My father Liu Xuande

Chapter 190 Conspiring to Rebellion
Liu Bei glanced at Wan Ze and replied, "This order was indeed issued by my state, and it was proposed by Zhang Zibu, the Prefect. At present, the state is short of supplies, so we have to broaden the sources of revenue. Since Emperor Wu, the profits from salt and iron have been nationalized. Emperor Shizong used this to replenish military funds, and finally sealed the Wolf Mountain, opened up the Western Regions, and drove the Xiongnu far to the north of the Gobi Desert. Now, I am merely restoring the policies of my ancestors."

Wan Ze glanced at Liu Zhi, the Prince of Donghai, who nodded slightly to him. So, he tentatively asked, "Lord Fang, you may not know this, but since the reign of Emperor Shizu, our dynasty has lifted the bans and given benefits to the people. The salt and iron industries were opened to benefit the country, allowing the court to recuperate and thrive. But Lord Fang, you are now changing course. Aren't you worried about inciting a popular uprising?"

Liu Bei said solemnly, "A popular uprising? What do you mean by that, Grand Tutor?"

Wan Ze forced a smile and explained, "Qu County has tens of thousands of salt workers who have always made a living by boiling salt. If we stop boiling salt now, it would be tantamount to cutting off their livelihood. Moreover, many salt merchants in Qu County are not ignorant of etiquette and are very willing to serve you, Your Excellency."

At this point, Wan Ze clapped his hands.

Dozens of servants from the Prince's mansion, divided into dozens of groups, carried in dozens of boxes.

After they put the box down, Wanze coughed softly.

The next moment, the servants opened all the boxes, revealing the wealth inside.

Most of the boxes contained five-zhu coins and valuable plain white silk and fine silk. There were even two boxes containing gold and silver ingots.

China was a country lacking in silver, and most of the silver in later generations came from overseas imports and production in the southwest.

Therefore, the value of silver ingots during the Eastern Han Dynasty was also very high, far exceeding the price of silver in later generations. The exchange rate with gold was basically maintained at five to one to three to one, and one jin of silver was worth 2000 to 3500 qian and wuzhu.

However, at this time, silver was not a circulating currency, but an important decorative item, a precious material used to make various jewelry and accessories.

Liu Bei's gaze swept over these items, and after a quick mental estimate, he roughly calculated that their total value was between twenty and thirty million coins.

"Please look, Your Excellency, these are gifts from the salt merchants."

Seeing that Liu Bei's gaze seemed to be drawn to the wealth, Wan Ze felt more confident: "My lord, the salt merchants asked me to pass on a message to them. If you agree to let them continue to manage the salt industry, starting this year, they will pay this amount of wealth to your residence every year."

Liu Bei almost burst out laughing upon hearing Wan Ze's words.

Bribery in this era was so simple and direct, completely lacking the complexities of later periods. Even princes and nobles like the King of Donghai were willing to directly intervene, acting as intermediaries for those offering bribes.

Therefore, Liu Bei was not mocking the behavior of the King of Donghai and Wan Ze, but rather ridiculing these salt merchants for treating him like a fool.

His own eldest son had personally done the math for him.

The main salt-producing area in the East China Sea is Qu County, with an annual output of approximately 200,000 shi (a unit of dry measure).

This quantity seems large, but the salt of that era was not the refined salt of later times. This salt contained straw, sawdust, sand, and even small stones.

But this does not affect the price of salt.

Taking the Wang family as an example, they retailed their products for 3,000 coins per shi (a unit of dry measure).

This price is only for ordinary people. If it were sold to powerful people, a 20-30% discount, or even a 40% discount, would be normal.

If it were trade between prefectures and counties like the one Liu Bei and his son discussed with Liu Xian of Jingzhou, the price could even be reduced to less than 1,500 coins.

Based on an average price of 2,000 coins, the annual salt profits from the East China Sea could reach 450 million coins, while the cost was only a few tens of millions of coins.

It should be understood that of all the heavy taxes levied in Xuzhou, including poll tax, house tax, and property tax, only about one or two hundred million zhu (a unit of currency) actually ended up in Liu Bei's hands each year.

These salt tycoons' annual net profit is estimated to be over 300 million yuan. Although they don't keep all of this money for themselves, it's still an astonishing figure.

The profits from salt production are almost double the total revenue of the state government, but now the salt tycoons and salt merchants think that giving them 20 to 30 million a year is enough to satisfy them. What do they think they are?

Moreover, Liu Feng assured Liu Bei that if he could nationalize the entire salt industry in Xuzhou, he could significantly increase production capacity and improve the quality of Xuzhou salt. At that time, selling it throughout the country would not be a problem, and the profits from salt would likely experience explosive growth.

It's laughable that these people thought they could bribe him with a bone with meat on it. These so-called gifts were like a slap in the face to Liu Bei.

Fortunately, Liu Bei remained composed and waited until Wan Ze finished speaking before speaking under the other's expectant gaze: "The repossession of the salt industry by the prefecture is a decision made jointly by the prefecture, not by me alone. Moreover, the price of salt is currently soaring, causing immense suffering to the people. Due to the high price of salt, they often have to eat only bland food. How can I bear to see this?"

"This, this..."

Wan Ze never expected Liu Bei to refuse; this was a sum of thirty million coins!

King Liu Zhi of Donghai was also taken aback. He stared intently at Liu Bei, while Liu Zhi's eldest son, Liu Wan, couldn't help but interject, "My lord, the price of salt has risen because the world is in chaos, war is rampant, and rebellions are everywhere. What hasn't gone up in price these days? I remember ten years ago, millet was only a little over a hundred coins per shi (a unit of dry measure), but now it has risen to over two hundred coins. Does my lord intend to forbid farmers from planting? Wouldn't the price of grain then skyrocket?"

Liu Wan is Liu Zhi's eldest son born out of wedlock, and he will not be able to inherit the title of Prince of Donghai in the future.

In the original history, it was his younger brother who inherited the title of Prince of Donghai, while Liu Wan himself was sent by Liu Zhi to Chang'an to meet Emperor Xian of Han in the fourth year of Chuping.

Therefore, he was enfeoffed as the Marquis of Wenyang by Emperor Xian of Han, and was also appointed as the Chancellor of Pingyuan.

Theoretically speaking, he was the real appointee of the Pingyuan position in the central government, which is completely different from Liu Bei's situation of privately accepting bribes from Chen Ji. This was the most legally justifiable way for him to take Liu Bei's official position.

Fortunately, Liu Wan could not actually go to Pingyuan to take up his post. After returning from Chang'an, he went back to Tancheng and continued to stay there. He had essentially given up his position as the Prefect of Pingyuan. However, he still held the title of Marquis of Wenyang and had the qualifications of a 2,000-stone official, so his words at this time were not considered rude.

Liu Bei naturally understood the sarcasm in the other's words, but he wasn't angry. Instead, he explained seriously, "The price of grain is rising because there are too many people and not enough grain to eat. But the East Sea produces 200,000 shi of salt annually, which is more than enough to supply the entire Xu Province, let alone the combined needs of Yan, Yu, and Jing Provinces. Under these circumstances, why is the price of salt so high? Is it a natural disaster or a man-made one?"

Liu Wan was speechless.

Taking advantage of the situation, Liu Bei stood up, cupped his hands in greeting to Liu Zhi, the Prince of Donghai, and explained, "Currently, there is no shortage of salt in the province. I will send my second brother, Yunchang, with two thousand troops to Qu County to manage the salt administration. The magistrate of Qu County, Liu Gong, is a corrupt and incompetent official who openly defies the provincial governor and the provincial government. I have already dismissed him. After the salt merchants in Qu County are reorganized, they will naturally continue to produce salt. Your Majesty need not worry."

After saying this, Liu Bei cupped his hands in greeting to everyone present: "I am deeply grateful for Your Majesty's hospitality today, but I still have official business to attend to at the prefecture, so I will take my leave now."

After saying that, he left without even looking at the East Sea King's reaction.

Wan Ze wanted to stop them, but looking at the fierce-looking Guan and Zhang, his legs went weak. It was already difficult enough for him to stay far away, let alone dare to get close.

After Liu Bei left, the King of Donghai snorted coldly, stood up, flicked his sleeves, and turned to leave.

His two sons and Wan Ze quickly chased after them.

"This Liu Bei is so unreasonable, ungrateful, and extremely rude."

As soon as he entered the study, Liu Wan called out to Liu Zhi, "I've long heard that this Prefect Liu is an old-timer from the north, and seeing him today, I can confirm it's true."

Wan Ze added, "Such a generous gift cannot sway his mind. It seems that Governor Liu is truly determined to take over the salt industry. Your Majesty, we must prepare accordingly."

Liu Zhi sat upright with a dark expression, his eyelids drooping slightly to conceal his eyes, making it impossible for others to discern what he was thinking.

Liu Wan wanted to say something more, but then she heard Liu Zhi whisper, "That's enough."

As soon as Liu Zhi spoke, Liu Wan immediately fell silent, and Wan Ze bent over even lower.

According to the Han dynasty system, the Imperial Tutor was dispatched by the central government. His essential job had two responsibilities: first, to serve the vassal kings and manage their palaces; and second, to represent the central government in monitoring the vassal kings and restraining their behavior.

As the Grand Tutor's status declined, his control over the vassal kings naturally weakened. Especially when dealing with a king like the King of Donghai who would share wealth with the Grand Tutor, the effectiveness of his oversight became virtually nonexistent.

In just seven or eight years, Wan Ze had amassed a fortune of several million coins in the Donghai Prince's Mansion by relying on the profits shared with the salt merchants.

This money wasn't stolen or robbed, nor did he have to bully men or women. He didn't even have to do anything himself. As long as he pretended not to see anything, the money would flow into his house continuously.

How could Wan Ze possibly resist this?

Liu Zhi pondered for a moment, then said, "Send a message to Qu County, saying that Liu Xuande is determined to regulate the salt industry, and that he has also dismissed Liu Gong from his post as county magistrate and will send Guan Yu with troops there. Tell them to prepare in advance."

Wan Ze agreed, saying that it was only right to inform others.

Liu Zhi paused for a moment, then continued, "Tell them that I have done all I can, and that they should take care of themselves."

Wan Ze raised his head in disbelief, then abruptly lowered it again. This King of Donghai was truly as slippery as an eel; after accepting tens of millions in tribute, he withdrew as easily as he said he would. The salt tycoons of Qu County would probably be driven to their deaths by his cunning.

Just as Wan Ze had expected, when the news reached Qu County, Gan Zhen, Wang Yu, Zheng Wang, and others were nearly furious.

So many years of offerings, and this is all we get in return?
"What do you suggest we do now?"

Zheng Wang spoke first, glaring fiercely at Wang Yu and Gan Zhen as if he wanted to devour them. But in reality, his anger wasn't directed at the two people sitting in front of him.

Gan Zhen felt uneasy under Zheng Wang's gaze. This Zheng was a formidable fighter, with hundreds of ruthless thugs under his command; otherwise, he wouldn't have been able to gain a foothold in Qu County.

Being stared at so fiercely by the other party made Gan Zhen very uncomfortable.

"What can we do? Didn't we already discuss this before?"

Gan Zhen took a deep breath and tried to calm himself down: "Since Liu Bei is going to cut off our source of income, we can't just sit here and wait to die, can we?"

As they had agreed beforehand, the salt magnates and merchants of Qu County could muster three to four thousand armed men, more than half of whom were elite family soldiers and outlaws.

If we can take control of Qu County as soon as possible, with a population of nearly 30,000, we can conscript at least another four or five thousand able-bodied men.

The city walls of Qu County were high and the grain was plentiful, enough to allow it to establish its own independent regime.

The King of Donghai had thoroughly investigated Liu Bei's true intentions. Despite having an army of 40,000 to 50,000, Liu Bei's main force was actually stationed elsewhere.

There are over 10,000 in Guangling, 4,000 to 5,000 in Langya, and also in Rencheng, Lu, and Pei.

There were only 10,000 troops in Xiapi, and they were troops who had just returned from a battle and were resting.

At that time, Liu Bei could only mobilize a few thousand men.

According to the salt magnates' plan, at least 10,000 men could defend Qi City.

Sun Tzu said, "If your forces are ten times stronger than ours, surround them; if they are five times stronger, attack them; if they are twice as strong, fight them."

As long as the salt merchants hold their ground and refuse to fight, even with a reduced number of troops, how could Liu Bei possibly break through the city without 30,000 to 50,000 men?
Not to mention they also sent people to contact Xuezhou in Guangling and Guancheng in Donglai for help.

Both of them were powerful pirate leaders, with tens of thousands of households and tens of thousands of able-bodied men alone.

If they are willing to come to the aid of Qu County, why should we fear Liu Bei, an old revolutionary?

Wang Yu slammed his fist on the table and said fiercely, "Uncle is right. If we don't take action now, aren't we just waiting to die? The world is in chaos right now. We have money, food, and manpower. What do we have to fear from a bunch of scoundrels in the north? If the old governor of Xuzhou can sit here, why can't we?"

"Good! I never would have guessed that Brother Gan and Nephew Wang would have such a bold spirit."

Zheng Wang laughed loudly: "Let's do it! After we kill Liu Bei, you and I can both become governors of a region."

The three discussed it and decided to rebel before Guan Yu arrived.

"Liu Gong is no longer trustworthy. Even if Liu Bei doesn't dismiss Liu Gong, without the instructions of the Prince of Donghai and the Prince of Langya, Liu Gong will not continue to favor us."

Gan Zhen said, "When we take action, one group of people must first occupy the county government and take Liu Gong into custody. The county magistrate's seal will also come in handy."

Zheng Wang nodded: "Alright, now that things have come to this, everyone should stop hiding their true intentions and make it clear how much strength you can actually muster."

Wang Yu glanced at Gan Zhen, and after receiving a nod of approval from the other party, he said, "Our Wang family can provide 600 family soldiers, plus 600 salt workers. The manpower is already in place. The family soldiers are in the city, and the salt workers are on the coast five miles outside the city. They can enter the city at any time."

After Wang Yu finished speaking, he stared at Zheng Wang.

Zheng Wang understood what the other party meant and generously revealed his trump card: "I have five hundred clan soldiers and five hundred salt workers, all of whom are brave and capable warriors, each of whom has blood on their hands. In addition, my elder brother Guan Ju has also agreed to personally bring eight hundred skilled men to help, but we will split the cost of the gift."

Guan Ju is a relative of Donglai Guan Cheng and one of the key members of the Guan Cheng Group. Bringing him on board would not only greatly enhance our own strength, but also make it easier to drag Guan Cheng into the mess.

Therefore, Gan Zhen and Wang Yu readily agreed to Zheng Wang's final request.

Anyway, they're not the ones who are paying for it; the blame will eventually fall on the small-time salt merchants and tycoons.

This time, Liu Bei is going to cut off the livelihoods of all the salt merchants in Qu County, not just the big salt magnates like Gan, Wang, and Zheng. The smaller salt magnates and merchants below them will also have to bleed money.

Zheng Wang looked at Gan Zhen expectantly and asked, "Brother Gan, your family is the most powerful in Qu County. How many people do you have?"

The words "First Family" made Gan Zhen's heart itch, but he still humbly replied, "Who doesn't know that the First Family is the Mi Family? How could my Gan Family possibly deserve such a title?"

"The Mi family?"

Zheng Wang burst into laughter, then his face twisted into a ferocious grin as he said, "This time, we'll start by wiping out the Mi family. Then, won't Brother Gan become the number one family in Qu County?"

Gan Zhen also laughed. The Mi family knew that Liu Bei wanted to cut off the roots of these salt merchants, yet they still stood on the other side to the death. No wonder they were ruthless.

“Our Gan family has provided 400 soldiers and 600 salt workers.”

Gan Zhen's words immediately disappointed both Wang Yu and Zheng Wang.

In their view, is this all the power Gan Zhen, as the head of the Qu County family, has?
Whether the Gan family is deliberately hiding their strength or they truly only have this much power, it's not good news.

Gan Zhen saw Wang Yu and Zheng Wang's dissatisfaction and contempt, and sneered, "The quality of an army is more important than its quantity. To be honest, all four hundred of my soldiers are armored, and fifty of them are in full suits of iron armor."

"What?! Fifty suits of armor?!"

Wang Yu and Zheng Wang were both frightened by Gan Zhen.

These fifty suits of armor are truly terrifying. If this had been released ten years ago, it would have been enough to wipe out the Gan family more than ten times over.

Wang Yu and Zheng Wang did have some armored vehicles, but they only had a handful each, which they had managed to procure over the past two years.

The Gan family is truly ruthless.

However, Wang Yu and Zheng Wang soon became excited.

Gan Zhen is now an ally. The stronger he is, the stronger everyone will be, right?

"In this way, the three of us combined will have 3,200 soldiers. Adding the other families in the city, we can easily gather 5,000 men."

Zheng Wang became more and more excited as he spoke: "And those fifty suits of iron armor, if used properly, they would be invincible!"

"Don't be careless. The Mi family is not to be trifled with. The Iron Camp outside Qu County is owned by the Mi family."

Gan Zhen, however, poured cold water on the situation with a solemn expression: "Over the years, I have been able to collect more than fifty sets of iron armor. The Mi family, which possesses the Iron Camp, would not have iron armor, would they? Even if they were required to hand over to the court in previous years, who can know whether the Mi family has handed over any in the last two years, or how much they have handed over?"

Gan Zhen's words brought Wang Yu and Zheng Wang to their senses; it was indeed as the other party had said.

In addition, there was indeed not much official military force in Qu County. The few dozen county officials and runners were negligible and no match for them.

However, the Mi family's influence in the city should not be underestimated.

Even though Mi Zhu and Mi Fang took some of their household troops with them when they went out, Gan Zhen estimated that the Mi family still had at least five or six hundred troops in the city, well-equipped and experienced.

When necessary, the Mi family's servants can be mobilized at any time, easily arming two or three thousand people.

Therefore, this operation must be swift and decisive, and we absolutely cannot give the Mi family any time to react.

(End of this chapter)