After staying in Xuzhou for three days, Zhu Ming did not choose to go north, but went to Xiapi, which had just been allocated to Huainan Province.

Xiapi was formerly the garrison of the Huaiyang Army of the Northern Song Dynasty, and a new army was also trained here to control the southern part of the eastern part of the country. At the same time, it also has the important task of protecting the security of Huaibei and deterring the eastern sea salt producing areas.

After the military parade in Xiapi, Zhu Ming went along the Salt Canal and took a boat to Haizhou (Lianyungang).

In later generations, the urban area of Lianyungang was still a sea at this time. The harbor of Lianyungang is currently located on a large island, which is Donghai County.

All the boatloads of sea salt pulled aside, waiting for the prince's fleet to pass first.

Zhu Ming said to Bai Sheng: "Raise the flag and give an order, don't go to the middle of the canal, and make way for the salt boat." ”

"Yes!"

Bai Sheng immediately ran to give the order, and soon the prince's fleet pulled aside, and the salt ships coming from the opposite side also had to be activated.

Fu Zhirou sighed: "Your Highness's heart for the people is ten thousand times better than that of a faint king." ”

Zhu Ming smiled: "You are becoming more and more flattering." ”

The rich and straightforward in history is actually a minister, and he has directly admonished Zhao Gou many times. Because he offended Qin Hui, he was thrown to raise the Taoist temple, and later became the prefect and resigned. Because he didn't want to be an official in the same dynasty as Qin Hui, he spent the rest of his life wandering mountains and rivers and writing poems for fun.

Fu Zhirou said: "When Cai Jing reformed the salt law, there was a decree that even if it was a government ship, it must give way to a civilian salt ship. Salt boats have priority access when crossing the card. ”

"Cai Jing has indeed done a lot of practical things." Zhu Ming nodded in approval.

Fu Zhirou said: "But after the rise of the Flower Stone Gang, no matter what kind of ship, it has to make way for the Gang ship of the Flower Stone Gang. In the end, the salt ships even had to make way for the tribute ships of the local Tugong. When Cai Jing regained his phase for the third time, the salt method he had set had been completely destroyed. ”

Zhu Ming commented: "Cai Jing's salt method, quick success, can only take half of it. ”

"He's just trying to cater to his liking." Fu Zhirou said.

In the northwest region of the Northern Song Dynasty, Jiezhou salt and Xixia Qingbai salt were mainly eaten.

Within two years of Emperor Huizong of the Song Dynasty, the salt pond in Jiezhou was destroyed by floods, and the imperial court imposed trade sanctions on Western Xia salt. For a time, the people of Shaanxi suddenly ran out of salt to eat, and Cai Jing reformed the salt law at this time.

The great success of the reform not only solved the problem of salt eating for the people of Shaanxi, but also doubled the salt tax several times in the first year, and made the production, sales, and transportation of salt throughout the country active.

However, the consequences soon followed.

Through reform, Cai Jing changed a large amount of salt tax, which belonged to the local tax, into a national tax.

Local fiscal revenues have plummeted, but the local officials have to use the money, so they can only collect more harsh taxes from the common people.

Secondly, in order to get money for Song Huizong, Cai Jing frantically issued new salt banknotes, which led to a sharp depreciation of the old salt banknotes, and the salt merchants were fiercely exploited by the imperial court. Cai Jing also continued to increase the price of salt, so that the cost of salt for the common people increased year by year.

In the face of the double pressure of the central and local governments, where can the people bear it?

At the beginning, Cai Jing also cracked down on the powerful to take salt money. But when the repair of the salt pond in Jiezhou was completed and there was no longer a salt shortage in Shaanxi, the Cai Party took the lead in making profits with salt money, making the salt merchants in other places even more miserable.

As a result of Cai Jing's reform of the salt law, it eventually became that ghostly appearance, that is, the central government's revenue increased dramatically, the powerful made a lot of money, and the local finances, salt merchants, and the common people all suffered. The system of entering the Central China completely collapsed, and the salt merchants were no longer profitable, so they no longer helped the imperial court transport supplies to the northwest frontier, but instead bought salt money directly from the hands of the powerful. The border army lacked daily supplies for many years, and a large number of border soldiers fled.

Now, the new dynasty of the Ming Dynasty has learned a lesson and adopted the seventy percent content of the Cai Jing salt method, and abandoned all the parts that are eager for quick success.

For example, if the salt ship does not pay tolls, this article will be abolished, leaving some local fiscal revenue.

The system of entering the middle (opening the middle) has been fully restored, and the old Song Dynasty salt banknotes (salt citation) issued four years after Xuanhe will also be recognized by the new Ming Dynasty. In addition, the Ming Dynasty strictly followed the salt production and prudently issued annual commercial salt banknotes to protect the legitimate interests of legitimate salt merchants.

The price of salt has also been lowered, returning to the level at the beginning of Cai Jing's reforms, so as to reduce the cost of living for people everywhere.

The central salt tax has naturally been sharply reduced, but it is beneficial for long-term development.

Regardless of other groups, anyway, salt merchants in all provinces across the country wholeheartedly support the new Ming Dynasty. Who dares to mention anything anti-Ming and the Song Dynasty, the salt merchant group is the first to be unhappy!

No, I heard that the prince came to inspect, and the salt merchants in the Northeast rushed here one after another, bringing countless gifts to thank the kindness.

Well, "Northeast Salt" is Shandong Hebei Sea Salt, which is the official name of the Song Dynasty.

The salt merchants in the Northeast gathered in Xuzhou when they heard the news, and then chased them to Xiapi, and finally caught up with the prince in Haizhou.

Zhu Ming briefly met with the salt merchants in Northeast China, accepted their not too expensive gifts, and returned those particularly valuable gifts.

Then, Zhu Ming went to the salt field to inspect and learn about the situation of the official and private salt works in Haizhou.

The salt farms with the highest salt production are basically government-run. But it is also allowed to be privately owned, unlike the Ming and Qing dynasties.

Even salt farmers have the right to choose freely, and they can choose not to do it if they feel that the treatment is too bad.

"Where did the salt workers in officialdom come from?" Zhu Ming asked.

Wu Juji, the salt supervisor of the East China Sea, replied: "Half is recruitment (hiring), and half is Ding service (service). ”

Zhu Ming asked, "How much money do you pay for the salt workers of Ding Gong?" ”

Wu Juji replied: "Following the law of the old Song Dynasty, the household is given 40,000 yuan a year, and two liters of rice are given a day. ”

That is to say, forty times a year for the whole family of salt households, and two liters of rice for the salt workers in service a day.

If it can be implemented, it will definitely be a high income!

Of course, this kind of wage standard is the top salt worker, and the income of ordinary salt workers is much less.

Zhu Ming nodded his satisfaction and began to ask about the salt making technology here.

After a Q&A, Zhu Ming returned to Haizhou City, and the salt supervisor Wu Juji's vest was drenched with sweat.

In Haizhou City, Zhu Ming lived for four days.

Several guards dressed in various colors returned to the Haizhou Hotel to report.

The guards who came back first reported to Zhu Ming: "Your Highness, I asked more than 20 salts, and they all said that only half of the money and rice were given. In the house of the salt household, the salt Ding was not allowed to work in private fields, and once he was discovered, he would be beaten by the ruffians. What's more, he was falsely accused of stealing salt and arrested and sent to prison. ”

"It's so bold that you can directly deduct half of the money." Zhu Ming sneered.

Fu Zhirou said: "The officials of the salt works have always been like this. ”

Zhu Ming said: "Write a letter to the imperial court, and ask the Inspectorate, the Criminal Department and Dali Temple to send someone over to investigate together." After checking the Haizhou salt farm, the rest of the salt farms were checked one by one! ”

Fu Zhirou happily helped ghostwrite, and soon wrote the chopstick, handed it to Zhu Ming to sign and seal.

If all the salt farms in the country are checked, it is estimated that at least hundreds of officials will be exiled to the northwest to open up wasteland and cultivate land, and many local officials will even be implicated.

Zhu Ming asked again: "Isn't the sea ship ready yet?" ”

Bai Sheng said: "Local officials said that the sea boats were not easy to find, and I felt that they just didn't want to do it. ”

Fu Zhirou said: "The officials were afraid that the prince would encounter an accident, so they advised him two days ago, but His Royal Highness insisted on taking a sea boat, so they could only delay the time. ”

"Forget it, go to the river." Zhu Ming didn't want to embarrass the magistrate.

In fact, Zhu Ming didn't want to do anything, he just wanted to take a sea boat to the north, from Haizhou (Lianyungang) to Banqiao Town (Jiaozhou). The whole sea route is less than 400 miles, and it has been advancing along the coastline.

But the magistrate, fearing a storm, not only did not help collect the boats, but also deliberately dispersed them.

In desperation, Zhu Ming had to go north along the river.

Hearing the news of the prince's departure, the officials of the salt field all breathed a sigh of relief, thinking that they had fooled the matter, how did they know that the imperial court would soon send someone to investigate?

Zhu Ming went to Jiaodong this time, first, to inspect the gold field and iron field, second, to inspect the sea trade port, and third, to inspect the naval warship.

In the early years of the Northern Song Dynasty, both Goryeo and Japan traded with China in Dengju.

In order to prevent the Liao State from attacking from the sea, the port of Dengzhou was abolished.

In order to increase fiscal revenue, local officials also requested the opening of a port in Banqiao Town (Jiaozhou), Mizhou.

Banqiao Port was abandoned from time to time, and it was completely abandoned by the time of Huizong of the Song Dynasty, and there was no trade port in the north of the entire Yangtze River.

How does this work?

Last autumn, Zhu Guoxiang ordered the opening of the sea in Shandong.

The cabinet discussed for more than a month that Dengzhou was too dangerous and that Jiaozhou Port was safer. This result was vetoed by Zhu Ming!

There are indeed sailors in the Jin Kingdom, but they are all inland water armies.

There are only twenty or thirty ships in the navy, all of which are small offshore boats. Moreover, there were no professional sailors, they were all army ships to fight, and when there was no war, these ships were doing business with Goryeo.

Afraid of a bird?

Even if Zhu Ming didn't know the exact information, he understood that Daming's sea ships must be more awesome, and it should be because Jin Guo was afraid that Daming would attack from the sea.

After Li Bao recovered the southeast last year, all the ships of the old Song Dynasty naval division in Zhejiang and Fujian were transferred to Shandong. And together with the sailors, they were transferred over and directly established the first Ming Navy in Dengzhou.

But it was said that before Zhu Ming left Haizhou, a fleet of ships came from the east.

The fleet consisted of only six seagoing vessels, but all of them were large ships.

As soon as he approached Dengzhou Port, he was targeted by the Ming Navy, and more than 30 coastal warships swarmed around.

"Your own people, your own people!"

On the deck of the head ship, a large number of soldiers shouted frantically, and then hung the crooked "Ming" flag.

Xue Daoguang sat on the deck with his butt on his butt, looking at the Chinese coastline close at hand, Dao's heart was broken, and he felt like crying bitterly.

Looking for immortals overseas, whoever likes to go to whom, he doesn't want to go to sea anymore.

Six large ships were "escorted" into the port, and as soon as Xue Daoguang got off the boat, he was surrounded, and a sailor general asked, "Where are you ......?"

Suddenly, an officer shouted: "This is Xue Zhenren, the faint monarch sent them to the sea to look for immortals, I saw them in Hangzhou before, and I was almost sent there at that time!" ”

"It's the remnants of the violent Song Dynasty, take them all!"

Xue Daoguang smiled bitterly: "Poor Dao has an old relationship with His Majesty and the Prince. ”

"How do you know that there has been a change of dynasty?"

"When we sailed back, we went to Goryeo to make up for the ship and learned the news from the Goryeo officials."

(End of chapter)