On February 12, the second year of Chuping, the hussar general Yuan Shu rose at Mao hour. He first washed himself in the mansion, then called his servants to trim his beard carefully, and then put on a crimson robe that had been baked with incense overnight. He wore a three-pillar crown on his head and light-colored cypress sandals on his feet. Yuan Shu's appearance was originally majestic, but now he is dressed up, with a high crown and elegant belt, and is radiant.
By the time he walked out of the door, it was already Chen hour. All the staff outside the door were dressed in court uniforms and standing on both sides. When Yuan Shu saw his subordinate, Zhongshi Yiguan, at the front, he smiled and asked him, "Chang Shi, what do I think of you now?" Shi Yiguan paid homage and said, "Elegance is like jade, virtue is better than gold, just like the leader who controls the wind. Holy!" Yuan Shu laughed when he heard this. Even though he was as proud as him, he couldn't help but refuse: "It's too much."
He was so dressed up today because he was going out to greet Qiao Mao at the revolving door gate to show his respect for Qiao Mao. To this end, he also prepared a pulley to mount the cart, which was equipped with bundles of silk and black silk, and the horses pulling the cart were four snow-yueji horses without mottled colors. This was the highest treatment for a scholar. Yuan Shu was often criticized both inside and outside the court for his inability to communicate with scholars. He knew this well, so he planned to take advantage of the opportunity to show his tolerance for others.
After arriving at the revolving gate, Yuan Shu stood in front of the gate and looked toward the east of the gate from time to time.
Unexpectedly, a messenger suddenly came from the south. The messenger was wearing a shabby winter coat, riding a one-eyed yellow gelding, and came after a long journey. Yuan Shu was very happy to see him. Instead of asking about his military situation, he asked him if he had eaten. Then he took out his shortbread and let him eat for a while. Then he smiled at him and said, "Have the reinforcements sent by Liu Jingsheng arrived? You asked them Wait a moment, I will greet Qiao Yuanwei and then go back to entertain them."
After hearing this, the messenger became even more dissatisfied. He stopped talking for a moment, and then said hesitantly: "The troops sent by Liu Jingsheng have indeed set off." After a pause, he lowered his head, not daring to look at Yuan Shu, and whispered: "It's just... It's just that they are not reinforcements. Under the banner of generals of chariots and cavalry, they attacked Deng County. Then they heard that the Mian River was advancing westward. When they came down to report the time, they were attacking Shandu, and I am afraid they have already captured it!"
Yuan Shu was furious. He broke willows with his hands, whipped the messenger with willow branches and said, "I'll say it again! What does Liu Jingsheng want?!"
The envoy bowed his head in pain and replied loudly: "Liu Biao ordered Kuai Yue to fight Yuan Shao's banner. Now he is leading his troops to attack Mianshui counties. Our army is outnumbered. I hope you will send reinforcements early!"
His voice was like a bell, and all the staff around him heard it and couldn't help but start talking. When Yuan Shu heard this buzzing sound like flies, his mind was filled with confusion. He was so angry that he threw the willow branch to the ground and angrily yelled at everyone: : "Silence!"
The surroundings suddenly became clear again. Yuan Shu's face was as gloomy as water. He said after a long time: "This matter needs to be considered in the long term. Liu Biao has only been in charge of Jingzhou for half a year. What combat power can he have? Nanyang will not be lost in one day. Wait until I receive the Lord of Qiaofu. , worry about this matter again.”
Even so, Yuan Shu no longer had the same mentality as before. He asked Cang Tou to bring a bed, and he sat down in the willow shade, closed his eyes to rest, and tapped his knuckles. He waited for more than an hour. , he finally waited for the messenger who went to Chenliu to communicate with Qiao Mao.
He was quite impatient and immediately asked as soon as they met: "How long until Qiao Yuanwei arrives?"...
The messenger was silent for a moment, obviously considering his words. When Yuan Shu saw this, he immediately had a premonition. He laughed angrily, stood up and said, "Could it be that Qiao Yuanwei also deceived me and planned to regret it later?"
The envoy shook his head at first, and then said slowly: "When Mr. Qiaofu returned to the city the day before yesterday, he was surrounded by Liu Dai, the governor of Yanzhou. Liu Dai, the governor of Qiaofu, had his head displayed to the public in the name of Mr. Qiaofu's corruption of military rations!"
"Is that all?"
"I also heard that General Chariot and Cavalry sent more than 100,000 troops to attack Yingchuan. But from my perspective, the more than 100,000 is in vain, but it must not be less than 30,000." After speaking, the envoy He kowtowed heavily and knelt on the ground motionless.
After hearing this, Yuan Shu was very calm. He slowly lowered his head and sat back on the bed, staring straight ahead blankly. After a long time, Fang said something: "Yuan Benchu! What a thief!" Li felt a sting in his heart like a needle pricking his eyes, and his vision suddenly went dark. He spat out a mouthful of blood and fell down slumped.
I don't know how long it took, but he seemed to be floating in the endless darkness. But something somewhere guided him to keep moving forward, so he kept moving forward, and kept moving forward. Suddenly, in an unreachable distance, he saw a slight light, and he swam towards there, and the light gradually became larger. Bright and soft, when Yuan Shu thought he was still far away, the light burst out suddenly, like a gust of wind that washed away all the darkness, blowing him out of the water and lifting him up into the air. Below him, there was a hazy light and shadow.
The first half of his life flashed between this light and shadow.
When he was a child, two brothers of the Yuan family attracted much attention. It was he and his elder brother Yuan Ji. They were the legitimate sons of Sikong Yuan Feng. At this time, his uncle Yuan An had no children, and his uncle Yuan Wei had no sons. At that time, everyone in the world knew that only his two brothers could inherit the Yuan family, lead the noble clan, and achieve the feat of overthrowing the regular servants.
The scene changed to when he was a teenager, and the situation suddenly changed. Uncle Yuan An passed away, and his brother Yuan Shao, who was born as a concubine, was adopted into his uncle's name due to his mother's early death, and became his legitimate son. During his lifetime, his uncle was General Zuo Zhonglang and was highly valued by Emperor Huan. He was originally the source of family prestige. Now his soul has returned to Jiuquan, and Yuan Shao, as the nominal legitimate son of Yuan An, is suddenly favored by the entire family. The people who used to gather around Yuan Shu The sons of scholars are now gathered around Yuan Shao. And Yuan Shao lived up to expectations. He became a Langguan when he was more than ten years old. From top to bottom, everyone praised him, saying that he could be the second to Li Ying and he would be a model for the world in the future.
In the blink of an eye, he was already a young man, and Yuan Shao had been a man for six years. He took in guests, and the hall was full of dead men. No less than thousands of people came to his court, and they filled the streets with supplies and firewood, and Yuan Shao was able to make a name for himself in the world. Although he started his official career early, promoted filial piety and integrity, and served successively as Henan Yin and Huben Zhonglang, he still often heard rumors. For example, brothers Xu Shao and Xu Jing, who organized the Moon Festival Review, once said about Yuan Shudao: "The gate of Yuan Highway is high and the road is far away. But if he can do it, he has the style of Zhong You." Commenting on Yuan Shao, he said: "Yuan Benchu's heroic weapon, among people, is like holding up the flames to burn the flying awning, and it is obvious that it is prosperous." After two comments, it is obvious that he has contempt for Yuan Shu. Even his uncle Yuan Wei believed that Yuan Shao had done all the planning to kill the eunuchs, so that he was reduced to a thug.
Since taking the lead in fleeing Luoyang, he captured Jing and Yu and recruited Sun Jian. When Yuan Shao suffered a series of defeats, he followed Chen Chong's plan to regain Luoyang and invaded Hongnong. He was about to destroy Dong Zhuo and achieve immortality. At that time, Yuan Shao sent troops to attack Yuzhou, and then joined forces with Liu Biaoyin to attack Nanyang. The foundation was about to be lost. How should he make a decision? …
Recalling this, he took a slight breath, opened his eyelids and opened his eyes. The first thing that appeared in front of him was the face of his eldest son Yuan Yao. He was holding his hand and looking at him nervously. Seeing that he was awake, Yuan Yao breathed a sigh of relief, and then asked Yuan Shu about his current situation. Yuan Shu waved his hand slightly and asked in a hoarse voice: "Where is this?"
Yuan Yao answered his father: "This place is still at Xuanmenguan. It was Mr. Shu who carried you up on his back. The second sister was boiling medicine for you and brought it over right away."
Upon hearing this, Yuan Shu felt a little warm in his heart when he looked at the eldest son's still slightly immature face. No matter what, the children in his family are considered friendly and the family is considered happy. But when he saw the bright clouds outside the window, he realized that he had fallen asleep for more than an hour because of this. Then a burst of anger burned again. He forced himself to sit up from the couch and said to Yuan Yao: "Go and get all the uncles who are accompanying you." Call me to the room, it’s an urgent matter now, if you delay even a little bit, you will lose everything, go quickly!”
After Yuan Yao left, Yuan Shu closed his eyes and rested for a while. He heard the movement of people in the room. When he opened his eyes again, he saw Yuan Yao and Yan Xiang, Shi Yiguan, Shu Shao, Han Yin and Hui behind him. Qu five people.
It was dusk now, the light in the room was a little dark, and there was silence outside. You could only hear the boiling sound of the daughter next door making medicine. Yuan Shu stretched out his left hand towards Yuan Yao, and Yuan Yao held his father's palm in his palm. The remaining warmth in his palm made him Some peace of mind.
Yuan Shu first asked Yan Xiang: "Is there any news while I'm sleeping?"
Yan Xiang replied honestly: "Guan Xiaowei on the South Road sent a good news that he had captured Shangluo and was marching to Lantian County."
Yuan Shu shook his head when he heard this and said calmly: "If Nanyang is completely lost and he captures Chang'an, what does it have to do with me?"
He turned to Hui Qu and asked, "De Yu, now that I am surrounded by enemies from the southeast and the southeast, what do you think we should do?"
Hui Qu was silent for a moment and said: "In my opinion, General Polu should be ordered to withdraw his troops and return reinforcements."
Yuan Shu closed his eyes and asked softly: "Three days ago, Wentai sent a letter saying that he will fight Dong Zhuo in the near future. Once he succeeds, Guanzhong will be at peace, and the emperor will be in my hands. According to you, I can't Do you want to follow the example of Emperor Gaozu and enter the Pass?"
Hui Qu replied: "In a battle with the famous general Dong Zhuoshi, the outcome is so unpredictable that you cannot say it is inevitable. What's more, even if General Polu wins, the people's livelihood in Guanzhong will be ruined after this battle, and there is Liu Yan in the south. There are Liang bandits in the west and Liu and Chen in the north. How can they be pacified by the imperial court's orders?"
"Nowadays, the counties in Guanzhong are not as prosperous as the county in Nanyang, and Yuzhou is thousands of miles of fertile land. The Central Plains has been used for military purposes in ancient times. How can we abandon the fertile land and choose poor soil? The top priority is to send you back to Wancheng first. Henan is all red and there is no land. Emperor, this is just a hindrance, it is better to repel Liu Biao first, and then send Sun Polu to repel the traitor army!"
After Hui Qu finished speaking, there was silence in the room. Yuan Shu closed his eyes and said nothing, as if he was asleep. However, Yuan Yao clearly felt his father's palm clenching in his hand and struggling, obviously in extreme pain. When his daughter Yuan Jiejun waited After Duan Yao was introduced, Yuan Shu finally opened his eyes. He said to Shi Yiguan numbly: "Let's draft a military order and ask Sun Wentai to withdraw his troops."
At this time, Han Yin was worried and said: "Sun Jian has always had no superiority, and Chen Chong is by his side. If he is unwilling to withdraw his troops, what should we do?"
Yuan Shu shook his head and said: "I have my own arrangements and will definitely let his army return eastward.".
