Chapter 8 8. Cao Cao welcomes the emperor

From Dong Zhuo's chaotic politics to Wang Yun's domineering to Li Jue and Guo Si's seizure of power, the emperor was still the same emperor, but the emperor was no longer the same emperor. He became a puppet in the hands of this group of people. On the side of the Yellow River, the princes of the Guandong watched the drama for a long time, and they lacked the courage to fight against the rebels, and now they have no heart to be loyal to the emperor.So I simply changed my mind, and you made a fuss as you like on the Yellow River side, and we have to start a new business on the Yellow River side.

After the allied forces, the princes of the Kwantung were roughly divided into two factions, with Yuan Shao and Yuan Shu brothers each leading a faction.Yuan Shao has Han Sui and others around him, and Yuan Shu's subordinates are dominated by Sun Jian. Yuan Shao and Yuan Shu almost unanimously came up with the emperor's idea.First of all, the leader of the alliance, Yuan Shao, once served as the commander-in-chief of the Kwantung Army, but he didn't shoot a single arrow, and his ambitions swelled.Seeing that Chang'an was having a lot of trouble, he thought about setting up another emperor in his own territory. If this happened, wouldn't he be the founding father of the country, with real power in his hands?

Yuan Shao spotted Liu Yu, Shepherd of Youzhou, and proposed to invite him to be the emperor. When Liu Yu heard this, he immediately refused, saying that I was born a man of a great man, and died a ghost of a man of a man. I never had any ambition to usurp the throne. Don't drag me into the water. Yuan Shao was not discouraged, and repeatedly persuaded him. You see, the current emperor is young, and in the hands of those rebellious officials and thieves, he doesn't know whether he will live or die. The country cannot live without a master. You are the elder of the clan , the responsibility of organizing the government cannot be shirked.Liu Yu was forced to go back in a hurry. If you do this again, I will go to the Huns. I would rather go to the Huns than become the emperor.

For this matter, Yuan Shao also discussed with his younger brother Yuan Shu.Both Yuan Shu and Yuan Shao are the sons of Yuan Feng, but Yuan Shu is a descendant of a concubine, and Yuan Shao is a descendant of a concubine, probably from a maidservant, so Yuan Shu has always looked down on his elder brother and often said that Yuan Shao is the seed of a slave.But in terms of overall quality and popularity index, Yuan Shao is indeed slightly better than Yuan Shu, so Yuan Shu's feelings for his brother since childhood are quite complicated, both contempt and jealousy.Childhood complex affects his whole life, Yuan Shu grew up wanting to compete with his brother for everything.

Hearing that Yuan Shao wanted to make Liu Yu the emperor, Yuan Shu laughed inwardly. After all, he was born of a girl. If you want to be the emperor, you can be yourself. After a long time, you have to find someone else to be the emperor. You are really used to the life of a slave. . Regarding the establishment of an emperor, Yuan Shu had his own ideas. Yuan Shao wanted to establish another emperor, and Yuan Shu wanted to establish an emperor himself.Yuan Shu believes that the Eastern Han Dynasty is exhausted, and the emperor will change his surname sooner or later. Looking at the world today, whether it is in terms of seniority or estimation ability, the old Yuan family is firmly on the top of the Forbes list, and the candidate for the old Yuan family is not my descendant Yuan Shu. none other than.

At this time, Yuan Shu got another treasure that symbolized the fate of destiny.This is the jade seal of the country that fell into the hands of Sun Jian during the Luoyang Rebellion. After Sun Jian died, the jade seal was in the hands of his wife.After Yuan Shu knew about it, he took Yuxi from Mrs. Sun abruptly. Whether through rational logical reasoning or perceptual hints of providence, Yuan Shu always came to a firm and unquestionable result: he was the best candidate for China's next emperor. Of course, this idea can’t be exposed now, otherwise it will become a real idea, so Yuan Shu replied to his brother with a letter that sounded righteous and lies, saying that I only know how to be loyal to the current emperor, I don’t have any other ideas, and I don’t agree with you of this idea.

In addition to Yuan Shu, Yuan Shao also discussed the matter of establishing another emperor with another person, and this person was Cao Cao.After drinking once, Yuan Shao confided his ideal and invited Fa Xiao to join him.Cao Cao's reaction at the time was to laugh and say, I don't listen to you, I don't listen to you. Behind the smile, Cao Cao has completely broken with this friend who stole the bride together in his heart.Because, he has seen Yuan Shao very clearly.Yuan Shao obviously equated stealing a country with stealing a bride, and didn't realize that he had reached the edge of a cliff.

In the critical period of history, what lurks at the bottom of that seemingly ordinary time is turbulent waves. The blind are quickly submerged, and the short-sighted are limited. Only those who understand the situation can ride the wind and waves and set sail. On the issue of dealing with the emperor, Dong Zhuo has fallen by mistake, Yuan Shao and Yuan Shu are not wise, and the only sensible person is Cao Cao.So, how did Cao Cao do it? When Wang Yun was planning to kill Dong Zhuo, the Yellow Turban Army took the opportunity to grow stronger. In 192, the Yellow Turban Army captured Yanzhou, and Liu Dai, the governor, was killed. Bao Xin and Chen Gong invited Cao Cao to act as Yanzhou Mu.After Cao Cao took office, he fought with the Yellow Turban Army. The Yellow Turban Army was defeated and surrendered to Cao Cao. Cao Cao organized them into the Qingzhou Army.

This battle really made Cao Cao perfect. From then on, he had a base - Yanzhou, and a military force - Qingzhou Army.It's time to show off your skills, what should Cao Cao do?Mao Jie, his senior adviser, planned a blueprint for him. Mao Jie said: "Today the world is falling apart, the ruler of the country is relocated, the people's livelihood is ruined, their jobs are famine and exile, the government has no reserves for the years, and the people have no ambition to stabilize the country. It is difficult to last. Although Yuan Shao and Liu Biao are strong in the people and people, they have no history and far The worry is that those who have not established the foundation and the foundation, the soldiers and the righteous will win, and they will gain wealth by guarding the position.

First of all, Mao Jie analyzed the situation in the world. The world was in chaos, falling apart, the emperor was forced to move around, the economy collapsed, industries were abandoned, natural disasters occurred everywhere, and the people could not live and work in peace.Then, Mao Jie introduced the situation of the competitors. Although Yuan Shao and Liu Biao have a large number of people, they lack lofty ideals and are not enough to achieve success. Then, in this turbulent era, to achieve a career, Cao Cao must grasp two basic principles, one is justice, and the other is strength.Justice is to let the emperor settle down, so that the country will no longer be turbulent, and there will be a banner of justice; strength is to cultivate farming, store military funds, and ensure sufficient economic strength.Do these two things, then hegemony will surely succeed.

After Cao Cao heard this, he was very happy and "respected his words". "Follow the emperor's order and not be a minister" is Cao Cao's attitude towards the emperor.Compared with Yuan Shao and Yuan Shu, Cao Cao has the calmest mind.He understood that even if Emperor Xian was forced to move around and was in a state of embarrassment, he was still the head of the country and the symbol of the country. territory. In 196 AD, after Dong Zhuo died, Emperor Xian of the Han Dynasty returned to Luoyang with his ministers.All the way up and down, Emperor Xian suffered a lot, and the emperor's majesty was almost hard to protect.Monarchs and ministers also go to court every day, so they find a small farmyard to sit in, salute those who salute, and those who receive worship receive worship.The difference was that there was a large group of spectators, officers and soldiers of the Northwest Army lying on the courtyard wall to watch the excitement curiously.Oh, that's how the emperor went to court. Back in Luoyang, the former bustling city was replaced by desolate ruins. Emperor Xian and his ministers lived in dilapidated houses.Just when they were at a loss, their rescuers came. This person is Cao Cao.Cao Cao followed Mao Jie's idea and came here specially to take Emperor Xian from Luoyang to Xu County, his base.Cao Cao is a careful and considerate person. He arranged the life of the emperor properly, let the emperor live well and eat well, and sent a lot of daily necessities.These daily necessities were like sending charcoal in the snow to the fleeing emperor, but Cao Cao, who knew how to be human, did not say "send", but used the word "return".Cao Cao said in the Shangshu that these utensils were given to the grandfather and father of the minister by the late emperor. The grandfather and father of the minister were grateful for the kindness of the late emperor and enshrined these utensils at home. To the emperor. When Emperor Xian heard this, he was very moved. Cao Cao was not only well-mannered, but also considerate of his own feelings. He was really a rare loyal minister.Emperor Xian immediately appointed Cao Cao as a general, and built a royal ancestral hall in Xu County, intending to settle here. Since then, Cao Cao has carried this banner of justice, whether it is to attack the enemy or win over allies, he has become famous and irresistible, and his political opponents are all politically short, watching his career flourish Development, rapid progress. At this time, someone became jealous, and this person was Yuan Shao.Yuan Shao saw that such a great benefit could not be left to Cao Cao, so he also proposed to welcome the emperor.He wrote a letter saying that Xu County is low-lying and humid, which is not suitable for the emperor to live in. The emperor should move to Zhencheng.Why is Cao Cao willing to distribute the benefits he got to others? Of course he couldn’t say that himself, but issued an edict to Yuan Shao in the name of the emperor, saying that your place is really good, and you really have strength, but when I was wandering around, Why didn't I see you come to King Qin?I see that you are either developing your own power or attacking others. Where is your loyalty to the big man?Yuan Shao knew that the edict was written by Cao Cao, but after all, it was stamped with the emperor's seal, so he had no choice but to write a review letter and submit it. The emperor didn't pick him up, and he was scolded in vain, but Yuan Shao was not wronged at all, he asked for it himself.There was once an opportunity placed in front of Yuan Shao, but Yuan Shao didn't cherish it. When Emperor Xian of the Han Dynasty was wandering, Ju Shou, Yuan Shao's counselor, also saw that this was a good time, so he suggested to Yuan Shao that the court was in turmoil. Take the opportunity to ask the emperor to drive to Yecheng, so that you can coerce the emperor to command the princes, and recruit soldiers and horses to fight against the rebels. Who will be your opponent in the world?If you don't go now, someone else will definitely go, and by then it will be too late. In fact, Jushou's suggestion had the same meaning as Mao Jie's suggestion, but Yuan Shao's reaction was different from Cao Cao's.At that time, Yuan Shao's other subordinates objected that now is the time to compete in the Central Plains, and if they bring the emperor here, will they listen to him or not?Not listening is against the order, and we feel uncomfortable after listening. This is not a good idea.Yuan Shao believed this and did not accept Ju Shou's suggestion.In fact, who the emperor listened to, from Dong Zhuo to Li Jue and Guo Si, is self-evident. Yuan Shao just gave up this good opportunity to Cao Cao for nothing, and now it is too late to regret it. Since then, Cao Cao has had the advantages in political capital and human resources, and talents from all over the country have flocked to Xu County like a hundred rivers returning to the sea. After all, the emperor is in Xu County, and he is doing things for the central government.Cao Cao raised high the bright banner of protecting the emperor with one hand, and tightly held the shining sword in the other hand, wanting to realize his ideal of leveling the world and unifying Kyushu. The road of life is very long, but there are only a few key steps. If you take these few steps correctly, your whole life will be on the right track. If you take these few wrong steps, the consequences will be unimaginable.The principle of political competition is similar, there are only a few key steps, and there is only one real trump card.Should we go steadily and well, or should we go wrong, should we hold the trump card, or should we lose the opportunity?Seemingly accidental factors can be traced to inevitable laws. Yuan Shao's mistake in welcoming the emperor was the same as when he established another emperor. The mistake was that he didn't see the objective situation clearly.He didn't see clearly the era of imperial power, the sacredness of the throne cannot be moved rashly, and he didn't see clearly that only Cao Cao was his enemy.