You have truly caused me great suffering!

Dali was incorporated into the territory, and Yunnan Road was established. Civil and military officials set off to take over.

Previously, the prevailing policy was one of appeasement, but now a tougher stance has been adopted.

In order to strengthen the common origin of Han and Bai people, the imperial court used many methods, such as recognizing ancestors and tracing origins, and made many concessions to the thirty-six tribes of Wuman.

This caused the people of the Southwest to forget the power of the Great Jing Dynasty for a time.

In fact, the people of the thirty-six tribes of Wuman forgot one fact: the reason why Dajing gave them concessions was because if they continued to support the Gao family, Dajing would be in a difficult position.

Only by creating conflict between them and the Gao family can we take action.

The same applies to any country: if it is internally divided, its ability to resist external enemies will be greatly weakened.

When powerful enemies conquer weaker nations, they often choose to first divide and instigate internal strife before defeating them one by one.

This method is so effective that it can save a huge amount of war costs.

Chen Shao and Zhang Run perfectly illustrated how to dismantle a small country.

Especially in a small country like Dali, where internal factions are numerous, bound together by shared interests, interdependent yet wary of each other.

The people of the thirty-six tribes of Wuman do not read history books, especially not the history books of the Central Plains.

So when Gao earnestly advised them to unite, even if it meant offering land, they should unite to get a good price, they all scoffed.

They thought that by clinging to Da Jing, they could get a bigger share of the pie, and even continue their good life, maintaining control of their own territory while also receiving concessions from Da Jing, making a fortune in the tea-horse trade.

At this moment, Wu Jie arrived.

This name carries great weight in the southwest; the commander of the Red River Massacre once made Dali tremble with fear.

Gao Shunzhen was naturally eager to see more excitement. At this moment, he couldn't wait for all those bastards from Wuman to be wiped out before he could feel truly satisfied!
From the moment the idea of ​​"Han and Bai sharing the same origin" was proposed, he knew that Da Jing had no good intentions, but unfortunately, those tribes wouldn't listen!

Such a simple strategy precisely exploited the weaknesses of these barbaric tribal chiefs—their greed and short-sightedness.

What surprised him was the court's attitude towards him. Generally, when a ruler surrendered his territory, the court would symbolically confer a title of king upon him, then put him aside, or even be on high alert, or simply poison him.

But Da Jing actually granted himself an official position, as if he really wanted to use him.

Having an official position in the Great Jing court would be far better than being a nominal prince.

This means that His Majesty the Emperor has accepted your family, wants to incorporate you into his own ranks, and trusts you greatly, or rather, he has great confidence in his own abilities and doesn't think you can cause any trouble.

This rekindled Gao Shunzhen's spirits.

In fact, Chen Shao has always been courageous, and he once heavily relied on Zhang Boyu to stabilize the situation in Annam.

When Gao's caravan reached Jinghu, on the shore of Dongting Lake, Gao Shunzhen looked at the vast expanse of water and admired the beautiful landscape.

The last time he went to Jinling, he was preoccupied with many worries and his mind was in turmoil, so he didn't really appreciate the beautiful scenery along the way.

When people are in power, they easily overlook the scenery around them. No matter how beautiful it is, they have no heart to appreciate it because there are too many good things waiting for them.

But when feeling down, one can always find beautiful scenery around them to comfort their troubled soul.

This is why poems of exile are always exceptionally brilliant.

The rest of the Gao family were even more depressed than him. The whole family was worried about the future.

At this moment, several riders galloped in from a distance, moving at great speed, their armor gleaming, their hooves kicking up dust.

Behind the riders on horseback was an even larger procession, and as they approached, the sounds of gongs, drums, and firecrackers rang out.

This left Gao Shunzhen somewhat confused.

But it really startled the Gao family. Gao Shunzhen's five-year-old daughter hugged her third brother Gao Si'an's leg and whimpered, "Third brother, third brother, do they set off firecrackers when beheadings and confiscating property in the Central Plains?"

Gao Si'an, who had once gone to Jinling to persuade his elder brother, was also pale with fright at this moment, but he forced himself to pat his younger sister's back, saying, "Don't talk nonsense!"

But he was clearly also a little scared and couldn't help but look at his father.

Finally, the crowd dispersed.

A fair-skinned official carrying an imperial edict with a yellow silk backing and five-colored cloud and crane patterns walked out, surrounded by local officials, assistant officials, and local gentry.

Receiving an imperial edict outside the capital was extremely rare. In addition, Jinghu was a special place, as it was all fertile land, which originally belonged to the scholar-officials and nobles who were exiled in the three major cases.

After all, the Song Dynasty had not prohibited annexation for over a hundred years, and ordinary small landowners had long been swallowed up by them, not to mention commoners.

More than 60% of the gentry and landowners in this area were members of the Dingnan Army.

At home, this group of people would practically worship Chen Shao, Han Shizhong, and Jin Ling. If they heard anyone slandering the emperor, they would raise their fists and beat them.

So when the messenger arrived, the locals spontaneously organized such a team.

Is Prince Gao Shunzhen of Nanping here?

"It's me." Gao Shunzhen was also stunned, not knowing what was going on.

"Prince Gao Shunzhen of Nanping receives the imperial decree."

Gao Shunzhen quickly knelt down, and when the Gao family saw this, they all knelt down as well.

The local gentry who had come along to join in the commotion also knelt down, as if they felt an immense sense of honor.

Every word on this imperial edict was written by their emperor, the emperor who led them out of the northwest to conquer the entire country.

[Your Majesty: I have been granted the mandate of heaven, which covers all nations without exception; and that all living beings on earth are treated with benevolence.]

The Gao family of Dali, who had guarded the southern border for generations, submitted to the emperor with sincere loyalty, recognizing the mandate of heaven and the rightful application of the king's rule. Their heart was commendable, and their ambition admirable; I greatly admire them!
Gao Shunzhen is hereby specially appointed as the Chief Transport Commissioner of Yunnan and Guizhou, with the rank of Grand Master of the Palace, and is granted a gold fish-shaped pouch and a silver seal. He is in charge of the administration of finances, grain transport, salt and iron, tea and horses, and household registration and finances in the two regions.

All official salaries, military supplies, and border reserves shall be subject to your audit and allocation, and you shall report directly to the Emperor. You shall not obstruct this without authorization.

He also appointed Prince Wu Jie of Fu to oversee the military and political affairs of Yunnan and Guizhou, and Zhang Shuye to oversee Yunnan and Guizhou. He instructed the three of them to work together to implement the policy of replacing hereditary chieftains with appointed officials: abolish hereditary chieftains and appoint appointed officials as prefects and magistrates; register households and equalize taxes and corvée labor; establish academies to change old customs and open roads to connect with the interior.

Gao Shunzhen has long governed the people and is well-versed in their customs. He should work together with my trusted ministers to transform the barbarians into civilized people and integrate the wild into culture, so that all the barbarian tribes may be influenced by my teachings.

I have treated you with utmost sincerity, without doubt or wavering. You must remember that the bond between ruler and subject is more important than personal feelings for your former country. Uphold justice and fairness, without favoritism or protection of relatives and cronies. If you can pacify the southwest and bring the Jinchi, Baiyi, and Luodian tribes into the fold, I will have your portrait displayed in the Hall of Heroes, bestow upon you land and titles, and grant you far more than just this task!
The proclamation was issued both domestically and internationally, so that everyone would be informed.

The proclamation was issued both domestically and internationally, so that everyone may hear of it!
The eight large characters, like the resounding tones of a great bell, echoed in Gao Shunzhen's heart, making him feel so happy that every pore of his body relaxed.

You barbarians, you treacherous savages, you betray your master for personal gain!

Now look at what has become of you. The big picture is not hiding anything. They are going to make it clear to everyone, both at home and abroad, that they have all been deposed.

This imperial edict can be described as the epitome of openness and integrity, directly outlining the tasks the court needed to undertake and how to accomplish them.

Moreover, he could take revenge himself. He didn't even need to go to Jinling for the time being; he could just wait here for Wu Jie to arrive, and then they could return to Dali together. Oh, right, it's not called Dali anymore; it's called Yunnan Road!
Gao Shunzhen felt incredibly happy.

He beckoned to his cousin Gao Shunjie and instructed him, "I have been ordered by the Emperor to serve as the Transport Commissioner of Yunnan and Guizhou, so I cannot go to Jinling with you. His Majesty has already prepared residences for us in the capital. You and your clansmen should settle in An Ding, do not cause trouble, and be kind to everyone. Wait for my return."

Gao Shunjie nodded. "Brother, take care."

Although he had been tormented by the Great Jing Emperor, Gao Shunzhen was now convinced of the Emperor's power and decisiveness.

The Transport Commissioner was the highest financial official of a circuit. The presence of a cross-circuit post in "Yunnan, Guizhou and other places" with the prefix "Du" (都) is an exception, reflecting the emperor's high level of trust and the immense temporary power he wielded.

It's no exaggeration to say that he had even more power than when he was the 'King of China' in Dali.

At that time, he could only govern the area near Yangcheng, the capital of Dali. Dali was also under a system of indirect rule, and the tribes held considerable power.

When they are dissatisfied with a policy, they will unite together to put pressure on Gao.

Chen Shao's heavy reliance on Gao Shunzhen was somewhat dangerous, but with Wu Jie around, Chen Shao had nothing to fear.

Moreover, generally speaking, the more dangerous the task, the higher the reward!

If Gao Shunzhen is used correctly, the effect is self-evident; there is no one in the world more suitable than her.

First of all, he is the person who knows the thirty-six tribes of Wuman the most. They have coexisted for hundreds of years and know each other inside and out.

His personal dismantling of the tribal system of the thirty-six tribes of Wuman had another benefit: it completely broke them apart.

If a real fight breaks out, it could reduce the local people's hatred towards Dajing.

As long as Gao Shunzhen is around, people's preconceived notions will naturally lead them to believe that this is an internal power struggle between the Gao Kingdom's ruler and the Wuman tribe chiefs, except that one side has brought in outside help.

There are also some forces loyal to the Gao family that can now play a role.

If others come, these forces will become stumbling blocks.

After receiving the imperial decree, the local gentry hosted a banquet for the Gao family on the shores of Dongting Lake.

The Gao family couldn't refuse their hospitality, and they genuinely wanted to build a good relationship with them.

These gentry members were perhaps the least literate and most martial-minded group in history.

But they all brought their families with them, settled down, and soon their families multiplied.

They themselves didn't study, but once the people of the Central Plains became wealthy, how could they not let their children study?

From now on, each of their families will be the cornerstone of the Great Jing Dynasty, the foundation of the empire, and the most supportive force for the court and imperial power.

Within at least three generations, if someone with the surname Chen raises a call to action, they will all respond in droves.

Three generations later? Chen Shao himself dared not imagine what it would be like three generations later if things continued to develop at the current pace.

Once technology gets started, its development is rapid and ever-changing.

Can you imagine that the Qing Dynasty had only been gone for 114 years and 21 days? The changes in those 114 years were more than just a dramatic transformation.

These local gentry in Jinghu may not necessarily have any affection for the Gao family of Dali.

They were merely gathering under the pretext of the arrival of the imperial edict. At the table, no one spoke of the Gao family or Dali. It had been exactly ten years since Chen Shao's ambush of Richard at Hengshan—ten years of war and countless miracles.

With weapons sheathed and horses released to graze, people's lives gradually settled down and became more prosperous. But who doesn't yearn for those passionate and fervent ten years of pacification?

Who doesn't miss that omnipotent commander who led them to defeat one enemy after another and personally built a powerful nation?

Regardless of right or wrong, it's good that everyone is making a fuss over his imperial edict and some of his words!
-
The weather is gradually getting cooler, and it's already early autumn.

Jin Ling, Li Xiaozhong, and Yue Fei each submitted a memorial to the throne, with only three days between them.

The content is pretty much the same; they're all going to do autumn harvesting.

Putting himself in the shoes of those mixed Hu people who were still persisting in southern Mongolia, Chen Shao felt despair for them.

Again? This is never going to end.
The answer is no! It's still early.

Chen Shao replied to each of them, instructing them not to slack off, not to be soft-hearted, and to eradicate the threat completely to prevent future troubles.

The war between the North and the Central Plains should not be subject to any mercy; it is a life-or-death struggle for survival that has lasted for thousands of years.

The more ruthless the methods, the better.

Aspirations hungry for the Hulu meat, and laughed and thirst for the blood of the Huns.

If you were to replace the words "barbarians" and "Xiongnu" with these, you would find this sentence truly perverse and utterly hellish.

But when you put those two words in, you just feel that the person who said them is a great hero.

I'm just trying to farm and support myself and my descendants, and you come here every day to rob, rape, kill, and set fires.
My wheels are flat and that's not even a problem; I should dig up all the earthworms in the ground and cut them in half!

When the Central Plains were weak, they never showed any mercy.

People often compare the Han and Tang dynasties together, but in fact, the two countries differed greatly in their treatment of other ethnic groups.

Emperor Wu of Han fought a desperate battle against the great enemy in the north, a relentless and all-out war that drained the Han Dynasty's coffers.

However, the benefits are also obvious.

Even at the end of the Han Dynasty, these foreign tribes still couldn't recover. The Three Kingdoms fought fiercely in the Central Plains, but the north never had the opportunity to take control of the Central Plains.

During the reign of Emperor Taizong of Tang, the four barbarian tribes naturally submitted to him, and each foreign tribe spontaneously fought for the Heavenly Khan.

When Li Shimin fought on the border, he rarely used Han Chinese troops; it was mostly foreign tribes who fought for him.

He didn't need to worry about wars draining the country's resources too much, and the Tang Dynasty did indeed make money from wars.

Is this kind of life good? Of course it is. The people in the heart of Guanzhong have been unaware of war for hundreds of years.

But how many emperors were there under Emperor Taizong? And who could keep these barbarians in check forever?

After the An Lushan Rebellion, the Uyghurs, Tibetans, and Khitans came in turn, making it one of the periods in the history of the Central Plains dynasties with the most frequent and devastating foreign invasions.

In 763, the Tibetan Empire captured Chang'an and spent 15 days there, burning, killing, and looting—a situation not far removed from the humiliation of the Jingkang Incident. The only difference was that this time the emperor fled, and the women of the royal family escaped unscathed, but the common people did not flee!

Today, Dali's predecessor, Nanzhao, is also restless. It attacked and captured the outer city of Chengdu, taking away tens of thousands of women, children, and craftsmen. It also launched five major invasions in western Sichuan and central Guizhou, besieging Chengdu and capturing Yongzhou. It frequently massacred cities and enslaved people from the Central Plains.

For hundreds of years, the Hexi Corridor was occupied, and the Han people could only "wear Hu clothing and speak Hu language" until it was recovered by Feng Sheng in the fifth year of Hongwu in the Ming Dynasty (1372) - the occupation lasted for 586 years!
From this perspective, the Tang Dynasty is not worthy of being compared with the Han Dynasty. If they must be compared, the Han Dynasty is like Qiao Feng of the South, while the Tang Dynasty is like Murong Fu of the North.

That's understandable, considering how many wise rulers the Han Dynasty produced throughout its history.
The Han Dynasty lasted for more than four hundred years, and even those famously incompetent rulers had their moments of glory.

In contrast, the Tang Dynasty was essentially the golden age of Li Shimin alone, with Li Longji being only half a person.

The rest are just living off the legacy of Emperor Taizong.

Li Shimin believed that he had surpassed his idol, Emperor Wen of Han, and that his descendants would produce their own Emperor Jing, Emperor Wu, Emperor Zhao, and Emperor Xuan of the Tang Dynasty; even if the fate of the nation were to encounter any difficulties, his Tang Dynasty would produce its own Emperor Guangwu, Emperor Ming, and Emperor Zhang.
Who knew that after his death, his son Li Zhi would casually destroy the Tang Dynasty and cause his descendants to be tortured like dogs.

During the Tang Dynasty, there were far too many loyal ministers and generals. Did they really sacrifice their lives for the Tang Dynasty because of your harsh, ungrateful, immoral, and incompetent emperors?

It's just that Emperor Taizong's brilliance was too overwhelming.

Just like Jiang Wei, who never even met Liu Bei, yet was determined to "preserve the legacy established by the late emperor" until his death.

True heroes, when faced with an emperor whose brilliance shines too brightly, possess a noble loyalty underpinned by political ideals, moral character, and a sense of historical mission.

Now that Chen Shao has the opportunity, he will naturally not tolerate evil. Not to mention that the national treasury is full and has enough to fight a war.

Even if it means tightening his belt, Chen Shao will use this opportunity to completely resolve the border troubles.

Their Dingnan Army wasn't wealthy from the start; they had only been fighting on a tight budget for the past few years.

After approving the three memorials from the front lines, Chen Shao turned to the next challenge.
King Gae of Goryeo wrote a letter requesting that Goryeo laborers return home for the autumn harvest.

The autumn harvest is a major national event, and his request was reasonable; Chen Shao had no reason to refuse.

But he had already made up his mind not to return it.

At this time in Goryeo, they had already felt the deep malice of Emperor Daegeung.

Despite the severe loss of national manpower, the traitor Cui Shunting, in their eyes, not only did not stop, but also intensified his recruitment of laborers to transport them to Dajing.

Some even planned ahead and fled with their entire families to Liaodong in the west.

After the Daejeong garrison was established, Goryeo's military preparedness relaxed, and coupled with the successive blows of the Yi Jagyeon Rebellion and the Seogyeong Rebellion, the court became increasingly chaotic.

If responsibilities are unclear, then authority is unclear, and if authority is unclear, it is easy for people to shirk responsibility, making it impossible to curb this westward exodus.

The people here are starving to death, how could they not run away?

Those who rushed there did everything they could to help and rescue their relatives who were still in Korea from their suffering.

There are also people like Cui Shunting, whose caravans, under the protection of the Great Jing, could legitimately lead people out of the country.

Some radical officials have even been demanding that the court execute the traitor Cui Shunting.

To be honest, everyone is very tempted, but no one dares to make the move.

Faced with such a memorial, Chen Shao could only read it but not reply, pretending not to know anything.

Goryeo had many officials in Daejeong, and they were of quite high rank.

Seeing that there was no reply to his memorials, he began to request audiences, not only with the emperor, but also with various high-ranking ministers.

But everyone tacitly agreed to keep passing the ball around.

The question is:
Really? I thought they had all gone back;
I am recuperating at the Summer Palace;
I truly did not know;

It was all done by the ministers;

Why are you here again? Didn't I say I'd wait two days?

We also cannot bear to see the people of Goryeo starve to death;
Why aren't there any Liao people fleeing eastward?

After experiencing this cold violence, Kim Bu-sik, a powerful minister of Goryeo, led a group of ministers to Jinling again.

The reason they were promoting this was to present a gift to the emperor during the Mid-Autumn Festival.

But everyone knows their true intentions.

Goryeo does indeed have reasons to fight for this, as it is undermining their foundation.

It is important to understand that Goryeo was a regime that closely imitated the Han Chinese, and its need for population was a rigid requirement encompassing survival, production, and security.

In such a civilization, population is not only the labor force, but also the foundation of national power, tax base, military manpower, and the continuation of civilization.

On the deck of a ship bound for Jinling on the vast ocean, Kim Boo-seok looked sorrowful.

This trip was not easy.

In his eyes, the Great Jing Dynasty is now ruled by a wise ruler, but its court is filled with ruthless ministers.

The emperor was very easy to talk to, always polite and courteous, and had always treated Goryeo with great favor and courtesy. In Kim Bu-sik's eyes, this was a typical wise ruler. But the officials of Daegeung were not necessarily so polite.

Especially those officials who came from the eleven states of Dingnan, they were either military men or peasants, and they would glare and curse at the slightest disagreement.

In Kim Bu-sik's eyes, these ruthless officials who were ignorant of poetry and literature were simply fond of chaos and violence.

They desperately want chaos in the world and are completely unreasonable.

Moreover, when things are taken seriously and investigated deeply, is Goryeo truly innocent?

It is a fact that people starved to death.

Nowadays, the powerful clans of Goryeo are living much better lives than before. Instead of growing grain in their fields, they raise ginseng, make paper, produce ink, and feed horses. They simply buy grain from Daegeeong with the money they earn.

You can also buy all kinds of exquisite porcelain, silk, glass and precious objects from the merchants of Dajing.

The jewels and ornaments on the heads of noble ladies, the robes on the heads of high-ranking officials and nobles, and the carriages they rode in were all more luxurious than before.

But after people stopped farming, life became even harder for ordinary people. The powerful clans and nobles profited more, but they didn't share it with the common people.

Mencius said, “If the kitchen is full of fat meat, the stable is full of fat horses, the people look hungry, and there are starving corpses in the fields, this is like leading beasts to devour people!”

He also said, “If the people have no stable property, then they will have no stable mind. If they have no stable mind, they will become unrestrained, wicked, and extravagant, and there is nothing they will not do.”

The people are only fleeing now; they haven't risen up in rebellion yet.

If Daejeong seizes on this point and accuses Goryeo of abusing its people, they will lose their moral ground.

Kim Bu-sik had no doubt that someone in Daejeong could see this; they had too many capable people in their court.

If they can come up with schemes like "opening up the grain market" and "the Han and Bai ethnic groups sharing the same origin," what else are they incapable of? (End of Chapter)