Great Zhou Empire: Kill Zhao Kuangyin at the beginning

Chapter 541: Detention and Direct Administration (Special thanks to my book friend LX for his reward!)

It was December 25, the 43rd year of Kaixi when Chai Zongxun received the memorial from Crown Prince Chai Jiyu in Bian Jing.

After reading the memorial, Chai Zongxun immediately issued an order, ordering the three Dragon Army Corps that were sent to conquer Kievan Rus to stay in the local area temporarily to maintain military rule in various states.

He ordered the crown prince Chai Jiyu to lead 5,000 dragon guards to escort the royal family of Kievan Rus to Bianjing, and to compensate the people of Beiming who had suffered harm with the silver seized from the Kievan Rus treasury.

The next day, December 26th, morning court session.

The chief eunuch Tang Qi first read out to all the ministers the news of the army's conquest of Kievan Rus, and the emperor and his ministers began to discuss how to rule this place.

The cabinet chief, Kou Zhun, came out and said:
“Your Majesty, the climate in Kievan Rus is even colder than that in Huyanzan City. The snow lasts for five months in winter, and it is a barren land.

Moreover, it is even farther away from the mainland of our Great Zhou than the land of Beiming. If the imperial court wants to directly govern this place, it will have to invest a large amount of silver, money and materials every year, which is not worth the cost.

I think it would be better to support the pro-Zhou locals in Kievan Rus to set up a government, and only need them to pay full taxes to the court every year, and then let them govern themselves. "

The Deputy Minister and Minister of Revenue Ding Wei came out of the class and said:

“Your Majesty, if we imitate the Star Religion’s land governance strategy and move a large number of Han people from the interior to Kievan Rus and continue to develop it, we, the officials of the Ministry of Revenue, have calculated that the annual expenditure of the national treasury will be between 8 million and 10 million taels.

The climate of Kievan Rus has long winters, and most areas can only grow one season of barley or oats, with very limited yields.

Only the ten or so provincial capitals around Kiev have a relatively warm climate, and are the main grain-producing areas.”

Chai Zongxun pondered for a moment and said:
"Although the imperial court does not have to spend much energy to control the country, this place will not be owned by our Great Zhou for long.

When the Tang Dynasty was at its peak, although it had actual control over vast territories in the northern desert and the Western Regions, it chose to allow local ethnic minorities to govern themselves. At the time, it seemed that no one would dare to disobey the government by collecting money and mobilizing troops from these places, and it greatly saved the court's ruling costs.

However, once the Tang Dynasty declined, the ethnic minorities in these vassal states immediately became independent and no longer obeyed the Tang Dynasty's orders.

Today, our Great Zhou is rich in Beiming, Khwarezm and other places, and our territory is connected to Kievan Rus, which can be incorporated into our eternal territory!
When Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty opened up the four counties in Hexi, it was precisely because of the large number of Han immigrants who came to guard the border that the Hexi Corridor became part of Chinese territory for thousands of years. This shows that "as long as the Han people are there, the territory will be there."

Taifu Li Hang came out of the class and said:
"Your Majesty, Holy Ming!
Our Han people are hardworking and intelligent. As long as there are no excessive taxes, we can be self-sufficient and even develop under any harsh natural conditions.

The Russians are brutal and barbaric. If we do not submit to the long-term rule of our Great Zhou, they will surely bring disaster upon us in the future!

Moreover, the annual surplus of our Great Zhou treasury exceeds 100 million taels, and the annual subsidy to Kievan Rus is 10 million taels, which is a small matter, but its strategic role is significant.

Your Majesty, you might as well adopt the strategy of "strengthening the trunk and weakening the branches" towards Kievan Rus, drive the Russians in the Kiev Plain area to settle in other provinces, and move millions of Han people from the inland areas to the Kiev Plain.

This place is the essence of Kievan Rus. With our Han people in control, we can ensure that Kievan Rus will be ruled by our Great Zhou for generations to come."

Chai Zongxun thought of the brutality of the Tsarist Russia in the past, "killing and occupying a place", such as the hundreds of thousands of Chinese in Vladivostok, who were killed without a single one left in a few decades. He slammed the table and said:
“The Master’s strategy is excellent!
The Russians are brutal and vicious, and they love aggression. Now that we have conquered their country this time, we must never let them go, or they will cause trouble in the future!
I have made up my mind. I have ordered the Third Corps of the Dragon Army of Kievan Rus to relocate all the Russian people from more than ten states in the Kievan Plain to other states for settlement. Anyone who disobeys will be killed without mercy!

Move 3 million Han people from the interior to the Kiev Plain, and the court will provide each household with a subsidy of 20 taels of silver and 50 mu of land!"

The emperor made the decision immediately, and the ministers in the Chuigong Hall had no objections. A few days later, the emperor and his ministers agreed on the officials and garrisons to be sent to Kievan Rus to establish the state and county rule, and they would set out after the New Year's Eve holiday. After the imperial edict on immigration was passed to the various state capitals, the people talked about it.

"The bandit nation of Kievan Rus dared to kill and plunder the people of the Northern Ming Dynasty of our Great Zhou. They are truly courting their own destruction!
Your Majesty sent the Crown Prince to lead the army, and in just over a year, the entire territory of Kievan Rus was pacified!"

“I heard that His Royal Highness the Crown Prince has issued an order that the three commanders of the Dragon Army will be very ruthless this time. For the Russians who dare to resist, except for young women and three-year-old children who will be taken back to Beiming as slaves, all others will be slaughtered.

It was really a complete revenge, so powerful and domineering!"

"Brothers, His Majesty has called on us common people to voluntarily immigrate to Kievan Rus. What do you think?"

"Since it is His Majesty's decree, we, the people of the Great Zhou, should fully support it!
Moreover, I heard that Your Majesty specifically drove out the Russians from dozens of states around Kiev and gave this place to our Han people to relocate.

I heard that the Kiev Plain area is located in the southwest and has a warmer climate, making it a good place to grow crops.”

"Even in this recruitment of immigrants, His Majesty only gave each household 50 mu of land and 20 taels of silver. This is much less than what the Mayan Continent gave, so it's not really worth it."

"Xiao Zhang, you should never forget your roots!

Without your Majesty, how could we, the common people, have the good life of having enough food and clothing and holding our heads high now? !

Go ask your parents how they lived when they were little.

Before Your Majesty ascended the throne, the people paid heavy taxes and had many corvées. Any petty official in the government office could discipline the people. If you didn't starve to death after working so hard for a year, you were lucky! "

"That's right!

As long as it is your majesty's decree, we, the people of the Great Zhou, should fully support it!
What's more, the immigration conditions given by Your Majesty this time are already generous enough. Once you go to Kiev, you will give each family 50 acres of fertile land.

How can this be compared with the Mayan continent? It takes more than six months to travel by land to the Mayan continent, and at least four months by sea. Once you go there, the chances of returning home are very rare in your lifetime.

It is only 3 miles from the mainland to Kiev, and most of the roads are straight. It only takes a little over months to travel there, so it is not difficult to go back to my hometown to visit relatives! "

“There is another benefit of immigrating to Kiev, which many of you don’t know!
My eldest son is a captain of the Sixth Corps of the Longxiong Army. I heard from his family in the letter he wrote to report his safety that the Longxiong Army’s expedition to Kievan Rus was extremely brutal and all the surrendered Russian devils were beheaded on the spot.

After more than a year of fighting, at least one million Russian male devils were killed.

There are only a little over ten million Russians in total, with five to six million men and women. The number of local men has suddenly decreased by more than a million, and things are precious because they are scarce. Men are treasures when they go there. Women not only do not ask for betrothal gifts, but also have to bring a lot of dowry in order to find a husband!
I have already planned to let Xiaowu and Xiaoliu, two unmarried boys, respond to His Majesty's call and immigrate to Kiev! This will save a lot of money on betrothal gifts!"

At that time, people who had unmarried men in their families were all attracted.

……

(End of this chapter)