Chinese New Year

Chapter 1493 The Life of Lying Flat (Part 2)
To the southwest of Cuiwei Hall is Yingqiu Courtyard, which was originally the residence of Wang Jingfeng and Wang Huifeng, but it is now empty and unoccupied.

To the southeast is the Hefeng Courtyard, which was originally the residence of Le Lanji and Lu Xun. This time it was given to the Zhuge sisters, while Le Lanji took the initiative to ask to live with Pei Lingyan in Cuiwei Hall.

So when Shao Xun stepped into the front courtyard of Cuiwei Hall, he saw Pei and Le. The two of them were sitting in the courtyard talking about the newly opened flowers, and judging from their enthusiastic expressions, they were in good spirits.

Upon seeing Shao Xun arrive, both of them stood up.

The palace servants were very perceptive and, as usual, began preparing tea.

“It’s still more comfortable to live in Bianliang.” Shao Xun sat down on the couch and said, “The palaces in Luoyang always feel a bit cold and not bright enough.”

"After all, it was passed down from the previous generation, and I don't feel comfortable living here either," said Yue Lanji. "It's not as good as the palace in Ye City."

What Yue Lanji said was probably more of a psychological factor, because the palace in Ye City was built by Cao Cao and had been there for quite some time.

The Luoyang Palace is said to have been passed down from the Han Dynasty, but that's not actually the case. It was already in ruins by the time of the great chaos at the end of the Han Dynasty, and major repairs didn't take place until the reigns of Emperor Wen and Emperor Ming of Wei, making it actually less old than Ye City.

But none of these can compare to the palaces of Bianliang.

As a rare water-themed palace complex in the Great Liang Dynasty, Bianliang Palace was outstanding in every aspect and had been modified according to Shao Xun's preferences.

He always held the view that engineering projects should be undertaken as early as possible, and should be done as soon as the country was founded. If projects cannot be undertaken in the early days of the country, the costs will be terrifying. Let alone building new palaces, even major renovations will shake the national treasury.

Shao Xun repaired the Luoyang Palace and built the Bianliang Palace, leaving a valuable legacy for future generations.

After the Mengding tea from Sichuan was served, Shao Xun took a light sniff of its aroma and sipped it twice.

“Now there are more and more people making Mengding tea.” Pei Lingyan sat down and said, “Back then, only Princess Jingfu was selling this tea, but now there are no fewer than twenty people selling it, and it is sold all over the world.”

“I started this trend myself,” Shao Xun said with a smile. “It looks like in another ten or twenty years, the imperial court will be able to collect taxes on tea.”

“Yes, the tea-drinking trend has spread to the Hu tribe in Pingzhou.” Yue Lanji also sat down and said softly, “The other day, Jin Dao sold some Yixing tea to Lelang, and the locals bought it.”

Shao Xun glanced at Le Lanji, who was looking at him with a smile.

Shao Xun chuckled and said, "Jin Dao is indeed working hard. Rather than being the governor of Pingzhou, he is more like the prefect of Lelang and Daifang counties."

In fact, Jin Dao had recently taken a wife, a woman surnamed Wang from Lelang. This was no easy feat. Both Liu Da and Liu Xiao knew how important it was to maintain good relations with the local powerful figures, and they dared not act recklessly in this matter. However, they were somewhat worried that the heir's position might be insecure and that unexpected troubles might arise in the future.

However, Shao Xun didn't think it was a big problem, because the Crown Prince Shao Dun was already twelve years old, and the two Lius had borne three sons and two daughters for Jin Dao, making their positions quite secure. The marriage alliance with the Wang family of Lelang was merely to appease the local power brokers.

"Shouldn't the decree be issued by now?" Yue Lanji asked Shao Xun.

Shao Xun pondered for a moment and said, "Next year. This year we still need to finish things up in Gaochang. The situation in Beiting County behind the mountains is a bit unstable. Let's wait and see. It won't be too late to issue an edict after Gaochang has completely established itself."

The three counties of Gaochang Kingdom are currently in a state of "overeating".

Last year, we bought back several thousand people in one go, and most of them were settled in Beiting County. We then dredged the waterways, dug wells and canals, and leveled the fields, keeping us very busy.

The biggest problem for the Gaochang Kingdom is still its food shortage. Therefore, they haven't bought many people this year; instead, they've been purchasing high-value goods from the Central Plains and reselling them to merchants from the Western Regions for profit.

Shao Xun estimated that the real solution to the food problem would be by next autumn harvest, or at least the year after if things went badly.

Once the food problem is solved, the three prefectures of Gaochang will have overcome the current difficulties. If they can be stabilized in another year or two, they can serve as a stabilizing force in the northern frontier.

"Has Nianliu written to you recently?" Shao Xun asked, looking at Pei Lingyan.

“It’s written.” Pei Lingyan nodded and said, “He mentioned that last year he collected no less than 100,000 taels of silver from the regular taxes, and for this he also gave 10,000 taels to the Protectorate of the Western Regions.”

"Oh? When?" Shao Xun asked in surprise.

“You can read the recent letter if you want; it’s in the inner room,” Pei Lingyan said.

Shao Xun grunted and said, "Nian Liu knows how to handle people. He makes money through business, but without the existence of the Kucha military town, it wouldn't be easy for him."

Pei Lingyan poured some more tea for Shao Xun without saying a word.

Shao Xun had nothing more to say.

His coming here was merely a subconscious act; he hadn't even deeply analyzed the reasons himself—he simply felt like he wanted to come and see. Now that he'd seen it, his heart immediately calmed down.

"Nothing major is happening this year, is there?" Pei Lingyan asked again.

"There are many matters to attend to, but they are all handled by the prime ministers," Shao Xun said. "I'll take a break for a while and then wait for good news."

“You should have done this a long time ago,” Pei Lingyan said. “Actually, most people don’t care how much you do.”

Shao Xun gave a wry smile.

Yes, whether he does a lot or a little, people don't really care; they only care that he's alive.

As long as I live, even if I'm just a clay puppet, I'll continue to bring blessings to this world that has only recently emerged from chaos. It seems I'd better enter low-power standby mode and try to last as long as possible.

But thinking about it carefully, there really isn't much going to happen this year; all that's left is to wait for the outcome of the campaign against Linyi.

No, perhaps the situation in Liaodong also requires waiting for a result.

Murong Ren has still not sent an envoy to the capital to apologize. Liang Laodeng finally managed to get him a chance, but it seems he is going to give up.

Shao Xun genuinely didn't want to take action in Liaodong, as it could potentially affect Jin Dao's enfeoffment. However, some things couldn't be calculated that way. If Murong Ren didn't deal with the situation, what would others think? There was a possibility of a second or third Murong Ren emerging.

Therefore, he decided to wait until September. If there was still no movement, he would approve Li Zhong's battle plan, mobilize the supplies and equipment of Ping, You, and Ji prefectures, and send a portion of the local troops to take action in Xuantu County.

He will not tolerate anyone challenging his authority in this matter.

As darkness fell, steady footsteps sounded outside. After some negotiation, people from the Imperial Household Department entered and brought in dinner.

The three of them sat in the courtyard and finished their dinner together under the starlight.

After tidying up, Le Lanji went back to her room to rest, while Pei Lingyan accompanied Shao Xun for a walk outside in the courtyard.

“You’re eating less than before,” Pei Lingyan said.

Shao Xun paused for a moment, then thought about it carefully and realized it was true. He then said to himself with a self-deprecating laugh, "No wonder I couldn't draw the hard bow, so that's why."

After saying that, he glanced at Pei Lingyan and said, "It's so good that you're still here with me."

Pei Lingyan didn't say anything, but quietly followed beside Shao Xun.

Moonlight shone through the dark clouds, casting its bright glow upon the earth.

The silhouettes of the two figures sometimes stand side by side, and sometimes merge together.

This scene seems to have existed for a long time, and decades later, they are still walking in this way.

******
At the end of August, Shao Xun quickly reviewed several memorials on the Lichun Terrace.

At this time, the land registers and household registrations of some counties in Yongzhou, Qinzhou, and Liangzhou were sent over, and the Crown Prince officially left Guanzhong and headed south to Jingzhou via Luoyang.

On the one hand, it was to carry out land surveys in the northern counties of Jingzhou; on the other hand, it was to prepare for the upcoming war.

On the day the Crown Prince left Kansai, Huan Wen, the Chief of Staff of the Agricultural Promotion Bureau and General of the Left Nagashi Guard, remained there to quell the remnants of the rebellion caused by the land survey.

In particular, some tribal chiefs of the Di, Qiang, Xiongnu, and Xiutuhu were extremely dissatisfied and colluded with others to incite unrest.

The newly appointed governor of Yongzhou and military commander of Yong and Shuo prefectures, Zhang Shuo, led 20,000 hereditary soldiers from Chang'an, joined forces with more than 10,000 men from the Left and Right Changzhi Guards, and launched a large-scale suppression campaign with remarkable results.

Huan Wen's performance was quite outstanding.

He led 6,000 men, hiding by day and moving by night, into the depths of Hengshan, where they suddenly launched an attack, killing several chieftains and capturing and killing more than 3,000 Di and Qiang people. In one fell swoop, he eliminated the most unruly group among the various tribes of Hengshan. From Anding to Shangjun, there were no fewer than 100,000 Di and Qiang people hidden in the vast Hengshan Mountains, who mainly cultivated millet and barley.

This was unexpected by Shao Xun. Grand Marshal Huan wasn't usually so fond of surprise attacks, was he? Where did he learn that from?

Furthermore, while the Zuo Changzhi Guard's fighting strength was indeed considerable, it shouldn't have reached this point. However, after seeing Huan Wen request to distribute the acquired Hengshan farmland to the remaining soldiers of the Zuo Changzhi Guard, I roughly understood.

Admittedly, Hengshan is not as good as the Guanzhong Plain, but it is not without good land. Some places with abundant water and grass are very suitable for growing crops. The turning point in the years of war between Song and Xia was the ownership of the various tribes in Hengshan. The Western Xia people often used Hengshan as a forward base to replenish their food supplies and launched ruthless attacks to plunder Guanzhong.

With the tactic of dividing the land, the soldiers of the Left Changzhi Guard knew why they were fighting, and the Di and Qiang barbarians could not withstand them, let alone a night raid.

Shao Xun did not make things difficult for Huan Wen and readily agreed to the request.

He was an old warrior himself, and he knew very well that Huan Wen could use this move to firmly establish himself in the Left Changzhi Guard. From now on, many people would respect him, be grateful to him, and love him. If he cultivated this position for a few years, this guard would become Huan Wen's foundation in the military.

Whenever he went to the border to govern, he would inevitably transfer people from the Left Changzhi Guard, and that's how a small group of military meritors gradually formed.

Once you've accumulated enough merit in the outer towns, you can consider entering the court as prime minister—of course, the competition will inevitably be fierce, since you're not the only border commander.

Leaving Huan Wen to the crown prince was probably one of the most important decisions Shao Xun made in his later years.

He may not be the most outstanding talent, but for the Liang Dynasty, which had entered a period of consolidation, he was more than enough; at least, he could easily dominate weaker opponents.

As for worrying about rebellion? That's probably just needless anxiety.

In fact, barring unforeseen circumstances, by the time the system had developed to the Tang Dynasty, it was already very difficult for anyone to usurp the throne. By the Song Dynasty, it was almost impossible, let alone the Ming and Qing Dynasties.

The Great Liang Dynasty is now gradually transforming into the system of the Tang Dynasty. Unless it suddenly falls apart, there is probably no longer any fertile ground for the ambitions of figures like Huan Wen to grow.

Use it with confidence!
(End of this chapter)