Guo Tai had been reported by the Governor-General of Zhili. So who had held that post at the time?
Yuan Shoutong was from Shandong, born in the first year of Yongzheng's reign. He was the grandson of Yuan Zilan, Shandong's richest man. His family was not only wealthy enough to rival a nation, but also a family of officials. To make it easier for family members to travel to the capital, and to benefit the local people as well, the roads from Jiaoqiao to the capital had all been built by the Yuan family.
Yuan Zilan had five sons. His fourth son was Yuan Chengfu, whose eldest son was Yuan Shoutong. Yuan Shoutong passed the provincial examination in the ninth year of Qianlong's reign. When he went to the capital the following year to compete for the jinshi degree, he failed the examination. His family then followed Chen Yunting, a Secretariat Drafter, and purchased for him the position of Grand Secretariat Drafter. He was subsequently assigned as a Clerk of the Grand Council to build up his official record.
Later, he was promoted to a Department Director in the Ministry of Personnel. After selection and assessment, he became a Supervising Censor of the Jiangxi Circuit, then was sent out to serve as Zhejiang Salt and Postal Route Intendant.
The postal routes referred to overland routes. While governors-general and governors in populous provinces racked their brains over how to ensure the food supply during their terms, places such as Guizhou were plagued by the problem of salt transportation. There was no doubt that transporting heavy goods such as grain and salt by water was far easier. However, since the sea routes around Guangzhou and other places were used to transport grain, salt had to travel by land.
Even Sichuan salt transported