Tiger Guards

Chapter 116 Vaccination
Soon, Zhao Yan and three others arrived at the main hall.

Here Liu Xie had already heard Fu Wan's general account, and then listened to the descriptions of Liu Ai, Tai Chong, and Zhao Ji again.

He thought about it and decided to ask Zhao Yan's opinion first, and then make a judgment based on that.

So he asked, "Does Lord Yuan Ming think this was a coincidence, or is Ding Chong plotting rebellion?"

Zhao Yan instead asked Zhao Ji: "What does Aji think?"

Zhao Ji bowed, "Since Your Majesty ascended the throne, heroes have risen up in Guandong. Heroes spanning states and counties abound. A single act of violence can devastate counties and prefectures. The best among them can even block the flow of the Si River. If the imperial court rises, how will the heroes of Guandong cope?"

Liu Xie was puzzled: "What did Lord Zhao mean by the blockage of the Si River?"

"Don't you know, Your Majesty?"

Zhao Ji looked at Zhao Yan and then at Fu Wan. The two of them seemed to be unaware and looked at him in surprise.

Seeing that no one else knew, Liu Xie waved his hand and said, "Mr. Zhao, please speak."

"I'm puzzled. Cao Cao's massacre of Xuzhou shocked the world, and many people in Guandong heard about it. How could Your Majesty not know about it?"

Zhao Ji bowed, "As far as I know, when Cao Cao attacked Tao Qian two years ago, Yuan Shao also sent troops to assist. Are there any envoys from Yuan Shao or Cao Cao in the court? If so, why not summon them and ask them? I have only heard a rough outline, but in Pengcheng, Suiling, and Xiaqiu alone, Cao Cao slaughtered hundreds of thousands of men and women when he retreated, causing the Si River to stagnate."

Zhao Ji glanced at Zhao Yan, who was biting his lower lip, and continued, "When he attacked Pengcheng, he killed countless people. Last year, he divided his troops into two groups and attacked Xuzhou again. Six counties in Donghai were slaughtered by Cao's army. The people of Yanzhou knew of his brutality, so they joined forces with Marquis Lü Wen to attack Cao Cao. However, Yuan Shao sent reinforcements and food, and the severe drought and locusts swarmed, leaving the soldiers and food scarce. Marquis Wen was forced to withdraw."

Zhao Yan raised his hand and touched his chest, and asked, "How did Aji know about the Xuzhou incident?"

"There are students and scholars from Xuzhou in the city. I only found out after hearing their complaints."

Zhao Ji lowered his head as he spoke. He was immune to the news of Cao's army massacring the city.

Zhao Yanze thought that his daughter, who had married into Pengcheng, must be in great danger.

Previously, we only knew that Cao's army invaded Xuzhou and severely damaged Tao Qian, which seriously damaged Tao Qian, who had always supported the court, so that he was unable to provide soldiers, money and food to Zhu Jun.

Among the heroes of Guandong, only Tao Qian always kept in touch with Zhu Jun and was willing to provide military support; the second was Liu Biao. Now that General Dong Cheng was leading his troops to repair Luoyang, Liu Biao had begun to send soldiers to assist in the construction.

In the past two years, due to the battle between Lu Bu and Cao Cao for Yanzhou, as well as the large-scale population extinction caused by drought and locust plagues, the connection between the court and Xuzhou has become extremely weak.

It was almost impossible for envoys from Xuzhou to pass through Yanzhou and they had to take a detour.

Even Fu Wan's face changed at this moment. Since Tao Qian was severely injured two years ago, the contact between the court and Xuzhou has been intermittent and unstable.

There are all kinds of news, and it is difficult to tell whether it is true or false.

He had also heard what Zhao Ji had said today. It was too exaggerated, but he just refused to believe it.

At this moment, I still don't want to believe it. If this is true, the destruction of Xuzhou is not important. The key is Cao Cao and Yuan Shao.

Xuzhou is far away and Yanzhou is close. Cao Cao is so cruel. If we really move to Luoyang, will there be any benefits?

The reason why his daughter could become the empress was not only because Fu Wan's wife was the daughter of Emperor Huan, but also because the scholars in Xuzhou supported the court.

The queen came from Xuzhou, so Xuzhou naturally benefited from it. Zhao Yan is a typical example.

When chaos broke out in Guandong and all parties fought against each other, Tao Qian was the only one who protected the territory and the people. He did not expand the army and kill people without any bottom line like Yuan Shao, Cao Cao, Yuan Shu and Gongsun Zan.

So if what Zhao Ji said is true, then there is no such thing as coincidence today.

Xuzhou was in ruins and could no longer provide indirect support to the court.

Then how could the villains in Guandong, who caused all this, sit idly by and watch the imperial court recover?
Therefore, investigating Ding Chong is a trivial matter. What we need to do now is to find out as soon as possible how Xuzhou was destroyed; whether it was an organized massacre by Cao's army at the instigation of Yuan Shao, or the decline was caused by normal fighting, drought, locust plague, disease, and population migration to avoid chaos.

If it was indeed an organized massacre and the Hebei soldiers under Yuan Shao participated, then the sincerity of Yuan Shao and Cao Cao in supporting the king must be re-examined.

Compared to these, Ding Chong is just a small matter.

But Ding Chong's death would also give Cao Cao an excuse, because Ding Chong was Cao Cao's childhood friend, relative, and close friend.

Zhao Ji remained silent. Liu Xie went to see Liu Ai and asked, "Two years ago, when Wang Bi, the official from Yanzhou, came to the court, did he mention the massacre of many men and women in Xuzhou?"

Liu Ai cupped his hands and said, "No."

Liu Xie had some impression of Wang Bi. Wang Bi was ordered by Cao Cao to enter the court to make friends with the ministers, and to give gold and silk to Li Jue and others, as well as to the ministers and officials. The emperor also received support from Yanzhou, which effectively intimidated Li Jue and others for a period of time.

This made Liu Xie feel somewhat favorable towards him.

If what Zhao Ji said was true and Ding Chong was a close friend of Cao Cao, then what happened today made sense.

It is no wonder that Zhao Ji was so vigilant, because he knew the cruel things Cao Cao had done in Xuzhou.

I originally thought that they just rushed over to defeat Tao Qian's army and robbed some supplies; but after reading Zhao Ji's account, it was clear that Yuan Shao and Cao Cao joined forces to try to kill all the people in Xuzhou, crush the will of the Xuzhou scholars, and destroy the court's pillar in Guandong.

Even Zhang Miao, Chen Gong, and other Yanzhou people could no longer bear it and joined forces with Lü Wenhou to attempt to expel Cao Cao, but Cao Cao stubbornly relied on the surrendered Yellow Turban troops from Qingxu to fight back. Having roughly grasped some of the clues, Liu Xie felt very disappointed and asked Zhao Yan, "Lord Yuanming, what should we do now?"

Zhao Yan also calmed down and said, "I am worried about the counselor Dong Zhao. He came to the court on Yuan Shao's orders and has connections with officials. The harm he poses is no less than that of Ding Chong."

How many days of peace did Liu Xie have after he decided to kill?
He looked at Zhao Ji and asked, "What do you think, Mr. Zhao?"

"You can consult Dong Zhao about the affairs of Xuzhou. If he reports the truth, I will keep him as a palace official in the three provinces."

Zhao Ji added, "The barracks in Anyi are too small. I intend to build a new camp beside the Su River to train the infantry and cavalry. Only a strong military can ensure the stability of the court. From now on, I will have to live and work with the officials, making it difficult for me to attend court and observe government affairs."

As he said this, he bowed, which showed that he didn't want to come to the Shizhong Palace to work.

Upon hearing this, Liu Xie asked, "Ding Chong is dead. Who do you think can replace him?"

"I am not familiar with the officials. I only know Zhao Zimao and Pei Juguang."

Zhao Ji answered simply, and Liu Xie naturally understood. He then looked at Zhao Yan, Liu Ai and the others and said, "Remove Pei Mao from his position as Shangshu and appoint him as Shizhong. What do you think, my three ministers?"

Zhao Yan didn't rush to express his opinion. Tai Chong was the first to respond: "I second the motion."

Liu Ai also followed suit and said, "I second the motion."

Seeing this, Liu Xie said, "Lord Zhao, command the troops outside. The four ministers of the Ministry of Personnel will discuss and decide on the policy. If they cannot reach a decision, we will consult Lord Zhao again."

"only."

Zhao Ji and the other three bowed. Liu Xie smiled and said, "Call Dong Zhao here. Let's ask him about the affairs of Xuzhou. Lord Zhao, please stay."

"I'm waiting to retire."

Fu Wan also bowed and retreated with Zhao Yan and others.

After watching these people leave with Shi Qian, Liu Xie asked, "How are Zhao Qing, the three ministers, Yang Ziqi and others?"

"Your Majesty, they are all well-fed and well-clothed. I have assigned them to some cleaning work. When you have cleaned your living quarters, I will then assign you to plant trees. When we march north to conquer the Xiongnu, you will accompany me."

"Don't harm your lives."

Liu Xie stated his bottom line. Even if Zhao Ji sent people to torture the ministers, it was possible in Liu Xie's view.

Just torture them a little... and sharpen them a little, and that's all. After all, the court still needs these people to keep up appearances.

"I am not a man who kills indiscriminately. Before I enlisted as a soldier, I could tear tigers and leopards apart alive, but I never killed a single person."

Zhao Ji replied earnestly, "Early tomorrow morning, I will lead my troops outside the city. Once the camp is complete, I hope Your Majesty will review the troops and lead the nobles, officials, and soldiers in planting trees. Plant mulberry, chestnut, and jujube trees. A forest of trees will become known to future generations."

"can."

Liu Xie looked outside and said, "I'm worried that the two thieves, Li and Guo, will learn of the Wei family's treasury and attack us. Should we recruit Dong Cheng and Zhang Yang to lead their troops to defend Hedong?"

"I do not wish to be distracted by matters after my death. If Li and Guo come, I can resist them."

Zhao Ji refused, saying, "Based on my understanding of the Li and Guo thieves, they are far apart, making it difficult to hastily unite them. Once the counties in Hedong are cleared, we should first march north to attack the Xiongnu. By pretending to go through Beijiang and then through the Chenguan Pass to Henei, we can delay the Li and Guo thieves and also lure the Xiongnu forces into an attack."

Liu Xie wondered, "If the two bandits Li and Guo send their troops quickly, won't we be attacked from both sides?"

"Your Majesty, the gold is in Anyi."

Liu Xie asked again: "How can we attract the Xiongnu to attack us?"

"Capturing His Majesty will naturally force Hedong to pay a large sum of money to redeem His Majesty."

Zhao Ji paused, then said, "We can also deceive the Xiongnu by saying that the gold is among the imperial carriages."

The Huns couldn't help it. Before Li Jue and Guo Si resolved the trust issues with each other, as well as Ma Teng and Han Sui, the probability of their joint forces attacking was not high.

It is so hot this year that it is extremely hot as early as May, which is not conducive to military operations.

During the three months from May to late July, no one should even think about large-scale, high-frequency troop deployments.

As time went on, the Hedong army became more mature, and Duan Wei also served as an outer barrier.

Seeing Zhao Ji's confident tone, Liu Xie stopped asking questions and said, "When you return to the camp later, I will send the Secretary of State to announce the imperial decree and grant you the Imperial Sword for protection. I wanted to discuss your coming-of-age ceremony and marriage with Lord Yuan Ming, but Ding Chong interfered. If you have no objection, the Empress's fourth sister, who is still unmarried, will marry you."

"I have no objection."

Liu Xie further explained: "This empress's younger sister will come of age in three years and will marry Zhao Qing."

"only."

(End of this chapter)