Chapter 33943396【Three Major Projects】

In the 40th year of Qianlong's reign, more and more Qing banks were opened, covering all parts of the world.

There are hundreds of branches of the Qing Bank in Japan, Central Asia, Southeast Asia, the Middle East, Europe, South America, and North America.

The total deposits of the Qing Dynasty Bank also increased to the level of 5 billion copper coins, 1 billion taels of silver, and 50 million taels of gold in a short period of time, which really surprised the Ministry of Finance.

I didn’t expect that opening a bank would be so profitable. It would add so much cash to the national treasury all at once, and the cost would be less than a penny in banknotes. It was really a sure-fire business.

However, Xiang Nan knew that the money was not free. It represented the people's trust in the court. If the rulers cannot treat this trust well, and the excessive issuance of currency leads to a huge devaluation of the currency, and the property of countless people is wiped out, then it will really be a great evil.

So although the bank is good, Xiang Nan still reminds his sons not to be greedy for short-term gains and lead to big mistakes. It should be noted that people are like water and kings are like boats. Water can carry a boat but also capsize it.

 …

By this year, three horizontal railways from Hankou to Tianfu, from Jinzhou to Dali, and from Vientiane to New Delhi were opened one after another.

In this way, Sihu, southern Yunnan and Tianzhu will be closely connected with the Central Plains, making the entry and exit of goods and the exchange of people greatly convenient.

For example, rice, spices, cotton, wheat, gold, silver, copper, gems, etc. produced in Tianzhu can be continuously sent to the Central Plains through railways.

 The same is true for the products of Siyi and southern Yunnan. Without railways, the cost of transporting goods would be very high. Just like the Ancient Tea Horse Road, a bag of tea and a bag of salt are both good things.

 Now that the railway is connected, many commodities can be imported and exported, which is an excellent thing to improve the lives of local people.

 The most important thing is that after the completion of the three railways, Qinghai-Tibet is completely included. It is surrounded by the railway network on all sides. From then on, it can no longer be cut off.

 …

 But this year, Ruyi's health began to deteriorate.

 Speaking of which, she is also sixty-four years old this year. Although she has been pampered and has not suffered any sins in her life, she has been worried and burdened in the palace for so many years.

Especially after Lang Hua's death, she succeeded as the queen and took care of the huge harem, which was impossible without hard work. Usually when an old lady retires at the age of fifty-five, she starts performing Yangko on the street.

 Ruyi is sixty-four years old and still has to deal with harem affairs. Even with the help of Hailan, Yihuan and others, it was not an easy task after all, so her health began to gradually deteriorate, and she suffered from coughs, headaches, and insomnia.

Upon seeing this, Xiang Nan also prescribed medicine for her, but in the end it only treated the symptoms rather than the root cause. Her health continued to deteriorate, and it was estimated that she would only be two or three years away from death.

Seeing this, Xiang Nan couldn't help but step up his plans for the future.

 He compiled more than a dozen new textbooks, covering mathematics, physics, chemistry, biology, chemical engineering, machinery, architecture, economics, military, agriculture and many other subjects, pointing out the direction of future development.

As long as Chinese students study and research according to his teaching materials in the future, China's science and technology will be at least another two hundred years ahead.

 In addition to leaving behind teaching materials, Xiang Nan also promoted three major projects.

 The first is the reconstruction project of the capital, which involves repaving roads, building sewers, installing wires, electric lights, etc. throughout the capital. He wants to create a model of a modern city for future generations to see and let them know how to bring a better life to the people; The second is to connect the national railway network. Previously, Xiang Nan had established four major railways in China, namely Northeast, Southeast, Eurasia, and Eurasia. In addition, there are several horizontal railways such as Sichuan-Hankou, Dian-Guizhou, and Xinzheng.

 Next, Xiangnan plans to connect cities with railways, especially in areas with relatively dense populations and relatively developed economies such as Zhili, Central Plains, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Hunan and Guangxi.

 After cities are connected to railways, they will be connected into a tight railway network. By then, more frequent exchanges of people and cargo transportation will better boost the economy and bring this area to a new peak.

In this way, with this large base area, even if something happens in Europe, America and other places in the future, we will not be defeated and will have no power to fight back.

 The third is to build a dam on the Yellow River. In this way, the Yellow River can be effectively managed and the problem of flooding over the years can be fundamentally solved.

 He hoped that these three projects could be completed before Ruyi passed away, or at the worst, they should be started before she left. Because after she leaves, he will leave too.

If these projects cannot be started, they may be canceled by the new emperor because they cost too much. By then, the development of the Qing Dynasty may come to a standstill.

 …

Hence, Xiang Nan has been busy with these things in the following time, and he also decreed to make the third elder brother Yongqi the crown prince to lay the foundation for him to ascend to the throne.

 Seeing Yongqi promoted to crown prince, all the elder brothers, princes and ministers were shocked. No one expected that it would be the third elder brother who had the courage to become the prince.

You should know that the three brothers Yong Huang, Yong Cong, and Yong Lian are the sons of the late empress Lang Hua, and are considered direct descendants, while the fourth elder brother Yong Cang is the son of the current empress Ruyi, and are also direct descendants.

In comparison, Yongqi’s mother-in-law, Hailan, was just an embroiderer when she entered the government. Her father was a dismissed official, so her status was extremely low.

As the saying goes, Hailan's status is far inferior to that of Langya, even compared to Ruyi, who is already in decline.

Hence, no one expected that Yongqi would become the crown prince.

“It turns out Huang Ama didn’t deceive me. He really wanted to make his third brother the crown prince.” Yong Huang couldn’t help but murmured.

 A few years ago, he had seen the edict written by Xiang Nan, which said that the throne should be passed to the third prince Yongqi. Because Xiang Nan showed up immediately and caught his disobedient behavior, he thought that the posthumous edict was just a ploy to lure the snake out of its hole, and did not take it seriously.

 But now, Xiang Nan still made Yongqi the crown prince. And he was both the legitimate son and the eldest son, and his status was unparalleled in the world. He didn't expect to be overtaken in the end, which made him really depressed.

But even though he was depressed, he did not dare to show any dissatisfaction. Instead, he wanted to congratulate his third brother.

 The reason is simple. Xiang Nan is not someone to be trifled with. He is known to be selfless and ruthless.



Even though he is his biological son, he was once imprisoned in the clan's mansion, so how can he dare to speak now?

The princes and ministers naturally had no objections, and they all knelt down and congratulated. The emperor appointed a crown prince, and there were successors to the country. It was truly a blessing to the Qing Dynasty and a blessing to the people.

 (End of this chapter)