At the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty

Until Yuan Shu really died.

And when Yuan Shu didn't know that Guo Peng was going to lead an army to attack him, and at the same time that he was raising troops to attack Tao Qian and Sun Ce, there was a person who was silently acting.

Yan Rou, alone with only two guards, went through difficulties and obstacles, and quietly entered Hongnong County under the support of Linzi Ying spies, and came to Hongnong County.

This is the residence of today's emperor, and also the residence of the imperial court. There are hundreds of officials of the imperial court, a group of warlords, and their army living in chaos.

Simply, after Liu Biao received the reward from the Hongnong court, under the persuasion of the court envoy, he sent people to Hongnong County to build a palace for Liu Xieying with a lot of military supplies. Necessary for survival around the farming county.

Yan Rou pretended to be a businessman from Jingzhou, and with the help of a secret agent from the Linzi Camp, who was the captain of the city gate, sneaked into Hongnong County.

The situation in Hongnong County at this moment is definitely not very good, and of course, it is not too bad.

After the war, Li Jue and Guo Si's strength was greatly reduced. Later, Jia Xu came to draw their salary from the bottom of the pot, and joined forces with Zhang Ji and Duan Yan, who were stronger, to give them a wave of political liquidation.

The number of troops has been reduced, and positions have been reduced, from the dignified Sima and Hussar General to the school lieutenant.

It was equivalent to bringing them back to their original shape, back to the way they were when Dong Zhuo was still there. How could they not be angry if the honor gained through years of hard work was wiped out?

But because of the small number of troops and the great loss of prestige, he can only be a school lieutenant.

Duan Yan and Zhang Ji didn't kill them either, probably because they followed some survival rules of the Liangzhou Army, or they simply felt that these two men fought bravely and had something to use. Anyway, the Liangzhou Army was victorious and defeated. Cole is used to it.

So these two people are now assigned to the Shan County Garrison in the east of Hongnong County.

The soldiers and horses under their jurisdiction were no more than a few thousand people, but the looting of places and entrapment of the people were not at all gentler than before.

As one of the three lines of defense set up by Dong Zhuo to defend against the Kwantung Allied Forces, Hongnong County was well established, and the households and production did not suffer too much loss.

Among them, the garrison of Huayin County is Duan Yao.

Duan Yan is a man of some culture, who knows the importance of food and production, so he diligently repairs water conservancy and develops agriculture. Not only does he not follow the usual style of Liangzhou soldiers to plunder the place, but he also develops the place, so that the people can live in peace.

Because of the existence of Duan Yan, the production of Hongnong County has not been seriously damaged, and the households are abundant, and it is also one of the few existences in the entire Guanzhong that can be used as a facade.

Therefore, Duan Yan and Zhang Ji's troops can still eat food, and they will not starve Liu Xie and Baiguan. Liu Xiehe and Baiguan even think that Duan Yan and Zhang Ji are stronger than Li Jue and Guo Si. The place.

For Li Jue and Guo Si who continued to plunder the land, Zhang Ji and Duan Yan just felt a little uncomfortable, but they didn't impose more restrictions, because they really didn't plan to provide stable food for Li Jue and Guo Si's army. Looting places, they have to starve to death.

But they drew a line.

You can plunder, but you can't cross Shan County to the west of Shan County to plunder. If you dare to cross Shan County to the west to plunder, Zhang Ji and Duan Yan will raise troops to attack Li Jue and Guo Si.

Therefore, the core part of Hongnong County has not been destroyed by war, but is relatively harmonious.

As for Huayin County to the west, to Chang'an area, the plague is currently breaking out. The few remaining households escaped the war and massacre, but they couldn't escape the plague, and died tragically in the plague. There were almost no casualties.

What was even more unlucky was Ma Teng and Han Sui, who knew that Li Jue and Guo Si had given up Chang'an and chased after Hongnong, thinking of taking advantage.

As a result, it happened to hit a deadly infectious plague—according to the records and descriptions, the plague at the end of Han Dynasty was most likely an epidemic hemorrhagic fever.

As a result, half of the tens of thousands of troops fell ill in an instant, and Ma Teng and Han Sui were so frightened that they immediately abandoned the sick soldiers who could not move, and fled back to Liangzhou in a hurry.

However, some sick soldiers also fled back to Liangzhou. After returning to Liangzhou, they became ill and spread the plague to Liangzhou.

Ma Teng and Han Sui were too tired to deal with it. As a result, a large piece of land from Liangzhou to Huayin County became a dead area for a while, and no one dared to approach it.

In fact, if someone has a little understanding of the principles of infectious diseases, maybe the great plague at the end of Han Dynasty would not necessarily take away so many lives, hundreds of thousands of people died.

Unfortunately, for quite a long time, doctors all over the world did not understand what "infection" was. It was not until the end of the Ming Dynasty in Chinese medicine that Wu Youke's exposition gave rise to an understanding of infection.

Prior to this, the medical theory of traditional Chinese medicine could not get rid of the entanglement of gods and ghosts. The remnants of witchcraft in ancient times were like a shadow and lingering, and the medical concept was quite simple.

If someone understands what contagion is, not to mention treatment, at least it can be prevented, and when things cannot be dealt with, the final plan of isolation can be used to end the plague, so that the plague will not bloom all over the land of China, causing countless deaths and injuries.

Unfortunately, no.

Li Jue and Guo Si's luck is really good, while Ma Teng and Han Sui's luck is really bad, and for a long time to come, the luck of the people of all ethnic groups in Liangzhou will not be too good.

Before Yan Rou sneaked into Hongnong County, Yuan Shu proclaimed himself emperor and announced the dethroning of Liu Xie, ending the rule of the Han Dynasty, and the news that Liangzhou people would be held accountable for their rebellion had already reached Hongnong.

Zhang Ji and Duan Yan were shocked, Manchu civil and military officials were shocked, Jia Wenhe frowned, and Liu Xie fainted from anger.

After waking up, Liu Xie smashed several cases, drew his sword and killed two servants, and roared that he would go out to attack Yuan Shu, and said that he would make the person who cut off Yuan Shu's head king.

In short, the political atmosphere in Hongnong County is very tense, everyone is nervous, and everyone is very confused, not knowing what will happen in the future.

At this time, Guo Peng's appeal to Yuan has not yet been delivered, and people in the world do not know that Guo Peng intends to take up the responsibility of maintaining the Han Dynasty.

Chapter 393 .390 Two Jia Xu's Worries (Revised)

Against this background, Yan Rou sneaked into Hongnong County.

After learning about the current situation in Hongnong County in Hongnong County, he made a bold decision.

Send greetings to Jia Xu.

As a member of the Cai family in Jingzhou, he sent a greeting card to Jia Xu.

"Commander, although the subordinates know what they should not say, it is too risky to do so. Jia Wenhe is the actual person in charge of the current imperial court, and the general government orders come from Jia Wenhe. If you contact Jia Wenhe rashly, once you are caught What did he discover, didn't he..."

"Yes, Commander, you are someone the general relies on very much. If there is something wrong with you, how can we explain it?"

Several spies based in Hongnong County were very worried about Yan Rou's rash decision.

Yan Rou shook her head.

"No, Jia Wenhe is a smart man. The general told me himself that Jia Wenhe is an unusually smart man. There is no mutual testing between smart people, only straight to the point."

The subordinates looked at each other in blank dismay, no one dared to say that this decision was wrong, but the internal hierarchy of the Linzi Battalion was strict, one after another, the highest command made a decision, and they could only cooperate.

So, they immediately forged a greeting card from a member of the Cai family in Xiangyang, Jingzhou, and then entrusted their connections with money to put this greeting card in the first sequence of Jia Xu's upcoming meeting.

The people at the top have the same way as the people at the top, and the people at the bottom also have the same way as the people at the bottom. The top eats meat, and the bottom can drink a few sips of soup.

No matter when, even in Hongnong, where the political atmosphere is extremely tense, the person in charge of Jia Xu's mansion still does not forget to make money.

This is very good, it is convenient for Yan Rou to operate.

Jia Xu is indeed very busy, busy with the daily running of the court, busy with some conflicts between the army, busy with the conflicts between the army and the bureaucrats, busy with the relationship with the emperor, in short, he is very busy. busy.

But no matter how busy he was, Jia Xu would spare some time to meet some important people who asked to see him, such as court officials, military generals, and distinguished guests from Jingzhou.

Finally, through the emperor's relationship, the relationship between Jingzhou and Hongnong Central was maintained, and Liu Biao was asked to contribute money and efforts to help them build a palace for the emperor to live in. They also welcomed traveling merchants from the major families in Jingzhou. Come alive.

Looking at the appearance of the imperial capital, Jia Xu must be careful to maintain this situation, so that it cannot be shattered again.

It was really difficult for Jia Xu, very difficult. Seeing Liangzhou Group turn good cards into dead cards and throw away trump cards at will, Jia Xu's tears rolled in his stomach.

But there was no way, no matter what, he couldn't let a group of muscular men who grew up in the Shura field understand what a political situation was.

So he was completely disappointed with Li Jue and Guo Si, and turned to Zhang Ji and Duan Yan, forming the three giants of the Liangzhou Legion and stabilizing the third generation of Liangzhou central government.

The first two generations of the central government of the Liangzhou Group were finished due to various factors, and now the third government is still maintained under the right conditions and people. It will almost make the people of Liangzhou completely lose their foothold. Completely became the rebellion of Quan Dahan.

That's it.

Now the emperor is the gold medal for Liangzhou people to avoid death. Only with the emperor can they avoid death. Without the emperor, everyone will be finished.

Fortunately, Zhang Ji, Duan Yan, and Zhang Ji's nephew Zhang Xiu, who have military power, are more politically minded and flexible than Li Jue and Guo Si, so the situation has temporarily stabilized.

But even so, Jia Xu was still very worried.

He clearly understands that this situation is difficult to maintain for a long time, and it can only be said to take one step at a time. When the situation in Kanto becomes clear, it will be the time when their central government collapses.

Whether it is population, territory, military power or economy, the current Guanzhong is completely incomparable with Kanto.

Especially the five states under Guo Zifeng's jurisdiction made Jia Xu feel very frightened. What he was most worried about was that Guo Peng raised his army to attack Guanzhong.

Only the emperor, only the emperor, the emperor is their life-saving talisman.

But how long can this last?

After losing the productivity of the entire Guanzhong area, the Liangzhou Group only had the only site in Hongnong County that could maintain production and survive.

If Hongnong County is gone, they will be completely finished.

Raising soldiers requires territory, food, productivity, lasting productivity and taxation.

Raising war with war is actually very ideal, and it’s a one-shot deal, and it’s gone if it’s gone, but people’s stomachs will continue to feel hungry, and they can never be filled at once, unless they are killed.

By the time Jia Xu understood this truth, it was actually too late, and she tried desperately to keep the basic position of Chang'an, but in the end it still failed.

Now only the area of ​​Hongnong County is left, and it must be carefully maintained without any mistakes.

And there must be no less foreign aid, no less traveling merchants, they can bring money, goods and taxes.

Moreover, these people come from the major families in Jingzhou, and any relationship with a few families is a valuable political and economic resource that can prolong the life of the central government.

Especially at this time, Yuan Shu boldly proclaimed himself emperor, broke with the Han Empire completely, announced that he would depose the Han Emperor Liu Xie, and demand that all people in the world respect his Chen Empire. .

The already fragile appeal and influence of the Hongnong central government were already on the verge of crumbling, and being hit suddenly like this was no different from falling directly to the ground and being smashed to pieces.

Zhang Ji and Duan Yan panicked and came to ask advice, but they couldn't understand no matter how they asked.

Because the current problem is no longer a question of who is the emperor, but this time, Liu Xie's political status and appeal have been seriously threatened and challenged.

Even if Yuan Shu is suppressed and eliminated this time, Liu Xie's position will become less stable.

Yuan Shu made a bad start, proclaiming himself emperor directly, without leaving any room for it, and treated the dignity of the Han Dynasty as nothing, and the dignity of the Han Dynasty completely collapsed.

If there is no strong force on the side of the Hongnong court, the Han Dynasty may really be over.

The righteousness that the Liangzhou Group relied on for their survival is really over.

At that time, the world will be so big, will there still be room for them to live?

Jia Xu, as the former Luo Piao, although Luo Piao failed, he was also promoted to Xiaolian, and he had some feelings for the Han Empire, so he tried his best to maintain all this, but when his life was threatened, Jia Xu is about to measure.

Chapter 394 .390 Three Yan Rou meets Jia Xu

The Han Empire did not give him much kindness, and relying on his feelings, it was not easy for him to achieve this step.

If Jia Xu was required to sacrifice his life to defend the Han Dynasty, then he obviously would not do so.

Between the Han Empire and life, Jia Xu would of course choose life without hesitation, so Jia Xu is very anxious now, he can even dream of being sent to the execution ground and beheaded.

Zhang Ji and Duan Yan's confusion, Zhang Xiu's panic, these can only intensify the fear in his heart and his worries about the future, but they can't make him rise up and fight for everyone's well-being.

He wants to live, wants to live, wants to survive in this chaos, and for this, he can sacrifice a lot of things.

It started from the time when he tricked everyone who was arrested with him in Liangzhou to falsely testify for him, falsely claiming that he was Duan Jiong's grandson in order to survive.

From the moment he decided to sacrifice everyone who was captured with him to live for him alone, he decided.

No matter what, live on.

Tasting the fear of death for the first time, let Jia Xu know that she was so afraid of death and wanted to live so much.

Those who have not experienced the fear of death close at hand cannot understand Jia Xu's mood.

Jia Xu sighed deeply, deeply worried, woke up in the middle of the night countless times from midnight dreams, touched the cold sweat on his forehead, he couldn't help shaking, wondering where his future was.

When will I die?

Where can I be my shelter?

Jia Xu didn't know.

Then, he received a visit from the head of the caravan who claimed to be from the Cai clan in Xiangyang.

The heads of these caravans know that Jia Xu is the top person in charge of this area, so they often visit Jia Xu and give him some gifts in exchange for cheap trading rights in this area, and some benefits to go back, anyway. daily.

Jia Xu will usually meet them, because behind these caravans are all major families in Jingzhou.

It was the same this time. The leader of the Cai family in Xiangyang, Cai Mao, was an important minister next to Liu Biao and held important powers. It would not be harmful to have more contacts with such a person, so Jia Xu wanted to meet him.

Then Jia Xu saw a young man coming in front of him led by the housekeeper.

"Yan Rou met Jia Shangshu."

"Ah you are……"

Jia Xu frowned slightly, because he heard the young man calling himself Yan Rou, not Cai.

"I am someone who wants to meet Jia Shangshu, but he is not from the Cai family in Xiangyang."