Sima Pei's Northern Expedition was also the first to be reported by Cheng Yao and reported to Shi Le.

In fact, if the normal speed of news transmission is followed, Shi Le estimates that it will take ten days and half a month to get the conviction, but Cheng Yao is now Zuo Changshi, second only to Zhang Bin - and Xu Guang has opened a gap - and married his sister to Shi Le as a concubine, so he has a close relationship with Shi Lejun and takes the initiative to ask for the intelligence work to be caught. According to Cheng Yao, the fine works he dispatched, from Chang'an in the west, to Youyou in the north, and Jiankang in the south, have woven a thick net, which can cover the situation in the world in one fell swoop!

Shi Le believed this, and Zhang Bin doubted it—but he couldn't get involved, so it was naturally difficult to find the truth. Zhang Bin just felt that with his understanding of Cheng Yao, that guy was in charge of logistics and strategizing, or he could have a long day, but exploring the subtleties and planning strategies had always been two knives, why did he suddenly become powerful?

To put it bluntly, although Cheng Ziyuan can't compare to Xiao He, his main talent is also in the same category as Xiao Chengxiang, and then you tell me now that he suddenly lit up Zhang Liang and Chen Ping's skill trees...... There is no reason for this!

Of course, it cannot be ruled out that Cheng Yao summoned a Zhang Liang or Chen Ping to help - Zhang Bin suspected that it was the other party's new doorman, Zhang Phi, a native of Qinghe, so he was thickly encircled and wanted to pull Zhang Phi to his side.

This Zhang Phi is indeed a talent, but Zhang Bin guessed wrong, it was not this person who assisted Cheng Yao in weaving the intelligence network, but an old acquaintance who even the resourceful Zhang Mengsun couldn't think of when he broke his head-

Jin Qing Xu Du Governor, Xuzhou Thorn Shi Pei Pei Wen Yue.

Soon after Pei Gai first arrived in Huaiyin, he began to try to contact Cheng Yao, and then the two exchanged letters very frequently, and it was Cheng Yao who Pei Gai took the initiative to inform him about the Northern Expedition. If Cheng Ziyuan really weaved an intelligence network that could reach Wuyue in the south, then before Sima Pei crossed the river, as early as when Sima Rui swore an oath, there should have been news transmitted to Hebei, so why wait until the two armies really came out? In fact, with Cheng Yao's humble background in Jizhou, it is impossible for him to extend his black hand to the south of the Yangtze River, and his talent and ability are impossible to remotely control intelligence officers who are more than thousands of miles away.

Even if Pei should have more than 2,000 years of knowledge than him, and he has always paid attention to intelligence work, it is difficult for Xuzhou's intelligence network to extend to remote areas such as You, Hebei, He, and Yong—in an era when the level of transportation and communication is extremely backward.

As for Pei and Cheng's "embarrassment", the main reason is that they have a common opponent - Zhang Bin and Zhang Mengsun. Thinking about the problem from Cheng Yao's point of view, he has always wanted to replace Zhang Bin, but he knows that he is not capable enough, and he can't advance and retreat with Xu Guang - there is still competition between the two - so he has to seek foreign aid. Especially when he became more and more aware that Shi Le did not have any firm loyalty to the Hu and Han regimes—Shi Le's loyalty might only be dedicated to Liu Yuan alone—then colluding with the Jin people was only a traitor, but there was no problem of rebelling against Shi.

The generations of the Jin and the Han Dynasty in the world, and even the generations of the two genera at the same time, maybe one day Shi Le will be forced by the situation, and he will also turn his back on the Han and follow the Jin, then I have some contact with the Jin people, even if it is exposed, as long as it is clear that he is using the other party, not being used by the other party, I believe that Shi Le will not care about it. In fact, if it weren't for the fact that this other party happened to be Pei Gai, Shi Le and Zhang Bin would have hated him to the core, otherwise, Cheng Yao would not have had the need to hide his affairs at all.

And from Pei Gai's point of view, he predicted the future, and knew that only Shi Le could be regarded as a lifelong enemy - no matter what talent and ambition in the world, who else could surpass Shi Shilong? Even Zu Shizhi is afraid that he is slightly inferior. In this case, it is necessary to be able to grasp the movements of Shile at any time, and only by being prepared to attack and not guard can there be a possibility of victory. Now Shi Le's right arm is Zhang Bin, and his left arm is Cheng Yao, but his right arm is rough and incorrect, and his right arm is empty - according to records, Zhang Bin died later, and Cheng Yao replaced him as the right long history. ”

As for the relationship between Cheng Yao and Zhang Bin, Pei Gai was once in Huying, so he naturally knew it very well. And it is also recorded in the history books that Zhang Bin once wanted to lead Cheng Yao's old guest Zhang Phi to participate in political affairs, Cheng Yao hated it, so he made his sister Yu Shile, saying: "Zhang Phi and Zhang Bin are rangers, and the door and guest are more than 100 times a day, and everything is returned. "Shi Le then killed Zhang Phi, Zhang Bin couldn't help it......

Pei should not remember the specific text, but he still has a little memory of it. Judging from this, if you want to defeat Shi Le, you must get rid of Zhang Bin first, and if you want to get rid of Zhang Bin, you must borrow Cheng Yao's power - besides, he is now Shi Le's uncle, and he can let his sister help blow the wind by the pillow at any time. Because of this, Pei Gai tempted and contacted Cheng Yao, hinting that he would conspire with Zhang Mengsun, and the two got along with each other and hit it off. Net starter

But overall, what Cheng Yao asks for Pei should be small, and what Pei should ask for Cheng Yao is big - unless Pei should set up a plan to get rid of Zhang Bin - so Cheng Yao must be given some sweetness. Pei Gai's approach was to pass on some of the information that was beneficial to him and undamaged to Cheng Ya in exchange for the intelligence of Shi Le's camp - Cheng Yao was inspired by Cheng Ya's request to take charge of intelligence matters, and he had an additional way to flatter and show merit to Shi Le than Zhang Bin, and his reputation was naturally growing day by day, and his favor was not declining.

The messaging between the two sides is mainly done through business travel. Since Pei Gai began to mint "auspicious money", it has naturally diverged from all over the world, and the local people in Xuzhou who have abandoned agriculture and business have gradually increased, and Pei Gai has selected and cultivated, giving many of them the important task of listening to the news of the Quartet. Of course, businessmen are unprofitable, and Pei should allow them to use intelligence gathering and some covert work in exchange for tax reductions, customs clearance, and other rights; And those businessmen who dare to trek around in today's troubled times are also bold and ruthless, and they naturally don't care about taking such a job - as long as they give benefits.

The only pity is that no one has been able to take on the intelligence work as a whole in order to share the burden.

As for Jizhou, after the war, the city was ruined, the land was barren, and many materials that could not be self-sufficient had to be sold by merchants - for example, salt - Cheng Yao persuaded Shile to reduce the checkpoints for the benefit of merchants, and by the way, industry and commerce were also included in his own jurisdiction, so that the contact with Pei Gai would be more convenient and his secrecy could be guaranteed. No matter how resourceful Zhang Bin is, it is difficult to surpass the times after all, and he naturally lacks a sense of prevention for such things as business.

This time, Pei Gai also provided Cheng Yao with the news of the Northern Expedition in advance through Shangjia, so that Cheng Yao made another great contribution in front of Shi Le - they would know sooner or later anyway. Shi Le got the report, hurriedly summoned all the generals to discuss, and said with a smile: "I would like to hunt with Pei Lang in the Central Plains to see what it can do—however, the foundation of our army is not yet stable, should we go south to scratch its back?" ”

Kong Chang said: "Ming Gong turned to war for thousands of miles, starting from Xiangguo, just when he was recuperating and recuperating, it was not appropriate to suddenly raise a useless army." And the Son of Heaven in Pingyang has not yet come to the edict, how can he be without his life? ”

In fact, Shi Le has been "fighting for no life" all these years, and Pingyang's edict is completely a fart for him. Otherwise, Pingyang wanted him to make peace with Wang Mi and Cao Wei, why did he turn his head and slaughter Wang Mi, and go to Qingzhou to attack Cao Wei? Pingyang asked him to help Liu Yao to take Guanzhong, how did he pull the team in the opposite direction and run to Hebei in one go? Therefore, Kong Chang's meaning is not to want Shi Le to be a loyal minister of Hu Han, on the contrary, it means that we go south to harass the back of the Jin master, and only Pingyang will benefit, what can we get? Why go to the fire for the Huns?

The generals talked a lot, some people said that of course they had to fight to the south - even if they did not follow the order of the Son of Heaven, they had to take into account the righteousness of the cold lips and teeth - and some people said that they should continue to pacify Jizhou and not disrupt the pace of their own expansion. In the end, Shi Le looked at Zhang Bin and Cheng Yao and asked, "What do you Hou and Cheng Changshi say?" ”

Cheng Yao was about to speak, but was preempted by Zhang Bin, Zhang Bin said: "Ming Gong, please think first, whether Pingyang will have an edict to come, and how to mobilize our army." ”

Cheng Yao interjected and said: "There must be an edict in Pingyang, either ordering us to go south to scratch the Jin division, or ordering us to wait for the west to pass Taihang to attack and annex the state......"

Zhang Bin nodded: "What Ziyuan said is true." Today, our army is the enemy in four wars: Wang Pengzu in the north, Liu Shiren in the south, Liu Yueshi in the west, and Shao Sizu in the east. If the north, Wang Jun's momentum is not declining, and the new Tuoba Xianbei is called to attack Liaoxi, the army is strong, and our army's chances of victory are slim; If the west, Taihang is dangerous, it is difficult to enter and exit, if our army goes to attack and annex the state, and Shao continues to take advantage of the situation to take Jizhou, how to deal with it? Ruodong, Wang and Shao are one, and they will inevitably send reinforcements; If you are in the south, with Liu Yan here, why should you cross the Yellow River to scratch the back of the Jin master? ”

Cheng Yao said: "In this way, it is better to protect the territory and recuperate for the time being-and the great hunger in Xiangguo last year, it is really not suitable for the expedition." "This is also Pei Gai's request to him to Shi Le, you better stand on the shore and watch, don't get involved in the dispute between me Jin and Hu Han.

However, Zhang Bin shook his head: "There will be great changes in the affairs of the world - or the Jin people will recover Henan, Pingyang will be weakened, or the King of Shi'an will fall into Chang'an, and the Jin division will retreat - how can our army wait and see the changes and miss this good opportunity?" For example, in horse racing, one horse goes forward, and it is difficult for those who lag behind to catch up. Therefore, in the autumn and winter of this year, our army must also take action. ”

Shi Le Twisted Xu muttered: "According to what the Right Marquis said, there is no way to win by attacking Youzhou in the north and Leling in the west; The west is more than Taihang, and I am afraid that Wang Jun and Shao will continue to attack me. If you want to move, you have to go south......"

Zhang Bin said yes: "Of the enemies around, the weakest ones are only three Liu Yan." If Liu Yan is attacked in the south, Wang Jun will not be willing to help, and Shao Xu may not be willing to move. However, if Liu Yan is broken, Linzhang has to be based, and the big river is used as a block, then no matter who wins or loses in the Central Plains, it will not threaten the foundation of Hebei. In this way, you don't have to worry about the future, you can seek the king and Shao Yin! And if there is an edict in Pingyang, ordering me to go south, it is just perfunctory to attack Santai; If our army is ordered to go west to Taihang, then our army has already gone down to Linzhang first, and it is difficult to return, and there are also excuses. ”

Cheng Yao was shocked when he heard this, and hurriedly dissuaded: "Ming Gong and Liu Shiren have an alliance, how can they carry it lightly?" ”

Zhang Bin pouted and smiled: "Ziyuan is so sloppy." In the past, he made peace with Liu Shiren in order to concentrate on dealing with Youzhou, and now Wang Peng Zufang is committed to Liaoxi, if I don't attack him, he won't come to disturb me, so what's the use of Liu Shiren? Raised his eyebrows: "It must be attacked!" ”

Shi Le immediately slapped the table: "What the right Hou said is true." I have made up my mind, all the armies will prepare grain and materials, and Keri will march south, and it is necessary to take Wei County! ”

——————————

Zhang Bin has a clear mind after all, and with words, Cheng Yao can't compare at all, besides, although he was asked by Pei Gai, he didn't have the will to benefit Pei Gai, since Shi Le had made a decision, he knew that he couldn't turn back, so he had no choice but to accept his life.

After retreating to his mansion, Cheng Yao summoned the businessman who had delivered the news before, and pretended to regret and said to him: "Zhang Bin is the main advocate of going south to attack Liu Shiren of Santai, but I can't dissuade him. Please report to Xuzhou, if I don't speak for him, it's really inadequate. ”

The merchant couldn't help but sigh in frustration, and then begged: "Then attack Santai, and ask Changshi to conspire, don't let General Shi cross the Yellow River south." Cheng Yao nodded: "Do your best." ”

The merchant said in his heart, in this case, I have to go to Santai to send a message to Liu Yan, asking him to beware of Shi Le...... Fortunately, it won't delay my business......