Bingzhou nine counties.
Among them, Yunzhong County, Shuofang County, Wuyuan County, Shang County and Xihe County are all in the territory of Jingguo. Only Dingxiang County, Taiyuan County, Shangdang County and Yanmen County are in the hands of Jin State.
At that time, because Yunzhong County, Shuofang County, and Wuyuan County were all in the hands of the Xiongnu, the Jin State never really controlled it. Later, Zhang Xiu went north to prove the land of Hetao and took control of the three counties of Hetao early, giving the Jin State no chance to take it back.
The Xiongnu in Hetao have completely surrendered to Zhang Xiu, but the Wuhuan who are entrenched in Bingzhou and Youzhou are still active, part of them in Yanmen and Taiyuan counties. Later, Gao Gan was ordered by Yuan Shao to come to Bingzhou and occupy the four counties of Xihe, Taiyuan, Shangdang and Yanmen. Wuhuan in the county was merged into Gao Gan's hands and was called Wuwan Tuqi.
Because Yuan Shang inherited the orthodox throne, senior officials supported Yuan Shang logistically.
However, there was a large army of Jingguo in the west, which seriously threatened the senior officials. In addition, there was a serious shortage of food and grass, and they were unable to compete with Jingguo, so they obeyed Yuan Shang's orders and gave up Xihe County as a border buffer zone between the two countries. But the Jing army drove wolves and tigers away and pressed forward step by step, threatening the three counties of Taiyuan, Yanmen and Shangdang.
"Zijing, now my Bingzhou is being pressed by the Jing army step by step, and Yecheng is surrounded by Cao Wei's heavy troops. Where should we go?" Facing the powerful Jingguo, Gao Gan seemed very powerless.
He has 50,000 troops in his hands, occupying the land of Bingzhou, with the barrier of the Yellow River on the left and the dangerous peaks of Taihang on the right. Although it is not as closed as Yizhou, it can still be regarded as having the benefit of both mountains and rivers. However, Xihe County had been given away, and Jingjun easily obtained a county. He lost the barrier of the Yellow River and was in a passive state, which made high-ranking officials uneasy.
Qianzhao, whose courtesy name is Zijing, is a famous general of Cao Wei in later records.
Originally, it was Yuan Shang's military governor who was responsible for the recruitment. Later, after ceding the land to ask for food, he was sent to Bingzhou to supervise the delivery of military food.
Faced with questions from senior officials, Qianzhao also had a headache. Without the barrier of the Yellow River, Taiyuan County was exposed to Jingguo's cavalry. The 50,000 troops in his hands had to rely on Jingguo's food and grass to survive, and they were completely passive.
After thinking for a while, he said: "Yecheng is under siege, and its life or death is at stake. There are only two options at the moment, either accept the King of Jin, use the annexation of the state as capital, and unite with the King of Jing to fight against Cao Wei. However, the prerequisite for this is to It depends on what Prince Jing wants."
Gao Gan felt that accepting Yuan Shang's arrival would not bring any benefit to him, and Yuan Shang's entry into Bingzhou would take away his power, so he said: "Since the death of the previous king, the Jin Kingdom has been divided into three parts, and it is bound to be defeated." He shook his head. , "Zijing, what about the second way?"
"The Battle of Guandu was not a fatal defeat. The real reason for the defeat of the Jin Kingdom was to abolish the elders and establish the younger ones!" Qianzhao gritted his teeth and showed a look of hatred for iron, and then sighed and said, "The second way is Surrender, either Cao Wei or Zhang Jing, how will the governor decide?"
Gao Gan smiled bitterly and struggled to say: "It is already May and the summer harvest is around the corner. If we can persist until after the summer harvest, the situation will definitely improve."
Qianzhao shook his head: "Last year's autumn harvest has been exhausted. The three counties alone cannot support an army of 50,000."
It has lasted for one year since the troops were launched in May 201 AD. After the fire burned Wuchao, Jin's food and grass began to enter a critical state. However, Jing and Wei seized the opportunity and did not give Jin a chance to buffer, resulting in constant overspending on food and grass. Even last year's autumn harvest was a drop in the bucket.
In March of this year, Yuan Shaoxin passed away, the Jin Kingdom collapsed, and food and grass became even more precious.
In April, Xihe County was ceded to Jingguo, and the situation in Bingzhou became even worse.
"In comparison, I think the first choice is Jingguo," Qianzhao said thoughtfully, "There is the danger of Taihang in the east, Zhongshan barrier in the south, and Luoyang is occupied by Jin. It can be said that our Bingzhou has been surrounded by Jingguo. Even if Cao Cao has the will, he is too weak."
After being led to such a point, the senior official suddenly woke up.
To the north, Yanmen County was threatened by Zhennan General Lebat and the Yiji Tenglong Cavalry Battalion of 15,000 people and the Huns' 5,000 cavalry, totaling 20,000 cavalry.
To the west, Xu Shu, chief of staff of the cavalry and land and water departments, led the Hussar General Pang De's Huben Cavalry Battalion with 20,000 troops, the Guard General Wei Yan led the Suzaku Cavalry Battalion with 20,000 troops, and Zhenbei General Zhang Xian led the Cheetah Cavalry Battalion with 10,000 troops. Five thousand men, a total of fifty-five thousand cavalry threatened.
To the south, Zhang Liao's chariot general Ma Chao led the Qinglong Cavalry Camp with 20,000 troops, and Zhenxi General Li Tong led the White Tiger Cavalry Camp with 15,000 troops. A total of 35,000 men were threatened.
After thinking about it carefully, a layer of cold sweat broke out on Gao Gan's forehead.
Unexpectedly, before he knew it, his Bingzhou had been surrounded by the Jing army.
It seems that Jingjun has long planned to merge with the state, and is bound to win it. At present, with his current state and Jingjun's vigor, he is simply trying to stop the enemy.
Gao Qianna stared at Qianzhao: "In your opinion, should I surrender to Zhang Xiu?"
Qianzhao: "It's better than Cao Cao. With the Taihang Mountains across the way, it would be difficult for Cao Cao to come with a million troops, but Jing's army can easily reach it. In comparison, we can only choose King Jing."
Gao Gan thought for a while and said, "Okay, then prepare to join Prince Jing!"
…
At the same time, Zhang Xiu also returned to Chang'an.
Zhang Xiu was furious about Wu Hao's incident. There were officials under him who were so merciless to the common people. Zhang Xiu regards it as a shame. This is only what he can see. There are still many things that he cannot see!
After Li Ru learned about this, he immediately went to the palace to plead guilty.
"This matter is not your fault," Zhang Xiu motioned to Li Ruping. "Back then, the Wu family had meritorious service in offering sacrifices to the city, but Gu was given an official position without examining his character. In this matter, Gu has made a mistake of neglecting to investigate. Please be free!"
"Thank you, Your Majesty!"
Li Ru stood up slowly.
Zhang Xiu stared at Li Ru and asked: "This is only what I saw. I'm afraid there are more things I can't see. I asked you to let the shadow guards conduct a secret investigation. Didn't you find out?"
"It's dark under the lamp! I placed the shadow guards in other counties, but I neglected the Jingzhao and Fufeng counties. Please punish me, Your Majesty!" With that, Li Rufu knelt down.
Zhang Xiu sat cross-legged on the kang, holding the case book just handed over by Shang Chengge in his hand. He glanced sideways at Li Ru: "I heard that you still live in the small house that Gu Ci gave you?"
Li Ru: "Yes."
"As the Prime Minister of Dajing, the house I live in is a bit shabby. Moving to a bigger one will also show the strength of Dajing." Zhang Xiu looked at the case book, "The affairs of the Ministry of Punishment and the Ministry of Etiquette are indeed There are many, so it is inevitable to have some oversights. This matter concerns the people of Dajing, so we have to be more careful. So, what does Zhongcheng think of asking Xiang Man to serve as Minister of the Ministry of Punishment to help you manage these local officials? "
Xiang Man Shadow Guard is a person with good abilities.
When he was assassinated in Nanyang, Xiang Man and Ma Ming had meritorious service in protecting him. Ma Ming had already served as a general in Nanyang, and Xiang Man was still in the shadow guard and could be promoted and appointed.
Li Ru: "Here! Xiang Man is loyal and righteous, and hates evil as much as enemies. He can be used."
"That's good, you can handle this matter. Also," Zhang Xiu said, holding the Gou Zhu case book, "the matter of merging the states is progressing steadily, and a three-sided encirclement has formed. We will implement it according to the plan you have drawn up."
"Here!"
Li Ru took the case book with both hands and stepped out.
