Chapter 230: Overall Planning of Fengtian

After everyone sat down again, Wei Jichen raised his hand and said with a smile: "To congratulate the general on his promotion, I specially present a generous gift."

Two guards hurriedly came over with two gifts.

The officials were curious and secretly glanced at them. They saw that the first guard was holding a three-foot-long box. It didn't look like a rare treasure. Could it be a hundred-year-old ginseng?

This thought came to the minds of the officials. The gifts they brought today were naturally valuable. Several people also gave ginseng.

Everyone looked at the second guard disapprovingly. The second guard also held a wooden box. Unlike the previous one, it was square. Perhaps it was a night pearl or something.

Yiktang'a smiled and said, "I feel very sorry that Zijie has to spend so much money."

He asked someone to accept it and put it aside.

Everyone was curious, and some people started to make a noise: "General, why don't you open the box and take a look? Let us all have a good look."

"Yes, yes, we are all curious. The gift sent by the mighty General Wei must be unique. Why don't you let us open our eyes?" This was said by the official who was jealous of Wei Jichen.

Generally, people who give gifts will reveal their names for fear that others will not know what they are giving. It is rare to see someone like Wei Jichen who puts the gift in a box tightly without revealing any secrets.

Yiktang'a was afraid that the gift sent by Wei Jichen was too shabby, so he asked others to put it away to avoid Wei Jichen losing face. Now everyone below was making a noise, Yiktang'a turned his head to look at Wei Jichen, and seeing that he looked normal, he immediately knew what was going on.

"Don't say you are curious, I am also very curious. In this case, let's open the box and take a look." Yiktang'a smiled and stroked his beard and said.

Two soldiers stepped forward, holding the first gift, and walked to the center of the hall. All the officials stretched their necks and watched without blinking.

The two soldiers seemed to be deliberately teasing everyone's appetite. They slowly removed the ribbon wrapped around the box, and then carefully opened the lid.

What is this? Some people couldn't help but stand up from their seats and tiptoe to watch carefully.

Inside the long wooden box, there was a long sword with an exquisite scabbard. It turned out to be a sword. Swords are given to heroes, and rouge is given to beauties. Among them, there are many people who give Yiktang'a swords. Everyone wants to see what is so special about Wei Jichen's sword.

The two soldiers carefully held the knife and brought it to Yiktang'a.

Yiktang'a picked it up, and with a clang, he pulled out the blade. I saw the cold light, which penetrated people's hearts. Looking carefully, I saw the inscription of the sword under the blade - Muramasa.

The sword is a good sword, but it is a Japanese sword.

Wei Jichen took the opportunity to stand up and explained with a smile: "This is the famous Japanese sword Muramasa. It is the sword that I seized from the Japanese Lieutenant General Katsura Taro. Now I present it to the general as a trophy."

The value of the sword is limited, but the commemorative value of this sword is immeasurable.

Yiktang'a was very happy. He looked at it again and again reluctantly, and then put it into the scabbard, and said with a smile: "Zijie's gift is the happiest gift I have received today."

Today, there are many warriors who came to congratulate Yiktang'a. They all looked at the sword in Yiktang'a's hand with fiery eyes, wishing to put it in their own pockets. Unfortunately, they only thought about it. Seeing Wei Jichen's indifferent look, they all admired him in their hearts. He was willing to take out such a thing.

Now, the officials are even more curious about Wei Jichen's second gift. In everyone's mind, the first one is so rare, so the second one is even more priceless.

Now, even Yiktang'a was interested. He personally stepped down from the main seat, picked up the second gift, and gently opened it. He saw that it was neither a treasure nor a precious medicinal material, but a document - "Comprehensive Fengtian Situation", signed by: Wei Jichen, Wang Shizhen, ...

Yiktang'a estimated that the people behind were Wei Jichen's staff.

The few large characters, a series of names, and the title of the book immediately aroused Yiktang's interest. He couldn't wait to open it and take a look.

The article pointed out the crisis in the three northeastern provinces at the beginning, and then the pen turned, emphasizing that in this extraordinary place and time, extraordinary policies must be implemented.

In terms of politics, Wei Jichen did not mention much, just a few lines, punishing corruption and renewing the administration.

Wei Jichen mainly proposed the idea of ​​focusing on the establishment of industry, engaging in trade wars with the powers, enriching the province, strengthening the army, and resisting aggression.

In addition, according to the financial difficulties of Fengtian Province, which was unable to make ends meet, a new fiscal policy was proposed, which can be summarized as: setting up banks, opening more commercial ports, hiring foreign employees, introducing foreign capital, but not setting up concessions, and ensuring sovereignty.

Even suggestions were made in agriculture, encouraging the use of the superior natural conditions of "wide terrain, fertile soil, and sufficient rainfall" to develop grain and animal husbandry. At that time, farmers in the Northeast did not know how to grow wheat, and Wei Jichen actively advocated wheat planting.

In addition, Wei Jichen also proposed to actively develop industry and commerce, open mines and build railways, eliminate bandits, settle immigrants, and raise funds for the border An family.

With more than 100,000 words, Yiktang'a naturally could not finish reading it in a short time, but this book was clearly organized and the outline was concise. He only glanced at it and felt that it was wonderful and meaningful. A series of specific measures, neither empty words nor big words, is a practical and excellent work, worthy of the word "coordination" in the title.

Although Yiktang'a only took a rough look, he spent more than ten minutes. The officials saw him standing there with ups and downs on his face, becoming more and more happy. They were all amazed and began to guess the content of the document in his hand.

"Cough..." Wei Jichen saw that Yiktang'a was reading endlessly and might neglect other guests, so he coughed twice to remind him.

Yiktang'a was awakened and calmly and solemnly stuffed the document into his arms.

He walked towards Wei Jichen, took his hand again and said: "Zijie's talent, I finally saw it today. I just became the general of Shengjing, and I feel that the responsibility is heavy, and I am uneasy. Now, with Zijie's letter, I am like a thirsty person seeing sweet spring water, and I will definitely get out of the predicament."

^.^,

Wei Jichen hurriedly replied: "General, you are too modest. Even if I didn't mention it, I believe that with your talent, you will be able to think of these things in a short time. I am just throwing out a brick to attract jade. Moreover, this document is not written by me alone, and I dare not take credit for it alone."

"Zijie, no need to say more, you have just come to Fengtian, and you must not have found a place to live yet. Move into my house in the next few days. I want to talk with you by candlelight and discuss major plans together." Yiktang'a said in an unquestionable tone.

It's no wonder that he was so happy. The situation in Fengtian Province was in a state of disarray. He was exhausted these days, but his subordinates had no talent at all. When asked, they were all hesitant and incomprehensible.

Moreover, he had a general idea in his mind, which was roughly the same as Wei Jichen's idea, but he didn't know how to implement it specifically. At this time, seeing Wei Jichen's "Comprehensive Fengtian Situation", he felt a sense of confidant and admiration for himself.

Wei Jichen nodded in agreement, and Yiktang'a sat back in the main seat with satisfaction.

"Well, everyone came to congratulate me on my promotion today. I am very happy. I have asked someone to set up a banquet in the side hall. Please join me." Yiktang'a stroked his beard and said with joy on his face.

Seeing his expression, the officials were all itching to get a word from him, but Yiktang'a didn't say a word.

At the banquet, everyone was toasting and the atmosphere was very lively. All the officials wanted to make friends with Wei Jichen, and Wei Jichen was also open to everyone. They all smiled and talked to each other. With his extraordinary conversation and extensive knowledge, he immediately won the favor of all the officials.

Until the end, he didn't know how many glasses of wine he had drunk.

Seeing Wei Jichen drunk at the table, Yiktang'a shook his head helplessly and asked someone to send him to the wing room.

The banquet lasted from the afternoon to the night, and the officials dispersed with satisfaction.

After Yiktang'a cleaned up, he really wanted to have a candlelight chat with Wei Jichen at night, and hurried to Wei Jichen's residence.

Wei Jichen woke up after lying on the bed for a while. He heard footsteps, opened the door, and saw that it was him, so he welcomed the Shengjing general in.

After a round of greetings, Yiktang'a quickly took out the documents in his arms and wanted to discuss with Wei Jichen on the spot.

"General, you are too impatient. You didn't even let me rest for a night. You know, I drank a lot of wine today because of you." Wei Jichen joked with a smile, looking depressed.

It was because of Yiktang'a's appreciation that those officials would flatter Wei Jichen. Wei Jichen was right to say so.

Yiktang'a first replied with a smile: "Since ancient times, capable people have worked harder! Who told me that document of yours, Zijie, made me feel relaxed and happy."

Then he changed his tone and said a little sadly: "Before I took office, I received a lot of news about Russian activities in the Northeast. Russia is a greedy person. It has been encroaching on our territory step by step. Now it is taking advantage of the situation. Now the Northeast is in a precarious situation, and most people in the court cannot see this. They regard the Russians as saviors and want to borrow Russia's power. This is tantamount to drinking poison to quench thirst and getting close to tigers and wolves. You and I are both the defenders of the Northeast. We can only do our best."

Yiktang'a has dealt with Russians a lot, so he is naturally very clear about the Russians' virtues.

Wei Jichen sighed and agreed, "General, you are a wise man. The Russians are working in the capital and want to build a railway from the northeast. They are exploring mineral resources everywhere in the northeast. Wherever the railway passes, there must be a place rich in resources. Moreover, after it is built, Russia can station troops around the railway, which will be able to grab the greatest benefits. General, we can't just sit and wait for death and watch the Russians gradually grow in power in the northeast. In the end, we won't even have a place to stand."

"I saw that Zijie also proposed building roads and mining in his letter. I wonder what Zijie's plan is." Yiktang'a asked thoughtfully.

"I have sent people to find out that there are several places in Liaodong where iron ore is stored. Please write to the court to set up a coal and iron mining bureau in Fengtian, set up an iron smelting plant, lift the ban on Fushun coal mines, produce rails and build railways by yourself. In this way, the Russians will have no excuse. We Chinese want to build railways by ourselves, so they will naturally go aside. Besides, with an iron smelting plant, we in Northeast China can also establish an ordnance manufacturing bureau like Hubei, Tianjin and other places to consolidate border defense." Wei Jichen has been preparing for a long time, so of course he can talk freely at this time.

Yiktang'a was very excited when he heard it. He didn't think that Wei Jichen had already taken a step ahead and even found the iron ore.

"Zijie's idea is good, but the court is in financial difficulties now, and I'm afraid it can't spend much money." Yiktang'a frowned, and Fengtian's finances were even more inadequate.

"General, we can also use the government-supervised business model to absorb capital from the private sector, so that we don't have to worry about insufficient funds. I think the top priority for Fengtian Province is immigration, mining, and road construction. As long as these few things are done , In less than a year or two, our Northeast will have a completely new look and its strength will be greatly increased. How dare the West and the East take a peek anymore?" Wei Jichen said solemnly.

Although the Qing court paid a lot of compensation, it was much better than in the original history. Wei Jichen did not believe that it would not be able to squeeze out this small amount of money. As long as Yiketang'a exaggerated, Fengtian, as the accompanying capital, would not allow any loss. , the Qing court's finances will naturally tend to this side.

Yiketang'a was obviously persuaded by Wei Jichen and replied with a smile: "Okay, I will raise the above points to the court today, and this matter will be bigger. I will join other places in Jilin and Heilongjiang to report it together. Please also ask Zijie to help me.”

"It's natural. The boy bows his head and is willing to be a bully. Everything is as long as the general follows his lead." Wei Jichen breathed a sigh of relief.