BSI Chapter 108 One Dynasty, Two Systems
Chapter 108 One Dynasty, Two Systems
The next day, Meng Huo entered the palace close to noon.
In the morning, Liu Shan was to hold a court assembly, and Meng Huo was waiting outside the palace gate.
I thought it would only take an hour or two to finish, but who would have thought that I would have to wait all morning.
In the past, Meng Huo would have been furious and stormed off.
Today, although he often paced back and forth impatiently, he at least stayed.
He must see the emperor today.
Huo Yi led the way, and when they reached the side hall, he stopped and made a shushing gesture.
Meng Huo was stunned for a moment before he realized what was happening. He instinctively covered his mouth, then carefully stepped over the threshold and walked in quietly.
Liu Shan was reading reports in a side hall.
On the table was a thick stack of documents, all reporting on spring plowing preparations from various counties and prefectures.
Spring plowing was a matter of great importance, and Liu Shan paid close attention to it, occasionally picking up his pen to make a few annotations, without even noticing Meng Huo entering.
Wang Gui served tea to Liu Shan, a gesture to remind him that someone had arrived.
After Liu Shan looked up and saw who it was, he immediately looked back at the report and said slowly, "General Meng, please sit down. I have some memorials to approve, they will be ready soon."
"well!"
Meng Huo lowered his head and smiled, his voice more respectful than ever before.
Wang Gui also brought Meng Huo a bowl of tea, but he didn't drink it. His eyes were fixed on Liu Shan, and his hands seemed unsure of what to do.
He had never experienced such torment as waiting for someone.
After an unknown amount of time, Liu Shan raised his head, put down his pen, and asked, "General Meng, have you eaten?"
Without even thinking, Meng Huo replied, "I...I've already eaten..."
In fact, he had been waiting outside the palace all morning and was already very hungry.
However, one cannot say that one is hungry in front of Liu Shan, as that would be extremely impolite.
"I heard that General Meng, you've been waiting outside the palace since early this morning. Is there something urgent?"
Liu Shan picked up the teacup, blew away the tea leaves floating on top, and then took a sip.
Meng Huo took a deep breath, took out the book "Strategies for Agricultural Transformation in Southern China" from his bosom, and held it with both hands.
"Your Majesty, I have read this booklet."
"Does the general have any opinions to offer?" Liu Shan immediately became interested and said, "You are originally from the south, so your opinions will surely be more accurate than mine."
Meng Huo remained silent for a while, then immediately felt ashamed and lowered his head.
"Your Majesty, Meng Huo has seen it; Your Majesty truly wishes to benefit the Southern Regions."
His voice was hoarse, as if he had something stuck in his throat, but he still had to continue speaking.
"Your Majesty didn't just talk the talk, he really did... a lot of things. Building canals, establishing schools, teaching farming... I, Meng Huo, couldn't have imagined these things, nor could the powerful clans of the south. Only Your Majesty thought of them."
"This time, I, Meng Huo, am truly convinced."
Liu Shan sighed softly, "General Meng, I did all this not to make you submit."
"The people of the South are also my people. Since they are my subjects, I cannot ignore them. Whether you submit or not is irrelevant."
Meng Huo stood up and then knelt before Liu Shan.
"Your Majesty, I, Meng Huo, have never submitted to anyone in my life. Today, I submit, truly and wholeheartedly."
Liu Shan quickly got up and reached out to help him.
"Get up. I told you, there's no need to kneel."
Meng Huo stood up shakily and said remorsefully, "Your Majesty, I am short-sighted, ignorant, and ungrateful. I have secretly formed a rebellious faction, repeatedly offended the court, and even brought disaster to the people. I deserve my punishment."
He took out the memorial he had written the night before from his pocket and handed it over.
"This is Meng Huo's confession, respectfully presented to Your Majesty. I will not hesitate to do whatever the court deems appropriate."
Liu Shan was greatly surprised upon hearing this.
Everyone says you, Meng Huo, are a warrior; you use this idiom very fluently.
The fact that there's a "confession" suggests that he genuinely repented.
Liu Shan wanted to win people's hearts, and since Meng Huo's attitude of admitting his mistakes was so sincere, he was overjoyed.
"General Meng, please rise. Who is without fault? To err is human, to forgive divine."
Meng Huo stood up, and Liu Shan gestured for him to sit down.
"General Meng, I also have something to say to you."
"Your Majesty, please speak."
Liu Shan walked back to the table, took out a rolled-up map, and ordered two guards to unfold it in front of Meng Huo.
"General, look, this is a map of the south."
Meng Huo leaned closer; the map was marked with the boundaries of the seven prefectures, mountains, cities, and countless other markings.
"I divided the four prefectures into seven prefectures not to weaken you."
Liu Shan pointed to the lines on the map and said, "This is to allow the court to govern more areas. Previously, there were four commanderies, each covering thousands of miles, which the court couldn't manage. Now there are seven commanderies, each smaller, so the court can better govern them."
Meng Huo nodded and said, "Your Majesty, rest assured, I still have some prestige in the south. I will definitely assist Governor Li Hui in keeping those powerful clans in line and not causing Your Majesty any trouble."
"I know you can do it." Liu Shan changed the subject, saying, "But the situation in the south is different from that in Yizhou. The mountains are high and the roads are long, and the people's customs are complex. Applying the court's methods directly will probably have little effect."
Meng Huo raised his head, looked at Liu Shan, and asked in confusion, "Then what does Your Majesty mean...?"
"What I mean is, you should still be the prefect of Jianning County."
Meng Huo was stunned.
"I?"
Although he was from a prominent local family, he had never served as the head of a prefecture.
"That's right." Liu Shan nodded and said, "No one can match your prestige in the south, Meng Huo. I appoint you as the governor of Jianning. The people of Jianning respect you, and the other powerful families in the south also respect you. Sending officials from the court to unfamiliar places is more likely to cause trouble."
Meng Huo stood there, his mind blank.
He thought Liu Shan would place him under house arrest in Chengdu or give him a sinecure.
But he never expected that Liu Shan would hand over Jianning County to him for administration.
"Your Majesty, I...I'm not up to it. I could barely manage a single county, let alone such a large prefecture as Jianning..."
"If you don't know how, you can learn it." Liu Shan interrupted him, saying, "In my Imperial Academy, the liberal arts classes have management courses. After you finish learning those, you can go and manage."
When Meng Huo heard that the Imperial Academy even had courses teaching people how to become officials, he felt more confident.
But he still had doubts.
"Your Majesty, if you entrust Jianning Prefecture to my administration, will the ministers in the court agree to it?"
The imperial court had finally recovered the south, and if it continued to let the locals govern it, it would be like raising a tiger that would eventually cause trouble.
"General Meng, do you know what 'one dynasty, two systems' means?"
Meng Huo shook his head in confusion.
"One dynasty, two systems means one court with two systems," Liu Shan said. "The Han Dynasty is the Han Dynasty, and the South is the South. The affairs of the South are the people of the South's business. The court will not interfere in your internal affairs, but there is one condition..."
He held up one finger.
"Nanzhong belongs to the Great Han. It does not belong to you, nor to any other great clan."
Meng Huo understood somewhat.
"Does Your Majesty mean... that the Southern Region will still be under the jurisdiction of the imperial court, but the court will not send officials there, and we will have to manage it ourselves?"
"Yes." Liu Shan nodded and said, "You are the governor of Jianning Commandery of the Han Dynasty. You can govern Jianning as if it were a small country. You can build your own army. I will give you a high degree of freedom in matters such as security, taxation, and personnel."
He paused, then continued.
"However, a high degree of freedom is not absolute freedom. Any action you take in Jianning County will be subject to the supervision of Li Hui, the Governor of Yijiang. As long as the major principles remain unchanged, Li Hui will not interfere with your administration."
"Prefect Meng, do you think this method is feasible?"