Fenghou

"Old man, what do you think about this?"

The old woman held up Sipa, and the old man was shocked when he saw it. He quickly pulled his wife into the back room and said in a low voice, "This is a treasure. Don't let others see it. There will be people with malicious intentions. Don't reveal the wealth."

"This... this is probably given to us by that little lady, what do you think should be done?"

The old man shook his head and said: "We have already collected the silver, so we can no longer take other people's gold. If you are too greedy, there will be retribution. Tomorrow we will hand it over to His Highness's subordinates."

"Correct!"

The old woman also agreed: "This hairpin is too expensive, it will be a disaster for us, we can't take it back if we give it back to him tomorrow."

……

When Chen Qing returned to the expensive hotel, he immediately sent someone to find the prefect Zheng Ainong, not long after, Zheng Ainong rushed over.

"See Your Highness for a humble position!"

In the lobby, Chen Qing smiled and asked him to sit down, Zheng Ainong seemed a little nervous and cramped.

Chen Qing smiled slightly and said, "Don't worry! I'm not here to trouble you. On the contrary, I really appreciate your doing a good job on Respect for the Aged Day. Is it the government's or the county's credit?"

"Reporting to Your Highness, it was arranged by the government office, and it was implemented in all counties of Chengdu Prefecture. It started in March last year, exactly a whole year."

"Is the money and food needed to promote the Respect for the Aged Day covered by the finances?"

"Reporting to Your Highness, our target is the elderly over 60 years old. In fact, there are not many people. The whole Chengdu Mansion is less than [-] people. Calculated, it is only [-] guan a month, and each person is given two sets of clothes a year. We It is enough to pay with the rent income of the government.”

"That's right! You don't spend much money, but you are very popular. Who cares about the old man's life?"

"However, there must be many deficiencies. I implore Your Highness to correct me."

"I really want to raise three opinions. The first opinion is that there are too few Changping stores open, and there are only seven stores. The queue is too long, so we simply open all of them. The afternoon of the first day of each month is specially open for the elderly. Most people can't buy it for half a day. Things don’t really matter, it’s only half a day a month, so it won’t delay things.”

Zheng Ainong bowed and said: "I understand, I must do it!"

"The second suggestion, let me ask first, how many state soldiers do you have in total?"

"About 1000 people!"

"That's simple. In the afternoon of the first day of each month, all the state soldiers are dispatched. There are more than a dozen people standing in front of each Changping store, helping the elderly to carry things. Everyone is trembling. A bucket of flour is twelve catties! How do you let them take it?" ? Since it’s Respect for the Aged Day, let’s do good deeds to the end and help them deliver them to their homes.”

Zheng Ainong said in embarrassment: "At this time, I was negligent. Your Highness criticized me well. I will definitely correct it next month."

"The third suggestion is more important. Don't implement it according to household registration. I met a couple of elderly people today. Their son was killed in the anti-golden battle at Dasanguan. The two were old and homeless because they were from Guozhou and could not enjoy the treatment of Respect for the Aged Day. I believe you have encountered this problem a long time ago, why can't you treat it uniformly?"

Zheng Ainong said for a while: "We are worried that after the news spreads, all the old people in Sichuan Road will come to Chengdu, and we cannot afford it financially."

Chen Qing nodded, "You should negotiate with Lu Changshi on how to solve this problem, instead of avoiding it and pretending that you haven't seen the old people from other states. So on this point, I want to criticize you for being negative and only considering local interests. Regardless of the overall situation."

Zheng Ainong said in shame: "Your Highness is right to criticize!"

Chen Qing was dissatisfied again: "I will criticize Lu Changshi tomorrow. He is in Chengdu, but he turned a blind eye to this matter. I don't believe that he didn't think of this issue. He is also responsible."

"Beizhi will go to Lu Changshi tomorrow to discuss a solution, and we will treat everyone equally from the first day of May."

Chen Qing said to him again: "You go to the county government later and tell the county magistrate that my soldiers will accompany the two old men tomorrow morning, and the county government will pay them [-] yuan as an additional pension for his son. Later, I asked Zheng Ping to send the money to the county government, and then gave them two May cards, and they will also receive food and salt starting in May, just these two things.”

"Your Highness, don't worry, the humble job will be done!"

……

At noon the next day, Chen Qing returned a gold hairpin inlaid with gemstones together with a silk handkerchief to Zhao Yingluo. Seeing that her face changed slightly, she explained with a smile: "I didn't send anyone to come back. Yes, and this kind of precious jewelry will be watched by bad guys, which is a threat to them."

Zhao Yingluo blushed pretty and said, "It's because I didn't think carefully, Meng Lang."

"You don't have to worry about it. I asked the county government to find them two bungalows with a small yard. They don't charge them rent and let them live forever. The shop they opened is also free of rent. Both of them are over [-] years old. , the body is quite healthy, already much better than most old people, this is also their blessing."

"That way I'm relieved!"

Chen Qing sat down, hugged her into his arms and asked with a smile, "Can I go today?"

Thinking of last night's madness, Zhao Yingluo blushed even more. She poked her husband's forehead with her slender fingers, pursed her lips and said with a smile, "I've only heard of exhausted cows, but never of plowed fields. Husband You should worry about your body!"

"Oh! Where did you hear that?" Chen Qingxiao asked, but his hands began to be dishonest.

"In the newspaper!"

Zhao Yingluo pressed his hand and begged, "It's daytime now, let's do it again at night!"

"I don't know which one is that?"

Chen Qing picked her up and said with a smile: "It's noon now, it's lunch break time, let's take a nap together and see how good my ox is at plowing the fields?"

-------------Chapter Dividing Line---------------

After another two or three days, officials from Jinghu South Road arrived one after another, not only the state officials, but also some county officials. This made Chen Qing a little strange. He asked the state officials to come by name. What did the county officials do?

Zhou Kuan explained: "It's Hengyang County in Hengzhou and Lingling County in Yongzhou. The reason is that the state officials from these two prefectures did not come, and the county officials below came."

Chen Qing's face sank slightly, and he asked dissatisfiedly, "Is there any reason why officials from Hengzhou and Yongzhou don't come?"

"Beizhi also asked the magistrates of Hengyang and Lingling, and they gave the same reason. The magistrates of the two prefectures fell ill, and the judges were busy with government affairs, so they couldn't leave."

Chen Qing snorted, and asked again: "Except for Hengzhou and Yongzhou, what about the other states?"

"There are also Chenzhou and Guiyang prisons that haven't arrived. They are far away, but I heard that they are already on the way. By the way, there is also the Wugang army. Their Zhijun is also on the way."

"So you know that the chief officials of Hengzhou and Yongzhou haven't arrived?"

"Exactly!"

Chen Qing thought for a while and said, "Invite the two county magistrates here this afternoon, I want to meet them."

It is not easy for these two county magistrates to fight against the chief magistrate, especially the county magistrate of the prefectural office. Information is blocked, and other counties do not understand the situation.

Chen Qing called Zhou Kuan again, "There are Zhang Shun, the governor of Jiangling, and Ge Qinghong, the governor of Ezhou. I will meet them together. Counselor Zhou, please be present!"

"Humble job understands, arrange immediately!"

……

In the afternoon, several officials were invited to the expensive hotel. The reason why Chen Qing invited Zhang Shun, the prefect of Jiangling, was that Zhang Shun and Chen Qing had a good relationship. Staff, when Wang Yan was the magistrate of Jiangling, Zhang Shun was recommended by Wang Yan as the Sima of Jiangling Prefecture. After Wang Yan's death, Zhang Shun was appointed as the general judge of Jiangling Prefecture because of his meritorious service in defending Jiangling. It is the magistrate of Jiangling.

On the other hand, Zhang Shun was not tolerated by the court because he assisted Chen Qing in controlling South Jing South Road. With the courier of the Internal Affairs Hall, it is impossible to deliver the letter so quickly.

Zhang Shun had a high prestige on Jinghu South Road and was very loyal to himself, so Chen Qing considered Zhang Shun as the director of Jinghu Road Shangshuxing.

The invitation of Ge Qinghong, the magistrate of Ezhou, to come here is also due to a certain intention of the imperial court. It should be said that the imperial court realized the importance of Ezhou. Ezhou is connected to Jinghu North Road in the northwest and Huainan West Road in the northeast. Bordering Jiangnan West Road, the strategic position is extremely important, especially Chen Qing plans to place the main force of the navy in Jiangxia, and the warships will attack from Jiangxia. Not only the Han River and Poyang Lake will be controlled, but the entire middle reaches of the Yangtze River will be controlled by the Jiangxia navy.

For this reason, Emperor Zhao Gou began to repent and wanted to take Ezhou back, but how could Chen Qing allow it?

Chen Qing asked everyone to sit down. The two county magistrates seemed a bit restrained. Zhang Shun smiled and introduced to Chen Qing: "This county magistrate Li is a magistrate of Hengyang, a Jinshi in the second year of Shaoxing, and a native of Changning County, Hengzhou."

The black and thin magistrate of Hengyang got up and saluted, "Li Gong, a lowly post, thank you for your highness' cultivation!"

Chen Qing smiled and waved his hand, telling him to sit down. The other one stood up and saluted, "Su Xuansheng, a low-ranking official, is from Baling County, Yuezhou. He has been the county magistrate in Lingling for three years."

Zhang Shun added: "Suzhi County is also a Jinshi in the second year of Shaoxing. In that year, the imperial court admitted more than [-] people, all over the counties in the south."

Chen Qing nodded and said with a smile: "You two are good. You take care of the overall situation, understand the current affairs, and are brave to forge ahead. People say that the county magistrate where the state government is located is the most difficult to be. At the top, you have to look up at the state capital, and at the bottom, you have to appease the squire, just like a woman wrapped I am afraid of saying the wrong thing or going the wrong way. I also know that the boss will definitely not tolerate you when you come here, but you can rest assured that since you dare to come out, then I, Chen Qing, will definitely protect you Escort, let those who don't want to cooperate with me go where they should go."

Chen Qing's words were very domineering, and he said without hesitation that he was going to clean up the officials of Hengzhou and Yongzhou.

The two magistrates looked at each other, and they both breathed a sigh of relief. Both of them took great risks in coming to Chengdu this time, and it can be said that they both bet on their official careers. If the magistrate does not leave, then only they will leave. , has been difficult to work together under the same roof.

Chen Qing changed the subject, then softened his tone, and asked with a smile: "I remember that banditry was serious in Hengyang and Lingling before, and then there was a flood of illegal salt. I wonder how the situation is now?"

Li Gong, the magistrate of Hengyang County, leaned forward and said: "As long as the previous banditry was caused by Liu Guangshi's rout, all banditry has been wiped out now, not only in Hengyang County, but also in Hengzhou. After Zhang Tai was completely wiped out, the two small salt lords in the south seemed to be overwhelmed, they have withdrawn from Hengzhou, and now they are all selling official salt from Sichuan and Shaanxi."

Chen Qing nodded, and then asked Su Xuansheng, "Where is Lingling County?"

"Reporting to Your Highness, Lingling County is exactly the same as Hengyang County."

Zhang Shun beside him sighed secretly, what a rare opportunity to talk with His Royal Highness King Yong, but this Su Xuansheng did not seize this opportunity to express himself a lot, how could it be said that Lingling County is exactly the same as Hengyang County, does Lingling County not have its own characteristics?

"Talk about the difficulties!"

Chen Qing said with a smile: "What difficulties do Lingling County have at present, and then Hengyang County will also talk about it."

This time, it was obvious that Lingling County was the first to speak and gave Su Xuansheng the opportunity.

Su Xuansheng hurriedly said: "The biggest problem in Lingling County is the inconvenient transportation. It is very closed. Although there are abundant products, they can't be shipped out. So many mountain products are rotting for nothing, which is really heartbreaking."

"Doesn't the Xiangjiang River pass through Lingling County? Can't it be transported out through the Xiangjiang River?"

"Reporting to Your Highness, Lingling County is located in the upper reaches of the Xiangjiang River. There are many beaches and rapids. There are many strange rocks in the river. Bamboo rafts are fine, but cargo ships are easy to run aground or crash."

"What if we pull out the strange rock in the river?"

"That's much better. At least a five hundred shi cargo ship can navigate."

Chen Qing nodded, "I will remember this matter, and I will arrange the army to try to remove the boulder later."

"On behalf of the [-] elders in Lingling County, I would like to thank His Highness for your concern."

Chen Qing smiled, and said to Li Gong: "What about Hengyang County?"

"Reporting to Your Highness, Hengyang County is actually a traffic problem. Hengyang County also relies on the Xiangshui River for transportation, but the water condition in Hengyang is relatively good, and the water flow is relatively smooth and stable. The problem in Hengyang is mainly due to too few ships. During the Xuanhe period, the entire Hengyang There are more than 3000 ships in the state, and now there are only more than 300 ships left, which has dropped by a full tenfold."

"Are you short of capacity?" Chen Qing asked.

"Exactly!"

Chen Qing asked Zhang Shun again, "Can the Xiangjiang River take a thousand-stone ship?"

Zhang Shun bowed his body and said, "Reporting to Your Highness, the ship with ten thousand stones has not passed by, but the ship with five thousand stones will definitely pass, and it has arrived in Hengyang during the Xuanhe period."

Chen Qing borrowed one hundred Wanshi ships from Zheng Tongquan, and bought twenty Wanshi ships in Quanzhou. He has 220 Wanshi ships in his hand, and he can divide [-] ships to go to the Xiangjiang River. If Hengyang is built As a transit city, materials from the entire south can be concentrated in Hengyang, and then transported from Hengyang to Jiangling by Wanshi cargo ship, and the entire Jinghu South Road will be revitalized through Xiangshui.

Chapter One Hundred and Eight

Thinking of this, Chen Qing said to Zhang Shun: "I have an idea, to build Hengyang into a material transfer place in the south of Jinghu South Road, which requires the construction of a large number of warehouses, and dredging of rivers and wharves. It’s hard to do, I want the envoy to take the lead and mobilize all the states along the Xiangjiang River to contribute together, if you have money, you can contribute, if you don’t have enough funds, write me another report, and I’ll make arrangements.”

Zhang Shun was overjoyed, this is what it meant to let him be in charge of South Jing South Road, he hurriedly said: "When I look back, I will call the chief officials of the states along the way to discuss this matter, and first come up with a preliminary plan for His Highness to review."

"So much the better!"

After talking for a long time, Ge Qinghong, the governor of Ezhou, was a little cold. Ge Qinghong seemed to have something on his mind and kept silent. Of course, he had some things that he couldn't say in front of the two county magistrates, so he kept silent.

With an open mind, Zhou Kuan first took away the two magistrates, leaving only Chen Qing, Zhang Shun, and Ge Qinghong in the hall.

Ge Qinghong was originally the Jiangling general judge, he was Zhao Ding's person, Zhao Ding recommended him to be the governor of Ezhou, now that Zhao Ding was demoted and Qin Hui was in power, he completely lost confidence in the imperial court, so he turned to Chen Qing in an all-round way. Officials arriving in Chengdu.

"Your Highness, just before I set off, I just received a letter from the imperial court, asking me to return to report on my duties temporarily. Of course, I will not go there. There is a problem here. I am actually a court official, a member of the Ministry of War, and I know Ezhou affairs. It’s just dispatching officials, if the lowly position refuses to obey the transfer of the court, and the court official dismisses me from the official position, the lowly position of Ezhou Governor will be a bit dishonest.”

Ge Qinghong pointed out a big problem, which is Chen Qing's right to appoint local officials, such as prefects, prefectures, and counties. They are actually court officials who are sent to the local government. They do not belong to the local official system. A kind of control over the place, Chen Qing can appoint local officials, but he can't appoint court officials from Lin'an to be local officials.

That is to say, Chen Qing can appoint actual local officials such as Tongpan, Sima, county magistrate, and county magistrate, but he cannot appoint magistrates, prefectures, and county magistrates, otherwise the name will be unfair.

This is a big problem, but also a new one. In the past, Sichuan and Shaanxi were decided by Chen Qing, and the imperial court had no control over them. However, both Hedong Road and Henan Road were taken back from Jin Guo, and the imperial court had no control over them.

But Jinghu South Road is different. It was snatched from the imperial court, so its nature is completely different.

Chen Qing didn't think about this issue clearly either, he smiled and said, "Don't worry, we are still negotiating with the imperial court, I believe the imperial court will definitely give in!"

……

Two days later, except for the governors of Yongzhou and Hengzhou, the chief officials of other states rushed to Chengdu, and Jiang Yanxian rushed to Chengdu Mansion with a group of officials. Chengdu was extremely lively, and the officials knew each other. They met each other, and Zhang Shun was also authorized by Chen Qing to organize a group of officials from the states along the Xiangshui River to discuss the plan to establish a material transfer warehouse in Hengyang.

Everyone could see that this was actually a loyalty rally. After this rally, Chen Qing formally took full control of Jingnan South Road, but the officials from Hengzhou and Everlasting didn't come, so they took another line.

Tanzhou Tongju Wang Yao was very worried. He and Hengzhou Sima Wu Yongjin were relatives. This time, none of the three senior officials of the Hengzhou prefectural government, Zhizhou, Tongju, and Sima, came. He didn't care about others, but Wu Yongjin was his. In-laws, he refused to come but didn't explain to himself, what is that?

In fact, Wang Yao probably knew a little about the situation. The key is that Ma Wenfu in Zhizhou is too powerful. Ma Wenfu is Qin Hui's confidant. How to do?

Wang Yao was really annoyed that his in-laws were weak and useless, even the magistrate of Hengyang dared to come to Chengdu to attend the meeting, but he, a dignified Sima, didn't dare to come, didn't he understand?If he came, he would be the magistrate of Hengzhou, and he missed this opportunity for promotion in vain.

But no matter what, his daughter is married to the Wu family. If something happens to Wu Yongjin, his son-in-law will be affected, and his daughter will also be affected.

Wang Yao was extremely anxious, he had to think of a way to intercede with his in-laws, after thinking twice, he thought of Zhang Shun, it seemed that Zhang Shun was highly valued by King Yong, if nothing unexpected happened, Zhang Shun would be the head of the Shangshu Office on South Jingnan Road Shi, become their boss.

Zhang Shun did not expect that Wang Yao would come to beg him. The Wang family is one of the largest families in Tanzhou. They are very powerful. Capable, now the magistrate of Xiangtan County.

Of course, Zhang Shun hoped that someone he likes would come to beg him, especially if someone from the local snake sect came to beg him, then he would have favor, which would be of great benefit to the implementation of his government orders in the future.

"Sit down, judge!"

Zhang Shun smiled and asked Wang Yao to sit down. He just had a quarrel with Feng Jisi, the governor of Tanzhou, this morning. Feng Jisi disagreed with putting the material transfer location in Hengyang, but asked to put it in Changsha, but the material transfer warehouse group is located in Hengyang. According to Wang, Zhang Shun also believed that putting it in Hengyang would be more beneficial to the southern states, so Feng Jisi's objection was invalid.

Feng Jisi immediately stated that Tanzhou would neither contribute nor contribute money, which made Zhang Shun very annoyed. If the other southern states were not very active, the discussion in the morning might not be over.

Now that Wang Yao is begging himself, this is a good thing!I was also worried that Tanzhou would resist the construction of Hengyang. Wang Yao came at this critical moment, which shows that it is God's will.

"This morning, your Zhizhou's attitude is very unfriendly! I don't understand the overall situation, and I'm worried that I won't be able to explain to King Yong!"