The guards left, and Xiao Chen suddenly fell into deep thought.

Before, he was still thinking about why Bai Qi suddenly withdrew his troops from Tingzhou, but now it seems that the reason why Bai Qi withdrew his troops must be inseparable from the current troubles made by the people of Tingzhou.

"Wu Liang!"

Xiao Chen subconsciously shouted, but there was silence for a long time.

When he came back to his senses, Xiao Chen realized that Wu Liang was no longer there.

With a light sigh, Xiao Chen sat back in his seat and said in a condensed voice outside the hall: "Go and invite Old Man Zhang Gu to come here." ”

"Yes!"

Hearing this, the guards left quickly, and soon, Zhang Gu came to the outside of the hall with unhurried steps.

Walking into the hall, Zhang Gu glanced at Xiao Chen deeply, and then said:

"You called me here to ask Tingzhou about this, right?"

Xiao Chen nodded lightly and said: "This matter is indeed a bit strange, according to common sense, when my Huazhou army entered the city and did not hurt the innocent, most of the people will not clash with my Huazhou army, the situation in Tingzhou is too abnormal, I can't figure it out, so I can only ask Grandpa Zhang." ”

Hearing this, Zhang Gu shook his head lightly and said:

"There is a cause and there is an effect, I just didn't expect that decades have passed, and the people of Tingzhou have not forgotten what happened at the beginning."

Xiao Chen's face changed slightly when he heard this: "Grandpa Zhang, do you know the reason for this?" ”

Zhang Gu nodded and said, "Speaking of which, this matter is still a sin that your father did at that time. ”

"Forty years ago, there were bandits on the border of the Wei State, and several of them were powerful, and they even faintly had the intention of occupying the land as the king."

"In order to solve the rebellion of bandits, the first emperor of Wei sent five armies to suppress bandits and quell the chaos."

"It's just that the national strength of Wei was weak at that time, and even the army's food and salary could not be satisfied, in this case, the emperor could only issue a secret decree to let the army collect grain nearby. In the year of natural disasters, the lives of the people everywhere were also miserable, and the act of requisitioning grain undoubtedly increased the burden on the people. ”

"For a time, a few states and counties that were expropriated for grain, there were a lot of people who died." m.

"And that time, the place where your father collected grain was Tingzhou."

Xiao Chen suddenly realized: "In other words, the reason why the people of Tingzhou made such a move is because they hate my father and Yong'an?" ”

Zhang Gu nodded slightly, sighed and said, "This is the grudge between your father and Tingzhou, although your father is dead, you have to face it." ”

"And the most difficult thing to do now is that Tingzhou is the key to open the hinterland of Wei, if Tingzhou is unstable, you can't compete with Bai Qi at all, but if you station the army in Tingzhou, you will definitely face endless harassment from the people of Tingzhou, and in the long run, it will not be a good thing for you. Have you figured out what to do? ”

Xiao Chen frowned and pondered for a long time, and said tentatively: "Grandpa Zhang, is it possible to resolve this grievance?" ”

Zhang Gu shook his head and said: "Forty years have passed, and these people who are making trouble now are either those who survived the disaster at that time, or the children of those who died. The hatred is very deep, and if you want to resolve it, I'm afraid it will take a long time, but judging from the situation between you and Bai Qi, I'm afraid he won't give you this opportunity. ”

"If you want to solve this situation quickly, I'm afraid there is only one way."

Xiao Chen was stunned for a moment, and said in a deep voice: "Grandpa Zhang, please speak." ”

"Kill!" Zhang Gu said in a cold voice: "In your current situation, the best way is to kill all the troublemakers and suppress these people with thunder. Only in this way can we free up enough time for you to deal with Bai Qi. ”

Xiao Chen fell into deep contemplation when he heard this.

Killing people is not uncommon in war, and it is even as common as eating and drinking.

can kill the people, the impact on Huazhou is drastic, as long as the butcher's knife is used in Tingzhou, Bai Qi will definitely spread rumors that Xiao Chen killed innocents indiscriminately. In this way, in every city that follows, the army of Huazhou will encounter the strongest resistance from the people.

Moreover, he sent troops this time on the grounds of Cao Xun, occupying the advantage of public opinion, and the hearts of the people in the world will more or less favor him Xiao Chen.

But if someone is killed in Tingzhou, and the people mention that the Huazhou army will be in danger, Cao Xun's letter against thieves is estimated to be unable to stabilize people's hearts.

If you don't kill, Tingzhou will be difficult to be safe, and if you kill, public opinion will definitely cause a lot of resistance to the Huazhou army.

Xiao Chen suddenly fell into a dilemma.

Looking at Xiao Chen, who was embarrassed, Zhang Gu said in a deep voice: "Xiao Chen, I know that you are actually pure in nature, and it is undoubtedly a little embarrassing for you to make such a move." I'm just saying. ”

"If you really can't, I'm afraid you'll have to take a detour."

Xiao Chen, who heard this, shook his head and said: "Don't hide it from Grandpa Zhang, I have been looking at the terrain of Wei for the past few days, if I bypass Tingzhou, then the army will have to pass through the jungle full of miasma, not to mention the slower marching speed, and the battle line has been lengthened. wants to compete with a strong enemy like Bai Qi, this kind of move is undoubtedly looking for death. ”

Zhang Gu said with a sad face: "Then what are you going to do, is it possible to achieve such a waste with the people of Tingzhou?" ”

Xiao Chen took a deep breath, shook his head and said, "Grandpa Zhang, let me think again." ”

……

After bidding farewell to Zhang Gu, Xiao Chen, who was worried in his heart, took care of himself and walked onto the streets of Zhangzhou.

The originally bustling night market became silent due to the arrival of the Huazhou army, and the merchants and people closed their doors one after another, for fear of being invaded by the aftermath of the war.

What war brings to the people is always depression and suffering. Xiao Chen saw it in his eyes, but as the lord of Huazhou, he had no choice.

even said that from the beginning to the present, it is not Xiao Chen who is willing to do certain things, but the trend of the times, which has always forced him to do these things.

He is like a boatman who tries his best to steer in the monstrous waves, although he has the heart to escape the waves, but in the turbulent waves, he is often involuntarily himself.

Just like his entry into Bai Qi today, it was not what he wanted.

But even if he doesn't beat Bai Qi, will Bai Qi let him Xiao Chen go?

Xiao Chen doesn't read much, but Xiao Chen is still clear about the truth that one mountain cannot tolerate two tigers.

It was very late at night, and Xiao Chen walked alone on the streets of Zhangzhou for a long, long time.

Along the way, he saw many sights, including soldiers talking to each other, people peeking through the windows, and ruffians who were wandering.

But what Xiao Chen felt the most was the endless darkness that the night brought to him, and the darkness seemed to devour everything, devouring Xiao Chen, a person who walked in the night.

But Xiao Chen could only continue to move forward, and he couldn't retreat half a step.

Xiao Chen, who returned to the Zhangzhou Palace, sat on the main seat for a long, long time, and when it was almost dawn, Xiao Chen finally summoned the messenger into the hall.

A moment later, the messenger rushed to Tingzhou with Xiao Chen's order.

……

Some people died, but not completely......