dtnovels Chapter 185 The General is Abroad, but the Accounts are Settled Inside
Chapter 185 The General is Abroad, but the Accounts are Settled Inside
Chapter 185 The General is Abroad, but the Accounts are Settled Inside
The collapse of Jiaodong County was undoubtedly a great joy to Cao Cao.
On the one hand, the Xiahou brothers led their troops to pursue and kill, and to gather the surrendered soldiers; on the other hand, Cao Ren and Gong Du led their troops to attack Jiaodong County.
In just one hour, Jiaodong City, home to the Yellow Turban Army of more than 700,000, was captured by Cao Cao.
Sitting in the lobby of the government office, Cao Cao looked at the surrendered generals, feeling both happy and troubled.
Even though some escaped and were killed, the number of Yellow Turban Army that surrendered to him was still as high as over 300,000, and most of them were the elderly, the weak, women and children.
With so many mouths to feed, where did Cao Cao get so much food?
Cao Cao happily accepted the surrender of the Yellow Turban Army. After returning to the back hall, he said to Guo Jia with a headache: "Fengxiao, if this continues, I will be the one to collapse."
More than 300,000 people consumed countless money and food every day. Even if Cao Cao quietly ordered Xiahou Dun and his brothers to "raise funds" everywhere, there was still a big gap.
As for the imperial court, what Zhu Jun could give was just a drop in the bucket.
Guo Jia lay on the couch, drinking quietly, glancing at He Yi out of the corner of his eye.
Cao Cao's eyes moved slightly, he patted his forehead with one hand, and sighed: "I am confused, Fengxiao is not good at these, I will ask other people."
As the chief clerk of the Wuwei General's mansion, He Yi could not accept his general asking others, so he quickly said, "General, actually, there is a solution."
"Oh?" Cao Cao was about to stand up, but he sat back down after hearing what he said, "What can the chief clerk do?"
He Yi hesitated for a moment and said, "There are some big families in Donglai County that still have a lot of reserves."
Cao Cao remained expressionless, with a thoughtful look on his face.
Guo Jia took a sip of wine, laughed, and said, "Are they the nobles who were connected with the Yellow Turban Army and were able to survive?"
He Yi was stunned for a moment, then looked at Guo Jia and nodded reluctantly.
It's not just Donglai County, in fact, there are countless people in the entire Han Dynasty who are secretly connected with the Yellow Turban Army.
Some support secretly and profit from it; some pay money out of necessity to protect themselves; and some are half-hidden and include family members.
This is the fact, but Guo Jia's reminder obviously had a hidden meaning.
Cao Cao's narrow eyes flickered constantly.
He understood what Guo Jia meant. The only thing he needed to worry about was the complicated network of relationships among these aristocratic families. If it were to get to the court, the consequences would be disastrous.
Cao Cao didn't say anything. He sat for a while, then got up and went out.
Jiaodong has just been settled, and there is still a lot of things to do.
At night, the situation was somewhat stable. He Yi, with a pile of documents in his hands, was busy all the time. He found Cao Cao in a prison in the city and said, "General, Kong Rong has arrived in Pingshou."
Cao Cao didn't care and was looking through the verdicts of the people in prison.
He Yi waited for a while and said, "General, there are people from the noble families of Beihai and Donglai who want to see you."
"Is there any famous person?" Cao Cao asked without raising his head.
He is no longer the same as he was before.
At first, he brought money and visited people all over Luoyang City, but almost everyone looked down on him because he was the descendant of a eunuch and no one was willing to help him.
But now, Cao Cao has the qualifications to be selected, and ordinary people cannot enter his "shogunate".
"There are some, and they are all quite famous." He Yi said.
As Cao Cao's chief clerk, he is now doing his best to recruit talents for Cao Cao.
Cao Cao handed the case file to the guard beside him, walked out, and said, "What does Fengxiao say?"
He Yi quickly followed and said, "The military advisor said they are all good-for-nothings."
Cao Cao laughed and said, "Fengxiao's standards are too high. You should prepare a banquet tonight."
He Yi responded, and then said: "General, the Yellow Turban Army in Donglai County seems to be gathering."
Cao Cao's expression suddenly turned cold, and he strode forward and said, "Let Yuanrang and Miaocai come to see me."
"I'll go right away." He Yi knew that Cao Cao was going to send troops.
While Cao Cao was busy recruiting talents and settling the surrendered Yellow Turban Army into farming, he was also busy training a new army and preparing to conquer Donglai County.
Jinan State, Cang County.
While Cao Cao was sharpening his sword, Zhu Jun, as the governor of Qingzhou, was also very busy.
Without the pressure from the Yellow Turban Army, Zhu Jun focused his attention on summer harvest and planting. He even personally inspected various prefectures and counties, striving to restore people's livelihood.
At this moment, Zhu Jun, dressed in casual clothes, was inspecting the people's fields for summer harvest.
As one of the "Three Heroes", Zhu Jun's personality is very different from Lu Zhi and Huangfu Song. He has long and thin facial corners and is used to slightly raising his face. His expression is like a teacher, very strict and intimidating without being angry.
After walking a long circle, Zhu Jun looked serious, with his hands behind his back, gazing at the farmland.
Because of the Yellow Turban Army's rampages, there were few intact places in the entire Qingzhou, and the amount of farmland that could be used for farming was almost limitless.
A middle-aged staff member behind him looked at his expression and knew that he was worried, so he comforted him: "Sir, the court has sent more than 100,000 troops to various places. The rebels in various places are retreating step by step. The signs of revival are already evident. There is no need to worry."
Zhu Jun remained calm, with his hands behind his back, and said, "The court has lost its courage."
The aide did not respond, knowing what he was referring to.
From Zhu Jun's perspective, the court could have done a lot of things, but it was perfunctory, procrastinated, and wasted many opportunities.
After waiting for a long time, the staff member hesitated and lowered his voice, saying, "Sir, Cao Cao has recruited nearly one million Yellow Turban soldiers in Beihai State, and obtained tens of thousands of young and strong men. He has cultivated land in Beihai State at will, appointed officials, and acted arbitrarily. If this continues, I am afraid that Cao Cao may become the second Dong Zhuo."
Zhu Jun remained motionless, his expression becoming more severe, and asked, "What do you think we should do?"
The staff observed Zhu Jun's expression and said tentatively: "I think you should invite him to Jinan in the name of reward, and then take away his military power!"
Zhu Jun glanced at him and said, "Everyone in the court knows that Cao Cao is your majesty's favorite general. I took away his military power without knowing the reason. In the eyes of your majesty and the court, it is no different from treason."
The staff seemed to think that Zhu Jun was tempted, and hurriedly said: "With hundreds of thousands of troops at hand, the court, even His Majesty, will probably not feel at ease."
There were more than a hundred thousand troops, but the entire Han Dynasty did not have so many troops on the surface.
"Not urgent."
Zhu Jun said this, turned around and walked back, saying: "There is a document from the Shangshutai, which exempts the counties in Qingzhou from paying taxes and grain for one year. All the money collected will be used to provide relief to the victims, and part of it will be allocated to Cao Cao."
The staff member was puzzled and asked immediately: "Sir, over in the North Sea, hundreds of people have accused Cao Cao of plundering and slaughtering people. Do we still need to give him money and food?"
Zhu Jun got on the carriage without saying anything.
The aide was very confused, because his envoys had never reacted like this in the past.
At the same time, in Luoyang City, the Imperial Palace.
In the courtyard of Jingfu Palace, Liu Bian rode a horse, beat the horse with all his might, and galloped around the courtyard.
Pan Yin was standing by, watching with fear, fearing that Liu Bian would fall.
Liu Bian was not one of those strong military generals who could stand up after falling off their horses. It was common for ordinary people to die after falling off their horses!
Not far away, Tang Ji and Cai Wenji were pregnant with big bellies and were also worried, but they didn't dare to say anything at this time.
There was a scorching sun overhead and Liu Bian was sweating all over, but he still had no intention of stopping.
"Drive!"
Liu Bian looked excited and galloped against the wind, feeling very heroic, like a charging general.
At this moment, Yang Biao, Wang Yun, Xun You and Xun Yu came out of the Secretariat, discussing as they walked.
Yang Biao's fat face was tense, and he asked, "Did Liu Yan send troops to Jingzhou?"
Xun You shook his head and said, "The news is not yet confirmed. I just went to the Grand Herald to meet Liu Zhang. He didn't know anything when asked, so I think it should be true."
Wang Yun snorted coldly and said, "I think we can order Hanzhong Governor Sun Jian to send troops into Shu!"
Xun You was startled and said quickly, "My Lord, this is absolutely impossible. Liu Yan still respects the imperial court on the surface."
Wang Yun looked indifferent, his eyes flashing with coldness, and said: "Then we have to give him a warning!"
Xun You didn't dwell on this. He glanced at Yang Biao as he walked and said, "Prime Minister, did Yuan Shu send troops to Jiaozhi?"
Yang Biao frowned, his face serious, and said, "It's just a letter, so it's hard to say. Zhu Fu hasn't been reported yet, so no one can tell what the situation is."
Yuan Shu easily occupied Jingzhou. The life and death of Jingzhou Governor Wang Rui was unknown, and the road from Jiaozhi to Luoyang was cut off. Therefore, the Secretariat knew nothing about the news of Jingzhou and Jiaozhi and was completely confused.
Wang Yun, Xun You and others also looked worried.
Cao Yin, the governor of Wuling, suddenly sent a false letter to attack Wang Rui, causing chaos in Jingzhou. Yuan Shu took the opportunity to occupy Jingzhou. This sudden change was beyond their expectations.
"The good news is that General Wuwei has pacified Qingzhou." Xun Yu suddenly spoke.
Wang Yun glanced at him, and his indifferent face became even colder.
He was already wary of Cao Cao. Now Cao Cao had an army of over a hundred thousand, which was the largest number among all the generals and governors of the Han Dynasty.
Of course, it was not just Wang Yun. Many people in the court expressed their "concern" about Cao Cao, hoping that the court would remove his military power as soon as possible to prevent him from "having his own troops", "establishing his own faction" and "threatening the country".
Yang Biao walked in front, with a big belly and a fat face like iron. He said, "Dong Zhuo has occupied Langya County and is eyeing Pengcheng State and Xiapi covetously. Should we respond?"
Xun You glanced at the back of his head and said thoughtfully, "Yuan Shao is still fighting with Zhang He in Jiujiang County and has not been able to break through for three months. If he wants support, there are Gongsun Zan in Runan, Xu Rong in Shanyang County, and Cao Cao in Qingzhou."
Wang Yun saw Jingfu Palace in sight and asked, "I heard that the Black Mountain Army has entered Jizhou again?"
The summer harvest is when the Yellow Turban Army is most active.
Xun You nodded and said, "There are also unusual movements from the Wuhuan and Xianbei. Messengers have come from the Three Qiang, asking for money and food from the court."
Dong dong dong
As Xun You finished speaking, they took a few steps and heard the sound of horse hooves coming from Jingfu Hall.
Suddenly clear and suddenly gone.
The four of them looked at each other, stopped talking, and strode to the gate of Gyeongbokgung Palace.
The guards did not stop them and let the four people go in. The first thing they saw was Liu Bian riding a horse, he was soaked all over, and his long hair was flying.
The four of them were so surprised that they couldn't help but look at each other.
Liu Bian turned in front of them, reined in his horse, and laughed loudly, "You all, please go inside and cool off for a while. I will ride two more laps."
The four of them bowed and watched Liu Bian pass by.
Wang Yun's heart suddenly skipped a beat, and he had a bad feeling. He said in a low voice, "Your Majesty, are you planning to lead the army in person again?"
Yang Biao, Xun You and Xun Yu all changed color when they heard this, and then looked at Liu Bian with uneasiness.
The last time Liu Bian led an expedition in person to Bingzhou, he was besieged by the Huns in Shangdang, which scared the city of Luoyang enough. If he leads an expedition in person again and something goes wrong, how will the officials in Luoyang city bear it?
Wang Yun glanced at the other three people and was already thinking about the wording of his advice.
The other three stood still, not going into the house to cool off, waiting for Liu Bian to finish.
Liu Bian turned around a few more times before dismounting with a sense of unfulfilled desire. He took the towel handed over by Pan Yin, wiped his sweat, came up to the four people, and asked with a smile, "What's up, is there any result for the summer harvest?"
The summer harvest is now basically completed. Although it has not been fully escorted to Taicang, the quantity should be there.
Xun Yu raised his hand and said, "Your Majesty, after summarizing, the Ministry of Revenue calculated that the amount is 180 million."