Chinese New Year

Chapter 1396 Mutual Aid
The first thing to do was to have Cai Cheng open the "account" and contribute 3,000 bolts of silk, with the Ministry of Civil Affairs contributing another 7,000 bolts, for a total of 10,000 bolts. These were to be used to reward the 2,000 households that performed best in the Huainan land reclamation project (two bolts per household). The remaining 6,000 bolts were to be used to purchase some farm tools in Guangling and distributed to the prisoners who had just finished their work on the river.

The management of these captured Hu people was very lax, almost entirely based on military law. But, to put it another way, this simple and brutal system was effective and played its role.

For these tribal peoples with different cultures, customs, and a certain degree of wildness, we must take a two-pronged approach, combining kindness and severity. After taming their wildness, calming their minds, and initially changing their lifestyles, we can gradually relax controls and gradually change their customs.

They are currently classified as land reclamation households, and this will not change within five years. We will have to see how things go after ten years.

The second thing was to increase Zhuge Hui's fief by 150 households.

It must be admitted that a person's ability and character are not always equivalent.

Zhuge Hui was of average character and had major flaws, but he was truly capable. His abilities in governing the army, pacifying the people, and conquering were not top-notch, but they were all quite good and comprehensive, making him a rare all-rounder.

He has been in charge of Jin Zheng's work for several years now. At first, he was not good at commanding the Chang'an army, but he gradually became able to control a portion of them. Now, he is leading 20,000 infantry and cavalry north to Henan and fighting well. His abilities are obvious to all.

After bestowing the rewards, Shao Xun requested Zhuge Hui's assistance in establishing the Shuozhou Hereditary Army, with an initial strength of 8,000 men, including 3,000 infantry and 5,000 cavalry. The land and pastures of Hexi Commandery (present-day Ningxia) would be used as funding for the establishment, and the Ministry of Civil Affairs would allocate another 50,000 bolts of silk, with weapons to be sent from the Chang'an Armory.

The third matter was to have He Chong, the Junior Supervisor of Works, lead his staff overland to Liaodong to conduct an on-site survey of the planned capital, finalize the matter as soon as possible, and begin construction after the summer.

After arranging these three matters, Shao Xun let the Political Affairs Hall handle the daily affairs, while he only controlled the overall situation.

After the spring plowing on the second day of the second lunar month, he began sending his sons out to work.

The first to leave was King Shao Zhang of Qi. Before departing, he went to the palace to pay his respects to his parents.

Inside the long-unseen west hall of the Taiji Palace, Shao Xun basked in the sun while reviewing the land survey progress of Qinghe, Taishan, Langya and other prefectures—currently being personally supervised by the Imperial Censor Shan Xia.

When Lady Yue saw her son arrive, she happily waved and poured him a cup of tea.

Shao Zhang quickly took it and sat down to the left of Shao Xun.

With his mother around, he felt much more at ease.

“Jin Dao, Youzhou has just abolished some military towns, and the people’s sentiments are not very stable.” After his son had drunk half a bowl of tea, Shao Xun finally put down the memorial and said, “After you take office, do not carry out large-scale construction projects, do not send laborers to collect donations, and do not levy exorbitant taxes. Stability is the priority. Even if there are things that must be done, try to postpone them and do not disturb the people, so as not to give others an opportunity to take advantage of you.”

“Then Piaoyujin…” Jin Dao tentatively asked.

This was an important task entrusted to him by his father: to dredge the waterway connecting Piaoyujin to the inland to facilitate shipping, and at the same time expand Haipu for the future.

"Don't rush," Shao Xun emphasized again. "For civil engineering projects like the Piaoyujin, which require gathering a large number of people, we must be especially cautious. Let's postpone it for another six months."

Shao Zhang seemed to understand something.

Father emphasized "gathering a large population," making his point very clear. The military towns in Youzhou and Jizhou, separated by a river, had just been abolished, and the people were unsettled. However, it would not be easy to get them to suddenly rebel, because after being registered as citizens, no one could control anyone else, and they lived relatively scattered, making communication quite difficult.

But if something brings them together, it's a different story.

Hearing this from the side, Yue Lanji was somewhat surprised and asked, "Your Majesty, is Youzhou really that dangerous?"

Before Shao Xun could speak, Shao Zhang comforted his mother, "Mother, Youzhou has hereditary soldiers who have been trained for many years. They have all seen blood and fought on the battlefield, so there will be no trouble in the area. Father is just being cautious and reminding me to be careful. As long as we don't cause too much disturbance to the people, it won't be so easy for them to rebel."

Le Lanji was slightly relieved and said, "Listen to your grandfather. Back then, those Youzhou soldiers rushed into Hebei, burning, killing, and looting, committing all sorts of evil deeds. Everyone cursed them. Such vicious and unruly people are indeed not easy to control. You can just live peacefully with them."

Shao Xun nodded secretly. After all, she had been the Crown Prince's wife; her words were insightful.

The more than twenty prefectures of Daliang are not all the same in terms of the role of governor; there are significant differences in their internal affairs.

"After the autumn harvest, you will be more familiar with the situation. At that time, you can handle some matters as appropriate," Shao Xun said. "The number of soldiers in Youzhou is now less than 20,000. Before the end of the year, you should personally select the strongest and bravest men and expand them to 30,000. As for the land and houses, you should find a way to provide them with them. You cannot treat them unfairly."

"Yes." Shao Zhang knew that his father wanted to test him.

Expanding the army by 10,000 is not as simple as just recruiting 10,000 people. In fact, it is easy to raise money such as settlement allowances, but land, houses, and even farm tools and livestock are not so easy to solve. There are many connections that need to be made, which will keep him busy for a long time.

This seems to further confirm some of the things Zuo Mao and he said.

He glanced at his mother discreetly, seeing that she was only slightly worried but didn't seem to care, and couldn't help but sigh inwardly. Then he felt his father's piercing gaze, and his heart skipped a beat. He thought to himself that some things were better left unsaid, and he shouldn't let his mother worry, after all, she couldn't change anything.

"Jin Dao, are you going back to Donglai again?" Le Lan Ji asked.

“Yes, let’s go back to Donglai first, and then go to Pei County,” Shao Zhang replied.

The purpose of returning to Donglai was to hand over the seals and account books.

Princess Consort Liu came to Bianliang before the New Year and is still staying there. Lady Liu has taken the children back to Pei County to reunite with her family. She will have to go to Pei County to pick them up—she didn't need to go in person, but her father said that they should adopt a laissez-faire approach for the first six months, so there's no rush.

"Be careful on the road," Yue Lanji instructed. "If you need anything, get it in the capital first, because it won't be as convenient in Youzhou."

“Okay.” Shao Zhang nodded repeatedly.

"The guards of the Prince's Palace have been running around with you, working very hard. Have they been rewarded before the New Year?" Yue Lanji asked again.

“Each person received one string of cash and two bolts of silk,” Shao Zhang said. “Two more bolts of silk will be issued after the New Year; the Imperial Household Department will provide them,” Shao Xun said. “In addition, after you go to Pei County, you can go to Pengcheng. The Imperial Household Department has a large granary there; I will have them provide three thousand bolts of silk. You can use them as you see fit. The Prince’s Guard can be expanded to a thousand men, after all—”

“After all, the situation in Youzhou is complicated,” Shao Zhang quickly added.

Shao Xun gave his son an approving look.

Seeing that the father and son were of one mind, Yue Lanji was very happy and said, "Let's have lunch here. It's a pity that I didn't bring Mancao and the others along, alas."

******
After a rather unpleasant lunch, Shao Zhang left through the Changhe Gate.

Wang Shizuo Mao, You Lexuan, Wenxue Cen Yi (from Nanyang), Zhongwei Wu Tong (from Pei), Sheren Deng Sui (from Pingyang), and others all rose to greet him.

"Let's not take the car, let's walk," Shao Zhang sighed and said.

Zuo Mao quickened his pace and asked in a low voice, "How is it?"

"One foot is already stuck." Shao Zhang's expression was not good.

“I knew the governorship of Youzhou wasn’t given to him for nothing,” Zuo Mao said with a smile.

"Lord Zuo, sometimes I feel that among all the royal advisors of the Great Liang, you are the least like..." Shao Zhang said speechlessly.

Does someone who can't even accept losing at a game of dice have any semblance of being a teacher?

Zuo Mao, however, did not take it to heart. He stroked his beard and laughed, "Your Majesty, there's no point in thinking about it now. It will take three to five years to get out of Youzhou. You should make preparations as soon as possible."

"How should we prepare?" Shao Zhang asked.

"The Prince of Yan should be leaving the capital soon, but I wonder when..." As he said this, Zuo Mao kept glancing at Shao Zhang.

"I don't know," Shao Zhang said.

"Then let's not delay and go to pay our respects to the Prince of Yan tonight," Zuo Mao said. "Your Highness is in charge of Youzhou, which is separated from Liaodong by only a sea. The Prince of Yan relies on Your Highness in many ways."

Shao Zhang pondered for a moment, then nodded and said, "Very well. It's been a long time since I've been close to my fourth brother; it's time to pay him a visit."

He and Zuo Mao walked and talked in hushed tones, and soon they were out of the city.

Guards and subordinates followed behind. Wang Youle Xuan then headed west, leading more than ten soldiers and several oxcarts, to the market to make a large-scale purchase.

After nightfall, Shao Zhang changed to a less conspicuous carriage and quietly arrived at the Prince of Yan's residence.

Shao Yu was sweating profusely as he sorted out accounts at his residence. He was somewhat surprised to hear that his elder brother had come to visit, but not unexpectedly.

He immediately had someone open the small gate to the backyard and quietly led his elder brother to the study—during the mourning period for their grandfather, it was inappropriate for him to wander around aimlessly; being cautious was the right thing to do.

"I know a little about your purpose, brother. There will be many things we need to rely on in the future," Shao Yu said. "No doubt about it. We were beaten together when we were young, and we will have to work together as adults."

Shao Zhang shook his head and chuckled, saying, "You made me suffer a lot when I was a kid, and I was punished with a ruler for no reason."

He ultimately didn't mention the possibility of being punished by feudal authorities or the "Daifang" (a derogatory term for a group of people with special privileges), but simply reminisced about brotherhood. As the eldest son in the family, he often shared in the beatings when his younger brothers got into trouble.

As a child, I felt indignant, but looking back now, I just smile knowingly.

Shao Yu added, "After you go to Youzhou, it would be best to repair the Lulong Road. It has been in disrepair for many years and is really hindering the travel of officers, officials and merchants."

Upon hearing this, Shao Zhang thought to himself that there were quite a few troubles in Youzhou, but he said aloud, "Lulong Road definitely needs to be rectified, but Father values ​​the drifting of Yujin more."

"I see." Shao Yu nodded slowly. "Then let's deal with Piaoyujin first, and we'll talk about Lulong Road later."

After he finished speaking, he paused and said, "Pinggang Ancient City belongs to Youzhou. There are still a group of old, weak cattle and sheep of the Xiluo tribe stranded there. After the pasture turns green this year, the tribe will move to Liaodong. I hope you will allocate a batch of grain and fodder to help them on their way."

“Okay,” Shao Zhang readily agreed.

"The internal strife within the Yuwen clan is escalating, and there is a risk that it may spread to Youzhou. If you find this troublesome, I do have some connections that I can help to mediate."

"With your words, Tiger Head, I am relieved."

"In the early stages of things in Liaodong, we still rely more on my elder brother."

"What are you saying? We are brothers, we should help each other."

"I saw my second brother before the New Year. Sigh, he's even quieter now. He wasn't like this before..."

The two brothers chatted until late at night before Shao Zhang finally took his leave.

Shao Yu escorted him to the door, and only after the Qi King's carriage disappeared into the night did he turn his gaze away.

(End of this chapter)