Zhan Bei said coldly: "Besides this, I can't think of any other possibility!"
Xiao Lingyue frowned and murmured: "If it is really iron ore, then the problem will be big..."
What does iron ore mean?
In ancient times, iron, salt, and grain were the three most important national resources and were the objects of strict control by the imperial government.
Food is the most important thing for the people.
Food represents life and is the basis of people's safety.
Once there is a problem with food, it will inevitably cause civil unrest, cause social instability, and cause various rebellion hazards.
This is why, as long as there are natural and man-made disasters and food production is reduced, civil unrest will break out in ancient times.
Salt represents health.
No one can live without eating salt. Once there is a lack of salt intake, people will gradually become weak and lose strength, and develop various diseases.
For the ancient court, salt and grain were weapons of taxation, and the people had to pay. Therefore, no matter what dynasty, the government would firmly control salt and grain in their own hands.
The salt sold by the government to the outside world is called official salt.
There is also a kind of private salt among the people.
As the name suggests, in order to make huge profits, some people obtained salt through various channels and secretly sold it among the people.
This approach is tantamount to robbing the country of tax revenue.
Therefore, in ancient times, smuggling illegal salt was a very serious crime. Once caught, not only would you die, but the entire family would be implicated.
More important than salt and grain, is iron.
In ancient times, iron represented weapons, armor, or strength.
No matter how stupid an emperor is, he will not allow military power to fall into the hands of others, because holding military power is equivalent to having the power to overthrow the dynasty.
And iron also has this kind of power.
If an army does not have weapons and armor, its combat effectiveness is about the same as that of ordinary people. On the other hand, if ordinary people can have weapons and equipment like the army, with a little training, they can become a ready-made army.
Therefore, in ancient times, the circulation of ironware was strictly controlled by the court, not just in the army.
Even private ironware shops are only allowed to open after being registered with the government.
It is illegal to cast iron tools privately, and if caught, the crime will be more serious than selling illegal salt.
Blacksmiths in ancient times were basically passed down from father to son, from generation to generation.
They do not have civilian status, but military status.
Once there is a war at the border, the imperial court can recruit private blacksmiths to the military camp at any time to build weapons for the army. The blacksmiths must obey the call.
Even a martial arts practitioner like Xiao Lingyue who is not under the control of the imperial court must first report to the government if he wants to buy a knife or sword among the people.
If you buy without reporting it, you will be jailed if you are reported.
Xiao Lingyue was a member of the military when she was in Nanyan. She had been in the army for several years and was very aware of the importance of iron ore to the ancient army and even the entire country.
If Northern Qin really had iron mines, they were not under the control of the imperial court.
They were even mined secretly by these bandits and secretly sold to their mortal enemy Nanyan...
This is a shocking case!! Popular "" This chapter has been completed!