[Sorry, everyone, this chapter has been reissued. I will replace it with the latest content tomorrow. For those who have already subscribed, please forgive me and I will update the content tomorrow. 】
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Liangzhou, Wuwei County, Guzang City.
Chijie of the Jin Dynasty, the commander-in-chief of all military affairs in Liangzhou, and Zhang Shi, the governor of Liangzhou, were sitting opposite his brother Zhang Mao to discuss matters.
"Brother, the memorial to Jiangdong has been sent out. The journey on the road will take almost two months."
After hearing his brother's words, Zhang Shi seemed to let out a sigh of relief.
"This is the best. As long as His Majesty receives the memorial, he will understand our previous painstaking efforts."
Just a few months ago, the news that Sima Rui, the king of Langya in Jiangdong, had succeeded to the throne of emperor, reached Liangzhou.
At that time, the Zhang family of Liangzhou had formed an alliance with Sima Bao of Qinzhou.
Zhang Shi, who had just acted as the governor of Liangzhou, faced the rebellion of the dissatisfied people in the state, so he pretended to be deaf and did not express his position on this.
But now that the Liangzhou headquarters has been stabilized, and the Jin King Sima Bao of Qinzhou looks like he can't hold up the wall, Zhang Shi simply pledges his allegiance directly to Sima Rui of Jiangdong.
After all, Sima Rui's prestige and power were far superior to Sima Bao.
What's more, Zhang Shi had already heard that although Sima Bao, the Jin King of Qinzhou, was young, he was not only obese, but also suffered from yang deficiency, and would probably not have any descendants.
No matter how you look at it, supporting Sima Bao is definitely not cost-effective.
"Which way will our envoy take?" Zhang Shi, the governor of Liangzhou, suddenly asked.
Zhang Mao immediately replied, "Go to Guanzhong, then leave Wuguan to Jingzhou, and then go along the river to Jiankang."
"We have to pass through Liu Yu's territory." Zhang Shi frowned slightly.
"The entire Guanzhong is now occupied by Liu Yu. If we don't go through Guanzhong, we will probably have to take the plank road into Yizhou. The Di thief Li Xiong in Chengdu is not as good as Liu Yu."
Zhang Mao couldn't help but complain.
After Liu Yu defeated the Huns and occupied Tongguan, all the surrounding forces felt very fearful.
Almost the entire Central Plains has been occupied by Liu Yu. The next step is to recuperate and then expand to all directions.
Under such circumstances, all parties who were originally hostile to each other could not help but join forces to try to keep each other warm.
Among them, Zhang Shi, the governor of Liangzhou, specially sent a letter to Li Xiong of Yizhou.
He hoped that Li Xiong would give up the title of emperor and become a vassal of the Jin Dynasty like himself.
In this case, Zhang Shi, the governor of Liangzhou, could recommend that Li Xiong continue to have actual control of Yizhou, and he could also obtain the loyalty of the Jin Dynasty subjects.
With the cooperation of both parties, they can also join forces to resist the invasion of Liu Yu's forces in the future.
However, Zhang Shi's suggestion was opposed by Li Xiong.
Emperor Li Xiong of the Cheng Kingdom not only expressed that he would not surrender to the Jin Dynasty, but even persuaded Zhang Shi to proclaim himself king in Liangzhou, so that the two families could form an alliance to fight against Liu Yu.
Zhang Shi naturally rejected this ridiculous proposal, and incidentally also developed a grudge against Cheng Guo Li Xiong.
"Li Xiongshu was short-sighted. He only occupied one Yizhou, and he was obsessed with power every day. He didn't even think about making progress. He didn't even capture Hanzhong. Sooner or later, he would be doomed." Zhang Mao couldn't help but laugh again.
"The refugees in Hanzhong gather, and it is an important place in Guanzhong such as Yizhou. If it is captured by Liu Yu, Li Xiong will not be far from death."
Zhang Shi naturally knew the importance of Hanzhong County.
Moreover, Hanzhong County not only has an important geographical location, but also houses a large number of Guanzhong refugees.
It can be said that Hanzhong is not far away from capturing Yizhou.
"In comparison, although Li Xiong is hateful, once Yizhou falls, Jiangdong will not be protected."
Although Zhang Shi hates Li Xiong, everyone knows that if he wants to take Jiangdong, he must go to Bashu first, so he does not want Li Xiong to fall.
At least, Li Xiong should not have died in Liu Yu's hands.
"Okay, let's not talk about Li Xiong. Did you know that Suolu Tuoba Pugen sent someone yesterday?"
Zhang Shi, the governor of Liangzhou, waved his hand and said.
"Tuoba Pugen?"
As soon as he heard the name, Zhang Mao immediately became hesitant.
"This Suolu, a few months ago, attacked the Helan tribe that was loyal to us. What does he want to do now by sending someone here?"
After Tuoba Xianbei was squeezed out by the Han army in Yanmen County, he followed the strategy of losing money in the east and making up for it in the west, and plundered the remaining tribes in the Hexi area.
In just one year, more than ten small tribes have been conquered, and even large tribes like the Helan tribe have been conquered by Tuoba Pugen.
"Of course it's about Liu Yu."
Zhang Shi, the governor of Liangzhou, was also dissatisfied with Tuoba Xianbei's wanton expansion, but since they were all members of the Jin Dynasty, it was hard to do anything to the envoys.
"Tuoba Pugen has already suffered several losses in Yanmen County. Do you still dare to go and plunder?"
Zhang Mao didn't have a good impression of these Suotou Xianbei.
Compared with the Eastern Xianbei who admired the literary enlightenment of the Central Plains, these Suotou Xianbei were just a group of semi-civilized barbarians. Although they were not as good as eating hair and drinking blood, they were not much better.
Compared with the Xianbei tribes in Hexi under the rule of Liangzhou, these Suotou Xianbei are more cunning and untamable. They are nominally subordinate to the Jin Dynasty, but they specialize in doing things that harm their friends and benefit themselves.
Except for Liu Kun, the governor of Bingzhou, who used them to fight against the Huns, no other acts of loyalty to the Jin Dynasty can be found.
"This time it's not that Tuoba Suolu is going to attack Liu Yu, but Liu Yu is taking the initiative to cause trouble for them." Zhang Shi chuckled.
"What? Is Liu Yu going to send troops to attack Tuoba Xianbei?"
Zhang Mao was immediately surprised when he heard this.
"Yes, that's what the envoy said yesterday. Liu Yu has begun to move to the central plains to enrich the border counties. He also asked the Qiang and Hu tribes to prepare troops and horses, and plans to attack Tuoba Pugen next year." Zhang Shi said.
"This is not a wise move. Liu Yu is a little arrogant."
Zhang Mao is not very optimistic about taking the initiative to attack Tuoba Xianbei.
Although these Suotou Xianbei are not very powerful, they are backed by grasslands and deserts. As long as the battle does not go well, they can retreat and hide in large strides. When the Han army's food and grass are exhausted and withdrawn, they continue to go back.
The Central Plains dynasty that took the initiative had no use other than consuming food, grass and money.
"Observing Liu Yu's actions over the past few years has always been surprising. Now Dialect's Northern Expedition to Tuoba Xianbei may not be the real purpose."
Zhang Mao thought carefully and then continued.
"What Cheng Xun means is that Liu Yu had other motives for doing this?" Zhang Shi asked immediately.
"Brother, Liu Yu has just captured Guanzhong, and the entire Central Plains is already in his hands. Under such circumstances, how can he deal with a mere rope head? I'm afraid his real purpose is to attack the east and west, maybe to attack Hanzhong."
When Zhang Mao said this, he continued in a more serious tone.
"Or maybe its purpose is to invade Longxi!"
"Invasion of Longxi?" Upon hearing this, Zhang Shi became nervous immediately.
The land of Longxi is now occupied by him and Sima Bao respectively.
For Guanzhong, Longxi had a condescending geographical location and a trade route to the western regions. For Liu Yu, who wanted to continue his strength, Longxi was much more valuable than Suolu Xianbei.
"Then Tuoba Pugen sent people here to ask for something from his brother?" Zhang Mao asked immediately.
"What I want is food, weapons and armor." Zhang Shi said.
"What are these Suolu prepared to exchange for?" Zhang Mao asked.
"I haven't said this yet, and I haven't agreed to it. I just asked him to go to the post house and wait."
Zhang Shi was not concerned about Tuoba Xianbei's situation, or in other words, even if the Han army attacked Tuoba Xianbei, Zhang Shi did not feel that Tuoba Xianbei was in great danger.
As for Tuoba Xianbei losing some troops and population, that is actually a good thing for Zhang Shi.
If Tuoba Xianbei's strength is weaker, the impact on the Hexi area will be much smaller, and the Xianbei tribe in the Helan Mountain area may return to Zhang Shi's control.
Nowadays, small countries such as Cheshi and Yanshan in the Western Regions are disobeying orders and refusing to pay taxes. Zhang Shi, the governor of Liangzhou, is suffering from insufficient troops.
It would be better if Tuoba Xianbei was weaker.
"Yes, my brother did the right thing. You must not give it to these Suolu. What's more, even if you give these Suolu weapons and tents, they can't give you anything in exchange."
Zhang Mao was also happy to see Tuoba Xianbei deflated.
What's more, Tuoba Xianbei couldn't exchange anything except some felts and horses.
And these things are not rare to Liangzhou at all.
"Then let Liu Yu teach these Suolu a lesson?" Zhang Shi said.
"Well, if Liu Yu really attacks Suo Lu, it would be good to teach them a lesson, and it can also consume Liu Yu's strength, which will at least give him a few years of peace."
"However, I'm afraid that Liu Yu has intentions for Longxi."
"Brother, why don't we send someone to meet Liu Yu and test his true attitude."
"Testing Liu Yu?"
"Yes, at least we can look at the strength of the Han army and the people's livelihood in the Central Plains, so as to judge whether Liu Yu can threaten us."
"Okay, this is a good idea, but who should we send?"
"Why not, let Zhang Jun go."
"Zhang Jun? He is good at adapting to situations and is a good candidate."
Zhang Shi has great trust in his nephew. This task requires keen talents, and ordinary people are really not capable of it.
"But under what name are we going?"
Zhang Shi, the governor of Liangzhou, was in trouble again.
He was a vassal of the Jin Dynasty, so there was no reason to pay homage to Liu Yu, a monarch from another country.
If Zhang Shi sent an envoy to see Liu Yu, he would naturally need a reasonable reason.
"Why not, just in the name of reopening the trade route." Zhang Mao said immediately.
"Reopening trade routes?"
"Yes, the trade routes in the Western Regions have been in decline for several years. The output of Liangzhou, which is close to Qinzhou, cannot satisfy the appetite of those Hu merchants. Our tax collectors can no longer collect taxes."
"Now that Guanzhong is gradually settling down, why not take this opportunity to test it out."
"If Liu Yu agrees to reopen trade routes, then we can detect the movements in Guanzhong at any time. As long as Liu Yu makes the slightest move, we can detect it from many sources."
"Moreover, once this trade route is opened, we will be able to use trade to contain the small Hu countries, chariot masters, and Yanqi under the governor of the Western Regions through trade, which means that they will not repeat themselves easily."
Small countries in the Western Regions such as Cheshi and Yanqi lived by collecting taxes from passing business travelers.
Years of war in the Central Plains have greatly affected the trade routes to the Western Regions.
After losing the income from the trade routes, these small countries still had to bear the tax collected by the tax collectors sent by Liangzhou, so they were naturally full of resentment.
All kinds of resistance and betrayal are mostly motivated by interests.
"It has been more than ten years, and the trade routes have been cut off for more than ten years!"
Zhang Shi couldn't help but sigh.
From the Central Plains region, even silk and other valuable goods from Yizhou are still sold to the Western Regions through Liangzhou.
In order to make up for the loss of goods on the trade routes, Zhang and his son in Liangzhou imposed high tax rates on those Hu merchants from the Western Regions that were several times higher than before.
But even if this is the case, it is still far inferior to previous years when the trade routes were prosperous.
