Great Han Empire

Chapter 448
Zhang Yan was very angry when he saw people arguing about whether to go to the fortress to fight. He said that the problem to be solved now was the problem of feeding and surviving the 60 disaster victims, not the issue of going to the fortress to fight.Even if the only way to deal with the 60 disaster victims is to go out to fight and recover the lost land, it will have to wait until next winter at the earliest, and the disaster victims will arrive soon.What will the disaster victims do this year?What will the disaster victims do next year?
He pointed to several senior officials in the Zhenbei General's Mansion and asked, do you still need people from the salt pond and the iron mine?Does the ordnance workshop need people?One thing that can be solved is one thing, you should find a solution as soon as possible, and stop talking nonsense.He looked at Xu Rong again, and asked, do you want to consult the King of Hedong, tell him about our difficulties, and see if he can help us resettle some victims?Then he cupped his hands and said to Zhao Qi, who was bowing his head in thought, "Boss, you can think of a way to see if you can squeeze out some more fields from Mintun?"

Ding Yuan said despondently, Mr. Zhang, don't just care about the stomachs of the victims. The 60 victims need to have a place to live and clothes to survive.In addition, in order to prevent the plague from causing a large number of victims to die, we have to recruit medical craftsmen and purchase medicinal materials.Money, what we urgently need now is money and land, but we don't have any of them.

Zhao Qi opened his eyes suddenly, looked up at Xu Rong and said, "Master Xu, your Zhenbei General's Mansion still has military supplies, military rations, and a large amount of combat supplies such as tents. You won't need these things for the time being. Call us first."

Xu Rong shook his head with a firm expression.

Zhao Qi said that His Majesty had issued an imperial decree as early as the beginning of this month, ordering all the troops in northern Xinjiang to return to their bases and stop fighting the enemy.Now the Yanmenguan battle is over, and there are no more wars in northern Xinjiang.Since there is no war in northern Xinjiang, why is the Zhenbei General's Mansion hoarding military supplies and rations?Mr. Xu, the most important thing is to properly resettle the victims. Only by solving the problems of the victims can the state be stabilized. This is more important than fighting ten Yanmen Pass wars.

Zhang Yan, Zhang Baiqi, Ding Yuan and others also know that the Zhenbei General’s Mansion still has a large amount of military resources and rations, and emergency response is definitely not a problem, but this matter is related to the war situation in northern Xinjiang. The 10,000+ army in northern Xinjiang, even It is related to the safety of the Han Dynasty, so no one dares to speak indiscriminately.The authority of the Zhenbei General's Mansion is to be in charge of the military affairs of the three prefectures and two counties, not just one Bingzhou. It is unimaginable if the Zhenbei General's Mansion does not have emergency military supplies and rations.

Now Zhao Qi was the first to push this matter away, and the others naturally followed behind to persuade him.No matter what, if the matter of the 60 victims is not resolved, the responsibility and pressure of the Zhenbei General's Mansion will be the greatest.

Xu Rong was unmoved and didn't say a word, as if he didn't hear it.

Seeing that his repeated persuasion had no effect, Zhao Qi couldn't help saying angrily: "Master Xu, if General Li is sitting here now, he will not refuse. This matter concerns more than 180 million people in Bingzhou and 60 people. Do you have any reason not to agree to the safety of the tens of thousands of disaster victims? Is the life of 240 million people more important or a general's mansion in Zhenbei? Compared with the two, don't you know which is more important?
Xu Rong sat behind the table, smiling but not speaking, just not speaking.

Seeing Zhao Qi's angry eyes wide open and his white eyebrows raised, Zuo Yan was worried that he would not be able to take it anymore, so he hurriedly persuaded him in a low voice: "Please calm down, sir, please calm down, let's think of other ways. Money can actually solve the problem, Yan Tie Captain Xie has it in hand, but it is His Majesty's money, we can't use it. If we withhold it and don't give it to us first, and then ask His Majesty for a loan, look, my lord..."

Xie Ming was startled, and said in horror: "Lord Zuo, this is a capital crime."

Zhang Yan was overjoyed when he heard the words, "What are you afraid of? I wrote to His Majesty, saying that I want to borrow it. In this situation, why are you afraid of decapitation or not, capital crime or capital crime?" He turned to look at Zhang Baiqi, and said loudly, "After you arrived in Anyi, you immediately organized [-] yellow scarves to train the main force, went south and north, and swaggered around. First, to show the military power, and second, to deter the capital. I don't believe it. Your Majesty dare not lend me money."

Zhang Yan's complexion sank, he glanced at the people in the big tent, and waved his hand and said: "Now the main force of the Zhenbei General's Mansion is in Youzhou and the Great Wall Fortress, and only our Yellow Turban Army is left in Bingzhou and Hedong. If your majesty pushes me into a hurry, hmph... ..."

Xu Rong couldn't help lowering his head and smiling.

Zhao Qi, Ding Yuan, and a group of officials from Zhenbei General's Mansion were dumbfounded and extremely shocked.They suddenly remembered that the battle at Yanmen Pass was fought by the Yellow Turban Army, not by Zhang Yan, but by General Zhenbei and his cavalry.The situation in Bingzhou became more and more complicated and dangerous.

Zhao Qi glared at Zhang Yan, then looked at Xu Rong who was smiling, and snapped at the table, "Okay, just do as Master Zhang said, and first withhold His Majesty's salt and iron benefits. Our Five Houses Jointly signed a letter requesting His Majesty to allocate funds for disaster relief immediately, otherwise, even if we are killed, Bingzhou and Beijiang will not be able to keep. Threat? Who threatens whom? We are dead, at most the nine tribes are killed, but Bingzhou and Beijiang are lost. The great man's society is in danger, can His Majesty still protect his Wanjintang?"

"I will write this memorial. Now that we have decided to do this, we will succeed, and we must ask His Majesty to pay for it, and borrow it on credit? We have to pay back the loan. What shall we pay back? We will not only threaten His Majesty, but also the court. Your minister." Zhao Qi pointed to Zhang Baiqi and said, "Master Zhang rushed to Hedong immediately, and set up a larger posture for military training. Both Pubanjin and Fenglingdu will garrison troops. Also, Master Xu dispatched the hussar battalion. Divided into two, one part goes to Hedong to kill the Baibo Yellow Turban Army in Wangwu Mountain, and the other part goes to Taihang Mountain to kill the Yellow Turban Army in Montenegro. You ask the cavalry to drive the Yellow Turban Army from these two places to Hanoi as much as possible, and let them threaten Gyeonggi. "

Ding Yuan looked at the gray-haired Zhao Qi in disbelief, wanted to say something but dared not say it.

Zhao Qi glanced at Ding Yuan disdainfully, "I want to write a letter to the General. Master Ding can also write a letter to the General, asking him to help us, it will be good for him."

"I have lived for more than 80 years. I am old, and I am forced by His Majesty and the court to lose my loyalty. I am really shameless to face my ancestors by doing such infidelity and injustice."

Knowing that the money problem was solved, the atmosphere in the big tent relaxed a little, but Zuo Yan then said something that made everyone feel gloomy, "What about the land? No matter how rich we are, we can't do without land? We can only rely on relief. We can't settle down for a while, but we can't ask His Majesty to move them back to their original place again, can we?"

Zhang Yan lowered her head and pressed her forehead against the table, wanting to cry in pain.Now he finally understood how much pressure and pain Zhenbei General Li Hong had to endure to appease the Yellow Turban Army and appease the refugees.

Zhao Qi sighed: "What if we don't move back to our original place? Although we have to withhold His Majesty's money, we can't go too far. One billion is already the limit. One billion can last up to three months. Wait for the October grain When we are mature, we can last another month. By November, these 60 people must leave Bingzhou, otherwise, as Mr. Li said, Bingzhou will be dragged down alive. At that time, don’t talk about farming, even northern Xinjiang I can't keep it."

"Moving back to the place of origin?" Ding Yuan exclaimed, "If the 60 disaster victims know about it, there will be chaos immediately. This is 60 people, not 60 livestock, and not 60 troops. They are 60 people. Tens of thousands of victims, who have nothing or even hope of survival. Some of the land of these victims’ homes has been washed away by the flood, and some have no land at all. They used to live by renting and planting. These people have nothing when they return to their original places. You How do you tell them to live? You are forcing them to riot. This is absolutely impossible, absolutely impossible, His Majesty and the court will not agree."

"According to what you say, the other victims who stayed there are going to riot?" Tang Fang asked puzzled.In his view, moving the victims back to their original places is the only way to solve the crisis in Bingzhou.

Ding Yuan nodded and said: "The reason why your Majesty and the imperial court moved the victims to Bingzhou must have taken into account the possibility of the victims' riots. This time the Yellow River broke its embankment, and the victims were the seven counties along the river, and none of these seven counties It is not a rich land, especially the land along the river, which is very fertile and has been bought up by the rich and powerful. This time, they suffered heavy losses. This year their fields will definitely have no harvest, and next year will they be able to It is even more difficult to resume farming. Firstly, it depends on the damage of each person, and secondly, it depends on the policy of the imperial court. The money and food for this disaster relief are allocated according to the amount of the affected fields in some places, and in some places The distribution is based on the number of people affected by the disaster, but no matter how it is distributed, the money and food will end up in the private treasury of the landowner. It is good that the farmers who cultivate the land can barely survive. Now that the disaster relief has just begun, His Majesty and the court attach great importance to it. Protection, although it is very hard, but they can still survive, but after a long time, if His Majesty and the court don't care about it, then the deep suffering of the victims will begin. At that time, whether the victims will gather crowds to riot, do we have to guess The emperor doesn't know, but the ministers in the court know it, and the bureaucrats in the local states and counties know it, but who is willing to damage their own property to help the victims? What's more, the victims riot, and they don't need money and effort to counter the rebellion. Isn’t it all paid by His Majesty and the imperial court, and the Han army went to kill them?”

Ding Yuan looked at the people in the tent, and solemnly said word by word: "It is absolutely impossible to move back to the original place. Even if the victims of the disaster in the lower reaches of the Yellow River rioted, it would be settled within a year or two in the internal counties of Dahan, and if Bingzhou If there is a riot, the whole of northern Xinjiang will be over, and if the northern border is over, the Great Han Kingdom will be crumbling."

He cupped his hands and said to Zhao Qi: "To solve the problem of the victims, in addition to moving back to their original place, there is another appropriate strategy is to go out to recover the four counties in northern Xinjiang, and then move the population north to ease the crisis in Bingzhou. As I said just now, as long as the money The problem is solved, and the method of going out of the fortress to recover the four counties is still the best solution. At the very least, these 60 victims of the disaster can temporarily serve as the husbands of the Northern Expedition to solve the problem of survival, and at the same time, it can stabilize the hearts of the 60 victims of the disaster. Let them see the hope of continuing to survive."

"It seems very unrealistic, difficult, and impossible to go out to fight at present, but everyone, please think about it, in addition to this method, you have better and more appropriate methods, which can make the victims of the disaster survive and make the northern Xinjiang Is it more acceptable to His Majesty and the imperial court to stabilize as soon as possible? We know that we can't do it, which is like going against the sky, and we will have to pay a heavy price. Consequences, which one is more conducive to the stability and revitalization of the Han Kingdom? Everyone, please think carefully, please think carefully."

There was no sound in the big tent, and the atmosphere was extremely depressing.

Zhao Qi sighed, "My lord Xu, two lords Zhang, and lord Ding, our five governments jointly signed a letter to report to His Majesty and the imperial court in detail the major impact and possible consequences of the victims' arrival in Bingzhou on northern Xinjiang. In addition, We will present the solution discussed at the same time. We cannot make decisions on such an important matter, and it is not our turn to make decisions. Let Your Majesty and the court make a decision. If Your Majesty and the court reject these two solutions, then We are just waiting to beheaded, which is considered to be loyal to the country."

He patted the table and said loudly: "Everyone, work hard, we will survive until October no matter what."

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July of the fifth year of Zhongping in the Han Dynasty (AD 188).

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At the beginning of July, Luoyang.

The Great Han Kingdom cannot live without Taiwei, but no one is willing to take up the post of Taiwei now.Since the ministers did not make recommendations, the emperor was also happy to pretend not to know, as if he had forgotten about it.At the beginning of this month, he accepted the recommendation of the general He Jin, the eunuch Yang Biao, and the doctor Yuan Feng of Guanglu, and appointed Taixue Jijiu Ma Rixun as the captain of the Northern Army Shesheng.The five major lieutenants of the Northern Army have long been the stepping stones for bureaucrats to advance to the imperial court. They usually go to the Northern Army to show their faces when they take office, and then they are invisible.

Ma Rixun is a great Confucian who is famous all over the world. He is the grandson of Ma Rong, a great Confucianist in this dynasty. He is a relative of the emperor and has a prominent family background.The current patriarch of the Ma Clan in Chang'an is Ma Rixun, and the number of disciples of the Ma Clan is definitely number one in the world.His grandfather, his father, plus his own disciples, bureaucrats and scholars with various ties to the powerful are all over the world, there are countless.The horse clan's power is so great that although it is not as powerful as the Yang clan, Yuan clan, and Xu clan in the Great Han Kingdom, it is not much different, especially the close relationship between the horse clan and the royal family, which makes his sudden entry into an official position even more attractive. people pay attention.

Ma Rixun has devoted himself to studying knowledge for many years, and he does not want to become an official in the court.Although the emperor admired him very much, the two had very different views on many things. For example, when the emperor built the Hongdu Gate, he was strongly opposed by Ma Rike, so the emperor was unwilling to use him.At this time, the emperor suddenly activated Ma Rifeng, which made people think of the fact that he traveled all the way to invite Cai Yong back at the end of last year.Is the emperor planning to use Ma Rizun to replace Cai Yong in the court to gain the support of scholars all over the world?Many people have already vaguely guessed the emperor's reluctance to appoint a new captain so far.That captain's seat was reserved for Ma Rixun.

But many people don't understand why the general He Jin took the initiative to recommend a great Confucian like Ma Rizun to enter the court, because no matter how He Jin wins him over, it is simply impossible for him to bring a horse clan who is close to the royal family to his camp. .With the news coming from various channels, many people know that the emperor will set up eight captains in the Xiyuan Army, three more than the Northern Army. The specifications are much higher, and the size of the Xiyuan Army has also expanded and expanded, reaching 4 people.This is all because the emperor is addicted to collecting money. As long as someone pays for an official, why not sell it?The official position of a military commander has been sold for 200 million yuan.It can increase the number of troops and collect more money, why not do it?The leaked candidates for the eight school lieutenants let everyone understand the difficulty of the general He Jin. Except for Yuan Shao among the eight school lieutenants, the remaining seven are all of the middle officer line.The general was cornered, as if he was about to surrender to His Majesty.This recommendation of Ma Rixun obviously meant to please the emperor, but maybe he had a little luck, because if Ma Rixun did not support the emperor to abolish his son and establish his concubine, then things would be very beneficial to the general .The focus of the imperial lineage dispute suddenly shifted to the emperor and the general's win over and win over the gentry.

The bureaucrats in Luoyang were worried.What position should we maintain now?If you want to stay neutral and swing from side to side, it is definitely not enough. One of the emperor and the general will always win. As the gentry that both parties rely on, they must always have their own fundamental stand.Is it to support the emperor's abolition of the son and establish the concubine, or to stick to the law of the Han Dynasty and oppose the abolition of the son and the establishment of the concubine?Many gentry are unwilling to abolish their sons and establish their concubines. Abolishing their sons and establishing their concubines violates the ancestral system and violates the law. If the emperor can violate the ancestral system, violate the law, and do whatever he wants, what will the emperor use to restrain his subjects? which country?But if you oppose the abolition of the concubine and the establishment of the concubine, the consequence will be the dictatorship of the generals, and the Han Kingdom will go back to the old path of tyrants and relatives taking turns to dictatorship, and finally harm the country.

While the powerful ministers in Luoyang were still hesitating and unable to make a choice, the emperor's footsteps became faster and faster.Once the northern border is stabilized, the Xiyuan army is fully formed, the emperor has generals in the north outside the emperor, and middle officials inside, and the great cause of imperial rule will be achieved naturally.

The emperor is obviously also worried that abolishing the concubine and establishing the concubine will cause conflicts and turmoil, so in the past few years he has thought of many ways to achieve his goals without turmoil, and the most admired by the ministers is the support of the emperor. Zhenbei General Li Hong.The emperor's vision was far sharper than that of the courtiers. Without the ministers knowing it, he took advantage of the continuous frontier wars to push Li Hong to the most powerful position in the Han Kingdom step by step.It is precisely because of Li Hong, General of Zhenbei, and himself, the most loyal and strong backing, that the current emperor can be arrogant and do whatever he wants.He can do whatever he wants now, and even deprived the power of the Taiwei completely. Now the power of Shangshutai has far exceeded the regulations of the Great Han Law, which is still very rare in the history of this dynasty.Think about the past, what did the emperor do in the palace?Driving a donkey cart to do business, who would have thought that he would have such a scheming plan?
But the emperor was very cautious because of his deep scheming. He did not entrust Li Hong with the matter of abolishing his son and establishing his concubine. The power of the great general has used a large number of scholars to enter the court. He wants to realize his intentions in a very safe situation without any crisis or suspense.

When the Son of Heaven read Li Hong's request to take advantage of the results of the Yanmen Pass War to quickly launch a counterattack in Youzhou and strive to stabilize northern Xinjiang as soon as possible, his first thought was to agree to start the war.

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(End of this chapter)