Chapter 67: Li Tai's Proposal

"Qingque, if you have no other business, you may withdraw first." Seeing that the matter had been settled, Li Shimin said to Li Tai.

"Father, Qingque has another matter to report. Originally, I intended to submit it as a memorial, but since I am already here, I will report it to you together!" Li Tai said earnestly to Li Shimin.

"Oh? What other matter is there?" Hearing Li Tai's words, Li Shimin asked with some confusion.

In fact, it was not just Li Shimin; even the court officials assisting with official documents in the Taiji Hall pricked up their ears. Because Li Tai had already proven himself to be a capable official, they attached considerable importance to his words.

Li Tai said, "Father, upon arriving in Chang'an today, I heard that Minister Li has defeated the Tujue and achieved a bountiful harvest of victories!"

"Haha, in this campaign, Yaoshi not only crushed the main force of the Tujue but also captured Jieli Khan, beheaded Yicheng, and seized the puppet emperor. It can truly be called a complete victory, wiping away the shame of the Weishui River!" Hearing this, Li Shimin was in high spirits.

Clearly, as far as Li Shimin was concerned, Li Jing had truly saved face for him this time. Even after he reported this news to Li Yuan, Li Yuan was equally delighted, and the relationship between father and son had eased considerably.

There was no help for it; during the Wude era, unless Li Shimin took the field in person, the Tujue basically beat the Tang forces soundly. If Li Yuan's internal heartache was the succession struggle between Li Shimin and Li Jiancheng, then the Tujue were Li Yuan's external mortal enemies.

Li Tai could naturally perceive Li Shimin's excitement. He then said, "If there are Tujue captives or civilians relocated inward, I hope a portion of them can be assigned to me. Gaoling is still quite short of manpower."

"Short of manpower?" As the Minister of Revenue, Dai Zhou clearly knew how many people lived in Li Tai's Gaoling. Seeing Dai Zhou step forward, he said, "Gaoling has registered nearly one hundred thousand displaced people, and by now the population probably exceeds ten thousand households. Even if it hasn't reached twenty thousand households, it surpasses certain remote prefectures of the lower class. How could Gaoling possibly lack manpower?"

Upon hearing Dai Zhou's words, everyone's gaze fell upon Li Tai. They seemed to realize that Li Tai always claimed to be short of manpower.

At this moment, Li Tai replied calmly, "Father, do you still remember when you asked me to manage the hungry and cold people within Chang'an city last year?"

"Naturally, I still remember that matter," Li Shimin replied thoughtfully.

Li Tai continued unhurriedly, "The key to my solving that problem was finding ways to provide work for the impoverished people, while simultaneously offering cheap boiled water to keep those on the subsistence line warm. The reason boiled water was available is because workers were mining coal in the pits; without coal mines, all of this would naturally be out of the question."

"What does this have to do with a shortage of manpower?" Dai Zhou asked, continuing his inquiry.

"First, because the weather turned cold this year, the Weishui River froze over. Therefore, a portion of the workers at the docks were diverted to the coal mines to dig coal, thus guaranteeing this year's coal supply. However, the Weishui River freezing over is not a common occurrence. Next year, when the Gaoling docks operate normally, a labor shortage for coal miners will inevitably arise next year, thereby affecting Chang'an's coal supply!"

"Second, this year's great victory over the Tujue has fully displayed the majesty of the Great Tang. Next year, various tribes from the grasslands will surely come to pay homage to Father. At the same time, within the country, people will undoubtedly rack their brains to squeeze into Chang'an city, so the population of Chang'an will certainly increase further. Therefore, the winter coal shortage in Chang'an next year will be further magnified."

"Third, alien tribes have always been difficult to civilize. I believe that if we wish to civilize the Hu people, we should start with labor, having them bear certain corvée labor tasks that our own people perform. Yet we also give them money and food to keep them alive. Once they learn the language of the Great Tang, understand our culture, and realize how hard-won the identity of a Great Tang subject is, we can bestow upon them the status of Great Tang citizens. I would be more than happy for my coal mine to become their primary testing ground for civilizing alien tribes!"

"Therefore, using Tujue captives or civilians to provide labor gives them a chance, and gives us a chance as well."

Upon hearing Li Tai's words, the ministers had not expected him to possess such determination. If they wanted to dissuade him, they seemed to have no good reasons. After all, didn't Confucian scholars preach the need for civilization every day? Now that Li Tai also wanted to civilize them, surely they could not forbid him from doing so!

As ambitious ministers, watching Li Tai take solid, practical steps to truly accomplish this matter filled them with admiration. Most importantly, the idea of civilizing Tujue civilians and captives to integrate them into the Huaxia system—even if it was just an attempt—was very difficult to refuse!

"Hitherto, only poetry, history, rites, and music could civilize the people. Labor reform is something never heard of before. I wonder which ancient sage proposed this?" The Minister of Rites, Dou Lukuan, stepped forward and said to Li Tai.

Li Tai pointed at himself and said, "Me! Once the civilization process succeeds, I will be the ancient sage a thousand years from now!"

Hearing such a brazen statement from Li Tai, everyone was left dumbfounded. But upon careful reflection, given that Li Tai became a county magistrate at age nine, if he truly succeeded in civilizing them, calling him an ancient sage a thousand years hence might not be entirely unjustified—it was just utterly shameless!

Dou Lukuan was momentarily speechless. Taking a deep breath to collect himself, he decided not to entangle himself in that question further and said, "Gaoling is too close to Chang'an. Having these people stay in Gaoling is like having a sharp sword hanging over our heads. If the alien tribes should rebel, it could destabilize the capital!"

"What Minister Dou says is very true," Li Tai nodded. "Before the docks in Gaoling were built, I might not have been able to say for certain. But with the construction of the Gaoling docks, we can completely build coal kilns in the coal-producing regions of Guanshou, have the alien tribes work there, and then transport the primary processed coal via the Weishui River to Gaoling for secondary processing, such as making honeycombed coal briquettes to supply Chang'an."

"Why process it a second time in Gaoling? Why not just manufacture it locally?" Dou Lukuan asked.

"We can do that!" Li Tai said as a matter of course. "In that case, the Minister agrees to use Tujue captives for labor reform!"

Dou Lukuan was stunned. He had originally thought Li Tai would stubbornly cling to his profits and argue further with him, allowing him to lecture Li Tai on the principles that petty men chase profit while gentlemen pursue righteousness. He never expected Li Tai to agree so readily.

Li Tai's unexpected cooperativeness left Dou Lukuan at a loss for words, because Li Tai apparently did not care about wealth!

As for Li Tai, honeycomb briquettes were basically something anyone could learn just by glancing at them; there was no technological content to them whatsoever. The real technological challenges lay in how to make the briquettes burn longer, how to make them smokeless, and how to prevent them from crumbling. Even if all these issues were solved, there remained one massive problem: carbon monoxide poisoning itself.

Do not assume Li Tai had solved this; he certainly had not. The coal Li Tai produced was primarily used for breeding farms and bathhouses that boiled water, and their internal operations had strict regulations directly warning workers that failing to follow procedures would result in death; anyone who cherished their life would naturally not act recklessly.

As for selling to the common people, it was generally only sold to those who had constructed specialized fire-kangs or honeycomb stoves, ensuring matching dimensions and relatively good protective facilities. Simply put, Li Tai had aimed for standardization and scale from the very beginning. The profits Dou Lukuan had his eyes on were likely beneath Li Tai's notice.

However, if other private coal kilns were opened, Li Tai could not guarantee their quality, but he was certain that this entire industrial chain—from producer to consumer—would inevitably result in deaths, perhaps quite a few.

Li Tai had no doubts about this. After all, modern illegal black coal mines had miners dying every year, let alone in this era. This was the unavoidable growing pain of the coal industry, and he needed them to open up markets in places the official authorities could not reach.

All he could do was produce standardized, cheap coal, and then use quality, price, regulations, and systems to compete. After all, since he was both the referee and the athlete, coal standards would certainly be formulated based on the coal Li Tai had researched. He didn't even need the scale-driven predatory pricing typical of commercial competition; normal trade would be enough to crush them out of existence.

When that time came, they would either become his subordinates or exit the industry. So why shouldn't he give them technology and an opportunity?

"Prince of Yue," seeing that Dou Lukuan had nothing more to say, Dai Zhou stepped forward and said, "I have no objection to your employing captives for the country and the people, but I must ask the Prince of Yue to have them registered. Next year at the autumn harvest, unless a male is exempt from corvée, taxes must be paid. Please ensure the rent, service, and cloth taxes are prepared, Prince of Yue."

"Understood..." Hearing Dai Zhou's words, Li Tai muttered under his breath, but said nothing more. After all, when it came to paying taxes, others would certainly try every means to conceal and evade them. But as a member of the imperial Li family, especially with his sights set on the throne, he certainly could not evade taxes and leave behind incriminating evidence.

Moreover, taking a step back, if he himself did not obey the laws, how could he expect others to do so?

Li Tai naturally looked toward Li Shimin. If he agreed, the matter of the captives would basically be settled.

"I'll give you a portion!" Li Shimin pondered for a moment and waved his hand at Li Tai, clearly not wishing to drag out the discussion on this matter any longer.

"Thank you, Father." Li Tai bowed to Li Shimin, but did not leave yet, continuing to gaze at him.

"What? Are you still dissatisfied? Could it be you have other matters?!" Hearing this, Li Shimin could not help asking.

"No, Father!" Li Tai shook his head, then nodded, pondered for a moment, and said, "I have an immature proposal. I am putting it forth in the hope that Father and the ministers can help me deliberate on it. This matter requires your consent."

"Oh?" Hearing Li Tai's words, Li Shimin smiled and said, "So polite? What on earth is it?!"

"As the expansion of the road from Gaoling to Chang'an is completed, I wish to build a road from Fengxian to Gaoling, which will take about two years to finish. Taking advantage of this opportunity, I would like to conduct a relatively complete survey of the entire Zheng-Bai Canal system. By the time my tenure in Gaoling expires, I want to begin renovating the Zheng-Bai Canal. Therefore, the current urban development of Gaoling will move in the direction of renovating the Zheng-Bai Canal. If Father agrees, I will begin working on this matter upon my return," Li Tai said.

"The Prince of Yue intends to renovate the Zheng-Bai Canal?!" Even Fang Xuanling could not help voicing his surprise.

Although the renovation of the Zheng-Bai Canal had not yet been placed on Fang Xuanling's agenda, he could see that as long as Chang'an remained the capital, renovating the entire irrigation district based on the Zheng-Bai Canal was a matter of course.

"Yes!" Li Tai nodded and said, "With the Tujue destroyed, our Great Tang will certainly enter a relatively long period of peace. At least until a new nomadic minority arises to plague our borders, developing ourselves as much as possible is only natural, isn't it?"

"Does the Prince of Yue think that after Jieli Khan, the Tujue will still dare to violate our borders?" Dou Lukuan asked with a solemn expression.

"Isn't that a matter of course?" Li Tai said. "Jieli deserves to die, but merely defeating Jieli cannot completely secure the borders. Once new alien tribes grow up, we must continue to suppress them."

"Indeed, using slaughter to stop slaughter is by no means the highest method; civilization should be paramount!" Dou Lukuan nodded, wearing an expression of profound agreement.

Li Tai was momentarily stunned. Looking at Dou Lukuan's expression, he hesitated and said, "If civilization were useful, the Chaos of the Five Barbarians would never have happened."

Hearing Li Tai's words, Dou Lukuan almost choked for breath; clearly, Li Tai had never stood on the side of Confucianism.

"Prince of Yue, you seem to have a good idea. Why don't you share it with us?" Fang Xuanling spoke up.

The more Fang Xuanling interacted with Li Tai, the better he could simulate Li Tai's mode of thinking. But a mode of thinking was one thing; actual specialized knowledge did not belong to a mere mode of thinking, so Fang Xuanling did not know what Li Tai was about to do.

However, once Li Tai accomplished certain things and explained them to Fang Xuanling, Fang Xuanling could quickly grasp them. The ability to do this was precisely what allowed Fang Xuanling to firmly hold the top advisor's seat under Li Shimin. Because as long as his own foundation and background were solid enough, anyone circling in front of Fang Xuanling would become transparent in their thinking. As far as Fang Xuanling was concerned, provided he was willing, he could basically be friends with anyone—uh... except Xiao Yu.

Hearing Fang Xuanling's words, Li Tai said:

"My proposal is that after defeating the Tujue, we relocate the Tujue civilians inward to the pass, making them labor in coal mines or perform other hard corvée service for three years. Among them, those who perform exceptionally well—for example, those who can speak Han Chinese and understand Han rituals—will be given the opportunity to be registered into the household registry, allowing them to personally govern their original kinsmen. Then, each year we grant them a certain quota for household registration. I believe they will be very happy to help their own ethnic group escape a sea of suffering."

"As for how to select them and who to choose, we need not concern ourselves; that is an internal matter for them. But for those who have already been registered into the household registry, we must naturally grant them the treatment due to citizens."

"These individuals of foreign ethnicity who enter our household registry shall take surnames based on the objects of their labor service. For instance, those who enter the coal field will take the surname 'Tan' (coal), those who build roads will take the surname 'Lu' (road), and those who build bridges will take the surname 'Qiao' (bridge), and so on."

"As long as the coal yard stands, the road remains, and the bridge endures, their spiritual sustenance will remain. Since they do not share common ancestors with us, we must at least help them create a sustenance. As long as this sustenance does not collapse, I believe they will all be willing to integrate into our Great Tang. After a decade or two, once they are successfully Sinicized, the sustenance will no longer matter."

Li Tai knew very well that in seventh-century Great Tang, there were only two kinds of people: the people of Great Tang, and everyone else who wished to be a Great Tang dog and could not.