Brother, stop curling up! You're curling up like the founder of the Han Dynasty!

Chapter 180 Liu Bei recruits Guo Jia, Jia Xu goes berserk (Please subscribe and vote)
"I understand Xuande's meaning." Cao Cao put away the strategic plan.

Since we can't break through in Shanyang County, let's try to open up the situation in Taishan County.

"Chen Gong and Cheng Yu are currently opposed to us; further recruitment will be futile." Liu Bei rejected the two men, then took out two bamboo slips and handed them to Cao Cao, saying:

"It just so happens that Xun Yu, the Prefect of Yuzhou, has recommended a talented man. I have appointed him as my aide and sent him to Xiaopei as soon as possible. Although he comes from a humble background, he is exceptionally resourceful and can help Brother Mengde achieve his goals."

Previously, Liu Bei exploited Cao Cao because of his differing stances with Cao Cao. Now that Cao Ang has become Liu Bei's disciple, Liu Bei is no longer stingy with his generosity.

Just then, Xun Yu recommended Guo Jia, and Liu Bei needed Cao Cao to open up a new base for suppressing Yuan Shao, so he summoned Guo Jia to Xiaopei.

Upon seeing Guo Jia's information, Cao Cao was overjoyed: "With this man's assistance, I no longer worry about having no one to consult with."

Liu Bei also considered having Guo Jia assist Cao Cao.

Although those from humble backgrounds were considered aristocratic families, they were mostly impoverished. Therefore, even if they might favor the aristocratic families, they would not be as persistent as the powerful and influential families. They would prioritize their personal interests rather than the interests of their families or the overall interests of the aristocratic families.

In addition, with the Yellow Turban Rebellion raging in Qingzhou, Cao Cao's focus was not on appeasing the gentry and scholars like Kong Rong, but on solving the problem in the fastest way possible. Guo Jia, who was good at devising ingenious strategies, was more suitable for Cao Cao.

Three days later.

Liu Bei ordered Guan Yu, Dian Wei, and Ma Chao to lead troops to escort Zhuge Liang and others back to Luoyang first, leaving only the White Feather Army and Zhang Liao to temporarily garrison Xiaopei.

Since Cao Cao wanted to establish himself at Mount Tai, Liu Bei needed to leave behind a great general to deter the rebels in Yan Province and the disobedient forces in Xu Province, and Zhang Liao was the most suitable candidate.

In addition to having Zhang Liao guard Xiaopei, Liu Bei also left Xu Chu to guard Qiao County, while He Yi, Huang Shao, Gong Du, and the Gebei soldiers, who were originally to be moved to Wancheng, remained in Yingchuan.

Although Yuan Shu fled to Huainan, he was like a locust, devouring one place and then immediately flying to another. Liu Bei did not know whether Yuan Shu's next target was Yangzhou or Xuzhou, or whether he would run back to Yuzhou.

We still need to be vigilant.

Two days later, on the fifteenth day of the eighth month of the first year of the Chuping era.

Guo Jia arrived as ordered.

"Guo Jia, the official of Yingchuan, greets the Imperial Uncle."

Guo Jia just came of age this year.

Without Xun Yu's recommendation, Guo Jia would have gone into hiding after reaching adulthood, secretly making friends with heroes and avoiding contact with worldly people, and later joining Yuan Shao's forces.

Today, the political landscape has changed dramatically. In addition to the chaos caused by various warlords, two more forces have emerged, one led by Liu Xie and Liu Bei in Luoyang and the other by Liu Yu and Yuan Shao, who are now openly confronting each other.

Liu Yu's appointment of officials directly made the stances of all the heroes in the land clear: whoever won was the rightful heir.

Therefore, talented individuals from various states and counties had to consider which forces were considered "legitimate" when choosing whom to serve.

Just like Chen Gong of Dongjun, he has now completely sided with Liu Yu and Yuan Shao's forces.

Guo Jia, who was originally going to Hebei, also responded to the call to serve after being persuaded by Xun Yu.

"This is Cao Cao, the governor of Yan Province." Liu Bei introduced Cao Cao while looking Guo Jia over: "The reason I summoned Fengxiao to Xiaopei this time is that I need Fengxiao to help me establish a foothold in Taishan County, Yan Province."

Guo Jia's eyes lit up, and he cupped his hands in greeting, asking, "Could it be that Imperial Uncle's intention is to target Qingzhou?"

Liu Bei laughed heartily and then turned to Cao Cao: "Brother Mengde, how about it? I only said that I wanted Fengxiao to help you establish yourself in Taishan County, and he guessed my intention."

Cao Cao had admired Guo Jia after reading his profile, and was even more pleased upon meeting him today. He asked, "Such a talented man, Xuande, do you really not intend to keep him by your side?"

Liu Bei laughed and said, "Now that the rebels have been defeated, if Fengxiao were by my side, he would have difficulty displaying his talents. If I were to let him handle other matters, it would be a waste of Fengxiao's abilities."

"Since Fengxiao has already guessed my intention, that helping Brother Mengde establish himself in Taishan County will allow him to fully display his abilities, I also want to know how much of a surprise this person, who can be so highly praised by Prefect Xun, can bring me."

Cao Cao laughed and said, "Then I shall accept your offer without being impolite."

Immediately afterwards, Cao Cao rose and bowed to Guo Jia, saying, "My army is still lacking a military advisor, I wonder if you, Guo, could temporarily take on this role?"

During Liu Bei and Cao Cao's conversation, Guo Jia keenly noticed that they addressed each other by their courtesy names, realizing that their relationship was quite close. Without hesitation, he said, "I am willing to serve Cao Cao, the governor of Yanzhou."

He then turned to Liu Bei and asked, "Uncle, do you know why the rebel armies from Yanzhou, Xuzhou, and Yuzhou have all gathered at Xiaopei?"

Liu Bei was intrigued: "Does Fengxiao know the inside story? Please tell me frankly."

Guo Jia said in a deep voice, "In the past, Guo Tu, a strategist from Yingchuan, privately sought me out and said that the original plan of the Yanzhou rebels was to quickly take Xiaopei, then use the excuse of attacking Xiapi to seize Xuzhou, and then gather the strength of Yanzhou and Xuzhou to attack Yuzhou."

"Guo Tu persuaded Yuan Yi, and then changed the plan to use Xiaopei as bait to lure the Imperial Uncle into sending troops. The idea was to use the combined forces of Yuan Yi, Tao Qian, and Yuan Shu to keep the Imperial Uncle tied down in Yu Province. However, the plan was thwarted because Yuan Shu refused to listen to the plan. Therefore, Guo Tu came to me again, hoping that I could persuade Xun Yu, the Prefect of Yu Province, to respond to Liu Yu."

Cao Cao suddenly realized, "No wonder Yuan Yi so aggressively sent troops from Yan Province to attack Xiaopei, yet he surrounded the area without attacking, missing a golden opportunity. He even had such a scheme." He then laughed, "It's a pity this man doesn't understand Yuan Shu. How could he not be defeated if he cooperated with Yuan Shu?"

Guo Jia continued, “The Yuan family has a century-long reputation, and its disciples and former officials are all over the country. It is even more difficult to distinguish who is loyal and who is treacherous in various prefectures and counties. Now that the Imperial Uncle has defeated the rebels in three prefectures and captured Tao Qian and Yuan Yi in one battle, it would be better to use a divisive tactic to make the Yuan family’s disciples and former officials suspicious of each other.”

"A divisive tactic, a brilliant plan." Liu Bei chuckled. "Fengxiao, do you want me to reward Guo Tu handsomely?"

Guo Jia was startled and felt even more awe towards Liu Bei. He said, "Your Highness is wise. In the past, Your Highness once entered Yuzhou to suppress the Yellow Turbans at Gebei and had dealings with Yin Xiu, the Prefect of Yingchuan, and his subordinates."

"The former chief clerk Xun Yu is now the governor of Yu Province; the former chief clerk Zhong Yao is now the minister; the former filial and incorruptible Xun You is now the governor of Hedong. All three of these men served the emperor and made contributions. So it is possible that Guo Tu will also serve the emperor."

"Now Guo Tu has led troops from three provinces to attack Xiaopei, but instead the troops from those three provinces were defeated by the Imperial Uncle, allowing the Imperial Uncle to capture two governors in one battle, a feat that shook the world. If Guo Tu is rewarded handsomely, he will have nowhere to stay in Hebei; if Guo Tu returns to Yu Province, those in Yu Province who are loyal to Yuan Shao will be filled with unease."

"When he has no way out, the Imperial Uncle will then use favors to win him over. Everything Guo Tu knows will be known to the Imperial Uncle. And how can a leader of the Yuan family, whom even those who run errands doubt, win the hearts of Yuan family's disciples and former officials?"

"Fengxiao's plan is excellent. I will remember your merit, and we will settle accounts when you return from Mount Tai." Liu Bei then stood up and said, "Now that this matter is settled, I should return to Luoyang. Fengxiao, from now on you will serve Mengde wholeheartedly under his command. I have a blood oath with Mengde, and Mengde's son is also my disciple, so you have no need to worry."

Having deliberately shown off earlier in hopes of a better future, Guo Jia was overjoyed to have achieved his goal and bowed again, saying, "Thank you, Imperial Uncle."

Cao Cao also greatly admired Guo Jia, and then said to Liu Bei, "Xuande, rest assured and return to Luoyang. This time I will definitely be able to establish a foothold in Yanzhou!"

Now Liu Bei is famous throughout the land, and Liu Biao, Liu Dai, and Gai Xun have all established themselves in their respective prefectures and counties. Cao Cao, on the other hand, is still a nobody who can't even gain a foothold in Yanzhou. This makes Cao Cao both anxious and resentful.

We all swore an oath of brotherhood, so why am I the only one who can't move an inch?
Seeing Cao Cao's determined expression, Liu Bei bowed and took his leave, saying, "In that case, I will await Brother Mengde's victory report in Luoyang!" After parting ways with Cao Cao, Liu Bei did not linger in Xiaopei.

Although Luoyang was as secure as a mountain under Jia Xu's garrison, there were still petty thieves causing trouble after he left for several months.

Jia Xu also sent Liu Bei a letter. Although the content was simple, every word was precious: 108 bandit leaders were killed, 72 officials were imprisoned, and a certain amount of embezzled funds were confiscated.

Although the letter did not specify who was involved, the fact that there were 108 bandit leaders and 72 officials made the situation even more brutal than the riots of powerful bandits in the Three Auxiliary Regions.

Huangfu Song killed more than eighty powerful bandits, while Jia Xu killed one hundred and eight people directly and imprisoned seventy-two officials. The officials who were qualified to imprison Jia Xu were not ordinary people.

Ten days later, Luoyang.

The dungeon was damp and dimly lit.

Grand Master of the Palace Wang Yun and Grand Master of the Palace Yang Biao looked at each other.

Of the twenty-odd people Wang Yun once hosted at a banquet in Luoyang, not one remains; they are all in the prison next door.

In addition, there were more than ten officials in Luoyang who had been contacted by Guo Tu and Yuan Si, as well as more than thirty people who had taken sides in advance.

Not one was left; they were all imprisoned by Jia Xu.

Some who weren't qualified to be imprisoned were either expelled or killed outright.

The most unfortunate were the powerful bandits under the governor of Henan. After Guo Tu and Yuan Si claimed that Liu Bei was being attacked and killed by hundreds of thousands of troops in Xiaopei, these bandits became excited. They all thought they were sure to win. They sent their private soldiers, retainers, and guests, and under the leadership of Zhu Jun, the governor of Henan, they gathered tens of thousands of people to attack Luoyang.

result.

First, Wu Kuang and Xia Mou, who had agreed to act as inside agents, wiped out the private army, retainers, and followers organized by Wang Yun and others in the city.

Later, Zhu Jun, who led tens of thousands of men to attack Luoyang, surrendered on the spot. Not only did he surrender, but he also took the initiative to persuade others to surrender, which stunned the rebellious bandits.

Finally, Lu Zhi completely ignored Guo Tu and Yuan Si, who were showing off their power outside the pass, and led the troops from Hulao Pass back to Luoyang. Together with Zhu Jun, they wiped out the rebellious bandits in one fell swoop.

Wang Yun's meticulously planned power grab, involving internal collaborators, external supporters, officials, and powerful figures, ended in utter failure.

Wang Yun had been in the dungeon for a month and still couldn't figure out what had gone wrong.

Wang Yun suspected that Yang Biao's son, Yang Xiu, had leaked the information.

But Yang Biao retorted to Wang Yun: "Guo Tu and Yuan Si have both gone to attack Hulao Pass, how can you doubt my son Yang Xiu? You can't doubt my son Yang Xiu just because we've all been arrested. Even if my son Yang Xiu leaked the secret, would Jia Xu have believed him without question?"
Although his suspicions about Yang Xiu were not dispelled, Wang Yun was indeed unable to refute Yang Biao's claims.

However, Wang Yun never expected that Yang Xiu's betrayal would only confirm for Jia Xu who was involved and who was not, without affecting Jia Xu's overall plan.

Jia Xu even prepared more than a dozen plans for how Wang Yun would attack Luoyang.

This included a plan involving Zhu Jun, the Prefect of Henan, who was given a clear answer: if you think you can defeat Lu Zhi and Huangfu Song, then help the rebels; if you help the Imperial Uncle, then you will be the Grand Master of the Palace. The choice is yours.

Zhu Jun, who came from a poor family, spent most of his life as a remonstrating official with a salary of 600 shi (a unit of grain). He was only fortunate enough to be appointed as the governor of Hanoi after the Yellow Turban Rebellion broke out. However, he was transferred after only one year because he could not afford to continue his service.

He only became the Governor of Henan after Liu Bei became Grand Commandant.

As a result, Zhu Jun did not serve as the Governor of Henan for long before he was forced to choose between helping the rebels or helping Liu Bei.

select?
What a joke!
The three generals who fought against the Yellow Turbans in the past were Lu Zhi, Huangfu Song, and Zhu Jun.

Zhu Jun was well aware of how formidable Lu Zhi and Huangfu Song were in combat.

Although he didn't know where Huangfu Song was hiding, Zhu Jun knew very well that if he were to lead a group of powerful bandits and their private troops to fight against Lu Zhi and Huangfu Song, he might as well just slit his own throat and commit suicide.

Helping the rebels will get you killed, helping Liu Bei will get you a position as Grand Master of the Palace, so there's no need to choose.

People like Wang Yun, who came from wealthy families, simply couldn't understand the obsession that people like Zhu Jun, from humble backgrounds, had with the Three Dukes and Nine Ministers.

Just as Wang Yun couldn't understand why Dong Zhuo, after enjoying the feeling of being one of the Three Dukes, would weigh the pros and cons and hand over power to Liu Bei, Wang Yun couldn't understand why Zhu Jun, like Dong Zhuo, was old and had no future.

As a result, when he got old, he suddenly had the opportunity to become a Grand Steward, which was not only low-risk but also didn't require him to spend money to buy his position.

Although the Grand Master of the Imperial Stud is not the head of the Nine Ministers, he is still one of them!
If he performs even better in the future, it's possible that he could serve as an official for a few days before retiring.

Wang Yun wouldn't even grant him the position of one of the Nine Ministers; he only knew how to shout slogans and wanted Zhu Jun to risk the lives of his entire family to rebel!
"Wang Yun, come out and stand trial."

The jailer's irritable voice hurt Wang Yun's ears.

"How dare you address me by my given name?" Wang Yun roared angrily.

The jailer, however, was not going to tolerate Wang Yun: "So what if I call you that? I'm doing a good job as a jailer, and I don't have much to do. But now that you're rebelling, I'm doing the work of ten people all by myself."

"I wanted to add more people, but the warden said it would only be busy for a month or two, and once the Imperial Uncle comes back, it won't be busy anymore. You want to hear nice things? You pay up! Oh wait, your money has all been seized, you have no money."

Humiliated by a jailer, Wang Yun felt dizzy and as if the sky was about to collapse: "I've been wronged! Aren't you afraid I'll punish you for disrespect when I get out of here?"

The jailer, however, remained unfazed and sneered, "Every one of the seventy-two people who came here claims to be innocent. I'm sick of hearing it."

Seeing that the jailer was becoming increasingly impatient, Wang Yun could only close his eyes and look at the sky, and was led to the interrogation room by the jailer.

"Isn't he Wang Taipu? Why is he in the dungeon? Did you arrest the wrong person? He's just someone in charge of carriages and horses and examines crafts, what could he have done wrong?" A familiar voice reached his ears. Wang Yun opened his eyes and saw Liu Bei leaning against a low table, seriously reprimanding Wu Kuang.

Wu Kuang shouted, "Uncle, we didn't arrest the wrong person! You just returned from suppressing the rebellion and don't know the details. Wang Yun incited 72 officials and 108 bandits to rebel, and even coerced the Governor of Henan."

Liu Bei asked in surprise, "Him? Someone who manages carriages and horses and examines crafts? He can incite a rebellion?"

“I find it very strange too. He even sent me a lot of money, trying to get me to join the rebellion.” Wu Kuangle said, “I don’t know what he was thinking. My son Wu Ban went with the Imperial Uncle to quell the rebellion, and he actually thought he could bribe me!”

(End of this chapter)