Overlord!

Gao Gan, the governor of Bingzhou, was the position given to him by Sun Ce after Yuan Shao surrendered to Sun Ce after his death.

His official position in the Zhao family is really too high, including general of chariots and cavalry, leader of Bingzhou Mu, Kaifu, and Yitong.

After the fall of Yecheng, the main force of the Song army returned south, but the Northern Expedition was not over. There were still famous generals from the Song Dynasty who led their troops to conquer unconquered lands and marched northward to regain the south of the Great Wall.

At this time, the senior officials assessed the situation and led the nine counties under their control to submit to Sun Ce.

Sun Ce therefore named him General Yangwu, Governor of Bingzhou, and Marquis of Qixiang to reassure him.

But at this time, everyone could see that the Bingzhous led by Gao Gan, especially the Taiyuan and Shangdang areas he commanded, were not under the control of the Song Dynasty at all.

So after hearing Zhang Hong's words, Sun Ce sighed and said, "High cadres, this is not a wise man who knows how to advance and retreat."

As long as he has a little bit of vision, he should also know that this situation cannot last long.

How could the Song Dynasty allow him to separate a vassal town from Bingzhou for a long time? Let him not be restrained by the imperial court, not pay taxes, and not listen to orders?

Wouldn't that mean splitting the land and sealing the territory, and granting him the title of prince and king?

Moreover, even the princes and kings of the Han Dynasty did not have as much power as him.

If he knew how to advance and retreat, he should be like Zhang Yan, who decisively handed over military power, gave up all military influence, and entered Jiankang alone with a few old soldiers, cronies, and dozens of wives to enjoy the wealth of the princes.

By doing this, even if he did not perform outstandingly in the crucial battle, Sun Ce would win the hearts of the world and stabilize the Black Mountain tribe. He would never massacre him, but would instead preserve his glory, wealth, and food.

After Sun Ce ascended the throne, there were hundreds of marquises in the world, not to mention his small Qianhu marquis.

There are thousands of orange trees in Jiangling, and thousands of marquises. The Marquis of Qianhu did not directly command the fiefdom of Qianhu, but handed him the taxes paid by Qianhu. Sun Ce could still easily take out this wealth.

After more than ten or twenty years, his influence has faded, and as long as he is not guilty of treason, he can enjoy peace forever.

But Gao Gan happened to choose a path completely opposite to Zhang Yan's, intending to support his troops and respect themselves.

The Song Dynasty is now unable to continue fighting, so as long as he is stabilized, Bingzhou will not be able to fight. As long as he did not raise troops to go south and plunder Jizhou, even if he used the emperor's ceremonial guard in Bingzhou, the court would tolerate it.

But once the Song Dynasty calms down, it is almost unnecessary to think that the army will definitely invade Shangdang and wipe out this separatist feudal town.

By that time, the Song Dynasty already had the righteousness of the world, and the elite king's troops went to attack the unofficial ministers. His ministers would bring order to the chaos, either by assassinating high-ranking officials, or by raising the county to surrender.

Therefore, Sun Ce said that the princes here have neither far-sighted strategy nor good plans.

Zhang Hong replied: "This is exactly what I am thinking. The reason why high-ranking cadres support troops in Bingzhou and respect themselves is because they do not trust each other with the court. They dare not abandon the army and enter the court, and they live in Jiankang. Therefore. At this time, we should appease their minds and help them recruit troops."

"Help him recruit troops?" Sun Ce was a little surprised and said, "It is almost inevitable for high-ranking officials to rebel. If they rebel after half a year of surrender, wouldn't it be harmful to help them recruit troops?"

The effect of soothing his heart can be said to be minimal.

At most, it will delay the rebellion of high-ranking officials.

If there was a war between Sun Ce and the imperial court, it is hard to imagine that senior officials would not be ready to take action.

Zhang Hong did not answer directly, but asked a question: "Is it true that the enemy is in danger?"

Sun Ce answered this question without hesitation: "Of course it is not a problem, but it is a solid problem."

Of course, Sun Ce is not afraid of the enemy's large numbers, because in today's world, no matter how large the enemy's army is, it cannot be larger than Sun Ce's army.

Moreover, the army of the Song Dynasty was the founding army, with high morale, fierce and good at fighting.

Most of the armies of other princes have low morale and will collapse at the first sign of attack. Even if they give 50,000 elite troops to senior officials, they may not be able to match the 30,000 Song troops.

Therefore, Sun Ce is really not afraid of the large size of the high-ranking cadres' troops, but he is very concerned about whether the high-ranking cadres win the hearts and minds of the people. If he sticks to one place and the people's hearts are strong, he can fight against the Song army for several months or even a year, which Sun Ce will never tolerate.

For example, in history, he fought with Cao Cao as a senior official. He guarded the Huguan area and fought fiercely with the main force of the army led by Cao Cao himself for seven or eight months. All the famous generals in Cao's camp joined the battle, but they could not defeat it.

This is the real problem.

Zhang Hongnai continued: "I heard that Zhongchang, a famous scholar in Bingzhou, commented on Gao Qian, saying that you have great ambition but no great talent, and you like scholars but cannot choose people, so you should be deeply warned. Looking at his behavior now, it is indeed the case."

"He ruled Bingzhou for seven years, and became famous and noble, attracting many wanderers from all over the country to join him. If he sticks to Bingzhou, it will calm the hearts of the people and it will be difficult to get rid of him."

"Forcing them to trade with Xianbei is a strategy to draw fuel from the bottom of the cauldron. With his ambition, he will recruit troops and horses in the mutual trade. However, Bingzhou is bitter and cold, and if he resorts to military warfare, he will lose the support of the people."

When Sun Ce heard this, he nodded slightly and said, "This is a strategy that kills three birds with one stone!"

Not only did it solve the problem of Xianbei rewards, but it also broke the hearts of high-ranking officials in Bingzhou. After he recruited troops and horses, his power expanded and he took the initiative to rebel, which made him even more disappointed. Because at this time, the world is initially settled, people's minds are at peace, and they all hate war.

His rebellion will hardly gain momentum and will not attract a large response.

Sun Ce said: "Just follow what you said and tell the senior officials and Xianbei."

The Xianbei pilgrimage was a relatively important thing that Sun Ce encountered during this period. However, since the Song Dynasty was still far away from the Great Wall, and the Central Plains was still undecided, he was unable to start a war against the grassland forces, so Sun Ce paid a little attention to this matter.

At present, the Song Dynasty's focus is still on unifying the Central Plains and appeasing Hebei.

Stability under his rule was the most important thing to Sun Ce.

A unified dynasty can never be defeated by the outside as long as there is no internal chaos.

As for the current top priority, appeasing Hebei is also divided into two aspects. In addition to political efforts, the most important is economic efforts.

The mistakes made by the Tang Dynasty in Hebei, Sun Ce must not make again now. Hebei must be given fair fiscal policies to win over local people.

In particular, the economic center of the Song Dynasty was in the southeast, and Hebei was the political and economic center. If the local area could not be appeased, it would inevitably lead to disunity.

So around July, Sun Ce summoned the Zhen family, a wealthy family in Hebei, to hold a family banquet.

The famous Luo Shen Zhen Mi was included in Sun Ce's harem after the war.

There is no doubt about Zhen Mi's appearance. Not only is she beautiful and fragrant, her skin is as beautiful as snow, her wrists are covered with frost, and where she moves, a weak willow supports the wind. When she is quiet, she is like a delicate flower shining on the water. Moreover, she was not only beautiful and beautiful, but also extraordinarily intelligent. Before going south, she told her clan members that seeking treasures in troubled times would be a crime for an ordinary man, but it would be a crime to possess a jade. And when people on both sides are hungry, it is better to use grain to feed relatives and neighbors, which will definitely be a favor.

What he said was exactly what Sun Ce needed. Hebei was famine, but Jiangnan was rich, so he needed a large number of aristocratic families and powerful caravans to send the wealth of Jiangnan there.

So Sun Ce invited Zhen Mi's brother Zhen Yao to the banquet.

Zhen Yao is Zhen Mi's third brother. Zhen Mi has eight brothers and sisters, but the eldest brother and second brother have both died young, leaving only the third brother Zhen Yao.

Now as the head of the Zhen family, he inherited the lintel of the Zhen family and was promoted to be filial and honest very early.

So after the family banquet started, Sun Ce asked: "Since Ji Wen promoted filial piety and integrity, why didn't he become an official?"

Ji Wen is Zhen Yao's cousin, and he has just been crowned. He is only a year or two older than Zhen Mi, and is not as old as Sun Ce, so Sun Ce calls him his cousin in a relatively affectionate manner.

Upon hearing this, Zhen Yao immediately said: "The Zhao family has acted arrogantly, and everyone in the clan thought it would be difficult for him to succeed in his career, so he was only recommended by the county and not recruited by the Zhao family."

Accepting the recommendation from the county is a way for their Zhen family to strengthen their influence in the county and enhance the reputation of the wealthy family.

Sun Ce is very clear about the inspection and promotion system of the Han Dynasty. Every year when the population of a county reaches 200,000, one person is promoted to be filial and honest.

It can be said that choosing someone as Xiaolian is the most important means for every prefect to win people's hearts.

There are so many big families in a county, and recommending one or two places every year. Which big family is assigned to is not only a test of the prefect's ability, but also a reflection of the strength of the big family.

Take Wu County as an example. There are countless wealthy families in the territory!

Wu County alone has more than a dozen surnames such as Gu, Lu, Zhu, Zhang, Sheng, Xu, Yu, etc., and the ancestors of the capital have two thousand senior officials, and now there are a large number of officials in the court.

Each tribe has a large number of tribesmen, hundreds or even thousands. In this case, there is only one quota for filial piety and integrity. Who will the prefect give it to, and who will he not give it to? This is a fierce competition.

but!

You know, this is just Wuxian County! Extended to the entire Wu County, there are more than a dozen counties. Each county has a similar large clan, such as Sun, Wu, Xu, Zhou, Xie, Quan, He, Qian, etc.

In addition, there are a large number of civilians with real talents, and the prefect will also consider recommending them. After all, promoting talented people is also one of the prefect's political achievements.

In this case, you know how difficult it is to be promoted as filial and honest.

However, one by one, the three brothers Zhen and Zhen Yao from Zhongshan were recommended as Xiaolian.

Even though his other two brothers, Zhen Yao, had died young, the younger ones were both Xiaolian.

If you don’t believe that their Zhen family is really noble, then it can only mean one thing! Their Zhen family's dominance in Zhongshan is extremely terrifying, and may even be higher than that of the Yuan family in Runan!

This is why Yuan Shaogui, the lord of Hebei, also wanted to marry the Zhen family's daughter for Yuan Xi, so as to win over the Zhen family.

There is no doubt about the fact that Zhen is the kind of prince who has served as a minister for generations. His ancestor was Zhen Han, a Taibao of the Han Dynasty.

Zhen Han's father-in-law, Boshan Hou Kong Guang, was the 14th grandson of Confucius and the son of Taishi Kong Ba. He was an auxiliary minister in the four dynasties, with high official rank, general, prime minister, Taifu, and Taishi. Chen was respected by the Empress Dowager Wang Zhengjun, Emperor Cheng of the Han Dynasty and Emperor Ai of the Han Dynasty. Later, as a famous Confucian in the world, he was appointed as the teacher of Emperor Ping of the Han Dynasty Liu Kuang.

As a result, Zhen Hanhe's descendants entered the court as officials, and because of their talents, they gained the trust of the powerful minister Wang Mang. Zhen Feng was promoted from a local official to a minister in the palace, and then to the rank of Grand Sikong, with the title of Marquis of Guangyang and Duke of Guangxin; Zhen Handan was promoted to the rank of Grand Sima, and the title of Marquis of Chengyang and Chengxin Gong was given, and then he served as the Han Dynasty Taibao, in charge of the military power of the world; Zhen Feng's son Zhen Xun was appointed as Shizhong and Jing Zhaoyin; Zhen Xin was Guang Luxun, known as the "Four Zhens", and became a new noble in the court, powerful in the court and the public.

The Wuji Zhen family has since become a powerful and prominent family in Zhongshan, with an inheritance of two thousand stones from generation to generation.

And unlike the Yuan family, which has fierce competition in Runan, a large county, the Zhen family can be said to be the only one in Zhongshan and even the entire Hebei.

At least if Zhen supports Sun Ce, Zhongshan will never rebel against Sun Ce.

And by selling grain in Zhongshan to alleviate the shortage, they could solve an important direction for Sun Ce to appease people.

Therefore, Sun Ce said: "Zhen's ability to bring things right is due to Ji Wen's sharp eyes. Now I also have a great trust entrusted to you."

Zhen Yao immediately held up his hands and said, "I am willing to die for Duke Song."

Sun Ce waved his hand and said with a smile: "This is a family banquet, so there is no need to be polite. Although it is a great trust, it is not dangerous, and it is beneficial to the Zhen family."

Hearing this, Zhen Yao relaxed a little.

Before coming, he thought Duke Song was interested in Zhen's wealth.

On this point, Zhen Yao specifically consulted the learned and talented Confucian scholar from Hebei. After hearing what he said, I felt it was very reasonable. Troubled times are long but transformation is short. In troubled times, villains are valued and favored, while gentlemen are poor and humble. When a gentleman is in poverty and humbleness, he can raise his tower to the sky and tread the earth for fear of being suppressed.

In the past, the rich and noble princes' families boiled the world's fat and cut the bones of human beings. They were full of resentment and boredom, and disasters and chaos arose. China was disturbed and foreign barbarians invaded and rebelled. They fell apart and disappeared in one day. The children and grandchildren who were my sucklings in the past are now my blood-drinking enemies. As for those who are still not aware of the situation after the fortune has passed, isn’t it because wealth breeds unkindness, and addiction leads to stupidity and disease?

Being rich but not benevolent is the biggest disaster that Zhen thinks.

So Zhen Yao had already planned to spend money to avoid disaster and help Song Gong stabilize Hebei.

Song Gong is now undoubtedly the number one person in the world. Even if he is from a heroic family, he can only follow his wishes and not dare to show his power. No matter how powerful the clan is, it can't stop Song Gong's thunderous wrath. Once the military power comes, three clans will be slaughtered, and the wealth will be just a passing cloud.

I never thought that Song Gong was entrusting him with something useful.

After Zhen Yao relaxed, Sun Ce said: "Now that the world is a little peaceful, there are few wolves on the road to Jiuzhou, and I want to revive the trade route to alleviate the famine in Hebei."

"It's bitterly cold in Hebei today, and what's missing is silk, money, and food. I would like to ask Qing Fu to take this post to transport money and food from the south of the Yangtze River to the cities in Hebei."

As the leader of the Zhen family, Zhen Yao was well-informed and immediately reacted and asked: "Song Gong wants to ask me, Zhen family, to buy supplies from two places?"

Sun Ce smiled, it was convenient to deal with smart people.

Yes, Sun Ce hoped that Zhen Yao would take on the role of a trading house.

Transporting supplies to Hebei should have been a matter for the imperial court, but why didn't the imperial court do it themselves and leave it to him? Isn't it because there is no more money and food in the imperial treasury?

Therefore, we can only hope for private transactions to transport the wealth from Hebei to Jiangnan first, and then transport the copper coins, silk, and grain from Jiangnan back to Hebei.

As for what kind of Hebei supplies can be sold and benefited from, it is obviously a caravan that is more suitable than the imperial court.

Zhen Mi sat next to Sun Ce, showing an innate elegance in her behavior. Her slender fingers dexterously poured wine for Sun Ce, then picked up delicate dishes and placed them in his bowl. Every movement was as smooth and natural as the fairy in the painting.

After doing all this, she spoke slowly, her voice soft and sweet, like the spring breeze blowing over the strings of a piano: "Brother, I heard that the famous cities in Hebei are empty but there are no people living in them. There are countless people who live hundreds of miles away without people. Looking forward to this. , can be reached to the end. Only by establishing a virtuous person and establishing a name can the world be established. At this time, bartering things will not only alleviate the hunger of the people, but also provide hope for decades. Brother, I should think about it."

Hearing this, Sun Ce and Zhen Yao's eyes lit up at the same time!

Zhen Yao almost didn't hesitate anymore. He immediately stood up and held his hands in his hands, saying: "Yao is willing to serve the Duke of Song to the death." (End of this chapter)