Chapter 361 Are You Willing to Relocate?
The territory that Shi Xie wanted to occupy was Jiaozhou, which was good, but it was definitely not a Jiaozhou that was in turmoil.
After spending several years together with Zhang Jin, Shi Xie would surely know exactly how capable Zhang Jin is.
If there was chaos in the Central Plains and no one was determined in a short period of time, Shi Xie would not mind having a governor of Jiaozhou or even a governor of Jiaozhou who was known as a "famous scholar" above him.
But if the winners and losers in the Central Plains have gradually been distinguished, perhaps they will be completely unified again in the next few years, and the number one official in the Chang'an court will not ignore the existence of the border areas.
Then, Zhang Jin's actions were not only contrary to Shi Xie's interests, but also particularly stupid.
But this fool didn't realize his situation at all. He just thought that Jiaozhou was still a place where he could fool people, and that its independent location outside the Central Plains could make him the advantageous party to launch a sneak attack.
But he is not Qiao Yan, and Liu Biao of Jingzhou does not seem to be an enemy who is much different from him.
Under such circumstances, why did Shi Xie insist on letting Zhang Jin occupy the position of Governor of Jiaozhou!
The three brothers in his family held the positions of prefects of three counties in Jiaozhou. They were extremely wealthy and powerful in Jiaozhou and there was no need for them to fall into disgrace with Zhang Jin.
What prompted Shi Xie to make this decision was Qiao Yan's attitude towards Gongsun Du in Youzhou, Ma Teng's group in Liangzhou, and Wu Yi in Yizhou.
Even if she wanted to deprive the Shi family of their power when she had the spare time to control Jiaozhou, she would never abandon them after they have done their work. Perhaps she could seek another form of win-win cooperation.
However, there is still some difference between the potential possibility of win-win cooperation and the actual benefits already obtained, which also makes Shi Xie somewhat hesitant.
This is also what Xu Jing was worried about.
To be fair, if it weren't for Shi Xie's reliance and care since he arrived in Jiaozhou, Xu Jing would have died long ago. He would feel really guilty if he failed to gain enough benefits for Shi Xie.
Xu Jing asked, "If I didn't have the current arbitrary position, would you be able to accept it?"
Shi Xie asked, "Do you think that if we let that Grand Marshal take control of Jiaozhou, it would be impossible for us to have more power than what we have now?"
Xu Jing thought for a moment and replied, "Perhaps he will be higher in name but lower in actual power - this is a common occurrence in balancing border areas."
Shi Xie knew the balance of power well, so Xu Jing didn't need to say much to him.
Shi Xie must have understood the disadvantages of bringing the power of the imperial court into Jiaozhou.
Xu Jing continued, "I will only talk about the benefits. If the central government intervenes, the scope of trade in Jiaozhou's rare treasures will surely be wider, from the Central Plains to Funan and Daqin, and the wealth will surely not decrease. In addition, the improvement of Jiaozhou's people's livelihood is a big problem, and even if we want to change it, it will not be a one-day job. Chang'an will definitely rely on you a lot, so it is possible to establish norms. Even if the position of prefect cannot be returned to one family, you will definitely be appointed to another position."
"But..." Xu Jing could see that Shi Xie was still hesitant about whether to make a complete decision, so he said, "We are not in a hurry to make a choice right now."
"You might as well let the lunatics in Jiuzhen County roam free first, and recruit some men to suppress the bandits. But if Zhang Ziyun doesn't intend to use the men he has gathered to conquer Jingzhou, but wants to do something bad to you, you can always strike back at him."
"If the people under his command intend to take Jingzhou, you have a strong army and sufficient food, and you can cut off their retreat at any time. Moreover--"
Xu Jing paused and said, "How can adding icing on the cake be better than sending charcoal in the snow?"
Shi Xie thought for a moment and then said, "Thank you for clearing up my doubts, sir. I now understand what is going on."
If he sent troops to capture Zhang Jin at this time and then handed Jiaozhou to Qiao Yan, it might appear that he had prior wisdom in choosing his position, but it would also make it seem that the people of Jiaozhou were too enthusiastic about the Chang'an court and not valuable enough.
Zhang Jin must send troops first to create some impact, so that the wisdom of these local people can be demonstrated.
He could also take the opportunity to see how Qiao Yan would react to the Zhang Jin incident to further determine whether he would completely turn against him.
Zhang Jin was indeed no match for Liu Biao, but as the first person to initiate the attack, he still had some advantages.
Liu Biao's restraint in southern Jingzhou would inevitably help Zhang Jin's attack to the north.
If he hesitated for a few more days, it wouldn't be too late to send troops when both sides reached a stalemate!
However, Zhang Jin had his own plan to "recover the country", Shi Xie had his own plans, and Qiao Yan in Chang'an also had his own ideas.
"Your Excellency's preemptive move is truly brilliant." Cheng Yu originally thought that encountering people like Wang Yun, Chunyu Jia and Liu Yang who had no clue of their own was a problem for them, but judging from the current situation, their existence was a good thing.
Regardless of whether they can serve as a control group for the other side of the Lord, at least they don't have the ability to cause trouble for Qiao Yan.
The apology Qiao Yan made in the court after returning to Chang'an blocked their way of using recent events to denounce her.
Her behavior was presumptuous, which might not be apparent to ordinary people. However, as the scope of enlightening the people gradually expands, there will always be people who realize that to the court of Chang'an, Qiao Yan's existence is far more important than that of the emperor.
But so what?
In this advance and retreat she has made her position clear.
All her previous actions were either forced or because she was young and did not realize the problems involved, but now they have been explained to the emperor.
Even Emperor Liu Yu did not think there was anything wrong with these actions. He only punished her by deducting one year's salary. No one else could use it as a reason to bring her down.
"Let's not talk about this. What kind of changes will this alternative provocation cause? Let's wait and see. It's only March now, and this year is still long. Some things still need to be arranged." Qiao Yan said, "I probably won't stay in Chang'an for too long. I don't have any extra time to delay."
"I heard that Prince Yang is currently training in your position as a subordinate to the Minister of Agriculture. You don't need to pay too much attention to him. The bad weather this year is a fact. You and Zhong Rao still have things to do."
Cheng Yu replied, "I know this well. According to your arrangement last year, if the drought continues this year, I'm afraid we will have to use the underground reservoir in front of the Qinling Mountains. We have already done land surveys in some places where it is difficult to maintain soil moisture with well irrigation alone. We will ask them to plant sesame instead after visiting them, exchanging oil for grain. The drought tolerance of corn is not too bad, and it can cover most areas."
"Fortunately, the drought in Yizhou, Jingzhou, and Yangzhou is not as severe as in the north. With you in charge, it is not difficult to maintain stable grain prices in various places."
In comparison, Yuan Shao, whose territory was all in the north, had a much more difficult life.
Although Qiao Yan had to deploy additional personnel to the defense lines in various places due to the expansion of his control over the prefectures and counties, and had to spend a lot of energy on the internal pacification, in the face of this opportunity, the breadth of the territory also meant the ability to resist disasters.
"I always trust Zhongde to do things," Qiao Yan nodded. "Speaking of Yizhou, how is the situation in southern Yizhou?"
When Yizhou first fell into her hands, she only held the area where Liu Yan had originally had deep roots and influence, and the southern part of Yizhou was still an area where the southern barbarians were active.
After Yao Chang, Chu Yan and others were appointed by Qiao Yan, and the Yizhou and Dongzhou scholars reached a balance of power under the new Yizhou governor Wu Yi, this control area began to gradually advance southwards.
In October, Fa Zheng, who was highly expected by Qiao Yan, was also sent to Wu Yi's army to give advice to Yao Chang who was in the process of suppressing a rebellion. Together with Zhao Ang and Wang Yi and his wife who went from Liangzhou to the southern part of Yizhou, the team was not bad.
Unfortunately, Qiao Yan had been tied up with the matter of sheltering refugees in Luoyang and various changes in Xuzhou and Yangzhou, and it was difficult for him to devote any extra attention to this matter for a while.
Therefore, in the first month of this year, Qiao Yan gave instructions to Yizhou. Unless there was a breakthrough against the southern barbarians in Yizhou, or unless there were difficult problems to be solved, the battle reports sent to Sili would be temporarily transferred to the Grand Marshal's Mansion for filing and then handed over to Cheng Yu, who would give instructions from the higher authorities.
Cheng Yu obviously knew the purpose of Qiao Yan's action.
After transferring part of the duties of the Grand Minister of Agriculture to Qin Yu, he took over the post of commander-in-chief of the Yizhou section.
Hearing Qiao Yan's question, he replied, "In February, a group of southern barbarians clashed with the troops of the General of the Central Army who protects the Qiang barbarians. We have a considerable advantage in mountain warfare, and we have recruited many elite local soldiers in Yizhou. However, the Bandun barbarians on the opposite side have the support of Yong Kai, a prominent family in Yizhou, and another Yi army to assist them. For a while, the situation became a stalemate."
One of the counties within Yizhou is also named Yizhou. It is located in the south-central part of Yizhou, connected to Jianwei County in the upper part and Zangke County in the east. It is indeed a place that Yao Chang, Wu Yi and others find difficult to penetrate.
The Yi people and the Bandunman, also known as the Di people, joined forces, and with the support of the big families in Yizhou County, it was normal for their side to suffer losses.
The southern part of Yizhou, where the Di, Yi and Qiang peoples are entrenched, should truly be called a place where snakes, insects, tigers and leopards roam. Even a strong dragon cannot suppress such a local snake.
Qiao Yan held his chin, thinking about the alliance between Yong Kai and the Yi people. For some reason, it sounded familiar.
Cheng Yu continued, "Because the prince of Yizhou does not plan to deploy too many troops, it is difficult to pacify these southern barbarians by relying on the advantage of numbers. The local tyrants in the north of Yizhou also need to retain enough soldiers to suppress them. Therefore, I wrote in the letter I sent to Yizhou that Li Hu, who led the Bandun barbarians, and Meng Huo, who led the southern Yi people, can only be defeated by wits."
"In early March, before you returned to Chang'an, new news came that Madam Wang, the wife of the governor of Zangke appointed by you, and General Yao had teamed up to set an ambush and captured Meng Huo. Fa Xiaozhi was planning to use this incident to capture Li Hu as well."
"Fa Xiaozhi wrote in the letter that Liaodong had implemented a strategy of capturing Gongsun Du three times and releasing him three times. Although Yizhou had also considered this idea in order to make the two barbarian leaders surrender, they finally gave up the idea due to the terrain restrictions. The most they could do was to capture the two men and also catch Yong Kai, who was hiding behind the scenes."
"Once we have caught this troublemaker, other situations will be much easier to deal with."
Cheng Yu saw that Qiao Yan was somewhat dazed when he heard this, so he asked, "My Lord?"
Qiao Yan smiled and said, "Nothing, I'm listening. As long as there is progress, it's worth it for me to put them in this position."
She just finally remembered why the names Yong Kai and Yi people sounded familiar to her.
Southern Barbarian Meng Huo!
In many literary works, even in the Huayang Guozhi, there is a record of the southern barbarian Meng Huo being captured and released seven times!
She was originally unable to confirm whether the other party was a real person. At most, she could confirm that the surname Meng was indeed a common surname among the barbarians in the south, but she could not be sure whether Meng Huo was really called Meng Huo, and whether the story of seven captures and seven releases really existed.
But judging from the battle between Yao Chang and others and the Nanman, they actually encountered an Yi leader with this name.
I don’t know if this can be considered as some kind of fate.
As for the Bandun barbarians on the other side, they cannot be said to be completely unknown.
Li Xiong, a descendant of Li Hu, established the Cheng Han regime among the Sixteen Kingdoms of the Five Barbarians and proclaimed himself emperor in Shu.
However, now, neither Meng Huo nor Li Hu, neither the Bandun barbarians nor the Yi people have the opportunity to continue to rule the southern mountains of Yizhou and become independent.
Although the current suppression of the rebellion has only opened a gap in Yizhou, it does not mean that Yao Chang and his team can completely pacify the southern part of Yizhou with this small victory. At least it will take several years of tug-of-war. However, it represents a fact -
Zhao Ang's position as the prefect of Zangke County can be considered secure, and he does not have to worry about being expelled from the country by the southern barbarian forces at any time.
In addition, since Cheng Yu said that Zhao Ang's wife Wang Yi had made military achievements during the capture of Meng Huo, Qiao Yan also had the opportunity to confer an official position on her.
"Write a letter for me and send it to Yizhou, and give it to Fa Xiaozhi."
Seeing that Cheng Yu had prepared paper and pen, Qiao Yan said, "Now that we have found a way to crack the Nanman, the pressure on Fa Xiaozhi has been reduced a lot. At present, the relationship between the governor of Yizhou and us is quite harmonious, and there is no need for him to do any supervision and surveillance for the time being. Therefore, I have an extra task for him to do."
Would Fa Zheng feel stressed when he heard about this new task being piled on him? That is something he has to balance. After all, after Wang Yi's official position is promoted, he will have a chance to distract himself.
"Zangke County is connected to Yulin County and Jiaozhi County in Jiaozhou. I want Fa Xiaozhi to send some men to these two places. If Jiaozhou mobilizes troops, they should report it immediately by carrier pigeon. At the same time, I want him to go from Zangke to Jiaozhi at an appropriate time to contact the governor of Jiaozhi, Shi Xie, Shi Weiyan."
Liu Ba, who had already served under her, had successfully passed the selection examination for the Hongwenguan last year. He had talked to Qiao Yan about Shi Xie, who had helped many famous scholars in the Central Plains.
Compared with Zhang Jin, who was once a subordinate of He Jin in the General's Mansion and had a special liking for promoting Taoism, Jiaozhi Prefect Shi Xie was far more likely to be won over than anyone else in Jiaozhou.
His ability to judge the current situation and his style of seeking stability undoubtedly made it possible for Qiao Yan to cross the line and win over others.
Now that Zhao Ang, the governor of Zangke, has almost secured his position, it would be normal for Fa Zheng to say a few words of greeting to their neighbors, right?
Maybe it can have some miraculous effects!
Cheng Yu replied: "I will inform him of this as soon as possible."
If the news from Jiaozhou was to be delivered to Chang'an, one way was to go through Jingzhou, one way was to send the news to Yangzhou first and then have Yangzhou send a carrier pigeon back, and the other way was to go through Yizhou.
Compared with the first two routes, the route from Yizhou to pass through the territories that Qiao Yan can control along the way, and there is no need to cross too far through Jiaozhou and waste time on the road. It is obviously much more suitable.
Unfortunately, with the incident in Yangzhou, the news of Qiao Yan's use of carrier pigeons to convey messages had spread to the outside world. It was heard that Yuan Shao and Cao Cao had also started to raise carrier pigeons, so the people in Jiaozhou should have received the news.
It would not be easy to send new carrier pigeons into Jiaozhou even with the cover of a caravan.
Fortunately, there are other channels of communication now, so it is not too much of a failure.
Seeing this, Nanmian didn't need Qiao Yan to take care of him too much for the time being.
Zuo Ci and Yu Ji had already followed her instructions and headed south to Jiaozhou and arrived at Zhang Jin's territory. They must have already made contact with him by now.
After she transferred Zhu Jun away, Jingzhou Governor Liu Biao was beginning to gather power in the south.
Although the progress of the attack by the Southern Barbarians in Yizhou is not fast, it is encouraging. At present, we can also spare some extra attention to pay attention to the situation in Jiaozhou.
Now we just have to wait for Zhang Jin to make a move first, and such a move——
There is no way it can escape Qiao Yan's eyes and ears!
With the confidence that this is a backup plan, Qiao Yan can now turn to other matters.
For example, the person who will follow her back to Luoyang.
When she was apologizing to Liu Yu, she had already mentioned that she planned to transfer Wei Ji's official position to Hongnong County.
Once the number of people accommodated in Luoyang exceeded the upper limit it could bear, Xun Yu would transfer some of them to nearby Hongnong, and Wei Ji would take over.
Such arrangements were not easy to carry out when Luoyang was still the capital, but they are not troublesome now.
If we have to count, Hongnong County is closer to Chang'an City, and its irrigation conditions are not much worse than Luoyang.
After receiving this dispatch order from Qiao Yan, Wei Ji naturally had no objection.
Perhaps the only troublesome thing is who will take on the position of You Fufeng, which was originally held by Wei Ji.
"Leave this matter to your Majesty to decide," Qiao Yan answered without hesitation after hearing Wei Ji's question. "Youfufeng is also a place under the emperor's feet, one of the three auxiliary provinces. The position of Youfufeng is similar to that of a prefect. If I just apologized for my crime and then recommended someone for such a sensitive position, what's the difference between that and setting up a surveillance person near the emperor?"
Wei Ji actually felt that this didn't need to be said so seriously.
But since even Qiao Yan said so, there was no need for him to make any further suggestions.
The current situation does not seem to be so favorable to her, and she needs to be careful everywhere. I think their subordinates should also be careful in what they say and do.
With this thought in mind, Wei Ji swallowed back the next sentence he was about to say and planned to return home immediately to prepare his luggage for Luoyang.
But Qiao Yan was such a perceptive person that Wei Ji's hesitation to speak did not escape her eyes.
"Just say what you want to say. Why hide it?"
After thinking it over, Wei Ji asked, "I want to ask the Lord about something on behalf of my second brother."
When Wei Ji mentioned his brother Wei Zhongdao, Qiao Yan realized something. As expected, he heard Wei Ji ask, "Does the marriage of the female officials under your command require your permission?"
Wei Zhongdao had finished his studies at Leping Academy. Due to his poor health, he did not return to Hedong County, but lived in Chang'an so that he could be managed by Chiyang Medical College at any time.
Several years of conditioning had improved his health a lot. At least it was no longer difficult for him to cope with normal situations. According to Zhang Zhongjing, his deficiency symptoms had also improved significantly.
So he thought, since his brother was here and Qiao Yan had already returned from Yangzhou, why not take the opportunity to ask his brother to find out from the prince whether he would be allowed to propose to Cai Yong and marry Cai Zhaoji.
Normally, for an ordinary marriage, it would only take the permission of the parents and the matchmaker to arrange the marriage, but Cai Zhaoji's situation was obviously different.
She held important positions under Qiao Yan. Although her official position was not prominent, the Leping Monthly and book printing matters she was in charge of were extremely important. Wei Zhongdao speculated that if she wanted to get married, she would have to tell Yu Qiaoyan.
"Zhongdao also asked me to tell the Lord that since he is the second son of the family, he does not need to support the family, so it is fine for him to marry into the family. This way, it will not delay Zhaoji from serving under the Lord. He is good at writing and is proficient in books. He can help Zhaoji organize documents and compile monthly magazines. The Hedong Wei family has decided to be loyal to the Lord in their early years, so there is no need to worry about his identity causing trouble. In addition..."
"Alright, alright, stop talking." Qiao Yan waved his hands and couldn't help laughing.
She had never expected that someone would come to her to ask for marriage, and she didn't know whether she should say that Wei Zhongdao was as discerning as his brother, or that her prestige among her subordinates had become increasingly profound over the years, leading to such a result.
But how to say it...
"I'm not responsible for matchmaking. Since he wants to ask Zhaoji for marriage, let him do it himself. There's no need to tell Zhaoji that he has already come to me to seek my opinion."
Otherwise, who knows if it will interfere with Zhao Ji's decision.
Let the young people figure out their own affairs.
In history, Zhao Ji and Wei Zhongdao were separated due to the latter's early death. Now both of them are approaching their twenties. If they are indeed a perfect match and understand each other, there is no need for Qiao Yan to stop it.
Wei Zhongdao himself suggested that he could marry into Zhaoji's family without affecting her career as a female official, which was undoubtedly good news.
Although Qiao Yan did not intend to force his subordinates not to marry, for example, Wang Yi, who had just made military achievements in Yizhou, was Zhao Ang's wife, but someone making some changes and setting an example did give people another choice.
Seeing Wei Ji still standing there in a daze, Qiao Yan raised his eyes and asked, "What are you standing there for? Does he still expect me to propose marriage for him?"
"Of course not!" Wei Ji replied quickly, "Whether or not the marriage proposal is successful, I would like to thank you for your help on behalf of Zhong Dao."
It is said that the eldest brother is like a father, and it is not easy for him to be an elder brother.
But when walking out of Qiao Yan's study, Wei Ji couldn't help but smile again.
If he had not decided to come and see Qiao Yan that year, Zhongdao's illness would have been delayed until he died, and he would not have met a good match for him, and the Hedong Wei family would not have developed to its current situation.
He really made the most correct decision at that time.
After telling Yu Zhongdao the news, he set off for Luoyang!
"Luoyang?"
In a bungalow in Hanzhong, a young man with a scratch on his face suddenly heard this decision and looked up in surprise at the couple sitting opposite him.
Since August of the third year of Guangxi, he changed from Liu Xie to Wang An, from a puppet emperor of the Han Dynasty to the son of a woodcutter. Even though his life was poor, it was many times more comfortable than the life of fear he had lived in his early years.
For Liu Xie, the days when he was held hostage by Dong Zhuo in Chang'an were already a distant memory, not to mention the memories of Luoyang before the sixth year of Zhongping.
But at this moment, the place name reappeared in front of him in an extremely unexpected manner.
When he heard his adoptive father talking about his intention to move to Luoyang, he even felt a surge of fear in his heart, mixed with a sense of unfamiliarity with Luoyang.
He pretended to be calm while picking up the food and asked his adoptive father, "Why did you decide to move to Luoyang?"
Aren’t they doing well in Hanzhong?
Although the shipyard in Hanzhong had less staff than before because most of its personnel were transferred to Hailing, their firewood and wild delicacies were no longer difficult to sell as Hanzhong developed.
Living in the mountains meant that Liu Xie rarely had contact with people outside the mountains. Even if he did, they would never associate this young man with scars on his face with the former emperor of Chang'an.
But it’s different when you arrive in Luoyang!
There are hundreds of thousands of people in Luoyang. Even if they may be lost in the crowd and appear inconspicuous, there is no guarantee that they will not meet old friends and recognize their identities.
But Liu Xie didn't want to face such a result at all.
This not only means that the peaceful life he can enjoy at the moment will be broken in an instant, but also means...
This means that Liu Yu, who in his opinion was very qualified to sit on the throne, would also face a dilemma.
No, it should be said that if he went back, it would not be good news for him, Liu Yu, or even Qiao Yan who supported Liu Yu to ascend the throne!
Who will sit on the throne then?
Liu Xie didn't feel that he had to be the emperor.
The news revealed by his adoptive father in the past few years and the scenes he saw with his own eyes in Hanzhong were all sending him a signal -
The current emperor is a good person, and the Grand Marshal who supports him is also very good!
His presence was not needed to cause trouble to these people.
But his adoptive father, not knowing his identity, probably couldn't understand his confused mood at the moment.
He seemed to think that his adopted son was asking about their plans, so he replied, "We have made some extra money from the construction of Hanzhong in the past few years, and the Grand Marshal has reduced the cost of printing books. I think it will be enough for you to go to school. But it is better to go to Chang'an or Luoyang, or Bingzhou. But you said earlier that you don't like Chang'an, and Bingzhou is really too far away. So it's better to go to Luoyang."
"I was planning to save more money for my expenses, but there was news from Luoyang that due to the natural disaster carrying capacity, the number of people entering Luoyang will be limited. If we go there later, we may not be able to stay there."
As soon as his adoptive father finished speaking, Liu Xie saw his adoptive mother looking around the house and then continued, "We don't have much furniture to begin with. If we really decide to go, it would be easy to leave early. If it is really as you said, those who arrive later will be moved to other places, we should leave early."
The next moment, the two men's eyes were cast on Liu Xie.
He knew clearly that the fact that they were looking at him at this moment was nothing more than conveying a message. Since they were going to give him the opportunity to pursue further studies, he had to make the decision himself. However, facing such gazes, Liu Xie felt that his hands holding the bowl and chopsticks began to grow cold.
The reasons given by the adoptive parents were extremely sufficient, especially the fact that they had to go as soon as possible because Luoyang restricted the number of people allowed. Every word they spoke was filled with concern for him.
However, it was this kind of concern that was so heavy that it made him panic.
"Xiao An..." The foster mother noticed the change in his expression and asked gently, "Don't you want to go to Luoyang?":,n,
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