In the third year of Yonghui (652 AD), the eighth day of the lunar month.

In the conference room of Wuzhou Yaertang, a year-end meeting was held, and Wu Kang, a judicial member of the army, made a speech, proposing that the post station accept civil business, that is, the postal express system. First of all, analyze the objective conditions, clarify the supply and demand sides, and wait for the bigwigs to criticize and suggest.

However, the venue was silent, and the bigwigs were wrinkling their eyebrows in thought. A few minutes later, Cui Yixuan coughed twice, sat down and said: "Whether the post office express system is established or not, we only have the right to suggest, and the decision is in the court." After the change, we will finish the words first, and finally we will jointly decide whether to go to the court or not. ”

Wu Kang deeply thought that if Wuzhou felt that it was not feasible, there would be no need to write to the imperial court. According to the usual practice, let's pat the sycophants first: "What Cui Gong said can be called insightful." The crux of the matter is how to impress the imperial court and how to gain the support of more courtiers? In the final analysis, what benefits can the imperial court get? ”

Back at the conference table, open the folder, pull out the paper, and write "copper coins" on it. Hang the paper on the nail and say solemnly: "There is no food in vain in the world, unless the meal is broken, and if you want to use the express delivery, you must spend money." The core of the postal express system is to make money. The highest level of making money is that I earn your money, and you are still grateful to me. Let's start with the way to make money..."

A piece of paper with "distance" written on it, hung on a nail, "First, charge by distance." If I write a letter and want to send it to my family in Muzhou, the post house charges five cents; Send it to a friend in Hangzhou, charge ten wen; sent to Sister Zhaoyi in Chang'an City, charging fifty wen; According to the distance between sending and receiving letters, different charging standards are set. ”

A piece of paper with "speed" written on it, hung on a nail, "Second, charge by speed." Write a letter to Zhaoyi's sister, if the content is not important, choose the slowest speed, and charge 50 wen; I have money and want to be delivered quickly, so I choose a hundred miles to expedite, which costs seventy yuan; I am poor and only have money left, so I choose to expedite 200 miles and charge 100 yuan; I'm a local tyrant..."

With a bang, the table was slammed, and Lao Cui scolded: "As an official of the imperial court, pay attention to your words and deeds, can't you speak well?" If you dare to talk nonsense, the old man will take off your hat, and you will also go home to raise pigs. ”

The bigwigs gloated, their eyes were playful, and Wu Kang was very embarrassed. The stalk of "going home to raise pigs" was used by himself to reprimand his subordinates, why did it reach Lao Cui's ears? He nodded and went to flip through the documents, and secretly complained in his heart, old fox, you continue to flicker. I can go home to raise pigs, Jiuniang follows me as a pig wife, I don't believe you don't feel distressed.

A piece of paper with "weight" written on it, hung on a nail, "Third, charge by weight." The post station express system not only transmits letters, but also transmits objects. For example, the husband of the two women is a government soldier and is in Chang'an. Woman A went to the temple to ask for a peace charm, and the courier gave it to her husband for a fee of fifty yuan; Woman B thinks that the peace charm is not working, and the blue bricks on the courtyard wall are spiritual, and she can defend herself at critical moments. It's okay, and the fee is 500 wen. As long as the money is in place, your house can be transported..."

The sound of slapping the table sounded again, Wu Kang braked urgently, and then took a piece of paper and hung it on the nail, which said "Accept?" ”。 Cui Yixuan saw the question mark, his face instantly darkened, and the other bigwigs joked even more. Punctuation marks are also the laughing stock of the big guys.

Wu Kang gave a lecture on punctuation at the judicial yamen, and then issued a death order that documents must be punctuated. Don't pay a fine once, don't get out of the box twice, go home and raise pigs. The subordinates were miserable at first, but gradually they were satisfied. The bigwigs laughed at first, and gradually secretly promoted their yamen.

Lao Cui thought it was insulting to Sven, and scolded him several times, Wu Kang adopted the strategy of "you scold yours, I will do mine", and he was angry and blew his beard and glared. But the old fox is not bad, although he scolds fiercely, he has never moved his real character. For punctuation, turn a blind eye.

Wu Kang fingered "Accept?" Paper, continued: "There are several ways to charge fees, as long as the charges are reasonable, people will agree. First of all, he said 'Shi', he was an official for three months, and his family letter was worth 10,000 gold. I want to send a letter to my sister to send my troops to ride horses, and everyone eats horses and chews them all the way, and at least four times back and forth. In case of an accident, the horse was robbed by bandits, and the loss was dozens of times. If there is a courier system, it only takes a few hundred words, and you can wait for a reply with peace of mind, why not? ”

After talking about the official, he then said to the official: "Of course, I can not let the subordinates go, let the subordinate officials go." I was stingy and didn't pay for the journey, he had to pay out of his own pocket, and he must have scolded me secretly. When the letter comes back, it will become even more intense, to extort businessmen, and make up for the losses. If there was a courier, the above would not have happened. ”

All the bigwigs nodded one after another, there were too many cases of officials being harsh, and Wang Linrui, who joined the army, said: "The change is reasonable, if there is really a courier system, the officials will not object." Workers, peasants, and others who rely on wanderers to deliver letters will not oppose it, and businessmen will not oppose it. ”

Sicang joined the army Sun Yingyuan, stroked his beard and said: "If the express delivery exists, Shinong industry and commerce will use it, saving money, effort and worry." Officials who serve abroad, sergeants who are far away from their homeland, daughters who marry abroad, and businessmen who are doing business abroad will not spare a little money. ”

"Since the uncles approve of it, then I will continue", Wu Kang was in a good mood and continued to speak at length: "The existence of express delivery will boost the communication needs of the people, and it is certain that the court will make money." For every penny earned, the treasury spends less. If the policy and management are done properly, perhaps in five years, the post station system will break even. Perhaps in another five years, the system will feed back to the national treasury by 50,000 yuan a year. ”

The venue was silent, and then there was a lot of silence. Wu Kang is full of confidence, and those courier masters in later generations have made a lot of money. A few minutes later, the cough sounded, the venue quieted down, and Cui Yixuan instructed the scribe: "The content of today's conversation must be written down word for word." Change, you continue! ”

A piece of paper with "military heart" written on it, hung on a nail, "In addition to the economy, the imperial court can also get the military heart." The soldiers who went on the last occasion or went on the expedition were worried about their homeland and homeland, worried about their stomachs all day long, and even returned to their hearts like arrows, and their morale was naturally not high. What is even more serious is that they infect each other in the barracks, and the consequences are unimaginable. ”

Wu Kang continued: "At this moment, the family letter is here, and I am naturally happy to learn that the family is safe and sound. The happy mood of a government soldier can infect a fire, and a fire can infect a team... The morale of the entire Ochichong Mansion is high. At the same time, the soldiers replied to the family to reassure the family's heart. Both sides will be grateful to the imperial court, winning both the hearts of the military and the hearts of the people. ”

"Change slowly", Cui Yixuan waved his hand to interrupt and instructed Yu Hongzhi: "This is a major military and political matter, Yu Commander will take my seal, gather all the bad people, strictly guard the second hall of the state government, prohibit anyone from stepping on it, and kill those who violate it!" ”

Yu Hongzhi came out in response to his promise, and Cui Yixuan gave a gag order to the scribe and signaled Wu Kang to continue.

The paper of the "pension officer" was hung, and Wu Kang continued: "Every state and county has a pension officer, who leads the imperial court's Yulu, and travels all day long and has nothing to do. Once the courier system is established, kick them all in, not to mention anything else, there will always be a letter writer, right? ”

Zhao Beijia's annoying face flashed in his mind, and he said with a bad taste: "Most of the people are illiterate, let the pension officer go to the post house to work, write the letter sent, and read the letter received." The people saved money to write letters, and they were even more grateful for the benevolence of the imperial court. Officials make the best use of it, and the people feel passionate, killing two birds with one stone. ”

When the words fell, Lu Huaiyuan joked: "In order not to go to Zhao Beijia's practice of calligraphy, Erlang will do everything, a typical communiqué personal vendetta!" Look at your handwriting, it hasn't grown at all, it's like a dog scribbling. My Wuniang's words are better than your writing, or... Worship Wu Niang as a teacher? ”

The sound of eating and laughing sounded, and the bigwigs were happy again. Wu Kang blushed in embarrassment, hung up the "official" paper gratefully, and changed the topic: "There is a fixed number of officials, one radish and one pit, and the express delivery system is established, which will give birth to many official positions." ”

The bigwigs nodded again and again, the new court organization means a new official position, whether it is the five surnames and seven wangs, or the scholars of the poor family, they will not object. The essence of the reader: Whoever makes me an official, I will serve as the president, and I will serve before and after the saddle. The president doesn't matter whether it is the Han and Tang dynasties or the Mengyuan and Manchu dynasties.

Wu Kang continued: "There are also those scholars who have nothing to do all day long, making poems that moan without illness. Recruit them to be scribes, write letters and read letters, and work and study, which can not only support their families, but also increase their knowledge. In this way, the post house is a talent market, and the imperial court will definitely accept it. ”

Hang up the "summary" page and conclude: "The establishment of the express delivery system, the imperial court has little investment, and the benefits are unusually high. Get a huge amount of copper money, the loyalty of the Shinong Industrial and Commercial Army, arrange redundant officials in the court, and obtain a talent pool, and count them in one fell swoop! In addition, this is a new business, which will not touch the interests of others, and the opposition should be small. ”

The bigwigs were dumbfounded, looking at Wu Kang like a monster. Cui Yixuan's heart was surging, he calmed down, and said lightly: "If you want to convince the court, these are far from enough, and there are still many problems. First of all, it is the corruption of the pawns. ”

"Cui Gong's words are reasonable", Si Bing joined the army Qin Li, adding: "I want to send a letter to Chang'an, and it will cost fifty wen to go to the post house, and I can buy it for thirty wen if I find a post man who runs the post in private." The post guard sent a letter to Chang'an, swallowed thirty wen alone, and the court could not get a penny. ”

Wu Kang had already prepared, hung up the "stamp" paper, and said chiseledly: "The so-called stamps are bills affixed on envelopes, which are sold by the imperial court. The size is one inch square, the printing is beautiful, and the amount of copper coins can be deducted, such as ten wen, twenty wen, etc. It is sold separately to various post houses, preferably merchants from all over the country. ”

"Change, interrupt", Sicang joined the army Sun Yingyuan, and asked a new question: "What you mean is that you use stamps instead of copper coins, and the post house does not directly collect money." Once this law is implemented, there will be many unscrupulous traders who will make fake stamps. ”

Wu Kang smiled helplessly, there is really no way to do this, there will be counterfeit banknotes in the future! Cui Yixuan thought carefully and said lightly: "How to put an end to fake stamps is the court's own business, let the Manchu Dynasty civil and military find a way." Let's just make suggestions, and we don't take them or not, and we can't waste food because of choking... Change, continue. ”

Wu Kang pondered for a moment and said, "Uncle Qin sent a letter to Chang'an, first go to the stamp shop and ask how much postage is needed. Forty stamps with a face value of forty are required, and two twenty stamps are not affixed. Take the letter to the post house, and the post clerk stamps the official seal. In order to prevent the reuse of stamps, half of the stamps are stamped on the envelope and half on the stamps. ”

Sihu joined the army Sun Mao, and said with a smile: "The answer is not what you ask, even if there are stamps, even if the post house does not collect money, it cannot prevent the post guards from embezzling." Qin joined the army without buying stamps, and went directly to the post house, still looking for a post man to bring a letter. ”

Hanging up the paper of "people and horses are changed", Wu Kang started a tirade: the working mode of the post station is now "horses are replaced without changing people". The post man traveled from Wuzhou to Chang'an, changing horses on the way. And "everyone and horses are changed", that is, the Wuzhou post guard, who is only allowed to go to Muzhou and hand over the letter to Muzhou Yi.

Muzhou Yi inspected the letters, and all those that did not affix stamps and did not comply with the regulations were all singled out and returned, and reported to the supervision department, so as to eliminate corruption. The post man can buy the Muzhou Station, and the Hangzhou Station is waiting, and then there is the Yangzhou Station, can he buy all the post houses?

Wu Kang said, hung up the "postal process" and said: "The post guard arrives in Muzhou, hands over the Wuzhou post mail, and at the same time checks the mail sent to Wuzhou." Only bring back legal mail, and Wuzhou Post will be dispatched in a unified manner. Our local mail will be sent to all counties and townships according to the address. The mail of the southern state of Kuozhou was sent to the post of Kuozhou. ”

Wei Dingzhou, who had been silent, said with a smile: "The mail delivery process is very similar to the beacon tower of the Great Wall, where the beacon fire and wolf smoke are delivered one by one. To implement this process, the envelope must have a specific format, otherwise the inn will be confused. ”

Wu Kang smiled when he heard this, no one can underestimate all the bigwigs here. I opened the document bag, took out a few envelopes, handed them out, and said, "The envelope has three parts, and it has a fixed format. On the left side of the top, is the address of the recipient, in the format of Daozhou County Village. For example, Jiangnan Province, Wuzhou City, Jinhua Avenue in Zhongcheng District, Wuzhou Province, and Zhang Village, Lanyi Township, Jinhua County, Jiangnan Province, the more specific the better. ”

Pointing to the middle of the envelope, he said: "Here is the name of the recipient, and here is the address of the sender, which is convenient for replying and replying." If my cousin writes to me, the format is like this: address, Wuzhou City, Jiangnan Province, Jinhua Avenue, Zhongcheng District; Recipient: Wu Kang; Return address, Kannai Road Chang'an City Imperial Palace Harem. ”

"Don't talk nonsense", Cui Yixuan slapped the table again, and scolded sharply: "Take care of your stinky mouth, don't you know that the trouble comes from the mouth?" She is just Zhaoyi, even if she becomes the queen, she may not be able to protect you? ”

Wu Kang immediately confessed, bowed down and said that he was taught, but he didn't take it seriously in his heart. That's Sister Wu, five thousand years old, the only female president with real power. As long as you hug your sister's thighs tightly, you will definitely enter the peak of your life if you eat and drink spicy food in this life.

Lu Huaiyuan, who joined the army, smiled and gave Wu Kang a round field, "Erlang, what is the return address?" I can understand the reply, what does it mean to reply? ”

Wu Kang replied: "The return letter is a special case, I will give it to Sister Wu... A friend in Chang'an sent a letter, because he owed him money, and put a gold leaf in the envelope. The letter arrived in Chang'an, but the friend died, or moved and could not receive the letter. Forget about general letters, gold leaves are quite valuable, which requires a return business. ”

Tie Ding hung up the "return" paper and continued to explain: "After the sender's address, write more 'return' words, if the friend can't receive it, the letter will be returned the same way." When I returned to Wuzhouyi, I paid extra postage to redeem my letter. ”

Wei Dingzhou smiled: "This method is feasible, but it is not recommended." The envelope was taken by the postman nine times out of ten, causing unnecessary disputes. ”

Lu Huaiyuan said with a smile: "This is not a matter of concern to us, once the postal express system is established, the imperial court will definitely legislate." For example, if the postman loses the letter, opens the letter without permission, fails to deliver the letter on time, etc., there will be corresponding punishments. What we have to do is to put forward opinions for the reference of the court. ”

All the bigwigs nodded one after another, and Wu Kang finished his speech and returned to his seat. Cui Yixuan's eyes were meaningful, and he stroked his beard and sneered: "The old man has a feeling that the change is still hidden in the back hand, the postal express system is just a prelude, and you will have a big move!" ”

Wu Kang was dumbfounded, his face full of disbelief, the old fox was too shrewd. Indeed, in the next big game of chess, it was difficult for the Tang Dynasty to have telephones and broadband, and the best information transmission was the political express delivery system. Once it flourishes, the stamps recognized by the common people will be transformed into paper money.

Those who have stamps in their hands will exchange rice and noodles directly from farmers who need them; From the cloth in demand, in exchange for the corresponding value of the cloth. At that point, banks, bonds and other financial institutions will come into being. But it was too early to say this, Wu Kang smiled awkwardly and kept silent.

Cui Yixuan didn't force him, he sat down and coughed twice, and said in an official tone: "The suggestion to change is very good, and the old man agrees in principle." Next, if you think it is feasible, the old man will immediately write a book and report the postal express system to Chang'an. ”

As the saying goes, there is no merit and hard work. The official document was submitted to Chang'an, and if it was successfully passed, it was a great political achievement. If you can't get through, everyone has nothing to lose, and the name of being loyal to the state will definitely not be able to run. It's all earned inside and out, so why don't you go to school?

The bigwigs are all old fritters, and their eyelashes are empty, Lu Huaiyuan spoke first: "The head of the analysis of change is the Tao, I think it is feasible, I am in favor of writing to Chang'an." Jiro's whimsical ideas are impressive. Uncle wants to knock you open in the head and see what it looks like inside. ”

The sergeant joined Wei Dingzhou and praised: "Brother Lu is right, Erlang is very smart. Especially the warm chicks in the nest, ordinary people can't think of it. Those few people in my family who are not successful, if they have half of Erlang's ability, I will always be safe! Cui Gong, I am also in favor of the book. ”

A wave of business blows to each other, and the bigwigs are incarnated as teachers, and they have praised the commendation conference. Si Bing joined the army Qin Li, and even said that he had the talent to be public. The so-called Xianggong was the name given to the prime minister in the Tang Dynasty.

This is a little embarrassing, I really want to tell the truth, I just want to shoot Wu Zhaoyi's sycophants, and I want to send chicken fir mushrooms to please her, but there is no express delivery in the Tang Dynasty. Thinking of Li Longji's lychee transportation again, he inexplicably had the idea of "changing the post station to express delivery".

Besides, the stuff I did was commonplace in later generations. This must be able to be a minister, from my time, just mention one, they are all pillars of the country!

After the business blew each other, Cui Yixuan concluded: "Since you are in favor, the old man decided to write the book." Discuss it and keep improving. Shen Shi took out the charter before that, and the old man drew up the chapter, and sent it to Chang'an in an expedited manner for 300 miles. ”