The days passed day by day, and soon came the day when spring flowers bloomed, and the busy spring plowing began.
In Tancheng, the seat of the Xuzhou government, everyone was sitting down. Liu Bei was listening to Chen Dengyan talk about the busy farming in Xuzhou.
When Liu Bei saw that Chen Deng had arranged the sowing and cultivating the fields in an orderly manner, he couldn't help but nodded slightly and praised: "With Yuanlong's help, Xuzhou will be able to recover in the next few years."
In the past, Xuzhou was known as a prosperous city with millions of registered residents and more than 100,000 hectares of fertile land. Not only was it rich in fishery and salt resources, it was also famous for its mulberry and hemp crops.
Xuzhou was attacked twice by Cao Cao, and three counties were poisoned by Zuo Rong. Now its vitality is severely damaged, and it is far less prosperous than before.
Mi Zhu said: "Now that we have reached an agreement with the Yuan family, the coastal trade route from Qingzhou to Jizhou has been fully restored. The two sides can exchange goods and make a lot of money."
Everyone nodded. Xuzhou's shipping was also very developed. It originally had maritime trade routes with Yangzhou, Qingzhou, Jizhou, and Youzhou. However, when Yuan Shao acquired Jizhou and Qingzhou, the route to the north was cut off.
Now that peace has been negotiated with the Yuan family, trade routes have been restored, and the Mi family has also spent a lot of money to build sea ships to help Xuzhou regain its health as soon as possible.
Chen Qun said: "Next step, although Qingzhou in the north and Yanzhou in the west are no longer threatening, we must be the vanguard of the Yuan family and face Yuan Shu in the south."
"Although the Yuan family and Cao Cao are allies, they may not be completely reliable."
What Chen Qun said was true. Xuzhou, the place where the Four Battles were fought, was destined to never be peaceful. Thinking of this, everyone began to have disagreements about their plans for the future.
Some people suggested that we should stick to Xuzhou for development first, while others felt that we could take the opportunity to expand, otherwise there would be even fewer opportunities when the surrounding princes became stronger.
When Liu Bei saw that everyone was arguing again, he thought it would be difficult to have a clue if this went on. It would be great if he had a counselor who could make the final decision!
He said: "What is the situation in the world now?"
When Chen Qun saw that everyone was looking at him, he said, "First of all, there was a great chaos in Chang'an. Li Jue and Guo Si attacked each other day and night, setting fire to and looting each other. Tens of thousands of people were killed or injured in Chang'an."
Everyone was shocked when they heard the sermon. So many people?
Chen Qun sighed: "If this continues, I'm afraid Chang'an, like Luoyang, will be destroyed by military disasters."
"A few years ago, Sili was a prosperous place with a large population. Now, several big cities have been destroyed, and the Southern Huns have plundered it. Instead, it has become a desolate place with a large population."
Liu Bei sighed: "It's a pity that Xuzhou is too far away. If we were in Yuzhou now, we could go to rescue the emperor and help the world!"
Chen Deng said in a deep voice: "Now Xuzhou is beyond the reach of the whip and has too much time to take care of itself, so we can only try to do it slowly."
Chen Qun spoke up: "Speaking of this, I heard that Lu Bu's army no longer attacked Dongjun, but stuck to Chenliu, and began to expand westward."
Everyone was stunned when they heard this. Isn't this unreasonable?
Although Lu Bu couldn't defeat Cao Cao, but he fought in the direction of Sili. Isn't it a bit indifferent?
With that kind of troops, wouldn't it be better to attack Jingzhou, the richest city?
Sun Qian spoke up: "Lü Bu is from Bingzhou. Does he want to conquer Sili, go north to Bingzhou, and honor his ancestors?"
Jian Yong shook his head and said: "These states have repeatedly suffered from military disasters and wars, as well as plunder by the Xiongnu. They are a mess even if they are occupied. How can Yanzhou and Yuzhou be as good as Yanzhou and Yuzhou?"
"If nothing else, let's just say that among these two states, which one is easier to deal with, the Baibo bandits, the Black Mountain bandits, or the Southern Huns?"
Everyone couldn't figure it out after hearing this, but Lu Bu was always acting strangely, so probably only he knew what he was planning.
Chen Qun continued: "Cao Cao's army has temporarily ceased operations, but there are rumors that the Cao family has been in contact with Yuan Shu and Liu Biao, and there are many more soldiers inexplicably, which may be sent by Chen Guo."
The State of Chen is located between Yanzhou and Yuzhou. King Chen Liu Chong is the current king. He is the great-great-grandson of Emperor Liu Zhuang of the Han Ming Dynasty and the son of King Chen Xiao Liu Cheng. He is extremely brave, good at using bows and crossbows, and has superb archery skills. After the death of his father Liu Cheng
, inherited the title of King Chen.
During the Zhongping period, the Yellow Turban Rebellion caused famine in the world. The princes no longer enjoyed rents and taxes, but were repeatedly robbed. Some even became homeless and died in the wilderness.
Only the state of Chen was still very prosperous and powerful, and people from neighboring counties came to seek refuge with them. The state of Chen had more than 100,000 troops. From then on, Liu Chong led his army to station in Yangxia and called himself the general to assist the Han Dynasty.
Liu Bei and others were slightly shocked when they heard this. If Cao Cao and Liu Chong team up, it will be a big trouble!
Liu Bei sighed: "Cao Mengde is a great man in the world. He managed to survive even when there were only three cities left a few years ago. If I didn't have to, I really don't want to be his enemy."
Jian Yong said: "Even so, Cao Cao's vitality is severely damaged. Compared with us, he is attacked on three sides. I don't think he will attack Xuzhou easily in the short term."
Chen Qun thought that this was not necessarily the case, but since Liu Bei took Xuzhou without telling him, Chen Qun began to speak with caution. Now he pretends not to hear and continues to speak.
"Also in Yangzhou in the south, Liu Yao and Yuan Shu were attacking each other. I heard that Yuan Shu's subordinate Sun Ce was so brave that he defeated Liu Yao in such a miserable state that he even lost Jiujiang County."
Jian Yong sighed: "That Sun Ce is the son of Sun Jian. I thought Sun Jian was difficult enough, but I didn't expect his son to be so powerful."
In the third year of Chuping, Yuan Shu sent Sun Jian to conquer Jingzhou and attack Liu Biao. Sun Jian defeated Huang Zu and was ambushed during the pursuit and died from an arrow.
After Sun Jian's death, his son Sun Ce remained filial piety for one year, and then defected to Yuan Shu's army as a general, hoping to gather his father's old troops.
However, Yuan Shu was afraid of him and asked him to go to Danyang to recruit troops as a test.
So Sun Ce went to Danyang to recruit hundreds of troops, and returned to Yuan Shu again. Yuan Shu then handed over more than a thousand of the thousands of Sun Jian's old troops to Sun Ce's command.
With more than a thousand troops and horses, Sun Ce invaded Yangzhou and held a stalemate with Liu Yao, the governor.
Chen Deng spoke up and said: "Sun Ce is good at using people and is very popular with the people. I heard that people are constantly defecting to him. Now he has as many as five or six thousand troops. If Yangzhou is captured by Yuan Shu, the next one will definitely be Xuzhou, so we have to guard against it.
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Chen Deng was from Xuzhou, and like Mi Zhu, he was naturally most worried about the safety of Xuzhou, but the others were not as worried as he was. They just comforted him: "Don't worry, Yuanlong, I don't know how long it will take."
Chen Qun added: "Never mind these things, the biggest thing today should be Yuan Shao's attack on Gongsun Zan."
Everyone had mixed feelings after hearing this. One was a former ally and the other was a current ally. Although they only had to sit on the mountain and watch the fight, they still felt a little embarrassed.
Chen Qun thought for a while and added: "Yuan Xi, the son of Yuan Shao, who came to Xuzhou last time, returned to Beixin City, Zhuojun County, Youzhou, and is said to be working on farming."
When everyone heard Yuan Xi's name, they listened attentively, because now Yuan Xi's reputation as a fierce tiger has become quite loud.
Moreover, everyone knows the abilities of Guan Yu and Zhang Fei. Both of them suffered heavy losses at the hands of Yuan Xi, which shows that he is also very talented in strategy.
At this time, Zhang Fei, who was behind Liu Bei, changed his face and snorted angrily: "To defeat a small number with more, what's the point of it!"
Guan Yu tilted his head like Zhang Fei: "If we win, we win. How can we not win with more than with less?"
Zhang Fei heard this and muttered: "Second brother always makes others more ambitious and destroys his own prestige."
Guan Yu shook his head helplessly. Zhang Fei had a bad temper and was too outspoken. Even if he was like this to his own brothers, it shows how he treated other people. He offended people too easily.
Chen Deng said: "Yuan Xi is an unusual person. I heard that he is farming in Zhuo County, and many people around him have joined him."
Mi Zhu said: "Didn't the Cao family also engage in farming?"
"You have been serving the people for generations, so what is the difference between being a slave and a slave?"
"Yuan is not afraid of the world's criticism for doing this?"
Chen Deng shook his head and said: "No, there should be a big difference inside, otherwise there wouldn't be so many people defecting to him."
"However, that location is located at the junction of Youzhou and Jizhou, which is not peaceful. It is said that the Black Mountain Army has already fought once, but was repulsed."
Zhang Fei snorted coldly: "The Black Mountain Army is a ragtag group of people. It's strange that they can defeat Yuan Xi."
Liu Bei said: "The Black Mountain Army is not simple."
"On that day, when Marquis Wen was under the command of Yuan Benchu, he led dozens of cavalry to rush into the formation every day, fighting for more than ten days in a row. After making some gains every time, he pushed back the Black Mountain Army. It can be seen that the Black Mountain Army was not easy to deal with."
Guan Yu praised: "Zhang Yan, like Zhao Yun, is from Zhending, Hebei Province. He is strong and agile, and is known as Feiyan. He is indeed capable."
When Zhao Yun was mentioned, Liu Guan and Zhang's hearts sank. Zhao Yun's defection to Yuan Xi was still a common worry among the three of them.
Sun Qian said: "Will Yuan Xi join forces with the Black Mountain Army?"
After hearing this, all the officials laughed and said, "Zhang Yan was almost killed by Yuan Benchu, so why would she seek refuge with the Yuan family again?"
"Furthermore, the Yecheng rebellion caused by the Black Mountain Army is an inseparable knot with the Yuan family. Even if Zhang Yan is willing, the Yuan family will definitely not be willing."
"Furthermore, the Black Mountain Army has a Yellow Turban background. Like the Baibo Bandits in Hedong and the Taishan Bandits in the north of Xuzhou, it is extremely difficult to subdue them."
Chen Deng sighed: "Speaking of which, Xuzhou not only has the Celestial Master Sect, but also Buddhism. If things go on like this, the people will easily be coerced and incited like the Yellow Turbans."
Everyone was worried after hearing this. If the aftermath of the Yellow Turban Rebellion could be solved so easily, it would not have led to chaos in the world since Zhang Jiao, and there is still no sign of recovery in the more than ten years since.
When everyone in Tancheng was talking about Yuan Xi, Yuan Xi was also summoning his subordinates in Beixin City. He said to Zhao Yun: "The Black Mountain Army was too insidious this time, thanks to Brother Zilong."
This sneak attack by the Black Mountain Army also greatly exceeded Yuan Xi's expectations. Thousands of them trekked from the Taihang Mountains for many days, and then suddenly launched an attack in the dense forest outside Beixin City and attacked the soldiers and civilians who were stationed in the fields.
Although Yuan Xi was well prepared and had hundreds of sergeants on guard at all times, the number of enemies facing him was still a little hectic.
Fortunately, Zhao Yun led his cavalry to patrol around the city every day and quickly came to the rescue. After several battles, the leading general of the Black Mountain Army was killed and the rest surrendered.
Zhao Yun said: "It seems that this kind of harassment will become more and more frequent in the future, and it is difficult to place the captured laughing thieves. There will be a mix of good and bad among them, and there must be many spies."
Yuan Xi smiled and said: "Speaking of this, I already have some ideas."
"I decided to punish them with hard labor for a month and then send them back."
Zhao Yun was startled, what is he doing?
Today I’m adding two more chapters for some reason.