Chapter 166 Liu Yu Arrives...
Now that the strategy had been decided, Yuan Shao could be said to be swift and resolute in his actions.
Xu You's proposal of "using public opinion to force Liu Yu to temporarily leave Youzhou and go to Liangzhou to stop Qiao Yan's offensive" was a supplement to the general direction proposed by Ju Su.
Yuan Shao immediately sent someone to execute him.
This is not a difficult thing to do.
At a time like this when natural disasters are rampant, the Han people and Wuhuan people in Youzhou sincerely feel that if Liu Yu is in power, their lives will become better, and they can actually support him to ascend the throne.
After Yuan Shao had people deliberately guide the speech, even though Liu Yu had openly opposed such advice, he was unable to stop the private voices from growing louder and louder until they reached his ears.
In the past, when Huangfu Song had military merit in suppressing the Yellow Turbans and had a good reputation in his early years, he also faced such a choice of adding fuel to the fire.
However, the Han emperor at that time transferred Huangfu Song from Jizhou within a year and weakened his military power. This voice of support was at most a tiny bit left in the nursery rhymes, which gave people a glimpse of the situation at that time.
But the situation Liu Yu had to face was different.
The decline of the central government's reputation in the Han Dynasty led to the rampant spread of such remarks in Youzhou, and some people even suspected that he was intentionally allowing such voices to spread.
Liu Yu was kind to others and not a courageous and decisive person. He was caught up in this unstoppable trend and was extremely worried. He was afraid that he would be accused of having coveted the throne from a governor who was forced to take on the post to suppress a rebellion and then be appointed as the late emperor's trusted minister.
It was in such a worrying situation that he received Liu Bian's request.
The letter reads:
[Today, the world is divided into two, and the people do not know who is their leader. Therefore, those in the western border face west, and those in the eastern border face east. This is a common thing. Although I am anxious, I am not surprised.
However, all under heaven belongs to the king, and when the people have worries, I have thoughts too.
Liangzhou is located in the border area, and the Qiang people have been invading the country, so the two provinces have been living together in mixed communities, which has been a common practice for hundreds of years. Therefore, Taiwei Duan Jiming once used the method of exterminating the Eastern Qiang to cleanse Liang Province, but he still could not put an end to the conflict between the Han and Qiang. Now, Qiao Bingzhou first captured Gaoping and then broke Jincheng, killing tens of thousands of people. Although it is necessary to advance to Chang'an, there is still a hidden worry on the border.
I have heard that Liu Youzhou has governed the chaos in the border areas with benevolence, and within a year the people's lives have been restored to harmony. The Han and Qiang people traded goods in the Hu market and became one family. It turns out that Liu Youzhou is going to Liangzhou to help the people of Xiliang out of their predicament.
My younger brother was kidnapped by Dong Zhuo and taken to Chang'an, and I am also worried.
If Qiao Bingzhou can march straight into Chang'an and capture it, there is no need to stop him. But if there are many hidden dangers, I hope Liu Youzhou will take the late emperor's entrustment of the orphan as his own responsibility and do his best to dissuade him. 】
Liu Yu looked at the letter in front of him for a long time and couldn't help but sigh.
He was not a fool and could see that the letter was more likely written by Yuan Shao than by Liu Bian.
As for these voices in Youzhou, whether they were just the people going with the flow or someone was fanning the flames behind the scenes, he had lived to this age and would not be unaware of them.
But in this situation where he was almost being roasted on the fire, the best choice he could make was to leave Youzhou temporarily.
Firstly, Youzhou’s bumper harvest is just around the corner, and with the various regulations formulated by Tianchou, there won’t be any major problems.
Secondly, if the situation in Liangzhou was really as Liu Bian said in the letter, he would probably have to go there to see what was going on.
If Qiao Yeshu really used the excuse of rescuing Liu Xie and returning to the capital Luoyang to do things that violated the Han Dynasty's system in Liangzhou, he, as a Han minister and a member of the Han royal family and an important minister entrusted with the care of the young emperor, would have to stop her.
What Liu Yu did not expect was that those traveling to Liangzhou with him were not only his own followers, but also a group of scholars.
Upon hearing that these people were asking Qiao Bingzhou to send troops cautiously in order to protect Lu Zhi, Xun Shuang and others from being harmed by Dong Zhuo, Liu Yu did not say anything on the surface, but he could not help but feel suspicious in his heart.
This doesn't seem like a coincidence, but more like someone did it on purpose.
But both of these reasons are valid, and even if one can vaguely see the support from behind, one has no choice but to follow the established trajectory.
Therefore, Liu Yu only reminded his son, who was temporarily taking over the duties of Youzhou Mu, to be a little wary of Yuan Shao, and then set out on the journey to Liangzhou.
But what Liu Yu did not expect was that when he passed through Bingzhou, Xi Zhicai, who was guarding Bingzhou for Qiao Yan, heard his intention and not only did not stop his actions, but on the contrary, he replaced the horses pulling the carriage for him and equipped him with a few more guards on the grounds that Liu Yu was the hope of the royal family and must be careful along the way.
That’s not all.
When he arrived in Liangzhou, the governor of Bingzhou, who was reportedly reorganizing his troops and intending to march towards Chang'an after the rebellion was quelled, came in person to greet him as his "respected colleague."
This attitude made Liu Yu think for a moment that he was not here to pick a fight with her, but to make a friendly visit.
In this somewhat magical situation, Liu Yu subconsciously looked at the ghost mask hanging around Qiao Yan's waist and asked about it.
"This is the ghost mask that the Qiang people use to summon the gods." Qiao Yan smiled playfully, "I'm not afraid of being laughed at by Liu Youzhou. I was eager to send troops to suppress the rebellion to ensure that the rear would be pacified when attacking Dong Zhuo. I took action against the Hanyang Yang family. The Yang family has a branch in Jiuquan. On the one hand, they felt that the incident with the Hanyang Yang family was an opportunity for them to stand out, but on the other hand, they were afraid of being implicated."
"I don't know where the rumor came from, saying that I spared Ma Shoucheng because General Ma has a son named Ma Mengqi, and then they sent me a young ranger from their own branch."
"This man's name is Yang Feng. Another name is Yang A'ruo. In Jiuquan, there is a saying: "East Market clashes with Yang A'ruo, West Market clashes with Yang A'ruo." Anyway, this guy is always involved in street fights. Because he looks like a beautiful woman, he is coveted by others. So he covered his face with a ghost mask and called himself Gui Feng."
Liu Yu asked: "Most knights have fiery tempers, and I'm afraid they would not want to accept gifts from people who are trying to curry favor with the rich and powerful."
He regretted what he had just said.
On the way to Liangzhou, he told himself that if Qiao Yan's behavior in Liangzhou was really inappropriate, he would ask questions directly to avoid being led into trouble by the other party.
As a result, when I heard her talking about such strange gossip, I couldn't help but join in the conversation.
Qiao Yan seemed not to notice the depression in Liu Yu's expression at the moment, and just continued to reply: "Of course he is not happy. I heard that Dong Zhuo tried to win over this man in the early years, but he declined on the grounds that he despised Dong Zhuo. But I don't need such a gift, so I called Meng Qi and had a fight with Yang Aruo."
Yang Feng was a capable man, even a top ranger who had made a name for himself among the Qiang people, and was also quite capable of commanding troops.
But it would be fine if Ma Chao lost to Lu Bu, but how could he lose to Yang Feng?
Seeing that Liu Yu was also somewhat curious, Qiao Yan kept it a secret for a while before saying, "I have already sent him and Meng Qi to Wudu County. It won't be a waste of his abilities if he helps Governor Gai to recapture this place first."
"Before I left, this guy gave me his ghost mask, saying that he had accidentally misunderstood me before. This item is for praying for the Qiang people. If we want to pacify Jiuquan, it may be of some use."
Qiao Yan fiddled with the mask in his hand and put it on his face, but did not fasten it. He suddenly poked his head out from behind the hideous mask, revealing a face that had become more refined and handsome with age. "This Liangzhou is really an interesting place. What do you think, Liu Youzhou?"
"..." Liu Yu was not sure whether Qiao Yan was only talking about the matter of Yang Feng, or was referring to the image she was spreading to the outside world at this time. It was as if she was wearing a ghost mask, but the actual situation could only be seen after the mask was removed.
He pondered for a moment and then asked, "Ye Shu acted too hastily in Liangzhou, only looking ahead without thinking about the consequences. Is there anything wrong with that?"
Qiao Yan straightened his expression and replied, "Then what does Liu Youzhou teach me?"
Liu Yu looked at Gaoping City in front of him. Even though several months had passed, because there was not much rain in Liangzhou at that time, the outer walls of the city still had blood stains left over from the fierce battle when the city was captured. He couldn't help but shook his head. "Slow down."
"If we rashly advance to Chang'an, once we get into a stalemate, Dong Zhuo will most likely attack Lord Lu, Lord Xun and others. Liang Province will recover from the shock and chaos will easily break out. It is better to wait for the reinforcements from Jing Province to arrive and Liang Province will be peaceful before sending troops."
"Ye Shu is a genius in the use of troops. I am far inferior to him, but I can see clearly what the current situation is."
He thought about the reasons to persuade her and added, "To be honest with you, Yeshu, many of the people accompanying you to Liangzhou are former disciples of Lord Lu and Lord Xun. They would rather give up the opportunity to study at the Imperial College in Yecheng and come to advise you. What they convey is the voice of another group of people. I hope Yeshu will take it seriously."
Qiao Yan held the fallen ghost mask in his hand, his eyes lingering on the paint on it, and said with a smile: "Liu Youzhou has said so. If I don't obey, wouldn't it be too rebellious?"
She raised her eyes to meet Liu Yu's gaze again and replied, "Since Lord Lu's disciples have arrived, I am grateful to Lord Lu for teaching me Shangshu. They are also my fellow disciples. I should welcome them."
"I wonder if Liu Youzhou is satisfied with this decision?"
Liu Yu was speechless for a long time.
This strange atmosphere of conversation was completely different from what he had expected before arriving in Liangzhou, and it made him feel guilty that he had come here to be a villain.
But he... he seemed to have not yet had a comprehensive understanding of the situation in Liangzhou. What to do next could actually still be discussed.
As a typical good guy among the Han royal family, Liu Yu chose to flee in the face of Qiao Yan's gaze, using the excuse of settling down.
However, he didn't know that behind him, Qiao Yan threw the ghost mask to Cheng Yu beside him, with a cheerful smile on his face.
“I have some regrets,” she said.
She couldn't tell the truth to others, but she could tell it to Cheng Yu.
So naturally she did not regret that after Liu Yu arrived in Liangzhou, she had to slow down the pace of her attack on Chang'an.
She looked towards the Huoshizhai military settlement in the distance. Seeing that there would be a good harvest in another month, she sighed, "You said Liu Bo'an should come, but why didn't you bring his subordinate Tian Zitai with you?"
"...My lord, please be careful with your words." Cheng Yu coughed lightly and reminded him.
Qiao Yan waved his hand and replied, "I know, but I won't tell anyone about this."
Intellectually, Qiao Yan certainly knew that Youzhou had just received a group of people who had fled from Weijun, and there would have to be a digestion process first.
It was indeed the most appropriate choice for Liu Yu to come to Liangzhou to dissuade her from her actions and have his son Liu He take over the position of Mu of Youzhou and leave Tian Chou to him to assist in the affairs of the state.
But emotionally speaking, Youzhou, which was in a state of disrepair and had yet to recover from Zhang Ju's rebellion, needed people like Tian Chou. Liangzhou in front of Qiao Yan, which had just been freed from the Xiliang rebels, also needed a large number of people with good governance talents.
Who would think that there are too many people like Tian Chou?
Fortunately, although Xun Shuang and Lu Zhi's disciples, who were used by Yuan Shao to create public pressure on her, were not talented people, they were all suitable people when she needed to clarify the details of the situation in Liangzhou.
After she has stabilized Anding, Hanyang, Longxi and Jincheng, she can expand her sphere of influence northward to Jiuquan, Wuwei, Zhangye, Dunhuang and other places.
If this place wasn't too far away from Jizhou, she really wanted to express her gratitude to Yuan Shao in person!
Qiao Yan's decision to gather troops and postpone preparations for war seemed a real pity to the generals under her command, especially Lu Bu and Ma Chao who were eager to make achievements.
For this reason, they often glared at Liu Yu.
But in the eyes of Yuan Shao and Dong Zhuo, this was a great event that gave them room for development.
Especially Dong Zhuo!
If it wasn't inappropriate, Dong Zhuo would have wanted to give Qiao Yan the title of Governor of Liang Province, so that she could discuss the people's livelihood management issues in Liang Province with Liu Yu.
Dong Zhuo himself came from Liang Province, so he knew clearly that in a place like Liang Province, a temporary victory did not mean the opponent's surrender. If he really wanted to take root and govern there, it would be a hot potato.
Liangzhou had changed five governors in three or four years, and the prefects of all dynasties were high-risk occupations. To govern them properly and make them become one's own helpers, it is very likely that it will not make it easier for her to send troops to Chang'an, but will instead drag down her strength.
Regardless of whether this goal of dragging Dong Zhuo down could be achieved or not, as long as all her accumulation in Bingzhou over the years could be thrown into the bottomless pit of Liangzhou, and Dong Zhuo could recuperate in Chang'an, recruit soldiers, and actively prepare for war, his situation would be much better than before.
"Sir, you are right. It is indeed the most appropriate strategy for us to keep our troops in place and let Yuan Shao hold back Qiao Yan."
Dong Zhuo almost wanted to step forward and shake Jia Xu's hand to express his sincere gratitude, but he saw the other party looking towards the north with a look of disappointment.
He thought that Jia Xu was probably worried about his wife and children in Bingzhou, so he withdrew his hand first, lest his overly excited behavior put any pressure on the other party.
Fortunately, if Jia Xu really wanted to gain a reputation for his family, he was mentally prepared before offering advice to Dong Zhuo.
When he turned his head to look at Dong Zhuo, his expression had returned to calm.
"The Prime Minister should not be too happy at this time. Qiao Yeshu is not someone who is not good at governance. Liangzhou can only hold her back for one or two years. If Liangzhou cannot invest too much manpower in construction, she will not hesitate to make the decision."
Dong Zhuo was shocked and realized that his previous estimate of using Liang Province to drag her down was too idealistic.
But it makes sense. A person like Qiao Yan has not shown any obvious shortcomings so far. Even though he was a little youthful in his raids to the border areas, he has never been alone in the enemy's territory and had his retreat cut off by the enemy.
She is not greedy and will not sacrifice herself.
Don't underestimate her!
"What does sir mean?"
Jia Xu replied: "On the one hand, we still need to ensure that the passes in various places are guarded. In order to prevent the generals from habitually slacking off and making defensive mistakes when guarding one place, it is better to rotate the troops among the three parties and rotate them every four months. This can also prevent one of the generals from contacting Bingzhou."
Dong Zhuo thought to himself that it was indeed necessary to be on guard against the emergence of traitors within the army.
However, Duan Wei can defend the important road from Liangzhou to Sanfu, but it is still unknown whether the others can do so.
For example, Yan Xing, who had just surrendered, was not allowed to stay here.
Therefore, how to implement this suggestion specifically still needs to be considered.
But thinking that Jia Xu's suggestion was in his best interest, Dong Zhuo nodded and said, "What you said is true, sir."
Jia Xu added: "Secondly, we can purchase rice from Yizhou in the name of the emperor's food shortage to quickly balance the grain prices in Chang'an. If the grain transportation becomes a routine, if the prime minister needs to take down his troops and march into Yizhou one day, he will have an additional cover."
Just as Dong Zhuo showed some joy on his face, he heard Jia Xu said in a rather sharp tone: "Don't use small money in this kind of transaction."
"...That's natural." Dong Zhuo smiled awkwardly.
After Dong Zhuo retreated to Chang'an, Liu Yan accepted the title of Grand Marshal, which Dong Zhuo had given him in order to win over people. He also expressed his gratitude to Dong Zhuo for releasing his eldest son Liu Fan. However, it was impossible for Liu Yan to have any good feelings towards Dong Zhuo. At most, he just gave him a pass for the sake of face.
The invisible subtext is——
Liu Yan behaved himself in Yizhou, and Dong Zhuo had no right to interfere.
Just as a deal, between Liu Xie and Liu Bian, Liu Yan would tend to choose Liu Xie.
Therefore, if Dong Zhuo wanted to use the grain price in Yizhou to buy some rice for Chang'an expenses, he could.
If you want to gain some advantage in Yizhou by taking advantage of this matter, no!
But Dong Zhuo secretly pondered the life-saving pie that Jia Xu had painted for him, and thought that even if he couldn't use small amounts of money, this transaction was different from his usual no-cost business, so it didn't seem like a problem if he had to suffer a little loss.
Especially in Hanzhong County, if he could plant a few nails under the pretext of transporting grain, he could always use them when he was in dire straits.
If it doesn't cost money, then don't use it.
Jia Xu glanced at Dong Zhuo's expression and guessed that Dong Zhuo's idea of accumulating military funds was probably not completely dispelled, and it was only because the situation was indeed critical at the moment that he restrained himself.
If he was really Dong Zhuo's adviser, he might think this was a mean and vulgar view, which was really annoying. However, he just pretended that he didn't see the other party's behavior and said in a calm tone: "Third, please ask the Prime Minister to help Liu Jingsheng with the friction in Jingzhou."
Sun Jian was given the title of General Po Lu under the imperial decree of the eastern court, which allowed him to recruit soldiers in Jingzhou under the pretext of suppressing the Jingzhou clan bandits.
Qiao Yan declined the title of General of Cavalry sent by Yecheng, but Sun Jian temporarily needed this title to enhance his reputation.
Liu Biao accepted the title of Governor of Jingzhou sent by Dong Zhuo.
It can be said that one person from the east and one person from the west each received a commission.
Of course, if that were all, it would not be enough to put the two of them in a state of hostility.
But Sun Jian is not the kind of person who would allow himself to suffer any loss.
Earlier, when he joined forces to fight against Dong Zhuo, he killed Zhang Zi, the then prefect of Nanyang, because he refused to supply him with military rations.
It was because of this incident that when Sun Jian mentioned to Liu Biao that he needed to borrow the road, Cai Mao, who worked for Liu Biao, asked Liu Biao a question, "Why do you want to follow the example of Governor Zhang?"
Cai Mao's worries are not without reason.
Who knows if Sun Jian's plan to borrow another country's territory to attack Dong Zhuo was just another trick to attack Guo while using another country's territory as a pretext?
How can we guarantee that, because the road from Jingzhou to Chang'an is difficult to travel, Sun Jian will not turn around and stab Liu Biao if he encounters any dissatisfaction when he needs material assistance from Jingzhou?
Now that the world is in turmoil and two emperors are separated, since Liu Biao has already obtained the power of Jingzhou Governor, he does not have to stick to the position of neutrality and not offending anyone. It would be better for him to stand on Liu Xie's side and seek greater benefits.
Of course, this is not just an opinion based on Sun Jian's personality. For these aristocratic families in Jingzhou, if they choose to surrender to the eastern court, their status will inevitably be lower than that of the aristocratic families in Hebei and Ruyang. This is not something they can accept.
Instead of this, it is better to choose Dong Zhuo.
Anyway, there is still a fig leaf on the surface——
They chose Liu Xie instead of Dong Zhuo.
Liu Biao was able to gain a foothold in Jingzhou thanks to the support of the aristocratic families in Jingzhou, so it was natural for him to accept this choice.
This is also why, according to the news received by Dong Zhuo and Yuan Shao, local friction and conflict had already occurred between Jingzhou Governor Liu Biao and General Sun Jian, and the war could escalate at any time.
Looking around, it was obvious that Yuan Shu, an ambitious but incompetent man, could not even take over a small Lujiang County in Yangzhou. It was impossible for him to join forces with Sun Jian to solve the problem of Liu Biao.
But this does not mean that Liu Biao's situation was advantageous.
Once the balance of the battle in Jingzhou was broken and turned into an all-out offensive, he would inevitably suffer some losses because he was not as good as Sun Jian and Zhu Jun in commanding troops.
In this case, he still needs external help to give him a hand!
After Dong Zhuo agreed to his suggestion and left, Jia Xu withdrew his gaze from Dong Zhuo, the victim, and instead looked at the chessboard in front of him.
In order to show his respect for his new and only counselor, Dong Zhuo specially asked someone to take out the jade chessboard from the gold and silver jewelry brought from Luoyang and gave it to Jia Xu as a pastime.
The black and white chess pieces on the chessboard are shrouded in a layer of warm light under the illumination of the candles in the room.
But he did not appreciate the value of the chess pieces. He just casually grabbed a handful of black pieces and let them fall one by one onto the original chessboard when he let go.
After a series of crisp collision sounds, it became difficult to tell what the original chess game looked like on the chessboard.
Jia Xu's hand was still suspended in the air, like a still silhouette in the light, but a barely visible smile suddenly appeared on his unfathomable face with his eyes downcast.
Jingzhou...
Letting Sun Jian and Liu Biao continue to fight each other will lead to too much uncertainty, and it may not necessarily develop in a direction that is beneficial to you. It is better to -
Be a little cruel.
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