Lu Bu hurriedly led the way, and walked towards the carriage with Ding Yuan and the others, and said as he walked: "Everyone Cai is in the carriage, and now the child is already a disciple of Mr. ”

Ding Yuan smiled after hearing this: "Oh? It's really good that Cai is a contemporary Confucian, with Zheng Xuan, Ma Riyan and others. In this way, the father should be close to him, and he should be introduced quickly. As he spoke, he quickened his pace.

At this time, Cai Yong also stepped out of the carriage with the support of the servants, and little Cai Yan followed her father like a shadow, blinking her bright and smart eyes to look curiously at the approaching people.

Ding Yuan didn't wait to get closer, so he laughed loudly: "Everyone Cai came from afar, Ding Jianyang missed the distance, and he hoped to forgive his sins." ”

Cai Yong hurriedly replied: "Uncle Dai is guilty, Ding Envoy Jun don't want to say so." I have heard the prestige of Captain Wu Meng for a long time, and today I can see that there is no vain man under the fame. ”

Ding Yuan walked to Cai Yong's side, grabbed one of Cai Yong's arms affectionately and said half-supportively: "Cai everyone, don't laugh at me, you and I are like old friends at first sight, I am Fengxian's father-in-law, and you are Fengxian's teacher, you don't have to be so polite, just call me Jianyang." ”

Cai Yong said gratefully: "Uncle treats the sinful body, can get Brother Jianyang to hand it over, this, this ......"

Ding Yuan smiled disappreciatively and said, "Hey, Brother Bo, you and I don't talk about these unhappy things when we meet today." Then he said to the people behind him: "Wu Kai, quickly take these officials to go through the formalities, and then prepare for the banquet, today Feng Xian will return, and everyone Cai is here, I want to have a good time with them." ”

A.D. 182 (5th year of light and peace), early autumn.

It's the annual farming season again. This year is a good year, the farmers look at the crops that are about to ripen and smile, the joy of the harvest is in the whole state, and the land is barren, it is not easy to have this harvest year, so this year the farmers are particularly happy and happy.

However, this time of year is also close to the time when the Hu people from the north go south to raid. The northern grasslands are cold and scarce, especially in winter. The harsh environment has also created a strong physique and barbaric character of the nomads, so every time the harsh winter is approaching, the nomads in the north will go south, invade the Han border, burn and plunder in the cities of the Han Dynasty, and obtain resources for the winter, due to the increasingly softening of the border policy since the Eastern Han Dynasty, the nomads not only did not converge, but became more and more unscrupulous, but because of the weakness of the imperial court and the corruption of officials, many border soldiers could not even be guaranteed for the usual training and basic equipment, Not to mention fighting to kill the enemy. Therefore, the life of the border people is very difficult.

On the Jinyang City Assassin Mansion, Ding Yuan was sitting in danger, and the civil and military officials of the state capital were sitting on the left and right.

Ding Yuan spoke: "The autumn harvest is approaching, and it is almost time for foreign races to invade my border. According to some information, Tan Shihuai, the commander of the Xianbei tribe died last year, and his son Helian succeeded him. This person is brave and abnormal, even like his father, and his ruthlessness and ferocity are even better than sandalwood locust. I wonder if you have any good strategies to defend against the enemy? ”

At this time, a scribe came out and said, "Lord Assassin, my state is barren and not abundant, and the soldiers have been fighting for many years, and they are tired. However, the Xianbei leader Tan Shihuai is newly mourned, and his son succeeds to the throne, after all, the spirit is flourishing, so this year's Xianbei attack will be fiercer than before. At this moment, I am weak and strong, if I reluctantly meet the battle, I am afraid that I will ......" The scribe paused, but the meaning of his words was clear to everyone, and the generals were already indignant when they heard him analyze it like this, but Ding Yuan was very powerful, he did not speak, and these generals could only dare to be angry but did not dare to speak.

Ding Yuan was also a little annoyed when he heard the scribe's words, but he couldn't refute it, because what the other party said was indeed the truth. In the previous ten years, under the leadership of Tan Shihuai, Xianbei's strength increased greatly, not only expelling the Xiongnu from the territory, but also rejecting the peace of the Han Dynasty, which was unprecedented in disaster. If it weren't for the rapid growth of Lu Bu, and the recent emergence of a group of young outstanding generals such as Zhang He, Gao Shun, and Cheng Lian, I am afraid that Bingzhou would have already fallen.

First, the grassland situation is not understood, secondly, the state has always been barren, and the food produced by the land is not enough to support the long-distance attack of the large army, and third, the imperial court is corrupt, Ding Yuan did not ask the imperial court for help, but they are all sunk in the sea, so he can only helplessly wait for Xianbei to counterattack when he comes to attack every year.

Seeing everyone's reaction, the scribe found that all the civil officials were nodding, but the generals didn't dare to speak, and couldn't help but continue with some pride in their hearts: "Therefore, the lower official suggested that the county soldiers be sent to guard the autumn harvest, and after all the crops are collected, the strong walls and clear fields will be stationed in the city, and the Xianbei people will not be able to get food, so they will naturally retreat, or turn to other places, so that there is no danger in the state!" ”

Hearing this scribe's suggestion, Ding Yuan was quite interested, although this law was a bit of a waste of money and labor, but the state is different from the hinterland of the Central Plains, the area is vast and sparsely populated, and there is not much obstacle to the implementation of the law of clearing the wilderness. It's just that in this way, the state army did not resist, and the actual situation caused political enemies and others to use the topic to play a role, and this move was not in line with Ding Yuan's consistent hard-line policy against the enemy.

At this moment, a tall and majestic military general suddenly came out of the ranks, this person is nine feet tall, his face is like a crown of jade, his lips are painted with Zhu, two sword eyebrows fly obliquely into his temples, a pair of starry eyes are like meteors, he wears a purple and gold hair crown, he is wearing a beast face swallowing head chain armor, his body is hung with a hundred flowers in Shu brocade robe, and his waist is tied with a delicate lion belt, which is Lu Bulu Fengxian. At this moment, after three years of conquest, Lu Bu became more and more mature, and because of his courage and courage in battle, he quickly grew into a general in his own right, and was promoted by Ding Yuan to be the captain of the cavalry of the state capital, commanding all the troops and horses.

I saw Lu Bu standing outside the queue, and said loudly: "Lord Assassin Shi, the lower officials think that it is inappropriate for Tian to engage in this method. ”

Seeing Lu Bu come out to refute, Ding Yuan was happy in his heart, but his face was silent, Lu Bu, the righteous son, can always stand up at a critical moment every time, but in front of all the officials, he never shows too much care, and he is only commensurate with his official position when discussing matters. He said, "Oh? Captain Lu, let's listen to what's wrong with Tian's method. ”

"No." Lu Bu turned to Tian Xing, who had just spoken, and said: "Fang Cai Tian said that the method of sending county soldiers to guard the autumn harvest is also very much agreed by the lower officials, and if the law of fortifying the wall and clearing the wilderness is implemented, it will definitely be as Tian Zhi Fang Cai said, so that the Xianbei cavalry will have no food to get or go elsewhere." Speaking of this, he paused, saw Tian Xing's smug smile on his face, and suddenly changed his words: "However, even though this method can gain temporary benefits, it has several disadvantages for me and the state and even the Han Dynasty. First, the ambition of the alien wolf, I show the enemy to be weak, and he will definitely gain an inch, which is the lesson of my Han Dynasty for hundreds of years, and blindly evading and retreating will not solve the problem; Second, if the policy of non-resistance is adopted against the Xianbei people, the will of the military and the people of the state will be lost, and the people's will will be lost, and if they want to recover, they must make a hundredfold effort; Third, once this law is implemented, it will inevitably be criticized by other state capitals and even the imperial court. ”

Since the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, the emphasis on literature and light on military force has become increasingly serious, and the original civil officials have looked down on the military generals, and the hinterland of the Central Plains has always been free of war, so the court, especially in the late Eastern Han Dynasty, headed by the three dukes, the Taiwei has almost become a vacant position, and the civil power has become increasingly prosperous. Fang Cai Tian Xing offered advice, which was also mixed with the prevalence of martial arts in Bingzhou, and the military generals faintly overshadowed the momentum of civil officials and suppressed them.

But after Lu Bu's explanation, especially the last sentence, although Lu Bu only stopped at the point, everyone present has been in the officialdom for many years, just this one, it can be concluded that Ding Yuan's future career is hopeless and may even lead to death, and everyone present does not dare to say more at this moment, even if they agree with Tian Zhi's ideas.

Tian Xing was even more frightened to the point that his face was bloodless, he fell to his knees with a thud, and argued loudly: "My lord, my lord, I stabbed Shi, and the villain didn't mean it." Fang is the villain's inconsiderate thinking, and he hopes that the adult will forgive his sins. ”

Ding Yuan waved his hand and said, "Tian Zhi, this official knows that you don't mean anything else, please hurry up." Fu turned his head to Lu Bu and said, "Captain Lu, then what are your best strategies to defend against the enemy?" ”

Lu Bu bowed down and replied: "I have a total of nine counties in the state, namely Shangdang, Taiyuan, Shangjun, Xihe, Shuofang, Yanmen, Wuyuan, Yunzhong and Dingxiang. Among them, Shuofang, Wuyuan, Yunzhong, and Dingxiang four counties are adjacent to the original Southern Xiongnu Department, which is also the Xianbei Department at this time. Therefore, every time the alien race goes south, the four counties suffer the greatest loss, and the lower officials think that the strategy of Fang Caitian has been slightly modified, and the people of the four counties will be moved to the Great Wall, and Chen Chongbing will be in the three counties of Shangjun, Yanmen, and Xihe. ”

However, before Ding Yuan could speak, Tian Cheng suddenly said unwillingly: "My lord, Lu Duwei's method is almost the same as the strategy I just offered, my lord, the official did not make it clear, and I only implemented some counties to clear the wilderness, but what Lu Duwei said was to completely abandon the land of the four counties outside the Guan, which is even more troublesome." ”

This is another military general walked out, this military general is burly, the face is mighty, and the tiger is walking in the wind, this person's name is Zhang He, Zhang He has emerged under the cultivation of Lu Bu in recent years, and served as a soldier Cao in the state. He said aloud: "My lord, the lower officials think that Lu Duwei's strategy is feasible. The four border counties have been repeatedly poisoned by border bandits over the years, if the scattered dispatch of county soldiers to defend will disperse the strength of our army, and secondly, there is no good city defense, and it may not be able to hold on, but it is better to give up completely, and then recapture it after the spring of the next year. ”

Ding Yuan nodded. At this time, there were some people among the civil officials who objected: "My lord, this method is absolutely not feasible, since ancient times, the whole world is not the king's land, how can I say that I will give up?" ”

As soon as this remark stopped, many civil officials echoed it, and most of the military generals also spoke in support of Lu Bu, and in an instant, the solemn meeting hall almost turned into a vegetable market, and Ding Yuan was dizzy from the noise.

Ding Yuan got up and shouted, "Don't make any noise." After seeing that no one in the hall spoke, Ding Yuan reached out and rubbed his swollen temples, closed his eyes and pondered.

All the civil and military forces present also stopped talking, waiting for Ding Yuan's final decision.

It didn't take long for Ding Yuan to stand up and say: "The territory of the Han Dynasty cannot be abandoned, and Lu Duwei's method is slightly inappropriate, but what Tian Zhi said about the strong wall and Qingye is too laborious and costly. As usual, except for the soldiers stationed in each county, the rest of the troops are all gathered in the four border counties, waiting for the opportunity to move. With that, he turned and left the chamber.