I, Liu Bian, Sanxing Han Dynasty

Chapter 426 Clear rewards and punishments
"Very good! Very good!" Liu Bian praised as he looked at the memorial in his hand.

Seeing that Zhao Qian, who was summoned by him, was a little confused, Liu Bian directly ordered Guo Sheng to hand the memorial in his hand to Zhao Qian.

"It can be said that it is a double happiness now!" Liu Bian was still in high spirits. "Not only have the rebels in Qianwei County been dealt with, but the Qiang people in Shu County have also chosen to surrender. This is all due to Lord Zhao's contribution!"

Zhao Qian hastily declined the offer: "Your Majesty, I am ashamed to accept your praise... The affairs of Qianwei depend on the courage of the soldiers to fight, and the affairs of Shu County depend on Xun Gongda to make plans. I am just trying my best to help."

Although his father and son each played their part in the war in Yizhou, the Zhao family's influence in Shu County was also clearly demonstrated.

It even magnified Zhao's influence by accident.

He was somewhat worried that the emperor would be wary of the Zhao family's influence in his hometown.

"Why are you so modest, Lord Zhao? Without your help, the rebels would have retreated to the city and would never have destroyed themselves so easily. A good father will have a good son. Your son has recommended himself and persuaded the Qiang people to surrender with his own words. This will be a good story in the history books in the future!"

"It is a waste of talent for such a talented person to serve as the county's literary officer. I believe that by now, your son has been appointed as Gongcao by Gongda."

After hearing this, Zhao Qian declined again, saying, "Your Majesty, my child is ignorant and I am afraid that he cannot take on this important task..."

The two positions of literature and Gongcao cannot be compared at all.

Liu Bian said with a smile: "In the past, Qi Huangyang promoted people regardless of their kinship. How come it is the other way around in Zhao Gong's case? The country is in need of talents right now. How can we force talented people to be employed?"

"And establish military preparations to maintain authority. Clearly define rewards and punishments to enforce the law. This is the great way!"

Zhao Qian came to his senses at this moment. He finally understood that the emperor summoned him not to consult on any political affairs, nor did he want to take the opportunity to suppress him. He just wanted to praise him.

And let everyone in the world know that you are being praised.

Zhao Qian understood the meaning of this and changed his tone. He no longer refused any words. In response to the emperor's praise, he pretended to be humble but actually accepted it all.

For a time, the king and his subjects were in a happy mood, with everyone praising each other.

The reaction of Shu County once again revealed a clear reality to Liu Bian - the powerful families and wealthy people were by no means united.

Some people care about the people and harvests in the fields, but others prefer to look up.

The next day, at the court meeting, Liu Bian publicly announced his appointment -

Shizhong Zhao Qian was appointed as the captain of the city gate, in charge of the guards at the Luoyang city gate.

The rank of the City Gate Captain was equivalent to that of a two thousand stone official. According to Han Dynasty tradition, this position was mostly held by favored relatives of the emperor's wife. Occasionally, there were people with both moral integrity and talent, and they were all famous officials.

For example, the former captain of the city gate was Zhao Yan, the younger brother of the eunuch Zhao Zhong.

When it comes to military power, it cannot be simply measured by official rank.

Zhao Qian's younger brother Zhao Wen was the Right Fufeng Cheng. Because of his past achievements, he was appointed as a counselor and entered the court.

The former is fine. There is actually no need to announce Zhao Wen’s appointment at the court meeting, but Liu Bian did it anyway.

He wants to tell those talented people around the world who want to make progress how to do so.

Where there is reward, there must be punishment.

Wang Ran, the governor of Shu County, who was wounded by a stray arrow, eventually died. The dead are gone, so Liu Bian did not pursue his guilt. After all, he was a 2,000-stone official, and on the surface, he died in the line of duty, so Liu Bian had to give him a decent look.

Xun You still has Ba County to manage, and the person who will take over the position of Shu County Governor will be the strong-willed and straightforward Attendant Censor Shen Pei.

Considering that it is impossible for Xun You to wipe out all the filth in Shu County in a short period of time, and Shen Pei will certainly continue the investigation after taking office, it can only be said that the powerful people in Shu County are blessed.

However, this is the blessing they deserve.

General Huan Dian of Anxi was demoted to the position of Counselor because of his serious mistakes in the military farming in Shu County. Compared with Zhao Wen, Huan Dian's position as Counselor was obviously a demotion.

In other words, he and Zhong Fu stood firm in their stance during the subsequent suppression of the rebellion, otherwise dismissal from office would have been the lightest punishment.

Zhong Fu was also guilty of dereliction of duty in his supervisory duties, but military farming was not part of his job, so he still retained his position as governor.

However, it will be heavily noted in the annual evaluation, and it is hard to say whether he can serve as a governor again next year.

Ren Qi, the governor of Qianwei, was dismissed from office because of his greed for merit and defeat in battle... From him onwards, rewards and punishments were given differently according to merits and demerits.

As the court meeting ended, Liu Bian's rewards and punishments began to spread to all parties.

"It is truly a cause for celebration that Lord Zhao has replaced Zhao Yan!"

"Congratulations, Mr. Zhao!"

As soon as he left the court, Zhao Qian was surrounded by many court officials, who congratulated him and greeted him.

Although the court officials nowadays have tacitly agreed not to openly clamor for the killing of eunuchs, they still curse the eunuchs when they have nothing to do.

Don't hit someone who smiles at you. Zhao Qian returned the greetings one by one.

When Zhao Qian came to the capital despite his illness, he served as the Prefect of the Guards and the Palace Attendant successively, and had almost no presence among the court officials.

But now, everyone understands that this person has been favored by the Emperor.

In this case, of course I should take this opportunity to make some friends!

……

At the same time, Zhao Yan, who suddenly lost his official position and had no news of his whereabouts, went to his brother Zhao Zhong to cry.

Zhao Zhong has lived through three dynasties. He is now quite old with gray hair on his temples.

He looked at his younger brother who was crying non-stop and remained silent.

Zhao Yan cried for a long time but didn't notice any reaction from his brother. He couldn't help but look up to see Zhao Zhong's expression, but he met Zhao Zhong's gaze.

Zhao Yan’s crying voice paused.

Zhao Zhong then asked, "How long has it been since you returned home?"

Zhao Yan shook his head. They were from Anping County, Boling County, Jizhou, but he could not remember when was the last time he returned home. In his heart, his hometown could not compare to the prosperous Luoyang.

Zhao Zhong said, "I haven't lived in my old house in Anping since it was built. Since you have nothing to do now, you might as well take a look at it for me. If you find any dilapidated parts, repair them in time."

According to the Han system, the township where the county seat is located is called the capital township, and its wealth is generally higher than that of the townships in the wild. Therefore, among the marquises, the status of the capital township marquis is higher than that of the township marquis.

Zhao Zhong was granted the title of Marquis of Duxiang in his hometown of Anping County, Duxiang. Although he had no power to govern the people, according to convention, a marquis would usually build a mansion in the place where his fief was located. When Zhao Zhong was granted the title of Marquis, he was at the height of his power. In order to curry favor with him, local officials built his mansion large and luxurious.

But Zhao Yan didn't care how big Zhao Zhong's mansion was. He didn't want to leave Luoyang. He was shocked when he heard this and said quickly, "Brother, I..."

"Shut up!" Zhao Zhong shouted angrily.

"What have you been doing so far?"

"Over the past few years, I have repeatedly urged you to do your job well. What have you done?"

"Not only are you dishonest, but you've also brought chaos to the gate guards!"

"If I didn't have some face in front of His Majesty and the Queen Mother, do you think it would be enough to just lose my job?"

Zhao Yan was reprimanded by Zhao Zhong and knelt on the ground, not daring to say anything more.

Seeing this, Zhao Zhong let out a long sigh.

He said earnestly: "In recent years, I often feel backache. Time is not forgiving!"

"Since entering the palace, I have never returned to my hometown. Now I often dream of the time when my parents raised me and my brothers. Please go and have a look for me first."

"Remember, although Anping does not have as many powerful people as Luoyang, you must not bully others by taking advantage of your power. Things are different now. If something happens, I can't protect you!"

Seeing that his brother, whom he relied on for support, had the intention of retreating, Zhao Yan knew that he could not change Zhao Zhong's decision.

His eyes rolled, and he complained again: "Brother, most of the properties I have acquired over the years are near Luoyang. If I sell them because of my hasty return home, I will definitely suffer a great loss..."

"Come to my home storehouse to get it later. After you arrive in Anping, you can also use my annual fief." Zhao Zhong was a little helpless, but the man in front of him was his younger brother after all. What could he do?

But before leaving, he still warned: "Remember, never commit crimes!"

Zhao Yan's mind was full of the wealth that Zhao Zhong had compensated him with, so he readily agreed when he heard it.

Jizhou, Changshan County.

Zhuge Jin wiped the sweat from his head with his sleeve without caring about his image, and patiently explained to the people in front of him the court's migration policy and the guarantees of the immigration process.

He came here as an official who organized the people to migrate south.

After actually getting involved in the administration, he realized that getting things done was not as easy as he had originally imagined.

Not long after Zhuge Jin arrived in Changshan County, it rained in Changshan.

This slightly relieved shower brought new troubles to Zhuge Jin - some people who originally intended to move south began to waver. They felt that as long as the drought could end, they could hold out until the soybeans planted this summer were harvested and they would be able to survive until next year.

"Mr. Zhuge, I don't understand much of the big principles. I'm just old, and as long as I can survive in my hometown, no one wants to go to a strange place thousands of miles away. Mr. Zhuge, do you think this is the truth?" said a newly arrived old man.

Zhuge Jin really could not refute this simple statement.

However, he had experienced this kind of situation many times, so he answered without hesitation: "Old man, what you said is indeed reasonable, but I also have something to say, old man, you might as well listen to it..."

"I don't know how many acres of land my father-in-law has in this township. Can they survive until April next year just relying on the poor wheat harvest last month and the low soybean yield? I don't know when the next rain will come after the rain a while ago."

"Just to mention one thing - when you arrive in the south, no matter whether it is the four counties of Jingnan or the four counties of Yangzhou, each household will be able to get at least 50 mu of land... I see that the two people around your father-in-law are your sons, right? They have already arrived to divide the households, right? By this calculation, as long as everyone arrives, there will be at least 150 mu of land."

"I won't hide it from you. There isn't that much cultivated land in the south. Most of the land that has been allocated needs to be reclaimed. But you don't have to worry about your livelihood while you're reclaiming the land. And as long as it's reclaimed, the land will be yours!"

"Are you serious, sir? Can these acres of land really be in our hands?" The old man was indeed tempted.

Seeing that there seemed to be a chance, Zhuge Jin immediately emphasized, "Don't worry, old man. When we move south, I will go with you. When we get to the south, I will accompany you to open up wasteland together... If you have any problems on the way south, you can come to me. I will always be there for you!"

Some people who were joining in the fun shouted, "Mr. Zhang, with the little land you have, you might as well sell it and move to the south... When you sell the land, please consider me, I'll pay a high price!"

"You still have money to buy the land? Pay me back what you owe first!"

"..."

Seeing that the topic was about to be diverted to another place, Zhuge Jin ignored his hoarse throat and shouted, "Father, do you have any doubts?"

The old man thought for a moment and said, "It is said that there is a lot of miasma in the south. We northerners may not be able to adapt to the climate there. We might die before we get the land."

"Don't worry, old man. The south is not as hot and humid as it used to be. If you want to see miasma now, you have to go to Jiaozhou, which is further south... As for the climate and soil, don't worry. The further south we go, the slower our journey will be. If you really can't get used to the climate and soil in the south, you can move to Sanfu, where the climate and soil are not much different from Changshan."

"And there is no need to worry about getting sick on the way. A long time ago, Zhang Zhongjing, a scholar from Hongdu School, went to Jiaozhou in person, tasted hundreds of herbs, and wrote Treatise on Febrile and Miscellaneous Diseases to treat typhoid fever. Doctors provided herbal medicines during the migration..."

By the end of his speech, Zhuge Jin's throat was almost smoking.

At this time, a bucket of water was handed over, Zhuge Jin took it and drank it all, and then whispered: "Liang Dao, thank you."

Jia Kui waved his hand and said, "Zi Yu, let me take over!"

Zhuge Jin did not force himself to continue and replaced him with Jia Kui, who was the same age as him.

He himself took this opportunity to have a good rest.

That night, Zhuge Jin, who had been busy all day, was about to fall asleep when he suddenly heard Jia Kui's question: "Zi Yu, are you asleep?"

"Is there something wrong with Liang Dao?"

"Just now, a county official sent a jar of wine, saying that the governor sent it specially because he saw how hard we worked. Isn't it because he wanted to drink with Ziyu?"

The two were indeed tired during this period of time, so they immediately took the bowl and a plate of pickled soybeans as a snack, and chatted quietly while drinking.

As they chatted, Jia Kui sighed and said, "If it's just a matter of voluntariness, only those who don't even have land are willing to migrate south. But the reason these people didn't become refugees is that they mostly relied on the support of their clans... It's so difficult to get them to voluntarily migrate south!"

Before they came to Changshan, they had received repeated orders from the emperor that the people must not be forced to migrate.

Zhuge Jin replied, "But if the government forces us to do this, I don't know how many more tragedies will happen. Although we are a little busy now, the people are at peace, so we don't feel tired anymore."

Jia Kui still shook his head: "Take today for example. You and I have been trying to persuade him for so long, but when Mr. Zhang left, he still hadn't made up his mind. I can only sigh that all the hard work today was in vain!"

Zhuge Jin comforted him, "Otherwise, what we said today is not just for Mr. Zhang to hear. There are so many people here, one person will tell ten people, ten people will tell a hundred people, there will always be someone who needs to hear it. Isn't this the original intention of you and me to come here from the Imperial College?"

"That's right! Ziyu is right!" Jia Kui raised his wine bowl and said to Zhuge Jin, "I made a mistake. I should drink three cups as punishment!"

Zhuge Jin nodded, looked at Jia Kui who was still drinking as a punishment, and suddenly realized what was happening. He shouted, "You are a good Jia Liangdao. I think your complaints were fake, and your real intention was to take the opportunity to drink more!"

(End of this chapter)