The fire tree silver flower never sleeps, and it is another Chinese New Year's Eve.

Listening to the crackling firecrackers outside, Zhang Zhidong, who was alone in Beijing for the first time, really felt the taste of missing relatives every festival. Thinking of my parents, brothers and wives in Guizhou, I don't want to mention how uncomfortable it is.

Zhang Xi knew that he was homesick, and while cleaning up his desk, he deliberately said something to say: "Young master, do you remember the Huang Zhongyin Huang Master we saw in the Chongqing Hall when we first came to the capital?" ”

"Remember, Master Han also asked me to bring him a letter, what happened to Master Huang?" Zhang Zhidong asked subconsciously.

"In the afternoon, I heard the old man Yu Tou say that I only knew, it turned out that we had just moved here from the Chongqing Hall and Master Huang was promoted two days ago, originally released to Guangdong Lei Qiong Road, but within a month, Master Huang is estimated to be still on the way to Guangdong to take office, and the emperor ordered Master Huang to go to Guangxi, and ordered Master Huang to act as an envoy in Guangxi!"

Zhang Zhidong was just a little surprised, and he didn't think it was strange, after all, Huang Zhongyin was originally a Hanlin official, and he had supervised the imperial history for so many years, so he said enviously: "Then you can't call Master Huang anymore, you have to be called Lord Huang or Huang Zhentai." ”

"The young master is right, the little one doesn't understand the rules, and he has to change his mouth when he mentions Master Huang in the future."

If it were in Guizhou, it would really be a big deal who would act or actually give the commissioner.

But in the capital, according to the envoy, he is really not much of a big official.

Zhang Zhidong followed Zhang Xi to the flower hall, looked at the table full of wine and food, and asked, "Zhang Xi, where are Mr. Wang and Yuan Guard?" ”

"Mr. Wang is still in the afternoon, Master Yuan...... Master Yuan just let off a cannon in the yard, or I'll go in and shout. ”

Yu Youfu, who had just changed into new clothes in the afternoon, washed his hands and walked in and said: "Brother Zhang Xi, don't call it, there is something wrong with the big head, and I can't come." Mr. Wang was also busy, and Mr. Wang explained that he asked the two of us to accompany Young Master Zhang for Chinese New Year's Eve dinner first. ”

Wang Naizeng has no family members and is also alone in the capital, Zhang Zhidong felt that it was not good to eat first, and subconsciously asked: "Lao Yu, did Mr. Wang say when he will be busy, or will we have a banquet when he is busy?" ”

"Yes, today is Chinese New Year's Eve, how can you not wait for Mr. Wang."

"Mr. Wang is busy, no one knows how busy he will be, so he really doesn't have to wait. Young Master Zhang, please take a seat, and the little one will pour you wine. ”

"No, no, let's wait."

Their master and servant insisted on waiting, Yu Youfu really had no choice, so he could only use the excuse to see how the banquet in the inner house was doing, and came to the small door leading to the backyard of the bookstore in the back garden in the dark, knocked lightly on the door three times, and waited for the people inside to open the door, and then asked in a low voice: "Big head, when will Mr. Wang finish his work, Young Master Zhang is waiting for you and Mr. Wang to go over to have a banquet!" ”

The other guards have all gone home for the New Year, and they will be on duty tonight.

The big head didn't dare to leave his post without permission, he glanced at the brightly lit exhibition hall, and said in his ear: "A distinguished guest just came, not only Mr. Wang couldn't leave, but even Mr. Wen hurried back to accompany him." I'm talking about business, I don't know when I'm going to talk about it! ”

"Distinguished guest, do you want to hurry up and go to a table of banquets?"

"No, that distinguished guest came with wine and food, saying that he had come to reward him." The big head turned around and glanced at it, and said in a low voice: "Lord Cao, Chongshi, and Chonghou are also here, they are all talking inside, Mr. Wang and I really can't leave, you let Young Master Zhang eat first, let him stop waiting." ”

"Okay, then I'll go back first."

……

On the night of Chinese New Year's Eve, it was not just a distinguished guest who sent the banquet, but Wen Qingwen, the foreman of military aircraft who no one else dared to believe!

As for the Zhan Shifu Zuo Zanshan Chongshi and the Chonghou brothers who learned to walk in the household department, one was sent by Wenqing half a year ago to "learn to walk", and the other was a friend Wenxiang made later. And Cao Yuying was originally the treasurer of the Han University of the "Houyi Hall", and the Lord of the Middle Hall came to reward him on the night of Chinese New Year's Eve, and he naturally could not be the treasurer of the Han University.

It's just that although it is Chinese New Year's Eve, although everyone is full of delicacies and seafood, the exhibition hall does not have the slightest festive atmosphere for the New Year.

Wen Xiang said worriedly: "Judging from the Xiyi Di newspapers in the concessions of Hong Kong, Macao, and Shanghai, since Palmerston became Prime Minister of England last spring, the English ministers, consuls, missionaries, and businessmen in our Qing Dynasty have become more and more restless. Although they agreed that even if Longfur won the battle, they would not be able to make any money out of it, and even decided to be neutral and non-interference. However, he was dissatisfied with the rejection of the treaty. ”

Wen Qing came over tonight to hear the truth, and asked in a low voice, "Why are you dissatisfied?" ”

"Lord Yu Zhongtang, the Shanghai branch has learned that Pasha Li has just returned to Hong Kong from England on the eighth day of the first month of last month, and claims that the Prime Minister of England, Palmerston, has agreed to his proposal that he must 'raise his voice' to clear my voice. On more than one occasion in Hong Kong, he shouted in public, demanding that I 'immediately apologize for even the smallest insult'.

He even brought back a note from Palmerston that the Xin'an and Nanhai branches had ascertained that the British Governor and Minister Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary stationed in Hong Kong had sent a messenger to Ye on the 16th of last month, saying that "no matter what happens between the two countries in the future, the fault will fall on the side of the Chinese Government." ”

Thinking that Ye Mingchen, the governor of Liangguang and the minister of trade and commerce of Wukou, was busy quelling the chaos, even if there was news of Xiyi, most of them copied the newspapers of Xiyi's mansion and how many people had died in some English mainland and colonies, and which foreign merchant's ship sank in a storm again, and only knew how to report good news and not bad news, Wen Qing realized that the military aircraft department would not see that note nine times out of ten.

Among the people present, the second son of Wanyan Linqing, the former governor of the river, who was learning to walk in the household department, was a noble person in the twenty-ninth year of Daoguang, the youngest, and the most daring to speak, he couldn't help but raise his head and said: "Lord Zhongtang, as far as the officials know, at the beginning, the officials in Shanghai, Ningbo, Xiamen and other places did not refuse Yingyi to enter the city. But after those Xiyi entered Shanghai, Ningbo and other cities, they found that the city was too dirty and chaotic, so they withdrew one after another and found another place to live outside the city. ”

The implication of his words could not be clearer, that is, he asked the emperor to order Ye Mingchen to stop playing tricks with foreigners, and simply let foreigners enter the city generously, maybe foreigners will find that Guangzhou City is as dirty and messy, and they are as unwilling to stay in the city as those foreigners in Shanghai, and will take the initiative to withdraw from the city.

Wen Qing stared at him for a while, then turned around and asked, "Chongshi, what do you think?" ”

Chongshi was stunned, and hurriedly arched his hand: "Lord Yuzhongtang, this matter must not be!" ”

"Why not?"

"Shanghai is only the county seat under the jurisdiction of Songjiang Prefecture, while Guangzhou is not only the capital of Guangdong Province, but also the seat of the governor of Guangzhou. The governor of Liangguang and the minister of trade of the five mouths, if the foreigners are allowed to enter the city, wouldn't the foreigners be able to go to the governor's yamen at any time to ask for Lord Ye? ”

Chongshi thought for a while, and then said: "With the temperament of foreigners, if Lord Ye is gone, they will definitely block the government office, so that Lord Ye will not be able to go anywhere, and he will not be able to do any official business, where will the prestige of the imperial court be at that time?" Liangguang is not peaceful, Guangzhou City has even been besieged by the Heaven and Earth Society, if it really takes that step, how can Lord Ye convince the public? And why supervise the army and the people to suppress the thieves and quell the chaos? ”

Chonghou couldn't help but say: "Then play tricks with foreigners, always avoid it, so what else do you want him to do as a minister of five trade?" What's more, if this goes on for a long time, it will only make the foreigners unbearable, and if there is a war at that time, he Ye Mingchen will not even be able to suppress the chaos of the world, will it be possible to win against the foreigners? ”

"But if the foreigners are allowed to enter the city, and the foreigners propose to revise the contract like they did when they came to Tianjin the year before, will Lord Ye agree or not?"

"Ziyu, what do you think?" Wen Qing asked again.

Cao Yuying complained bitterly, thinking that it was the first emperor and the emperor to not allow Xiyi to enter the city, and if Xiyi was really allowed to enter Guangzhou City, the things that Chongshi said would definitely happen, so he could only say hesitantly: "Lord Zhongtang, the lower officials think that the war between the two Guangxi is tight, and Lord Ye should still focus on suppressing thieves and quelling the chaos." ”

"Lord Cao, what about the foreigners?" Chonghou couldn't help but ask.

"As for the provocation of foreigners, Xia Guan thinks that he should still be patient now, and when Lord Ye clears up the chaotic party in Liangguang, he can deal with foreigners wholeheartedly at that time."

Seeing that Lao Zhongtang was not angry, Chonghou became even more courageous, and asked again: "Then Lord Cao thinks that the world of Liangguang will be chaotic, can Lord Ye be wiped out within a year or two?" ”

Cao Yuying thought to herself what you know as a hairless gentleman with a hairless mouth, and said neither humbly nor arrogantly: "Brother Dishan, the British and the Buddha are fighting against the Russians, and this battle also does not know that it will be fought until the Year of the Monkey and the month of the Horse. ”

"Lord Cao, you are betting that Yingfo and Eryi dare not fight two battles at the same time, but how dare I, the Qing Dynasty, fight with Xiyi while suppressing the thieves and quelling the chaos? The urgent report sent back by Xin'an and Nanhai Branch, you haven't read it, you should know that Yingyi is on the line! If you don't come up with a strategy, the consequences will be unimaginable! Chonghou took a few deep breaths in a row, and then gritted his teeth and said, "Lord Cao, you are gambling on the national fortune of my Qing Dynasty!" ”

Chongshi saw that Cao Yuying's face had changed, and hurriedly said: "Dishan, how can you talk to Lord Cao like this, you don't understand the rules at all, let me out!" ”

"Brother, I'm ......"

"Okay, okay, what's the noise for the New Year?" Wen Qing glanced back at their brothers, then turned around and said, "Bochuan, you can also talk about it." ”

"Lord Yuzhongtang, Lord Cao, Pu Shan, and Dishan have all said that in the face of this crisis, there is nothing good to do about it. However, the lower officials thought that now that the matter had come to an end, the imperial court should take precautions and make some preparations. ”

"What are you going to do?"

How could Wen Xiang miss this opportunity, and arched his hand: "There are no outsiders here, this is a bookstore and not a court, and the lower officials dare to say something depressing." If Yingyi really can't bear to start a war, he will definitely attack Guangzhou City, and Lord Ye will not be able to defend it nine times out of ten. The political situation in Guangzhou, which was already full of chaos and bandits, was even more terrible, and it was impossible to clean up the mess without reliable officials. Moreover, if the foreigners do not stop doing two things and lead their troops and ships to invade the north, Fujian, Zhejiang, Jiangsu, Shandong, and even the coastal areas of Zhili cannot be unprepared. ”

Wen Qing didn't know the importance of coastal defense, but now the imperial court really had no time to take care of it, so he was silent for a moment and raised his head and said: "It's okay to send someone to Guangdong, if you really go to that point, even if the people you send can't clean up the mess, the imperial court won't be ignorant of what happened in Guangdong." ”

"That's what Xia Guan thinks."

"Who do you think is appropriate?"

"Lord Yu Zhongtang, when Shanghai fell, the civil and military officials in Shanghai and around Shanghai died and fled, and only Han Xiufeng, who went to Songjiang Mansion to run grain on the orders of the two Huai Yun Divisions, was left within a radius of several hundred miles. If it weren't for Han Xiufeng summoning the gentry to raise food and salaries and helping to find out the thieves, Xu Naizhao, the governor of Jiangsu at the time, led his troops to rush outside Shanghai, I'm afraid that his soldiers would not even be able to eat, let alone suppress the thieves and quell the chaos. ”

Wen Xiang paused, and continued: "And Han Xiufeng knows how to deal with foreigners, unlike those pedantic people who disdain to deal with foreigners, and not like those who are greedy for life and afraid of death who dare not fight with foreigners." Therefore, the lower officials thought that it was most appropriate to ask the emperor to order Han Xiufeng to move his filial piety and be loyal to Guangdong. ”

This is really not a good errand, Cao Yuying said without thinking: "Lord Zhongtang, the lower officials also think that there is really no better candidate except for Han Xiufeng. ”

"Han Xiufeng can lead the troops and understand the feelings, he is indeed the best candidate, please ask the emperor to order him to be filial piety and loyalty, and the old man estimates that the emperor should also be gracious. It's just that...... Just ......"

How could Wen Xiang not know that Lord Zhongtang couldn't think of anything in Guangdong that was suitable for Han Xiufeng, so he struck while the iron was hot and said: "Lord Zhongtang, Han Xiufeng once worked as a deputy of two Huaiyun, and the lower officials thought that he could let him act as Chaoyuntong and take charge of Chaoqiao Salt Affairs. ”

Wen Qing is not only the minister of military aircraft who leads the army, but also the secretary of the household department, and the Liangguang Salt Transportation Division is under the jurisdiction of the household department, and he is no stranger to the Liangguang salt affairs. ”

Wen Xiang couldn't help but say: "And you can be in charge of the Chaoqiao salt tax, as long as you have silver, you can do a lot of things!" ”

"The old man will think about it after he goes back, hey, he said that he was here to treat you, but he patronized and talked about business, and look, the dishes are cold, come, fill the wine, and the old man will give you a glass."

……

Wen Qing drank three glasses of wine, ate a few bites of food, and then got up and went home.

As soon as he sent away Lord Zhongtang, Chonghou couldn't help but ask: "Brother Bochuan, what is the lack of Chaoyuntong?" ”

Without waiting for Wenxiang to speak, Cao Yuying picked up the wine glass and said with a smile: "In the thirtieth year of Kangxi, the imperial court sent a salt inspector to Guangdong and set up a salt institute. Two years later, the Liangguang Capital Salt Transportation Department was reorganized, stationed in Guangzhou, to manage the salt affairs of the province. Because Chaozhou is rich in sea salt since ancient times, widely sold to the surrounding provinces and Jiangxi and Fujian provinces, the imperial court set up a salt transport branch in Chaozhou, the full name is 'Chaojiating Jiangxi salt transport, from the four products, so referred to as salt transport or tide transport with the same tide, in charge of Chaoqiao salt affairs. ”

"No wonder Wen Zhongtang said that he didn't have to be busy dealing with Shangguan to do this Yuntong, it turned out to be far away from Guangzhou!"

"It's not just far from Guangzhou."

"Brother Bochuan, what do you say?" Chongshi couldn't help but ask.

In order to help Han Simou with this shortage, Wen Xiang really racked his brains, and couldn't help laughing: "Because it is far away and the land is different, since then, the Guangdong salt affairs have become salt transportation envoys to supervise the provincial river, that is, to supervise the Pearl River salt affairs, and the tide transportation is the same as the supervision of Chaoqiao salt affairs."

One hundred and fifty-nine ports of the provincial river, set up six cabinets in the east, west, south, north, middle and flat under the jurisdiction of the sub-jurisdiction, which is called the change of the port to the outline. Later, due to the poor handling of the Outline Bureau, the port was tired and in arrears, Jiaqing was rectified in the 17th year, the Outline Bureau was changed to a public office, and six transporters were selected to divide the main six counters, and members were sent to supervise and urge the station, which was called the change of the program and the return of the office.

Chaoqiao Salt is independent of the provincial river, and Chaoyun is in charge of Chaoqiao's production, purchase, transportation, taxation, anti-smuggling and other salt affairs. It has jurisdiction over seven salt farms, including Zhaozhao, Hexi, Longjing, Dongjie, Haishan, Huilai and Xiaojiang, and the land is divided into three roads: Dahe, Xiaohe and Qiaoxia; Among them, Dahe Jiubu is marketed in Tai Po, which is under Chaozhou Prefecture and Changting, Ninghua, Shanghang, Wuping, Qingliu and Yongding in Tingzhou, Fujian;

The 12 ports of Xiaohe are marketed in Jiaying Prefecture and its Changle, Xingning, Pingyuan, Zhenping, Jiangxi Ganzhou Prefecture's Yandu, Xingguo, Huichang, Changning and Ningdu Prefectures and its 12 prefectures and counties such as Ruijin and Shicheng; Eight ports under the bridge, marketing Haiyang, Fengshun, Chaoyang, Jieyang and Puning counties under the Chaozhou government. It is not subordinate to the Liangguang Salt Transport Envoy, as long as it obeys the orders of the Liangguang Governor, who is also the salt administration of the Liangguang. ”

Chonghou reacted, and couldn't help laughing: "If the first big shopkeeper of our Houyi Hall does this tide of luck, and Ye Mingchen is busy suppressing thieves and quelling the chaos, so naturally he can't take care of him, then the big shopkeeper Han can really do a lot of things!" ”