Han officials

Chapter 289 A bright future
Pei State was called Pei Commandery during the Former Han Dynasty, and further upstream it was called Sishui Commandery.

After Emperor Gaozu of Han, Liu Bang, founded the Han Dynasty, he renamed the Qin Dynasty's Sishui Commandery to Pei Commandery in honor of his hometown, Pei County.

After Emperor Guangwu of Han established the Han Dynasty, he enfeoffed his son Liu Fu as the King of Pei, which led to the establishment of the Pei Kingdom.

Basically, every dynasty had some special titles.

Examples include the General of Heavenly Strategy in the Tang Dynasty, the Commander of the Palace Guard in the Song Dynasty, and the Prince of Wu in the Ming Dynasty.

Because Liu Bang once competed for the throne under the name "Duke of Pei," the title "King of Pei" during the Han Dynasty carried a special significance, as it was not something that ordinary princes could obtain.

Although Liu Fu was the second son of Emperor Guangwu, he was neither the eldest son nor the legitimate son, so it was clear that he was extraordinary to receive this honorific title.

Ultimately, it's because he has a good mother—Guo Shengtong!
At that time, Guo Shengtong had already fallen out of favor. Because she was dissatisfied with Yin Lihua, who was a noble lady, being the emperor's favorite, she secretly instructed her family soldiers to pretend to be bandits and kill Yin Lihua's mother, Deng, and her younger brother, Yin Xin, causing Yin Lihua to be heartbroken.

After the incident, Emperor Guangwu was furious. In his anger, he even wrote in an edict, "Consort Yin has the beauty of a mother and should be made empress."

Although Liu Xiu ultimately did not depose the empress after calming down, Guo Shengtong was completely neglected from then on.

After ten years of preparation, Emperor Guangwu finally deposed the empress and then the crown prince, causing the powerful families of Hebei to fail at the last minute.

Perhaps to set an example for his subjects and show that he was not heartless, Liu Xiu, the year after deposing the crown prince, enfeoffed Liu Fu, the second son of Guo Shengtong, as the Prince of Pei, and Guo Shengtong subsequently became the Empress Dowager of Pei.

Both Liu Fu and Guo Shengtong died and were buried in Pei State.

For this reason, Luoyang has always paid close attention to the situation in Pei State.

Although the throne of the Prince of Pei has been passed down for seven generations, they have basically been minor figures.

Even when Cheng Yu led Cao Cao's army to occupy most of Pei State, he didn't even glance at the King of Pei in Xiang County.

It can only be said that treating members of the imperial family and princes like pigs was not a precedent set in the Ming Dynasty; there were already signs of it during the Han Dynasty.

However, Wei Zhe knew that these Han imperial princes, who were kept in their fiefdoms, were useless, but he did not expect them to be so useless!
He's already made grand promises about reviving the Han Dynasty, but the current Prince of Pei is still shaking his head like a rattle drum.

……

While Sun Ce, Lu Su, and others were causing a great disturbance in Xiapi, Wei Zhe was not idle either.

After leaving Pengcheng Kingdom, he quickly captured Fuli County and stationed his troops in Dazexiang.

However, the key to this battle is not the number of cities captured, but the location of those cities.

Because the terrain of Pei State is a typical dumbbell shape, with large ends and a small middle, Cheng Yu did not station himself in Xiang County, the capital of Pei State, after heading south. Instead, he personally took charge of Qi County.

Cheng Yu even placed a coffin on the city wall to show his willingness to live and die with the city.

Thus, despite the fierce offensive of the Wei army, Qixian remained unmoved.

This made Wei Zhe very upset.

If he could capture Qixian and Fuli, it would be tantamount to choking Cao Cao.

A city in a strategic location is like that; sometimes it is more important than an entire prefecture!

But Cheng Yu was like a rock in a latrine, stubbornly blocking his way.

Cheng Yu's tenacity even reminded Wei Zhe of Zhang Xun during the An Lushan Rebellion.

After all, this man was a ruthless individual who used civilians as military rations, and he was also extremely skilled at defense.

Deep behind enemy lines, with supplies cut off and facing an attack by over 100,000 rebel troops, Zhang Xun stubbornly defended Suiyang for more than ten months. Before the battle, Suiyang had a population of 40,000, but by the time the city fell, only 400 people remained alive.

Even though Wei Zhe didn't intend to besiege the city for ten months, he had no doubt that Cheng Yu could do that.

Interestingly enough, Cheng Yu had just left Suiyang, the capital of Liang, and moved into Qixian.

After several days of fruitless siege, Wei Zhe decisively abandoned Qixian and turned to attack Zhuyi, which he successfully captured this time.

As the strategic gateway to Pei State, Zhi County and Zhuyi were just as important as Qi County and Fuli.

Wei Zhe understood this, and Cheng Yu was naturally aware of it as well.

Therefore, after entering Pei State, in addition to personally overseeing Qi County, he also sent Cao Ren to lead troops to garrison Zhi County.

As the second most famous general in the Cao family after Cao Cao, Cao Ren could be described as skilled in both offense and defense. In the original history, he often led troops independently, defeating Yuan Shu, attacking Tao Qian, capturing Lü Bu, defeating Liu Bei, and defeating Ma Chao, repeatedly achieving great feats. During the Battle of Xiangfan, he also blocked Guan Yu's attack, indirectly leading to Guan Yu's defeat and death.

Faced with the fierce attack of the Wei army, Cao Ren, though not as ruthless as Cheng Yu, still managed to defend the city as solid as a rock.

This shows that Cheng Yu had a very clear understanding of the situation. As long as the areas of Zhi County and Qi County were not lost, Cao Cao would always have a glimmer of hope.

It can be said that since entering Pei, Cheng Yu has basically not made a single mistake.

This is the most feared situation in a war between two armies, because it means an extremely low margin for error.

In the end, the outcome of the entire battle might be decided by just a tiny flaw.

To be honest, Wei Zhe never felt this troublesome when he faced Yuan Shao.

After all, given Cao Cao's mastery of military strategy, he might react at any time, so his time was limited and he could not besiege the city indefinitely.

Under these circumstances, for Wei Zhe to fight to the death for a city would be nothing short of a gamble.

Wei Zhe was confident he could win, but he didn't like gambling!
So after failing to capture Zhixian, he did not continue to risk the lives of his soldiers, but instead sought other methods, such as besieging the city and attacking reinforcements!
The key to the tactic of "besieging the city and attacking the reinforcements" lies in "attacking what the city must defend".

If Wei Zhe could lure out Cao Cao's troops from Dan County or Zhi County, he was confident he could break the deadlock.

After some deliberation, Wei Zhe set his sights on Xiang County, the capital of Pei State.

Because this place is located right between Pengcheng and Liang, once Wei Zhe takes this city, it will become Cheng Yu's escape route.

Unexpectedly, Cheng Yu remained completely unmoved, and the garrison troops of Qixian and Zhixian held their ground and refused to come out.

Even though Wei Zhe forced the surrender of the four counties north of Xiang County—Xiao County, Feng County, Pei County, and Zhuqiu County—it still had no effect.

Cheng Yu was completely unconcerned about the loss of northern Pei State, his only concern being Cao Cao's lifeline.

It was under these circumstances that Wei Zhe, as a last resort, sought help from Liu Yao, the Prince of Pei in Xiang County.

He had originally thought that the lineage of the Prince of Pei had been passed down for seven generations and had multiplied for over 150 years. After so many years of management, even if it wasn't completely intricate, there should at least be some hidden forces within Pei. As long as they could coordinate their efforts within Zhi County and Qi County, Wei Zhe would be confident of capturing the city.

Even the strongest fortress can be breached from within.

Thus, the scene at the beginning unfolded, revealing that the incompetence of the Prince of Pei's lineage far exceeded Wei Zhe's expectations.

Not to mention affecting Pei State, Liu Yao couldn't even affect Xiang County; he could only remain confined to his palace.

No, even within the Prince's mansion, Liu Yao lived with extreme caution.

Even though the world is now in chaos, his long-standing habits still make him cautious and prudent.

After all, who knows if the officials in the Prince's mansion might secretly report him to the Emperor?

This wasn't Liu Yao being overly pessimistic; rather, it was because the Han Dynasty had experienced far too many such incidents over the past hundred years.

As a result, no matter what Wei Zhe said, Liu Yao replied listlessly:

"I am old, deaf and blind, and I really don't know what the general is talking about." When pressed by the question, this fellow even drooled in front of Wei Zhe and fell fast asleep.

Seeing this, Wei Zhe shook his head helplessly, too lazy to waste any more words with him.

However, after Wei Zhe led his men away from the palace, they saw Xi Zhicai chatting with a young guard.

Wei Zhe didn't take it seriously and immediately mounted his horse to leave.

Unexpectedly, Xi Zhicai stopped Wei Zhe and introduced him with a smile:
"My lord, it's a rare treat to visit the Prince's residence, why not meet the handsome young men here?"

Upon hearing this, Wei Zhe was taken aback.

A handsome young man?

He's already risen to the rank of a guard in the Prince's mansion, how handsome can he still be!
However, knowing Xi Zhicai well, Wei Zhe did not refuse and immediately turned to look at the young guard not far away with great interest.

Upon seeing this, the young man immediately stepped forward excitedly to pay his respects and said:
"Huan Wei of Xiang County pays his respects to Your Majesty!"

Seeing his somewhat helpless expression, Wei Zhe looked at Xi Zhicai on his left with a puzzled expression.

His eyes were full of confusion. That's all?
Seeing this, Xi Zhicai smiled slightly and said:

"My lord, please be patient, the secret is yet to come."

After saying that, he introduced his family background to Huan Wei.

Although Huan Wei was excited, he still introduced the situation with considerable pride:

“My family was originally from Qi. Our ancestors were descendants of Duke Huan of Qi. At the end of the Qin Dynasty, in order to avoid being searched and arrested, we took the posthumous title of our ancestor, “Huan,” as our surname. In the mid-Former Han Dynasty, our ancestors moved to Pei County to live and multiply.”

"At the end of Wang Mang's reign, his great-uncle Huan Rong was well-versed in the Ouyang Shangshu, so after the founding of this dynasty, he was appointed by Emperor Shizu as the Crown Prince's Junior Tutor and Grand Master of Ceremonies."

"My ancestor Huan Tan was also a learned and versatile scholar, having mastered the Five Classics. However, he liked to criticize and denigrate common scholars. Therefore, during the reigns of Emperor Ai and Emperor Ping, he did not hold a higher rank than Lang. During the reign of Wang Mang, he served as the Grand Master of Music. It was not until Emperor Gengshi, Liu Xuan, ascended the throne that he was appointed Grand Master of the Palace. After Emperor Shizu established the country, he was also summoned to serve as a Consultant and Attendant-in-Ordinary."

At this point, Huan Wei's expression suddenly darkened, and he said with some helplessness:
"However, my ancestor was strongly opposed to the study of prophecies and apocryphal texts, and "extremely argued that prophecies were not the classics." He was denounced by Emperor Shizu as "unholy and lawless" and almost executed. Later, he was demoted to the position of Assistant Prefect of Liuan County, and unfortunately died of illness on the way.

Huan Tan can be considered a rare Confucian scholar during the transition between the two Han dynasties.

His Confucian ideals were pure and simple, continuing the Confucian tradition of the Western Han Dynasty.

Furthermore, Huan Tan compared the candlestick to the human body, proposing the famous argument of "using candlelight to symbolize form and spirit," asserting that the spirit cannot exist independently of the human body, just as candlelight cannot exist independently of the candle.

Wang Chong frequently quoted Huan Tan's words in his work "Lunheng", expressing his high regard for him.

It can be said that Wang Chong's atheistic ideas were influenced to a considerable extent by Huan Tan.

Unfortunately, both Wang Chong and Huan Tan were born at the wrong time, in an era when apocryphal and prophetic theology were prevalent.

Unfortunately, both Wang Chong and Huan Tan were born at the wrong time, in an era when apocryphal and prophetic theology were prevalent.

In an environment where Emperor Guangwu Liu Xiu personally promoted apocryphal and prophetic theology, these out-of-place pure Confucian scholars could only be suppressed by society and unable to show their due brilliance.

However, Huan Wei did not understand these profound principles; he only regretted that his ancestor Huan Tan was too stubborn.

And he stopped there, clearly there was nothing more to say.

Meanwhile, Wei Zhe, who was hearing this, was still completely confused.

Although he could roughly guess that the Huan Wei in front of him was related to Huan Wen, the powerful minister of the Eastern Jin Dynasty in later generations, it didn't matter to his current predicament.

At least Wei Zhe couldn't see anything special about Huan Wei.

Fortunately, he and Xi Zhicai had known each other for many years and had a tacit understanding.

Although Wei Zhe had doubts in his heart, he still praised Huan Xuan with a few words of respect and invited him to join his ranks as a personal cavalryman.

Upon hearing this, Huan Wei's face lit up with joy, and he readily agreed.

Don't be fooled by the fact that they are both guards; the personal guards of the General of the Cavalry and the guards of the Prince's Palace are not even in the same league!
One has a bright future, while the other has absolutely no future.

When Prince Liu Yao of Pei learned of this, he readily released the prisoner and even sent Huan Wei a gift of money.

It wasn't until Wei Zhe led his men back to the main camp that Xi Zhicai began to explain his thoughts.

……

Inside the commander's tent, Xi Zhicai stood before the map, pointing to the State of Pei and explaining:
"Although the Huan clan of Pei State originated from the same source, they split into three during the reign of Emperor Guangwu, and their branches spread out."

"Besides the Huan family of Xiang County, there are two other families in Pei State: the Huan family of Longkang and the Huan family of Zhi County."

"Therefore, although there were many powerful clans in Pei State, the Huan clan always ranked among the top."

Speaking of the division of the Huan family in Pei State, it was actually related to Emperor Guangwu.

It was precisely because of his undisguised disgust for Huan Tan, and Huan Tan's firm critical attitude towards apocryphal texts, that the Huan clan of Pei State dared not keep him in their clan any longer.

At that time, Huan Rong, the head of the Huan clan of Pei State, was highly valued by Emperor Guangwu and was even entrusted by Liu Xiu with the important task of educating Crown Prince Liu Zhuang. Therefore, in order to show the emperor their attitude, the Huan clan of Pei State simply split up their family.

As it turned out, Huan Rong's decision was indeed correct.

The shared academic and political ideals led the royal family to place great trust in the Huan family.

Huan Rong, Huan Yu, and Huan Yan, three generations of ancestors, served as teachers to five emperors of the Han Dynasty: Emperor Ming, Emperor Zhang, Emperor He, Emperor An, and Emperor Shun. The Longkang Huan family, which inherited the "Ouyang Shangshu" (Book of Ouyang), also became a long-standing family of Confucian scholars.

Although the Longkang Huan clan did not have the same glorious history of producing three high-ranking officials for four generations as the Runan Yuan clan, its members served as ministers or governors for generations.

After Emperor Shun of Han ascended the throne, Huan Rong's grandson Huan Yan was appointed Grand Tutor and concurrently served as Minister of the Imperial Secretariat. He joined forces with Grand Commandant Zhu Chong to govern the country and later served as one of the Three Dukes, Grand Commandant.

While the Huan family of Longkang was at the height of their power in Pei State, the Cao family of Qiao County was still struggling to farm.

Huan Wen's descendants even established the State of Chu, leading to several emperors emerging from the Longkang Huan clan.

However, compared to the Longkang Huan clan, the other two branches did not fare so well.

Perhaps thanks to Huan Tan, no one from the Huan family of Xiang County became an official after that, and they gradually became local tyrants.

Although he had a place in Xiang County and Township thanks to his relationship with the Longkang Huan family, that was about it.

The Huan family of Zhixian County did not have any debts, but they always lacked good fortune and never managed to get ahead.

In fact, it wasn't until the Eastern Jin Dynasty that the Huan family of Zhi County rose to prominence. They produced several notable figures, including Huan Xu, Prefect of Yiyang; Huan Bi, Chief Clerk of the Champion Army; and Huan Rong, Prefect of Xinye. Huan Bi's son, Huan Xuan, even served as General Who Pacifies the North, Governor of Liangzhou, and Commander-in-Chief of the military affairs of three prefectures and four counties, leading a northern expedition to the Central Plains and defeating the Later Zhao army. Even into the Tang Dynasty, the Huan family produced two renowned ministers, Huan Fasi and Huan Yanfan.

From this perspective, it is not an exaggeration to say that the Huan family of Zhixian County had accumulated strength over time and achieved great success.

For example, although they are currently only powerful families in Zhixian County, their clan strength should not be underestimated.

By candlelight, Xi Zhicai pointed to the location of Zhixian County and said confidently:
"The Huan family is the key to breaking this deadlock!"

However, after pondering for a moment, Wei Zhe shook his head:

"It would be difficult for the Huan family of Zhi County to cause any major disturbance on their own."

“Of course, it’s not just them.” But Xi Zhicai’s eyes gleamed with determination as he said, “This time, I will unite the three powerful families to cut off the Cao family’s lifeline!”

(End of this chapter)