Memoirs of the Heavenly Khan

Chapter 427 This isn't his style.
Li Shuang returned to Luoyang from Yingzhou in the summer of the second year of the Datong era.

Before even returning to Luoyang, Li Shuang received numerous reports of the disaster from local prefectures and counties.

These states and counties experienced frost and snowfall.

Keep in mind, this is in the summer.

In this era, dealing with these extreme weather conditions involves more than just taking precautions against the cold and frost.

This implies a terrible truth.

This year is destined to be a year of poor harvest.

And this situation will not last only a year.

Frost, drought, epidemics and other disasters will come one after another.

In this day and age, if the fields cannot yield a harvest, people can only rely on their family's reserves to survive the famine years.

It's alright for prefectural cities, county cities, and county towns, as they still have some grain reserves in their granaries. But where would ordinary people find so much grain stored up?
Li Shuang had no way to deal with this.

He couldn't conjure up enough food, nor could he teach greenhouse farming techniques, so he could only tough it out.

In Jinyong City, Hu Sichun was all smiles.

Changsun Zhi passed away last year, and Husi Chun succeeded him as the governor of Luoyang.

Now, looking at Li Shuang, his face is full of admiration.

"Your Majesty, it is fortunate that you issued the order early, instructing the military garrisons and soldiers in various regions to store grain; otherwise, there would have been great chaos."

What impressed Hu Sichun even more was that last year, Li Shuang went to Hebei and, together with the taxes collected from the aristocratic families and various prefectures, brought back nearly two million shi of grain to Luoyang.

Hu Sichun was certainly not a fool. Even if he were, after becoming the garrison commander of Luoyang, he could still obtain information from various government offices in Luoyang and know the current situation in various places.

The situation in Guanzhong is terrible.

After Li Shuang entered Guanzhong, although he carried out a lot of water conservancy construction, a drought still struck Guanzhong in this year of famine.

Hu Sichun knew that in the year or two since Li Shuang annihilated the Erzhu clan and entered Luoyang, a large number of people had poured into Guanzhong, and the population had reached one million.

However, unlike the Han Chinese who originally lived in Guanzhong and the retainers who followed Li Shuang into Guanzhong, these newly arrived people did not have land allocated to them early on, had cultivated it for several years, and had food reserves at home. The newly cultivated land they brought in was not enough for them to survive the drought.

At that time, it will probably be a tragic scene.

"Your Majesty, after the severe drought in Guanzhong, there is a risk of widespread refugees. Should we transfer grain from Luoyang to Guanzhong?"

Hu Sichun clearly underestimated the severity of the drought, believing it was merely a matter of widespread displacement.

Li Shuang did not adopt this suggestion.

"Luoyang is the center of the world, the capital of the country, and the granary of the nation. It is of utmost importance and should not be lightly transferred from Guanzhong."

The 30,000 northern troops led by Hou Jing at the front are certainly not enough to support themselves with the few counties of Southern Liang they have conquered. They will need reinforcements after autumn.

Li Shuang ordered military prefectures and garrisons throughout the Central Plains to stockpile grain. However, the degree of implementation of this order varied across different prefectures. After all, the situation differed from place to place; some prefectures and counties had just quelled wars and lacked sufficient grain even if they wanted to stockpile it.

There was no other way but to transfer grain from Luoyang.

Guanzhong is Li Shuang's stronghold. If his strength is weakened, it will be very disadvantageous for Li Shuang.

Hu Sichun was puzzled. Could it be that Li Shuang planned to transfer grain from the three major granaries in Guanzhong to provide disaster relief?
This isn't like him at all!

"How are the disaster victims in Guanzhong?"

Li Shuang looked at Hu Sichun and said with certainty:
"Entering Sichuan for food!"

Entering Sichuan?

These two words flashed through Hu Sichun's mind, and he was quite surprised.

Many counties in Sichuan and Chongqing were vacant. While the influx of people from Guanzhong into Sichuan and Chongqing could indeed strengthen their control over the region, it would inevitably lead to bloodshed.

Hu Sichun asked cautiously:
"How many men does Your Majesty intend to send into Shu?"

"First, move 20,000 households with insufficient surplus grain to Hanzhong and Bashu as a preliminary step. If next year is still a year of famine, then move another 30,000 households to Shu."

Hu Sichun was no longer shocked when she heard this.

There are only 160,000 to 170,000 households in Guanzhong. How can 50,000 households be moved to Bashu all at once? "If this happens, I fear that the barbarians will invade, the court will be uneasy, and the Central Plains will be plunged into turmoil again!"

Hu Sichun warned that once the population of Guanzhong was insufficient, its military strength would certainly decline. At that time, the Hu and Yi tribes surrounding Guanzhong would probably be eager to try, and the aristocratic families of the Central Plains would likely cause trouble.

Li Shuang simply smiled at this.

That smile sent a shiver down Hu Sichun's spine. Then, he heard an answer that would be etched into his memory forever.

"Who stole it is another matter!"

……

Chengdu.

"What does your Majesty mean?"

Li Shengui stared at the imperial edict sent from Chang'an, somewhat shocked.

"This year, 20,000 households will be relocated from Guanzhong to Sichuan. Won't this cause widespread resentment among the people?"

Relocating people is not a tourist activity; the process is extremely brutal. Moreover, this is not in the flat plains of the Central Plains, but in Sichuan, where there are towering mountains and steep ridges blocking the way.

Hulü Guang remained silent, but Han Ling stroked his beard and said:
"Under normal circumstances, that would indeed be the case, but things are different now. It seems that the drought in Guanzhong is very serious, otherwise, His Majesty would not have issued this decree."

After Han Ling finished speaking, he looked at Hulü Guang and asked:

"How is your repeating crossbowman unit training?"

"Some progress has been made."

Han Ling nodded and said:

"It will come in handy soon."

Seeing Han Ling's gaze, Hulü Guang seemed to realize something and said:

“Sir, I understand.”

Just then, a report came from outside the mansion: Old Master Dongfang has arrived.

"Let him in."

Han Ling waved his hand, signaling someone to invite Elder Dongfang in, only to find that Li Shenggui had unknowingly stood up.

When Li Shenggui met Elder Dongfang, he was quite polite, with a smile on his face. Han Ling suddenly realized that Li Shenggui seemed to have barely seen Elder Dongfang in the past year or so.

"Your Majesty, sir, a military order has been sent from Guanzhong, instructing me to prepare troops and go to Hanzhong to meet the three thousand men who are entering Shu, in case of any unforeseen circumstances."

"General, you've worked hard. Please go quickly!"

After Li Shenggui finished speaking, Elder Dongfang looked at Han Ling, who nodded, and then he left.

"King of Chenliu, why do you treat Elder Dongfang like this?"

Li Shengui shook his head and said:
"This kid usually calls Heba Yun his brother, but when it comes to fighting, he doesn't even blink an eye. How terrifying!"

As he spoke, Li Shenggui patted his chest and asked, puzzled:

"Your Majesty wants to send someone to meet you. What is he to do?"

Han Ling said leisurely:
"It's because he's ruthless that we sent him!"

Li Shenggui was somewhat confused and asked:
"Why?"

"These three thousand people who have entered Sichuan are all local ruffians, sons-in-law, and criminals. We will also provide them with weapons in the future. Otherwise, how can we intimidate them?"

Han Ling stood up, already having a premonition of the bloodshed that was about to erupt in the Sichuan and Chongqing region.

All the worries and thoughts that came to mind were summed up in a single sentence.

"Wherever the sun and moon shine, it is all Han territory; wherever the rivers flow, all are subjects of Han."

……

(End of this chapter)