The main hall of the Prince's Mansion!
Lin Yi summoned the leaders of the seven legions, as well as Xun Yu and others, to discuss the Western Regions. Now that the war was coming to an end, the issue of the Western Regions had to be resolved.
"My lord, the Western Regions are still too far from Xiliang. If we want to control them perfectly, we need a powerful military base," Xun Yu said in a deep voice.
"In my opinion, we should just wipe out these Western Regions countries. Even if the Frostwest Empire attacks, so what? With our current strength, we fear no one!"
"Screw you, all you ever think about is fighting!"
"Although we are not afraid of any power, we have provoked three major forces at the same time: the Northern Region Barbarians, the Great Ning Dynasty, and the Frostwest Empire. We may very well face a three-against-one situation, which is not a good choice."
"That's right. Even if we can withstand it, the foundation of Xiliang will likely be damaged."
"Since these kings have taken the initiative to visit us, I believe we can easily make them our allies and use them as stepping stones to conquer other countries!"
After hearing Xun Yu's words, everyone immediately offered their own suggestions. However, their opinions differed, and an argument ensued.
Lin Yi tapped the table, signaling them to quiet down.
Then someone brought in a sand table, the location of which was clearly the site of the Jushi Kingdom.
Looking down from this vantage point, the view suddenly opens up dramatically.
This place connects the three regions of Northern Liang, Great Ning, and the Western Regions, making it a small crossroads. To put it bluntly, it is extremely important, serving as a crucial link on the main western route, even more important than the Shachi Kingdom.
After a moment's thought, Lin Yi said in a deep voice, "This place is a strategic point for three parties, and we must take it into our hands. Let's build a super city here. Not only can we conduct trade, but we can also garrison troops on a large scale. This is the ideal situation!"
Xiliang has no major ambitions for the Western Regions at the moment, so it is destined that there will be no large-scale military operations in the coming year, but small-scale operations will inevitably continue.
If we have to transfer troops from Xiliang and Northern Liang every time, it is somewhat of a waste of manpower and resources. It would be more reliable to build a military base here directly.
Keeping 100,000 prisoners around would be a waste; it's better to use them to build this city, which is a way to make good use of waste.
However, Gongsun Zan's last words made a lot of sense. These countries had come to Xiliang on their own initiative, so we could take the opportunity to make them our subordinates and thus enter the Western Regions without a sound.
This method is very reliable!
"My lord is wise! These kings are clearly terrified by Old Master Bai's massacre. This is an opportunity!" Ma Chao couldn't help but exclaim excitedly.
Gongsun Zan's eyes gleamed with excitement as he exclaimed, "With these countries as cover, we can operate entirely under their names; all we need to do is put them in the blame!"
What a wonderful idea! I get all the benefits, and you all get the blame. It's absolutely fantastic!
Seeing this, Xun Yu couldn't help but chuckle, saying, "This city is so important that it needs to be named by our lord. This is our Xiliang territory!"
kindness!
Lin Yi nodded slightly and began to ponder the name; there were quite a few options.
He quickly came up with a name and couldn't help but laugh, "Let's call it Four Directions City, which encompasses all four directions, and is the most prestigious city in the Western Regions."
Since the Green Leaf Kingdom and others are inclined to align themselves with Xiliang, then they should regard Four Directions City as their superior and become Xiliang's subordinates!
If a country wants development and stability, it must make choices. These countries need to pay a price for their security; otherwise, there are no such good things in the All Under Heaven.
Although these small countries are not large, they have abundant resources. In particular, the Mojin can be used to forge sharp weapons, which is very important to Xiliang and can further improve the weaponry of the Xiliang Army.
There's also the snow lotus from the Icefield Kingdom. This isn't the kind from martial arts novels; it's a Chinese medicinal herb called snow lotus, and it's a very effective tonic.
With these things in place, Xiliang had to control the entire Western Regions.
"Haha, then wouldn't our Xiliang become the leading force in the Western Regions!" Gan Xingba's eyes lit up, unable to contain his excitement.
"The ringleader?"
Lin Yi's lips twitched. The words were crude but true; wasn't he just a ringleader?
etc!
At that moment, he thought of the leader of a certain dark force, and an idea immediately came to him. He smiled and asked, " Zizhong, how are our money exchange and banknotes doing? Any progress?"
"Does our lord intend to use the money exchange to collect wealth from the Western Regions and then control the Western Regions?"
Xun Yu's eyes lit up, and he immediately became interested.
He thought of what his lord had mentioned about the value of currency. His lord was trying to completely control the value system of the Western Regions!
If the money shops can be successfully integrated into the Western Regions, their lifeline will be in the hands of Xiliang, achieving victory without bloodshed.
Forehead!
Seeing that both powerful figures were looking at him, Mi Zhu smiled and nodded, then said in a deep voice, "We are currently conducting preliminary trials, but the results are not good. Apart from a few aristocratic families giving face to our lord, everyone else has some concerns."
It's too difficult, and he's under a lot of pressure!
"Hmph, a bunch of naive fools!"
A cold glint flashed in Lin Yi's eyes as he said in a deep voice, "What I want to promote, cannot be rejected by them so easily!"
"Go and tell those noble families that I, the King, have said that everyone who does business with my Xiliang needs to exchange their money for silver notes, otherwise Xiliang will not welcome them."
In addition, this transaction of potatoes and sweet potatoes also requires the use of silver notes!
"This presents an excellent opportunity to establish money shops in various regions before the potato harvest."
While it's difficult to force people to do this, some of the best resources are in the hands of the Prince of Xiliang. If they want to make a living in Xiliang Liang, they have to follow the rules of Xiliang!
Potatoes are a unique product; no one else can control them. If you want this incredible yield, you have to bow down to it, otherwise, don't even think about it.
Besides potatoes, Xiliang is now exporting other goods, such as paper, salt, and even cement for civilian use. The daily turnover is in the hundreds of thousands or millions, making it a major economic hub in the north.
If you want to follow Xiliang but don't even give them face, then you don't want to be friends!
"My lord is wise!"
Everyone nodded in agreement. After their lord's decisive blow, even if they were unwilling, they had no choice but to accept their fate, unless they decided to give up doing business altogether.
Lin Yi then looked at Pang De and said in a deep voice, " Lingming, I hereby appoint you as the temporary governor of Four Directions City. Are you confident in your abilities?"
Upon hearing this, Pang De's eyes lit up; this was a meteoric rise to power!
The prefect is the top official; this is an immense favor from the lord.