Five hundred and forty-six chapters of the coal market
Li You sat in the yamen, letting go of his official duties, warming the brazier while thinking about what was going to be discussed in court tomorrow. Lu Yuanguang impeached him, and the emperor asked him to go to the palace to defend himself, so he had to go to the Wenhua Palace tomorrow, which he had not seen for a long time.
You have to think about your lines in advance.
In fact, the meaning of Ambassador Lu's remarks were Li You's, and the themes were Li You's. Mr. Li had already drafted an outline and conveyed it to Ambassador Lu.
But the specific method, timing, and wording need to be controlled by Ambassador Lu himself. It can be said that Ambassador Lu has done a good job, and it is not that dog meat cannot be brought to the table. It is a great achievement.
Just as Mr. Li was thinking carefully, a clerk from the yamen came to the door and said, "Sir! The Xicheng Army and Horses Division has something to report!"
This interrupted Li You's train of thought, and he raised his head and shouted: "Come in and talk!"
The clerk opened the door curtain and went inside and replied: "Sir, just now someone from the Xicheng Army and Horses Department came to report the news. They said that there is a shortage of coal and the price of coal has skyrocketed. The price per kilogram has almost risen to three or four times last month!
"
In the old days, the main fuel in the capital was charcoal and firewood. However, after three hundred years of felling, there were fewer and fewer trees in the surrounding areas. In addition, during the Emperor Gaozong's period, he inexplicably ordered to close the mountains for forestation in several counties around the capital, resulting in a large shortage of charcoal and firewood.
big.
Therefore, the proportion of coal among the fuel used in the capital has increased sharply in recent years, accounting for about 40 to 50 percent now. Coal has also become an indispensable means of livelihood for the capital's millions of people.
The area around the capital, especially the Xishan area, is rich in coal. There are hundreds of coal kilns, with an annual output of nearly 200 million kilograms of coal. The mountainous areas under the jurisdiction of Wanping and Fangshan counties are the main source of coal supply for the capital.
Each of the nine gates in the capital has its own characteristics. Coal from the west of Beijing enters the city mainly from Fucheng Gate in the west. Some large coal markets and coal shops in the capital are located inside and outside the west city. The west factory of the Da Nei Xixin Company is also located in the west city.
Therefore, it was the Xicheng Military and Horse Department, not other military and horse departments, who sent people to urgently report the market conditions in the coal market.
After Li You heard the news, he thought to himself that this Xicheng Army Commander was so filial and filial that he would think of informing him quickly when encountering such a thing.
The number of people in Mr. Li's family far exceeds the normal fifth-grade standard, and the public supply is really a drop in the bucket, so he can't count on it. So he can only provide enough food and clothing by himself.
His family were all from the south, and it was the first time that twenty or thirty people had spent the winter in the capital. Due to lack of experience, the estimated quantity was wrong, so the charcoal and coal reserves were not too much.
It's freezing cold in the capital in winter, and there's always a shortage of charcoal and coal, otherwise the whole family will really suffer. It's safer to grab a batch quickly and stock up.
Li You immediately called Zhang San in and said, "Take twenty sergeants with you. Go to Xicheng Coal Market to buy charcoal or coal, and transport two thousand kilograms to your home."
Zhang San responded and was about to go, but heard the old man shout: "Wait a minute!" He turned around and saw the old man standing up. He patted the dust on his hands and said, "Listening to the situation reported in Xicheng, coal seems to be in short supply. I will go and buy it myself."
If a tense situation really arises, Li You is worried that Zhang San, a mere slave, will not be able to rob others. After all, there are too many powerful people in the capital.
In order to live a happy life in winter, Mr. Li summoned dozens of sergeants with great courage and prepared to go to Xicheng to grab coal. The clerk who reported the news witnessed the whole process and stood aside with a dumbfounded expression on his face.
Li You stepped out and accidentally caught a glimpse of the clerk's expression, wondering: "What else do you have to say?"
The clerk spoke the truth with a slight fear: "The eldest sir seems to have misunderstood. The Xicheng Army and Horses Division reported the coal price information to ask the eldest sir for instructions and to report to the court."
His subtext is that the news reported by the Xicheng Military and Horse Division is for official business, not for you, the old man, to seize the time and use official weapons to grab coal...
"Does this have something to do with this hospital?" Li You asked shamelessly in confusion.
"Monitoring market prices and preventing unrest in the capital are also the existing responsibilities of the military and horse divisions in each city. Now it is under your control, the eldest sir. Special attention should be paid to the charcoal in the west city and the grain in the east city."
Li You was greatly surprised. He knew that the Five Cities Military and Horse Division had the responsibilities of public security, urban construction, and urban management, but he didn't expect that it was also responsible for managing prices. This responsibility was too complicated. If it had been like this in the time and space of his previous life.
With multiple responsibilities integrated together, what a huge yamen it is.
Although he was timid because he had only been in office for two or three months and was not familiar with the business, Mr. Li's expression did not change and he coughed heavily, "Don't think wrong, I am going to Xicheng personally to investigate the situation!"
"Yes, my subordinates know!" The clerk promised.
Li You glanced at him sideways and walked out of the yard. He had already made up his mind to send someone to inquire in the Yamen to see if there were any rumors spread about "Li Qianxian is not familiar with the business".
It seems to be a small incident that happened inadvertently, but it is a good opportunity to test people. If there are rumors spread, it means that the scribe is outspoken and frivolous, waiting to be dealt with; if there are no rumors spread, it means that the scribe is cautious and careful.
, can be reused later.
Let this person choose whether it is heaven or hell. There was a saying in the previous life that character determines destiny. The most applicable place for this saying is in the relationship between superiors and subordinates. In the eyes of superiors, character can really determine the fate of subordinates.
There are several relatively large coal markets in Beijing, with different locations. They are mainly outside Fuchengmen in the west, outside You'anmen in the southwest, and at the intersection of Zhengyangmen and the inner city. Among them, the coal market outside Fuchengmen in the west city
Due to its convenient location, the city is the largest distribution center for Xishan coal in the capital.
The place where Li You wanted to "check" the coal price was the coal market outside Fuchengmen. As soon as his team, who were shouting and swarming, entered the boundary of Xicheng, Commander Jiang from the Soldiers and Horses Division greeted them, and together they went to Fuchengmen.
And left. This attitude made Mr. Li quite satisfied.
When passing by the Xicheng Army and Horses Office, Li You went in to rest for a while and warm up. Commander Jiang took the time to introduce the situation to Mr. Li.
It turns out that news came from Xishan yesterday that a large number of miners were making trouble and calling for a break. Many coal mines and mines stopped working. Therefore, the price of coal has skyrocketed today, from the previous one tael of silver per one hundred catties to one per hundred catties.
Three taels of silver, and it’s still rising.
The miners called for a break and the coal kilns stopped production? No wonder the coal market suddenly became tense. Li You suddenly realized it, but he still couldn't help complaining in his heart. He used the textbooks in his previous life to explain that this was a case of the early proletariat's struggle against exploitation and oppression. It is a pity.
Without the guidance of advanced theory, the simple struggle of the proletariat is destined to fail.
Commander Jiang continued to introduce the situation: "It's okay to have high coal prices, but there seems to be a shortage of coal in the market. Many coal shops have posted signs that they are out of coal because the supply of Xishan is cut off.
You can’t buy coal with money.”
"Winter is the peak season for coal consumption. How could the coal shop have no inventory? How could it be sold out so quickly? Could it be that profiteers are hoarding it?" Li You asked.
Commander Jiang replied: "My subordinates will have time to investigate carefully in the future, so I am not sure whether this is the case."
This coal market is located outside Fucheng Gate. Li You and his party left the city from Fucheng Gate. When they got off the sedan and looked up, they saw a steady stream of people flowing in the direction of the coal market. Although it was not so much that they were rubbing shoulders with each other, there were still quite a lot of bustling people.
. There are still rows of large cars parked by the road, but they are all empty.
Commander Jiang introduced to Mr. Li again: "The coal market is not a department store like Chongwenmen. It is never so lively on weekdays. I'm afraid it's not even 10% of what's in front of me. Today, these people probably heard the news.
Came here."
In this cold winter, coal and food are almost equivalent, and they are absolutely necessary, and people cannot help but pay attention to them.
Mr. Li, surrounded by his entourage, walked towards the coal market. The people in the capital were far-sighted, and after suddenly seeing officials around them, they just casually moved out of the way, without making as much fuss as in other places. Maybe this young official is just like them.
, came to buy coal after hearing the news!
There are dozens of coal shops in the coal market here, ranging from 10 to 20 large ones and 40 to 50 small ones. Every year, hundreds of millions of kilograms of coal are transported here from Xishan and sold here.
Although Li You was wearing an official robe, his identity was not disclosed. He randomly chose a coal shop with a small appearance. Before he entered the store, the shopkeeper and his waiters came out to greet him and salute him. Mr. Li simply did not go in.
The man at the door of the store asked: "I want to buy coal, do you still have it here?"
"It's really unlucky that the store has sold out all of them. I would like to go and ask somewhere else."
Li You did not embarrass this family and ordered two ordinary coal shops in the coal market, both of which claimed that they had sold out.
In the end, Li You directly chose one of the largest coal shops in the coal market, a shop named Taisheng, and went in. The answer he got was still the same.
"Sir, you are late. The store has run out of coal." Taisheng's shopkeeper said.
Bang! Li You suddenly slapped the counter and scolded: "That's nonsense! It's winter now, you must have stored a lot of coal by selling coal! How can there be news that the miners called for a break yesterday, and it was all wiped out in half a day today?
reason!"
Shopkeeper Ye from Taisheng replied: "Indeed not."
Li You sneered a few times, "I hope not."
Then he gave orders to the people around him: "Search the backyard! You don't have to enter the house, just check to see if there is any coal!"
There were 20 waiters and 20 servants in this shop, but there was no way to stop the officers and soldiers who had already drawn their weapons. Soon more than a dozen people passed through, and led by Commander Jiang, they rushed into the backyard of Taisheng Coal Shop.
.
After just a few breaths, Commander Jiang came out of the back yard again and reported to Mr. Li excitedly: "You don't even need to look carefully, there are a lot of coal piled in the backyard, about 100,000 kilograms by visual inspection!"
Hearing this, Li You looked at Shopkeeper Ye with a half-smile, and said sarcastically: "Is this all gone? What do you think?
Shopkeeper Ye replied: "Those coals are already owned by their owners and are not for sale!"
"Whose coal does this belong to?"
Shopkeeper Ye struggled for a long time but didn't come up with an answer.
Li You shouted to the people around him again: "The unscrupulous merchants are hoarding money and inflating the price of coal. They want to get ill-gotten gains. I will do justice to God! I will take the shopkeeper Ye back to the government office for interrogation. All the coal accumulated in the hospital will be confiscated and shipped away."
, hand it over to Xicheng Military and Horse Division for sale!"
"Wait a minute!" Shopkeeper Ye shouted anxiously: "Sir, don't misunderstand me. That batch of coal does indeed have an owner. It belongs to the Superintendent of the Great Nei Zhi Hall! There are seals and documents from the eunuch in charge of the shop!"
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