Fu Shanhe

Chapter 227 The Frustrated Governor

Influenced by the White Lotus Rebellion, maritime merchants from Guangdong and Guangxi moved to Fujian, and the trading city of Quanzhou became more and more prosperous.

However, the maritime merchants who were seen as spending money like water by the outside world were now in a panic.

When the news that the imperial court intended to lift the maritime ban spread, the world fell on the merchants.

In any business, monopoly is the most profitable.

The biggest reason why overseas trade is so profitable is the "sea ban".

Official policy suppression has made maritime trade the exclusive domain of a few people.

They dared to engage in overseas trade unscrupulously when the imperial court banned maritime trade, so they naturally had the protection of noble families behind them.

This kind of protection is not free.

While gaining support, they also have to return a large amount of profits to the owners behind the scenes.

Once the imperial court lifts the ban on maritime trade, the number of merchants pouring into overseas trade will inevitably increase dramatically.

By then, the huge profits from monopoly trade will no longer exist, and the profits of these maritime merchants will also be greatly reduced.

No matter how the profits change, the interests of the aristocratic families behind them must be protected.

The management of local government offices should not be reduced either.

The network of relationships established in the past still needs to be maintained.

In addition, the number of subordinates raised must also be increased.

Maritime trade has never been peaceful, and the more competitors there are, the higher the probability of accidents occurring at sea.

It is difficult for any businessman to accept throwing away huge profits just for the sake of a legal title.

"Patriarch, please think of a solution quickly.

Once the imperial court lifts the maritime ban, it will be too late for us to take action!"

Bao Yuntao said in panic.

As a descendant of the Bao family's side branch, he is a big businessman who spends money like water outside, and becomes a money bag when he returns to the clan.

He contributes nearly 80% of the family's income, but his status and position are very ordinary.

At least in front of the successful candidates in the clan, he was nothing.

"What are you panicking about?
The sky won’t fall now!
What Marquis Wuyang wanted was military expenditure, and he didn't really care about whether the maritime ban should be lifted.

The biggest pressure now faced by local officials at all levels is also to raise military funds for the army.

As long as they can plug the fiscal gap, they don’t care who pays.”

The old man's words immediately pointed out the essence of the problem.

Marquis Wuyang proposed lifting the maritime ban in order to collect taxes and make money, not to promote reform.

The current situation of the Dayu Dynasty is not suitable for major changes.

If money could be obtained from other places, it would not be difficult to persuade Marquis Wuyang to abandon the plan.

“Patriarch, that’s true.

But the imperial court now has no money and requires the three provinces of Guangdong, Guangxi and Fujian to raise their own military funds.

Even the taxes collected before the rebellion could not fill this hole, let alone at a time like this!"

Bao Yuntao said with a bitter look on his face.

Like all previous feudal dynasties, the Dayu Dynasty has passed down to the present day, and private wealth has reached an unprecedented concentration.

Seventy percent of the wealth is in the hands of the gentry, twenty percent is in the hands of nobles and royal relatives, and the last ten percent is in the hands of the general public.

The White Lotus Rebellion is still going on, and if we intensify the plunder of the people at this time, there is a risk of backfire at any time.

What's more, Guangdong and Guangxi had just been plundered by the rebels, and there was not much oil to be squeezed out now.

Even if the people of Fujian province alone were squeezed dry, they would not be able to fill this hole.

Marquis Wuyang himself was a member of the royal family and it was impossible for him to betray his own class.

Of course, even if one could betray one's class, it would be useless.

The nobles and royal relatives in Fujian province were also unable to come up with the money.

The only ones who had large amounts of cash were businessmen affiliated with the gentry group.

Now Marquis Wuyang wants to raise funds, and maritime merchants, salt merchants, cloth merchants, grain merchants, tea merchants... are all major contributors.

Since maritime merchants are mainly concentrated in Guangdong and Fujian, they will naturally be the focus of attention.

“You’re right, this hole is indeed hard to fill.

It’s just that the White Lotus rebels are rampant. If they are allowed to grow stronger, they will be undermining the roots of Confucianism.

We must find a way to raise the military funds to quell the rebellion, but we cannot pay for it.

Arrange people to encourage scholars from all over the country. Now is the time for them to come forward.

Remember to do it covertly and put some scapegoats in the front.

When the matter becomes serious, we will communicate with the government and find a way to pass the burden on.”

The old man replied calmly.

The White Lotus rebels touched upon the core interests of the gentry group, and there was no possibility of easing tensions between the two sides.

On the issue of suppressing the rebellion, the gentry of Dayu were united in their stance.

There is no problem in supporting the imperial court in suppressing the rebellion, but asking everyone to contribute money is something that must be considered carefully.

If he could pay some money to solve this problem, he wouldn't mind paying it temporarily.

But no one can predict how long the counterinsurgency war will last and how much money it will cost.

In this context, we naturally cannot spend money easily.

Otherwise, after setting this precedent, if the imperial court thought of them when it was short of money, it would be a big trouble.

If you don't want to pay, you can only let others pay more.

As land annexation progresses, there are only a few self-employed farmers left.

If they continue to merge, they will only be able to target small and medium-sized landlords who are also in the gentry camp.

In normal times, for the sake of reputation, people are reluctant to take action.

Now is the best opportunity. We can take advantage of the opportunity to raise funds to shift the burden to small and medium-sized landlords and businessmen as much as possible.

Not only did it reduce their own burden, it also weakened the financial strength of small and medium-sized landlords, laying the foundation for subsequent mergers.

……

At the Governor's Office, Marquis Wuyang was looking at the news coming in from all over the place, but there was no smile on his face.

In the past, the government troops recovered lost territory, mainly focusing on recovering important cities.

The vast countryside and some remote counties are still under the control of the rebels.

If these remnants of the rebels are not completely eliminated, once the enemy fights back, these inconspicuous remnants of the rebels will immediately become a serious threat.

In recent days, the main combat mission of the government troops is to eliminate the remnants of local rebels.

In order to restore local order as soon as possible, even the battle plan to recapture Shaozhou Prefecture was postponed.

The military operation to encircle and suppress the remnants of the rebels lasted for two months, but only managed to wipe out the rebels entrenched at the county level.

In some remote areas, there are still a large number of rebel remnants remaining.

When the government troops came to encircle and suppress them, these people hid in the mountains; as soon as the government troops left, they immediately came out to rob and loot.

The Guangdong Governor's Office, which was eager to take over the local area, paid a heavy price for this.

In just one month, two county magistrates, three county assistants, and five registrars were killed.

The number of officials who lost their jobs was countless.

Faced with the remnants of the rebels who had transformed into bandits, the temporarily formed Guangdong local army performed very poorly on the battlefield.

Not only did they not kill many enemies, they also suffered heavy casualties.

In order to wipe out the remnants of the rebels as soon as possible, An Qingfeng had no choice but to ask for help from Marquis Wuyang.

“You said that the enemy army’s discipline is poor, and asking them to wipe out the remnants of the rebels is just causing trouble for everyone.

How come it's only been two months and you suddenly changed your mind?"

Marquis Wuyang asked unhappily.

In order to take over the local area as quickly as possible, considerable conflicts arose among the coalition forces of the three provinces.

Finally, it was Marquis Wuyang who made the final decision and ordered the armies of Guangxi and Fujian provinces to transfer local jurisdiction to the Guangdong Governor's Office.

In order to strengthen local management, An Qingfeng submitted a memorial to the court, requesting the Ministry of Personnel to send officials as soon as possible.

Compared with Guangxi, which no one cares about, the situation in Guangdong is much better.

Except for particularly remote areas, the court quickly replenished the staffing quota.

After the staffing was completed, the three parties completed the transfer of jurisdiction a month ago.

Then the nightmare began.

The garrison army, which was temporarily formed with the remaining troops from Guangdong as its core, failed to meet An Qingfeng's expectations.

The only recruits who could fight were in a very bad situation with the governor's office because of the issue of military pay.

If you want them to send troops to quell the rebellion, you have to pay them first.

An Qingfeng was extremely poor and naturally had no ability to solve the problem of military pay. The direct consequence was that the recruits became passive and lazy.

Jing Yifeng selectively executed all military orders from the Governor's Office.

"My Lord, it was I, Meng Lang, who underestimated the strength of these remnant rebels.

Most of these remnant rebels are in strategic locations in the mountains.

It would be difficult to wipe them out completely in a short period of time with only the troops from Guangdong province.

According to the battle plan, we will recapture Shaozhou Prefecture and recover the entire Guangdong Province next month.

By then, the rebels in Yongzhou will inevitably respond, and perhaps another major battle will break out.

If we don’t eliminate the internal hidden dangers, these remnants of the rebels may affect our decisive battle with the rebels.”

An Qingfeng explained reluctantly.

If you don’t have money in your pocket, you can’t speak with confidence.

He begged for alms from merchants in the province, but ended up not meeting any of the real owners.

In name, the master had gone out to avoid the war and had not returned yet, but in reality, he just didn't want to see him.

After all, everyone had just lost a large sum of money in the war and didn't know where to make up for it.

No one could bear the fact that they had to pay protection money to the new governor immediately.

Even if we need to make some adjustments, it will be after business recovers.

Guangdong was in a state of disrepair at the moment. Even if they wanted to resume trade, they had to restore civil order first. Under the combined effect of multiple factors, the suppression of the remnants of the rebels became the top priority of the governor's office.

Only when order is restored among the people can the court's rule in the local areas be re-established.

Only after the bureaucratic system was established could he truly deserve the title of governor.

"Alright, I know exactly what you are thinking.

It’s not that Guangdong doesn’t have soldiers to quell the rebellion; it’s mainly because you, as the governor, don’t have the money and food to put it down.

When it comes to fundraising, you are the least efficient among the three provinces.

Even in the poorest Guangxi, 20,000 to 30,000 lijin could be collected every month.

If we continue at the current pace, how will you accomplish this year's fundraising mission?"

Marquis Wuyang asked coldly.

When in a certain position, one should do his job.

He provided all the policies that could be provided.

If problems arise during the execution process, it is the responsibility of the officials responsible for execution.

"My Lord, the situation in Guangdong is special.

Civil order has not been restored yet, and I am unable to raise funds at this time! "

An Qingfeng replied while suppressing his displeasure.

Forcibly allocating a certain amount is really a rip-off. It is clearly an attempt to deliberately make things difficult for people.

Deep down, he didn't believe that the three provinces of Guangdong, Guangxi and Fujian could complete their respective fundraising tasks.

If any of the three parties fail to complete the task, even if the Governor wants to hold them accountable, it will be shared by all.

No matter how powerful Marquis Wuyang is, it is impossible for him to replace all the officials in the three provinces.

If you put things off until later, you may not complete the task.

There are many similar things in the officialdom.

You can't directly refuse the task assigned by your superiors, so it's definitely a good idea to procrastinate.

As long as the attitude is correct, whether the task can be completed is secondary.

"Humph!"

"Is it that you can't do it, or you don't want to do it?

The situation in Guangdong is special. Is the situation in Guangxi better than here?"

Marquis Wuyang immediately mocked.

He naturally knew that there were difficulties.

But if there were no difficulties, what would these officials be for?

The difficulties currently faced by the Guangdong Governor's Office may seem troublesome, but in reality they are not that difficult.

At the end of the day, it comes down to just that - execution.

A similar operation has already happened once in Guangxi.

First use the military control system to stabilize the local area, and then gradually take back the local management rights after the remnants of the rebels are wiped out.

As for how to persuade the military to cooperate and how much it will cost, that is the business of the Governor of Guangdong.

Anyway, since they have been successful in Guangxi, it proves that the approach is feasible.

As the governor of three provinces, Marquis Wuyang only cares about the results and doesn't care about the process at all.

Even if there are certain hidden dangers, that is a matter for the future. The most important thing right now is to quell the rebellion.

The Dayu Dynasty had already accumulated enough internal hidden dangers, so it didn't care about adding one more.

"My Lord, I would like to learn from Guangxi, but the troops below are not obedient!

Every time an order was issued, they came to ask for money and food.

......"

Before An Qingfeng could finish his explanation, Marquis Wuyang interrupted him with a wave of his hand.

"We are all smart people, stop playing dumb here.

All difficulties are just excuses, it’s just that you don’t want to take responsibility.

If we really want to solve the problem, Guangdong's financial resources are much richer than Guangxi's, so it is not difficult to come up with money!
I don't want to listen to your nonsense, so I'll give you three more days.

If you still can't come up with a solution, you should return to Beijing and apologize.

Well, I am tired today, you can go now!"

An Qingfeng was shocked by Marquis Wuyang’s words.

This is getting serious.

The current emperor is not in a good mood. Even though the unfortunate Governor Zhu died on the battlefield, his relatives were still brutally confiscated and exiled.

At a time like this, if I go back with the charge of inaction, I might even lose my head.

In the case of the next-door neighbor, it is difficult to defend oneself.

……

After leaving the Governor's Mansion in a daze and returning to the Governor's Office with a lot of grievances, An Qingfeng immediately convened a military meeting.

“I have called you here today to discuss an important matter with you.

Military fields have always been a stubborn problem that has plagued the combat effectiveness of the garrison troops. Now there is a chance to solve it.

As long as the local garrisons can quell the remnants of the rebellion as quickly as possible, they can restore local order within a month.

The governor took the initiative to allocate some land from the unowned land to make up for the shortfall in military land.

General Jing, although the troops under your command are recruited soldiers, they can still share the profits from the military farms. "

An Qingfeng immediately started to make a big promise.

Unfortunately, the performance on the scene was not as enthusiastic as he expected.

"Governor, these are matters for the future, for now we should first solve the problem of feeding the army.

If the governor's office cannot provide money and food, then in the next battle, my troops will work together with the Guangxi soldiers to recapture Shaozhou Prefecture.

I'll leave the task of crushing the remnants of the rebels to you, my colleagues!"

Jing Yifeng immediately interrupted.

This bullshit about sharing the profits from military farms is pure nonsense.

He had eaten a similar pancake once when he was in Guangxi.

As a result, he was transferred to Guangdong before he could see the output of the military farm.

I thought the conditions here were better and I could make a lot of money, but it turns out that the governor in front of me is totally unreasonable.

A few days ago, he proposed to contract the government mines in Guangdong, but was decisively rejected.

The money and grain cannot be distributed, and we have to raise money ourselves, but we are not given the opportunity.

Now that they need to hire someone, they just bring a big pie to trick him.

Jing Yifeng was so angry that he didn't care whether he was the governor or not.

It's okay to offend someone. At worst, I can find a chance to transfer later.

"General Jing, don't forget that you are the General of Guangdong!"

An Qingfeng scolded immediately.

He was angry with Marquis Wuyang, but since he was his superior, he could only endure it for the time being.

Since when did the generals below become so arrogant?

"No matter who you are as a general, the soldiers under you have to eat.

Governor, aren't you curious about why the remnants of the rebels are becoming more and more numerous as we suppress them?"

Jing Yifeng asked back unhappily.

If given a choice, no one wants to live under someone else's roof.

But there is no way. The money and food currently distributed are not enough for the soldiers to eat.

In order to prevent the soldiers from going hungry, he had no choice but to act together with the Guangxi soldiers and take his troops to Li Mu to ask for a meal.

"what do you mean?"

An Qingfeng asked angrily.

Deep down, he also realized that something was wrong.

With all the cities lost, the number of remnant rebels kept increasing, which was a problem in itself.

It's just that before this, he subconsciously didn't want to think about it.

"Governor, why do you ask when you already know the answer?
You asked everyone to go out and suppress the rebels, but you were unwilling to pay them enough money and food.

If the soldiers didn't want to starve to death, they naturally had to find a way out themselves.

As far as I know, a lot of the money and grain allocated by the imperial court was lost after entering the Guangdong Governor's Office.

The Guangxi Governor's Office next door, however, did not deduct a single cent!"

After the fall out, Jing Yifeng didn't bother to save face.

The money and food given by the higher authorities were not enough to begin with, and when they reached the local level, they were deducted again.

Although this is a common practice, there are still some people who do not deduct money.

However, the bureaucrats in Guangxi will definitely cry out for injustice on this issue.

They also wanted to go along with the others, but the money and grain allocated by the imperial court to Guangxi did not go through their hands at all.

Every time money and grain were delivered, Li Mu would arrange for people to take them away directly.

It’s impossible to block the procedure because they have the note approved by Marquis Wuyang and can directly connect with the Governor’s Office.

Since you can't get involved, you can only be passive and honest.

"General Jing, stop talking nonsense here!

"I didn't take a cent of the money and military supplies allocated by the imperial court!"

An Qingfeng said with a depressed look on his face.

If the money really went into his own pocket, he would be fine if he was scolded, but the problem is that he really didn't make any money from military supplies.

It is true that money and grain were lost, but they were the operating expenses of the governor's office.

……

(End of this chapter)