Great Han Empire

Chapter 585: Troubled Times Heroic Chapter Dangerous
"General..." Li Wei stretched out his hand to hold Li Hong who was about to walk, and said very dissatisfied, "General, do you want to give up checks and balances and northern borders? Now give up checks and balances, give up northern borders, and go instead Qin Wang's attack on Chang'an is simply a strategy of drinking doves to quench thirst, and it will not save the great Han country. Look at Dong Zhuo, he has the emperor, the army, and the power of the world, but has he stabilized the country? No, right It was because of his incompetence that my great Han society fell into the abyss and became what it is today. Does the general think that the strength of Beijiang is enough to save the world and stabilize the society?"

Li Hong stopped, looked at Li Wei and Zhu Mu, and said calmly: "No, I don't have the ability, you don't have the ability, and Beijiang doesn't have the strength. That's why I need the Eldest Princess' Mansion and Cui Mu. With the help of Lie, Zhang Wen, and Ma Rizun, the brawny ministers of the great man, we can only fulfill the great entrustment of the late emperor and defend and revitalize our great man's society only if we work together and work together."

"You have been with me for a long time. You should be very clear about who I am and what I think." Li Hong looked at the pile of papers on the case table and sighed softly, "How did the first emperor's edict be written?" How can I live up to the late emperor's trust and great trust? If I can't fulfill the late emperor's will, what face will I have to see the late emperor under the nine springs? Whether it is a man or a courtier, the first thing is loyalty, if I If I can’t even do loyalty, am I still human? Are you still willing to help me? No, no one wants to be my big man’s rebel and bear the infamy of generations.”

"Maybe the emperor can't understand my method of defending and saving the country, and maybe the ministers in the court also regard me as the biggest disaster for a big man, but I ask myself, I have done nothing wrong." Li Hong went to Li Wei and Zhu Mu, Holding the shoulders of the two, they walked slowly outside the big tent, "I, like you, firmly believe that we have the ability to save and revitalize the country, but we need a long time and need more strength."

"The emperor set up Princess Changping's mansion in Jinyang, and sent seven veterans to assist the princess. People in the world will believe that I, Li Hong, is absolutely loyal to the emperor and the great man. This is a great deal for Beijiang and myself. It is a matter of great benefit and no harm. For example, when we go to Jizhou to buy grain, although our Hushi General's Mansion pays for it, it is the eldest princess of the Han Dynasty who comes forward. Does Han Fu dare to push back? Do the elites in Jizhou still dare to say no? At this time, whether Yuan Shao, Yuan Shu, Han Fu, or Liu Dai, what choice will they make when facing the eldest princess? Are they simply refusing to admit it to the eldest princess? , saying that she was not from the late emperor?"

"No one dares to say this. Although Yuan Shao dared to kill the four court ministers, he dared not deny the eldest princess. The eldest princess is still young and has no prestige at present, but behind her is me, Li Hong, and my Northern Xinjiang 10,000 + Dajun, with us standing behind her, who dares to say 'no'? Behind the eldest princess are Cui Lie, Zhang Wen, Ma Rixun, Yuan Pang, Chen Ji, Cai Yong, and Ding Gong, seven veterans. These seven people look at the whole world, except the emperor, who can provoke them? With Yuan Shao's ability, he can't provoke anyone."

"The seven old ministers in the princess' mansion, Zhang Wen, Ding Gong, and Yuan Pang are all my former superiors. The relationship between Cai Yong and us is even more unusual. Zilong will soon be his virtuous son-in-law. Abandon us. Regardless of the differences in political opinions among the two, as far as personal feelings are concerned, the seven veterans will definitely be able to sit with us. In any case, our purpose is the same, it is for the community, for the common people in the world, and for the eternal life of my great man. Guozuo."

"I have these seven highly respected old ministers in northern Xinjiang, plus Zhao Qi, Xu Shao, Yang Qi, Wang Jian, Wang Han and other five ministers, their strength is growing so fast, I'm afraid it's beyond what you and I can imagine. ?” Li Hong looked at Li Wei and said with a smile, “Didn’t you say that northern Xinjiang is poor and no Confucian scholars are willing to accept it? After a while, it’s not that no one in my northern Xinjiang is willing to accept it, but It was overcrowded."

"As long as we work together with the eldest princess and all the veterans, not only will we be able to stabilize the northern border within two or three years, but we will also be able to eradicate the traitors of the king and revitalize the country."

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Li Wei and Zhu Mu felt heavy and silent by default.Li Hong just chose to talk about it, but he didn't mention the hidden worries about the future of northern Xinjiang.

The purpose of the Son of Heaven is to set up the eldest princess's mansion in Jinyang, and enlist seven veterans to serve in the eldest princess's mansion. The purpose is obviously to check and balance and weaken Li Hong's power, but from the current situation, using the eldest princess' power to force Li Hong It doesn't seem to make much sense to provide materials to Gyeonggi, because the situation in Northern Xinjiang itself is worse than that of Gyeonggi, and the materials that can be provided are very limited.That being the case, why did Dong Zhuo still do this?Why should Li Hong be angered?Is it necessary to use Li Hong's hand to kill these veterans, make Li Hong and Bei Jiang become rebellious, and completely come together with Yuan Shao?But what good does that do Dong-joo?
To take a step back, even if Li Hongzun obeyed the order of the emperor and lived in northern Xinjiang with the Princess's Mansion, the military power in Northern Xinjiang and the six prefectures is in Li Hong's hands, and the army is also in Li Hong's hands. Can the Princess's Mansion be a check and balance? The role is all in Li Hong's thought. To put it bluntly, if Li Hong has the intention of dividing the feudal domain or usurping the country, then the Princess's mansion is just a decoration and has no effect.

Of course, if Li Hong is loyal to the Son of Heaven and the Great Han, the power of the Eldest Princess Mansion will vaguely surpass that of the General Hussar's Mansion, and the power struggle between the two mansions will begin immediately. Who can avoid the vortex of this power struggle, its consequences are difficult to predict.Huge internal friction is bound to detract from the strength of Northern Xinjiang.But it will take a while, which will not help Dong Zhuo solve the current crisis facing Gyeonggi.

What does Dong Zhuo mean?
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It is impossible for Dong Zhuo not to know that the princess came to northern Xinjiang with the late emperor's edict and the banner of King Qin to eradicate adultery.Now that the princess has great power, and she has seven veterans to assist her, she will take attacking Chang'an as her first goal.Dong Zhuo wouldn't be so confused that he asked the seven veterans to help him persuade the princess to give up King Qin, and instead asked Li Hong to attack Yuan Shao and the Yellow Turban Army, right?Since Dong Zhuo is not so confused and childish, it is impossible for him to come up with such an idea, and according to Dong Zhuo's familiarity with political affairs, it is impossible for him to come up with such an idea. They figured it out.

Since this idea was conceived by the ministers in the court, its intention is self-evident. Of course, it is to ask Li Hong to become king quickly, or to use the prestige of the eldest princess and the old ministers to influence and control Li Hong, preventing him from being like Yuan Shao It became a big man's rebellion, which made King Qin's eradication of traitors and revitalization of the country an elusive thing.Judging from the current situation, the most ideal way is to use Li Hong's force to wipe out traitors such as Dong Zhuo, Yuan Shao, and the Yellow Turban Army, stabilize the country within a few years, and then plan to revive it.That is to say, the ministers of the DPRK and China still put their hope of revitalizing the country on Li Hong.

Li Hong had just returned from an expedition to the desert, no one in the world could match his merits or prestige, and so far, he hadn't had any bad deeds other than being unfavorable to the king.Unlike Dong Zhuo, who first made repeated failures to cause turmoil in the country, then raised the butcher knife to kill people, and finally wanted to move the capital in a frenzy. He would rather perish with the country than give up the power in his hand. Now this person has become an out-and-out traitor. There is no cure other than killing.Yuan Shao even made the ministers in the court dumbfounded and beat their chests. Why did the talented Yuan Kai choose such a person to take on the important task?Yuan Shao refused to recognize the emperor, and confronted Li Hong tit for tat, and that was all. Who knew that he would kill the ministers later, and openly broke with the court.Yuan Shaozhi's intentions have been clearly revealed.With his strength, he is unable to defeat Dong Zhuo, let alone defeat Luoyang and Chang'an. He just wants to push the great Han society into the abyss of overthrow, a complete great Han rebellion.Yuan Shu was overwhelmed, swaying from side to side, he had neither the determination to be king nor the courage to be a rebel, so he just looked around and didn't know what he was going to do?A useless bastard.In this case, the ministers of Chang'an have only one choice.

Dong Zhuo is not an idiot, of course he can see the intentions of the court ministers, so why does he still obey what he says?If Li Hong was loyal to the emperor and led his troops to serve the king under pressure, Luoyang and Chang'an would be in danger.Could it be that he is really confused and wants to wait for death?
Zhu Mu Fengchen's servant rushed back from Chang'an, thinking hard all the way, but he didn't understand.

Li Wei explained his doubts to Li Hong in detail, but it was also difficult for him to understand Dong Zhuo's intentions.

Li Hong smiled and said, forget it if you can't figure it out.Soldiers come to block, water comes to cover, what are you afraid of?There is still one month before the autumn harvest, so tell the northern Xinjiang prefectures to make preparations as soon as possible.In addition, Tian Chou and Zheng Yan urgently asked them to contact Yuan Shu and Han Fu respectively to buy grain as soon as possible.

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September of the first year of Chuping (190) of the Han Dynasty.

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In September, the princess and Li Hong, Zhao Qi, Xu Shao, Yang Qi and other officials from northern Xinjiang traveled more than 100 miles to Jinyang to meet Ma Rizun and other imperial envoys.

Among these seven people, Cui Lie, Zhang Wen, and Ma Rixun were the former Taiwei of the Han Kingdom, Ding Gong was the former Situ of the Han Kingdom, Yuan Pang was the former Chief Farmer of the Han Kingdom, Chen Ji and Cai Yong were both It is probably the first time in the history of the Han Dynasty that such a prominent lineup of envoys has become famous all over the world.

Li Hong's attitude was very humble, and he took the first step to pay respects to the seven veterans as a disciple.Although the current official positions of these seven people are not as high as Li Hongda's, Li Hong's qualifications, prestige, and knowledge are far beyond Li Hongda's.The seven wanted to bow down to Li Hong as an official, but Li Hong was startled, knelt on the ground at a loss, and did not dare to get up.

Zhao Qi hurried over to make a rescue, "Okay, okay, don't make things difficult for the general. The princess is here, the brothers should go to see the princess first."

The seven were very happy, especially Zhang Wen, who held Li Hong's hand very emotionally.He and Li Hong had spent a long time together on the battlefield in Xijiang. Although there were some grievances and grievances between them, it was all a cloud of the past and not worth mentioning.Li Hong was very excited, "I went to Luoyang in March last year. Due to time constraints, I didn't visit you. It was rude. I haven't seen you for more than three years, and your hair has turned gray."

Zhang Wen shook his head and sighed: "Seeing that the country is in danger, I live alone in the court room and cannot serve the emperor. I am so worried. But now I am better, and I can stand on the land of northern Xinjiang with my people. I have confidence. I think back then , Xijiang was about to fall, and the people led a [-]-strong army to rush to Xijiang day and night for three thousand miles. After two battles and two victories, they finally turned the tide by themselves. Today, who in the world can stand up to the sharpness of the general? The revival of Dahan is just around the corner."

Li Hong's face turned red, and he bowed again and said: "Your Excellency is absurd. If there was no master's strategizing back then, how could there be victory in Xijiang?"

At this time, Hua Xiong, Duan Xuan and other Xijiang generals surrounded him and paid homage to Zhang Wen.

Li Hong took the opportunity to walk up to Cai Yong, and said happily, "Sir is finally back. If you don't come back again, I will write to His Majesty to invite you back to Northern Xinjiang."

Cai Yong laughed loudly, "After receiving the letter from Zijiang, I immediately started to think about it. Alas, I am old, I am old..." He waved his hands at Li Hong again and again, and said embarrassedly, "I almost delayed the child. I am ashamed of my life. I want to thank you very much for this. You saved the lives of my father and daughter, and you helped me..."

"Sir, you're being polite." Li Hong bowed and said, "As long as you can return to Northern Xinjiang, I will be grateful."

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In September, Shi Zhongzhong returned to Chang'an.

He brought good news that Han Sui and Ma Teng had agreed to be appeased, and had retreated from Longxi and Jincheng.Dong Zhuo was overjoyed and rewarded Zhongji a lot.At the end of July, Shangshu Liu Ai stayed in Luoyang due to illness, so Zhongji Zhongji went to Xiliang alone with the imperial decree.Dong Zhuo didn't have much hope at first, but he didn't expect the seeding to be successful.Zhong Ji said that Han Sui and Ma Teng were stopped by Huangfu Hong's army in the area of ​​Yicheng. Because of lack of food, they had to retreat if they didn't retreat.

Dong Zhuo said to Zhong Ji, don't mention this matter to the emperor for the time being, and don't spread it around. You go home and rest first.

Dong Zhuo immediately wrote to Li Ru in Luoyang, and immediately took the three passes of Hulao, Mengjin and Xiaopingjin, and attacked Hanoi.Jishu Duan Yao and Niu Fu raided Hedong before the end of September.Dong Zhuo told the three of them that the momentum must be large and the attack must be fierce, so as to cover the main force of the army to attack Yuan Shu.

Dong Zhuo ordered Dong Yue and Li Su to rush to Wuguan and attack Yuan Shu in Nanyang.Dong Zhuo said, Yuan Shu is now confronting Liu Biao in Xiangyang, Wancheng is empty, the army must take down with one blow, occupy Nanyang, and drive Yuan Shu away.

Hu Zhen, Li Jue (jue), Guo Bang, and Fan Chou of Hangu Pass received Dong Zhuo's order, and the army secretly assembled in the direction of Dagu Pass, Zhiyuan Pass, and Yique Pass.

Lu Bu of Yique Pass, Zhang Liao of Dagu Pass, and Li Meng of Shenyuan Pass also received Dong Zhuo's secret orders and immediately dispatched scouts to investigate the situation in Nanyang, Yingchuan and other places and prepare for an attack.

After Dong Zhuo's deployment, he immediately reported to the Son of Heaven, saying that the Xiliang rebels had already captured Yicheng in Hanyang County, and there was no news of their appeasement so far.

Emperor Zhao Zhun.

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(End of this chapter)