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It would be unfair to say that Li Ru was foolish, but rather, it must be acknowledged that very few people can flexibly break free from the constraints of habitual thinking.
Fei Qian wasn't necessarily much smarter than Li Ru. However, having lived in a later era where "robbing Peter to pay Paul" was a common practice, he was no stranger to hastily recruiting people to fill gaps. Moreover, as an outsider observing the situation, he wasn't bogged down by endless trivial matters, making it easier for him to step back and think. Thus, it wasn't surprising that he could come up with a solution.
Li Ru's earlier line of thinking had indeed hit a dead end. Upon hearing Fei Qian's suggestion, it was as if a bright new path had opened before him, bringing a sudden clarity to his mind.
For this reason, Li Ru expressed his gratitude with utmost sincerity and explicitly stated that, regardless of what Fei Qian needed from him, he would assist to the best of his ability. In exchange, he hoped Fei Qian would provide more and better strategies for relocating the capital.
If before, Li Ru had regarded Fei Qian with slight indifference, now he treated him as an equal.
Fei Qian cupped his hands in thanks and said, "There is indeed one matter I would like to trouble you with, Chief Clerk Li…" He then explained his request for a travel permit (过所). Of course, Fei Qian didn't reveal everything to Li Ru—mixing three parts falsehood with seven parts truth made it harder for others to detect deception.
In this matter, since it involved the use of carriages and horses, certain details couldn't be hidden—such as what was being transported and the general direction of travel. Fei Qian truthfully disclosed these aspects. However, regarding the final destination, he only mentioned Hedong Commandery.
After all, Cai Yong had previously established marital ties with the Wei family of Hedong. Although the two families were now estranged, firstly, the Wei family still held onto Cai Yan's dowry, putting them somewhat in the wrong; secondly, such matters weren't something to be openly discussed, so most people weren't aware of the current state of relations between the Cai and Wei families.
Thus, claiming that the books were being temporarily stored with the Wei family to avoid loss wasn't entirely implausible.
Moreover, Fei Qian's main goal was simply to leave the Si Li region and escape the control of Dong Zhuo's forces. Once in Hedong Commandery, the Cui family's trade routes were still operational, making it relatively easy to transport the books to Pingyang Commandery.
Li Ru immediately agreed. In his view, since these were Cai Yong's personal books—his private property—how they were handled was entirely up to Cai Yong. Besides, Cai Yong wasn't an enemy, so there was no reason to interfere. However, Li Ru casually asked, "...Do you not regard Liu Biao as a wise ruler?"
Fei Qian fell silent for a moment before cupping his hands in response—effectively an admission. After all, this wasn't hard to deduce. If Fei Qian considered Liu Biao a wise ruler, he wouldn't have resigned so easily, nor would he be transporting Cai Yong's books to Hedong instead of finding a way to send them to Jingxiang.
However, in Li Ru's mind, as long as Fei Qian wasn't working for the eastern gentry clans, a little selfishness or concealment was acceptable—as long as it didn't harm Dong Zhuo's faction. After all, humans were driven by emotions and desires.
Thus, Li Ru promptly ordered someone to prepare a travel permit and handed it to Fei Qian, then had tea served to entertain him.
Li Ru himself picked up a teacup and took a few slow sips, feeling his parched throat finally moistened. A faint smile of relief appeared on his face.
These past few days had been so busy that he hardly had time to eat. With countless matters piling up on him alone, even the finest delicacies had lost their flavor, let alone finding the peace of mind to enjoy a cup of tea...
Once Fei Qian had also set down his cup, Li Ru spoke slowly, "Regarding the matter of 'a day's grain' you mentioned earlier—how should it be resolved?"
Fei Qian had previously raised four issues with Li Ru: the first was the problem of lower-level officials, the second was the matter of "a day's grain," followed by the relocation of non-Han peoples and the issue of coordinated military movements. Seeing how readily Li Ru had granted the travel permit, Fei Qian decided not to hold back and answered all of them directly.
"A single dou of grain, when boiled slowly with water, can provide enough porridge to feed a family of three for a day. But without fire or water, swallowing it whole won't satisfy even one person. Therefore, during relocation, camps must first be established. Travel should begin at sunrise and end at sunset. The distance between the eastern and western capitals is no more than six hundred li. Over a dozen major camps can be set up along waterways, allowing an orderly progression. This will prevent chaos."
Why was it that during relocations, people were prone to exhaustion and death, whereas armies could cover the same—or even longer—distances without suffering the same fatigue and disorder? Aside from military discipline, the lack of reference points was another critical factor.
If people knew where the next stop was each day and that food would be available upon arrival, most would persevere and not easily give up along the way. Moreover, organizing people into smaller groups for travel would not only make management easier but also prevent excessive consumption of supplies due to fears of future shortages.
This way, the overall speed of movement would increase, and fewer people would die along the journey. Of course, some deaths among the weak or sick would be unavoidable, but far fewer would perish compared to a disorderly, chaotic migration.
Li Ru pondered for a moment before saying, "Well said!"
Originally, provisions were already being transported westward. Now, it was simply a matter of establishing more camps at shorter intervals. Though this would require more effort from the soldiers to construct additional camps, the benefits—ensuring the survival of more migrants—made it a worthwhile trade-off.
Furthermore, if supplies weren't wasted along the way and the relocation could be completed swiftly, the current reserves in Luoyang would suffice. Thus, an orderly march was more conducive to the overall plan, and Li Ru had no reason to oppose it.
Fei Qian continued, "People of the same clan share kinship ties, making them more united and supportive of one another. Even over long distances, they can endure hardships together. However, mixing different clans during travel can lead to conflicts. Therefore, it would be best to organize migration groups by kinship, ensuring smooth progress."
Li Ru nodded but didn't comment. While this idea sounded good in theory, its feasibility was questionable. Grouping people by clan also meant that local elders and influential figures would remain together, making them easier targets for agitators and potentially causing greater problems.
Still, Li Ru didn't openly refute or criticize the suggestion. In his view, Fei Qian simply lacked practical experience, leading to this well-intentioned but slightly flawed proposal. It was an innocent mistake, not worth reprimanding.
"In warfare, besieging an enemy on three sides while leaving one open is meant to disrupt their morale. Now, with the soldiers on the verge of returning home, without proper discipline, their morale will also collapse. Therefore, troops should be ordered to retreat gradually alongside the civilians. Once in Jingzhao, rewards and punishments can be meted out based on the number of civilians safely escorted—those who preserve more lives are rewarded, while those who lose many are punished. This will pacify the people internally and deter external threats."
After listening, Li Ru smiled faintly and said, "This method is sound in theory, but it cannot be implemented…"
Fei Qian's heart skipped a beat—had Li Ru detected the personal agenda hidden within his suggestions?