The Moon in the Qin Dynasty

Chapter 442: Conferred the title of Marquis
Ying Zheng felt both happy and emotional. It was not easy, really not easy.

The construction of this 300-li canal required the conscription of more than 300,000 civilians and prisoners, and took eight years. Most of the energy of the Gongshu family and the Mohist school was focused on this canal. Lu Buwei personally took charge of the matter and almost put all the strength of the entire country into it.

The death toll from this project has reached thousands over the past eight years.

But even so, it still took eight years, only two years ahead of schedule.

But all the costs are worth it!
More than ten years ago, the Dujiangyan Irrigation System was completed, and Sichuan became a land of abundance. Now that the Zhengguo Canal has been completed, both the south and the north are now fertile fields!

People eat for food.

There is food at home and there is no panic in the heart.

Food is the foundation.

Always the root.

Barren land becomes fertile, and uncultivable land becomes cultivable. The same land can produce four or five times more grain.

This means that more people can be fed. At any time, population is the foundation of a country. More people can do more things, and the probability of talents emerging will also be higher.

Similarly, more food output can feed everyone in a short period of time. After all, it takes time to increase the population. However, increasing food output several times in a short period of time can feed more people and make the rule more stable.

The Qin Dynasty now has no worries. After a few years of recuperation and preparation, and more talent reserves, the war to annihilate the country can begin.

Since the construction of Dujiangyan, Li Bing has been working in Shuzhong, and his work is very hard. He is not idle at this time. Seven years ago, he submitted a memorial requesting the construction of a road from Shuzhong to Yunnan.

Due to transportation problems, communication between Shuzhong and Yunnan has always been difficult, and the development and control of Yunnan is also a huge problem.

If the road is opened, the steel and silk from Shuzhong can be exchanged for the gold, silver, tin, copper, slaves and horse leather from Yunnan. This will be of strategic significance to the trade between the two places and the control of Yunnan.

Yunnan is too backward today. It can be directly occupied as long as it is developed. The only problem is that there are no roads.

Ying Zheng considered the long-term. The southwestern region of the Qin Dynasty was backward and barren, and there was not even a road for travel. This was not a good thing. For the future development of the southwestern region and to prepare for future plans to govern Southeast Asia, this road must be built.

No matter how high the cost is, this road must be built!
Although Yunnan is not suitable for survival or farming, it is rich in minerals, both metal and non-metallic minerals. It is a treasure land.

Especially precious metal mines, gold, silver and copper, are most abundant in Yunnan.

If the empire is unified and wants to change the barter system to a monetary economy, it first needs precious metal currency.

The precious metal resources needed are huge, so we cannot give up Yunnan.

At that time, the environment in Yunnan was complex and there were many ethnic groups, all of which were loose and backward small tribes. At best, there was a small tribal alliance, but they were still in the most primitive slave society, and the indigenous people were even worse than the Qiang people and Huns today.

These people are of no use now. At most, they can be made to do some hard labor. They are perfect materials for road construction. Capture the Yunnan slaves and build roads!
Of course, it doesn’t just mean violence, business still needs to be done.

Now all the tribes in Yunnan are in the most primitive slave society. The slave tribes like to do business with the natives who are several versions behind them.

They didn't even have to capture people themselves. They could just exchange some ceramics, silk, cloth, salt and ironware for large numbers of slaves.

Ying Zheng immediately agreed to Li Bing's plan to build the road, and he wanted the road to be further away, directly connecting Southeast Asia and Sindhu.

There is no need to rush, just take your time to build it. It doesn't need to be too wide, just enough for horse-drawn carriages to transport supplies and soldiers to pass through.

In recent years, throughout the Yunnan region, roads have been built while setting up counties and appointing officials along the way, achieving effective management and rule of the region, and then the indigenous people were captured to continue road construction.

Those who are willing to do business can do business, and those who are unwilling to do business are like the mother of you. They are all shameless and will be arrested to build roads.

It has already become a virtuous cycle, at least for Daqin.

At present, Dian children (slaves) are still quite popular in Daqin.

Although I don't want to say it, but in certain circumstances, the tricks the Anglo-Saxons once used are quite useful.

Anyway, for Ying Zheng, anyone who is not in the Central Plains cultural circle and does not pay taxes or serve him is not considered a human being.

Not to mention these barbarians, even the six countries in Guandong, which are also part of the Central Plains cultural circle, may be considered human beings, but if they do not pay taxes or serve me, I do not care how many of them die.

When you truly become my subjects, paying taxes and serving me, then you will be worthy of enjoying my glory.

Now, it is enough to do the job of consumables.

But I have to say that nowadays in Yunnan, even dogs don’t want to go there. Even dogs would shake their heads when they see the environment.

It's really difficult to build a road in that broken place.

The road was only wide enough for a carriage to pass through, so Li Bing named it the Five-foot Road.

Even though the road is so narrow, seven years have passed, and such inhumane methods have been used, countless people have died, and only a mere 400 miles of it have been repaired so far.

The terrain here is complex, with many mountains, plateaus and hills. The terrain is rugged, with undulating mountains and ravines, making it extremely difficult to dig. In addition, the climate is changeable, with various types and obvious vertical changes. The climate in some areas is very unstable, and droughts and floods occur from time to time, which is hard to prevent.

This is not the end. At that time, Yunnan was all primeval forests, the climate was humid and hot, and it was a place where malaria was rampant.

The hot and humid climatic conditions breed various pathogens and parasites, leading to the spread of diseases such as malaria and dysentery. With current medical conditions, there is a lack of effective prevention and treatment measures for these diseases. Once infected, the mortality rate is extremely high.

This broken place is really not suitable for living now.

If Li Bing had not lived in Shu for more than 20 years and had not recruited natives from Bashu and Yunnan to build the road, the number of deaths would have been more than five times higher if he wanted to achieve the current level.

Even so, the main force was made up of the natives of Yunnan. The Shu people could not withstand the harsh environment. The closer they got to the southwest, the more difficult it was for them to survive.

These four hundred miles of land can only barely bring Yunnan under control. As for the benefits of ruling, there is really not much at present. Not to mention that there is basically no agricultural income, even for minerals, the difficulty of mining is extremely high, and what is even more difficult is the transportation after mining.

Without at least twenty years of development, no matter how valuable this place is, it will not be able to produce any benefits.

As for the scattered tribes and indigenous peoples in Southeast Asia, there is no way for them to get through now because there are no roads. Let's just let them live in peace for a few years.

It’s such a pity that they couldn’t feel the glory of Qin’s education earlier.

Ying Zheng generously rewarded Li Bing for his loyalty and contributions.

After basically gaining control of Yunnan, Li Bing was conferred the title of Marquis of Chengdu, with a fief of 3,000 households.

The reward was a thousand gold coins, five hundred pieces of silk, and one hundred carts of treasures.

He also carved a stele in memory of Li Bing at the beginning of the construction of Dujiangyan and Wuchi Road.

If you want your subordinates to be loyal and dedicated, you must be clear about rewards and punishments!
Money is only money when it is spent!
Even if I have to suffer myself, I cannot let the talented people working for me suffer.

Li Bing could never have imagined that he could be granted a title of nobility without any military merit. When he received the imperial edict, he was so moved that his eyes filled with tears and he cried loudly. He felt that all his hard work over the years and all the difficulties and obstacles were worth it!
Long live the king! The king is worth dying for! Even if I die, I can still protect the family's wealth.

Li Bing was even more motivated to open the Five-foot Road. Even if he died of exhaustion in office, he would be willing to do so.

Ying Zheng's move was also to tell the people of the world that as long as they made contributions to the Qin Dynasty, even if it was not military merit, they could still enjoy wealth and glory!

It also puts the brakes on the military merit titles, telling the world that not only killing and military merit can earn titles, but production and construction can also earn titles!

Now that the overall situation in the world has been settled, there is no longer a need for extreme killing and wars such as those caused by military merit. It’s not that it is not important, but military merit is no longer the only thing.

Whether it is the preface of "Lüshi Chunqiu" or the current reward for Li Bing, both are putting the brakes on the military merit system, and also telling everyone that it is time to develop a hundred flowers to bloom.

As for Zheng State, Ying Zheng was very satisfied with Zheng State's hard work over the past eight years.

Since all of Zheng Guo's family members were brought to Xianyang, Zheng Guo has been working really hard.

No matter what happened in the beginning, he had made great contributions after all.

This is the importance of talent.

When Zheng Guo returned to Xianyang to report on his work, he was still a little panicked, for he was really afraid of being abandoned.

Although I have lived in Qin State for these years and have gained some understanding of the King of Qin, I don't think it would be so serious. However, I am still panicked because my whole family is in Xianyang.

But is Ying Zheng such a narrow-minded and short-sighted person?
King Zhao of Yan recruited talented people and spent huge sums of gold on horse bones. How could Ying Zheng be worse than King Zhao of Yan?
Ying Zheng specially convened a grand court meeting to commend and reward Zheng State.

After these eight years, Zheng Guo, who was not very strong to begin with, has become extremely thin and haggard. Just by looking at his current appearance, one can tell that he has truly worked hard over the past eight years and has absolutely devoted his life to his work.

In front of all the civil and military officials and nobles of the Qin Dynasty, Ying Zheng reiterated what happened that year and explained the whole story.

Zheng Guo was officially pardoned for his crime and his promise was fulfilled, and the canal was named Zheng Guo Canal.

Zheng Guogang was completely relieved and breathed a sigh of relief, but then a surprise came that took his breath away.

Ying Zheng ordered craftsmen to carve a stele and write a biography for him at the place where the Jing River flows into the Luo River.

Zheng was enfeoffed as Marquis of Guangqu, with a fief of 2,000 households.

There was also a reward of one thousand gold coins, five hundred pieces of silk, and one hundred pieces of treasures.

A mansion in Xianyang, a luxurious carriage with four horses, ten beauties, and twenty slaves and maids.

He served as the water conservancy official of the Qin Dynasty, in charge of inspecting water conservancy projects in all directions.

After the decree was announced, Zheng Guo was stunned and countless people looked at him with envy.

(End of this chapter)