Chương 575: Military officers volunteered to continue road construction and canal digging.

"I guarantee to complete the mission!" Song Yingxing's voice trembled with excitement as he ordered his men to carry the steam engine model back.

He had already started planning how to build a train. The train His Majesty had mentioned could run on rails and carry thousands of tons of cargo. Just thinking about it made him so excited that he couldn't sleep.

"The second project is the war to annihilate the four barbarian tribes!"

Liu Ce's voice suddenly turned sharp.

As soon as his gaze swept over the ranks of military officers, the temperature in the entire hall instantly dropped to freezing. Even Cheng Yaojin and Yuchi Gong, who had been playfully fighting just moments before, immediately shut their mouths, straightened their backs, and dared not utter a sound.

"Since the Qin Dynasty, the Xiongnu and Xianbei in the north have been like a leech, clinging to the back of our Central Plains dynasty. They have burned, killed, looted, and committed all sorts of atrocities, stealing our grain, killing our people, abducting our children, and treating our border people like livestock!"

"In order to exchange for a pitiful peace, the previous dynasties had to send their princesses to marry foreign rulers and send large amounts of gold, silver, silk and tea every year."

What is this? This is an utter disgrace! It is an eternal wound for our Central Plains dynasty! How can a true man born between heaven and earth endure such humiliation!

Liu Ce slammed his hand on the dragon throne, the sound so loud it made the ceiling vibrate and even the candlelight flicker.

"Now! The Han army is strong and well-equipped! I have no desire to send any princesses to marry foreign rulers! I have no desire to send money to the barbarians! I want their Chanyu and Khan to come to Luoyang to dance for me! To offer me wine! To kowtow to me!"

"Within five years! I will destroy the Xianbei, pacify the Xiongnu, conquer the Western Regions, subdue the Japanese, and pacify the southern regions! I will eliminate all the barbarians who dare to oppose the Han Dynasty!"

Turn their land into the provinces and counties of the Han Dynasty, and their people into subjects of the Han Dynasty! Let our descendants never again suffer the oppression of barbarians!

"Your Majesty is wise! I request permission to fight!"

The generals instantly erupted in excitement, like a volcanic eruption.

"Your Majesty! Let me be the vanguard! I am willing to lead ten thousand elite cavalry straight to the Xianbei royal court!"

Zhang Fei was the first to charge out, his whole body brimming with fighting spirit, his eyes sharp as an eagle's.

"Your Majesty! I request permission to fight! I am willing to lead the navy across the sea and annihilate the Japanese invaders!" Qi Jiguang also stepped forward, full of vigor and spirit, clad in white robes and silver armor, a truly awe-inspiring figure.

"My navy is ready and awaits Your Majesty's command!"

......

"Your Majesty! I, Cheng Yaojin, will lead the vanguard! I guarantee I'll be the first to charge into the Xiongnu royal court and capture their Chanyu to serve as Your Majesty's horse!" Cheng Yaojin shouted, making two fist gestures in the air.

"Your Majesty! I want to be the vanguard too! I'll compete with Old Cheng and see who cuts off the Xiongnu Chanyu's head first!" Yuchi Gong was not to be outdone, and the two almost got into a fight on the spot, pushing and shoving each other, neither willing to give in.

Li Jing and Xu Da exchanged a helpless glance and shook their heads. These two rascals were like chickens getting pumped up the moment they heard about war, and there was no stopping them.

Liu Ce smiled and gestured for Liu Ce to lower his hand.

"Stop arguing! There are battles to fight everywhere! To the north are the Xianbei and Xiongnu, to the west are the Western Regions, to the east are the Japanese, and to the south are the barbarians. There are enough for you to fight in four directions! If anyone fails to conquer, don't come back to see me!"

"Thirdly, the project to improve the quality and efficiency of agriculture."

Liu Ce's tone softened, like a spring breeze blowing across the fields, his voice carrying a touch of warmth.

"During the First Five-Year Plan, we solved the problem of feeding the people. During the Second Five-Year Plan, we aimed to ensure that the people eat well, dress warmly, and have money to spend. We not only wanted them to be full, but also to eat well; not only to dress warmly, but also to dress attractively."

"The Ministry of Revenue will fully promote the technology of two or three rice harvests a year in the Yangtze River Basin and the Pearl River Basin. In the future, not only will the people be able to eat their fill, but the army will also have enough rations. Even if we fight a war for ten years, there will be no problem! Even if we fight until the end of time, we will still have enough food."

"We must also vigorously promote cash crops such as cotton, sugarcane, tea, and rapeseed."

In the past, people wore hemp cloth, which was stiff and prickly, making them shiver in the winter and rushing indoors at the slightest gust of wind. From now on, we will grow cotton and weave cotton cloth, which is soft and warm, so that every person can wear cotton clothes and trousers and have a new cotton quilt.

In the past, people could only eat maltose, which was sickeningly sweet and sticky. From now on, we'll grow sugarcane and produce white sugar, so people can eat sugar every day. Children won't have to fight over the wrappers anymore; they can eat as much as they want.

"We also need to build grain processing plants, textile mills, and oil pressing plants to process agricultural products into commodities and sell them. We need to improve the ever-normal granary system, so that when grain prices are low, the government will buy at a guaranteed price to prevent farmers from losing money; when grain prices are high, the government will sell at a fixed price to prevent people from going hungry."

We can't let farmers work hard all year round, only to lose money and not even recoup their seed costs because grain prices are too low!

Shen Wansan immediately stepped forward, rubbing his hands together and smiling so hard his eyes narrowed into slits as he said:

"Your Majesty, rest assured! I have already prepared to lease hundreds of thousands of acres of land in Jiangnan to grow cotton and sugarcane! I have also imported the best cotton seeds from the Western Regions and the best sugarcane seeds from Lingnan. They are all top-quality products!"

Your Majesty, I guarantee that within five years, all the people of the Han Dynasty will be able to wear cotton-padded clothes and eat white sugar... and the prices will be absolutely fair, with no price gouging whatsoever! I will be the first to object to anyone who engages in price gouging!

"You're really something!" Liu Ce chuckled and shook his head, pointing at him with his finger.

"But I trust you with this matter. Remember, no hoarding or speculation, and no harming the people."

"Your subject dares not! Your subject absolutely dares not!" Shen Wansan quickly assured him.

"The fourth is the national transportation network improvement project."

Liu Ce pointed to the huge national map on the wall and said, "I'm drawing lines on the map with my pointer."

"Song Yingxing, you will continue to be in charge of road construction. Within five years, extend the imperial highways to all counties in the country and cover all towns and villages with post stations. Make it so that people can take a car as soon as they go out and have letters delivered to their homes. In the past, letters were delivered on foot, now they are delivered by horse, and in the future, letters will be delivered by car."

"We also need to excavate the Yongji Canal and the Jiangnan River. The Yongji Canal connects the Yellow River and the Hai River, while the Jiangnan River connects the Yangtze River and the Qiantang River."

In this way, the Grand Canal, centered on Luoyang and connecting the five major river systems of the Haihe, Yellow River, Huaihe, Yangtze River, and Qiantang River, was completed. Waterways were connected from north to south, allowing for the free transport of goods between the two regions.

"In the past, it took nearly half a year for grain from Jiangnan to be transported to Luoyang, and 10% of it would spoil. A shi (a unit of dry measure) of rice could fetch several times the price when transported to Luoyang."

After the Grand Canal is completed, the journey will take about a month, reducing transportation costs. Rice, silk, and tea from the south, and coal, steel, and cotton from the north, will be able to circulate freely, truly forming a unified national market! Grain produced in one province can be sold to another.