Xiaoqi

Cao Cao nodded slightly, lowered his head, and responded in a low voice: "Since he is the one who came to the alliance on his own initiative, how can Cao be ignorant of the general situation and ignore the overall situation? Everything depends on the leader of the alliance, and Cao has no objection!"

Yuan Shao was overjoyed when he heard the words, he laughed heartily and said, "Okay, that's very good! Meng Dezhen is a person who understands the general situation and cares about the overall situation. As expected, my brother did not misunderstand you. Hahaha"

"The leader is too famous." Seeing Yuan Shao laughing, Cao Cao nodded in response, grinning from side to side twice, and smiled in agreement.It's just that he smiled very reluctantly, with lingering bitterness and shame in his smile, it was obviously a forced smile.Yuan Shao had a panoramic view of all these, but he pretended not to notice it, turning a blind eye, the smile on his face became brighter and happier, and the laughter became louder and longer.

While apologizing, Cao Cao keenly felt another meaning in Yuan Shao's laughter, which made him feel extremely humiliated and filled with shame and indignation.However, the situation is stronger than others, Yuan Shao is now powerful, his prestige is rising day by day, and he is on the verge of extinction, while Cao Cao is on the verge of extinction.

Comparing the two, Yuan Shao is of course qualified and capable to laugh out loud, laughing at all the people and things he thinks are ridiculous; while Cao Cao knows that Yuan Shao is laughing at himself.But still had to greet each other with a smile, dared to be angry but dared not speak up, and pretended to be a snake.All he has to do now is to try his best.Wait for the opportunity to seize all opportunities for development and growth, in order to restore strength as soon as possible, and whoever can have the last laugh at that time will be the real winner.

There are very few people and things that go smoothly in the world, and anyone who achieves great things will inevitably encounter failures and setbacks.Therefore, those who can bend and stretch, persevere in spite of setbacks, and become more courageous after setbacks are the ones who can really achieve things. The brightest smile is the one who laughs at the end, and the winner is the winner.Win all the power and reputation; but the loser falls under the back of the winner, completely submerged in the torrent of history, and reduced to dry bones and dung in the vicissitudes of life.

"I don't know how the lord is going to treat the princes of the Ninth Town?" Yuan Shao was taking advantage of the time when he was always smiling.Cao Cao asked softly.

Hearing the sound, Yuan Shao quickly suppressed the smile on his face, raised his wine bottle and invited Cao Cao to drink with him.The moment when he covered his face with his sleeves and drank.There was a flash of light in his eyes, and his mind turned quickly.He noticed that Cao Cao used the word "treat" in an understatement question, which contained a strong sense of comparison and comparison; it meant that another prince had come to form an alliance, and he had a deep suspicion with me, Cao Cao. How do you, Yuan Shao, plan to arrange for the new princes of the Ninth Town?

There are many profound meanings in this simple sentence.One is the depth of friendship between the two parties, which one is close and which is distant; the other is to remind Yuan Shao not to treat one more favorably than another.So as not to be chilling.In addition, Cao Cao's words also carried a bit of instigation and dissension; the former mat weaver and shoe seller has now become a town of princes.The wings are getting more and more abundant, if there is no further restraint, there may be danger of breeding tigers, and there will be endless troubles.

In the midst of a sudden change of mind, Yuan Shao couldn't help thinking of his original intention of uniting the princes of all parties.The original intention of the alliance of princes was to jointly defeat Xiliang Li Li, which was undoubtedly the first purpose.In addition, Yuan Shao had another intention, which was to take the opportunity to weaken the strength of the princes in various towns and clear the way for him to dominate the Central Plains.Therefore, it seems that Yuan Shao is spending money to make money for this alliance of princes, but in fact it is a real plan to kill two birds with one stone and gain both fame and fortune.

Because there is only one final winner of the alliance, and that is Yuan Shao and Yuan Benchu, and the princes of the various towns in the alliance are just snobs who were lured by him with food and supplies, and became scapegoats for defeating Li Li's Xiliang army.The reason why he was able to facilitate this is because Jizhou is rich and has sufficient money and food.This prompted him to have the capital and the guts to squander it once, exchanging money and food for the dual purpose of attacking the powerful enemy Li Li and weakening the strength of the princes of the towns, and then realizing his ultimate goal of dominating the Central Plains.

This was the true intention buried deep in Yuan Shao's heart. He had never revealed a single word to anyone before, even in front of his own son, he kept his mouth shut and never leaked anything.Once upon a time, Yuan Shao thought he could hide it from everyone, and for this reason, he was often complacent, and he admired himself very much.Unexpectedly, there is never a shortage of smart people in this world, and smart people often get together; therefore, any seamless scheme, even if it can be deceived by outsiders, cannot be hidden from people around you, especially your confidantes who have been with you for decades friend.

The person in front of Yuan Shao is his former confidant and friend, and now they are both friends and enemies.But this person has already been able to defeat his scheme, but he has been pretending not to know it until the matter concerns his own interests, and then he revealed it, and he said it very implicitly, to the point.

It goes without saying that this person who has already seen through Yuan Shao's intentions is Cao Cao Cao Mengde who is sitting opposite him at the moment.

Slightly narrowing his eyes and staring at Cao Cao, the smile on Yuan Shao's face disappeared, replaced by a solemn expression, his eyes became deep and cold.

Yuan Shao didn't believe this sentence before, thinking that it was the self-boasting words of many small princes, which was not enough to be believed.However, at this moment, he is convinced.Because sitting in front of him was a wise man whose strategy and scheming were not inferior to his own, but he had always regarded this person as the younger brother who used to hang around behind him, and almost never really paid attention to this younger brother.But now Yuan Shao has no choice but to pay attention to this person, or to say that this person's ingenuity shocked him, and he was even very jealous.

"To tell the truth from what Meng De said, my brother intends to temporarily conceal the whereabouts of the princes of the Ninth Town, and does not tell the princes. He intends to use this group of people as a surprise soldier. At the critical moment, he will deal a fatal blow to Thief Li and secure the victory in one fell swoop. Therefore Let them not cross the river for the time being, and stay in Hedong County, which will help them hide their tracks and avoid the eyes and ears of Xiliang's secret agents. In addition, they can also help Zhang Yang protect the food road behind our army and guard against Zhou Yu's army's sneak attack from behind; When the allied army and Li's army are in a decisive battle, I will secretly recruit them to cross the river, and then attack Li's army by surprise, defeating them in one fell swoop. With such an arrangement, I don't know what Meng De intends?"

"The leader is wise, such an arrangement can be said to kill two birds with one stone, and there is nothing wrong with it. But" Seeing that Yuan Shao finally stopped hiding from himself, Cao Cao flattered him without hesitation, but then he hesitated to speak. It seems that there is something that is inconvenient to speak out.

"But what? Mengde might as well say it bluntly, there is no need to be taboo between you and me!" Yuan Shao's expression changed slightly, and he asked urgently.

"The leader of the alliance is a clear lesson. As far as Cao knows, Xuzhou has always been rich, the treasury is full, and the food and grass are sufficient. This is the wealth accumulated by the old thief Tao Qian for many years, and now it is all in Liu Bei's hands. This time Liu Bei led [-] people. Yu Buqi took the initiative to come to the alliance, presumably with sufficient food and supplies, and does not need the leader to provide food and salary. What this means is clear at a glance, and Cao does not need to go into details. But since this is the case, how should the leader restrain Liu Bei Well, will he be respectful to the leader on the surface, but in private he is obedient and disobedient?

What's more, the leader asked Liu Bei to lead the army to settle in Hedong County, and to take care of our allied army's food and grass supplies and rear food roads.If he has ulterior motives or is dissatisfied with the leader, the consequences will be unimaginable, directly endangering the life and death of hundreds of thousands of my allies!

Therefore, Cao believed that although the leader of the alliance wanted to use Liu Bei and the tens of thousands of horses under his tent, he should not trust him too much.It is about the life and death of the entire Allied army and the success or failure of the Battle of Sili. How can we entrust our wealth and life to Liu Bei, who is not under the control of the leader of the League? "

Following Cao Cao's in-depth analysis and elaboration, the names of the princes of the Ninth Town finally came out of his mouth.

The princes of the Ninth Town who came uninvited were none other than Liu Bei and Liu Xuande who had taken over the Six Counties of Xuzhou for less than three months.

The reason why Yuan Shao didn't directly say Liu Bei's name before was because he took Cao Cao's face into consideration and didn't want to embarrass him; in addition, there was also a reason for keeping it secret temporarily, fearing that the accompanying soldiers would hear a few words and then publicize the matter.But now Cao Cao took the initiative to say Liu Bei's name, showing his extraordinary magnanimity and his loyalty to the allies.

"Well, what Meng De said makes sense." After Cao Cao finished speaking, Yuan Shao frowned and nodded lightly: "I didn't think too much about it before. Anyway, the more allied soldiers and horses, the better. Now Meng De That being said, this is true. According to reports from the guards sent by Zhang Yang, Liu Bei brought a total of nearly [-] cavalry this time, along with nearly [-] stones of grain and grass. He is fully equipped with weapons, money, food and supplies. It is really unnecessary. Yuan Mou subsidizes any food and supplies.

I ignored this section before, but now that I think about it, there is almost no place for us to coerce Liu Bei. He can come and go freely without any restraint.Moreover, Xuzhou is far away from Sili. Even if the city is captured and the entire Sili is occupied, it has little to do with him.That being the case, why did he lead an army to join the alliance? "

"The leader of the alliance does not know. Liu Bei has always regarded himself as a descendant of the Han royal family, and he has just taken over Xuzhou. It is time to establish his prestige and then deter Xuzhou's gentry. In the past, Chen Liu met with Liu Bei and became famous in the first battle. Today, he will meet in Hanoi. Wouldn't it be another great opportunity to become famous all over the world, how could Liu Bei miss this opportunity?"

Chapter 684 Battle of the Overlord (Add more)

"Furthermore, Cao heard that Liu Bei has not been conferred the title of Emperor, or that Thief Li did not confer the position of Xuzhou Mu to him. Instead, he issued an order to bury Tao Qian generously and reward Tao Qian's two sons, but he said nothing to Liu Bei. Not to mention. In other words, although Liu Bei has now taken over the six counties of Xuzhou, he is still the Pingyuan Commander appointed by Gongsun Zan, and has no other official positions or titles.

As the saying goes: if the name is not correct, the words will not be smooth.

For a prince like Liu Bei who raised a state, it would be difficult to get the approval and support of the people of Xuzhou without the emperor's seal. It is really hard to convince the people to raise Xuzhou only with the post of Qingzhou plain order.At the same time, the absence of an edict from the emperor means that Xuzhou is still a land of no masters, and the princes of all walks of life don't need to make excuses at all, as long as they have the strength, they can lead their troops to attack Xuzhou.After all, Liu Bei can occupy Xuzhou without a name, why can't other princes in the world occupy Xuzhou? "

Speaking of this, Cao Cao smiled knowingly: "Now, Liu Bei is leading the six counties of Xuzhou, and Tao Qian recommended him on the table before his death. Maybe Li Li will give him the imperial edict of Xuzhou if he thinks about it. It's a pity that he He underestimated Li Thief, and also underestimated Li Thief's dominance and strong self-confidence. When he took over Xuzhou, he didn't pay tribute to Li Thief, and wanted to wait for Li Thief to issue him the emperor's edict, which is simply arrogant. Great, wishful thinking!

Thief Li is not the old Dong Zhuo!

Earlier, when Dong Zhuo was in power, he focused on enjoying wealth and honor and spending his old age peacefully. Whenever the princes of the towns requested him, Dong Zhuo would accept all requests from the princes of the towns.However, thief Li ruled all the states and counties in Xiliang at a young age.Firmly controlling the hundreds of thousands of Xiliang troops, he didn't pay attention to the princes of all towns and towns in the world.Whenever the princes ask for official positions, they must pay enough money and food.Otherwise, don't expect to get any imperial seal from Li thief, even if it is a small county magistrate, don't even think about getting it for nothing.

Therefore, in Cao's view, Liu Bei took the initiative to come to the alliance this time, not so much to form an alliance with us to fight against Li's thief, but to use the powerful military power of the allied army to take the opportunity to ask Li for an imperial edict! "

"Huh?" Yuan Shao was astonished when he heard the words.After thinking for a while, he nodded in agreement: "What Meng De said is absolutely true. Thief Li has always been stingy and bullied the weak. He has never paid attention to the princes of the world. What happened to Liu Bei today, we and other princes in various towns have also encountered I have been here before, if anyone wants to ask for an official position from Thief Li, no matter who he is, he has to pay a lot of money. I’m deliberately using our allied forces to create momentum, so I’m afraid they may not sincerely help us defeat Thief Li. I don’t know what Meng De has to say about this?”

"Leader don't have to worry. If Liu Bei doesn't come, we can't do anything about him; but since he's here, we can't let him go. What's more, Thief Li is the easy-going generation. Who in the world can threaten him to submit obediently? Therefore, Liu Bei led his troops to come here this time. It was a foolish move to offend Li Thief’s Ni Lin by mistake! Cao is sure. As long as the emperor is still in Li Thief’s hands, Liu Bei will never die in this life I want to get the imperial edict from Xuzhou Mu. Maybe Liu Bei still wants to let thief Li see how powerful he is, so he obediently bestows the imperial edict to grant him the imperial edict of Xuzhou! Hehehe"

While speaking, Cao Cao couldn't help laughing, and Yuan Shao also smiled happily, obviously agreeing with Cao Cao's remarks.

In fact, when Cao Cao told Liu Bei's true intention of this alliance, Yuan Shao already understood it all in his heart, and there was no need for Cao Cao to explain it in detail.But he enjoyed Cao Cao's respectful demeanor when he spoke. The more detailed Cao Cao said, the more loyal Cao Cao was to him.For him, this is undoubtedly a good thing that he likes to hear, so why not do it!

Because of this, Yuan Shao listened to Cao Cao's long speech while drinking, and accidentally saw that the sun was already westward, and it would be dark in another hour.So he got up slowly, waved his hand to signal his soldiers to clean up the case and wine cups, and said with a light smile to Cao Cao, "Meng De has a very thorough understanding of Liu Bei's real intention for this trip, so he must have a good plan to deal with it? Hehehe!"

While walking slowly down the mountain with Yuan Shao, Cao Cao nodded with a smile: "That's true. But the leader of the alliance has already made up his mind, how dare Cao show his shame?"

"Meng De is self-effacing. If you have any good ideas, you might as well speak up and see if you and I agree with each other?"

"It's not a good idea. Before the decisive battle between our allies and Li Thief, the strategy decided by the leader does not need to be changed. Let Liu Bei stay in Hedong, and we will make calculations when the decisive battle is pending. After the first battle, even if Liu Bei wants to fight with his whole body Retreat, but he can't help him, until I completely defeat Li thief, he can't even think about leaving the allied army and leading his troops to escape alone!"

"Hehehe!" Yuan Shao laughed when he heard the words, nodded happily and said, "Okay, according to what Mengde said, you and my brother really have a heart-to-heart, and they coincide with each other! In this case, we have the right to pretend that there is no ninth brother for the time being." The princes of the town, tomorrow the army will knock on the pass, explore the defense situation of Hangu Pass, and by the way, see with your own eyes whether Li Thief's men are as strong and invincible as the rumors say."

"Hahaha!" After speaking, Yuan Shao and Cao Cao looked at each other and smiled, then got on their horses and walked back to the camp along the mountain path in the afterglow of the setting sun.

The next day, the sky was gloomy and the wind howled.

At the third quarter of the hour, Hangu Pass failed to usher in the rising sun, but ushered in an army of 30 princes led by Yuan Shao.

Standing at the top of the city, looking around.

But as far as the eye can see, apart from the majestic and towering mountains and rivers, there are hundreds of thousands of densely packed swords, guns, swords and halberds, dense iron armor, and the long hiss of war horses resounding through the sky.

Three hundred steps away from the pass, tens of thousands of Allied infantry carried hundreds of ladders, pushed well rails, and set up catapults, with long bows and crossbows ready to wait; The huge iron-clad bumper about ten feet thick and four feet thick is facing the thick and simple main gate of Hangu Pass. It is menacing and ready to move.

"I haven't seen such a majestic and spectacular scene for many years. It's really shocking!"

In the middle of the tower, Li Li, who was dressed in military armor, looked from afar. He could see a sea of ​​princes and allies, soldiers standing everywhere, and banners flying.The soldiers are as majestic as a prison, with a magnificent momentum, and their murderous aura soars to the sky.This was the first time he had witnessed such a spectacular battle scene since he was reborn in the late Han Dynasty.Facing the 30 siege army, the faces and expressions of the allied soldiers could not be seen clearly as far as the eyes could see. The murderous armored soldiers were all in sight, which was dizzying and shocking.

Guo Jia and Jia Xu stood behind Li Li, one on the left and the other on the right. After hearing Li Li's exclamation, Jia Xu said softly with deep emotion: "My lord's words are very true. This is the third event in the Eastern Han Dynasty over 100 years ago. World War II.

Ten years ago, the Yellow Turban Rebellion broke out, and the Yellow Turban Army with as many as one million people swept the world.In the past few months, the eight states of the Han Dynasty have been fighting everywhere.Although the imperial army quickly wiped out the Yellow Turban Rebellion, the Yellow Turban Army shook the whole world, shook the foundation of the Liu Dynasty, and opened the prelude to the advent of troubled times.Demagogy.From this, there is the chaotic situation of today's princes.

Five years ago, the princes of eighteen towns crusade against Dong Xiangguo, and successively assembled nearly 50 troops. The momentum was huge and earth-shattering.In this battle, the allied forces of the feudal lords fought fiercely with our Xiliang army for a year. Although the allied forces won in the end, it was in vain.In fact, it did not shake the foundation of our Xiliang army, but instead prompted Dong Xiangguo to plunder the eastern capital Luoyang.With the accumulation of hundreds of years in the Eastern Han Dynasty and hundreds of thousands of people in Luoyang, the capital was moved to Chang'an.Therefore, the alliance of the princes of the eighteen towns was called to crusade against Dong Zhuo, but in fact it trampled heavily on the imperial power of the emperor and pushed the Liu family to the brink of destruction.

Five years later, the princes of the Central Plains made a comeback and once again united to form an allied army. Under the banner of "crushing against the lord, on the side of the Qing emperor", they assembled more than [-] allied troops to crusade against us.This time the army of the princes is nominally to crusade against the lord and rescue the emperor, but in fact it is to destroy our Xiliang army in an attempt to dominate the Central Plains and aspire to the world.

In just ten years, three massive and unprecedented wars completely ignored the imperial power of the emperor. Since then, the face of the Liu family has disappeared, and the world will become more and more chaotic.Therefore, the Son of Heaven, the Son of Heaven, is already of little use and is useless. "

After a little hesitation, Jia Xu finally expressed his true thoughts, and this last sentence was actually a remonstrance to Li Li, revealing a faint hint of persuasion.

It is true that Jia Xu did not pay attention to the army of hundreds of thousands of princes in front of him at all, thinking that the victory was in his hands.For him, after experiencing the battle against Dong Zhuo by the princes of the Eighteen Towns five years ago, looking back at the army of princes in front of him, it was like a group of jumping clowns making poses, it was difficult to be elegant, and nothing to be afraid of.