Chapter 1076

“Does Your Majesty mean that some of the industries that use steam engines can be transferred overseas?”

A flash of inspiration appeared in Yang Chengye’s mind, and he suddenly thought of something.

Xiao Ming nodded with a smile. He said, “In fact, some merchants in the Empire have already brought steam engine technology to the colonies. These are the mines in the colonies. The efficiency of mining is very low without a steam engine.”

“That is true. In comparison, using electricity requires building a thermal power plant. A steam engine only needs coal and water no matter where it is, which is very convenient,” Yang Chengye said.

Pang Yukun pondered for a while and said, “Factories that are mainly based on steam engines will slowly withdraw from the Empire’s market. These idle machines are indeed a waste. And compared to the cheap labor in the colonies, the wages of the Empire’s workers are much higher, and factory owners will gradually be unable to afford them. But if they are transferred to the colonies, they can continue to make profits, which is also a way for the Empire to make use of waste.”

“That’s exactly what I mean. The Empire’s merchants are still the Empire’s merchants no matter where they go. Their output is the Empire’s output. Rather than letting the steam engine industry be completely abandoned and causing a huge waste, it’s better to transfer it to various colonies to extract surplus value.”

“Your Majesty is wise!” Everyone was filled with admiration when they heard this.

The speed of the Empire’s development over the years was truly too fast, so much so that the people of the Empire could not keep up with the speed of the factories’ machinery upgrades.

After the advent of electricity, this conflict became even more prominent. Continuing to use steam engines meant facing low efficiency and high labor costs. If they used electricity, they would have to leave the steam engines, which they had only acquired a few years ago, idle.

After the Empire successively occupied the colonies of Japan and Southeast Asia, some smart merchants were already preparing to move their steam engine factories to the colonies. In this way, they could continue to produce in the colonies and would also have money to purchase electrical machinery.

However, the Empire’s control over technology was very strict. Apart from the mining industry, control in other areas was always very strict.

Because of this, merchants would complain to officials when they interacted. Now that the Emperor had set the tone, this matter was no longer an issue.

The reports on the economy and technology basically ended here. Next, Xiao Ming listened to the reports on the progress of the political and military reforms.

According to the reports provided by the Cabinet and the General Staff, the restructuring of the various provinces has now been completed, and the officials of the various departments were all performing their respective duties.

And the establishment of the military regions’ hierarchy from top to bottom was also basically completed.

With these two reforms successfully completed, Xiao Ming also breathed a sigh of relief, because this meant that in terms of industry, government, culture, and commerce, the Empire had now officially become a modern country.

In the next few hundred years, the order that he had painstakingly built would not be outdated and would be enough to ensure the stable operation of the Empire, after all, these systems themselves also came from the modern era.

The year-end summary court session lasted from morning until noon. After entertaining the ministers in the palace, the meeting continued in the afternoon, but the content of the afternoon meeting was to formulate the specific plans for the next year.

“If there are matters, report them. If there are none, dismiss the court!”

In the evening, with Qian Dafu’s high-pitched voice, the court session came to an end. The ministers all chanted “Long live,” and withdrew from the main hall. The next day was New Year’s Eve.

Standing up from the dragon throne, Xiao Ming and Qian Dafu were the first to leave the Zhengda Guangming Hall.

Arriving outside the hall, Xiao Ming looked up at the large snowflakes fluttering in the sky and asked, “It seems the war in Southeast Asia will drag on until next year.”

“That’s probably the case. But at least the Southeast Army has taken Jakarta. I don’t know if Yue Yun’s fleet has controlled the maritime trade routes yet.” Qian Dafu was responsible for receiving telegrams and was naturally very clear about these military campaigns.

Xiao Ming’s eyes narrowed. In fact, he had a premonition that the war in Southeast Asia would not be as easy as the ones in Japan and Goryeo, after all, although the Western weapons were backward, they were a truly modern army.

And the soldiers of the era of firing in ranks were from the most disciplined era, because in every war, they had to directly face the enemy’s muzzles.

So in Jakarta, Lei Ming’s attack resulted in two thousand casualties. And in India, there were even more Western soldiers. If they were to clash head-on, they would also suffer a considerable number of casualties.

What he needed most now was petroleum. The occupation of India was not his top priority, so he was also considering the plan for the attack on India.

Since the imperial navy could control the maritime routes, besieging the allied forces in India was a good choice.

At the same time, he could have Luo Xin’s Southwest Army attack French Indochina and the British-controlled Burma from the land, encircling India from the east. In this way, the allied forces in India would have an even harder time.

Soon, his idea was verified on the tenth day of the New Year, and a telegram from the imperial navy was delivered to him.

“In the battle at the mouth of the Ganges River, the imperial navy sank ninety-six enemy warships, but suffered more than three thousand casualties. This is the most serious combat loss the imperial navy has suffered so far. According to Liu Chen, the allied forces have built even more solid fortifications in Calcutta, India, and the Southeast Army alone will probably not be able to take this hard nut.”

In the Imperial Study, Cui Shang’an analyzed the battle report from Southeast Asia.

“How many men does the Southeast Army have now?” Xiao Ming asked.

“Reporting to Your Majesty, the Southeast Army has a total of sixty-four thousand registered soldiers. Fifty-seven thousand of them are combat soldiers, and the remaining seven thousand are logistics and civilian personnel,” Cui Shang’an said.

Xiao Ming nodded when he heard this. Because of the army’s modernization reform, the army’s logistics were now self-sufficient, as the number of logistics soldiers in the army accounted for a considerable proportion.

“According to Liu Chen, to capture Calcutta, we will probably have to suffer twenty thousand casualties, which is a loss of half of the Southeast Army’s combat personnel?”

“That’s probably the case. Moreover, to control the colonies, the Southeast Army now has garrisons in the colonies, and the number of soldiers who can actually participate in the attack is probably only around forty thousand.”

Xiao Ming frowned. “Sacrificing twenty thousand soldiers for one Calcutta is not worth it. In that case, let’s slowly wear them down. Anyway, the Empire has plenty of time now. The longer we wait, the more advanced equipment we will have, and they will eventually lose their will to fight after being separated from their home countries for so long.”

“I also have the same idea. During this time, the Empire can consolidate the colonies it has already occupied. At the same time, the Southwest Army can march south to attack and seize cities, so that the enemy cannot take care of both the front and the back.” Cui Shang’an said.

Getting up and walking to the map, Xiao Ming circled India with a red pen. He said, “Let’s do that. Also, expand the Empire’s army to a scale of six hundred thousand men. I am afraid that we will still have a lot of things to deal with in the future.”

Cui Shang’an was stunned for a moment, then he chuckled. “Your Majesty, that’s not a problem. But what about the military budget?”