In March of the sixth year of the Qingli period, the new policy first fermented in Bianliang, and then quickly spread to the entire Jingji Road and the surrounding Jingdong Road and Jingxi Road.
By May, Hebei, Henan, Shandong, Huainan, Zhejiang, Sichuan and other regions that are close to each other or rely on relatively developed water transportation networks have basically completed the transmission of information.
In Qiantang County, Hangzhou, the newly appointed Deputy Envoy of Transportation, Liu Yong, was originally the fifth-rank prefect of Xinzhou. He completed his ninth year of official probation in the second year of Baoyuan, and then went to Xinzhou at the end of the year.
In February of this year, after the three-year term expired, the Ministry of Personnel, after investigation, promoted him from Xinzhou to the fifth rank Deputy Envoy of Liangzhe Road.
Although officials generally serve for a three-year term, under normal circumstances, it is actually very difficult to get promoted after serving as a prefect for three years. Often, they will be transferred to other places to continue serving as a prefect. Only after two or three consecutive terms of outstanding performance can they continue to rise.
Because the jump from the fifth rank to the fifth rank is a bit like the jump from the city or department level to the vice-provincial level in later generations. At the fifth rank, one is a middle or senior official of the Song Dynasty. If one goes up one step further, he will be a fourth rank transport envoy, and will be eligible to be transferred to the central government to serve as a minister of various ministries.
There are more than 400 prefects and assistant prefects of the fifth and sixth ranks across the country, but there are only 70 or 80 officials above the fifth rank, such as the transport envoy and deputy envoy; the shipping envoy and deputy envoy; the judicial officer and assistant prefect; the grain commissioner and assistant prefect. This shows how difficult it is to get promoted.
Therefore, given the extremely fierce competition, Liu Yong was able to be promoted directly to the position of Deputy Transport Envoy without having to serve as a prefect for several more years. There are only two possibilities: one is that his political achievements are particularly outstanding, and the other is that he has the support of a powerful figure above him.
Liu Yong, on the other hand, is a combination of both.
At the beginning of this year, when he went to the Ministry of Personnel in Bianliang for an inspection, he met Zhao Jun, who gave him some instructions and asked him to always keep them in mind.
"The horses sluggishly trot along the ancient Chang'an Road, cicadas chirp in the tall willows. Beyond the setting sun, on the plains in the autumn wind, my eyes are fixed on the four corners of the sky."
"The returning clouds have gone without a trace, where is the past? The passion for intimacy has faded, the drunkard is desolate, it is no longer like the days of youth."
On May 4th, a medium-sized passenger ship drifted on the Qiantang River, slowly heading towards Xixing Town on the other side of the river in the breeze and drizzle.
Today, Liu Yong went to Kuaiji to work with Zhao Xiaozhi, the coin minter and transportation judge of Liangzhe Road.
The passenger ship was swaying with the waves of the river, and a light rain was falling outside the window. Inside the house, Liu Yong was enjoying a short poem.
Zhao Xiaozhi walked in and said to him, "Deputy Commander, Xiaoshan is just ahead. Huh? The Deputy Commander has written another new poem? I must really appreciate it."
In the Song Dynasty, there were usually only three chief officials for each route: the Transport Commissioner, the Criminal Commissioner, and the Grain and Oil Commissioner. However, in most cases, there were four, because routes along the canal would have an additional Transport Commissioner, and routes to ethnic minorities or border areas would have an Appeasement Commissioner.
Therefore, the chief officials of the Northern Song Dynasty are generally called the Four Departments, namely the Marshal Department, the Transport Department, the Justice Department, and the Warehouse Department.
Among them, the transport envoy was responsible for finance, the pacification envoy was responsible for public security, the shipping envoy was responsible for grain transport, the criminal justice official was responsible for prisons, and the grain purifier was responsible for warehousing. However, the government affairs along the way were not originally under their jurisdiction, and each state governor was responsible for the governance of his state.
During the reigns of Emperors Zhenzong and Renzong, the status of the Transmission Commissioner gradually increased. He was not only in charge of finances but also of local government affairs, and his power grew. After the establishment of the Political System Yuan, the Transmission Commissioner was officially appointed as the chief administrative official.
Therefore, just as the prefect is usually called the Taishou and the Transport Commissioner is called the Si Shuai, the Deputy Transport Commissioner, as the second in command, also has the elegant title of Deputy Shuai.
Hearing Zhao Xiaozhi's words, Liu Yong carefully put the paper away and said with a smile: "Don't look at this carelessly. This poem was not written by me. I have to take it back and frame it carefully. I have to pass it on as a family heirloom."
"No, Deputy Commander."
Zhao Xiaozhi quickly stopped him and said, "I'll just take a look."
"Just one glance."
Seeing that the other party was very curious, Liu Yong had to spread it out again.
After reading it, Zhao Xiaozhi was amazed and said, "It wasn't written by Si Shuai, the style of the lyrics is quite similar."
"I'm also confused. He said that since he gave me the lyrics, I should just tell everyone that I wrote them. But I really didn't write them."
Liu Yong scratched his head, then pointed to the lower right corner and said, "Look at the signature."
"Zhou Shuren?"
Zhao Xiaozhi was shocked and said, "It's actually this gentleman!"
"Forehead"
Liu Yong wanted to say something, but remembering that the prefect didn't allow him to reveal his identity, he could only say, "It's him."
"Amazing! He's worthy of being called the Deputy Commander. It's said that Mr. Zhou is always heard of, but never heard of. I went to Bianliang several times, trying to find him, but couldn't find him. Yet, he's willing to meet the Deputy Commander. I guess it's because the Deputy Commander's poems are so good that he feels a deep sympathy for him."
Zhao Xiaozhi quickly asked, "I wonder what he looks like?"
"he"
Liu Yong felt a little dazed, so he could only answer vaguely: "He is about fifty years old, but he has a very handsome face. He is so handsome that he can be said to be a person of heaven."
"To be praised so highly by the deputy commander, one must be truly a rare talent!"
Zhao Xiaozhi smiled and said, "I once read this gentleman's article. Every word was so precious and unforgettable."
Zhou Shuren has now become a remarkable figure active in the literary world of the Song Dynasty.
In addition to writing lyrics, he also criticizes current affairs.
For example, he once wrote an article to speak for science, saying that science is the future and that the Song Dynasty should actively promote science.
He also wrote articles expressing that everyone is equal and there should be no distinction between high and low. He criticized the slavery system and expressed his firm support for the Song Dynasty's abolition law.
In addition, he has also written a lot of explorations and opinions on the grassroots people and the current situation in the officialdom, and his words are thought-provoking.
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