Spoiler History: Starting from the Three Kingdoms

Chapter 668: Deputy Prime Minister Cao's reputation is damaged
Fu Shou felt her hands trembling a little.

Although she had psychological expectations about the situation in Yecheng when she set out from Xuchang.

But the situation after arriving here was far beyond her imagination.

The descendants of Cao family, wealthy and prominent families, famous scholars and ministers, veteran generals and elite soldiers all gathered here.

These civil and military officials, who enjoyed the Han salary and carried the Han blood, jointly created a fairly prosperous Yecheng.

But unfortunately, the prosperity of Yecheng belonged to Cao, and not only had nothing to do with her and Liu Xie, it even became a shackle for her and Liu Xie.

Under such circumstances, the imperial physicians, merchants, and commanders whom she had risked her life to win over could only do very little in Yecheng.

Wei Feng, who relied on his trusted followers to establish connections, was good, but he still lacked stability and had insufficient foundation.

The emperor's blood-written edict was still vivid in her mind. Whether it was the imperial concubine Dong Cheng who turned into dust, or the war that finally broke out in Guandu, they all made Fu Shou understand the boundaries of her actions now.

So she pondered the letter for a long time and wrote it very carefully. In order to make it more persuasive, she also included the jade pendant that Li Jue had cut off when he threatened her.

His intention is very simple. How is the current situation different from the time when Li Jue kidnapped the emperor?
In the past, Jia Qing was able to perform his duties loyally and think of strategies to repel the enemy. Is it possible to trust Jia Qing again now?

Yoshimoto watched quietly from the side as the queen hesitated for a long time before opening the envelope. A smile then crept onto her face, which was weathered but still bright, and at the same time, a big tear fell from the corner of her eye.

Ji Ben stood quietly aside. He was not curious about the content of the letter, nor was he curious about who Wei Feng was in contact with in Yecheng. He only knew that the current emperor and queen needed his help, so there was no reason for him to refuse.

So when the Queen had put her appearance in order and asked him calmly, "Mr. Ji said before that you two also want to serve the country?", Ji Ping took two steps forward and bowed:

"My father and I, our sons, will all become Han ghosts after we die."

The attitude speaks for itself.

However, for Zhang Quan, it was not a very pleasant experience to always dream of himself becoming a ghost with a mutilated body.

Fortunately, as time approached the end of September, the military intelligence that came in gradually made Yecheng more and more anxious. Under this situation, Zhang Quan was forced to take action and no longer had time to think about his grandfather's plan to build a cenotaph for him.

Shangdang in the northwest, which is directly related to the safety of Yecheng, is said to have been surrounded at Huguan and breached at Luxian. Now Cao and Liu are fighting to the death in Shexian, but because the terrain here is quite critical, they can still fight for a while.

But Wei County has also started to move. The troops near Qinghe Zhao State are currently gathering towards Wuan, and they obviously do not intend to let these troops enter Hebei.

The place that can directly determine the safety of Hebei is Hanoi. After all, it is well known that the main force of Liu Bei, the current leader of the bandits, is in Luoyang. This group of people is most likely the main force. If they march northward and capture Hanoi, there will be no more dangerous passes from Hanoi to Yecheng.

Therefore, except for the six necessary garrison armies in Yecheng, all other troops are gathering towards Henei to attack Mengjin Pass and Xiaopingjin Pass, hoping to recapture Luoyang and support Prime Minister Cao's troops in Yingchuan to attack the enemy army from both sides. But unfortunately, Huo Jun stationed at Mengjin Pass took advantage of the natural barrier of the Yellow River to firmly guard Mengjin, making it difficult for Cao's army in Henei to advance.

Yecheng was threatened from both sides, so the discussions in the city were very intense for a while.

Most people think that the emperor's uncle was able to survive the Battle of Red Cliffs, bypass Jingnan and enter Yizhou to seize Hanzhong and conquer the Three Qins, and now he has really recovered the old capital Luoyang. Isn't this a blessing from heaven? It can be seen that the destiny is still with Liu Zaihan. It is possible that the army of Shangdang or Luoyang will be at the gates of Yecheng tomorrow.

But there are also people who think that Shangdang is a natural barrier and they can rest easy. Although Liu Bei, the rebel army, has taken Luoyang, who doesn't know that Luoyang has been burned down by Dong Zhuo? Not only can they not get food and grass replenishment, but in order to show his reputation for benevolence, he may even use food and grass to provide disaster relief for the surrounding areas of Luoyang. He will surely fail because of his reputation.

Among them, there is inevitably some sarcasm and ridicule from people who have actually witnessed the massacre and war in Xuzhou and Wancheng, and are trying to take advantage of the situation.

In this situation, even someone as slow-witted as Zhang Quan could sense that something was about to happen. "Starting tomorrow until everything in Yecheng is done, you don't have to come."

In the quiet hall, the grandfather's unhurried voice was very clear, which made Zhang Quan suddenly startled.

But when his father was alive, he told him not to question any of his grandfather's decisions, so he subconsciously asked:

"When is it done?"

When will it be considered finished? This question made Jia Xu silent for a moment, and then he just shook his head and said:
"If something unexpected happens, or if you want to leave Yecheng, go here. This place can keep you alive and send you back to Liangzhou."

Seeing the note that his grandfather pushed over with an address on it, Zhang Quan read out the name on it:
"Jin Yi... the Jingzhao Jin family that runs a paper company in Yecheng? They are actually my grandfather's people?"

As for the safety of his grandfather, Zhang Quan was not worried. When his father was alive, he once got drunk and said in a frivolous tone that even if Cao Cao died, Jia Xu would not die.

"I don't have that ability."

After laughing quietly twice, Jia Xu did not explain too much. He just urged Zhang Quan to think about whether there was anything else he had missed. After all, they might not know when they would meet again after today's separation.

This actually made Zhang Quan a little curious. If Jin Yi could be said to be so by his grandfather, and that he could survive by looking for him, then who was behind him? The son of the Cao family? A noble from the royal family? One of the four families that dominated Jiangdong? It couldn't be Uncle Liu, could it?

However, when thinking of the young masters of the Cao family, Zhang Quan recalled that most of the recent rumors in the streets of Ye City were related to the two young masters.

Prime Minister Cao had been away from Yecheng for a long time, and the affairs of Yecheng had always been handled by the two chief secretaries of the Prime Minister's Office, Wang Bi and Xin Pi, while all military affairs were handled by General Xu Chu of the Wuwei Army and General Liu Ruo of the Jianwu Army.

In addition to this group of civil and military officials, a garrison personnel was needed. Initially, Prime Minister Cao may have thought that the war in the south would be settled soon, so before going south, he appointed Cao Pi Cao Zihuan as the General of the Five Officials and deputy prime minister, to stay behind in Yecheng.

What about his younger brother Cao Zhi? In the past year or so, he wrote several famous articles in Yecheng, got drunk several times, and was even severely reprimanded by Deputy Prime Minister Cao. It is said that Cao Zhi cried after getting drunk at a banquet because of this.

The issue of Prime Minister Cao's succession to the throne has always been a hot topic in Yecheng.

After all, after both Prince Cao Ang and Prince Cao Chong died unfortunately for well-known reasons, everyone knew that it would most likely be one of the two choices, Cao Pi or Cao Zhi.

A month ago, after Master Cao Zhi was scolded by Deputy Prime Minister Cao for causing trouble while drunk, rumors in Yecheng began to increase for some reason.

After all, Deputy Prime Minister Cao worked diligently, Cao Zijian was drunk and immoral, and we have seen many examples in recent years of deposing the eldest son and enthroning the youngest son, which caused disasters. It would not be difficult for any normal person to know how to make the decision.

But soon there was a saying that the reason why the great doctor Hua Tuo died unjustly in prison was because he said that the Cao family had a hidden disease that could not be cured for generations, so he was poisoned by our beloved Prime Minister Cao.

This statement quickly became popular. After all, if you count how many of Prime Minister Cao's sons died young, you will know.

The rumors about Deputy Prime Minister Cao's sweet tooth are very plausible, so it is reasonable to speculate that he will develop diabetes sooner or later.

It is also said that Deputy Prime Minister Cao's favorite sugar cane comes from Jiangdong, and the sugar cane sold in Jiangdong all comes from the rebel Liu Bei. Does that mean Deputy Prime Minister Cao is suspected of colluding with foreign enemies?
From what Zhang Quan had seen today, the opinions in the market were quite varied. Some people asked Prince Cao Zhi to lead the army to save his father to prove himself, some asked Deputy Prime Minister Cao to give an explanation, and some said that the hidden illness was the retribution for usurping the Han Dynasty.

These rumors, which were not sure whether they were reliable or not, were flying everywhere. The Prime Minister's Office, which was in charge of government affairs, was unwilling to get involved. Liu Ruo and Xu Chu, who were in charge of the army, were not the kind of people who would talk too much. In addition, there was a rumor from the palace that the emperor personally praised Cao Zijian for his excellent writing skills and his handsome appearance.

Therefore, in the absence of Prime Minister Cao Zheng himself to set things right in Yecheng, the hostility between the two princes became more and more intense.

(End of this chapter)