Rain fell in pitter-pattering streams, clattering onto the carriage canopy and the stone-paved long street.
Han Qian tightened the reins to slow his horse, riding close alongside the carriage, saying, “I wrote a letter this afternoon to send to Xuzhou, thinking to bring Ting’er and Wenxin mother and son to Tangyi to stay for some time. I also thought that after they arrive and I speak to her about this matter, I would formally send someone to Yangzhou…”
“At least you have a conscience. Otherwise, if she remained in Xuzhou knowing you were making a great show of marrying in Tangyi, even if she said nothing, her heart would surely be desolate,” Xi Ren leaned over to say.
Maidservant Xiangyun sat at the rear of the carriage, somewhat dazed, not even noticing raindrops falling on her face.
As a personal maidservant, she knew better than anyone the entanglement between Wang Jun and Han Qian, and that Wang Jun had persisted in not marrying these years. Yet she felt deep regret, because she also knew better than anyone what obstacles lay between Wang Jun and Han Qian.
Coming to Tangyi in disguise this time, she had truly thought it was just to relax—after all, Yangzhou, Taizhou and other places were all ravaged by war. Though Jiangnan was prosperous, it couldn’t compare to coming to Tangyi for peace of mind. She just never imagined they would unexpectedly encounter Han Qian right upon landing at East Lake, much less that after just staying as guests, Han Qian would suddenly turn to the topic of sending someone to propose marriage.
Besides, even if Han Qian now wanted to send someone to Yangzhou to propose, would the Wang family necessarily agree?
Who was it that publicly used the betrothal to humiliate the Wang family at the Third Prince’s wedding banquet? And in Fanchang, who was it that, upon hearing Director Ruan and Commissioner Yin raise the betrothal matter again, disregarded everything and left in a huff, leaving the young miss alone in Fanchang to awkwardly face the whole city’s gossip?
Thinking of this, Xiangyun felt indignant on Wang Jun’s behalf.
“You seem quite certain I won’t turn and leave after hearing your mad ravings. How did you guess I came for this matter?” Wang Jun rested her hand on the carriage’s side railing, extending her arm with its icy, snow-white skin into the rain, watching raindrops fall on her slender fingers.
“Emperor Liang Zhu Yu was in Sizhou last year, driving tens of thousands of cavalry to raid Huaidong, systematically destroying the garrison farming system my father established in southern Chuzhou in earlier years. Prince Xin failed to detect his intentions in time and still executed the previous scorched earth strategy.”
Han Qian wiped rain from his face, saying.
“In the past, with Huaidong’s defensive line relying on the entire Great Chu’s supplies, using scorched earth tactics to avoid the enemy’s sharp edge while preserving strength was fine. Even if one area’s garrison farming system was destroyed, recovery would only take two or three years. But the mistake was that after Prince Xin was enfeoffed in Huaidong, military provisions could only be levied from the mere three prefectures and seventeen counties under his control. With the production system severely damaged, shortages immediately appeared. Calculating stored grain, Huaidong might sustain another three or four months. Unfortunately, Chu and Yang counties also suffered great disaster, with summer and autumn grain production able to preserve only thirty to forty percent at best, with even less tax revenue collected. This means Huaidong army’s stored grain had no possibility of replenishment this year. In this situation, even if Huaidong didn’t directly send officials to petition Jinling but intended to first test Tangyi’s attitude, there was no need to have you come…”
Only then did Xiangyun realize she was a fool, thinking: yes, when the young miss willfully insisted on coming to Tangyi to visit, the master didn’t make a sound or obstruct at all—such obvious abnormality, yet she hadn’t noticed?
Xi Ren laughed, embracing Wang Jun’s shoulders from behind, saying, “Two days before you arrived, Han Qian was still joking that with Huaidong’s weak points so thoroughly exposed this time, they’d have to offer up a few wives to obtain court assistance. Yet unexpectedly, before Huaidong’s wives were offered, the always calculating Minister Wang who never accepts losses first wanted to offer his daughter over…”
Embarrassed by Xi Ren’s words, Wang Jun changed the subject, asking Han Qian, “Liyang City is perfectly intact, yet few households have migrated here so far. What do you intend to use this place for?”
“To give you as a betrothal gift!” Xi Ren said with a laugh. “East Lake City is chaotic—it might not take shape even in three to five years. In the short term, Han Qian has no spare energy to specially build a residence as a golden house for hiding beauty—when you marry over, we can’t have you wronged by living in humble lanes and crude rooms!”
“If you keep talking nonsense, I won’t speak to you anymore,” Wang Jun couldn’t help protesting.
“Ji Xiyao has already been transferred to Tangyi. Next month, the main instructors and newly enrolled students of the Engineering Academy, Medical Academy, and Military Academy will all relocate here. We also want to establish a teacher training academy,” Han Qian said. “Of course, the academies initially may only have over a thousand people, so some buildings will still temporarily sit vacant. But for now we don’t want too mixed a population migrating in…”
Liyang City’s west gate was only thirty-five or thirty-six li by direct road from the newly built embankment on the eastern shore of Chao Lake.
In other places, this distance might seem far, but Jinling’s outer city walls stretched over twenty li from east to west, and the distance from the imperial palace to Changchun Palace was also over thirty li—showing that the distance between Liyang and East Lake could be said to be just right.
Once the road between Liyang and East Lake was properly constructed in the future, allowing carriages to travel back and forth, the journey between Liyang and East Lake would only take an hour.
Liyang wasn’t suitable for building wharfs and harbors, inconvenient for transporting bulk goods. But with its secluded environment and dense forests, summer climate somewhat more temperate than East Lake and Dongguan thirty or forty li away, it was an excellent place for establishing academies and summer retreats.
Leaving East Lake Camp in the afternoon, traveling east in the rain, unable to move quickly on the roads, they delayed an hour en route. Entering Liyang City and traveling along the street, by the time they reached a residence on the east side of the long street, the sky had nearly darkened.
Though the garrison forces in Liyang City had already swept through the residence and people usually maintained it, Han Donghu still led guards inside to search first before Han Qian entered with Wang Jun and Xi Ren.
Before Emperor Tianyou crossed the river to capture the Shengzhou Regional Military Commissioner’s headquarters (Jinling), Liyang City had been the command headquarters of the Huainan Army’s southwestern field camp. Li Yu had lived in this residence—at that time, Huainan Army warships also traveled via the Yuxi River, entering the Yangtze from Chao Lake to cross the river and land on Shengzhou Prefecture’s western side.
After Emperor Tianyou crossed the river to establish his capital in Jinling, he had also bestowed this residence upon Li Yu. But when Li Yu resigned from office to live in seclusion in Yuzhang, he returned all the fields and residences bestowed in Jinling, Liyang and other places.
Afterward, this estate became an official garden under Liyang County office administration.
Coming from the long street, the residence looked somewhat unremarkable from outside. But after the three entered, they saw it held another world within—several sets of courtyards front and back, totaling over a hundred rooms.
The pavilions, towers and halls couldn’t be called particularly grand, but the blue brick and black tile, white walls and winding corridors complemented bamboo, pomegranate, crabapple and many other flowers and trees in an extremely elegant and tranquil manner.
Large and small meandering ponds dotted the garden, raising many koi. One could see that after recovering Liyang City, though this garden hadn’t housed occupants, it had been well maintained—pathways and areas before and behind buildings had no weeds or accumulated fallen leaves.
In the central garden, a wooden tower stood atop a three or four zhang high artificial mountain. Wang Jun climbed the tower with Han Qian and Xi Ren, taking in the entire long street they’d just walked. Gazing into the distance, Qingcang Mountain north of Liyang City appeared and disappeared through the rain curtain like a gray dragon quietly crouching in the rain.
Though Wang Jun had resolved to personally come pierce this layer of window paper, having thought along the way about various scenarios for broaching this matter, when Han Qian directly pierced through it, the courage in her heart seemed completely deflated. Now feeling embarrassed, she stood before the tower’s window railing, stretching her soft, slender figure as if wanting to deeply imprint this beautiful scenery in her heart.
“This residence—will you find it less comfortable than living in Jian Garden?” Han Qian asked.
Wang Jun shot Han Qian an indignant glance, afraid Xi Ren would mock her, and didn’t respond to his words.
“I say, we’re all so familiar, so there’s no need to find intermediaries to negotiate betrothal gifts and dowry. Why don’t we directly discuss what kind of betrothal gift Huaidong needs to marry you over?” Xi Ren casually sat at the long table in the tower hall, hand supporting her snow-white chin, asking Wang Jun.
“I came to Tangyi fully expecting to be humiliated again, thinking I’d return to Yangzhou with only blue lamps and ancient texts guarding a nunnery. I didn’t think to carefully ask Father what Prince Xin’s conditions actually were,” Wang Jun took a breath, sitting across from Xi Ren at the table, saying. “However, Huaidong’s situation in the next two years will be very difficult. Each year they need to import over a million shi of grain from outside to rebuild the garrison farming system, but they also fear the court will use this opportunity to press for vassal dissolution…”
“If not for the unstable factors of Wanhong Tower and the Empress Dowager, this might truly be an excellent opportunity to eliminate the Huaidong vassal state.”
Han Qian stood by the window, sighing lightly, saying.
“However, the court internally is far from stabilized. Both Huaidong and Huaixi had best maintain the current situation. Yang Yuanyan’s conditions aren’t unacceptable—”
“Fortunately so. Otherwise, to marry you, Han Qian would probably have to forcibly detain you this time, accepting the world’s ridicule,” Xi Ren said with a laugh.
From the Xichuan campaign period, Xi Ren had followed at Han Qian’s side, part concubine and part servant, with close and trusting relations. Naturally she most clearly understood the entanglement between Han Qian and Wang Jun over the years, particularly the Fanchang marriage refusal—ultimately Wang Jun had made tremendous sacrifices to provide Han Qian the best excuse to return to Xuzhou.
If Han Qian and Wang Jun’s marriage encountered more complications, she felt it would be better to directly resolve it with force.
After all, Han Qian had forcibly implemented new policies in Xuzhou. During the Jinling Incident, he’d further offended all the powerful clans completely—one more matter for the world to discuss wouldn’t make a difference.
Wang Jun smiled, then said, “Even if you now know Huaidong’s needs, this matter probably won’t be so easy to accomplish?”
“Even if not easy, it must be done,” Han Qian laughed. “You now also understand the situation at East Lake and Xuzhou. Compared to Huaidong, I actually need two to three years even more to stabilize the foundation here—fortunately your father couldn’t fathom Tangyi’s depths. Otherwise, even if he didn’t offer you, I’d still have to cooperate with Huaidong…”
“You might also consider how many people you’ve schemed against these years. If Wang Jun doesn’t marry over and force you to reveal your ambitions more openly, who in the world would feel secure cooperating with you?” Xi Ren said indignantly.
Joking aside, the three then sat in the tower pondering how difficult Huaidong’s current predicament truly was to resolve.
Each year, the field taxes, poll taxes, and various miscellaneous taxes submitted by prefectures and counties and received by the Ministry of Finance into the national treasury were fixed amounts.
For prefectures and counties to maintain operation of military and administrative systems, they inevitably retained a certain proportion. Even new portions generated each year by prefectures and counties were retained as local expenditures.
Before the Ministry of Finance conducted large-scale field and household surveys, no locality would honestly hand over all tax revenue, much less with powerful clans controlling grassroots authority now—they wished they could submit as little as possible.
Beyond this, the financial resources the outer court’s central administration could control mainly consisted of salt profits and various monopoly taxes including wine, tea, iron and transit taxes controlled by the Salt and Iron Bureau.
These various taxes, partly in physical form like grain, cloth and silk—transit and market taxes also mostly collected one in ten as physical goods in lieu of taxes—and partly transported to the capital as currency for reserve use.
Even with Jiangnan prefectures and counties maintaining general stability without much impact from the Jinling Incident, the court could only levy about two million shi of grain annually from prefectures and counties, one million two hundred thousand bolts of cloth and silk, plus other miscellaneous taxes fluctuating around two million strings of cash.
This was the outer court’s annual income, with expenditures calculated by the Revenue Service. Besides official salaries and rewards for court officials, the largest expenditure block was military provisions for the Imperial Guards and Imperial Attendant Army.
Beyond this, the inner court also controlled income from minting currency and rents from imperial estates in various locations under the Inner Palace Bureau’s name, but this was mainly used for inner palace and imperial clan expenditures, unrelated to the outer court. Whether to allocate this money and grain for emergency use and how much depended on Emperor Yanyou and the Empress Dowager’s mood.
Honestly speaking, Great Chu hadn’t stopped suffering internal troubles and external threats these past two years. That Shen Yang presiding over central government affairs could barely maintain operations without collapse was already quite remarkable.
The court now could directly levy only just over two million shi of grain and over one million bolts of cloth annually in physical taxes—with transport of these physical taxes currently mainly each prefecture and county’s own responsibility for shipment networks. Even distributing salaries and rewards to civil and military officials and maintaining such an enormous Imperial Guard and Attendant Army system wasn’t sufficient, requiring additional portions from imperial estate rents for supplementation.
Now Huaidong annually lacked over a million shi of grain. The court couldn’t directly provide this much food, but even taking money and silk to purchase from the populace, calculated at Jianghuai’s persistently high grain prices these past two years, would require taking out two million strings of cash annually…
With central finances so strained, truly squeezing out this much money and grain from between teeth for inner and outer courts to reinforce Huaidong—wouldn’t they demand Prince Xin mortgage even his undergarments before being satisfied?
Though the court was not only not united but severely divided, regardless of which faction Prince Xin cooperated with, the enormous obstacle of at least two to three million strings or as much as four to five million strings of cash in additional expenditures over the next two or three years couldn’t be avoided by anyone.
Even if Han Qian wanted to cooperate with Prince Xin Yang Yuanyan, they still had to consult together to find methods—seeing how, under obstruction by numerous court officials, and without touching Huaidong’s fundamental interests, they could overcome this obstacle.
This really wasn’t ordinarily difficult.
This wasn’t something that having Han Daoming as an internal ally would be enough—Han Qian and Prince Xin joining forces to pressure Jinling wouldn’t suffice.
Of course, with Wang Jun knowing her father Wang Wenqian’s and Prince Xin Yang Yuanyan’s thoughts and those of other Huaidong officers, Han Qian could more clearly sort through Huaidong’s intricate internal interests. At the same time, he also told Wang Jun about matters involving Wanhong Tower, Han Jun, the Empress Dowager, and even Li Zhigao’s identity secrets, so she could help him deliberate response strategies.
Learning so many secrets, Wang Jun didn’t appear too shocked. Her slender, delicate hand supported her snow-white, rounded chin as her beautiful eyes looked at Han Qian, saying, “If you truly want to marry me, you might ask Prince Shou to go to Yangzhou to propose marriage. This way my father can also recover some face…”
“Yang Zhitang?” Han Qian leaned against the window platform, arms folded across his chest, also raising one hand to support his chin in contemplation.
“Even if Prince Shou doesn’t know more detailed circumstances, he should be extremely wary of Lü Qingxia and Li Zhigao. While Shen Yang, Yang En and others may be more loyal to His Majesty, for Prince Shou, if His Majesty is too deeply controlled by old Divine Mausoleum Bureau subordinates, as a fellow son of the late emperor, Prince Xin might not be a worse alternative choice for him.”
Wang Jun looked at Han Qian, saying.
“As you said, if not for Lü Qingxia and others restraining the Empress Dowager from behind, Prince Shou and many in court might more resolutely support vassal dissolution. But currently Prince Shou should more hope Huaidong can maintain its current status. Prince Xin may have long secretly sent people to petition Prince Shou, just that Prince Shou lacks confidence in accomplishing this alone… “
Han Qian nodded, saying, “Or rather, he doesn’t want to arouse His Majesty’s suspicion at this time and is unwilling to take the lead in this matter—who knows, perhaps your and my betrothal was first suggested by this old fox?”
“My father went to Chuzhou to see Prince Xin in mid-July. Ruan Yan brought up this matter on his behalf. How exactly Prince Xin thought of this wasn’t mentioned—perhaps Prince Shou really did mediate…” When Wang Jun pondered problems deeply, her beautiful eyes took on a somewhat dreamy quality, her elegant brows unconsciously slightly furrowing.
“If Prince Shou was already involved in this matter, asking Prince Shou to propose marriage, he cannot refuse. Before His Majesty, Prince Shou can also claim he couldn’t decline requests from this side, rather than actively seeking reconciliation with Huaidong. Of course, the entire matter can advance our cooperation with Prince Shou that hasn’t yet been achieved, killing several birds with one stone—only, if Prefect Wang knew his daughter so eagerly turned her elbows this way, I wonder what his heart would feel,” Xi Ren said with a laugh.
Wang Jun reached out to hit Xi Ren, but with Xi Ren’s agility, she easily dodged with a sidestep.
Han Qian contemplated for a long while, then told Wang Jun, “Whether Yang Zhitang was involved is still just speculation. Even if I send people to probe, that old fox Yang Zhitang is extremely wary—he might directly decline the marriage proposal matter. Too hasty would be counterproductive. However, before this, Tangyi and Huaidong can first cooperate on one matter to lay groundwork…”
“What matter can be done first?” Wang Jun asked.
Han Qian said, “Tangyi newly reclaimed over one hundred thousand mu of fields in June and July, renovating over ten thousand old houses. I want to arrange for people to go to Yangzhou to sell these fields and residences at ten to twenty percent discount. But as long as people can come over, all proceeds from field and residence sales can be loaned to Huaidong for purchasing grain…”
Never mind Jiangdong and Liangzhe—Yangzhou and Taizhou’s populace also had surplus grain.
Yangzhou and Taizhou were originally lands of fish and rice, not suffering war or great disaster for nearly ten years.
During the Jinling Incident, Prince Xin’s forces occupied Yangzhou and Taizhou, also vigorously courting local powers, only requiring normal tax payments—far unlike the later period when Chuzhou forces prepared to withdraw north of the river for those one or two months, when they plundered Runzhou and Changzhou without restraint.
Not only did Yangzhou and Taizhou’s populace have stored grain, it wouldn’t be too little.
However, the problem was that commoners, especially powerful clan families, held surplus grain. Besides paying normal field and poll taxes, unless absolutely necessary, Huaidong forces couldn’t possibly directly seize grain in their own territory—truly reaching that step, they might as well kneel down and actively petition the court for vassal dissolution.
Even temporary additional levies would ultimately be passed more onto commoners, further intensifying internal contradictions and turmoil.
Of course, if Huaidong forces had sufficient funds, not only could Yangzhou and Taizhou obtain certain amounts of grain, they could even send people to Runzhou, Huzhou and other even more grain-abundant lands of fish and rice to purchase grain.
After all, Huaidong remained Great Chu’s territory. Though Huaidong forces suffered successive military and flood disasters, even if the court didn’t aid them, it wouldn’t restrict Huaidong from purchasing grain in Jiangnan prefectures and counties.
Tangyi’s situation was similar.
Tangyi’s grain shortage was extreme. Previously newly reclaimed grain fields hadn’t reached harvest time yet. Even with harvests this autumn, they must first satisfy soldiers’ families’ food needs for next year. Military and manufacturing grain consumption would long-term require external purchases.
Currently, besides the two thousand shi polished rice and thirty thousand strings of cash allocated monthly by the Privy Council, Tangyi also purchased sixty to seventy thousand shi of grain monthly from prefectures with still relatively cheap grain prices, even from Yuzhou under Marquis Changxiang Wang Yong’s governance, transporting it to Tangyi to meet consumption needs.
Such enormous consumption, besides the Han family continuously selling fields and residences in Xuanzhou, Shezhou and other places to purchase grain and materials for Tangyi, mainly benefited from Xuzhou this year levying physical taxes only from the cotton weaving industry—collecting over eight hundred thousand bolts of Qianyang cloth and four million jin of seed cotton.
Great Chu’s physical taxes were mainly grain and cloth. As daily necessities, cloth was sometimes harder currency than gold, silver and copper coins.
Han Qian implemented labor in lieu of corvée taxes in Tangyi. When hiring soldiers’ families for work, he mainly paid in grain. But when paying laborers conscripted from Guangde and Jiangzhou, he paid with Qianyang cloth instead of cash—workers had no complaints.
Jiangzhou and Guangde Prefecture were governed by Zhou Dan and Chen Jingzhou. Han Qian even used Qianyang cloth to exchange for all stored grain in these two prefectures’ granaries. Marquis Changxiang Wang Yong was even more willing to have Xuzhou exchange quality, cheap Qianyang cloth for grain…
Combined with Chishan Association’s transport capacity gradually recovering, as long as no major changes occurred subsequently, just over eight hundred thousand bolts of Qianyang cloth and four million jin of seed cotton could exchange for six to seven hundred thousand shi of grain for Tangyi.
Adding the Han family’s full clan support at this point, various Tangyi matters could proceed simultaneously.
However, the problem for Huaidong forces now was they not only had limited surplus grain, they also couldn’t produce much money or cloth.
Jiangnan paddy fields cost over ten strings of cash per mu. Tangyi selling fields and residences in Huaidong at ten to twenty percent of market price—over ten thousand old houses and over one hundred thousand mu of fields, if truly sold in Yangzhou, could obtain about two hundred thousand strings of cash to loan Huaidong for purchasing grain. Though Tangyi’s land prices were low, Yangzhou and Taizhou residents wouldn’t be too interested. But Chuzhou residents fleeing war with homes burned down, even refugees fleeing south from Haizhou and Sizhou north of the Huai River, would be different.
Though this could only delay the crisis one or two months, it also gained more time to resolve problems subsequently…