The Tang Dynasty: Wu Zetian made me her imperial tutor

"Chu Yu, didn't you say it couldn't be eradicated?"

Wu Zetian was initially delighted, but then she remembered Lu Jun's earlier words and became puzzled.

Lu Jun replied, "I have indeed said that the inherent advantages of powerful clans cannot be eradicated, and that remains unchanged."

"But since the Empress Dowager is in charge of the country, there is no need to eradicate their advantages, because powerful clans are also her subjects."

"Among the powerful clans, there are also many outstanding individuals. They are exceptionally talented and loyal to the country, just like many ministers in the court, and are worthy of the Empress Dowager's trust."

The *Tao Te Ching* says, "The Tao follows nature," and also, "It assists all things in their natural course without interfering."

"As long as the law is followed, the Empress Dowager should use her power to govern both powerful families and ordinary people without suppressing them."

Powerful and influential families have never been a threat.

Lu Jun's acquaintances, Cui Shi and Li Qiao, were from five prominent families, both of whom were exceptionally talented and ambitious.

Although Li Qiao's family was noble, he lived a very poor life, using old, coarse silk curtains for many years. He was an upright and chaste man.

Of the twenty-four meritorious officials in Lingyan Pavilion, only Zhang Liang came from a poor background and made a living by farming; the rest could not be described as being from humble origins.

Regardless of whether they are scholars or warriors, powerful clans all have outstanding talents, and suppressing them indiscriminately is a huge waste of resources.

Lu Jun paused for a moment, then continued:

"The way monarchs deal with their relationship with powerful clans has always been to divide and rule."

"The Western Han Dynasty valued the heroes of Guanzhong, and thus established its capital in Chang'an; the Eastern Han Dynasty valued the talented scholars of Shandong, and thus established its capital in Luoyang."

"This was the case in every dynasty thereafter. The Empress Dowager was extremely wise and naturally understood the reason behind it."

The reason for only mentioning the Western Han and Eastern Han dynasties is that the established practices of later generations have been followed to this day, and the topic is very sensitive.

The Northern Zhou, Sui, and Tang dynasties all relied on the Guanzhong aristocracy. They depended on them when conquering the country, but after unifying the country, the monarchs all tried to weaken their influence.

Emperor Yang of Sui built Luoyang, shifting the center of the court from Guanzhong to Guandong.

After the founding of the Tang Dynasty, through the efforts of Emperor Taizong and Emperor Gaozong, the Guanlong aristocracy gradually distanced itself from the core of power.

Wu Zetian disliked both the Guanzhong aristocracy and the Guanzhong gentry because neither of these groups supported her.

Therefore, she resided in the capital for a long time and focused on Shandong.

When it came to matters of imperial strategy, Lu Jun only touched upon them briefly.

Wu Zetian said calmly, "Chu Yu, I know your loyalty. This matter can be discussed privately, but not publicly."

He continued, "I believe the divide-and-conquer approach is only a temporary measure. Suppressing one side will only cause another to emerge. Do you have a long-term plan?"

"Yes," Lu Jun replied. "My method is not to suppress powerful clans, but to allow new forces to emerge."

Wu Zetian immediately replied, "You mean increasing the number of candidates for the imperial examinations? I already know how to do that."

At this time, the imperial examination was still called the Gongju. It was established in the Sui Dynasty with the purpose of promoting commoners in order to counter the old aristocratic families.

Since the reigns of Emperor Taizong and Emperor Gaozong, the number of people selected for the imperial examinations has gradually increased. Wu Zetian was an expert in this, often opening new special examinations to win over the people's hearts, and this year is one such example.

When it comes to supporting emerging forces, she naturally thinks of the imperial examination system.

Lu Jun shook her head:

"The Empress Dowager is wise; expanding the imperial examination system is indeed a good strategy, but its effects are only temporary."

"According to the Record of Surnames, those of the fifth rank and above are all from aristocratic families. According to the tax law, relatives living together are exempt from taxes. Those from humble backgrounds who are promoted will soon become new powerful families."

"Due to the limited number of official positions, it was necessary to create new assistant officials, and the number of key officials of the fifth rank continued to increase, while the number of powerful families also increased."

"I fear that decades from now, the situation will not be any better than it is now..."

This is a very euphemistic way of putting it.

In reality, the rise of numerous new powerful clans during the Wu Zhou Dynasty led to a much more severe land annexation than before.

The equal-field system was already on the verge of collapse, and then it deteriorated even further, leading to the complete collapse of the militia system.

It was bound to happen sooner or later, but it shouldn't have happened so quickly...

Wu Zetian had actually considered Lu Jun's prediction about the drawbacks of expanding the imperial examination system. After a moment of contemplation, she said:

"Chu Yu, do you know that if the examination system were not so open and people were not selected according to any particular criteria, a talented person like you with strategic acumen might not have been able to outperform those from powerful families in the regular examinations?"

"Leaving aside the issue of entering officialdom through family connections, just considering the study of classics and literature, the scions of aristocratic families have a huge advantage due to their family tradition of learning."

"Isn't it much better for me to allow more people from humble backgrounds to enter the court than for it to be dominated by powerful families?"

"Do you have a better idea?"

His eyes held both expectation and a hint of sharpness.

"I have three solutions," Lu Jun said with a slight smile.

"The first solution is to reduce dependence on powerful clans."

"The specific method was to take advantage of the search and seizure of escaped households to relocate the population to more remote areas, such as Huainan and Jiangnan."

"Guanzhong, Henan, and Hebei are all narrow areas, and there is no more land to be allocated, but the Jianghuai region still has more than 30% wide areas."

"In addition to the land awaiting allocation in the register, there are also many salt marshes, mountains and hills available for development."

"Swamps can be drained and used to create fields, and hills can be terraced for farming, because the Yangtze and Huai River basins receive a lot of rain, so the terraced fields are not short of water."

"Furthermore, the Jianghuai region has a warm climate and a dense network of waterways, which allows for the large-scale cultivation of rice. Rice-wheat rotation is also possible, resulting in higher yields than millet, wheat, and sorghum, thus supporting a larger population."

"Unfortunately, there are few people and much land now, and the people are not yet accustomed to intensive farming. In many places, slash-and-burn agriculture is still practiced, which needs to be improved."

"Jiangnan has no shortage of land, but it lacks people..."

He was explaining the advantages of the Jianghuai region when Wu Zetian suddenly interrupted him:

"Chu Yu, since the Sui Dynasty, both dynasties have attached great importance to the Jiangnan region. What are the differences in your suggestions?"

Wu Zetian had extensive experience in government affairs and knew that Emperor Yang of Sui and Emperor Taizong of Sui had both made great efforts to develop the Jiangnan region and tried every means to win over the scholars there.

Emperor Yang of Sui also built the Grand Canal and made several tours to Jiangdu, where he eventually died.

This method doesn't sound new.

Lu Jun replied:

"Your Majesty, the two dynasties have only just begun to develop Jiangnan, and the region has not yet been fully utilized."

"After the Sui Dynasty conquered the Chen Dynasty, the gentry in Jiangnan rebelled repeatedly. After more than 700 battles, large and small, the local gentry were finally suppressed."

"Nowadays, the gentry families of Huainan and Jiangnan have long since declined. For example, my family, the Lu family of Wu County, has far less influence than the gentry families of Shandong."

"Everyone in Kuanxiang owns land and does not need to rely on powerful clans. Developing this area will greatly benefit the imperial court."

"Because newly acquired land and newly added households are the source of the imperial court's rent and tax revenue."

"With such a large amount of tax revenue coming from here, the imperial court no longer needs to rely on the support of powerful clans and can implement sweeping reforms—something that neither the two capitals, Henan, nor Hebei can do!"

To sever the influence of powerful clans, a monarch must first secure his purse strings and have sufficient financial resources.

Otherwise, with everyone intertwined and dependent on powerful clans for food, there would be no way to break free; the only options would be to control and win them over.

This is the significance of developing the South.

Historically, the Tang Dynasty's proactive development of the south began as early as the time of Emperor Xuanzong's household registration inspection.

During Wu Zetian's reign in Chang'an, the plan to expand the number of households involved was to order people to return to their hometowns, but this method was not good enough.

Yuwen Rong's approach was more practical: he encouraged newly registered households to migrate to Kuanxiang, so that people would have land to cultivate.

In the thirteenth year of the Kaiyuan era, Yuwen Rong petitioned to separate four townships from Chen County and establish Anling County.

In the twenty-fourth year of the Kaiyuan era, Tingzhou was established.

In the twenty-fifth year of the Kaiyuan era, Tangcheng County of Suizhou was established.

In the twenty-sixth year of the Kaiyuan era, Mingzhou was established.

In the 29th year of the Kaiyuan era, Gutian County of Fuzhou was established.

In the second year of the Tianbao era, Tangnian County of Ezhou was established.

……

The newly established prefectures and counties were intended to settle those who had fled after being searched. For example, Tingzhou was established between Fuzhou and Fuzhou, where "three thousand households of people who had evaded service from various prefectures were investigated and dealt with."

The imperial court's development was relatively moderate, but the arrival of the An Lushan Rebellion accelerated this process with violence.

Later, powerful clans in Hebei established regional military governorships, and the Huai River region and the Jiangnan region became the pillars upon which the Tang Dynasty relied for its survival.

Lu Jun's suggestion was to expedite the relocation as soon as possible in order to enhance the court's sustainable financial capacity.

Such a view is something that people at this time cannot see.

Even the monarch cannot see it.

Wu Zetian gently touched her forehead, leaned against the phoenix couch and pondered for a long time before gradually understanding the advantages and disadvantages involved.

His previously slightly solemn face suddenly relaxed, and his eyes became bright and alert.

"Chu Yu, you're absolutely right! Simply relying on checks and balances won't get rid of the powerful clans."

"We must first free ourselves from dependence on taxes before we can do anything else. Emperor Yang of Sui was truly farsighted, but alas..."

"You mentioned the development of Jiangnan in your 'National Policy' section. I didn't fully understand it then, but I do now!"

Because it involved the interests of powerful clans, Lu Junce could not elaborate on the details, so Wu Zetian's understanding was somewhat shallow, and she had not had time to ask in detail until now, when she finally began to appreciate the nuances.

He thought to himself, "Chu Yu's strategies extend far beyond military matters; he's also adept at political affairs. I must protect him!"

The thought that someone had stopped Lu Jun from seeking justice only strengthened his resolve to send him out of the capital to avoid trouble.

She continued, "Chu Yu, your second plan was also mentioned in the strategy document, right?"

Lu Jun nodded: "Exactly."

"The second strategy is tax reform."