Yecheng

As one of the six strategists under Yuan Shao, Xin Ping naturally has a house in the city. With Yuan Shao's return to Yecheng, the judges, Guo Tu and others began to get busy, and Xin Ping was no exception. But unlike others, Xin Ping has been worried about his brother Xin Bi, whose whereabouts are unknown.

Xin Ping is the brother, Xin Bi is the younger brother, the two brothers and brothers have a deep affection, from the news that the imperial court army conquered Chengdu, Xin Ping's heart was pinched, lest the brother Xin Bi encountered an accident and was no longer alive. It's just that the war was in an urgent situation at that time, and Xin Ping couldn't delay the business for personal matters.

According to Xin Ping's thoughts, his brother Xin Bi was either captured or killed, or went into hiding. Whether he was captured or killed, Xin Ping was mentally prepared, but the imperial court did not announce the matter for a long time. If it hadn't fallen into the hands of the imperial court, then Xin Bi would have fled, but it has been so long, why hasn't Xin Bi come back yet, didn't he encounter an accident on the road, or died in which corner, no one knows?

If you don't get Xin Bi's whereabouts for a day, Xin Ping can't feel at ease for a day. It's just that Yuan Shao is sick in bed right now, and Xin Ping can't bother Yuan Shao with this matter, so he can only send his cronies to Yizhou secretly to investigate, whether it is dead or alive, there is a letter anyway.

But what Xin Ping didn't expect was that the cronies at home came back only three days after leaving Yecheng. Xin Ping felt that this matter was strange, and hurriedly asked someone to ask, only to know that his brother Xin Bi had returned to Yecheng at this time.

"What's going on? If you're back, why don't you go home? Xin Ping asked with a frown.

"Master, the second master said that he still has a little private matter to deal with......" The cronies suddenly stopped talking when they said this, and Xin Ping said when he saw this: "If you have anything to say, what are you going to do?" ”

"Master, when the little one saw the second master, he found that the second master was not alone, he seemed to be controlled by someone."

"Huh? Are you sure? Xin Ping was shocked and hurriedly asked.

"It's a small certainty, although no one takes care of the second master, but every time the second master makes a decision, it seems that he will first ask for the opinions of others."

“…… Do you remember where you met my brother? ”

"Little remember."

"Okay." Xin Ping nodded, and was just about to tell the housekeeper to gather the family, when he saw the housekeeper running in in a hurry, and came to Xin Ping's ear to report: "Master, the second master is back." ”

"Coming back? No one found out? ”

"No, the second master came in through the back door."

"Just him?"

"Yes."

Xin Ping was silent for a moment, and then instructed the housekeeper, "Take him to the study to see me." ”

……

Seeing that Xin Bi was safe and sound, and there was no missing any parts on his body, Xin Ping couldn't help but sigh secretly, and sent the housekeeper out to prepare wine and food, Xin Ping asked Xin Bidao: "Second brother, why did you come back at this time?" ”

"Brother, when the wine and food come, the younger brother will slowly tell the elder brother what happened to the younger brother during this time." Seeing Xin Bi say this, Xin Ping couldn't help but chuckle in his heart, and subconsciously felt that the story that his brother was going to tell in a while must be very exciting.

After the housekeeper brought the wine and food, Xin Bi told the housekeeper not to let people come and disturb him, Xin Ping poured wine for Xin Bi, "Second brother, you and I are left here at this time, just say anything you have to say." ”

"Brother, guess where I am during this time?"

"Where can I guess?" Xin Ping glared.

"The younger brother was ordered to go to Yizhou to persuade Liu Zhang to send troops, but I didn't expect Liu Zhang to be so unhelpful, the imperial army was everywhere, and the defenders everywhere almost surrendered, and the younger brother was captured by the Han An army before he even had time to escape from Yizhou."

"Sure enough, he was captured by the imperial court." Xin Ping said secretly in his heart. However, Xin Ping didn't speak, just looked at Xin Bi quietly, since his brother can come back at this time, either he escaped, or he was let back. And for now, the latter is more likely.

"Soon after the younger brother was captured, he was escorted to Chang'an, and the saint didn't feel sorry for me when he saw me, but just put me under house arrest, planning to dispose of me after defeating Yuan Shao. The younger brother thought that Yuan Shao had a strong soldier in his hand, and the court was not necessarily an opponent, but he didn't want Yuan Shao to be really disappointed. Brother, to tell you the truth, the frustrated guy has already surrendered. ”

"What? …… What about you? Xin Ping was startled at first, but then stared at Xin Bi and asked. From the fact that Xin Bi did not call Yuan Shao the lord but called him by his first name, Xin Ping realized that his brother had defected to the enemy nine times out of ten, so the purpose of his coming to see him was probably to persuade himself to join him in the enemy.

“…… Brother is really amazing, he has already guessed it? ”

"I want to hear you say it with my own ears." Xin Ping looked at Xin Bi with a serious expression and said.

“…… Brother, as you think, the younger brother has returned to the court. But brother, now the world is still the world of the Han Dynasty, and the younger brother returns to the court, which can only be said to be a change from evil to righteousness, but it cannot be said that he is betraying the Lord for glory. ”

"Second brother, the lord treats my brother well......"

"Brother, you don't have to tell me this kind of outsider's words, right? If you are really loyal to Yuan Shao, why do you secretly support Yuan Tan? You must know that Yuan Shao is interested in Yuan Shang. And brother, even if you don't think about yourself, you have to think about the future of our Xin family, right? ”

"What do you mean by that?" Xin Ping frowned and asked.

"The sons of the Yuan family are infighting, and the great foundation of Hebei will be occupied by others sooner or later. Brother, don't say that you don't see the hidden dangers of the Yuan family. ”

Xin Bi's words immediately aroused the worry in Xin Ping's heart. Although Yuan Shao is not dead now, he has been ill since he returned to Yecheng, and the famous doctors around Yecheng have invited many doctors, but his body has never improved. Yuan Shao fell ill, and the sons of the Yuan family, who originally occupied one state, began to be restless. Xin Ping supported Yuan Tan, and Yuan Tan had been recruiting troops to expand his strength during this time in Qingzhou, nominally preparing for the future southward, but in fact, it was used to deal with Cao Cao or to grab positions with Yuan Shang, only Yuan Tan understood in his heart.

And Yuan Tan is like this, and so is Yuan Xi, Yuan Shang and a senior cadre. Due to the poverty of Gao Gan, even if he wanted to expand his strength, he didn't have the capital, so he stood on Yuan Shang's side early. And Yuan Xi in Youzhou, in the name of guarding against the northern border troubles, has not stopped during this time, and what is even more worrying is that Tian Feng's old stubborn donkey has been very close to Yuan Xi recently.

As for Yuan Shang, who was regarded as the heir by Yuan Shao, he didn't stop during this time, as soon as Yuan Shao fell ill, Yuan Shang jumped out, relying on Yuan Shao's favor, as if he had already regarded himself as the overlord of Hebei. Pick your nose and eyes at old ministers like Guo Tu who didn't support him before. Xin Ping can be sure that once Yuan Shao is angry, the first thing Yuan Shang has to clean up is himself and Guo Tu.

It has never been Xin Ping's habit to sit still, but according to the current situation, Yuan Tan may not be Yuan Shang's opponent, if you want to defeat Yuan Shang, you can only use external force, but this external force is not easy to borrow, and a little carelessness may lead the wolf into the room. During this time, Xin Ping was not only worried about Xin Bi's whereabouts, but also had a headache for his family's future.

"Even if the sons of the Yuan family are not angry, but the lord treats you and I am not ......"

"Hey~ My good brother, Yuan Shao can't wait for me, that's because I'm useful to him, but you can't use the Xin family to bury him Yuan Shao because of this, right?"

"This matter is very important, let me think about it." Xin Ping was silent for a moment before replying to Xin Bidao.

Xin Bi had long expected that his brother would not be able to promise himself happily, and being able to answer himself like this already showed that he was moved, Xin Bi did not urge, nodded and said: "Brother needs time to think about it, naturally no problem, but what the younger brother is going to do next, I hope that my brother will not interfere." ”

“…… What are you doing? Xin Ping looked at Xin Bi vigilantly and asked.

"Don't worry, brother, no third person knows about the little brother's coming back this time, except for your cronies and our housekeeper."

"What the hell do you want to do?"

"Brother Mo asked, I'll see in the future. By the way, brother, there will be civil strife in Yecheng soon, if you don't want your family to be affected, it's best to let him leave as soon as possible. ”

“…… How are you going to get your little family away? ”

"My grandmother passed away, what is the reason for going home to mourn?"

Xin comment: "......"

Filial piety comes first, Xin Ping's grandmother in his hometown passed away, and it is reasonable for Xin Ping to let his family return to his hometown to worship, even if Yuan is not waiting to see Xin Ping, it is not easy to stop this, anyway, Xin Ping himself did not leave Yecheng, his family left and left, and he will come back sooner or later.

When his family and his brother's family left Yecheng, only the brothers Xin Ping and Xin Bi were left in the huge Xin family, plus some household servants, and as for the cronie who saw Xin Bi before, he was also sent back to his hometown by Xin Ping. What made Xin Ping puzzled was that Xin Bi disappeared after seeing him, and he didn't know where to look for it, but fortunately, he knew that Xin Bi was safe and sound, and his heart was more steady.

Xin Ping didn't know what Xin Bi wanted to do when he returned to Yecheng, but he believed that his brother would not harm him, so he didn't take it to heart, and instead began to think about how he should choose. Whether to continue to insist on supporting the eldest prince Yuan Tan, or to learn from his brother Xin Bi to return to the imperial court.

……

Xin Bi quietly returned to Yecheng, which was naturally the credit of Shi A and others, and by doing business in various places, the tentacles of Tianyan also developed to all parts of the Han Dynasty. If you want to send a person to a certain place without knowing it, it is not difficult for Tianyan. This time, Xin Bi was able to return to Yecheng smoothly, that is, with the caravan acting together, who would believe that the bookkeeper of a caravan would be the second master of the Xin family.

Liu Xie's purpose of letting Xin Bi return to Hebei was not just to lower his brother Xin Ping through Xin Bi, although the Xin family brothers were talented, but at this time, Liu Xie had Taixue, and Zheng Xuan, Kong Rong, Cai Yong, Lu Zhi and other Confucians were responsible for teaching, and Liu Xie was not very short of officials who could help Liu Xie govern the place.

The reason why the Xin brothers were recruited was not so much that Liu Xie took a fancy to the talents of the two brothers, but that Liu Xie planned to use the Xin brothers as a-stirring stick to disrupt Hebei. The news of Yuan Shao's serious illness was a bit of a surprise to Liu Xie, although I don't know why Yuan Shao was seriously ill again, but this is a good thing for Liu Xie. And with Yuan Shao seriously ill, the competition for the next overlord of Hebei will become more intense.

Yuan Tan and Yuan Shang are on the surface, and Yuan Xi and Liu Xie don't believe that Yuan Laoer, who has a place in Youzhou and has 100,000 soldiers, is willing to bow down to his brother.

Once Hebei falls into infighting, it will naturally not be able to take care of itself and make trouble. Taking advantage of this opportunity, Liu Xie planned to clean up his backyard, and then gather people to settle accounts with Cao Cao. After thinking about it, Cao Cao, who occupied the Central Plains, was always Liu Xie's confidant.

When the sons of the Yuan family were infighting, Cao Cao would definitely be unwilling to be lonely and intervene, and according to history, it was Yuan Tan who lured the wolf into the house in order to deal with Yuan Shang, and invited Cao Cao to cross the Yellow River to attack Yuan Shang with him. In a sense, the Hebei Yuan clan will be defeated so quickly, and Yuan Tan has contributed a lot.

Liu Xie didn't have time to deal with Cao Cao in the next period of time, Huang Zhong's Han'an army wanted to guard Yizhou, Xu Huang's army had to guard against the Xiongnu, and there was Tongguan in the east of the imperial court, even if Cao Cao sent troops to come and Hao Zhao was in charge, I believe that Cao Cao would not be able to enter the pass.

The You Yijun and the Tabai Army formed by Zhang Ren after the handover with Lü Bu will become the main force in this battle against Xiqiang. As for the pro-army of the Son of Heaven led by Liu Xie, except for Zhao Yun, Pang De, Ma Chao, and Tai Shici, who each led their headquarters to participate in the battle, the rest of the men and horses stayed in the camp. There is no way, Gan Ning was not lightly injured in the previous defense of Tongguan and must recuperate, while Dian Wei was allocated to Hao Zhao by Liu Xie, so as not to overwork this iron-walled general.

There are not many soldiers, this is what Liu Xie has always insisted on. If Liu Xiezhen launched a ruthless recruitment, it would not be impossible for the imperial court to recruit millions of soldiers. But in that case, it will inevitably affect the development of the imperial court, which in Liu Xie's opinion is more than worth the loss.

At present, the regular establishment of the imperial court, the number of the four armies of Han'an, Jiefu, Youyi, and Qihuo has gradually increased from the initial 5,000 to the current 20,000, plus the newly built Tabai, as well as the pro-army personally led by the Son of Heaven Liu Xie, the imperial court now has 150,000 professional soldiers.

In addition, the imperial court's forces were scattered among the counties. There are 3,000 large counties and 500 small counties, and Huang Zhong was able to lead the Han'an army to take Yizhou before, thanks to this method of hiding troops from the people. Han'an's regular army was only 20,000, and when war broke out, the soldiers from the surrounding counties would gather and obey Huang Zhong's command. And after the war is over, the soldiers who participated in the war will go home with their respective rewards and wait for the next imperial call-up.

In this way, on the one hand, it saved the expenses of the imperial court, and on the other hand, it was possible to hide troops from the people and maintain local law and order. With these county soldiers, it will not be easy for people to occupy mountains and become kings near the county. The supplement of the regular army of the imperial court is also selected from these county soldiers, and a large number of county soldiers ensure the source of soldiers for the imperial court, and they only need to train for a period of time, then they can go into battle to kill the enemy.

Under Liu Xie's instructions, the imperial court was sitting and preparing for a battle against Xiqiang. With the increasing development of the imperial court, Xiqiang, which is located in the northwest of the imperial court, is also valued by the imperial court. As for what the Xiqiang King Cheriji thinks, that is not something that the imperial court needs to consider. And judging from the latest information received, it is obvious that Cheriji did not learn the lesson of the last time, after the Han Sui Rebellion was quelled, Cherrigi who fled back to Xiqiang did settle down for some time, but this guy healed his scars and forgot the pain, and after finding out that the court did not trouble him, the heart that was dead began to stir again.

In order to have a chance of winning against the imperial court in the future, Cherrigi adopted the advice of Prime Minister Yadan and collected Xiqiang iron and stone to build a chariot, which was called the Iron Chariot Array.

Although Liu Xie had never seen the power of the Iron Car Formation, Cherrigi and Yadan would be so confident that this Iron Car Formation would have merit. In order to avoid calling Cherrigi to take the lead, Liu Xie decided to strike first, no matter what iron car formation and silver car formation you have, you have to rest when you get to Lao Tzu.

……

Chaisang

As the frontier of Jiangdong to deal with Jingzhou, Chaisang naturally has heavy troops. However, at this time, it was neither the little overlord Sun Ce nor the metropolitan governor Zhou Yu, but Sun Zhongmou, the second son of the Sun family who was released by the imperial court before.

Sun Quan was quite depressed at this time, and not long after returning to Jiangdong, Sun Quan felt that his situation at this time was a little embarrassing. At the beginning, the court wanted to take him as a hostage and leave his brother, and the brother was very reluctant, but now that the court finally let him back, Sun Quan found that his brother seemed to be reluctant to let him come back.

Sun Quan didn't understand why, although his brother didn't treat him badly, but Sun Quan could no longer find the feeling when his brothers were together, Sun Quan always had a slight feeling, and felt that his brother seemed to be guarding himself. This time he was able to sit in Chaisang, or Sun Quan invited his mother to intercede for him, otherwise this Chaisang County Shou would not be able to fall on his head.

"Brother, what's wrong?" Sun Quan asked himself, not knowing where he provoked his brother to dislike him.

"My lord, it's late at night, it's time to go back and rest." A relative stepped forward to remind Sun Quandao.

“…… Well. Sun Quan replied and walked down the city. I didn't want to pass by the city gate cave when I heard someone whispering, "Sixth son, I heard that your second uncle did something inauthentic when your third uncle died?" ”

"But no, my third uncle has a son, although he is a little younger, but that is also my third uncle's son, and my third uncle's savings should naturally be inherited by my little brother. But you don't know how that shameless man explained it to people. Hearing this, the sixth son, he was immediately a little angry.

The vigil is boring, and it is normal to say that it is normal to gossip to pass the time, and when everyone heard Liuzi say this, they immediately asked about good things: "How do you explain it?" ”

He actually said that the child was small, and he would keep it for him first, and then return it to the child when he grew up. Tell me, 'Do you believe this nonsense?' ”

"Hey, it's shameless, so what happened in the end?"

"Finally? In the end, the official ordered someone to beat him forty boards, and he obediently took out the money. ”

……

Sun Quan originally overheard it and listened to it freshly, but when he pondered it on the way back, he couldn't help muttering in his heart, his brother was secretly guarding himself, wouldn't it be because he was worried that he and Sun Shao's little nephew would snatch Jiangdong, right?