I did it all for the Han Dynasty!

Chapter 533 New Beginning

Shi Xin, left alone, looked completely bewildered.

Shi Xin was even more terrified when Liu Miao led him to a side hall at the back instead of questioning him in public.

In an instant, Shi Xin thought of many things.

Although Shi Xie was always close to Liu Miao, he was still a local warlord in reality.

Now that Liu Miao has just defeated Yuan Shao and won the war between Han and Zhao, he is at the height of his power!
At this point, if Liu Miao wanted to do something... it wouldn't seem entirely impossible, would it?

Shi Xin sat alone in the side hall, his expression shifting between worry and fear, clearly indicating a very complex inner world!

At this moment, Liu Miao finally walked out from the front hall and casually took off the heavy crown on his head.

Seeing this, Shi Xin panicked even more!

The emperor removes his crown!

What does this mean? What deeper meaning does it hold? Is the emperor trying to give a warning, or a threat?

Liu Miao took off the magnificent twelve-tassel emperor's crown from his head, shook his slightly sore neck, and cursed the Duke of Zhou, who had formulated these rituals, twice more.

The insults reached Shi Xin's ears clearly, which only made him more terrified!
Your Majesty, what does this mean?
Is this a veiled attack, implying that we do not follow the Zhou rituals?
Yes! It must be!
It's impossible that the mighty Emperor of the Han Dynasty would actually insult the Duke of Zhou in front of him, a mere foreign official.
Before Liu Miao could even get close, Shi Xin's legs gave way, and he collapsed to his knees with a thud, tears streaming down his face as he sobbed.

"Your Majesty! Your father and I have absolutely no intention of betraying the Han Dynasty! After learning that Your Majesty had revived the Han Dynasty, your father even built a shrine for Your Majesty and worshipped him day and night! He worshipped Your Majesty as if he were his own father!"

"However, Jiaozhi is far from the Central Plains! We cannot let Your Majesty know our intentions! Please rest assured, Your Majesty! After I return this time, I will also promote the 'Zhangwu Law' in Jiaozhi, emulate the people of the Central Plains, establish schools, and educate the people! So that the people of Jiaozhi may admire Your Majesty's virtuous rule!"

"..."

Shi Xin's actions, however, caught Liu Miao completely off guard.

Although I don't know why Shi Xin is like this, it seems like everything he says is a good thing.
Liu Miao nodded in confusion: "If you have this idea, that's naturally for the best."

"However, I summoned you here not for this matter."

Isn't it for this reason?

Now it was Shi Xin's turn to blush.

Doesn't that mean Liu Miao did nothing, yet he exposed everything?
"..."

The scene was a little awkward for a while.

However, the most urgent task was for Liu Miao to help Shi Xin up first.

"I have no intention of starting another war, so you need not worry."

Having received Liu Miao's assurance, Shi Xin grinned.

But Liu Miao looked at him and said, “When the Later Han Dynasty was first established, two women from Jiaozhi, Zheng Ce and Zheng Er, raised an army in rebellion. Emperor Shizu appointed Ma Yuan as General Fubo, who led the army along the coast, clearing roads through the mountains, and marched more than a thousand miles into the country. In just one year, he killed the two women and sent their heads to Luoyang.”

Shi Xin was aware of this matter, so he was somewhat uneasy, wondering what Liu Miao wanted to do by saying all this.

"Emperor Guangwu rose from Hebei, while I rose from Jiangdong. In terms of military strength, perhaps the Han Dynasty today is not as strong as it was during Guangwu's time... But in terms of advancing along the coast, I am no weaker than Guangwu."

The flourishing of the private shipbuilding industry gave Liu Miao the confidence to say this.

"Therefore, I simply have no intention of using weapons, not that I am unable to use weapons."

Liu Miao looked Shi Xin up and down, and seeing that Shi Xin's legs were trembling, he smiled slightly.

"As long as you do what you just promised me, both sides will be safe and sound, so there is no need to worry."

Under Liu Miao's constant tugging and slapping of his head, Shi Xin finally obediently bowed to Liu Miao: "Yes, sir!"

"Alright! Let's leave it at that. If we can improve trade and educate the local people, turning those barbarians into Han Chinese, then I won't be sending soldiers there idly."

As long as the goal is achieved—to turn Jiaozhi, that barren land, into a Han Chinese territory—Liu Miao doesn't care whether it's done by someone surnamed Shi or someone surnamed Liu.

"Today, I have something else to ask about."

Shi Xin brazenly said, "Your Majesty, please speak! I will tell you everything I know!"

"Recently, the Ministry of Works discovered discrepancies in the grain and fodder quantities of Guiyang, Lingling, and other prefectures. Furthermore, the market officials in Changsha and Jiangling have also discovered a large number of ivory and pearls originating from Jiaozhi. That is why I have come to you to inquire about the matter."

That's it!

Shi Xin suddenly realized, and at the same time, a look of surprise appeared on his face.

Seeing Shi Xin's expression, Liu Miao understood.

"So you knew?"

Shi Xin nodded somewhat uncertainly.

"I wonder if Your Majesty is aware that many people in the Central Plains have heard from somewhere that there is a sea route to India south of Jiaozhi, so they have taken the initiative to travel by boat to the south?"

Liu Miao knew far more than just that.

This whole thing was orchestrated by Liu Miao!

"I have heard a little about it."

Shi Xin sighed, "I don't know which damned person spread this news! India is not an easy place to go. As a result, many people went to sea and never came back."

Liu Miao remained silent.

"So, fewer and fewer people are going these days?"

"No!"

But Shi Xin's words clearly surprised Liu Miao.

"Your Majesty may not know this, but there really were people who went to India and brought back a large amount of gold!"

Liu Miao's eyes widened.

"According to those who returned, the area is indeed wealthy; even the temples used for worship are made of gold! Cattle and sheep are everywhere, and even the rivers flow with milk!"

Shi Xin spoke these words with skepticism, while shaking his head more and more vigorously: "This has led to more and more people fleeing to Jiaozhi."

"Perhaps only one in ten will return, and only one in a hundred will obtain the gold, but at least now many of the people heading to Jiaozhi have something to look forward to..."

And longing is undoubtedly the most tempting thing, even more so than gold in one's hand. As a traditional landlord and scholar-official, and as a member of the local rulers of Jiaozhi, Shi Xin was inherently averse to and fearful of this uncertainty and the hidden dangers brought about by longing.

Liu Miao was clearly aware of this as well.

So he skipped that point for the time being.

The current situation in Jiaozhi cannot be widely publicized yet.

Otherwise, scholars who fear such things as Shi Xin would certainly take action.

Actions such as banning maritime trade and burning nautical charts could easily stifle this nascent seedling. Therefore, Liu Miao returned to the main topic—

"What does this have to do with Jingnan?"

Shi Xin quickly stopped grumbling.

"Your Majesty, if there are too many people, won't there not be enough food?"

“Especially those people who went to Jiaozhi were people who were going to India to make a fortune. They didn’t farm or anything, so they could only buy food to eat… But Jiaozhi didn’t have many products, so they could only buy from Jingzhou.”

Shi Xin offered his explanation, but he refused to take any responsibility for it.

"I have acted in accordance with the rules. The handover in Jingzhou was handled by government officials. I know nothing else about the matter!"

With this explanation, Liu Miao roughly understood.

It's nothing more than some officials in Jingnan seeing an opportunity to profit and using wartime supplies.

Who knows, by reselling it like this, they might have already made back the money from those grains, replenished the grain shortage in the granary, and at the same time, eaten their fill while thinking it was all done perfectly...

Such things have happened frequently throughout history. After hearing this, Liu Miao chuckled a few times and said, "I see."

Shi Xin looked at Liu Miao with some worry, fearing that Liu Miao would criticize him.

But Liu Miao laughed and said, "If Jiaozhi is short of food again in the future, wouldn't it be more convenient to just go by sea and use ocean-going ships for transportation? From Jingnan to Jiaozhi, we have to cross mountains and valleys. Isn't that troublesome?"

How could Liu Miao be angry about buying grain from Jiaozhi?

He would love for Jiaozhi to be supplied with all its grain by Jingzhou or Yangzhou, so that Jiaozhi could just obediently grow sugarcane for the Han Dynasty...

The more Jiaozhi relied on the Han Dynasty, the more at ease Liu Miao would be! Otherwise, if Jiaozhi were to simultaneously grow grain, smelt iron, and build ships, Liu Miao would truly be unable to sleep at night!
Shi Xin was unaware of Liu Miao's thoughts.

At this moment, he looked at Liu Miao with eyes full of longing.

He truly is a holy emperor!
Those rumors outside are all nonsense! Who said the emperor was a scoundrel? He clearly has the demeanor of an elder!

Liu Miao chatted with Shi Xin for a few more minutes before Shi Xin reluctantly left.

Being able to chat with the Holy Emperor for so long is not only an honor for me, but it also illustrates something else—

Jiaozhi is safe!
At least for the next five years, there shouldn't be any major wars! The Shi family will remain the ruling family in Jiaozhi!
The price to pay is simply to listen to Liu Miao and do what they were already doing!

After Shi Xin left, Liu Miao, yawning, also came to find Zhang Zhao.

"That's the gist of the matter, and I should make it clear."

"What are your Majesty's plans?"

What do you mean by "plans"?

Liu Miao waved his hand impatiently.

"What should we do? It's all clearly written in the 'Zhangwu Law': kill those who should be killed, imprison those who should be imprisoned, punish those who should be punished. Let me decide what to do?"

Zhang Zhao: “…”

Liu Miao raised an eyebrow: "If you have something to say, Zhang Gong, just say it."

"It's nothing."

Zhang Zhao simply said, "I believe Your Majesty has always been intolerant of official corruption..."

"Of course I cannot tolerate it."

Liu Miao interrupted Zhang Zhao.

"But I also know that this kind of thing is beyond my control."

“If we arrest all the officials of the Han Dynasty today and kill one out of every five, there might be some innocent people. But if we kill one out of every ten, there will definitely be many who escape the net.”

Liu Miao lay there lazily.

"So, if you really want me to worry about this, I'll be exhausted and still not be able to handle it. You too, Lord Zhang, just do things the proper way and don't waste your energy on them."

Hearing Liu Miao say that the officials of the Han Dynasty could not be trusted, Zhang Zhao felt a pang of sadness, but he also felt that what Liu Miao said made sense.

So he asked, "What method did Your Majesty mention?"

Liu Miao held up two fingers.

"Either we regulate it through the system, for example, I think it would be good to disclose the assets of officials."

Upon hearing this, Zhang Zhao's buttocks tightened slightly.

"besides--"

Liu Miao said, "In the end, the reason I hate corruption is simply because when people are corrupt, the people suffer, and some even die."

"Therefore, if the people can become wealthy, even if they embezzle some, it will not cause any major harm."

"Everyone has more money now, so even if they are greedy, the common people will at least not be without food and clothing."

"But if everyone is penniless and they starve to death after taking the money, then that would be a real problem."

Liu Miao summarized—

"in short,"

"It is better to enrich the people than to kill officials."

"Take it slow, we can always do it! Our Great Han has gone through four hundred years, it's time to set some new goals!"

(End of this chapter)