Late Han Zhao Tang

Chapter 255: The Selection of the Overlord's Mansion, Recruiting Gongda
In July, the General of Chariots and Cavalry’s Mansion.

"Your servant Zhang Ji, Zhang Derong, greets you, Your Excellency!"

But Zhang Ji, who was of medium build and handsome appearance, bowed to Zhang Yu who was sitting on the couch.

Zhang Yu glanced at Zhang Ji's business card, and then looked up at his appearance. Seeing that Zhang Ji was neither humble nor arrogant, he was full of praise. He asked, "You were originally a gatekeeper in the county. Because of your many achievements in government, you were selected as a filial and honest official. However, the court has summoned you to serve as a palace official many times. I wonder why you didn't go? And why did you come here now at my call?"

There were many powerful families in Guanzhong. In order to rule Guanzhong and spread his influence in the countryside, Zhang Yu attached great importance to the scholars in Guanzhong and recruited almost all the famous scholars in Guanzhong. However, due to the large number of scholars, Zhang Yu screened them through written examinations and then met with the scholars who passed the examination one by one.

Zhang Ji was a leader among the scholars. He was not from a prominent family, but he was a powerful man in Fengyi County. Similar to Du Ji, he was recruited as a county official at a young age, and later he was selected as a filial and honest official for his meritorious service.

Zhang Ji remained calm and answered truthfully, "My Lord, when Dong Zhuo controlled the government, the ministers could not protect themselves. Since I had no intention of following the enemy, I thought deeply and did not dare to accept the call to Chang'an. But my Lord is so powerful that he established the great cause of Duke Wen of Jin, moved the Han Dynasty to Luoyang, and settled in Guanzhong to resist the Hu invaders. The people of Guanzhong who are determined to make contributions, how dare they not come to serve!"

During the eastward migration of the Ji Zhou Dynasty, the achievements of Jin Wen were not made by Duke Wen of Jin, Chong'er, but by Marquis Wen of Jin, Ji Chou. The "Wen" in the phrase "Ji Wen Shao Wu" refers to Marquis Wen of Jin. Now, with the eastward migration of the emperor, Zhang Yu's achievements were recognized by the court, and in the imperial edict, Yuan Shu was compared to Duke Wu of Zheng, and Marquis Wen of Jin was compared to Zhang Yu, so almost everyone praised Zhang Yu for this.

Now Zhang Yu asked Zhang Ji about the conscription, not to test Zhang Ji's ability to adapt to circumstances, but to test whether Zhang Ji was a die-hard member of the Han Dynasty. Zhang Ji's answer satisfied Zhang Yu, he was not a member of the Han Dynasty, but a person who was eager to make achievements.

Zhang Yu smiled and said, "You have made great contributions in the county and have been selected as a filial and honest official. You are both talented and virtuous. I now appoint you as the magistrate of Xinfeng County. Are you willing to take the position?"

"Thank you for your kindness!" Zhang Ji said with a happy expression and bowed.

"Xinfeng used to be a prosperous place, but now it is in turmoil due to war. If you take office, you should give priority to pacifying the people and restoring production," Zhang Yu warned.

"As ordered!"

As he spoke, Zhang Ji was thinking of something, and he cupped his hands and said, "My Lord, since there is something concerning agriculture, I dare not fail to report it now!"

"De Jong, just say whatever you want!"

"My Lord, the wealth of Guanzhong lies in the Zheng and Bai canals. However, since the last emperor, rebellions have arisen in Longyou. When Dong Zhuo moved west to Chang'an, warlords in Guandong fought for supremacy. Amid the chaos of war, the Zheng and Bai canals have not been repaired for many years, and silt has accumulated, causing less and less irrigation water."

Zhang Ji gathered his thoughts and said, "This summer, there were heavy rains for more than 20 days and strong winds like winter. Although the food production has not been reduced, if there are droughts and floods in the future, and the Zheng and Bai canals are silted up, it will definitely harm farming. Therefore, since I have dared to submit a memorial, you should mobilize the people in Guanzhong to repair the canals during your free time this year to prepare for any eventuality."

"good!"

Seeing that Zhang Ji was concerned about farming and had foresight, Zhang Yu nodded in praise and said, "Your virtue is profound, but I have forgotten the roots of Guanzhong. Now I will send people to survey the Zhengbai Canal. If the canal is blocked by siltation, we will recruit civilians to clear it."

"Your Excellency is wise!" Zhang Ji said respectfully.

The Zhengbai Canal is composed of two canals, the Zhengguo Canal and the Baiqu Canal, which irrigated more than 40,000 hectares of farmland in Guanzhong. Most of the 40,000 hectares of farmland were good farmland, with an annual yield of three shi per mu. Therefore, during the Han Dynasty, the food supply of Chang'an almost came from the 40,000 hectares of good farmland.

If there was an accident in the Zheng and Bai canals, it would mean a serious food crisis in Guanzhong. Therefore, all the governments in Guanzhong in the past dynasties attached great importance to the Zheng and Bai canals. Now a local man named Zhang Ji reminded him, so Zhang Yu dared not ignore it.

After Zhang Ji left, Zhang Yu met with many scholars from Guanzhong and granted them different official vacancies based on their performance.

In the afternoon, Zhang Yu took advantage of the hot weather and asked the maid to wash his hair.

When the maid was wiping Zhang Yu's hair, the attendant suddenly came to interrupt and reported: "My lord, Military Advisor Zhong is outside the palace!"

Hearing this, Zhang Yu was overjoyed and said, "Quickly invite Military Advisor Zhong!
"No, I will go out to meet you myself!"

Zhang Yu wrapped his half-wet hair with a silk cloth and, without caring about etiquette, went out to greet Zhong Yao in person.

"Call all the ministers to the palace to discuss matters!"

"promise!"

After a while, Zhang Yu met Zhong Yao who came to visit him. He walked up to him quickly, held his hand, and said happily: "I have been waiting for Yuan Chang in Chang'an for a long time. Now that Yuan Chang has arrived in Beijing, I have nothing to worry about!"

When Zhong Yao saw Zhang Yu rushing to see him and treating him with the same attitude, he was deeply moved and said, "I congratulate you on conquering the three prefectures of Guanzhong and being appointed governor of Yongzhou."

"Ha ha!"

Zhang Yu held Zhong Yao's arm and laughed, "When we were discussing the strategy of Shangdang, you said that we would conquer Bingzhou and occupy Guanzhong, and complete the foundation of Emperor Gaozu. Now I have fulfilled my old words. In the past, when we went to war, you supervised the management of food and grass, all thanks to Yuan Chang's contribution."

"Don't dare!"

Zhong Yao said modestly: "You all have your own duties. I have only made minor contributions to the supervision. I dare not claim major achievements now!" Zhang Yu smiled and said: "Now that Guanzhong has just been pacified, I need you to sort out everything for me."

"As ordered!"

On the way to the meeting hall with Zhong Yao, Zhang Yu asked: "In the past, we governed Bingzhou with Jinyang as our base. Now we are in Guanzhong, and Jinyang is far away. I am afraid it will not be conducive to governing Guanzhong. However, if we make Chang'an the capital, I am afraid that the northern border will be uneasy. It is difficult to decide at the moment. What do you think?"

Zhong Yao pondered for a moment and said, "In Yao's opinion, although Chang'an has the richness of Guanzhong, if you move the capital to Chang'an, it may be difficult for you to go east to compete for supremacy. Your foundation is in the northern border, and the border Hu people are afraid of your name. If the Xianbei, Qiang and Hu people know that you have moved the capital to Chang'an, they will attack Yunzhong and Pingcheng. Because there is a big river blocking the way, the journey is thousands of miles away. By the time our army reaches Daidi, the Hu people will have retreated."

"Bingzhou is adjacent to Hebei, and Yuan Shao in Hebei is your powerful enemy. If there is a change in Shandong, you can send infantry and cavalry to Hebei to show off your power, and then all the people in Shandong will be in awe. If Luoyang is in a state of panic, you can look south to Henei, and the court will not dare to go against your will. Therefore, the above is a strategy to check and balance Shandong, and to help you solve the problem of Chang'an!"

Zhang Yu nodded slightly and asked, "Does Yuan Chang want to continue to use Jinyang as the capital?"

Zhong Yao smiled and shook his head, saying: "If you make Jinyang your capital, it will be difficult to take care of the counties on the Long River. Moreover, Chang'an is now at peace, and the remnants of the evil in Guanzhong are still there. If you return to Jinyang, the rebels will get the news and will surely rise up and rebel."

Zhang Yu laughed when he heard this and said, "It seems that Yuan Chang has a different opinion!"

"This is a humble opinion. I wonder if you are willing to accept it?" Zhong Yao said.

"sit!"

Zhang Yu motioned for Zhong Yao to sit opposite him and said, "You have profound insights. I will listen attentively."

Zhong Yao stroked his beard and hummed softly, saying: "In my humble opinion, you may as well make Anyi the seat of the General of Chariots and Cavalry for the time being."

"Anyi was the old capital of the Xia Dynasty. The Xia took the copper from Boshan to cast weapons and collected the salt from Jiechi as taxes, which enabled them to reign for a time. Although the Jin Dynasty did not use Anyi as its capital, it ruled from Hedong to balance Guanzhong and Daidi and to support the royal family. When the Jin Dynasty fell and Wei was established, the Wei State used Anyi as its capital, took Guanzhong in the west, and occupied Zhangye in the east, dominating for a time."

"Since you want to divide your attention in Hebei and also need to govern Guanzhong, why don't you choose Anyi as the capital?"

Zhong Yao told him everything he had in mind: "Your Excellency should make Anyi the capital, collect salt from the pond as tax, and use it to support the army; look north to Dai and Zhao to control Hebei; take Guanzhong in the west to recover Longshang; look east to Henan to threaten the capital. The capital is not the capital, it only provides temporary peace. Once you have pacified Hebei, you can use Luoyang to control the Central Plains; if you have pacified the Central Plains, you can use Chang'an to control the world."

Zhang Yu was thoughtful. Zhong Yao's use of Anyi as the capital city was indeed reasonable. The capital city was not the capital city, and the changes of the capital city needed to change with the changes in the situation.

If he takes Chang'an as his capital, Bashu and Longyou will be the direction where he can exert his strength due to geographical reasons. However, according to the current situation, his future direction will be to go east and eliminate Yuan Shao who is entrenched in Hebei. Therefore, if Hebei is the strategic development direction, Jinyang will be more suitable, after all, Bingzhou has a geographical advantage over Hebei. But if Jinyang is used as the governance, it will be difficult to take care of the Guanlong area.

Considering the above content, Anyi would be a good choice in the short term. Its geography is well connected, bordering Taiyuan to the north, Guanzhong to the west, the capital to the south, and Shangdang to the east, which will be beneficial for Zhang Yu to use troops in response to changes in all directions.

"The matter of the Bafu government will be discussed for the time being!"

After some deliberation, Zhang Yu said, "I am sending Yuan Chang to Chang'an to help me sort out the government affairs in Guanzhong, implement the new tax system in Yongzhou, and discuss the selection of governors for the counties in Bingzhou and Yongzhou."

Zhong Yao said, "This is not difficult. Please select virtuous officials to take up the post and supervise the officials in the counties. As for the rest of the taxation and household registration, you can leave it to me and other officials to carry out."

After a pause, Zhong Yao smiled and said, "Your Excellency's reputation is so great that it shakes the world, and you control all the counties in Shanxi. So I would like to recommend someone. I wonder if your Excellency is willing to use him?"

"who?"

"Yingchuan Xun You, Xun Gongda!"

"Gongda?"

Zhang Yu laughed with great joy and said, "During the Yellow Turban Rebellion, I met Jun, Gongze, Gongda and other wise men in Yingchuan. They are very wise and have great talents. I have wanted to recruit them for a long time, but I don't know where Gongda is now."

Before Wang Yun killed Dong, Xun You was the Imperial Court Minister. Zhang Yu had sent a letter to recruit him, but Xun You politely refused. Zhang Yu then paid no attention to Xun You. Later, Xun You was imprisoned by Dong Zhuo for his involvement in the killing of Dong. Not long after Wang Yun killed Dong, Xun You was released and requested to be appointed as the governor of Shu County. Later, because the Shu Road was blocked, Zhang Yu did not know where he was.

Zhong Yao said, "After Gongda requested to be appointed governor of Shu County, he stayed in Nanyang because the Shu Road was blocked. Recently, he wrote to Yao, talking about the current situation and reminiscing about the past, and Yao now knew his whereabouts. Now that you are in control of Bing and Yong provinces, why not send a letter to summon him and recommend him as a senior minister to avoid being recruited by Yuan Shu."

"good!"

Zhang Yu nodded slightly and said, "Gongda and you have a close relationship. I am writing a letter to you after I submit my petition to recruit you."

"I am willing to serve you, my Lord!"

PS: I will resume my work and rest schedule today and update three chapters tomorrow morning!

(End of this chapter)