In late autumn of this year, Li Longji suddenly went out incognito to Hanjiacang in Luoyang and inspected the grain storage there.
After having an in-depth understanding of the operation process of the "seeing money method", Ji Ge lamented to Gao Lishi: "Zheng Shuqing is too talented to be the governor of Qizhou."
According to the customs of Tang Dynasty officialdom, the position of governor is very interesting. Going to certain big states to take up posts is definitely a promotion, such as Liangzhou, Yangzhou, Shuzhou, etc. This is the same even if he is transferred from the center.
Going to certain "lower states" usually means demotion, such as Yazhou, Gaozhou, etc.
In some states, it is only a temporary position, and most of it will not last long. For example, the position of governor of Qizhou has a strong transitional nature. Officials who serve as the governor of Qizhou are likely to be promoted or demoted in a short period of time.
But what Lao Zheng encountered this time was obviously not demotion.
After returning to the palace, Li Longji personally wrote an edict and promoted Zheng Shuqing to be the governor of Yangzhou. He also wrote a letter to Zheng Shuqing privately, asking him to supervise the production of silk and silk in Yangzhou and increase production volume.
Please be sure to cooperate with the transshipment envoy to transport as much silk as you can to Chang'an!
If this matter is handled well, he can be transferred back to Chang'an Center to serve.
After finishing this matter, Li Longji took Yang Yuhuan to take a boat trip along the canal of Luoyang. How happy he was!
Later, he accompanied Yang Yuhuan to visit the other party's third uncle Yang Xuangui's house.
This time Yang Yuhuan returned to Luoyang to visit Yang Xuangui, who was like his adoptive father, mainly to fulfill his filial piety and to offer gifts for his fiftieth birthday.
Yang Xuangui is not an ordinary person. He is a famous Liyuan musician since the Kaiyuan Dynasty. He has studied the sounds of various countries in the Western Regions and can be called a generation of Hu music masters. After getting tired of the life in the palace, he settled in Luoyang.
Because of this relationship, Brother Ji personally accompanied Yang Yuhuan on the tour incognito. After all, Yang Xuangui was also an old acquaintance.
Also celebrating Yang Xuangui’s birthday this time were Yang Yuhuan’s sisters and Yang Xuangui’s family. Yang Xuangui's fiftieth birthday was held grandly this year, and there were many guests at the banquet. And Li Longji's visit can be said to have given him enough face.
The emperor condescended to come because Yang Xuangui was once the master of the Liyuan! It's not because of Yang Yuhuan at all!
The two of them came together and just met by chance!
Everyone in the Yang family is saying this!
At the birthday banquet, Yang Yuhuan's eldest sister, third sister, and eighth sister were all equally beautiful and each had their own merits, which dazzled Li Longji.
However, Brother Ji had the dignity of an emperor and did not clarify his relationship with Yang Yuhuan, so he did not behave out of the ordinary at the birthday banquet.
He didn't even have time to talk to the Yang sisters, so he hurried back to Chang'an with Yang Yuhuan.
As soon as he arrived in Chang'an, Li Longji immediately summoned Chen Xuanli, and the two had a secret conversation in the main building of Qinzhengwu, but they didn't know what was going on.
Gao Lishi, on the other hand, was sent to Changle Station east of Chang'an, where he received Lei Haiqing, the "Flower and Bird Envoy" who had returned from Jiangnan and had a hard time traveling all the way.
Lei Haiqing is the actual manager of the Liyuan, and his relationship with Li Longji is very close and even private. The two used to study music theory together. Therefore, Brother Ji gave him a glorious and arduous task.
That is to help the saint go to Jiangnan to find women! As for what he wanted to do with the woman, Brother Ji didn't say, he believed Lei Haiqing would understand.
For this reason, Brother Ji specially invented the official position of "Flower and Bird Envoy"!
It can be seen that Brother Ji has high hopes for Lei Haiqing!
One Yang Yuhuan can only satisfy Brother Ji's current appetite, but the thoughts of the saint are unpredictable. Who knows if there will be a second "Yang Yuhuan" in the future?
It's never a bad thing to be prepared.
However, when Gao Lishi saw the so-called "beauty" Lei Haiqing found, he was disappointed!
"Master Marshal (Lei Haiqing's nickname in Liyuan), you failed in this job!"
Gao Lishi said sadly.
Although the two were not close personal friends, they were still acquaintances, and there was no need for Gao Lishi to put on Lei Haiqing's shoes.
It was really the "beauty" that the other party found, so he could only "please" it by himself, without even considering whether Brother Ji would like it.
When Gao Lishi saw the woman Lei Haiqing had chosen, he felt that it was completely impossible for Brother Ji to like her!
On the contrary, the women who appeared at Yang Xuangui's birthday party in Luoyang before, that is, Yang Yuhuan's sisters, I'm afraid that Brother Ji is very concerned about it, so this matter is not over yet.
The four young women in front of him were very beautiful, but they couldn't arouse Brother Ji's excitement at all.
It's like bragging about how delicious a certain wine is in front of a person who doesn't drink at all, and that person will be completely indifferent. The way to solve the problem is to prescribe the right medicine, not to scratch the eyebrows and beard.
Especially if you give a woman to the emperor, if the other party doesn't like it at first sight, will he care about it later? Brother Ji is not a puppet emperor!
"These are all recognized beauties in Yangzhou. I shamelessly searched for them for a long time before finding them. Are they really not worthy of the eyes of a saint?"
Lei Haiqing asked doubtfully. Although this errand was very embarrassing and went against his inner wishes, Lei Haiqing worked hard and hard to find a girl for Brother Ji!
He had been in Liyuan for more than ten years, and he thought he understood Brother Ji's preferences relatively well. Why did Gao Lishi say no when they met?
"Don't guess about the saint's private affairs. You don't have to leave them to me. Let's stop here and don't mention it again. Just let them go back to wherever they came from. Just send someone to send them back to their place of origin. .”
Gao Lishi sighed.
Nowadays, the saint is not too young, and it is really embarrassing for him to engage in such things.
When he was young, Gao Lishi often discussed Fangzhongshu with Li Longji, so he also had a deep understanding of Ji's preferences in this area.
There are too many beauties in the world, and the saint's energy is limited, so he can only ignore the details and focus on the mainstream.
Nowadays, Yang Yuhuan's matter has become a hot topic. Anyone caught on Chang'an Street will know that the saint is picking up the ashes.
Gao Lishi recalled that at Yang Xuangui's birthday party, Li Longji looked at the three Yang sisters with hungry eyes, and felt that it would be better not to let Lei Haiqing get into trouble.
The palace is deep and deep, how many people can escape unscathed after entering? It's better to let them go their separate ways, and it would be better to have one less thing to do than one more thing to do.
"This will trouble General Gao."
Lei Haiqing crossed his hands and saluted, bowed deeply and said.
"You're welcome, I'll go back and resume my duties right now. After finishing the matter, you should go back to Liyuan as soon as possible."
Gao Lishi said meaningfully, turned around and left.
…
Sitting weakly on the bed, Fang Chongyong enjoyed Anaye's attentive service. Those small hands kneaded his shoulders, all the way to his wrists and palms, which felt sore and refreshing, and extremely comfortable.
"are you asleep?"
Anaye asked softly when she saw Fang Zhongyong drooping his eyelids.
"I'm already asleep, keep going and don't stop."
Fang Chongyong responded angrily.
"It is normal for a capable person to be squeezed out by others. Don't worry, Mr. Lang, everything will be fine."
Anaye comforted her kindly, even a fool could see that Fang Chongyong went to the government office for a "regular meeting" today and was in a bad mood when he came back.
"well!"
Fang Chongyong sighed, if someone really tried to challenge him, it would be easy to handle!
Just find a few scapegoats and hand them over to Hexi Jiedu Mansion. Just say that these local officials are interfering with my work, blah blah blah.
Then you can negotiate conditions and reasons with Xiao Jiong. Fang Chongyong is now eager for someone to jump out and slap him in the face.
Then show the rich background of "hands and eyes reaching the sky" in Fangyanei!
Isn't the matter half done?
However, the customs and customs here in Hexi are quite special. Fang Chongyong imagined that this method would not be of much use.
The five states in the Hexi Corridor are all oasis economies with very little precipitation throughout the year. They all rely on the rivers formed by the snow water of the Qilian Mountains to sustain their livelihoods!
Without water, there would be no agriculture and humans would not be able to survive. Protecting water sources is the first priority for survival here.
In addition to lack of water, there is also the risk of war here. The Turks are to the north and the Tibetans are to the south. The Hexi Corridor may be flanked at any time in the middle. It can be said that it is attacked from both sides.
Even putting these aside, states have varying degrees of land desertification and salinization problems. In addition, various ethnic groups live together here, and they have to cooperate and exclude each other. The situation is complicated.
Similar conditions will inevitably lead to the formation of a local government with close internal unity and a certain degree of democratic mechanism.
In the oasis area, where people will die if they lack water, thousands of people can die just by building dams on rivers. If everyone does not unite under such conditions, sooner or later this area will become a no man's land due to internal fighting!
Facing the harsh living environment, people have to lower their noble heads and choose to formulate rules and strictly abide by them.
Compared with other places in the Tang Dynasty, local officials in the Hexi Corridor were relatively diligent, loving, and well-behaved.
The real pressure does not come from internal strife, but from the imperial court, from the eager gaze of the Tubo people, and from the supply of the Hexi Corridor to the states in the Western Regions.
Fang Chongyong summoned local administrative officials, such as Sima He, Chang Shi, Liu Cao and others to discuss the autumn defense order today, and then he was doused with ice water!
The local officials have already calculated the "solution" and the money and food needed to solve these problems, and directly put the account books in front of Fang Chongyong for "review"!
As long as he signs and stamps his governor's seal, the official document can be sent out directly!
It’s not very demanding! As long as you have money!
However, the average household in Ganzhou has to collect an additional ten thousand guan worth of goods. If this tax cannot be raised, or if a civil unrest breaks out, they, the local officials, will have nothing to do.
Of course, generally speaking, there are many channels for the government to make money. For example, there are many so-called "good warehouses" established in Ganzhou. On weekdays, it is also operated by specialized personnel and makes profits by "lending". If we can recover all the loaned grain in one go, we can also collect less tax.
There are more than one method like this, but one thing is certain: the wool comes from the sheep, no matter what the reason is, if you want money from the people, you can't get away.
Even these suggestions were specially written in a booklet and handed over to Fang Chongyong.
Seeing this group of hard-working local officials, Fang Chongyong felt that it was difficult to be a local official! It’s too much of a trick!
This group of people are both helpers and "opponents". They have done everything they can before someone from the other side comes, and they are just waiting for someone to take the blame!
But can you say that these people are all bad people?
That's not true, everyone is just trying to protect themselves. Whoever took the lead in doing this has offended the people of Ganzhou to death. How can they still hang out here in the future?
Theoretically speaking, Fang Chongyong's job is to "make the final decision", as long as he signs and seals it. But the problem is, if the autumn prevention order is really implemented, big trouble will definitely happen in Ganzhou!
"Otherwise, Lang Jun should find a way to return to Chang'an. Why should the son of Jiedushi suffer this anger?"
Anaye complained with a dissatisfied look.
“It’s true that long hair means short knowledge!”
Fang Chongyong scolded in a low voice.
Seemingly feeling that his words were a bit harsh, he added:
"Wear something plainer tomorrow and follow me for a walk inside and outside Zhangye City. We will visit those military households who cannot change their defenses and go home due to military orders from the imperial court."
"oh."
Anaye responded noncommittally, wondering what Fang Chongyong was thinking.
Does he really think that by saying nice things to others, those local people with strong folk customs will obediently pay the taxes required by the court?
"You said before that you could speak the languages of the Turks, Sogdians, and Tiele tribes. You weren't just bragging to me, were you?"
Fang Chongyong asked coldly.
"Is it difficult?"
Anaye asked in confusion. At that time, she just said it casually, because it didn't seem to be a big deal in Liangzhou. She has grown up in Liangzhou, where Turks and Sogdians can be seen everywhere. If you can't even understand the words of those people and can't communicate with them, how can you open a medical clinic?
Fang Chongyong, who has very poor foreign language talent, said awkwardly: "It's not too difficult...it's just very time-consuming. You can teach me if you have the opportunity in the future."
Early the next morning, Fang Chongyong took Anaye and Aduan to visit the residence of a military household in Ganzhou City.
The head of this household is surnamed Li, and his family is in Zhangye City. Two of them are serving in the Chishui Army. They have dozens of acres of paddy fields on the right bank of Heishui River. The family is considered to be in a very good position.
As for the fact that high-quality rice can be grown here in Ganzhou, Fang Chongyong did not expect it. He originally thought that the "black rice" he had eaten at the banquet was just a special offering, just like the red lotus rice in Kuizhou. However, from what is known, it seems that rice cultivation is common on both sides of the Blackwater.
As for why the paddy fields were not occupied by local powerful men, Fang Chongyong guessed that someone in this family was a soldier, and the rabbit was biting someone in a hurry, but the gain was not worth the loss. It is not too late to wait until everyone in the family has died in the battle before taking action, or it may be taboo for some other reason.
After looking through the local household registration books, I realized that land annexation here is far less intense than in places like Chang'an and Luoyang. For areas with frequent wars, real estate such as land does not have such transcendent appeal.
Fang Chongyong thought it would be difficult to enter this family's house, but when he arrived outside the other party's courtyard gate, he found that the courtyard gates were open and there were people queuing up outside the door!
Although their robes are not much different from those of the Han people in the Central Plains, their robes are tighter in size, and they are generally equipped with beard hats, quilted belts, and black leather boots.
Black leather boots, also known as black leather boots, are the most representative boots in the Western Regions. These boots are made from six pieces of leather sewn together, and because the leather has been dyed black before being sewn together, they are called black leather boots.
There are only a few people wearing cloth shoes.
These people were carrying bulging cloth bags in their hands, and they had no idea what was inside.
Fang Zhongyong pretended to be at the back of the queue, but soon, several people stopped the group.
"You guys are not from our Qushe, so what are you doing in the queue? Do you want to rub against Wang Er's mother's stone mill?"
One of the strong men glared at Fang Chongyong and asked in a bad tone.
As if to stir up a hornet's nest, those who were queuing up gathered around Fang Chongyong and the others after hearing the news.
"Qushe?"
Fang Chongyong heard a novel term.
"Don't get me wrong, I am the newly appointed governor of Ganzhou."
Fang Chongyong straightened his body and spoke righteously.
It's okay not to say it. As soon as he heard this, the crowd of onlookers suddenly burst into laughter!
"If you, a slutty brat, becomes the governor, then we will all be handsome, hahahahaha!"
A certain strong man laughed loudly and pointed at Fang Chongyong, laughing so hard that he almost burst into tears.
Fang Chongyong looked at his casual clothes and sighed helplessly.
This is the disadvantage of not wearing official robes.
"Do you know this thing?"
Fang Chongyong took out the iron plate hanging from his waist that read "Captain Guo Yi", showed it and shook it, and the laughter in the crowd stopped abruptly!
More than 90% of the men here in Hexi have military experience. It would be a shame if you haven't seen the badge of "Captain Guoyi". There may be people pretending to be the governor of Ganzhou, but there are no people who dare to pretend to be Captain Guoyi!
Because this is a "certificate of honor" issued by the imperial court. Although you cannot participate in government affairs or military affairs, it can prove your "extraordinary status"!
The crowd of onlookers gradually dispersed, making way for a path, as if Fang Chongyong was a god of plague.
Fang Yanei pointed to the person who laughed the most just now and said, "You lead the way! Everyone else must enter the yard, and no one is allowed to leave!"
At this moment, Fang Chungyong's domineering attitude was revealed, making people dare not question his orders!
When everyone walked into the yard, they saw a stout middle-aged woman whipping the little donkey grinding the mill. The donkey had a very stubborn temper and refused to leave. She was so anxious that she cursed her mother.
Seeing a group of people from Qushe walking into the yard behind Fang Chongyong, she quickly wiped her hands and stepped forward and asked, "I am the second wife of the king. What are you doing here?"
"I am the newly appointed governor of Ganzhou. I came to Zhangye to take a walk around the city to understand the sentiments of the people."
With a smile on Fang Chongyong's face, he saw that the false smiles on everyone's faces had collapsed. Madam Wang even begged with a bitter face: "The last male in the family is only ten years old, and the others are all old people, so there is no need." Is it the last time?"
Um?
There seems to be something wrong with this situation.
Fang Chongyong muttered in his heart, but said calmly on his face: "Let's talk in the main room. This is not the place to talk."
(End of chapter)
