The Three Kingdoms began with island farming

Chapter 689 Each Side Makes Concessions

Three days and three days.

After two days and three nights of non-stop arguing, plus a three-day break in between, the division of the spoils of the Kushan Empire was finally settled.

Although none of the seven parties were satisfied with the final result, feeling they had been taken advantage of, they could only reluctantly agree.

First, there are the Three Kings of the South.

Ultimately, they were forced to back down, giving up 70% of the population they had captured in the southern region, leaving only some women behind.

In terms of territory, half of the vast and fertile southern lands were ceded, but at the same time, the lands in the western region were acquired.

By this calculation, the three kings gained very few people, just over ten percent.

They expanded their territory by 20-30%, but what they gave up was mostly fertile land, while what they acquired was mostly mountainous terrain. In the end, they acquired nearly 40% of the Kushan Empire's land and fertile soil, which was a slight loss.

Although the competition among the three kings was relatively fierce, the relationship was still harmonious.

The land was divided equally, and Liu Fan, who was wealthy and powerful, made concessions regarding the population.

Next are the Four Kings of the North.

After dealing with the three kings in the south, Yuan Shao, Cao Cao, and Gongsun Zan did not hesitate to turn their swords against Lü Bu.

There's nothing we can do; this guy is the richest.

However, Lü Bu was not easy to talk to, and he firmly suppressed more than 10% of the Kushan population, as well as 15% of their land and fertile soil.

If we lose even one point, Fangtian Huaji will flip the table; at worst, we'll all be finished.

The three kings of the south, who were eating melon seeds on the side, seemed to enjoy the spectacle, while Yuan Shao and Cao Cao were utterly speechless.

When a scholar meets a soldier, there is no reason to explain.

They were truly helpless against such a reckless man; even when facing the cunning and shrewd Li Ru, they were not so powerless.

Because Li Ru could weigh the pros and cons, while Lü Bu only knew how to be stubborn and overturn tables.

When they saw Li Ru standing by, seemingly unconcerned, they realized the situation was difficult and had no choice but to grit their teeth and accept the situation.

The remaining 75% of the population and 45% of the land were naturally divided equally among the three.

After all, Gongsun Zan was a stubborn and reckless man who couldn't stand being taken advantage of, and Yuan Shao and Cao Cao were evenly matched opponents.

The final result was as Zhang Liao and Sima Yi had expected.

The land and fertile soil were almost evenly distributed, with the three southern kings, who had previously benefited greatly, suffering a slight loss.

After all, land is different from people; it is a promise made by the Seven Kings to the noble families under their command for the future.

Even if the three kings gained a great advantage, they could not make too many concessions on matters involving interests spanning decades or even centuries; maintaining a balance was inevitable.

In comparison, the difference is relatively larger in terms of population.

The three wealthy kings of the south and the relatively rich Lü Bu made some concessions, but they all managed to retain enough women.

Overall, the population gap between the seven kingdoms has narrowed somewhat, but they are still in the same tier.

Once the allocation was finalized, the rest was simple.

The territories that the seven kings fought for were mainly for the future aristocratic families under their rule. Even if there was competition, it was all implicit competition under the overall stable rule, and it did not involve war.

Furthermore, the issue of attacking Parthia must be considered in the future, and a place of encampment must be left in the western or northern border.

Therefore, the division among the seven kings was relatively harmonious, like a layered cake, directly dividing the Kushan Empire horizontally into seven parts. Sima Yi was helpless in the face of this.

If Parthia and Rome were interested and understood the situation, they could easily see the problems with this division.

This clearly shows that the relationship between the seven kings was not so bad, and that they had a certain tacit understanding regarding the western expedition.

Unfortunately, he no longer has much say among the seven kings.

Not to mention him, even Zhang Liao wouldn't dare to easily get involved in this matter.

These are all matters concerning the long-term development of the Seven Kings and various aristocratic families. Zhang Liao is already taking a considerable risk by acting as a strict referee. If he gets involved further, he will only cause trouble for himself.

After dividing their respective territories, the seven kings did not hesitate to draw large numbers of people from the former Western Regions, the Northern Xiongnu, India, and the southeastern lands to begin managing the Kushan Empire.

While Chen Gong was busy preparing for the human trade with the seven kings, he also began to plan for the migration of people.

Today, the Great Qi has a population of over 70 million, with nearly 30 million being slaves of foreign tribes.

Under Tian Ze's control, a massive construction boom was launched.

However, with the smooth progress of external expansion and the conquest of Kushan, Tazawa had to loosen the previously controlled pace and adjust the direction accordingly.

The original strategy, which focused on large-scale land reclamation, has gradually shifted towards infrastructure development and soil and water conservation.

Because the fertile land in the Central Plains is now saturated, if the land in the Northeast Plain is included, the cultivated land area is more than twice that of the Eastern Han Dynasty at its peak, and all of it is fertile land.

Except for some areas with special terrain, in most parts of Daqi, inferior land has been abandoned and replaced by concentrated reclamation and cultivation of superior land.

Tianze's talent is so terrifyingly effective in farming.

Even though Tian Ze now almost no longer uses his talent to create fertile land in the Central Plains, the total annual grain output is still nearly ten times that of the Eastern Han Dynasty.

This is even after a lot of fertile land has been converted to grow some cash crops.

Even with the government's efforts to control the situation, the prices of land and grain in the Great Qi Dynasty have fallen to a certain level.

After all, the population of the Great Qi Dynasty today is much larger than that of the Eastern Han Dynasty at its peak, but not by much. Even if slaves are included, it is less than twice the number.

Even with the added support for the Seven Kings' expansion and various construction projects, the amount of grain consumed would at most double.

Moreover, the Great Qi is newly established and its ruling system is relatively healthy, unlike the corrupt Eastern Han Dynasty. Most of the grain can be used well, and there is not much unnecessary internal friction and waste.

Such abundant land and grain laid a solid foundation for the livelihood of the people of Daqi.

After all, no matter how much society develops, as long as there is enough food to guarantee the most basic survival needs of the people and allow them to survive, stability can be largely ensured.

Not to mention the feudal era.

With nearly half the population consisting of foreign slaves serving as "resources," Tianze could carry out large-scale construction projects without any scruples and support the westward expedition.

But it is precisely because of this that the lives of ordinary people in China are relatively easy.

After all, people are most easily satisfied when creating something from nothing.

The rapid development of the Great Qi Dynasty, with everything in ruins waiting to be rebuilt, was almost unaffected by the war. The happiness of all the people was increasing rapidly, and the whole society was full of vitality.

During this period of rise, the Central Plains was the center of the world, and no one would have the idea of ​​migrating outwards.

After all, life is so good, why would they run off to poor places?

(End of this chapter)