The city of Xuchang has indeed been very lively these two days.
First, Mi Heng, the big troll who was worried about ghosts, suddenly broke with Kong Rong and joined the new school. Cao Pi, the prince of Sikong, also switched to the embrace of the new school.
Especially the latter, to some extent, almost changed the political structure of Xuchang.
In the past, once Cao Cao left, Xun Yu was in charge of Xuchang's affairs.
But although Xun Yu was a social butterfly that was loved by everyone, he himself could not directly represent Cao Cao.
At this time, Cao Pi suddenly appeared and directly stated his identity and stance, which undoubtedly gave reassurance to all powerful families.
In just three days, many aristocratic families in Xuchang came to visit Cao Pi and recommended their descendants to serve as Cao Pi's staff.
In comparison, Jia Xu's method of "slowly cultivating party members" to Cao Pi was simply weak...
As Cao Pi's power continued to grow, Cao Pi came to He Yan with a shy face and wanted to move to He Wu.
"No! I have no place for you!"
He Yan has been getting upset these two days: "One Yang Xiu, one Deng Ai, and one Mi Heng. It's not enough for these three people to bother me every day. If you still come here, will I still have a good life?"
As a new learning incubation base, Hewu is responsible for technical and cultural output.
Cao Pi's side is obviously a political struggle, and the core should be Sikong Mansion and the Han Palace. Hewu is not suitable for the two sides to fight.
not to mention……
After finally pushing Cao Pi out as a shield to help Yang Biao distract Liu Xie and Kong Rong's pressure, He Yan had no reason to let Cao Pi bring the flames of war to him again.
"Find a place by yourself outside."
"And have you forgotten what I told you about teaching?"
Cao Pi:???
He Yan clapped his hands and said, "I have found students for you. If you don't want to teach them, is it difficult for me to teach them?"
Only then did Cao Pi realize what He Yan meant by asking him to teach before.
"You want me to teach those children from aristocratic families?"
"Correct answer! But there is no reward."
Cao Pi's face suddenly fell: "What should I teach them? Should I teach Xun Lingjun's son to govern the country or teach the Xiahou family's sons to fight?"
He Yan sighed again: "Who asked you to teach them those things? You need to teach them those things?"
"What you have to teach them is the world you saw before."
"At the same time, you have to tell them who are their friends and who are their enemies."
"Finally, you have to tell them what you're after..."
Cao Pi was stunned for a while: "Can I teach you these?"
"This is the essence of education, but it has been complicated by those of us who came later."
He Yan patted Cao Pi on the shoulder: "Whenever you teach those people, we will start."
"Start with what?"
"war!"
"A war without swords and guns, but extremely cruel!"
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Just as the Xuchang family was preparing for this war, Liu Biao in Jingzhou also began to prepare for another war.
Although the relationship between Liu Biao and Cao Cao was not as direct as that between Yuan Shao and Cao Cao, the relationship between the two parties was definitely not harmonious.
No, it's not that it's not harmonious, but it can be described as "hostile". It's just that due to various reasons, the two sides have not yet fought an all-out war.
In fact, as early as the Battle of Guandu, Liu Biao originally wanted to send troops to cooperate with Yuan Shao in attacking Yuzhou. However, because Changsha Governor Zhang Xian united with Guiyang County, Lingling County, and Wuling County, a total of four counties to rebel against Liu Biao, Liu Biao
Troops had to be used to suppress civil unrest.
When Liu Biao put down the rebellion in Changsha and planned to return to the war, he found that Cao Cao had defeated Yuan Shao, which made Liu Biao dare not act rashly.
But now seeing Cao Cao sending troops to attack Cangting and leaving Yuzhou empty, Liu Biao felt that he was doing well again! He decided to cooperate with Yuan Shao in another Northern Expedition.
In addition, an important factor that made Liu Biao decide to start the Northern Expedition was Liu Bei.
After Liu Bei arrived in Jingzhou, Liu Biao asked him to station troops in Xinye to defend Cao Cao in the north.
During Liu Bei's time in Xinye, he also began to retrain Buqu and regain his strength.
Especially after Guan Yu and Zhao Yun returned, Liu Bei felt that he could do it, so he tried his best to write to Liu Biao, asking Liu Biao to allow him to expedition to the north.
Liu Bei and Zhang Xiu are different. Maybe Liu Bei's military strength is not as good as that of Zhang Xiuqiang who inherited Zhang Ji's Xiliang tribe, but his personal reputation, his political reputation, and Liu Bei's appeal in the Central Plains are far from Zhang Xiu's.
If Liu Bei can really take advantage of Cao Cao's absence in Xuchang, he might be able to destroy Cao Cao's advantage in defeating Yuan Shao and return Cao Cao to his previous passive situation.
Even if the Central Plains cannot be disturbed, as long as we can take advantage of this opportunity to get back Nanyang County, especially Wan County, it will play an important role in the integrity of the defense line in northern Jingzhou.
The key is--
Liu Bei himself has stated that Liu Biao does not need to send troops for this Northern Expedition, but will let his troops charge into the battle.
Calculated in this way, as long as Liu Biao pays a little money and food, Liu Bei, a not weak force, can go north to attack Cao Cao. Why not do such a deal?
So, just after the grain in Jingzhou had just matured, Liu Biao agreed to Liu Bei's request and asked him to go north to attack Cao.
Liu Bei's move really touched Cao Cao's nerves.
Because Cao Hong, who previously guarded Wan County, had been transferred away by Cao Cao during the Battle of Guandu, Nanyang's defense at this time could be said to be empty.
As a last resort, Cao Cao, who was fighting in Cangting, ordered Houdun of Xia Yin from Henan to lead the Yuzhou army, and his general was in Jin. General Pi, Li Dian, led the Yanzhou army to Nanyang for support.
In addition to Xiahou Dun, Yu Jin, and Li Dian's troops, Cao Cao once again thought of He Yan, who was currently serving as the commander of Xuchang.
"I told you to let Yulang have a good rest in Xuchang..."
He Yan had just returned from Lujiang and experienced another fierce battle. Cao Cao actually did not want to mobilize He Yan's army anymore.
It's just that Liu Bei is someone Cao Cao has always been afraid of. Now that he has Liu Biao's support, Cao Cao, who has not yet built up his family fortune, really can't give up any power in his hands.
"Send a letter to Yulang and ask him to lead his Yaoyao camp to follow Yuan Rang on the expedition!"
In the end, Cao Cao decided to suffer He Yan one more time.
Whether it was the Yuzhou soldiers and horses brought by Xiahou Dun or Yu Jin, the Yanzhou soldiers and horses brought by Li Dian had long been disabled in the war with Yuan Shao, and it is hard to say how much combat effectiveness they had.
If they were really careless and were defeated by Liu Bei, and then Liu Biao would seize the opportunity to attack the Central Plains, it would undoubtedly be a signal to Yuan Shao in the north, asking him to continue to cheer up and go south again.
If Yuan Shao also attacks and cooperates with Liu Biao and Liu Bei's momentum, the situation in the Central Plains will inevitably fall into corruption again!