Great Qing Dynasty talker

Chapter 460: The underlying logic of Vanity Fair
20 miles east of Suzhou City, the imperial palace’s royal pier.

Among the crowd that came to welcome the imperial carriage were dozens of officials at all levels and hundreds of influential people from the public.

Firecrackers, drums, and smiling faces~
After the huge noise ended, Li Yu slowly walked out of the cabin, waving frequently.

……

In this kind of occasion, rules are the most important.

First of all,

It is an honor to be able to stand here and be a member of the welcoming group.

Everyone should be careful and not be impatient.

Smiling as His Majesty descended from the deck,

then,

Who can only stand there and applaud, who can come forward to greet, who can say a few words to His Majesty~
All are booked in advance.

If you break the rules,

Others will regard you as a bumpkin who has never seen the world.

next time,

I won’t play with you anymore.

……

Li Yu smiled and nodded frequently at the crowd, and picked out a few important people to greet.

Today is different from the past.

He just stopped, stared at a fat and big-eared tycoon in the crowd, and said:
"I remember you."

5 words!

It can make the parties so excited that they can't help themselves, often reminiscing about it, and will definitely tell it vividly every time they have a drink.

Even if the drunkards at the same table knew the lyrics so well that they could recite them, they still had to cooperate with the actor in acting.

Surprise, envy, admiration,
I am proud of it~
……

The Wu Palace is roughly divided into 12 areas according to its function.

They are:
Square area, court meeting area, national sacrifice ceremony area, emperor living area, central office area, concubines living area, children's living area, garden area, sports area, kitchen storage area, entertainment area, guard camp area~
In addition, there is a mysterious area in the northeast corner.

Therefore,
Wu Palace is actually District 13.

……

Entering the main gate is the square area.

On both sides of the square are the national sacrifice ceremony areas.

Continue walking forward and you will reach the court meeting area, with the central office areas on both sides.

So much for ordinary subjects.

Because going further inside is the royal area, no outsiders are allowed to enter.

……

The architecture of the Wu Palace abandoned the traditional design of buildings that mainly used wood.

The whole structure is made of steel bars, cement and red bricks.

The building has amazing height, open interior space, and good lighting and ventilation.

During the Ming and Qing dynasties, there were countless incidents of wooden palaces catching fire.

There is no fire risk in the Wu Palace.

Other than that,

The eunuch system was also abolished, and female officials and palace maids were used instead.

All the palace maids are from the common people. The contract lasts for 5 years and they are paid monthly. In principle, they only recruit unmarried women from Jiangnan aged 13 to 16 with a clean background and good health.

There are no fixed requirements for female officials, as long as the emperor and empress are satisfied.

This change alone was talked about by the idle people for months.

……

After returning triumphantly from the battlefield, a welcome treat is in order.

Welcome Group,
Stay in the palace and have a simple meal.

It’s called a simple meal, but the specifications are indeed average.

There are 8 dishes on the table, but no bear paws, deer tails, sea cucumbers, chicken tongues, or duck feet.
Chicken, duck, fish, and other ordinary meat.

but,

Everyone here knows that it doesn’t matter what you eat, what matters is where you eat!
Any place that you can enter by paying money cannot be considered truly high-end.

Therefore,
This potluck is the finest meal in the world.

People greeted each other and made connections.

No one picked up the food with chopsticks because the real Buddha had not arrived.

……

Until a female official walked into the hall and shouted clearly:
"Your Majesty has arrived~"

Everyone immediately fell silent and stood up.

Some people left their seats and went to the door to greet them.

Some people left their seats and stood against the wall.

Some people just smiled and applauded.

Inside,
It's all knowledge.

If you understand this, you will understand the underlying logic of Vanity Fair.

……

When the true Buddha appears, he is kind and amiable.

His Majesty smiled, said some encouraging words, and drank a glass of wine.

then,

Just left.

Everyone stood up and gave a warm farewell.

Some people can be seen out the door, but most people can only stand there and see them off with their eyes.

Until His Majesty disappears outside the door~
Li Yu had no intention of completely changing the social culture because it was impossible and unnecessary.

……

The wine shop is like a battlefield~
Five ministers took over the command, each sitting in one area and chatting and laughing with the guests at the main table, and taking the time to look after the surrounding tables and toast from afar.

Only the Minister of the Army, Lin Huaisheng, did not attend.

First of all, he was born with a cold face and didn't like socializing, and then he happened to be sick.

The five ministers Fan, Du, Hu, Tan and Jia are like the reincarnated spirit boys under the seat of the real Buddha.

In the mortal world, the spiritual children's cultivation is also very profound.

Just a word of gossip,
I dare not say that I will ask you to pray for mercy before the Buddha.
At least it can make you rich in this world.

……

Anyway,

They drank one wine cup after another, and toasted each other.

The food and wine on the table today are provided by Deyue Tower and Songhe Tower in the city.

The main idea of ​​Wu Palace is to calculate the cost and emphasize efficiency in everything.

Able to take orders from the palace,

The two restaurants naturally put in all their efforts, with the shopkeepers personally in charge of every link, carefully preparing each dish with the highest standards and the best ingredients.

For today's meal, Emperor Wu only paid a few ingots of silver as a symbol, and the shopkeeper was very happy.

Especially the owner of Deyue Tower,

The box that Li Yu often visited before he started the rebellion had been painted with gold powder and used as a sacrifice.

The advertising effect is sufficient.

No worries about business!
The palace guards happily tasted all the food and wine in advance.

……

High-end wine party,

What is valuable is neither the wine nor the food.

But people~
You need a few guests who can liven up the atmosphere to liven up the party.

It connects the past and the future and its role cannot be underestimated.

Dishes,

You must follow the taste of the true Buddha.

This is a very serious political issue.

Although His Majesty only took a sip of the wine and left, the dish was not against his taste.

Even if

We are in Sichuan today, and the dishes on the table must be Huaiyang style.

Anyone who dares to serve a pot of red chili peppers would be challenging the imperial power.

……

After three rounds of wine, five flavors of food.

Hu Xueyu stood up and raised his glass.

Everyone raised their glasses and drank up the wine in their glasses, and the game was over.

Generally speaking,

Five ministers did not drink much, but the rest drank quite a bit.

The amount of alcohol consumed is also a symbol of status.

Drink too much and lose value.

People don't talk about serious business at drinking parties, they only talk about love, vanity and health.

Anyone who talks about serious matters at the table is a fool.

……

but,

The table is over.

It’s not over under the table yet.

The carriage left the palace for one mile.
Everyone began to be reluctant to leave and got off the bus to say goodbye.

The brothers have deep love, abundant affection and true feelings.

Of course,
Experienced old hands know that the more affectionately someone calls you brother, the less loyal he is.

On the carriage,

The elder brother who claims to be rich might sneer:

"When I was living in the garden and raising a troupe, this kid was so poor that he was still hiding in a small shabby courtyard with four entrances. Now, hey, he has become a decent person~"

……

the above,

It's all rubbish.

You can ignore it and choose not to associate with it, there is no problem at all.

people,
It would be great if you could really be indifferent to fame and fortune and be as free and easy as a wild crane.

What I fear most is,
He is greedy and lustful by nature, wanting to get to the top but also wanting to protect his reputation. There is something weird about him.

You can't hang out with villains, and you can't get into the company of gentlemen.

Looking around all your life will only bring you ridicule.

... "Your Majesty is welcome to return to the palace."

Led by Queen Hu Ling'er, the beauties dressed in their best to welcome them.

Li Yu looked around at the girls.
Everything from clothes to makeup is carefully designed, making her look charming and fragrant.

beside,

It was the maids holding the princes and princesses.

Have:
The eldest son born to the queen was Li Yuanzhen.

Born to Concubine Yang, the eldest daughter is Li Xuanji and the second son is Li Jing.

The third son, Li Lin, was born to Concubine Jie.

Born to Mrs. Bai, the fourth son is Li Fu.

……

Li Yu sighed,

Now it's a class.

In another 10 years, it might be a platoon!

The long-awaited royal family banquet was filled with joy.

That night,

Li Yu slept at the Queen's place.

This is the respect that the Master of the Central Palace deserves.

After some tenderness,

Hu Ling'er leaned sideways against the couch and said:

"Your Majesty, I have a feeling that I will be pregnant this time."

Li Yu looked up with his arms and legs spread out, and asked casually:
"Why?"

"Because your majesty has returned from the battlefield, it is the time when the Yang energy is at its peak."

"So good."

……

Hu Ling'er obviously hesitated for a moment.
asked:

"Concubine Yi, what are your plans for the future?"

"She needs some peace and quiet, so she makes an exception and lives on Xishan Island."

"Yes." Hu Ling'er continued, "I want to build two small palaces, one in Xishan and one in Moganshan. Your Majesty can take his concubines and children there for vacation in his spare time."

"We will build a summer palace in the West Mountain. Mogan Mountain is not a good choice. After conquering Huguang, I will consider building a summer palace in Lushan, Jiangxi."

"Your Majesty is very thoughtful! Mount Lu is cool and can be reached directly by water. It is indeed a good location."

……

Before crossing,
Mount Lu is known as the Yin Mountain, which is not favorable for those seeking official positions or wealth.

Many historical celebrities failed after visiting Mount Lushan.

The most famous ones are:

The first Baturu in Zhejiang Province, the master of diary, the director of Huayuankou Water Conservancy, the wolf of Huangpu River, the first person to wear relaxed clothes and climb mountains~
but,

Li Yu thought it was accidental.

Many people have been to Mount Lushan, and many people have also been to Mount Taishan.

……

In general,

The harem is peaceful.

The concubines seemed to have inherited the usual character of Jiangnan women, with an overflowing sense of alienation and a strong sense of marginality.

Between each other,

Not much moving around!

As for women, the less contact they have, the fewer conflicts they have.

The Queen was in charge of the Finance and Taxation Bureau, and Concubine Yang was in charge of the Ministry of the Interior, which were two extremely critical departments.

Li Yu stayed alone in the study, carefully reading the work reports they sent.

If you have any doubts, you must get to the bottom of it.

……

The Ministry of the Interior is a shadow department with no sense of existence.

In the past, soldiers and grassroots officers were developed to serve as insiders.

Now the situation has changed. We first develop literate, strong and quick-witted amateurs, and after they have passed the training, they will be sent to enlist in the army in their own capacity.

now,

Among Wu Jun,

Except for the Guards Corps, the other corps have no less than 10 spies from the Ministry of the Interior.

They watched everything quietly.
The intelligence is aggregated layer by layer to the central hub.

In addition to the military,

The Ministry of the Interior has also planted stakes in large factories, mines and chambers of commerce.

……

Yang Yunjiao proposed two ideas in her report:
First, dozens of secret agents were placed among the people of Suzhou. Second, spies were placed on every large warship of the navy.

For the first one,
Li Yu approved it immediately.

Regarding the second article,
Li Yu felt that this was not enough, so he picked up his pen and wrote that it should also include the logistics bases of the army and navy.

The Wu army was a modern army that was extremely dependent on logistics.

crucial moment,

Controlling a logistics base is even more important than directly controlling an army corps.

……

During this period, the Ministry of the Interior has achieved some results.

Inside the Wu Ting,

There are no major problems for now, but there are quite a few minor ones.

For example:

In Jingdezhen,

The four major merchants in Yangzhou were ruthless. They bought up all the surrounding sources of high-quality raw materials, hired all the porcelain craftsmen under their banner, and signed lifelong contracts with them.

More than 30 people who resisted the acquisition and refused to be employed, regardless of their wealth, all died accidentally~
In southern Anhui,
The conflict between the local tea chamber of commerce and the Zhejiang tea chamber of commerce has become prominent.

The former purchases tea from tea mountains in northern Jiangxi, while the latter purchases tea from Fujian.

……

In Yangzhou~
The 4th Corps and the Qing-controlled area were engaged in smuggling business on a large scale, exchanging tea for rice, and they were doing very well!
The source of smuggled tea is Fujian.

Therefore, there are definitely quite a few people involved in this chain.

……

In addition,

The Jiangsu Textile Chamber of Commerce and the Zhejiang Textile Chamber of Commerce joined forces and used their financial advantages and low-price dumping to drive out hundreds of small silk and cotton workshops in Jiangxi and Guangdong provinces, and also incorporated more than 2 existing cloth and satin shops of all sizes as their distributors.

Expected,

Soon we will be able to make up for the unit price with scale, and profits are just around the corner~
……

After reading it, Li Yu quietly folded the information and put it away.

Take out your diary.
record:

"I released a young beast. As soon as it arrived in the human world, it showed extremely strong vitality and aggressiveness. As a beast tamer, I don't know how to evaluate it."

for the time being,

There is no time to deal with these conflicts.

The next day,

Wu Ting convened a court meeting, and all officials above the rank of deputy director were present.

……

Wu Ting had no rule of holding court in the early morning.

First of all, Li Yu felt that this was a bad culture and obeyed the test.

Secondly, he couldn't get up by himself.

Therefore,
At 3: am, the ministers finally arrived at the palace.

At 9 o'clock, the court meeting began.

The ministers bowed and the director and below knelt on one knee.

Then, the ministers could take their seats while the rest stood.

Regarding court etiquette,

Li Yu received many people's subtle suggestions and even strong protests.

They all felt that it was too disrespectful to the imperial power and not solemn enough.

Especially the former Qing ministers who surrendered, they were almost in tears and demanded the restoration of the three kowtows and nine bows.

(In fact, Wu Ting also had great gifts, which were limited to sacrifices and special important moments.)
……

After adding up the total population of the Wu State, the annual grain output, and the amount of grain exported to Fujian, everyone looked solemn.

Jiangsu is self-sufficient in food and even has a surplus.

Jiangxi has great surplus.

Southern Anhui is unable to be self-sufficient and has a 4% gap.

Zhejiang is unable to be self-sufficient and has a gap of 3%.

Guangdong is unable to be self-sufficient and has a gap of 3%.

Fujian is simply unable to be self-sufficient, with a gap of 6%.

Therefore,
We mainly rely on the support from our fellow countrymen in Jiangxi, and some support can also be provided from Jiangnan.

……

Most of the people in the central government are well-dressed people from the south of the Yangtze River. They like to settle accounts and don’t like to be controlled by others.

In summary,

If there were no rice imported from Southeast Asia, no major natural disasters, and if food was rationally coordinated and allocated, it would be possible to ensure that all the people under the rule had enough food to eat.

but,

Who can predict God's temper?
The emperor and his ministers agreed that
It is necessary to launch a campaign against Huguang and capture the largest grain-producing area in the south so that development can be more secure.

at this time,

It was the beginning of summer.

The weather is not suitable for war.

However, it did not affect the preparations for the Huguang Campaign in the autumn.

……

If the soldiers and horses are not moving, the grain and grass will go first.

Before the battle begins, the staff officers go ahead.

During the court meeting,
His Majesty has instructed:

The army was divided into several routes and made a large detour to gradually encircle the entire Huguang region.

We need to be bold enough to swallow up two provinces in one go (excluding the mountainous areas in the west for the time being).

Swallow all the Qing troops and food in Huguang~
The Army Department and the General Staff Headquarters jointly discussed the specific implementation plan for the Huguang Campaign.

(End of this chapter)