Three Kingdoms: I am not Liu Bian

Chapter 263 The "Southern Migration of the Elite" Plan

"Lord Ju Gao, you've been working hard lately."

Outside the Hall of Joyful Succession, Liu Bian personally stepped out of the hall to greet Cao Song, his attitude so warm that it was a stark contrast to his previous coldness towards the five important ministers.

Before Cao Song could even bow in greeting, Liu Bian had already taken his arm and, without a word, led him side by side into the hall.

He instinctively wanted to fall half a step behind, but the emperor pulled him forward. The emperor's arm was steady and strong, and he couldn't break free. A trace of panic flashed across his face.

Of course, what Cao Song was thinking was something no one else could know.

The emperor had just sternly reprimanded the two Grand Dukes and the three Grand Masters of Ceremonies, yet now he was showing such favor to him alone. Such an honor was enough to make one feel proud.

Liu Bian saw right through Cao Song's intentions, but paid them no mind.

The person in front of him is his lucky charm!

The Grand Minister of Agriculture was in charge of the nation's money, grain, gold, silk, and currency. The 105 commanderies and kingdoms of the Han Dynasty were required to submit a detailed monthly income and expenditure statement for the previous quarter in the first month of each quarter. The Grand Minister of Agriculture verified all the statements, determined the reasons for any increases or decreases, and even dispatched officials to investigate the causes of sudden increases or decreases.

If border prefectures need to allocate funds and grain, they must also obtain approval from the Grand Minister of Agriculture.

This was already an extremely complicated matter, and on top of that, Liu Bian ordered all commanderies and kingdoms to build water conservancy projects, to make salt and iron state monopolies, and to handle the restoration of people's livelihoods in the commanderies and kingdoms affected by the Yellow Turban Rebellion, the Qiang Rebellion in Liangzhou, and the Southern Xiongnu Rebellion.

Although the Grand Minister of Agriculture ranks eighth among the Nine Ministers, his current importance to the nation surpasses that of all other ministers.

Moreover, Cao Song rarely made mistakes in handling these affairs.

Occasionally there may be minor mistakes, but these are mostly minor details in execution and do not affect the overall situation. This is especially rare for a Grand Minister of Agriculture who is in charge of the nation's finances.

The position of Grand Minister of Agriculture requires no major faults to be considered a great achievement, let alone Cao Song's hard work these past few days.

Liu Bian led Cao Song into the hall and immediately ordered the eunuchs to serve pastries and a cup of honey water with extra honey added.

It wasn't that Liu Bian was stingy with roasted tea, but rather that Cao Song simply couldn't stand the bittersweet taste of roasted tea. For someone as busy as him, with almost no time to rest and even dreaming about the upcoming summer expenses, a cup of honey water that others found cloyingly sweet was Cao Song's perfect remedy for fatigue.

Cao Song's gaze fell on the two plates of pastries on the table. He reached out and picked up a piece, chewing it slowly.

At first, everything seemed normal, but after a moment, Cao Song's chewing motion suddenly paused, a glint of light flashing in his eyes. He swallowed the steamed rice cake in his mouth and asked with a hint of surprise, "Your Majesty, this steamed rice cake seems quite different from what I usually eat. The texture is delicate... Hmm? Why is this so sweet?"

Liu Bian nodded slightly. The reason Cao Song was able to get so fat in the past was because he was a glutton.

Cao Song often spent lavishly to recruit renowned chefs from all over the country to his residence to cook delicacies, so it was not surprising that he could tell the difference in this steamed rice cake after just one bite.

“It is because this bean paste is different; I call this ‘red bean paste’.”

Liu Bian then summoned Shangfang Ling Chai Yu and introduced him to Cao Song, saying, "This is my Shangfang Ling. I had some novel ideas and asked him to try to implement them, and fortunately he has not disappointed me."

Zenggao actually existed in the pre-Qin period, but at that time it was a snack called "Qiuerfenci" invented by the Zhou royal family. It was a cake made by adding bean paste to glutinous rice flour and steaming it. However, the bean paste filling had a coarse texture, and if it weren't for the value of glutinous rice itself, it wouldn't be considered a good thing at all.

The reason for this is that the coarse bean paste contains a lot of bean dregs and bean skin fragments. Moreover, before the advent of thin iron pots and sugar boiling methods, bean paste was only slightly sweet.

The paste was repeatedly pounded and ground in a stone mortar, and then filtered through a coarse cloth. Although it was not as extremely fine as the red bean paste of later generations, it was still able to remove a lot of residue and could be considered a fine red bean paste.

The sugar used to make the sweet bean paste is brown sugar obtained by pressing the juice with a stone mill, filtering it through three layers of fine kudzu cloth, and then boiling it in a thin iron pot.

Although lacking crystallization technology, this brown sugar is more than twice as sweet as the original maltose. (Note 1)

Otherwise, the much more refined bean paste alone would not have been enough to move a gourmand like Cao Song.

If it's just delicate bean paste, it only requires more labor, peeling the skins little by little by hand. As long as you have money and power, these are not problems. The real value lies in the sweetness.

Sugar has always been a luxury. Sweetness makes people relax unconsciously, so sweets are a favorite of the powerful and wealthy. Regions with a preference for sweet flavors tend to be more economically developed.

Cao Song had a sweet tooth, and recently he had been overworked, so he even carried a few pieces of maltose with him as a way to relieve fatigue.

"The nation!" Cao Song, who was chewing on a steamed rice cake, suddenly focused his gaze, as if he had realized something, and hurriedly looked up and said, "This sugar..."

"No way!" Liu Bian saw Cao Song's posture and guessed what this God of Wealth was up to. He immediately raised his hand to interrupt, leaving no room for negotiation and directly making Cao Song give up his idea. "The Imperial Household Department has already begun to supervise the construction, and it will soon be available on the market. If you, Lord Ju Gao, need it, I will have the Imperial Household Department send someone to deliver it to your residence in person."

Although the Grand Minister of Agriculture was in charge of finances, he was only involved in the trade of cloth, grain, salt and iron. All other miscellaneous businesses were the work of the Junior Treasury, who was in charge of finances for the imperial family.

Since Liu Bian became regent, he first confiscated the imperial treasury funds and the property of the Ten Attendants accumulated by Liu Hong through selling official positions and extortion. Then he confiscated the property of the powerful families in Xindu County, followed by Liu Hong's wet nurse, Lady Cheng, and Zhao Rao. Finally, he confiscated the property of the Yuan family of Runan and all their former students and officials. As a result, even though Liu Bian used the imperial treasury funds to cover the expenses of the central army, the rewards for the army, and the resettlement expenses for good families in the Three Rivers region, and allocated funds to support the national treasury several times, the imperial treasury still had a surplus of 14 billion.

After several wars and water conservancy projects, the national treasury had only a little over 3 billion coins left, which was not even a fraction of the imperial treasury's funds. No wonder Cao Song was so "greedy for accumulating wealth".

But this is only a temporary predicament.

As the various prefectures and kingdoms gradually recover from the war and resume normal production, coupled with the completion and commissioning of many water conservancy projects that were repaired and newly built since August of last year, this year's tax revenue is at least 5 billion coins more than before the Yellow Turban Rebellion.

Cao Song conservatively estimates that at least one billion coins could be added! (Note 2)

This number may seem exaggerated, but it is actually a conservative estimate.

The profits from salt and iron were so astonishing, which is why Liu Bian was so eager to reclaim them. Moreover, there was the increase in taxes brought about by the development of agriculture and commerce after the war ended.

Therefore, Cao Song was not too disappointed after being rejected by the emperor.

He never expected to turn these profits into the national treasury; it was just a habitual, subconscious act of "accumulating wealth."

Liu Bian wasn't deliberately showing off the benefits of brown sugar, but rather trying to tell Cao Song that he had to trust the skills of the Imperial Workshop Order.

"I have summoned Duke Ju Gao here today to discuss two matters."

Upon hearing that the emperor had finally brought the topic back to the main point, Cao Song straightened up, sat up straight, and quickly chewed and swallowed the steamed rice cake in his mouth.

Liu Bian gestured to Chai Yu to bring a plow and place it in front of Cao Song, instructing him to examine it closely.

Although Cao Song, as the Grand Minister of Agriculture, did not have much knowledge of agriculture in his early years, he now has a good understanding of his job.

Although this plow resembles the plow commonly used by farmers, closer inspection reveals differences.

"Why is the shaft of this plow curved?" Cao Song asked, pointing to the shaft.

Liu Bian nodded slightly, pointed at Chai Yu, and said, "Bo Yan, please explain the convenience of this item to Ju Gao Gong."

Chai Yu bowed and accepted the order, then squatted down and stroked the plow shaft with his palm: "This was obtained by the Emperor of the State. The old plows of our Great Han were all straight shafts. The State ordered me to try replacing the straight shafts with curved shafts. When plowing, I found that this thing is particularly agile when turning around in the field, and is especially suitable for paddy fields!"

Cao Song did not question Chai Yu's words.

Chai Yu's ability to develop such a sugar-boiling method, though a minor skill, demonstrates his expertise in the art of crafts, especially considering it was the Emperor's design.

The emperor was determined to revive the Han dynasty and would certainly not treat such an important matter lightly. Since the curved-shaft plow was shown to him, the Grand Minister of Agriculture, it must be much more convenient than the straight-shaft plow.

Cao Song's thoughts raced quickly, and he immediately realized the key point: "The lands of Jiangnan and Jiangdong, with their crisscrossing waterways, seem perfectly suited to this plow."

"Your Excellency, the Grand Minister of Agriculture is wise. However, this tool is not only suitable for paddy fields, but it is exceptionally well-suited for them." Chai Yu pointed to the plowshare and the plowshare, saying, "Your Excellency, please look. The plowshare is sharp and easily penetrates the soil. This curved plowshare can effectively turn over the soil clods and flip them to the right, forming deep furrows and ridges, which is extremely beneficial for drainage in paddy fields and the growth of grain roots. Moreover, this plowshare and plowshare can also adjust the depth, allowing for deep and shallow plowing."

Cao Song focused his gaze on the curved plow, his brows furrowing slightly, and a growing seriousness appearing in his eyes. He said, "According to you, besides paddy fields, those narrow and winding terraced fields can also be used?"

Chai Yu replied, “Indeed! I have already taken this item and tested it with the craftsmen of the Imperial Workshop, and it is indeed usable. Its convenience lies not only in the ability to adjust the depth of plowing, but also in the lightness and flexibility of the curved plow itself. Its lightness also makes the cost only about 60% of that of the straight plow.”

Upon hearing that the cost was low, Cao Song's slightly furrowed brows relaxed a little.

His concern was that although the objects were excellent, their high price made them difficult to promote.

While improving farming efficiency is certainly good, the beneficiaries are still the government-owned land and wealthy households with oxen for plowing.

"Grand Minister of Agriculture, I still have the 'treadle plow,' which requires no animal power and is much lighter than the old plows. If we disregard the effort required, its efficiency is about half that of the curved-shaft plow." Chai Yu paused abruptly, a hint of dissatisfaction in his voice, and snorted coldly. "There is also the 'dragon-bone cart,' used to draw water from rivers. This was originally created by the craftsmen of the Imperial Workshop, but Bi Lan used it to sweep roads. This device could have been used by the people to draw water from rivers to irrigate their fields. Following the State's guidance, I made some improvements and created the 'waterwheel,' which can turn itself to draw water using the force of the current, without the need for human or animal power." "Thus, the 'dragon-bone cart' can be used in calm waters, and the 'waterwheel' can be used in turbulent waters. As for the height, it can be adjusted according to the water depth."

Chai Yu ordered the craftsmen to carry in the newly made farm tools and old tools that were not used for proper purposes. He explained in detail their uses, characteristics and suitable terrains for each tool. He talked on and on for nearly an hour without showing any signs of fatigue. His words were full of sincere admiration for the emperor's ingenious ideas. Cao Song listened attentively, his joy evident in his expression.

Liu Bian wasn't particularly interested in this, and simply focused on reviewing the memorials. After all, he wasn't a professional, and the new agricultural tools he could propose were merely a few of the more famous ones recorded in later historical annals.

After Chai Yu finally finished speaking, he and Cao Song realized that the emperor, whom they had neglected for so long, had appeared somewhat embarrassed.

"It's alright." Liu Bian didn't take it to heart, a gentle smile playing on his lips. He said, "Agriculture is the foundation of the nation, and I am very pleased to see your concern for agriculture."

"Lord Ju Gao, I wish to cultivate wasteland in Jingzhou, Yangzhou, and Jiaozhou. The agricultural tools here are mostly suitable for the water-rich lands of the south. I would like to trouble you, Lord Ju Gao, to take the time to make overall arrangements for this matter."

The Later Han dynasty made some progress in developing the Jiangnan region, but this was limited to the area north of Jingzhou.

The area south of Jingzhou is underdeveloped, and the Yangzhou area is almost entirely uncultivated wasteland.

It has been said that the Jiangdong region during the Later Han Dynasty practiced slash-and-burn agriculture, but in reality, this slash-and-burn agriculture is different from the slash-and-burn agriculture practiced when technology was underdeveloped.

This slash-and-burn agriculture was actually a form of land reclamation.

In the early days of Jiangdong, they could only rely on fire to burn away the tangled vegetation and use the ashes as fertilizer.

However, the land utilization rate in Jiangdong is indeed very low, and there is a lot of room for improvement.

He planned to appoint some court officials who were knowledgeable in military affairs but would not abuse force to serve as governors of Jingzhou, Yangzhou, and Jiaozhou, to suppress the Yue tribes in the mountains, replenish the population and land, and reclaim a large amount of wasteland to increase the country's arable land area.

Liu Bei was the candidate he was preparing to cultivate as the governor of Jingzhou.

Of course, the root cause of all this is ultimately the insufficient population.

If it were a chaotic period like the end of the Han Dynasty in history, when scholars from the Central Plains migrated south to Jiangdong and Jiangnan, who wouldn't reclaim a lot of land just to fill their stomachs?

The relocation of people was something he had to arrange, but he would also provide supporting policies, such as giving away oxen, distributing iron and advanced farming tools free of charge, and rewarding people with money and grain or even titles of nobility depending on the area of ​​wasteland reclaimed, and exempting them from taxes for several years.

However, this matter cannot be prepared in a few words; the specific details still need to be discussed by the Ministry of Personnel, the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, and the Three Dukes and Nine Ministers.

However, the migrants were not only ordinary people; many wealthy and powerful families also took the opportunity to move away.

Liu Bian privately named his plan to relocate aristocratic families to Jingnan, Yangzhou, and Jiaozhou the "Southern Migration of the Aristocracy" plan.

Both were forced to go south. What's the difference between being forced to cross the river by the Han emperor and being forced to cross by the barbarians with weapons in hand?
In any case, all the powerful and wealthy families that don't migrate south will die!

Oh wait, it seems that the Hu people were still willing to accept the groveling of some aristocratic and wealthy families.

It doesn't matter, whether the issue of land ownership is physically resolved by addressing the reluctance of the powerful and wealthy families to relocate south, or by encouraging them to do so voluntarily, it will temporarily solve the land problem.

"This is my duty, there is no need to trouble you."

Although the emperor had added burdens to Cao Song's life, he did not complain.

For him, the greatest joy was seeing the Han Dynasty's cultivated land increase daily and its taxes become more abundant.

As the emperor said, agriculture is the foundation of the nation.

If agriculture flourishes under his rule, he will surely be remembered in history.

At that time, would anyone dare to criticize him for being the descendant of a eunuch?

The position of one of the Three Dukes can be held by others, but Cao Jugao cannot.

Liu Bian suddenly remembered another matter that had not been discussed with Cao Song. He shook his head slightly and smiled, saying, "There is still one matter concerning the Cao family, which I need to consult with Lord Ju Gao."

Gao Wang, who was standing to the side, understood and gently tugged at Chai Yu, who was still engrossed in his farm tools and standing still, signaling him to take his leave first.

Cao Song was taken aback upon hearing this. Judging from the emperor's tone, this seemed to be a major matter, but the emperor's attitude was very lenient, so he guessed it was not a bad thing, otherwise he would not have given him this extra responsibility.

After Liu Bian expressed his concern that Cao Cao would have "no more titles to bestow" in the future, Cao Song couldn't help but feel a strange sensation.

He had always known that the emperor valued Cao Cao, but he never expected that the emperor would value him to this extent. It was even higher than his own father's expectations for Cao Cao. He was even worried that Cao Cao's achievements would be so great that he could not be given any more titles.

It seems the emperor placed too much importance on Cao Cao!
The last person whom the emperor worried about having no more titles to bestow was none other than the current head of all officials, Grand Tutor Lu Zhi!

This clearly shows that Cao Cao was being cultivated as a prime minister-level talent, just like Grand Tutor Lu Zhi!

Of course, the fact that the emperor could speak so frankly about these concerns made Cao Song, a veteran official who had experienced many ups and downs in his career, deeply feel the emperor's trust in the Cao family.

As for how to solve this problem, Cao Song also felt it was quite tricky.

If the title is not passed to the eldest son, how can it be passed to the second son?
It is against etiquette and law!
Cao Song pondered deeply, but could not find a solution for the time being.

Seeing Cao Song pondering for a long time, Liu Bian gave a brief hint: "I have heard that besides Mengde, Ju Gao Gong has four other sons?"

Cao Song had five sons: Cao Cao, Cao Bin, Cao Li, Cao Yu, and Cao De.

However, apart from Cao Cao, the other four sons were mediocre, and could not even be considered average.

Upon hearing the emperor's words, Cao Song was first taken aback, then his brows furrowed deeply.

Liu Bian did not urge him. After a long while, Cao Song's eyes flashed, as if he finally understood the emperor's intention. He solemnly bowed and said, "Your subject dares to ask the country for a favor. If I pass away in the future, please divide my fief into four parts, not to be inherited by Mengde, but to be distributed to my other four sons."

Liu Bian looked at Cao Song with a hint of satisfaction and appreciation in his eyes.

These are the virtuous ministers he relies on and loves, who understand the bigger picture and know when to advance and retreat.

Our ancestors had already provided the answer: Emperor Xiaowu's Edict of Grace.

However, Cao Song's situation was different. The eldest son of the legitimate wife would inevitably have a fiefdom that was comparable to or even surpassed that of his father, while the eldest son himself would not receive even a single fiefdom.

If it's just a regular act of kindness, then it's fine.

However, in such special circumstances, the emperor cannot force the emperor to grant favors; the subjects must understand the situation themselves and actively request it.

Otherwise, the significance to the subjects would be different, and the outside world's perception of the matter would also be different.

The former is close to punishment, while the latter is grace.

If Cao Song had not made such a decision, although Liu Bian could have come up with other ways to reward Cao Cao, the consequences would have made the Cao family pay the price in the future.

Perhaps it was the emperor's fear, or perhaps it was the Cao family being sidelined; in that case, it was not something that Liu Bian could change simply by valuing Cao Cao.

(5345 words)
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P.S.: Hehe, I accidentally fell asleep when I got home today. I dreamt that I published a chapter, and then I fell asleep peacefully. I almost slept through the night, so I'm adding a short 1300-word update to make up for the late update.

Dear readers, please give me some extra monthly votes in recognition of the extra 1300 words I've added!
Note 1: Based on the use of ancient methods to make sugar in modern times, the sweetness of maltose in the Han Dynasty was about 30%, the brown sugar mentioned above had about 65% sweetness, and the sweetness of crystallized sugar in the Tang and Song Dynasties was about 90%. This is not a fabrication by the author.

Note 2: The "Discourses on Salt and Iron" states that the average annual salt consumption per person in the Han Dynasty was about one dou (the official measure of salt), which is about 3 kilograms, or 0.1 shi. The price of salt was 180 coins per shi.

180 coins/stone * 0.1 stone * 5000 million people = 9 million coins
The revenue from the iron industry was not as significant, and much of the price and cost information was not preserved, probably because it was considered confidential. However, according to the ratio after Emperor Wu of Han monopolized salt and iron, the profit ratio between salt and iron was roughly 2 to 1. The iron industry was monopolized by the state, which cost about 4.5 million coins, mainly to save expenses.

Therefore, the total revenue of the state-run salt and iron industry was 13.5 billion coins, and after deducting costs, it was certain that it would be around 10 billion coins.

The revenue from salt and iron is calculated based on the consumption level during the reign of Emperor Wu of Han. However, with the increased use of ironware among the people, the cost decreased, and the consumption level of salt increased, this revenue of 10 billion is actually an underestimation.

(End of this chapter)