Kuangfu Han Dynasty

Chapter 13: Enduring Death for a Moment of Dugen

PS: Xinpi is not the Prime Minister yet, it has been changed.

……

These words were very offensive and completely negated Xu Shu's entire life. Xu Shu looked up and found that he recognized this person.

It was Du Zixu, Xu Shu's fellow countryman and one of the "Four Scholars of Yingchuan".

Xu Shu and Du Xi were both from Dingling County, Yingchuan County, but they had no contact when they were young because the gap between their family backgrounds was too great.

Xu Shu's family came from a poor family, and his father died when he was young. His mother had to go to the market to sell bamboo shoots to support him.Du Xi's family was a prominent family in Dingling. His grandfather was Du Gen, a famous minister in the dynasties of Emperor An and Emperor Shun. He had been the prefect of Erqian Shi for three generations.When Xu Shu was still fighting swords in the street when he was young, Du Xi had already joined the circle of Yingchuan scholars by virtue of his family background and became a leader among the younger generation.

However, as Dong Zhuo entered Luo, Yingchuan was frequently plundered by the Xiliang army. No matter whether they were from aristocratic or poor families, they could only flee with their families in embarrassment. Du Xi and Xu Shu chose to go south to avoid the chaos in Jingzhou, and they only met several times.

However, their subsequent life paths were completely different again. Although Du Xi received courtesy from Liu Biao, he was unwilling to serve the head of the household and avoided serving.When Cao Cao welcomed Emperor Xian to Xuchang in the early years of Jian'an, Du Xi believed that Meng Degong would be able to help China as he was destined to die, so he resolutely returned north and became an official in the Xudu court on the recommendation of Xun Yu, an old man from the same county.Xu Shu was not treated well by Liu Biao because of his birth, so he had no choice but to study in Hanbin, and then joined Liu Bei's army.

Although they were enemies for a time, they were each their own masters. Logically speaking, Du Xi shouldn't have been so direct and exposed Xu Shu's shortcomings.

All the officials in the tent also looked surprised, because Du Xi was always known for his gentleness and intellectual integrity in Cao Cao's place, and he tried to be as gentle as possible when admonishing and not directly violating his lord's taboos.I met Xu Shu suddenly today, but he suddenly became righteous and outspoken, which was very different from his usual behavior.

A subordinate who understood the reason whispered to the people around him: "Although the two of them have no personal grudges, they do have a public grudge!"

It turned out that in the seventh year of Jian'an, Xu Shu planned a surprise attack on Xuchang for Liu Bei and Liu Biao. When they marched north, Liu Biao's army attacked Xi'e County with a partial division. The person who served as the head of Xi'e County at that time was Du Xi.

Du Xie governed Western Hubei for several years. He was kind to the people and won the hearts of the people.Facing an offensive of thousands of people on foot and cavalry, the small county town could not be defended, but he was not afraid. Instead, he summoned 50 trusted officials and soldiers, and immediately dispatched those who expressed their willingness to leave and go home.None of the fifty warriors left. They kowtowed and expressed their willingness to die with the county king.

So Du Xi personally held the bow and led them to stand guard on the city wall. He defeated Liu Biao's army with fifty against ten thousand, and repeatedly repelled Liu Biao's army's offensive.After guarding for five days, more than a hundred enemies were killed, but more than 30 of our own troops were killed, and the remaining 18 were all wounded.

Seeing that he could no longer hold on, Du Xi took the remaining people and the common people who were willing to go with him to break out of the city at night.Along the way, the officials were ordered to cut off their rear and died one after another, but no one surrendered.When Du Xi and his troops arrived at Mobei, Cao's military camp, only a few officers and soldiers were left.

These were all his die-hard loyalists. After the battle, almost all of them were killed. Du Xi's heart was bleeding. Although this battle was carried out by Liu Biao's army, it was Liu Bei who persuaded Liu Biao to launch the northern invasion and planned the military strategy for him. Yes, it’s Xu Shu!Of course Du Xi was filled with hatred for this pair of monarchs and ministers.

After the war, when the exiled people in Xi'e County heard that Du Xi was in Mobei, they admired him and came to help the elderly and children one after another. There were as many as a thousand households.After this incident, Du Xi gained Cao Cao's attention and was appointed Yilang to join the military.In July of this year, when the Southern Expedition was about to begin, he was transferred to the Prime Minister's Mansion to serve as the military advisor's sacrificial wine-this position was originally created by Cao Cao specifically for Guo Jia.

After Guo Jia's death, Dong Zhao and Yuan Huan successively succeeded him. Yuan Huan was supposed to follow the army south, but this person was a talented person recommended by Liu Bei when he was appointed governor of Yuzhou. He was caught by Lu Bu and Wen Wen. The Marquis ordered him to write a letter to scold Liu Bei, otherwise he would be beheaded. Yuan Huan would rather die than obey, because it would be ungrateful to criticize the leader as a disciple, and his reputation would be ruined.Then Yuan Huan joined Cao Cao and was highly regarded. When Liu Bei defeated Runan a few years ago, there were rumors that he was dead. For a time, everyone in the court congratulated him, but Yuan Huan looked sad and refused to congratulate him.

He was such a person, even if Cao Cao wanted Yuan Huan to make plans to deal with Liu Bei, he would probably refuse, so he would not let Yuan Huan be embarrassed, and would only promote Du Xi as his successor.Because Du Xi had lived in Jingzhou for many years and traveled to Nanyang, Nanjun and Changsha in the south of the Yangtze River, he was very familiar with the geographical advantages.

Therefore, Du Xi was able to stand in the forefront of the military attachés on the left, and he had considerable say in the military-related offices such as the Bing Cao and the Military Counselor Cao in the prime minister's camp.

Everyone in the curtain looked at each other, and they were all happy to watch the fun. Cao Cao's attitude was also very playful. He looked at Du Xi, then at Xu Shu, and asked: "Yuan Zhi, what do you think of Zi Xu's words?" ?”

Unexpectedly, Xu Shu admitted: "What Du Jun said is right."

"It is true that good fortune rarely comes from planning." This is how Xu Shu recounted the past events.

"The surrender of the prime minister was not a public decision in Jingzhou, but a conspiracy by Kuai Yidu, Cai Degui and others. Liu Cong was forced to do it as a last resort, and many civil and military officials were reluctant. Xuande abandoned Fancheng and when he passed Xiangyang, he stationed his horse and called Cong, but Liu Cong was afraid He didn't dare to get up and respond. The officials on his left and right and in the city were greatly disappointed with him, and dozens of people fled to join him. Fu then persuaded Xuande to take advantage of Xiangyang's unstable people and attack the city immediately!"

"Based on the bravery of Guan and Zhang and the reputation of Xuande, Xiangyang can be like this. After he succeeds, Liu Cong will be isolated, and Liu Biao will take over the government of Jingzhou with the help of Liu Biao's entrustment. He will execute those who surrender and promote those who lead the battle. In this way, within half a decade, Jingzhou can be secured. When the Prime Minister's army arrives, Xiangyang will be able to defeat the invaders by relying on the land and water, which is a key area."

This was actually Zhuge Liang's suggestion. Xu Shu did not advocate taking Xiangyang in a hurry. He was afraid that a fire war would cause chaos, but instead slowed down his move south. Liu Bei finally adopted Xu Shu's suggestion... But today Xu Shu did not surrender sincerely. , just to try to sneak into Cao Cao's account so that he could accomplish great things in the future, he put Kong Ming's plot on his own head.

Cao Cao knew that the situation in Xiangyang was the same as what Xu Shu said, and that the surrender faction and the main war faction were very different.I heard that when he was chasing Liu Bei with light troops, there were actually generals around Liu Cong who proposed to send thousands of Jingzhou troops to intercept southward, so that Cao Cao could be captured... Liu Cong didn't dare, and they actually planned to do it. Fortunately, Liu Cong was timid. , and quickly reported to Cao Jun who was staying behind, thus stopping this farce.

Of course, Cao Cao didn't think that Liu Bei would be able to fight him if he captured Xiangyang. When Xuande attacked and killed the chariots and regained Xiapi City in Xuzhou, he thought he could make a comeback. But when Cao Cao went on a personal expedition, didn't Liu Bei just run away?
So Cao Cao only said: "Even if this is the case, it is only a temporary defeat. Moreover, Liu Bei did not accept Yuan Zhi's plan?"

Xu Shu sighed and said: "However, Xuande actually said, 'Liu Jingsheng and I are like brothers, Cong is like a nephew, and we can't bear to be like this', so we missed the opportunity."

"After leaving Xiangyang, Fu also advised Xuande to go to Jiangling. Jiangling is close to the meeting point of the Yangtze River and relies on Wushan Mountain. It is surrounded by fertile fields for thousands of miles and has sufficient food. If Jiangling can gather tens of thousands of naval troops and thousands of boats, we can enter. Relying on the fortified city and the deep pool, we can retreat through Baqiu and the Xiang River, and take the four counties of Changsha, Wuling, etc., and use the boat division to cross the river, and the Northern Army will be unable to do anything. In this way, we can protect half of Jingzhou, and we can rule across the river with the prime minister. "

"Xuande agreed, but the scholars and people in the north of Jing were following them like a cloud, and there were more than [-] people, with thousands of carriages...Fu then told Xuande that he should abandon the people and quickly go south to Jiangling. Although he is supporting the crowd, , but there are too few armored men. If the Prime Minister's cavalry comes and kills them, how can they resist?"

The latter one is also Zhuge Liang's suggestion. Kong Ming is always rational when faced with problems.Xu Shu was prone to being emotional and had the opposite opinion. Like Liu Bei, he could not bear to part with the scholars of Jingzhou and the hundreds of thousands of people.Isn't it what Liu Bei is doing today when he cultivates kindness in the new countryside to win over people and achieve great things?And he was lucky about the speed of Cao's army.

Thinking about the past, Xu Shu felt ashamed and just thought: "Kong Ming, Kong Ming, today I got some courage from A Shao. As for my wisdom, I will borrow it from you first."

After hearing this, Cao Cao secretly thought that he was afraid of this situation, so he rushed to pursue it regardless of the fatigue of the army, and asked: "Is it possible that Liu Bei still doesn't listen to Yuan Zhi's plan?"

Xu Shu sighed and said, "Yes, Xuande actually said, 'Fu Ji's important affairs must be based on people. Now that people have returned to me, how can I bear to abandon them?' So he sent Guan Yunchang to lead hundreds of ships along the Han River to Jiangling. In order to let people go. The people of Jingzhou were at ease, and Xuande even ordered Fu and his family members not to board the ship, but to travel with the general public."

"The benevolence of a woman!" Cao Cao commented like this. Although he regarded Liu Bei as a hero, he only looked down upon him. He only said to everyone in the tent: "Although Liu Xuande has great ambitions, he is indeed far-fetched. Unexpectedly, The older I get, the more serious the disease becomes, and if I can't protect myself, how can I bring peace to the people?"

"What the Prime Minister said is true!" All civil and military officials in the tent agreed. "Although there is a small plan, if you can't convince Xuande, it is still a blessing without a plan."

Xu Shu continued: "When we arrived in Dangyang, we were lucky enough to see mountains on both sides of the oak forest Changban. The slopes were long and sheltered by lush forests and bamboos. So we urgently advised Xuande that we should cut down the trees and install antler fences to block the road. Again Gather the armored soldiers, concentrate the bows and crossbows, and set up an ambush at Changban due to the favorable location, so as to block the pursuing troops.

"If this can be done, even if the prime minister attacks with light cavalry, the powerful crossbow will not be able to penetrate Lu Zhen, and he will be defeated by the general! And Xuande can reach Jiangling smoothly..."

This is indeed Xu Shu's own strategy. Although Kong Ming is an all-rounder, whether it is grand strategy, governance, governing the people, law, or military training, Xu Shu can't match him, but he only has a little bit of tactical acumen. short.Xu Shu is quite good at this. After all, it was his handiwork to burn Bowang Slope, and it can be used on Changban Slope as well.

Speaking of this, Xu Shu still felt a great pity in his heart: "But before it was too late to implement it, the prime minister's pursuers had already arrived, Xuande's army was defeated, and everything was too late."

Xu Shu shook his head and said: "I then understood that all small plots were a joke in front of the Prime Minister who used his troops like a god. I saw with my own eyes that the courage of the Prime Minister's cavalry was as fast as a bird of prey, while Xuande's army was like throwing eggs and stones, destroying them instantly. Broken. Only then did Fu realize that assisting Xuande in fighting against the Prime Minister for many years was actually a mantis acting as a chariot, and it was indeed unwise."

"After the defeat at Nagasaka, Fu and Xuande fled in panic with dozens of horses. They were disheartened and heard that their old mother had been arrested. Fu thought about the safety of his loving relatives and was eager to return north to fulfill his filial piety, so he could only say goodbye to Xuande. .”

Xu Shu raised his head, cupped his hands to Du Xi and said, "So Mr. Du is right, Fu really has no loyalty."

Xu Shu seemed to accept all Du Xi's accusations, but in fact he was defending himself. After hearing this, people felt that the responsibility did not lie with him at all, but because Liu Bei did not listen to his advice!Even Du Xi's face softened slightly, wondering if he was pushing too hard?
Unexpectedly, Xu Shu said again: "As for Fu changing his name and hiding himself when he was young, he was imitating Du Jun's grandfather."

This is a well-known story in Yingchuan: Du Xi's grandfather Du Gen was an official during the reign of Emperor An of the Han Dynasty. He strongly advocated the emperor's personal administration, which offended the Empress Dowager Deng who was attending the court.The furious Empress Dowager Deng ordered Du Gen to be put in a sack and killed in court. Fortunately, the law enforcers sympathized with Du Gen's loyalty and did not beat him so hard, allowing Du Gen to survive.Queen Mother Deng sent someone to see if Du Gan was dead. He could only hold his breath and pretend to die. Flies were laying eggs in the corner of his eyes without moving, so he was thrown into a mass grave outside the city.

Du Gen was able to escape and went to Jingzhou, changed his name and surname, worked as a maid in a restaurant, and did some odd jobs to make a living.It was not until many years later that Deng's relatives were overthrown and Emperor An of the Han Dynasty came to power, that Du Gen returned to his hometown and conquered the public car. From then on, he became famous all over the world.

"Fu was thinking of Du Gong's deeds at that time, so he humiliated himself and endured death, in order to learn from his mistakes and correct his past mistakes."

Xu Shu moved out of Du Gen. Du Xi said that he was scolding his ancestors if he said he was incompetent. He only sneered and said: "The so-called painting of tigers is not anti-dog."

She could scold him no matter what, but Xu Shu was determined to be like Yu Rang, and endured the humiliation in order to avenge his lord and himself.

Xu Shu looked at Cao Cao again and explained: "Today I was able to return to the imperial court, so I used my old name 'Xu Fu' again. The Prime Minister can give Fu to Yousi to punish him. Fu is willing to be killed. If he is lucky enough to get all the leaders, I hope the Prime Minister will do it." Returning Fu to the township party is just like today's Du Jun. The evaluation of Fu's reputation, status and virtue, whether it is good or bad, all depends on public opinion."

After saying this, Xu Shu bowed his head again.

After hearing Xu Shu's half-truth and half-false thoughts, Cao Cao thought he had a comprehensive understanding of Xu Shu, so he sighed and said: "Why did Yuan Zhi say this? You have a very good response strategy, but Liu Bei cannot use it."

Cao Cao recalled an event from the past to everyone in the shogunate: "When Zhang Miao betrayed me and went to Lu Bu, he kidnapped Bi Chen's mother in Yanzhou. I said to Bi Chen, 'Your mother is over there. You can go. I won't blame you.' . Bi Chen nodded on the spot and expressed that he had no second thoughts, which moved me to tears. Ha, unexpectedly, Bi Chen had just left the military camp, and then ran to join Lu Bu! I hated him so much that I gritted my teeth."

"After Lu Bu was defeated in Xuzhou, I captured Bi Chen alive, but let him continue to serve as an official, because the Han Dynasty has governed the country with filial piety for four hundred years. If a wife is filial to her relatives, isn't she also loyal to the king? This kind of person is me That’s what you want.”

After saying that, Cao Cao stretched out his hands and said, "Bi Zili abandoned me and joined the thieves out of filial piety, but he was spared. Yuan Zhi today also abandoned the thieves and joined me out of filial piety. I should reuse him, so how can I be willing to kill you? Hurry up. Please get up!"

Only then did Xu Shu get up, feeling that he had finally passed the test of Cao Cao, and at the same time he admired Cao Mengde. His words just now were enough to make ordinary scholars burst into tears. If he had not already given his heart to his lord, he might not have Will be moved.

But Du Xi still insisted on his opinion and said again: "Prime Minister, a filial son should be praised, but this person has just surrendered, and his words may be deceptive. I feel that I have to guard against him. Even if he enters the shogunate, he cannot be allowed to join the military." position to avoid leaking our military secrets!"

The implication is that Xu Shu is not welcome under his command as a military advisor.

Now it was Cao Cao's turn to feel a little embarrassed. He just wanted everyone to try Xu Shu's talent. If he really had some talent, he would still use it.After all, the war is not over yet. As Liu Bei's mastermind, Xu Shu must know his future movements. If he can know in advance, and on the premise of knowing himself and the enemy, he will not be afraid that Liu Bei, an old loach, will escape from his grasp again.

So Cao Cao pondered for a moment, looked past Du Xi and looked at the other people in the curtain. Sure enough, a smart person understood the boss's meaning. Xinpi in black, who was on the right side of the curtain, immediately stood up and bowed to Cao Cao: " Prime Minister, what the military advisor said about offering wine is reasonable, but I am now participating in Cao Cao's affairs as Yilang, performing the duties of Cao Cao, and participating in the deliberation. I happen to be short of an assistant who is familiar with the situation in Jingzhou. Perhaps Xu Yuanzhi can be tried for the position."

In the past, it was against the rules for Yilang, who was originally a court official with a salary of [-] shi, to go to the palace and concurrently serve as a Cao Cao with a salary of [-] shi.However, since the time of Emperor Ling, the cavalry general Zhang Wen Yiyi Lang Tao Qian entered the general's mansion to join the military. After this, there were more and more similar appointments, and finally they were carried forward by Prime Minister Cao.Nowadays, in Cao Cao's shogunate, there are a lot of "Yi Lang participates in something". Sometimes it is difficult to distinguish which are ministers of the shogunate and which are officials of the court.

"That's a very kind thing George!"

Cao Cao was very happy. He liked Du Xi's loyalty and uprightness to fill in the gaps for him, but he also needed Xin Pi's understanding. He said, "In that case, how about I wrong Yuan Zhi and take up the post of Cao Shi first?" "

The Yi Cao Department is a special department. Everything can be discussed, or nothing can be discussed. How much participation you can have in something depends entirely on the decision of Prime Minister Cao. It is definitely the most suitable department for Xu Shu.Xin Pi remained silent in the curtain for a long time, waiting for this moment to hand over a perfect answer sheet, which not only gave Cao Cao the chance to step down, but also gave Xu Shu a favor.

Moreover, Yi Cao Shi was just an ordinary petty official, his status was under the subordinates, and his rank was hundreds of stones. All the ministers in the tent thought it was acceptable, and they would not be dissatisfied with Xu Shu, a minister of the defeated army, who "came from behind".

Xu Shu was very satisfied with being able to sneak into Cao Cao's shogunate smoothly. If Cao Cao really used him, Xu Shu's character might not be good enough, so he just thanked him and said, "That's what I wish for! As a captive of the defeated army, Xu Shu just wants to If I hold the post of Cao Xiaoli, my salary can be used to support my old mother. Now that I can do so, I am so blessed and grateful!" After saying this, he raised his hand to his future boss, Xin Piyi.

Cao Cao raised his palm and said, "That's it, but Yuan Zhi, I have one more thing to ask you."

Cao Cao's eyes became overbearing: "Since Liu Bei has been defeated, he is now running away from Hanjin and taking Guan Yu's boat to go south. It seems that he is going to Jiangxia to join Liu Qi. But everyone in my account thought that Jiangling was gained, and the imperial court took over the Jingzhou navy. Going down the river, it's easy to take Jiangxia. Do you know what Xuande's plans are after that?"

"Xuande also knows that Xiakou is difficult to defend." Xu Shu knew that this was the final test, so he followed Cao Cao's words and revealed to him information that seemed to be true and false.

"When Fu Lin left, he only heard Xuande say that in order to avoid the Prime Minister's sharp influence, he continued to cross the river southward, intending to go to Jiaozhou and defect to Wu Ju, the prefect of Cangwu!"

(End of this chapter)