At the end of the Han Dynasty: a stingy husband from his hometown

Chapter 224 Clues

Although Liu Bei was moved, the matter was serious. If he set up another court and re-established the emperor, he would be labeled as a traitor if he was not careful.

Others may not care, but for Liu Bei now, his reputation cannot be lost.

He pondered for a long time and then said: "We will discuss this matter later."

After Xu Shu watched Liu Bei leave, he returned to the house alone, with a thoughtful look on his face.

Liu Bei did not refuse directly, which shows that this matter is a good sign.

The fact that the other party did not agree also shows that he has worries in his heart. The other party's worries must be resolved before we can discuss important matters together.

Xu Shu was shocked when Zhou Qi told Xu Shu privately that he planned to establish a separate court in accordance with the late emperor's decree.

Only then did Xu Shu know that the chariot general had such tricks.

If General Chariot and Cavalry had expected this day and asked King Chen Liu to come over from Dong Zhuo, his gaze and scheming would be truly terrifying.

However, in Xu Shu's view, the chariot and cavalry generals now only occupy the land of two states. Unless they get the full support of Yuan Shu and Liu Bei, this matter will definitely fail.

Even Liu Bei was unwilling to express his position easily, let alone Yuan Shu.

In other words, the generals of chariots and cavalry directly conquered the two states of Jiao and Yi and occupied the entire south. Only then could they be qualified to establish a separate court and allow the two Han Dynasties to stand side by side.

Speaking of Yuan Shu, he was eerily quiet at this moment.

In Jiangxia County, on the Huaihe River, Zhou Tai patrolled the river in a warship, not daring to show any signs of neglect.

This is because before Zhou Qi sent troops to Yizhou, he gave orders to Zhou Cheng and Zhou Tai, asking them to guard Jiangxia and be careful to prevent Yuan Shu from inviting troops to invade.

In addition to Zhou Tai leading the navy to patrol the Huaihe River, Zhou Cheng also recruited 1 horses and stationed them in Dai and Meng counties respectively.

These two county towns are located south of the Huaihe River and border on Yuan Shu's territory. If Yuan Shu attacks Jiangxia, he will definitely capture these two cities first.

However, after they waited for a long time, Yuzhou remained extremely quiet, which actually made Zhou Cheng and Zhou Tai a little uneasy.

Don't worry about the enemy on the surface, just worry about the enemy playing dirty tricks.

Lujiang County, Sheriff's Mansion.

Du Ji looked at the document in his hand and couldn't help but frown slightly.

Seeing this, the county magistrate couldn't help but ask: "Why are you worried?"

Du Ji took out a stack of official documents and said: "There have been many caravans pouring in from Runan during this period, but the tax revenue has not increased. There must be a problem."

The county magistrate thought that some businessmen were evading taxes, and his face became serious.

Because of Anfeng County and Zhou Qi's deliberate support, Lujiang County gradually became a commercial center connecting the east, west, north, and south.

Since Du Ji took office, he has been lax in taxation and taxation. However, due to the very developed business in Lujiang County, the tax revenue of the treasury has only increased.

The vast majority of Lujiang County's current tax revenue comes from commercial taxes. Du Ji is very concerned about this and will check the commercial tax revenue every few days to judge whether the business within the territory continues to prosper.

Unexpectedly, during these days of detailed investigation, I discovered something unusual.

The county magistrate also knows the importance of commercial tax to Lujiang County, so his attitude is so serious.

Du Ji shook his head and said, "This matter may have nothing to do with business."

Suddenly, Du Ji seemed to have thought of something. He stood up suddenly and said, "Hurry and prepare the car and take me to Zhang Duwei's camp!"

The camp stood outside the city. After leaving the city, Du Ji drove for nearly an hour before arriving at the gate of the camp.

He was anxious and hurried to the camp.

"Stop comers!"

Unexpectedly, Du Ji walked to the gate of the camp, but was stopped by the soldiers guarding the gate.

When the county magistrate saw this, he immediately reprimanded: "Didn't you see that this is the county guard? You still don't get out of the way and your official duties are delayed. You can't afford it!"

The soldier who stopped Du Ji glanced at the seal around Du Ji's waist, and his expression changed slightly.

Even so, they still did not get out of the way, but said in a deep voice: "The captain has an order. No outsiders are allowed to enter the camp without the military order. Anyone who violates it will be killed without mercy!"

The county magistrate was shocked and angry when he heard this. He was about to continue to scold him, but was stopped by Du Ji.

He said: "Can you please help me to inform you that Du Ji, the governor of Lujiang County, is visiting and has important matters to discuss with Captain Zhang."

The soldiers were about to send a message, but Hao Meng, who was patrolling the camp, had already heard the news and came over.

After seeing Du Ji, he hurriedly stepped forward to salute, and then cursed at the gatekeeper: "Who gave you the courage to even stop the county guard?"

The soldier guarding the gate hurriedly lowered his head and said: "Report to Sima, this is a military order made by Captain Zhang. We dare not violate it."

Hao Meng was furious and was about to step forward and slap the person who spoke.

"Don't come forward!"

"Captain Zhang's military order, when the guards at the gate are on guard, anyone who approaches to provoke or attack will be regarded as an enemy and can be killed on the spot!"

"Although Hao Sima has a high and powerful position, he cannot disobey Captain Zhang's military orders!"

"Chong!"

As soon as the guard finished speaking, the other soldiers at the door all drew their swords and stared at Hao Meng eagerly.

"Well, since it is a military order, I will abide by it. Could you please Hao Meng and Sima to inform Captain Zhang on your behalf?"

Hao Meng's face was ashen and he was about to have a seizure, but he heard Du Ji's voice.

Hao Meng snorted coldly, glanced at the guards with swords in their hands with a gloomy face, confessed to Du Ji, and walked towards the camp.

Even though Hao Meng's status was much higher than that of these guards, the commander-in-chief of the army was Zhang Liao, and Hao Meng did not dare to really do anything to these guards.

Inside the camp, Zhang Liao was training his troops.

Since joining Zhou Qi's account, Zhang Liao still feels that he is being ostracized everywhere, even though no one will say anything on the surface.

What made Zhang Liao feel most helpless was that General Chaoqi actually appointed him as the captain of Lujiang County.

It’s not that this official position is bad.

In any case, the captain of Lujiang County is a military attache with two thousand stones after all, and he also has five thousand county soldiers in his hands. Even if he is more prominent than when he was under Lu Bu's tent, he is even more prominent.

It’s just that Lu Kang, the former governor of Lujiang County, has been working hard here for many years and really won the hearts of the people.

When Zhang Liao used a trick to capture Shu County, Lu Kang, the governor of Lujiang County, died at the hands of Lu Bu, but now that Lu Bu was dead, the people naturally blamed Zhang Liao for this.

Previously, Tian Feng had designed to deceive the major families and businessmen in Lujiang County, almost causing them to lose all their money, and even forced these people to send out assassins, planning to take the risk to assassinate Tian Feng, the governor of Lujiang County.

Although Tian Feng left, Zhang Liao, the accomplice, stayed.

The aristocratic families, businessmen, and powerful people in Lujiang County had no way to seek revenge from Tian Feng, so they naturally transferred their hatred to Zhang Liao.

However, as Zhang Liao was the commander-in-chief of the county and had a large number of troops, these people did not dare to go too far, but they would always stumble Zhang Liao.It was precisely for this reason that Zhang Liao felt a little uncomfortable staying in Lujiang County. He was unwilling to leave the military camp unless necessary.

He also hoped that the general of chariots and cavalry could take him with him, or that it would be a good idea to be transferred to other counties to serve as county captains.

Zhang Liao, who was depressed and unwilling to leave the camp, took out his grievances on the soldiers and drilled the five thousand county soldiers hard every day.

After Zhang Liao's rigorous training, although these county soldiers were not elite at this time, they were at least capable of fighting.

If they can survive after going to the battlefield several times, they might become elites.

"The county governor came in a car and said he had something important to see the captain."

Zhang Liao was training his soldiers when he suddenly saw Hao Meng running over and said breathlessly.

Hao Meng originally captured Lu Bu and Zhang Liao and presented them to Zhou Yu. Although Zhou Qi accepted them, he despised them and did not promote them.

On the contrary, Zhou Qi specially transferred Hao Meng to Zhang Liao's subordinates.

This move made both Zhang Liao and Hao Meng feel a little awkward, because although the two had fought side by side before, ever since Hao Meng captured Lu Bu and Zhang Liao behind their backs, there was no old friendship between the two.

Although Zhang Liao felt that Lu Bu was not a wise master, he did not despise Hao Meng as a person.

If it were Zhang Liao himself, the most he could do is abandon Lu Bu, and he would never be able to capture his old master and claim credit.

Therefore, apart from their daily official duties, the two of them had no interaction at all in private.

Zhou Qi also had his own considerations in making this arrangement.

Today's Zhang Liao, compared to the famous general in history, has some gaps in terms of experience and ability.

Zhang Liao in history, first traveled around with Lu Bu but made no achievements. Later, he finally found a place to use himself after defecting to Cao Cao, and made great contributions in the southern and northern wars.

It was not until he had accumulated a lot of experience in Hefei that he defeated Sun Quan in one fell swoop and became powerful in Xiaoyaojin.

Although Zhou Qi knew that Zhang Liao was a talented person, he still had to hone his talents. Whether he sent him to Lujiang County as a captain or transferred Hao Meng to his command, it was not Zhou Qi's intention to dislike Zhang Liao.

Without wind and rain, where can you see a rainbow?

Zhou Qi knew where the upper limit of Xiang Hong, Chen Wen and others was, so he arranged their futures properly and did not expect them to make much contribution in the future.

Zhang Liao is different.

Zhou Qi had high hopes for it, so he decided to polish it up.

If Zhang Liao can wash away all his troubles, he will definitely have a bright future, and he will be one of the generals Zhou Qi relies on most.

Moreover, doing so can also calm the resentment in the hearts of the old tribe, so why not?
When Zhang Liao heard Hao Meng's words, his expression became slightly condensed, and he hurried out to greet him in person.

Zhang Liao had a good impression of Du Ji.

Because of Du Ji's strong ability, since he became the governor of Lujiang County, he quickly calmed down the mess left by Tian Feng and made Lujiang County gradually prosperous.

As the people's lives improved, and the aristocratic families, tycoons, and businessmen became rich, the resentment in their hearts naturally began to dissipate.

Zhang Liao could clearly feel that as time passed, these people's attitude towards him was no longer as bad as before.

This change was possible thanks to Du Ji.

If it were a mediocre county guard who made the people's lives worse and worse, they would miss Lu Ji even more.

After missing Lu Ji, his hatred for Zhang Liao will naturally deepen.

As soon as Zhang Liao reached the gate of the camp, he saw Du Ji waiting anxiously outside and hurriedly stepped forward.

Du Ji pointed at the soldiers at the door jokingly and said: "Wen Yuan is really strict in running the army. Without Wen Yuan's order, these people would not even let me, the county guard, into the camp."

When Zhang Liao heard this, he quickly confessed and said, "I am to blame for this matter. I issued the military order. They are just the executors. Please don't blame me."

Instead of being angry, Du Ji looked at the guards at the door with admiration and said, "They are doing their duty faithfully and deserve a reward!"

Zhang Liao responded and said: "The envoy said you would reward me, so of course I will reward you. After the sentry inspection is over, go to the logistics office to receive the reward."

No wonder Zhang Liao issued such strict military orders.

When Zhang Liao attacked Huang Shao, the soldiers and horses in the camp of Lujiang County, even without a general, were enough to drink a pot of Zhang Liao's hundreds of men as long as they stabilized the position.

However, Huang Shao did not manage the army strictly, so the camp was attacked and everything was lost.

It is an ironclad order that no outsiders are allowed to enter the military camp. Even Hao Meng, the army commander, is not allowed to bring outsiders in without permission. This is to prevent enemy spies in the military camp from coming to steal the camp.

It's not that Zhang Liao deliberately targeted Hao Meng.

After Zhang Liao introduced Du Ji into the camp, he asked, "Why are you here?"

He knew that Du Ji was busy with official duties, and the two of them were in charge of military affairs, so they rarely interacted with each other.

Unless Du Ji encountered something major, he would never suddenly come to the camp outside the city without notifying him in advance.

After hearing this, Du Ji took out some documents and handed them to Zhang Liao.

Zhang Liao casually browsed through the documents and felt a little overwhelmed when he saw that they were just commercial tax and caravan registration documents.

The so-called profession has specialization.

He was naturally a good fighter, but he didn't know much about these things. He could only say with a wry smile: "I have something to say, but it's okay to say it, but I can't quite understand these documents."

Du Ji said seriously: "Recently, the number of caravans entering Lujiang County from Runan has increased a lot. If we follow the past practice, the increase in commercial taxes on caravans will inevitably increase accordingly."

"However, this time the caravans have increased a lot, but the commercial tax has not increased but decreased. Doesn't Wen Yuan find it strange?"

Zhang Liao's expression changed slightly when he heard this, and he hurriedly picked up the documents and looked through them carefully.

With Du Ji's reminder, Zhang Liao naturally chose important places to read, and his face became extremely solemn after reading it.

He looked at Du Ji and asked, "Do you think that these caravans may be agents from Runan and plan to attack Lujiang County?"

Du Ji said: "Didn't Wen Yuan do this at the beginning?"

"And before our lord went to Yizhou, he had already told us to pay close attention to the situation in Jiangxia County. Once Yuan Shu leads his troops to attack Jiangxia, Wen Yuan can decide on his own whether to cross the county for rescue."

"Although my lord guesses that Yuan Shu may attack Jiangxia County, it is not impossible that he will not attack Lujiang County."

"What if he follows Wen Yuan's actions that day and uses the caravan as a cover to attack Lujiang County in a surprise attack?"

Zhang Liao stood up suddenly, bowed deeply to Du Ji, and said, "I already know about this matter. Thank you very much for coming to remind me."

"I asked Hao Meng to lead two thousand soldiers and horses into the city for the envoy to drive and defend the city and arrest them carefully. I will lead three thousand soldiers and horses to camp outside the city, and I will fight against the envoy."

Du Ji did not refuse and asked Hao Meng to follow him and lead his troops back.

However, Zhang Liao sent scouts everywhere to investigate the enemy's situation. Those caravans that entered Lujiang County were even more important targets of investigation.

(End of this chapter)