Daming: I, the emperor who trains the carpenter

At the beginning of the new year, from the Zhengdan Festival to the Shangyuan Festival, the Ming Dynasty is full of joyous family reunion.

After the Lantern Festival, the atmosphere of the New Year's Eve gradually disappeared, and Daming returned to being busy again.

The prosperous land needs careful cultivation the most, and the Ming Dynasty needs it even more.

Therefore, as soon as the new year is over, the members of the cabinet will hold a small meeting.

In Wenyuan Pavilion, charcoal basins were still burning to keep warm. On the second floor, Zhang Haogu, Zhang Ruitu, Lu Xiangsheng, Qian Qianyi, Huang Liji, and Qiao Yunsheng were sitting and laughing and talking about interesting things during the New Year's Eve.

After chatting, it was inevitable to talk about the main affairs of this year.

"The old man also read the brochure handed over by the Chidao Yamen. Yuanfu, does the Chidao Yamen really plan to open a few new Chidao this year?" Qian Qianyi asked curiously.

Zhang Haogu nodded and said: "The Chidao Yamen and the Academy of Engineering have come to look for me, I hope there will be no new additions to Chidao this year."

"Speaking of which, this is not a bad thing. Currently, the imperial court is repairing six roads, and there are still three that have not yet started to be repaired. It will take time to repair them. Even if it is released to build new chi roads, There is not so much manpower and energy, and work will not start before the end of this year."

"Since this is the case, you might as well fix the current ones first, and accumulate experience along the way. The Academy of Engineering has already made a technological breakthrough. The improvement of the steam engine is on the agenda. When the steam engine is improved, the existing locomotives of the imperial court They will all be replaced by new models, and these old models will definitely be refurbished, so why bother to open new tracks and build those old-style locomotives now.”

Qian Qianyi nodded and stroked his beard: "So it is like this. This is a good thing. The Academy of Engineering has made breakthroughs in technology, and a new locomotive has been put on the agenda. This is a great thing. By then, the new locomotive will be available." , and go to open a new road, maybe the stock market can go up again."

Huang Liji said again: "Speaking of Chidao, the most important thing right now is the two Chidao that connect the grassland, Datong to Baliannadu and Shuntianfu to Chahar. The progress of the construction is somewhat endless. Satisfactory."

Mentioning these two galloping paths, the elders couldn't help but sigh.

There is no way, it is indeed too troublesome to build a road on the grassland, and the terrain of Monan is too complicated, even if there are old people from Monan Mongolia leading the way, it is still difficult to build.

But the importance of these two passages is impossible for Daming not to repair. After all, they are important passages to control the three thousand miles of Monan Grassland in the future and deter Mobei and Zhungeer. It is impossible for the imperial court to say that the current situation Monan Mongolia, which is getting better and better, is ignored.

There are millions of herdsmen and tens of millions of cattle and sheep in the three thousand miles of Monan grassland. This is the largest horse farm in Ming Dynasty, and it is also the main source of cattle and sheep in Ming Dynasty. How could the court ignore it.

Lu Xiangsheng held tea in his hand, with a straight face: "I said last year that these two roads are not easy to repair, and we must focus on them first, but we are all blinded by the great situation. There are so many jumps in the face, it is not easy to transfer people from other places right now, and it will take at least two or three years for the Chidao Academy to train people."

"There is a problem with the two roads in Mongolia right now, and the Ministry of Household Affairs is going to spend money to solve it."

Zhang Haogu said with a smile: "Master Lu, the Ministry of Households does not need to spend more money. There are all kinds of ups and downs in Mongolia. It is normal to repair it slowly, and it is enough to be able to open to traffic in the end. This one is worth the money. It’s hard to solve, it’s better to look at the river side.”

Lu Xiangsheng picked up a brochure, with a bad expression on his face: "I can't be more clear about what's going on here in Hedao. They still cling to the old ways. They don't want to give up their special status, and they don't want to put things right. Letting go of the imperial court, wanting money from the imperial court, and secretly doing that shameful thing, how can there be such a good thing in this world."

River channels, or water transport, were important channels for the Ming and Qing dynasties to make a living.

Because in the land of fish and rice, money and food are important in the south, and the political centers of Ming and Qing Dynasties are all in the north, all the officials, soldiers and horses in the Zhili area need money and food from the south to feed them.

The role of the canal is reflected here. The money, food and taxes from the south are continuously escorted to the capital through water transportation. This not only relieves the food pressure in the north, but also an important channel for the southern tax to reach the capital.

The tax and bank in the southeast of Jianghuai and other places are all transported to Beijing by water.

Of course, the current Ming Dynasty has fully switched to the gold and silver standard treasure banknote system, and there is no need to escort treasure banknotes to the capital.

Nowadays, the effect of water transportation on Ming Dynasty is gradually decreasing. First, the increasingly developed overseas trade has made great progress in sea transportation. Not to mention that it is from the southeast to the capital, even the Wanli Sea Road has not been traveled. In comparison, from It is safer to walk along the offshore waters from the southeast coast to the north.

The second is the straight road official road system and supporting roads that are being continuously built in various places. These are constantly squeezing the living space of the river. The importance of the river is getting lower and lower. The prestige of the water transport in the past is no longer there, and the court has gradually no longer needed Water transportation to transport money and food to ease the pressure on the north, which made the water transportation more dissatisfied and panic among new students, fearing that it would be abolished.

Therefore, in the past two years, there have been some small actions on the river, but they were all small actions, and the cabinet did not take care of the river. As for the abolition of water transportation, it is actually a problem faced by the cabinet.

Because this canal, which connects the economic and political centers of the north and south of Ming Dynasty, cannot be banned. Even if there is a canal, the canal still has an irreplaceable role. Even if it is a pure commercial river, it still has enough important status.

Therefore, the importance of the canal will not decrease, but the water transport yamen will no longer have the prestige of the past, and the days of those who control the water transport and those below will not be as easy as before.

Without the previous importance, it means that it will gradually be unnecessary, so it is normal for the river to jump up and down. The cabinet has also discussed whether to take some measures now, but it involves millions of waterworkers, a series of regions from north to south And officials, it is not easy to move this water transport.

Right now, the other side of the river seems to have noticed this, and began to call for help, jumping up and down, and constantly passing pocketbooks to ask for money, hoping that the court can clean up the silt in the canal, allocate money to repair the embankment, and renovate the canal.

Just kidding, a canal runs from south to north. When was the Ming Dynasty not repairing and dredging?

They don't know how much food the river has swallowed. Now they report a figure and count on the imperial court to allocate funds, and then they continue to eat, drink, eat and wait to die. How can there be such a good thing.

So it's no wonder that Lu Xiangsheng is angry. After dealing with government affairs these years, it is a process of continuous self-cultivation, so Lu Xiangsheng's temper is much better than before, but whether they don't know about the twists and turns of water transport, or others don't know. This is talking about things, fooling ghosts.

Qian Qianyi smiled slightly. He knew a little about the situation on the other side of the river, but he really didn't pay attention to those people who transported the water. He really thought that without the water transport, Daming would not turn?
What a joke.

"Ahem, Prime Minister Lu, there's no need to talk to the other side of the river, just refute them directly. These people are just jumping up and down just to let the court know their importance and then throw them at the mouse. Even if the river is gone, Daming still has no effect. Let them jump if they want to." Qian Qianyi said with a smile.

Zhang Ruitu also said: "Yes, just to see how many people are dissatisfied with the imperial court and take the opportunity to make trouble. I don't believe that they are involved on the other side of the river. There are people who are interested in going up and down along the river. How much? They are all those who are unwilling to serve the imperial court down-to-earth, and there will be plenty of time to deal with them in the future."

Lu Xiangsheng also sighed: "Forget it, I'm looking at the book on the other side of the river. The food and clothing of millions of waterworkers, heh, is really a big name. This year's appropriation on the other side of the river, I see whether it will be slowed down or not. Sow less, now that wharves are popping up all over the coast, people are willing to find a living along the coast, and there are more jobs on the wharves. I have to say that the power gangs on those wharves are more disciplined than the Cao Gang.”

Zhang Haogu nodded slightly: "Over the water transport yamen, the imperial court first sent people to check the situation along the river, whether it needs to be repaired, how much money should be spent, and then check the internal problems of the water transport in the past two years. .Warn them first, and if they don’t obey, a new group of people will come up, and the water transportation is not just controlled by these people.”

"That's right. The things belonging to the imperial court are now their private property. It's better to go and check them out, knock them down, and let them settle down." Zhang Ruitu agreed with Zhang Haogu's opinion very much. The river course is too extensive. It's not that the imperial court can't rectify it, but there's no need to waste energy on it right now. After all, the importance of water transportation has decreased, and their influence is constantly weakening. It will be very easy to handle water transportation in the future.

"Let's let them go with the river course first, we'd better solve the problem of running the course first." Huang Liji also spoke.

After the cabinet's deliberations, it didn't do much to deal with the river, but still sent a censor to check the water transportation situation, and at the same time check the files of the river for the past two years.

But right now, the court's focus is still on the north. Whether it is the establishment of the nine-year education system this year or the two roads on the grassland, there are more people who care about it than water transportation.

Not long after, the censor sent out to inspect the river came back and reported that everything in the river files was normal, that the water transportation was good, and there was no problem.

The cabinet also smiled at this and ignored it.

Nowadays, the imperial court has a large stall, and there is a shortage of manpower everywhere. There are too many places to employ people, but there are not enough talents.

After half a month of calm, rumors spread all over the place, saying that Chidao is a cover for the imperial court to cheat money. In fact, Chidao is not as evil as advertised, and the train is actually a larger horse-drawn train, which is extremely inconvenient , it can't hold much goods and can't run far.

As for the two roads leading to Mongolia that are currently under construction, they have stopped repairing a long time ago. All these can show that the roads are just a thing for cheating money, and the court will ignore the money once it is in hand.

There was no market for these rumors at the beginning, jokes, how about Chidao, businessmen still don’t know?

Ordinary people don't need Chidao, so they don't care if Chidao is good or not. They only know that when Chidao is built at the doorstep, everyone benefits.

Just like last year's Double Eleven and Double Twelve, the imperial court paid merchants to sell their goods at a discount, and the common people bought things that were cheaper than usual. Can this be said that the imperial court is not good?
The person who spread these words must have lost his mind, or he was jealous because Chi Dao didn't cultivate to him at all.

So at the beginning, everyone didn't take it seriously, hehe, right now it is said that Chidao is not good, that is not good, wait for Chidao to be repaired at his door, and he will definitely be the one who can most boast about the benefits and convenience of Chidao.

But after a while, someone claimed that there was a problem with the Mongolian Chidao. In fact, this Chidao was not mature at all, and the court used the money of the people to conduct experiments.

Some people also said that the construction of Chidao cost a lot. The money could be used to do other things that benefit the country and the people, but it was wasted on Chidao. There must be hidden secrets and so on.

These gossips were well-spoken and caused some people to panic. Could there really be something wrong with the Chidao in Monan?
For a while, some people who couldn't sit still began to investigate continuously, and after getting some news, they immediately rushed to sell the stocks in their hands. Regarding the two roads leading to Monan, except for the major chambers of commerce, some ordinary People also bought some.

Originally, these stocks were intended to be used as family heirlooms, but now it seems that there is something wrong with Chidao. The stock is thrown out, for fear that the stock in hand is worthless.

When someone sells, someone blindly follows the trend, just like before when a large number of people bought in a large number and made the stock go up, a large number of people followed blindly. Now that someone sells, other people who can't sit still and don't know what's going on also start to sell. , they don't know what's going on, they just know what to do with others.

All of a sudden, a group of people began to sell Chidao's stock, which directly caused the stock market to fluctuate, and Chidao's stock fell all the way.

Not only the stocks of the two Chidao in Monan, except for the Jingjin Chidao, the stocks of the other Chidao under construction have all fallen to varying degrees, and this has also led to more and more people starting to sell the Chidao in their hands Stocks, these retail investors began to sell, and the big investors couldn't sit still. There shouldn't be a real problem with this trend, right?

This series of changes has also attracted the attention of the cabinet. How can it become a project to cheat money if it is going well?

"The gossip about Chidao has never stopped. These remarks were just regarded as normal at the beginning, and no one expected that they would intensify. But in just one month, they have developed to the current situation." Sun Fengqi said bitterly. Zhang Haogu and others reported the situation.

He is the servant of Chidao, and the leader of Chidao Yamen. The stock of Chidao Yamen fluctuated and fell, retail investors sold off one after another, and big investors kept making indirect inquiries about the situation. Chidao Yamen was really at a loss. They had never encountered such a situation before. .

Zhang Haogu closed his eyes and rested his mind, Lu Xiangsheng slowly sipped tea with a cup of tea, Zhang Ruitu tapped his palm with a booklet in his hand, Qian Qianyi was looking at a pair of calligraphy and painting, the atmosphere in the cabinet, all of a sudden It's getting subtler.

"About the two Chidaos in Balanadu and Chahar, what is the current situation, the Chidao Yamen will always give an explanation." Lu Xiangsheng said slowly.

Sun Fengqi said: "Mr. Lu, there are indeed some problems with the imperial court's road leading to Baliannadu and Chahar. It is true that work has been suspended at the moment, but this is normal. The north has just thawed, and the grassland is still open. It is not as good as in the north, where it is difficult to start construction without thawing, and the ground is mostly small swamps and muddy land after thawing, and construction is also troublesome. These are normal, and Chidao will resume construction again after this period of time passes.”

Qian Qianyi nodded: "That's true. The grassland is not as good as the Central Plains. There are many Gobi deserts, swamps and rivers. Last year, when it snowed, there were a few more rivers and swamps in the grassland. It will freeze again next year. These rivers, swamps Ah, it’s gone. It’s normal for many rivers on the grassland to divert, and the place where Chidao is walking is the road that traders and grassland herdsmen have walked over and over again. Basically, there will be no major problems. Now the grassland is freezing cold. It is normal that it is difficult to start work, and the common people are just bewitched by people with good intentions."

"Sun Shilang go back first. When the time comes, you will send a few notices to the yamen, and Da Ming Daily will help you publicize it so that the people know what's going on, and it will pass." Zhang Ruitu laughed.

After Sun Fengqi left, Zhang Haogu said slowly, "What do you guys think about this?"

"Hmph, there must be a situation behind it. Chidao's repairs are changed according to the times. Isn't it not just the construction of Chidao, rivers, and official roads? Nowadays, Chidao is attacked by the cold grassland and the common people's unreasonable Knowing the situation to attack the stock market is not something ordinary people can do.” Lu Xiangsheng said.

Zhang Ruitu frowned slightly: "The question now is, who did this, are those big merchants holding a large number of stocks wanting to clear the market, or is there someone else?"

I have to mention that Chidao stock is really weird nowadays. A large number of retail investors are being led by the trend to sell their stocks continuously. Some small and medium-sized investors can’t bear the risk and dump a large number of Chidao stocks, which attracts others to follow suit, but the big investors are unmoved. .

Neither selling nor buying, no one knows the thinking of these big chambers of commerce and big groups, it is hard to say which party has hit the Chidao stock.

Maybe it's someone with a heart who wants to attack the court, or maybe the big players want to unite and swallow most of the retail stocks to clear the market. Now they don't move because they want more people to sell their stocks so that they can buy them in one fell swoop. By the way, there may be other opponents who can't bear it. Housing is also sold, so as to hit the enemy.

It may also be that people from other fields want to hit Chidao stocks, such as shipping, and their competition with Chidao is very fierce.

These situations are all possible. In many cases, it may just be that someone throws out an introduction, and other people take advantage of the opportunity when they find the opportunity, so that people can use their strength to complete their efforts. In the end, the interested person achieves the goal, and others take advantage of the situation to complete their own goals. For the goal, there is only a mess left, waiting for others to finish.

"Well, it's not easy to be calm and calm. There are always some people who insist on causing trouble."