Three in one! Yang understood the king's profound meaning! ...
That's what he said, but this loss was really painful. An Zhuo was not the kind of person who would swallow his anger. The more he thought about it, the more uncomfortable he felt.
In the end, he chose to vent his anger on the king of Bian State.
You can't just turn against the emperor. It's legitimate and right for the emperor to recover the lands of the princes, but it's truly treasonous for the princes to want to establish themselves as kings.
"Prime Minister, I will lead my troops to the southwest and attack Jiangcheng, the home of the King of Bian. Jiangcheng will be in my hands. Not even the Emperor can seize it by force!"
An Zhuo said this in a decisive tone. His expression was solemn, and he obviously knew that if An Guo wanted to occupy Jiangcheng, there would probably be a big battle to fight.
"After all the hard work of raising an army, it's impossible to get nothing. Your Majesty, please go ahead. He will definitely take this piece of land from the emperor!"
At this moment, Anqu can only take care of Anguo himself. As for the other small vassal states that followed Anguo to attack Bian State, Anqu can't take care of them.
If those vassal states have the ability, they can also take a bite out of the land of Bian State. If they don’t have the ability, they can just face the outcome of paying money and sending people but getting nothing good.
Shen Zhiwei was in Jingchang, squatting on the ground, holding up a piece of paper.
Through the sunlight, you can see spots on the paper, which are places where the plant fibers are too thick.
The quality of this batch of paper is not very good, but it is pretty good if used to make straw paper.
Shen Zhiwei thought about it, clenched his hands, and crumpled the paper into wrinkles. The hard paper became soft and felt much more comfortable to touch.
I rubbed it on my palm and it felt great.
"My lord, the materials used for this paper are really simple. The paper made from it can only be like this at best."
Tao was kneeling beside them, speaking cautiously. When he saw this batch of paper, he felt like the sky was falling.
This batch of paper did not use the original craftsmanship, and even the materials were some things that could be found everywhere, such as tree bark and broken fishing nets. Without long-term accumulation, they were directly boiled into pulp in a large pot. Even the drying process was not natural drying in the shade, but directly pasted on the wall outside the iron stove next door.
The production cycle was less than a week, and the resulting paper was truly worthy of the word "shoddy". Tao tried it privately with a pen, and found that even the best ink would smudge, which was really terrible.
Now the king has crumpled the paper, and it is obvious that he is very dissatisfied.
Tao felt that God was going to kill him, and waited with despair for the king to pronounce his death.
Unexpectedly, the king stood up from the ground, crumpled the paper again with great satisfaction, and said, "That's it. Make a batch and put it in the place where the grains are reincarnated."
"ah?"
Tao couldn't help but let out a cry, which attracted the king's puzzled look back.
Facing the king's pair of black eyes that were as clear as glass, Tao Leng was frightened and broke out in a sweat. After all, he was young and did not have enough concentration. But even if his master was here, he would probably express his doubts.
Since it was invented, paper has always been a special product for the nobles. It is worth a fortune, and a piece of paper is enough to cause a frenzy among the nobles in a place to grab it.
Such a noble thing has absolutely nothing to do with the place where the five grains are reincarnated. But now, the king has ordered people to put the paper there!
What are you doing? Writing an article while you're doing it?
This is too "elegant".
When Shen Zhiwei met Tao's confused eyes, he understood that people of this era could accept the king using cloth to wipe his butt, but they could not imagine the king using paper.
Paper is a carrier of knowledge, and is associated with literati and reading. In an era when knowledge is monopolized, people who possess knowledge are tied to power and status.
Therefore, paper became valuable and became an item that no one dared to neglect.
But paper itself has no value. It is just a tool, like pen and ink.
If it can be used for writing, it can also be used for wiping your butt.
Shen Zhiwei casually placed the crumpled paper in his arms and said, "You can't write on this low-quality paper, so we can only make the best use of it and develop some other functions. People spend a lot of time in the place where grains are recycled, so what can't be used? Isn't soft paper much better than those hard toilet paper? Okay, you ask your apprentice to continue making this kind of paper, and then work on the raw materials of paper, and study how to use existing materials to make paper that does not smudge ink."
Shen Zhiwei paused for a moment and then warned, "Don't put any spices or cinnabar in the paper. Just think about how to make the fibers finer and softer, so that they can be spread more evenly layer by layer. This way, the papermaking process can be extended."
"Yes."
Tao felt dizzy and relied almost entirely on his willpower to support himself, allowing him to barely understand the king's orders.
But the king's words slipped through his cerebral cortex and did not enter his brain at all, because at this moment his mind was full of the king's words.
Soft paper is much better than toilet paper.
Paper, toilet paper.
How on earth did these two things get discussed together! It’s paper, it’s paper!
But think about it, the king in front of her is the Son of Heaven, and she is the ruler of the world. If she wants to use paper as toilet paper, she doesn't even need to specially make this rough paper, or even knead it before it is soft enough. She can just use the best paper, just like she uses cloth.
Thinking about it this way, the king is a very good person and knows how to be frugal.
Ahhhh, I can’t continue making up stories. The king wants to use paper as toilet paper!
Tao stood there, gradually turning gray, as if his whole body was shattered.
Yanxia, who had been watching the whole process, looked down at the pile of straw papers on the ground with awe, then looked at Tao, who was unable to accept the reality and seemed to have gone crazy on the spot. Finally, she tightened her hands and feet and followed Shen Zhiwei out.
"Your Majesty...did you want to use paper as toilet paper from the beginning?"
Yanxia didn't dare to believe it. She always felt that things were not that simple. How could the king think so?
"Paper has many uses, and this is just one of them." Shen Zhiwei had no choice. She felt really bad about having to burn the cloth after it was used up every day.
A weaver has to sit in front of the loom for a long time to weave a piece of cloth, but she uses up a piece of cloth every three to five days. It is such a waste.
With paper, this consumption can be stopped.
Yanxia was a little dazed. In the king's eyes, paper seemed to be just paper.
Yes, paper is just paper. Who regards it as a sacred object?
At this moment, Shen Zhiwei thought, weaving is really hard work, why not modify the loom? But now cloth is still a common currency. If she modified the loom, would it impact the currency market and cause economic turmoil?
Haha! Shen Zhiwei laughed when he thought of this. In this broken feudal slave society, where did the social economy and perfect money market come from?
It doesn't exist at all. Transactions only exist between big merchants, that is, the aristocracy, and the common people at the bottom are still bartering.
Thinking of this, Shen Zhiwei asked Yanxia to find a few weavers and bring a loom.
Shen Zhiwei didn't know how to modify a textile machine, but she vaguely remembered some pictures from later generations, and she could always find some inspiration by following the pictures.
She doesn't need to modify it herself, she just needs to give a little inspiration to those who can modify it.
Yanxia personally went to find a few clever weavers and brought them to Shen Zhiwei.
The king called the weaver girl here, he must have an important role to play for her. He would never ask for the weaver girl who is ignorant or timid, who can't even speak clearly in front of the king.
Shen Zhiwei didn't think too much about it. After seeing several weavers in the palace, she was still sighing that there were really child laborers everywhere these days. The five weavers who came in front of her were only seventeen or eighteen years old.
The weavers in the palace were all veterans with many years of experience, having been weaving for at least four or five years. In other words, these girls may have started weaving when they were eleven or twelve years old.
He's definitely a child laborer. He wouldn't even graduate from elementary school in modern times!
Thinking that his body was only sixteen years old, a modern high school student, but he was already the common ruler of the world and the emperor of the people of the world, Shen Zhiwei felt that this evil era was really a waste.
At her age, when she is just sleeping, eating and growing, she has to become a social animal and deal with so many things every day.
The point is, she worked so hard to become the king of a fallen country, but someone still stabbed her in the back.
Thinking of Hu Youan who was besieging the city and occupying the territory in Bian State, Shen Zhiwei's breathing stagnated and he felt unwell.
Because he was thinking of something not very happy, Shen Zhiwei's expression was very cold at the moment. In the eyes of the other palace maids and Zhiniang, it seemed that the king's majesty as an emperor was too heavy.
They lowered their heads and didn't even dare to breathe, let alone look up to meet the king's eyes that seemed to be able to see through people's hearts.
"You, come forward."
Shen Zhiwei softly called the oldest one over to question him.
The oldest one is actually the most courageous among the group.
The reason why the weavers Yanxia called were all young was because the older weavers were so scared when they heard that they were going to meet the emperor that they could not move their legs.
The weavers never see the emperor all year round. If there is a queen in the harem, those in charge among them may see the palace maids around the queen, but now the harem is empty, and the previous batch of weavers have been buried with the previous king.
The longer they stayed in the palace, the more they understood that nobles should not be touched lightly. Those nobles could take their lives with just a raise of their eyebrows or a slight gesture.
After realizing how terrible power was, the weavers in the palace did not even dare to step out of the door of their embroidery workshop.
Yanxia had no choice but to call the younger ones. They had been in the palace for a short time and still had a bit of curiosity about the king and the nobles, which was enough to give them the courage to approach the king.
The oldest weaver in this group is called Qiaoshou. Her hands are as soft as boneless. She seldom weaves, but they are very strong. There are calluses on her knuckles, and her fingertips are smooth and flat. Even the texture of her fingers has been worn away. Such hands can weave fine cloth and embroider on silk without snagging the threads.
She stood at the bottom of the steps with her hands bent. When her right hand trembled, she held it with her left hand. When her legs trembled, she pressed them together tightly and covered them with her skirt.
Shen Zhiwei looked at her again and again strangely.
This girl is like a fully drawn bow, as if she is about to shoot off and fly out at any time.
Shen Zhiwei asked, "Can you read?"
"I have learned a few characters, but I cannot recognize them all."
Qiaoshou's voice trembled violently, as if he had been electrocuted.
He is also gifted and can speak with his own electronic music.
Shen Zhi smiled slightly and was really amused by her own dry humor.
"Don't be so nervous, hold your head up and speak."
Shen Zhiwei tried her best to appear gentle, but she usually pretended to be nice in front of outsiders, with a cold face as if it was welded shut, without a trace of gentleness. If she didn't scare people out of their wits, it meant that they had a strong mental state.
When Shen Zhiwei was at work before, people just said she was aloof, but now that she has become the emperor, people are scared to death when they see her.
Perhaps a person's momentum mostly comes from other people's imagination.
No matter how gently Shen Zhiwei spoke, Qiaoshou was still very nervous. Seeing that she was nervous but still spoke fluently, Shen Zhiwei stopped wasting her time.
She asked Qiaoshou to find the person who wove the best and fastest, and then a group of people watched the little girl weaving. The little girl was a little braver than Qiaoshou. Before weaving, she bowed to Shen Zhiwei and smiled sweetly, then sat down. Her movements were neither hurried nor slow, and she was at ease.
Shen Zhiwei learned that the weaving girl was named Zhen'er, and her mother was also a weaver. Last year, she was chosen to be one of the weavers to serve the previous king and was buried alive with him.
Shen Zhiwei was originally in a good mood, but after learning that the families of the other four girls were buried alive, her mood became not so good. She simply said a few ideas that could improve weaving efficiency, and under the surprised gazes of the little weavers, she stood up and left the palace in a slightly embarrassed manner.
Walking outside, Shen Zhiwei felt extremely heavy-hearted.
She could ignore the sufferings of the world and concentrate on being the king of her fallen country if she had never seen those persecuted people with her own eyes.
Slave society, these four words represent an environment that is more traditional and cruel than feudal society.
"My king, are you not satisfied with those weavers?" Yanxia asked uneasily when she saw that the king's expression was becoming more and more solemn.
Shen Zhiwei shook his head silently and said, "Yanxia, where is your mother?"
Shen Zhiwei never took the initiative to ask anyone about their past or origin, nor did he take the initiative to ask about their relatives.
Yanxia was stunned for a moment and said, "She left more than ten years ago to serve King Xiao."
King Xiao of Zhou, Shen Zhiwei's nominal grandfather.
Yanxia's mother was also a palace maid, and she was also a palace maid. In addition to the palace maids, there were also everyone in the palace.
When a king dies, he takes away almost all the palace servants, leaving the next king with an empty palace.
"Have you ever felt resentment?"
Yanxia couldn't see the expression on the king's face in front of her, because she had just stopped for a moment and the king had already walked completely in front of her. When she looked up, she could only see the king's thin back.
The sixteen-year-old young emperor was like a baby who was just beginning to understand the world. She was asking about the sufferings of the world that she had never experienced.
Resentment?
Maybe, Yanxia didn’t know, because when her mother left, she was younger than the king is now.
At that time, she only knew that on an ordinary afternoon, she would never see her parents again.
Her parents were tied with long ropes and dragged into the already built underground palace, never to be seen again.
"Your Majesty, does an afterlife really exist? Do people who die in this world really continue to live in another world?"
Yanxia hopes that the world after death really exists.
In this way, even if her parents go to another world to continue taking care of King Xiao, it doesn’t matter. Serving the king is what they, the servants, should do.
Shen Zhiwei shook her head. She didn't know that after she died in another world, she opened her eyes and came to this world.
Whether it was the system tasks or the people she met in this world, they were all very unfamiliar to her. She didn't know if this counted as living in another world after death.
"I don't know. If you're dead, you're dead. How can you still call yourself alive?"
"Your Majesty is right."
Yanxia's eyes were full of confusion, and Shen Zhiwei didn't ask any more questions.
People living in this world are not suitable for thinking about philosophical things, nor are they suitable for seeing the underlying color of this world clearly.
Only if you don’t understand can you continue to live. Once you understand, you will lose the courage to live.
The heavy atmosphere was completely broken after the letter of surrender from the king of Bian State was delivered to the palace.
Shen Zhiwei looked at the heartfelt letter of surrender and fell silent. This time, his silence was filled with a sense of helplessness and resignation.
She has already done this, but An Guo still hasn't conquered Bian State!
She knew that as the main task of the system, it was not easy to be a king of a fallen country.
I used to think that I could just do nothing and wait for the country to be destroyed. How naive!
Shen Zhiwei felt that she had to do something.
First of all, this letter of surrender must not be accepted. Accepting it would mean that she had obtained the land of Bian State. An Guo worked for her, no, nearly half of the princes in the world worked for her, allowing her to obtain such a large piece of land in Bian State. This was really too much.
Now is not the time when the Zhou Dynasty was first established, when all the princes in the world were relatives with good relations, helping each other and guarding the country. Now the Zhou Dynasty is about to perish, how can such a harmonious scene appear?
Shen Zhiwei would never allow it!
But the letter of surrender has already been delivered to Shen Zhiwei. This thing is just like the manifesto issued by Shen Zhiwei before. It is a one-way message. Once it is spread out, it is spread out. The recipient can only accept it passively. It is a very domineering letter of surrender.
Now all Shen Zhiwei can do is hold a grand ceremony to formally accept the surrender from the king of Bian State.
Thinking of this, Shen Zhiwei had an idea.
The surrender was a foregone conclusion, but the process could still be manipulated. Shen Zhiwei believed that An Guo and the other vassal states that attacked Bian State did not want to see the emperor in charge of Bian State, so they would definitely interfere. Once the king of Bian State changed his mind and refused to surrender at the surrender ceremony, they would take the opportunity to cause trouble.
It may not be possible to take back the Bian Kingdom, but it will definitely be possible to split most of the Bian Kingdom and snatch a lot of land from it.
At this time, the more they rob, the greater the probability of Shen Zhiwei's demise. As long as they can weaken themselves, wouldn't it be strengthening the enemy? Besides, the enemy can really get the benefits.
It depends on how capable the enemy is and how much they can take.
Shen Zhiwei decided that she would make the king of Bian State suffer humiliation and never surrender.
But how to do it?
Shen Zhiwei, a kind-hearted modern office worker, fell into deep thought. After all, she was not a psychopath and could not think of many ways to torture others.
It doesn’t matter if you can’t think of it, there is a psychopath around her, oh no, a person who can give advice.
Gui Yang, who was called into the palace, had a handsome face and happily bowed to Shen Zhiwei, congratulating the king on taking over the Bian Kingdom.
The king was so flattered that he wanted to kick Gui Yang in the chest.
Shen Zhiwei narrowed his eyes, but finally showed mercy and let Gui Yang go. Gui Yang, unaware that she was on the brink of life and death, was still praising the king for his wisdom and bravery and continued to seek death.
"Okay, things haven't reached the final step yet, so there's no ending yet. Why start celebrating so early?" Popping champagne at halftime is a surefire way to fail.
Shen Zhiwei comforted herself in this way, and her mood improved a little.
Gui Yang listened to Chen Zhiwei's words, and her heated mood cooled down a little, and then she was impressed by the king's calmness at the moment.
He should be like the king. Even when faced with such a great achievement as taking over the State of Bian, he should remain calm.
After Gui Yang stopped saying those unpleasant words, Shen Zhiwei looked at him a little more favorably. Then Shen Zhiwei asked him how to reward Hu Youan and Wen Tao.
It was only after receiving the letter of surrender that Shen Zhiwei carefully examined it and realized that her three generals were involved in the backstabbing incident of recovering Bian State.
There is also the non-staff general Bian Xiao, and everyone has made great efforts.
If there was one person missing, they would not have been able to quietly conquer the entire Bian Kingdom and do something that amazed her!
Gui Yang is still the Prime Minister for the time being, and Shen Zhiwei still has not agreed to let him be the Prime Minister, so Gui Yang is actually not qualified to speak on rewarding meritorious officials and influence the king's thoughts. However, since the king asked, he has to say it even if he doesn't want to, and he has to give an answer.
Gui Yang suggested that Hu Youan be appointed general and Wen Tao be rewarded with an official position in the army, as well as gold, silver and land.
In short, give whatever is needed.
Hu Youan now only lacks the title of general, and Wen Tao is a pure civil official. The county magistrate actually has the power to lead troops, but Shen Zhiwei didn't mention it before, so no one knew it.
I thought that Wen Tao could only officially lead the troops after he had an official position, so Gui Yang now wanted Shen Zhiwei to give Wen Tao military power.
military power.
Shen Zhiwei thought about it and rejected the request.
Even without military power, they dare to rely on logistics to stab her in the back. If they have military power, wouldn’t they capture a city today and a country tomorrow, and stab her in the back everywhere like crazy?
Rewards of official positions, gold, silver and land for civil officials are all acceptable. As for land, more wasteland that needs to be reclaimed can be given as rewards, as there are plenty of these.
But even if it was Wen Tao, her land had to be owned for seventy years. Shen Zhiwei made two deeds mainly for the sake of easier management. By then, iron farm tools would be open to the nobles, and allowing the nobles to use iron was intended to allow the nobles to have their own military forces.
Shen Zhiwei was not afraid of the nobles holding their own troops. She was afraid that those nobles would torment her for a long time but still fail to kill her, wasting her precious time.
Gui Yang had more guesses about why Shen Zhiwei did not give Wen Tao military power. He himself did not have military power, so the king must be guarding against one person becoming too powerful.
As expected of a great king, his ideas on governing the country are so clear.
When most monarchs were groping for ways to govern their countries, Shen Zhiwei's methodical way of governing the country was indeed outstanding.
When there are no routines, the routines themselves are the most novel things.
The advantage of routines is that they are mature and stable. They are not amazing but they are good enough for most people to adapt to. Political stability is a great blessing for a country, and the most feared thing is instability.
After discussing the "heroes", it's time to move on to the formal topic.
"Soon, King Mori of Bian will enter Jingchang and personally present a map of Bian to formally surrender. Does the Prime Minister have any good ideas for this ceremony?"
Shen Zhiwei felt that when he asked this question, he sounded like a villain, the kind of guy with bad intentions.
Gui Yang didn't think there was anything wrong. He thought about it carefully and gave some sincere suggestions.
"I'm afraid King Anguo won't allow Bian's surrender to proceed smoothly. During those few days, we must protect the King of Bian to prevent Anguo from secretly sending assassins to disrupt the surrender ceremony. As for the ceremony, Your Majesty only needs to sit on the throne and wait for the King of Bian to kowtow."
Things have reached the stage of the surrender ceremony and can be declared over. In fact, even if the king of Bian State died, it would not have much impact on the outcome. Now Hu Youan has led his troops into Yongming City, the capital of Bian State, and no one can regret it.
Unless An Guo directly declared rebellion and wanted to fight to the death with the king's army, he really didn't want to live. Now the world is in chaos and everyone wants to find a reason to kill. If An Guo jumps out and becomes the first bird to speak out at this juncture, he will definitely be crushed to death by everyone.
Knowing the danger involved, Gui Yang decided that during this surrender ceremony, they only needed to guard against assassinations against the king of Bian State, and they didn't need to worry about anything else.
This was not the answer Shen Zhiwei wanted to hear.
Shen Zhiwei asked unwillingly, "Is there really nothing we need to do? There are still many nobles in Bian State, and they haven't given up yet."
All under heaven belongs to the king, and all the people in the world are the king's subjects. This is what they say, but the vassal states have been divided for hundreds of years, at least a hundred years.
After a hundred years, those nobles had already felt a sense of belonging. They said on the surface that they were still the subjects of the Great Zhou, but in fact they had long since stopped recognizing the Great Zhou.
Now that Bian State has been taken back by the royal family, they will no longer be one of the most powerful nobles in the country, but subjects who have to kneel under the emperor. The officials and nobles of Jingchang are all superior to them. How could they admit defeat so easily?
The blood on the battlefield has been shed, and the next step is the invisible blood.
Gui Yang frowned in embarrassment and said, "I wonder what the king is worried about?"
He did not understand what those nobles were thinking because he was not a descendant of a great noble family that had been domineering in a place for a long time.
His original family was one of the princes, and the princes themselves were subordinate to the emperor.
From a certain perspective, it is a rather ironic fact that the princes had a stronger sense of belonging to the Zhou Dynasty than the ministers and nobles in the vassal states.
"I wouldn't say I'm worried. I'm just thinking about Taisheng. The reason Wen Tao was able to take over Taisheng City was because most of the nobles fled overnight. I don't think many nobles from Bian Kingdom left, right?"
After conquering a place, the problem becomes governance. A later saying sums it up well: it is easy to conquer a country, but difficult to keep it. Wars always end, but governance is an endless challenge.
Shen Zhiwei didn't have many people she could use, so she wanted to send Gui Yang out to be the county governor.
Calling Wen Tao back to be the Taizai, Shen Zhiwei intuitively felt that Wen Tao and Hu Youan had a better relationship. If the two were separated, they would no longer give her "surprises".
At this time, Shen Zhiwei didn't know that none of her subordinates were easy to deal with.
Random combinations are all terrifyingly strong. Even if their relationship with each other is average, when they work together, they can still backstab her from different angles!
"Yes, most of the nobles of Bian State are still in Yongming City. However, they were once retainers of the king of Bian State, and naturally they can also be retainers who trust the governor of Bianzhou in the future."
Gui Yang didn’t understand what Shen Zhiwei was worried about.
"In Dazai's mind, is the governor the next ruler?"
Shen Zhiwei pointed out the biggest problem Gui Yang currently faces.
That is, Gui Yang did not understand the official system of later generations, or it can be said that no one currently understands the official system of later generations.
Because we cannot fully understand the situation, when facing the unknown, we will apply our own cognition. If we do not understand the county governor, we will apply the settings of the princes.
This makes the county governor seem like another name for a prince.
The same problem also lies in Gui Yang's attitude towards the position of Chief Minister. He thinks that Chief Minister is just another name for Grand Prime Minister.
He was completely unaware of the huge system of officials hidden behind him.
It's not Gui Yang, Wen Tao, or anyone else's fault. It's because Shen Zhiwei didn't come up with a complete official system. She didn't dare to do it, fearing that after she did, she would have to implement the imperial examination system, and then the Great Zhou would take off.
"Yang is dull, please enlighten me, Your Majesty."
Gui Yang realized her misunderstanding and waited respectfully for Shen Zhiwei to clarify.
Shen Zhiwei didn't know what to say. If she said too much, she would not be able to hide it. If she had known earlier, she might as well not have been appointed as a county governor. However, if she didn't become a county governor, the princes would still be divided and the war would have been in vain.
"A county magistrate is an official position with a five-year term. One cannot serve in their native place. The powers exercised by a county magistrate are similar to those of a marquisate ruler, but also different. A county magistrate cannot lead troops, only government affairs. Do you understand this explanation?"
Shen Zhiwei's words were evasive, and Gui Yang felt a little strange. She asked again, "Who holds the military power? If another country attacks, how will the county governor fight back?"
"If a local commander leads troops and another country attacks, you can ask the commander to lead the troops to fight back, and then send the report to Jingchang and get the emperor's order to march."
Shen Zhiwei admitted that this step was much more complicated than the county magistrate directly leading the troops to fight back, but it was the only way to consolidate power.
Whoever holds the military power controls the world.
Gui Yang did not know this truth. He only vaguely realized that if all the princes in the world became county governors, the world would no longer fall into the current fragmented struggle.
Because all the county governors are the king's subjects, not the local kings who help the emperor to govern the people.
The topic has gone off topic. Shen Zhiwei originally planned to talk about how to disrupt the surrender ceremony, but somehow ended up talking about the county system.
In fact, the county system had already appeared in its infancy, but it was not as detailed as Shen Zhiwei's.
Shen Zhiwei hadn't said that above the county magistrate was the governor of the province. Bianzhou was very large, so the governor should be in charge of Bianzhou, and the county magistrate should be in charge of the small city below him.
The reason why I didn't say it is, first, there is no intention to move the official system so completely over, and second, there is a serious shortage of manpower.
A complete official system requires too many officials, which is far beyond the capacity of the current officials in the Great Zhou.
Gui Yang knew nothing, but she kept saying that the king was wise and that the post of county governor that he had envisioned was really wonderful. She said that if this position was implemented throughout the world, the rebellion of the princes could be completely put to an end.
"It's not that simple. The problem with Bian State is obvious. Accepting surrender is easy, but how do we deal with those ministers of Bian State?"
Shen Zhiwei looked at Gui Yang with a little expectation, hoping that Gui Yang would quickly use his brain and give her a shocking idea.
Gui Yang thought about it for a long time and finally came up with a solution, which was to let the king of Bian State announce to the world that all the rewards previously given by Bian State would be abolished.
Shen Zhiwei was silent for a moment, then praised this method highly!
Shen Zhiwei thought with his knees, and knew that this method would not work and would definitely not be implemented!
If you give it away, you can still take it back? What a dream!
If the nobles are not rewarded, they will dare to rob them themselves and want to take back what has gone into their pockets. Young people are really brave enough to think of anything.
Shen Zhiwei could almost foresee how the nobles in Bian would resist frantically when this order reached the area, and they would definitely fight to the death with the royal army.
By then, Hu Youan would definitely not be able to control the situation.
Shen Zhiwei almost laughed out loud. She asked Gui Yang to go back and make some preparations, and when the king of Bian State arrived in Jingchang, she would let him issue this order.
Gui Yang had only said it casually. He himself was a person who admired fame and fortune, so he naturally knew how much people from aristocratic families loved fame and fortune, and how much they protected their own money, land and other wealth.
At first, he just wanted to abolish the rewards given by the current king of Bian State. Sen had only been in power for a short time and had never rewarded many people.
Unexpectedly, the king did not allow him to add anything and directly asked him to go down and prepare.
When Gui Yang saw the king's attitude, she knew that he was determined to take back all the rewards given by the king of Bian State.
There is no need to check the records. Just confiscate all the land and houses of the nobles in the Bian State. The Bian State has been established for more than a hundred years. Now, almost everything the nobles of the Bian State have is awarded by the king of the Bian State.
Gui Yang wanted to persuade him, but then she thought, when has the king ever done anything foolish? Every decision the king makes has a profound meaning.
Moreover, the king has already had an idea about the issue of the nobles of Bian State. Wasn’t the reason why the king called him into the palace today just to guide him to make this suggestion?
As for why the king did not give a direct order but instead guided him, it was naturally because the king was afraid that he did not understand the order well enough and would not be thorough enough in executing it.
Therefore, the king's intention was not to take back everything from the nobles of Bian State, but to force those nobles to rebel. Hu Youan did not massacre the city, resulting in a large number of disobedient nobles remaining in Yongming City. How could he subdue those nobles without a reason?
On the way out of the palace, Gui Yang gradually understood the king's deep meaning and firmly believed that this was what the king thought.
He sent a secret letter to Hu Youan, the contents of which were what he considered to be "the king's ideas". He reminded Hu Youan to make arrangements in advance and to take direct action as soon as he caught any discontented actions of the nobles.
If we really give those nobles time to act, the army will probably suffer heavy losses.
Now that Hu Youan has made preparations in advance, the nobles have no way to escape.
King Sen of Bian State remained silent when facing his ministers who came to the palace and scolded him after hearing that he had sent the letter of surrender. Those ministers seemed to have forgotten that he was the king of Bian State. They scolded him for being cowardly, unable to protect his family business, and being a waste.
Sen became more and more silent as he listened, but he burst into laughter in his heart.
When these officials learned that the King of the Northern Kingdom had passed the throne to Prince Yue, they privately told the former King to reconsider the selection of the Crown Prince, saying that he was incapable of preserving the Kingdom of Bian, and belittled him to the dust, believing that no one could compare to him.
Yes, you are right. Since you have already foreseen the arrival of this day, why do you have to make ugly faces and curse me?
Isn't it just right that such hypocritical and ugly ministers are paired with such an incompetent monarch?
Sen wiped the spit off his face and looked forward to the Jingchang surrender ceremony. He really wanted to see An Zhuo's angry and unwilling look with his own eyes!
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