next day
Jia Heng got up early and went to the Xuzhou government office with Princess Xianning, because the rice grains from the Ministry of Internal Affairs were temporarily stored in the Xuzhou treasury.
Ju Changnian, the magistrate of Xuzhou, saw the person coming and hurriedly greeted him. With a respectful look on his face, he bowed his hands and said, "I have seen Uncle Yongning before."
Jia Heng nodded and said, "The boat from the Yamen will come over later and transport it to Huai'an Mansion."
Because he came to Yangzhou with a fast horse and a light carriage, the fleet of the Governor of Water Transport Du Jitong was still behind, and according to the time, he should arrive today.
Ju Changnian asked: "I wonder how many thousands of stones need to be transported?"
Jia Heng said: "Send 150,000 dan in advance, and then we'll see what's happening over there in Huai'an Mansion. If it's still not enough, send another 100,000 dan."
However, in his opinion, the punishment of the grandson of Pan Ruxi, the Minister of Household Affairs in Nanjing, and the whipping of the Jia family for speculating in Jinling Twelve Houses should have created a "chilling effect" to some extent.
Ju Changnian secretly breathed a sigh of relief and said: "Many people who were affected by the Xusi Flood fled into Xuzhou City. Recently, the city is also very short of food. The rice grains brought by Uncle Yongning from Taicang really solved the urgent need. Next On behalf of the official, more than 100,000 fathers and fellow villagers in Xuzhou, I would like to express my gratitude to Yongning Bo for his kindness."
Jia Heng said: "Xu Zhizhou, how many victims have poured into Xuzhou recently?"
Ju Changnian looked gloomy and said, "Uncle Yongning, nearly 50,000 to 60,000 people have poured into Xuzhou City from several counties in recent times, and the official position has already been exhausted."
"Now that we have rice, we must not slack off and try our best to resettle the victims without causing trouble." Jia Heng pondered for a moment and warned.
Ju Changnian said: "It's a good idea for me to wake up."
Jia Heng said a few more words of advice to Ju Changnian, while Princess Xianning watched quietly on the side, her bright eyes shining brightly, without interrupting.
Then, Jia Heng, accompanied by Ju Changnian, the magistrate of Xuzhou, inspected the grain depot.
This grain depot was personally guarded by a military general from the Beijing camp, a Yuanwai Lang from the Ministry of Internal Affairs, and the general magistrate of the sixth-floor household of Xuzhou Zhizhou Yamen.
The joint supervision of the three parties effectively prevents people from lining their own pockets and controlling others. Jia Heng carefully checked the amount of official grain and the storage conditions.
In the evening, the Jinyi guards and the officers from Xuzhou came to report that Du Jitong, the Governor of Water Transport, had arrived by boat with the Caoliang Guards.
Jia Heng and Princess Xianning then led a large number of retinues and left Xuzhou Yamen, heading to the ferry to meet the fleet of boats of Du Jitong, the Governor of Water Transport.
Du Jitong, the governor of water transportation, boarded the pier surrounded by Caoding. When he saw Jia Heng from a distance, he smiled more eagerly than he did at Nanhe Yamen. He raised his hands and saluted, saying: " I have met Uncle Yongning."
In the past, whether it was Jia Heng's punishment of the Jia family members or the arrest of the officials' children in Jinling, they all fell into the eyes of this old bureaucrat.
Act resolutely and ruthlessly.
Jia Heng said: "Master Du has come just in time. The rice grains from Taicang have been loaded into the treasury. At dawn tomorrow, you and I will set off for Huai'an Mansion."
Du Jitong smiled and agreed happily: "Easy to say, easy to say."
Assisting Yongning Bo to transport rice and grain now, and then mentioning the matter to the court later, can also serve as a meritorious service. Later, he can also take charge of the Nanhe Yamen, which can be used as an excuse.
Jia Heng and Du Jitong briefly exchanged a few words and said: "The grain will be transported to Huai'an Prefecture tomorrow, and people from the Hedao Yamen will take over it. They will open a rice store in Huai'an Prefecture and sell it to the people of Huai'an Prefecture at a fair price. "
Du Jitong said: "Uncle Yongning, don't worry, stabilize prices. This is a move to win the hearts of the people. Uncle Yongning may not know it, but in the past two days, the lower official heard that the officials and sons of Jinling heard that Uncle Yongning was selfless and did not show favoritism. Most of them were shocked, and one family was already selling grain at a fair price."
Jia Heng said: "Oh?"
Then he asked: "I don't know which ones they are?"
"The Zhen family in Jiangnan." Du Jitong looked at the young man opposite him aggressively. Jia Heng was silent for a moment and then said: "I stopped my horse from the cliff and inspired a righteous deed."
He was saying that he would write a memorial to impeach Pan Ruxi and other important Jinling officials when he gets back today. I don’t think so, but the Zhen family knows
When he saw that the situation was not good, he changed his tune.
Jia Heng had a conversation with Du Jitong, and ordered a general from the capital camp and officials from Xuzhou to go to the treasury to transport food. Seeing that the night was falling, he did not stay any longer and followed Princess Xianning back to the mansion.
As soon as she entered the mansion, Princess Xianning asked with concern in her eyes: "Sir, is the Governor of Water Transport a member of the Qi Party?"
She remembered that her husband had always been at odds with Qi Dang. Jia Heng whispered: "They are from Qi Dang.
Princess Xianning was surprised and asked: "How come you, Sir, and the people of the Qi Party..."
"It's just for each other's use. Now if we want to transport food to Huai'an and other places, we cannot do without the Caoliang Guard." Jia Heng said softly.
In fact, it may not be inseparable, such as the Beijing camp escorting along the road, but he originally had the idea of uniting the party to control the two rivers.
When Princess Xianning heard this, a thoughtful look appeared on her face as beautiful as snow.
"Okay, it's getting late, let's not talk about this anymore. By the way, I saw you leading the little princess to my room to look for me yesterday, and I haven't asked you what's going on." Jia Heng asked.
Princess Xianning came to her senses after hearing this. She felt a little ashamed and said, "I just rehearsed a dance with my cousin Chanyue and wanted to show it to my husband. Why don't you go back and enjoy it?"
Jia Heng responded, looked at Xianning in surprise and said, "Are you so close to the little princess?"
Appreciating dance has a different meaning when the two of them are alone, and with Li Chanyue and Xianning in the mix, it's impossible not to know what this means.
It seems that, as Jin Yang said, Xianning is not very opposed to the issue of concurrent cultivation.
Princess Xianning said in a clear voice: "Sir, I grew up with Chanyue. My cousin Chanyue is introverted. If it weren't for... I wouldn't have gotten married to you."
Jia Heng nodded, took Xianning's hand, and said, "It's hard for you." When drinking water, remember the person who dug the well, and when drinking water, remember the source...
Jia Heng said warmly: "However, I have to leave early tomorrow morning. Let's look for opportunities next time." He didn't like being arranged by others, and most of the time he took it by himself.
While the two were talking, they came to the corner and were about to go to the backyard when they looked up and saw the eldest princess of Jinyang. "You're back? Where have you been?" Princess Jinyang looked at the two of them with a chuckle, as if it was natural.
Jia Heng was not surprised and said, "I went to see the official grain storage and will return to Huai'an early tomorrow morning."
The eldest princess of Jinyang smiled sweetly and said: "That's fine. I just told Yuan Chun that if you are in a hurry to leave tomorrow morning, I will let you have a good night's rest. It will not be easy for you to tell stories to Xiangyun and the others tonight. .”
As he said that, he glanced at Princess Xianning with his clear phoenix eyes.
Princess Xianning's eyebrows were furrowed, her eyes averted, and she felt a little uncomfortable.
Looking at what she is doing, the most she can do is... dance to let her husband relax. On the other hand, some people spent the whole afternoon after lunch yesterday.
....
The next day, at dawn, Jia Heng led a large number of Jinyi Mansion guards, and then followed Du Jitong to escort the ships carrying grain to Huai'an Mansion.
As soon as he arrived at Huai'an Mansion, Jia Heng asked Jin Yiwei to spread the word in the city that Henan had allocated 500,000 shi of grain to be escorted to Huai'an Mansion. For a while, all the merchants began to retreat.
With half a million shi of grain, the court's determination to stabilize prices cannot be questioned.
Combined with Jia Heng's previous punishment of Jia's clan members in Jinling's twelfth house and the arrest of the grandson of Pan Ruxi, the Minister of Household Affairs in Nanjing, this Yongning Bo took advantage of the remaining power after quelling the rebellion to move alone across the Yangtze and Huaihe Rivers and look after Pan Zixiong.
On the other hand, as Jia Heng's reputation gradually spread among the scholars in Jiangnan, the scholars in Jiangnan also had complicated feelings about Jia Heng.
As grain ships coming from the direction of Yangzhou Prefecture entered Huai'an Prefecture, the soaring grain prices in Huai'an Prefecture fell accordingly. People bought cheap official grain from the court one after another. However, there were no rice shops opened by Jinling and other officials' children. If you ask for it, most of it is shipped from Susong at a higher price. Every time you come here, you will suffer heavy losses, and people will be mourned all over the world.
However, because the Zhen family made a bid in advance and sold it at the government's fair price, they ultimately made no profit or loss. Posthouse, second floor
Governor Shen Fang of Liangjiang stood with his hands folded
In front of the window, looking at the people of Huai'an Prefecture who were very happy because of the complete supply of rice and food on the outer street, their eyes filled with coldness.
"Master Taiwan, the food price in Huai'an Prefecture has stabilized now." Not far away, Jiangzuo Chief Envoy Xu Shikui, sitting next to a small table and absentmindedly drinking tea, said in a low voice.
Shen Fang said coldly: "Sitting on millions of grains in Taicang, Luoyang, and being in charge of the guards of Jinyi Mansion, with one hand of grain and the other of a knife, he is really incompetent if he cannot stabilize the price of grain."
Xu Shikui couldn't answer this for a moment, so he could only change the subject and said: "Zitai, Mr. Pan from the Jinling Household Department, arrived in Huai'an yesterday and didn't see Uncle Yong Ning. He wanted to meet the elders of Zitai and Zhao Ge. "
"Tell him that I will go to the seaside today to guard the river embankment and coordinate supplies. I will have no time to spare." Shen Fang said in a low voice with gloomy eyes.
Xu Shikui said in a low voice: "I feel that Mr. Pan has no knowledge after all. Should we wait for Mr. Zhao Ge to come back from Yingzhou to discuss it?"
Shen Fang said: "Although he is not directly involved in the case, he is also responsible for lax governance and neglect. Uncle Yong Ning has already targeted him, and now people have caught him. This is not a good test."
"Master Taipei, this..." Xu Shikui was startled, and his expression was a bit hesitant. The official circles of the two rivers are at odds with each other, so how can they ignore death?
"Don't worry, I won't see him until we can talk about it in the future. If we meet him rashly, the Hedao Yamen man has many eyes and ears. I'm afraid he will be able to get a handle on me and consult me closely." Shen Fang frowned. , with cold murderous intent hidden in his eyes.
Uncle Yongning is the Minister of Military and Aircraft. He often secretly reports to the imperial court when he is away, and goes straight to the front of the emperor. If he is hurt by slander behind his back, he must be on guard.
Seeing that Shen Fang had no intention of meeting Pan Ruxi, Xu Shikui couldn't persuade him any more, so he went back and talked to Pan Ruxi.
Jia Heng did not see Pan Ruxi and Qian Shuwen. Instead, he went to Hongze Lake and other Huaihe River embankments to supervise the army to fight floods, and hid again.
In this way, time flies by like water. Unknowingly, it is late June. The land of Jianghuai River has turned cloudy and sunny. The heavy rain that swept the entire north of Chongping for fifteen years has completely stopped. The sun is shining brightly and the sky is clear. The floods that swept through several northern provinces have finally come to an end.
Qingjiangpu, Huai'an Prefecture
Jia Heng looked at the flood of rivers from all over and the money and food wasted on repairing dikes and weirs. Even though he had been prepared, he still couldn't help but feel sad.
This time the imperial court carried out large-scale construction projects on the Huaihe River and the Yellow River. It was impossible to build embankments and weirs without money, but it only took a short month. The official money was huge, reaching nearly one million yuan.
Fortunately, the lives of hundreds of thousands of people have been saved, and the river transport has been prevented from being destroyed and the north and south isolated. Everything is worth it now.
Jia Heng's expression returned to calm, he gently closed the account book in his hand, and looked far away.
As soon as the river affairs came to an end, he had just sent a message to Feige in the capital. Emperor Chongping had an oral edict in the capital, summoning his teacher to return to the capital, and the official edict would be in the next few days.
In other words, I won’t be able to stay in Huai’an Mansion for long.
"Sir, people from the Zhen family are asking for a meeting outside." Just when Jia Heng was feeling ups and downs, Liu Jixian came from outside and said with cupped hands.
Jia Heng had a bit of surprise on his face and said, "A member of the Zhen family?"
Since he returned to Huai'an Mansion, many people came to intercede for the Pan family in Jinling, but he ignored them. Pan Xiangdong and others have now confessed to reselling official grain and other matters.
Although the Jinyi Mansion used a certain degree of torture to extract confessions, the case was still not implicated in Pan Ruxi, but the Ji family bit Qian Shuwen, the minister of household affairs in Nanjing.
However, even so, Jia Heng's memorial to impeach Pan Ruxi and Qian Shuwen has been sent to Shenjing by express delivery from 600 miles away, and it has not been approved yet.
Jia Heng put down the book in his hand and said, "Invite him in."
The Zhen family had previously instigated the Jia family's children from the 12th house of Jinling to go to Huai'an Mansion for speculation, and the Zhen family still owed him an explanation.
Not long after, Nanjing garrison Zhen Lin was seen striding into the official hall accompanied by two young men. She was not wearing official robes, but was wearing casual clothes.
"Uncle Yong Ning." Zhen Lin started to clasp her fists in salute as she was far away, and said with a smile. Jia Heng said: "Zhen is not stationed in Nanjing. Come here."
What does Huai'an Prefecture do? "For a guard general to leave his garrison without military orders is a fool's errand.
Zhen Lin smiled and explained: "I filed a leave of absence with the Nanjing Ministry of War. I heard that Yongningbo was stationed in Huai'an, so I came by boat to meet Yongningbo. Yongningbo was the governor of the river yamen this time, fighting floods and preparing for floods, and saved Jianghuai and other areas in one fell swoop. Zhen respects the vitality of hundreds of thousands of soldiers and civilians here."
Jia Heng said: "Zhen's defense has been overrated."
After saying that, Zhen Lin was asked to sit down, and the clerk served him tea.
"Uncle Yongning, you and I, the Zhenjia family, have been friends for generations, so you don't have to be so open-minded." Zhenlin smiled and clung to the friendship and said, "If you don't give up, I would like to ask you, Brother Fool, how about calling you Brother Heng?" "
Jia Heng frowned slightly and said sternly: "Zhen Guards, among the officials, it's better to address each other's positions." The smile on Zhen Lin's face froze for a moment and said, "Uncle Yongning is still considerate."
After making a haha, he immediately mentioned the previous incident and said: "When we first saw the shortage of rice in Huai'an Prefecture, we transported some grain from our own fields in Jinling. I didn't know what was going on at the time. I didn't know that Uncle Yongning took charge of the civil affairs affairs in Huai'an Prefecture. I often caused trouble to Uncle Yongning, and later I heard that Uncle Yongning wanted to stabilize food prices."
Rather than hiding these things, it would be better to tell them in front of Jia Heng in order to resolve the grudge earlier.
Jia Heng said in a deep voice: "I can let go of the past. Besides, if Zhen Shouwei can turn around and take care of the overall situation, let's not talk about those previous things."
Zhen Lin said: "Yes, that's what Uncle Yong Ning said." The two of them chatted casually.
Zhen Lin smiled and said: "Uncle Yong Ning's supervision of the river to fight against floods. When will it be a complete success? I wonder when he will start?"
Jia Heng said with a careless look: "We can't say anything yet, everything depends on the court's wishes."
"The leader of the army is away and has not returned for nearly ten days. The army is very kind and considerate. There are also gossips in the capital. It would be nice to go back early." Zhen Lin said with a smile.
Jia Heng answered every one of them, wanting to see what kind of medicine was sold in Zhenlin's gourd.
Sure enough, after waiting for a while, Zhen Lin said: "Uncle Yongning has been a figure in the Jia family for many years. My wife also wants to meet him. If Yongning is free, how about going to Jinling with me? The two sides are very close, but there are also It won’t take a few days.”
Jia Heng was silent for a moment and said: "In the past few days, the returning military generals from various river embankments need to discuss the military situation, and the river yamen's hands and tail are really inseparable."
When Zhen Lin heard this, the smile on her face gradually faded a bit.
His wife wanted to meet Uncle Yong Ning, so he was too lazy to come all the way and be extremely cautious in front of the young man.
Unexpectedly, this man actually excused himself from busy official duties and insulted his ancestors. How could this be unreasonable?
Zhen Lin smiled, stood up, cupped her hands and said, "That's my presumption. I have something to do, so I'll take my leave first.
Jia Heng's eyes were deep, he picked up the tea cup, called Liu Jixian beside him, and said, "Liu Jixian, send it to me."
After this incident, not only did they become strangers to the Zhen family, but their relationship also dropped to a freezing point.
