The Leisurely Life of the Prince of the Tang Dynasty

Chapter 467 Transporting Grain
Li Chengqian and Xu Xiaode looked at the large sand table in front of them. The entire Guanzhong area was centered on Chang'an, with villages and counties standing around it.

"The prosperity of Guanzhong does not come from Chang'an, but from the villages and counties in Guanzhong. Without the villages and counties, if only Chang'an City remained, Guanzhong would not be prosperous."

In Xu Xiaode's opinion, many villages and counties have been built in Guanzhong in recent years, and these villages and counties are almost surrounding the city of Chang'an. The villages and counties are the source of Guanzhong's wealth and the foundation of Chang'an. The workshops developed by various counties over the years have indeed brought great help to the prosperity of Guanzhong.

"Your Majesty, this year we have sent a lot of people to each county to build highways from each county to Chang'an."

Li Chengqian nodded and said, "You should take more care of it and check the progress more often."

"Here."

"Let the Supervisor of the Imperial Household make this sand table into a puzzle and send it to Father."

Several eunuchs picked up the sand table and moved carefully, fearing that they would break the blocks on it.

When the hall quieted down, Li Chengqian took a sip of tea and looked at the memorials. When facing state affairs, he quickly regained his rationality and saw the real problems before him. The grassroots of the Tang Dynasty at that time was very empty.

This has led to a strong center, a weak grassroots level, and an imbalance in local governance.

The current court center is still strong, and at the same time it makes up for the shortcomings of insufficient staff at the grassroots level.

Just like the memorial before us, Yu Zhining, as the Minister of War, was in charge of the grain transportation in Liaodong. Whether the transportation process was efficient was a test of the local grassroots capabilities.

Even if the general direction is good, if there are details in the execution process, it is all empty talk.

Therefore, Li Chengqian nodded and said, "Let Shangguan Yi come."

As His Majesty finished speaking, someone left to pass on the message.

Half a minute later, Shangguan Yi hurried into the hall.

Li Chengqian closed the memorial in his hand and said, "Are things going well at the Censorate recently?"

Shangguan Yi replied: "It is possible to correct the trends in the court and the public, but there are still many contradictions in the army."

"I know everything." Li Chengqian stood up and put the memorial on the bookshelf beside him. He then ordered, "Send an imperial censor from Luoyang to investigate along the upper reaches of the canal to see if the grain transportation from Liaodong was smooth."

"Here."

Li Chengqian added: "You don't need to participate in the process, just watch."

Shangguan Yi understood, saluted again with a stern look, and said, "I obey your command."

After giving these instructions, Li Chengqian stood alone in front of the hall, feeling the slight coolness in the air in Guanzhong after the autumn.

There were very few officials in the Sinong Temple on weekdays. Guo Luotuo was a minister of the Sinong Temple who attached great importance to practical matters. He sent many officials of the Sinong Temple to various places. Those officials would investigate the conditions of various crops in various parts of the Central Plains.

The current climate in Guanzhong is very suitable for growing wheat, which is also the conclusion reached by the Sino-Agricultural Temple, so most of the crops in Guanzhong and Hebei are mainly wheat.

On the fifth day after the beginning of autumn, people begin to celebrate the harvest.

On this day, many families make zonggao, and some people also perform sacrifices.

Guanzhong was the most lively at this time. Li Chengqian, Guo Luotuo, and Ying Gong were walking in the countryside and saw people slaughtering livestock and celebrating.

"Some people say that the country I rule has the spirit of Zhenguan, but no matter how I think about it, it doesn't feel like the Zhenguan period. There are no wars of such a large scale as those in the past."

Guo Luotuo said: "People will not think about fighting if they have enough food."

Li Chengqian thought that if the millions of people in Guanzhong could build a simple industrial model, Guanzhong's financial resources and productivity would be enough to support the Li Tang for two hundred years. Moreover, Guanzhong was now moving in this direction.

Even if Hebei and Liaodong decline again, as long as the foundation of Guanzhong remains, there is no need to fear the resistance from other parts of the Central Plains.

With a population of several million, Guanzhong is enough to shoulder the heavy responsibility.

Besides, the current father has not yet become the late emperor.

Li Chengqian took the decree from the eunuch beside him and handed it to him, saying: "Guo Siqing, I heard that you are from Fengle Township. I heard that the village has a small population, but I would like to change Fengle's name to Fengle County and grant you the title of Fengle County Duke."

Hearing this, Guo Luotuo hurriedly bowed and said, "Thank you, Your Majesty."

Li Chengqian added: "Give me the Imperial Censorship in the Palace. If I have any reports, I can submit them directly in the court."

"Here."

Guo Luotuo stood by in panic.

Li Chengqian raised his head and said, "Farming requires consideration of the weather and location. I still need your talents to govern the country. You will continue to serve as the Minister of Agriculture."

Guo Luotuo finally looked much more relaxed and said, "I only know how to farm."

I could only see people in the distance burning incense and offering sacrifices. This was a festival in autumn where people celebrated the harvest.

Li Chengqian liked this kind of scenery very much, and said: "That's good, the meritorious officials of Lingyan Pavilion have nothing to do with their official positions."

Guo Luotuo is a very simple person. Unlike Xu Jingzong, he does not have a complicated mind, but he is also ambitious.

Guo Luotuo is a person without strong ambition. He said he only knows how to farm, and he is so simple that he only focuses on farming.

The wind at this time of year is still very dry.

The wind made the children's cheeks red, and several children were riding on the back of a cow in the field.

Li Chengqian then remembered that people were using more oxen to plow the fields than before.

In the autumn, when people were still celebrating the harvest, the emperor returned to Chang'an City in the sunset.

Guo Luotuo held the imperial edict in his hand and watched His Majesty leave. This time the title was not read out in the court, but was given directly by imperial edict.

Originally, Guo Luotuo didn't want to attract too much attention. This was actually a good thing. His Majesty had the ability to judge people. Guo Luotuo was grateful and saluted again.

If the imperial edict was read out in the court and everyone knew it, Guo Luotuo would feel uncomfortable.

As the sun in the distance was about to sink into the horizon at the end of sight, Guo Luotuo also returned home with the order.

Guanzhong spent several dry days in autumn. This year's autumn rain came later than in previous years. The autumn rain was about to come, and the wind blew through the quiet corridors of the imperial palace. A rain fell with the wind.

The little magpie stretched out her palm to catch some of the rain that fell from the roof. The little princess looked up and asked, "The rain this year is so cold."

The maid asked, "Princess, isn't the autumn rain in previous years cold?"

Little Magpie shook his head and said, "Last year's autumn rain was not this cold."

This child has an especially good memory, whether it is reading or remembering various things. Although he has not yet achieved photographic memory, he can recite a short article after reading it a few times.

Not to mention that she has always remembered all kinds of trivial things from the past since she could remember. When Concubine Ning couldn't find her old things, she would always think of them first.

Children under ten years old should have excellent memory.

“It’s time to write.”

Hearing her mother's words, Xiao Que'er walked into the hall with her hands in her pockets. Before she sat down at the table, she still had her hands in her pockets, wrinkled her nose again, raised her head and asked, "Is my father making zongzi?"

Ning Er said, "Yes, you can eat the zong gao after you finish writing."

She grinned, then sat down and began to write. The autumn rain outside the palace was getting heavier, and when the wind blew, one could even see ripples of rain on the ground.

After Xiao Que'er finished writing today's words, she saw her father really coming with the zong gao. She smiled happily.

She took her sister and brother to sit in front of the Liangyi Hall, eating zongzi and watching the rain, very quietly.

Li Chengqian was peeling tea eggs while talking to Su Wan and Concubine Ning.

After several renovations, the eaves of the Liangyi Hall were widened, so no matter how strong the wind and rain outside are, the rain cannot drift into the hall.

An eunuch walked into the hall, handed over a memorial and said, "Your Majesty, this is a memorial from the Censorate."

The conversation between the couple was interrupted. Li Chengqian took the letter and took a look. The memorial was handed over by Shangguan Yi, saying that he had sent people to Liaodong with the officials of the Ministry of War, and would investigate secretly along the way.

In November of the sixth year of Qianqing, grain and fodder from Liaodong were transported south from Zhuozhou to Luoyang.

Bags of grain were carried onto the big boat. With a shout from the boatman, the boat sailed down the river from Liaodong all the way to Luoyang.

After the villagers from various places brought the grain, the court gave them enough silver to buy the grain.

In Luo Binwang's eyes, he saw how happy the villagers were after they handed over grain to the court and received money.

Luo Binwang looked towards the river again, and saw some boats already setting out down the river.

"Teacher, was this canal really dug by Yang Guang?"

Li Yifu said: "Of course not."

Luo Binwang asked doubtfully, "Isn't it?"

Li Yifu added: "It was dug by people."

Luo Binwang nodded and said, "Student understands."

The grain filled up another ship, and Li Yifu and Luo Binwang boarded the ship under the identity of merchants.

It was snowing heavily in Zhuozhou. The thirteen-year-old Luo Binwang sat on the bow of a boat, looking at the scenery in the distance, sitting cross-legged, feeling the wind and snow blowing towards him.

A child of the same age came forward and asked, "Aren't you afraid of the cold?"

Luo Binwang tightened his cloak and said, "It's not cold."

The child also sat down nearby. He looked at the ships moving around him and said, "My uncle said that the Grand Canal will be the main route of the Tang Dynasty in the future, and the center of the Grand Canal is Luoyang. But my uncle can't understand why the emperor didn't move the capital to Luoyang."

After that, the child said, "My name is Yang Jiong."

Luo Binwang still had a smile on his face and asked, "Is your uncle also an official in the court?"

Yang Jiong said: "That's right."

Luo Binwang raised his head and said with a smile: "You are so kind. My father passed away a long time ago. I don't even remember what he looked like."

"Ah..." Yang Jiong was speechless for a moment, and he said, "I almost forgot. I'm going to Chang'an. What's your name?"

He smiled and said, "My name is Luo Binwang."

The two children seem to have the same past, and now they are going to Chang'an together.

There was some snow on the boat, and the snowstorm did not stop until night when the boat left Zhuozhou.

It was very cold at night, and the snow on the boat quickly froze into ice.

Inside the cabin, Li Yifu was not wearing his official uniform, and he added, “If you feel cold, you can sleep in the barn.”

Luo Binwang was shaking with cold in his bed, and he said, "It's not cold, I can sleep."

Hearing that the child was very stubborn, Li Yifu stopped talking. He brightened the oil lamp and wrote down what he had seen and heard along the way in the swaying cabin.

The Censorate arranged a total of sixteen censors to be stationed in the villages and counties along the river. According to Shangguan Yi, the purpose was to see whether the villages and counties along the way would obey the orders.

The court could not simply send officials to various places. It also had to look at various rumors and the governance situation in various places to make judgments to see whether the other party could really stay in the local position.

The next day, when the ship docked, they had arrived in Hejian Prefecture from Zhuozhou.

As soon as the ship docked, civilians would transport food and fodder to the ship. It was not only the food from Liaodong that needed to be transported, but also the food from the Daozhou along the way.

Luo Binwang stepped on solid ground, said a brief farewell to Yang Jiong, and then walked along the shore with his teacher.

The two came to a restaurant and planned to have something to eat.

While we were eating, we saw three or two people in round-collared official uniforms walking in. They sat down and started complaining.

"What's going on in the court? They still want us to transport food in this freezing cold weather."

"Do you dare to disobey the court? You will suffer. Do you know how strict the current emperor is? The trees in the Western Regions have been planted in Shazhou. In a few years, they will be planted in Anxi Protectorate. We are still short of manpower."

"Alas, we are getting busier every year. Look at those teachers who are teaching in rural areas. They don't know that they will be more tired than us when they come back from teaching."

These words made Luo Binwang feel extremely angry. Just as he was about to stand up and yell, he was held down by the teacher beside him.

Li Yifu knew that the child had always hated evil and could clearly distinguish between good and bad people, but he had a rather impatient temperament.

Whenever he saw Luo Binwang like this, Li Yifu thought of his past self. If he had been able to keep his composure in Bozhou, perhaps the mute would not have died.

The three officials were still complaining. After they finished complaining, they endured the cold wind and walked outside the tavern to start arranging the transportation of grain.

Li Yifu sat in the restaurant and watched the whole time. Even if these officials had complaints, they did not dare to vent on the spot.

Because the current supervision is very strict, villagers can make reports. Even if they are bullied by local officials, they can appeal step by step, even to Chang'an.

After docking at the shore for a day, there was a ship heading south behind. Luo Binwang saw his teacher talking to a farmer. He waited until the conversation was over before getting back on board.

Yang Jiong and his uncle arrived late and almost missed the boat.

"Luo Binwang, do you know Xuanzang?"

"Of course I do."

Yang Jiong sat cross-legged at the bow, looking at the open river in the distance, and said, "Back in the day at Hanshan Temple, Xuanzang taught me how to study."

"Didn't he return to secular life?"

"Yes." Yang Jiong said, "I have heard that too. My uncle said Xuanzang had an agreement with the emperor. Hey! Have you ever seen the emperor?"

Luo Binwang shook his head.

Yang Jiong said with longing: "I really want to visit Chang'an and see the emperor. I heard that the current emperor is a very powerful person. Such a powerful emperor is rare in all dynasties."

When Luo Binwang thought that his teacher would be able to meet the emperor, a proud smile appeared on his face.

(End of this chapter)