Teasing the First Dragon at the Start

"Only then could ordinary people spend twenty coins to buy a pound of mutton during festivals and cook a reunion dinner."

"After the imperial court occupied the Western Regions, the people began to have cucumbers, spinach, grapes, peppercorns, spices, cotton, and so on."

"As a result, the court collected sufficient taxes from merchants, which in turn reduced taxes for farmers. As a result, the lives of those farmers were able to improve, and they could afford to wear cotton-padded clothes and drink wine in winter."

Yu Ji was taken aback. She had never paid close attention to these issues before, but after Bai Su mentioned them, she thought about it carefully and realized that they were indeed true.

In the past, most people in the Central Plains wore rough hemp clothing and ate only clear rice porridge. As for meat, it was something they dared not even think about.

However, ever since the Great Xia established the three major protectorates, even ordinary people can now have a meal with both meat and vegetables, a four-dish-and-one-soup meal, during festivals.

Yu Ji was stunned for a moment, and she began to doubt her own existence.

After all, she had learned the proverb "Forgetting war leads to danger, and loving war leads to destruction" since elementary school, and had never heard of the idea that fighting wars could make you richer.

This completely overturned her worldview.

Bai Su couldn't help but smile: "War is merely the last resort; my true purpose lies elsewhere."

Yu Ji couldn't help but ask, "What does Your Excellency mean...?"

Bai Su pondered for a while before speaking: "My goal has always been the same: to establish a trade route dominated by the Central Plains."

"For example, porcelain, tea, and silk from the Central Plains are hard currencies in various places, and there is always a shortage of supply."

"But these are clearly our craftsmen who worked hard to make these things, yet the money they earn is only a drop in the ocean compared to trade."

"Most of the profits are earned by middlemen in the countries along the trade route. We sell our goods to them for 100 coins, and they resell them to other countries for 1,000 coins."

"In the end, we ended up working for them, while these middlemen made more money than us."

“If we sit idly by, several huge empires will soon rise up in the places along the Silk Road. They can live a life of extravagance and debauchery just by collecting taxes. They may even set their sights on our Western Regions in order to control trade routes. How can we allow that to happen?”

"Therefore, in order to protect the interests that originally belonged to us, in addition to establishing a trade system based on the Central Plains in the Western Regions, the grasslands, and Liaodong."

"We also need to continue westward along this Silk Road and penetrate this trade route as much as possible. Only by controlling it can we prevent the rise of powerful nations around the Western Regions."

"At the same time, my Central Plains can influence the rise and fall of the world through free trade, and use the people of all nations and the world's resources to support the people of my Central Plains."

"Only then can the people of my Central Plains have clothes to wear and meat to eat. If one person engages in business or farming, the whole family can live without worry."

"To achieve this, the fertile granaries, transit points, and bases for providing corvée labor along the inevitable route of the Mauryan Empire are an indispensable part of the future westward expansion."

Yu Ji looked at Bai Su, who was speaking with a confident expression, and her lips parted slightly, her beautiful eyes showing surprise.

Throughout history, countless kings and ministers have waged wars for the purpose of either fighting among themselves or bringing glory to their ancestors.

However, Bai Su did this for the benefit of the entire Central Plains, including nobles and the common people of the Nine Provinces.

Such vision and such magnanimity truly deserve the reputation of a sage among the people and a renowned minister throughout the ages.

After pondering for a long time, she suddenly spoke up: "My lord wants to launch a western expedition, which must be lacking a capable and skilled commander. I wonder if Yu'er has the opportunity to serve as a vanguard commander?"

Bai Su paused for a moment, then hesitated and said, "Xiang Yu? If General Xiang wants to participate in the Western Expedition, that would be wonderful. However, she has always been hostile towards me and unwilling to serve the Great Xia. It would be difficult to get her to come out of seclusion."

Yu Ji raised her head, her beautiful eyes fixed on Bai Su: "Leave this matter to me. I will definitely find a way to persuade Yu'er to join the western expedition, not for any other reason than for your magnanimity in caring for the world."

"Really? That's wonderful."

Bai Su excitedly grabbed Yu Ji's slender waist and spun her around the room in his arms.

This expedition has always been an extremely risky undertaking, and most commanders would probably find it difficult to shoulder such a heavy responsibility.

If Xiang Yu were willing to launch a western expedition, then he would have no worries about his rear.

After all, long-distance raids were always Xiang Yu's forte.

Maodun was a master of cavalry tactics; with the two of them working together, what was there to fear?

Yu Ji couldn't help but exclaim in surprise. Her jade-like arms, as white as lotus roots, instinctively wrapped around Bai Su's neck. Looking at the smile on Bai Su's face, she was slightly stunned, and a smile involuntarily crept onto her lips as well.

Since she started following Bai Su, she has received a lot of care and has never had the chance to repay her.

Now, she can give Xiang Yu a chance to prove himself, fulfilling her childhood dream of becoming the greatest general in the world, while also relieving her husband of a major worry.

This is a win-win situation for her.

Chapter 393 The door has always been open to you, sir.

"Ding, you have obtained a copy of the steam engine manufacturing process."

Bai Su was stunned. This was the first lottery in several months. She thought that, like before, she would only get snacks and toys, which were not very useful. She did not expect to actually win something this time.

This isn't your average product.

After all, the steam engine is on par with gunpowder, papermaking, and the compass.

In fact, it is even more valuable than the latter.

After all, papermaking facilitated the spread of knowledge and increased education, while gunpowder increased the number of weapons used in warfare.

The steam engine, however, fundamentally changed productivity.

There's a joke that says humans have only done two things throughout history: throwing stones and boiling water.

This "throwing stones" refers to the evolution of stones into spears, longbows, crossbows, catapults, and so on.

The beginning of boiling water refers to the steam engine.

No matter how it evolves afterward, the essential principle remains the same: how to boil water more efficiently.

This demonstrates the importance of the steam engine.

I was really sleepy, and someone came to bring me a pillow.

Bai Su was initially thinking about how to effectively control Xianyang after taking over the Mauryan Dynasty.

After all, it was too far from the Central Plains. Relying solely on post stations and messengers to deliver messages would take three to five months for a round trip.

Although with the current strength and prestige of the Great Xia Dynasty, it would be easy to establish a stable rule for ten or twenty years, trouble is likely to arise when a new emperor ascends the throne and lacks prestige.

However, with the steam engine, everything changed.

Subsequently, based on this, the Central Plains greatly improved the efficiency of transportation, which made it easier to send troops from the Central Plains to quell the rebellion.

It will be much easier and more convenient to transport locally harvested cotton and grain back to the Central Plains to stabilize prices there.

Thinking of this, Bai Su did not hesitate for long. After putting on an outer garment, she headed towards the Shaofu.

Shaofu, within the Inkware Bureau.

Mo Xun, dressed in a light blue ruqun (a type of traditional Chinese dress), sat upright at the table, gently wiping the sweat from her forehead and letting out a long sigh.

These days, she has been researching how to mass-produce gunpowder to create easily portable weapons for use in the military.

After several months of research, some progress has finally been made.

Some were mixed with iron pieces, and their explosions had a splashing armor-piercing effect, used to deal with cavalry on the battlefield.

Based on the experience of digging canals and blasting mountains along the way, they also specifically studied how to blast down city walls for use in sieges.

Although she advocated universal love and non-aggression, and was unwilling to create these battlefield killing tools, she couldn't help but think of what Bai Su had once said: dignity only exists on the edge of a sword, and the range of a bow and crossbow is used to measure the area of ​​territory.

She couldn't help but let out a long sigh.

Just as the adults said, if you want to avoid killing people, you must first possess the sharpest sword in the world.

Otherwise, if you have nothing to offer, even if you speak eloquently about benevolence and morality, you will have no persuasive power whatsoever.

Mo Xun's slender fingers gently traced the patterns on the table as she murmured, "The weak seek help, the strong save themselves, and the strongest can save others. Relying solely on the Mo family's philosophy of universal love is destined to be short-lived."

"Perhaps only the most wicked person like the adult can suppress the pack of wolves surrounding him and keep the Central Plains peaceful and the borders calm in this room full of monsters."

Looking back on all her interactions with Bai Su over such a long period of time, she was overwhelmed with emotion.

She remembered that when she first met Bai Su, she felt that he was just a guy who had no manners whatsoever and seemed frivolous and unreliable.

However, during their interactions, they learned about Bai Su's inventions of papermaking and porcelain, and witnessed Bai Su's fearless efforts to go to the front lines to eradicate smallpox, marking the first time that human effort had overcome a natural disaster.

Her impression of Bai Su gradually changed.

Although he seemed frivolous on the surface, the talent he displayed when he got serious left her completely mesmerized, and her heart began to pound wildly.

After listening to Bai Su's ideas on diplomacy and national defense, she gradually found herself admiring and longing for this man.

It must be admitted that under Bai Su's dazzling brilliance, her proud talent seemed to have become dim and lackluster.

Even unknowingly, the image of this man had been imprinted on her heart.

Talented people are often attracted to even more talented people, just like moths to a flame, making her unable to resist wanting to stay by Bai Su's side and follow him.

Mo Xun's slender fingers slowly traced the patterns on the table, and she couldn't help but murmur, "I wonder what the master is doing."

"The Giant".

At this moment, a disciple of the Mohist school walked over.

Mo Xun paused, then casually asked, "What's wrong?"

The disciple clasped his hands in greeting and replied, "Lord Bai has arrived."

Mo Xun was taken aback: "Which Lord Bai?"

The Mohist disciple honestly replied, "Who else could it be but Lord Bai? Of course, it's Grand Chancellor Bai Su, Lord Bai! Hey, Grand Master, what's wrong?"

Mo Xun, who had just been resting her chin on her hand and leaning on the table, suddenly sat up. She subconsciously brushed her fair hand aside, and a few strands of hair fell between her brows as she couldn't help but ask.

"How do I look now? Is my hair a bit messy? Do I look bad?"

She didn't know why, but after hearing the news that Bai Su had arrived, she suddenly felt inexplicably nervous.

The Mohist disciple was taken aback by his leader's unusual behavior.

After all, Mo Xun usually acts like a research girl, rarely caring about her appearance, and her eyes are always only on research, like an emotionless doll.

The Mohist disciples had never seen someone so anxious and concerned about their appearance, like a young girl in the throes of first love.

The Mohist disciple was taken aback for a moment, then replied, "The Grand Master is a beauty of unparalleled grace; how could he not be handsome?"

In a sense, he wasn't wrong.

Mo Xun wore a light blue ruqun (a type of traditional Chinese dress), her black hair was tied up high and adorned with delicate hairpins, and her waist was lightly cinched with a sash, outlining her slender waist.

Despite her simple attire, lacking any jewelry or cosmetics, her beautiful face was the most exquisite adornment. Her dignified and elegant scholarly air was captivating.

"Yeah……"