Insufficient balance

  Xue Chongxun's headquarters had a side courtyard, which seemed quite quiet. He got up early in the morning and was about to practice martial arts there to loosen his muscles and bones. When he entered the door, he found that there were actually a group of chickens raised in the courtyard! The imperial court is now in Chang'an, and it's surprising that these government offices in Dongdu are raising chickens. Xue Chongxun couldn't help but laugh at this unexpected scene.

  A servant at the gate came forward and said: "Sir, please forgive me, I will drive them away immediately."

  At this time, Xue Chongxun saw a rooster chasing a hen and suddenly felt amused. He raised his hand to stop them, saying: "No need, I find them quite interesting."

  Zao Yi was stunned, not knowing what to do, and San Niang on the side was also speechless. Xue Chongxun seemed to have a childlike heart, took a handful of millet from Zao Yi, and threw it on the ground to tease those chickens.

  A group of chickens pecked at the rice for a while, and then began to play a game of roosters and hens. The little rooster from before chased after a hen with smooth feathers who was pecking at the rice; the hen flapped her wings and ran around, but unfortunately was caught by the little rooster. Just as the little rooster climbed onto the hen's back, a majestic large rooster suddenly appeared out of nowhere and charged over to peck at the little rooster. The two roosters stretched their necks and began to fight, but the difference in height was too great, and after just two rounds, the little rooster ran away.

  The big rooster occupied the place where Xue Chongxun scattered rice, gathered the chickens to eat rice there, and from time to time lifted one foot and flapped its wings to "tease" that hen. The hen didn't escape either, pecking at the rice around the big rooster. The small defeated rooster tried several times to come over and peck at the rice but was chased away by the big rooster each time.

  "Look, each has its own role." Xue Chongxun pointed at those chickens and turned his head to say to San Niang.

  The third daughter seemed uninterested in this boring matter and didn't respond, silently standing aside with her arms around her.

  Xue Chongxun pondered, "If that hen hadn't yielded to the rooster just because it could fight, that would be even better... If humans can only be like all natural things, then we might as well be that majestic rooster, don't you think?"

  The third daughter still didn't speak, making Xue Chongxun seem like he was talking to himself.

  Just then, Fang Yuzhong walked in, clasped his fists and said: "Report to Lang Jun, a letter has arrived from Xijing, it just arrived." He handed over a letter, Xue Chongxun brushed aside his sleeve, reached out and took it, tearing it open to read.

  The letter from mother mentioned two things: first, the person Xue Chongxun wanted had followed the inspector to Dongdu and would arrive soon; second, the situation on the canal was unfavorable to our side, but it wasn't a big deal. The prime minister of Taiping was prepared to sacrifice some people in exchange for taking the initiative and public opinion, so that Xue Chongxun wouldn't have to intervene, just focus on another more critical matter.

  Xue Chongxun sighed alone: "Just waiting for Liu An... This Liu Shijun, the courage is not big enough, too cautious, making me wait."

  ……

  "Hiss!" Suddenly a fierce gust of wind startled Liu An, and when he looked up, he saw the branches swaying "swish" without stopping. He couldn't help but sigh, "The tree wants to be still, but the wind won't stop."

  The staff sitting on the stone bench took over and said: "The news from the capital is indeed not very good."

  Liu An furrowed his brow and paced back and forth: "It's like walking on thin ice. In the officialdom, one wrong step can lead to a lifetime of decline, the effect is slow, but as long as you take a wrong step, your luck will get worse and worse..."

  The staff also nodded and said: "Liu Shijun is indeed in a dilemma."

  "It's hard to decide what to do, but the hardest thing is that there's no way out now. It's too late!" Liu An said with a mournful tone, "Originally, I thought Your Highness would definitely be able to hold on, who knew others hadn't even started yet, and our side has already surrendered."

  "Now and in the past cannot be spoken of on the same day. Previously, Your Highness was trying to expand your influence, but now you are trying to win people's hearts. Last time, she went to great lengths to promote Lu Xiangxian as Prime Minister, we should have seen the change, adjusted our strategy, and kept up with the times... Lu Xiangxian has a very high reputation, but he is a gentleman who is as gentle as water, with a calm and composed nature, and it's absolutely impossible for him to come up with strategies for Your Highness to deal with the Crown Prince. This person is basically useless! Why does Your Highness value him? It's just because of his name."

  Liu An wiped away a fine sweat from his forehead and said: "Now that you mention it, it seems to be the case... Is there any way to make up for it now?"

  The staff hesitated and said: "Last time Weiguo Gong wanted 70%, why didn't he just give him 70%?"

  Liu An glared and said: "Then what will we take to Chang'an?"

  The staff said: "Don't send it to Chang'an. Anyway, Xue Chongxun was originally a member of Taiping Gongzhu's family, and he took away 70% of the city, can we be blamed?"

  Liu An lowered his head and fell into deep thought, glancing at the curtain official before murmuring: "This is indeed a move... The Duke of Wei took the lead, he's the tall one. If the sky really falls, the tall one will have to bear it first. At that time, he made it clear, I've also thought about it, but I didn't dare confirm whether this person was reliable or not."

  "It's come to this, Your Excellency, make a decision!" The aide said resolutely.

  Liu An stretched out his pale and slightly swollen hand, hesitated for a moment in mid-air, then pointed at the door with a determined look: "Go, follow me to Lord Xue's headquarters."

  The two of them then took a carriage and arrived at Xue Chongxun's residence, inquired about his whereabouts, and turned to go to the side wing. As soon as they reached the entrance, Xue Chongxun had already come out to greet them, with a smile all over his face: "Liu Shijun, we've been waiting for you for a long time!"

  Liu An stepped forward, his face somewhat embarrassed, saying: "Ashamed... ashamed..."

  Xue Chongxun patted his shoulder and said, "It's okay, it's not too late now. You will understand later that coming to find me today was absolutely the right decision."

  "I've already thought it through, soon all the accounts from various places will be collected and 70% of them will go to Lord Xue!" Liu An said in a low voice.

  "Haha..." Xue Chongxun threw his head back and laughed loudly, then put the thing he was holding into Liu An's palm. Liu An opened his hand and looked down to see that it was a handful of rice, and suddenly felt very confused.

  He hastily pondered the meaning: a handful of rice, what does it mean? Could it be referring to salary rice? Liu An suddenly thought, could it mean that after joining him as the Duke of Wei, he would receive a salary and have no worries about his official position?

  Although this explanation is a bit far-fetched, Liu An thought about it more and more, and felt that the situation was like this. Putting a handful of "Lu Mi" into his own hands could only mean one thing - it was a hint for him to show his loyalty!

  Liu An then no longer hesitated and immediately bowed his fist, saying: "From now on, Liu will follow the orders of the Duke of Wei as his superior, relying solely on his dispatches."

  "Wait and talk later." Xue Chongxun took him into the courtyard and said, "Go get a copy of the canal map paper."

  The two entered the courtyard and came to an empty room. After the servant presented the drawings, Xue Chongxun unfolded the drawings and placed them on the table, beckoning: "Liu Shijun come over and take a look."

  Liu An didn't know what Xue Chongxun was up to, so he walked over to the table and took a closer look. It was just an ordinary diagram, and it was even cruder than the special rice allocation diagrams used in government offices.

  Xue Chongxun, however, did not mind the roughness of the map. His face flushed with excitement, he pointed at the map and said: "I have come all the way from Lingnan to Chang'an along the Grand Canal, and I have figured it out - it takes as long as eleven months to transport grain from Lingnan to Chang'an! And from Hangzhou to Chang'an, it also takes nine months! With such a long transportation time, not only will most of the grain be consumed, but there are also dangers of bandits and natural disasters. The taxation system is already a very difficult and costly affair for the people of Chang'an. Is there any way to change this?"

  Liu An sighed and said: "Man against heaven, nothing can be done, but if we can clean up the officials, appoint people according to their abilities, and govern in a way that brings harmony to the people, perhaps we can reduce the burden on the common people."

  Xue Chongxun said in surprise, "You think too much. I'm telling you about the method of transporting grain by water, how did you bring up governance? We are officials of the Ministry of Revenue, not the Ministry of Justice, what does governance have to do with us?"

  Liu An said: "The governance of officials is the foundation of a well-governed country, so I think of it first. What good strategy does the Duke of Wei have?"

  Xue Chongxun thought that Liu An, an official who had been in the Ministry of Revenue for many years, had much richer experience in governance than himself. If even he couldn't do it, then wasn't the method he had come up with just empty theory, unable to be put into practice? Thinking this, Xue Chongxun's excitement was greatly reduced, and he felt a bit uncertain, so he said: "Then I'll first talk about this method. Liu Daifu is an old official, let him take a look and see if it can be implemented."

  "Please speak clearly for the sake of our country."

  Xue Chongxun thought for a moment and said, "My method is called the Four-Section Method. In short, boats from Jiangsu do not enter the Bian River, boats from the Bian River do not enter the Yellow River, and boats from the Yellow River do not enter the Wei River. By dividing transportation into sections, there are two major advantages: Firstly, boats of various types can navigate in familiar waters, reducing accidents; secondly, it is not necessary to wait for the river water to rise or fall, saving time spent waiting. The Four-Section Method is supplemented by two additional laws: the Warehouse Law and the Employment Law. The Warehouse Law involves setting up grain warehouses at Yangzhou, Biankou, Heyin, Weikou, and other places. After taxes are collected, grains can be transported to these warehouses in sections, and then re-shipped during suitable navigation seasons to Chang'an. The Employment Law aims to save time for grain transport households, reduce their burdens, and have the government hire boatmen and assign military escorts, so that grain transport households do not need to linger at various checkpoints or worry about bandits, thus reducing losses. Liu Shijun, please consider these three laws and see if they can be implemented."

  Liu An remained silent for a long time, his facial expression changing extremely richly, sometimes excited and sometimes deep in thought. After a long while, he finally said: "The Duke of Wei wants 70% of the wealth, is it just to use the money on reform?"

  Xue Chongxun smiled and said, "That's right! Building warehouses, building ships, dredging rivers, hiring people, what doesn't cost money? I thought of this four-part method a long time ago, but I was worried that there wasn't enough silver. Now it's good, the silver is here, and I think it's still very feasible."

  "Where is it possible?" Liu An muttered to himself.

  Xue Chongxun frowned and said: "What's wrong? Is there a problem?"

  Liu An sighed and said, "Today, Liu's admiration for the Duke of Wei is completely genuine! This method is truly a perfect combination of heaven and man, an ultimate strategy that has been unmatched since ancient times. I am in awe, and it is indeed true that heroes emerge in their youth... Liu will not rest until he achieves this."

  "Haha!" Xue Chongxun burst out laughing, "Liu Shijun, your flattering words are really too exaggerated, but it feels comfortable to hear."

  Liu An let out a sigh of relief: "Why didn't the Duke of Wei mention this earlier? If I had known about this wonderful plan, which kills two birds with one stone, I wouldn't have been worried and anxious for so long."

  Xue Chongxun patted his waist, and said with a pleased expression: "I'm just waiting for the people from the Crown Prince's side to slap each other in the face until they hit stone, let them make trouble, the more they make trouble, the more intense the public opinion is, the more glorious we are, haha..."