“Can strategists not ascend to the throne?”
Chapter 194: The Four Family Sins…
Lu Yuan wasn’t wrong with her statement.
Even after having won over strategists and generals to his side, one still couldn’t fully trust them when managing intelligence networks.
But Qiao Lan and Qiao Ting were different.
The dual limitations of their surname and gender meant they could only receive truly fair treatment under Qiao Yan’s rule, relying on their brains and abilities rather than their beauty.
Qiao Rui’s death in the battle between Yuan Shu and Liu Bei also shed a layer of shackles passed down from their father.
Ultimately, even if Yuan Shu’s forced retreat to Yu Province was a chain reaction from Qiao Yan’s interference in the Jing Province conflict, and even if Yuan Shu’s confrontation with Yuan Shao was spurred on by Qiao Yan’s meddling, Qiao Rui’s death shouldn’t be blamed on her.
On the contrary, providing refuge was kindness, nurturing was kindness, and having an independent identity rather than being someone’s subordinate was also a grace from Qiao Yan to the Qiao sisters.
That was reason enough to select them.
However, this was a relatively dangerous job. In the midst of chaos, merchants often faced robbery, and the specter of bandits during tough times made it common for people to be coerced into handing over their goods. No matter how many armed bodyguards were arranged, incidents could still occur.
Additionally, the identity of an intelligence chief and the need to deal with various factions meant that exposure posed a deadly risk.
Unless at that time, Qiao Yan’s power had reached a level that every commandery would fear.
In such a scenario, as long as the Qiao sisters bore the mark of being Qiao Yan’s own, no one would dare touch them.
Qiao Yan pondered the pros and cons for a while, remaining silent.
But Lu Yuan could see her approval of this choice from her expression.
Even if outsiders were to be appointed to this position, considerations regarding loyalty and personal safety were necessary, and compared to others, the Qiao sisters posed the least risk.
“Let them study at the academy for half a year to adapt to the environment. Once matters in Chang’an are settled, I’ll discuss this with them,” Qiao Yan decided. “If they’re willing to take on this task, their course of study will need some adjustments.”
Relying solely on how they presented themselves when choosing to align with Bingzhou wasn’t enough for them to confidently take on such a unique role.
They needed specialized training in matters like poise, accent, intelligence assessment, and crisis response techniques.
To ensure that they could disappear and execute their travel tasks without drawing attention from the academy’s students, Qiao Yan needed to be well-prepared.
Fortunately, the most promising candidates had already been identified; everything else was just supplementary.
Before that, she wanted Guan Daxian from the Black Mountain army to get started on business expansion.
Qiao Yan understood that for this business to not be linked back to her in the short term, the best way wasn’t to sever ties with Bingzhou, but to trade in a manner where the core products were not from Bingzhou.
So after meeting Guan Daxian, her first assignment was: send him to Shu to purchase Shu brocade for trade in Bingzhou, Ji Province, and Xuzhou.
Then Qiao Yan met with Sun Gan.
As for Sun Gongyou from Beihai, if one were to assess his ability for advanced studies, he certainly wasn’t top-notch among Zheng Xuan’s students; he was, at least, not pursuing a path of scholarly advancement.
But for Qiao Yan, someone like Sun Gan, who was a practical talent like Guo Yuan, held even greater significance in these chaotic times.
Sun Gan had no objections to serving under Qiao Yan, but she couldn’t just throw him into a high position right away.
After some thought, she arranged for Sun Gan to start as an assistant in the administration, helping Xi Zhicai with matters.
The information coming into Bingzhou from various regions would be summarized by Xi Zhicai.
So this assignment for Sun Gan, in some sense, was also a way to lighten Xi Zhicai’s load.
“Is your lordship just finding me a capable assistant, or are you testing my administrative abilities?” Xi Zhicai joked.
It seemed like a double-edged sword.
Qiao Yan replied, “With your mind, of course, it’s relief. If you don’t delegate some tasks to your subordinates, won’t you just end up exhausting yourself while serving as Acting Governor?”
The more tasks you delegate, the clearer someone’s capabilities become.
This was such an obvious principle.
Xi Zhicai said, “Why do I hear your words as if you’re talking about yourself?”
In order to avoid collapsing from overwork, she pushed her responsibilities onto her subordinates—that was quite the signature move of Qiao Yan.
Fortunately, she had enough subordinates now, giving her the capital to pull this off.
Qiao Yan raised her cup towards Xi Zhicai and replied, “You understand me. Thinking about all the unfinished tasks ahead of us, I feel the weight of responsibility.”
The implication being, she needed to ensure she lived long enough to tackle it all.
She felt this, and so did Xi Zhicai.
But Xi Zhicai glanced at the cup in Qiao Yan’s hand and really wanted to point out that in this case, shouldn’t she be drinking tea or wine, instead of this concoction of milk and tea, sweetened with rock honey, which she called milk tea?
This stuff had even been chilled before serving.
But if Qiao Yan were to say, drinking iced milk tea in summer was just as essential as covering oneself with a quilt in winter, that sense of spiritual satisfaction was irreplaceable.
How could that not be a method of prolonging one’s life?
By the time Qiao Yan toured around Bingzhou, confirming that even the newcomers had adapted to life there, and on her way back to Liangzhou, July’s heat had grown increasingly intense.
Fortunately, the military garrison she first arrived at in Jincheng Commandery, if measured by modern standards of temperature, hadn’t even exceeded ten degrees.
When asking Cheng Yu about the situation during her absence from Liangzhou, she glanced outside and momentarily felt she might as well be on a summer vacation.
Compared to those still consolidating power and suppressing uprisings, Qiao Yan was undoubtedly in the most comfortable environment.
But it couldn’t be denied that comfort in temperature didn’t mean she’d face fewer crises.
For example, what Cheng Yu was saying right now: “Your lordship ought to be wary of the Four Families in Hanyang.”
Compared to the “chickens” that had fallen to the warning from her regarding Liangzhou’s powerful clans, the Four Families in Hanyang had it pretty good under her rule.
Moreover, with Qiao Yan concentrating the military populations in Jincheng, Wuwei, and Anding Commanderies, the management of Hanyang was still left to the original Prefect Zhang, granting the Four Families even more freedom.
In their view, it was only natural for Qiao Yan to show such attitude towards them.
The Jiang family of Hanyang, represented by Jiang Jiao, accompanied Gai Xun to Bingzhou, and during Qiao Yan’s offensive against Longxi, the army passed through Hanyang, and they also stepped in…
“That’s a lot of help!”
So, the arrival of the Bingzhou army wasn’t such a hassle for them after all; it was actually a golden opportunity to clear away some pesky obstacles.
Cheng Yu continued, “At the end of June, as per the lord’s instructions, I gathered more Qiang people under my command and recruited personnel in the region. Among them was a talented individual from Hanyang named Xue Xia. Everyone in the commandery said he was useful, but unfortunately, he came from a poor family, had no connections with the four prominent families of Hanyang, and repeatedly rejected their offers, his reputation growing louder in the area.”
“The four clans of Hanyang despised him deeply, worrying that once he served the lord, he might cause them trouble. So, they conspired to deal with him before the lord returned to Liangzhou.”
“The lord’s reputation in Liangzhou lay in military might rather than politics. He had favored the four families of Hanyang and even sent their young members to Bingzhou as Zheng Xuan’s disciples. Xue Xuan was afraid the lord had a secret alliance with the four clans and planned to flee overnight, but I managed to invite him back to Jincheng before that happened.”
Upon hearing this, Qiao Yan’s expression turned somewhat grave.
Decades of established dynamics in Liangzhou meant that it wasn’t just the Qiang who might defect from the Han, but these local landlords could also band together for separatist ambitions.
With such powers still in play, there were plenty of untapped grievances, and Xue Xia was just one victim among many.
While Xue Xia could use his fame and knowledge to bring these whispers to Cheng Yu’s attention, what about the others?
Compared to the more restrained powerful families in Bingzhou facing the threats from the Hu people beyond the borders, Liangzhou’s elite wore their disregard for rules like a badge of honor.
Perhaps in their eyes, that was the rule.
To fully bring Liangzhou under her control, all these unstable elements needed to be crushed and rebuilt.
“I have an idea I’d like to hear Mr. Zhongde’s thoughts on,” Qiao Yan said, her fingers tapping rhythmically on the table, her calm tone a subtle cover for the underlying threat.
From her tone, Cheng Yu could tell that “this matter” she mentioned involved more than just Xue Xia’s mistreatment.
Sure enough, Qiao Yan continued, “With Wenhe planning something in Chang’an, whether Dong Zhuo himself or his generals, an army will invade Liangzhou before the autumn harvest to break the stalemate, and the key offensive will occur in Hanyang.”
“I plan to use the accusation that the four clans of Hanyang colluded with Dong Zhuo to sweep them away and then deploy troops to Chang’an. This battle—”
“Must shock the world and make Liangzhou bow!”
Colluding with Dong Zhuo?
That would certainly be a trumped-up charge for the Hanyang four clans.
But in their years of dominating Liangzhou, the number of people they harmed couldn’t be counted on two hands.
In another record submitted by Cheng Yu regarding Qiao Yan, it was documented how their people had uncovered countless wrongdoings by the local elite while leveraging the opportunity of acquiring lands from the four clans.
Compared to the Yang family, the first target listed by Qiao Yan, the danger posed by the Jiang, Yan, Ren, and Zhao clans was far greater.
So, this cruel action could also serve as a boon for the commoners of Liangzhou.
Qiao Yan also needed the people of Liangzhou, especially the remaining powerful families, to understand who truly held power here before moving into Guanzhong!
As for the potential backlash after dealing with the four clans of Liangzhou, just as Qiao Yan had said, as long as she could create a shocking situation with this war against Chang’an, any resistance wouldn’t amount to much.
And by the time any real impact was felt, the new power to replace them, which would support Liangzhou, would have already been firmly grasped in Qiao Yan’s hands.
So—killing was indeed an option!
Cheng Yu was well aware of the parasitic nature of these Liangzhou families and, given his ordinary background, shared no connection with them, allowing him to see the downsides of their power-based coalition clearly.
Were such methods cruel?
Perhaps, but compared to the deeply-rooted problems plaguing Liangzhou, being a burden to Qiao Yan was far worse than cutting the knot quickly.
At most, he considered the feasibility of Qiao Yan’s proposal from the perspective of a strategist before returning, “This plan is practical.”
“However, we still need to weigh who should be killed and who should be spared.”
If too many were killed, it wouldn’t be just digging a hole on their own territory for other crops to grow; they’d be wrecking the whole field.
People hoping to save their lives likely wouldn’t care about who their opponent was.
After all, whether they resisted or not, death was certain; it might as well be a quick death.
Thus, the attack must balance light and heavy strikes just right.
Qiao Yan and Cheng Yu looked at each other, both understanding the unspoken meaning in each other’s eyes.
She replied, “I have a plan in mind.”
With Cheng Yu’s acknowledgment, Qiao Yan felt more daring to proceed with her plans.
Now she just hoped that Dong Zhuo’s people would cooperate a bit.
Prior to this plot to use someone else’s knife to do the killing, Xu Rong and Ma Teng made their return to Wuwei Commandery after their second trip to Guishuang.
The previous trip had dragged on due to delays in securing cotton in Tianzhu, but this time, they had gained experience on the road, and their true target was Dayuan, making their journey much faster than the last.
They set out at the end of the month and returned before mid-July.
This time, however, they brought back even more cargo.
When Qiao Yan heard the news of their arrival at the border between Wuwei and Zhangye, she saw a large number of Dayuan steeds returning with the caravan.
Under the July sun, these famous blood-sweating horses galloped in, causing Yan Jun, who came to greet her, to change his expression dramatically.
This number of prized Dayuan horses couldn’t have been legally acquired or purchased with their funds, making it obvious they were stolen!
However, when he looked toward Qiao Yan, he saw no trace of surprise on her face, only an air of unapologetic righteousness.
This sudden realization hit him hard: the true purpose of this second Silk Road journey had never involved buying goods!
Yet recognizing this now did him no good.
The people had returned, the horses were back, and even Xu Rong and Ma Teng, whom he thought had fallen into Qiao Yan’s disfavor, were now bowing before her, behaving as if they had accomplished a great mission.
And considering the situation in Wuwei Commandery with farming…
By July, it was easy to judge the expected harvest from August to September.
Let alone those Qiang people from Lushui incorporated into the farmland, even Yan Jun couldn’t help but admire the growth he saw in the military barracks, so much so that he wished to give all his private fields to Qiao Yan to manage.
All the facts and signs pointed to one conclusion: opposing her was a decision no one with a brain should make.
With this thought, Yan Jun instinctively wiped the sweat off his forehead.
“Are you feeling hot?” Qiao Yan asked him, glancing over.
Yan Jun intended to point at the blazing sun overhead, only to realize there was a large oil-paper sunshade spread over him, shielding his face from direct sunlight.
“…”
All he hoped for now was that those colleagues involved in the Silk Road trade would be smart enough not to target Ma Teng before he even got a chance to recruit!
