Late Han Zhao Tang

Chapter 562 Extending One's Own Feelings to Others (33)

September, Chang'an.

"Guo Huai's strategy of sailing a thousand miles across the river actually helped Li Song defeat the enemy; it was truly a stroke of genius!"

Zhang Yu smiled and said to his men, "Li Song, a master of military strategy, selected the vanguard to lead the cavalry in probing attacks, repeatedly striking and defeating the enemy. The army's victory was due to his excellent plan!"

The four great generals of the kingdom went on campaign and all achieved some success, which pleased Zhang Yu greatly. After all, his status had changed; he was no longer the warlord who conquered the land. Now, as the emperor, he couldn't personally lead every campaign. The achievements of the four generals at least proved that his selection of generals was correct!

Zhang Liao's overwhelming performance in Huainan was a prime example. He not only killed Yuan Shang and Yuan Xi, eliminating the remnants of the Yuan clan, but also defeated Xiahou Dun and plundered Huainan.

Man Chong and Xu Huang, needless to say, performed exceptionally well on the battlefield in Shu, achieving the goal of conquering Shu within six months. As for Li Song, his southward expedition to relieve the siege, although his achievements were not particularly illustrious, at least accomplished the objective and even gained some spoils.

"Congratulations, Your Majesty, on eliminating the remaining rebels, pacifying Sichuan and Chongqing, and repelling the southern invaders!"

Zhong Yao bowed in congratulations and laughed, "Once the southeast is pacified, proclamations will be sent down to Liaodong and Jiaoling, and the world will be unified in no time!"

Zhang Yu put down the handkerchief and said, "In the first year, I secretly promised that I would pacify the world within five years. The alliance between the upper and lower reaches of the Yangtze River stipulated that if we could not conquer Shu, the southern expedition would be difficult. Now, after two years of conquering Ba and Shu, we have secured the upper reaches of the Yangtze River, built numerous ships, and trained our troops. Within three years, we will surely be able to conquer the southeast."

When he first declared himself king, Zhang Yu secretly vowed to unify the world within five years. Now, two years have passed, and he has conquered Bashu and the Central Plains one after another. Even the officials in the Western Regions, which are thousands of miles away, have been reassigned.

Currently, besides the formidable enemy in the southeast, only two major separatist forces remain: the Gongsun clan of Liaodong and Shi Xie of Jiaoling. Given Shi Xie's temperament, seeing peace in the south, he will most likely submit a memorial of surrender. As for the Gongsun clan of Liaodong, it's harder to say; perhaps a distant expedition will be necessary to bring them into the Central Plains.

“The Yangtze River was originally a natural barrier, but now that we share its benefits, that barrier will disappear. The only difficulty is whether our navy can defeat our enemy!” Xun You said.

Zhang Yu nodded and said, "Liu Bei has stationed his troops at Yiling, intending to launch a western expedition against Bazhong. Order Guo Huai to train his troops well and defend the strategic passes, lest Liu Bei be allowed to reach Jiangzhou."

As he spoke, Zhang Yu looked at Xun You and said, "Prepare the rewards for the three campaigns of Bashu, Jinghan, and Huainan as soon as possible, and make sure to distribute them before the end of the year. The soldiers stationed in Bashu should be given extra money and grain as a reward to supplement the troops stationed in other places."

"promise!"

Zhong Yao seized the opportunity to say, “Your Majesty, there are many virtuous men in Shu. If we wish to pacify Bashu, we may need to recruit people from the countryside to the capital region.”

"What does the Prime Minister mean?" Zhang Yu asked.

“The governor of Yizhou is concurrently held by a Manchu official, who needs to attend to both military and political affairs, and I fear he may be overwhelmed. I think it might be necessary to select a high-ranking official to go south and recruit talented people from Sichuan on behalf of Your Majesty, and recommend them to the Ministry of Personnel,” Zhong Yao said.

Zhang Yu pondered for a moment and said, "Your words are reasonable. I hereby appoint Sun Zi, the governor of Yongzhou, as the pacification commissioner of Yizhou. He will pacify the soldiers and civilians of Shu, Ba, and Nanzhong, observe their customs, understand their sentiments, and know their geography, so that the court can govern Shu."

"And what about the governor of Yongzhou?" Zhong Yao asked.

"Wei Ji, the Prefect of Taiyuan, will take the position!"

Wei Kai, courtesy name Boyu, was the elder brother of Wei Zhongdao and a native of Anyi in Hedong. When Zhang Yu conquered Hedong, Wei Kai served as a court attendant. When Li Jue was defeated, Wei Kai and Liu Xie jointly served as Zhang Yu's protectors. At that time, Zhang Yu lacked capable men under his command, so Cai Yong recommended Wei Kai, and Zhang Yu appointed him as the magistrate of Maoling.

Since Wei Ji took control of Maoling, he had made numerous suggestions to Zhang Yu, bypassing his own level, based on the situation in Guanzhong at that time. One of these memorials was particularly crucial, helping Guanzhong to quickly stabilize and becoming Zhang Yu's main policy for every region he conquered.

He said that Guanzhong was a fertile land, but the 200,000 families who migrated westward from the Dong family were starving, frequently engaged in warfare, with fields lying fallow and many people displaced. Therefore, to pacify Guanzhong, it was advisable to quickly pacify the counties, invite the people back to their hometowns, and grant them land.

With the national treasury empty, it is impossible to provide for the people. Salt is a great national treasure. It is advisable to establish salt and iron reserves, exchange them for oxen and plows to provide for displaced people, and encourage them to cultivate the land diligently and accumulate grain to enrich Guanzhong. When the world knows that Guanzhong is at peace, people from near and far will rush back day and night, weakening the power of neighboring states and strengthening the military power of Guanzhong.

Based on this insightful and comprehensive memorial, Wei Ji was remembered by Zhang Yu!
After governing Maoling for two years, the people of Maoling lived in peace and prosperity, everyone owned land, and taxes were paid in full. He was then promoted to governor of Linwei Commandery. During his many years in the commandery, he extensively developed irrigation systems, resulting in bountiful harvests. He also taught the Yi people how to cultivate the land, which greatly pleased them, and both the Han and Yi peoples became compliant.

Sima Lang was promoted to governor, and Wei Ji was transferred to be the prefect of Taiyuan. They continued the policies of their predecessors and cracked down on the illegal activities of powerful families and their sons in the prefecture. Now, he is widely praised in the Secretariat and at the beginning of the year, he even submitted a memorial to Zhang Yu on matters concerning law and education.

Wei Kai believed that law was the most important system of the state, yet it had not received the corresponding attention. The officials in charge of punishment held the lives, deaths, honors, and deaths of the people in their hands, but their official positions were low, which was detrimental to social governance and a long-standing problem in the Han Dynasty. Therefore, Wei Kai hoped that Zhang Yu could establish a system of legal scholars to teach legal knowledge to officials and improve the status and salaries of judicial officials.

For Zhang Yu, who was keen to implement the separation of powers at the prefectural level, Wei Ji's memorial almost perfectly matched Zhang Yu's wishes. As a result, Wei Ji was promoted to the position of governor of Yongzhou so that he could start reforms in Yongzhou and implement the separation of military, political, and judicial powers under Wei Ji's leadership.

"Your Majesty, Marquis Sun Quan of Hefei is waiting for you outside!"

Seeing that it was almost time, the attendant reminded him, "Has His Majesty summoned you?"

"allow!"

A short while later, Sun Quan, Sun He, Xu Kun, and others, led by their attendants, arrived at the hall to pay their respects to Zhang Yu.

"This sinner pays his respects to Your Majesty, and thanks Your Majesty for your magnanimity in pardoning my crime of disobedience!" Sun Quan said respectfully, kneeling and kowtowing.

Zhang Yu lifted everyone up out of thin air and said calmly, "I was an old acquaintance of your father, Sun Wentai. When the Sun family resisted Yuan Shu, I repeatedly sent envoys to provide them with horses and supplies. However, your brother launched an attack on me without cause, and this crime cannot be ignored. You succeeded your brother to the throne, but instead of correcting your ways, you deceived me with excuses, which has greatly disappointed me!"

Sun Quan said, “The world is divided, each serving its own lord. Ba and Shu belong to my father and brother, and I, as their successor, dare not ruin the foundation. However, Your Majesty is deeply blessed by Heaven, and my actions have been a stubborn resistance. Now, having rushed to the capital, I have finally witnessed the majesty of the true Son of Heaven. Please forgive my limited knowledge!”

Sun Quan's reply was neither humble nor arrogant. He explained the reasons for his resistance, as well as his reasons for submission, and subtly flattered Zhang Yu.
Zhang Yu's expression relaxed slightly, and he said, "I will forgive your past mistakes because of your merit in leading your troops to surrender. However, if you violate the law in the future, do not blame me for punishing you according to the law."

"Thank you, Your Majesty!" Sun Quan replied respectfully.

Seeing the young Sun Quan's humble demeanor, Zhang Yu inwardly sighed at Sun Quan's ability to bend and stretch. Historically, to gain Cao Pi's trust, he had deceived Cao Pi with a show of respect and deception. Now, Sun Quan's humility towards him was nothing more than a desperate attempt to save his life.

"I have already ordered people to prepare a residence in the capital. You and your family may move in there!" Zhang Yu said calmly.

"promise!"

After offering a few words of reassurance, Sun Quan and his attendants withdrew.

Seeing Sun Quan kneeling repeatedly before his departure, Zhang Yu suddenly felt something and said to his attendants, "From now on, unless absolutely necessary, do not summon surrendered rulers such as Sun Quan and Yuan Shu to the palace!"

"I don't know why?" Guo Tu asked.

Zhang Yu said, "Sun Quan and Yuan Shu both have officials serving me. If I summon them to the palace and they discuss the fall of their kingdoms, these former officials will all feel ashamed. As the ruler of the world, I should put myself in their shoes and not embarrass them!"

To be honest, Zhang Yu often enjoyed the thrill of conquering an enemy after defeating one. Now that Sun Quan had entered the capital, Zhang Yu had originally intended to make fun of him.

Upon seeing that the immature Sun Quan was not the shrewd and experienced Emperor Sun of history, Zhang Yu's sense of humiliation vanished. Instead, he felt that Sun Quan should have the demeanor of a true monarch.

Therefore, considering that a large number of surrendered officials served him, and that the former monarch who had humiliated everyone was actually embarrassing the surrendered officials and lowering his own status, he made this decree after careful consideration!

"Your Majesty's benevolence is beyond my wildest admiration!" Guo Tu said from the bottom of his heart.

"Your Majesty is benevolent!" the crowd echoed.

Zhang Yu waved his hand and said, "Do not do to others what you would not have them do to you; this is the foundation of humanity."

After a pause, Zhang Yu added, "From now on, no one is allowed to mistreat a surrendered ruler. Making him a wealthy man is enough!"

(End of this chapter)