Late Han Zhao Tang

Chapter 275: The weather is getting cold. When can I put on an outer robe?
Yishui, Gongsun Zan’s military camp.

Inside the big tent, Gongsun Zan looked at Gongsun Ming, who was looking frightened, with a questioning look in his expression.

"You surrendered to Zhang Yu in the past, why do you come to me now?" Gongsun Zan asked with a sullen face.

Gongsun Ming said in fear, "I surrendered to Zhang Yu because of the situation. I surrendered to you and I dared not not surrender. I just wanted to stay useful and repay you. So I am under Zhang Yu's command, but I dare not forget you. Now I have learned the secret and I come to report it to you."

Gongsun Zan still had a suspicious look on his face and asked, "What secrets are there?"

Gongsun Ming heaved a sigh of relief and said, "My Lord, Youzhou is suffering from drought and no rain, the crops have decreased and there is a shortage of food and grass, so the army is short of food. Zhang Yu was worried about the shortage of food, so he ordered the grain officer to cut spending, and the soldiers gradually became resentful!"

Gongsun Zan frowned slightly and asked, "Why do you want to join me now?"

Gongsun Ming gritted his teeth and said, "I will never forget your kindness, so I came here with military intelligence."

"Be bold!"

Gongsun Zan angrily slammed the table and asked, "How dare you lie today? Someone take him away and execute him!"

"Yes, sir!" the warrior responded solemnly.

"Mingsir, I am innocent!"

Gongsun Ming didn't know what was going on, so he quickly said, "Every word I said about Zhang Yu's food shortage is true. I dare not lie!"

"Why on earth did you come back to serve me?" Gongsun Zan asked sternly.

"Injustice!"

The warriors held Gongsun Ming and walked out. Gongsun Ming was held back and kicked desperately, saying in panic, "I was punished by Zhang Yu and did not want to serve the sentence, so I fled the camp. I wanted to exchange confidential information for your reward and important position."

"Although I am not sincere, everything I said is true. If you don't believe me, you may send scouts to investigate the enemy camp!"

Seeing that Gongsun Ming did not seem to be faking it, Gongsun Zan waved his hand and signaled the warriors to retreat.

"Thank you for your generosity, sir!"

Gongsun Ming let out a long breath and quickly bowed to Gongsun Zan to express his gratitude.

"Apart from the shortage of food and fodder, do you know what's going on in Zhang Yu's army?" Gongsun Zan asked.

Gongsun Ming said: "According to my observation, due to the shortage of food and grass, Zhang Yu dismissed the Hu soldiers and ordered them to return home. There is also a rumor among the army that Zhang Yu is about to withdraw his troops. I don't know whether it is true or not, so I dare not speak rashly. Maybe you can send scouts to investigate!"

"As for the rest, due to my humble status, it was difficult for me to gain Zhang Yu's trust, so I was unable to find out the secrets."

"Go down and rest first. If the military intelligence is true, the army will reward you."

Seeing that Gongsun Zan was silent and thoughtful, Guan Jing asked Gongsun Ming to leave.

"promise!"

After Gongsun Ming left, Gongsun Zan asked, "Do you think Gongsun Ming is trustworthy?"

Guan Jing stroked his beard and thought for a moment, then said, "What Gongsun Ming said should be true. The grain of Youzhou was transported to Yijing by you, and Youzhou suffered from a severe drought, so the crops in the fields decreased. Therefore, the fact that Zhang Yu is short of food should be true. And according to the scouts' reports, some Hu cavalry have indeed left the main camp recently."

"So~"

Gongsun Zan pondered the mystery and asked, "Does Zhang Yu intend to withdraw his troops?"

"It is possible that Zhang Yu intends to withdraw his troops!"

Guan Jing said: "Zhang Yu went to Youzhou this time because of the order of the court and Liu He's request. Now Zhang Yu has occupied most of Youzhou, and it is difficult to destroy the princes. It is natural for him to want to withdraw his troops."

Guan Jing added, "Besides, the counties of Youzhou are not owned by Zhang Yu. How could Zhang Yu be willing to waste his troops for Liu He? And if the war lasts for a long time, Zhang Yu is also afraid that you will ask Yuan Shao for help."

"Now we are worried about the severe drought and food shortage. Zhang Yu is in such a dilemma. How dare we waste time with you for long?"

"Yes!"

Gongsun Zan was in a much better mood and said, "What does the hatred between Liu He and I have to do with Zhang Yu?"

"Somebody come!"

As he spoke, Gongsun Zan ordered his men, "Order someone to investigate the movements of Zhang Yu's camp, and report any unusual movements immediately!"

"As ordered!"

"Mingsir, what is the reply of Yuan Shao's envoy?" Tian Kai asked.

"Ha~"

Gongsun Zan sneered and said, "Since Zhang Yu wants to withdraw his troops, I can defeat him. Send the messenger back to tell Yuan Shao that I don't need his help now. Let Qu Yi lead the troops back."

"Wait a minute!"

Guan Jing tried to stop him, saying, "Your Excellency should not make enemies with Yuan Shao. It is better to defeat Zhang Yu first, and then the envoy will know what to do and leave. If Yuan Shao is dissatisfied with you and sends troops to Hejian and Bohai, it will not be a good thing for you!"

"Han Fei said: 'Things are accomplished by keeping secrets, but ruined by leaking. It is not necessarily that one leaks things, but if one reveals things that are hidden, then one's life will be in danger.' Now that you are planning something important, you must learn from the deeds of the ancients."

"Right!"

Gongsun Zan had suffered too much, so he agreed and said, "Then I will do as you wish!"

"Ming Gong is wise!"

When Gongsun Zan was gearing up to do something big, Zhang Yu, as he had expected, ordered his soldiers to pack their bags.

In the evening, Zhang Yu bowed and entered the army to inspect the various units in the camp.

Inside the tents, the soldiers looked delighted, sorted their packages, and talked to each other in whispers.

"After being away for more than half a year, I can finally go home!"

"Yes!"

"I heard there was a severe drought back home, I wonder how the harvest will be this year?"

The older soldiers sighed and said, "It wasn't long before the weather was good and the harvests were good. This year, it's dry again. There has been no rain for several months. I don't know how things are going at home!"

"It should be OK!"

"Didn't we build a lot of canals before?"

"With canals for irrigation, even if the harvest is bad, at least we can have food!" Shizhang Shen Gu packed his luggage and said, "It hasn't rained for several months, I'm afraid even the canals will dry up!"

"That's true!"

"If there is really no water in the canals, you and I can still earn a living as soldiers, but the rest of the people in the village will probably starve."

"I wonder if the Lord will order the allocation of grain for relief?"

"Will do!"

Seeing someone questioning Zhang Yu, Shi Chang Shen Gu said in a deep voice: "When the Lord occupied Shangdang, I had just joined the army. At that time, a locust plague swept Shangdang, and Shangdang had almost no output. Even though the Lord had no surplus grain in his palace, he still ordered relief for the people. In order to obtain food and grass, he even sent troops to force the rich to borrow grain, and asked Youzhou for 300,000 dan of grain."

"That autumn and winter, you were able to conquer Taiyuan and provide relief to the people of Shangdang, all thanks to 300,000 shi of grain. Even in such a difficult time back then, you still remembered the people, not to mention that you have conquered Guanzhong now."

"Thanks to three hundred thousand shi of grain!"

The older soldiers kept saying, "Liu Youzhou was a good man, but unfortunately he was harmed by Gongsun Zan. Therefore, Your Excellency's attack on Youzhou is not only in compliance with the emperor's order, but also for revenge for everyone!"

"Gongsun Zan really deserves to die!"

The young soldier said: "The world is in such chaos, it would be great if you could become the emperor!"

"Don't talk nonsense!"

The older soldier who had spoken earlier hurriedly stopped him and said, "The emperor's surname is Liu, and your surname is Zhang. How can your surname be the emperor?"

"Stupid!"

The young soldier cursed: "What benefit did Liu give you that you spoke for him? I remember that before Han was Qin, and before Qin was Zhou. Qin and Zhou did not use Liu as their surnames, but Ying and Ji as their surnames. Ying and Ji were able to become emperors, so why can't Junhou be the emperor?"

"If you become the emperor, you and I can live a good life!"

"Don't say more!"

Seeing that the topic was becoming more sensitive, Shi Chang Shen Gu stepped out to interrupt and said, "Your Excellency is my father and mother, so I will just follow your military orders."

As soon as the noise in the tent stopped, someone summoned the chief to come out of the tent.

The sergeant went out upon receiving the order, only to see Zhang Yu leading a dozen armored soldiers outside, who were looking for him to question.

The captain was filled with fear, not knowing whether his previous conversation had been heard.

"Greetings, my Lord!"

"Do you recognize me?" Zhang Yu asked with a smile.

"I remember that when you were in Shangdang, I joined the army!" said the sergeant.

"what name?"

"Shen Gu, courtesy name Bo Jing!"

"it is good!"

Zhang Yu pointed at Shen Gu and said to Lu Fan, "Shen Bojing arranged the camp carefully and managed his subordinates well. Now he can be credited for his merit."

"As ordered!"

"Thank you, Lord!"

Shen Gu was terrified by the sudden reward.

Zhang Yu patted Shen Gu on the shoulder and said with a smile: "Work hard and practice military affairs, and you will be promoted!"

"Don't forget your instructions!"

After conferring the rewards, Zhang Yu took everyone away.

Shen Gu became more loyal to Zhang Yu in his heart, and felt that what the boy said made a lot of sense, and that Zhang Junhou should be the emperor!

Zhang Yu naturally had no idea of what was in Shen Gu's mind. The reason why he encouraged Shen Gu was not only because he accidentally heard Shen Gu's words in favor of him, but also because Shen Gu's tent was very solid, better than the military regulations, so Zhang Yu had to summon him to commend him.

After all, it is better to let a loyal person take the position than to let an unloyal person take the position!

"It's getting cold. When can I put on an outer robe?" Zhang Yu couldn't help but sigh.

"Are you cold, my lord?"

Lu Fan asked, not understanding the deeper meaning.

Zhang Yu said meaningfully, "The time has not come yet!"

The day to add clothes has not come yet. We need to wait for Yuan Shu to take over before the explosion. However, how to make Yuan Shu take over is worth Zhang Yu's deep consideration.

Recovering his thoughts, Zhang Yu asked, "What is the situation in each camp now?"

"Don't worry, sir!"

Guo Tu cupped his hands and said, "I have already laid out the strategy. The officers who will be ordered to lead the army are all veterans!"

"it is good!"

Zhang Yu nodded and said, "Gongsun Ming has escaped from the camp and will surely flee to Gongsun Zan's army. Gongsun Zan knows our army's movements and his preference in deploying troops. Now is the time for our army to defeat him!"

In order to let Gongsun Zan know that he was withdrawing his troops, Zhang Yu deliberately punished Gongsun Ming and made him escape to Gongsun Zan's camp.

"My lord, the news of the severe drought in Bing and Yong states has spread widely in the army. And according to books and letters, the drought in the two states is particularly serious. I wonder if we should issue a decree?" Guo Tu asked.

Zhang Yu hesitated for a moment and said, "Now you can tell the soldiers that I have ordered the warehouses to be opened for relief, so that they don't have to worry."

"promise!"

The severity of the drought was beyond Zhang Yu's expectations. Therefore, considering various factors, Zhang Yu had to instruct Zhong Yao to reduce or exempt taxes according to the severity of the drought to relieve the pressure on the people and let the government open its warehouses for disaster relief.

In today's world, Zhang Yu is the only warlord who reduced taxes due to drought. However, it is not because Zhang Yu is a saint that he reduced taxes, but because it is difficult to collect taxes during drought. If taxes are not collected properly, it may cause riots.

Of course, the areas not seriously affected by the drought would continue to be taxed, while in the seriously affected areas, in order to make up for the losses, Zhang Yu would offer a policy of work-for-relief, asking the people to repair rivers, roads, city walls, and even build armor and weapons.

(End of this chapter)