Chapter 246 Return to Luoyang
Although Liu Feng had something on his mind, he needed to rely on He Yi for the next thing, so he asked patiently: "Oh, I don't know what it is?"
"Bring people here."
He Yi waved his hand behind Liu Feng with approval.
I saw He Luan escorting two people in from the outside.
"Sir, this person is He Kui, who used to be the commander of Huangjinqu in Qingzhou. The other person is Zhang Mang, who was also the commander of Huangjinqu in Qingzhou."
Seeing Liu Feng's doubtful look, He Yi stepped forward to give him a warning. He introduced: "These two people came from Yanzhou and told us that the Xuzhou army commanded by our master will soon go south to clean up Yingchuan. Therefore, I hope that we can take our families and follow them to Yanzhou, or simply go directly Yi Zhi, surrendered to the newly appointed general Cao Cao. "
He Yi's move was tantamount to betraying his brother, but he was helpless. Now that he surrendered to Liu Feng, he would also have to fight for the hundreds of thousands of Yingchuan Yellow Turban troops. Brothers and sisters, consider this.
Besides, He Kui and Zhang Mang are not good people. This time they came here not to use them as a stepping stone, but to ask them to surrender to Cao Cao.
Cao Cao massacred many Yingchuan Yellow Turban brothers. Marshal Bo Caibo was defeated by him, Huangfu Song and Zhu Jun together.
These hatreds have only passed for ten years, and many old people have not forgotten these things.
Before, He Kui went to Yangdi to persuade Bo Xing, but after Bo Xing died in the battle, he fled back to Yingyin with his followers.
Therefore, after He Yi decided to surrender, he immediately sent people to control He Kui and Zhang Mang, who had been staying in Yingyin to persuade him to surrender.
Now I just want to give it to Liu Feng as a token of my loyalty.
“That’s it.”
Liu Feng suddenly realized why he hadn't seen any action from Cao Cao.
Soon, Liu Feng felt angry.
It turns out that this old man actually took the firewood and ran ahead of himself.
Fortunately, He Yi was not persuaded by them, otherwise she would have become a clown.
When I think that I have mobilized tens of thousands of troops, paid them a lot of money, and marched south with great fanfare. Before the official battle, the Yingchuan Yellow Turbans directly came to the battlefield to change their flag and became Cao Cao's subordinates. That scene is so disgusting. How disgusting.
It will even greatly affect Liu Feng and even Liu Bei's reputation.
You worked hard to fight against the Yellow Turbans, but the Yellow Turbans looked down on you and surrendered to Cao Cao who did not waste a single soldier.
Doesn’t this mean that Cao Cao is far superior to your Liu family and his son?
If Cao Cao really comes here all of a sudden, not to mention Yingchuan, I am afraid that even Peiguo and Runan will not be able to survive. From now on, Yuzhou's operations will be half the result with twice the result.
Damn it, this old dog Cao Mengde might still be eyeing Pei Guo and Runan.
The Yellow Turban Army in Runan and Yingchuan are separated by a thin layer of water, and they are at odds with each other.
That is to say, he fought fast and slow, and captured the Yingchuan Yellow Turbans with almost no siege. Otherwise, the Yellow Turbans in Runan would not have been able to sit idly by and reinforcements would arrive sooner or later.
If Cao Cao could successfully surrender the Yingchuan Yellow Turban, I only believe that he would not use his crooked ideas against Runan.
The uncles and nephews He Yi and He Luan watched Liu Feng perform a Sichuan Opera face change in front of them, and their hearts trembled.
He Yi secretly sighed in her heart. Fortunately, she did not release He Kui and the others in private. Just looking at Liu Feng's current performance, if she had really done that, it might have become the cause of death of her uncle and nephew. .
Liu Feng slowly exhaled and controlled the anger in his heart. After calming down, he realized that this was now a good thing.
Widow Cao did such an immoral thing, and the person who handled it was caught. He just wanted to get through without any blood. Doesn’t that make him look too incompetent?
Liu Feng's expression changed, he stepped forward to hold He Yi's hand, and said emotionally: "Old General, you have helped me a lot."
Both He Yi and He Luan were I was surprised, and then I felt a sense of joy in my heart. Could it be that I made the right bet?
This is actually an exaggeration deliberately made by Liu Feng.
It is true that He Yi's move was a great help to Liu Feng and worthy of Liu Feng's gratitude, but Liu Feng's move had another purpose besides acknowledging He Yi's uncle and nephew's contribution.
In fact, when people interact with others, it is not all about showing kindness in one direction. If you encounter someone with bad character, kindness may even turn into hatred.
In fact, Cheng'en is also a means to enhance the relationship between the two parties, and it is effective.
Liu Feng generously told He Yi and He Luan, his uncle and nephew, that He Kui and Zhang Mang were very useful, and you had made great contributions.
This was more effective than the hundred times he had wrapped He Yi in a cloak before, and could soothe the hearts of He Yi and He Luan's uncle and nephew.
Because they were confident in their hearts, they had made contributions to Xuzhou, which Liu Feng had personally promised, which also meant that Liu Feng could no longer execute them casually, otherwise Liu Feng's political reputation would also be greatly affected.
After all, there is a huge difference between executing a surrendered general and executing a surrendered general who has made great achievements.
After He Yi and He Luan heard Liu Feng's praise and approval, they were so happy that they relaxed. For a while, even the lingering feeling of humiliation of surrendering general subsided.
Liu Feng’s personal recognition of his great contribution made He Yi and He Luan feel like they were beginning to integrate into the Xuzhou Group. This was undoubtedly a pretty good start.
Subsequently, Liu Feng suppressed the thought of running back to Luoyang to trouble Cao Cao, and immediately held a banquet to entertain He Yi and He Luan, and even invited Zhang Liao to accompany him.
The city's defense has been completely taken over by Gao Shun and Xiahou Bo, Xu Huang is in charge of the cavalry camp, and Taishi Ci is in charge. Liu Feng is not worried at all.
During the banquet, Liu Feng also specifically asked He Yi and He Luan about the situation at the Runan Corner.
In this regard, uncle and nephew He Yi really know that area very well.
“Young master, I don’t know something. Two years ago, when all the Taoists gathered together, we wanted to go to Chen State to eat.” Food, in fact, everyone understands it, isn’t it just looting?
"At that time, we were going to assemble in Xihua County. The land there was already white and there were no human habitations."
He Yi looked normal when he said this, just because the Yingchuan Yellow Turbans had never harmed this area. area.
Although the Yingchuan Yellow Turban is relatively close to the Runan Corner area, the reason why this area is so deserted is mainly caused by the Xiliang Army and the Runan Yellow Turban. Compared with their Yingchuan Yellow Turban, It really doesn't matter much.
He Luan also added on the side: "The same is true for Zhaoling and Zhengqiang. This place used to be very prosperous, but now it is the same as Xihua. When we gathered in Xihua before, we had to go from Ying Yin transported grain because the neighboring counties of Zhaoling and Zhengqiang also had no surplus grain. "
This Zhengqiang County is a large county, with more than 10,000 households.
Jiao Jiao, a famous scholar in Kuaiji whom Bu Zhi once visited, once served as the magistrate of Zhengqiang County and did a pretty good job.
In the Han Dynasty, those with more than 10,000 households were called county magistrates, and those with less than 10,000 households were called county magistrates.
It can be seen that this land is fertile and prosperous, supporting at least a population of more than 10,000 households.
Liu Feng was secretly happy. If this was the case, he would have many more options to choose from.
Subsequently, Liu Feng began to explore migration again.
After hearing this, He Yi and He Luan were silent for a moment, expressing some grievances and difficulties.
After all, in this day and age, traveling such a long distance is a fatal thing for ordinary people.
Even if there are government organizations and sufficient supplies along the way, many old, weak, women, children, and even young adults will die on the way for various reasons.
The reaction of He Yi and He Luan was not unexpected by Liu Feng. On the contrary, the opposition of the other party was too weak, which gave Liu Feng the feeling that as long as he was a little tougher, the other party would give in. .
However, Liu Feng did not press any further, but changed the subject. Uncle and Nephew He Yi introduced the situation in Xuzhou, and asked Uncle and Nephew He Yi about his future intentions.
When He Luan heard Liu Feng mention that he could continue to join the army, his eyes immediately lit up, and he couldn't help asking: "Master, I wonder if Luan is lucky enough to be able to serve under General Xu?"
Liu Feng was immediately happy. I didn't expect He Luan would actually make such a request. Is this a good feeling by Xu Huang?
"If you really have this idea, I can ask on your behalf, but it will only happen if General Xu agrees."
Liu Feng spoke very conservatively, but precisely because of his conservativeness, he was more confident Sincerity.
He Luan was immediately overjoyed and prostrated himself at the table: "You are stupid and ignorant, and have been a thief for most of your life. Thanks to the young master for not giving up, I am willing to be his lackey!"
Liu Feng laughed and stood up, helping him up: "Wenshan, I hope we can have a good beginning and a good end. If you don't let me down, I will not let you down."
On this day, He Yi and He Luan are both like this. After returning drunk, the uncle and nephew had completely relaxed.
The next day, Liu Feng specially arranged for Taishi Ci to be in charge, and asked He Yi to cooperate. Then he asked He Luan to serve as the school captain, selected two thousand yellow scarves to form a school, and assigned them to Xu Huang to command.
Of course He Luan was overjoyed, but Xu Huang was also a little surprised.
He never dreamed that his extra-staff reinforcements would have the opportunity to expand. Although He Luan was a surrendered soldier, who would have thought that Xu Huang would be assigned to him.
Even with Xu Huang's stability, he couldn't help but come to Liu Feng to have a look.
Liu Feng didn't say much, he just expressed his respect and appreciation for Xu Huang, letting Xu Huang just feel at ease, and even specifically promised the status of a lieutenant general.
Historically, Xu Huang was doing quite well at this time. Not only did he obtain the official position of a partial general, he was also granted the title of Tinghou.
But now with Liu Feng's strong intervention, Yang Feng has actually stepped aside during the emperor's return to the east. Although his official position was not demoted but promoted, his actual power was far worse than at the same time in history.
Yang Fengshang was like this, Xu Huang was naturally even worse. Even now, he is still a captain, not even a lieutenant general. There is still a gap of two levels between being a general of the middle rank and a general of the side, and there is also a general of Pi in the middle, let alone the title of marquis.
After the arrangements were made, Liu Feng left Yingyin, went north by water, then turned to land and rode back to Luoyang.
He returned to Luoyang this time for three main things. The first thing was naturally to cause trouble for Cao Cao. He had to make the widow Cao vomit some blood no matter what.
The second thing is of course to pay a pilgrimage to the emperor and ask for merit for his generals.
The third thing is to continue to win over Yang Feng and Zhang Yang. Widow Cao still had time to set a trap for himself. Apparently Yang Feng and Zhang Yang put too little pressure on him, so he had to encourage the two brothers.
Eight days later, Liu Feng returned to Luoyang with a team of carriages and horses.
On the day he entered the city, Liu Feng went to Zhaozhai to meet the emperor.
The person who came out to greet him was Zhong Yao, an old acquaintance. At this time, he had been promoted to Yushi Zhongcheng.
"Liu Jianzhong, the emperor is waiting for you in the main hall, please come with me."
Seeing Liu Feng, Zhong Yao showed a kind smile and whispered while leading the way: "The emperor heard that You fought three battles in Yingchuan, defeated the Yellow Turban, and recovered seven or eight cities in a row. If the general hadn't stopped you, the emperor would have wanted to make you a marquis. "
Liu Feng's face showed a look of surprise, and he hurriedly said humbly: "I am ashamed that the emperor is worried about me. This great victory in Yingchuan is a blessing to the emperor and to the soldiers who fought bloody battles. I fought with trembling fear and sincerity, but finally I didn't. Live up to the emperor's expectations, and clear up the Yingchuan Yellow Turban for the emperor and the court."
Liu Feng was complimenting the emperor, but in his heart he was digesting the information given by Zhong Yao.
Whether Zhong Yao's words are true or false, Liu Feng doesn't know yet, but Zhong Yao's attitude is very important.
At this point in history, Zhong Yao had completely surrendered to Cao Cao, and later even took the important position of Sili Xiaowei with Cao Cao's support.
Anyone who has a little knowledge of the officialdom of the Eastern Han Dynasty knows that the position of Sili Xiaowei is quite powerful, and it is simply a sharp blade used to eradicate dissidents.
Therefore, it is absolutely impossible for someone who is not trusted by Cao Cao to sit in this position.
The reason why Sili Xiaowei is so arrogant is because this official position can directly arrest high-ranking officials in the DPRK.
In history, Wang Fu, the powerful eunuch who served in the Changqiu period (the top eunuch position) and served his father for ten years, was killed by Yang Qiu, the captain of the Sili school.
This shows how powerful this official position is.
Historically, after Emperor Xian of the Han Dynasty moved to Luoyang, Cao Cao personally served as the first Sili Colonel, killing three important officials in one go.
Later, Cao Cao had to worship the general, and the Sili captain was transferred to Ding Chong.
After Cao Ang died, the relationship between Cao Cao and Ding Chong deteriorated sharply, and Ding Chong eventually had to poison him.
The person who succeeded Ding Chong as the school captain was Zhong Yao.
This period of time seems to be quite long, but it is actually not that long, only a short year.
It can be seen that Zhong Yao must have defected to Cao Cao early, otherwise how could he move from Huangmen Shilang to Yushi Zhongcheng, then to Shizhong, then to Shangshu Pushe, and finally took over as Si Li Xiaowei within one year.
This series of promotions is equivalent to promoting a centrally managed department-level cadre to a senior official within one year.
Not one of his own, Cao Cao is crazy to promote Zhong Yao like this.
Judging from the information Zhong Yao has revealed to Liu Feng, it seems that he still stands on the side of the emperor, is vaguely close to Liu Feng, and dares to directly denounce the right and wrong of Cao Cao.
This attitude is completely contrary to history.
Liu Feng was actually quite greedy for Zhong Yao, but he did not deliberately try to win over him.
Because famous people from noble families like Zhong Yao are very opinionated. Your courtesy corporal will only bring you certain bonus points, but they will never be able to make the final decision like you do with powerful people from poor families.
To put it simply, the input-output ratio is too low.
Even if you spend a lot of money to win over Zhong Yao, you may end up being prostituted by him for nothing.
Liu Feng does not have so many resources to squander it so much.
“The Chariot and Cavalry Generals, the Wei Generals, and Sikong all support giving you a reward, but the Taiwei, General Anji, and the Great General have the same attitude.”
Zhong Yao continued to introduce Liu Feng's changes in the past month since he left.
"A few days ago, there was a big conflict between General Han Xian and General Dong Cheng of Anji. Their soldiers almost got into a fight. This angered the emperor and ordered them both to withdraw from Luoyang. The city is now only garrisoned by the Yanzhou Army, the Hanoi Army and the Cheqi General's troops."
This news aroused Liu Feng's alert. Zhang Yang will run away sooner or later, and Yang Feng can't fight. Cao Cao also wanted to go to Gong County to farm.
In this way, wouldn’t the widow Cao be able to cover the sky in Luoyang City from now on?
It seems that when you enter the city in the future, you will need to bring more followers, and you will also have to control a city gate.
Although the widow Cao may not go crazy, Liu Feng is not at ease.
After thanking Zhong Yao, the two of them had arrived outside the main hall.
Zhong Yao apologized and went into the palace first to pass the news.
"Hurry up and invite Liu Qing to the palace."
The emperor had a very good impression of Liu Feng, especially in the past half month, he felt that Cao Cao, Yang Feng, Zhang Yang, Han Xian, The tyranny of Dong Cheng and other warlords.
Although far inferior to the warriors of Xiliang, even Hedong is inferior.
But the emperor's mood has become higher now.
He does not think that he is still a puppet emperor.
The successful return east to Luoyang, coupled with the support of Xuzhou, gave the emperor the illusion of being in power, and naturally he began to be unable to stand the warlord behavior of Cao Cao and others.
On the contrary, Liu Feng requested the order early to go to Yingchuan to suppress the bandits, and he was very successful.
In this way, Liu Feng, who had the bonus of distant fragrance and near odor, coupled with his relatively deferential attitude in the past, instantly became a loyal minister in the emperor's heart.
"I was ordered by the emperor to go south to sweep Yingchuan. I was protected by the emperor. The generals dared to fight and the soldiers served their lives. Now we are finally done."
Liu Feng first expressed his credit, and then He bribed the emperor: "In the process of suppressing bandits, I seized a batch of materials and property. I learned that the imperial court was in financial difficulties. I am willing to hand over all of them to the chief minister and the young government."
The emperor heard this. , the excitement surged.
The emperor is very clear about the difficulties in the DPRK at the moment, but in addition to Zhang Yang squeezing another batch of money and grain from Hanoi to Beijing, Yang Feng and Han Xian also want the imperial court to subsidize them to raise troops, and Cao Cao It's nothing.
After all, Zhang Yang only had more than half of Hanoi, and his money and food were extremely limited. The goods sent this time were only tens of thousands of money and three thousand shi of food.
This is Zhang Yang's best effort to offer sacrifices, and he can't give out any more.
Cao Cao still has some money and food, but he also has to raise troops. If he turns over the money and food, how will he maintain his 70,000 to 80,000 troops.
Liu Feng is selling off to the emperor now and turning over the proceeds because he is about to leave.
Before leaving, it is very important to continue to brush up on the emperor's favorability and leave a good impression.
At the same time, Liu Feng will soon have to settle accounts with Cao Cao, and the emperor is also a very good weight.
Soon, the chamberlain transferred the memorial in Liu Feng's hands to the emperor.
The emperor couldn't wait to open it and saw a dazzling array of various materials. Not only were there goods and fabrics, salt and food, lamp oil and candles, but also many precious materials. Even two pieces of Shu brocade were offered.
These things were all dug out from the Yellow Turban Army's warehouse. Although the quantity is not large, there are many types, such as lamp oil, candles and other supplies, which are what the emperor is in urgent need of now.
(End of this chapter)