The Three Kingdoms: Zhaolie, the strategist, and the rise of the Han Dynasty

Chapter 166: Marquis Tan is thinking about the whole world, how could he care about the common people?

Xu You ordered someone to bring the gift and present it to Li Yi.

Li Yi still found it strange because he was the one who usually gave gifts to Xu You.

The sun is rising from the west today, why is Xu You giving me a gift?
Before he could speak, Xu You took the lead in explaining:

"This is a small gift from the general, just to show the respect that Mr. Yuan has for Ziyu."

Li Yi then realized that it was a gift from Yuan Shao.

"I appreciate the general's kindness."

"I don't know if the general has any other instructions?"

Although relations between Hebei and Henan are very tense, they have not escalated to the point of armed conflict.

Now the exchanges between the two places are very frequent.

Li Yi also has a keen political sense.

When a head of a country gives a gift to a prime minister of another country, it can easily give rise to criticism if the matter is not handled properly.

"...Haha, the general has no other intentions."

Xu You grinned and said, "It's just that he admires Zi Yu's talent and sent me here to give him a gift."

"...Is it true that he has no other intention?"

"I have no other intention!"

Xu You promised solemnly.

Li Yi raised the corners of his mouth slightly, and smiled:
"good!"

He glanced at the gold and silver behind him, then patted Xu You on the shoulder and said:
"I appreciate Mr. Yuan's kindness."

"Please accept these gifts on my behalf, Brother Xu."

Upon hearing this, Xu You quickly waved his hand and said:
"Hey! No way!"

"Before You came, Lord Yuan repeatedly told me to ask Zi Yu to accept it no matter what."

"Besides, this item is what Lord Yuan wanted, how can I covet it?"

Li Yi smiled with his lips curved:
"Brother Xu, just consider it as I have accepted it."

"If you keep it for me, I will be proud of it."

Xu You was overjoyed when he heard this, but he looked embarrassed.

"…How can this be done?"

As he said this, he ordered someone to put the gifts away.

Li Yi smiled meaningfully, took Xu You's hand and said:

"Brother Xu, you came at the perfect time. I was just enjoying the snow and barbecuing with officials from the state."

"Since Brother Xu is here, please come and have a drink with me."

"It just so happens that Taishi Ziyi hunted two fat deer just now. I have already taken the deer liver and blood, which are very helpful."

"Brother Xu will take the antler away in a while."

Deer antlers are rare and valuable.

Xu You was overjoyed to see that Li Yi was so capable of handling things.

He bowed quickly and said:
"Zi Yu invited me so kindly, how dare I refuse your kindness?"

“…Hehe, please, please, please.”

Xu You was brought into the crowd by Li Yi.

"Everyone, let me introduce myself to you."

"This is the famous scholar from Nanyang and an important official from Hebei, Xu You and Xu Ziyuan."

As Li Yi was the leader of the ministers of Xuzhou, no one dared to neglect the person he introduced solemnly.

They all stood up and saluted.

"Meet Mr. Xu."

"…Hello, Mr. Xu!"

Xu You also became famous at a young age.

When he was young, he, Cao Cao, Yuan Shao, and Zhang Miao were known as the "Four Heroes of the Wind and Dust" and were well-known street thugs in Luoyang.

However, what Xu You was truly famous for was that he conspired with Wang Fen, the governor of Jizhou, to unite heroes across the world and plan to depose Emperor Ling of Han, Liu Hong.

In the meantime, Xu You also tried to get Cao Cao to join.

When Cao Cao heard this, he thought to himself that you are quite brave, so he decisively refused.

In the end, this movement to depose the emperor ended in failure, and Wang Fen committed suicide out of fear of punishment.

Xu You also joined Yuan Shao and sought shelter under the umbrella of the Yuan family.

Although the movement to depose the emperor failed, Xu You became famous.

Now everyone in the world knows that this kid is bold enough to depose the emperor.

You have to know that Emperor Ling was not like the later Emperor Shao and Emperor Xian. He had real power in his hands.

Moreover, the Han Dynasty had not completely collapsed in his hands.

However, plotting to depose the emperor is a politically sensitive event after all.

Therefore, although all the officials present knew about this matter, they kept silent about it.

He only asked about Xu You's well-being and praised his talent and reputation in Yuan's camp in Hebei.

Xu You earned enough fame and reputation at the scene, and also won face.

This is all thanks to Li Yi's recommendation.

Xu You knew this very well and kept it in mind.

Li Yi pulled him to sit with him.

Li Yi cut the deer liver into slices with a knife and grilled it for Xu You himself.

"Every winter, I eat a few slices of deer liver to nourish my body. It helps a lot."

Li Yi explained to Xu You while grilling.

This thing is very beneficial in strengthening sexual function and is a rare item.

"...Come, Ziyuan, come and try my cooking."

Li Yi picked up a piece of cooked deer liver with a knife and fork and handed it to Xu You.

Xu You took it with great trepidation.

During the Han Dynasty, cooks were not despised and looked down upon as they were in later generations.

Especially in the Eastern Han Dynasty, many aristocratic children would prepare sashimi and barbecue by themselves when they gathered together to please their relatives and friends.

Therefore, there was nothing wrong with Li Yi grilling the meat himself.

However, given his respected status, Xu You was a little flattered.

"……good."

Xu You's appetite was excited, and he praised it repeatedly, "It's delicious! Even if Lord Taihe were resurrected, his cooking skills might not be better than this."

Xu You was considered a seasoned official. Even if the food was so unpalatable that he could not swallow it, he would pretend that it tasted extremely good.

What's more, the deer liver has a delicate texture, just slightly salty and bitter, but it has a unique taste.

"I wonder if Ziyuan is doing well in Hebei?"

Li Yi gradually got to the point and asked tentatively.

Xu You was treated with great courtesy by Li Yi and was in a good mood. He just said:
"… Well, aren't we just going to muddle through and live our lives?"

"In the early spring of next year, Lord Yuan plans to march north to attack Gongsun Zan of Yi County."

"I've been busy waiting for a while."

Xu You was so proud of himself that he told the public important military secrets of Hebei.

Sure enough, as soon as these words were spoken, everyone present was shocked.

Everyone's expression changed slightly, and they looked at each other without saying a word.

Taishi Ci was extremely excited in his heart, but his face remained calm.

He pretended to add more wine to Li Yi's glass, but then he came over and leaned over him, whispering:
"...Sir, if the news is true, Yuan's army will march north to Yijing next year."

"Isn't Yecheng empty?"

"Isn't this a good opportunity for us to launch a surprise attack?"

Li Yi took a sip of the wine calmly, shook his head, and replied indifferently:
"Don't move lightly."

This……

Seeing that Li Yi rejected the proposal of attacking Ye County without even thinking about it, Taishi Ci was a little confused.

Li Yi winked at Cao Bao who was standing beside him.

Although Cao Bao may not be good at other things, when it comes to observing people's words and expressions, he is quite familiar with officialdom.

He immediately understood, picked up a glass of wine, and walked towards Xu You with a smile.

"Mr. Xu, Cao offers you a toast."

"Who is this...?" Xu You asked.

Someone else introduced him, saying, "This is Cao Bao, the prime minister of Xia Pi."

Hey!

Xu You stood up hurriedly, as this was a high-ranking official at the prefect level.

Someone came over to toast him personally, Xu You did not dare to be negligent, he stood up hurriedly and raised the wine cup.

The two of them asked each other about their health and drank three cups each.

Li Yi saw that Xu You was a little tipsy, so he continued to ask tentatively:
"Brother Xu is much more prosperous in Jizhou than in Xuzhou."

"I heard that the population of a county in Jizhou is greater than that of an entire state. Is this true?"

Although each state has its own intelligence system.

However, spies are only there to gather intelligence, and they cannot compare to officials who have direct access to information and have clear information.

Xu You was Yuan Shao's childhood friend. Relying on Xu You's status, his family members abused their power for personal gain and amassed huge wealth.

But this also has an advantage, that is, Xu You is very familiar with the operation of Hebei's officialdom, as well as information on population, commerce, grain storage, etc.

Xu You was happy drinking and told Li Yi the truth.

The population of each county in Jizhou is over 60.

Among them, the population of Bohai County reached one million.

He also talked about several important grain storage bases in Jizhou.

Li Yi didn't seem to care on the surface, but he was remembering it in his heart.

There were even many officials in Xuzhou who were afraid that they would forget, so they left the table on the pretext of going to the toilet, and then secretly found pen and ink to write it down.

Li Yi also secretly sent people to invite more officials from Xuzhou to join the banquet.

Because this snow-viewing barbecue event was just a spur-of-the-moment idea, not many people were invited.

Unexpectedly, Xu You's sudden visit turned this gathering of relatives and friends into a political conspiracy.

Afterwards, important officials from Xuzhou such as Liu Ye, Xu Sheng, Tian Yu, and Qian Zhao rushed to the banquet.

There were still many people among them who had waiters in their hands, and Li Yi told them to put them down temporarily and come over to have a drink first.

Xu You saw another person coming and asked him why.

Li Yi introduced them to Xu You one by one.

Xu You was surprised to find that the people who came were all important officials of Xuzhou, so he did not dare to neglect them and greeted them one by one.

Then Li Yi ordered everyone to line up and toast Xu You.

It was actually to get him drunk.

All the people who came were important officials, so Xu You couldn't refuse them, so he accepted everyone's toast.

In just half an hour, Xu You was already drunk and unconscious.

While the wine was being poured, Li Yi had been standing by and was secretly trying to get information about Hebei under the pretext of adding more wine.

All of a sudden, several important strongholds in Hebei where troops and grain were stationed were discovered.

In addition, Xu You also revealed that in order to appease the Wuhuan people, Yuan Shao sent his clan children to marry them.

The Wuhuan people then formed an alliance with Yuan Shao and offered a large number of Wuhuan horses.

In this way, Yuan Shao’s rear will be more worry-free.

As long as we deal with Gongsun Zan and move all our main forces to Henan, there will be no problem at all.

Li Yi then went to ask for details from other states and counties.

Yuan Shao ordered his nephew Gao Gan to supervise the military and political affairs of Bingzhou.

Bingzhou is vast and sparsely populated, and is a bitter and cold place.

The most populous Yanmen County, Zhang Liao's hometown, had only over 200,000 people.

As for other states and counties, the population is less than 40,000 or 50,000.

The entire Bingzhou population is less than that of Bohai County.

Yuan Shao did not pay much attention to Bingzhou.

Another reason is that Wuyuan, Shuofang and other counties in the north of Bingzhou were where the Southern Xiongnu were entrenched.

Because the Southern Xiongnu people rebelled and submitted from time to time, there was chaos in Bingzhou and the population was displaced and dispersed.

The Bingzhou area actually controlled by Yuan Shao was mainly Shangdang, Taiyuan and other counties in the eastern part of Bingzhou.

What surprised Li Yi even more was that Yuan Shao wanted to ensure the safety of western Jizhou.

In order to guard against nomadic peoples in the west and north, 50,000 elite troops were stationed in Bingzhou.

This is not a small amount.

Although when Hebei and Henan fight a war in the future, most of these 50,000 people will also be deployed to the battlefield.

But it was placed in Bingzhou.

Bingzhou simply cannot afford to support so many people.

In other words, these 50,000 people were shedding Yuan Shao's blood.

Yuan Shao had to lose money but still maintain these 50,000 elite soldiers.

But everything has its pros and cons. Bingzhou’s troops are expensive.

But they are guarding the border, and their fighting power should not be underestimated.

As for Youzhou.

This place has been an important military town since the pre-Qin period.

Although it is not rich, it is of great strategic value.

It is the border area between the Central Plains agricultural civilization and the grassland nomadic civilization.

Because they were often plundered by nomadic peoples, the people here are tough and ferocious.

It is one of the best horse farms in the entire Han Empire.

Yuan Shao has now taken control of most of Youzhou, and his rear is stable.

Youzhou will provide Yuan Shao with a steady supply of war horse resources.

Horses do not necessarily have to be used as cavalry.

Its real value lies in improving transportation efficiency.

This is where war horses are truly valuable.

Since the topic of war horses came up, Li Yi took the opportunity to ask about Jizhou's military production.

Xu You got drunk and was flattered by the officials, and he thought he was successful.

So he did not suspect him and escaped completely out of trust in Li Yi.

Last year alone, more than 10,000 sets of armor and fighting gear, 100 sets of horse armor, and more than 10,000 bows and crossbows were produced.

When this number was spoken, all the Xuzhou officials looked at each other in surprise.

While everyone was amazed at Jizhou's terrifying productivity, they also secretly admired Li Yi's foresight.

Now everyone finally understood why Li Yi urged Yanzhou and Xuzhou to unite and join forces to fight against Hebei.

Given Hebei's strength, Xuzhou alone cannot defeat it.

The rate of wearing armor was extremely low at the end of the Han Dynasty.

In the early Western Han Dynasty, among the Terracotta Warriors and Horses of Yangjiawan that were investigated, this was already considered a national defense force.

But the armor rate is only 40%.

During the Battle of Guandu, Yuan Shao raised the armor-wearing rate to a terrifying 50%.

Although it cannot be compared with the terrifying 60% of the Tang Dynasty.

But that was the heyday of the Tang Dynasty, when handicrafts, iron smelting, and agriculture all developed rapidly.

The productivity is simply incomparable to that of the Han Dynasty.

The armor rate is linked to productivity.

By the Song Dynasty, the armor rates of Yue Fei, Han Shizhong, and Zhang Jun's troops were all above 70%. Theoretically, if you want to achieve a % armor rate, it is possible, but only for front-line troops.

Yuan Shao was able to raise the armor rate to 50% based on the total base of productivity at the end of the Han Dynasty.

It is not an exaggeration to call him God Yuan.

Of course, in addition to armor and fighting gear, Yuan Shao also armed his war horses in a very generous manner.

In Cao Cao's words, "Benchu has 300 sets of horse armor, and I cannot have 10 sets."

Such productivity, such armed forces.

He is indeed worthy of the title of the number one prince in the world.

Everyone also understood why Li Yi was not in a hurry to go to war with Yuan Shao.

Instead, they should first try to win over all the surrounding forces that can be won over to fight against Hebei together.

As they were talking, Xu You, perhaps drunk, fell down in the snow.

Everyone rushed to rescue him, and Li Yi ordered people to take him to the inn to rest.

……

At this time, another foreign visitor arrived.

It was the former governor of Kuaiji, Wang Lang.

He first went to the post station to report and request to meet Li Yi.

The attendants on both sides only replied that Li Yi was enjoying the snow and barbecuing with other officials and would not see any outside guests.

Because Wang Lang had been stripped of his official title at this time, Li Yi would generally only meet with officials at the prefectural level in person.

Only if the person is indeed important will Li Yi introduce him to Liu Bei.

As for the remaining number, most of them were received by subordinates.

In order to prevent anyone from slipping through the net, if his subordinates think that this person is of noble status or has strategic value, they will introduce him to Li Yi again.

In a word, Li Yi would personally meet with officials at the prefect level, while the rest would have to be assessed by his subordinates first.

If it is really special, it will be reported to Li Yi.

The purpose of doing this is just to reduce Li Yi's workload.

After all, he was in charge of military affairs, agricultural affairs, and receiving foreign guests, and he couldn't take care of everything.

Wang Lang realized that he couldn't see Li Yi right away, let alone Liu Bei.

He has come all the way from Yuzhang, so he has to make the most of every minute. How can he waste any time?

Just scold:
"I was an official in Xuzhou before. When Tao Gongzu was in power, he selected me as a talented person and appointed me as an official in the government."

"Don't you know my face?"

Wang Lang was from Donghai, Xuzhou, so Tao Qian, as the governor of Xuzhou, could recommend him as an outstanding talent.

The attendants on both sides said:

"Your Excellency is busy with all sorts of affairs, how can you receive just anyone?"

"We have informed Pang Gongcao, and he will come to see you."

Wang Lang then said that Xuzhou had changed a lot since he left it.

All the officials, both high and low, were replaced.

He was an old official of Xuzhou, but no one recognized him, which made Wang Lang a little depressed.

"Even a posthouse attendant is so disrespectful to me. Things have really changed in this era..."

Wang Lang walked out of the hall dejectedly with his hands behind his back.

The servant said to Wang Lang:

"The attendants are being disrespectful to the elders, perhaps they want to ask for bribes."

"Now that the prince is anxious to see Marquis Li Tan, why don't you offer him gold and silver to get him in?"

Wang Lang sighed when he heard this.

Although he was kind and generous, he mostly used his money to help the poor. How could he use it to pay bribes?

But now I have official business to attend to, and it is an important matter.

If there is any delay, it will not only harm his old friend Hua Xin, but it may also bring harm to the people of Yuzhang.

So he compromised and said, "...Well, this is the only way for now."

He ordered his servants to prepare some money and property, intending to go back to the post house to communicate with his attendants.

A young man came over and shouted:
"You are guests who have just arrived in Xuzhou, and you want to bribe our Xuzhou officials?!"

Wang Lang saw that he was caught, and hurriedly put a gold ingot into the boy's hand and apologized:

"We are new here and don't know the rules of Xuzhou."

"I just want to ask to see Marquis Li Tan, but the attendant said that I have to wait for a while."

"When Marquis Tan is free, I will take the time to meet him."

"However, we came from Yuzhang for an important matter, and we would like to see the Marquis of Tan."

The young man weighed the gold in his hand and grinned:

"Don't you know that we in Xuzhou are fighting corruption and cracking down on officials who take bribes?"

This……

Wang Lang and the servant looked at each other in bewilderment.

"I haven't asked for your name yet?"

Wang Lang first tried to find out this person's background.

The young man bowed and said:
"Pang Tong Pang Shiyuan, the current Gongcao of Marquis Tan."

"Oh my! So you are Gongcao Pang, you are so young!"

Wang Lang felt as if he had found a savior. He stepped forward, grabbed Pang Tong's sleeve, and bowed, saying:

"We really have something important to discuss and would like to see Marquis Tan. We hope Gong Cao can help put in a few good words for us."

"Lang is also a native of Xuzhou and an old minister of Tao Gongzu."

"For this favor, I hope you, General Pang, will take more care of me."

Gongcao is equivalent to a secretary. Although he may seem to be a low-ranking official, in actual practice, he has more power than many people.

Wang Lang knew that as long as he got Pang Tong's approval, he would be able to meet Li Yi.

Pang Tong was indifferent to this and just said calmly:

"The Marquis of Tan is very busy, and everyone says they have something important to see him about. Doesn't that mean everyone wants to see the Marquis of Tan?"

Wang Lang was stunned, then said:

"But Lang really has something important to do, and he is not lying!"

Pang Tong frowned and looked at him:
"If there is anything important, please tell me first."

This……

Wang Lang saw that Pang Tong was young, and thought to himself that the fate of Yuzhang was such an important matter, how could he entrust it to others easily?
If the secret were to leak out, Hua Xin and the people of Yuzhang would be implicated.

So he didn't want to tell Pang Tong.

Pang Tong saw this and said:

"If you don't want to speak clearly, please go back!"

After saying that, he turned around and left.

Wang Lang was shocked. He didn't expect this young man to be so decisive.

He quickly chased after him, grabbed his sleeve, and said:

"Gongcao, don't leave. Gongcao, don't leave."

"I said it's not okay?"

Wang Lang sighed and could only place his hopes on this young man.

I just hope he can really introduce Li Yi to me.

As for success or failure, we can only leave it to fate.

Then he told Pang Tong about what happened in Yuzhang.

After hearing this, Pang Tong nodded and said:

"This is indeed worthy of the Lord Tan's time to see it."

After saying this, he looked at Wang Lang again and asked:
"Did you bring the books of laws and regulations from Yuzhang?"

Wang Lang quickly responded, "Yes, the book is here!"

He immediately ordered his servant to present Yuzhang's "letter of surrender".

The servant brought a stack of books. Pang Tong picked up two of them and glanced at them quickly.

The list of officials in Yuzhang, taxation, stationed troops, arsenal reserves, and grain storage are all recorded in detail.

Pang Tong was convinced that Yuzhang was truly willing to surrender, so he put down the scroll and said to Wang Lang:

"Please wait a moment, I will tell you."

Wang Lang was overjoyed and thanked Pang Tong repeatedly.

So Pang Tong ordered his men to prepare horses and hurried to the suburbs to find Li Yi.

Seeing Pang Tong approaching, Li Yi smiled and waved at him, saying:
"Shi Yuan, you have come at the right time. The venison on my rack is just cooked. Come and eat with me."

This……

Seeing that Li Yi had handed the meat to him, Pang Tong did not dare to refuse. He thanked him first, and then quickly put it in his mouth and chewed it.

He gasped from time to time and looked quite embarrassed.

The people around him all laughed and said:
"Pang Gongcao, eat slowly! Don't be anxious, the meat is very hot."

Pang Tong swallowed the meat in a hurry, bowed and reported to Li Yi:

"My Lord, the envoy from Yuzhang has arrived!"

"Is there an envoy from Yuzhang?"

Li Yi raised his eyebrows and put his hands behind his back, without much change on his face.

Pang Tong followed closely behind him and added:

"That man claimed to be Wang Lang, the former governor of Kuaiji. He came to Xuzhou on behalf of Hua Xin, the governor of Yuzhang."

Oh?
Isn’t this Wang Zhizhong?
There was an old minister of Tao Qian's dynasty who recognized Wang Lang.

They used to be colleagues.

After so many years, they still hold high positions in Xuzhou.

But Wang Lang has fallen from the altar and has no official position to hold, which is really sad.

This shows how important it is to serve a stable regime.

"What is he doing?" Li Yi asked.

Pang Tong explained to Li Yi the purpose of Wang Lang's visit one by one.

"Wang Jingxing also brought all the books and official appointments from Yuzhang."

"You are so sincere..."

Pang Tong raised his eyebrows and said to Li Yi.

"If you can spare the time to meet me, it will be helpful in winning the hearts of the people in Yangzhou and the west."

The second half of the sentence is entirely speaking for Wang Lang.

Seeing that Wang Lang and Yuzhang were so sincere, he still hoped that Li Yi would meet them.

However, if they really meet, it will mean that Xuzhou will interfere in Yuzhang's affairs.

Chief Clerk Wang Xiu said:

"Yuzhang is the land of Zhang, full of ants, insects and wild beasts, and has been isolated from the Central Plains since ancient times."

"Now I am in Xuzhou, leading Sun Ce westward to take Liu Biao of Jingzhou, passing through Chaisang and crossing the Yangtze River."

"Hua Xin must be feeling uneasy and wants to seek shelter in Xuzhou."

"However, Xuzhou is now focusing on Huainan. The Shanyue problem in Danyang alone has not been resolved. How can we spare the time to protect Yuzhang?"

"It is better to reject him and let Sun Ce and Liu Biao fight for it."

Wang Xiu believed that Yuzhang was a barbarian land, too poor and backward, and it was not worth Xuzhou's effort to save it.

Even if Yuzhang really submitted to Xuzhou, how would Xuzhou rule the enclave there?
Moreover, the economy and culture there are so backward that the central government has to lose a lot of money every year by investing in infrastructure development.

It's really not worth it.

Although Danyang is also backward, it still has some strategic value and can balance the Jiangdong territory.

At the same time, it is adjacent to Huainan and Xuzhou, and is very easy to control.

In addition, Danyang has elite Danyang soldiers who can provide blood transfusion to Xuzhou.

Therefore, it is worth it for Xuzhou to bleed a little for Danyang, after all, it can bring some benefits back to Xuzhou.

Yuzhang is a complete blood draining tank.

Even as a vassal, it could not provide blood transfusion to Xuzhou like Danyang did.

The only truly wealthy place in Yuzhang was Nanchang County, its seat of government.

But it only appears wealthy compared with other counties and towns in Yuzhang.

It is really not worth it to go through so much trouble just for a county.

On the contrary, this place is very important to Liu Biao and Sun Ce.

Because Yuzhang connects Jingzhou and Jiangdong, it can be used as a logistics supply base and has outstanding strategic value.

Therefore, Wang Xiu believed that Yuzhang could be used as a bargaining chip on the negotiation table between the Sun and Liu families.

Let the two families fight to the death for Yuzhang.

In the end, Xuzhou can reap the benefits.

"What Wang Zhubu said makes sense. Yuzhang is not worth our trouble."

"...Yes, yes, in such a wild place, why should Xuzhou intervene?"

Wang Xiu's remarks were recognized by many officials in Xuzhou.

No one wants to do this thankless business.

The main reason is that Yuzhang can’t make much money, so people dislike it even more.

"What do you think Gongda thinks?"

Li Yi asked Xun You for advice.

Xun You stroked his beard and said in a deep voice:
"Yuzhang is like chicken ribs, tasteless to eat, but a pity to throw away."

"But for Liu Biao and Sun Ce, it was a piece of fat meat."

"If we can make use of it, maybe we can relieve the worries in Jiangnan and let Henan focus on dealing with Hebei."

Li Yi looked at Pang Tong standing beside him again.

Although Pang Tong did not speak, he understood and said seriously:

"Yuzhang really surrendered sincerely. I think that since Yuzhang wants to seek asylum."

"Why don't we send officials to take over the military affairs of Yuzhang so that we can check and balance Jiangnan in the future."

The implication is that if Yuzhang really wants to surrender, he should hand over the military and political power.

I will send someone from Xuzhou to receive it.

In this way, Yuzhang became a semi-vassal state.

The only difference is that it has the protection umbrella of Xuzhou.

If others want to attack Yuzhang, they must attack Xuzhou.

Whether it is Liu Biao of Jingzhou or Sun Ce of Jiangdong, they have to think carefully.

After all, they have more than one enemy.

"Shi Yuan's words are the best. If we can make Xuzhou officials take over Yuzhang, it will be great."

Since Yuzhang is a blood-draining trough, let it govern itself.

Whether it makes a profit or a loss every year has nothing to do with Xuzhou.

But if officials from Xuzhou could be sent to garrison there, Xuzhou's business in the south of the Yangtze River would be more flexible.

"...Well, bring the messenger here."

Li Yi waved his hands, lifted his clothes and sat down.

After a while, Wang Lang was brought over.

He looked around and saw that there were so many people here.

I’m afraid most of the senior officials from Xuzhou have come.

Wang Lang straightened his clothes and bowed loudly:
"Yuzhang Prince Jingxing pays homage to Marquis Tan!"

……

(End of this chapter)