Feng Ziying had already made up her mind when she learned that her destination might be Yongping or Hejian, one of the three prefectures of Baoding.
Baoding undoubtedly seems to have the best conditions. It is the largest palace in the entire North Zhili region, second only to Shuntian and Zhending. It has a large number of people and an extremely important geographical location. It can be called a forbidden area for the confidants of the Great Zhou Dynasty. It is also very far from the capital.
Qingyuan, where the government is located, is the closest to the capital city.
Hejian Prefecture is not bad either. Its lower Cangzhou is not only the location of the Changlu Salt Factory, but also the location of the Changlu Salt Transportation Department. It is one of the richest places in the North.
The worst is probably Yongping Prefecture. Not only is it located in the northeastern corner of Beizhili, it is small in area, with only six prefectures and counties. In addition, there are Shanhaiwei and Funingwei belonging to Ji Town in the north, and Kaiping Zhongwei in the west.
, Ji Town’s headquarters is also located in Santun Camp in the northwest corner.
After coming out of Qi Yongtai's mansion, Feng Ziying rode back to her own house.
The Tongzhi of Yongping Prefecture became an official in old age, while the Tongzhi of Baoding Prefecture was promoted to the right counselor of the Shandong Chief Envoy, and the Tongzhi of Hejian Prefecture was taken down by the Metropolitan Procuratorate for corruption.
The vacancies of the co-presidents in the three prefectures of North Zhili were not at the same time. The appointment of the co-president of Yongping Prefecture was at the beginning of last year. The promotion of the co-president of Baoding Prefecture to the position of Chief Envoy of Shandong Province was still in the process of going through the procedures of the Ministry of Civil Affairs.
What happened to the governor of Hejian Prefecture happened at the end of last year.
Qi Yongtai summoned Feng Ziying to his house just to discuss this matter with him, and suggested that he go to Baoding Prefecture to serve as a co-prefect, because Xu Shojian, the prefect of Baoding, was from Huangzhou Prefecture, Huguang, and a fellow town official of Yingzhen.
He is one subject later than Guan Yingzhen and is closely related to Guan Yingzhen.
But Feng Ziying didn't want to go to Baoding.
Although Baoding was good, Xu Shojian was still in his prime, full of energy and strong style. Not only did he belong to the same hometown as the official Ying Zhenyi, but he also had a very close relationship with the chief assistant Ye Xianggao. He went to Baoding to be his assistant.
You will be pressed to death, without any room for improvement.
The situation of Yan Chongnian, the prefect of Hejian Prefecture, was similar. He was also a second-class Jinshi, even one class earlier than Xu Shojian. He was a native of Yanzhou Prefecture, Zhejiang Province. He had a very close relationship with Fang Congzhe, the second assistant, and he was also on the rise in his official career.
Officials, if you look at the fact that your previous colleague ended up in jail because he failed to maintain a good relationship with Yan Chongnian, you will know that this person is not a good person.
If you go to Hejian by yourself, if you keep in step with Yan Chongnian? Then you will definitely be more dissatisfied by the northern scholars who already have some opinions about you. If you go against Yan Chongnian, not to mention whether you will be suppressed by the other party? Is it really a conflict?
Get up? It's also detrimental to your future development.
Although he has Qi Yongtai and Qiao Yingjia as his backing, Yan Chongnian also has the support of Fang Congzhe. Even if he does not end up in the same situation as his former colleagues, Feng Ziying is not willing to see both sides lose. And if the reputation is bad, no matter where he goes in the future.
If you go there, it will arouse the vigilance and hostility of the original officials.
Therefore, Feng Ziying would not go to Baoding or Hejian. He had already made up his mind to go to Yongping Mansion.
But there are some topics that he can't talk to Qi Yongtai. Qi Yongtai has a upright character. Although he can understand some of his difficulties, he will inevitably feel that he likes to be opportunistic and leaves a bad impression. So there must be other more
Just a good reason.
How to persuade Qi Yongtai? And also to prevent Qi Yongtai from having other unpleasant emotions? Feng Ziying still has to think about it carefully.
Of course, in addition to this aspect, Feng Ziying also has some other plans.
Having already reached the Fourth Archway on Fuchengmen Street, Feng Ziying thought for a moment and saw that it was still early, so she simply turned her horse's head and rode towards Hongluochang.
"Master? You are not going back to the mansion?" Ruixiang was surprised. "Didn't I say that several girls from Rongguo Mansion are coming to the mansion today?"
"Not in a hurry? Let's go to Prince Zhongshun's Mansion first." Feng Ziying nodded.
Ruixiang also knew that the relationship between the uncle and Prince Zhongshun had always been very close, especially after the opening of Haitong Yinzhuang Jingshi, which became more and more prosperous, Prince Zhongshun's posts came to the house more often.
Zhongshun Prince's Palace is located on Chongguosi Street, which is adjacent to the chariot factory and connected to Dingfu Street.
Here, the palaces of princes and princes are lined up one after another. Most of the mansions of the princes and clansmen of the Great Zhou Dynasty were located on this line. However, in such a short period of more than a hundred years, they have also experienced countless ups and downs.
Prince Zhongshun's Mansion was also Prince Ding's Mansion fifty years ago. Prince Ding was the younger brother of Emperor Guangyuan, but because he was involved in a palace scandal, he was demoted and made a commoner. Later, this mansion was given to Emperor Tianping.
The seventh son, King Lu, was the half-brother of Emperor Yuanxi. However, King Lu lost power while helping his brother fight for the throne with Emperor Yuanxi. He was later imprisoned until his death. This mansion was given to him by Emperor Yuanxi.
Jiuzi, also known as King Zhongshun.
Feng Ziying was already well acquainted with Prince Zhongshun's residence. When the concierge saw Feng Ziying's post, he welcomed Feng Ziying in without even waiting for the prince's reply.
As expected, King Zhongshun, who was still listening to the opera, left a group of actors behind and went into the study with Feng Ziying.
"Is Jia Lian really going to Yangzhou?" King Zhongshun was very dissatisfied with this. He felt that Jia Lian had done quite well in the capital for the past six months, and all aspects of his career had been opened up. "Ziying, I heard that you are also going to leave the capital.
?Why is this?”
Most people may not know or pay attention to the news that Feng Ziying is leaving Beijing, but as the major shareholder of Haitong Bank, King Zhongshun will naturally pay more attention. At first, he did not understand why Feng Ziying, who was so red, suddenly thought of leaving Beijing, but
Later, after asking some people, I roughly understood it.
"Your Majesty, there are some things you should understand. The imperial court got the lion's share of the strategy of opening up the sea, but my father was in Yulin at that time, and now he has gone to Liaodong. He needs money, so I have nothing to say, but Jiangnan also has huge benefits.
"Only the north has not seen any profits for a while. How can we, the gentry and merchants in the north, be satisfied?" Feng Ziying smiled bitterly.
How could King Zhongshun not know these things? Feng Ziying has never despised this prince. He seems to be greedy for money, fun-loving, manly, even greedy, and interferes with the judiciary. He is involved in everything, but he can always stand firm. This is amazing
It's not just about being brothers with the emperor. The censors won't care about you.
"Is it because of this?" King Zhongshun seemed to be unconvinced, "Even so, there is no need to go to the local government, right? Even if you stay in the Hanlin Academy to hide your capabilities and bide your time for two years, won't it be enough?"
"My lord, keeping a low profile and biding your time is not suitable for lowering one's official position." Feng Ziying said calmly: "It is inevitable for the North to be dissatisfied, but it is indeed a real problem. We in the North have indeed not benefited much from it. If we say there must be, then
The answer can only be seen from Liaodong, but the Jianzhou Jurchens are now on the rise, and my father also felt a lot of pressure after passing there. In three to five years, we can only take a defensive stance against the Jianzhou Jurchens...
"
King Zhongshun nodded slightly.
Of course he is aware of the situation in Liaodong. The emperor is also the most concerned about the situation in Liaodong. The vigorous development of the Jianzhou Jurchens, especially since Nurhaci unified the Jianzhou Jurchens and launched an offensive to annex the Haixi Jurchens, the emperor has been restless.
, otherwise I wouldn’t have had the guts to replace Li Chengliang.
You must know that during his father's decades, Li Chengliang has always been the anchor of Liaodong, but seeing the increasing power of the Jurchens in Jianzhou, the emperor's brother had to change his general even at the risk of Liaodong being unstable for a period of time.
Li Chengliang is old and no longer has the ambition and courage of the past. If he continues like this, it will be like boiling a frog in warm water. It will only completely ruin the situation in Liaodong, so the emperor brother made a decisive decision.
Feng Tang went to Liaodong and stabilized the situation in a short period of time. However, the momentum of the Jianzhou Jurchens was not completely curbed. This serious problem still existed and would even continue to grow.
"So it is very difficult to regain the impression of the northern scholars on me from Liaodong. However, Master Qi, Master Qiao and Master Guan will inevitably receive some criticism, so I don't intend to waste two years."
In the Hanlin Academy, I would rather go down to any prefecture in the North and do some real things." Feng Ziying was confident.
King Zhongshun pondered for a moment, "Are you very optimistic about Yongping Mansion?"
The cooperation between Shanxi merchants and Zhuangji has entered a substantial exploration stage, and they have begun to contact Haitong Bank for loans. King Zhongshun should have received some news about this.
"Look, Xiaguan is personally more optimistic. Foshan Zhuangji is very large, and its main exports are large quantities of various iron materials. However, there are not many mines in the south and the quality is not good. But here in Yongping Prefecture, it should not be
Poor." Feng Ziying nodded, "If we can replicate a prosperous town based on the iron smelting industry like Foshan in Yongping Mansion, I believe that the criticism of the gentry in the north will be alleviated.
many?"
King Zhongshun understood that this man wanted to use his own ability to turn the tide, and he did not hesitate to place the following bets.
If it were another person, I would never dare to make such a huge gamble. If I go to a certain place, it would not be so easy to come back, especially if I am still criticized.
But if it is true, as Feng Ziying said, that a large and prosperous large town similar to Foshan that integrates iron smelting, ironmaking and ironware sales can be replicated in Yongpingfu, the influence it will bring is indescribable.
It turns out that even his official career will become brighter.
But the reason why it was regarded as a huge gamble by King Zhongshun was because the possibility was too slim.
It is nothing new that the line from Shuntian Prefecture to Yongping Prefecture is a rich area of iron ore. There are many government-run and private mines and iron smelting shops in the Zunhua area, but they are limited by the difficulty of mining, smelting technology and transportation.
, market and many other factors, although the iron smelting industry in Zunhua is considered developed in the north, it cannot be compared with Foshan.
Of course, the most important thing is the limitation of iron smelting technology and transportation capacity. In addition, the Shuntianfu line cannot compare with the convenience of Foshan relying on Guangzhou shipping and Pearl River shipping, so the market is relatively narrow, which creates a vicious circle.
"Ziying, your goal is too ambitious. It's so ambitious that although I really hope to succeed, I find it difficult to achieve it." King Zhongshun sighed and said, "Yongping Mansion is not a good place, you may be disappointed."
"You have to give it a try." Feng Ziying also understood that Yongping Prefecture can be regarded as the poorest prefecture in the entire Beizhili. It may only be slightly better than Wandu Division and Baoan Prefecture, but the poorer the area,
As long as you find the right path, you will see results faster.
Seeing that Feng Ziying had made up her mind, King Zhongshun did not try to persuade him, "What about Jia Lian?"
"If Jia Lian is going to Yangzhou, let Jia Yun be responsible for the time being." Feng Ziying thought for a while and said: "I asked Jia Lian to consciously ask Jia Yun to assist him before. After taking it for so long, there should be no problem.
"
"Jia Yun? Can that young man from the branch of the Jia family do it?" King Zhongshun was a little doubtful, "Ziying, I know that the capital ship was successful in the early stage, but it doesn't mean that it can be the same in the future..."
"Your Majesty, as I said before, if you believe me, leave it to me." There was an unquestionable confidence in Feng Ziying's tone. It was this kind of confidence that always made King Zhongshun very optimistic about Feng Ziying.
"Okay, Ziying, I hope so, but if the performance is not good, I hope you can find a more suitable candidate, especially if you are leaving the capital again." King Zhongshun exhaled in frustration.
He originally wanted to recommend a candidate he was more optimistic about, but he found that he lacked the confidence in front of Feng Ziying.
After all, the other party launched the strategy of opening up the sea, which brought about all these changes. Even Wang Ziteng's trip to Denglai was partly due to Feng Ziying's strategy of opening up the sea, and it was also possible to remove Niu Jizong from Beijing.
The envoy was moved out, and now there is always a vacancy for the Jiedu envoy in the Beijing camp. King Zhongshun knew very well that he, his brother, would never appoint another Jiedushi envoy in the Beijing camp.
This guy not only has an amazing sense of smell in business, he also has unparalleled keen perception and coping methods when it comes to the ups and downs in the court.
It was impossible for Feng Ziying to hand over the Capital to anyone beyond her control. The upcoming series of actions in Yongping Mansion would require a large amount of funds. This time, the cooperation between Shanxi Merchants and Zhuang Ji would largely involve borrowing money from Haitong Bank.
And if there is no one whom you can completely control, you will definitely be bound by various constraints.
"Your Majesty, I also hope to stay in the capital city so that I can have better control. However, the strategy of opening up the sea has relieved the emperor's worries. Jiangnan has benefited, but I have become a victim." Feng Ziying spread her hands helplessly.
, "Otherwise why should I leave? How unfair."
Prince Yi Zhong stared at Feng Ziying for a while and then laughed, "Ziying, being so resentful makes me feel that you are here for a purpose. Tell me, what do you need me to do with the emperor?"
"My lord has misunderstood. I actually just want to tell my lord that the Supreme Emperor is also very considerate of me..." Feng Ziying blinked.
King Zhongshun stared at Feng Ziying, half-smiling, "Is it still Uncle Yunchuan of yours? It's just a false title, is it that important? Or is it rumored that you really want to marry another family? Which girl will let you
Are you so worried?"
Feng Ziying smiled and said nothing, and King Zhongshun finally snorted softly, "If Gu knows such things that make the emperor unhappy, why do you have to do it?"
"My lord, this may not necessarily make the emperor unhappy. Maybe the emperor is in a dilemma now and needs someone to give him a step up." Feng Ziying said with an airy smile.
King Zhongshun thought about it carefully and nodded thoughtfully.
It seems that the little actions of the father have also been noticed by the emperor brother. It seems that the situation may be as Feng Ziying said, and the emperor brother is also in a dilemma now.
In this case, it is better to be a good person for once, which can not only satisfy Feng Ziying, the emperor brother has a step to step up to, but also the father and emperor have nothing to say, and even achieve a happy result for all parties.
But is this guy really so romantic? King Zhongshun couldn't help but look at him one more time.