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

Chapter 318 Arrangement

When it comes to the Yuan family, most people only know the Runan family of the Fourth Generation and the Third Duke, but the Yuan family of Chen County is rarely known.

However, the Yuan family in Chen County, as the birthplace of the Yuan family in Runan, had been active in the court as early as the Western Han Dynasty. Even at the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, Yuan Pang still served as Sikong during the period of Emperor Ling of the Han Dynasty.

Yuan Pang is the father of Yuan Huan, and Yuan Ba ​​follows his father.

Compared with the ambitious Yuan family of Runan, the Yuan family of Chen County advocated purity, self-denial, and devotion to public service. They did not seek private wealth, nor were they too involved in the struggles of various political forces.

It is precisely for this reason that the Yuan family of Chen County has a very good reputation among scholars, so that starting from Yuan Pang, the family held important positions in the court for thirteen consecutive generations, which continued until the Tang Dynasty.

Historically, Yuan Ba ​​was a subordinate of Cao Cao, one of the ministers who urged Cao Cao to become the Duke of Wei, and the first chief agricultural officer in Cao Wei.

In this time and space, Yuan Ba ​​took refuge with Yuan Shao, but he was more active than in the original history.

He looked at his younger brother Yuan Hui, with a soft look on his face, and said, "I thought that you came to Jiaozhou to avoid trouble, and that you would live a miserable life far away from the Central Plains."

"I never thought that you would actually look plumper than before!"

Yuan Hui bowed deeply to his brother and said: "Since I arrived in Jiaozhou, I have been taken care of by Shiwei Yan. I don't have to worry about livelihood problems or government affairs. I just study and study at home and teach my children. Naturally, I don't have to worry about it." It seems like my brother is tired."

The two brothers reunited after a long absence and had endless topics to talk about. It took them half a day to finish recounting their respective experiences over the years.

Seeing that it was getting late, Yuan Hui asked: "Brother traveled thousands of miles from Yecheng to Jiaozhou, but was entrusted with an important task by Emperor Zhao?"

In the face of his younger brother, Yuan Ba ​​did not hide anything and said bluntly: "To be honest, my brother's coming to Jiaozhou is indeed under His Majesty's order to confer Shi Weiyan as the governor of Jiaozhou."

Yuan Hui said: "Besides this, should we let Shi Weiyan send troops to attack Chu?"

Yuan Ba ​​smiled and said: "I really can't hide it from you."

He then said seriously: "Although you are not an official in Jiaozhou, you have a close relationship with Shi Weiyan. Do you know whether he will agree to send troops to attack Chu?"

Yuan Hui pondered for a moment, and then said: "If you are the only one, even though he is jealous of the King of Chu, he may not dare to send troops to attack him."

"Now that Yuan Benchu ​​has launched a large-scale southern expedition, when the internal emptiness of the Chu Kingdom becomes empty, I will not dare to give it a try."

Yuan Ba ​​looked excited and said: "Why do you say this?"

Yuan Hui stroked his beard and said: "Brother, you may not know that Zhou Ziyi established the Governor's Office in Nanzhong. He first destroyed the Shan and Piao countries, and then set his sights on Jiaozhou."

"Zhou Ziyi sent envoys to Jiaozhou several times to persuade him to surrender."

"You are unwilling to do so, but you are afraid of the power of the Chu State, so you are always hesitant. If the Chu State frees up its hands, it will definitely lead its troops to march south and seize the counties in Jiaozhou."

"You may not know this, but you are also worried in your heart."

"If Yuan Benchu ​​launches a large-scale attack on Chu, he will undoubtedly give hope to the envoy who has been forced into a desperate situation. As long as he does not want to sit still and wait for death, he will definitely lead his troops to attack Chu."

Yuan Ba ​​was overjoyed when he heard this and immediately went to visit Shi Xie. In the name of His Majesty the Emperor of Zhao State, he was named the governor of Jiaozhou and held the rank of general of Zhennan.

Shi Xie accepted it happily and expressed his submission to Yuan Shao.

Yuan Ba ​​immediately asked Shi Xie to take advantage of Zhao's large-scale march south to lead troops to attack the southern counties of Chu.

Shi Xie also accepted it happily.

The words are divided into two parts.

However, it was said that while Zhou Qi was vigorously promoting the imperial examination and carrying out construction in the territory, Chen Wen's subordinate Xiao Zuo was vaguely aware that Zhao State seemed to be making big moves.

Just when Chen Wen ordered his agents to detect Zhao's movements, Liu Bei secretly sent an envoy to inform Yuan Shao of his plans to launch a large-scale southern expedition.

When Zhou Qi heard the news, he couldn't help but feel awe-struck.

Almost not long after the Xuzhou envoy arrived in Xiangyang, Chen Wen's subordinate Xi Zuo also heard the news that grain, grass, soldiers and horses were being mobilized on a large scale in the Zhao Kingdom.

Zhou Qi urgently summoned his subordinate Wen Wu to discuss countermeasures.

Tian Feng asked a little strangely: "This time Zhao State has mobilized a large number of troops, horses, grain and grass. Could it be that they are preparing to attack Xuzhou again?"

No wonder Tian Feng had such speculation.

In his opinion, Jingzhou and Xuzhou are unbreakable allies. If Yuan Shao wants to go south to attack Chu, he will definitely worry about Liu Bei cutting off his food routes.

Therefore, it is basically impossible for Zhao State to attack Chu State before conquering Xuzhou.

Zhou Qi held the latest information in his hand, but shook his head and said: "Yuan Benchu ​​has canonized Liu Xuande as King of Qi of Zhao and awarded him the post of General of the Eastern Conquest."

"At least nominally, Liu Xuande has attached himself to Yuan Benzhu."

"This time Yuan Shao leads his troops south, Xuzhou will most likely stand still. The only one we can rely on is ourselves."

After saying this, everyone was in an uproar.

Dian Wei slapped the table and stood up, shouting sternly: "I originally thought Liu Bei was a hero of the world, but looking at him today, he is nothing more than an ungrateful person!"

Cai Mao also shouted: "My lord has saved Xuzhou from danger many times. Liu Bei falsely claims to be a clan member of the Han Dynasty and actually surrenders to the puppet Zhao. He is really not a son of man!"

Huang Zhong even stepped forward and shouted: "I hate unjust people the most in my life. I am willing to send 50,000 elite soldiers to conquer Xuzhou, and behead Liu Bei and offer it to the lord!"

Gan Ning, Yan Yan and others were also filled with indignation and asked for a fight one after another.

Seeing that all the generals automatically ignored the news that Yuan Shao was about to march south, and instead pointed their fingers at Liu Bei, Zhou Qi couldn't help but smile bitterly to himself.

He put his hand in the air and said to the indignant generals: "Xuzhou is only the itch of scabies, Yuan Benchu ​​is the most serious problem."

"No matter whether Liu Xuande accepts Yuan Benchu's canonization or not, as long as he does not lead his troops to attack me, we cannot quarrel with him."

As a prince, Zhou Qi would not be as motivated as his soldiers.

Although he was also angry that Liu Meng was canonized by Yuan Shao, since the other party secretly sent someone to inform him, it meant that he still cared about the past friendship and had no intention of becoming his enemy.

At this time, Zhou Qi not only couldn't break up with Liu Bei, but even tried his best to win over him.

Yuan Shao's strength should not be underestimated.

Zhou Qi would not be so naive as to think that Yuan Shao's defeat to Cao Cao in Guandu was really as vulnerable as a chicken or a dog.

Now that Yuan Shao's subordinates are missing Xu You, a rebel, and Guo Tu, an impure counselor, was killed early, the moral character of his counselors is basically passable.

They may usually fight, but when facing a war that affects the fate of Zhao, they will definitely work together.

The most important thing is.

Chen Wen has already heard the news. The reason why Yuan Shao is preparing to launch a large-scale southern expedition this time is precisely because of the advice of many civil servants under his command.

Zhou Qi could guess with his toes that their purpose was to strangle the imperial examination system in its cradle.

Once Yuan Shao's counselors work together, it will be difficult for Zhou Qi to find a breakthrough point. The outcome will be determined in one battle, just like burning the black nest. In the end, there is a high probability that the two sides will fight endlessly, competing for logistics, money and food. He looked around at the crowd and said in a deep voice: "For the current plan, we should first discuss how to deal with the invading soldiers from Zhao."

After Zhou Qi finished speaking, Jia Xu, who never liked to express himself, suddenly said: "Of course Yuan Shao must be on guard, but Xuzhou must also be prepared."

"Take the initiative and send an order to Huang Zu, Shi Huan, and He Qi, instructing them to recruit troops and horses in Wu County and Danyang County respectively to take precautions."

Zhou Qi took it seriously and immediately issued an edict asking the three of them to be careful.

Now Huang Zu is the governor of Wu County, and Shi Huan is the captain of Wu County.

Wujun and Xuzhou are across the river. If Liu Bei really plans to take the opportunity to attack Jiangdong, he will attack Wujun first.

As for He Qi, he was the captain of Danyang County. He recruited Shanyue in Danyang County and trained Danyang's elite soldiers, and achieved great achievements.

Danyang County is also across the river from Xuzhou. Although there is a high probability that it will not be regarded as the primary target of attack, it is just a matter of caution and it is necessary to take precautions in advance.

Seeing that Jia Xu took the initiative to offer advice today, Zhou Qi couldn't help but feel happy and asked, "Does Wen He have any other suggestions?"

Jia Xu pondered for a moment and continued: "Although Yuan Shao is powerful, my lord occupies the natural danger of the Huaihe River, and there are naval forces crisscrossing the Huaihe River."

"Most of Yuan Shao's soldiers and horses come from Hebei and are not good at water warfare. My Lord, as long as the three generals Zhou Jin, Zhou Tai, and Jiang Qin lead the Huaihe River navy and tightly block the river, even if Yuan Benchu ​​mobilizes all the troops in Hebei, what should he fear?"

Listening to Jia Xu's calm words, Zhou Qi couldn't help but feel reassured.

He immediately sent an order to Zhou Tai, Zhou Jin, and Jiang Qin, asking them to block the river and not to put Hebei's fine works into the south of the Yangtze River.

Zhou Qi was still worried, so he sent orders to Zhang Liao, Xu Huang, and Zhou Cheng respectively, asking them to activate first-level combat readiness and recruit soldiers and horses stationed in their respective counties to be ready to respond to the navy at any time.

After long discussions with his subordinate Wen Wu, Zhou Qi immediately prepared to mobilize across the country to fight Yuan Shao.

Unexpectedly, after the ministers dispersed, Jia Xu returned quietly.

Zhou Qi was surprised when he saw this and asked, "Why did Wen He leave and come back?"

Jia Xu's face became a little solemn at this time and said: "This time Yuan Benchu ​​comes with a fierce momentum. I'm afraid it's no better than before. My lord, you should treat it with caution."

Zhou Qi asked with some surprise: "In the hall just now, didn't Wen He say that Yuan Benchu ​​was not afraid?"

Jia Xu smiled bitterly and said: "Didn't my lord notice that some civil servants among the officials had strange expressions? If I didn't say this, how could I calm people's hearts?"

Zhou Qi's face was solemn.

In fact, he just discovered something was wrong.

Although the generals are gearing up, they all want to have a great battle so that they can make achievements and gain a wife and son.

However, there are some civil servants, especially those from aristocratic families, whose expressions are somewhat intriguing and can't help but make people wary.

Looking at Zhou Qi's face, Jia Xufu comforted him again: "As long as my lord does not mess up his position, as I just said, Yuan Benchu ​​has nothing to worry about."

"However, the person I am concerned about is not Yuan Benzhu alone."

Zhou Qi frowned slightly and asked, "Why did Wen He say this?"

Jia Xu's face was extremely serious and he said: "My lord, you might as well imagine that before Yuan Benchu ​​raised his troops to go south this time, he had already sent people to win over Liu Xuande and let Chu's most solid ally stay out of the matter."

"Even Liu Xuande is like this, what will happen to the other princes?"

Zhou Qi felt awe-struck, pointed to the northwest and asked, "Is Wen He referring to Cao Mengde?"

Jia Xu shook his head and said: "Cao Mengde is not alone, I am afraid there is also Jiaozhou."

Zhou Qi frowned and said, "Shi Xie is no more than a conservative, how dare he invade our territory?"

Jia Xu said seriously: "This moment, that moment."

"If Yuan Benchu ​​had not launched a large-scale southern expedition, Shi Xie would never have dared to invade Chu. However, my lord sent envoys to Jiaozhou several times before, trying to persuade Shi Xie to surrender, but the other side repeatedly resisted."

"Since Shi Xie has no intention of surrender, he might give it a try!"

Zhou Qi felt awe in his heart and said, "If Wen He hadn't reminded me, I might have missed something important!"

If Zhou Qi was unprepared and Shi Xie led a surprise attack on Chu when he was fighting Yuan Shao, the consequences would be disastrous.

He pondered for a long time, then looked at Jia Xu and said: "Xiang Hong and Fazheng led the troops of Nanzhong and took the initiative to attack Jiaozhou. What do you think, sir?"

Jia Xu said: "My lord is wise!"

Jiaozhou spans too long from east to west and borders Yangzhou, Jingzhou, and southern Yizhou. It will be difficult to passively defend it.

In this case, taking the initiative to attack is the best choice.

As for fighting on two fronts, as long as Zhou Qi relies on the natural dangers of the Huaihe River and does not face a decisive battle with Yuan Shao, he is not afraid.

He didn't expect Xiang Hong to conquer Jiaozhou, as long as he could hold off the opponent.

Although Shi Xie was only the governor of Jiaozhi in name, his relatives and brothers almost completely controlled all the counties in Jiaozhou, and he properly belonged to the Lingnan warlords.

For example, Shi Xie's younger brother Shi Yi concurrently served as the governor of Hepu, Shi served as the governor of Jiuzhen, and Shi Wu concurrently served as the governor of Nanhai. Countless other relatives held important local official positions.

Almost the entire Jiaozhou belongs to the private domain of the Shixie family.

Zhou Qi continued to ask: "Guyu ordered the crown prince to lead the troops from the northern counties of Yizhou to Hanzhong to guard against Cao Cao's invasion. I wonder what you think, sir?"

Jia Xu said: "Although Cao Mengde is not easy to get along with, Zhou Yu, Pang Tong, and Lu Xun are all outstanding talents in the world. Wei Yan, Huo Jun, Wu Yi and others are also talented generals. Hanzhong also has dangerous mountains and rivers, and it is enough to defend the enemy at the gate of the country." outside!"

After hearing Jia Xu's words, Zhou Qi was completely relieved.

He was a little worried before that Zhou Yu and others were too young after all, and compared with the old and cunning Cao Cao, they might still seem a little immature.

However, Jia Xu is very good at understanding people. Since he thinks Zhou Yu and others can be of great use, what is there to worry about?

Just to be on the safe side, Zhou Qi specifically told Zhou Ji in his letter to him that if Cao Cao came to attack, he must act with caution and discuss everything with Zhou Yu, Pang Tong, Lu Xun, Li Yan and others first, and to Defense is the main thing, don't be greedy for success and rush forward, and fall into the thieves' tricks.

Zhou Qi was still worried, so he wrote a letter to Zhou Yu and Pang Tong respectively, asking them to advise Zhou Ji and not to make him too willful.

After arranging some military affairs, Zhou Qi couldn't help but be shocked to find that the only troops and horses that could be recruited from the counties in central Jingzhou and Yangzhou were now available.

The population of Chu State is not as large as that of Zhao State, and now it may be a three-front battle, and it has to guard against Xuzhou and Liu Bei, so its military strength is inevitably somewhat stretched.

The soldiers and horses of Yizhou cannot be moved, and the soldiers and horses of the southernmost counties of Jingzhou and Yangzhou cannot be mobilized.

Zhou Qi calculated that if he did not include the troops under Zhang Liao, Xu Huang, and Zhou Cheng, he could mobilize only 80,000 troops.

(End of this chapter)