Wait, please don't call me Emperor Zhaolie

Chapter 123 The Army Returns to Qingzhou
After properly coordinating the affairs of the Yanzhou counties, Liu Bei led his army from Shanyang County to Dongping County, and then crossed the hilly and mountainous areas of Jibei.

It happened that they stayed in Lu County for five or six days, which frightened Ying Shao, the governor of Taishan County, very much. He didn't know that Liu Bei's army had run out of food and grass, and that this camp was a way to effectively collect food from the wealthy families.

Hearing about it is no match for seeing it with your own eyes. The soldiers hold their heads high, rub their hands together, and are ready to fight. The powerful army with its spirited military presence brings you shock.

Ying Shao mistakenly believed that Liu Shijun was preparing his troops and was coming to kill those who disobeyed him.

He quickly sent the county Gongcao to express his attitude and expressed his willingness to submit and obey.

"Your Excellency, the entire Taishan County is willing to obey the orders of the state." Gongcao, who was short and sturdy with a moustache on his upper lip, bowed respectfully and kowtowed.

After being left alone in Lu County's inn for three days, he was terrified and thought his trip was in vain.

Liu Shijun had made up his mind to attack Taishan County, but he unexpectedly met him. The meeting meant there was still a chance to stop the war.

Gongcao gradually put his mind at ease. As a local noble family in Mount Tai, in addition to being able to live up to the friendship of the prefect, he also had to protect the interests of his clan.

He was born into the Gao Humu clan of Feng County, and was a descendant of Humu Sheng, a doctoral student during the reign of Emperor Jing of the Qing Dynasty. His ancestor studied under Gongyang Shou, and was able to pass on the Gongyang Spring and Autumn Annals orally as a family heirloom, which was later passed on to Gongsun Hong, Lanling Zhu Da, Wen County Lu Bushu, and Dongping Ying Gong.

Duke Ying of Lu appointed Meng Qing of Donghai and Sui Meng of Lu, and it was not until Dong Zhongshu that the school became famous.

After Liu Bei learned about it, he summoned Hu Wu Gongcao to the military camp. At that time, he was gradually inspecting each camp and chatting with him from time to time. Seeing that the goal of stopping the war had not been achieved, Gongcao had to follow behind him and was hesitant to speak.

Walking past rows of neatly-organized troops and soldiers practicing military formations, even a soldier who had never been on the battlefield could feel the solemn and murderous atmosphere.

The sword and shield soldiers, spear soldiers, and archers cooperated in an orderly manner, with the small formation fitting in with the larger one, leaving almost no gaps to be found.

The charge drills of the more than a thousand Tiger and Leopard Cavalry brought an overwhelming momentum, which made Hu Wu, who came from Taishan County, suddenly feel weak in the legs and feet. If the military officer beside him had not kindly supported him, he would have lost his balance and sat down on the ground, bringing shame to his family.

The armies were still training with drums beating, flags waving, and deep trumpet sounds.

After visiting three or four camps, the Gongcao of Taishan County completely lost the courage to resist.

Previously, he was thinking about proposing conditions, but now he only wants to think about how to appease Xuande Gong.

With one county against two states of strong soldiers, even if the prefect wanted to do such a stupid thing, the wealthy and the gentry would not go crazy with him. Officials of the Han Dynasty implemented the policy of serving in different places.

If a fight breaks out, Ying Shao can escape, but their clan members are all stuck in the local area and will be wiped out if they encounter a powerful army.

Liu Bei smiled and asked, "Have you ever seen such a battle formation at Liugong Mountain?"

"Reporting to the envoy, I have never seen it." Hu Wu said with fear and bowed.

Previously, he wanted to negotiate terms and try his best to get Envoy Liu to withdraw his troops while retaining the real power of the prefect.

But now, I finally realized how easy it was for my in-laws, the Yang family, to secretly surrender. I'm sorry, Lord Ying. Hu Wu has repented and only wants to surrender to Lord Xuande and support the Han Dynasty forever.

Gongcao felt guilty and his face turned red and sweat broke out due to shame.

Ying Shao had not expected that half of the powerful families and nobles had secretly wanted to defect to Liu Bei, so he specially sent the neutral Humu clan to negotiate. Now another clan also wanted to follow the example of the Yang clan and lead the remaining powerful families to defect to Liu Bei.

After all this, he was left alone.

Without the support of the wealthy families and exemplary aristocratic families in the counties of Taishan County, he could not even escape from Taishan County, let alone mobilize the county troops.

Mount Tai and the nearby Xuzhou Langya Commandery are basically hilly and mountainous areas. Since the Yellow Turban Rebellion, there have been many thieves and bandits. Without the guidance of local people who have lived there for many years, if they run away with dozens of followers, they will probably be buried in the mountains.

Liu Bei then asked many questions about Taishan County's topography, population, fields, and the rebellious bandits.

Hu Wu Gongcao tells everything he knows and leaves nothing unsaid.

Liu Bei looked calm on the surface, but he was delighted in his heart. He had stumbled down Mount Tai by accident and was able to pass on the message. If you plant flowers intentionally, they will not grow, but if you plant willows accidentally, they will grow into a shade.

In addition to Qingzhou Beihai, Yanzhou Taishan also borders Xuzhou, and you can go directly to Xuzhou Donghai County through Taishan.

……

Along the field path in Pingyuan County, the sound of horse hooves could be heard and a flag with the word "Liu" engraved on a red background fluttered in the wind on a tall flagpole.

The mighty knights holding the Han flag followed closely behind.

"It's the envoy! The envoy has returned triumphantly."

"Father, father, look, Envoy Liu is back, look!"

Many people were working in the fields nearby. When they heard the sound of horse hooves, they suddenly looked up and couldn't help cheering when they saw the familiar flags.

At the end of last year, there was a severe cold disaster. Although Liu Shijun was away on a military expedition, he did not forget the common people. He sent official documents to all counties to open the granaries and take out the last batch of stored grain to provide relief to the people.

He opened the granaries and allocated the harvested straw to distribute to the people household by household to fill their thatched huts to keep them warm. He also ordered county, township and township officials to investigate the people's homes to see if the firewood and straw could survive the long winter and spring.

Liu Bei also wrote letters to the governors of each county, saying bluntly: The cold disaster in the third year of Chuping caused tens of thousands of people to freeze to death in various counties. This lesson must not be repeated. If large numbers of people in counties and prefectures freeze to death, I will hold the governors accountable and demote them by one level.

Once the official document is issued, even the prefect will be held accountable, let alone other officials.

The clerks did not dare to slack off and visited the villagers diligently without complaining about the hard work.

Sometimes, if there is no pressure on the subordinates, not many officials will really care about the lives and deaths of the people, and they will become numb over time.

In addition to pacifying the world, internal governance of officials and officials cannot be neglected.

The Huben cavalry arrived at the plain first, and the infantry carrying the baggage were still more than ten miles behind them.

At the end of the year, in order to provide disaster relief, Qingzhou had stopped transporting grain to Jiyin. Liu Bei was able to lead his army back to Pingyuan only by personally visiting wealthy families to seek funding along the way.

When the powerful people saw Lord Xuande leading his troops to the manor or the fortress, they immediately stopped objecting and sent their servants to kill cattle and sheep and reward the troops with smiles on their faces.

Wherever the army passed, they saw that the baggage carts were loaded with siege equipment, except for a small amount of food and fodder.

Even a person with a bad temper will instantly become amiable and smiling.

If you talk nicely, he will only give you some food and fodder. If you refuse to give it, he will take everything including your life.

After the powerful people in Shanyang and Dongping had settled the accounts, they naturally knew what to choose.

"Envoy!" After crossing the Gaotang River, Xun Yu brought his clerks and subordinates to the Pingyuan County ferry to personally welcome him.

Liu Bei reined in his horse and stepped down from the stirrup. Looking at the many familiar faces, he could not help but smile and said, "Wen Ruo, I have been away on the expedition for nearly half a year. Qingzhou relies heavily on your assistance to keep things in order."

"Wen Ruo really has the talent of Prime Minister Xiao!" Liu Bei said with emotion.

"Your Excellency is overpraising me. I am not talented enough to compare myself with Prime Minister Xiao. There are countless talented people in the world. In Yingchuan, there are talented people who are ten times better than me."

Xun Yu is still gentle, elegant and steady as ever.

Don't be conceited and think that you are better than others. Instead, always feel that you are just a small person in the world.

(End of this chapter)