Water Margin: The opening scene involves assassinating Emperor Huizong of Song and forcibly taking L

My trip to Hangzhou.

The palace here has been under construction for six months.

Due to the lack of suitable timber

They had to scale down the size and specifications.

Emperor Huizong of Song felt very wronged.

The palace he designed himself!

The blueprints had to be changed because of a shortage of raw materials.

Even so, readily available timber is hard to find.

They had no choice but to demolish some of the surrounding temples and monasteries.

Bring the pillars and beams from the main hall here.

"Your Majesty, the wicked people of Yixing have rebelled,"

"Gathering for business at Xianglu Peak on Junshan Mountain,"

"We have captured Yixing County!"

The eunuch Li Yan rushed in.

Emperor Huizong of Song remained calm and composed.

Where is Zhu Mian?

“I remember he was working around Taihu Lake.”

Li Yan said, "It was Zhu Mian and his son who used the pretext of building palaces."

"They levied extortionate taxes and levies on the area surrounding Taihu Lake,"

"That's what drove the people of Yixing to revolt!"

"Summon him and his son to the capital," Emperor Huizong of Song said.

"Yes!"

Li Yan bowed and withdrew.

A triumphant smile graced his face.

Li Yan was also cultivating his cronies to amass wealth.

And the territory is only so big now.

He was in a competitive relationship with Zhu Mian and his son.

Chapter 1781 Hangzhou

Emperor Huizong of Song was also growing impatient with Zhu Mian and his son.

After much deliberation,

I can't wait for these two to come to Hangzhou.

He summoned Cai You and said...

"Go to Suzhou and lure Zhu Mian and his son into a trap,"

"Incorporate their private army,"

"Kill them to appease public anger."

"And then announce tax cuts for next year,"

"This year, the tribute from the area around Taihu Lake will no longer be collected."

"According to the order!"

Cai You accepted the order and withdrew.

Leaving the imperial court,

Cai You seemed somewhat dazed.

Zhu Mian and his son amassed a vast fortune.

They also annexed hundreds of thousands of acres of land.

Moreover, they dared to keep a private army.

Logically speaking, he deserved to be torn to pieces.

But these things,

Emperor Huizong of Song had long been aware of this.

But it took so long to make a move.

They were simply using Zhu Mian and his son as tools.

Tools for accumulating wealth

Tools for quelling unrest!

Cai You was ordered to salvage the situation.

It's inevitable to feel a sense of shared sorrow, like the rabbit mourning the fox's death.

Who knows, maybe one day it will be his turn?

This small court in the southeast,

I don't know how long it can last.

Cai You thought it would be good if they could survive for five years.

What should I do then?

On his way to Suzhou, Cai You

More than a dozen ships departed from Haimen.

It drove silently toward Hangzhou.

This type of seagoing vessel is called a seagoing vessel.

Common coastal merchant ships in the Song Dynasty

With a load capacity of only 120 tons,

The deck is about 10 meters wide.

Who would have thought,

The ship was carrying only soldiers and provisions?

until this time,

The Ming soldiers in Jingxiang.

They don't even know where their commander has gone.

All departments will temporarily be under the unified command of Wang Yuan.

Deploy troops to defend key cities.

Then let the navy roam freely.

To guard against Zhong Xiang's sudden counterattack with his troops.

.....

Hangzhou at the end of the Northern Song Dynasty

It is also a seaside city.

The mouth of the Qiantang River is currently in the shape of a true funnel.

There was no siltation at the estuary.

The river channel has become winding and meandering.

In later times, the land was part of the land.

At this time, some areas were a sea.

The land that belonged to the sea in later generations

At this point, some areas were land.

Grains from Suzhou and Zhenjiang

Fuel, oils, fish, livestock, and forest products from Ming, Yan, Qu, and Hui prefectures.

There are also timber and mountain delicacies from southwestern Zhejiang.

Seafood from the coastal areas of eastern Zhejiang

And precious textiles such as Huzhou silk, Yue silk, and Wuluo...

All of these goods are being transported to Hangzhou!

Due to the excessively busy inland waterway transport

Hangzhou can no longer accommodate too many seagoing vessels.

Therefore, a true maritime port,

It has been moved to Ganpu Town in the southwest of Haiyan County.

Don't underestimate it just because it's a town.

It has many government offices and institutions.

There were also a particularly large number of officials.

There were civil officials in charge of the town's supervision.

There are military officers and generals stationed there.

There were people specifically in charge of salt tax.

There are also departments specifically responsible for tariffs.

There are even troops stationed there.

And offshore patrol vessels.

Salt tax and customs duties here,

It has become the financial lifeline of the small regime in the southeast!

The Qiantang River tidal bore has just passed.

More and more ships from the south gathered.

They all stopped near Ganpu Town.

Several months were spent unloading, selling, buying, and repairing the ship.

They waited for the winter winds and ocean currents to arrive before shipping goods south.

From the Arab world, Jiluo, Eunuchs, Champa, Brunei, Ma'i, Srivijaya...

Merchants from places like these

I'm currently negotiating business with a local brokerage firm.

They sold their goods through official brokers.

They also purchased goods through official brokers.

A large number of small coastal boats,

Coming from the direction of Hangzhou,

Goods from inland areas were transported to Ganpu Town.

They also transported the goods unloaded from the seagoing ships to Hangzhou.