After losing his temper, Yuan Shu realized his gaffe, closed his eyes and took a few deep breaths. When he opened his eyes again, at least he had regained some composure on the surface.
He sat down again and stared coldly at Li Ren, who was kneeling in front of him. He resisted the urge to call his personal guards to push this mediocre man out and kill him. He just sneered and said: "Very good.
very good!"
"I would like to ask you, what benefits did Zhuzi give you?"
Yuan Shu knew very well that Li Ren could not be unaware of the risks of bringing this matter back. If he had not received any benefits, he would definitely not have the guts to agree to bring this sentence back.
Li Ren was about to deny it, but out of the corner of his eye he saw the murderous intent in Yuan Shu's eyes, and his heart suddenly skipped a beat. He knew very well that he only had one chance to speak!
If you continue to deny this matter, and if it is later discovered by secret agents lurking in Xuzhou, you will be cheating!
Accepting bribes is naturally serious, but it may not be a capital crime, but if you add to it the deception of Yuan Shu...
"A thousand taels of gold..."
This short sentence almost made Li Ren use up all his energy. He almost said each word slowly, because he could feel the sharp gaze injected by Yuan Shu at this time, going straight into the sword and falling on him.
, what's more, in this midsummer season, Li Ren felt cold all over the place, and felt as if he was sitting on pins and needles.
But even so, Li Ren actually concealed something.
What drove him to risk his life and say this in front of Yuan Shu was actually another promise made by Wang Zheng.
Regardless of whether it succeeds or not, Wang Zheng will leave a place for Li Ren, his family, his wife and children in Xuzhou!
"Zhuzi is such a big handiwork. It's just four characters..."
"It's worth thousands of gold!"
Probably because he was extremely angry, Yuan Shu looked up to the sky and laughed when he heard this. However, in addition to the strong murderous intention, there was also a faint sadness in his laughter.
At this moment, both Li Ren and Yang Hong were silent and did not dare to speak.
After laughing for a long time, when Yuan Shu looked at Li Ren again, his expression had returned to calm: "If my subordinates are all money-grubbing generals like you, I am afraid that the day of ruin and death will not be far away."
not good!
Could it be that Wang Zheng guessed wrong...that the monarch would not agree to this condition?
When Li Ren heard this, he instinctively felt something bad, but he didn't know what to do. He just kowtowed repeatedly and kept shouting: "The general is guilty, please remember the past kindness..."
Before he finished speaking, he was interrupted by Yuan Shu with a sneer: "What are you guilty of?"
Yuan Shu actually knew that people like Li Ren were not uncommon in his military system. Even similar corruption and bribery had long been common among civil servants, including Yang Hong around him. How could it be said that he had done some illegal things?
Less?
What made him even more angry was that Wang Zheng took advantage of the situation and dared to openly bribe an envoy from another country!
Moreover, this guy's ambition is too great.
He captured Xuzhou last year and attacked Qingzhou and Beihai in the spring of this year. Now that the war has just been decided, will he surrender to Pei again?
No... I'm afraid it's not just a country of Pei, right?
It’s the whole of Yuzhou!
Isn't this guy afraid of eating too fast and stuffing himself to death? Yuan Shu gritted his teeth, or did the other party see that this was a unique opportunity?
Having initially calmed down from his anger, he kept making calculations in his mind. When he came back to his senses, he looked at the man kneeling on the ground in front of him. At this time, he had a look of panic on his face, which was so overwhelming.
Unbearable.
Not to mention greed for money, but also so afraid of death...
This made Yuan Shu feel a little colder in his anger, and another thought came into his mind. After this crisis was over, he must immediately find some generals who could be of great use. People like Li Ren and Chen Lan could no longer
Reused!
Although Li Ren had been sentenced to death, on the surface he still kept his expression intact. Instead, he sighed and said, "You have been with me for many years. I miss my old friendship and I will spare you one more time!"
"There have been frequent wars in the past two years, and I feel that the treasury is empty. How about this? When you go back, you can hand over these thousand taels of gold yourself, which will be used as military pay in the future."
"Yes, yes, please be more open-minded!"
Listening to Yuan Shu's intention, the matter seemed to have been revealed, which made Li Ren feel like he had been pardoned and hurriedly thanked him. However, after getting up from the ground again, the original panic initially calmed down, the cold sweat also disappeared, and Li Ren couldn't help but feel better.
I felt annoyed and reluctant.
The thousand taels of yellow scarf were still warm in my hands, so they were just gone?
If I had known earlier, it would be better not to accept this windfall. It is really a waste of money.
Or... I should have reported a little less just now?
He lowered his head and looked at his toes, thinking wildly in his mind, but Yuan Shu pondered for a moment and suddenly asked him again: "What do you think about Wang Zheng's desire for Peiguo?"
ah?
Hearing this, Li Ren looked up in shock, his eyes full of surprise.
It was rare for a prince to be so furious, and because he had been exposed for secretly accepting bribes, Li Ren originally thought that the matter was completely over, but why did Yuan Shu ask him for his opinion again?
Li Ren really couldn't figure out what Yuan Shu meant now, and he was filled with worries. He was speechless for a while, not daring to speak, for fear that he would offend the other party again by saying something carelessly, which would lead to death.
"Both Ji Ling and Sun Ce are both happy people. Why are you such a mother-in-law?"
Yuan Shu saw what he was thinking and became even more disdainful: "For the sake of the general, you have to make the decision to kill. Just say so. I will forgive you!"
With this assurance, Li Ren felt a lot more at ease. After weighing it for a moment, he decided to state his point of view impartially. Of course, he had to express his own position first:
"Your Majesty, just by relying on these acts of seeking repayment, you can be sure that Wang Zheng, a son of a wolf and an ambitious man, is really a villain!"
Then he got back to the topic: "As for whether to agree to this son's unreasonable request, it is naturally up to the ruler Qiankun to make the final decision. I dare not say anything unreasonable, but..."
At this point, Li Ren paused and carefully considered his words: "If Wang Zheng does not send troops, whether we deploy the army from Runan or the garrison from Jiujiang, we will be at greater risk!"
"Mobilizing a large number of troops and horses cannot be concealed from nearby enemies. Once the Runan army is transferred back, Cao Cao in Xudu and Xiahou Dun in Kunyang will receive the news and will most likely take the opportunity to go south. By then, not only will the entire territory of Runan be lost, but also Cao Cao's army
It is more likely that we can successfully join forces with Sun Ce from Jiujiang and attack our Jiujiang County."
"As for the deployment of guards from Jiujiang..." Li Ren said with a wry smile: "These troops are either new soldiers or defeated soldiers. It is difficult to form a certain combat effectiveness in a short period of time. If they encounter Sun Ce head-on, I'm afraid...
"But I didn't dare to continue speaking the next words.
"That makes sense."
When Li Ren spoke just now, Yang Hong had been frowning, with an expression of disgust and anger. Speaking of which, compared to Ji Ling who died in battle and Sun Ce who rebelled, among Yuan Shu's generals, Li Ren's friendship with him in the past was actually quite good.
, Yang Hong had already known about the other party's greed for money and fear of death.
But he didn't expect that Li Ren, besides being greedy for money and afraid of death, was also so stupid and incompetent!
And these two points are precisely what Yang Hong can't stand the most!
It's just that he was disgusted, but Li Ren's last words made Yang Hong feel the same way. If you think about it, Wang Zheng's threat to Yuan Shu is actually no less than that of Cao Cao and Sun Ce. Even according to the development speed of the other party in the past two years, it may be even greater.
!
But in the face of long-term worries and immediate worries, everyone knows which one to deal with first. After all, if you can't get through it now, what's the point of talking about the future?
At this time of internal and external difficulties, in Yang Hong's view, among these three enemies, whether overt or covert, Sun Ce must be the first to be dealt with!
Because Sun Ce knew Yangzhou, understood Yuan Shu, and even better understood Jiangdong.
The blade he showed was almost as close as his neck!
Even though he knew that handing over Pei State to Wang Zheng was an act of capitalizing on his enemies, at the moment, he had no choice but to do it.
"Lord." Yang Hong said to Yuan Shu, "Please agree!"
"Promise?" Yuan Shu looked sideways after hearing this, with a look of disbelief on his face: "You want me to agree? That's the country of Pei!"
"O Pei State with twenty-one counties!"
"The ancients have a saying: 'The viper stings the hand, and the strong man frees his wrist!" Yang Hong looked solemn, and did not bother to correct Yuan Shu's language. You must know that although Peiguo has 21 counties, the ones actually controlled by Yuan Shu at this time are
In fact, there are only fifteen cities.
He just said one word at a time: "Compared with Jiujiang, Runan, and Peiguo, which one is more important and which one is less important, doesn't my lord know?"
"If we can save our lord's foundation and vitality by sacrificing our country, why not do it? On the contrary, if we reject the king's government at this time, we will not only lose our only helping hand, but even if the emperor becomes angry, he will raise a large number of troops to invade, which will add insult to injury.
, then we will be attacked from three sides, how will we respond?"
"This..." Although he knew that Yang Hong's words were reasonable, Yuan Shu still felt as if his heart was cut by a knife when he thought of such a large territory in Pei State, and he was very reluctant to give up.
There are very few people who can accurately see the situation clearly. Those who can make decisions, make choices, and be willing to make compromises and the most rational decisions after seeing the situation clearly are even rarer.
Especially Yuan Shu, who had obtained the imperial seal and believed that his destiny was to be Tu Gao, a descendant of the Han Dynasty. He was already imagining the heyday of his reign in the Ninth Five-Year Plan, but unexpectedly, in the blink of an eye, he was faced with life and death, and the country was overthrown.
In such a dangerous situation, how could you change your mentality in a short time?
Seeing Yuan Shu's delay in speaking, Yang Hong sighed inwardly, but he still continued to admonish: "What's more, as I see it, Wang Zheng's request for Pei State is not all bad."
No harm...
Yuan Shu Xunxun said, is there any benefit?
"I heard that Wang Zhenghui led more than 15,000 Xuzhou troops into our territory. I was actually quite uneasy. I felt like a thorn in my back and a knife in my throat."
Facing Yuan Shu's puzzled gaze, Yang Hong explained: "However, since Wang Zheng used this troops to ask for Pei from his lord, it actually indicates that Xuzhou's next focus will be on Yuzhou, which means that in Wang Zheng's heart,
The enemies in the future will still be Cao Cao and Yuan Shao. It proves that the alliance between him and his lord will continue to exist in the short term, and the situation of both sides joining hands to fight against the enemy will not change. In this case, the threat of Xuzhou soldiers and horses in our territory will naturally be greatly reduced.
"
"Besides, the territory of Yuzhou, except for Runan, is the sphere of influence of Cao Cao and Wang Zheng. The two have a grudge and a battle is expected. After Sun Ce is dealt with, we in Yangzhou can also take the opportunity to recuperate and restore our strength for the future.
, it is possible to recapture Pei State and even Xuzhou!"
That makes sense...
While Yang Hong was talking, Yuan Shu also fell into thinking. Indeed, what he lacks most at the moment is time, isn't it?
Although Peiguo is not small, it is not as important as Runan and Yangzhou!
He is so embarrassed and passive now. To put it bluntly, Sun Ce and Cao Cao picked the time very well. It was precisely because the Yangzhou Army suffered heavy losses in Xuzhou last year and Yuan Shu was short of major generals that he dared to be so presumptuous!
As long as Yuan Shu calms down, as long as he can block the military pressure from several directions, recruit a new group of generals, and cultivate an elite force of more than 10,000 people, then Yuan Shu will still be the strongest in the world who is proud of the others.
Princes!
At least for a long time, Yuan Shu himself firmly believed that he was stronger than his fellow sect Yuan Shao!
As for Wang Zheng, even if his territory expands again, he can still block the pressure from Yuan Shao and Cao Cao first. When his value is exhausted, will a mere yellow scarf bandit be wiped out?
Thinking of this, Yuan Shu completely woke up and even began to reflect. He glanced at Yang Hong and suddenly sighed: "Speaking of which, I did lose my sense of proportion that day. I regret not listening to your words!"
"This is really not the right time to proclaim yourself emperor!"
"My lord, it's not too late to wake up now." Yang Hong also lamented: "Then this country of Pei..."
"If Na Shuzi is really capable of completely wiping out the traitor Sun Ce..." Yuan Shu thought about it repeatedly, and finally his attitude wavered: "I am willing to give up the country of Pei!"
"It's the officials, soldiers and horses that I have in Pei State... If I agree to Wang Zheng's conditions, will they all be transferred back to Jiujiang?"
"It doesn't matter other places. The two cities of Longkang and Guyang must not be given to us, and the defenders cannot withdraw!"
Hearing this, Yang Hong shook his head repeatedly: "Longkang is the main water and land route from Pei State to Jiujiang from the south, and Guyang is the chokepoint from the east to Shouchun by land. These two places must not be handed over to others!"
After saying that, he glanced at Li Ren and asked calmly: "General Li, you are a veteran on the battlefield. You should know the pros and cons."
"The remaining nineteen cities in Pei State can be given to Wang Zheng. Only these two places have no room for negotiation. Do you think Wang Zheng will agree?"
Seeing this, Li Ren laughed dryly, looked at Yang Hong, then looked at Yuan Shu who was also turning away, laughed dryly, and said in a sullen tone: "I think... you should agree, right?"
He also knew that this should be the bottom line that Yuan Shu and Yang Hong could accept. Even if he was not sure, it was impossible to say "no" at this time.
"That's it!"
Seeing Li Ren's promise, Yuan Shu's gloomy expression improved a little. After careful consideration, he took a deep look back, glanced at Li Ren coldly, and made an immediate decision.
"Then you go to Xiapi again and tell Wang Zheng..."
"The Marquis of Pei State gave it to me!"
"He wants to bring fifteen thousand troops into Yangzhou, and I agree!"
"But my request is not simply to relieve the siege of Linhu..."
Having said this, the familiar face seemed to appear in front of Yuan Shu's eyes again, with a complicated and difficult-to-understand light in his eyes.
That handsome young man once made him sigh from the bottom of his heart: If a master has a son like Sun Lang, how can he regret his death?
But the other party betrayed him! He stabbed himself at the most critical moment!
It hurts...
Suddenly, Yuan Shu's face became violently distorted, and then he smiled somewhat self-deprecatingly and slowly closed his eyes.
After a while, a cold voice filled with murderous intent sounded in the hall:
"I want to exchange these thirteen cities for one head!"