Late Han Zhao Tang

Chapter 156 Help Dong, or help Yuan?
Winter October 26th, because Shangdang is at a high altitude, the winter is colder than that in Hebei.

Although the weather was cold, the Han army camp in Li Ting was bustling with activity, welcoming the thousand-odd troops recruited by Zhang Liao. The thousand-odd troops were divided into two groups, and under the guidance of the officials, they went to their respective garrisons to rest.

Looking down from the sky, we can see that the camp of the Han army is built along the river. With the arrival of Zhang Liao's troops, the camp that can accommodate 3,000 people is now full. However, although there are many soldiers and horses at present, except for the 1,000 people in the central camp, most of the 2,000 newly recruited soldiers are a motley crowd and cannot go to the battlefield.

Inside the big tent, Zhang Yu, Zhang Liao, Zhang Yang and other generals gathered in the big tent.

Zhang Yu poured a bottle of warm wine for Zhang Liao and said with a smile: "Wenyuan must have worked hard to recruit soldiers in Hebei!"

Zhang Liao took a sip of wine and said, "From Wu'an to Shexian, we entered Shangdang. The temperature dropped sharply. Shangdang is much colder than Weijun!"

"Did the trip go smoothly?" Zhang Yu asked.

Zhang Liao pondered for a moment and said, "With the help of Han Jizhou, it can be considered a smooth journey."

"Have you seen Han Fu?"

"seen!"

Zhang Liao said: "Liao had no money or food to recruit soldiers, so he went to visit Han Fu and learned my purpose of recruiting soldiers. He then allocated a lot of money and food to me and allowed me to recruit soldiers in Hebei."

As he spoke, Zhang Liao remembered something and took out a letter from his pocket and told Zhang Yu, "When I arrived in Yecheng, a letter written by Qiao Mao, the governor of Dongjun, arrived in Ye. It said that the letter was written by the three ministers, and it described Dong Zhuo's crimes and invited all the counties in the world to fight against him."

"Now many officials in Ye City are discussing the matter of fighting against Dong. Yuan Shao is planning to raise an army and has ordered his followers to go to Ye to invite Han Fu to fight against the enemy with him. Yuan Shao's followers know my identity and have asked me to deliver the letter to you, Your Excellency."

"What actions has Han Fu taken in the fight against Dong?" Zhang Yu asked after opening the letter.

Zhang Liao frowned for a long time and said, "Han Fu is quite afraid of Yuan Shao. I heard from the officials in Jizhou that since Yuan Shao took office as the governor of Bohai, Han Fu has sent his followers to Nanpi to supervise Yuan Shao."

"As for the campaign against Dong, when Han Fu summoned Liao, he asked about the prince's attitude. Liao did not dare to speak out, so he evaded the question by saying that he was of humble status and did not know the prince's thoughts."

"Asking Dong?"

Zhang Yang sighed and said, "When I arrived in Henei, Wang Kuang was very active, recruiting soldiers in the county and checking the people coming in and out of Luoyang. If it weren't for the lobbying of the princes and old officials, Wang Kuang would never have allocated money and grain to recruit soldiers for me."

"Although Dong Zhuo has deposed the emperor, the imperial court is still the imperial court. How can Wang Kuang, Yuan Shao, and Qiao Mao have the guts to raise an army to attack the capital?" Zhang Yang couldn't understand, "Don't they know that if they raise an army now, there will be no peace in the world!"

Zhang Liao showed a confused look on his face and also could not understand the actions of the Guandong soldiers.

Zhang Yu read the manifesto denouncing Dong Zhuo, sneered, and said, "The intention to attack Dong Zhuo is fake, but the intention to seek fame and fortune is probably real."

When I first read the Romance of the Three Kingdoms in my previous life, I thought that the heroes in Guandong fought against Dong Zhuo for the sake of the Han Dynasty, so the righteous men in Guandong rose up to fight against Dong Zhuo. However, as a person involved in the fight, Zhang Yu could only say that all crows in the world are black.

The man who brought Dong Zhuo to the capital was Yuan Shao. Now he was attacked by Dong Zhuo in the political struggle in Luoyang. All the efforts of the Yuan family were in vain. In order to get back their own interests, or perhaps because they were unwilling to accept defeat, they united others to fight against Dong.

Among those heroes, there may be loyal and righteous people, but most of them are losers in the Luoyang coup. Those losers have a high reputation in the Guandong region and have the right to speak. Now they use their own public opinion to gather troops to fight against Dong in the name of fighting against the enemy for the country.

As for whether they considered the collapse of the world caused by the fight against Dong, they didn't care at all, they only cared about their own interests. Even if the fight against Dong failed, those initiators who had the right to speak would have a feast to their heart's content.

"Sir, what should we do now?" Zhang Liao asked.

Zhang Yu put down the manifesto and said, "Let's have everyone go to the big tent to discuss matters!"

"promise!"

After a while, following the notification from the attendants, Gao Shun, Lu Fan, Yu Yi, Xu Shu, Zhang Feng and others entered the tent and filled it up.

Seeing Xu Chu wearing armor and guarding outside the tent, Zhang Yu called out to him, "Zhongkang, you don't have to guard outside the tent. You will also attend the meeting today!"

"promise!"

"Yuanzhi, read this manifesto!" Zhang Yu handed the manifesto to Xu Shu and said.

"promise!"

"Dong Zhuo deceived heaven and earth, destroyed the country and killed the king, defiled the palace, and killed people. He was cruel and merciless, and his crimes were numerous. Now, I receive the secret decree of the emperor to gather a large number of righteous soldiers... to support the royal family and save the people. When the proclamation arrives, you can carry it out as soon as possible."

"This~"

Man Chong frowned and looked at the people around him, all with expressions of shock on their faces.

Zhang Yu looked around at everyone and asked, "Now that Yuan's disciples have passed on Qiao Mao's written manifesto, what do you think?"

Man Chong pondered for a moment and said, "Dong Zhuo entered the capital, deposed and enthroned the emperor, and poisoned the empress dowager. He is indeed guilty of such crimes. But if you join the others in raising an army to fight him, I am afraid that the world will fall into turmoil, so you should think carefully about the pros and cons."

Lu Fan hesitated for a moment and said, "If we attack Dong now and anger Dong Zhuo, your life may be in danger. The Wang family of Qi County may regard you as an enemy because of this."

"If you don't help Yuan, won't you help Dong?" Yu Yi asked.

Zhang Yang said nonchalantly, "It's not possible to help Dong, and it's not possible to help Yuan either. At worst, I can just not help either of them and focus on fighting the enemy!"

"It's a minor matter for your reputation to suffer, but if you anger the Yuan family, there may be disasters in the future!" Yu Yi said worriedly. "What do you think?" Man Chong asked with a bow.

Zhang Yu pondered for a long time and said, "Dong Zhuo messed up the government, deposed the emperor, and poisoned the empress dowager. He can be called a traitor to the country. However, if the heroes raise an army to fight against Dong now, it may be detrimental to the country. As Bo Ning said, we need to discuss the pros and cons."

After a pause, Zhang Yu said, "Youzhou Mu Bo Anjun is of royal blood, kind and respectful, famous throughout the world, with a million people and 100,000 soldiers. Now you can send someone to Youzhou Mubo to see what Liu Mubo thinks."

In Zhang Yu's eyes, the war between the heroes and Dong Zhuo was essentially a farce. Among the heroes, apart from Yuan Shao who gained fame and territory by annexing Jizhou, Cao Cao was the only one who won the reputation of a loyal minister because he lost all his troops in the pursuit of Dong Zhuo. Almost no one else benefited from it.

Since it was a farce, why should Zhang Yu participate in it?
It would be better to focus on planning for the Bingzhou counties and take in the people of Hebei who fled to Shangdang due to the war.

If he participated, not only would Wang Yun be killed, but it would also delay Zhang Yu's time to plan for Bingzhou. After all, Bingzhou was too poor, and Jizhou was too rich.

As for the diplomatic mission to Liu Yu, it was an ally that Zhang Yu had found for himself in advance. Under Liu Yu's governance, the Wuhuan Rebellion in Youzhou was quelled, and the people lived and worked in peace. In the future, when money and food were in short supply, Zhang Yu could go to Liu Yu to borrow money and food.

Seeing that Zhang Yu was willing to wait and see Liu Yu's attitude, everyone didn't say much.

"Sir, who will be sent as envoy to Youzhou?" Man Chong asked.

Zhang Yu looked at the people in the tent, and finally set his eyes on Yu Yi, saying, "Shao Ran has followed me for many years and has had dealings with Liu Youzhou. How about letting Shao Ran go on a diplomatic mission for me now?"

"I am willing to obey your orders!"

Yu Yi stood up and bowed, then asked, "But I don't know what you want me to do when I go to Youzhou as an envoy."

Zhang Yu paced for a while and said, "Shao Ranruo went to see Liu Youzhou and presented the letter on my behalf, asking whether he intends to raise an army to besiege Luoyang."

"promise!"

After walking for a while, Zhang Yu stopped and said in a deep voice: "Looking at the current situation in the world, Yanzhou and Yuzhou will soon be in chaos, and your families are stranded in Henan. I am worried about the safety of your families, so I ask you to write letters and return home. I will send troops south to welcome your families to Jin."

Zhang Yu had wanted to take his subordinates' families to Bingzhou for a long time. After all, if they were left somewhere else, once their families were captured, his subordinates would be in trouble, and Zhang Yu would be in a dilemma as to whether to let them go.

For example, in history, Xu Shu had to abandon Liu and return to Cao for the sake of his mother's safety because his mother was captured by Cao's army in the defeat at Changban.

The current campaign by many heroes to attack Dong Zhuo would inevitably cause turmoil in the Central Plains, so sending troops to take over the families of his subordinates was something Zhang Yu had to do.

"promise!"

Yu Yi hesitated for a moment, then cupped his hands and said, "I still have an old mother and younger brother at home, so I'm sorry to bother you, Your Majesty."

"I have an old mother at home, so I'm sorry to bother you, sir!" Xu Shu said gratefully.

Gao Shun bowed and said, "Shun has quite a few family members, I'm afraid I'll have to trouble you, Your Excellency!"

"Borning!"

Zhang Yu looked at Man Chong who was sitting on the chair and said, "Bo Ning, please check the soldiers and officers from Yan and Yu in the army. Then, I will lead my troops south to bring your families to Shangdang. As for the resettlement issue, don't worry too much. I have already discussed it with Governor Liu."

"promise!"

After taking care of the trivial matters, Zhang Yu left Lu Fan, Zhang Feng and Xu Chu alone to give them some important instructions.

"Zhongkang, your father and brother moved to Shangdang. Is there any problem?" Zhang Yu asked.

Xu Chu shook his head in embarrassment and said, "My family has property in Peiduo. Now we are moving to Shangdang. I wonder if my father and brother will be willing to leave!"

Zhang Yu hesitated for a moment and said, "I will recommend you as a temporary lieutenant. If your brother can reach Shangdang, I will recommend him as a military commander. As for the family property, there are many wastelands in Shangdang that can be cultivated by your family. I can exempt your family from taxes for ten years."

Xu Chu's family is a powerful one, with many retainers and clansmen. If they can be recruited into the army, it will be of great benefit to Zhang Yu. The next difficult task is to see whether Xu Chu can attract clansmen to join the party.

Xu Chu nodded, understanding Zhang Yu's good intentions, and said, "I know your intentions, and I will do my best to persuade my people to migrate to Jin."

"Is Ziheng in trouble?" Zhang Yu asked.

Lu Fan smiled, cupped his hands and said, "What's the problem? My family has no extra money now, so it's easier to move to Shangdang, but it's a little difficult for my wife's father to move."

Zhang Yu nodded slightly and said, "In that case, Lao Ziheng will go to Huguan and ask the governor to come to the banquet on time tomorrow to discuss the matter of suppressing the Black Mountain bandits."

"promise!"

Lu Fan restrained his expression and responded in a deep voice.

After Lu and Xu left the tent, Zhang Yu warned Zhang Feng, "When you leave the camp tomorrow, don't let outsiders see you. Remember not to use military weapons and don't reveal your whereabouts."

Zhang Feng looked serious, cupped his hands and said, "Don't worry, brother, I won't let the news out tomorrow!"

(End of this chapter)