Chapter 125 Yueyang Tower
There were many soldiers standing under the west wall, and a few servants were looking around boredly, holding on to the avoidance cards on the ground, occasionally chatting and laughing among themselves. Pedestrians in Yuezhou (today's Yueyang) knew that the magistrate was meeting friends upstairs again and that they would not be able to climb Yueyang Tower today, so they all went around to avoid it. Although the shops under the wall were open, all the shopkeepers had sad faces, and all the business for the day was ruined. Even Tan Song, the head shopkeeper of Dongtingxuan, is no exception. Of course, he will host a banquet later, but there is no telling when the money for the banquet will be paid. After deducting the share of the filial manager, Uncle Cao, he will not earn much. Money. Today we can only do business at the prefect's table. Not to mention there are no passers-by. Even if someone comes, Tan Song doesn't dare to entertain him - whoever has a louder voice after drinking two drinks disturbs the prefect's literary and poetic nature and can't hold back a sentence for a long time. If a good poem is laughed at by others, not to mention being slapped a few times, it is possible to be arrested and sent to the prison cell for two days.
There were seven or eight boats moored by the lake under the western wall. One was a large official boat with avoidance signs on the bow and stern, and some soldiers were stationed beside it. The remaining boats were slightly smaller, but still much larger than ordinary fishing boats, with a row of shields erected on both sides. Judging from the flags, they turned out to be the water camp of Changde Prefecture - it turned out that the visiting boats were actually from Changde Prefecture. Lord Prefect*! Dongting Lake has been very uneasy recently. Lake pirates are rampant. There are many fewer merchants passing by than in previous years. If it weren't for the prefect himself, who else could allow Shuiying to put up such a formation of guards?
Fan Zhongyan's famous story "Yueyang Tower" made Yueyang Tower widely known, and it was also known that this "number one tower in the world" was built by "Teng Zijing (Teng Zongliang, courtesy name Zijing)" who was "relegated to Baling County" in the "Five Years of Qingli" "It was "rebuilt" (in the spring of the fourth year of Qingli...the next year of Yue), but few people know who built it. Interestingly, the founder of Yueyang Tower is much more famous than Teng Zongliang - even far above Fan Zhongyan: Lu Su and Lu Zijing!
Yes, it is the mediocre peacemaker* who is caught between Shu Han and Soochow in "The Romance of the Three Kingdoms".
In real history, Lu Su, who was called a "genius" by Chen Shou, the author of "Three Kingdoms", was definitely not like this. Everyone is familiar with Zhuge Liang's "Longzhong Dui". Let's look at this again: "The Han Dynasty cannot be revived, and Cao Cao cannot be eliminated. For the general's plan, the only way to stand in the east of the Yangtze River is to watch the world's provocations!" - This is Lu Su's response to Sun Quan! Do the analysis!
How does it compare to "Longzhong Dui"?
Liu Bei borrowed money from Jingzhou without repaying it, and the relationship between Soochow and Shu Han suddenly became tense. Zhou Yu died early, and Guan Yu led his army to the city. At the same time, Cao Cao may send his troops south again at any time to make a comeback... Baling (the ancient name of Yueyang) suddenly became The center of the whirlpool of the struggle between the three forces! Under this situation, Lu Su was appointed as the naval commander and stationed troops here. Governor Lu chose the wide Dongting Lake at the foot of Mount Baqiu as a base for training the navy. He built a Qiao tower near the water for training and commanding the navy. It was named the Yuejun Tower - this was the predecessor of the Yueyang Tower.
Whether due to natural disasters or man-made disasters, the Yueyang Tower has been repeatedly destroyed and repaired, and thousands of years have passed. By the Ming Dynasty, the Yueyang Tower built on the west wall of Yuezhou no longer had military significance. It had become a scenic spot for tourists to linger around, watch the mountains, admire the water, splash ink and write poems.
However, today, despite the risk of encountering lake pirates, Song Shiyong (also known as Ziji), the prefect of Changde, traveled all the way across Dongting Lake to meet with Feng Zhen (also known as Maoqin), the prefect of Yuezhou. This was not because of any poetry. In a leisurely mood, the two prefects received official documents signed by the Chief Envoy Li Linyang (also known as Ruzhen) and the Inspector-General Teng Shiheng (also known as Qinqing) - in fact, there are more than one, including the Baling Guards of Yuezhou and the Wuling Guards of Changde. , also received orders from Jin Yuanchun (alias Youxia), commander of the Huguang capital... Originally, Yu Anqi (alias Xianchang), the prefect of Changsha, was also going to come, but he was blocked in Xiangyin because of a mountain flood that washed away the official road.
There was a governor named Kou Shiyi in Huguang. However, no one in the entire Huguang officialdom, including Mr. Kou himself, took this title seriously. In just a few decades from the Xuande Dynasty to the present, more than a dozen people have been changed back and forth like a revolving door - and it is not just the change of people, but the position of governor of Huguang itself. It is set up today and will be withdrawn tomorrow, and people are always replaced from time to time in the middle. The longest one didn’t even last two years. Therefore, all affairs in Huguang are still decided by the two masters of the feudal clan. Mr. Kou is very sensible: he accepts all the rules and etiquette that should be paid, and pushes all the big and small things to "turn it over to Mr. Li and Mr. Teng", so that he can be at ease. As for the big plans for next year, Mr. Kou won't worry about it. Mr. Kou told his friends in private: "I won't give you a cent! Why? I don't do anything, so everything is good! You can't give a bad review to your staff, right? Anyway, they will be transferred to another place. It’s also possible to implement real power, which is what I wanted, just right!”
Upstairs, the two prefects Feng and Song each held official documents and were speculating on the true intentions of the adults of the Third Division of Huguang.
"All prefectures, prefectures, and counties are under the order of Lord Jian, Governor of Yunyang! It has not been a day since private salt from Sichuan and Chongqing entered Hubei. Refugees from the four provinces have been flooding in, causing long-term disaster. As a parent, you must know that it is time to repay God's kindness. , I live up to the expectations of the common people, how can I allow Xiaoxiao to wreak havoc and cause harm to our Huguang? The holy grace is widespread, the virtue is touched by heaven; the officers and soldiers are vigorous, and the righteous people are enthusiastic. In the ten months of Fubiao, more than 2 million kilograms of Sichuan private goods have been seized, and they will be ready They were sent to various places to serve as officials one after another. As soon as the fury of thunder was unleashed, snakes and rats fought in terror, and there were many people rushing to surrender! The warriors who were guarding the standard were excited, and the tigers and wolves in the guard were fighting. In a few days, the courtyard was plowed and the caves were swept, and the great work was completed with a battle. ; The heavenly soldiers will destroy the bandits, and the public security will last forever. Master Fu Zun swore: Sichuan private oaths will be eradicated, and the homeless people must be eliminated. The number of people who have been confiscated as officials is more than tens of millions, which is expected? The official villages of various prefectures, states, and counties It is necessary to prepare early. We also heard that there is an overflow of illicit salt in the Huaihe River, and lawbreakers are either entraining or carrying it privately, and even those who forge evidence are running rampant. The Deputy General of Xiangyang has been sent to Xiangyang to have full authority to ban it. This order is issued to all places and is notified to the military and civilians. Everyone is aware of it!"
Song Shiyong read the official document loudly, and then looked at Feng Zhen intently: "Brother Mao Qin, what do you think?"
Feng Zhen smiled: "Parallel 4 and Parallel 6, the voice is full of emotion and impassioned, it's almost time to write a petition against rebellion, it's well written!"
Song Shiyong smiled bitterly: "Brother Mao Qin, don't fight, haha, you know that's not what I asked."
Feng Zhen stared at Song Shiyong: "Brother Ziji, do you believe this? Brother, I worked on water transportation for a few days in the early years. Let me first make a calculation for Brother Ziji: an ordinary water ship can almost load More than a thousand stones, that is, about 150,000 to 200,000 kilograms. Note that it costs more than five thousand taels to build. It requires "one inspection of the wood, two inspections of the boards, three inspections of the bottom, four inspections of the beams, and five inspections." A nine-inspection official ship with stacks, six-inspection nails, seven-inspection seams, eight-inspection warehouses, and nine-inspection cabins! What private salt dealer can build such a ship? Even if it can be built, it can pass through the Qutang Gorge and Wuhan Gorge? Brother Ziji, please don’t stare for now, listen to me. If it is a normal harvest, such a large number must go by water! If it is taken by dry road, how many people will be picked up if each person picks a stone? Twenty thousand! We won’t tell you. Who can organize 20,000 salt disciples in one go? Let’s just say how many people there are in Master Fu Zun’s Fu Biao. Five hundred beat 20,000, and they won! Do you believe this? They checked two million kilograms in one go. This clearly intercepted a fleet! Then again, is there a water camp in Fubiao? Well, since it said that officials will be recruited from various places one after another, why don’t I believe it! A blind cat will also encounter a dead mouse. , right? So I guess, this is the internal strife of the salt lords, and Fubiao, with the help of the informant, directly dug out the den of thieves! 'Those who rush to surrender will never stop', didn't Master Fuzun say it clearly! That's all. .”
Song Shiyong said: "According to what Brother Mao Qin said, it's completely possible! Anyway, they will be sent one after another... I'm not struggling with the number two million. I mean the following words, 'It's not just a mere tens of millions', I mean That's the sentence! What does it mean? We need to 'make preparations in advance for the government offices, prefectures, and counties'? How can we prepare early? The officials and villages will sell as much as they send! There must be something in the words, right? "
"What are you talking about? A farmer was plowing the fields, and a rabbit was chased out by a fox in the forest. He hit his head against a tree and died. So the farmer was so happy that he waited all day to pick up the dead rabbit and eat it..."
"Brother Mao Qin, I can tell you the story of 'waiting for the rabbit' when I was four years old," Song Shiyong interrupted Feng Zhen's complaint, "You mean, Lord Fu Zun is like this farmer, who was dazzled by an accidental victory. …”
"What else?" Feng Zhen said disapprovingly, "Two million catties, the official price is 20 to tens of thousands taels, right? Private salt prices are low, half as low, more than 100,000 taels! Which salt lord can bear this all at once? Such a heavy blow? Even if people escape, carrying brine, cooking and drying, pressing bricks, and packing... all require people, time, and money! How can we continue to maintain production? Even the stove has been lifted. Now, are you still waiting to continue eating the hot food?"
Song Shiyong said again: "That's not right! Now that Mr. Jian has said it, I think it won't be that simple. By the way, Brother Mao Qin just analyzed that it is the internal strife of the salt owl. A helped Mr. Jian beat B, then It’s time for A to become bigger! What Master Jian said, could it be that you are waiting for free hands to continue to make plans for A? "
Feng Zhen did not answer immediately. She picked up the tea cup and sipped Junshan Silver Needle, looked at Song Shiyong with a smile, and then asked, "What would you do if Brother Ziji encountered such a thing?"
Song Shiyong thought for a moment and laughed in sudden realization.
Feng Zhen said with a smile: "That's right! We are happy to see the internal strife among the salt lords. We want to lead the way and dig out the den, which is what we want! After digging out B, it is normal to kill A as well! If it were you and me, change This is the case for anyone. To achieve Futai, Mr. Jian can only use much more aggressive methods than us. How can he be worse than you and me? Brother Yiyu looks at it, these two million pounds are probably from two families, or even Goods from three families!”
Song Shiyong picked up the tea cup and said: "Brother Mao Qin, I would like to offer tea instead of wine. I would like to pay my respects to Brother Mao Qin first."
After taking a sip, Song Shiyong thought of something again: "Something's still wrong! According to Brother Mao Qin's analysis, Lord Jian was really overwhelmed by the joy he got this time..."
"Ahem, students are brave, please forgive me." The person who interrupted Song Shiyong was a middle-aged scribe sitting next to him. This was Feng Zhen's Shuqi master Miao Mulin (written by Ben Run) ).
Song Shiyong had a very good personal relationship with Feng Zhen and Yu Anqi. He had known Master Miao for a long time that he was a great talent. Unfortunately, he was unlucky and failed in many trials, so he turned to Feng Zhen in frustration. The official documents that passed through his hands were watertight, and were highly valued by Magistrate Feng. Immediately responded: "Mr. Miao, please don't be polite. Please help Mr. Song to clear up your doubts. Mr. Song is all ears."
Feng Zhen's relationship with Miao Mulin was much closer, and she said curiously: "Brother Benrun, you have read this letter many times, maybe something suddenly occurred to you..."
Miao Mulin replied: "Go back to Mr. Song, go back to my boss. The students have read the official letter several times, and they were puzzled at first. But just now I heard my boss say that Mr. Jian has done a lot to Futai, and his methods are much more ruthless, and he silently thought in his heart again. After thinking about it over and over again, I seem to have come up with something unexpectedly, so I’m not presumptuous..."
"Brother Benrun, Ziji is not an outsider. You know our relationship. Stop using the polite words and get to the point." Feng Zhen urged.
"Yes. The student suddenly thought of a few things. You two adults can judge." Miao Mulin said carefully, "We saw that the official letter was all about Jian Fuzun, so we decided in our hearts that it was Jian Fuzun relayed by Fan Zhen. According to this idea, it is difficult to understand the meaning of your respect. However, if you change the way of thinking, what if this letter was originally intended to support the feudal lord?"
"First of all, everyone knows the background of Guanbu, which is entrenched in northern Hubei. Logically speaking, it should be Master Jian who feels the thorn in his back, right? There are no outsiders here, so the student just said so. With this knife on his back, next year's big plan, Normally, Master Jian must do everything possible to leave the place of right and wrong! Is this the truth? The seizure of two million kilograms of illegal salt at once is certainly a resounding achievement, but in this way, Master Jian can still leave. What?! Needless to say, the Sacred Heart is overjoyed with praises, and I really hope that Mr. Jian will continue to work hard. If the officials are replaced... Let’s not talk about who is sitting on this brazier and who is scolding in his heart. If the Holy Master’s expectations are not met, the officials will Aren’t the adults asking for the wrath of Thunder? Master Jian would never think of this!"
"That makes sense!"
"Go on."
The two prefects said almost simultaneously.
Miao Mulin cleared his throat and mentally sorted out his thoughts. Upon seeing this, Feng Zhen handed the official letter in his hand to Feng Zhen: "Brother Benrun, look at this and speak slowly. Ziji and I will read a copy."
"Well, thank you, Mr. Master. Just now, the student said that he should follow Fan Zhenzun's thinking. To put it bluntly, even if Mr. Jian is negligent for a moment, could it be that the two masters are... ahem, confused at the same time? It can be counted in tens of millions. It's not a small amount, but judging by the tone, it's more than that! 'The government offices of all prefectures, states, and counties must make preparations early!' How to prepare? Free up all the official warehouses and wait to collect the private goods that Mr. Jian will confiscate in the future? Then Where to put the salt from Lianghuai River? If Mr. Jian doesn't find out, it will be a laughing stock. Are Mr. Li and Mr. Teng willing to join in and be laughed at? What will everyone say in private? "Old Jian throws it away After getting a mallet, Li and Teng hurriedly sewed needles? Who can be an ordinary person who can become a frontier official? In Huguang, the governors change like a revolving door, no one can stay, not Li and Teng. A man with deep roots and lush trees? The Lord Kou in Wuchang Mansion in front of him can't give orders. How can they help Master Jian who is far away in Yunyang? This will definitely not be the case! Look at the back, "the two Huaihe Rivers are flooded with private salt"... ...What's the matter with Lianghuai Qianjian? What Governor Yunyang wants to investigate are the private refugees in Sichuan! Besides, the Lianghuai salt field is exclusively for Huguang, where is the need for a lot of private salt? How much can be brought in? Here, the two statues of Fan Zhen Obviously he is using Jian Zun's name to express his own meaning! Looking further down, there is a saying that "the Deputy General of Xiangyang Guan has full authority to ban". That surnamed Guan, even Tang Fan... well, there are such rumors, it is Can you listen to Lord Jian, or will you listen to Lord Li and Lord Teng? If it weren't for a few people colluding in private, oh no, it's been discussed, who would bring him in openly!" Miao Mulin looked at the mouth of the official letter. Go on and on.
Feng and Song were stunned when they heard this, and they all wiped the cold sweat from their foreheads with their sleeves.
Miao Mulin thought to himself and said: "Looking at the front and back, Tengguancang, Sichuan private property, and Huaiyan salt inspection, well, 'How can we allow Xiaoxiao to wreak havoc and cause trouble in our Huguang'... Let the person surnamed Guan do the inspection! Du Siguan The government also issued this order to each guard station. The students remember that it was, "Every guard station, thousands, and hundred stations must obey orders as one." Look at this again, "Sichuan private oaths will be put to an end, and refugee affairs must be eradicated." Master Jian clearly meant this. If you want to continue to serve as governor of Yunyang, do you have any intention of leaving? No need to doubt it, the adults must have discussed it with Guan! From now on, don’t think about Huaiyan, the adults are just waiting to sell Sichuan Salt it.”
Feng and Song looked at each other with astonishment on their faces.
For a long time, Song Shiyong muttered: "It's hard to disobey your destiny. But... if Huaiyan is gone... Oh!" At the end of the sentence, he sighed heavily.
Feng Zhen also looked solemn and glanced at Miao Mulin, who handed the official letter back as if casually. Feng Zhen subconsciously reached out to take it, but Master Miao didn't let go. Feng Zhen raised her head and glanced at him again, and saw Miao Mulin scanning the letter in his hand with a smile in his eyes before letting go, so he carefully examined the place where Master Miao's fingers had pinched, and couldn't help but smile: "Brother Benrun Talent! I admire you, I admire you!" Then he turned to Song Shiyong and said: "Ziji, don't worry. To be honest, Brother Yu also has some hope for Huaiyan. But look," he said the words in his mouth, and in his hand He pointed to that place and said, "'Heaven's army will destroy the bandits, and we will ensure peace and order for a long time'! If we want it for a long time, we must raise troops, recruit courage, collect food, and cultivate martial arts... There is money everywhere. Of course, the adults know our difficulties and have helped us a long time ago. Let’s lay an ambush! Haha.”
After all, Song Shiyong was also a high-ranking member of the party. He understood immediately and answered with a smile: "Oh my God! Your Excellency is your Excellency! These short two hundred words may seem insignificant at first glance, but after careful consideration, they are really worthy of the title. It’s every word of pearl!”
"Of course. Otherwise, how can it be possible that several people can be officials in the border areas, and we have to worry about getting a state capital all day long? Hahahaha."
Feng Zhen turned to Miao Mulin and said: "Brother Benrun, Yu Xianchang of Changsha Mansion is currently blocked in Xiangyin. There are also sensible people in the neighboring mansions - if they don't understand, they won't do anything about us. We must always work together to advance and retreat together. This matter is too big to be stated clearly in official documents, and I don't trust others. Even if I go and speak, there is no weight. After dinner later, please take a trip and tell Brother Xian. Let’s be transparent.”
"I'll go too. Ben Run can take my boat."
Shopkeeper Tan of Dongtingxuan was extremely happy: The magistrate must have written a good poem today and showed his face in front of Lord Song of Changde - as soon as the food and drinks were served, he threw out five taels of silver ingots. Reward it.
Knowledge points in this article.
*During the Ming Dynasty, the area of Dongting Lake was much larger than today, stretching from Changde in the west to Yuezhou in the east and Xiangyin in the south. Therefore, it was most convenient for Song Shiyong to come by boat.
*The tomb of Lu Su is also in Yueyang, not far from Yueyang Tower.
Beiyang Cao Kun once rebuilt Lu Su's tomb and carved a stone record: 1698 years ago, the 22nd year of Jian'an in the Han Dynasty, Lu Su, the general on the Eastern Wu Dynasty, died here. The people of Baling buried him here because of his virtue. When I was in Yueyang, I passed by his tomb and wanted to see him as a human being, so I lingered over him. There was a pavilion in the old tomb, which was too obscene to allow people to visit, so I repaired it and inscribed it with the following inscription: "He was a man of public morality, he died here, and he was buried here." Woohoo, fair enough for eternity!
There are couplets on the tomb:
Helping the emperor to kill Cao Cao, what he saw on Xun Yu
Serving Wu and being close to Han people has the same intention as Marquis Wu.
——I don’t know if this couplet was written by President Cao, but I’m just guessing that President Cao was a cloth dealer and was relatively poor at reciting poems and writing couplets. He might have been ghostwritten by his staff. If so... President Cao’s aides also watched "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" instead of "Romance of the Three Kingdoms"! ^_^
In addition, the word "Zhi" in the last sentence of "And bury him here" is not appropriate - of course, it can barely make sense without being far-fetched and interpreted as a modal particle. However, it seems better to remove it to avoid being The misunderstanding of the third person.
