Chapter 1: A Brief Respite

  The first watch of the second year of junior high school

  ——

  Hanyang County, Long City.

  It has been over 200 years since it was used as the office of the governor of Liangzhou.

  During the Western Han Dynasty, the position of Cishi existed intermittently and held low status with limited power. Initially, their salary was only 600 dan (a unit of measurement), and they were only authorized to conduct limited supervision and inspection, which was not even comparable to a county magistrate, let alone a prefectural governor. Moreover, due to various reasons, they often became localized and flowed in the same stream as local officials, gradually losing their original significance. To put it another way, this is also quite normal - it's indeed difficult for a low-ranking official with a salary of 600 dan to supervise a high-ranking prefectural governor with a salary of 2,000 dan.

  After Wang Mang's chaotic politics and Emperor Guangwu's restoration, the position of Governor gradually became a regular post. The higher the position, the heavier the responsibilities, and the salary was greatly increased, equal to that of the Taishou of a heavy prefecture. The scope of supervision also expanded, until the late years of Emperor Ling, when Zhang Jue and the Yellow Turbans rebelled, causing great chaos in the country. Liu Yu, Governor of Youzhou, submitted a memorial stating that the local situation was unstable due to the Governor's power being too light, insufficient to mobilize military officers and quell the rebellion in time. Therefore, the court restored the position of Provincial Governor, who had full control over the military and administrative powers of a province, and was equivalent to a high-ranking official with territorial jurisdiction. The weight of his duties was roughly equivalent to that of a provincial party secretary, governor, and military district commander combined - other officials in smaller positions such as public security, procuratorate, and law courts were not even worth mentioning.

  The city where the governor of each state is located, there was nothing special during the Western Han Dynasty, and it wasn't until after the Eastern Han Dynasty that they gradually rose to prominence, mainly in the last twenty years. Even so, the scale of Long City is several times larger than that of Juzhang City.

  Longcheng, also known as "Dragon City" in ancient times, is said to be the birthplace of Nüwa, the ancestor of humanity. Therefore, Longcheng has always been called "Nüwa's Hometown". Inside and outside the city, there are many temples dedicated to Nüwa, which are repaired by the government every year, and incense is offered in all four seasons. Located on the ancient Silk Road, Longcheng is the first major town from Chang'an through Guanzhong to enter Gansu Province via the southeastern route of Tongguan, and has long been a hub for merchants and transportation - although this cannot be compared to the Central Plains. From a macro perspective, Longcheng controls Lanzhou in the west and blocks Sanfu in the east, making it an essential location for military strategists throughout history.

  As for the population of the counties, it is even more far-fetched than Wuwei: According to records, Wuwei was originally the old capital of the Xiongnu Chanyu King. After Emperor Wu of Han's northern expedition against the Xiongnu, he ordered the relocation of 200,000 prisoners and vagrants from the Central Plains to the northwest. At that time, Wuwei was slightly larger in scale, so most people gathered in Jiuquan. At that time, there were about 700,000 to 800,000 people in Wuwei County; however, over the next few hundred years, they slowly migrated eastward, and by today, the population of Wuwei is less than 60,000. Han Yang County has more than 30,000 households with a population of 150,000 to 160,000, nearly three times that of Wuwei. The prefecture of Longcheng has almost 50,000 people.

  Where there are many people, there is prosperity; where there is prosperity, there is wealth; and where there is wealth, it must be a place cherished by officials.

  The twelve counties of Liangzhou, in terms of wealth and prosperity, are led by Hanyang (150-160 thousand), followed by Wudu (100 thousand). As for Wuwei (70-80 thousand) or Jincheng (30-40 thousand, with the number of Qiang people unknown), they are only lower-ranking counties. As for Zhangye and Dunhuang, the farther west you go, the larger the territory, but the population is only 30-40 thousand. What's more, the land is poor and barren, and the Rongdi and Hu people frequently invade, making them the lowest ranking.

  So if the original was a county official in the Central Plains, and was promoted to be a prefecture governor in the northwest, although it is called promotion, in fact, even a flat transfer would not be as good, it can simply be said that he was exiled.

  Of course, if promoted to the rank of刺史州牧, the treatment will be appropriately improved. As long as you do your job well and there are no major mistakes during your term, you have the opportunity to be transferred to a wealthy and prosperous province in the Central Plains. Although it is called a transfer, looking at the past officials, who is not eager to go? Let's not mention distant examples that we are not familiar with, let's just mention a big brother who was recently transferred.

  The best example is our grandfather Dong Zhuo. Grandfather Dong rose to the position of Governor of Liangzhou and then fled to Hedong as a governor, Hedong is considered a good place, especially in the present day before 1800, with a population of over 6 million people, nestled between mountains and rivers, where coal and iron can be produced. Does coal not count as an essential product for daily life during this era? Let's put coal aside for now. As for iron, its importance goes without saying, how can one contend for the world without it? Can we do without iron for weapons, armor, warhorses, bows, and arrows? Moreover, there are salt pools of no small scale, salt is a precious resource, especially when sea salt has not yet developed, selling nationwide would absolutely rake in profits, with the majority going to the imperial court and local officials.

  Let's talk about General Dong again. After serving as the governor of Hedong for several years, the Yellow Turban Rebellion broke out, and originally brave and heroic Zhongying suffered consecutive defeats... This is truly unthinkable! It seems that the Yellow Turbans were very powerful at first, or perhaps Dong's forces were simply no match - leading a fierce and robust Northwestern Han army composed of local elites couldn't even eliminate a group of impoverished, malnourished commoners without money or weapons? You deserved to be demoted back to your hometown!

  How could Dong Zhuo, who had tasted the sweetness of good places for several years, be content with his poor old home? He was hesitating about how to seize power again when Han Sui and his father rebelled against him. The court was shocked, and the defenders of the northwest were either defeated or killed or surrendered. The rebels threatened Chang'an, and the court could not find a suitable general to fight them for the time being, so they had to promote Dong Zhuo again. Emperor Ling of Han appointed Dong Zhuo as General-in-Chief and, together with Left General Huangfu Song, attacked Han Sui and his father's mob, winning a great victory and receiving heavy rewards.

  Dong Zhuo's power continued to rise, and the court appointed him as a minor official, the Minister of Works, in an attempt to curb his growing influence. Dong Zhuo understood the court's intention and politely declined the appointment. When Emperor Ling fell ill, he hastily summoned Dong Zhuo and appointed him as the Governor of Bing Province, with his troops under the command of Huangfu Song. However, Dong Zhuo was dissatisfied with this arrangement and requested to be sent north to fight on the borders, refusing to relinquish control over his troops. He then led his troops into Hedong, waiting for an opportunity to strike.

  After Emperor Ling's death, the capital Luoyang was in a state of great chaos. The eunuchs and He Jin fought for power and profit, but this benefited Dong Zhuo, who quickly took control of most of the troops in the capital with his 3,000-strong Liangzhou army. He controlled the young emperor, established his authority, planted his power, and eliminated anyone who opposed him. As for the story of deposing Emperor Shao and establishing Emperor Xian, which everyone is familiar with, it has not been told yet.

  However, considering the time, it may not be far off. The poor young emperor can only be a child emperor for four months at most before being deposed and then killed by Dong Zhuo - if history doesn't change course, that's how things should develop.

  Besides, with our current strength, it's simply impossible to rush thousands of miles and enter Luoyang in triumph. Not to mention the heavy troops gathered inside Chang'an, even if we were to attack Luoyang alone, how could we possibly deploy 40,000 or 50,000 imperial guards and palace guards? Even if they're all old, weak, sickly, or disabled, they have the advantage of waiting for us to tire ourselves out. What's more, I'd be asking for a beating by running all that way. And what about Luoyang's defenses, as solid as gold? I don't even have any siege engines with me - how could we possibly take the city?

  So I can't take any action.

  Besides... even if I impulsively wanted to lead troops to attack Luoyang... would Ma Teng let me go? Which soldier would follow me?! If Father didn't agree, even if there were soldiers who followed me, who would provide supplies and logistical support for me? Let me take two steamed buns to send myself to death?!

  So I'll just stay at home and slowly practice my fists, feet, and staff to promote development.

  In addition, the phenomenon of being weak all over has not been thoroughly resolved.

  Then just take good care of yourself and enjoy a comfortable life close to the Central Plains.

  Maybe it will be hard to enjoy this peaceful life again in the future.

  －

  In September, on the day of jiashen, Dong Zhuo deposed Emperor Shao and made him King of Hongnong.

  Bingzi, Dong Zhuo killed Empress Dowager He of the Han Dynasty.

  Dong Zhuo appointed himself as Taifu, and added the titles of Fu Xie and Hu Ben.

  "From June rain to this month."

  "In November, Dong Zhuo appointed himself as Chancellor."

  Is the sky going to change?

  －

  December 6th was just an ordinary day.

  The old man received a letter.

  At the top of the post was a bright and eye-catching signature:

  "Chariot and Cavalry General, Governor of Bohai Commandery, Yu Yang Yuan Shao".

  That night, Old Man stayed up all night, sitting upright at the head of the bed, repeatedly reading this secret letter.