However, during the Han, Wei and Jin dynasties, due to the intricate marriage alliances between wealthy noble families, indirect kinship relationships were not taken too seriously. ,
For example, Liu Chan, the empress of the Han Dynasty, regarded Zhuge Liang as his father, but after Zhuge Liang's death, he married his daughter to Zhuge Liang's son. In this way, the original "father and son" relationship became "brothers are good friends".
For example, now, Wang Jun's aunt is the sister of Xun Fan and Xun Zu's brothers, but Wang Jun's wife and Xun Zu's wife are sisters. So, guess, is Wang Jun the nephew of Xun Fan or Xun Zu? Where's your brother-in-law?
Therefore, if the nobles in the Wei and Jin Dynasties encountered such difficult-to-clarify relationships, they often made decisions based on different situations.
Liu Yu knew that Hua Xiu didn't really mean to make Liu Yu and Xun Kui recognize each other as cousins.
If that were the case, it would become a common vulgarity.
Because Xun Kui's identity was sensitive, he just used this relationship to eliminate Liu Yu's alertness and hostility.
Then the three of them took their seats in order of priority. Xun Kui came here with a mission from Xun Fan, the head of the Xun family. After a few more useless polite words, Xun Kui immediately went straight to the topic.
"Ji Xing, have you already heard about the Taifu's plan for China Construction Bank to travel to Taitung?"
Xun Kui did not use too conspicuous rhetoric, but just used the statement that Sima Yue wanted to establish a line of travel to the east.
"Brother Dao Jian, what you said is true. I have already learned about this matter, and I was discussing this matter with the generals and officers in the front hall just now."
Liu Yu knew that Xun Fan of the Xun clan in Yingchuan was one of the three nobles at the center of the Jin court. Legally speaking, he was second only to Sima Yue, the regent of the East China Sea.
Now that Xun Kui came to Qingzhou quietly alone, he must have come to test his reaction to this matter.
Even though the Yingchuan Xun family seemed to be related to him, Liu Yu couldn't be sure whether he was really an enemy or a friend, so he didn't remember to express his attitude.
"The Taifu has lived in Taige for a long time. It is inevitable that he will be deceived and misled by some villains about the affairs of Qingzhou, which is thousands of miles away. I came here this time because I was entrusted by my uncle Xun Sikong. I just want to have a frank talk with the general. If anything happens in the middle If there is any misunderstanding, Sikong is willing to try his best to resolve it for the general in front of the Taifu, and guarantee that the general will be cleared!"
Seeing that Liu Yu was not obviously irritated, Xun Kui knew that there was still room for maneuver in the matter, so he immediately stated his purpose bluntly.
The reason why he was like this was because what Xun Kui saw and heard along the way since he entered the Qingzhou Army from Jibei County made him feel gratified and surprised.
Unlike the Sili and Yuzhou areas, which were ravaged by Xiongnu barbarians and refugee thieves, there was actually peace and harmony under the rule of the Qingzhou Army.
Xun Kui had previously thought that Liu Yu had always been so bellicose, and that the soldiers and civilians under the rule of the Qingzhou Army must be miserable and miserable. He never expected that these Qingzhou thieves actually knew how to recuperate, and the post houses where Xun Fan rested along the way, The official buildings are all dilapidated, but the common people's houses along the way are all newly covered with thatch and tiles. There are surprisingly few luxurious buildings among the Qingzhou Army.
In this way, Xun Kui had a good impression of Liu Yu, and he did not want Liu Yu to be forced to rebel by Sima Yue, King of the East China Sea, and become a life-or-death enemy like the Huns, so his words were actually full of this kind of expectation. ,
When Liu Yu heard this, he realized that there was something in Xun Kui's words, and he immediately set the tone. It was Sima Yue who was deceived, and then Liu Yu was wronged. As long as Liu Yu behaved a little, Xun Fan, who ranked among the three princes, could take care of Liu Yu's crimes. When the storm subsides, although success cannot be guaranteed, there is great hope that this will prevent Liu Yu from becoming a public enemy.
"This is for me to get off the stairs. If I get off the slope as fast as I can, Xun Kui and the others might think that I am afraid of Sima Yue, King of the East China Sea, and they will grab hold of life-saving straws whenever they see them." Liu Yu thought in his heart.
The Xun family of Yingchuan was a political ally of Sima Yue. Who knows if he was encouraged by Sima Yue to come to find out what Liu Yu was and what he was?
Liu Yu put on a nonchalant look, with confidence all over his body.
"Brother Dao Jian, it definitely doesn't have to be like this. Our Qingzhou now has a vast territory of thousands of miles, a hundred thousand soldiers with armor, and three years of accumulated wealth. Even if Sima Yue brings all the Chinese troops from Luoyang, so will I, Liu Jixing. Not a trace of fear.”
After saying this, Liu Yu felt a wry smile in his heart. He didn't have enough capital on his waist, and his boasting was a bit weak. Coupled with his lack of experience, he only doubled his strength.
"As I traveled along the way, I saw that the people along the way were settling down and working hard in the autumn harvest. This kind of peaceful scene has indeed been rare in Sili for several years. From this point of view, the general's soldiers and savings are enough to afford it. Elite and rich.”
Although Xun Kui said this, he didn't believe Liu Yu's statement of 100,000 troops and three years of savings. Although he saw people living in peace along the way, these civilians were all sallow and thin, and they were basically It is not as rich as Liu Yu described.
However, Xun Kui didn't bother to expose these.
"The general has elite soldiers and strong generals. How do you want to respond to the Taifu's behavior?" Xun Kui continued to ask.
Liu Yu smiled domineeringly, looking free and easy.
"Of course, the soldiers will stop him, and the water will drown him. I can't be afraid of him as an old man who steals power."
Because he couldn't figure out Xun Kui's true intention, Liu Yu kept a tough stance during several conversations, but did not disclose any specific responses.
Finally, Liu Yu excused himself and asked Xun Kui to rest first and wait until the next day to discuss the matter again.
Xun Kui knew in his heart that Liu Yu probably wanted to take the opportunity to discuss with Hua Xiu. Anyway, he was in Qingzhou and was not in a hurry to return, so he immediately resigned and rested.
Under the guidance of several servants, as soon as Xun Kui left, Liu Yu couldn't wait to pull Hua Xiu's sleeves and sit down together.
"Uncle, how should we deal with this matter now? Is there any good strategy?"
As soon as he sat down, Liu Yu asked eagerly.
"Today's meeting in the front hall, what did the generals and officials say?" Hua Xiu asked without answering.
Immediately, Liu Yu told Hua Xiu the process of discussing with the ministers and officials in the front hall.
Hua Xiu listened quietly, shaking his head for a while, then nodding again.
"As expected, someone really wants to encourage you to become emperor."
Hua Xiu seemed to have already expected the virtues of Liu Yu's generals. These people were all bold and naughty people. If they didn't make or say something that shocked everyone, they wouldn't be able to do it. Normal.
"What do you mean by these things about persuading Jin to become emperor?" Hua Xiu looked at Liu Yu.
"An emperor title needs to be matched by equivalent strength. If there is no strength, Emperor Ruzi and Emperor Xian of Han are both precedents, and the current emperor is also a good example. In such a situation, what is the use of having an emperor title? ?If you have the strength, even if you are not the emperor, you can still command the world. Back then, Xiang Ji was so strong that even if he was not the emperor, he could still rule the world. With the talent of Emperor Taizu Gao, he had to go south to Hanzhong. "
Liu Yu didn't care much about emperors or princes.
"Today, what Qingzhou needs most is self-cultivation and training of sergeants. It doesn't really need an emperor." Liu Yu said.
"However, if the emperor's title is added, it will be of great advantage in giving orders." Hua Xiu said with a meaningful expression.
"Hahaha, I don't think my uncle should be too superstitious about this kind of appeal. Not long ago, there was an edict from the emperor issued to all states and counties. The edict said that all states and counties were required to form King Qin's army. If reinforcements are not sent quickly, they may lose their emperor. Later, I heard that not a single soldier in the world had arrived in Luoyang. The states and counties were either cut off from roads or too busy to take care of themselves, or they just looked on with cold eyes. You said, this is the case. What’s the use of having the title of emperor?”
"Besides, I don't need to accept too many scholars now, so the idea of becoming emperor is not too tempting to me."
Liu Yu's big talk gave Hua Xiu a new understanding.
In Liu Yu's words, on the one hand, he was cautious about the position of emperor, but on the other hand, he seemed to have demoted the throne to nothing.
"Yes, now Wang Pengzu is in the north, Sima Yue is in the west, and King Langya is in the south. Although they all have their own thoughts, if the general really declares himself emperor as Zhao Kun and others said, these people will definitely be able to unite against the general. ." Hua Xiu analyzed.
"Yes, if that happens, not only will the sales revenue of various goods be greatly damaged, but even the harvest of many farmlands will be greatly affected." Liu Yu also continued his analysis.
Later, Liu Yu expressed his thoughts on the issue of production savings. If he proclaims himself emperor, he will really become the target of ambitions from all walks of life. In that case, Qingzhou is likely to be harassed by multiple attacks, and the harvest of farming tomorrow and even in the next few years will be greatly affected. Impact, if the war becomes more intense and more frequent, it is not impossible that the people of Qingzhou will be squeezed into refugees and flee to other places.
Hua Xiu nodded, agreeing with Liu Yu's analysis.
"Yes, in today's situation, although it is not difficult to become emperor, it is a matter of little benefit. Back then, Yuan Shu established himself in Huainan and became a public enemy of the world. It can be said that he lost his family and his life because of this."
"Furthermore, according to my guess, what Sima Yue, King of the East China Sea, did this time was more of a bluff and pretense. Sima Yue did not attack the two powerful enemies in the south and the north. Instead, he attacked the general far away in Qingzhou. It makes sense."
Later, Hua Xiu's analysis and guessing basically concluded that the King of East China Sea, Sima Yue, wanted to use the crusade against Liu Yu to leave Luoyang, which was getting worse and worse. Before he was starved to death and wasted to death, the King of East China Sea, Sima Yue, wanted to At the last moment, use the tens of thousands of elite Chinese troops in your hands to make a last-ditch effort.
If the barbarians and refugees in the Henan area of Yuzhou are wiped out, then Luoyang's transportation with Yuzhou and Xuzhou will be restored, and Luoyang can be supported by these two counties.
But if the Xiongnu and Han supernumerary warlords who were raging in Henan could not be driven out, then Sima Yue, the king of the East China Sea, would probably take the opportunity to plunder the population and property and retreat to Xuzhou and Yangzhou to defend themselves.
After listening to Hua Xiu's analysis, the more Liu Yu thought about it, the more reasonable it became.
Liu Yu has been working hard in Qingzhou for a year. Even if he fights, he goes out to fight, which does not affect Qingzhou's production at all. Even so, after the recent autumn harvest, a rough estimate is that this year's surplus can barely support the second half of the following year. That’s all.
And Sima Yue, who had been suppressed by the Xiongnu and Han Dynasty for almost a year, could not find the capital to attack Liu Yu when he lost the support of Sifang Prefecture and County.
Could it be that Sima Yue didn't know that the Qingzhou Army that defeated Gou Chun, Wang Mi, Shi Le, and Liu Ling was also a character that was not easy to mess with?
Thinking of this, Liu Yu felt a little relieved. He was originally afraid of another war, which would consume too much manpower and material resources and affect his series of follow-up plans. From this point of view, it was basically just Sima Yue's talk.
At this time, Hua Xiu said.
"However, Sima Yue has already told the world that if the general does not give a strong counterattack, the people of the world will think that the Qingzhou Army is weak and weak, and it will also easily make people think that the general is weak and can be bullied. This will greatly go against the rule. Men."
When Liu Yu heard this, he thought for a moment and asked Hua Xiu first.
"Then what does uncle mean?"
Hua Xiu smiled softly and said.
"Although Zhao Kun and the others are a little reckless in what they say, there is some truth to it. Although this name is not that important, it would not be appropriate if it were not available. It just so happens that this time, we can take the opportunity to add a name to ourselves and use it. To retaliate against Sima Yue's actions without making the general a target of public criticism."
"Uncle, please clarify." Liu Yu asked with some seriousness.
"If you don't want to be called emperor or king, you can call yourself a duke first. In my opinion, it's just right to use the title of Duke of Qi."
"Qijun Gong?"
Hua Xiu nodded and explained.
"The title of Duke of County is different from that of Marquis. It is considered to be a high title that is far beyond ordinary ministers. In comparison, since one cannot be crowned king unless one belongs to the clan, the title of Duke of County is just like that of a king."
Hearing this, Liu Yu felt a little reluctant. No matter how you think about this title, Duke of Duke, Duke of Qi, it doesn't have the power and domineering power of King of Qi or King of Han.
"Can't we call him King of Qi first?" Liu thought for a while and finally said.
"You can't call yourself king if you are not a member of the clan. If you call him King of Qi, what's the difference between calling him emperor? It will also become a thorn in everyone's side." Hua Xiu said.
"What if I call myself the King of Qi and let someone else be the emperor?" Liu Yu said slightly mysteriously.
"Others, be the emperor?" Hua Xiu was a little confused, "Who did Ji Xing mean to be the emperor? Do you have any clan in your hands? Is it a descendant of King Sima Ji of Qi or the king of Chengdu? Descendants, or other distant ancestors with the surname Sima?"
Hua Xiu thought that if he were to become king, he would only be able to support Xiaozong and become emperor.
"No, not the Sima family's clan, but the descendant of Liu Han's clan." 11
