Guide to Traveling through the Northern Song Dynasty.

Chapter 1021 1016 [One Denglai Prefecture Defeated Goryeo]

The area east of Jiaoshui has been called Jiaodong since ancient times, and now belongs to Denglai Prefecture of the Ming Dynasty.

The prefect of Denglai is a lucrative position.

Since the founding of the Ming Dynasty, three prefects of Denglai have been executed, all for corruption.

There have been only four prefects in total, and the current one was transferred here last year.

In other words, from the founding of the Ming Dynasty to last year, the mortality rate of the prefect of Denglai was 100%!

It's so rich here.

The prosperous market that this group of Goryeo royal family and clan members saw in Denglai Prefecture is just a reflection of the growing prosperity of the Jiaodong region.

With the court's rectification of gold mines in Jiaodong, the gold output from Denglai Prefecture accounted for 45% of the gold output in the Ming Dynasty (excluding overseas), ranking first in the country!

Steel production ranks third in the country (prefecture-level ranking).

The salt production ranks third in the country (ranked at the prefecture level).

The cloth production ranks fifth in the country (ranked at the prefecture level).

At present, the most cotton-growing areas in Daming are in Shandong, mainly concentrated in Jinan, Yanzhou, and Dongchang (Liaocheng and Linqing areas). The climate and soil here are suitable for cotton growing, and there are abundant irrigation resources.

One-sixth of the cotton produced in Shandong was sold to Denglai Prefecture for weaving because the textile industry has always been developed there.

In the past, the main products were silk, satin and linen, but now cotton has been added as a specialty.

The textile industry in Goryeo was destroyed in recent years, and the main culprit was the linen cloth of Denglai. This place was rich in linen and was closest to Goryeo, so the cost of shipping was extremely low. It destroyed the linen cloth of Goryeo, and the market that used linen as currency was also reshuffled.

Just Denglai Prefecture destroyed the Goryeo economy!
The current prefect of Denglai is Hu Quan, the first number one scholar in the Ming Dynasty and the last disciple of the late cabinet minister Xiao Chu.

The first number one scholar in the founding of the country had spent more than ten years in the imperial examination, so it was impossible for him to reach the level of prefect. He was transferred to Denglai, which was a high-ranking but low-ranking position, and was specifically ordered to rectify the atmosphere in the officialdom of Denglai - last year, not only was the prefect of Denglai sentenced to death, but more than a dozen of his subordinates were also executed or exiled.

Upon hearing that Zheng Zhichang had returned from Goryeo, Hu Quan took the initiative to find Zheng Zhichang to chat.

After chatting for a while and getting a general understanding of the situation, Hu Quan asked, "I heard from the sea merchants who travel to Goryeo that the farmers there mostly use wooden farm tools. Denglai is rich in iron tools, but when iron farm tools are shipped to Goryeo, the farmers there generally cannot afford them. Goryeo acceded to the Ming Dynasty and was renamed Joseon, so it is natural that agriculture must be developed first. Does the court have any plans?"

Zheng Zhichang laughed and said, "Prefect Hu actually stepped forward to help merchants open up sales channels."

"Our ironware is cheap, and Korea is short of iron, so we can complement each other," Hu Quan urged. "After Minister Zheng returns to Beijing, he can suggest to His Majesty that the court allocate funds to purchase iron farm tools from Denglai and sell them on credit to Korean farmers without interest. In this way, Denglai will expand its ironware sales, and Korean farmers will also have iron farm tools to use."

Zheng Zhichang nodded and said, "I will give advice to your majesty."

Hu Quan asked again: "Does North Korea produce salt? Denglai produces a lot of salt."

Zheng Zhichang smiled and said, "I'm afraid this business won't work. Salt is also produced along the southwest coast of Korea. There is a lot of fish salt produced there, but the method of frying salt is backward compared to Denglai."

"Oh, forget it." Hu Quan sighed.

Hu Quan certainly did not want to sell that little bit of salt, but wanted to include the entire Korean Peninsula into Shandong salt's monopoly zone.

Many provinces in China are not short of salt, but the salt monopoly system restricts the development of major salt-producing areas. The purpose of doing so is not only to facilitate tax collection, but also to balance the local areas.

The salt monopoly system was only officially abolished in 2016!
After chatting for a while, Zheng Zhichang asked, "Has the Denglai Telegraph Office been officially put into use?"

Hu Quan said: "It will not be used until the New Year's Day next year, but the art officer has already arrived. In addition, the code books of the prefect and the magistrate were also delivered in wax seals. I just received them a few days ago."

Zheng Zhichang said, "Let me borrow it for a while."

All the officials in the telegraph system were technical officials and clerks, which could be considered as Zhu Ming providing more positions for technical officials.

Due to the limited level of technology, large antennas and relay stations must be set up along the way to send electromagnetic signals over long distances. Currently, only two routes have been built, one from Luoyang, Kaifeng, Shandong, Lushun to Liaoyang, and the other from Luoyang, Chang'an, Lanzhou to the Hexi Corridor.

We plan to add three more lines next year, one to Yue Fei, one to Han Shizhong, and one to southern Sichuan.

Existing lines will continue to be built, such as the Liaoyang line, which will extend eastward to Harbin and southward to Kaesongfu in North Korea. The Hexi Corridor line will also be connected to Yinchuan.

Within three years, telegraphs covered every province in the country.

"Beep beep..."

In the telegraph office, there was a constant noise; the holes punched in the paper tape finally turned into sound signals.

Zhu Guoxiang originally thought that this was very difficult, but after more than two months of research and development, he discovered that the original buzzer was very simple.

How simple is it?
Its basic principle is similar to the school bell.

The director of the Denglai Telegraph Office personally helped to send the message. He typed for a while, then turned to Zheng Zhichang and said, "Minister Zheng, the telegram has been received. Please wait patiently for a reply."

About a quarter of an hour later, the beeping sounded again.

After some communication across the air, the director of the telegraph station translated it into Chinese characters: "Shan."

The text of the telegram contained only this one word, but Zheng Zhichang was very emotional. It seemed that the emperor was very satisfied with the affairs of Goryeo. …

After a few sunny days, heavy snow fell again.

The average temperature this year has actually been warming up, and the next stage of warming will be a period lasting more than a hundred years.

The emerging Ming Empire is about to emerge from the years of frequent disasters. The pressure on food security will gradually ease, and it will officially enter a stage of rapid development.

The Winter Solstice Festival is celebrated by the whole world.

Inside and outside the city, every household became joyful.

Since members of the Goryeo royal family and clan were staying in Denglai Prefecture, Hu Quan allocated special funds to hold a banquet.

He didn't dare to make the banquet too grand. After all, three consecutive prefects of Denglai had been beheaded, and the new prefect, Hu Quan, was specifically appointed to correct the atmosphere.

"Today is the winter solstice, and I have prepared some wine and drinks," Hu Quan said, "If I have been negligent, please forgive me."

Wang Gou said quickly, "It is very sumptuous. The governor is very thoughtful."

Officials from the government office also came, each bringing their wives with them, and they ate at the same table with the Korean women.

There was no singing or dancing on the scene, which was also a reflection of frugality.

But for these Koreans, the banquet was indeed very sumptuous, with mutton, pork, and fish filling the table, and many spices added.

Spices are even rarer in Goryeo than meat!
At the beginning of the banquet, Hu Quan was the first to raise his glass towards Luoyang: "This glass is to wish your majesty and the emperor good health and longevity."

Everyone raised their glasses and faced Luoyang.

After finishing a glass of wine, Hu Quan said, "The reason why the Ming Dynasty is so strong today is because of the two generations of holy emperors. For example, the spices used in today's dishes are due to the agricultural promotion officials established by the emperor. Many spices that came from overseas in the past have been successfully introduced to China. For those that have been introduced but not popularized, the agricultural promotion officials have also studied their habits and expanded the planting area of ​​these spices."

Zheng Zhichang smiled and said, "In the past, the swallows in front of the halls of the rich and powerful have flown into the homes of ordinary people. The foreign spices that were exclusive to the rich in the pre-Song Dynasty are now affordable even for the well-off. I heard from officials of the Agricultural Persuasion Bureau that there are still not enough varieties of spices now, and they will continue to introduce new varieties for research."

Many officials of Denglai Prefecture also praised the prosperous times.

In fact, the prices of overseas spices are still relatively high and ordinary people cannot afford them.

The spices used in those roadside stalls are still common local spices.

Wang Gou's three younger monk brothers sat at the same table with several monks from Dengzhou. They were eating vegetarian food, but when they smelled the aroma of meat from the next table, they couldn't help but drool.

The damn Emperor Zhu not only banned unnecessary temples, but also prohibited monks from eating meat.

In the Song Dynasty, monks were allowed to eat meat, as long as they followed the "three clean" principles. That is, if the meat was not seen by the monks, not killed by their own hands, and not caused by the monks, the monks could eat the meat.

Zhu Ming believed that monks should be pure in mind and body, so he issued an imperial edict a few years ago to prohibit monks from eating meat...

The monks from Dengzhou who were accompanying the Goryeo monks had only given up meat for a few years and even ate it secretly. But now that the government was hosting a banquet, they did not dare to disobey the order, and the smell of meat made them very greedy.

Wang Gou's younger brother, the head monk of Xuanhua Temple in Goryeo, the monk with the Buddhist name Jueguan, could not resist the temptation and suddenly stood up and said, "Angel, Governor, I am a member of the royal family of Goryeo. I was forced to become a monk by the treacherous prime minister. Now that Goryeo has annexed the Ming Dynasty, becoming a monk is not my intention. Can I return to secular life?"

Zheng Zhichang immediately translated it for the Denglai officials.

Many Ming officials were trying to hold back their laughter, and Hu Quan also lowered his head and pursed his lips.

Zheng Zhichang said: "Since you are not sincere in becoming a monk, you can return to secular life. However, I still need to consult your majesty on this matter. Master Jueguan, please come and eat meat. One or two meals of meat will not be a problem."

As soon as these words were spoken, the other two princes and the high monks also left their seats and gave up their vegetarian meals.

Only a few local monks from Denglai were left, sitting there staring at each other.

A group of Goryeo royal family and clan members were a little reserved at first, but gradually they ate heartily.

The fat little king Wang Gou stuffed a few pieces of mutton into his mouth and said, "This is the taste of the best food in the world. Denglai Prefecture is really prosperous."

Zheng Zhichang was still boasting: "Do you know that the ironware produced in Denglai alone is more than that in the whole of Goryeo? Denglai also produces more cloth than the whole of Goryeo. The gold mined in Denglai in one year is more than the total amount mined in Goryeo in the more than 200 years since its founding!"

When these words were spoken, the Koreans present were stunned.

Prince Taiyuan Wang Yu sighed, "No wonder the Ming Dynasty was invincible. This prefecture was so rich, and the whole country was so rich. I am afraid that I, the Prince Taiyuan of Goryeo, live a worse life than the gentry of Denglai. Goryeo should have annexed the Ming Dynasty long ago. This is in accordance with the will of heaven."

Wang Gou took the opportunity to show his loyalty and acted angry: "It's all because of those treacherous ministers who obstructed me. I wanted to surrender the country ten years ago. Long live the Emperor of Ming!"

"Long live the Emperor of Ming!"

The people of Goryeo shouted in unison and then denounced the powerful Goryeo officials.

The scene was touching with tears and sobs.

(End of this chapter)