Late Han Zhao Tang

Chapter 170: The Governor of Henei, My Kou Xun

The sun rose high in the sky, and the dazzling sunlight covered the earth. The people of Luoyang who were forcibly relocated to Guanzhong staggered on the official road, with men pushing carts, women carrying bags, and the elderly and the weak following them.

To prevent the people of Luoyang from fleeing, Dong Zhuo's cavalry patrolled along the way. The cavalry often looked at women with lustful eyes, searching for women with outstanding looks. In order to avoid being targeted, many women made themselves look dirty.

In the queue, a simple carriage raised its curtain, and a beautiful and elegant woman poked her pretty face out, looked at the endless crowd, and sighed slightly.

Seeing this, the Western Army cavalryman not only did not look at her with lustful eyes, but rode forward and said respectfully: "Miss Cai, what do you want me to do now?"

Cai Yan bit her lip and asked, "How long will it take to get to Chang'an? Where is my father now?"

The attendant lowered his eyes and replied, "We are now at Xin'an, and it is still two hundred miles from Chang'an. If you are tired, you can stop the car and rest. As for Lord Cai, he is serving the Prime Minister, so you don't need to worry about him."

"I don't know Qianjin, what else do you want me to do?"

Cai Yan hesitated for a moment and asked, "I want to send a letter to Yang Shi of Taishan. I wonder if it can be delivered?"

"I'm afraid it will be difficult!"

The attendant looked troubled and said, "The princes in Guandong are in chaos, and the roads are blocked. I'm afraid the letter will have a hard time reaching Mount Tai."

"That's it!"

A hint of disappointment flashed across Cai Yan's autumn-water eyes.

Since she followed her father to Luoyang, she has lost contact with her sister Zhenji. Now she wants to report her safety to her sister, but she cannot contact her due to the war. She does not know when she will see her sister again.

"There are wars everywhere in the world, and I don't know when it will be settled!" Cai Yan said sadly.

"The world is about to fall into chaos. If the people of the capital are relocated to the Guanzhong area, it will be able to enrich the counties and towns in Guanzhong."

Dong Zhuo placed his hands on the wall, looking at the Han people on the road like ants, and said to the people around him: "I am moving west now, not because I am afraid of the allied forces in Guandong, but because Luoyang is too small to accomplish great things. Moving the capital to Guanzhong is actually to follow the Qin's strategy of sweeping the world, first stabilize Guanxi, then settle Bashu, and then go east to rebuild the country."

Before, Dong Zhuo still had the idea of ruling the world together with the Guandong scholars, but as the Guandong heroes rose up in rebellion, Dong Zhuo no longer had the idea of ruling the world together. Instead, he planned to establish his own regime first, following the order of the Qin Dynasty to unify the world, and use the dangers of the ancient road of Qiaohan to stop the Guandong coalition forces.

After all, Dong Zhuo did not actually control Guanzhong before entering the capital. There were still Huangfu Song with 30,000 soldiers and Gai Xun with 10,000 soldiers in Guanzhong. Therefore, Dong Zhuo moved the capital to Luoyang this time to avoid the attack of the Guandong coalition forces and to stabilize Guanzhong.

Cai Yong bowed and said, "The Prime Minister has the intention to support the country, and I respect him very much. However, there are nearly one million people who have moved west, and many died or were injured along the way due to famine. If the Prime Minister sits back and does nothing, I don't know how many people will be able to reach Guanzhong. I only hope that the Prime Minister will implement good policies, as people are the foundation of a country."

Dong Zhuo raised his eyebrows slightly and said with a smile: "What Bo Ji said is not without reason. Order the troops not to drive the people too far."

"promise!"

Dong Zhuo came from Longyou, so his methods were naturally cruel. The people in the capital were unwilling to migrate, so Dong Zhuo directly ordered his soldiers to burn fields and houses and drive the people to migrate.

"Wenyou, are there any changes in Guandong now?" Dong Zhuo asked.

"Reporting to the Prime Minister, the bandits in Guandong are killing each other!"

Li Ru stroked his beard and smiled, saying, "Yanzhou Governor Liu Dai killed Dongjun Prefect Qiao Mao and appointed his subordinate Wang Gong as Dongjun Prefect."

Li Ru hesitated and said, "Yuan Shu somehow learned that the Prime Minister appointed Liu Biao as the governor of Jingzhou. Now he has captured Liu Biao in Yicheng and obtained the seal of the governor of Jingzhou. He calls himself the governor of Jingzhou and makes Wancheng his seat of government."

Dong Zhuo frowned and said, "Jingzhou has a rich population. Now that Yuan Shu has taken it, and other Yuans are doing evil, I'm afraid it will be difficult to stop the Yuan family!"

Li Ru stroked his beard and made a decision, revealing a shrewd look. He said: "Yuan Shu and Yuan Shao hate each other. Now they can unite and rebel because of the prime minister. Therefore, in my opinion, Liu Dai's annexation of Dongjun is just a past event. When the prime minister enters Chang'an, the bandits in Guandong will surely kill each other, and the Yuan family will split up and annex each other's prefectures."

Dong Zhuo patted the rammed earth wall, laughed heroically, and said, "Let the bandits in Guandong fight. I will settle Guanzhong, subdue Bashu, and then march east to wipe them out one by one."

"The Prime Minister is wise!" Li Ru and everyone congratulated.

Dong Zhuo calmed down, as if remembering something, and asked, "Didn't Zhang Yu report a few days ago that he had defeated the Baibo Army, beheaded the bandit leader Guo Tai, and captured more than 50,000 people?"

"Of course!"

Liu Ai, the chief secretary of the prime minister, said: "Zhang Yu and Yu Fuluo were married, and he also asked for the position of Chanyu on his behalf."

Hearing this, Dong Zhuo paced along the city wall and said slowly, "Fengxian once said that Zhang Yu was extremely brave and strategic. Now, relying on the desolate land of Shangdang, he has defeated the Baibo bandits and eliminated the worry in my heart. His strategy should not be underestimated."

Last year, the Baibo bandits defeated Niu Fu and looted the counties in Hedong, which made Dong Zhuo, who was in Luoyang, worried that the Baibo bandits would move south to Guanzhong. With the eastward migration of the Baibo bandits, Dong Zhuo felt much more relieved.

As for Zhang Yu, who was stationed in Shangdang, Dong Zhuo did not think much about it. He expected that Zhang Yu would be defeated with a high probability, considering the small number of troops. However, the news that Zhang Yu had defeated the Baibo bandits shocked Dong Zhuo so much that he no longer dared to underestimate Zhang Yu and even began to be afraid of him.

"Wenyou, what do you think of appointing Zhang Yu as governor of Henei?"

Dong Zhuo stopped and said with a cunning look on his rough face: "Yuan Shao has stationed his troops in Henei. If we move Zhang Yu to be the governor of Henei, maybe we can make Zhang and Yuan enemies."

Li Ru thought for a while and said, "The strategy of two tigers competing for food is not bad, but I am afraid Zhang Yu has no intention of competing with Yuan Shao." "No impact!"

Dong Zhuo held his belt with his hand and said with a smile: "Wang Zishi and Wang Changwen are brothers who served in the same dynasty as me. Logically speaking, Zhang Yu is friendly to our dynasty. Now I appoint him as the governor of Henei, which is not only to let him fight against the enemy for the country, but also to reward Zhang Yu for his merits."

"Who will be the governor of Shangdang?" Li Ru asked.

Liu Ai pondered and said, "Zhang Yu has an uncle named Zhang Yang. We can let Zhang Yang be the governor of Shangdang, and Zhang Yu will be the governor of Henei."

"good!"

Dong Zhuo nodded slightly and said with a smile: "I agree with you. I hope you can ask the court to send someone to reward you!"

"Oh, by the way, let Niu Fu settle in Anyi and recruit soldiers there to guard Hedong for me."

"promise!"

Dong Zhuo was not a man without strategy. As one of the few great generals in the Eastern Han Dynasty, he had a deep understanding of military geography.

The Bingzhou region was barren, and Dong Zhuo had no time to take care of it for the time being. However, Hedong County had a registered population of 600,000, and it also had the Hedong Salt Lake. The county's cities were rich, and its geographical location was critical, so Dong Zhuo would not allow outsiders to get involved.

Therefore, one of the important reasons why Dong Zhuo appointed Zhang Yu as the governor of Henei was to direct Zhang Yu's attention to Henei instead of him spying on Hedong County.

Not to mention that Dong Zhuo appointed Zhang Yu as Marquis of Gaodu, with a fief of 2,000 households, and moved him to be the governor of Henei, in order to cause a conflict between Zhang and Yuan.

Du Ji, who had received Zhang Yu's letter before, finally changed his mind due to the situation.

Hanzhong, Nanzheng.

Du Ji straightened his back, clasped his hands and said, "My Lord, Liu Yan has ordered Zhang Lu and Zhang Xiu to station troops in Ba County. His intention is to plot against Hanzhong. My Lord should be on guard against them."

The prefect, Su Gu, disagreed and said, "Liu Yizhou is the governor and Hanzhong is under his jurisdiction. Why are you plotting against Hanzhong now?"

Du Ji sighed and said, "My Lord, Liu Yizhou has pacified the rebellious, implemented leniency, punished the powerful, repaired weapons, and led the Qiang soldiers to the west. His ambition is far-reaching. Now the heroes in Guandong are fighting against Dong, and Liu Yizhou has no intention of helping Yuan, let alone Dong."

"Last year, except for Hanzhong, all the money and grain from Bashu were intercepted by Liu Yizhou in the name of fighting against the rebels. The governor is loyal to the state and has continuously supplied money and grain to the capital, and Hanzhong is the gateway to Bashu. If Liu Yizhou has great ambitions, he will definitely take Hanzhong in order to block the road."

Su Gu's expression was slightly gloomy, and he said stubbornly: "I am ordered by the court to stay in Hanzhong. How dare Liu Yanan commit treason and harm me!"

Chen Diao, a clerk at the imperial court, said earnestly, "Sir, Dong Zhuo controls the government, and all the heroes in the world are rebelling. Now is a chaotic world. You have no intention of harming anyone, but you must be on guard against them. Zhang Lu and Zhang Xiu are rice thieves who surrendered only after Liu Yan recruited them. To prevent the two thieves from causing trouble, I hope you will recruit soldiers and repair the pass for defense."

Su Gu looked displeased and said in a deep voice: "I have my own plans, so please don't say anything!"

After saying that, Su Gu waved his sleeves and stood up to leave, leaving Chen Diao, Du Ji, Zhao Diao and other officials looking at each other in bewilderment.

"Lord Bo, the Lord does not accept our strategy. What should we do now?" Chen Diao asked, spreading his hands helplessly.

Du Ji looked at Su Gu's receding back, took a long breath, then took off the scholar's hat on his head and placed it on the table.

"Bo Hou, why is this?"

Zhao Song, the chief clerk, hurriedly stopped Du Ji, took the county magistrate's cap, and advised him, "It is not easy for a marquis to find a filial and honest official. How can you easily abandon your post and leave now?"

Du Ji shook his head and said, "It's easy to get an official position, but it's hard to keep it in troubled times!"

As he spoke, Du Ji looked at the county officials who had gathered around him, and said with a bow, "I have done my job, but the governor is stubborn and refuses to accept my request. Now I have no choice but to leave my post. I see that the situation in the world is in chaos, and the two bandits have stationed their troops in strategic locations, and they must be planning to spy on Hanzhong. I hope you will make plans early and not make mistakes. We are colleagues, and this is all I have to say!"

Without waiting for everyone to try to stop him, Du Ji pushed everyone away and quickly walked out of the mansion.

Chen Diao hesitated for a moment and then chased after Du Ji.

Outside the gate, Chen Diao stopped Du Ji and asked, "The county magistrate has left his post and is leaving. Where is he going?"

Hearing this, Du Ji pondered for a long time and said, "I used to have an old relationship with General Zhang Ji'an, who was stationed in Shangdang and repeatedly invited me to serve. However, I am concerned about the civil administration of Hanzhong and dare not abandon it lightly. Now Hanzhong is not suitable for living, so I will go to Shangdang."

After a pause, Du Ji patted Chen Diao's arm and said, "Your Excellency is stubborn and cannot accept our advice. I hope you can make plans early!"

Chen Diao looked at the government office, shook his head and said, "I was originally a knight-errant, and I was able to become a county official only after being recruited by the governor. If I abandon him and run away now, I would be an unrighteous person."

Du Ji said earnestly, "Although the favor of the expedition is great, please do not forget your family. It is difficult to save a fool, I hope you will think carefully about the pros and cons. If there is a chance, I hope to see you again!"

After parting with Chen Diao, Du Ji packed his luggage overnight, hired a knight-errant, and took his stepmother out of Shu Road, preparing to pass through Guanzhong and go to Zhang Yu for refuge.

(End of this chapter)