Second-hand time travel: Liu Bei, the big-eared bandit

Chapter 456 Returning to the Old Capital
The report documents contain a lot of information, including all the affairs within the prefecture. They are usually submitted after the autumn harvest and are first reported to the Duke's Office. After the Duke's Office confirms the report, it is then submitted to the Ministry of Personnel.

The current government is, of course, headed by Liu Bei, the prime minister.

In fact, many people do not recognize Liu Bei as prime minister because it is not in accordance with the rules and regulations. After all, the Han Dynasty abolished the prime minister and replaced him with the Three Dukes two hundred years ago.

Liu Bei sent documents to various military commanders, urging them to report on grain taxes, just to gauge their attitudes.

"Prime Minister, a report from the north states that General Yangwu Li Jue has not yet completed the autumn grain collection, and tens of thousands of refugees have gone to Niyang. He requests that the autumn grain from the north be used locally for relief. He also says that the governor of the north, Zhao Rong, has conscripted laborers from among the refugees to transport flowers, plants, and rare stones to Chang'an to help repair the palaces..."

Zhuge Liang held up the two documents and said, "Both documents are signed by You Chu, the strategist from the north, but the handwriting of You Chu's signature on the two documents is inconsistent."

The reporting process also included the autumn performance review, and the report was actually a collection of many different documents.

The report contains a wealth of data for the entire year, including population composition, military deployment, official appointments, taxes and corvée labor, criminal justice and public order, disasters and auspicious omens, and many other matters.

For matters involving military mobilization, population movement, and large-scale material transfer, it is even more essential to clearly describe the causes and consequences, including the origin and the routes taken.

Before being sent to the imperial court, the documents would be reviewed by various parties and signed and stamped by many people, such as the prefect, the assistant prefect, the commandery commander, the head of the garrison troops, and the clerk responsible for reporting to the imperial court.

The documents were completed jointly by multiple departments, so it is normal for the handwriting on the bamboo slips to be different. However, if the signatures are inconsistent, then that is certainly not normal.

This is actually a small issue that is easily overlooked, because people are more concerned about the content of the document itself.

Li Jue was not actually an official of Beidi Commandery, but since he was currently stationed in Niyang, he was regarded as the commander of the garrison troops—Li Jue was the one who actually controlled Beidi Commandery.

The governor of Beidi was Zhao Rong, courtesy name Zhichang. He was appointed by Dong Zhuo and was one of the Eight Colonels of the Western Garden.

This person came from the Zhao clan of Longxi, and was a fellow townsman of Dong Zhuo.

At present, Liu Bei's focus is definitely on Li Jue regarding the documents of Beidi Commandery, while Zhuge Liang pays attention to the trivial issue of the different handwriting of the clerk in charge of accounting.

Liu Bei thought for a while and then asked Zhuge Liang, "How many laborers from the north need to be brought to Chang'an?"

Zhuge Liang flipped through another bamboo slip: "Five thousand men."

The data looks correct; the matters concerning the repair of Weiyang Palace and the preparation of military supplies and provisions for the pacification of Liangzhou were indeed communicated by the Ministry of Personnel to various prefectures.

It's normal for there to be refugees in Niyang after Li Jue just finished fighting Duan Wei. As for using the autumn grain to relieve the refugees on the spot... this is obviously because Li Jue didn't want to be held hostage and wanted to keep the grain for his own use.

However, conscripting laborers to support the construction of Weiyang Palace in Chang'an can be considered a positive attitude.

The slack season after the autumn harvest is the best time to conscript laborers, and conscripting laborers from the displaced people is also a form of work relief.

If we only look at the statistics, it is obviously very reasonable—both from Li Jue's current situation and his mentality, it is normal.

Liu Bei turned to Jia Xu and asked, "Who is this man from Chu? Does Wenhe know him?"

"I'm not familiar with him, but I've heard of him. You Chu is a prominent family in Fengyi and Pinyang, and his father, You Yin, is very famous in Guanzhong."

Jia Xu replied, "You Yin was once an aide appointed by Grand Commandant Yang. Two years ago, when he was serving as the Chief Clerk of Beidi, he was beheaded by Hu Zhen for the crime of allowing his troops to commit illegal acts."

"Is this a miscarriage of justice?"

Liu Bei now understands Jia Xu quite well; if Jia Xu takes the initiative to tell a story, it's likely that there's something hidden behind it.

“It was indeed a miscarriage of justice. Hu Zhen and You Yin had a past feud. It was actually Hu Zhen who ordered the troops to plunder. You Yin reported Hu Zhen to Dong Sikong, but Hu Zhen falsely accused him and killed him. Zhang Ji had a past relationship with You Yin, and You Yin had entrusted Zhang Ji to take care of You Chu.”

Jia Xu nodded: "More than a month after You Yin died, Hu Zhen fell ill and went blind. Before he died, he said that You Gongcao's spirit was looking for him to take revenge... This matter was widely known in Guanzhong. People also said that You Yin became a ghost after his death, and You Chu was recommended as a clerk because of this."

"Blinded by illness, and then encountering a ghost? It must be You Chu seeking revenge..."

Liu Bei nodded, but then shook his head: "What does the feud between You Chu and Hu Zhen have to do with Li Jue? These two documents..."

“Since the handwriting of You Chu’s name is different, then one of the documents is not from You Chu. This document is harming You Chu, and also harming Li Jue.”

Jia Xu shook his head and said, "Prime Minister, You Chu alone cannot seek revenge against the Grand Protector who commands tens of thousands of troops..."

"...Was it Li Jue who helped You Chu murder Hu Zhen?"

Liu Bei thought for a moment and nodded: "That's true. If Hu Zhen hadn't died, Li Jue and Guo Si would have had a hard time getting ahead."

"It may not be Li Jue, but many people believe that this matter is related to Li Jue..."

Jia Xu explained the situation in Guanzhong: "Originally, Dong Zhuo appointed Hu Zhen to lead the troops of the Three Auxiliary Regions. After Hu Zhen's death, Li Jue became the general of Guanzhong and benefited the most... Under Dong Zhuo's rule, the prefects had no real power..."

Originally, Dong Zhuo's territory could be divided into three parts.

Jingzhao and the capital region were directly under Dong Zhuo's control, Bingzhou was under the jurisdiction of Niu Fu, and Yongliang was under the jurisdiction of Hu Zhen.

At that time, Niu Fu and Hu Zhen were the highest-ranking people among those from other surnames.

After Hu Zhen was defeated by Sun Jian in Nanyang, Dong Zhuo transferred him to the Three Auxiliary Regions. Subsequently, Yuan Shu withdrew his troops, and Dong Zhuo captured Nanyang, whereupon he stationed Zhang Ji's troops.

Soon after Hu Zhen 'died of illness,' Li Jue was able to take charge of Fufeng, greatly increasing his power.

When Dong Zhuo served as Minister of Works, he originally tried to befriend powerful and aristocratic families to gain their support. As a result, all the governors of the prefectures under his jurisdiction came from prominent families.

For example, in the Three Auxiliary Regions, the original position of the Prefect of the Capital was Han Fu, but the actual power was held by Liu Ai, Dong Zhuo's Chief Secretary.

The person named Wang Hong from Youfufeng was from the Wang clan of Taiyuan, but Li Jue was the actual person in charge of Fufeng.

Zuo Fengyi was named Song Yi, and he came from the Song clan of Fufeng—the family of Empress Song, the first wife of Emperor Ling Liu Hong. Guo Si had previously been stationed in Fengyi.

Wang Hong and Song Yi were actually in Chang'an the whole time and never went to take up their posts.

However, appointing these people to positions with a salary of 2,000 shi (a unit of grain measure) was merely a way to appease and win them over. Dong Zhuo himself understood that these prominent families were not on his side and he could not allow them to gain real power. Therefore, he assigned his subordinate colonels to oversee the various prefectures.

In reality, the military and political affairs of each prefecture were controlled by the respective colonels, and tax collection was also the responsibility of the colonels. The governor's authority was basically limited to the recommendation system.

Each colonel and captain was in charge of a prefecture, while each military commander was in charge of a major county.

This was an alternative military government, where military leaders actually controlled the counties, but the nominal positions of prefects and magistrates were given to prominent families.

In fact, this is another way of copying Liu Bei's homework, as Liu Bei's side was essentially a military-supervised local area.

However, this kind of homework is really hard to copy. Dong Zhuo failed to copy the details of mutual supervision and military discipline management on Liu Bei's side.

Because the discipline of most of the troops under Dong Zhuo was poor, the local areas were plundered by the military leaders, which led to a major problem - the first place to be in trouble was Bingzhou, which was managed by Niu Fu, and soon after Dong Zhuo was assassinated.

After all, the most direct negative effect of using the military to govern local areas is the resistance from local gentry.

The military leaders used the pretext of collecting taxes to plunder extensively, and the more powerful and wealthy the families, the more they suffered—the military leaders didn't have time to bother the common people; they only sought out wealthy families to collect taxes.

Even though Liu Bei's side didn't engage in any looting, so many powerful clans still rose up in rebellion. Dong Zhuo's side, with its blatant plundering, would naturally trigger a "clan uprising." From the perspective of the Bingzhou gentry, their alliance with the Southern Xiongnu against Niu Fu, driving Niu Fu's troops out of Bingzhou, could also be considered a kind of "uprising" to protect their homeland's interests.

After all, their positions are different, and Niu Fu really did use dirty tricks when 'collecting taxes'.

The plots of Yuan Shao, Feng Xun, and others were merely a prelude. The root cause of Dong Zhuo's assassination was the dissatisfaction of various powerful families with Dong Zhuo's policies. If the gentry of the Three Auxiliary Regions had not intended to kill Dong Zhuo, Liu Ai and others would not have been able to succeed so easily.

However, the way military leaders supervised counties was indeed very comfortable for them—they didn't have to bear any responsibility for governance, and they could let their soldiers plunder and pocket the money, and it was even legal plunder.

This is precisely why Dong Zhuo was indeed loved and respected by all his generals, and their desire to avenge him was genuine, as they still wanted to maintain this kind of military-based politics.

Therefore, even now, the remaining generals of Dong Zhuo still control their respective regions, and the prefects of each prefecture are all hiding in Chang'an as mascots.

However, the territories of the military leaders have now been redivided by themselves.

For example, after Li Jue counterattacked Chang'an, he also placed his hometown in the north under his jurisdiction, which is only natural.

After Liu Bei entered Chang'an, many local officials, including those with nepotistic tendencies, began to stir and conspire against each other.

Zhang Baiqi reported once that the official residences and East Market in Chang'an were bustling with people and constantly lit up, day and night.

But so far no one has come to Liu Bei. They are probably all in a dilemma – they are not willing to join Liu Bei, but in the current situation, it seems that they have nowhere else to join if they don't join Liu Bei.

Moreover, if they did not submit to Liu Bei, and Liu Bei incorporated the forces of Li Jue and Guo Si, and continued to manage the local areas as military leaders, then these powerful clans would truly suffer.

Therefore, they will definitely try to regain the governor's original authority.

This is all normal. It's good to have conflicts; if everyone is united, it's harder to resolve them.

Li Jue is unlikely to act recklessly at this point. Liu Bei has already issued a clear edict forbidding private campaigns, and Li Jue has just suffered a great loss; he wouldn't want to invite trouble at this time.

Duan Wei now appears to have 'defected' to Liu Bei. Li Jue might worry that Liu Bei will help Duan Wei deal with him, but the more worried he is, the more he will take the initiative to curry favor with Liu Bei at this time.

"Li Zhiran should have no interest in repairing the palace at this time. It is likely that this matter was a test of the Prime Minister by Zhao Zhichang, the Prefect of Beidi."

Liu Bei turned his head: "A test?"

"After Li Zhiran and his men stormed into Chang'an, the prefects of various counties were all afraid of dying and kept making arrangements in secret."

Jia Xu explained, "Now that the Prime Minister has come here and has ordered General Duan to serve the court, Zhao Zhichang may think that the Prime Minister intends to help General Duan get rid of Li Zhiran... Li Zhiran is already uneasy, and if not handled properly, Li Zhiran may turn his back on the court."

Jia Xu had warned him about this long ago. Li Jue and Duan Wei had a personal feud, and no matter which side he favored, it would make the other side think that Liu Bei wanted to be his enemy.

In fact, Liu Bei did not favor Duan Wei, and Jia Xu had already gone to Li Jue's army to persuade him, but Li Jue was still uneasy.

Originally, Liu Bei planned to start with Guo Si, Fan Chou and others, and then appease Li Jue.

But now it seems that another group of people were the first to jump up and down.

"Wenhe, what do you think should be done about this?"

Liu Bei asked.

“Those five thousand laborers are definitely not laborers... It would be too dangerous to let them into Chang’an. We should send someone to intercept them.”

Jia Xu smiled bitterly: "But if we send troops to intercept them, it will be difficult to peacefully take over Guanzhong."

“No… Please ask Duan Zhongming to stop them. This matter is probably not as simple as the prefects of various counties colluding, and it shouldn’t be about harming Li Jue…”

Liu Bei sighed: "If these prefects from prestigious families wanted to vie for power, fighting in the court would actually be more advantageous than on the battlefield, but they chose the battlefield... then it's not just a simple power struggle."

Jia Xu frowned deeply: "Does the Prime Minister mean that this is an external enemy?"

“We have come from a thousand miles away with the emperor’s entourage; surely some thieves will smell our presence.”

Liu Bei nodded: "The internal strife has lasted too long, giving the enemy an opportunity... But at this time, Chang'an is not yet settled, and people's hearts are restless. We need help... Hold a grand court assembly, announce the relocation of the capital, promote everyone and summon them all to Chang'an."

……

Five days later, the first grand court assembly in Chang'an took place.

This court assembly was held in the front hall of Changle Palace. It was thanks to Dong Zhuo's renovation of the front hall that there was a suitable place.

Liu Xie reappeared on the throne as the Son of Heaven and announced the relocation of the capital to Chang'an.

However, no new era name was adopted; instead, rewards were bestowed upon the generals who led the armies.

Li Jue and Guo Si were respectively granted the titles of Zhenxi and Zhenbei, but they were not granted the title of Marquis.

Fan Chou, Li Meng, Wang Fang, and others all held the rank of General of the Central Army.

Cao Cao appointed him General Who Conquers the West, and Duan Wei appointed him General Who Pacifies the West.

Both are from the West, so the implication is quite obvious.

General Duan Wei of Anxi was ordered to conquer Liangzhou, and all matters were in line with the plan he had previously proposed to pacify Liangzhou.

Laborers were conscripted to build pontoon bridges, camps were established at the confluence of various tributaries and the Wei River, and grain from the Three Auxiliary Regions was transported to Chang'an.

At this point, none of the military leaders would obey Liu Bei's orders. Apart from his own troops, the only one he could barely trust was Duan Wei.

At least Duan Wei had no other intentions.

Li Jue was naturally dissatisfied with Duan Wei's appointment as commander-in-chief, but he did not show it at the court meeting.

Liu Bei had no more titles to bestow, and his retainers were not promoted or ennobled. This was not a reward for merit, but rather a means of appeasement.

The original governors and court officials will be reassigned. Liu Bei asked each official to make their own recommendations—partly to appease them, and partly to delay the process so they wouldn't cause trouble at this time.

Yang Biao's crimes were not mentioned at all, and as expected, Yang Biao complained in court that he had no money left to repair Weiyang Palace and could only offer the emperor grain and beauties as a token of his affection.

At the same time, Yang Biao admitted his guilt for abandoning the capital Luoyang and requested to resign.

This was all expected. Liu Bei even praised Yang Biao for his loyalty to the country and relieved him of his post as Minister of Works, reassigning him to the position of Grand Master of Ceremonies, and letting Yang Biao handle the affairs of all officials.

This was actually because the power of the Minister of Works and the Chancellor conflicted, which did not affect Yang Biao's actual position at all. Moreover, the officials only listened to Yang Biao anyway, so Liu Bei simply let them recommend themselves.

Anyway, they have no military power, and the actual appointments must be approved by the prime minister.

As soon as the court assembly ended, Liu Bei hosted a banquet for Li Jue, Guo Si, and others, inviting them all into his residence: "Do you gentlemen know that someone wants to harm you?"

(End of this chapter)