Tang Dynasty Xie Lu Lang

Chapter 255 A River Apart, A Different World
In the autumn of the fourteenth year of the Kaiyuan era, torrential rains caused the river to swell, eventually breaching its banks in Weizhou, turning the area north and south of the Yellow River into a vast expanse of water.

Weizhou is located on the north bank of the Yellow River, with the Yongji Canal of the Grand Canal flowing through it. Moreover, it is situated in the fertile Hebei Plain, making Weizhou a prosperous and large city in Hebei. Although it is far from the Heluo region, it is still among the six powerful prefectures, which shows the importance the imperial court attaches to it.

Zhang Dai and his party entered the river via the Bian Canal from Caozhou, and then turned into the Yongji Canal from Liyang. Several days later, they arrived in Weizhou.

After traveling through Henan, Zhang Dai initially thought that the disaster in Weizhou, where the Yellow River had breached its banks, must be even more severe, and the people's livelihood must be even more impoverished. However, upon entering Weizhou, they found that carts and boats lined the roads, and processions constantly moved along the official roads and canals. In the countryside, groups of people could be seen everywhere, engaged in construction and work.

"Your boats must not obstruct the waterway. If you need to pass the weir, please submit your passage notice immediately. We will calculate the voyage after you have moored!"

Upon arriving near the capital of Weizhou, the scene was even more lively. The state soldiers waved flags and shouted loudly, while also enthusiastically reminding everyone: "Now the government offices, residences, and shops are all open to merchants from all directions. Whether arriving by land or water, if you bring a thousand catties of goods, you will be exempt from food and lodging fees. Goods are divided into various categories such as bushels, sheep, horses, and utensils. You can sell them in the market and your taxes will be refunded!"

The position of Weizhou in Hebei was roughly similar to that of Bianzhou in Henan; both were hubs for the convergence and transshipment of goods.

Many naturally formed rivers and man-made waterways in Hebei flow through and converge in Weizhou, making it a place with excellent geographical location and natural endowments.

Thanks to the Grand Canal, Weizhou was not only a hub for the resources of Hebei, but also a major link for north-south exchange. The Yongji Canal branched off into the western canal to connect with Weizhou Prefecture. Shops lined both banks, displaying a wide variety of goods from the Jianghuai region, including rice, tangerines, rhinoceros horns, and tortoiseshell.

Of course, this is under normal circumstances. After the devastating flood caused by the Yellow River breaching its banks, the markets along the canal in Weizhou are no longer as abundant and diverse as they used to be. Most of what is on display and sold are local Hebei goods. Although the variety has decreased, the quantity has increased several times over.

After Zhang Dai's boats passed the weir, a local official approached them to inquire about their goods. He then guided their boats to the vicinity of the granaries built along the canal. They could choose to sell their goods directly to the government or sell them in the market themselves.

The price for government purchases is lower, while market sales not only fetch higher prices but also offer certain reductions in market taxes. Regardless of the transaction method chosen, as long as the type and quantity of goods meet certain standards, they can use the government's granaries for storage free of charge within a specified period.

After listening to the explanation from the state officials, Zhang Dai finally understood why Weizhou, which had just experienced a natural disaster, was still so prosperous and bustling. In addition to its superior geographical location and convenient transportation, it was also due to the implementation of a series of policies to benefit merchants!

Compared to Bianzhou, which had a similar positioning on the south bank of the Yellow River, Weizhou adopted a completely opposite strategy, resulting in two drastically different landscapes. One was characterized by a desolate market and a scarcity of resources, while the other was a thriving commercial center with abundant goods.

While the ships were docking and unloading cargo, Zhang Dai inquired about the relevant government policies from the local officials and learned that this series of policies to benefit merchants were promulgated after Yuwen Rong entered the territory.

After learning this, Zhang Dai couldn't help but sigh that one's perspective is determined by one's position; people do things differently depending on their circumstances.

He recalled that when he was in Luoyang, Yuwen Rong's subordinates and Xu Shen, recommended by Zhang Dai, had proposed similar ideas, hoping to stimulate commercial activity by reducing or exempting market taxes and other preferential policies, and attract private merchants to actively transport goods to the disaster area, thereby solving the shortage of supplies in the disaster area.

However, these proposals were rejected by Yuwen Rong at the time, but now that he has entered the state, he has implemented these preferential policies for merchants in a more comprehensive way.

With a series of preferential policies such as free food and lodging, provision of storage space, and tax reductions, even if Zhang Dai's trip was not for business profit, he still wanted to transport some goods to the market for sale.

The reason for the difference in attitude before and after was naturally because Yuwen Rong's status had changed. Previously, he was the Vice Minister of Revenue, the Censor-in-Chief, and concurrently served as the Envoy of Henan and Hebei. He was the overall commander of disaster relief, and he was in charge of all the government's disaster relief policies, manpower, and resources. Naturally, he had to consider issues from the perspective of the overall situation.

However, he has now been stripped of all his official positions and is only serving as the governor of Weizhou. Although he still holds the title of envoy, he can no longer wield the same power over personnel as before. Therefore, he simply makes full use of Weizhou's geographical advantages and uses various decrees to attract merchants from all walks of life to Weizhou.

The Tang Dynasty was a vast empire, not a small, fragmented regime. Even if one region suffered greatly, it could overcome difficulties through cross-regional resource allocation. Therefore, any attempt to interpret various issues of the Tang Dynasty from a regional perspective is destined to miss the point and be biased and narrow-minded.

Once Yuwen Rong lost his ability to coordinate the overall situation, he immediately used his existing authority to attract as many personnel resources as possible to him.

Its various pro-business policies may seem to have waived a considerable amount of customs and market taxes, but the gains were even greater. Merchants from all over the country competed to transport goods here, which ensured that Weizhou, despite the disaster, still had abundant resources and stable prices, maintaining overall stability and possessing great potential and room for maneuver.

To put it bluntly, do the goods sold on these boats and in shops on both sides of the strait really belong to those merchants? Whoever has the power and the guns owns them! We're not robbing you now because we don't need to, but if things really come to that, who will teach us how to handle it?

Because Weizhou was a hub for merchants, Zhang Dai's arrival did not cause much of a stir, and the Weizhou government made no special announcement. Only his cousin Zhang Yu and a few servants were there to greet him.

"Sixth Brother, shall we go into the city to stay overnight, or head straight to the weaving workshop?" Zhang Yu asked after helping Zhang Dai ashore.

"Let's go to the weaving workshop instead. There are quite a few people with us, and it's not convenient for us to come and go from the city. We can send a letter to the prefectural government tomorrow morning."

After thinking for a moment, Zhang Dai said that his experience in Bianzhou had made him wary, and he didn't know how Yuwen Rong would react when he met him. Therefore, he planned to deal with the affairs here first before going to see Yuwen Rong.

The weaving workshops in Weizhou were located near Wang Mang's city, in the old course of the Wang Mang River. The land was already somewhat saline, and the surrounding transportation was not very convenient, so a weaving workshop was set up there.

This was an arrangement made by Cui Mian when he was in the prefecture. Now that I think about it, he probably started to feel annoyed that I had sent people into the prefecture to cause trouble since around last year.

Although Weizhou did not offer much preferential treatment, it took in the largest number of women and children, and now nearly five thousand people in the weaving workshops are receiving relief.

After all, the Yellow River breached its banks in Weizhou, and while the prosperity of commerce increased the availability of goods, the agriculture and sericulture of Weizhou suffered extremely severe damage, and little has been recovered to this day.

Otherwise, the people would have already returned to their homes to carry out spring plowing, and there wouldn't be so many laborers building water conservancy projects in the fields.

"It's a pity you arrived a few days late, Liu Lang, otherwise you would have been able to meet our Uncle. Uncle was recently appointed as the Governor of Ji Province and made a special trip to this weaving workshop. He greatly praised your plans, Liu Lang, and even said that if the disaster situation in Hebei does not improve this year, it would be a good plan for Ji Province to follow this course of action!"

As Zhang Yu led Zhang Dai into the weaving workshop, he said with a smile.

Although Zhang Shuo had lost power in the court, he still wielded considerable influence if he sought an official post outside the capital. After a period of maneuvering, he secured the appointment of Zhang Guang as the governor of Ji Province, and soon he was on his way north through Wei Province to take up his post.

"With such a willingness to shoulder responsibilities, and with proper preparation, Uncle will be a blessing to the people of the prefecture. It's a pity my return is imminent, otherwise I would like to accompany you to the prefecture to take a look. Third brother, you are in charge here, handling matters between superiors and subordinates. If Uncle suffers any illness or hardship within the prefecture, you must inform him promptly, so that Uncle is not left alone in distress!"

Zhang Dai knew that the disaster situation in Hebei this year would also be severe, and Zhang Guang's appointment to Jizhou at this time was also a considerable test.

But the more difficult the situation, the easier it is to accomplish something, and he has already planned to help out in Jizhou if necessary.

It might seem foolish to spend his own money to work, but disaster relief doesn't require such careful calculation of pros and cons. Besides, his grandfather is a big, corrupt official who has embezzled a lot. Giving away some of his wealth at the right time would be a way to bring good fortune to his family. Keeping it all at home would only raise a few more good-for-nothing spendthrift children and wouldn't be of much use. It would be better to give it away to win people's hearts.

The total wealth of the Tang Dynasty society was still growing rapidly. This was itself a process of adjusting the ruling structure and redistributing resources. If the money in one's hands could be exchanged for a ticket, it would undoubtedly be very worthwhile.

Such opportunities to grow and thrive alongside society are rare, and since Zhang Dai encountered one, he naturally wouldn't miss it.

When the time is right, heaven and earth will lend a hand. An Lushan, Geshu Han and others were able to rise to prominence in a very short time after their historical opportunities came. Zhang Dai believed that after he had a deep understanding of the pulse of the times and made various preparations, he could do the same!

The women and children in the weaving workshop also lined the road to welcome him and repeatedly expressed their gratitude for the relief. In addition, some weavers asked with trepidation, "Lord Zhang said that we wait for our husbands to go north to cultivate the land, but it is only temporary. We can return home and reunite after the disaster is relieved. Is this true, young master?"

The weaving workshops in Weizhou best matched Zhang Dai's initial vision. The women and children gathered there had their able-bodied husbands go north to cultivate land near Youzhou, totaling over three thousand people. Although these weavers were currently well-fed and clothed and their survival was not a problem in the weaving workshops, they were also worried that their husbands would not return after moving to the border.

"You can work here in peace. If any of the men in your families do not return next year, I will go to the border myself to bring them back!"

Upon hearing this, Zhang Dai smiled and said that since the plan came from him, he naturally had to take responsibility and could not break up thousands of families for the sake of temporary fame.

Seeing that there were many young men and women in the weaving workshop besides the weavers, he said to his cousin Zhang Yu, "Third brother, you should ask those young men and women about their skills. If they are willing to learn a skill to help themselves, they can be trained in the weaving workshop."

They might worry about becoming mere craftsmen, but even without learning a skill, they fear they'll have no land to cultivate and may become vagabonds. By then, it will be too late to find work and save themselves!

(End of this chapter)