Late Yuan Dynasty: I am the true emperor

Chapter 337: Policy Selection (Part )

After Liu Zhang sat down again, Lu Jin said, "Now that the currency law is determined, let's talk about financial management and taxation. Does anyone want to try it?"

After this round of advice and suggestions, everyone present realized that this commander not only likes practical talents, but also likes to do things in an organized and methodical manner, with novel views and meaningful words, and it would be best if he could explain things clearly. Such people do seem more reliable.

Therefore, those who were interested in competing for official positions changed their strategies. Isn't it just a matter of words? Come on, one, two, three. I can do it too.

Zhou Zhen and Yang Xian, who had just lost the first match, stood up again almost at the same time. They both bowed and said, "General, I would like to say something."

Lu Jin looked at the two men, who were getting more and more courageous, so he said, "Mr. Zhou, go first. The one behind you, remember to give your name and hometown first next time."

Yang Xian immediately regretted what he said, and the two of them said yes in unison. Yang Xian then sat back down, while Zhou Zhen continued to stand and speak.

"Managing the finances of a country is like managing a household. It is nothing more than increasing income and reducing expenditure, living within one's means, being frugal, and having a reasonable reward and punishment. Only in this way can the country have surpluses year after year and become prosperous and strong. As for taxation, there are only three types of taxation laws in all dynasties.

"The first is the land tax, which is the output of the land. If you want to collect the land tax well, you must first register the people and measure the land. Only with the details of the land can you collect taxes. Second, you must adapt to local conditions. Since the Song Dynasty, the country's land tax has been collected in summer and autumn. The same is true for the Yuan court today, collecting cotton and silk in summer and millet in autumn.

"However, local customs are different. For example, in western Zhejiang, people grow double-season rice, raise silkworms, and do not grow cotton. Therefore, they should harvest raw silk or cloth in the summer and rice in the autumn. In eastern Zhejiang, people grow cotton but do not grow mulberry and raise silkworms. Therefore, they should harvest cotton or cotton cloth in the summer and rice in the autumn. It is different in Anfeng, Luzhou, where the Marshal was before. I heard that many people grow wheat and beans there. Therefore, we should adapt to local conditions and tax wheat and beans.

"Third, we must inspect the fertility of the fields and collect taxes based on the yield. The fertile fields and paddy fields in Jiangsu and Zhejiang can be taxed more appropriately based on their yield, while the dry fields and lean fields in Anfeng and Luzhou can be taxed less.

“But in general, the land tax should not be too high. Once the land tax is determined, it cannot be changed overnight. Stability should be the main focus.

"The second is the tax on men. There is nothing much to say about this. Just remember not to make it too high. Otherwise, it will be detrimental to population growth and people will be unwilling to report to the government as men of color.

"For example, during the reign of Emperor Wu of Han, the state's land tax was extremely low, with 1 in 20 or 1 in 30. The court could not collect the land tax, so it could only levy more taxes on people. In addition, during the reign of Emperor Wu of Han, there were continuous wars, which led to a large number of hidden households. In order to avoid paying the high taxes on people, many people took shelter in the homes of wealthy and powerful families, resulting in a sharp decline in the number of people registered with the court."

Lu Jin nodded frequently, but some other people frowned when they heard this, suspecting that Zhou Zhen was alluding to some gentry.
Zhou Zhen ignored all that and continued speaking.

"The third is corvée. Since ancient times, corvée has been a burden on people, especially those who serve outside the country. There is a saying among the people that if one man serves in the corvée, the whole family will starve. This is because the labor force at home is limited. If someone serves outside the country, it will naturally delay production at home.

"Speaking of corvée labor, I should have advised the Marshal to impose as little corvée labor as possible, but now is a time when people's livelihood is in decline and everything needs to be rebuilt. The country needs to recover its vitality, which is inseparable from construction. Therefore, corvée labor cannot be avoided, but we must also prioritize it.

"The most urgent tasks are city building, water conservancy, and transporting military supplies. City building is a military matter, water conservancy is the foundation of agriculture, and transporting military supplies is for the army to win. All three cannot be omitted. But once the city building and water conservancy tasks are completed, taxes and levies should be reduced immediately.

"As for other things that need to be delayed, such as the construction of county and prefectural offices, it will not be too late to build them after the world is pacified. Now we should be frugal and rely on existing government buildings to work, save as much as possible, and cherish the people's strength.

"Only these three things should be considered. Other corvée labor should be avoided as much as possible. It would be best if the commander-in-chief could directly issue an order to prohibit government offices at all levels, especially clerks, from recruiting corvée labor privately."

Lu Jin was a little surprised when he heard this, "Do clerks also have the right to impose corvée labor?"

Zhou Zhen immediately answered, "Yes, there are corrupt officials who, in order to make money, deliberately conscript the people to do corvée. They arrange for them to work, but deliberately find faults, and finally make the people pay money to do the corvée. Their fundamental purpose is to make money."

Lu Jin frowned and nodded, "Go on."

"Yes." Zhou Zhen then continued, "In addition to the clear order not to conscript menial labor, the conscription of corvée labor should also pay attention to the time. Unless the military situation is urgent, it should be avoided during the farming season to avoid delaying the production of the people.

"The above-mentioned land tax, population tax, and corvée are the main sources of taxation. In addition to taxation, there are also expenses.

"The expenditures of all dynasties are limited to five items: salaries, military expenses, engineering projects, rewards, and disaster relief savings.

"The Marshal now has the benefits of salt and iron, and he is also going to mint coins and print banknotes. This is already a relatively stable and sufficient fiscal revenue. With the support of salt and iron, it is best to focus on light taxes on land and capitation.

"In terms of increasing revenue and reducing expenditure, the first thing to do is to reduce salaries. We should avoid redundant officials and personnel to save unnecessary expenses. In terms of military expenses, except for soldiers going out to fight, soldiers in the rear and soldiers guarding the border should try their best to cultivate the land on their own to reduce the burden on the people.

“The third is engineering. As I just said, apart from necessary projects such as water conservancy and city building, we should try to avoid large-scale construction so that the people can rest and recuperate.

"Fourth, rewards. The Yuan court's finances were corrupt, and there was a suspicion that successive Yuan rulers gave out rewards indiscriminately. Therefore, rewards should be reasonable and moderate. The monarch only has the power and reputation, and should not use them on others. Rewards are the power in the hands of the monarch, and should be used with caution. If rewards are given indiscriminately, it will undermine the monarch's authority.

"The fifth item of disaster relief savings cannot be achieved for the time being. Now the Marshal is mainly focusing on pacifying the country, and military expenses will definitely account for a larger proportion of his expenditures. Savings can only be accumulated after the country is pacified, military expenses are reduced, and the country has a surplus."

After Zhou Zhen finished speaking, Lu Jin commented, "What a good way to increase income and reduce expenditure, and live within one's means. Mr. Zhou explained the income and expenditure clearly, which made me suddenly enlightened. It can be seen that Mr. Zhou has some experience in financial management."

Zhou Zhen hurriedly bowed and said modestly, "Thank you for your praise, Marshal. The so-called self-cultivation, family harmony, governance of the country, and peace in the world, increasing income and reducing expenditure, and living within one's means are what it means to govern the country in a harmonious family. I am just applying the ability of the harmonious family to governing the country."

Lu Jin smiled and said, "Then Mr. Zhou's family must be doing well."

Zhou Zhen said quickly, "I wouldn't call myself wealthy, but I do have some surplus."

Lu Jin nodded, and then continued, "I have sent the chief of the Finance Department of the Marshal's Mansion to be the prefect, and I have sent a manager to Jiangbei to transport military supplies. The Finance Department is in urgent need of staff now. Are you willing to join the Finance Department as a manager first? If you can manage your income and expenditure properly, I will promote you to the position of manager in the future."

Zhou Zhen hurriedly bowed and said, "Thank you for your consideration, my lord. It is what I wish for. I dare not ask you to do so. I will do my best to manage your purse."

"Okay, you sit down first."

After Zhou Zhen sat back in his seat, Lu Jin stood up, turned around twice, and suddenly came to Yang Xian and asked.

"Mr. Zhou just mentioned that some clerks privately levied corvée labor and took the opportunity to extort money from the people. I thought about it and realized that this was not just a matter for the clerks.

"Now our territory is expanding very fast. There are not enough qualified officials to use. Schools have not been built in various places. We cannot cultivate more talents in a short period of time. The Yuan court officials who are directly recruited from the public, tested, recommended, or retained are also of varying quality. How should we supervise them? Do you have any ideas?"

Yang Xian immediately stood up and said, "My name is Yang Xian, my courtesy name is Xiwu, and I am from Jining. I would like to say something for the commander-in-chief."

Lu Jin frowned and asked in confusion, "Wait, Jining Road? From Shandong Qilu? Your accent is wrong, right?"

Yang Xian immediately explained, "Reporting to the commander, it is not Jining Road in Lu, but Ji Ning Road in the Three Jins. It was called Taiyuan in the previous dynasty. It was not until the reign of Emperor Chengzong of Yuan that Taiyuan Road was changed to Ji Ning Road. I am originally from Taiyuan and came to Jiankang to study, so I ended up here."

"Oh, it's Taiyuan." Lu Jin suddenly realized, "I've been to Taiyuan before, and I've also been to Xinzhou, which is north of Taiyuan, once."

Yang Xian was stunned when he heard this, and asked curiously, "The Marshal has been to Taiyuan and Xinzhou? When?"

When? Last year, no, about the year before last, Lu Jin followed his school mentor and the seniors in the satellite class to the Space Satellite Launch Center in Xinzhou, Taiyuan, to watch the launch of a satellite they designed.
"It was a long time ago." Lu Jin shook his head. He had traveled through time for more than a year without realizing it. He even had a child in this world. It really felt like a lifetime ago. No, it was really a world away. He sighed for a moment before saying, "Go on with your story."

“Yes, I think the supervision system should be improved.

"Since the Qin Dynasty established the Three Dukes, who were in charge of civil affairs, military affairs, and supervision respectively, and the Sui and Tang Dynasties established the Three Departments and Six Ministries, the Censorate has always been responsible for supervising all officials and assessing their performance.

"In order to keep a low profile and avoid being noticed, the Marshal deliberately changed the Shangshu Province and the Privy Council into the Civil and Military Councils, and the Zhongshu Province into the Secretariat. Although the names are different, the system framework has been established, but the supervision system is still lacking.

“Although the Marshal had previously established the Supervisory Office to replace the Censorate in charge of supervision, at that time the Marshal only had two or three routes in Jiangyou, with an incomplete system and not many officials. A few inspectors could still take care of everything. But now the Marshal’s territory has increased dramatically. If the supervisory system has not kept up, it will be difficult to take care of the officials in various places.

“I think we can refer to the official positions of the Censorate of past dynasties, as well as the official positions previously set up by the Marshal, to improve the supervisory system of the Inspectorate.

"The Censorate has the Grand Censor, the Censor-in-Chief, and the Assistant Censor. If the commander-in-chief changes the Censorate into the Supervisory Office and divides it into the left and right chief officials, he can set up the Left and Right Chief Censors, the Deputy Chief Censors, the Palace Censors, and the Assistant Chief Censors.

"The provinces should set up the Censorate, and there should be left and right supervisory envoys and inspectors. The inspectors will inspect the local areas, supervise the officials, recommend and impeach local officials, and assess the officials' performance, conduct and integrity. Only in this way can we eliminate the bad apples and ensure that the orders of the general's office are implemented."

Lu Jin nodded repeatedly after listening. This Yang Xian was indeed the prime minister of the early Ming Dynasty. He knew the court system very well. He even had some doubts now. It was this guy who made suggestions when the system was established in the early Ming Dynasty. The staffing plan of changing the Censorate into the Inspectorate was almost the same as in history.

After Yang Xian finished speaking, Lu Jin glanced at him and said, "You just said that the Censor-General should assess the performance of local officials. Let's talk about this later."

Speaking of performance appraisal, Lu Jin suddenly thought of the Ming Dynasty's performance appraisal method, which is the modern KPI system that requires officials to perform performance appraisals. However, after thinking about it, he decided to put this matter off until later and set up the institutional framework first.

Also, if I remember correctly, the job of evaluating political achievements should be under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Personnel. Although the Censorate is also responsible for it, it is more responsible for monitoring whether officials have committed dereliction of duty or corruption. It is a bit like the combination of the modern Discipline Inspection Commission and the Procuratorate.

Yang Xian was stunned when he heard this, and he didn't know why Lu Jin stopped talking halfway. Then he heard Lu Jin speak to everyone again.

"Since we are talking about improving the system, do you have anything else to add besides the Supervisory Office, the supervisory agency?"

A young man immediately stood up and bowed, saying, "My name is Qian Yongren, courtesy name Chengfu, from Guangde Passenger, and I came to Jiankang to study. I think that since there is a Censorate, there should also be a Remonstrant Doctor, so that the supervision system will be more complete."

As soon as these words were spoken, Lu Jin frowned immediately. Yang Xian immediately turned his head to look over and said to Lu Jin again.

"General, although the position of the Counselor was established in the Sui and Tang dynasties, since the early Song Dynasty, the position of the Counselor has been combined with the Censorate, and is now called the Censorate. Since then, the Censor has had the power to discuss politics, and the Counselor has also had the power to supervise. Since the two have been combined, there is no need to separate them. Otherwise, there will be more redundant officials and staff. Didn't we just say that we want to save on salaries?"

Lu Jin nodded slightly.

He actually knew about the term "Remonstrant Doctors". The most famous one among them was Wei Zheng.

If the Imperial Envoy is responsible for monitoring all officials, and has the dual functions of the Commission for Discipline Inspection and the Procuratorate, then the Imperial Counselor is responsible for monitoring the emperor, finding faults with him, and criticizing him every day. The Imperial Envoy only criticizes all officials, while the Imperial Counselor only criticizes the emperor.
Wei Zheng of the Tang Dynasty was the most famous counselor in history. He could criticize Li Shimin so much that no one could refute him. So no matter who becomes an emperor, they would find this thing disgusting. Now you are controlling the emperor?

So starting from the Song Dynasty, in order to strengthen centralization and enhance imperial power, the Song Dynasty merged the Grand Counselor and the Censorate into one. From now on, you are only allowed to criticize the officials and stay out of my business!
During the Song Dynasty, the imperial power was indeed greatly strengthened than before, but there was also a situation where the emperor was left without supervision, leading to the emergence of evil people like Song Huizong. But then again, if the emperor really wanted to do something stupid, could a counselor really control him?
Wei Zheng criticized Li Shimin, because Li Shimin was quite self-disciplined. If you really put Wei Zheng and Emperor Huizong of Song, Zhao Ji, together, believe it or not, Wei Zheng would have been driven away by Zhao Ji long ago.
If you are self-disciplined, what else do you need? If you are not self-disciplined, what can you do with Wei Zheng? So it doesn’t matter whether you set this thing or not, so why use it to disgust yourself?
But it can also be seen from this that Yang Xian actually defended the imperial power? Or in order to get an official position in Lu Jin, he has already used this method to show his loyalty and flatter the emperor?
Lu Jin nodded and said, "Xiwu is right. Since the former Song Dynasty has already merged the two, there is no need to separate them. It also saves adding redundant officials and increasing expenses. Does anyone else have anything to add?"

Yang Xian was secretly delighted when he heard this. He was not discouraged when Qian Yongren's opinion was not accepted. He bowed obediently and sat back.

But this person is actually not simple. Qian Yongren is from Guangde County, Anhui Province. According to the original history, he studied in Jiankang, and then took part in the imperial examination of the Yuan court. He passed the left list in the 14th year of Zhizheng, and two years later, he served as a councilor of Henan Jiangbei Province. Later, when Xu Da attacked Huai'an, he directly surrendered the city. Later, he served as the Minister of Rites in the first year of Hongwu in the Ming Dynasty.

But now it's different. Lu Jin conquered Jiankang several years in advance and directly intercepted it. This guy didn't participate in the imperial examination of the Yuan Dynasty, but came directly to Lu Jin to participate in the "imperial examination"
Hearing Lu Jin still asking if there was anything to add, another person immediately stood up.

"My name is Sun Yan, courtesy name Bo Rong, and I am from Jurong County, Shuntian Prefecture. I think that since the Marshal's Office already has the Criminal Law Department and now has the Supervisory Office, we should also add the Dali Temple, one of the Nine Ministers, so that the three judicial departments can be complete."

Lu Jin nodded when he heard it. Dali Temple? He knew about it. It was equivalent to the Supreme Court in modern times. In ancient times, it was also called Tianlao. Ordinary cases were not worthy of being sent to Dali Temple for trial. Only those who appealed continuously and believed that the judgments of the county and provincial governments were all unfair would finally appeal to Dali Temple. For serious cases, or the trials of officials above the seventh rank, major cases might be sent to the Ministry of Justice, Dali Temple, and Censorate for joint trial.
"The Dali Temple does need to be filled, but calling it the Dali Temple now is a bit too ostentatious. For the time being, let's call it the Zhengfa Court, which means to judge crimes according to the law and to rectify the legal code."

"Yes." Li Shanchang immediately nodded in agreement.

Lu Jin then looked at Yang Xian again, "Since Xiwu proposed to improve the Inspectorate system, would you like to join the Inspectorate and become a deputy chief censor first?" Yang Xian was delighted and said immediately, "Of course I wish so. I will definitely remember your kindness in my heart."

Lu Jin nodded, "You go sit down first."

"Thank you, Lord."

After this guy sat back, Lu Jin also returned to his seat, looked at everyone in the hall and asked again.

"You all have suggestions on finance and taxation, currency and coinage, the supervisory system, and the three judicial departments. As for the second question I raised earlier, how to win back the hearts of the people in the north and south, which gentleman can tell me about it?"

This time, everyone looked at each other, and the person who stood up was the old man who spoke earlier, Qin Conglong.

"My name is Qin Conglong, courtesy name Yuanzhi, from Luoyang. I would like to say something for the commander-in-chief."

Seeing this, Lu Jin waved his hand and asked, "I saw the resume sent up below. Did you serve as an official in the Yuan court before?"

Qin Conglong did not deny it. If he did not investigate their background clearly, how could he let them in to participate in this special recruitment? So the old man admitted it directly.

"That's right. I was promoted to the position of Left Prime Minister of the Helin Province in the Yuan court, and later transferred to the post of Assistant Censor of the Jiangnan Province. Before that, I was an official in Hangzhou. In July, Xu Shouhui attacked Hangzhou. To avoid the war, I resigned from my post and lived in Zhenjiang.

"But I didn't expect that I could escape the first day, but I couldn't escape the fifteenth day. As soon as Xu Shouhui was driven back to Jiangxi, the Marshal crossed the river and attacked us."

Wow, this old man is a provincial-level official in the Yuan court. Everyone present who didn’t know the truth was very surprised and looked over at him sideways.

Lu Jin couldn't help but smile when he heard this. "I have another question. Since Xu Shouhui had already attacked Hangzhou, why didn't you go to Hangzhou to join Xu Shouhui? Why did you wait for me to cross the river and attack Jiqing Road before running to join me?"

Qin Conglong immediately stroked his beard, puffed out his chest and said proudly, "People with different beliefs cannot work together. The Maitreya cult occupies the temple and claims to be the king. I don't look down on it!"

Lu Jin nodded, acknowledging his answer, and then asked, "How old is the old man this year?"

"Fifty-six, four years away from sixty."

Lu Jin was amazed and said, "That's not easy. The temperature in Helin is minus 30 to 50 degrees Celsius in winter, and the frozen pears can be used to hammer nails. The old man was an official in Helin, and he was able to come back alive. It's not easy."

Qin Conglong was stunned when he heard this. He was a little surprised. He didn't expect Lu Jin to know He Lin, and what did the temperature of minus thirty or fifty degrees mean? However, seeing that Lu Jin didn't intend to explain, he still said, "It was because I couldn't stand the bitter cold in Mobei and I was old that I was transferred to Jiangnan."

Lu Jin nodded to show his understanding, and suddenly asked, "Have you ever seen the aurora in Helin?"

Qin Conglong was startled. "May I ask, Marshal, what is the Aurora?"

"It is a special astronomical phenomenon at the north and south poles of the earth. Every night you can see green glow, floating on the sky like silk."

Qin Conglong suddenly realized, "Although I have not personally seen the aurora that the Marshal mentioned, but when I was in Khorin before, I heard from officials there that the Yuan court had a Tiele meteorological station in Buriyati, which is 800 miles north of the North Sea. I heard from people who have been there that they have seen the celestial phenomenon that the Marshal mentioned."

Wow, the Yuan court's astronomical survey institute is located in the Arctic Circle, which is really awesome. Lu Jin nodded and asked, "Then do you know Siberia, or Siberia?"

This time, Qin Conglong simply nodded and said, "I've heard that Siberia means muddy land in Tatar. It seems to be further northwest, close to the Khanate of Ogedei. I heard that there is a Balin Wanhu, and there is also a Yilanzhou and other tribal officials. The Yuan court has set up officials to govern it."

Lu Jin nodded secretly after hearing this. It seemed that this old man knew a lot about the geography and power distribution of Mobei in this era, so he immediately said, "Since you know the geography of Mobei, could you help me mark the map later?"

Qin Conglong frowned and said, "I don't know how to draw a map."

Lu Jin immediately said, "Don't worry about this, sir. I have a map of the north, but the markings may be wrong. I just need you to tell me the approximate location and help me correct the markings."

Qin Conglong immediately agreed, "That's fine."

Lu Jin only had a modern map traced from a mobile phone map. Although the terrain was similar to that of later generations, the markings of the administrative divisions did not match the locations of the Yuan Dynasty. Therefore, he had been asking the Intelligence Bureau to help him adjust the map. Now, someone finally helped him light up the map of the north.

After finally meeting a high-ranking provincial official who had served in Mobei, Lu Jin confirmed some information about the north with him. Then he returned to the main topic and asked.

"Then please tell me, sir, do you have any ideas to bridge the gap between the north and the south?"

Qin Conglong said immediately, "To reconcile the hearts of the people in the north and south is difficult, but it is also easy. The difficulty lies in the Northern Expedition, but if the Northern Expedition is successful, it will be easy to win over the people's hearts.

"The north has been separated from the Central Plains for hundreds of years and has been influenced by barbarian customs. If we want to bridge the hearts of the north and south, or more precisely, to win over the hearts of the north, we need to get rid of barbarian customs, restore Han Chinese clothing, and start educating the people. Within a generation, or in 20 to 30 years, we can turn around the customs."

Everyone nodded when they heard this, but Lu Jin said, "It's easy to get rid of the barbarian customs and restore the Han people's clothing. It's just a matter of a government order, but how should we educate them? Education is so broad, what should we teach specifically?"

Qin Conglong heard this and said, "I am not good at teaching, but this Chen Yu, Chen Zhongxing, used to be a professor in Wenzhou in the Yuan court. The Marshal may let him try to speak a few words."

"Oh?" Lu Jin immediately looked at Chen Yu behind Qin Conglong. He didn't expect that there was someone who could help recommend him, so he said, "Then please tell us, Mr. Chen?"

Chen Yu was also a very special person. In the original history, he was pulled over by Qin Conglong and introduced to Zhu Yuanzhang. Chen Yu was very talented. Zhu Yuanzhang offered him an official position, but Chen Yu refused repeatedly. He was willing to do the work, but he just didn't want to be Zhu's official.

This man had participated in the compilation of "History of Yuan Dynasty" and provided Zhu Yuanzhang with many practical suggestions, but in the end he never served as an official for Zhu Yuanzhang. Zhu Yuanzhang had no choice but to let him go, and he died of illness in the 17th year of Hongwu.

When Chen Yu was called, he stood up and said, "My name is Chen Yu, courtesy name Zhongxing, and my ancestral home is Cao County. When Emperor Gaozong of the Song Dynasty moved south, I moved to Jiankang.

"Your Excellency wants to win the hearts of the people in the north. I think that if we want to promote education in the north, we should do it together with getting rid of the barbarian customs. If we want to win the hearts of the people in the north, we must learn Confucian classics, the Three Bonds and the Five Constant Virtues. As long as we learn these Han customs classics, we will naturally win their hearts."

However, Lu Jin was not impressed by this statement, especially the so-called Three Bonds and Five Constant Virtues, which were the rubbish of the father-son ideology that persecuted women. They did not allow women to remarry after their husbands died, and required women to observe the virtues of women, while they themselves had three wives and four concubines and went to brothels. When their wives were taken advantage of by others, they still wanted them to be buried with them as a "chaste and heroic woman".

Lu Jin is still planning to set up a textile factory. If he really continues to promote this kind of dregs, believe it or not, the textile factory won’t be able to recruit a single female worker.

However, Lu Jin did not explicitly oppose the Three Bonds and Five Constant Virtues, but instead changed his approach to guerrilla warfare. He shook his head to express his dissatisfaction, and then said.

"What about the Three Bonds and Five Constant Virtues? Confucian classics are still too broad. To put it nicely, it's about bringing the northerners back to their roots. To put it more bluntly, it's about making them remember who their ancestors were. Is that right?"

Chen Yu frowned, but nodded.

Lu Jin continued, "What should we teach a person to remember their ancestors? Of course, we should teach them history, so that they know where they came from and how glorious their ancestors' Han and Tang dynasties were. We should also let them know that they are of Han descent, not slaves of the Tartars. Is that right or wrong?"

Chen Yu nodded again and said, "Of course, but wanting to study history books does not conflict with studying Confucian classics. There are only a few Confucian classics, and history books are so vast, where should I start?
"If you learn the classics first, you can study history books if you want to. If you want northerners to read more history books, at worst, after the Northern Expedition is successful, every imperial examination in the north will be based on history books, and then the northern students will study history books."

Lu Jin still shook his head after hearing this. "That's not what I meant. I think that not only the people in the north, but also the people in Jiangnan and Lingnan further south, as descendants of Yan and Huang, should all remember their ancestors. And they are standing on their own motherland, so they should all study Chinese history, not a biographical history book, but a brief history of China, a general history."

Chen Yu was stunned for a moment, and then said, "But where can such a history book be found? Are we going to compile one now? Since the Zhou Dynasty, the history books of each dynasty have been written by historians for more than 2,000 years. If we are going to compile a brief history or a general history, how brief should it be?"

Lu Jin said again, "I think we can use the chronicle style and only record major events, such as the reign of Yan and Huang, the Battle of Zhuolu, the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors, Dayu's flood control, the abdication of Yao and Shun, Qi's founding of the Xia Dynasty, the Shang Dynasty replacing the Xia Dynasty, the Battle of Muye, King Wu's conquest of King Zhou, the establishment of the Western Zhou Dynasty, the feudalization of the world, Duke Zhou spitting out food to feed his guests, and the people's reunification.

"Write about how Duke Zhou established the Zhou rituals, how King You of Zhou played tricks on the princes with beacons, how the various states fought for supremacy, how Qin unified the nine provinces, and how it perished in the second generation, how Chu and Han fought for supremacy, and how Han unified the world again.

"Write about the parallel existence of counties and kingdoms in the early Han Dynasty, the Rebellion of the Seven Kingdoms, Zhou Yafu's Xiuli Camp, the Reign of Emperor Wen and Emperor Jing, Emperor Wu of Han's conquest of the Xiongnu, Huo Qubing's conquest of Langjuxu, Huo Guang's regency, Wang Mang's usurpation of the throne, Emperor Guangwu's restoration, the Yellow Turban Rebellion, the Three Kingdoms at the end of the Han Dynasty, Cao Wei's reunification, Sima Yi's usurpation of the throne, and so on and so forth, only recording the major events of the dynasties.

“Once this book is completed, it will be studied by students all over the country, and it will also be tested on in the future imperial examinations.

“I believe that the purpose of education is not only to cultivate talents, but also a means of governing the people. There are only a few scholars in the world, and how many of them can really pass the imperial examinations and become officials? Most of them are scholars who cannot become officials. Do these people not need to learn history?
"With such a general and concise history of China, anyone who reads it will have a general idea of ​​history. If they are interested, they will delve into the corresponding historical details. Even if they are not interested, they will at least know where they came from and who their ancestors are after reading it. This is the real purpose of teaching people to read history books."

Lu Jin's words shocked the group of new Confucian scholars below. Wow, it seems that this general has studied a lot of history books, and he knows all the major events of every dynasty!
Li Shanchang and Feng Guoyong had known him for a long time and knew that the commander was knowledgeable, but this group of newcomers was experiencing it for the first time.

Chen Yu also immediately bowed and said, "The Marshal is very knowledgeable and has a new interpretation of education. I am not as good as him."

Lu Jin waved his hand and said again, "You have all read my book Gongshuzi."

Everyone nodded in unison, "I saw it."

Lu Jin added, “Since Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty promoted Confucianism and rejected all other schools of thought, I, Gongshu, have either withdrawn from society to study or traveled overseas. But no matter how far I traveled, even to the ends of the earth, I still knew that China was my motherland and I was a Chinese Han. Why?

"Because all the children of Gongshu have to learn this kind of general history. Only by learning history, even if we go far away, we will know where we came from.

"It's the same with the Han people in the north today. If we want them to recognize their ancestors, we have to learn history!"

Upon hearing this, everyone bowed and said, "General, what you said is very true. I appreciate your advice."

Lu Jin continued, "Mr. Hengqu of the Song Dynasty said that we should establish our mind for the heaven and earth, establish our destiny for the people, inherit the lost knowledge of the past sages, and bring peace to the world. But if we don't even know who the past sages are, how can we inherit their lost knowledge?"

Only then did he look at Chen Yu and ask, "Mr. Zhonghang, are you willing to stay and write this book for me?"

Lu Jindu had said that he would carry on the lost knowledge of the ancient sages, so how could Chen Yu refuse? He bowed deeply and said, "If you can compile this book for people all over the world to learn, it will be regarded as carrying on the lost knowledge of the ancient sages. Then I will die without regrets. I am willing to follow you, my lord."

Lu Jin immediately stepped forward to help him up, and then said, "Very good, then I will wait for the book, sir."

After Chen Yu returned to his original position, Lu Jin changed the subject and spoke.

"Whether it's compiling a book or the Northern Expedition, it's actually too early to talk about these things now. Why don't we talk about something more recent? I want to change the reign title to the reign title of Emperor Xuanyuan Huangdi. What do you think?"

The crowd below stared at each other in amazement. Qian Yongren stepped out and said, "But we have been using the Yellow Emperor's calendar. The Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches were created by the Yellow Emperor. As long as we still use the Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches, it is equivalent to using the Yellow Emperor's calendar."

Lu Jin said "oh" and immediately explained, "That's not what I meant. I meant that the year when Huangdi ascended the throne should be the first year, and it should be used until now and in the future. As long as the descendants of Yan and Huang are not extinct, it will never be changed. Dynasties can be replaced, but the Yanhuang calendar will last forever!"

Everyone was stunned for a moment, and Wang Guangyang immediately said, "If we count from the time when Emperor Xuanyuan ascended the throne until now, wouldn't the reign title be several thousand years?"

(End of this chapter)