After all, they are all people with family and young families. Liu Laosan gave instructions before his death. Although he was not very willing, Cao Shen, Zhou Bo, Xiahou Ying and others finally chose to escort Liu Laosan's body north and voluntarily requested to surrender to the Han army. However, out of years of affection, Cao Shen and others did not really cut off Liu Laosan's head, but handed Liu Laosan's body to the Han army intact, hoping that a miracle would happen so that Liu Laosan could be buried with his entire body.

At this point, Cao Shen, Zhou Bo and others were of course worried about nothing and did not need to explain any reason. Xiang Kang of course chose to treat Liu Laosan's body and family well. Not only did he reward Liu Laosan for his anti-Qin merits, he ordered Liu Laosan to be buried back to Fengyi's ancestral tomb with the ceremonies, but also appointed Liu Laosan's two sons Liu Fei and Liu Ying as doctors, allowing them to receive a good education so that they can become officials in the future. He also gave the Liu family a fief of 300 households so that Liu Laosan's family would not have to worry about food and clothing.

In this regard, Cao Shen, Zhou Bo and others, who were as close as Liu Laosan, were of course extremely surprised and grateful. However, what surprised them even more was that Xiang Kang not only granted them official positions, but also asked them to continue to lead the army. His magnanimity and trust in them made the Han army's civil and military officials unable to help but be amazed. In addition to being surprised, Cao Shen, Zhou Bo and others also greatly reduced their hatred for Xiang Kang and began to gradually accept their new identities.

Even the third Liu Lao San best friends, Zhou Bo and Cao Shen, chose to surrender, not to mention Xiang Kang's cousin Xiang Xian and Xiang Dian. Xiang Guan had just brought the news of Xiang Yu's death to Pengcheng. After crying, Xiang Xian and Xiang Dian accepted Xiang Guan's persuasion without hesitation. Before Xiang Kang led his army to Pengcheng, they led the Pengcheng defenders to retake the red Han army flag early. When Xiang Kang arrived in Pengcheng, they accompanied the two aunts out of the city for thirty miles to welcome Xiang Kang. The children of the Xiang family, who are still alive, finally reunited after several years, hugging their heads and crying.

After a while, thanks to the unremitting efforts of the Han army soldiers, they finally found the corpses of Xiang Bo and Xiang You and his son. Xiang Kang, who was still hating Xiang Bo and was so distressed, quietly breathed a sigh of relief. He quickly made a marquis of Xiang Bo and Xiang You with tears in his eyes, and sent the father and son who had suffered themselves back to their hometown in Xiang County for burial, and asked them to go to the ancestral tomb of the old Xiang family to receive reprimands and punishments from the ancestors of the Xiang family.

As for Xiang Yu, Xiang Kang, who had always been generous to the dead, not only buried him in Pei County with the ritual of a duke, but also made his son a marquis, gave him a fief of 3,000 households, moved to Xianyang to live in the same clan palace, and raised it as a mascot. The other children of the Xiang family were all given marquis and each had rewards. Of course, the ones who got the biggest cake were Xiang Zhuang and Xiang Kang's only shameless Xiang Guan.

During this period, the remarks of local officials of the Western Chu army were of course flying to Xiang Kang like snowflakes. Huan Chu, the Grand Marshal of the Western Chu army, who was still confronting Dingtao and Zhonglimei, also accepted the persuasion of the Han army envoys, and led 30,000 defenders to surrender nearby to Zhonglimei, who had only 20,000 troops, in exchange for Xiang Kang's generous title of marquis and granted a town, and also saved the precious lives of tens of thousands of soldiers of the Chu and Han army.

Of course, there are also things that disgusting Xiang Kang. The garrison of Kuaiji County, Jiangdong, who started out, did not know what medicine was wrong, but he refused to accept the Han army's persuasion to surrender. Fortunately, the level of Jiangdong in this era was not high, and the population, money and food were far from the opponent of the Central Plains. In addition, Xiang Yu's old rival Song Yi had already rebelled against Western Chu at the end of the day. After receiving the news, he took the initiative to send his son Song Xiang to the north to surrender, and voluntarily requested to re-strike the Han army to fight across the river. Therefore, it was only a matter of time before the Han army was destined to pacify Jiangdong. He only needed to send a side division to do so easily.

Peng Yue, who finally walked out of the dense forest, was also a little greedy. He actually asked Chen Ying and Lu Qing to interview Xiang Kang, wanting Xiang Kang to choose a Chu royal family and then be named King of Chu, and rebuild the Chu State again, so that he, the self-proclaimed prime minister of Chu could be worthy of his name. Xiang Kang of course flatly rejected this. However, in view of Peng Yue's great contribution, Xiang Kang still granted Peng Yue the title of Chen Hou, led the fiefs of four counties, and moved him to Chen County to be a rich man. The old ministers of Chu who Peng Yue had taken away from Pengcheng were also drawn by Xiang Kang and were scattered as officials in various places.

Tian Guang and Tian Heng, who proclaimed himself the King of Qi, wanted to surrender to Xiang Kang very much, and were willing to give the two places of Langya and Jiaodong to only lead Linzi. Xiang Kang of course refused their request without hesitation. He used the excuse that Tian Heng and nephew rebelled against him and refused to forgive him. He decisively ordered the Han general Zhu Jishi to launch a battle to destroy Qi and completely eliminate the two time bombs of uncle and nephew Tian Heng. As a result, after receiving the help of reinforcements sent by Xiang Kang, Zhu Jishi also successfully obtained the contribution of the country that Uncle Zhou deliberately gave him. After several months, he finally completely pacified Qi and killed the ambitious uncle and nephew Tian Heng.

During this period, there was no need for Xiang Kang to say anything, Chen Ping and Zhang Liang and other close friends had already connected everywhere, inciting the Han army's civil and military officials and Zhao Xie, Yingbu, Zang Tu and other princes to persuade them to advance, begging Xiang Kang to ascend the throne and become emperor, and command the world with the reputation of the emperor. Zhao Xie, Zang Tu and Wu Rui, who were very eye-catching, also went to Pengcheng to pay homage to Xiang Kang and asked Xiang Kang to be the emperor in person.

Needless to say, Xiang Kang, who was extremely hypocritical, refused repeatedly. In the end, when he could not give in, Xiang Kang reluctantly accepted the repeated invitations from his ministers and decided to ascend the throne at the Dingtao Altar and officially ascend the throne.

It was a short time. When Xiang Kang officially ascended the throne, it was already March of the second year when the Han army destroyed Chu. During this period, relying on Xiang Kang's hard work, the beautiful concubines recruited from all over the country had already given birth to four sons and three daughters for Xiang Kang, which gave Xiang Kang enough offspring to be crowned kings. He followed the customs of the countryside and adopted a political system of centralization and feudalism. This is because the feudal system left behind during the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period was deeply rooted, so Xiang Kang had to temporarily follow the power.

After the grand and simple assumption ceremony was officially held, the internal stolen goods of the Han army began. There is no doubt that Zhou Zeng, who had been staying in the rear of Guanzhong, was of course named the left prime minister. Zhou Shuling, the first person in the Han army, became the only duke of Xiang Kang's title, with a fief of 20,000 households, and his fief was half of Hedong County, including Yanchi. In addition, his daughter was designated as the crown prince's concubine by Xiang Kang, and Xiang Kang's eldest daughter was also promised to Uncle Zhou's son, which basically gave Zhou's wealth and honor. Xiang Kang had the limit. Li Shiqi, who had made contributions and hard work, was granted the title of Censor, Marquis of Yongqiu, and had a fief of 3,000 households.

Chen Ping was named the right prime minister, and his fief was the richest Dingtao in the Central Plains. He also had 5,000 households in the fief. Zhang Liang was named Fengchang, the leader of the nine ministers. Originally, Xiang Kang also wanted to give him 5,000 households in the fief, and wanted to give him the famous city of Linzi to him. However, Zhang Liang, who was cautious, refused firmly and only begged to give him the subordinates whom he and Xiang Kang had first met. Xiang Kang, who knew that Zhang Liang was a man, did not force him and let Zhang Liang protect himself.

Of course, the Han generals such as Long Qi, Zhonglimei, Ding Ji, Zheng Bu and Zhu Jishi were also assigned to large pieces of cake, all of which were ranked among the nine ministers, and their fiefs were all fertile lands. The rare treasures left by Hu Hai and Xiang Yu were sent to their luxurious residence in Xianyang by car. Their children also benefited from them. They were either accused of Xiang Kang's son or a marriage to the daughter born to Xiang Kang's rush, or they were formed with other nobles, and they were destined to be rich for a lifetime before they grew up. Other Han military officials also had rewards, so they would not list them here.

On the most critical issue of the throne, Xiang Kang's son, who was worked hard to work, became the protagonist, and was named the four kings of Qi, Chu, Liang and Wu respectively. After replacing the six kings, he also split the Chu State with an overly large territory. But of course this was not enough. Xiang Kang still had to work hard in this regard to replace Yingbu, Zang Tu and Zhao Xie in the future - even the native Liu Laosan could not tolerate the king of different surnames, so naturally, let alone the time traveler Xiang Kang.

Because Han Cheng betrayed the Han army in the war, of course, the land of South Korea was directly confiscated by the Han court. Han Wangxin was named Marquis and Liang Xiang, who was just over a month old, and was in charge of the heartland of the Central Plains for Xiang Kang. Due to historical changes, Han Wangxin played almost negligible role in the Han army's unification of the world. Han Wangxin, who was still a little self-aware, dared not say much, but could only give honest greetings.

It is easy to divide the spoils, but Xiang Kang, who officially proclaimed the emperor and ordered the world, took over a devastated mess. The entire Central Plains was completely destroyed, with white bones exposed in the wild, and there was no rooster crowing thousands of miles away. Even though Xiang Kang ended the Chu-Han War shorter than Liu Laosan, the population of the world still dropped sharply by half, all industries withered, and national strength was exhausted. In addition, the problem of princes and kings that plagued Liu Laosan for life, the problem of the Huns in the north and the problem of the South Vietnam in the south still bothered Xiang Kang, and it may always turn into time bombs, making Xiang Kang restless all night.

After Dingtao ascended the throne, he led all civil and military officials and his army back to the capital Xianyang, Yanmen County sent an urgent report, saying that the second generation of the Xiongnu Shanyu Maodun led his army to invade Yanmen, forcibly annexed the two tribes of Loufan and Aries, and then followed the Great Wall to invade Pingcheng, Shanwuhe Ban and other places, stole a large amount of population and property, and had the intention to invade the important town of Mayi. The Yanmen defenders of the Han army were weak and could not resist the enemy, so they could only ask Xiang Kang for help.

When Xiang Kang heard this news, he was silent and said nothing for a long time. Chen Ping and Zhang Liang next to him saw Xiang Kang's thoughts and asked: "Your Majesty, are you worried that our national strength will be exhausted and unable to resist the barbarians of the Huns?"

Xiang Kang nodded calmly and said, "It is easy to increase troops from Yanmen, but it is definitely useless if the army is less. If the main force goes north, he may not find a chance to fight the main force of the Huns. If we have been stationed in remote places such as Yanmen Dai County for a long time, our national strength will definitely not be able to withstand it."

"King, my subordinates think that you should ask Guangwu Jun Li Zuoche for this issue." Zhang Liang suggested: "Guangwu Jun's grandfather Li Mu was a famous general of Zhao State who fought against the Huns. He has a family background and is most familiar with the situation of the Huns. However, if you ask him for advice, you will definitely gain a lot."

Xiang Kang slapped his forehead and then remembered that Li Zuoche, who had forgotten that he had been familiar with the situation of the Huns, quickly ordered the guards to invite Li Zuoche to discuss. Then, before much time passed, Li Zuoche, who was named the Censor and the Marquis of Dongyuan when the stolen goods were divided, was in front of Xiang Kang. Xiang Kang was not polite, and immediately told Li Zuoche about the situation in Yanmen and made a clear statement to ask him for advice.

Li Zuoche did not hesitate at all and immediately said, "Your Majesty, you can only temporarily tolerate it. The problems of the Huns have plagued the Central Plains for hundreds of years and cannot be solved overnight. Now our Han Dynasty has just unified the world, and there are many internal and external troubles. If you rashly launch a full-scale war with the Huns, not only will the national strength not bear it, but it may also lead to the resurgence of the Central Plains. The Xiaoxiao mouse who refuses to surrender in his heart takes the opportunity to rebel."

"But the Huns are aggressive. If they ignore them, I'm afraid these barbarians will become more aggressive." Xiang Kang said with a wry smile.

"A real man can bend and stretch, and he must endure when he should endure." Li Zuoche said: "My ministers suggest that when dealing with the Huns and barbarians, our best way should be to use both soft and hard methods. While temporarily tolerant, we will send envoys to seek peace, open border cities, communicate with the Huns, and gain time to restore national strength. We will also take the opportunity to spy on the internal situation of the Huns and know ourselves and our enemies. On the other hand, we will appoint an important official to guard the border, command the official army of Dai County, Yanmen and Jiuyuan, and prepare for war. Only when our national strength is restored and the time is ripe can we consider launching a decisive battle with the Huns."

Xiang Kang nodded, also believed that under the current circumstances, he could only temporarily bow to the Huns for time, and wait until the national strength recovered to a certain level before he could consider dismantling the Huns. After a moment of calculation, Xiang Kang asked Li Zuoche: "Jun Guangwu, if I send you to guard the border and guard against the Huns, are you sure to defend the Great Wall defense line and buy time for us to restore our national strength?"

"No." Li Zuoche's answer surprised Xiang Kang, and then said: "Your Majesty, let alone a weak minister, even if you let Taiwei Zhou go to the frontier, it is impossible to defend the Great Wall defense line and prevent Hu Ma from crossing the Yinshan Mountains south. The reason is also very simple. The people in the north are short of food. No matter who goes there, it is impossible to quickly train and organize enough troops to guard the Great Wall. The Huns are nomadic light cavalry, and they are flexible and can succeed from attacking from the weak point of our defense line at any time. Therefore, we not only have no possibility to defend the Great Wall defense line, but also have to be mentally prepared to continue to suffer losses in the northern border for a long time."

Knowing that Xiang Kang's history was not good, Zhang Liang next to him said: "Your Majesty, Guangwu Jun's grandfather Wu'an Jun was in charge of northern Xinjiang for seven or eight years. He only won the peace of the northern Xinjiang of Zhao for more than ten years. Now, in terms of our national strength and domestic situation, it may take so much time to achieve this."

Xiang Kang laughed when he heard this and said with a smile: "It's only seven or eight years? What's the matter? I'm only in my twenties now. Not to mention seven or eight years, I can afford to wait for even ten or twenty years."

"That's it." Xiang Kang made up his mind and said, "Guangwu, I now appoint you as the governor of Yanmen County, and also in charge of the military and civilian affairs of Dai County and Yunzhong County. I will give you ten years to prepare for war. In these ten years, no matter how many defeats you suffer or how much losses you suffer, I will not pursue it. But ten years later, you must at least achieve a battle record as beautiful as your grandfather!"

Li Zuoche, who had volunteered to lead the army to fight Han Xin in history, was overjoyed when he heard this and thanked Xiang Kang. Xiang Kang helped him up with his own hands, patted his shoulder and said in a deep voice: "Guangwu Jun, I will ask you in Beijiang. I believe you will not disappoint me."

After Li Zuoche rested again and said that he would never let Xiang Kang down, Xiang Kang quickly made another important decision, which was to accept Lou Jing's volunteering and let Lou Jing, who was named the Right General of the Central Army, serve as an envoy when he was dividing the spoils. He went north to the grassland to seek peace with the Xiongnu, and also took the opportunity to understand the current internal situation of the Xiongnu.

It was still a coincidence that after Xiang Kang made this decision, Chen Ping, Zhang Liang, Li Zuoche and others had just said goodbye and left, Xu Ji, who was named the doctor's order, suddenly presented a secret report to Xiang Kang and said sneakily: "Your Majesty, the secret report from Linjiang that I just received was a rebellious person. When I was traveling, I dared to ride a carriage led by six horses. It seemed that I was arbitrary. Please be careful." (The Zhou Li stipulated that the emperor could only ride a carriage led by six horses. Ying Bu was a prince and could only use five horses.)

Xiang Kang was not angry, nor did he go to receive the secret reports sent by Xu Ji. He smiled and said, "I will give the informant a heavy reward, and I will collect the secret reports. After I have saved up enough ten similar secret reports, I will read them together."
Chapter completed!