Xiaoqi

"Hahaha!" Li Li laughed heartily, stroking Xiao Hao'er's head lovingly, and said with a smile: "Silly son, as a father, I really want to go outside to see, but it's not for sightseeing, but for leading The army is going to conquer the country and land there. As for now, it is really impossible to leave, as soon as the front foot is gone, the other princes will take the nest away, and that is a rootless duckling, so I have to flee to the Western Regions!"

"Father, don't worry, the child will grow up soon. At that time, the father, mother, and aunts will stay at home. The child will lead the younger brothers and sisters to conquer the Quartet, and will not let the father down!" Xiao Hao'er is very serious Said the matter.

"Hehehe! My son is very ambitious. I will remember what you said today for my father. Within 20 years, my father will clear away all obstacles for your brothers, and then you will each lead an expedition. Within ten years, whoever achieves If you fulfill today's promise, as a father, you will hand over everything in your hands to him." Li Li stroked Xiao Hao'er's hair and said with a smile.

Then the father and son talked for a long time, until Xiao Hao'er fell asleep soundly in Li Li's arms, and the conversation ended.

No one took the conversation between the father and son seriously at the moment, but more than 30 years later, it became a prophecy.Many of Li Li's sons and daughters led expeditions one after another, opened up territory and expanded the territory, abruptly expanding the territory of the Han Dynasty by five times, and their footprints spread all over East Asia.

small dividing line

Jinyang City, Governor's Mansion.

After making arrangements for Li Li's wife and children, Lu Su and Li Li sat in the side hall drinking tea to reminisce about the past.

This time Li Li visited northern Xinjiang, taking all his wives, concubines, and family with him. He set off from Chang'an in late autumn and October, passing through Beidi County, Shang County, Shuozhou, Yunzhong, Shuofang County, Yanmen County, Wuyuan County and other counties. , and then entered Taiyuan County, until now staying in Jinyang Governor's Mansion.It took more than two months, and the itinerary was not announced in advance. Only a thousand gold guards followed. When it arrived in Yanmen County half a month ago, it was snowing heavily. Escort, and inform Li Li and his party's itinerary in advance, Bingzhou Inspector Lu Su, who will be responsible for the reception.

"Brother's trip to the north is indeed a little sudden. Brother Yu didn't know it beforehand. If General Yunlong hadn't sent a quick horse to report. I'm afraid that brother and his wife entered Jinyang City, and Brother Yu would still be in the dark." Got up and told Li Hot tea was poured into Li's teacup, and Lu Su smiled authentically.

Li Li nodded and said with a smile: "The road is blocked by heavy snow. It is reasonable that Zijing did not receive the summons. Besides, this trip to Bingzhou was just a tour of the mountains and rivers. The children grow up day by day, but I seldom accompany them By their side, it happened that there was no war this winter, so I took time to take them for a walk, and inspect the northern border by the way. It was a balance between public and private, without delay. What's more, since Zijing and Gongjin recovered Bingzhou. I haven't Come over to see the military, political and defense in person. This time, I will carry out an inspection along with it. It is right to make an open and unannounced visit to supervise the governance of the counties and counties.

therefore.Every county.I will stay for two days, instead of going to the government office, I will live in the inn to secretly check people's conditions.After this trip, it is already approaching the twelfth lunar month, and the end of the new year is approaching.Three days later, we will set off and return to Chang'an. Zijing will go with me, and we will hand over state affairs to Biejia Cui Yan.I don't know how to pay respects? "

"Everything is at the command of the lord. I have no objection." Lu Su stood up and responded respectfully.

Seeing this, Li Li waved his hand to signal Lu Su to sit down.Shaking his head and laughing, he said, "Zijing, please don't stick to etiquette. You and I are brothers, why should we separate each other! What's more, after this journey, the officials in all counties and counties in Bingzhou have clear governance, good governance, and effective governance of the prefectures and counties. This is enough to show that Zijing He has outstanding political achievements and outstanding talents, so he should be rewarded and promoted. In addition, Cui Yan is skilled in government affairs. He used to be the governor of Hanyang, and now it is logical to let him serve as the governor of Bingzhou, otherwise I, Li Li, will be incompetent and incompetent without knowing rewards and punishments."

After Lu Su heard the words, he let out a long sigh, and said with lingering fear: "I thought that there were major mistakes in the counties and counties under the jurisdiction of Bingzhou, and my brother was dissatisfied with my governance of Bingzhou. It turned out to be a false alarm. Hehehe!"

Li Li laughed when he heard the words: "If you, Lu Zijing, do not have the ability to govern the state and counties, and you are incapable of governing, even if you are my brother Li Li, I will not tolerate you and punish you severely. Facts have proved that I released you before. It is a wise move in Bingzhou. From the recovery of Bingzhou last year to the present, for a whole year, the counties and counties of Bingzhou are in order and the streets are prosperous. Even if the roads are blocked by heavy snow, there is still an endless stream of business travelers. This is your credit, let me I'm very pleased, very grateful that you are my brother-in-law of Li Li, how honored you are!"

"Brother, I'm too proud." Lu Su smiled brightly, and said modestly, "Brother entrusted Bingzhou to me, which is a great trust. How dare I not obey my death? I just came here at the beginning, and my qualifications are shallow. If I didn't appreciate and entrust my brother With a heavy responsibility, even if my brother Yu has some talent, there is no place to use it. Therefore, if I say that I have some merits this time, it is the merit of my elder brother who knows people and does well. I just did my best and did my best."

"Hahaha! Well, there is no need to be so polite between you and me." Li Li waved his hands and laughed.

Then he gradually restrained his smile, and said seriously: "Currently, there are many undercurrents in Chang'an City, and spies under the command of various princes are swarming here. This is a sign of the imminent chaos. Has Zijing heard any rumors about this?"

Lu Su's face changed slightly when he heard the sound, his expression was serious, and he thought about it: "I will tell you my brother, I have heard about this matter. It is said that the emperor and all the officials had fled Chang'an as early as July this year, passing through the jungle and bypassing Xingyang. Day camp, and then return east to Luoyang. Therefore, three days ago, my foolish brother received a secret report that the emperor’s imperial edict appeared in Jinyang City, ordering all prefectures, prefects, governors, and county guards to send troops to assist the king.”

While talking, Lu Su showed Li Li the bamboo slips on the table to have a look. This is the Emperor Qin's order issued by the emperor.Immediately, Lu Su continued: "This is a handwritten edict. It was passed from outside the pass (Yanmen Pass) to Bingzhou a few days ago, and this is exactly what I can't understand. It stands to reason that this King Qin's edict should be from Sili. It is correct to pass it on, but the fact is exactly the opposite, Qin Wangling entered Bingzhou from outside the pass. That is to say, the barbarian leader outside the pass received the Qin Wangling before us, this matter is really very strange."

Li Li shook his head and smiled and said, "There is nothing strange about it, because this Qin Wang Ling is not written by the emperor at all, but an edict written by Li Ru on behalf of Li Ru. Maybe Zijing didn't know that it was Li Ru who taught the emperor how to write, so he The drafted edict can be completely fake; even if the emperor saw this edict, he would mistakenly think it was written by himself based on the font alone. In fact, the emperor and the officials have not arrived in Luoyang at this moment, and are still detained in the In the stronghold of some rogues and bandits, they won't be able to reach the Eastern Capital until after the beginning of spring."

"Ah!" Lu Su was shocked when he heard the words, looked straight at Li Li, and said suspiciously: "So, these edicts of King Qin are all ordered by the lord, and they were first sent to the barbarian tribes outside the country, and then spread to various states. county?"

"Exactly." Li Li nodded and said, "Let the barbarian forces and vassal kings in the distance know about this first, and then pass it on to the Han, and pass it on from outside to inside. This will leave them enough time to prepare. If they If they want to join in, or take a share in our Han territory, then they should be ready now, starting at the end of the year, and arriving in the spring. As for the princes of the Central Plains, they have to wait until the emperor personally issued an edict Only then can this matter be confirmed, and then the camera will move.”

Lu Su nodded lightly if he realized something, and sighed softly: "There is thunder in all directions, but the princes around the emperor don't know anything about it, and they are still sending secret agents to Chang'an to inquire about the news. From this point of view, the Lord's this time There is another major plan, the cloud of battle is thick, and a big battle is already brewing. Since the big battle is imminent, I should follow my elder brother to my side and do my best!"

Li Li laughed loudly and said: "Zi Jing's words are exactly what I want. This time, I will wait for my brothers to join forces and fight against the heroes of the world again! Hahaha"

Chapter 895 Ripples, layers of waves

Thank you: book friends Jun Zibai, lcx700319, wq007 book friends monthly ticket support, thank you!

Jizhou, Yecheng.The Chariot General's Mansion, standing in the middle, is definitely second to none among the many princes and shogunates. It is majestic, majestic and luxurious, quite domineering and full of kingly style.

As the largest state in the Central Plains, Jizhou has a vast territory, abundant goods and people, bustling markets, and many shops. Its wealth ranks first in the Central Plains; its population exceeds 500 million, ranking first among the Han states, which makes all the princes envious. , salivating endlessly.

Before the Sili War, Yuan Shao in Jizhou had more than [-] soldiers, overwhelming the heroes of the Central Plains, faintly revealing the posture of the overlord of the Central Plains, and his momentum was unprecedented, forcing the heroes of the Central Plains to follow Yuan Shao's lead, and no one dared to draw his edge.

After the disastrous defeat in Hangu, Yuan Shao lost more than half of his soldiers and horses, suffered heavy losses in food and supplies, and squandered the money and food accumulated in Jizhou for many years.

Afterwards, Gongsun Zan of Youzhou, who had been peeping for a long time, took advantage of the situation and launched a massive attack, causing the counties and counties of Qingzhou that had already been included in the pocket to be lost. Many cities fell one after another, and the territory shrank sharply.Forced into desperation, Yuan Shao had no choice but to shrink his troops and defend the city to the death, resisting every step of the way.After half a year of stalemate, Yuan Shao of Jizhou finally controlled Gongsun Zan's offensive momentum and turned from defense to offense. After several fierce battles, he regained half of the city, swept away the defeat, and gradually recovered some vitality.

However, the huge shortfall of the Sili War could not be filled, and the land shrinking was still inevitable.The treasury is empty, the troops are insufficient, and the money, food and supplies are still stretched.All these problems and difficulties need to be solved urgently.However, he was unable to solve it, which caused Yuan Shao in Jizhou to completely lose his former overlord aura, and his overall strength dropped by [-]%, which was slightly worse than that of Gongsun Zan in Youzhou, and comparable to the strength of Cao Cao who recaptured Yanzhou.

Since then, the powers of the princes from all walks of life in the Central Plains have faintly formed an extremely delicate situation.in a relatively balanced state.

Balance means that all forces have the opportunity to develop and grow, and each other restricts and hinders each other.What followed was to be on guard against each other and stare at each other.If you want to break this delicate balance, you must weaken or completely destroy the power of one side of the princes, forcing others to have nowhere to go.It can grow and develop on its own.Then he stood out and became the leader of the Central Plains.

In the past, facing this situation, Yuan Shao would definitely join forces with Cao Cao to form an alliance to attack Gongsun Zan in Youzhou.They did this before, but it was Yuan Shao in Jizhou who benefited the most. Cao Cao could only get some money, food and baggage compensation, and did not get any actual benefits or any territory.

However, the current situation in the Central Plains is different from the past.The Xiliang army was on the sidelines, forcing Cao Cao in Yanzhou not to act rashly.It is even more impossible to join forces with Yuan Shao to attack Youzhou.In this way, Gongsun Zan of Youzhou is safe for the time being, and Yuan Shao of Jizhou can't get any help. brilliant.

Under the mutual restraint of various forces, Gongsun Zan, Yuan Shao, and Cao Cao devoted themselves to development and accumulated strength.In this process, the advantages of Jizhou's solid foundation have been highlighted. It has abundant resources, a large population, and its development potential and speed are obviously ahead of the surrounding forces.

For more than half a year, Yuan Shao in Jizhou resisted Gongsun Zan's attack while raising money and food to recruit troops and horses. He united the major families and powerful gentry in Jizhou to advance and retreat together, share honor and disgrace, and share benefits.The means are endless and interlocking, and the Jizhou family and powerful people are rigidly tied to his chariot. This allows Yuan Shao to obtain a large amount of funding in a short period of time, raise countless money and food supplies, and recruit soldiers and horses wantonly. Growing day by day, quickly returning to strength.

By the end of the year, Yuan Shao's army had once again expanded to more than [-] troops, once again surpassing Gongsun Zan of Youzhou, and regained most of Qingzhou's counties and counties, forcing Gongsun Zan to retreat and defend, recovering most of his strength, and once again ranked first among the princes of the Central Plains.However, although the number of soldiers and horses in Jizhou has expanded rapidly, which is not much different from that before the Sili War, but the combat effectiveness is far from that of before, and it is quite a posture of being strong outside and doing nothing.

At the same time, Yuan Shao also has a large number of civil servants and military generals with outstanding talents.Ever since Yan Liang and Wen Chou were successively lost in the hands of Xiliang generals, the four court columns in Hebei have been incomplete, but it was the battle of Sili that made some buried generals stand out and perform well.Therefore, the four court pillars under Yuan Shao's command have been completed again. They are: Zhang Yun, Gao Lan, Qianzhao and Jiang Qi.In addition, in the repeated confrontation with Gongsun Zan, Ju Yi, the general of Jizhou, made great contributions and turned the tide several times before he fell. He is indeed the pillar of Jizhou and is indispensable.Therefore, Yuan Shao once praised Ju Yi in public as the backbone of Jizhou, and he was really a handsome talent. He was officially appointed as the general, and he could be praised and paid a lot of rewards when he entered the shogunate.

So far, Ju Yi has become the commander-in-chief of the Jizhou army second only to Yuan Shao, and the well-deserved number one general in Jizhou.

small dividing line

Not long after the New Year's Eve, on the [-]th day of the first lunar month, the shogunate of the Cheqi General's Mansion gathered for a meeting and summoned civil servants and military generals to discuss major issues.

When the bureaucrats of Jizhou entered the lobby one after another, Yuan Shao was already sitting on the main seat, holding the bamboo slips in his hands, but his eyes were not on the bamboo slips, but staring at the handsome case without blinking, his brows were frowned, as if he was hesitating The matter is weighing the pros and cons.

After everyone knelt down and saluted, Yuan Shao didn't say much, he raised his hand and handed the bamboo slips to the attendants, signaling to everyone in the hall to pass them on.

After a while, Yuan Shao asked straight-forwardly: "Everyone is talking about whether the general will obey the edict or not, and should he welcome the emperor and all the officials to Jizhou? What should he do if he obeys the edict, and what if he doesn't?" The question was really straightforward, and he told everyone clearly about his difficult decision-making, which shows that Yuan Shao's personality has changed a lot since the defeat of Sili. Throw it out for everyone to discuss.

At this moment, there were nearly a hundred people sitting on both sides of the hall, and the front ranks on both sides were civil servants and generals whom Yuan Shao relied heavily on.On the left is Guo Tu, with Xu You at the top, followed by counselors such as Shenpei, Xin Pi, Xin Ping, and Chen Lin; on the right is the lineup of generals, led by the above-mentioned general Ju Yi, followed by Yuan Shao's two sons : Yuan Tan and Yuan Shang, and then dozens of generals including Si Tingzhu.

It is worth mentioning that with Tian Feng and Xun Chen leaving one after another, Guo Tu can be said to be lucky if he survives a catastrophe. He finally made it through and took the seat of the head of civil servants, that is, Jizhou Biejia, which won the trust of Yuan Shao , according to the arm.

After Yuan Shao's words fell, Guo Tu closed his eyes and fell asleep. He didn't intend to speak first. Perhaps he still couldn't figure out Yuan Shao's intentions, so he didn't want to speak first, lest he misunderstand his intention and damage his reputation of Jizhou Biejia.

Seeing that Guo Tu remained silent, even though Xu You, Shen Pei and the Xin brothers had already made up their minds, they could not open their mouths rashly. Then they turned their attention to Ju Yi, the general opposite.

Although the general Ju Yi is somewhat unpopular among the bureaucrats in Jizhou, and he is lonely and lonely, but he is deeply supported by the soldiers in the army and has a high prestige.The most important thing is that he has an outstanding record. He is absolutely top-notch in commanding troops and fighting. In the repeated battles with Gongsun Zan of Youzhou, he used his troops skillfully and won many battles. So far he has not lost any defeats.These are all achievements made by real swords and guns, which makes the officials of Jizhou never forget Ju Yi's previous convictions of betraying the master and begging for glory, and have no good impressions, but they have to admit that Jizhou can recover quickly after the disastrous defeat of Sili. Wei, the army cannot do without him.

Right now is the time of great struggle, this is the breeding ground for heroes, and it is also the golden age for generals to lead the trend.Therefore, Ju Yi has a great say in the shogunate's affairs, and it weighs a lot, but every word that comes out of his mouth, even Yuan Shao cannot ignore it, and must seriously consider it and make a prudent decision.

"The imperial edict clearly states that the emperor and the officials have already left the boundary of Xiliang, and will soon arrive in Luoyang, the eastern capital, so the princes from all walks of life are ordered to enter King Qin of Beijing to discuss the righteous deed of attacking Li Li in Xiliang."

Speaking of this, Ju Yi paused, looked up at Yuan Shao, and said respectfully: "The general thought that the crusade against the Xiliang army mentioned in the imperial edict can be put aside for the time being. It has been proved that the princes from all walks of life did not do their best, feared the head and the tail, had their own ghosts, deliberately preserved their strength, and tried to encourage others to fight with the Xiliang army. However, looking at the world, the princes and overlords who have survived to this day are not mediocre. You are not a fool, and you will definitely not do your best to fight a bloody battle with the Xiliang army. Therefore, regardless of the matter of uniting the princes to crusade against Li Li, whether it can be achieved in the end depends on whether the other princes agree to send troops, and whether they can unite as one to help the charity." This is the key reason why Ju Yi doesn't fit in with the group. Opening up Yuan Shao's scars in public, although the truth is the same, but there are some things that are known, but can't be said in public, otherwise, what face will the superiors have?

Yuan Shao, who was at the top rank, had slightly flushed cheeks, a strong look of displeasure flashed in his eyes, he nodded perfunctorily and said, "Well, what the general said is reasonable, let's not mention the matter of jointly sending troops to hunt down thieves. The general continues to talk about welcoming the emperor and all the officials."

Ju Yi clearly saw the anger in Yuan Shao's eyes, but he didn't care about it, nor did he take it to heart.Because he firmly believes that honest words are harmful to the ear and good for deeds. Some people dare not say some things, but he dares to speak out. If Yuan Shao really listens to it and corrects it, it will undoubtedly be very beneficial to the entire Jizhou army.

"My lord is wise. As for the matter of welcoming the emperor and all the officials, the general will regard this fact as a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that must not be missed. It is imperative and determined to win. The reason why Li Li and his Xiliang army can have today His strength is precisely his ability to control the emperor and hundreds of officials, otherwise, how could he be so powerful in just a few years! Therefore, the last general begs the lord not to hesitate, and to set off quickly, otherwise he will be killed by other princes. Get there first, by then it will be too late to regret!"

Chapter 896 Ripples, the leader of the world