Chapter 167: Volume 1, Chapter 167: Attracting Investment for a New Era

Han Xinglan took the letter and his heart immediately began to pound. Every time he received a letter from Luoge, he always felt a special anticipation—an indescribable feeling, yet one that left him very eager.

He opened the letter and read from the beginning; by the time he reached the latter part, the smile on his face could barely be contained. Since they were still in the mourning period, he forced his lips down hard. After finishing, he looked at everyone and said, "Tomorrow morning's court discussion—unless there's other business, everyone may disperse for now."

The ministers were taken aback. The matter of the military expedition hadn't even reached a conclusion, and they were dispersing already?

Han Xinglan paid no mind to what others thought. He strode out of the main hall and, after entering the imperial study, had Shi An summon Yu Yan, Zhen Yun, Hu Xi, and others to come.

The three men had originally been officials of the Dong Gong, and their relationship with His Majesty was closer and more trustworthy. It was just that their qualifications were still somewhat shallow, and they could not yet stand against those veteran ministers in the court—but that did not mean there was no way.

If they were truly going to war with Qingxuan, this expedition would be an excellent opportunity to accumulate military merit. Whether it was Xiao Shen serving as commander-in-chief or his plan to have Yu Yan and Hu Xi accompany the army, it was all to gain more control in the court.

The paper armor was brought before the group, and the same look of pleasant surprise appeared in all three men's eyes.

Hu Xi said, "This will reduce military expenditure by nearly half. The consumption of armor has always remained stubbornly high. If cheaper paper armor could be used as a substitute, that would naturally be better. But whether paper armor is truly as formidable as claimed still needs to be forged and tested before we can say."

Yu Yan also nodded in agreement. "Military matters are as urgent as fire and cannot be delayed. Let us go to the Imperial Manufacturing Bureau now and test it."

The three looked up at His Majesty, awaiting his decree.

Han Xinglan was delighted in his heart. The hole the Late Emperor had left for him was simply too large, and he truly could not fill it alone. Moreover, a war between two nations would be an enormous drain, which gave him a terrible headache.

But if paper armor could replace traditional armor and reduce a portion of military expenditure, to him that would be like a lump of gold dropping onto his head.

"Hu Xi, Yu Yan, the two of you go to the Imperial Manufacturing Bureau and forge the paper armor as quickly as possible," Han Xinglan said.

"Yes," the two answered in unison, turning to leave at once, the excitement on their faces impossible to conceal.

Zhen Yun stayed behind, naturally understanding His Majesty's intent, and spoke up: "Your Majesty, with Qingxuan invading this time and Commander Xiao leading the army on campaign, I fear his shallow credentials may fail to command the troops' respect."

Han Xinglan heard this and said coolly, "Win one battle and they will naturally fall in line."

Upon hearing this, Zhen Yun knew that His Majesty's mind was made up and that he would absolutely not replace the commander. "Your Majesty speaks truly. Commander Xiao is already preparing for the expedition. The situation at the border is critical, and the army should depart as early as possible."

Waiting for the paper armor to be forged before setting out would be too late. They could only make do with the equipment already in the armory for now, and subsequent military supplies could be replaced with paper armor—this would take a process.

Thinking of this, Zhen Yun looked at the emperor and added, "Moreover, once the paper armor truly proves viable, the Imperial Manufacturing Bureau will need to expand its scale and accelerate production. The matter of selecting artisans must also be prepared in advance."

Matter after matter, Zhen Yun laid them out one by one. Han Xinglan listened quietly, and finally said, "I entrust this matter to you, Zhen Yun. Xiao Shen and the others are fighting desperately at the front lines; the rear I leave in your hands."

Zhen Yun's heart tightened, and his expression immediately turned solemn. "Rest assured, Your Majesty. This humble servant will certainly not disappoint you and will ensure the army has ample supplies."

Even if it was impossible, he had to fight with everything he had. This was His Majesty's first battle since ascending the throne. If they lost, those in the court who supported Prince Qi would likely seize the opportunity to stir up trouble again.

Han Xinglan nodded. "Go. I await your good news."

Zhen Yun left with heavy steps. Walking out of the hall, he looked up at the sky, took a deep breath, and only then strode away.

After Zhen Yun left, Han Xinglan sat in the imperial study reviewing memorials, but his mind kept racing, constantly thinking about affairs at the border.

Restless, Han Xinglan simply set down his brush, paced a few laps around the hall, and finally pushed open the doors and headed toward Yuzhao Gong.

Rong Luoge was still in the study and had not come out. What she was pondering now was that during the Late Emperor's reign, since wars were rarely fought, the Imperial Manufacturing Bureau was essentially just decoration. Now that Han Xinglan wanted to make this and make that, the bureau's current situation certainly could not cope.

She had someone bring the Imperial Manufacturing Bureau's base records for a look, and her head immediately throbbed. The Late Emperor had left Han Xinglan a sieve.

Wherever one looked, it was nothing but holes.

Just as she was worrying, she heard familiar footsteps approaching. She looked up and happened to see Han Xinglan lift the curtain and walk in.

Rong Luoge was quite surprised. She hurriedly stood up to greet him and asked, "How come you're back at this hour?"

Han Xinglan said, "I was feeling a bit restless, so I came back to see you."

Rong Luoge: …

Well, thank you very much for that.

Han Xinglan noticed the scribblings and drawings on Rong Luoge's desk, whatever they were, and casually asked, "What are you working on? I've already sent people to handle the paper armor matter. There will be news soon."

Rong Luoge pulled Han Xinglan to sit down on the warm couch by the window, then grabbed the blueprints and handed them to him, saying, "I was thinking about the Imperial Manufacturing Bureau. When I pulled out the bureau's base records and looked at them, I felt that the current bureau is completely unable to handle the tasks at hand. Setting everything else aside, just pellets, fire arrows, and sleeve arrows alone—the smeltery and the ironworks can't keep up. The number of registered artisans is not small, but far too many are drawing pay without doing any work."

What had been giving Han Xinglan a headache in the imperial study earlier was exactly this matter. He needed too many things, and the Imperial Manufacturing Bureau was far from able to supply them.

"You're right. I was just thinking about this matter too. But there are too many things to do right now, and the national treasury is empty. You know how difficult it would be to rebuild the Imperial Manufacturing Bureau from scratch." Han Xinglan had a terrible headache.

Rong Luoge also knew this was the crux of the problem. She looked at Han Xinglan and said, "I have an idea, but I'm afraid those stubborn old ministers in the court won't agree to it."

"What idea? Tell me first and let me hear it." Han Xinglan couldn't think of a better solution at the moment. If Rong Luoge had a good method, no matter how difficult, they would have to try it.

Seeing Han Xinglan's troubled expression, Rong Luoge felt all the more that being an emperor was too hard. Especially with this country riddled with holes, trying to be a wise ruler truly required ten thousand times the effort.

"The national treasury has no silver, but private merchants have plenty of silver," Rong Luoge said slowly. She felt they could emulate the method of attracting investment—I have good ideas but no money; you have money but without state permission, no better products. If the two sides combined now, new sparks would surely fly.

Listening to Rong Luoge's words, Han Xinglan thought for a moment and his eyes lit up. He then immediately understood what Rong Luoge meant about the veteran ministers in court trying to stop it.