Rejuvenation of the Han Dynasty in the Three Kingdoms

Chapter 315
In the Han Dynasty, the Yellow River had not changed its course. It crossed from the North China Plain to the northeast and flowed into the Bohai Bay. The boundary between Jizhou and Qingzhou was precisely the big river.

After Liu He acquired Jizhou, he ordered Xu Rong to guard Qinghe and set up defenses along the river in Lingxian County, connecting with Guan Yu's defense line in Bohai Sea to guard against Gongsun Zan.

Tai Shici and Yu Jin divided their troops to take Julu County and Guangzong County in the south of Julu, ready to march south at any time, and transferred Yan Liang, Hua Xiong, and Zhang Liao to Guangnian, the southernmost point of Julu Army, to attack Handan.

Handan originally belonged to Handan County, but it was changed to the feudal land of King Zhao during the Gaodi period, and it was renamed the State of Zhao. Sima Qian commented on the five metropolises of the Han Dynasty, and Handan was one of them.

Now that the fief of Zhao State has long been abolished, after Yuan Shao entered Wei County, he immediately sent troops to Handan and Quliang to connect the northern part of Wei County.

Yuan Shao forcibly occupied Handan, mainly to deter Han Fu. Now Han Fu gave up Jizhou to Liu He, and these two cities became the gateway to the north of Wei County.

Yuan Shaozheng was worried about losing Bohai County, when he heard Xin Ping and Gao Lan begging for an interview, he knew that Han Fu had decided to surrender Jizhou to Liu He, so he became furious and scolded Han Fu for being ungrateful.

Feng Jiyan said: "Liu He has as far as the north of Jizhou, and the general only has Wei County. He can no longer be an enemy with the Black Mountain Army. If he can surrender, he will surrender, and if he can make peace, he will make peace. Now we must deal with Liu He with all our strength."

Yuan Shao snorted coldly: "The Black Mountain Army is my enemy, how can we stop fighting?"

Feng Jiyan said: "Yu Du and Bai Rao failed to intercept and kill Liu He. They were afraid of Liu He's revenge in their hearts. They lost many troops in Bingzhou. They must hate Liu He. If Liu He takes Jizhou completely, the Black Mountain Army will be like tarsus maggots." , had to be eliminated, now the general and the Montenegrin Army are closely related, as long as they send someone to explain their interests, I predict that they will stop fighting and focus on Liu He."

Yuan Shao sighed helplessly, nodded and said: "So Lao Yuantu sent people to persuade Yu Du, if they are willing to surrender, I will justify their name, appoint an official and worship a general, and work together to deal with Liu He."

Feng Ji took the order to leave, Yuan Shao discussed countermeasures with Xin Ping, Guo Tu and others, Xin Ping first informed Yuan Shao of the situation in Jizhou, and the whole situation was very unfavorable for Yuan Shao.

Now Liu He holds 20 elite soldiers, plus the defenders from all over the country, the total number of troops exceeds [-]. Coupled with the surrender of the people, the morale of the troops is like a rainbow, and Yuan Shao alone may be difficult to stop.

Guo Tuyan said: "I have three strategies, the top, the middle, and the bottom. I ask the general to make a decision."

Yuan Shao hurriedly asked: "Please tell me, sir!"

Guo Tu replied: "The best strategy: the general defends Wei Commandery to the death, unites with Gongsun Zan to take Jizhou together, first divides Hebei and then surrenders to Gongsun Zan; the middle strategy is to retreat to Hanoi and take the East River, and wait for an opportunity to enter Tuguanzhong; the worst strategy is to retreat to Runan and join forces with the highway. Restore the glory of the Yuan family, and take the Central Plains to achieve a great cause."

Yuan Shao pondered for a moment, and said: "The middle strategy is not acceptable. Dong Zhuo ordered Zhang Ji to guard the east of the river, and Duan Yao to guard Hongnong. According to the danger of Weihan, there are more than one hundred thousand Xiliang troops. Without a foundation, it is difficult to gain a foothold, and the last policy is to surrender the policy, and it is not a last resort, so it is not used for the time being.”

Xin Ping frowned and said, "If the best strategy is to use Gongsun Zan as the main force to contain Liu He, then we can take advantage of it. How can we persuade Gongsun Zan to send troops?"

Guo Tu said with a smile: "Gongsun Zan is brave and intrepid, jealous and warlike. He used to ridicule Liu He as a playboy in Zhuo County, but now Liu He's achievements and prestige are higher than Gongsun's. I guess he will feel dissatisfied. , It’s just that we can’t find an opportunity to send troops for a while.”

Yuan Shao's eyes froze slightly, and he asked, "How can we get Gongsun Zan to send troops?"

Guo Tuyan said: "In the old alliance, when the princes appointed Duke Ming as the general of chariots and cavalry, they had the right to open offices and worship the generals. Why didn't Duke Ming worship Gongsun Zan as the general of the Northern Conquest, make him rank above Liu He, and then express his brother-in-law? Gongsun Fan is the governor of Bohai and sent people to send seals and ribbons. Gongsun Zan will definitely be moved and will raise his troops to go north."

"This plan is very clever. It is of great importance, so Lao Zhongzhi will go there personally!"

Yuan Shao was overjoyed, and immediately ordered someone to fetch the seal and ribbon from Bohai County, and ordered Xin Ping to go to Qingzhou to persuade Gongsun Zan to send troops.

Guo Tu added: "Liu He has reached the north of Jizhou, and he will immediately send his troops south. Regardless of whether the Montenegrin army wants to surrender or make peace, the general must prepare early and go to Handan to guard in person, so as to boost morale and defeat Liu He. "

Yuan Shao nodded and said, "That's exactly what I mean, but the area around Guantao is unguarded. If Qinghe's troops take it down, the right wing will not be protected. How can we defend Wei Commandery?"

Guo Tu also frowned and said, "That's right, Guantao is near the Dahe River and serves as a barrier to the northeast of Wei Commandery. Those who are not wise and brave can't defend it. Is there such a person under the general's command?"

Yuan Shao lowered his head in thought, went through all the generals under his command in his mind, always felt that there were shortcomings, and sighed: "In the past, a certain man boasted that he was well-versed in both civil and military affairs, but now when it comes to employing people, he is struggling. Only Wen Chou can be called a general, but he went north to fight Liu With all the generals, you can't fight without Wen Chou, so what should we do?"

Guo Tu sighed inwardly, and said: "If that's the case, why not send Gao Lan and Gao Gan to guard Guantao, as long as Gongsun Zan raises his troops, he will be able to contain Qinghe troops in the plain and keep this place. "

"Report——" During the discussion, a soldier came in and reported: "Xu You wants to see you."

"Xu You?" Yuan Shao frowned, and said with a sneer, "Xu Ziyuan cheated Han Fu of 300 million before, but now he wants to profit from me?"

Guo Tuyan said: "Xu You is only interested in profit. I am afraid that Liu He is sent as a lobbyist again. General, be careful not to fall into the trap."

"Is someone comparable to Han Fu's cowardly generation?" Yuan Shao snorted slightly, beckoning to invite Xu You in.

Guo Tu was at odds with the celebrities in Nanyang. Just now he offered advice, but he said nothing. When Xu You came, he didn't want to meet him, so he left first.

Yuan Shao sat on the desk and waited quietly for Xu You. After a while, he saw a person walking in with his head held high and his chest held high.

After entering the door, Xu You saw Yuan Shao's indifferent expression, cupped his hands and said with a smile: "I haven't seen you for half a year, Ben Chu is such a powerful official!"

Yuan Shao snorted coldly and said, "I swear against Liu He. If you are a lobbyist for Liu He, you will not be accepted."

"Hahaha——" Xu You laughed up to the sky, twirled his beard and said, "In the past, you and I played in the rivers and lakes with Ah Man, how happy it was? I don't want to treat my old friend like this at the beginning. Could it be that there is no room for others?"

Yuan Shao said angrily: "Xu Ziyuan, even though they were good friends in the past, but now they are their own masters, and the situation is the same. If he didn't think about the old love, how could he see you?"

"Oh, it looks like I'm overthinking it!" Seeing Yuan Shao's anger, Xu You sighed helplessly, shook his head and said, "I came here to save Xianfu's nephew, I didn't think so at the beginning, blame me for unnecessary actions, leave! "

"Wait a minute!" Yuan Shao heard Xu You talking about Yuan Tan, he hurriedly got up to stop him, and asked, "Are you really here for Xianfu?"

Xu You stepped out of the door and replied calmly: "When Xianfu was at home in the past, I also taught him the Analects of Confucius. Although he did not have the title of master and apprentice, he has the feeling of master and apprentice. How can we see him being imprisoned and suffering? Unfortunately……"

Having said that, Xu You shook his head and walked away with his sleeves thrown away. Yuan Shao, a father, was not in a hurry. Wouldn't it be superfluous for him to do so?

"Brother Ziyuan..." Yuan Shao chased him out, stopped Xu You in front of the garden, and said with a dry smile, "I just didn't know why brother came here, there was a misunderstanding, please go to the study, I will prepare wine to apologize."

(End of this chapter)