The heads of Soden and several of the main criminals of the So family were hung high at the south gate of Dunhuang. They looked particularly ferocious in the rain, but they could not frighten the people who were watching. What made the people especially grateful was that the government not only confiscated the property obtained from the house, The land deeds, real estate, and fields were listed, and half of the property was indeed returned to the owner.
With the execution of Soden and the capture of Zhang Dinghuang, the two children of the Zhang Suo family who used to show off their power and aloofness on the streets of Dunhuang fell to the streets overnight, but no one pitied them or sympathized with them. Human life is unpopular in the first place, but for today, most people will say that they deserve it.
At this time, even the other powerful families in Dunhuang are doing things with their tail between their legs. There is no shortage of smart people among them. They have already seen the government's plan: it is nothing more than provoking conflicts between the people and the powerful families. This not only allows the government to win the hearts and minds of the people, but also breaks away from the trap of local power and power, making Guazhou like the newly built Xizhou, Tingzhou, and Yizhou, and allowing aristocratic families to no longer have absolute control and dominance.
However, the government can gain a foothold in the people's hearts step by step, establish the government's credibility, and at the same time weaken their influence on the people, and firmly control the people's hearts in the hands of the government. As long as this step is completed, then the next step is probably the government. Bringing many old cases to trial will further weaken their reputation and influence and create a solid public support for their complete eradication.
Of course, they can also leave before the government finds them. Unfortunately, it might have been possible before, but now there is no need for the government to make deliberate arrangements. The people who were exploited by them in the past spontaneously watched their every move, and some were even forced into slavery. The servants and maids all had other thoughts. They believed that as long as they moved, these people would immediately report to the officials, saying that they were absconding in fear of crime.
The large shed built by Xiao Yu in front of the state capital was almost overcrowded, and an endless stream of people came to "petition" every day. This was just as Xiao Yu had expected before, with Soden and Zhang Dinghuang taking the lead. , and then there will be the second and the third... Even though there are many criminal officials, even though Xiao Yu is quick-thinking and experienced, one case after another leaves him no room to rest.
This feeling and the current situation made Xiao Yu involuntarily think of Wang Mang. However, the Yang Ji supported by Yang Guang was not like Wang Mang, who would spread whatever he thought of to the whole country. Instead, he started from a certain village in Liangzhou. The state was promoted bit by bit, very carefully and steadily. In addition, the Liangzhou family was withering, and Xizhou, Tingzhou, Yizhou, Shanshan and Qiemo did not even have the powerful Han family. The original foreign tribes were all in war. was wiped out, which undoubtedly provided Yang Ji with a good reform environment.
More importantly, the various political orders adopted by Yang Ji were by no means just done as they came to mind, nor were they imagined out of thin air. Instead, they gave full play to their imagination on the framework of the old system, and finally formed a set of policies that originated from the old system but exceeded it. 's new system, almost every 'new decree', has the shadow of the old rules. Precisely because it is not completely divorced from reality, but also benefits the country and the people, when states and counties promote it, it does not cause any turmoil among the people, and soon Just got used to it.
On this basis, the law is used as the criterion: on the one hand, while people are allowed to complain about corrupt officials, they are not allowed to make false accusations. If they dare to make false accusations, they will also be punished accordingly, ensuring that there is no self-indulgence in the officialdom. Crisis of turmoil. On the other hand, the Yucao is used to supervise the government, and the Yucao is also supervised by the government and the people. In this way, one link is within another, forming a good mutual control, but no link will be separated from Yang. Centralized control and independence from outsiders.
Nowadays, with the eviction of one big family after another and a large amount of land, money and grain being distributed to the common people, the reputation of Yangji, the state pastor, continues to skyrocket.
Yes, it has skyrocketed.
This is not a reputation gained on the battlefield, but real and sincere support.
Now, anyone who dares to speak ill of Yang Ji or the government on Dunhuang Street will be sent to Xiao Yu's office the next moment to cause trouble for him.
"Rumble~" bursts of spring thunder suddenly sounded in the sky. After a period of suppressed dullness, heavy raindrops began to fall between the sky and the earth. The people who came to complain went to take shelter from the rain.
Their temporary departure finally calmed down the crowded prison building. After Xiao Yu finished handling a case, he looked at the shining sky outside the door and said silently: Today, it seems that things are going to change!
. . . . . . . .
Among the boundary lines between the Great Sui Dynasty and the various tribes and tribes in the north, after stretching for thousands of miles from Liaodong, it ends at Tingzhou in the northwest of the Great Sui Dynasty. If the boundary line is a straight line, then Liangzhou accounts for one-third. If calculated according to the actual curve, it accounts for about two-fifths.
That's all. The key is that among the fourteen states under the jurisdiction of the Liangzhou Prefectural Mufu, except for Huizhou, Lanzhou, and Hezhou, which belong to the heartland, the rest are all bordering on foreign ethnic groups. If we also take into account factors such as Huizhou, Lanzhou, and Hezhou being far away from Liangzhou's pastoral office and transportation, then Liangzhou's strategic depth is almost zero.
Due to the above practical reasons and the need to protect the horse farms in the Hexi Corridor, Yang Ji was not criticized by important officials in the court even if he had an army of 260,000. However, even with so many troops, Yang Ji still felt that his troops were stretched thin.
In view of the lack of military strength, Yang Ji did not hesitate to launch the Northern Expedition against Murongbei. If he easily won this battle, he would gain three major benefits: First, he could use Murongbei's army to supplement his own strength and use it to fight Tuyuhun. ; The second is to severely intimidate Qimin Khan, who is ambitious and intends to expand westward, so that he does not dare to go south and west when he is fighting south; third, it can introduce the Great Sui forces into the Great Lakes area, even if it is just to attack them Military rule can also threaten Qimin and Xue Yantuo at all times.
Yang Ji originally planned to lead 30,000 troops in this Northern Expedition, but his plan changed. Before he went on the expedition, he suddenly received a very important piece of information: I don’t know if it was Qimin Khan who ruled the unified East/Turks and planned to stay away. The fierce tiger of the Sui Dynasty was still preparing to march into the Great Lakes region. He appointed his second son Ashina Qilifushe as Mohe Dushe (military commander), who was in charge of the Northern Turkic Khan Court (Yanran Mountain or Yudujin Mountain). After Ashina Qilifushu was appointed, he gathered the tribes living on the border between Sui and Tujia one by one, and then moved northward with great momentum. He himself had 30,000 elite troops. If he added the Turkic Northern Yazhang, he Ten thousand garrison troops, as well as a large number of young men in various departments, at least a hundred thousand capable men.
It was this sudden but very important military information that forced Yang Ji to expand the Northern Expeditionary Army to 40,000 men. After all, the location of the Northern Turkic Khan's Court can be used to go south to Ganzhou or west to the Great Lakes Region. It is also a key point for Yang Ji to penetrate into the Great Lakes Region and withdraw his troops. His army might not be able to cope with a sudden attack on the Sui army or cut off the Sui army's retreat.
While adding 10,000 troops, Liu Wujian, the governor of Liangzhou and the general manager of the march, was ordered to lead the army to Xiutuze at the turn of Liangtu to put pressure on the Turkic South Khan Court in the northeast; at the same time, the general manager of Lingzhou, Zhao Cai, was asked to lead the army. The army marched north to Huaiyuan County in Lingzhou, guarding Liu Wujian from the flanks and intimidating the Southern Khan Court. (Note: Baicheng is the place where Changsun Sheng originally built on the order of Yang Jian to enlighten the people. This is also the southern Turkic Khan's court.)
After arranging everything, Yang Ji marched northwest from Zhangye, Ganzhou. He led him all the way north along Ruushui. After walking hundreds of miles, he arrived at Juyanze. Then he walked around Juyanze and walked northward. The prairie on the border between the Sui Dynasty and the northern tribes.
This 40,000-strong army was composed of three parts. The central army was led by Yang Ji with 20,000 elite soldiers. The right army was led by Tiger General Wei Yunqi with 10,000 Qiang soldiers. The left army was led by Li Jing, the governor of Tingzhou. Composed of 10,000 Ting and Yi coalition troops.
Yang Ji led the army first to the southwestern part of Huge Lake where they agreed to assemble. If you follow the three forks of the Jingang River in front to go north, you can enter the Great Lakes area. This was also the time when Shi Wansui and Yang Lun restrained Bujia Khan and welcomed Yang Ji. garrison place.
Although it was still early, Yang Ji had to wait for the arrival of the left army and the news of the vanguard army before he could make the next arrangement.
Three days before their departure, Xue Ju had already led three thousand fine cavalry as the vanguard, and entered the Great Lakes area one day before.
At this time, a group of cavalry rushed from the north. They were the vanguard scouts who entered the Great Lakes area first. They rushed to the commander's flag in a moment. The leader of the group bowed and saluted on horseback and said: "Your Majesty, for the time being, the five people by the lake are One hundred Xianbei troops have been captured, and there are no Xianbei troops stationed within three hundred miles."
Yang Ji nodded and asked, "Where are the Qiang people and other tribes? What's their attitude?"
This area is narrow from north to south and long from east to west, with flat terrain and vast expanse. The melted ice and snow from Jinshan Mountain has not only formed countless large and small lakes, but the abundant water has also formed a fertile and green prairie for thousands of miles, so this area It was also one of the areas of influence that Bujia Khan focused on at the beginning. After he was eliminated by Yang Ji, many Qiang, Xianbei, Tiele, and Sogdian people who coveted this place came here as nomads, although they were all small and medium-sized tribes. , usually attack each other endlessly, but once they gather together, they are also an army with tens of thousands of people.
Such an existence cannot be underestimated by Yang Ji who goes deep alone.
"Your Majesty! The many tribes in this area are very friendly and have no intention of being hostile to me, the Sui Dynasty." Dui Zheng answered with an overturned hand: "General Xue has had contact with the Qiang people before. Their attitude was particularly friendly and they also sent a lot of dried meat. , live sheep, I think someone will come to visit the king soon."
"Okay! Continue to inquire." Yang Jiling said.
"Here!" The team leader saluted and led his soldiers to ride back.
Yang Ji looked at the gloomy sky, and then said to Yu Chigong beside him: "Send the order and let the army choose a place to camp."
"Here!" With an order, the 30,000-strong army took action one after another. They moved tents from the army carriages and set up large tents. The war horses also gathered one after another to drink water at the lake. Although the art of war said that soldiers are fast, but Haste makes waste in many things. The Sui army was already exhausted after marching so quickly, and both men and horses needed to regain their strength. Secondly, the attitude of the nearby ministries was unclear. Although hasty action was beneficial to military occupation, it would leave many political consequences.
"Your Majesty! In this Northern Expedition, are we really going to extend our Sui power to the Great Lakes region?" It was Master Cui who spoke.
Cui Shi was the governor of Weizhou not long ago, but after Yang Ji decided to go on the Northern Expedition, he wrote to Yang Guang explaining the reasons for the Northern Expedition, and also stated the value and far-reaching significance of maintaining a military presence in the Great Lakes area. Yang Guang not only approved his Northern Expedition During the war, he also listened to his suggestions and decided to establish a purely military Moxi Governor's Mansion in the Great Lakes Region. Master Cui was Yang Guang's appointment as the Governor of Moxi. As long as Yang Ji defeated Murongbei and supported the new master of the Great Lakes Region, then Master Cui and Deputy Governor Shi Huaiyi formally established the Moxi Governor's Office in the Great Lakes area based on the 3,000 Weizhou troops to control the Great Lakes area militarily.
"This is necessary!" Yang Ji said: "The Great Lakes area is like Guanzhong. To the east is the Yudujin Mountain Range, to the west is the Jinshan Mountain Range, to the north is the intersection of the two mountain ranges, and to the south is the remaining Jinshan Mountains with few gaps. Therefore, it is not an exaggeration to say that it is easy to defend and difficult to attack. Its internal terrain is flat and fertile, so it is managed by Bujia Khan as a core place. Although Bujia Khan is dead now, the Qimin of the Eastern/Turkic people can Khan, Xue Yantuo's Yi lost his alms bowl, and his mouth is watering."
After the introduction, Yang Ji sighed again and said with a wry smile: "I worked with the ambitious Murongbei at the beginning. I thought that in order to realize his ambition of establishing the Xianbei Kingdom, he would have to rely on the support of me, the Sui Dynasty. Unexpectedly, the situation was slightly better. At one point, they tried to break away from the control of my Great Sui Dynasty. It can be seen that the aliens are really untrustworthy. If they support another person, the result will be the same. But if the military power in the Great Lakes Region is controlled by my Great Sui Dynasty, the situation will be completely different. As long as Our Sui Dynasty maintains a military presence in the Great Lakes area, so the Eastern Turks and Xueyantuo do not dare to attack and occupy this rich area, and the two cannot be connected together. At the same time, it can also deter them from carrying out any military operations. When you act, you have concerns.”
"If your Majesty wins this battle and establishes the Moxi Governor's Mansion adjacent to Liangzhou in the south, it will completely reverse the relationship between the Central Plains dynasty and the foreign tribes in the north, turning passive defense into active offense. At the same time, the war will take place in a foreign land. Protect our Sui Dynasty from the ravages of war." Master Cui said with a smile: "If this strategic goal is achieved, your Majesty will definitely leave his name in the annals of history."
Yang Ji shook his head and said: "I dare not say that my name will go down in history, but I hope I have a clear conscience, and I hope I will no longer be in trouble by raising tigers."
Master Cui heard this and nodded secretly.
Yang Ji was very promising at a young age, and after achieving a series of brilliant achievements, instead of being arrogant or arrogant, he was so clear-headed, which is really commendable. No wonder the saint dared to entrust him with important tasks. If it were any other young man, he would have been arrogant and arrogant. .
A group of patrol sentries cruising around the outside came from afar and said loudly: "Your Majesty, more than thirty chiefs of the Qiang tribe want to see you."
"Please!" Yang Ji also knew a lot about these scattered tribes living in the cracks.
There are more than a hundred of these tribes, each maintaining a piece of pasture to survive. The large ones have thousands of people, while the small ones have only a few hundred people. Among them, the Qiang tribe has lived a nomadic life nearby for generations; in the early days of the Sui Dynasty, It has not yet been unified, and because the Turkic Khanate is extremely powerful, the Sui army rarely reaches here, which makes them heavily oppressed by the Turks and forced to pay a large amount of sheep tax every year in order to survive.
In recent years, the situation between the Sui Dynasty and the Turks has been reversed. Although these tribes in the gap did not clearly indicate that they were subjects of the Sui Dynasty, they were afraid that the Sui Dynasty would destroy them, so they paid protection fees to Liangzhou in accordance with the Sui Dynasty tax system. , with this relationship between the two sides, Murong Bei and the Eastern Turks in the east did not dare to conquer them, so that they could live freely.
The leaders of the Qiang tribe who came to visit Yang Ji today are from the twelve nearby Qiang tribes. It can be seen that they are deeply influenced by Han culture, and almost everyone can speak fluent Chinese.
In a large tent that had just been built, Yang Ji received these more than 30 Qiang tribe chiefs and representatives. Master Cui also sat aside and listened. After all, he is the governor of the Moxi Governor's Mansion. His future contact with Liangzhou will still be through people here. Meeting him now will also help him communicate in the future.
After a brief exchange of greetings, Yang Ji asked: "You guys have come so quickly, you must have dealt with General Xue, right?"
"Your Majesty is right, we have indeed contacted General Xue!" A white-haired old man said respectfully: "In the past few years, Sui Dynasty not only allowed us to live here, but also only collected a symbolic amount of tax. Sheep, we are very grateful for the kindness of the Sui Dynasty and the king. Now that we heard that the king is about to go to the north, we have nothing to repay, so we specially sent 20,000 fat sheep, hoping that the king will win the battle and create another glorious record."
Yang Ji heard the implication of this old man's words, which was that he hoped that the Sui Dynasty would allow them to continue grazing here and not annex or expel them or increase taxes. He smiled and said: "As long as you are good friends in business travel with the Sui Dynasty, everything will remain as it is. In the future, we will trust each other and benefit from each other, and work together to maintain the prosperity and stability of this land. Even when you are attacked by powerful people, you can also seek help from the Sui Dynasty." Justice."
The old man said sincerely: "The king showed great power two years ago and led the Sui army to annihilate the main army of Bujia Khan, which caused the Turkic Khanate to fall into pieces and is still internal to this day. That brilliant victory that attracted worldwide attention, It has also brought great benefits to us.”
"What's the benefit?"
"In the past, in addition to forcing us to pay a large amount of taxes on sheep, the Turks would also rush into this grassland every spring and autumn and extort a large number of cattle, sheep and horses from us. But since the defeat and death of Bujia Khan, the Turks army has no longer Dare to enter this grassland. We have finally lived a good and peaceful life for two years!" When the old man said this, he glanced at Yang Ji and said with deep gratitude: "All the tribes here are grateful for the king's kindness. As long as the king If we continue to maintain the current taxation, everyone will be happy to do good to the Sui Dynasty."
Yang Ji nodded and said with a smile: "I also express my attitude to you! And I hope you will spread this attitude to all tribes."
The old man bowed and said respectfully: "Please give me your orders, Your Majesty!"
"The Great Sui Dynasty will treat all tribes well as always, and will neither occupy your pastures nor increase taxes. On the contrary, in the coming days, I will encourage the Great Sui merchants to come here to buy livestock and furs, so that the people of the Great Sui Dynasty can Eat your mutton, wear your fur coats, and use your animal power. At the same time, your tribes will be able to wear the best silks and satins, use exquisite porcelain, and read Han classics. With such complementary advantages and disadvantages, the economic capabilities of both sides will be better. It will be more prosperous, communication will be more convenient, and conflicts and misunderstandings will be less or even non-existent!”
Everyone was overjoyed when they heard this and bowed together, "With your Majesty's words, we are completely relieved."
Yang Ji pondered for a while, then continued with a smile: "In addition, I suggest that you each send dozens of students who are proficient in Chinese to go to Liangzhou University to study Sinology and arithmetic, and go to the market to understand the prices of various items. They will return after completing their studies. , we can use copper coins to evaluate and price each of your items according to the market conditions in the Sui Dynasty, so that you can be aware of it."
"Furthermore, the determination of commodity prices allows the copper coins of the Sui Dynasty to circulate here, and the use of copper coins has many benefits. First, after copper coins replace barter, there will be no inability to trade; secondly, everything is done with money. If you think about it, it will no longer happen that you need several divine horses to exchange for one pot, which can effectively prevent you from suffering big losses during the transaction process."
Everyone nodded in agreement: "When we get back, we will select our children to go south to Zhangye to study Chinese studies and arithmetic."
"Okay!" Yang Ji nodded with a smile.
To the south of this grassland is Liangzhou, to the west are Yizhou and Tingzhou, and to the east are the Eastern Turks. Once the Desert West Governor's Mansion in the north was established, these small independent tribes would be surrounded by the Sui Dynasty on three sides.
Although they are not the people of the Sui Dynasty now, the sheep tax they pay every year is the same as the herdsmen of the Sui Dynasty, so in fact, there is not much difference between them and the people of the Sui Dynasty. As long as there are more business travelers traveling from north to south, and copper coins are used as the common currency, and the various preferential treatments of the Sui Dynasty are guided and promoted, these small tribes will definitely compete to integrate into the Sui Dynasty, and there is no need to conquer or expel them by force.
