Wait, please don't call me Emperor Zhaolie

Chapter 462: Han Dynasty Relatives: If You Become Rich and Powerful, Don’t Forget Each Other
Liu Bei felt more and more empathetic. Why were there always emperors who couldn't sit still and tried every means to inspect various places?

In addition to the reason that they like to be active, officials have become bold and presumptuous because there is no one to supervise them.

When he was conquering the princes in various places, every time he passed by an official, he had to tread on thin ice, trembling with fear, not daring to neglect official affairs. The gentry and wealthy families in each state and county all kept their tails between their legs and behaved themselves.

They were afraid that he would find an excuse to gather his troops and then directly exterminate his clan.

Now he has only lived in Guanzhong for a few years to deal with the Qiang and Hu affairs, but many of the aristocratic families in Guandong have forgotten the pain and are determined to die.

Liu Bei could only feel deeply moved.

Since they are not afraid of death, we have no choice but to take action.

……

After resting in Dai County for five days, the Huben Cavalry and the Ruichong Camp set out again. The people of Dai County could not afford to stay any longer.

On October 21st of the fourth year of Jianxing, the central army arrived at Shanggu County. Shanggu Prefect Liu Ye brought many clan leaders and specially welcomed the emperor's central army a hundred miles away from Juyang County.

In the wilderness, there were loud gongs and drums, and music was blaring. People were eager to watch.

Not far to the southwest of here is Zhuolu Mountain. In the past, Emperor Huangdi fought with Chiyou in the wilderness of Zhuolu. After Huangdi defeated Chiyou, he settled his people on the mountainside of Zhuolu. This is the place we are talking about.

Zhuoshui also originates from Zhuolu Mountain. Not far away there is a county called Zhuolu County. One mile east of the city there is a spring called Banquan. A Huangdi Temple was built beside the spring for local people to worship.

Liu Ye discussed with the officials of Shanggu County for several days and finally decided to welcome the emperor not far from Zhuolu Mountain.

After all, this place worships Huangdi, and Gaozu traced the ancestors of the Liu family, believing that Tang Yao was the ancestor of the Liu family, and Yao was the descendant of Huangdi. The Battle of Zhuolu was the place where Huangdi defeated Chiyou.

There is also Banquan nearby. Some historical records record that the Battle of Banquan also took place here. The details of the battle are difficult to ascertain, but Huangdi was victorious in all of them.

It would be best to welcome the emperor here.

As the most powerful member of the royal family of Emperor Guangwu's lineage and a descendant of King Fuling Liu Yan, Liu Ye had countless relatives who wanted to find out through him whether the emperor had any intention of enfeoffing their relatives.

At this time, there were very few relatives of the Han Dynasty who were granted the title of king or marquis. If not many titles were granted to the Liu family, there would be no record of it in the Han Chronicles. Later generations would mistakenly believe that the benevolent emperor had treated the royal family badly.

It doesn't matter if they suffer a little, but they must not let the reputation of the leader of the Han Dynasty's revival be affected.

There were three members of the royal family, Liu He, Liu Ye and Liu Yu, who were still highly valued by the emperor in the court. Except for Liu He, although he was the chief of the Nine Ministers, he was a descendant of King Jing of Zhongshan. It made it difficult for the descendants of Emperor Guangwu to shamelessly write letters to him and ask for official positions and fiefs in an indirect way.

The remaining two are both descendants of Emperor Guangwu and are related to everyone else. We should at least request some fiefdom for them from the emperor, right?

Those princes enjoyed the support of a county or country. When the Han Dynasty was in danger, except for Chen Wang Liu Chong who did something, the other princes were still living a life of drunkenness and enjoying the music of stringed instruments.

When Your Majesty abolished their royal titles, the Liu family had no objection. Everyone applauded and praised you.

But the emperor deposed the princes, abolished the twenty vassal states, and vacated so many rich counties. Why didn’t he remember that the Liu clan members were still waiting anxiously?

Among so many people in the Liu family, only a few of them rose to the rank of two thousand stone officials. In addition, Liu Yuan, the patriarch of the Liu family in Pingyuan, was granted the title of Xianghou, and Liu Bo, the patriarch of the Liu family in Zhuoxian, was granted the title of Duxianghou.

There was also the extremely lucky Liu Deran, who benefited from the protection of his father Liu Yuanqi. Although he was posthumously demoted from the title of King of Bohai to a marquis and only controlled Nanpi County and two neighboring counties, it was still an extremely rich place.

The food and land of one county was equivalent to two counties elsewhere. This made many clan members in the world envious, and they even hoped that the emperor would grant large fiefs to the clan members, but they ended up waiting for several years.

The people who were eagerly waiting could no longer bear it and took the initiative to write letters to Liu Yu and Liu Ye. Liu Yu could not bear the hundreds of letters sent to him by Liu clan members from all over the country every month to establish friendship with him.

He directly asked the emperor for permission and was willing to travel thousands of miles to Yongzhou to be the governor, even though the court had already moved the state to Fulu County in Jiuquan County, and he had to climb mountains and wade through rivers and go through untold hardships to get to the post.

At that time, Liu Yu was about sixty-six years old, with white hair and beard. He frequently made reports to Liu Bei in Yizhou. Even if he died on the way, he was satisfied.

Liu Bei hesitated for a long time, but could not resist Liu Yu's repeated requests. Thinking that Yongzhou really needed someone to take charge and open up the Silk Road, and that Liu Bo'an also knew how to handle the affairs of the envoys and caravans from the Western Regions, he agreed to his request.

However, Liu Ye was different from Liu Yu in that he cared about his reputation. He directly rejected many letters and even insulted many people.

He also quoted Zengzi's original words: "To accept a large salary without benefit is like stealing."

He blocked all requests and also received a lot of infamy, but Liu Ye didn't care at all. For him, being able to follow the emperor to rebuild the Han Dynasty and make great achievements was already satisfying his life's pursuit.

The criticism from Liu's clan members had no effect on him at all.

A real man should be upright in his conduct in life, make immortal contributions to the world, and have no fear of what others say.

"Here they come..." Liu Ye keenly saw more than a hundred riders galloping towards him in the distance, and he thought that the emperor was about to arrive.

He immediately turned sideways and shouted to the hundreds of officials and clan leaders, "Everyone, the emperor's army is coming here. Quickly put on your clothes, shake off the dust, and come forward with me to kowtow and welcome the emperor."

"When you kowtow, do not look up and look around, which is disrespectful. Officials should be in front, clan leaders should be behind, and guards and common people should be behind them. County servants should organize the common people. If you see someone who looks panicked and has unknown objects hidden in his robe, regardless of his identity, immediately arrest him and interrogate him!"

"promise!"

"We will obey the governor's orders!"

The officials and nobles did not dare to fail to give Liu Ye face, and they all answered in unison.

The servants and guards held their heads high and responded loudly.

After Liu Ye finished speaking, he quickly glanced at everyone and nodded unconsciously.

Then he also respectfully straightened his clothes and solemnly went over in his mind the government affairs he had dealt with last night, as well as the household registration, cultivated land, taxes, water conservancy, and the harvest of the villages in various counties in Shanggu.

Otherwise, when the emperor asks, he will hesitate and be unable to give a clear answer to the county and township officials, and will have no good ideas for governing the people and no words to offer advice to the emperor as an official, which would show that he is not qualified for the job.

Now that the three highest officials in the court have been removed, the ones with the highest authority are the Shangshu Ling and Zhongshu Ling, followed by the Nine Ministers and the six ministers. Among them, the Shangshu Ling, Zhongshu Ling, and the Grand Tutor enjoy a salary of ten thousand stones.

The Nine Ministers were each of the Middle Two Thousand Stone rank, the Six Ministers of the Six Ministries were each of the Middle Two Thousand Stone rank, and the Censorate did not have a commander, but only had left and right servants, who were also of the Middle Two Thousand Stone rank.

Liu Ye has already become an official of two thousand stones. His greatest pursuit in this life is to become an official of "ten thousand stones" and truly live up to the praise of being a talented person who helped the world in those days.

Thinking about becoming Wanshi in the future, Liu Ye's breathing even became a little excited.

"Ten thousand stones... I must get it."

(End of this chapter)