Transmigrating to the Three Kingdoms as Lu Bu: I Have a Pseudo-Apocalypse System

Upon learning that Tao Qian was willing to surrender, Lü Bu was naturally overjoyed, as he could gain a province without firing a shot.

On the eighth day of the seventh month, Lü Bu led his army to Tan County, the capital of Xuzhou. Tao Qian led dozens of civil and military officials from Xuzhou to meet him ten miles outside the city.

Three thousand cavalrymen surged in like a red tide, their military bearing impeccable, the sound of their iron hooves thundering across the ground.

The first rider was crimson like flames, and the general on horseback wore golden armor and a black robe; it was none other than Lü Bu, the Duke of Jin.

The procession stopped a hundred paces away.

Lu Bu rode forward, his gaze sweeping over the crowd.

Tao Qian broke free from his son's support, took three steps forward, knelt down, and prostrated himself: "Your subject Tao Qian, leading the civil and military officials of Xuzhou, respectfully welcomes the Duke of Jin's royal army!"

More than a hundred people behind him knelt in unison: "Welcome, Duke Jin!"

The sound shook the surrounding area.

Lü Bu dismounted, walked to Tao Qian, and personally helped him up: "Lord Tao, please rise. Your surrender of the entire province has saved the people of Xuzhou from the ravages of war. What crime have you committed?"

Tao Qian looked up and saw that Lü Bu's expression was gentle and showed no murderous intent, which reassured him somewhat: "Thank you, Lord Jin, for your kindness..."

Lü Bu then addressed the crowd, saying, "You have all wisely followed the will of Heaven and submitted to the court. Officials at all levels in Xuzhou will remain in their original positions for the time being, each performing their duties. A final decision will be made after the court sends officials to assess them."

"Thank you, Lord Jin!" The crowd bowed again.

Lü Bu looked at Tao Qian: "Lord Tao is advanced in years and has been ill for a long time. It is not appropriate for him to continue to handle state affairs. He can go home and recuperate. Does Lord Tao have any objections?"

Tao Qian said sadly, "This humble subject has no objection; I leave it entirely to the Duke of Jin's arrangements."

Lü Bu nodded: "Now that Xuzhou has just been annexed, everything is in need of rebuilding. I have already ordered Zhang Yang, the Prefect of Hanoi, to come and take over as Governor of Xuzhou. In addition, I have transferred Song Xian of the 4th Army of the Luoyang Group to lead troops into Xuzhou to reorganize the Xuzhou troops and form the Xuzhou Group Army. During this period, I hope that you, my lord, and all of you will give your full assistance to stabilize the region and prevent any unrest."

"We will do our utmost!" Mi Zhu, Sun Qian, Chen Deng, Cao Bao and the others responded in unison.

On that day, Lü Bu led his army into Tan County, the capital of Xuzhou.

The people in the city lined the streets to watch, and seeing that the imperial army was disciplined, did not disturb the people, and did not loot, they felt somewhat relieved.

When Lü Bu moved into the governor's mansion, the first thing he did was to take stock of the household registration in Xuzhou.

In the back hall, Mi Zhu and Chen Deng presented the register.

"Duke of Jin, apart from Pengcheng being destroyed by Cao Cao's army and the people suffering, the other prefectures are relatively prosperous under Duke Tao's governance. The entire prefecture currently has about 280,000 households and a population of over 1.8 million," Mi Zhu reported. "If we include the refugees who have fled from the Central Plains in recent years, the actual population is about two million."

Lü Bu originally controlled five provinces: Sili, Bing, Liang, Yan, and Yi, with a population of nearly six million. Now, with the addition of Xu Province, which has a population of two million, his total population has reached eight million.

We are only two million people away from reaching a population of ten million and a level six security zone.

Ji Province had approximately three million inhabitants, Jing Province approximately three million, and Yu Province and Yang Province each had approximately two million...

No matter which state we choose next, the population will exceed ten million.

A few days later, Zhang Yang, the governor of Hanoi, arrived in Tan County and took over as the governor of Xuzhou.

In mid-July, Song Xian, commander of the 4th Army of the Luoyang Group Army, led 10,000 troops into Xuzhou and began to reorganize the Xuzhou troops with the 4th Army as the backbone to form the Xuzhou Group Army.

At this point, Xuzhou was entirely submitted to the imperial court.

Under Lü Bu's rule, there were six provinces: Sili, Bingzhou, Liangzhou, Yanzhou, Yizhou, and Xuzhou, with a population of eight million and an army of 180,000.

The next step, whether it's taking Ji Province to the north or Yu Province to the south, will see the population surpass ten million.

Level 6 security zone is just around the corner.

……

Tan County, the temporary residence of Lü Bu.

This residence was originally built by Tao Qian to entertain distinguished guests. It has three courtyards and three exits, complete with pavilions and towers. After Lü Bu moved in, he only kept the necessary servants, and the rest of his personal guards were drawn from the Imperial Guard.

That afternoon, Lü Bu was in the back hall reviewing the household registration and land records submitted by various counties in Xuzhou, while Zhang Yang explained them to him.

"Pengcheng County suffered the most from Cao Cao's ravages." Zhang Yang pointed to the numbers on the bamboo slips. "In the third year of the Chuping era, Pengcheng still had 42,000 households and more than 280,000 people. Now there are less than 8,000 households and less than 50,000 people left, and nine out of ten houses are empty."

Lü Bu put down the booklet: "To support his 20,000 elite troops, Cao Cao levies exorbitant taxes and allows his soldiers to plunder. The people have either fled or died. Issue an order to exempt Pengcheng from taxes for three years, open the granaries to distribute grain, and encourage displaced people to return to their hometowns to restore production."

"promise!"

Just then, a guard came to report: "My lord, Prefect Mi and his brother Mi Fang are requesting an audience outside the mansion."

Lu Bu raised an eyebrow: "Let them in."

Before long, the brothers Mi Zhu and Mi Fang entered the hall.

"Your guilty subject Mi Zhu (Mi Fang) pays his respects to Duke Jin!" The two brothers knelt down and bowed.

Lü Bu raised his hand: "Please rise, both of you. Prefect Mi has been in charge of the finances and provisions of Xuzhou for many years, and has rendered great service. What crime has he committed?"

Mi Zhu rose, bowed, and said, "Lord Jin, please understand that Lord Tao was previously misled by Liu Bei and joined Yuan Shao's anti-Lü alliance. As his subordinates, we failed to remonstrate with him, which is a dereliction of duty. Now that Lord Jin has pacified the people and punished the guilty, and recovered Xuzhou, we are willing to devote the strength of the entire Mi clan to help Lord Jin stabilize the region and atone for our crimes through meritorious service."

Lü Bu nodded: "Prefect Mi is very kind."

Mi Fang stepped forward and presented the wooden box in his hand: "This is a list and account book of the Mi family's land and shops in various counties of Xuzhou, totaling 80,000 mu of fertile land, 27 shops, and 3 granaries with 50,000 shi of grain. We now offer it all to Duke Jin as military supplies to show the Mi family's sincerity in submitting to the court."

The guard took the wooden box, opened it, and presented it to Lü Bu. Inside was a thick stack of records, filled with detailed accounts.

Lu Bu glanced at them and mentally estimated that these properties were worth no less than ten thousand gold pieces. Was the Mi family going to gamble their entire fortune on Lu Bu, just like they had done with Liu Bei in the original history?

Unfortunately, he wasn't Liu Bei. He had his own system, no shortage of provisions, no need for the Mi brothers' timely help, and he wouldn't give them much political reward.

"I appreciate the Mi family's loyalty," Lü Bu said. "But these properties are the result of generations of accumulation by the Mi family. How can I take them away? Here's what we'll do: the farmland and shops will remain under the Mi family's management, and they only need to pay taxes according to the new imperial system. As for the 50,000 shi of grain, the prefecture will buy it back at market price and use it to provide relief to disaster victims."

Mi Zhu hurriedly said, "Lord Jin is benevolent, but since these properties were presented as gifts, how can we take them back? Please accept them, otherwise my brother and I will not feel at ease."

Lü Bu waved his hand: "No need for further words. I govern the world by laws and the hearts of the people, not by force and robbery. Since the Mi family is willing to submit, they are subjects of the court. They can simply operate legally and pay taxes according to the law."

Mi Zhu and Mi Fang exchanged a glance, their eyes showing both gratitude and disappointment.

Mi Zhu took a deep breath: "In that case, the Mi family has another gift, which we hope Duke Jin will accept with pleasure."

"Oh, what is it?" Lu Bu asked curiously.

Mi Zhu said, "My younger sister, Mi Zhen, is seventeen years old. She has heard of Duke Jin's bravery and admires him greatly. She wishes to enter Duke Jin's mansion and serve him."