"It is precisely because of the heroic fighting of the soldiers that our Zhao country can win one war after another, defeat one enemy after another, and become stronger and stronger. Without the dedication of the soldiers, our Zhao country would not be what it is today."
Now, on behalf of Zhao people, I would like to thank you for your efforts, thank you for bringing peace, and thank you for bringing a better life."
It was not until evening that all medals of merit were awarded to all the soldiers. Zhao Kuo walked back to the stage, faced Zhao Jun, and bowed.
"Long live Zhao Jun!"
"Long live Zhao Jun!"
"Long live Zhao Jun!"
Earth-shattering shouts rang out from all around. After standing for a whole day, everyone was not tired at all. On the contrary, they were full of strength, waving their fists and shouting at the top of their voices crazily.
The soldiers looked at Zhao Kuo with fiery eyes. They had countless things to say in their hearts, but they didn't know how to say them.
Since ancient times, some people have praised kings, some have praised generals, and some have praised civil servants, but no one has ever remembered them, the most ordinary soldiers.
They are the people who have given the most to the entire country and the entire nation. No emperor, general or minister has contributed more than them. But because they have no power and are at the bottom, no one has ever looked at them, let alone remembered them.
But now, someone saw them.
The sky was filled with wind and clouds, and the war clouds gathered quickly, like stormy waves constantly beating towards the ground. Even if it was not a war, there were still many soldiers who were distorted by the light of their military souls!
"We were victorious in the past, we are victorious now, and we have always been victorious!" Zhao Kuo finally said.
"We have always been victorious!" all the Zhao troops shouted loudly.
In the end, all Zhao people shouted in unison.
"At this time, I'm afraid even if there are millions of troops blocking the front, as long as the king gives an order, our army can tear them to pieces in an instant." Yu Xin looked at the shocking scene in front of him and murmured.
He even saw soldiers who used to be from Hezong, Lou Fanren, Huns, and Yan people shouting wildly. He was sure that if he asked these soldiers who they were now, they would definitely answer that they were Zhao people without hesitation.
The next day, Zhao Kuo held a sacrificial ceremony outside the city, not offering sacrifices to heaven or earth, but only to the soldiers who died in battle.
After the sacrifice, Zhao Kuo led the soldiers to send the ashes of all the sacrificed soldiers to the Hall of Heroes and engraved their names. He also took out the ashes of the soldiers who had reached the age of sacrifice and sent them back to their hometowns to be worshiped locally.
After the sacrifice, except for a few legions who stayed on duty, all other soldiers could take their rewards and go home in glory.
Wealth and wealth are like walking in brocade at night. Every time a war is over, it is the happiest time for soldiers.
In fact, the State of Zhao could distribute the rewards to the local area and let the soldiers receive them locally to avoid the inconvenience of carrying the rewards on the road.
However, most of the soldiers rejected the court's kindness and chose to go home with the rewards themselves. For them, these rewards were not just money, but more of honor and pride.
Collecting it from the local area is not as refreshing as carrying it all the way home.
Especially those soldiers who were awarded medals, when they returned home, they specially took out their medals of merit and hung them in the most conspicuous place on their chests, eager for everyone to see them.
Some soldiers even received two medals of merit, one individual and one collective. Other soldiers could only look on with envy.
The State of Zhao did not forget about the soldiers selected from the Hu captives. They allocated land and houses to them, and also distributed concubines as wives to them so that they could marry and have children.
If they want to graze, they can also apply to exchange their homes and land for pasture, cattle and sheep.
At the same time, disabled soldiers from Han, Wei and Qi were also sent to Handan one after another.
The Three Kingdoms did not embarrass Zhao State in this regard. For them, disabled soldiers were just a burden. Zhao State sent these soldiers over. Although Zhao State won a good reputation, it also reduced their burden, and they were even able to free up land for distribution.
give others.
This is a win-win thing.
What made all countries angry was that the State of Zhao exempted its people from oral duties and even sent people to spread it everywhere, which made the hearts of all countries unstable and resentment increased.
We don’t worry about scarcity but about inequality. In the past, countries were generally black, everyone lived a very miserable life, and the people at the bottom didn’t feel much.
But now everyone has discovered that other countries are still as black as before, but Zhao seems to have become white, and even the oral tax is exempted. Everyone begins to feel unhappy.
Just because Zhao Guo doesn't like the money of the gift, it doesn't mean that other countries don't like it.
In particular, the Qin State lost the Hexi Corridor. All merchants and goods coming and going were detained by the State of Zhao, and the commercial tax was directly reduced by more than half. Now that the caravans are being sent out again, it will take more than a year at the earliest to return, and they have to pay in turn to the State of Zhao.
Huge business taxes.
Qin State also lost Nanjun and a large area of grain-producing land and population east of Jingshui River, and agricultural taxes and oral taxes were also greatly reduced. At the same time, because of the defeat of the Qin army, almost every family member was captured by Zhao State, and the people dared not be angry with the government.
Dare to speak.
It stands to reason that the Qin State should reduce or reduce taxes at this time to give the bottom class a break and win over the few remaining people's hearts.
Qin Wangzhu also knew this truth, but he couldn't do it. Qin had to compensate Zhao and Qi with two million stones of grain and 20,000 pieces of Shu brocade every year.
Qin's granaries have long been emptied, and even Xianyang fell into the hands of Zhao. If taxes were reduced or exempted, Qin would be unable to repay Zhao and Qi for their grain.
Before the Qin State did not have enough power, Qin Wangzhu would not dare to fall out with the Zhao State. Even if he scrimped on food and clothing and drained all the people in the country, he could only repay the food.
But when the first batch of food was sent out, Qin Wangzhu almost vomited blood in anger.
The State of Zhao used the grain sent by the State of Qin to attract the Qin people on the west bank of the Jing River and the south bank of the Wei River to join the State of Zhao, and promised that as long as the Qin people came over, the State of Zhao would give them houses and land, and exempt them from agricultural taxes for three years.
Zhao State not only has low taxes, but also has no oral taxes, and does not have harsh criminal laws. It will not raise taxes at every turn, and it can still get money for helping the government build roads and work.
The State of Zhao also told the people east of the Jingshui River that as long as they could bring one Qin family from the State of Qin to join the State of Zhao, they would release the captives in their homes. If there were no captives in their homes, they would be exempted from agricultural taxes for one year, with no upper limit.
If you take one household, you will be exempted for one year; if you take ten households, you will be exempted for ten years.
Regardless of whether it is east of the Jingshui River or west of the Jingshui River, south of the Weishui River or north of the Weishui River, in the past it was basically the same place, regardless of each other. Who didn't have a few relatives and friends on the other side?
So a large number of people poured into the Jing River and the other side of the Wei River to persuade their relatives to join the Zhao Kingdom.
Some even promised huge profits in order to get their captured family members back as soon as possible.
At this time, the prestige of the Qin court was greatly reduced, and various places were almost in a state of semi-paralysis. It was too late to deal with this situation. In just half a month, tens of thousands of people were abducted by Zhao.
The Qin State sent envoys to hold him accountable, but the Zhao State officials simply closed their doors.
However, Qin is not someone to be bullied. Zhao can kidnap people from them, and they can also cause some chaos to Zhao east of the Jing River.
After all, that is the homeland where the Qin State has taken root for decades or even hundreds of years. There are countless people who have intricate connections with the Qin State. The Qin State can easily find a large number of people to work for the Qin State.
Then the Zhao State warehouse was burned down, the newly built road was destroyed, tools were mysteriously lost, and so on.
The three county guards, Feng Quji, Huang Shigong, and Han Fei, immediately united to blockade Guanzhong, and together with the county lieutenants, they led a team to arrest the thugs. By mid-September, the three counties had captured hundreds of thugs, including three of them.
ethnic group, all were sent to Liaodong to contribute to the construction of the Liaohe Plain.
However, neither Zhao nor Qin brought their conflicts to light.
It doesn't matter how you do it in secret, but if you do it openly, you might end up fighting each other.
Neither Zhao nor Qin wanted to start a war at this time.
In addition to the State of Zhao, the Qiang people also went to Yongcheng every day to ask for 50,000 troops from the State of Qin. However, the 50,000 Qiang people had long been defeated by King Zhaoxiang of Qin. Most of them were cultivating land in the State of Zhao. How could there be anyone in King Zhu of Qin?
Return it to the Qiang people.
In the past, the Qin State did not pay attention to the Qiang people at all, and even King Qin Zhaoxiang planned to act like a rogue and leave 50,000 Qiang troops in the Qin State. But now that Qin State is worried about foreign troubles and cannot even recruit an elite force, how can it dare to do so?
If you fall out with the Qiang people, you can only keep appeasing the Qiang people and tell them that this matter is our Qin State's fault. If you are willing, we can give you other compensations.
But we really don’t have the people. If you insist on returning to the army, you can only go to Zhao State.
…
In late September, officials from all over the country gradually rushed to Handan to prepare for the next official examination.
In the past, if they wanted to be promoted, they could only wait until one day luck suddenly fell on them and they were valued by a nobleman. Or they could give up everything and become a client of a nobleman, and then wait for an opportunity to be recommended.
This opportunity may exist, or it may never come across in your lifetime.
Like Zhao Guo, a selection method that gives everyone a fair opportunity, regardless of origin or past, only based on talent, is unprecedented.
The officials were all gearing up, fully prepared, and determined to take this opportunity to strive for a bright future.
"How many people are taking the exam this time?" Zhao Kuo asked.
There are two assessments for civil servants. The first is local. The assessment method is also the responsibility of each local county magistrate. Only those who pass the assessment can continue to serve as civil servants.
The second time was held in Handan. Only those who passed the local assessment could participate. As for the content of the examination, no one knows what it is until now.
"More than 6,000 people, almost half of the officials participated, especially in areas such as Hebei, Taiyuan, and Hetao, where most of the officials signed up," Xunzi said.
Officials in Zhao's hometown received the news earlier, were more fully prepared, and grasped the direction of the wind more accurately. To a certain extent, they had a more obvious advantage than other regions.
However, Zhao Kuo has no plans to organize examinations based on regions.
The hometown of the State of Zhao has contributed more to the State of Zhao, and it is natural to enjoy some benefits. There is no real fairness in the world.
"I hope we can find some good candidates." Zhao Kuo said. There are still more than 300 official vacancies in Zhao State. In some counties, only one of the three official positions of county, county guard, county lieutenant, and county chief is occupied. Many counties
Also like this.
There won't be any problems in the short term, but over time it will definitely affect local administration.
"The examination venue, pens, ink, paper and inkstones, test papers, tables and chairs, etc. must be arranged. At the same time, we must prevent anyone from cheating. This is the first civil service examination in our country, Zhao. There must be no problems." Zhao Kuo warned again.
.
"I have already discussed it. The exam will be held directly in the military camp. The place is spacious and the officers will invigilate the exam. No one will dare to cheat." Xunzi said with a smile.
They had discussed for a long time in order to determine the location of the examination, because Zhao State did not have a main hall that could accommodate more than 6,000 people, and it would be awkward to place it in different halls. In the end, Le Yi made the decision to place it directly in the military camp.
Anyway, most of the soldiers have gone home for the holidays and will not come back until after the new year. The barracks are empty, just in time for the civil servants to take exams, and the problem of who will invigilate the exams is solved.
These soldiers have experienced hundreds of battles, and any small moves made by the candidates will not escape the sharp eyes of the soldiers. At the same time, they can also test the psychological pressure of these officials.
"I will personally invigilate the exam when the time comes," Zhao Kuo said.
"The officials must be very honored." Xunzi said with a smile.
"Your Majesty, Zhangye County has come to report that the Qiang people are asking for Qiang people from our country, Zhao." At this time, Lin Xiangru walked in quickly from outside and handed a letter to Zhao Kuo.
"You want Qiang people? What Qiang people?" Zhao Kuo said doubtfully.
"They are the 40,000 Qiang people captured by our Zhao Kingdom." Lin Xiangru said.
"Tell the Qiang people, no, go to the Qin State. Lend your troops to the Qin State to attack our Zhao State, and then want to go back after being captured. How can there be such a good thing in the world?" Zhao Kuo almost became angry.
"What if the Qiang people attack our Zhao country?" Lin Xiangru asked.
"Then let there be no more Qiang people in the world." Zhao Kuo said in a deep voice.
"I will reply to Zhangye County Governor Meng Ao right now." With Zhao Kuo's reply, Lin Xiangru immediately felt confident.
"Your Majesty, the Qiang people live in high mountains, and the terrain is complex, making it easy to defend but difficult to attack." Xunzi reminded.
"Xunzi doesn't mean that the Qiang people have no advantages except geographical advantages." Zhao Kuo said with a smile.
"...You can say that." Xunzi was stunned for a moment and nodded.
In addition to the excellent geographical location, the Qiang people really have no other way to compare with Zhao.
"That's fine. If the Qiang people are more honest, I don't have the heart to deal with them. But if the Qiang people insist on running into them, then there is no need for me to be polite." Zhao Kuo said.
The barbarians around them all have one characteristic: they are afraid of power but not moral, they bully the weak and fear the strong. If the Qiang people are not beaten to pain, the Qiang people will not have a sense of awe.
The State of Zhao could also take advantage of this and cause the Qiang people to suffer a big loss.
The Qiang people and the Zhao State are not bordering each other and have never fought in the past. Even if the Qiang people learn from the Qin State that the Zhao State is very powerful, they will not take it too seriously as long as the knife has not been cut on them. This is the weakness of human nature.
.
As for the plateau, if the Qiang people can stay on it, the Zhao people can naturally kill it.
Historically, the reason why all surrounding barbarians, including the Qiang people, have not been wiped out by the Central Plains is that what really protects them is not favorable terrain such as plateaus or deep mountains, but poverty.
It was so poor that the Central Plains Dynasty not only received no benefits from occupying this place, but also poured money into it.