Chapter 602: Overstepping
"Your Majesty, this matter concerns whether the Han Dynasty can recover the Guandong states, so we must not be careless." Fei Yi took the lead and put forward his own ideas.
"Recovering Guandong has become the top priority now. It is better to move the capital to Luoyang again and move the focus to Guandong..."
"This is not possible! Chang'an is the old capital of the Han Dynasty and can still be the capital. How can we move it just to accommodate it?" Before Fei Yi finished speaking, Yang Zhun took the lead to stand up and oppose it.
The rights and interests of the Guandong clans they represent cannot let the capital move to Luoyang. Otherwise, it is not certain whether they can still stand here at that time.
In addition to the opposition of the Guanzhong scholars, Jiang Wan also expressed that this is not feasible.
Moving the capital is a very expensive and time-consuming task. In order to move the capital from Chengdu to Chang'an, Ji Han was unable to open up the border for three years. In the end, if Ma Su had not taken Jingzhou from the enemy, they would still be considering going south.
If the capital was moved again, Ji Han's eastern expedition would probably have to be shelved for a while.
It is not reasonable, nor is it cost-effective.
After Fei Yi's proposal to move the capital was rejected, Jiang Wan made a new suggestion.
"At present, Guanzhong has become stable, and there is no need to maintain a large number of troops in Guanzhong all year round. So according to my opinion, it is better to order the general of the cavalry to take full charge of Guandong affairs, and Chang'an will send officials directly to assist."
"In this way, he can obtain supplies in Sizhou and use the funds in Luoyang to maintain the eastern expedition."
As soon as Jiang Wan said this, the noisy Han court fell silent. Even Yang Zhun lowered his head and said nothing.
Jiang Wan's words meant that the financial and military forces of Guandong should be completely handed over to Ma Su. If Ma Su was responsible for all matters from Hangu Pass to the east, what was the difference between this and enfeoffment of a king of a different surname?
If this general of the cavalry had any second thoughts, not to mention the loss of Guandong, it is estimated that the Han army on the eastern expedition would become rebels together.
Although this is what he said, there is nothing to say in this extraordinary period. Especially with Ma Su's current status and power, Jiang Wan's proposal is understandable.
However, these outsiders are obviously not qualified to say anything about this, and Liu Chan himself will have to make the final decision on this matter.
So all of them wisely kept silent and refused to get involved in such topics.
"Well... what does the Prime Minister say about this?" Upon hearing this, Liu Chan was immediately moved, but he still hesitated and asked.
"Prime Minister Zhuge wrote back, saying that the matter is up to your majesty!" Jiang Wan replied.
"In that case, let's do it." Liu Chan nodded, pondered for a while and said.
"Order the General of the Cavalry to set up a government in Luoyang, serve as the lieutenant of Sizhou, and be fully responsible for all matters in Guandong! He has the right to make independent decisions on anything, and he only needs to report to Chang'an after the matter is over!"
Liu Chan is very good at the application of power. He knows that sometimes power should be released and sometimes it should be taken back.
For example, he could delegate power to Zhuge Liang, Ma Su and others without hesitation, but he was determined not to delegate the power to open a government to anyone else. Even Jiang Wan and Fei Yi did not have the power to open a government so far.
So after he nodded, no one in the court dared to say a word. Only a few Confucian scholars expressed their concerns about this, but they also kept silent tacitly.
Soon, under Liu Chan's personal seal, the decree to appoint Ma Su as the lieutenant of Sizhou and supervise the military affairs of Guandong was successfully issued.
And when the decree was sent to Guandong, Ma Su had just returned to Luoyang from Xingyang.
During the month that Ma Su waited and watched in Xingyang, the entire Central Plains was in chaos. Many righteous armies, rebels, and bandits joined in the event.
Because the Han army made rapid progress, Cao Wei's deterrence in the Central Plains was almost zero. A large number of local nobles and clan bandits emerged to make trouble, without any scruples about Cao Wei's power.
When the central government lacked deterrence in the local area, it was not far from the destruction of the country. But at this moment, Cao Rui was seriously ill and his life or death was unknown. The court could not issue a decree to suppress the rebellion in time, which led to the Central Plains being almost eroded.
Such a chaotic situation made Ma Su stop his pace of advancement directly.
Going forward now not only lengthens the supply line, but also requires the effort to quell the chaos in the local area, which is a thankless task. It is better to digest Sizhou first, and then slowly plan.
So, Ma Su left Liu Yin in charge of Xingyang and Jiang Wei in charge of Hulao Pass, and returned to Luoyang.
After returning to Luoyang, Ma Su received a decree from Chang'an. Seeing this, Huang Quan had to pat Ma Su's shoulder with envy.
Since the time of Liu Bei in the Han Dynasty, there has been only one person who has both commanded troops outside and been fully responsible for local finances. That person is Guan Yu, and he is responsible for controlling Jingzhou.
Now, after nearly 20 years, Ma Su has become the second Guan Yu. But the difference is that the territory and troops under Ma Su's control are much higher than Guan Yu's.
In fact, if Ma Su wants to rebel or establish himself, Chang'an will not approve of it.
What a trust...
While Huang Quan was still sighing at Ma Su's achievements and the trust of His Majesty, Ma Su also finished reading the edict given to him by Liu Chan. While being amazed at Liu Chan's generosity, Ma Su frowned.
"So... I am the only one responsible for Sizhou's affairs? Your Majesty, are you planning to turn Luoyang into a military district?"
"I'm afraid this is not appropriate..."
If Liu Chan designated Bingzhou as a military district and let Ma Su use Bingzhou as a base to launch a northern expedition, Ma Su would have nothing to say. However, Luoyang is not only home to aristocratic families, but also has a large population, and is the heart of Guandong. It would be a bit of a waste to simply govern it as a military district.
Moreover, after experiencing this Eastern Expedition, Ma Di also found that Ji Han's popular support in Guandong was very weak. Most of the local nobles had no sense of belonging to the Han Dynasty, and the people did not agree with the Han Dynasty's rule at all.
Therefore, the top priority now is not only to open courses to obtain scholars in Kanto, but also to develop many policies that benefit the people. This obviously means that this place cannot simply be treated as a military region, and he cannot do all of this just by letting him be responsible.
Especially opening up subjects to obtain scholars, is this what he, a hussar general, can do?
"No...let me think about what to do..." Ma Su touched his chin and pondered,
At present, in order to continue the Eastern Expedition, it is inevitable to divide military regions in Guandong. However, many key construction projects have to be put on the agenda, such as opening courses to obtain scholars. These must be presided over by someone from the royal family so that they are not overstepping the mark.
So, Ma Su immediately thought of a solution,
"How about I call the prince to Luoyang to supervise the country? Wouldn't this perfectly solve all the problems?"
As soon as Ma Di said this, the envy in Huang Quan's eyes disappeared instantly, replaced by "Are you kidding me?"
Originally, the emperor was very kind to you by dividing the military regions and letting you take over the power. You kid, you still want another prince?
You really stepped aside all the thunder that the officialdom can step on!