I did it all for the Han Dynasty!

Chapter 367 Is this smuggling?

After Guo Tu passed through Zhiguan and entered Hedong territory, he became increasingly apprehensive.

The prosperity of Hedong exceeded almost everyone's expectations!
Merchants came and went in a constant stream, with numerous oxcarts and horse-drawn carriages traveling along both sides of the narrow road, transporting goods in an endless stream. Sometimes, Guo Tu would travel dozens of miles day and night, only to find that there were always caravans around him, as if he had never moved forward and had been wandering in the same place.

Guo Tu is now completely terrified!

This is hardly smuggling.

Where can you find such blatant smuggling?

Are the officials, elders, and soldiers along the way all blind?
wrong……

Guo Tu quickly realized that many people might not even know that Yuan Shao had ordered the severing of trade with Liu Miao!
After all, the Great Zhao established by Yuan Shao through the abdication of the Later Han dynasty was a direct descendant of the Later Han, and its grassroots system was naturally the same. Official decrees could only reach the county-level government offices at most; below that, it was the territory of the clan.

If someone were to cover it up, the lower-level officials might not even know that Yuan Shao had actually issued such an order!

Looking at those truckloads of goods, Guo Tu felt a heart-wrenching pain!

These goods are all products that the people of Hebei have worked hard to produce!
But now, they can only watch helplessly as a group of rats secretly smuggle these valuables out of the country, slowly draining Hebei's wealth.

Most importantly, because it was smuggling, the government was completely unaware of it and couldn't collect a single penny of tax from these trade activities! All the money ultimately ended up in the hands of the people behind the scenes!
The money in the national treasury was used for water conservancy projects and the casting of weapons and armor.

But the people behind the scenes used the money to buy land and continue to expand their empires!
If this continues, how can Yuan and Zhao possibly survive?
Upon arriving at Hedong, Guo Tu nearly fainted and fell off his horse!

War horse!

An endless array of warhorses!
The east bank of the river was filled with warhorses that were about to be transported to Guanzhong!
Guo Tu even witnessed people abandoning farming and letting the land lie fallow in order to engage in this smuggling trade!
After all, these people had done the math and realized that the money they could earn from trading was far more than what they could earn from farming!
It's laughable that Guo Tu had previously mocked Liu Miao with Yuan Shao for letting the people under his rule pursue their "golden dreams," only to find that the people of Hedong had already become like that as well.
"Young Master! What have you done?!"

Guo Tu was both angry and regretful. He simply ignored the scenery on both sides and crossed the river directly towards Guanzhong.

Unexpectedly, Guo Tu was captured by Yuan's soldiers as soon as he crossed the river.

Guo Tu thought that if he showed his official seal, the soldiers would not harm him.

Unexpectedly, when these Yuan soldiers saw that Guo Tu was actually sent by Ye City, their eyes revealed a fierce glint!
"What do we do? They're from Ye City!"

"What do you mean, what do we do? If this is exposed, we'll all die!"

"Then let's kill him first!"

"..."

Guo Tu thought he was prepared for the terrible situation in Guanzhong, but he did not expect that the actual situation in Guanzhong would exceed his expectations!
Even the soldiers here dare to kill him, a central government official!
Seeing that the soldiers were really going to kill him, Guo Tu hurriedly shouted, "I have a past relationship with His Highness the King of Qin! I have come to see the King of Qin!"

"I see!"

When Yuan Shao was mentioned, these soldiers of Yuan's army ignored him and even wanted to stab Guo Tu a few more times.

But when Yuan Tan was mentioned, these soldiers of Yuan's army suddenly became friendly and treated Guo Tu with great courtesy: "So you're one of us! My apologies!"

"..."

This change, when it came into Guo Tu's view, naturally made his heart sink once again!
This means that Yuan Shao and the central government have completely lost control of Guanzhong!

The soldiers and civilians of Guanzhong only recognize the Prince of Qin of the Yuan family, not the Emperor of the Yuan family!

From Yuan Tan's perspective, this is naturally the best possible outcome!
But from the perspective of the nation, this is simply outrageous!
Guo Tu was taken to Chang'an to meet Yuan Tan.

Upon arriving in Chang'an, Guo Tu's anxiety finally subsided.

Trade between Xiliang, the Central Plains, and Hebei converged in this area.

Large quantities of warhorses, silk, porcelain, and other goods were traded among them.

Guo Tu judged that perhaps in just one day, trade could flow through this place involving tens or even hundreds of thousands of coins.

This number is too big!
It was so large that even Guo Tu couldn't imagine how many local tyrants and powerful central officials were gathered behind it all.

But Guo Tu also confirmed it at the same time.

This matter was definitely not the work of Yuan Tan alone!
Yuan Tan doesn't have the ability to bring all these people to his side and do such a thing together!
However, Guo Tu quickly realized something was wrong.

Why don't we go into the city?

"His Highness does not reside within the city."

Not long after, Guo Tu was led to a military camp in Ba Shang.

"His Highness is right here."

Guo Tu was overwhelmed with mixed feelings.

The wealth and prosperity of Chang'an today are already evident to the naked eye.

But Yuan Tan actually stayed in the military camp, which is truly rare.

At the same time, Guo Tu couldn't help but feel somewhat fortunate that the clear-headed Yuan Tan had not been blinded by these temptations, and perhaps he still had a chance to persuade Yuan Tan to come back!
Guo Tu entered the central tent, where Yuan Tan had been waiting for a long time.

Yuan Tan was still wearing the same armor that he wore when he began his campaigns in Qingzhou, and that had accompanied him through many places.

"Your Highness."

"Public principles".

The two exchanged names, but didn't know how to begin, and instead fell into an eerie silence.

After a while, Yuan Tan was the first to get up and bring a pot of fragrant tea to Guo Tu's side, gently filling him with a cup.

"I remember that Your Highness did not like tea when you were in Jiangdong."

"I am not happy now either."

Yuan Tan sat down again, this time with a cup of warm tea in his hand.

"But tea can refresh you and prevent drowsiness."

"Moreover, drinking tea is always better than drinking alcohol, at least it won't delay important matters."

Guo Tu held his teacup, took a sip, and gently touched the tea in his mouth with the tip of his tongue, savoring its flavor.

"It's exactly the same as the one I had in Jiangdong."

Guo Tu suddenly opened his eyes and stared at Yuan Tan! "Your Highness, don't forget how we got to Jiangdong!"

"Does Your Highness really believe that it's just a visit to relatives?"

"We were captured back then!"

Boom!
Yuan Tan slammed the porcelain teacup from Jingzhou onto the table with a thud.

Guo Tu ignored him.

"Liu Miao, Zhou Yu, Lu Su, Taishi Ci..."

"How terrifying these people are, others may not know, but do you think we don't know?"

"Your Highness is clearly courting death by doing such a thing!"

But Yuan Tan calmed down at this moment.

"I am not courting death, I am drinking poison to quench my thirst."

Guo Tu immediately became agitated: "Since Your Highness knew this, why did you still do it?"

"Does Your Highness not know that if things continue like this, the Yuan family's empire will be destroyed in an instant?"

"..."

Yuan Tan picked up his teacup again.

"The only copy is for the Yuan family's empire."

Guo Tu couldn't believe it.

Where in Yuan Tan's actions was there even a trace of consideration for the Yuan family's rule?!

But Yuan Tan's next words silenced Guo Tu—

"Because only when this country is in my hands will it truly be the Yuan family's country."

"If it's not in my hands, what does the fate of this empire matter to me?"

Guo Tu's eyes were filled with astonishment.

He couldn't believe that Yuan Tan would say such a thing!
Is this still the Yuan Tan he knew, the one who always led from the front for Yuan Shao and never cared about his own personal gains or losses?
"Your Highness!"

"Does Your Excellency think I am exaggerating?"

Yuan Tan shook his head.

"His Majesty's decision not to appoint a crown prince already demonstrates His Majesty's attitude."

"Moreover, you should also know that Shen Pei, the Minister of the Imperial Secretariat, and most of the scholars in Hebei support Yuan Shang."

"If I don't do something, do you really think the Yuan family's empire will fall into my hands?"

After hearing this, Guo Tu still wanted to advise Yuan Tan—

"That shouldn't be the case!"

"As long as you achieve merit, His Majesty will naturally see it..."

Yuan Tan's voice suddenly rose three fen: "What merits do I have to establish myself?"

"I have lost Qingzhou and Hedong."

"But nobody cares that I lost to Liu Miao! Nobody even cares that His Majesty lost to Liu Miao! They only care that I did lose!"

"Now, even if I wanted to achieve great things, how could I possibly do so?"

"and……"

Yuan Tan's expression was both dejected and sarcastic.

"What good are great achievements? What good is conquering a province? It's still not as good as someone who can win His Majesty's favor by simply flattering him?"

Guo Tu also looked somewhat dejected at this point.

Because both the Qingzhou and Hedong exhibitions were planned by him for Yuan Tan.

"Your Highness, I am ashamed."

"But this is absolutely no excuse for Your Highness to do such a thing!"

Guo Tu sighed in frustration, "Your Highness! Stop!"

“Gongze, you must have seen the scale of this matter on your way here. It’s no longer something I can just stop doing.”

Yuan Tan knew very well what he was doing, and he also knew very well who was standing behind him.

"The Southern Xiongnu, Wuhuan, Ma Teng and Han Sui of Western Liang, the Qiang people, some warlords in Guanzhong, as well as Zhong Yao, Xiahou Dun and others..."

"And most importantly—the gentry of Hebei!"

Yuan Tan said to Guo Tu, "I told you, I'm drinking poison to quench my thirst."

“Once we stop, these people will definitely not mind driving me out of Guanzhong and replacing me with someone else.”

"And indeed, because of this matter, I have gained the support of many gentry in Hebei."

"Recently, Gongze should have been able to sense in court that my reputation has improved considerably, and many ministers are speaking up for me... Does Gongze really believe that it is because I conquered Guanzhong without bloodshed and rendered great service to the country that they are speaking up for me?"

"Don't dream about it. When I personally conquered Qingzhou, I didn't see anyone say anything good about me."

Yuan Tan looked melancholy.

"After all, although the country gained a new province by conquering Qingzhou, it had nothing to do with those people."

"But things are different now. I have truly put the money into their pockets, so how could they not cheer for me in the court?"

(End of this chapter)