My father Liu Xuande

Chapter 187 Anti-Corruption in Xuzhou
Zhuge Jin's face flushed slightly, and he dodged aside, looking rather flustered.

Zhuge Liang stepped forward and walked to Zhang Zhao's side, whispering a reminder: "Lord Zibu, Lord Liu has sent his eldest son Liu Feng to visit you. We are just accompanying him, not officials from the state."

Zhang Zhao suddenly realized what was going on, and glanced at Zhuge Liang with gratitude, while the latter silently looked at Liu Feng.

Zhang Zhao felt even more grateful, but this was not the time to express his thanks. He could only suppress his embarrassment and turn to bow to Liu Feng.

Liu Feng would never allow Zhang Zhao to kneel. He stepped forward and stopped him, saying, "Lord Zibu, I have come on my father's orders to recruit you as my advisor. I implore you not to refuse. My father in Tancheng has been waiting for you day and night, like a withered seedling longing for rain."

Zhang Zhao said with remorse, "I am unworthy of your kindness and ability to have troubled you to invite me three times. When I go to Tancheng this time, I will definitely apologize to you with a bundle of thorns on my back."

Liu Feng reassured him, "My father has high hopes for you, Zibu Gong. How could he possibly blame you? Please do not say anything more."

Then, Liu Feng looked curiously at the people behind Zhang Zhao and asked, "Master Zibu, are these all your nephews and nieces? In my opinion, they all seem to be learned men. Master Zibu should recommend them to the prefecture."

Upon hearing this, Zhang Zhao solemnly introduced them: "Young master, these two are renowned scholars from Guangling in Xuzhou: Xu Xuan (Xu Baojian) and Chen Jiao (Chen Jibi)."

After being introduced, Xu Xuan and Chen Jiao each bowed to Liu Feng.

"It turns out to be Xu Baojian from Haixi and Chen Jibi from Dongyang."

Liu Feng was so surprised that he blurted out the exact hometowns of Xu Xuan and Chen Jiao.

This greatly shocked Zhang Zhao and the other two.

It was quite a coincidence that Liu Feng actually remembered Chen Jiao more, but wasn't very familiar with Xu Xuan. However, Chen Jiao was constantly criticized by Xu Xuan, who even went to Cao Cao to complain, almost causing Chen Jiao to be dismissed. This made Liu Feng take a look at Xu Xuan's information when he was looking at Chen Jiao's records.

In fact, Xu Xuan was also a remarkable person. He was upright and honest by nature. Not only was he frugal and incorruptible in his daily life, but he also asked his family to bury him in coarse clothes when he died.

Upon hearing that it was Chen Jiao and Xu Xuan, Liu Feng was quite pleased. He stepped forward, bowed to the two, and invited them, saying, "My father has long admired the names of Xu Baojian and Chen Jibi, but the two of you went to Jiangdong to escape the war, so he was very sorry that he could not meet you. If he knew that you two gentlemen had returned to Xuzhou, he would be very happy."

"If you gentlemen have no urgent business, I would like to take the liberty of inviting you to return to Tancheng with us, so as to quench my father's thirst for talent."

Now Xu Xuan and Chen Jiao were certain that the other person hadn't mistaken them for someone else.

The name, place of origin, and even the details of the person's life all match up.

Xu Xuan and Chen Jiao were both delighted and nervous. They felt that Liu Bei was indeed a wise ruler, so eager to acquire talent. They were also pleased that their talents and reputation had been recognized by Liu Bei.

The current Liu Bei is no longer the unknown border warrior he once was. Even Kong Rong helped him make a name for himself, Yuan Shao made him an ally, and even Xu Xuan and Chen Jiao, who were far away in Jiangdong, heard the story of how the Xuzhou army recaptured Guangling in one fell swoop.

Subsequently, Liu Feng introduced the Zhuge brothers, Dong Xi, and Gan Ning, who in turn introduced Zhang Cheng.

Liu Feng took a few more glances at Zhang Cheng. Historically, he was a well-regarded and above-average talent, but unfortunately, his father was Zhang Zhao, and as a result, this scholar was forced to switch to a military post.

Although many civil officials in Eastern Wu switched to military positions, judging from the performance of Lu Xun and others, as well as the records in official history, they truly regarded themselves as military men after switching to military positions and were not easily allowed to participate in politics.

Historically, after Lü Yi was purged, Sun Quan reprimanded Zhuge Jin, Lu Xun, Bu Zhi, and others, whose explanation was that they were military officials.

This shows that during the Eastern Wu period, there was a clear distinction between civil and military officials, and they did not interact with each other, unlike in the Western Han Dynasty where officials could freely switch between positions as generals and prime ministers.

Suddenly, Liu Feng thought of something and couldn't help but look at Zhuge Jin.

Although Zhuge Jin is only twenty years old, he is only four years older than Zhang Cheng.

But Zhang Cheng's future wife will be Zhuge Jin's daughter.

In the original timeline, these two were a genuine father-in-law and son-in-law relationship; Zhang Zhao even had to call Zhuge Jin his father-in-law.

Consider that Zhang Cheng and Zhuge Jin were friends in their youth, but in middle age Zhang Cheng married his friend's daughter. It was truly outrageous and despicable.

After the introductions were completed, Liu Feng personally presented gifts and issued a recruitment notice to Zhang Zhao.

This time, Zhang Zhao did not refuse, but respectfully accepted and expressed his gratitude and loyalty to Liu Bei.

Subsequently, Zhang Zhao hosted a banquet at his residence to entertain Liu Feng.

During the banquet, Xu Xuan asked somewhat rashly, "I'm in Jiangdong, and I've heard that the Little Conqueror Sun Bofu once fought with our state for Guangling, but was defeated in a night battle at Guangling County. I wonder what the inside story is?"

Liu Feng replied with a smile, "Mr. Xu, what brought you to inquire about this matter?"

Xu Xuan replied solemnly, "A month ago, when I was still in Jiangdong, Sun Bofu came to my door to recruit me, wanting to appoint me as the magistrate of Piling County. At that time, he inquired about the strength and weakness of Xuzhou, especially the Xuzhou army, so I managed to get the information out of him."

Liu Feng suddenly realized and explained, "At that time, Liu Ye and Liu Ziyang, officials of the prefecture, sneaked into Guangling alone and persuaded the local powerful Li brothers to rebel. That night, they staged a mutiny and captured Guangling. However, the south gate had been captured by Sun Ce, and Sun's troops rushed into the city and gained the upper hand."

"Afterwards, fortunately our troops arrived in time, and after a fierce battle, we successfully repelled the Sun family's troops and were able to recapture Guangling."

"In this battle, my archery and horsemanship master Taishi Ci also fought against Sun Ce and Sun Bofu on the battlefield. The two fought fiercely for more than a hundred rounds, and the two sides were evenly matched and eventually drew."

Upon hearing this, Chen Jiao was also taken aback and blurted out, "Taishi Ci is actually your archery and horsemanship teacher, young master."

Liu Feng asked curiously, "Mr. Chen, you also know the name of my mentor?"

Chen Jiao nodded: "When Sun Bofu invited me to be the magistrate of Qu'a County, he also asked me if I had heard of the names Taishi Ci and Liu Ye."

"We have heard of Liu Ye and Liu Ziyang of Lujiang, even if we have never met them."

Chen Jiao explained, "I have never heard of the name Taishi Ci."

"My master, Taishi Ziyi, lived up to his name, and his actions were unparalleled in loyalty and righteousness."

Seeing an opportunity, Liu Feng seized the chance to promote Taishi Ci's reputation, recounting in detail his loyalty and resourcefulness in destroying the documents to protect his master.

Xu Xuan slapped the table in admiration and praised, "Truly a man of loyalty and righteousness."

"To be loyal to one's duty and to fulfill one's duty to one's sovereign, regardless of one's own safety, this is the mark of a righteous person."

Chen Jiao also offered a word of praise, but compared to Xu Xuan's heartfelt words, it seemed somewhat insincere.

Zhang Zhao nodded in agreement: "Taishi Ziyi lives up to his name, he has not failed his lord's trust, and is a loyal and righteous man."

Although Zhang Zhao and the others each praised him with a single sentence, these words of praise, once spread, greatly enhanced Taishi Ci's reputation and status.

Because Zhang Zhao was a renowned scholar, a top-tier literary figure in Xuzhou.

Xu Xuan and Chen Jiao were both renowned scholars of Guangling; that's what makes them so prestigious.

Two days later, Zhang Zhao, having made all the necessary preparations, returned north with Liu Feng, passing through Qu County and then turning towards Tancheng.

When Zhang Zhao arrived, Liu Bei went out of the city three miles to greet him.

Upon meeting, Zhang Zhao immediately apologized to Liu Bei.

Liu Bei would never allow Zhang Zhao to do such a thing, so he naturally offered words of reassurance.

Subsequently, Zhang Zhao took over the post of Prefect of Xuzhou, and was entrusted with an important task by Liu Bei: to evaluate many officials in the prefecture.

This matter should have been the responsibility of the Gongcao, whose duty was to arrange promotions and demotions based on officials' merits and demerits. However, in reality, the Gongcao was unable to investigate the merits and demerits of officials, as that was the power of the prefectural officials and the supervising officials of the prefectures and kingdoms.

Therefore, it was entirely necessary to appoint Zhang Zhao, in his capacity as Prefect, to personally oversee this matter and thoroughly clean up the entire officialdom of Xuzhou. Moreover, Zhang Zhao was a man of strong character, hated evil as if it were his enemy, and detested those who were corrupt, took bribes, or held positions without merit.

Zhang Zhao was a senior and well-known figure in Xuzhou. He was even imprisoned for refusing Tao Qian's recommendation for a scholar position, but he refused to yield. He was famous throughout Xuzhou.

Officials dismissed by Zhang Zhao would obediently leave without daring to argue with him.

After Zhang Zhao took office, Liu Feng once again took action and went to Jiangdu to invite Zhang Hong back to serve as the chief administrator.

When inviting Zhang Hong, Zhang Zhao used the same excuse that had been useless.

In Zhao Yu's name, Zhang Hong was persuaded. In addition, after Sun Ce crossed the river, he was trapped in half of Wu County and still could not conquer Wu County.

In addition to Zhao Yu's favor and Liu Bei's sincerity, Zhang Hong was finally moved and allowed to go north to Tancheng to take up the post of Zhizhong.

Incidentally, he also took Chen Duan and Qin Song with him on their journey north.

If Zhang Zhao succeeds in purging the officialdom of Xuzhou, there will definitely be a shortage of county-level talents.

Although Xu Xuan, Chen Jiao, Chen Duan, Qin Song and others all started their careers as central or prefectural officials before being assigned to county magistrate or county head positions.

However, it must be considered that both Cao Wei and the Sun family of Jiangdong had already grown very powerful at that time.

Especially when Cao Cao, Xu Xuan, and Chen Jiao entered the service of Chen Deng of Guangling, it was already the third year of Jian'an. At that time, Cao Cao had already controlled Emperor Xian of Han and the central government, and owned the territory of four or five provinces.

What were Xu Xuan and Chen Jiao compared to the vast Henan faction of scholars?
Not to mention their ancestral home of Xuzhou, which could bring negative consequences. But Liu Bei's situation is completely different. Liu Bei started his career in Xuzhou, and the local gentry and powerful families actively welcomed him to the province and subsequently gave him their full support. Therefore, the Xuzhou gentry were a plus under Liu Bei.

In today's world, their direct appointment as Marquis of Baili would not attract any questioning or opposition.

Even if there were dissenting voices, they would be suppressed by the local gentry and powerful groups in Xuzhou.

However, for Xu Xuan, Chen Jiao, and others, this was still considered an exception made by Liu Bei to give them important positions.

Xu Xuan and the others were very grateful for Liu Bei's favor.

*********
One week later, at Cao Bao's residence in Xiapi.

Cao Bao was stunned for a long time as he looked at the 9.4 million coins that Liu Feng had sent from Tancheng.

Not to mention Cao Bao, even Cao Qing, who had just arrived at the main hall, couldn't help but cover her rosy lips.

The Cao family father and daughter had previously thought that frosting sugar and snow salt must be quite valuable, but they never expected that in just half a year, they would receive a huge sum of nearly ten million yuan.

"Father."

Cao Qing suddenly spoke up: "What do you plan to do with this money?"

Cao Qing's words startled Cao Bao, who then realized that he had been in a daze for a long time and did not even know when Cao Qing had arrived.

Cao Bao grinned and replied, "What do you mean, 'what to do'? This money was a gift from my son-in-law, it's clean, what's the problem?"

"Oh, right."

Cao Bao seemed to remember something and slapped his forehead: "Qing'er, don't worry, half of this is your dowry, you can keep it safe."

"When you get married, your father will give you extra gifts."

As Cao Bao spoke, he couldn't help but lick his lips; his excitement had made his mouth dry.

At this moment, Cao Bao felt only ecstatic joy and relief. Fortunately, he had chosen to trust the young master. Now he had an official position, seniority, powerful backers, and even seemingly inexhaustible wealth.

Consider Cao Hong, who was highly regarded by Tao Gong, yet he embezzled and accepted bribes, and misappropriated state property, ultimately only accumulating a few million coins in assets.

But all she did was make one decision, and now the young master is sending nearly ten million in wealth into her home.

And this is only half a year's dividend; there will be another one in the second half of the year.

This made Cao Bao extremely happy.

However, Cao Qing's brows furrowed unconsciously.

"Father, Qing'er has something she wants to discuss with you."

Cao Bao opened the boxes one by one, looking at the strings of five-zhu coins inside. These treasures, reflecting a dazzling light, captivated most of his attention.

Fortunately, he remembered that he had another treasure, so he spared a small portion of his attention to reply, "Hmm? What is it?"

“Father, you can take half of this money and send it to the state government.”

Cao Qing's words made Cao Bao jump up.

"Qing'er, are you crazy? This was a gift from the young master. You want me to hand it over to the prefectural government?"

Cao Bao looked at Cao Qing in disbelief: "Why is that?"

Cao Qing calmly explained, "Father, I only asked you to take out half of it and send it to the prefectural government, not all of it."

Cao Bao said angrily, "Even half of that is five million coins! You should know that my family's assets are only that much."

Actually, he owes this figure to Cao Hong's own self-destructive actions. Without the one or two million yuan he received from Cao Hong, he wouldn't have been able to scrape together five million.

Faced with Cao Bao's anger, Cao Qing showed no fear whatsoever. Instead, he reminded him, "Father, have you forgotten the official document issued by the prefecture a few days ago?"

"What official document?"

Cao Bao was taken aback for a moment, then realized: "You mean Zhang Biejia's theory of integrity?"

Within a few days, Xiapi, where Cao Bao was located, received an official document from Tancheng, issued by Zhang Zhao, the Prefect, with Liu Bei's endorsement.

This demonstrates Xuzhou's determination to fight corruption and promote integrity.

This is not a slogan that only appeared in later generations; similar slogans and guidelines already existed in the Western Han Dynasty.

In his discourse on integrity, Zhang Zhao quoted Yang Fu, a famous anti-corruption fighter from the Eastern Han Dynasty, who said, "The counties and cities are exploiting the people without restraint, and bribery is rampant between the upper and lower levels, leading to the decline of good governance."

Therefore, it is necessary to rectify the officialdom in Xuzhou, punish the corrupt, deter those who accept bribes, demote the incompetent, and promote the talented.

As the Chancellor of Xiapi, Cao Bao was naturally the one who received this official document.

He understood Cao Qing's meaning and immediately explained, "Since I took over as the Chancellor of Xiapi, I have never accepted any bribes. All matters in the state are handled by the Chief Clerk Chen Qian. I am merely a figurehead."

"Father, have you forgotten what happened in Tancheng?"

Cao Qing couldn't help but remind him, "Have you really forgotten what you did when Cao Hong died?"

Cao Bao suddenly realized that his daughter was referring to the matter of him and Xu Dan dividing Cao Hong's family property. He stammered an explanation: "At that time, Xu Dan and I also sent a generous gift to you, sir. You should know about this."

After hearing Cao Bao's explanation, Cao Qing couldn't help but reach out and press his fair and smooth forehead. His father was truly an honest man.

“Father, Cao Hong’s ill-gotten gains belong to the state government. You and Xu Dan embezzled most of them, and then gave a small portion to Lord Ming. Do you expect him to thank you?”

"this……."

Upon hearing this, Cao Bao realized that his daughter's words made sense.

Logically, since Cao Hong was executed, his property should naturally be confiscated.

The reason he and Xu Dan dared to divide Cao Hong's property privately was because they followed the rules set by Tao Gong during his time.

If Liu Bei didn't respect this rule and wanted to punish them, then it seems there wouldn't be much of a problem.

After figuring this out, Cao Bao grasped another key point: "Well... I only received less than two million in money, so sending two million would be enough. Why would I need five million?"

Cao Qing had to remind him again: "Father, is there nothing else you have to do besides Cao Hong's matter?"

Upon hearing Cao Qing's question, Cao Bao also felt guilty, sweat beading on his forehead, and stammered, "Then...is five million enough?"

Cao Qing said irritably, "Of course, your daughter wants you to send them all to the prefectural government, but are you willing to do that?"

Cao Bao laughed awkwardly, "How can that be? After all, there's still half of Qing'er's dowry inside."

Cao Qing sighed, “Father, if you’re going to send something, send enough; otherwise, it’s better not to send anything at all. In my opinion, this time the anti-corruption campaign in the prefecture is clearly serious. Lord Zhang is a renowned scholar in Xuzhou, with a fiery temper, unyielding and incorruptible, and he hates corrupt and incompetent people the most. With Lord Zhang in charge of this matter, and with you, sir, secretly pushing it forward, I’m sure this matter will succeed.”

“My father is already a high-ranking official with a salary of two thousand shi (a unit of grain). If he could voluntarily hand over the embezzled funds and personally go to Tancheng to plead guilty, that would be a good opportunity.”

"What!?"

Upon hearing Cao Qing's request for him to turn himself in, Cao Bao immediately shook his head vigorously: "No, no, this won't do. Qing'er, you yourself said that the Duke wants to fight corruption. If I go to plead guilty now, wouldn't I be walking into a trap?"

Cao Qing hurriedly advised, "Father, the crime of embezzlement can be serious or minor. With your official position, the worst that can happen is that you will be dismissed from office. If you do not go to Tancheng to plead guilty now, then this is the most likely outcome."

Cao Bao couldn't stand it. He had given up all his military power in exchange for this 2,000 shi of grain, and he hadn't even settled in yet, and now he was being dismissed?

Seeing Cao Bao's anxiety, Cao Qing seized the opportunity to advise him, "But if you voluntarily go to Tancheng to plead guilty and return the embezzled funds, even if it's just for a thousand pieces of gold to buy his bones, the Lord will appease you properly. In this way, you can keep your position as Prime Minister."

Cao Bao always trusted his daughter's wisdom, and Cao Qing had never deceived him.

Upon hearing Cao Qing say that he could keep his official position by voluntarily pleading guilty, Cao Bao immediately believed him.

Seeing that Cao Bao was somewhat tempted, Cao Qing added fuel to the fire: "Besides, the young master's dividends will still be paid in the second half of the year. At that time, it will really be your money, Father. But if Father is dismissed by Lord Ming because of corruption, which affects other things, then it is hard to say whether there will still be dividends."

Cao Qing was too embarrassed to bring up the marriage directly, but Cao Bao understood what she meant.

The thought of his enormous annual dividend of 20 million disappearing without a trace made Cao Bao immediately resolve: "Alright, I will go to Tancheng to apologize to Lord Ming right now. This dividend... I'll take it all with me!"

(End of this chapter)