As soon as the news of Yuan Shao's death came out, the whole world was shocked. After all, Yuan Shao was the strongest overlord of this era. The former leader of the Kwantung Allied Forces died with hatred, causing conflicts between the Cao and Yuan families to the point of no compromise.
There are some powerful people in the world who feel sorry for him, and there are also those who praise him. Among them, the one who was most relieved was not Cao Cao, but Yuan Shu, the second fool who occupied the three counties of Jiujiang, Lujiang and Danyang.
Yuan Shu's army suffered successive defeats in Danyang, but after hearing the news that Yuan Shao, a thorn in his side, was dead, Yuan Shu was happy, but felt a bit sad.
After more than a year of fighting, the Sun family achieved brilliant results. Not only did the Sun family firmly control the three counties of Wu, Kuaiji, and Yuzhang to form a siege on Yuan Shu, but the Sun family also won consecutive battles in Danyang, and Yuan Shu's army was defeated in one fell swoop. Rush to Jiangbei.
Shortly before the Cao and Yuan families stopped their troops, Zang Ba, with the support of Qingzhou and Chen Deng as his assistant, suddenly led his troops to occupy Taishan County, catching Cao Ren, the commander of Cao's army on the eastern front, by surprise.
Xuzhou Liu Bei, instigated by Tian Feng, divided his troops and went south. He summoned Tao Qian's old troops from the East China Sea and Pengcheng armies, and formed a north-south pincer attack on Cao Ren.
When Cao Cao stopped his troops, he ordered Cao Ren's troops to be transferred back to Yanzhou and Lu State to guard against the Qingzhou Army in the direction of Mount Tai.
As a result, Liu Bei controlled all three counties of Langya, Donghai, and Pengcheng, as well as the northern area of Xiapi, and formed a pincer attack on Yanzhou with the Qingzhou Army.
In Guanzhong, due to the relocation of some of the refugee population, Xiliang warlords Ma Teng and Han Sui entered the three counties of Youfufeng, Jingzhaoyin, and Zuofengyi to station troops. Previously, Liu Xie sent subordinate officials to govern Guanzhong, but Cao Cao replaced him with two of his cronies, Chen Gong and Zhao Yan, before setting off for the expedition.
The battle for hegemony among the princes of the world entered a new situation with the death of Yuan Shao. With Yuan Xi's ascension, history has also opened a new page.
In Jizhou, Yuan Xi finally calmed down Mrs. Liu, and then a lot of military and political affairs had to be handled by his new overlord of Hebei.
Feng Ji, Shen Pei, Xu You, Chen Lin, Guo Jia Xu and others quickly came to the study room in the Zhou Mu Mansion. Their faces were not very good and they looked worried.
Chen Lin, who was in charge of the clerical department, reported: "The two generals Zhang He and Guo Huai defrauded Zhuoxian and Jixian, and have collected most of Youzhou's troops. The eldest son fled to Yuyang to gather his party members, but he was defeated by Zhang He again. .”
"Okay, Zhang He, Guo Huai and the others moved quite quickly!" Yuan Xi said with a happy face.
"But..." Chen Lin paused and whispered: "The eldest son and his followers have fled to Youbeiping. Apparently they are going to defect to the Wuhuan people! The general made a plan that morning."
"Wuhuan people!" Yuan Xi's heart tightened. Wuhuan Tatton still had an account with him that he hadn't settled clearly yet.
In Xudu’s Guanyi,
At this time, a group of uninvited guests were welcomed. Cao Cao's personal guard general Dian Wei led a hundred elite tiger soldiers to the post house.
When he met Sima Yi, he didn't say much. He just cupped his hands and said loudly: "Mr. Sima, my Sikong family has an order. Please follow me to the mansion, Mr. Sima!"
The main hall of Sikong Mansion,
However, they saw that not only Cao Cao's men were there, but also Xun Yu, Xun You, Cheng Yu, Dong Zhao and others were on the side, holding a terrifying formation, which was obviously intentional.
Sima Yi didn't hold his hand, bend down, or have stage fright. He opened his mouth and said, "Sima Yi, who is from Hanoi, has met Cao Sikong."
Cao Cao looked Sima Yi up and down and said curiously: "Are you Sima Yi, the son of Fang Gong? En has a good appearance, but unfortunately it lacks some rules. You are the most respected of the three princes in the dynasty. You are just a diner in the Yuan family's tent. , how can you not be polite when you see me?"
Sima Yi shook his head and spoke decisively: "Although you are the Third Duke, you are hostile to us. Although I have no official position, I am a loyal and respectful person. Now that I am an envoy, how can I abandon my family?" Lord, it’s a matter of course!”
Seeing that Sima Yi's words were appropriate, Cao Cao was not impressed, and immediately asked: "Your master sent you to Xudu, besides paying homage to the emperor, what else do you have to say to me?"
Sima Yi smiled softly and replied: "Before my death, my old lord passed on the throne to his second son, who is now the lord of Hebei, in front of all the people in Hebei! Now that the four states are serving, all they need is a formal appointment edict from the imperial court. , My lord has no other needs, he just wants to inherit the title of the old lord during his lifetime, that is: general, Taiwei, leader of Jizhou shepherd, and Marquis of Ye!"
"Impossible!" Before Sima Yi finished speaking, he saw Xun Yu on the side speaking, "What kind of person is Yuan Xi? Do you want to receive so many titles? It's ridiculous! Besides, the imperial court has already issued an edict. The position of Jizhou Mu has been inherited by Yuan Shao's eldest son Yuan Tan. If the order is changed overnight, where will the emperor's face be? Where is the majesty of the imperial court?"
Sima Yi sneered in his heart, and then said generously, "Even so, my son is the heir designated by the old master before his death. Now that the imperial court has sealed Yuan Tan, how can my master's face be saved? How can he still retain his dignity? Do you want Mr. Xun to teach me?"
Xun Yu sneered and said, "What a joke! All the officials and nobles of the prefectures and counties in the world are from the Han Dynasty! It should be decided by the emperor, how can it become the private property of the heirs of his Yuan family?"
But at this moment, Xun You stood up, first saluted Cao Cao, and then cupped his hands to Sima Yi, saying: "My lord, please calm down, Mr. Sima, please don't get excited. If you come to talk with your temper, this deal will still be settled after all." If we can't negotiate, Wen Ruo is upright by nature and not good at this. I think it would be better for me to negotiate with Mr. Sima."
Xun You smiled, then turned around, looked Sima Yi up and down and said: "Mr. Sima, don't be surprised. The titles in this court are not like cabbage and pork in the market. They can be exchanged at any time. Even if Yuan Xi is Yuan Shao's beloved son, do you think It is really unfair to let him inherit the title of General, Jizhou Mu, and Yehou. Moreover, Yuan Shao was famous all over the world at that time and had made many contributions to the Han Dynasty, so he could get this honor. Although Yuan Xi succeeded to the throne, he was still young and inexperienced. It is difficult for him to achieve such a great position, so I am afraid that it would be inappropriate to confer him the title of Third Duke."
Seeing that what Xun You said was fair, Sima Yi asked, "Mr. Xun, tell me, what can we do?"
Xun You paused for a moment, then smiled slowly and said, "How about making your lord the General of the Eastern Conquest to bring peace to the world?"
Sima Yi rolled his eyes and said impatiently: "General Zhengdong? No, no, no, you have to be higher! Isn't this just sending a beggar away!"
Hearing this, Xun You was angry, so he asked: "What do you think, Mr. Sima? What do you want?"
Sima Yi thought for a while and affirmed: "Master Yushi!"
Xun You shook his head: "General Pingxi!"
Sima Yi: "General Fenwei!"
Xun You: "Capture the general!"
Sima Yi: “General Hussars!”
Xun You: "General Hengye!"
Sima Yi: “Situ!”
After savage bargaining, Yuan and Cao finally reached a consensus and awarded Yuan Xi the position of guard.
From the beginning to the end, Sima Yi acted very sincerely, as if he really came to negotiate with Cao Cao and seek an official position for Yuan Xi, without anything inappropriate.
But Cao Cao and others did not expect that when Sima Yi came to negotiate, he never thought about getting any official position for Yuan Xi, nor did he bother to get it. He was just paralyzing Cao Cao and buying time for Yuan Xi to capture Youzhou, because Yuan Xi doesn't care about the official title.
In the Jizhou Assembly Hall, Chairman Bo Chen Lin told everyone about the battle situation in Youzhou. Now Yuan Xijun and Zhang He used light troops to defraud Zhuoxian and Jixian, and defeated Yuan Tan who gathered in Yuyang. They were basically under control. The situation in Youzhou.
"But..." Chen Lin paused and whispered: "The eldest son led his followers to flee to Youbeiping, obviously to defect to the Wuhuan people! The general should have made a plan early in the morning!"
"Wuhuan people!" Yuan Xi's heart tightened. Wuhuan Tadun is known as the new generation of Modun on the grassland, which not only refers to his ability, but also refers to his ambition.
It is also one of Yuan Xi's father's three greatest hatreds.
"Wu Huan Tadun has always been on good terms with Jizhou. Now that the Major General has inherited the title of Duke Yuan, he can send envoys to Liucheng to explain the situation, continue the alliance with Tadun, and let him return to the eldest son." Shen Pei suggested. This plan is the same as Guo Jia's posthumous plan to determine Liaodong.
However, the situation has changed. Now Yuan Xi was originally on bad terms with Taodun, but it was different from the good relationship between Cao Cao and Gongsun Du at that time, so the effect was different.
Nonsense! Yuan Xi thought to himself. Tadun has always supported Yuan Tan. If he recognized his status, he would take the initiative to send Yuan Tan over. But how could Tadun be a peaceful master? It would be strange if he didn't take the opportunity to stir up a dispute.
But there are some things that he can't be too arbitrary, so it doesn't hurt to try. If it doesn't work, it's not too late to fight again. What's more, compared to the Baideng siege of Liu Bang, the emperor of the Han Dynasty, and the Weishui Alliance of Li Yuan, he The Yuan family's situation is even better.
"Then let Mr. Kong Zhang draft this document." Yuan Xi ordered. Sooner or later, this shame will be repaid.
"This subordinate will draft a document and have it sent to Liucheng." Chen Lin said.
"But!" Yuan Xi paused and said, "If Tadun doesn't recognize me as a Jizhou shepherd, how should we deal with it?"
Yuan Xi's words immediately stumped everyone, and Yuan Shao felt uneasy when he was there. Yuan Shao granted him the title of Chanyu, and also selected women among the people to marry him and treat him with tenderness and comfort.
But Tadun still often asked Jizhou for money, silk, food and grass. But for the sake of stability in the north, Yuan Shao had to be humble and win over Tadun in every possible way.
At the end of the Sui Dynasty, Li Yuan also sent goods to the Turks and formed an alliance with Yuan Shao in order to speed up the march into Chang'an and fear that the Turks would raid behind him, which was the Weishui Alliance.
At this time, the territory controlled by Youzhou was very limited, including all of Zhuo County and Guangyang County, Yuyang County south of Yuyang City, and the southern part of Dai County and Shanggu County. Because the Eastern Han Dynasty began the inward migration of Xianbei and Wuhuan.
By this time, these nomadic tribal forces had controlled the northern parts of Daijun, Shanggu, and Yuyang. The three counties of Youbeiping, Liaodong and Liaoxi were even occupied by Wuhuan Tadun.
Liu Yu implemented a pro-Hu policy, and the situation in the border areas was slightly better when he was the pastor of Youzhou. After Gongsun Zan, the main militant faction, replaced Liu Yu, the war in the Youzhou border area resumed. Until the Yuan family replaced Gongsun Zan, some Wuhuan and Xianbei tribes began to stir up trouble again.
Therefore, it is not impossible for Yuan Xi to say that Tadun took the opportunity to cause trouble.
"Jizhou has just experienced a great war and is very tired. Our mortal enemy is Cao Cao who occupies the Central Plains. We really can't afford the troops, money and food to solve side issues! General, think twice!" Feng Ji said.
"No matter what Tadun decides, the young general must be patient." Shen Pei also agreed.
"The only way is to take revenge first, and then free up your hands to deal with Hu Yi."
Yuan Xi disagreed, but now that money and food were scarce and his soldiers were exhausted, he could only negotiate with Tadun first.
However, he, Yuan Xi, would never sign another covenant with Tadun, because although the Yuan family was exhausted, it was still a stronger side in terms of strategy compared with Wuhuan, and was in a better situation than Li Tang.
This comes from the history of the Jin Dynasty, but what Taizong Xuanwu Emperor Yuan Xi said was that it would no longer be signed. In other words, Yuan Shao had signed some treaties with foreign tribes before, right?
"Next, I want to talk about the opening of the mansion and the mobilization of troops and horses." Yuan Xi continued.
Several people cheered up at once. After inheriting Yuan Shao's legacy, Yuan Xi had to reopen the government and recruit staff, and the personnel arrangements were very complicated. He had to take care of not only the original ministers, but also Yuan Xi's direct subordinates.
The positions held by these subordinates often determined their favor and influence in Jizhou.
With that said, Yuan Xi circulated a drafted appointment document to everyone. Because he had to rule the four states, Yuan Xi could no longer serve as a governor as a state pastor.
Therefore, it is very necessary to open a general's mansion. Yuan Xi urgently summoned Chen Qun to Yecheng, and after discussing with Guo Jia and other close officials, he improved some official systems at this time.
The staff of the General's Mansion are generally civilians, while the military generals are directly under Yuan Xi's command. Among them, Chang Shi is responsible for controlling all the Cao in the government and is the highest subordinate official. Among them, Bingcao was in charge of military affairs. Hucao is in charge of civil affairs. Bo Cao. Supervising documents. Law Cao, in charge of legal supervision. Cangcao is in charge of farming and grain storage. Li Cao, in charge of personnel affairs.
The lower level of the chief official is engaged, and they serve as deputy assistants to the chief official. To engage in the next level is to sacrifice others. He is a junior director official. In addition, there are military advisers offering wine, several soldiers joining the army to participate in planning, and in charge of intelligence.
In Yuan Xi's appointment, the chief official of Bing Cao was Jushou, the chief official of Hu Cao was Tian Feng, the chief official of Bo Cao was Jia Xu, the chief official of Fa Cao was Shen Pei, the chief official of Cang Cao was Zhong Yao, and the chief official of Li Cao was Feng discipline.
The remaining Xun Chen and Xu You worked for Hu Cao, Cui Yan worked for Fa Cao, and Chen Lin worked for Bo Cao. Guo Jia, Liu Ye and Xu You were engaged in military affairs. Chen Qun worked for Li Cao, and Gu Yong worked for Cang Cao. Among them, Guo Jia, Liu Ye, Jia Xu, and Xu You also served as military advisors to offer wine.
This appointment was discussed repeatedly by Yuan Xi, Guo Jia, Jia Xu and others. Among the six chief officials, the Qingzhou faction only accounted for two. The Jizhou faction accounts for three, and the remaining Tian Feng is in the role between the two factions.
This arrangement is not only to give full play to personal strengths, but also to take care of and appease the old ministers of Jizhou.
Everyone read it carefully several times and couldn't find anything wrong with it, so they all agreed with the decision. At the same time, Yuan Xi also sent people to summon Tian Feng, Zhong Yao and others, and moved the daughters in Qingzhou to Yecheng. It was time.
Yuan Xi was based in Qingzhou, and Guoyuan acted as governor, while Xu Huang was in charge of Qingzhou's military affairs. The remaining Chen Deng and Mi Zhu were appointed as state officials to assist Guoyuan.
At Yuan Xi's suggestion, Xu Huang allocated 20,000 Qingzhou reserve troops to command Zang Ba, who occupied Taishan County, and appointed him General Pi to lead the Taishan County prefect.
Seven days later, Yuan Xi summoned a group of civil and military personnel at the Prefecture Mufu. Except for Ju Yi Qianzhao who was stationed on the front line in Puyang, Zhang Xiu who was stationed in Liyang, and Zhang He and Guo Huai who were stationed in Ji County, all other civil and military personnel were present. Lan had just been temporarily transferred back from Liyang by Yuan Xi.
First, Bo Cao met Chen Lin and read out the appointment of civil servants. Then everyone paid homage to Yuan Xi and formally recognized Yuan Xi's status, this time legally.
Looking at the many Hebei talents kneeling on both sides, Yuan Xi was excited, but also felt the pleasure of having power in his hands, and the ignited ambition for hegemony. Is this power?
Yuan Xi looked at everyone and said loudly: "Everyone, since the Yellow Turban Rebellion, the imperial court has declined and the emperor has been in power. Dong Zhuo, Li Que, Cao Cao and other traitors have appeared one after another to kidnap the emperor. Under the banner of the Han Dynasty, they marched Dirty deeds. The tycoons from all over the world are also fighting against each other, and there are constant melees. Although I am not talented, I have inherited my father's legacy and vow to eradicate the traitors, quell the wars, and restore peace and stability to the world! "
After a pause, Yuan Xi continued, "All of you here are heroes of the world. I hope you will not abandon me and serve as my subjects. At this time when the world is in danger, it is the time for heroes to stand up, and it is also time for you to show your talents. . It’s a great opportunity to leave your name in history! I hope you will all work together to create an unparalleled cause!”
"I am willing to assist the general to create a great cause!" Everyone said one after another.
"Okay! Next, I will announce a new military and political order." Yuan Xi paused and said, "Take Gao Lan to exchange for Ju Yi, and he will be stationed in Puyang on the front line to defend Yanzhou."
"Here!" Gao Lan said as he stepped out of the queue to take orders.
