I did it all for the Han Dynasty!

Chapter 31 The Prosperity of Huainan
Jiujiang Prefecture, Shouchun.

In the suburbs, the coffered ceiling made of Chinese tallow wood in the winding pavilion casts dappled light and shadow. Yuan Yi leans against a soft Shu brocade pillow, his silk robe slipping down to his elbows. He plays with a gold ball between his fingertips, then suddenly flicks it at the water's surface, startling the red carp swimming in the canal.

Upon seeing this, Governor Chen Wen, who was standing beside him, looked regretful.

"That golden pellet could probably be exchanged for dozens of bushels of grain. Why did Boye use it to feed the fish?"

Yuan Yi didn't take it to heart: "Between you and me, let's not talk about such mundane matters."

As he spoke, he took another gold pill in his hand and played with it, then closed his eyes to rest.

"My dear nephew, you've returned from Lujiang?"

"Bo Ye is asking a question he already knows the answer to. After Zhou Ang learned that his wife had been humiliated, his mad screams alerted half of Shouchun. How could Boye not know about this?"

Chen Wen moved the ancient zither in front of him and walked out of the pavilion.

"Although I had anticipated that Liu Miao would be absurd, I did not expect him to be this absurd."

"Not only did he personally beat Zhou Ang's wife, but he also promised 30,000 bushels of grain. It's truly laughable!"

Chen Wen was utterly speechless about this matter.

"In my opinion, Liu Miao is nothing more than a greedy and lustful man. He's useless to Yuan Shu, and even to Lu Kang. We'd better get rid of him as soon as possible and stop getting entangled with him!"

"Ah."

Hearing Yuan Yi laugh, Chen Wen turned around, somewhat puzzled.

"What? Does Boye think I'm wrong?"

“No, Yuan Ti is right.”

Yuan Yi picked up the golden pellet, aimed carefully, and fired it again, startling the red carp into leaping and splashing water everywhere.

“But Huainan is rich, just like this golden pill in my hand, with inexhaustible wealth… Yuan Ti, isn’t this a bit too stingy?”

Chen Wen looked up at Yuan Yi.

"It has nothing to do with being stingy or not."

"Liu Miao is nothing but a womanizer and a philanderer; why waste money and provisions on him?"

"Even if we ignore him, what trouble can he cause?"

At this moment, Yuan Yi also got up, walked to Chen Wen, and handed him a golden pill.

"Even the red carp in this pond can make a splash, let alone a member of the Han imperial family?"

"There's something Yuan Ti might not know."

"What's the matter?"

"Chen Yu left Huainan a few days ago."

Chen Wen didn't react at first...

However, Chen Wen's eyes lit up very quickly!
"Really? No... Shouldn't he be with Liu Miao? Why did he suddenly leave? Doesn't he know that staying in Lujiang is the safest place for him right now? Why did he leave so suddenly?"

Yuan Yi took out a bamboo slip from his bosom.

Chen Wen took it and discovered that it was actually an "official document".

Officials and commoners alike carried cloth coins as a substitute for official documents when entering and leaving the city.

During the Han Dynasty, agriculture and sericulture were prioritized, and given the small population, people were not allowed to leave their local counties without permission. If someone wanted to leave, they had to carry a "talisman" as a token to guide them.

"This is the official document that Chen Yu prepared when he left."

"He has indeed left Huainan and gone north to join Yuan Shu."

Upon hearing this, Chen Wen's face also lit up with joy!
"It's good that he left! What I fear most is that Chen Yu will stay in Huainan and instigate the local officials to bring Yuan Shu in!"

"Leaving today is truly a good thing!"

Chen Yu was, after all, the son of Grand Commandant Chen Qiu, and had some reputation among scholars.

If he were willing to act as an envoy for Yuan Shu, even a prefect like Lu Kang, with a salary of two thousand shi (a unit of grain), would have to be treated with courtesy and not arbitrarily dismissed. Even Chen Wen's decision to send his son Chen Xiu to Lujiang was to prevent Lu Kang from being persuaded by Chen Yu to defect and help Yuan Shu.

Now that our biggest threat has been eliminated, how can we not celebrate our victory?
Despite the celebrations, Chen Wen still couldn't understand why Chen Yu would leave Huainan at this time.

If he really wanted to help Yuan Shu take control of Huainan, wouldn't it have been the right thing to do to persuade Lu Kang?

Yuan Yi couldn't help but smile slightly when he heard Chen Wen's question.

"Actually, not long after my nephew left Lu Kang's residence, Liu Miao had a big argument with Chen Yu!"

"Is there such a thing?"

Chen Wen was first puzzled, then shocked!
"How could Boye, who is far away in Shouchun, know about the affairs of Lu Kang's residence?"

Yuan Yi smiled again, a smile that revealed the profound heritage of the Yuan family, which had produced four generations of high-ranking officials. At the same time, it made Chen Wen sigh again for no reason: "Nowadays, perhaps only the Yuan family can achieve great things!"

With such pervasive influence, if it's not the Yuan family who can win, then who can?

"Liu Miao and Chen Yu had a heated argument, which is why Chen Yu chose to leave."

"Although we don't know exactly what they were arguing about, some people vaguely heard Liu Miao and Chen Yu arguing about Yuan Shu, so it's not hard to guess what happened."

Chen Wen was no fool; he immediately guessed—

"Could it be that Liu Miao has already decided to betray Yuan Shu and join Yuan Gong, which is why Chen Yu fled north in anger?"

Chen Wen nodded repeatedly, his smile growing wider: "That's exactly right! That's exactly right!"

"Liu Miao must have been blinded by the tens of thousands of bushels of grain and money my son promised him, which is why he broke off all ties with Chen Yu!"

"In addition, Liu Miao's previous attempt to have Chen Yu act as matchmaker for Sun Jian's wife also failed, so he must be furious and embarrassed! He simply drove Chen Yu away!"

The more Chen Wen thought about it, the more he realized it made sense! At the same time, he also understood what Yuan Yi had meant.

"Zhongye believes it is necessary to give Liu Miao some benefits to demonstrate Lord Yuan's respect for talent and virtue?"

"Of course!"

Yuan Yi nodded.

"Although Liu Miao was a greedy and lustful man, he was ultimately a member of the Han imperial family and the governor of Jiujiang appointed by the court."

"A man like him could not possibly have any great ambitions; he just wants money, food, and beautiful women."

"And Huainan is wealthy, so what difference would it make if we threw a few gold pills at him?"

"When he receives the money and provisions, wouldn't he speak well of Lord Yuan in front of Lu Kang?"

"As long as Lu Kang doesn't actually raise an army, the advantage of the Huai River and the troops in Jiujiang and Danyang are enough to guard against Yuan Shu!"

Upon hearing this, Chen Wen immediately agreed that it made sense!

Liu Miao had actually broken ties with Yuan Shu!

If that's the case, where else in the world could he find refuge besides Yuan Shao's forces? Could it be that he intends to go it alone?
"good!"

"only……"

Chen Wen, being a prefectural governor, knew the difficulties of farming and sericulture, and was somewhat distressed by the sudden expenditure of such a large sum of grain.

"I can give it, but could you give me a smaller amount?"

"Food and supplies are of paramount importance! Even if Huainan is wealthy, there's no guarantee that there will be enough, is there?"

Yuan Yi glanced sideways, clearly looking down on Chen Wen's "petty" attitude.

"Alright, send 20,000 bushels of grain to Liu Miao first... but it would be best to bring some gifts as well, so that he doesn't think that Yuan Shao is stingy and not as good as Yuan Shu. I remember there are still pearls and silks in the treasury, send some to him as well."

Meanwhile, Yuan Yi was also settled—

“Nowadays, water piracy is rampant in Chaohu Lake. Yuan Ti must act cautiously and avoid making any mistakes.”

"Don't worry, Zhongye!"

(End of this chapter)