Wait, please don't call me Emperor Zhaolie

Chapter 396 Xun Yu: I discovered another talent

Xun You was startled and wanted to say something, but finally stopped.

He had seen this kind of scene many times in Luoyang, especially after the end of the Battle of Hebei, when many government offices were moved to the vicinity of Luoyang, keeping him very busy.

"Uncle, now that the world is about to be stabilized, shouldn't we re-discuss the affairs of the various Caos? Previously, the Caos were in charge of the affairs of the prefectures and counties."

"The more detailed the division, the more affairs we have to undertake, and the more we need to streamline the original complicated governance methods. The reform of the government is imperative."

Xun You thought about how busy he was every day, and how he often had to participate in decision-making in various offices. These administrative affairs had already extended to the towns and villages, so it would be strange if he was not busy.

In addition, there were many things in need of reconstruction in the various counties of Sili, whether it was the Hucao who was in charge of agriculture and sericulture and counted the people's household register, or the Cicao who was in charge of litigation and mediating disputes, or the Facao who was in charge of postal services and the establishment of mileage stations for relay stations.

Not to mention the Wei Cao, who was responsible for transporting food, military equipment, and recruiting civilians all year round, as well as the Jin Cao, who was in charge of money, salt, sugar, tea, and iron affairs, and the Zeicao and Jue Cao, who were in charge of dealing with thieves and enforcing the law.

These are the top priorities of Sili Management. Although he is only the Yin of Henan, he is in charge of a lot of things.

Especially before Jingzhou was annexed, the flow of horses into Jingzhou and the flow of salt and iron into Bingzhou and other places must be strictly controlled.

I thought I would have some free time after Jingzhou and Sili were recovered, but I didn't expect to be even busier.

Both Hedong County and Hongnong County needed to transfer food and grass from Jingzhou and transfer officials from Yanzhou in order to restore people's livelihood.

The chief officer in charge of the Heluo area is Xun Gongda, it would be strange if he is not busy.

After hearing this, Xun Yu pondered and said, "Gongda's words are very good. After the second rise of the Han Dynasty, it is indeed necessary to reform the system. The three dukes and nine ministers are originally from the Qin system, which has been in effect for more than 400 years. Since ancient times, there has been no official system that cannot be changed in the world. They are all changed according to the times and used according to convenience."

"Now, not only will ironware be introduced into the homes of ordinary people, but paper and books will also be distributed throughout government offices and the homes of scholars throughout the country. If the old system of the Qin Dynasty is still used, it will inevitably lead to officials in the court being exhausted and no longer having the energy to supervise the administration of officials, so that corruption will spread from the petty officials in the countryside to the upper classes."

"The Han Dynasty will repeat the mistakes of Cheng, Ai, Huan, and Ling. The past has already happened, so the future should take warning."

Xun Yu and Xun You had no taboo about this. They had to say that during the reigns of the first and last four emperors, the Han Dynasty had become weak and they could not come up with any solution.

If Guangwu and the King of Han had not risen up and led their armies to attack the princes and pacify the world, it would be hard to say what the outcome of the Han Dynasty would have been.

During the Xinmang period, except for the brothers Guangwu, the rest of the Liu clan members had no talent for accomplishing anything.

At this time, after Dong Zhuo forced the emperor and the court to move to Chang'an, did Liu Yu, the governor of Youzhou, Liu Dai, the governor of Yanzhou, Liu Biao, the governor of Jingzhou, Liu Yao, the governor of Yangzhou, and Liu Zhang, the governor of Yizhou, have any heroic spirit at all?
These clan members were either coerced by Gongsun Zan, instructed by Yuan Shao, suppressed by the rice thief Zhang Lu, or defeated by Cao Mengde, in addition to Liu Biao, who had been guarding Jingzhou for nearly ten years without moving.

Thinking of this, Xun Yu could not help but sigh. The prosperity of the Han Dynasty was extremely precarious. If he wanted to rely on the Liu clan princes, who were just chickens, pigs, dogs and pigs, to revive the Han Dynasty, he would probably be eaten by wolves and tigers by the princes of other surnames and would be chewed up.

They seem to be famous all over the world, but in fact they are all waiting to die.

"I dare not hide the truth from my uncle. There is one more thing that makes You a little worried." Xun You stopped at the ferry, looking at the majestic river, sighed slightly, frowned and said.

"Gongda, what else is bothering you?" Xun Yu walked over, a little puzzled, and asked softly.

Xun You did not answer directly, but said: "Your Majesty wants to carry out the land measurement, but the provinces that have already measured the land are only Qing, Xu, Ji, Yu, Huainan, Sili and Yanzhou."

"The remaining Youzhou, Yangzhou, Jingzhou, Liangzhou, and the prefectures and counties that have not yet surrendered, such as Yizhou, Jiaozhou, Bingzhou, and Yongzhou."

"If we want to measure the land in the remaining areas, the soldiers cannot take off their armor and the horses cannot take off their saddles. We still need to continue to replenish the arsenals and granaries in each county, and we need to set up more military offices to deter those who have evil intentions and are obviously ambitious."

"With such a huge expenditure of treasury money, plus the salary expenditure of officials all over the country, and the financial expenses of military offices and armaments, how can we make up for these financial gaps?" Xun You felt a headache as he said this. Previously, many county officials were appointed by the prefects, county ministers, county magistrates and county heads themselves. Part of the land tax, calculation tax and head tax collected from the people was allocated for local expenditure, and the local prefects distributed grain, cloth and money as salaries.

Because they were officials under the jurisdiction of the prefect, they would even spend their own money to improve the treatment of the clerks and officials under their jurisdiction.

But the situation is completely different now. All the officials in various places are appointed by the King of Han himself, and they are paid money, fine silk, refined salt, sugar and tea by the prefectures and ministries as their salaries.

As more states, counties and prefectures were taken over, the burden on the imperial court became heavier. For example, in Jiaozhou, southern Yangzhou and southern Yizhou, these places were filled with miasma and were often rebelled by barbarians and Shanyue.

If we take over the two states of Yong and Liang, we can also open up to the countries in the Western Regions, transport blood to various places in Guanzhong through trade, and make the area prosperous.

Then Jiaozhou and other places...

Xun You thought for a long time but couldn't think of a way to make money.

With such a huge expenditure, it is impossible to fill the gap only by relying on the merchants under the King of Han to sell salt, sugar and tea.

Doesn't this show that their officials are incompetent?

But this matter was not only a headache for Xun You, but also a headache for Xun Yu for a long time.

Fortunately, the King of Han once told him that with such a large amount of money to spend, he must not focus on increasing taxes on the people's land, but can only make profits from outside the Han State to fill the treasury expenditure.

In addition, it is necessary to vigorously develop business, break the restrictions of counties, cities and towns, allow the common people and local nobles to engage in business, rent houses to sell goods, and enable commercial taxes to be collected in various places.

At the same time, lavish burials were strictly prohibited and simple burials were encouraged, allowing the newly minted Wuzhu coins to circulate throughout the country.

He ordered Qingzhou to build sea vessels and compile nautical charts so that the three coastal states of Qing, Xu and Yang could sail to the four counties of Liaoxi, Liaodong, Xuantu and Lelang in Youzhou. This would not only stabilize the local area, but also transport back the wheat and corn that had been reclaimed and planted to feed the Central Plains.

Xun Yu and Xun You talked a lot. There were changes in the Han Dynasty's prefectures and counties, and all rules, regulations and policies needed to be gradually changed.

Xun Yu sighed, "It is not impossible to restore order in the world, make the sea peaceful and the river clean, make the people comfortable and the world prosperous, and make the court responsive and flexible."

Xun You smiled and agreed with his idea.

Coincidentally, dozens of horse-drawn carriages were seen approaching from afar at the river ferry. Two of the carriages had flags with the words "Langya Zhuge" written on them. It seemed that they were all planning to take an official ship to Hedong County and then go to Chang'an.

Xun You remembered something, looked at the words on the flag, chuckled and said, "Your Majesty thinks highly of the Zhuge clan of Langya. It is said that Zhuge Gui, the prefect of Taishan County, had the talent to govern the country ten years ago, but unfortunately he died young. Your Majesty is filled with regret."

"So I wrote several letters, hoping that the Zhuge family could produce someone with the talent of his father. I wonder if the Zhuge family can fulfill your wish?"

Xun Yu looked in the direction of the voice and happened to see a tall young man about fifteen or sixteen years old getting off the carriage first and then helping his elders in the family.

When he inadvertently made eye contact with Xun Yu, he bowed respectfully from a distance. This move undoubtedly impressed the gentle, frugal and modest Xun Yu.

Even without knowing his identity, one can tell from small things that the Zhuge family is indeed a kind and gentlemanly family. No wonder they are valued.

Xun Yu secretly praised in his heart.

(End of this chapter)