Of course, the Northern Kingdom is very wealthy. Coupled with the Yuan family's background and the support of all the major families, to be honest, even the Northern Kingdom at this stage can easily meet the conditions proposed by Lin Mo.
The problem is that Yuan Tan cannot represent the entire Northern Kingdom, or even the Yuan family. In fact, his current overall situation is not much better than Lu Bu. If it weren't for the fact that he had just harvested in the autumn and had enough food and grass, he might have fallen into a cost crisis.
One hundred thousand people eat, drink and eat, which is an astonishing number visible to the naked eye every day.
In fact, under normal circumstances, only the most elite of these sergeants will be retained, and the rest will be pulled out to participate in farming, water conservancy construction and other matters. Some of them will even be dismissed after being registered, and they will be recalled when fighting again.
The advantage of this is that the expenditure can be greatly reduced. The disadvantage is that if a war breaks out, the preparation time will be relatively long, sometimes even one or two months.
But at this time, Yuan Shang might attack him at any time. How dare he send these troops away? Apart from letting them be responsible for harvesting wheat fields, he did not dare to send them farming and military affairs too far away.
This also directly led to a significant increase in his expenses. As an army without the support of the Yuan government, all Yuan Tan could do was to actively run around the Qingzhou family. After all, he had not openly broken up with Yuan Shang yet.
Therefore, he did not dare to agree to Lu Bu's price immediately, hoping that he could push it even lower.
Fortunately, Qingzhou's cavalry was extremely intact during the Central Plains War. Even now, the number of eight thousand cavalry can still be counted. The most difficult thing is always the logistics problem.
Yuan Shang seemed to be aware of this problem and was ready to start knocking the mountain to shake the tiger.
He asked Pang Ji to come to Qingzhou in person and ordered Yuan Tan to return to Yecheng immediately. Any military affairs could be put aside first. As the newly promoted supervisor, Pang Ji would take overall responsibility for the war here.
This time, if Yuan Tan does not go to Yecheng, he can justifiably declare that Yuan Tan is a rebel. This move is likely to cause his subordinates to rebel, because these people are not all Qingzhou soldiers, most of them are Qingzhou soldiers. Once a Jizhou person is declared a rebel, his family members will be implicated.
Furthermore, aristocratic families will also start to take sides. Yuan Shang certainly does not think that all the aristocratic families in Qingzhou will stand on his side, but after all, he is the heir to the Yuan family and the new master of the North, and he will definitely have more supporters than Yuan Tan.
This would be equivalent to cutting off Yuan Tan's logistics lifeline.
The seemingly unnecessary attempt to persuade him to surrender actually conceals murderous intent.
This also made Yuan Tan deeply uneasy. He was not yet sure that he could truly stand firm.
Fortunately, Yuan Xi was not involved in this battle for the heir, otherwise, Yuan Tan would have no chance of winning.
"My lord, the time has come to break with Yuan Shang!" This was what Xin Ping said, with his head held high and his chest high and calm.
"You mean, you can agree to Lu Bu's request and let him go to Qingzhou to confront Yuan Shang? But what does this have to do with timing?" Yuan Tan was a little confused.
The invitation to Lu Bu to Qingzhou was agreed on early in the morning, and it was delayed for more than half a month just because he wanted to lower the price.
"Because I'm here." Next to the Xin brothers, there was a short, chubby Confucian scholar wearing a Confucian robe, with a very friendly smile.
It was Guo Tu. He came from Yecheng with Pang Ji, and he took the initiative to ask for orders to go.
Yuan Shang was undecided at first. Although Guo Tu was more popular with Yuan Shao, he had always been different from Yuan Shang. He was a supporter of Yuan Tan.
But after thinking about it carefully, the situation is very different now. Maybe he wants to turn the gun against Yuan Tan and get some achievements to express his position.
If you think about it from this perspective, Yuan Shang can still accept it. Although Guo Tu is from Henan, he still has the Guo family, which can attract many talents for him.
In addition, Yuan Tan should be able to see that the current situation was unfavorable, so he agreed immediately.
"Could it be that Mr. Gongze has a clever plan?" Yuan Tan was still very happy to see his former supporter again. Hearing his arrogance again, his eyes filled with hope.
"Actually, Yuan Shang just wants to cut off the support of the major aristocratic families for the Young Master, so that he can disintegrate Qingzhou from within, and even capture the Young Master without a single blow.
What did he rely on? It was the appeal of the Yuan family. But now that he has gone to Qingzhou, Yuan Shangke may not be able to give orders as the head of the Yuan family. "Guo Tu twirled his short beard and raised his head, his eyes full of teasing.
What does this mean?
Yuan Tan was a little confused and didn't understand what medicine he was selling in his gourd.
But seeing that the Xin brothers also looked cheerful, as if they had the upper hand, they bowed to Guo Tu and said, "Please teach me, sir."
"Master, where did Gongze come from?" Xinpi also started to talk about it.
"Yecheng."
"So, Gongze was with my lord when he traveled to the immortal world. If Gongze could say something, it was Shen Pei and Pang Ji who tampered with my lord's will."
There was no need to say the rest of the words, because Yuan Tan was so shocked by these half words that he froze and his whole body was stunned.
Yes, the fact that Yuan Shang came to power was testified by Shen Pei and Pang Ji from beginning to end, but these two were originally supporters of Yuan Shang. Who in the Northern Kingdom didn't know this.
Can you believe what they say?
The problem is that the Xin brothers and you have been in Qingzhou all the time, and you can't refute Yuan Shang.
But Guo Tu is different. He came from Yecheng. He was by Yuan Shao's side when he died. As long as he says that the will is a fake, it cannot be said that it will immediately change the opinions of the major families and soldiers, but it will definitely Let the matter be shrouded in a veil of secret history.
At least, if Yuan Shang wants to declare them as rebels as the new master, it will not work.
The only shortcoming is that the Xin brothers and Guo Tu are both from Yingchuan. Although they have some connections in the North over the years, they are definitely not as good as Shen Pei, an authentic Northerner.
It doesn't matter, Yuan Tan also has his own confidence in this. He is Yuan Shao's eldest son. As long as Guo Tu testifies, he will be confident to take the initiative in this matter.
At the family level, he has had his advantages over the years, but as for the military, he has led troops for many years, and his prestige is by no means comparable to that of Yuan Shang.
After thinking about this problem clearly, he naturally understood what Xin Ping was talking about. The timing was Guo Tu!
"Hahaha, great! With Mr. Gongze's help, I don't have to worry about succeeding in my great cause!"
In the council hall, the four people laughed loudly.
Guo Tu found a long-lost familiarity again. Since Yuan Shao's death, he had not had this sense of accomplishment and satisfaction for a long time.
Sure enough, gold will shine sooner or later.
"Master, it's time to reply to Lu Bu and invite him to Qingzhou." Guo Tu reminded him at the right time.
"Then what's the price?"
But seeing that Yuan Tan was hesitant, Guo Tu smiled and shook his head, "Young master, if you want to achieve great things, why should you stingy with trivial things? It's just three thousand war horses. Give him this. If these horses can return you to your position as the lord of the Northern Kingdom, , do you still think it’s expensive?”
Yuan Tan rolled his eyes and laughed to himself, "What you are trying to teach me is that I am confused. Well, even if I give him three thousand horses, I still have five thousand cavalry and a hundred thousand troops. Why should I be afraid!" "
Just as he said, Yuan Tan immediately turned back to the handsome chair, wrote a letter asking for help quickly, and stamped it with his own seal.
Just when he was about to go to the military camp to order three thousand war horses to send to Lu Bu, Xinpi stood up and said, "Master, you must sacrifice the flag for important events."
"Sacrifice the flag? Sir, what are you going to use as a sacrifice to the flag?" Yuan Tan blinked, at a loss.
"Pang Ji's head."
"Yes, this guy is the one who tampered with the master's will by cooperating with the judge. Don't let him be spared!" Guo Tu scolded sternly.
Okay, the two great sages have spoken, so what are you waiting for? Go find Pang Ji.
For Pang Ji, theoretically the best way is to win over him, because he is Yuan Shang's most trusted person. It would be more convincing if he also turned around and said that the death was false.
But this is simply unrealistic, because he and Shen Pei originally killed Yuan Shang, the third young master of Shili, about the death. If he were to change his story now, it would not only be humiliating for him, but also the entire family. And be shamed.
So when Yuan Tan came to Pang Ji, he didn't even say a word to persuade him to surrender, and his eyes were filled with murderous intent.
"What does your general want to do?"
"It's nothing, I want to lend you something sir." Yuan Tan looked at Pang Ji with interest, the enemy who had forced him to a dead end.
"What?"
"Head on the neck!"
After saying that, Qing Feng unsheathed, and a cold light flashed through him. Pang Ji didn't even have time to cry out in pain, and he fell straight down while holding the blood-stained wound at his throat.
At this moment, Yuan Tan felt a great sense of satisfaction, as if he had finally let out the bad breath that had been accumulated for many years.
There are still two left, Shen Pei and Yuan Shang
Looking at Pang Ji who was still twitching on the ground but unable to make any sound, the Xin brothers and Guo Tu looked at each other and smiled, today is really a good day.
Afterwards, Yuan Tan immediately summoned all the generals above the centurion level to the martial arts field to issue a declaration.
"For their own selfish purposes, Pang Ji and Shen Pei actually tampered with my father's will and appointed Yuan Shang as their master. Now Pang Ji has been rectified by me!" Yuan Tan held up Pang Ji's head with a cold gaze.
These remarks were too shocking for these generals who only knew how to fight on the battlefield, and they were at a loss for a while.
Of course they understood what Yuan Tan meant, which was to compete with Yuan Shang for the position of Lord of the Northern Kingdom.
The problem is, none of them want to be declared rebels.
"I came from Yecheng, and I was there when my lord was traveling to the immortal world. I really heard my lord say that he would make Mr. Tan the crown prince and take over the throne. I, Guo Tu, would like to guarantee with my life that every word of what I said is true. !”
When Guo Tu said this, the whispers among the generals disappeared instantly.
It turns out there are witnesses, and it’s not the young master who is talking to himself.
Many of these generals had been with Yuan Tan for several years. In addition, he was also good to his subordinates, so some people immediately started to respond.
Even Zhao Rui and Han Ju raised their arms and shouted in support of the young master's rise to power after exchanging glances.
Once there is a leader, others follow.
At this point, the linkage between the military and morale has been solved. The next step is to visit the major families to win more support.
Anyway, it will take some time for Lu Bu to enter Qingzhou, which is enough for him to deal with it.
That night, Guo Tu and the Xin brothers drank and talked happily.
We are all from Yingchuan, have common enemies, and have common interests. Of course, we should take advantage of Shijiu's youth.
Moreover, we are all smart people. Now that this matter has been pushed to this level, some details should be discussed carefully.
For example, how to support Lu Bu, how to gain his trust, and finally how to let Lu Bu gain a foothold in the Northern Kingdom.
Even if Lu Bu really becomes big in the future, his own people in Lu Camp will still have to stick together and not let people from other factions bully him.
Finally, everyone raises a toast to the strongest military advisor alliance!
Poor Yuan Tan is still looking forward to his high spirits after retaking the Northern Kingdom. He believes that Yuan Shao has a spirit in heaven, and he will also feel sad for these idiots in the Yuan family.
"Sun Ce's tribute gift list is not thin. There are five luminous pearls alone, as well as various valuable treasures. After two major defeats in Guangling, he can still pay so many tributes."
Cao Cao casually threw away the note handed over by Sun Ce and sneered, "It seems that the internal conflicts in Jiangdong are too great, and he has to take action against Jiaozhou."
"Father, after Shi Xie was promoted to the governor of Jiaozhou, he didn't come to pay tribute. Isn't it time to move his position?" Cao Ang looked at Cao Cao with his eyebrows lowered, waiting for his order.
Cao Cao smiled, "Is it just because he hasn't paid tribute for several years?"
Cao Ang was slightly startled, and immediately guessed that Cao Cao would agree to Sun Ce's request, but why he agreed was definitely not as simple as tribute.
After thinking about it in his mind for a while, he said confidently: "Liu Biao has long coveted Jiaozhou and will not sit idly by. Even if Sun Ce wins Jiaozhou in the end, the war between the two families will become even more intense.
Compared with Shi Xie, who only sticks to his duties, Sun Ce takes charge of Jiaozhou and can better weaken the forces of both parties. "
Cao Cao finally showed a satisfied smile and nodded, "The Sun family and Liu Biao are feuding. The two families have been fighting for so many years without stopping. Once Jiaozhou falls into Sun Ce's hands, there will be no fight between the two. It will be as convenient as before by hundreds of miles of waterway."
Shi Xie's position as governor of Jiaozhou was just an extension of Cao Cao's use of the emperor to command the princes. It was originally intended to curb Liu Biao's further expansion.
As early as the fourth year of Zhongping, Zhu Fu, the governor of Jiaozhou, was beaten to death by the people because of excessive taxation. The imperial court sent a new governor, Zhang Jin, to take office. However, this guy was even more deceitful than Zhu Fu and was directly killed by his subordinates.
At that time, Liu Biao wanted to reach out to Jiaozhou. Taking advantage of the fact that the court had not arranged a new candidate, he sent Lai Gong to take over the position of governor, and also asked Wu Ju to occupy the position of Cangwu prefect.
Of course, Cao Cao was not happy to see Liu Biao grow stronger, so he thought of using the scholar family to deal with Liu Biao, and made Shi Xie the governor of Jiaozhou in the name of the emperor.
There is no room for two tigers in one mountain, so the two sides naturally started fighting in Jiaozhou.
With Liu Biao as his backing, even Shi Xie from the No. 1 family in Jiaozhou could not do anything to Lai Gong. Who would have thought that there would be internal conflicts between them.
Wu Ju, the prefect of Cangwu who was also sent by Liu Biao, could not stand Lai Gong's arrogance in relying on power, so he even joined forces with Shi Xie to drive Lai Gong away.
In the end, Shi Xie finally secured his position as the governor of Jiaozhou, and Wu Ju remained in Cangwu.
Therefore, from this perspective, Cao Cao actually did not want to replace the governor of Jiaozhou, even if he did, it would not be to replace Sun Ce.
But over the years, Cao Cao discovered that Shi Xie could only look after the family and the hospital, and had no ambitions at all. The battle between Jiaozhou and Jingzhou that he was looking forward to has not started yet. In this case, you should give way to Xian.
"I sent an imperial edict to Sun Ce in the name of the emperor, telling him that Shi Xie had not been in court for many years and had other intentions. Let him go ahead and do it."
"Here!"
Before Cao Ang had time to walk out of the hall, Xun Yu came in. He held a piece of silk cloth in his hand and said with a smile: "Sikong, there is good news."
Jiaozhou is definitely not as unbearable as some readers say. Liu Biao, who is sitting in Jingzhou, the heart of the world, has long had thoughts about Jiaozhou, and has also taken practical actions. As mentioned in the article, he sent Lai Gong and Wu Ju to take over. Use it as your own backyard.
Not to mention Sun Quan, who later directly occupied the entire Jiaozhou and gave in to Zhi as governor.
In fact, Liu Zhang also had some ideas, but he was so tortured by Zhang Lu and had so many internal conflicts that he couldn't get out of it at all.
Jiaozhou is bordered by Yi, Jing and Yangzhou, and with millions of people in the seven counties, with the use of curved shaft plows and keel waterwheels, it can definitely become a strategic backyard within a few years.
Moreover, there has been no war in Jiaozhou for many years. If compared, it is at least higher than Liangzhou.
One more thing, Chapter 2 will be updated in the evening. Sorry, I’m on a business trip and I really don’t have time.
(End of chapter)
