"Zhao Pu and Qinglian layman have a poem saying that the road to Shu is as difficult as climbing to the sky. Although the road is dangerous and narrow, the mountains are high and the mountains are steep, and there are many strong passes, it can be seen that its terrain is favorable. However, over the past dynasties, whenever large armies entered Shu, they often succeeded. From afar, we can follow the Western Jin Dynasty to destroy Shu Han, and from near, we can see the Later Tang Dynasty conquering Shu. Now our Han Dynasty is marching, and it will be devastating, and the overall situation will be determined. What do you think is the reason for this?" Calling Zhao Pu, walking between the palaces, Liu Chengyou said with a asked him in a probing tone.
After hearing this, Zhao Pu became interested. He enjoyed discussing current affairs and the rise and fall of ancient and modern times with the emperor. After thinking for a while, Zhao Pu said: "I think there are four reasons.
First, Sichuan and Shu are relatively peaceful places with high mountains and dangerous roads. Although they are a barrier for them to rely on to protect the country, they also hinder their enterprising spirit and difficulty in expansion. Although Sichuan is called a country of abundance, even if it supports millions of people, it is difficult for them to expand. How can one compare with the Central Plains and Hebei with a hundred thousand soldiers? When the world is under control and the central government is strong, sending troops to seize Shu is like Mount Tai squeezing an egg. It is not something that the national power of Shu can compete with!
Secondly, when foreign troops enter Shu, it is often when Shu's national strength and military strength are weak. Just as Meng Shu is currently in political chaos and military weakness, the Western Mountains are crumbling at sunset.
Thirdly, when Shu was prosperous, its national power was even stronger than that of the Han Dynasty. However, the heroes from the Central Plains came out and repeatedly attacked and weakened their ambitions. Therefore, the stronger the Han, the weaker the Shu. The rich people in Shu also tended to corrupt their ambitions. The Lord of Shu Meng Chang had been in power for twenty years and could be regarded as a promising leader. However, in the later period, he indulged in pleasure, indulged his subordinates, and became a coward. How could he protect the country?
Fourth, there is a cycle of ordering chaos in the world. From chaos to order, this is the general trend. Your Majesty established the Central Plains majestically, with the ambition to control the heaven and the earth. He raised an army to destroy Shu and return to unity. This is a great trend. No human power can stop it! Even if there are mantises acting as chariots, , they will eventually be turned into ashes and turned into powder!"
Hearing what he said, Liu Chengyou couldn't help but laugh and said to Zhao Pu: "How many people are as knowledgeable as Zhao Pu?"
The emperor's evaluation was not low. Zhao Pu accepted it with a slight smile and showed humility: "I have only a little humble opinion, and I dare not receive such high praise from your majesty!"
"You don't have to be modest!" Liu Chengyou raised his hand and said, "If you, Zhao Pu, are not talented, how can I rely on you as a close minister to preside over the affairs of the Chongzheng Palace?"
Walking among the palaces, there is a festive atmosphere everywhere. The Mid-Autumn Festival is approaching, and there are many palace maids and chambermaids under the command, decorating with lanterns and colors, preparing for the festival.
Seeing this, Liu Chengyou summoned an eunuch, Du Zhi, pointing to the decorative brocade ribbons, and directly ordered: "Inform me, this Mid-Autumn Festival, no extravagance and waste will be allowed in the palace, only a little decoration in Chongyuan Hall and Ciming Hall." Just decorate it!”
Facing the emperor's order, the head of the chamberlain did not dare to neglect, and immediately responded: "Young man, I will convey the official decree!"
After Liu Chengyou and the others left, the little eunuch, who was still holding a lantern in his hand, walked up to the chamberlain Du Zhi and asked blankly: "How to deal with this?"
Douzhi glared at the young eunuch and scolded slightly: "What else can you do? The officials have decrees, how dare you violate them! Get them all out!"
On Liu Chengyou's side, he walked all the way to the palace garden and continued the topic of Sichuan and Shu with Zhao Pu. Liu Chengyou asked: "Just now in the palace, what do you think of Prime Minister Fan's suggestions regarding the aftermath of the aftermath in Shu?"
Suddenly hearing this question, Zhao Pu glanced at Liu Chengyou subconsciously, but he could not tell anything from his calm expression. The emperor's reaction in the palace just now appeared in his mind. After pondering for a while, he tentatively asked: "Your Majesty seems to have objection?"
"Is it me who is asking you, or are you asking me?" Liu Chengyou said calmly: "Just tell me what you think! I want to collect opinions from the public and also listen to them!"
The emperor said this, but Zhao Pu was convinced. The emperor indeed had other ideas. After all, he was a person who had been on an envoy to Chengdu, and he was much more familiar with the military, political and civil affairs of Shu than Fan Zhi.
After hesitating for a while, Zhao Pu raised his hand and said: "Fan Xiang's words are actually a safe method. If it can be implemented, it can be used to bring Sichuan and Shu under the rule of the imperial court in a short period of time. There is no doubt about this."
After hearing what he said, Liu Chengyou said calmly: "You still haven't finished what you said! Could it be that after a long time, Shuzhong can still break away from the imperial court?"
Shaking his head, Zhao Pu said: "With the strength of the Han Dynasty and the majesty of the imperial court, if Shu surrenders, it will return to its rule. How can it be separated from it? But I think that Shu has long-standing disadvantages. If it is dealt with according to Fan Xiang's words, it will be the same as the imperial court accepting it." The disadvantage. In that way, the imperial court may be able to suddenly gain peace in Shu, but it will also bury hidden dangers!"
"You mean something!" Liu Chengyou raised the corner of his mouth and said, "Tell me about it!"
Zhao Pudao said: "Xiang Fan has drawn up several items, including calming the people, suppressing bandits, and pacifying the army, which can all be implemented and implemented quickly. This will greatly benefit the public security in Shu."
"It seems that you feel that you should not treat the king and ministers of Shu kindly?" Liu Chengyou chuckled.
Zhao Pu still shook his head and said: "There is nothing wrong with treating the Lord of Shu's family with a little courtesy to show His Majesty's kindness and tolerance. It's just that the officials and dignitaries of Shu should be treated differently. I have tasted the envoy to Shu. , take a look at its disadvantages.
For many years, because of Meng Chang's lenient treatment and even indulgence of his ministers, the dignitaries and officials of the Shu Kingdom have been amassing wealth and land, especially in the past few years! From the prime minister down, they are extravagant and lustful, and they are greedy for enjoyment. How do they get their wealth? They are all through squeezing the people. Absorbing the power of the country. This is a chronic disease. If these people do not take advantage of the destruction of the country, at the beginning of the economic structure, to screen and rectify it, and accept them all, in the long run, the Shu land of the imperial court will be different from the country of Meng Shu."
Zhao Pu's words spoke to Liu Chengyou's heart. Looking at the autumn scenery of the Imperial Garden, he picked up a gravel and threw it into the lake. Liu Chengyou said: "In the past two years, I have received reports from the Department of Military Affairs and the Department of Military Intelligence on the military, political and civilian conditions in central Shu. I have also read a lot. Chengdu, the Land of Abundance, is rich and prosperous in Shu, but whose hands are most of its wealth concentrated? The powerful, the bureaucrats, the landlords, the merchants! In recent years, the Shu Kingdom has been short of food, but there is really a shortage of food within its territory. ? If there is no shortage, whose hands is the food?
For many years, the poor and small people, although not without a place to stand, benefited from the stability of the country, so they had their peace. But what happened after their peace was broken by the Han Dynasty? Land annexation became more and more serious, refugees breed, and public security deteriorated. Those in power, They all went out of their way to plunder people's property and seize their fields, which is why there is today's chaos in Shu!
If I don’t change my ways and eliminate the shortcomings when I take the land of Shu, I will suffer from it in the future!”
"Your Majesty is wise!" Seeing the emperor confiding his feelings, Zhao Pu immediately agreed.
Liu Chengyou continued, with a cold look in his eyes and a stern tone: "I even suspect that in the past three years, the Shu officials have been powerful and wanton. They saw that the country of Shu was in danger, so they did not restrain themselves for personal gain and expansion of private property. Wait. If I want to destroy Shu and bring peace and order to Shu, I will have to rely on them to appease them and protect their interests... If so, how can I be willing to do so?"
The indifference shown by the emperor when he said this made Zhao Pu shrink back, feeling that Liu Chengyou was in danger at this time.
"In your opinion, how should I solve this shortcoming?" Liu Chengyou asked Zhao Pu.
Zhao Pu thought for a while and responded: "I believe that the crux of the problem lies in the land. Start with the dignitaries and bureaucrats, reward them for their integrity, punish them for their corruption, conduct an inventory of the land in Shu, and seize the illegal ones Take what you take and distribute it to the poor..."
Before Zhao Pu finished speaking, Liu Chengyou smiled lightly and said: "According to what you said, directly infringing on its interests in this way may easily cause chaos in Shu!"
Liu Chengyou's eyes showed a little reminiscence, and he said leisurely: "At the beginning, when I first took over, the country had many ills. Although I was determined to reform, I did not dare to offend the public, so I could only walk on thin ice and make adjustments gradually.
The Khitan Lord Yelv Deguang led hundreds of thousands of troops to destroy the Jin and seize the Central Plains. Why did he retreat north in a short period of time to take advantage of the rise of the Han Dynasty? It was because he violated the interests of the powerful and powerful people in the Central Plains.
With the strength of the Khitan, all the army and troops returned north in embarrassment. If I offend the nobles, bureaucrats, and landlords in Shu, will I be driven out of Liangchuan?
After all, Shuzhong is not as good as Jinghu. Jingnan is narrow. Although Hunan is vast, it can be rebuilt from ruins. I can make drastic changes..."
"Your Majesty, I believe that it is precisely because of the deep evils in Shu that we should vigorously rectify them. Otherwise, it will not be a threat to the future rule of the imperial court. Today's Shu can not be compared to the Central Plains and Hebei in those days. The reason why the Khitans were defeated is of course Offending the Central Plains vassal town also violated the interests of the common people.
Although there are many dignitaries and bureaucrats in Shu, they are only a minority compared with the vast number of ordinary people. As long as they win the hearts of the majority of ordinary people in Shu, why worry about it?
The Han Dynasty destroyed Shu, not only to complete the great cause of unifying the world, but also to punish the people! Who should be punished? Naturally, it was the dignitaries and bureaucrats who used their power to exercise authority, and those powerful landlords who did evil and fish and meat towns. They had a good reputation and occupied the territory. With great righteousness and holding high the banner, why worry about not winning the hearts of the people?
Even if the Han army is strong enough to destroy its country, why can't it still eliminate some demons and monsters?
Even if there is chaos, what are the pros and cons in the long run by using today's small chaos to achieve great peace in the future?
Moreover, if Shu is closed to the fortress, chaos can be contained within it!" Zhao Pu made a long speech, which deeply understood the emperor's intention.
Paying attention to Liu Chengyou's reaction, Zhao Pu continued: "Furthermore, for the upper and middle levels of Shu, it is not all liquidation. Those who are honest should be greatly rewarded and reused, small evils should be punished, and big evils should be punished. This is enough to form divisions.
There are many people in the Shu army who are landless and propertyless. For these people, the court can grant and confiscate land, which can greatly win over the hearts of the Shu soldiers and civilians. The treasury and official warehouses of Shu will be taken back to the court, and the wealth of the Chengdu palace should be The confiscated ill-gotten wealth can be used as rewards for the troops who defeated Shu. And those who have been punished can also move out of Shu to solidify the border for the Han immigrants and avoid future troubles..."
What Zhao Pu said was to clearly divide the cake of conquering Shu...
"Hahaha..." Liu Chengyou laughed heartily.
Seeing this, Zhao Pu also smiled a little. In fact, all Zhao Pu's suggestions were based on the emperor's wishes. He could see that Liu Chengyou had a desire to rectify, so he made such remarks.
If Liu Chengyou wants Shu to be settled quickly, then he will definitely agree with Fan Zhi's suggestion. This is Zhao Pu, the smart Zhao Pu!
"You should keep an eye on the officials sent to Liangchuan this time. The selection must be strict. I want people who can do things!" Liu Chengyou suddenly gave instructions.
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"yes!"
"Who can take charge of the governor of Chengdu?" Liu Chengyou muttered in a low voice.