Super Cultivation System of the Three Kingdoms

Chapter 680: Rebellion
Xun You stood up and said, "Your Majesty, I think the threat from the Xiongnu is not something to be feared. The Southern Xiongnu's Zuo Xian King has been killed by Your Majesty. Considering the current strength of the Southern Xiongnu, I'm afraid that they can only send out 70,000 to 80,000 cavalry. This time they came to plunder Beidi County. I think it's because they can't make a living in Mobei, so they have to return to our Han territory to plunder food."

Liu He nodded and said, "Well, that's true. But they killed so many people of our Han Dynasty this time, how can we let this blood debt go? Since the Southern Xiongnu dared to come back, I will take this opportunity to wipe them out in one fell swoop and eradicate them completely."

Xun You said, "The national treasury is still short of food and grass. Although we have just had a good harvest, the tax grain will not be deposited into the treasury until the end of the year. In the near future, only the grain from the military farms will be deposited into the national treasury. After deducting expenses, there is still only enough for hundreds of thousands of troops to withdraw for about half a year. Now that Han Sui and Liu Yan have not been eliminated, the court should not send troops lightly."

Cui Jun also echoed, "I agree with Gongda's words. The Xiongnu cavalry roams in the desert and grasslands, and it is difficult to find the traces of their royal court. The army is away, and the daily expenditure on food and fodder is a huge amount. If it takes several months, I am afraid that the treasury will be emptied again, and Han Sui and others will surely become more rampant."

"Yes, the sudden return of the Southern Xiongnu at such a precise time may be due to someone's instigation. If so, Your Majesty must not fall into their trap."

Xun Yu also tried to persuade him.

Seeing that the three of them were against sending troops, Liu He became a little annoyed.

"Are we just going to let these Xiongnu villains run rampant on the land of our Han Dynasty? I..."

Before he finished speaking, a voice suddenly came from outside the hall.

"Your Majesty, urgent news from Xuzhou from 500 miles away..."

Liu He was stunned. "Urgent news from Xuzhou? Didn't Tao Gongzu just return to Xuzhou half a month ago? How come there is a report so soon, and it's urgent at a distance of 500 miles?"

In the court now headed by Liu He, reports from various places are divided into three levels: 300 li, 500 li, and 600 li. Because the Han Dynasty has not yet been unified and there are no post stations, the most urgent 800 li express can only be used in Bingzhou and Sili areas, and even Jizhou cannot be used.

Normally, a report was sent at a distance of 300 li, and an urgent report of 600 li was extremely rare, unless there was a major disaster such as the Yellow River flood, or a powerful enemy invasion. In most cases, an urgent report of 500 li was already a very urgent report.

Xun Yu walked out of the hall, took the memorial, and walked back in.

"What does Tao Gongzu want to report?" Liu He asked.

Xun Yu opened the report and took a look, his brows instantly frowned.

"The four Taishan bandits, Sun Guan, Wu Dun, Yin Li, and Chang Xi, suddenly led 80,000 bandits to invade the Xuzhou Langya territory, burning, killing, and looting, causing Langya to be a sea of ​​fire, with heavy casualties. Governor Tao sent troops to resist, but the enemy did not engage, and fled after the battle. Later, they attacked at night, causing heavy losses to the Xuzhou army. I beg the court to send troops to help."

"Taishan bandits?" Liu He was a little surprised.

"Although the Taishan bandits are quite powerful, comparable to the Black Mountain Army, how dare they go against the imperial court? Tao Qian's visit to Luoyang to pay tribute has already shown that Xuzhou belongs to him. Previously, they were just wandering around Xu, Yan, and Qing to collect money. Now they have the guts to attack the city directly?"

Xun Yu thought for a moment and said, "This matter is indeed a little strange. I think..."

Before he could finish his words, another person outside the hall shouted.

"Express delivery from Yangzhou, 500 miles away..."

"What's going on?" With urgent reports coming one after another, Liu He could no longer sit still.

After Xun Yu took the report and read it, he replied: "Shanyue barbarians appeared in many places in Yangzhou, looting food and women, and setting fire to countless houses. The new governor Liu Yao personally led the army to hunt them down, but the Shanyue were scattered all over the place and wandering in the mountains. The officers and soldiers went out to fight, not only did they gain nothing, but the chief clerk of Yangzhou was attacked and killed by the bandits. Governor Liu begged the court to send troops to collect the accusations." Liu He frowned and said, "What on earth happened? How come these jumping clowns seemed to have discussed it beforehand and went out at the same time? Something is wrong..."

Cui Jun reminded him: "Could this incident and Liu Yan's claim to the throne have been instigated by the same group of people?"

After hearing this, Liu He suddenly realized: "Yes, that's probably the case. They just want to use this to attract the court's attention and consume our troops and food."

But he changed his mind and became worried again: "The Taishan bandits, Shanyue, and Xiongnu rebellions all require heavy troops to suppress. Moreover, it is inconvenient for the imperial army to go to Xuzhou and Yangzhou to suppress the rebellion. If the person behind the scenes interferes, I am afraid that our army will suffer heavy losses. This matter will be difficult to handle."

Cui Jun was also in a dilemma: "The three rebellions are all dangerous to the people of our Han Dynasty, especially the two governors of Xuzhou and Yangzhou. Tao Qian came to Luoyang to pay tribute, and Liu Yao was appointed by the court. If the court does not send troops and lets them fend for themselves, the other princes will certainly be disappointed with the court. So no matter what choice our army makes, it will be of great benefit to the people behind the scenes and Liu Yan and others."

"Um……"

Liu He half-closed his eyes and slowly tapped the imperial desk in front of him with his fingers.

Xun Yu and others knew that Liu He would be like this every time he was upset.

In the Xuzhou governor's mansion, a young man who looked like a scholar was saying something to Tao Qian with an anxious look on his face.

"My lord, we have already sent a letter to the court for help. Your Majesty is benevolent and righteous. A large army will come to suppress the bandits soon. Why should you be in such a hurry? I'm afraid that Cao Cao's troops from Yanzhou have ill intentions. If we let them enter Xuzhou, it will be easier said than done. Please think twice."

This person looked very anxious and urgent, and his words were somewhat excited.

Tao Qian looked at him and sighed.

"Alas, I know the power of the imperial court. As long as Your Majesty sends troops, the Taishan bandits are nothing to worry about."

"Then why did the lord agree to Cao Cao's proposal to advance?" the scholar asked puzzledly.

Tao Qian sighed, "I am helpless. Even if Your Majesty dispatches troops from Jizhou, through Qingzhou, and into Xuzhou, and sends an order from Luoyang, and then reorganizes the army and sends troops, it will take at least half a month, or even longer. After the Taishan bandits successfully looted Langya, the four major bandit leaders have led their troops to attack from all sides. If we can't stop them in time, I'm afraid that Donghai, Chengyang and other places will suffer. The bumper harvest of grain this time will all be looted by the bandits, so..."

At this point, Tao Qian showed reluctance: "If this happens, the people of Xuzhou will lose their food. How will they live? Yuanlong, do you think I understand?"

Upon hearing this, the scholar had to swallow back what he was about to say.

However, he was still very unwilling, his lips moved, and finally he spoke again: "Your Excellency is very kind and righteous, and you love the people so much, which is a blessing for all people. However, I think Cao Cao is a tiger and wolf. Once he enters Xuzhou, the disaster he will cause will be worse than the Taishan bandits. In my opinion, it is better to go to Qingzhou and ask Kong Beihai and Liu Xuande for help. Especially Liu Xuande, he has been training troops and martial arts in Donglai County for the past two years, and he has also fought against the Taishan bandits and won many battles. Asking him for help is ten times stronger than Cao Cao."

Tao Qian shook his head and said, "I have known the reputation of Liu Xuande and his three brothers, so I naturally have no doubts. But the mountain bandits and sea pirates in Donglai County have caused a lot of trouble. Now they have just been pacified. If I ask the three brothers to lead the troops here, the bandits in Donglai County will surely come back again, and the people of Qingzhou will also suffer. How can I bear it?"

Another young man in a white robe and brocade belt stood up and said, "My Lord, I think Chen Deng's words are very good. Although the Taishan bandits are fierce, their fighting ability is mediocre. It's just that we don't have good generals in Xuzhou, so it's difficult to fight them. The three Liu Xuande brothers are all great generals, and your majesty has praised them a lot. I am willing to go to Donglai in person and ask Lord Xuande to send a general with troops to help us. There is no need for too many troops. I will also hand over the military power of Xuzhou to him. Even if we can't destroy the Taishan bandits, it will be enough to protect ourselves for a while. When the imperial army arrives, we can surround them from both sides and it will be easy to eliminate the bandits. In this way, Xuzhou can be protected, and the defense of Donglai County will not be slack. Isn't it the best of both worlds?"

(End of this chapter)