Tiger Guards

Chapter 262 Impatient

Wankou, Ye County.

After Cao Hong withdrew, when Zhang Xiu's army approached, the gates of Ye County were wide open, and the county elders led their sons and daughters to capture the county magistrate and county lieutenant appointed by Cao on the road.

Zhang Xiu calmly took over Ye County, and since then the last transportation node between Nanyang and Luodu was opened.

The capital accumulated by the big families in Nanyang could finally be transferred to Luodu.

King Hongnong is dead. It is meaningless for the people of Nanyang to reminisce about the past glory. Instead, they should think about how to restore it step by step.

The first step must be to abolish the Zhao family's chaotic rule and the old system in which the three ministers or the generals were in charge of the affairs of the Secretariat.

However, the Zhao family forged the imperial edict and made the vassal king a general, which had never happened before in the Han Dynasty.

Therefore, if Luodu wants to obtain money and grain from Nanyang, it must show due sincerity.

If this sincerity is insufficient, not only will the subsequent money and food shipped to Luodu be cut off, but even the supply of soldiers, money and food from the big families affiliated with Zhang Xiu will be cut off.

With the drought this year, after Zhang Xiu's supplies are cut off... he only has about ten days of mobility. If he can't find a reliable financial backer within ten days, he will starve to death.

Outside Ye County, by the Fenshui River, Zhang Xiu was upset and took his horse to the river to wash it to relieve his boredom.

Lou Gui, a Gongcao of Nanyang County recruited by Zhang Xiu, a famous scholar in Nanxiang and a man of a prominent family, drove to the river, got off the car and walked towards Zhang Xiu.

Zhang Xiu also came ashore and bowed, "Mr. Zibo."

"My Lord, the Marquis of Pingyang has sent a letter calling on the heroes of all the counties to gather at Suanzao and swear to jointly defeat the thief Cao."

Lou Gui bowed slightly and handed the manifesto over with both hands.

Because of Zhao Qi, no one here in Zhang Xiu would call Zhao Ji Zhao Yuansi.

Among Zhao Qi's brothers, there was Zhao Xi, the governor of Dunhuang County, who was good at cursive writing. Because they offended the eunuch Tang Heng, the entire Zhao clan was wiped out. Only Zhao Qi escaped to Beihai with his nephew Zhao Jian and saved his life.

Zhang Xiu looked at the manifesto, which consisted of only a few hundred words, and asked, "What do you think, Master Zibo?"

"If you command your troops to Suanzao, I'm afraid the armies will gather together, lacking fodder and food, and with disorganized command, they will be attacked and defeated by Cao Cao."

Lou Gui's occupation as a famous scholar, a wealthy family, and a Gongcao does not mean that he is a gentle and refined person. Lou Gui, who is more than eight feet tall, also has a strong appearance and has more than two thousand followers and guests under his command.

Lou Gui also has shares in Zhang Xiu's current army.

Lou Gui analyzed carefully, "I'm not exaggerating the Cao rebels' fighting power. If they're defeated now, their entire clan will be wiped out. The Cao rebels, from top to bottom, have united their efforts, which is extraordinary. Look at the great families in Taiyuan and Shangdang, all of which were destroyed because they surrendered. If they had raised their troops earlier and put up a desperate resistance, and the Marquis of Pingyang had been unable to capture it for a long time, and the court had intervened to mediate, perhaps there might have been a chance of survival. With this lesson learned, how could the Cao clan dare to slack off?"

Hearing this, Zhang Xiu nodded and extended his arms to invite Lou Gui to sit together on the rocks on the shore.

After Lou Gui sat down, he continued, "The Marquis of Pingyang Zhao is young and successful. If the Lord sends his generals to help him in battle, it will be seen as disrespectful. Losing soldiers and generals is a minor matter, but damaging the Lord's prestige is a major one. The court will also look down on the Lord."

Zhang Xiu frowned when he heard this. In fact, he had very limited respect for the court.

I always feel that there are some problems with Lou Gui's words, but his previous analysis also makes sense. For example, Cao Cao must have fought to the death here, because the big families in Taiyuan and Shangdang knelt quickly and died quickly.

Instead, Yuan Shao blocked Zhao Ji at Fukou. Zhao Ji then went to Jingxing, but was still blocked by Yuan Shao.

The detailed battle report from Zhending has not yet arrived, and there are various reports that are difficult to distinguish between true and false. Zhao Ji and Yuan Shao have reported their respective positions on the battle of Zhending.

It is difficult for Zhang Xiu to learn the truth here. One thing is very clear, that is, Zhao Ji did not enter Jizhou from Jingxingkou, but he should have gained some advantage.

Otherwise, given Yuan Shao's character, he would not easily let Zhao Ji withdraw his troops.

Zhang Xiu looked pensive and did not respond to Lou Gui's opinion.

Lou Gui didn't know what to say, so he turned around and said, "Li Tong led his troops up the Ru River. Cao Hong withdrew his troops from Ye County and headed south along the Ying River, threatening to attack Li Tong's troops. However, Li Tong was determined and brave enough to fight his way to Wankou. I believe that the governor should not ignore Li Tong's enthusiasm."

Li Tong’s enthusiasm cannot be wasted, and Nanyang’s enthusiasm cannot be wasted either.

Zhang Xiu naturally understood what he heard, and said, "Zhao has made great contributions to the country. I would like to consult the military advisor on the details."

Now he had no choice but to bring Zhao Qi out. Zhang Xiu did not want to be enemies with Zhao Ji.

It’s not that he was afraid of Zhao Ji, but without Zhao Ji... Zhang Xiu himself would have no value.

Otherwise, why would the big families in Nanyang provide him with more troops and food, but not take the initiative to form an alliance and stir up trouble on their own?

To put it bluntly, the military capabilities of the Nanyang big families have declined drastically, and they no longer have the ability and courage to fight back.

Not to mention Zhao Ji, before this, Yuan Shu, Liu Biao, Sun Jian, Zhang Xiu, and Cao Hong took turns bullying the people of Nanyang. With the lessons of Taiyuan and Shangdang, even if these people were determined to fight to the death and then negotiate peace, they might not really dare to fight.

Nanyang was the imperial capital of the Later Han Dynasty, and the sons of prominent families in Nanyang had everything they needed, including opportunities to cultivate military talent. However, the people of Nanyang, the imperial capital, suffered the most from the Party Ban. As a means of appeasement, the great general He Jin was appointed.

The Yellow Turban Army in Nanyang was causing so much trouble... In a place like Nanyang, what could happen without the approval of the big families?
In other words, the Yellow Turban Army failed. Zhang Mancheng, Zhao Hong, and Han Zhong, whose origins are unknown, were all from big families around Nanyang and Wancheng.

The more violent the Yellow Turban Army in Nanyang became, the more the military talents of the big families in Nanyang declined.

Zhang Xiu was a county official when he was young. During the rebellion of Han Sui and Bian Zhang, Qu Sheng, a powerful general in Jincheng, killed the county magistrate Zu Li. Zhang Xiu assassinated Qu Sheng in revenge, and his fame spread. Young proletarians flocked to him, and in that chaotic era, Zhang Xiu became a new powerful general.

Although he inherited Zhang Ji's army, Zhang Xiu had his own strong capital before the succession.

Besides, Zhang Ji also has a daughter and a son. When Zhang Ji’s son grows up, he will take away Zhang Ji’s troops.

Zhang Ji followed Dong Zhuo to start a business at the risk of losing his head, and relied on the savings of his father and grandfather to become a heroic general in Liangzhou.

Zhang Xiu was just the nephew of Zhang Ji. He developed himself and became a great general.

In this regard, Zhang Xiu naturally had some insights into the changes of the times.

So after parting with Lou Gui, he went to visit Zhao Qi.

Zhao Qi was old and had difficulty walking. When Zhang Xiu came, Zhao Qi was inspecting the granary in a sedan chair. He was watching with a gloomy face as the warehouse clerks and guards carried soil, mixed it with straw, and trampled it into mud, which was used to cover the rat holes inside and outside the granary.

These warehouse clerks and guards were originally the treasury officials of Ye County. These local residents did not move with Cao Hong.

Whoever comes to Yecheng, they serve him. This is how their ancestors have been doing it for generations.

For these clerks and aristocratic families, the warehouse is their home.

Zhang Xiu handed over the hundred-word silk document: "My Lord, I'm afraid that all parties will shirk responsibility regarding the Suanzao Alliance, which will waste time and miss the opportunity to fight."

"If the young Marquis Zhao doesn't move, who would dare to move even if there's an opportunity?"

Zhao Qi read the silk manuscript and said in a dull tone, "He held the Suanzao Alliance only to station troops there and force Cao Cao to attack Lü Menghou. Now that Wankou is under control, you must make your own decisions. Liu Jingsheng is not someone who will sit back and wait for death. Be vigilant."

"My Lord, do you mean that our army should remain stationed at Wankou?"

"Well, after joining forces with Li Tong, we will take Nanyang."

Zhao Qi's eyes were slightly cloudy as he looked up at Zhang Xiu. His gaunt face was covered with age spots. "Looking at the behavior of the Nanyang clan, they are beyond help."

After hearing this, Zhang Xiu's head exploded.

He naturally understood what Zhao Qi meant. If Zhao Ji could eliminate the big families in Taiyuan and Shangdang, then Zhang Xiu would naturally have the opportunity to eliminate the stubborn problems in Nanyang.

The big families in Nanyang couldn't even protect their own county. With their decline like this, how much power could they have to fight against Zhang Xiu who had the support of the imperial court?
Now they want to use money and food to threaten the imperial court... Zhao Qi did not have such a strong intention to kill, but the big families in Nanyang were too tactless.

As long as he agreed to them, he would force Zhang Xiu to do the next thing.

The ultimate goal of the big families in Nanyang was probably to marry into the emperor's family and promote a powerful relative to be the recorder of the Secretariat from within Nanyang.

The tricks that have been practiced for generations are very easy to use for the big families in Nanyang.

This was something Zhao Qi could not agree to. Since the court moved eastward, the people of the Three Auxiliary Provinces were receiving generous rewards.

Zhao Qi's fellow townsman Jin Xuan was sent to be the governor of Tianshui County as a Huangmen Lang.

Wei Duan, who did not participate in the eastward migration but dissuaded it, was also appointed as the governor of Liangzhou.

As the joint forces of Li Jue and Guo Si failed to attack the Su family manor, the county governors of various counties in Liangzhou were captured and replaced by Zhao Yan. The priority was to use the officials from Guanzhong who survived the eastward migration and the famous scholars who dissuaded the eastward migration.

The people of Sanfu can cooperate with the people of Langya, but they cannot allow a group of people from Nanyang to squeeze in.

It's not that they are stingy, but there are too many people from Nanyang. If they leave a gap and a person with a big family from Nanyang comes in, the city will soon be filled with people with big families from Nanyang.

Therefore, it would be better to eliminate the big families in Nanyang in advance.

Anyway, Zhao Qi concluded that when Liu Biao made a move, the people of Nanyang would definitely add fuel to the fire so that they could get a good price from the court... As for how much the court would lose, what does this have to do with the people of Nanyang?
Zhao Qi now has only two uncles and nephews in his family, so he doesn't mind killing all the big families in Nanyang.

But all this still had to be done by Zhang Xiu. He didn't even dare to be an enemy of Zhao Ji, so how could he dare to wipe out the big families in Nanyang?
The conversation between the two men fell into silence. Zhang Xiu pondered for a moment and made a prudent decision: "Then send an envoy to the Marquis of Zhao in Pingyang first to see what he has to say."

Zhao Qi felt a little disappointed after hearing this and sighed, "That's fine, but we must not provoke this person."

Zhao Qi felt that he could still live for a few more years. If he provoked Zhao Ji, he would most likely not care about their friendship and would prioritize breaking the legs of this nearly 90-year-old man.

(End of this chapter)