Chapter 971: Duwei and Sima

Chapter 971: Duwei and Sima

Chapter 971: Duwei and Sima

The reform of the electoral system is a secret and will not be made public for the time being, but a complete plan needs to be put forward before the winter month.

Even if it is rough and needs to be revised, you have to come up with a plan.

This is Mao Bang's most important job at the moment. He is also fully committed to this matter, because it is likely to be recorded in history books!
Even though Wang Yan was the one who took the lead, he would surely go down in history as he assisted in the official system reform and was listed there.

They might also be despised by the sons of scholars, because they could not be drinking and having fun one moment and be picked up by a bus sent by the court to become an official the next moment.

In a nutshell, scholars still have great advantages in becoming officials, but they need to work hard, and more importantly, they need to learn and compete.

If you don't want to fall behind at the starting line, you should throw away the Wu Shi San now, start studying hard, and strive to become a high-ranking official.

If you feel that you don't have the ability to be a high-ranking official, then you can become a "Yimen" official who does specific work. Anyway, you have an estate at home, so stop playing around and take an active part in its management.

The manors are not small, and many county magistrates have smaller populations than you do. If you can manage a manor well, you will be able to manage a county.

It’s a pity that most people are still in a state of confusion, and they only care about criticizing Shao thief in their hearts, and don’t know how to work hard in advance.

Among these people, Bian Tao was the one who hit the jackpot by accident.

His father, Bian Dun, was the governor of Chenliu.

This county is one of the most important in the world, but his father is not in good health and he doesn't know how many years he can serve as the prefect. Bian Tao has no other choice.

Now I can only work hard.

One day, Prime Minister Wang Yan sent someone to Bian Tao's residence and asked, "Yingzhi, do you want an official position?"

Of course!
It’s just that his official position is a bit strange: an eighth-rank Duzhi Duwei Sima.

Bian Tao thought about it for a whole day and then agreed.

He quietly returned to Jiyin, took off his scholar's robe, changed into military uniform, and put on the bow that he hadn't touched for at least five years, and took up his post.

After arriving in Bianliang and receiving the official uniform and seal, he hurried to Wenshijin Ferry to meet his chief officer.

"Get on the boat." A loud shout with a heavy accent was heard in the river breeze that carried a strong fishy smell.

Bian Tao was startled and looked up, only to see a small boat coming from the north shore with a man standing on the bow, waving.

Soon, the boat arrived at the ferry.

Bian Tao seized the opportunity and jumped onto the boat.

The Duzhi Duwei (rank 7) looked him up and down and said, "How can you be a military officer with your physique?"

"Duwei Sima is not a military officer." Bian Tao defended: "There are many Sima, and they are not military positions."

"If you say it's not true, then it's not true." The captain said helplessly: "Prince Liang was once the lieutenant Sima of Donghai State."

Bian Tao pursed his lips.

"I am Fu An from Lueyang." Fu An's voice was quite loud when he said this.

Bian Tao glanced at him and said, "Bian Tao from Jiyin."

When Fu An introduced himself, he spoke very loudly on purpose, as if to raise his own status.

But he obviously didn't realize that Bian Tao was a scholar from Jiyin and had never been in the officialdom, so how could he know about the Fu family of Lueyang? He didn't even know which noble families there were in Lueyang.

But he was his superior after all, so Bian Tao suppressed his discomfort and said, "Lueyang Fu clan? They are a famous clan in Central China. With Fu clan here, the other Hu people will not dare to act rashly."

Fu An's face froze, and he didn't say much, only saying: "Now it is the Fu family of Ji County."

Bian Tao didn't think much of it at first, but when he heard it again, he almost fell off the boat.

He remembered!
Isn't this the Di chieftain Fu Jia who moved from Lueyang to Fangtou, Ji County? His face suddenly became very ugly. It was his first time meeting a colleague, and his immediate superior, and such a thing happened. It was really not going well.

Neither of them spoke anymore.

The boat rowed slowly across the muddy river and drifted towards the other side.

Opposite is Fangtou. The landmark event of King Liang's capture of Hebei was the construction of a city in Fangtou and the repulsion of Shi Le's offensive. Since then, Shi Le's rule in Yecheng has become precarious, and it can even be said that it is doomed to fail. The only suspense is how long it can last.

Thinking of this, Bian Tao couldn't help but sigh. Some people privately joked that the King of Liang "adopted the princess as his official", and the "princess" was both the princess and the mistress, but he really didn't take any shortcuts in his conquest of the world, and all his enemies were defeated by him.

Was Shi Le a bad man? Maybe not at the beginning, but after so many years of fighting, his people became more capable of fighting.

Were the Xiongnu really that bad? Probably not at the beginning, but after more than ten years of fighting, they were able to defeat the Xiliang soldiers repeatedly and crush their intention to go east.

The Tuoba Xianbei's armor and long spears were used for hard charging and fighting, and they were also extremely powerful.

The growth process of this group of people is similar to that of the heroes at the end of the Han Dynasty, and the process of King Liang's conquest of the north is also similar to that of Cao Mengde.

Bian Tao looked quietly at the city that was growing taller and taller, his eyes somewhat confused.

Maybe I was too arrogant before.

"Splash!" There was a sound of water splashing, and the boat had already approached the river.

The transport troops on the ship immediately stood up and lined up to go ashore.

Bian Tao followed Fu An and landed on the land of Hebei.

Outside the two cities of Fangtou, north and south, there were crowds of people everywhere.

"Captain, this is..." Bian Tao pointed to a place not far away and asked.

"The court has ordered 5,000 men to be dispatched to Liyang to follow Yicong's army southward." Fu An said, "Have you seen those ships? They are from Yecheng, fully loaded with food and military supplies. My troops will load them on the ships in Fangtou and send them to Runan." "Is the fighting in the south very fierce?" Bian Tao asked.

Fu An was silent for a moment, and finally explained: "That's not the case. The Di Qiang in Runan were unwilling to go south to Xiangyang on the grounds of a major epidemic in their tribe. The court mobilized troops--"

At this point, he sighed, with a look of grief on his face, and said, "The court wants to raid them to serve as a warning to others. It is possible that not only the Liyang army is heading south, but also other troops."

Bian Tao was speechless.

The Di and Qiang tribes of Fengyi may have had difficulty adapting to the situation in Runan, and many of them fell ill. However, this may have been an excuse for not wanting to fight. However, the imperial court was not prepared to listen to their explanation and took direct action.

Bian Tao had a deeper understanding of King Liang. What kind of person is he?
Of course, he had the answer to this question in his mind.

"Are the Fangtou Di soldiers willing to move south?" Bian Tao suddenly asked.

"Unless we rebel together, otherwise..." Fu An didn't finish his words, but his meaning was obvious.

Bian Tao understood.

The tens of thousands of Di people who migrated to Fangtou did not dare to act rashly.

They may never dare to rebel, or they may be waiting for an opportunity, such as when the power is transferred between the father and son of the Shao family.

"The King of Liang is going to establish a new country, right?" Fu An asked.

"This is only the second time I've declined three times." Bian Tao answered casually as he looked at the Di village in the distance.

"You guys only know how to play these little tricks." Fu An sneered and said, "How did the King of Liang refuse the first time?"

Bian Tao retracted his gaze and said, "The king said that he raised the army for the benefit of the people of the world and had no selfish motives, so he politely declined to abdicate."

Fu An showed a funny expression on his face and asked again: "What about this time?"

"King Liang said that there are many talented people in the world, and asked the ministers to find others."

Fu An didn't laugh this time, but instead felt a little admiration. How could you resist laughing when acting so seriously?

"It's the sixth day of July. You can wait for three more days at most. You can escort a batch of grain and grass to Yewang." Fu An calmed down and said, "Don't worry. The Qin River will rise sharply soon. The grain ships can reach the city directly."

"Why are you going to Yewang?" Bian Tao asked.

"The Xianbei have come south to pay a visit," said Fu An.

"Tuoba clan?"

"Not only the Tuoba clan, but also the Yuwen clan." Fu An said, "The Yuwen clan is now in charge, and they were just beaten badly by the Murong clan, so they sent their nephew Yuwen Xibaxiong to lead 500 fine horses, 1,000 chariots, and thousands of soldiers and civilians to the south as hostages."

"Is the Murong clan so powerful?" Bian Tao was a little surprised, and then asked, "What about Yuwen Qiu Buqin?"

"He's dead." Fu An said, "After his death, within two or three years, the Yuwen clan suffered a series of defeats, and their leaders Yuwen Mogui and Yuwen Xunniyan died one after another. Now Yuwen Qidegui is in power."

"How did he die?" Bian Tao asked stupidly.

Fu An glanced at him and said meaningfully, "The grasslands don't need useless leaders. If Yuwen Qidegui suffers another defeat, I don't think he will live long."

Bian Tao felt a chill in his heart. This was much more cruel than the Han area.

"Qidegui wants the court to protect him. It seems he is scared of being beaten." Bian Tao exclaimed.

"The imperial court will definitely help the Yuwen family," said Fu An.

Bian Tao agreed.

The Murong clan was so powerful that it was unknown how many times they had defeated the Yuwen clan. Even Goguryeo was defeated by them more than once, causing the loss of countless soldiers, civilians, and cities.

The Jin court's land and population in Liaodong were also seized by them.

During the years when Wang Jun was in power in Youzhou and Hebei was in chaos, no less than 200,000 Han people flocked there and were used by him.

King Liang would certainly not tolerate his insolence, so he would definitely protect the Yuwen family.

But - what if the Murong clan also sent envoys to pay tribute? Would they invade Liao?

"Let's go." Fu An stretched out his hand to pat Bian Tao's shoulder, but quickly retracted it and said, "Let's go to Fangtou and sit for a while. My brother is going south, and it's not easy to see him."

"Yes." Bian Tao did not refuse and accepted the offer. He then asked, "Are there any Tuoba Xianbei people heading south?"

"I heard that it was Madam Wang who brought Duke of Liangcheng Tuoba Lizhen to the south." Fu An said, "Why are you asking this? The Dai Kingdom has already submitted and will send an envoy."

"You don't understand." Bian Tao's expression changed, and he said, "I'm here to congratulate the king on founding the country. The third abdication edict may not be far away."

Fu An was stunned. Is this true? Thinking about it carefully, it does make sense.

It's not easy for them to come here. For such an extremely important occasion as the founding of a country, it would be best if the rulers of vassal states were present. After all, the emperor of the Central Plains likes the tone of all nations coming to pay tribute.

Mrs. Wang was, after all, a woman of low status, and Duke Dai could not come in person, so he had to let the Duke of Liangcheng take his place.

Perhaps, Duke Dai was still planning to use Tuoba Lizhen as a hostage? Fu An analyzed.

Just like Yuwen Qidegui was too young and had no children, so he could only send his nephew Xibaxiong to the south as a hostage - this nephew was much older than Qidegui.

Bian Tao did not stay in Fangtou for too long. On July 15th, he led dozens of small boats directly to the city of Yewang and delivered 100,000 hu of grain and beans.

Outside Yewang City, hundreds of Xianbei cavalry escorted several carriages southward, loaded with the finest black lambskins selected from Dongmugen Mountain.

(End of this chapter)