Chapter 270 The desire ignites

The warlords' melee in the five years of Jian'an not only greatly damaged the Liangzhou military group, but also damaged the Kanto military group. The one with the most heavy losses was Cao Cao! The tens of thousands of elite soldiers that Cao Cao had finally pulled up by attacking the Qingzhou Yellow Turbans lost all the losses in this battle, and even the tiger and leopard cavalry composed of clan children was not spared.

For a while, Cao Cao even had only a few hundred soldiers left.

Fortunately, Yan and Henan provinces have a large population, so Cao Cao does not have to face the problem of exhaustion of troops like a butcher of horses. In addition, Xun Yu, an internal affairs expert, stayed in the rear and recruited 30,000 new troops in time. Otherwise, just dealing with bandits in the territory would be enough for Cao Cao to have a headache.

However, Cao Cao is now facing a new crisis.

Xuchang, Prime Minister’s Mansion.

When Cao Cao was discussing matters with Xun Yu, Guo Jia and others, he suddenly saw Xiahou Dun stepping in and shouted: "Meng De, it's not good!"

Cao Cao's eyes narrowed for a moment and asked in a deep voice: "Yuan Rang, what happened?"

Xiahou Dun took a deep breath and said in a deep voice: "Yuan Shu is going to do it!"

"Hmm?" Cao Cao's face changed and he said anxiously, "Tell me quickly!"

Xiahou Dun said: "Just just came to the horse and General Chen Lan of Yuan Shu led 50,000 troops across Yingshui Village at Gepo, and his troops were heading straight to Runan, Lei Bo led 50,000 troops across Xiyang, and his troops were defeated by Liang! There was also Zhang Xun and Qiao Rui led 80,000 troops across Ruyin, and he could cross Yingshui to attack Qiao County at any time."

Cao Cao's face changed drastically when he heard this, and he said in a low voice: "This Yuan Shu! He actually mobilized an army of 180,000! It seems that he was determined to put Benxian to death."

"Lord, don't worry." Guo Jia pondered for a moment, and then said calmly, "Although Yuan Shu has many troops, there is no general in command. It is not enough to rely solely on Chen Lan, Lei Bo, Zhang Xun, Qiao Rui and others to pose a threat to our army! Moreover, if the time is taken, Mr. Ziyang (Liu Ye's name is about to arrive in Shouchun now. If nothing unexpected happens, Yuan Shu's three armies will retreat soon."

Cao Cao looked drooling and said with a little fascinated: "If I could get all the land of Yangzhou and Yuan Shu's soldiers, why worry about the uncertainty of the world and the unrest of the Han Dynasty?"

Guo Jia smiled and said, "If nothing unexpected happens, Yangzhou will belong to the lord next year."

Shouchun, Yangzhou, Grand Sima Mansion.

Yuan Shu was at the high position of the case soldier, proudly glanced at Liu Ye, and asked calmly: "Why did sir come?"

Liu Ye looked around and said nothing.

Yuan Shu knew it and waved his hand to turn around, then asked, "Mr. Liu Ye, can you tell me now?"

Then Liu Ye clasped his fists and said, "According to the Prime Minister's order, come and offer the imperial seal."

"The jade seal of the country?" Yuan Shu suddenly stood up and asked loudly, "Where is the jade seal?"

Liu Ye solemnly took out a cloth bag from his arms and placed it on the table. Yuan Shu couldn't wait to untie it layer by layer, and finally a jade seal was revealed.

The imperial seal is four inches in radius, with five dragons on it. It is engraved with eight seal characters written by Qin Prime Minister Li Si, "Accepted from Heaven, and will live forever" on the front. Since the pre-Qin and the previous Han Dynasty, this seal has been a symbol of the divine imperial power granted. If you get it, you will receive it and be ordered from Heaven, and if you lose it, you will have exhausted your energy. It can be called a country's important weapon!

Looking at the imperial seal on the table, Yuan Shu's eyes were straightened!

Liu Ye took a step forward and leaned against Yuan Shu's ear and said, "The Prime Minister said that the Han Dynasty has been around for more than 400 years. The Liu family has been exhausted. The Yuan family has four generations and three officials. I hope to return to the country, so I should replace it. The Prime Minister got this jade seal from a dry well in Luoyang, but did not dare to accept it privately, so he ordered him to bring the jade seal to the Grand Sima."

Yuan Shu said coldly: "Does Meng De want to harm this Grand Sima?"

Liu Ye's face changed and he said anxiously: "Prime Minister has good intentions, Grand Sima He said this?"

Yuan Shu said: "Meng De and this Grand Sima are so kind?"

Liu Ye said relievedly: "The Prime Minister said that personal grudges are trivial matters, and only the great people in the world are the most important!"

Yuan Shu wrapped the jade seal and put it away carefully. Then he said to Liu Ye: "Mr. Ziyang, go back and tell Meng De that the jade seal was left by the Grand Sima, but the matter of becoming an emperor is not discussed! My Yuan family has received the favor of the emperor and has always been loyal to the king and the country. How can we corrupt morals, discipline and conduct such unfaithful and unfilial acts?"

Liu Ye bowed deeply and said respectfully: "Yes, I am determined to pass on what the Grand Sima said to the Prime Minister."

After saying that, Liu Ye bowed to Yuan Shu for a long time, turned around and left.

As soon as Liu Ye's figure left, Yuan Shu's confidant Jin Shang turned out from behind the screen. Yuan Shu's eyes fell on Jin Shang and asked, "Yuan Xiu, what do you think about this?"

Jin Shangyi looked solemnly: "As the saying goes, every man is innocent and is guilty of possessing a treasure. Cao Aman took the initiative to hand over the imperial seal to his lord. After all, after the defeat at Hangu Pass, Cao's army has already been frustrated. At present, the three armies of Lei Bo, Chen Lan and Zhang Xun are underway, and Cao Cao can no longer withstand it. He is making an announcement to the lord for peace."

"Yeah." Yuan Shu nodded proudly and asked, "Yuan Xiu thought, should this Grand Sima talk to Cao Cao?"

Jin Shang thought for a while and replied: "Although there are many magistrates in the world, they have the strength to fight for dominance in the world, but they are only lords, Ma Butcher, General Yuan, Gongsun Zan, Tao Qian, Liu Biao and Cao Cao. Among these seven people, Cao Cao is the weakest, and Ma Butcher poses the greatest threat to the lord. I think that having Cao Cao defended Yanzhou to resist Ma Butcher for the lord will only have benefits but no harm."

"I understand." Yuan Shu nodded and said in a calm voice, "Immediately send orders to Zhang Xun, Lei Bo, Chen Lan, the army will rest on the spot and cannot move forward."

Jin Shang said respectfully: "The lord is wise."

Xuzhou, official road.

Lu Bu rode his horse slowly, looking lonely.

Behind him were Zhang Liao, Song Xian, Cheng Lian and the remaining more than a hundred personal soldiers. Looking up at the dark sky, Lu Bu sighed, feeling that his future was as confused as the sky.

In this warlord melee, Lu Bu suffered extremely heavy losses, and the losses were two thousand loyal Bingzhou old subordinates! Looking back now, Lu Bu regretted it so much that his heart was so blue. If he had known this, he would not have listened to Chen Gong's words at the beginning! He would not stay in Peicheng well and insisted on joining a coalition army. Why did he really have to do it?

"Why is this lord?" Cheng Lian followed Lu Bu and complained in a mess, "I shouldn't have listened to Chen Gong's words at the beginning. You must know that Chen Gong was Cao Cao's counselor before. Can he really consider the lord? This time Chen Gong will never return, and I will see that 80% of them will run away."

"General Cheng Lian's words are a bit inappropriate, right?" Zhang Liao retorted, "What Mr. Chen Gong said is still very reasonable. If the attitude of the Xuzhou gentry towards the lord cannot be changed, we will not be able to stay here for a long time! Although our army suffered a lot of losses in this battle, if we can change the view of the Xuzhou gentry towards the lord, we will think it is still worth it."

"Change the views of the gentry in Xuzhou?" Song Xian said coldly, "Wen Yuan was a little wishful thinking."

"Okay, don't fight!" Lu Bu was upset and couldn't help but shout, "When is it now, I'm still fighting!"

"Lord!" As soon as Lu Bu finished speaking, a personal soldier suddenly shouted, "It seems that someone is coming in front of him."

"Um?"

Lu Bu turned around and looked forward with a tent in his hand. Sure enough, he saw a large group of people coming from the official road ahead. More than a dozen scholars rode their horses. When the distance was close, Lu Bu suddenly realized that it was Chen Gong who led the gentry and gentry in Pei City who came out of the city to welcome him.

Zhang Liao said happily: "Lord, it's the military advisor here to welcome him."

"Huh?" Cheng Lian also said in surprise, "This guy Chen Gong really convinced the gentry and gentry in the city?"

Zhang Liao sighed and said, "Two thousand old Bingzhou subordinates finally did not lose in vain. The Xuzhou gentry finally accepted the lord."

In the distance, Chen Gong turned over and got off his horse, walked up quickly, and bowed to Lu Bu with his fists and said, "Lord, I'm lucky to be unfair."

Yecheng, the General's Mansion.

Yuan Shao put away the imperial edict and said to Zhang Yan, the leader of the Black Mountain Army with a smile: "Pingbei General Zhang Yan has not received the imperial edict yet?"

Zhang Yan looked grateful and knelt down and said, "I thank you for your kindness in the general for your support!"

"General Pingbei please get up quickly, haha."

Seeing that Zhang Yan only thanked him but not the court, Yuan Shao couldn't help but feel excited. He stepped forward and helped Zhang Yan up, smiling and said, "Now the general is also a general of the court. You can no longer act like a bandit to fight the family and rob the family."

Zhang Yan blushed when she heard this and said to Yuan Shao: "Please rest assured that General. After returning to Renqiu Camp, the military discipline will be strictly restricted. If the looting of the people happens again, the general will not need to give the order. The general will cut off his head and send it to the general for apologizing before the case."

"Hey." Yuan Shao shook his hand and said, "General Pingbei is so serious, and it is necessary to restrict military discipline. The Heishan Army is now a regular army of the court. Of course, it cannot act like a bandit and be lawless. However, there is no need to issue military orders. This general believes that General Pingbei will be able to lead his own troops."

Zhang Yan said gratefully: "Thank you for your trust in the general."

Yuan Shao patted Zhang Yan on the shoulder and said in a harmonious voice: "The army supplies, food and fodder needed by the 100,000 Heishan Army, this general has sent someone to take it to Hejian County. The general condemns people to take it. Also, after the general returns to Renqiu's garrison, he must strictly monitor the movements of Gongsun Zan of Youzhou. If there is any disturbance in Youzhou soldiers, they will immediately report it."

"Please rest assured, General." Zhang Yan clasped his fists and said, "In this way, the last general will say goodbye."

Yuan Shao waved his hand, and Zhang Yan turned around and left.

Until Zhang Yan's figure disappeared outside the hall, Tian Feng, Shen Pei, Feng Ji, Xun Chen and other talents came in one after another. Shen Pei seemed a little dissatisfied with Yuan Shao and Tian Feng's arrangements and said, "Zhang Yan is just a martial artist. It's a bit too much for the lord to treat him so well."

Yuan Shao saw Tian Feng's words and said nothing.

Tian Feng said: "Mr. Zhengnan (Shen Peibiao's name) doesn't know that Zhang Yan is quite loyal, and it is not so great that he will convince him! If his heart is hidden, he will be loyal and will never be able to be reborn from now on. In this way, the 100,000 Heishan Army can become the lord's strong army. Why worry about the uncertainty of the north with this powerful army?"

Shen Pei disagreed and said, "If Zhang Yan holds his troops and respects himself, he may become a big shot."

Tian Feng said: "Don't doubt people, don't doubt people."

When Shen Pei wanted to argue again, Yuan Shao waved his hand to stop him and said calmly: "There is no need to argue about Zhang Yan anymore. How is the progress of trading horses with Pei Yuanshao's troops in Mobei?"

Shen Pei hurriedly said, "Go back to the lord, Pei Yuanshao's troops have too many horses, but they are short of money and food. They are not opposed to transactions. They just need to obtain the consent of the butcher of horses. They say that they will give a reply after the first month."

"Oh?" Yuan Shao glanced at Tian Feng and asked, "Yuan Hao, will the butcher Ma agree to the deal in your opinion?"

Tian Feng pondered for a moment and said, "Lord, Feng thought the horse butcher would agree."

"Mr. Tian Feng thought the problem was too simple, right?" Shen Pei sneered, "Last summer, the lord destroyed tens of thousands of troops of horse butchers, but he almost took the horse butchers' Hetao lair! It is a blessing to not go against our army now, so how could he trade horses with our army in turn?"

"That's already last year, isn't it?" Tian Feng smiled faintly and said, "What's more, the person Ma Butcher hates the most now should be Gongsun Zan, not the lord! Whether it's to kill the chicken and scare the monkeys to shock the small countries in the Western Regions, or to give his own troops an explanation, Ma Butcher must take action with Gongsun Zan! And ~~ It's possible to take action in the beginning of spring!"

"Oh?" Yuan Shao's eyes lit up when he heard this and said happily, "So, can I still join forces with Butcher Ma?"

In the first month of the sixth year of Jian'an (193), Ma Yue returned to Hetao. Jia Xu, Ju Su, Fu Xie, Gan Ning, Xu Huang and other confidants were also returning to Hetao. Only Gao Shun wanted to guard Hangu Pass and Fazhen also wanted to guard Guanzhong and Liangzhou, so he was unable to come with him.

"Isn't it fun to learn and practice it from time to time?"

"Is it a pleasure to have friends coming from afar?"

As soon as the butcher Ma stepped into the gate, he heard a loud sound of reading. When he looked up, he saw a thin boy of seven or eight years old carrying his left hand behind his back and holding Shu Jian in his right hand, walking in a pretty horoscope in the patio. While walking, he shook his head and kept reciting.

The butcher Ma suddenly paused in his heart.

"Puff!"

“Geehhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

The little slim kid who was shaking his head and learning to walk the eight-character steps suddenly fell down. Another little slim kid suddenly turned behind the haystack not far away. The little slim kid was at most five or six years old, but she was so terrifying that she was very likable.

"Oh, my elder brother is teased by my second brother again, and my elder brother is teased by my second brother again~~"

Amid the tender laughter, two three or four-year-old little kids shaking out from behind the haystack, clapping their hands and giggling there. Behind the two little kids, there was a girl with two braids, and they were made of pink and jade, just like jade carvings, not to mention how cute they were.

"Second brother, you are naughty again." The fallen little pills got up slowly. Although their foreheads were swollen and their noses were broken, there was no angry expression on their faces. They smiled bitterly at the five or six-year-old pills, "Did you forget how your husband taught us in normal times? Be steady, be steady~~"

Although this child is only seven or eight years old, his expression and tone are already like an adult. When Ma Butcher saw him, he felt that his eyes were black. Damn, is this the "smart and studious" student taught by Guan Ning? Ju Su also praised him to the sky, saying that he had learned a lot at a young age?
To be continued...