"Prepare for things in advance and make amends for things later. Although it cannot be eliminated, it must be restored." [Notes from Yuewei Thatched Cottage·Gu Wang Ting Part 1]
August 23, the third year of Jian'an in the Han Dynasty.
Xuzhou, East China Sea.
The night gradually swallowed up this vast plain, and the vast land stretched endlessly into the distance, and finally disappeared into a blurry line. In the stretching military tent, a warm bonfire was burning, and from time to time, a few watchdog sounds were heard.
It added a lot of life to this cold dark night.
As soon as Cao Cao came out of the baggage camp, he ran into Xun Yu, who was tall and tall. He was wearing a dark green cross-cut coat with wide sleeves and soft shoulders, decorated with a wide black border. He was standing quietly and gracefully outside the tent.
"Wen Ruo?" Cao Cao's eyes moved and he stood fixedly at the door of the tent for a while, then reached out to touch Xun Yu's arm and walked side by side with him: "Just in time, I also have something to ask you for."
The two of them walked endlessly in the camp, Cao Cao looking here and there, while Xun Yu and Dian Wei followed closely behind.
"Although Tan County has been won, after several battles, our army's casualties are not few. Yuan Tan's people, Chang Xi's bandits and the like are not worth mentioning. Only Qu Yi's soldiers and Lu Bu's courage are ours.
The army is in serious danger." Cao Cao put his hands behind his back and said slowly: "Qu Yi's command will be the first to attack, and they must go forward in every battle, but there are only so many elite soldiers, and they will be gone after a few more battles. As for Lu Bu, it is a bit tricky...Dong Gongren
Where is the news?"
"There are no cherry blossoms all the time," Xun Yu said.
Cao Cao was a little disappointed: "It's already this time, and Dong Zhao is not pedantic, so why can't he see the situation clearly? How can he afford the Zhijinwu that Yuan Shao gave him and can't let it go?"
After Yuan Shao supported Liu Shuo, he ennobled him extensively. In addition to his relatives, staff, generals, etc., Yuan Shao also greatly attracted scholars such as Dong Zhao who had attached themselves halfway. Now Dong Zhao's "official residence" is in charge of Jinwu.
Lu Bu was the general of Zhennan, and even Chang Xi was granted the title of general. However, these were fictitious in the end, and in terms of value, they were not as valuable as a county magistrate appointed by the imperial court. Dong Zhao was a good man, and he should not be limited to mere fame.
"Dong Gongren committed himself to Lu Bu and made him win and lose Qingzhou, but Lu Bu is still close to him. This man's talent is immeasurable." Xun Yu put his hands in his sleeves and said softly: "He is still under Lu Bu's subordinates.
Yuan Shao planned things and led Lu Bu step by step to this day. If he really had the intention to attach himself to the Yuan family at the beginning, but to this day, if he still has the Yuan family in his heart, I think it is not the case. Unless the feud between him and Yuan Shao is unresolved, he has already
Those who are not from Yuzhou or Jizhou will be alone under Yuan Shao and will not be able to survive for a long time. In addition, people with insight will see what the situation is like. The two Yuan's combined efforts are just a mantis' arm as a chariot, and Dong Gongren has no need to risk his life and die."
Cao Cao thought about it carefully. Wasn't he also attached to Yuan Shao at the beginning? When the imperial court gradually became stronger and the situation changed, he immediately changed the court and continued to be the loyal dog of the imperial court. Now, who still has the people he helped Yuan Shao with?
The same thing happened to Dong Zhao. Yuan Shao was powerful. It was normal for him to be ordered to plot against Lu Bu. But by now, based on the expectations of Cao Cao and Xun Yu, Dong Zhao should have made some plans. What's more, Dong Zhao had contacted Langxie a long time ago.
When Wang Liuxi was king, he had contact with Cao Cao's subordinate Wang Bi. If Dong Zhao wanted to abandon the dark side and join the bright side, his first choice would be Cao Cao, and he could only be Cao Cao.
"He is now in a dilemma." Cao Cao raised his foot and kicked away a stone. The stone bounced to the roadside and rolled under the empty grain truck: "I can't leave him anymore. I just went to the transport camp and found that there was not much food left.
, our army has more than 20,000 soldiers and horses, and the food and grass can only be used for a few days. Yanzhou Canglin originally had farmland output, but when they arrived, they had all been handed over to the court. I thought that with Xuzhou's support, I should be safe, no matter what.
You can withdraw it from the imperial court. But since arriving in Xuzhou, the war has not stopped, and food and grass are not available. Liu Bei retreated to the isolated city and collected tens of thousands of meters of food in advance, but he refused to give me a handful. Instead, he asked me to borrow troops every day. If he didn't borrow, he would complain.
I, this kind of person, am quite a bit of a rogue."
Xun Yu was wondering why Cao Cao was thinking about Dong Zhao, whom he had never met before, and wanted to bring him over. At this time, when he heard Cao Cao change the subject, he replied smoothly: "He was also a famous ranger in the county in his early years, and some The custom of knight-errants. Xuzhou has gone through several wars, the East China Sea and Pengcheng have become ruins, and the rich can only go to Xiapi. If Cao Gong asks for military rations, he may still have to go to the Shu court to allocate them. It is better to give authority to a son than to an outsider. "
The Yanzhou treasury, like the local officials and his family members, were all left intact to the emperor by Cao Cao to show his sincerity to the court. His back was exposed to the emperor, and the logistics were completely under the control of the emperor. Cao Cao made this move In addition to being determined to defeat Yuan, he also had a sense of loneliness and loyalty. Even if the emperor was suspicious, the other party would have to believe him if he could do this.
"That's what I meant!" Cao Cao sighed tiredly: "I can't guess his temper without meeting him. I am not a close confidant, so if I join the imperial court, I have to be cautious and not be bold in every word. I can't leave any room for anyone to say anything. As long as I have the trust of my son, Yanzhou, the warehouse, and my family, I can entrust him to you. The situation is critical now, and I can't make a single mistake. I only need to survive this battle before I can breathe a sigh of relief."
Xun Yu nodded lightly. It was not easy for him and Xun You to plan step by step, especially under the eyes of such a smart emperor. Therefore, he could understand Cao Cao's worried thoughts. There are some ways to show loyalty that he is not afraid of doing more. He was afraid not to do it: "Liu Bei is in trouble right now. He defended Xiapi, but he didn't see any success. He originally wanted to use Tian Chou's name and lead troops to pursue Yuan Shu, but the other party was unwilling and he couldn't make the decision. We can only watch the situation in Xuzhou continue to be recovered under Cao Gong."
"Tai Shi Ci is coming." Cao Cao thought of the military report he received today and couldn't help but sneered: "I don't have many cavalry under my command, but there is a Yue Cavalry camp, so I have nothing to fear from Lu Bu. As for Guan Yu, who is accompanying him, although he is here to help I tried my best, but Liu Xuande saw that he could not benefit from Huainan, so he came here to get a share of the pie? In addition, when Guan Yu's flag was raised, Liu Bei did not hesitate to take casualties, regardless of the disagreements I had with him, Those who want to help me will be spread all over the government and the public after the war; but I did not send any troops when he was most critical. Who is selfish and who is righteous, can't the world see the good and bad at a glance? He is not afraid I left Guan Yu idle because Liu Bei already got what he wanted since Guan Yu left Xiapi."
"Therefore, Duke Cao not only cannot leave Guan Yu idle, but also needs to make some military exploits with him and use them when necessary. Only in this way can he appear generous." Xun Yu was quick-thinking and quickly thought of a remedy.
Cao Cao turned back to look at Xun Yu, raised his hand and nodded twice, and said with a smile: "That's right, how can we allow him to enjoy the name of kindness and righteousness to himself?"
Seeing that Cao Cao had thought so thoroughly, Xun Yu felt strange. Cao Cao knew this, so why didn't he send a symbolic general south to rescue him? Moreover, the military pressure faced by Cao Cao at that time was not great, so this doubt came to his mind. After a moment, there was an answer.