Great Han Empire

Chapter 749: A Storm of Troubled Heroes

"Brother Bogui, if you find it difficult, I can transfer you and your iron cavalry to the western battlefield." Li Hong said with a smile, "The opponents on the western battlefield are Yuan Shao, Liu Biao, Yuan Wei, Zhang Yang and others. Then we can avoid Tian Kai and Liu Bei."

Gongsun Zan sighed, but did not speak.

It was out of kindness that Li Hong transferred Gongsun Zanzheng to the Jizhou battlefield.Now there are many civil and military ministers from Youzhou in the middle of the court, and people like Liu He and Xian Yufu occupy pivotal positions and have great influence on the government.Li Hong wanted to take this opportunity to let him make more meritorious deeds and ease the hatred between him and the scholars in Youzhou.

Although the former Grand Tutor Liu Yu had already explained the reason for pardoning Gongsun Zan before his death, but as Liu Yu's son Liu He and Liu Yu's old officials Wei You, Liu Fang and others still blamed Liu Yu's death Yu Gongsun Zan.Today Liu He and the others may not kill him, but it does not mean that these people will not avenge themselves in the future.The more meritorious service Gongsun Zan has achieved and the higher his official position, the stronger his ability to protect himself, and the less likely he will be threatened by this.Gongsun Zan's life was guaranteed. Even if he didn't want to become an official in the court, he could always guard the frontier fortresses loyally for the great man, so that he would no longer have any ambitions.

In addition, when Gongsun Zan arrived on the Jizhou battlefield, he could not only come forward to appease old friends such as Tian Kai and Liu Bei, but also give a clear hint to the rebels who attacked Hebei.As long as the emperor is respected and belongs to the imperial court, the imperial court can let go of the past and still entrust important responsibilities.

Gongsun Zan guessed Li Hong's thoughts, but he couldn't overcome his mental barrier.Every time he took a step closer to the battlefield, the past became clearer, and the resentment in his heart became stronger.No matter how kind people like Li Hong and Qu Yi treated him, he couldn't resolve the resentment in his heart. He even hated the triumphant faces of the northern Xinjiang generals. insult.Whenever he thinks that he is about to face his former good brothers Tian Kai and Liu Bei, he has an inexplicable impulse. He wants to repay them and fight the enemy side by side with them.Back then, if these two brothers hadn't vowed to save each other to the death, I would have already turned into a pile of bones.

Gongsun Zan was restless because of this, and he was very eager to leave Jizhou.The reason why he accepted Li Hong's invitation today and rushed to the General Xingyuan with a cheeky and forced smile was because he wanted to beg Li Hong to transfer himself away from the Jizhou battlefield as soon as possible.

"I can't stay here anymore, I'm going crazy." Gongsun Zan lowered his head and begged in a low voice, "I hope the general can understand my feelings. I really can't face all this. I can go to the desert, or I can go to the desert." Liaodong, I can even disarm and die, I don’t have any demands, I just want to get out of here quickly.”

Li Hong looked at him in surprise.From Gongsun Zan's haggard face, sad expression, and helpless eyes, Li Hong seemed to see Gongsun Zan's heartbroken tears.The past few years of peace, not only did not relieve the pain in Gongsun Zan's heart, but made him feel even more miserable.

Li Hong wanted to comfort him with a few words, but he swallowed the words again.Everyone can tell the truth, but if he is Gongsun Zan, he may not be able to do better than Gongsun Zan.I should put myself in Gongsun Zan's shoes and think about it.

"I promise you." Li Hong stretched out his hand to pat Gongsun Zan, "but you have to give me time. What reason can I use to ask the imperial court to transfer you back to Youzhou? Now that you are gone, who should be the cavalry army on the eastern battlefield?" Command? I have to solve all these problems before I can let you go."

Gongsun Zan raised his head, bowed his hands to Li Hong gratefully, "Thank you, General."

=

A few days later, because Fengxue missed her child, she left Handan with several envoys from Fuyu Kingdom and headed for Jinyang.

From the frontline army on the north bank of the Yellow River, various news came one after another.

Hanoi prefect Zhang Yang's army has left Dangyin City and is approaching Yecheng along Chidao.Hebei Captain Han Hao led his army out of Chaoge City and approached Liyang in Wei County.Liyang is the westernmost city in Jizhou along the north bank of the Yellow River.

Yuan Shao's generals Han Qiong, Pan Feng, Zhu Ling, and Tao Sheng's army had already entered Baima and faced Li Yang across the river.

The armies of Yuan Wei, Gao Gan, Gao Rou, and Yuan Zhong from Yuzhou have entered Puyang area.

Liu Biao's army in Jingzhou has already entered the Juan (juan) city area. It is not yet certain whether they will cross the river in the direction of Qinting.

Cao Cao's army has already assembled in the direction of Dong'e and Cangting, and can cross the river to attack Dongwuyang at any time.

Xuzhou's army approached the line of Linyi City and Chi (chi) Pingcheng, echoing Cao Cao's army at a distance.

Tian Kai's army gathered in Gaotang and Qiancheng. Whether he will attack Ganling together with Cao Cao and Liu Bei, or directly enter Bohai County is still unpredictable.

According to the analysis of the existing military situation, the rebels may cross the river at nine to ten crossings to attack. If the two enemy troops in the direction of Hanoi are added, the rebels' attacking army will reach as many as twelve routes.Which of these roads are the main force of the rebels?Which ferry is the main direction of the rebel attack?For this reason, Li Hong and the generals of the northern border army stayed up all night, discussing repeatedly how to deal with the enemy.

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Recently, Gongsun Zan and Lu Bu were ordered by Li Hong to write several letters to Tian Kai in Qingzhou and Zhang Yang in Hebei, hoping to persuade them, but with little success.

Zhang Yang has always refused to reply.Although Tian Kai wrote back frequently, he always persuaded Gongsun Zan to recognize Li Hong's usurping character, and turn his back on him as soon as possible, or simply take his cavalry across the river to join him.As long as Brother Bogui enters Qingzhou, Qingzhou will be yours.Gongsun Zan couldn't laugh or cry.

Seeing that the war was imminent, Gongsun Zan rushed to Handan Xingyuan again, requesting to be transferred back to Youzhou.Gongsun Zan was depressed, looked exhausted, and was much thinner than before.Li Hong was worried that others would know what Gongsun Zan was thinking, so he specially invited him to his military tent to discuss with him alone.

"Wufeng Zhonglang General Li Su has already joined me. With his ability, he is completely qualified to lead the army." Gongsun Zan said slowly, "This time the generals who will follow me to the south include my son Gongsun Xu, who has a long history. Shi Zhaoheng, Xiaowei Yingqin, and Guo Hua are very familiar with Lord Li Su, and they will obey Lord Li Su's military orders and will not cause any trouble to the general."

Li Hong persuaded him to open a little bit and stay temporarily, "I suggest that the memorial for you to return to Youzhou has been submitted to Jinyang, and there will be news soon. Just wait."

"My son, let me beg you personally, okay?" Gongsun Zan smiled wryly, "You are the Great General Sima, who is in charge of the military affairs of the court. You have every right to transfer me back to Youzhou."

"Brother Bogui, you are a general of the imperial court. Although I am restraining you, it is a big event for the imperial court that I transfer you back to Youzhou, especially at this time. It can be adjusted." Li Hong persuaded earnestly, "In addition to Her Royal Highness the eldest princess, there are four Shanggongs including me in charge of state affairs in the court today. I personally have no right to transfer a general at will. If I can do whatever I want, then who am I? Dahan Zhongxing first needs to restore the majesty of the emperor and the majesty of the law. If I can't respect the law, then what qualifications do I have to say about Yuan Shao, Cao Cao, etc. Are people rebellious? Brother Bogui, you don't want me to be like Dong Zhuo, arrogant and perverting the law, right?"

Gongsun Zan looked annoyed, and said very dissatisfied: "You didn't go to the court at all, you just don't want me to go."

"Brother Bogui, you have to think about it for me. How will others understand me when I transfer you away? Others will think that I don't trust you, or other generals except the former general of Northern Xinjiang. This will shake the morale of the army. You are not representing yourself now, but the generals of other departments in the court except the old generals of northern Xinjiang." Li Hong persuaded again, "How can I explain to you when you are gone? I can't tell the generals Say, you put brotherhood above the interests of the community, right? At a time when the great man is in danger and Hebei is in danger, what is personal brotherhood? Why can't you understand me?"

"But you have to understand me." Gongsun Zan said desperately, "What should I do when I face Tian Kai and Liu Bei? Whether Tian Kai and Liu Bei are rebellious or not, you and I have a plan, just like you It’s like meeting each other in battle. There is no right or wrong. You say Tian Kai and Liu Bei are rebels, so what kind of rebellious things do you say they did? Rebuild the imperial line, rejuvenate the big man, you think this is a matter of Hebei, but they If you think it's their business, then who is right and who is wrong?"

Li Hong's face gradually darkened, "Brother Bogui, do you think so?"

"I think so." Gongsun Zan said without hesitation, "When the late emperor was alive last year, Tian Kai and Liu Bei both went to the court and expressed their willingness to honor the emperor, but what happened later..." Gongsun Zan saw Li Hong looked angry, secretly sighed in his heart, and took back the rest of the words.

"Why don't you finish your sentence?"

"Forget it, everyone has different ideas, maybe I'm wrong." Gongsun Zan sighed, "I can't know your thoughts, and I can't know Tian Kai's and Liu Bei's thoughts, but in the future, the sky will bear witness, and there will be thousands of people in the world. Tens of thousands of living beings are witnesses, and whoever is right and who is wrong has his own say."

Li Hong sneered.

=

Under April, Jinyang.

After Fengxue returned to Jinyang, the eldest princess immediately announced him into the palace and inquired about Damo in detail.Although there were reports from Yan Wuwei, the guardian of the Northern Protectorate, and Tian Yu, the prefect of Hebei County, before this, the eldest princess still wanted to hear the specific situation with her own ears.

After Qianman was killed and Bu Dugeng fled to Mobei, the Xianbei people planned to rebuild the Xianbei royal court, which shocked the court a lot.Once Kobe Bear rebuilds the Xianbei Royal Court, the desert will surely enter troubled times again.

At this time, Cui Lie no longer talked about giving up the desert.If we abandon the desert now, the northern border will inevitably be unstable, and if the northern border is unstable, it will be even more difficult to pacify the world.

Cui Lie immediately proposed a strategy of coercion and lure, forcing Kirby to give up his plan to rebuild the Xianbei royal court, so as to stabilize northern Xinjiang to the greatest extent.

The so-called intimidation is to threaten Kirby from three directions.One is to appease Budugeng, invite Budugeng back to Jinxueyuan, and rebuild the western Xianbei tribe.Budu is also the grandson of Xianbei King Tan Shihuai. In recent years, he has been fighting left and right in the desert, and he is quite famous.Although Bu Dugeng's strength has been defeated in the past few years, but he is a descendant of the Xianbei royal family. With him in the desert and our support, Kirby Bear will not dare to rebuild the Xianbei royal court, because he is the king of Xianbei. None of the qualifications.Secondly, they secretly supported the Tuoba tribe and the Wuye tribe in the northern Xianbei to develop into the central Xianbei, and gradually eroded the territory of Kirby Bear.Thirdly, to garrison the two counties of Xuantu and Liaodong with heavy troops, and under the pretext of asking for help from Fuyu country, stationed troops to Fuyu country.

In this way, Budugeng and Mobei Duhufu are in the west of the desert, Tuoba, Wuye and other tribes are in the south of the desert, and Xuantu, Liaodong army and Fuyu army are in the east of the desert. We can intimidate them from three directions at the same time. Kirby bears in the central Xianbei and eastern Xianbei.If he dares to rebuild the Xianbei royal court, we will attack from three sides.

The Hu people are barbaric, and threats of force cannot frighten them, the key is to lure them. When the three-sided attack is completed, we can sit down and have a good talk with Kirby Bear.We can agree with him to send people to northern Xinjiang to learn the characters and etiquette of our Han people, we can agree to give them limited financial and material assistance, and we can even agree with him to migrate tribes to the south of Yanshan Mountain.As long as he is willing to belong to us and is willing to be a citizen of the big man like other Xianbei people, this matter will be easy to handle.

Da Situ Cui Lie's proposal was full of compromises. As a result, he was criticized by the court. Except for Taifu Zhao Qi, almost all other ministers opposed it.

Guang Luxun Xianyufu who was in charge of the Grand Sikong Shi, Liu He the Da Sikong, Gai Xun the eunuch, Yan Rou the Zhenbei General Yan Rou who was in charge of the Wei Weishi, and Zhang Fan, the Minister of Shangshuling, were the resolute main fighters.

The older Cui Lie was, the more angry he became, and he argued hard without giving up an inch.

=

The 90-year-old Grand Tutor Zhao Qi finally couldn't hold on and fell ill.Last year, he and Ma Rixun went to the envoys and counties, but they were hit hard in Yangzhou.After returning, he independently supported the crumbling Jinyang court, exhausting all his efforts.Then the emperor passed away, and all states and counties joined forces to attack Hebei, and crises followed one after another. He was like a tireless old horse, dealing with government affairs day and night, with almost no time to rest.After falling ill, he could never get up again.At this time, Master Huatuo had already left, and Master Xiangkai was also far away in Jizhou.In order to save his life, the eldest princess hastily issued an edict to invite Master Xiangkai with a fast ride of eight hundred miles.

According to Zhang Wen's instructions before his death, the eldest princess decreed to worship Cai Yong, a doctor who was teaching in Jinyang University Hall, as the grand tutor.

When Cai Yong arrived at the court, the first thing he did was to deal with Fuyu's request for help.The dynasty's foreign policy has always been to kill or appease according to the domestic situation, but the decades of war in Xiliang shows that once this policy is used wrongly, it is tantamount to pushing itself into the abyss of defeat.The situation has been the same for more than ten years. This dynasty has killed both externally and internally. As a result, the society cannot bear it and collapses.When to adopt what method to ensure the safety of the country is a difficult problem.

It is obviously unrealistic to abandon Fuyu country and ignore Fuyu country's request for help, but it is obviously even more unrealistic to send troops outside the Great Wall when the war is raging on both sides of the Yellow River today.Kirby Bear's choice of timing is really just right.

Cui Lie's strategy of coercion and lure seems to be the only correct choice at present, but Cui Lie's attitude towards foreigners has always been unflattering. Who knows whether his method is right or wrong?If it is wrong, once the Xianbei people rise again in the desert under the leadership of Kirby Xiong and Bu Dugeng, then the great Han Zhongxing will be far away.

The warriors in northern Xinjiang are warlike because they occupy the desert. In their eyes, the barbarians are vulnerable, and they will beat anyone who is disobedient.Many of the ministers in the court today are scholars in their 20s and 30s. Because of their special age and special reasons, they stepped from school to court in one step. Many of them do not have rich experience in government affairs. State affairs often rely on one's own blood.

Cai Yong had a rough life, with ups and downs in the imperial court, and has rich experience in politics. He was also exiled in Wuyuan for many years, and he has his own views on border county governance. Like Zhao Qi, he is inclined to Cui Lie's suggestion, but he Feeling weak and weak, he could not persuade the Minister of Chinese and Military Affairs of the court, so he invited the eldest princess and immediately consulted Li Hong, the great general of Sima.

The eldest princess wanted to ride eight hundred miles to issue an edict to inquire, but was stopped by Cui Lie, "send someone to go." He recommended admonishing doctors Zhong Yao and Yilang Jiaxu to go to Handan immediately.

The eldest princess frowned and said nothing.Both Zhong Yao and Jia Xu were former ministers of the Chang'an court. Cui Lie obviously had ulterior motives in doing this.

Cui Lie saw that the eldest princess was hesitant, so he hurriedly looked at Cai Yong for help.

=

Cai Yong understood Cui Lie's thoughts.

A group of ex-officials left by the Chang'an court have rich experience in handling government affairs, and this is exactly what the current court needs.

Now almost all the ministers in the court and the central government are high-ranking officials from Hebei. They are young and most of them studied in Jinyang and Handan colleges, including some northern Xinjiang generals. They have all studied in these two colleges for a period of time.They advocate restructuring and have strong confidence and expectations in ZTE Dahan. It is this kind of confidence and expectation that makes many restructuring policies of the imperial court become impatient and blind.

As the curtain of the Hebei War gradually opened, as Hebei's wealth gradually became tense, and as the ministers yearned for victory, many things were gradually losing direction and out of control.

For example, in recent times, local counties and counties have repeatedly forcibly expropriated food, forcibly expropriated peasants and horse-drawn carriages. Minting coins and so on, all these things show that there are more and more radical and short-sighted behaviors in many policies of the imperial court, but the court ministers who formulated these policies are at a loss and are still indulging in complacency.When they dealt with this kind of major event that required the use of all national power and related to the fate of the country, they quickly exposed their fatal flaws of lack of sufficient experience. An inner crisis is approaching.

Zhao Qi and Cui Lie felt this crisis, and they tried their best to save it, but at this critical moment, Zhao Qi fell down, and the new Taifu Cai Yong just took office, and he knew nothing about many things, so he couldn't help busy, and more importantly, he does not have the absolute prestige of Zhao Qi.The same sentence, when spoken by Zhao Qi and Cai Yong, will have different meanings.The subordinates absolutely obey Zhao Qi, but not necessarily Cai Yong.The subordinates can misunderstand Cai Yong's meaning and execute it wrongly, but Cai Yong has nothing to do.

In desperation, Cui Lie had no choice but to use the old ministers of Chang'an. He planned to use the power of the old ministers of Chang'an as a buffer, to restrain and support the restructuring forces headed by the eldest princess, so that the imperial court's various restructuring strategies would stop the radical pace. Let the promotion and implementation of the New Deal have sufficient time to verify, so that the restructuring can find the right direction and carry out safe and effective control at a steady pace.

=

The sudden death of the emperor made the eldest princess hold a grudge against these old ministers of Chang'an. Although she pardoned these people's crimes, she refused to use any of them.

However, Cui Lie knew that there was one thing that could make the eldest princess give up this unreasonable resentment.As long as Li Hong, the great general of Sima, takes the lead in using the old ministers of Chang'an, then the princess can gradually accept and use these old ministers of Chang'an who can play a key role at critical moments, but Cui Lie doesn't know what Li Hong thinks, he wants to use this rare This is an opportunity to test Li Hong.

Cai Yong spoke out to persuade the eldest princess.This matter is very important, especially at this time, it is better to send someone to explain it in detail, so as not to harm Hebei and affect the great cause of ZTE.

"Why do you have to send Zhong Yao and Jia Xu?" The eldest princess looked at the two of them suspiciously, "There are more than 50 servants and Ling Shi in Shangshutai, I can send any two..."

"No, no..." Cai Yong waved his hands and said, "The Hebei War is about to begin, the court is busy all over the place, and there is a shortage of manpower. The two adults, Zhong Yao and Jia Xu, have nothing to do, so let them take a trip. Two The two adults are all close to fifty years old, and they have served in the court for many years, and they are quite experienced in dealing with foreign affairs, I believe they can explain this matter more thoroughly."

The eldest princess nodded and agreed without thinking too much.

=

In May of the first year of Jianxing (AD 197) of the Han Dynasty.

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At the beginning of May, the imperial court's special envoys Zhong Yao and Yi Lang Jia Xu hurried to Handan.

After reading the imperial edict of the eldest princess, Li Hong carefully read the letters of Cai Yong, Cui Lie, Xian Yufu and Liu He, and he was already hesitant.He called Cao Renran, his subordinate supervisor, and ordered him to send someone to invite Gongsun Zan immediately.

Li Hong was very polite to Zhong Yao and Jia Xu, he asked about Zhao Qi's condition, and then tentatively asked, "The situation in Hebei is getting more and more complicated, I wonder if the two adults are willing to stay in Jizhou temporarily to help me. "

Zhong Yao stroked his beard and smiled, "The two of us are idlers in Jinyang. If the general trusts us, we are willing to stay in Jizhou."

Li Hong smiled, "Lord Tian Choutian is currently presiding over the evacuation of a million people in Xindu City, and he is very busy. If Lord Zhong is willing, I will recommend you to the imperial court to be the person in charge of the case of General Zuo Zhonglang and preside over the evacuation of the people. Lord Tian Chou is still responsible for supervising the transportation of grain and grass." Then he looked at Jia Xu, "Does Lord Jia want to stay in Xingyuan? The Hebei battlefield lacks a right-handed general who sits in Xingyuan. If you are willing, I will go to the court together. "

Zhong Yao and Jia Xu looked at each other, secretly surprised.The great general did not doubt his employment, opened his mouth, and both of them reached the vital point of Hebei.

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(End of this chapter)