Han officials

Chapter 169: Soft and Hard [12]

Yingchuan County has been in a lot of bad luck recently.

Since the various princes fought against Dong Zhuo, Yingchuan County, which was right at the doorstep of Luoyang, seemed to have become a punching bag.

Whether there was something to do or not, the Qiang and Han cavalry under Dong Zhuo liked to come and hang out, but most of them were just peripheral troubles. It was the first time that something like Lu Bu went deep into Yingchuan County and captured the prefect alive.

Therefore, when Yingchuan Prefect Li Min was captured alive by Lu Bu, the entire Yingchuan County was in a panic.

Because news of the victory at Xuanmen Pass hadn't spread yet, they still believed that Wei Zhe's army had suffered a crushing defeat, just as Cao Cao had, which was why Dong Zhuo's army had so brazenly advanced into Yingchuan to capture the prefect. Panic seized the people, and many Yingchuan nobles completely gave up hope in defeating Dong Zhuo and fled with their families to other prefectures. Some headed for Yangzhou, others for Jingzhou, and vehicles of all sizes practically clogged the official roads.

Fortunately, Lu Bu was in a hurry to return to Luoyang and had no intention of looting, otherwise this group of people would have become fish on the chopping board.

What’s interesting is that immediately after the news of Wei Zhe killing Hu Zhen in battle and taking three passes in one fell swoop spread in Yingchuan County, most of the caravans that had taken refuge with their families immediately turned around and returned. It was truly a picture of the world in troubled times.

The Yingchuan gentry, who used to point fingers at and look down on military generals, now behave in a panic because of them.

Being arrogant at first and respectful later, it’s really laughable to think about it!
At the same time, Wei Zhe had no idea that he was the cause of the frequent farces in Yingchuan County.

After the war, Wei Zhe ordered the entire army to rest, treat the wounded, and reward the troops.

Especially the Jingnan Left Army and the Jingnan Right Army, they suffered heavy casualties in this battle.

But Wei Zhe had no choice. When attacking a city, especially a dangerous pass like Xuanmen Pass, heavy casualties were inevitable. Sometimes, even with countless casualties, it was not possible to capture the city. For the coach, this was actually a gamble with human lives as chips. The slightest negligence would result in the loss of thousands of lives.

If you are unwilling to let go of the dead, you are not fit to lead the army. This is what is meant by "a kind person cannot lead an army"!
Fortunately, Wei Zhe captured quite a few prisoners in this battle. Even after beheading some of the troublemakers and seriously injured, there were still more than 3,000 prisoners.

After dispersing and settling these surrendered soldiers, they were able to recover some of their strength.

However, this kind of thing cannot be delegated to others, otherwise it would be like holding the sword upside down.

So when the Wei army was on vacation at Xuanmen Pass, Hulao Pass and Chenggao Pass, Wei Zhe was extremely busy.

But even so, when Wei Zhe saw a name on the list, he couldn't help but pause.

"Hua Xiong?"

Xi Zhicai, who was standing by, thought that Wei Zhe was paying attention to him because of Hua Xin.

So he immediately explained, "I asked before, this person is from the Hua family of Wuwei. He is not from the same clan or family as Ziyu, but they share the same surname."

Although Hua is relatively rare, it is also a surname with a long history.

There are many different opinions about the origin of the Hua family. Some say it comes from the "Hua Xu tribe" and some say it comes from the Ji surname.

However, the first time a person named Hua appeared in history books was Hua Du, the prime minister of the State of Song during the Spring and Autumn Period.

At that time, Prince Kaofu of Song Dai was granted the title of Duke of Hua and took him as his surname. Later, Kaofu's son Hua Du, as well as his descendants Hua Yuan, Hua Ding and Hua Hai, successively served as ministers of Song.

It can be said that at that time, the Hua family was a very prominent family in the State of Song.

By the way, Hua Du was the nobleman of the State of Song who killed Confucius’ ancestor Kong Fujia and forced the Kong clan to move to the State of Lu.

However, later the Song Dynasty was in civil strife, and the Hua family fell into decline and dispersed, and from then on it declined.

It was not until the early years of the Western Han Dynasty that Hua Ji and Hua Wuhai followed Emperor Gaozu of Han in battle and made great contributions. They were granted the title of marquis and their descendants inherited the title. The Hua family then rose again, and Hua Xin was the main descendant of this branch.

As for Hua Xiong's branch, the two may not be from the same family even five hundred years ago.

If you really count, Hua Tuo and Hua Xin are more closely related than Hua Xiong.

After listening to Xi Zhicai's explanation, Wei Zhe said nothing, but simply asked, "What is this person's official position?"

"He's just a cavalry commander." Xi Zhicai shook his head casually.

You must know that the governor in the Han army at that time was not the same as the governor in the later Eastern Wu.

Hua Xiong, the Cavalry Commander, was essentially a "Military Inspector-General", a purely temporary military position.

To prevent rebellion by generals, Emperor Guangwu appointed an official as a Military Inspector to command the army whenever war broke out. After the war, the Inspector's command was relinquished, and his position was abolished. Therefore, Hua Xiong's "Commander-in-Chief" was only a temporary assignment, his primary role being a cavalry general under Dong's army.

Thinking of this, Wei Zhe ordered his men to bring Hua Xiong over.

Looking at the nine-foot-tall man in the tent, with a tiger's body, a wolf's waist, a leopard's head and monkey's arms, Wei Zhe didn't waste any words.

"Hua Xiong, are you willing to surrender?"

Unexpectedly, Hua Xiong, who looked extremely brave, was actually very obedient at this moment.

Seeing that it was Wei Zhe who personally persuaded him to surrender, this guy immediately knelt down on the ground smoothly.

"I have been ordered to do something by the Lord, and I have no choice. Fortunately, Your Excellency is so magnanimous that I am willing to serve General Zuo!"

There was no way, since Wei Zhe was also a famous general on the frontier, and he defeated them on the battlefield.

Moreover, Wei Zhegui was the Left General, so there was nothing to be embarrassed about surrendering to him.

Seeing this, Wei Zhe finally smiled.

"Since that's the case, I'll first transfer my personal soldiers to supervise the account, and dismiss their duties as escorts."

Upon hearing this appointment, Hua Xiong was not worried but happy. He immediately bowed down with a happy face to express his gratitude.

When Xi Zhicai saw this, he knew that Hua Xiong had caught Wei Zhe's eye.

If he passes the test during his time as a personal soldier, the Wei army might have another great general in the future!
Xi Zhicai immediately smiled and congratulated: "Congratulations, sir, for finding another talented person!"

Wei Zhe just smiled lightly when he heard this, and then asked Hua Xiong to take up his post immediately and stand guard outside the tent.

It’s true, Hua Xiong’s mentality changed quite quickly and he adapted to his new job in the blink of an eye.

On the other side, Wei Zhe discovered a hidden gem while searching the list of prisoners.

This time, Xi Zhicai was much more proficient, and immediately introduced him in detail: "This man was once an official in Yanmen County. He was a descendant of Nie Yi, but changed his surname to Zhang to avoid resentment. Later, General He Jin recruited foreign troops to the capital, so Bingzhou Governor Ding Yuan summoned Zhang Liao as a military officer and sent him to lead troops to the capital under He Jin's command. However, He Jin later sent this man to Hebei to recruit soldiers. After Zhang Liao recruited over a thousand men, he returned to the capital to report."

At this point, Xi Zhicai couldn't help but shake his head and sighed, "However, General He Jin trapped himself in a cocoon, and ultimately died and his clan was wiped out. Zhang Liao's former troops were then recruited by Dong Zhuo and brought under his command. This time, they were ordered to join the Han army in Luoyang."

In Xi Zhicai's opinion, Zhang Liao was simply tricked by Ding Yuan and He Jin.

If either of them had been more reliable, Zhang Liao wouldn't have ended up like this.

However, even so, Zhang Liao and Lu Bu were not in a superior-subordinate relationship, at most they were colleagues.

For example, this time he belonged to the Han army in Luoyang, while Lu Bu led the troops from Bingzhou.

In fact, it was not until Dong Zhuo's defeat that Zhang Liao was appointed by Wang Yun to lead troops under Lu Bu.

When Zhang Liao was brought in and saw Hua Xiong guarding outside the tent, he immediately felt relieved.

However, compared to Hua Xiong, Zhang Liao was treated much better.

Wei Zhe still showed some respect to this Han general who was recruited into Dong Zhuo's army by accident.

Although Zhang Liao was a prisoner, Wei Zhe treated him with courtesy, calling him "Wenyuan" whenever he opened his mouth and "Wenyuan" whenever he closed his mouth, which made Zhang Liao feel embarrassed.

After all, Ding Yuan and He Jin didn't respect him so much back then, and for a moment he felt inexplicably emotional.

Under Wei Zhe's humble attack, Zhang Liao, as expected, fell to the ground on the spot.

Upon seeing this, Wei Zhe burst out laughing, personally helped Zhang Liao up, and appointed him as the Sima of a separate department.

No matter what means are used, soft or hard, as long as they can subdue talents, they are good means!
While Wei Zhe was trying to persuade people to surrender at Chenggao Pass, news of the defeat at Xuanmen Pass reached Luoyang...

(End of this chapter)