Guangling.
Chen Deng walked into the room and saw Lu Xun browsing through his collection of books.
The books in these rooms are all the classics that Chen Deng brought from home, ranging from astronomy and geography to strange stories and gossips. They can be said to be the accumulation and inheritance of the family for hundreds of years.
After Lu Xun followed Taishi Ci back to Guangling, he became very interested in these books and stayed in the house for several days.
He read very quickly. Chen Deng could hear the rustling sound of bamboo slips turning outside the house. When he entered the room, he saw Lu Xun taking apart the bamboo slips, then cutting them open along the direction they were rolled up. When they were completely spread out, his fingers pointed and it turned out that he had already read through several words on the bamboo strips.
Lu Xun's eyes kept scanning the scroll, and within a cup of tea, he had finished reading the scroll of bamboo slips. He then rolled up the bamboo slips with his hand, tied them up, put them aside, and opened another scroll.
Lu Xun read at different speeds. The fast ones would just glance over the book and put it aside, while the slow ones would often think for a moment before continuing reading.
Chen Deng did not disturb him and stood by for a while. Lu Xun accidentally raised his head and realized that Chen Deng had come. He quickly stood up and bowed, saying, "Greetings, Governor."
Chen Deng returned the greeting and said, "Bo Yan, there is no need to be so polite."
The two men sat down opposite each other, and Lu Xun asked, "Did I cause trouble for the governor here?"
Chen Deng said: "No, Boyan is a great talent, and his future achievements will definitely surpass mine."
"At the beginning, the envoy had never met him before, but he praised Boyan highly. If he knew that Boyan had come to surrender, he would definitely be overjoyed."
Lu Xun had long heard that Yuan Xi had specifically recruited him, and a trace of doubt appeared on his face. "Your Excellency is now famous all over the world, how could you know someone like me who is unknown?"
"I heard that the envoy still thinks highly of me. This is incredible."
Chen Deng smiled and said, "Indeed, before I met the envoy, I didn't believe that he could save my life."
"I can only say that you have a unique vision and can see a glimpse of the secrets of heaven, which ordinary people cannot achieve."
After hearing this, Lu Xun thought that this might be a false rumor. How could there be anyone in the world who could predict the future?
Chen Deng didn't know what Lu Xun was thinking, so he asked, "Bo Yan has already learned about what happened in Huaicheng, right?"
Lu Xun nodded and said, "I have learned from General Taishi that the counselors and generals under your command are all outstanding. They can achieve great success, which is due to your ability to manage your subordinates."
Chen Deng said: "Now the envoy has gone to Yecheng, and has not yet learned that Boyan has come to Guangling."
"At the beginning, the envoy told me that if Bo Yan came to surrender, I must come and meet him."
"But there is one thing that is very troublesome. We were able to receive the urgent letter from the young master because we have been in Guangling all the time."
"But the young master is different. He went to Huaicheng first, then to Yecheng. It is not certain where he will go next. So even if we send a letter, we may not be able to find the envoy."
"I came here to ask Boyan, do you want to wait in Guangling for someone to deliver the letter, or go to Yecheng to look for the envoy?"
Lu Xun hesitated for a moment and said, "I have surrendered to Guangling but have not accomplished anything. If I leave now, if Jiangdong attacks..."
Chen Gong smiled and said, "It's okay. Jiangdong is currently expanding its territory in Yangzhou and will not waste its troops in Guangling."
"Besides, it tried to come once before, but was repelled by Ziyi and I. It is unlikely that it will come again in the short term."
"It's not that I don't want to keep Boyan, but the envoy thinks highly of Boyan. I don't know what official position is suitable for Boyan, so it's better to let the envoy decide for himself."
As the two were talking, another urgent report came in. Chen Deng took a look and asked in confusion, "Strange, how come the north has become unstable in the past few days?"
He handed the information to Lu Xun and said, "What does Boyan think?"
After Lu Xun read it carefully, his face changed slightly and he said, "Not good."
This information is about Liu Bei's movements.
The fleet built by Mi Fang in the East China Sea was robbed by the pirate fleet of Guan Hai, a member of the Yellow Turbans in Qingzhou, when it was heading north for trade. All the property and goods were lost, and many people were killed and injured.
Mi Fang was furious when he heard this, and led his troops out to sea to fight. Both sides suffered casualties. Mi Fang's side suffered a great loss and retreated back to the port.
This was actually a huge loss for Mi Fang, because it was equivalent to losing control of the maritime trade routes. Who would dare to trade on the sea routes in the future?
This incident actually had a significant impact on Guangling, because Guangling was backed by the Zhen family's trade route. The Zhen and Mi families had different channels for purchasing goods, and the two had a good relationship and could share what they had with each other.
But in this way, the Mi family would lose their channels and Guangling's trade would also be affected.
Seeing this, Lu Xun shook his head and said, "How could those Yellow Turbans in Qingzhou know how to build sea vessels? In all likelihood, Yuan Qingzhou is behind it."
"It's obvious that they want to expand their territory. Looking around, the only way is to go south from Xuzhou."
"Although Liu Yuzhou was his sponsor, if we put the blame on the Yellow Turbans, we won't be able to track them down."
Chen Deng listened and looked worried, "I'm afraid of this."
"But why is he in such a hurry?"
"Why are you so brave?"
Lu Xun thought for a moment and said, "There are several possibilities. One possibility I can think of is that he may have teamed up with the Yellow Turban bandits."
"If we recruit the Yellow Turban bandits, including the Taishan bandits, there will be so many more mouths to feed, and we will definitely be running out of food and fodder."
"We can't keep these people for nothing. It's better to use them for war. On the one hand, we can reduce the population, and on the other hand, we can expand the territory. It's like killing two birds with one stone."
Chen Deng looked even more worried after hearing this. "Although Boyan is young, he has a keen eye for things."
"Yuan Qingzhou is decisive in his actions. I am worried that he also has feelings for Guangling. If we don't handle this well, I am afraid it will affect the relationship between you and him."
Lu Xun said softly: "Now it is tantamount to seeking the skin of a tiger. If Yuan Qingzhou gets the Taishan bandits, his military strength will increase by at least tens of thousands. I am afraid that Xuzhou alone will not be able to satisfy him."
"If it were me, I would have planned to seize Liu Bei's Xia Pi, then eye Jiujiang County, and then occupy Yuzhou."
"If he really gets Yuzhou, I'm afraid the competition for the next head of the Yuan family will become complicated and confusing."
Chen Deng was somewhat incredulous, "Defeat Yuan Gonglu?"
"Although Yuan Qingzhou is powerful, I'm afraid he still doesn't have enough strength, right?"
Lu Xun picked up another urgent report beside him, "This is about the movements of Cao Cao's army."
"Some of the Cao army that besieged Chenliu in Yanzhou have already headed to the border between the east of Yanzhou and Xiapi."
"Looking at his movements, he obviously has some ideas."
After hearing this, Chen Deng shook his head and said, "I would rather be an enemy of Sun Ce than Cao Mengde."
Lu Xun remained silent, and Cao's army relaxed its attack and siege on Chenliu Puyang. One reason was that as the secret letter said, the emperor sent Kong Rong to Puyang to mediate the dispute between the two sides.
On the other hand, it is still unknown how many people are left alive in Puyang City.
Because when Cao's army besieged the city earlier, they blocked several rivers near Puyang, then dug them up and flooded the city.
It is said that the flood caused countless casualties in the city. The water accumulated to a height of more than one person, and the soldiers and civilians were forced to live on the roofs of houses. However, most of the houses were made of mud, wood and thatch, and would collapse after being soaked for a long time. The people on the roofs fell into the water, causing many casualties.
Later, I heard that there were floating corpses everywhere in the city, and the scene was too tragic to bear to watch.
In this situation, people inside cannot get out, and people outside cannot get in. After waiting for a month or two, the accumulated water will recede and most of the people in the city will have died, and the city can naturally be breached.
However, after this battle, Puyang fell and became completely unsuitable for human habitation for several years.
It can be said that a water attack is more thorough than letting soldiers massacre the city.
This is also why Chen Deng said that he was unwilling to be an enemy of Cao's army. Building a city often takes a hundred years, and a flood would make all efforts come to naught.
This also shows that Cao's army was very determined to pacify Yanzhou. They were willing to let Puyang become a dead city in order to eliminate the hidden dangers. This behavior of killing one thousand enemies and losing eight hundred of their own was not a momentary impulse, but had other intentions.
Cao's army must have something more pressing to do, which is why they acted so decisively!
Thinking of this, Chen Deng sighed: "I'm afraid that Xuzhou will be in turmoil again."
Lu Xun lowered his head to think for a while, then raised his head and said, "I won't leave for the time being."
"It would be good if I could help the governor by staying here."
Over these days, Cheng Deng already knew that Lu Xun's strategic talent was not inferior to anyone he had ever met. With his help, he would feel much more relaxed. After all, the situation around Guangling was not very good now.
Chen Deng sighed, "If this is the case, Boyan will not be able to meet the envoy."
Lu Xun said, "Even if I go to Yecheng, I may not meet the envoy. He may have already left."
"Ruoxun's guess is correct. If the envoy can understand the situation here, he should come to mediate the dispute between Yuan Qingzhou and Liu Yuzhou."
"Xun will naturally be able to meet the envoy then."
Outside Yecheng, Yuan Xi pointed at the city and turned sideways to Lv Lingqi, who had lifted the curtain and stuck her head out of the carriage, and said, "How is it?"
"This world-famous city has a different atmosphere, right?"
Seeing the majestic city walls and the bustling streets leading into the city, Lu Lingqi nodded and said, "Luoyang and Chang'an are both dilapidated, and Huaicheng is small. It is indeed not as prosperous as Yecheng."
"But why don't you let me ride a horse? I've been so bored these days!"
Yuan Xi consoled him, "You haven't married yet, and you're showing up in public. Aren't you afraid of damaging Marquis Wen's reputation?"
"Just bear with it for a while. After these few days, when we leave Yecheng, you can ride however you want."
Lu Lingqi muttered, "Don't lie to me, or I'll never let you go."
Seeing Lu Lingqi lowering the car curtain, Yuan Xi secretly wiped his sweat. He could only coax Lu Lingqi because using force on her was no longer feasible.
When the convoy arrived in front of the city gate, they were stopped and everyone was asked to surrender their weapons before entering the city. Yuan Xi knew that this was someone's stupid idea who was trying to test him.
But I think it is unlikely that it was Yuan Shao. He came to Yecheng in person. Isn't that enough to prove his sincerity?
He didn't buy it at all, and directly took out the imperial edict and said, "I have already told the envoy to deliver the imperial edict on behalf of the emperor. Do you want the angel to bow down now?"
"You guys better think about it carefully. When the time comes, will it be the people behind you who will lose their heads, or you?"
After hearing this, the soldiers trembled and dared not answer.
Shen Pei heard this from a distance and said to the city gate commander Shen Rong beside him, "Master Xianyi is indeed no longer the same as he was before."
He rode over, shouted at the soldiers to retreat, and bowed to Yuan Xi, saying, "My lord, it's been a long time since we last met. I'm here to greet you on the orders of the envoy."
"But now I am calling you Young Master Yuan Youzhou, or Yuan Xuzhou?"
Yuan Xi laughed: "Mr. Zhengnan is well."
"How to address him depends on your opinion."
Shen Pei handled the other party's response perfectly, made a gesture of invitation, and the two of them entered the city gate together, followed by the convoys that followed.
Shen Rong ordered the soldiers to return to their positions, and looked at the direction where the convoy was going away, his eyes narrowed.