Chapter 1076: The Twenty-Three Circuits of the Great Han

Inside Chongzheng Hall, the enormous map of the Great Han hung high on the side of the hall. After the household registers and maps of the southern prefectures were transported to the capital, the relevant offices in Kaifeng sorted them by category and quickly digested them. A complete map of the Great Han's current territory was thus produced, drawn by Xue Juzheng with thirty specialists of various fields, taking three months from start to finish.

The map in Chongzheng Hall was the most detailed one—mountains, rivers, lakes, plains, prefectural cities, and county towns were all marked upon it. Though he could not personally tread every inch of the Great Han's land, he could at least use the map, the most intuitive means, to understand his realm's territory and freely admire the domain he had conquered.

Of course, this was not just a single map—it was accompanied by a complete set of introductions to each prefecture and county's geography, customs, and local conditions, amounting to a national gazetteer. Had it not been for organizing all this information, it would not have required so many people or so much time.

At this moment, Emperor Liu once again admired the Great Han's territory. As for vastness, that was certainly true—reaching the Yin Mountains in the north, the Eastern Sea in the east, Qiongzhou in the south, and the shifting sands in the west. The only pity was that the east lacked a head and the west was missing a tail, plus some corners and edges here and there—to achieve perfection would still require time.

Still, as his gaze swept over the Great Han's circuits and prefectures, Emperor Liu's eyes could not help but reveal a hint of satisfaction. The Great Han, after its recent redivision, was now divided into twenty-three circuits: Jingji Circuit, Jingxi Circuit, Henan Circuit, Hebei Circuit, Yan Mountains Circuit, Hedong Circuit, Shanyang Circuit, Guannei Circuit, Longyou Circuit, Hexi Circuit, Shannan Circuit, Jiannan Circuit, Chuandong Circuit, Hubei Circuit, Hunan Circuit, Huaixi Circuit, Huaidong Circuit, Jiangnan Circuit, Jiangxi Circuit, Liangzhe Circuit, Fujian Circuit, Guangnan East Circuit, and Guangnan West Circuit.

Compared to before, there had been considerable adjustments. The Huaibei Circuit was abolished—part of it merged into Huaidong, part into Jingji Circuit. The newly established Henan Circuit encompassed most of the former Huaibei Circuit, plus a portion of Hebei East Circuit. Hebei, which had previously been divided east-west, was now divided by the Juma River and Baigou as the boundary—north of it was Yan Mountains Circuit, south of it was Hebei Circuit, while the former Huai, Wei, and Chanzhou prefectures were incorporated into Jingji Circuit.

The Jinan Circuit was renamed Jingxi Circuit, and the An and Fu prefectures were assigned to Hubei Circuit. The former Jinghu Circuit was split into Hubei and Hunan Circuits, with Dongting Lake as the dividing line. Hubei Circuit had Jiangling Prefecture as its seat of government, incorporating Ezhou to the east and including Yuezhou, Langzhou, and other prefectures formerly belonging to Hunan to the south.

Lingnan was divided into east and west circuits. The former Min kingdom's territory became Fujian Circuit, while the former Southern Tang lands became Jiangnan and Jiangxi Circuits—east of the Chi and She prefectures belonged to Jiangnan Circuit, west of them to Jiangxi Circuit. Wuyue's territory became Liangzhe Circuit, though Fuzhou was naturally assigned to Fujian, and Suzhou was also given to Jiangnan Circuit.

The changes to Huaixi and Huaidong were not significant—only minor adjustments to individual prefectures and counties. As for Shanyang, Hedong, Shannan, Jiannan, and Chuandong, they basically followed their previous distribution with no major changes.

Longyou Circuit stretched from Fengxiang in the east to the Lan and Shan regions in the west, essentially encompassing all the fruits of Wang Jing's territorial expansion—it belonged to the phase of consolidation after expansion. Guannei Circuit encompassed the vast lands west of Shanzhou, including the Xia and Sui prefectures where the Dingnan Army was situated, as well as the areas where the Tangut were distributed—all temporarily placed under Guannei Circuit.

Hexi Circuit was centered on Liangzhou and Lingzhou, with the area actually under control still not large. But in Emperor Liu's mind, even the Gan and Su prefectures still in Uyghur hands, along with those pastures, deserts, and oases, ought to be Great Han territory.

However, Emperor Liu's gaze at this moment fell upon Guannei Circuit. Emperor Liu felt it was somewhat too large—from Chang'an to the northernmost point bordering Shanyang Circuit, the straight-line distance was eight or nine hundred li. In terms of circuit administration, effective management and governance were simply impossible.

Of course, this was only a temporary measure. The prefectures and counties controlled by the Dingnan Army north of Yanzhou, as well as the areas where the Tangut were active, were like the Uyghurs in Gansu—increasingly an eyesore to Emperor Liu.

Although Liu Chengyou's main focus in the coming period would be on domestic adjustment and consolidation, his goals and plans for advancing into the northwest would not change. Experience from the later age told Emperor Liu that if the northwest was not pacified, the realm would never be at peace.

Even though the Dingnan Army's days had grown increasingly difficult in recent years—on one hand facing external pressure from the court, on the other hand with internal strife growing ever more intense—Li Kerui still firmly controlled Xiazhou and Youzhou, but Suizhou and Yinzhou had completely slipped from his grasp.

As for the Dingnan Army at this time, even if all its forces were combined, mobilizing ten thousand men would be the most it could manage—and that was while it was in a state of division. Add to that the Great Han's border troops nearby, and Lu Duoxun running about east and west, constantly dividing and buying off Tangut tribes—it could be said that the current Dingnan Army's power was not worth a single blow.

With the second peace agreement between the Han and the Liao, Li Guangrui had become completely docile, no longer daring to make any overt moves. Interestingly, two years earlier, Li Guangrui had repeatedly submitted memorials to the court hoping for Li Yiyin's release, but as his own position gradually stabilized, he stopped mentioning the matter—only sending Li Yiyin greetings and a gift when presenting tribute at the Eastern Capital during festivals.

As for Duke Xia, Li Yiyin, he had been kept in Kaifeng for a full four years. The court had not mistreated him—all his food, clothing, and expenses were provided according to protocol—but his freedom was greatly restricted, and in the end, he was simply placed under house arrest. There were armored guards in the open, informants behind his back, and secret agents in the shadows.

Under such constrained and oppressive living conditions, the aged Li Yiyin's spirit and body gradually declined—and with that, traveling far back to the northwest became even less feasible. Previously, upon learning that Li Yiyin was ill, the Emperor, to show concern, had specially sent an imperial physician to treat him.

Not long ago, Li Yiyin submitted a memorial saying he was afflicted with illness and did not have long to live, hoping to be buried in his native land. Emperor Liu agreed, promising he would be returned for burial in his homeland—well, after he died.

Even though the imperial physician had repeatedly reported to Emperor Liu that Li Yiyin was indeed ill and had little time left, Emperor Liu's suspicious nature would not allow the slightest negligence. Under the current circumstances, the Dingnan Army was meat on a chopping board, ready to be taken at any moment—he did not want any accidents.

Li Yiyin wanted to move him with the plea of burial in his homeland. The merciful Emperor Liu would not be so heartless—when he died, he would notify Li Guangrui to come carry the coffin...

Though the Dingnan Army was not a concern, the Tangut could not be taken lightly. Perhaps unwilling to admit it in his heart, but the reality was that the Xia-Sui region was already Tangut territory. They had herded, hunted, and cultivated there for so long that their blood was fused with the soil.

Just as Lu Duoxun had advised him before, the Dingnan Army and the Tangut should be viewed separately. In Emperor Liu's thinking, he naturally would not allow the Tangut to continue living freely within the Great Han's borders as they had before—household registration and taxation would both have to be implemented. At the same time, Emperor Liu also knew in his heart that the Tangut were ultimately not the barbarians of the southwest; if he went too far, it would absolutely provoke violent upheaval. How to proceed would require careful deliberation.

Perhaps he should summon Lu Duoxun back to discuss it? Emperor Liu thought to himself. With several journeys to the west and many years of service in the northwest, Lu Duoxun had grown into the official with the most say in the Great Han's northwest affairs.

"Your Majesty!" The cautious footsteps behind him stopped, and Emperor Liu heard Lü Yin's call.

Emperor Liu did not turn around, but pointed at the Great Han map and asked him with great enthusiasm: "Lü Qing, don't you think the Great Han's territory is not yet perfect enough?"