The ministers looked at the emperor and thought to themselves, "When you were scheming about paper money back then, were you already eyeing the Jiulongjiang Plain?"

Both last year's Yellow River floods and this year's drought in Jiangling Prefecture have brought many troubles to the officials in the imperial court.

Strict control of the disaster situation, organization of personnel, restoration of order, allocation of food supplies, and relief of disaster victims all require a large amount of manpower and financial resources.

In particular, the distribution of grain resulted in grain embezzlement incidents during both disasters.

Many people starved to death in both disasters.

Now, when the emperor tells his ministers about a place where there are four harvests a year, where rivers nourish the land, and where the land is near the sea.

The ministers' first reaction was: Holy crap! This is great! It would be even better if it belonged to the Song Dynasty!

Then, another thought struck me: Holy crap, why can't we be from the Song Dynasty!

Compared to land transportation, water transportation is much more convenient.

If such a place really exists, and we take it over, Xu Churen's mission will definitely be accomplished with a little more effort!

After their initial shock, the ministers realized: Holy crap! This was a strategy the emperor had planned all along!

The ministers who had been accompanying the emperor for nearly six years had to admit that although the emperor seemed reckless and acted roughly, he had a far-sighted and deep understanding of the future direction of the entire Song Dynasty.

Zhao Huan said, "This matter must be handled quickly, without delay. Anyone who dares to obstruct the enfeoffment will have their head taken by me!"

"Yes, Your Majesty!"

"Shi Xun!"

"Your subject is here!"

How are the schools in Jiaozhou doing?

"Your Majesty, there are two primary schools and one secondary school in Shengcheng, Jiaozhou (formerly Shenglong City, the capital of Jiaozhi, to avoid the taboo of the character 'dragon'). No university has yet been established. I believe that the matter of establishing a university should not be rushed."

Why?

"The knowledge taught in universities is all practical. Before the people of Jiaozhou truly become assimilated into the Song Dynasty, we should begin their education in primary and secondary schools!"

"No need, everything can be done according to the Song Dynasty's educational system," the emperor said. "I know what you are worried about. You are afraid that enfeoffing princes will cause the chaos of the Zhou Dynasty, and that the vassal states will replace the suzerain state, or that there may be a War of the Eight Princes like in the Jin Dynasty."

Tang Ke said, "That's entirely true, but after all, it's a barbarian land. How can it possibly contend with the great China? It's nothing to brag about!"

Zhou Chao said, "However, if the state of a vassal state intends to rebel, its food supply may be cut off."

Li Gang said, "Your Majesty, why not send troops to destroy Zhenla and Champa as you destroyed Jiaozhi, and establish separate prefectures along the same route!"

Liu Yanzong said, “What Prime Minister Li said is wrong. The transportation in the southwest is complicated and it is far from the capital. It is no longer suitable to govern Jiaozhou. If we send troops to attack Champa and Zhenla, it is easy to win, but it is really difficult to occupy them.”

Liu Yanzong's point really struck a chord with Zhao Huan.

Setting up a prefecture and setting up a marquisate are completely different approaches.

The Lu Prefecture is subject to the control of the imperial court. For example, if it is captured, how many people should be relocated there? How to quell local resistance?

What if the local forces wage guerrilla warfare against you?

The imperial court was too far from Zhenla and Champa, and all intelligence from the front lines could be lost. Officials could declare themselves kings at any time, just like Zhao Tuo in the Han Dynasty. How was this any different from enfeoffment?

This is tantamount to cultivating a king of a different surname for the imperial court!

The enfeoffment was like the royal family starting their own business, so they would naturally pay more attention to it, and be more proactive in figuring out how to quickly dismantle local power.

This approach is more effective than direct control by the imperial court.

This is why later giants were unwilling to allow internal corruption when starting new businesses.

The internal interest chain is too complex, and it is easy for the project to fail before it even begins. It is better to establish a company or invest in a company outside the circle of interests, and then acquire it when the time is right.

Zhao Huan said, "The imperial court's wars against foreign powers are not about displaying the might of the Celestial Empire, but about obtaining tangible benefits. I will not fight a war that results in a loss!"

The ministers had long been accustomed to the fact that the emperor's governing strategies were mixed with business acumen.

"War is not decided in a single battle. Is the war in Jiaozhou truly over?" The emperor glanced at his ministers. "No! This war is not over until the people of Jiaozhou have fully become citizens of China!"

"Are only Zhong Shizhong and Yao Gu fighting? Of course not, you are all fighting!"

"One day, Zhong Shizhong will conquer the lands of the Jin Kingdom for me, Shi Ziming will conquer the people of the Jin Kingdom for me! Minister Xu will take over the fertile fields and iron mines of the Jin Kingdom for me! Tang Ke will secure the trade with the Jin Kingdom for me! And Zhao Ding will secure the lifeline of that land for me!"

If an ordinary person heard the emperor's words, they would definitely feel confused, but the ministers understood them and couldn't help but admire the emperor even more.

Zhao Huan continued, "What is the most important thing? It's not just about taking over the land. The power of the Former Tang Dynasty extended far into the Western Regions, so why did its influence shrink drastically after the An Lushan Rebellion?"

"Because it only uses force to define national borders!"

"What I want to do is not just use force. The people of Champa will learn Chinese characters from childhood, study Chinese classics, wear Hanfu, and only be allowed to use the paper money printed by the Royal Bank to buy food. Everything they buy will be provided by Song merchants! Including the marquisates! And the safety of their territories will be protected by the Song army!"

"Remember this, every one of you is on the battlefield, only in different positions. For example, if Shi Xun fails to properly educate and civilize the barbarians for me, he will suffer defeats on the battlefield, putting pressure on Commander Zhong! Why would Commander Zhong be under pressure? Uneducated barbarians will rebel!"

The emperor has already made his words quite explicit, so looking at his enfeoffment policy now, it doesn't seem so bad.

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!