Chapter 324 Patrolling the Yellow River

The fifth year of the Qingli reign of the Song Dynasty came to an end after the last heavy snow.

At the end of the year, Di Qing returned to the court and brought back the envoys and letters from the Le Dynasty.

After the fall of the Annan Li family, Di Qing followed Zhao Jun's instructions and supported a 12-year-old descendant of the former Le Dynasty to take office.

Because the former Le Dynasty was not popular, it had to rely on the rule of the Song Dynasty.

The child who was supported did not understand, but the other adults of the Le family did. So after the Le family came to power again, they flattered Di Qing to the extreme.

Internally, they immediately supported their own forces and brutally suppressed the opposition. Externally, they regarded the Song Dynasty as their parents. Not only did they compare Zhao Zhen to their father country in the memorial, but they also surrendered themselves to the King of Annan, no longer being a king outside and an emperor inside like before, which was a bit like Zhao Gou.

Now the power of the entire country is basically in the hands of Di Qing. For a time, Di Qing became the emperor of Annan, and his limelight was unparalleled.

However, Di Qing did not stay in Annan for long, because the court could not allow a senior general to lead troops outside for a long time, so the whole court was reporting to the emperor, and Zhao Zhen recalled him.

Di Qing asked Yang Cha, the transport envoy of Guangxi Road, to take charge of Annan temporarily, and then left a group of troops in Thang Long Prefecture and Jiangnan Prefecture, which are Hanoi and Haiphong in Vietnam in the future, and returned to the country with the envoy and letter of the new king of Annan.

As the transport envoy of Guangnan West Road, Yang Cha was actually sent by Zhao Jun to deal with this matter, so he naturally had to take it to heart.

Now the court has moved the seat of Guangnan West Road from Guizhou to Yongzhou, which is equivalent to moving from Guilin to Nanning.

First, Yongzhou is indeed better developed than Guizhou, and second, it can develop relations with Annan nearby and control the situation in Annan.

It is true that Yongzhou is close to Annan, but after all, the living conditions there are extremely poor, and the Song Dynasty cannot personally go out to annex Annan, so Yang Cha naturally cannot stay in Thang Long often.

So he let Nong Zhigao stay in Annan as the governor of Annan, in charge of the Song army stationed in Annan.

Nong Zhigao was a little unhappy.

Just kidding.

He finally became a local official of the Song Dynasty, and he fantasized about being promoted and transferred to Bianliang.

Only a fool would want to go to Annan, where there is no one and the climate is very hot.

But Yang Cha had reasons for letting him go to Annan.

First, Nong Zhigao was familiar with the situation in Annan, which was conducive to controlling the situation.

Secondly, as the leader of the border ethnic minorities, Nong Zhigao could properly handle the problems of Annan and the border ethnic minorities of the Song Dynasty.

The last and most important point is that Nong Zhigao and his tribe had a feud with Annan, and the Annan people would never accept him, which completely eliminated the plan of the officials sent by the Song Dynasty to establish themselves as kings by relying on the court's inability to reach them.

Therefore, based on these three reasons, Yang Cha let Nong Zhigao stay in Annan first, and promised to report his merits to the court, which made Nong Zhigao reluctantly stay in Annan as a young emperor.

In this way, the entire Song Dynasty army in Annan will be shipped and stationed by Guangxi and Guangdong, so that Jiaozhi will be completely under the control of the Song Dynasty army.

However, the army was dispatched this time in name because the Vietnamese Li Dynasty had repeatedly violated the border of the Song Dynasty, so the upper country used thunder and lightning to destroy the Li family, not to annex Annan.

The Annan people still ruled themselves, but naturally they could no longer be kings outside and emperors inside like the Li Dynasty, but called themselves the King of Annan and formally established the Annan tributary of the Song Dynasty.

This can be regarded as a fig leaf for Annan.

As for who is the power behind this, it can only be said that those who understand will understand.

In addition to Annan, the other neighboring countries such as Liao, Xixia, Dali, Goryeo, and Japan also sent envoys to celebrate.

Especially the Liao Kingdom and the Western Xia, they were also shocked to learn that the huge Annan was destroyed in two months and the Li family changed the dynasty.

Except for the Liao Kingdom, which made a few sarcastic remarks and secretly accused the Song Dynasty of being overbearing, the other countries all praised the Song Dynasty for its wisdom and decisiveness.

After all, the Song Dynasty had a legitimate reason to send troops this time, and it was considered to have informed all countries. In addition, the result of this military expedition also made the surrounding countries feel frightened, so no one dared to interfere.

At the end of the year, Zhao Zhen handled diplomatic affairs, received foreign envoys, held various celebrations, and also sent envoys to congratulate various countries.

The East Asian circle celebrates the Lunar New Year, so the end of the year is also the busiest time in the East Asian circle and the time when exchanges are most frequent.

This year, in addition to the major surrounding countries, many countries in the Western Regions, Central Asia, and the Middle East sent envoys early. After the prosperity of trade, the influence of the Song Dynasty has further expanded.

Strictly speaking, the countries in the Western Regions, Central Asia and the Middle East have nothing to do with the Song Dynasty. Apart from trade, they are not involved in international politics.

But Zhao Jun made early arrangements. When he toured the country in his early years, he had already told local officials in Guangzhou, Zhejiang, Shaanxi and other places to take the initiative to send people out to understand the foreign landscape and promote exchanges and cooperation.

In addition, the Song Dynasty's handicraft industry was prosperous, and its products were deeply loved by the Middle East and Europe, which led to the great attention of those white-robed monarchies in the Middle East.

The Middle East is now in the late Abbasid Dynasty. This powerful empire that once defeated the Tang Dynasty in the Battle of Talas is now facing serious internal divisions.

Since the eighth century, there have been as many as seven or eight independent kingdoms of various sizes. In the era without the oil system, their lives were not rich. Under the nomadic system, they also needed to do business to survive.

Although their relationship with Europe was very poor due to the Crusaders' invasion. But this did not prevent these white-robed monarchies from purchasing tea, porcelain, and silk from the Song Dynasty, selling them to medieval Europe, and then purchasing raw materials such as ores, spices, etc. from Europe, Africa, and shipping them to the Song Dynasty.

Under such preconditions, the Song Dynasty became the factory and market for Arab merchants in the Middle East. Whether it was exported goods or imported goods from Europe, the Middle East, and Africa, they had to go to and from the Song Dynasty.

Therefore, the Arab world naturally wanted to have a good relationship with the Song Dynasty, lest the Song Dynasty reject their raw materials and export goods to them.

For a while.

After the Tang Dynasty, the Song Dynasty actually had a vague feeling that all nations came to the dynasty.

At the end of the year, various departments are on holiday, and the Constitutional Yuan is also free.

In November, the statistics of each department are basically handed over to the Prime Ministers of the Constitutional Yuan for approval and verification. From December to January, the court basically has a few days off, a few days of work, a few more days of rest, and a few more days of work. Day shift status.

Zhao Jun also has a family now. After staying at home for two days, he felt a little restless again.

He thought that he had been repairing the river embankments in the past few years, and the Yellow River flooded in the eighth year of Qingli, which was about to happen in two years. He didn't know how the specific projects had been in recent years, so he decided to inspect it.

After letting Cao Xiu say hello to Zhao Zhen, he left Bianliang in a rather low-key manner.

As a result, just after leaving the city, Jia Changchao followed.

After all, he was in charge of the Yellow River canal construction project. Since Zhao Jun wanted to inspect the Yellow River, he naturally had to accompany him.

The first thing they inspected was the canal section excavated from Kaifeng to the north. This was a project that Zhao Jun had decided on at the beginning of this year. In the first half of the year, it was allocated by the Ministry of Finance and organized by the Ministry of Industry. Jia Changchao was always watching.

It was late winter, but just as spring was about to begin, it snowed heavily in the north. The rustling snowflakes cover the ground. Although it is not as bitter and cold as in the Northeast, it is still biting.

Zhao Jun and Jia Changchao's trip was relatively low-key this time. The two of them sat in a carriage, warming themselves by the fire while discussing the rerouting of the canal in two years' time.

"We spent 120,000 people digging last year. Now the main sections of the canal have basically been completed. It will be almost the first half of next year when the canal can be officially opened for traffic."

Jia Changchao introduced the situation of this new canal in the car.

"Well, that's a good thing."

Zhao Jun said: "The creation of new canals will not only boost the economy along the line, but also provide flood discharge and waterproofing. The only worry is that there are too many canals. Once the Yellow River floods, the Bian Canal and the new canal will easily flood Bianliang. Therefore, the canal must pass more than 20 miles outside the city."

Jia Changchao added: "Our economy has not developed outside the city yet, and there are still some transportation inconveniences at the beginning. If a dock is built on the canal bank, it will probably take a land route to deliver it to the city."

"There is nothing we can do about it. Sanyi's return to the river is extremely harmful. Although we have carried out many treatment projects on the Yellow River in the past ten years, it is still unclear whether we can change this history, so we still have to work harder. The Yellow River must be managed well. As for economic issues, we will expand the city next year.”

Zhao Jun lifted the curtains and looked out the window.

Outside the window was a blanket of snow, and there were almost no people on the official road. A huge gully has been excavated in the east, but there are no people on the construction site. Everyone has gone home to celebrate the New Year.

However, construction seems to have begun along the canal. There are many sheds and houses, and the nearby villages and towns are also busy.

This is a good thing for construction.

Because there are only two sections of the canal in Bianliang, east and west, not north and south.

Therefore, Henan Prefecture to the west of the canal and Yingtian Prefecture to the east are very prosperous businesses. However, places such as Fengqiu, Changyuan and Xucheng in the north, as well as Yingchang and Ruzhou in the south, have not seen much development.

If a canal can be built from Bianliang to the Yellow River in the north and from Nanyang in the south, it will not only greatly connect the north and the south, but also make plans for the future.

The later South-to-North Water Diversion Project was such a route.

It's just that there are too many canals in Bianliang, and floods will be unlucky. Therefore, flood discharge and flood control projects around Bianliang still need to be completed. In addition to canals, a large number of ditches and reservoirs must be dug and built to achieve the purpose of regulating water resources.

"yes."

Jia Changchao nodded, then looked out the window and said, "Zhiyuan, we are about to arrive at Fengqiu."

"Um."

Zhao Jun responded and asked casually: "I asked Xia Song last month. In recent years, the court has allocated almost 70 to 80 million yuan to build the river. Is there any corruption among them?"

Jia Changchao felt a thump in his heart. He really didn't know whether there was corruption or not, because he actually only visited the river construction project once or twice a month.

After all, as the prime minister, he couldn't go to the construction site every day. He didn't know whether the people below were deceiving the superiors or hiding the truth from the subordinates.

But now when the leader asked, it would obviously be a problem if he couldn't explain clearly, so he thought for a moment and replied: "There must still be corruption, but the amount is not large, so it was not reported to the Supreme Court. "

"Well"

Zhao Jun nodded slightly and said: "The money allocated by the imperial court is for the quality of the river embankment. If the canal and river embankment are well reinforced, it will be a thousand-year-old project. A little corruption is nothing, as long as it is dealt with well. But if there is a major Large-scale corruption has affected the quality of river embankments and caused irreversible consequences, so you have to be careful with your head.”

"Yes Yes Yes."

Jia Changchao suddenly broke into a sweat and said hurriedly: "This item will be carefully guarded by the officials, and no one will take advantage of it."

He decided that starting next year, he would personally go to various river embankment construction sites to start auditing the accounts. Those that have been repaired in the past must also be inspected. Regardless of whether there is corruption or whether there is a deficit, everything must be thoroughly investigated to ensure the quality of the project.

"Well, the country will have to do a lot of big projects like this every year, and the strict requirements of quality first must be passed on. If there is any breach, damage, or collapse due to quality problems, then don't blame me for falling out. Recognize someone."

Zhao Jun's tone became much harsher.

"yes."

Jia Changchao responded again.

The convoy continued on.

The wind and snow had stopped long ago, and the warm sunshine outside shone on the earth.

They set off in the morning, planned to have dinner in Fengqiu at noon, and then arrived in Changyuan in the evening. They expected to go to Huazhou tomorrow to inspect the status of the Yellow River project.

But less than ten miles away from Fengqiu, a crowd of three to four hundred people suddenly appeared from behind the slope of the road ahead, surrounding the convoy.

"Asshole, what do you want to do?"

"Bang bang!"

Two gunshots rang out, and there was chaos outside.

Zhao Jun and Jia Changchao's expressions changed slightly, they lifted the curtains and looked outside.

This is on the edge of the official road. On the left side is a small hillside, no more than ten meters high. There are one or two hundred people on the outside, all holding axes and knives. There are actually more than ten people on the hillside, pointing guns at them.

Although their guards numbered more than a hundred, and all of them had guns, they did not dare to fight back at this moment, and the leading general was forced to retreat step by step.

The guard next to him came to the window in panic and said: "Zhiyuan, Prime Minister Jia, there are people outside who stopped the car and robbed us of money. They also killed two of our brothers. They had guns in their hands."

"Where's your gun? Is it a fire stick?"

Jia Changchao was furious.

"They were hiding behind the mountains and shooting, but we didn't dare to fight back."

The guard said.

Once you fire back, you'll be in big trouble.

Because they had hills as cover, they were directly on the road.

In addition, there is snow on the road, making it difficult for the carriage to run and turn. Once the situation escalates and it is not a big deal if they die, what will happen to the two people in the car?

"Give them your belongings and take the bodies of the dead soldiers with you, and we will go back."

Zhao Jun said in a deep voice.

"yes."

The guard responded.

Then the attendant who was carrying silver and copper coins opened his bag, revealing the bright money, and scattered it on the ground.

Zhao Jun traveled for more than a hundred people, not only with carriages, but also with more than a hundred horses. Naturally, the expenses were not paid by the local finance, but paid by himself, so he took a lot of money with him when he went out. If the guards take it with them, it may cost tens of thousands of strings.

So much money was thrown on the ground, which immediately made those people's eyes glow green. If they were not afraid that the other party also had a gun in their hand, they would have rushed to grab it.

The team scattered money while slowly retreating.

The coachman turned the carriage with difficulty, and the other soldiers dismounted and pulled the horses back. The more than twenty soldiers at the front formed a defensive formation. When the money was gone and the convoy successfully turned, they turned the horses and followed Get on the team.

At this time, the ground was full of money. When they walked farther away, hundreds of people rushed out in a swarm and started picking up money on the ground happily.

A young man with a long gun on the hillside looked at the situation below and said worriedly to a man in his thirties next to him: "Tuan leader, those people all have guns, and they come out with so much money. I'm afraid they are some big guy." official."

"What about the high officials? Can we still be caught? When the time comes, we will take off our clothes and blend in with the river workers who are repairing the river. They won't be able to find us."

The man laughed loudly, and then said: "I have made a fortune this time, so I must celebrate it well. Let's go to Chunfeng Tower tonight, girls, take your pick."

"Okay."

"Hahaha, you can still make money by following Tuantou."

"That's right, our Tuantou is so awesome. Who among the river workers who repairs the river disapproves of our Tuantou?"

"Have a good time tonight."

These people were laughing and chatting happily, as if they had won a great victory.

And at this moment.

In the convoy that was already far away from here, Zhao Jun was leaning on the car board with his eyes closed.

His face.

Already livid.