Three Kingdoms: I am not Liu Bian

Chapter 279 Are the soldiers of my Han family brave and strong?

October 20th, the first year of the Hanxing era.

Liu Bian entered Yuntai Pavilion with slightly slow steps, casually waving his hand to signal the courtiers who were bowing to him to rise and dispense with the formalities.

It was no longer the Crown Prince's residence it once was. Even though Liu Bian had repeatedly stated that everything in the Yuntai Pavilion should be focused on political affairs and that there was no need to be bound by formalities, it was still difficult to return to the old scene of the Crown Prince's residence. That casual relationship between the emperor and his ministers was ultimately hard to find.

"Burp~" Liu Bian let out a burp, plopped down on the couch, rubbed his slightly bloated belly, his brows furrowed, and his voice carried a hint of post-meal languor as he asked, "What important matters are there today?"

Gao Wang silently stepped back a few paces, took a lacquered tray from his godson, and offered a cup of warm tea to the emperor's left side.

This tea was prepared by his godson when he was in the Northern Palace, foreseeing that the Emperor would need it today.

Liu Bian glanced at Gao Wang. It was only Gao Wang who could serve him so well; he could get many things done without Liu Bian even having to say a word.

He ate a bit too much this morning, and even felt bloated and uncomfortable.

Liu Qing is now more than six months pregnant. Although she has had experience before, she still cannot overcome the influence of hormones in her body. Her emotions are extremely unstable, and she often feels inexplicably sad over trivial matters. Liu Bian has specially decreed that Liu Qing's parents may enter the palace to visit her every day.

The reason why Liu Bian's abdomen was so bloated was that Liu Qing often felt hungry but also felt bloated and had no appetite.

Empress He was experienced and understood that this was normal during pregnancy. Unlike Liu Bian, she was not worried at all. There were many experienced female officials in the palace who were also paying close attention.

However, Liu Bian patiently coaxed Liu Qing, taking a bite himself and then coaxing Liu Qing to take another bite. In the end, Liu Bian ate a little more than usual.

Empress He, the mother-in-law, was somewhat envious of the treatment Liu Qing received from her daughter-in-law, and half-jokingly remarked that Liu Bian had never been so considerate to his mother.

Although Empress He's words were unintentional, they slightly aroused Liu Bian's vigilance.

Empress He has too much blood on her hands, and he is worried that she might suddenly become jealous of her daughter-in-law and get stuck on a futile thought.

With the examples of Empress Dowager Dong and Empress He right before his eyes, Liu Bian, out of caution, held a bowl of meat soup and, just as he had coaxed Liu Qing, spoke gently and softly to Empress He, feeding her spoonful by spoonful.

Empress He rolled her eyes at her son, who was coaxing her to eat like a child. Although she scolded him a few times, she ate half a bowl more meat soup than usual.

After appeasing the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law, Liu Bian was so full he could barely walk, which caused him to be late.

Zhong Yao took out a scroll from the several memorials placed on the right side of Liu Bian's desk, unfolded it, and handed it to Liu Bian, saying, "The state has received a memorial from Zhao Pingshu. He has met with King Pu Hu of Ba Yi. Pu Hu is willing to submit to the court, but hopes that the court can formally confer upon him the title of Marquis of Congyi. In addition, two other tribal leaders also hope to receive the court's promise of a title."

"Zhao Ping Shu" refers to Zhao Wen.

Liu Bian originally planned to transfer Zhao Ang, the governor of Yizhou, to Xuzhou, or appoint Zhao Wen as the temporary governor of Shu Commandery, stationed in Chengdu, the capital of Shu Commandery.

Chengdu will serve as the logistical base for this campaign against the Southern Central Army. With Zhao Wen's ability to oversee logistics, there should be no major problems.

However, before the edict was drafted, Dong Zhao reminded Liu Bian that Zhao Wen was from Chengdu in Shu Commandery of Yizhou, and was also the younger brother of Zhao Qian, the Minister of the Central Capital Office. According to the Three Mutual Law, Zhao Wen could not serve as the Governor of Yizhou, the Prefect of Shu Commandery, and the Magistrate of Chengdu. Therefore, Liu Bian changed Zhao Wen's title to General Who Pacifies Shu.

Liu Bian took the memorial but did not rush to read its details or express his opinion. Instead, he glanced at the officials of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices and asked, "What are the opinions of the various Attendants and Gentlemen?"

"We, along with Wenhe (Jia Xu), thought it was acceptable; Gongda (Xun You) and Yuantu (Feng Ji), the two Gentlemen-at-the-Gate, thought it was acceptable; Gongren (Dong Zhao) thought that we should exert our power over the barbarians and only enfeoff one person as a marquis, which would cause internal discord among the Cong people; Zhengnan (Shen Pei) and Wenxiu (Xu Jing), the two Gentlemen-at-the-Gate, thought that the barbarians were greedy and should not be granted lightly."

“Four to three…” Liu Bian’s lips curled into a playful smile as he lightly tapped the memorial with his finger. “It’s rare that you all have such differing opinions and are deadlocked.”

In his memorial, Zhao Wen stated that the situation within the Ba people had changed. The old system of governance by the seven clans of Luo, Pu, Du, E, Du, Xi, and Gong had been broken. The leader of the Pu family had subdued the other six clans, and now the so-called seven clans were all ruled by Pu Hu, the leader of the Pu family, who was known as the "King of Ba Yi".

However, two Ba people forces emerged in the eastern and western parts of Ba Commandery. The Ba people in the western part of Ba Commandery recognized Du Hu as their leader, while the Ba people in the eastern part of Ba Commandery recognized Yuan Yue as their leader. These two forces were in opposition to the Pu Hu, who were active in the central part of Ba Commandery. The three forces were almost like a mini Three Kingdoms.

Zhao Wen invited the three families to sit down and negotiate. All of them requested that the court confer upon them the title of Marquis of Ba. After Zhao Wen's negotiations, Pu Hu finally requested to be conferred the title of Marquis of Congyi, while Du Hu and Yuan Yue were conferred the titles of Marquis of Congdong and Marquis of Congxi, respectively.

This was already the best condition Zhao Wen had negotiated. The Cong people initially wanted an outrageous demand, proposing that the court divide Ba Commandery and bestow titles upon the three leaders, making them the King of Ba, the King of Baxi, and the King of Badong respectively. They wanted to divide Ba Commandery into the Kingdom of Ba, the Kingdom of Badong, and the Kingdom of Baxi, to be governed autonomously by the Cong people, making them vassal states of the Han Dynasty. Zhao Wen stated that this was absolutely impossible and recounted the terrifying victories of the Han army over the past two years to the three Cong leaders. He then led them to Nanzheng, the capital of Hanzhong Commandery, where a vast amount of supplies prepared by the court for the southward conquest of Nanzhong were stockpiled.

The imperial court's supplies were transported to Chengdu, with three transit hubs along the way.

The first is Luoyang, the second is Chang'an, and the third is Nanzheng, the capital of Hanzhong Commandery.

The supplies traveled from Chang'an to Hanzhong via the Baoxie Road, a journey of about 470 li.

Traveling west along the Wei River, one enters Xiegu (the northern entrance of the Baoxie Road) at Mei County, then travels south along Xiegu, crosses the Qinling watershed, enters the Baoshui River Valley (the southern section of the Baoxie Road), and finally arrives at Baozhong City in Hanzhong Prefecture. Finally, one travels west along the Hanshui River Valley to Nanzheng.

There were post stations and supply points along the way, and the road was extensively repaired during the Yongping era, so the road conditions were relatively stable.

Outside Nanzheng City, Zhao Wen generously led the three to visit the elite warriors' camp, carefully selected from the good families of Yizhou, and to observe their drills. They saw that the army was well-organized, the battle cries were deafening, and the soldiers' armor was gleaming.

The three officers recognized him; he was Yan Yan from Linjiang County in Ba Commandery, a powerful Han Chinese clan known for his bravery and archery skills.

Seeing the formidable power of this hastily recruited army, the three were secretly astonished.

No wonder the Southern Xiongnu were destroyed and no fewer than 100,000 Qiang and Hu people in Liangzhou were killed. If even the temporarily recruited army had such a military appearance, then what kind of elite soldiers must the Han court's northern border army and the most elite Luoyang Central Army be?

Zhao Wen laughed heartily, "Let's see if my Han soldiers are truly valiant!"

Du Huo exclaimed, "What a formidable army!"

Zhao Wen then led the three men to the treasury, pointed to the mountains of supplies being transported to various warehouses, and said loudly, "Look at whether my Han army has enough food and provisions!"

Pu Hu, Du Huo, and Yuan Yue approached and examined the various granaries, which were filled with grain, herbs, firewood, salt, fruits and vegetables, white mud that was not salt, and some military tents and bamboo tube-shaped utensils that they had never seen before.

"This substance resembles salt, but it is a water purifier; it is made from crushed alum. Those military tents were designed by the Emperor and made by the Imperial Workshop, and they can serve to protect against mosquitoes. As for the utensils, they are water purifiers."

The Shennong's Classic of Materia Medica states: "Alum tastes sour and cold...it removes chronic heat, and can be refined into a medicinal paste for consumption."

One pound of alum stone is worth 12 coins, while only 2 coins are needed to treat 10 tons of water. It has always been used by the Han army for purifying water when they went out to war. As for water filtration equipment, it has existed for a long time.

The Han people didn't understand how boiling water could kill bacteria, but they did understand how to use alum and water filters to remove visible dust and sand. The army commonly used a filter made of multiple layers of coarse and fine cloth and sewn fine mesh.

As for the bamboo tube, it was a simple device for collecting distilled water, and each soldier was issued one as a source of drinking water in emergencies.

Yuan Yue couldn't help but admire them. These Cong people had never been so particular. Even if they knew the water they drank might be problematic, only the Cong people who could drink it without dying could survive for thousands of years. But this did not prevent Yuan Yue from being amazed by the wisdom and dowry of the Han people, saying, "Indeed, the army is well-trained and the food is plentiful, and the reputation is well-deserved."

Zhao Wen showed everything to Pu Hu, Du Huo, and Yuan Yue in order to let them know that the court was really going all out this time, and that even the emperor was using money from the imperial treasury.

Although our new emperor is a young emperor, he personally went to the front lines to quell the Yellow Turban Rebellion even before ascending the throne. He also commanded the suppression of the Qiang and Hu rebellions in Liangzhou and the Southern Xiongnu rebellion in Bingzhou from Luoyang. He is a brave and skilled emperor.

Moreover, our emperor is, after all, a young man with lofty ambitions. He is unwilling to indulge the barbarians from all directions who refuse to submit, nor will he allow any barbarians who are unwilling to see him wavering between rebellion and allegiance. Therefore, this time, he is determined to completely resolve the barbarian affairs in Yizhou.

If it weren't for the fact that Zhao Wen still had some influence with the emperor, and that he had a deep friendship with the three of them, remembering their past kindness in helping him govern Ba Commandery, he personally persuaded the emperor to postpone the campaign against the Cong people and instead persuade them to submit to the court. Otherwise, the emperor would have already launched a military campaign against them, with a large army pressing on the border.

Finally, Zhao Wen looked meaningfully at Pu Hu, Du Huo, and Yuan Yue, and said indifferently, "I hope the three chieftains will assess the situation and not let down Wen's painstaking efforts."

Ultimately, the three marquis titles of Marquis of Congyi, Marquis of Congdong, and Marquis of Congxi were finalized, and the imperial court bestowed upon them the "Golden Seal of Marquis of Congyi of Han Guiyi", the "Golden Seal of Marquis of Congdong of Han Guiyi", and the "Golden Seal of Marquis of Congxi of Han Guiyi".

(3054 words)
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PS: The image below is the original image of the "Han Guiyi Congyi Marquis Gold Seal". However, it is uncertain whether it was bestowed by Cao Cao after he conquered Hanzhong in the 20th year of Jian'an (215) or by Liu Bei when he established Dangqu County in the 21st year of Jian'an (216). However, Pu Hu, Du Hu and Yuan Yue benefited from both sides.

(End of this chapter)