While Zhao Xin was busy bickering with the Spaniards, in the early morning of November 8, 1794, thousands of miles away in Liaodong Bay, a flat-bottomed sailing ship with a load of about 700 stones, sailed through the sky in the fine snow. Slowly sailed into Matigou Port, thirty-five miles southeast of Jinzhou City.
Located at the mouth of Xiaoling River, it was one of the four most important commercial ports in Liaodong Bay in the mid-Qing Dynasty. The other three places are Tianqiao Changgang, which is seventy miles southwest of Jinzhou City and is known as the "West Sea Coast"; the other two places are Mogouying and Genglongtun, which are located across the bay and belong to Niuzhuang.
In the late nineteenth century in another time and space, with the rise of Yingkou Port and the opening of the Beijing-Fenghuang Railway, the two seaports in Jinzhou also declined.
Because the two seaports are not far apart, starting from the Kangxi era, in order to facilitate management, the Qing government required merchant ships from Fujian, Guangdong, Jiangsu and Zhejiang to dock at Tianqiao Factory, while Matigou was the docking place for merchant ships from Zhili and Shandong.
In addition, the two ports also differ in the types of import and export of goods. Tianqiao Factory imports mostly medicinal materials and tea from the south, and exports soybeans and melon seeds. Since Matigou only docks northern merchant ships, the imports are mainly wheat, and the exports are cereals produced in western Liaoning.
On the deck, the bowman Zha Laoliu shouted a few instructions to the helmsman, then hurriedly walked into the lower cabin, came to the door of a cabin, and knocked rhythmically on the door panel a few times.
With a "squeak" sound, the door opened a gap inward. Standing behind the door was a strong man with broad shoulders and a round waist. When he saw that the person coming was the bow of a ship, he ducked to let him in.
In the fairly spacious cabin, there is an Eight Immortals table and three square stools placed close to the left bulkhead. In addition to the tea set, there is also a kerosene horse lantern produced in Beihai Town on the table. The bright lights make the room very bright. . Beyond the Eight Immortals' table, there are two camphor wood boxes for carrying clothes and luggage; on the right side of the room, there is a carved elm wood Arhat bed against the wall, with bedding piled randomly on it.
Beside the Eight Immortals table, a middle-aged man in his thirties was smoking a white copper dry tobacco pipe commonly known as the "Jing Ba Cun". Seeing the bow of the boat coming in, he asked calmly: "What's the situation?"
This person has a long and thin face, high cheekbones, a mustache, a Liuheyi hat on his head, a maroon Beijing-style high-collar robe, an azure Batulu waistcoat, and a belt. There are also beautifully embroidered purses and sachets hanging on it, and she wears a pair of black cloth shoes with thousand-layer soles.
After entering the door, Zha Laoliu was about to bow to the middle-aged man, when he saw the man wave his hand and said in a hoarse voice: "No need, I have something to say."
Zha Laoliu bowed and said with concern: "Mr. Zhang, we are about to dock. According to the new regulations here, the Beihai soldiers will first board the ship to inspect the people and goods, and then we can disembark after the completion."
"Yeah. There won't be any surprises, right?"
"Don't worry, I've already made three trips after the August Festival. When you do the interrogation later, don't stuff money into the Beihai soldiers. Someone has done this before, and they were caught and imprisoned for two days before being released. come out."
"I've noted it down. Go ahead and get going." The middle-aged man named Zhang nodded.
Half an hour later, when the ship entered the berth and had just lowered the anchor line and set up the gangplank, two Beihai navy men with revolvers on their waists and a guy wearing a gray cotton robe and a leather hat walked onto the deck from the Narcissus Gate.
With a smile on his face, Zha Laoliu stepped forward and bowed to the three of them, saying, "Excuse me, sir."
The two Beijun soldiers didn't say anything. The guy in the leather hat raised his hand in a perfunctory manner and said, "Zha Laoliu, your grain business is doing well. This is the fourth trip since the August Festival. Alright?"
Zha Laoliu explained: "Mr. Ma, the price of food on the market in Tianjin is almost the same every two days, and the number of homeless people begging outside the city is almost over 5,000. Our boss wants to buy another boat of sorghum before the sea freezes. Alas! This winter is going to be difficult. How many people may starve to death."
It is said that Tianjin has been sparsely populated since the late Ming Dynasty. Because of the large amount of saline-alkali land, even in good harvest years there was not enough food for the people. Therefore, starting from the Kangxi period, after the merchants pleaded, the imperial court issued dragon tickets to allow local merchants to sail to Liaodong to buy Sorghum, millet and other miscellaneous grains.
After the Northern Navy launched the Liaodong Offensive, the government and the public were shocked. Jiaqing, who had just succeeded to the throne, hurriedly transferred the Eight Banners from Beijing and the Green Camp from Zhili and Shanxi to Shanhaiguan for garrison. He also transferred the Green Camp from Henan and Jiangsu into Shandong to ensure water transportation. Such a large-scale military operation naturally requires a large-scale purchase of food locally, which also caused the price of food in Zhili and Western Shandong areas to skyrocket.
Although the Qing government has repeatedly ordered the coastal provinces to ban maritime trade and Beihai town trade in recent years, the level of corruption in the administration of officials in various places within the customs has become very serious.
With the help of Mr. He's many years of "hard work", the Manchu officialdom in the late Qianlong period was filled with incompetent and mediocre people, and corruption, bribery, and bending the law for personal gain were common. Especially in the face of the situation where the building is about to collapse, the official circles from the capital to the local level are all mercenary, even to the point of blatant. The newly arrived local officials are like hungry tigers emerging from the forest, and they can't wait. Therefore, as long as there is enough oil and water, officials in coastal provinces, roads, prefectures, and counties will turn a blind eye to the behavior of maritime merchants.
Chuanfou Cha Laoliu is such a character. His owner is a famous wealthy family in Tianjin - the Shuixi Cha family.
The Cha family started out as a salt dealer and became a wealthy man in the capital during the Ming Dynasty. During the reign of Yongzheng, Zha Siting was convicted by Yongzheng on the grounds of "rebellion in examination questions" for participating in Longkodo's clique. The Cha family in Tianjin also suffered a great disaster because they had the same origin as the Cha family in Haining. However, he continued to operate the salt industry after the incident and his wealth remained unchanged.
The Manchu Qing Dynasty had strict management of the salt industry. Not only did they set up salt affairs yamen, but the affiliated salt merchant organizations were also well-established. The salt merchant organizations in each district have different names for the people involved. Guangdong, Guangxi and Huaihe are called "general merchants", Shandong is called "Gangtou", Zhili is called "Gangzong", and the Cha family is the Gangzong of the Changlu area.
As the person in charge of the regional salt merchants, the government-run water vessels of the Salt Merchant Yamen would be managed and operated by him; with the qualification to sail ships, he would naturally have the confidence to participate in maritime trade. In recent years, the price of food in the north has soared, and the Cha family's boat has also been running between Jinzhou and Tianjin, making a lot of money. Even though the Beihai Navy occupied Jinzhou, the Cha family's ship still had the courage to sneak out in both directions.
By the way, just like the descendants of Yangzhou salt merchants, the descendants of the Cha family are also highly educated and keen on building gardens. In "Suiyuan Shihua", Yuan Mei called Cha's Shuixi Villa, Yangzhou Xiaolinglong Villa and Hangzhou Xiaoshan Hall "the three major private gardens of the Qing Dynasty".
However, Zha Laoliu came to Jinzhou this time to buy grain, but in fact he had an important task.
Eight days ago, the head of the Cha family, Zha Shanchang, summoned him to Yangliuqing's mansion, introduced Mr. Zhang in person, and asked him to go to Jinzhou again, in the name of buying grain, to deliver Mr. Zhang ashore safely, and then bring him back. Return to Tianjin Port.
Zha Shanchang did not say who his surname was Zhang, but Zha Laoliu could see that Zha Shanchang was very polite and respectful to Mr. Zhang. Coupled with the fact that the other party spoke Beijing Mandarin and dressed in a fashionable manner, he guessed that he might be a relative or housekeeper of a high-ranking official in Beijing, and he went to Jinzhou to establish a relationship with Beihai Town and do business.
In order to fulfill the owner's instructions, Zha Laoliu not only gave up his cabin for Master Zhang to live in, but also asked the chef to cook carefully for him alone. However, Mr. Zhang’s focus was obviously not on living and eating. During the past few days at sea, apart from asking about some things about Matigou Customs, he would either sleep soundly in the cabin or go up to the deck to blow air and smoke, and often He frowned, looking worried.
The landing inspection was over in less than a stick of incense. After all, the Cha family's ship has been here many times, both the personnel and the ship have been registered, and there has never been any violation record.
Mr. Zhang and his men were also said by Cha Laoliu to be the new accountant of the Cha family responsible for the sea trade business, and they passed the inspection smoothly. Having said that, if they want to go ashore, they must first go to the customs to apply for a temporary identity card. Otherwise, let alone go to Jinzhou City, they will not even be able to stay in an inn on the dock.
However, when Zha Laoliu finished arranging things on the ship and then took Mr. Zhang and his servants to Matigou Customs to apply for identity cards, an accident happened. The man surnamed Zhang just walked into the customs yard. After learning from Zha Laoliu the location of the customs official's office, he actually walked towards it.
Zha Laoliu wanted to dissuade him, but the strong man following Mr. Zhang raised his hand and stopped him. He was so anxious that he didn't know what to do.
The person in charge of Matigou Customs, whose surname is Ma, used to be a small supervisor of the Ministry of Trade in Anping Port; according to the new civil service system of Beihai Town, he belongs to the fifteenth level. After the Jinzhou Military Control Commission was established, it was transferred here to prepare and manage the local customs and collect import and export taxes.
Although Mr. Zhang broke in forcefully, he did not dare to break in outside the official room door. He stood at the bottom of the two steps and pricked up his ears. He heard someone talking in the room, so he straightened his clothes a little, held up his hat, took two deep breaths, bowed politely and said: "Zhang Yonghe, a native of Beijing." , I was entrusted by someone to ask you to see the government official if you have something to ask for!"
His loud roll call brought an abrupt end to the whispers in the room. After an excruciating ten seconds, the half door of the office room suddenly opened inward, and a middle-aged man in his thirties walked out. This person is the director of Matigou Customs.
"What's the matter with you?" Chief Ma is from Yangzhou, and his accent is mixed with a Yangzhou accent.
Zhang Yonghe raised his head and saw that the other party was wearing a grass green "coat" divided into two pieces, and the top had four pockets. Based on his limited understanding of Beihai Town, he knew that all officials wore jackets with four pockets, so he bowed and bowed again: "I am Zhang Yonghe, a native of Beijing. This time I came to Jinzhou to receive the invitation from an important official in the court. As requested, there is a letter to be delivered to Lord Zhangyin of your army in Jinzhou."
After saying these words in one breath, a layer of white sweat appeared on Zhang Yonghe's forehead and neck, and his heart beat loudly. The reason why he broke into trouble this time was because he couldn't help it.
Because I had an important mission, time was tight, and I didn't know anyone here in Beihai Town, so when I was on the ship, I kept thinking about what to do after landing.
Originally, he thought of doing this after going to Jinzhou City, but he was worried that the military control in Beihai Town would be as tightly guarded as the imperial yamen. If someone kicked him out, he would miss important events, and he couldn't afford to waste time. After much thought, I made a decision.
The middle-aged man on the steps looked at Zhang Yonghe and blinked. It took him a while to realize what "Lord Palm Print" meant, and he suddenly felt dumbfounded. He was about to ask someone to kick Zhang Yonghe out when he heard someone in the room behind him say loudly: "It just so happens that I'm here today. Lao Ma, please let him in."
Ma Guanchang slapped his forehead and thought to himself: How could I have forgotten this great god? This matter is under his control!
Zhang Yonghe carefully crossed the threshold and walked into the official room. Because it was snowing outside, a bright lantern was lit on the table inside the house, illuminating everything in the surroundings. Only then did he notice that the person who spoke before was actually a young man in his twenties.
This man is of medium build, has long and delicate eyebrows, but his skin color is somewhat dark. He was wearing a dark blue robe and a gray buttoned mandarin jacket. He had a slight beard under his chin, and his head was actually bare. He looked like a young master from a wealthy family.
Zhang Yonghe looked at the young man blankly, feeling that he looked familiar, but he couldn't remember where he had seen him before. In the midst of doubts, Chief Ma said to the young man: "You guys talk, you guys talk, I'll go around the port. If you need something, just shout. People outside the yard can hear it."
The young man laughed and said, "Old Ma, what do you think I am? Besides, Lao Zhang is here."
Zhang Yonghe turned his head following the young man's gaze and saw a lean man sitting behind the desk in the corner of the office room. He was wearing a bun and sitting upright with his sleeves on his hands, but his eyes were staring at him like an eagle, and he couldn't help but Shivered.
After Chief Ma went out, he closed the door. The young man did not sit down, but took a clean tea bowl from the table, grabbed some tea leaves from the tea box, then carefully picked up the steaming kettle on the cast iron stove and made a cup of tea. Then he placed the tea cup on the Eight Immortals table, and then motioned to Zhang Yonghe to sit down.
Zhang Yonghe saw that the other party was making tea with ease, and thought to himself that if this young man changed his clothes and put a white towel on his arm, he would look like a waiter in a teahouse.
Wait a minute, the waiter is right! At Tianhuixuan in the southeast corner of the Back Gate Bridge, there is a waiter from Yangzhou who looks exactly like him! At the beginning of spring, he spent time in the teahouse from morning to night every day, and the two of them would sometimes have a little banter. Later, He Shen defected and the capital was under martial law. He has not been seen since then. I heard from the shopkeeper that his relatives in the capital found other ways to make a living.
Seeing the sudden change in Zhang Yonghe's expression, the young man smiled slightly, looked into the other person's eyes and said, "Master Yong, we haven't seen each other for a while. What's the matter? Why are you here in Jinzhou instead of going to Tianhuixuan to drink tea and talk about the mountains? "
"Zhang Yonghe" looked at the young man in disbelief, and after a moment he said in surprise: "Are you Guisheng?"
The young man nodded slightly and said, "Okay! Mr. Yong, you haven't forgotten it yet."
"Why are you here? Ah! I know!" Yonghe reacted instantly, opening his mouth wide enough to stuff a steamed bun. Don't tell me, the other party must be from Beihai Town.
This young man is none other than Shen Guisheng, who was the servant of Shen Jingdan's family and later became Zhao Xin's lackey! It's just that Baiyuncanggou, the jumping little follower back then, is now the head of the Northern Navy Intelligence Bureau's front line in Jinzhou.
The reason why Guisheng lurked in Tianhuixuan Teahouse a few days ago was to get an extremely important account book from Li Qiucheng. Although Dong Xinchen, the shopkeeper of "Huang Shengtai" on Qianmenwai Street, could collect and deliver the goods on his behalf, the Intelligence Bureau was worried that there would be more risks in passing through one more layer, so Guisheng used other channels to work as a waiter in Tianhuixuan, working directly with Li Qiucheng touch.
"I work for Beihai Town, is there anything strange about it?" Shen Guisheng ignored the other party's surprised expression, but said with a half-smile: "But you, Mr. Yong, why did you choose a Han surname to deceive others? Tell me, Who entrusted you and what letter did you send?"
When Yong He was about to speak, Shen Guisheng suddenly raised his hand to stop him and said, "Well, let me guess first to see if what I said is right. Don't mind if I am wrong.
Your mother was the wet nurse of Prince Jia Yongyan. From this point of view, you, Mr. Yong Er, are his wet nurse. Now that Prince Jia has succeeded to the throne, your family's status is naturally extraordinary and will definitely rise.
You said outside just now that you were entrusted by an adult in the court to deliver a message. Well, you can make the emperor's nanny come to Jinzhou in the snow. Not to mention the Manchu and Han ministers, even the prince is not qualified. So, you are helping Jiaqing deliver the letter, right? "
Guisheng has been following Zhao Xin for several years. He has learned nothing else but Zhao Xin's tone and demeanor.
"Who are you?" Yonghe's eyes suddenly widened, as if he had seen a ghost, and the other party actually guessed it right. In panic, more sweat broke out on his forehead.
"Don't be nervous, Mr. Yong." Shen Guisheng said calmly: "I forgot to introduce myself. Shen Guisheng worked for Prince Zhao ten years ago. I went to Beijing to perform a mission before, and I was able to get to know Mr. Yong. I am lucky to be born. Hahaha~~"
Jinzhou has a saying of "three mountains and three rivers" since ancient times. The three mountains are Nanshan Mountain, Beiputuo Mountain and Zijing Mountain, and the three rivers are Xiaoling River, Nuerhe River and Baigun River.
