Ding Chong, whose courtesy name was Youyang, was a native of Pei and a fellow townsman of Cao Cao. He was currently the Imperial Secretary. He felt that Yuan Xi was looking at him threateningly, and his first reaction was to glare back.
We are here in front of the Emperor, all the officials and generals are here. What can a mere general with a nominal title do to you?
But when he looked up, he found that the officials had different expressions. Many of them looked at Lu Bu involuntarily, but Lu Bu glanced at him indifferently.
Ding Chong suddenly came to his senses and broke out in a sweat. Anything else would have been fine, but it was rumored that Yuan Xi was going to marry Lu Bu's daughter, and Lu Bu was a scoundrel who had killed Ding Yuan and Dong Zhuo!
But he was now in a dilemma, so he gritted his teeth and insisted: "Yuan Gonglu threatened the emperor's carriage, and his generals are guilty of crimes that cannot be punished. Why not?"
At this time, Kong Rong said, "Let's not talk about anything else. Yuan Gonglu attacked the city of Wenhou. What does it have to do with the emperor?"
Ding Chong choked and cursed in his heart, Kong Rong is really a stone in the toilet, coming out to meddle again at this time!
He knew very well that Bian Rang and Kong Rong were both famous scholars of the time. After Bian Rang was killed by Cao Cao, Kong Rong became determined to fight Cao Cao. Ever since he defected to Liu Xie, he would rebel against Cao Cao in everything he did.
Ding Chong rolled his eyes and snorted coldly, "Yuan Gonglu sent troops to Sili, obviously to spy on Luoyang. Now An Guotinghou secretly hid his generals, is he trying to collude with Yuan Shu?"
Yuan Xi thought to himself where did Cao Cao find such a fool? This was not even a test but a clear provocation.
Ding Chong is obviously fearless, thinking that Cao Cao is protecting him, but he doesn't think about the fact that if he can't deal with Cao Cao, how can he deal with you?
Ding Chong had two sons, Ding Yi and Ding Yi. Cao Cao actually valued the father and son Ding very much, but the fate of Ding Chong's family was obviously not very good. Because Ding Yi and Ding Yi supported Cao Zhi, they were eventually killed by Cao Pi.
Thinking of this, Yuan Xi admired Cao Pi very much. He killed all the people belonging to the Cao family, resulting in almost no one standing up to support the Cao family when the Sima family usurped the throne.
However, they each serve their own master. With Yuan Xi's current status, he is equal to Cao Cao, so there is no need to explain this issue to Ding Chong in person.
In principle, it should be the officials on Yuan Xi's side who stand up to defend Yuan Xi at this time, but Yuan Xi did not place his own forces around Liu Xie, so even if he had a hidden chess piece, he would not expose it now.
As for Ding Chong and Zhong Yao, they were Cao Cao's open chess pieces and had long been exposed. Cao Cao must have other hidden chess pieces. Yuan Xi wondered if Cao Cao was testing him or deliberately provoking him?
He seemed to have not heard Ding Chong's words, but raised his head slightly and faced Liu Xie with a calm expression.
The officials had different expressions when they saw this. They had long heard of the reputation of the Yuan family as a ferocious tiger on the battlefield, and thought that this person must have a bad temper. But now it seemed that apart from showing some anger at the beginning, he quickly calmed down and maintained his energy without any composure, which was extremely inconsistent with his age.
Liu Xie asked, "What does Marquis Anguo think of what Yuan Gonglu did?"
He said this very tactfully, without mentioning Qiao Rui's matter at all. Instead, he asked directly about Yuan Shu's situation, as a way to give Yuan Xi a way out.
After hearing this, Yuan Xi bowed and said, "Yuan Gonglu has evil intentions, which is a disaster for the Han court."
Liu Xie said, "Then, my dear minister, what do you think I should do?"
Yuan Xi replied: "Yuan Gonglu is powerful, with 300,000 soldiers under his command. If he mobilizes all his troops, the Sili region will be in danger."
Zhong Yao snorted, "Huaicheng has Marquis Wen, Sili Yanzhou has Captain Cao, how dare Yuan Shu step into the unforgivable pond?"
His words were openly praising Lu Bu, but secretly building momentum for Cao Cao. Yuan Xi heard this and smiled, "I heard that Chenliu County has been under attack for a year, and Yanzhou can't even be stabilized, let alone Sili."
Everyone's faces froze. Wasn't this a veiled denigration of Cao, mocking him for not being able to recover even a county under his rule? How could he be capable of resisting Yuan Shu as Zhong Yao said?
Zhong Yao's face flushed. Seeing Cao Cao looking at him, he was about to open his mouth to explain, but he heard Yuan Xi say, "Zhang Miao and Zhang Chao are stubborn and intend to be enemies with Cao. Chenliu is very close to Henei. If it is not pacified, it will also affect the emperor's carriage."
"Please also ask the emperor to issue an order to allow the brothers Zhang Miao and Zhang Chao to surrender to the Han court, so as to relieve Envoy Cao of his worries and allow him to concentrate on protecting Sili."
The officials were stunned, and then a few of them cheered secretly. Originally, Ding Chong wanted to divert the trouble to Yuan Xi, but somehow, it became Cao Cao's business!
The incident involving the Zhang Miao brothers in Chenliu County was not a big deal, but the relationships and entanglements implied in it were like a tangled mess that was difficult to unravel.
Zhang Miao and Zhang Chao were also famous figures of the time, and they were the initiators of the Suanzao Coalition. They were considered heroes in the campaign against Dong Zhuo, and the Han court had to protect them on the surface. However, their rebellion against Cao Cao became a personal grudge between them and Cao Cao, and the Han court had no excuse to intervene.
However, Yuan Xi's proposal cleverly turned it into a matter of the emperor's safety, giving the Han court a legitimate reason to intervene!
However, this was also risky for Liu Xie. If the mediation was successful, the prestige of the Han court would greatly increase, but if Zhang Miao and Zhang Chao turned a blind eye, the prestige of the Han court would be damaged.
As for Cao Cao, he is now building up the strength of his party around the emperor and is still in a dormant period. It is not easy for him to openly oppose Yuan Xi's proposal.
Yuan Xi's idea was a counterattack against Ding Chong's provocation just now. Everyone looked at Ding Chong at this time with a hint of mockery on their faces, thinking that this fierce tiger of the Yuan family had the wisdom of military strategy even in his words in the court.
Liu Xie turned to Cao Cao and asked, "What do you think, sir?"
To Yuan Xi's surprise, Cao Cao replied without hesitation: "Marquis Anguo's plan is very good. If the emperor has any orders, I will obey them."
A solemn look appeared on Yuan Xi's face. Cao Cao was a man who could take it or leave it. When it came to interests, he would give up all his face. It was really hard to guess what he was like.
Cao Cao added: "Zhang Miao and Zhang Chao are indeed talented, but unfortunately they have been blinded for the time being. If they can bow down to the Han court, I will recommend them to serve in the same court."
Yuan Xi looked at Lu Bu and found that the other party did not react. He thought that Lu Bu really lacked a strategist.
At that time, Zhang Miao and Zhang Chao supported Lu Bu in his rebellion against Cao Cao. If you didn't speak up and try to get more benefits for them, who in the court would dare to join you in the future?
Just from this point alone, it is clear that Lu Bu will definitely not be able to defeat Cao Cao in the future. Yuan Xi sighed inwardly, wondering if it was a bit wishful thinking on his part to let Lu Bu and Cao Cao wrestle with each other.
As soon as Cao Cao spoke, many ministers spoke in agreement. Even Kong Rong, who was at odds with Cao Cao, spoke in agreement.
After all, Zhang Miao and Zhang Chao were surrounded in Chenliu, which was already a dead end. If they could give up Chenliu and get a nominal position in the Han court, it would be better than losing their lives.
For Cao Cao, being able to capture Chenliu without bloodshed and stabilize his hometown was a sure win.
Seeing this, Liu Xie said, "Since this is the case, I will send an envoy to Chenliu to mediate between the two sides and put an end to the fighting."
For him, this was a good opportunity to demonstrate the majesty of the Han court and test the attitude of the world. Not only was it a way for him to repay Cao Cao for his efforts, but he could also suppress Cao Cao's momentum by recruiting the Zhang Miao brothers.
After hearing this, everyone bowed and said, "The Heavenly Family is wise!"
Several ministers began to think actively. This fierce tiger of the Yuan family acted unexpectedly. This proposal seemed to be fantastic, but in fact it grasped the thoughts of all parties extremely accurately. How did Yuan Shao teach this son?
Yang Biao said, "Marquis Anguoting is very wise, but I remember that your majesty was asking about Yuan Gonglu just now, right?"
After hearing this, Yuan Xi smiled and said, "What Shang Shu Ling said is correct. Chenliu is just a small matter. The problem with Yuan Gong Road is the real problem."
"But Xi thought that although Yuan Gonglu claimed to have an army of 300,000, their morale was not united, and since the rumor of his establishment spread, their morale was even more unstable."
"That day, Qiao Rui attacked the city and surrendered after being besieged by me. Afterwards, I talked with him and learned that many of Yuan Gonglu's men were still loyal to the Han Dynasty."
"Especially his subordinate Sun Ce, whose father Sun Jian was a loyal minister of the Han Dynasty. If he were still alive, he would not allow Yuan Shu to establish himself as the emperor."
"Sun Ce has the spirit of my father, so Xi thinks that we should send an envoy to Sun Ce to persuade him to betray Yuan Shu. In this way, Yuan Shu will be attacked from all sides and will not dare to spy on Sili again."
"I have occupied Guangling City, which is only separated from Sun Ce's capital by a river. The surrendered general Qiao Rui is very friendly with Sun Ce. If we release him and persuade Sun Ce, great things can be accomplished."
After these words were spoken, Cao Cao's face showed a solemn expression for the first time, and there was even a hint of anxiety.
Yuan Xi keenly caught this point and thought that Cao Cao had indeed made arrangements in advance with Sun Ce!
Because according to later records, after Yuan Shu proclaimed himself emperor, Sun Ce immediately rebelled against Yuan Shu, and formed an alliance with Cao Cao to fight against Yuan Shu together. This shows that Cao Cao had already made a private deal with Sun Ce.
Yuan Xi's proposal now was tantamount to inserting the power of the Han court and Yuan Xi into the alliance before Sun Ce and Cao Cao formed one.
This was a blatant interception. Cao Cao felt as disgusted as if he had eaten a fly. An idea suddenly came to his mind.
How come this ferocious tiger from the Yuan family seems to know what I'm thinking?
Does he have a spy under his command, or is he really proficient in the illusory art of astrology as rumored?
If it is the latter, he is probably able to guess people's thoughts and predict the future. Can I really outwit him?
Cao Cao found that he had still underestimated Yuan Xi!
Although the current situation in the Tianxiahe court has not deviated from the previous plans and expectations of himself and Xun You, the terrifying thing about the fierce tiger is that every time it acts, it coincides with his own!
No matter in welcoming the emperor, suppressing Yuan Shu, or the affairs of the Zhang Miao brothers in Chenliu, Yuan Xi's ideas are extremely similar to his own, or they are diametrically opposed. Now he still has the energy to deal with him, but what about the future?
When Cao Cao thought of this, he suddenly felt a bit murderous. He tolerated Yuan Xi everywhere. On the one hand, he could still control the situation and all his actions were to paralyze the other party. On the other hand, he had to show humility in front of Liu Xie in order to gain his trust, so he couldn't act too extreme.
Yuan Xi was against me in every way, and I was afraid that he knew my psychology well. If this continued, I would be led by him, which would be very disadvantageous.
Just kill him?