Wang Chunqing went to the capital to report on his work. As soon as he returned home to rest, several in-laws came running over.
The three families of Jia, Xue and Shi are the most formal.
The Jia family sent their youngest son Jia Daishan, the Xue family sent Xue Chongwen, and the historian Shi Ding.
Likewise, Wang Chunqing became more formal and put on a robe.
"Meet Shibo!"
Several people bowed down.
"Sit down! Our family has been close for many years and there is no need to be so open to the public."
Wang Chunqing chuckled and looked at Jia Daishan first.
Nowadays, the Jia family is very powerful. Jia Dai has become the prime minister of Liao Dynasty, and he is the pastor of one side. He is a rising star among the second generation of nobles, and he can be said to be attracting attention.
Many people expected that Jia Daihua's promotion to marquis was just around the corner.
Whether it is the Holy Family or ability, Jia Daihua is also one of the best.
Likewise, the position of viscount in the Jia family was inherited by Jia Daishan. With the help of his elder brother, the family's future is limitless.
"Dai Shan, what if you do something good?"
"In the talent test at the end of the year, my nephew dare not boast, he can only say that he will try his best!" Jia Daishan said modestly.
Like his elder brother, he was not a student since he was a child, so he naturally prepared for martial arts, won military exploits, and was promoted to a noble title.
There was also a sense of arrogance in his heart. He did not directly enter the martial arts hall like some noble disciples, but prepared to take the martial arts examination step by step.
Enyin and Wuju have two paths, but their futures are completely different.
As time went by, there was more peace and less war. Therefore, civil servants in the imperial court generally valued imperial examinations and meritorious service, and so did the military attachés.
It was even said that border ministers could not be appointed without military exercise.
The meaning is obvious. Enyin's military generals can only serve as generals. Important frontier positions such as governor-general require ability and cultural level, so it is very suitable for children to be promoted to martial arts.
The nobles also assessed the situation and asked their children to participate in martial arts as much as possible to win the future.
"Very good!" Wang Chunqing said with a smile: "My nephew has such a humble heart, why worry about failing to succeed in his career?"
There was a trace of shyness on Jia Daishan's face. He was completely different from his elder brother Jia Daihua's cheeky face, which made Wang Chunqing laugh.
Then, he looked at Shi Ding again.
Brothers Shi Nai and Shi Ding showed their prowess in the Battle of Beihai and gained great fame.
Shi Nai was directly promoted to earl, and Shi Ding was promoted to viscount.
His father originally had a viscount, so if we add them all up, there are three viscounts in one family.
Of course, there are rules for the transmission of titles. The clan government allows adoptive heirs, but it can only be done when there is no heir.
He originally had two sons, and the title could only be inherited by two sons.
In this case of multiple nobility, the court stipulated that the nobles could only distribute the inheritance to their descendants, but could not receive them all.
Because this is an act to divide the noble forces,
Otherwise, if some choices are not differentiated and five or six titles are given to one discipline, is that okay?
In other words, since Shi Nai is an earl, he cannot inherit another viscount unless he wins it by himself.
Therefore, the Viscount of the Shi family can only be inherited by his grandson.
Two sons, one viscount, will also be a dispute.
Xue Chongwen is in his thirties, and he is full of the temperament of a scholar, more like a scholar than a businessman.
But this does not change his identity as an imperial merchant.
Over the years, Wang Chunqing has been in charge of Chahar, and the Xue family has led the other three families to engage in grassland business.
Each family can make tens of thousands of dollars in profits a year.
Therefore, even though the Xue family has a relatively low status and does not belong to the noble class, they are still befriended.
"My nephew is here, not just to say hello?"
Wang Chunqing whispered to Xue Chongwen, with a bit more solemnity in her tone.
The wealth in charge of the Xue family was greater than that of simple nobles like them, so he had to be cautious.
Also because of leaving Chahar, the business in the grassland will inevitably decline. After all, the succeeding governor also has to do business for the family, and you can't stay behind when someone leaves.
"See you tomorrow, Shi Bo!"
Hearing this, Shi Ding and others felt their hearts bleed.
Who can bear to have their income cut in half?
Wang Chunqing was equally uncomfortable with this.
But there is no way, this is reality.
In the Ming Dynasty, when doing business, the backers in the counties and villages were the gentry such as scholar-officials. When doing business across the provinces and counties, you had to rely on local officials or nobles.
Especially long-distance business, it is impossible to do it without a certain background.
Even the imperial merchants could only deal with local ruffians and yamen, but they were not of much help in business competition.
Therefore, it is best to do monopoly business, leaving mining, tea industry, etc.
This trade route maintained by Xue Chongwen, because Wang Chunqing served as deputy commander-in-chief, then commander-in-chief, and governor-general, so the tribal nobles naturally respected him and took care to sell goods at low prices, often one or two percent lower than the market price.
.
The same is true. Only four companies can make such huge profits every year. Otherwise, it wouldn't make much sense to divide them into several thousand dollars a year.
Seeing the changes in the expressions of several people, including the governor Wang Chunqing, Xue Chongwen felt happy and remained silent.
Unless we encounter some difficulties, we really would not take our Xue family seriously.
"My dear nephew, is there any other way?"
Wang Chunqing said in a deep voice.
Shi Ding on the side said impatiently: "The expenses for the mansion have already been decided, what if it's half less?"
"Brother Xue, you are an imperial merchant, there should be something you can do!"
"Nowadays, the best trade route is Heilongjiang in the northeast."
Xue Chongwen said in a deep voice: "I heard that the whaling industry is booming, but any businessman with a ship will go to sea to hunt whales, and each one can make thousands of dollars in profit."
"We don't have a ship in the future, but we have the channels and the background. Wouldn't it be easy to make money?"
"Brother Xue, how much money do we have to invest?"
Jia Daishan was calm and pointed directly.
"Shibo, Brother Shi, Brother Jia, now a big ship with a thousand materials only costs 3,000 yuan. If you buy a current ship, 2,000 yuan is enough."
"So if our family invests 10,000 yuan, we can organize a huge caravan and make a lot of money."
Xue Chongwen gave a passionate speech: "Whale skin can be used as armor, fish meat can be eaten, fish oil can be made into candles, whale baleen can be used as strings for crossbows, and if you are lucky, there is also ambergris..."
"While others earn several thousand yuan, we can earn 10,000 yuan per head."
"Even the palace is using whale candles!"
Several people were said to be in a daze, but Wang Chunqing was, after all, older and much calmer.
He understands a realistic truth: the four major families have no connections or connections at sea.
In other words, the background cannot be used at all, and whales can only be caught with technology and ability.
In this case, profits will not be stable.
Unstable trading can make him anxious.
However, as a general, he still has this courage: "My dear nephew, it's only ten thousand yuan, so don't worry and do it."
"Thank you Shibo for your support!" Xue Chongwen was overjoyed.
With Wang Chunqing taking the lead and agreeing, there was only a good start.
You must know that not many people even in the Xue family agree to engage in the whaling industry, let alone the other three families.
As the person with the highest official position among the four families now, after Wang Chunqing takes the lead, the other three families will inevitably follow.
Several people chatted about interesting things in Beijing.
After a while, the eunuch came: "Governor Wang, Your Majesty has summoned me, please come with me quickly!"
Immediately, Wang Chunqing left in a hurry.
When he arrived at the palace, the emperor's expression was somewhat rare and serious: "How much does the Qing family know about the northwest?"
Wang Chunqing was stunned and immediately said:
"The northwest is strategic, and the Hexi region is particularly important.
The land here is fertile, rich in cattle, sheep and horses, and the food is abundant, making it a place for long-term defense. In addition, the imperial court has taken root and operated here for hundreds of years, with a solid foundation. Therefore, Hexi is not chaotic, and Suiyuan and Anxi are naturally stable."
"As long as the Hexi Corridor is owned by our country, there will be no chaos in the northwest."
"Very good!"
Zhu Yixi nodded and sighed: "The governor of Shaanxi and Gansu, Sun Shirui, got cold from the cold a while ago and is no longer able to manage political affairs."
"The Qing family has been in charge of the military town in Chahar for many years and has rich experience. Naturally, there will be no mistakes in appeasing the northwest."
"I believe you."
After saying this, Zhu Yixi said loudly: "Wang Chunqing accepts the order!"
"Your Majesty Chunqing accepts the order..."
Soon, the official post of the Governor-General of Shaanxi-Gansu was assigned to Wang Chunqing.
It is extremely rare for a military minister like him.
This is an inland feudal official, and according to convention, it should be a civil servant.
But neither Shaanxi nor Gansu are easy to get along with, and they need a strong minister to take charge.
An experienced military minister like Wang Chunqing came into view.
At the same time, unlike those princes, his title is only earl. His influence among the nobles is not great, and there is no need to worry about him taking advantage of the situation to become bigger.
Of course, thanks to his conscientious work in the past two years as Governor of Chahar, he has a way of appeasing the people, otherwise he really would not be qualified.
This also vividly illustrates the importance of distance.
Chahar is within easy reach, and there are hundreds of caravans coming and going every year. Shuntianfu can be reached almost casually.
In this way, once there are any political achievements, the court will immediately know about it, which is really a good place.
Not to mention that Wang Chunqing happily took up the post, while Zhu Yixi slapped her forehead and sighed.
In addition to the situation about Sun Shirui, there is another news from Jiangsu:
The Yellow River burst through Yandun on the south bank of Taoyuan, and the water entered Hongze Lake, destroying more than 300 feet of dams. Thirty counties along the river were flooded. The flood in Gaoyou County was as high as 20 feet, the city gates were blocked, and tens of thousands of people drowned.
Even if there is a flood discharge river, how can such a rapid flood be easily drained out?
Another flood that has never happened in a century.
Years of achievements in regulating the Yellow River were all destroyed under a heavy rain.
Therefore, in Jiangsu at this time, the number of disaster victims reached one million. It can be said that there is no need to think about summer taxes, and they can only be used for disaster relief.
At this time, a general was needed to take charge of Jiangsu, a large southern province, and Sun Shirui was very suitable.
Jiangsu's population of tens of millions cannot be chaotic.
At the same time, Jiangsu will also need to maintain the livelihood of the victims in the future.
Under this situation, a huge amount of money will flow into Jiangsu, and Zhu Yixi is most assured by knowledgeable officials like Sun Shirui who know the situation better.
At least he still has a bottom line.
Under the temptation of millions of silver coins, Zhu Yixi no longer trusts Jin Yiwei.
Jin Yiwei cannot find out the secret information in the officialdom, and may even be bribed.
He has always evaluated bureaucrats with the utmost malice.
Its bottom line must never be overestimated.
Thinking of this, Zhu Yixi felt a little helpless.
The Yellow River is really too dangerous.
There is a river hanging on the ground. The usually shallow and turbid river water suddenly exerts force. Who can bear it?
…
Horqin, along the Nen River, the river water nourishes many trees. This season has already snowed for the first time. The snow hanging on the branches makes the withered trees seem to bloom with clusters of flowers, which is particularly beautiful.
Inside and outside Nenjiang City, it is covered in silver and a vast expanse of white.
Li Yingren rode through the forest road and reined in the horse.
After a while, several generals also rode up, three horses abreast, and the big men on the mounts all stared ahead with bright eyes.
Even the front hooves of the war horse were scratching the snow, as if impatiently.
On the road directly behind, a long line of people and horses were crawling slowly, and there were also groups of sheep and carts pulled by ox-horses.
"It seems that there are really some people who are not afraid of death."
Li Yingren smiled.
The lieutenant general shook his head: "In this winter, if you want to avoid starving to death, this is the only way."
General Horqin's Mansion was established after the Mobei War.
At first, the imperial court decided that Wang Chunqing would be the general, and Jin Bao, the left minister of the Ministry of Rites, would be the governor of Chahar.
But the situation cannot be changed.
Before the two men took office, the court began to be in turmoil. The first assistant and second assistant took office one after another, and Jin Bao was promoted to Minister of Finance, leaping to the pinnacle of power.
In this way, in order to stabilize Chahar, Wang Chunqing was granted the post of governor as an exception, while General Horqin was passed over by Li Yingren.
As a descendant of the Li family in Liaodong, although Li Yingren was only an earl, he was quite competent in leading troops in battles and was relatively familiar with the environment in the Northeast, so he was chosen as the one he missed.
Soon, a large group of cavalry came out of the forest road and moved forward slowly. The army gradually became larger, and it was obviously impossible to hide their tracks in the open space in the middle.
This is a team with no less than a thousand riders.
Li Yingren was relatively calm. He kicked his war horse and shouted: "Kill without mercy——"
The cavalry at the front immediately rushed out, and the horses behind also accelerated their speed.
The silent army immediately shouted loudly, and the sound of horse hooves suddenly roared.
Seeing the Ming army's oncoming force, the Mongols were not willing to come forward and fight, so they turned around and ran away.
The Mongolian cavalrymen were wrapped in tattered sheep coats and were no match for the enemy. They were immediately chased away and screamed. They were quickly surrounded and had to dismount and kowtow to beg for mercy.
Li Yingren stood on the ground and wiped his saber back and forth on the clothes of a dead corpse. Looking around, he saw corpses everywhere on the ground, stained with flakes of snow, and stained with blood everywhere.
It looks intense, but it doesn't kill more than a few hundred people.
He took a quick look and saw that there were very few people wearing leather armor, only a handful of them.
"Take care of yourself, lest you attract wolves!"
"Boss, those beasts are here just in time. We are in need of a wolfskin coat!"
The soldiers were in high spirits. This encounter was quite smooth and there were not many critical casualties.