Yunzhao’s fourth year of Chongzhen came soon. For Yunzhao, it was a little boring and lazy. It also feels like wasting time.
However, for the Ming Dynasty, the world did not become better in the fourth year of Chongzhen.
The thieves entered Shanxi and actively attacked Hequ to gain a foothold.
In January, Hequ fell.
After the loss of Hequ, the Jin army was defeated. A large number of guest troops entered Shanxi and gathered in the Hequ area.
For this purpose, the imperial court set up Du Wenhuan, the commander-in-chief of Shanxi and Shaanxi, for unified command and dispatch.
Cao Wenzhao, deputy commander-in-chief of Yansui East Road, led the Guan Ning Army to the south of Hequ.
The giant bandit Wang Jiayin stayed in the meander of the river and could not come out.
As the scale of operations expands, Shanxi's river defense level on the Yellow River is also improving.
The supply line in the east of Yansui was cut off, and transportation in the south and west was not smooth. The price of goods in Yansui reached one stone and six taels.
In this case, not only military pay is needed, but relief for the victims is also needed. The Ministry of Household Affairs issued 60,000 taels of silver as spring pay for Yansui soldiers, and the two departments of household and military affairs jointly issued 100,000 taels of silver as disaster relief.
Wu Di took the one hundred thousand taels of silver to Shanxi for relief.
Without a large amount of food entering Shanxi, money alone was just a piece of cake for the Shanxi people's army to satisfy their hunger.
At Hong Chengchou's suggestion, Wu Di transferred to Lantian County to buy grain from Yunzhao.
In the first month of the fourth year of Chongzhen, Zhang Yingchang, the deputy commander-in-chief of Dingbian, Zuo Guang killed the giant bandit Shen Yiyuan before Baoan, but unfortunately they failed to defeat the enemy in one battle. The rest relied on Shen Yikui and vowed to kill Baoan. People of one place.
But because of lack of food and grass, they had to follow Wang Jiayin, Luo Rucai and others, crossing the Yellow River and entering Shanxi.
Li Hongji and Zhang Xianzhong, while plundering all directions in Shanxi, fought fiercely with the government and the army. Through continuous fierce battles, Li Hongji finally gained the name of "The General", and Zhang Xianzhong also became known as the "Eight Great Kings". His reputation shocked Shanxi.
When the entire Yansui, as well as Hequ in Shanxi, northern Henan, and east Gansu are all mixed into a pot of porridge, Lantian County is peaceful and boring.
Refugees continued to enter Lantian County. Although Yun Zhao ordered the border to be closed, the refugees still looked for every opportunity to enter Lantian County.
As soon as they entered Lantian County, they turned to relatives and friends one after another, asking for help at all costs to register in Lantian County.
In December of the third year of Chongzhen, Yun Zhao had only more than 24,000 households under his command. By March of the fourth year of Chongzhen, the number of registered households in Lantian County actually reached an astonishing 35,000 households. The population of Lantian County A sudden increase of 10,000 households occurred in one year, accounting for almost 40% of the original household registration in Lantian County.
Refugees who can enter Lantian County through various channels and obtain household registration cannot be called refugees. Most of them are upper-class households, and the most disadvantaged ones are middle-class households. Only such families can Bear the expensive cost of household registration in Lantian County.
"When the Emperor of Han Dynasty moved 100,000 households into Guanzhong, it was only on this scale."
Xu Yuanshou took another look at the population register of Lantian County and couldn't help but sigh.
Yun Zhaodao: "Chang'an County was disrupted by Hao Yaoqi, Gao Yigong, and He Jin made Fufeng County and Qian County a mess. Behind us, Xiangfan is also full of thieves. The people of this world It is really difficult for us to find a stable place to live."
Xu Yuanshou said: "You only want the rich and don't allow the poor to enter Lantian County. This is harmful to the peace of the world."
Yun Zhao shook his head and said: "Sir, you have wrongly blamed me. The reason why the population of Lantian County has increased dramatically is not that more rich people have come in, but that the poor have come in.
One household can support three families The main reason for the population explosion in Lantian County is that lower households enter Lantian County together, but it is more controversial when wealthy households enter Lantian County, while small households from poor households enter together with the upper households. It’s from Lantian County, so everyone just says that the family has a big business.”
“The land in Lantian County can’t support so many people... Even if you always expand the boundary markers when you have nothing to do, I can’t feed so many people.”
“I’m going to start a business. It’s impossible for all these people to farm. I don’t have that much land, and I don’t need so many people to farm. "
"I heard that you have joined forces with Shanxi merchants to develop business outside the Great Wall?"
"Yes, this is a big deal, and it can support a lot of people. "
"If I remember correctly, the rice I ate seems to have been taken from Jin merchants, right?"
"Business is like a battlefield. Hehe is commonplace. Mr. was originally an open-minded person, why has he become pedantic now?"
Xu Yuanshou shook his head and said: "I just feel sorry for the merchant from Jin who did business with you. It’s hard to choose a business partner, but I chose a robber.”
Yun Zhao smiled and said nothing, took out six dollars and bought two sesame balls from a roadside vendor stall. One is handed to the husband and the other eats by himself.
Xu Yuanshou raised his eyes to look at the two-mile-long Cao Shizi on both sides of the street, then looked down at the sesame balls in his hands, took a bite of the sesame balls and said to Yun Zhao: "A sesame ball costs three?
Yun Zhao’s eyes were smiling, and he held up the sesame balls and said to Xu Yuanshou: “Sir, my family thinks that my greatest achievement is that I gained an arsenal and became a county magistrate. I don’t know that turning the sesame balls in our hands into three cents each is my greatest achievement in the past two years."
Xu Yuanshou and Yun Zhao stood in front of the stall selling sesame balls, looking at the passers-by. There was an endless stream of people coming over to buy the freshly baked sesame balls, with a look of satisfaction on their faces.
“I sold twelve sesame balls for one stick of incense and got thirty-six dollars.”
“Take the household registration book and go to the grain depot with thirty-six dollars. You can buy six kilograms of grain!”
“Huh? The price of grain in Lantian County has dropped to six cents per kilogram”
Yun Zhao shook his head and said: "No, there are many ways to do it. Students can't explain it clearly for a while. There are many algorithms involved. For example, making sesame balls requires white rice, and white rice has a different price than wheat, millet, and millet. , the conversion is very troublesome.
However, since there is a business of selling sesame balls for three cents, it is necessary to make one cent per sesame ball.
This is me. The benefits given to the people are also the way to support their families."
"Why is it a gift from you?"
"Do you know how much a load of food costs outside?"< /p>
“Until, Brother Liu Zhang just returned from Hancheng Province, where the price of food is almost as high as gold.
By the way, you don’t have to worry about someone taking advantage of your low price Are the grains sold outside?”
“Don’t worry, every household can buy a certain amount of low-priced grains. We will ensure that the people’s rations are low-priced and they will not have any excess. The grain is for sale."
"What did Ma Tuan say?"
Yun Zhao smiled silently, took out a few copper coins from his arms and handed them to Xu Yuanshou.
Xu Yuanshou looked carefully at the copper coin in his hand. He saw that the copper coin was golden in color, with clear writing. It was heavy in his hand, unlike other coins that were light and weightless.
"Is this a copper coin you minted privately?" Xu Yuanshou was shocked.
Yun Zhao looked at his husband and said: "I will never risk the disapproval of the world. There is a money casting bureau in Shaanxi, and these money are cast by the money casting bureau, and the Shaanxi money casting bureau is in Fufeng. , I produced some copper materials, and then obtained a batch of this kind of money.
In the Ming Dynasty, from Emperor Hongwu to Emperor Shenzong, there were only six people who made money, and only six of them made money at a time. Mint 190,000 coins.
Since Emperor Shenzong, new coins have been minted every year... and then everyone started to use silver.
I think this is the way to do it. No, sir, what do you think?"
Xu Yuanshou conveniently put a handful of Yun Zhao's money into his sleeve and looked at the grass market at the foot of Yushan Mountain with his hands behind his back. After a long time, he said to Yun Zhao: "Grow up early, your current body can no longer contain your ambition."
Yun Zhao smiled and said: "Take your time, I'm actually not in a hurry at all, I even wish that time would stop." Four years in Chongzhen will give me a few more years of preparation time, so that we can do things better and more properly.
The days ahead will not be easy, and we need to do enough. Only by being prepared can we face the storm in the future."
"Li Taibai said: I wish I could hang a long rope to the blue sky and tie it to the day when it flies west. The clouds will not stop."
Yun Zhao smiled and said: "In that case, sir, are you willing to bring me slave craftsmen from Haojing?"
Xu Yuanshou sighed and said: "Already on the way here, my brother will take over for me." You bought a lot. He didn’t think it was a sinful thing, but thought it was a good deed. Among them were two Jesuits.Scholars will also come together. "
"Who are they? "Yun Zhao's big eyes sparkled.
"Deng Yuhan, Luo Yagu, my brother also wrote a letter saying that you can visit the Jesuits Jin Nige and Tang Ruowang who are living in Xi'an for missionary work. ”