We agreed that you, a weak strategist, would fight against three heroes by yourself?

But later, in order to frighten other nobles, Cao Cao killed the famous scholar Bian Rang. As soon as this incident came out, Cao Cao was betrayed by Chen Gong and Zhang Miao. If Xi Yu hadn't traveled through time, Cao Cao would have been as difficult as before. , had to rely on Xun Yu to offer Yingchuan to gain a foothold.

However, Xi Yu's later policy of running a school and Xuzhou's current status were all aimed at getting rid of the control of the gentry class over the region. This conveyed a momentum that Xi Yu did not need to rely on the gentry to do things because he was not a gentry himself.

Based on this, Yuan Shao and Cao Cao are fundamentally different.

Yuan Shao could not control the people below him. Without the support of the nobles, he would not be able to control the chaos in the territory.

Sometimes, noble people should not be underestimated.

For those in charge in various places, when they are not fully in control of the situation, once the nobles leave, not only will the political affairs be chaotic and there will be many security issues in the territory, but also many methods of handling political affairs will be taken away.

In view of this, many people in charge want to get rid of such dependence on the gentry.

But now the situation has changed. Ever since Xi Yu implemented the policy of running a school in Xuzhou, the gentry people have understood that things are different now, and the status of the gentry is facing unprecedented challenges.

Even if they are familiar with thousands of books of Confucian sages, once the war starts and the city is breached, all it takes is one arrow or one knife. In the face of absolute force, the nobles are very small and vulnerable.

The nobles were indeed afraid that they would have to rely on whoever was stronger.

"Have all the nobles who originally belonged to me left me?"

After a long silence, Yuan Shao couldn't help but ask Guo Tu and Jushou beside him.

Behind Guo Tu is the Guo family of Yingchuan, and behind Jushou are the gentry of Qinghe County.

At this moment, neither of them dared to answer Yuan Shao's pointed question immediately.

How did they answer this?

Do you want to tell Yuan Shao what happened: As soon as the outcome of the war was decided, the reputations of Cao Cao and Xi Yu had reached an incomparable height. Therefore, many people chose to support Cao Cao and Xi Yu.

Nowadays, nobles and people from poor families have begun to accompany him one after another. Even many counties in Qinghe County have begun to plan to surrender after offering the city.

Now, letters of surrender are like snowflakes, flying towards the land of joy.

Xi Yu has already learned the essence of Cao Cao's mind attack skills. Xi Yu knows very well when the nobles will be very anxious and have no choice. Xi Yu then throws out a strategy at this time, so that these nobles have no choice but to Pay attention to.

Xi Yu's strategy is obvious, which is to make the nobles understand that only by surrendering to Xi Yu now can they truly surrender, and there are no conditions for this surrender.

For Xi Yu, he can manage Leling County in an orderly manner without any nobles. These nobles also understand that Xi Yu does not need to rely on the nobles at all now.

Guo Tu had to sigh and said, "Yuan Cheqi, we are already... helpless from the current situation..."

"Unless Sun Ce from the south breaks through Yangzhou and Hefei and reaches Shouchun, he will threaten Xuchang from then on."

"Otherwise, there will be no way to recover."

…

Three days later, Yuan Shao and Guo Tu's hopes were dashed.

Military news came from the south.

Sun Ce led his troops to attack Hefei by land and water. Thirty thousand troops pretended to attack on the water, while 10,000 troops entered the pass directly from land to attack.

However, the naval force was quickly pushed back by countless crossbow arrows fired by the giant crossbow formation, while the land force was ambushed and directly blocked at the pass.

Zhang Liao first took the initiative to abandon the pass, and then used a trick to lure Sun Ce to lead his troops in personally. Then Zhang Liao sent a thousand cavalry to deliberately surrender.

In this way, Sun Ce would think that most of Zhang Liao's troops were used to defend the water battle, so he would not have the slightest intention to defend, and he would definitely pursue him deeply.

Zhou Yu sent a message to pursue him and ordered Sun Ce to come back immediately.

Unfortunately, it was too late. Sun Ce had already been stimulated by Zhang Liao. He rushed in so hard that it was difficult to turn back. He rushed into the heavy siege and killed a large number of soldiers and horses in the crossbow array. He could no longer recover.

Veteran generals Huang Gai, Cheng Pu and others fought desperately to rescue Sun Ce.

Just when they were about to exit the pass, Zhang Liao left only two thousand troops to guard the land and water. He abandoned his original defense like a copper wall and led 6,000 cavalry to pursue them all night like a violent storm.

Sun Ce's soldiers and horses thought that they were chasing Sun Ce, so they immediately sent a large number of cavalry from Yangzhou, Lujiang, Qu'a and other places to cover Sun Ce's retreat.

But unexpectedly, Zhang Liao didn't care about Sun Ce at all. He always remembered Xi Yu's instructions, ignored Sun Ce, and went directly to kill Sun Quan.

Even if Sun Quan cannot be killed, Sun Quan must be left with a memory of fear from now on. Of course, it doesn't matter if he can kill the most, or he can catch him. In short, at least one of the brothers Sun Ce and Sun Quan must be killed.

So Zhang Liao led 6,000 soldiers and horses to attack Xiaoyaojin overnight, scaring Sun Quan to the point of urinating. Several times, Sun Quan almost lost his life.

In this battle, Zhang Liao killed at least fifty of Sun Quan's generals, three of whom were famous generals. Han Dang was also killed with a single sword in order to protect Sun Quan.

Sun Quan rolled and crawled before escaping to his brother Sun Ce's camp.

At this time, Sun Ce was hit by three arrows in the back, and an arrow in his foot penetrated directly through the knee. This leg was completely disabled, and it would be difficult for him to have the power of a little bully again.

Although the two brothers Sun Ce and Sun Quan were lucky enough to survive this battle, the entire Jiangdong was shaken by this battle and had to withdraw their troops for dozens of miles, and finally had to give up Xiaoyaojin.

Jiangdong's army never dared to approach Hefei again.

Zhang Liao ordered his people to quickly compile a battle report, and then process the looted baggage and food, so as to gather deserters and capture the surrendered soldiers. They guarded the Hefei camp for three days and three nights. The defense arrangements were in order, and even Be careful.

When Zhou Yu saw this scene, he could only gnash his teeth in anger and sigh to the sky: Zhang Liao is really a general!

After reaping such a great victory, he did not get carried away. Instead, he sent troops to patrol day and night. There was no sign of carelessness. The army was so strict that he would definitely become one of Jiangdong's old enemies in the future.

How deplorable!

Such an outcome of the war shattered Yuan Shao's last hope.

Yuan Shao also received news very early that Zhong Yao, the Marquis of Guanzhong, could suppress the Guanzhong princes by stating the pros and cons, so that no one dared to move. Li Jue was in Chang'an, and he had no control over Luoyang, Yanzhou and other places. No offense.

Thanks to the stability of these cities, Cao Cao could stay in Liyang with confidence and boldness. The situation in Jingzhou was almost the same as Yuan Shao's situation in Jizhou. The nobles and nobles were equally unwilling to start a war.

The interests of these people are connected with the entire Jingzhou. If they lose the war, it means that they will never rise again in this life.

In this way, only Liu Bei was left, but Liu Bei was so weak and only found a small new land in Liu Biao's place. How could he stir up big storms and waves? It was not something to be afraid of.

At this time, Yuan Shao had been sleeping for a whole day and night and never woke up. The medical officers in the camp were already in a panic and they were almost at the point where they didn't know how to treat him.

After a lot of work, Yuan Shaojun had to withdraw from Wei County again, leaving only 80,000 soldiers and horses to guard it. At the same time, he also left soldiers and horses in various places of the Wei army.

But Cao Cao suddenly stopped advancing at this time.

Time passed day by day, and when Cao Cao had already entered Liyang with half a foot, Xi Yu finally raised his troops again, and with great speed, he opened a hole in the Bohai Sea and penetrated the man's skin.

After Xiyu captured Nanpi City, he immediately implemented benevolent policies, coupled with his already established prestige and the rations he had for the army. In just half a month, the nobles in the city came to join him.

Xi Yu ordered people to govern the counties in various places, gather the displaced people, stabilize the development of local commerce and agriculture, and prepare for the autumn harvest early.

As a result, it didn't take long for the entire Bohai County to fall to Xiyu.

As a result, Yuan Shao's original city continued to decrease, and this momentum continued, growing bigger and bigger like a snowball.

…

September 200.

At this time, in Pingyuan City, Yuan Tan had been worried about the condition of his father, the commander-in-chief Yuan Shao. He no longer wanted to guard the city, so he sent troops to fight Zhao Yun. More than 100,000 troops from the two armies fought on the outskirts of Pingyuan City!

This battle lasted for more than a month. In the end, Yuan Tan was defeated in Pingyuan and withdrew directly, leaving Ju Yi to defend Pingyuan.

But within three days, Pingyuan City was breached, with more than 40,000 casualties, and the remaining 30,000 troops surrendered directly.

At this time, Zhao Yun and Xi Yu started fighting at the same time and captured Pingyuan and Bohai respectively.

At this point, the entire eastern part of Jizhou has basically fallen.

The Battle of Guandu also came to an end.

Xi Yu wrote a letter in his own hand and sent it to Qinghe County. The purpose was to tell all the nobles in the city about the matter. Within seven days, the nobles came to surrender one after another.

As a result, Xi Yu's soldiers and horses finally entered the city named after Qinghe River.

In order to welcome Xi Yu into the city, the nobles of Qinghe County held a banquet in the city. During the banquet, the nobles from all sides toasted and exchanged their respective situations, including celebrities from various counties and counties, reclusive people, and even brave generals.

Xi Yu set up his camp in Qinghe County, eyeing the center of Jizhou with covetous eyes.

Although there was no room for others to sleep soundly beside the couch, Yuan Shao could not do anything about it at this time. At most, he could only send people to guard and defend Xi Yu's troops.

At the same time, Yuan Shao's internal conflicts were in a critical state and intensified to an intolerable level.

There are many rebellions in Pingxiang. The bandits of Bai Bo and the Black Mountain Army have now turned into bandits again. The business in Jizhou City has slowly collapsed.

In such a situation, Yuan Shao was different from Yuan Shu at the time. At that time, Yuan Shu knew that the situation was over, but he only cared about having fun with his concubines and ignored the government affairs.

Now Yuan Shao is also in an extremely difficult situation. However, Yuan Shao is bedridden and sleepy all day long. He has no ambition as before. Yuan Shao's troops are now defeated and there is no chance of rising again.

A few days later, Xi Yu had completely stabilized the situation in Qinghe County, and Liyang City was also captured by him.

After entering the city, Cao Cao treated the people of Liyang well, opened warehouses to store grain, and at the same time transported grain and grass from Yanzhou and Qingxu to stabilize the hearts of the local people, and at the same time maintained the farmland for planting in the coming year.

Many people came to vote for Cao Cao one after another, and the nobles continued to gather under Cao Cao's command. For a time, Cao Cao gained momentum.

Yuan Shao could no longer resist Cao Cao and had to order an evacuation from Jizhou to the land of Youzhou.

At the same time, Yuan Shao left soldiers and horses to guard the remaining areas, and then ordered the massacre of a large number of nobles in the territory, and even robbed the nobles' homes of books, money and food.

Until this time, Yuan Shao discovered that many noble families not only had books, but also many noble families had private land and private soldiers and horses.

These nobles raised private soldiers and horses, thereby occupying farmland and many unattended lands.

However, Yuan Shao's killing of nobles also consumed all the fame he had accumulated over the years.

After the situation stabilized, Xi Yu stayed in Qinghe County for a while and then returned to Xuzhou.

The internal and external affairs of Qinghe County were managed by Zhao Yun, and the appointment of officials in various places was left to Zhuge Liang.

In Qinghe, Bohai, Pingyuan and Laoling, local gentry were rarely selected, and most local power was still retained in the hands of Xi Yu.

After returning to Xuzhou, Xi Yu took off his armor in the camp, put on Confucian robes, and rested at home for three days and three nights, drinking and having fun every night.

Then, I have to go to Tiangongyuan next door to have a massage with Mrs. Zou to relieve fatigue.

Xi Yu rested like this for about five days. Zhuge Liang came back from Diannong and sat opposite Xi Yu outside the courtyard. He had something to report to Xi Yu.

…

"Now, my lord, you have captured Qinghe County, and Cao Gong has hidden in Wei County. Now Yuan Shao has no place in Jizhou. As a result, Yuan Shao will definitely go to Youzhou. What do you think, sir?"

Zhuge Liang looked very serious. Such a thing was very important to him.

Xi Yu nodded and said, "Kong Ming, what is your purpose in asking me like this?"

"My lord, you came back from the east of Jizhou after a great battle. My lord, you did not receive the reward. This is the best humility for Duke Cao and the Cao family." Zhuge Liang said seriously.

"So, no matter what the reason is, adults are not allowed to go to Xuchang."

Hearing this, Xi Yu looked at Zhuge Liang in surprise. He knew that Zhuge Liang was doing this for his own good. Zhuge Liang was using his understanding of the nobles to analyze what would happen next for Xi Yu.

"Why do you say this?" Xi Yu asked.

"Sir, now that you have made great contributions, even Duke Cao doesn't know how to reward you now."

"You must be the first to take credit for this battle in Jizhou. What if you give up the reward and don't strive for credit?"

Zhuge Liang stared at Xi Yu and asked seriously. He wanted to find some emotional changes on Xi Yu's face.

Xiyu nodded and said calmly, "Of course I have no problem."

"But you can't."

Zhuge Liang continued in a deep voice, "My lord, how many dead souls are there in your soldiers and horses? Do you still remember that these people have gone through life and death for my lord, and they have even sacrificed their lives for the prosperity of the Han Dynasty."

"It's thanks to your book that they have names. Otherwise, we still don't know who those who have sacrificed are."

"But if you don't fight for the reward, my lord, then the widows of these heroic spirits will not be able to get the reward. But those soldiers and horses risked their lives for my lord's war, and they never came back..."

Xi Yu's eyes suddenly widened, and he looked shocked, but not surprised. Instead, he still maintained a rather stunned attitude, looking at the document quietly, feeling very complicated in his heart.

fight.

We really have to fight for it!

You must fight for what you should fight for, and you have to fight for what belongs to you.

Many people lost their lives for this, and Yuan Shao had so many counselors and generals under his command. Their contribution cannot be denied.

"I will definitely go to Xuchang, but I have to wait until the war in Jizhou is over."

The war in Jizhou is over. After this year's autumn harvest, collect the grain and grass to me. At the same time, gather all the officials in Xuzhou, Qingzhou, Yangzhou North and Jizhou East. Summarize it into a document and give it to me. It must be completed by the end of this year. I will Go to Xuchang to report the matter. "

"grown ups……"

Zhuge Liang's expression suddenly changed, and he persuaded nervously, "Sir, this must not be done, must not be done, absolutely must not be done!!"

"There is no war in the north now. If this is the case, Cao Cao may not still be able to use you, sir. Moreover, you are the uncle of the state. How can it be that the uncle of the state should not accompany the prince in the palace?"

"If by then, Duke Cao puts you under house arrest in the palace, if such a day comes, won't you become a plaything in Duke Cao's hands?"

Hearing this, Xi Yu said confidently, "But my brother once told me that he would treat me with the courtesy of a national scholar."

National scholar? !

Zhuge Liang said in a deep voice, "Even so, Fengxiao and I will not allow you to go to Xuchang alone. Is the Xuchang of today the same Xuchang that you were in then?"

Obviously, what Zhuge Liang meant was that Xuchang today is no longer what it used to be.

Xi Yu was very indifferent, patted Zhuge Liang on the shoulder, and said with a smile: "It doesn't matter, I'm not worried. What are you afraid of, Kong Ming?"

"At that time, you guard Xiapi City in Xuzhou. If I really can't come back, you can send my family members out of Xuzhou and find a place to live in seclusion. It is up to the other generals to choose whether to go or stay. What do you think of this arrangement?"

"Kong Ming, now Cao Zhengzong needs manpower, and he also needs the power of the world to return his heart. In order to defend Xuchang and then aspire to conquer the south, it will be difficult to make progress without a year or two, and neither will the people of the Cao family. There are so many words.”

"In this way, you can continue to serve as officials and ministers in the next few years."

Hearing this, Zhuge Liang frowned slightly, "However, if something happens to you, my lord, I dare to say that the soldiers and horses of Xuzhou, Qingzhou and even Jizhou will definitely cause chaos. The 80,000 soldiers and horses of Qingzhou will never sit idly by and ignore them. My lord, you have some rights towards them." Kindness.”

"If that's the case, then the world will be in chaos." Xi Yu said with a smile.

If such a day comes, let them see who is behind my Xiyu.

Although these people are not high-ranking people, and there are even low-status scoundrels, they are the lowest people in the world today.

In 201, at the beginning of the year, Cao Cao's troops swept across the land of Jizhou and almost occupied Yecheng.

At this time, Yuan Shao was seriously ill and was transferred to Youzhou to recuperate, but he was already dying...

After the Battle of Guandu, Yuan Shao had to hurriedly put down the civil strife and had no time to participate in Cao Cao's Northern Expedition. In addition, the nobles in Jizhou were already alienated.

Yuan Shao had no choice but to abandon the land of Jizhou and retreat to Youzhou in order to seize the Liaodong vassal state.