The kitten looked around and said, "Half a year ago, Ning Zefeng led his troops to sea. In the words of the Qi people, this wolf-ambitious guy was ungrateful and led his troops to rebel. But we all know that this is not just a joke. Ning Zefeng led his troops to sea, and the Qi people gave up the defense of the sea was just a strategic choice that had to be made under the pressure of our strong navy. After Ning Zefeng went to sea, he won more strategic space and tactical maneuverability. From this perspective, the Qi people were extremely smart, and the facts also proved that Ning Zefeng's navy has indeed caused us great trouble now."

"What the Ministry of War said is right. In the past three months, the overseas trade volume of the General Administration of Sea Trade has dropped significantly. After being robbed by Ning Zefeng's troops several times, the maritime merchants are already afraid of this route. The most recent time was that an armed merchant ship we went to Sanfoqi was attacked by them. Fortunately, although we suffered heavy losses this time, we also sank two of the other two main warships." Wang Yueyao said: "Your Majesty, this threat must be resolved immediately, otherwise this year's maritime trade will suffer major losses."

The skillful hands of the Ministry of Works stood up, "The maritime merchants have only made less money. Their existence has posed a major threat to us. A month ago, a whole ship of city guard cannons and ammunition that we shipped to Manila was robbed by them. I am now worried that these things will fall into the hands of Qiren. Qiren has been exploring our secrets in this regard. After having physical objects, I am afraid that their research in this regard will make rapid progress."

Geng Jingming snorted coldly: "Wen Industrial Ministry, what does maritime merchants just make less money? If they make less money, we will have to lose a large amount of taxes. What's even more annoying is that now the food we ship to Manila cannot be transported, and the grain prices there have begun to fluctuate. Many raw materials in Manila cannot be transported back, which has led to many local factories that have to reduce their output. The market has responded to this, and prices have risen to varying degrees. If such a situation cannot be improved, it will be a big deal for the national economy and people's livelihood."

Jin Jingnan looked at the kitten with some anger, "Ministry of War, I think it is necessary to denounce Zhou Baozhen. It has been half a year since Ning Zefeng went to sea to Zhou Baozhen was ordered to wipe them out. Now, let alone destroy them, I have not even touched Ning Zefeng's shadow. If this continues for a long time, it will not only be a humiliation for our Ming Dynasty, but also affect the strategic plans of the entire country. For example, now we no longer dare to transport materials such as artillery to Manila. If it falls into the hands of the enemy, it will be a capital to the enemy. If Manila cannot get these things, the future war will inevitably be affected. Especially if food and other materials cannot be transported, everyone knows the consequences if there is a shortage of food in that place."

"It's easy to deal with the Navy of Qi, but it's hard to deal with pirates!" The kitten sighed, "Zhou Baozhen has also done his best. Today I want to inform you of the latest plan of the Navy's navy on the extermination of Ning Zefeng's navy."

"Let's talk quickly. As long as they can be wiped out, we will definitely support it." A chaotic voice sounded in the conference room. Although the sound was chaotic, the urgency was the same. Many people present had great connections with the sea trade or industries related to sea trade. Ning Zefeng's existence has caused great losses to everyone's interests.

"We used to be unable to catch Ning Zefeng's shadow, but now because of their failure to attack the armed merchant ship, we finally have a connection to find it." said the kitten.

"Aren't pirates wandering around? Once they fail, they scattered around. How do they arrest them?" someone asked.

The kitten heard the question from an outsider and smiled and said, "Pirates also need to have a nest. Their personnel need to rest and repair their ships. Especially naval divisions like Ning Zefeng who are just a regular army need a stable nest even more."

"In other words, we have found his nest." someone asked impatiently.

"How easy is this?" Xiaomao shook her head and said, "But we have determined a general range. Ning Zefeng has formulated a plan to wipe out them. The Manila fleet has just been reorganized, so Ning Zefeng applied to lead the West Manila Company fleet to set off. The main warships of the West Manila fleet are now as many as 120, divided into four fleets. This time, all went out to sea and oppressed the suspicious sea area. This time, for them, it is not only a bandit suppression, but also an integration. At the same time, the Ministry of War is also preparing to order Zhou Baozhen to cooperate with them to complete this operation. Your Majesty, do you think it is feasible?"

Strictly speaking, the Western Manila fleet was also an army belonging to the Ming Dynasty. It was natural that Qin Feng nodded on such a large scale.

"This is how you do it." Qin Feng nodded.

"Yes." The kitten smiled and said, "You don't have to worry. I think it won't take long before good news will come."

"Let's go down, what else is there in other departments?"

"Your Majesty, I have two things here." said cleverly: "The first thing is the Grand Canal of Xidi. We used to estimate that the Grand Canal of Xidi will take at least five years to complete, but with the progress of the project, the large-scale use of steam machinery and the continuous increase in manpower, the digging of the canal can now be reduced to two years. Of course, this is just digging. Many places our technicians have used some of the original river channels to dig. After the digging, there are more later work to do, building river embankments and maintaining water and soil are all things to do, otherwise,

There are endless troubles. But this also requires a lot of capital investment, whether it is labor costs or increasing machinery. Using machinery in large quantities can greatly speed up the process. The second thing is that due to the scale of the machinery factory, a large number of machinery orders cannot be completed at all. Now the people of all types of machinery needed by various departments are about to block the door of the machinery factory. We need to expand the scale of the machinery factory. The Ministry of Industry is preparing to build three new machinery factories to manufacture different types of machines, and improve production efficiency and efficiency. This also requires a lot of capital investment."

Hearing the money, Geng Jingming groaned: "There is no money now."

"How could it be that there is no money?" Jieshou glared at him: "This is all a big deal. Do you keep the money on your own?"

Geng Jingming rolled his eyes: "Money can indeed be given up. Besides, now everyone understands that the Mingqi war is about to break out, and it is only a matter of tearing apart the last fig leaf. The Ministry of Revenue needs to live within its means and prepare for this war. Minister Wen, do you know that the Ministry of Finance estimates how much the war with Qi will cost?"

"How much?" The clever hands really don't know.

"The first year of the war, at least this number is needed!" Geng Jingming stretched out a finger and shook it.

"Ten million taels?" The clever hand was a little uncertain.

Geng Jingming sneered: "I think beautifully, ten times more."

"One hundred million?" The clever hand jumped up: "I have to spend so much money in the first year? Are you still making money in war?"

"War is about making money!" Geng Jingming snorted coldly: "The State of Qi may not use so much, but our Ming Dynasty just needs to use so much."

"Why do people in Qi use less than us? Is it because you, the Minister of Finance, that is, incompetent?" asked angrily.

"The people of Qi are fighting and recruiting a large number of civilians. Just give them a bite of food. Can we?" Geng Jingming asked back. "We all pay. This amount of money alone is as many as millions of taels."

The clever hand opened his mouth and had nothing to say. This is true.

"Since last year, the Ministry of Finance has been preparing for this war, so there is no way to tighten the money. Everyone should grit their teeth and live. After the first year, everything will be fine." Geng Jingming said.

"I will use so much money in the first year, and I don't know how much I will use in the future!" said cleverly. "Anyway, I think the matter of the Grand Canal in the West cannot be delayed. Once the Grand Canal in the West canal is completely unblocked, the West Jiangnan mentioned by Yue Kaishan is really possible. If this goal can be achieved, the West will no longer be our burden, but will be a strong support for us to launch a war of alignment."

"Everyone knows this, but everything has its priorities." Geng Jingming disagreed: "Besides, Minister Wen has not figured out one thing. We need 100 million in the first year, but in the future, the cost of war will gradually decrease."

"What's the reason?" The clever hand was puzzled.

"Because in the first year, both sides will do their best." Qin Feng interrupted: "The most critical thing in the war with Qi is the first year. After the first year, the strategies of the two countries will inevitably change, and the intensity and intensity of the war will be greatly reduced. Therefore, the cost of war will be reduced."

"So, the money I want is not settled? At least I have no hope this year, right?" said the clever hand.

"The solution is all figured out by people." Qin Feng smiled and said, "The clever hand is right. The machinery manufacturing factory does need to expand. The further we go, we are afraid that the demand for it will be stronger. This money, if it is released in the inner warehouse, is considered a royal investment. As for the money needed for the Grand Canal in the West, I don't have the ability, and it seems that it can only be delayed."

He nodded with a clever hand. Even if it was very good, he knew that it was basically impossible to completely solve these two major issues.

"So, who else wants money? You might as well say it out loud and let our Minister of Finance know how to know!" Qin Feng said with a smile.

Geng Jingming looked up: "Everyone, I'm sorry, before that, if you don't have a budget at the beginning of the year, if you want to get money, you must have reasons to use money, otherwise everything will make way for the war that will come soon."

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Chapter completed!