"General, I would like to ask for an audience with Dachangqiu and Grand Administrator Cai!"
Outside Luyang City, Cao Jun's camp was in the tent. When he was discussing with Xun Yu and Cheng Yu who had just arrived from Xu County, as well as Guo Jia, Ding Chong, Dong Zhao and others, they were discussing how to move the base to Yin territory in Henan Province. Dian Wei, who was outside, suddenly reported a piece of news that shocked Cao Cao.
Zhong Chang Shi Da Chang Qiu... When Cao Cao heard these six words, a kind-hearted old man without a beard suddenly appeared in his mind. That was his grandfather who loved him the most, Zhong Chang Shi Da Chang Qiu Fei Tinghou Cao Teng!
It is impossible for Grandpa Cao Teng to come to Luyang to see him, so who is this Changqiu, the regular servant? I don’t think I’ve heard of anyone appointed by the Little Emperor to be the Chief Minister of Great Changqiu?
However, Dachangqiu is an official worth two thousand dan, and Zhong Changshi is an official worth more than 2,000 dan. They are not small officials. Although Cao Cao is a general, he can't let a regular attendant, Da Changqiu, wait outside the tent, right? Besides, he came with Cai Mao.
So he immediately stopped talking to Xun Yu and Cheng Yu, smiled and shouted: "Invite!"
Then he watched the curtain of the big tent being lifted up, and Cai Hao and Zhang Ji walked in one after the other.
Cao Cao had met Zhang Ji before, so he asked him with a smile: "Zhong Jing, why did you become the Changqiu Emperor? This official position..."
Zhang Ji just waved his hand and said with a wry smile: "General, don't say anything. This emperor...can't slander you, can't slander you!"
Cao Cao knew that Zhang Ji was a miracle doctor, and he just wanted to find out what was going on with the little emperor, so he quickly asked the miracle doctor Zhang to take a seat, and then asked: "What happened to the emperor? Did he really become an immortal, or... ..”
Zhang Ji and Cai Mao were also surprised when they heard this question, because they both found that Cao Cao seemed to be serious.
Cai Mao said: "Meng De, you are so powerful and confused!"
Cao Cao waved his hand: "That's Sage Kong...and I, Cao Cao, have seen so many things about his strange power and chaos, how can I remain silent?"
Xun Yu, Cheng Yu, Guo Jia, Ding Chong, and Dong Zhao in the tent all looked like they were sighing when they heard what Cao Cao said. Zhang Ji also sighed and said: "What the Emperor is like requires further observation. But..."
He just shook his head, and looked like he was hesitating to speak. It seemed that he had said nothing, and he seemed to have said nothing!
Cao Cao couldn't ask any more questions. He could only look at Zhang Ji and wait for the other party to tell his intention. Zhang Ji glanced at Cai Hao, who said: "Meng De, the Tian family wants to reopen Xiyuan and sell officials!"
"Selling an official position?" Cao Cao chuckled, "Now the emperor still has an official position to sell?"
"Yes," Zhang Jidao said, "What the emperor means is that all local governors, county guards, and state ministers who want the imperial court to grant seals, festivals, talismans, letters of honor, and edicts have to spend money!"
"Spend money?" Cao Cao frowned and asked, "How much will it cost?"
"The state herdsman is ten million, and the prime minister is twenty million!" Zhang Ji said, "The emperor also said that if he doesn't give it, he will have to pay for it himself!"
"This..." Cao Cao frowned, and immediately thought of the eleven governors and prime ministers under his command.
His Yanzhou Mu was officially appointed by the emperor long ago, and he did not need to spend any more money. However, many of the county governors and ministers were privately appointed by him. Even if they were not privately appointed, they would have to be replaced in the future!
This time, I exchanged more than 200 million and it was gone!
Thinking of this, Cao Cao looked at Cai Mao. Cai Mao said: "Liu Jingzhou will definitely be willing to pay!"
Liu Biao's Jingzhou only has seven counties. Because it has not been ravaged by much war, the drought in the previous two years has not had much impact on Jingzhou, which is full of rivers. Therefore, Jingzhou's current population exceeds 6 million, and its agriculture and handicrafts are very developed. Financial resources are naturally strong. More importantly, Liu Biao was a clan member of the Han Dynasty. The reason why he could easily establish rule in Jingzhou was because of his status and official appointment by the court.
So he sincerely hopes that Dahan can continue!
But Cao Cao...his surname is not Liu!
Cao Cao looked at Xun Yu again. Xun Yu frowned. He was the one who strongly supported the emperor, but he didn't expect that the emperor... was crazy, divine, greedy, and difficult to deal with!
Seeing Xun Yu's expression, Cao Cao knew that this Xun Yu had no "good ideas", and it was not convenient to say "bad ideas" in front of Zhang Ji and Cai Mao. So he turned to Zhang Ji and said, "Zhong Jing, how about Rong Gu discussing with Wen Ruo, Zhong De, Feng Xiao and others for a while?"
Zhang Ji and Cai Mao knew that Cao Cao was going to whisper to his men, so they immediately got up and left.
Cao Cao personally sent Zhang Ji and Cai Hao out of the camp.
When Cao Cao returned to his central army tent, Cheng Yu, who was older and a bit thin, stroked his long gray beard and began to offer suggestions: "General, Yuan Benchu has Jizhou, Qingzhou, and Bingzhou. He is also eyeing Youzhou! Among them, there are thirteen counties in Jizhou, seven counties in Qingzhou, six of which are owned by the Yuan family, and two counties in Bingzhou are controlled by the Yuan family... There are three states and two counties in total. The eleven counties and counties all have their own relationships with each other. In addition, many counties and counties in Youzhou also have a close relationship with the Yuan family."
Just the 21 counties and counties of Jizhou, Qingzhou, and the three states... more than 700 million!
Yuan Shao was going to receive a "payment notice" from Liu Xie, but he was so angry that he vomited blood?
Moreover, Cao Cao was already a general, a lieutenant of Sili, a pastor of Yanzhou, and a minister of affairs. Even if he doesn't buy the governors and ministers for his subordinates, he can still send out a lot of subordinate officials for his subordinates. And the only legal position that Yuan Shao has is that of a right general, not even a Jizhou Mu... The little emperor is selling his official position now, so don't look back at the great general, the great Sima, the general of chariots and cavalry, the general of hussars, etc. Yuan Shao is everywhere. This right general saw everyone as a "lower official", which would make Yuan Benchu, the fourth generation and three princes, angry.
Cao Cao laughed and said: "Zhongde, you still have a way... You have to let Yuan Benchu pay some blood! But Yuan Benchu is so stingy, is he willing to pay this money?"
"Of course I won't!" Xun Yu shook his head, "Benchu forgets his loyalty when he sees small profits and cherishes money when doing big things. How can he be willing to give so much money to the court? If he is so generous, he should have sent troops to welcome the emperor long ago."
Cao Cao actually knew Yuan Shao's character, so he smiled and said, "But Yuan Benchu's methods are quite powerful. I wonder how he will deal with the little emperor?"
Guo Jiadao: "Yuan Benchu was fierce but timid, fond of schemes but without decisions, generous but pragmatic. He would definitely not order all the Hebei troops to go south for a decisive battle just because the emperor wanted to sell his official position to him. After all, he is not Yuan Gongdao! As long as If he doesn't send troops, no matter what means he uses, with your wisdom, Mr. Cao, you can deal with it calmly.
In addition, as long as you can station troops in Xingyang to guard the Xuanmen Pass and control the water transport across the divide, you will be able to advance and retreat freely. Even if Luoyang fails, the emperor will not be homeless. "
Xingyang is the location of the new base camp that Cao Cao chose for himself. It has convenient transportation. There is a dangerous revolving door in the west - Hulao Pass, the Yellow River and Guangwu Mountain are in the north, and the Honggou Canal is in the east. It can also be used to transport food and troops, and can also be used to set up defense lines. Moreover, across the Yellow River from Xingyang is Hanoi County controlled by Zhang Yang, which is not Yuan Shao's territory, so it is relatively safe.
Cao Cao not only planned to open a palace in Xingyang, but also planned to expand the city and establish farming in the counties east and south of Xingyang. As long as the base camp in Xingyang is run, General Cao will be able to advance and retreat freely no matter what evildoes the little emperor of Luoyang creates or what troubles Yuan Benchu of Hebei creates. If that doesn't work, you can still have fun driving by car! If it really comes to this, wouldn't Cao Cao be able to get his wish?
Of course, Cao Cao will not leave Luoyang alone. He will also station troops in Luoyang, occupy a piece of land in Luoyang City, and build a general palace. In this way, he can run between Xingyang and Luoyang, control the Luoyang court, and sneak to Xingyang's lair when necessary.
However, he was still a little unwilling to spend a large amount of money on the little emperor.
Cao Cao frowned and said with a heartbroken look, "But it's still a lot to spend 200 million yuan alone!"
Cheng Yu smiled: "A lot? Not much, not much!"
Cao Cao looked at him: "200 million is not much?"
Cheng Yu smiled and said: "Gong Cao, you planned to hold the emperor hostage to order the princes. After the emperor and the officials arrived in Xu County, you couldn't support them? You couldn't build a palace for the emperor and a mansion for the officials? I'm afraid it would be ten taels. Billions of dollars are not enough to spend! Now that the emperor wants to be the emperor of Luoyi...should the emperor figure out the expenses of the imperial court himself? "
"That's right!" Cao Cao's eyes lit up, "The emperor of Xu County has to bear the expenses alone, but the expenses of the emperor of Luoyi have to be borne by the little emperor himself!"
Xun Yu next to him heard the conversation between Cao Cao and Cheng Yu, and his brows tightened: "Mr. Cao, what can the emperor do? You can't raise all the money to support the court by selling your official posts, right? If the emperor can't raise enough, What about the money?"
Cao Cao looked at Cheng Yu again.
Cheng Yu said: "Isn't the emperor capable of calculation? Isn't there three volumes of the Heavenly Book that Gaozu taught in his dream? And he will be stumped by a mere amount of money and food? If he is stumped, doesn't it mean that the Heavenly Book and so on are all fictitious? Things?
Besides, Liu Jingsheng controls seven counties and is the richest in the world. He will not watch the emperor starve, right? Mr. Cao, you are the general and the minister. You can at least take charge of half of the affairs of the court, and you don't need to bear the expenses of the court. Isn't this great? If the little emperor really can't raise money, then he won't be able to be the emperor of Luoyi anymore! "
"Okay! Okay! Okay!" Cao Cao said three times in a row, and then turned back to Dong Zhao and said, "Gongren, please tell your Majesty that even though Cao Cao is short of money, I can still spend 50 to 60 million. The money is used to finance the imperial court's return to Luoyang...but Gu Ke cannot afford the imperial court's expenses in Luoyang!"
"Only fifty or sixty million?" Dong Zhao suspected that he had heard wrongly and asked again.
"Only fifty or sixty million!" Cao Cao said, "The Gu family is not as rich as Liu Jingzhou."
Dong Zhaoxin said: Your price is quite brutal! But the little emperor is not that easy to talk to, so you two should bargain slowly!
