The Three Kingdoms began with island farming

Chapter 544 Perfectionism
Northeast Plain.

In just a few years, everything has changed dramatically.

Under Zhuge Liang's management and the efforts of aristocratic families and various schools of thought, this originally barren land has completely changed its appearance.

On the fertile black soil, neat ridges stretch as far as the eye can see, heavy ears of wheat flutter in the wind, and countless people walk through them with joy on their faces.

The newly built canal is long and winding, covering the entire field.

Water wheels and windmills are constantly turning, helping people irrigate canals and process food.

Driven by farmers, ox carts loaded with grain were moving along the solid and flat road.

In each town, tall city walls stand tall. At the city gates, capable militiamen wearing leather armor stand guard in high spirits, and from time to time they help the farmers who enter the city push their carts.

In the town, there are rows of shops and houses, and on both sides of the wide roads, the sounds of shouting and bargaining can be heard one after another, making it very lively.

Zhuge Liang was dressed in ordinary scholar's attire, walking calmly through the streets, secretly observing the business conditions of each store.

With the vigorous development of agriculture in the Northeast Plain, handicrafts and commerce also sprang up like mushrooms after rain.

Many of the production equipment improved by the Mohists had already been mass-produced, and a large number of folk factories and workshops had gradually become popular. Almost three or five people could set up a small workshop, and there were also a large number of small factories based on villages and streets.

Silk cloth, porcelain furniture, refined salt and sugar, candied fruits, spices and liquors, the market today is already as prosperous as it was during the Song Dynasty.

Behind the prosperity, a large number of problems have gradually emerged, such as hoarding, monopoly suppression, price gouging, vicious competition, and evasion of commercial taxes...

Zhuge Liang's work in those years was not easy, especially in the Northeast Plain where there were a large number of powerful families, various schools of thought, and mixed Han and Hu people, which made management more difficult.

Fortunately, Zhuge Liang was in charge of the Northeast, and he was assisted by many capable ministers such as Guan Ning, so everything went in an orderly manner.

Practice is the best teacher.

People cannot teach people, but things can teach people once.

Tian Ze specially arranged Guan Ning to look after Zhuge Liang, strictly limited the time Zhuge Liang spent on handling government affairs every day, and formulated a scientific schedule and diet.

After making mistakes several times due to being unable to handle everything at once, Zhuge Liang completely changed his previous style of doing things himself and instead focused more on employing people and cultivating talents.

Tian Ze was quite pleased with this.

It is good to lead by example, but it is absolutely not advisable to do everything yourself.

As the person in charge, the bigger the business, the more you need to know how to make choices and use people. Governing personnel and finances is the most important thing, and everything else is secondary.

Zhuge Liang's ability to judge people was naturally not bad, although he still had some shortcomings, such as the mistake of Ma Su. However, it was also partly due to the fact that the foundation of Shu Han was too weak and the losses were too great at that time.

It is enough to see from the "The Memorial to the Emperor on Leaving the Capital" that his ability in judging people is not much worse than that of Liu Bei.

After this period of training, Zhuge Liang made great progress in employing and educating people.

Tian Ze has always believed that in addition to natural talent, the acquired environment is also extremely important for talents to grow into talents.

Otherwise, Guan Yu, who was feared throughout China, would not have been fighting against generals in the early stages and would not have been able to produce any outstanding record of leading troops.

Later, when Liu Bei had grown stronger, he gradually honed his ability to lead troops.

Tian Ze had high hopes for Zhuge Liang, so he naturally spared no effort in cultivating him.

The Northeast Plain is no worse than the rest of the world, and may even be more difficult.

Because the situation was too complicated, even Chen Gong and others found it difficult to handle.

When Zhuge Liang was appointed to lead the project, many people including Chen Gong disagreed, thinking that it was a case of forcing things to happen. Once you are frustrated and go the wrong way when you are young, it will take too much time to make up for it if you want to go back.

Therefore, Tian Ze believed in Zhuge Liang and also prepared a large number of backup measures for Zhuge Liang. A group of bigwigs such as Guan Zhong and Pang Degong were ready to provide Zhuge Liang with support at any time.

It can be said that the energy Tian Ze invested in Zhuge Liang was even no less than that invested in the Northeast Plain.

And the result is naturally gratifying.

Zhuge Liang and the Northeast Plain achieved mutual success. Tian Ze's bold use of people resulted in a prosperous Northeast Plain and a peerless minister who dominated the world.

Today's Zhuge Liang is so powerful that even Chen Gong and Zhang Zhao have to admit defeat. At such a young age, he has already demonstrated the charm and demeanor of Guan Zhong and Xiao He.

Tian Ze's training and positioning of Zhuge Liang was targeted. Although Zhuge Liang had the potential to become an all-rounder, Tian Ze did not need an all-rounder.

It is enough to be able to draw inferences from one instance to another in terms of strategy and military tactics and reach a first-class level. Zhuge Liang did not need to spend much energy on this.

What Tian Ze needs is to reach the pinnacle of political strategy.

Zhuge Liang, Sima Yi, and Lu Xun, the future core trio of the empire, Tian Ze had already prepared positions for them.

With such an abundant pool of talent, there is no need for Zhuge Liang to take care of too many things. He can just focus on managing domestic affairs well.

As long as the internal affairs are strong enough, the others will be strong as well, the military will be overwhelming, and the situation will naturally be very good. Tian Ze's way of conquering the world is the best proof of this.

After returning to his mansion, Zhuge Liang stayed alone in the room, recording what he had learned and his corresponding thoughts, preparing to convene everyone for a meeting tomorrow.

Just at this moment, Guan Ning knocked on the door and walked in.

"Kong Ming, I'm afraid we will be busy from now on."

Handing over the letter in his hand, Guan Ning said quietly.

Although he was forced to leave the mountains during this period, Guan Ning felt that his life was quite comfortable.

Tian Ze's complete decentralization allowed Zhuge Liang to control the Northeast Plain at will.

Zhuge Liang respected him very much and followed the approach of his ancestor Guan Zhong in domestic affairs. Guan Ning was naturally very satisfied.

As a result, his desire to live in seclusion was dispelled, and he gradually began to think about leaving the world and bringing peace to the people.

After receiving Tian Ze's letter, Guan Ning was initially hesitant about whether to accept it.

After all, Tian Ze's letter to Zhuge Liang could have been delivered directly to him, so why would it have to go through his own hands?

However, he still habitually looked at it on behalf of Zhuge Liang, and then he couldn't help but become more and more excited.

Although the Northeast Plain is thriving today, it is still somewhat far from Guan Ning's ideal paradise.

Because the local people each have their own place.

The various schools of thought are fine. Although they attach great importance to land, they focus more on their own academic theories and do not involve too many profit factors.

However, the local noble families and powerful people all have their own selfish motives. Even if they are doing official business and there is no problem on the surface, there are still some differences in the subtle details.

To put it nicely, Guan Ning was a bit of a perfectionist, but to put it bluntly, he was too picky, which was very similar to Zhuge Liang in the past.

Although he never mentioned these questions, they were always rooted in his heart.

But now, these problems are about to be solved.

(End of this chapter)