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

Chapter 237: Fighting with each other, cutting off the robe and severing the righteousness

Zhou Qi's voice, clear and penetrating, quickly reached Yuan Shao's ears.

Zhou Qi first ordered people to shoot at the formation's feet to find out the distance between the two sides, and then signaled his generals to stop, while he himself walked slowly towards the front of the formation on horseback.

Neither Yuan Shao nor his subordinate Wen Wu expected that Zhou Qi would be so courageous and dare to ride to the front of the battle alone.

Zhou Qi tightened the reins without going too far forward.

The so-called son of a thousand gold can't sit down.

Ever since he became a prince in a separatist regime, Zhou Qi has paid special attention to his own safety and will not make the same low-level mistakes as Sun Ce.

The reason why he asked people to take the lead in shooting was to explore the safe distance.

Zhou Qi ordered the archer to be a sharpshooter with extraordinary arm strength, and the arrows had already reached the farthest range of the bow.

Where Zhou Qi is now, even if there are sharpshooters in Yuan's army who secretly fire arrows, it would be difficult to reach him.

Even if he managed to shoot it, I'm afraid it wouldn't have much power.

Zhou Qi has been on the battlefield for a long time, and his martial arts skills have never fallen behind. He also wears two layers of armor and has strong protection against arrows.

Although Zhou Qi made complete preparations, Yuan Shaojun's sergeants did not know it. They all secretly expressed surprise when they saw the opponent's coach being so courageous.

When Yuan Shao saw this, he couldn't help but frown slightly.

He is a person with a good face. When he saw Zhou Qi just appeared on the stage, he was so embarrassed that he naturally felt unhappy.

When Yuan Shao was thinking about how to fight back, he heard Zhou Qi's voice again: "Since Brother Benchu ​​invited me to talk to him in front of the formation, why did he hide in the formation and dare not come out to meet him?"

After Zhou Qi finished speaking, laughter immediately erupted from the formation.

When Yuan Shao saw this, his face turned gloomy.

He originally thought that Zhou Qi relied on the Yuan family to make his fortune, and had been favored by him before. Even if the two sides were fighting each other today, the other party should be grateful.

Unexpectedly, Zhou Qi had just arrived in front of the battle. In a few words, he seemed gentle and gentle, as if he had been an old friend for a long time, but in fact, there was something hidden inside, and every sentence hit the point.

Moreover, instead of calling him "brother" in front of him, he dared to call him "gu", which somewhat made Yuan Shao feel unhappy.

He knew that after today, the already shaky friendship boat between the two parties could no longer withstand the violent storm and would definitely capsize and be swallowed up by the stormy waves.

Facing Zhou Qi, Yuan Shao naturally did not want to be inferior to others, so he immediately patted his horse and came to the formation alone.

However, Yuan Shao was not a reckless and impulsive person. He urged his war horse to come a little in front of the arrow shot by the sharpshooter in Zhou Qi's army, and also reined in the reins.

This distance can also ensure Yuan Shao's life safety.

The two princes seemed to be calm and calm, but in fact they were full of evil intentions.

Seeing that his king was also riding into the battle alone, Yuan Jun, who was originally shocked by Zhou Qi's momentum, became excited at this time and secretly applauded and shouted for his king in his heart.

"Brother Ziyi, I haven't seen you for many years!"

Although Yuan Shao was angry at Zhou Qi's pretense, he still looked like he was reunited after a long absence, and there was even a little excitement in his tone.

Yuan Shao continued to sigh loudly: "In the past, I met Ziyi for the first time in Luoyang. It was because Cao Mengde wrote a letter recommending me that I wanted to make friends with Ziyi."

"Recalling the past, Ziyi was born in a poor family, and was valued by the Commander-in-Chief of the Sili School, Yang Shijun, so he worked as a Du Guan in the Sili School of the Commander-in-Chief Mansion."

"At that time, you and I were both young and energetic. Regardless of our origins, we talked loudly every day. How free and unrestrained."

Yuan Shao's words seemed to be recalling the scene when the two met, but in fact they were a hidden secret, insinuating that Zhou Qi was from a humble background, but he had become friends with him despite being a lowly acquaintance.

In just a few words, Yuan Benchu's image of young and energetic Xiao Mengchang, who was willing to bend over backwards, suddenly appeared on the page.

Yuan Shao still did not give up, but continued to say loudly: "Back then, you and I met each other in Luoyang, and we were so free and easy. Unfortunately, the commander of the Sili School, Wei Yang, was framed by the eunuchs and died in prison. Even Ziyi was killed by Cao Jie. That guy is wanted."

"At that time, Cao Jie was extremely powerful and worried about the safety of his close friends. He used almost all the connections at Yuan's disposal to barely keep Ziyi alive and promoted him to be the head of Anfeng County."

"Until Cao Jie died of illness and the Yellow Turban Rebellion broke out, my father strongly recommended Zi Yi to be the Zhonglang General to lead the troops to attack the rebels."

"Later, when Ziyi resigned due to illness, Guo Guo and Han Sui rebelled. It was Yuan who recommended Ziyi as the general of the left and raised troops to attack the rebels."

"In the past, although we had different surnames, we were like brothers and were as close as brothers. We both wanted to revive the Han Dynasty and help the country."

"I never thought that after Ziyi became the shepherd of Yangzhou, he began to despise the imperial court. He attacked Jingzhou and Yizhou without edicts and were governed by Han clan clan. He even committed treacherous acts and established a separate imperial court to divide the Han Dynasty."

"Zi Yi's move is worthy of our past friendship, worthy of Yuan's repeated recommendation, and worthy of the late emperor's love!"

Yuan Shao's voice became louder and louder, and finally became even fiercer.

These words reached the two armies and immediately caused quite a commotion.

No one thought that the two princes who were now hostile to each other actually had such origins and past.

Especially those soldiers of Yuan Shao, after listening to Yuan Shao's words, whispered, secretly cursing Zhou Qi for being ungrateful.

Even the many uninformed Zhou Qi's soldiers looked at Zhou Qi with somewhat different eyes.

Faced with Yuan Shao's sudden attack, Zhou Qi remained unmoved.

What Yuan Shao said seems to be correct, but in fact many aspects are not worthy of scrutiny, and it can only fool ordinary soldiers who do not know the truth.

The greatest favor that Yuan Shao and the Yuan family gave to Zhou Qi was to recommend him as the magistrate of Anfeng County after Zhou Qi's patron Yang Qiu fell.

Later, because of the Yuan family, Zhou Qi was able to stay in Anfeng County safely for so many years and slowly accumulate strength.

Zhou Qi will not deny these help.

However, Yuan Shao said that his father recommended him as General Zhonglang to fight against the Yellow Turbans, and later recommended him as General Zuo to fight against the Kingdom and Han Sui. That was really nonsense.

The reason why Zhou Qi was worshiped as a fake lieutenant general was also because of his outstanding performance on the battlefield, defeating the Yellow Turban for the first time and writing a letter to the Yellow Turban Qushuai to death.

It was precisely because of this first achievement, coupled with the fact that the Han Dynasty court was eager to put down the rebellion at that time, and the other counter-insurgency troops were not progressing smoothly, that the imperial court promoted Zhou Qi in an unusual way.

It was also from that time that Yuan Shao became jealous of Zhou Qi, and the two parties began to go further and further away from each other.

As for Cao Jie's secret arrest, Yuan may have contributed some efforts, but most of the credit must be attributed to Gai Xun.

Even Zhou Qi was later recommended as General Zuo to pacify the kingdom and Han Sui's rebellion. This was the result of Gai Xun's strong recommendation and had no relationship with the Yuan family at all.

What Yuan Shao said was purely to put money on his face and that of the Yuan family, and to take credit forcibly.

Zhou Qi and the few people who knew the inside story naturally knew that Yuan Shao was talking nonsense.

But the soldiers on both sides didn't think so.

Zhou Qi couldn't even refute Yuan Shao's words at this time, otherwise even if what he said was true, he would give people the feeling of putting up his pants and not recognizing others, and being ungrateful.

After all, Zhou Qi did not come from a poor background. He was able to rise from the bottom to his current high position. Without the support of the Yuan family, ordinary people would not believe it.

Zhou Qi took a deep breath, then turned over and dismounted, bowing deeply to Yuan Shao.

After bowing, Zhou Qi raised his head and said, "This bow is to express my gratitude to Brother Benchu ​​in the past for not considering my humble background, but for being willing to surrender to me at all costs."

After saying this, Zhou Qi bowed to Yuan Shao again: "The second bow is to thank Brother Ben Chu and the Yuan family of Runan for recommending Zhou Qi."

After finishing speaking, Zhou Qi continued to bow: "The third bow is for the brotherhood between you and me."

"Just as Brother Benchu ​​said, although you and I had different surnames before, we are actually as close as brothers. It is the ethical principle for me to meet my brother with the courtesy of a brother."

Zhou Qi did not deny Yuan Shao and the Yuan family's favor to him, nor did he accuse Yuan Shao of exaggerating the facts. Instead, he lowered his profile and bowed to Yuan Shao three times as a prince.

This low-profile move actually aroused the goodwill of the soldiers on both sides.

After all, the soldiers on both sides are ordinary people. From an emotional point of view, they have a greater sense of empathy for the experience of Zhou Qi, a man from a humble background.

They just spurn the ungrateful people, but they don't resent Zhou Qi's rise from a commoner to a high position.

Zhou Qi's low-profile performance has made everyone think that the two sides were fighting each other today, and perhaps there was something hidden behind it. It was not that Zhou Qi was ungrateful and deliberately made an enemy of Yuan Shao.

Even Guan Yu, Zhang Fei and others who were watching the battle on the city wall couldn't help but take a high look at Zhou Qi.

Zhou Qi retreated in order to advance. After temporarily stabilizing his character, he got on his horse again and looked at Yuan Shao, his eyes suddenly becoming sharp.

He said loudly: "The Yuan family in Runan is so kind that Zhou Qi will not dare to forget her in this life."

"In the past, when Zhou Qi was the magistrate of Anfeng County, he worked hard for several years, established workshops, and opened up trade routes. If there were rare output under his rule, he must first enshrine brother Benchu ​​and the Yuan family."

"In the past few years, almost all of Anfeng County's output, except for the basic maintenance of people's livelihood and taxation, was handed over to the Yuan family."

"Doesn't elder brother know my brother's thoughts?"

After Zhou Qi said this, the soldiers on both sides were in an uproar, and even Yuan Shao's face became very ugly.

He could not deny that Zhou Qi had indeed brought many benefits to himself and the Yuan family when he served as the county magistrate of Anfeng.

However, these are all unwritten private agreements. If the Yuan family recommends you to be a local official, you will become a disciple of the Yuan family. There is nothing wrong with showing filial piety, right?

Moreover, Zhou Qi said that all the surplus was given to the Yuan family. Yuan Shao would not believe these things even if he was beaten to death.

However, just like Yuan Shao had previously deliberately exaggerated the kindness of the Yuan family to Zhou Qi, Zhou Qi had deliberately exaggerated the tribute given to the Yuan family. Yuan Shao did not dare to refute, so he could only suffer such a dumb loss.

As for the uproar among the soldiers on both sides, it is reasonable.

Although this kind of thing seems to be relatively common among the upper class, for ordinary people, this is a naked transfer of interests.

For this reason alone, Yuan's favor to Zhou Qi was not without cost.

The originally high-level favor of promotion, but when it is mixed with benefits, it will change its taste in everyone's mind.As ordinary people, their promotion notifications had long been blocked, and they originally resented the aristocratic families for controlling the promotion of local officials.

Now that I see such a naked transfer of interests, I am naturally extremely angry.

Yuan Shao, a mute, couldn't tell how hard it was to eat Coptis chinensis, but Zhou Qi refused to give up, and instead pressed forward step by step.

"Zhou Qi will not dare to forget Mrs. Yuan's kindness to me in this life."

"That's why, as the eldest son of the Yuan family in Runan, Yuan Jiuji repeatedly invaded our territory, and was even captured alive by me in the end. I didn't take his life. Instead, I treated him with good wine and meat, and finally treated him respectfully. Return it to Yuzhou."

"For so many years, even though Yuan Jiujiu took the initiative to provoke wars many times, I always cared about the kindness of the Yuan family and never set foot in Yuzhou."

"This is my, Zhou Qi's, return for my kindness to the Yuan family in Runan!"

"Wow!"

These words caused a huge uproar.

In particular, the soldiers under Zhou Qi's command had not understood before why their lord had captured Yuan Shu who had invaded Lujiang alive, but instead of taking the opportunity to kill him and seize Yuzhou, he was willing to submit to others and serve Yuan Shu as prime minister.

It was only then that everyone suddenly realized that it was out of gratitude to the Yuan family in Runan that the general held back.

Thinking of this, everyone felt unhappy.

They did not expect that the Yuan family, relying on their kindness to their lord, would actually repay the kindness and invade the territory many times.

Not only that, today in front of the two armies, Yuan Shao, who also came from the Yuan family in Runan, planned to use his old tricks again, hoping to tie down his lord with past favors.

Thinking of this, everyone's eyes immediately became a little unkind.

Even the soldiers of the Yuan family, as well as Liu Bei, Guan Yu, Zhang Fei and others who did not know the details, could not help but secretly praise Zhou Qi for repaying his kindness and his righteousness.

Zhou Qi's performance was still not over, his mood gradually became depressed, and his eyes gradually filled with tears.

His voice was slightly hoarse but penetrating, echoing in the formations of the two armies: "I met brother Benchu ​​in Luoyang in the past. I thought that brother Benchu ​​was loyal to the Han Dynasty and had the ambition to help the country."

"I never thought that I paid by mistake after all."

Yuan Shao retorted: "I am loyal to the imperial court and want to help the country. Otherwise, why would I travel thousands of miles to welcome the Emperor of Heaven into Yecheng?"

Zhou Qi wiped away his tears, his eyes suddenly became sharp, and shouted: "If brother Benchu ​​is really loyal to the imperial court and wholeheartedly supports the Han Dynasty, I am willing to dismount and accept surrender, and let all Jing and Yang states submit to the imperial court!"

Zhou Qi's words immediately shocked everyone. They didn't expect that the other party could have such courage.

"But I also have something to say, and I won't be happy if I don't say it."

"The emperor has been crowned emperor for more than three years. Brother Benchu ​​keeps saying that he is loyal to the court. May I ask if you have ever allowed the emperor to personally govern and handle the military and political affairs of Jizhou?"

Facing Zhou Qi's questioning, Yuan Shao's face turned pale and he did not dare to answer.

If the emperor was young, Yuan Shao could still use this as an excuse to continue to control the government, but now the emperor Liu Bian in Yuan Shao's hands is 23 years old and has already reached adulthood.

If an adult emperor is used as a puppet, how can he have the face to say that he is loyal to the court?

Seeing that Yuan Shao did not dare to reply, Zhou Qi was aggressive and continued: "You keep claiming to be loyal to the imperial court, but you treat the prince Bian as a puppet, hold all the power in the imperial court, and behave like a powerful minister who bullies the emperor's officials. Lift.”

"To the extent that you blatantly violated the oath Emperor Gaozu made by killing Baima - anyone who is not the Liu family but the king will be attacked by the whole world."

"Your actions are worse than those of Dong Zhuo, Li Jue, and Guo Si!"

"At least even if they control the government, they dare not openly violate the oath of Emperor Gaozu Baima!"

At this point, Zhou Qi's tone became cold: "If what I said is true, the last person with a different surname to become king was probably the usurper of the Han Dynasty, Wang Mang."

"Do you want to imitate Wang Mang and usurp the Han Dynasty?"

Zhou Qi's combination of punches shocked Yuan Shao into chaos.

As Zhou Qi said, anyone who is not the Liu family but the king will be attacked by the whole world. This is the iron law set by Emperor Gaozu.

Yuan Shao claimed to be loyal to the imperial court and the Han Dynasty.

There are still some quibbles in controlling the government, but the matter of being king with a different surname cannot be cleansed no matter what.

It was not until this moment that Yuan Shao suddenly realized that Yuan Shu was trying to persuade him to become king. This was actually a sinkhole dug by his opponent.

He remembered that he had not listened to Xun You's words and had even become suspicious of him, and he immediately regretted it.

Zhou Qi, however, did not wait for Yuan Shao to speak, and continued to pursue the victory, shouting: "The late Emperor Gu Meng favored King Gu Chenliu and me, and issued a posthumous edict, ordering me and Gai Yuangu to lead troops into Luoyang and jointly crown King Chenliu as emperor. "

"However, when we received the imperial edict and led the troops to Luoyang, the late emperor's eldest son had already been made emperor by General He Jin and the ministers of the court."

"At that time, it happened that Dong Zhuo was controlling the government and wanted to depose the prince Bian and establish the prince Xie as the emperor."

"If they had followed the late emperor's edict, Gu and Gai Yuangu should have supported Dong Zhuo's move to abolish and establish the throne."

"However, after all, Prince Bian is the eldest son of the late emperor. According to legal principles, he should inherit the throne. If the two of us insist on abiding by the late emperor's edict and carry out the act of abolishing the throne, we will trample on the court etiquette and the dignity of the Han Dynasty. Trampled hard."

"It is precisely because of this consideration that we went against the late emperor's high expectations and failed to jointly elect the princes to be emperor, and even prevented Dong Zhuo from deposing him."

When Zhou Qi said this, the soldiers on both sides were in an uproar again.

Even Liu Bei didn't know these things at first, let alone an ordinary soldier.

After Zhou Qi said these words, the image of being loyal to the Han Dynasty and safeguarding the dignity of the Han Dynasty suddenly appeared on the paper, making many people who were still loyal to the Han Dynasty feel in awe.

Zhou Qi then took out a testamentary edict from his arms, displayed it in front of the two formations, and said loudly: "This is the late emperor's edict. If what I say is false, both heaven and man will be killed!"

Zhou Qi produced evidence and made such an oath, which immediately dispelled the last doubts in everyone's mind.

He respectfully collected the late emperor's edict, and then continued: "At this time, we used the excuse of establishing a separate court to mobilize all the troops from Hebei to attack Uncle Liu Huang in Xuzhou."

"Don't you know that I don't want to establish a separate court, but Brother Benchu ​​really disappoints me."

"If we still place all our hopes of helping the country on Brother Benchu, I am afraid that Brother Benchu ​​will become another Wang Mang sooner or later."

"The fourth Duke and Assistant of the Yuan family in Runan, Brother Lu, as the legitimate son of the Yuan family, always had the intention of reviving the Han Dynasty."

"As a clan member of the Han Dynasty, Liu Xuande has already discussed the genealogy with the prince and is called the emperor's uncle."

"I am not talented, but the late emperor valued me and entrusted me with important responsibilities."

"The three of us now occupy half of the world's territory, and we are supported by the Yuan family in Runan and the late emperor's imperial edict. Why can't we establish a separate court, reopen the sun and moon, revive the Han Dynasty, and support the country together?"

"On the other hand, brother Benchu, as the concubine of the Runan Yuan family, has been expelled from the Runan Yuan family because he claimed to be king without permission and ruined the reputation of the Yuan family."

"We set up a new imperial court based on great righteousness, but brother Benchu ​​is a thief who wants to catch thieves. He does not obey the imperial court and does not care about the people. He goes on a military rampage and gathers the power from Hebei to go south. He wants to follow Wang Mang's actions for his own selfish gain?"

"You and I used to have similar minds. Although we have different surnames, we are actually brothers."

"However, the traitors of the Han Dynasty do not stand in harmony, and the royal family does not take sides. Even if we do not lead troops to attack Xuzhou today, we must abide by the oath of Emperor Gaozu and the White Horse and call on the princes of the world to fight against the traitors."

After saying this, Zhou Qi suddenly pulled out the sword from his waist, then withdrew his lining, used the blade of the sword to cut off a piece of cloth, and suddenly left it on the ground.

"If we have different ways, we should not conspire against each other. I have received great favor from the late emperor, how can I call myself a brother and a brother to a national traitor?"

"After today, you and I will cut off our ties and have nothing to do with each other anymore!"

"The kindness I received from the Yuan family in the past was also from the Yuan family in Runan, not Yuan Benchu ​​who has been expelled from the clan!"

When Yuan Shao heard this, he was so angry that he was shaking all over. He only felt a tightness in his chest, and then his throat felt sweet, and a mouthful of blood immediately came up.

Fortunately, Yuan Shao knew that this was in front of the two armies. If he was scolded by Zhou Qi until he vomited blood, it would be a disguised admission of the other party's remarks, which would definitely plummet the morale of his 30 troops.

He resisted spitting out blood, and instead swallowed them into his belly again, his eyes becoming extremely sharp.

Yuan Shao knew that his first confrontation with Zhou Qi resulted in a huge defeat.

Fortunately, the battle between the two armies does not rely on words. In the end, it still depends on the strength of both sides.

He said in a hoarse voice: "If you want to cut off the robe and sever the righteousness, then follow your wish. All you need to do is distinguish the superior from the inferior on the battlefield. Why do you need to use your words to gain advantage?"

At this time, Yuan Shao's words of "just using words" are better than all kinds of words.

Zhou Qi glanced at Yuan Shao with a complicated expression, and then said: "Of course we have to fight, but we also have to explain things clearly."

"It is out of righteousness that I confront the two armies of Benchu. However, after all, I still care about the friendship in the past, so I should stay away from Benchu ​​for now."

"Our army has recently arrived and is full of vigor, but we don't want to take advantage of this."

"I will lead my troops back to the city and refrain from attacking Yuan's army for three days in order to repay Ben Chu's kindness in the past."

"Three days later, we will sever all ties and decide the outcome!"

Zhou Qi's words are sonorous and powerful.Then he led his troops back to the city without looking back.

The soldiers, who were already excited by what Zhou Qi said, all shouted in unison.

When Yuan Shao saw this, he almost vomited blood again.

God's army had just arrived and was at full strength. He retreated for three days to repay his past kindness.

This is obviously a long-distance attack, and the soldiers are tired and cannot bear the battle, okay?

The so-called retreat for three days was just to recharge one's energy, but Zhou Qi said that he was so arrogant.

Yuan Shao felt that he had never seen such a shameless person in his life!
(End of this chapter)