In the 21st year of Yankang, Shangshu ordered Zhuge Liang to return to Luoxian County.
At this moment, four full years have passed since he went to Hezhou. During these four years, he has done a great job in expanding the area outside the Great Wall. Zhuge Liang just opened up another large area outside the Great Wall.
The areas in these areas were nominally owned by the three prefectures of He, Xin, and Ning. They sent county magistrates and governors, and also moved a group of powerful men and lawless people from Hebei to enrich the numbers of these areas.
It has to be said that although the land outside the Great Wall is cold, there is a lot of fertile land. However, millet, rice and the like cannot grow here. Wheat and woodland are mainly grown in large areas. These two types are still important here.
Those who can grow, Zhuge Liang has been busy outside the Great Wall for many years and made sufficient preparations. He even watched the reclamation and education work here have begun, and then, as Shangshu Ling, he exempted these people from slave status and gave them
their right to cultivate freely.
Even, despite the objections of local officials, Zhuge Liang exempted the area from paying taxes for three years.
Many people cannot understand what Zhuge Liang wants to do and what he thinks. Zhuge Liang will not explain to them. After the border troops in Ningzhou and Youzhou took over the local defense, the Northern and Southern armies also withdrew.
Got here.
Zhuge Liang originally didn't want to go back too early, but the emperor's letters kept urging him to return earlier. He couldn't resist the order and handed over the affairs here to Lu Yu, leaving Zhuge Zhan as his deputy.
But he returned to Luoyang.
Sitting in the carriage, Zhuge Liang's face was still full of sorrow. It had been many years, but Zhuge Liang had never been truly happy. Thinking of Zhuge Zhan's angry and reluctant look before leaving, Zhuge Liang also felt a little sad. He
He is not a heartless person, nor is he willing to let go of his children. However, there must be someone who knows his thoughts to help deal with matters outside the Great Wall.
When he conferred the title of state pastors in various places, in order to better guard against powerful enemies outside the Great Wall, the Emperor arranged a group of strong and iron-blooded state pastors in the border counties so that they could better deal with challenges from beyond the Great Wall. But now, Zhuge Liang
I feel that they are very unsuitable to deal with today's problems outside the Great Wall. The slaves have been busy for four years, and they hate the big man in their hearts.
Zhuge Liang liberated them and exempted them from taxes in order to allow them to develop outside the Great Wall, and he also continued to move the people of Hebei here to make this place completely the domain of the Han Dynasty. Only then could Zhuge Liang feel at ease. Unfortunately, these
In 2000, except for those lawless powerful people and prisoners, few people were willing to go to develop outside the Great Wall.
Therefore, education is very necessary, that is, we must not let them forget their hatred for the Han, but also let them speak elegant words and enter the core of the culture of the Han. Only in this way can the people outside the Great Wall be stable for a long time. Zhuge Liang even fought with
Xun You of the Japanese island got in touch and asked him to send some capable men to the outside of the wall, and even hoped to relocate some people from the Japanese island.
Zhuge Liang knew in his heart that his method of forcibly relocating people would definitely be despised, but this was already the best way at the moment.
The carriage drove slowly on the road. Finally, Zhuge Liang arrived in Luo County. As soon as he entered the Sili area, officials from all over the country came to greet him. Zhuge Liang's reputation in these years has been very high. He is almost here.
When arriving at Luoxian County, some ministers even went out to greet them. Zhuge Liang also got off the carriage, looked at the people who came, and returned the greetings one by one.
Standing in front of the ministers, it was the prince Liu Qu who came to greet Zhuge Liang. Liu Qu was smiling, but his eyes when he looked at Zhuge Liang were extremely hot, almost worshiping him. Zhuge Liang was a little creepy when he looked at him.
It's not that he hasn't dealt with the prince before, but the prince's attitude towards him seems to have changed a lot.
"Sir, you are finally back!" Liu Qu held Zhuge Liang's hand cordially and said seriously. "Sir" is the name he calls the elders in the clan. Logically speaking, it is not unreasonable for him to call Zhuge Liang this way. After all,
, Zhuge Liang is the son-in-law of Emperor Xiaokang, the sister-in-law of Emperor Xiaokang, and the uncle of the emperor. However, Zhuge Liang felt a little uncomfortable when Liu Qu suddenly called him this.
"Your Highness...this..."
"Hey, you can just call me Hu'er. These days, I miss you so much..." Liu Qu didn't give the other ministers a chance to speak. He pulled Zhuge Liang and walked towards the county seat, following
Next to him, Zhuge Liang was the only one in his eyes, and he looked particularly fanatical. Zhuge Liang frowned, thought for a long time, and attributed all this to the fact that he had planned temple orders outside the Great Wall in these years.
Most likely the prince also heard about these things, so he treated him with such courtesy.
However, this is a good thing. It is not that Zhuge Liang likes to be so respected by the emperor. He thinks that the prince can be so courteous to talents. This is a good thing for the Han Dynasty. The Han Dynasty has a wise prince.
"With Zhuge Linggong here, the country's affairs will be worry-free!" Liu Qu looked very happy. The two of them walked into the county together. Looking at the familiar streets, Zhuge Liang was filled with emotions. Hu'er took him with him.
Walking towards the palace, Zhuge Liang once again thanked the many friends who came to greet him, and then entered the palace. Liu Qu led him towards the Houde Hall.
"Kong Ming!" Liu Xi was very excited to see Zhuge Liang again. He smiled and walked up to him. They were both a little excited to meet their old friends. After chatting for a long time, the two of them sat down. Liu Qu
Just standing aside without saying a word, Liu Xi waved him away. After Liu Qu reluctantly left, Liu Xi discussed important matters with Zhuge Liang.
"Your Majesty, please forgive me for my sin. I made my own decision and exempted the people outside the Great Wall from three years of taxes... I also want to settle down outside the Great Wall as soon as possible, and also implement a series of overseas policies in
Outside the Great Wall, as long as you can learn elegant language and be able to read and write, the temples will reward you. In this way, the Outside the Great Wall can be civilized as soon as possible..." Zhuge Liang opened his mouth and talked about his faults.
He hoped that the emperor could understand his painstaking efforts outside the Great Wall, and even if he was dismissed, he would never abolish his decrees outside the Great Wall.
Unexpectedly, Liu Xi seemed very calm about this, nodded, and said: "That's right, Kong Ming, I believe you can do it well, so just go ahead and do it..."
"Thank you, Your Majesty!"
"You and I are old friends, why are you doing this?" Liu Xi shook his head and asked about some things outside the Great Wall. Zhuge Liang also truthfully told the expansion of the Great Wall. He even did not understand the cycle he saw.
He told Liu Xi, "I see..." Liu Xi nodded. He became the first person among the big men to trust Zhuge Liang's words. This touched Zhuge Liang's calm heart.
"For matters outside the Great Wall, we can imitate Prime Minister Xun's policies on the Japanese island... I will send someone to take charge... A few days ago, Xun Linggong wrote to me, recommending his son Xun Shen to me, and wanted Xun Shen to Heading to Hezhou... I saw that Xun Linggong was alone and Xun Shen was taking care of him all day long, so I couldn't bear to agree to it."
"Sigh... Your Majesty, Xun Shen is indeed a good choice. However, I recommend another person. Although this person is young, he can definitely handle these things well..."
"Oh? Could it be that you also want to recommend your son?"
"No, Zhan'er is lazy by nature, so he is not suitable. The most suitable candidate is Yuan Yao, the son of former Duke Yuan."
"Yao'er? He is still young, can he do well?"
"Your Majesty, if he does not do well, I will share the same guilt with him."
"Oh...that's fine, then let's do it like this."
"Speaking of which, I haven't cared too much about Master's son. Over the years, I can't be considered a good disciple... Master is just such a son. If you didn't tell me, I would have almost forgotten... ." Liu Xi sighed with emotion. He frowned, and the wrinkles on his forehead were quite obvious. Zhuge Liang was stunned for a moment, and then said: "This kid is quite good. He has also made great contributions overseas in these years... "
"That's because you taught me well."
The two chatted for a long time before finally discussing matters beyond the Great Wall.
"Kong Ming...you said, are you sure you can conquer Guishuang within a year?" Liu Xi suddenly asked. Zhuge Liang was shocked and hurriedly raised his head and said: "Your Majesty, we have just started attacking outside the Great Wall. The national treasury is not stable, there are many disasters, and the soldiers of the Northern and Southern armies are exhausted. How can they mobilize troops again within a year? What’s more, this Kuishang is different from that outside the Great Wall. Kuishang is not as good as before, but if it is forced to death, it will probably be the same. We can raise an army of hundreds of thousands!"
"Your Majesty, think twice!"
Listening to Zhuge Liang's persuasion, Liu Xi smiled bitterly, "How come I don't know this? But, Kong Ming, if I don't rush to conquer Guishuang, I'm afraid that after a while, I will have to use the strength of the whole country. I'm afraid of going on a conquest... If you let me do it, I can at least destroy the powerful enemy at the minimum cost, which can be considered a good thing."
"Your Majesty... within one year... I'm afraid it won't work. If we make preparations from now on, it will take three years..."
"Three years?" Liu Xi was stunned for a moment. He placed his left and right hands gently on his heart, which was in severe pain from time to time. He quickly put it down again and shook his head.
"I'm afraid I won't have three years left."
"Your Majesty!" Zhuge Liang was shocked and stood up. He was a little panicked. "Why did your Majesty say this? Your Majesty is still young. Your Majesty must not speak like this..."
"Give you two years..." Liu Xi remained unmoved and just said seriously, "Two years later, the Northern and Southern armies will send troops together to turn Guishang into a state of the Han Dynasty... You can do it "?" Liu Xi looked at Zhuge Liang expectantly. The emperor's face had an almost pleading look that Zhuge Liang had never seen before. Zhuge Liang's expression gradually became determined.