A Good Landlord in the Tang Dynasty: Emperor Yuan Cong

Chapter 745: Who allowed them to recruit people?
Wu Huaiyu walks along the Gan River,

Rest in a small town called Xiajiang Baqiu at the narrowest point of Ganjiang River.

"It is said that Zhou Yu, the governor of Soochow in the Three Kingdoms, once trained navy here."

The peaks of the Yuxia Gorge on both sides sandwich the Gan River. The Gan River is extremely narrow here. After leaving the mouth of the peaks and gorge, it suddenly becomes clear that there is a sandbar in the river.

"Since the Marquis of Qushui built the Meiguan Road in Daquling, the Gan River and the Pearl River were connected across the Five Ridges, leading directly to Guangzhou. The Gan River has become a golden waterway, and small towns like Baqiu have prospered along the way. "

"This small place has beautiful mountains and clear waters. Xiajiang rice noodles and bamboo paper are quite famous, and they are tributes. But after all, these two local products are so famous now, and they were both given by the Prime Minister."

The speaker was Liu Xiangdao, the censor of Jiangnan West Road.

It seems that he has some relationship with Wu Huaiyu. His father Liu Linfu died of illness the year before last. Before his death, he was the Minister of Zhongshu, and Ma Zhou took his place.

He had been ill for some time before his death, and Wu Huaiyu often went to his house to see him and prescribe medicines. He had frequent contacts with him, and his relationship with Liu Linfu was getting along well, and he even got along well with Liu Xiangdao.

The Liu family is also a distinguished family.

The fiancée of Liu Xiangdao's younger brother Liu Yingdao was Li Wanshun, the daughter of Prince Yin Jiancheng, the head of Wenxi County, but this marriage was arranged by Li Shimin.

Liu Xiangdao became the censor of Jiangnan West Road, which was arranged by Wu Huaiyu after his father died and his period of filial piety expired.

Although the rank of the supervisory censor is not high, it is an important position, a clear and important position, and has a bright future.

Liu Xiangdao was still very grateful. He even regarded himself as Wu Huaiyu's registered disciple, even though he was older than Wu Huaiyu.

Since Huaiyu entered Jiangxi, this baron from Leping County accompanied him all the way south and acted as a guide.

He has been in Jiangxi for a while, and has traveled to almost every prefecture and county in Jiangxi. At this time, Jiangnan West Road was very big, and it was said that it was separated from Jiangnan Road, but after it was separated, it was still so big that it was a bit borderless.

Not only did it include the two provinces of Jiangxi and Hunan in later generations, but places such as Wuchang and Xianning in Hubei now belong to Ezhou and were also included in Jiangnan West Road. Even the area of ​​Ma'anshan, Wuhu, Tongling, Chizhou and Xuancheng, now called Xuanzhou, was also included in Jiangnan West Road. Tao.

Reaching the Yangtze River in the north and Wuling in the south, this river is so big in the south and west that it has no borders.

But now, relatively speaking, it is still relatively underdeveloped and backward.

However, Jiangnan can still be called a land of plenty.
For example, this small Xijiang River is a hilly area with many mountains, but there are particularly many moso bamboos, which can be found all over the mountains and fields. Other forest resources are also good, and even mandarin oranges are very famous.

In the past, small places like Xiajiang were very poor, considered remote and inland, with few industries and a backward economy.In the past few years, the samurai Yiwu Huaiyi, his uncle and nephew, went to Shaozhou to serve as governors. Wu Huaiyu also organized many people to build roads and mines, especially the establishment of the gall copper mine, which made Shaozhou soar to the sky.

Eighty percent of the copper produced in the Tang Dynasty actually came from the Danquan Copper Factory in Shaozhou, which also had the largest money store and mint in the Tang Dynasty.

Even countless pig irons are gathered in Shaozhou. Some come from Lingnan along the Pearl River, and some from Jiangnan area along the Ganjiang River.

After the Ganjiang waterway prospered, Wu Huaiyu also invested money in other industries along the Ganjiang River, such as buying some fields in the states along the river, exploring some mines, and building some tea farms.
Another biggest operation is to use the abundant bamboo resources in Jiangxi to build many bamboo paper workshops here.

In the past, there were not many people using bamboo to make paper. Most of them were hemp paper, rattan paper, etc.

The bamboo paper workshop of the Wu family has made very good bamboo paper after technical improvements. It is made of young bamboo. The paper is fine, thin and soft, light yellow in color, has good ink-holding and water-absorbing properties, and is both suitable for writing and excellent for writing. in printed books.

Because the master papermaker hired by the Wu family was named Mao, the bamboo paper produced was also called rough edge paper.Wujia's Jiangxi rough-edged paper has different qualities, the heavier the paper, the more expensive it is.

But compared with other papers, Wu's bamboo paper is cheaper and of better quality. So now in Datang's paper market, it has quickly captured a lot of markets. It is almost three-thirds of the market compared with hemp paper. The power of the world.

Jiangxi has a natural advantage in making bamboo paper. Since there are many bamboos in the mountains, a large amount of young bamboo can be cut down to make paper every year without affecting the next year. This is like many rattan paper-producing prefectures and counties. In recent years, too many ancient rattan canes have been cut down, and the supply has exceeded demand. , severely limiting output.

Secondly, Jiangxi not only has many mountains but also has abundant water, which is very beneficial to the papermaking industry.

In addition, the finished paper can be transported down the Ganjiang River and it is very convenient to transport it. This makes the Wu family's bamboo paper more and more prosperous now.

Bamboo paper has even become an extremely important industry in small towns like Baqiu.

Liu Xiangdao, the censor of Jiangxi Province, liked Jiangxi Bamboo Paper very much, and even became a voluntary recommender of Jiangxi Bamboo Paper, recommending Jiangxi Bamboo Paper everywhere.
On the Ganjiang River, there are a lot of sails, and there are many ships going south and north, fully loaded with passengers and cargo, and there is an endless stream.

At the Ganjiang pier in the small town of Baqiu, there are ferries waiting to cross the river and ships loading and unloading cargo.
"Most of what is loaded onto the ship is bamboo paper, rice flour, taro flour, lotus root flour and dried fish, as well as charcoal, wood and tung oil. Xiajiang's charcoal is also quite famous."

Huaiyu stood by the river and liked the scenery here very much.

When he heard that there would be floods here every year, he called the accompanying Wu family members and the stewards of the Wu family's paper mill in this small county.

"I will ask the Wu family to pay a sum of money, and you will hire workers to heighten and strengthen the embankments along the river in Baqiu Town. After the repairs are completed, you will rebuild the Taoist temple in Jiangzhongzhou, and then build it on the other side of Xinjiang River on the other side of the island. Let’s build a Guanlan Pavilion on the embankment.”

"By the way, let's spend more money to build a school."

"Does the Prime Minister like this town very much?"

"Well, the mountains and rivers are beautiful, the people are simple, and the scenery here is unique,"

The Wu family has docks and warehouses here, as well as paper-making workshops, tea farms, forest farms and manors. They benefit a lot from here every year. It doesn't matter if they invest some money to repay them now.

Moreover, the waterway of Ganjiang River will become more and more prosperous in the future. The Ganjiang-Guangdong Business Road will drive this place to become more prosperous. Especially with the development of Lingnan and the expansion of Guangzhou Port’s maritime trade, Ganjiang River will become rich and lively.
If the Wu family invests more money, they will definitely not lose money here in the future.

at night,

Foresta accompanied Huaiyu and blew the river breeze, feeling the taste of summer.
It is really pleasant to eat the delicious river fish from the Ganjiang River and have fried noodles on the embankment of the dock. You can also taste the molded tofu and molded fish in this place.

This is known as the narrowest place in Ganjiang River, but the water is also the clearest, and the fish becomes more delicious.

Huaiyu ate fish for three days in the Xiajiang River.
Even Liu Xiangdao couldn't help but ask, "Xiangguo has been traveling from Chang'an for more than two months, and he hasn't arrived at Lingnan yet. Are you not in a hurry?" "You're not in a hurry."

"Do you still want to rest here?"

"Stay a few more days. The mountains and rivers here are beautiful, the rice is fragrant, and the fish is fresh. Even the salted catfish and herring dried here are extremely delicious."

A group of Forbidden Army generals who followed Huaiyu laughed and said, "The girls here are also pretty."

"Isn't the Prime Minister worried about the barbarian rebellion in Lingnan?"

"Aren't the two commanders-in-chief, Feng Zhidai and Chen Longshu, leading their troops in an encirclement and suppression campaign? Successful reports are coming frequently,"

It is true that good news comes frequently. The number of beheadings reported by both of them has reached more than 2.

But Wu Huaiyu stopped instead.

He had been on the road for more than two months and still had [-] miles to go.

In two months, I traveled more than 600 miles.

To be honest, this speed is indeed too slow, too slow.

But the strange thing is that the emperor of Chang'an did not punish or urge him for this. It seemed that the emperor and the court had forgotten that such a large force was always on the way.

But it is impossible to forget. After all, the soldiers and horses need food and drink on the road, the place needs supplies, and the court also needs supplies.

But what's even more strange is that Wu Huaiyu led not only this group of troops going south, but also the group that took the Xiangjiang River to Guizhou, which was also on the way. The two armies were far apart, but their speed seemed to be the same.

The two armies marched at a rapid pace.

Liu Xiangdao picked up Wu Huaiyu from Jiangzhou and followed him all the way. The speed was indeed too slow, but along the way, he saw that this group of people was also very orderly. They traveled sixty miles a day, then set up camp and conducted various drills. ,study,
The army not only built a martial arts hall for the battalion, but also a medical school for the battalion, and even an engineer training camp. These soldiers and generals are also very busy and fulfilling every day.

The discipline is also very good. When they are not marching, they are setting up camp, training and studying in the camp.

After all, Liu Xiangdao was also from Chang'an. He was from a well-known family and was well-informed. He guessed that there might be a tacit understanding between the emperor and Wu Huaiyu, and they intended to slowly move south like this.

As for the reason, the most likely reason is to let the powerful chiefs, governors, and governors in Lingnan lead their troops to quell the Lihuman rebellion.
This is driving a tiger to devour a wolf, or it can be said to be sitting on a mountain and watching a tiger fight.

When the local forces in Lingnan were both in danger, Prime Minister Wu arrived with his elite troops and took control of the situation in one fell swoop. Of course, it is also possible that Wu Huaiyu was deliberately waiting for the subsequent deployment of troops stationed in Lingnan.
For example, patrol navy, coastal patrol, and soldiers of the new Tongjunfu to be established in Lingnan.

Huaiyu said he would stay in Baqiu town for a few more days, and he actually stayed for a few more days. Not only did he fish on the Gan River in the past few days, he also went to the Chashan Forest Farm, visited a paper-making workshop and a rice noodle processing workshop, and even visited I ran to the east side of Hedong and went to Yuqi Mountain to play and hunt for two days.

Wu Huaiyu's three-eyed gun is getting better and better now.
Fifty steps away, you can shoot down flying birds.

Moreover, his three-gun ignition and shooting speed is also very fast, and even reloading speed is extremely fast.

The two hundred disciples and tribes in his guard even have a three-eyed gun, and they practice with him every day, and now they are all practicing well.
Not only can he shoot from a dismounted position, but he can also shoot from horseback.

They can even hit three shots in coordination.

At a distance of thirty or forty steps, 200 people shot in three stages. The power was quite astonishing. There were continuous bangs and bangs, and the flying lead bullets could destroy a row of shields.

Consecutive days,

According to the reports sent by Feng Zhidai and Chen Longshu, no more thieves were captured, and the Lihu barbarian rebellion in the five states of Lingnan suddenly lost momentum.

And that evening, a new report arrived. Feng Zhidai and Chen Longshu had surrendered the rebellious Xitong barbarians, and the rebellion in the five states of Lingnan was suddenly put down.

When Huaiyu read this report, he was eating dinner on the river embankment. The new Ganjiang embankment had begun to be repaired, and the Guanlan Pavilion had also begun to be constructed.

On the long wooden table brushed with tung oil, there is a table of delicacies, including stir-fried yellow beef, stir-fried snails, blood duck, stewed dog meat, roast chicken, braised goose, braised fish, fried noodles, and cold skin.
Paired with the local old winter wine, it would have been extremely pleasant to watch the sails while blowing the river breeze.

The recruitment and pacification of the barbarians in the five Lingnan states was originally a good thing, but after Wu Huaiyu saw it, he threw it aside.
"Who allowed them to recruit and surrender?"

"Do these rogue barbarians really think they can rebel if they want to, and surrender if they want to?"

Wu Huaiyu took a sip of rice wine, and then asked someone to reply to the two governors, Feng Zhidai and Chen Longshu,
Such a surrender by these rebels will not be accepted unless all the large and small lords of Xidong who participated in the rebellion surrender themselves to Guangzhou, accept trial, and await their fate.

At the same time, all Xidian rebels who participated in the rebellion, regardless of whether they were men, women, old or young, as long as they participated, would be killed on eleven occasions.

Draw lots, and one of the ten people will be killed on the spot. If he is under eighteen or over sixty, he will be spared death, but he will be demoted to a slave.

"Tell Governor Feng and Governor Chen that betrayal must pay a price, and it is a heavy price. If the rebels cannot surrender on these terms, I don't need to tell you what to do."

Liu Xiangdao, who was dining with Wu Huaiyu, heard this request and couldn't help but said, "It's impossible for those Xidong barbarians to accept this condition."

"Whether they accept it or not is their business. They overturned the table first, and now they want to settle the matter. It's not that easy."

Liu Xiangdao understood that Wu Huaiyu wanted Feng Chen and other powerful chiefs to continue fighting against the Xidong rebels. He was not satisfied with the current results.

"Send the order to break camp tomorrow and continue southward."

It is still [-] miles away from Guangzhou.

(End of this chapter)