A Good Landlord in the Tang Dynasty: Emperor Yuan Cong

Chapter 1165: War Begins

Xizhou, Gaochang City.

Wu Huaiyu was holding a shining silver coin. It was a very exquisitely made coin, but different from the imitation Persian Sassanid coins circulating in the Western Regions.

First of all, this silver coin is a square coin with a round outer shape and a square inner shape like the copper coin. Because there is a hole in the middle, it is larger than the silver coins in the Western Regions.

"This silver coin weighs one coin, and can be exchanged for 160 Kaiyuan copper coins, or five coins of Western Region silver."

Wu Huaiyu looked at the silver coin in his hand. This was a new coin minted by the imperial order of the Gaochang Mint of the Anxi Protectorate of the Tang Dynasty.

The front of the coin has the words "Kaiyuan Tongbao" on it.

There have always been many small countries in the Western Regions, including numerous Turkic and other foreign tribes. Sogdian merchants entered the Central Plains along the Silk Road and established a trade network. The Persian silver coins they carried also became an international currency widely circulated on the Silk Road.

For the Tang Dynasty, since it had already opened up the situation in the Western Regions, conquered various countries and tribes, established the Anxi Protectorate, and even directly set up three directly affiliated prefectures, it was only natural to promote its own currency.

However, the people in the Western Regions are generally accustomed to using Persian silver coins.
Therefore, the imperial court sent people to Xizhou to establish a mint and a coin mint, and to start casting Kaiyuan Tongbao copper coins. However, considering the usage habits of the people here, the emperor specially ordered the casting of silver coins as well.

There are two kinds of silver coins minted. One is the silver Kaiyuan that has been circulated in the mainland. Each coin weighs one coin and can be exchanged for 160 copper Kaiyuan coins.

A special kind of silver coin imitating the Persian silver coin was also minted. It was a coin without a square hole in the middle. However, the front did not have the portrait of the Tang emperor like the Persian king of kings on the Persian silver coin, but four words, not Kaiyuan Tong Bao, but Anxi Jili.

The inscription "Anxijili" on the coin is more exquisite than Persian silver coins, and its quality and weight are similar. Therefore, one Anxijili silver coin can be exchanged for Persian silver coins from the Western Regions at a one-to-one ratio, and five silver Kaiyuan coins can be exchanged for one.

If you exchange it for copper Kaiyuan, the exchange rate is still 32 wen.

The court's intention was simple.
In the future, the Western Regions will use silver Kaiyuan and silver Jili to gradually replace the Persian silver coins in circulation, and slowly promote the use of copper Kaiyuan coins.

After all, coinage is profitable, and currency unification is very important for imperial rule. It represents the authority of the empire and is also of great help to local industrial, commercial, economic and trade.

"The Xizhou Mint and Gaochang Mint have officially started production. The Ministry of Revenue and other branches of the imperial government-run banks are almost ready. Let's open them quickly.

Then the newly minted coins will be issued and circulated.

"After the imperial money is issued, Anxi will be prohibited from privately minting or counterfeiting Persian silver coins, and will also be prohibited from privately minting or counterfeiting imperial money. This must be severely punished."

"Another thing is to implement the court's policy of prohibiting usury, restricting and cracking down on usury,"

With interest rates of several hundred percent a year, this kind of usury is very harmful to people and also causes great damage to the industrial and commercial economy.

"Prime Minister, we received a report yesterday that Fan Huanjin, a wealthy family in Jiaohe, had committed many illegal and criminal acts,"

Fan Huanjin was a former noble and powerful man of Gaochang State, similar to Zuo Chongxi. He also served in Gaochang State. His family owned tracts of land, hundreds of servants, and many pastures, vineyards, and wineries. There were cattle, horses, and camels in the valleys.

Like the Zuo family, Fan Huanjin had been lending money at high interest rates for generations, with interest rates starting at 10% or 20% per month. The Fan family also secretly hoarded grain and deliberately sold only a small amount of grain, constantly driving up grain prices.

After the court notified the Fan family that they had to move to the inland, Fan Huanjin also tried various ways to avoid moving eastward. While he was giving bribes and gifts everywhere, he also began to secretly transfer his children in batches to Yanqi, Qiuci, Shule and other places. He also secretly converted some real estate in Gaochang into cash and exchanged it for light goods such as gold, silver, and gems, preparing to ship them out quietly.

"Hasn't Zuo Chongxi's fate woke him up yet?" Wu Huaiyu had no sympathy or pity for such a stubborn person.

"Then search the Fan family, publicly behead him, and then send his head to Anxi."

"Notify the King of Yanqi, Long Tuqizhi, and the King of Kucha, Baihelibushibi, and have them send back all the people of the Fan family. All the property of the Fan family in the two countries should be handed over to the Anxi Protectorate."

Did the Fan family think they could escape by fleeing to Yanqi and Qiuci?
Now the King of Yanqi, Long Tuqizhi, is extremely respectful to Wu Huaiyu. He still has four cities and more than 2,000 households of looted people, and wants to ask Wu Huaiyu for help to return them.

He also wanted to get Wu Huaiyu's support and allow Yanqi to reopen the Loulan Silk Road.

He also wanted to use the Anxi Protectorate to get rid of the control and demands of the Turkic Southern and Northern Courts over Yanqi.

How could Longtu Qizhi offend the Tang Dynasty and Wu Huaiyu for the sake of a local tyrant who was an old official of Gaochang? Even if he had ten courage, he would not dare to do so.
Not to mention that he is the Dragon King, he is actually just the Horse King. But even if you really lend him a pair of wings, he would not dare to act rashly.

At the beginning, Gaochang could easily defeat Yanqi, and Wu Huaiyu destroyed Gaochang without any effort, and even easily attacked the previously powerful Duolu Khan and captured him alive.

Does Yanqi dare to offend the Tang Dynasty?

Again,
Don't move, if you move the country will be destroyed.

The national strength of Kucha was not weaker than Gaochang, and might even be stronger than Gaochang, whether in terms of economy, population, or army, but it was just an oasis country.

During the Han Dynasty, Ban Chao, the Protector General of the Western Regions, replaced Yulido, the King of Kucha established by the Xiongnu, and supported Bai Ba as the King of Kucha. From then on until Bai Huan in the Tang Dynasty, the Bai family, as the royal family of Kucha, ruled Kucha for nearly eight hundred years.

But for eight hundred years, the Kingdom of Kucha ruled by the Bai family never left that oasis.

After all, the population is only a few hundred thousand and there are only a few thousand soldiers.

Until now,
Qiuci became a Buddhist kingdom in the Western Regions. It was not a big country, but it had more than a hundred monasteries and over five thousand monks. During the few days during the autumnal equinox every year, monks from all over the country would gather together. From the king to the common people, they would abandon worldly affairs, observe the fasts and precepts, and listen to the scriptures and the Dharma without getting tired.

During this golden period, the country did not seize the opportunity to train soldiers and enhance national defense capabilities, nor did it engage in production and economic development. Instead, it focused on promoting Buddhism.

The people of Kucha were devoted to Buddhism. The nobles and powerful people donated large amounts of money to Buddhist temples every year and competed to build grottoes and repair Buddha statues.

The number of real monks and fake monks far exceeds the number of soldiers.

Wu Huaiyu would not take such a kingdom of Kucha seriously, let alone a dynasty of 1,000 years, let alone 800 years. In history, after the Tang Dynasty destroyed Gaochang, it successively destroyed Yanqi and Kucha.

After conquering Qiuci, he moved the Anxi Protectorate from Gaochang to Qiuci City, making Qiuci the center of the Western Regions.

It is still too early to talk about destroying Kucha now.

But it is also possible to use the incident of the Fan family to conduct an obedience test with the King of Kucha.

The next day, Fan Huanjin was captured by the Anxi Army and Fan's family was ransacked.

The news spread quickly,

Many wealthy and powerful families in Gaochang who were still delaying and waiting to move inland became panicked when they heard the news.

First there was Zuo Chongxi, then there was Fan Huanjin. In a short period of time, the two famous tyrants in Gaochang were killed and their clans were destroyed.

Who would dare to doubt the determination of the Grand Protectorate now?

Start packing your luggage overnight.
The next day, people began to report to the Protectorate and then started to move.

Those who were unable to make it in time had to show their attitude first and send some of their men to the Central Plains to lead the charge. "They are all donkeys. They won't move if you lead them, and they will retreat if you hit them."

Wu Huaiyu didn't care at all about their cowardly behavior. These people used to be wealthy and powerful families in Gaochang, but in the entire Tang Dynasty, they were just local tycoons and were not worth mentioning.

These people are not as courageous as Qu Zhisheng. Although that guy acted recklessly at the beginning, he was not stubborn. He knew to change immediately after hitting the wall.

He surrendered happily and went to Chang'an happily without causing any more trouble.

Now that he has met the emperor in Chang'an, it is said that the emperor had a good impression of him and conferred on him the title of Duke of Jincheng County and on his brother Zhizhan the title of Duke of a county, which was considered a respectful act for the royal family of Gaochang. They were also given a sinecure and a large house in Chang'an, which meant they would be rich and prosperous for the rest of their lives.

The powerful families of Gaochang all realized their own weakness.
Lord Wu is really good at killing people and confiscating their property without any hesitation. Let's go quickly, or you won't be able to leave any later.

Xizhou was particularly lively.
The local tyrants were busy selling off their land, houses and shops. Those who had grain sold their grain, those who had workshops sold their workshops, and they also sold off their livestock and slaves that they could not take with them.

Because too many people concentrated their efforts,
Can't sell at a high price.
But it has to be sold even if it cannot be sold. If it is too late, you may not be able to leave, or even end up like Zuo Chongxi and Fan Huanjin, with death and destruction of the family.

No one wants to lose his head, and then his wife, concubines and daughters will be sent to music schools or brothels, or bought by others to do laundry, cooking and even bed warming.

For a time, this benefited the generals of the Anxi Army and the newly arrived civil servants.
Such a good opportunity to pick up a leak.
Fields, houses, shops, and workshops are all for sale at reduced prices, with plenty of room for bargaining.

Wu Huaiyu also specially arranged a benefit for the officers and generals. If anyone wants to buy property in the Western Regions, they should seize this opportunity to buy it. If they don't have enough money, they can borrow money from the Protectorate, or give them a note of guarantee to go to the newly opened Ministry of Revenue or several government-run banks to borrow money with low interest rates.
You can also borrow money from private banks run by the Wu family, and the interest rate is not high either.

Let the officers and clerks pick up some of the leftovers first, and when they have bought most of the goods, the Anxi Protectorate will make its final move and take up the rest.

The wealthy and powerful people in Gaochang also knew that this would be a disadvantage.

But compared to life and property, a little loss is like cutting off one's tail to survive.
They also had to thank Prime Minister Wu for not killing them and giving them the opportunity to leave, and for allowing them to take away their gold and silver jewelry, and to sell the land, houses, and shops that they could not take away.
The Grand Protectorate and the Xizhou Yamen also specially dispatched a number of officials and yamen runners to coordinate the transaction transfer procedures.

One-stop service ensures that the process and formalities can be completed in the fastest time.

After the price is agreed upon and the transaction is transferred, an official red deed is signed and both the buyer and the seller pay a deed tax. For every ten thousand coins, the seller pays three hundred coins and the buyer pays one hundred coins. For larger transactions such as land, houses, cattle, horses, and slaves, a red deed must be signed and then taxed.

For some transactions of smaller value, no deed is required, but a 4% transaction tax is still required, which is borne entirely by the seller. This is called scattered valuation.

Properties are being transferred rapidly.

The wealthy and powerful families in the West Province all left silently and were forced to move eastward, while the officers and officials of the Anxi Army who came from the Central Plains happily took over the fields, houses, shops, pastures, cattle, horses, slaves, etc. that they left behind.

Gaochang completely changed its owner.

The wave of benefits that Wu Huaiyu provided to everyone made a lot of money for the soldiers and officials in Anxi, and they indeed accumulated a fortune in Anxi.

Autumn is getting stronger,

Anxi is becoming more and more beautiful like a fairyland.
Every day, the wealthy and powerful families of Gaochang would migrate to the Central Plains with their families. Fortunately, they did not need to bring too much luggage and did not have to worry about safety issues.
Along the way, the Anxi Army will send soldiers to escort them as they set out in batches. Together with the Sogdian and Turkic mercenaries they have hired, as well as their own men and slaves, they should be safe on the journey of thousands of miles.

Wu Huaiyu stood on the top of the city wall, watching another group of people migrating eastwards set off today. Many of the Gaochang people who left looked back reluctantly, some even crying.

They are reluctant to leave their hometown and are also afraid of the future.

They left, an era ended.

However, more Tang people arrived in Gaochang and the Western Regions, and a new era began.

"Report, Prime Minister, urgent news from Hexi."

An urgent report came from Hexi. Shazhou Governor Guo Xiaoke reported that the Qibi tribe, a vassal tribe of Helan Prefecture between Gansu and Liang, was planning to rebel and join the Xueyantuo tribe in the northern desert. They had already started to act.
He Lihui of Qibi went back to his tribe to stop them, but was tied up and held hostage by the Qibi people.

"What is bound to come will eventually come," Wu Huaiyu was very calm after reading the letter, because he had expected it and had made a plan in advance, so he was not panicked or anxious at the moment.

"Report,"

Another urgent report has arrived.

"An unexpected incident occurred in the northwest court of the Yili River's Dianhe Mountain. The young Khan Ashina Buzhen claimed that Mishe was secretly plotting a rebellion and suddenly led his troops to attack the Khan's court. The Xingxi Khan Ashina Mishe was seriously injured and was escorted away by his guards at the risk of his life. He has now fled to Gongyue City.

Bu Zhen attacked Beiting and killed more than twenty of Mishe's brothers and nephews.

Ashina Buzhen now occupies the northern part of Mount Dianhe."

This news was somewhat beyond Wu Huaiyu's expectations. He knew that the cousins ​​Mishe and Buzhen had a bad relationship and were even incompatible with each other.
But after capturing Yugushe, he let Mishe, one of the four great Yehus, succeed as the Khan of Beiting, and then chose Buzhen to be the young Khan.

This was naturally done to divide Beiting and make it easier for the Tang Dynasty to control Western Turks.

But he never expected that Bu Zhen was so courageous. When Li Shimin appointed Mishe as Khan, he led his troops to attack Mishe and killed many of Mishe's brothers and nephews, thus creating a blood feud.

I didn't expect that he would come again now.

It is quite disappointing that Mishe Khan could fall into the same pit twice.

"What does Bu Zhen want to do? Does he want to be the Khan of Beiting Xingxiwang or the Protector General of Kunling?" Wu Huaiyu sneered. "He is really bold. The positions of the Khan of Beiting and the Protector General of Kunling will be decided by whoever is given by the court.

If the imperial court doesn't give it to you, no one can snatch it!"

Bu Zhen tried to grab it, and directly attacked Khan Ting, and almost killed Mi She.

This is not a matter within the East Wing of Beiting in Western Turkic.
Mishe was the Khan appointed by the Tang Dynasty. He was also the Protector of Kunling in the Tang Dynasty. Bu Zhen attacked Beiting and seriously injured Mishe. This was a slap in the face of the Tang Dynasty.

It was to slap the face of Wu Huaiyu, the Grand Protector of Anxi.
If everyone is like Bu Zhen, how will the Tang Dynasty command the various tribes in the Western Regions in the future?

Two urgent messages arrived one after the other.

Wu Huaiyu pondered for a moment and put it away.
He summoned Liu Demin, the deputy protector general and governor of Tingzhou, and said, "The Qibi tribe in Hexi has rebelled and wants to surrender to Xueyantuo. They have also kidnapped Qibi Heli. I order you to lead 5,000 troops to Liangzhou to quell the rebellion. I will ask Yuwen Chengdu, the military envoy of Luntai Jingsai, to assist you. In addition, I will immediately send a message to Guo Xiaoke, the governor of Shazhou, to ask him to prepare food, fodder, baggage and laborers for you, and to mobilize 3,000 Shazhou garrison troops and government soldiers to assist you in quelling the rebellion in Liangzhou."

"I heard that Ashina Buzhen attacked Beiting and Khan Mishe was seriously injured. How should this matter be handled?" Liu Demin asked.

"Leave this to me. I will lead the troops to Yili myself." Wu Huaiyu said.

"Will it be dangerous if we use troops on two fronts?" Liu Demin was a little worried.

"It's only Bu Zhen who's causing the riot, not the entire Beiting. There's no need to worry."

(End of this chapter)