Three Kingdoms: Jiangdong is no longer a rat

Chapter 113 Han You
After Wu Jing captured Guangde, a large number of refugees fled with their families towards Yong'an, and then poured into Wujun and Kuaiji through Yong'an.

The seat of Yong'an County is located 40 miles southwest of Wucheng. It was the ancient Fangfeng State in the Xia Dynasty, belonged to Wu in the early Zhou Dynasty, belonged to Yue in the Spring and Autumn Period, and was returned to Chu after the fall of Yue. After the fall of Chu, it was returned to Qin and Han.

Because it is located at the junction of three counties, during the reign of Emperor Jing of the Western Han Dynasty, Yong'an belonged to Kuaiji County. Sixty-five years ago, Emperor Shun re-divided Wu County and Kuaiji with the Qiantang River as the boundary, and Yong'an was included in the jurisdiction of Wu County.

The western part of Yong'an is the remnant of Tianmu Mountain, and the east is Tiaoxi River. The county is located in the transition zone from mountainous areas to plains.

If Wucheng is famous in Jiangdong for its textiles and winemaking, Yong'an is famous throughout the world for its porcelain.

Yong'an can be regarded as one of the important birthplaces of Chinese porcelain. Its porcelain firing history can be traced back to the Shang Dynasty. Since the Shang and Zhou Dynasties, it has begun to fire a large number of primitive celadon such as bowls, plates, pots, bowls, tripods, you, and gui.

Today, it has formed its own unique style, with richer shapes and more diverse glaze colors. It is an important celadon production area in Jiangdong.

When Yan Yi was making development plans for Yuncheng's textile industry, he had coveted Yong'an's celadon. If he could capture Yong'an and sell Yong'an's celadon and Wucheng and Yuncheng's silk to Southeast Asia, Sindhu, Japan and other places, it would not be a temporary wealth gain, but a continuous feast of wealth.

Therefore, he has been paying attention to Yong'an. In the past month, the number of spies sent to Yong'an by the Procuratorate has continued to increase. This was due to the war and other reasons.

Due to Yan Yi's special status and growing influence within the clan, coupled with Xu Ying's deliberate arrangement and Yan Baihu's acquiescence, the Censorate is no longer an institution that only obeys Yan Baihu. A group of people headed by Yin Li have gradually separated and become Yan Yi's lackeys.

As long as Yan Yi was interested in anything big or small in Yong'an, the spies would collect and organize it every day and pass it on to him as soon as possible.

At this time, in the backyard of the official temple on the north side of Yong'an County, Yong'an Ling Han You was sitting in a main room, flipping through a scroll of bamboo slips with a serious expression.

Han You is thirty-five years old this year. He is not good-looking, only seven feet tall, short and thin. Perhaps because he has been under high pressure for a long time, he looks much older than his actual age, and his eyes are full of fatigue.

The letter records the story of Yan Yi's conquest of Rencheng.

Han You had recently placed a number of spies near Rencheng. In addition, Yan Yi intended to exert more pressure and influence on Yong'an, and took a tacit attitude towards the existence of these spies. Therefore, the news of the fall of Rencheng quickly reached Yong'an.

It only takes about half an hour to ride a fast horse from Rencheng to Yong'an.

Han You read the bamboo slips over and over again, the corners of his mouth curled up slightly, and there was a hint of satisfaction in his tone: "Zhu Zhi actually lost to Yan Yi in the battle of Rencheng. Hey, I really want to see his face right now."

He was both afraid and resentful of Zhu Zhi, who openly displayed a strong possessiveness towards Yong'an and completely ignored him.

If Rencheng fell into Zhu Zhi's hands, Yong'an would immediately be besieged on three sides by Wu Jing and Zhu Zhi, and its fall would be almost inevitable.

Now Yan Yi has captured Rencheng beyond everyone's expectations, which has given him a glimmer of hope for survival.

At least Yan's attitude towards him was relatively gentle.

Han You closed the bamboo slips and looked down at a middle-aged scholar wearing a Jinxian crown and a black square-collared Confucian robe. With a glimmer of hope, he asked, "What do the bandits in Mogan Mountain and Yinshan say? Are they willing to join me in resisting Wu Jing?"

Mogan Mountain towers to the west of Yong'an, while Yin Mountain lies to the north, forming two natural barriers protecting the city. For the past few years, Han You has been coddling and collaborating with the bandit gangs entrenched within the mountains, hoping to use them to defend against the threat from Danyang. A middle-aged scholar named Jia Ping, currently serving as a Gongcao in Yong'an and a longtime confidant of Han You, smiled wryly upon hearing this: "Wu Jing has marched southward with unstoppable force, annihilating any forces that dared to oppose him along the way. These bandit gangs have become terrified and no longer dare to confront Wu Jing. They are now planning to seek refuge with Zu Lang to avoid disaster."

"What an unreliable bunch!" Han You's face turned pale, and he felt a sense of impending disaster. After a long silence, he asked with a hint of humiliation in his tone, "How's the Wang Lang incident going?"

Jia Ping glanced at him stealthily and said cautiously, "Wang Lang does not wish to be dragged into this matter. He has rejected our proposal to surrender. However, if the county lord is willing to abandon Yong'an and flee to Kuaiji, he would welcome it."

"Wang Jingxing, you cowardly rat!"

Han You suddenly stood up, put his hands behind his back, and walked back and forth angrily. When Wang Lang first arrived in Kuaiji, his attitude was not like this. He was like a young boy who had just fallen in love and launched a fierce "pursuit" of him. But as soon as Wu Jing showed up, this man immediately became scared, and the "vows" he made in the past became bullshit.

He walked for a while, still furious, and said, "If I give up Yong'an, I will naturally go to Yuhang to find Sheng Gong. Why go to Kuaiji?"

The Sheng Gong that Han You mentioned refers to his sponsor Sheng Xian. If Sheng Xian had not gone against the majority opinion and recruited him to be the Yong'an magistrate, he would probably still be just an ordinary county official now. Sheng Xian really gave him a new life.

Now Sheng Xian is taking refuge with Xu Zhao in Yuhang. If he gives up the position of Lord of Yong'an, he will of course go to Sheng Xian to serve him first.

However, in these chaotic times, the temptation to establish one's own territory was not something he could easily abandon. At least within the 100-li territory of Yong'an, he was practically no different from the Emperor.

Han You had a conflicted expression on his face.

If Wang Lang was unwilling to protect him, it would be difficult for him to fight against Zhu and Wu with his own strength. Even if he defected to Zhu and Wu, given how much importance the two of them attached to Yong'an, it was basically foreseeable that he would be sidelined at best, or even his life would be in danger.

As for joining the Yan family, the result would not be any better. The Yan family also wanted to swallow him up and would never let him stay in Yong'an.

Ugh!
Han You sighed deeply, feeling caught between a rock and a hard place.

At this time, footsteps were heard outside the house.

An assistant official from the yamen came up the steps and said, "My Lord, an old man from the countryside wants to see you outside the temple. He claims to be an old acquaintance of yours."

Han You was feeling worried, and when he heard that, he frowned and said, "No!"

The assistant clerk hesitantly replied, "This man said he could save the county lady from danger, and that as long as he told her his name, she would definitely see him."

Han You thought it was a trick and didn't want to pay attention to it. However, the words "can save the county lady from danger" hit the nail on the head. He couldn't help but ask with a straight face, "What's the name?"

"My surname is Sheng, my name is Shen, and my courtesy name is Mengzhang."

As soon as the assistant official finished speaking, he saw his own county lady suddenly become ten years younger and rushed out like a gust of wind, leaving only a rapidly receding back.
(End of this chapter)