The Three Kingdoms: I asked you to save Guan Yu, not to destroy Sun Quan.

Chapter 627 Don’t Force Me to Beat You

From the perspective of outsiders like Jian Yong and Jian Huan, you would find that Guan Xing was not only good at fighting, but also wrote excellent plans, so good that lower-level officials could simply follow them.

Jian Yong had recently reviewed many of Guan Xing's proposals and found that apart from the fact that they were all written in vernacular Chinese, which was a bit wasteful of paper, he couldn't find any fault with them. Anyone who could read could understand them, so having Guan Xing help write a proposal was definitely the right thing to do.

But Guan Xing was not happy. This was a brain-intensive task. Guan Xing said speechlessly, "Uncle Jian, you're going too far... How about I just write you a five-year development plan for Funan?"

Jian Yong's eyes lit up and he quickly grabbed Guan Xing's hand, excitedly laughing, "That's great, no problem, Uncle has faith in you."

Guan Xing: "..."

I was just saying it offhand, can't you tell I'm being sarcastic?

Although he was reluctant, Jian Yong and his son were, after all, his own people, and besides, he had already accepted the gifts, so there was no reason to return them. Guan Xing had no choice but to reluctantly say, "Alright then, but I'll have to trouble Uncle Jian to get me all the information that Funan can gather, including information on terrain, climate, population, customs, and the distribution of local power."

Jian Yong said, "No problem. Besides, Fan Shiman and the princes and ministers of Funan will be escorted back to Jiangling soon. I will talk to them then. They will definitely know more details than the court currently has."

It's impossible for Jian Huan to leave his fiefdom tomorrow; he needs at least two or three months to prepare. That's enough time for Fan Shiman and the other prisoners to reach Jiangling.

To ensure his son's smooth ascension to his fiefdom, Jian Yong was willing to risk his life. He had no choice but to fight desperately, as this was his own son.

After finishing their discussion, Jian Yong and his son chatted with Guan Xing for a long time before taking their leave.

Leaving the Shence Marquis's residence, Jian Yong excitedly said, "This trip was worthwhile. With the Shence Marquis's advice and plan, I believe you can quickly gain a foothold in Funan. I never thought that our Jian family could produce a ruler in the Han Dynasty. This is truly bringing glory to our ancestors."

Although what he said was true, Jian Huan still said with some worry, thinking of the long and arduous journey to Funan, "Father, I can't bear to leave you."

He is the eldest son of the Jian family. Even if he doesn't go to his fief, the title of Duke of Yan will be his in the future. So there is really no need for him to make this trip. Isn't it better to stay in the capital and enjoy life?

Unfortunately, neither Liu Bei nor Jian Yong asked for his opinion; they simply made the arrangements without asking, leaving him no chance to object.

Upon hearing this, Jian Yong slapped him on the back of the head and then cursed, "What nonsense are you talking about? You're almost forty years old and you're still staying by your father's side. Don't you know that I was already following His Majesty to Jingzhou when I was your age? So stop talking nonsense and go to Funan to take up your post. Don't force your father to slap you when he's happiest."

“From now on, you will be the ruler of Funan, and your brother will be a member of the gentry in the Han Dynasty. As Anguo would say, we will be walking on two legs. Our Jian family will be completely prosperous. A hundred years from now, I will have the face to meet our ancestors.”

He's more than just shameless; if he were to meet his ancestors in the afterlife, they would all praise him for being both scholarly and martial.

It should be noted that Jian Yong also came from a humble background; otherwise, he wouldn't have been able to follow Liu Bei in his early days.

Born into a poor family, he has now not only risen to the highest position in the government, but also raised a king. If this is not bringing glory to his ancestors, what is?

Jian Yong grabbed Jian Huan by the ear and got into the carriage, heading straight for the Prime Minister's residence. After consulting with Zhuge Liang, they went to Shi Xie's residence. Shi Xie had lived in Jiaozhou for a long time and knew the situation in Funan best, so it was always good to talk to him.

Not long after the father and son left the Marquis of Shence's residence, another carriage arrived at the gate of the residence under the escort of hundreds of personal guards. As soon as the carriage stopped, Liu Shan jumped off and shouted from afar, "Anguo, Mi Wei has sent word. Let's discuss this."

Guan Xing was worrying about how to draft a five-year development plan for Funan without any on-site investigation or data when he heard Liu Shan's call.

Then, startled, he quickly got up to greet Liu Chan, inviting him into the room and asking, "Brother Wei sent a letter, when?"

Liu Shan handed over the letter and said, "It was Dai Liang who brought it back. The letter said that he and Shi Hui were captured by Mi Fang. Afterwards, he obtained several thousand soldiers and several thousand strings of cash from Mi Fang. He also got Mi Fang to provide some grain and fodder so that the sugar factory can be rebuilt in Funan. It is indeed easy to get things done if you have connections in the area. Anguo, your suggestion that Father Emperor exile Mi Fang to Linyi was absolutely brilliant."

Without this second uncle in Linyi, who would Mi Wei have taken advantage of?

Now things are looking up. Not only did he profit from the tomb of the Marquis of Haihun because the sugar factory was seized by Shi Hui, but the sugar factory has also been returned to him. As the saying goes, every cloud has a silver lining.

Liu Shan continued, "Mi Wei said that although the funds provided by Mi Fang can support him to build another factory, he needs more money to expand the scale. Therefore, he wants me to invest an additional 5,000 strings of cash. I think it's no problem. I'm not short of money now."

Liu Shan now also has businesses. Guan Xing not only gave Liu Shan the brick and tile factory built outside the city for the construction of the new Jiangling city, but also made Liu Shan write an application and go through the procedures to contract Wushan for five years.

It is worth mentioning that although Liu Bei brought all the basic resources, such as fertile fields and mines, into the hands of the imperial court, the court could not keep these things to itself. It was necessary to hand them over to the gentry to manage. Therefore, a leasing and contracting system was established. Willing gentry could obtain the right to use the land through leasing and contracting. The lease contract was signed every five years, and after the five-year term, the renewal was decided according to the wishes of both parties.

At the same time, Zhuge Liang was also preparing for state-owned enterprises in accordance with Guan Xing's advice, exploring the path of state-owned enterprises controlling mineral resources. Once the conditions were ripe, various mines would be gradually brought under the name of state-owned enterprises.

To put it bluntly, seizing mines also takes time. It's impossible to take them away immediately while they're being operated by the aristocratic families; that would be no different from robbery. So, this so-called lease and contract system came about, which essentially gave the mine owners a five-year grace period.

However, this buffer period allowed Guan Xing to take advantage of the situation and suggested that Liu Shan contract Wushan. In this way, all the precious timber produced in Wushan would become the Crown Prince's private property, so His Highness the Crown Prince is indeed not short of money now.

Guan Xing laughed and said, "What else is there to say? Let's give Mi Wei an additional 5,000 strings of cash and get the sugar factory up and running."

Liu Shan hesitated and said, "Adding funds is no problem, but Mi Wei wants to build the factory in Funan because he doesn't have to comply with the Labor Law. I want him to move it back to Jiaozhou. Funan is too far away. The little bit of salary saved by not complying with the Labor Law probably won't even cover the transportation costs."

The transportation costs of this era were indeed staggering, but...

Guan Xing put his arm around Liu Shan's shoulder and advised, "Your Highness, if you were just a merchant, it would certainly be right to consider transportation costs, but you are the Crown Prince and the heir apparent, so we need to take a longer-term view."

"Now that His Majesty has already appointed Jian Huan as the King of Funan, he will surely follow suit and grant other overseas lands in the same way. But granting lands requires that the recipients are willing to go. If it were you, would you be willing to give up the riches and honors of the capital and go to some godforsaken place to expand your territory?"

Liu Shan shook his head decisively, "Only a fool would go."

Guan Xing spread his hands and said, "So we must fully support Jian Huan so that he can quickly gain a foothold in Funan and make it bigger and stronger, so that others can see the glory of Funan. Your Highness is the Crown Prince. As the Crown Prince, you cannot only consider economic issues, but also political issues. Compared with bringing Funan under your complete control, what is a small sugar factory?"

Liu Shan tilted his head and pondered for a moment before saying, "What you said seems to make some sense. Once Jian Huan has truly secured his position as the ruler of Funan, we can still do other businesses there. Let's do as you say, and consider this a preliminary investment."