The Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal was basically formed in the period of Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty. Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty also exhausted the last drop of the blood of the Great Sui because of this huge project, so he became the king of the fallen country, and was infamous for being violent and debaucherous.

(In fact, the Ming Dynasty's policy outside the customs was similar to the construction of the Grand Canal.) Endlessly filling the pit, the only manpower, material and financial resources of the Ming Dynasty were continuously invested in the endless confrontation, and soon exhausted the essence and blood of the Ming Dynasty, and finally died of weakness. The difference is that the Grand Canal has been passed down by generations for thousands of years, but the fortress outside the Daming Pass has become a pile of ruins and broken walls, which can only be nostalgic for the past. ）

By the time of Chongzhen, the Grand Canal had been extended and dredged several times, and had become the most important traffic artery in the Ming Dynasty.

Especially in the northern part of the Ming Dynasty, when there was a drought every year and grain production continued to decrease, the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal became the lifeblood of the Ming Dynasty.

If Jingshi is the head of the Ming Dynasty, Jiangnan is the heart of the Ming Dynasty, and the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal is the main artery of the Ming Dynasty.

The Grand Canal was so important to the Ming Dynasty that the imperial court also attached great importance to it, and set up the Yamen of the Governor of Caoyun in Huai'an by the canal, and set up a paramilitary organization Caoding, which was responsible for Caoyun affairs.

There are about 30,000 or 40,000 Caoding, distributed on the canal two or three thousand miles long, so naturally they cannot complete the arduous task of Cao Yun.

As a result, the Cao Gang came into being.

The Cao Gang is equivalent to the assistant management and assistant police of the Celestial Empire, and it is not in the establishment, but it has certain administrative rights. According to incomplete statistics, the Cao Gang during the Chongzhen period was as high as one million.

In addition, the families of the Cao Gang, the employees of the hotels and inns along the way, the Wild Flower Workshop that specializes in doing business on the canal, and the Caokou (i.e., brokers) who are responsible for the communication between the Caoyun Yamen and the common people...... Nearly 10 million people survived along the canal.

If Zhu Shunming's control of the two materials of grain and salt is to pinch Emperor Chongzhen's two eggs, and he can make Emperor Chongzhen feel painful with a little force, then Zhu Shunming's control of the Grand Canal is to pinch the lifeblood of Chongzhen Lao'er, and he has to die whenever he wants the emperor to die.

………………

Zhu Dadian was pulled down from the position of governor of Shandong, escorted all the way to Beijing, and entered the prison, thinking that he might not escape the catastrophe.

Emperor Chongzhen was mean and unkind, and he was never soft on his courtiers who made mistakes. In the past few years in power, there have been countless court ministers and local officials who have died at the hands of Emperor Chongzhen.

Zhu Dadian lived in the prison in a sincere panic, neither mentioning the punishment nor interrogation, as if he had been forgotten.

In June of the seventh year of Chongzhen, Zhu Dadian was suddenly summoned by the emperor and asked him what he thought of Cao Yun.

The Grand Canal has a very long river in Shandong, and Zhu Dadian also knows a little about the affairs of the canal, and his response is in line with Emperor Chongzhen's wishes, and he was actually appointed as the governor of Caoyun and the governor of Fengyang.

Zhu Dadian walked out of the palace, as if he was in another world. I didn't expect to continue to be an official.

After some inquiry, I learned that Yang Yipeng, the former governor of Caoyun, was old and frail and could not continue to manage Caoyun, which caused all the grain in the spring and summer of Chongzhen's seventh year to arrive in the capital, causing the grain in the capital to skyrocket.

Yang Yipeng sparse the bones of the beggars, and Emperor Chongzhen approved it without hesitation. Fortunately, Yang Yipeng has eyes, and if he drags it out any longer, maybe Emperor Chongzhen will dismiss Yang Yipeng in anger, and it will be difficult for the family to die well.

Wen Shoufu proposed that Zhu Dadian, who was imprisoned, be succeeded to the post of governor of Caoyun.

Sun Yuanhua, the governor of Denglai, who was far away in Shandong, also defended Zhu Dadian, saying that Zhu Dadian's shortly after taking office was not the main reason for the rebellion of the Liaodong soldiers, and that Zhu Dadian ensured that Shandong's capital and county were not broken by the rebels, which was also a bit of hard work.

Zhu Dadian is a forty-fourth year of Wanli Jinshi, who has fought with the red-haired people in Fujian, is a person who is familiar with waterways, and has served as the governor of Shandong, so he is qualified for the post of governor of Caoyun regardless of his education or resume.

Emperor Chongzhen waved his pen "accurate", and good luck fell on Zhu Dadian's head.

Is it really good luck to be the governor of Caoyun?

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Daming Cao Yun is mainly concentrated in summer and autumn. One is because of the abundant water resources in summer and autumn, and the other is because the north is frozen and cannot be sailed.

During the Chongzhen period, the grain was transported north about 4 million stone per year. Chongzhen's seven-year Cao Yun was only about 2 million stones by the beginning of September, and nearly half of them were missing. Emperor Chongzhen was angry and removed Yang Yipeng from his post and replaced him with Zhu Dadian, who was quite capable.

Zhu Dadian was ordered to be in danger, and the task was actually very heavy. It is not an easy task to transport nearly two million stone of grain to the capital within two months.

With nearly one million gang members, such a redundant and huge organization is naturally inefficient in intrigue, and what can't be done for their own interests?

Will local officials cooperate well with the transport of grain to Yangzhou in a timely manner? Did the local officials along the canal give the green light to Caoyun and make the road unimpeded?

Will God help without bad weather? Is the freezing period in the north, as before, not a sudden wave of cold air from Siberia?

The time, the place, the people are indispensable. Zhu Dadian had to bite the bullet, was busy in the dark, constantly made overall arrangements, and secretly prayed that there would be no chaos.

………………

"What? Huguang's grain has to be escorted by itself? No, no......" Zhu Dadian vetoed.

Are you kidding? The grain is not transported through the Caoyun Yamen, so why do you need this Caoyun governor? Escorted in person? What else do you want to do with the Cao Ding Cao Gang?

It stands to reason that someone is willing to help transport the grain to the capital, and Zhu Dadian should be happy.

In fact, Zhu Dadian was very annoyed.

The Caoyun incident is not only related to the issue of eating in the north of the Ming Dynasty, but also involves the jobs of tens of thousands of officials and soldiers of the Yamen, the governor of Caoyun, and the livelihood of nearly 10 million people along the canal.

Although Zhu Dadian had a headache in order to transport the grain to the capital in time and in sufficient quantities, once the grain transportation was out of the control of the governor of Caoyun, Zhu Dadian was even more headed.

Fang Kongzhi and Zhu Dadian are in the same year (both are Jinshi in the forty-fourth year of Wanli), and the relationship is not bad or bad, and it is quite harmonious.

Fang Kongzhi said helplessly: "Brother Yan, it's not that the elder brother doesn't help you, but the elder brother can't do anything." ”

Zhu Dadian grimaced and said dissatisfiedly: "Brother Qianfu, as the governor of Huguang, there are still things in Huguang that you can't control?" Don't embarrass me, dude. You've robbed your brother of the job, and it's thankless. It's not an easy thing to do......"

Fang Kongzhi was very helpless.

Huguang's current situation can be said to have a lot to do with him.

When Zhu Shunming was still nesting in the remote prefecture and county of Wugang, it was Fang Kongzhi who single-handedly connived and promoted Zhu Shunming, so that Zhu Shunming could enter Changsha Mansion, and his power expanded rapidly.

Zhu Shunming has a hand in fighting and making money, and the rioters have nothing to say, and they are not lagging behind in grabbing territory.

Nowadays, Fang Kongzhi's decree can almost only work in the area of Wuchang Mansion. After leaving Wuchang Mansion, local officials almost did not implement any government decrees that contradicted Zhu Shunming's policies, and they did not cooperate with non-violence.

Fortunately, Zhu Shunming still respects Kong Zhi, it is not a major issue of right and wrong, and he never disagrees with Kong Zhi's face.

But this time, Zhu Shunming raised the issue of Cao Yun to Fang Kongzhi in person, and it was obvious that Fang Kongzhi could not deny the change.

"You don't believe it," Fang Kongzhi laughed at himself: "In Huguang, my brother's signboard is not as good as Zhu Shunming, the general soldier of Huguang. If it weren't for General Zhu's nod, my brother's decree would not have been able to pass in Huguang. ”