By the end of August, Chen Chong and Liu Bei had roughly finalized all the details of the Eastern Expedition.
As Chen Chong said before, the Westerners now have a strategic advantage and only need to encroach step by step without rushing to a decisive battle. Therefore, this time the troops are sent to Henan as the main attack direction. The main target is the five important towns in Yanzhou: Puyang , Changyi, Shouzhang, Lu County, Fenggao. These important towns have been the foundation of Cao Cao's operations for many years, and they are still the hometowns of many powerful generals in the Eastern Dynasty. Once they are captured, they will not only threaten the relationship between Qingxu and Hebei geographically, but also threaten the relationship between Qingxu and Hebei in the Eastern Dynasty. resulting in huge political turmoil.
But this does not mean that troops will not be deployed in Hebei. According to the intelligence, the Eastern Dynasty's military forces have always been organized according to states and formed into separate armies, so they can be divided into five armies: Yan, Ji, You, Qing, and Xu. However, in the Battle of Pingcheng, the Qingzhou Army and the Yanzhou Army were almost wiped out by the Westerners, and the Jizhou Army also suffered heavy losses. The Eastern Army currently stationed in Yanzhou is a mixture of the remaining Jizhou soldiers and new soldiers. The Youzhou Army is divided into two, with one part staying at Juyongguan and the other guarding Yecheng as the new Jizhou Army. This is the most elite soldier in the Eastern Dynasty at present, so we have to be careful.
Therefore, Chen Chong divided the march route into one main and one auxiliary. The main attack was Henan. Liu Bei personally led the Beifu Army and Dongfu Army. He followed the river with 100,000 troops to the direction of Yanzhou and wiped out the Eastern Dynasty cities one by one. The auxiliary attack was Guan Yu. Lead the central army, cross the river bridge with 20,000 troops, and go towards Hanoi and even Yecheng, making a gesture of threatening Yecheng. The remaining 30,000 Chinese troops were kept as a reserve between Luoyang and Xingyang in case of unexpected war situations.
As for the time to send troops, Chen Chong and Xun You discussed it and decided to set it in early spring of the next year. When the time comes, the river will thaw, floods will occur frequently, and the land will be filled with swamps. It will be difficult for the people from the east of Hebei to march across the river, and the people under their rule will not be able to do spring plowing. These are all favorable conditions for siege and siege.
That's it for the most part, and the next step is the tedious and tedious preparation. The Sili Mansion began to prepare grain, mobilize supplies, recruit civilians, and continuously sent money, grain, and military equipment to Luoyang as the starting point for the Eastern Expedition. Liu Bei had also taken up residence in the Eastern Capital in advance and began to continuously send scouts to inquire about changes in Hebei.
It is worth mentioning that in early September, Liu Bei's eldest son Liu Xie also ordered Xu Qianju to enter the court through Chang'an, and was then transferred to work in Chen Chong's mansion. This was also Liu Bei's arrangement. He told Chen Chong that it was best for Liu Xie to familiarize himself with government affairs as early as possible, so Chen Chong asked him to go to Zhizhong Caozhong to read the documents and account books. Liu Xie did an excellent job. In less than ten days, he memorized the entry and exit of various counties in Gyeonggi Province. He even found some mistakes and omissions in previous years and checked them with the local governor. They were all correct.
This made everyone in the mansion look at him with admiration. Disciple Shangguan Sheng even said to Chen Chong: "Among my peers in Chang'an, I don't think there is anyone who can compare with Young Master Gong Lin. Young Master's literary and military skills are truly outstanding." At this time, Liu Xie had already served in the Yuan Dynasty, and Chen Chong took the pseudonym Gonglin, so Liu Xie was often called Gonglin Gongzi in Xijing.
Chen Chong was quite worried about this. He regards Liu Xie as his own, so he has always been very pleased with the child's growth. But Liu Xie was too arrogant and arrogant than when he was young. Chen Chong could not say that this was a good thing. However, Chen Chong also knew that Liu Xie was young and energetic now and would probably not be able to listen, so he invited him to the study every night, and the two of them copied poems and practiced writing together.
By the winter months, most of the preparations were completed. On this day of rest, Chen Chong, Liu Xie, and Chen Zhang were reading "Poetry" together in the study. When they read the sentence "In the past, I left, and the willows lingered. Now I come to think about it, the rain and snow are falling." . Chen Chong suddenly remembered that the last time Liu Xie returned to Jinyang was three years ago, so he put down the book and asked him if he missed his mother Liu Jia and his brothers and sisters.
Liu Xiexin replied: "Uncle, I have at least ten brothers and sisters. How can I get over this?" But when it came to Liu Jia, he paused and said solemnly: "When I came here, I promised my mother that if I learn nothing in a day, , I couldn’t see you again for a day. I wonder what kind of person your uncle thinks I am now?”
Chen Chong saw his rare serious expression, and his eyes suddenly softened. He thought: Although Ajian is a bit arrogant on the outside, he is still filial on the inside. Then he said: "You are already familiar with everything I can teach you in the book, but not everything in the world can be explained in the book. You have to rely on yourself to understand it when you do it. At your age, I I'm not as good as you!"
Liu Xie waved his hands repeatedly and said, "My uncle was already known as the God of God at that time. How can I compare?" But then a smile appeared on his face and he said to himself, "Then I will write a letter to Luoyang in the evening. , told my father that I will go back to Jinyang to celebrate the New Year this year."
Speaking of this, he suddenly remembered something, and he was quite hesitant on his face, but he finally said to Chen Chong: "Speaking of which, just last month, my mother sent me a letter asking if there were any good people in Beijing who would let my uncle. Please help arrange the wedding."
"Oh?" Chen Chong was stunned when he heard this, and then remembered that Liu Xie was already old enough to get married. Looking at Liu Xie's expression, he immediately knew that he already had someone he liked, and asked with a smile: "Does Gong Lin like him? If the family is a good family, I can intercede on your behalf."
Liu Xie did not speak, but looked sideways at Chen Zhang. Chen Zhang understood the idea and immediately said: "Father, half a year ago, Xuan Ji, the second daughter of Uncle Zhong's family, took a car to copy scriptures in the Imperial College. The students at the time saw her from a distance and stopped in their tracks. They all said she was stunning!"
After hearing this, Chen Chong pointed at the two of them and shook his head with a smile and said: "You two, to marry a virtuous wife, the piano, se, and Ming are the most important. Don't you know how Kong Ming married a wife? You have to use sex as your inferior. Virtue is the highest priority."
Liu Xie curled his lips and said disapprovingly: "Even though my uncle said so, aren't the two aunts he married also beauties?"
Chen Chong was speechless and could only pat his knees and sigh, and said helplessly: "Okay, I will take you to the Zhong Mansion tomorrow so that you can have a look at the Zhong family's family tradition. By then, it won't feel complicated, so I will help you." We kissed. But I’m afraid we’ll have to wait until next year when your father goes to war.” Liu Xie was overjoyed and immediately thanked Chen Chong.
Now that Liu Xie's marriage has been mentioned, Chen Chong looked at his only son Chen Zhang and asked with a smile: "You are now thirteen, should I choose a marriage for you?"
Chen Zhang was stunned and hurriedly declined: "Father, I haven't even served yet, why should I be in such a hurry?"
Chen Chong originally mentioned it casually, but when Chen Zhang refused, he didn't intend to say more. He just warned him: "I just heard from Wan Nian that you are a bit lonely in your daily life. You don't go anywhere on weekdays. You often read in her room. I've been looking at it for several hours. This is not a good thing. A gentleman should have many friends and be well-informed. You should take this as a warning."
Unexpectedly, as soon as these words came out, Chen Zhang fell silent, obviously resisting this. When Chen Chong saw this, he could only sigh silently, and secretly told the princess, hoping that she would help take more care of Chen Zhang.
Speaking of which, in the past few years, Chen Chong and Dong Bai have given birth to two daughters. The eldest daughter is named A Zhi, who is already four years old, and the second daughter is named A Suo, who has just turned two years old. But nothing happened between him and the princess. Firstly, the two of them didn't get along much. Secondly, there was always a thick barrier called the Emperor between them. Perhaps out of a tacit understanding of maintaining dignity, the two still acted as a relatively loving couple, but in fact, both of them knew very well that this was just a superficial gesture of mutual understanding.
The next day, Chen Chong took Liu Xie and Chen Zhang to visit Zhong Yao. The two old friends were sitting in the hall talking about home affairs, while Liu Xie, Chen Zhang, Zhong Yao and others were sitting down next to listen.
Under Chen Chong's guidance, the two soon talked about the younger generation. Chen Chong said deliberately: "Lao Hu from Chang said at the meeting the year before last that the younger generation was not as good as us. I didn't agree with it at the time. But looking at it over the past two years, the young people's extravagant spirit is far better than it was during the Guanghe period. I don’t understand the light and the dust at all, so I think he has some truth.”
Zhong Yao laughed when he heard this, rapped the table gum with his knuckles and joked, "Ting Jian can also joke. When you were the only one in Imperial College, why didn't you know how to be like the light?"
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Then he slowly said: "As for coquettishness, it is not a waste of time. However, intelligence is given by heaven, and temperament is developed later, so there is no need to be so harsh on future generations. In my opinion, everyone in the younger generation can be regarded as a leader in the world. People."
Speaking of this, Zhong Yao immediately called his eldest son Zhong Yu and asked him to write a calligraphy for Chen Chong to appreciate. Chen Chong knew that Zhong Yao was a master of calligraphy, and he was obsessed with calligraphy, so he did not shirk it, so he stood aside and watched. What Zhong Yu copied was "Chen Qiu's Inscription". After writing, Chen Chong took the copybook in his hand, nodded and praised: "Your Majesty's layout is meticulous, with both strength and softness. The stipples and paintings are quite interesting. I have won you seven successes!"
Zhong Yao was greatly comforted when he heard this. He stroked his beard and said, "Then, what level will my son be in the next generation?" He said the question, but between his eyebrows and eyes, he was full of pride for his eldest son.
Chen Chong didn't answer, just smiled slightly, waved his hand to Liu Xie and said, "Gong Lin, please write a calligraphy."
Liu Xie accepted the promise and stepped forward to write some ink. Within a moment, he copied Bian Rang's "Ode to the Parrot". Chen Chong handed the copybook directly to Zhong Yao and asked with a smile: "How do you think of my nephew's calligraphy?"
Zhong Yao took a cursory look, and suddenly his face changed drastically. He glanced at Liu Xie in surprise for a few times, then shouted "Hello" a few times, and asked Cang Tou on the side to put away the calligraphy and painting. Then he sighed to his eldest son Zhong Yu: "People There is someone outside, Yu'er, I think you can't catch up with Gong Lin."
After Chen Chong and others left, Zhong Yu was not convinced because he had not seen Liu Xie's copybook, so he pestered Zhong Yao for an explanation. Zhong Yao waved his hands and said in relief: "Do you think what I said is a word? Yes, in fact, it is not. The lines of the words are wild and unbridled. I think you have an imperial spirit! You will be the most valuable in the future, but you will not be a Qianhu Hou. How can you do it? Can you catch the King of God?"
When he went to bed to rest that night, he said to his wife Sun: "Speaking of which, Xuanji is already fourteen years old, and it's time to find a family. I think the general's son is really good. When the general succeeds in the Eastern Campaign, We came to propose marriage, and our family became prosperous because of this."
