Chinese New Year

Chapter 1407 All the Way

Stone City had become a commercial port, rather than a military stronghold.

When Huan Si and his party arrived at the place on August 19th with their goods, they were greeted by a bustling crowd.

They weren't merchants, but people who migrated south.

"Don't come to Danyang, there's no place here." A shout came from the crowd, sounding somewhat exasperated.

Huan Si couldn't help but laugh.

The powerful northern clans that migrated south often made Danyang their first stop. It wasn't that there was no land there, but it wasn't easy to acquire, or rather, it required clearing land, and quite a difficult one at that.

Why are they all crowding into Danyang? Can't they go to Piling? Well, you know what, the good farmland in Piling is almost full, and the rest will require a lot of manpower and resources to reclaim.

If you think about it carefully, the Zhenming era name has been used for five years already, and the Empress Shan has already given birth to children for the Emperor of Liang. You are only coming now, dawdling around. Where is there any good place for you?
But that's reality. When has it ever been less about people being reluctant to leave their homeland? Some older generations have lived in the north their whole lives, and it's normal for them not to want to leave, even if they are willing to accept the condition that all their land will be lost after the Yongjia era.

However, the emperor seems increasingly dissatisfied with this level of land allocation. Now, large-scale land acquisition has begun in places where aristocratic families are concentrated, such as Qinghe, Langya, and Taishan. There are even rumors that the emperor may investigate the land and households accumulated since the Sima Jin dynasty.

This is more terrifying.

It is said that the Wei and Jin dynasties were peaceful transitions with little change in the aristocratic families. However, upon closer examination, some families rose to prominence while others declined. The findings are quite remarkable.

Some people said in a fit of pique that the emperor would never have dared to do this twenty years ago, he wouldn't have even dared to mention it...

The problem is, it's not twenty years ago anymore, what are you thinking?
How cunning is Shao Ze? How ruthless is he? Yet he dares to do this now. Saying these words is just to gain some verbal advantage and make himself feel better; Shao Ze doesn't care at all, he only cares about the result.

Of course, you could say this is just a "rumor." Indeed, but where there's smoke, there's fire; there must be some truth to it.

Anyone with a brain knows they should prepare in advance. This is Shao's way of giving you a buffer period so you can use the income from the north to subsidize the reclamation in the south.

People who can't even figure this out deserve to be punished.

These people surging over here have actually figured it out. Rather than living in fear in the north, it would be better to disperse some of their family businesses and send some of their children across the Yangtze River to the south. In the future, they can advance or retreat as needed. Wouldn't that be wonderful?
Although Huan Si was from Guangling, he could understand this approach. What if the land reform in the north wasn't as ruthless as rumored, and you had already established a new business in Jiangnan? Wouldn't that be a win?

However, despite his understanding, he still felt a pang of jealousy at the surging crowds, as if something of his had been stolen, even though the Huan clan of Guangling was also one of the groups that migrated south.

He waited until sunset before he and a dozen or so others, carrying their goods, managed to squeeze onto the ship.

The ship quickly weighed anchor and set sail, leaving the anchorage below Stone City and heading west.

The route goes through the Yangtze River into the Ruxu River, then into Chaohu Lake, and then through the Fei River, Suiyang Canal, Bian River, Yellow River, and Luo River, finally arriving in Luoyang.

Although it may seem like a long and winding journey, it actually doesn't take long at all if you take a boat; it's much faster than walking.

******
On the evening of the 23rd, the ship anchored outside Hefei city.

Accompanying Huan Si northward was a distant relative of the Sun family named Sun Cha. At this moment, he stood on the deck, pointed at the farmers on the shore who were preparing to harvest wheat overnight, and said, "This land is cultivated even worse than that of the mountain barbarians."

Huan Si didn't even need to look to know that Sun Cha was talking about the Xianbei people, so he chimed in, "Not only do they not know how to farm, but they also have bad tempers. They don't even submit when you crack your whip at them. I heard that the hereditary soldiers of Jingzhou are stationed in shifts and can't leave at all. Ten thousand men are stationed in the Jianghuai region all year round and are frequently mobilized to intimidate and deter them from obeying."

“There’s been a tax rebellion in the mountains of Liangzhou. This year, over a thousand families were sent to Xuzhou to manage the river, and they’ll probably be settled here in the next year or the year after,” Sun Cha said. “Judging from this, they’ll just end up as civilian settlements here. It’s better for them to stay in the mountains. What’s the point?”

“Sun Dianji, compared to last year, these Xianbei people are actually much more compliant. Perhaps they really can’t stand the weather in the Jianghuai region. I’ve heard that many people have died of illness, causing widespread panic and constant unrest,” Huan Si said. “Those who are now obediently harvesting wheat can already be considered ‘good citizens.’ In a few years, there will be more and more of these people, and the court will benefit. Although Cao Mengde’s military-agricultural system was cruel, it was indeed very profitable.”

Sun Cha was speechless, because it really was true.

The imperial court probably didn't intend to profit much. Even if some local settlements were stabilized and the court received a lot of grain, most of it was used to subsidize the newly resettled people, or for things like river management and road construction.

They were more concerned with long-term benefits. That is, the people settled in the Jianghuai region were transformed from civilian settlements into households in the prefectures and counties, becoming obedient and then providing taxes and corvée labor for a long time. In short, the imperial court was building its foundation.

"Clang, clang..." The crisp sound of gongs came from the shore, accompanied by the sound of horses' hooves.

The two looked up and saw more than twenty riders approaching. After striking a gong, the leader roared as if using all his strength: "The ninth day of the ninth month is the Double Ninth Festival. We must wear dogwood, eat rice cakes, and drink chrysanthemum wine. You can find the dogwood yourselves. The rice cakes and chrysanthemum wine will be sent by the county officials. Everyone will receive one. If you don't, someone must have embezzled it. You can report it to the authorities, and the court will punish you severely."

After saying that, he was about to turn and leave when, perhaps seeing something, he suddenly ran forward a few steps, brandishing his whip and striking the people who were harvesting wheat. As he struck them, he cursed, "Why haven't you changed your hairstyle yet? If you don't change it, I'll beat you to death!"

The man who was being beaten cried out in pain and begged for mercy. The others were agitated and wanted to step forward to stop it, but when they saw the twenty or so riders not far away draw their horn bows, they immediately calmed down.

Fortunately, the leading knight didn't really intend to kill anyone. After lashing the man ten times, he stopped and said hatefully, "You motherfucker! If I had the temper I had back then, I would have cut your head off long ago. I'll come back before the Double Ninth Festival and see if you'll change your ways."

After finishing his tirade, he gave a whistle and disappeared into the horizon with more than twenty riders.

There was a moment of silence in the field, then a loud, indistinct speech rang out—perhaps it was cursing, but Huan Si and Sun Cha couldn't understand it.

But it was just swearing and venting. After they finished swearing, everyone continued harvesting wheat without daring to delay.

Huan Si and Sun Cha exchanged glances.

This is the military-agricultural system; it controls every aspect of your life, simple and brutal.

In addition, it was only then that they realized that the Double Ninth Festival was approaching.

Wearing dogwood, eating Peng'er cake, and drinking chrysanthemum wine are all traditional customs. Peng'er cake is a pastry made from millet, dates, chestnuts, and other ingredients, commonly known as "Double Ninth Cake".

These Xianbei people probably don't know how to make Chongyang cakes and lack the ingredients, so the court provides them. In the future, perhaps they will be required to prepare them themselves.

Customs are passed down from generation to generation in this way. Whether it's the whipping that resulted in a beating for not changing one's hairstyle, or the Double Ninth Festival pastries, they are all part of the customs. The so-called transformation of customs lies in these cultural details.

On the 24th, the ship left Hefei and set off northward.

The journey was smooth, and the scenery on both sides of the river was delightful. Especially after entering Yuzhou, the houses were clustered together, and the sounds of chickens and dogs could be heard. The farmers, who had just harvested their crops, had smiles on their faces and were all looking forward to the coming year.

Huan and Sun were also somewhat moved. Compared to the iron horses and clashing swords of yesteryear, the peaceful and tranquil days of today seemed even more captivating.

******
On the second day of the ninth month, the boat stopped at the Jiuqu Canal east of Luoyang.

Huan Si paid the fare himself and waited for the other merchants on the ship to unload their cargo before they disembarked at a leisurely pace. They then headed west until they arrived at a mansion.

This was the residence of Sun He, the governor of Liangzhou, outside the city. Sun Xiong (Sun He's eldest son), the chief clerk of the Court of Imperial Stud, came out to greet him after receiving the news.

He first looked at the goods, then laughed and said, "Third brother is quite adept at handling these things."

After saying that, he picked up a bar of hard soap, examined it carefully, and said, “I’ve heard that someone in Luoyang sells rose dew from the Western Regions, and its fragrance is intoxicating. I wonder if it would be feasible to add some fragrance when making soap? If it is, my doorstep will probably be worn down by people.”

Huan Si thought to himself, "That's right! Why not add some fragrant bait? Theoretically, it's feasible."

So what if it's a little expensive? People who can afford soap are either rich or noble, why would they care about a little money?
Sun Cha was also a bit dumbfounded. It seemed to make sense. How come he hadn't thought of that?

Sun Xiong glanced at the two men and smiled, "You must be tired from your long journey. Please come to my residence and rest for a few days. After a few days—"

At this point, he frowned slightly, as if he was hesitating about something.

"Brother, what's wrong?" Sun Cha asked instinctively.

“It’s alright to say it out loud, many people in the capital already know.” As he spoke, he pulled the two into the mansion and whispered, “The Minister of the Imperial Household and the Minister of the Imperial Sacrifices are preparing for the funeral. You just need to know this, don’t go around telling anyone. Stay here for the time being and don’t go out. As for the hard soap, we need to choose a good time to present it, now is not the right time.”

Huan Si sighed helplessly; what bad timing! But since things had come to this, there was nothing he could do but wait patiently.

However, looking back on the past few months, he is already very satisfied.

They made contact with the Prince of Yan and completed their first horse transaction;
He became acquainted with all three sons of the Sun family, and even developed a preliminary friendship with them;
Sun Ling also promised to introduce him to Wang Que'er's son.

These were all extraordinary encounters, things they had never dared to dream of before. Especially for these surrendered subjects of the Jin state, past relationships were no longer relevant; what mattered most now was getting to know the powerful and influential figures of the new dynasty.

He succeeded; the future of the Huan family of Guangling is promising.

On the fourth day of the ninth month, Sun Xiong moved into his mansion in the city to prepare for the morning court session on the fifth day. However, he did not see the emperor, but instead saw the crown prince sitting below the throne...

(End of this chapter)