Zhu Nao

Not long after capturing Shangguanxian alive, the Shu army found another very important person in the Henan army's barracks——Puzhou Mu, Zhao Wu.

When Shangguanxian led troops to invade Hezhong and captured Zhao Wu, he did not kill Zhao Wu, but put Zhao Wu under house arrest.In the past few months, he has taken good care of Zhao Wu. Even when Puzhou was besieged for four months, and everyone, including Shangguan Xian, had greatly reduced food, Zhao Wu was the only one in the city who was not deprived of food and clothing. degrees of people.

Therefore, when the Shu army found Zhao Wu from the Henan army camp, Zhao Wu's figure was still round and round, and because he hadn't had any female sex recently, his complexion was even more ruddy than before.

The reason why Shangguanxian treated Zhao Wu so kindly was not because he was merciful, but because Zhao Wu had great influence in the entire Hezhong Mansion.The Henan Army wanted to take root in the Hezhong Mansion, and if they could get Zhao Wu's cooperation, they would be able to get twice the result with half the effort.It's a pity that before they had time to infiltrate their forces into the river, Zhu Nao rushed over with a large army.

Zhao Wu was not killed at the hands of Shangguan Xian, and it was even more impossible for Zhu Nao to kill him.So on the second day after occupying Puzhou City, Zhu Nao personally received Zhao Wu.

Zhao Wu was taken into the temporary official residence, besides Zhu Nao's officials and guards in the courtyard, Chen Fu was also by his side.

When Chen Fu and Zhao Wu met each other's eyes, both of them were a bit embarrassed.

Chen Fu was Zhao Wu's subordinate before, and he was sent by Zhao Wu to be an envoy in Hanzhong before he came into contact with Zhu Nao.Now he has taken refuge in Zhu Nao, and he wants to help Zhu Nao to negotiate terms with Zhao Wu. It can be said that his position has been completely reversed.But Zhao Wu also knew that he couldn't blame Chen Fu for this matter. In the end, he still blamed himself for losing Puzhou and being a prisoner, which led to him getting to where he is today.

Zhu Nao smiled and said, "Zhao Zhoumu, have you suffered a lot these past few months?"

Of course Zhao Wu didn't dare to say that Shangguanxian had been entertaining him with delicious food and drinks, wasn't that just asking for trouble?He quickly knelt on the ground and kowtowed: "Thank you for saving your life, thank you for saving your life! In the past few months, the Shangguan thief has repeatedly threatened the minister to defect, and the minister has been vain and submissive, and refused to obey! If your majesty hadn't led the troops in time Hurry up, I'm afraid my life will be lost!"

Junao chuckled.Could he not know what kind of life Zhao Wu has been living these past few months?It's just that it's not necessary to see through but not to tell.

"So," Zhu Nao got straight to the point without going around the bush, "Zhao Zhoumu is willing to work for me in the future?"

Zhao Wu hurriedly expressed his loyalty: "That's natural! I have always been willing to be loyal to His Majesty, and I have no second thoughts!"

If someone who didn't know was present and saw this scene, they really thought that their masters and ministers were in harmony.

This Zhao Wu speaks human words when he sees people, and speaks nonsense when he sees ghosts, and Zhu Nao is also good at this.He said softly: "Zhao Zhoumu has such a heart, I am very moved. After all, this Hezhong Mansion is the place you have governed for many years. If you are willing to do some government affairs for me and restore people's livelihood, I will make you the governor of Hezhong Mansion. I wonder what you want? "

Zhao Wu immediately beamed with joy.In fact, he has controlled the Hezhong Mansion for many years, but his official position is still Puzhou Shepherd, not Hezhong Yin. This is because the old emperor is dead, and he always wanders between various forces and has not recognized the Lord, so no one will replace him. He came to represent this official position, so he has always been anonymous.Now that he is in Zhu Nao's hands, not only can he keep his original position, but he can also be promoted, what a surprise!

He hastily kowtowed and said: "Thank you, Your Majesty, thank you, Your Majesty! I will live up to your holy hope!"

Zhu Nao continued: "You don't need to thank me. Zhao Zhou Mu—— Zhao Fu Yin, you have received a hard job. The Hezhong Mansion suffered such a catastrophe. If you want to make things right, you must build a new one and change the course. Especially in the Hezhong Mansion. The military affairs of the government...hehe, it is really not satisfactory. Next, Zhao Fu Yin and all the lovers will have to work hard to make things right."

The smile on Zhao Wu's face suddenly froze.In fact, he had already expected many things, but he still couldn't help but feel heartbroken when he heard Zhu Nao say it.

The so-called ordering out of chaos, changing the course, was not only the chaos brought about by the invasion of the Henan Army, but also the chaos left by him, Zhao Wu.Although Zhu Nao promoted Zhao Wu's official position, he also wanted to severely suppress Zhao Wu's power, so that the Hezhong Mansion would no longer be under the control of Zhao Wu only.As for the military affairs that were specifically mentioned... Undoubtedly, Zhu Nao will immediately rectify the Hezhong Army and take the general power from Zhao Wu. From then on, the Hezhong Mansion's army will be controlled by the Shu people.

Military power is the foundation of these princes, because they have military power, they become princes of one side.Without military power, they are just officials who can be dismissed at any time.

Thinking back when Zhao Wu sent Chen Fu to Hezhong to negotiate with Zhu Nao, he was relying on his own military power, relying on the fact that both Zhu Nao and Tao Bei wanted to win him over, so they put on the airs that they were waiting for a price.He listed countless conditions. Although he agreed to bow down to Jun Nao, he must not only retain his military power, but also completely control the taxation market in Hezhong Mansion. Come to meddle in the affairs of his Hezhong Mansion.

But now, although Zhu Nao gave him a higher status, he took away his real power, but he didn't even dare to say a word of nonsense—he was already a prisoner, so what qualifications did he have to negotiate conditions?

As for why Zhu Nao still kept him and assigned He Zhongyin the official position?It's nothing more than fancying that he still has a high reputation in Hezhong Mansion and many old ministries.For those old forces in the Hezhong Mansion, if Zhu Nao uses strong means to suppress them, it will inevitably cause a lot of resistance and disputes.But let Zhao Wu himself come forward to abolish the old department and balance the forces, so that the transition of power can be completed more smoothly.

And with Chen Fu and other Hezhong people who were recruited in advance to supervise, it was difficult for Zhao Wu to play tricks behind his back.If he is willing to serve Junao sincerely in the future, he may still be able to keep his safety and wealth; if he dares to do any disobedience, Zhu Nao will crush him to death like an ant.

Thinking of his future situation, Zhao Wu couldn't help crying secretly.But in the past four months, his state of mind has also changed a lot compared to before.It should be known that the current situation in troubled times is changing rapidly. In the past few years alone, how many heroes have risen rapidly and disappeared in a flash?He was lucky to end up like this.After all, those who know current affairs are heroes, and those who can change are heroes...

So Zhao Wu took a deep breath and said, "Don't worry, Your Majesty, I am willing to do my best for the country and the country, and I will die."

Compared to the flattering flattery just now, his words now seem much more sincere.

Zhu Nao took a look at the change in his expression, smiled in satisfaction, and flinched to the side.

So those officials who had already prepared went to discuss with Zhao Wu how to govern the Hezhong Mansion in the future.

……

The management of the river is in full swing, and the march to Henan will not be delayed.Two days later, several envoys set off at the same time, went to the prefectures and counties of Henan Province, and began to lobby officials, wealthy businessmen and gentry from all over the place...

……

Half a month later, the news that Puzhou City was destroyed and Shangguan Xian was captured finally reached Yedu.This tragic news instantly caused a huge uproar in Yedu!

That day Tao Bei had just returned to his mansion from the palace, when an attendant immediately came to report: "Mr. Tao, Huang Shizhong and Chen Duwei have been waiting for a long time to see you outside."

Tao Bei was in an extremely bad mood at the moment, and when he heard these two names, his face darkened again.

It should be known that Tao Bei has three generals under him, namely Shangguanxian, Gao Hong, and Tian She, who guard the triple towns of Ruzhou, Jizhou, and Xuzhou respectively for him.Since Tao Bei was born as a military general and started his business on horseback, the main forces under him were also composed of warriors. These warriors were headed by three generals and divided into three forces.

In fact, these three generals have followed Tao Bei for many years and fought side by side, and there is not much conflict between them.But when their power grows, too many people's interests are involved, so the relationship between the three forces has nothing to do with them, and it is inevitable that they will fight each other.

And more importantly, because Tao Bei himself gained power by usurping Liu Ping, the former governor of the Guangjin Mansion, since he gained power, he was very afraid that his subordinates would have too much power and would one day usurp him, so in the past few years he There will always be intentional or unintentional use of these three forces to check and balance each other to prevent someone from threatening their status.Under such circumstances, the struggle among the three forces has become increasingly serious.

As for Huang Shizhong and Chen Duwei, one has a close relationship with Gao Hong, and the other once served under Tian She, and they are the main figures representing Gao Hong's forces and Tian She's forces in Yedu.Their coming to the door at this time must have something to do with Puzhou's affairs.I'm afraid they just heard the news that Shangguan Xian was in trouble, and they rushed to fight for power.

Tao Bei just wanted the two of them to get out of here quickly, so they don't bother him.But things have already happened, and you have to face them, and you can't hide them for a while.

Finally, Tao Bei took a deep breath, gritted his teeth and said, "Let them in!"

……

Not long after, Huang Shizhong and Chen Duwei were brought into the lobby, and Tao Bei sat in the hall with a sullen face and waited for them.

Seeing Tao Bei's unkind expression, the two couldn't help but look at each other, both wanting to encourage the other to speak first.However, neither of them was stupid, and neither of them wanted to suffer first, so the situation froze for a while.

How could Tao Bei not know what the two of them were thinking?He slapped the table violently and scolded: "Don't wink there, just say what you have to say! I still have a lot of things to do, I don't have time to spend here with you!"

The two couldn't help being embarrassed.

After all, it was Huang Shizhong who spoke first.He pretended to be concerned and said: "General, I heard that Puzhou City was destroyed, and Hezhong Mansion has been controlled by the Shu army. I don't know how the general Shangguan is safe?"

Tao Bei sneered, "You don't know? You really don't know? You are so well informed, do you still need to ask me!"

The two were suddenly embarrassed.

Tao Bei was always humble and polite when dealing with people, but the news of Puzhou's fall filled him with anger, and he couldn't help but reveal his majestic and ruthless side.

Huang Shizhong bit the bullet and said cautiously: "I heard that General Shangguan is loyal to his duty and will not obey him to the death. It's a pity that the food and grass in the city are exhausted, and some thieves rebelled and opened the city gate for the enemy, resulting in General Shangguan being captured alive by the enemy... General, this time Is it true?"

Tao Bei didn't say a word.His eyes that were about to breathe fire had already answered for him.

Huang Shizhong hurriedly said: "General Shangguan has always been loyal and courageous. Even if he is defeated, it is not the fault of General Shangguan, but the fault of traitors! It's just... the Shu people know that General Shangguan is highly valued by the generals, and they are quite popular in the Henan army. With prestige, he will definitely try every means to instigate General Shangguan... then I'm afraid..."

"Yes, General!" Chen Duwei hastily continued, "If General Shangguan rebels, the Henan government will be in a hurry! Even if General Shangguan does not rebel, there are many old ministries in Henan, and it is difficult to guarantee that those old ministries will not be divided! For the sake of the country Sheji, the general should find a way to stabilize Henan as soon as possible!"

This Huang Shizhong saw that Tao Bei didn't want to hear bad things about Shangguan Xian, so he said it quite tactfully.Chen Duwei lacked his mind, and bluntly said that if Shangguanxian rebelled, it would bring huge losses to the new dynasty.

Chen Duwei's words really angered Tao Bei, Tao Bei slammed the table again, and scolded: "Do I need you to teach me how to do things!"

Chen Duwei and Huang Shizhong were suddenly too frightened to say anything.

Tao Bei understood the purpose of these two people.As soon as something happened to Shangguanxian, they rushed to carve up Shangguanxian's power for their faction.

But putting aside their selfishness, Tao Bei also had to admit that what the two said was reasonable.

Zhu Nao didn't kill Shangguanxian, he must have planned to instigate Shangguanxian's rebellion.It's fine if Shangguan Xian insists on not surrendering, but just in case... If Shangguan Xian wavers, will his faction, his old department, also waver with him?Even though Tao Bei had great trust in Shangguan Xian, as a person in power, it was impossible for him not to consider this risk.

And no matter whether Shangguanxian surrenders or not, Zhu Nao will definitely attack Henan in the future.Even if the defenders left in Henan were not Shangguanxian's old troops, they had a close relationship with Shangguanxian.Knowing that the Lord will be surrendered, wouldn't they fight timidly and surrender out of fear? !

Tao Bei has always been cautious, he dare not bet on such a big matter.He must quickly send someone to take over what Shangguanxian left behind, and even eradicate those forces that are too loyal to Shangguanxian, so as not to be defeated like a mountain and cause an irreversible situation!

but……

Tao Bei felt a pain in his heart.

For a moment, he had an impulse to gather an army of millions, and poured all the power of the whole country to crusade against Zhu Nao and rescue Shangguan Xian!But this is just an impulse, he can't really do it.

He knew very well that Shangguan Xian would not come back again.This general who was loyal to him may commit suicide or be killed because he does not want to submit to the enemy, or maybe... he will turn his back in the end... In short, that person can no longer stand by his side and accompany him to win the world.

Tao Bei closed his eyes, hiding all his emotions behind the thin eyelids.

After a while, he whispered: "I'm not feeling well today, what's the matter, we'll discuss it another day."

Huang Shizhong and Chen Duwei couldn't help but look at each other again.Although Tao Bei didn't express his opinion, they knew that Tao Bei had already been persuaded by them.Or, this was originally Tao Bei's own intention, but the two of them were too eager to choose the right time.

So the two hurriedly saluted and left in a hurry.

After the two of them left, Tao Bei opened his eyes again, and the fundus of his eyes was already slightly red.With a long sigh, he forced himself not to think about anything about Shangguan Xian, and silently thought about how to carve up the power that Shangguan Xian vacated, so that the forces under him could rebalance...