Chapter 230: Xun Yu: Serving the Emperor to Punish Disloyalty

November 7th, Jiangling County.

Jin Mao has already made preliminary preparations for war in Xiangyang City and is only waiting for all the advisers to gather before making detailed preparations.

Just today, the last counselor, Yu Fan, also arrived.

During this period, Yu Fan was in high spirits.

Guangling County has 70,000 households, neither more nor less, just enough for Yu Fan to show his skills.

As the second winner of "My Zifang", Yu Fan was deeply trusted by Jinmao, and the fact that he was entrusted with the most important task, Guangling County, was evident.

The only regret was that he was unable to marry a legitimate daughter of the Jin family.

However, Yu Fan did not ask for too much, as he knew his own limitations.

Among the smart people under Jinmao today, who doesn’t have more potential and talent than him?
Let’s not talk about others, just take Zhou Yu who just joined. At a young age, he is already in charge of the affairs of a county and manages it in an orderly manner. Coupled with his outstanding appearance, how could the Jin family choose him instead of Zhou Yu?
There is no way, there are too many wolves and too little meat.

The Jin family does not have many sons or daughters. Jin Shan has only one son and two daughters. The eldest daughter has just been married to Xi Zhi for two years, and the youngest daughter will have another two years before she reaches the age of marriage.

As for the children of Jin Gao's daughters, that is, the daughters of Aunt Jin Mao, or the daughters of the Liu family, they do not have the surname Jin and are not within the scope of consideration.

Of course, Yu Fan did not come empty-handed this time. He brought with him the future development plan for Guangling County.

"Demon, you are so lucky."

When Yu Fan saw Xi Zhicai, he was very harsh in his words, but this time the demon warrior only had the intention of teasing him.

As one of the earliest generation of counselors, Xi Zhicai's qualifications were no less than Yu Fan's, and he immediately retorted.

"Isn't this Yu Zhongxiang? He will be thirty in a few years, right?"

"Do you still want to be a playboy, not get married, start a family, and carry on the family line?"

In the Eastern Han Dynasty, you could say I was old, but if you said I was unfilial, that would be a very ugly insult.

"Evil warrior!" Yu Fan was angry: "Draw your sword!"

Xi Zhicai thrust his lower body forward and said jokingly, "My sword is already unsealed, can you use it?"

Yu Fan's blood rushed to his head, his whole face flushed red, he drew his sword and shouted: "Demon warrior! Die!"

"choke!"

Sparks flew everywhere, but Xi Zhicai did not make a move. A big man in a Confucian robe appeared in front of him and blocked the attack.

The person coming is Xun You!
"We are both ministers in the same court, why should we use swords against each other?"

Xun You's words made Yu Fan sheath his sword: "Does Yu Guangling want to repeat the same mistake and start all over again?"

This is exposing Yu Fan's scars.

Just when Yu Fan was feeling angry, a young man who was about the same height as Xun You jumped out, his fur not yet completely gone.

"What's the point of two people bullying one?"

Zhou Yu drew his sword and said, "Xun Gongda, let me fight you!"

After half a year of training in Wuling County, Zhou Yu was no longer pale, but had gained a sense of sharpness.

Xun You naturally knew that Zhou Yu was killing enemies on the front line. This guy was not only a strategist, but also a genius who could lead troops to fight.

Wouldn't it be asking for trouble to compete with Zhou Yu?
At this moment, Xun Yu also came.

"You all seem to be in a good mood."

Xun Yu bowed and saluted everyone.

Yu Fan, Zhou Yu, and Xun You all hurriedly sheathed their swords and returned the greetings one by one.

"Sometimes, I really envy you guys, wielding swords and sabers."

Xun Yu said with emotion: "When I was young, I only focused on studying and didn't practice swordsmanship well. In the end, I became a useless scholar."

After hearing such a Versailles speech, the other four chose to do nothing.

Everyone knows that Xun Yu is good at debates and he can win over anyone.

I'm saying it again: you are not as smart as me, nor as knowledgeable as me.

Everyone present here is smart, so how could they not understand?

The next moment, another person came over with a paper book in his hand, reciting the article as he walked.

Gu Yong seemed to have just discovered everyone. He held the book and bowed, and everyone did the same thing again.

"Guilty, sinful."

"I was so absorbed in reading that I forgot what I was doing."

Gu Yong held the book higher as if to show off so that everyone could see it.

Everyone was not blind, so they saw the two big words "The Analects of Confucius" written on the book.

Who doesn't know that paper is expensive in Luoyang?

Xi Zhicai knew the inside story and refused to come to support the play. Now it was a dispute between the two local schools of thought in Yingchuan and Yangzhou, and he must not give in.

Zhou Yu was smart and guessed something, so he said, "This Analects by Yuan Tan must be very expensive."

After these words were spoken, Xi Zhicai and Xun You secretly thought that something was wrong, but Xun Yu remained calm.

Sure enough, Gu Yong looked at Zhou Yu with admiration, and then said, "It is indeed a bit expensive. It will cost thirty big coins."

A copy of the Analects costs thirty coins!
They can all be exchanged for one stone of grain, but compared to bamboo slips, they are still much cheaper.

Not to mention anything else, the cost of making the bamboo slips alone was thirty coins, not to mention the labor cost of transcribing and the favors owed for borrowing the books.

In this round, the Yangzhou faction won.

Xi Zhicai and Xun You looked at Xun Yu, who nodded slightly, and then they regained their confidence.

The Yangzhou faction had no backbone, and although they won one round, it would be difficult for them to win later.

Zhou Yu, Gu Yong and Yu Fan were well aware of this, but they had no way of coming to a unanimous suggestion.

The three of them belong to the same faction but are from different hometowns. The cultural differences are huge. Everyone wants to be the leader, but no one can.

It's like three lions, invincible when they gather together, but no better than three wolves when they are scattered. Besides, Xun Yu and the other two are more than just wolves.

After a round of competition, the six people seemed to have reconciled.

Gu Yong, Xun You, and Yu Fan, one doesn't like chatting, one basically doesn't chat, and one is not good at chatting.

On the scene, it became Zhou Yu facing two opponents alone.

In front of the faction, Xun Yu would not maintain his gentlemanly demeanor, and he and Xi Zhicai enjoyed attacking Zhou Yu together.

Who made the six people present all consider themselves gentlemen?

There is no need for humility among gentlemen.

There is a saying that goes, a gentleman does not argue with a villain. So can you guarantee that you will not argue with a gentleman?
Just do it and it’s done!
After a while, sweat began to appear on the young Zhou Yu's forehead.

Zhou Yu was about to be defeated when he foresaw the generals fighting each other.

The six people immediately put aside their prejudices and stood together to look down on this group of people.

When the generals had a dispute, the solution was simple and crude. As long as their lives were not harmed, Jin Mao allowed a duel.

Therefore, the two people wrestling on the field are the brothers Zhang Fei and Guan Yu!
Things have to start from the beginning.

Wuling County has a thousand disadvantages, but only one advantage, which is its countless military achievements.

Zhang Fei was not afraid of hardship and only loved military achievements. After returning this time, he was at least promoted to the next level and became the first second-level colonel in the entire army.

Jiangxia County is good in every way except its military achievements.

Guan Yu led the second echelon of troops to defend the city. Every day he was either training new recruits or on his way to train new recruits. He was definitely no match for Zhang Fei.

So, when Zhang Fei saw Guan Yu, he spoke with his head tilted up, as if his eyes were not eyes and his nose was not a nose.

"Guan Lao Er!"

Zhang Fei pointed at Guan Yu's nose and said, "From today on, you are Guan Lao San!"

Then he pointed at his nose and said, "When you see me, you should bow and call me sir, and then add 'Second Brother'."

"I won't bother you!"

Guan Yu's face turned even darker and redder, whether it was from anger or the sun, and he snorted angrily, "Shameless bastard!"

"Since you have recognized someone else as your master, you are no longer worthy of being my brother!"

Zhang Fei couldn't take it anymore: "Guan Lao San! I won't allow you to say bad things about our lord!"

Guan Yu sneered and said, "I'm talking about you!" Zhang Fei said angrily, "If you say something about me, you're saying something about my lord! If you scold me, you're scolding my lord!"

"Guan Lao San! You are such an ungrateful person!"

"Have you forgotten the great kindness your lord has shown you?"

"You!" Guan Yu was so angry that he pointed at Zhang Fei and was speechless. He suddenly thrust his Green Dragon Crescent Blade into the ground, rolled up his sleeves and said, "If you are not afraid of death, then let's fight!"

Zhang Fei's eyes widened in anger and he laughed, "Wrestling? You can't do that."

Then, they did that scene, spinning around with their pincers together like two crabs.

During this period, Guan Yu did nothing but lift weights every day and eat well, which greatly increased his strength.

Zhang Fei had to fight every day, and his strength increased, but relatively slowly.

Therefore, although Guan Yu was originally not as strong as Zhang Fei, now they can fight on equal terms.

Zhang Fei was anxious, but it was useless and he screamed in anger.

Soon, many military generals came and cheered for the two.

Then, the counselor arrived, looked at the two clowns, and commented on them.

Guan Yu felt embarrassed and wanted to stop.

Zhang Fei refused to let go and insisted on defeating Guan Yu.

Guan Yu was very concerned about his reputation, so how could he lose to a reckless man like Zhang Fei in public? So he continued to fight.

Soon, the noise here alarmed Jin Mao.

"what happened?"

No one else knew about it.

Jinmao had no choice but to stop the two of them.

"I'll count to three, and then we'll let go."

To prevent Zhang Fei from causing trouble, Jin Mao added: "Whoever doesn't let go will be demoted one level!"

"one two Three!"

The two separated almost at the same time.

Next, it’s Zhang Fei’s turn to perform.

"My Lord, you have to make the decision for me!"

Zhang Fei cried and complained: "This red-faced fellow said bad things about you behind your back. I scolded him, but he didn't listen and insisted on wrestling with me to see who would win!"

“Can I spoil him?”…

Zhang Fei, a loudmouth, accused Guan Yu of a bunch of "false" charges.

Jin Mao couldn't help but look at Guan Yu and asked, "Yun Chang, is what Yi De said true?"

Guan Yu clasped his fists and said, "My third brother is naughty and has made you laugh."

To be honest, Jin Mao had always had a good impression of Guan Yu at the beginning, which was influenced by his student days.

But ever since Zhang Fei recognized his master, Jin Mao has become increasingly impatient with Guan Yu.

Looking at Guan Yu's arrogant look, Jin Mao felt unhappy. You have only followed Liu Bei for more than three years, but you have followed me for almost two years.

Even if it's a tiger, it will be tamed soon.

But Guan Yu still looks indifferent. Look at how good Zhang Fei is.

Therefore, in response to Guan Yu's explanation, Jin Mao just said "hmm" dully, and nothing more happened.

Instead, he took Zhang Fei aside and asked about his well-being.

When Zhang Fei began to show off his military achievements, Jin Mao didn't even need to ask the commander Zhou Yu, but directly upgraded Zhang Fei's rank, making him the only second-level colonel in the entire army!
As for other generals, they all gained something to varying degrees.

Only Guan Yu lost his troops and his rank remained unchanged.

"Yun Chang, this trip to Luoyang still depends on your military strength."

Jin Mao said earnestly: "You are the bravest among the three armies, so you must shoulder the corresponding responsibilities."

Having said that, no position was assigned to Guan Yu. He was just a leader who fought in battle and charged into the enemy lines.

Zhang Fei was different. Not only was he promoted to the battalion commander of the second battalion, but Jin Mao also did not take back the 500 cavalrymen.

In other words, Zhang Fei's troops had a total of 2,500 elite soldiers, which is incomparable!

Now everyone knew that Guan Yu had fallen out of favor, and everyone looked at him strangely.

Guan Yu wanted to defend himself. He had done nothing wrong, so why should he be deprived of his military power?

But reason told Guan Yu that it was useless!
Jin Mao would only entrust the core troops to his confidants. Guan Yu could lead the troops, but he could only go down to the counties to lead the county soldiers or even new recruits.

All the 5,000 soldiers under Guan Yu's command had to be transferred away.

Guan Yu was in a daze throughout the entire meeting and didn't hear a word.

He began to doubt himself: "Could it be that what Third Brother said is right?"

No matter what Guan Yu thinks, the meeting must continue.

This time, Jin Mao summoned so many advisers not just to cause trouble.

Instead, you should make a two-year plan to plan your development for the next two years.

By the way, I would like to ask for everyone's opinions and suggestions on this trip to Luoyang.

When the five counselors learned that Jin Mao was going to Luoyang in person, they all expressed their opposition.

Xi Zhicai: "A son of a rich family should not sit in the hall. My lord controls two states, why take the risk?"

Zhou Yu: "My lord, if you have any request, just tell me to do it!"

Gu Yong, Xun You and Yu Fan all stood behind Xi Zhicai to support him.

Only Xun Yu seemed to be thinking about something.

Jin Mao looked at Xun Yu and asked, "What does Wen Ruo think?"

Xun Yu's eyes were clear as he asked, "My Lord, why must you go to the capital Luoyang in person?"

Jin Mao stood up and said, "I heard that there is a place called Dongguan in Nangong, Luoyang, which has more than 30,000 books, which is a treasure of Han culture!"

"I want to go and see if it's true."

Xun Yu nodded and asked again: "My lord, are you going to Luoyang just for books?"

Or else?

Jin Mao looked at Xun Yu in confusion, not understanding what he meant.

Then he saw Xun Yu pointing to the sky, and Jin Mao suddenly realized: "Son of Heaven!"

Xun Yu nodded, with an expression that showed that he was a teachable child, and said, "I agree that my lord should go to Luoyang in person!"

"But it's not for the books in the East Palace, but to bring the emperor back from the traitor Dong Zhuo!"

"In the future, wherever our army goes, we will be following the orders of the emperor to punish those who are disloyal!"

In an instant, the other five counselors also reacted and bowed in unison, saying, "I second the motion!"

Why can Jinmao control Jingzhou?
Half of them are soldiers risking their lives, and the other half are naturally the army that follows the orders of the emperor and carries out the just cause.

Otherwise, like Zhang Yan of the Black Mountain Army, he will always be a rebel and will never have the chance to rule the county. He can only seize the county and live in the mountains.

If Jin Mao could welcome back the emperor, then even if he was once a rebel, he would now be a righteous army.

In other words, no one will dare to oppose, and no one can oppose, the plans that Jinmao wants to implement in the future.

As long as you dare to oppose, a big hat will be put on you, and then the army will come, confiscate your property and exterminate your clan.

This is the benefit of "serving the emperor to punish disobedience."

But there are also disadvantages!
And this disadvantage is fatal to Jinmao.

If the emperor is welcomed back, who will his troops obey?

"I don't want to welcome the emperor back at this time."

"Wouldn't it be better to wait until the emperor comes of age and then welcome him back?"

(End of this chapter)