Chapter 82: Thoughts on Making Money
After returning from the defense command of Jing’an Prefecture, Yang Zhengshan summoned Yang Mingwu, who was in charge of the Three Mountain Fortress.
“How is the situation in the Three Mountain Fortress?” Yang Zhengshan asked in the government office.
“Reporting to the lord, the autumn harvest in the Three Mountain Fortress is proceeding smoothly, but this year’s yield is too low, and everyone is worried,” Yang Mingwu replied.
Yang Zhengshan nodded slightly, understanding their concerns.
He thought that there were three key issues he needed to address.
First, he needed to store a large amount of grain to ensure the future food supply for the troops in the four fortresses.
This problem was easy to solve, as Zhou Lan had given him 3,000 taels of silver, and he could buy grain from Yang Family Village or nearby villages.
Second, he needed to find a way for the troops to earn money during the harsh winter.
The Fortress City relied on needlework to increase income, but the other three fortresses could not.
Because they had already received a limited amount of needlework in the Fortress City, which was already enough to meet market demand, and if the other fortresses also made shoes, it would be difficult to sell them.
As for other cities, they were too far away, making it inconvenient to travel, and the market was too small, so even if they did this business, the profit would be negligible.
Yang Zhengshan had some ideas about this issue, but he needed to think it through carefully.
Third, he needed to recruit refugees, which was a complex task that required providing them with shelter, food, and land to cultivate, and making them settle down in their own land.
“Tomorrow, you will set off to Anning County, and I will give you 2,000 taels of silver to exchange for grain,” Yang Zhengshan instructed.
Yang Mingwu was also clear about the situation in each fortress and the importance of grain, so he had no objections.
“What about the price, lord?” Yang Mingwu asked.
Yang Zhengshan remained silent.
Last year, the grain price in Anning County was 2.3 taels of silver per unit, and when he first arrived in this world, he had specifically gone to Anning County to buy two units of grain.
But what about this year?
“You can discuss it with the village head, but don’t cheat the villagers, and don’t set the price too high!” Yang Zhengshan said, thinking that he should leave this issue to Yang Zhengxiang to handle.
Because he didn’t know the current grain price in Anning County.
The grain price in the Heavy Mountain Fortress had already risen significantly, and it was likely that Anning County would also increase its price, but that was the selling price of the granary, and the purchasing price of the grain merchants might not have risen much.
“I understand, lord!” Yang Mingwu responded and departed to prepare.
The next day, Yang Mingwu set off with 50 soldiers and 20 ox carts to Anning County.
Twenty ox carts might not be enough, but Yang Zhengshan could only provide that many at the moment.
On the third day, Zhao Yuan arrived with 300 warhorses and 500 sets of armor.
Yang Zhengshan warmly welcomed Zhao Yuan, especially when he saw the 300 fine warhorses, which made him laugh so hard that his beard fluttered.
“These are all personally selected by me, and they are all top-notch warhorses!” Zhao Yuan patted a black warhorse’s mane, looking extremely reliable.
Yang Zhengshan stroked the warhorses, and as Zhao Yuan said, they were indeed top-notch warhorses.
“I’m curious, how did you raise the Red Cloud so well?” Zhao Yuan asked, looking at the divine warhorse, Red Cloud, in the stable, his eyes filled with wonder.
When Zhou Lan gave Yang Zhengshan the four warhorses, he had intentionally selected the best ones, and Zhou Lan had particularly instructed him to choose the top-notch warhorses.
But the Red Cloud was no longer just a top-notch warhorse; it could be called a divine steed.
Yang Zhengshan looked up at Red Cloud, which was also gazing at him with its bright and piercing eyes, as if he saw some emotions in its eyes.
Suddenly, an idea flashed across Yang Zhengshan’s mind.
Raising horses!
With the Spirit Spring water, even inferior horses could become fine steeds.
And a fine steed was worth at least several dozen taels of silver, and if it had a rare bloodline, it could be worth thousands of gold.
If he raised tens of fine steeds like Red Cloud, he could earn at least several thousand taels of silver.
Most importantly, this business could be the foundation for the Yang family’s wealth.
He wouldn’t raise horses for the government; it would be a private business under the Yang family’s name.
The fortresses were poor, and as the defense official, he was also poor.
He only had less than 100 taels of silver left and didn’t want to use his own money to subsidize the fortresses.
Moreover, if he raised horses, he could also hire the troops to help, which would help them earn money.
It was a win-win situation!
Yang Zhengshan secretly thought to himself.
Zhao Yuan saw him lost in thought and called out, “Brother Yang! Brother Yang!”
“Ah, it’s just that I took good care of it,” Yang Zhengshan replied with a smile, trying to cover up the truth.
The Spirit Spring water was the key to Red Cloud’s growth, but he couldn’t explain it.
Zhao Yuan didn’t press the issue.
At noon, Yang Zhengshan treated Zhao Yuan to a meal, and the over 100 soldiers who came with him also ate at the Welcome River Fortress.
Since they had come from afar, Yang Zhengshan couldn’t just let them go without a meal.
However, after sending Zhao Yuan off, Yang Zhengshan started to worry about the 300 warhorses.
Where would he put them?
Feeding them was also a problem.
Taking care of warhorses required meticulous attention, and their food was also a significant expense.
Warhorses didn’t just eat grass; they also needed to be fed bean curd occasionally.
Raising a horse was not cheaper than raising a person.
He had no choice but to summon Old Li from the Fortress City to come and help.
Old Li was skilled in raising horses and was good at handling some tedious tasks, so Yang Zhengshan directly appointed him as the Horse Officer of the Welcome River Fortress.
“Lord, winter is approaching, and we need to stockpile a large amount of hay in advance,” Old Li said after inspecting the warhorses.
“Then let’s stockpile it. I’ll give you the silver, and you can hire the troops to harvest the hay,” Yang Zhengshan replied promptly.
Although it was already autumn, the land was still fertile after the heavy rain, and the grass was still growing; it was still possible to harvest some hay.
“Ah, I’ll get it done, lord!” Old Li responded with a smile.
Old Li got busy, and Yang Zhengshan went back to the government office.
The autumn harvest was coming to an end, and the training of the troops should be on the agenda soon.
Yang Zhengshan sat in the office, thinking about how to conduct the training.
Unlike in the Fortress City, he couldn’t gather all the troops together to train them.
The main reason was that he couldn’t secretly give the troops the Spirit Spring water during the training.
Without the Spirit Spring water, the training effect would be much lower.
So Yang Zhengshan decided to conduct the training in rotation, focusing on basic training and selecting the best to receive advanced training.
He currently had armor and warhorses, so he could train infantry and cavalry.
But regardless of infantry or cavalry, they needed to undergo basic training.
The basic training would last for a month, and each fortress, stronghold, and beacon tower would take turns coming to the Welcome River Fortress for training.
After completing the basic training, the best would be selected for advanced training, focusing on specialized skills like archery, swordsmanship, and firearms.
At the same time, he could recruit refugees and settle them, and after the second batch of troops completed their basic training, he could recruit more refugees and select the third batch, fourth batch of troops for training.
The entire training process would last around three to four months and could be completed before the new year.
Yang Zhengshan made a detailed training plan and assigned tasks to each person.
After writing and drawing for half a day, Yang Zhengshan finally began to assign tasks.
“Ming Hao, Ming Hao!” Yang Zhengshan called out in the office.
“Father!” Yang Minghao responded and rushed in.
“Go call Cheng Ze, Cheng Xu, Cheng Chi, and Jin Wu to come here!” Yang Zhengshan instructed.
“Okay,” Yang Minghao replied and rushed out.
This kid might be a bit foolish sometimes, but he was quick on his feet.
Yang Zhengshan had just finished lunch when the four came to the Welcome River Fortress government office.
“Cheng Ze, you’re in charge of recruiting refugees. We’ll give everyone who comes to our fortress a piece of land, a house, and six months’ worth of rations,” Yang Zhengshan explained the refugee recruitment policy.
Land, there were many uncultivated fields around each fortress.
Houses, they could be built in the fortresses, strongholds, and beacon towers.
As for rations, this was the most worrying thing for Yang Zhengshan, as he was currently lacking in grain, but he should be able to hold out for a while after Yang Mingwu returned.
“I’ll follow your orders, lord,” Cheng Ze replied and took the small book from Yang Zhengshan.
“Cheng Xu, you’re in charge of organizing the training. This is the training plan I made, and I’ve selected the instructors from the Fortress City,” Yang Zhengshan handed another small book to Cheng Xu.
Cheng Xu grinned, showing his two small tiger teeth, “Don’t worry, lord, I’ll get it done!”
“Cheng Chi, you’re in charge of patrolling. You can select 20 people from the Fortress City and patrol the four fortresses, seven strongholds, and 16 beacon towers during the training period,” Yang Zhengshan instructed.
Training was important, but guard duties were also crucial, and he couldn’t let his guard down during the training period.
“What if someone makes a mistake, lord?” Cheng Chi asked.
Yang Zhengshan’s expression turned solemn, “Follow the wartime military law! Make it clear to everyone beforehand, and if someone still makes a mistake, execute them on the spot!”
Earlier, he had already cleaned up and reorganized the Welcome River Fortress and its surrounding areas, getting rid of the idle and incompetent officials.
And during this time, he had first established his authority and then showed his benevolence, accumulating a lot of prestige.
He believed that as long as it wasn’t someone who deliberately tried to cause trouble, they wouldn’t give him much trouble.
“I understand, lord,” Cheng Chi replied.
Yang Zhengshan nodded and looked at Yang Qinwu.
This kid was like Yang Minghao, but a bit more mature.
“You’ll select 20 able-bodied men from the fortress and hire them at a daily wage of 15 coins,” he instructed.
He needed to find a way for the troops to earn money, and this task should also be on the agenda.
“Yes, lord,” Yang Qinwu replied.
The tasks were assigned, and everyone got busy.
(Fin)
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