The Prime Minister of Pei State, Yuan Zhong, courtesy name Boxin, is about to turn fifty this year. He is tall and tall, with good facial features and three long beards hanging on his chest. He is very majestic. He is Yuan Shao, Yuan Shu's brother, and he is also a Shan.
The brothers of Yuan Yi, the governor of Yang, were members of the Su Zhong family in the Han Dynasty. Even though they were ten and twenty generations apart, they still called each other brothers. Although the relationship between Yuan Zhong, Yuan Shao, and Yuan Shu did not reach the exaggerated level of ten or twenty generations, they still called each other brothers.
However, there are also three generations, and the relationship with Yuan Yi is even more remote.
Yuan Zhong had a rare career and was well-known in Runan for a long time. He traveled to Taixue and worshiped Li Ying, the "model in the world" as his teacher. Afterwards, the first disaster of party imprisonment broke out. At that time, Li Ying was the captain of the Sili school, and Yuan Zhong was the Sili school captain.
They were both subordinates and had a master-disciple relationship, so they were naturally implicated and imprisoned in the Huangmen North Temple Prison.
At that time, the jailer was instructed by the eunuchs to beat the scholars into submission and tortured them for several days in a row. Dozens of people in the room were all scarred and dying. The jailer had no mercy in his heart and wanted to show off his power the next day. Yuan Zhong and the people from Runan Township
, the party leader "Eight Gu" Fan Pang and Fan Mengbo went out together and rushed to accept torture, which greatly increased their fame.
Later, Emperor Huan of the Han Dynasty sent Wangfu, a regular attendant, to interrogate everyone in order. Everyone's hands, feet, and necks were tied with wooden torture instruments, their heads were covered with bags, and they were exposed to the sun and tortured at the bottom of the steps. Wangfu, a regular attendant of the Han Dynasty, questioned everyone arrogantly
Not only are they loyal to the country, but they also build a party, praise each other, and comment on the imperial court. They are fictitious and unfounded. What do they want to do? Yuan Zhong and Fan Pang went up to the crowd to argue fiercely with Wang Fu. Their loyalty and perseverance flourished.
, made an impassioned speech, and the expressions of all those who heard it changed, so Wang Fu had no choice but to untie them.
When the news came out, Yuan Zhong became a famous figure in the world. Soon, the Empress Dowager Dou's father, Dou Wu, one of the three monarchs, and the scholars finally persuaded Emperor Huan of the Han Dynasty to change the Yuan Dynasty to Yongkang, grant amnesty to the world, and the party members were released.
.
If the first calamity caused by the party's imprisonment was drizzle, then the second calamity caused by the party's imprisonment was a storm. Li Ying, Fan Pang, Du Mi, Zhai Chao, Liu Ru, Xun Yi, Yu Fang and more than a hundred people were imprisoned and executed.
Six to seven hundred scholars were successively arrested, killed, exiled, and imprisoned in various places. At that time, the Yuan family in Runan included Yuan She, the regular attendant, and Yuan Feng and Yuan Wei outside. Yuan Zhong relied on the protection of his family and finally escaped.
After a catastrophe, the Yellow Turbans were violent in the first year of Zhongping, and the imperial court lifted the party ban, and Yuan Zhong was able to come out of the army again.
Yuan Zhong is Li Ying's disciple and old official. It stands to reason that he should surrender to Yuan Shaocai, Li Ying's beloved son-in-law and heir. Unfortunately, some things cannot be decided by individuals. His lineage is deeply involved with Yuan Shu, not to mention
, among all the states and counties in the world, Yuan Shu was the most active in challenging Dong. Regardless of private or public affairs, family or country, he would stand on Yuan Shu's side.
When Yuan Zhong reported to Cao Cao, Zhou Zhe suddenly sent tens of thousands of people southward and captured Gongqiu County in the north. He immediately stood on the spot, dumbfounded. It was not that he had not thought that the other party would sneak attack on Yuzhou when Sun Jian left the country to fight against Dong, but this
The idea was driven out of his mind as soon as it came up. Sun Jian fought hard against the thieves, and the progress was smooth, attracting the attention of the world. All knowledgeable people applauded, saying that the emperor was saved, and the Han Dynasty could be prosperous. He did not believe in Yuan Shao, and Cao Cao dared to risk the world at this time.
The Great Buyi invaded Yuzhou and Pei State.
However, it turns out that Yuan Zhong guessed wrong. Yuan Shao and Cao Cao really dared to...
"Yuan Shao, Cao Cao, Zhou Zhe, Shuzi, Shuzi..." Yuan Zhong was so angry that he was shaking all over, pacing back and forth, gritting his teeth and cursing: "You are not afraid of the world's criticism for your reckless actions, and you are not afraid of being accused by Qingshi.
For posterity?..."
Cao Huanshao, who was on the sidelines, said worriedly: "Cao Cao, Zhou Zhe is coming with great force. Xiangxian County only has a few thousand soldiers alone. It may be difficult to fight. The ruler of the government should make plans early." The surname Huan is a common surname in the state of Pei. He is a native of Qi and after Duke Huan.
With the posthumous title of Ming, he moved to Longkang, and after six generations of accumulation, he came out of Huanrong. Huanrong, also known as Chunqing, was a great scholar in the early Eastern Han Dynasty. He was appreciated by Emperor Guangwu and became the teacher of Emperor Ming of the Han Dynasty. Because Huanrong spent his whole life specializing in the study of "
"Ouyang Shangshu", later generations thought of it as a family study. For more than a hundred years, they went east and west with the Hongnong Yang family, and were famous for their good management of "Ouyang Shangshu". Huan Shao was fond of learning, worked hard on his family studies, and finally achieved success.
He is the leading celebrity in Pei State. Only a person like Yuan Zhong who is a party member and has a high reputation can invite him.
"..." Yuan Zhong's expression changed drastically. Confrontation between two armies was not his specialty.
Huan Shao suggested: "Master Fu, the opponent is powerful. In my opinion, it is better to retreat to Runan temporarily. Runan has a vast territory, a large number of people, strong military strength, and is close to Jingchu in the west. After Yuan Jingzhou learns the news, he will definitely
Send reinforcements as soon as possible..."
Yuan Zhong hesitated and said: "Fleeing in the face of the enemy may damage your reputation."
"Otherwise." Huan Shao shook his head and said: "Sun Shijun has demobilized all the elites in the state, leaving only the old, sick and weak in the county. At this time, he is defending Xiang County and resisting for a few days at most, but it will not help. Cao Cao is a castrate and ugly.
They are cunning and unfaithful people, and if you fall into their hands, the consequences will be unpredictable."
"Cao Er still dares to kill me?" Yuan Zhong said this, but his heart was shaken.
In a short time, news of the fall of Peixian, Fengcheng, Zhuqiu, and Xiaoxian came one after another. Cao Jun's cavalry suddenly arrived at the city. Xiangxian County was shocked, the people were trembling, and the soldiers had no intention of fighting. After sunset, Yuan Zhong quietly led
Dozens of people left the south gate and fled to Runan.
When Cao Cao arrived with his army, the gates of Xiangxian County were opened, and the officials of Pei State either fled with Yuan Zhong or went home to take refuge. Only a few people greeted them, most of them were Cao Cao's old friends. Zhou Zhe looked at Cao Cao doubtfully, this was really his
Hometown, not to mention that the roads are blocked, at least it shouldn’t be like this?
How could it be that Cao Cao was so sensitive that he just pretended not to see him and talked enthusiastically with his old friends, sometimes laughing.
Xiangxian fell, Yuan Zhong fled, and Peiguo was recovered. Cao Cao and Zhou Zhe sat in the Prime Minister's Mansion of Peiguo to discuss what to do next. Zhou Zhe thought that it should not be delayed, so he discussed it with Zhou Xin, his two brothers from Jiujiang County.
, Zhou Ang joined hands to attack Runan County in the southwest of Pei Kingdom from the north and the south. Runan accounts for half of Yuzhou. As long as Runan is captured, the other counties and countries will inevitably surrender, and Yuzhou can be recovered without any bloodshed.
Cao Cao laughed when he heard this and asked: "Ren Ming, do you know who the governor of Runan is?" Then, without waiting for Zhou Zhe's answer, he thought to himself: "Xu Zhuan and Xu Mengyu of Guangling served as the governor of Runan for more than seven or eight years in total.
, the power is so deep-rooted that even Yuan Shu dare not force him to do anything easily. If we don’t send troops to Runan, he will not cross the border to attack us..."
"Meng De's intention is not to use troops in Runan?" Zhou Zhe asked. Seeing Cao Cao nodding, he wondered: "Should Yuan Shu be allowed to calmly gather troops to Runan?"
Cao Cao smiled bitterly and said: "Xu Meng Yu's father is Xu Shu, who once served as the general of Liao Dynasty and was famous in the border areas. Xu Meng Yu has a paternal style. In the first year of Zhongping, the Yellow Turbans broke out. He first served as the governor of Yuzhou
Wang (Yun)'s army attacked Bo Cai and Peng Tuo. Later, he and Zhonglang general Zhu (Jun) Gongwei crossed the border to attack the Yellow Turbans of Nanyang. They had many military exploits and their troops were very strong. Did Renming really think that Runan could be conquered in one battle? Wan Wan
After defeating the city, Yuan Shu and Sun Jian arrived behind to attack my exhausted soldiers..."
Zhou Zhe frowned and asked, "Then what do you think we should do?"
Cao Cao said: "The six counties of Yuzhou, the Kingdom of Lu, and the Kingdom of Pei are currently in our hands. The Kingdom of Chen and the Kingdom of Liang remain neutral and do not participate in the dispute. Yingchuan County belongs to Yuan Shu, and Runan County seems to belong to Yuan Shu, but it is not the case.
Xu (璆) Meng Yushu has deep roots and is obviously a faction of his own. We should avoid Xu (璆) Meng Yu at this time and go west through Chen State to directly attack Sun Jian's base camp Yingchuan County. Only in this way can we have a chance to force Sun Jian to surrender."
Zhou Cao thought for a long time and agreed to Cao Cao's proposal. Although Cao Cao said that Xu Meng Yu would not leave the country to attack his own side, but he was not afraid of ten thousand, just in case, so he sent a letter to Zhou Xin and Zhou Ang, asking them to station troops in Pei State Longkang
, looked at Rudong like a tiger, so that Xu Mengyu did not dare to act rashly.
The next day, Cao Cao and Zhou Zhe left 5,000 men to guard Pei State and led an army of 20,000 to the west. When they passed through Qiao County, Cao Cao went home specifically to have a look and visit his friends.
There was a famous warrior in Qiao County, his surname was Xu, his given name was Chu, and he was also named Zhongkang. He was more than eight feet long, with a waist as big as ten inches.
In a critical moment, he once pulled the tail of an ox and dragged it for more than a hundred steps, scaring away tens of thousands of thieves. Therefore, he was famous among Huai, Ru, Chen and Liang, and no thieves dared to invade.
The last time Cao Cao returned to his hometown, he was in great embarrassment. He had just gone through the Longkang mutiny and his troops were weak. He felt that he could not invite Xu Chu. But now it is different. He has an army of 20,000 and the situation is excellent. Even Xu Jiabao wants to invite Xu Chu.
Conspiracy to do great things together.
When Xu Chu heard that Cao Cao was visiting, he immediately killed cattle and pigs and prepared fine wine. The two invited each other to drink and had a pleasant conversation. However, when Cao Cao extended the invitation, he declined politely on the grounds that his father was ill. At first, Cao Cao thought that the other party was just a
Xu Chu pretended to refuse and invited again and again, but Xu Chu remained unmoved. Only then did Cao Cao understand, and he couldn't help but look a little embarrassed.
The next banquet was not as lively as before. Cao Cao sat for a while and stood up to say goodbye. Xu Chu walked out of Xujiabao, standing tall and tall with his hands behind his back, watching Cao Cao ride away...
Xu Chu had a strange appearance, and there were several people behind him who, although a little inferior, also had extraordinary physical appearance. They were all famous rangers in Yuzhou. Because they admired Xu Chu, they took care of Xu Jiabao. One of them, a big man eight feet tall and with a heavy beard, spoke up.
He said: "Brother, I think General Cao is very sincere, why should he refuse?"
Xu Chu shook his head slowly and said word by word: "If I were alone, I would vote. However, there are many people who are dependent on me in the fort. The situation in Yuzhou is dark and unclear now. I can't risk the lives of tens of thousands of people on him."
It’s better to wait and see. I believe that with General Cao’s ability, he will eventually overcome all difficulties and achieve something."
The man whispered: "When General Cao becomes famous, what do you want me to do?"
Xu Chu smiled, the other party couldn't understand him after all. He took one last look at the direction Cao Cao was leaving, turned around and went back to the fort, and said as he walked: "Let's go back to the fort and continue drinking. It's rare to eat meat, so I want to drink to my heart's content..."
"..."
Cao Cao suffered a humiliation in Xujiapu and felt extremely depressed. However, this was just a small matter. As the army set off again and entered the territory of Chen Kingdom, his eyes naturally turned to a higher level.