Chapter 13 Bloodless

In view of Yuan Shao's huge influence in Hebei, Cao Cao did not dare to compete with him, so he handed over the position of general to Yuan Shao, and granted the title of Marquis of Ye, bestowed bows and arrows, and hundreds of tigers, and made him concurrently supervise Ji, Qing, You, and the four prefectures .Cao Cao dismissed Sikong Zhang Xi and replaced him by himself, and the shogunate was changed to the Sikong government.He also selected Yuan Shao's younger brother Yuan Xu from the Yuan family in Runan as the prefect of Jiyin to show his favor to Yuan Shao and show that he had no suspicions, and finally stabilized Yuan Shao who was jealous.Everything has been settled. In the first month of the second year of Jian'an (197 AD), Cao Cao first tried "serving the emperor to beg for disobedience".

Zhang Xiu, a native of Wuwei Patriarch Li, is an old general under Dong Zhuo's command and the nephew of Hussar General Zhang Ji.After Zhang Ji was killed in battle in Nanyang, Zhang Xiu took over the army and gained a foothold in Wancheng with the acceptance and support of Jingzhou Mu Liubiao.Although he was known for being brave and good at fighting, when he heard that Cao Cao's army had arrived, he was still in chaos, so he quickly called his only adviser to discuss countermeasures. This great strategist is the chief culprit who caused troubles in Xijing in the past——Jia Xu! Jia Xu, styled Wenhe, was born in Guzang, Wuwei. When he was young, he was loved by Yan Zhong, a famous scholar in Hanyang, and was once promoted as Xiaolian.He was also a member of the old Xiliang Ministry, and was stationed in Shan County with Dong Zhuo's son-in-law.After Wang Yun and Lu Bu assassinated Dong Zhuo, Niu Fu fled in a hurry and was killed halfway. The court's pardon did not arrive for a long time, and Li Jue, Guo Si, Zhang Ji, Fan Chou and other ministries all wanted to flee in all directions.At the critical moment, Jia Xu stood up and suggested that the generals send troops to Chang'an in the name of avenging Dong Zhuo. As a result, Lu Bu was defeated, Situ Wang Yun was killed, and the Xiliang army occupied Chang'an for the second time.

But after the Xiliang army entered Chang'an, Jia Xu regretted his previous suggestions.The two reckless men, Li Jue and Guo Si, wantonly plundered property, and then developed to detain the emperor and hundreds of officials. Mutual suspicion and conflict, not only failed to achieve a career, but also devastated the land of Sanfu.Jia Xu took advantage of his position as a minister to reconcile the two, and then secretly covered the emperor's return to the east.He saw the development of the situation very clearly, if he continued to stay with Li and Guo, he would accompany them to death sooner or later; but following the emperor's return to the east, it was inevitable that someone would bring out the old account of the fall of Xijing.So he chose the middle way, neither going east nor west. Instead, he resigned from his official position and joined Duan Yan, another general in Liangzhou who remained neutral. Under Zhang Xiu's command, he made plans for him.

"Uncle Jia, how should my nephew deal with Cao Cao now?" Zhang Xiu is not yet thirty years old, and Jia Xu is a member of Zhang Ji's generation. Because of his seniority, Zhang Xiu treated him like a nephew. "General, what do you think?" Jia Xu asked back. Zhang Xiu scratched his head: "Now we live in Nanyang, relying on Liu Biao for food and grass. The soldiers are no more than a few thousand, and the cities are no more than Wanxian, Yexian, Wuyin, and Rangxian counties. It will be me and Zhang Xian, and you are the only mastermind. With this strength alone, it is very difficult to fight against Master Wang. But if he surrenders and surrenders, my uncle used to assist Dong Zhuo in the past, and he has committed the crime of treason and abetment, and I fear that the emperor will not tolerate it."

"Master Wang? Son of Heaven? Hehehe... Is this the general's view?" Jia Xu couldn't help sneering, "It's just empty talk from a pedantic person. Dong Zhuo and Li Jue have threatened Son of Heaven, have they ruled the world yet? The imperial court is just the last straw for desperate people. Only the poor will submit to the imperial court as their servants, resigning their lives to help their masters conquer other people until all dissidents are transformed. Becoming a servant—this is the process by which the king unifies the world!" Jia Xu was silent and reserved in front of others, but he was not stingy with the thoughts in his heart when facing Zhang Xiu, a young man with a pure heart.

Zhang Xiu felt that these words were too cloudy, and blinked: "You... what do you mean by these words?" "What do I mean?" Jia Xu restrained his smile, "The Great Han Dynasty has already perished, and it was already doomed the moment Dong Zhuo entered Beijing. The enemy we are facing now is not the Son of Heaven, but Cao Cao!" Zhang Xiu couldn't help taking a breath when he heard him say that the great man was dead. "General, it is true that your uncle committed the crime of attacking Xiliang, and he must admit it at any time! But that is for the emperor. But for Cao Cao, what crime is he?" Jia Xu Make a judgment, "No crime! There is no crime... Not only will you not be punished, but you will also be treated preferentially by Cao Cao. He will label you as a model who sincerely submits to the court. And you are not the same as Liu Bei, you are not old with Cao Cao Qiu, maybe he will be reused! Surrender, there is no problem."

"I don't have a problem, but what about you? You were the one who gave Li Jue and Guo Si the idea to attack Chang'an. You caused so many troubles, and my nephew can get away with it, but you are dangerous! Maybe Cao Cao will kill you Liwei's." Seeing that he cared about him so much, Jia Xu felt quite comforted: "General, you don't have to worry about my affairs. I have my own speech when I see Cao Cao. Just a few words and I will ask him to forgive all my sins." After finishing speaking, he smiled mysteriously. . Zhang Xiu knew that he had a lot of scheming, so he didn't ask any further questions, and instead said: "It seems that surrender is a feasible strategy...how about raising troops to resist? We still have Liu Biao as our backing?"

Jia Xu shook his head and murmured: "When we first arrived here, our hearts were unstable and we did not make any achievements. Liu Biao always prided himself on being a loyal minister of the Han Dynasty. He must not become enemies with Cao Cao and the entire imperial court because of us. Even if we are trapped and will die, He will only see death. But if we win this time, Liu Biao will find out Cao Cao's strength. At that time, you don't need to ask him, general, he will take the initiative to come to us to join forces so that we can be his pawns. The North rejects Cao Cao's barrier."

"In the end, you can't count on him!" Zhang Xiu clenched his fists. "It's not that you can't count on it, it's that you can't count on it for the time being." Jia Xu corrected. Zhang Xiu felt that he was too literal-minded, so he frowned and said, "Is it war or surrender?" "It all depends on the general's own opinion. If you say war, we will fight, and if you say surrender, we will surrender. But let me put it here, we are 100% sure of surrender. Confrontation..." Jia Xu stretched out three Finger, "Based on the general's current strength, the odds of winning are less than 30%! If you can't beat him and surrender again, you will be in bad luck. You can judge for yourself!"

Zhang Xiu's clenched fists suddenly loosened: "Forget it, seek benefits and avoid disadvantages in order to be safe...I surrender to Cao Cao!" "The general is bad... we are not surrendering Cao Cao, but the court." Jia Xu stood up with a smile, "at least we have to say so." "Oh, my mind is in a mess. It's the same thing about surrendering Cao Cao to the court anyway." Zhang Xiu murmured. "It's quite different. If you don't understand it, you can see that the general has a pure heart!" Zhang Xiu spread his hands: "I think it's okay to fight wars, but I can't play tricks."

"Don't be discouraged, general. With your simplicity of heart, you still have another step of good luck! In this troubled world, either you are extremely scheming or innocent to the extreme, and both of them can actually have a good home. I'm afraid some He has a heart but is not serious. If a bottle is full of half a bottle, there is absolutely no good fruit to eat. Such a person is popular in peacetime, but in troubled times he is a mediocre person! For example, Liu Biao, a talented person in the ordinary world, but he does not see things changing and is suspicious. There is no decision, nothing can be done.” Zhang Xiu was quite amused: "If someone can make a difference in the troubled times, what would he be like?" "It's so tiny..." Jia Xu shook his head, "Such a person can be extremely simple and treacherous. The so-called 'capable minister in the world, traitor in troubled times' is such a person who is both good and evil." "Huh?! Isn't that what you said about Xu Shao's comment on Cao Cao's gossip?" Jia Xu burst into a smile: "Talk about Cao Cao, Cao Cao is coming soon. I'm afraid he has already arrived in Ye County by now, we don't have time to chat anymore." Zhang Xiu nodded and said: "I will send orders to Ye County and Wuyin to let them go all the way and not to resist, and then personally order troops. Let's go to the Feishui River to meet Cao Cao. Let's show off our strength and let him see our Liangzhou." With the majesty and majesty of the Ministry, even if you surrender, you must surrender with style!" Cao Cao did not expect that things would go so smoothly.Since entering Nanyang, it has been unimpeded, and Zhang Xiu has surrendered. The name of the court is indeed a sharp sword, and it is invincible wherever it goes. Seeing that the army had already reached the east bank of the Feishui River, the scene on the west side was unobstructed.Nanyang Wan County can be described as a fortified city. In the past, Cao Cao fought bloody battles here when he followed Zhu Jun to pacify the Yellow Turban.But at the moment the city gate was wide open and the flags and drums were silenced, Zhang Xiu led the troops and horses to line up by the river. The cavalrymen from Xiliang really lived up to their reputation. They were full of energy and showed off their might. Although there were not many in number, their armor was bright and well-equipped. Cao Cao originally looked down on Zhang Xiu, but now that he has surrendered, he couldn't help sighing: "The danger of the river, the solidity of the city, the strength of soldiers and horses, Xiao Zhangxiu is also a strong enemy!" At this moment, I suddenly heard the sound of drums and music singing triumphantly, and a rider came head-on, rushing across the temporary pontoon bridge.This man was in his twenties, seven feet tall, with a clean face and long beard, wearing a chain armor of silver and white chains, an iron pocket on his head, no red tassels and white filial piety. It's fluttering in the air, but it looks extraordinarily chic.Cao Cao couldn't help laughing at Guo Jia beside him: "This must be Xiao Zhangxiu with the white horse and silver gun, and he even wears mourning for Zhang Ji!" Zhang Xiu rode across the pontoon bridge alone, kicked off the saddle and got off the horse, took off the sword at his waist and threw it on the ground, aimed at the big flag, and ran towards the direction of Cao Cao's army—this series of movements were smooth and smooth , with crisp energy!When Cao Bing saw him walking with his head bowed and without any weapons, he did not stop him; Zhang Xiu ran straight to the front of the tiger and leopard cavalry of the Chinese army, then stopped and knelt down, took off his pocket, bowed deeply, and said, "General Jianzhong Zhang Xiu, it is late to welcome Master Wang, I hope Duke Cao will forgive me!" Jia Xu has already given instructions—do not say "surrender" but "greeting" when meeting, so as to show that there is no intention of resistance at all; self-declaration of the official position of Jianzhong General, so that you can only be promoted but not surrendered; "Wang Shi" is not "Cao Jun" to show the recognition of Xudu's court; when Cao Cao pays homage, he should call "Cao Gong" instead of "General", which shows respect for his status as Sikong.Zhang Xiu complied with everything, and gave enough face; Cao Cao was really happy, and he rode on his horse and said loudly: "General Zhang understands that righteousness belongs to the court, he is innocent and innocent, please hurry up!" "I don't dare...My uncle is guilty of causing trouble in Tokyo and capturing Xijing." Zhang Xiude said all the ugly things before. Cao Cao naturally wanted to show his strength: "Dong Zhuo was responsible for the disaster in Luoyang, and Li Jue and Guo Si were responsible for the capture of Chang'an. Uncle Ling has nothing to do with it. In addition, your uncle reconciled the two thieves and allowed the emperor to return to the east. He has nothing to do with it. Hurry up, General." Get up!" These words are considered to have blown away the old evils of Zhang Ji's nephew, following Dong Zhuo to invade the people of Yuzhou, and taking advantage of the fire when the emperor defeated Hongnong. . Zhang Xiu breathed a sigh of relief: "Since the rebellion, I have no idea where to go. I want to protect the emperor's return to the east, but I am afraid that other ministers will stir up trouble and bring up the past, which will kill my uncle and nephew. Now I have Cao Gong's pardon and kindness, and I will be able to serve the court again in the future." .” After speaking, he bowed again before standing up. Cao Cao couldn't help nodding: "It's rare to have a community at a young age." "The last general has ordered the soldiers to clean the streets. Please Cao Gong lead the king's army across the river to settle down." Zhang Xiu turned his head, put two fingers in his mouth, and blew a crisp whistle.When the soldiers and horses on the west bank of the river heard this, those who dismounted dismounted, those who picked up their weapons took off their weapons, and all their weapons were disarmed. It was the first time Cao Cao saw whistles instead of military orders, and he couldn't help admiring: "General Zhang has a unique way of governing the army!" "I'm laughing at you. There's nothing unusual about our Liangzhou natives' tricks." Seeing that Cao Ying's generals were not hostile, Zhang Xiu let go of his courage and took a few steps forward, grabbed Cao Cao's horse reins, and led the horse himself. lead him forward. Dian Wei and Xu Chu were about to stop them when they saw it, but Cao Cao waved his hand: "General Zhang is a hero of Liangzhou, and he is willing to lead the horse for me personally. This is Cao's honor!" "Don't dare to be." He stroked Zhang Xiu's pocket again and said: "It's rare for a general to not forget to wear mourning for his uncle while he is in the army." Zhang Xiu led the horse and explained as he walked: "Regardless of his life's right and wrong, I lost my parents when I was young and was brought up by my uncle Meng. My aunt and younger brother all died in the Qiang riots. If I don't wear mourning for him Keeping the spirit, I'm afraid no one will inherit his cigarettes." Hearing this, Cao Cao liked this young man more and more: "If you don't go to the court without a war, you can be said to be loyal; if you don't forget your relatives in the army, you can be said to be filial. A general is a person who has both loyalty and filial piety!" I can't help but look back at Cao Ang, Cao Pi and Cao Zhen who came with the army. Will these children achieve both loyalty and filial piety in the future? The atmosphere on the entire bank of the Feishui River is very happy and harmonious. It doesn't feel like receiving enemy troops, but rather like two friendly troops converging.Cao Cao introduced the generals under his account to Zhang Xiu, and Zhang Xiu also quickly introduced Jia Xu. When Cao Cao saw Jia Xu for the first time, he felt that this person was quite different from the legend.In his mind, the chief culprit who instigated the generals to bring chaos to Xijing must be the monkey with the eyes of a deer and a mouse with a sharp mouth, and he would feel very cunning when he saw it.The man in front of him was in his forties, not tall, with a kind face, fair complexion, slightly wrinkled, and a slender beard; he was wearing a soap-colored scholar's suit, with a blue scarf covering his head, and he was slightly hunchbacked.It gives people the impression of being solemn and gloomy, old-fashioned, and even a bit pedantic.Cao Cao sized him up for a long time, and said with a half-smile, "The famous Jia Shangshu has admired his name for a long time, and he is disrespectful and disrespectful." "Don't you dare?" Jia Xu arched his hands slightly, his head still lowered, "I am now resigning from office, and relying on General Jianzhong for food, I dare not pretend to be a minister anymore." If this former culprit can be killed, wouldn't it be more able to win the hearts of Xijing scholars?Cao Cao was secretly murderous, but said calmly: "Now that the Xu capital is established, and the court is waiting to be raised, and is employing people, does Mr. Jia have no intention of returning to the court? After all, you are also helping the emperor return to the east. Hero!" Jia Xu raised his eyelids a little, and with just one glance at his hypocritical smile, he saw through his thoughts, and simply made it clear: "I really dare not enter the court again. When I arrive in Xudu, I am afraid that I will have to fight with Shangshu Feng." Shuo, Shizhong Taichong, and Habayashi Langhou Zhe, these three colleagues are in the team!" Cao Cao couldn't help being startled—what a pair of powerful eyes!He pretended to be puzzled and said, "Why did Mr. Jia say that?" Jia Xu didn't even lift his eyelids this time. He lifted his robe and knelt down, and started talking: "In the past, when Dong Zhuo died, the culprit was eliminated, and all the generals in Liangzhou wanted to plead guilty. But the pardon from the imperial court did not come for a long time. The whole people are in panic. It's just because the murderous minister Lv Bu has abused for no reason, and he is arbitrarily arbitrarily occupying the court and occupying the court, trying to kill all the people in Liangzhou..." He did not mention Wang Yun, but said Lv Bu, this was after careful consideration.Wang Yun used to fight the Yellow Turban with Cao Cao in the past, and he didn't dare to slander rashly if he couldn't figure out the relationship between the two. However, everyone in the world knows that Lu Bu and Cao Cao competed for Yanzhou. "For the sake of protecting the lives of the soldiers and generals in Mei County, I proposed to send troops to attack the palace and crusade against rebellious ministers. Although it is a rebellious strategy, it is a helpless move. I don't want Li Jue and Guo Si to make trouble for the three assistants, and even kidnap the emperor and detain all the officials. I will implement it He didn’t want to join forces with them, so he secretly helped the emperor return to the east. He was supposed to serve with him, but he was afraid that upright people would disdain him and make it difficult for him to stand in the court, so he fled to Nanyang to survive.” His words were more in line with the facts. Cao Cao nodded secretly after hearing this: This person is not a heinous person. Jia Xusheng was afraid that this statement would not be enough, and added: "The "Book of Changes" says, 'The words of a benevolent man will benefit everyone', but what about the words that are not benevolent? Harm the world! The country was destroyed several times, and the people suffered from swords and soldiers. Thanks to Mr. Cao’s efforts to turn the tide, the society was saved and life was restored..." Speaking of this juncture, we have to shoot it properly Flattering Cao Cao, "The source of the great chaos in the world is not all caused by the words of the next one? Since ancient times, there has been no one who has threatened chaos so much as the one below. No one who has been evil since ancient times has never been as deep as the one below! What face do I have? Standing in the court? Painful, painful... Alas..." Seeing him endlessly accusing himself of crimes, Cao Cao felt unbearable: Is this person really the culprit of the Xijing Rebellion?Otherwise, if Situ Wangyun had been more generous and pardoned Dong Zhuo's former subordinates, the world would not be in chaos again!The culprit is Wang Yun?It doesn't seem right, Wang Yun hoped that all the generals in the Kanto region would work together to rescue him, and he deliberately refused to pardon the people of Liangzhou because he was afraid that we would be suspected again... It seems that the real culprits are Yuan Shao, Yuan Shu, Liu Biao, and Gongsun Zan. Of course I count myself as one.It was us who forgot the country's grace and attacked each other, which caused Xiliang to fall for the second time, and the emperor was dusted again. It is us who should reflect... "Okay, okay, you're going to call yourself a sinner through the ages!" Cao Cao interrupted quickly, "It's never too late to make up for it. Mr. Jia has a heart of repentance, so that's all. If you don't mean to do evil, even though you are evil, you won't be punished. Get up quickly..." As he said that, Cao Cao actually helped Jia Xu up with his own hands.With his help, the public case that caused trouble in Xijing has nothing to do with Jia Xu at all! Those who should be pardoned and those who should not be pardoned are all pardoned. Jia Xu finally smiled knowingly, and as if he was a master, he cupped his hands and said: "Mr. In the army, welcome the wind for you and the generals." He was not in the city to treat guests, but he insisted on bringing the banquet here because he was afraid that Cao Cao would be suspicious. "Mr. Jia's remark is wrong! How can there be any reason to treat the guest with the host? Since they are all members of the imperial court, there is no difference between inside and outside the city." Cao Cao waved his hand to the back, "Generals, follow me into the city. "After that, I didn't ride the horse anymore. I held Zhang Xiu with my left hand and Jia Xu with my right hand. The three of them walked in holding their wrists hand in hand. Zhang Xiu put his heart in his stomach now, talking and laughing casually. But Jia Xu kept observing Cao Cao's words and deeds, and thought to himself: This guy is willing to confide in his heart, and he doesn't use power to oppress others, he is indeed a hero!It's a pity that dealing with people is too sloppy and casual, this is a fatal injury...