I, Liu Bian, Sanxing Han Dynasty

Chapter 557: Vacant Land in Youzhou

The treatment of the Han and Qiang people is not a small issue, or rather, it is a problem that the Qiang people will inevitably encounter when they become sinicized.

The Qiang people who participated in the military farming were not bad, as they relied on the income from the military farming to make a living and were tied to the land controlled by the court. It can be said that as long as the military farming continued and the land rent was not increased, the Qiang people who participated in the military farming could be naturally assimilated into the Han culture.

The key issue is that the Qiang people, who had occupied the land that could be used as farmland for various historical reasons in the past, have mastered the farming techniques that they did not master before. It would be very easy to cause unrest if they were asked to pay taxes and labor service like the Han people.

It is almost obvious that this problem is not limited to Liangzhou. Yangzhou, Jingzhou, and Yizhou, which called on Shanyue and barbarian tribes to cultivate the land, also had this problem - after mastering the relatively advanced farming techniques from the Han people, they did not go to the land provided by the Han Dynasty to participate in the military farming, but instead developed their own land on the hillsides or in the valleys that the Han Dynasty could not control.

Liu Bian had to consider more - after all, he had seen cases in history books. There was once a Wuling prefect in Jingzhou who wanted to do this for his political achievements. Although some people opposed it, with the support of Emperor Shun of Han, he successfully organized a large-scale Wuling barbarian rebellion.

Liu Bian felt that he might be able to get answers from a different perspective from Ma Teng.

In fact, the answer to this difficult problem in Liu Bian's eyes was very simple and clear for Ma Teng - "As long as those people do not have a hard time living after paying taxes, then taxes can be collected."

After listening to it, Liu Bian suddenly felt that it was very reasonable.

After all, we need to analyze specific issues specifically, and taxes must be paid as long as the conditions are met.

Looking at Ma Teng's matter-of-fact look, it seemed that all Liu Bian's worries were unnecessary.

However, Liu Bian immediately realized that Ma Teng's words were simple, but it was very complicated to implement. Even if the tax standard was determined only based on the number of acres of land, it would require a high level of governance.

Another example is Liu Bian's goal of deepening tax reform, which was to collect different land rents according to the different yields per mu of land. However, this would be like the two-tax system in the Tang Dynasty, which seemed fair to collect taxes based on family wealth, but in fact gave petty officials more room to manipulate the system. Therefore, Liu Bian never implemented this theoretically fairer tax system.

Ma Teng said, "Your Majesty, I have been in Liang Province for a long time. I know that the Qiang people in Liang Province rebelled because they were oppressed or because they could not survive... Liang Province is peaceful now. We just need to take it slow. We don't need to complete the registration of all people overnight. It is enough to expect it!"

After Ma Teng finished speaking, Xun Yu and Ma Yu both expressed their agreement with Ma Teng's statement.

Liu Bian readily accepted the advice and said with a smile: "I was right to keep you by my side for advice before!"

He then said to Xun Yu: "Wen Ruo, from now on, regarding matters concerning the Qiang and Di peoples in Liang Province, we need to ask Ma Qing for his opinion..."

Xun Yu agreed, and Ma Teng felt a sense of satisfaction when he heard it.

Soon, Ma Teng and Ma Yu resigned together, while Xun Yu stayed.

In addition to discussing Qiang affairs, Xun Yu also had to report his work to Liu Bian.

"Now that the wars in various parts of Kanto have been settled, there are many vacancies for minor officials in the counties of Kanto. Under the supervision of the General of Chariots and Cavalry, the Four Generals of Expeditions, and the two thousand stone officials in each county and state, this large-scale trial is going very smoothly. In addition, because the printing and papermaking technologies have greatly reduced the price of classics in recent years, more people have participated in the trial than originally expected, so there is no need to worry about not having enough officials."

The advent of printing technology lowered the threshold for studying. Although some people were reluctant to study due to their background, there were also people like Bing Yuan’s teacher who gave those who were willing to study a chance even if they did not charge tuition.

Liu Bian felt like he was going to win during this period.

Under the general trend, all conspiracies and tricks will be exposed.

And good news came from all over the country. As many powerful people suspected of rebellion surrendered their heads, their land was nationalized and rented to landless people at 40% to 50% of the rent.

When the news spread, wherever the royal army went, the people not only welcomed the royal army with food and drink, but also hoped that the local tyrants in their neighborhood would die!

The chaos in various places broke out quickly, but was quelled even faster.

People want peace!

And according to Jia Xu's statistics, this time several armies were dispatched simultaneously, and with the cooperation of the School Affairs Department, they dealt with more than 3,000 families that could be considered powerful or above in all states and counties. Even so, there were still some that slipped through the net!

The army is still guarding the place and has not returned yet.

"Your Majesty, today the Secretariat received some petitions requesting the withdrawal of troops from the prefectures and counties of Guandong. First, the prefectures and counties have been determined, and it may be risky to keep the heavy troops outside. Second, it will only increase the consumption of food and grass. Third, if the troops are withdrawn now, the soldiers will still have time to return home in time for the autumn planting."

After hearing this, Liu Bian realized that Xun Yu actually supported the withdrawal of troops at this time.

In fact, he had this idea in his mind. Although he trusted Huangfu Song and Guan Yu, he still had to do what he had to do. Now there was no need to station heavy troops in the Guandong prefectures and counties. After the powerful people were killed, the remaining ones should not dare to make trouble again. By killing the powerful people, the court once again controlled a batch of land distributed in various prefectures and counties, which could alleviate the contradiction between people and land to a certain extent.

As expected, the powerful still have to be killed, but it is not appropriate to divide the land now.

"The Shangshutai will come up with a set of rules today, and we will discuss this matter at the morning court tomorrow."

After Xun Yu accepted the request, he did not take his leave, but said, "Your Majesty, when I came just now, the Secretariat received another memorial from Youzhou."

After hearing this, Liu Bian smiled bitterly and shook his head. Zhang Rang took Liu Duan, Marquis of Hefei, to Bingzhou and Youzhou to investigate the matters of land measurement and idle land.

Although Liu Bian had realized that Zhang Rang would not stop when he handed the matter over to him, he did not expect Zhang Rang to be so good at making trouble.

Youzhou.

Zhang Rang said to the Marquis of Hefei beside him: "When I was young, I was ignorant and greedy for money. Later, I realized the value of power, so I pursued wealth and was awarded the title of marquis and inherited the title. Now I am already past the age of knowing my destiny. I often think, can I, Zhang Rang, really bear to have come to this point today? Every time I think of this, I feel like I am walking on thin ice."

"Things that I once cared about, such as money, are now like floating clouds to me!"

At this point, Zhang Rang suddenly sighed with emotion: "When you reach my age, you will understand!"

Liu Duan listened silently, and only occasionally spoke up to agree and support Zhang Rang when Zhang Rang needed it.

Just at this time, an eunuch came to report: "My Lord, another person has sent a visiting card and brought a valuable gift."

Liu Duan pricked up his ears immediately after hearing this. Zhang Rang did not disappoint Liu Duan and immediately ordered: "Put it away according to the old rules."

Liu Duan felt that he could not just ignore it, even if the other party was Zhang Rang. He smiled bitterly and said, "Even if Mr. Zhang wanted to accept the gift, why did he do it in front of me?"

Zhang Rang smiled and asked, "Do you think what I just said was a lie?"

"We are new here, and we are not here to kill people. The local big families are afraid and want to test us by giving gifts. If we want to appease people, it is best to accept the gifts and make them feel at ease. And we must accept all gifts. In this way, no one will ask me to do things for gifts!"

Liu Duan opened his mouth for a while before he said, "But Mr. Zhang, if you only accept gifts but don't do anything, isn't that corruption?"

Zhang Rang replied: "What do you think the old rules are? Of course, these gifts should be registered in a book and presented to the emperor after returning to the capital. Before that, these gifts should be sealed and not used."

After hearing this, Liu Duan breathed a sigh of relief.

"I almost misunderstood Mr. Zhang. I hope you won't blame me."

Zhang Rang shook his head and said, "If it were before, if you came to remind me not to take bribes, I would not even see you, but now... I don't think you want to spend your whole life in the Marquis of Hefei's mansion. Work wholeheartedly for His Majesty, and you will have your own benefits in the future!"

After hearing this, Liu Duan immediately bowed and said, "Thank you, Mr. Zhang, for your advice!"

Zhang Rang looked at Liu Duan's humble attitude and thought to himself: When the list of gifts is sent to Luoyang, will His Majesty still covet these small gifts? In the end, they are still mine! And there will be no future trouble!

However, he did not tell Liu Duan about this.

Who made Liu Duan suspect him of corruption?
After saying this, Zhang Rang prepared to accompany the Marquis of Hefei to the countryside of Youzhou. In addition to going there himself, he also sent people to those places that had been abandoned for many years. To appease the people was one thing, but he still had to do the tasks assigned to him by the emperor.

But before he could leave, the eunuch came hurriedly to report: "My Lord, Liu Youzhou is here."

Zhang Rang was reluctant to offend Liu Yu, so he said, "Please ask him to go to the living room. I'll be there shortly!"

"Liu Youzhou is already coming this way!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Zhang Rang heard an angry voice shouting, "Emperor Zhang, if you continue to disturb the local area and the people, I will write a letter to impeach you even if I have to resign from my post!"

Zhang Rang, who was originally angry at Liu Yu's intrusion, heard Liu Yu's obvious threat, and his anger dropped rapidly. The words of dissatisfaction on his lips turned into "Mr. Liu, please don't frame me casually. How have I disturbed the local area?"

"You were in Youzhou, and wherever you went, you lavishly collected gifts, causing people to panic. How can that not count?"

Zhang Rang then brought out his previous remarks to Liu Duan, and concluded: "In fact, I am still helping Liu Gong stabilize the local area!"

Liu Yu was so angry when he heard Zhang Rang's nonsense that he blew his beard: "If you hadn't come, this place would have been safe!"

"If it was originally stable, why did it become chaotic after I arrived?"

If they were discussing classics, or talking about reason, two Zhang Rangs combined could not beat Liu Yu, but Zhang Rang was unreasonable.

In other words, the two men did not develop their conflict to the point of deliberately holding each other back. Both of them were carrying out the work of investigating the land suitable for immigration in Youzhou. This was not a deliberate double act by the two men. This could be seen from the memorials impeaching Zhang Rang that were sent from Youzhou every now and then.

Therefore, in the Yuntai Hall of the Luoyang Palace, Liu Bian shook his head and said, "As long as Zhang Changshi doesn't hold us back, let him be."

Although Liu Yu was able to execute the imperial decrees, his personality made him more willing to exercise benevolence within the scope of his discretion. There was nothing wrong with benevolence itself, but when it came to land issues, Liu Yu would be more willing to use negotiation to resolve the issue if someone offered a land deed to uncultivated wasteland, but that was too soft and too slow for Liu Bian.

Xun Yu was also aware of these things. He had always been a supporter of using severe punishments in troubled times, so he did not say much about Zhang Rang's issue.

Instead, he reminded: "Your Majesty, there are too many impeachment memorials now, and they all come from different officials in Youzhou."

Liu Bian understood Xun Yu’s meaning very well. These officials impeached Zhang Rang. Was it for Zhang Rang or for Liu Yu?
Several officials who hold the title of governor have indeed been in the local areas for too long. It is time to put their positions on the agenda.

Especially Liu Yu.

But now is not the time.

Therefore, Liu Bian did not continue to dwell on this issue, but said: "The best way to migrate to Youzhou is to let the people migrate voluntarily as much as possible, just like when the northerners migrated south."

"Your Majesty, I have some thoughts."

"The text is as good as the words."

Xun Yu replied: "Youzhou is a border area after all, and the people will inevitably be afraid. Therefore, we must first publicize the court's several great victories over the Xianbei to reassure the people."

"Secondly, Youzhou is not like the south. It is free of smog and miasma, and is more suitable for northern people to move to. If it is voluntary, the most attractive ones are the tenants who are still in the Central Plains. In addition, there are also people who have to become refugees because of the previous war... Therefore, not only should we divide the land, but we should also divide more land than the people who moved south."

"Finally, we will follow the story of the northerners migrating south and select talented people to participate."

Xun Yu has always been such a worry-free person. Liu Bian was very satisfied listening to his well-organized words.

He even thought that when Xun Yu joined forces with the grown-up Zhuge Liang in the future, he would be able to rule the country in a literal sense.

However, watching Xun Yu leave for the Secretariat to draft the corresponding imperial edicts and official documents, Liu Bian also realized that the Secretariat today is not only responsible for organizing and providing opinions on memorials and official documents, but also responsible for drafting and issuing imperial edicts. Although in theory these links can only play a role with the participation of Liu Bian as the emperor, it is indeed time to change its unclear powers and responsibilities.

Moreover, the internal officials of the Shangshu Tai, which originally had no contact with external officials, are no longer the same as they were during the time of Emperor Guangwu. Not to mention the three provinces and six ministries, at least the responsibilities of drafting and reviewing imperial edicts should be divided into two places, which can also help Liu Bian share some of the pressure.

Now that the local situation has been pacified, it is a good opportunity to make some moves in the central government offices!
However, before that, Princess Wannian Liu Shou's wedding date was approaching.

(End of this chapter)