Tianjin was originally called Haijin feed, is the Yuan Dynasty's Wei grain transshipment hub, after the dynasty was settled, Chengzu Zhu Di is from then on crossed the Grand Canal to the south to grab the throne, and later became the Yongle Emperor, in order to commemorate the place was renamed Tianjin, that is, the meaning of the ferry where the Son of Heaven passed. As a strategic place to guard the gateway of the Beijing Division, Tianjin does not belong to the local administrative division, but belongs to the direct jurisdiction of the Ministry of War, and there are three guards, namely Tianjin Wei, Tianjin Left Guard and Tianjin Right Guard. There are 5,600 soldiers per soldier, and a total of more than 106,800 officers and soldiers of the three guards, who were first directly subordinate to the Later Military Capital I$\ Mansion, and later with the decline of the Wuhan Metropolitan Governor's Mansion, it is now directly under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of War.

After the great outbreak of the Japanese plague, it strengthened its armament several times, and even moved the people within 50 miles of the coast to the interior, and built a forest of forts by the sea, which were covered with hidden piles and iron cables under the water, leaving only a few waterways for passage. If it weren't for the fact that since last year, Caoyun was forced to switch to sea transportation, and thus entered Beijing through the Zhangweinan Canal, which would have been a cold military fortress.

The day before Shen arrived, the commander of the Tianjin Wei and the inspector of the imperial history had already prepared a ship for him, waiting for the arrival of Lord Qincha. So as soon as the team arrived at the beach, they could board the boat directly through the trestle.

Waiting for the team to board the ship, Shen saw a team of sea ships unloading on another pier not far away...... Because the canal is silted up, the sea cannot enter the river, and it must be transshipped by river boats. Shen came to the time to be interested, tight $! The half-worn mink fur on his body said to the accompanying officials: "Let's go, let's go over and have a look." Shen hated Shen Yun deeply, and was very pleased that the imperial court could take the initiative to change to sea transportation...... This time, I insisted on taking the sea route, which also meant to investigate.

Tianjin's civil and military officials don't think there's anything good, but here is the biggest difference, and everyone can only serve what they want to do.

So the group came to the busy cargo terminal, and the officials in charge here were also informed and hurried over to meet them. Shen greeted them kindly, and when he heard that they were all from the Harmony Yamen, he politely asked, "Are you still used to changing river transportation to sea transportation?" Those people didn't even think about it, so they shook their heads together and said, "I'm not used to it." "Why?" Shen smiled faintly, his mood was not as happy as it was at the beginning

They looked at each other, and finally a leading official said: "Lord Hui, the sea is full of strong winds, the reefs are dense, and there are pirates harassing, we have to be afraid every time, and we have to spit out the yellow water......

"And in less than a year, seven ships were sunk, and hundreds of brothers were lost......," someone answered: "It will be restored to the same next year, otherwise the little ones will really not survive." There was a chorus of echoes.

Shen listened to it very unpleasantly, but when he saw that they were serious and did not seem to be fake, he suppressed his anger and said, "Who told you that you will resume your willingness next year?" ”

"Our Lord Governor?" The official replied: "He patted his chest with us and promised us that if we persisted until the beginning of spring, we would not have to suffer this crime." The rest of the people chimed in: "Yes, everyone says so." "It is said that Elder Xu Ge has also approved it." "Oh......" Shen couldn't help frowning slightly, and when those people saw him with such an expression, they couldn't help but say, "Is there another - can't change?" ”

"Hehe......" Shen respected his identity. I didn't want to cause the slightest turmoil, and said with a smile = "This official is a waiter of the Ministry of Rites, and if you ask me about Caoyun, don't you ask Yu Blind." The humorous answer made the officials feel relieved, but his own heart tightened.

In fact, Shen is not completely ignorant of shipping, and as an official who maintains a high degree of concern for all aspects of the national economy and has a close relationship with the Su Song Harmony Gang, he at least knows that to maintain this so-called north-south artery, the main expenditure is to dredging and dredging to maintain its navigation capacity. When he got the exact figure from the household department, he was so shocked that he didn't say anything for a long time, and took the average value since Jiajing, which was more than 978,000 taels of silver per year. In other words, in the past 40 years, Damingguang has spent 40 million taels of silver to maintain the navigation of this canal.

And with the current level of navigation, it is not difficult to take a route from the sea to Jingshi that is both close and inexpensive. In fact, during the Song Dynasty, China's maritime industry could support ocean shipping, let alone offshore transportation.

Of course, Shen is not the first time to come to your realm, he knows that after a long sea ban, the officials and people of the Ming Dynasty have a fear of the sea. They are so afraid of the sea and the pirates that intrude on the coast that they consider the sea to be a risky business that outweighs the losses.

But in fact, such fears are unfounded, because even at the height of the sea ban, the number of smuggling vessels plying the north and south coasts amounted to thousands. Smugglers can quickly sell out goods at below-market prices by transporting goods from north to south, while still making high profits. Let's ask if even the maritime merchants with small ships and lonely ships dare to be by sea, and the imperial court has countless warships, why don't you dare?

What is even more absurd is that instead of making such an attempt, the imperial court severely cracked down on smuggling maritime merchants and banned the development of maritime transportation. As if and this convenient, fast and inexpensive mode of transportation

There is a hatred, insisting on maintaining the original inefficient and expensive canal transportation. Shen knew very well that this once brilliant and dazzling, but now silted, narrow, and decaying harmonious canal, is like an extremely blocked blood vessel, which seriously restricts the development of industry, commerce and foreign trade in the Ming Dynasty; Moreover, the same conservative and self-styled ideas brought about by closed, slow, disorderly, and inefficient Cao Yun will definitely suffocate the already thin air and make the Chinese civilization miss the golden period of rapid development for the first time in human history!

At one point, he thought that it would be much less difficult to change the apparently backward shipping to the proven viability of shipping than to the thorny political reforms. It is also hoped that the open and enterprising maritime shipping can bring a fresh breeze of habit and progress to this heavy empire.

So he had long made up his mind to do this matter well within the scope of his ability. But obviously it's not time yet, because it's taboo for a dog to take a mouse, and he is not in his position or seeking politics, and he is an official of the Ministry of Rites, so he can't point fingers at this matter...... That would only make the relevant officials disgusted with him, and no one would listen to him.

Only when you have enough power can you carry out your ambitions. So power, no matter how much you spit on it, how can you not chase it?

Then, Shen was very happy, and after a hasty look, he returned to the boat, and at this time the team was all on the boat, ready to set off at any time, and he thanked the officials of Tianjin Wei again, and waved goodbye to them.

But when the ship sailed not far from the shore, Shen Zhu's expression became gloomy, looking at the thin ice floe on the sea, and he didn't say a word for a long time.

Seeing that he was depressed, Xu Wei sighed secretly, and he didn't know when he would be able to see the champion who was full of G letters again. But standing like this is not a problem, he walked up to Shen Yu and said softly: "It's cold outside, be careful that it's freezing, let's go in and bake the fire." Shen shook his head and said slowly: "It's good to be cold, it's sober." "Alas," Xu Wei looked at him outside and asked, "Are you still angry about the dock?" Shen looked noncommittally into the distance, where there were seabirds flying that were not afraid of the cold wind.

"Actually, you're thinking too much." Xu Wei explained him and said: "Since the thirteenth year of Yongle, Mei Yun has always been a lonely person in harmony, and it has become a rule...... Last year, because the emperor toured the south, the river was occupied, and the grain from the south could not be transported. As a last resort, Caoyun Yamen asked the cabinet to temporarily change it to a shipping expediency for one year. He said with a smile: "Now that the one-year period has passed, it is natural to change back to Caoyun, as long as you inform the cabinet, you don't need to alarm the officials." Shen took a deep breath of the cold and salty sea breeze, shook his spirits, turned his head to look at Xu Wei and said, "What about you, what do you think of these two?" If you had to decide, which one would you choose? ”

"I'm ......" Xu Weimo rubbed his soft chin and said: "If you want me to say, shipping is good, but it can only be done when the canal is impassable, such as last year, for example, when it freezes in winter. ”

Of course, you don't have to be polite when talking to Xu Wei, Shen snorted and said, "Are you also worried that the so-called sea ban is gradually relaxed, and there may be future troubles, or something like that?" ”

"Hehe, then you will underestimate me Xu Wenchang." Xu Wei was not annoyed, patted the railing and said: "The benefits of shipping are obvious to all, whoever wants to say that they can't see it, is to talk nonsense with their eyes open." "It was a hasty decision to change from consumption to sea transportation, but it was opened in a short period of time, and the grain was transported to Beijing in time; And apart from the hiring of ships for shipbuilding, there are hardly any engineering costs.

In order to complete this year's shipping, the Caoyun Yamen hired more than 300 sea vessels, plus warships to escort them, at a cost of only 150,000 taels. It's just that because of the rush of time, the best voyage was missed, so it encountered a typhoon, which caused seven grain ships to be washed away, but the amount of damage was not large, and the pension was only 50,000 taels.

That is to say, one million taels of silver, two hundred thousand taels of silver can be done, and those who do not admit that sea freight is superior to harmonious transportation are probably either idiots or have ulterior motives.

"But you can't just calculate the economic account...... Xu Wei scratched his head with a wry smile and said: "The damage caused by shipping to the current situation is really great. Caoyun has been traveling alone for 150 years, and around this canal, a relationship has been formed involving the central and local governments, the government and large households, as well as the hundreds of thousands of Shending, and millions of ordinary people who rely on the canal for food...... A vast and intricate network of relationships, and in the course of hundreds of years, it has reached a balance of power that can be said to be reasonable.

Shen also knew about these situations, but he still listened silently, because he found that he had underestimated this best friend...... For a long time, his understanding of Xu Wei has stayed at the level of a great talent and a big lover, and to be honest, he has never seen his ability in government affairs, so he is not optimistic. Therefore, when chatting, he will only pick some retreat topics, and never bother him with specific government affairs.

But hearing that he had such a deep understanding of Cao Yun, Shen knew that he was still guilty of underestimating the ancients. And it's too tiring to think and carry everything by yourself, so if you have something to do as an audience, you just listen and think, why not do it? will be met with great resistance. For example, the Gulai River Route, which has been hotly discussed several times, "is obviously a good way to get the best of both worlds, and unlike shipping, it can't bring benefits along the way." It can not only solve the problem of Cao Yun, but also directly bring great benefits to the generation of Jiaolai River, so the officials and ancient gentry in Shandong are also interested in accepting it, but these driving forces are still not as great as the unwillingness to change, so it has not been successful. ”

"And it's not all greed, there are a lot of justifiable reasons." Xu Wei continued: "It is as if giving up the Cao River means that the Yellow River is even more wreaking havoc, which will bring disasters to the people in the middle and lower reaches year after year. If this point is not resolved, the local people and conscientious magistrates will never agree. ”

"Involving so many people, such a complex relationship, water transportation or sea transportation, is not just a technical issue, but a question of choosing to break the existing pattern or maintain stability." Seeing Shen's thoughtful expression, Xu Wei was deeply encouraged and said: "Hehe, those local families and officials who have benefited from the court are reluctant to sit back and watch the existing pattern be broken...... Of course, it is not impossible to change, but we must take care of all aspects, so that at least the interests of most enemies are not damaged, and they can get greater benefits, otherwise they will definitely do their best to obstruct and do anything.

"Clumsy words, I have always wanted to say something to you" Seeing Shen, he nodded, and Xu Wei said word by word: "I know you have the ambition of Yiyin, but the way to govern the country is first and foremost, steady and pragmatic, and strive for balance, otherwise it will be called chaos, which will not benefit the country and harm others and yourself."

Therefore, Xiao He, Song Zhen, and Fu Bi will be called virtuous ministers; And Sang Hongyang, Wang Mang, and Wang Anshi are known as chaotic countries. Hearing this, Shen bowed to Xu Wei and said, "Thank you for your teachings, you will never forget it."

"Bang, you come with me to do this..."Xu Wei smiled: "Actually, I don't need to say this, but I don't." You're in it, you're under too much pressure, and I'm afraid you'll go crazy, so I'm going to pour some cold water on you. "This cold water is good," Shen said with a smile: "You have to splash it often in the future." "Hahaha■r■■r■" Xu Wei can't be serious anymore) laughed and trembled ="As you wish." "Seriously" When Xu Wei had laughed enough, Shen rubbed his hands and said. "What the hell is that Jiaolai River Seaway, I am indeed lonely. "That's because you're too young." Xu Wei smiled: "I'm older than you this round, but I don't have a long beard, that is, I have more knowledge than you." "Okay, you're amazing, okay" Shen knew that this old man was a donkey, and you had to coax him: "Please give me some guidance." ”

"Hmm." Xu Wei pretended to say: "That is, more than ten years ago, when you were still young...... In that year, the Yellow River burst near Xuzhou, and the transportation channel was blocked for 50 miles, and the transportation was completely stopped. At that time, the government and the opposition reacted violently, and they had already surveyed and demonstrated, and Shandong had gathered more than 100,000 people. In the end, because of the huge estimated expenses, the empty treasury, and the fact that Xia Guixi, who was in power, was conservative and unwilling to carry out such a big project, he was openly and secretly obstructed, and finally was forced to give up. "What kind of project is it to get to the spring?" Shen asked.

"Actually, I don't know very well about Eleven, R one" Xu Wei said with a red face = "At that time, I didn't pay much attention to this, but I heard that I wanted to use the Jiaohe waterway to communicate the sea route from Jiaozhou Bay to Laizhou Bay, shorten the sea route from Jiangnan to Beijing, and avoid the risk of opening the ocean to detour into a mountain corner, so as to reduce the burden of the Beijing-Hangzhou Canal, or even replace it." Said to fight for his face and said: "But what I am sure of is that this waterway was actually dug in the Yuan Dynasty, and the dynasty also started construction several times, the most recent one was the nineteenth year of Jiajing, it is said that the ships were navigable at that time, but for some reason, and then it was gone." ”

"Why haven't I seen it in the Ministry of Works?" In order to understand the true situation of the Ming Dynasty, Shen has a good habit of reading materials, as long as the six more public documents, he has borrowed them and read them, but they have no effect on this river. "I can't tell," Xu Wei said, and suddenly patted his head and said, "But there is a person who can definitely make it clear."

"Who?" Shen asked.

"When I was studying in Hangzhou in the past, I had a friend of Geng" Xu Wei said: "I like to study the way of water conservancy the most, and his attainments are no less than that of Daoyuan, the residence of the previous dynasty." "So powerful?" Shen said with interest: "Where is he now?" Can you tell us a little bit about it? ”

"Being an official is not free, how can you come as you say." Xu Wei shook his head and said: "Although he is an official in Nanjing, no matter how idle he is...... he said and said with a smile: "But you seem to have an errand to recommend talents, this is not a problem, after arriving in Hangzhou, you can recruit him in the name of Qincha, and you can want to do anything when you want." "Hmm." Shen nodded and smiled: "It's okay if I just go there." "-^--Split----

I've come out completely, and Shen will come out right away.