Tiger Guards

Chapter 296 A serious problem
The next day, Zhao Ji woke up from a deep sleep.

Seeing that it was almost four in the morning, he wrapped himself in a cloak and went out of the tent.

Two campfires stood outside the tent, and guards squatted in front of them, keeping watch quietly through the night.

To protect themselves from the wind, these guards sat side by side, with shields standing behind them.

Upon seeing Zhao Ji emerge, Xu Chu, who was on night duty, was the first to stand up, causing both teams of guards to stand up as well, including those from Qiao, Pei, Ru, and Ying, as well as those from Hebei.

Xu Chu bowed slightly: "Your Excellency."

Zhao Ji looked at the bandage on Xu Chu's left shoulder and asked, "Why is Zhongkang also on night duty?"

"This is just a minor injury. The Chamberlain has entrusted me with an important task, how could I dare to be negligent?"

Xu Chu answered, while Zhao Ji took off his cloak and draped it over him, instructing him, "The worst thing for you to do while recovering is to be exposed to wind and cold. If Zhongkang still insists on staying tonight, he shall stand guard in the main tent."

"Here."

Xu Chu responded in a deep voice, appearing kind and honest.

Zhao Ji waved for the other guards to sit down, feeling the cold wind of the early morning: "In another half month, it will be frost. How accurate has the frost season been in the Central Plains over the years?"

"Sometimes it will be early or late. Sometimes it will be early October, but it won't get cold after the first frost. Sometimes it will be late, until early November."

Xu Chu thought for a moment and then said, "Huainan is indeed a mild and peaceful place, but Yuan Shu is not good at governing the people."

"Heh, how could he not know how to govern the people? He just treats the people like weeds, letting them grow when he doesn't need them, and harvesting them when he does."

Zhao Ji couldn't help but chuckle. If Yuan Shu hadn't completely disrupted Yuzhou and Lianghuai, Xu Chu wouldn't have been able to expand so rapidly in the past five or six years, growing from a small clan to a powerful leader with over four thousand followers and guests.

It was precisely because the order of the prefectures and counties was out of control, and Yuan Shu forcibly imposed manpower and material requirements on the prefectures and counties under his jurisdiction.

This forced the people to either flee into exile or seek refuge with nearby powerful leaders.

Even so, Yuan Shu would still try to win over and coerce powerful local leaders to extract manpower and resources.

Those unaware of the details only know that this Skeleton King of Huainan can create units from the void.

Those who know the inside story understand that Yuan Shu is a top-tier skeleton king who feeds on the flesh and blood of the people.

If Yuan Shu wins in the future, there will naturally be people who defend him, attributing the various population losses to natural disasters.

The reason for killing Sun Ce was that he was young and if allowed to grow up, he would become a formidable enemy in the future. In addition, Cao Cao and Yuan Shu were simply inhuman, and Zhao Ji planned to deal with them slowly when the opportunity arose.

Seeing Zhao Ji mocking Yuan Shu, Xu Chu, a powerful general who passively benefited from Yuan Shu's rise, remained silent and offered no opinion.

He then followed Zhao Ji on a tour of the camp. During the tour, scouts brought military intelligence, which was relayed through the ranks and eventually delivered to Zhao Ji.

As dawn broke, Zhao Ji used the dim light to decipher the writing. The message was simple: it was sent by Chen Liushou to Han Hao, who was to seal the treasury and lead his troops away.

This may have been at Cao Cao's behest. One reason was to consolidate reliable central army forces, and another was to use the grain reserves in Chenliu to sow discord between Cao Cao and Lü Bu.

It cannot be ruled out that Cao Cao wanted to do him a favor so that he could leave sooner.

Based on Zhao Ji's understanding of Cao Cao, it's possible that Lü Bu also received a notification from Han Hao.

However, Chunyu Qiong's more than 5,000 men were stationed in the west, so it was highly unlikely that he and Lü Bu would be able to seize the grain from Chenliu.

While he was pondering, a knight arrived outside the camp, and Qin Yilu brought a letter from Lü Bu.

After reading Lü Bu's letter, Zhao Ji asked, "Chunyu Qiong is closer to Chenliu. If Han Hao informs Chunyu Qiong at night, is Lord Meng confident that he can take Chenliu from Chunyu Qiong?"

Qin Yilu was taken aback and said, "Lord Meng has already sent scouts to investigate. I wonder what the Attendant thinks of the grain reserves in Chenliu?"

"Chenliu has abundant grain reserves. How much can I eat here? How much will I be able to eat when I withdraw my troops?"

Zhao Ji countered with a question, then said, "Chunyu Qiong is a general under Yuan Shao, and I cannot control him. If you, Lord Meng, are willing, you may take it yourself."

Qin Yilu cupped his hands and said, "I would like to request that the Attendant-in-Ordinary provide a written reply so that I may respond to Marquis Meng."

"Alright."

Zhao Ji agreed and wrote his stance on the silk scroll that Qin Yilu had brought, then affixed his seal and handed it to Qin Yilu.

Rather than the grain from Chenliu, Zhao Ji preferred to take a detour through the State of Chen and circle south to Yingchuan.

Let alone the grain in Chenliu, even if Guo Jia refuses to open the city gates and surrender in Xiangyi, which they are about to pass through, he won't bother with it.

Qin Yilu soon returned to Lü Bu's camp, where Lü Bu had already begun preparing his cavalry. If he could reach Chenliu before Chunyu Qiong, he would most likely be able to capture Chenliu.

Seeing Zhao Ji's negative attitude, Lü Bu asked Gao Shun and Zhang Liao, "Zhao Yuansi predicts that Chunyu Qiong will seize Chenliu. What do you two think?"

Gao Shun replied directly: "Zhang Xiu is currently in rebellion, and the court is trapped in Yingchuan. This humble general believes that Your Excellency should lead your troops to Yingchuan. Once the court is stabilized, Your Excellency's might will ensure that the rest of the matter is settled."

Lü Bu then looked at Zhang Liao: "What does Wen Yuan think?"

Zhang Liao frowned: "This humble general is worried that Cao Hong and Xiahou Yuan's armies will join Xun Yu's forces and hold the court hostage. I urge you, my lord, to make a decision as soon as possible, lead your troops westward, and protect the emperor."

“I also want to go, but Zhao Yuansi is too meticulous. If he were as easy to talk to as Zhang Zhishu, I would have sent a vanguard west yesterday.”

Lu Bu couldn't help but spit, wiped it away with his foot, and said, "If Chunyu Qiong takes over Chenliu, and Zhao Yuansi and I join forces to demand grain, how much can we get?" Gao Shun answered without hesitation, "Thirty to fifty thousand shi, which can be transported within two or three days."

Lu Bu nodded: "It is a bit small, and Chunyu Qiong will have to consult Yuan Shao. Before Yuan Shao's military order arrives, I don't think Chunyu Qiong would dare to antagonize the two of us."

He then looked at Qin Yilu beside him and said, "Go and pay a visit to Zhao Yuansi again, and ask him to help me convey the order to Chunyu Qiong, so that Chunyu Qiong can advance and occupy Chenliu and transport grain and fodder for the army."

"Here."

This time, Qin Yilu didn't bring any letters; he immediately went to deliver the message.

The sky was clear and bright; it was Chen County in the State of Chen.

King Chen stood atop the palace tower, overlooking the capital city amidst dense smoke from cooking fires. He was in his forties and had a robust build.

At this moment, he did not appear as heroic as the rumors suggested, but rather looked worried.

If the court remained in Luoyang, it could continue to maintain the stability and peace of the Chen Kingdom.

But the imperial court moved to Yingchuan, and the Chen Kingdom was right next door. How could it not be affected?

The King of Chen was not surprised by the outcome of the Battle of Bian River that very night.

Let alone Zhao Ji, even Lü Bu had a chance to severely injure Cao Cao.

What worried King Chen were Zhao Ji and Lü Bu, both of whom were strong-willed individuals.

During the Chang'an Incident, Lü Bu suffered because he was not assertive enough and chose to yield to powerful officials like Wang Yun. As a result, the officials messed things up, and a promising situation was lost.

Considering Lü Bu's disgraceful past of scheming against Hu Zhen and Hua Xiong, King Chen had reason to suspect that Lü Bu might have been behind the Liangzhou troops' victory over Li Su and Xu Rong.

Lu Bu tried to turn the tide, but failed.

As for Zhao Ji, he was even more domineering. He became famous at a young age and didn't care about beautiful women or gold, which was already a very dangerous sign.

If a high-ranking official is caught making a mistake, he will be pursued to the death, and his legs will be broken at the drop of a hat... This is not about breaking the official's legs, but about damaging the face and dignity of the court.

Previously, Yuan Shu and Cao Cao coveted the wealth and manpower of the Chen Kingdom, and now that the imperial court has moved here, they will also covet it, as will Zhao Ji and Lü Bu.

King Chen felt he was getting old and was no longer the new king of Chen who had repeatedly provoked Emperor Ling.

He had clearly done an excellent job, but when the warlords were campaigning against Dong Zhuo, very few people were willing to follow him.

This attitude of the scholars has made King Chen deeply understand the pursuit of the main group of scholars.

Therefore, he gave up his idea of ​​external expansion. In a place like Chen, which was surrounded by enemies, he would inevitably be besieged by all sides if he went on a campaign.

Scholars could not tolerate a wise, strong-willed prince or emperor in his prime.

Now, Zhao Ji's request to march through Chen puts the King of Chen in a precarious position.

However, the problem is also obvious: if Zhao Ji forces his way through, who can stop him?

The state of Chen did not lack soldiers, but rather lacked strong soldiers and capable generals.

In recent years, in order to resettle the more than 200,000 disaster victims who had attached themselves to the State of Chen, the King of Chen adopted the measure of expanding the army.

His army was large, but it was a motley crew, an expanded garrison for the convenience of managing disaster victims.

The only truly effective force was the more than 5,000 heavily armored crossbowmen, but this army was stationed in the capital and could not be easily mobilized.

Therefore, if Zhao Ji were to forcibly march south, all the King of Chen could do was continue to supply him with grain to prevent Zhao Ji's troops from lacking food and thus attacking cities.

As King Chen pondered, Chancellor Luo Jun ascended a nearby pavilion and then followed the covered walkway between the pavilions to King Chen's location.

Luo Jun, in the prime of his life, handed over a silk scroll: "Your Majesty, this is a letter from Attendant-in-Ordinary Zhao."

"Are you trying to force me again?"

“Zhao Shizhong sent his brother as a hostage to show that he was harmless.”

Luo Jun held up the silk book and explained, "In the Battle of Bian River, Attendant-in-Ordinary Zhao treated more than 10,000 wounded soldiers from all sides, which shows that he is kind-hearted and not comparable to the likes of Cao Cao, Yuan Shu, and Lü Bu."

"It's just about winning over the hearts and minds of the soldiers. If one were truly kind-hearted, how could one have achieved what one has today?"

Despite his words, Prince Chen reached out and picked up the silk scroll, opened it to read, and his expression became much more relieved.

If Zhao Ji sends his elder brother to the State of Chen as a hostage, then allowing Zhao Ji to enter the country wouldn't be too bad.

King Chen comforted himself and said, "I agree. Since Zhao Shizhong is so brave and skilled in battle, his brother must not be weak either. The Prime Minister will observe him later. If his brother is capable, I will appoint him as a general of Chen."

Luo Jun also knew what the real threat to the State of Chen was, and bowed deeply, saying, "Your subject obeys."

With such a powerful ally as Zhao Ji, the imperial court had no way to deal with the Chen Kingdom.

If the State of Chen does not expand outwards but simply holds its ground, it can wear down anyone.

What they feared most was that the imperial edict would allow scholars within the country to legally rebel and undermine the rule of the Chen state.

(End of this chapter)