Great Han Empire

Chapter 781
Encouraged by Zhou Yu's words, Sun Ce suddenly felt his blood boil, and he wished he could jump on his horse and whip his whip, and gallop across the battlefield.

Zhou Yu blushed, immersed in the dream of berating Fang Qiu and pointing Jiangshan.Lu Su was also very excited, looking eager to try.

Sun Ben, Zhu Zhi, and Cheng Pu have been through the battlefield for a long time, and the expressions in their eyes are very complicated. Although Zhou Yu's words can inspire people, the bloody facts of more than ten years tell them that dreams and reality are often very different.There is nothing wrong with young people having dreams and passion. In the future, after they have experienced many ruthless and cruel blows, I hope they can still stick to this dream and maintain this passion in their hearts.Whether it is for survival or for realizing ambitions, having a dream and passion is the most important thing.The three looked at each other and remained silent.

Zhang Zhao was very calm, without the slightest bit of excitement. The eyes of the three young men looking at Sun Ce showed unstoppable admiration, and perhaps a bit of self-mockery.Older and more knowledgeable, his understanding and views on world affairs are quite different from those of these three young people.He didn't speak. Perhaps he thought that at this time, he should not speak out to stop them, but to stimulate the fighting spirit of these young people even more.

Only with an indomitable fighting spirit can there be morale, and only with an indomitable morale can we be invincible.

=

Zhou Yu calmed down his emotions, and continued to explain to Sun Ce and others the strategy of attacking Yangzhou and Jiangbei counties.

Sun Ce had more than 3 soldiers and horses in the Jiangdong area. After the defeat of Guangling, about 5000 troops were lost. With the current strength, it is not a problem to attack Jiangbei. Rong's army, Lingyang in the west of Danyang County had Tai Shici's army, so Zhu Zhi and Sun Ben's 8000 troops in Danyang County could not move.In addition, considering that the army will not be able to return in a short period of time after attacking Jiangbei, Wu County and Kuaiji County must stay in the army.Calculated in this way, Sun Ce can only lead 8000 troops across the river to the north at most. Even if Zhou Yu's [-] soldiers are added, the total force is only [-].It is too difficult to take Jiujiang and Lujiang counties with [-] people in a short period of time.

"In order to gather more troops to cross the river north, can Brother Bo Fu shake hands with Liu Yao and Hua Xin on the pretext of attacking Yuan Shu?" Zhou Yu looked at Sun Ce and said with a smile, "Although we fought with Liu Yao back and forth, We fought for three years, but Liu Yao is obviously at a disadvantage, if we take the initiative to negotiate peace with him at this time, he should be very happy."

Sun Ce hesitated for a moment, then turned to look at Zhang Zhao.Zhang Zhao looked cold and serious, and he couldn't tell what was going on in his heart.Negotiating peace with Liu Yao is tantamount to negotiating peace with Ze (ze), and Zhang Zhao obviously would not agree.

Of course Zhou Yu understood what Sun Ce and Zhang Zhao were thinking, so he smiled and explained.

=

Since we drove Liu Yao to Yuzhang County, why haven't we captured Yuzhang County yet?Why has he been blocked by his army in Jingyang and Lingyang in the west of Danyang County?
The reason is simple. When Liu Yao and Ruo Rong retreated to Yuzhang, they still had considerable strength.As long as they join forces, with our current strength, it will be difficult to make an inch of progress.The more we fought, the more determined the two joined forces, the smaller the conflict between the two, and in the end we got nothing.So, let's take a step back and give Liu Yao and Ruo Rong a period of stability, and let them fight for Yuzhang County.When both of them are hurting, we can win Yuzhang without any effort.After taking Yuzhang, we can directly kill Jingzhou.

The main initiative and Liu Yao's stated purpose was to capture the two counties in Jiangbei, but the real purpose was to capture Yuzhang County and open up the road to Jingzhou.

Liu Yao and Ruo Rong have always had a feud, and you all know it.

Three years ago, after we successfully crossed the river and attacked, Ruo Rong and Xue Li's soldiers retreated to Yuzhang, while Liu Yao and Tai Shici continued to fight fiercely with us in Wujun.

When Ze Rong and Xue Libing retreated from Yuzhang, Zhu Hao, the prefect of Yuzhang at that time, was fighting with Zhuge Xuan, the prefect of Yuzhang sent by Yuan Shu, to fight for Yuzhang, and forced Zhuge Xuan to retreat to the west city.

After Liu Yao was defeated by Sun Ce, he went back to Jiangxi and stationed his troops in Pengze.After hearing the news of the fierce battle between Zhu Hao and Zhuge Xuan, he wrote to Ze Rong and ordered him to lead the army to help Zhu Hao deal with Zhuge Xuan together and keep his last foothold.It's a pity that Liu Yao's entrustment is not human, and Ruo Rong's nature is hard to change. He thinks that there is an opportunity to take advantage of it, and he can win Yuzhang and no longer be controlled by others.

Hua Xin pointed out to Liu Yao that Ruo Rong has a bad nature and is an untrustworthy villain, while Zhu Hao has always treated people with sincerity and kindness, so he is easy to be murdered by Ruo Rong, and he may be killed like Zhao Yu, the prefect of Guangling, so he should notify Zhu Hao guarded against Ruo Rong, but it was too late.Ruo Rong turned his back on his master and abandoned his friends, and decisively raised his sword to kill Zhu Hao and seize Yuzhang.

Regretted, Liu Yao worshiped Hua Xin as the prefect of Yuzhang, and the two marched together to attack Ze Rong, but because Sun Ce's army attacked continuously from behind, Liu Yao was defeated several times by Ze Rong.Zhu Hao's elder brother, Zhu Fu, governor of Jiaozhou, almost sent troops north to avenge his younger brother, but was persuaded by Mou Zi, and temporarily held back.

After Ruo Rong captured Yuzhang by shameless means, it was difficult to gain the support of the people, and life became more and more difficult, and gradually retreated to the southeast of Yuzhang County, while Liu Yao and Hua Xin were unable to do so because they were repeatedly attacked by Sun Ce. Go take care of Ruo Rong again.In order to survive, the two parties negotiated a peace and turned to work together to deal with Sun Ce.

In order to rekindle the war between Liu Yao and Ruo Rong and let them fight each other in Yuzhang, we must not only take the initiative to negotiate peace with Liu Yao, but also pretend to agree to all Liu Yao's conditions.In this way, we can not only recruit more troops to go north to attack Yuan Shu, but also sit on the mountain and watch the tigers fight, and use Liu Yao's sword to kill Ruo Rong. In addition, we can wait for the opportunity to take Yuzhang.

=

Zhou Yu's strategy was unanimously appreciated by everyone.A rare smile appeared on Zhang Zhao's reserved face.

After solving the worries for the future, I sent people to the north to discuss with Cao Cao and Liu Bei, and to present a confession to the emperor and the court.Sun Ce attacked Guangling when Xuzhou was empty of troops, and formed hatred with Cao Cao and Liu Bei. If the person who went north to negotiate peace made a bad choice, it is very likely that all previous efforts will be wasted.

Zhang Zhao recommended Wang Lang, the former prefect of Kuaiji County.Wang Lang is a famous scholar in Xuzhou, and he is close friends with Xuzhou officials Chen Deng, Mi Zhu, Sun Qian and others. If he goes north to negotiate a peace, he will surely succeed.In addition, Sun Ce had just conquered Kuaiji County, and Wang Lang had great influence in Kuaiji County. When Sun Ce went north to attack Yuan Shu, it was not safe to leave this man in Jiangdong.

When he went to Yuzhang County to discuss peace with Liu Yao, Zhang Zhao recommended his friend Zhang Hong from Guangling.

=

At the end of September, when Sun Ce, Zhou Yu and others were deploying troops to cross the river and start attacking, Yuan Shu's letter was sent to Moling.

In the battle of Jizhou, the outcome of the Northern Expeditionary Army being forced to retreat due to Yuan Shu's betrayal was expected by everyone, but the heavy losses suffered by the Northern Expeditionary Army during the retreat were far beyond everyone's expectations.Hebei's strength is too strong.

In addition to being shocked, facing the Central Plains War that has already begun, everyone feels confusing and unpredictable.Will Yuan Shao come forward to support Yuan Shu?Will the Northern Xinjiang Army take advantage of the momentum to cross the river and go down the river?If Yuan Shu got the support of Yuan Shao, defeated Cao Cao and captured the Central Plains, the situation of the world would change drastically. At that time, what would be the end of Sun Ce's betrayal?Can Sun Ce still hold Jiangdong?

Yuan Shao's attitude determined Yuan Shu's fate, the outcome of the Central Plains War, and the life and death of Jiangdong's heroes.

Sun Ce felt that a bloody saber was being held on the heads of all the heroes in Jiangdong at this moment. If he was not careful, the saber would be struck down with a thunderbolt, and both jade and stone would be destroyed.

Sun Ce hesitated.

Zhang Zhao, Zhou Yu, Lu Su and others held Yuan Shu's letter and gathered around the map to discuss the situation.

After the Jizhou War, Hebei suffered heavy losses, and there was a rebellion in Liaodong, making it impossible to cross the south of the river in a short period of time.Yuan Shao's strength is still strong.Cao Cao's three alliances suffered heavy losses and were on the verge of collapse.Yuan Shu's public betrayal has become the target of public criticism.At this time, the Central Plains War happened to be the best opportunity for Yuan Shao to defeat Cao Cao and Yuan Shu and monopolize the Central Plains. It is almost impossible for Yuan Shao to help Yuan Shu defeat Cao Cao.

If Yuan Shao occupies the Central Plains, his strength will be strong enough to fight against Hebei. Then, no matter whether Sun Ce betrays Yuan Shu or not, he will eventually become the target of Yuan Shao's attack.

Since Yuan Shao would not help Yuan Shu and wanted to put Yuan Shu to death, and since Yuan Shao would extend his hand to Jiangdong sooner or later, then Sun Ce attacked Yuan Shu and occupied the two counties of Yangzhou and Jiangbei, which was tantamount to helping Cao Cao keep the Central Plains.Cao Cao kept the Central Plains and formed a rivalry with Yuan Shao. Sun Ce also saved Jiangdong and bought time for Jiangdong's development.In addition, now that the Son of Heaven is in the hands of Cao Cao, helping Cao Cao is equivalent to helping the Son of Heaven. From this point of view, it is correct to attack Yuan Shu, and Sun Ce and Jiang Dong will get the most benefit from this attack.

After Sun Ce attacked Yuan, Yuan Shu would suffer heavy losses. He would either be killed by Cao Cao or defect to Yuan Shao, but no matter what choice Yuan Shu made, the enmity between Sun Ce and the Yuan Clan was settled.In this way, Sun Ce can only be tied tightly with Cao Cao and Liu Bei, and Cao Cao will rebuild the three alliances again to fight Yuan Shao.

With the backing of Cao Cao and Liu Bei in the Central Plains, Sun Ce can take the opportunity to vigorously develop Jiangdong and quickly attack Jingzhou.

Jingzhou Liu Biao and Yuan Shao have always been a solid alliance. To fight Jingzhou, one can avenge Sun Jian; From the foothold, I plan to go north to occupy the Central Plains, so as to realize the grand ambition of pacifying the world and revitalizing the Han Dynasty in the future.

The incisive analysis by Zhang Zhao, Zhou Yu and others gave Sun Ce great confidence. After much consideration, he finally made up his mind.

=

October of the first year of Jianxing (AD 197) of the Han Dynasty.

=

In October, Jinyang.

When General Li Hong arrived at Longshan, he was greeted by Taichangqing Xunyou.

Li Hong chatted and laughed with Xun You affectionately, but felt a little strange in his heart.According to the usual practice, it should be Xian Yufu and Li Wei who went out of the city to welcome him back to the court. Why is Xun You here today?It's been more than half a year since I left Jinyang, and there are many things in the court that Xian Yufu and Li Wei need to vent to themselves first. What's going on today?

Xun You seemed to know the doubts in Li Hong's heart.After exchanging greetings with Li Hong, he immediately explained: "The general won a complete victory in Jizhou, and his military exploits are outstanding. In order to thank the general for everything he has done for the great man, His Majesty, the eldest princess, and the ministers of the court, specially gave the general A grand entrance ceremony has been prepared. At that time, His Majesty, Princess Eldest, Minister of Military Affairs, and hundreds of thousands of people will gather at the city of Jinyang to welcome the general back in triumph."

"At this moment, the eldest princess and the ministers in the court, including Mrs. Xianyu and Mrs. Li, are busy in the city for tomorrow's ceremony." Xun You bowed slightly and said with a smile, "The two lords will rush to Longshan tomorrow morning to welcome Mrs. The general returns."

Li Hong was taken aback, suddenly felt something was wrong.I am very opposed to engaging in such extravagant and luxurious etiquette, and Northern Xinjiang has never held any celebration ceremony for so many years.From the eldest princess to the ordinary officials in the court, everyone knew about this matter. Why did they suddenly go out of their way this time and hold such a grand ceremony?
Li Hong took a careful look at Xun You.Xun You's smile was very kind, but there was a hint of sadness between his brows.

=

"General, the Longshan camp has arrived, please enter and rest." Huben Zhonglang Duan Xuan, who accompanied Xun You to welcome Li Hong, said respectfully.

Li Hong looked up at the barracks under the distant mountains, then at the sky, and shook his head, "Go back to Jinyang immediately."

Xun You and Duan Xuan were taken aback.Duan Xuan waved his single arm and persuaded softly: "General, Your Majesty has an order, please..."

"I'll go back and apologize to His Majesty." Li Hong's tone was unquestionable, "Go back to Jinyang immediately."

"General, it's almost dusk now. If you want to go back to Jinyang, it will be midnight." Xun You hurriedly dissuaded, "The eldest princess and the ministers have been busy for more than half a month for tomorrow's ceremony. If you go back to Jinyang overnight, What about tomorrow's ceremony?"

Li Hong shook his head, hesitated to speak, and then sighed.He originally wanted to say that because the army lacked money and food, the number of troops attacking Hanoi had been reduced to a minimum, but you are here to spend extravagant celebrations and spend money recklessly, which is simply outrageous.When the words came to his lips, he remembered that there might be something hidden about this matter, so he swallowed it back.

"Go back to Jinyang." Li Hong said loudly.

=

Li Hong didn't ride a horse, but sat in a carriage with Xun You.

It was getting darker and darker, and the cabin gradually fell into darkness.

Li Hong sat across from Xun You, keeping his eyes closed.Xun You folded his arms and lowered his head, as if he was asleep.

Li Hong couldn't bear it anymore, he sat up straight suddenly, stretched out his hand and pushed Xun You, "Master Xun, do you have to say something to me?"

Xun You looked up at Li Hong, hesitated for a long time, and then asked in a low voice: "General, do you think the current three-metric system in the imperial court is appropriate?"

Li Hong was suddenly enlightened, and his expression suddenly became serious.

In order to compete with China and North Korea for power, the ministers of the foreign court fought again.

Since Zhang Wen and other seven old ministers arrived in northern Xinjiang, the struggle between prime minister and imperial power has intensified.Zhang Wen and others took the initiative to revise the official system, re-established the Sangong Jiuqing system headed by the prime minister, Taiwei and Yushi doctor, and vigorously weakened the power of Shangshutai.After Emperor Xiaoxian arrived in Jinyang, Zhang Wen and other ministers insisted on revising the official system, but because of Emperor Xiaoxian's resistance, he had to mediate from it, forcing the ministers of the foreign court to give way, and pushed the eldest princess to the front to be the secretary. A six-year agreement was made.Six years later, Emperor Xiaoxian came to power, and during these six years, the eldest princess returned this part of the power to the foreign court through restructuring.

However, no one expected that the emperor died.The consequences of the emperor's death were very serious. First, Hebei ushered in the Jizhou War, and second, the eldest princess took charge of state affairs.The former forced Hebei into trouble, and the latter forced the court into a struggle for imperial power and power.

Li Hong regrets it now. He knows that the mistake he made at the beginning was fatal. This mistake led to a series of crises in Hebei.

If I had resolutely stood on the side of Zhang Wen and other ministers of the foreign court and refused to return the power, and forcibly moved the emperor to Jinyang, there would have been no major rebellion case in Jinyang, and the emperor would not have died. The great Jizhou war and the current court crisis will not appear.

Li Hong was very regretful.

=

"How long has this been going on?" Li Hong asked feebly.

"It started when the general decided to change the battle on the outside line to the inside line, and moved millions of people out of the war zone." Xun You said in a low voice, "At that time, many ministers of the DPRK and China objected to fighting on the inside line, but because the eldest princess and many With the firm support of the ministers, the decision of the general was passed smoothly. From this incident, the eldest princess and Shang Shutai have monopolized power, and all political affairs unrelated to the Jizhou war have been put on hold, and the conflict between the outer court and China and North Korea has finally been aroused .”

Xun You said the second half of the sentence very vaguely, but the key lies in the second half of the sentence.

Li Hong frowned slightly, and asked: "What are all the political affairs that have nothing to do with the Jizhou War?"

Xun You didn't answer.

"Did the eldest princess and Shang Shutai monopolize power by putting aside all political affairs that have nothing to do with the Jizhou war? Or by deciding to support my Jizhou war decision?"

Xun You still didn't answer.

"Lord Xun, you must explain this matter to me clearly, otherwise when I return to Jinyang, who should I listen to? Is it from the eldest princess or the foreign court minister?"

Xun You still didn't answer.

"Lord Xun, who instigated this matter? Is it a foreign court minister?" Li Hong's voice suddenly became severe, "Is it the three princes and nine ministers including you? Is it including ministers such as Xian Yufu and Li Wei? "

Xun You looked at Li Hong in the dark and nodded.

"Master Xun, I hope to hear your explanation."

Li Hong pulled open the car door violently, and waved his hand at Cao Ren, the thief under the door guarding the carriage, "Send the order to stop marching and rest on the spot."

=

Li Hong closed the car door, looked at Xun You, and waited patiently.

Xun You thought for a long time, and began to slowly describe what happened in Jinyang in the past few months.

After the Battle of Jizhou was changed to an internal battle, a series of problems were immediately involved. The biggest problem was the migration of millions of people and the relief to these millions of people for a year, as well as the fallow of dozens of counties in southern Jizhou. food shortages.The shortage of money and food immediately became the biggest problem that the court needed to solve.

If this difficult problem is not resolved, the life of the court next year will be difficult.Both Xijiang and Bianjun need relief, money and food. If the money and food cannot be delivered to Xijiang and Bianjun in time, Han Sui in Xiliang is likely to betray the imperial court, and the barbarians in Bianjun are likely to use the Kirby bear to claim power in the desert. Wang and Liaodong's rebellion brought disaster to the desert and frontier fortresses.Once the western border is out of control and the border counties are on fire again, it will be more difficult for the imperial court to bring Han Sui back and stabilize the frontier fortress.

In order to solve the problem of money and food, the foreign ministers agreed on a series of contingency plans, which involved taxation, salt and iron, land system, cargo breeding, farming and animal husbandry, water conservancy, etc., but there are only three states in Hebei, and only Jizhou can provide the court with what it needs. Therefore, the result of the implementation of these emergency plans is nothing more than increasing the burden on the people of Hebei and delaying the pace of Hebei's accelerated development.

This is the only way to tide over the difficulties at present, but after careful deliberation by the eldest princess and a group of ministers at Shangshutai, they ignored it and put it on the shelf.

Of course, the eldest princess will not sit idly by and ignore the current situation in Hebei. She also put forward a proposal, and it was this proposal that provoked a fierce struggle for power between the foreign and Chinese DPRK.

=

The eldest princess intends to increase the imperial court's wealth and income by promoting land cuts and renting shade households.

The so-called earth break is to redefine the boundaries of counties and counties, and then compile unified household registration according to the new boundaries of counties and counties. All residents within the boundaries of counties and counties will be registered in the official household registration in the county where they live, so that the imperial court can unify the household registration. The people of Qi collected taxes and collected corvees.

When the imperial court implemented the "dictation of land by dictation", it had already compiled a unified household registration. Why did the eldest princess implement the policy of land cut again?

Because they are attached to the shade households of the powerful and powerful families.

The so-called shady households refer to a part of the household registrations controlled by the aristocratic and wealthy families by virtue of their privileges and influence, including slaves, children, slaves, and tenants who rent the land of the aristocratic and aristocratic families, as well as poor clans and guests.They are all attached to the aristocratic families. In addition to farming, paying rent and performing labor services, they also serve as private soldiers, housekeepers, and patrol guards.These shady households under the control of the powerful landlords hid under the doors of the powerful and wealthy families, and no longer had any relationship with the imperial court.

The imperial court’s “dictation of land by dictation” system is very clear. The shadow households of powerful and powerful families must be registered in the household registration, and the land is granted equally, and taxes and corvee are paid equally. In the two years since the "dictation of land by dictation" system has been implemented, due to the imperfect system and the turbulent period, the rich and powerful have seized all the loopholes in the land system, and the imperial court has awarded the land to these shady households , but failed to collect all the taxes from these shady households.

The implementation of the policy of land cuts is to tax the land tax of the shady households and levy the corvees of the shady households.

Secondly, after the implementation of the policy of cutting off land, the royal clan and the Hu people in border counties also became the objects of tax collection by the court.

The clan of this dynasty has a special "clan name book", and the counties and countries are timed, and they are also reported as "Zongzheng", and they do not associate with the editors.These clans, including their shady households, do not have to pay taxes to the court.In addition, the Hu people in the border area of ​​this dynasty, because of various relationships, many Hu people were not included in the registered households of the imperial court, which also caused the imperial court to lose part of its taxes.

The eldest princess's policy of cutting land and renting shady households this time is aimed directly at the royal family and the rich and powerful, and the turmoil caused by it can be imagined.

The eldest princess immediately became the target of public criticism.

=

"When did this happen? Why didn't anyone tell me?" Li Hong was shocked after hearing Xun You's narration.

"This happened three months ago. Before the general left Jinyang, he told the ministers not to tell you anything unrelated to the Jizhou war. After the eldest princess came up with this proposal, she also warned the ministers again and again. Don't tell the general. The battle of Jizhou is related to the survival of the country. Who dares to influence you to fight at this critical moment?" Xun You sighed softly. Up and down are very tacit understanding, no one will disturb you, but..."

Xun You glanced nervously at Li Hong and shook his head repeatedly, "Last month, at the most critical moment in the Jizhou War, the Eldest Princess ignored the dissuasion of the ministers and suddenly ordered Taiyuan County and Hedong County to start trying out new strategies immediately."

Tian Yu, the prefect of Taiyuan, and Zuo Yan, the prefect of Hedong, are both staunch supporters of the new policy. These two counties have many royal families and rich families. One has the eldest princess sitting at the foot of the emperor, and the other has the support of the later general Xu Rong in Hedong. So Tian Yu and Zuo Yan took the lead in implementing the New Deal regardless of resistance.

The conflict between the ministers of the court and the eldest princess immediately heated up. Both sides used their best tactics, fighting from the court to the two counties, and each side refused to give in.

The eldest princess is single and weak, and is gradually losing the wind. At this time, the news of the Liaodong rebellion reached Jinyang.

The spearheads of the ministers of the DPRK and China pointed at Xu Rong almost at the same time.The eldest princess had no choice but to recall Xu Rong.Zuo Yan couldn't applaud in Hedong, and the implementation of the Hedong New Deal immediately came to a standstill.

=

After the initial shock, Li Hong calmed down slowly.

He knew the meaning of the grand princess and the court ministers holding a grand ceremony to welcome him back to the court.The eldest princess needs her own help and support to maintain the majesty of the imperial power.The ministers of the DPRK and China also need their own help and support to suppress the extremely inflated imperial power, regain the lost prime ministership power, and maintain the check and balance between the two.

Li Hong closed his eyes in the dark, thinking silently for a long time.

"What is the total population of the shady households in the three prefectures of Hebei, and the various tribes of the Hu tribe in the border counties?"

Xun You was also in deep thought. He was awakened by Li Hong's words, "there are about 300 million shady households in the three prefectures of Hebei. The Hu tribes in the border counties, including the Xiongnu in Hexi and the Qiang in Western Xinjiang, have about 100 million people. Around [-] mouths."

Li Hong was startled, and sat up straight involuntarily, "Three million shady households? Are there so many shady households in the three prefectures of Hebei?"

"Since your lord arrived in northern Xinjiang, do you know how many refugees and victims of disasters cross Hebei every year?" Xun You smiled wryly. "During the war, do you know how many lords and tycoons from all over the world embezzled land without owners? Those fields of the tycoons and rich people themselves Who is farming, do you know?"

Li Hong shook his head in disbelief.No wonder the eldest princess was so determined that she dared to make an enemy of the entire Jinyang court.This little princess has really grown up.

"Lord Xun, do you think the Eldest Princess' policy of cutting land and renting shaded households will be beneficial to Zhongxing Dahan?"

Xun You hid in the darkness without making any sound.

=

(End of this chapter)