My father Liu Xuande

Chapter 376 Suppressing the Mountain Yue
Pan Zhang's actions were like a signal flare, and actions were launched in various places as well.

Taishi Ci, along with generals Gao Shun, Zhang Yun, and Sun Ce, launched a campaign to encircle and annihilate Kaolao Mountain in the heart of the Ningbo Plain.

As mentioned before, the reason why the Ningbo Plain is compressed into the shape of a dumbbell is because there is a mountain called Kaolao Mountain in the middle and above.

It is the existence of this mountain range, facing the Siming Mountain across the Yaojiang River, that makes the Yaojiang River Valley an east-west corridor of the Ningbo Plain, which is the lever part of the dumbbell.

Strictly speaking, Kaolao Mountain is actually an extension of the Siming Mountains, but it is blocked by the Yaojiang River.

Within the Kaolao Mountain region, there is a mountain-wide tribe of over ten thousand people. The reason they have such a large number is entirely due to the relatively flat terrain of Kaolao Mountain, with some plains within the mountain range. In addition, the surrounding plains make it easy to plunder and reap rich rewards when they go down the mountain.

For a long time, the local gentry and powerful families of Kuaiji had considered besieging Kaolao Mountain.

However, once the powerful clans of Kuaiji gather their forces, the Yue people of Siming Mountain on the opposite side will also launch attacks from all directions, relieving the pressure on Kaolao Mountain.

Even if the Han people disregard everything and are determined to besiege Kaolao Mountain, the Yue tribes in Kaolao Mountain will find an opportunity to cross the Yaojiang River Valley and escape to Siming Mountain on the opposite side.

The Yue people knew very well that the Han people would not stay in the mountains for long and would eventually retreat, so they were not worried at all about their homeland being occupied by the other side.

Even if I can't defeat the Han people, it's the same if I come back after you leave.

This time, however, the Yue tribe did not expect that Taishi Ci's focus was not on Kaolao Mountain, but on the Yue tribe within the Kaolao Mountain area.

While mobilizing infantry to form a massive encirclement and suppression operation, he secretly deployed cavalry and naval forces on both sides of the Yaojiang River.

The large-scale operation in the north forced the Yue tribes to migrate. When these tribes were preparing to cross the Yao River and flee to the Siming Mountains on the other side, they were successfully ambushed by Taishi Ci while crossing the river, and the entire tribe was wiped out.

In this battle alone, Taishi Ci killed more than 700 people, captured more than 16,100 men, women, children and the elderly from the mountain tribes, and obtained countless grains, mountain products and minerals.

Taishi Ci then pressed his advantage, selecting guides from among the Yue people in the mountains before storming into the Siming Mountains. He swept through the northern part of the Siming Mountains, annihilating seven or eight tribes and capturing tens of thousands of prisoners.

In this battle, Sun Ce took the lead and fought bravely, winning one victory after another. However, he was ambushed by the Yue people and wounded by an arrow.

After the battle report was delivered to Liu Feng, Liu Feng was stunned for more than a dozen breaths before chuckling. His previous wariness and attention to Sun Ce gradually subsided.

The image of Sun Ce, who swept through Wu and Kuaiji, established his rule over Jiangdong, and was a brilliant military strategist—that's a thing of the past. The Sun Ce of today is merely a general under my command, seeking redemption for his crimes and the loss of his family. Besides, many want Sun Ce dead. Leaving aside Yu Fan, He Qi, Wei Teng, and Wu Fan of Kuaiji, even Gu, Lu, Zhu, and Zhang might not see Sun Ce as a good match.

Liu Feng then sent a physician to visit and comfort Sun Ce, and also brought him a lot of nourishing foods, telling Sun Ce to rest and recover.

Taishi Ci's two battles resolved the dangers from the east and south to Yuyao and Gouzhang, and also completely cleared Kaolao Mountain.

Even Mao County and Yin County have been relieved of the threat from the west, allowing them to concentrate their efforts on Tiantai Mountain in the southeast.

However, compared to Kaolao Mountain, Siming Mountain and Tiantai Mountain are obviously much larger and not even in the same league.

Therefore, Taishi Ci was not in a hurry to continue expanding his gains. Instead, he began to absorb the 20,000 to 30,000 mountain Yue prisoners, selecting the elite and brave to join the army and register them as commoners, allowing them to cultivate the land under the name of the General Who Conquers the South.

The mountainous areas inhabited by these Yue people are mostly adjacent to the plains. They usually live and interact with Han people, and some of them are even Han people who have become Yue people.

Therefore, a high proportion of this group are skilled farmers, and there are even artisans among them, making them a very cost-effective way to supplement the population.

On the western front, Xu Sheng was not idle either. He commanded the troops of Zhu Zhi and Zhu Huan to carry out operations along the Puyang River, focusing on clearing out the Yue tribes in the oval-shaped area from the Puyang River to the Fuchun River, and achieved a series of great victories.

The final count revealed over 22,000 Yue soldiers captured, and over 1,900 heads were taken.

This series of battles greatly improved the security situation in Kuaiji Commandery and effectively stabilized the negative emotions generated by Du Tian.

During this time, Liu Feng also received a reply from Liu Bei.

In his reply, Liu Bei politely declined Liu Feng's request to appoint Chen Deng and Xun You as governors of Yangzhou, allowing Liu Feng to continue handling military affairs in Jiangdong. At the end, he only agreed to the request to replace Sheng Xian as governor of Wu Commandery.

As relations with Liu Biao improved, Liu Bei was able to free up a large number of troops in Jiangbei, many of whom were newly recruited soldiers.

Upon learning that Liu Feng planned to quell the Yue tribes and strengthen his control over the four commanderies of Jiangdong, Liu Bei carefully selected troops and prepared to send them south to assist in the battle.

At the same time, at Liu Feng's request, Guan Yu, along with Zhang Liao and others, will cross the river to the south and station themselves in Wu Commandery, temporarily taking charge of the military affairs of Wu Commandery and Danyang Commandery, and will be under Liu Feng's control.

At this time, Guan Yu's official position was the governor of Xuzhou. However, Xuzhou was now stable, while the south was newly acquired and needed an important general like Guan Yu to be stationed there. At the same time, he could also quell the mountain tribes in the south of Wu Commandery.

This part of the Yue people in the mountains is more likely to be from Danyang Commandery than from Wu Commandery.

Therefore, Guan Yu, with his title of General Who Guards the East, was able to better command the military affairs of the two commanderies.

********
While Liu Feng was in Shangyu handling various matters, a group of people arrived outside the city.

The leader was a scholar of ordinary appearance, and beside him was a tall young scholar.

Two pageboys followed behind the two, and six burly guests carrying swords and knives followed behind them.

The leader was Pang Tong, Pang Shiyuan, who had left Shouchun and was inspecting Yangzhou. The young scholar beside him was his cousin, Pang Shanmin.

"Brother, Liu Zhengnan has very grand intentions."

The two prefectures of Jing and Yang are adjacent to each other and are separated only by the Yangtze River. Their relationship is quite close and intertwined.

From a military perspective, Jingzhou and Yangzhou were essentially one entity. The saying goes, "To defend the Yangtze, one must defend the Huai River; and to defend the Huai River, one must defend Jingzhou." Without Jingzhou, there was no point in even discussing defending the Huai River; for Yangzhou, that would practically mean certain annihilation.

On the surface, Sun Quan's ambition to seize Jingzhou seemed reasonable; only by taking Jingzhou could he control the entire Yangtze River and resist the north.

The problem is that Jingzhou is currently in the hands of Liu Bei, an ally. Moreover, if Guan Yu forces Cao Cao to move the capital, the entire Huaibei region may be abandoned, otherwise it will be caught in a pincer attack by Sun Quan and Liu Bei.

As the last major military force of Cao Wei, Xiahou Dun's Huaibei War Zone, encompassing a full twenty-six battalions, can be considered the linchpin of Cao Wei. It was absolutely impossible for them to take risks for Huaibei.

Meanwhile, many people defended Sun Quan, pointing out that Liu Bei also broke the alliance, but in fact, Lü Meng's attack was the second time.

The result of the first sneak attack was the Xiang River Alliance.

In the Xiang River Alliance, both sides expressed their intention to forgive and forget the past and to divide the territory with the Xiang River as the boundary.

This sneak attack, especially since they first submitted to Wei before launching the attack, is simply unacceptable.

Pang Tong and his brother came from a prominent family in Jingzhou and had always harbored ambitions for Yangzhou.

Among the four great families of Kuai, Cai, Huang, and Pang, the Pang family appears to be the most low-key. Even Pang Degong, a prominent member of the family and a direct descendant, has gone into seclusion and has not taken up an official post.

In reality, the Pang family's ambitions were no smaller than those of the other three families, and in fact, their ambitions were even greater.

As it turned out, the Cao Wei group never trusted the Jingzhou group. In the Ye City incident, the most devastating casualties were among the surrendered Jingzhou scholars. After the Battle of Guandu, the four major families of Jingzhou were completely divided.

Kuai, Huang, and Cai have almost disappeared from the annals of history. Apart from a very few records left by their descendants, these are merely brief mentions and questionable details.

On the contrary, the Pang family reached the pinnacle of their family's power.

Pang Tong first defected to Zhou Yu, leading Zhou Yu's army into Nan Commandery, capturing Jiangling, and devising a plan to enter Shu.

After Zhou Yu died of illness, Pang Tong rushed to Jiangdong to find a successor.

Unfortunately, Sun Quan didn't think much of Pang Tong, which cost him the good situation of Jingzhou and gave Liu Bei a huge gift from heaven.

There are many reasons why Sun Quan looked down on Pang Tong. For example, Lu Su, contrary to the novel, not only did not strongly recommend Pang Tong to Sun Quan, but was Pang Tong's biggest suppressor.

Lu Su was indeed recommended to Sun Quan by Zhou Yu, and was also a member of the Huai-Si martial arts faction led by Zhou Yu.

However, Lu Su had already forged his own path long ago, splitting off a Huai-Si exile faction from the Huai-Si martial arts faction and becoming its leader.

This involved strong support from Sun Quan, as well as timely concessions from Zhou Yu.

Zhou Yu was an extremely shrewd political man. At the beginning of Sun Quan's reign, as a powerful regional military commander, he was the first to respond to Sun Quan and led troops to support the emperor, thus gaining Sun Quan's trust and being given important responsibilities.

Therefore, when he discovered that Sun Quan wanted to divide the Huai-Si faction, Zhou Yu did not choose to confront him, but instead complied with Sun Quan's wishes and created a branch.

Although Zhou Yu did a brilliant job, satisfying Sun Quan, avoiding a complete falling out with Lu Su, and preserving the large group of the Huai-Si faction, he achieved three goals at once.

But the problem is that Lu Su was also a capable advisor to the emperor, and he had no reason to remain subservient to others indefinitely.

Especially since you, Zhou Yu, are already dead.

Lu Su's political program was to annex or unite with Jingzhou and develop northward together, while Zhou Yu hoped to first enter Shu, take over Yizhou, and control the entire south.

In this situation, Lu Su naturally had to suppress Pang Tong, because Pang Tong was Zhou Yu's chief clerk, and the two were extremely close.

Zhou Yu's trust in and heavy reliance on Pang Tong was exceptional.

Historical records state: When Zhou Yu was in charge of Nan Commandery, Pang Tong was highly regarded and trusted by the local people, so Zhou Yu forced Pang Tong to serve as his chief clerk and entrusted him with important matters. Zhou Yu, however, simply did nothing.

It can be said that Zhou Yu made military decisions himself, while all political affairs were handed over to Pang Tong. Even more exaggeratedly, Pang Tong was also responsible for preparing Zhou Yu's grand plan to enter Shu.

This was also a very important reason why Liu Bei chose Pang Tong to accompany his army when he entered Shu instead of Zhuge Liang.

Therefore, why would Lu Su want Pang Tong to be highly valued by Sun Quan?
More importantly, Sun Quan at the time did not want to give Pang Tong an important position.

Just look at the people Pang Tong interacted with when he went to Jiangdong to mourn Zhou Yu, and you'll know how much Sun Quan feared him.

Pang Tong's friends in Jiangdong included Lu Ji, Gu Shao, and Quan Cong; most people in Eastern Wu had heard of Pang Tong's name.

Lu Ji was the head of the Lu family, Gu Shao was the eldest son of Gu Yong and the son-in-law of Sun Ce, and Quan Cong was the son of Quan Rou, the governor of Guiyang. They were also a first-class powerful family in Wu County, second only to Gu, Lu, Zhu, and Zhang.

Pang Tong himself was a top-tier aristocratic and powerful figure in Jingzhou, and he also became sworn brothers with other top-tier aristocratic and powerful figures in Jiangdong.

Sun Quan had finally gained control of the court, but he still couldn't do anything about the powerful clans of Jiangdong.

At this point, if the powerful clans of Jiangdong and Jingzhou were to unite, Sun Quan would truly go mad.

After hearing Pang Tong's words, Pang Shanmin frowned and pondered deeply.

He understood what Pang Tong meant; he was clearly referring to Liu Feng's land survey. The rebellion in Kuaiji could be kept secret from others, but not from the Pang brothers, who were in Wu Commandery and had now entered Kuaiji.

Pang Tong and Pang Shanmin knew very well that the rebellion in Kuaiji was deliberately instigated by Liu Feng. And the reason Liu Feng did this was most likely to seize land in Kuaiji.

Once the land in Kuaiji is cultivated, it will be immediately extended to the four counties of Jiangdong.

With the cultivation of fields in Jiangdong completed, the two counties north of the Yangtze River, and even Xu and Yu, may follow in the footsteps of Kuaiji.

As prominent figures in Jingzhou, Pang Tong and Pang Shanmin were naturally well aware of the power of excessive farming.

When the Shu Kingdom fell, it had 280,000 registered households and 940,000 people, which is quite an interesting number.

During the reign of Emperor Shun of the Eastern Han Dynasty, Yizhou, excluding the southern frontier, had a population of over five million, with the Chengdu Plain as its core.

After the Yellow Turban Rebellion, there were relatively few battles in Yizhou, and there were no large-scale massacres.

When Liu Bei successfully entered Shu, the registered population was 240,000 and the population was 900,000.

When combined with numbers representing the period after the Western Jin Dynasty unified China, this mathematical puzzle becomes even more intriguing.

After the Western Jin Dynasty unified the country, Yizhou had 910,000 registered households and a population of 4.34 million.

Clearly, both this population decline and growth are highly unreasonable.

The reason for this situation is naturally due to powerful and influential families like Pang Tong and Pang Shanmin.

Currently, with Gu, Lu, Zhu, and Zhang jointly contributing 150,000 mu of land, the number of households and people registered in Wu County will increase by at least 10,000 and 50,000.

The population of 50,000 is not only a source of human resources, but also a source of tax revenue.

But now, having lost 150,000 mu of land resources, Gu Luzhu Zhang can no longer support these people and has no choice but to "dismiss" them from their homes.

Pang Shanmin frowned and said, "Isn't Liu Zhengnan afraid of inciting public resentment by acting so recklessly?"

"Incite public resentment?"

Pang Tong stared at his cousin in shock. Wasn't this rebellion in Kuaiji a sign of popular discontent?

The public resentment has been completely and cleanly eliminated, so what is there to be afraid of?

Pang Shanmin realized his mistake and looked embarrassed. He had spoken carelessly. When he said those words, he was actually speaking from the perspective of the Pang family of Nanjun, not from the perspective of Kuaiji.

Pang Tong glanced at Pang Shanmin and deliberately changed the subject: "Brother, do you just think Liu Zhengnan is acting recklessly? If he can successfully expand the land in the southeast, who in the world can withstand the Liu family's military might?"

(End of this chapter)