When the monarchs and ministers of the Liao Kingdom felt at a loss due to the increasingly unfavorable war situation and the increasingly embarrassing situation, and were thinking hard about changes, their real and biggest opponent, Emperor Liu, was on his way to patrol according to the established plan. .
Since it was wartime, Emperor Liu went on a tour this time and tried to be thrifty and avoid any extravagance and waste. The size of his entourage was also limited, including concubines, princes, palace servants, officials, and troops, the total number of people was only more than 5,000. .
It was the smallest patrol with the least noise. Even the Western Tour in the first year of Qianyou, shortly after Emperor Liu ascended the throne, was more noisy than this one. After all, there was not a lot of publicity and momentum on that one.
The first destination of this tour is Damingfu, Hebei. As the birthplace of Weibo Town, the most powerful Jiedu in the vassal era, Daming Mansion has continued its glory for hundreds of years. Although its status as "accompanying capital" was canceled more than ten years ago, it is still a great place for Han Dynasty. Hebei's Political, Economic, Military and Cultural Center.
Since the founding of the Han Dynasty, after the Du Chongwei Rebellion, thanks to the increasingly stable and peaceful situation, Daming Mansion, the capital of Hebei, has also made great strides in development.
Especially after the First Northern Expedition and the restoration of the Youyanguan Mountains, the military pressure was once again reduced, making it completely a hinterland. Not to worry about the Khitan dangers, its development in all aspects showed a blowout state.
In the north of the Han Dynasty, Daming Prefecture is undoubtedly the first prefecture between the East and West Beijings, and its comprehensive level far exceeds the three cities of Taiyuan, Youzhou, and Chang'an.
During this Northern Expedition, Daming Mansion also served as a major transit hub for the transportation of supplies. Zhang Mei, who was responsible for the land and water transportation of the army, was stationed here to coordinate the dispatch.
The arrival of Emperor Liu has put great pressure on local officials. Especially at such a busy time, the pressure on the operation and scheduling of various affairs is extremely high. The busier it is, the easier it is to make mistakes. It doesn't matter if you make mistakes, the important thing is Being caught by the emperor on tour would likely affect his official career.
Nanle Wharf is the largest wharf in Damingfu and even in Hebei Province. When fully loaded, it can accommodate 80 cargo ships at the same time. It was autumn, with a cool breeze and surging waves. The strong and wide trestle stretched straight into the canal. A large number of official ships and merchant ships frequently came in and out. On the dock, densely packed migrant workers were busy loading and unloading, and the whole place looked busy. scene.
On weekdays, the wharf is divided into official and civilian uses, as well as freight and passenger transportation. However, during wartime, there is only a distinction between military and civilian use. Military ships greatly compress the throughput of Nanle Wharf.
At this time, Emperor Liu, accompanied by the transshipment envoy Zhang Mei and a small number of officials, inspected Nanle Pier. Amid the lively scenes, Emperor Liu did not speak casually or ask questions. He just walked, watched, and memorized silently. This only made Zhang Mei and others feel more stressed.
Listening to a trestle, looking at several oar-driven official ships anchored on both sides, the hatches were wide open, and hundreds of civilians were like ants, carrying goods towards the ships.
Finally, Emperor Liu pointed to the large and small packages of goods and asked: "What are these ships carrying? Military supplies and uniforms?"
Zhang Mei, who had been well prepared, immediately replied: "Your Majesty, it is the winter clothes needed by the frontline army. The weather in the north is getting colder, and the Northern Expedition camp has also moved documents. Therefore, the Ministry of War purchased clothes and sent them to Liaodong to prepare for winter operations!"
"It's only early autumn, and you are already thinking about winter operations and making preparations in advance. Take precautions, okay!" Emperor Liu showed a smile.
Observing his words and noticing that Emperor Liu's expression was no longer cold, Zhang Mei breathed a sigh of relief and immediately responded: "Your Majesty, the war in Liaodong is uncertain when it will end. Autumn is here, and winter is not far away!
The biggest difficulty faced by Wang's division in fighting in Liaodong was the severe cold in winter, so preparations had to be made early. In addition to quilts, charcoal, coal, grease, gloves and other consumable materials to keep out the cold are also being transported to Liaodong in large quantities! "
"Everything must be considered beforehand. I have personally experienced the hardships of winter work, and I feel particularly deeply about it. In the bitter cold land of Liaodong, we cannot let the soldiers of the Han Dynasty brave the snow, cold and wind to fight against the Khitans!"
Nodding, Emperor Liu directly nodded to two civilian husbands and asked them to carry a bundle of quilts in front of him. He opened the package and took out one of the items at random. Emperor Liu squeezed it in his hand and said with a calm expression, "These are all cotton clothes, right?"
"Exactly!" Zhang Mei replied: "These cotton clothes are all made by factories in Daming Mansion. According to reports from Daming Mansion, the local factory can now produce a thousand sets of cotton clothes and trousers every day!"
"One thousand sets, this is not a big number!" Emperor Liu looked at the famous magistrate Tao Xian aside: "It is such a big famous mansion, and it is during the war, and it produces a thousand sets a day? Is it a lack of people? Or a lack of money?"
Emperor Liu's question put Tao Xian under pressure, and he reported with some trepidation: "Your Majesty, there is still money in the treasury, but there is a lack of skilled craftsmen, and there is a shortage of cotton cloth, cotton batting and other materials, so the production The output is insufficient. If these two problems are solved, the output will be greatly increased!"
"Oh? Then how do you plan to solve it?" Emperor Liu asked directly.
"This...this..." Tao Yan hesitated.
Seeing his embarrassment, Zhang Mei opened his mouth to relieve him and said: "Your Majesty, military cotton uniforms are mainly produced in the two capitals and Henan Province. Daming Prefecture accounts for only a small part. Although the imperial court has vigorously promoted cotton cultivation and Cotton was used, but the overall output was not much. During the Northern Expedition, most of the military cotton clothing was produced in Henan, where the materials could be obtained nearby and transported to Liaodong by sea! In addition, not all the winter clothing of hundreds of thousands of troops used cotton clothing. , silk and linen fabrics still account for a large part!”
"It seems that it still needs to be promoted vigorously!" Emperor Liu sighed.
In fact, after more than ten years of development, the use of cotton in Han Dynasty has made great progress. Folk cotton textile technology is improving, and officials and citizens have become enthusiastic about various cotton textiles. Various products are also in short supply. . However, what restricts its development is insufficient production.
Nodding, Emperor Liu accepted this statement and did not embarrass Tao Xi about the matter. He let the two delayed workmen continue their work and asked instead: "How many people are involved in unloading at this port?" ?”
Tao Yan obviously hesitated, and under Emperor Liu's attention, he said in a trembling voice: "Your Majesty, there are about thousands of people!"
"Thousands of people..." Emperor Liu showed a cold smile on his face and looked at Zhang Mei: "Zhang Qing, do you know there are thousands of people?"
Zhang Mei couldn't help but be speechless about Tao Yan's performance, but after hearing about it, she didn't dare to be negligent, and reported: "The sources of civilian labor on the dock are complex. The total number of laborers under the jurisdiction of the Transportation Department, Daming Prefecture, and merchants and civilians, there should be at present More than 4,500 people.”
"So many people?" Emperor Liu raised his eyebrows.
Zhang Meidao: "On weekdays, naturally there is no need for so many people, but during wartime, the demand for labor is huge. We need to maintain the loading and unloading speed to save time. There are also many people who are willing to come and make money."
"Zhang Qing, you are responsible for the logistics and dispatching of the army. You have a heavy workload, so you don't need to accompany me. Go and do your work!" Hearing this, Emperor Liu waved his hand and said to Zhang Meida.
"I excuse myself!" the emperor said, and Zhang Mei respectfully left.
Before leaving, I exchanged glances with the famous magistrate Tao Xian and gave him a look of self-seeking. Tao Xian had a bitter look on his face and was even more uneasy in his heart. No matter how slow he is, he can still feel Emperor Liu's dissatisfaction with him.
"Sit!" After Zhang Mei left, Emperor Liu sat directly on the edge of the trestle, patted his side and motioned to Tao Yan.
"I don't dare!" Normally, he would be honored, but now, Tao Yan was extremely nervous.
"If I ask you to sit down, sit down! Do you think the storefront is too dirty and has stained the robe of your magistrate Tao?" Emperor Liu said softly.
"Your Majesty is serious! I don't dare!" Tao Yan, with red face and cold sweat on his forehead, sat down with Emperor Liu in a panic. His legs were so weak that he almost fell into the water.
Emperor Liu frowned visibly at his unbearable performance, but still had a slight curve in the corner of his mouth as he asked calmly: "Tao Xian, how long have you been in Daming Mansion?"
"Back to Your Majesty, it's been almost three years!"
"Three years, that's not a short time!" Emperor Liu smiled faintly: "How many officials are there under the Daming Mansion? How many people? How many men? How many acres? How much is the tax this summer? How much is the commercial tax?"
Facing Emperor Liu's series of questions, Tao Yan was probably too nervous. He hesitated for a long time, his lips trembling, before he could answer.
Seeing this, Emperor Liu smiled even more and said in a deep voice: "Are you asking me how you don't know?"
Without waiting for his answer, Emperor Liu said leisurely: "Your father is an old minister of the Han Dynasty. He has been loyal to me for more than 20 years. He passed away this year. I am quite sad. You have taken care of the livelihood and well-being of hundreds of thousands of people in Daming Mansion. There is no time for filial piety, which is a bit inappropriate! I heard that in order to support the Northern Expedition, you did not return to your hometown to mourn? I think you can take off your errands first and pay homage to your father's tomb..."
"Your Majesty, I, I am guilty!" Tao Yan almost cried with a sad face, very at a loss what to do. But seeing Emperor Liu's expression becoming cold, he also knew that his official career was probably coming to an end.
Tao Yan is the eldest son of the late Xuanwei envoy Tao Gu, who died of illness this year.
