Chapter 327: Reunion
Not only did she say this with confidence, she also did not give anyone the slightest chance to mediate.
Cao Ang could not help but ask: "Since Qiao Bingzhou intends to sell cotton to us in the form of silver, why does he also use books as a medium? Putting aside the increased cost of making and transporting books, how many people can understand the true meaning of it?"
"You are wrong." Qiao Yan raised her hand to stop Cao Ang from trying to refute her bargaining chip. "For the sake of our friendship, I will talk to you one by one."
She did not forget to mention her friendship with Cao Cao, but in Cao Ang's view, the Marquis of Leping, who now holds the position of Grand Marshal, was at most using her words as an excuse.
In the face of a real clash between the two forces, how can there be any friendship?
This is the truth.
"Guanzhong is not short of silver and money now, and it is even more so after conquering Yizhou. I wonder if Zixiu knows that the amount of copper mines in Liangzhou and Yizhou is not inferior to the reserves of Yangzhou and Xuzhou in the two Huai regions. It is really nonsense to say that I intend to sell cotton in the form of silver and money."
Qiao Yan's expression remained unchanged as he quietly spoke words that were extremely cruel to Cao Ang, "Even judging from the quality of the Wuzhu coins, Bingzhou used to dispatch the three officials of Shanglin to enter the country, and the scale of coinage has never decreased. The disasters and wars over the years have hardly affected the prices in several states. If I want to manipulate the currency to compete with you Yanzhou, it is easy. In this case, what do I need the currency in your state for!"
"Let's talk about the cost of making and shipping the books."
"Since the rise of woodblock printing in Chang'an City, coupled with the prosperity of the paper industry, the only thing that really affects the cost of books is the proofreading of old books and the supplementation of picture books. If I were not interested in mutual benefit and win-win cooperation with various noble families, I could make books available all over the world at any time, so what cost would I have to talk about!"
"Since the drought and locust plagues re-emerged this year, the court has been collecting refugees in Hongnong County and Henan Yin, and the supplies have been repeatedly sent to Luoyang via the Chang'an treasury. The transportation costs during this period are incalculable, but if it is beneficial to people's livelihood, what's the harm in such consumption? The same is true for the sale of cotton and books. The so-called transportation costs have never been considered by me."
"As for whether you can understand the true meaning of the book... Zixiu, you are still a little arrogant."
This series of words made Cao Ang at a loss as to how to respond for a moment.
He also had quite a bit of experience in dealing with affairs. Before the Dong Zhuo Rebellion, or when Emperor Ling of Han intended to select the Eight Schools of the Western Garden, Cao Ang had already been traveling with Cao Cao.
But when Cao Cao was making the decision, he had never faced such questioning like a storm as he was facing now.
Before he could speak, Qiao Yan nonchalantly flicked his fingers, "Actually, it's fine if you don't want to agree to this bargaining chip. Youzhou has just been settled, and the north is in great trouble. The inventory of cotton clothes is already tight. Do you want to fulfill my concession, or let me use it to win back the hearts of the people in the north? It's up to you to decide."
"No, I didn't say enough." She moved her eyes from her fingertips to Cao Ang's face again. "Since Gongsun Shengji took the post of governor of Liaodong, Buyeo and Goguryeo, located east of Youzhou, have also expressed their willingness to surrender. Right now, the land is vast and the population is sparse. We need to deploy the Youzhou cavalry at the border of Youzhou and Jizhou, and restore the farming order in Youzhou. If we can use this batch of cotton to win their hearts, then next year we may have the opportunity to march south to Jizhou and defeat the pseudo-dynasty. Why do we need to be kind to Yanzhou and Yuzhou?"
"Zi Xiu, I don't think this winter will be so cold. Reducing expenses may be a good thing for Brother Meng De to set up a business like this."
Cao Hong was stunned by Qiao Yan's verbal output, which was mixed with sarcasm and targeted attacks.
He couldn't help but wonder if Cao Cao asked him to accompany Cao Ang here so that he could learn from him how high the upper limit of a true military commander's sharp language could be.
The conditions proposed by Qiao Yan now really blocked their way.
If this is just an exchange of ordinary goods, then bargaining is possible, but if it is a half-sale, half-gift deal, then even bargaining is not possible.
And if they don't want to accept this condition, that's easy. After all, she has made her meaning clear in her words and she can choose not to make this deal.
If they wanted to leave, the road was right over there, and she could use the money to win over foreign countries.
Perhaps even Cao Cao had not thought of such a situation when he sent them out.
To her, the material resources and mineral resources in the two states are not as important as promoting a book and winning the hearts of the people!
Although this may seem like a relatively low expense, the impact it causes is likely to bring unbearable losses at a critical moment.
Cao Ang opened his mouth but could not utter a word. He only heard Qiao Yan say, "Zi Xiu, I don't think you have the power to make the decision on this matter. After all, it's still early in winter. Why not ask Brother Meng De after you return to Yanzhou? What do you think?"
But...is it possible to do so?
Cao Ang originally thought that Qiao Yan had made a special trip back to Bingzhou in order to finalize this deal that not only involved a difference in camps but also between two states. She had made them anxious by patrolling all directions, and that this was the limit of how long she could stay here.
She used such sharp words to break down their psychological defenses in order to quickly finalize the arrangement.
After all, this matter obviously would not be delayed until she went to Sili to discuss it, otherwise the meaning would inevitably change. Also, because Yanzhou and Sili are close neighbors, people feel that there is a possibility of cooperation between the two sides, which is of no benefit to either Qiao Yan or Cao Cao.
But from what she said, it seems like she is not in a hurry?
In Cao Ang's bewilderment, he heard Qiao Yan change his aggressive and even verbally attacking attitude just now, and asked him in a casual tone: "Zi Xiu has met your second brother. I wonder what you think of this Leping Academy?"
"So how do you respond to this, brother?" Cao Pi looked at Cao Ang suspiciously, as if he felt he had said something wrong, and asked curiously.
He didn’t know if it was his illusion, but he felt that Cao Ang’s answer seemed a little wrong.
"I...I subconsciously replied that my father's wish to fight you on the battlefield may not be realized."
Cao Pi: “……?”
He was silent for a long while before he raised his head and looked at his brother, saying, "I think you might be more suitable to be Mr. Bojie's disciple than I am."
It turned out that because of Qiao Yan's previous roundabout way of talking, Cao Ang was in a state of nervousness, so when he suddenly heard such a casual conversation, he unexpectedly got such a reply.
The EQ of this reply is really low.
But Cao Pi thought again, Cao Ang, as Cao Cao's eldest son, showed such a performance during his mission to Bingzhou. Was he also trying to reduce the threat of Yan and Yu states to Qiao Yan?
But when Cao Pi looked at Cao Ang's face again, he felt that his brother was worthy of admiration, but there was no need to find any excuses for him.
He then asked, "What else did Qiao Bingzhou say to you?"
"She said that she could see that your father missed him very much, so she could take you back to Yanzhou to live for a while. It would not be too late to send you back after receiving your father's response to this bargaining chip."
Seeing Cao Pi frowning, Cao Ang replied: "But I didn't agree to this. I just told you to concentrate on your studies here. I can see that you are doing well here, so my father and I are relieved."
Cao Pi immediately breathed a sigh of relief.
He is a little stubborn as his elder brother, but under the influence of his father, he has not become a confused idiot.
If he returned to Yanzhou before the deal was finalized, firstly, it would be considered that Qiao Yan was doing Cao Cao a favor, showing that he had no intention of using anyone as a hostage while extorting money. Secondly, the court in Yecheng would definitely ask about his whereabouts, which would cause a lot of trouble. It would be better to maintain the status quo.
But this impish child looked at his brother's departing back and couldn't help shaking his head and sighing.
Compared with the young men from Leping Academy who had been sent to Xuzhou and Youzhou for trials, his brother, who had clearly been in the army for several years, seemed even younger.
But what does this have to do with him, who is still studying with Cai Yong?
Maybe by the time he grows up and is old enough to work, his father's position will have been readjusted.
Let’s talk about it when the time comes.
Seeing Cao Pi saying goodbye to her with such a relaxed expression, Qiao Yan couldn't help but laugh after he left.
"For a moment I didn't know which one of them was the older brother and which one was the younger brother."
"But fortunately, the one with more thoughts is still in your hands." Xi Zhicai replied.
Ten years have passed since Qiao Yan came to prominence. While they are paying attention to the current situation in the state and county, they also have to pay some attention to those young people.
There are some really interesting characters among them.
But in fact, if divided by age, Qiao Yan can still be considered as a member of the younger generation.
Twenty years old!
Her age, which gives her more potential for development than other competitors, and her firmness in making decisions, are what make her subordinates feel safe.
"Let's not talk about them," Xi Zhicai thought. No matter if Cao Pi had any wits or not, he didn't have the ability to bring out his absolute advantage, nor the opportunity to stir up the world. Instead of worrying about whether he would grow up to be a qualified politician despite Cai Yong's negative influence, it would be better to think about other things, such as: "When do you think Wen Yuan will expose Tian Yuanhao's identity?"
"Given Wenyuan's personality, he won't be delayed too long." Qiao Yan thought for a moment and replied.
She gave this task to Zhang Liao because she saw his decisiveness and endearing friendliness.
These two characteristics plus the sudden exposure of his identity would definitely make Tian Feng hesitate if handled properly.
Qiao Yan's judgment in this matter was not wrong.
Tian Feng woke up in the middle of the night and stared at the roof for a long time.
In the dream just now, Zhang Liao's words at that time, "Mr. Tian Yuanhao, the prince ordered me to take you to visit the border of You and Ji," appeared again.
But what is even more outrageous is that he dreamed again about the scene where Qiao Yan promoted him after the debate in Hongwenguan. This time, Qiao Yan said, "Tian Feng, you are a genius. Why do you still want to stay and work for Yuan Benchu?"
He shook his head quickly.
No, no, who would be so careless towards spies that they would allow them to freely explore secrets on their own territory?
It shouldn't be that early.
Could it be that he was targeted because he was too enthusiastic in coming to Youzhou to be conferred the title?
Or maybe... in the previous incident of digging the well, Qiao Yan presented a palm-leaf fan to his "hometown" as a reward. Was there any clue that was discovered during the whole process?
Tian Feng couldn't figure out this problem for a moment.
But what he couldn't figure out was——
Why did Zhang Liao still have the confidence to send him away even though his identity had been exposed, and even after he chose to stay, he treated him like an envoy from the capital and a distinguished guest in the military camp!
This sleepless confusion, along with the faint sounds of patrol drills outside, completely drove away the little sleepiness that Tian Feng had left in his mind.
He didn’t know whether Zhang Liao had any serious problems, but he was about to be driven crazy by this strange atmosphere!
What made him feel even more mixed emotions was that when he put on his clothes, stood up and walked towards the stable, he was not even stopped at all.
By the dim candlelight beside the stable, Tian Feng carefully checked the horse that was given to him for transportation.
The horse was indeed a good one, with no problems with its hooves, and at least it wouldn't throw him off its back halfway through the journey.
After confirming that there was no trick involved, Tian Feng felt guilty for a moment for doubting Zhang Liao's sincerity.
This also made him even more confused about how to deal with the current situation.
While he was thinking about this, he suddenly saw some scattered sparks flashing in the distance. As he still couldn't sleep well, he walked towards that end. He saw a young man squatting in the grass halfway from the stable to the camp gate.
When Tian Feng got closer, he discovered that the flame was carefully blocked by a circle of wooden boards to prevent the light from leaking out. However, although the light was blocked, the fragrance was a little difficult to cover up.
The young man poked the fire with the wooden stick in his hand and pulled out some cut yams.
While it was still hot, I rolled it twice in my hands and quickly peeled off the skin.
The movements were so skillful that it didn't look like it was his first time doing this kind of job.
Even after hearing footsteps behind him, he quickly handed another piece of yam in his hand to Tian Feng, as if to bribe him not to tell the secret.
This was the first time Tian Feng had such an experience. He put aside his previous worries and asked, "Where did you get this thing from?"
The young man glanced at him and saw that he was not wearing a soldier's armor. He replied, "You are from the imperial edict team in the capital, right? Your Majesty said that he wanted to temper the Wuhuan people, so he asked people to bring a lot of yam tubers over and asked General Lu to supervise the surrendered soldiers to cultivate the fields first. Among them, there was a batch of low-quality ones, which became our food. A few of the boxes I helped carry the past two days were given to me as a snack at night."
He raised the yam in his hand and said, "Try it. The variety from Leping has been cultivated for seven or eight years and tastes great."
Tian Feng didn't know whether he should refuse or accept the offer, so he simply imitated the young man's actions, sat down on the ground with his legs crossed, peeled off the still hot yam skin, and asked in a low voice:
"But since you are going to do the night watch, why don't you concentrate on your work instead of being lazy and sneaky here?"
The young man shook his head. "I told you that you are not very knowledgeable. I am not being lazy. Soldiers usually don't go through this door. If anyone leaves this door, they will be killed without mercy. There are several guards outside the door. They will not let anyone escape. It doesn't matter if I distract them for a while."
"I heard that this is to prevent Yuan Shao's spies from sneaking into our recruitment in Zhuo County and reporting the situation here to Yecheng, so this door that no one usually uses was specially left open."
When he said this, he happened to see Tian Feng's expression and asked, "Hey, what's wrong with you? Why do you look like that?"
Tian Feng held the yam in his hand and was silent for a long time before he replied: "I think this thing is a bit bitter..."
The young man had no idea of the impact that Tian Feng was feeling at that moment, and he snatched the piece of yam from Tian Feng's hand, "Bitter? How can it be bitter? I see that you are a mountain...you can't eat coarse food. Forget it, I'll solve it myself."
"By the way, walk around here a little bit, so as not to be mistaken for a spy."
Avoid being tricked by others!
These words were still echoing in Tian Feng's mind until he returned to his residence, causing great damage.
So, if he really rode back to Jizhou on horseback tonight, even if he missed the man who was having a snack of roasted yams, he would definitely be beheaded outside the camp gate?
What does it mean to let him go back to Jizhou?
The next day, when he looked at Zhang Liao with a pair of sleepy eyes, he couldn't help but ask, "Are all the subordinates of the Grand Marshal so cunning?"
Zhang Liao, who knew everything that happened last night, did not seem to be panicked at all by having his trump card exposed. He just calmly replied: "But in fact, Mr. Yuan Hao has already made up his mind. My preparations will not be useful. They are only used to prevent real spies."
“……”Yes, is that so?
It was hard for Tian Feng not to feel that his mind was confused at the moment, probably because he did not get enough rest last night.
But what made him even more confused was Zhang Liao's next words, "Don't worry about this trap that was not prepared for you. Mr. Yuan Hao has heard about the way to deal with Wuhuan last night. I would like to ask you, how do you think Buyeo and Goguryeo should be dealt with to ensure the long-term stability of Youzhou?"
Tian Feng's mouth twitched, and he asked back, "Is it really appropriate for you to ask me about this?"
Zhang Liao obviously did not think there was anything inappropriate about this, and he replied: "Since Mr. Yuan Hao came to Bingzhou, then to Chang'an, and then to Youzhou, he has met all kinds of people along the way. It is impossible that everyone has joined hands to perform a big drama to trap you."
"Then may I ask you a question, is it really the camp gate that will kill you if you cross the border that is holding you back from returning to Jizhou?"
Tian Feng's expression was somewhat complicated.
Was it the door that blocked his path, or was it a trap that Zhang Liao might have hidden in letting him go?
Most likely not.
During the nearly three years he has been here, he has been exposed to too many details in the Chang'an court.
So much so that when he stood at this crossroads, the new road in Chang'an City flashed through his mind, he thought of the drought protection on the Guanzhong Plain, he thought of the noodles with sauce in the small restaurant in Chang'an City, he thought of the many opportunities he had to escape this year, but he had wiped out the idea with the reason that he might be caught, he thought of...
Think of many more things.
Even the journey through Bingzhou before coming to Youzhou made him feel that it was worth savoring.
These images that flashed before his eyes repeatedly in the middle of the night made him realize that
It is possible that he was not as loyal to Yuan Shao as he imagined, and his coming to Youzhou to receive the imperial decree was more like an explanation for his first two years in office, rather than a rush to Yecheng without hesitation.
At the moment when the fierce battle in his heart reached its peak, he heard Zhang Liao say: "My Lord asked me to ask you at the right time, if she can bring all the children of Julu Tian family to Bingzhou, are you willing to seriously consider the question of who you will be loyal to?"
Tian Feng held his forehead with his hand and asked, "General Zhang, do you need to say the words 'the right time' as well?"
It seemed as if he was jumping into a pit without looking back!
But even though he asked this question, it didn't mean that he would hesitate at this moment.
He was not the type of person who liked to be indecisive for a long time.
Even though the premise given by Qiao Yan meant that he had more time to think about it, he did not decide to continue to escape and returned to Chang'an first.
The only request was that he should not appear in public as an adviser for the time being, in case his family members still in Jizhou were liquidated by Yuan Shao because of him.
Although Yuan Shao could not kill the Hebei noble families at will, but at a time when the war between Youzhou and Jizhou was likely to break out at any time, it was completely reasonable for Yuan Shao to say that he was doing this to kill the chicken to scare the monkey and warn all parties not to have the intention of defecting.
However... since he is in the military camp, he will always show up occasionally.
After Xun You, the strategist for this place, arrived, he, Xun You and Sima Yi often went in and out together.
"Don't be distracted. Those are the important people in the military camp. You new recruits can't get in touch with them!" Xin Pi had just rubbed his eyes and looked at the departing figures of Tian Feng and the other two. He wondered if he had seen the wrong people, when he heard the centurion above him shouting, telling him to quickly look away.
In order to better understand what to do to stir up trouble in Youzhou, Xin Pi and Han Ding, who had arrived in Zhuo County, introduced him to the military camp so that he could observe closely and spy on the movements of the enemy.
A lot of Jizhou's men from Youzhou also sneaked in with him.
Of course, his accent is the most difficult to conceal, so it is best to take this recommended approach.
The reason for the recommendation was easy to explain. Qian Zhao accidentally broke his leg during the previous recruitment training in Zhuo County, but he still wanted to serve under the command of the Grand Marshal, so he reluctantly recommended his friend first, hoping that the other party would make a name for himself and be recruited again after his injury recovered.
Having learned the lesson from Tian Feng who never returned, Xin Pi decided to be much more low-key than his opponent, hoping not to be noticed, and in all his training he tried his best to stay in the middle.
After all this trouble, he, a scholar from Yingchuan, suffered a great sacrifice even though he had once fought in battles under Yuan Shao!
But what he never expected was that he would actually meet this old friend who shouldn't be here!
When he carefully cast another glance over there, he was sure that it was not a wrong judgment due to his dazzlement.
What's the point of that guy shaving his beard? He can still be recognized by others.
That was clearly Tian Feng!
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