Chapter 31 planning eastward

Cao Cao defeated Yuan Jun from Kuangting, Yanzhou, and pursued them all the way to Ningling County, Yuzhou.Yuan Shu was terrified by the defeat. He had already reached his own territory, and his soldiers, horses, food and supplies were sufficient, but he didn't have the courage to fight Cao Cao anymore.He prepared his troops and horses, took treasures, food, and the Jade Seal of Chuanguo, cursing Cao Aman and retreated again. This time he not only abandoned Ningling, but also abandoned most of Yuzhou in the north. From then on, Yuan Shu left the northern battlefield and moved to Jiujiang to start fighting from scratch. He never dared to confront Cao Cao face to face throughout his life.

This battle was also the farthest cross-regional pursuit battle since Sangluan. Cao Cao chased Yuan Shu for nearly 200 miles with limited troops, so his fame and power shook the Central Plains.With his victory, Yuan Shao's crisis was completely resolved, and he could continue to concentrate on controlling the land of Hebei. He had great trust and gratitude to Cao Cao, and appointed his subordinate Guo Gong as the governor of Yuzhou to cooperate with Cao Cao's actions. Even so, Cao Cao was unable to continue to pursue the enemy to Yangzhou, because he was afraid that Gongsun Zan would strike behind his back, and he was even more afraid of unpredictable changes in Yanzhou.

The army sang triumphant songs and flaunted their strength and returned. From time to time, people came to comfort the soldiers with water, thanking them for defending Yanzhou.Cao Cao rode a tall horse in front, looking up, the majestic mountains and rivers, lush forests, and newly plowed fields had a panoramic view, but turned his head to look again, pulling the convoy of captured military rations and luggage for half a mile.At that moment, pride welled up in his heart, and he really felt a little giddy. Before the soldiers and horses arrived at Dingtao, Chen Gong and Xun Yu rushed from Puyang, and they also brought the documents of these days to report.Seeing that it was just after Shenshi, Cao Cao thought that the soldiers were tired these days, so he sent an order to set up camp on the spot, and the generals returned to the camps. Only two people were left in the tent of the Chinese army to check their official duties these days.It has been more than a month since he left the city with his troops, Wan Qian and Bi Chen took care of the government affairs in the prefecture, and Xun Yu and Chen Gong handled important military affairs, everything was decent.

Cao Cao looked at it for a while and then piled the bamboo slips aside: "How is Xi Zhicai?" "The spirit has improved a lot, and I can't stop talking about "Lu Lan" if nothing happens, but I still have some cough." Xun Yu smiled, "He should be fine." "It's good to have nothing to do, and I still need to ask him to refer to many important matters..." Cao Cao was relieved, "Is there any progress in Mao Xiaoxian's examination of officials?" "Mao Xiaoxian seems to have done too much to eliminate the officials. He removed several prestigious officials, and most of the people he replaced were from poor families. There were even a few people from other counties, which made Puyang angry. The gentry nearby are quite critical." Chen Gong didn't dare to conceal and report the truth.

Cao Cao's expression darkened immediately after hearing Chen Gong's words: "Chen Li will be on the list, and those who can't be stopped. Since he wants to be eliminated, there must be someone who can't handle it. I believe Mao Jie's vision, he can't go wrong with the choice , the one he chose not long ago to work in Xue Ti is very good." Chen Gong knew very well that Xue Ti was a bit of a ruthless official, and he was always careful about what he did, but he couldn't say it directly, so he said tactfully: "That's what I said, but after all, we can't lose the hearts of the gentry in this state. Although there is no shortage of money, food and soldiers for the time being, there is no shortage of money, food and soldiers. Military chaos is also unpredictable, and we have to count on their help in these matters in the future."

"Hmph!" Cao Cao sneered, "You only heard what the gentry said, but have you seen the life of the peasants with your own eyes?" "This..." Chen Gong swallowed, "Most of the land around Puyang is owned by the big clans, and half of the people are tenant farmers. We still have to rely on the gentry to produce good land. In times of famine, self-farming is too much for food and clothing, so there is no spare energy for the state temple. We can’t just kill the rich and help the poor.” "Who says it can't? It's just that it hasn't been forced to that point." Cao Cao said casually.

Chen Gong was terrified by this understatement: "I want you to think carefully." "Did I say something wrong?" Cao Cao glanced at Chen Gong. Because he won the battle, he spoke with confidence recently, "Why did my man decline in the past few decades? Isn't it because of land annexation and people's livelihood? In the past, I was Emperor Guangwu. At that time, the county government collected 30 yuan for land rent and 1 tax, and the people were deeply virtuous and worked diligently on farming. Emperor Xiaozhang also ordered to open Changshan, Weijun, Qinghe, and plains to pay the poor, and this is how we are today. Yuan Shao and Gongsun Zan competed for this fertile land in Hebei. The imperial court is so generous, but the aristocratic and powerful families are still annexing fertile fields, beautiful industries, mountains, forests and lakes. A Zhonglang general, Wang Kai, he doesn't think about the suffering of the people in the world, he is still asking for land and homes, I think this kind of person should be removed."

He wants to kill Wang Kai?Chen Gong quickly lowered his head. "Don't think too much, I don't mean anything else, I just want to talk about this truth." Cao Cao took the words back again, "The court is just collecting some rent and taxes, but the rich are robbing the common people for food! What's wrong with killing the rich and helping the poor? ?If the day comes when the people have no livelihood, if you don’t kill the rich and help the poor, the common people will do it themselves. Back then, Xu Shao in Kuaiji, Lianglong in Jiaozhou, and the Yellow Turbans, Heishan, and Baibo who were not cleaned up, what did they do? On the contrary? Don’t worry about scarcity but inequality, don’t worry about poverty but anxiety, think about what Mencius said.”

When he said this, he suddenly became angry, and then said: "As for the nobles who own their own manors and horses to dominate the states and counties, it is even more abominable! It is tolerable and unbearable! The more such people want to be officials, the more I will The more you can't give him an official. Is giving them an official just to let them use their power for personal gain and continue to squeeze the people, and grab soldiers and food from me? No one is allowed to fight against me on the one-acre three-point land at my Cao Cao's feet! In the past, Lord Guangwu killed Ouyang She Erdu Tianxing, the methods of the sage emperors are useless."

Chen Gong was sweating profusely when he heard it, and he didn't dare to breathe out: In the past, Emperor Guangwu Liu Xiu went to the prefectures to inspect and reclaim acres of land for the purpose of collecting taxes.However, the local wealthy families had superior land properties and were unwilling to report the real numbers, so they fabricated the numbers to conceal the annexation.At that time, the official Ouyang She worshiped Da Situ. He was a famous scholar in "Shangshu" and the founding hero of Emperor Guangwu.At that time, his disciples and many officials wrote letters to express their grievances, but Emperor Guangwu ignored public opinion in order to assess the land property and restrain the powerful, so he executed Ouyang She to death.Cao Cao brought up this example today, and it is obvious that he is going to attack the rich family in Yanzhou.

"Your Majesty, let's discuss the matter of officials governing morality and education for the time being. As for the matter of land property and taxes, we may discuss it later." Xun Yu was also quite uneasy in his heart, so he quickly changed the subject, "I understand the meaning of public office, and most of the officials used in Yanzhou today are Powerful people, if we change easily, people’s hearts will fluctuate, Kuang county magistrate and other posts should be appointed by the imperial court, if we move them, we will be at odds with the imperial court’s laws, and it is too easy to give people excuses.” Cao Cao's anger rested for a while, and he tutted and said: "Mao Jie advised me that it is better to serve the emperor to win over the ministers, and to use livestock and military resources for farming and planting." It can’t be entirely dependent on people like Ding Fei who actively contribute funds..." Speaking of this, Cao Cao thought of the quarrel between the staff under Yuan Shao's account—the reason why Shen Pei and others dared to stand upright in front of Yuan Shao was because Because the local tyrants have soldiers and food.Do I, Cao Cao, have no choice but to win over such a group of people? Sure enough, Xun Yu suggested: "In my opinion, even if you want to replace the big officials, you still need to use some big families. You can choose those who are famous and upright and don't embezzle the people's wealth, and appoint them to the positions of counties and counties. A role model must have improved the world of this state. I think the Juye Li family is doing well these days. Li Gan helps you eliminate the Yellow Turbans, and his fellow clan's children are more disciplined now, so find more people like this." The so-called rule of the world is like cooking small fish. Xun Yu's method seems clumsy, but it is a sophisticated view of the country. Cao Cao had no choice but to nod in agreement, and asked Chen Gong: "Gongtai, what other handsome people in this state can do it?" ?" What does it mean to be able to do it?The more Chen Gong listened, the more awkward he became, but he still smiled and said, "Yes, there is one in Chenliu Junyi County, the famous Bian Wenli!" Give way! ?Cao Cao's eyes narrowed, he and Bian Rang had quite a feud.This person is friends with Huan Shao and Yuan Zhong. Huan Shao has a deep feud with the Cao family. Yuan Zhong ridiculed Cao Cao because of the imperial conquest.Gold is like gold and jade is like jade, this side also slandered Cao Cao, always dragged him to eunuchs and beat him to death endlessly, and even humiliated him in public in the shogunate of General He Jin , Now asking this person to come out to do things, wouldn't it be self-inflicted humiliation?But Bian Rang is very famous, as famous as Kong Rong, and his "Zhang Hua Fu" is superbly written, and he can be called the leader of the current literary world.Cao Cao was quite conflicted in his heart, and he prevaricated: "Oh, it's this person." Chen Gong didn't realize it: "Bian Wenli's talents are outstanding and heroic, if you ask him to be a high official in the state, you can calm the hearts of scholars." "Isn't he in the Xijing court?" "Jiujiang Taishou Zhou Angqianfan was defeated by Yuan Shu and fled back to his hometown. Xijing replaced him as Jiujiang Taishou. He dared not take up the post, so he fled back to his hometown. Bian Wenli and I have known each other in the early years, and we can invite him to the state temple. Let me meet him." Chen Gong didn't know that Cao Cao and Bian Rang were old acquaintances. "Don't force this matter." Cao Cao hoped that he would come, but also hated him to come, so he gave an ambiguous answer.Chen Gong completely misunderstood it. He thought that Cao Cao said this because he did not believe that he could ask Bian to let him out, so he hurriedly explained: "This matter is not forced. To be honest, since Bian Wenli returned to Chenliu, he has closed the door to thank guests. "If I hadn't had some old friends with him, I wouldn't know that he has returned. I heard that he brought two friends who took refuge with him. One is the former chancellor of the Pei Kingdom, Yuan Zhong, who was the descendant of the famous minister Yuan Chang, and is also a relative of Yuan Shao; There is a man named Huan Shao, who is from Peiguo, and he is also your fellow countryman, so you should know him." Cao Cao's heart was about to burst out, Huan Shao, Yuan Zhong, and Bian Rang, these three deadly enemies had caused him so much trouble, and now they were right under his nose, no wonder they had to close the door to thank the guests.Now Cao Cao is the lord of Yanzhou, as long as he moves his fingers, he can crush these three people to death.He couldn't help laughing up to the sky: "Hahaha... I know you, of course I know you, we are old friends." Chen Gong didn't get the point: "Since they are all the envoy's friends, they should treat them well." "Yes, I want to entertain them. They should be treated well!" Cao Cao squeezed these two words through his teeth, his fists already clenched. "Then when I go back, I'll come to invite them to meet you in Puyang. Let's plan big things together, and the scholars will return to their hearts." "There's no need to come and invite me to see... Gongtai, you can do something for me." "Your Majesty just obeys orders, how dare I disobey them?" Chen Gong was overjoyed. "Go and kill the three of them for me." Chen Gong was startled, and he hesitated for a long time before saying: "Aren't you friends with them?" Cao Cao squinted his eyes and sneered: "Of course they are friends, the best friends. That Huan Shao has always been arrogant. Even though his slaves robbed the people's daughters, he once caused Xiahou Miaocai to be imprisoned. If it wasn't for his good friend , my adopted son Cao Zhen will not become an orphan without father and mother! Yuan Zhengfu and Bian Wenli humiliated me several times without asking questions, and in front of the Luoyang scholars, they kept calling me an eunuch. Good friends, what are you keeping them for?" At the end of his speech, he finally hit Shuai's case with his fist.This is the third time Chen Gong has seen Cao Cao's sharp gaze. Whenever he wants to kill someone, that terrifying expression will appear, and he lowers his head to prepare for countermeasures. Xun Yu at the side suddenly cupped his hands and said, "I have something to say, I hope you will accept it deeply." "Don't you just want to persuade me to spare them?" Cao Cao was full of revenge at this time, and didn't even look at him. "No, what I am doing is the envoy's ear." Xun Yu bowed deeply, "I would like to ask the envoy, is the enmity between you and the three people public or private?" "What about the public? What about the private?" Cao Cao asked rhetorically. "For the public, killing and punishing is the law of the country, so that the emperor cannot be self-determined. For the private, he will harm the virtuous gentleman for no reason and not take it, which will hinder the emperor's understanding." Cao Cao was furious: "Wen Ruo, I have always respected you, please don't say anything about this!" Xun Yu knelt down on the ground neither humble nor overbearing: "Your envoy escaped from the place of the villain Dong Zhuo. Do you know that Dong Zhuo forced Huangfu Song to worship? Dong Zhongying and Huangfu Yizhen were in Liangzhou in the past, and the two were at odds with each other. Huangfu Song played Dong Zhuo’s crimes, and Dong Zhuo fought against Chencang to seize Huangfu Song’s merits. Later, Dong Zhuo moved his capital to Chang’an to hold the young master hostage, and ordered Huangfu Song to enter the court. Everyone thought that Dong Zhuo would surely kill him, but they didn’t know that he was entrusted with the imperial court. Shi Zhongcheng only asked him to pay homage, and after this bow, it would not be difficult to become Huangfusong after abandoning the previous suspicions. Thinking of Dong Zhuo who corrupted the court, tyrannized the world, destroyed artifacts, and set fire to the capital, everyone called him a thief Dong, compared to Wang Mang. But it was this thief , There is still a moment of benevolence to be able to abandon old enemies. If you take the world as your responsibility and revive the Han Dynasty as your lifelong ambition, your tolerance should be wider than that of the sea, how can you be inferior to a thief?" After finishing speaking, he rolled his eyes and looked at Cao Cao. Cao Cao's face turned from white to red, and then from red to white again. After all, he didn't have another attack. He sighed and said, "That's all for Yuan Zhong and Bian Yi. Huan Shao killed Qin Shao, how can this matter be lightly forgiven?" "Huan Shao used to be the order of Qiao, so that Jun used to be a fugitive official. Since Huan Shao is an official of the court, it is not too much to be ordered to arrest you." Xun Yu said halfway, seeing Cao Cao's eyebrows raised again, he quickly changed his words, "The actions of the elders who repay virtue with grievances, if you can tolerate the inability of others and forgive Huan Shao's past mistakes, you will surely make the world return to see the good and think of the same, and the people of Yanzhou can rest in peace!" "Okay, okay," Cao Cao frowned and waved his hands, "Just keep him alive for now." Xun Yu stabbed Chen Gong quietly, and Chen Gong understood immediately, and said: "Your Majesty, I have always been friends with Bian Wenli, and I would like to go to his house to know his interests, and bring the three of them to you in person to plead guilty. , in the name of the righteous envoy. If the scholars of Yanzhou hear this, they will feel the great virtue of the king, which can be described as a good story through the ages." Cao Cao is also a donkey, and most of the time he likes to listen to good words. Seeing that the two of them praised themselves like flowers, most of their anger disappeared. Fearing that these stones are smelly and hard, I would rather cut off my head than admit my mistake, and I will lose face even more... I will not mention this matter. Gongtai, go back and tell Mao Jie that I support what he has done. Because, no matter what family background a person who is unbearable, he only cares about the sand, and a talented person just hires Mo Kao's family background." "No." Chen Gong broke out in a cold sweat, and hurried out of the tent. "Wen Ruo, I have one more personal matter for you to do." Seeing him walk out, Cao Cao continued to speak. "Private matters?" Xun Yu didn't understand why he wanted to talk about private matters to him. "After defeating Yuan Shu, I will be able to gain a firm foothold in Yanzhou. I should take my old father in and serve him well. The old man is also old, so he should enjoy the family happiness. One is happy and the other is worrying. I have Cao Zhang at my knees, There is also the second son Cao Zhi who was born not long ago. He has not seen him yet. Now he and his younger brother Cao De are living in seclusion in Langya County, Xuzhou. Write a letter for me to Taishou Taishou Ying Shao, asking him to meet my father and brother-in-law at the border of Xuzhou, and send them to Puyang. Ying Zhongyuan is a man of literary talents, you must carefully consider this letter for me , Don’t let him laugh at my poor rhetoric.” "No, I will serve you myself." Xun Yu laughed in his heart, thinking that Cao Cao was taking too much face. Unexpectedly, Cao Cao knocked on Shuai's case and said in letter: ""Zuo Zhuan" has a saying that "in the past, there was a banyan in the dynasty'." In the past, there was a banyan in the dynasty!As soon as someone takes it, do you immediately turn against it?Xun Yu was taken aback: It turned out that Cao Cao had realized that Xuzhou was incapable of fighting with Yuan Shao in the previous battle. He took the old father over to relieve the worry about using troops. He was going to attack Xuzhou so soon.However, if you want to go west to save your family, you must first solve your worries. It is only a matter of time before Tao Qian is defeated in Xuzhou.I have heard that Taishan Ying Zhongyuan has an old relationship with Tao Qian. He asked me to write this letter not only to arrange the reception, but also to make me respond to Shao Xiao and persuade him to break with Tao Qian... Thinking of this, Xun Yu saluted respectfully: "If you want to break it, you must break it. I understand what you mean." Cao Cao smiled with satisfaction: "Now that Xi Zhicai is sick, you and Cheng Li have to work hard on military affairs. In addition, you take some troops to station in Juan County to observe Yuan Shu's movements." "Promise." Xun Yu agreed, "There is one more thing, please let Junshu speak frankly." "Wen Ruo, what is there to hide between you and me?" Cao Cao's arrogance grew and he became more and more moody. Seeing that Xun Yu was willing to write letters for him, he calmed down. "The envoy was conferred by Yuan Shao as governor of Yanzhou, after all, his reputation is a hindrance. The former Jinshang was ordered by Xijing. Although he has been expelled, it is inevitable that Xijing will send others here." Xun Yu tested his meaning, "Instead of In this way, it is better for us to send someone to the court to ask for a decent status, so as to silence other people's mouths." "This method is good...do it now." After saying that, Cao Cao got up and shouted, "Wang Bi!" The king will be guarding the entrance of the big tent with a sharp knife in his body. Hearing the call, he immediately responds: "What orders does the general have?" Cao Cao frowned deliberately: "There is a dangerous job, I'm afraid you dare not do it." "Why don't you dare?" Wang Bi raised his eyebrows, "As long as the general orders, I will die." "Okay!" Cao Cao nodded, "I now appoint you as the chief bookkeeper." "Ah?" Wang Bi couldn't believe it, "I'm a little..." "Listen to me!" Cao Cao interrupted him, paused and said, "I want you to go to Chang'an as my master bookkeeper to hand in a seal. Your old master Liu Miao is in Xijing, because of this There is no one who is more suitable than you for this job. In addition, I have observed you for a long time. You have read some books and can speak, so you don’t have to be just a guard here. If this job is done, I will do it again Promoted, the future is limitless." "Thank you General for your support." Wang Bi knelt down and saluted. Cao Cao sighed, and said: "This road is very difficult and dangerous, and you have to pass through other people's territories. You must not be careless. When you arrive in Xijing, besides handing in the form, you must also ask Mr. Liu to speak well in front of the emperor. In addition, I have A friend of mine, Ding Chong, is also in Chang'an, and I heard that he is now a Yilang, so you can ask him to find a way, and try to ask me for a governor of Yanzhou to come back." "The little one must live up to the general's entrustment, and return quickly with instructions." Cao Cao bypassed the Shuai case and walked up to Wang Bi, and picked him up with his own hands: "It doesn't matter if this matter can't be done, I will find another opportunity later, as long as you are safe and well." Wang Biwen fell to his knees again after hearing this: "What did the general say? The little one was called by Mr. Liu to be your little guard. Today, I became the master with just a word. You are really kind to the little one." Report. The king must swear here that if he does not ask for an order for you, he will never come back to see you!" "Ambition!" Cao Cao stroked his beard and smiled. Xun Yu watched all over from the side: first he used aggressive words, then soft words, and finally made people willing to go to hell, Cao Mengde had a thorough understanding of the temper of these warriors.It doesn't matter whether he is loyal or treacherous, as far as his ability to employ people is concerned, he can't accept it...