Go back to the Ming Dynasty to be a thousand households

Chapter 276

(In order to strive for the end of this book on New Year's Day, I will work hard in the last two months. I hope to write 20 to 30 words per month in these two months.)
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This time Huang Laifu came to Beijing to work for Emperor Wanli, manage Huangzhuang, open various factories, Huangdian, etc.Although a series of achievements are remarkable and the emperor is satisfied, in fact, related matters are all managed by Qu Yuanrui, Wang Qinian, Gu Shibao, Jiang Yongsheng and others in Huang Laifu's shogunate. Huang Laifu is only doing some theoretical planning and detailed affairs. Don't ask.

This is the benefit of delegating to subordinates, greatly reducing your workload.But Huang Laifu wanted to go back to Wuzhai Fort, so these people naturally wanted to follow him.After all, their competent affairs are still in Shanxi Town, Wuzhaibao and other places.However, they also retained personnel from various bureaus in charge of various matters. Since then, the bureau will send people to Beijing for inspections every year.That's all.

At the end of October in the 24th year of Wanli, after a long journey, Huang Laifu and others returned to Ningwu Pass.

It was after the autumn harvest at this time, but Ningwuguan was still busy. In the past two years, the local coal and timber industries had developed rapidly, and after the cement road in Ningwuguan was completed, merchants from all over the country poured into the town.People from all over the world are used to looking for work in and outside the city after the busy autumn harvest, so when Huang Laifu and others walked on the street, it could be said to be noisy, with local dialects spoken.

Looking at this lively scene, Huang Laifu naturally felt a sense of satisfaction in his heart. Like Wuzhai Fort, Ningwuguan was in his hands, and it became more and more prosperous. Seeing the smiling faces of ordinary people and military households on the street, Huang Laifu secretly sighed with emotion It's not in vain to travel through it for nothing.

As soon as he returned to the General's Mansion, Governor Yang Fanglue couldn't wait to invite Huang Lai Fushang to the lobby of the governor's yamen, and Liu Tangsheng Bingbei also sat beside him.When they met, the faces of Governor Yang and Liu Bingbei were quite smug. This year, the taxes and grains of Wudao in Zhenning, Shanxi were well collected, and a large amount of mutual market taxes were collected from Shuiquan Yingbao and other places. Public, the Ministry of Officials has given them excellent attendance this year.In private, the two have received a large amount of bonuses from coal mines and timber clubs in Ningwuguan, and both public and private harvests have naturally made them smile.

The three sat down and exchanged pleasantries for a while. Governor Yang tentatively asked about Huang Laifu's stay in Beijing, not without envy in his tone.They have also heard about Huang Laifu's stay in Beijing in the past few months. As a warrior, Huang Laifu is so favored by the emperor and entrusted with various important tasks. envy.

Liu Tangsheng Bingbei even laughed dryly and said: "Huang Junmen is highly valued by the Holy Majesty, and it is a good thing to open various factories and workshops in Gyeonggi. But I have also heard about the cement factory, wool spinning factory, glass factory, and large supermarkets. Other things can also be opened in Jin, and Huang Junmen is proud of being in Beijing, but don't forget to take care of the elders at home, Zicai."

Huang Laifu said: "There will be a chance."

Governor Yang said: "Jin Town is an important town on the nine borders, and Huang Junmen is responsible for guarding the country's borders. We must not be separated. Now that autumn and winter are coming, Huang Junmen will be troubled by the task of preventing autumn and winter."

As the commander-in-chief of Shanxi Town, Huang Laifu has made great military exploits, and the Hu people dare not invade outside the Great Wall.If Huang Laifu was in Ningwuguan, the soldiers and civilians in the whole town would feel reassured, and they would not be surprised.However, during the time Huang Laifu left, many people in the town felt uneasy, including Governor Yang and others. Now that Huang Laifu is back, everyone is relieved.

The Nine Frontier Army Town in the Ming Dynasty is just at the frontier fortress, and the nomadic tribes on the grasslands often invade south when autumn is high and horses are fat.So every year in autumn and winter, the commanders-in-chief and deputy commanders-in-chief of each town have to personally lead the army to the frontier military fort, strengthen the guards, and deploy troops to defend.The same is true for Shanxi Town, where autumn is at Yangfangkou, and winter is at Piantouguan.Although the frontier fortress has been out of control these years, this routine is still unavoidable.

After discussing military affairs for a while, Huang Laifu left.

In the next few days, Huang Laifu was busy dealing with various military affairs and autumn prevention at Ningwu Pass.During the days when Huang Laifu came to Beijing, most of the affairs of the general's mansion were handled by Yang Xiaolu and Zanhua, the shogunate's staff officer.But even so, there were many things that required Huang Laifu's approval and decision-making, but there was still a mountain of paperwork, which kept Huang Laifu busy for several days and nights before basically finishing it.

In Ningwuguan now, there are actually only three battalions left, 2000 in Huang Laifu, 2000 in Ningwu, and 3000 in Governor Yang's battalion.However, the Ningwu Battalion led by Liu Quanli has become a professional mine protection team. I am afraid that they will not have the ability to fight in the future, and the pacesetter battalion is also frowning.It turned out that the remaining two battalions of skirmishers inside and outside the city and the soldiers of the military household guards, after several years of development, have become professional field soldiers, animal husbandry soldiers and mining soldiers.But in the future, these people may also not have the ability to fight.

In the entire Shanxi town, I am afraid that is the same. Except for Huang Laifu's direct descendants, the rest are at most serving as garrison troops, guarding the city.He doesn't have the ability to fight in the field, so in the past few years, in Shanxi's conquest of Ningxia and the war against North Korea, all troops from Huang Laifu were dispatched.

Right now, the army in Ningwuguan, Shanxi Township, is already self-sufficient like Wuzhai Fort and Laoying Fort, and does not need much funding from the Ministry of War, so it is naturally praised by the superiors.However, there are not many troops capable of fighting. The Ministry of War is considering whether to recruit new troops in Shanxi Town and form a new combat battalion.But it costs a lot, where can the Ministry of War get the money?Moreover, Huang Laifu didn't think it was necessary, because the soldiers were good but not many. In the entire Shanxi town, his several battalions of soldiers and horses were able to fight in the field, which could already shock the barbarians outside the Great Wall from invading.If you really want to do it, you can select elites in the town to form a new battalion horse, and the rest should be transformed into field soldiers, so that you can farm when you are busy and practice when you are free.

It's just that this matter is complex and involves the interests of many people. Although Huang Laifu is the commander-in-chief of Shanxi Town and has the obligation to train soldiers, it is still not easy to actually implement this matter in Shanxi Town.

In any case, on November [-]th, Huang Laifu led five hundred members of the Laifu camp to Yangfangkou Fort in the north of Ningwuguan, and began his military affairs against autumn and winter.

This Yangfangkou is a section of the Great Wall, about twenty miles north of Ningwuguan.It is connected to the Golden Sand Beach on the edge of Datong in the north, and Yunzhong Mountain, Chanfang Mountain, and Guanlu Mountain in the south, east, and west. It is a throat pass, and its military position is very important.This is not only the key point of Ningwu, but also the shield of Yanmen and Pianguan.Once something happens in Datong, heavy troops are often stationed here.

However, because the Hui River flows through here, the terrain is flat, and a hundred thousand riders can march in a row. In the mountainous terrain of the entire Shanxi Town, this place is very flat, and it has always been the balance of the first offenders of the grassland barbarians.In the past, when the captives rode in the Lanna, they led from here, and the soldiers and horses could destroy the wall for several miles.Therefore, in the 18th year of Jiajing, the then governor Chen Dao built a fort at Jiulongkou, and there were two enemy buildings. It is about eighty steps away and about three feet five feet high.

After the completion of Yangfangkoubao City, it is called "the first crossing of the middle road in Shanxi Town". It is adjacent to Changfang Mountain in the east and Huihe River in the west. , the north can respond to Yunshuo, taking advantage of the geographical advantage.

Right now, Yangfangkou Fort has a garrison, divided into 340 and nine leading flag troops, who manage the surrounding defense area of ​​150 miles and [-] steps, and there are [-] side piers, a place in the inner west water mouth.Since the Longqing period, Yangfangkou has been less war-torn, and the Huihe River at the pass is an important traffic route connecting Shuozhou, Datong and other places, so boats come and go here every day, and it is very lively.

Especially after Huang Laifu came to Ningwuguan, because there was a lot of coal in the area under the jurisdiction of Yangfangkou, in the past two years, the dozens of villages in the area have been digging coal and mining everywhere, and everywhere is busy.Not only the local people were wiped out, but also the soldiers and civilians from nearby Datong Town Shuozhou and other places came here one after another to make a living. Therefore, although the sparrows in Yangfangkoubao are small, they are very lively. In the small fort, there are a large number of inns, restaurants, shops and so on.

When Huang Laifu led the army here, the guards of Yangfangkou Fort rushed out of the fort to meet them. This fort was the only one in Ningwu Pass where no generals were sent to farm. The Banner Army usually collects taxes to protect the mines, and they also eat slickly.This was also tacitly acquiesced by Huang Laifu.

Although it is a routine defense against autumn and winter this time, Huang Laifu does not plan to stay permanently in Yangfangkou Fort. What he really pays attention to at the end of the year is to visit Laoying Fort and other places.After all, Yangfangkou Fort is deep in the interior. If the Mongols on the grassland invaded, they would have to penetrate the entire Datong Town before reaching Yangfangkou.And from Yangfangkou Fort to Ningwu Pass, riding a fast horse is also an instant thing. My two thousand family members are in Ningwu City, so there is no need to wait here stupidly.Besides, Huang Laifu's style is to fight out, so he is even more unwilling to stick to a certain place and get beaten.

However, after inspecting the inside and outside of Yangfangkou Fort, Huang Laifu also gained something. Yangfangkou Fort is a traffic artery connecting Datong Town and Shanxi Town. Here, a trade distribution center between the two towns can be established. Do a lot of coal mining.Moreover, the river here is vast, and the land on both sides is fertile, so it is possible to build some farmland.Due to the abundance of coal mines in the area, many local people would rather work in the mines than farm. However, due to the development of Ningwuguan, many refugees from Shanxi Town and Datong Town have come here to make a living. , It is entirely feasible to recruit Dingkou among these people.

On November [-]th, Huang Laifu left a hundred family members to stay at Fangkou Fort in Guanyang, led by a hundred personal guards, and then left the place to go to the frontier fort by way of Wuzhai Fort.

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On November 24th, the [-]th year of Wanli, seeing the weather getting colder every day, the clothes everyone wore became thicker every day.But in this place of Wuzhai Fort, the clothes that everyone wears are somewhat different from those in other places.In other places, everyone wears thick cotton-padded jackets, but in Wuzhaibao, woolen coats are the new fashion these past few years.

Although it is said that after winter, it is slack in other places, but the bustle of Wuzhai Fort is like a day by day.Huang Laifu positioned Wuzhai Fort as an important place for agriculture and commerce, so after the autumn harvest, the rice shops and rice store merchants all over the fort began to resell the rice noodles to various towns.The traffic of carts and horses, the abundance of corn and corn goods, can rank first in Shanxi Town.

There are also various factories. After autumn, there is a flood of people. People from all over the country come to Wuzhaibao to work in an endless stream.Over the years, under the influence of the exchange of various agricultural and sideline products and commodities in Wuzhai Fort, many commercial towns have also formed around Wuzhai Fort: Wuzhai Fort, a distribution center for grain, oil and wool spinning.Shenchibao, a distribution center for coal, iron and cement.Kelan Prefecture, a distribution center for wool... The various cities and towns communicate with each other, forming a vast market.

And just like the wave of migrant workers in later generations, Junbao Prefecture and counties elsewhere in Shanxi Town have also formed the custom of working in Wuzhaibao or its surrounding areas over the years. They either work for a living for a long time, or go to Wuzhai after the slack. They worked part-time jobs in Fort, and after they earned money, they returned to their hometown, and every time they talked about it, they aroused the envy of others.This in turn brings in a greater flow of people.According to preliminary statistics, the current population of Wuzhaibao, both permanent residents and migrants, has exceeded [-].

The demand for raw materials from various places and the prosperity of commerce have led to a rapid increase in the number of businesses inside and outside Wuzhai Fort. Now the farms in Wuzhai Fort are like towns. Including them, there are nearly a thousand large businesses in Wuzhai Fort. There are also many banks, banks, teahouses, theaters and so on.Due to the increase in trade volume and the frequent exchange of cash, Wuzhaibao Bank also produced bank notes for remittance in different places last autumn. Once it was released, it was very popular among merchants.

In the Ming Dynasty at this time, although there were many banks in various cities, they also issued various bank notes.But without exception, these banknotes are not allowed to be withdrawn in other places. Merchants have to rely on cash to pay for purchases and trade when they go out. If they earn money in other places and send it to their hometown, they have to rely on special escorts to transport the cash back. Big, time consuming and often wrong.As the volume of trade between Wuzhaibao and other places is increasing and becoming more and more frequent, the large-scale cash payment obviously cannot keep up with the development trend of the times.

Due to the development of Wuzhaibao Bank in recent years, the bank has opened branches in Shenchibao, Ningwuguan, Laoyingbao, Kelanzhou, Guihuacheng, Taiyuan and other places, so Huang Laifu has changed the name of the shopkeeper to the bank Zhou Wendong, the general manager, came up with a way.Those who have deposits in the Wuzhaibao Bank, and those banks have a branch in a certain place, hold the bank notes in their hands, so they don't need to go to the deposit place to withdraw money, but can directly go to the branch in a certain place to withdraw.Afterwards, it is enough to inform the other party's number and the general number of the delivery matters by letter.

In this way, it can be said that it greatly facilitates those merchants who need to spend a lot of money.In just one year, more and more people have requested for redemption.Seeing the situation like this, Zhou Wendong was surprised and overjoyed at the same time. In addition to Wuzhaibao Bank's special exchange business, he also specially sent people to investigate the trading locations of many merchants, and selected capable people to open exchange branches in many towns in Shanxi No., the other party only needs to pay a certain handling fee to handle it.

Because this kind of remittance pays money here and spends money there, the procedure is simple and convenient to use, so not only many merchants come to remit money, but also some wealthy households, officials and generals entrust the remittance matters.With the increase of capital, the places of remittance and remittance become larger and larger, and the profits also increase.Then they took in cash and issued loans, and the business boomed.In the fall of this year, there were more than [-] taels of silver deposits and more than [-] taels of loans in the Guihua City branch alone.

Seeing that Wuzhaibao Bank's business is so hot and busy, many banks have followed suit and invested in foreign exchange banks.Soon, the trend has spread out of Shanxi Province and developed to other provinces.For a time, this ticket office business, which only appeared in the late Qing Dynasty, unexpectedly appeared earlier in Wuzhaibao in the Wanli period.

"Madam, this is a money order of 10 taels of silver, please keep it."
Wuzhaibao Bank occupies a large area and is luxurious. There are three entrances, and the innermost one is the VIP office.In the flower hall, Zhou Wendong took out several bank notes and solemnly handed them over to Gu Yunniang.For Gu Yunniang, Zhou Wendong admired it from the bottom of his heart, not because Gu Yunniang was Huang Laifu's wife, nor because she was the appointed wife, but Gu Yunniang's own ability and temperament, which Zhou Wendong admired.In these years in Wuzhai Fort, she was a woman who took charge of the place, not to mention subduing the people's hearts, and managed the Treasury Bank in an orderly manner, which is something that ordinary women do not have.

Gu Yunniang's temperament has become more and more stable in recent years, and the charm of that young woman has become more outstanding. She said softly: "Mr. Zhou is here."

The bills of exchange in his hand were made of exquisite paper with different denominations, but each had the same format, with the word "voucher" and a pattern printed on the first side, and vertical grids printed on the two sides in the middle, with the exchange number, silver number, and year. The month, date and other contents are also printed with the word "Xinxing" on the tail, and three kinds of seals of the bank are affixed. In addition, there are secret codes and anti-counterfeiting watermarks on it to ensure the safety of the draft.

Gu Yunniang looked through it carefully, and after a long time, she couldn't help sighing: "This money order is really exquisite, especially the anti-counterfeiting technique is so clever, it's really embarrassing for Mr. Zhou!"

Zhou Wendong said: "Don't dare, this is the brainstorming of all the shareholders, and it's not the work of someone Zhou!"

The bank industry in the Ming Dynasty was well developed. Regarding the operation of the bank and anti-counterfeiting, each bank has very rich experience and has its own mature and rigorous system.Many Shanxi merchants joined Wuzhaibao Bank, and many families have experience in running a bank. For these people, the anti-counterfeiting of money orders is not a difficult task.

Of course, a bill of exchange carries tens of thousands of taels of silver. It is remitted here, and the bill is used as a proof, and it is cashed in a different place. How to ensure safety, reliability, anti-counterfeiting, and no mistakes are related to the credit of the bill number. , It is related to the big problem that customers' assets will not be lost.The shareholders of Wuzhaibao Bank have also put in a lot of painstaking efforts for the operation of the bank.

They thought for a long time, and finally adopted three strict anti-counterfeiting and anti-counterfeiting measures: writing, secret pressing, and engraving.First of all, bills of exchange have uniform standards, formats, and filled-in content, and cannot be altered at will, let alone forged.In addition, the person who writes the money order in each bank and each bank is fixed, and the handwriting of this person must be reported to each bank so that everyone can recognize his handwriting and distinguish the characteristics of his handwriting. handwriting, you can identify the authenticity of the draft.In addition to the fixed person who writes the money order, the manager of the semicolon must also sign the money order himself, and no one else is allowed to write on behalf of the money order.

There is also the confidentiality method of "anti-counterfeiting secret deposit", which is a confidentiality measure using Chinese characters as symbols. Each bill of exchange has the code number of the time of issuance and the password of the remittance bank amount. Only the accountant and manager of the cashier's bill number Known, and constantly changing.For example, the number of silver taels is represented by the ten characters of "Students check more, and act after consideration" to represent the ten numbers of "One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine."The four characters "National Treasure Circulation" are used to represent the four units of "ten thousand, one thousand, one hundred, ten".The twelve characters of "Beware of fake tickets, and don't forget to read the chapters carefully" represent the twelve months of the year.The 30 characters of "It's ridiculous that the world is weak, the way of heaven is the most fair. Unconsciously seek self-interest, conspire to harm others. Good and evil will always be rewarded, and it will be clear from the end", which represent the [-] days of each month.

Gu Yunniang had a money order in her hand, with the words "Lai Guo Shiliu" and "Book Harm" written on it, and others didn't know what to say when they saw it.However, by comparing and interpreting the "secret deposit" stipulated by the Wuzhaibao Bank No., its content is clear at a glance. The four characters "Laiguoshiliu" represent the exchange of seventy-two hundred taels of silver. The word "Book Harm" means that the date of remittance of the bill of exchange is November [-].

In addition, there is a "watermark" embedded in the money order paper, which is highly technical and extremely difficult to prevent.Each money order is also stamped with the stamp of the bank number, which is very finely engraved and extremely difficult to prevent.In the end, even if the money order is lost, the bearer can declare it invalid as long as he immediately informs the number of the money order that issued it.If a thief uses it, it is like throwing himself into a trap, and if someone else finds it, he will not be able to withdraw the money, because he does not know the time and amount of the remittance.If the remitter loses the money order, the number of the original money order issued has the stub registered during the remittance. As long as it is verified to be true, the remittance will not be lost at all.

Such a set of strict anti-counterfeiting and confidentiality measures has guaranteed the economic interests of both the host and the customer, and is easy to use. No wonder it has been widely welcomed by the world once it was launched.And since the beginning of this year, Huang Laifu has also started to use Wuzhai Fort's exchange bills. After all, he needs to transport a lot of money back and forth between Ningwuguan and Wuzhai Fort. It is very inconvenient to always use soldiers to escort him. Well, the current Ningwuguan Bank has become a place frequented by Huang Laifu.Of course, what Huang Laifu misses the most is the bank card of later generations, and that is the real convenience.

Huang Laifu has this need. Gu Yunniang, who is the director of Wuzhaibao Bank and Money Bureau, naturally has to come to Wuzhaibao Bank to exchange money.Of course, with Gu Yunniang's current status, she only needed to send her family members to handle it, but she was worried that this kind of bill of exchange was handled by herself.

Among the directors of the various bureaus who are currently staying in Wuzhaibao, except for Zhou Wendong and Gu Yunniang, most of them followed Huang Laifu to the capital. As Huang Laifu's shogunate, the directors of these bureaus would naturally run by his side frequently, and those who stayed in Wuzhaibao were mostly valued or capable confidantes of the bureau chiefs.

It is also because Wuzhai Fort is too important. The annual income and expenditure of money, rice and grain are astronomical figures. Huang Laifu's source of everything is from this place, and Wuzhai Fort is still the hereditary land of the Huang family, so Huang Laifu has always let Gu Yunniang stay in Wuzhai Fort sits.After a year, there are very few opportunities for husband and wife to meet each other, which makes both Huang Laifu and Gu Yunniang unable to bear the pain of lovesickness.

Gu Yunniang was thinking that now that everything is on track in Wuzhaibao, she should talk to her husband if she has a chance, and let him pick her up to Ningwuguan.The money management of Wuzhai Fort can be left to Qu Xiuhe to manage. At most, he can visit the place several times a year.Anyway, it is also close from Ningwuguan to Wuzhai Fort.

The two chatted for a while, and finally Gu Yunniang left the bank in a carriage surrounded by the maids and servants. On the west side of the flower hall of the bank, there was a corridor leading to the carriage and drove directly to the street.

When driving outside, they saw Gu Yunniang's chariot and horses approaching, and the pedestrians on the street saluted the chariot and horse respectfully. When Huang Laifu was not in Wuzhai Fort, Gu Yunniang, as the mistress, was the soldiers and civilians of Wuzhai Fort. backbone.Compared with the past, the life of the soldiers and civilians in the fort is really one in the sky and the other on the ground, but the soldiers and civilians have a feeling of dreaming and restlessness in their hearts, as if one day there will be no such days.In the past, Huang Laifu was in Wuzhaibao, and everyone felt at ease, but now Huang Laifu is often not in Wuzhaibao, and Gu Yunniang is replaced as everyone's backbone.

As soon as the carriages and horses returned to the Huang Mansion, before Gu Yunniang sat down, she heard a maid happily come in and said repeatedly: "Madam is very happy, Madam is very happy!"

Gu Yunniang asked: "What's the matter, all the fuss?"

"My lord is back!"

(End of this chapter)