My older brother is Gao Huan.

Chapter 299 Laying a Solid Foundation
May 28th.

Temperatures in Shandong Province are gradually rising.

When in Rome, do as the Romans do. Gao Yu took off his military uniform and put on a blue scholar's robe, holding a feather fan in his hand, which gave him a unique style.

With a feather fan and silk turban, he exudes the air of a 'scholar-general' as described by literati.

After the Five Barbarian Invasions, the entire north was filled with Han and non-Han peoples living together, and ethnic groups were integrating and subtly influencing each other. In Shandong, in particular, the traditional culture of the Han people was relatively well preserved.

Since the Jin Dynasty, metaphysical discussions gradually became the mainstream, while traditional Confucianism gradually declined.

However, Yanzhou Lu County is still the hometown of Confucius, and the influence of Confucianism in this area remains, and it is not so easy to replace or influence it.

It was indeed beyond everyone's expectations.

After arriving in Taishan County, Gao Yu stayed for more than a month without taking any action, not even rushing to establish his own residence, keeping a very low profile.

It was clear to everyone that Yuan Ziyou had high hopes for Gao Yu, hoping that after arriving in Shandong, he would take decisive action, quickly take control of the region, and build up a strong army to serve as an external ally for Luoyang in order to counter the aggressive Erzhu clan.

Gao Yu, however, acted out of character.

He even had the time to go out of town to watch the farmers sowing rice in the fields.

Although Yanzhou was a battleground, it was also a good place. It had a dense network of waterways and was home to the Juye Marsh, which made it easy to develop water conservancy facilities and very suitable for farming and land reclamation.

"Zunyan, why is the general still in Taishan County and unwilling to set off? Why hasn't he mentioned establishing his own government? We can only waste our days in vain."

Cui Jishu was young and not very composed. He followed Gao Yu here because he wanted to make a name for himself.

But now?
Being confined to the mansion to study every day caused a great psychological gap.

Yang Yin remained unmoved, continuing to gaze intently at the book in his hands.

Cui Jishu snatched the scroll away, exclaiming, "Zunyan!"

Yang Yin shook his head helplessly, "No matter what it is, things will be resolved if we are patient."

“The land of the three states is vast. Everyone in the world knows that the general is about to make a big move and they are all watching him. At times like these, the general must be more cautious in his actions. As the saying goes, it is better to remain still than to act rashly. You are still young. Even if you have great ambitions, why rush things in this short time?”

Cui Jishu sighed, "I understand the reasoning, but you have to give us something to do."

"With so many eyes watching, how can you be sure the general hasn't done anything?"

After Yang Yin finished speaking, he snatched the scroll back.

Neither he nor Cui Xian and the others went to offer any advice; they were all observing how Gao Yu would demonstrate his ability to control Shandong.

Great talents are like wild horses; taming them and making them work for you is no easy task.

They won't willingly pledge allegiance just because Gao Yu's body trembles; it's a process of mutual testing.

Good birds choose trees to roost in.

The Battle of Luoyang showed them Gao Yu's bravery, but bravery alone cannot conquer the world. In the end, bravery is only at the level of the Overlord. Did the Overlord ultimately conquer the world?

One must be brave and resourceful, but also possess political acumen in order to balance and win over various forces for one's own benefit.

Gao Yu stood by the field for a moment before turning around. "Any news about Liu Taozhi?"

“My lord, Liu Taozhi sent word five days ago that she was about to arrive in Lu County, and she should arrive in Taishan County in the next day or two.”

"Ah."

Gao Yu nodded, just as a farmer passed by. Exposed to the wind and sun every day, the farmer's face was wrinkled like the bark of a withered tree, making it impossible to tell his age, but he worked very efficiently.

"The elder is in good health."

Seemingly surprised that this noble young master would speak to him, and extremely wary of Liu Yi and the others behind Gao Yu, who did not look like kind people, all of them were burly and had murderous eyes, he had no choice but to bite the bullet and say, "You can't be weak, otherwise you will starve to death if you don't have the strength to plant crops and pick vegetables."

"Thanks to the protection of the young master of the Yang family, the rebel army that came to harass us was repelled, allowing us to farm in peace."

"If you can farm the land steadily, how is the harvest?"

"Whether it's a lot or a little, my home is here. In order to survive, I still have to farm."

Gao Yu remained silent.

Yes.

Ultimately, we still need to farm.

The people of this land are so simple and honest; having land to cultivate and not starving is their greatest hope.

Even in times of peace, natural disasters still occur, and this peace is only superficial; war could break out again at any moment.

The old man's answer was also one of the reasons why Gao Yu hesitated to take action.

In the suburbs of Luoyang, he was renowned for his bravery and prowess. Throughout the courts and aristocratic families of both the Northern and Southern Dynasties, General Gao Yu was unparalleled in martial arts.

However, for the people of Shandong, his prestige was insufficient, even less than that of Yang Kan, who repelled Xing Gao.

"Let's go back."

Gao Yu returned to the city with his entourage.

Yang Kan was very accommodating and had already prepared an extremely luxurious mansion for Gao Yu, who did not stand on ceremony.

Two more days passed.

Liu Taozhi, who had gone to Nanliang to do business with the Yang family caravan, finally returned and immediately went to see her loyal husband!
"Thanks a lot."

Looking at Liu Taozhi's weathered face, Gao Yu couldn't help but pat him on the shoulder. Although Liu Taozhi didn't have to fight alongside him on perilous battlefields like Liu Yi and the others, his life was by no means easy.

Given the transportation conditions in ancient times, the physical toll of long-distance travel was no less than that of fighting on the battlefield.

Liu Taozhi did not forget her mission.

“My lord, there is indeed something called ‘sugarcane’ in the island barbarians of the Southern Dynasty. I brought back a cartload for you this time.”

"very good."

With sugarcane, there is a raw material for making white sugar.

"Is it true, as rumored, that aristocratic families in Jiankang enjoy ostentatious displays of wealth?"

Liu Taozhi nodded.

Gao Yu had a better understanding of the situation. He didn't expect to make much money selling sugar, but he was happy to be able to alleviate his financial situation during the initial stage when he needed money the most.

"Oh, right, I specifically told you this when you left Luoyang..."

"Don't worry, my lord, I have made all the preparations."

Liu Taozhi hesitated for a moment before speaking, "Young Master Yang and his wife have also provided considerable assistance in this matter."

"I know."

Gao Yu has no foothold in Shandong. He only brought a few dozen people with him, so how could he possibly handle things so easily?

There must have been someone helping them.

"Tell me what you have found out."

Liu Taozhi then relayed all the information she had gathered.

Gao Yu had a rough idea in his mind.

His next area of ​​focus will be Qingzhou.

Although Yanzhou was good, Yang Kan protected it too well, and it did not suffer large-scale damage. Xuzhou, on the other hand, was on the front line facing Southern Liang and was easily destroyed. Qingzhou was the best.

Xing Gao initially gathered a crowd to start a rebellion in Qingzhou, which is why Qingzhou was the most severely damaged by the rebel army. After the Southern Liang army was defeated, a large number of rebels under Xing Gao's command returned, occupied the mountains, and continued to wreak havoc in Qingzhou.

The powerful families and clans in Qingzhou suffered heavy losses. If Gao Yu wanted to implement some policies, such as the Fubing system and the equal-field system, the resistance would be much smaller. The powerful families and clans would not have the strength or energy to oppose him.

Whether it's the equal-field system or the militia system.

They all needed to target population and land, two things that were taboo for powerful families and clans.

Even with the Yang family's strong support, they might not fully cooperate when faced with something that could harm their own interests.

You can't expect aristocratic families to revolutionize themselves, nor can you expect capitalists to revolutionize themselves.

If Gao Yu were to follow Liu Xiu's example and make peace and compromise with the local powerful families in Shandong, making significant concessions in terms of political power, he could indeed quickly gain control of Shandong in a short period of time, using the Yang family as a link.

However, the foundation of power established in that way is not solid.

A major defeat could damage one's personal prestige, leading to an instant collapse, much like Fu Jian's situation.

Gao Yu didn't want his hard-earned power to end up like the Former Qin and Later Qin dynasties...

Gao Yu chose to take the most difficult path.

He can compromise on some things, but there are some things he absolutely cannot compromise on!
The more this is the case, the more cautious we must be, the more we must proceed slowly, and the more we must lay a solid foundation.

"By the way, my lord..."

Liu Taozhi suddenly spoke up, "When I arrived, Lu County was very lively."

"Oh? Why?"

"I heard that a high-ranking monk from the Western Regions has come to preach. I also heard that this monk was once invited to the palace by the emperor of the Southern Liang Dynasty to preach to him."

To preach to Bodhisattva Xiao?

Could it be Bodhidharma, the founder of Zen Buddhism?

"What's this monk's name?"

"Bodhidharma".

Indeed, it was Bodhidharma.

Such a venerable monk...

Perhaps I should go and see him?
Gao Yu had no prejudice against truly great monks.

My dislike for temples and monks stems from my dislike for those unscrupulous individuals who use them as a pretext to make money.

Ordinary people need their own spiritual sustenance to support them in surviving in this chaotic world.

Moreover, by going to pay homage to Bodhidharma, one might be able to leverage his profound knowledge of Buddhism and achieve the ideal of the unity of Confucianism, Buddhism, and Taoism at this time ahead of schedule?

If we can achieve the unity of Confucianism, Buddhism and Taoism.

This is equivalent to achieving 'unification' in advance at the ideological and cultural level, which allows for the establishment of a sense of identity among different ethnic groups through culture.

This is destined to be a long process, but it's worth a try!
If it succeeds, it will be a great achievement.

(End of this chapter)