Chu and Han contend for the throne

Chapter 276
That night, Wu She also rushed back to Wuzhong. Hearing that Yingbu only wanted to give fifty scholars, Xiang Zhuang quickly sent someone to call Fan Zeng, Xiang Ta, Xiang Tuo, Bailixian and others into the palace to discuss countermeasures.

After listening to Wu She's introduction, Xiang Tuo said angrily, "Yingbu is really stingy."

Bai Lixian shook his feather fan and said calmly: "This is also expected."

Fan Zeng suddenly asked Wu She, "Wu She, when will these fifty scholars cross the river?"

Wu She hurriedly said: "Reporting to the old military commander, I have already talked with these fifty scholars, and they are all willing to go back to Jiangdong. If everything goes well, they will be able to cross the river in at most three days."

Fan Zeng said again: "In this way, immediately send troops across the river to protect the fifty scholars, and then let them cross the river in batches, the first batch of ten scholars, the second batch of ten scholars, and then the first batch of ten scholars. The third batch and the fourth batch, after these scholars cross the river, they will all be arranged in the palace, and they should not be allowed to contact the outside world."

"This..." Wu She wondered, "Old military advisor, is it wrong to do this?"

It is nothing to send troops across the river to protect the Huainan scholars, but after crossing the river, arrange them in the palace and prohibit them from contacting the outside world. If he ran away, wouldn't this borrowing matter come to naught?

Fan Zeng didn't bother to explain, but Xiang Zhuang said, "Wu She, just do as you want."

"Here!" Wu She rushed to Xiangzhuang and Fan Zeng, turned around and took orders.

Watching Wu She's figure go away, Xiang Zhuang turned his head to Fan Zeng and said, "Yafu, you are suspicious of the strategy, but the Huainan Kingdom provides us with only 50 scholars, and one batch a day can only support us." Five days, after five days, if the determination of the Jiangdong gentry cannot be shaken, all our previous efforts will be wasted."

"Ji'er, you overestimated their determination." Fan Zeng waved his hand and said in an extremely firm tone, "As long as we build up our momentum first, and then let out rumors that the Huainan Kingdom will continue to send scholars across the south of the Yangtze River." Next, within five days, the Jiangdong gentry will inevitably disintegrate, and when that time comes, they will turn around and flatter you, Jier."

"Okay." Xiang Zhuang nodded happily, "With Yafu's words, my son can rest assured!"

For Fan Zeng, Xiang Zhuang really had an inexplicable confidence. This old man's name in history is too famous. Zhang Liang, one of the three heroes of the early Han Dynasty, is not even his opponent!

##########
The next day, King Xiangzhuang of Chu issued an edict, ordering all scholars who resigned from office to go to Lingyin's mansion to hand over their rosters, and made it clear that if Lingyin's mansion did not receive their rosters within five days, they would be punished. All their titles and titles will be deprived, and the Lingyin Mansion will appoint others to take their place.

At this time, almost all the resigned scholars gathered in Wuzhong City.

However, the more than 400 scholars who resigned were completely indifferent to Xiang Zhuang's edict, and a certain "highly respected" old man even vowed that King Xiang's move was a bluff, so that everyone should not care, and once again He threatened that if King Xiang did not take back his order and abandon the new land tax law, they would fight to the end.

However, what disturbed the Jiangdong scholars was that in the afternoon, a group of scholars from Jiangbei entered Wuzhong City with great fanfare, and arranged to enter the palace. Xiang Zhuang even hosted a banquet in the palace hall to entertain the scholars from Jiangbei. And the court stated that it would recruit Jiangbei scholars according to their talents, and entrust them with important responsibilities for those with both ability and political integrity.

In the early morning of the next day, another incident that made Jiangdong scholars feel uneasy happened. King Xiangzhuang of Chu and Ling Yin Xianghe summoned more than 200 students from Taixue successively, and asked them to study Qin Fa and get familiar with it. The new law, the words faintly revealed the intention to appoint them to the local government in the near future.

On the afternoon of the third day, another group of Jiangbei scholars arrived in Wuzhong.

Now, the scholars in Jiangdong are really busy. This situation is not quite right!
##########
That night, Huanyuan's mansion was full of guests and friends, but the atmosphere was not harmonious.

"Duke Huan, something is wrong with the situation recently." A middle-aged scholar wearing a crown and white clothes, but with wicked eyebrows and eyes, said, "Two batches of scholars came from Jiangbei in a row. There is also news from there that Xiang Zhuang and Xiang Ta intend to let them go down to work in the local area in advance!"

"Yes, Duke Huan." Immediately someone echoed, "It's not the end if things go on like this. If the scholars from Jiangbei and the students from the Taixue have all counted the positions of counties and counties, then we will really be Stealing a chicken is not enough to lose a handful of rice, and when the time comes without the title and official position, we will be nothing."

"Brother Wang, I'm worrying too much. Although there are two groups of scholars from Jiangbei, they add up to only 20 people. What can they do? As for the students of Taixue, they haven't even grown up yet, so they want to go to the local area Be an official, just dream! If Xiang Zhuang really dares to gossip like this, he will wait for Jiangdong to be in chaos and Chu to be defeated, hmph!"

"I don't think so. Jiangbei scholars are coming menacingly. We must guard against it. Huan Gong, why don't we just forget it? Isn't it just paying taxes with the untouchables? It's a bit shameful to say it, but anyway, the fifteenth tax is one It is impossible for the tax rate to hurt your fundamentals, but if the titles and official positions are gone, we will really be doomed."

"Cao Ji, are you a fucking man or not, so you shrink back from this difficulty? Don't we fight for face when we are alive? If we follow the untouchables and receive taxes together, what kind of gentry are we? If you want to be soft, just go and order The Yin family handed over the roster, but starting today, I, Wang Zhong, will no longer recognize you as a friend, hmph!"

"Wang Zhong, what do you call this? I, Cao Ji, did this not for myself, but for the future of everyone. You, Wang Zhong, are alone. Even if you are deprived of your title and official position, it's fine, but others are There are old and young, there is a big family waiting to support, if there is no title and official position, how will we live in the future?"

"That's right, what Cao Ji said is right. If we are really deprived of our titles and official positions, we will have no power or power, and then we will really only be able to associate with those untouchables, alas."

For a while, the scholars gathered in the lobby said everything, and it was as noisy as a vegetable market.

In the end, an old and respected scholar stood up and shouted: "Everyone, everyone, let's not argue, first listen to Duke Huan's opinion, and then make a decision, how about it?"

The noisy lobby gradually quieted down.

It wasn't until everyone's eyes were focused on him that Huan Yuan, who was sitting in the chairman's seat, cleared his throat and said, "Everyone, I have heard that the scholars from Jiangbei came to Wuzhong. Your Majesty and Ling Yin intend to let the students from Taixue come to Wuzhong." The talented husband already knows about the local affairs, but you don't have to worry, the king is just bluffing."

After Huan Yuan spoke, the debate was finally ended, and the scholars gathered in Huan Mansion dispersed contentedly, but Huan Yuan's heart was at a loss, and he asked someone to arrange a carriage to go to the Sheriff's Mansion overnight. After discussing secretly with Uncle Sun Guan, the prefect of Wujun, in the middle of the night, he finally returned to Huan Mansion in the early hours of the morning.

No one knows what Uncle Sun Guan said to Huan Yuan, but on the fourth day, Huan Chu, the general of Great Chu, expressed in private that he hoped that his clan uncle Huan Yuan would take the lead to submit the roster to Ling Yin's mansion, otherwise, once the king was furious and deprived Even without his title and official position, Huan Chu would never stand up for him to ask for an explanation.

Huan Chu's private statement quickly spread throughout Wuzhong, and caused a great shock among the gentry.

Everyone knows that Huan Chu is Xiang Zhuang's best friend and also a trusted general of Xiang Zhuang. If Huan Chu persuaded Huan Yuan in private like this, could it be that he got some trust from Xiang Zhuang?Does it mean that Xiang Zhuang is really going to attack the Jiangdong gentry this time?If this is the case, then their persistence is meaningless.

In the final analysis, the only bargaining chip of the Jiangdong gentry is that Xiangzhuang does not have so many talents available, but once Xiangzhuang solves this problem, once Xiangzhuang has enough talents, the resistance of the Jiangdong gentry will seem very ridiculous and very overwhelming up.

Also, the consequences of overreaching can be disastrous.

Chu State now only has four counties and more than [-] counties, and there are only a few hundred radish pits where officials can be arranged, but now there are too many guys from Jiangbei and so many radishes from Taixue. Obviously not enough points, if you don't go to Lingyin's mansion to submit the roster, then there will be no pitfalls for these carrots.

##########
Chu Palace, go to the study room.

Xiang Taxi handed a roster to Xiang Zhuang, and said, "Your Majesty, before I left for the palace, more than 200 gentry have submitted the roster, which is already more than half of the troubled gentry."

"Really? It's a good feeling." Xiang Zhuang happily took the roster, flipped through it casually, then turned his head and said to Fan Zeng, "Yafu, I really let you talk, these guys really gave in."

Fan Zeng stroked his silver beard and said with a smile, "This is also expected."

Xiang He said again: "Your Majesty, there are more than 200 noble families, including the scholars from Jiangbei, and the available talents selected from the Taixue, it is almost enough to fill the vacancies in various counties and counties. You see , can the rest of the gentry refuse to accept it? This time such a big thing happened, someone should be punished."

Without waiting for Xiang Zhuang to express his opinion, Fan Zeng said directly: "This is unnecessary."

Having said this, Fan Zeng explained to Xiang Zhuang: "Ji'er, our original intention of doing this is not really to deprive the Jiangdong nobles of their titles, let alone drive them out. The reason why we borrowed people from Huainan is because Selecting talents from Taixue is just to better implement the new law, so..."

Xiang Zhuang smiled slightly and said: "So, as long as the Jiangdong gentry are willing to change their course and support the new law, we will let the blame go, right Yafu?"

Fan Zeng nodded happily, and said, "Ji'er, you are really much stronger than Yu'er."

(End of this chapter)