mtl008 Chapter 671 The Ruthless Capitalist Liu Xuande
Chapter 671 The Ruthless Capitalist Liu Xuande
Chen Yu had just been taken away by Liu Shan and Zhang Bao when Zhuge Liang arrived.
Zhuge Liang entered the hall, bowed, and asked breathlessly, "Your Majesty, Zizhong, why did you summon me here in such a hurry? Has something serious happened?"
Zhuge Liang had been working in the fields all day, and before he could even sit down at the Prime Minister's residence, he received a message from Mi Zhu inviting him to the palace.
Although Zhuge Liang felt sore all over and didn't want to move, he knew that Mi Zhu was a cautious person and wouldn't bother him unless it was urgent, so he mustered his energy and returned to the palace.
Liu Bei recounted in detail the reasons for Chen Yu's surrender. After listening, Zhuge Liang excitedly said, "This is a good thing, Your Majesty. Chen Yu's surrender at this time does not only represent himself, but also the entire Chen family of Xiapi. With the help of the Chen family, the future recapture of Xuzhou will definitely be much easier."
Liu Bei smiled and said, "That's what I was thinking too, so I wanted to ask the Prime Minister, what do you think should be done with Chen Yu?"
Zhuge Liang pondered, “First of all, the Chen family was the first Central Plains gentry to surrender after Cao Pi usurped the throne. They have the potential to be of high value, so we must give them important positions. This will show other Central Plains gentry the court’s sincerity in treating surrendered officials and dispel their concerns about surrendering to Han. Only in this way will more gentry continue to surrender to Han.”
"Secondly, Chen Yu faked his death and came here secretly. This means that the Chen family does not want people to know that they have surrendered to the Han. This is understandable. Xuzhou is still Cao Wei territory. Unless the Chen family can move here as a whole, they will face annihilation if the news is leaked."
"But relocating the entire clan is clearly unrealistic. Not to mention whether it's even feasible, if the whole clan were to move here, they would lose their influence in Xuzhou and their usefulness to the court would be greatly reduced. Only by remaining in Xuzhou can they play an unexpected role when His Majesty leads the army on the Northern Expedition. Therefore, we must protect Chen Yu and issue a gag order to anyone who knows Chen Yu's identity. Before the Northern Expedition, no one should know Chen Yu's identity or the fact that the Chen family surrendered to the Han."
All relationships are reciprocal. The Chen family's secret surrender was an act of trust in Liu Bei, and it was only right for Liu Bei to keep the news secret and protect the Chen family. Otherwise, if the Chen family had secretly surrendered, and you had made a big fuss about it everywhere, wouldn't that have harmed them? If the Chen family had been wiped out as a result, who would dare to surrender to Liu Bei in the future?
Zhuge Liang said, "In view of the above two points, I suggest that Chen Yu continue to live in Jiangling as Lin Yu, and be given an important position in the Six Ministries. When the Northern Expedition is launched, he can then persuade other gentry to surrender to the Han."
Liu Bei stroked his beard and nodded, saying, "The Prime Minister's thoughts coincide with mine. What do you think, Anguo?"
Guan Xing bowed and said, "I second your opinion, but I think it would be more appropriate to place Chen Yu in the Prime Minister's residence and let him follow the Prime Minister. How should I put it? When I was fighting in Jiangdong, I did not dare to give important positions to the newly surrendered Wu soldiers. I had to carry out some ideological reform before I dared to let them fight."
"The same goes for Chen Yu. It's certainly a good thing that he surrendered to the Han, but his loyalty is still somewhat worrying. However, if he were to gain experience by the Prime Minister's side for a few years, this concern would be eliminated."
Guan Xing's winning formula was ideological reform, which required a qualified political commissar. Looking across the entire Han Dynasty, was there anyone more suitable for this position than Zhuge Liang?
Liu Bei laughed and said, "That makes sense. Then let Chen Yu follow the Prime Minister. Besides, although I agree with the suggestion to protect Chen Yu's identity, isn't it a waste to keep Chen Yu in the Prime Minister's residence all the time?"
Chen Yu represents the Chen clan of Xiapi, which has a strong influence in Xuzhou and even the entire Jianghuai region. If this influence can be used to win them over in advance, it might be possible to bring a large group of gentry to him before the Northern Expedition.
To put it bluntly, Liu Bei wanted Chen Yu to do the work, rather than stay in Jiangling and enjoy a life of leisure.
Guan Xing shook his head and said, "It's not a waste. Chen Yu is both a hostage sent by the Chen family and their hope for surrendering to the Han. Only if Chen Yu rises in rank in Jiangling will the Chen family feel at ease serving the court. Otherwise, if something happens to Chen Yu, the Chen family might turn against them again."
The Chen family's surrender to the Han Dynasty was also purposeful; their aim was to have Chen Yu appointed as a marquis and prime minister in the Han Dynasty, rather than having him charge into battle like a common soldier.
In other words, as long as Chen Yu lives comfortably in Jiangling, the Chen family will naturally have someone to fight for Liu Bei.
Liu Bei asked with a smile, "Then what do you think the Chen family is best suited to do now?"
Chen Yu may not have to work, but the Chen family must work. They cannot stay in Xuzhou waiting for the imperial court to launch a northern expedition and then reap the benefits without lifting a finger.
It has to be said that Liu Bei is increasingly resembling a ruthless capitalist, unable to bear seeing his subordinates idle.
Guan Xing said, "Didn't news come from Luoyang a few days ago that Sima Yi went to Youzhou and was gathering troops as if to attack Liaodong? Moreover, Cao Zhang and Man Chong in Guanzhong are also making moves, as if they want to point their swords at Longxi. Since Cao Pi doesn't want to be content, let's add fuel to the fire for them."
"The guerrillas have been trained to a near-complete degree. I think we can send them to the Central Plains and let them establish bases behind enemy lines. As for the Chen family, they can provide some assistance to the guerrillas while ensuring their own safety. They are not needed for the time being."
As early as when Jiangdong was fighting against Wu's army, Guan Xing established literacy classes in the army. The literacy classes selected promising soldiers through examinations and focused on their training.
Although the war with Jiangdong has ended, the literacy classes have not been canceled, but have been extended to the entire army. Guan Xing is in charge of this.
After all, Guan Xing was not only the Marquis of Shence, but also the General Who Guards the East appointed by Liu Bei. It's impossible that he wouldn't do any of his duties, right?
In addition, when Guan Yu launched the Battle of Xiangfan, he recruited many bandits and rebels. Among them was a man named Sun Lang who overcame all difficulties to escape to Jiangnan and rejoined Guan Yu's command. At that time, Guan Yu was thinking of sending Sun Lang out again to fight guerrilla warfare in the heart of Cao Wei during the Northern Expedition.
Therefore, after Liu Bei ascended the throne, Guan Xing shifted the focus of his literacy class training to operations behind enemy lines. He planned to send them to the heart of Cao Wei to recruit troops and establish bases when the time was right, or to recruit bandits and outlaws from various mountain strongholds in the Central Plains as special envoys of the Han Dynasty.
After all, there were many bandits in various mountains during this era, and they were difficult to eradicate. Now, not to mention Cao Wei, there were many bandits who occupied mountains and ruled over the Han territory. It would be difficult to eliminate them in a short period of time. It was not that they could not be defeated, but that the bandits occupied advantageous terrain in the mountains and disappeared without a trace. If the court wanted to surround and suppress them, it would need to mobilize at least three times the number of troops, which would be too much of an investment.
Nevertheless, Guan Xing, being a time traveler, still did not want to see a situation where bandits were rampant, and had put the suppression of bandits on the agenda.
Therefore, while training the trainees, Guan Xing also selected elite troops from the Yue barbarians to train a special forces unit skilled in traversing mountains and valleys, specifically responsible for suppressing bandits. At the same time, he sent people to collect information on bandits in various places, preparing to release this special forces unit when the time was right.
For bandits within the territory of the Han Dynasty, special forces should be dispatched to carry out a full-scale encirclement and suppression. However, for bandits within the territory of Cao Wei, the trainees should be offered official positions and promises to be recruited as much as possible, and they should be integrated into an army to become a force to fight against the Wei army.
Liu Bei said, "It is possible, but isn't it too early to send the trainees behind enemy lines?"
Guan Xing replied, "It's time to put it on the agenda. We can wait until the fighting starts in Liaodong and Longxi before sending them off."
Liu Bei and Zhuge Liang exchanged a glance. Seeing that Zhuge Liang had no objections, Liu Bei said, "Then we'll do it your way. You will still be in full charge of this matter, but you can only stay in Jiangling. You are not allowed to leave Jiangling before the Northern Expedition, and you are not allowed to secretly go to Jiangbei to personally establish your so-called base. Do you understand?"