Chapter 360: The Battle of Jiaozhou
However, Zuo Ci probably still lacked some knowledge about Jiaozhou.
It really can’t be blamed on Zuo Ci’s ignorance.
After all, Jiaozhou was too far away from his original location because of the uncivilized land in the south of Yangzhou.
He didn't really think that because of those tricks he used to pretend to be a god, he had a pair of extra clairvoyance than others and could see what Jiaozhou really looked like.
However, when he arrived in Jiaozhou, he saw with his own eyes this land that was strange and weird to him.
He originally thought that the Shanyue people in Yangzhou were relatively barbaric, but compared to the truly wild Jiaozhou, the situation in Yangzhou was actually quite normal.
In Jiaozhou, except for the county seat where there are formal marriage rules, other places will wait until August to gather together and look for suitable marriage partners. It is useless for parents to try to stop them. 1
It is still March and not August yet, but apart from this gathering scene, there are also people who fall in love with each other on the street and then go together.
"The area of Nanhai County is relatively good, after all, it's not too far from Yangzhou." The guide Yu Ji invited said, "Going southwest from Nanhai County, you will find Jiaozhi County and Jiuzhen County, which are even more remote places. It is common for brothers to inherit the throne after their brothers die, and for sons to inherit the throne after their fathers die. Going further south is Rinnan County, where it is hot all year round and many people even walk around naked without any scruples."
Zuo Ci muttered to himself that the situation in this place was somewhat similar to that of the barbarians outside the Great Wall.
He had previously vowed to Yu Ji that this place was a poor and barren land, and that they were the ones who needed to civilize it. But now he couldn't help but feel that if the people here were only different from insects and animals in appearance, then they might not be so easy to civilize.
But just as he had thought before, in places like this, the public's perception is not the main thing; what is important is the local officials.
The rugged terrain and the harsh conditions of snakes, insects and miasma made it difficult for the county officials and prefecture governors here to be considered by the imperial court, which led to the continuous growth of local family power.
It was difficult to send taxes from Jiaozhou to the Central Plains, so the pearls, ivory, rhinoceros horns, tortoise shells and other rare treasures paid as tribute by the local people, along with the income from farmers, were sent directly to the provincial capital and county government offices, becoming the private property of the local officials.
This guide had been helped by Yu Ji, so he dared to speak more.
As he led a few people to board the carriage to Panyu in the South China Sea, he said: "The officials in Zhuya are the most confusing. In addition to collecting the corals and pearls handed over from this place, they cut off the hair of the locals and make wigs when they see it is shiny. The two Taoist priests should not go there if they can. Zhuya is independent overseas and does not listen to the words of Governor Zhang."2
“……” Zuo Ci and Yu Ji looked at each other and saw the astonishment in each other’s eyes.
It is absolutely impossible for someone to cut off someone else's hair and bring it back as a wig in the Central Plains.
What made them feel even more speechless was that the guide actually reminded them not to go there out of curiosity, lest they be caught and become victims. It was obvious that he thought that if they went there, they would also become victims.
That's right.
In order to make their image look more convincing, these monks indeed look respectable no matter how you look at them.
Especially in order to show that they really have the ability to prolong their life, they all have black hair that is no less beautiful than that of young people.
Looking at it this way, it’s really not a good idea to go to Zhuya.
Zuo Ci thought this was the limit, but he soon heard the guide say, "In addition to the fierce folks in Rinan, Jiuzhen, and Jiaozhi, the conflicts between the local people and the officials are the greatest. Try not to go there if you can. The governor of Rinan was short of supplies, so he killed the chief clerk as soon as he came up, and then he was beaten by the people. The governor of Jiuzhen hosted a banquet for his father-in-law, and Gongcao forced the governor's father-in-law to dance after drinking. The governor was furious and killed Gongcao, but Gongcao's brother shot him to death, and now he is confronting the governor of Jiaozhi."3
"..." Zuo Ci was silent for a moment, and couldn't help but start to consider whether it would be more terrifying to return to Yangzhou and become an enemy of Qiao Yan, or to stay in Jiaozhou and experience the outrageous practices of this place.
He couldn't come up with an answer for a moment.
Yu Ji was slightly more optimistic than him and asked, "Then the situation in the area governed by the governor should be better?"
At least there won’t be any situation of eating raw meat and drinking blood, right?
The guide said, "You can see for yourself. All I can say is that this might be a good place for you two."
In the four counties of Nanhai, Cangwu, Hepu and Yulin in Jiaozhou, the power of Zhang Jin, the governor of Jiaozhou, was quite large, and he and the local scholar families each accounted for half.
With the control of superiors, the habits and customs of the people are always much better than those in Zhuya and other places.
But if this superior has some hobbies of his own, that would not be a good thing.
Before Zuo Ci and Yu Ji arrived in Panyu, they saw soldiers with red scarves on their heads walking on the road. They were very eye-catching. As they passed by, they could hear that these people were reciting the "Laozi Five Thousand Characters".
When we arrived at Panyu, the county seat, we saw Taoist scriptures along the way and everyone dressed like religious believers.
But for some reason, even though he knew that these people were on the same path as them, Zuo Ci still felt an indescribable discomfort.
When the Jiaozhou governor Zhang Jinxing came before him, this sense of disharmony finally reached its peak.
Is he hospitable? Of course we are so hospitable!
As soon as Zhang Jin heard Zuo Ci and Yu Ji coming, he ran out in a hurry without even putting on his shoes and socks.
Zuo Ci dodged quickly, and Zhang Jin had already held Yu Ji's hand, and said with emotion: "I have heard that the immortal master helped the people in Yangzhou and used holy water to cure diseases. The holy water is definitely not the same as Zhang Jiao's. It can be called a real Taoist immortal thing. Today I see the immortal master's demeanor, which is indeed beyond the reach of ordinary people."
At Zhang Jin's invitation, Yu Ji and Zuo Ci both came to Zhang Jin's guesthouse, where the rather "unemployed" governor Zhang hosted a welcome dinner for them to show his respect for them.
Then they saw an outrageous scene that was no less severe than that in other counties of Jiaozhou.
Originally Zuo Ci was a little confused as to why Qiao Yan insisted on asking them to come and see Zhang Jin.
Even if Zhang Jin is really obsessed with the spread of Taoism, their arrival may gradually gain them the right to speak in Zhang Jin, which is also something full of uncertainty.
After he arrived in Jiaozhou, he no longer had to worry about the possible threat posed by Qiao Yan. He could just enjoy himself in this place isolated from the Central Plains.
But during this banquet, Zuo Ci had already realized that whether his and Yu Ji's presence could interfere with Zhang Jin's decision-making might not be important to Qiao Yan at all. What she wanted was just a landmark event that a Taoist master would come to submit to him after hearing about Zhang Jin's methods in Jiaozhou!
Officials in Jiaozhou, even those from Zhang Jin, a city with a prosperous culture like Nanyang, had become unrestrained because of the deformed official ecology there.
According to the guide, Dan Meng, the governor of Jiuzhen, would beat Gong Cao to death because his father-in-law was asked to dance by Gong Cao. In front of them, Zhang Jin, the governor of Jiaozhou, also showed his outrageous side after drinking.
He shook the wine glass in his hand and said to Zuo Ci and Yu Ji below: "I originally thought that I would need to cultivate morality and virtue for several years before I could make any progress. I didn't expect that in just a few short years, two masters would come to my place. This is what they say: the phoenix roosts in the phoenix tree."
"The Central Plains is in turmoil, but Jiaozhou is located in a remote area, with accumulated assets and soldiers, and the restrictions of the Dao law, it is becoming a rule. If you two hadn't come, I would have waited a few more years to restore peace and order. Now it seems that I can do it earlier, I should drink a glass to celebrate!"
Peaceful order?
There was no change in Zuo Ci's expression, but his heart was full of question marks.
From what he had seen along the way, Jiaozhou was a place where, perhaps because of its climate, the output of crops could reach two or three per year, and the frequency of harvest was not low. However, in terms of per mu yield, it was not as good as Yangzhou after the promotion of the curved plow, let alone Sili, Bingzhou and other places that were mentioned in the Heleping Monthly.
The specialty of Jiaozhou is indeed rare in the Central Plains, but in the absence of trade with the Central Plains, the rare treasures remain rare treasures and cannot be exchanged for equivalent items such as food and weapons.
Let’s talk about those soldiers who are bound by the rules set by the moral scriptures!
Perhaps in terms of physical strength, they would not be much inferior to the elite soldiers of Danyang due to their daily living habits, but even if Zuo Ci was just a Taoist priest who frequented the territories of Xu, Yang and Jingzhou, he knew very well that relying solely on these was not enough to achieve victory in the battle, otherwise the Shanyue would have occupied the entire Yangzhou long ago, and would not have been besieged by Sun Ce in many places first, and now chose to surrender under the blockade of Qiao Yan.
But it is obvious that Governor Zhang, who has lived in his own cognition for many years, would not understand this truth.
He continued, taking advantage of the wine and the joy of welcoming guests, "The southern part of Jingzhou is often disturbed by clan bandits. Liu Jingsheng is unable to pacify them. Since Jiaozhou has spare power, why not take the power to pacify them and enhance the prestige of Jiaozhou. I have heard that Mr. Wujiao is very good at fortune-telling and strategizing. I wonder if you are willing to tell me a fortune to see when is the auspicious day to march?"
Zhang Jin has looked down on Liu Biao for a long time.
When Liu Biao took advantage of the unrest in Jingzhou to seize the position of Governor of Jingzhou, Zhang Jin was in Luoyang.
Since he was originally from Nanyang, Jingzhou, although it was impossible for him to become the governor of Jingzhou according to the laws of the Han Dynasty, he still submitted an answer sheet tentatively.
He thought that what he wrote was quite good. Even if he could not become the governor of Jingzhou, he could always gain the emperor's appreciation. Or perhaps, since the trouble was in Lingling, Guiyang and other places, His Majesty entrusted him with an important task and handed over the task of quelling the rebellion in southern Jingzhou to him, a person from northern Jingzhou.
Who knew that the final result would be that Liu Biao would reap the benefits.
Although he was appointed as the governor of Jiaozhou at the end of the Zhongping period, which meant he was in power and had just avoided the changes in the throne in Sili, the unpleasantness of that year was still not something Zhang Jin could easily forget.
Seeing that his power in Jiaozhou is growing day by day, and Liu Biao has not been able to effectively curb the forces in southern Jingzhou due to the obstruction of Changsha County before, it would be better for him to govern this place on his behalf!
Moreover, Zhang Jin's good relationship with Yuan Shao and his past ties with General He Jin meant that even if he had not clearly stated his position, he would naturally stand on the side of the Yecheng court.
If he could seize Jingzhou when everyone was caught off guard, get in touch with Cao Cao in Yuzhou, and return Xuzhou and Yangzhou to the hands of the court in Yecheng after cutting off Chang'an's support to the south, he, Zhang Jin, would become the number one hero who had been lurking in troubled waters for several years and then made great achievements in one fell swoop!
By that time, his status was more than just a governor of Jiaozhou.
Yuan Shao, who was in Yecheng, should have given him a high position such as General of Chariots and Cavalry or General of Light Cavalry.
Taoist classics obviously did not help Zhang Jin cultivate any spirit of tranquility and inaction. They were just tools for him to control his subordinates. As for Zuo Ci, Yu Ji and others, they were just gimmicks he used to add hype to his uprising.
His desire for power has always been strong.
but--
He thought of himself as the only smart person, and others were not really that stupid.
Zuo Ci looked at the delicious food and wine in front of him, then looked at Zhang Jin who was sitting at the top with a smug look on his face, and he suddenly realized something.
The moment the other party mentioned the plan to attack Jingzhou, he completely understood the reason why Qiao Yan drove him and Yu Ji from Yangzhou to this place!
She had no intention of influencing Zhang Jin's actions through them and making him join her side.
Instead, they wanted to let the existence of these "immortal masters" become the fuel that ignites Jiaozhou's intention to conquer, prompting Zhang Jin to take another step forward and triggering a confrontation between Jingzhou and Jiaozhou in the southern border!
This move was not only performed silently, but also extremely clever.
Zuo Ci hesitated for a moment, wondering whether he should fulfill Qiao Yan's plan after experiencing Qiao Yan's intimidation.
But even he had to admit that if he had to choose between Yuan Shao and Qiao Yan to be the one who could pacify the world, as long as the latter existed, it would never be the former.
So why did he insist on going against the will of heaven?
He turned to Zhang Jin and said, "Zhang's reputation is well-known, and it is not limited to Jiaozhou. Yangzhou in the north is so famous, and Jingzhou is not inferior. If we send troops, we will gain something. If you agree, I will ask you for a divination tomorrow, which can be regarded as a return for your hospitality."
Zhang Jin was delighted: "Then I'll have to trouble you, Mr. Wu Jiao."
Thinking of the teasing behavior Zuo Ci had played on Liu Biao and his cooperation in front of him at this moment, this kind of different treatment seemed to be another kind of good omen.
The reply Zuo Ci gave him the next day made Zhang Jin feel extremely relieved.
Zuo Ci had a divination and said that there would be a day of Tian Xing and evil in April, so it would be a good time to send troops to fight the enemy. Tian Xing belongs to the fire element, which will benefit Yanhan. It would be the time when Zhang Jin would establish meritorious service.
April!
You don't even have to wait a month.
Zhang Jin originally felt that if he delayed for some more time, seeing how fast Qiao Yan was advancing in Xuzhou and Yangzhou, there was no guarantee that he would target Yuzhou later, completely severing his connection with the northern court.
If such a situation really happened, he would not be able to turn the tide even if he wanted to!
It is time to act soon.
In April, Qiao Yan and Liu Biao must have shifted their attention from the south and gradually focused on the confrontation in the north. This was also the time when he could launch a surprise attack.
Thinking of this, Zhang Jin simply mobilized all the elite troops from the four counties that his orders could reach early on, and asked them to participate in the pre-war cultivation activities to ensure that they could achieve a one-shot effect in the subsequent northward operations.
According to modern terms, Zhang Jin's move might be considered an alternative form of military cultural construction.
However, although Liu Biao would not be informed of his troop deployment because the news of Jiaozhou was difficult to pass on to the Central Plains, it would definitely not escape the eyes of the local people in Jiaozhou.
Especially the scholar family.
The leader Shi Xie was indeed still dealing with the mess created by the Jiuzhen prefect and fighting against local rebel forces.
But you have to know that the prefect of Nanhai County at that time was Shi Xie's younger brother Shi Wu, and the prefect of Hepu was Shi Xie's other younger brother Shi Yi. The troops of these two counties happened to be the ones mobilized by Zhang Jin in the largest number!
Zhang Jin had mobilized soldiers during his usual preaching activities, but never on such a large scale as this one.
Such actions naturally aroused the vigilance of the Shi brothers, and they immediately reported the news to their elder brother.
"What does Zhang Ziyun mean?" Shi Xie's face suddenly darkened after receiving the news. 4
If Zhang Jin had just been content to be the governor of Jiaozhou and done some work to improve the people's livelihood and educate the people, they could have lived in harmony. Anyway, Zhang Jin's ability alone was not enough to affect the status of the Shi family in Jiaozhou.
But his current actions clearly have ulterior motives.
Xu Jing, who was staying at Shi Xie's place, had fled from Yangzhou to avoid disaster in his early years. After seeing off Liu Ba, he stayed here to give Shi Xie advice. When he heard Shi Xie's question, he replied, "Zhang Ziyun should not be stupid enough to gather troops to attack the local tyrants. I think the only possible thing is to go north to Jingzhou."
"Go north...to Jingzhou?" Shi Xie estimated in his mind, thought about Zhang Jin's performance, and pondered this possibility. It seemed to be the case.
If it is said that Zhang Jin had the guts to reach out to people like them after operating in Jiaozhou for a few years, it is absolutely impossible!
However, although this move north to Jingzhou is not intended to disrupt the internal structure of Jiaozhou, it will still have a significant impact on Jiaozhou.
He put down the letter, pondered for a long time, and suddenly said to Xu Jing: "Last year when Liu Zichu went north, I asked you a question about the future of the Grand Marshal who was worried about Zichu's entry into the court. You told me that before the autumn harvest, Guanzhong would not be in turmoil, and the Grand Marshal's future would be limitless. Now it is the spring of the following year, and we can see all the changes in Jiaozhou clearly in this year..."
"Then let me ask you one more question, sir. If Zhang Ziyun really wants to go north to Jingzhou, we can kill him from behind as a token of our loyalty to Chang'an. Will this protect our family's future?"
If Zhang Jin wanted to go north to Jingzhou, it would be equivalent to going to war with Qiao Yan.
Shi Xie originally thought that the conflict between Chang'an and Yecheng had nothing to do with him, but now he has to be on guard against it.
No matter whether the war in Jingzhou would spread to Jiaozhou or not, he would never let Zhang Jin ruin his peaceful life! ：,n,
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