.    , The Three Kingdoms began with fooling Liu Bei

The Grand Canal planned by Li Su really needs to be fought. It is only the part north of the Yellow River. There is indeed no old river channel for use since ancient times, so it must be dug again.

Of course, the so-called re-digging does not mean that it is completely new digging like when Emperor Yang of Sui, because Li Su now has a team of surveyors that combines Chinese and Western styles.

The altitude surveyors trained by him and Zhuge Liang, as well as the practical level of famous craftsmen from the Roman Empire, was simply too experienced in finding altitude water spots for natural rivers.

Therefore, in the future, the mileage required to be excavated by the Han Dynasty will be much shorter. Just connect the Zhangshui water system with the Hutuo River-Yi Water System. Then, choose a place south of Yecheng to build a connecting Yellow River and Zhangshui.

These two communicative river channels are dug, and the remaining two-thirds of the mileage is just used directly to use the natural river channels of Zhangshui Yishui.

The purpose of this canal is not to transport materials to Ji County, but to connect materials around Yecheng more closely with Luoyang, and at the same time radiate to inland plain areas such as Zhongshan County, Zhuo County, Julu County, and Hejian County, which are not near the sea.

The Bohai County, which is truly near the sea in Jizhou, and even around Ji County in Youzhou, is still the same saying, "Sea Transportation of Grain" is placed, so you don't have to worry about transportation inconvenience.

To put it bluntly, Li Su's purpose of building the canal was like someone asked later in the late 20th century: "Why should the Beijing-Guangzhou Railway and Guangzhou-Kuangzhou Railway be specially built when there was the Beijing-Kuangzhou Railway?"

Because the Beijing-Kowloon Railway is not only to connect to Beijing-Kowloon, but also to build places along the railway where there were no railways. For example, Beijing-Guangzhou went to Henan Province and Hunan Province, while Anhui Province and Jiangxi Province were relatively difficult to benefit. The Beijing-Kowloon Railway went to another line, and was more to take care of Anhui and Jiangxi Province.

Li Su’s idea of ​​planning the canal is also clear: Ji County does not need this canal, but it is needed between the Julu River in Zhongshan, Wei County, and the vast inland hinterland of the Hebei Plain.

It took a few years to gradually repair the major artery of the north transportation of materials, and then recover the people's strength. Then it was time for the Han Dynasty to fully destroy the Xianbei.

As for the remnants of the Qiang and the Qiang tribes in Hexi, Hai and Xi, those things were already at the end of their power. They were beaten to death by Ma Chao six or seven years ago. If it weren't for the support of the Xianbei, they would never have been able to resist the Han Dynasty alone.

Therefore, after 210 years, these barbarians will be completely arranged.

Li Su's ten-year plan was moderate and took into account the rest of the people. He basically made the foreign troubles of the Han Dynasty from the northwest to the northeast and then to the east.

...

After Liu Bei understood Li Su's plan comprehensively, he followed his ideas and began to coordinate the subsequent personnel arrangements of the court.

He first asked Li Su what he meant, taking advantage of the past few years of "governing" and there were few central affairs and the court did not need reforms. Whether Li Su himself wanted to seek exile again.

For Li Su, "release" is actually equivalent to half a vacation, and there will be no more things. At the same time, as the prime minister, he does not want to take charge of the government affairs in the capital, but delegates power moderately, which is also a manifestation of lack of ambition.

A normal person who can achieve this position will definitely not make such a choice, and he is worried that he will not be able to take it back in the future after delegating power. But Li Su is not worried about this at all, and he is eager to put down the specific work. He is good at focusing on big and letting go of the small, focusing on big strategic planning and thinking about the orthodox construction of rule.

Moreover, if others become prime ministers, they are in their fifties and sixties, so they don’t have to rush to recuperate and return to their fiefdoms. They will return sooner or later after retirement.

Li Su became prime minister at the age of 30, and he was only 33 next year. He was also very depressed to stay in Luoyang since then.

Therefore, after the monarch and ministers privately, Liu Bei decided to give Li Su a leave considering that there were indeed fewer things in recent years and that the prime minister did not need to take charge of the affairs in person.

He followed the flow and suggested that Li Su first took a half-time vacation to Yangzhou starting next year, and he could take care of his fiefdom.

Of course, the official name is the governor of the eastern coastal states, while rebuilding the post-war order, being responsible for local farming construction, and preparing to deal with Gongsun Du.

The Prime Minister was in charge of his army outside, and this kind of thing was also famous. In history, Zhuge Liang was in charge of his army outside during Liu Chan's tenure. Even after the world was unified, this was a precedent. In the early years of the Western Zhou Dynasty, after King Wu successfully defeated Zhou, Duke Zhou assisted the government, leaving one assistant minister to the east and west to govern the local area and take charge of the world.

Because in the early Western Zhou Dynasty, the remnants of Zhou Zhou of Shang were dissatisfied with the various abnormal movements of the Eastern Yi. Liu Bei had just destroyed Cao Cao and rested for a year or two, and then asked the Prime Minister to manage the easternmost Xinguangfu area nearby. Adding Yangzhou to the transition for two years is also reasonable.

It is considered "like the story of Zhou Gong".

Considering that the Han system had previously stipulated that the governor of the local affairs of several states generally had a term of one year, and additional special approvals should not exceed one year. So this time, it would be given two years (from 204 to 205).

Then he sent Zhuge Liang out and left Xuzhou. After all, Zhuge Liang had accumulated rich experience in central positions in this life, but he had less qualifications as a local official.

Although he has served as the Yin and Sili School of Henan, his level is very high, but his actual mastery is very small, because his territory is close to the capital and his talent is inflated.

It’s like Zhuge Liang only cared for prefecture-level cities and municipalities directly under the central government, but never really cared for a province.

Now I will be released to handle all parties in Xuzhou and give Zhuge Liang a favor to manage and build his hometown. It is also the best of both worlds, supplementing his resume and facilitating his growth.

In addition, after Li Su and Zhuge Liang arrived at the local area separately, some civil servants who had been in the local area for many years also took back the center and transferred to Jiuqing to make up for their resumes, preparing to be promoted to the Third Duke in the future.

Lu Su, who had been in Jingzhou for many years, had returned to the center last year and served as the Nine Ministers.

After Governor Li Su's eastern coastal states, Gu Yong could also be transferred back to Luoyang, allowing Gu Yong to make up for the resumes of the nine ministers and become a minister, laying the foundation for further reuse in the future.

I believe that in a few years, as Zhong Yao completely retreated to the second line, the older generation of three dukes gradually retreated. Talents such as Lu Su, Fa Zheng, Gu Yong, and even Zhuge Jin and Zhuge Liang brothers will gradually be replaced to the level of three dukes, as well as Shangshu Ling and Shizhong.

The rotation of transfers between senior central civil servants and border officials was clearly arranged, which not only cultivated a talent team, but also avoided the long-term existence of a certain position, resulting in the inconsistent forces and the large ends.

Li Su's place in the town has also become a "leading example", which seems very reasonable:

It was not that the prime minister wanted to go out of Beijing to be lazy and go to the newly occupied area in the East to enjoy the mountains and rivers, but he just set an example for Gu Yong and Lu Su, so that Gu Yong and Lu Su would not operate in the local area for too long and did not want to enter the court.

After discussing all the plans with Liu Bei, Li Su also showed Liu Bei some interesting things and barbarian sailing talents that Zhou Yu surrendered a few months ago.

However, Liu Bei did not understand technology or navigation, so he didn't understand much.

He only knew that he should know people and be good at placing them, and he would not doubt his employers. So he told Li Su not to ask for instructions. After arriving in Yangzhou, he would do whatever he thought he should do. Even Zhou Yu could use it again.

All factors, technologies and management methods that are conducive to the development of navigation in the Han Dynasty and deter overseas barbarians can be used as reference.

...

After this in-depth communication with Liu Bei, Li Su continued to stay in Luoyang for three or four months to handle daily government affairs.

By the way, he summoned Zhou Yu many times to learn about the overseas situation and the new navigation experience that Zhou Yu has mastered in recent years.

Li Su's plan was to wait for the Mid-Autumn Festival and the weather was getting cooler. He asked Liu Bei for a three-month vacation, then walked and went south to Yangzhou, and returned to his fiefdom, Kuaiji County, before the winter began.

After all, summer is too hot, and Li Su doesn't want to go to the south on a hot day. It's just right to go to Yangzhou in winter.

The term of office of the Governor of the East China Sea states can be calculated from the first month of next year, and the three months this winter are only considered leave requested by the Prime Minister.

However, from May to August, Li Su was not idle, because he had gained a lot from many communications with Zhou Yu. So from June, Li Su gave up his past grudges and asked Zhou Yu to come to the Prime Minister's Mansion several times every month to report on his work and introduce his experience in navigation.

Even with Li Su's disciple Zhuge Liang came several times, and he followed him to discuss.

When Zhou Yu entered Beijing at the beginning of the year, Liu Bei granted Zhou Yu the official position of General Henghai, and he could continue to manage the territory of Yizhou and command the old subordinates.

However, the local officials who needed to allow the court to send civilian positions to Yizhou were only in charge of local military defense, and internal affairs and supervision must be gradually transferred to the court.

At first, Zhou Yu was a little resistant, mainly because Sun Quan's sudden assassination caused Zhou Yu's behavior of surrender to be shadowed.

Regardless of whether Zhou Yu really surrendered to the Han Dynasty, he was once a subordinate of Sun Quan, so he had to show his "righteousness" to the former master's family. It was impossible for him to contribute to the court immediately when Sun Quan died.

Li Su also knew this, so he advised Liu Bei to raise Zhou Yu for a few months, but he didn't ask him about his serious matters and deal with him for a while.

Later, Cao Pi and Xu Chu were also executed. The truth of the case was revealed, and it was indeed not related to the court's affairs. Three or four months later, Zhou Yu expressed his grief for the former lord for more than a hundred days. Everyone took Zhou Yu's loyalty in their eyes, and then gradually officially started.

Later, Zhou Yu discovered that Li Su was indeed full of talent and was sincerely concerned about the great man's navigation and development career. In this regard, he was like-minded with Zhou Yu.

Zhou Yu also hoped to show his power in foreign lands and explore overseas for the Han Dynasty. Since he could realize his ambitions and leave his name in history, he turned around and sincerely explained his experience and gains over the years.

...

On the fifth day of the sixth month, this day was Zhou Yu’s first time to come to the Prime Minister’s Mansion, and formally and thoroughly explained his experience in developing overseas.

Moreover, Li Su also knew that Zhou Yu had some real information in his mind, so he notified his beloved disciple Zhuge Liang in advance, as well as the general Taishi Ci who happened to be recalled to the capital at that time, and Gan Ning also attended the meeting together to listen to relevant experiences.

Gan Ning Taishi Ci fought with Zhou Yu, and each had his own victory or defeat, so it was inevitable that he would not accept it.

Fortunately, Li Su was in charge and held a banquet as the prime minister, and presented the highest-end delicacies and mellow wine to help the generals, so that they could become ministers in the future, cooperate with each other sincerely, and leave their names in history. Both sides took advantage of the situation and let them settle their past grudges.

After drinking for three rounds, Zhou Yu sincerely started with his experience and gained knowledge over the years. He first talked about the overseas territory he had discovered and interpreted the charts he had drawn.

On that sea chart, the coastal terrain of the entire island of Yizhou was roughly drawn for the first time, which was not much the same as the shape of the Bay map recognized by Li Su later generations, and of course it was not that accurate.

The main ones are the navigators under Zhou Yu. After all, the skills in drawing surveying and mapping are not as good as those in Liu Bei's camp. Li Su didn't say anything after reading it. Instead, Zhuge Liang said that he could send a few surveyors and drawing crews he trained to send a boat to follow Zhou Yu to re-survey and map.

As for the inland terrain of Yizhou, Zhou Yu certainly couldn't know, because he has only established two plain bases on the central and northern coasts on the island, and has only explored about one or two percent of the land area of ​​the entire island.

In more inland areas, Zhou Yu only knows that they are all high mountains and dense forests, or plain jungles, tropical rainforests, and mainly there are many mountainous areas in the east and plains in the west. Apart from that, Zhou Yu doesn’t know anything.

After all, even all naturalized barbarians were included, the island had a population of only 100,000, and the Han people had no more than 30,000, which was equivalent to two or three counties in later generations, which was definitely enough to live there.

According to Zhou Yu, only 30,000 Han residents mainly farmed. In the past four or five years, they barely naturalized 10,000 or 20,000 barbarians and mountain Yue, allowing them to learn farming with the Han people.

But at least 70% of the barbarians, more than 50,000 people, are still fishing and hunting nations. About 10,000 or 20,000 people use primitive canoes to go out to sea to fish, and 30,000 to 40,000 people hunt for survival.

Half of them are the main ones who hunt deer alone. Some brave mountain people dare to hunt even wild boars and other beasts. Each person can catch more than a dozen large prey every year, and rely on the subsidies for wild fruit collected from the mountains and forests to barely fill their stomachs.

Then the animal skins will be transported to the plain river estuary farming area in the central and northern part of the west coast to trade with the Han people under Zhou Yu.

Two or three years before Zhou Yu surrendered, he had secretly sent many sea boats to disguise themselves as civilian ships to the coast of Kuaiji County, traded with local merchants and powerful people, and exchanged animal skins for the products from the Central Plains.

Last year was the last peak of Zhou Yu's land reclamation and farming career. That year, the total number of various deer skins (including elk and muntjac) obtained from the trade of the island Yueman was as large as 300,000,000,000, and tens of thousands of other large animal skins.

With these things, Zhou Yu secretly exchanged tens of thousands of kilograms of iron every year, as well as many other important pioneering production materials.

It seems that Yu Fan, the prefect of Kuaiji, did not investigate this aspect very strictly in the past few years, and of course, this cannot be completely blamed on Yu Fan.

The main reason was that Li Su didn't think that Zhou Yu was a threat at that time. Sooner or later, he would have the confidence to return to the Han Dynasty, so there was no need to carry out an economic blockade of "films and films cannot go into the sea" like the Qing Dynasty in the future.

At that time, I turned a blind eye and just thought it was just to support the acceleration of the development of foreign immigration and development.

Ganning Taishici didn't care much about these people's livelihood information, and he was about to fall asleep when he heard it, just waiting for the follow-up to talk about navigation and geographical discoveries.

However, Zhuge Liang listened with relish. He also noticed a question from Zhou Yu's introduction: "There are so many wild deer and wild boars in Yizhou. Could it be that they are separated from the Central Plains because of this, and there have been no beasts since ancient times?"

After hearing Zhuge Liang's question, Zhou Yu couldn't help but secretly praised Zhuge Liang for being able to infer such important information when he saw the small knowledge. He recalled a little, combined with the feedback from his subordinates over the past few years, and said cautiously:

"It seems that there is no tiger and bear. In addition, Yizhou has many jungle and mountainous areas, so wolves are not suitable for breeding. Most wolves are on the grassland, so pigs and deer are very thriving. There is only a kind of sensitive leopard in the mountains, which is rare in the Central Plains. Since the Prime Minister and the Chief Zhuge Zhengzhou Officer mentioned it, they happened to bring some leopard skins this time for tasting."

Zhou Yu also sincerely ordered people to go home and took some of the things he brought from Yizhou, which was a gift.

Zhuge Liang didn't know much. Judging from the leather, it was just a cat. It was less than five feet long (one meter two), and it was estimated to weigh less than one hundred pounds. It was not considered a beast. No wonder the threat to deer was just like that.

No matter what, Yizhou's special natural environment is rich in resources and is worthy of in-depth development.
To be continued...