Late Han Zhao Tang

Chapter 190: The Outlaw Zhang Ji'an and the Loyal Han Official Cao Mengde

April, the second year of Zhongping.

When Zhang Yu headed north to Pingcheng, the situation in the Central Plains changed drastically.

While Yuan Shao and Liu Dai had their own intentions, Sun Jian, with the support of Yuan Shu, led his troops to approach Dagu Pass in Luoyang.

Dong Zhuo personally led his army to fight against Sun Jian, but was defeated by him. Dong Zhuo led his troops to retreat to Mianchi, and ordered Lu Bu to lead his troops to cover the rear, but was defeated by Sun Jian again.

In the Northern Expedition, Sun Jian became famous and feared the whole country. He was the first to enter Luoyang and clean up the ancestral temple of the Han Dynasty in Luoyang, so he was awarded the imperial seal.

Perhaps Sun Jian led his troops to recapture Luoyang alone, which made the Guandong lords lose face. When they learned that Luoyang was burned down by Dong Zhuo and there was no one living for hundreds of miles, they only sent people to Luoyang to clean up the battlefield symbolically.

Seeing that no one had sent troops to help and that he had already reaped rich rewards, he returned his troops to Luyang, intending to send troops to fight for Yuzhou with the support of Yuan Shu.

At the same time, Yuan Shao saw that Dong Zhuo had walked west to Chang'an and had no more worries, so he decided to attack Jizhou.

Huai County, Yuan Shao’s military camp.

Inside the big tent, Yuan Shao was discussing the situation in Guandong with his civil and military officials.

"Now Dong Zhuo led his army to flee to Guanzhong, and Sun Jian led his troops to retreat to Yangcheng. Now Yuan Shu has occupied Jingzhou. If Sun Jian gets Yuzhou, the situation in Guandong will depend on Yuan Shu, not me!" Yuan Shao said worriedly.

The situation is not favorable for Yuan Shao now. His opponents have already established themselves to some extent, but he is still dependent on others. Especially his cousin Yuan Shu, who now controls the counties of Jingzhou and has the powerful general Sun Jian under his command. If Sun Jian is allowed to take control of Yuzhou, Yuan Shao will fall further behind in his bid for world domination.

"General, in this campaign against Dong Zhuo, the governor of Danyang, Zhou Xin, has sent a large number of troops, more than 10,000 soldiers and horses to assist you. And Zhou Xin's brother Zhou Ang used to be the governor of Yingchuan and is very famous in Yuzhou. It would be better to recommend Zhou Ang as the governor of Yuzhou and order him to resist Sun Jian." Xu You said.

"Zhou Ang?"

Yuan Shao nodded and said, "Yuan Gonglu controls Jingzhou. Now I appoint Zhou Ang as the governor of Yuzhou to win over Danyang governor Zhou Xin. And Yangzhou governor Chen Wen is on good terms with me, so he can check Yuan Gonglu from using force against Yangzhou."

Chen Wen was a descendant of the Chen family of Runan and had a close relationship with Yuan Shao. Before Cao Cao went south to Jianghuai to recruit soldiers, in addition to Cao Hong's good relationship with Chen Wen and the Cao family's many connections in Yangzhou, Cao Cao was also responsible for the liaison between Yuan Shao and Chen Wen.

Although Yuan Shao is in Hebei, he is still keeping an eye on Yuan Shu's development. Now that Yuan Shu has the tendency to become more powerful, how can Yuan Shao remain indifferent? He will definitely take action to check and balance him.

"I now recommend Zhou Ang to be the governor of Yuzhou to check and balance Yuan Gonglu of Jingzhou. This is the general's long-term plan. However, the general has too many soldiers and too little food. It is most important to seize Jizhou and establish a base as soon as possible."

Feng Ji bowed and said, "Ji heard that Jizhou general Qu Yi and Han Fu have a grudge, so why don't you ally with Qu Yi internally and Zhang and Sun externally to force Han Fu to give up his throne to you."

"Qu Yi is a warrior from Liang Province. He has a rebellious character and has many conflicts with Han Fu. If we send someone who is good at talking to him, he can be used by me." Yuan Shao stroked his beard and nodded, saying, "I wonder if Zhang Yu and Gongsun Zan can send troops to help me conquer Ji Province as agreed last year."

"Although Zhang Yu disagreed with making Liu Yu the emperor, he was willing to help the general conquer Jizhou. He only said that he would give the general the Henei County as a gift after the general's war was completed, and he had no intention of caring about the counties of Jizhou."

Xun Chen said: "On the contrary, Gongsun Zan asked a lot about the counties of Jizhou and how to divide Jizhou. Chen told him about the two counties of Boling and Hejian that the general mentioned, but Gongsun Zan was secretly unhappy. In Chen's opinion, when the general goes to Jizhou, Gongsun Zan will become the general's biggest enemy in the struggle for hegemony in Hebei."

"No!"

Yuan Shao shook his head slightly and said, "The strongest enemy for Hebei is Zhang Yu, not Gongsun Zan."

"Zhang Yu?"

Xun Chen was puzzled and asked: "Although Zhang Yu holds Bingzhou, his population is poor; although he is good at strategy, his troops are not as good as yours. Why do you say that Zhang Yu is a strong enemy of yours?"

Yuan Shao shook his head and said, "You all underestimate Zhang Yu. Although Bingzhou is in decline, it has a strategic location. In addition, Zhang Yu recruited refugees from Henei to strengthen his army. However, this alone does not make him a strong enemy. He is allied with Liu Yu and cooperates with Youzhou. We must be on guard!"

With frequent contact with Zhang Yu, Yuan Shao was able to face Zhang Yu squarely, or to have a deeper understanding of Zhang Yu.

There is no need to say much about Zhang Yu's military level, and his foresight about the situation made Yuan Shao admire him.

After Dong Zhuo entered the capital, Zhang Yu decisively went to Shangdang, occupied it first, and took advantage of the war to continuously absorb people from Hebei.

In order to avoid being involved in the turmoil, he clung to Liu Yu's thigh early on, so that when the locust plague occurred, he received a large amount of food and grass support from Youzhou, and quickly captured Taiyuan, thus breaking the situation of being trapped in Shangdang.

In just one year, Zhang Yu took control of all the counties in Bingzhou. Although Gongsun Zan was in charge of the military in Youzhou, he was nominally under the jurisdiction of Liu Yu. There was a big difference between the two situations.

Now Yuan Shao can conclude that the reason why Zhang Yu did not covet the counties of Jizhou is that he had far-reaching ambitions. Otherwise, how could he be satisfied with Henei County, which had been ravaged by war?
"General, what should we do now?" Xun Chen asked.

Yuan Shao drew his sword and stood up, saying in a deep voice: "I will send someone to contact Gongsun Zan, Qu Yi and Zhang Yu. When the war breaks out in Jizhou, I will ask them to go north to persuade Han Fu for me. As for Zhang Yu and Gongsun, I will make friends with them temporarily. When Jizhou is stable, I will make peace with Zhang Yu in the west and drive Gongsun to the north to stabilize the states in Hebei."

"Yes!" Everyone responded in unison. Not to mention Yuan Shao's attack on Jizhou, Zhang Yu's influence in unifying Bingzhou is spreading.

"Brother, Guo Gongze has written to you and me many times to invite us. Are we going east to Jin now?" Xin Pi handed the letter to Xin Ping and asked.

Xin Ping looked at the passionate words in the letter, frowned and said: "You and I have served Lord Yuan, how can we betray him now? Besides, although Zhang Yu has taken Bingzhou, Lord Yuan will also take Jizhou."

As he spoke, Xin Ping looked up at Xin Pi and asked, "But does George have any intention?"

Xin Pi looked embarrassed and said, "Although Lord Yuan treated you and me with courtesy, he valued my brother more. I have been under Lord Yuan's command for a long time. Although I have the honor to attend meetings occasionally, I have nothing to do most of the time. As for Zhang Yu, although he was born in a humble family, he was promoted by his wife's family. Now that he controls the counties in Bingzhou, there is a shortage of outstanding talents. If I go to serve him, I can at least get the position of county magistrate."

The Xin family of Yingchuan was not a native gentry of Yingchuan. Their ancestors can be traced back to the Xin family of Longxi. In the early years of the Eastern Han Dynasty, the Xin family moved east to Yingchuan, and then the Xin family of Yingchuan came into being. However, due to the migration, the Xin family was not as prosperous as the other families in Yingchuan.

Therefore, when Han Fu sent people to recruit them, the Xin brothers decisively went north to Jizhou. When Yuan Shao was competing for the Yingchuan scholars, the Xin brothers failed to get the Yingchuan scholars who were valued by Han Fu, so they went to Yuan Shao's camp again. Now the Xin brothers have disagreements again because of their future.

Seeing his brother's pursuit of a better future, Xin Ping did not refute him, but said calmly: "The world is in chaos, and the chaotic times have come. If you want to make achievements and save the world, you need to entrust it to a good master. For example, the county official Xiao He met Emperor Gaozu and became a good prime minister of the founding of the country; the criminal Guan Zhong met Duke Huan and became famous in the world."

"Now that Yuan Gong's name is known all over the country, he is respectful to the wise and humble, and has the potential to become a hero, I wonder why Zuo Zhi wants to flee west to Jin?"

Xin Pi scratched his head and said, "Mr. Zhang was a powerful figure in Hebei when he was young. Now he has unified the Three Jins and has the potential to split the land. According to Gong Ze, Mr. Zhang treats scholars with courtesy and selects people based on their talents. Judging from what he has done, he may not be much weaker than Mr. Yuan!"

"Moreover, last year there was a prophecy that 'Yu will be the emperor in the future'. Lord Zhang used Yu as his name and made great achievements in Dai. Now Lord Liu has no intention of becoming emperor, so the prophecy should be confirmed by Lord Zhang!"

Upon hearing this, Xin Ping was at a loss whether to laugh or cry. He had originally created these auspicious signs purely to build momentum for Liu Yu's ascension to the throne, but who knew it would be linked to Zhang Yu.

Xin Ping thought for a long time and said, "If Zuo Zhi is interested in joining Zhang Gong, I have no intention of stopping him. I only hope that Zuo Zhi will weigh the pros and cons and think twice before acting."

Seeing that his brother had no objection, Xin Pi let out a sigh of relief and said, "If you invite me by letter, I will go to Jin to observe Mr. Zhang's talents. If Mr. Zhang is incapable of accomplishing anything, I will return to Mr. Yuan in the east."

"good!"

With the help of his brother Xin Ping, Xin Pi left Yuan Shao's army and went to Jinyang with Guo Yuan, on the pretext of staying in Henei to recuperate. However, Guo Jia, the cousin invited by Guo Tu, was stopped by Xun Yu when he was hesitant about whether to go to Jinyang.

Guo Jia sat cross-legged and said, "Within a year, Zhang Ji'an was able to rule Bingzhou, subdue the Xiongnu and Baibo, and accept the people. He has the potential to accomplish something. I wonder why Brother Wenruo thinks Zhang Ji'an is not worth serving?"

Xun Yu pointed at the letter on the table and said with regret: "The Han Dynasty collapsed and the princes rose up. Zhang Yu had no intention of serving the country and relied on his strong army to occupy Bingzhou. Now Fengxiao has great talent, how can he go west to join the evil people?"

"Moreover, Lord Yuan came to the court at a young age and his name spread far and wide. Although he now only controls Bohai, he is still one step ahead of Zhang Yu. In terms of talent and reputation, how can Zhang Yu compare to Lord Yuan?" Lord Yuan is respectful to the wise and humble, and he values scholars. He is good at making plans and plans, and will take Jizhou as his base. How can Feng Xiao give up the pearl and go to it secretly?"

Under the lobbying of his younger brother Xun Chen, Xun Yu defected from Han Fu to Yuan Shao. Regardless of the historical events in which Xun Yu abandoned Yuan and defected to Cao, Yuan Shao's actions of raising troops to fight against Dong Zhuo and treating people with respect and courtesy were very much to Xun Yu's liking, and he admired Yuan Shao very much.

As for his opinion of Zhang Yu, Xun Yu changed from a good friend to a person he disliked. After all, others might not be able to see Zhang Yu's wavering behavior, but how could Xun Yu not see it?

Isn't it just an act of annexing territory under the banner of loyalty to the Han Dynasty?

Guo Jia hesitated for a moment and said, "Mr. Yuan comes from a famous family and bravely fights against the enemy. His courage and strategy are admirable. But I suspect that Mr. Yuan is indecisive and forgets about personal gain when he sees small gains."

"Why does Fengxiao say that?"

"Dong Zhuo fled Luoyang. If Lord Yuan marched eastward to Luoyang, summoned volunteers and attacked Guanzhong again, or offered sacrifices to the ancestral temple and welcomed the new emperor in Luoyang, with Lord Yuan's reputation, if he supported the emperor to rule the world, then all the princes in the world would dare not disobey you!"

Guo Jia said: "Now he is plotting to seize Jizhou and force Han Fu to give up his throne to him. This is feasible, but it is not a good strategy. Especially bringing Gongsun Zan and Zhang Yu into Jizhou, I am afraid it is like inviting a tiger into the house."

Hearing this, Xun Yu pondered for a while and said, "Feng Xiao has just arrived at Lord Yuan's camp. It's better to observe for a few more days. I hope Feng Xiao will not mention the matter of running to Jin again."

"When we were in Yingchuan, Yu and Zhang Yu often interacted with each other. They were scheming and their words and deeds were improper. They were not good leaders. They went against the trend and would eventually fail. Moreover, Guo Gong was a flatterer and cunning person, and Zhong Yuanchang was a mediocre and smooth person. It would be difficult for them to accomplish anything."

"If Lord Yuan is not able to help, General Cao Mengde can serve. He is loyal to the Han Dynasty and wants to help the world, but now he has no foundation and cannot display his talents. So it is better to wait and see what happens instead of serving him."

Guo Jia frowned and nodded, saying, "I just came under Lord Yuan's command, and I know very little about him. Now, as Brother Wenruo said, let's observe what kind of person Lord Yuan is."

Seeing that Guo Jia had no intention of going west to Jinyang, Xun Yu let out a sigh of relief and said with a smile: "Tomorrow, I will introduce Meng De to Feng Xiao."

"good!"

(End of this chapter)