69novels Chapter 1070: Advance Arrangements for the Three Counties of the North!
Chapter 1070: Advance Arrangements for the Three Counties of the North!
“What’s even more critical is the food supply.” Li Zhao, who was in charge of logistics, frowned. “The three northern prefectures originally had a population of over 1.4 million, but after Xiang Yu’s forced conscription and the chaos of war, only about a million remain. Eighty percent of the people have less than a month’s worth of food in their homes. If there is no food relief before the autumn harvest, I fear there will be great chaos.”
Gao Yao's finger slowly traced the winding curve of the Great Wall on the map, finally stopping at the location of Longxi County. "How are things on the Qiang side?"
"The Fourth Army has completely taken control of the Qiang royal court and captured forty-seven nobles, including the Qiang king," Xiao He reported in the military report. "However, the Qiang territory is vast and scattered, and if we want to bring it under our rule, we need to send officials and establish prefectures and counties, which is not something that can be accomplished overnight."
A brief silence fell over the main hall of Xiao He's residence, broken only by the crackling of the candlelight. Gao knew that every decision made at this moment could influence the fate of the nation for decades to come.
After three days and nights of continuous discussion, a complete defense plan for the Great Wall was finally formed.
First, troop deployment. Gao Yao decided to draw elite troops from the newly reorganized four army groups to form the "Northern Frontier Garrison Army," with a strength of 50,000. Among them, 20,000 were heavy infantry, equipped with halberds and powerful crossbows, specializing in the defense of passes; 15,000 were light cavalry, responsible for patrolling and maneuvering along the Great Wall; 10,000 were chariot and engineering troops, responsible for the construction and maintenance of fortifications; and the remaining 5,000 were logistics and supply troops.
"Does anyone have a nomination for the commander of the garrison?" Gao Yao looked around at everyone.
Wu She stood up and clasped his hands in a fist salute: "This humble general recommends Chen Zhao, the former Commandant of Beidi. He comes from a prominent family in Beidi and is familiar with the terrain of various passes along the Great Wall. He once fought against the Xiongnu with General Meng Tian, but later went into seclusion because he was dissatisfied with Zhao Gao's monopoly of power. When Xiang Yu occupied Beidi, Chen Ping refused to cooperate, and seventeen male members of his clan were conscripted into the Chu army, of whom only five returned."
Gao Yao nodded: "Summon Chen Zhao to Xianyang. I want to see him in person."
Second, the defense system was innovated. Zhang Liang proposed the concept of "three lines of defense": the first line was the Great Wall itself, which required the construction of 300 beacon towers on the existing foundation to ensure that the smoke signals could be heard within a hundred miles; the second line was the chain of fortified outposts 30 miles south of the Great Wall, which would establish 50 garrison outposts, each with 200 soldiers, to serve as early warning and to delay enemy cavalry; the third line was the reinforcement of the main cities in the three northern prefectures to ensure that even if the Great Wall was lost, the Xiongnu would not be able to advance unimpeded.
Li Zhao added: "I suggest restoring the Qin system of 'migrating people to strengthen the borders.' One hundred thousand households of criminals, sons-in-law, and merchants should be relocated from Guanzhong and Bashu to the three northern prefectures. Each household should be given one hundred mu of land and exempted from taxes for three years. However, each household should provide one able-bodied man to participate in the rotation of guarding the forts."
“This plan is excellent, but it needs to be refined.” Gao Yao pondered. “The relocated people should be provided with sufficient food, seeds, and farming tools to settle down, and the government should send agricultural instructors to guide farming in the north. In addition, a ‘border merit title’ should be established, and those soldiers and civilians who kill Xiongnu heads should be rewarded according to the Qin twenty-rank system of nobility.”
The difficulty of restoring people's livelihoods is no less than that of military deployment.
Xiao He presented a thick ledger: "Your Majesty, together with the Minister of Grain, we have calculated that if we want to ensure that the million people in the north will not starve to death by the autumn harvest, at least two million shi of grain will be needed. Currently, the granary in Xianyang has 1.2 million shi of grain, and the counties in Bashu and Guandong can mobilize 800,000 shi, but there is still a shortfall."
Gao Yao closed his eyes and pondered for a moment. When he opened them, he had already made a decision: "First, the palace expenses will be halved, and the salaries of the imperial family and officials will be temporarily reduced by 70%, saving 200,000 shi of grain; second, we will borrow grain from wealthy merchants in Nanjun and other places, promising them the salt and iron monopoly rights as collateral; third, we will order the navy to open up grain routes along the Wei River and the Yellow River, purchase grain from Qi, and transport it by sea to the north."
"Furthermore," he continued, "farming in the three northern prefectures must be restored immediately. Order: all unclaimed land shall be confiscated by the government and distributed to landless people; the government shall provide oxen and farm implements for rent, with the rent to be paid in grain after the autumn harvest; one hundred agricultural officials shall be selected and sent to the northern prefectures to promote the alternating field system and the zoned planting system."
Zhang Liang reminded him, "My lord, six or seven out of ten men in the north have left, so there may be a shortage of labor."
“Women and the elderly can also work in the fields,” Gao Yao said resolutely. “In addition, we will select 30,000 soldiers from the surrendered soldiers who have committed less serious crimes and are willing to reform themselves, and organize them into ‘military agricultural camps’. The army will supervise the reclamation and cultivation of the wasteland, and half of the grain produced will be used as military rations and the other half will go into the government granary.”
Li Zhao recorded these orders and then asked, "The cities and towns of the three prefectures are mostly damaged, government offices are abandoned, and officials have either fled or died. How can government orders be effectively implemented?"
“Three hundred officials will be transferred from Guanzhong to serve in the north,” Gao Yao said. “A special ‘border county examination’ will be opened to recruit literate people from the north. After three months of training, they will serve as village officials, pavilion chiefs, and other grassroots clerks. All children from the north who enter the Xianyang Academy will be exempt from tuition fees and will be provided with food and lodging.”
Xiao He added the most crucial point: "I suggest establishing a 'Northern Pacification Commissioner' to oversee the military and political affairs of the three prefectures and coordinate military and civilian affairs."
Gao Yao's gaze swept over the crowd: "This position is perfect for Xiao He. Are you willing to go?"
Xiao He bowed deeply to the ground: "I would gladly die ten thousand times over."
The handling of the newly acquired territory by the Qiang people is even more complex and delicate.
The military report from Wang Li, the commander of the Fourth Army Group, detailed the current situation of the Qiang people: there were more than a hundred Qiang tribes of varying sizes, with a population of about 300,000. They lived a nomadic life, moving with the flow of water and pasture. After the Qiang king was captured, the attitudes of the tribal leaders varied. Some were willing to submit, some were waiting and seeing, and three tribes even joined forces to migrate eastward, intending to surrender to the Xiongnu.
“The Qiang region should not be abandoned, nor should it be forcibly governed,” Zhang Liang analyzed. “In the past, King Huiwen of Qin conquered the Yiqu and established the Beidi Commandery. However, the Qiang people are different from the Yiqu. They live further west and are more aggressive. If we forcibly establish a commandery, it may cause unrest.”
Gao Yao agreed with this assessment: "The Qiang region was established with the Qiang Central Protectorate, without the establishment of prefectures or counties, and was governed by the military prefecture. Wang Chuan concurrently served as the Protector-General of the Qiang, leading 10,000 troops stationed at the location of the Qiang royal court."
In terms of governance strategy, the eight-character principle of "mainly controlling and supplementing with assimilation" was established:
First, the tribal structure of the Qiang people was preserved, and the status of the chieftain remained unchanged. However, they were required to receive their official seals from the Protectorate and promise not to rebel, not to raid the border, and to pay tribute on time. The tribute was not gold or silver, but warhorses—the Qiang region was rich in fine horses, which were precisely the strategic resources that Gaoyao urgently needed.
Secondly, five "mutual markets" were established to exchange tea, salt, cloth, and ironware for the Qiang people's horses, cattle, sheep, and furs. The mutual markets were monopolized by the government, with fair prices, and private markets were strictly prohibited.
Third, recruit Qiang warriors to form the "Qiang Cavalry Battalion," with a strength of three thousand, led by a Qiang chieftain, but they must accept training and equipment from the Han army. The Qiang Cavalry Battalion will receive preferential treatment, and those who make meritorious contributions will be rewarded in the same way as the Han army.
Fourth, fifty Confucian scholars fluent in the Qiang language were dispatched to teach the sons of Qiang chieftains Chinese and the written language, and to spread agricultural and medical techniques. Qiang people who voluntarily migrated inland were granted land and houses, registered in the household register, and exempted from taxes for ten years.
“The most important point,” Gao Yao emphasized, “is that officials, soldiers and civilians are strictly prohibited from bullying the Qiang people, and violators will be beheaded. Disputes between the Qiang and Han people shall be adjudicated by the Protectorate General and the chieftains in a fair manner.”
Wu She raised military concerns: "What should we do if the Qiang people are fickle?"
"The garrison of the Protectorate must be elite and capable of suppressing rebellions at any time," Gao Yao said. "But more importantly, we must spread benevolence and trust so that the Qiang people know the benefits of submission and the harm of rebellion. At the same time, we should build post roads from Longxi to the Qiang region to ensure the smooth flow of military orders and supplies."