Wei and Jin did not submit to Zhou

Chapter 215 South Wind
Shi Shouxin gave his hereditary military commanders three days to consider the matter and asked them to come to the governor's office to discuss it again in three days.

But just as night fell that day, Li Liang came knocking on the door.

After the two men were seated in the study of the government office, Li Liang began, "Regarding the matter of equal land distribution, I inquired with both distant and close relatives of the clan today, and they all..."

Li Liang started to say something but then stopped.

"They didn't object, right?"

Shi Shouxin countered with a question, and Li Liang remained silent for a moment before nodding slightly. Just as he had predicted, almost everyone in the clan, except for very close relatives, wholeheartedly supported the idea.

Even if some relatives were unhappy, it didn't come to the point of fierce opposition.

This situation is not surprising, because the equal distribution of land among equals is a very domineering centralized policy, and it has two fatal effects:
First, it emphasizes the correspondence between rights and responsibilities.

The more person in a family serves in the military, the more tax-exempt land they receive. Whether it's farming or military service, the benefits are tangible and real for the family as a unit.

Ordinary people under the rule of the hereditary military system worked on the estates of the hereditary military generals. They were soldiers when they went out and tenants when they returned. No matter how much they did, the hereditary military generals took the lion's share. Their enthusiasm was greatly affected, whether they were fighting or farming. Such an army usually wouldn't work if they didn't receive rewards.

Secondly, there were no "middlemen" taking a cut. Even with the implementation of equal land distribution, tribal leaders like Li Liang still owned more land than anyone else in their tribe, and often significantly more.

However, the land that had already been distributed to different levels within the tribe was no longer under the control of Li Liang and his group. In other words, if these leaders wanted to take more or more, they would have to work hard themselves.

Whether it's earning military merits or managing the fields, you have to do it yourself. Don't think about exploiting the people in the tribe and expecting to live a life of ease while lying around doing nothing.

Which clansman would want to be exploited by the clan chief? It's not surprising that the equal distribution of land was warmly welcomed by the lower classes.

Li Liang went to sound out the situation today, and sure enough, almost everyone was on Shi Shouxin's side. Everyone was already struggling financially, and no one wanted to have a father, let alone several fathers, dominating them.

Upon hearing that Shi Shouxin had a plan to distribute land equally, everyone immediately offered their enthusiastic support.

Otherwise, Li Liang wouldn't have come here tonight.

"My lord, how large an army do you intend to build? In my opinion, after the equal-field decree is promulgated, I'm afraid there will be quite a few people joining the army."

The current troop strength under his command is insufficient.

Li Liang asked in a low voice.

He had realized that the policy of equal land distribution could not be changed; at most, the details of its implementation could be slightly adjusted.

"The rules of the hereditary military system will remain unchanged for the time being, but the selected elite soldiers must be given equal land distribution."

Every time soldiers are selected, land is redistributed; there's no such thing as free food. This matter won't actually have much impact on you.”

"The key to handling this kind of problem is a smooth transition, not a complete overhaul," Shi Shouxin said slowly. "Everyone will gradually adapt to the new rules and get used to them."

Li Liang immediately understood and couldn't help but admire Shi Shouxin's meticulousness in handling matters.

Equal land distribution was not a simple, indiscriminate allocation of land; it wasn't a system where everyone received a share. The so-called "equal land distribution" was, in reality, also known as "blood tax."

He selected elite soldiers from among the common soldiers, granted each of them land, and exempted their families from taxes. These soldiers then became his direct subordinates, directly loyal to Shi Shouxin.

The others remained hereditary soldiers belonging to their respective units, still bound by their shackles. The old rules continued, but a loophole had been opened, giving those at the bottom of the hereditary soldier ranks a glimmer of hope for advancement.

This creates an incentive mechanism within the army, where soldiers from various tribes must perform exceptionally well in order to escape the exploitation by hereditary military commanders.

Or, to put it another way, when Shi Shouxin takes the initiative to open a door and want to distribute a batch of land, some people will stand up to express their loyalty!
If someone is neither hardworking nor loyal, then there's nothing that can be done. Opportunities are always there, but it depends on whether you can seize them.

If land were truly distributed equally without any principles, then whether one works or not would make no difference; wouldn't it be better to just lie back and wait for the land to be distributed? With such a flawed system, who would actually put in the effort?

This was Shi Shouxin's strategy to control his generals, yet it was very mild and clever, focusing on the long term and having little impact in the short term.

Is it too much for him to grant land and tax exemption to the loyal and brave?
The more you work, the more you earn—that's fair, isn't it?
Unless Li Liang and his group want to go it alone, who can say anything? If word gets out, their subordinates will become disloyal.

"As for the size of the army, I plan to reorganize it into 6,000 men after the autumn harvest this year, in four units, with a ratio of one cavalry and three infantry, and each unit having 1,500 men."

We'll find a way to double the size to 12,000 people in the future.

Shi Shouxin added another sentence.

Li Liang nodded. He wasn't a general who personally led troops, so he didn't have much of an opinion on these matters.

After discussing this matter, the two fell into silence. For intelligent people, it's often better not to explain things too clearly.

Shi Shouxin is now an official, and Li Liang and others are also figures in official circles.

If their subordinates were also won over by the imperial court, or to put it bluntly, by powerful figures like Sima Yan or Sima You.

These people already had their own troops and were backed by the government, so wouldn't they be able to bypass Shi Shouxin and go it alone?
Faced with this situation, what should Shi Shouxin do? He couldn't just stand by and watch something like this happen, could he?
Therefore, Li Liang and his associates must be either tribal leaders or court officials; they can only be one of the two. If they are both, Shi Shouxin might not be able to control the situation.

The plan today, on the surface, is to distribute land equally among the retainers, but in reality, the essence of the problem is still the distribution of power.

It's better not to bring it up in the open.

Just then, Li Liang suddenly remembered something else. He leaned closer and asked in a low voice, "Does Your Excellency intend to use the name of the King of Qi to raise your own troops and expand your own territory?"

He raised a rather taboo question. But it was indeed something that needed to be clarified, otherwise no one would feel at ease following Shi Shouxin's lead.

After all, we've been through so much together, climbing from being nouveau riche in Hanzhong to where we are now. Jumping ship now would result in enormous losses; nobody can afford that!
"That's indeed the case; we won't be returning to Luoyang for the next few years."

Shi Shouxin nodded slightly.

Having one's own retinue makes it unlikely that one will be able to enter the imperial court as an official. This is like Shi Bao, who, although he frequently returned to Luoyang, never stayed for more than half a year, and was often transferred to other places.

When Shi Shouxin participated in the campaign against Shu, Shi Bao was in Luoyang when he went there. When he returned, Shi Bao was still in Luoyang, but he was away on official business and had traveled back and forth to Ye City many times.

"My lord, everything you have in Qingzhou, if the King of Qi wants it in the future, he can take it away with just a word."

For example, the palaces you're building, the newly recruited troops, and so on. Aren't you just doing this for someone else's benefit?"

Li Liang voiced a question that had been lingering in his mind for a long time.

Sima Zhao could not possibly be unaware of what Shi Shouxin was doing, nor could he be unaware that Shi Shouxin's methods were somewhat unseemly.

For example, he appointed his cronies as officials in the governor's office without giving any face to the local wealthy families.

But why doesn't the imperial court intervene? Why doesn't it even send someone to inquire?
Sima Zhao believed that whatever Shi Shouxin did was serving Sima You. Since Shi was his own son, he naturally deserved preferential treatment; why would he obstruct him?
No matter how much Shi Shouxin does, it's all paving the way for Sima You. What trouble can Shi Shouxin cause once Sima You arrives in Qingzhou?

If Shi Shouxin hadn't been working for Sima You, it's hard to say how the court would have responded.

It is quite possible that the ownership of a piece of land could cause a huge uproar that is known throughout the court.

Things like enclosing land around Judian Lake are unthinkable.

"As I said before, the day King Qi returns to his fiefdom will be the day he raises an army in rebellion."

Therefore, Sima You will not return to Qingzhou, nor will his family. Shi Shouxin emphasized.

Li Liang didn't quite understand this, because he didn't know what would happen next, so he still felt that Shi Shouxin's words were a bit too arbitrary.

Seeing his continued confusion, Shi Shouxin added, "In the future, Sima Yan will guard against Sima You like a thief. How could such a dangerous person be allowed to return to Qingzhou? Wouldn't that give him an excuse to establish his own independent regime? Moreover, Sima You would never, and would never, leave Luoyang."

"Don't want to?"

Upon hearing this, Li Liang pondered repeatedly, and after a moment, he suddenly understood.

This future King of Qi was unwilling to leave Luoyang; how could he not have thought of that!
Yes, if this man leaves Luoyang, how will he compete for the throne in the future?

Did Sima You not have any ulterior motives at all?

It seems impossible!
"I understand. Your Excellency's arrangements are very appropriate. We have at least five years to focus on development."

Li Liang nodded, his doubts vanishing.

He finally understood why Shi Shouxin dared to issue the "equal distribution of land" policy.

Because Sima You could never return to Qingzhou, no one could interfere with the military and political orders issued by Shi Shouxin!
In the future, Shi Shouxin's control over Qingzhou will be much greater than outsiders expect! It is also easy to understand why he wants to consolidate power from his hereditary military commanders.

To put it bluntly, in the future, only Shi Shouxin's voice will be heard in Qingzhou; no one else, regardless of who they are, will have a say. Anyone who tries to usurp the position will become Shi Shouxin's enemy!
It's that simple.

Three days later, Shi Shouxin arrived at the military camp in Jiliting and announced the selection of one thousand "brave warriors" from the army, along with the policy of equal land distribution to their families. Upon hearing this, the army erupted in cheers; there was no need to ask who was willing or not.

In the context of the average family in that era, a family of five would be exempt from land rent and farmland rent if one member joined the army.

With surplus grain at home, one can pursue further development; who wouldn't want such a good thing?
The reform only recruited a thousand people, which was acceptable to high-ranking officials from wealthy families in Hanzhong, such as Li Liang, Zhao Lun, and Xi Zuo.

It is a common practice in the martial arts world for a lord to select his own elite troops from among his generals.

Shi Shouxin used the equal distribution of land policy to win people's hearts. Although no one had ever done this before, it was still a routine operation.

Isn't it only natural for subordinates to relinquish benefits to their lord? Shi Shouxin provided them with official connections and channels, as well as military achievements and spoils of war.

Shi Shijun was busy running around, but he didn't take the largest piece. Was he just serving a bunch of his subordinates like fathers?

Despite some people's displeasure, the land redistribution proceeded smoothly, and soon a thousand elite soldiers were selected and registered separately.

After Shi Shouxin attends the founding ceremony, this governor, who has already been ennobled, will formally grant land to the selected elite soldiers upon his return to Qingzhou.

The reason it hasn't been implemented now is because it's still the Cao Wei dynasty. Even if Shi Shouxin did it now, after the dynasty changes, he could find an excuse to pretend he never said it.

This is far from credible.

Only when the country is founded, when the military flag is changed, and when Shi Shouxin is still the governor of Qingzhou, will his words be truly effective! Right now, everyone just believes his promises for the time being.

A few days later, Shi Shouxin received a very unexpected order from the "Imperial Court," which contained only one sentence: "Return to Luoyang before the White Dew solar term to report on your duties," and was signed by the Prince of Jin's residence.

This seems to be about ten days earlier than the scheduled date for the founding ceremony.

……

As the date of the founding ceremony drew near, it was supposed to be a momentous occasion that would make the powerful and wealthy in Luoyang ecstatic.

However, the home of the powerful minister Jia Chong was not very peaceful.

First, Wang Hun was behind the scenes organizing the ministers to advocate for the emperor's abdication. However, this task should have been undertaken by Jia Chong, both morally and logically.

Sima Zhao's arrangement was clearly due to various reasons, which was to distance himself from Jia Chong, or it could be said that he was wary of and wanted to suppress him.

Jia Chong's official career was unsuccessful, and his family life was also unstable.

After Jia Bao got married, Jia Yu, who was young and had no one to help him, had a hard time at home and was often bullied by his stepmother, Guo Huai.

After the big commotion, Jia Chong had already sent Jia Yu to live with his birth mother, Li Wan, and this "eyesore" finally left the Jia family.

After that, Guo Huai stopped causing trouble, and the Jia family finally became much quieter.

That day, in the courtyard of the Jia family mansion, there was a short, dark-skinned little girl who looked no more than seven or eight years old and was wearing a green ruqun (a type of traditional Chinese dress).

She was holding a thick wooden stick and repeatedly beating a maid who was lying on the ground, covering her face with her hands.

"You slut, how dare you talk about how ugly I am behind my back! Who gave you the guts?"

The little girl hit her hard; the maid was beaten until her skin was torn and bleeding, and she cried out in pain.

"Jia Shi, what are you doing?"

Just then, a majestic voice came from behind, undoubtedly Jia Chong.

“Father, this servant said I’m ugly, and I’m about to beat her to death.”

The little girl said this with a straight face.

"Alright, you may leave!"

Jia Chong impatiently raised his hand, and the little girl named Jia Shi had no choice but to retreat dejectedly, not daring to disobey her father.

Jia Chong bent down and touched the maid's nose, only to find that she was no longer breathing.

He sighed deeply and ordered the servants who were watching, "Drag him out and bury him."

The servants of the Jia family quickly carried away the dead maid and washed away the bloodstains on the ground. The gruesome scene that had just unfolded became clean and refreshing.

"She's just like her mother, what are we going to do?"

Jia Chong watched Jia Tong's departing figure, shook his head in disappointment, and muttered to himself.

He entered the study, his mind filled with the fierce image of Jia Tu wielding a stick, the menacing look on his face leaving a lasting impression.

You can tell what a child will be like at three and what they will be like at seven. Jia Shi was like this at seven years old, so what will he become when he grows up?
To become a gentle and charming noblewoman?
It seems impossible when you think about it.

Jia Chong sighed. Jia Wu was still weak and it was hard to tell what her personality was like, but her sister Jia Shi could be predicted to be a complete shrew in the future, with no tolerance whatsoever.

Jia Chong suddenly realized, why did he ever try to curry favor with the Guo family back then? Look at the kind of scum Guo Huai has raised!

"Ugh!"

Jia Chong sighed deeply, regretting his past actions.

(End of this chapter)