Elegy of Tang Dynasty

Chapter 10

Returning to the Lotus Pond Villa in the evening, Zheng Shuqing asked the beautiful maid to make tea again. Unfortunately, Fang Chongyong was so tired that he almost fell asleep. He sat on a high stool with a slumped face and took a nap.

Zheng Shuqing waved his hand gently, signaling the maid to leave.

"You've been wandering around today, have you figured out a way?"

He was a little impatient. The pressure of 30 yuan was not something ordinary people could bear.He was just as tired as Fang Chongyong, but he was just mentally tired.

"There must be a way, and I walk on two legs."

Fang Chongyong said impatiently while rubbing his eyes.Zheng Shuqing is too long-winded, and he is not calm at all, isn't it only 30 guan?
After the beginning of the Anshi Rebellion, the imperial court randomly made donations among the wealthy people in Chang'an, and even when it failed, it was more than this amount!
"Isn't this nonsense? Who doesn't walk on two legs?"

Zheng Shuqing looked at Fang Chongyong with contempt, and asked angrily, not bothering to care about his own image, and his words were very vulgar.

He always felt that Fang Chongyong's actions were erratic and he couldn't control it at all!

"Okay, okay, I said it's not okay."

Fang Chongyong rubbed his temples and sighed: "There are two methods that can work both ways, but for the time being, there is only one method that can be used."

"Then you didn't say anything?"

Zheng Shuqing's eyes lit up, wishing he could shoot the case.

"It's simple. I saw that there are many shipyards in Kuizhou, and there are also many people engaged in ship repair and shipbuilding. After asking around, most of the ships in Shu come from Kuizhou. We can just sell the ships. Basically I can collect up to 30 yuan."

Fang Chongyong said with some lack of interest, as if he was talking about a trivial matter.

"Selling ships? Have you ever inquired about the prices of ships? Are you pretending that I don't know what the prices of ships are here in Kuizhou? Are you taking the governor for a fool!"

Zheng Shuqing yelled while patting the table, already furious.

"No, no, I'm thinking about it. If you sell one for [-] guan, you can only sell [-]. Kuizhou is located in a critical position. Could it be that you can't sell [-] in half a year?"

Fang Chongyong said indifferently, as if he was talking about selling a few catties of meat.

However, in the Tang Dynasty, a county in Yangzhou and other places produced more than [-] large ships a year!It sounds like this thing can be made very quickly as long as the raw materials are available.

And Kuizhou is the shipbuilding center of Shu, with a long history and strong technical strength. There are many craftsmen who have been engaged in shipbuilding for generations!There are 360 ​​five days a year, and on average there are only two ships a day.

Fang Chongyong felt that it was too much water.

"Here in Kuizhou, a boat of two or three hundred calibers is already very impressive. If it is bigger, there is no way to pass through Kuimen! Have you ever thought about this?"

Zheng Shuqing roared at Fang Chongyong, and the spittle almost sprayed onto his face.

The shipbuilding industry in the Tang Dynasty was extremely developed, let alone a hundred guan. On the wide river in the lower reaches of the Yangtze River, some large ships could accommodate more than 3000 people, and even vegetables could be grown on them. A thousand guan would only make a lonely ship!

However, this has nothing to do with Kuizhou, because those big ships can't sail at all, and the draft is too deep, so they are easy to run aground in the Three Gorges.The question Zheng Shuqing said is a common sense question, but Fang Chongyong has his own ideas.

He took a deep breath and said:

"Your Majesty, we said that each ship costs a thousand guan, so it will cost [-] guan. Isn't this obvious? What we provide is not a boat, but the qualification to pass through Kuimen.

There are many boats, some are big and easy to run aground; some are small and easy to capsize.Isn't it dangerous for these ships to pass through Kuimen and easily get into trouble in the fast river current, eventually blocking the waterway?

Channel congestion affects everyone.Let's stand up now and set the rules, what kind of ship is more safe and can pass the weight of the ship.

We use our reputation as a guarantee, accept them a few hundred guan, and issue a customs clearance permit. Is this too much? "

Fang Chongyong spoke so confidently that Zheng Shuqing was stunned.

"Uh, if that's the case, why don't we just issue the customs clearance documents?"

Zheng Shuqing asked in a low voice, feeling that Fang Chongyong was unnecessary.Now that you have decided to play a big ticket, why bother to hold your hands back?

The atmosphere of the Tang Dynasty was open, and local officials were not short of desperate people.

"My lord, if we only issue customs clearance documents to collect money, people will report to the court that we forcibly extort bribes! After all, we have not received official documents from the court, and now it is just that the higher-ups can't help it, and they didn't say that the money we received for customs clearance documents is Legal.

But we are selling ships now, no, we are suggesting that merchants who have cleared the customs buy local ships that meet the requirements in Kuizhou, and we don’t take a penny, this is just a matter of business.

As for those merchants who are responsible for shipbuilding along the coast of Kuizhou, if they voluntarily donate some money to the government to do good deeds in the future, we are too embarrassed not to accept it, right? "

Fang Zhong said bravely, very confident.

Because it is necessary to ensure the safety of the waterway, only "standard" watercraft can pass through. This is responsible for the smooth flow of the waterway and the personal safety of the people sailing on the ship. Logically, there is no problem.

Because standard ships are only available locally, merchants can only buy "standard ships" locally. If something happens to a standard ship, it is a problem on the part of the Kuizhou government. It is the government that guarantees it. There is no problem with this logic.

Because the shipbuilding merchants were grateful to the government, they voluntarily donated money to the government. This logic is also not problematic.

Because the imperial court needed money, Zheng Shuqing sent the money to Chang'an or transported it to a certain place according to the imperial court's instructions. This logic is even more unproblematic.

As for the astonishing price of local standard watercraft in Kuizhou, it has nothing to do with the Kuizhou government office. It is all commercial behavior and free buying and selling.

If you don’t buy it, you can continue to see the scenery in Kuizhou, and no one is forcing you to pass the customs.

Fang Chongyong reached a logical closed loop after talking in a roundabout way.

Zheng Shuqing was so shocked that he couldn't speak for a long time. After a long time, he asked with some doubts: "Would this trigger a civil uprising?"

"No, the local people are too busy to build so many boats, counting the money is too soft, who will make trouble. Helping the envoy to take care of the city is almost the same, whoever makes trouble is against the people of the whole city. "

"It may take many years for the ministers of the imperial court to realize the painstaking efforts of the envoy to do this. Many people will understand the envoy's approach in the future. Unifying the standards of the tank boats and making them uniform can maximize the Guarantee the safety of sailing as much as possible. As long as it is the same boat and sails according to the rules, it will not capsize or run aground.

What do you think? "

Fang Zhongyong spoke eloquently, and when the whip was inserted, it seemed as if there really was such a great and noble person.

Zheng Shuqing felt at ease, nodded slightly and asked: "Then what if it's the imperial court's tank boat? There are quite a lot of court's tank boats passing through the Kuizhou River Pass. Shall we force them to change their boat?"

Fang Chongyong: "..."

This Governor Zheng really thought too much.It's enough to eat the bonuses of the merchants. Do you still want to apply this set of operations to the court?
"Your Majesty, there is one more thing."

Fang Chongyong's face straightened and he said: "Please write an official letter to ask the soldiers from Dongyang Prefecture to come to Kuizhou Prefecture to help. There are many slave warriors armed with swords and clubs on the merchant ships. If we force the pass, we have to have someone. Being able to hold back the scene, Yang Ruoxu's fifty crossbowmen might be underestimated.

If we can't control the situation at the critical moment and let some ships escape, then all our previous efforts will be in vain.

Tomorrow, I will go to many docks outside Kuizhou City to inquire about the suitable ship type for crossing the river pass, and pick the best one, which is strong and will not delay the good deeds of the envoy. "

Hearing this, Zheng Shuqing's face was a bit tangled.If possible, he really didn't want to take the risk.But there seems to be no other good solution at the moment. Who knows if Fang Chongyong's other "bad idea" will work?
It might as well be like this!
"Okay, you can make the arrangements. If you need any help, just ask. There is no way out, alas!"

……

During the Kaiyuan period of the Tang Dynasty, inland waterway shipping was extremely developed.

In order to ensure the sustainable development of the shipping industry and strengthen water transport management, the imperial court established a complete top-down water transport affairs management and law enforcement agency. From legislation to execution to supervision, it can be described as a trinity!
Among them, the "Water Ministry" under the Ministry of Industry of Shangshu Province is responsible for the legislation and administrative review of water flow and boat navigation.

The "Du Water Supervision", an independent agency directly under the Shangshu Province, is a specialized water transport management agency at the central level other than the six ministries of the Shangshu Province. It is responsible for supervising and inspecting water flows, river embankments, shipping and Jinliang work, and most of the supervision and administrative management. The task is also carried out by the Water Superintendent.

The "Water and Land Transport Envoy" or "All Roads Transport Envoy" sent by the central government are responsible for coordinating the relationship between the two, especially monitoring whether the government's water transportation is running smoothly.

But in these institutions, there is a blind spot, which is not, or deliberately not determined.

That is the question of who will collect the river tariff.The situation in different states and counties is different and cannot be generalized.

What surprised Fang Chongyong was that most of the river tariffs collected in the Tang Dynasty were collected by the local states and counties.

In fact, this is also very understandable, because if the Ministry of Water and the Metropolitan Water Supervision are in charge of these matters, it is easy to have serious conflicts with the civil affairs of local states and counties.Moreover, it is directly under the central government, so it is impossible to send many people to work outside.

For example, Gu Kuang is the supervisor in charge of hundreds of hectares of red lotus rice fields. In the entire Kuizhou, he is the only official directly under the central government. The others working in the fields are just tenants!There is no imperial establishment at all!The same goes for the petty officials who manage farmland.

Another example is Kuizhou. If the tariffs are collected by an organization directly under the central government, even if there is no problem with the personnel, it will greatly weaken the local financial resources.

Because the Kuizhou government doesn't really have much other income except for tariffs, the total amount of tariffs is much higher than the rents charged by the local government!It is also almost an order of magnitude more than the commercial tax!

Will these checkpoints overwhelm the host by then?Will it cause local financial chaos?Will it be resisted and constrained by the local government?

The answer is self-evident, it must not be avoided.The court's choice is also very realistic, how to manage it.

If the collection of river tariffs is not included, this is a complete water transportation management system, and it also raises water transportation management to the level of law, and fully implements water transportation management with the theme of safety.

Some of them are as sophisticated as Fang Chongyong's previous life.

For example, before or during the voyage, the boatman must conduct safety inspections on the ship at any time to ensure that the hull is watertight.If there is water seepage, it should be eliminated in time to avoid navigation accidents and ensure that the ship maintains a good seaworthiness.

For another example, after a boat is berthed, signs must be set up to facilitate identification by ships and passengers.Boats and bamboo rafts must avoid each other during navigation. In rapids and dangerous shoals, if the upper and lower boats meet, the boarding boat must take the initiative to avoid the launching boat. This is especially true in the Yangtze River where rapids and rapids are common, to avoid accidents caused by rushing to the other side. .

If the above regulations are not complied with, the boatman will be punished with "fifty lashes".

All the regulations are extremely detailed.

However, the ideal is full, and the reality is very skinny.

The strategy of the Central Committee of the Tang Dynasty was very good, and the arrangements were not ingenious, but... it seemed that there were not enough manpower, and the policies formulated could not be truly implemented.The phenomenon of capsizing and sinking of ships in river channels still occurs frequently and can be seen everywhere.

Because the Metropolitan Water Supervision, which is in charge of implementing "water affairs", has a total of less than 400 officials with establishments across the country, 362 to be precise.

This includes roles such as department heads and chief clerks, and there are even fewer who can actually work at the grassroots level.

But in the vast territory of the Tang Dynasty, there are more than a hundred rivers!If you only expect these people to do things and deal with those complicated affairs, then even if they are busy from dawn to dusk, they can't finish it without sleeping or eating!
Therefore, the local state and county where the river section is located has taken on the task of "assisting" in the management of the river.In other words, the Metropolitan Water Supervision does not go down to the grassroots at all, but only listens to "reports" from local states and counties on a regular basis.

The people in the capital water supervisor are all deployed in key node cities and work there.For example, big cities like Jiangling, Yangzhou, and Luoyang.

Specifically, here in Kuizhou, there are no officials from the Water Supervision Bureau in charge of the management. Everything is "carried out" to the Kuizhou government office.Who let Fucheng be right next to Jiangguan in Kuizhou? Zheng Shuqing didn't say a word. Who dared to reach out and take care of it?

Yang Ruoxu and the united soldiers under his command were responsible for the tasks of anti-smuggling and intercepting ships on the river. Except for Yang Ruoxu, who had a military position, everyone else was a "temporary worker", and this kind of work was very hard. Said that there is not much oil and water to fish for. On weekdays, it is often three days of fishing and two days of drying the net.

As long as there are no ships evading customs and tax, or large ships capsizing and blocking the waterway, they generally will not go out.

Early in the morning, Yang Ruoxu posted a notice at the ferry outside Kuizhou City, asking his subordinates to beat gongs and drums, and then blocked the Kuizhou Jiangguan!No ships are allowed to pass!

On the board where the notice was posted, there was a large piece of paper that read:

According to the new regulations of the imperial court, in order to ensure the safety of waterways and prevent ships from capsizing or running aground, only ships with designated ship types and designated carrying capacity can pass through customs!

Please ask in front of the government office for details!

If someone breaks through the gate by force, he will be punished as a bandit.

Seeing this notice, all the merchants running the ship were dumbfounded.Kuizhou Commercial Port can indeed store goods, but it cannot be said that it will stay here forever. If it cannot be cleared on time, the consequences will be big or small.

One after another, merchants went to the government office, but found that the front of the government office was already full of people.

There were many notices posted on the wall outside the government office, and a bunch of people crowded there to read them. Many people who came later couldn't squeeze in at all.

"The current of the Shu River is turbulent, and ships are easy to capsize, and it is easier to run aground and block the waterway. The new policy of the imperial court, from now on, the tank boats passing through the Jiangguan must be uniformly regulated, and the Kuizhou Jiangguan will issue a unified customs clearance certificate. One ship, one certificate, no Witnesses are not allowed to pass.”

"If the urgent goods pass the customs, each ship must pledge five hundred guan. If a new ship is customized next time, the pledged money can be redeemed with the customs clearance permit. If the customs clearance is not completed within one year, the pledged money will be redeemed later. Kuizhou government office redeemed him.

Or all the cargo on the ship can be unloaded, and the empty ship can pass the customs, and the cargo can be punished as adrift.The goods can also be unloaded first, and the new ship can be changed to pass the customs after the new ship is built. "

"There are shipyards around the capital of Kuizhou where ships can be built. In order to ensure orderly order on a first-come, first-served basis, you must first go to the government office to apply for customs clearance documents and receive a number plate. Then, use the documents and number plate to go to the shipyard to customize a standard ship. The shipyard builds ships in sequence. , the government will cancel their construction qualifications if they violate the rules. If a merchant builds a ship privately and then comes to apply for a customs clearance document, the government will not issue it."

"This customs has established a red name system. Those who pass through the customs by force, those who commit crimes in Kuizhou City, those who build ships or forge customs clearance documents in an attempt to confuse customs clearance, once verified, will be permanently disqualified from customs clearance."

This is not a new rule, this is Hongguoguo's forced buying and selling!
"The dog officials are levying excessive taxes. Let's sail the boat and fight them. I don't believe they can stop everyone!"

A strong man in a green brocade robe raised his hand and shouted loudly.Suddenly, an arrow shot from a distance, directly piercing his throat!
"There are still people who dare to make trouble, he is a role model!"

Wang Zhongsi, a tall and burly man in leather armor, walked out of the mansion gate, still maintaining the posture of shooting arrows, and did not put down his horn bow.Behind them, a dozen soldiers in heavy armor lined up and waited for the enemy.

　The price of the water tanker is basically as stated in the text, as recorded in the historical materials about the conversation between Dezong and the minister.

　　This background knowledge description of the river should be carefully read, as it is closely related to the subsequent plot.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)