From Zhending, we crossed the Hutuo River and headed westward for seventy miles to Jingxing. As one of the eight towns in Taihang, Jingxing has been very famous since ancient times. Bai Chongzan guarded it for several years before he was transferred to Huazhou.
At that time, Jin Emperor Shi Chonggui was captured by the Khitan Northern Captives. Liu Zhiyuan, the great ancestor, also led his army, under the banner of King Qin to help people in trouble, and wanted to go east to Taihang to rescue him. The route he chose was also Jingxing (Tumen). At that time, he fought a victorious battle with the Liao army in Jingxing. As a result, he returned to Jingxing. Shortly after returning to Taiyuan, under the planning of executive director Liu Chengyou and others, he wore a yellow robe.
As one of the important transportation routes connecting Hedong and Hebei, Jingxing Pass received special attention from the imperial court. From the beginning of the founding of the country, there were heavy troops stationed there. Even during the planning of Liu Zhiyuan and the Han Dynasty princes, if the situation in Hebei was repeated, , then follow Jingxing and guard Taihang to avoid affecting the foundation of Hedong.
However, later, with the support of Liu Chengyou, Zhao Yanshou led the Yan army in the Northern Expedition and successfully captured Youzhou. After that, the Khitan's strength shrank significantly northward and was gradually eliminated from Hebei. Coupled with the pacification of Wei Bo and Du Chongwei, the situation in Jingxing It's not that urgent.
After that, the Han Dynasty's northern defense line was gradually consolidated, the situation in Hebei became stable, Jingxing's military status was further reduced, and the garrison was gradually reduced to the current 500 soldiers.
However, no matter what, the importance of Jingxing still exists here, and with the stability of Hedong and Hebei, commercial uses have also been vigorously developed, and travelers come in an endless stream.
Guancheng is surrounded by mountains and rivers. It is strong and precipitous, easy to defend and difficult to attack. These are its basic attributes. However, standing on the gate tower, Liu Chengyou's attention was not on the defense of the city gate.
The stream flows in front of the city gate, meandering away, and quickly disappears into the deep mountains and old forests. The sound of water hitting the walls and colliding continues to echo around the city gate. Looking west, the mountain road leads far away. Although it is winding, the road in the field of vision has obviously been developed and repaired.
There were many tents and posthouses inside and outside the Chengguan, which were crowded with travelers and merchants. Due to the arrival of the emperor, Jingxing Pass was temporarily under martial law, so pedestrians traveling from east to west had to restrain themselves inside and wait for the opening.
Although the Han Dynasty has abolished most of the customs and taxes within the country, special checkpoints such as Jingxing are still retained. The Third Division also specially dispatched city officials to manage taxation. Except for a part of the tax collected, the rest was turned over to the court. They are all used to strengthen defenses and open mountain roads.
In addition to being a military fortress, the current Jingxing Pass is also a place for commercial exchanges between Hedong and Hebei, especially Taiyuan and Zhending. Within the pass, an area was also set aside as a market. Not only business travelers, but also the surrounding people gathered here every now and then to deliver goods and barter. After three or four years of this, it became increasingly prosperous. According to observations, every autumn, the number of merchants and common people gathering in Jingxing exceeded 7,000 at most, which is not a small number.
"Now how much customs and city tax can you get here in Jingxing every year?" Touching the hard and cold wall, Liu Chengyou asked the Jingxing city official who was summoned in front of him.
It must be the first time he saw the emperor, but he was still questioned in such a gentle manner. The city official seemed very embarrassed, his body was tense, and the shrewdness and wisdom that usually managed the city were completely absent.
Seeing this, Liu Chengyou's attitude became even more cordial and said, "Don't be nervous, I'm just asking casually!"
"Your Majesty, the customs duties are more than 3,000 guan, and the city tax is more than 19,000 guan!" The city official calmed down and responded: "In recent years, they have been increasing year by year, and there will be more next year!"
"That's not too little!" Liu Chengyou said with some uncertainty.
"It's quite a lot!" The city official said quickly: "It has been six years since I came to Jingxing. I still remember that the initial customs and city taxes combined were only more than 3,000 guan a year. In these years, the public security has been stable, and the court has improved. With the elimination of tariffs in various places, there will be more merchants coming and going, and people will rush to the market to trade, and the tax revenue will also increase unprecedentedly!"
Liu Chengyou did some calculations and found that up to now, the annual income of the Han court was only twelve million yuan. By comparison, Jingxing's tax income was not as miserable as the superficial figures seemed, and could even be considered sufficient.
"What standards are used to collect taxes?" Liu Chengyou asked. Speaking of which, Liu Chengyou really didn't pay close attention.
"According to the regulations of the Third Division, the judgment is based on the carriage, weight, and value of the goods. However, different goods have different tax management!" the city official replied.
"So, it's not easy to be a good tax collector!" Liu Chengyou smiled slightly.
"It's just doing things according to the regulations of the imperial court. There are garrison troops here and the merchants who come and go are very obedient. For the ministers and others, it is not a burden!" the city official replied.
Nodding, Liu Chengyou pondered for a while, then suddenly stretched out his hand, pointed at the closed city gate, and said to the general: "Unlock the switch! Those merchants have been waiting hard, but there is no need to disrupt the daily order and trade of Jingxing because of me! "
"Yes!" The town general immediately ordered someone to pass on the order.
"Let's go, take me to Guanya to rest!" Liu Chengyou looked at General Jingxing again.
The general is not too old, probably under thirty years old. He has an ordinary appearance, with a few acnes on his face, but his beard is thick and hairy. The key is that his surname is Sun, his name is Sun Quanhui, and he is the son of Sun Fangjian.
Paying attention to the buildings and streets in Jingxing City, they were both familiar and unfamiliar. In Liu Chengyou's opinion, they had changed a lot. Liu Chengyou had been to Jingxing twice before, once when he regained Hengzhou (today's Zhending Prefecture) in the early days of the Republic of China and came to inspect the pass. The second time was during the winter tour in the second year of Qianyou. At that time, I originally planned to meet Liu Chong, the emperor's uncle and the king of Taiyuan, but Liu Chong declined politely.
When I arrived at Guanya, I took a seat and drank two sips of water. Then I saw Sun Quanhui, the general of the town, prostrating himself in the hall, kowtowing and saying, "Your Majesty, please punish me!"
Facing his sudden move, Liu Chengyou was not surprised. There was a flash of amusement in his eyes, and he waved his hand and said: "General Sun, you don't have to be like this? You have guarded Jingxing well, the public security is stable, and the roads are smooth. It is appropriate to give If you show merit, how can you talk about guilt?"
After hearing this, Sun Quanhui said in a solemn tone: "Your Majesty, the matter in Dingzhou will finally be heard. My uncle's actions are very serious. I am here to beg for justice to atone for my sins!"
"It doesn't have to be like this! The matter in Dingzhou has passed. I have come to a conclusion and dealt with your uncle!" Liu Chengyou looked at Sun Quanhui with a smile: "Besides, an uncle is an uncle and a nephew is a nephew. I will not get involved. , you don’t have to be uneasy because of this, continue to do your job and do your job, this Jingxing still needs you to be stationed!"
"Get up!"
Hearing what the emperor said, Sun Quanhui was relieved and breathed a sigh of relief. He stood up and bowed his hands deeply: "Thank you, Your Majesty! Your Majesty is so broad-minded and open-minded. I will shed tears of gratitude in the end!"
Seeing this, Liu Chengyou still had a warm smile on his face and said: "Before I came to Jingxing, I also received a confession from your uncle Sun Fangjin, who also asked me to punish him! You guys are over-minded, loyal and traitorous. No matter what, I have a strong balance in my heart, so I won’t act foolishly and suspiciously! Please feel free to relax!”
When Sun Quanhui heard this, he was a little surprised at first, and then said: "Your Majesty is so sincere and sincere, you will be ashamed in the end!"
Regarding Sun's uncle and nephew's initiative to plead guilty, Liu Chengyou still felt like an uncle in his heart, and he still said in a friendly manner: "Your father and uncle have made meritorious service to the country, especially the few battles they fought against the Khitan. Boost morale!”
"It is said that during the second capture of Feihu Village, you were the first to get there. You killed seven barbarians yourself and were injured as a result!" Liu Chengyou's tone was very sure.
Sun Quanhui grinned and his thick beard trembled, but his expression seemed a little embarrassed: "Your Majesty actually knows the resume of the general so well!"
Liu Chengyou smiled lightly, that was natural. Everywhere he went, he did his homework in advance.
"I have made great contributions to the Han Dynasty and shed blood for the imperial court. It is too late for me to treat such a heroic hero well, so how can I punish him for his crime?" Liu Chengyou said.
"Your Majesty's kindness will never be forgotten!" Sun Quanhui immediately vowed.
