With the death of King Chu, the war between Zhao and Chu came to an end.
Some righteous men were grateful for King Chu's kindness and couldn't bear King Chu to go on the road alone, so they drew their swords and committed suicide.
However, the vast majority of soldiers, although they felt sad for the King of Chu, had no idea of being buried with him. They had family and friends, and they wanted to live well.
Huang Xie stood at the top of the city, staring blankly at the bottom of the city. Two lines of blood and tears could not help but fall from the corners of his eyes.
More than a minute later, Huang Xie wiped the tears from the corners of his eyes, ordered the city gate to be opened, walked up to Zhao Kuo, leaned over and said, "Please allow King Zhao to collect the body of King Chu for me."
"I'm sure, Xiong Wan is the king of Chu and should be buried with the rites of a prince," Zhao Kuo said.
During his reign, Xiong Wan rectified the country and expanded his territory. His status in the hearts of the people is still very high. He is not the kind of faint-hearted king who everyone calls for beating him.
Zhao Guo showed corresponding respect and could win over the Chu people's hearts, so there was no need to refuse.
"Thank you, King Zhao." Huang Xie bowed again and walked to King Chu. Looking at King Chu with his eyes closed, he couldn't help but feel sad. He slowly knelt on the ground, helped King Chu tidy up his robe, and stretched out his hand again.
I wiped the blood stains on my forehead, but it couldn't be wiped clean.
"Go and get some clean water. The King of Chu loved to be clean when he was alive and would not tolerate any stains on his body..." Huang Xie said to the soldiers behind him.
The soldier took off his helmet, took a cup of water from the moat, and handed it to Huang Xie.
"In the past, you always liked to ask the palace maids to clean your body. Now that there are no palace maids, I can only do it..." Huang Xie said in a low voice while helping King Chu wipe away the stains.
He and the King of Chu had known each other for decades. They went to the State of Qin as a hostage and fled back to the State of Chu together.
One became the King of Chu, and the other became the Prime Minister, and they agreed to revitalize the Chu Kingdom together.
It is said that a king cannot have friends, but he was the only friend of King Chu.
During Xiong Wan's reign, there was never a change of prime minister. For decades, he was the only prime minister.
No matter how others impeach him, his position cannot be shaken.
This kind of trust is impossible even for brothers.
But it came true between the monarch and his ministers.
Now the two are separated forever...
"Let's enter the city." Zhao Kuo turned away, sighed, and led Zhao Jun into Gusu City.
When the people in the city heard the sound of war disappearing, they curiously came outside to see what was going on. When they saw Zhao Jun entering the city, they were frightened and fled back home. They closed the doors and windows and used wooden sticks to hold them up. They were frightened.
are hiding at home.
"Immediately post notices to appease the people. Soldiers are prohibited from burning, killing and looting. Anyone who violates military discipline will be severely punished." Zhao Kuo said in a deep voice.
"No." Liu Ping said.
"The King of Chu is dead and the Kingdom of Chu has been destroyed. Immediately send people to recruit the remaining counties and cities of Chu Kingdom to surrender. Lord Xinling will be responsible for leading the army to attack the counties that refuse to surrender." Zhao Kuo continued.
"No." Wei Wuji said, cupping his fists.
"Send a letter to Handan immediately. I have already pacified Chu and asked the court to send officials over immediately," Zhao Kuo said.
Although Zhao Jun was able to maintain order, he still had to rely on officials to keep the place running smoothly.
"Ask the lieutenants in the army if there are any who want to transfer to civilian positions. We will make statistics and then conduct an assessment. Those who pass the assessment will be awarded official positions according to their current positions." Zhao Kuo added.
There are differences between Zhao and Qin.
The Qin State awarded corresponding titles and military positions according to military merit. When the war was over, corresponding official positions were arranged according to the titles. When the next war happened, military positions were awarded according to the titles.
The advantages are obvious, and so are the disadvantages.
Military positions in the State of Zhao cannot be directly transferred to official positions. Soldiers can also become officials if they want to, and they must pass the assessment.
The reason is very simple, those who know how to fight may not necessarily know how to govern one party.
Even though Zhao Jun has been practicing literacy for more than ten years, there are still some soldiers in the army who are illiterate and can't even read documents. How can they be officials?
It is impossible for the imperial court to assign him a literate clerk to read to him.
As for the officers who failed to pass the examination, they could either remain in the army or be discharged and go home, but they would only have a title, not an official position.
"Let me do this." Le Yi said. He, the lieutenant, was originally responsible for this matter. He couldn't get rid of it anyway, so he might as well take over it on his own initiative.
"The territory of Chu State is too vast. In order to facilitate management, I plan to build Jingzhou and Xiangzhou in the land of Jingxiang, Yangzhou in the east of the Yangtze River, Xuzhou in the south of Mount Tai and north of the Yangtze River, and Yuzhou in the remaining places.
Establish a governor to oversee each county. As for the division of each county, let the court discuss it and submit the results to me." Zhao Kuo continued.
"The governor's appointment..." Wei Wuji said.
"I'll think about it some more," Zhao Kuo said. He always felt that the stall was too big and there weren't enough people.
"One more thing. Although the Chu Kingdom has been pacified, there are still Baiyue in the south. Although the land of Baiyue is wild, the climate is warm and humid, the rainfall is abundant, and the soil is fertile. If it is cultivated, two crops a year will not be a problem. I plan to
With Lord Du Wu as the chief general, he commanded an army of 50,000 to Nanping Baiyue. What do you think?" Zhao Kuo looked at everyone.
Lingnan can theoretically achieve three crops a year, but only if there are chemical fertilizers.
Without chemical fertilizers, the crop can be grown twice a year at most.
But even so, it is still stronger than the Central Plains.
Except for areas with perfect water conservancy facilities and fertile soil, most areas in the Central Plains can only have one crop a year or three crops every two years.
Half a year of planting means half a year of rest.
However, there are too many mountains in southern China. Except for the Yangtze River coast, the Pearl River Delta and the Chengdu Plain, other places are all mountains and hills, which are not suitable for farming, and the carrying capacity of the land is also low.
The area of these three plains is also quite limited.
In comparison, the Ganges Plain is much stronger.
Just sow a few seeds and they will grow, easily raising tens of millions of people, the true foundation of an empire.
It's a pity that Zhao Guo can only watch it now and cannot eat it in his mouth.
"The road to Lingnan is far away, the climate is very different from that of the Central Plains, and there are many mountains and rivers along the way. I will eventually worry that the soldiers will not be accustomed to the climate," Le Yi said.
In fact, he didn't really agree with the attack on Baiyue. If he had the energy, it would be great to attack the Maurya Dynasty and save the need to develop it.
This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading! Baiyue doesn’t have a few pieces of flesh on his body, so what’s there to fight for?
"Choose all the soldiers with good health and bring more doctors. It is winter at this time, and the climate in Lingnan is not hot. It is the most comfortable time for us northerners. The Mauryan Dynasty is also located in the south, and the climate is not much better than that in Lingnan. The soldiers
We will have to face it sooner or later, so we have adapted in advance." Zhao Kuo said.
Baiyue is weak, so Zhao Jun can still withdraw even if he is really acclimatized.
If the Mauryan Dynasty is not acclimatized, it will be a real disaster, and the entire army may even be annihilated.
As a king, Zhao Kuo must be responsible for his soldiers. He could not send a large army to attack the Maurya Dynasty without any preparation.
Hearing Zhao Kuo mention the Maurya Dynasty, Le Yi suddenly stopped talking. Among all the top leaders of Zhao State, the Maurya Dynasty has become the target that Zhao State must destroy.
The Ganges Plain must be in the hands of Zhao!
China has had a fear of land shortage since ancient times.
I always feel that my land is too little and not enough.
When I see that other people's land is better than my own, I feel uncomfortable all over and want to conquer it.
The sooner you adapt to the climate, the sooner you can attack the Maurya Empire.
"General, I will go and choose my soldiers now," Lian Po said loudly.
Most of the soldiers in the Zhao army have internal qi, and there are many who have mastered qi. However, since Zhao Kuo gave him this opportunity, Lian Po naturally had to select some strong ones.
"Don't worry, Lin Qing sent people to transport a large amount of wine and meat from Handan. Let everyone have a good rest these two days and start the southern expedition in a few days." Zhao Kuo said.
"Your Majesty, my subordinates have just found out that King Chu has another son, the prince of Chu State, who is in the city." At this time, Liu Ping whispered.
"I know." Zhao Kuo nodded, "Just send someone to keep an eye on it, don't do anything else."
Zhao Kuo didn't care about the prince of Chu. Even the king of Chu was dead, let alone a mere prince, but the premise was that the other party was sensible.
If you don't understand, don't blame him.
In the evening, the sun is about to set.
Huang Xie must have buried the body of King Chu, and brought an eleven or twelve-year-old boy to Zhao Kuo. He bowed and said, "This is the heir of Prince Chu. His name is Xiong Han. I ask King Zhao to spare him."
Once he is alive, I will stay with him to raise him, watch over him personally, and will never disobey King Zhao."
Huang Xie knew very well that if he wanted to keep Xiong Han alive, the best way was not to take him out of the city, but to bring him directly to Zhao Kuo and express his feelings.
From now on, as long as he is under Zhao Kuo's nose, Zhao Kuo will not attack him.
On the contrary, if you run away, if you are caught, you are more likely to be executed.
Even if you successfully escape, you will have to remain anonymous for the rest of your life, or even live in exile.
Xiong Han hid behind Huang Xie, holding the corners of Huang Xie's clothes tightly with both hands, and looked at Zhao Kuo fearfully.
"Jun Chun Shen's words are serious. Not to mention a childish boy in his early teens, even if the King of Chu were... I would not kill him. King Yan is still living a good life in Handan. Although it is not as good as the life in the past, it is far away.
More nourishing than ordinary civilians." Zhao Kuo helped Huang Xie up.
"Thank you, King Zhao." Huang Xie pulled Xiong Han in front of him and scolded, "Why don't you thank King Zhao."
"Your Majesty... the common people would like to thank King Zhao." Xiong Han knelt on the ground and said carefully.
"Get up, don't be nervous. You go out to play first while I discuss some things with Lord Chun Shen." Zhao Kuo touched Xiong Han's head and said kindly.
Xiong Han glanced at Huang Xie, saw Huang Xie nodded, and quickly retreated.
"The land of Chu has been settled for the first time, and everything is waiting to be revitalized. As a native of Chu, Lord Chunshen probably doesn't want to see the people of Chu being displaced and living in chaos. I wonder if Lord Chunshen is willing to help me stabilize the land of Chu?" Zhao Kuo
said.
"I am willing." Huang Xie leaned over and said.
It seemed that Zhao Kuo was asking him about this matter, but in fact he couldn't refuse at all.
Zhao Kuo had just given him face over Xiong Han's matter, and now he had to give Zhao Kuo face as well.
"I plan to move all the Chu kings and nobles to the south of the Yangtze River to fill the population of the south of the Yangtze River and promote the development of the south of the Yangtze River. What do you think of Chun Shen Jun?" Zhao Kuo asked.
The state of Chu has the most lordships among the seven kingdoms, and the number of lordships in one country is equal to that of the other six states combined.
The smaller ones only have one small dilapidated city with a population of several thousand, while the larger ones have several large cities, which are enough to compete with the Chu royal family.
The largest feudal lord was standing in front of Zhao Kuo. The twelve counties in Huaibei used to be Huang Xie's fiefdom. Later, Huang Xie asked the King of Chu to transfer the fiefdom to Jiangdong. Huang Xie presided over the expansion of Gusu at his feet.
These lords and nobles were spread all over the Chu State and controlled most of the wealth and power of the Chu State. Their power was complex and deeply rooted.
On the surface, they were very respectful to Zhao State, but secretly they united to block Zhao State's decrees and incited the local people to fight against Zhao State.
Unless Zhao Guo gets rid of these feudal nobles, it will never truly be able to control Chu.
Not to mention Zhao, even the kings of Chu in the past dynasties thought about killing these princes every day and gathering all the power into the hands of the king.
King Chu Mourning once appointed Wu Qi to carry out reforms to weaken the prince's power and move the noble fiefdoms to the south of the Yangtze River.
Later... Wu Qi was killed by a noble of Chu State...
However, the State of Zhao is different from the State of Chu. The basic base of the State of Zhao is Hebei, followed by the Central Plains. The Chu land is just a new occupation. Even if all the nobles of the Chu State are offended, it will not be able to touch the foundation of the State of Zhao. The worst is to smash it and start over.
If you can destroy Chu State the first time, you can destroy it the second time.
When the king of Chu was there, he was no match for Zhao.
The King of Chu is dead, can the remaining loose sand still threaten the State of Zhao?
"As long as your Majesty makes up his mind, I have no objection. However...it's either not done, or it can't be done halfway," Huang Xie said.
Since Zhao Kuo mentioned it in front of him, he would probably leave the matter to him.
But this matter is not easy to handle. If not, he might be killed by those nobles like Wu Qi.
Only by going all the way to the dark side and completely eliminating these nobles can he save his life.
"Then this matter will be left to Lord Chunshen. Ben, mobilize a thousand imperial guards to protect Lord Chunshen and prevent those nobles from jumping over the wall." Zhao Kuo said to Ben.
"No." Ben said, clasping his fists.
"Thank you, Your Majesty." Huang Xie did not refuse. Although the Imperial Guards seemed to be under surveillance, they could indeed protect themselves.
Those nobles can do anything when they are anxious.
"I have one more thing. I would like to ask Lord Chun Shen to select some young talents from the Chu region to serve as officials in various places." Zhao Kuo said.
There is a language barrier between Zhao and Chu, and there are big differences in writing. Without the help of Chu people, it would be difficult for Zhao officials to govern the place alone.
Moreover, using only Zhao officials would easily trigger conflicts in various places.
However, Zhao Kuo does not intend to continue using most of the current officials in Chu State, and must select a new group.
"This is easy to handle. I have thousands of customers before me, and most of them are not from noble families." Huang Xie said.
"Then please trouble Chun Shenjun to gather them together again." Zhao Kuo said.
"No." Huang Xie leaned over and said. Seeing that Zhao Kuo did not continue to give instructions, he retreated.
"The order is passed to move the prisoners of Qin and Chu to develop the south of the Yangtze River for a period of five years. After five years, they can return to their original places. If they are willing to move the whole family to live in the military service, they can be exempted from five years of service, obtain household registration immediately, and do not have to pay taxes within five years.
In addition to agricultural taxes, the government will build houses and allocate land for free." Zhao Kuo ordered again.