Tiger Guards

Chapter 598 The undercurrent is surging
In the eastern suburbs of Xuchang, Zhou Yu, as Sun Ce's envoy, escorted tribute from Qingzhou.

Yang Xiu, the newly appointed chief clerk of Liu Bei's General of Chariots and Cavalry, stopped his horse outside the East Gate to personally welcome Zhou Yu.

In just a few days, the various factions within Xudu were in turmoil, with some merging with each other and others becoming more antagonistic and hostile towards one another.

Liu Bei also began to compromise and recruited Yang Xiu as his chief clerk.

However, Yang Qi had only recently died, and his son Yang Liang was still observing mourning for him; otherwise, he would have been recruited by Liu Bei as well.

Zhou Yu and Yang Xiu appreciated each other upon their first meeting.

One was dashing and debonair, the other refined, witty, and unconventional. That night, they drank heavily and fell asleep on the couch, chatting happily all night long.

Yang Xiu looked down on Lü Bu and Zhao Ji, not thinking they were particularly formidable; coincidentally, Zhou Yu was also not afraid of them.

If fighting a war relies solely on the bravery of the general, then what's the point of having strategy and tactics?
Yang Xiu had been studying Zhao Ji for the past few years, and coincidentally, so had Zhou Yu.

With Zhao Ji as the central topic, the two found themselves getting along better and better as they talked.

The Zhou family rose to prominence only after the Party Prohibitions. Although they could not compare to the Yang family of Hongnong, a prominent family in Xizhou, they were still a noble family in Yangzhou and a leader in the state.

Although they came from similar backgrounds, Zhou Yu's appearance and demeanor made up for this shortcoming.

The two treated each other as equals, yet each harbored special motives, which led to a rapid escalation of their friendship.

To counter Zhao Ji, it is necessary to target the families of Langya Kingdom and the four tribes of Qingzhou.

Zhao Ji will definitely save this!
Only by attacking the enemy's defenses can we gain the initiative. Once we break Zhao Ji's momentum, things will be much easier.

Just two days later, the delegation from Xuzhou that was presenting tribute also arrived in Xudu.

While ostensibly offering tribute, their true purpose was to probe the political climate in Xuchang. Yangzhou was no exception; apart from Yuan Shu, all the slightly independent forces in the region offered tribute to the emperor in Xuchang.

Even Zhao Fan, the prime minister of Langya, sent people to Xudu to investigate the wind direction.

The leader was Zhang Zhao, and the team consisted of more than 300 people, including some members of the Fu family.

Fu Wan's residence has had the "Zhongshu Ling Fu" plaque removed and replaced with the previous "Fu Guo Jiang Jun Fu" plaque.

However, the inscription "Hanzhong Shuling" still appeared on the edicts on both sides of the mansion, proclaiming Fu Wan's previous high status.

Inside the mansion, Fu Wan and Zhang Zhao sat in the pavilion. The ladder was removed, and the food and wine were transported by rope basket.

With the candlelight beside him, Fu Wan's expression was gloomy, and his eyes were slightly cloudy.

With Zhao Ji's consent, Fu Shou secretly informed him of what had happened in Pingyang.

Fu Wan was filled with fear and trepidation; how could he possibly hope for the high position of prime minister?
Forcing himself to remain calm, Fu Wan recounted recent events in Xudu for Zhang Zhao's reference.

Zhang Zhao was upright and honest, but he disliked making meaningless sacrifices and struggles.

If someone at his level remains blindly loyal, they won't even reach the status of a renowned scholar.

Those who have reached the level of celebrities have long since broken through too many moral shackles.

Zhang Zhao listened carefully and found it to be extremely troublesome.

The loss of Langya Kingdom is nothing; there are few villains and wicked people like Cao Cao who massacred entire cities on such a large scale.

It's not a big deal to temporarily lose control of Langya Kingdom. As long as the people of Langya Kingdom can survive, they will eventually become the Grand Marshal's right-hand men.

Given Zhao Fan's personality, he wouldn't stubbornly resist to the end.

If the people of Langya neither resist nor support, but remain neutral for the time being, they can avoid the immediate disaster.

The four divisions of Qingzhou, which Zhang Zhao was in charge of, had become the most dangerous part at the moment.

Holding the wine glass and gently swirling it, Zhang Zhao could naturally taste that this was wine brewed from the newly harvested summer wheat of Xudu.

After a moment's thought, Zhang Zhao said, "My lord, do not worry. I will return to Langya tonight and persuade Lord Zhao to resign and avoid trouble. The counties of Langya are full of the Grand Marshal's trusted men, so we can also retreat to the jurisdiction of General Andong. General Andong is known for his generosity and righteousness, and has also received favors from the Grand Marshal. If we are in distress and seek refuge with him, General Andong will surely accept us."

General Zang Ba of Andong was compensated by Zhao Ji after he resigned as governor of Qingzhou. He was stationed in the northern part of Langya, the western part of Taishan, and the southern part of Jiaodong, which is located at the junction of Yanzhou, Qingzhou, and Xuzhou. It was a free and happy land that was not really in the hands of any of the three.

Anyone who falls on hard times and seeks refuge with Zang Ba will be taken in by him. As long as they are not utterly wicked, they will be given something to eat.

It was precisely because of Zang Ba's sense of justice that so many of his subordinates were spared his life.

Therefore, neither Sun Ce nor Liu Bei dared to take action against Zang Ba; he was simply too difficult to deal with.

It was a lucky accident that Zang Ba was killed, but Zang Ba's remaining followers are not so easy to subdue. These people will continue to resist and cause trouble. These people are mutually dependent on Zang Ba, and as long as Zang Ba himself doesn't provoke trouble, no one will want to provoke him.

These hard bones can break your teeth, and even when chewed, there's hardly any flesh or blood.

Upon hearing this, Fu Wan slowly nodded: "I entrust all matters concerning Xuzhou to Mr. Zibu. I have already made arrangements with trusted confidants, and the Emperor has agreed to send the bride to Xizhou. If there are no unforeseen circumstances, I will feign illness and not attend court tomorrow, and will accompany the bride's procession to Xizhou."

His voice was hoarse, and his expression was unwilling.

He nearly lost his head while following the emperor under the rule of Li Guo, and later survived the eastward relocation by a number of lives lost.

He should have been enjoying his retirement, but unexpectedly, he was never able to obtain power, and his patriotic aspirations had nowhere to be realized.

Worse still, Zhao Ji and Lü Bu have already joined forces. If they don't run away now, they are very likely to be killed as a sacrifice to the flag.

After the proclamations issued by Zhao Ji and Lü Bu reached Xuchang, even he wanted to kill himself, and others found it even harder to restrain themselves.

As a member of the Han imperial family with generations of noble lineage, Fu Wan naturally possessed a flexible moral compass.

However, when Zhang Zhao saw that Fu Wan had said such a thing, he felt that this operation was not going to go well.

This kind of thing must be kept secret not only from oneself upon first meeting, but also from one's wives, concubines, and children, until the very last moment before fleeing.

But they felt their relationship wasn't close enough, so they didn't want to say anything discouraging.

Upon hearing this, Zhang Zhao simply nodded slightly and raised his cup, saying, "I wish you a smooth journey and a speedy reunion with the Empress."

"I hope it will be as Mr. Zibu said."

Fu Wan also raised his glass, but his movements were slow, as if he were somewhat absent-minded.

Upon seeing this, Zhang Zhao said, "Your daughter is the betrothed of the Grand Marshal, and this matter concerns the long-term future of Xuzhou. Please forgive my rudeness, but I will disguise myself and head west tomorrow. What I am worried about is that the Grand General and the General of the Guards will find out and send troops to intercept and kill me."

Fu Wan was in a state of turmoil, but he nodded and said, "I will follow Mr. Zibu's arrangements. I sincerely hope that my daughter can arrive safely under the Grand Marshal's command."

He naturally understood Zhang Zhao's concerns; Lü Bu's daughter had already gone to the Grand Marshal's residence as a concubine.

Even if Lü Bu was magnanimous, Wei Yue, as Lü Qi's maternal uncle, and the two brothers were very likely to collude with other former Lü Bu subordinates to send troops disguised as bandits to ambush and kill him.

Although he had some relatives and fellow villagers as his loyal followers, he did not actually control any decent army, let alone a large-scale elite force.

On the contrary, Zhang Zhao has always been in charge of the garrison affairs of the four tribes in Qingzhou, and he has no shortage of brave and fierce men who dare to fight and kill.

Only Zhang Zhao had the military strength to escort his daughter to Xizhou.

After the secret banquet ended, Fu Wan signaled to the servants who were waiting in the distance to bring a ladder, and then personally escorted Zhang Zhao out of the mansion through the back door.

He acted very humbly... Now he has no backbone at all, like a landlubber caught in a whirlpool of undercurrents grasping at a straw.

As a member of the imperial family with generations of noble lineage, he was well aware of all the anecdotes and stories of killings in the court.

Zhang Zhao exited through the back door, met up with his guards, and rode in a carriage straight back to the inn.

Curfew had already been imposed, but they had the travel permit from the Assistant General's Office. If that didn't work, they would produce the travel permit from the Grand Marshal.

Even if the village chiefs of Xudu didn't give Fu Wan face, they still had to consider the risk of offending the Grand Marshal.

As long as Zhao Ji does not raise troops to march east, the court will do everything in its power to appease him!

A mere village head, killing a whole bunch of them isn't even enough to make him a figurehead!
Not long after Zhang Zhao returned to the post station, before he had even taken off his boots, a servant came to report: "Sir, Chen Yuanlong, the prefect of Guangling, has sent someone with a letter to pay his respects."

With that, he handed over the visiting card with both hands.

Zhang Zhao picked up the visiting card, glanced at it, and sneered, "He's in such a hurry, so bold as to come in person."

The servant asked, "Then?"

"Reply to him that after I pay my respects to the General of Chariots and Cavalry tomorrow morning, I will host a banquet for Chen Yuanlong here. Prepare a good feast; Chen Yuanlong is wealthy and extravagant, so don't let this man make fun of him."

"Here."

The servant agreed, took the visiting card, wrote the meeting time on it, and then gave the card to Chen Deng's messenger.

Since the people of Xuzhou cannot fully bet on the Grand Marshal, Chen Deng's side is a good fit to bet on the General of Chariots and Cavalry.

Chen Deng's cousin, Chen Yu, after breaking away from Yuan Shu, is now leading troops in the court, naturally forming another force.

(End of this chapter)