The envoys sent by Haidong were divided into three routes, all the way to Dadu, asking to see the Qi clan; All the way to Datong, see Polo; All the way to Jining, see Chahan. Chahan is the farthest, and Qishi is the closest. The messenger who asked to see the Qi clan was the first to arrive. There were two envoys, Liu Shimin, the main envoy, Luo Lilang, the deputy envoy, and more than a dozen selected warriors in the army to escort them. They pretended to be leather merchants from Liaodong, and the leather goods were all strapped by horses, and they walked very fast along the way, and it only took them seven or eight days to enter the territory of Dadu.

Dadu, at that time, had another name, called "Khan Bali". "Khan" means ruler and emperor, and "Bali" means city. "Khan Bali" is the city of the emperor.

The origin of the metropolitan city can be traced back to the Yin Shang dynasty. In the Zhou Dynasty, this was the location of the thistle, the capital of the Yan Kingdom. During the Qin period, Ji was the seat of Guangyang County. Since the Han Dynasty, set up Youzhou, with thistle as the history of Youzhou Thorn, continued to Sui, renamed Zhuo County, to the Tang Dynasty, renamed Youzhou again.

To the Liao Dynasty, it was renamed Yanjing and was one of the five capitals of Liao. At the end of the Liao Dynasty, the Song Dynasty had taken over Yanjing and its adjacent areas. Two years later, Yanjing fell into the hands of the Jin dynasty. Later, the Jin Dynasty moved its capital here and changed it to the central capital. Unlike the capital of the Liao Dynasty, Yanjing officially gained the political status of the capital of a country.

The Mongol army prospered, and in the third year of Zhenyou (1215), Yanjing was captured from the hands of the Jin Dynasty. On the eve of the Mongol army's attack, a fire broke out in Yanjing, "burning more than 10,000 homes, and the fire continued for five days", and the city was greatly damaged. Later, in the siege of Mongolia, the Yanjing Palace, which was "majestic and the crown of ancient and modern", was demolished a lot due to the lack of firewood in the city. Therefore, after the Mongol army entered the city, in general, Yanjing City was already very dilapidated.

In the beginning, Mongolia did not use Yanjing as its capital, but established a province of Xingshangshu, also known as Xingtai, to represent the Mongolian regime and manage the relevant affairs of the "Han land". The governor of the Xingtai was a judge sent by the central Mongolian power, and there were often several people at the same time. The judge has a lot of power, "he has to kill people, and he relies on power to make power", and "kills people to make the market". Under all kinds of cruel rule, Yanjing City became more and more dilapidated, full of desolation, and some wells were piled up with "dead remains".

There are poems in the time: pity a prosperous belt, and see the spring breeze and green artemisia.

Half a century later, Kublai Khan ascended to the throne. Many Mongolian and Han ministers believed that Yanjing "controls Jianghuai in the south and Shuo Desert in the north", and has an extremely advantageous geographical location, so it is better to move the capital to Yanjing. Kublai Khan agreed with them, and in order to make it easier to rule the "Han land", he rebuilt a city next to Yanjing City, and in the ninth year of the Yuan Dynasty (1272), he named it "Dadu".

Since then, Beijing has become the political center of the country.

Kublai Khan's construction of the capital was astonishing. In the eighth year of the Yuan Dynasty alone, some people estimated that Dadu Road "built stones, transported wood plants and all construction and other places", and "no less than 150,000 or 600,000 workers". From this, it can also be seen how majestic and magnificent the final completed capital city will be.

Liu Shimin lives in Liaodong, and Luo Lilang lives in Shuangcheng, and the two of them have never been to Dadu.

When they arrived at the capital city one afternoon at the end of June, along the wide official road, the only reaction of the two men, including the dozen or so soldiers who escorted them, was to be stunned.

Most of the capital is "sixty miles away from the city, eleven gates". The city wall is all made of rammed earth, the wall root is more than ten steps thick, more than 20 meters, the higher it goes, the narrower the wall, to the top, the thickness is only three steps, but there are also several meters. Towering into the sky. Although it was in the war-torn years, the carriages and horses entering and leaving the city gate were endless, and watching from a distance was like a cloud.

Beyond the city walls, there is a wide and deep moat, and the white waves crash against the riverside, splashing with water. The sun shines down with a little gold spot, undulating with the waves.

Liu Shimin noticed that many of the pedestrians who came and went in and out of the capital were dressed as Mongolians and Semu people. It was in line with what he had heard. At its peak, the population of the capital was one million, of which less than two-thirds were Han Chinese. The other third are of different races.

The group gradually approached, and when they were about to reach the moat, Luo Lilang suddenly pulled Liu Shimin. Liu Shimin turned his head and asked, "What?" ”

"Shopkeeper, where do you look?"

Following Luo Lilang's line of sight, Liu Shimin saw that outside the moat, two or three miles away, there was a small raised hill, which was not very high, but it was very conspicuous on the flat ground.

Luo Lilang said: "I heard that the year before last, locust plagues and floods broke out on most roads, and there was no harvest in many places, and there was a famine. In addition, the sea transportation was cut off, and the grain in the south of the Yangtze River could not be delivered. Many people starved to death. It was not until the second half of last year that the famine improved slightly, but the plague broke out again. The dead of the people are not counted, let alone one or two hundred thousand. Outside the eleven city gates, mass graves were dug for burial. Shopkeeper, if you look at that little hill, maybe it's one of them. ”

Liu Shimin shook his head, sighed, and said, "Xing, the people are bitter." Death, the people suffer. ”

There was a bridge over the moat, and several teams of Yuan soldiers guarded it. Liu Shimin and the others approached and showed them the forged road guides. The soldier officer who led the team was a hundred households, with a Mongolian-style hairstyle, and his appearance seemed to be a man. He checked the road guide, glanced at Liu Shimin and the others, drew his waist knife, and weakly picked up the goods on the caravan horses, without saying a word, only waved his hand, and four or five soldiers who had been on the side early immediately pounced on him like wolves, grabbed the reins of the horses, and dragged them away.

"This, this ,......, general, why is this?"

"'Hades is easy to see, but the little ghost is hard to be.'" Haven't you heard of this sentence? The hundred officials were also sincere, speaking in half-baked Chinese, and said, "With so many good goods, without any filial piety, I want to go to the city, but what do you think of us?" A dumb goose who guards the door? ”

Luo Lilang leaned into his sleeve and took out a few bills.

The officials of the hundred households didn't look at it, and sneered: "A little waste paper, who are you fooling?" Black eyes, white silver, the lord and I are only serious about gold and silver. "These hundred households are not bad, last year's famine, a bill in the capital, fifty taels to buy eight buckets of rice, the paper money is indeed about to become waste paper. In many places, bartering has even occurred.

Luo Lilang had no choice but to take back the banknotes, take out a few pieces of broken silver, and stuff them to hundreds of households with a smiling face.

Baihu cushioned the weight of the silver, put the waist knife back into the sheath, and said: "The master does business, and he has always bought and sold in the future. One, two, and three、......, you have fourteen horses in all, and this little silver is only enough for half to enter the city. He put the silver in his arms, stretched out his hand, shook it, and reached in front of Luo Lilang, "If you want to pass it all, what about the other half?" ”

I have heard for a long time that people can do business, but I didn't expect to meet such a trader before entering the capital. Luo Lilang reached out three times, and took out some broken silver again, and the hundred households were satisfied.

He took half a step back, sang, and said, "The world is difficult, and the master is not easy to live as well." I didn't get food for three months, my belly was so hungry that I couldn't ask for extra money, and it was difficult to get hungry. There is a saying: rely on the mountain to eat the mountain, rely on the door to eat the door. If there is something offended, please bear with me. ......, third child, bring the pack horses of these noble merchants, and please enter the city. ”

Liu Shimin and Luo Lilang glanced at each other, crying and laughing. The accompanying guards took the reins of the pack horses returned by the Yuan soldiers, and they couldn't take two steps, but they were suddenly stopped by the hundred households. The money was also given, but why didn't you let it go? Liu Shimin's heart jumped and he forced his composure.

The hundred households caught up in three or two steps, glanced at the city gate, and said: "Lao Liu at the city gate, the dog day is notoriously difficult to speak, and people call Liu to pick the skin." Want to know how to get past him? ......, the ,......,price is clearly marked," he held out a finger, "the number." You've got you covered. ”

Luo Lilang reached into his arms for the fourth time and took out a tael of silver. The hundred households caught it and pulled Liu Shimin to whisper a few words in his ear. When he was over, he arched his hand and said, "According to the master's method, if you can't get by, just come back." Two taels of silver will be returned to you, and it will be a lot. This is called Tong Suo without deception. ”

Liu Shimin thanked him again and again, and according to the method he taught, he directly sacrificed five taels of snowflake silver, and sure enough, he passed the city gate smoothly. Luo Lilang sighed: "The dignified Yuan, the doorman is like Jia." It's ridiculous so, how not to die? Just thinking about the bizarre experience just now, the two of them forgot to watch the characters and scenery in the city for a while.

Although the city has only experienced famine, the wine and meat of Zhumen stink, and the road has frozen bones, it has always been a natural truth, and most of them have concentrated a large number of powerful nobles, and the rich abound, so their skins are not worried. I looked for a passer-by, and after some inquiry, I learned the location of the leather market.

Liu Shimin said: "Acting is very good. Let's go to the leather market first, sell some leather goods, and then find someone who connects, how about it? Luo Lilang nodded yes and said, "That's exactly how it should be." ”

There are two main business districts in the capital, one around the city's bell and drum tower, and the other in the west of the city. Shuncheng Gate, mostly sheep, cattle, horses, camels, donkeys and mules and other cities, to buy and sell leather goods, silk and the like, need to go to the bell, drum tower.

The city they entered from the Chongren Gate in the east was not too far from the bell and drum tower, and the road was also very smooth.

Along Chongrenmen Street, you can go west to the Drum Tower, and there are several important yamen on this road. Dadu Road Governor's Office, Police Patrol Yard, Treasure Banknote Warehouse, and Banknote Dumping Warehouse are all adjacent to the Drum Tower. Because of this, there are many sentry posts on the streets. For the sake of prudence, Liu Shimin chose another road, took Chongrenmen Street, turned north at the second intersection, passed the Confucian Temple, Guozijian, and then turned westward to reach the bell tower.

The road was bustling with people, the sun was scorching, and sweating was like rain.

Many shops along the street are closed, but there are still open, look at the curtain flags and plaques in front of their doors, more than sixty percent belong to the powerful and powerful families. It is either the private property of the powerful or operated by a temple. In the Yuan Dynasty, the Buddha was revered, the monks were very privileged, and it was very common for the monasteries to run businesses. The industries it is involved in are all-encompassing, such as shops, pawnshops, hotels, warehouses, and even wine stores and mining charcoal. This situation is not unique to most cities, but everywhere.

Liu Shimin and Luo Lilang came to Dadu this time, in addition to serving as envoys, they also had the responsibility of investigating the people's livelihood, climate, and human feelings in Dadu.

They mingled in the flow of people, watching as they walked. It was found that the shops were opened, and sometimes there were some aliens who were different from the Semu people. Although the two of them have never been out of Liaodong since they were children, they are not unaware of the outside world, and they know that this kind of alien race must be the famous Great Food and Persian for a long time.

There were many foreign merchants from Arabia, Persia and other places in the Yuan generation, and most of them came to conduct trade activities. Marco Polo praised Dadu as "a city of prosperous commerce" and believed that "there is no other city in the world", which shows the degree of its prosperity. It is not surprising that some foreign merchants were attracted to settle down here, and changed from merchants to merchants, and thus set up shops in the city.

Not only Arabs and Persians, but also merchants from Southeast Asia and elsewhere. However, the largest number of foreign merchants had to be Koreans.

Most of the Koreans were merchants, and there were not many merchants. In the peaceful years of the past, Goryeo merchants in the capital city could be seen everywhere, and it can be said that there were groups of them. Recently, although the number has decreased due to Deng She's new acquisition of Haidong, it is still quite a lot. After all, although Deng She was in a state of hostility with the Yuan regime, he never severed commercial contacts with Dadu, but only forbade the outflow of some strategic materials such as grain and horses.

After walking less than half a street, Liu Shimin saw the Goryeo merchants of the third and fourth teams.

Listen to the lively shouting of the shops on the street, and see the pedestrians on the street. Liu Shimin couldn't help but sigh and said: "Now that there is war and chaos today, most of the capital is suffering from famine, and the city is still so prosperous. In the years of peace and prosperity in the past, I really don't know how prosperous it was! ”

Luo Lilang was silent.

Shuangcheng is an important town in the east and north of the sea, compared with the capital, if you talk about prosperity and dense population, I am afraid that even the villages outside the city are not as good. Not to mention the twin cities, even famous cities such as Liaoyang, Pyongyang, and Goryeo Wangjing cannot be compared with them at all, and the difference cannot be calculated.

One of the guards said: "Prosperity is prosperous enough, but there is a fly in the ointment." ”

"Which point?"

"It's all over the city."

Luo Lilang was startled, and was about to cover his mouth, but his hand stretched out half of it, retracted it, turned to the left and right, and saw that no one was paying attention, so he relieved his heart, frowned, reprimanded the guard, and said, "Hugh is talking nonsense!" If these words are heard by others, you and I will not be able to save our lives. ”

Before he could finish speaking, a person jumped out next to him, with a blue-eyed lion's nose, and a lustful person, only to hear him shout: "What did that little brother say?" I've been waiting for you for a long time. Stay, stay, Hugh is leaving! ”

——

1. Murder and prosperity.

"The judge and Yanjing stayed behind to stay in Shi Moxian and not 'especially greedy and violent, killing people and making the market'. His relatives and the 'powerful son' pulled the car in Yanjing City in broad daylight to grab things, and 'if they don't agree, they will kill them'. Not only did the judge 'kill twenty-eight people in one day', but one of them had already 'been released from the battle', and when someone offered a ring knife, he not only 'chased back the one he had fought and cut him with his hand'. ”

2. There was a famine in most of them.

It's summer, "the Beijing division is hungry, the people have died nearly a million, and the eleven gates are dug to cover the graves, and the owls are hundreds of flocks, and the night is until dawn, and it is the end of the day." ”

"In the eighteenth year of Zheng, there was a great hunger in the capital, and then (Qi's) ordered the official to eat porridge. And out of the gold and silver silk, ordered the main courtyard to make Pu Buhua in Kyoto eleven doors to set up a tomb, bury the remains of the dead more than 100,000, and reinstate the monk to build a water and land conference. ”

There is a poem in the time: "The officials in the south of the city dig holes, and the corpses accumulate every day." "The people in the ditch eat the corpses, and the mother on the road throws the children."

3, Shuncheng Gate, Chongren Gate.

Shun Chengmen, that is, the south of Xidan. Chongren Gate, that is, Dongzhi Gate today.