Chapter 38: Gao Ling's Goal

"Beyond these basic plans, the next step is to attract population flow into Gaoling!"

Li Tai reached out and pointed to the map of the region where Gaoling was located.

"We have established the Agricultural Academy. Beyond the fact that its students provide a large labor force, they themselves will act as a magnet for those yearning for knowledge to migrate to Gaoling. This leads to the second point: establishing supporting facilities to ensure they stay. Aside from housing centered on the *kang* heating system, and the supply of poultry from our farms to guarantee sufficient meat and down jackets for winter, the most important element is the large-scale shop established by Que!"

"The goal of Que's shop is that whatever can be bought in Chang'an should also be available here. We don't demand luxury; we demand completeness. This will perfect the infrastructure of Gaoling's urban area and allow those who come here to settle down. This leads to the third point: Gaoling's regional advantage, situated at the heart of the Guanzhong plain. In practical terms, this place is better suited than Chang'an to become the hub for the entire Guanzhong region, connecting the transport of goods for the whole area!"

Hearing Li Tai's words, Ma Zhou stroked his chin, took a sip of wine, and said, "Your Highness is not thinking that we should have what Chang'an has, but that we should have what Chang'an needs!"

Listening to Li Tai's plan, the path for Gaoling's development suddenly became clear to Ma Zhou.

"Precisely," Li Tai nodded. "First, we must build a road leading directly to Chang'an, wide enough for eight carriages to travel side by side. Since we are positioning Gaoling as a transportation hub, the main thoroughfare connecting it to Chang'an will be the top priority."

"The cost of that will surely be immense!" Ma Zhou frowned. "Where will the money and grain come from?"

No matter what is undertaken, money and grain must come first; plans without them are nothing but castles in the air.

Li Tai immediately replied, "In terms of costs, the Gaoling region has been eroded by the Jing and Wei rivers for years, naturally possessing rich deposits of clay, sand, and gravel. These are natural resources for road construction; using them directly on-site minimizes costs. Furthermore, the labor force intended for *corvée* service needs training, so we will use this road as a proving ground, thereby reducing labor costs. Additionally, we can encourage the local people who benefit from this road to help, bringing welfare to everyone along the route. For instance, as long as the people are willing to move bricks, shovel dirt, and bury sand, I am willing to provide them with food. The people haven't lived well these past few years, especially last year with the drought and locust plague. There hasn't been much rain this year either, so I don't believe the common people will turn their noses up at a warm meal. Therefore, the cost of building this road this year won't be too high—at least, the cost of providing sufficient food won't be."

"That is certainly one way," Ma Zhou nodded in agreement. Even though the winter wheat had been harvested, grain prices had not fallen. For the common folk, receiving food directly in exchange for work could save them at least one meal's worth of expenses.

"Speaking of grain, now that the wheat harvest is mostly finished, shouldn't we return the grain to the Ministry of Agriculture?" Ma Zhou asked.

"We must, of course, we must," Li Tai said decisively. "Prepare one-tenth in actual wheat, and for the rest, use Kaiyuan Tongbao coins and bolts of cloth. It would be best to value it ten percent higher than the market price. Tomorrow you go to... No, tomorrow I will go to the Ministry of Agriculture myself!"

"Is our grain supply sufficient? Why not return it all in grain?" Ma Zhou asked. "If we pay the laborers in Kaiyuan Tongbao later, wouldn't it be the same?"

"It hasn't rained for over forty days. Although our reclaimed fields are near the Wei and Jing rivers and don't lack water, the vast majority of commoners' fields are mountain plots. If the dry spell continues, it will be very troublesome. So, we should store more grain. As for money, it only becomes real wealth when it’s spent!" Li Tai said.

"You mean the drought from last year will return this year?" Ma Zhou's expression changed.

"I don't know," Li Tai shook his head. "But when you have grain in your hands, your heart is at ease."

Li Tai knew very well that although his duck farm was slowly transforming into a full-scale poultry farm, in reality, if the feed supply were cut off, it would be reduced to its original state. Grain, after all, is the foundation of society.

Coming from a modern background, Li Tai understood that the prerequisite for any large-scale industrialization is that agriculture must reach a certain level, supporting a population that does not need to farm, which in turn eventually feeds back into agriculture through industrialization. If agriculture does not meet a certain standard, making a quick fortune on luxury goods is easy, but building a complete industrial chain is impossible. Once you scale up, you find that agriculture and energy constrain you at every turn. If you recklessly expand, you might even trigger a backlash from the entire feudal society.

Luxury goods like perfume have a very low ceiling and are difficult to integrate into other value systems. Even in the modern era, the global perfume industry was worth only 20 billion euros before the pandemic, whereas the grain industry in China alone exceeded three trillion yuan. More importantly, the grain industry can spawn new systems, such as brewing or cash crops.

In Li Tai's view, for a transmigrator who wants to be comfortably rich, making a little money with luxury goods is normal. But if one truly wants to change the entire feudal society, there are only two entry points: energy and grain. He could not help them achieve energy industrialization; that requires building an industrial system from scratch, and more importantly, it requires not just his knowledge, but the ability to teach successors how to build it from nothing. If you cannot make your successors build such a complete system, then after you die, these things will return to dust at a visible speed. At most, they will leave behind a few legends, becoming worshipped totems or mythical stories.

But Li Tai was walking a different path. He wanted to pave the way for agricultural industrialization. China’s agricultural accumulation was absolutely sufficient, so Li Tai wanted to consolidate the Tang Dynasty's agricultural power. Farming techniques were almost inscribed in the Chinese gene; what the Tang Dynasty lacked was not top-tier planting techniques, but a continuously refined agricultural system. This would allow China to stably provide agricultural yields, enabling more people to be freed from the land and engage in other pursuits, thereby successfully completing the transition from an agricultural society to an industrial one.

Ma Zhou nodded. "I will organize the *corvée* labor force as quickly as possible."

Li Tai said, "Building this twenty or thirty-mile road to Chang'an strengthens our regional connection. Naturally, the next step is to strengthen the connection across all of Guanzhong! At that point, I think we need to build a port in Gaoling and construct ships capable of navigating both water and land. Otherwise, shipping throughout the Wei River region will be restricted."

"Ships that can walk on land?!" Ma Zhou could not help but exclaim.

"I don't know," Li Tai shrugged. "If the Jing and Wei rivers flow downstream, it's fine, but if you want them to go upstream, small boats are okay, but for those large vessels, I've often seen them dragged upstream by horses and manpower during the dry season. The cost of moving ships upstream is too high; even if we build a port, we won't attract much traffic."

"Very well..." Ma Zhou smiled bitterly. "I will ask Chu Ke to see if he can research such a thing."

"Actually, we could combine things like dragon-bone waterwheels or cylinder wheels with the ships, and see if we can borrow power from the currents or the wind. I believe that, eventually, we will be able to solve one difficulty after another!" Li Tai encouraged Ma Zhou.

"Let's build the wharf and the shipyard first. As for the research, that will depend on Chu Ke!" Ma Zhou said.

Li Tai nodded. "In short, our construction of Gaoling County is based on the Agricultural Academy. We will perfect the infrastructure, and finally, find a way to connect Gaoling with the entire Guanzhong region, making it the hub of Guanzhong! This is the comprehensive plan for the Gaoling region. If you find anything that needs changing in practice, feel free to adapt it to local conditions. After all, I only handle the planning; the specific operations require you to execute them!"

"Your Highness, rest assured. You have already planned this out clearly; the rest is up to me!" Ma Zhou said confidently.

Hearing this, Li Tai felt a sense of relief. They continued to discuss the details, though by this point, it was mostly Ma Zhou speaking and Li Tai nodding. They talked until the roosters crowed, and only then did Ma Zhou, with red eyes, go to get some sleep.

Li Tai opened his eyes and saw Bai He already preparing his washing supplies. "Bai He, was the meeting minutes from my discussion with Binwang yesterday recorded?"

"Everything was recorded in detail. Would Your Highness like to see it?" Bai He replied while styling Li Tai’s hair.

"Make two copies today. Keep the original in my study. Send one copy to Binwang, and place the other in the Gaoling County magistrate's office, so I am reminded of it constantly."

"I will see to it today," Bai He replied.

"Also, once Binwang has prepared the goods to be returned to the Ministry of Agriculture, get the carriage ready. I’m going to catch up on some sleep!" Li Tai yawned. Honestly, these late-night talks were taxing.

Bai He replied calmly, "Master Ma has already handled that early this morning, and I have prepared the ox-cart. Your Highness can head to the Ministry of Agriculture whenever you wish!"

"Is it necessary to be this diligent..." Li Tai muttered. "Alright, I'll sleep in the carriage. Let's depart now."

Meanwhile, Ma Zhou arrived at the Agricultural Academy and gathered the heads of the six departments. "The Prince of Yue has been appointed Magistrate of Gaoling County, and I have been entrusted by the Prince to act as the County Assistant. Therefore, I will be reassigning some teachers and students to temporarily serve as officials in Gaoling County, so that the county's administrative work can run smoothly."

"Oh?!" Hearing this, Lü Cai immediately perked up, looking at Ma Zhou with great longing. Seeing Lü Cai's firm gaze, Ma Zhou nodded silently and said, "Yan Wenxue, Lü Cai, Liu Shenwei, you three are responsible for continuing the academy's normal operations. Chunfeng, Mr. Du, you two will accompany me, along with ten students from each department, to assist in handling the affairs of Gaoling County."

"Me?" Li Chunfeng was somewhat stunned. Du Chuke, however, showed no signs of panic, cupping his hands to Ma Zhou and saying, "Chu Ke thanks you."

"Hey, hey, hey!" Lü Cai looked at Ma Zhou and said, "Ma Zhou, we’ve shared drinks together, haven't we?"

"Cough, cough!" Ma Zhou cleared his throat. "I won't be at the academy anymore, so you must take care of things. The Prince of Yue has handed the entire Agricultural Academy over to you; isn't that proof enough of the Prince's regard for you?!"

Lü Cai was helpless. He really wanted an official position. Even if it were a minor one, he wouldn't mind. Although the Agricultural Academy was established by the Prince of Yue, it wasn't an official government post! It was just like the modern era—who wouldn't want a secure, official government job?

Ma Zhou added, "Of course, the Prince of Yue has one more task for you. If you do it well, not to mention anything else, becoming a Scholar of Gaoling County will be no problem at all!"

"Oh? What is it?" Lü Cai's attention was immediately captured. A Scholar had no official rank, but it was a formal position, and the status of teaching students was quite high. If he did well, he might even catch the eye of Li Shimin and enter the Chongwen Hall, especially since this was so close to Chang'an!

"Compile the household registry of all the people in Gaoling County. It needs to be accurate down to each individual, including their residency, occupation, property, and so on!" Ma Zhou said. "As for the staff, select them from the non-local students at the academy. How you do it is up to you!"

"Fine, leave this to me!" Lü Cai gritted his teeth and accepted.

Du Chuke looked deeply at Ma Zhou. Aiming to be like Du Ruhui, he knew this was a massive pit. If one could clear up the population of Gaoling County, to some extent, one could clear up the population of the entire world. It was just that as the scale of the investigation grew, the difficulty would increase.

"Let us work together to build Gaoling County well. For those of you who want to enter politics, this is the best calling card you could have!" Ma Zhou looked around the room, his gaze falling on Du Chuke. "Mr. Du, Chunfeng, let us discuss the details!"

As Ma Zhou began recruiting at the Agricultural Academy, Li Tai arrived at the Ministry of Agriculture to return the grain he had borrowed.

"Ha, we've arrived."

In the carriage, Li Tai yawned as he saw the sign for the Ministry of Agriculture.