Late Han Zhao Tang

In the fifth month of summer, Zhang Yu issued an edict that Ezhou was established by separating Jing and Yang prefectures, and Nanzhong was renamed Guizhou.

The governor of Yangzhou was promoted from Dong Yu, the prefect of Henan; the governor of Ezhou was transferred from Su Ze, the prefect of Hanzhong; and the governor of Guizhou was appointed by Wang Ling. Li Song, the former governor of Yangzhou, and Zhang Feng, the former commander of the Southern Central Army, each led their troops back to the capital to report to Zhang Yu.

Not long after Li Song returned to the capital to report on his duties, Zhang Yu received an urgent military report from Yangzhou.

"Bosong led his troops back to the capital, but the bandits in the southeast rose up again!"

Zhang Yu handed the military report he had received the day before to Li Song and said, "Although the Danyang County troops quelled the rebellion, it is clear that the bandits have not been completely eradicated."

Li Song took the military report and said, “Your Majesty, Danyang is located in a dangerous area, bordering Wu, Kuaiji and Poyang counties. It is thousands of miles in circumference, with many valleys and mountains. The people there are soldiers who are unruly and flee into the forests. They are fond of martial arts and war, and have great strength. They are difficult to subdue. When I was in the southeast, I relocated some civilians from the outer counties, but I could not capture them all in the remote areas.”

The Danyang Commandery is characterized by numerous valleys, and the later mountainous region of southern Anhui lies within its borders. Therefore, since the Han Dynasty, the Yue people or Han Chinese people have sought refuge there to avoid taxes. Due to the rugged terrain and the need to resist bandits, the people there are known for their fierce and warlike nature. While Li Song achieved some success in suppressing the Yue people and requisitioning land, he did not achieve his goal completely.

Zhang Yu sipped his tea and pondered. If he remembered correctly, the Eastern Wu's campaign against the Shanyue lasted for one or two decades, until Zhuge Ke spent several years to completely pacify the barbarians in Danyang County.

"Bo Song has been stationed in Yangzhou for a long time. Does he have any strategies to teach me?" Zhang Yu asked.

After a moment of contemplation, Li Song said, “Although Yangzhou is remote, it has vast land and fertile soil. It can grow both rice and wheat, and has the benefits of salt and fish. Its population is growing and multiplying, and it will surely become a prosperous place in the future, no less than the Central Plains.”

"The current problem in Yangzhou lies with the mountain people, who are unruly and occasionally come down from the mountains to plunder. The soldiers and officials cannot eliminate them all. Not only that, although many of the military leaders and local chieftains who rebelled have been exiled by the government, there are still remnants hiding. The current rebellion of the mountain people is not unrelated to the instigation of these remnants."

"Therefore, in my opinion, Your Majesty should first dredge the waterways of Huainan to connect with the Central Plains, and secondly select good generals and soldiers to expedite the recruitment of mountain people. Relocating all the mountain people will not only replenish the population but also bring peace to the southeast."

"Do you have any good generals to recommend?"

“He Qi and Quan Cong from Kuaiji, and Lu Xun and Zhu Ran from Wu Commandery, these four generals are well-versed in military strategy. Your Majesty may wish to employ them.” Li Song recommended, “When Cao Cao first surrendered and was defeated, the mountain tribes of Kuaiji, Danyang, and Tang’an Commandery rebelled. I led troops to quell the rebellion. He Qi volunteered to be the vanguard, Quan Cong contacted the chieftains, Lu Xun devised strategies, and Zhu Ran provided geographical guidance. Thus, with the help of these four men, I was able to completely defeat the rebels!”

Zhang Yuxin had an idea and said, "The four generals have just joined us, so we cannot entrust them with heavy troops for the time being. Now, let Wenpin be the governor of Yangzhou and let him lead the Yangzhou troops to besiege the people of Danyang and Kuaiji. He will be assisted by the four generals recommended by Bosong and will be transferred to Guizhou to strengthen the border."

"Your Majesty is wise!"

Zhang Yu poured Li Song a cup of tea and said with a smile, "Next month, the court will reorganize the border defenses, stretching from Hexi in the west to Yingzhou in the east, covering tens of thousands of miles. I would like to trouble you to make a western tour to Yongzhou to inspect the strategic points and repair the passes, so as to provide a legacy for future generations."

"Your Majesty may give the order!"

Since the death of Tan Shihuai, the Xianbei tribes had fallen into chaos due to the lack of prestige of his son. Historically, Kebineng unified the Xianbei in the later period of the Three Kingdoms, becoming the new overlord of the grasslands. However, due to the intervention of Zhang Yu, Kebineng became a puppet ruler, driven by Zhang Yu. Therefore, not only was the unification of the Xianbei impossible, but there was not even a hint of Xianbei unification.

Among the Xianbei tribes spanning thousands of miles from Bingzhou to Youzhou, Budugen was the most powerful. However, due to a rift with his brother Fuluohan, he was never able to unify the Xianbei territory of Bingzhou.

Of course, this was also related to Budugen's lack of ambition; he was content with the status quo and enthusiastic about trading with Zhang Yu. Even at the beginning of Zhang Yu's reign, he and his brother Fuluohan paid tribute to Zhang Yu.

Within the territory of Youzhou, the Xianbei forces were complex and intertwined, primarily led by the Suli, Mijia, and Queji tribes, who had previously been subservient to the Wuhuan. However, after the Wuhuan were decisively defeated by the Tang army and Tadun was killed by Zhang Liao, the three tribes turned to submit to Zhang Yu, even sending a thousand cavalry to assist Zhang Liao in destroying Gongsun Zan. When Zhang Yu declared himself emperor, the leaders of the three tribes sent envoys to pay tribute.

Therefore, the external environment when Zhang Yu founded his dynasty benefited from the Han dynasty's victories over the Xiongnu and Xianbei, making it the dynasty with the best situation in history. As for the Tang dynasty, Goguryeo and the Qiang and Hu tribes were merely minor problems if properly governed!

That being said, considering the long-term goals, Zhang Yu must seize the opportunity of the absence of powerful enemies in the northern border during the founding of the dynasty, taking advantage of this period to occupy strategic locations and fortify the passes and defenses, so that future emperors will have a clear path to follow. After all, according to the laws of dynasties, excellent rulers are always few and far between, and the earlier the ruler, the more favorable the era, the better his reputation will be.

Zhang Liao, Man Chong, Xu Huang, and Li Song, the four founding dukes, each took charge of a region. Li Song was in charge of Yongzhou, Zhang Liao inspected Youzhou, Man Chong supervised the border defense of Shuoshang, and Xu Huang went to Liangzhou.

While Zhang Yu and Li Song were chatting, Du Ji, led by his attendants, walked to the pavilion.

"I pay my respects to Your Majesty!"

"What brings you here, Lord Bo?"

Zhang Yu gestured for Du Ji to sit down and said...

"Your Majesty, the Governor of Jingzhou, Zhuge Liang, has submitted a memorial!" Du Ji had just sat down when he handed over the memorial.

Zhang Yu smiled and said, "What matter requires the Marquis to personally submit a memorial?" As he spoke, Zhang Yu glanced at the memorial and saw that Zhuge Liang had reported on the effectiveness of land surveys and the mobilization of the populace in Jingzhou. Compared to the rebellions of powerful clans and military commanders that erupted in Yangzhou, under Zhuge Liang's political methods, apart from a disturbance in Changsha County in southern Jingzhou, the other counties remained peaceful. Only a few county magistrates were punished for falsifying land survey data.

Under Zhuge Liang's land survey, Jingzhou saw an increase of 130,000 to 140,000 people compared to its previous registered population. Including the 20,000 mountain tribes who were relocated and registered as commoners, Jingzhou now had nearly 300,000 more people. The land survey likely identified over 200,000 hectares of land.

The memorial, exceeding a thousand words, not only addressed the issues of demanding the people's support and surveying land, but also, crucially, proposed establishing a transport commissioner in Nanjun and calculating transportation costs. It suggested transporting taxes from upstream Sichuan and Chongqing to Jiangling, then from Jiangling to Nanyang, and transporting them together with taxes from Jingzhou via the Wuguan Road to Chang'an.

Because of the excellent water conservancy in Jiangling, in order to maintain the transportation of grain on the Yang and Han rivers, Zhuge Liang proposed to arrange 3,000 soldiers to protect the important financial area and be responsible for the annual tax transfer.

Zhang Yu closed the memorial and asked, "What does the Marquis think of Kongming's insights?"

Du Ji pondered for a long time before saying, "Nanjun connects to Bashu in the west, reaches Jiaoling in the south, links Han and Xia in the north, and supplies the Yangtze and Huai rivers in the east. It is a vital town along the Yangtze River. Kongming intends to make Nanjun the central hub of the southern lands, and I think it is feasible. However, if Nanjun is made the hub, it will collect taxes from the southern lands. If there are any unruly people, wouldn't it be dangerous?"

What you say makes sense!

Zhang Yu pondered for a moment and said, "Why not make Nanjun directly subordinate to the imperial court, so that the court can govern from afar?"

"Directly under the imperial court?"

Du Ji asked in surprise, "Isn't Nanjun the same as Jingzhao, Hedong, and Hanoi, all within the capital region? But Nanjun is a thousand miles away from the capital region, how can it be considered equivalent to the capital region?"

Zhang Yu said, "Although Nanjun is directly under the jurisdiction of the capital, it is not equivalent to the capital region, but rather to the governor of a prefecture. Therefore, we might as well change Nanjun to Jiangling Prefecture, and the chief official in the prefecture would be called the Prefect, with the same rank as the governor of Jingzhou."

Since Nanjun is so important, it would be better to follow the example of the directly administered municipalities system of the Tang and Song dynasties and later periods and establish Nanjun as a separate entity. This would facilitate the allocation of positions for the governors after promotion, and also allow the imperial court to more effectively control the region.

"If what Your Majesty says is true, wouldn't all the important tax-paying areas and key transportation hubs in the country be able to be upgraded from prefectures to counties?" Du Ji said thoughtfully.

That's roughly it!

Zhang Yu said, “Taiyuan is situated between mountains and rivers, a vital town in the Dai and Shuo dynasties, and the place where the emperor rose to power. It was also the former capital. Therefore, Taiyuan County can be renamed Taiyuan Prefecture. In Hebei, Yinzhou Wei County is a major tax-producing area and controls the main canal of Hebei. It can be renamed Tangxing Prefecture. In the Central Plains, Chenliu County is a major transportation hub and a prosperous area during the Han Dynasty. It can be renamed Chenliu Prefecture.”

Taiyuan needs no introduction. Zhang Yu had previously planned to establish Taiyuan as the northern capital. If the prefecture were changed to a prefecture, Taiyuan would become Taiyuan Prefecture, directly under the imperial court. As for Weijun, due to its fertile land, it had often served as the capital of Hebei regimes during times of chaos, and its population remained substantial. Therefore, it could be converted into a prefecture.

As for Chenliu Prefecture, not only is its land fertile, but due to its geography, it is a key point for the transport of grain from the Central Plains and Southeast, bearing the heavy responsibility of transferring taxes to Chang'an. Moreover, during times of peace, as a central hub of the grain transport, it attracted numerous merchants and was undoubtedly a major tax-generating area. Therefore, the early relocation of the prefecture is simply to ensure the smooth transfer of taxes.

“If the above four prefectures are upgraded to directly administered prefectures, the capitals of the various states and the counties under their jurisdiction may change. For example, Yanzhou will need to borrow a prefecture from Yuzhou, and Yinzhou will need to borrow a prefecture from Youzhou,” Du Ji said.

"Let the Ministry of Personnel discuss it first and see if it's feasible!"

"promise!"

While the emperor and his ministers were chatting, a servant rushed in.

"Your Majesty, the Prince has just passed away in his residence!"

"The prince has passed away?"

Upon hearing this, Zhang Yu sighed and said to Li Song, "The Prince taught you and me. Now that he has passed away, we must observe the mourning rites."

Li Song lamented, "When I returned to the capital, I visited the princes and nobles. They were still able to speak, but unexpectedly, they passed away in just a few days. Alas!"

"Bosong, go ahead to offer your condolences. I will arrive shortly!"

"promise!"

After Li Song took his leave, Zhang Yu instructed Du Ji, saying, "The prince is my father-in-law. The court should conduct the funeral according to the established rites. It should not be extravagant or shabby!"

"Yes, sir!" Du Ji replied. (End of Chapter)