Hengdao Sixteen Kingdoms

Chapter 608
  For so many years, Li Yue has actually been secretly vigilant.

However, with the advent of cheap yellow rattan paper and woodblock printing, another force will rise in Daliang in the future, gradually dismantling the privileges of the nobles.

The Cui family has not yet reached the level of a powerful family. She has not done anything extraordinary in the past few years, and all taxes and duties are exactly the same.

During this severe drought, the Cui family also handed over [-] shi of grain to the court to provide relief to the people.

The so-called clan is a power that owns a state or a county, controls hundreds of thousands or even millions of people, has its own tribes, and has its own city.

Looking at the entire Liang Kingdom, only the Xue family in Hedong can barely be considered as half of the family, but that was due to special circumstances. It had already become a climate before returning to the Liang Kingdom.

If he didn't have such strength, he would have been annihilated in the Wuhu Rebellion long ago.

Li Yue took back his thoughts, and the road was one step at a time. The current task was to annex Di Qin and unify the Northern Kingdom. Other matters were left to the future, and there would always be opportunities to solve them.

Whether it was the tomb system of the Han Dynasty or Wu Zetian's use of cruel officials, there was no shortage of means to suppress them in history.

At present, China is weak, and the northern land is filled with a large number of foreign races. The primary conflict is not them, but how to integrate these foreign races.

Fu Jian is now in a difficult situation. In fact, there are too many foreign chiefs, each with his own army.

The army marched westward.

Although Guanzhong and Guandong were affected by drought at the same time, Bingzhou and Luozhou sandwiched between them were not greatly affected.

After Xiu Wu, the earth gradually changed from dry and yellow to green.

Although the flow of the Yellow River has decreased, the Xushui and Qinshui rivers meandering down from Shangdang are abundant, nourishing the land of Luozhou.

No wonder most dynasties in history have their capital in Luoyang.

There are dangerous mountains and rivers, with Guandong on the left, Guanzhong on the right, and Jingxiang in the south. It is surrounded by grain producing areas.

Li Yue drove his troops westward along the Yellow River, observing the land of Luozhong along the way. The city was majestic, the streets were crisscrossed, and the decay of the past had long gone.

"How about I, Daliang, follow Cao Wei's example and set up five capitals in the future?" Li Yue said on a whim.

"Yecheng, Xuchang, Qiao, Luoyang, Chang'an?" Cui Hong said that Cao Wei had five capitals.

In fact, the Han Dynasty also established five capitals: Luoyang, Handan, Linzi, Wan, and Chengdu, which controlled the most important places in the world for money and food.

Li Yue shook his head, "Yecheng is the northern capital, Luoyang is the central capital, Chang'an is the western capital, Jiankang is the eastern capital, and Chengdu is the southern capital."

The five major capitals were directly under the jurisdiction of the imperial court and controlled the five major geographical areas of Hebei, Central Plains, Guanzhong, Bashu, and Jiangdong.

However, three of the five capitals are not within the territory of Liang State.

"Your Majesty... you have such great ambitions that I never expected!" Cui Hong said with a smile.

"I will unify China in my lifetime!" Li Yue rode forward.

After passing Zhiguan, they entered the border of Hedong. Wei Shan personally led the generals from Hedong to greet him.

Wei Shan has been leading the army on his own for many years and has become much more mature and steady.

"What happened to the scar on his face?" Li Yue saw at a glance that there was a long and narrow scar on the right side of his face.

"When Deng Qiang was besieged, I personally led my elite troops to invite him to fight. Unexpectedly, Deng Qiang did not meet him and was wounded by the hidden arrows of the Qin thieves. The arrows almost took off half of my face." Wei Shan said angrily.

"You are also a national general now, how can you be so reckless?" Li Yuegang thought he was calm, but was immediately slapped in the face.

Fortunately, he didn't meet Deng Qiang, otherwise Wei Shan would be in trouble if they were to fight one on one.

Li Yue still knew how much this guy weighed. He was only at the level of a brave general, far behind the enemy of ten thousand people. He was too desperate in his early years, leaving hidden dangers, and his body was not as good as before.

Deng Qiang was more than ten years younger than him, and he was at the age when he was very powerful.

Wei Shan chuckled twice, trying to get through.

Li Yue, however, killed people and said heartily: "People have to obey their old age. It is the job of young people to charge into battle!"

"How have I ever grown old?" Wei Shan argued. Everyone around me was smiling.

After some pleasantries, the army entered Anyi.

On the second day, Wang Meng and Xue Qiang came from Anyi to see him.

Wang Meng has been guarding Taiyuan and presiding over affairs in the west for two or three years. He works hard and sleeps all night, and is almost as thin as a bamboo pole.

After this battle, Li Yue had to let him rest for a year and a half to recuperate his body.

I originally thought that Xue Qiang was a Confucian scholar like Wang Meng, but I didn't expect that he was dressed in Confucian armor, tall, strong, and powerful, and looked more like a fierce general than Wei Shan.

"Xue Qiang, my minister, pays homage to Your Majesty."

"Please get up, please get up." Li Yue helped him up, "The Xue family from Hedong is indeed a gathering of talents!"

The Xue family extended from the Sixteen Kingdoms to the Sui and Tang Dynasties, and produced many important figures.

"Your Majesty, although there are many talented people in the Xue family, they all have their hearts in China and are loyal to Daliang." Xue Qiang's answer was flawless and could not find any faults.

If Daliang represents China, Xue will be loyal to Daliang.

One sentence can reveal Xue Qiang's level, and he deserves to be a close friend with Wang Meng.

"Da Shan, I'm hosting a banquet. I'll get drunk with you all today, and congratulate Daliang for adding another talented person to the throne!" Li Yue also made his intentions known, and at the same time secretly supported Xue Qiang.

Wang Meng laughed and said: "Haha, your majesty has a sharp eye and a powerful talent, which is enough to serve as the king's assistant!"

Sure enough, Xue Qiang looked happy when he heard this, but he quickly calmed down, "I don't dare, I'm a talented man with a hundred miles of talent. Fortunately, His Majesty favors me."

Flower sedan chairs carry people.

Li Yue also felt embarrassed after blowing around like this. Fortunately, the banquet was ready.

Everything in the army was kept simple. Qiang was cooked and roasted, and meat was eaten in large chunks and drank in large bowls.

Even though it was a simple banquet, Wei Shan put a lot of thought into it. The deer head was boiled, cut into two finger-sized pieces, and cooked with pork to make a soup. Add the green onion and cook it together in the cauldron. Ginger, orange peel, and pepper were crushed and mixed with Make bitter wine, salt, and black bean sauce.

This way of eating has been popular all over the world since the Taishi period.

But of course the people present are not here for food and drink.

Wang Meng and Xue Qiang picked up their wine bottles and saluted Li Yue.

After a bottle of wine, Wang Meng went straight to the topic, "The drought in Guanzhong is very serious. Recently, the scouts have reported that the red land is thousands of miles away, and cattle and horses are biting each other's hair. The people are frightened and uneasy. The powerful forces are holding back their troops but do not dare to attack. It is a group of dragons without a leader."

Severe droughts have always started in Guanzhong on the upper reaches of the Yellow River.

"Now His Majesty is leading a hundred thousand black cloud elites to the east of Hedong. When they reach Guanzhong, there will be heroes to respond." Xue Qiang said.

In this situation, Wei Shan on the side couldn't say anything. Cui Hong was too young and had no right to speak.

Li Yue picked up a piece of venison and put it into his mouth. It was indeed delicious. It would still be enjoyed by veteran nobles. "I'm afraid Fu Jian will make a desperate move first. This is his last chance. If you defeat me, all hidden dangers in Guanzhong will be solved."

"Yes, your Majesty is here. Fu Jianjian will speed up his actions. The chaos in Guanzhong is not far away. Now the Yellow River is dry and the river has become narrow. There are many places where you can cross the river." Wang Meng drank another bottle of wine.

There are many places where we can cross the river, but Puban is stuck behind it, blocking the grain road, and we can't get around it.

Deng Qiang was extremely capable in military affairs, so Li Yue was worried about leaving him behind.

That is to say, the first battle to attack Qin will inevitably break out in Puban.

"After three days of rest, I will lead my army to attack Puban. People say that Deng Qiang is an enemy of ten thousand people. I want to see if this person can turn the tide."

"I have prepared the siege equipment and am just waiting for His Majesty's order."

Perhaps because of his weak body, after Wang Meng drank two bottles of wine, his eyes began to wander...

(End of this chapter)