Taichang Ming Dynasty

Chapter 415 River Management Budget
"Funny" Sun Yuerong asked, "Is there anything funny about this?"

"The high-ranking officers of the two guards. The men with two balls under their bird handles have no backbone at all, and they speak more servilely than slaves." Jin Zhong simply recounted what happened that day.

Sun Yuerong listened silently, and remained silent until Jin Zhong finished speaking.

After a while, Sun Yuerong raised the teacup, drank the water in it in one gulp, and asked, "Have you reported this matter?"

"I have reported it, aren't you here to investigate this matter?" After the meeting, Jin Zhong immediately wrote a report on the whole matter and sent it to the Imperial Household Department. So when Sun Yuerong mentioned Sun Chengzong, he thought that the East Factory had sent someone here to investigate this matter.

"Of course not." Sun Yuerong handed the empty teacup to the eunuch. "Go, give me another cup."

"Yes." The eunuch hurried over and took the empty cup from his hand.

"Then you are here..." Jin Zhong began to murmur in his heart again.

"Don't worry, don't tremble. What I am going to do has nothing to do with you. Just do your job well." Sun Yuerong chuckled.

"Yes, yes." Jin Zhongxin understood. Sun Yuerong clearly wasn't going to tell him the truth. But no matter what, as long as the East Factory wasn't targeting him, it didn't matter.

"Apart from this matter, what else did Sun Zhongcheng do in Tianjin?" Sun Yuerong did change his mind. He originally wanted to tell Jin Zhong some inside stories, but now it seems there is no need to do so.

"Hiss!" Jin Zhong took a breath, looking pensive. "Measure the land, cultivate the land, train the troops, inspect the canal and water conservancy projects, and some daily chores."

"Did he take you with him when he did these things?" Sun Yuerong asked casually.

"No, I only heard about it." Jin Zhong shook his head and said, "If I must say, Sun Zhongcheng did take me to the military camp to watch a drill."

The eunuch brought a large cup of warm water and was about to put it on the coffee table, but Sun Yuerong stretched out his hand.

Sun Yuerong took the teacup from the eunuch and took a sip. "How does the battalion look like?"

"I don't know much about military drills and formations, but it looks pretty decent. The ranks are neat and the drills are regular, and those peasant soldiers don't look too sluggish." Jin Zhong said.

"Have you reported this matter?" Sun Yuerong asked.

Jin Zhong replied, "No." This was neither a major event nor anything suspicious. Therefore, Jin Zhong never considered reporting the matter to the palace.

Sun Yuerong chuckled and said, "You should have reported it."

"Why?" Jin Zhong opened his mouth, wanting to ask why. However, since Sun Yuerong was willing to give him a suggestion, he could not help but suppress his unnecessary questioning and nodded in response, "I understand."

Just by looking at Jin Zhong's expression, Sun Yuerong knew that Jin Zhong had completely misunderstood what he meant. But Sun Yuerong didn't plan to say anything more. He turned to look at the eunuch at the door and asked, "What time is it now?"

The eunuch first looked at the sky, then calculated in his mind, and replied: "Grandpa, it should be almost 3 p.m.."

"That's perfect," Sun Yuerong stood up, and Jin Zhong and the two accompanying soldiers also stood up. "Goodbye," Sun Yuerong said to Jin Zhong.

Jin Zhong hurriedly said, "Captain Sun, it's getting late. If you want to hurry, please leave tomorrow. Please allow me to show some courtesy."

"No need. Save your hospitality for next time." Sun Yuerong did not stop. After drinking the remaining water in the cup, he left with the two guards.

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If Jin Zhong dared to order someone to follow Sun Yuerong, he would know that after leaving the Shen family's old house, Sun Yuerong did not rush anywhere, but took two guards to the Tianjin Governor's Office at a leisurely pace.

"Stop!" The standard-bearing soldier on duty stopped the stranger as usual. "Who are you? Which government office are you from?"

"From the East Depot." Sun Yuerong showed his badge, and the two soldiers immediately made way.

After entering the main gate, the guards searched for a place to stow their horses, while Sun Yuerong walked alone down the corridor toward the ceremonial gate. Arriving at the gate, Sun Yuerong noticed the central double doors were tightly shut. Naturally, he looked around, trying to find another entrance. The left side door seemed ajar.

As soon as I pushed open the door, a clerk-like man spoke up. "Which government office are you from, and what business do you have?"

Sun Yuerong walked to the desk and handed the badge he still held in his hand to the clerk. "I'm looking for Sun Zhongcheng."

The clerk was startled and jumped up from his chair as if he had been pricked by a needle. "Ouch! What happened?"

"Nothing, I just wanted to chat with Sun Zhongcheng." Sun Yuerong was quite polite: "Is he free now?"

The clerk replied, "Central Chancellor Sun should be discussing matters with Doctor Mi and Director Lu at this moment. Please go to the tea room and rest for a while. I will go and inform you."

"Huh." Sun Yuerong smiled dumbly and muttered to himself. "You're here again."

"What are your instructions?" The clerk didn't hear clearly.

"No instructions," Sun Yuerong waved her hand. "You go and report. I'll just wait."

"Yes, I'll go right away." The clerk responded and left the lobby as if fleeing.

Bang bang bang!
Not long after, a hurried knock on the door rudely interrupted the discussion in the signing room.

"Who is it?" Sun Chengzong, who was speaking, frowned and shouted.

"Zhongcheng, it's me!" the clerk replied.

Sun Chengzong recognized the person by the tone of voice and said, "Come in!"

The clerk pushed open the door and, without even a bow, came directly to Sun Chengzong's side. He leaned in close and whispered, "Zhongcheng, someone from the East Depot has arrived, and they want to see you." Sun Chengzong didn't react immediately, but soon the displeasure on his face gave way to a slightly apprehensive confusion. Sun Chengzong didn't think the emperor would send someone from the East Depot to arrest him without warning, but he couldn't imagine why they'd come looking for him.

After a moment's silence, a look of realization, mixed with worry, flashed across Sun Chengzong's face. He stood up, and the other two followed suit.

"You guys sit here for a while, I'll be back soon." Sun Chengzong waved his hand downwards, his expression returning to calm.

The two men didn't ask any more questions. After listening to Sun Chengzong's words, they nodded and sat down.

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When Sun Chengzong followed the clerk on duty to find Sun Yuerong, Sun Yuerong had already been led to the tea room by Sun Sui and was sitting in the first guest seat below the main seat.

Sun Yuerong had never met Sun Chengzong before, but his signature fourth-rank civil official uniform was enough to reveal his status. Without waiting for Sun Chengzong to approach, Sun Yuerong rose and approached him, greeting him with the words, "My humble servant, Sun Yuerong, greets Sun Zhongcheng."

Sun Chengzong felt a little relieved by Sun Yuerong's gesture. Since the other party did not take the main seat and took the initiative to greet him, he could basically rule out his worst expectations.

"Nice to meet you." Sun Chengzong took two steps forward, took Sun Yuerong's arm, and gave himself a flawless and kind smile. "No need to be so polite, Eunuch Sun."

When Sun Yuerong stood up, Sun Chengzong immediately asked, "What is your current position, Eunuch Sun?"

Sun Yuerong bowed again. "I am currently serving as the Chief of Staff at the East Factory's Banyi Bureau."

The head of the Foreign Service Bureau is the Director, who is currently the Governor Cui Wensheng himself. Under the Director are two Deputy Directors, the Left and the Right. The Left Deputy is concurrently held by Cui Yuan, the Director of the Criminal Division who reports directly to the Governor. Under the two Deputy Directors are the four Chief Directors. The daily work of the four Chief Directors is to manage the personnel rosters, military equipment and supplies, salary distribution of the four major archives of East, West, South and North, and supervise the training of the thousand households. However, the four Chief Directors do not directly enjoy command power. Only with the explicit authorization of the Director can the Chief Director transfer foreign service. Strictly speaking, even Li and Zhang, who were taken out of Beijing by Sun Yuerong, were transferred to him by Cui Wensheng, the Director, who stamped the seal of the East Factory headquarters.

"Master Sun, please come this way." After clarifying Sun Yuerong's position, Sun Chengzong naturally changed his address.

"Then I will respectfully obey your command." Sun Yuerong walked up and sat next to Sun Chengzong.

As soon as the two sat down, a yamen runner came into the tea room with tea and snacks. Sun Sui, who was in charge of the reception, knew his master too well. He was sure that Sun Chengzong would come as soon as he learned that someone from the palace had arrived, and he was very unlikely to bring the other two masters with him. So after Sun Yuerong entered the tea room, he had someone prepare tea and snacks for two.

After the refreshments were laid out, Sun Sui asked the yamen runners to leave the tea room to make room for the two men to talk. But before they could leave, Sun Yuerong apologized to Sun Chengzong, saying, "Sun Zhongcheng, I'm here at an inopportune time. I hope you will forgive me if I have disturbed your business."

"It's just some trivial matters. I won't bother you anymore." Sun Chengzong responded with a smile and shook his head.

As soon as Sun Chengzong finished speaking, Sun Yuerong continued, "May I ask, Sun Zhongcheng, what are these trivial matters?"

Sun Chengzong immediately understood that although Sun Yuerong apologized, he was actually trying to interrupt. Sun Chengzong was not annoyed and replied directly: "Wide the river and survey the settlement."

Sun Yuerong raised the teacup, took a sip, and asked with an interested look, "Can you tell me more about it?"

"Of course." Sun Chengzong nodded and said, "Let's talk about widening the canal first. I'm sure that Chief Sun is also aware that the emperor plans to build ports in Beitang and Dagu and open customs to trade with Western merchants."

"I know this. It not only increases revenue for the country, but also reduces the pressure on food and fodder supply for the towns in Ji and Liao." Sun Yuerong nodded.

Sun Chengzong was a bit surprised, but a look of genuine admiration crossed his face. "Captain Sun is right. However, this will inevitably increase the number of ships passing through the Haihe River and the Beiyun Canal. As far as I know, hundreds of large ships capable of carrying thousands of tons ply the Nanyang Sea each year, and countless smaller vessels. Even if foreign merchant ships were banned from entering the inland waterways, the grain and silver transport vessels supplying these ships would clog the waterways. Therefore, we must at least widen the entire route from Tanggu to the capital."

"At least?" Sun Yuerong picked out a word.

"Yes." Sun Chengzong nodded and said, "Opening the port of Tanggu for trade will not only affect the area between Tianjin and the capital. The area between Cangzhou and Tianjin will also benefit from trade. However, the Weicao section of the Grand Canal is not currently under consideration by the Governor's Office. Even if it is to be repaired, it will have to wait until the Haihe River, Beiyun River, and Tonghui River sections are completed before consideration can be made."

"So that's how it is. Please continue." Sun Yuerong nodded deeply.

Sun Chengzong continued, "Current estimates suggest that the Beiyun River and Tonghui River's canals need to be widened by at least 30%. Some narrow sections of the Haihe River also need to be widened to prevent bottlenecks. And widening is only one aspect of the process. According to Doctor Mi's investigation, due to years of neglect of the canals, some sections have accumulated silt and are very shallow. Ships sailing in these sections with a draft exceeding five feet will be wary of running aground, so clearing the silt and increasing the depth are necessary."

"I see." Sun Yuerong nodded and asked, "What do you need?"

"Of course it's manpower, silver, and food." Sun Chengzong narrowed his eyes, thinking he had guessed Sun Yuerong's intention. However, Sun Chengzong still had a lingering doubt. After all, even if the emperor was just asking about the project's progress, there was no need to send someone from the East Depot to inquire.

"How much exactly?"

"According to the precedent set by Wu Jianquan in the seventh year of the Jiajing reign, to complete the widening and dredging of the Tonghui River within a year of commencement, at least 100,000 workers would be needed."

"One hundred thousand people!" Sun Yuerong's eyelids jumped. "With so many people, how much food will be consumed and how much silver will be spent?"

"Still counting." Sun Chengzong raised his cup to drink tea, using the mist to cover up the fleeting guilt when he lied.

Although the details of the project still need further investigation, they have already roughly estimated the overall silver and food consumption.

That year, Wu Zhongxiu dredged the Tonghui River, about 40 miles long. Work began in early March and was completed at the end of June, taking nearly four months. It involved approximately 12,000 men, 6,000 taels of silver, and 4,000 dan of rice.

However, they only dredged and cleared the silted river sections back then, but now they want to widen the river.

According to Mi Wanzhong's estimate, the workload of widening the river channel will be two to three times that of dredging and cleaning.

If we roughly calculate the entire length of the Tonghui River from the estuary to the Datong Bridge as a 400-li river, the engineering workload would increase by 20 to 30 times the original length. Taking the median value, it would be 25 times.

If the project still needs to be completed in four months, it will require 300,000 workers, 150,000 taels of silver, and 100,000 dan of grain.

However, they planned to complete the project in one year, which was three times the construction period, so only 100,000 people were needed, and the cost was 150,000 taels of silver and 100,000 dan of rice.

However, Mi Wanzhong's calculation was based on the corvée labor of the river workers, who provided their own money and grain. If the money and grain were all provided by the court, it would be the calculation of Xiong Tingbi. For 100,000 people, a year would cost 1.8 million taels of silver and 600,000 dan of grain.

(End of this chapter)