my wife is queen

Chapter 8 Talking
The pheasant slave was confused and couldn't understand the meaning of my uncle's words. It is easy to understand that the waste water is not to take the water canal, but only by water boats can more goods be transported, and the speed is also fast.

If it was replaced by mules and horses, I don’t know what to do. The animals consume a lot of horse feed, and the loquats may be eaten up by the animals before they are transported to the capital.

Change the sea?

The water boats have always been on the Cao River, and I have never heard of the Municipal Ship Department passing through Tianjin Sanwei. Besides, the Shi Ship Department has been abolished for many years.

The pheasant slave thought that Ma Yun, the big companion in the mansion, could go out to sea secretly, and smiled and rolled his eyes: "Young master is still knowledgeable, no problem can be difficult for you, and next year we will have loquats to eat again."

Li Mian pointed to the loquat saplings in front of him, meaning that in a few years, he would be able to eat loquats without having to go to Tangqi in Hangzhou to buy them.

Everything needs a certain period of precipitation, just like this loquat sapling needs several years to bear fruit.

After the master and servant planted the loquat tree, at noon, they walked out of the mansion and walked along the streets and alleys to the Jinshui River beside the Yinding Bridge.

The daily eating habits of the officials, gentry and common people are two meals a day. The first meal is called Chaoshi, also called 饔. When the sun comes to the southeast corner, which is Sishichu, it is the first meal.

The second meal is called feeding, also known as 飧, and it is eaten near dusk.

Some officials and gentry eat three meals a day, and they only eat tea and cakes at noon.

Li Mian couldn't get used to two meals a day, but was more used to three meals a day. Since the kitchen in the mansion didn't prepare meals at noon, he often took the pheasant slaves out to eat.

The two came to the Lengtao stall next to the Yinding Bridge, sat on the small scorpion, ate the tender and delicious Lengtao with blue and white glazed porcelain bowls, and looked at the Jinshui River full of flowers.

I have been watching it for many days, but I have never been to a cruise ship on the Jinshui River to appreciate the elegant demeanor of Yangzhou Shouma, West Lake Boat Lady, and Datong mother-in-law.

The pheasant slave patted the Hunan embroidered purse, raised her double-ringed bun and said: "I have saved dozens of taels of silver over the years, my uncle wants to go to the pleasure boat to listen to music, so don't worry about not having enough money, just go..."

Seeing her like this, Li Mian was really amused, stretched out his hand and rubbed the pheasant slave's face like kneading dough, his small mouth leaked air, he couldn't continue speaking.

It turned into a whistling sound, which was even more interesting.

"Uncle." The pheasant slave was so angry that he didn't want to talk to him anymore, because it was the first skin-to-skin contact between the two of them, he felt embarrassed, pretended to look at the two old men beside him, and turned his red face away.

Li Mian looked away: "If you want to go to the pleasure boat to listen to the music, just take the Red Bridge and come with you. You don't need to pay money, but you don't want to go for the time being."

The mansion is more lenient towards this uncle Li Mian, he can enter and leave the mansion at any time, and most of the requests will be done.

It's just that it's no problem to go to the cruise ship to listen to the music, and the lady in charge, Hongqiao, will take the initiative to give money.

Li Mian put down the blue and white glazed porcelain bowl in his hand, nodded towards the two old men, and prepared to leave.

Both of them have a special liking for Leng Tao beside the Yinding Bridge. After a long time, they got acquainted with each other, so they can be regarded as nodding acquaintances.

Li Mian was still thinking about what kind of friends they were, bubble friends were not considered, they had never taken a bath in a urn hall, let alone drinking friends, Lengtao stalls did not sell alcohol.

The only barely plausible statement is that it should be a food friend, who likes to eat the same Lengtao.

The two old men did not put on airs, nodded kindly, and gave Li Mian a response, but the mood of the two of them was obviously not high today, with a bit of sadness.

The old man surnamed Sun usually ate two bowls of Lengtao, but today he couldn't eat after two mouthfuls. He sighed and said: "During Taizong's reign, the grain tax and grain transported to the capital through the Cao River amounted to five million eighty-eight thousand five hundred and forty-four stones. During the reign of Emperor Xuanzong, it once reached 540 four stones, and now... oh."

The old man surnamed Yuan also lost his appetite, and Leng Tao, who was usually fond of him, also lost his appetite: "Mr. Sun should have seen the account books of water transport over the years. After Xuanzong, the water grain transported to the capital through water transport has been decreasing year by year. This year, there are only 190 million stone water grain. It’s really shocking.”

Sun Gong put down the blue and white glazed porcelain bowl in his hand. He couldn't eat any more, but he didn't want to waste it. He handed it to a man like an iron tower behind him. Seeing his big arms and round waist, he didn't have an ordinary appetite.

The iron tower man took the blue and white glazed porcelain bowl, and finished Leng Tao's meal in two bites, which made people look very appetizing.

Sun Gong still has no appetite: "As Yuan Gong said, grain grain has dropped from 670 shi in Xuanzong's reign to 850 million shi today. It is the same bad government that has been accumulated for many years. The maladministration by water transport continues."

During this period of time, Li Mian heard a lot of interesting stories from the two of them about various gossip in the capital, and thought that the two old men were high-ranking officials and gentry in the capital, and their nephews and nephews were officials in the imperial court, so they were relatively well-informed about various news in the imperial court.

After hearing the two old men talking about grain, and knowing the amount of grain accurately, even down to a few stones, the identities of these two old men are not simple.

Not everyone can see the Yellow Book of Water Transport, and Princess Changping still doesn't know about it.

Sun Gong and Yuan Gong talked for a long time, but they didn't say a reason. They lost their interest and the sky became gloomy, as if it was going to snow.

There was no interest in talking, and I was about to get up and leave.

Sun Gong glanced at Li Mian who left first, and said casually: "We have known each other for a long time, what do you think of the imperial court's mismanagement of water transportation?"

Li Mian looks young, but he has a sense of maturity and prudence that has been ups and downs in the officialdom for many years. At best, he is young and mature, at worst, he is old-fashioned.

But this weather-beaten old-fashioned appearance appeared in a young man, which was abnormal and very eye-catching at the same time.

Mr. Sun subconsciously regarded him as an official returning to his hometown after leaving his post, and he laughed dumbfounded as soon as he said it. The bad government has accumulated for many years.

What Li Mian said was just as Mr. Sun expected: "It's interesting for the younger generation to listen to the two of you talking about it. Let me tell you how much you know about water transport and grain."

The pheasant slave was confused, my uncle also said in the morning that the waste water should be changed to the sea, why suddenly he didn't understand.

She stuffed two candied fruit into her mouth, her cheeks bulged up, and she wanted to help Li Mian speak, but she couldn't open her mouth, so she quickly bit the candied fruit hard.

Yuan Gong was a little displeased with his words, seeing that he was dressed as a son of an official and gentry, but he was unlearned and inexperienced and didn't even know about water transportation, so he frowned: "I can bump into you every time I come here, don't spend all day Wander around with nothing to do, read more classics and history collections, and continue to be so ignorant, sooner or later, one day, you will lose your family fortune."

Uneducated?

The pheasant slave was not happy anymore, and said angrily: "My uncle is very powerful. He knows astronomy and geography at the top, so how can he be incapable of learning and incompetent. Could it be that the food brought in is less, and my uncle has already thought about what to do. , It’s not enough to change the waste water into the sea.”

(End of this chapter)