The Crown Prince's eyes flashed with gloom as he whispered, "Father, this is a memorial submitted by the Left General of the border army. The Left General reports that the border army lacks horses and food and has not recruited new soldiers for two years. This year, they need to recruit soldiers. He requests the court to allocate two million taels of military funding."
No wonder the Crown Prince's brow was furrowed so tightly.
In the past two years, the North has suffered severe droughts, leading to a 20% reduction in Da Liang's tax revenue last year, and even less collected this year, not reaching even 70%. The court must support a 400,000 strong army, maintain civil and military officials, provide for the Imperial Family and relatives, and still squeeze out silver to repair river channels and relieve the people. Everything requires silver. The National Treasury has already been as empty as to host a horse race.
