The elite did not migrate south

Chapter 436: Those who have attained the truth will be helped more

The first month of the third year of Zhengyuan.

The emperor issued an edict to re-establish the Three Elders System, allowing the people to elect elders with the virtues of integrity, firmness, and gentleness to assist the government in handling local affairs.

There is less than a month left before the imperial examination officially begins.

At this moment, Cao Mao was extremely busy.

Zhuge Dan came to the palace to complain all day long.

"Your Majesty, generals across the country are disobeying orders and acting recklessly. We cannot tolerate this any longer!"

The situation in various places is now very tense, and it seems that Wei is about to go to war with Shu and Wu at the same time.

Zhuge Dan thought this was an opportunity for him to display his talents, so he couldn't wait to give orders to generals from all over the country, wanting them to report the situation in a timely manner and to conduct the war according to his own ideas.

But the problem is that the generals in various places did not pay much attention to the orders of the general.

They sent some letters perfunctorily, which contained simple descriptions of the situation and had no intention of asking the general to issue instructions.

On the contrary, Chen Qian of the Secretariat began to constantly contact generals from all sides, closely monitor the situation in various places, and began to provide logistical support and liaison work.

Zhuge Dan was very dissatisfied with this.

At this moment, he was sitting in front of Cao Mao, and the displeasure on his face was obvious.

Cao Mao laughed and said, "Grand Marshal, please don't be anxious."

"You should know that none of the regions are actually planning a war. They are merely forcing them not to send heavy troops to Jingzhou. This is to provide cover for General Wang."

"You ask them for information about the battle, but what can they give you?"

Zhuge Dan frowned, "Then why didn't Wang Ji obey the orders of the court?!"

"He didn't even send anyone to tell us the details. We don't even know where he's attacking now!"

Cao Mao said calmly, "Hasn't General Wang always been like this? Even during the reign of Duke Xuanwen, he liked to act on his own and openly refused orders from the imperial court. How much less now?"

Zhuge Dan asked again: "Then why does Chen Qian know the details?!"

"The Ministry of War is responsible for logistics, transporting food and fodder, and so on. How could they not know?"

Anyway, no matter how Zhuge Dan asked, Cao Mao had enough answers for him. Cao Mao was gradually undermining the power of the Three Dukes and Nine Ministers, and letting the Secretariat completely replace them. In such a plan, the Grand Marshal would of course give way to the Ministry of War.

You just need to be responsible for giving suggestions to the Ministry of War. Don't even think about interfering in the war, let alone getting involved in matters like logistics support.

Cao Mao then continued, "Grand Marshal, you've been going to the Ministry of War these past few days. I heard some officials say that you're trying to steal the credit for the General of Zhennan's achievements."

Zhuge Dan jumped up as if he had been electrocuted, "Who said that?!"

"Am I the kind of person who covets the military achievements of others?"

Cao Mao quickly said: "Of course not."

Zhuge Dan didn't dare to say anything more, but just tried hard to prove that he had no intention of plotting against others' military achievements. However, the more he spoke, the angrier he became. In the end, he was so angry that his face turned red, and he left here angrily.

Cao Mao laughed and said that different methods should be used to treat different ministers.

If you use a tough attitude to intimidate Zhuge Dan, it will only have a counterproductive effect. He will not buy it at all. But once he finds out that it will damage his reputation, he will not dare to say anything more.

After Zhuge Dan left, Cao Mao looked towards the side door.

"come in."

Chen Qian and Du Xin walked out from the side door one after another and then sat in front of Cao Mao.

They had just come to report an important event to Cao Mao, and when they learned that Zhuge Dan was coming, they hurriedly avoided him because they did not want to have any conflict with him.

As soon as Chen Qian sat down, he couldn't help but say, "Mr. Zhuge's purview is truly getting wider and wider. He's even meddling in the affairs of the Secretariat."

"He still wants to command the generals from all over the country. Who can obey him?"

Chen Qian is now the Minister of War, in charge of all wars in the world, so it is natural that the Grand Marshal Zhuge Dan often comes to trouble him.

Chen Qian was not a good-tempered person. If it were not for Cao Mao's order, he would have confronted Zhuge Dan long ago.

Cao Mao tried to appease him again, saying, "Don't think so. The Grand Marshal has been very helpful these days. It will take some time to get everything handled by the Secretariat."

Only then did Chen Qian get down to business.

"Your Majesty, General Guanqiu has returned to Huainan. He has submitted another petition stating that it is not appropriate to attack Wu by force now. We can only put pressure on Wu to prevent them from sending all-out reinforcements to Jingzhou."

"General Deng's situation is different. He said that the defenses at many of Shu's checkpoints are weak and morale is low. We can try to attack."

"General Wang has already engaged the enemy, but the specific situation of the battle is still unknown."

Chen Qian then gave a detailed account of the specific battle reports sent in from various places.

Cao Mao listened carefully. As expected, attacking Jianye by force was not easy in the southeast, and crossing the river was a big problem.

But in the northwest, Deng Ai actually wanted to take the initiative to attack?
Cao Mao fell into deep thought. Deng Ai had always been somewhat adventurous and liked to do things that others could not imagine when fighting.

The Shu Kingdom was different from the Wu Kingdom. The turmoil in the Wu Kingdom could be said to be the most serious in their history. The emperor was deposed and the generals were mostly killed or wounded. It would be a waste if we didn't attack them at this time.

However, the situation in Shu was obviously much more stable than that in Wu. Moreover, if they completely took over Jingzhou and extended their hands to Jiaozhou and other areas, the situation in Shu would become really bad.

At that time, it will not be a simple matter of dealing with the Yongliang war zone. Cao Wei's southern war zone will also put pressure on them.

With the national strength of Shu, it would be quite difficult to resist the enemy's army from two directions.

Cao Mao immediately issued an order, "Tell Deng Ai not to act rashly."

"The situation in Shu is not as bad as that in Wu. We cannot take action against them yet."

"If Shu intervenes in Jingzhou and sends troops, we can put pressure on Hanzhong, but we must be cautious."

Although Cao Mao would not command his generals, he could not completely let them go, especially when facing a radical general like Deng Ai, he still had to keep a close eye on him.

Chen Qian immediately accepted the order and then looked at Du Yu standing beside him.

"Your Majesty, Lord Du has already sent the designs for the repeating crossbows and the corresponding craftsmen to the various generals."

He started, then shut up and let Du Yu speak.

Du Yu then continued, "Your Majesty, the large-scale production of Ma Gong's newly improved repeating crossbow has begun. It can fire twelve arrows in a row."

After Zhuge Liang invented the repeating crossbow, Ma Jun improved it and created the ten-repeater crossbow, and later the twelve-repeater crossbow.

Now that the Wei Dynasty is fighting against a powerful enemy, Du Yu is also devoting all his energy to military science and creating equipment to arm the armies that are at war.

Cao Mao was very satisfied with this.

Du Yu, the Minister of Works, was even more outstanding than Cao Mao had imagined. He and Ma Jun had been constantly engaged in research and development during these days. It was said that he had also gathered many famous local craftsmen.

In addition, the Ministry of Works would reward skilled craftsmen who had new inventions with extremely generous rewards.

He also did a good job in promotion. He directly contacted the provincial governors in various places and asked them to complete the promotion as soon as possible. He also claimed that the promotion efforts of the new tools would also be included in the evaluation of political achievements.

Tools in all parts of the Wei Dynasty have begun to be updated, and Du Yu now has several major goals.

In addition to making new inventions and promoting things, he also had several ideas about roads and water conservancy.

At this moment, Du Yu said seriously, "Your Majesty, Jiangling has the Ju River and the Zhang River, which irrigate thousands of acres of fertile farmland. Anlu and its surroundings also have fertile fields. If we can capture this place, we can open up the waterway as soon as possible and carry out major water conservancy projects here."

"This will not only help us develop the local area and accumulate supplies for the offensive, but will also strengthen transportation and facilitate future battles."

Cao Mao looked at Du Yu with some surprise.

The war hasn't even officially begun yet, and you're already thinking about your plans for after you capture Jiangling and other places?
Cao Mao asked, "So, Lord Du believes this battle is certain to be won?"

"I have heard from the ministers that our army has come from afar, and the central army is unfamiliar with the local terrain. The enemy's walls are strong, their generals are skilled in defense, they have sufficient food, and there are natural defenses. The battle will certainly not be easy."

Du Yu laughed, his eyes bright.

"Your Majesty, I've heard that favorable timing is not as important as favorable location, and favorable location is not as important as favorable people."

"A nation's people are not bound by its frontiers, a country is not secured by its mountains and rivers, and the world is not intimidated by the power of weapons."

"Sun Chen was tyrannical and cruel, and his people were tortured. The generals feared him, the soldiers had no desire to fight for him, and the people only wanted to flee. But Your Majesty is wise and wise, and the country is peaceful and the people are safe. The generals want to repay Your Majesty's kindness, the soldiers are brave and fearless, and the people wholeheartedly support you."

"This gap can no longer be determined by geographical advantages or military strength."

"I heard that when the princes governed Jingzhou, the people of Jiangling and other places often fled to Xiangyang. This situation has become even more common this year."

"This year, Wu's generals and ministers all began to flee."

"It can be seen that he has lost the hearts and minds of the people."

"Even if Marquis Huaiyin were resurrected, he wouldn't be able to command such an army to stop the Heavenly Master of Wei."

"Therefore, I predict that the Wu Kingdom will suffer a crushing defeat."

Cao Mao agreed with Du Yu's suggestion and said with a smile, "Okay, then you should start preparing to open canals in Jiangling and other places, irrigate farmland, and build roads!"

Du Yu stood up and thanked him.

Chen Qian seemed a little excited. "If we can capture Jingzhou, the communication between Shu and Wu will be cut off. Wu will be forced to retreat to Jiangdong, with no possibility of attacking again. Our navy can even sail downstream. As for Shu, it will face attacks from both sides."

"Your Majesty, the world will be settled!"

"Before victory is achieved, do not rush to celebrate. Be cautious and never underestimate the enemy."

"only!!!"

(End of this chapter)