Super Cultivation System of the Three Kingdoms

Chapter 539 The real mastermind
He originally thought that Liu He would naturally return to Luoyang to see his new daughter at this time. Anyway, the disaster in Xihe County had basically been settled.

Liu He looked at him with a serious expression.

"Well, the Sili region is peaceful, but Bingzhou is in trouble. Yuan Shao is eyeing it covetously. A few days ago, Liu Yu and Gongsun Zan wrote to me at the same time to rebuke each other and asked me to intervene in justice. Not long ago, Budugen and Qianman had another war. Budugen wrote to me asking me to send troops to help. I split the three Xianbei tribes back then, and they have been fighting for many years. This time, Budugen and Qianman seem to be fighting to the death."

"Although Xihe County has temporarily blocked the gaps in the river bank, it is not a long-term solution. If we want to truly manage the river and eliminate future hidden dangers, it is still a huge project. I intend to visit Bingzhou and look for experts in river management and water conservancy. Otherwise, if I leave like this, I will inevitably feel a little bit reluctant."

Qian Li urged him: "But the military advisor mentioned in the letter that the court has tried all the criminals of the Luoyang Rebellion, and is waiting for the master to return to the court to make a final decision and then announce it to the world. In addition, Yuan Shu has been frantically expanding his troops in the past few months. The military advisor got the news that he bought 20,000 war horses from the Qiang people and Xiongnu people in Liangzhou more than a month ago. I am afraid he has ulterior motives. The military advisor asks the master to go back and take charge of the overall situation."

Listening to all these miscellaneous things, Liu He, who was already very tired, suddenly felt his head swollen, and he couldn't help but slap his hands.

Seeing his appearance, Qian Li did not dare to continue reporting: "My Lord, are you okay?"

Liu He took a deep breath and then opened his eyes: "It's okay, I'm just overworked. How about this, you write the letter this time. Send the list of those criminals who plotted treason to Lishi County first, including all the people or families involved, and don't let them go. As for Yuan Shu..."

When talking about Yuan Shu, Liu He couldn't help showing contempt: "This man loves vanity and is just a show-off. He is not worth mentioning. Tell the military advisor to continue to send people to keep an eye on him. I will spend a few days in Bingzhou to look for people who can manage the river, and by the way, I will arrange the affairs of Jizhou. If there is still no progress in the search after half a month, I will return to Luoyang."

"This..." Qian Li looked embarrassed.

"That's it, go ahead and do it, I'll take a rest first."

Liu He turned and left. Qian Li shook his head helplessly. He could only write a reply letter according to his wishes and order someone to send it to Luoyang as soon as possible.

The General's Mansion in Luoyang was filled with joy since the birth of the new daughter. The mansion was decorated with lights and lanterns for several days in a row. Every servant and maid in the mansion was sincerely happy.

However, Xun Yu and Cui Jun, who had just received the reply from Liu He and Qian Li, looked a little conflicted.

"Alas, I thought the news from the mistress would bring the lord back, but I didn't expect that he could really endure and continue to stay in Bingzhou. Yuan Shao has been defeated in succession, and this time in the battle of Shangdang, his vitality was severely damaged. What is there to be afraid of? As for the river management, you can leave it to Qian Daozhun, Meng Gongwei, Shi Guangyuan and others. Why do you have to do it yourself? I dare not tell the mistress and the old lady about this news."

Cui Jun said this with some complaint.

"Okay, you know what the lord's temper is like. Eighteen county magistrates in Bingzhou have been arrested this time, and there are many government affairs and disaster relief affairs that are very heavy. Qian, Shi, Meng and others alone, even if they have three heads and six arms, will be too tired to sleep at night. River management is the most fundamental of all affairs. If the river is not managed well, the river bank will collapse sooner or later. The lord is running around for this, which is a move that cares about the people. You and I should support him. As for Yuan Shao, this man is still evil. Although he lost 40,000 elite troops in this battle, Jizhou has a large population and can recover its strength in a few months at most. Moreover, he just captured Anle Army and Jinan State in Qingzhou a few days ago. I predict that there will be more actions after the spring."

As soon as Xun Yu brought up this topic, Cui Jun started talking.

"I think Yuan Shao is just so-so. Previously, he relied on the secret collusion of many ministers in the court to cause trouble behind the scenes, which caused chaos in Luoyang and the Yellow River bursting its banks. Now that the matter has been resolved, with the military strength of Yunchang and others, it will be our turn to counterattack Jizhou next year."

Although they were both counselors, Cui Jun had a worse temper than Xun Yu, Meng Jian, Shi Tao, etc. He was usually gentle and polite, unlike Cheng Liang and Zhu Ye, but when something really happened, he could definitely be described as a hateful person.

Xun Yu smiled and said, "Haha, Zhou Ping is right. Yuan Shao is the leader of all the princes. If we get rid of him first, half of our lord's great cause will be accomplished."

"Yes, that's right." Cui Jun stroked his chin and said, "But it's strange that Yuan Shu has no intention of helping his brother. Even if they have conflicting personalities, he remained unmoved when most of our main forces were deployed. It seems that he really has no ambition."

"It's better to be careful. Not long ago, he purchased so many war horses. I don't know who he is going to fight against. The two brothers of the Yuan family, one occupies Jizhou and the other occupies Yuzhou. Both are the richest places in our Han Dynasty. There are many people, money, powerful people, and talents. Yuan Shu was able to defeat Liu Biao and firmly sit in Nanyang County. It can be seen that his strength should not be underestimated."

Xun Yu sat in his seat and put away Liu He's reply letter.

Seeing him like this, Cui Jun sat down with him and said, "Since the lord is unwilling to come back, we can only continue to keep an eye on the various princes." After Yuan Shu gained control of the entire Yuzhou, he moved his seat of government from Nanyang County to Pingyu City in Runan County, proclaimed himself the Governor of Yuzhou, and made his eldest son Yuan Yao the Prefect of Nanyang.

On this day, Yuan Shu and many of his civil and military officials gathered together for a banquet, apparently entertaining some important guests.

There was a man who looked like a Confucian scholar with a thin figure, sunken eye sockets and very high cheekbones. He was sitting in the first seat below Yuan Shu.

Yuan Shu's face flushed and he raised his glass to toast this man again and again.

"Mr. Zhongde has worked so hard. A small amount of wine is not a sign of respect. It is not a sign of respect."

The man was not polite and raised his glass in response: "Thank you, Mr. Yuan, for your hospitality. I'll drink first as a token of my respect."

This person is none other than Cheng Yu, Cheng Zhongde, a counselor under the command of Cao Cao, the current governor of Yanzhou.

"Meng De and I are not brothers, but we are better than brothers. He has treated me, Yuan Shu, with such respect. Not only has he sent me generous gifts many times, but he has also asked Mr. Zhongde to come to Yuzhou to teach me many times. This is a toast to Meng De from afar."

He raised the wine jar high, and many civil and military officials below followed suit.

Cheng Yu said respectfully, "Yu would like to thank Lord Yuan on behalf of my master."

After finishing another bottle of wine, Cheng Yu wiped the wine off his beard.

"The Yuan family has three dukes in four generations, and they are the leaders of the world's scholars. Now Liu He is tyrannical and cruel to scholars. We have long hoped for a wise leader like Lord Yuan to raise his arms and lead the scholars to overthrow Liu He and create a prosperous era again."

Yuan Shu was so happy to hear this, but he squinted his eyes and looked at Cheng Yu, saying: "Hey, Shu is just a humble man. Meng De and my brother Yuan Shao have known each other since childhood. Why don't we go to Jizhou and welcome him to fight?"

It would have been fine if he didn't mention it, but as soon as he mentioned Yuan Shao, Cheng Yu's face immediately became full of disgust.

"Why do you say that, Lord Yuan? Your brother Yuan Benchu ​​is stubborn and reckless. He was defeated by Liu He many times. His generals are known as the Four Pillars of Hebei. Yan Liang was seriously injured in the battle of Shangdang and is still recovering in Jizhou. Zhang He was captured and there is no news of him. Gao Lan was defeated by Guan Yu and had to rely on Zhang Niujiao, a bandit soldier, to rescue him. He was so incompetent that he greatly damaged the dignity of the nobles and the Yuan family. Lord Yuan, are you talking like this because you don't trust my lord? If so, Yu will die in front of Lord Yuan to show his sincerity!"

After saying that, Cheng Yu stood up and pretended to crash into a large pillar beside him.

Yuan Shu had never expected that he would be so excited, and his face immediately turned pale with shock.

"Quick, stop him!"

Several people nearby quickly stopped Cheng Yu, but his face was still filled with grief and anger.

Yuan Shu smiled and said, "Zhongde, why do you have to be so? I just said it casually. Since last year, Mengde has visited me many times and offered me advice and suggestions. How sincere is he? Don't I know?"

Only then did Cheng Yu's expression relax and he sat down again.

"At the beginning, my master pretended to give advice to Yuan Shao, urging him to unite the noble families and officials and frequently attack Liu He. Yuan Shao really believed it, which led to the Luoyang Rebellion, the Yellow River disaster, and many wars in Bingzhou. Not only did it greatly damage Liu He's strength, but it also caused most of his main forces to gather in Bingzhou, either to deal with the invasion of Jizhou, or to assist Xihe County in disaster relief and river management, or to increase troops in Yanmen and Taiyuan to prevent the Taihang Mountain bandits from colluding with Yuan Shao. Now that Luoyang is empty, the time is ripe. As long as Lord Yuan makes a call, the world will surely gather and respond."

(End of this chapter)