I rode and slashed unparalleled in the Three Kingdoms

Chapter 942 Western Region Development Company (Combined Chapter)

Su Yao's rapid-fire speeches were like thunderclaps, exploding in the Chongde Hall.

Civil and military officials looked at each other, some with excitement in their eyes, while others had frowned and looked worried.

All the lands that the sun and the moon shine on are Han territory; all the lands that the rivers and streams reach are Han subjects.

This is a famous quote written on the Dinghu Stele after Emperor Xuan of Han defeated the Huns.

At that time, the Han Dynasty was at its peak of national strength and was feared by all. All the countries in the Western Regions were subject to it. However, even with its glory at that time, due to limited vision, the Han Dynasty never really turned its attention to the farther West.

The world seems to be only as big as the area around the Central Plains, and any place farther away is just a barren land.

And now, with the map Su Yao took out, they realized for the first time that the world was so vast and the Han Dynasty was just a corner of it.

It has to be said that this was a great shock to the Han Dynasty scholars who were proud of being the Celestial Empire and viewed the surrounding ethnic groups as barbarians.

Among them, Xu Huang, Zhang Liao, Dian Wei, Song Xian, Hou Cheng and others all had shining eyes and were ready to fight.

It's a very simple logic. The Han Dynasty values ​​military merit and Su Yao is very generous, but they pacified the world too quickly.

Although there are many people like Lu Bu, Cheng Lian, Guan Yu and Taishi Ci who gradually became the governor of a military region because of their merits.

But there were still many people who did not go on the expedition because they were responsible for guarding the occupied areas. As a result, they watched those who arrived later than them rise like rockets while they lost their chance.

Is it because my skills are not as good as others?
No, in terms of ability, none of them felt that they were much inferior. All they lacked was a chance to join the battle.

Once the world is pacified and weapons are put into storage, it means that these warriors will no longer have any place to use their skills.

But now, with a map from Su Yao, an opportunity that far surpassed Fenglangjuxu slowly unfolded before their eyes.

Who wouldn't be tempted if he's a warrior with something to pursue?
Even the Minister of War Cao Mengde, who had been promoted to the imperial court for his military achievements in Jizhou, stood up with a flushed face and expressed his willingness to give up his current position and follow the general in the western expedition as a vanguard general.

However, compared to the excitement among the military men, the civil officials were obviously much more rational.

However, those who knew the general well saw Su Yao like this and realized that it was probably useless to say anything more.

Only Liu Yu, the Minister of the Ministry of Rites, who had always been known for his outspokenness and courage to remonstrate since entering the court, stood up and openly opposed it:

"War is a major issue for a country and must be carefully considered."

"Your Majesty, the Han Dynasty is a country of etiquette and has always ruled the world with benevolence. How can we start a war just for the sake of profit?"

"Confucius traveled around the countries and preached benevolence, which earned him the respect of later generations. Mencius also said, 'Those who have the Way have many supporters, while those who have lost the Way have few supporters.' If our dynasty forcibly conquers in order to expand its territory, although we may gain land temporarily, we will lose the hearts of the people. This is not only contrary to our dynasty's benevolence and righteousness, but will also make our Han Dynasty become a greedy and bloodthirsty country in the eyes of the world."

"At that time, we may be able to gain some land and wealth with the temporary advantage of the sword, but unpopular tyranny will not last long."

"By then, those countries that fear the Han will surely unite."

"If the world is really as vast as the general says, how will our Han Dynasty cope with the siege by other countries thousands of miles away?"

As he spoke, Liu Yu bowed to the elders around him:
"Your Majesty, in the past, Ban Dingyuan recovered all of our Western Regions with only 36 men. He relied on combining kindness with force and winning people over with virtue."

"I heard that now that the Western Regions know that our political situation is stable, they have sent many merchant groups and envoys to Dunhuang to establish friendly relations with our dynasty. Now we should adopt a gentle approach and implement a benevolent and righteous policy to make them voluntarily submit. If we rashly raise an army, it may backfire!"

Liu Yu's words resonated with many civil officials, and they all nodded in agreement.

"Liu Taichang is wrong!"

Before Su Yao could say anything, Cao Cao suddenly stood up and expressed his opposition:

"Ban Dingyuan was able to pacify the Western Regions with only 36 men. This was not due to any morality, but the great reputation of our Han cavalry!"

"If General Dou Gu had not defeated the Xiongnu first, how could Ban Chao have had the confidence to subdue the Western Regions?"

"If it weren't for Chen Tang's heroic words, 'If anyone dares to offend the mighty Han, no matter how far away he is, he will be punished,' how could the Western Regions have been so respectful to our great Han?"

"That's right, morality must be backed by swords!"

Su Yao nodded and took over Cao Cao's words, saying loudly:
"Without the deterrence of powerful troops, even the best ideas are nothing but castles in the air!"

"Why do you think our Han envoys always receive courtesy when they go to the Western Regions? Why did the Xiongnu Chanyu send his son to serve him? Why did the King of Nanyue write a letter to declare himself a vassal?"

"It's not because our Han envoys are good at speaking, but because our Han cavalry are good at fighting!"

"Otherwise, how would Your Excellency Taichang explain the surrender and rebellion in the Western Regions in recent decades?"

"Is it because our dynasty is of low moral character and has done something to offend the Western Regions?"

"Bullshit! They just saw that our Han Dynasty was in trouble both internally and externally, and the Xianbei people took advantage of the situation to expand their power, so they dared to be fickle and treacherous!"

"Now, they sent envoys and merchant groups not because they admired the king, but to find out our strength and see if our Han Dynasty is still as powerful as it was in the past!"

Su Yao's voice echoed in the hall, deafening. He looked around at the ministers with a sharp gaze:
"Do you remember how arrogant the Xiongnu Chanyu was when he wrote to Empress Lü? If it weren't for the accumulation of national strength during the reigns of Emperor Wen and Emperor Jing, and Emperor Wu's counterattack, the Han land today would have been reduced to a pasture for Hu horses!"

"This..." Liu Yu was speechless for a moment, his face flushed.

Su Yao did not give them a chance to continue to object and said directly:
“This is an era of great contention.”

"Every country and every nation must fight for its own survival. If the Han people do not make progress today, they will be controlled by others in the future!"

Su Yao turned his gaze back to the map and pointed to the grassland in the north:

"If we don't quickly complete the unification today, there will be endless fighting in the Central Plains in the future. The hungry wolves on the grassland will sooner or later take advantage of our weakness and attack us fiercely. By then, there will be countless deaths and corpses everywhere, and the Central Plains will be filled with the smell of blood."

Then, Su Yao moved to the Western Regions: "The Yuezhi have been encroaching on the Western Regions for hundreds of years, and the Parthians have monopolized the silk trade. If we continue to be complacent, within ten years, the Western Regions trade routes will fall into the hands of others, and the prosperity of our Central Plains will be nothing more than a wedding dress made for others!"

Finally, Su Yao's finger landed heavily on the location of Rome: "And the most dangerous is this empire that is expanding crazily. Their legions are invincible, and their ambitions are endless."

"Do you know why I have this map and why I want to launch a westward expedition?"

"That's because this is a sign from heaven!"

Su Yao looked at those people who suddenly widened their eyes and said nonsense:

"One day in the future, these conquerors from the West will set foot on the land of our Han Dynasty, their warships will appear on our coasts, their iron hooves will trample our homes, and countless Chinese people will sink in the flames."

"They will divide the whole world by force, and everyone will tremble under the rule of these western conquerors. By then, our faith, our life, everything about us will be changed!"

"All this is not imagination, but a reality that will definitely happen someday in the future!"

Su Yao's voice was like thunder, exploding in the hall:
"And God allowed me to see all this and brought me here to shatter this future and win the right for me, the people of heaven, to live under the sun without fear of future generations!"

"Therefore, the Western Expedition is imperative!"

Shocked and silent, everyone was speechless after Su Yao's final words. In the huge court, one could hear a pin drop.

Who could have thought that in the end, what Su Yao came up with was neither reason nor threat, but a statement that was almost like an oracle.

After the court was adjourned, the ministers gathered in groups of three or four, all with nervous looks on their faces.

Liu Yu whispered, "Taifu Lu, what do you think about this? This is what the King of Tang said."

Lu Zhi stroked his beard, frowning: "I have studied the science of prophecy and divination, but I have never seen such a clear prediction. If it is really as the Tang King said..."

"How is that possible?"

Chen Ji shook his head:

"In my opinion, this is probably an excuse for the Tang Emperor to launch the Western Expedition. He just can't sit still and wants to fight, and he's talking about the omen from heaven."

"Guanglu Xun, be careful with your words."

Cao Cao suddenly appeared from the shadows, squinting his eyes and smiling:
"It is a miracle that the Tang King came back to life, and he also presented this unprecedented world map. If there is no providence, who can explain this?"

Everyone fell silent.

Indeed, Su Yao himself had already shown a side that was very extraordinary before, and this time he even came back to life from the dead. All these incredible things were completely beyond common sense.

The Han Dynasty was an era that was very superstitious about metaphysics, where prophecies and beliefs in gods and ghosts were prevalent. Now that Su Yao had stated his views so bluntly, it was hard not to believe.

Liu Yu sighed: "If this is really a sign from the Emperor of Heaven, then this Western Expedition is not unreasonable. However, this expedition will cost the army a lot of money and the country's strength. I'm afraid the people will suffer for a long time."

Three days later, in the Government Hall.

"what?!"

"Without wasting national strength?"

"What exactly does the Tang King mean by this?"

Besides, the imperial court's westward expedition is a national event. Since they have reached a consensus at the previous grand court meeting, today the officials in the government hall will work with Su Yao to formulate detailed strategies for the next westward expedition and make preparations for mobilizing troops and horses, logistical support, etc.

However, everyone was shocked when Su Yao opened his mouth:

"For this Western Expedition, the imperial court does not need to recruit soldiers from all over the country, nor does it need to impose additional taxes and corvée. The main focus should still be on promoting the new policies at home, while allocating some resources to prepare for overseas expansion."

Jia Xu frowned, thought for a moment and said, "Could it be that the King of Tang wants to follow the example of Sun Bofu's expedition to Rinnan and use a small number of elite troops as the vanguard and let them explore on their own?"

“Even if you miss, you’re not far off.”

Su Yao laughed and said:
"I will personally lead the Western Expedition this time and raise the military funds myself to solve the problems in the Western Regions. The court will just wait and count the money."

"This"

Everyone looked at each other in bewilderment, and the Minister of War Cao Cao couldn't help but ask:

"The Western Regions are thousands of miles away from Luoyang. Even with a small number of troops, the cost of the journey would be huge. How can we let you prepare on your own?"

"Besides, the imperial court has no idea what the current situation is in the Western Regions. You are a man of ten thousand gold, but you only have a few people with you. Not only will it bring disgrace to the imperial court, but if something goes wrong..."

Su Yao chuckled, confident: "Don't worry, I have a plan."

Next, Su Yao explained immediately.

This time, he wanted to create a template that could be used sustainably, so that the war of expanding territory would no longer be a waste of money and labor, but would bring tangible benefits to the people and the court.

To this end, Su Yao proposed a rather novel method.

"Western Region Development Company?!"

"What is this???"

In the Council Hall, Lu Zhi's hand, which was twirling his beard, stopped in mid-air, and he was completely stunned. Others like Jia Xu and Cao Cao were no less impressive.

It is said that all of them were well-read in scriptures, but they knew each word of the word King Tang said when they were separated, but when they were put together, these talented people were completely confused.

Su Yao raised the corner of his mouth slightly, took a document from the table, spread it out and said, "Everyone, take a look."

The white rice paper was covered with the "Articles of Association of the Western Region Development Company". The first article was: "The purpose of this company is to open up trade routes and manage the Western Region. All investors are shareholders and share the profits according to the proportion of their investment."

"This..." Cao Cao's eyes widened, his palm unconsciously pressed on the table, "Is the Tang king going to follow the example of Shang Yang of the pre-Qin Dynasty and use his power to drive the people?"

"No." Su Yao shook his head. "Shang Yang's reforms were to encourage the people with rewards and punishments. I want to gather the people with benefits."

Su Yao tapped the charter with his fingers, and said in a clear voice: "The reason why I chose the Western Regions as the direction is because the trade routes here are extremely profitable: a piece of Shu brocade shipped to Parthia can be exchanged for ten horses, and a pound of tea can be worth the same weight of gold. In the past, these profits were divided up by the countries and caravans along the way. The court only received a small amount of customs duties, but had to bear a heavy defense burden. The purpose was just to prevent the Western Regions from falling to the Xiongnu and Xianbei."

"It is precisely because of this that the imperial court's management of the Western Regions was intermittent. In the final analysis, it was because it was overwhelmed."

Jia Xu narrowed his eyes slightly: "Then is the King of Tang planning to manage this trade route himself?"

Su Yao nodded and said, "That's right. I want to form an expeditionary force composed of elite soldiers and merchant caravans, with soldiers and merchants as one. We will set up trade stations along the way and open up trade routes. All merchants, noble families, and even ordinary people who participate in the investment can invest and participate as long as they are willing to share the future profits."

"Then the imperial court will gain land, population and sovereignty, and the company will operate the local area under the authorization of the imperial court and make profits. In this way, expanding the territory will not only not consume the national treasury, but will fill the treasury. Isn't it wonderful?"

That’s right, this is the magic weapon that will enable the British Empire to rule the world and become the first superpower in history in the future.

In addition to its strong ships and powerful guns, its advanced colonial system brought the empire a steady stream of overseas wealth, supporting its continued expansion.

The accumulated wealth also enabled the British Empire to make the breakthrough from an agricultural country to an industrial country, leading the transformation of the industrial age and creating the glory of the Victorian era.

Now that Su Yao has learned part of the truth about this world, he needs to march west as soon as possible to solve the imminent problem.

So how to break through the shackles of the times and escape the limitations of the limits of rule is what he must consider.

Therefore, Su Yao stood on the shoulders of his predecessors, holding tightly to the military merit system of classical militarism inherited from the Qin and Han dynasties in one hand, and directly grasping the essence of later imperialist mercantilism and colonial expansion in the other hand, using both methods to create a new expansion model for the ancient Han Empire.

Su Yao looked around at everyone and saw that they were still a little confused, so he continued to explain:

"Have you ever thought about why the Han Dynasty has been managing the Western Regions for more than 200 years, but has never been able to truly take root? Why can Ban Chao's 36 cavalrymen intimidate the Western Regions, but cannot make the Western Regions a permanent Han territory?"

He paused, and said in a sonorous and powerful voice: "Because the way of management in the past was just to 'subdue with military force and win over with kindness', it never made the Western Regions a real part of our Han Dynasty!"

"And this time, what we have to do is to make every city, every trade route, and every citizen in the Western Regions deeply bound to the interests of our Han Dynasty!"

"The Western Region Development Company was born for this purpose!"

(End of this chapter)