About Cao Cao's reincarnation as the emperor's uncle

Chapter 12: Luoyang Yun's Plans

"The Qiang people called them and Duan Xing the 'Three Wolves.' Although they had made great military achievements, their path to advancement was..."

"He is also inseparable from Duan Xing. Duan Xing, Huangfu Gui, and Zhang Huan are all three of the Three Masters of Liangzhou, but he is on a completely different level from them."

"First, Huangfu Gui and Zhang Huan advocated pacification, while Duan Xing advocated execution. The three had different aspirations."

"Secondly, Duan Xing and Wang Fu were very close, and they frequently interacted with eunuchs. The three of them did not get along."

"However, Duan Xing's career has been smooth, and he is far more proud than Huangfu Gui and Zhang Huan..."

Feng Yan lowered his eyebrows and continued:

"Although he was demoted from the position of Grand Marshal last year, he still holds the powerful position of Inspector of the Imperial Guards and should not be underestimated."

Listening to Feng Xian's story, especially when he mentioned the relationship between Duan Xing and Wang Fu, Liu Fang remembered a key point.

In his previous life, when Liu Hong decided to launch a northern expedition, it was these two people who fanned the flames.

Because Tian Yan, Xia Yu and Duan Xing were like brothers, and Duan Xing was a well-known conservative.

They are the kind of conservatives who think the war faction is too conservative...

After Xia Yu's great victory over the Xianbei, Duan Xing began to clamor for military action in front of Liu Hong every day.

On the other hand, Tian Yan, through Wang Fu's relationship, advised Liu Hong that the threat from the Xianbei must be eliminated and that they should seize the opportunity to pursue them and expand the territory.

Coincidentally, Duan Xing was later transferred from the position of Sili Xiaowei to the position of Yingchuan Taishou, so Duan Xing took the opportunity to lobby the Yingchuan nobles to jointly sign a petition, inciting the scholars to seek war.

The court, aristocratic families, border generals, and eunuchs all tried to build up momentum, and Liu Hong also got carried away. His blood boiled and he was ultimately defeated.

After such a great defeat, Duan Xing still did not give up. He returned to the position of Taiwei and submitted a series of memorials, requesting to personally lead the troops to avenge the previous defeat.

The matter came to an end only when Wang Fu was attacked by his colleagues and implicated and imprisoned, and the two died in prison together.

Objectively speaking, Duan Xing was a brave general who was good at fighting, but he was definitely not capable of being a commander and had a very poor sense of the overall situation.

Liu Fang was very suspicious that the main reason Duan Ying was implicated was because he kept shouting nonsense.

He ignored the national conditions and only wanted to start a war. He was very famous and had great appeal, so he always asked a lot of people to ask for war. That's why he was killed.

If the country is strong, Duan Xing, who has made great military achievements, can still be used. However, merits are merits and faults are faults. At present, this person is harmful and has no benefit.

Thinking of this, Liu Fang shook his head and listened to Feng Chen continue talking about Zang Min's memorial.

"Zang Min reported the Xu Zhao Rebellion, which has been going on for three years."

"In the first year of the Xiping reign, Xu Zhao gathered his people and launched an uprising in Juzhang. He proclaimed himself the Great General and established his father, Xu Sheng, as the King of Yue. He conquered counties and prefectures, and had an army of over ten thousand."

"The following year, Kuaiji Prefect Yin Duan failed to defeat the rebels and was impeached by Zang Min for 'failure to defeat the rebels'. He should have been sentenced to death..."

"Fortunately, his students bribed the Imperial Guard, Jian Huangmen, and he was spared from death. He was sentenced to serve in the Zuoxiao Office as a weapon maker."

"If this disciple is indeed talented and intelligent, he was able to find Jian Huangmen all the way. It was thanks to Jian Huangmen's great power that he was able to get around."

"Later, Yangzhou Governor Zang Min took command, along with Danyang Prefect Chen You and Wu Commandery Commander Sun Jian, and defeated the bandits."

"I didn't expect Xu Zhao's remnants to reunite and become a serious threat, so I submitted a petition and report together."

As Feng Qian spoke calmly one sentence after another, Jian Shuo's expression became increasingly strange.

As soon as he finished speaking, everyone's eyes turned to Jian Shuo.

Jian Shuo's triangular eyes were almost twisted into hexagons at this moment, and he wanted to retort.

But when he thought about the possibility of offending Feng Chan and the consequences for himself, his face turned red.

Xu Feng and Xu Rong both looked at Jian Shuo with raised eyes, while Xu Shao stroked his long beard with joy, which made Jian Shuo so angry that he glared at Feng Chen fiercely.

In an instant, the room was filled with joy.

Seeing this, Liu Fang couldn't help but jokingly said:
"I never thought that Jian Huangmen had such a way of mediation..."

Before he finished speaking, Jian Shuo fell to the ground and kowtowed:

"Please understand, sir, there is a hidden story behind this fact."

Liu Fang kowtowed and signaled Jian Shuo to continue.

Jian Shuo raised his head slightly, took a quick glance with his triangular eyes, and breathed a sigh of relief when he found that there was no anger on Liu Fang's face.

"This matter has a lot to do with that old villain Wang Fu, so I intervened."

Liu Fang raised his eyebrows.

"Is it about Wang Fu again?"

Jian Shuo nodded hurriedly:
"Exactly! As Yuan Huo said, Wang Fu and Duan Xing are good friends, while Duan Xing and Zhang Huan have always been at odds."

"When Duan Xing was the Protector of the Qiang, Zhang Huan was the General Crossing the Liao. Their ideologies conflicted, yet they were both stationed at the border, constantly feuding overtly and covertly."

"Once, Zhang Huan wanted to cross the border to attack the Hu people, and he faced Duan Xing in battle array, almost coming to blows."

"During that period, Duan Xing's subordinates were Tian Yan and Xia Yu, while Zhang Huan's subordinates were Yin Duan and Dong Zhuo."

"Xu Zhao's rebellion began in Juzhang, which belonged to Kuaiji and then Yangzhou. Zang Min, however, shifted all the blame onto Yin Duan and, leveraging Wang Fu's influence, sentenced him to death."

Jian Shuo lowered his voice, as if muttering:

"To put it bluntly, Zang Min is a chess piece, and Yin Duan is a discarded piece. Duan Ying simply wants to use this incident to cause trouble for Zhang Huan."

"Later, Zhang Huan was implicated and dismissed from office. Duan Xing intended to banish him to Dunhuang to silence him, but Zhang Huan resorted to a covert scheme and publicly wrote a letter to Duan Xing to show his weakness."

"Fortunately, Zhang Huan had the merit of supporting him, and with the pressure from many parties, he was able to return to Hongnong safely and live in seclusion to preach the scriptures."

"Back then, it was commonplace for Huangfu Gui, Zhang Huan, Wang Fu, and Duan Xing to attack each other."

"At the time, I thought, since Wang Fu has taken action, how can I just sit back and watch? Even if I can't bring him down, I have to disgust him..."

"Furthermore, I did not accept bribes or act in a manner that favors me. Yin Duan's crime does not deserve the death penalty."

After saying this, he did not forget to secretly glance at Feng Yan.

Liu Fang had no intention of blaming him, so when he heard this, he waved his hand to interrupt his chatter.

As luck would have it, the clouds dispersed, and the scattered sunlight illuminated the different expressions of the people in the room.

……

Liu Fang leaned on the desk in the sunlight and closed his eyes.

His focus was on the word "Dong Zhuo".

Yes, he almost forgot the relationship between Zhang Huan and Dong Zhuo.

Dong Zhuo... this is a very important person.

This gave another reason to keep Zhang Huan.

Just to make arrangements for Dong Zhuo in advance, Zhang Huan must be kept by his side.

Moreover, Yin Duan can also be used. If he can be rescued from the Zuo School Office, he will not only have a useful talent, but also an important bargaining chip to retain Zhang Huan.

Thinking of this, Liu Fang raised his hand and motioned Jian Shuo to stand up:

"Is Yin Duan still serving in the Zuo School Office?"

"Yes, yes! His disciple Zhu Jun even found a place to stay in the northeast of Beigong to facilitate his visit..."

"Zhu Jun?!"

Jian Shuo had just gotten up from the ground and had not yet stood firmly when he was startled by Liu Fang's suddenly heavier tone and his knees bent.

He knelt down again:

"My Lord, it is Zhu Jun. Could it be that Shuo said something wrong again?"

Feng Chen passed by Jian Shuo, patted his shoulder lightly, and then stood in front of Jian Shuo:

"Your Excellency, please allow me to report that Zhu Jun is from Shangyu, Kuaiji. He has been diligent in study since childhood and gained fame for his filial piety. He is also well-known in his hometown for his emphasis on righteousness over material gain."

"Yin Duan appreciated his talent and took him in as his disciple, appointing him as his chief clerk. From then on, he repeatedly demonstrated his wisdom and strategy."

"When Xu Zhao rebelled, it was Zhu Jun who noticed the clues and exposed the traitor's plot early."

He paused and continued:
"Xu Zhao was quite cunning. He hid his main force in the mountains and forests, using only the old and weak to lure the enemy..."

"When Yin Duan led his army to fight, he was ambushed and his entire army was defeated. Fortunately, Zhu Jun risked his life to protect him, saving his life."

"When Yin Duan first sentenced him, Zhu Jun rushed to Luoyang overnight, dressed in tattered clothes and carrying hundreds of gold he had collected from all over the place..."

"I worked my way through layers of connections and finally persuaded Emperor Jian to revise the memorial, saving my mentor's life."

"This man is loyal, filial, affectionate, righteous, wise, and courageous. He is truly a man of great talent."

As Feng Yan finished speaking, fine golden light covered his body.

After hearing this, Liu Fang nodded in approval at first, but when his eyes fell on Feng Yan again, there was a hint of deeper meaning in them.

It is obvious that Feng Yan had already prepared the details of Zhu Jun's life and his original plan was to recommend Zhu Jun to him.

Feng Yan always acts with great discretion.

If there was anything he had not understood, Feng Yan would gently enlighten him with clever words.

If he has a plan for success, Feng Yan will carefully consider it and make up for his shortcomings.

Although Feng Yan did not offer any advice or suggestions, his words and actions never crossed the line and were always in line with his wishes.

Moreover, using this incident to bring out something Jian Shuo hadn't said, it seemed like he was exposing his shortcomings in public, but in fact...

This was both a warning to Jian Shuo to stop him from keeping secrets and a protection for Jian Shuo to cover up the suspicion of taking bribes.

At this moment, he straightened his hunched body slightly and protected Jian Shuo behind him.

Jian Shuo had already understood what was going on in his heart, so he didn't dare to say anything more and just retreated to a corner.

Xu Rong was also a thoughtful person. He knew that Feng Yan seemed to be reporting Jian Shuo, but in fact he was recommending Zhu Jun.

Then he stepped forward, bowed, and said, "I also have an acquaintance who is both civil and military, and whose talent is ten times greater than mine. I dare to recommend him to you, sir."

Liu Fang became interested when he heard this. As everyone knew, he had no resistance to talented people.

"Speak quickly."

Xu Rong lowered his eyes and said in a deep voice:

"This man is none other than my good friend from the same county who I recently drank with. His surname is Gongsun and his given name is Bao."

"Gongsun Bao?"

Liu Fang murmured to himself, in his past life he remembered that the Gongsun family had many outstanding people, such as Gongsun Zan and Gongsun Du.

But no one knows where Gongsun Bao came from. Perhaps, he is another hero lurking in the grass roots?

Xu Rong was also a proud man. To be praised so highly by him, Gongsun Bao must be no ordinary person.

Just as I was thinking about it, I heard Feng Yan speak again.

Looking at this intelligence expert, Liu Fang couldn't help but sigh, how could the gap between people be so huge?

How on earth was Feng Xian's brain formed? How could he remember so many things so clearly?

"This person's name was mentioned in a recent secret letter from the Shangshutai. I think he will be recommended as a Shangshulang in the near future..."

Before he finished speaking, Feng Chen straightened up and looked at Xu Rong:
"But he is the son of Xuantu Governor Gongsun Yu?"

Xu Rong replied firmly and decisively:

"No!"

As soon as these words were spoken, everyone's eyes were focused on Xu Rong like lightning, and even Xu Feng, who was usually indifferent, showed a look of surprise.

For many years, Feng Xian's words had never been wrong, so it was shocking that he was refuted by Xu Rong this time.

Feng Chen suddenly straightened his hunched back, and his previously cloudy eyes became sharp as he looked straight at Xu Rong.

Xu Rong felt uneasy when being looked at. He subconsciously avoided everyone's gaze, stretched out his hand to scratch his hair, and stammered:
"Uh... Actually, that's right. Gongsun Hong's son is indeed called Gongsun Bao. But this Gongsun Bao is not that Gongsun Bao. However, this Gongsun Bao was indeed recommended by Gongsun Hong..."

Jian Shuo was furious after hearing Xu Rong's tongue-twisting explanation. He raised his foot and kicked him on the butt:

"No, are you kidding?"

In an instant, the sharpness in Feng Yan's eyes disappeared, and returned to its former turbidity.

When he turned to face Liu Fang, his hunched back bent even lower:

"Sir, I plead guilty."

Seeing this, Liu Fang smiled and waved his hands:
"It's nothing. Didn't Zi Liao say that? You're not wrong."

Feng Xian did not respond, but simply bent his waist lower and lower, and his salute movement seemed extremely stiff.

Everyone present knew that the person they should not offend the most was not Liu Fang, but Feng Yan.

Xu Rong also realized at this moment that he had said the wrong thing, so he quickly added:

"This man has the same name as Gongsun Yu's son. He fled to Xuantu County to avoid being pursued by county officials."

"It just so happened that Gongsun Hong's son had passed away at that time. Not only did they have the same name, but they were also about the same age. So Gongsun Hong adopted him as his adopted son."

After everyone understood the reason, Liu Fang saw that Feng Yan still looked remorseful, so he changed the subject:

"There's no rush for this matter. Once the current affairs are settled, Zi Liao will bring him to see me..."

"Yuan Huo, bring me a copy of the map so we can discuss this important matter."

Feng Xian stood up in response. Although his expression remained calm, he felt as if a thorn had been stuck in his heart.

To outsiders, this might seem like a trivial matter, but he knew very well that intelligence could not tolerate any omissions.

Sometimes a slight mistake may lead to a complete loss. This is the most basic awareness of an intelligence person.

Just like the identity Zhang Rang forged for Liu Fang, it was a mixture of true and false. At first glance, it sounded almost the same as his real experience, but in fact, it was a huge mistake.

……

After a while, a map was slowly spread out on the table.

This map is extremely exquisitely selected, without any distractions. It only depicts the entire northern territory of the Han Dynasty, with mountains, rivers, passes and cities all visible.

Liu Fang stared in thought for a moment, then drew three large circles with his brush:
Liangzhou, Bingzhou, and Youzhou

These three states cover the northern part of the Han Dynasty from west to east.

However, in the current situation, the countries in the Western Regions have gradually broken away from the control of the Han Dynasty.

Only Dunhuang County, as the seat of the Chief Secretary of the Western Regions, still has some control.

Going further west, beyond Yumen Pass and Yangguan, there is the vast desert and Gobi, and numerous foreign countries. Many matters are not worth considering at this time.

Then, he took out a piece of silk and carefully recalled all the people who had passed through his mind from the beginning to now.

Seeing Liu Fang frowning in deep thought, everyone stood by with their hands lowered, not daring to move.

For about half a quarter of an hour, Liu Fang wrote on the silk. After he finished writing, he called Xu Feng to bring new silk.

Finally, on the new silk, the key figures in this conspiracy were written in lines:

"Huangfu Gui, Zhang Huan, and Duan Xing."

Liu Fang now had a very clear idea in his mind about how to use the three cities of Liangzhou.

One is about to die, one is about to die, and one must die.

Then write:
"Xia Ning, Tian Yan, Yin Duan, Dong Zhuo."

The first two were Duan Xing’s confidants, and the last two were Zhang Huan’s confidants.

Xia Ning and Tian Yan, it is enough to leave one to take over Duan Xing's legacy.

In his previous life, Dong Zhuo inherited everything that Zhang Huan had left behind, so this time he let Yin Duan compete with him.

However, Dong Zhuo cannot move for the time being. The knife still needs to be polished, so he can only make the scabbard first.

Another book:

"Huangfu Song and Zhu Jun."

These two people were listed among the three heroes of the late Han Dynasty in their previous life. Huangfu Song needs to use them with righteousness, and Zhu Jun needs to bind him with friendship.

Both of them are proficient in both civil and military affairs. Although Zhu Jun is not as good at fighting as Huangfu Song, Zhu Jun is better in the word "change".

For example, in the matter of Yin Duan, Huangfu Song would rather die in front of the hall than bribe the eunuchs to smooth things over.

The two of them can each occupy Liang and Bing states, build an iron wall to defend against the Hu people, and serve as each other's support.

"Zang Min, Chen You, and Sun Jian."

"Cao Cao, Xu You, Zhang Miao..."

Zang Min and Zhang Miao, these two people easily became knives in the hands of others.

But the same principle can easily be used by him, especially in his current identity.

His feelings towards Zhang Miao were complicated. If possible, he would try his best to keep him innocent for the rest of his life and prevent him from being involved in any more disputes.

Xu You was also a pitiful man. All he did in his previous life was to seek death.

Let’s not talk about the various factors for now. In short, now is the time to use people, and Xu You’s talent cannot be ignored.

When it comes to Sun Jian's bravery, he can be said to be the best in the world.

From the age of seventeen, he was able to break into the bandit camp alone. Later, when he was fighting against Dong Zhuo, he defeated Lu Bu head-on twice, reached Luoyang first, and was the first to be meritorious among the coalition forces.

And he likes Sun Jian very much, who is a very pure person.

As for the matter of the imperial seal, he died because of its purity, or to put it bluntly, it was childish.

There is no need to say much about Cao Cao.

The remaining Chen Yi is not important. What is important is that Chen Yi has a great relationship with one person.

Finally, he solemnly wrote down four names:

"Tan Shihuai", "Yuan Shao", "Wang Fu", "Xu Zhao"

The threat posed by the Hu people brought by Tan Shihuai is the center of all current affairs.

The internal strife within the Yuan family behind Yuan Shao was the fulcrum for him to pry open the aristocratic families.

Wang Fu is the intersection of this network and is closely related to everything.

Xu Zhao was the springboard he chose. The border needed to be stabilized first, and the fastest way for him to gain momentum was to quell the rebellion.

As he put down his pen, Liu Fang sighed and looked out the window.

Is it messy? Are you tired?
If you really want to govern a county, a prefecture, or even a state or a country, you will know that there is a world of difference between thinking and doing.

Fortunately, he had enough capital in this life and it was also at the right time.

Moreover, he is not only Liu Yuanyi, but also Cao Mengde.

But this is just the beginning of rebuilding this crumbling dynasty.

History never gives people a chance to breathe, never allows them to calmly solve problems one by one, and certainly never gives them easy questions on the eve of troubled times.

Especially at the end of a dynasty, when chaos is about to occur, everything becomes tangled and intertwined like a tangled mess.

All Liu Fang can and must do is to unravel the mystery and find the clue in the chaos.

"Please remember this: I will make the following arrangements..."

(End of this chapter)