My Three Kingdoms is not right

Warm sunlight streamed into the kitchen.

It was like an ordinary afternoon, with an ordinary young couple preparing an ordinary dinner.

Unfortunately, one of them was a high-ranking official with lofty ambitions, and the other was a member of the imperial family who wanted to protect the Han dynasty.

Then the content of the conversation will inevitably become "hardcore".

"Of course, beyond the technical details of land reclamation, there is one thing we must first clarify."

Liu Xun's hands moved swiftly, as if he were chatting about everyday matters: "Mengde, what problem do you think the military-agricultural colonies are meant to solve?"

Cao Cao unconsciously stopped what he was doing, thought for a moment, and replied, "The fields are abandoned and the army's food supplies are insufficient."

"That's true, but also not true." Liu Xun shook his head. "When considering the implementation of the military-agricultural colonies, we can't just look at it from the perspective of the court's need for food. We need to look at it from the perspective of the displaced people and see what they need."

"It was precisely because this point was overlooked that a large number of the recruited refugees fled."

Cao Cao frowned slightly: "Providing land for those refugees and surrendered soldiers to cultivate, enabling them to settle down and make a living, isn't that fulfilling their needs?"

"Keep packing, don't let your hands be idle!" Liu Xun reminded him with a smile before continuing, "A stable home and a livelihood are naturally important, but what migrants lack most is a sense of security."

"sense of security?"

"They lost their homes and land, their wives and children were torn apart... cough, their husbands and daughters were separated, they were like birds startled by the mere twang of a bow." Liu Xun explained, "Then let's look at the policies previously formulated by Ren Jun (General of Agriculture) and Zao Zhi (Captain of Agriculture)—"

"By requiring the villagers to pay a fixed amount of grain, they will start to wonder: What will we do in the event of drought or flood? What will we do in the event of locust plagues or epidemics?"

"Forcing displaced people to cultivate land and strictly managing them will make them think: What's the difference between this and corvée labor? This can't be a good thing!"

Cao Cao seemed to understand something: "So..."

Liu Xun didn't keep them in suspense:

"Therefore, in the Zhile Garden Park, I stipulated that grain should be delivered according to the harvest ratio. More should be delivered in a bumper year and less in a lean year, so that they would have a clear understanding of the situation."

"Secondly, do not force them. I have Yang Dezu hire people to spread the word among the refugees that the imperial court is providing disaster relief, offering land and seeds to settle the refugees, but the quantity is limited and will be distributed on a first-come, first-served basis."

"And the result? There were so many people queuing up to sign up that 300 hectares of land simply wasn't enough to go around."

Cao Cao listened so intently that he forgot he was holding half a dumpling in his hand.

"And there's water conservancy," Liu Xun continued. "The Yi River near Xuchang had been in disrepair for years, making irrigation inconvenient. I led the Imperial Guards and the villagers to repair the old canals and even built dragon-bone waterwheels to irrigate the fields."

"When the displaced people saw that the ditches were clear, their fear of disaster was relieved."

"Keep wrapping," Liu Xun said, getting up and walking out of the kitchen. "Wait for me."

Before long, he returned carrying a large stack of documents and placed them on the desk.

"All matters concerning the military agricultural settlements are here," Liu Xun explained to the dazed Cao Cao. "Land allocation, food rations, oxen arrangements, farm tools and seeds, water conservancy repairs... everything is here."

"Don't forget to take it when you leave."

Cao Cao looked up at Liu Xun: "Your Highness, you were prepared all along?"

"Yes," Liu Xun nodded matter-of-factly. "Even if Mengde hadn't come today, I was planning to send it to the Minister of Works' residence tomorrow anyway."

"Didn't we agree on that back then?"

A hint of emotion flashed in Cao Cao's eyes.

She originally thought that this time, after going through so much trouble to ask for help, she would definitely have to use her words a lot.

Unexpectedly, Liu Xun had no intention of making things difficult for her at all.

They had even prepared everything for her.

"Oh, right," Liu Xun seemed to suddenly remember something, "the person who modified the waterwheel is named Ma Jun, an official at the Imperial Academy. I think she's quite ingenious, and I'd like to transfer her to the Court of Imperial Sacrifices. Is that alright?"

"No problem," Cao Cao agreed instinctively.

She had never even heard of a minor academic officer.

Liu Xun secretly chuckled to himself.

This Ma Jun was no ordinary person; he was the most outstanding inventor and mechanical master of the Three Kingdoms period.

By snatching her away from Cao Cao, I've made a huge profit!

"Stop wrapping," he clapped his hands contentedly, "Let's cook!"

He mixed the oddly shaped dumplings with the exquisite dumplings he made himself and put them into the boiling water.

Cao Cao stared blankly as the misty vapor blurred the handsome face of the young man.

The kitchen was filled with the aroma of noodles and meat, and the firelight from the stove illuminated the entire room.

Before long, the dumplings floated to the surface, plump and white, and their aroma filled the air.

Liu Xun brought out a bowl and handed it to Cao Cao: "Try it."

Cao Cao picked one up—it was one she had made herself, crooked and crooked, the filling almost spilling out.

She felt a little embarrassed, but seeing that Liu Xun didn't seem to care and was eating with relish, she also lowered her head and took a bite.

"tasty."

"Eat more, you can't waste what you made yourself."

……

Two days later, the experience of land reclamation in Zhileyuan Garden was promoted throughout Yingchuan.

A month or so later, it expanded to the entire Yuzhou and Yanzhou regions.

The refugees and prisoners of war were resettled, and large amounts of abandoned farmland were reclaimed and planted.

Water conservancy restoration and the promotion and application of waterwheels are progressing smoothly in various regions.

That year,

The Central Plains, once barren and desolate, finally saw a long-awaited harvest.

The last weakness that hindered Cao Cao's army's operations has been overcome.

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"Edict on Establishing Military Farms - Cao Cao"

The key to governing a country lies in having a strong army and sufficient food. The Qin people conquered the world by prioritizing agriculture, and Emperor Wu of Han pacified the Western Regions by establishing military colonies. These are good examples from previous dynasties.

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Food is ultimately the most solid foundation in times of chaos.

Cao Cao escaped the predicament of food shortages through the military-agricultural colonies, and his tributes to the court increased accordingly. The rice, grain, meat, and silk sent to the palace every month were more than three times what they were when he first arrived in Xuchang.

With Xun Yu, the Minister of the Imperial Secretariat, in charge of overall coordination, and with the Yingchuan gentry as the core, he managed all the affairs of the court in an orderly manner—sacrifices were performed according to rites, court assemblies were conducted in accordance with rituals, the salaries of all officials were paid in full without delay, and the repairs of palaces and government offices were gradually completed.

The Han Dynasty court, which had been neglected and in decline for the past few years, was beginning to show signs of resurgence.

The suffering of the chaotic times was too long, so long that people began to miss the four-hundred-year foundation of the Han Dynasty, and the era when the world was still governed by rules and the people could still sleep peacefully.

As a result, countless ambitious and talented people began to come to Xuchang from all directions.

Xun Yu's strategy for Cao Cao, "to serve the emperor and command the disobedient," is slowly revealing its power.

However, with a large number of people, factions naturally emerged.

The current imperial court in Xudu is roughly composed of three groups of people.

The first group naturally consists of Cao Cao's clan, fellow villagers, and others. Xiahou Dun, Xiahou Yuan, Cao Ren, Cao Hong, Xu Chu, Man Chong, Cheng Yu... these civil and military officials who followed Cao Cao in raising his army in the early days, held tens of thousands of elite troops inside and outside Xuchang and some local administrative power, and were the real power holders at present.

The second group was the Yingchuan gentry, represented by Xun Yu. Xun Yu, Xun You, Zhong Yao, Guo Jia, Du Xi, Zhao Yan... they almost monopolized key positions in the Secretariat and various government offices, and were the main civil officials who helped the court operate.

The third group consisted of traditional aristocratic families, renowned scholars, and high-ranking officials, led by Yang Biao. Their presence endorsed the legitimacy of the Xu Du court and gave this regime, which controlled less than two prefectures, the power to influence the hearts and minds of the people.

The delicate balance maintained by these three groups has supported Xudu's prosperity and stability.

But beneath the calm and tranquil surface,

Turbulent undercurrents.