Chapter 10 Winning the Central Plains Section 10 Li Hong looked at Mao Jue, who looked calm and talked eloquently, angry and funny.

This Lord Mao's face is not ordinarily thick, and not only did he not react to his cold words in the slightest, but spoke more vigorously.

Cao Cao married himself in order to gain time for survival and development. As long as he stabilizes Xu and Yangzhou, he will have the capital to make a comeback.

Now Cao Cao's situation is very difficult. Xuzhou up and down the memory of Cao Cao's bloody Xuzhou is still fresh, after the defeat of the Central Plains War, he used despicable means to occupy Xuzhou, which made Xuzhou people hate Cao Cao even more.

Xuzhou is turbulent and full of hidden worries, and it will take a long time to calm and stabilize, but this is not the main reason for Cao Cao's restlessness.

Xuzhou is currently under the direct attack of the Northern Xinjiang Army, and Cao Cao must take Yangzhou before the Northern Xinjiang Army moves south if he wants to ensure survival.

And if you want to take Yangzhou, you have to defeat Sun Ce and Zhou Yu, but Sun Ce and Zhou Yu are strong, especially the sailors in their hands, which is the biggest obstacle for Cao Cao to attack Jiangdong.

Therefore, the seizure of the two counties of Jiangbei in Yangzhou, namely Jiujiang and Lujiang, has become the most urgent matter. Cao Cao went to rob, Sun Ce and Zhou Yu also went to rob, Yuan Yao and a group of Yuan Shu's old subordinates were also fighting for survival, and the Jianghuai battlefield was indistinguishable for a while.

At this time, the northern Xinjiang armies of Qing and Yan became a mortal threat to Cao Cao. After the Great War in the Central Plains, Hebei's vitality was damaged, and it was very difficult for the Northern Xinjiang Army to conquer Luoyang in a short period of time.

There are eight dangerous passes outside Luoyang, and there are the strongest cities in the world inside, if Hebei does not have sufficient financial endowments, does not have enough infantry troops, and does not complete the encirclement of Jingya, Hebei does not have the conditions to take Luoyang.

Hebei can't hit Luoyang, and the Northern Xinjiang Army won't be idle, and they are very likely to wave their troops south and take advantage of the situation to take Xuzhou.

Cao Cao was attacked before and after, and he would be defeated in the blink of an eye. Cao Cao couldn't sleep at night for this reason, thinking about countermeasures day and night, but there was no other way than to persuade Hebei to let Li Hong take the Northern Xinjiang Army to fight Luoyang.

"Master Mao, before you said this, did you think that this sentence would anger me, and I might kill you in a fit of anger." When Li Hong waited for Mao Jue to say that he was tired and stopped drinking water, he said coldly,

"How can I believe that Brother Meng De is sincere in his obedience to the imperial court? Just by his daughter? When I conquered Luoyang, he probably also conquered Jiangdong, if he continues to fight against the imperial court, how can I explain to the Son of Heaven and the imperial court? Mao Jue was overjoyed, thinking that Li Hong had the intention of relieving, and hurriedly persuaded: "The general has just conquered Yanzhou, if he immediately goes south to attack Xuzhou, not only will he be jointly resisted by my family and Jiangdong Sun Ce Zhou Yu, but Yuan Shao of Luoyang, Liu Bei of Yuzhou and even Liu Biao of Jingzhou will also take the opportunity to counterattack Yanzhou. If you are not careful, the general may also lose Yanzhou, causing Zhongxing's great achievements to be wasted. Mao Jue arched his hand and said,

"General, my family is now obedient to the imperial court, and joining forces with the general to pacify the world, whether it is for the imperial court, for both of us, or for the Han Dynasty, it is a good and harmless thing." Li Hong was furious when he heard this, but the smile on his face was even stronger,

"With what you say, I can't beat Xuzhou and kill Cao Mengde?" Mao Jue was shocked and hurriedly shook his hand,

"The general misunderstood, misunderstood. The general has now taken Xuzhou, which will not help Zhongxing's great cause. On the contrary, it gave Yuan Shao, Liu Biao, Liu Bei and others time to recover their strength. Now that my family is willing to submit to the imperial court, the general can concentrate all his forces to attack Luoyang without giving Yuan Shao and the others any respite. The general regained Luoyang, and the day of the Han Dynasty's revival was also close at hand. After weighing the two, it is already clear how the general should choose. I believe that the general will not ignore the great cause of Zhongxing, and make such a foolish thing as giving up Luoyang to fight Xuzhou. ”

"As for the marriage, it is purely the personal intention of the adults of my family, and with the relationship between the general and my family in the past, it is not too much to make this request. Of course, if the General thinks this is an insult to your identity, you can refuse. ”

"Of course I refuse." Li Hong didn't want to talk anymore, he stood up and waved his hand at the disappointed Mao Jue,

"You go back and tell Brother Meng De that if he sincerely submits to the imperial court, he will let Xuzhou out, hand over the army, and then take his family to Jinyang to wait for the disposal of the Son of Heaven. He is not a prince, nor a hero, he is a rebel, a rebel. If he wants to live, if he wants to save the lives of himself and his relatives, the only way to do this is to surrender. He is not qualified to negotiate any conditions with the Son of Heaven and the imperial court. ”

"General, we all want to calm the world as soon as possible, we all want to prosper the Han, Lord Cao, like you, is also fighting for the Han. You say we are rebellious, but how can you not be rebellious in our eyes? We compare our hearts to our hearts, so why can't we understand each other? Why do you have to be so aggressive, and why do you have to fight to the death with us? "Mao Jue is still making the last effort.

"The majesty of the Han Dynasty cannot be trampled on, and the majesty of the Son of Heaven and the imperial court cannot be humiliated, which is why we are sworn to be enemies." Li Hongyi said solemnly and loudly,

"I will never let the Han be humiliated, and I will never let the Son of Heaven and the court be disgraced." Mao Jue was shocked and speechless. Li Hong did not immediately send Mao Jue away, in order to let him go back and persuade Cao Cao to surrender, Li Hong asked Yang Qi, Xun You, Liu Yi, Zhang Chao, Chen Gong, Zang Hong, Dong Wan, Wang Kai and other ministers to negotiate with Mao Jue one after another.

Mao Jue was very surprised. There are so many famous ministers in the general's line, which shows that Hebei will soon launch a new operation.

The appearance of Xun You, an important minister of the Jinyang court, made him realize that the target of the Northern Xinjiang Army was very likely to be Luoyang.

If Li Hong wanted to fight Xuzhou, he would not have summoned so many ministers to Xingyuan to discuss matters, and the Jinyang court would not have sent Xun You to Yanzhou to take charge.

Mao Jue was overjoyed, and immediately showed his talents and learning, and in turn tried his best to persuade his friends to help him persuade the Jinyang court and the general to agree to Cao Cao's peace demands.

Yang Qi, Xun You, Zang Hong, Chen Gong and others all felt that it was not inappropriate to negotiate peace with Cao Cao at this time, and it would be of great benefit to the army to attack Luoyang, and the eldest princess had the same meaning at the end of last year.

It's just that the general didn't follow the edict. Li Hong resolutely disagreed with Cao Cao to negotiate peace. Yang Qi was very strange, so he asked him, when you were in Jinyang, you recruited Zhang Yan and Yang Feng, but the court did not agree at that time, and you played the chapters one after another, and forced Emperor Xiaoling to agree.

Since you are even willing to appease the Yellow Turban Army, why are you unwilling to appease Cao Cao? Just because he broke the embankment and flooded Jizhou that year?

Or, do you want to take Xuzhou before attacking Luoyang?

"This time and that time." Li Hong said,

"The Yellow Turban Army was recruited mainly to solve the problem of displaced people and to stabilize the society. Now it is different, now the Son of Heaven and the imperial court are rebuilding their prestige, and the great cause of Zhongxing is taking off. We must not be forced by the situation to bow to the rebels, accept the unreasonable demands of the rebels, and encourage the arrogance of the rebels. ”

"Back then, I was ordered to appease the Yellow Turban Army and take hundreds of thousands of Yellow Turban Army soldiers to guard the border fortress. In order to defend the territory of our Han Dynasty, these officers and soldiers of the Yellow Turban Army have paid countless blood and lives, and more than 200,000 heroic martyrs are buried in the mountains and rivers of the border fortress. Today I asked Cao Cao to give up Xuzhou and hand over the army, why is he unwilling? Don't you know what his purpose is? Can this be compared to the appeasement of the Yellow Turban Army back then? Yang Qi was speechless.

At that time, Zhang Yan and Yang Feng not only handed over the territory and the army, but also firmly guarded the frontier for the Han Dynasty, conquered the desert, opened up the territory for the Han Dynasty, and made great achievements.

On the contrary, now Cao Cao is not only unwilling to hand over Xuzhou and the army, but also treats himself as a prince, and negotiates with the imperial court on an equal footing, which is indeed an insult to the Son of Heaven and the imperial court.

"General, do you have any plans to attack Xuzhou?" Xun You asked,

"If the general has no intention of attacking Xuzhou, I think we can talk to Cao Cao. This is a good opportunity to split the rebels, and it would be a shame to miss it. Li Hong hesitated for a moment and did not speak.

"General, judging from the current situation in Qingdao and Yanzhou, it is obviously unrealistic to attack Xuzhou in the spring." Seeing that Li Hong did not make a clear statement, Chen Gong immediately said,

"Cao Cao attacked Xuzhou twice back then, but both failed, in addition to the various reasons we know, there is also a little-known reason." Li Hong and everyone looked at Chen Gong together.

"When Cao Cao formulated the strategy for attacking Xuzhou, I also participated, and at that time we all ignored an important situation, that is, the terrain and climate of Xuzhou. Xuzhou is covered with dense rivers, whether it is marching or transporting grain and grass, we have encountered great difficulties. The southern counties of Xuzhou, near Jianghuai, have very cold and humid winters, while the northern winters are cold but dry, and these two colds are fundamentally different things. The soldiers in the north could not adapt, and many froze to death from frostbite. Due to our lack of preparation, coupled with the lack of troops, and the Xuzhou army under the command of Tao Qian, it also held the city and vowed not to surrender, and the first attack of the Yanzhou army failed. ”

"The following year, Cao Cao attacked Xuzhou again, and at this time we had learned a lot from the first attack, and we were well prepared, and the time was chosen in the summer, so this attack went very well. If it weren't for Lord Lu Bu and Lord Zhang Miao leading us to attack Yanzhou in time, Cao Cao would definitely be able to defeat Tao Qian and take Xuzhou. ”

"Cao Cao has always formed an alliance with Liu Bei since stabilizing Yanzhou, and he has never found an excuse to send troops to attack Xuzhou, which has a lot to do with the fact that he lost confidence in conquering Xuzhou."

"Now if we want to fight Xuzhou, we need to meet several conditions. First, there must be enough infantry troops. On the battlefield of Xuzhou, because of the terrain, the main thing is to attack the city, and it is difficult for the iron cavalry to play a role, so it is necessary to have enough infantry troops to speed up the attack. Second, it is best to choose the attack time in the summer. In addition to the cold northern soldiers who penetrated into the bone marrow in winter, the Jianghuai area could not adapt, and there was also the 'rainy season' weather at the turn of spring and summer. In this kind of weather, the rain is dense, the air is humid, and all things are rotten, so it is also called 'mildew rain'. When the soldiers encounter the rainy weather, not only will they not be able to fight, but they will also lose a large number of troops due to the lack of adaptation to the water and soil, and the morale of the army will be easily weakened, burying the hidden worry of defeat. ”

"At present, part of our infantry army is in the Hedong battlefield, and part of it is in the Hanoi, Henan and Yuzhou battlefields, and only the armies of Zang Ba, Gao Shun, Xu Huang and Zhang Liao can attack Xuzhou. And in these four battalions, most of them were northern soldiers, except for some southern soldiers who were transferred from prisoners. Therefore, if we want to go south to fight Xuzhou, we not only need to prepare for a long time, but also gather more infantry troops. However, in the summer, after the stability of Qingdao and Yanzhou, the Guanzhong battlefield had already begun to fight. The imperial court's wealth this year can only supply one battlefield at most, so it is impossible for the general to go south to fight Xuzhou this year. As for next year, after Guanzhong is conquered, the general will lead the army to attack Luoyang again, and it is impossible to go south to Xuzhou. ”

"Cao Cao of Xuzhou has been given precious time, he can stabilize Xuzhou, he can take Yangzhou, he can restore and develop his strength, and he is very likely to attack Yanzhou when we attack Luoyang." Chen Gong arched his hand at Li Hong,

"General, although my speculation may not be correct, judging from the current situation, we really have no possibility of taking advantage of the situation to attack Cao Cao and go south to Xuzhou."

"In order to quickly stabilize the Qing and Yan Prefectures and start attacking Luoyang as soon as possible, the general should think carefully. Although you are not willing to accept Cao Cao's conditions and do not want the Son of Heaven and the court to be humiliated, you can accept Cao Cao's marriage in a private capacity with the permission of the Son of Heaven and the court, so that the goals of both parties can be achieved. ”

"For Cao Cao, what he wants is the promise of the general. As long as the general does not fight Xuzhou this year, his goal will be achieved, and he can concentrate on stabilizing Xuzhou and fighting Yangzhou. ”

"For us, what we want is the fact of this peace. Using this fact, we can drive a wedge between Cao Cao and Yuan Shao, Liu Biao, and Liu Bei, isolating Cao Cao from the rebel alliance. At the same time, we can also use this fact to appease Sun Ce and Zhou Yu in Jiangdong. ”

"Without our containment in the northern part of Xuzhou, Jiangdong would be fiercely attacked by Cao Cao. Once Jiangdong is in danger, Liu Biao of Jingzhou will go down the river and attack Cao Cao on both sides. Sun Ce and Zhou Yu will be appeased immediately when Jiangdong is in danger, and this is the only way to keep Jiangdong. ”

"After Sun Ce and Zhou Yu returned to the imperial court, the general could use his troops in northern Xuzhou to threaten Cao Cao. Cao Cao was worried that the general would break his promise, so he had to withdraw his troops, so that his hope of capturing Jiangdong and trying to make a comeback was dashed. As for Liu Biao, when he saw Cao Cao withdraw his troops, of course he didn't dare to attack Jiangdong alone, so he could only withdraw his troops. ”

"The general did not have a single soldier, but Cao Cao, Liu Biao, Sun Ce and Zhou Yu fought on both sides of the Yangtze River, and Xuzhou, Jingzhou, and Jiangdong were greatly injured. Cao Cao was busy in Jianghuai for a long time, but in the end he found nothing. Liu Biao wanted to pick up a sesame seed, but lost the watermelon. And whether Sun Ce and Zhou Yu of Jiangdong are sincere or not to submit to the imperial court, they still have Jiangdong, which can form a huge threat to Cao Cao and Liu Biao, which will be of great benefit to our attack on Luoyang. ”

"Because Cao Cao did not take Jiangdong, he was damaged in many battles, and his relationship with Yuan Shao, Liu Biao, and Liu Bei was bad, and Sun Ce and Zhou Yu were eyeing him on the other side of the Yangtze River, so when he took advantage of our attack on Luoyang, the possibility of sending troops to attack Yanzhou was very small. With his strength, we will go south to recover Xuzhou in the future, and we will not go down in one go? ”

"General, you weigh it carefully and see if the marriage and peace with Cao Cao are in greater interest to us?" The general accepted the advice of Yang Qi, Xun You, Chen Gong and other ministers, and decided to marry Cao Cao in a private capacity, but Lu Yi and Fu Gan were worried that this matter would bring unnecessary trouble to the general and tried their best to dissuade him.

Lu Yi said, this kind of thing can't be done, if someone frames you with this matter in the future, saying that you are fornicating and treacherous, how do you explain it?

The more he thought about it, the more angry he became, and he ran to the big tent and scolded Yang Qi, Xun You and others who were deliberating.

"Either the ministers will play this together, or you will just be a fart, there is no such thing." Fu Gan, Wang Ling and others dragged Liyi away.

As soon as Koji left, there was laughter in the big tent.

"General Zuo Wei is a good man." Zhang Chao threw his hand at Ko Yi's back,

"Shangguan who is sympathetic to public opinion like General Zuo Wei is really rare now."

"Alright, alright, what nonsense, come and stamp your letter." Jin Shang came over with a long piece of music,

"If it weren't for Cao Cao coming to negotiate peace, we don't know when we would be able to leave Xingyuan?"

"Now we are in the same camp as the general, and we can leave at any time." Dong Wan stood next to him and said,

"We have worked together with the general like this, and I believe the general is very grateful to us. Even if we know that we are not good enough, we can only turn a blind eye. ”

"The affairs of Qing and Yanzhou, as long as the general does not pursue them, the big things will be turned into small things, and the small things will be turned into small things, and it will be fine." Yang Yi let out a long breath,

"Now I can finally breathe a sigh of relief and get a good night's sleep." Considering the prestige of the Son of Heaven and the imperial court, it was suggested that the eldest princess should issue an order to let the general come forward in his private capacity to negotiate peace with Cao Cao, so as to stabilize the Qing and Yan prefectures and allow the army to devote more time to the preparation for the attack on Luoyang.

Before the imperial decree came down, the three ministers Yang Qi, Xun You, and Fan Li discussed with Mao Jue about marriage and peace.

"Gongda, who did you just say? Who is going to marry the daughter of my lord? After listening to Xun You's words, Mao Jue's face changed suddenly, and his eyes suddenly widened.

"Xiaoxian, you're old, aren't your ears bad?" Xun You smiled unhurriedly,

"I'm talking about the sacrifice of the front, the captain of the Hu cavalry sacrifice of the front."

"What? Cao Cao wouldn't want to marry his daughter to the general and let the general be his son-in-law, right? Yang Qi stroked his long beard and laughed,

"If Cao Cao really thinks so, then let's not talk about it. He's a madman who kills himself. Mao Jue ignored Yang Qi's ridicule, and said angrily at Fan Li: "I want to see the general, I want to talk to the general in person." Fan Li shook his head,

"The general does not agree to negotiate peace by marriage." He pointed at Xun You and said,

"If it weren't for the persuasion of Xun Daren and begging the general to write to the Son of Heaven for instructions, we would not be sitting here today. If you don't want to talk, the general will be very happy, because he is ordering the battalions and troops to prepare for the south to Xuzhou. Mao Jue snorted coldly and said very dissatisfied: "It's you who don't want to talk." ”

"Filial piety. What are you talking about? Yang Qi's face immediately fell, "The general only has two six-year-old daughters, who in the world doesn't know?"

You said that Cao Cao was going to marry the general, how to marry? Is Cao Cao marrying a daughter-in-law or a daughter?

Did he really want the general to be his son-in-law? Then I can tell you the results now. You immediately go back and tell Cao Cao that the iron cavalry of the Northern Xinjiang Army is about to enter Xuzhou, and the person who ordered to attack Xuzhou is the eldest princess.

Cao Cao and you are dead.

Mao Jue waved his hand angrily,

"What nonsense are you talking about, sir? The general has two subordinates who regard him as his own, one is Lord Tian Chou and the other is Lord Fu Gan. Lord Tian Chou has married the daughter of the Zhen family in Jizhou, but Lord Fu Gan has not yet married a wife. My family has a fancy for Fu Gan. ”

"Fu Gan?" Xun You was not surprised at all, and shook his hand again and again,

"You're late, he's already engaged."

"It's just an engagement, and it's not that I've already married into the family."

"Do you know who the other party is?" Xun You said with a smile,

"One is the granddaughter of the eldest princess of Fuwan and Yang Zhai, and the other is the daughter of Sima Fang of Hanoi."

"Two?" Mao Jue was stunned,

"Marry two at a time?"

"The general's wife took a fancy to the Sima family, but the eldest princess of Yangzhai took a fancy to Master Fu. The general's wife was in a dilemma and had to turn to the eldest princess for help. The eldest princess said that she couldn't afford to offend any family, so she simply cheapened Master Fu and married together. Xun You spread his hands and said helplessly,

"Actually, even if Master Fu didn't marry a wife, the general would never agree to this family business." Mao Jue was disappointed and smiled bitterly.

The general Li Hong and these ministers of Jinyang were simply playing tricks on themselves, and even let Lord Cao's daughter marry a Hu man, a bearded Karasuma man.

Thinking about Mao Jue's anger, he was angry, and he couldn't wait to point at the three of them and scold.

"Xiaoxian, don't look down on him if he is a Karasuma man. Do you remember the Xiongnu Jin Riyan, the minister of the Xiaowu Emperor's Dynasty? I think that the achievements of this sacrifice will definitely be no worse than that of Kim Il-pan in the future. Xun You said,

"He is the son of Heng Sai, the general of Northern Xinjiang. After Heng Matsuri died in Sunset, the general took Sai Feng with him and treated him like his own son. not only let him live in the General's Mansion, but also let him worship Prime Minister Cai Yong, the former Taifu Zhao Qi, and Mr. Wang Jian, the Confucian of Jinyang University Hall. With the connections of these three teachers in the court, coupled with his connections in the army, and his special status in the Hu tribes, his future achievements can be imagined. Maybe he will surpass Tian Chou and Fu Gan and become a generation of important ministers in this dynasty who have both civil and military skills. Although Xun You was smiling, these words were very serious, and Mao Jue still vaguely heard the meaning.

Perhaps, Cao Cao's marriage of his daughter to Sai Feng is the real marriage.

"Cao Cao, what he wants to do, you and I know it in our hearts." Fan Li patted the case hard,

At this time, he came to negotiate peace, to put it bluntly, he just wanted to let himself take a breath, and when his strength recovered, he would turn his face and fight. As for what kind of marriage, it is even simpler, purely to leave a way back for his Cao family. In the future, if he is defeated, with his heinous rebellion, he will inevitably be punished by the nine clans. With this marriage, it may be able to leave some blood for their Cao family. Mao Jue was silent.

He had already understood Xun You's words, and he was going to rush to Cao Cao. Chen Hao hurriedly walked into the big tent with a bundle of concerto.

General Li Hong, General Li Yi of the Left Guard, Xun You, Supervisor of the Central Library, Yang Qi, Assassin Shi of Yanzhou, Fu Gan, Wang Ling, Sun Xing, and others of the Liangfu Peng, were all present, reading the urgent reports sent from all over the country.

This is the third batch of urgent reports that Zhao Yun and others were ordered to rush to Qingdao and Yanzhou to carry out land inventory and arrest officials who violated the law.

The severity of it far exceeded their expectations, and more and more ministers of Jinyang and the wealthy men of Hebei Sanzhou were involved.

Chen Hao was the secretary of the Imperial History Observatory, who was in charge of the impeachment of the law and was familiar with the provisions of the law, and the impeachment of county officials was mainly written by him.

Seeing several cases piled up with papers, he couldn't help but let out a sigh,

"General, you still let me lead the troops to fight, I really can't stand it."

"Okay, accept your resignation." Li Hong put down the scroll in his hand and said with a smile,

"However, it is not for you to lead the troops to fight, but for you to go to Jiangdong."

"To Koto?" Chen Hao immediately understood,

"Let me go and appease Sun Ce and Zhou Yu?" Hiroshi said,

"I have already written to the court, and the decree will come down soon."

"You go with Sun Fu and Lu Su." Xun You stood up, walked up to him and said,

"We have negotiated peace with Cao Cao, and Cao Cao's army will soon concentrate all its forces to attack Jiangdong. And Liu Biao in Jingzhou saw that there was an opportunity to take advantage of it, and he was bound to increase his troops to attack Yuzhang, and Sun Ce and Zhou Yu's life became more and more difficult. Then he said the general situation of the peace with Cao Cao,

"If Sun Ce and Zhou Yu want to defend Jiangdong, they can only be appeased."

"Shall I leave right away?"

"You prepare. When the decree arrives, leave immediately. Li Hong said,

"After you arrive in Jiangdong, no matter what conditions Sun Ce and Zhou Yu propose, you can agree to come down first. But Sun Ce and Zhou Yu must accept our three conditions, otherwise the proposal of appeasement will be abandoned. ”

"Please make it clear, General."

"First, let their family members go to Jinyang to serve as a hostage. 2. Pay taxes to the imperial court. 3. After our army pacified Jianghuai, they immediately ceded Jiangdong and surrendered their army. Chen Hao bowed and agreed.

At this time, the thief Cao arbitrarily opened the curtain and walked in.

"General, Liu Pan has arrived at Xingyuan, do you want to see him?" Jump to