I rode and slashed unparalleled in the Three Kingdoms

Chapter 345: Bad reputation, difficult to conquer
In times of chaos, nobles and powerful people took in refugees, reclaimed land, and stabilized social order.

In this process, some people do it through benevolence and righteousness, while others rely on coercion and inducement.

But, the end result is the same.

After gaining control of a large number of dependent people, these aristocratic families gained control of the people's hearts and possessed the power to check and balance the country and the ability to divide the world.

This shift in public opinion not only exacerbated the weakening of central power, but also laid the foundation for the future rise of aristocratic families and clan politics.

By controlling the land and population, they accumulated huge economic and social resources, and eventually formed a force capable of determining the fate of the country.

And now I am standing at the crossroads of this era of great change.

At this moment, Su Yao understood what Liu Bei, Qian Zhao, Wei Ming and others meant by the suspense they had kept before.

In the following days, he was not only the General Du Liao, but also the Prefect of Liaodong, and he had to govern the area and protect the people.

Then, we must officially start dealing with these aristocratic families.

Historically, the choice that ended the chaotic times was Cao Wei's Nine-Rank System.

It ceded power to aristocratic families, fully embraced the arrival of the era of aristocratic families, adapted to the development of society at that time, and quickly won the hearts of the people.

However, Su Yao was very clear about what the final outcome would be.

It was a time when social contradictions exploded, with no commoners in the upper class and no nobles in the lower class.

The dark and chaotic Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties, when the upper class lived in luxury and fought for wealth, and the lower class people became like two-legged sheep of foreign races.
Although there are still some doubts about this world today.

But no matter what, Su Yao was not prepared to watch it slide into such an abyss.

As a result, how to deal with these rapidly growing aristocratic families became his current problem besides military issues.

"Sir, the people are suffering." Liu Bei sighed.

This heartfelt cry of “The people are suffering” brought Su Yao’s thoughts back to the present.

Su Yao also deeply agreed with this.

He knew that to truly achieve peace in the world, the people's suffering must be fundamentally resolved.

For such a problem, a military victory alone is not enough.

In the past, he didn't want or need to consider these issues.

All you have to do is win the battle and then leave the follow-up matters to your cheap superiors or local officials.

But now, regardless of what he has seen and heard along the way, or the practical considerations of soon taking charge of a region, he must face this problem.

But he still has time.
"There is no point staying here any longer"

Su Yao said to Liu Bei:
"Brother Xuande, let's go visit the Tian family, find that Tian Chou, and then set off to Liaodong as soon as possible."

So Su Yao ordered the army to stay where it was, and at the same time sent people to inform the people and the manager of the local Tian family that he was the prefect of Liaodong, not the princess of this place, and that he came here only to look for Tian Chou, and had no intention of disturbing the people, let alone disrupting their current stable life.

As the news spread, there was finally movement in the manor.

Not long after, the elderly patriarch of the Tian family walked out of the manor gate surrounded by several servants and came in front of Su Yao and others.

"I didn't know that Marquis Guanjun was coming. I'm sorry for not welcoming you in person. I'm sorry for not welcoming you in person!" said the head of the Tian family.

In response to this, Su Yao, who was thoughtful, simply exchanged a few words of greeting and then went straight to the point:

"Old sir, we have important matters to attend to, so we will not enter your manor."

"I came here this time because of the recommendation of Envoy Liu. I heard that you have a young man named Tian Chou, who is good at both literature and martial arts, quite courageous, and has traveled to Youzhou since he was young, and is proficient in geography. He is a rare talent."

Su Yao said, and glanced at the servants behind the old patriarch of the Tian family, frowning:
"So I am eager to seek talents, so I come to visit you. I wonder if you can let me see you, old sir." The old patriarch was slightly stunned when he heard this, and then a bit of embarrassment appeared on his face. He hesitated for a moment before slowly speaking:
"Thank you for your kindness, but to be honest, Tian Chou, the child is not in the mansion today."

Su Yao was stunned when he heard this.

Did I miss it, or was this another reason why the aristocratic families were avoiding me?

Then, Su Yao's eyes became sharp.

The old patriarch paused and explained:
"Little Sun Tianchou has been naughty and stubborn since childhood. He often does things unconventionally, often goes alone, and his whereabouts are erratic.

Although the elders of the clan have repeatedly advised him, he still goes his own way and is difficult to control."

At this moment, Zhao Yun, who was standing by, whispered to his personal guards, then stepped forward and bowed, saying:

"Lord Su, when I was talking to a few common people just now, I learned that Master Tian Chou has not left the manor and seems to be still in the mansion."

As soon as these words were spoken, the atmosphere suddenly became a little tense.

The old patriarch's face changed, as if he had not expected that Su Yao's people would be so meticulous and find out all these details.

He hesitated, not knowing how to respond for a moment.

At this moment, the people on Su Yao's side knew clearly that this old man was deliberately obstructing them.

"Great, your Tian family is really great!"

Before Su Yao could say anything, Zhang Fei angrily said:

"My lord is in charge of the military affairs of the northern border under the command of the emperor. Not to mention your lord, even Envoy Liu treated him well and spoke kindly to him before."

"Today I heard that your child is famous, and I came to the meeting because of his reputation. I want to recruit him to serve the country and give him some honor."

"Not only do you not want to serve the country, but you also find excuses to refuse and hide. What are you thinking?"

Frankly speaking, in the past, Zhang Fei, a hero who came from a butcher's family, still had deep respect for these aristocratic families.

However, the affair of the Li family in Zhongshan State shattered the filter of aristocratic families in his eyes.

Not all of those people are as benevolent, righteous, polite, wise and trustworthy as they appear and boast.

Today, after seeing the famous Tian family also making excuses, he immediately became furious:

"You guys are behaving like this, are you looking down on my Lord?!"

"Could it be that you don't know about the rebels in Jizhou and the Li Mansion?"

Zhang Fei's words were powerful and the atmosphere became tense for a moment.

Although Su Yao looked calm on the surface, with an expressionless face, his heart was in turmoil.

He understood that this visit to Wuzhong County to look for Tian Chou was not only to find a suitable guide, but also a test and contact with the aristocratic families in Youzhou.

Facing Zhang Fei's questioning, the old patriarch was obviously a little flustered. He waved his hands and explained:
"General, you misunderstood. General, you misunderstood. How dare we look down on the Marquis of Guanjun?

It’s just that Tian Chou is a really naughty kid, and I’m worried that he might offend the general, so I did this.”

"Hmph, collision?"

Zhang Fei snorted disdainfully:
"My lord is a man of broad mind. How could he bother with a young man? If your Tian family really wants to contribute to the country, you shouldn't be so reluctant!"

The old patriarch was left speechless by what Zhang Fei said and was at a loss for words for a moment.

(End of this chapter)