"The day before yesterday I didn't have enough to show off, and the storm suddenly turned out to be unwarranted."
Although Gongsun Zan had heard of Lu Bu's martial prowess, he had no actual contact with him. Moreover, Lu Bu had just arrived and was not very strong, so he was not worried about how much of a threat Lu Bu would pose to him.
The one who really put him in trouble was Tao Qian from Xuzhou.
The news that came with Tian Kai was that in addition to Lu Bu's attack on Qi, it was also said that Tao Qian, an ally of Xuzhou, secretly conspired with the Xiapi thief Que Xuan in order to respond to Gongsun Zan's military operation in Qingzhou and encouraged Que Xuan to gather a crowd.
Thousands of people claimed to be the emperor. They took the initiative to lend a road to Que Xuan to divert the disaster eastward, allowing Que Xuan to go north to attack Taishan County of Yanzhou and west to attack Rencheng State, so as to contain the possible threat from Pingdong General Cao Cao for Gongsun Zan.
Tao Qian's actions were communicated with each other in advance when Gongsun Zan went south. It was originally a well-planned team battle, but Gongsun Zan was caught in a dilemma at this time. Since he knew that Yuan Shao's main force was heading west, Jizhou was empty.
, Gongsun Zan came up with the idea of changing the established strategy. But his biggest concern at the moment is that if he transfers his troops to Jizhou, then the troops and allies in Qingzhou and Xuzhou will be left alone, and he may not be able to achieve greater success in Jizhou.
Results.
At this time, a mistake in prediction caused Gongsun Zan to be trapped in gains and losses. He was unable to get off the tiger, so he had to bite the bullet and continue to chew on the hard bone of the plains, hoping to join forces with Tian Kai and others to repel Lu Bu as soon as possible. After Qingzhou was stabilized, Qingzhou was connected and the three states of Youqing and Xuzhou were connected.
I’ll make plans later.
The sixth day of July in the fourth year of Chuping.
Yanzhou Taishan County, Fei County, Yiting.
The Yi Pavilion has a long history. It was called Yi Yi in the Zhou Dynasty. It was given by the emperor to Zheng Guo to worship Tang Muyi in Mount Tai. Today, the Yi Pavilion is located in the southeast of Fei County, Taishan County. It is the largest post pavilion close to the Langye Kingdom.
It is connected to Wushui to the west and Linyi to the east, with convenient water and land transportation. During the Taiping Period, it was an essential route for business travelers from the two places to travel from north to south.
Nowadays, despite the continuous disasters, Yiting has also been affected. Even so, Yiting still maintains a large scale because of its unique geographical conditions.
Days of heavy rain caused the Wu River, which was originally flowing slowly outside the pavilion, to surge suddenly. The volume of the river surged, immediately submerging the low-lying beaches and even overflowing the dilapidated river embankments.
The rain is pouring heavily and the night is dark.
A gust of wind blew, and large raindrops fell from the sky in thin, dense sheets, as if someone had knocked over a plate of pearls, and they rolled to the ground with a crackling sound. In this violent storm, the back of the Yi Pavilion was used to entertain guests.
In the guest's courtyard, the sound of silk and bamboo strings could be faintly heard, and sometimes the sweet laughter of the daughter's family penetrated the rain curtain.
Countless water drops splashed and jumped on the two large tanks filled with water in the yard. The yellow candlelight reflected on the water droplets, like bright golden beads. The raindrops hit the roof and the stone slabs in the yard vertically.
Soon there was a thin and rapid flow of water on the ground, under the eaves and in the cracks of the rocks.
The singing and dancing in the hall continued. A white-haired old man was wearing extremely gorgeous clothes and sitting in the middle with a rich face. He was holding a plump concubine in his arms, and one hand was hidden under the concubine's clothes.
In the high place, I don't know what kind of movements are being made, which makes the concubine extremely shy.
The old man was playing with it in his hands and holding it in his arms, but he was still not satisfied. He still stared intently at the maids singing and dancing in the hall.
A young man sitting next to him was a little uncomfortable. He moved his body slightly and said to the old man: "Ah, are we doing this a little too ostentatiously? We are both dancing maids and slaves. Along the way,
We have hundreds of carriages accompanying our family. Now, shouldn’t we go home as soon as possible? We should travel lightly and simply.”
"These belongings have been managed by my family for generations. Do you think we should throw them all away? It's really shameless." The old man said displeased: "We are not fleeing, we are returning home. My son Mengde is now General Pingdong.
, supervises the military affairs of Yanzhou, and is powerful in the Central Plains. As long as the flag is raised, a few bandits on the road will not open their eyes? What's more, we have arrived at the border of Taishan County. County Governor Yingjun has received my son's letter earlier and will lead troops to greet him in two days.
.I just need to wait in Qiting, what else do you want to do with those useless things?"
If I hadn't been unable to stay in Langxie Country any longer and was worried about Tao Qian's anger and harm, why would I have rushed to pack up Xinruan and return home? It was still an escape, but it was just a more leisurely departure.
Of course, this was just Cao De's inner slander. He did not dare to say that in front of his father, Cao Song.
As early as when Cao Cao rebelled against Dong, Cao Song was worried about the prospect of challenging Dong, so he took his family property and his youngest son Cao De to take refuge in Langye, Xuzhou. At this time, Langye country had a vast territory, many counties, and a strong capital city. After many wars, the situation changed.
It was still peaceful, and Langye King Liu Rong was quite prestigious in the hearts of the people in the country. Under his care, Cao Song lived a relatively stable life in Langye. Even if Tao Qian was hostile to Cao Cao, he would not dare to risk it openly.
How about taking advantage of Cao Song at the risk of offending Langye Kingdom?
However, the good times did not last long. At the end of spring this year, Cao Song's patron, King Liu Rong of Langye, fell ill and passed away. For Cao Song, this was not only the passing of a benefactor, but also meant that his country of Langye would no longer be safe.
.
Xuzhou and Chang'an are thousands of miles apart, and the imperial court has not yet issued an edict. Therefore, Liu Rong's posthumous title has not yet been decided, and the crown prince Liu Xi cannot succeed to the throne without authorization. Under this situation, there is no one in Langye to take charge.
In the overall situation, Tao Qian seized the opportunity and sent the cavalry captain Zang Ba to lead his troops to Kaiyang County, the capital. He quickly defeated Langye Prime Minister Yinde and took over the Langye Kingdom.
Fortunately, Cao Song saw the opportunity quickly. As early as when Liu Rong was seriously ill, he sent a letter home to Cao Cao, hoping to have someone to help him on his way back. Before Zang Ba came, he quickly packed up his belongings and rushed to the west of Langye Kingdom without stopping.
Taishan County rushed there.
Cao Cao received a letter from his family and urged Ying Shao, the prefect of Taishan, to come and meet his old father. At this time, Que Xuan was in Mount Tai. The bandits were insurrection near Rencheng, and something unexpected might happen at any time. As soon as Cao Song arrived at Yuting, which belongs to Taishan County, it was like another disaster.
He seemed to have no worries, and he was not in a hurry. Instead, he took shelter from the rain and spent his leisure time waiting for Ying Shao to come and greet him.
Cao De saw all this and couldn't calm down for a long time. Although what Cao Song said was reasonable, there was always a feeling of uneasiness lingering in his heart, as if something bad was about to happen.
Suddenly, there were bursts of rapid and dull sounds in the distance. Cao De's eyebrows jumped and he immediately stood up and said, "Aweng, listen to this sound."
Cao Song listened for a while, and then said disapprovingly: "It must be thundering in the distance."
"No." Cao De walked to the door and carefully distinguished the bursts of sound among the noisy music and rain. It did not sound like thunder rolling across the sky on a rainy night, but rather like a cavalry trampling the earth.
"It looks like a cavalry, Aweng, keep an eye out, kid, go ahead and have a look." After saying that, Cao De walked towards the front yard with his sword in hand.
Cao Song finally started to look serious this time. He pushed his concubine away and said with a deep expression, "Follow me to the back to pack your things."