It is said that Liu Bang, the ancestor of the Han Dynasty, left his last words before his death, "If it is not the Liu family and the king, if it is useless, the world will punish the people who do not say anything." Therefore, during the two Han Dynasty, only the clan surnamed Liu could be crowned king, and other heroes with different surnames could only be crowned to liehou at most. Even Han Xin, the first founding hero of the Han family, who was once named the king of Qi and the king of Chu, was demoted to the marquis of Huaiyin after his death. It is true that when Empress Lu was in power, he also "sealed Zhu Lu". But after the death of Empress Lu, these princes surnamed Lu also disappeared in the long river of history.

Nowadays, the majesty of Emperor Liu Xie of the Han Dynasty may not be as majestic as Emperor Hui Liu Ying, who was suppressed by Empress Lu, but in the case of a forest of princes restraining each other, except for the Yuan family, who openly declared himself emperor, no prince dared to ask the court to be crowned king. Therefore, "Hou" is still the highest title of the Han Dynasty at present. The marquis of the Han Dynasty were mainly divided into liehous who had fiefdoms and Guannei marquis who did not have fiefdoms. Among them, the liehou is subdivided into county marquis, township marquis, and pavilion marquis according to the size of the fiefdom. Like the "Fei Tinghou" who was sealed by the imperial court and Cai Ji before, it belonged to the last pavilion marquis among the princes. It stands to reason that if the Han Emperor wants to improve Cai Ji's status, he should make her a county marquis or a township marquis. However, the "Qi Hou" mentioned by Wu Shuo at this time is extremely special.

"Qi" in the Han Dynasty was not a "county", but a "county", or more precisely, a "country". The state of Qi has always been a fiefdom reserved for the clan relatives of the Han family. It was not until the last king of Qi, Liu Xi, died childlessly that the state of Qi was annexed to Qingzhou. Regardless of the fact that the Marquis of Qi has changed direction in the fiefdom, he is higher than the ordinary county marquis. Since "Qi" is still the national name of Qi, one of the five hegemons of the Spring and Autumn Period and one of the Seven Heroes of the Warring States, its influence on geopolitics should not be underestimated. Just like in history, after Sun Ce was named Marquis of Wu, the thoughts of the famous families in the entire ancient Wu region were activated. Even the famous Lu family in Jiangdong, who had a deep enmity with Sun Ce, finally complied with the "will of heaven" and took refuge in Sun Ce.

Therefore, when he heard that Wu Shuo wanted to crown Cai Ji as the Marquis of Qi, Liu Xie's eyes immediately flashed a trace of surprise and hesitation, "Wu Qing's words are true?" With Cai Anzhen's merits, it would be too much to make him the Marquis of Qi. ”

Faced with Liu Xie's questioning, Wu Shuo explained earnestly, "Your Majesty is a clear guide." It is precisely because Cai Anzhen's merits are not high and his strength is not strong that he can be named the Marquis of Qi. On the other hand, Cao Cao, Liu Biao and other great princes, His Majesty rewarded them with great caution, so as not to take advantage of the situation to threaten the imperial court. In this way, supporting the small princes against the big princes is a combination of vertical and horizontal strategies. In addition, not only is Cao Cao in a life-and-death crisis at the moment, but the safety of the imperial court is also on the line. If Cai Anzhen can relieve the siege for the imperial court by sending troops and food, isn't his exploits worthy of the title of Marquis of Qi? ”

After listening to Wu Shuo's analysis, Liu Xie finally stopped hesitating in his heart, and immediately nodded with a smile on his face and said, "Good, the matter of Cao Cai's marriage will be handled according to Wu Qing's strategy." However, since the imperial court has named Cai Anzhen as the Marquis of Qi, should it also express something to Liu Xuande of Lujiang and let him kill Liu Jingsheng's prestige? ”

Wu Shuo couldn't help but bow his head with relief when he saw Liu Xie draw inferences so quickly, "Your Majesty, Liu Jingsheng and Sun Bofu are both ill-intentioned people, and it is only appropriate to use Liu Xuande to contain the two." ”

And just when Wu Shuo and Dong Cheng analyzed the pros and cons behind the "Cao Cai marriage" to Liu Xie one by one, Xun Yu in the same city also wrote similar content on the brocade silk, and ordered the messenger to send it to the Cao army camp in Guandu overnight. Therefore, early the next morning, Cao Cao received an urgent letter from Xu Du in his tent.

"What does Gongda think about this?" Seeing Xun You, who was sitting opposite, reading the entire letter, Cao Cao couldn't help but change his sitting posture and leaned over and asked. Unlike what the outside world imagined, Cao Cao did not seem too surprised after reading Xun Yu's letter. In fact, marriages between princes were not uncommon in the late Han Dynasty. The marriage between Lu Bu and Yuan Shu was relatively influential. And just before Cao Cao's eastern expedition to Lü Bu, he also married one of his nieces to Sun Ce's younger brother Sun Kuang. However, the "Cao Cai Marriage" is obviously different from the "Cao Sun Marriage", and Cao Cao cannot just pick a Cao family boy to marry Cai Ji. So Cao Cao at this time had to listen carefully to the opinions of his staff.

But seeing Xun You put down the letter in his hand, he replied, "Returning to the lord, the marriage with the Cai family is an opportunity to resolve the difficulty of Guandu." But as Wen Ruo said, if this matter is not handled well, there will be endless troubles in the future. I still have to ask again under this subordinate, Xu You really doesn't know where Yuan Shao's military rations are? ”

"Before Ziyuan came to vote, Chun Yuqiong had not escorted the military rations across the Yellow River, so he was not familiar with Yuan Shao's arrangements after that. And the few strongholds provided by it, Gu also sent people to investigate, but none of them were Yuan Shao's place to store grain. If it weren't for that, Lone wouldn't have to pay attention to the words of Wu Shuo, Dong Cheng and other villains. Cao Cao gritted his teeth and waved his hand. It turned out that because Xu You defected to Cao Cao one step earlier than the original history, he lost the opportunity to grasp the place where Yuan Shao's military rations were located. And Cao Cao naturally can't be like the original history, burning the black nest to stage a Jedi counterattack with outnumbered enemies.

"That being the case. The lord also had to seriously consider the marriage with the Cai family. Cai Anzhen's grain, grass and soldiers and horses can certainly solve the urgent needs of the lord. But Yuan's lesson has to be guarded against," Xun Yu did not shy away from mentioning to Cao Cao.

"Yuan's lesson? How could the children of my Cao family be as dull as Yuan Shao and Yuan Shu. Cao Cao smiled disapprovingly.

But Xun Yu still gave his hand with a stern expression and admonished, "The lord is clear." Ang is indeed a generous person and open-minded, and he is by no means Yuan Shao and Yuan Shu. But with all due respect, the other sons of the lord are still young, and it is not yet possible to make a conclusion about what will happen in the future. What's more, once the lord marries Cai Anzhen, it is difficult to guarantee that the imperial court will not use this relationship to interfere in the lord's family affairs. It must be known that Wu Shuo and Dong Cheng have sought the future of the Cao family this time."

Xun You's heartfelt words made Cao Cao fall into deep thought. Indeed, among Cao Cao's several, in addition to Cao Ang, who is already an adult at the age of twenty-two, the second son Cao Pi is twelve years old, the third son Cao Zhang is ten years old, and the fourth son Cao Zhi is seven years old, and the fifth son Cao Xiong is still in infancy. And with Cao Cao's energy, it will be an ironclad thing to continue to branch out for the Cao family in the future. It is also impossible to say that there will be no gap in the future with so many children. The only thing that made Cao Cao deeply relieved was that Cao Ang and several younger brothers were more than ten years apart, and the issue of inheriting the head of the family should not be as sharp as Yuan Shao and Yuan Shu. But as Xun You said, if the imperial court uses Cai Anzhen's strength and Cao family's identity to intervene in the inheritance of the Cao family, it will not be optimistic.

So after thinking about it for a while, Cao Cao opened his mouth and asked Xun You, "Then according to Gongda's opinion, which one should Gu choose to go to Qingzhou to marry?" ”

"But I don't know what the lord expects from Cao Cai's marriage?" Xun You raised his head and asked.

Cao Cao raised his eyebrows and waved his hand at Xun You, "I want to hear about it." ”

Seeing this, Xun You followed Cao Cao's words and said, "If the lord wants to take advantage of Cao Cai's marriage and replace him with Cai Anzhen, you can send Da Ang to Qingzhou to get married." Ang is similar in age to Cai Anzhen, and he is heroic and brilliant. After it arrives in Qingzhou, it will be able to attract a group of local famous generals and celebrities for the use of the Cao family. In addition, I heard that Aung seems to be quite in love with Cai Anzhen. If Joao can capture Cai Anzhen's heart in one fell swoop this time, and make him hand over his power and retire to the deep courtyard to teach his husband and children, then the lord's great affairs can be accomplished. ”

Although the prospect of Xun You's analysis was quite tempting, Cao Cao shook his head when he heard this, and said, "Cai Anzhen is not an ordinary woman who is content with the deep boudoir. In Gu's opinion, it was Ang'er's stupid boy who never forgot Cai Anzhen's wishful thinking. Therefore, after the two get married, it is not known who will be the main one. ”

Seeing Cao Cao say this, Xun You was not discouraged, but continued to analyze to him, "If the lord only wants to use Cao Cai's marriage to temporarily form an alliance with Cai Anzhen to deal with Yuan Shao. Then you can build yì, and the lord can choose two pi to go to Qingzhou to marry. Pi is neither the eldest son nor the son-in-law, and the little Cai Anzhen is six years old, and he is only twelve years old now. After he and Cai Anzhen got married, they could only have the name of husband and wife for at least three years, but could not be husband and wife. With the heroism of the lord and the help of Cai Anzhen, Yuan Shao will be able to pacify Hebei within three years. At that time, whether to divide the four states of Hebei with Cai Anzhen, or take advantage of the situation to send troops to recruit Cai Anzhen to completely unify the north, it is all in the mind of the lord. It's just that Pi has become a 'proton', I don't know if the lord can be willing to give it up? ”

Xun You's so-called proton does not refer to the subatomic particles with a positive charge of 1.6×10-19 coulombs (C) in later physics, but refers to the hostages sent to the enemy or other countries in ancient times. Historically, the hostages who have been called "protons" have been the children of nobles such as princes or princes. During the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, when there were many princes, it was very common for countries to send protons to each other. For example, Qin Shi Huang and his father Ying Yiren both worked as protons in Zhao State. However, once the two countries and two forces are at war, the first bad luck is the proton. Although Cao Pi is a concubine, he is still Cao Cao's pro after all, and he is not yet an adult. Therefore, Xun You asked Cao Cao if he was reluctant.

However, for Cao Cao, who had already sent a daughter to the palace and a niece to marry Dongwu, this did not seem to be a problem. But I heard Cao Cao proudly reply, "Willing, willing, giving will be gained." As long as Cai Anzhen is willing to marry, why is he afraid to give a son as a hostage. ”

Xun You saw that Cao Cao did not hesitate to sacrifice a son in order to achieve hegemony, and in addition to his admiration, he couldn't help but take advantage of the situation and said, "Since the lord has this determination. The lord of Yu Jian can first mention the marriage with Pi, test the attitude of the imperial court and Cai Anzhen before making a decision. ”

Cao Cao listened to what Xun You said, and also felt that it was better to probe Cai Ji's tone than to guess here. After all, ordinary people have to pay attention to three media and six appointments when they get married, not to mention that this is the marriage of princes. So Cao Cao immediately nodded and agreed, "Good, just do it according to Gongda's plan." ”

At this moment, Cai Ji, who was far away in Donglai, didn't know that there was a group of old men who were calculating the marriage event. At this time, she was busy with the matter of opening a branch to recruit scholars. It is said that after Cai Ji presided over the graduation ceremony of the lecture hall, he sent a list to the two counties of Donglai and Beihai to announce that he would open a department to these two counties. According to Cai Ji's statement in the list, no matter what background he or she is, as long as he thinks he is talented, he can go to Huang County to register for the imperial examination before August 15. The middle one can not only get an official position under Qing and Xu Erzhou, but even have the opportunity to be directly recruited into the shogunate by Cai Ji. However, in order to appease the family, Cai Ji also stipulated that if a person was recommended by the magistrate because of his virtue and virtue, he could bypass the preliminary examination and directly participate in the questioning.

Although Cao Cao is currently confronting Yuan Shao in Guandu, the Liu dynasty seems to have reached a critical juncture of life and death. However, for the vast majority of famous families and poor people in Qing and Xu Prefectures, the news of Cai Ji's opening of the branch is obviously more attractive than the battle of Cao Yuan. After all, no matter who wins or loses Cao Cao and Yuan Shao, and who will be the emperor between Liu Xie and Yuan Shao, local government affairs still need to be taken care of by local officials. As long as you can get an official position in the hands of Cai Ji, or even just show a little fame, it may be an opportunity to open up your career.

Therefore, throughout June and July, every day, people from Qingzhou, Xuzhou, and even Yanzhou and Yuzhou flocked to Huangxian from all directions, either on horseback, or on car, or simply on foot. For this reason, Huang Zhen had to open up a separate square area in the city to entertain these scholars who came to take the exam. And this square area has also won the reputation of "Genius Square".

However, compared to those who live in the Caizifang and come to try their luck, other candidates who live in the city's independent courtyards or luxury wine shops are obviously much more eye-catching. These men often rode in elaborate chariots or ox-carts, accompanied by a large number of servants, and not only did they themselves look like jade trees, but in all cases they had letters of recommendation from magistrates. Needless to ask, these candidates who are comparable to future stars in terms of appearance and dress are the so-called children of wealthy families. Since ancient times, Chinese officialdom has had the habit of judging people by their appearance. If a person is not good-looking, then no matter how talented he is, his career must be bumpy. Therefore, the first condition for the magistrates of the Han Dynasty to recommend talents is that the person must be upright, and the person with a good temperament is even more loved in the officialdom.

In this way, it can be regarded as a feast for the little ladies and children in Huangxian County. Many girls who have reached the age of marriage have even had rose-colored dreams. On this day, when a bullock cart carrying an expensive ox cart passed through the streets and alleys, as usual, there were many infatuated girls chasing the ox cart all the way and throwing the embroidered purse, silk handkerchief and even fruit into the cart to show their love. Seeing this situation, Guo Jia, who was standing on the pavilion, couldn't help shaking his fan and sighed, "It's a pity that so many little ladies have a heart." ”

Cai Ji, who was standing on the side watching the excitement, couldn't help but tease and asked, "Why did Feng Xiao say this?" Since ancient times, she has been a fair lady and a gentleman. How can Bonghyo be sure that those girls will not find their crushes because of this opportunity? ”

"Those handsome gentlemen who have been greased and powdered, all the way to Huangxian County, are not to fall in love with the little ladies of ordinary people." Guo Jia turned his head to Cai Ji and asked with a smile, "Doesn't the lord still see the thoughts of these young men?" ”

Cai Ji was asked by Guo Jia like this, and it was not good to continue to pretend to be stupid. had to cough dryly and clarified to Guo Jia, "This time the government is recruiting talents, not husbands. ”

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