Chapter 945: The Mentality of Scholars Who Migrated to the South

Chapter 945: The Mentality of Scholars Who Migrated to the South

Chapter 945: The Mentality of Scholars Who Migrated to the South

Du Yi never thought that one day he would be entrusted with an important task.

Of course, he is the Danyang Cheng, theoretically the deputy of the Danyang prefect, but in reality he does not have much to do with things. However, he has suddenly become busy in recent days.

The prefect Liu Kun even told him that there was no need to avoid suspicion and that they should unite sincerely in times of hardship and danger, so he handed over all the criminal justice affairs to him.

Du Yi did not refuse and took over these trivial, boring and extremely energy-consuming political affairs.

It was the ninth day of the tenth month. There was not much to do today. Du Yi took a rare day off from being lazy, so he left the government office in the afternoon and rode an ox cart out of the city.

After leaving the city, he simply abandoned his car and walked.

The autumn harvest was over, and the paddy fields were bare and lifeless, just like Jianye at this time of year.

The only thing that makes people feel a little bit alive is probably what we see along the way: the manor owners use the slack time in farming to repair ponds and dams, and reclaim farmland around lakes, so that more and more farmland can be cultivated and more and more people can be fed.

Du Yi knew very well that the road he was walking on and the farmland beside the road were originally created by reclaiming land from the lake. At the end of the Han Dynasty, this place was still a field of water grass, reeds and silt with a faint odor. After decades of transformation, it gradually became fertile land with farmers living in it.

After another hundred years, the fields and paths are crisscrossed and the ponds are connected.

Willows swayed on both sides of the road, and the high-spirited young man galloped on his horse with a big laugh.

In the river pond, a light boat entered the water, and Wu Wa raised his hands and laughed, showing the lotus roots he had just dug.

There were also those rich young men who were drunk, standing in groups by the river, pointing and talking at the girl whose clothes were wet from picking lotus roots, and occasionally uttering malicious laughter.

The girl turned away shyly and gently rowed the boat into the reed marsh.

The scenery in the south of the Yangtze River is so beautiful!

Du Yi stroked his beard and watched all this quietly. He felt that all the fatigue in his body disappeared and he was in an extremely happy mood.

After walking for a long time, a gray-brown manor appeared in front of us.

That is the Du family’s manor.

His father Du Xi was a literary official in the Changsha Palace. Later, he moved south to Jianye and worked in the Langya Prince's court.

Because they moved south early, they were able to live in the suburbs of Jianye and got a not-too-large manor with a few hundred farmhands - to be honest, it was nothing compared to the family business they had in the north.

His father had passed away, and Du Yi first served as a staff member and then as the magistrate of Danyang, and it has been three years since then.

Danyang County was very important because Jianye was located within this county. Danyang County, the Yangzhou governor, and the shogunate all had their capitals in this city.

Du Xi was Du Yu's eldest son and he had three younger brothers.

The second brother, Du Ji, once served as the prefect of Xinping. Now he stays in Guanzhong to guard the ancestral home.

Du Ji would cooperate with whoever took control of Guanzhong. Even if he wanted to protect his reputation and didn't want to be an official, there would always be people from his clan who would become officials, and they would also marry into the forces that occupied Guanzhong.

The third brother Du Dan and the fourth brother Du Yin run another family business in Yiquanwu, Yiyang. They are now serving as officials under the rule of King Liang.

Du Dan was appointed as the prefect of Xingyang - if not for some coincidence, historically Du Dan would have been able to go to the Liangzhou shogunate to serve as a military commander.

Du Yin's granddaughter married Shao Shen, the nephew of King Liang and the guerrilla general, while he himself served as the prefect of Hongnong and the commander of the Sili Army.

The four brothers were divided into three groups and were all very powerful.

After entering the manor, Du Yi first went to visit his mother, and then asked about matters at home. After everything was fine, he went to the study.

His cousin Du Bi was kneeling behind the desk, reading a book with great interest.

Since Du Xi could serve as the literary officer of Sima Yi's palace, he must have good knowledge, and the collection of books in the palace was very rich. When he crossed the river to the south, he would rather take less gold and silver, but he could not leave behind books.

Since arriving at the manor yesterday, Du Bi has been reading in the mansion and enjoying himself - Du Bi is the second son of Du Yin and the cousin of Du Yi.

"Yi Zhi." Du Yi took off his shoes at the door, walked in with a smile, knelt down opposite Du Bi, and said, "You don't read the classics, but read the stories of gods and ghosts instead."

"It's nice." Du Bi put the book down and said, "I'm in Yiquanwu, and it's a pleasure to read miscellaneous books when I have nothing to do."

"How is Yiquanwu?" Du Yi asked.

"Too big, people will envy us." Du Bi shook his head and said, "My family has already released a group of people, but now there are still 6,000 households and more than 30,000 people. Last month, my father said that we should release another group and hand them over to King Liang. He can send them wherever he wants."

"Six thousand families." Du Yi smiled bitterly and said, "There are not even six hundred families in my village."

"You can't say that." Du Bi smiled and said, "I came here with nothing to do, so I went to the fields for you. I saw all the way -"

"how?"

"If we clear the dirt, reeds, and bushes, how difficult will it be to get hundreds of hectares of land?"

"We are doing all these things, but we are not able to do much because of insufficient population and the constant collection of labor and grain." Du Yi said helplessly, "In fact, it is not just the Du family. Even Wang Maohong is worried about the lack of farmhands. There are more than 5 million people in Jiangnan, and most of them are in the hands of the native tribes. The Zhou family of Yixing is unknown, but every time there is an incident, they can send out more than 10,000 soldiers and horses. It's okay to have a large number of people, but these troops are quite good at fighting. Why is that?"

"Practice diligently." Du Bi said.

Du Yi nodded and said, "They practice diligently. This shows the wealth of the Jiangdong natives such as Zhou, Shen, and Qian. They may not be much worse than the big families like Gu, Lu, Zhu, and Zhang. My family business cannot be compared with theirs. None of the scholars who migrated south can compare with them."

"What if we drive all the people of Quanwu southward?" Du Bi asked.

Du Yi was silent. From the perspective of family business, this was not a bad thing. We were all family, so we could just sit down and discuss and divide our respective shares. It was nothing complicated.

But my cousin said that this matter was not simple, because it implied a premise: King Liang occupied the entire Jiangnan region and his orders were effective in the former territory of Eastern Wu.

"Brother?" Du Bi looked at the silent Du Yi and said with a wicked smile, "Are you scared?"

Du Yi glared at him unhappily and said, "After not seeing you for so many years, you have become so slick."

Du Bi smiled when he heard this and said, "I have been dealing with military strategists for many years in Yiyang, and I have changed unconsciously."

"Too much contact with military men is never a good thing."

"The customs in the north are different. Even though military men are still looked down upon, it is better than in the south."

"That's right. Shao Xun is a military strategist, and he has already accomplished something, alas."

"It's more than just accomplishment." Du Bi said seriously, "His foundation is not empty at all. The twenty counties of Liang State are the foundation of his career, and there are more than ten counties outside the twenty counties that are the same. The warriors wish he could be the emperor now, and the Hu people also want to win him over. He is different from those self-proclaimed kings who rise and fall quickly. Even if he kills the king to take the throne, I don't think it's a big deal."

Du Yi was silent again.

A family like theirs that was divided into different places certainly wasn't isolated from the news. Even though they didn't know the North very well, they knew the general situation pretty well.

As for Du Yi, he also believed that among all the heroes in the north, Shao Xun, who fought to the end and reaped the fruits of victory, had the most stable foundation, even more stable than the pseudo-Han established by Liu Yuan - although the five tribes of the Xiongnu had 500,000 people, they were still divided into various tribes internally, and the tribes were not separated, and the people were not registered as one. Everything depended on the loyalty of the tribal nobles, so the foundation was really not very stable.

Of course, Shao Xun’s current situation is inseparable from his twenty years of management.

His disciples were spread across all the counties of Liang State and gradually climbed to high positions.

He won over a large number of wives' relatives and separated them from the gentry as a whole.

The establishment of the government soldiers was a stroke of genius, as it created a large group to suppress the scholars and the Hu people. This group did not distinguish between Hu and Han, noble and humble. As long as one joined it, they would become an independent group with their own will.

The most important thing is that it is difficult for the government soldiers to rebel and they are a powerful tool for stabilizing the local area.

In addition, he often does things to gain popularity, giving benefits and prestige, so he is always successful.

Du Bi was right. Even if he really killed the king, it would not be a big deal.

"Yi Zhi." Du Yi opened his mouth with a dejected look on his face and said, "The King of Langya has done a favor to my family, but I cannot betray him."

"Brother!" Du Bi's face changed and he said.

Du Yi waved his hand, signaling him not to say anything for now.

"If Shao's troops attack, I will serve the King of Langya." Du Yi said, "But if things are impossible, I will not fight to the death."

Du Bi suddenly realized.

This is the attitude of my brother, and it is actually also the attitude of many scholars who have moved south, especially those families that have been divided into different factions.

They didn't have a very pleasant life in Jiangnan.

It is difficult for them to get the land that is ready for development. Even if they do get it, it is mostly in the hands of powerful people like Wang Dao.

If they wanted to expand their family business, they could only open up new land, which was not an easy task.

Spending money is a small matter; death is the most troublesome thing.

There were originally few soldiers and farmhands, and some of them had to be spent on reclaiming the land, so the business was run with great difficulty and was very slow.

Therefore, the current situation in Jiangnan is like this: the Tu people have advantages in population, economy, and military, but are at a disadvantage politically. The situation of the scholars who have moved south is just the opposite. The two sides fight and compromise constantly, and finally reach a temporary balance.

This factor was the reason why Du Yi was not completely opposed to Shao Xun going south to occupy Jiangdong.

However, due to his personal integrity and code of conduct, he was unwilling to betray King Langya.

He is actually just a microcosm; many scholars who moved south had this mentality.

For Shao Xun, who was determined to unify the country, this was actually quite good.

They are unwilling to surrender, but they will not resist either. To put it bluntly, they are just loyal to their duties and personal values ​​and doing the best they can.

There is a huge difference between working hard and fighting to the death.

"I know exactly what you mean, brother." Du Bi said, "This world has been in chaos for long enough, and it is time to unify it. After peace is restored, I will bring my troops to Jiangnan and work with you to manage the property. King Liang said that the land in Jiangnan will not be measured."

"The King of Liang knows how to manipulate people's hearts." Du Yi sighed, "This is the method of besieging three sides of a city and leaving one side open when attacking it, so that the nobles in the world will feel lucky and unwilling to resist stubbornly."

"There should be people from Guanzhong heading south as well." Du Bi added, "The number of Han and Hu civilians they brought with them may be more than that of Yiquanwu."

Du Yi shook his head and laughed, saying, "Come on, everyone. Let the people of Wu see who has a richer family background once the northern nobles get serious."

Du Bi also laughed.

After a moment, he whispered, "If any of my nephews are talented, you can go back to Yiyang with me to meet the brothers and sisters in the clan."

Du Yi did not refuse, he was powerless to refuse.

(End of this chapter)