Chapter 22 Based in Dongjun

In the first month of the third year of Chuping (AD 192), Cao Cao arrived in Yanzhou. Unexpectedly, he did not go to Dongwuyang to complete the handover with Wang Gong, but instead led his army into the county boundary of Dunqiu County. "What are you doing here instead of going to Dongwuyang to garrison?" Ren Jun couldn't help asking Cao Cao as he looked at the tightly closed Dunqiu City. "I intend to defeat the yellow turban bandits before the enemy is stable." Cao Cao said with a relaxed expression, "Since we have arrived in Dongjun, we must act like a prefect. If we don't defeat the thieves first, how can we win the hearts of the scholars and common people in Dongjun?" ?”

"General, don't force yourself too much. We have crossed the river from Wei County to this point. The soldiers are exhausted on the way, and the food and grass are almost exhausted. This battle is not easy. Besides..." Ren Jun turned his head and looked at Dunqiu City again, his face full Worryingly, "Besides, the general has not yet arrived in Dongwuyang to hand over the seal, and the power of Dongjun is still in the hands of Wang Gong. The counties can't supply you with food and grass. If this continues, people's hearts will disperse." Unexpectedly, Cao Cao burst into laughter after hearing these two harsh words.Not only he laughed, but also Lou Yi, and even Xi Zhicai and Bian Bing, who were not far away to check the luggage, also laughed.Ren Jun felt hairy: "What are you laughing at? What's so funny?"

Cao Cao saw his anxious face, so he said in a mysterious way: "Bo Da, I led the people here, one is to fight the enemy nearby, and the other is to supply food and grass." "The four gates of Dunqiu City are closed to prevent the thieves. You are not justified, how can you open the gate? How can anyone pay for food?" "I have my own way." Cao Cao turned his hands away, "Abing, come here." Bian Bing walked over with a smile: "Brother-in-law, I knew you had to call me." "The only people here are you and Lou Yi who have the ability to open the city gate. As a commander, I can't leave. If Lou Yi and the others arrange tents, then you are the only one to go." He took out a command arrow from a large pile of things, "Listen Bian Bing, I order you to take 300 small schools to the front of Dunqiu City, and shout to the city, 'Cao Mengde is here, begging for food from the people of Dunqiu' , be sure to let the people inside open the city gate. If you can’t do it, you will be dealt with by military law immediately!”

"It's a trivial matter, brother-in-law, why are you so serious." Bian Bing took the command arrow casually. Cao Cao's face sank: "This is a military camp, without your brother-in-law!" "Promise." Bian Bing shrank his neck, "Respect the general's order." Ren Jun was very surprised to see Bian Bing gone, but seeing Cao Cao calmly busy with his own affairs, he couldn't say anything more and walked away silently.He has been managing the army rations since he followed Cao Cao, and now he is absent-mindedly directing the soldiers to settle the rations.The flatbed carts are all empty, and there is almost no food left. I am afraid that it will be completely eaten tomorrow, and it will be too late if we don't rush to Dongwuyang.The more Ren Jun thought about it, the more urgent he felt that the matter was urgent, and he turned around to remonstrate Cao Cao, but suddenly he heard a burst of shouting from the bustling crowd.

I saw the gate of Dunqiu County was wide open, except for Bian Bing leading the soldiers, a large group of people of all kinds came rushing in like a tide!These people trotted all the way with the old and the young, with all the food pots and pulp in their hands, there were peasants in coarse cloth, country gentry in brocade, even county government servants, and dozens of city guards with sticks in their hands. . Cao Cao took off his helmet and stood at the gate of the camp, when he heard the crowd shouting in unison: "Magistrate Cao is back...Magistrate Cao is back..." In the past, when Cao Cao first entered the official career and served as the captain of Luoyang North, he killed Huang with a stick. The uncle of Jian Shuo offended the powerful and powerful, and moved to Dunqiu County as the county magistrate.During his tenure, he fought against the powerful and treated the people kindly, which won the popularity of the people.Fifteen years later, he has returned to Dunqiu County, and the meritorious deeds of that year are still in the hearts of the people. Which of the people who have been favored by him will not come to welcome and reward him?

All of a sudden, there was a turmoil of people, and all kinds of people rushed over and surrounded Cao Cao tightly, shouting and shouting. "Master Cao, hello!" "Look, kid, this is Mr. Cao that grandpa said..." "Master County Magistrate, do you still recognize the younger one? I'm Wang Er!" "If it weren't for you, my son would have been taken away and joined the army." "You saved our family's life!" ... "Give way, everyone! Make way!" At this moment, a middle-aged man in a soap suit and wearing a martial pen pushed forward.As soon as Cao Cao saw that shrewd face, he immediately recognized it, and hurriedly bowed: "Xu Gongcao, how are you doing now?"

The person who came was Xu Tuo, the meritorious Cao Cao of Dunqiu County. He was very happy to see Cao Cao recognized him, and he talked endlessly: "Cao County...Cao County General, I didn't expect you to come back after so many years. I miss you back then. Aim high and heroic, resolve cases like a god and love the people like a son; when you leave office, the people of the Li people will stay behind, and the scholars, women, old and young will see you off with tears like a mourning concubine, that time is really..." "Xu Gongcao, you and I are old acquaintances, why bother to say such polite words?" Cao Cao was not happy to hear his exaggeration and flattery.Back then when he was serving as Dunqiu Ling, he didn't get along well with Xu Tuo, and even had some disputes.

Xu Tuo was taken aback. When he was the county magistrate, he couldn't offend him. Now that he is the prefect, and he has so many soldiers with him, he dare not offend him. My lord, do you see what this is?" Cao Cao didn't look at it, and almost burst into tears when he saw it-it turned out to be the pair of five-color sticks he used to enforce the law in the past.Now they are so rusty and mottled that the color is almost indistinguishable. Back then, he and Lou Yi carried this pair of big sticks all the way from Luoyang to Dunqiu, and used them to fight the powerful and the thieves, and governed a small county that never closed its doors at night.Thinking about it now, he was so vicious and righteous back then, but now that he has gone through life and death in the world, his character is almost rounded, how can he be as straightforward and stubborn as before...

"My lord, since you left, this pair of sticks has always been the treasure of my town and county in Dunqiu!" Xu Tuo opened his eyes and said nonsense. Since Cao Cao left, the pair of sticks have been thrown into the backyard of the county temple. It was raining, and once I almost asked the yamen servant to change the threshold. This is because I heard that Cao Cao was coming, and I just dug it out from the chaotic wormwood.Seeing the people bustling around, Cao Cao really didn't want everyone to see him sad, so he hurriedly said: "Xu Gongcao, I just arrived in this county, and I have some matters to ask. After you settle here, come and do things by my side."

Xu Tuo was so happy that he almost jumped up. He came from a humble background and hadn't been promoted until he was in his forties. "Get up, the war is not over now, everyone's safety is the most important thing, take the people back quickly, and strictly guard the city is the most important thing." Xu Tuo got up and smiled and said, "Everyone is here for you, and it doesn't work to talk to me." His attitude was very concerned about Cao Cao's face, and Cao Cao hurriedly shouted: "Folks, be quiet, everyone! Sit down, everyone." If the people really listened to his words, they spread the word to ten, ten to hundreds, and they all sat down in a short while.Cao Cao boarded a wagon and shouted: "I have been away from Dunqiu for fifteen years, and the situation in the world has changed drastically. Now the emperor's dusty local regime is divided, and wars are everywhere. My soldiers and horses are now going to destroy the thieves from Qingzhou. , Thank you for the food you sent. Now please Xu Gongcao lead everyone back quickly, guard the city, and don't let the thieves succeed. I am already the prefect of Dongjun, and there will be more opportunities to return to Dunqiu in the future. Everyone cherish it , When the battle is over, I will issue an order to exempt the county from taxes and servitude. Now that Xijing’s decree is not in place, I can make the final decision on exempting taxes!”

Wow... When this remark came out, the people were in an uproar, and they were even more elated.After Xu Tuo persuaded him for a long time, these people finally left sparsely, and some people were really reluctant to leave, and they insisted on pulling Cao Cao's skirt and saying a few words before they were willing to go back.After all, it was a time of war, Cao Cao was afraid that the Yellow Turban scouts would come and go, so he hurriedly ordered Xiahou brothers to be careful, while he prevaricated the people one by one, telling them to return to the city quickly.Even so, it took half an hour to be considered quiet. When the people were almost gone, Cao Cao found that there were still dozens of Xiangyong standing silently in line: "Aren't you going back to defend the city?" "Don't go back!" The leader walked over waddlingly, "What kind of a hero is he who stays in the city? I will bring these brothers to join the general, and I will fight with you in the future!" Cao Cao almost laughed out loud: this man is in his early twenties, dressed as a brave man, solid and capable, but he is less than five feet tall, a bit shorter than himself.A chubby little black face, small nose and small eyes, big mouth and short beard, facial features squeezed together, and some bow-legs when walking-can such a person fight? Fearing that he was used to being ridiculed by others, he shouted loudly: "General, don't look at me as short. I can lead troops to fight as a general." His voice was so loud that it made people's ears buzz. Leading troops to fight as a general is a big tone—since people dare to say this, they must have done something wrong if they don’t ask. Cao Cao didn’t want to be negligent, and said with a smile: “Little brother, what’s your name?” "My Xia Lejin is from the Kingdom of Wei." When Cao Cao heard that he was from Wei, he hurriedly said politely: "Sage and villagers, I am rude." Wei State's original name is Wei County, and it is also under the rule of Dongjun, but it is one of the only two duchies in the Han Dynasty.Since the resurgence of Guangwu, all the clans have been enshrined as kingdoms and govern the same county. Only Liu Kui, King of Bohai, younger brother of Emperor Xiaohuan, was relegated to King Yingtao, creating a unique county kingdom.All the ministers who have made great achievements are granted the title of Marquis, and they govern the same county, but there is no level of principality. Even the Sangong and the Tai Tuo are only named Marquis.Emperor Guangwu Liu Xiu loved Confucianism and admired sages. In order to respect Ji Dan and Confucius, in the thirteenth year of Jianwu (AD 37), Ji Chang, a descendant of the Zhou Dynasty, was granted the Duke of Wei, and Kong An, a descendant of the Yin and Shang Dynasties, was granted the Duke of Song. The sons followed hereditary and did not succeed, and each established duchies as guests of the Han Dynasty. From then on, there were two county duchies of Wei and Song. Cao Cao had always worshiped the Duke of Zhou, Ji Dan, and when he heard that Le Jin was from Wei, he immediately showed kindness. Le Jin clasped his fists and said, "Don't dare, I'm just a rough man, I just want to join the general to build fame!" Seeing that he spoke so bluntly, Cao Cao didn't want to disappoint him, but his appearance really didn't deserve much confidence, so he smiled slightly and said: "In that case, you can return to Xiahou Sima under my tent to listen to him!" It seemed that he was not very happy, but he still took people to pay a visit to Xiahou Dun. When Cao Cao returned to his tent, he saw that Cao Hong, who had been sent to inspect the news, had returned.It turned out that Yu Du, the Yellow Turban of Qingzhou, was entrenched in the valley west of Wuyang. Because Wang Gong was weak and incompetent, Yu Du had led tens of thousands of soldiers and horses to surround Wuyang County, the prefecture, and began to attack the city. "Since there has been a change in the war, when the meal is over, send an order to set off!" Cao Cao ordered. Cao Hong said happily: "After being raised by Yuan Shao for so long, my hands are already itchy. Go to Dongwuyang to fight the thieves, and kill his mother's eggs!" "Wrong!" Cao Cao pointed at Cao Hong, "If we don't fight Dongwuyang, let's attack the poisonous Bentun." "What?" Cao Hong stared blankly, "Meng De is narrow-minded, of course Wang is not a good thing for his mother, we can't do nothing!" Cao Cao was a little displeased: "Listen, Zi Lian, this is a military camp, there must be courtesy from top to bottom, and you can't use foul language casually. From now on, you can only call me general and county general, and you are not allowed to call me brother or Biao. If there is a next time , The military law is ruthless." Xi Zhicai can see things clearly—Cao Mengde stands up now, and will be a straight-faced man in the future. "General, I have a word." Because Ren Jun is an outsider, he is more disciplined than others on a daily basis. "Wuyang is the seat of the Eastern County. Once it falls, the entire county will be in chaos. The hearts of the people will be uncertain. They will think that the siege will be rescued first." "Bodamo is going to be anxious. I decided to attack its base. It was a strategy to encircle Wei and save Zhao. In the past, Sun Bin rescued Zhao and attacked Wei. Geng Yan wanted to leave Xi'an and attacked Linzi first. Let us attack his base, and the enemy will return when they hear that we are going west. If they don’t come back to save us, we won’t suffer any losses. The Yellow Turban camp is easy to attack, but Wuyang City is strong. I can destroy its foundation, but I can’t attack Wuyang City due to poison.” Cao Cao glanced at Xi Zhicai, "Mr. Xi, how about my plan?" Xi Zhicai nodded repeatedly without expressing any objection. "Boda, is there still a shortage of food and grass?" Cao Cao asked him with a smile. Ren Jun blushed: "I don't know that you used to be the county magistrate here. The people sent food, not only dry food, but also some mustache and meat, which is enough for five days now." "Hmph, how can it take five days? Two days is enough." Cao Cao was full of ambition, "Everyone, let's eat quickly, and send troops to attack the enemy's nest in the afternoon." As Cao Cao expected, scouts reported that Yu Du had withdrawn from the siege of Wuyang and led the soldiers back to rescue.Cao Cao's spirit was lifted, and he ordered his troops to advance quickly.Although Yu Du's Dazhai was located in a valley, he didn't know how to guard the dangerous place according to local conditions. In addition, there were so many yellow scarves with their families following them, so Cao Jun cleared the camp without any effort, and there were a lot of prisoners and supplies.And right after, Yu Du's army was about to kill him. There is no need for Cao Cao to go out in person in such battles anymore. He is protected by his own soldiers and sits on the top of the mountain. There are Lou Yi on the left and right, and the king will personally protect each other, watching the battle from a condescending height.That Yu Du is a brave general in the Yellow Turban Army. Although he has tens of thousands of people, all of them are outdated in weapons and weapons, far inferior to Cao Cao's more than 3,000 people who are good at fighting. Thousands of farmers led by Yu Du himself dared to fight in front. Looking at the stalemate below, Lou Yi stomped his feet anxiously: "General, general, I'll kill him for a while." "Don't move! You are my bodyguard now, and it's your duty to protect the general. If you go, what if someone assassinates me from the trail up the mountain? Just wait for me!" "No." Lou Yi lowered his head again. "I'm sure about this battle, but we still need to fight for a while, and it will be easy to deal with the chaos in the front team of Commander Yu Du." When Cao Cao saw that Lou Yi was not allowed to go down the mountain, he was listless, and taught again, "What are you going to do?" I need to be more energetic!" "No." Lou Yi hurriedly stood up straight. "Now that we have a county, everything has to look like it. You have to learn to be a soldier captain, and I have to learn to be a county commander. We all have to start again..." Suddenly, Cao Cao's His eyes were straightened, and he saw that his army was in chaos.Cao Cao is not below, Xiahou Dun is the commander in command directly, and his troops are at the back.But from his camp, a small team of dozens of people poured out. Regardless of the formation, this team just squeezed through the camp of Cao Hong and Xiahou Dun in front, rushing their own team into a mess. , and then went all the way to Yu Du's team. "What's going on...it's that dwarf!" It was the short Le Jin, who actually led dozens of Xiangyongs to squeeze from the back to the front.With his big feet bare, he walks in circles, holds two big machetes of the brave envoys in his hands, dances like a disc, and runs rampant in the poisonous front as if entering no one's territory. In the blink of an eye, Le Jin killed like a scoop of blood, and the enemies retreated one after another, like avoiding a tiger.He led the people in such a way, and the situation of the confrontation immediately changed drastically, as if a sharp knife had been wedged into the formation of the Yellow Turban army!Behind Cao Hong and Xia Houyuan's men and horses rallied and moved forward bravely. "Victory!?" Cao Cao looked at the Yellow Turbans fleeing in all directions, "What a happy defense of the country!" , can no longer assemble into a team.Yu Du, the leader of the Yellow Turban, did not dare to stay, so he fled north and crossed the river to join the Black Mountain Army. All the ministries happily counted the luggage and property they had obtained, while Cao Cao walked through the village with his own soldiers. From afar, he saw Le Jin squatting beside a big tree, panting, and walked hurriedly: "Le Jin, I saw You, the land of Duke Zhou not only raises Confucian scholars, but also warriors like you!" Le Jin wiped off the blood on his face, grinned and said: "This battle is not going to be very effective. If I have a horse to ride and a spear to use, Yu Du will not be able to run away!" "Okay." Cao Cao nodded, "Give you a horse and a gun, go and be Cao Zilian's second-in-command." Unexpectedly, Le Jin frowned, and said loudly: "I don't want to be someone else's second-in-command, I come from fame. Yes! If you let me go back to Weiguo, I will immediately bring you more than a thousand people, and I will lead the army myself." Lou Yi and Wang Bi were taken aback. This man was too arrogant. An ordinary soldier would lead his own troops just after winning a battle.Cao Cao didn't care about it, he just said: "Do you know that there are no jokes in the army?" "I don't brag." "Okay. If you can bring in a team of a thousand people, I will appoint you as another Sima and lead those people by myself." "Thank you, my lord." "Slow down," Cao Cao waved his hand, "If you can't bring so many people..." "Then you cut me with a knife!" Le Jin stood up abruptly. "Hahaha...quick!" Cao Cao laughed with his face up, and immediately took off his battle robe and put it on him. "In the future, don't go barefoot in battle. Feet are the foundation of human beings. You must protect them carefully. I will appoint you as the other Sima right now." , you just feel free to pull the team." Le Jin was stunned: "This..." "Employers don't doubt people, and strong men don't need to refuse." Cao Cao smiled. Le Jin stood in a daze for a while, then suddenly knelt down on the ground: "I have to repay the general for his kindness." "It's easy to get a thousand troops, but it's hard to find a general." Cao Cao stroked his beard and smiled. Bentun, who burned the yellow scarves, took the captured military equipment and escorted the prisoners. Cao Ying sang triumphant songs and went straight to Wuyang City.There were still twenty miles away from the city, and suddenly several horses came to meet them.When the leader saw the big banner, he immediately contacted the scouts and was led to Cao Cao's horse. "Who are you?" Cao Cao reined in his horse. "Working in the Chen Palace in Xiadong County, I am here to present the seal and ribbon under the order of the former county guard." After speaking, he untied the package from behind and held up the county guard's seal. Cao Cao sneered for a while: "Your lord is really polite. I'm still twenty miles away from Wuyang, and I haven't yet produced the general's edict." Chen Gong swallowed, lowered his head, and said, "Wang Jun will know that you are broken. Huang Jin was deeply admired, and felt shameless to meet him, so he asked me to welcome and offer a seal, and now he has left Wuyang City by car with his family." "He's quite clever." Cao Cao glanced at Xi Zhicai to take over Yinshou, "Wang Gong managed Dongjun in such a way that the Yellow Turban didn't dare to fight when he arrived. If the official judges the crime, he should send troops to catch up. Killed him with one blow." Not to mention Chen Gong, everyone present was startled. "But..." Cao Cao retracted his words again, "Since he escaped, that's fine." "The general is magnanimous." Chen Gong wiped off his cold sweat. "Chen Gong, go back and tell the officials in the county first. The disaster in Dongjun is the fault of Wang Gong alone. All officials will continue to hold their original positions and will not be held accountable." "Ah? You are really magnanimous." If Chen Gong's magnanimity just now was a polite word, then this time it is the truth.Once the emperor, one courtier, one official and a group of people, Chen Gong saw that he had so many followers around him, but he still did not change the old officials of Dongjun. This kind of courage is indeed rare.Cao Cao changed his smiling face and said, "Master Chen please stand up. In the future, I would like to ask for your advice on the affairs of the county. I still want to lead the troops forward, so let's go our separate ways." Chen Gong did not move, standing there with fists folded, Watching him and his relatives go away on horseback. After walking a long way, Cao Cao glanced at Xi Zhicai: "Mr. Xi, I ask you to take charge of this county." Xi Zhicai was quite disturbed when he heard him say "please" instead of "appointment", so he hastily declined and said: "I'm from a merchant, it's not appropriate to defile the temple, I'd better stay in your general's mansion as an aide." "Okay." Cao Cao didn't force it, and said, "There is one more thing to ask Mr. Xi to do for you. Write a letter to Yuan Benchu ​​and tell him that the Dongjun Yellow Turban has been ordered." "promise." Cao Cao turned his head and said: "The majesty of riding a general on a chariot depends on the echo of the generals in Hebei... Say more disgusting things like this." "Don't worry, you must choose your words well." "We have to reassure the chariot general in Hebei, I will listen to him in everything. Reassure him, I will build a barrier for him in Yanzhou smoothly." Cao Cao showed a contemptuous look on his face. Xi Zhicai shook his head and said: "There is a saying in "Lu Lan" that 'survival and death are in danger, don't look outside, just know yourself'. Although Yuan Shao has the ability to recognize talents, he has no self-knowledge." "But now I have to be consistent with Yuan Benchu, there are too many enemies." Cao Cao shook his head helplessly. Xi Zhicai said again: "The resurgence of the Yellow Turban, some families are happy and some are sad! Yuan Benchu ​​is probably the one that suffered the most, and Yuan Gonglu is the one that has benefited the most." "No!" Bian Bing interjected, "The one who benefits the most is sister... you, General." He didn't dare to call brother-in-law again, so he changed his words hastily. "Profit? After such a big disturbance, no one in the world can profit." Although Cao Cao said so grandly, he was quite happy in his heart. Bian Bing thought about the confiscated luggage and belongings: "General, what we seized..." "We'll talk about it after we arrive in Wuyang, but first we'll give some to the people in Dunqiu. I still have to pay back the favor." Cao Cao shrugged and his body relaxed, "It's like I have to pay back Yuan Benchu's favor." "Everything is according to my sister... the general's orders." Bian Bing breathed a sigh of relief, "We have arrived in Wuyang today to deal with the affairs of the county, can we ask the soldiers to rest?" "If you can't rest, just rest for one night and leave for Chenliu tomorrow." "Go to Chenliu?" "We still have to help Zhang Mengzhuo conquer Chenliu Commandery." Cao Cao moved his stiff neck, "Dongjun Commandery has been settled now, let's do our best to fix the Chenliu Rebellion. I heard that Yu Fuluo has plundered everywhere since he betrayed Yuan Shao, and now he has disturbed Yanzhou Here you go, be more careful when dealing with the Huns." "Sister... General," Bian Bing changed his words hastily again, "Since you are going to fight in Chenliu, why don't you take my sister... the general's wife and children over here." "Yes!" Cao Cao patted his forehead, "It's been so long since Zhang'er was born, and I haven't met him as a father yet." Bian Bing smiled and said, "I wish the general and his son a reunion." Cao Cao squinted at him, and said dissatisfiedly, "The more you listen, the more awkward you become. What's wrong with you boy! Can't you call me brother-in-law?" "I...I...I was wrong." Bian Bing shook his head, lowered his head and murmured to himself, "What kind of temper is this? It changes all the time, it's really hard to handle!"