Chapter 2765

In the Ming Dynasty, public grain transportation from the south to the north was mainly divided into two parts: sea transportation and water transportation. Starting from the Chenghua period of the Ming Dynasty, the annual grain transportation volume was about 4 million shi, of which 60% came from southern Zhili and Zhejiang.

In addition to grain, the five prefectures of Suzhou, Songjiang, Changzhou, Jiaxing and Huzhou in the Jiangsu and Zhejiang regions also need to bear the so-called "white grain" dedicated to the palace and Beijing officials, amounting to 214,000 shi per year.

The Ming Dynasty stipulated that all grain levies were in essence and could not be reduced or reduced. Except in the case of major disasters or water transportation being blocked, they could not be converted into gold, silver or other commodities. All freight, ship repair fees, personnel consumption, etc. were borne by grain households.

Levy will be distributed based on regular grain and increased consumption.

As a result, it leaves a huge space for corruption and accumulation of government officials at all levels to operate. Various groups of people who charge extra fees emerge in an endless stream, even several times more than the normal amount paid.

Each prefecture has officials from the Ministry of Household Affairs and the Cao Prefecture to take command. At the prefecture and county level, the grain chief is responsible for collection and transportation. Under the grain chief, there are also housekeepers and transporters, who are responsible for transportation tasks in a corvee situation.

However, once the public grain is damaged in various ways during transportation, or if it fails to pass the government's acceptance due to lack of money to deal with blackmail from officials, the losses caused will be fully borne by the carrier. Those who are forced to lose their families and lose their lives will

Civil dissent abounds, and the entire water transport system has become an accelerator for the government to force people to rebel.

Cao Kun, the grain chief, is a typical victim. When he was more than ten years old, he was forced to inherit his father's position as grain chief. And his father's resignation was not a normal handover. It happened during a grain transportation process.

The boat capsized on the river, and thousands of stones of grain sank into the river. His father could not bear the loss, so he simply chose to flee and disappeared from the world without a trace.

The person involved ran away, but the debt could not run away with him. The so-called father's debt must be paid by the son. If Cao Kun did not want his whole family to go to jail, he had to bear this debt. From the day he took office, he owed a large sum to the government.

Money can only be paid back slowly through years of continuous corvee work, and I have been doing it for seven years now.

The dossier does not mention how the Special Liaison Office established contact with Cao Kun, but judging from the information between the lines, it is likely that Cao Kun had the intention of actively reporting, and was then transferred to the Special Liaison Office to handle the matter.

thing.

The incident that Cao Kun wanted to inform Haihan officials was also related to water transportation and the expropriation of land and grain.

In 1654, the Ming Dynasty surrendered to Haihan. Although in name the Shanghai Han Dynasty would inherit the dominance of the Ming Dynasty, taking over the management system of such a huge country could not be completed in a short time. Many regions and departments still continued the rule of the Ming Dynasty.

Mode of operation. In order to achieve a smooth transition, Haihan had to acquiesce in this situation.

The water transport affairs of the Ming Dynasty were managed by the Governor of Water Transport located in Huai'an Prefecture, Nanzhili. The full name of this position is "Governor-General of Water Transport and Admiral of Military Affairs, Governor of Fengyang and other departments and also in charge of rivers." This means that the Caofu Mansion not only manages 3,000 rivers

Yuli canal, and also has the right to manage local affairs along the canal.

Under the Governor of Water Transport, there are also civil servants such as those responsible for the administration of water, censors for patrolling the water, doctors, supervisors, managers of punishments, and principals. There is also a military transport establishment with subordinate generals, commanders and other military attachés. The total number of civil and military officials is about two to three hundred.

During the period when the personnel establishment was the largest, there were as many as 120,000 guards under the canal transport. Of course, there were empty quotas used to defraud the imperial budget, so it is difficult to calculate the true situation.

But even during the Chongzhen period in the late Ming Dynasty, there were still tens of thousands of people under the jurisdiction of the Caofu government in the areas of warehousing, shipbuilding, and Cao guards. If we add in the people along the canal who relied on the water transportation system for their livelihood, then this number I'm afraid the numbers will have to be doubled several times.

Once such a huge institution stops operating, it may affect the livelihood of hundreds of thousands of people and cause social unrest. Moreover, the northern region still needs to import materials from the south through water transportation, so it is necessary to ensure that the water transportation system can continue to be stable. Operation.

And if Haihan wants to replace the original system, it is obvious that he cannot send a few officials to take over. Changing the yamen signboard will have the effect. Therefore, after Haihan took over Jiangsu and Zhejiang, he has not yet taken action on the water transportation system. It is still Let it retain its previous establishment and maintain operations as usual.

But precisely because of this, Haihan's attitude may have caused misunderstandings to some people, thinking that Haihan was unable to fully control the water transport system due to various fears, so he could use this extraordinary period to do something to seek personal gain, or to Create some trouble for Haihan.

During a mission to transport grain northward in the second half of last year, Cao Kun discovered that there were many problems on the canal from Suzhou to Huai'an.

The most important problem is the calculation of deductions and losses on the way. It is not a new thing to extract oil and water during the water transportation process in the name of losses, but in the past, there were special personnel from the Caofu Yamen to keep an eye on it, and generally they would not go too far. It's an exaggeration. It's enough for each link to collect its share of the benefits, and at least 80% will still be shipped to the north.

But now, before the grain ship has passed Huai'an, about 30% of the grain has been secretly cut off in the name of loss. According to Cao Kun, he saw the local guards boarding the ship to unload grain in an organized manner in the middle of the night, and was warned No publicity is allowed.

If such a situation had occurred before, the carrier would definitely have to bear the responsibility, and maybe he would have to compensate for the losses like Cao Kun's father did. But now, in order to prevent the incident from being exposed, the person behind the operation has found a better person. A good excuse is to put the blame on Haihan.

The insufficient quantity of goods arriving in the north is due to the fact that part of it was seized by Haihan on the way. If the payment is not made, not to mention the grain, the entire water transportation may be interrupted. If anyone thinks there is a problem, then go to Haihan on his own. Negotiate.

Although this reason is far-fetched, it is very effective. People who are dissatisfied with this will only listen to the rumors and put this account directly on Haihan. People who have doubts may not have channels to verify Haihan. Have you ever behaved like this?

The Caofu Yamen no longer has the obligation to be loyal to the Ming court, and the Ming court has also lost its due control over the Caofu Yamen. The entire water transportation system has become a black hole lacking supervision. So it only takes three to five months. , these losses will become confusing accounts that cannot be verified, and the benefits will naturally flow into the pockets of some masterminds.

The most terrible thing is that even if the officials sent by Haihan to take over administrative affairs in these areas discover something fishy, ​​they have no better way to deal with it and can only pretend to be deaf and dumb. Because once the water transportation system needs to be thoroughly investigated and punished, it will It affects the interests of too many people and may even affect the normal operation of water transportation. It is said that the food and clothing of millions of water workers depend on it. If this affects the livelihood of a large number of people, who can bear such responsibility?
Chapter completed!