Chapter 276 Buying Territory

Time flies like a white horse passing a crack, passing in the blink of an eye; the seventh year of the new era name was fast approaching its end.

After more than a year of recuperation, the Southern Yue Kingdom had accumulated quite a substantial foundation.

Cement roads were being built in an orderly fashion, covering eighty percent of the Diannan Circuit and Lingnan Circuit.

Coupled with the cancellation of city entry fees and other charges, commercial trade and exchanges across various Guanzhongs became more frequent.

Cartloads of seafood from the South of the Ranges were transported to inland cities in Southern Yunnan, while fresh mushrooms from Southern Yunnan became the new favorite on the dining tables of the people in the South of the Ranges.

The prosperity of commerce spurred many industries, such as the various courier stations established by retired and disabled soldiers with the support of the government offices.

In addition to providing food and lodging for passing merchant caravans and travelers, these courier stations also ensured the safety of the trade routes.

This year, relying solely on commercial taxes, the government offices repaid a large portion of the bank loans.

With nearly a million shi of grain and over a hundred thousand guan in capital accumulated in the government treasury, Gao Yuan, who had been dormant for a year and a half, felt his ambitions stirring once again.

He still remembered the mission given to him by the system; he certainly did not want his son to become the "War God of the Great Ming" or Wan Yan Gou.

Perhaps he was the chosen one, for just as he was contemplating his next move, an opportunity arose.

After the start of spring, the Yellow River experienced severe ice floods, and levees breached in places like Hebei and Shandong.

This caught Lu Kuan, who had enjoyed a few good years, off guard, and it also gave Gao Wu and his sons a glimpse of an opportunity—a prime chance to take Hebei.

Gao Hu grew anxious upon seeing this: "Father, if we commit our full force to attacking Hebei, how should we respond if that bastard attacks the Jiannan Circuit?"

Gao Wu remained silent, casting his gaze toward his eldest son, wanting to hear his opinion.

Gao Long had long since devised a plan: "Father, the Jiannan Circuit is now like a chicken rib to our Northern Liang—tasteless to eat, yet a pity to discard. In my humble opinion, why not discuss it with the Third Highness and trade the four prefectures for some money and grain?"

Gao Wu nodded slightly, very much in agreement with his eldest son's choice.

Long Prefecture, Wen Prefecture, Fuzhou, and Jian Prefecture were now like chicken ribs to Northern Liang.

Not only were there no defensible positions, but more importantly, they required elite troops and strong generals to garrison them, which greatly dispersed their strength in competing for the north.

Gao Hu immediately objected: "I object, Father. The difficulty of the Shu roads is beyond imagination; it was pure luck that we managed to invade the Sichuan region this time. If we just hand it over to that bastard, I fear that if we ever want to invade the Sichuan region again..."

Gao Long was very confident, standing straight and looking at his second brother: "As the saying goes, he who gains the Central Plains gains the world. Our top priority now is to destroy Lu Kuan and take the entire Central Plains. It is truly not worth it to let those four barren prefectures in the Jiannan Circuit drag down thirty thousand of our troops. Moreover, as long as we hold Hanzhong, taking the Sichuan region will be as easy as reaching into a bag."

Gao Hu wanted to say more but was interrupted by a wave of Gao Wu's hand: "Enough, I have made my decision. Proceed as your eldest brother suggested. Long'er, you will be fully responsible for this matter."

"Understood!"

Gao Wu had made his decision; although Gao Hu was unwilling, he had to swallow the words he wanted to say.

Having received Gao Wu's approval, Gao Long immediately began to set things in motion.

To negotiate a good price, Gao Long sent his trusted advisor, Wei Yu of the Hedong Region Wei clan, to the Jiannan Circuit.

Meanwhile, Liu Rengui was receiving grain and military supplies transported from various places and was taken aback when he heard that someone from Northern Liang had arrived.

Upon hearing Wei Yu's purpose, Liu Rengui was even more bewildered: "Is Mr. Wei not joking?"

"Does the Governor think I traveled thousands of miles just to tease Governor Liu?"

Liu Rengui realized he had been somewhat undignified and quickly coughed to compose himself: "I wonder what price your country intends to set for these four prefectures?"

Wei Yu, being greedy, directly held up five fingers: "Five hundred thousand shi of grain, one hundred thousand guan in cash, and..."

"Mr. Wei, stop!"

Seeing that Wei Yu was prepared to continue, Liu Rengui's mouth twitched, and he reached out to stop him: "If your country is so insincere, I think we should just send our troops and fight a battle."

"Governor Liu, our country currently has thirty thousand elite troops in the Jiannan Circuit, and General Gao Ding is brave, skilled in battle, and adept at commanding troops. I believe that even if you could take the four prefectures, the price you would pay would likely be no less than this, right?"

Liu Rengui wanted to say something, but a highly magnetic voice came from outside: "There is no need for you to worry about that, Mr. Wei. Our Nanyue Army has never feared any battle."

Dressed in white martial attire, walking with the stride of a dragon and a tiger, who else could the handsome man walking in be but Gao Yuan?

Liu Rengui quickly stood up and bowed to Gao Yuan: "Your subordinate greets you, my Lord."

Seeing his appearance, Wei Yu guessed who the newcomer was and quickly stood up to bow: "Wei Yu of the Hedong Region, pays respects to the Third Highness."

Gao Yuan raised his hand to stop Wei Yu: "Hold on, I am not the Third Highness of Northern Liang. I am the Great General Huaihua and the Duke of Xicheng Commandery of the Great Qian."

Walking to the main seat and sitting down, Gao Yuan narrowed his peach-blossom eyes and sized up Wei Yu: "Mr. Wei, you are not young anymore; you shouldn't be this naive."

Wei Yu felt offended, and his tone immediately turned unfriendly: "Third... Commandery Duke Gao, why do you say that?"

Gao Yuan sneered and retorted: "Why would a mature person not have a clear understanding of the balance of power between the two sides? To seize the four prefectures, I can mobilize the entire strength of Southern Yue. Tell me, does your Northern Liang dare to do the same?"

It wasn't that Wei Yu lacked understanding; he simply wanted to bluff Liu Rengui to squeeze out more benefits.

Now that Gao Yuan had arrived, his intentions faded significantly.

What followed was a bargaining session between Gao Yuan and Wei Yu; the two of them haggled like peddlers in a vegetable market.

The negotiation lasted for five full days before both sides finally agreed on a price.

Three hundred thousand shi of grain, fifty thousand guan in cash, and two hundred cartloads of furs in exchange for the four prefectures of Fuzhou, Long Prefecture, Wen Prefecture, and Jian Prefecture under the Jiannan Circuit.

At the same time, Gao Yuan provided an additional one hundred thousand shi of grain in exchange for the Northern Liang Army not relocating the common people and, simultaneously, yielding Jiameng Pass.

The price was settled, and the next step was for Liu Rengui to continue liaising with the other party to finalize the details of the handover.

By the fifteenth day of the fourth month, with the last team of Northern Liang laborers escorting grain carts out of Jiameng Pass, the handover between the two sides was officially completed.

Gao Yuan "bought" the four prefectures and Jiameng Pass with nearly forty percent of the reserves in the government treasury.

As the Northern Liang Army departed, Gao Yuan immediately gave the order to build Zhaohua City based on Jiameng Pass.

With a city, not only could the size of the garrison be increased, but it could also bring prosperity to the area, improve defensive capabilities, and reduce the pressure on supplies.

At the same time, the second barrier of the Sichuan region, Jianmen Pass, was built at Jiange.

This majestic pass, which in the original timeline was ordered to be built by the Prime Minister, appeared under Gao Yuan's command in this timeline.

At the same time, he recruited laborers to repair the road from Chengdu to Zhaohua City; only in this way could absolute safety be ensured.

It also provided convenience for his future departure from Sichuan to attack Hanzhong and the Guanzhong.

Having dealt with the Northern Liang's influence in the Jiannan Circuit, Gao Yuan could concentrate his efforts on dealing with Western Kang.

Song Prefecture and Yaizhou could be said to be the gateways to the west of the Jiannan Circuit; now that they were in the hands of the Western Kang people, it was like a fishbone stuck in Gao Yuan's throat.

The main general currently garrisoned in Song Prefecture and Yaizhou was none other than Tuoba Rui, who had suffered several major defeats at his hands.

This rising star of the Tuoba family had received the heavy trust of Li Yuanhao, who appointed him as the Grand Governor of Song and Yao, commanding thirty thousand troops to garrison the two prefectures.

This time, to deal with Tuoba Rui, Gao Yuan brought forty thousand infantry from the Central Corps, along with five thousand Xuanjia Army, as well as a large number of craftsmen.

Counting the fifteen thousand men of the Jiannan Army, sixty thousand men had been mobilized this time.

The ratio of forces between the two sides was two to one; it was a rare opportunity for Gao Yuan to fight such a wealthy battle.