After the Mid-Autumn Festival, Shandong once again fell into the sweltering heat. The scorching summer heat was scorching the entire land.
Since the Chongzhen period, Shandong has suffered no less.
The invasion of the Qing Dynasty caused the entire Shandong people to crumble, and the taxes in Dingkou were drastically reduced. As a result, many vassal kings were eliminated from the country.
Drought, war, and banditry made the entire land of Confucius and Mencius seem to be in chaos, making it difficult to extricate itself.
Of course, the Yellow River, which once flooded from time to time, now flows into the sea from the Huaihe River and lacks a large amount of water for irrigation. For Shandong, it does more harm than good.
As the seat of Kinki and protecting the canal, the size of the army in Shandong has reached 40,000 to 50,000. There are even nearly 10,000 Eight Banners troops stationed in Jinan to guard this strategic location.
The thin coat directly exposed the general's belly, his face was tanned, and a lot of sweat dripped from his forehead to the insteps.
The horse was also sweating from the heat, which made him extremely distressed.
"Damn it!"
Wu Sanfu looked at Jinan City in the distance, feeling extremely tired both physically and mentally.
"Let's go!" The mighty army stirred up a lot of dust.
Outside Jinan City, Ding Wensheng, the governor of Shandong Province, and a large number of civil and military officials greeted him.
From Yangzhou to Jinan, even though there is a canal along the way, it is naturally extremely uncomfortable to be chased.
At the same time, returning from a defeated battle also left him with a shameful face.
He was a Jinshi in the second year of Tianqi and came from a noble family, but he was extremely respectful to the governor Ding Wensheng who was a scholar and did not dare to slack off in the slightest.
Without him, he is from Liaodong and has surrendered long ago. Now he is one of the Eight Banners of the Han Dynasty, and the status of the Han Banners is very different.
As for garrisoning the Eight Banners, they are in Dezhou and Qingzhou, naturally not in Jinan.
On the side, Shao Mingshi, the chief envoy of Shandong Province, has a slender beard and is extremely elegant and upright.
Ding Wensheng had no expression on his face and said with a chuckle: "He has tens of thousands of soldiers at his disposal and doesn't lose much. This is his confidence."
"What, what do you mean to King Pingxi?"
"Fu Xian, why do you want to cater to Wu Sangui like this?"
Shao Mingshi stood on one side and whispered: "He returned defeated and should be punished."
"As things stand now, we can only persevere."
Ding Wensheng sighed softly: "We still need them now..."
"No."
Shao Mingshi shook his head quickly: "I just think that we in Shandong are struggling with money and food. Now we have to support tens of thousands more cavalry, and it is inevitable that we will be overwhelmed."
The majestic horses and sturdy temperament impressed Shandong civil and military officials deeply.
"Thank you for your warm welcome!" Wu Sangui looked good.
After these words, the two of them stopped talking.
Soon, he was wearing armor and looked majestic. King Pingxi came in force with his Guan Ning cavalry.
Within a few days, Ding Wensheng became unhappy.
"Fu Xian, it is Wu Sangui who pushed too hard, so I have to come and complain."
Seeing such a grand welcome ceremony, I couldn't help but smile on my face.
In this way, the banquet will be full of fun.
As he spoke, he clapped his hands and kept walking: "Although it is the autumn harvest in Shandong, the money and grain shipped to the capital has increased by 20% compared to last year. The rest, excluding the Eight Banner garrison, has been completely divided."
Shao Mingshi, the governor of Zuo, gritted his teeth and said angrily:
"Only two days after arriving in Jinan, King Pingxi came looking for me. He wanted to reward the army with one hundred thousand dan of rations and one hundred thousand taels of silver. It's really ridiculous."
Ding Wensheng then walked a few steps, raised his brows, and said, "Give him five thousand stones of grain and five thousand taels of silver for the time being, and then we can stabilize the situation."
"If there's anything left, tell him. We're still spending it."
"Now in the treasury, let alone one hundred thousand taels, even if it is ten thousand, I can't get it out."
"King Pingxi has come back after a long journey, but he still has to give him some money and food."
"But what about the next few months?"
"Then go grab it or borrow it!"
"From now on, the money and food will be paid every month. Don't give too much."
"I understand." Shao Mingshi's expression changed.
Qufu.
For thousands of years, the Confucius Mansion has been entrenched here, almost becoming a state within a state. Its branches are spread all over Shandong, and its influence can be said to be no less than that of the imperial court.
Ding Wensheng waved his sleeves and sat down, minding his own business: "This is the responsibility of your chief envoy regarding money and food. I don't have the ability to teach you."
Shao Mingshi sighed and frowned.
Of course, don't deify him too much or be too demanding on him. There are too many spineless people like him in the late Ming Dynasty.
"What about borrowing food?"
The local gentry may not care about the court, but they have to consider the words of the Confucius family.
Therefore, after the Manchus entered the customs, Yan Shenggong once again retained his title and continued to be rich and powerful.
Facing the magistrate of Qufu, Kong Yinzhi said unabashedly: "It's better to just rob it openly, and we can still win sympathy."
Speaking of this, we have to mention Qufu County.
When Yanshenggong Kong Yinzhi heard this, he was shocked and stood up from the Taishi chair.
"Isn't there no return?"
It lasted until the Qianlong period, when the hereditary history of more than 300 years ended.
Therefore, the magistrate of Qufu faced Duke Yan just like he faced his parents, fearing and obeying his advice.
Starting from the Tang Dynasty, people from the Kong family served as county magistrates one after another. It was not until the Ming Dynasty that the rule of hereditary appointment of the Kong family began.
The county magistrate of Qufu was completely chosen by Duke Yan Sheng, and then approved by the court. Even the emperor only had the power to remove him.
"My lord, according to the information I have received, the governor wants you to set an example. With you taking the lead, how can others dare not to contribute? Then it will all matter."
"Alas, there are thousands of people living in the mansion, and there are vines and branches. No matter how much land there is, it can't be used."
"Master, these Manchus are different from us Han people. They are cruel. Have you forgotten what happened back then?"
After hearing this, Kong Yinzhi immediately remembered the scene when Shandong invaded and couldn't help but shudder.
The Confucius Mansion, which owns tens of thousands of hectares of land, has tax exemptions and exemptions, and this little money and food is really not enough to scratch the itch.
"Master, your intention..."
Duke Yan Sheng sighed in embarrassment and said: "But in order to show the Kong family's loyalty to the emperor, I am willing to offer a thousand taels of silver and three thousand stones of food and grass."
The magistrate of Qufu's eyelids twitched.
Duke Yan Sheng sighed in embarrassment and said: "But in order to show the Kong family's loyalty to the emperor, I am willing to offer a thousand taels of silver and three thousand stones of food and grass."
The magistrate of Qufu's eyelids twitched.
"What, it's missing?"
Kong Yinzhi endured the heartache and continued: "Then I will give you three thousand taels of silver and five thousand shi of grain. No more. The grain depot is empty. I am afraid that next year the whole government will be hungry."
The Confucius Mansion, which owns tens of thousands of hectares of land, has tax exemptions and exemptions, and this little money and food is really not enough to scratch the itch.
"Master, your intention..."
"What, it's missing?"
Kong Yinzhi endured the heartache and continued: "Then I will give you three thousand taels of silver and five thousand shi of grain. No more. The grain depot is empty. I am afraid that next year the whole government will be hungry."
chaptere
7017k
