Goose Three Kingdoms

Chapter 566: Mediation and Truce
Jizhou, Qinghe State, at the northern boundary bridge.

Cao Cao deployed his troops here, eyeing Guangzong City in the north.

The area south of the old Yellow River course was Cao's army's hunting ground.

When Yangzhou Governor Jiang Ji arrived there, he saw a bustling military market outside Cao's camp, where captured men and women were being sold and redeemed by people sent from Hebei.

Jiang Ji was upset by the rumors of unredeemed boys and girls, so he simply let down the door curtain and closed his eyes in deep thought.

Information about the war in the north gradually spread to the south. As an envoy who mediated the ceasefire, Jiang Ji received first-hand information.

Yuan Shang did not hide anything from him and even made threats.

If Cao Cao did not withdraw his troops, Yuan Shang would submit a memorial to the Guanzhong Shangshu Xingtai, demote himself three levels to ask for forgiveness, and formally become subordinate to the Grand Marshal.

This was just the basic requirement. Another requirement was to ask for the King of Wei, and the next level was to ask for the King of Zhao, in an attempt to formally establish a country.

Jiang Ji was faced with two choices, but he was only ordered to mediate a ceasefire.

Soon the vehicle entered the camp, and several of his former colleagues who were on good terms with him greeted him at the camp gate.

Jiang Ji walked into the central army camp holding a red banner. Cao Cao was sitting at the head of the tent.

Without getting up, he looked at Jiang Ji and said, "Yuan Shang is a traitor. I sent troops to suppress him. Why are you pleading for Yuan Shang?"

Jiang Ji leaned on the banner, held his head high and said, "I am not here to save the Yuan family, but to save you, my lord."

"I haven't seen you for many years. You seem to be more talkative now."

Cao Cao smiled and said, "I am leading an army of 100,000 men. The black bandits are already exhausted after the battle. How can I be in danger? If you can't explain clearly, I will ask the emperor to send another wise man."

Jiang Ji looked around at the thirty-odd civil and military officials in the tent and asked with a smile, "In September, Guanzhong will recruit Xiongnu and Xianbei volunteers, which will at least have more than 30,000 cavalry. I heard that when Ma Shoucheng came to rescue, he also had more than 30,000 cavalry. Add to that the surrendered troops in this battle, and there will be no less than 100,000 cavalry. If you focus on the south and Yuan lets you go, the natural barrier of the river will be the end of your journey."

Several generals glared at Jiang Ji, but no one stood up to refute.

After losing Guanzhong, Cao Cao's cavalry became increasingly weak in size, and even the Tiger and Leopard Cavalry were disbanded.

With 100,000 infantrymen fighting against 100,000 cavalrymen, and with the assistance of Jizhou soldiers, both the Yuan and Cao families might be destroyed.

Seeing that no one objected, Jiang Ji said: "Yuan's handwritten letter is here. You also know that Yuan is young and hot-tempered. If he surrenders to Guanzhong out of spite, the world will be upside down in an instant."

He took out a scroll of silk from his sleeve and handed it to Cao Zhang. Cao Zhang stood up and took it. He shook it open and read it himself. Then he took it and walked to the upper seat and said to Cao Cao: "Father, Yuan Shang wants to perish together with us. In my opinion, this is more like blackmail."

"A rogue method."

Cao Cao picked up the silk book, glanced at it casually, and then put it on the edge of the table, stretching his arms: "Please take a seat and tell me the court's intentions in detail."

"I dare not attend the banquet until my mission is accomplished."

Jiang Ji continued, "The court sent me here to mediate the dispute between the two families, so as to persuade the Yuan family to obey the will of heaven and the court. If I fail to accomplish my mission, the court will send another envoy, and it will take months to come and go. The situation in Hebei may be difficult to control. I have something to say, I wonder if you can listen to it?"

"The black thief is rampant, and I am unwilling to fight to the death with Yuan, and let the black thief reap the benefits. Please speak frankly."

"Yes, Yuan has lost his wife for several years. It is said that she died at the hands of Grand Historian Wengong."

Jiang Ji coughed twice and said, "Why don't you marry your daughter to him? This way, we can form a father-in-law and son-in-law alliance, and we can also make up for the losses in Guandu and Liyang. In this way, we can fight against the black bandits together, and the court can also devote all its efforts to conquer the bandits in Jingzhou."

"Given the old friendship between Benchu ​​and me, if his son comes to me after losing his position, I will put aside the old grudges and treat him like my own son."

Cao Cao looked around the tent and said in a clear tone: "The court is talking about peace now. If Yuan is willing to put aside the old grudge, I can agree. But Pingyuan County should be returned to this state."

“That’s what it should be.”

Jiang Ji agreed and said, "The black bandits are strong and fierce, and far more violent than Dong Zhuo. The court is extremely worried. In order to pacify the world, we have the idea of ​​establishing a strong vassal state to resist the black bandits. When I report to the court, the day when Yuan and Cao form an alliance and make peace will also be the day when the court will issue an imperial decree to establish a vassal state."

Cao Cao adjusted his sitting posture slightly, and the expressions of the civil and military officials in the tent became lively.

The most important thing now is to stabilize the front line and curb the black bear's expansion momentum.

Only by containing it can we have the opportunity to hold off and counterattack.

Whether it is the establishment of a duchy or a kingdom, it means entering a new level of development.

If they could gain a firm foothold, they would be able to seize control of Yanzhou, Yuzhou and Xuzhou before the imperial court and restore the previous situation.

After all, Luoyang is still in Xiahou Dun's hands. If the situation improves, the Heluo defense line can be restored and the way out of Guanzhong can be blocked. Jiang Ji then did not attend the banquet, but crossed the boundary bridge to the north under the escort of Cao's knights, and headed west along the Chidao Road to Yecheng.

Jiang Ji arrived at Yecheng in the evening of the next day, and Yecheng had become a huge military camp.

The officers and soldiers who were subsequently mobilized and conscripted arrived in Yecheng for arming and training. Without the army composed of the big families and powerful people, these newly conscripted troops were naturally directly under the command of the Shogun's shogunate.

The burden of arming and supporting these troops fell on Yuan Shang. Fortunately, the coalition of powerful forces was almost completely wiped out, and the remaining leaders were terrified and responded positively to the orders of the general's office to collect money and food.

After a great defeat, the human and material resources that Yuan Shang could mobilize increased by two levels.

The biggest concern now is no longer Cao Cao, but the captives in Black Bear's hands. These powerful captives represent the people's hearts in Jizhou.

Fortunately, Black Bear disdains to use or utilize this part of the people's hearts and manpower.

In the residence of Yecheng, Jiang Ji was reading the accumulated letters after bathing when the guard came to report: "Mingsir, Ju Hu wants to see you."

"Prepare refreshments."

Jiang Ji got up to get his outer robe, and soon met Ju Hu in the living room.

Ju Hu wore mourning clothes. One of his uncles also led his fellow villagers and troops to join the expedition and died in battle at Chanhe Pond.

After the two men exchanged greetings, Ju Hu explained his purpose: "My lord sent me here to bother you so late at night because I want to ask you a few questions."

"It just so happens that Jiang has something to ask you, sir."

Jiang Ji took a sip from the tea bowl and said to him: "Now the Grand Marshal of Guanzhong is the only one in power. In order to survive, all parties have become like the pre-Qin Dynasty. But Liu Xuande was given a great favor by the Grand Marshal and formed an alliance with Guanzhong. Regarding this matter, does the court have any countermeasures?"

"I have been in Huainan for a long time and have not had much contact with the court."

Jiang Ji shook his sleeves and sat firmly, and continued: "Sir, you also know that Jiang had a good relationship with the Grand Marshal in his early years. If it weren't for the fact that I have a master-servant relationship with the current emperor, and if I didn't care about the people in my hometown, Jiang would have gone to Guanzhong on a bicycle and dressed in hemp to ask for a title and salary."

He was only the governor of Yangzhou, but because of his long experience, the southeastern court never appointed a new governor of Yangzhou, and Jiang Ji was the de facto governor.

His ties to the Southeastern Court are not strong, and in the future he will still be a nominal representative of the locality rather than a founding member of the Southeastern Court.

After explaining his position, Jiang Ji asked, "I heard that you have a close relationship with the Grand Marshal?"

"Yes, I have been on several diplomatic missions. Because I am a close friend of the Grand Marshal, I have become quite close to him."

Ju Hu blew on the tea and continued, "During the clash between the two armies, when the Grand Marshal left Feihukou, he had already predicted that Hebei would rise up, and he sent me back to Hebei twice with excuses. The Lord also knew that I was loyal, so he only made me retreat to Yecheng to assist Lord Zhengnan in recruiting new troops, and I did not participate in the clash between the two armies."

Ju Hu drank his tea slowly, feeling mixed emotions. He then smiled calmly, "Your Excellency wants to ask about the military situation on the front lines. I won't hide it from you. All of my troops were killed in Chanhe Pond. There were also 60,000 miscellaneous Hu people, Youzhou officials and soldiers, and Wuhuan infantry and cavalry. The casualties from all sides were about 160,000."

"Hi~!"

Jiang Ji took a deep breath, his face horrified: "There are so many soldiers?"

"Well, the most casualties were suffered by the various Hu tribes. After this battle, the miscellaneous Hu tribes were purged, the Wuhuan tribe declined, and the Xianbei tribe in the east fled far away. The border threat was completely resolved."

Ju Hu held the tea bowl, his expression calm, "What the predecessors had not accomplished, we have now accomplished. So my master is not threatening Cao Cao with empty words, but after this battle, Hebei's fighting spirit is low, and it will be difficult for them to fight against the Grand Marshal for several years. Even if Cao Cao forces me again, Lord Zhengnan can still give up his family business, not to mention that each family has hostages there."

It was said that he was threatening Cao Cao, but the real threat was to the southeastern court.

Jiang Ji nodded slowly after hearing this: "If the court knew the inside story of the battle of Chanhebi, they would understand the strength of Guanzhong. But the King of Wei is a high title, and neither the Han Dynasty nor the Han Dynasty conferred it by imperial decree, so the court could not risk violating the will of the world. In the past, the Grand Marshal asked the late emperor to confer the title of Liang Wei, but because he refused to change it to the royal family, the court declined and made him the Marquis of Liang."

"Furthermore, if you grant him the title of King of Wei, the Grand Marshal will be angry and will certainly send troops to attack, which will not be conducive to Hebei's recuperation. In my opinion, what do you think of the King of Zhao?"

Seeing Ju Hu silent, Jiang Ji patiently explained: "When the parties form an alliance in the future and recover Hedong and Taiyuan, you can promote the King of Zhao to the King of Jin. This is the bottom line of the current emperor, and you can't ask for it anymore. In addition, I intend to bring the Yuan and Cao families together to put aside their past hatreds and old grudges. I also need the general to marry Cao Gong's beloved daughter with Pingyuan as a betrothal gift. In this way, the alliance between the father-in-law and the son-in-law will be achieved, and the situation of being interdependent will be achieved in an instant."

"This is a serious matter. Please allow me to report it to the Lord."

"It should be so. Jiang will wait for good news."

Jiang Ji smiled and agreed, then whispered, "I have a letter that I want to deliver to the Grand Marshal in person. Sir, do you have any ideas?"

Ju Hu looked at Jiang Ji, and Jiang Ji continued to smile.

Under Jiang Ji's smiling gaze, Ju Hu nodded slowly: "I am responsible for negotiating with the Grand Marshal, and each family also wants to inquire about the safety of their fathers and brothers. I will be sent to Dai soon, sir, you can give me the handwritten letter."

(End of this chapter)