Cao Cao was sitting in the meeting hall of the Prime Minister's Office, frowning as he read the various "complaints" sent by the fourteen counties one by one.
Although the wording of these official documents is very humble, and the writing seems to have been very hard to manage, but the words are full of "What is going on?" "How can we fix it?" "It must not be my fault!"
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Cao Cao was now very suspicious of how Lord Xun Nu could endure these idiots.
Take Dunqiu, which he once governed, as an example. Even if Cai Wan was not retained as the temporary magistrate of Dunqiu, as long as the people strictly followed the rules he established and there were no major accidents or disasters, Dunqiu could go on his own.
Develop for three to five years without any deliberate interference.
As for Jinan...if they let it go for even a month, they would be able to reveal a big flaw. They vowed at the reception banquet that they would absolutely cooperate with the new Prime Minister and not cause any trouble. Who said that?
"Obviously, this is another test for you by the Xun family." Cai Wan, who was assisting at the side, showed no sign of anger. "These accidents and loopholes probably existed all along, but Master Xunxi used clever means to eliminate them."
I just suppressed it when I noticed it."
"Wen Ruo has tricked me!" Xi Zhicai, the only civil servant under Cao Cao who was captured to help handle political affairs, looked up to the sky and sighed: "I should have known that he would not introduce a position where he can drink and have fun with casual ideas!
"
"'Just come up with ideas'?" Cao Cao looked up at Xi Zhicai and said with a smile: "You are too ambitious. Your strategy to win over the people has already eliminated the biggest hidden danger for Jinan and even Qingzhou."
Zhang Jue, who had transformed the "talisman water" on Taiping Road, used it to treat injuries and punish villains in Jinan and surrounding counties, showing that although he transformed the "talisman water" into a lethal "talisman of life and death"
", but it doesn't mean it's evil, it's more like a workshop craftsman inventing a new weapon.
This action first convinced the Taoist ancestor's daughter who was killed, and then attracted most of the Taiping Taoist disciples in Qingzhou. It can be said that if Zhang Jue wanted to, he could set up a branch altar in Jinan and recognize himself as the leader of the altar.
However, it was a good thing that this "new weapon" was only spread in Qingzhou. If it were spread to Sili, the imperial court would think that Taiping Dao had some ambitions, but it would lead to completely opposite results. Therefore, after absorbing most of Qingzhou Taiping Dao,
Xi Zhicai asked Cao Cao to send people to control the spread of this matter. At most, outsiders would hear that "the usage of talisman water in Qingzhou is different."
"A good man does not mention his former bravery~" Xi Zhicai skillfully used rural slang: "There are so many weird situations in Jinan and even Qingzhou, but the reason is the same. Lord, do you know why?"
"Although the superficial reason is that Mr. Xun Kui was promoted and left, they must have their own reasons, well..." Cao Cao thought for a while, but couldn't figure it out. He subconsciously wanted to see the "substitute", and then he remembered that the "substitute" had heard about the West.
After the Xiongnu rebellion in Liang, they took the initiative to investigate but did not return.
"Probably because Qingzhou is rich?" Cai Wan took out a few silk books recording "cheng" and looked at them, and said: "Problems that can be solved with money are not problems in their eyes. They suppress them until they can't spend any money.
After it couldn't be solved, it broke out - such as this "food shortage" complaint. Officials in this area have never paid attention to agriculture. When there is a shortage of food, they buy it from surrounding counties. Unexpectedly, there is a slight drought this year, and the surplus food available for sale in the surrounding areas has dropped sharply.
, and even though they had money, they couldn't buy grain, so they sent a petition, hoping that the Prime Minister would open a warehouse to help the gap... Oh, they still have no intention of developing agriculture."
"Oh, Pingyin, no wonder." Xi Zhicai glanced at the name of the county from a distance, and then said: "My lord, do you know where the local officials' money comes from?"
"Here... I seem to have heard something." Cao Cao thought for a while, but it seemed that he didn't hear it during official business?
Xi Zhicai looked at Cai Wan.
"What? I should know?" Cai Zhenji stared, as if she was ready to hit him with a harp.
"Pingyin roses are famous all over the world. They are used in sachets, hair accessories, powder, and sesame oil. They simply don't have more farmland to grow food." Xi Zhicai spread his hands.
"..." Cao Cao and Cai Wan looked at each other.
——This is not a food issue, but a flower decoration. How can a man know it so clearly?
——Does he also use it on weekdays?
——Can’t ask.
--agree.
"The feudal lord here is indifferent to the fiefdom and does not ask for money or materials. He only sets the number of roses or related products to be handed over every year." Xi Zhicai continued: "So, the reason why the government decrees in Jinan are blocked
Isn’t it already ready to come out?”
"Because Lord Hu Lai's decrees have caused damage to the normal development and order of the local area," Cai Wan nodded: "So, if you want to solve this matter, you must find a way to deal with those decrees."
"It would be a bad idea to just ask the lord Liu Kang to suppress it," Cao Cao thought for a moment and said decisively: "We must formulate a law that is sufficient to restrain the feudal lords and ask the lord to approve it."
"My lord is wise," Xi Zhicai said, cupping his hands.
————
Although it was scheduled to "legislate", Cao Cao had no other manpower to do this at this time.
Brothers Xiahou Dun and Xiahou Yuan are busy training cavalry and archers in Jinan. Dian Wei is in charge of Cao Cao's personal bodyguards and has to take care of Cai Yan who for some reason always likes to play with him. Zhang Jue is still doing good deeds in various places and recruiting Taiping Taoist disciples. Yuan Shao
?Although he has grown a lot recently and can help handle some political affairs, his thinking is still very straightforward and not suitable for writing laws.
First of all, this law must be able to make the chaos of those feudal lords follow the rules. They cannot just think about it, but at the same time, it must be able to bypass Liu Kang, the leader of Jinan Kingdom, because strictly speaking, this law is also "chaos."
"Fate", therefore, loopholes should be left in the regulations so that we can counterattack him when there is opportunity and need in the future.
In the end, Cao Cao, who could only go into battle personally, began to draft this law. Because the purpose was to stabilize the grain harvest, he thought about it and named it the "Green Crop Law".
After confirming the name, Cao Cao began to formulate this regulation based on what he saw and what he had gained from his previous posts: "——The land rent collected by the feudal lord is limited to grain per mu...five, no, four liters, or three pieces of silk.
, two pieces of cotton, two pounds of cotton, and other goods are not allowed to be produced without authorization. Local specialties need to be reported to the king of the country, and the king of the country will levy them in a certain amount. In addition..."
"Mengde! The people from Qiao County and Nanyang have sent baggage and troops!" Cao Cao was considering the number when he heard Yuan Shao shouting from afar: "There are three more who look very powerful and can fight!"
Qiao County and Nanyang County are not close, and as for being very capable of fighting... the hope that there would be civil servants among these people was dashed again.
Cao Cao put down his pen and took the initiative to welcome him out of the meeting hall.
These visitors were Li Dian, Le Jin and Cao Ren, who had already been mentioned in the correspondence from their hometown in Qiao County. They were all very young.
Le Jin was originally from Qiao County. He was armed with an iron spear and came here because he saw the order for talents issued by the Cao family. He was tall and strong, with a handsome face. He exuded an aura of "I want to take the lead in the charge".
He also suggested that if there is a war in the future, please appoint him as a vanguard.
Li Dian belongs to a family of warriors who originally lived on the border of Liangzhou. The contemporary head of the family, Li Qian, moved his family to Qiao County to avoid the war in Liangzhou. He is familiar with the Cao family. There are currently several intermarriages, and they may merge with each other in the future.
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Unlike Le Jin who is full of energy, Li Dian also uses a big gun, but is more delicate and pays attention to skills. However, when introducing himself, he said strange words such as "I am Li Mancheng, also known as the man with the sixth sense."
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Finally, there is Cao Cao's descendant Cao Ren. He is technically Cao Cao's cousin. He is not tall but extremely strong. He wears heavy armor and uses a strange combination of arm shield and short sword. His official name is Cao Ren.
It's called "tooth wall".
When asked about his specialty, he just responded in a deep voice, "I am the iron wall of the Cao family."
Although he was not a civil servant, it was always a good thing to have more workers to share. However, Cao Cao also felt that there seemed to be more and more weirdos under him...
While Cao Cao was arranging accommodation for the three supporters, the "substitute" who had traveled all the way to Xiliang also came back.
"Hey, partner, you must not know what happened over there in Jiuquan." The "substitute" relied on others not being able to see it, and kept making noises all the way.
When Cao Cao was talking to the new trio, he took the opportunity to ask, "What?"
"The young boy who came to us last time to ask us about our strategies for governing the world appeared in Xiliang, and together with another young man under the command of Dong Zhuo, the governor of Liangzhou, they uncovered a Xiongnu invasion incident," the "substitute" said.
Oh... Could it be that he thought Dong Zhuo also had reasonable "strategies for governing the world"? Although Cao Cao had doubts, he had no chance to say this.
"But the point is not here," the "substitute" continued: "The local 'Taiping Dao' organized a 'Taiping Army' to assist the two teenagers who fell into the tiger's mouth, and finally wiped out the Huns."
Taiping Army? Cao Cao was a little surprised. If Taiping Road showed its power like this, it would be strange if it didn't attract the attention of the imperial court.
"Afterwards, some Liangzhou officials said that it was basically a conspiracy between the Taiping Dao and the foreign tribes, and that the fight started because of the uneven distribution of the spoils," the "substitute" said: "But strangely, Dong Zhuo suppressed the matter.
After arresting those officials, this matter didn't even make a splash."
Wasn't it that Dong Zhuo wanted to deal with the local Taiping Road? Cao Cao was a little surprised. In his opinion, unless he directly surrendered like Zhang Jue, he would never tolerate a disobedient force operating on his territory.
"Obviously," the voice of the "substitute" was filled with contempt: "The so-called 'emperor' in Luoyang planned to attack Taiping Road, but he actually colluded with foreign races? Haha..."
At this time, the disadvantage of the "substitute" being exactly the same as himself is revealed... Cao Cao thought.
Because he simply couldn't tell whether the strong "replacement" meaning he heard in those words was what he really thought.
