No matter how much Cao Cao hated Cai Ji so much that he gritted his teeth and hated him to death, he couldn't deny that Cai Ji really grasped the minds of the princes of the world this time. In November of the eighth year of Jian'an, under the "inspiration" of Cai Ji's 16-character initiative of "Bu Du Dingding, returning the political son, dividing the princes, and using the feudal Ping Han", Ma Chao, a partial general, knocked on Longxi with the Guanxi army under his command in the name of "escorting in Beijing". In the face of the menacing Ma Chao, Shi Weirui, the assassin of Liangzhou, stationed troops in Liangzhou Prefecture to block the eastward advance of the Guanxi Army, and sent envoys to Xudu day and night to ask for help.

Don't look at the Han Emperor Liu Xie, who has already declared himself pro-government. However, when the war report of Ma Chao's invasion of the eastern part of the country reached Xudu, Cao Ang still operated the military power in his hands to block the news as soon as possible, and quickly summoned Xiahoudun, Ding Chong and other cronies into the prime minister's mansion to discuss countermeasures. Without the presence of the Son of Heaven and the Imperial Party, Cao Ang naturally spoke a little less concerned. Seeing him slap the case, the tiger's eyes widened and said, "Ma Chao is so taking advantage of the fire to rob, he is not afraid of affecting his father!" ”

As soon as Cao Ang's words came out, Xiahou Dun, who was as fierce as fire, immediately clenched his fists and echoed, "Zixiu, don't hesitate, I will raise troops to put Ma Teng's family in prison, and see if Ma Chao'er dares to make any changes!" ”

Seeing that Xiahou was murderous, and Ma Chao would destroy Ma Teng as soon as he made a move, Lou Gui, the general on the side, hurriedly said to stop him, "No." Ma Chao is a border beard, with no king or father in his heart. This time, his leading troops knocked on the pass, as if he had put the Ma family to death. If Gongzi kills Ma Teng because of this, he will only give Ma Chao the truth. The gains outweigh the losses! ”

Lou Gui, the word Zibo. A native of Nanyang, Jingzhou, he had some friendship with Cao Cao when he was young. During the early peace period, Lou Gui gathered some people in Jingbei. He was first attached to Liu Biao, and then switched to Cao Cao, and was appointed as a general by Cao Cao, participating in the planning of military affairs, but not in charge of military power, so he was also a wise figure in Cao Ying. And he called Ma Chao a "border beard" at the moment, but it was not a deliberate belittling of Ma Chao. Because although Ma Teng's ancestor was the founding father of the Eastern Han Dynasty, General Fubo, Ma Yuan, he had already fallen into the middle of his family by his grandfather Ma Ping's generation. Ma Ping. Zishuo, originally a captain of Tianshui Lan, lost his official position and stayed in Longxi. was poor, and had only a Qiang girl as his wife, and gave birth to Ma Chao's father, Ma Teng. And Ma Teng, along with his sons, was also born with a large body and a different face and nose. At a glance, people can see that it is mixed with Huqiang blood. As for Ma Chao, regardless of his father and younger brother, he was an official and a hostage in Xudu. The cold-blooded faction of leading the troops to invade the east to divide the feud is comparable to Lu Bu, who killed his father in the eyes of the Han Dynasty people who have always paid attention to filial piety.

In fact, according to the original historical process, even if Cai Ji did not propose to "move the capital and divide the feud", Ma Chao would have rebelled against Cao in the sixteenth year of Jian'an, resulting in Ma Teng being killed by Cao Cao in the following year and destroying the three clans. But Cao Ang is not Cao Cao after all. After realizing that Ma Chao didn't care about the life or death of Ma Teng and the Ma clan at all, Cao Ang did not exterminate the Ma clan to vent his anger, but calmed down and asked Lou Gui for advice. "According to General Lou's opinion, how should Yu Dang deal with the Liangzhou Rebellion?"

Lou Gui said in a deep voice: "Ma Chao used the name of escorting the Beijing to coerce the Guanxi soldiers to invade the east. The purpose is to ask the imperial court for the division of Liangzhou. The eldest prince can send the guard captain Ma Teng to escort him south to accept the separation, so as to stabilize Ma Chao, and after the prime minister gets out of trouble, he will mobilize heavy troops to fight against this fang. ”

Considering Cao Ying's current clumsy strength, Lou Gui's Jianyì won the approval of most people on the scene. Wang Lang, the counselor, followed Lou Gui's words and said bluntly, "The people of Liangzhou are fierce, and the Hu and Han live together, even if they are ceded to Ma Chao, it will not be a big problem." ”

Hearing that Wang Langti ceded Liangzhou to Ma Chao, Cao Ang couldn't help frowning. Although Cao Jun has only occupied one county in Liangzhou so far, Cao Ang is really a little unwilling when he thinks that Ma Chao will only show off his power and take the huge Liangzhou into his pocket. What's more, with Ma Chao's ambition, once he captures Liangzhou, how can he let Sanfu and even the entire Guanzhong go. Just when Cao Ang was hesitating, he suddenly heard someone outside the door say loudly, "Never! ”

Cao Ang and the civil and military forces present looked back one after another, and saw Xun Yu, who had not seen each other for a long time, and Zhong Xuan, who was dressed in military uniform, came together. Xu is because of the continuous march, and Zhong Xuan, who has always been elegant, looks gray at this time. Thinking that Zhong Xuan, who was already fifty and two, rushed all the way from Bingzhou to Xudu in order to rescue him in the south, Cao Ang was moved and hurriedly got up to greet him, "Zhong Shuai has worked hard all the way. ”

"I've seen the eldest prince." Zhong Xuan returned the salute and said in a deep voice, "The old man heard that Ma Chao led the Guanxi soldiers to knock on Longxi, so he and Xun Lingjun rushed to the Prime Minister's Mansion. The eldest son, Xun Lingjun is reasonable, Ma Chao is ambitious, and he must not let it gain an inch! ”

Cao Ang was pointed out by Zhong Xuan, and he couldn't help but remember that Cao Ying encountered crises in the past, and his father always asked Xun Yu for advice, and Xun Yu could always help his father save the day. Until the last time, my father did not listen to Xun Lingjun's persuasion. Cao Ang didn't listen to Xun Yu's persuasion recently, and even went to Cai Ji for help without Xun Yu. He thought that Xun Yu would be disappointed and indignant at his Cao father and son from then on, and even shut himself up. However, at that time, Xun Yu was still working hard for Cao Ying, and even received Guo Jia and Lu Su who were envoys to Xu Du not long ago.

Thinking of this, Cao Ang suddenly felt deeply guilty, and then turned to Xun Yu and bowed down, "Please also ask Ling Jun to give guidance to Ang." ”

Xun Yu looked at Cao Ang, who bowed to himself in front of him, and his heart was full of emotion. Although Cao Ang is emotional, he is a rare filial son, and he is powerful and kind, brave and righteous, after all, he is a hundred times stronger than Ma Chao and others. In addition, after a candlestick and night conversation with Guo Jia that day, Xun Yu had also realized that it was the trend of the times to divide the feudal territory, and for the sake of today, he had to try to preserve his strength for the Cao family, so that Cao Cao could gain an advantage in the next princes' hegemony. And compromising with Ma Chao, on the surface, seemed to avoid a fight, so that the Cao army, which was not well fed, did not have to fight to the death with the fierce Kwanti army. In essence, this move is highly likely to tear the states and counties under Cao Cao's rule apart. Because in Guanzhong, Bingzhou and even Jianghuai, there are all kinds of warlords and heroes. When Cao Cao was strong, these forces attached themselves to Cao Cao's army and became Cao Cao's minions. But once Cao Cao loses power, these warlords and heroes will turn into fierce tigers and hungry wolves in an instant, waiting for Cao Jun to show their cowardice one by one, so that they can rush to the Cao family and divide the corpse.

In Xun Yu's opinion, Cao Ang did not agree to Wang Lang and others' proposals, but asked himself for advice. At least it proves that Cao Dagongzi is not completely confused. So Xun Yu stretched out his hand and stepped forward to help Cao Ang and said, "The eldest son, please get up." ”

After saying that, Xun Yu raised his head and looked around at the colleagues present, and then said with a solemn face. Ma Chao led the troops to knock on the pass and beg for a seal, so he ceded Liangzhou. If the warlords of Guanzhong and Huaibei compete to follow suit, the monarchs present will also cede Guanzhong and Huaibei? ”

Xun Yu's rhetorical question made Wang Lang and others, who were still clamoring to give up Liangzhou a moment ago, bow their heads in embarrassment. However, Ding Chong, who had never expressed his position before, suddenly interjected, "According to Xun Lingjun's opinion, how should Yu and the others resist Ma Chao?" ”

Ding Chong's question spoke to the hearts of most people. Everyone understands the truth, but how to send away Ma Chao's plague god is the top priority. So, everyone's eyes suddenly converged on Xun Yu. Xun Yu had been prepared for this for a long time, and seeing his tough attitude, he raised his eyebrows and swept coldly. "I am sending troops to help Longxi and help Wei to defend Liangzhou!"

"Where's the reinforcements? Do you want to sprinkle beans into a soldier? Ding Chong asked in a sarcastic tone. It has long been a well-known secret that Cao's army has limited troops. Xun Yu's statement of "dispatching troops to help" is obviously a bit wishful thinking. In addition, the Qian Pei family, led by Ding Chong, finally set foot in the court by moving the capital to divide the seal, and they were somewhat unwilling to see Xun Yu, who was the leader of Ruying, make a comeback.

However, just when Ding Chong scoffed at Chi Yuan. Zhong Xuan stepped forward and asked Cao Ang for help, "Eldest son, the old man is willing to bring three thousand pieces to help Longxi." ”

Cao Ang was shocked when he heard this, and said, "Zhong Shuai has just arrived in Beijing. Kurama Lawton. How can you run long distances to Longxi! ”

"Don't worry, eldest prince." Zhong Xuan waved his hand and calmly analyzed with Cao Ang, "Ma Chao has many discords with the Liangzhou tribes, and if he does not attack Jicheng for a long time, the rear will inevitably be unstable." Therefore, the old man only needs to arrive in Liangzhou to put on a decisive battle, and Ma Chao can retreat. ”

"That being said. However, Longxi and Xudu are thousands of miles apart, and if the reinforcements arrive in Longxi, Jicheng has already fallen. Didn't Zhong Shuai run for nothing? Lou Gui Xu questioned.

Faced with Lou Gui's question, Xun Yu hugged his fists as a protector. "Liangzhou Thorn Shi Weirui once mediated the dispute between Ma and Han, and he is known as a prestige in Liangzhou, and his other driver Yang Fu is even more capable of both ability and political integrity, and is resourceful. With these two people sitting in Jicheng, they will be able to protect the city. ”

It turned out that Ma Teng and Han Sui were originally righteous brothers, but later due to the contradictions between the tribes, the two turned against each other. During the early peace period, Ma Teng led his troops to attack Han Sui, and Han Sui was defeated and retreated. But soon after, Han Sui again recruited soldiers to attack Ma Teng, and killed Ma Teng's wife and eldest son. At this point, Ma Teng and Han Sui completely became undying enemies, and Liangzhou was in war for many years, and it was not until the early years of Jian'an that the two reached a reconciliation under the mediation of Zhong Xuan and Wei Rui. At this moment, hearing Xun Yu mention the past when Wei Rui and Zhong Xuan successfully mediated the dispute between Ma Teng and Han Sui in the past, many people at the scene nodded happily and sincerely. Even Ding Chong had to say sourly at this time, "Ma Chao's wolf ambition is comparable to his father." ”

However, regardless of whether Wei Rui and Zhong Miao can still say that Ma Chao retreated with an incorruptible tongue like mediating the dispute between Ma and Han, at least the appearance of Xun Yu and Zhong Miao gave Cao Ang the confidence to defeat Ma Chao. The next moment, Cao Ang, who had made up his mind, bowed respectfully to Zhong Xuan and said, "Liangzhou will ask Zhong Shuaiye." ”

Zhong Miao was entrusted by Cao Ang, and after replenishing enough grain and grass, he quietly led his troops straight to Liangzhou. As for Ma Chao's "knocking procession", it was temporarily whitewashed as a riot in the border area. However, Cao Ang's move could only deceive the ordinary people in Xudu City. For example, Guo Jia heard the whole incident through the spies who were planted in the city of Xudu by Guò Qiying and the fellow villagers of Yingchuan. Of course, out of the needs of the alliance, Guo Jia also generously shared this information with Lu Su, who was still kept in the dark.

Hearing that Ma Chao of Liangzhou also wanted to take advantage of the momentum of Cai, Sun, Liu, and Cao to divide the princes to ask for a piece of the pie from the Son of Heaven, Lu Su immediately opened his eyes angrily and said dissatisfied, "Things are rare and expensive, and people are noble." If you show off your might, you can divide it, won't the world be in chaos! ”

Guo Jia deeply agreed with Lu Su's statement. Because as Lu Su said, "things are rare and noble, and people are noble", the fewer princes the Son of Heaven divides, the more noble the princes who are feuded. On the contrary, if any warlord can ask for a feud from the Son of Heaven with a little pressure, it will not only cause chaos in the world, but also the titles of Cai, Sun, Liu, and Cao will be eclipsed.

So as soon as Lu Su's words fell, Guo Jia chimed in, "Zi Jing's words are reasonable. Although Cao Ang did not agree to Ma Chao, he would have a lot of dreams at night, so it was advisable to persuade the Son of Heaven to go south as soon as possible and achieve the trend of dividing the four families. ”

But Lu Su listened to what Guo Jia said, but he frowned and said, "The new capital has not yet been determined, how to protect the Son of Heaven to the south?" ”

It turned out that although Liu Xie, the son of the Han Dynasty, had chosen Xiangyang as the new capital early on, Cao Ying was inclined to move the capital to Peicheng. In addition, Cao Ang did not intend to let go of the Son of Heaven before Cao Cao got out of trouble. As a result, the parties have fallen into a deadlock on the issue of moving the capital. However, Guo Jia obviously didn't care about this, but seeing that he confidently smiled at Lu Su and asked, "At this time and that time, Ma Chao knocked on the gate to ask for sealing, how dare Cao Zixiu delay the relocation of the capital any longer?" ”

was mentioned by Guo Jia like this, Lu Su also tasted it, and immediately patted his thigh excitedly and said, "What Feng Xiao said is extremely true!" This choice of the new capital can finally settle down! ”

Looking at Lu Su, who was full of interest, Guo Jia stood up with a smile, walked to the pigeon cage in the corner of the courtyard, took out a piece of brocade silk full of small characters written on the fly's head from his sleeve pocket, rolled it into a small roll and stuffed it into the leather tube, and then picked a blue pigeon from the pigeon cage and tied it to the leather tube, and released it towards the sky.

The pigeon, which had broken free, spread its wings and carried the information all the way southeast through the Yingshui Plain, crossed the Huaihai Plain, and flew to a Qingzhou merchant house in Shouchun after several days. Originally, in the Eastern Han Dynasty, only the official mansion was used to hoard grain and receive officials who came and went. It was only after Cai Ji crossed into the chaos that some important towns in the north and south emerged one after another, and the merchant residences built by merchants from Qing and Xu prefectures were popping up one after another, which was convenient for merchants in these two regions to store their goods and settle down to rest. On the other hand, these mansions also secretly served as intelligence liaison stations for the Qi army. No, when the shopkeeper of the Qingzhou merchant mansion saw the seal on the leather tube, he immediately sent the most trusted messenger in the store to ride the best fast horse and bring the leather cylinder to chase the southbound Qi and Wu coalition forces. By the time the messenger had delivered the tube to Cai Ji, it had been seven or eight days before Guo Jia had released the pigeons. However, Rao is like this, Cai Ji can still be proud of the leaders of this era in communication, after all, Liu Zhang, who is far away in Shu, has not yet known about the "relocation of the capital and separation". (To be continued......)