The elite did not migrate south

Chapter 427: Hatred of the Country

"Your Majesty, the thief Cao has appointed Zhuge Xu as general to lead his troops into the invasion!"

Chengdu, inside the imperial palace.

It was another court meeting, and all the ministers gathered in the palace.

Jiang Wei frowned, stood at the front, and told Liu Chan about Cao Wei.

Liu Chan sat in the upper seat, feeling extremely bored. He was physically present, but his mind didn't seem to be there. His eyes were somewhat empty, and he didn't know what fun thing he was thinking of. There was even a smile on the corner of his mouth.

Just as Zhong Hui said, after the court appointed Zhuge Xu as the general of conquering Shu and transferred Sima Wang to Liang Province, unrest soon broke out in Shu.

Jiang Wei was the first to know about this, and he immediately began to think about Cao Wei's intentions.

After Cao Mao took power, he had already proved his ability to the Shu Kingdom, which was an extremely difficult enemy to deal with.

The situation in Yongliang was changing rapidly, and Jiang Wei felt that something was wrong.

Did Cao Wei really want to launch a large-scale invasion?
Jiang Wei believed that the Han Dynasty should think of countermeasures earlier. If Cao Wei wanted to invade on a large scale, it would have to make arrangements in advance. Cao Wei had always wanted to take Hanzhong. Jiang Wei felt that the other party was using troops in Yongliang and was very likely trying to plot against Hanzhong.

"Your Majesty, the Liangzhou army is being mobilized more frequently, and the Yongzhou army has begun repairing abandoned roads. This is a sign that the army is about to set out."

"We don't have many troops in Hanzhong"

Jiang Wei spoke until his mouth was dry, but he couldn't get a single answer from Liu Chan.

At this moment, Chen Qi finally couldn't bear it anymore. He cleared his throat, stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty!"

Liu Chan suddenly woke up and looked at Chen Qi, but there was no accusation in his eyes. He smiled and asked, "What do you want to report, Lord Chen?"

"The Cao thief may really want to invade Hanzhong. Your Majesty must be on guard."

"We should gather the troops in advance and prepare for defense."

Liu Chan was somewhat displeased when he heard Chen Qi's words. "Lord Chen, the Han Dynasty has natural defenses; how could it be so easily breached? Besides, the enemy has only hinted at sending troops, but they haven't yet. If we muster troops from all over, who knows how much food would be consumed. If they don't come in the end, wouldn't it all be wasted?"

Jiang Wei couldn't help but say, "Your Majesty, you can't think like that!"

"Cao may not come, but we cannot afford to be careless. This natural barrier is not impenetrable. If the enemy attacks from multiple directions and we do not receive timely reinforcements, Hanzhong will certainly be in serious trouble."

Liu Chan was a little unhappy.

Ever since Jiang Wei's last defeat, Liu Chan no longer liked him as much.

Although Chen Qi has been trying to ease the situation and trying to get Jiang Wei to take another step forward, he can't resist Huang Hao's instigation, making the relationship between the two sides not so close.

Liu Chan asked again, "If Cao Cao launches feint attacks every day, we will have to keep our entire army in Hanzhong and wait all day long? Where will we get the food for that?"

Jiang Wei was helpless about this.

He couldn't say that the emperor's idea was wrong, but the current situation really required the dispatch of a large army and permanent stationing in the Hanzhong area.

The morale of Cao's army is very high, and the new generals are by no means ordinary people. If they take the opportunity to attack and lose Hanzhong, it will be a fatal blow to the Shu Kingdom.

Jiang Wei looked at Chen Qi who was standing aside.

Chen Qi spoke again: "Your Majesty, we must find a way to resolve this matter."

"Then why don't we go and borrow grain from the State of Wu?"

"I was just about to tell Your Majesty about this. Wu's great general, Sun Jun, died of illness. General Sun Chen took his place, and his cavalry general, Lü Ju, rebelled. Chaos reigned in Wu, and less than half of the promised grain was delivered, forcing them to halt their efforts."

Liu Chan was furious, "Do the Wu people want to break their promise again?!"

Chen Qi said bitterly, "The newly appointed general, Sun Chen, doesn't seem capable or farsighted. I'm afraid he won't sincerely join the Han in dealing with Cao Cao."

"The Wu Kingdom has lost several generals in succession, and even members of the royal family have defected to Cao Wei. If problems arise in the Wu Kingdom, then..."

Liu Chan finally couldn't sit still anymore.

How come the situation in the world has suddenly become so bad?
Wasn't it fine before? How can I play peacefully if it continues like this?

He was a little anxious, "Everyone, what should we do now?"

"We still need to gather the troops and prepare for defense. If necessary, we can strike first to disrupt their deployment and make it impossible for them to defend themselves."

As soon as Chen Qi opened his mouth, a minister couldn't help but stand up.

"Lord Chen?! Are you planning to send troops again?!"

The person who stood up was Zhongsan Doctor Qiao Zhou.

Qiao Zhou came from a prominent family in Bashu. He loved to study since childhood and was well-versed in classics. Later, he was appointed by Zhuge Liang as an advisor to encourage learning. When Jiang Wan came to power, he was appointed as an advisor to the Ministry of Education. He could be regarded as the leader of all Bashu scholars.

Liu Chan appointed Liu Xuan as the crown prince and appointed Qiao Zhou as the crown prince's household steward. Later, he saw that Liu Chan often went out to play and indulged in sensual pleasures, so he submitted a memorial to the emperor, advising Liu Chan to follow the example of the previous emperor and reduce the number of concubines and music palaces.

Later he served as Zhongsan Daifu, a position he holds until now.

Qiao Zhou's expression was not looking good at the moment. He looked at Chen Qi in front of him and said, "Have you forgotten the consequences of your last military expedition?"

"The army has been dispatched numerous times, and the people are exhausted. Walking out of the palace, all I can hear along the way is the people's wailing. We don't even have enough food to provide disaster relief, and you still want to send troops to suppress them?!" Chen Qi said seriously, "The situation is not as serious as you say. Wars must have winners and losers, and one defeat is nothing. Besides, if we just hold on and wait for the enemy to attack, wouldn't that cost more? It's better to take the initiative and attack without giving them time to prepare. We can still achieve something."

"Achievement?!"

"Lord Chen, you are a man of understanding. Years of war have exhausted the people of Yizhou and they are no longer able to fight. Please do not propose further expeditions. First, stabilize the country and then make plans!"

Chen Qi shook his head. "You don't understand government affairs. I won't discuss this with you."

Qiao Zhou sighed and returned to his seat somewhat unwillingly.

The faces of the ministers were not very good at this moment, especially those ministers who came from Yizhou. Their eyes turned unfriendly when they looked at Chen Qi.

Jiang Wei looked at the situation in the temple and felt vaguely uneasy.

The ministers' opposition to sending troops became increasingly strong. Even famous scholars like Qiao Zhou jumped out to oppose it. Who knows how many people would stand up against him.

But now this situation.
He looked at Chen Qi again. It wasn't that Jiang Wei didn't dare to come out, but that he couldn't come out.

Compared to him, Liu Chan would rather listen to Chen Qi. If he said something too much, Liu Chan would probably not listen.

Chen Qi persuaded Liu Chan for a long time before finally convincing him to agree to gather the troops first and make preparations for defense.

The ministers were not in a very good mood. As soon as the court meeting ended, they stood up one after another and left without looking back, completely ignoring Chen Qi and others.

Qiao Zhou walked in front, his face full of anger.

The continuous wars over the years have not only harmed the common people, but also the big families. Life is very difficult. The tenants have all been dragged off to fight, and there are no people left on the masters' farmland!

When he returned home, his students were waiting for him.

"teacher."

This is a young man in his early twenties, his face full of childishness and the drive of youth.

His name is Chen Shou.

He was studious since childhood, so he took his fellow villager Qiao Zhou as his teacher and studied books such as "Shangshu" and "Sanchuan".

He personally liked historical books very much and often read "Records of the Grand Historian" and "Book of Han" and made comments on these historical books.

Qiao Zhou was in a bad mood at the moment. Seeing that his disciples were not in a good mood either, he walked straight into the study, asked his disciples to prepare pen and ink, pondered for a moment, and then began to write.

"Because my country is small, and the country that founded it is large, we are both enemies in the world."

"Because my country has a high and virtuous minister, I asked Fu Yuzi: 'Now that national affairs are unsettled, both the upper and lower classes are worried. What are the methods used in the past to enable the weak to defeat the strong?'"

Qiao Zhou wrote faster and faster, stopping from time to time to think, and soon an article appeared in his handwriting.

In his article, he mentioned two fictional countries, Yinyu and Zhaojian. Yinyu is a small country and Zhaojian is a big country. The two countries have been enemies for generations.
This isn't even a hint; it's a blatant statement.

In the article, Qiao Zhou criticized the behavior of excessive military spending and continuous wars, and said that only by resting and recuperating with the people and stabilizing their hearts can the final victory be achieved.
Qiao Zhou picked up the article.

Chen Shou approached curiously, "Teacher, what's this?"

"This article is called 'On Hatred of the Country.'"

"Anti-national theory?"

Hearing this name, Chen Shou looked a little confused.

Soon, this article spread throughout Shu.

I don’t know whether it was because too many people thought the article was well written, or because they agreed with Qiao Zhou’s point of view, but in any case, the theory of hating the country was widely circulated in Shu, and the officials of Shu were discussing the article fiercely.

The blow this brought to the Shu Kingdom was almost devastating. In an instant, it seemed as if officials across the country began to condemn the actions of Jiang Wei and Chen Qi.

This had a huge impact on the morale of Shu. The local faction was originally unwilling to go to war, and now this article seemed to ignite the anger of all of them, and they all began to express their dissatisfaction.

When Jiang Wei saw this article, his face turned pale and he was speechless for a long time.

As for Chen Qi, he just sighed after reading it and did not refute.

Even Liu Chan saw this article.

After Liu Chan finished reading, his expression became somewhat complicated.

"Mr. Huang, what Qiao Zhou said seems to make sense."

"But if Mr. Chen saw this, he would probably be very angry, right?"

Huang Hao hesitated for a moment and asked, "Then how will Your Majesty deal with Qiao Zhou?"

"Dispose of him? Why should we punish him? His writings are pretty good. What he said is not unreasonable. Let him stop being a doctor."

"Enter the Imperial Household Department!"

(End of this chapter)