Ji Han Liu Zhang

Guanzhong, Chang'an.

When the first heavy snow of winter fell, everything was white, and the sky and the earth became the same color. Liu Zhang climbed to a high place and looked into the distance from the city wall of Chang'an, admiring the beautiful snow scene.

The wind is cold and the snow is flying.

"The river should be freezing now, right?" Liu Zhang said to himself.

Xun You, who was accompanying Liu Zhang to enjoy the snow, heard Liu Zhang's question and replied, "It's the first snowfall, and the cold is not yet severe. The river should only have a layer of floating ice, which is not yet frozen solid, so pedestrians can't walk."

As a strategist, Xun You, who was well versed in astronomy and geography, was also very familiar with the solar terms. He had a rough estimate of when the Yellow River would freeze and when it would be frozen solid.

After a moment, Liu Zhang said meaningfully: "Hebei is now strong and invincible. When the river freezes over, I will send soldiers to break the ice to prevent Yuan's army from marching on the river. What do you think, Xunzi?"

"Are you afraid of Yuan Ruhu?" Xun You did not respond, but shook his head, chuckled and replied with a teasing remark.

"Fear Yuan like a tiger!" Liu Zhang laughed a few times when he heard this. Xun You's words reminded him of a certain Wei Taifu who feared Shu like a tiger. That Taifu had no idea what to do when fighting against Shu Han. He just stood firm and watched the Han army farming in Wuzhangyuan. He didn't have the prestige of capturing Meng Da and conquering Liaodong in the past.

Liu Zhang turned around and said to Xun You, "Hebei is formidable." During this period of time, Liu Zhang personally experienced the comments in the Records of the Three Kingdoms about Yuan Shao's invincibility in the late Han Dynasty.

Yuan Shao, who controlled the four states of You, Ji, Qing and Bing, reached the peak of his power in terms of manpower, material resources, reputation and family background after he defeated Gongsun Zan and drove away the Black Mountain Army. He was truly invincible in the late Han Dynasty.

Although in history Yuan Shao was ultimately defeated by Cao Cao, and Cao Cao defeated the strong with his weak force, Cao Cao's victory was hard-won, lucky, and terrifying. If Yuan Shao had made the right move when they were enemies, Cao Cao would have been doomed.

Therefore, Liu Zhang did not judge a hero by his success or failure. After all, Yuan Shao was very difficult for him to deal with at the moment, and he needed to deal with him carefully and cautiously, otherwise, one careless mistake would lead to eternal regret.

Just like now, Liu Zhang plans to destroy the ice on the Yellow River when the Northern Qi is strong, just like the Northern Zhou Dynasty in history, to prevent Yuan’s army from easily crossing the Yellow River and attacking Guanzhong when the river is frozen.

However, just as Xun You said, Liu Zhang's little thought was a little too worrying. In any case, at the end of this year, it is difficult for Yuan's army to take any action. Yuan Shao was holding on after defeating Gongsun Zan. Now that Gongsun Zan has been destroyed, Yuan Shao's side is discouraged. He will probably have to wait until next year to take action, or he may have to rest for a while.

"Yes, Hebei is formidable." Xun You nodded in approval. Regardless of his opinion on Yuan Shao's actions and ideas, Yuan Shao's current strength alone is considered to be three or four points out of ten of the world.

It should be known that the Han Dynasty had a total of thirteen states, and Yuan Shao controlled four states, You, Ji, Qing and Bing, all of which were well-known large states, accounting for three or four out of ten of the world. I am afraid that people have underestimated Yuan Shao's strength. After all, Jiaozhou, Yangzhou, Yongliang and other places were mostly desolate.

"However, the weak defeating the strong and the small winning the big have existed throughout history." Xun You added, encouraging the wise man in front of him.

Liu Zhang heard the hidden meaning in Xun You's words, and he said with great pride: "Although Hebei is formidable, Yuan Shao is not. If Yuan Benchu ​​had the civil and military talents of Emperor Guangwu, I would immediately surrender and surrender with courtesy, so that the country would be safe and the people would be happy."

"It's a pity that Yuan Benchu ​​can't govern the country with his literary skills, nor can he maintain peace with his military power. He doesn't have the talent to bring peace to the world. That's it. I should have a good discussion with Yuan Benchu."

Liu Zhang ridiculed Yuan Shao in favor of Xun You. Strategically, he despised Hebei, but tactically, he still took Yuan Shao seriously. After all, Yuan Shao's strength was there and it was too strong.

"Now that Yuan Shao has defeated Gongsun Zan and driven away the Black Mountain Army, Hebei's internal troubles have been eliminated. Xunzi believes that Yuan Shao will attack Guanzhong in the west and eye the three auxiliary provinces, or go south to Yanyu and unify the Central Plains."

Hearing Liu Zhang's inquiry, Xun You frowned and thought deeply for a moment. After a moment, he gave an answer: "In the current situation, Yuan Shao should go south to Yanyu first. Why? The terrain is convenient and accessible from Hebei to Yanyu. Although there is the Yellow River as a barrier, there are many river crossings, and it is very difficult for Cao's army to defend them all. In addition, Yuan's army is invincible. If it is deployed properly, it can sweep Yanyu, Qingyu and Xuzhou in one fell swoop like autumn wind sweeping fallen leaves."

"By then, Yuan Shao will own Hebei and the Central Plains, and he will own six or seven out of ten prefectures and counties in the world. After that, he can either go south to Jingyang or west to Guanzhong, and he will be able to achieve the goal of becoming a king and a hegemon easily."

"However, your reputation is now known to the world, and people all say that you are the reincarnation of Emperor Guangwu. I am afraid that Yuan Shao will be wary of you and will prepare for Guanzhong first. Therefore, I am 70% to 80% sure that Yuan Shao will first attack Guanzhong and then Yanyu."

"First Guanzhong and then Yanyu." Liu Zhang nodded. He was afraid that he would be targeted by Yuan Shao first because of his fame. "It seems that the defense of Hedong needs to be repaired. Otherwise, Hedong will be unprepared and captured by Yuan's army. Guanzhong will be in great trouble."

Xun You responded, "The defense of Hedong needs to be reorganized, but Yuan Shao is a man of indecisiveness. He will definitely hesitate for a long time on whether to go west to Guanzhong or south to Yanyu. We can't act rashly for the time being. We can wait and see what happens."

Xun You then bowed and said, "I suggest that next spring, we should summon Hedong Governor Wang Yi to Guanzhong and replace him with Fa Zheng. Hedong is an important place, so we need a trusted and good person. In addition, we need to increase the number of Hedong soldiers, and there should be no less than 10,000 soldiers. We also need to build high walls and dig deep trenches. These are all things that need to be done one by one."

"It should be as you say." Liu Zhang expressed his agreement. Xun You's proposals were all suggestions to anticipate the enemy. If they were well prepared in advance, there would be fewer worries in the future. If they were not well prepared, they would not know how to resist Yuan Shao's army when it arrived.

into the night.

In the left wing of the government office, Liu Zhang gently rubbed the white cotton in his hand with his fingers - an object called Jibei in today's world. The table in front of Liu Zhang was filled with Jibei, which was the first year's output of the cotton seeds that Zhang Yi had found in Jiaozhou.

"Not satisfactory." Liu Zhang stroked the cotton in his hand. First, the cotton fiber seemed a little delicate, not as thick as the cotton of later generations. Second, the cotton output per acre was a little less, not as good as the per acre output in later generations.

However, considering that the seeds of later generations are the result of generations of screening, cultivation, and the support of several generations of high technology, Liu Zhang is quite satisfied with his current harvest.

With cotton, Liu Zhang began to think about the matching tools. First, he needed a device to extract cotton seeds, and then a device to fluff the cotton.

He had a general impression of the style of the cotton-flicking machine here, and he had also seen a movie in which the music played by the cotton-flicking machine was so deeply rooted in people's hearts that he remembered it very clearly. With the matching equipment, promoting the planting of cotton and using cotton to replace the current straw and wadding for heating would be a great thing that would benefit the country and the people. In this regard, Liu Zhang planned to issue a decree to include cotton as one of the taxes levied by the government.

Of course, in the beginning, cotton was just a substitute for taxes such as money, silk, and rice. After all, the promotion of cotton takes time, and people need to become familiar with the growing conditions and environment of this crop.

Liu Zhang's plan was to use cotton as a high-value alternative tax to replace traditional taxes such as money, silk, and rice, so that the people would feel that growing cotton was profitable. Only in this way would the people have the motivation to explore growing cotton. Otherwise, even the people would not do something that was not profitable.

"Ten thousand years is too long, we must seize the day." Liu Zhang felt a sense of urgency, but he also knew that nothing can be rushed, and things must be done one by one. If they are piled up, they may fail like Emperor Yang of Sui who dug the Grand Canal, attacked Goguryeo, and attacked the Turks in the north at the same time, and ruined a powerful empire.

Putting down the cotton in his hand, Liu Zhang took out a handful of rice from the rice bag next to the table and gently felt the delicate texture of the husked rice with his hands.

Similarly, this bag of rice was the output of the high-quality rice seeds that Zhang Yi found from Jiaozhou. Although Liu Zhang didn't know whether this kind of rice could be considered Champa rice, after all, the country of Champa was probably still in a barbaric state.

However, the rice seeds are indeed good. One acre of land can produce two to three stones, which is a good output.

However, due to the influence of the Little Ice Age, Liu Zhang plans to grow rice only in Shu first and then promote it. The reason is that Guanzhong is close to the north and the cold is extremely severe.

"Cotton, rice seeds, paper..." Liu Zhang had confidence. He wanted to give birth to the Third Han Empire, wash away the decadent atmosphere of the Han Dynasty, and revive the glory of the Han Dynasty.

"Husband, it's getting late, you should go to bed early." Huang Wan saw that Liu Zhang was taking a long time to rest, so she swayed her hairpins and came to Liu Zhang's side and said something caring.

"Okay." Liu Zhang put the rice in his hand into the rice bag. After clapping his hands, he got up and left with Huang Wan. He fell asleep peacefully with Huang Wan's service.

When there is nothing to do in winter, time seems to be long, but time always passes bit by bit and will not go faster or slower because of the feelings of mortals.

In December of the third year of Jian'an, Liu Zhang received news from afar.

After besieging Xia Pi for nearly a year, Cao Cao finally broke through Xia Pi. After hearing Liu Bei's words "Hasn't you seen what happened to Ding Jianyang and Dong Zhuo?", he made up his mind to kill Lu Bu, the capricious tiger.

Those who died with Lu Bu were Chen Gong who was determined to die, and Gao Shun who was unwilling to be a second-rate minister. As for Zhang Liao, Wei Xu, Song Xian and others, they surrendered to Cao Cao and became his generals.

"All the elite soldiers of Bingzhou have been taken over by Cao Cao." This was Liu Zhang's sigh when he received the news from Baimen Tower. As a native of Wuyuan County in Bingzhou, Lü Bu was able to dominate the world by relying on the elite soldiers of Bingzhou under his command, but now they have all been confiscated by Cao Cao.

Liu Zhang did not feel too much about the repetition of history at Baimen Tower. He focused his attention on the news from Taihang Mountains.

Zhang Song, who was sent to Taihang Mountain by Liu Zhang, brought good news. Zhang Song had established contact with Zhang Yan, the leader of the Black Mountain bandits. Zhang Yan was in a critical situation and his life was in danger. After receiving Liu Zhang's goodwill and condolences, Zhang Yan wisely submitted a document of surrender to Liu Zhang, and along with several hostages of the Black Mountain Army generals, they would be delivered to Guanzhong soon.

Liu Zhang would certainly not miss the opportunity to form an alliance with the Black Mountain bandits, a resilient rebel army that rose up in the second year of Zhongping during the reign of Emperor Ling of Han and disappeared only after Cao Cao conquered Hebei and Zhang Yan surrendered to Cao Cao.

Needless to say, the Black Mountain Army had previously joined forces with Gongsun Zan and fought more than a hundred battles with Yuan Shao, during which they almost kidnapped Yuan Shao's family. The hatred between the two sides was extremely deep and there was no possibility of eliminating it.

As it was, Liu Zhang's clever move against Yuan Shao was to win over the Black Mountain bandits and make them a threat to Yuan Shao. He needed the Black Mountain bandits, who had a deep foundation in Youyan and Taihang, so that he could extend his hand into Bingzhou. The Black Mountain bandit Zhang Yan, who had suffered a series of defeats, was exhausted, and was in a critical moment of survival, also needed Liu Zhang's strong external support.

Liu Zhang and the Black Mountain bandits both had needs and common enemies. With Liu Zhang's willingness to build connections, the two sides naturally connected.

"Bingzhou." Liu Zhang looked at the map in front of him. This map was very rough, far inferior to the map of China that Liu Zhang had seen in his previous life, but it was already considered the most detailed map today.

On this map, Bingzhou is sandwiched between Hebei and Guanzhong. It is the dividing line between Hebei and Guanzhong, a place that Hebei and Guanzhong must fight for, and an important place that both sides are crazy about.

If Guanzhong could obtain Bingzhou, it would be able to overlook the Hebei Plain, swoop down from above, and through the multiple passages in the Taihang Mountains, making it impossible for the people of Hebei to take care of themselves.

If Hebei obtains Bingzhou, and has Hedong and Shangdang, it will be separated from Guanzhong by only a river. This will put great pressure on Guanzhong, making the Guanzhong government uneasy at night and requiring it to be vigilant at all times.

"In the fight with Yuan Shao, Bingzhou is the most important." Liu Zhang clearly knew the current strategic focus. Moreover, Bingzhou was not only needed to compete with Yuan Shao, but also to compete with Cao Cao.

The areas of Shangdang and Henei could put considerable pressure on Cao Cao in Henan. After all, there were few obstacles and fortresses heading south from Henei, and there was no geographical advantage to rely on.

Liu Zhang took into account the current situation in Bingzhou. In Bingzhou today, Shangdang County was in the hands of Yuan Shao, and Hedong County was in his hands. As for other counties, most of the areas had become the territories of the Xiongnu barbarians, and only the fortresses and cities were still in the hands of the Han people.

Since Yuan Shao was a benevolent ruler and had good relations with the barbarians, the Xiongnu and Wuhuan would most likely help Yuan Shao. That is, while attacking Bingzhou and fighting against Yuan's army, Liu Zhang would need to deal with the Xiongnu and Wuhuan that might appear in Yuan's army.

Speaking of which, the Xiongnu and Wuhuan are now the thugs in the struggle for hegemony among the princes, and they make a living by being mercenaries. If Liu Zhang offers a higher price than Yuan Shao, he may be able to recruit the Xiongnu and Wuhuan to help.

But Liu Zhang had no intention of doing so. He was not impressed by the power of the Xiongnu and Wuhuan. He only believed in the power of the Han people. (End of this chapter)