prosperous age

Chapter 506 Chapter 505

Zhang Juzheng had an impression of the housekeeper in Wei Guangde's house, after all he also went to drink at his house from time to time.

However, Zhang Juzheng would not be so foolish as to believe what Wei Guangde said was that Zhang Ji himself was involved in the business.

When Wei Guangde asked about this matter, Zhang Juzheng just thought about it for a while and said: "The teacher is not opposed to Liaodong Shipping, and believes that this move can strengthen the relationship with Liaodong."

Wei Guangde nodded slightly upon hearing this.

After all, when Jia Yingchun handled this matter, Xu Jie also made great efforts.

Emperor Jiajing didn't like shipping, so Jia Yingchun started with cost, and Xu Jie assisted him, finally letting Emperor Jiajing let go.

Although it was only a few years, it really saved a lot of money for the court.

It is conceivable that a cart of grain and grass was transported from inside the pass to outside the pass, and even half a cart of grain and grass would not be left.

But shipping by sea is different. The cost of the journey is very little, and the time is even saved by more than half compared with the land route. Naturally, it is a great good governance.

It is not that the Ministry of War is unaware of this, but the Ministry of War has so many guards in Liaodong, so it is naturally unwilling to let the Liaodong guards feel lazy because of the support from the mainland, so they give up farming and blindly go to Beijing to ask for food and fodder.

At the beginning, when Zhu Yuanzhang stopped shipping to Liaodong, the purpose was naturally to make the guards in Liaodong as self-sufficient as possible, so that they could really take root there.

Once the sea route is kept unblocked, from time to time, they will find food and grass from the imperial court to help them. With the temperament of those arrogant soldiers and powerful generals, they may not cultivate the land for a long time, clamoring for the imperial court to help them every day, or simply give up that land.

Who wants to live in that bitter cold place without staying in the warm pass.

"However, before this matter triggers a discussion between the DPRK and the Chinese Communist Party, he can temporarily suppress it, but once the matter becomes clear, His Majesty will know the details, and may abolish the matter of shipping."

Zhang Juzheng analyzed.

Wei Guangde also understood that Xu Jie was not against shipping, but he couldn't reason with the emperor.

Before the emperor knew about it, he could speak for Liaodong Shipping in private discussions in the court, but once the emperor knew about it, he would stand by and watch.

Everything is in your Majesty's mind.

Wei Guangde was still thinking about how to suppress this matter, avoid spreading it among Beijing officials, and control the situation before forming a consensus, but Zhang Juzheng said in a low voice: "Shan Loan, let me tell you, if this matter If it can be suppressed, my teacher may have already made a move."

"What do you mean?"

Wei Guangde looked up at him hesitantly and asked.

"This matter is not only promoted by the local government in Shandong, but also by the water transport government. It is impossible to suppress it. At most, it will be delayed for some time."

Zhang Juzheng said in a low voice, "The only ones who benefit from this matter are the merchants and Liaodong army leaders. The imperial court will not allow them to profit from it."

Zhang Juzheng's words were like enlightenment, Wei Guangde understood it all at once.

In fact, before making this decision, it was not at all to see who was more cost-effective in sea or land transportation, but how to effectively control Liaodong.

How to reassure the court?
It seems that the only way for the imperial court to change Liaodong to other provinces in the country is to set up a new Liaodong Chief Commissioner and a Procuratorate in addition to the existing Liaodong Capital Division, and change the control of the military town to the management of the three divisions.

However, Liaodong is a place with vast land and sparse population, which is why the Third Division was not established at the beginning. Most of the local people came from the guards, and there were few civilians.

In fact, Shandong wants to ban the sea again. One of the reasons is that these ships come with not only mountain goods from Liaodong, but also people fleeing south.

Liaodong is bitterly cold, and it is very difficult for Han people to survive in that place.

In the past, it was very difficult to get back to the customs on two legs, and the Shanhaiguan hurdle was definitely difficult to pass.

It’s different now, as long as you can go to Shanghai, you can go to Shandong when you disembark, not only perfectly avoiding the pass along the road, but also reaching places like Shandong.

At the beginning, the Shandong side didn't have anything to do with the arrival of the Liao ship. The imperial court agreed to come to Shandong to buy grain, and the grain transported by the Grand Canal was directly transferred to Denglai and sent to Liaodong.

But after a long time, the number of refugees in Denglai and other places increased sharply, and they found out their origin after careful investigation, even though they tried their best to conceal it.

Even, not only civilians could not escape, but many of them were military households.

There are hundreds of households and hundreds of people who have been discovered alone, and even more have been hidden by big households.

Cheap labor, as long as you have food to eat, you can work.

As for the dissatisfaction with the water transport, Zhang Juzheng didn't even bother to explain.

Others are also smart. If the sea-going ships from Liaodong to Shandong run well, it is impossible not to affect the unsafe sea-going ships they advocated before.

The goods in the south of the Yangtze River can be shipped directly to Shanghai, and go all the way north along the coastline to Jinmen.

By sea, there will be no congestion of the canal fleet, and it will not be affected by the dry season or flood season.

Only by completely eradicating sea transportation can they continue to make a fortune around the canal.

"Knowing that shipping by sea is good governance and beneficial to the imperial court, do you want to give up just because of these obstructions?"

The two said in the end, Wei Guangde said somewhat unwillingly.

"What the teacher means is that with His Majesty in power, I am afraid that the sea transportation will not be guaranteed. With the power of the people behind the water transportation, my teacher can only retreat behind the scenes."

Zhang Juzheng sighed in a low voice, "All he can do is try his best to delay for some time."

"It's work."

Wei Guangde cupped his hands and said.

"Originally, my teacher would communicate with Prince Yu's Mansion after Water Transport made efforts on this matter, but now they are just connecting with others below.

But since you asked about this matter today, I'll tell you first, let it go if you have to let go of the matter over there.

Traveling by land, although earning less, is also much safer. "

Zhang Juzheng finally said to Wei Guangde earnestly.

The whole day, Wei Guangde was not in a good mood.

Seeing that the source of income has been cut off, it will be hell if it can be better.

The good life he is living in the capital now depends on the dividends from the Liaodong line. Thinking of losing this source of income, his family will seem to be reduced to mediocrity in the future, Wei Guangde is extremely unwilling.

In the end, Wei Guangde could only sigh in his heart, no wonder he used to read books, those pig feet had to be worn on the emperor, and then he dared to change the world and build an empire on which the sun never sets.

Dressed as a fart, even if you succeed in the imperial examination, it seems that it is really difficult to accomplish anything except to hang out with your colleagues.

As for those who climbed up from the bottom and wanted to rebel and become emperor, they were just making nonsense.

Of course, if it was in Chongzhen's era, it seemed possible. With the assist of that pig teammate, the probability of success is indeed very high.

But in this era, perhaps it should be regarded as the middle of the Ming Dynasty. Everyone's thoughts are loyal to the emperor and patriotic, and in their minds, the Zhu Ming Dynasty is the orthodox.

If you think that you can let people give up the court in their hearts by virtue of giving them certain favors, you are thinking too much, unless you are allied with bandits and robbers.

Only these people have no imperial court in their hearts, because the imperial court is their reminder.

Wei Guangde, who returned home, was still thinking about this matter, because it was related to his family's future life.

On the side of King Yu's mansion, Wei Guangde didn't plan to go to ventilate so early, because King Yu didn't have any say in this matter.

Thinking of the materials I asked Lu Bu to transcribe before, it involved data on water transportation and sea transportation from the Qianyuan Dynasty to the Zhengde Dynasty.

To transport 100 million shi of grain from the south to the north, if it is transported by water, about 300 million shi of grain will be consumed in the Yongle period, and about 330 million shi in the Chenghua dynasty. Now, this figure is only high or not low.

In other words, transporting grain from the south to the north requires more than three times the transportation cost, not taking into account the time spent during the period.

But what about by sea?

Then the cost is about 100 million stone.

That is to say, on the premise that everything remains the same, only water transportation is changed to sea transportation, and the grain sent to the capital can be doubled directly.

Although it only doubles, it can make the soldiers on the nine borders no longer worry about rations, or the Lumi of the Beijing officials can also be guaranteed, and they don't have to be discounted by the Ministry of Households.

Of course, Wei Guangde can only think about these things.

If Emperor Jiajing adopts it and all these things become a reality, it is hard to guarantee that there will be countless construction sites in the capital and new temples will be born.

In fact, when Wei Guangde saw these data, he keenly discovered that doing sea freight seems to be able to make a lot of money.

As for the method, of course it is the method of sea transportation against the consumption of water transportation.

The tank boats do not enter the Grand Canal, but go down the river into the sea, travel northward along the coastline to Tianjin, and then transport them to Tongzhou through tributaries such as the Haihe River.

This is huge profit.

It is equivalent to sending one ship of food and earning two ships of food back. Even considering shipbuilding and maintenance, it is a very lucrative business.

However, this is only a catastrophe for sea transport merchants and those who eat water transport.

Think about the prefectures and counties that the Grand Canal flows through, and how many people depend on it for a living. Among other things, the Cao Army is a force that cannot be underestimated.

It's not about how powerful they are, but about their terrifying destructive power after being released.

How much will the Cao army be cut off if the water transportation is changed to the sea?
Wei Guangde didn't know, but at least tens of thousands of people would lose their occupations passed down from generation to generation.

Of course, they can also be used by the Ministry of War to supplement other guards, but what about the countless people living on the canal on both sides of the strait?
Thinking of this, Wei Guangde scratched his head for a while, the water transportation is really untouchable.

Water transportation has been implemented for hundreds of years. Countless people along the canal depend on water transportation for their livelihoods, such as peddlers, boatmen, and even singing and laughing singers. Moreover, the middle and lower managers along the river can also take advantage of the opportunity. Everyone should work together to maintain this system.

On a narrow river, too many people's livelihoods have been kidnapped on this river, from the imperial court to water transport officials, from water workers to ordinary people.

The existence of water transportation has actually transcended the shackles of the economy, but is a major policy related to the national destiny of the Ming Dynasty and the long-term stability of the country.

At this moment, Wei Guangde finally realized.

As long as the Ming Dynasty did not lift the sea ban, the status of water transport would not be challenged at all.

The interest groups surrounding countless towns along the canal, and the countless Li people who make a living from this, are so powerful that Emperor Jiajing made a wise choice.

What Wei Guangde didn't know was that what would end water transportation in the future would actually be a peasant uprising that would affect the starting point of the canal—the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom Movement.

After 1853, the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom occupied Nanjing and Anhui, and the major cities along the canal were severely damaged or even burned. The Qing court had to choose to transport grain to Beijing by sea. So far, the Ming and Qing water transport, which had been popular for hundreds of years, completely withdrew from the stage of history.

If he knew that this would be the power to end the water transport in the future, Wei Guangde might consider making an assist to let Zhang Lian's troops simply sweep the Nanzhili area, so that the Ming court could fully see the fragility of the water transport.

Of course, this is not possible.

Not to mention other things, but right now Qi Long Yu Hu in Jiangnan is enough for Zhang Lian to drink a pot. With these two people in charge, it is really difficult for ordinary rebels to grow big.

As for what Wei Guangde saw, the gradual replacement of water transport by sea through the sea ban is also based on the development of coastal ports.

As long as the north-south seaports are established, of course they mainly carry out sea trade business at the beginning, but when some merchants find out the low cost of sea transportation, they will inevitably change the goods that were previously transported by water to sea.

Even if the vested interests in the imperial court continue to insist on the transportation of grain by grain, they can only continue to compromise if the general trend goes down, and they will eventually have to accept the main solution of sea transportation and water transportation as a supplement.

Thinking of this, Wei Guangde couldn't help feeling that he was so great.

I just wanted to make some money, but I actually thought of going up for the country and the people.

Withdrawing his thoughts, Wei Guangde called Zhang Ji and told him the news that Liaodong Shipping might be banned in the coming year, so that the chamber of commerce could make an early plan, so as not to be caught off guard when the order was issued.

Prepare early, and ship the goods as soon as possible, and don't think about pressing the goods.

Hearing that the Liao boat might be banned, Zhang Ji immediately became a little anxious.

As the housekeeper of the Wei Mansion, Zhang Ji can be said to be very familiar with the income and expenditure of money in the mansion.

"My lord, if the waterway from Liaodong to Shandong is stopped, our mansion's dividends will be cut in half at least."

Zhang Ji reminded carefully.

"I know."

Wei Guangde replied helplessly: "I know what you said. Before I heard the news, sir, I asked someone about it. This matter is very involved. It is estimated that by the end of next year at the latest, there will definitely be a clear order issued by the court."

Hearing what Wei Guangde said, Zhang Ji lowered his head and thought for a while before looking up at Wei Guangde, and said in a low voice: "Master, do you want us to prepare sea boats by ourselves, transport goods quietly, and walk through some small fishing villages?"

"Can you avoid the patrol of the naval warship?"

Wei Guangde interrupted Zhang Ji angrily.

In fact, Wei Guangde had heard from Zhang Ji before that before there was no shipping to Liao, there were businessmen doing this secretly.

It's okay if you don't get caught, but once you get caught, it will be very troublesome, and it's not just as simple as losing a batch of goods.

As for the current governors of Liaodong and Shandong, one is Ji Cheng and the other is Xie Dongshan. Wei Guangde is not familiar with these two.

Something is really going to happen, and it will take a lot of effort to suppress it.

The opponent's power is too strong, Wei Guangde intends to give up, if he doesn't engage in shipping, he won't do it.

However, my own influence on King Yu obviously had an effect at the beginning. King Yu was very enthusiastic about the pilot project of opening the sea. Wei Guangde had already handed over two plans, but King Yu seemed to be still dissatisfied and asked him to continue to improve.

Thinking of this, Wei Guangde glanced at Zhang Ji and said: "Although sea transportation is not allowed, don't be idle there, and find out more about your favorite overseas products."

(End of this chapter)