Overlord!

Chapter 304 The Situation of the DPRK Meeting

Seven state pastors and governors were summoned to Jiankang in the name of congratulations, and the meeting between Sun Ce and everyone was naturally scheduled for the Spring Festival.

It happened that the end of the court meeting was spring plowing, and Sun Ce could host the spring festival in Jiankang.

The major events of the country are only the sacrifice and the Rong.

When Sun Ce also worshiped heaven and earth in the suburbs and implemented a calendar different from the Han system in Jiangdong, there was not much Han virtue left.

After all, the people of Jiangnan even have different calendars from those of the Han Dynasty. Who would think that the Liu family is still the co-owner of the world?
  During the court meeting, Sun Ce was still very kind and did not ask the ministers to line up in the Zhaoming Palace at midnight to prepare. In this bitter cold winter, if the ministers had any problems due to the cold, it would be serious.

On Pingdan, the beginning of the new year, that is, when the rooster crows at five o'clock in the morning, governors from various states arrived in front of Zhaoming Palace one after another.

In addition to the governors and governors of the seven states, the three ministers, the prefect of Danyang, and the generals in the army also participated in the meeting.

Of course, what surprised everyone the most was that Zhuge Liang also returned from Qingzhou. You must know that Lu Meng, who was also responsible for the overseas campaign, did not participate in the court discussions this time.

Everyone immediately started talking, and Zhang Hong took the initiative to step forward and asked Zhuge Liang: "Why is Kong Ming still in Jiankang today? Has the Changba rebellion been put down?"

Zhuge Liang smiled slightly and said, "The prince may have other arrangements."

This is a polite refusal to answer.

Everyone was even more surprised, but a rebellion would have little impact on the current situation.

The states and counties in the south were more concerned about the princes in Hebei who could influence the general situation of the world. Everyone looked at Gu Yong, the governor of Qingzhou, and asked: "I heard that Yuan Shao in the north is preparing to ascend the throne and proclaim himself emperor? Are there any rumors about this in Qingzhou? "

Gu Yong nodded and said: "There are rumors in Qingzhou that Yuan Shao wants to establish the Kingdom of Zhao. Maybe it is not groundless."

Lu Su was most interested in this aspect. He had always advocated establishing a country first and then becoming an emperor.

With the power of Gaozu, he became the lord of the world, and the other princes could be pacified in a matter of seconds, and rebellion could be quelled by raising partial troops.

If the imperial title is not established, Jiangdong will always look like a separatist force, fearless and submissive to all parties.

For example, Liu Zhang of Yizhou has not yet reacted and is still surrendering to the Han Dynasty.

It stands to reason that Jiangdong is already so powerful, so he should have sent envoys early to inquire about their return.

But so far, no one in Jiankang City has heard of Liu Zhang sending envoys to surrender.

So Lu Su said to Gu Yong: "Since the country's name has been spread, then the rumors are most likely to be true."

Everyone nodded in approval. It was not so much a rumor as it was spread by Yuan Shao to test things out.

This is also the political tradition of the Central Plains. If it is spread and tested, and the public opinion is not serious, then the rumors will become facts!

Lu Su continued: "If Yuan Shao becomes emperor, he will naturally send envoys to Jiankang to promote his power. We also need to make preparations in advance to deal with it."

His early preparation was that Jiankang also made plans to proclaim himself emperor. Once Yuan Shao proclaimed himself emperor, Jiangdong would immediately follow suit to avoid being inferior to Yuan Shao in status.

Zhang Hong waved his hand at this time and said: "Don't act carelessly. If Yuan Shaoru really dares to proclaim himself emperor, it is because he has the power of victory. If you..."

Having said this, he paused: "No matter what, we need to defeat Yuan Shao first before we can take advantage of the power of victory and do the king's deeds."

After hearing this, everyone nodded, Zhang Hong's words were undoubtedly more mature and prudent.

If Yuan Shao proclaimed himself emperor, Jiangdong would rashly proclaim himself emperor, which would appear to be hasty and nameless.

Since ancient times, those who want to carry out kingly affairs have first conquered and defeated the enemy's army, and then used their power to carry out their mission.

If our side defeats Yuan Shao, who has rashly proclaimed himself emperor, it will be justifiable for him to proclaim himself emperor again.

So other people asked: "Yuan Shao brought the power of victory? Has he already won a great victory in Guanzhong?"

Guanzhong is connected to Jingzhou, passing from Chang'an through Lantian, and then out of Wuguan is Nanyang, Jingzhou.

Therefore, Zhang Hong, the Jingzhou shepherd, knew best about the war in Guanzhong.

Zhang Hong nodded slowly and said: "Han Sui and Ma Teng asked Yuan Shao to cut the west of the river for peace a month ago, and Yuan Shao agreed."

Speaking of the war, the generals who participated in the court meeting came to pay attention. Zhou Yu asked: "Is there such a general in Yuan Shao's army? He defeated the [-] coalition troops in Guanzhong in just a few months?"

This is an army of [-] people. If we open up a battle formation, it will be difficult to decide the winner in less than half a year!
  However, Yuan Jun only took three months, and all the generals were amazed. If the generals from Jiangdong were to take over, they might not be able to achieve this result, right?
  Zhang Hong said: "This is not a military achievement, but a victory. Yuan Jun used Xun Chen's plan to cross the Wei River and set up camp along the river to transport grain and grass. The Han and Ma coalitions challenged several times, but Yuan Jun did not respond. The confrontation lasted for two months. , the generals in Guanzhong are about to collapse, and they have to cede territory and ask for surrender, and send protons to ask for peace."

Please surrender the land west of Hexi, that is, the large area from the west of the Yellow River to the north of the Wei River. Basically half of the three assistants were given to Yuan Shao.

After hearing what Zhang Hong said, all the generals started talking about it. The level of the counselors in Yuan camp was still acceptable.

As long as they don't get together and quarrel with each other, and have a counselor accompanying the army, it will be easy to deal with princes like the Guanzhong generals.

And the generals in Guanzhong surrendered, and among the heroes in the world, there were not many who were enemies of Yuan Shao!
  Zhou Yu then asked with concern: "What about Cao Cao? How is he doing in the court?"

During this period of time, countless ministers from the imperial court left Nanyang. Since the imperial court only had two counties left, and they were dilapidated, with less than [-] people under its rule, it was inevitable to see the decline of the imperial court. Many ministers could only Able to go their separate ways.

After all, if you are now defecting to Sun Ce, you are still defecting as a minister of the Han Dynasty, so you can get a good treatment.

If in a few months, Yuan Shao or Sun Ce's army enters Luoyang, they will have no room for negotiation as prisoners.

Speaking of Cao Cao, Zhang Hong looked solemn and said: "Cao Cao is truly a hero of his generation. After he fled to Luoyang, he set up a camp to gather the defeated troops from all directions and gained about [-] soldiers."

Wu Jing was appointed as the captain of Sili School, and this place would be under his rule in the future. He was extremely concerned and asked: "Given the dilapidated state of Sili, with less than [-] households and tens of thousands of men and women, how can we support [-] soldiers?" ?”

The key to the emperor's ability to gather people in Luoyang again was that the princes of the world sent gifts to the court.

For example, when Cao Cao occupied Yanzhou and Yuzhou before, because they were located near the capital, they could transport a large amount of grain and grass to the court all year round.

Therefore, he was known as a loyal minister. Countless ministers in the court worked for him, especially the scholars in the Yingchuan area. Since their family hometown was under Cao Cao's rule and under his care, Zhong Yao, Xun You and others all spoke well of Cao Cao.

In addition to Cao Cao, Sun Ce, Liu Biao, and Yuan Shao all paid tribute to the emperor. Each tribute was in huge quantities, and there were endless carriages and horses on the road.

But now, with the crucial battle, the emperor is impatient and indecisive, causing him to lose the hope of the world.

Therefore, neither Yuan Shao nor Sun Ce sent taxes to the court this year. What went further was Yuan Shao, who also took over a large amount of the emperor's territory to the west.

This left the emperor trapped in a corner of Luoyang, relying on tens of thousands of broken people, unable to support a huge army.

And Zhang Hong said: "The only place where we can see Cao Cao's heroes is that the land is small and the people are few, and it is not enough to support the soldiers. Instead, he organized the troops into military households. They farmed in peacetime, trained after the autumn harvest, and served as soldiers in wartime."

"Now it has established a firm foothold in Luoyang. In October, it gathered more than [-] people to conduct military exercises and winter training."

At this time, Zhang Zhao also came to the Chui Gong Hall. Hearing Zhang Hong's words, he took the initiative to step forward and asked: "Cao Cao has gathered more than [-] people? Doesn't this mean that Liu Bei has lost power and all the troops belong to Cao Cao? Or even that the imperial court has been controlled by Cao Cao?"

Cao Cao's [-] people are definitely not comparable to those in the past.

He disbanded all the troops and placed them among farmers.

This is never a good idea.

Zhou Yu also said: "I said that the people who proposed this dynasty spent a lot of money on raising troops and wanted to restore the method of integrating troops with farmers. The scholar's opinion is that it can be said but not used. I never thought that Cao Cao would use this method."

Zhang Hong said: "However, it is true that this method is used to support tens of thousands of people. If there is no external trouble, relying on this army, it may not be impossible to conquer Guanxi."

Several generals nodded slightly. The Cao thief should not be underestimated and must be eliminated quickly. It would also be a difficult matter if he held the emperor hostage and ordered the princes to do so.

While everyone was talking, Zhao Yun walked out of Chui Gong Hall, stood on the high platform in front of the palace, looked down at the civil and military officials below, and shouted: "The king is here, and he is congratulated by all the ministers!"

"Turning!"

Following the order, the civil and military personnel at the bottom of the steps immediately lined up in order. Soldiers in embroidered uniforms and various flags and ritual objects were arranged from above the palace. The civil and military personnel, headed by Zhang Zhao and Zhou Yu, marched forward in an orderly manner. , arranged in classes from east to west, and enter the Chui Gong Hall.

The court meeting originally required each state to present gifts to the princes, but Sun Ce skipped this step. Now is not the time to enjoy it.

After the ministers congratulated each other and took their seats, Sun Ce took the initiative and said, "Now that everything has changed, I have a piece of news to tell you."

"Chang Ba rebelled, intending to collude with Yuan Shao and harm Qingzhou. He has been beheaded by Gu and hung in Linzi to warn the counties."

"Now that the rebellion in Qingzhou has been suppressed, we can gather all the power of the south to bring down the world in one fell swoop."

When the news came out from Sun Ce's mouth, everyone was a little shocked. Changba's rebellion could be said to have affected a whole state. Unexpectedly, it was put down so quickly?
  This also shows that in politics, everyone only cares about the results and does not care about the process at all.

The Changba rebellion was brought to Zi in just a few months, which was enough to shock everyone.

As for the process, not many people even pay attention to it.

In fact, the process of quelling the rebellion was not what ordinary people imagined. It relied on the army to crush him and cut off Chang Ba's head.

But because Chang Ba had an old relationship with Sun Guan, he repeatedly asked to surrender through Sun Guan. Being moved by Zang Ba's wishes, he asked for his permission.

Please allow it!

These four words decided Chang Ba's fate.

Because he and Zang Ba were old acquaintances, Chang Ba went to Zang Ba's camp to ask for his surrender. All the generals believed that Changba had surrendered and should be sent to Jiankang for disposal. But Zang Ba said with tears: "You guys don't know the official order! Those who surround you and surrender will not be pardoned. I follow the law and follow the orders, which is the integrity of things. Although Xi is an old friend, I can't lose my integrity!" So Zang Ba said He said goodbye to Chang Ba in person and killed Chang Ba with tears without waiting for the government order from the rear!
  And Chang Ba's death, no matter how it happened, caused Qingzhou to be shaken!
  Those powerful men and sect commanders who were ready to collude with Yuan Shao were horrified.

The originally ambitious and cunning people who gathered their troops secretly could only die without Zang Ba who carried the banner.

Zang Ba's decision to make his own decisions was obviously very responsible, so after Sun Ce received the good news, he sent an envoy to elevate him to the rank of Marquis of the Countryside!

Chang Ba was beheaded. Jiangdong and other civil and military ministers only paid attention to it for a moment, and then stopped caring. Everyone focused on the important events that followed.

With the death of Chang Ba, the northern front line can be said to have completely settled down. Since defeating Cao Cao, all remaining troubles have been eliminated.

The next step is the decisive battle between Yuan and Sun. In this battle, the two sides will determine the dominance of the world.

Sun Ce looked at everyone and said: "Yuan Shao has the ambition to become emperor, and the only people he fears are Gu and Guo Tongrui." When Cheng Tang attacked Jie, he said, "You Xia has many sins." King Wu attacked Zhou and said, "Yin You Heavy punishment'. Although these two kings have holy virtues, if they have not committed any wrongdoing, there is no reason to force them."

"My lord is not doing evil to the world now. He is just using the weak to threaten the strong ministers, which is different from the time of Tang and Wu. Yuan Shao falsely claims to be the emperor and persecutes him. Gu must not sit idly by and ignore it."

"If you want to mobilize the three armies in a big way, please apply for nine punishments! You and others can tell you all your suggestions."

This is the most typical speech of the princes, and the emperor can do no wrong.

How can anyone, a minister, accuse the emperor of being immoral?

At least it must be taboo for His Holiness.

Therefore, Sun Ce can accuse Yuan Shao of being arrogant and immoral without any scruples. As for Sun Ce, if he also goes to war with the emperor in the future.

The reasons and excuses are easy to find. The emperor will not lose his virtue, but the chaos in the world must be because there are treacherous ministers around the emperor. Therefore, the emperor's holy virtue threatens the powerful ministers!

As a loyal general, Sun Ce was ordered by the emperor to raise troops to clear the emperor's side. It was reasonable!

Can anyone really come to Sun Ce and ask him to take a look at the emperor's edict?

After Sun Ce preempted Dayi's speech, Zhang Zhao took the lead and said: "If the general wants to quell Yuan Shao's rebellion, he should use the material resources of the south. He dominates the outside of the river and is good at strengthening the Southern Xia. He is a man of Han Dynasty, and he is a garrison of horses. Zu Lianyou and Qingji controlled half of the world. He was brave in serving his orders, wise in making tribute plans, and he was so powerful that he said that the ancestors of the Han Dynasty could stand on his heels, and that Huan and Wen Yi could advance. They should not be underestimated."

Yuan Shao is naturally very powerful. You can say that he is tolerant on the outside and cautious on the inside, and indecisive, but you cannot say that he is weak in power.

He conquered four states and controlled half of the world. He had hundreds of thousands of subordinates. He could be said to be a fierce general as powerful as an eagle and an advisor as powerful as clouds and rain.

His problem is only that his soldiers are not good enough. The soldiers in the north are numerous but not as brave as those in the south.

If he can accumulate grain to train his troops and select more than [-] soldiers, he will also be a formidable enemy on the battlefield!

It is not easy for Sun Ce to defeat such a powerful enemy alone.

So Sun Ce asked: "Is there any harm caused by rebellion under Yuan Shao's rule?"

Rebellion was unavoidable under Sun Ce's rule, and it must have happened under Yuan Shao's command.

Any rebellion can greatly delay Yuan Shao's time to go south, allowing Jiangdong to expand his army and train new troops.

(End of this chapter)