At the foot of Changyi City, Zhen Yao led his subordinates Wen Wu and waited quietly. About half a stick of incense had passed before the sound of footsteps came from the official road ahead. Then, the figures of Zhang Fei and Zhang Liao appeared in front of everyone.
"Fei (Liao), see my lord." The lord greeted him personally. The two generals surnamed Zhang hurriedly clapped their horses and ran straight. They got off their horses and knelt on one knee in front of Zhen Yao. They bowed and clasped their fists and spoke.
"Get up, get up." Zhen Yao stretched out his hand to help the two generals up, and said with a comforting smile: "Yide and Wenyuan have made outstanding contributions. If it weren't for you two, why would this battle be ended now? Come on, follow me into the city!"
"My lord, please!" Zhang Fei was very arrogant in front of others, but when facing Zhen Yao, he was very respectful. He took half a step back slightly and pointed his right arm in the direction of the city gate.
The return of Zhang Fei and Zhang Liao means that the battle between Yan and Yu has officially ended. The soldiers entered the city one by one. The captured Xun Yu, Cheng Yu and others looked at each other and smiled bitterly. They left the city in the middle of the night. After a few hours, they came back.
Although Zhen Yao wanted to hold a banquet to celebrate after moving into the Prefectural Mufu Mansion, things were still complicated after the war. Recruitment, land acquisition, handover of rights, and appointment of new officials were all a big headache for Zhen Yao. Fortunately, there were many scribes accompanying him on this expedition. Zhen Yao only needed to grasp the overall situation, and all the details were left to Guo Jia, Xu You and others.
In the bottom of Zhen Yao¡¯s heart, apart from the government affairs of Yan and Henan, what he was most concerned about was the elite civil and military elite of the Cao family. Old man Cheng Yu was easy to talk to. After only hesitating for a moment, he agreed to go to Wuji to have a look. But the two uncles and nephews of the Xun family are not so easy to take for their own use.
Even if Guo Jia played the emotional card, Xun and Yu only reluctantly responded, with no intention of investing in their own accounts. Zhen Yao couldn't help but feel annoyed: "Wen Ruo and Gong Da, these two are unparalleled talents. Duke Xun once praised them as 'Wang Zuo'. Why did Cao Mengde retreat to the mountains and fields because of his defeat?"
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"That's it, that's all, you're going back to your hometown to farm. Just go back." They spent a lot of time talking, but these two people just didn't listen. What could Zhen Yao do. He snorted coldly and walked away.
After so many years, we have all the talented men and women under our command. Zhen Yao has long since given up the idea of ??traveling hundreds of miles alone.
To him, although the Xun family uncle and nephew are great talents in the world, they are not indispensable. There are so many counselors under his command, but if there are only one or two less, what difference will it make? Thinking this way, Zhen Yao naturally wouldn't put any more thought into it.
"Wen Ruo. Alas!" Guo Jia was helpless when facing his former childhood friend. He shook his head with a wry smile, held his hands slightly, then turned around and left behind Zhen Yao.
He returned without success from Xun Yu¡¯s uncle and nephew. Jia Xu, who was busy, could get an idea just by looking up. Putting down the pen and ink in his hand, Old Man Jia whispered: "My lord, I have a trick that can make Xun Yu come and vote."
"Come and tell me." Zhen Yao was angry, so naturally he would not be too enthusiastic about this, so he waved his hand.
Jia Xu squinted his eyes and spoke slowly: "No one else. Only the emperor's ear."
"Emperor?" Zhen Yao's eyebrows turned slightly, and he knew what Jia Xu meant. This person is Xun Yu. To be loyal to the Han Dynasty, if you use the emperor as an excuse. There will definitely be some excitement. But, what use does he need for Xun Yu like this?
Old man Jia Xu's work was never that simple. When he saw Zhen Yao frowning, he explained: "My lord, for a great talent like Xun Wenruo, instead of agreeing to return home and increase his reputation, it is better to trap him in Wuji and wait for him later." use."
"This matter, this matter." Zhen Yao wanted to hand it over to Jia Xu, but when he looked at Guo Jia next to him, he smiled and said, "I'll leave it to Feng Xiao. Within three days, Feng Xiao will hand over the Xun family's uncle and nephew." Bring him to see Yao."
"Personal friends are personal friends, but when it comes to business matters, Guo Jia will not abandon public relations for personal reasons. He will bow down and accept orders: "Promise." Just looking at Jia Xu's eyes is quite complicated. He knew this method very well, but he didn't say so. He just wanted to fight for his two young friends, but old man Jia Xu was too busy thinking and couldn't hide anything.
Except for Xun Yu and others, other generals of Cao Cao's family, such as Xia Houyuan and Cao Ren, all said that they would rather die than surrender. But it was impossible for Zhen Yao to really kill all the pillars of the Cao family and Xiahou family. With the influence of these two companies in Yan and Henan, Zhen Yao must consider many things if he wants to truly take charge of these two places.
Zhen Yao was sitting at the head seat handling government affairs. After a while, Xu Huang came in and asked, "My lord, we have collected all the soldiers in the city. What should we do with them?"
"As usual, the military records are checked, and those who are over forty and under sixteen are sent back to their hometowns." Wu Ji had his own way of arranging the prisoners. Zhen Yao raised his eyebrows slightly, but did not make any changes. Xu Huang also nodded, but he came here obviously not only for this matter: "My lord, Wen Yuan has said that Cao Mengde should be among these prisoners of war. He is good at painting and virtue. Wen Yuan wants to make himDe drew a picture of Cao Cao and then began to conduct a census. "
"Cao Cao?" Zhen Yao suddenly realized that this Cao A'hao was really good at escaping. Maybe he didn't know where he had gone at this moment. But since Zhang Liao hadn't given up yet, he just let them go and nodded immediately, allowing Xu Huang to do this.
Guo Jia was busy with the affairs of his uncle and nephew Xun Yu, and all his generals were staying in the barracks. In the huge palace, only Zhen Yao and Jia Xu were making overall plans for the government affairs.
In the barracks, at the exit of the area where the prisoners were staying, a row of bookkeepers were sitting there with their desks, looking up from time to time to ask the prisoners in front of them.
"What's your name? From which county in Pei State?" Every bookkeeper has a military register in his hand, which shows the recruitment status of each county in Yan and Henan. In front of them, the soldiers and prisoners lined up like this, waiting for their final arrangements.
"Wu, Wu Gou, is from Xiao County, Pei State." The soldier did not dare to raise his head and answered timidly.
"Wu Gou?" The bookkeeper patiently flipped through the military register in his hand and finally found the name, "Xiao County, Li Township, um, he was drafted into the army last year at the age of fifteen. Go, take this piece of paper and go over there. Stand and go quickly.¡±
The boy named Wu Gou looked at the direction pointed by the bookkeeper, took a piece of paper similar to an identity certificate, nodded repeatedly, and walked closer. When he stopped, he was surrounded by young soldiers or older soldiers.
"Name, where do you live?" This is a mechanical question that these bookkeepers have been saying these days. If you count carefully, there are not only one thousand, but also eight hundred.
"Cao," Cao Cao, who had mixed up with the prisoners, was about to speak, but realized that what he said was wrong, and immediately changed his words: "Zhao. Zhao Er, home. I forgot where he lives. It seems to be Shuxiang, which is also called Chu. Township."
"Zhao Er?" This name is too common. The bookkeeper flipped through the military register. I saw several such names. There are names, but the place of residence is very different from what the prisoner in front of me said.
"Think again, where is it!" A hint of impatience flashed across the bookkeeper's face, soldiers like these who knew nothing could only earn a living by joining the army. He's seen a lot. The person in front of me looks pretty good, and I'm afraid he is also an old soldier.
"I can't remember, I can't remember." Cao Cao, who is also a master of acting, rubbed his head and said with a frown. It seems that there is a feeling that I have been in the army for decades and never returned home.
The bookkeeper waved his hand impatiently and said, "If you don't remember, just go back and think about it. Come back when you've thought about it!"
Cao Cao frowned for a while. He had observed for a while that the young and old were all sent away by the soldiers. No need to think. These people must be free.
He wanted to leave safely, and this was his only chance. However, Cao Cao did not dare to make any noise at this time and turned around immediately. He walked back without saying a word.
"Stop, come here!" A shout suddenly sounded when Cao Cao turned around.
Cao Cao paused and almost ran away, but in the end he held back, pretending that he didn't hear anything, and continued walking towards the group of prisoners.
"Stop, come here!" The fierce shout came again, and Cao Cao could already feel that many people around him were focusing on him. With sweat in his palms, he turned around slowly.
After turning around and hearing the voice, Cao Cao breathed a sigh of relief. The person shouting to him was not the familiar general of the Zhen family, but the junior high school commander in the ordinary barracks. He immediately stepped forward carefully and whispered: "General, General, what are your orders?"
The principal slapped Cao Cao on the forehead and asked coldly: "Everyone else is lined up on both sides, why are you walking back alone?"
¡°If someone dared to treat him like this one day ago, Cao Cao would definitely draw his sword and kill him first. However, as he is now a captive soldier, he can only say in pain: "I, I don't remember where I live, so sir asked me to think about it again."
"Don't remember?" The principal stared and raised his hand to hit someone again. At this time, another principal came over with a stack of paper in his hand. Cao Cao lowered his head and his expression suddenly changed.
There is not a word on the paper, but it can make Cao Cao change his color. Nothing else, but a portrait of Cao Cao himself.
Just when Cao Cao's expression changed, the two men were already talking, and the content of their conversation was naturally the portrait in his hand.
The junior high school student who beat Cao Cao took the portrait, looked at it carefully, and praised: "I didn't expect that General Zhang has this skill. He can kill people and leave, and the painting is also very impressive."
"No, I saw the general draw this painting with my own eyes. I was just polishing the ink for the general in the tent!" The other person said with a slight show of pretentiousness. It seemed that it would be an unparalleled honor to be able to polish the ink for Zhang Fei.
The junior high school commander who spoke before felt envious and shook his head: "You are so lucky. If General Zhang takes a fancy to you and takes you with him, won't you worry about your military success in the future?"?¡±
As he said this, he thought that he was still only a low-level general in the army, and suddenly felt a little uncomfortable. Feeling uncomfortable in my heart, I naturally wanted to find someone to find out, and there was a ready-made person in front of me. Another slap hit Cao Cao on the back of the head, and the principal shouted coldly: "Lift your head up so I can take a good look!"
Fearing nothing, Cao Cao was still thinking about how to escape the pursuit of the portrait, when he heard the order to raise his head. During the hesitation, Cao Cao did not raise his head.
"Can't you hear me when I tell you to look up?" He kicked his right foot and the footprints fell on Cao Cao's chest. Poor Cao Amo, he had never been bullied like this on the battlefield, and now he was abused by a small school who was not welcome in the army.
With his hands covering his stomach, Cao Cao lowered his head without saying a word. He had made up his mind not to raise his head. At most, it's just a severe beating. As long as you can escape this level, you can get it back if you have a chance in the future.
But he didn¡¯t want to raise his head, and the primary school student who started beating people was even more annoyed. He stepped forward, grabbed Cao Cao's head with his right hand, grabbed his hair into his hand, lifted it violently, and cursed angrily: "I told you to raise your head, but you can't hear me, you are looking for death!"
Although the quality of the soldiers and horses of the Zhen family is better than that of the soldiers of other princes, it is undeniable that more of them are still a group of ruffians. Originally, I just wanted to find someone to vent my anger on, but now the small school has the idea of ??killing someone.
"Don't move. Lift his head!" The principal just made his move, but his companion next to him grabbed his arm and said, "Let me see, this person is somewhat similar to the portrait!"
Hearing what his companion said, Xiao Xiao grabbed Cao Cao with his right hand and raised his head. Then he spread out the portrait with his left hand and compared it while looking at it. The face doesn't seem to be much different. The eyes and nose are also similar.
Being caught in someone's hands, Cao Cao couldn't hide even if he wanted to. Although he cut off his beard, he also deliberately smeared plaster on his face. But the face remained unchanged. Especially the eyes. If you look carefully, you can see that they are very similar to the ones in the portrait.
At this moment, Cao Cao already hated Zhang Fei for painting his portrait. How could this guy draw himself so much like this? Even Cao Cao himself had to say that this was as if it was imprinted on himself.
There is such a realistic portrait. It was difficult for Cao Cao not to be recognized. After discovering this, the two junior high schools looked at each other. Immediately, there was a burst of joy. Cao Cao was captured. The two of them actually captured Cao Cao!
"I actually hit Yanzhou Cao Cao?" The principal holding Cao Cao's head felt dizzy and at the same time let go of his right hand. At this moment, his heart was in turmoil, and he felt everything, including excitement, uneasiness, and joy.
"Hurry up and report to the general that we have found Cao Mengde!" He grabbed Cao Cao who was about to turn around and run away with one hand, and his companion from the small school shouted: "I'm watching him. Go quickly!"
"Okay." How great is the credit for catching Cao Cao? The primary school doesn't know. But he knew that maybe he would really not have to worry about not being able to gain military exploits in the future.
Cao Cao found him among the captured soldiers. Zhang Liao and Zhang Fei were also happy. When the principal told Cao Cao nervously that he had given Cao Cao a few hard blows, Zhang Fei looked at Cao Mengde, who had a black face, and laughed and said: "Well done, you are worthy of me, Lao Zhang." The soldiers under my command are talented."
The words of praise came from Zhang Fei¡¯s heart. He was indeed happy to see Cao Cao suffer. You must know that this guy, like the former Yuan Shao, was against the lord every day.
Cao Cao was captured and was not suitable to stay in the military camp. He was soon sent to the Prefectural Mufu by Zhang Fei. After Zhen Yao heard what the soldiers in the military camp said, he looked at Cao Cao beside him with a half-smile: "Meng De was actually captured like this?"
Now that he has been recognized, Cao Cao stopped pretending, rubbed his still sore stomach, shook his head and sighed: "I don't want Bo Gao to use his troops like this, fuck, it's far worse!"
Zhen Yao did not comment on this. In fact, from the time he sent troops to capture Changyi, all he did was make overall arrangements, such as issuing edicts to all states and counties to attack Yan and Henan together.
As for the details of the battle formations, none of them were personally commanded by Zhen Yao. Either there were subordinates who commanded the troops to seize the city, or there were subordinates who plotted the strategy.
Zhen Yao only needs to know these things in his heart, and there is no need to tell Cao Cao. With a slight smile, Zhen Yao said: "Would Meng De be willing to return north with Yao and serve the emperor?" "Serve the emperor?" Cao Cao was very disdainful of this and snorted: "Who in the world doesn't know? There is only one Zhongshan Gong, so where can the Emperor of Han come from!"
"Meng De be careful." There was no one else around, and old man Jia Xu just pretended not to hear and continued busy with the affairs at hand. However, Zhen Yao still spoke: "Yao devoted his whole life to the Han Dynasty and fought on the battlefield for decades. Otherwise, how could he have the favor he has today? Xu Shao once said that Meng De is a capable minister in governing the world. Is it possible that his words are false?"
"Xu Zijiang?" A strange look flashed across Cao Cao's face. When he was young, his most proud thing was to set up a five-color stick and threaten Xu Shao to give him criticism.
"Since Meng De is powerful and has the same goals as Yao, why can't he help him?" This sentence is very explicit. If he goes on to say it, he may directly ask Cao Cao if he will rebel with him.
Cao Cao did not speak after hearing this, but his brows never relaxed. Cao Cao also understood what Zhen Yao was talking about, which was the current conflict between the nobles of the Han Dynasty and the poor families and common people. Whether it was Zhen Yao or Cao Cao, both of them took measures to suppress the expansion of the gentry, but their methods and degrees were different.
"Rong Cao, think about it carefully, think about it carefully." Cao Cao's expression changed a little, but he still didn't make a decision immediately, he just kept shaking his head.
Zhen Yao also knew that this matter could not be rushed, so he immediately said with a smile: "Meng De might as well go back to the house first. Several wives and nephews are here, and Yao did not disturb him."
"Thank you!" It was extremely difficult to get Cao Cao to say "thank you". Even if Zhen Yao had no intention of killing him, Cao Cao never thanked him. But because of his wife and children, Cao Cao uttered this word that he had not spoken for decades.
After Cao Cao left, Jia Xu said: "My lord, Cao Mengde is a man who cannot be left lightly."
Poison Master still maintains his own unique characteristics. As long as he considers a threat, he basically directly recommends killing them. But Zhen Yao didn't think so. Before Cao Cao was defeated, he might have been the biggest threat, but now he had no one to rely on. How could he do useless work again if he was as smart as him?
With the corners of his mouth raised, Zhen Yao sighed softly: "Wen He doesn't have to be like this. Cao Mengde is really a talented person, and he is somewhat similar to Yao!"
"My lord, there is a message from Yizhou." Just after he finished speaking, his bodyguard walked in and bowed.
Zhen Yao's eyes lit up and he said, "Yizhou? Hand it over!"
Zhen Yao couldn't help but laugh after taking the letter from the guard, opening it and looking at it carefully. Zhang Zha, Yan Yan and others did not let them down. Although they suffered some losses in the early stages of the Jiangzhou war, when the situation reached a stalemate, they gradually reversed the situation and successfully repelled the invading Jingzhou troops.
Judging from the date mentioned in the letter, it has been almost half a month since the war in Jiangzhou ended. Compared with Wenpin and other Jingzhou soldiers, they have all returned to the land of Jingxiang.
With this in mind, Zhen Yao decisively ordered: "Wen He, please order Zhang Xiu and Zhang Ren to secure the front line of Nanyang and Fancheng. There is no need to put pressure on Xiangyang anymore!"