Chapter 233 Kong Ming enters the court! Ma Chao makes a comeback!
Chapter 233: Kong Ming enters the court! Ma Chao makes a comeback!
The prime minister is in charge of the emperor and assists him in all affairs...

When Cao Cao welcomed the emperor to Xuchang, the reason why he was able to quickly take control of the court and the emperor was because he occupied the position of Prime Minister of the Han Dynasty.

At that time, there were many people in the court and the world who were loyal to the Han Dynasty.

Cao Cao had a powerful army in one hand and the righteousness of the Han Dynasty in the other. This, at least on the surface, silenced many voices of dissatisfaction with him.

He, Cao Mengde, is indeed arrogant and domineering.

Indeed, he holds all the power.

He really dominates the government!

But as long as he still has the banner of Han Xiang,
All his actions can have a fair explanation, because the prime minister is the head of all officials who assists the emperor in managing all government affairs and is in charge of the highest state affairs!

It is no exaggeration to say that whoever sits in the position of prime minister, at least in name, has the power to control the entire court.

Even though Cao Cao is now the King of Wei, this power is still very important to him!
Many of his talented civil and military men came for his reputation as "Prime Minister of Han", such as Xun Yu, also known as Xun Linggong, who was praised by Cao Cao as "my Zi Fang" and "a talent who can assist the king".

And now...

Liu Wu asked Cao Cao to exchange his position as Prime Minister of Han for the lives of Yu Jin and Cao Ren!

The most important thing is that Zhuge Liang is now Liu Wu's man. If Zhuge Liang is really made the prime minister of Han, Liu Zilie's power in the court will surely increase greatly...

There was silence on the city wall.

All the civil and military officials in Cao's camp bowed their heads and remained silent.

Generals Yu Jin and Cao Ren are certainly important, but isn’t King Wei’s position as Prime Minister of Han also important?

"Liu Zilie! You traitor! Kill me now!"

"Liu Wu! You, you are the emperor's brother after all! How can you resort to such despicable means!"

Outside the city, Cao Ren and Yu Jin were cursing loudly.

How could they not know how important the position of Prime Minister of Han was to their lord?
Cao Ren was even more furious. He would rather die than see Cao Cao give up his position as prime minister for him.

"I agree!"

A cold voice instantly stunned Cao Ren and Yu Jin.

They looked up in disbelief and looked at the figure on the top of the city.

Cao Cao tightly grasped the blue bricks on the wall and said: "I can give the position of Han Prime Minister to Zhuge Liang, but you must return Wen Ze and Zi Xiao to me without any harm..."

Although he was unwilling to let Zhuge Liang become the Prime Minister of Han, Yu Jin and Zixiao were his most trusted men, so how could he not save them?
The reason why I took the position of Han Xiang was to seek legitimacy.

Rightfully controlling the court,

Recruiting talents for yourself legitimately,
To legitimately expand their own wings,
He monopolized the government with all due respect and authority, conquered the world and rebelled against the princes...

Now that he has occupied the Central Plains and has already achieved great success, although the position of Prime Minister of Han is extremely important, it is no longer indispensable to him at this moment.

If I could exchange this item for the bones of two trusted men, it would be worth it.

As for Zhuge Liang becoming the Prime Minister of the Han Dynasty, would Liu Wu's power in the court threaten him...

Haha, since Zhuge Liang was the prime minister of the Han Dynasty, he had to come to Xuchang to take up his post. He controlled Xuchang for more than ten years, and basically controlled the entire court.

Even if Zhuge Liang came to Xuchang and became the Prime Minister of Han, he was still the Prime Minister of Han in his own hands. What was there to be afraid of?

Liu Zilie, let you be proud for a while!

"If you dare to break your promise, today you and I will fight to the death at Hangu Pass!"

The King of Wei actually gave up his position as Prime Minister of Han for the sake of the two of them? !
"The King of Wei...My Lord!" Cao Ren's eyes were already red. He had been captured four times and he didn't know how many soldiers and horses he had lost to the King of Wei. Yet, the King of Wei still treated him with such great kindness. He felt that even if he were to be torn to pieces, it would still be difficult to repay the King of Wei's kindness.

Yu Jin was in a daze, then his face flushed and he lowered his head.

Although Cao Hong beside him was captured many times, he was always exhausted in the battle. He surrendered twice on his own initiative, but the King of Wei...

Liu Wu smiled faintly: "Don't worry, King Wei. I am the King of Chu of the Han Dynasty and the brother of the emperor. How can I break my promise?"

"Release them..."

……

Wu-Chu coalition camp,

In a remote little tent, Zhuge Liang sat behind a desk, lost in thought...

He was still thinking about what Liu Wu had said when he came to find him before he went out to fight: "From today on, Mr. Zhuge will be Prime Minister Zhuge..."

Prime Minister Zhuge!

Even Mr. Wolong, who worked hard in the fields in Nanyang and was always calm and composed, felt dazed when he thought of these four words.

Han Xiang...

There is no need to mention the founding heroes of the Western Han Dynasty such as Xiao He and Cao Shen.

Even Cao Mengde had the merit of subduing all the princes in the world, and he also controlled a large number of troops, which enabled him to secure the position of Prime Minister of the Han Dynasty.

How could Cao Aman be willing to give up the position of Prime Minister of the Han Dynasty to a commoner like himself?
But Zhuge Liang also knew where Liu Wu's confidence came from, because he saw with his own eyes that Yu Jin and Cao Ren were tied up and led to the front of the two armies by Liu Wu. He must have wanted to use these two people as a bargaining chip to exchange for the position of prime minister with Cao Cao.

These two were Cao Cao's most trusted men. Whether they were killed or released, Liu Wu would benefit greatly...

Although he had been working for Liu Wu, he had never agreed to serve him as his master. Was Liu Wu really willing to exchange the position of prime minister for Zhuge Kongming at the cost of these two people?
Tap tap tap~
wow~
A figure lifted the curtain and entered the tent.

Zhuge Liang looked up and it was Liu Wu.

He clenched the handle of the feather fan tightly...

Liu Wu: "Sir, it's time to pack your bags."

packing luggage?

Zhuge Liang was stunned subconsciously: "Where to go?"

Liu Wu looked at Kong Ming, his lips curled up slightly: "Of course I will go to Xudu and become the prime minister!"

"I will let Zhou Gongjin lead the troops to escort... Prime Minister Zhuge."

……

Liangzhou, Longxi County.

"kill!"

"Run! Run!"

"It's General Shenwei! General Shenwei is back again!"

Rumble~
On the vast and boundless land of Liangzhou,
Yellow dust rose into the sky and thousands of horses galloped like a gust of wind, running wildly towards the Qiang people who were fleeing in panic in front.

run!
The Qiang tribesmen were whipping their horses desperately. They didn't understand why General Shenwei Tian, ​​who had clearly gone to the Han people's territory, returned to Liangzhou?

In the past few days, several smaller Qiang tribes near Longxi have suffered great misfortune.

"kill!"

"Ah~"

More than ten thousand Xiliang cavalrymen passed through the remnants of the Qiang people like the wind, and all the screams disappeared in an instant.

On a high slope in the distance, Ma Chao nodded with satisfaction: "Yes, the bones of this cavalry have grown back."

These 10,000+ Xiliang cavalry were exactly the 10,000+ remnant soldiers that Ma Chao had gathered from Lantian after his defeat in Chang'an...

After Ma Teng entered Xuchang, Ma Chao stayed in Liangzhou, commanding Ma Teng's former troops and stationing them in Sanfu and Youfufeng Huaili.

After being defeated by Liu Wu in Chang'an, he learned at Tongguan that Han Sui had surrendered, so he led the 10,000 cavalry to retreat to Sanfu. After a brief rest, he quickly retreated to Liangzhou.

Although these ten thousand cavalrymen from Xiliang were the defeated troops in Chang'an, they were all elite veteran soldiers.

However, the defeat at Chang'an broke their backbone, destroyed their spirit, and made it almost impossible for them to form an army.

In order to make this cavalry able to fight again, Ma Chao led them to almost wipe out several small Qiang tribes around Longxi County in recent days.

This allowed them to gradually regain some of their former fierceness and courage.

Ma Chao turned around and looked at his cousin Ma Dai: "How is the recruitment?"

Ma Dai: "After all, my Ma family has been operating in Longxi for a long time. Although my brother and uncle have not been in Longxi for a long time, their reputation is still there. Officials from all sides dare not delay my brother's affairs. Money, food, weapons, horses, and all military equipment have been arranged..."

How could Ma Mengqi forget the defeat in Chang'an and the shame in Tongguan?
I must settle this account with Liu Zilie. At least I have to take Chang'an back first. But Liu Zilie now has a strong army and powerful military force.

But the mere 10,000 remaining soldiers in his hands are far from enough to avenge his humiliation. He must recruit more soldiers and regroup.

Since his father lost his official position, Ma Teng stayed in Longxi and married a Qiang girl named Ma Chao. Later, he responded to Han Sui's call and started a rebellion. Han Sui occupied Jincheng and Ma Teng occupied Longxi.

By the time Ma Teng died, the Ma family had ruled Longxi for twenty years.

Over the past twenty years, the Ma family has already established deep roots in Longxi. Even though Ma Teng is dead and Ma Chao has just been defeated, the Ma family still has a deep foundation in Longxi.

This is also the reason why Ma Chao has the confidence to fight Liu Wu again.

"It's just..." Ma Dai hesitated slightly: "Brother wants to fight Liu Wu again. If we recruit new soldiers, they still need to be trained. I don't know when we can form an army for you to lead."

"If they are old soldiers, most of the old soldiers in Longxi are already in your hands."

There were constant wars in Liang Province and the population was already poor. In the Battle of Chang'an, Ma Chao's 30,000 cavalry were the most elite soldiers in the entire Longxi County.

Unfortunately, after that battle, only these ten thousand remnants are left.

It may be difficult to recruit more veteran soldiers.

"It's okay..." Ma Chao didn't care at all, as if all this was within his expectations: "Have all the leaders of the Qiang tribes that I asked you to invite arrived?"

"It's all here!"

"Okay." Ma Chao nodded and got on his horse: "Let's go back to Longxi City first!"

……

(End of this chapter)