Chapter 221 Sun Jian kills Kong Zhu, Jin Mao gets a talent
Yuan Shao did not expect that the mediocre Yuan Shu could be so wise.

"No need, just let's all bear witness together."

Yuan Shao said: "There are eight people here, so we will vote according to eight votes. Whoever gets the most votes will win!"

"Wait!" Yuan Shu stepped forward to stop him for the second time, saying, "There are only seven of us here, and you are not from the Southern Alliance!"

Yuan Shao chuckled and said casually without any protest: "Then do as you say."

Yuan Shu knew he was no match for his enemy, but he still wanted to put up a fight.

Soon, the results came out. As expected, Yuan Shao had four votes, while Yuan Shu and himself only had three votes.

Yuan Shu himself was very surprised. He didn't expect that there were two people among the princes who supported him. Unfortunately, the secret ballot made it difficult for him to know who the other party was.

Just when Yuan Shao had the situation in his hands and wanted to defeat Yuan Shu head-on.

Unexpectedly, Yuan Shu had another trick up his sleeve: "This vote cannot represent the opinions of everyone. I suggest that we wait until the governors of Yangzhou, Yizhou, Jingzhou, and Yuzhou come together and hold another election next time."

Yuan Shu had no other intention but to show off his own strength.

Yuan Shao was in a terrible state. Couldn't his stupid brother use his brain? He wondered how many of the four people he mentioned would truly support him to become the leader of the alliance?

He was so self-satisfied that he didn't even realize he was being sold out.

Yuan Shao didn't want to waste any more time with Yuan Shu, so he said, "It is not the behavior of a gentleman to go back on one's word."

"Since the results have already come out, General Hou should stop. We are all local lords, so why do we need to act in anger?"

Yuan Shu put on his clothes slowly. The early summer night was not too hot, and the tent was a bit empty with few people around. It would be easy to catch a cold if he didn't put on more clothes.

"Yuan Bohai, please do as you please." Yuan Shu began to act like a rogue: "You have an alliance, I also have an alliance, we are both leaders of the alliance."

"The governor of Yangzhou has told me that he will fully support me in my campaign against Dong Zhuo."

Gan!
Looking at Yuan Shu's threatening face, Yuan Shao really couldn't help it.

"Yuan Gonglu! The Yangzhou shepherd has evil ambitions, and you are actually in collusion with him!?"

At this time, Yuan Shu was just fastening his belt. He stood up and yelled back, "Yuan Benchu! Watch your words!"

"Do you want to destroy the Anti-Dong Alliance?"

Yuan Shao felt a headache when seeing Yuan Shu's stubborn attitude.

It was certainly impossible to ignore it, as Yuan Shu occupied the two richest counties in the south: Nanyang County and Runan County.

This is where the granary of the Southern Coalition is located. Anyone who wants to attack Dong Zhuo must get the support of Yuan Shu.

Before the troops move out, the food and fodder must be sent first.

Otherwise, the coalition forces would collapse on their own and the so-called fight against Dong Zhuo would be nothing but a joke.

This is also the source of Yuan Shu's confidence.

If you don’t let me be the leader, then no one else can play!

Let’s see who can outlast whom!

And Yuan Shao must never give in to this leader of the alliance.

This not only concerns reputation, but also the direction of Yuan family’s resources.

It is clear from looking at Yuan Shu's current situation. Without the allocation of resources from the Yuan family, how could it be possible for him to gather another 20,000 troops in such a short time.

Therefore, Yuan Shao, who was unable to defeat Yuan Shu, could only retreat and plan for the next day.

Seeing Yuan Shao's defeat, Yuan Shu couldn't help but feel proud: "It's me who has to unite with the governor of Yangzhou. It is indeed the right choice!"

At first, when Jin Mao wrote the letter, Yuan Shu's advisers Yan Xiang and Yang Hong disagreed, saying that this was Jin Mao's strategy and hoped that Yuan Shu would not fall into it.

But how could a wise man like Yuan Shu agree to this?

Since the emperor issued the edict, the situation in the south has become clear. The five southern counties of Jingzhou can no longer stop Jin Mao's annexation, and sporadic resistance will eventually die at the hands of Jin Mao's group of fierce and wolf-like soldiers.

Although Yuan Shu had never fought with Jin Mao, both Cao Cao and Sun Jian, two good fighters, were in awe of Jin Mao.

I don't want to provoke anyone easily, and even if I am provoked, I just want to stay away from them.

This is also the reason why Sun Jian wants to give up Nanyang County. Although there are not many big rivers in Nanyang County, the surrounding mountains and forests are destined to make this place the home ground of Jinmao.

Nanyang County will fall into Jinmao's hands sooner or later, it's just a matter of time.

Yuan Shu was defeated by Sun Jian despite his superior military strength. By analogy, how powerful must Jin Mao be if he was even stronger than Sun Jian.

In short, Yuan Shu thought he could not win in terms of military force.

Now that we have the emperor's support, don't worry about whether Dong Zhuo is behind it.

As long as Dong Zhuo is not overthrown, the emperor is still the emperor, and the emperor's edicts are still effective.

Once the fighting breaks out, Jinmao will be the party holding the title.

...

The next day.

Yuan Shao came to discuss with Yuan Shu privately.

Yuan Shu met with Yuan Shao, but the negotiation process was extremely difficult and it could be said that there was no progress at all.

Yuan Shu insisted that he would not cooperate unless the leader of the alliance was given to him.

Yuan Shao also refused to give in.

The two of them parted on bad terms again.

Cao’s army camp.

Yuan Shao asked Cao Cao for advice: "Meng De, time is running out. I can't stay here for long. I have to return to Jizhou soon."

"But what about the South?"

Cao Cao did not bring Guo Jia with him, but he had discussions with Guo Jia. The two of them always believed that Jin Mao would not support Yuan Shu to the end.

On the surface, it seems that Dong Zhuo's sugar-coated bullet strategy was very successful. In fact, Jin Mao always likes to eat the sugar coating and spit out the bullet.

Therefore, Yuan Shu is not the key, and food and grass are not a problem. Jin Mao is the most important person!
"The trouble should end it."

Cao Cao said calmly: "Yuan Bohai, why don't you ask the governor of Yangzhou?"

"From my observation of the various lords, only Sun Yuzhou's troops are still elite. The rest are either old and weak like Tao Qian, or the soldiers are newly trained and have no fighting power."

"If we can get the approval of Yangzhou Mu, and Yuan Bohai can bring a few princes who are willing to fight against Dong, great things can be accomplished!"

Yuan Shao was very interested after hearing this. He stood up and paced back and forth for a few rounds, then began to think.

Plans can't keep up with changes.

Yuan Shao's original intention was to suppress the development of Jinmao in the name of attacking Dong Zhuo, but now with the idiot Yuan Shu standing in his way, he had to make changes.

Compared with Jin Mao, who was in a safe corner, Dong Zhuo was Yuan Shao's biggest concern.

As long as Dong Zhuo is dealt with, no one in the north will be more powerful than Yuan Shao, and he can do whatever he wants.

After thinking it through, Yuan Shao clapped his hands and said, "Okay! Let's do it!"

"I'll write a letter to the Yangzhou governor right now!"

Cao Cao happily called someone and asked him to bring bamboo slips and a writing knife.

Yuan Shao took the pen knife, looked at Cao Cao and said, "I will have to trouble Meng De to contact the princes."

Cao Cao patted his chest and assured: "Don't worry, Benchu! Leave it to me!"

Another day passed.

With Cao Cao as his lobbyist, Yuan Shao got the support of all the princes except Sun Jian and Yuan Shu as he wished, and returned to Jizhou with light cavalry.

When Yuan Shu heard the news, he was so angry that his face twisted, and he drove away all the princes who were meeting in Nanyang County overnight.

"You eat my food and drink my drinks, but in the end you don't support me, but support that bastard Yuan Shao!"

"roll roll roll!"

"Get out of Nanyang County!" No matter how others persuaded him, Yuan Shu's attitude was very tough: If you don't listen, get out, and don't even think about getting a single grain of food and supplies!
Cao Cao got up and left, returning to Chenliu County.

Kong Zhu, Tao Qian, Zhang Miao, Liu Dai and others had different opinions.

Kong Jun didn't want to leave. If he retreated, Sun Jian would definitely push forward. However, the other three and a half princes used the lack of food and grass as an excuse to ignore Kong Jun's decision to leave first.

Sun Jian seized the opportunity and joined forces with Yuan Shu to launch a surprise attack on Kong Rong.

Kong Ji's troops were defeated and killed.

Yuan Shu merged with the remnants of Kong Ji and expanded the army to 25,000.

Sun Jian did not take a penny and entered Yingchuan, Yuzhou with 4,000 soldiers.

Yuan Shu was very satisfied and announced to the world in the name of the leader of the Four-Party Alliance, calling on the southern princes to join forces to fight against Dong.

There were many people who responded, but they were all low-class people.

But Yuan Shu accepted all comers, and in three months, he selected the best among them and expanded the army to 50,000.

Sun Jian was also not idle. He recruited bandits from Yingchuan County and even Yuzhou into his army, selected the best among them, and expanded the army to 20,000.

...

It's August.

Jin Mao stabilized the rear of Jingzhou and, in view of the current situation, established a new military settlement system in the five counties of Jingzhou.

Suffering from a lack of talented people to govern, Jinmao sent out recruitment notices to Jing and Yang states, recruiting talents through examinations.

This manifesto was written by Xun Yu, who used the name of the Xun family, and it attracted many virtuous nobles and children from poor families.

There were more than a thousand talented people, including Lu Su, Zhang Zhao, Zhang Hong, Bu Zhi, and Yan Jun.

Jin Mao was not familiar with other people, but he was very concerned about Lu Su and specially met with him.

Lu Su is nineteen years old this year. He is as tall as Zhou Yu, both of them are eight feet tall and very strong. He does not look like a scholar but more like a military general.

Jin Mao couldn't help but laugh when he saw him dressed like a scholar. "With your physique, you should go to war. It's a waste of your talent to be a ruler."

Lu Su came from the eastern city of Linhuai and had a wealthy family, so he would not have come to Jiangdong. However, Sun Jian's troops were all bandits and acted without scruples.

This caused a large number of Yuzhou refugees to spread out in all directions, making it difficult for the surrounding Xu and Yanzhou to provide assistance, leading to further collapse of order.

Lu Su saw the opportunity early and took his family south to avoid disaster. He happened to encounter Jinmao recruiting talents, so he signed up for a try.

Unexpectedly, the exam was extremely simple, but the scope of examination was a bit broad, covering everything from astronomy to geography.

In the end, Lu Su was admitted with the fifth highest total score.

But no one expected that Jin Mao did not summon Zhang Zhao, who ranked first in the overall score, but instead summoned him, who ranked fifth.

Facing Jin Mao's ridicule, Lu Su replied respectfully: "To answer the governor, I have learned martial arts since I was young, only for self-defense, and I have never learned how to fight in battle."

Jin Mao laughed happily, not because Lu Su's answer was funny, but because he was happy to have gained another great talent.

This is one of the protagonists of the story "Borrowing Arrows from a Thatched Boat" in the Chinese textbook!

"No problem, I'll just ask."

Jin Mao smiled and asked, "I see that Zijing (Lu Su's courtesy name) has dabbled in all aspects. Do you have any specialties?"

Lu Su bowed first, then thought carefully before answering: "I am good at managing the household."

"What?" Jin Mao thought he had heard wrongly.

Lu Su repeated respectfully: "I am good at managing the household."

Did you make a mistake!
Isn’t this too modest?
Jin Mao couldn't help but wonder: "Where are Zijing's ancestors?"

Lu Su replied: "There are no famous people in this merchant family."

Jin Mao was filled with awe. That was indeed a good way of managing a family. Otherwise, how could a merchant family cultivate a talent like Lu Su?

The status of merchants in this era was very strange: in name only, they were lowly, but in reality, their power was above that of most people.

Because they have close ties with the gentry and officials, and they are also very rich and good at managing their families, there are always many famous people among them.

Like the Mi family of Xuzhou and the Zhen family of Jizhou.

However, the reason why merchant families are despised is mostly because they lack integrity.

Lu Su was a rare businessman with integrity, he was simply an outlier.

"Lu Zijing, are you willing to serve me?"

Lu Su had been concentrating and paying close attention to Jin Mao's every move. When he suddenly heard these words, he was completely stunned.

This is one of the greatest princes in the world!

The only person who is bigger and stronger than Jin Mao is Dong Zhuo. Even Yuan Shao and Yuan Shu cannot compare to him individually!
It was normal for Lu Su to be shocked for 0.1 second when such a big shot suddenly extended an olive branch to him.

Fortunately, Lu Su reacted quickly enough. Before Jin Mao noticed anything unusual, he bowed respectfully and said, "Lu Su greets the lord!"

There was excitement in his voice, and Lu Su couldn't help but be excited.

He grew up in a wealthy family with no shortage of food and clothing. He did not value money at all. Instead, he had vision and courage.

In Lu Su's eyes, the new system that Jinmao strictly implemented seemed to be tailor-made for him and was extremely suitable for him.

Lu Su himself was not a member of the gentry, and he was deeply disgusted by the evil deeds of the gentry, but he had no ability to change them.

Now that there is an opportunity before him, how can Lu Su not be excited.

Jinmao was also very excited as he had gained another top talent. Even if he couldn't unify the country in the future, at least in Jiangdong, no one would dare to challenge him.

"Good good!"

"From now on, we will be a family."

After the excitement comes reality.

Jin Mao said with embarrassment: "It's just that Xun Wenruo and I have an agreement that no matter how talented you are, you have to start as a low-level official in the future."

"Look, Xun Yu has served me as a secretary in Jianye County."

Of course, Jin Mao did not explicitly mention that Xun Yu was about to jump three levels and be promoted to county magistrate.

Lu Su agreed and said, "Xun Wenruo is not just a name for nothing. My lord, I am willing to start as a minor official, even if it is just an accountant."

A clerk is a minor official like an accountant, the lowest of the lowest ranks.

Unexpectedly, Lu Su was so sensible. Jin Mao said, "Don't worry, this is just a test process. Those who pass the test will be assessed once every quarter, and those who excel will be promoted."

He also assured Lu Su: "As long as you do a good job, it will be a piece of cake to be promoted three levels."

Jin Mao approached and whispered, "This is all internal information, don't spread it outside."

Unexpectedly, Lu Su bowed and said, "My lord, I have a question."

"speak!"

"My Lord, why don't you make the assessment rewards public?"

Lu Su asked: "In this way, even those who have doubts in their hearts will try their best to do their best when they know that the reward is so generous.

Isn’t that a good thing?”

"That's right!" Jin Mao clapped his hands and praised, "Lu Zijing! I was right about you!"

This is just a small thing, but it will greatly motivate the ambition of all employees.

Just imagine, if there is a prince who takes an assessment every three months, and the outstanding ones can be promoted three levels in a row, then after a year, wouldn't the most outstanding people directly become the top level?

Who wouldn't be so excited that they want to scream if this happened to them?

However, there is a problem here.

Jinmao hasn't even been conferred the title of nobility yet, so does that mean that the most outstanding talent can be promoted faster than Jinmao?

(End of this chapter)