Late Han Zhao Tang

Chapter 234: The story of Ji Zhou's eastward migration, Yuan Gonglu's ambition

"In the past, many heroes fought against Dong Zhuo, but Yuan Shao, Liu Dai, Zhang Miao and others were ineffective. Only you led the army to the north, drove Dong Zhuo away, recovered the old capital, and were loyal to the royal family, with outstanding merits. However, Yuan Shao sent his young generals to live in Luoyang, cut off Sun Jian's food supply, and prevented him from advancing deep into the enemy's territory, so that Dong Zhuo could not surrender for a long time."

"The emperor moved westward and was in deep trouble. The princes took Huo Guang as their ambition and joined forces with righteous men to kill Dong and restore the dynasty, but they failed in the end. The right general is determined to plot against the thieves, but unfortunately he can't do it alone. Now I hope that you will not forget your old ambitions and do your best to send troops to help them."

Sun Zi stood in the hall with his hands behind his back, trying to tempt Yuan Shu with words to raise an army to attack the bandits.

"In the past, the government of the Zhou Dynasty was weak, the barbarians invaded China, the emperor moved east, and the princes turned away. Therefore, Duke Huan of Qi established the Keting Alliance, and Duke Wen of Jin had the Jiantu Conference, which respected the king and repelled the barbarians, and achieved temporary hegemony. You serve Minggong as the leader of the alliance, and the Grand Marshal serves you as the general. If this time we defeat the enemy, you will build on the great achievements of Duke Huan and Duke Wen."

As Sun Zi's voice echoed in the empty hall, amusement gradually appeared on Yuan Shu's face, and his civil and military officials whispered to each other, seeming to have quite a few insights into the matter.

Yuan Shu looked at the contents of the scarf and asked, "I have read the letter from the Right General. You want me to be the leader of the alliance, but I don't know where the emperor will be placed after the bandits are defeated?"

"My Lord, you have made an agreement with the other princes that if you destroy the rebels in Guanzhong, you will welcome the emperor to Luoyang, emulating the story of Ji Zhou's eastward migration and revival." Sun Zi said, "What you have done is comparable to Qi Huan and Jin Wen. Your reputation will be renowned throughout the world, and all the princes will submit to you."

Zhang Yu not only proposed to conquer the rebels in Guanzhong and welcome the emperor to Luoyang, but also put forward the political slogan of reviving the Han Dynasty, that is, to follow the story of the Eastern Migration of the Zhou Dynasty, to answer the questions of Liu Yu, Yuan Shu, Liu Bei and other princes about the placement of the Han Dynasty. After all, although the Eastern Migration of King Ping was the beginning of the decline of the Zhou Dynasty, from another perspective, the Eastern Migration of King Ping could be regarded as an alternative revival of the dynasty.

In today's world situation, everyone with a discerning eye knows that the Han Dynasty is declining and the emperor has lost the ability to control the world. Therefore, if the princes sent troops to Guanzhong, even if they rescued the emperor, the world would be doomed to fall into chaos. It was impossible to expect the Guangwu Restoration to happen. Moreover, it was hard for everyone to believe that Zhang Yu was willing to return power to the emperor. Therefore, Zhang Yu took a trick and used the story of the Zhou King's eastward migration to express his political vision. The Han Dynasty was the common ruler of the world, and he had no intention of controlling the government.

"Ji Zhou moved eastward!"

Yuan Shu muttered for a moment, then asked with a smile, "If I send troops to welcome the emperor to Luoyang, I wonder what title the emperor will confer on me?"

Sun Zi said solemnly: "The title is granted by the emperor, I dare not make any comments. If you welcome the emperor to move east, your achievements will be no less than Huo Guang, and you will be able to rebuild the Han Dynasty."

Yuan Shu hesitated for a moment and asked, "You are passing through Yanzhou, which is under the jurisdiction of Cao Mengde. I wonder what Cao Mengde thinks of it?"

Sun Zi considered his words carefully and replied, "Cao Yanzhou was delighted to hear that you were going to welcome the emperor to Luoyang. However, there were many bandits in Yanzhou, and Yuan Benchu might be afraid, so Cao Mengde did not dare to send troops to respond to the alliance."

When Sun Zi passed through Yanzhou, Cao Cao learned about Zhang Yu's slogan and political ideas. As a former loyal minister of the Han Dynasty, Cao Cao quite agreed with Zhang Yu's suggestion to move the emperor to Luoyang. In addition to his feelings for the Han Dynasty, it was also because Yanzhou was adjacent to Luoyang, which would be convenient for him to influence the court in the future. However, considering the internal and external troubles in Yanzhou, Cao Cao was temporarily unable to withdraw and fight against the enemy. In addition, Cao Cao had to consider Yuan Shao's attitude.

Seeing that Yuan Shu was still hesitant to express his opinion, Sun Zi asked, "What do you think, sir?"

Yuan Shu stroked his beard and smiled, saying: "My Yuan family has been deeply benevolent to the Han Dynasty. Today, the emperor is in trouble and in deep trouble. How can I refuse? Now I ask you to report to Lord Zhang that this time I will send troops from Wuguan to Guanzhong to support Lord Zhang in fighting the enemy."

If you don't take advantage of an opportunity, you are a fool. Zhang Yu and Liu Yu jointly appointed him as the general and respected him as the leader of the alliance. He got all the benefits of fame and fortune. In the issue of sending troops, Zhang Yu took on the heavy responsibility of destroying the bandits, and he only had to send a small army. So if he didn't agree to the alliance, wouldn't it be a pity?

Of course, Yuan Shu had his own considerations. The Han Dynasty had been declining for a long time, and his Yuan family was well-known throughout the world. Next year, he would send troops to Yanzhou. If he could occupy Yanzhou, the emperor would be placed in Luoyang, which would be a bargain for him. At that time, he occupied Jing, Yan, and Yuzhou, and Sun Jian held the imperial seal. When he destroyed Yuan Shao, half of the world would be in his hands, and it would not be difficult to change the country.

Even if he fails to conquer Yanzhou next year, he can still put pressure on the court if he controls Yingchuan. Moreover, as the leader of the alliance, he has made contributions in welcoming the emperor, and the court will be more friendly to him at that time, which will help him deal with Yuan Shao and Cao Cao. When the time is right, he can also become emperor and succeed to the throne.

Yuan Shu's idea of becoming emperor was not born out of thin air. Judging from the current situation, Jingzhou was occupied by him and Yuzhou was almost in his hands. There were many heroes in Yangzhou in the lower reaches of the Yangtze River who responded to him, especially after the death of Chen Wen, the governor of Yangzhou, Yuan Shu had recommended Chen Yu as the governor of Yangzhou.

If we look at Yuan Shu's situation, his influence now covers the three states of Yang, Jing, and Yu. However, Yuan Shu's biggest problem is that his territory is too large. He has appointed many governors and inspectors, but how many of them are loyal to him is a question mark.

"Your Excellency's generosity and generosity towards the people are admired by the scholars. I would like to thank you on behalf of the prince!" Sun Zi said happily.

"good!"

Yuan Shu had agreed to the alliance and ordered Zhang Xun to lead troops to attack Wuguan next spring. Now not only Yuan Shu agreed to the alliance, but Tao Qian, the governor of Xuzhou, who received Zhang Yu's letter, also agreed to the alliance. The reason why Tao Qian agreed to the alliance was that Zhang Yu and Liu Yu jointly recommended him to be the governor of Xuzhou. In exchange for the empty title of the alliance, Tao Qian had nothing to lose.

At the end of the third year of Chuping, Zhang Yu sent envoys to pull together a coalition of princes in Guandong, and they recommended each other official positions and gained benefits. For example, Yuan Shu was the leader of the alliance and was named the general; Zhang Yu was recommended as the general of Wei and the lieutenant of Sili; Tao Qian was recommended as the general of Andong and the governor of Xuzhou. In addition, Lu Bu, Dong Cheng, Liu Bei and other generals were also given official positions.

Looking at the members of the coalition army, the northern army was led by Zhang Yu, and Liu Yu provided the army with supplies; the central army was led by General Zhu Jun, and Tao Qian was responsible for waving the flag and shouting; the southern army was led by General Yuan Shu, and Sun Jian, the governor of Yuzhou, was listed symbolically. When Li Jue, Guo Si, Fan Chou and other rebel generals in Guanzhong learned about the coalition army, they were panicked and hurriedly asked Jia Xu for advice on how to repel the enemy.

"Wenhe, Zhang Yu has joined forces with Yuan Shu, Zhu Jun, Tao Qian, Liu Yu and other princes to attack us because we killed Wang Yun. What should we do now?" Li Jue said worriedly.

Fan Chou sighed and said, "In my opinion, it would be better to send the emperor back to Guandong and let the Guandong coalition army disband on its own!"

Hearing this, Jia Xu couldn't help but roll his eyes. How could he accomplish anything great when he was with this group of unwise companions?

Zhang Yu used the excuse of fighting the rebels as a secondary reason, and now he might be coveting the wealth of Upper Guanzhong. If you look closely at Zhang Yu's military operations, he would always find an excuse. Last time he intervened in the conflict in Hebei, he called it stopping the war, but in fact it was to balance the power in Jizhou. Now he is welcoming the emperor to Luoyang to fight the rebels, isn't it just to defeat the rebels in Guanzhong and throw the emperor to Luoyang so that he can control Guanzhong.

Jia Xu shook his head helplessly and said, "If we send the emperor back to Guandong, I'm afraid you will be on the verge of defeat soon!"

"Zhang Yu is ostensibly fighting against the rebels, but in reality he covets the counties of Guanzhong, and will fight you sooner or later. When the emperor returns to the capital, he will be resentful of you for controlling the government and killing Wang Yun, so he will definitely send Zhu Jun to lead troops to the west."

"What should we do then?" Fan Chou asked.

Jia Xu stroked his beard and thought for a long time, then said: "Looking at the Guandong coalition, Zhang Yu and Liu Yu are willing to send troops, and they are strong enemies of you. Although Yuan Shu is the leader of the alliance, he is interested in the Central Plains. Tao Qian is incapable of doing anything, and only Zhu Jun is stationed in Zhongmou, which is harmful."

"Now you hold the emperor in your hands, and you are the orthodoxy of the court, so why not send an envoy to the east to summon Zhu Jun to lead his troops to the court, and give Tao Qian a high position, so that he can relieve the enemy at Yaohan. And send a general to guard Wuguan, so that you can stop Yuan Shu's troops. The enemies on both sides retreated, and only Zhang Yu crossed the Yellow River to enter Guanzhong."

"Although Wenhe's plan is good, I'm afraid Zhu Jun has no intention of entering the court," said Li Jue.

Jia Xu hesitated for a moment, then said with a smile: "Zhu Jun is an old minister of the Han Dynasty. Today, the emperor has issued an edict to summon him. How dare he not obey the edict!"

Guo Si looked suspicious and asked, "Can Zhu Jun really enter the court?"

"You can send envoys to summon him first. If he cannot come to the court, you can then find Xu to question him!" Jia Xu said with confidence.

"good!"

Li Jue was skeptical and said, "Let's just follow what Wenhe said!"

Why Jia Xu was confident that Zhu Jun would come to the court was not because he blindly trusted the emperor's edict, but because he had a good grasp of Zhu Jun's mentality. Zhu Jun had few soldiers, and if he wanted to play a greater role in fighting the enemy, he had to find another way. For example, he took advantage of the fact that the generals in Guanzhong had no foresight and the opportunity to cooperate with Zhang Yu from inside and outside.

Of course, Jia Xu could not tell Guo, Li and others clearly because their political abilities were too poor and they had many internal conflicts. If Zhu Jun entered the court, he would have the opportunity to cooperate with Zhang Yu from inside and outside.

Jia Xu looked at the three people's departing backs, a thoughtful expression on his face.

If I join the Guanzhong generals, I will have no future. If Zhang Yu defeats Guo and Li and controls Guanzhong, I will need to find an opportunity to join Zhang Yu. If Zhang Yu is defeated, I will need to examine other people and consider my future.

The world is in such chaos, I wonder where the heroes of this world are!
December of the third year of Chuping.

Li Jue adopted Jia Xu's strategy and summoned General Zhu Jun to the court with the emperor's edict. However, Zhu Jun rejected Zhang Yu's proposal to form an alliance with generals and officials and led his troops to the court alone.

When Zhu Jun entered the court, he sent a letter to Zhang Yu. The content of the letter was similar to what Jia Xu had expected, that is, Li Jue and Guo Si were not talented enough to plan for the future, and Fan Chou was incompetent. At present, the internal forces in Guanzhong were complicated, and Zhang Yu had a large number of troops outside. He led his troops into the court. When necessary, he could take advantage of everyone's unpreparedness and lead his troops to respond to Zhang Yu, so as to coordinate internal and external forces.

After receiving Zhu Jun's letter, Zhang Yu was deeply moved by Zhu Jun's spirit of putting himself into the game. After all, Zhu Jun only had a few thousand soldiers and it was too difficult for him to enter Guanzhong from the Hangu Pass. Now he is entering the court as an internal supporter. Regardless of whether he can succeed, his efforts to maximize his role are worthy of admiration!

(End of this chapter)