Three Kingdoms: I am not Liu Bian

Chapter 362 Micro-management Master
Although Cheng Yu had previously submitted more than ten memorials, these memorials had to pass through the Ministry of Personnel, so many secrets could not be explicitly stated in them.

Cheng Yu's previous reports were mostly detailed analyses of the Xianbei political and military system, as well as suggestions on supporting Tan Shihuai's eldest grandson Kui to become the Xianbei leader.

He usually keeps a low profile, but in the past year or so, Cheng Yu has not only completed his mission of sowing discord among the Xianbei, but also thoroughly understood their power structure and internal secrets. This alone has earned him the respect of many important officials in the court.

Liu Bian lowered his head, flipping through Cheng Yu's previous reports, and shook his head slightly, sighing, "This Tan Shihuai could be considered a prodigy of his generation. I never imagined that after his death, such a large Xianbei tribe would collapse so quickly."

A hint of sadness flashed across Liu Bian's eyes.

This is not out of sympathy for Tan Shihuai or the Xianbei, but rather a sorrow and worry stemming from the plight of those of the same kind.

As a fellow monarch, Liu Bian couldn't help but wonder if, if he were to die one day, this vast Han Empire would also crumble in the same way.
Whether it's a unified force or a separatist force, there seems to be an unchanging rule.

The more ambitious a monarch is, the weaker the power of the prime minister becomes, and the more centralized the power of the emperor becomes.

If the new ruler who inherits the country is an incompetent person and takes over such a political system that concentrates all power in his own hands, he will inevitably lead the country to extremes.

The strong get stronger, and the weak perish.

For example, a certain war god of the Ming Dynasty, under the political system of continuous centralization of power by four generations of emperors, could do whatever he wanted without anyone being able to stop him, no matter how unreasonable it was, and the decline of a country began from this.

But his father and grandfather were the exact opposite, positive, and extreme examples.

However, if the power of the prime minister is so great that it can restrain the power of the emperor, even an incompetent or foolish ruler can secure his position and the country may even experience a period of prosperity, earning him the title of "ruler of restoration".

Right, Emperor Shenzong, who didn't attend court for thirty years and whose government positions were 70% vacant.

While a country with centralized imperial power can certainly integrate the nation's resources and efficiently achieve military and political goals, it is too vulnerable to risks, and the rise and fall of the country depends entirely on the personal ability of the person who steers this chariot.

In a country where "imperial power" and "ministerial power" check and balance each other, although internal conflicts lead to low administrative efficiency, the country is extremely resilient to risks. Even if the driver himself is not capable, there will be other ministers as his deputies to assist him.

Therefore, Liu Bian has recently been hesitant about whether he should reform the political system of the Han Dynasty to be so centralized.
The air seemed to grow heavy because of Liu Bian's silence. Cheng Yu, of course, could not fathom the emperor's profound thoughts on centralization and checks and balances. Seeing the emperor's somber expression, he assumed it was a lament over the near-demise of the Xianbei after only two generations. Stroking his long beard, he said in a deep voice, "In terms of military affairs, Tan Shihuai may be considered a hegemon of the grasslands, but in terms of governance, he is far inferior to the Xiongnu."

The Xiongnu rose to prominence during the reign of Modu Chanyu, who governed their vast territory using the "Twenty-Four Chiefs" system.

As someone who personally murdered his father, Maodun naturally did not believe in feelings or loyalty. Therefore, he would not concentrate too much power in the hands of others, even if that person was his blood relative, his son, his brother, or his trusted confidant with whom he had fought for many years.

However, it was Modu's son, Laoshang Chanyu, who truly matured the political system of the Xiongnu and brought the Xiongnu to its peak of power.

Based on the existing twenty-four chieftains, Lao Shang Chanyu added official positions such as "Grand Commandant" and "Grand Household Officer" to manage military, judicial, and tribal affairs, thus dispersing the power of each tribe.

Subsequently, a large number of surrendered Han Chinese were appointed to positions, and elements of the Central Plains bureaucratic system were incorporated, such as the use of seals and documents, which greatly improved administrative efficiency.

Therefore, although the Xiongnu were also an alliance system, it was a fairly stable political and military alliance.

"The Xianbei under Tan Shihuai's rule, in my opinion, are somewhat like a feudal system."

As Cheng Yu spoke, he took out a hand-drawn map of the Xianbei from his sleeve and had Gao Wang, who was standing to the side, present it to the emperor.

The Han dynasty did not have detailed maps of the vast grasslands, and it was especially difficult to know the boundaries of the Xianbei tribes.

However, over the past year, Cheng Yu has painstakingly extracted information from the leaders of various Xianbei tribes and obtained many rough maps made by the Xianbei people from many Xianbei nobles. He learned roughly about the approximate regional divisions of many tribes from them and finally pieced together the map that exists today.

Although it is still in its early stages, it is a strategic national treasure!

"Zhongde, please sit down beside me and explain this map to me." Liu Bian's eyes were immediately drawn to the Xianbei map, and without looking up, he beckoned Cheng Yu to come forward.

Upon hearing this, Cheng Yu hesitated for a moment, then subconsciously glanced at Dian Wei, who stood behind the emperor. It wasn't that he had any rebellious thoughts, but anyone who came close to the emperor could not ignore the warning gaze that the towering man was giving them.

Cheng Yu composed himself before slowly stepping forward and sitting on the emperor's left.

Cheng Yu argued to the emperor that "the Xianbei were a loose military alliance formed by conquering and absorbing various Xianbei tribes, a few remnants of the Xiongnu, the Dingling, the Wuhuan, and other tribes, with the Tanshihuai tribe as the core."

“Look at the state. The political system of the Xianbei is led by the Xianbei chieftain. Below the Xianbei chieftain are the three tribal chieftains.”

“From Youbeiping eastward to Liaodong, encompassing more than twenty towns including Fuyu and Huimo, constitutes the eastern region; from Youbeiping westward to Shanggu, more than ten towns constitute the central region; and from Shanggu westward to Dunhuang and Wusun, more than twenty towns constitute the western region. Each region is governed by a chieftain.” Cheng Yu pointed to the eastern, central, and western regions on the map and said, “However, this is only a general division of territory. The struggle between the three regions for pastures and people was something that even Tan Shihuai could not eradicate during his lifetime, and it is now escalating even further.”

"This is also why I said that Tan Shihuai is far inferior to the Xiongnu. The division of these three parts is that the west is the eldest son, the central part is the second son, and the east part is the confidant, just like the vassal lords of the Zhou Dynasty."

Liu Bian nodded slightly, his gaze still fixed on the map, and asked, "It is quite similar to the enfeoffment system, but since Tan Shihuai had an eldest son, why was it that incompetent second son, Helian, who ultimately succeeded to the throne?"

Cheng Yu chuckled and explained, “What the state may not know is that Tan Shihuai’s eldest son is exceptionally capable and has won the respect of all the tribes, making him very popular. Therefore, Tan Shihuai is wary of him and has entrusted him with the newly conquered western territories. This is both to ensure the stability of his own power and to give his successor a period of training.”

"Then he appointed his incompetent and unpopular second son, Helian, as the head of the Central Region, so that he could better control the entire Central Region with the help of Helian, consolidate his own power, avoid being sidelined by his second son, and ensure his control over the Xianbei."

"This was originally a method of checks and balances, but unfortunately the eldest son suddenly fell ill and died in the west, so we had no choice but to establish the second son, Helian, as heir."

Seeing that the emperor was listening attentively without interrupting, Cheng Yu continued to analyze the Xianbei political system for the emperor, saying: "Below the three tribal leaders are the leaders of each tribe, and below that are the village chiefs. Tribal leaders are not hereditary; they are chosen based on their bravery and ability to resolve disputes and lawsuits. Village chiefs, on the other hand, are mostly hereditary."

Liu Bian suddenly asked curiously, "How many soldiers does this village commander lead?"

Cheng Yu paused for a moment, then thought for a moment and said, "In the Xianbei system, a village must support a military force of at least twenty people, which means there must be at least twenty households, but the upper limit will not exceed one hundred households. Otherwise, grazing on the same pasture may cause resource pressure and make management more complicated."

Therefore, once the population of a village exceeds one hundred households, the tribal chief will draw people from each village to integrate them into a new village.

A tribe, on the other hand, consists of one hundred to one thousand villages, each with its own livestock and industries, and they do not exploit each other.

Upon hearing this, Liu Bian frowned slightly, his fingers unconsciously tapping the table. He said, "No wonder the Emperor Emeritus warned me that the Xianbei had more than 100,000 archers, and that I should not underestimate them or repeat his mistakes. Judging from this, if it were during the heyday of Tan Shihuai, the number of archers would have been far greater, probably no less than 200,000."

Cheng Yu stopped talking at the right time and refrained from making any unwarranted comments.

The defeat in the Northern Expedition against the Xianbei in the sixth year of the Xiping era (177 AD) is really hard to comment on. Anyway, those who know, know. It is not something that can be explained in a few words.

There were many military experts in the Imperial Secretariat. Under the emperor's organization, Lu Zhi, Huangfu Song, and Dong Zhuo, the three commanders of the Central Army, as well as the generals of the Central Army, the generals of Youzhou and Zhouzhou, and invited Xia Yu, the current Protector of the Qiang, and Zang Min, the current governor of Taiyuan, who had personally participated in that battle, to review that battle together.

Aside from the discord between Xia Yu, Zang Min, and Tian Yan, and the military factors of rashly advancing troops without familiarity with the terrain, Liu Hong bears at least 60% of the responsibility.

Firstly, the reason for the war was not to retaliate against the Xianbei, but because Tian Yan, who was then the General Who Destroys the Xianbei, was convicted of another matter. At the same time, the Xianbei were harassing the north. In order to get away with his crime, he bribed the eunuch Wang Fu with a large sum of money and persuaded the retired emperor to go to war against the Xianbei. This led to the war of three routes against the Xianbei.

However, the Han Dynasty's logistics and supplies were insufficient to support the battle, so the Han Dynasty could not afford to suffer losses. Liu Hong had to urge the soldiers at the front line to fight repeatedly, and even considered replacing them.

When the news reached the front, an imperial edict urged the troops to advance, which led the three to rashly venture deep into the Xianbei territory, where they were decisively defeated.

Therefore, this battle is not very meaningful for reference. To put it bluntly, it was a military defeat caused by political issues. The only benefit was that we became familiar with the Xianbei people's tactics.

Another major benefit was that it served as a warning to Liu Hong: if you don't understand military affairs, you shouldn't meddle in them.

Unfortunately, this micro-management expert seems to have forgotten the pain of past mistakes.

(3016 words)
(End of this chapter)