Wait, please don't call me Emperor Zhaolie

Chapter 143: Discovering that I can't discredit Liu Bei
On the morning of the third day of July, the mist in Huai County gradually dissipated.

With the careful service of his concubines, Zhang Yang got up and washed.

Looking at his beautiful concubine, he could not help but hold her in his arms and play with her. This concubine was originally a palace maid in the harem of Emperor Xiaoling. By chance, she came into his hands and he loved her very much.

While playing with his obedient concubine, Zhang Yang felt a little regretful. There were so many people in Emperor Xiaoling's harem, and many beautiful palace ladies suffered disaster when Dong Zhuo entered Luoyang. The crude warriors from Liangzhou could only vent their desires violently and hastily, and they did not know how to guide out their tenderness and enjoy the ultimate warmth like jade.

Zhang Yang previously worked for Bingzhou Wumeng. He came to Kyoto to recruit soldiers for He Jin. When He Jin died, Luoyang was in chaos. Zhang Yang made the best of both worlds and formed an alliance with Yuan Shao. Later, he was abducted by the Xiongnu Chanyu and returned to Dong Zhuo, who appointed him as the governor of Henei.

After Dong Zhuo's death, he wavered between Yuan Shao, Li Jue and Guo Si, trying to play both sides, and also secretly formed an alliance with the Huns. Over the years, he was flattered by the three parties, and was given beautiful concubines, musicians and dancers, and lived a very comfortable life.

It was not until Liu Bei, the governor of Qingzhou, sent troops all the way from Pingyuan County with Lu Fengxian to conquer Henei that his leisurely feast came to an abrupt end.

"My Lord, a letter has been sent by express horse to Wude County!"

Zhang Yang and his concubine had not gotten up for long when something came to disturb and spoil their fun, making his face gloomy, but it was not a big deal after all.

Then he shouted, "Pass it in."

He took the document, opened the seal, and read half of it carefully, then took a deep breath.

"Why do you look so pale, my lord?" Mei Ji couldn't help but ask when she saw that Zhang Yang's face was pale.

Now he finally has a place to live. Although Zhang Fujun's addiction is strong and the time is short, he is much better than the Liangzhou warriors who don't care about people's lives.

She would rather flatter and pretend to love to maintain her current situation.

"It's nothing, just some small things." Zhang Yang quickly rolled up the wooden slip. Not wanting his concubine to see it, he forced a smile and comforted her.

Then he quickly went to the front hall to call the clerks to pass the documents around and asked for countermeasures: "Liu Xuande has already captured Xiuwu County, Yang Chou and his soldiers were all killed in the battle, and the Qingzhou army is approaching Wude. If Wude is defeated, they can safely cross the Qin River and then attack Huai County, which is dozens of miles away. Do you have a good plan to resolve the crisis?"

After reading the urgent report, the white-haired Gong Cao bowed and said, "My Lord, Lord Xuande is coming with great force. He has conquered half of Henei County in just over a month. He is an elite army with strong soldiers and horses. The best plan now is to surrender as soon as possible so that he has no excuse to attack and can only retreat."

"I'm afraid Sima Gongcao has had dealings with Liu Xuande for a long time, otherwise why would he want to surrender?"

Li Jing, the chief clerk of Hanoi with a three-pronged beard, said with narrowed eyes.

He was born in the local Li family of Huai County and should have been a Gongcao, but was suppressed by the Sima family of Wen County, which made him dissatisfied for a long time.

If there was a chance to cause trouble for the Sima family, he would certainly be happy to do it.

Unexpectedly, Sima Gongcao was too lazy to pay attention to Li Jing. He saluted towards Zhang Yang and said, "My Lord, have the soldiers of Henan Yin been dispatched? Have the nobles responded?"

Zhang Yang shook his head and said, "I wanted to recruit the nobles and powerful families, but they kept pushing me back. Until today, few have responded. As for the soldiers' lack of strength and courage, let's not talk about it."

"My Lord, I know the reason." Sima Gongcao clapped his hands.

"Please tell me the answer, Gongcao." Zhang Yang said.

Sima Gongcao stroked his beard and said, "The Sima family is related by marriage to the prominent families in Yingzhou, so we know that the Xun family, Guo family, Xin family, Chen family, and Zhong family are plotting to contact the noble families in Henan Yin and make them surrender to Lord Xuande."

"So if the aristocratic families don't move, the other powerful families will naturally follow suit." After hearing this, Zhang Yang fell silent.

Chief Clerk Li Jing sneered and said, "I'm afraid it's not just the nobles of Henan Yin, the Sima clan of Wen County may also be of the same mind."

I couldn't help but secretly curse why the prominent families in Yingzhou didn't come to contact the Li family in Huai County. The Li family also had a family heirloom book "Yanshi Chunqiu" and was listed as a noble family, which was much better than the Shan family which had no family heirloom at all.

He glanced at Shan Wang, who was the Inspector General of northern Hanoi, and a hint of contempt flashed in his eyes.

Sima Gongcao smiled and barked again, and continued to advise Zhang Yang: "My Lord, since Lord Xuande went to war, he has been victorious in every battle and has conquered every enemy. He is comparable to the famous generals of ancient times who are invincible."

"Your Excellency has no grudge against Lord Xuande. He was called a Liangzhou bandit in the proclamation, but his general Yang Chou and others were recruited by Li Jue and Guo Si. Now Yang Chou and others have all died in the battle. When the guards of Wude County were killed, the Liangzhou soldiers in Henei were also killed or wounded."

"It is known to all the world that the Lord was held hostage by the Xiongnu in Fuluo and surrendered to Dong Zhuo. If you can surrender Henan and Henei, you will surely silence the mouths of Lord Xuande's subordinates. If you make meritorious deeds, you may still have a chance to lead the army to conquer Henei."

It must be said that Sima Gongcao's words touched Zhang Yang's heart. He felt that he had been blessed by heaven for being a brave and capable man in Bingzhou and being promoted to the rank of governor of a two thousand stone rank. It was probably impossible for him to be promoted to the rank of governor in this lifetime.

Moreover, he had been indulging in pleasure over the years, often indulging in musical instruments and beautiful maids, and was drunk all day long, which drained away his energy and bravery.

Thinking of the nearly one hundred beautiful maids and concubines in the mansion and the dozen or so children born in the past few years, Zhang Yang instantly lost the desire to fight.

If Liu Xuande was willing to let him keep his rich and noble home and not rob him of his money, wives, concubines and beloved maids, then there would be nothing wrong with him surrendering and giving up the position of prefect.

Besides, there is Lu Fengxian to act as a guarantor.

Zhang Yang pondered and said, "Sima Gongcao, you..."

"Your Excellency, you can't do that!" Chief Clerk Li Jing hurriedly stopped him.

The Li family of Huai County has close ties with the Liangzhou clan. If Liu Xuande goes to Huai County, the Li family will have no good luck. You guys will be fine, but the Li family will be in big trouble.

"Why?!" Zhang Yang frowned and asked unhappily.

"Because..." Li Jing racked his brains, just looking for a reasonable excuse.

After much thought, I found that there was nothing to discredit Liu Bei, saying that he was cruel and murderous, but Liu Xuande was famous for his benevolence and righteousness, and he had great justice in his hands.

Some say he is greedy for money and lustful, but this has never been heard of among the gentry. Some people think he does not respect talented people. Liu Bei employs people based on their talents, regardless of their background. He does not neglect the talents in the wild and cherishes the talents of Baili Xi and Sun Shuao.

People said that Liu Bei had no loyalty and righteousness, but he promoted his childhood friend and sworn brother to the position of prefect, making people all over the world envious and wanting to be brothers with Liu Xuande.

Just when Li Jing was in a dilemma, a servant reported: "The Xiongnu Chanyu Yu Fuluo led his tribe back from Hedong County and has now passed Yewang County. Hearing that Liu Xuande attacked Henei, he ordered his cavalry to rush over."

Upon hearing this, Li Jing immediately saluted and said, "My Lord, the surrender of the two counties is of great importance. It would not be too late to discuss it with Chanyu Yufuluo first and then make a decision. With the speed of the Xiongnu cavalry, they can reach Huai County in three days at most."

"My lord, the two rivers are the Han Dynasty's affairs. There is no need for the Hu people to interfere. If you listen to the Xiongnu, you will probably become a laughing stock of the world." Sima Gongcao advised sternly.

(End of this chapter)