"Sun Zaizhi reported back intelligence that the British Indian Army and the Thirteenth Lama Lama were colluding. Currently, the Thirteenth Lama has provided many serfs to the British Indian Army to build roads together with the slaves captured by the British in India."

"Our movements are still a little slow, and the troops entering Bashu are still far away. As a last resort, Sun Zaizhi activated Zhao Erfeng, an old minister of the Qing Empire." Liu Yiming said helplessly.

After the barbecue meeting, he had already called Sun Zaizhi and asked him to recover the plateau as soon as possible.

After all, Gaoyuan was the only one who did not take the initiative after the revolutionary army captured the capital, so Sun Zaizhi also took the initiative.

But it's no use just being ambitious. There are only a few roads to the plateau, among which the Bashu road is the most mature.

But entering Bashu is very troublesome. The road to Shu is not just talk. No matter how serious he is, he can only urge the troops to speed up.

He thought, no matter how arrogant the British and Indian troops were, the Tibetan army could hold them back, right? It wouldn't take long, a month or two, for the troops to be in place.

Who knew that the 13th Lama had rebelled?

As a last resort, after asking Liu Yiming for instructions, Zhao Erfeng was hired.

Yes, Liu Yiming agreed to this.

"Is Zhao Erfeng trustworthy? Will he betray?" Xu Hui asked while lying on the map.

"It should be credible when it comes to dealing with the British and counterinsurgency." Liu Yiming said uncertainly.

Zhao Erfeng made his fortune during the battle to put down the rebellion of the plateau people. He was already over sixty when he made his fortune.

Not only did he always insist on putting down the rebellion by force, but after putting down the rebellion, he would also arrest all the rebel chieftains, nobles and lamas, and behead them regardless of their status.

Not only that, the political reform of the Tibetan border and the reform of the Tuguiliu were also carried out by him. The change of the Tuguiliu would weaken the rights of the chieftains. The chieftains would definitely not sit still and wait for death, so they started fighting.

After fighting for six full years, all the chieftains and living Buddhas on the Sichuan side were abolished, and Mingzheng, Batang, Litang, Qamdo and other places were recovered.

The border areas it collected were about three thousand miles from east to west and about four thousand miles from south to south, and there were more than thirty places to govern.

Chieftains, lamas, etc. on the plateau call him "Butcher Zhao".

(This nickname appeared during this time period.)

During these six years, his military expenditures came from appropriations in addition to trophies, and he had no tax sources of his own.

With only one million allocated each year, the cost can be described as extremely low.

(I’m not trying to slander him. This person has indeed had mixed reputations and reputations in history. It’s not all infamy. At least he has some abilities.)

"Should?" Xu Hui raised his head when he heard this, looked at Liu Yiming, and asked in surprise.

"Zhao Erfeng was born into a family of officials, but he was a bannerman. After the fall of the Qing Empire, bannermen were liquidated in many places. His foundation was basically lost."

"He has only become successful in the past few years. To say how many cronies he has, it would be a lie. Therefore, he urgently needs an opportunity to escape from liquidation."

"If he goes to the plateau and does it honestly, no matter he wins or loses, it will be a death-free gold medal."

"I believe he is smart." Liu Yiming picked up the cigarette, put it under his nose and smelled it.

"Why him?" Xu Hui tapped his fingers gently on the map.

"Because he was ruthless, people on the plateau were afraid of him. The Qing Empire wanted to send him as minister in Tibet, so the lama quickly wrote a letter begging for mercy."

"Also because of his experience, I will carry out reforms on the plateau in the future. In what era, serfdom was abolished in Tsarist Russia, and there is still one in China."

Liu Yiming still didn't light the cigarette.

"After the military layout is smoothed out, I have some suggestions for China's key construction directions." Xu Hui nodded, indicating that he understood.

"Tell me about it?" Liu Yiming asked curiously.

"Our original plan was to carry out huge military industrial construction and build a military industrial system along railways, rivers, and seaports."

"The purpose of this plan is to assist in the attack on the Qing Empire, but now that the Qing Empire has been destroyed, the plan cannot keep up with the changes, so the military industry can be put on hold."

"I suggest that we build railways first. Access to the Western Regions, Bashu, grasslands and other places is very difficult. If we don't build railways, it will be difficult to support military operations."

"These places are related to territorial integrity, especially since the Russians are right next to them. If they don't station a large army, I can't sleep." Xu Hui said very straightforwardly.

As a British person, Xu Hui is actually not particularly worried.

Years of management on the plateau are not without effect, and most ordinary herdsmen are pro-Central Plains people.

Moreover, at this time, Nanhua had not yet officially integrated with China, otherwise the British would not be so foolish as to do so.

Of course, it is not because of the friendship of allies, but strategically. South China can send troops from Southeast Asia or Arabia to directly threaten Britain's core interests, and Britain will not act rashly.

Whether it is Suez, Malacca, or India, they are all indispensable to British maritime hegemony.

And these are all within the threat range of South China. At least Britain will not take the initiative to carry out military provocations.

On the contrary, it was Tsarist Russia, and Nanhua had nothing to threaten him, even after integration.

"This is not a conflict. The railway has to be built. Since you said so, then put the priority of the railway up." Liu Yiming thought for a while and nodded.

Liu Yiming's original plan was to invest in the construction of heavy industry first, mainly various machines or military factories.

When these factories are put into operation, it will be just in time for the war, but now that the Ottomans seem to be winning the Balkan War, he is not sure when the war will break out.

Besides, the same goes for railway investment. To build railways, you have to build steel plants, rolling mills, and even machinery plants and machinery repair shops.

Moreover, after the war came, the price of steel also rose sharply, and steel mills could make a fortune even by selling crude steel.

Moreover, Arabia is already building various weapons factories, so that they can be exported nearby.

In this way, it doesn't matter what to build first.

"My plan is to build three horizontal and four vertical roads, seven main roads, with a total length of about 15,000 kilometers. Considering the complex terrain, the average cost per kilometer may be 25,000 yuan, with a total budget of 375,000 yuan.

Wan." Xu Hui drew a few strokes on the map.

"Money comes second. Have you considered the construction cycle?" Liu Yiming was stunned by Xu Hui.

The Ping-Han Railway is only 1,200 kilometers long. It took three years to build. How long will it take to build 15,000 kilometers? Thirty years?

"Twenty years, it will definitely be repaired in twenty years. The Qing Empire has still built some parts. Simple renovation can save time."

"I think it's worth spending 20 years building the railway," Xu Hui said.

"From a grand strategic perspective, you are right, but right now..." Liu Yiming wants to put more power elsewhere, while the railway is taking its time.

What he agreed to was just thinking about two railways, one from Bashu to the outside, and one from the Western Region to the grasslands, and finally to the three provinces.

"The railway can also activate China. At present, China does not have much vitality. Most people are engaged in intensive farming, which is actually unnecessary."

“Only by using machines to replace human labor in agricultural work and allowing more people to enter industrial production can we become rich and strong.”

"Ordinary industry cannot accommodate so many people, but railways can, including iron mines, steel plants, railway workers, extended machinery factories, daily necessities, etc."

"These industries will continue to extend outward, eventually forming a virtuous cycle."

"Even without war, we can continue to develop healthily and rapidly."

"It doesn't need to take up too many resources. If we allocate more than 10 million yuan every year, we will definitely generate more tax revenue than this."

"Manpower is cultivated directly from China's huge population." Xu Hui persuaded Liu Yiming.

"I understand, okay, I accept it. However, we must first build a railway connecting the Western Region to the grassland and the three provinces." Liu Yiming nodded.

This is the conflict between the government and the emperor, but fortunately, the conflict is very small.

"I know that border defense is a priority. We have enough labor to build this railway, and it will be very fast." Xu Hui nodded and joked.

The labor force he mentioned was the tens of thousands of Japanese prisoners held by Nan Hua. Except for the prisoners of the Eighth Division, the rest of the prisoners were sent to build roads and mines.

Its vanguard has already passed Shanhaiguan and is heading towards Wucheng while building roads.
Chapter completed!