Great Han Empire

Chapter 750: A Storm of Troubled Heroes

Li Hong invited Yu Peng and Sima Yi and asked them to write a book immediately.

After hesitating for a long time, Yu Peng put down his pen and questioned Li Hong's actions.The imperial court sent two ministers, Zhong Yao and Jia Xu, with obvious intentions.With the character of the eldest princess, she will never re-appoint the old ministers of Chang'an in such a short period of time. This may be the idea of ​​the new Taifu Cai Yong, Da Situ Cui Lie and Da Sikong Liu He. They want to take advantage of Hebei's crisis, Once again, it competed with the northern Xinjiang forces for power.

"The general's reuse of the two adults, Zhong Yao and Jia Xu, is tantamount to giving a strong hint to the eldest princess and the court." Yu Peng said worriedly, "The court has your tacit approval and support, and uses this as an opportunity to quickly use the A group of old ministers in Chang'an may intensify the contradictions among the various forces in the court and directly affect the victory or defeat of the Hebei War. In addition, the generals who reuse Chang'an's old ministers will also weaken and hurt our interests in northern Xinjiang. Many officials in northern Xinjiang Might complain about the General because of it."

Li Hong shook his head and sighed, and took out the letters from Tai Fu Cai Yong, Da Situ Cui Lie, and a personal letter that Zhao Qi wrote to him earlier, "You can take a look."

=

As early as when Li Hong attacked Youzhou and left Zhang Yan to supervise Hebei's military administration, Li Hong had already instructed Zhang Yan to vigorously employ and promote northern Xinjiang warriors as county officials, such as Zuo Yan as the governor of Hedong, and Song Wen as the governor of Hebei. The prefect of Bohai, Wei Zheng served as the prime minister of Hejian, Xian Yuyin also served as the prefect of Zhuojun, Gan Xiang served as the prefect of Yunzhong, Lei Zi served as the prefect of Shuofang, and Zhang Xun served as the prefect of Beidi.After the imperial court was rebuilt, the civil and military officials of northern Xinjiang occupied many key positions in the imperial court, such as Xian Yufu, Xu Rong, Zhang Yan, Li Wei, Xie Ming, Tang Fang, Tang Yun and others were even more powerful. After the major rebellion case broke out in Jinyang, scholars from northern Xinjiang were even denser in the court.

Although Li Hong has been deliberately balancing the forces of all parties in the court and striving to restrict power, the influence in northern Xinjiang is too great.The civil and military officials in northern Xinjiang not only successfully controlled the three states of Hebei, but also occupied more than half of the power in the court.If a certain memorial is vetoed by the northern Xinjiang forces, it is tantamount to being completely vetoed by the court.The loss of control of the Jinyang rebellion case last year can fully prove the absolute control of Hebei by the northern Xinjiang forces and their absolute strength in the court.

In the past few years, Li Hong and the big officials in Northern Xinjiang have worked hard for their own survival, and finally cultivated and consolidated the forces in Northern Xinjiang. At the same time, it gradually revealed its great harm.

The forces in Northern Xinjiang are composed of warriors and scholars in Northern Xinjiang. Although there are various contradictions within it, after so many years of ups and downs, it has formed an indestructible fortress. No one can control the power of human beings, and even its creators sometimes have to bend to its will.Now it is like an unfettered bloodthirsty beast, fighting bravely in the bloody wind. If it fights well, it can benefit the country. If it fights badly, it can also harm the country and destroy the community.

"The forces in northern Xinjiang have grown into a big tree with deep roots and luxuriant leaves and intertwined roots. I can only see the thick trunk and lush leaves at the top of this big tree, but I can't see this big tree at all. The roots of the tree, and now these roots buried deep in the ground, are beginning to rot." Li Hong smiled wryly, "Any power that loses control will be like a wild bull running wildly, first losing control, then losing direction, and then losing control. Lost their minds, and finally fell to the ground and died unexpectedly. This is the case with rape eunuchs, this is the case with foreign relatives, and the same is true for Dong Zhuo and Li Jue."

"Any power that harms the country and the people, at the beginning of its rise and growth, is for survival, and when it survives without worry, it will be entangled in endless desires, such as power, wealth, etc., will gradually corrode and poison this power , and finally push it to the abyss of defeat." Li Hong closed his eyes and sighed, "After ten years of suffering and hard work in northern Xinjiang, the problem of survival has finally been solved, but the root of defeat has also been planted." down."

"The lessons of the failure of the past dynasties are vivid in my mind. If we really want to find out the reason for this dynasty today, it is actually very simple. The common people in the world know it." Li Hong pointed to his eyes, "Who doesn't have a pair of eyes? Whose? Aren’t eyes sharp? We have eyes, too, and we know why our country falls, but why are we so eager to make the same mistakes again?”

"Master Zhao Qi said to plan for the rainy day, Lord Cui Lie said to rein in the precipice, and Lord Cai Yong said to learn from the past. I think we must vigorously clean up Hebei's officials." We haven't fought a big war for several years, and many problems in northern Xinjiang have been covered up. Today, Hebei has only been besieged by rebels, and it is still far away from pacifying the world, but what is the result? As a result, we immediately exposed countless problems .”

"If this crisis is allowed to continue slowly, I think Hebei will collapse in a few years. In the future, we will not be defeated by the rebels, but by us in Beijiang itself. The embankment of a thousand miles is defeated by ants Acupuncture point, if it is not cured in a small way, it will lead to chaos, so it is better to take precautions early and prevent problems before they happen."

=

"What is the general going to do? Advise the eldest princess to re-appoint the old ministers of Chang'an and other forces to curb the unlimited expansion of northern Xinjiang?" Yu Peng said very cautiously, "General, this is Hebei and Northern Xinjiang. Only Three states, not the thirteen states of the Han Dynasty, if the forces in northern Xinjiang..."

"Bohan..." Li Hong looked at him very dissatisfied, and hesitated to speak.Yu Peng realized that there was something wrong with his words, and a trace of embarrassment immediately appeared on his face.

"This is the problem of Northern Xinjiang." Li Hong pointed at him and shook his head helplessly, "Bohan, this is why the forces in Northern Xinjiang began to be arrogant and corrupt. You are the chief minister of the two prefectures, and you can be regarded as an important minister of the Han Dynasty. , why do you also think this way? I have said again and again that Hebei is the Hebei of the Han, and Beijiang is the Beijiang of the Han. Why do you only have Beijiang and Hebei in your heart, and there is no Han for whom we fought? Without the Han, we What are you fighting for?"

"Fight for Hebei? Fight for Northern Xinjiang? Is this your real idea? Is it also what Yuntian (Qu Yi) and Zishan (Yan Liang) really think?"

Li Hong's tone was a little angry.

"Before the death of the emperor, the imperial court had already made a strategy to prepare for war. During the first lunar month, I also repeatedly told the officials of Hebei provinces and the generals of the Northern Xinjiang army in Jinyang that we must raise food and grass after returning. We must make all preparations for the battle, but what happened? When I arrived in Handan, the food and grass in various places had not been raised yet, and the generals of the Northern Frontier Army in Jizhou were skeptical about the strategy of crossing the river. Why did this problem arise? Because of yourselves, because you only have northern Xinjiang in your heart, and only your own interests, you are trying to give up the big man, give up the more bloody and tragic conquest."

=

"General, it's not about who thinks, it's a fact, it's a fact now." Yu Peng couldn't accept Li Hong's accusation, and suddenly became emotional, "The idea of ​​​​the general is to calm the world immediately, so you didn't wait for it last year." Jinyang is stable, and immediately led the army to go to the desert, but haste made waste, resulting in the death of the emperor and the collapse of the court. If you stayed in Jinyang last year, why did you have such a difficult situation today?"

"After you returned to Jinyang, you still ignored the facts, and you still blindly sought speed. You even insisted on crossing the Yellow River south to fight on the outer line. Why do you insist on fighting on the outer line? This is your mentality of seeking quickness. You have a kind of Luckily, you want to defeat the rebels and occupy the Central Plains, and after you gain a foothold in the Central Plains, let Lord Xu Rong send troops to capture Guanzhong, so as to form a situation where the north and the south attack, and recover Luoyang as soon as possible."

"You have a big man in your heart, and you fight for the big man, but you are sacrificing northern Xinjiang and Hebei at the expense of it. The risk is too great. Once the outside battle fails, Hebei will collapse because of being overwhelmed. Have you thought about the consequences? ?With the current situation in Hebei, it is actually impossible to pacify the world within two to three years, but the general is unwilling to admit this."

"The general put all his energy into military affairs, and the strategy of seeking speed in military affairs seriously affected the court's decision-making. Under the pressure of the general's sword, the court and Hebei had to do their best to let go of their pace. As a result, both the court The reform of the system, or the implementation of the new policies of the local counties, have been chased by the generals and lost their reason and direction."

"In order to pacify the world, Zhongxing Dahan, the general put bloody knives on the necks of the court and Hebei, forcing the court and Hebei to follow you crazy. Quick, everything is for the sake of speed. The court and Hebei are like a carriage, The general is like a coachman driving a carriage. The horses pulling the cart are whipped continuously by the general, making them run like lightning, and the carriage is unbearable, and is about to fall apart, but the general still doesn’t realize it, and is still roaring, whipping, and driving away.”

"The forces in Northern Xinjiang are not as corrupt as you imagine, and the forces in Northern Xinjiang are not just blindly defending their own interests. The civil and military officials in Northern Xinjiang are like generals. They not only have Northern Xinjiang, Hebei, but also ours in their hearts. Dahan. The general cannot vent his anger and resentment to the northern border just because his goal cannot be achieved and the world cannot be pacified within the predetermined time. The general needs the northern border, and the northern border also needs the general. We are one. There can be no doubts or suspicions."

=

Yu Peng believes that General Li Hong's pursuit of quickness led to his continuous mistakes in decision-making, which in turn brought Hebei into today's crisis, while Li Hong believes that the forces in northern Xinjiang are now more and more inclined to separatist regimes, and this mentality has led to more and more officials. Corruption, which seriously affected and affected the implementation of imperial court decisions.

The two argued fiercely.

Sima Yi timidly stood aside, at a loss, not knowing what to do.Sima Fugan, Chen Qun, and Yuan Huan who came here after hearing the sound, saw that the two were so angry that they didn't dare to speak out to dissuade them.

Li Hong usually looks very easy-going, but once his temper gets angry, it is very scary. Yu Peng is always gentle and courteous, but this time he is uncharacteristically, arguing hard with Li Hong and refusing to give up.

The accidental death of the emperor led to a sudden change in the world situation, and Hebei fell into a dangerous situation. This is something that Li Hong blames himself very much. Although no one has said anything to Li Hong about this matter, from the eldest princess to the ministers However, Li Hong never forgave himself. He felt that he had failed the great trust of the first emperor and the expectations of the whole Hebei Province, and he was always brooding about this.

Today, the pain in his heart gave Yu Peng a merciless punch, which made him unbearable, and he couldn't help but become angry from embarrassment.

The two quarreled until they lost their minds, and there was nothing else to do except blame each other.

Seeing that the momentum was wrong, Fu Gan and Sima Yi hurriedly moved left and right, holding Li Hong who was furious.Chen Qun and Yuan Huan took the opportunity to drag Yu Peng out of the tent.

Li Hong then rushed out of the big tent, flew on his horse, and galloped along the galloping road.

=

In the evening, Yu Peng, who had calmed down, pleaded guilty to Li Hong and submitted his resignation.

"We have been together for 12 years, 12 years of friendship..." Li Hong held up Yu Peng's resignation letter, shook his head and smiled wryly, "Where are you going?"

Yu Peng thought for a long time, "The general's idea is right. Now the general wants to control the forces in northern Xinjiang, instead of letting the forces in northern Xinjiang control the general. This is related to the success or failure of ZTE's great cause. If the general is willing, I will go to the desert go."

Li Hong suddenly understood Yu Peng's intentions, and he reached out to pat Yu Peng happily, "Bohan, thank you. I have thought about what you said carefully, and you are right. I should sit in the hall and not Just like in the past, I personally led the army to attack everywhere."

Yu Peng smiled slightly, "I don't believe what you said."

The two smiled at each other.

=

In May, the imperial court decreed.

He worshiped Gongsun Zan as the general who conquered the north, led five thousand cavalry, and stationed in Liaodong.

He worshiped Yu Peng as the general of Pinglu Zhonglang and the leader of the case, and patrolled the counties outside the Great Wall and the tribes of the Hu tribe.He also ordered him to lead a thousand cavalry, and first went to Fuyu State as an envoy to discuss the establishment of the Liaodong Protectorate in the territory of Fuyu State.

=

He turned to Zhu Mu as the prefect of Hanbei County, and ordered him to appease Budugeng and help Budugeng rebuild the western Xianbei tribe.

Turn to Zhao Jian, the son of Grand Tutor Zhao Qi, as Shangshu Zuopushe.He turned to worship Tian Yu as the prefect of Taiyuan County.Turn to worship Cui Yan as Tingwei Zhengjian.

=

Yuan Pang, Chen Ji, Ding Gong, Yang Qi, the former court officials, Yang Biao, Chun Yujia, Zhang Xi, Zhao Wen, Zhao Qian, Han Rong, Zhong Yao, Jia Xu and others re-entered the court.

=

In May, locust plagues began to break out violently in several counties in the Central Plains.

In mid-May, the plague of locusts spread to the north bank of the Yellow River.More than a dozen counties in Yanzhou East County on the north bank of the Yellow River, Wei County, Ganling State and other places were successively affected by the disaster.

In order to prevent the locust plague from continuing to spread to central Jizhou, Zhong Yao, Guo Ce, Tian Chou and others who presided over the evacuation of a million people categorically ordered to burn all the unharvested wheat fields south of Qinghe River.In a short period of time, within a range of about [-] miles from the north bank of the Yellow River to the Qinghe River, not only was there no human habitation, but even plants were almost gone.

=

In mid-May, Yanzhou, Cangting.

The sun is shining brightly.

In the camp of the Yanzhou Army, drums and roars rang out, and the soldiers were rehearsing battle formations.

The fast horse was swept into the camp like a whirlwind.

Xiahou Dun squinted at the fast horse that was getting closer, licked his chapped lips, and reached out to the guard behind him.The guard hurriedly handed over a skin bag filled with water.Xiahou Dun drank a few sips of water, turned to Li Dian and said, "What the hell is this? It's not raining, and it's still so hot."

"My lord, it's good if it doesn't rain." Li Dian took the water bag from Xiahou Dun's hand and said with a smile, "If it doesn't rain for another month, we can cross the river without boats and rafts."

"What a fart." Xiahou Dun scolded unceremoniously, "It doesn't rain for half a year, why don't we drink the northwest wind?"

Li Dian chuckled, raised his head and gulped down the cold water.

Xiahou Dun unfolded the document delivered by the express horse and read it carefully.Seeing his expressionless face, Li Dian asked strangely, "Where did you get the urgent book? From the Prime Minister?"

Xiahou Dun nodded, "Mancheng, will Zhang Yang get cold feet?"

"Zhang Yang?" Li Dian shook his head. "Lu Bu and Zhang Liao are right across the street. They are both from Northern Xinjiang, and their personal relationship is extraordinary. It's hard to say. Why are you asking this?"

"Where's Tian Kai?"

"Tian Kai?" Li Dian thought for a moment, then shook his head again, "He won't turn against him. On the contrary, Gongsun Zan on the opposite side may really turn against him."

"Go ahead and dream." Xiahou Dun snorted, and threw the document in his hand to Li Dian, "The Prime Minister said that people in Hebei have been in close contact with Zhang Yang and Tian Kai recently. In order to prevent accidents, he has given up the strategy of attacking with both wings first. , told us to fight first."

"Shall we fight first?" Li Dian asked in surprise, "When?"

"tonight."

"Tonight?" Li Dian hastily opened the document, "Didn't you say you have to wait until mid-June? Why did you change it?"

"The locust plague over there is serious, and the people of Hebei are too busy to take care of themselves. This is the best time to attack."

Xiahou Dun took the water bag from Li Dian's hand, and while walking, he waved and shouted: "Send the order, end the training, eat and sleep."

=

The sun is setting.

Lei Zhong sat on the embankment, looking at the blood-red clouds, fascinated.

"What are you looking at?" Gao Lan walked over leisurely with a whip in his hand, "Are you missing your wife?"

Lei Zhong smiled shyly, turned over and got up to salute.

"The scout hasn't returned yet?"

Lei Zhong shook his head, "It hasn't rained for several months, and the water level is getting lower and lower. If this continues, the Yanzhou Army can walk over with a big swagger."

"Come here." Gao Lan said with a smile, "I just hoped that they would come."

"Is the cavalry here?" Lei Zhong asked in surprise.

"When we arrive, we will wait for Cao Cao to cross the river."

Lei Zhong looked back at the other side, and shook his head in disappointment, "I don't know how long that butcher will hang around."

At this time, the guards standing behind them suddenly pointed to the river and shouted happily, "They're back, they're back."

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(End of this chapter)