Chapter 156: Economic Warfare

Li Zhi did not allow his men to act rashly.

In warfare, the messenger is not beheaded.

Perhaps the aristocratic families simply wanted to provoke him.

"The man is in my hands, and I will deal with him as I see fit."

"Go back and tell the heads of the aristocratic families standing behind you to unleash whatever tricks they have left."

Li Zhi was not afraid of the schemes of these aristocratic clans.

Was it not merely monopolizing market resources and attempting to disrupt social order?

Affecting the lives of the common people?

No problem at all.

The very purpose of operating in Hunnong was to accumulate these social resources.

Zhang Yuanfang wore a sinister yet mocking smile and said, "Your Highness the Prince of Jin must know that the common people across the realm will starve."

Li Zhi replied, "Then the clans should also know that the grain in their hands will turn stale, or simply rot in their storehouses."

"Let us see, then, whether my supply of grain is sufficient to feed the people of the Guanzhong region."

"See the guest out!"

At Li Zhi's command, guards immediately hauled Zhang Yuanfang out.

His life was spared.

However, being tossed out flat on his face was entirely deserved.

To dare come to Hunnong and act wild without knowing who they were dealing with was sheer foolishness.

"Your Highness, it seems the aristocratic families are growing impatient and wish to fight a decisive battle with us," Qin Huaiyu said as he walked over, looking thoroughly excited.

It was as if a great war was imminent.

Not a clash on the battlefield, but an economic and societal war.

Li Zhi clapped his hands, and a subordinate brought forward a wooden box.

Upon opening it, it was filled with standardized land deeds.

"From this moment onward, land reform shall be implemented across the Guanzhong region. The previous land deeds issued by the aristocratic families are henceforth void, and all private households of the common people must exchange them for new land certificates."

"All land shall be remeasured, the reclamation of wasteland will be permitted, and the scale of military farming shall be expanded."

Li Zhi's strategy was a chain of interconnected moves.

If they relied solely on economic warfare, the imperial treasury of the Great Tang would likely be unable to sustain the consumption.

The power of the aristocratic families had to be dismantled and dissolved from a societal level.

Did they not possess land and grain?

Having already begun absorbing tenant farmers, he was now revising the land system entirely.

Regarding taxes, the implementation of more effective measures, such as levying taxes based on the head count and land acreage, would liberate a vast amount of social labor.

Military farming would be increased.

Soldiers would farm in times of peace and fight in times of war.

This would solve the issue of military provisions.

These were methods proven effective by rulers over the course of later centuries and millennia.

With his forward-thinking intellect, how could Li Zhi possibly be cornered by a stagnant pond?

"Your Highness is brilliant."

Both Luo Tong and Qin Huaiyu held profound admiration for Li Zhi.

...

Imperial Palace.

Having finished reviewing the memorials, Li Shimin received a report submitted by Wei Zheng.

Upon hearing the contents, Li Shimin narrowed his eyes, a faint smile playing on his lips. "Stirred up by the Prince of Jin, the aristocratic families of Guanzhong must be frantic by now. The objective has been achieved."

Wei Zheng inquired, "Does Your Majesty mean that it is time to stop while we are ahead?"

Li Shimin shook his head.

"In the past, I did harbor such thoughts—to issue a minor warning so that the Guanzhong families would learn to submit to the imperial court."

"Who would have thought that the progress made by the Prince of Jin far exceeds our expectations? In that case, we might as well let him carry on. Perhaps this will completely eradicate the monopolies of the Guanzhong families once and for all?"

Li Shimin's attitude was resolute.

Previously, employing Li Zhi had been largely a test.

Now that the test was yielding results, it was time to push further.

Whatever Li Zhi chose to do, he required the full backing of Li Shimin behind him; otherwise, progress would stall.

Wei Zheng still harbored concerns and sighed, "The Guanzhong region is the foundation of our Great Tang and must not be thrown into chaos. Given the Prince of Jin's radical methods, it is inevitable that it will provoke a backlash from those major aristocratic families."

"If this is not handled properly..."

Li Shimin cut Wei Zheng off, saying sternly, "I am still here. What is there to fear?"

Wei Zheng wore a look of astonishment.

Previously, it had been solely Li Zhi making moves, while Li Shimin largely acted as a spectator.

In truth, however, Li Shimin possessed his own methods.

Military power rested in Li Shimin's hands, allowing him to deploy troops for suppression.

Yet, many officials in the imperial court still hailed from the Guanzhong aristocratic families, and there were fears of provoking dissatisfaction among middle- and upper-tier officials.

By sending Li Zhi, the emperor could act as a mediator.

Li Shimin's move was designed to suppress the monopolistic families while minimizing losses to the imperial court.

"This subject understands," Wei Zheng quickly acknowledged.

With a cold expression, Li Shimin said, "The Great Tang has stabilized, but many unstable factors remain."

"The Prince of Jin has submitted a memorial proposing the minting of new currency, expanding the production of Kaiyuan Tongbao coins. Through monetary reform, merchants will be enabled to circulate goods more extensively. I have already approved it."

The Great Tang was reforming its currency.

Minting the Kaiyuan Tongbao held immense positive significance for society.

Previously, the volume minted had been insufficient.

Kaiyuan Tongbao coins of superior fineness were largely monopolized by the major aristocratic families.

They had both money and grain in abundance, and heavy metals such as gold and silver were also firmly in their grasp.

What Li Zhi aimed to do was increase coin minting.

In the past, this was considered impossible due to the low efficiency of copper mining in the Great Tang, compounded by exorbitant mining and smelting costs, preventing the imperial court from making a profit.

Now, things were different.

Li Zhi had introduced far more efficient mining techniques.

Furthermore, having learned the locations of numerous non-ferrous metal deposits, including copper mines in the south, he had already dispatched men to survey them.

Coupled with improvements in existing smelting technology, the cost of minting currency was drastically reduced.

While an increase in currency might superficially suggest inflation, its greater benefit lay in fostering social and economic prosperity.

Seeing the business opportunities and financial prospects behind this, Li Shimin naturally lent his full support to Li Zhi's proposal.

"Minister Wei, all I can do is support the Prince of Jin from behind the scenes, whereas you must beat the drums for him openly in the court."

"Others may slander him behind his back, but those around me must stand firmly on his side. What the Prince of Jin is doing is entirely beneficial to the imperial court of the Great Tang."

Li Shimin was admonishing Wei Zheng.

He must offer his unwavering support to Li Zhi.

Wei Zheng bowed respectfully and said, "This subject will naturally support His Highness the Prince of Jin with all my strength."

...

True to form, the aristocratic families launched a large-scale offensive.

To monopolize social resources, they hoarded grain first, attempting to use it to force Li Zhi into submission.

Without even tapping into his own storehouses, Li Zhi relied solely on grain transported by merchants from the Jiangnan region and elsewhere to stabilize grain prices significantly.

"Is this the extent of their capability?"

Looking over the intelligence reports compiled from the surrounding regions, Li Zhi felt a tinge of disappointment.

He had expected the counterattack from the aristocratic families to be fierce.

As it turned out, the ripples were negligible.

The Grand Canal continuously transported grain up from Jiangnan, a region known as the land of fish and rice.

In the past, inconvenient transportation conditions made it easy for the Guanzhong aristocratic families to monopolize social supplies.

Times had changed, however.

Transporting Jiangnan grain northward previously took three, four, or even half a year, and the long distances incurred enormous freight costs.

Resources like grain had to be sourced locally; unless massive military campaigns or catastrophic natural disasters occurred, large quantities of grain were rarely transferred across regions.

Now, things were different.

Once the logistical worries of merchants were resolved and policies supported their cargo transport, merchants would naturally follow the pursuit of profit.

The Guanzhong aristocratic families could only watch helplessly as massive quantities of grain were shipped in, overwhelming the regions they had previously monopolized.