Chapter 6533: The disaster

Chapter 6533: The disaster
Chen Xi actually considered what the Romans would do if they were not completely crazy, but just a little crazy because they ran out of food. However, Chen Xi thought of various possibilities and never thought that Rome would come up with such a ridiculous but reasonable plan.

How can I describe this method? It completely solved the problem of Rome's farming technology. It allowed the Yuan family to farm directly, and then sent the crops directly to Italy via the Volga River and the Don River.

As for the land route, one only needs to take the section of less than 100 kilometers between the Volga River and the Don River, which is also the main battle zone between the Yuan family and Rome. According to the navigability of the Don River and the Volga River, during the non-freezing period, transport ships of less than 5,000 tons can pass through, so there is basically no problem with transportation.

The Roman Empire still did not know that the Volga River could lead to various parts of Eastern Europe, but it at least knew that the Yuan family could take the Volga River to a location less than 100 kilometers from the Don River without any logistical pressure, because Huangfu Song's camp had been stationed there for several years.

If the logistical pressure is too great, the Yuan family will not be able to hold on even if they want to.

With this understanding, the Roman Empire did not need to think too much. It only needed to consider letting the Yuan family farm. No matter where the Yuan family farmed, they would definitely be able to transport the crops to a location 100 kilometers away from the Don River without much loss.

It is true that the loss of land transportation over 100 kilometers is very large, but at least within Rome's tolerance range and with relatively good road quality, three days is enough.

In fact, Sergio's sudden inspiration at that moment was that instead of recruiting his own people to farm in Eastern Europe, it would be better to let the Yuan family farm in Eastern Europe and then transport the crops over.

Apart from anything else, the Han people in Eastern Europe recruited by the Yuan family are all good at farming. If those soldiers are transferred to local farming, they can also farm, and their farming level is quite good.

With Rome's reconnaissance capabilities, it at least knew that Yuan had several large-scale farming corps west of the Ural Mountains.

Of course this is normal. The Yuan family fought with Rome in the upper reaches of the Volga River's tributary. Considering the logistics transportation costs, they had to send a few farming corps to the west of the Ural Mountains. Otherwise, it would be stupid to transport grain from the east of the Ural Mountains.

More importantly, this positive cycle can be maintained continuously with just one push, and the Yuan family does not need to expend energy on management. They just need to be careful when reviewing it, and not be too ruthless, thinking of having the best of both worlds.

In this way, even if this tax was added, the people of the Han Dynasty were happy to accept this policy as there was no need to invest in the cost of reclaiming wasteland. After all, the tax was not high, and the land was really in their hands.

Considering the size of Eastern Europe and the scale of its human resources, Cyprian estimated that this positive cycle could last at least two to three hundred years, until the entire Eastern Europe was reclaimed and food was grown.

And after this step was taken, the Yuan family no longer needed to invest energy in this area. They only needed to rely on the gradual encroachment of the Slavs and the Han people to gradually swallow up the entire Eastern Europe and build a true empire.

Although Cyprian's tax law clearly stated that the land reclaimed by the Slavs, after being transferred to the Han people, fundamentally belonged to the country, as long as the owner of the land paid taxes on time, the land could be sold no matter who owned it.

Because they had distilled liquor, the Slavs didn't mind working to reclaim wasteland and grow crops in exchange for liquor. As a result, they reclaimed the wasteland but didn't grow crops. More than 100,000 acres of black soil were reclaimed, but the grain produced was not enough to exchange for liquor. Yuan Tan was dumbfounded.

It was also because of this that the Yuan family successfully spread from Sizhao City and Xiancheng east of the Ural Mountains to the west of the Ural Mountains, and gradually spread towards the black soil in the west.

Originally, this operation would have caused big problems, leading to excessively high tax rates for the Han people. However, the Slavs had basically no established civilization before the fifth century. They mainly engaged in fishing and hunting and did not know how to farm at all. The approved output was far lower than the per-acre yield of the Han people.

This is extremely outrageous, but it is completely in line with various sales habits in Europe. The right of tax farming itself is the evolution of sales. After all, Cyprian was influenced by the Roman Empire and unknowingly embarked on the road of sales.

It was not until Cyprian joined the Yuan family that he helped the Yuan family reorganize the organizational structure, clarified the responsibilities of the Slavs, revised the original blood tax, and established the strange structure of the Agricultural Reclamation Corps and the Knights.

The people of the Han Dynasty had ready-made fields to farm, and if there were enough of them, they would not take the initiative to open up wasteland, because farming was also very energy-consuming. The emergence of various farm tools did reduce the physical consumption of the people, but the scale of family farming ultimately had an upper limit.

Even if it is subordinate to the state, it can be sold. At most, the sales basis is different. In essence, this kind of sale is actually a secondary subcontract. But you can decide whether it can be considered a sale.

It was difficult for the common people of the Han Dynasty to see the operations at the higher level. They could only see the tax reform in the provisions and could not understand what was behind the tax reform. The Slavs got the land and farmed in exchange for wine, but now they only need to reclaim the land and can get wine without farming. It goes without saying what to choose. This asymmetry in information has enabled both sides to get what they want.

The Slavs were responsible for the task of reclaiming wasteland. After being approved by the state, the reclaimed land was handed over to the migrated Han people for cultivation. The Han people who then used the land were responsible for the production of wine and water from the land.

That is to say, the grain output that the Slavs used to earn from farming for wine was borne by the Han people who farmed the land, but in this process, the Slavs had no contact with the Han people, and it was all handled by the state, which directly included it in the taxation.

This was also the reason why Cyprian had such a prosperous status in the Yuan family even though he had only been in the family for four years, and why even Xun Chen was considering letting him take over, and Yuan Tan was thinking about arranging a marriage for him.

He even sent Xu You to investigate several times, and finally confirmed that the Slavs had indeed reclaimed hundreds of thousands of acres of wasteland, but because their civilization was at the level of fishing and hunting, their farming was too poor, and it was basically abandoned farming, which was too wasteful.

In fact, from the very beginning of the war with Rome in the upper reaches of the Volga River, the Yuan family vigorously promoted land reclamation on the west side of the Ural Mountains. In the early days, they even organized a large number of Slavs to reclaim wasteland and provided the Slavs with shops where they could exchange grain for wine.

The speed was slow but the pace was steady, because if each generation of Slavs wanted to always have wine to drink, they had to reclaim at least a few hundred acres of land. When this generation of Slavs died, the amount of wine allocated to their families would be halved. If the next generation did not continue to reclaim the land, the amount would be halved again. This was the wisdom that Cyprian learned from the degeneration of titles in the Han Dynasty.

In this way, as long as the Slavs take the initiative to reclaim wasteland, they will have a guarantee of livelihood, and as long as the Han people farm, they will provide a guarantee of livelihood for themselves and the Slavs. The two complement each other. As long as this seemingly simple framework is maintained, Eastern Europe will gradually turn into farmland with the advancement of the Slavs and Han people.

To put it bluntly, this person is really strong, so strong that he doesn't need to rely on himself to promote his plans. He only needs to take the first step, and the huge interest group that will naturally form will push the plan to continue.

Now it has been the tenth year of Yuanfeng. The way the Slavs reclaimed wasteland and the Han people farmed has become a habit, and several large groups have been formed west of the Ural Mountains.

These farming and reclamation corps, with their families, numbered from tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands. The Slavs who reclaimed the wasteland in the front and the Han people who farmed in the back had naturally formed their own tribes in Eastern Europe.

Just as Cyprian said back then, running a large team and eliminating internal conflicts requires more than just hands. Sufficient interests can serve as a lubricant to naturally produce suitable middle-level managers.

Education? It is not necessary at all. It is best to have it. If not, there are smart people among the illiterate people. Even monkeys can become leaders. A successful organization must have ideals or interests. It doesn't matter which one you choose.

For Cyprian, most of the useless people who can't run an organization either haven't found the right lofty ideals to rally people's hearts, or haven't found the right points of interest.

As long as you have these two things, even if there are no suitable organizational rules and established regulations, sooner or later there will be capable people to come up with them for you. Even if times have changed and the previous organizational rules and regulations have become inappropriate, as long as your ideals are lofty enough and the benefits are great enough to attract new blood, that is not a problem.

Is it difficult for the Yuan family to have a lofty ideal in their current situation? It is not difficult. Even in the 21st century, building a great country is a lofty ideal, especially since the Yuan family has the foundation to build it. As for the benefits, let alone the benefits themselves. So Cyprian casually operated and gave the Yuan family a long-term and stable century-old strategy. Moreover, this strategy was so stable that the Yuan family could just leave it alone. As long as they did not take the initiative to kill themselves, after a hundred years, they would naturally have the ability to confront Rome head-on. They might not win, but the Yuan family, who had the advantage of location, would at least not lose.

Yuan Tan personally reviewed this strategy and began to implement it two years ago. After all, this is a plan that does not take up any resources, and as long as it is kept in place, it will make progress and bring in considerable benefits.

In Xun Chen's words, just leave it alone and let Rome observe. By the time Rome realizes what is happening, it will be too late for Rome to do anything about it.

Precisely because of this idea, settlements with large amounts of farmland have spontaneously formed west of the Ural Mountains, and because of mutual promotion and cooperation, the relationship between the Han people and the Slavs has become much more harmonious.

The two parties, who were once unable to communicate due to language barriers, can now communicate through gestures, cooperation, work, and mutual support, gradually eliminating the barriers between the two sides.

As Cyprian joked, Rome knew nothing about these things, but this did not prevent Rome from knowing that there was a large group of Han people who could farm west of the Ural Mountains.

It just so happens that what Rome needs now are people who can farm. Compared with Christians who have average farming skills and whose number is limited after the mass exodus in recent years, the Han people, who have more reliable farming skills, are more trustworthy.

Transportation is not difficult, it can be done by water, the farming technology is reliable and will not disappoint you, and more importantly, the locusts will basically not rush to the current location of the Yuan family’s farm in Eastern Europe. Taking all factors into consideration, is there any need to say what to choose?

Just as Glius apologized to Chen Xi, we in Rome are indeed anxious, but please forgive us, our current situation requires the Yuan family to help us farm.

There is nothing much to say. Even if Chen Xi faces Roma's attitude, he has no way to deal with it. Having said that, Roma is very humble in front of Chen Xi, but this humble attitude means that Chen Xi is doomed to be unable to resist.

Watching Grus leave, Chen Xi sat in his seat helplessly. Then he was silent for a moment and handed the letter from Rome to Yuan Yin. After all, he was the Yuan family's messenger in the Executive Yuan, so he should take a look at it.

When Chen Xi handed the letter of credence directly to Yuan Yin, Yuan Yin felt a little flustered. How could he be shown such a thing? He was not worthy of it!
"It's related to the Yuan family. Take a look and be mentally prepared." Chen Xi said calmly without looking back.

Yuan Yin was a little at a loss. He took the letter and opened it. In just a moment, his pupils shrank into pinholes.

"How can this be!" This was the first time that Yuan Yin lost control in the Executive Yuan. He was totally unable to accept this kind of enthronement. As a member of the Yuan family, Yuan Yin knew very well what Yuan Tan was facing.

"There is no choice. If Rome really reaches its end, it will kill everyone. At least we are not sure we can stop Rome from self-destructing and taking everyone with it to death." Chen Xi explained with lifeless eyes.

It's not that there is no certainty at all, but Chen Xi cannot take the gamble. Even if there is only a one in five chance that Rome will cause severe damage to human civilization while exploding, the Han Empire, which is now on the rise, should not take the gamble.

When the sun rises, it will naturally defeat the opponent when it reaches its peak. Why bother to fight to the death with the opponent when it just rises?

As long as the Han Dynasty develops step by step, it will naturally reach its peak and defeat its current opponents, so it is not worth risking your life now.

Yuan Yin only felt dizzy, and he held on to the table, looking at Chen Xi, "Lord Chen, can you accept this humiliation?"

"You should ask Duke Zhong if he can bear it." Chen Xi said to Yuan Yin.

Yuan Yin looked bitter when he heard this, he didn't know either.

From the perspective of other members of the Yuan family, they would feel humiliated at most, but from Yuan Tan's perspective, Yuan Tan had already accepted the title from Liu Bei, the enemy who killed his father, as a loser. Subsequently, he continued to accumulate strength and bravely moved forward. It took him ten years to finally see some improvement. Then, he had to accept the title from his second mortal enemy!
What kind of hell is this.

Yuan Yin left first because he was not in good condition. Chen Xi picked up the enthronement document again and took a look at it, then sighed softly. Between large forces, as long as the difference in strength has not reached a crushing level and they are not prepared to fight to the death, then many things are actually political games.

"Appoint Yuan Tan as the Duke of the northeastern border county of Rome, in charge of all parts of Eastern Europe, and give him the title of Augustus." Chen Xi carefully read the contents of the letter after everyone else left.

Without talking about the hellish black humor of the enthronement for Yuan Tan, just talking about the enthronement, it was not a humiliation. Putting other rewards aside, the Duke of Bian County was given the title of Augustus, which was actually the treatment of a vice emperor. Rome did not humiliate Yuan Tan, and even deliberately elevated Yuan Tan's status.

Although this is all empty talk, it is obvious that Rome, for the sake of the Han Dynasty's face, made special adjustments even if it was an emergency. After all, this is the Duke of a border county, and in Rome he is a real local tyrant.

On the other hand, if such a status is given, then there will naturally be corresponding obligations. If nothing unexpected happens, after suffering from this wave of locust plague, Rome will more or less realize that it needs to find a way out, and the blank Eastern Europe is a real way out.

Even though it was relatively far away and difficult for Rome to rule, and they could only occupy the area along the Don River, they could make peace with Yuan Tan by means of the title and eat some of Yuan's food.

After all, Rome does have a strong fist, and as long as Yuan Tan accepts the title, he can talk to the Yuan family about some legal issues. It is true that the Yuan family will definitely benefit from it, but Rome is larger in size and military strength, and the profits will only be greater.

To put it simply, it was just a group of better farmers and a large piece of grain-producing land, which was beneficial to Rome. As for the occasional unrest by local dukes, was it a problem?
this is not.

Anyway, after accepting the enthronement, if Rome went to the Yuan family to ask for food, it would not be extortion, but taxation. On the contrary, it would be normal for the Duke of the northeastern county to go to Rome to fleece the sheep, or even bark like a dog in the Senate.

"If Yuan Xiansi had not been spared by my mortal enemies and Lord Xuande, I would probably have negotiated with Rome to confer the title of honorary Duke of the West on Ganasis to achieve balance in the empire. But now, this letter may further stimulate the development of Duke Zhong." Chen Xi said with some estimation as he looked at the letter.

Yuan Tan's ability to withstand pressure is so strong, and the more he withstands, the stronger he becomes. Chen Xi did not deliberately consider the strategy of imperial balance, but also took Yuan Tan's ability to withstand pressure into consideration. Yuan Tan has not suffered a major blow for such a long time, and it seems that the overall forces are a bit slack. You need to develop. Although the official history shows that you are quite useless, this time your development is really amazing. You are the prince that I, Chen Xi, am most optimistic about!

Many arrangements of Yuan Tan's forces could not be understood by others, but Chen Xi could still understand them. If it was only possible to break into the empire before, it could be realized now. One civilization and two empires would form a strong cultural wave and naturally assimilate other civilizations.

Therefore, for Chen Xi, this time is a test for the Yuan family. If Yuan Tan can get through it, then some subsequent things can be laid out to Yuan Tan, and he will really be qualified to be the pillar of Han civilization.

　This is really a test, miserable.

　　(End of this chapter)