Three Kingdoms: Fusion of Entries, Change of Destiny

Chapter 113 What a “benevolent and people-loving” Tao Gongzu!

After Cao's army captured Pengcheng State,
The secret agents "Eagle Eyes" of the Yingyang Guard under Xi Zhicai mingled with the people of Xuzhou to collect intelligence and develop spies, and they seemed to have regarded Pengcheng State as their own back garden.

Now, they are infiltrating Xia Pi State and Donghai County, preparing to use their own strength to help Cao Cao seize other counties in Xuzhou.

Counties and prefectures in Xia Pi and Donghai noticed that many suspicious people had appeared recently and immediately began to impose martial law.

However, the seeds had already been sown, and various news began to flow towards Yanzhou.

The Map Bureau headed by Guo Jia also systematically compiled information on counties, officials, guards, and gentry from all over Xuzhou, and produced them into "character portraits" and landform sand tables.

At this moment, Guo Jia was staring blankly at a sand table marked "Xia Pi". In his hand, he was holding a piece of intelligence with the name "Zao Rong" written on it.

Zuo Rong and Tao Qian were both from Danyang.

After he defected to Tao Qian, he was immediately appointed as the prime minister of Xiapei and the governor of the grain transport in Guangling, Xiapi and Pengcheng!
In other words, Tao Qian gave Zuo Rong a pass to engage in corruption openly.

But Zuo Rong's ambition goes far beyond this, he plans to do something bigger!
He used the money he obtained through corruption to promote Buddhism in Xuzhou.

The temples he built were extremely luxurious, comparable to royal temples, and he also recruited three thousand monks.

Not only that, he often held banquets and set up free tables for dozens of miles along the way.

In this era of frequent wars, hunger and cold, who wouldn’t want to follow such a “good man”?

So the three thousand monks soon grew to tens of thousands, and Zuo Rong became a veritable "traffic Buddha".

As long as these monks put on armor and take up weapons, they become soldiers!

Don’t say anything about lack of training... Nowadays, most princes just go to war with a bunch of refugees and common people. There is basically no one else who is truly well-trained and has complete weapons and armor, except for the weirdo Boss Cao.

The reason why Zuo Rong was able to gather so many people in such a short time was simply this: he has money and can do whatever he wants!
Anyway, as long as you come, food and drinks are all included, and there are all kinds of sacrifices and festivals.

With such good conditions, who wouldn’t want to be his monk?
After a moment, Guo Jia seemed to think of something.

He stood up suddenly, took the intelligence, and hurried towards the governor's mansion.

Cao Yan and Xun Yu were leading everyone in handling official business at this moment. Even Zhuge Liang, who was not yet sixteen years old, was assigned some simpler political affairs to practice.

Before anyone could ask, Guo Jia said eagerly, "I seem to have discovered an incredible secret!"

"Oh? Tell me about it." Cao Yan responded.

"Xia Pi State Prime Minister Zuo Rong, do you know this person?" Guo Jia asked.

Cao Yan certainly knew. "Zao Rong is a fellow townsman of Tao Qian, and he's deeply trusted by him. He's used the guise of worshipping Buddhism to win over the people, and under the guise of religion, he's gathered his own troops and plundered the people's wealth... What's happened to him now? Is he trying to escape?"

"The intelligence reports say that there have been unusual movements at the temples in Xia Pi State. It seems they are indeed preparing to flee with their valuables." Guo Jia nodded, then said, "But I have a bolder guess."

"Don't keep us in suspense, tell us quickly!" Xun Yu urged.

"Tao Qian has always been known for his 'benevolent government and love for the people', but why could he tolerate the existence of someone like Zuo Rong who spread false rumors and plundered the people's wealth? He also made him the governor of the grain transport of three counties. Isn't this opening the door to corruption for Zuo Rong in disguise?" Guo Jia's words made Cao Yan and Xun Yu silent.

Later generations discussed more about Zuo Rong's cruelty, immorality and madness, but few people linked Tao Qian with Zuo Rong.

Now hearing what Guo Jia said, it seems that there really is something going on between these two people.

Seeing the two men lost in thought, Guo Jia struck while the iron was hot, "As I've read through the intelligence, I increasingly feel there's something else going on. Tao Qian appears magnanimous, but in reality, he's deeply scheming. His tolerance of Zuo Rong's actions is no accident." Guo Jia then asked, "Zi'an, what would you and my lord do if someone like Zuo Rong appeared in our territory, exploiting the people's wealth under the guise of Buddhism or Taoism?"

Cao Yan replied, "The Yellow Turban Rebellion is a lesson for us. Who would tolerate their rampant growth under our rule?"

"That's right!" Guo Jia slammed the intelligence onto Cao Yan's desk and said, "Tao Qian was also a great man of his time, one of the most distinguished generals who suppressed the Yellow Turbans. How could he not see the potential dangers behind Zuo Rong's promotion of Buddhism? Yet, he tolerated it. Why?"

Xun Yu vaguely understood what Guo Jia meant, so he replied, "Are you saying that everything Zuo Rong did was tacitly approved by Tao Qian? Are the two of them colluding with each other to make money?"

Guo Jia finally smiled. "That's right! Tao Qian and Zuo Rong are from the same hometown, so it's not impossible that they're colluding. Now, Zuo Rong wants to escape, and he's very likely to transport all his property back to his hometown in Danyang. If my guess is correct, Tao Qian may also want to escape and return to Danyang!"

Cao Yan was shocked.

He truly deserves to be the top strategist of the Three Kingdoms. He can unravel and analyze to this extent based on scattered intelligence!

In history, Tao Qian did want to escape, and he wanted to put the blame on Brother Beibei, who thought he had gotten a great bargain.

But before he could put it into action, he suddenly died of illness!

When he was young, Cao Yan was moved by Tao Qian and Liu Bei's "three surrenders of Xuzhou".

Later I felt that things might not be that simple.

It is possible that Tao Qian was just testing the waters at first, and only when he was about to die did he really have no choice but to let Liu Bei take over Xuzhou.

Now, after listening to Guo Jia's analysis, I was shocked to realize that "it turns out that they are all a bunch of old silver coins!"

Moreover, Buddhism is not like Taoism.

During the Han Dynasty, Buddhist culture was not prosperous.

The introduction of Buddhism into the Han court can be traced back to the "Yongping Seeking Dharma".

At that time, Emperor Ming of the Eastern Han Dynasty sent Cai Yin and others to the west to seek Dharma because of the legend of "dreaming of a golden man at night".

They welcomed back the Indian monks Shemoteng and Zhu Falan, and carried Buddhist scriptures to Luoyang on white horses. They then built the first Buddhist temple, the White Horse Temple, and translated the "Sutra in Forty-two Chapters" in the temple.

However, Buddhist teachings advocated monastic practice and non-production, which was contrary to Confucian filial piety and ethical concepts, so it was denounced as "barbarian techniques."

Local religions like Taoism still need to be eradicated and suppressed within the country, let alone Buddhism, which is scorned by Confucian scholars?

"Zao Rong extensively built Buddhist temples in Xia Pi, casting golden statues, draping them in splendid robes, and constructing countless multi-story pavilions and corridors... Such vast sums of money were spent, and tens of thousands of believers followed. To say Tao Qian was unaware of these actions is sheer nonsense!"

Guo Jia took out a few more pieces of information, slapped them all in front of Cao Yan, and said with a serious expression:

"I speculate that Tao Qian and Zuo Rong have already reached a secret agreement! Tao Qian paves the way for Zuo Rong, and Zuo Rong makes money for Tao Qian...

Once everything is settled, the two of them can return to Danyang and stay away from Xuzhou, a place of trouble.

From then on, whether they want to make a comeback or become a carefree rich man, it will be as easy as pie."

At this moment, a place name suddenly flashed through Cao Yan's mind - "Jiangdong!"

(End of this chapter)