The Rebellious Officials and Traitors of the Late Han Dynasty

Chapter 496 Enfeoffment
It's just a casual placement of a chess piece. It doesn't matter whether it succeeds or not. To conquer Jiaozhou, it doesn't depend on the enemy's strength of soldiers and horses, but on the local climate. As long as the army can adapt to the local climate, find the right path, and attack by both land and sea, it's only a matter of time before Jiaozhou is taken.

In this way, the internal problems of the Shi family became unimportant. Having a few more internal supporters was just icing on the cake.

The messenger who came to deliver the letter quickly left Jiangdong, bringing Qin Shou's promise with him to sow discord within the Shi family.

"Your Majesty, Jiaozhou has a bad climate and is full of miasma, which is not conducive to long-term garrisoning. We also need to consider the local noble families. The Shi family is a local noble family. Although they are now bewitched by Liu Bei, if Your Majesty can issue an edict to pardon their crimes, perhaps the entire Shi family will immediately abandon the dark and join the light."

Jiang Gan suggested.

After fooling Zhou Yu, Jiang Gan wanted to go to Jiaozhou to fool Shi Shi and increase his merits.

In the hall, everyone nodded after hearing this. It would be great if they could defeat the enemy without fighting.

"Cheng Qian, what do you think?"

Qin Shou looked at his son and said.

"Father, Jiaozhou is Jiaozhou of the Central Plains. All policies should be consistent with those of the Central Plains. Persuading the Shi clan to surrender can certainly win the enemy without fighting, but it also means that the Central Plains will compromise with Jiaozhou. If things go wrong, the Shi clan may even occupy Jiaozhou and become local emperors. This is not advisable." Qin Chengqian's childish voice rang out in the hall.

Everyone was thinking about what Qin Chengqian meant. If nothing unexpected happened, this would represent the other party's future policy direction.

Qin Shou nodded slightly, with a hint of approval in his eyes. He looked around at everyone and said slowly: "Cheng Qian is right. Although Jiaozhou is far away, it is still part of our Central Plains. How can we compromise with local nobles for the sake of temporary convenience? If we give in to the Shi clan today, other border areas will follow suit tomorrow. If this continues, the country will no longer exist."

Seeing Qin Shou's resolute attitude, Jiang Gan felt a little uneasy, but still tried to persuade him: "Your Majesty, Jiaozhou is in a dangerous place with malaria everywhere. If the army attacks forcefully, it may suffer heavy losses. If we can win over Shi clan with a gentle strategy, we can avoid casualties and quickly stabilize the situation in Jiaozhou. Why not do it?"

Qin Shou hesitated for a moment, then turned his gaze to Zhou Yu: "Gongjin, what do you think?"

Zhou Yu smiled slightly, bowed and said: "Your Majesty, Ziyi's words make sense, but Master Chengqian's views are more far-reaching. Although Jiaozhou is dangerous, it is not unconquerable. The key lies in how to deal with the local climate and terrain. Now we should make full preparations in advance, advance by land and sea, and Jiaozhou will be easy to conquer."

Qin Shou nodded, looked around, and said with a smile: "You all think that although Jiaozhou is vast, it is full of miasma and is a barren land, but you don't know that Jiaozhou is a treasure land. In Jiangnan, rice can be harvested twice a year, but in Jiaozhou, or south of Jiaozhou, rice can be harvested three times a year."

"Really?" Even Jia Xu was moved when he heard it.

What is the concept of three harvests a year? It is enough to change the situation in the world. If the Han Dynasty could occupy Jiaozhou and develop Jiaozhou in the past, there would be enough food, and perhaps the current situation would not have occurred.

Qin Shou saw the surprise on everyone's faces, smiled slightly, and continued: "Although Jiaozhou is located in a remote area, its land is fertile and its climate is hot and humid, which is suitable for rice growth. If it can be well developed, Jiaozhou will become the granary of our Central Plains. Not only that, Jiaozhou is also rich in rare wood, medicinal materials, spices and other things. If a trade channel with the Central Plains can be opened, the value of Jiaozhou will be immeasurable."

Qin Shou said so much, but in the final analysis, Jiaozhou must be controlled by the court, and no noble family can get involved. Jia Xu and others heard it very clearly. They knew that this was also the reason why Qin Shou decided to send troops to Jiaozhou, which was to sweep away the local noble families and prepare for the court to completely control Jiaozhou.

Jia Xu's eyes flashed with a gleam of light, and he bowed and said, "Your Majesty is far-sighted, and I admire you. If it is true as Your Majesty said, Jiaozhou is indeed a treasure land. However, if we want to develop Jiaozhou, we must first quell the rebellion of the Shi clan and stabilize the situation. Otherwise, even if we have more resources, it will be difficult for us to use them."

Qin Shou nodded and said, "Wenhe is right. Therefore, this expedition to Jiaozhou not only aims to take down the Shi clan, but also to completely eliminate the local forces in Jiaozhou and make them truly submit to our Central Plains. Only in this way can we pave the way for subsequent development."

"Your Majesty, although Jiaozhou has countless treasures, it is vast and sparsely populated. It may take more than ten or even several decades to fully integrate into the Central Plains." Lu Xun suggested: "Your Majesty can suggest that the noble families in the Central Plains go there."

"This is what I want to say today." Qin Shou looked around and said, "During the reign of Emperor Gaozu, the land was divided and the meritorious officials were given fiefs. Many were given the title of kings and marquises. Unfortunately, in the end, the king and his officials became suspicious of each other, and countless people died and were injured. Only the Liu family could be kings. Today, I am about to become emperor, and I must reward the meritorious officials. Although I cannot give them the title of king, I can give them the title of duke, marquis, earl, viscount, and baron, five grades and fifteen levels of nobility."

In the hall, everyone's breathing became rapid after hearing this. Everyone followed Qin Shou and fought on the battlefield, wasn't it just for the title of a wife and children today?

Moreover, it can be heard that Qin Shou seems to be very generous, even offering the title of Duke. In fact, everyone can hear that the reward is definitely not just this.

"In addition to the Central Plains, I have decided to grant real fiefs to meritorious officials. The first-class duke will be granted a fief of 500 miles, and then the same will apply to the rest. The first choice is the south of Jiaozhou." As soon as Qin Shou finished speaking, people in the hall took a breath of cold air, their eyes lit up, and even their breathing became rapid.

Even though Jia Xu had a calm personality, his expression changed when he heard Qin Shou's words.

The fiefdom of 500 li was not only a symbol of a title, but also meant real land, wealth and power. Especially the south of Jiaozhou, although it was still a wild land, but if it was really as Qin Shou said, the land there was fertile and the products were abundant, it would surely become a prosperous land in the future.

Whoever can obtain a fief here can not only lay a solid foundation for the family, but also occupy a seat in the future court.

No matter how powerful a noble family is, can they get so much land? According to this division, the worst third-class baron can also get 33 miles of land, far more than the noble family.

Add to that the rice that can be harvested three times a year, and this is a tremendous fortune. If you throw it away, you will become the eternal sinner of the family.

"Write to the cabinet and start implementing it. The fiefdoms include the southern part of Jiaozhou, the Three Kingdoms of Korea, and Japan." Qin Shou said with a smile: "I also hope that all of you meritorious officials can become my Qin family's eternal monarch and ministers, and share weal and woe from now on."

"Your Majesty, I will live forever!"

After hearing this, Jia Xu and others stepped out, knelt on the ground, and shouted "Long live the emperor".

(End of this chapter)