Han Shizu

Chapter 1983
During the chat, I went forward for about three to five miles. Even on the Gyeonggi Plain, there was a sense of enlightenment and a refreshing feeling.On both sides of the several-foot-wide road are densely packed merchants and shops, and the contiguous buildings and houses expand to both sides, and you can't see the side. Of course, the most eye-catching huge stone archway.

There are four pillars and three gates, and the heads of the pillars soar to the sky. According to the visual inspection, they are at least three feet high.The middle door below is very wide, which can accommodate four cars in parallel, and there is no problem at all for the Emperor Luan to drive through it easily.

There is a lot of traffic between the roads, and the flow of people is like weaving. Although the road will not be blocked, the scene of prosperity and endless life can directly affect people's hearts.

Liu Wenyuan was the first to immediately look up at this majestic archway, his eyes even showed a little trance, and sighed: "I used to go to and from the capital, and I have passed by this place several times, but I have never looked at this town so patiently and carefully. .In Anton, even Suihua City, there is no archway of this scale."

Hearing this, Bai Yonglin immediately entered the role and introduced to Liu Wenyuan: "My lord, as far as I know, this building was first built in the seventh year of Qianyou. Two pillars and one door. Later, due to the long history, it was demolished and rebuilt in the 12th year of Kaibao, which is the archway in front of you. It is said that this word was invited by Li Hanlin when he passed by."

"Li Hanlin?" Seeing Bai Yonglin's admiring expression, Liu Wenyuan was confused, and asked curiously, "Who is this? He is very famous?"

Bai Yonglin said: "Back to your Majesty, this Li Hanlin is Li Jianzhong, a scholar of Jixian Hall, and another great master after Yang Gong (Ning Shi). Your Highness Yang Gong should have heard of it. He was also your Majesty's calligraphy teacher in the early years.
Li Hanlin's calligraphy style is elegant and rich, collecting the strengths of many families, and integrating all kinds of wonderful things. He is a contemporary model and has the reputation of being the best in the world. Students in Beijing middle school compete to copy it.

To tell you the truth, the minister also practiced Li Hanlin's handwriting! "

Bai Yonglin was full of praise for Li Jianzhong, but Liu Wenyuan twitched his mouth when he heard it, and said: "It sounds like a scholar with beautiful handwriting, other than that, there is nothing strange about it!
When I go to Beijing to meet the saint, I will ask His Majesty for this person, and I will bring him back to Anton to make documents and write official documents, but I don't know if His Majesty will agree? "

Seeing that Liu Wenyuan had such an idea, Bai Yonglin was obviously stunned, her eyes widened, and she whispered in her heart, this young King Anton is really very human.

The dignified Li Hanlin, a master of calligraphy of a generation, actually thought of using it as a knife and pen official.If His Majesty does as he pleases, it would be a waste of money!Such a thought appeared in Bai Yonglin's mind.

Before he could answer, Liu Wenyuan smiled cheerfully and took the lead in patting his horse and driving away. He ordered in a loud voice: "Let's go and see this Chenqiaoyi Town who is famous all over the world!"

Due to the rush, I didn't have enough time to go for a stroll, and I just glanced at it for a while, but even so, I gained a lot.

Under the guidance of Chen Qiao Yi Cheng, the group of people entered the official post to rest, and the post house had already made sufficient preparations for hospitality.Knowing that King Anton was passing through the capital, everyone mobilized from top to bottom, and even greeted the officials who were boarding and lodging in the post, so as to make a good impression on King Anton.

Due to the special economic and transportation location of Chenqiao, Chenqiaoyi is the only official post in the town. It has received many high-ranking officials and dignitaries.

But there are really not many nobles from the Tian family, and the one who is receiving them now is King An Dong who has come to Beijing to accept the canonization, and the weight is really not light.His Majesty the Emperor's respect for and trust in the pre-Qin king's family has long been rumored in the market. They are those who attract and send people to work, and their "consciousness" is naturally extremely high. Wang Jia's eyes, at least not to neglect the nobleman.

There is no pressure at all for the reception of these dozens of people at the Chenqiao Post House. The accompanying guards sit at the same table and quickly settle the food and rest. The horses are also carefully and patiently cared for, and the forage is the finest.
Liu Wenyuan and Bai Yonglin entered the private room under the personal service of Yicheng. The hot beef and mutton, delicious wine and vegetables, made people appetite.

Liu Wenyuan didn't move his chopsticks in a hurry, but after clinking a glass with Bai Yonglin, he took another bowl and filled it himself, pushed it to the table, and signaled to the attentive Yicheng: "Please!"

Watching Liu Wenyuan's movements helplessly, Yi Cheng was obviously stunned for a moment, before he realized that he was flattered, and hurriedly said: "I don't dare!"

"It's just a bowl of wine, don't dare to dare, good man, have fun!" Liu Wenyuan said with a light smile: "However, after eating this glass of wine, I have to trouble you to answer a few questions for me!"

Hearing this, Yicheng was thoughtful, but reacted quickly, bowed his hands and said: "The king has something to ask, as long as the little one knows, there is no secret!"

As he spoke, he picked up the wine bowl and drank it all in one gulp. He drank too much, and a lot of it oozes out, and the front of his clothes is wet.

"Happy!" Seeing this, Liu Wenyuan laughed loudly, put a piece of beef into his mouth, chewed it for a while, and before swallowing it, he asked casually, "How long have you been working here?"

"Back to the king!" Yicheng replied very neatly: "My parents were the first group of people who moved to the town. The younger ones grew up here, went to school, and became officials. As for the postcheng, it has been two years. The deadline is approaching, and I am about to step down."

"Resigned after only two years?" Liu Wenyuan couldn't help being surprised.

Yicheng said: "Your Majesty does not know that in Chenqiao Town, many positions are changed every two years. Not to mention this little Yicheng, even the mayor of the town is ordinary!"

"How could it be so frequent?" Liu Wenyuan frowned slightly.

Yicheng: "This is a rule that has been developed in this town for decades!"

"I'm getting more and more curious, can you tell me about it?" Liu Wenyuan looked at him.

Yicheng hesitated for a while, and said with a little pride: "My lord, Chenqiao has its own special features. The location of this town is convenient for transportation, and it is not comparable to most towns in the world. Don't say that the villain, this Yicheng, is just a catcher. , patrol inspection, everyone was overwhelmed. Before that, there were many conflicts of incentives. Ten years after Kaibao, the mayor of the town at the time agreed with all the officials that all positions would be rotated for a period of two years. As a result, many conflicts have been quelled just now, and the town has been able to maintain stability."

Listening to his words, Liu Wenyuan looked at this person playfully. He is not easy to deceive. In this person's words, he avoids the important and ignores the minor, and there are many places to cover up.After pondering for a while, Bai Yonglin said to the side: "I still remember that before Anton's major adjustment last year, most of the county magistrates and town generals who ruled for several years or even ten years!"

Bai Yonglin took a sip of wine and said with a light smile: "Anton doesn't need Chenqiao. As he said, this is the largest town in Kaifeng in the east. People who gather together but cannot form a county set up a town. The main purpose of the imperial court's establishment of a town is also to To strengthen the management of the densely populated areas in the suburbs of these states and counties, apart from inspections, fire fighting, and burglar arrest, the most important duty of the town government is tax collection.

Chen Qiao is extraordinary here!As the largest market around Tokyo, it is densely populated, merchants gather, and trade is frequent, and the tax revenue during it is not a small amount!

Your Majesty, you should know that there are 10,000+ households in Tokyo, and the three cities in the city alone are far from being able to meet the daily needs of the people of Tokyo.Therefore, market trade developed largely outside the city, gradually forming a market town centered on the three major post towns.

Chenqiao Town is the largest trading town in the eastern part of Kaifeng, and a large number of products from the surrounding counties and villages are concentrated here, and then sold by merchants to Tokyo. Over the years, it has become an important transit hub for transporting Tokyo products.”

As he said that, Bai Yonglin glanced at the Yicheng, and said leisurely: "Under such circumstances, it is conceivable how huge the tax revenue and various benefits that Chenqiao Town generates every year. How popular are the positions here? It's not surprising how fierce the fight will be!"

"In the end, it's still the word 'profit'!" Liu Wenyuan glanced at the embarrassed Yicheng, and asked, "How much tax does Chenqiao Town get in a year?"

"For the young ones, I have no way of knowing, only the mayor and the tax collector know!" Yi Cheng said.

"How many people are there in Chenqiao Town now?"

"As far as I know, there are more than [-] households, and there are tens of thousands of people in the whole town. If you include the temporary population, there will be even more!"

"In this way, the mayor of Chenqiao may live better than most county magistrates in the world."

"Not only!" Bai Yonglin continued: "The population of two thousand households is concentrated, which has reached the population of many prefectures. The mayor of Chenqiao is also from the seventh rank, and he was established in the county town, which is very high."

After listening, Liu Wenyuan was silent for a long time, and then said with some regret: "Just this Chenqiao Town is better than Suihua in all aspects. This is the capital of my Anton!"

After hearing this, Bai Yonglin comforted her: "Your Majesty, don't be discouraged. How many towns in the world are there like Chenqiao Town?"

That being said, in the whole world, there are probably less than twenty towns with the population and economic scale of Chenqiao Town.However, the number of second-class and second-class ones is innumerable.

As the capital of the Andong Kingdom, Suihua City is really just an ordinary, remote, and bitterly cold town in the world.This not only makes people feel frustrated, but also inevitably leads to a sense of unwillingness and grievance.
Quickly adjusted his mentality, with a smile on his face, Liu Wenyuan said to the postman, "I'm going to enjoy the wine and food, you step back, I don't need your service here!"

"Yes! The younger one will leave, and the king will take it easy!" Although he was a bit reluctant, he really didn't dare to linger.

After he left, Liu Wenyuan tasted some dishes slowly, then raised his head, and said to Bai Yonglin with great interest: "Brother Lin, I realized that I underestimated you before, and you know so much about Chenqiao Town. , I am afraid that few people of the same age can match it!"

"Your Majesty's praise!" Bai Yonglin said modestly: "I grew up in Kaifeng, and my family used to have a stock farming business. I have learned a lot, and I understand it. It also happens to be Chenqiao Town. If you change it to something else, you are not a minister." Got it"

After looking at Bai Yonglin carefully, Liu Wenyuan took a bite of the roasted lamb leg and said, "Eat quickly. After eating, leave immediately for Tokyo!"

Hearing this, Bai Yonglin couldn't help being surprised: "Your Highness is so interested in this Chenqiao Town, I thought that the King will stay here today!"

"No more!" Liu Wenyuan said.

Like a war, quickly settle the wine and meat, and when you are eighty percent full, stop the bowls and chopsticks, wipe your mouth and go downstairs, gather your entourage, and prepare to set off.This resolute appearance made the posthouse at a loss as to what to do, and they didn't even dare to talk to Kou if he wanted to stay.And when the mayor heard the news and interrupted the outing, when he returned in a hurry, he only got the news that King Anton had left, and he couldn't even see his back, so he had to beat his chest and stamp his feet in front of the post...

On the way to Kaifeng, Liu Wenyuan's expression was always serious. When the Kaifeng city wall was in sight, he suddenly asked Bai Yonglin, "If the population is concentrated in counties and towns, what if everyone is running for profit? Trade, how many people are left to work and produce in peace, if natural disasters and man-made disasters happen, won't it be easy for famine to break out?"

To this, Bai Yonglin didn't know how to answer. After thinking for a while, she said: "The people who work in the land should be far more than the population of cities and towns in counties and counties. This kind of trading is not something ordinary people can do. As for the famine , these years there have been many big and small disasters, and many people have died, but I have never heard of a great famine..."

Liu Wenyuan fell into deep thought again. He always felt that there was something in it that he couldn't grasp...

(End of this chapter)