In Lingzhou, Dao of Beiliang, a water transport wharf crowded with people.
The wharf was extensively expanded under the hands of the former governor Xu Beizhi. Lingzhou officialdom is not without complaints about wasting people and money. In addition to the wharf, there are also those huge granaries that are not inferior to the size of Liyang Jiazi. Who doesn't know that Xu Beizhi is known as "absolutely doting on Beiliang"? Coupled with the custom of impeachment from silent officials in Beiliang, at most it is official scribes and generals who slander in private, so naturally no one is willing to go to that Qingliang Mountain to run into trouble.
Probably because Xu Beizhi's official reputation in Lingzhou is really bad. The new governor Chang Sui's rest and health regimen after taking office made the whole Lingzhou, who was mentally prepared to continue to fiddle with it, feel like a spring breeze. Scholars, that is full of praise.
Today at the pier, under the escort of two hundred of Lingzhou's most elite Qingqi, two carriages approached slowly, and two elegant men dressed in official mansions got off respectively. , and the old father-in-law of the current King of Xinliang, Lu Dongjiang, the "Central Plains Land Breaker", who had just been promoted from the governor of Liangzhou to the deputy economic envoy of Beiliang Road.
Lu Dongjiang became the third civil servant of Beiliang Dao in just one year. Although he is a typical father and daughter, the officialdom in Beiliang is pragmatic and not worthy of his reputation. There is no question whether those in the Liyang court were from Jinshi or served as officials. The red tapes of the big and small Huangmen of the Imperial Academy, Lu Dongjiang and Song Dongming are now in the same rank as officials, but Lu Dongjiang is in charge of the government affairs of Youling and Song Dongming are in charge of Liangliu. At the family banquet, the children of the family said that sentence, "Tai'an City used to have a dispute between Zhang Lu and Gu Lu, and now we in Beiliang also have a pattern of Lu Lu and Song Lu, which is even more of a dispute between gentlemen. It's just a businessman with a smelly copper, what is it?" The two meanings of this slap in the face made Lu Dongjiang, who was full of inappropriate stomachs after entering Beiliang, deeply understand it.
Although Lu Dongjiang still has some grievances against that cruel daughter Lu Chengyan, but after such a smooth rise, he climbed to the top and looked far away, and gradually let go of the bad things under his nose. Bad, even if Lu Chengyan really breaks with the Lu family, the situation of the Lu family in Beiliang official circles will be completely different if there is Lu Chengyan on Qingliang Mountain. It turned the world upside down.
Lu Dongjiang recently thought about inviting his daughter and son-in-law back to the Lu family during the Spring Festival this year. We are a family that shares weal and woe. Even if you, Xu Fengnian, are a vassal king, you can accompany us to have a peaceful New Year’s Eve dinner together. It’s not too much Bar
Different from the brand-new official uniform of Vice Minister Chang Sui, the official uniform worn by Governor Chang Sui looked old and wrinkled, and his fair face also became dark. The two stood together, Lu Dongjiang, who was older but pampered and well-maintained , but to look younger, although there is not much difference between the second-rank Jinji official Buzi and the third-rank Peacock Buzi. The central minister, the latter is the powerful minister of Mushou, and there is still a thin line between him and the former. However, Lu Dongjiang is a well-known Qingliu celebrity who has been famous among scholars in the Central Plains for many years. If he was replaced by other governors, he would still use the airs of official authority to treat Han Guzi, the master of the literary world, Mr. Jishang, the famous Shangyin school, and Xu Wei at the same time. Brother Xiong's Chang Sui, Lu Dongjiang naturally regarded him as a kindred spirit, and he spoke warmly and warmly.
Lu Dongjiang, as the Deputy Economic and Strategic Envoy of Lingzhou Youzhou, who is the commander-in-chief of Lingzhou Youzhou, certainly has heard about Liyang water transportation. He knows that the imperial court originally promised to ensure that one million shi of water grain will enter Beiliang before autumn, but until now even half Five hundred thousand stones are not there, three times in succession, scattered, hidden and hidden, it is only worth 400,000 stones. There are two horizontal and vertical lines for Liyang water transportation, and the horizontal line takes Guangling River as the main trunk. Qingzhou Xiangfan City, which is regarded as the waist of the Central Plains, is an important place for water grain transfer, but no one thought that the young feudal lord Zhao Xun would actually follow Yan The Emperor Zhao Bing and the Shu King Chen Zhibao rebelled together, and it is said that they were elected as the new emperor. As a result, the Zhao family court lost most of the Jing'an Road's jurisdiction, and Cao Liang was delayed again and again. Lu Dongjiang could only sigh with emotion. A fleeting time is not good.
Chang Sui accompanied Lu Dongjiang to the shore of the ferry. The boats on the river were piled up, almost as if they were walking on flat ground. The two sides of the pier were full of heat, which surprised Lu Dongjiang.
Chang Sui made it clear, "The Liyang court announced to the outside world that it would supply Beiliang Road with 500,000 shi of grain before autumn. In fact, our prince's monk at the time ordered Qi Yanglong to say that it was 1 million shi. In fact, this In autumn, under the personal supervision of Qi Yanglong and Huan Wen, nearly 800,000 shi of grain have already been transported into our Lingzhou granary, but we only received 400,000 shi for the sake of Li Yang's face. "
Since the territory under his jurisdiction is "smooth weather and clear political affairs", Lu Dongjiang was pleasantly surprised and relieved, but then he found that the governor of Lingzhou, who had suddenly risen to a high position, beside him, seemed not in a very good mood.
Chang Sui said indifferently: "Master Lu has just taken office, and some things may not be clear about the inside story. Apart from promising one million shi to transport grain to Liang before autumn, the Liyang court actually promised to transport two million shi later. But given the current situation It seems that it is far away.”
Lu Dongjiang asked suspiciously: "The Central Plains is in great chaos, and Jing'an Road is under the jurisdiction of the rebellious vassal Zhao Xun. It is reasonable for the court to be unable to control the supply of food and grain, right?"
Chang Sui shook his head, "That's not the case. The main force of Jing'an Dao, or the elite of the Jing'an Palace, has long been exhausted by Zhao Xun. The current Jing'an Dao Hong Lingshu is one of the leaders of the Qing Party. He has been in office for so many years. The high-ranking and powerful Minister of the Ministry of Officials in Tai'an City has extremely rich experience, and Ma Zhongxian, the deputy envoy of Jiedu, is the son of the general Ma Fulu. It's reasonable, but it's definitely not that the 200,000 stones will not be delayed to Beiliang. In the final analysis, they have reached a tacit agreement with the clan of the Zhao family and the nobles of the capital who have controlled the Liyang water transport for 20 years. We Beiliang got the next two million shi grains and grass for free. We must know that two million shi grains means a large dividend in a peaceful and prosperous age. What's more, now that the Central Plains are in war, we can ask for a lot of money, maybe it's a big deal with the court lions , maybe it was the three vassals who participated in the rebellion. Collecting in prosperous times, gold and silver in troubled times, what do gold and silver do, it’s not to buy the soldiers, horses, food and grass.”
Lu Dongjiang was stunned.
Chang Sui smiled suddenly, "Master Lu must have seen the large and small shops on both sides of the main road when he came. Their business is so prosperous that even the city of Lingzhou can't compare, so you're not curious?"
Lu Dongjiang nodded, "Master Chang just said that gold is collected in prosperous times, since ancient times, and troubled times are approaching. Before I came here from Liangzhou, I heard that rich families in Lingzhou are selling all kinds of antique calligraphy and paintings at a low price. , even many of the rare and handed down treasures that were considered to have disappeared and disappeared in the catastrophe of Hongjia Beiben have reappeared and amazed the Central Plains. Return to the Central Plains and sell it at a sky-high price, and everyone will earn gold and silver. My lord Chang, to be honest, I am also very excited."
Chang Sui smiled playfully, and said slowly: "Oh? Then Master Lu really wants to see it. From the Dafeng Dynasty to the Spring and Autumn Nine Kingdoms, Lu Gang's jade wares, Lu Aishui's gold wares, Zhu Bishan's silver wares, Bao Zhiran's Rhinoceros wares from Zhao Liangbi, agate wares from Wang Xiaoxi, bamboo carving wares from Jiang Baoyun, porcelain wares from Yangsun, if you get a doll, it must be rare and an antique. Now in this unnamed street in Lianglingzhou in the north, there are all kinds of wonders. Otherwise, why would the government and the public in Liyang say that 'all the masters of the rivers and lakes in the Central Plains have come to Wudang Mountain, and the literati in Liyang have their hearts attached to Lingzhou City'?"
Lu Dongjiang was moved.
Chang Sui, with a slightly cold face, laughed and poured cold water on his face and joked, "It's just that for those big and small shops, before doing business, they have to check the buyer's address to guide their household registration. I'm afraid Mr. Lu, who has no wind in his sleeves, will be disappointed."
Lu Dongjiang laughed and said: "It doesn't matter, it doesn't matter, it's okay for me to pass the eye, but it's the next thing if I don't get it in my pocket. It's like treating those beautiful beauties in the world. It's a good thing to watch from a distance."
Chang Sui led the Deputy Economic and Strategic Envoy to a shop near the pier.
The shop is not big, not even a study room in Jiangzhong's middle-class courtyard in Lingzhou, but Lu Dongjiang's eyes widened as soon as he crossed the threshold, he was beyond shocked.
So many things to see!
Lu Dongjiang's appreciative vision is so sophisticated, he walked quickly to an antique kang table with waist-length teeth and animal legs. There were more than a dozen odd objects randomly placed on it. , deep red.
Tangtang turned over the lacquered wooden bowl with slightly trembling fingers, and as expected, Lu Dongjiang saw the thick gold inscriptions on the bottom of the bowl in the four official scripts of "Hangzhou Tongou"!
The handyman in the shop was a lavish young man. He saw two men in official uniforms, but he didn't see their entourage following them, so he didn't pay much attention. When dealing with the seed brothers, they feel very sympathetic to the civil servants who are more angry than them, not to mention how shy and fearful they are. Moreover, in the past half a year, their small shop has also seen many strange customers from the Central Plains. This young handyman who cleans the shop and also bids prices has begun to feel that he is a person who has seen the big world. , just took a few steps forward, grabbed the slender spout of a gold pot from the table, lifted it high, and smiled courteously: "Master Guan, not long ago, there was an elderly scholar from the Central Plains who fell in love with this piece. It's a thing, but it's a pity that he couldn't afford the price at the time, so we must stay, saying that he went back to his hometown in Jiangnan Road to operate, and our shop didn't pay attention to him, Mr. Guan, otherwise you will hold your hand, if If you like it, you can take it for twenty taels of silver, of course, this is the price only locals in Beiliang have, not foreigners!"
Lu Dongjiang put down the lacquered wooden bowl tremblingly, and took the gourd-style golden pot with cloud and dragon pattern with both hands. After examining it carefully, he said in a trembling voice: "This is a genuine old Southern Tang imperial thing. Even the eyes are higher than the top. Li Mi, the great master of the Chu State, praised him as 'drinking and drinking together, pouring out the whole life'! How much silver, twenty taels?!"
The young handyman smiled and said: "Twenty taels is enough. No bank notes, only cash!"
Lu Dongjiang turned his head stiffly to look at Chang Sui, "Master Chang, do you have cash on you?"
Chang Sui shook his head and said, "I never carried it."
Lu Dongjiang looked regretful and cherished, and muttered to himself: "No, I implore Mr. Chang to find someone to lend me some money today, one thousand taels, no! At least ten thousand taels! The more the better!"
Chang Sui smiled and said, "Your Majesty Lu, don't need to lose your composure. There are objects like this everywhere on this street. Not only that, from this Lingzhou Wharf, along this river into Guangling River, until Xiangfan City in Qingzhou, there are all kinds of objects, big and small. There are shops like this in the small water transport docks.”
Lu Dongjiang woke up suddenly, regretting: "Is this what the prince meant?!"
Chang Sui nodded, "Here, half of them come from the Xu family treasury in Qingliang Mountain."
As half of Xu's family, the deputy manager couldn't help stomping his feet and shouting loudly: "Prodigal son! Prodigal son!"
Chang Sui laughed out loud, leaving Lu Dongjiang at the shop and leaving alone.
In the shop, Lu Dongjiang held up a white jade bowl, holding the bowl to reflect ointment candles, it was as bright as ice and snow, and the yellow dots on the wall of the bowl were dotted like dozens of chestnuts, which was very innocent and lovely.
Every time Lu Dongjiang admired something, he always chanted prodigal son.
Especially when they learned that foreigners in Beiliang wanted to take away fancy items, they could only go to Liyang officials who were in charge of water transportation on the Guangling River, and it was quite cheap to exchange grain and grass. It's just one or two hundred stones of grain and grass!
Lu Dongjiang's heart bleeds.
Chang Sui, the governor of Lingzhou, returned to the pier and stood on the shore.
People all over the world divide the Xu family together.
Qingliangshan's daughter will come back after all the money is gone? Never again!
Chang Sui didn't know what the deputy economic envoy was thinking, he only knew that he was willing to live and die for such Beiliang!