Johime Three Kingdoms

Chapter 476 Difficulties in Hanzhong
The third year of Chu Li had not yet arrived, but at the end of the second year of Chu Li, an obituary came from Liaodong - Gongsun Du died of illness in September.

The second year of Chuli is also the second year of Xingshun, which is equivalent to the eighth year of Jian'an without the white rabbit effect...

It is said that Gongsun Du died in the ninth year of Jian'an, but... As of now, the white rabbit is different from the butterfly. It not only flaps its wings, but also kicks its legs. The impact on the surroundings has been countless. Gongsun Du died a few months ago, and Nothing surprising.

If you really want to speculate, Bai Tu estimates... It is probably because of the stability of Jingyang and Yangzhou. Not only do the locals have no idea of ​​​​migrating, but they are also more attractive to war-torn immigrants from the Central Plains than in history.

As a place to avoid chaos, Liaodong is mainly to benefit from the influx of talents in troubled times, so that it can develop a wave every time in troubled times. Now that Jingyang Zhuyu is in front, Liaodong naturally has a lot less talents than in history. .

Maybe a few doctors who originally went to Liaodong have now gone to Chu State and medical school, thus indirectly affecting Gongsundu's lifespan...

However, the power transition of the Gongsun family was very smooth. After all, Gongsun Kang had been gradually taking over before Gongsun Du's lifetime, and his younger brother Gongsun Gong had no competition for inheritance rights because he had cut off his roots for medical treatment since he was a child. Therefore, Liaodong's The transition of power was uncontroversial.

Taking advantage of the obituary announcement of Gongsun Du's death, Gongsun Kang once again requested the states of Chu and Wei to seek a title for him.

Neither the Chu State nor the Wei State refused. They jointly submitted a letter to the Han Dynasty, stating that Gongsun Du had worked hard for the country and guarded Liaodong, and his heirs should be granted the title of marquis - and not just a general prince, but a prince. The earth-splitting princes who need to be awarded Jiuxi!
In addition to Gongsun Kang, Zhang Lu, the Marquis of Hanzhong, was also requested by Chu and Wei to be conferred the title of Jiuxi Marquis.

Of course, they only supported Zhang Lu's title of Marquis. As for titles such as Heavenly Master and King of Hanzhong, Bai Tu and Cao Cao didn't want to pay attention to them at all.

Zhang Lu, who increasingly felt threatened, stopped being arrogant, accepted the suggestions of Chu and Wei, and moved closer to the two great feudal states of Chu and Wei...

Therefore, during the New Year, Bai Tu and Cao Cao gave Liu Xie the best gift - two letters of commendation for "loyal ministers of the Han Dynasty". They flattered Gongsun Du and Zhang Lu so much that they refused to seal them or ban them. Their descendants are princes, and they are not worthy of the whole world.

In addition to appeasing Gongsun Kang and appeasing Zhang Lu, Chu and Wei may not have the intention of "further damaging the reputation of the Han Dynasty."

Before Bai Tu, the last time the Han Dynasty awarded Jiuxi was when Wang Mang was in chaos.

However, now from Bai Tu to Cao Cao, there are still a number of auxiliary Han princes. How many Jiuxi have been awarded by the Han Dynasty?
Not to mention, they are still being forced to continue "teaching".

Although he knew clearly that Chu and Wei were talking nonsense, and that Gongsun Du and Zhang Lu were all "rebellious ministers and traitors", Liu Xie also knew that if he told the truth, there would definitely be more embarrassing results, such as Hanzhong and Youzhou. The Northeast secretly granted vassal status, such as Chu and Wei, which privately recognized the status of Gongsun Kang and Zhang Lu as vassal states...

Regarding this matter, there is also a lot of controversy between North Korea and China.

Liu Xie wanted to reject them all, but everyone knew that the Han Dynasty did not have the confidence to do so now.

The more controversial ones are mainly aimed at Zhang Lu's Hanzhong Hou!

Gongsun Kang was far away in Liaodong. In the eyes of the Han Dynasty, even if they wanted to attack Gongsun Kang, only the Wei State, which bordered on land, could do it. Since the Wei State supported Gongsun Kang in making him a marquis, there was no need for the court to care too much.

Even if we have to argue with Gongsun in the future, it will only be after regaining Wei. And after all, Cao Cao and Gongsun Kang are neighbors, can the two really get along happily?
Maybe when fighting against Wei in the future, we can also seek cooperation - making friends at a distance and attacking at close range, but this is a "good method" that Qin has proven.

However, the situation in Hanzhong is completely different. In theory, Hanzhong and Chu State cannot be considered connected. After all, taking the Han River from Hanzhong to Jingzhou is not only inconvenient, but also completely one-way. It is impossible to cross Wushan from Chu State. , arrived in Hanzhong!
If it is difficult to march on a large scale from Jingzhou to Yizhou, then it is just a dream to go from Jingzhou to Hanzhong.

The north and south sides of Hanzhong are respectively Yizhou of Shuhou Liu Zhang and Guanxi of Yonghou Ma Teng and Saihou Han Sui.

It seems that as long as Yonghou and Saihou sweep Guanxi and subdue Dong Zhuo's remaining troops in Guanxi, they can attack Zhang Lu from both sides...

What's more, Zhang Lu occupied Hanzhong, which was not only related to the integration of Yizhou and other auxiliary forces of the Han Dynasty, but also the land of Longxing, the emperor of the Han Dynasty.

Moreover, the enmity between Liu Zhang and Zhang Lu cannot be mediated by an imperial edict.

Rushing to seal Zhang Lu might make Liu Zhang dissatisfied with the court and only increase the number of variables!

Not to mention that Dong Cheng and others also played a great role in opposing this matter...

According to Dong Cheng's logic, Zhang Yan, Yang Feng, and Liu Bei, the princes of Guandong, are all unruly people who want to harm His Majesty. Ma Han of Guanxi is also a loyal general, especially Ma Teng. After all, Han Sui When Dong Cheng deliberately paddled in a low profile, he could experience the suppression of his IQ by the Xiliang princes!

In contrast, Liu Bei and Zhang Yan both made Dong Cheng feel threatened because they had expert advice.

Therefore, Dong Cheng's faction in the court must put the interests of Guanxi first and oppose the idea that Guanxi can attack the feudal princes of Hanzhong!

At this time, the courtiers were roughly divided into three factions. One faction was headed by Dong Cheng, whose first priority was to protect the emperor...or to lick the emperor. They claimed to be absolutely loyal to Liu Xie and were Liu Xie's emotional favorite. The other faction was Led by Zongzheng and Liu Ai, with the focus on supporting the Han Dynasty, Dong Cheng said in private when he challenged Liu Xie - people like Liu Ai don't care at all who becomes the emperor, as long as he is the emperor of the Han Dynasty!

As for the third faction, it is "others"...

There is no absolute representative figure. If I have to say it, it should be Yang Biao.

We must talk about the unanimous appeal of "other factions", that is, each faction has its own calculations, whether it is clan interests, or the factions behind the scenes. Hua Xin and Zhong Yao are also included.

Everyone knows that behind Hua Xin is the Chu State, and behind Zhong Yao is the Wei State.

When Li Jue and Guo Si held Liu Xie hostage, Zhong Yao served as "Ting Wei Zheng" in Chang'an. When Liu Xie escaped from Guanzhong, Zhong Yao was also one of the main planners!

Originally Liu Xie also trusted Zhong Yao, but... after going to Xudu, Liu Xie gradually discovered that this guy and Cao Cao were of the same mind.

In fact, Zhong Yao had already contacted Cao Cao through Xun Yu before returning to the east. When he was in Chang'an, he persuaded Li Jue and Guo Si many times to coordinate the relationship between the court and Cao Cao.

After all, Zhong Yao and Xun Yu were both from Yingchuan, and both families were from noble families. Zhong Yao was optimistic about Cao Cao, Cao Cao also needed someone from Chang'an to look after him, and with Xun Yu's help, the two sides quickly reached an agreement. A tacit understanding!

Historically, Zhong Yao had been sitting in Guanyou and controlling Guanzhong for Cao Cao after Emperor Xian returned eastward and before the Battle of Chibi.

At that time, Guanzhong was in chaos after the deaths of Li Jue and Guo Si. Cao Cao was actively preparing to conquer Yuan Shao in the north and Sun Quan in the south. He had no intention of getting involved in this mess. Zhong Yao used Cao Cao's power as his backing and was good at dancing in Guanzhong, playing both sides... …

Before the Xiliang rebellion, whether it was Ma Teng or the Xiliang generals, as long as they reached the border of Guanzhong, they were led by Zhong Yao. When the Yuan family persuaded the southern Xiongnu to attack Pingyang, including Ma Teng, all the generals in Guanzhong and Guanxi The Lu warlords all followed Zhong Yao's orders and fought against the Southern Xiongnu.

Later, when Ma Chao rebelled against Cao Cao, in order to persuade Han Sui, he also pretended that "Zhong Sili asked me to capture the general"...

Obviously Cao Cao did not put many troops in Sili, but only gave Zhong Yao a "tiger skin". However, Zhong Yao relied on his "tiger skin" to become Sili's "big leader" and stabilized Sili for Cao Cao. scribe.

This shows the "evil nature" of Zhong Yao, or he is a "chicken thief"!
When he and Zhong Yao discussed rescuing the Han Emperor's returning officials, perhaps part of his original intention was for the sake of the Han Dynasty and the Emperor, but... what Zhong Yao is best at is making his "thief ship" bigger and more powerful. Keep everyone who got on the pirate ship!

More than two years ago, when the Han Emperor returned to the west and reunified the Sili, Zhong Yao, who originally served as Cao Cao's pacification Sili, also entered the court again and served as an official for the Wei state in the court.

Because Hua Xin had the merit and fame of returning the jade seal, and Zhong Yao had the merit of rescuing the emperor ten years ago, and they were both famous people in the world, their status in the court was stable. On the one hand, there were Chu and Wei While he was granted official titles and titles, he was still serving as a Han minister in the court.

Even in court, the two of them did not fight alone, but had a group of supporters!
Because of the good relations between Chu and Wei, the Wei State's various unresolved relations with the Yang family, and the fact that they had to face the suppression of Dong Cheng and Liu Ai, "other" factions often united.

But this time, not only did Dong Cheng insist on rejecting Zhang Lu's title of marquis for the benefit of Kansai, but Liu Ai and other clan members also resisted Zhang Lu because of Liu Zhang...

Although Liu Yan's plan to abolish history and establish animal husbandry was a strategy to disrupt the Han Dynasty, Liu Zhang's surname was still Liu after all, and the clan no longer wanted the Liu family to be weakened in any way!

Even Yang Biao agreed with Dong Cheng's objection on this matter.

Therefore, Hua Xin and Zhong Yao were running around in the court, but they could not compete for full merit...

In the end, the Han Dynasty court finalized the decision and made Gongsun Kang the Marquis of Yan. At the same time, he admonished Zhang Lu, accusing him of not wanting to defend his territory and arrogantly going to war with Yizhou. Zhang Lu was ordered to immediately cease his troops and return to Chang'an to report on his duties.

Of course, no one expected Zhang Lu to return to Chang'an honestly after seeing the edict, just to show his attitude.

Jinling learned about this on the 23rd of the twelfth lunar month, and Bai Tu probably didn't even know about Zhang Lu...

Bai Tu also deliberately began to "leak" the matter in Jinling. However, the version spread among the people is that the Marquis of Shu was a cunning and sycophantic man who deceived the Han Dynasty and wanted to join forces with the Marquis of Yong to capture Hanzhong first without any worries, and then go down the river. , attacked Jingzhou and destroyed Chu State...

(End of this chapter)