Especially now that he was about to enter the realm of Huai'an Prefecture, Yang Shiqi was even more eager to figure this out.
Because his own destiny is now connected with Mr. Xu.
When one is prosperous, both are prosperous; when one is lost, both are harmed.
If something happens to the Lord, will he, as a counselor, have a good ending?
"Master Yang, do you think that as the designer and implementer of this land tax reform plan, if I don't show up, who in the DPRK will be able to take up the responsibility?"
Faced with Xu Qin's soul torture, Yang Shiqi thought for a while and said:
"Except Mr. Xia, the Minister of Household Affairs, in the imperial court, even if others are willing to come, it will be difficult for them to complete such an important task. It is very laborious anyway."
This is a pertinent and realistic comment.
Xu Qin nodded after hearing this.
As a historical archaeologist, he has a very good understanding of the virtues, ethics and abilities of the Ming Dynasty courtiers in the late Hongwu and Jianwen dynasties, or the Jiangnan gentry.
Let’s just say that four years of peace is difficult.
Jiangnan was so wealthy, but the Jianwen court was astonishingly inefficient in organizing and dispatching manpower and material resources.
The government offices are overstaffed, which is extremely disappointing.
At the end of the Battle of Jingnan, the rich family fortune that Lao Zhu left to his grandson was completely destroyed by the Jiangnan gentry represented by Qi Tai, Huang Zhicheng, and Fang Xiaoru.
This group of people was self-righteous, ambitious and talented, and talked about military affairs on paper. However, they wasted a lot of resources on the way, or gave it to Zhu Di, who was already in serious shortage of people and property.
A veritable "transportation captain".
Moreover, the Confederate army was full of deserters and exiled civilians.
The front line is clearly losing consecutive battles, but the squandering at the rear is becoming more and more shocking.
The decline of one situation and the growth of another gradually strengthened Zhu Di's Yan army.
Now that Zhu Di has ascended the throne, in addition to military generals, the civil servants who manage the government are still the old Jianwen officials.
Except for Xia Yuanji, Jian Yi and a few others who can hold important positions, there are really no other capable people here.
People like Yang Shiqi, Xie Jin, Yang Rong, etc. have not fully grown up yet.
The most important thing is that their background is not strong, and their qualifications and prestige are far from enough.
In fact, Zhu Di's family is indeed difficult to manage.
A great man said it well:
All opposition or reactionary forces will not voluntarily withdraw from the stage of history. If you don't fight, they will not fall.
"Then tell me, why bother?"
Yang Shiqi and Su Zecheng were both stunned by Xu Qin's sudden question.
First of all, Yang Shiqi is from Ji'an, Jiangxi Province, and he is a standard commoner. His father died when he was young, and he remarried with his mother and became a "oil bottle".
Fortunately, his stepfather was a sixth-grade official, so he was kind to him and funded his training.
Although Su Zecheng was considered a Confucian scholar from Jiangnan, his family was just an ordinary squire and landowner.
I can't understand the thoughts of a wealthy gentleman at all.
"Because they don't want to kill themselves."
Xu Qin took the water bag handed over by Sanlang, drank a mouthful of cold water, and then told Yang Shiqi and Su Zecheng the answer.
Yang Shiqi and Su Zecheng in front of them could not understand the thoughts of the Jiangnan gentry. It can be seen from this that both of them were officials who were good at doing things and had ambitions to pursue an official career.
However, I am afraid that some guidance is needed on how to manage government and self-management.
"There will definitely be irreconcilable contradictions between different classes and different camps, and there will be class contradictions and class struggles."
"Class struggle itself is revolution. If we want to liberate productive forces, we must liberate the labor force and carry the revolution to the end. We must not give up halfway."
"Personally taking some risks is nothing compared to the success achieved."
They are all smart people. After saying this, Yang Shiqi and Su Zecheng understood clearly.
Both of them looked at Xu Qin with admiration.
I also feel ashamed for my previous narrow-minded thinking of protecting myself wisely.
Xu Qin wanted to say something more, so Li Xiaoqi came to report.
"Mr. Xu, due to continuous heavy rains, the section between Qinghe County and Shanyang County such as Hongze Lake and Baima Lake was directly diverted into the canal, and then rushed out of the ancient canal road and destroyed the river crossing."
"We can't find the boat right now, and the road ahead is completely impassable."
In other words, even if a bridge is built over this section, the traffic behind it will still be blocked.
Xu Qin took out the map and looked at it, frowning and said:
"Does that mean there's no way past this swamp?"
"Yes." Li Xiaoqi was also a little helpless.
It is the rainy season in the south of the Yangtze River, and the ancient Sanhe soil roads cannot be compared with the cement roads of later generations.
Heavy rains trigger flash floods that wash away roads and rivers are commonplace.
Although the rain has stopped now, the situation has not improved at all.
Originally, in this season, it was most convenient to go out on the water in the Jiangnan Water Town.
But Xu Qin had to go incognito to inspect the local customs and customs along the way.
Therefore, even if the subordinates have complaints in their hearts, they dare not express them.
The superior officer leads by example, what else can the subordinates say?
"Is there any other dry road we can go around?"
"It's possible, but it takes more than a hundred miles of detour, and it's a mountain road."
"Let's go. Anyway, it only takes us one more day to ride."
With fifty elite soldiers escorting us, we were not afraid of anything going wrong in the eighteen bends on the mountain road.
After all, judging from the current situation, there are no big mountains here, and the hilly areas are relatively flat.
Moreover, the east direction is towards Shanyang County.
When we arrived in Shanyang County, we were very close to Huai'an Prefecture.
At present, after walking through the hills for about a hundred miles, we should first reach the boundary of Qinghe County.
Perhaps in later generations, a hundred miles is only fifty kilometers, nothing at all. You can get there in twenty minutes with just a kick of the accelerator.
But it was different in ancient times. After leaving the official road, the road we walked could not be called a road at all. In addition, the road was muddy and slippery due to flooding.
If you usually ride a horse and walk slowly, it won't be a problem.
But now, except for Xu Qin, who is in plain clothes, the other forty sergeants are all wearing armor at all times.
There are also more than a dozen mules and horses carrying tents, food, etc.
The team took a detour.
Along the way, people and horses continued to slide into the ravine. The entire team had long lost the majesty and power it had at the beginning, and seemed more like the remnants of a defeated battle.
"Sir, there is a village ahead." The outpost came back to report.
Xu Qin, who was planning to conduct an on-site inspection of these areas, was delighted when he heard this.
Isn't the reason why you don't take the ordinary path just to see the truest side of the people?
"The soldiers will rest on the spot. The plainclothes soldiers will follow me into the village to get a closer look, and the two adults, Yang and Su, will also come with us."
The dozen or so people who originally entered the Wang family's earthen fort followed Xu Qin into the village.
There were no pedestrians on the dirt road to the village. Occasionally, they saw a group of strangers on horseback. The villagers were so frightened that they hid in their homes.
The village seemed quite depressed at the moment.
However, the strange thing is that there is a large shed set up under the big locust tree in the center of the village, and many people are eating, including porridge, food and wine.
What's this?
Eat from a big pot?
Looking at the young people eating and drinking in the greenhouse, they don't look like local farmers, but like people from the world.
Looking at the dragons and tigers painted on each of their arms, and their green-skinned and bald attire, I was a little surprised.
Xu Qin glanced at Su Zecheng and saw that he also looked confused and ignorant, and was about to send someone to ask.
Suddenly, a boy of six or seven years old ran out of the house next to him with his head buried in tears.
The little boy's steps were weak and feeble, but he was very energetic in escaping.
