Shen Chen's official position was actually the Grand Governor of Yongyi Liang, and also the shepherd of Liangzhou, the envoy to Chijie, in charge of Bashu, Guanzhong, the military affairs of Liangzhou, and the civil affairs of Liangzhou.
In other words, he was in charge of the military affairs of Yizhou and Xiliang Pass, and he was in charge of the civil affairs of Liangzhou.
Hanzhong belongs to Yizhou, so in fact he cannot control the civil affairs of Hanzhong, and naturally he cannot do any guidance work.
But no fool would dare to find fault with him, not only because of his high and powerful status, but also because it is easy for him to manage the people's livelihood with his ability.
Since what he did was right, why bother to refute it?
Therefore, Shen Chen spent a long period of time inspecting water sources in various mountains, looking for suitable places to cultivate terraces and expand Hanzhong's productivity.
This process lasted for nearly three months. Shen Chen traveled all over the Qinling Mountains, Bashan, and Micang Mountains in search of suitable water sources. This was a major issue related to whether grain and grass could be transported to the rear when troops were sent to Guanzhong in the future.
After searching throughout Hanzhong, he found more than a hundred places in the upper reaches of mountain water sources suitable for reclamation. If a village of 20 households and 100 households can cultivate a thousand acres of land, these places can cultivate more than 100,000 acres. There are countless fields, vegetable fields, ponds and mulberry forests.
But this was not enough. Before leaving Hanzhong, Shen Chen told Huang Zhong, Li Yan and others to continue to find suitable areas to cultivate terraces in Hanzhong, Shangyong and other places, and to provide preferential treatment policies to the people to attract them to the mountains to cultivate new fields. 's fields.
In addition to building terraces, the old plain areas cannot be abandoned. If there is no water source, we must find ways to cultivate canals. If the water source is too far away, it is expensive to open water canals, so we dig wells and build ponds to find high-quality groundwater.
This is also something that must be done.
According to Shen Chen's three-year Northern Expedition policy, the period from the second year to the fourth year of Zhangwu was the period of recuperation and recuperation. Preparations for the Northern Expedition could begin in the second half of the fourth year of Zhangwu, and troops could be officially dispatched in the fifth year of Zhangwu.
Therefore, Shen Chen hoped that by the fifth year of Zhangwu, Hanzhong would have a total of 5 million acres of farmland, more than 700,000 people in Dingkou, and a mostly young and strong labor force.
In this way, when a large army is dispatched, there is no need to recruit civilians from Bashu to serve as corvees. It will not be like Liu Bei's previous battle of Guanzhong, which only took a month or two to cause the people's livelihood in Yizhou to wither. A wealthy state, almost collapse situation.
As the saying goes, there is no shortage of food in Hanzhong, but there is always a shortage of food transportation methods.
In addition to inspecting the conditions of the fields in Hanzhong, Shen Chen did not rush to Xiliang. Instead, he followed Baoxie Road to Xieyuguan, then entered Chencang Road from Lianyun Road, inspecting the road conditions along the way.
Indeed, as Xu Shu said, only the first half of Baoxie Road is easy to walk, while the middle section is a cliff plank road that stretches for more than a hundred miles.
Not to mention the Tangluo Road and Ziwu Road, there are almost cliffs along the way.
Only Chencang Road is really easy to walk.
No wonder it can become the only road from Guanzhong into Hanzhong despite such a long detour. The reason is naturally that the road is wide and flat, with few high cliffs.
For this reason, Shen Chen improved the handcart according to the road conditions, and invented a wheelbarrow and a four-wheel steering carriage to transport food.
There is never a shortage of horses in the land of Bashu, but there is a shortage of war horses.
Because the southwest has been the birthplace of Shu horses and Yunnan horses since ancient times, the horses used on the Tea Horse Road are southwest horse breeds. They are relatively short and have good endurance. Although they are not as suitable as northwest Liangzhou horses or Bingzhou horses as war horses, they are suitable for transportation. Supplies horses.
So Shen Chen also signaled Li Yan and the others to introduce a large number of southwestern horse breeds to Hanzhong. Although the Hanzhong Plain area has a lot of cultivated land, the Hanzhong Basin has 5,000 square kilometers, and the plain area only occupies 1,400 square kilometers.
The remaining more than 3,000 square kilometers are hills, and horses can be raised in the mountains. We only need to breed more southwest horses, and at the same time develop agriculture in Hanzhong so that Hanzhong can be self-sufficient. Then there will naturally be no need for the Northern Expedition in the future. Then Bashu sent people and supplies, which made the people in the rear areas miserable.
After staying in Hanzhong for more than three months, and then inspecting Chencang Road and Baoxie Road, Shen Chen went to Liangzhou in October of the second year of Zhangwu, went north from Qishan Road, passed through Wudu County and entered the territory of Tianshui County, and then Went to Ji County, the current seat of Liangzhou.
Ji County is located in Gangu County, later Gansu Province. The terrain here is flat and is a rare narrow plain area in Gansu Province. To the north is the Loess Liangmao gully area of the Liupan Mountains, with low mountains; to the south is the stony mountainous area extending west of the Qinling Mountains. , with a higher altitude. The Wei River runs through the middle, and it belongs to the rift valley landform.
Unexpectedly, when Shen Chen was riding on horseback and slowly heading towards the city of Hebei County, he saw that rice was widely planted in the wilderness. It was the late rice harvesting season, and a large number of people from the north and south of the Weihe River were harvesting in the fields. Rice, golden ears of rice fluttering in the wind, full of vitality.
Accompanying Shen Chen were Liang governor Shi Dengzhi and Tianshui prefect Pang Cao. Pang Cao was famous for his bravery. After Liu Bei obtained Liangzhou, he conscripted him as a vassal and later became Tianshui prefect. Together with Deng Zhi and Li Yan, Assist Zhang Fei in guarding Liangzhou.
Zhang Fei was recalled to Xiangyang by Liu Bei at the beginning of this year. Shen Chen even met Zhang Fei when he was in Jiangzhou. The reason why Liangzhou can maintain stability without a general is because the current governor of Liangzhou, Shi Dengzhi, and Tianshui Prefect Pang Chuo maintained order.
Shen Chen's cavalry slowly entered the vast plain area outside Ji County. He turned to Deng Zhi and Pang Qiao and said, "Rice is actually grown in Liangzhou?"
Deng Zhi returned and said: "To the Governor, rice has been planted in Liangzhou since the Shang and Zhou Dynasties. Nowadays, Jiaozhi rice has been introduced. Because of its early maturity and drought tolerance, Zhongtao and Hebei counties on both sides of the Weihe River in Tianshui County. Xinyang, Tianshui and other counties have been extensively planted to replace Han rice to form a double crop."
"It turns out that rice likes high temperature and humidity. The terrain in the northwest is higher and the sunlight is indeed more abundant."
Shen Chen nodded.
Pang Qiao said: "It's just that rice requires too much water, so except for the two sides of the Wei River and Changli Sichuan, millet and wheat are still the main crops in other places."
"Um."
Shen Chen said: "I first came to Liangzhou and I don't know the specific situation in Liangzhou. I remember that your Majesty once moved people from Tianshui, Longyou and other places to Hanzhong. Why do I think there are quite a lot of people here."
Pang Xuan smiled and said: "The Governor did not know that the people your Majesty moved were landless people from Liangzhou and Han people who voluntarily followed them to Hanzhong. However, many people from aristocratic families were unwilling to move, so Dingkou under the rule of aristocratic families was unwilling to move." There are quite a few left, and the rest are Qiang Di or Beihu."
"Qiang Di Beihu?"
"Yes."
Deng Zhi said: "Qiang people, Di people, Hu people, and Han people live together in Liangzhou. Some Han people herd, while some Qiang, Di, and Hu people farmed. They also intermarried with each other, so there were so many people farming."
"Not only Tianshui, but also the Western Regions."
Pang Qiao also said: "In the southern mountains of the western region of Dunhuang, thousands of miles from the Nu Qiang to Cong Ling in the west, there are other species of the Yue clan, the Cong Chu Qiang, Baima, and Huangniu Qiang, each with its own chieftain. They are connected to other countries in the north. I don't know. Its roads are wide and narrow. There are Fulu, Qian, Longdi, Qingdi, Baidi, Andi and so on. Their language is not as good as the Qiang's mixed alleys. Each has its own surname, which is like the Chinese surname. Its clothes are still green and crimson, and the common people can weave them. Bu, good at farming, raising hogs, cattle, horses, donkeys and mules."
"good."
Shen Chen said with satisfaction: "It seems that whether they are Qiang or Hu people in Xiliang, their living habits are no different from those of the Han people. This is a good thing. It shows that their ideology, culture and living habits are already close to those of the Han people, which is even more It can facilitate our governance.”
An official at the back said: "Master Governor, "Zuo Zhuan" says: If you are not of my race, your heart will be different. These Qiang people are not convinced by the king, so they should be treated with caution."
"Don't talk nonsense."
Shen Chen frowned and turned around and said: "Confucius wrote the Spring and Autumn Annals; the princes used barbarian etiquette to bring about barbarism, and when barbarians entered China, the Chinese were treated as such. Regardless of whether they are Yi Yi or Han people, as long as they can abide by Chinese etiquette, they will be They are subjects of China. Since the Qiang, Di, Hu, and Han people are in our Liangzhou, they are the people of our Liangzhou. When the sages used the term "Yi" and "Xia", it did not mean that the blood of the Han people must be the blood of the Xia and the blood of the Yi people. It must be Yi, but it means that Xia has etiquette and civilization, which represents advanced culture; Yi people are barbaric and do not distinguish between superior and inferior, which represents backward culture. If Yi people can read, understand etiquette, and gain wisdom, they will be worthy of it. We are also Chinese people, how can we treat them as barbarians? Therefore, you must remember to treat the Hu and Han people equally, and do not be biased like Wang Hong, Laiji, Liu Bing, etc., who discriminate against the barbarians and cause continuous rebellions among the barbarians. Just treat them as the same Han people, do you understand?"
"yes."
The Liangzhou officials behind him were stunned for a moment, and then all responded.
The saying "If you enter the barbarians, you will be the barbarians; if you enter the Xia, you will be the summers." This sentence was not actually said by Confucius, but was put forward by Xu Heng, a great scholar of the Yuan Dynasty, in order to provide legitimacy to the orthodoxy of the Yuan Dynasty.
Confucius' original intention was not to emphasize race and blood as the standard, but to use civilization, etiquette and justice as the measure.
For example, the state of Chu claimed to be a barbarian. Later, when civilization advanced and the princes of the Central Plains allied with it, they no longer regarded it as a barbarian. However, the state of Zheng was originally a state of Xia. If its behavior was inconsistent with justice and etiquette, it would also be regarded as a barbarian. If the barbarians admired the Central Plains, If you are able to practice etiquette and justice, you will be praised and promoted. If the Chinese prefer to do barbarian things, they will become barbarians; and vice versa.
Therefore, the sages from ancient times have looked at this issue very accurately. They do not use blood as the criterion, but whether they obey justice and etiquette. It is the best and most objective to judge whether a certain race is Huayi based on the situation of civilization. way of judging.
Just like the citizens of a country that boasts the old Stars and Stripes discriminate against other ethnic groups, during the Han Dynasty, there were also Han people who discriminated against and suppressed the Qiang and Di people, resulting in sharp conflicts between the Qiang and Di people.
For example, the first Qiang rebellion occurred because when Wang Hong, the Cavalry Commander, was on a mission to the Western Regions, he forced the local Qiang soldiers to follow him, without providing them with weapons, equipment, or wages. They scattered and fled, but each county sent people to intercept them and wiped out their tribes, causing the first Qiang rebellion to break out.
The financial pressure caused by the Qiang Rebellion on the Eastern Han Dynasty was unprecedentedly huge. This rebellion lasted for eleven years, consuming 24 billion yuan in military expenditures of the Eastern Han Dynasty, seriously dragging down the Eastern Han Dynasty's finances, and making Emperor Huan of the Han Dynasty at the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty Emperor Ling of the Han Dynasty had no money in his hands, so he was forced to use various methods to search for money.
In addition, during the period of Emperor Shun of the Han Dynasty, when the governors of Bingzhou and Youzhou came to an opportunity, Liu Bing and Liu Bing were cruel officials. They imposed excessive taxes and continued to exploit the Qiang people unscrupulously. It is said that the Qiang people at that time were dissatisfied with them and immediately broke up their families.
To exterminate a clan, the entire clan will be slaughtered.
Under such ferocity and violence, the Qiang people resisted again, causing the second large-scale Qiang rebellion.
This Qiang rebellion lasted until the reign of Emperor Huan of the Han Dynasty. It was not until Sanming in Liangzhou suppressed the rebellion one after another that it finally ended. The military expenditure was 4.4 billion. Although the scale was not as large as the first Qiang rebellion, it still gave a heavy blow to the Eastern Han Dynasty court.
hit.
simply put.
The Han officials in Liangzhou were so deceitful that they bullied and suppressed ethnic minorities such as the Qiang and Di, which made conflicts between the Han people and ethnic minorities too acute. The two sides killed each other, causing instability in Xiliang.
During the period of Emperor He, the number of registered Han people in Liangzhou was less than 500,000. Even if we exclude the unnaturalized Han people, the number did not exceed one million at most.
What about the Qiang, Di, Hu, Man and other ethnic minorities?
There are millions of people.
Liangzhou officials bullied and suppressed the Qiang and Di, but the Liangzhou army and the Han people were not as numerous as the Hu people, so they were defeated by the Hu people. Then the Eastern Han Dynasty sent a large army to expedition to Xiliang, spending a lot of money.
This was repeated several times, and the Eastern Han Dynasty was almost brought down. At the same time, it did not wipe out all the Hu people, and it further deepened the contradiction between the Hu and Han.
Therefore, under such a turbulent background, the contradiction between the Qiang and the Han was very great. The consequence of no one to resolve this contradiction was that the Western Jin Dynasty and the Five Huns disrupted China, and the Hu people madly hated the Han people and started bloody revenge.
Now that Shen Chen has arrived in Xiliang, his top priority is to solve these problems.
He advocated Confucius's saying that "the princes will use the barbarians' rituals, and the barbarians will be in China." He does not advocate "the barbarians will be barbarians, and the Xia will be Xia", but the ethnic harmony.
If Liangzhou officials continue to adopt a hostile attitude towards the barbarians, then the two sides will continue to be hostile. Once Shen Chen launches the Northern Expedition and Cao Wei colludes with the barbarians in the rear who are hostile to the Han to launch a rebellion, it is very likely to cause instability in the rear.
Therefore, he must seek stability and treat ethnic minorities equally with a normal outlook.
Just like the fifty-six ethnic groups in later generations are one family.
Stablize.
It is the cornerstone of a country's development.
Shen Chen continued: "I heard that when the generals of chariots and cavalry were in Liangzhou, they made many attacks, so that the Qiang and Di rebelled a little?"
Pang Qiao said: "It is true that there are some, but it is also caused by the Qiang Di's disobedience to the king."
"Um."
Shen Chen said: "The policy needs to be changed. Since Liangzhou has been returned to the Han Dynasty, that is where the king's land is. Whether it is Liangzhou's aristocratic family or the Qiang Di tribe, they should obey the king's Hua. This is the responsibility of the government and also
The purpose of your majesty sending me to Liangzhou. If you want to launch the Northern Expedition, you must first govern Hanzhong and Liangzhou. From today on, you must abide by the principle of equal treatment between Chinese and foreigners. You must not discriminate or show favoritism. If I pick out any more Han
If the officials despise the barbarians and the barbarians start a rebellion, they will be severely punished."
"only!"
Everyone responded in unison.
Then Deng Zhi asked: "Captain, the reason for the rebellion of the Yi people is not only the Han officials' discrimination against the Yi people, but also the fact that the Yi tribes have always despised the court and oppressed the Han people. What should we do if we encounter such a thing?"
"snort!"
Shen Chen said coldly: "Just as the Han people are bandits and rebels, you should treat them as rebel bandits. The Han people cannot bully the barbarians at will. How can the barbarians bully the Han people at will? Tribal leaders
If you do this, you will kill the tribal leader. If you raise the clan, you will kill the whole clan. But remember, killing the clan is not a last resort. If the clan members are coerced by the leader, they should be forgiven. Do you understand?"
"only!"
Everyone responded again.
The conflict between Hu and Han in Liangzhou set a tone before Shen Chen entered the city today.
That means Hu and Han are equal, and the two sides must not hate or be hostile to each other.
In principle, they are all Han people and should be treated equally, and should not be suppressed and exploited as before.
In fact, the number of Qiang and Di in the Han Dynasty was in the millions, but by the time of the fifty-six ethnic groups in later generations, the traditional Qiang people had been less than 300,000.
It’s not that they were wiped out, but that Hu and Han have merged with each other in Liangzhou and Gansu for thousands of years, and they have long since become Han people.
Therefore, national integration is the trend. We do not distinguish between each other. As long as we accept each other's culture and customs, respect each other's diet and living habits, then everyone will be Chinese.
This is also a manifestation of my country's enlightened ethnic policies and respect for the cultures of all ethnic groups in later generations.