Another purpose of Liu Mang's visit to Pingyang was to convene a military and political conference in Binzhou.

The situation gradually stabilized.

Study and judge the current situation and plan the next stage of strategic deployment. Attendees include:

General Wei's Governor's Mansion Shi Liu Bowen, Sima Guo Kan, Li Yan and Wu Yong in Langzhong.

And don't drive Wang Meng and govern Fan Zhongyan.

Bingzhou general Su Dingfang, Bingzhou deputy generals Xu Da and Deng Qiang, Taiyuan general Li Xiucheng, eldest son general Fu Youde, and Hedong general Xu Shiji.

The eldest grandson Wuji and Li Hongzhang served in the imperial court, and Kou Zhun was appointed as Anyi Yin, so it was inconvenient to attend the meeting.

Yanmen is located at the border pass, the defense is critical, and the distance is far away, and Yang Yanzhao can't do without it.

Although Du Ruhui did not have a military or political position, Liu Mang intended to train him and let him attend the meeting as a scholar.

The meeting began with a discussion and analysis of the current situation.

Bingzhou and Hedong under Liu Mang's rule, on the whole, have a good momentum of development. Except for Xihe and Shangjun, which have just been incorporated into the rule, governance needs to be strengthened, and the rest of the counties are on the right track.

Under the guidance of a series of policies, there is a situation in which agriculture, animal husbandry and miners take the lead and all industries are prosperous.

Although the income of the state capital is still not comparable with Jizhou and other traditional wealthy states, it is not the same as when Liu Mang first took over.

The population is growing explosively. The people who left their hometowns returned, the people from the surrounding areas moved, and the displaced people poured in to settle down......

At present, the total population of Bingzhou and Hedong is close to 1.3 million!

The increase in population brought with it an abundant supply of soldiers. In particular, the winter solstice competition has deepened the relationship between the military and the people, and greatly enhanced the image of the state army. There was an endless stream of defectors.

Up to now, the total number of horse infantry troops in Bingzhou has exceeded 47,000!

In the land under his rule, the situation is gratifying.

The surrounding situation, on the whole, has also tended to ease.

Yuan Shao, the new general of Jizhou in the east, experienced a battle with Gongsun Zhan, Jizhou needs to recuperate, and will not easily move troops against the state, and the threat is slightly reduced.

Western Dong Zhuo's Xiliang Group. Dong Zhuo's life and death are unknown, and the Xiliang army has no leader. All of them were cowering to the west of Tongguan, and Li Dao and the others looked like they were detached, and they were all people with no ambitions. As long as they don't take the initiative to provoke, they won't take the initiative to attack.

At present, the main threats to the state and east of the river come from the north and southeast.

He was only driven away by Yang Yanzhao, but he did not suffer a heavy blow. Always covet the fertile pastures south of the Great Wall.

The Han-Hungarian contradictions, after thousands of years, are not a day's work, and they need to be dealt with cautiously.

On the south bank of the Yellow River, the remnants of Lü Bu and the Baibo army wandered in the eastern part of Hongnong and the western part of Yin, Henan. These two forces do not pose a direct threat to Hedong, but they are a major obstacle to the reconstruction of Luoyang and the return of the Son of Heaven to the eastern capital, and must be resolved as soon as possible.

In general, except for the Xiongnu, it is an uncertain factor. The rest of the peripheral forces will not take the initiative to provoke in a short period of time. Liu Mang has already grasped the strategic initiative around Bingzhou.

……

The situation is generally improving, but hidden worries still exist.

The main troubles are related to the Son of Heaven and the imperial court.

The imperial court tentatively accompanied the capital Anyi, and many princes did not buy it. Liu Yan put forward the idea of crowning the princes surnamed Liu, which was seconded by many courtiers.

And most of the seconders were courtiers who had collusion with Yuan Shu.

Liu Yan's proposal is naturally for his own benefit. But. Why did Yuan Shu respond positively? Crowning the king surnamed Liu has no direct benefit to Yuan Shu, why is he jumping up and down so hard?

There is no profit and can't afford to be early, and Yuan Shu is treacherous and slippery. There must be a picture!

However, Yuan Shao, Liu Biao and other powerful princes have always held a wait-and-see attitude towards the addition of the king surnamed Liu, and neither support nor oppose it. From this incident, it can be inferred. The powerful princes led by Eryuan and Erliu did not approve of the imperial court's settlement in Hedong.

They were worried that the Son of Heaven and the imperial court would be controlled by Liu Mang, and they did not want to see a strong annexation of the state, and a strong imperial court.

For the time being, these princes do not dare to act rashly, but if time passes, they will inevitably make some rebellious acts. As long as one great prince takes the lead, it will soon cause other princes to follow suit.

And their purpose is nothing more than to weaken the influence of the imperial court, strengthen their own prestige and strength, forcibly secession, and even split the Han Dynasty!

In this regard, it is necessary to prepare in advance to avoid passivity.

In order to avoid the collapse of the Han Dynasty, the most important thing is to return to the Eastern Capital as soon as possible by the Son of Heaven and the imperial court, so as to reassure the hearts of all the people in the world.

……

The situation was analysed clearly and thoroughly, and the next development strategy was quickly formulated.

The strategic focus is to return to Luoyang as soon as possible and maintain the rapid development of his rule.

To sum up, it is necessary to maintain the existing balance between the east and west directions, consolidate the achievements of border defense in the north, and strive for the strategic initiative in the southeast direction.

Strategies include:

Take the initiative to contact Jizhou, maintain the existing relationship with Yuan Shao, and win Yuan Shao's support in opposing the addition of the king surnamed Liu, and smash Liu Yan and Yuan Shu's attempts.

Try to get Cao Cao to persuade Yuan Shao to oppose this proposal. Cao Cao also opposed the title of king surnamed Liu, the reason for which was that he forced Liu Dai, a patriarch of the Han family, to death and seized Yanzhou, and if Liu was crowned king, he would be condemned even more. Cao Cao and Yuan Shao have the closest relationship, and it is most appropriate for him to come forward.

At the same time, let Liu Bei come to the table and oppose this matter. Although Liu Bei is a relative of the Han family, he is a remote side branch. Even if the surname Liu is crowned king, it will not be his turn.

Liu Bowen also proposed to crown Sun Ce, the son of Sun Jian. Sun Ce had broken away from Yuan Shu and had just started his army. Judging from the news sent back from Yangzhou, the place where Sun Ce settled is very likely to be Jiangdong. And there is the territory of another Han clan relative, Liu Xuan. In order to seize Jiangdong, he will definitely try his best to oppose the addition of the king surnamed Liu.

In view of the strategy of Xiliang Group, in the near future, it is mainly to appease and eliminate the worries of Li Dao and others, so as to prevent their dogs from jumping over the wall and rushing out of Tongguan to cause chaos.

Let Dong Cheng and others go to the table, and Jin Feng Li Dao and others. Li Dao and others are unpopular in the imperial court, and the matter of Jin Feng may not be approved, but this move can calm their hearts. When the time is ripe, try to divide and disintegrate the Xiliang Army Group and seek to capture Guanzhong.

Dealing with the Northern Xiongnu problem. The current strength is not enough for a large-scale northern expedition against the Xiongnu, and the principles of harmonious coexistence, friendly trade, active defense, and no concession will continue to be followed.

He took advantage of the Yanmen trade to engage in Lü Kuo's relations with the Xiongnu, actively contacted the influential nobles of the Xiongnu, and promised appropriate preferential policies to guide them to focus their attention on the Han-Hu trade and avoid large-scale conflicts.

Hu Luguang was promoted to the general of Shangjun, and Cheng Yanjin was promoted to the general of Xihe, and the troops were increased in two counties to strengthen the defense of the Xiongnu and reduce the pressure on Yanmen.

At the same time, it was suggested that the imperial court should increase the number of guards to protect the Xiongnu in order to stabilize the pro-Han Southern Xiongnu and gradually make it a buffer between the Han and the Northern Xiongnu.

Strategies in the eastern, western, and northern directions have been drawn up, and the next focus is to formulate a strategy for the southeast.

The strategy of the southeast is related to the return of the Son of Heaven to Luoyang, and it is necessary to adopt a proactive strategy and tactics to open up the passage between Hedong and Luoyang. (To be continued.) )