Chapter 280 Reorganization
Zhao Deyan was born in Yunnei, Mayi. He loved reading poetry and books since he was a child. He hoped to become an official, realize his ambitions, and bring honor to his family.

But in the Sui Dynasty, people with his background had no chance to enter the officialdom, so he could only stay with the children of aristocratic families and flatter them in the hope of getting a chance to be recommended.

But he never waited for the world to be in chaos, so he directly surrendered to several heroes who rose to prominence in troubled times. However, these lords all had a bad ending under his assistance.

Although his plans were a little poor, fortunately he was good at avoiding danger and seeking good fortune. After many twists and turns, he did not suffer any injuries and successfully survived until the founding of the Tang Dynasty.

He concluded that the new emperor would definitely recruit scholars from humble backgrounds to provide a check and balance in the court, so he rushed to Luoyang to study hard, waiting for the opportunity to make a splash.

This wait lasted several more years, but fortunately his judgment was correct, so he frequently held poetry gatherings and literary collections in Luoyang, hoping to attract a group of his peers.

He is already this old. How long will it take for him to be able to fulfill his ambition of assisting the king in governing the country by just working hard in the local areas to gain experience?

You still have to cultivate your reputation, especially among those children from poor families, so that you have a chance to be selected by His Majesty to take on important tasks, and then take advantage of His Majesty's opportunity to balance the court...

Zhao Deyan thought so and did so. It went smoothly at the beginning, but soon he suffered a huge blow.

As scholars from all over the world gathered in Luoyang, especially those from poor families in the south, their brilliant articles and strategies for governing the country shattered his decadent and backward self-confidence.

There are not just one or two people, there are too many. Even though there is no best in literature, the obvious advantages and disadvantages can still be determined.

Zhao Deyan asked himself if he might still have a chance to pass the exam and become an official, but he could forget about bringing honor to his family, let alone his ambition to serve the country.

So he returned to his hometown in low spirits, preparing to write two books to pass on his story of being a talented but unappreciated talent to future generations.

But unexpectedly, the situation changed. After he returned to his former residence in Mayi, a Turkic merchant caravan actually came to his door and claimed that Princess Yicheng was recruiting talents for the Turkic Khan.

It was fine a few years ago, but who would skip the imperial examination in Luoyang and go to the Turks now?

Zhao Deyan suddenly realized that he was just an average person in Luoyang, but if he went to the Turks, he might have a chance to govern the grassland. He didn't dare to think about bringing honor to his family, but he still had a chance to realize his ambition.

So Zhao Deyan followed the caravan to Dali City again, and successfully met Princess Yicheng. Thanks to his eloquence honed over the years, he actually became the princess's guest of honor and was recommended to the Khan.

So he belittled the Turkic system whenever he had the chance, attributed the Turkic decline to it, and then vigorously promoted the ritual and legal system of the Central Plains.

At the beginning, Tuli Khan naturally didn't want to pay attention to it, but over time, especially when he suffered setbacks in all aspects and saw the continuous prosperity of the Tang Dynasty, finally, he, Zhao Deyan, became the prime minister of the Turks.

He began to change all the systems, policies and laws of the Turks, generally imitating those of the Central Plains, and occasionally adding the political and legal ideas he had conceived in his early years.

As a result, the already unstable Turkic people began to experience the pain of reform. The nomadic people were troubled and very dissatisfied, but Zhao Deyan had the support of Princess Yicheng and Tuli Khan, and no one could do anything to him.

"Your Majesty, do not mind this little difficulty. You are going to be the emperor of the grassland. After the reform, you will be as powerful as the emperor of the Central Plains. No one can go against your will!"

The first thing Zhao Deyan reformed was the Turkic harem system. He imitated the Central Plains and established a queen, four concubines, nine concubines, twenty-seven concubines, and eighty-one imperial wives for Tuli Khan. He also forced all tribes to offer beautiful women, especially the leaders of each tribe, who had to gloriously marry their daughters and cattle and sheep slaves to the emperor of the great Khan grassland.

In a very short period of time, the harem was actually filled. Tuli Khan was only eighteen years old. Seeing that he had so many women, each with their own cattle, sheep and slaves, he was overjoyed and was the first to taste the benefits of the reform.

There were more than a hundred women, some of whom were still young and some of whom were married. Tuli Khan thought they were all good and began to trust Zhao Deyan sincerely.

Zhao Deyan did not neglect Princess Yicheng. He built a new palace for her and specially sought out some young men with elegant looks from the Central Plains.

Since Princess Yicheng was married to the Turks by Emperor Yang, she has been the wife of Qimin Khan, Shibi Khan, and Jie Li Khan successively. She has long been tired of the rough men of the grassland.

Tuli Khan looked a little weak. He originally had only three or four women, but now there are more than a hundred of them, and each of them is quite strong. Naturally, he can only try his best to treat them equally. Only the eighteen-year-old Tuli can withstand such hardship.

Tuli perked up and said, "Because of last year's snowstorm, the Ministry of Censer... doesn't have much savings now. You still said you wanted to provide relief to the herdsmen affected by the disaster to win their hearts and minds. How can you do that?"

Zhao Deyan said confidently: "Of course we collect taxes. Your Majesty, the taxes you originally set were too low, almost relying solely on the voluntary tributes from various tribes. How can this be possible?

It is only natural that the amount of tax that should be paid each year should be determined according to the number of cattle and sheep each tribe has. "

Tuli frowned: "What if they don't want to?"

Zhao Deyan smiled and said, "Then you have a legitimate reason to fight. You can mobilize the troops of other tribes to fight against the rebels who do not obey the imperial decree!
After defeating them, confiscate all their wealth and put it into the national treasury. In this way, the court will have savings. You can also reward part of it to the tribes loyal to you, so that they will be more loyal.

If there are tribes that do not obey your orders to send troops, we can conquer them again. In this way, the national treasury will become more and more abundant, and the leaders of various tribes will become more respectful and loyal. No one will dare to disobey any of your wishes, Your Majesty! "

Tuli was very tempted, but he also felt something was wrong: "Will this work?"

"The Central Plains has always been like this, Your Majesty. The people of the Central Plains and the grasslands are all human beings in the final analysis. The only difference is the political system. As long as we reform the system and make up for our weaknesses, then you will have the opportunity to go south and become the only emperor in the world."

Tuli licked his lips. There were only a few Han women in his harem. If he could conquer the Central Plains, would the number of his harem double?

He had heard from Zhao Deyan that the emperor of Central Plains could have 3,000 beauties in his harem. He was not so greedy and thought that more than 300 would be enough.

Just as Tuli was about to speak, a Turkic noblewoman wearing jewels on her head rushed in: "But... Your Majesty, you should accompany me today!"

What Tuli Khan liked most was to watch women vying for his favor, so he nodded happily.

………………

(End of this chapter)