After staying in Luo Tu Longbu for one day, Zhou Jun planned to return home.
When leaving, Zhou Jun wrote a letter in his own handwriting and gave it to the clan leader Long Maoyuan, instructing him to send someone to take this letter with him and go to the Anxi Protectorate in Qiuci Town in the Western Regions to find the Jin family workshop.
After finding it, give this letter to Uncle Shen, the owner of Changxingfang.
The letter mainly said two things.
First, when Ling Jin’s family returned to their business, they sent out a caravan. Instead of taking the Yiwu Caravan Road, they followed the guide of the Luo Tu Long Bu and walked the Dunhuang Ancient Road to see the two caravans taking different routes.
, which one can return to Liangzhou first.
Second, the Jin family caravan taking the Dunhuang Ancient Road purchased food and expenses before leaving Qiuci Town. If it successfully passed through the Shazhou Sea Road, the caravan's goods were transported to the Luo Tulong Department and presented as gifts.
To the tribesmen.
After listening to Zhou Jun's words, Long Maoyuan knew that the other party was testing the Luo Tu Dragon Division.
If the Dragon Division guide can successfully complete the task, it will prove the advantages of the Dunhuang Ancient Road, and Luo Tu Long Division will be reused in the future.
Long Maoyuan thought about this and assured Zhou Jun that he would send the best guide in the clan to lead Changxingfang through the desert.
After arranging these things, Zhou Jun took everyone along the way and hurried back to Liangzhou when the summer heat was about to end in July.
The first thing Zhou Jun did when he returned to Liangzhou was to go to the Governor's Mansion, find Kong You, and ask about the Kang family.
Kong You took a thick book, put it on Zhou Jun's desk, and said: "Colluded with the horse bandits, attacked Changxingfang, killed the guards, robbed officials of money and food, smuggled poisonous medicine... this
Any of the crimes contained therein are enough to warrant execution."
"The Dudu Mansion has already drafted a criminal complaint, which I'm afraid has already been sent to the Shangshu Province. Since the case involves so much and there are so many prisoners, the Ministry of Punishment and Dali Temple are already working together to prepare the case and submit it for approval."
"All the Kang family members in Liangzhou, Ganzhou, Suzhou and Guazhou who were involved in this case, a total of 1,755 people, were all imprisoned. The property, land, shops and slaves in the Kang family's name were
He has also been impounded."
Zhou Jun looked at the album and asked Kong You: "The Kang family was confiscated, but there was no movement for the other nine Zhaowu surnames?"
Kong You: "Kang Zongchang, the head of the Kang family, is a Zoroastrian Saguaro and holds a high and powerful position. If the Kang family is investigated, the other nine surnames of Zhaowu will naturally protest."
"But later, the Zoroastrian saint sent a letter. The letter said that the head of the Kang family colluded with traitors and violated the doctrine, so he deprived Sabao of his position and expelled him from Zoroastrianism. With this letter, other Zhaowu
The Nine Surnames will no longer object."
Zhou Jun couldn't help but nod after hearing this. Tuoba Huaisu's letter came in time, which was a great help.
After looking at the document for a while, Zhou Jun frowned and asked, "Why is there no name of Kang Zongchang, the head of the Kang family, in the prison list?"
Kong You: "He escaped."
Zhou Jun: "Escaped?!"
Kong You said helplessly: "On the night before You received the letter from the master, the head of the Kang family took his belongings and led his troops to violate the curfew and fled out of the city."
Zhou Jun guessed that on the night when the horse bandits were wiped out, someone escaped and reported the news to Kang Zongchang.
Kong You said again: "The governor's office has sent out wanted orders and distributed them to all major customs and Jindu." Zhou Jun sighed: "Kang Zongchang has been operating in Hexi for many years. I am afraid that he is a cunning rabbit. If he escapes this time, it will be difficult to find him again.
He got it."
Kong You bowed and said, "It was You's fault for letting Kang Zongchang escape from the city. Please punish me."
Zhou Jun: "This matter has nothing to do with you, so there is no need to blame yourself."
After saying this, Zhou Jun put down the document and told Kong You about his trip to the Luo Tu Long Tribe.
After hearing this, Kong You said to Zhou Jun: "If the Dunhuang ancient road can be opened for trade, this road can be used in the future to move people and materials. In this way, a lot of time and energy can be saved."
Zhou Jun: "I intend to write to the imperial court and find craftsmen to rebuild the ancient Dunhuang roads, but this memorial must be meaningful and I need to think of some reasons."
Kong You thought for a moment and said to Zhou Jun: "If we want to rebuild the Dunhuang Ancient Road, there are actually many reasons."
"First, the armies of Tubo and Tuyuhun entered Shazhou from Longle Mountain and then went north to Dunhuang in previous years. The Moli Army and the Doulu Army often had to face enemy forces ten times their own. If the early battle was unfavorable, they would only
They could huddle in the cage city and wait for reinforcements. Since Shazhou is far away and difficult to travel, the Tang reinforcements in Hexi often have to spend a lot of time on the road. As a result, the Tang and Tubo forces
The northern front is full of dangers. Therefore, quickly responding to the threat from Tibet is the first reason for repairing the Dunhuang Ancient Road."
"Second, the Tianzhu and Dashi caravans headed east to the Tang Dynasty. Since the Silk Road of Gaochang, Yiwu, and Jinchang is located in the middle line, the Western caravans had to go north to bypass the desert. The journey was long and time-consuming.
. Therefore, many caravans from the West would rather pass through Tubo, take the plateau trade route, and then enter the Tang Dynasty from Longyou. In this way, Tubo could collect customs duties and fees, and in vain intercepted what should have belonged to the Tang Dynasty.
The taxes of the Tang Dynasty. Therefore, reopening the Dunhuang Ancient Road can return the customs duties captured by Tibet to the Tang Dynasty, which not only strengthens the national power but also weakens the enemy."
"Third, there are only 20,000 soldiers stationed in the four towns of Anxi, but they have to face Dashi, Big and Little Bolu, Tocharo, the Kingdom of Nine Surnames and other forces. The situation is complicated and supplies are difficult. Therefore, if the Dunhuang Ancient Road can be rebuilt,
, can strengthen the connection between the Central Plains and Anxi, and strengthen the ability to control the Western Regions."
After Zhou Jun heard this, he clapped his hands and said with a smile: "The three reasons Bo Hong mentioned are all key."
Kong You added: "Master, just having a reason is not enough. When the court asks, I'm afraid they will have to come up with a feasible strategy."
Zhou Jun: "Yes, Jin Jiahangfang is going to the Western Regions this time. After completing the deed of the Anxi Protectorate, I asked them to follow the Longbu guide and return from the Shazhou Dahai Road to walk the Dunhuang Ancient Road again."
Kong You: "If this trip goes well, I can record the trade routes and maps and report them to the Ministry of Finance. As long as they can be approved, there will be only one last question left..."
This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading! Zhou Jun: "Yes, the last question...the grain money needed to rebuild the Dunhuang Ancient Road."
Kong You: "According to the manufacturing process of the Tang Dynasty in the past, grain, silk and rent orders were jointly raised by the two capitals and the state government. The Dunhuang ancient road has been in disrepair for a long time, and the post stations and road houses along the way have long been in dilapidated condition, making it difficult to rebuild.
It will cost a lot.”
"Let's talk about the two capitals first. In the past few years, the imperial court and the palace have been spending a lot of money. The national treasury is almost in crisis. I'm afraid not much food money can be allocated to rebuild the Dunhuang ancient road. Let's talk about the state capital. Dunhuang County's finances are already in dire straits. Even daily expenses
It’s unsustainable, let alone responsible for such a costly project.”
Zhou Jun also had a headache after hearing this, so he asked Kong You: "Bohong, in your opinion, what should we do?"
Kong You: "The reconstruction of the Dunhuang Ancient Road is both a challenge and an opportunity for the master. You have two strategies for the master's reference."
Zhou Jun: "Come quickly."
Kong You: "One of the strategies is to use business to gain power. The Dunhuang Ancient Road project is huge and involves many things. If it is not done well, it will be charged with wasting people and ruining money. This kind of errand is like a hot stone that others avoid.
I am afraid that it will not be enough. Therefore, as the supervisor of the Hexi Mutual Market and the first person to propose the reconstruction strategy, the master can take the initiative to ask the imperial court to personally supervise the construction of the Dunhuang Ancient Road and completely control the control of this trade road."ъiqugetvt
"The second strategy is called joint financing. If the money and food used for reconstruction are asked to come from the imperial court and the state government, I am afraid that it will not be able to raise it. However, if we propose to the imperial court to borrow money from private merchants and ask them to help finance the reconstruction,
Then, a part of the customs revenue from this trade route was used to repay the private sector, and all merchants who borrowed money were allowed to have priority. In this way, the imperial court and the state government not only did not have to pay, but also rebuilt Dunhuang.
From the ancient road, you can also collect customs revenue every year.”