Yang Yinjiang can count on one hand the number of times she has taken boat rides in her life.
She used to go boating on the Wei River and was quite used to it, but now she is having a hard time on the Yangtze River.
Therefore, she became seasick and vomited almost every day. Even so, she still managed to get to the bow of the ship and enjoy the scenery on both sides of the river.
Because she had never seen such a scene before.
When the Sui Dynasty destroyed Chen Dynasty, the main force of the Sui Dynasty was a bunch of landlubbers, so Yang Su built a five-tooth ship based on the characteristics of the northerners who were not accustomed to water.
The building has five floors, more than a hundred feet high, a full 35 meters high and a total length of 55 meters. Driving on the Yangtze River, it looks like a giant on the river.
The Wuya ship is large and has a stable hull, so it can withstand wind and waves. It can accommodate 900 soldiers. There are six shooting poles on the left and right, like six large oars.
The shooting pole uses the ship's side as the fulcrum, with a boulder tied to the outward end, and a winch set inward. After encountering an enemy ship, the soldiers turn the winch to pull up the shooting pole, and then use the principle of leverage to stand down and line up the end of the pole with the boulder tied to it. Fall quickly and smash into surrounding enemy ships.
Most of the old navy ships were small boats, which could not withstand such a smashing.
In the water war that year, the five Wuya ships lost by the Sui Dynasty were all damaged because the old and Chen naval forces broke through the periphery and hit the hull with a fire ship formation.
This can be regarded as one thing defeating one thing.
Yang Ming's fleet has sufficient supplies, so there is no need to stop the ship for supplies. Passing through Baling County and heading north along the Yangtze River is Jiangxia County.
The person in charge of Jiangxia County is Yang Yinjiang's biological father, Yang Xuangan.
So when the fleet passed by Jiangxia, Yang Yinjiang kept hiding in the cabin and did not dare to come out.
In fact, there was nothing to be afraid of. Yang Xuangan was not clairvoyant, so how could he discover his own daughter so easily.
After Yu Jiangxia turned into the Han River, the waterway became obviously narrower and had many twists and turns.
Taking the water route is easier and less bumpy, but it is also time-consuming.
Nine days later, Yang Ming and the others finally arrived at Xiangyang Pier.
Although most people in the Jingzhou area still call Xiangyang Xiangyang County, the administrative division of Xiangyang has actually been changed to Xiangzhou, and the chief official is Du Zha, the governor of Xiangzhou.
However, historically, after my father succeeded to the throne, it would still be changed to Xiangyang County. Anyway, the current situation is quite chaotic and it is difficult to distinguish between states and counties.
The post of governor was mostly appointed by Yang Jian, and most came from the Guanzhong Group.
This Du Zha was born in the Jingzhao Du family. Their ancestors held quite a few official positions in the Sui Dynasty, and almost all of them were lords.
Du Zha had a younger brother named Du Yan, who served as Minister of Civil Affairs during the reign of Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty. However, now, together with Wei Fusi, the second son of Wei Shikang, the first governor of Jingzhou, he was exiled to the south of the Yangtze River by Yang Jian.
The reason is that these two boys have high self-esteem and think they are quite capable. The Supreme Being likes to appoint hermits. Su Wei was conscripted into the court while he was living in seclusion. So the two of them got together and lived in seclusion in Zhongnan Mountain, waiting to be conquered. Call up.
After Yang Jian found out about the matter, he was furious. He felt that these two boys were just trying to gain fame and had no self-awareness, so he simply exiled himself to the south.
This exile is actually equivalent to being kicked out of the capital. You can find a cool place to stay, just not under my nose.
It won't be long before they can go back.
Du Zha, the governor of Xiangzhou, is not as famous as his younger brother in history, let alone his son.
Yes, he is Du Ruhui's biological father.
Du Ruhui is Yang Ming's primary purpose of coming to Xiangyang this time.
On the pier, Du Zha, who had received the news in advance, came to greet him early. Yang Ming did not intend to go to the city first. He wanted to go to the naval station to take a look while the sun was still early.
So Du Zha's convoy led the way and rushed to the navy station by land.
The ships are docked at the dock and have not been used for many years. Many of them look very old, and the naval base is not far from the shore.
Surrounding Yang Ming were Du Zha, the governor of Xiangzhou, Cai Ju, the general of the Xiangyang Hussar Prefecture, and a group of left-handed officers and captains, including Zhou Zhongmo.
Yang Ming stood on the pier, looking at the river, bleak
Said: "How many ships are there in the navy at the moment?"
Cavalry General Cai Ju hurriedly stepped forward and said, "Reporting to your highness, there are three Wuya boats, eleven Huanglong boats, thirty flat boats (large boats), and thirty-three grasshopper boats."
Yang Ming said: "How many can use it?"
Cai Ju swallowed her saliva and said, "After more than a month of maintenance, it can be used."
"More than a month of maintenance?" Yang Ming frowned and turned around: "In other words, if a war breaks out today, it will take a month for the Xiangyang Navy to sail?"
Cai Ju lowered his head and said, "The navy's maintenance funds are insufficient, and the general has no choice."
"Where are the funds?" Yang Ming asked again.
At this time, it was Du Zha who came out to explain: "The capital allocates only 110,000 guan to the navy every year. Apart from military training and salary, there is not much left. Among them, if the corroded wood of Wuya and Huanglong is replaced, it needs to be purchased from Badong. Transporting it alone would cost 150,000 guan, so we really don’t have the money.”
Yang Ming nodded.
Although the Sui Dynasty had a government military system, and more than half of the soldiers in the military government came from civilian military service, there were still many permanent soldiers in the military government.
110,000 guan is used for military pay, which is actually not much.
The reason why the imperial court did this was because the world was at peace and there was no use for river armies like this, so they only paid salaries but not maintenance fees because they knew that even if the maintenance money was paid, these people would not be able to use it. Will be used for maintenance.
"If it can be requisitioned at any time and available at any time, how much will it cost?" Yang Ming asked again.
Du Zha didn't know this, so he glanced at Cai Ju, who quickly said: "About 450,000 guan."
Damn...this is really a gold-eating beast.
When Yang Ming heard this figure, he also had a headache. Fortunately, more than 6,000 Qinglu fields were granted this year. The taxes on these fields were an extremely astonishing figure. In the future, some could be secretly allocated to the Xiangyang navy.
But this year is definitely out of the question, there is no money in the account.
Cleaning up a Wen family brought a large amount of tax revenue to Jiangling area, but Yang Ming knew that this kind of thing of killing the rich and giving to the poor should be done slowly. If it was done too frequently, it would cause trouble.
That night, Yang Ming accepted Du Zha's hospitality at the governor's mansion.
This is giving him face. A governor in Zhongxiazhou does not have such a big face, but if you have a good son, you will have this face.
On this occasion, Du Zha would definitely bring his son out to see the world.
So his two legitimate sons, Du Ruhui and Du Chuke, came to pay tribute to Yang Ming.
Du Ruhui is already an adult, sixteen years old this year, and Du Chuke and Yang Ming Tonggeng are thirteen years old this year.
"Is your eldest husband already married?" Yang Ming asked casually, as if chatting about family matters.
Du Zha hurriedly said: "Your Majesty, I am worried about you and we have not yet gotten married."
Du Ruhui was born in the Du family in Jingzhao, so Du Ruhui's future wife must be from a wealthy family, so she couldn't be any worse off.
However, there is no record in history where Du Ruhui's wife came from.
Yang Ming asked again: "Since he is an adult, why don't you choose a wife for him?"
"I haven't found the right one yet," Du Zha said.
Yang Ming joked and said, "Young man is in his prime of life and his temper is at its peak. In this case, I will reward you with a concubine."
Du Zha hurriedly said to his son, "Why don't you thank Your Highness for your grace?"
Du Ruhui thanked him honestly.
Yang Ming asked again: "Does your master have an official status now?"
"Not yet," Du Zha was overjoyed when he heard this, because he figured out Yang Ming's way of speaking.
If I ask if you have a wife, I will reward you with a concubine. If I ask you if you have an official status, I will probably reward you with an official.
So he added: "It will be a blessing for the dog to be able to serve His Highness."
Who is Yang Ming? The crown prince's third legitimate son, the future prince, if he doesn't fawn over him now, will there be another chance to fawn over him in the future?
Yang Ming nodded and smiled: "There are still a few vacancies in the General Manager's Office, so we might as well let you temporarily serve as the Household Cao, in charge of households, temples, and farming in Jingzhou."
Du Zha was overjoyed and hurriedly thanked his son.
Even though the Hu Cao in the General Manager's Office is only a seventh-rank servant, he has considerable power, because the administrative scope of this position covers the entire Jingzhou.
What's more, he is Yang Ming's closest minister and has a bright future.
Yang Ming actually didn't know whether Du Ruhui could do this job at the moment, but considering his status as a famous person in history, even if he couldn't adapt to it in a short time, he would gradually adapt to it.
He was sixteen years old, which was quite a big deal in the Sui Dynasty. Many people in the capital had already achieved titles at this age.
When Li Yuan was fifteen years old, he prepared a thousand cattle for Yang Jian.
At the age of nineteen, Yang Guang was already the commander-in-chief of an army of 500,000 people.
That night, Yang Ming spent the night at the governor's mansion. He planned to visit the navy station again, and then took Yang Yinjiang to play nearby.
Xiangyang occupies a pivotal position in the entire history of China. It is known as the southern boat and the northern horse, and the thoroughfare of seven provinces.
Coming out of here, there are countless stories that have been passed down through the ages, such as: visiting the thatched cottage three times and scraping bones to cure poison.
This is also the birthplace of the two great works of Chinese literature, The Book of Songs and The Songs of Chu.
In The Legend of Heroes, Guo Jing guards Xiangyang, and he guards it here. Although it is a reading, it also reflects Xiangyang's strategic position as the most important place on the Han River.
If you get Xiangyang, you can dominate the Han River. It can be seen that there is an inevitable reason for the navy to be placed in Xiangyang.
The next day, Yang Ming named Du Ruhui as his guide and took them out of the county to the surrounding scenic places.
On the way, Yang Ming specially called Du Ruhui into the carriage and asked with a smile:
"When you grew up, didn't your father Du Zha find a position for you in Daxing?"
Du Ruhui shook his head: "Back to Your Highness, there is a shortage in the capital, and it is not my turn."
If it's not your turn, will you follow Li Shimin to rebel? Yang Ming drew a big cake for him and said:
"If you have real talent and learning, I will never bury you."
Du Ruhui showed gratitude: "From now on, no one dares to disobey His Majesty's orders."
In his opinion, being able to serve as a subordinate official for Yang Ming is a great springboard, and he will surely succeed in the future.
People like him who have read the books of saints and sages all have this problem. They have great ambitions and are eager to prove their worth.
And there is one thing that Yang Min likes more about scholars: these people are more loyal.
This is because the Confucian ideas of "the king entrusts his ministers with courtesy, and the ministers serve the king with loyalty", "the king is the guide for his ministers, and the father is the guide for his sons" and "the king wants his ministers to die, and the ministers have to die" have been deeply engraved in them. in the bones.
