My older brother is Gao Huan.

Chapter 466 What is the Will of the People?

Chapter 466 What is the Will of the People?
The larger the territory and the greater the power, the more necessary it is to consider and weigh the opinions of various subordinates when making decisions.

For a few critical decisions, Gao Yu, as the 'boss,' needs to make the final decision independently.

This is the ability needed to be a leader.

There are many advisors who can offer correct suggestions and make sound decisions, but few dare to make the final decision at crucial moments.

Making a decision means taking responsibility and bearing risks.

If it succeeds, that's fine.

Failure would be a huge blow to one's personal prestige.

"Then let's do as Zunyan said. I will first lead the army south, then return to Qingzhou, and after the spring planting next year, I will head north to the lands of Yan and You..."

Gao Huan nodded, "Then, in the name of the Prime Minister's Office, order General Yang Kan to send a vanguard to Yuzhou to investigate the specific situation."

Gao Yu did not refuse.

Once the framework is in place, there's no need for him to do everything personally. People have limited energy and can't possibly control every trivial matter. He can simply provide a direction and let his subordinates refine and execute it.

After Gao Huan and the others left in a hurry.

Yang Yin, Cui Xian, and other core members of the original Tian Ce Mansion were retained.

Clearly, they still had something to say to Gao Yu.

"Zunyan, Jilun, is there anything else you wish to report?"

"Prime Minister..."

Yang Yin paused for a moment before speaking, "If we succeed in taking Yu Province this time, the previous arrangements may need to be overturned and rearranged."

"Indeed, Hebei, Henan, Shandong, and half of Shanxi are now under the Prime Minister's control. The territory is so vast that it is no longer just Shandong. The Prime Minister must also learn to be a 'hands-off manager'."

Cui Xian continued.

"You two have followed me for many years and are my trusted confidants. Speak your mind."

"Prime Minister, we should take precautions."

Yang Yin spoke frankly, “Prime Minister, you need to reduce the number of times you personally lead troops into battle. Right now... the fate of the Great Wei rests entirely on your shoulders. You alone bear the burden. On the battlefield, swords and spears have no eyes, and everyone knows that when you lead troops, you are always at the forefront. If something happens to you, the great situation will be ruined!”

"The peaceful and prosperous world that the people have been eagerly anticipating will also be destroyed in an instant."

Everyone knows Gao Yu's style of leading troops into battle...

Speed is of the essence in warfare, and they like to lead their elite cavalry in charges.

The advantage of this is that it can establish supreme prestige among the soldiers, maximize the morale of the front line, and make the soldiers fight to the death. Warriors will always admire the strong. Gao Yu's control over the army is unimaginable to anyone. Absolute control over the army and the absolute loyalty of the middle and lower-ranking officers and soldiers are the foundation of Gao Yu's 'rule'.

But war is dangerous and perilous. Even with divine protection, who can guarantee that nothing will go wrong every time they lead troops into battle?
If something happens to Gao Yu.

So……

The power centered around Gao Yu will quickly collapse, and no one can inherit Gao Yu's mantle, not even Gao Huan.

Maintaining a 'regime' generally boils down to the military, bureaucracy, and finance.

The legitimacy of a regime is what is known as the will of the people.

This sentiment of the people has absolutely nothing to do with the ordinary folks who toil in the fields. Ordinary folks don't care who the emperor is; they care more about the harvest and whether they will go hungry.

The morale of the army and the hearts of powerful families are the hearts of the people.

Having a strong morale in the army means having control over the military. Conquering the world requires military force, and military force originates from the army.

During the Northern and Southern Dynasties, bureaucrats and finance were controlled by powerful families and wealthy clans.

In this era of monopolized knowledge, bureaucrats could only emerge from aristocratic families and powerful clans. Moreover, this period was characterized by a manor economy, where aristocratic families and powerful clans controlled land and population, and consequently, financial power. To collect military funds and provisions, one had to rely on them.

If anything were to happen to Gao Yu, firstly, the morale of the army would be unreliable for Gao Huan. The fierce and powerful army of the Fubing, along with the generals who had followed Gao Yu in his campaigns, would not be convinced by Gao Huan, a "useless" man who couldn't even defeat Erzhu Rong.

The powerful families would not be convinced by Gao Huan.

At the very least, the powerful families in Shandong would definitely support Gao Yu's youngest son to break away from Gao Huan, with the Yang family at its core.

Gaining legitimacy is essentially a process of gradually gaining control of the army and winning over the hearts of powerful families.

The reason why Cao Cao did not usurp the throne and declare himself emperor was that when Cao Cao was alive, the hearts of the powerful families had not completely sided with him, and there were still many Han officials who admired the Han dynasty.

Gao Yu is in a similar situation now. In fact, relying on the morale of the army, Gao Yu could forcefully ascend the throne and become emperor... but he might not be able to win over the powerful families. A forced ascension to the throne would inevitably lead to insufficient legitimacy of the regime and an unstable foundation.

He had to eliminate Yuan Gong, whom Erzhu Rong had installed, and seize the world by force in order to completely subdue all the powerful families and thus lay the foundation for the legitimacy and win the hearts of the people for his new regime that would replace the Great Wei.

"Previously... the Prime Minister's power was weak, and he had to personally lead troops to fight. Now that the Prime Minister's prestige and achievements are evident, and he is personally leading troops to fight, what use are all these newly appointed generals?"

Yang Yin said, "Moreover, the achievement of winning every battle belongs to the Prime Minister, not to the generals."

"However, in my opinion, some generals are too proud and complacent."

"Let him personally lead the troops to meet the enemy, let them see just how much they are without the Prime Minister. This will also consolidate the Prime Minister's prestige and make everyone understand that only when the Prime Minister leads the troops can they be invincible!"

Although Gao Yu is not the emperor now, he is more powerful than an emperor.

They shouldn't be showing their faces in public so frequently.

A royal expedition is not something that can be easily accomplished.

Gao Yu sighed, "I am aware of this matter, and I will weigh the pros and cons and make my own decision."

With so many capable ministers and fierce generals under his command, he naturally had to be a hands-off manager. However, there were some battles that he had to personally take to the field. For example, if he were to fight Erzhu Rong outside Luoyang, at the foot of Mangshan Mountain, he would definitely have to go himself.

This is the lesson Gao Yu learned from the Battle of Guandu.

Did Yuan Shao make any major mistakes?

No.

However, because Yuan Shao did not personally lead the troops, others dared not make decisions for him at critical moments. On the contrary, Cao Cao took a gamble and personally led the troops to boost morale. Moreover, at the critical juncture, as the lord, he could make the most crucial decisions.

How could Chunyu Qiong, a mere military general, dare to make decisions for his lord Yuan Shao?
"The Prime Minister is wise!"

Yang Yin then added, “The generals have too much power in their hands. The Prime Minister should send someone to supervise the army. Furthermore, all the generals should bring their families to Ye City. This would be the most appropriate course of action.”

"The Prime Minister is open-minded, but one must be wary of people's hearts. Moreover... the Prime Minister's wariness of the generals is also a form of care."

Supervising and guarding against trusted confidants can indeed be considered a form of protection to some extent.

At least it can put the person being monitored and watched at ease.

If someone holds a high position and wields great power, but their superiors do not guard against them, they will become suspicious and wonder if their superiors are about to take action against them. Once people start having wild thoughts, they cannot stop. Under such anxiety and irrationality, even those who do not intend to rebel will be "forced" to do things to protect themselves.

"Oh, I know all that. Let me think about it."

Gao Yu waved his hand.

Yang Yin and Cui Xian then got up to take their leave. They knew Gao Yu was a smart man, and a gentle reminder would suffice. To overstep their bounds and make decisions for Gao Yu would be presumptuous and court death.

After the two left.

Gao Yu paced back and forth in the room.

"Supervision..."

He wasn't entirely unprepared; Gao Yu's ability to communicate so smoothly meant that someone was constantly relaying messages to him.

"Liu Yi."

"Prime Minister?"

"Go and call Liu Taozhi over. I need to talk to him."

"Here!"

Not a moment.

Liu Taozhi hurriedly came to Gao Yu, bowed and said, "Greetings, my lord."

"Get up."

Gao Yu helped him up, scrutinizing him intently.