Late Han Zhao Tang

The day after defeating Yuan Shu, on September 21st.

Zhang Yu personally led his army back to Yongqiu, ordering Yuan Shu to lead the officials of Chen State to the city's outskirts, and sent Zhang Xun into the city to persuade Zhang Chao to surrender, promising that if Zhang Chao surrendered, he would not harm Zhang Chao and his family.

Upon learning of Yuan Shu's defeat and capture, Zhang Chao was both shocked and terrified. At a loss, he summoned his civil and military officials for a meeting. After learning what had happened, Yuan Sui, the governor of Hanoi, and Wei Zhen, the chief clerk, both advised Zhang Chao to surrender.

Yuan Sui, a native of Guangling, was an aide to the Grand Tutor of the former Han dynasty. When Zhang Chao served as the governor of Guangling, he summoned the lords of the realm to attack Dong Zhuo. Yuan Sui, due to his abilities, was appointed to take charge of the affairs of Guangling Commandery.

Since the campaign against Dong Zhuo, Zhang Chao had remained in Chenliu for a long time due to the chaos in the Central Plains. Yuan Sui, however, had to take his family and join Zhang Chao because Tao Qian had appointed another governor of Guangling. Zhang Chao then recommended Yuan Shu, who retained him as an official. When Yuan Shu declared himself emperor, Yuan Sui was appointed governor of Hanoi Commandery on a remote basis and temporarily resided in Chenliu Commandery.

Yuan Sui was not well-known, but his great-grandson Yuan Ye was quite famous, and his work "The Annals of Emperor Xian" has been passed down to later generations.

After a day of hesitation, on September 24th, Zhang Chao led dozens of civil and military officials and more than 7,000 soldiers from Chenliu to surrender, presenting relevant documents such as household registers, maps, and military records.

“The sinner Zhang Chao has failed to recognize the will of Heaven and now begs the Tang Emperor for forgiveness.”

Inside the main tent, Zhang Chao performed a grand ceremony, kneeling and kowtowing to Zhang Yu.

Zhang Yu helped Zhang Chao up and said, "In the past, when the royal family was in danger and Dong Zhuo was in power, you and your brother were fortunate enough to raise an army to repay the favor and serve the emperor, setting an example for the world. I had heard a lot about this before, which is what is meant by the greatest righteousness. Now you have been able to recognize the situation and surrender, thus avoiding the cruelty of war. You are truly benevolent!"

After a pause, Zhang Yu's tone softened, and he said, "Although I have no connection with you, we share the same surname. Tomorrow, you will lead your clan and wealth to relocate to Longyou. I can guarantee your safety."

"Thank you for your kindness, Your Majesty!"

Upon not seeing Zhang Yu bestow a title, Zhang Chao sighed inwardly, but knowing he had no leverage to negotiate with him, he respectfully bowed.

But now, one of the men in the procession said, “In the past, when the world was in turmoil and heroes vied for control of the Central Plains, your brothers, sir, occupied a large prefecture and gathered refugees to cultivate the land. Therefore, although you were guilty of resisting the King, you were also guilty of protecting the territory and ensuring the safety of the people. Moreover, knowing the general trend, you promptly surrendered your territory and sealed the treasury. The King of Tang, who has received the Mandate of Heaven and brought peace to the Central Plains, how could he not grant you land to reward your benevolent men?”

Upon hearing this, Zhang Yu looked over and saw that although the speaker was young, his face was resolute, his expression composed, and he showed no fear.

"Who are you?" Zhang Yu asked.

"My surname is Wei, my given name is Zhen, my courtesy name is Gongzhen, and I am currently the Registrar of Chenliu County," Wei Zhen said, neither humble nor arrogant.

Fearing that Zhang Yu would take his anger out on Wei Zhen, Zhang Chao added, "When we attacked Dong Zhuo, his father, Wei Zi, died in battle at Xingyang. He was a descendant of a righteous man, and we hope Your Majesty will understand."

Just as the atmosphere reached a stalemate, Zhang Yu suddenly laughed and said, "Truly worthy of being the descendant of righteous men, I dare to speak out for justice and defend my former master."

As he spoke, Zhang Yu looked at Zhao Zi and said, "Draft an edict on my behalf, stating that Zhang Chao has rendered meritorious service by surrendering the prefecture, and is now enfeoffed as the Marquis of Duting. If his brother Zhang Miao surrenders, he will be enfeoffed as the Marquis of Guannei."

"Yes!" Zhao Zi picked up his pen and wrote.

Upon seeing Zhang Yu bestow upon him a title, Zhang Chao was overjoyed, but considering his elder brother Zhang Miao, he said, "I am deeply grateful for the Emperor's kindness and virtue. However, Chenliu was originally the place where you were appointed, and in terms of merit, you have surpassed me. Moreover, considering the distinction between elder and younger, I would like to yield the title of Marquis of Ting to you, and take the title of Marquis of Guannei for myself."

Zhang Yu laughed and said, "I am very pleased that you do not forget your seniority. I will now follow your advice. If Zhang Miao submits, he will be granted the title of Marquis."

"Thank you, Your Majesty!"

Under other conditions, Zhang Yu might not have agreed. However, Zhang Chao's humility in relinquishing his position to his elder brother Zhang Miao meant that, according to the values ​​of Eastern Han society, Zhang Yu had to agree and approve in order to repair the nearly collapsed value system in the chaotic world.

"What about Minister Wei?"

Zhang Yu looked at Wei Zhen and asked with a smile.

Wei Zhen, who dared to speak out for justice, was exactly what Zhang Yu wanted. Moreover, Zhang Yu was deliberately using Wei Zhen to appease the surrendered people.

Wei Zhen, filled with admiration, flattered, "Your Majesty is good at accepting advice, just like the King of Han. No one but Your Majesty can bring peace and prosperity to the world."

"hehe!"

Zhang Yu smiled with delight and asked, "You are loyal and righteous, and possess talent and knowledge. Now that Yanzhou is in ruins and Yuzhou is in chaos, do you have any advice to offer?"

After considering for a long time, Wei Zhen bowed and said, "Your Majesty captured Yuan Shao in one battle and annihilated the Chen army, which shook the Central Plains. Now the various states are leaderless and their troops are almost exhausted. If Your Majesty sends an envoy to pacify them, the counties of the Central Plains will surely gladly submit. However, although Chen and Yuan are easy to surrender, the sons of Qi and Yuan are also in power. It will be difficult to pacify them without sending troops. Once Qi and Yuan submit, Your Majesty can send a general to attack Xuzhou, and it will be able to fall in a short time."

Wei Zhen didn't say much, but he highlighted two key points. First, with Yuan Shu's surrender, Chen and Yuan would likely surrender as well, leaving the region leaderless. Second, even if Yuan Shang and Gao Gan surrendered due to circumstances, they wouldn't be truly loyal, making military action necessary. Third, once the Central Plains were somewhat pacified, sending troops to intimidate Xuzhou would likely bring Tao Qian to his side.

"good!"

Zhang Yu nodded in appreciation and said, "You have considerable insight into military affairs. I will now keep you by my side to advise on military matters and temporarily appoint you as my Vice Minister."

"Thank you for your kindness, Your Majesty!" Zhang Yu then appeased Yuan Sui, and because Yuan Sui had the merit of persuading him to surrender, Zhang Yu appointed Yuan Sui as the Prefect of Chenliu. As for the other civil and military officials, some remained in their original positions, some were slightly promoted, and some were demoted, all following the advice of Wei Zhen and Yuan Sui.

After the people of Chenliu withdrew, Zhang Yu asked his men, "How many households are there in Chenliu?"

"Your Majesty, Chenliu has 28,000 registered households, a population of about 140,000, more than 7,600 soldiers, 500,000 shi of grain, 50,000 bolts of silk, and 800 horses, making it the leading prefecture among the counties of Yanzhou," Xun You reported briefly.

"When Chenliu was prosperous, it had 180,000 households and nearly one million people. After the great chaos at the end of the Han Dynasty, the population was less than 20% of that. How small it was!"

Zhang Yu sighed and said, "However, compared to the other counties in Yanzhou, it can be considered a large county in terms of population. If what you all say is true, the population of the whole province is less than that of this county."

Yanzhou was devastated. Chenliu was better off with the Zhang brothers in charge, but other prefectures like Dongjun, Jiyin, Jibei, and Shanyang only had a few thousand households registered. At its peak, these prefectures had tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands of households.

During his time in Yanzhou, without Chen Gong's assistance and connections with local powerful figures, Lü Bu would likely have starved long ago. Even so, Lü Bu frequently relied on subsidies from Yuan Shu to launch military campaigns.

"Your Majesty, in Yanzhou, only Yuan Xi is holding out and refusing to surrender. Why not follow the example of persuading the Zhang family to surrender and see if we can convince Yuan Xi to surrender the city?" Xun You suggested.

Zhang Yu lowered his head and flipped through the official documents of Chenliu, saying, "Yuan Xi is not trustworthy. Now we will send the fake Chen troops to Shouzhang to lure Yuan Xi's subordinates into rebellion. They will only surrender if Yuan Xi's head is cut off."

Xun You's expression shifted slightly. Yuan Xi was not like Yuan Shang, who inherited Yuan Shao's legacy; in fact, there was no need to exterminate him. Yet now Your Majesty refuses to let Yuan Xi surrender. What is the reason for this? Could it be that you fear Yuan Xi might surrender again in the future?

Compared to the old and cowardly Yuan Shu, Qi Yuan, who was Zhang Yu's greatest enemy, was the one Zhang Yu was wary of.

The Yuan brothers are still young and ambitious, eager to make a name for themselves. Now imprisoned in Chang'an, they are unlikely to be content, and may even use their influence as members of a family that has held high office for four generations to recruit disillusioned former members of the Yuan clan.

Therefore, in order to cripple the Yuan clan, Zhang Yu had to eliminate the able-bodied male members of the Yuan clan who had experience in separatist rule, since those who had tasted power were unlikely to accept their fate. Among them, Yuan Xi was his enemy for stealing his wife, a grudge that most men would find intolerable.

"Your Majesty, yesterday's defeated soldiers and surrendered people from Yongqiu totaled 60,000. They are now scattered across various camps. If this is not dealt with for a long time, I fear that their morale will waver," Xun You warned.

Zhang Yu pondered for a moment, then asked, "What are your opinions, gentlemen?"

"Your Majesty," Guo Tu said, "the Central Plains are vast, with numerous places for military campaigns. Now that Yuan Shu has surrendered, the provinces of Jing and Yu are within reach, and there are still the counties of Yan, Yang, and Qing that need to be conquered. Therefore, in my opinion, it would be better to train the surrendered soldiers, appoint Yuan Shu's former generals, and then have a senior general oversee them."

“Gongze’s words are reasonable. Sixty thousand surrendered soldiers cost a huge amount of money, and if they are gathered together for too long, things may change. We should first select the elite!” Jia Xu said.

After considering for a while, Zhang Yu asked, "When I conquered Hebei, I sent the old and weak back to their hometowns. Now that Yuan Shu has been captured, the people of Chen are without a leader. Should we follow suit?"

"inappropriate!"

Guo Jia shook his head and said, "When Your Majesty conquered Hebei, Yuan Shao had already fled to the coast. There were no rebels gathered there, and you sent virtuous officials to govern the country, which allowed the surrendered people to live in peace. Now, although Yuan Shu has been captured by Your Majesty, he still has a legitimate son. If everyone supports Yuan Shu's son as emperor, then the surrendered people Your Majesty has dispersed will become soldiers again!"

Zhang Yu pondered the suggestions of the others and said, "Since that's the case, let's follow your advice and select the elite soldiers. The rest, the old and weak, will stay in the army to transport supplies. Make an agreement with everyone that when I conquer the counties of Yuzhou, I will let the people of Yuzhou return to their hometowns, and the people of Jingzhou will follow the old order!"

"How many tens of thousands will be selected, or perhaps twenty thousand? And will the generals be the same as those in the past?" Xun You asked.

"First select ten thousand people to observe their strengths and weaknesses!"

Zhang Yu flipped through the list of surrendered generals, then called out the name of the captured Wen Ping, saying, "Wen Ping of Nanyang is known for his talent and strategy. I now summon him to the main tent for an audience."

As he spoke, Zhang Yu said to his men, “Although Yuan Shu has been captured, Cao Cao, Liu Bei, and Sun Ce are still alive. Without a navy, it is impossible to unify the world. Now, most of the people of Chen come from the south. Their soldiers are good at swimming, and their officers know how to sail. Therefore, we may select them to prepare a navy.”

"Your Majesty has great foresight!" Xun You praised.

Jia Xu, mindful of the important matter, cupped his hands and said, “Your Majesty, although Yuan Shu has been captured, the key to getting his former subordinates to surrender lies in whether Wancheng will support the crown prince and whether the successor will insist on using force.”

Zhang Yu said, "Since Wenhe has said this, I wonder what your opinion is?"

"Your Majesty!"

Jia Xu pondered for a moment and said, "The Han River connects Yongzhou to Jingzhou. It would be better to issue an order to the counties along the Han River to feign an attack and put pressure on the Chen people. Meanwhile, Your Majesty should lead your troops to Yingchuan, cut off the main road between Nanyang and Runan, send envoys eastward to persuade the counties of Yuzhou to surrender, and send another envoy westward to pacify the false Chen officials. Beset by internal and external troubles, the ministers of Wancheng will surely be terrified by the situation, and their surrender will not be far off!"

"good!"

Zhang Yu said, "According to your opinion, after pacifying Chenliu, the army will enter Yingchuan and Li Song and Man Chong will manage the military affairs of Yuan Shang and Yuan Xi."

"Yes, sir!" (End of Chapter)