When Huan Xi captured the city in Longyou, the east wind that killed Hu also blew into Guanzhong.
Huan Xi came from a later generation, and his soul was passed down as a descendant of a noble family in the south. He had no personal experience of the conflicts between Hu and Han during this period.
He only focused on the population data under his rule, paying attention to how many tax-paying households and military service households there were. Therefore, against the background of labor shortage in Guanzhong, Huan Xi advocated easing the conflict between Hu and Han rather than intensifying it.
But the hatred between Hu and Han that has accumulated for decades cannot be resolved overnight.
"Jin Yang Qiu" written by Sun Sheng, who was a member of Huan Wen's army, once recorded that when the Jie people fought, they would bring Han women with the army to raise them as two-legged sheep, not only for them to vent their animal desires, but also as military rations when marching and fighting.
When the news that Shi Min killed Hu in Yecheng reached Guanzhong, the Han people were full of revenge, while the Hu people were frightened.
Quan Yi, who stayed behind in Chang'an, worked hard to appease the Hu and Han people, and finally received instructions from Wang Meng from Yong County, which contained only one sentence:
Regardless of Hu or Han, private fights are strictly prohibited. Anyone who hurts others will be punished, and anyone who kills will die.
Huan Xi had never experienced hardship, but Wang Meng was born in poverty. He was homeless in the north when he was a boy, and he had witnessed the bullying of the Han people by the Hu people countless times.
But as a ruler, he must put aside his hatred. With a total population of 110,000 households in Guanzhong, it is impossible for him to withstand killing each other.
Even if Huan Xi takes all of Longyou, not to mention the Qiuchi Kingdom, there will only be more than 36,000 households in Longyou.
If the Han people are really allowed to take revenge and massacre the Hu people in Guanzhong, if the incident spreads to Guandong, and if they want to go east, they will definitely arouse the desperate resistance of the Hu people.
Wang Meng and Quan Yi used force to suppress ethnic conflicts and temporarily resolved the crisis caused by the killing of Hu Ling.
However, Wang Meng still had little leisure time. Although Huan Xi allocated fields to the Hu people, some of the Hu people did not know how to farm at all. Seeing that spring plowing was approaching, Wang Meng had to personally take care of the matter and arranged for agricultural officials to go to various places to teach the Hu people how to farm. technology.
At the same time, news spread that Huan Xi defeated the coalition forces of Wang Zhuo and Yang Chu in Lueyang, and all counties in Qinzhou were shocked.
The distance between Tianshui County and Lueyang County was only more than 500 miles. In just two days, Wang Zhuo's head was sent to Tianshui City.
The choice before those who stayed behind was simple. There were only a total of 36,000 households in Longxi. In the Battle of Lueyang, the combined forces of Wang and Yang totaled 34,000 people, and they spent almost everything they had.
Now Huan Xi released surrender troops in Lueyang, but even if these surrender troops returned to their hometowns, they were still waiting for the Jin army to come to divide the fields, so how could they resist the king's division.
Even though many surrendered soldiers received the food supplies, they were unwilling to leave and had to lead the way for the Jin army.
Wang Tiao's defeat at Lueyang can be said to have ruined Qinzhou's military strength. Facing the king's western expedition, how could the Han people be loyal to Jie and Zhao.
The Jin army was still halfway there, but the powerful Tianshui troops had already arrived at the county boundary to welcome the king's army.
Tianshui scholars were represented by the Zhao family.
At the end of the Warring States period, after the fall of the Zhao Kingdom, Zhao Jia, the king of Dai, fought against the Qin Dynasty in Dai for six years. He was defeated and captured, and his family moved to Xianyang. His son Zhao Gongfu settled in Tianshui during the Qin and Han Dynasties and became the founder of the Zhao family in Tianshui.
Of course, the most famous figure among the Tianshui Zhao family must be Zhao Chongguo, one of the eleven heroes of the Qilin Pavilion of Emperor Xuan of the Han Dynasty and the famous general of the Western Han Dynasty.
During this period, the most outstanding figure in the Zhao family was Huan Xi who summoned Zhao Ju alone after meeting with the Tianshui scholars.
Different from the original time and space, Zhao Ju did not go east to join Fu Hong at this time. Instead, he saw Huan Xi's northern expedition and captured Guanzhong. He knew that Huan Xi would definitely move west, so he stayed in Longyou and waited for the Ming Dynasty.
Of course Huan Xi knew this man's experience, otherwise he wouldn't have called him here alone.
In the original time and space, Zhao Juguan came to the former Qin Shangshu Ling. His talents need not be described in detail.
And because he was ashamed that his brothers Zhao Shao and Zhao Hui were flattering the emperor, he killed Zhongliang and finally died of sorrow and anger.
What Huan Xi likes most is this kind of talented and loyal people.
Thinking of Wang Meng working as an ox and horse for him in Yong County, Huan Xi was afraid that he would fall ill from overwork, so he had to find some helpers in government affairs for Wang Meng.
After all, if Wang Meng died young, how could Huan Xi live such a leisurely life.
I'm afraid that even if I'm marching and fighting, I still have to take time to take care of military affairs.
When Zhao Ju met Huan Xi for the first time, although he did not feel heroic, he was amazed by his appearance.
Huan Xi was nineteen years old at the time. He was 1.8 meters tall, with a long body and handsome face. It would not be too much to praise him for his beauty.
Zhao Ju bowed respectfully, raised his hands and asked:
"I wonder why Duke Huan called me here?"
When it got dark, the Jin army had already set up camp. Huan Xi pointed to the edge of the couch and said:
"Mr. Zhao, please sit down."
Zhao Ju followed his words and sat upright.
Huan Xi then said:
"I disturb Duke Zhao at night to ask for advice on how to govern the country and bring peace to the country. I also ask Duke Zhao to give you some advice."
When Zhao Ju heard this, he became energetic. He was looking for an opportunity to show what he had learned in front of Huan Xi, so he started talking eloquently.
In the handsome tent, the sound of Huan Xi stroking his hands and cheering could be heard from time to time.
In a corner of the Jin army's camp, the Tianshui Zhao family's tent was placed here.
It was getting late, and Zhao Shao never saw Zhao Ju coming back, so he couldn't help but envy:
"My cousin has not returned yet. It seems that Duke Huan will be of great use."
Zhao Ji was also envious of him. Among brothers of the same clan, Zhao Ju had become famous early and attracted the attention of all forces. Wang Zhuo had conquered several times, but Zhao Ju refused due to illness. Now Huan Xi summoned him alone, which was expected. things.
However, although the two men were not noble in virtue and could even be called despicable, they had a deep relationship with their brother Zhao Ju, and they did not feel jealous because Zhao Ju was favored by Huan Xi.
Huan Xi and Zhao Ju talked all night long, admiring his talents very much. Seeing that it was already dawn, the two of them had finished talking, and Huan Xi asked:
"Huan wants to conquer Duke Zhao and serve as a lieutenant in the shogunate. Is Duke Zhao willing to give in?"
Zhao Ju came here just to get a place beside Huan Xi, and he quickly bowed:
"My lord, if Zhao Ju is old and condescending to consult with you, how can Zhao Ju dare not do his best to repay your lord for his kindness?"
Although Zhao Ju claimed to be old, he was actually only forty years old. In later generations, he was still in his prime. Of course, in ancient times when people in their thirties could call themselves old men, his statement was not a bad idea.
Huan Xi was overjoyed. He stepped forward to help Zhao Ju up, held his hand tightly, and laughed loudly:
"My husband is like a fish in water."
Once you have a territory and a reputation, recruiting wise men is easier than before.
At first, both Xi Chao and Wang Meng had to be invited by Huan Xi, but now it is the talented people who come to join them.
Huan Xi won the allegiance of Zhao Ju and immediately sent someone to escort him to Yong County to take office in the shogunate.
I believe that with such an assistant, Wang Meng doesn’t have to pay attention to every detail and do everything personally.
There are many talented people in this world, but there are very few who truly have both ability and political integrity.
Huan Xi has always followed a principle in selecting talents. At the local level, meritocracy can be used, but those who truly hold central power must have both ability and political integrity.
Having virtue but no talent is mediocrity; having talent but no virtue is treachery.
Only one who possesses both moral integrity and talent can be called a virtuous prime minister.
As for Tianshui scholars such as Zhao Shao and Zhao Hui, Huan Xi will also use them, but he will not be promoted to the central government immediately, but will be arranged to conduct inspections in the local area in advance.
Anyone who is willing to serve as an official under Huan Xi will follow Zhao Ju in front of Yong County, and Wang Meng will recruit them according to their talents.
Huan Xi is now focused on seizing the counties in Qinzhou and resisting the invasion of Qianliang, so he has no energy to test their talents one by one.
Along the way, Huan Xi treated the nobles from various places in the same way.
He was able to completely trust Wang Meng, in addition to his reputation in history, but also because Wang Meng came from a poor background, had no clan power, and was completely dependent on Huan Xi.
If Wang Meng came from a high-ranking family such as the Wang family of Langya or the Xie family of Chenjun, Huan Xi would not dare to trust him unreservedly no matter how ambitious he was.
Of course, it was Huan Xi's unreserved trust that made Wang Meng work hard and work hard to plan important events for him.
The Tianshui Zhao family surrendered to Huan Xi, which immediately triggered a chain reaction, and nobles from all over the country joined in.
At this time, the Tianshui Zhao family deserved the title of the first noble family in Longyou, otherwise the Zhao family would not have been as prominent as in the former Qin Dynasty.
Not only was Zhao Ju the minister, but Zhao Shao also held a high position, serving successively as ministers Youpu She and Zuo Pushe. Zhao Jiuguan worshiped the Central Protector and Sili Xiaowei, and was in charge of the military power in the capital.
As for the Li family of Longxi, who became famous in later generations, they have just left the category of a poor family.
During the Western Han Dynasty, the Li family in Longxi belonged to a family of military generals. However, during the formation and development of the Wei and Jin dynasties, their status as a military family declined and they became a poor family.
Decades ago, before Li Yan became an official, his family began to practice Confucianism, and the social status of the Li family in Longxi finally improved.
It was not until 400 AD, half a century later, that Li Hao established the Xiliang regime, and the Li family in Longxi was able to soar into the sky.
Nowadays, all parts of Qinzhou have surrendered, and even before the Jin army arrived, the Jin flag was already flying at the top of the city, and the situation was gratifying.
Deng Qiang, who was ordered to escort Yang Chu back to China, had a smooth journey. When passing through Wudu County, he remembered Huan Xi's instructions before leaving and went to the city to look for brothers Mao Xing and Mao Dang.
The Mao brothers were powerful Di people and had great prestige among the local Di people.
The Mao family in Wudu was married to the Fu Hong family, whose ancestral home was Lueyang and who were both Di people.
However, when Deng Qiang arrived, he learned that brothers Mao Xing and Mao Dang had already taken their families eastward and were living in Fangtou, serving under Fu Hong's command.
Along with this, even Mao Xing's young daughter, the future Queen Mao, was also taken to Guandong.
Deng Qiang was just following Huan Xi's instructions. He asked along the way and didn't feel too sorry that he didn't see the Mao brothers.
After staying one night in Wudu, Deng Qiang left Shi Yue with five hundred troops to guard Wudu city, waiting for people from the rear to take over, while he continued to escort Yang Chu back to his country.
Shi Yue has the same name as Shi Bao's eldest son, but he is not from the Jie Zhao clan. He lived in Shiping County, Yongzhou (today's Xingping, Shaanxi Province). Huanxi's Northern Expedition captured the four counties of Shiping, so he defected to serve under Huanxi.
This man was brave and good at fighting, quite strategic, and good at judging the overall situation, so he was valued by Huan Xi. This time he followed Deng Qiang southward to capture and defend Wudu City.
But I didn't expect that when the troops came to the city, Wudu had already changed its banner.
Leaving Wudu City, you are already a stone's throw away from the capital of Qiuchi.
At this time, just as Huan Xi threatened Yang Chu, when the news of Yang Chu's defeat and capture spread back to the country, a civil strife broke out in Qiu Chi.
