I did it all for the Han Dynasty!

Chapter 184 Prefect of Yuzhang
Jinling, the inner city.

After Hua Xin left, Liu Miao asked Zhang Zhao and Gu Yong to recommend talented individuals who could serve as the governor of Yuzhang.

Sun Shao and Shi Yi, whom Liu Miao had previously recommended, had already achieved political success in Jiujiang and Lujiang. While organizing the people to resume farming, they were also promoting the implementation of the Three Chiefs and Equal Field System. They were indeed good officials. Therefore, Liu Miao entrusted them with the position of Prefect of Yuzhang and asked them to continue recommending talents.

“Zhang Hong from Guangling is qualified to serve as the Prefect of Yuzhang.”

"it is good."

Zhang Zhao wrote a letter to Zhang Hong on behalf of Liu Miao. Zhang Hong initially declined, but more than a month later he went to Jinling to meet Liu Miao.

“Zhang Gong recommended you to me, and I originally had no reason to doubt it. But I still want to ask you, what should you do after you arrive in Yuzhang?”

Zhang Hong answered Liu Miao's questions fluently.

“Yuzhang is a large prefecture, stretching from Hubei in the west to western Anhui in the east, encompassing Pengze in the south and reaching the Yangtze River in the north. It is bordered by the three rivers and the five lakes, so the people are scattered in various places, making travel inconvenient.”

"In my opinion, we should first dredge the waterways, repair the roads, and connect with various places in order to ensure that the government orders in Yuzhang are carried out smoothly."

"I have also heard that Pengze is located south of Yuzhang, where bandits and mountain tribes are hiding. We should send troops to quell the rebellion so that the people can live in peace and focus on farming."

Road construction and bandit suppression.

Zhang Hong was very pragmatic and did not reveal any further details.

But it was precisely this thing that made Liu Miao laugh.

"Since Zigang can say all this, I can rest assured that I can entrust Yuzhang to you!"

"The two things you mentioned are not difficult to handle. The latter can be assisted by Ziyi, and the Yuzhang region can be pacified in this way."

Zhang Hong showed a surprised expression, which Liu Miao happened to see.

"What? Doesn't Zigang want to go to Yuzhang?"

"No."

Zhang Hong cupped his hands to Liu Miao and said, "Fortunately, I was summoned by General Liu, but it took me more than a month to get to Jinling. I thought I would be punished by General Liu, but I didn't expect that General Liu didn't ask about this matter."

Why should there be punishment?

Liu Miao chuckled, "If a person always needs punishment to maintain his authority, then he is probably not a wise ruler, is he?"

Upon hearing this, Zhang Hong felt even more ashamed and took the initiative to apologize to Liu Miao: "It is not that I have been negligent towards General Liu, but my mother passed away last year and the mourning period has not yet ended, so it has been delayed for some time."

"In that case, Zigang has no need to apologize."

Liu Miao raised his cup to Zhang Hong and said, "Just as Zijing advised me before, I have now given up drinking. Zigang is also in mourning and cannot drink either, so I will use tea instead of wine to comfort Zigang's mother."

Zhang Hong traveled to the capital to study in his youth, entered the Imperial Academy, and studied under the scholar Han Zong, specializing in the "Jing Shi Yi" (Jing's Book of Changes). He can be considered a master of Yi studies.

Upon hearing Liu Miao's words, Zhang Hong exclaimed in admiration: "The Book of Changes says, 'Following good is like climbing a mountain; following evil is like a landslide.' Since ancient times, those who govern a country or a family have all wanted to cultivate virtuous governance to bring prosperity to the world, but their governance has mostly failed to achieve the desired results. This is not because they lacked loyal ministers and capable generals to assist them, nor because they did not understand the fundamentals of governing a country, but because the rulers could not overcome their own likes and dislikes and were not good at listening to the opinions of good ministers."

"Now that Liu Biaoqi is able to patiently accept loyal advice, restrain his emotions and suppress his desires, and sacrifice personal love for the sake of righteousness, this must be the demeanor of an enlightened ruler, right?"

Liu Miao chuckled upon hearing this.

Upon first meeting Zhang Hong, seeing his advanced age, I assumed he would be another upright and unyielding minister like Zhang Zhao. But now, it seems Zhang Hong is perhaps far more endearing and gentle than Zhang Zhao!
Liu Miao downed his tea in one gulp: "Zigang's words are quite right! Hahahaha!"

Zhang Hong was surprised that Liu Miao didn't even bother with modesty and directly admitted it, so he smiled knowingly.

He vaguely understood what kind of ruler Liu Miao was.

After the banquet, Liu Miao invited Zhang Hong to go for a walk in Jinling City with him.

With the successive completion of the first, second, third, and fourth phases of the project overseen by Zhang Zhao, Jinling was no longer a barren wasteland, but was completely renovated and transformed into a super city.

Along the banks of the Huai River that encircles the city, vermilion buildings stand in rows, and boats shuttle back and forth. At the Zhuque Bridge, boats float one after another, and merchants and travelers throng shoulder to shoulder. The four major markets in the city—the Tai Market, the East Market, the West Market, and the South Market—are bustling day and night, with taverns and teahouses filled with music and singing all night long. The theaters and brothels also stage a variety of performances and magic tricks, dazzling the eyes.

Then there was the old man selling perch under the shade of willows, and the little girl hawking water chestnuts and lotus roots. This made Zhang Hong, who had studied in Luoyang in his youth, feel as if he were in another world!
"I have long heard of the prosperity of Nanjing, which is even more magnificent than Shouchun in the past! Today, it seems that this is not just someone's boast."

Looking at the pedestrians and shops, Zhang Hong felt as if the carriage he was sitting in had traveled through time, returning to the scene of his first trip to Luoyang when he was young.

No.

It should be said that seeing Nanjing at this moment is even more breathtaking than seeing Luoyang decades ago!
Luoyang was, after all, the capital of the Han Dynasty, a famous city that everyone talked about, and a symbol of the strength of the Han Dynasty at that time.

Even though they had never been to Luoyang, it did not stop students like Zhang Hong from fantasizing about it. They imagined it to be the most perfect, prosperous, and largest city in the world, with everything imaginable.

But it's different now.

After more than a decade of war, the people were destitute and the roads were littered with bones.

Furthermore, Yuan Shu's tyrannical rule in Huainan turned Jiangbei into a desolate wasteland, leaving people with no hope for life.

But when Zhang Hong saw Jinling, he realized he was wrong.

The world is not all desolation, nor is it all hunger.

He couldn't speak for other places in Jiangdong, but right here in Jinling, Zhang Hong vaguely saw signs of a prosperous era!
Moreover, Zhang Hong was in Yangzhou on the opposite bank, and he knew the predecessor of Jinling, Moling, better than anyone else: at that time, Moling didn't even have city walls, many places were even wasteland, and the population was only a little over ten thousand. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that Moling was just a large fishing village. And yet, Liu Miao had transformed such a place into such a large city that it even reminded Zhang Hong of Luoyang, which was truly unbelievable to Zhang Hong.

Liu Miao and Zhang Hong rode in the same carriage. After passing through these markets, Liu Miao asked Zhang Hong, "Zigang, how long will it take you to transform Nanchang into something like Jinling when you go to Yuzhang?"

Zhang Hong was ashamed: "How can Nanchang compare to Nanjing?"

Although Nanchang was also a large city and the seat of Yuzhang Prefecture, Jinling at that time had gathered almost all the essence of Jiangdong. How could Zhang Hong possibly build Nanchang into the prosperous state of Jinling?

Liu Miao replied, "If we can ensure that every farmer owns his land, can't we achieve that?"

Every farmer should own his land...

Zhang Hong immediately realized that Liu Miao was giving him a hint.

Liu Miao added, "When officials are sent out, what they mostly seek is stability."

"But if everyone chooses stability, what should they do when they encounter difficulties?"

Zhang Hong immediately realized what Liu Miao wanted to say.

"Does General Liu want me to implement the Three Chiefs and Equal Land Distribution system in Yuzhang as well?"

Zhang Hong just mentioned road construction and bandit suppression, but he didn't mention the Three Chiefs and the equal distribution of land.

This wasn't because Zhang Hong forgot, but because he was more worried about other things.

"I heard that Liu Biaoqi and Cao Sikong agreed on a joint attack on Jingzhou at the high platform. Logically speaking, Yuzhang should not be in turmoil at this time, right?"

Danyang and Wujun were places Liu Miao personally slaughtered with his butcher's knife.

Kuaiji may have been relatively peaceful under Wang Lang's rule, but it was ultimately intimidated by Liu Miao, and the local powerful clans dared not act recklessly.

As for Jiujiang and Lujiang... these two places had already been ravaged by Yuan Shu. There were hardly any powerful clans left, and even ordinary people were few and far between. Therefore, it was only natural for Sun Shao and Shi Yi to implement the Three Chiefs and Equal Land Distribution.

However, under Hua Xin's rule, Yuzhang did not strictly follow Liu Miao's decrees, and the local powerful families had never witnessed Liu Miao's military might. It was foreseeable that these people would put up a last-ditch resistance...

As Zhang Hong said, now that we want to attack Jingzhou, how can we cause chaos in Yuzhang at this time?
"Disorder? Ha, Zigang thinks too highly of them."

"Only when the world is in chaos will they risk their lives."

"Yuzhang under Hua Xin's rule has always been relatively stable, so why would they resort to desperate measures?"

Zhang Hong asked worriedly, "What if it really causes any trouble?"

"kill."

At this moment, Liu Miao was nothing like the warm and welcoming manner he had shown Zhang Hong at the banquet; instead, he was as cold and stern as a knife.

“Zigang is right. We are about to attack Jingzhou, so there is no time to appease them. Therefore, we need to be more decisive.”

Liu Miao said, half-jokingly and half-seriously, "Incidentally, we can also raise some military funds and provisions!"

Zhang Hong finally understood the task Liu Miao had assigned him.

But Zhang Hong was still worried: "In that case, I'm afraid..."

"do not be afraid."

Liu Miao knew what Zhang Hong was worried about, but he still wanted to tell him not to be afraid.

Powerful families have always controlled resources such as farmland and population, which in turn have developed knowledge, relationships, and social skills, becoming the cornerstone of their rule.

But now, as resources are redistributed to the people, the foundation of governance will naturally shift.

Knowledge, connections, and all those things that inspire fear will become castles in the air and eventually collapse.

It is only because these foundations are not yet solid that they appear shaky and unstable.

But Liu Miao knew that no matter how shaky the foundation was, it was still the foundation.

Conversely, no matter how grand those castles in the air may appear, they are still nothing but illusions and are unlikely to achieve anything significant.

"Zigang, I'm entrusting this matter to you. Just do it with confidence!"

Liu Miao boldly encouraged, "Once you actually do these things, you'll find they're easier than you imagined!"

Zhang Hong was somewhat doubtful at this point: "Really?"

"What's the big deal about real or fake? Just try it and you'll find out!"

Liu Miao pointed to the bustling market in Jinling: "By then, not only Nanchang, but I'm afraid every city in the world will become like this? Zigang, do you believe it or not?"

Zhang Hong: "..."

(End of this chapter)