Chương 734: Qin Zhong, Lu Bei, Xi Yi, Dong Qin, Nan Li

He picked up his vermilion pen and, with a few swift strokes, drew several lines on the map of Rome, dividing it into five pieces like slicing a cake:

"First, divide it into five separate protectorates: Rome (Italy), Gaul, Iberia, Asia, and Africa."

They'll be called Qin Zhong, Lu Bei, Xi Yi, Dong Qin, and Nan Li—all their names have been changed. And they're not allowed to mention the word "Rome" anymore.

Each protectorate was headed by a governor who was directly under the control of the city of Rome. Each protectorate was independent and not allowed to collude with each other, nor was a unified Roman government permitted.

Anyone who dares to form an alliance will be treated as a traitor, and we will send troops to attack them directly.

It's been demolished?

Everyone was stunned for a moment, then suddenly realized.

A unified Rome was a tough nut to crack; but if it was divided into five parts, each acting independently, it would be five easy targets, which could be manipulated at will.

They are all fighting for territory and having internal conflicts, so how can they have time to unite against the Han?

Wow, that's brilliant!

"That Senate," Liu Ce laughed, "don't disband it, keep it."

Give the senators some stipends and honorary titles, let them argue and bicker in Rome every day, and meddle in trivial matters, such as repairing a bathhouse or holding a celebration.

These nobles are concerned with appearances and love to show off and maintain their status. Give them empty titles and something to do, and they'll have no time to think about rebelling.

If we really remove them and they lose their status, they will cause trouble.

"Keep it, keep it as a mascot. It won't cost much, and it'll put people at ease."

Fang Xuanling frowned, somewhat worried: "Your Majesty, isn't it inappropriate to employ former Roman officials for lower-level positions? What if they collude together..."

"What's wrong with it?" Liu Ce waved his hand, his tone confident.

"We'll just send a governor, a finance officer, and a military commander—only a few dozen people in a province—to control the core power."

The county magistrates and municipal officials at the grassroots level, including former Roman officials who were willing to surrender, were all retained. They were left to manage daily security, civil affairs, and tax collection.

We'll focus on three things: military power, financial power, and the power of final adjudication.

The army must be ours, taxes must be collected and handed over to us, and we have the final say on major cases. As for the trivial matters, let them do what they want.

He paused, then explained the situation to everyone:

"You do the math. If we send all our officials there, the travel expenses, salaries, and settlement allowances would amount to tens of thousands of coins per person per year. With several thousand people, that would be tens of millions."

Using local Romans, whose salaries are paid from local taxes, is cheaper and they are familiar with the local situation, making them more effective than our officials.

He dares to disobey? Just replace him with someone else. There are plenty of Romans who want to be officials; they're all in line.

Don't worry, if we really give them power, they'll fight amongst themselves more fiercely than anyone else, and won't have time to rebel against us.

Fang Xuanling pondered for a moment and nodded... Indeed, as long as core power is firmly held, using local people at the grassroots level is more beneficial than harmful.

"The real focus is on the economy," Liu Ce said, tapping the map, his eyes gleaming.

"First, confiscate their property. Those rebellious elders, nobles, and diehards should have all their assets confiscated—gold, silver, land, mines, and estates—to fill the national treasury and recoup the military expenses of the three-year western expedition."

Shen Qing, you and Lu Bing will take the lead in handling this matter. Be careful and don't overlook anything.

Shen Wansan quickly bowed, his face beaming with joy: "Your subject obeys! Your subject guarantees a thorough search, not a single copper coin will be missed!"

He had long coveted the wealth of the Roman nobles; he'd heard they were all incredibly rich, and if he seized a bunch of their assets, the national treasury would be bursting.

"Secondly, dumping goods," Liu Ce continued.

"Our silk, tea, porcelain, steel farm tools, and glassware are all sold to Rome."

Roman nobles were concerned with appearances, loved rare items, and enjoyed comparing themselves to others. They would scramble to buy our products even if they were more expensive, because the more expensive they were, the more prestigious they felt.

Our machine-woven fabrics and daily necessities are both good and cheap, and people are willing to buy them.

In just a few years, Rome's local handicraft industry will gradually collapse, and they will have to rely on us for clothing, ironware, and tea.

"Their economic lifeline is in our hands; they can't live without us, so how can they rebel?"

"Third, control the waterway." Liu Ce looked at Qi Jiguang.

"Our navy is stationed in ports such as Carthage, Alexandria and Marseille, and all merchant ships in the Mediterranean have to pay tolls and undergo inspections."

We'll acquire mines, farms, and ports gradually, using local slaves and commoners to work while we sit back and collect the money.

From now on, the Mediterranean will be our inland lake. Anyone who disobeys will have their trade cut off, their ports sealed off, and they'll starve to death.

Qi Jiguang cupped his hands and said, "Your subject obeys! The navy will certainly guard the Mediterranean and control all waterways."

Li Jing was still a little worried and asked again, "Your Majesty, there are many Romans and many city-states. What if someone really incites a rebellion and fires break out everywhere?"

"Simple." Liu Ce smiled meaningfully, pointing to the barbarian territory on the Roman border.

"Aren't the Germanic and Celtic people on the border formidable fighting skills? Aren't they always trying to come in and rob us?"

Recruit them as mercenaries, give them money, land, and status, and have them guard the borders and keep an eye on Rome.

The Romans and the barbarians have a long-standing feud, constantly at odds with each other, and have been fighting for centuries. We'll take sides, offering the barbarians some benefits so they can wear down the Romans.

If someone does rebel, send the barbarian servants to the army first, while our main force guards the ports and key routes, and we can just pick up the scraps.

If we win, we reap the rewards; if we lose, it's the barbarians and rebels who suffer the losses, and we won't care.

Everyone felt a chill run down their spines... This trick was too cunning, but also too effective.

Let our enemies fight amongst themselves, and we'll reap the benefits without having to send our own troops to fight.

"There's no rush in terms of culture," Liu Ce added finally, softening his tone.

"First, set up schools to teach Chinese, arithmetic, engineering, and medicine—these are the useful things to learn."

If you learn it, you can become an official in our government, do business with our merchants and make a lot of money, and live a good life.

There were still some clever people in Rome who could do the math: if they followed the Han, they could make money, get an official position, and have a promising future; if they opposed the Han, they would have no money, no power, and even their lives.

When the upper-class nobles all take pride in speaking Han language, wearing Han clothing, and using Han goods, and send their children to study in Luoyang, this place will gradually become ours.

No rush, take your time. It will take decades, even centuries, to digest it all.

After explaining the specific ways of eating the three dishes, Liu Ce threw down his pen, sat back on the dragon throne, picked up his teacup, and took a sip.

The Liangyi Hall remained quiet for a long time before the officials came to their senses, their eyes filled with admiration.

Previously, they only thought that once they conquered a territory, they should send troops to guard it, appoint officials to manage it, and establish provinces, prefectures, and counties just like in the interior.

I never thought it could be done like this... No need to send more people, no need to spend more money, no need for a head-on confrontation. By dividing, winning over, economically binding, and culturally infiltrating, the other party will obediently listen and even have to give you money voluntarily.

That's some serious brainpower.

"What I've said today boils down to five words: low cost, high return."