Looking north towards the rivers and mountains

The loading and transportation of grain did not end until early March.

Shao Shuyi did not go straight home, but instead went to the Zheng family mansion on the west side of Yantietang to help process the timber.

Many shipbuilders also worked here. In theory, they belonged to the Grand Canal Bureau and were responsible for building ships for the imperial court. However, just as seafarers like Shao Shuyi were pulled in to do odd jobs, the shipbuilders were often driven around – being paid was already considered a good thing, at least they weren't being made to work for free.

Their workplace was actually the Zheng family's private shipyard, a small operation with few employees. There were only a handful of skilled craftsmen, each leading a few dozen apprentices of varying skill levels. The majority of the workers, the laborers and laborers, were, of course, temporary hires.

Shao Shuyi had no shipbuilding skills whatsoever, and he didn't even know how to do carpentry. He could only do some basic manual labor, such as scooping timber out of the salt and iron ponds and piling it on the shore to dry in the shade.

During breaks from work, he would often find an opportunity to mingle with the shipwrights, chat with them, and broaden his horizons.

"Little Tiger, you're quite lucky. You didn't win the grain transport for the sea, but instead became an employee of the Zheng family," said shipwright Li Zhuang as he cut wood with an adze.

This was a middle-aged man in his thirties, tall with thick arms and large, calloused knuckles. Perhaps due to years of hard labor, Li Zhuang walked with a slight hunchback, but his steps were steady. He habitually squinted at people, as if examining the curve of a piece of wood.

"My family doesn't even have a boat anymore, how can we go out to sea?" Shao Shuyi said, carefully observing Li Zhuang's actions.

After searching his memory, he discovered that his family used to have a boat, but it had been used for a long time, with patches piled on top of each other on the planks, until it was no longer usable and had to be scrapped. At that time, when ships were being built, the planks were not replaced when they were damaged. The common practice was to patch them on the outside until they could not be patched anymore.

In other words, his family no longer owns a boat, and after his parents passed away, the funeral expenses cost a lot of money, almost squandering all of their last remaining savings.

Of course, he wasn't the only shipowner without a boat. More than sixty years had passed since Kublai Khan promoted maritime transport, and shipowners had become increasingly impoverished. The court was aware of this, so it stipulated that five or even ten households should contribute one boat for transporting grain by sea. Furthermore, it issued numerous new shipowner certificates to wealthy coastal households or directly requisitioned civilian vessels for grain transport. All of this was because shipowners were becoming increasingly poor and less able to sustain maritime transport.

But no matter what, going to sea is still the best way for seafarers to make money; there is no other way.

"Your family might not get a turn this time, but you'll definitely get one next time." Li Zhuang looked at the boy, who was only fourteen or fifteen years old, with pity and said, "The provincial government and the Wanhu Prefecture did their best to get the court to exempt seafarers from miscellaneous corvée labor, but now there are many troubles, and who knows when it will be reinstated. When that happens, you'll have to go to sea again and do corvée labor, and who knows how many tragedies will result in the destruction of families and the loss of lives."

During the conversation, his seven-year-old son, Li Yu, ran over, clutching half a persimmon in his hand.

The child was as thin as a monkey, with a large forehead like an upside-down gourd, bright eyes, and a tendency to tilt his head when looking at people. After circling around Shao Shuyi once, he giggled and then ran off on his little legs.

After finishing the remaining persimmons in a few bites, he nimbly climbed onto a half-built boat, which earned him a scolding from Li Zhuang.

"Father, there are twenty-four bottom plates here!" Li Yu shouted as he ran around the cabin.

The craftsmen who were working straightened up and looked at the little one with smiles. Some of the acquaintances even pinched Li Yu's little face and teased him a bit.

Li Yu chuckled and dodged aside, sometimes grabbing a handful of wood shavings and scattering them around, sometimes sniffing the scent of cedar wood, and sometimes squatting down to pick out a piece of fish glue and put it in his mouth to taste.

Li Zhuang shook his head and continued to squint as he examined the wood.

Shao Shuyi returned to the riverbank and joined the crowd, who were chanting work songs, in moving large timbers.

The open space on the shore was piled with huge logs that would take several people to encircle, one pile after another, extending to the vicinity of the Zheng family mansion.

He didn't know where the Zheng family bought so much wood; he only knew that these large logs, with branches and bark removed, were piled up according to the year. When shipbuilding was needed, a batch of wood that had been dried to near-complete drying was taken out and processed into floorboards, sideboards, waist beams, pilasters, purlins, body beams, masts, etc., which were then used on one ship after another.

The shipbuilding industry in Liujiagang and Taicang was thriving, with countless government and private workshops, and its level of expertise was among the best in the country, unmatched by any other place.

Once war breaks out, whoever controls Liujiagang will control a considerable shipbuilding industry, and perhaps foreign trade as well. As for whether having high-quality ships will be enough to win naval battles, that's another matter. There are plenty of examples of small ships defeating large ships.

Half a day passed in the blink of an eye, and as the sun began to set in the west, the Zheng family servants brought in dinner on time.

This time it was porridge, and everyone complained.

The servants distributed rice porridge with expressionless faces, ignoring the complaints of the craftsmen and clerks.

I don't have to work in the evening, and I'm lucky to have some porridge! Besides, this porridge isn't thin, it's quite thick. After drinking it with some pickled vegetables, my stomach feels warm and cozy, just right for bed.

After receiving the porridge, Shao Shuyi sat cross-legged on the grass and finished it in a few gulps.

Li Zhuang sat down next to him, sighed softly, and said, "The harvest is getting worse and worse; it wasn't like this in previous years."

"How was it before?" Shao Shuyi asked, putting the bowl and chopsticks on the ground.

"Is this your first time working as a maid?" Li Zhuang asked, fiddling with the beaded bracelet on his wrist.

"Yes."

"How much are the wages?"

Without hesitation, Shao Shuyi replied directly, "Ten strings of cash."

"Is it the Zhongtong banknote or the Zhiyuan banknote?" Li Zhuang pressed.

"Central Bureau of Investigation and Statistics (Zhongtong) banknotes".

Li Zhuang chuckled to himself and said, "Few artisans and seafarers own land. Many families can only afford to buy rice with money. Nowadays, one shi (a unit of dry measure) of rice costs thirty guan (another unit of dry measure). Even if you work as a laborer for a month, you can only buy three dou (another unit of dry measure) of rice. Besides, this is not a good job. If you're not careful, injuries and illnesses are common. You'll understand when you get older."

Shao Shuyi remained silent for a moment.

Although he has only been in this world for a short time, he has already begun to experience the hardships of life.

The full name of the Zhiyuan Note is "Zhiyuan Tongxing Baochao". It was issued in the 24th year of the Zhiyuan reign of Emperor Shizu of Yuan (1287).

The full name of the Zhongtong paper money is "Zhongtong Yuanbao Jiaochao". It was issued in the first year of the Zhongtong reign of Emperor Shizu of Yuan (1260).

Two types of banknotes circulated in the market: the One to Yuan banknotes and the Five Zhongtong banknotes. They were made of mulberry bark paper and inscribed with Chinese characters and Phagspa script. The face value ranged from five cash to two strings of cash, and there were eleven denominations in total.

Initially, silk, silver, and copper coins were used as the "funds" (reserve funds), and it was stipulated that one guan Zhongtong paper money could be exchanged for one tael of silver at the treasury of each region. However, as the imperial court's finances became increasingly strained and currency was issued indiscriminately, it gradually became impossible to exchange it. Now, even the various regional paper money administration offices have been abolished. Where can you exchange it now?

At the imperial court level, both the Zhongtong and Zhiyuan banknotes used the "ingot" as their "accounting unit," with fifty strings of paper money constituting one ingot. Initially, printing was relatively restrained, with a minimum of 30,000 ingots and a maximum of 100,000 ingots per year, thus maintaining a stable value. By this time, the annual issuance had reached over two million ingots and was still increasing year by year.

The worst part is that, with the loss of printing plates, the private printing of counterfeit money has become increasingly rampant, especially in Jiangxi province. Some have asserted that most of the banknotes circulating in the market are counterfeit; given this situation, it would be a miracle if hyperinflation didn't occur.

Shao Shuyi earns 10 guan of Zhongtong currency a month by doing manual labor, which can buy three dou of rice now, but it is uncertain whether he will be able to buy that much next year.

"If we go to sea, we can earn more, but times have changed." Li Zhuang finished the last mouthful of porridge, looked at Shao Shuyi, and said, "A large ocean-going ship can transport a thousand shi of coarse rice, with each shi costing eleven taels (strings of cash). It seems like a lot, but there are many people on board, so it's not much after all. Besides—"

At this point, Li Zhuang patted the timber and said, "Before setting sail, ships need repairs and maintenance, and floating supplies must be purchased, which can be quite expensive. According to old folks, when the maritime transport system was first established during the reign of Emperor Shizu, paper money was valuable, and prices were low. In the rice-producing region of Jiangnan, a shi (a unit of dry measure) of rice cost only three liang (a unit of weight) of Zhongtong paper money, while transporting one shi of grain cost eight liang and five qian (another unit of weight), almost three times the price of rice. The court also allocated more favorable paper money, which allowed boatmen to buy goods and build ships. Building a ship cost only one hundred ingots for labor and materials, while transporting one thousand shi of grain earned one hundred and seventy ingots of transport fees, making the trip worthwhile. Therefore, everyone rushed to build ships and focus on transporting grain. But now—"

Li Zhuang gave a wry smile and said, "Goods are heavy but money is light. The materials and labor for shipbuilding are ten times that of the former. Although the cost per stone has been increased to eleven strings of cash, prices are soaring, and there is no profit to be made. In fact, it is not even enough to cover expenses."

Shao Shuyi's rapid mental arithmetic.

Since the time of Kublai Khan, shipbuilding prices have increased more than tenfold, and maintenance costs are estimated to be about the same, but freight rates have only increased by less than 30%, which is far behind the rate of inflation.

The total cost of a single ocean-going vessel is 220 ingots, but the ship has a general manager (also known as "gangshou", i.e., captain), bosun, navigator, helmsman, anchorman (responsible for dropping and raising anchor), sailor (responsible for hoisting sails), sternman (ordinary sailor), warehouse manager (managing warehouses and even armories), and miscellaneous staff. Even at the very least, there are always more than a dozen people. If a fleet is formed, there is also a "thousand-household navigator" who is responsible for overall coordination.

The costs of repairing ships, hiring sailors, transporting rations back home, and short-distance transportation after arriving at the Zhigu Wharf were not small, and most of the expenses had to be covered by the ship's own money.

After calculating to the end, Shao Shuyi sighed. Why is living so difficult? Then he thought, maybe this is still a "good time". In a few years, will life be even more difficult?

Difficult!

His will to survive forced him to calm down and think carefully about how to get through the rest of his days.

(Awkward, I didn't mean to deceive you, I just forgot that the new book needs to be reviewed... It was posted at 8 am, and the editor wasn't at work yet. Tomorrow it will be posted at 12 pm.)