At the end of Qin, I became a son of the plane

Chapter 469: Meeting Old Friends and Hidden Rules
In the next few days, Liu Bi wandered around Chang'an City to make sure he didn't look like a country bumpkin who didn't know anything. But a few days later, Liu Bang found him and said, "Father Ji will take you to see Uncle Cao to make more connections. It will be good for you in the future."

Liu Bi knew that the uncle Cao that Ji's father mentioned was the current fake prime minister Cao Shen. It was soon time for the top leadership of the Han Dynasty to change, but this time was different from the previous ones. Cao Shen was the successor to the position of prime minister because he was not a businessman or a farmer. His ten-year term had not yet expired, so he would most likely become the new prime minister of the Han Dynasty, and might even serve for two more terms.

Then Liu Bang took Liu Bi to Cao Shen's mansion.

"Old Cao, the Lord is here!" Liu Bang shouted as he entered Cao Shen's mansion.

Cao Shen's eldest son Cao Qiu came out and welcomed Liu Bang and Liu Bi to the study.

Liu Bang found that his other friend Zhou Bo was also there.

He smiled and said, "Why are you here too?"

Zhou Bo said: "You, a prince, can be here. I live in Chang'an City, so why can't I come? I am here to see Cao too."

Liu Bang said, "What do you mean by vassal or not? You are just hanging around with the barbarians. You are already sixty years old this year. The craftsmen in Chang'an City all retire at this age. You should also retire. At this year's vassal assembly, I will abdicate and hand over Pei State to Ying'er. I will live a free and easy life for a few years, sweep the tomb of Lord Xinling, and visit my parents in my hometown. If I can still bear it, I also plan to take a ship to the South Seas to see what the overseas lands of my great Han are like."

Cao Shen laughed and said, "You are so old and still acting recklessly. Aren't you afraid of dying out there?"

Liu Bang said nonchalantly: "I'll bury him wherever he dies. It's all Han territory anyway."

Liu Bang really wanted to retire. It was not an easy task to develop a vassal state in a wild land. Liu Bang had worked hard for more than ten years and wanted to live a relaxing life for a few years. At the same time, he also wanted to arrange for his sons to go out. Liu Ying had already come of age, and now he was in charge of the main government affairs of Pei State. Judging from the current situation, it was not bad.

Cao Shen said with a smile: "Among us, you, Liu Ji, are the most free and easy."

Liu Bang said, "Why don't you call someone?"

"Liu Bi met his two uncles"

Zhou Bo smiled and said, "So you are Liu Zhong's son. You have grown up so fast. Where do you work now?"

Liu Bi said: "North Sea Fleet, now serving as the captain."

Cao Shen laughed and said, "You are much better than me. When we were your age, we were just minor officials."

Liu Bang laughed and said, "That's because the First Emperor didn't know talent. We are much more capable than just minor officials. If the First Emperor had used us, the Qin Empire wouldn't have fallen so quickly."

When Liu Bang said this, everyone burst into laughter, and Cao Shen even kept coughing from laughing.

Then Cao Shen asked his eldest son Cao Qiu to take Liu Bi away, and the three old friends gathered together.

Liu Bang said: "Now the whole Chang'an City is praising you for your good luck. First, you got a fake prime minister for nothing, and now you want to be the prime minister of the Han Dynasty."

Liu Bang gave a thumbs up and said, "This luck is unique in the world."

Cao Shen smiled bitterly and shook his head, saying, "I will retire next year, too."

Liu Bang was surprised and asked, "Why?"

Cao Shen pointed at his body and said, "I can't bear it anymore. After Old Xiao became seriously ill, His Majesty assigned a doctor to each of us to monitor our health at all times. The doctor said that I was injured in the war when I was young, and now my body is full of holes. It is not advisable to overwork. If I retire from the position of Prime Minister next year, I can live a few more years. Otherwise, I will die like Old Xiao."

Liu Bang sighed and said, "This is such a pity."

Then he comforted her, "It's better for you to retire. I have a lot of things to do in managing the daily affairs of Pei State. Now the political affairs of the Han Dynasty are more than ten thousand times more than those of Pei State. We have worked hard all our lives and deserve to enjoy a few years. When you retire, we old friends from Pei County can travel around the world together."

Cao Shen nodded and said, "We conquered the Han Dynasty and governed it with great effort. People are saying that the Han Dynasty is unprecedentedly prosperous, but I have been trapped in Chang'an for the past few years. I really want to see the prosperity that I have conquered with my own hands."

Then Liu Bang looked at Zhou Bo and said, "Then don't you have a great chance?"

Zhou Boyu said proudly: "The world is still undecided, everything is still unknown."

Cao Shen said: "Don't listen to Zhou Bo's modesty. Your Majesty has appointed him as a false prime minister and started to handle the government affairs of the court. Obviously, Your Majesty recognizes him. If nothing unexpected happens, he will be the new prime minister of our Han Dynasty."

Ten years ago, Zhou Bo's experience was not very deep, but ten years later, there were few people in the entire Han court with more experience than him. In addition, the emperor appointed him as the false prime minister at the time of the term change. Although I can't say that he is 10% sure of becoming the prime minister, it is almost certain.

Liu Bang was a little surprised and said, "Old Zhou, you are really capable. You have finally got the chance to rule the world."

Zhou Bo suppressed his smile and said, "Old Xiao and Old Cao have laid a good foundation. Even if I take office, the Han Dynasty will continue to move forward according to their governance plan."

In fact, Zhou Bo had taken over government affairs for several days, and he was amazed when he learned about the infrastructure plans of Xiao He and his team. The rail transportation of the Han Dynasty has developed very rapidly in recent years, with two to three thousand kilometers of tracks added almost every year, and more than 5000 miles of new roads built. But now the rail transportation of the Han Dynasty can only reach one-fifth of the plan of Xiao He and his team. According to their idea, every county of the Han Dynasty must be connected by rail, so that the Han Dynasty's troops can reach any part of the Han Dynasty's territory within three days.

Cao Shen taught: "Your Majesty attaches great importance to the employment of the people. The reason why the Han Dynasty has launched so many infrastructure projects in recent years is, on the one hand, to improve the rail network of the Han Dynasty and expand the market for industries, and on the other hand, to find jobs for the people of the world."

"Although these infrastructure projects are hard work and the salaries are not high, they can provide millions of jobs for the people of the Han Dynasty. A salary of 500 coins is enough for a farmer to support his whole family."

"Now, there are nearly 200 million young and strong adults in the Han Dynasty every year. These people need land, work, and to support their families. If the court cannot properly accommodate them, the current good development situation of the Han Dynasty will be ruined. Therefore, expanding employment is the foundation of all government affairs in the Han Dynasty."

Liu Bang was shocked and said, "You have to provide jobs for 200 million people every year. No wonder you and Lao Xiao are exhausted. This is really not something that ordinary people can do."

His Pei State now has less than 200 million people. If he has to solve the jobs of so many people, Liu Bang feels his scalp tingling just thinking about it.

Cao Shen smiled and said, "It won't be difficult if you do more. The fiefdoms of the princes will relocate some of their young and strong men, and the southern settlements will settle hundreds of thousands of people. In addition, the development of the Han Dynasty's industries will absorb some young and strong men, and finally, these infrastructure projects of the court will provide the bottom line. As long as you are not too lazy, you can always find a job to support your family."

Zhou Bo said: "The court spends more than 30 gold on infrastructure every year, but the actual construction costs exceed one million gold. Many wealthy tracks and roads have been contracted by merchants, which is not good for the court. Those tracks and roads in wealthy areas can quickly recover their investment and become a new source of financial resources for the court, but because the court has contracted them out, it can only wait 30 years. Most of the tracks and roads built by the court are difficult to recover their investment."

"I understand that it is because these tracks are not profitable and can only be invested by the government, but why doesn't the government borrow money to take control of the profitable track sections as well?"

Cao Shen shook his head and said, "The court has too many places where it needs to spend money. This kind of cooperation method can reduce the court's consumption and improve efficiency. As for letting private individuals make a little money, it doesn't matter. The court can get the money back through taxation. As I said before, stable employment is the foundation of the court's government affairs."

Zhou Bo nodded in approval.

On the other hand, after Liu Bi met Cao Qiu, he was able to establish a network of relationships in the second generation circle in Chang'an. Cao Qiu often took Liu Bi to meet the sons of other nobles.

That day Cao Qiu found him and said that there would be a party after the meritorious service, and asked him to join and make some connections. Liu Bi changed into casual clothes and went to the agreed place.

Chang'an City has become more and more lively since it was designated as the capital of the Han Dynasty, especially after the emergence of reinforced concrete structures. In addition, the Han Dynasty had no artificial restrictions on the height of buildings, which could not be higher than the palace. The powerful merchants of the Han Dynasty continued to pile up buildings to show their strength. If someone built a six-story building, the competitor would build a seven-story building. And so it went on step by step. Now the tallest building in Chang'an is a restaurant full of gold and jade, which is 16 meters high and has 12 floors. It has become one of the iconic buildings of the Han Dynasty.

When Liu Bi arrived at the private room of Jin Yu Man Tang, it was already full of meritorious officials. Cao Qiu introduced Liu Bi and said, "This is Zhou Ce, the son of Prime Minister Zhou, Ye Zhao, the son of Prime Minister Ye, and Zhou Sheng, the son of the tax inspector~~~~."

There were more than a dozen people here, all of them were high-ranking officials of the Han Dynasty, sons of princes, and they were all quite old, about 20 years old. They introduced themselves, ordered food and wine, and started eating and drinking.

Liu Bi was a little shocked when he knew the identities of these people. To be honest, he was not qualified to join this circle. After all, he was just Liu Bang's nephew.

After three rounds of drinking, Zhou Ce came to Liu Bi and toasted him, saying, "Brother Liu is also a hero among us. It is unique for you to become a 2000-shi official in your thirties." Liu Bi said carefully, "It's just luck. If there were no gold and silver mines on the Japanese island, I wouldn't have achieved what I have today."

But Zhou Ce said, "That's because Brother Liu was able to endure the loneliness and stay in a wild place like Wadao for ten years. I can't match his perseverance. If Brother Liu had this ability in the chaotic world at the end of the Qin Dynasty, he would definitely be a founding hero."

Then he said lonely: "I can only do the loan business in Chang'an City."

Then Zhou Ce began to greet other people.

Liu Bi whispered to Cao Qiu beside him, "Brother Zhou has a relationship with the old prime minister, where is he working now?"

Cao Qiu said: "I am the county treasurer in Kaifa Money House."

Liu Bi was stunned and asked, "How could this be?"

Considering Zhou Zhang's relationship with the emperor, Zhou Ce could not sit on the position of Nine Ministers, but it should not be a problem for him to be the governor of a county with a salary of 2000 dan. However, Liu Bi did not expect that Zhou Ce had not even entered the officialdom of the Han Dynasty.

Cao Qiu said: "The old prime minister refused to give in, saying that Zhou Ce had no ability to govern and that governing the local area would only harm the people. Because of this incident, Zhou Ce ignored the old prime minister for three years."

Liu Bi shook his head and said, "Not really. With the old prime minister's teachings and example, Brother Zhou is not incapable of governing a county."

Cao Qiu also complained: "Who said it wasn't true? My father also treated me as a child. I wanted to help him with government affairs, but he always scolded me, saying that it was not my place to speak on state affairs. As a result, I am now just a bank manager."

After drinking, people talk a lot. Cao Qiu complained about all his grievances. Almost all the people in their group were like this. They were already adults and wanted to realize their ambitions, but their father still treated them as children.

Liu Bi said: "Since you think you are capable, why don't you govern your uncle's fiefdom?"

Cao Qiu said: "The fiefdom is too poor and boring, it can be governed by retainers."

Liu Bi had an expression of understanding. If Cao Qiu was really capable, his uncle would not have banned him from entering the officialdom. The temptation of Chang'an City was too great. He had stayed here for three days and felt that Chang'an City and other places in the Han Dynasty were two different worlds, not to mention Cao Qiu and other children who had lived in Chang'an City since childhood.

Seeing Cao Qiu's expression, Liu Bi said earnestly: "We are all from Pei County. My uncle and Uncle Cao are close friends. I am not being polite. Brother Cao, you have a good background and a high starting point. If you stay in Chang'an City, you can live a carefree life. You can even live a life of wealth and honor without any problems.

But doing so will not earn you respect, because it is based on the legacy of your fathers, not your own real ability. All the civil and military officials in the Han officialdom have fought their way out of troubled times. Your uncle will naturally look down on you when he sees that you cannot endure hardship. If you want to be respected, you must do something. Your uncle's fiefdom has more than 10,000 households. If you can manage your uncle's fiefdom well, you will naturally be able to manage a county well. If you make achievements, more people will naturally respect you, and your uncle will naturally not look down on you. "

"Pa pa pa, what Brother Liu said is very good, it can be said to be a wise saying." Zhou Ce applauded.

But Zhou Ce said, "This statement is true for you, Brother Liu, but not for us."

Liu Bi was surprised and asked, "Why?"

Zhou Ce pointed to the sky and said, "Because the higher-ups don't allow it. Brother Liu is already a senior official with a salary of 2000 dan, and his future prospects are far more than 2000 dan. Brother Liu could even become a general of the Han Dynasty, or even be granted a title of nobility or appointed as prime minister, but we can't do that."

Zhou Ce said with a hint of resentment on his face: "Even if we enter the officialdom, the highest salary we can get is 2000 shi. No matter how capable we are, the higher-ups will not allow us to be promoted."

This was the reason why Zhou Ce did not enter the officialdom of the Han Dynasty. For ordinary people to become an official with a salary of 2000 shi would be a great honor for their ancestors. But for Zhou Ce, the eldest son of the founding prime minister of the Han Dynasty and one of the future dukes of the Han Dynasty, he could only become a county governor with a salary of 2000 shi.

If people mentioned his titles, such as Duke of Chu of the Han Dynasty or Magistrate of a certain county, it would be so embarrassing. At the very least, people would regard him as a son of a tiger father. Therefore, Zhou Ce simply did not enter the officialdom of the Han Dynasty.

What Zhou Ce was talking about was an unspoken rule established by Xu Fan, which is that the three dukes and nine ministers of the Han Dynasty, in principle, were not allowed to have their descendants reach this position, and becoming a county governor with a rank of two thousand stones was the ceiling for these second generations.

Xu Fan did this to prevent the disgusting situation of three officials in four generations from occurring in the Han Dynasty. During the Eastern Han Dynasty, five people in the four generations of the Yuan family were three officials in the highest position, but it was these aristocratic families that ultimately destroyed the Eastern Han Empire.

Among them, the notorious Yuan Shu was selected as a filial and incorrupt official at a young age, and was later promoted to the rank of Lieutenant General of the Huben Guards. Yuan Shu was only in his early twenties when he became Lieutenant General of the Huben Guards. The status of Lieutenant General of the Huben Guards was equivalent to that of the Nine Ministers in the Eastern Han Dynasty. If it had not been for the chaos at the end of the Han Dynasty, it would have been inevitable for him to become one of the Three Dukes. Of course, by his generation, people were no longer interested in becoming one of the Three Dukes, and Yuan Shu said that he wanted to be the emperor.

During the turbulent times at the end of the Han Dynasty, there were conflicts between foreign relatives and eunuchs, and the aristocratic families like the Yuan family played a role in fueling the flames. One thing that many people don't know is that Dong Zhuo also had a relationship with the Yuan family. Dong Zhuo's original master was Zhang Huan. When Zhang Huan was used by the eunuchs in the Party and Factions Incident, they destroyed the then scholar general Dou Wu and ruined his relationship with the scholars. As a result, he thought he was deceived by the eunuchs, so he resigned and offended the eunuchs again. As a result, Dong Zhuo and his subordinates were in trouble. For more than ten years, they were in the most dangerous place on the border.

When Yuan Shu's uncle Yuan Kui was the governor of Bingzhou, he needed a military general and recruited Dong Zhuo. Dong Zhuo immediately changed his allegiance and became a disciple of Yuan Shu. That's why Dong Zhuo was able to enter Luoyang so easily. Because Dong Zhuo was Yuan Shu's white glove, he had to do some dirty work, that is, to depose and enthrone. But Yuan Kui played too much, and Dong Zhuo had his own ideas.

It couldn't be like what was written in the Romance of the Three Kingdoms, that Dong Zhuo used 3,000 men to keep entering the city to deceive the world. This was simply a joke. Luoyang City was full of spies from scholars. How could they not know how many men Dong Zhuo really had? The northern and southern armies of Luoyang City and the Xiyuan Army were all armies formed by the nobles and aristocrats of the Han Dynasty in Luoyang City. Even the emperor of the Han Dynasty couldn't command them, so how could Dong Zhuo? These armies added up to nearly 100,000 people, and they could crush Dong Zhuo as long as they were deployed.

Therefore, Xu Fan established this rule in order to guard against the second generation of the Han Dynasty. If you have the ability, you can get your own fiefdoms and the vassal states will take over. The Han Dynasty does not need you to take over. What the Han Dynasty needs is fresh blood.

Liu Bi was shocked. It was the first time he knew about this unspoken rule. At this moment, he also felt fortunate. His uncle was one of the princes of the Han Dynasty, but he was not one of the three dukes or nine ministers in the court. He was not even the second generation.

"How is it possible? The Han Dynasty was founded by our fathers. It's fine that they gave me preferential treatment, but now they are blatantly discriminating against me. This is simply outrageous." The other second generations were also shocked. It was the first time they knew about this unspoken rule. Many of them couldn't even believe it. They were the only ones who discriminated against others, so how could it be their turn to be discriminated against?

Zhou Ce said: "So the best way out for us is not to stay in the Han Dynasty, but to leave the Han Dynasty and establish our own vassal state. Only in this way can we display our talents."

"Establish a vassal state?" Everyone looked at Zhou Ce in surprise, because when the old prime minister Zhou Zhang retired, he said that the Han Dynasty was his vassal state, so he did not ask for the land of the vassal, but asked for a commission of 200 households, plus the commission of households for the old prime minister to establish the country, the title of Duke of Chu, the Han Dynasty had to pay the old prime minister million yuan every year. This amount of money is naturally not a small amount, but it is not much for a duke, and it is not even as much as the wealthy merchants of the Han Dynasty earn in a year.

Zhou Ce said: "After I inherit the title, I will propose to the court to establish a fiefdom in Tianzhu."

"Tianzhu." Liu Bi suddenly realized.

There are hundreds of vassal states in the Han Dynasty, but if you were to say what these vassal states lack the most, it must be population. Even though the Han Dynasty now transfers hundreds of thousands of people to vassal states all over the world every year, it is still difficult to satisfy the appetites of these vassal states. These vassal states have large fiefdoms, but very small populations, and the natives in the fiefdoms have almost no abilities, and it takes a huge amount of effort to educate them.

But the newly discovered India of the Han Dynasty was different. It was a civilized land with a large population. The local people knew how to farm and were good at handicrafts. It could be said that they were not much worse than the people of the Han Dynasty in terms of ability. To establish a vassal state in India, there was no need to open up the wilderness like in Southeast Asia, but to establish a country on a cultivated land.

Liu Bi said: "India is not close to the mainland of the Han Dynasty, and their civilization is much stronger than that of the Nanyang natives. Although their combat effectiveness is not strong, after they fight with our Han Dynasty, they will definitely learn our weapons and equipment, tactics and methods. It will be much more difficult to educate them than the Nanyang natives. The learning ability of the Indians is better than that of the Nanyang natives."

In Liu Bi's opinion, the Indian civilization is very advanced and their learning ability is no worse than that of the Huns. Their current weak combat effectiveness does not mean that their combat effectiveness will be weak in the future.

Zhou Ce smiled and said, "Isn't this better? Only with a strong opponent can we demonstrate our strength."

Liu Bi advised: "Brother Zhou, the cost of war is not small. Think about the Duke Ji back then. It was with the support of Your Majesty that he was able to establish a foothold in the Western Regions. Now the Duke Chu only has an annual income of 200 million coins. This amount of money is too little to start a war."

Zhou Ce smiled and said, "Brother Liu, you know nothing about our strength. Although we don't have any power, with our strength, we can mobilize tens of billions of money. Not to mention fighting a small country like Tianzhu, even launching a war in Mobei is not a problem."

If Xu Fan does not allow these second-generations to enter the Han officialdom, then he must compromise on money. Many second-generations have entered the Han banking system. Their combined power to mobilize money should not be underestimated.

Zhou Ce said: "Now there is a Tianzhu Trading Company in the Han Dynasty, and I also plan to set up a trading company."

Liu Bi thought for a moment and said, "Brother Zhou, are you willing to listen to something?"

Zhou Ce said, "Brother Liu, please speak."

"The emperor is sending two fleets to explore the world. There must be more than one civilization in this world. At least we know from the Huns that there is an empire called Parthian Empire in the west, and there is an empire called Daqin to the west of the Parthian Empire. It can be seen that there are many civilizations in this world. When my great Han Dynasty discovers these civilizations, it will be time for the court to educate the world again.

At this time, Tianzhu already has the Kushan Empire and the Tianzhu Trading Company. Even if Brother Zhou squeezes in, he won't have much development. He should wait for the court's expedition team to return, so that he can have a better understanding of the world and make the best choice. "

(End of this chapter)