I, Liu Bian, Sanxing Han Dynasty

Chapter 400: Yangzhou Division
Liu Bian was not unhappy about Jia Xu's advice. On the contrary, he was in a good mood.

He was very happy to see this change in Jia Xu.

Putting aside his character, it is not an exaggeration to say that Jia Xu has both good and fair talents.

But if Jia Xu always maintained an attitude of self-preservation, how could Liu Bian entrust him with the important task of prime minister?

Jia Xu, feeling ashamed, reminded: "Your Majesty, when I sent people to investigate the intentions of the officials, the Imperial Guards probably noticed something."

Since there were Tiqi under the command of the Praetorian Guards, Liu Bian was not surprised that Xu Qiao noticed some movements.

Although Xu Qiao liked to write letters to advise Liu Bian, he knew how to control the strength of his advice. Liu Bian was not too worried that Xu Qiao would make the matter public.

Although the school affairs department's fishing operation was done in secret, the senior officials in the court were no mediocre people, and there were countless cunning and treacherous ones.

Especially now that the reputation of the School Affairs Department has been gradually spreading in private, it is unlikely that they are unaware of it.

This may also be one of the reasons why senior officials are so quiet nowadays.

When leaving Yuntai Palace this time, Jia Xu suddenly felt relaxed all over.

At the beginning, he was inexplicably conscripted to the capital with his family, and he never expected that he would be in the current situation.

However, he immediately straightened his collar and suppressed the upturned corners of his mouth.

In an instant, Jia Xu turned back into the low-key and introverted lieutenant colonel.

……

After meeting Jia Xu, Liu Bian summoned the counselor Chen Deng.

A while ago, Chen Deng fell ill. After Hua Tuo's diagnosis and treatment, he concluded that "there were several liters of worms in his stomach, which were about to turn into internal carbuncles." After taking medicine, he vomited three liters of worms. Even Liu Bian heard about this.

When they met now, Liu Bian saw that Chen Deng looked good, and asked with concern: "How is Yuanlong now? This gastrointestinal disease cannot be taken lightly. You must follow the doctor's advice, and don't forget to go see Hua Yuanhua for consultation."

When Chen Deng found out that his illness had even reached the ears of God, he felt ashamed but also somewhat moved.

Originally, he listened to Hua Tuo's advice and thought that the worms in his stomach were caused by his consumption of fresh and fishy food, mainly his favorite fish sashimi, and he was still a little skeptical in his heart.

But now seeing that the emperor had said so, he had no choice but to agree: "Your Majesty, thank you for your concern. I am guilty of death! Please rest assured, Your Majesty, I am fine now."

Liu Bian nodded and said, "In this case, I am relieved."

He then asked, "The public office and the Shangshutai have recently drawn up the counties under the jurisdiction of Minzhong County, with the county seat being Dongye County. Does Yuanlong know about this?"

Chen Deng's heart moved. Although he had been recuperating at home these days, he still knew some hot topics in the court.

Half a year ago, Xunshuang considered that the transportation between Kuaiji and Yuzhang counties was inconvenient, and the county seats of the two counties were close to the north, which was not conducive to recruiting the Shanyue people, nor was it conducive to organizing the development of land in the south. After all, in the Han system, the difference in the forces that could be mobilized between the county level and the county level was too great.

Now the plan to add two counties is being implemented one after another.

The southern part of Yuzhang County was divided into Luling County, and the southern part of Kuaiji County was divided into Minzhong County.

One after another, the prefect of Luling County has already taken office, while the prefect of Minzhong County is still in the process of preparation.

Although these two newly appointed prefectural governors were both in the south and had jurisdiction over many mountainous areas, they were considered barren lands in the past.

But for a young man like Chen Deng who wants to achieve something great, it is a place where he can display his talents.

He missed the chance to be the governor of Luling due to illness, so he certainly seized this opportunity now - "As a counselor, I dare not slack off on such state affairs!"

Liu Bian did not doubt Chen Deng's ability to govern, but he still had to go through the process: "If Yuanlong were the governor of Minzhong, how would he govern Minzhong?"

Minzhong County was the name of an old county during the Qin Dynasty. In the early Han Dynasty, three kingdoms were set up in Minzhou, namely Minyue, Dongou and Nanhai. By the time of Emperor Wu, only Minyue was the only powerful kingdom. As a result, Emperor Wu sent troops to destroy the Minyue kingdom because of its intention to rebel against the Han Dynasty. Later, the people of Minyue were relocated to Jianghuai and the Eastern Commandery was set up to govern the old Minyue territory of Dongye (Fuzhou).

Later, the people of Minyue who escaped from the valleys gathered together, and Dongye was established as a county. To this day, after the rebellion of the Xin Dynasty, Minzhong is still under the jurisdiction of the Eastern Commandery of Kuaiji. In the development of these years, there are also Han clans migrating from the north in Minzhong, but at present, it has not experienced the ethnic integration of Shanyue led by Sun Wu, let alone the migration of people to the south during the Jin and Southern and Northern Dynasties. Therefore, the situation in Minzhong is somewhat similar to that of Bingzhou and Liangzhou, and the Han people are at a disadvantage in terms of numbers.

Although Chen Deng had never been to Minzhong, Kuaiji County and Yuzhang County had been one of the hot spots of the court in the past six months. Since he was interested, he talked about Minzhong in detail: "Your Majesty, in my humble opinion, the livelihood of the people depends on grain. Minzhong is a humid and hot land, so we should make use of paddy fields, make full use of irrigation, and expand the use of agricultural tools to reassure the people. The Shanyue people have different minds, so they can be divided and transformed."

"I have also heard that transportation within and outside Fujian is inconvenient, and it is difficult to transport local products and land rents out. I personally think that it can be done by sea transportation." It is said that the road to Shu is difficult, but compared with the road to Shu, the road to Fujian is not much worse.

Liu Bian knew Chen Deng had done his homework on the issue of Minzhong County. He said, "In my opinion, the number of acres of farmland in Minzhong County is still too low. Yuanlong will have a long way to go."

When Chen Deng heard this, he immediately leaned forward to accept the order.

"However, before Yuanlong leaves, he still has to go to Hua Yuanhua again. I don't want to see Yuanlong take office while he is sick!"

"I obey!"

At the same time, in Luling County, which Chen Deng had always cared about, it was winter, but it was still a joyous scene.

Luling County (Ji'an), a county town established during the Qin Dynasty, has been renamed several times and has now officially become the county seat of the new Luling County.

The prefect of Luling was none other than Wang Lang, who had earlier followed He Jin to various places in the Central Plains to restore the county and state schools.

He was promoted to a rank of Erqianshi, although it was the lowest among the Erqianshi, but it was worth his hard work.

Xun Shuang was standing on the gate tower of Luling County at the moment, watching the Han and Yi people coming and going in and out of the city gate. Beside him followed his youngest disciple Zhou Yu, who was serving beside him, but his face was full of worry.

Wang Lang was also worried like Zhou Yu. When a new county was established, court officials only needed to talk behind the scenes, while frontline officials had a lot of things to consider.

As the initiator of establishing Luling County, Xun Shuang has been working extremely hard during this period. He already had an old illness and now looks extremely thin, which makes his already poor health even worse.

Wang Lang, however, was following Xun Shuang closely, listening to his instructions without a trace of impatience on his face.

"The Shanyue people's rebellion was mostly caused by persecution..."

"You must be careful of the officials and clans under your rule..."

Wang Lang listened attentively, and he also knew that these were Xun Shuang's selfless words.

After just a few words, Wang Lang noticed that Xun Shuang was breathing heavily.

Zhou Yu couldn't help but remind him: "Teacher..."

Xun Shuang raised his thin arm and finally reminded Wang Lang: "Jingxing, I have only one thing to tell you about governing Luling - 'Respect the old as your own, and the young as your own.' No matter what decision you make, you must consider the people coming and going in front of you."

"Lang will accept your instruction!" Wang Lang bowed deeply, "I will never forget what you said today!"

Xun Shuang responded lightly and said no more.

Zhou Yu asked softly, "Teacher, it's windy here, why don't we go back to the government office and rest first?"

He actually didn't quite understand why his teacher didn't just rest in the house at this time, but had to come to the top of the city wall.

Xun Shuang shook his head slightly. Only he knew the condition of his own body.

Suddenly, Xun Shuang sighed softly: "Time waits for no one!"

Zhou Yu didn't hear clearly——"Teacher..."

"Nothing, let's go back..."

Upon hearing this, Zhou Yu waved his hands hurriedly, and the servants who had been waiting nearby immediately came over carrying a bamboo sedan chair.

The shape of the sedan at this time was almost the same as the frame, or in other words, it was the frame after wheels were installed underneath. The servants carefully carried Xun Shuang down the city wall.

After getting down from the city wall, Zhou Yu asked about Xun Shuang's health, but got no response.

Zhou Yu immediately became nervous and quickly lifted the curtain to look inside.

Zhou Yu heaved a sigh of relief when he saw Xun Shuang's gray beard trembling back and forth with his breathing, indicating that he was asleep.

(End of this chapter)