The Prodigal Son of Zhenguan

"Oh?" Li Fu looked at Li Shimin: "That's great. The emperor said that when the stadium is built, it will be called Zhenguan Arena."

"Zhenguan?" Li Shimin was stunned: "The emperor said that?"

"Yes, I was thinking that the emperor paid for the construction of the stadium and called it Wude Arena. The emperor said that this thing is different from wine. Strong liquor becomes more mellow as it ages. Naming it Wude sounds like the mellow aroma of old wine, but the arena for holding polo matches should keep up with the times. Just call it Zhenguan Arena."

As for the emperor's words that he used this name to trick Li Erfeng into granting him a good piece of land, Li Fu didn't even mention a punctuation mark.

Li Shimin was moved when he heard this.

Father...

"Although the emperor is now in Da'an Palace, he still cares about the people." Fang Xuanling said with emotion: "At this critical juncture, not levying corvée, embezzling money from Da'an Palace, building an arena, and allowing the people to earn money are essentially the same as the projects on Jingyang Wang's farm."

"Yes, I agree with the point made by Jingyang Wang. The more at this time, if the court has enough money, the more it should do things so that the people can earn money and live by working for the court." Du Ruhui agreed.

In the past, the court had to use a large number of workers, all of which were levied corvée.

"So, the more actions like the emperor and Jingyang Wang are like, the better." Du Ruhui continued: "Your Highness Jingyang Wang, I have a question to ask."

"Please speak, Minister Du."

"That is, in this regard, what can the court do?" Du Ruhui asked.

"That depends on the strength of the national treasury. For example, the renovation and reinforcement of the city walls, or the construction of roads and bridges, the renovation of the palaces that have been in disrepair for a long time, and the renovation of the county government offices in various counties are all included. In the past, these were all completed by the imperial court's conscription." Li Fu said thoughtfully.

These are basically the infrastructure projects that can be done these days.

In addition, the dredging of rivers and the reinforcement of river embankments are now being done in Jingyang County.

There are many rivers around Chang'an City.

Eight rivers surround Chang'an, and the tributaries of these eight rivers are not counted.

There are canals under the tributaries.

For agricultural civilization, water conservancy projects are very important.

"These belong to infrastructure." Li Fu explained: "The word infrastructure, I don't need to explain it in detail. In fact, infrastructure is all projects that benefit the country and the people. Roads, water conservancy, even cities and government offices are closely related to the people of the Tang Dynasty."

"Take the arena I just mentioned for example. Will it benefit the people after it is built? In fact, it does. The people of Chang'an City can have a place to have fun and watch the game in their spare time. The cheapest ticket is one penny. One penny can watch a wonderful polo game. Is it worth it?"

"Then what benefits does the arena bring to the builder? That is, the emperor of Da'an Palace can also have some fun. In addition, how do you know that this place can't make money by hosting games?"

It can definitely make money.

It's just a matter of how long it takes to pay back the investment. After the completion of the venue, the cost of building the venue can be estimated to be earned back by hosting a few years of competitions. The rest, minus daily maintenance and employee wages, is pure profit.

"Since it is an investment, there will always be a return, more or less." Li Fu said: "The same is true for the court's investment in the people. In this year, the money spent by the court, as long as there are no accidents in the middle, will drive changes in the lives of the people."

"Of course, if there is an accident in the middle, just ignore what I said. After all, from the previous dynasties, when the court allocated funds, it was not without the situation that the Beijing officials took 60%, the local officials took 30%, and the remaining 10% fell on the heads of the people, or even not a penny fell on the heads of the people."

"I am talking here, but they are all ideal situations. There is still a big difference between ideals and reality."

Looking at the past and present, this is the "normal situation".

When Li Shimin heard Li Fu say this, his face was as black as the ash at the bottom of the pot.

Li Fu didn't care. What kind of morals are the court officials? Don't you know it as an emperor?

Some things may be deceived by the people below, but can't you see the little tricks between colleagues?

I don't want to expose it, it's just the "unspoken rules" in the officialdom.

There is no way to escape this.

If he was truly selfless, when the court took back the salt and iron business rights, Changsun Wuji should have already begun to show his loyalty and voluntarily handed them over, and then discussed together how to deal with the mines and business rights in the hands of other families.

This is notThere is no movement until now?

"Second brother, what I said today refers to the Zhenguan Arena that is about to be built." Li Fu added.

As for other things, you can think about it yourself, but it has nothing to do with me, King Jingyang.

Li Shimin closed his eyes and let out a long breath.

"Okay, I know what you and the emperor mean. I will let the people from the Ministry of Works choose a good place." Li Shimin said: "But where do you plan to build this arena? In Chang'an City or outside Chang'an City? How big a place does it need?"

"Here is a simpler drawing. I think such a venue should be able to accommodate at least 3,000 people."

Li Fu thought about it carefully. In this day and age, there are no telescopes or large-screen live broadcasts. Just sit in the seats around and watch the games in the middle. A Class C gymnasium with 2,000 to 4,000 people is the most suitable.

Although the viewing effect in the back row is a little worse, it is still possible to see the field clearly.

If the venue is bigger, it will not be friendly to the surrounding audience.

"If there is a suitable place in Chang'an, it would be convenient." Li Fu smiled.

It is only the second year of Zhenguan, and the land in Chang'an is not yet so expensive. Because of some old things in the Wude period, from the court officials to the common people, they are not so confident in resisting the Turks.

Most people think that even in Chang'an, it is not necessarily 100% safe.

In history, it was not until the fourth year of Zhenguan that the Tang Dynasty launched a war against the Turks and captured Jie Li Khan alive and brought him to Chang'an. Chang'an began to prosper rapidly. Many people settled in the city, and the increasing number of people caused the phenomenon of every inch of land in Chang'an.

Because Li Fu knew this, after making money in the tea business, he also asked Lao Zhao to find a lot of houses, shops and land in Chang'an.

The land deeds are in his hands and can be used at any time.