Chapter 159 Guan Yu: Nephew, your uncle shouldn’t have let you go that night…

Chapter 159: Guan Yu: Nephew, your uncle shouldn’t have let you go that night…

The emperor stood up,

Looking directly at Xun Yu:
"May I ask Lord Xun, is the Lord you have assisted for decades a Han official?!"

May I ask Lord Xun Lingjun,

Is the wise minister you have assisted for decades a Han official?

The emperor's words seemed to be asking about Xun Yu's heart.

The wise official back then was naturally a Han minister.

Cao Cao was naturally a Han minister back then...

But is Cao Cao still a Han minister today?
How many transgressions did Cao Cao commit?

How disrespectful was Cao Cao to the emperor?

How deceitful was Cao Mengde to the emperor?
But if there was no Cao Mengde, who knows how many people would have been kings and emperors in this world!

But without Cao Mengde, the Central Plains would still be in turmoil and divided into pieces.

Cao Mengde was a little more powerful. When the Yidaizhao incident happened, he even executed Queen Dong, who was pregnant with the dragon seed, and killed a large number of Han officials.

But if Cao Cao does not kill them, the situation will become unstable. Who of these so-called Han ministers can stabilize the situation?
How serious was Huo Guang's dictatorship? Although Huo Guang was not as arrogant as Cao Cao.

But Huo Guang even deposed and enthroned the emperor! Even Cao Mengde today is probably not as good as him...

But no matter at that time or in the following hundreds of years, no one doubted Huo Guang's loyalty to the Han Dynasty!
Xun Yu cupped his hands and whispered, "Prime Minister Cao sometimes oversteps his authority, but Your Majesty should not doubt his loyalty to the Han Dynasty..."

"The Prime Minister is a Han official, he will never usurp the throne."

"Prime Minister Cao has fought all his life, isn't it for the sake of the Han Dynasty?"

"However, the struggle for power and the fighting among the princes often lead to the death of people and the destruction of clans. The Prime Minister is sometimes a little too aggressive. Your Majesty should understand."

"His Majesty!"

At this point, Xun Yu knelt down, tears streaming down his face: "If Your Majesty can become a ruler like Emperor Gaozu who stabilizes the country, Prime Minister Cao will be willing to be a wise minister like Zhang Liang who governs the country."

"When the master is weak, the minister is strong; when the master is strong, the minister is weak!"

"Your Majesty, have you ever thought about what would happen to the Central Plains if the imperial edict was successful and Prime Minister Cao died?!"

"Your Majesty was displaced and in danger several times before he met Prime Minister Cao. Although he has suffered some grievances in recent years, isn't he now stable?"

"I know that Your Majesty hates Prime Minister Cao."

"But Your Majesty is not a powerful ruler after all. Since there are capable ministers in the court, a wise ruler should rule the country with ease..."

Xun Yu spoke from the bottom of his heart and almost burst into tears.

The emperor on the dragon throne was in a trance.
Xun Yu was telling the truth.

I am not a powerful ruler, and since Cao Cao is a capable minister, he should just rule the country without any hesitation.

"I am not a great ruler, but I am the emperor of the Han Dynasty after all. I have to consider the country and society of the Han Dynasty."

"Lord Xun, you should know that I still have no offspring..."

In the first month of the spring of the fifth year of Jian'an, General Dong Cheng, Lieutenant Wang Fu, and Captain Zhong Ji of Yue Cavalry received a secret imperial edict to execute Cao Cao, but the plan leaked.

On the Renwu day, Cao Cao killed Dong Cheng and others, and exterminated their three clans.

In the seventh month of autumn, Prince Feng was made King of Nanyang.

In the year Renwu, King Feng of Nanyang died.

At this time, Liu Xie's eyes were already red. When the Yidaizhao incident happened, Empress Dong was already pregnant with his child. The emperor went to Cao Cao for help several times, but Empress Dong was still executed by Cao Cao, leaving two lives.

Xun Yu said silently: "Your Majesty is in good health, and you will naturally have children in the future."

The emperor sneered: "Even if there is a child, it can only be born to Cao's daughter, right?"

Xun Yu remained silent.

Wasn't it the same for the powerful official Huo Guang back then...

The emperor continued, "Lord Xun, you are old, and so is Prime Minister Cao. Prime Minister Cao also has children. Don't you understand what I mean?"

Xun Yu was stunned.

Liu Xie took a deep breath and said, "King Wen of Zhou was a minister of the Shang Dynasty until his death."

Xun Yu was stunned...

At this moment he felt suffocated.

Before he could react, the emperor had already stood up and said, "Didn't Lord Xun just ask if Ah Wu was a Han minister?"

"I can answer you now..."

"I will only speak to Lord Xun Lingjun!"

"Awu is certainly not a Han minister. How can Awu be my subject? Awu is my younger brother!"

"Lord Xun, Awu is the son of Uncle Liu. He is a descendant of the Han Dynasty. How could you be so confused? He is a descendant of the Han Dynasty. You know that I have no offspring..."

……

……

Nanyang County, the lobby of Wancheng County Magistrate's Mansion.

After Liu Wugao took the lead in the case, his court was filled with officials, including the county magistrates of more than fifty counties...

Officials from all over Jingbei gathered here to pay homage to Liu Wu.

They bowed to Liu Wu loudly: "Your subordinates are here to see the governor of Jingzhou!"

The lingering sound, like a wave, echoed throughout the lobby and slowly dissipated.

After the big case, there was silence.

The young figure just looked down at the people in the hall...

A large number of county magistrates kept their bodies bowed and their hands clasped, not daring to move.

They knew that the figure sitting at the top was incredibly young, but none of them dared to look down on this young man because of his age. They only had awe for this figure.

Endless awe...

Eighty thousand troops!

That’s 80,000 troops coming to aid Xiangfan!

How could he defeat her so easily?
Xiangfan fell.

Cao Ren, Yu Jin, Xu Huang, Man Chong, and Lu Chang, one is Prime Minister Cao’s cousin, two are among the Five Elite Generals, and the remaining two are also generals under Prime Minister Cao who can lead an army on their own.

Now they are all captives of Liu Zilie.

He easily took possession of Prime Minister Cao's elite troops who had experienced many battles.

Even the huge Nanyang was completely occupied by the other side...

Nanyang, Wancheng!
Further ahead is Xuchang!

At present, Xuchang has no strategic location to defend. Prime Minister Cao has lost 80,000 troops in a row. Before that, there was the Battle of Red Cliff, the attack on Xiling, and the battle of Jiangling... How many troops are left in Xuchang?
How many combat-ready soldiers does Prime Minister Cao have left?

What else can he use to resist Liu Zilie?
The situation is like this,

What choice do these Baili Hou have?
Pang Tong, who was standing on one side of the lobby, looked at the scene in front of him and took several gulps of wine. Otherwise, he really could not suppress the excitement in his heart.

Since the reigns of Emperors Huan and Ling, the entire northern Jing was finally in the hands of his own good disciples and essentially belonged to Jingzhou!

This is Liu Jingsheng's most desired and helpless achievement...

Liu Wu's calm voice came from behind the desk: "Gentlemen, please excuse me."

This voice made the officials of the three counties, who were originally nervous, breathe a sigh of relief: "Thank you, Lord Governor!"

Liu Wu glanced at the officials from the three counties who were respectfully waiting for him and nodded slightly. These local officials would play a big role in whether he could digest Jingbei peacefully.

Liu Wu met them today not only to intimidate them, but also to reassure them.

As long as you behave yourself and don't cause any trouble, you can continue to be officials.

Many officials understood this point and felt completely at ease.

Liu Wu glanced at Pang Tong and said, "Teacher, there are still 70,000 captives left in the Jingshan area of ​​Xiangyang. Please go back to Xiangfan first and lead the Jingzhou navy to bring them back to Jingnan."

"Then let Lu Xun send troops north to help me!"

Liu Wu's attack on Xiangfan yielded great results, especially the 70,000 elite northern soldiers captured, which allowed Liu Wu to cut a large piece of meat from Prime Minister Cao. Liu Wu had to eat this piece of meat quickly.

However, these 70,000 surrendered soldiers have to be sent to Jiangling and Xiling for reorganization, and it will take at least half a year before they can be truly used.

And this time when he went north, he only brought 35,000 people with him, 25,000 of whom were naval officers...

Apart from this Han River breach, the navy was of little use either in Jingbei or the Central Plains.

If the navy goes north again, they have to send troops from Hefei...

Therefore, we must immediately send the navy back to Jingnan to replace the 30,000 to 40,000 infantry guarding both sides of the Yangtze River.

Pang Tong bowed solemnly: "I accept your command!"

Liu Wu: "The article is long."

Wei Yan: "I am here!"

Liu Wu's voice was as calm as ever: "Now that Jingbei has been secured, we still need a general to garrison there... I now order you to lead the army and garrison Jingbei!"

Town, guarding Jingbei? !
Wei Yan was completely stunned. He stared blankly at Liu Wu after the big case. This surprise came too suddenly.

Whether under Liu Jingsheng or Liu Bei, he was just a deputy general leading more than a thousand people. He was unwilling but helpless.

It was Liu Wu who allowed him to realize his ambitions step by step.

Previously, he was the sole governor of Jiangling.
Now he is guarding Jingbei!
He finally became a truly independent general!

Wei Yan knelt on one knee with a trembling voice: "Wei Yan, I will repay my lord with my own death!"

Liu Wu nodded slightly, then stood up and walked slowly out of the hall: "That's all for today, everyone please go away."

The officials of the county magistrate all bowed to Liu Wu and said, "We, the officials, respectfully send you off, Your Excellency the governor."

Liu Wu slowly stood up, thinking to himself: Cao Mengde, if you don't know what's best for you, don't blame me for charging forward again. It's only 500 miles from Wancheng to Xuchang...

Swallowing the three counties in northern Jing and accepting the surrender of 70,000 prisoners made Liu Wu's power surge, but it would take a year and a half to digest it.

The 15,000 soldiers in the Hefei war zone cannot move.

Huang Zhong's 10,000 soldiers in Changsha are too far away...

Chen Dao's White-ear soldiers in Wuling have not yet been trained.

The navy of Jingzhou is not good at land combat, so it needs to return to Jingnan to make corrections.

In fact, at this time, all Liu Wu could mobilize, except for the 10,000 soldiers under Wei Yan who had already arrived in Xiangfan, were only more than 30,000 people on both sides of the Yangtze River.

At most, there are less than 50,000 infantrymen, which is not enough to compete for the Central Plains.

But after a year or so, the situation will be completely reversed, and by then Liu Wu will be able to march north with 150,000 troops...

No, it will be more than 200,000!

Because Sun Quan is still in his hands...

In the lingering sound,
Liu Wu left the hall of the prefectural governor's mansion.
Come to the backyard.

Mi Zhu, holding the bamboo slips, had been waiting for a long time: "My Lord."

Liu Wu looked at him and asked, "How are the tribute items that need to be prepared when entering Xu?"

Mi Zhu reported respectfully: "My Lord, all the offerings for the audience with the Emperor have been loaded onto the carts and we can set off at any time."

Liu Wu: "Very good."

I have spent so much effort and energy to attack Xiangfan and take Nanyang just to enter Xuchang and pay homage to the emperor. This important event must not be taken lightly.

"Zi Lie has done a great thing..." A figure walked in from outside. It was Wu Hou Sun Quan. "I'm afraid that Zi Lie's visit to the capital this time will make Cao A Man unable to sleep or eat well."

Having trouble sleeping and eating?

I’m afraid that Prime Minister Cao may not be able to stay in Xuchang right now.

Sun Quan looked at Liu Wu seriously and said, "Zi Lie, you have to go to Xudu early and come back early. I still hope that Zi Lie can take me back to Jiangdong as soon as possible."

These days, Liu Wu would take Sun Quan with him wherever he went.

This is the case in Xiangfan and Nanyang as well.

Now that Liu Wu is going to Xuchang first, Sun Zhongmou will probably have to stay in Wancheng for some time.

only……

This Marquis Wu has never been an honest man. If we really leave him in Wancheng, no one knows what tricks he will play.

Liu Wu's eyes moved slightly: "Uncle, why don't you come with me to the court this time."

The words fell,

Sun Quan's blue eyes were filled with astonishment: "I, I will go to the court with you to meet the emperor?!"

……

……

Woohoo! ~
The majestic sound of the horn echoed throughout the entire city of Xuchang.

The flags are flying high and the drums are waving.

The spears and halberds are like a moving forest.
The armor leaves collided continuously, and the cold light was faintly visible under the sunlight.

Wow! ~
Densely packed soldiers, like a wave, surged out of Xuchang City.

As the heavy footsteps fell, the houses in Xuchang seemed to tremble.

In the houses on both sides of the street, countless people looked out through doors, windows and cracks, with different thoughts in their minds:
"This is really weird! Whenever Prime Minister Cao went to war, he would swear an oath outside the city. Why did he go out directly from the city this time?"

"Prime Minister Cao's armies used to be boundless... Why does this army look so small?"

"Hiss! I heard that the Prime Minister has no more troops to deploy this time..."

"Xuchang City, I'm afraid it's really going to be unstable this time."

Rumble, rumble~
In the center of the army, a chariot with a canopy and a large banner with the word "Cao" on it was moving slowly forward under the protection of armored soldiers.

Cao Mengde in the car had a gloomy face. He turned around and looked around, and couldn't help but sighed at the army that was going on this expedition.

Fifteen thousand!
There were only 15,000 soldiers on this expedition.

There was no other way. Xuchang only had 20,000 soldiers and horses in total. Taking away 15,000 of them was already the limit. The emperor and the officials of Xuchang were his foundation, and he could not afford to be careless.

Besides, he had previously summoned governors from all over the country to lead troops to support Xiangfan, which should be enough for this expedition...

Xiangfan,

Alone in Xiangfan!

When Cao Cao mentioned Xiangfan, he felt heartbroken.

Eighty thousand troops,

Several generals,

And also got a Nanyang!
This is all Liu Zilie’s doing!

"Liu Zilie!" Cao Cao's forehead was throbbing with hatred. "This time, I will definitely stop you from leaving Xuchang!"

Cao Cao's voice was not loud, but not small either.

call! ~
A gentle breeze blew, and the three words "Liu Zilie" were blown to the back of the carriage.

The sound also reached the ears of several civil and military officials who were following on horseback.

Xu Shu remained silent and said nothing.

A trace of disdain flashed across Jian Yong's lips. It seemed that Prime Minister Cao had no other way to ensure victory over Zi Lie except to say some harsh words.

I just didn’t expect that…

Jian Yong had a complicated expression as he looked at the figure holding the Azure Dragon Crescent Blade beside him. Did Cao Mengde actually persuade Yun Chang to go to war? !
Da Da Da~
Guan Erye sat on his red rabbit horse, his eyes slightly closed...

His mind was full of thoughts.

I thought of Liu Wu.
Thinking of Liu Xuande,

I thought of that snowy night...

Guan Yu whispered in his heart: "My nephew, my nephew, your uncle shouldn't have let you go that night..."

　Yesterday's chapter has been added, but it's gone today.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)