The hooves were very loud, the ringtones were jingling, and the carriage was galloping on the flat and wide official road. The shadows of the trees on the side of the road quickly retreated backwards, connecting them into a faint shadow of the tree, reflecting the wheat fields with the remaining snow in the distance, allowing Zhao Qi to relax unconsciously.

He leaned against the wide leash, put his hands on his arms. The leash was covered with silk, and his hand felt soft and smooth.

"Ji Ning has taken care of it." Zhao Qi sighed softly, withdrew his gaze, looking at Lu Kang opposite him, a little uneasy. Lu Kang is also a 70-year-old, and is a county priest, sitting opposite him like a young man, running back and forth for him for hundreds of miles, Sheng Yi fist. "I feel guilty."

"Mr. Zhao must not say that." Lu Kang stroked his beard and laughed. "You are a famous scholar who practiced the way of Mencius as a scholar. You are united in knowledge and action, and the world admires you. This time you are so lucky to be able to come to Jiangdong."

Zhao Qi looked at Lu Kang, and the corners of his mouth trembled. He raised his arm, twisted his long white beard, thinking. "The word "integration of knowledge and action is interesting. I remember that Wu Hou once said that those who are scholars should not only know, but also behave as a precept. Is this what it means?"

"What do you think Zhao Gong?"

"It's good, I'm afraid it's easy to know, but it's hard to do it." Zhao Qi raised his eyelids, his eyes a little complicated. "I'm old, I don't know when I close my eyes and kick my legs. I can't see you, and I'm not upset. But Ji Ning, the world is raging, what can I do?"

Lu Kang was silent for a moment. "I cannot agree with what Mr. Zhao said about the world is raging. At least the Jiangdong I saw was the people who were happy. Seventy people were wearing silk and eating meat. The people were not hungry or cold. The elderly had something to raise and the young were raised."

Zhao Qi smiled bitterly twice. "Ji Ning, do you say that too?"

Lu Kang nodded solemnly. "Duke Zhao, please forgive me for being frank, no one who can do the way Mencius is the king. The court only has the king, but the Wuhou has the people and the country. What you said is very suitable for the world to be used in Guanzhong. I heard that Guanzhong is sold in cloth, and the people cannot afford to wear clothes. Food is used to go to war, and the people can only use wild vegetables to make their belly. As for the country, Zhao Gong, do you really think it is a good thing for the court to bring Qiang people into the pass?"

Zhao Qi sighed repeatedly, opening his mouth several times, but he didn't know what to say. He once gave Lu Kang the manuscript of "Mencius Chapters" and entrusted him to print it all over the world. Lu Kang's research on "Mencius Chapters" is no less than his. Debate is meaningless unless he relies on his seniority and forces Lu Kang to bow his head.

This is definitely not what he wants and makes no sense.

Seeing Zhao Qi's entanglement, Lu Kang comforted again: "Duke Zhao, you don't have to be anxious. Although Wu Hou is young, he is not a reckless person. I can guarantee that if a war is inevitable, he will definitely not be the one who provokes the war. Since Duke Zhao is here, he will take a look in Jiangdong and then persuade the court." Lu Kang smiled. "The court is also implementing the new policy, but it is a pity that it is not true. Duke Zhao can be used as the court to conduct a field investigation and then give advice to the court. It may be beneficial. If the court can also implement Mencius's policies, be like-minded and ministers, and each of them has his own positions, it may be possible to avoid an unnecessary war."

Zhao Qi was silent for a moment and nodded helplessly. "That's all."

The carriage continued to speed forward. Zhao Qi put aside his worries and noticed the speed of the carriage. Then he realized that although the carriage was fast, it was very stable. He was a little surprised and asked Lu Kang. Lu Kang took the opportunity to introduce the development of Jiangdong in recent years. This area was originally low-lying, and water accumulated in the rainy season. After Sun Ce defeated Danyang and Kuaiji bandits, he moved the prisoners here to cultivate farms, build water conservancy, and level the roads. These roads were all newly built and relatively flat. In addition, this car is also the latest car. The two advantages combined to make it so stable.

Lu Kang pointed to the large wheat fields outside the car and told Zhao Qi that these wheat fields were the fruits of the past few years, planting wheat in winter and rice in summer, and ripening twice a year. Because of the good planning, water conservancy has been working hard, and it is not drought or flooding. It is also made of soil that has been silted for hundreds of years, and it is very fertile. The harvest has been good in the past two years. The counties have food, and the captives who were moved to the military farm can live and work in peace, with the best of both worlds.

"When Mr. Zhao was in Jiangbei, did he hear about the freezing of the New Year?"

Zhao Qi nodded. He did hear that before the New Year, around the 20th day of the twelfth lunar month, a sudden freezing almost swept across the Central Plains.

"As early as the second year of Chuping, when Wu Hou was still white, he said that the weather was getting colder and it was not manpower to resist it. The grain harvest in the Central Plains was inevitable. Only developing the south of the Yangtze River was the solution. Since then, he spared no effort to move people across the river, from the east to Wuhui and the west to Wuling, and from the west to the farmland to accumulate land. Zhao Gong, can ordinary people have such knowledge?"

Seeing Lu Kang proud, Zhao Qi felt so sad and couldn't help but sneer: "It seems that Ji Ning has a high expectation for Mr. Wu."

Lu Kang laughed. "Mr. Zhao, the younger generation is terrifying. I am naturally happy to be able to practice Mencius' benevolent politics and kingly ways."

Zhao Qi rolled his eyes and was speechless. What kind of virtue do these Jiangdong people like to enter my room so much and hold my sword to attack me?

At the end of the first month, Zhou Yu, the governor of Jingzhou War Zone, and Du Ji, the governor of Jingzhou, rushed to Moling and reported to Sun Ce.

Sun Ce pushed everything away and talked with Zhou Yu and Du Ji for two days. First in Youzhou and then Jiaozhou. Zhou Yu's original Hanzhong strategy was delayed for a year. At the end of the year, he rushed to Guiyang and was about to pick up Sun Jian, but in the end it was proved that it was a false alarm.

Sun Ce felt a little disgusted, but Zhou Yu was very calm.

Sun Ce asked Zhou Yu and Du Ji's view on the current situation. The emperor's expedition to the west unexpectedly succeeded, public opinion turned, the emperor was ambitious and had the intention of uniting states and counties to siege the Central Plains. How should we deal with it?

After hearing Sun Ce’s question, Zhou Yu smiled and said to Du Ji: “Hou Bo, you are from Guanzhong. Let’s talk about the situation in Guanzhong first.”

Du Ji nodded. "Okay, let me throw away bricks and jade, let me talk about the situation in Guanzhong first. Lord, as far as I know, although the situation in Guanzhong has improved, it is a false fire, which is like a flash of light and is not worth mentioning. The emperor led the Qiang people into Guanzhong, enriching the population of Guanzhong, but it also caused a lot of conflicts. The Qiang people are accustomed to nomadic people and are not good at farming. The customs and habits are different from Guanzhong. They brought a lot of cattle and sheep, grazing in Guanzhong, and trampling on fertile fields. The counties and counties were originally subject to severe punishment, but the Qiang people gathered to attack the county prefectures and counties.

The temple was robbed and smashed officials. The court intended to win over the Qiang people, but could only perfunctory. Guanzhong was very resentful. Many people planned to move to Jingzhou, but the gates were closed and they were not allowed to be ziyou. The so-called people were just officials who were not disturbed by the Qiang people. Ordinary people had no good feelings for the court. I think that in less than three to five years, the court could not appease Guanzhong, and that hastily marched to the battle would only bring blame. In other prefectures and counties, I don’t think they dare to challenge and drive the imperial court.”

Sun Ce smiled and looked at Zhou Yu. Zhou Yu said, "If the court should first settle the house, the lord can rest assured. Five years later, even if the emperor can let the Han and Qiang each have their own business, the household registration in Guanzhong is not enough to fight against the Central Plains. If the court wants to take advantage of the Western Expedition and rashly leave the pass, it will not be a big problem. The lord only needs to divide the generals and guard the fortresses and can lie down. These two are not the concerns of the ministers."

"Then what are you worried about?"

"I am worried that the court favors the lord for his unimportant kindness and treats the lord for his unimportant reward, so I summon the lord to Guanzhong to take charge of his rule."

Sun Ce was very surprised.

The Military Planning Office deduced a lot of results, but I didn't expect this possibility. The emperor's victory in the Western Expedition was just when he was full of energy. How could he admit defeat, increase his position and then let him take charge of the government? Even if he is safe and does not go out in a hurry, he should take the initiative of Du Ji, go to seclusion and breeding valleys, reconcile the conflicts between the Han and Qiang, and accumulate strength.

But if the emperor really does this, it will be really terrible.

First of all, he won a great victory in the West, showed his ability to the world, and recruited powerful ministers to take charge of the government, showing his mind and demeanor. He had both ability and mind, and could be called a wise ruler. The monarch and wise ministers were naturally promising to revival in the Han Dynasty. The expectations of the people of the world naturally increased, which was much stronger than the hope brought by the emperor's victory in the West. In this way, if Sun Ce refused to enter the court, it would go against the will of the people of the world and become the culprit of the world, but the emperor had no responsibility.

Secondly, if Sun Ce enters the court to rule, the problems faced by the court will become his problem. First, there is the population problem of Guanzhong, and secondly, the separatist states and counties. Both of these problems are very difficult and are not conducive to Sun Ce himself. After solving the population problem in Guanzhong, the strength of the court will increase. To solve the problem of prefectures and counties, one must first decompose his own territory, otherwise it will be difficult to convince the public. For him, this is a standard way to harm oneself and benefit others.

Finally, even if Sun Ce is skillful and is a powerful minister like Wang Mang and slowly destroys the court, it is not something that can be done overnight. How many years has Wang Mang used to usurp the Han Dynasty? What's more, Sun Ce does not have such conditions. He neither has the family background and academic background like Wang Mang, and the emperor is not a child who knows nothing. With the righteousness of the monarch and the subject, Sun Ce cannot be unscrupulous, but the emperor can slowly accumulate strength. Maybe one day a surprise attack will Sun Ce may be like Liang Ji and He Jin. Even if Sun Ce does not give the emperor a chance, the emperor has no fault. In addition to forcibly usurping the throne, he can only accompany the emperor to grow old slowly.

In short, this plan is most beneficial to the emperor, but it is full of risks for Sun Ce and the future is uncertain.

"Is it Gongda's suggestion?" Sun Ce glanced at Xun You, who was watching the scenery with Guo Jia in the distance, and his heart was dark.

"And Mr. Zigang's opinions."

Sun Ce nodded. Jiang, it was indeed still too old. In contrast, there were too many young people in military planning, and they were more motivated and not more experienced. But from another perspective, this is actually a good thing, which shows that Zhang and Xun You were determined to serve him, otherwise they could not say anything and let him suffer a loss.

"Gongjin, Bohou is right. You are indeed a piece of beautiful jade, golden jade and good words."
Chapter completed!