Great Han Empire

Chapter 924 Troubled Times Heroic Chapter Wins Central Plains
The officials in Luoyang discussed countermeasures day and night.

After the Northern Xinjiang Army won consecutive victories in the Central Plains and Guanzhong, the coalition forces suffered heavy losses, their morale was low, and the morale of the army was sluggish. At this moment, if we want to reverse the crisis, the most urgent thing is to stabilize the morale of the army, boost morale, and unite the forces of all parties. For this reason, Yuan Shao decided to write a letter to all parties in the name of the emperor, asking them to come to Wancheng, Nanyang, to meet the emperor around October, and discuss strategies to save the country together.

In terms of defensive strategy, although Yuan Shao's method is difficult to implement, it is the only way. Now Yuan Shao alone cannot defend Luoyang, nor can he stop the northern border army from calming down the world.

At present, the biggest problem in opening up the east and west battlefields is the lack of time.Yizhou on the west road is full of wars, and it takes time to quell the war and control Bashu, so as to form enough forces to attack Guanzhong northward.If Cao Cao and Sun Quan from Xu and Yang on the East Road can shake hands and join forces to deal with Hebei, they will have certain strengths, but the two sides are now in conflict, and it is more difficult for them to make peace and then turn around and deal with Hebei.

Yuan Shao therefore planned to defend Luoyang at all costs.As long as Luoyang is defended and the northern army is dragged under the city of Luoyang, Hebei's wealth may be dragged down, and he can also win precious time to open up two battlefields in the east and west, so as to turn defeat into victory and drive the northern army away. Out of the Central Plains.

If you want to defend Luoyang, in addition to strengthening the defense of the eight passes such as Dagu, Yique, Guangcheng, Yuyuan, Hulao, Xiaopingjin, Mengjin, and Hangu, the most important thing is to ensure the connection between Luoyang and Jing and Henan. Before the northern Xinjiang army came to Luoyang City, it had been supported by grain, grass and supplies from Jing and Henan.Now the Northern Xinjiang Army has entered Yingchuan, occupied Yangdi City, and is attacking Luyang.If Luyang is lost, Luoyang will be surrounded, the aid from Jing and Henan will be cut off, and the difficulty of holding on to Luoyang will be greatly increased.

Yuan Shao decided to immediately mobilize troops from the Kansai battlefield to attack Yangdi.At present, there are more than 1 people in Duan Yao, Gao Rou, and Zhu Ling on the Kansai battlefield, and there are four dangerous passes in Shancheng, Mianchi, Xin'an, and Hangu Pass.Even if the Northern Xinjiang Army can reach Hangu Pass, it will take some time. After weighing the two, it is best to support the Yingchuan battlefield first to help alleviate the crisis in Luoyang.When Yuan Jun went south to attack Yangdi, he hit the northern army's waist. Once Yangdi fell, the northern army who attacked Luyang would be in a dilemma. , Liu Bei and others teamed up to attack the Beijiang Army, and they could also defeat the Beijiang Army on the Yingchuan battlefield, making the Beijiang Army's plan to encircle Luoyang this year a complete failure.

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To open up the West Road battlefield, we must first control Yizhou, but Liu Biao and Zhang Lu are eyeing Bashu, and Liu Zhang and Zhao Wei are fighting each other for Bashu. At this moment, if Yuan Shao intervenes forcefully, it will definitely backfire. It will seriously delay the time to open up the West Road battlefield.In order to complete the control of Bashu in the shortest possible time and quickly open up a western battlefield to attack Guanzhong, Yuan Shao decided to discuss carefully with Liu Biao, Zhang Lu and others when they met in Nanyang in October, and strive to balance the interests of all parties. Control Bashu with the fastest speed.

But Yuan Shao was very worried that the northern army would enter Hanzhong first and occupy Bashu.If the Northern Frontier Army occupies Bashu ahead of itself, then the Northern Frontier Army will be able to attack Jingzhou and Jiangdong from both water and land in the future, and the coalition forces will completely lose their resistance.Zhang Lu in Hanzhong is not strong, and his Five Dou Mijiao is closely related to Zhang Jiao’s Taiping Dao. If the Beijiang Army in Guanzhong enters Hanzhong from the direction of Dasan Pass, the former Yellow Turban general in the Beijiang Army will appease him , Zhang Lu may surrender.If Hanzhong is lost, Bashu will be lost.

In order to ensure the safety of Hanzhong, Yuan Shao urgently wrote to Yuan Xi of Nanyang, asking him to stay in the army in Hanzhong, just in case.At the same time, please send someone to Xiliang to get in touch with Han Yi.Han Sui was killed in battle, and Han Yi and the Northern Xinjiang Army had a vendetta against killing his father. As long as Han Yi can be persuaded to raise his troops to revolt, Western Xinjiang will inevitably be in chaos.Once there is chaos in western Xinjiang, Guanzhong will be in danger.In order to stabilize Guanzhong, the Northern Xinjiang Army must send troops to Western Xinjiang. This will not only suspend the crisis in Luoyang, but also relieve the threat of the Northern Border Army to Hanzhong, and buy itself enough time.

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Whether the East Road battlefield can be opened up, whether Cao Cao and Sun Quan will join forces to fight against Hebei, Yuan Shao is not sure.

With the northern army winning consecutive battles and Xu and Yang being in dire straits, both Cao Cao and Sun Quan may change course and turn to Hebei.Now the two sides are accepting the mediation of Hebei, and Hebei is also trying its best to win them over in order to fight Luoyang.At present, Yuan Shao can't find any reason to persuade them to fight against Hebei. Unless Cao Cao and Sun Quan gain a firm foothold in Xuyang and have the strength to fight against the northern army, they will not seek their own death.

The situation on the north and south sides of the Yangtze River is very delicate now, and it affects the whole body.Cao Cao was firmly restrained by the Northern Xinjiang Army, unable to move, unable to send troops to control Lujiang County on the north bank of the Yangtze River.If Cao Cao could not occupy Lujiang County, he would face the threat of Jiangdong and could not gain a firm foothold in Jianghuai.Jiangdong was under attack from both sides of Cao Cao and Liu Biao. In order to get out of the predicament, Sun Quan attacked Liu Biao at all costs while Cao Cao was restrained in Hebei, with the intention of stabilizing Jiangdong.Liu Biao was dragged on the battlefield by Jiangdong, unable to advance or retreat, unable to go north to support Yuan Shao.

In order to get Liu Biao's assistance, Yuan Shao planned to send troops to attack Lujiang County and break the dilemma on the north and south sides of the Yangtze River in order to get Cao Cao and Sun Quan out of trouble and quickly stabilize Jianghuai and Jiangdong, so as to get rid of the threat of Hebei and help him contain the northern army.

In order to attack Yingchuan, the northern border army let Yuan Yao's army leave Lujiang County and enter Runan.Jiangdong's army was attacking Liu Biao and dared not go north to take all of Lujiang County in order not to anger Cao Cao.Cao Cao didn't dare to move, fearing that Hebei would be angered and the negotiations would break down and Xuzhou would be hit.Therefore, there is currently no army in the northern part of Lujiang County. Yuan Tan can swagger into Lujiang County and take Lujiang County in one fell swoop while Jiangdong Army and Jingzhou Army are fighting fiercely in Jiangxia.

After Yuan Tan took Lujiang County, he could not only threaten Jiangdong, but also give Lujiang County to Cao Cao, allowing Cao Cao to quickly gain a foothold in Jianghuai.Cao Cao has gained a firm foothold in Jianghuai, which in turn can threaten the Central Plains to restrain the northern army, and can help Yuan Tan control the southern counties of Yuzhou.

Jiangdong lost Lujiang County, and the defense line shrank to the south bank of the Yangtze River. He was threatened by Cao Cao and Yuan Tan, so he had to withdraw his troops from Jiangxia, but the withdrawal would make Jiangdong lose nothing. Jiangdong counties were still under the attack of Cao Cao and Liu Biao. Yuan Tan can come forward to mediate.

Under the strong threat of Hebei, Cao Cao, Sun Quan and Liu Biao can only get the greatest benefit by forming an alliance.After forming an alliance, with the support of Jiangdong and Jingzhou, Cao Cao can temporarily get rid of the threat of Hebei and quickly restore his strength.Sun Quan can also temporarily get rid of the danger of Cao Cao and Liu Biao's two-sided attack and quickly stabilize Jiangdong.Liu Biao was able to temporarily get rid of the threat of Jiangdong, and went north to support Yuan Shao with all his strength.

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From the perspective of the overall situation, if Cao Cao, Yuan Tan, and Sun Quan could work together to open up the East Road battlefield and launch an attack on the Central Plains when the northern army attacked Luoyang, it would be much easier for Yuan Shao to defend Luoyang. Totally impossible.Cao Cao's strength did not recover, Sun Quan did not stabilize Jiangdong, and Yuan Tan did not fully control Yuzhou. Even if they joined forces, they would not dare to attack the Central Plains rashly. No matter what, the two dared not publicly jump out to confront Hebei.For a long time, Cao Cao and Sun Quan were still on two boats in order to maximize the benefits between Hebei and Luoyang.

Since Cao Cao and Sun Quan did not have the confidence and courage to open up the East Road to fight against Hebei, Yuan Shao had no choice but to choose the most difficult path, which was to control Yizhou and open up the West Road Battlefield.

Yizhou now has three forces.Zhang Lu of Hanzhong has married Yuan Shao.Zhao Wei of Jiangzhou had a close relationship with Liu Biao and asked Liu Biao for help many times.Liu Zhang in Chengdu was attacked from north to south by Zhang Lu and Zhao Wei. Life was difficult, and he asked Yuan Shao for help several times.Now is the best opportunity to control Yizhou, but the problem is that Liu Biao has long wanted to take Yizhou. If it wasn't for the Central Plains War, and Jiangdong's repeated attacks on Jiangxia, Liu Biao had already used Zhao Wei to successfully occupy Yizhou.

At today's critical moment concerning the survival of the country and the life and death of Luoyang, Yuan Shao certainly could not offend Liu Biao because of this incident, not to mention that he did not have any spare troops to attack Yizhou.However, Jingzhou has frequently used troops in the past few years, and has suffered great losses. If another army is sent westward to Yizhou, the defensive forces on the front lines of Luoyang and Nanyang in the middle road will be seriously insufficient.Yuan Shao's army is mainly concentrated in Luoyang, and Nanyang's defense mainly relies on the Jingzhou army, so now there is only one person left who can undertake the important task of advancing westward to Yizhou and opening up the west road battlefield, and that is Liu Bei.

After Liu Bei’s war in the Central Plains, not only did he lose an astounding amount of troops, but he also gave up Xuzhou to Cao Cao. Although Liu Bei took control of Yuzhou in name, it was mainly to help Yuan Shao block the attack of the northern army. After arriving in Yuzhou, Liu Bei became a decoration.Not only did Yuan Shao and Cao Cao feel sorry for this matter, but even Liu Biao and many officials of the coalition army complained about it.Fortunately, Liu Bei is a minister of the imperial family, and he has always put the overall situation first, dealt with it calmly, and did not react violently, but passive sabotage is still inevitable.This time when the Northern Xinjiang Army attacked Yingchuan, almost the entire territory was lost in a short period of time, which had a lot to do with Liu Bei's passive defense, and he has not mobilized his own army for a long time.Guan Yu and Zhang Fei took the pretext of killing Yuan Yao and the Yellow Turban Army, and led the army around the Hongquepi (xi, bei) area, but did not go to the Yingchuan battlefield.

If Liu Bei is allowed to lead the army westward into Shu, he can just be transferred away from the Yingchuan battlefield, allowing Yuan Tan to take control of Yuzhou in a legitimate manner, and at the same time return Liu Bei's favor.Both Liu Biao and Liu Bei were ministers of the clan, and their relationship had always been good. Let Liu Bei be in charge of Yizhou, and Liu Biao had nothing to say, and also cut off Liu Biao's ambition to expand his power.Liu Bei is good at fighting and is very loyal to the emperor. After he arrives in Yizhou, in order to save the country, he will definitely do his best to open up the West Road battlefield and attack Guanzhong northward.

Yuan Shao's suggestion was unanimously approved by everyone.

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Yuan Shao then wrote to Yuan Tan, telling him in detail about Luoyang's defensive strategy after the Guanzhong War, asking him to go south to attack Lujiang County quickly, and try to make Cao Cao, Liu Biao and Sun Quan form an alliance as soon as possible.Once the situation on the north and south banks of the Yangtze River is under control, Yuan Tan can return to Yuzhou and lead his army to attack Yingchuan, Liu Biao can lead his army northward to support Luoyang, and Liu Bei can lead his army into Shu to open up the West Road battlefield.

In order to delay the Northern Frontier Army's attack on Kansai and Yingchuan and buy time for his own side, Yuan Shao decided to accept Li Hong's invitation and send people to Dingtao to discuss peace.

At the end of July, Yuan Zhong and Shen Pei were ordered to go to Hebei.

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In August of the fourth year of Jianxing in the Han Dynasty (AD 200), Jinyang.

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At the end of July, Qu Yi and Yang Feng's army was blocked from attacking Shancheng. Qu Yi immediately wrote a letter, urging for reinforcements.

In August, Qu Yi's wording in the memorial began to be harsh, and he wrote three times a day, full of anger.

At the same time, the memorials of the generals on the battlefields urging the court to increase troops also poured into Jinyang like snowflakes.

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In mid-August, Pang De, the general who conquered the west, rushed to the court. The Qiang people in Xiliang's Liaozhong and Fanghan areas were killed in the Guanzhong War because of Qushuailanglang. The leaders of the tribes fought for the position of Qushuai, and they were defeated. The attackers asked for help from the Shaodang Qiang tribes near the West Sea outside the country, and about a dozen Xiqiang tribes, about thousands of cavalry, rushed into Jincheng County, and the area of ​​Huangzhong was full of smoke.

Two days later, Pound rushed again.

After Xiliang generals Li Kan, Zhang Heng, Candidate, Ma Wan and others were killed in the Guanzhong War, their land and property were plundered wantonly by Han Yi, Yang Qiu and others. The relatives and tribes of Li Kan and others were greatly shocked Angry, he asked for help from the Qiang people on the north bank of the Yellow River.Tietou, one of the great leaders of Xiqiang, led his troops across the river and fought fiercely with Han Yi's army.

Only one day later, Kuang Fengsha, the leader of Xianling Qiang, urgently reported to the court.

Shaodang Qiang commander Hong Ri suddenly led his army to the vicinity of Tianqiong Desert and launched an attack on Xianling Qiang cavalry.The violent wind and sand were outnumbered, and the army retreated hastily.It has now withdrawn across the Yellow River and returned to the territory of Xianling Qiang.The entire territory of Wuwei County was lost.

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The whole court was tense.

Master Taiwei Xu Rong rushed to the court.

After Han Sui's death, Xijiang lost control, and chaos inevitably occurred.Considering the stability and security of Guanzhong, Xu Rong begged the imperial court to issue an order to increase troops and defense immediately.

Since the Huns, Xianbei, and Duliao cavalry have all returned to the outside of the Great Wall, only Nie Xiao's Qiang cavalry, Wei Jun's Ula cavalry, and Hua Xiong and He Feng's infantry army are left in Guanzhong. Unable to use, serious shortage of troops.Therefore, Xu Rong suggested that the imperial court immediately issue an order to stop the attack on the Kansai battlefield, and instead draw troops from the Kansai battlefield to return to the Guanzhong.

After Qu Yi received the imperial decree, he was furious and wrote a letter requesting to continue the attack, and impeached the prime minister Cai Yong and Taiwei Xu Rong, thinking that the two court ministers ignored the great cause of ZTE, one refused to increase troops, and the other demanded to stop attacking Luoyang. Forgiveness.

The imperial court decreed to reject Xu Rong's plea.Xu Rong was very angry and wrote a letter to impeach Qu Yi, thinking that he ignored the overall situation and put Guanzhong's safety at risk, and demanded that the court punish him immediately and order to stop the Kansai war immediately.

Xu Rong and Qu Yi accused each other, and they all pointed the finger at Prime Minister Cai Yong.Prime Minister Cai Yong was very angry, and he also wrote a letter of impeachment, scolding Xu Rong and Qu Yi.

General Pang De sent an urgent report that Jincheng and the western counties of Longxi had been involved in the flames of war, and the situation in Xiliang was extremely critical.Regardless of dissuasion, Ma Chao led his troops to leave Hanyang without authorization, rushed to Longxi, and borrowed troops from Baima Qiang.I implore the imperial court to immediately reinforce Xijiang.

The eldest princess and the ministers of the DPRK and China repeatedly argued over the matter of increasing troops, and all of them were in a state of desperation.

Elder Gai Xun had already retired and went home to take care of the elderly. Hearing about the chaos in Xijiang, he took the initiative to ask Ying to go to Xijiang, but was rejected by the Eldest Princess.

At the end of August, on the suggestion of Taiwei Xu Rong, the eldest princess ordered Jia Xu, the young mansion, to lead the governor of Liangzhou in the capacity of Zhong Erqian Shishangqing, hold the festival, supervise the military administration of Liangzhou, and take office immediately.

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In mid-August, Taichang Xu Shao, Guang Luxun Zhang Yan, Wei Wei Lu Bu, Sili Xiaowei Zuo Yan, Shangshu Tianchou, former Zhishu Yushi Chen Hao and other ministers returned to Jinyang.

Two days later, eight generals including Zuo Cheqi General Xian Yufu, Hou General Yushi, Zuo General Yan Liang, and Long Xiang General Zhao Yun returned to Jinyang.Six ministers including Yang Qi, Liu Yi, Chen Gong, Dong Zhao, Yang Yi, and Jin Shang also arrived at the same time.Qingyan and Yanzhou have basically stabilized, and they were all recalled to Jinyang by the court.

Three days later, Yan Rou, General of Zhenbei, Huangfu Li, Taizhong Doctor, Duan Xuan, General of Huben Zhonglang, Xie Wu, Captain of Chengmen, led Huben and Yulin Army back to Jinyang.

At the end of August, Zhu Mu, the prefect of Hanbei County, and Yu Peng, the governor of Liaodong Dufu, returned to Jinyang by order.

In the court hall, the number of important ministers in northern Xinjiang suddenly increased, and the debate on increasing troops became more intense.

The prime minister Cai Yong, the censor Liu He, the master craftsman Kong Rong and other ministers had a premonition that the situation was becoming more and more unfavorable.

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In mid-August, Master Zheng Xuan led his disciples Chi Lu and Zhao Song to Jinyang, where he preached Master Dong Zhongshu's "Three Traditions".

In Jinyang and Handan, there was a wave of restoring the authority of the "Three Traditions", and the old and new "Five Virtues Theory" of Zou Yan and Liu Xin were seriously challenged.

Scholars in Hebei launched heated debates on various occasions, and the "Three Traditions Theory" began to spread throughout Hebei.

At the end of August, Zheng Xuan, Zhao Qi, Wang Jian, Xu Shao, Cai Yong, Yang Biao, Chun Yujia, Xun You, Zhong Yao, Kong Rong and other contemporary great Confucians gathered in the Jinyang University Hall. The debate on the ordering of the ancient emperors started, which led to a big academic debate among the three schools of "New Classics", "Guwen Jingxue" and "Jinwen Jingxue". The two joined forces to launch an attack on the "New Classics", and the official and academic status of Master Zheng Xuan and the "New Classics" was questioned and attacked.

The eldest princess was shocked and summoned Xian Yufu, Zhang Yan, Li Wei, Zhu Mu, Tian Chou, Yu Peng, Tian Yu and other officials from northern Xinjiang to discuss matters overnight.

The "New Classic" is the foundation of the people of northern Xinjiang and the basis for adhering to the ZTE strategy to innovate and improve the previous system. "Jinwen Confucianism" is based on the veterans of the former dynasty headed by Yang Qi and Chun Yujia, and it is the basis for adhering to the ZTE strategy to carry out moderate improvements in the former dynasty's system. "Ancient Confucianism" is based on the foundation of Cai Yong, Xu Shao and other veteran officials of the dynasty, and it is the basis of adhering to the ZTE strategy to carry out retrofitting on the former dynasty's system.

Today, the modern and ancient classics jointly attack the "New Classics", which is obviously aimed at the northern Xinjiang forces and the imperial court's revival strategy, and its intention is self-evident.

"Immediately promulgate the revised official system." Xian Yufu said decisively, "Don't discuss this matter any more, and don't hesitate any longer. We must resolutely stop them before they cause serious damage to the 'New Classic'."

"But..." the eldest princess hesitated, "The newly revised official system has not yet been discussed by the court, and there may be flaws in some aspects. If..."

"If there is trouble, we will revise it in the future." Zhang Yan waved his hand decisively, "The power is concentrated in His Highness's hands to solve these difficult matters."

The eldest princess still hesitated.After all, the revision of the official system is directly related to the success or failure of ZTE's great cause, and it needs to be prudent and prudent, not so hasty.

Xian Yufu and Zhang Yan urged her repeatedly.Li Wei, Zhu Mu, Tian Chou and others were also anxious and did not dare to speak carelessly.

"Your Highness, make a decision immediately." Xian Yufu bowed and said, "Even if something serious happens, we still have a great general."

These words brightened the eldest princess's eyes, and the worry on her face was instantly wiped away, "Okay, tomorrow morning, the new system will be promulgated."

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In the court hall, the eldest princess made successive decrees in the name of the emperor.

Accept Xu Rong's resignation, remove him from the position of Taiwei, and turn Yang Biao, the doctor of Guanglu, as Taiwei.

Li Wei was dismissed from the post of Shang Shuling, and he was transferred to worship him as one of the nine ministers.

Zhong Yao was removed from the position of the chief minister of agriculture, and let him lead the governor of Yanzhou as the second thousand Shi Shangqing.

Xun You was dismissed from the position of supervisor of the book and transferred to worship him as the Shaofu, one of the nine ministers.

Turn to Shangshu Tianchou as the supervisor of Zhongshu.

Turn to worship the right servant of the Shangshu and shoot Cui Yan as the order of the Shangshu.

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Prime Minister Cai Yong and other foreign ministers were both surprised and delighted.

Yang Biao's appointment as Taiwei was expected, but Cui Yan's appointment as Shang Shuling was unexpected.Could it be that the people of northern Xinjiang voluntarily gave up Shangshutai in order to increase their troops?
Soon, the smiles on their faces disappeared, replaced by anger and horror.

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With the promulgation of the new official system, the power of Shangshutai was greatly weakened, and all decision-making power was transferred to Zhongshujian.

The scale of Shangshutai was reduced, and the agency of Zhongshujian was expanded.

At the same time, the decision-making power of the foreign court has also been weakened.Although state affairs are still subject to the "collegiate discussion of the four governments", the eldest princess holds power, and all state affairs are decided and handled by the Zhongshujian. This "collegiate discussion of the four governments" has become useless.

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There was chaos in the court, and the ministers tried to persuade them one after another. What’s more, they believed that the new official system had not been approved by the court and had no effect. Part of the power in the outer dynasty, but also deprived the power of the northern Xinjiang people, so that the power of the general Li Hong dropped sharply.The foreign court ministers couldn't scold him even if they wanted to.

The eldest princess and the people from Beijiang teamed up and dealt a heavy blow to the ministers of the foreign court.

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After the court meeting, Prime Minister Cai Yong, Taiwei Yang Biao, and Yushi doctor Liu He urgently met with Zuo Cheqi General Xian Yufu, Guang Luxun Zhang Yan, the new chief minister Li Wei, and the new Zhongshu Supervisor Tian Chou.

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(End of this chapter)