ushernet Chapter 245 Cao Cao's Urgency
Chapter 245 Cao Cao's Urgency
Chapter 245 Cao Cao's Urgency
After Xun You finished speaking, Huangfu Song, Yang Biao, Xun Yu, and Zhong Yao all had different expressions.
From the time Cao Cao led his troops out of the capital, attacked Bai Rao in Puyang, and then attacked Changshan State, he spent almost half of the time on the road.
Now, almost all of the Montenegrin troops have surrendered, it's so fast it's outrageous!
"And it's about surrender again." Xun Yu continued.
This sentence made Yang Biao, Zhong Yao and others frown.
Cao Cao forced nearly one million Yellow Turbans to surrender in Qingzhou, which greatly increased his strength. Now he recruited 300,000 Black Mountain troops to surrender, so he had at least 100,000 young and strong men!
This Cao Cao seems to have divine help!
Liu Bian packed up the chess pieces and set up the chessboard. He looked up at the group of people, searching for them. He looked at Zhong Yao and said with a smile, "Mr. Zhong, would you like to play a game with me?"
Among this group of people, only Zhong Yao understood the principle of "equal strength", so Liu Bian was relatively happy with him.
Zhong Yao raised his hand with a serious face and said, "Your Majesty, looking at Cao Cao's military campaigns, before Qingzhou, they were almost all defeated, and even put Your Majesty in danger. But two years ago, he easily forced a million Yellow Turbans in Qingzhou to surrender, and now he easily recruited the Black Mountain Army, which has been a headache for the court for more than ten years, to surrender, up to 300,000! Your Majesty, I suspect there is something wrong."
Liu Bian raised his eyebrows and glanced at the faces of Zhong Yao, Xun You, Xun Yu, Yang Biao and Huangfu Song with a somewhat strange expression.
Reaching out to take the teacup handed over by Lu Yu, Liu Bian was still thinking about it, but he still had no idea. He looked at Lu Yu and smiled and said, "Lu Yu, what do you think of Cao Cao?"
Lu Yu first thought of his father's support for Cao Cao and the sadness when Cao Cao arranged his father's funeral. He slowly raised his hand and said, "Your Majesty, I feel that General Cao is a kind man."
Yang Biao, Huangfu Song, the two Xuns, and Zhong Yao's evaluation of Lu Yu as a "honest person" is undeniable.
After all, he is just a ten-year-old child.
Liu Bian drank a sip of tea. Seeing that they were still silent, he became curious and said, "My dear ministers, you seem to be somewhat hostile to Cao Cao. Why? Cao Cao did not select strong men to serve as soldiers or cultivate land this time. He acted recklessly. Is there any suspicion of independence..."
Xun You raised his hand and said calmly and seriously: "Your Majesty, as the Chief of the Grand Sima Mansion, Cao Cao should not have led the troops to the expedition. Since the Black Mountain Army has been pacified, he should return as soon as possible."
Liu Bian tilted his head, glanced at the people in front of him, and thought to himself: Is there something that I don't know?
The people in front of him seemed to be even more "vigilant" towards Cao Cao.
Liu Bian slowly turned the teacup and suddenly asked, "Those people in the south, still no one is moving?"
Huangfu Song said: "Yes."
Since the situation in the south changed dramatically last year, all parties seemed to have reached some kind of tacit understanding, and they all stopped fighting and developed quietly.
Sun Jian occupied Wujun and Guangling counties, Yuan Shao occupied Jiujiang and Jiangxia counties, Liu Biao got most of Jingzhou, the Shi family got most of Jiaozhi, and Gongsun Zan occupied Runan.
The powerful Yuan Shu was forced to retreat to four counties including Kuaiji and Danyang.
The forces of all parties remained motionless, and something seemed to be brewing in the silence.
Liu Bian thought for a while, took another sip of tea, and said calmly: "We can't let them be so quiet, otherwise their attention will return to the court. Think of a way to make them fight."
Everyone looked at each other, and Yang Biao raised his hand cautiously and said, "Your Majesty, there is another Dong Zhuo."
Liu Bian seemed not to have heard and said, "How about this, transfer Gongsun Zan to Lujiang County. Transfer Cao Cao to Runan, and make him the commander of Runan and Nanyang counties. Shangshutai, send another letter to Yuan Shu, ordering him to surrender."
Yang Biao raised his hand and said, "I accept your order."
Second Xun, Zhong Yao saw that Liu Bian wanted to transfer Cao Cao to Runan, and he felt uneasy. After looking at each other, Xun You said, "Your Majesty, Runan is a place surrounded by wars, with many treacherous officials and traitors. Cao Cao is the chief of the Grand Marshal's Office after all. If he loses, it may damage the morale of the army."
Liu Bian waved his hand, stood up and said, "This matter is settled."
"correct,"
Just as Liu Bian was about to leave, he looked at Yang Biao and said, "Mr. Yang, where did your son go again?"
Seeing Liu Bian calling his son "dog son", Yang Biao's heart skipped a beat and he said quickly, "Your Majesty, that rebellious son is disobedient and has refused to change despite repeated admonitions from me. Now, I have locked him up in the old house in Hongnong and ordered him to study behind closed doors and not to go out."
Yang Xiu was assigned to Cao Cao by Liu Bian, but Liu Bian never expected that this man was restless and active. After only half a month, he followed the example of his predecessors and left in a carefree manner, claiming that he was "too noble to accept the position" and "threw the jade" on the pretext of "not accommodating the task".
After all, Yang Xiu was the prime minister's son. Cao Cao and everyone in the court and the public were stunned, but there was nothing they could do and the matter ended.
Liu Bian smiled and said, "Young man, it is not necessarily wrong to act according to your own will. Let him out. I have built a school next to the Minister's House and let him be your companion."
Yang Biao thought about the children in the school, and said with a chill in his heart, "I obey your order."
In that school, the older ones included Lu Yu, son of Lu Zhi, Sima Yi, grandson of Sima Jun, and Cao Ang, son of Cao Cao; the younger ones included He Yan, grandson of He Jin, Cao Pi, son of Cao Cao, and two princes, the eldest prince Liu Shao, and the second prince Liu Yu.
This arrangement is so obvious that even a blind person can see it clearly.
Before everyone could react, Liu Bian looked at Zhong Yao again and said with a smile: "What's the name of Zhong Qing's son, Zhong Yu? Yes, let him come back and go to the Shizhong Residence every three days to take care of them for me. These children are not young anymore, I can't take care of them all the time, someone needs to control them."
Zhong Yao was still thinking about Cao Cao, and he had to raise his hand when he heard this, and said, "Your minister leads the decree."
Xun You and Xun Yu couldn't help but sigh in their hearts when they saw this.
They had a lot of suggestions for Cao Cao, but now they had to keep them to themselves.
Liu Bian looked at them again and turned away.
Xun You watched Liu Bian walk away, and said to Yang Biao with a tone that could not hide his complaints: "Prime Minister, didn't we agree before that you would give the advice?"
Yang Biao's fat face trembled, and he pretended to sigh: "Hasn't Minister Xun discovered it yet? His Majesty has always been very fond of Cao Cao. If we don't have sufficient evidence, His Majesty will not care."
"For such a thing, what kind of evidence do you need?"
Xun You suppressed his anger and said, "If Cao Cao is rewarded for his merits in pacifying the Black Mountain Army and given Qingzhou, he will definitely be granted a title of nobility. If he becomes the lord of the Grand Marshal's Mansion in the future... can the Prime Minister really trust Cao Cao?"
Cao Cao had a very bad reputation in the court and the country. He was once compared with Dong Zhuo and was considered more dangerous than Dong Zhuo.
This is also one of the reasons why the court and the public were very wary of Cao Cao, and would attack him whenever there was any sign of trouble.
Seeing Xun You so angry, Yang Biao blinked his eyes and suddenly said with a smile: "What do you mean he is the master of the Grand Marshal's Mansion? With the Grand Marshal here, Cao Cao is just a junior."
Cao Cao entered officialdom very early, but his career was very bumpy. Even with the support of the Cao family, he was still struggling in the lower-middle classes before he was thirty-five.
Even now, in the eyes of the government and the public, he is just a "rising star" and a junior.
Zhong Yao thought for a while and said, "We can put the matter of Cao Cao aside for now. The summer harvest is coming, and the Shangshutai must ensure that nothing serious happens."
The implementation of the "New Policy" continues to deepen, and one of the most important evaluation criteria is the comparison between the summer harvest and the autumn harvest.
In the year before last, with the strengthening of anti-corruption efforts and the intervention of the grain-controlling commander, the court's tax revenue increased significantly. But since last year, because the anti-corruption campaign has reached a certain stage, tax revenue has almost stagnated.
This year's tax situation will be an important criterion. If it continues to stagnate, the palace may have other ideas.
This is also what the Secretariat and the Six Ministries have always been worried about.
The "new policies" that the current emperor has been forcibly pushing forward since he ascended the throne are obviously "not enough".
Amid internal and external troubles, both the government and the opposition hope that the imperial court will be as firm as a rock and its policies will be stable. They do not want to make any drastic moves that would cause people to panic and worry.
Yang Biao looked at Xun Yu. After the reform, the taxation issue had always been under the management of the Household Department.
The Grand Minister of Agriculture and the Minister of the Imperial Household gradually became history and few people mention them anymore.
Xun Yu was silent for a while, then said, "According to the calculations of the Ministry of Revenue, this year we may be able to increase by about 50,000 dan."
Fifty thousand shi is better than nothing for such a huge country like Han, and it is not an increase at all.
Zhong Yao's face was serious. He thought of some possibilities and suddenly felt a huge pressure on his shoulders.
On the other side, Liu Bian came out of Fanglin Garden, put his hands behind his back, and said to Lu Yu: "Lu Yu, do you think that the attitude of these nobles towards Cao Cao is a little strange?"
Lu Yu followed Liu Bian and said, "I also find it a little strange."
Liu Bian looked up outside the palace. The sky was blue without a single cloud.
"Call Zuo Li back." Liu Bian said calmly.
Pan Yin took a step forward and said, "Yes."
Zuo Li is still hiding in Yuzhang County. Compared with Huangfu Jianchang's proactive attacks and repeated achievements, Zuo Li seems timid and cowardly. He can only collect some true and false information, appearing very incompetent.
Liu Bian returned to the back hall and just sat down when he saw a memorial that he had not finished reading last night.
This was a memorial from Zhu Jun, the governor of Qingzhou. Its main content was about the aftereffects of Cao Cao's military farming. Because most of these fields had owners, the noble families who had fled returned and began to demand these fields from the government.
Qingzhou is now in a dilemma. If they return, the 'Yellow Turban Army' who have just settled the land will lose their land and will definitely rebel again. If they don't give it, it will be inconsistent with the law and they will not be able to account for the Qingzhou families.
'Redrawing the fields'
These four words appeared in front of Liu Bian again.
Recently, these four words have been rising and falling in Liu Bian's heart, and he has been unable to make a decision.
The main reason is that the various aristocratic families are still powerful, while the imperial court is still too weak to withstand the turmoil.
However, the people were landless and the situation throughout the country was in turmoil. Instead, it became more and more serious and reached a very serious point.
"Is it time to test the attitudes of Erxun, Zhong Yao and others?"
Liu Bian narrowed his eyes and whispered to himself.
In Liu Bian's eyes, Yang Biao was not important. He believed that talents such as the two Xuns and Zhong Yao would be his future right-hand men and the most important executors of the reform.
But these people were all born into prominent families, and Liu Bian was unable to judge their true attitude towards the common people.
In the eyes of everyone in the Han Dynasty today, 'aristocratic families' are the pillars and foundation of this society. There can be no common people, or even no royal family, but there cannot be no aristocratic families!
at the same time.
Cao Cao, who had just arrived in Lu County, Shangdang Commandery, finally received the news that Huang Zhong had recaptured Huguan and wiped out the remnants of the Black Mountain Army.
At the foot of a mountain, Cao Cao stopped to rest.
The army was exhausted after traveling all night, so Cao Cao wanted to take this opportunity to think about where to go.
This time he left the capital, he was ordered to destroy the Black Mountain Army. Now that the Black Mountain Army was surrendered by him calmly, it was time for him to seriously consider what to do next.
While lighting a fire and roasting mutton, Cao Cao and Guo Jia sat opposite each other, drinking and talking.
Guo Jia clearly noticed that Cao Cao was absent-minded, so he didn't say much. He just drank and discussed the affairs of the world with Cao Cao, from south to north, from west to east, but he never mentioned Luoyang.
Cao Cao was depressed for a long time, but he couldn't help it and said, "Fengxiao, what do you think? Should I go back to Beijing?"
The Black Mountain Army broke through Huguan and threatened Luoyang. This was a major accusation against Cao Cao by the government and the public. Now that the Black Mountain Army has been pacified, the most concern of the government and the public is not about rewarding merits, but about settling accounts later.
The impeachment of Cao Cao is happening at an unprecedented intensity.
Among them were the prime ministers, the most important of the six Caos, all of whom had complaints about Cao Cao.
Cao Cao was not a reckless general and he had accurate predictions about these things.
Guo Jia smiled slightly and said, "Are you scared, General?"
Cao Cao was startled, then shook his head with disdain, saying, "They are nothing but clerks. How can I, Cao Cao, be afraid of them? However, the turmoil in the world is a good opportunity for heroes to show their talents and build achievements. How can I sit back and watch in Luoyang and waste my time?"
Cao Cao is 38 years old this year. Forty years old is a hurdle for everyone nowadays. Cao Cao has a strong sense of urgency in his heart.
Guo Jia took a sip of wine confidently and said, "General, you worry too much."
Cao Cao looked at Guo Jia's expression and was moved. He said, "Feng Xiao, what do you have to teach me?"
Guo Jia looked at Cao Cao with a thoughtful expression.
Cao Cao was indeed a man who achieved great things. This "what can you teach me" alone is better than most of the so-called 'heroes' today!
Guo Jia drank again, and said, "I have met Your Majesty, and from my observation, His Majesty is the kind of person who will not give up until he achieves his goal, and he is not pedantic. For many things, he only asks for the result and doesn't care about the means. Your Majesty has a lenient side, but also... a domineering side. The general is someone your majesty values, and the impeachment of the general by the government and the opposition will arouse your majesty's dissatisfaction. Recall Jing."
Cao Cao's narrow eyes flashed with light, and he quickly asked, "Really? Then where are we going?"
Guo Jia drank more wine and said, "The main reason for not recalling the general is to protect him. If the general returns to Luoyang, some people will skin him alive and take out his bones."
Cao Cao nodded. He knew the nature of those people in the court and the country, but he didn't care too much. He stared at Guo Jia eagerly.
Guo Jia pondered for a while, then shook his head and said, "Where to go, I can't guess. The court needs to recuperate now and doesn't want to fight. So the place where the general goes should also be a stable and key place that can curb instability. Xuzhou, Yanzhou, Yuzhou, or even Jingzhou are all possible."
Cao Cao never doubted Guo Jia's judgment, and a look of longing appeared on his face. He said, "It would be great if we could go to Xuzhou."
Xuzhou can be connected to Yangzhou, Jingzhou and Yuzhou, all of which are places of great chaos, but also good places to make achievements.
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