Chapter 328 A few extra bushels of grain were harvested.

In the third year of Qiande of the Great Qian Dynasty, this was the calmest year since the chaotic times began. Whether in the north or the south, everyone had ceased their mutual attacks.

Gao Yuan, who had the strength to launch an attack, was currently reorganizing his troops and building naval bases, so he naturally had no intention of attacking. As for the Yan, Liang, and Qian factions, they were truly unable to attack due to the depletion from the previous great war.

The only thing everyone failed to notice was that while Northern Liang was tightening its military forces due to being hard-pressed everywhere, Western Kang seized this opportunity.

The ruler of Western Kang, Li Yuanhao, with Li Yuanlang as the commander and Tuoba Rui as his deputy, raised an army of sixty thousand to invade the Western Regions. In less than a year, they had pacified the kingdoms of the Western Regions and were now fully committed to attacking Tokharistan.

Unlike the kingdoms of the Western Regions that relied on taxing trade routes, Tokharistan was located Southwest of the Pamir Mountains and on the upper reaches of the Amu Darya (Vakhsh River). Its territory spanned over three thousand li from east to west and over a thousand li from north to south, bordering the Congling Mountains in the east, Persia in the west, the Hindu Kush mountains in the south, and the Iron Gate Pass in the north.

The climate here was mild and rainy, making it not only a crucial hub for trade routes but also a famously fertile land for grain production.

As long as they took Tokharistan and controlled the Talas region, Western Kang would gain a firm foothold in the Western Regions and Central Asia, making it difficult for others to shake them.

To say nothing else, if the Central Plains dynasty wanted to attack the Western Regions and Central Asia, they would first need to solve the problem of supply transport. With a transport distance of thousands or even ten thousand li, it would be good if half a shi of grain remained by the time it reached the Western Regions after being shipped from the Guanzhong Plain.

Having experienced several painful failures, Li Yuanhao had also seen clearly that while his strength was sufficient to bully those small countries in the Western Regions, attacking Gao Yuan and the Great Qian was truly an act of throwing an egg against a rock.

After deep reflection, he had spent several years enduring hardships, trained a formidable army, and stockpiled massive amounts of supplies before launching the war of aggression against the Western Regions.

Unexpectedly, the results were quite good. In just one year, they had subjugated the kingdoms of the Western Regions and were now beginning to expand into the Tokharistan region.

Perhaps because the Western Regions were too remote, or perhaps because everyone didn't attach importance to it, or perhaps because everyone truly lacked the energy to pay attention, Western Kang was able to silently make a fortune and develop well.

Meanwhile, Gao Yuan was currently facing a happy problem. After years of promotion, potatoes, sweet potatoes, corn, and southern japonica rice had been fully rolled out, and yields had gradually stabilized.

This brought about a problem: there was too much grain. Even though a large number of new granaries had been built in various places, this grain was still piling up like mountains.

Gao Yuan felt for the first time what it meant to "harvest a few extra bushels." Grain prices in various places had fallen by more than 30 percent. While this made Song Jinglian, Zheng Ji, and others beam with joy, Gao Yuan was deeply worried.

"Cheap grain hurts the farmers..."

Gao Yuan looked at the grain prices summarized from various places, and his brows furrowed even deeper.

For dinner, Gao Yuan ate two extra potatoes, considering it his contribution to the problem of grain consumption.

After finishing dinner, Gao Yuan called out to the women who were preparing to play mahjong for leisure and raised the problem he was worried about:

"It's only the summer harvest now, and the granaries everywhere are already in danger of bursting. What are we going to do when the autumn harvest arrives!"

Involving serious matters, the women also put away their playful attitudes and began to think, each resting their chin on their hands.

It really was true that there is strength in numbers; soon, various solutions were proposed.

"We can encourage everyone to raise more chickens and pigs."

"We can allow private brewing of alcohol."

"Brewing only consumes some rice and corn, but what about those potatoes and sweet potatoes?"

Hearing about brewing, Gao Yuan's train of thought was opened up, and he immediately had a new idea.

"Who says potatoes and sweet potatoes can't be used to brew alcohol? Although it might not taste good, it has great utility!"

Yang Xin immediately understood Gao Yuan's idea.

"You want to mass-produce alcohol?"

"Of course. Alcohol is a good thing; it can not only be used to start fires but also to sterilize and disinfect. Every time we go on an expedition, alcohol is the thing we lack the most."

Thinking of the soldiers who died from infections in the wounded camp every time, Gao Yuan couldn't help but feel a heavy heart and sighed, "If the supply of alcohol were sufficient, the number of our fallen soldiers could be reduced by at least half each time."

Hearing this figure reported by Gao Yuan, the women's faces also turned serious. Zhao Xiyao gently patted the armrest of her chair and looked at Yang Xin.

"Sister Yang Xin, this matter is of great importance. I will entrust it entirely to you. You must establish the workshops as soon as possible. I hope we can carry enough of that 'alcohol' on our next expedition."

Yang Xin also stood up very formally and bowed to Zhao Xiyao.

"Understood!"

Come to think of it, Gao Yuan had been quiet at home for a long time. The Fifth Division of the Beiwei Army had been formed, and the Xiaoguo Army had also completed its expansion. Given Gao Yuan's personality, he would surely go out to have some fun at any time.

Therefore, Yang Xin acted very quickly. Within three days, she had negotiated with ten workshop owners, arranging for them to send trusted personnel to Chengdu, Vientiane, Toungoo, Phnom Penh, and other places to establish alcohol brewing workshops.

In addition to paying normal taxes, these alcohol workshops had to turn over a certain amount of alcohol every month.

Once wartime arrived, all workshops were required to produce alcohol at full capacity to sell to the Ministry of War.

Yang Xin didn't just give them the carrot; she still had to use the stick.

"If you try to gouge prices on alcohol or fail to supply the amount needed by the Ministry of War, not only will the Duke of Yue be angry, but I will also immediately look for new alternatives. I hope everyone keeps this in mind and do not ruin yourselves."

These factory owners immediately woke up from their joy; Yang Xin's warning was very clear.

Where did their monopoly business and huge profits come from?

To put it bluntly, it was because they were held in high regard that such a profitable business was given to them. If they were not honest or did not work hard, Yang Xin could replace them at any time.

The technology was in their hands, and more importantly, there was Gao Yuan and his loyal army of hundreds of thousands.

The group broke out in a cold sweat. A few of them felt very regretful for the little bit of crooked thoughts that had just arisen in their hearts.

They had almost forgotten that he was no longer the head of a powerful family faction who could summon wind and rain, and they were no longer facing those rulers or emperors who needed to be afraid of wolves in front and tigers behind, weighing pros and cons. This was a killer who didn't really reason!

They looked at each other, stood up, and bowed respectfully to Yang Xin.

"We will remember your teachings. Please rest assured, Madam; we will definitely not fail your trust."

Yang Xin waved her hand.

"It is not to fail the trust and heavy responsibility placed in you by His Highness the Prince of Yue and the Duke of Yue."

"Yes, yes, yes. We will definitely not let His Highness the Prince of Yue and the Duke of Yue down. We definitely won't."

The group wiped the cold sweat from their foreheads. After watching Yang Xin leave, they collapsed into their seats and looked at each other with bitter smiles.

"Thank goodness, thank goodness. If Madam Yang had known about my little thoughts, I probably wouldn't have lived to see tomorrow's sun."

"Lucky, so lucky!"

"Hahaha, don't worry. At most, they'll confiscate your property and send you to India or Taiwan to clear land and farm. The Duke of Yue won't kill people arbitrarily."

Gao Yuan was very benevolent, so benevolent that he never easily drew his sword to kill; he would always squeeze every last bit of value out of everyone.

Those prisoners and criminals all had to wear handcuffs and shackles to work until they died.

Having seen the miserable state of those people, these wealthy merchants all broke out in a cold sweat and dared not continue thinking about it.

The steward of the Mu Family was the first to stand up, stroking his beard as he swept his gaze over the group who felt as if they had survived a disaster.

"Alright, everyone. If we honestly do this business, we can all make a fortune. Don't covet things that don't belong to you."

After saying this, the steward strode away, leaving the suddenly enlightened crowd behind.