Chinese New Year

Chapter 633: Testing Preparation
The carriage slowly passed through the imperial road inside Jianchun Gate.

Shao Xun opened the curtains and looked outside.

The tall Taicang was the most eye-catching. But he knew that it was empty inside, just like Sima Chi.

Shi Chong's old house is still there, having changed hands and owners before, but now no one cares about it and the weeds are knee-high, just like this imperial court.

The Prince of Wu's Palace is old and dilapidated, no longer as glorious as it once was, and looks a bit like a candle in the wind. It resembles both a member of the Sima clan and a prominent family within the ten counties of the Liang State.

The streets were filled with soldiers from the Left Camp with Silver Spears, looking majestic and high-spirited.

They exude a strong vitality, are full of energy, and look down on all directions. This is a group that has not only not lost its own interests under the changes of the times, but also snatched market share from others.

How do the private soldiers of the aristocratic families compare with them? Their treatment and status are far inferior.

How does Dudu Shibing compare to them? He is still far behind.

Even the original Luoyang Central Army could not compare with them because their treatment was worse, not to mention that not all of the Luoyang Central Army were recruited soldiers.

Shao Xun persisted for many years and finally got the aristocratic families to give him some benefits, so the proportion of soldiers allocated to him was increased.

This is his real base.

After arriving at Shao Mansion, Shao Xun got off the car.

Wang Que'er, the commander-in-chief of the Silver Spear Left Camp, came to pay a personal visit.

Shao Xun patted his shoulder and said with a smile, "Much stronger than before."

After saying that, he looked at Wang Que'er's face again and said, "More mature and stable."

Wang Que'er smiled shyly.

He was surrounded by dozens of personal soldiers, and when they saw the governor's appearance, they all lowered their heads.

Wang Du didn't talk much, and his tone was not strong, but the decisions he made were irreversible. During the Hanoi retreat, he personally ordered the execution of several fleeing military officers, and no one could plead for mercy.

But in front of Mr. Chen, he was as shy as a young boy.

Shao Xun also noticed the personal soldiers behind Wang Que'er.

Yes, the children I once brought up have grown up.

He had a wife and children, confidants, and his own small group. On the battlefield, he did not recognize his relatives, commanded with confidence, established his own prestige, and forged his own gratitude.

When the master and disciple meet, they can still appreciate everything that happened in the past and their relationship has not deteriorated. This is very good.

"Let's go inside and talk. We are all family here today." Shao Xun patted his shoulder and said.

The group then entered the Shao Mansion.

After lunch, Jin Zheng and others who had been resting in Chenjun some time ago also came.

In the evening, Zhang Shuo and Sun He from the Silver Spear Camp, Xu Yu and Jiang Ke from the Mule Army, Hou Feihu from the Black Army and others all arrived.

Shao Xun had someone set up a grill in the backyard, and they sat on the ground and chatted while grilling meat.

"It has been fourteen years since the second year of Yongning (302)." Shao Xun took the barbecue from Jin Zheng and said, "I can still remember what happened back then. Jin Zheng, your stomach was like a bottomless pit back then. No matter how much you ate, you could never get full."

As soon as these words were spoken, everyone laughed.

Jin Zheng was very proud, as if being able to eat was something worth boasting about.

"It's a pity that Mao Er is no longer here. He was the one who cried the most back then."

"Mao Er doesn't remember his old brother. I saw him a while ago when I went north to Youzhou. He was riding in a bullock cart, wearing wooden clogs, and covered in incense. He was not the same kind of person as us stinky soldiers."

"Zheng Long and Wang Hui are not as good at pretending. They even drink together when they have free time."

"Wang Hui wasn't very good either. At the beginning of the year, I went from Xiao Chang'an to Wancheng to see him. His second wife was from the Shunyang Fan family. There were several Fan family members at the banquet, and they actually gave me a cold shoulder. Wang Hui, that bastard, didn't try to dissuade me, and I left in a rage."

"real or fake?"

"Of course it's true. If anyone causes trouble in Nanyang in the future, he will be the first to be sold out."

"He read a lot and married a scholar's daughter, so he thought he was a scholar too, haha. Sun Dayan, how about my son marrying your daughter in the future?"

"Your son is too weak to do this."

Everyone laughed again.

Is it really that easy to change social trends? In fact, it is very difficult.

The first two batches of students led by Shao Xun (from Donghai and Taiyuan) now have families and high social status, but have they integrated into the social circle dominated by scholars? Not necessarily.

Even a tough guy like Liu Yu, after he became emperor, there were still people who laughed at his humble background.

Once Huan started to work as a soldier, his reputation immediately deteriorated.

Yes, you are in a high position with great power and wealth. As a scholar, I have to rely on you, please you, and even marry my daughter to you, but that does not prevent me from secretly despising you for your poor background.

"Okay, stop talking." Shao Xun waved his hand and said.

Everyone fell silent.

"It's not a big deal, but you're telling it around like a woman." Shao Xun looked around and scolded with a smile, "Civil servants and military officers have different paths, there are some things that can't be helped."

"Master Shao, when will there be a solution?" Jin Zheng asked under the influence of alcohol. "Take your time, don't rush." ​​Shao Xun picked up the wine glass and said, "Drink it up."

Everyone picked up their wine glasses and drank them all, and the atmosphere became lively again.

All those present were warriors, but except for a few rough men whose brains were filled with muscles, most of them still had some ideas. After all, Shao Xun had taught them to read more than ten years ago.

"Jin San, you just asked when there will be a solution. That's a good question." Shao Xun put down his wine glass and said, "When one day I can raise money and food without relying on scholars, manage counties without relying on scholars, and promote my reputation without relying on scholars, and you can defeat two million people with 20,000 people, then it will be fine. By then, Master Shao can do whatever he wants, even directly abolish the cabinet, bypass the prime minister, and control the six ministries of Personnel, Palace, Five Armies, Agriculture, Finance, and Zuomin. It won't be a problem."

"That's too difficult..." Even a brave warrior like Jin Zheng knew that this was unrealistic, but he couldn't help but say, "If it really doesn't work, we can all move to Liang State and clean up Chenliu and Runan. Then we can put our own people in various positions in Liang State, so that out of sight, out of mind."

"You are just being arrogant." Shao Xun scolded him again with a smile, and said, "Take your time, don't rush."

"Master Shao, Jin Zheng is right." Zhang Shuo, the commander of the Silver Spear Camp, said, "The ten counties of Liang State have compiled the household registration. As long as there are officials who are proficient in literature and familiar with the people's conditions, they can directly collect taxes without the need for scholars. Only Chenliu and Runan are a bit troublesome. We just need to spend some time to polish them slowly."

"There are more than ten counties in the world." Shao Xun shook his head and said, "Forget it, let's discuss this matter later. In two days, Master Shao will enter the palace, so you should prepare well. The left camp is in Beijing, stabilize Luoyang for me, the middle camp and the right camp are in Chenliu and Chenjun, and the Black Army is in Heyang, keep an eye on any disturbances in the local areas."

"Yes."

"Drink." Shao Xun raised his glass again.

After some probing today, he once again confirmed that the Silver Spear and Black Shadow armies he created were following him, and that was enough.

In these years of expeditions, he had few opportunities to meet so many student leaders at once. After a long time, he also wanted to find out more about his students and see their current thoughts.

From what I've seen today, it's OK.

Changing social trends is not something that can be done overnight.

Historically, it was the three hundred years of chaos during the Northern and Southern Dynasties that completely deprived the gentry of their economic foundation, destroyed their pride, and caused the entire country's social structure, customs, and thoughts to change, and gradually found a new path - if you let a Tang Dynasty person look at everything about the Han Dynasty, he would find it a bit unfamiliar, and vice versa.

The students that Shao Xun relied on for support have not yet been accepted by the "mainstream society".

Everything has its advantages and disadvantages.

At this critical juncture, the advantages outweigh the disadvantages.

Whatever he wants to do now, he needs other people's approval - or at least no opposition.

If the core army approves what he is doing, then the miscellaneous troops will be much more obedient.

The aristocratic families approved of him doing this, so other small and medium-sized families could not make much waves.

The army, bureaucracy and finance complement each other and are indispensable.

Now that he is sure that the core military officers support him, he still needs to spend some effort on the side of the nobles.

******
"General, do you want to embarrass me?" After the banquet, the students dispersed and Shao Xun received Wang Yan in the study again.

"Taibai, you can't just not attend a talk, can you?" Wang Yan said helplessly, "I have prepared some exquisite principles for you, which will surely shine and become famous."

"Not appropriate." Shao Xun waved his hand.

Lao Deng was helping him organize a gathering for discussion, using his reputation to invite "famous people" from various states to attend. Then he used his status as the host to set the agenda, gave him cheat sheets in private, and helped Shao Xun build a reputation in metaphysics.

This is how scholars gather, and it is also the best way to gain recognition from their circle. Even a powerful person like Liu Yu would have idle chats with scholars, and when someone caught him using language or logic to criticize him, he could only laugh at himself.

Of course, fortunately this is in the north, so if Shao Xun refuses to participate, it won’t be a big problem.

"Well." Seeing Shao Xun's firm attitude, Wang Yan could only give up and said, "But don't refuse next time. Some things have to be experienced. Well, it won't make you look bad. Come to my house when you have time. Huifeng is an expert in this..."

Shao Xun looked at Lao Deng in surprise.

This is someone who does great things!
Wang Yan felt a little embarrassed by his gaze, and coughed, saying, "The ceremony will be held in three days. All the civil and military officials will be present. The music of the auspicious ceremony will be played, and the emperor will come to confer the title. Don't make too much noise..."

"How many people did Zhao Wanglun bring into the palace in the past?" Shao Xun asked.

"Five thousand people."

"After the battle of Xin'an, many of the imperial guards were in short supply. Yesterday I had them stationed outside the city." Shao Xun said, "The duty in the palace will be in the charge of Wang Que'er, the commander of the Silver Spear Left Camp. Tomorrow at the latest, six thousand soldiers will enter from the Duanmen Gate to protect the emperor. I can travel light, as it is not good to make too much noise."

Wang Yan was stunned.

His old wife, Mrs. Guo, once joked that in terms of shamelessness, Shao Xun was his equal.

You have sent 6,000 soldiers to guard the palace, and you are still traveling with a small entourage?
Wang Yan didn't say anything, and Shao Xun didn't take it seriously. He asked again, "What is the public opinion in the capital?"

"It's nothing." Wang Yan said, "We knew what we should know before the New Year. We also heard what we shouldn't know after the New Year. After these few months, no one should object anymore, after all, we have the lessons learned from the past."

The "lessons from the past" mentioned by Wang Yan refer to Jiao Qiu, Li Shu, Xu Xia and others, and perhaps the more recent He family of Runan.

The only two aristocratic families that were exterminated by Shao Xun in the past ten years were the Chenjun He family (including the Runan Langling branch) and the Runan He family.

The former was when he was first conferred the title of Duke of a county and used the local tyrant He family to establish his authority.

The latter was that he wanted to be promoted to Duke and use the royal relatives and the He family to establish his authority.

Each time is a critical moment, and each time there is a reason that makes sense on the surface. It seems to be in accordance with the rules and will not cause a strong backlash, but it also serves as a warning.

He believed what Wang Yan said was true, and there would be no foolish people willing to charge for the emperor now.

This is actually the reason why powerful ministers in history did not usurp the throne in one go. They kept spreading rumors, testing the waters, luring out troublemakers, and cleaning up the troublemakers. Finally, when they abdicated, nothing happened and it was a natural outcome.

"In that case, we will hold the enthronement ceremony in three days." Shao Xun said, "I can't wait any longer. I will return to Bianliang after the enthronement ceremony. Please, General, take good care of Luoyang."

(End of this chapter)