pappabearbooks Chapter 96 Heroes of the World Make Their Appearance
Chapter 96 Heroes of the World Make Their Appearance
"Zhang Gong is brilliant!" Xu You said sincerely.
Zhang Rang waved his hand, a hint of smugness appearing on his face, which he quickly concealed.
"Tell Commandant Liu to behave himself and not give anyone any leverage. As for Guo Xun, we'll handle it."
Xu You readily agreed, exchanged a few more words with him, and then got up to take his leave.
As we left Zhang Rang's residence, it was nearly dusk.
In Luoyang in autumn, the setting sun paints the sky with varying shades of orange-red, and the locust trees on both sides of the long street have begun to shed their leaves, carpeting the ground with gold.
Xu You walked on the fallen leaves, his steps much lighter than when he came.
Back at his lodgings, he lit the lamp wick, spread out bamboo slips, and began to write a letter.
The letter was addressed to Liu Bei. Xu You never prepared his letters in advance; he wrote whatever came to mind.
He first wrote about Guo Xun's appointment as governor of Youzhou, detailing the man's temperament, background, and attitude towards Liu Bei.
The text then briefly recounts how Zhang Rang orchestrated Zhao Bao's appointment as the governor of Liaoxi.
He then compiled the information he had recently gathered.
Firstly, the death of Huangfu Gui, the Protector of the Qiang, meant that the Liangzhou defense line lost a crucial pillar.
Secondly, Liu Kang was enfeoffed as the King of Jinan, continuing the lineage of his biological father, the emperor.
Thirdly, Zhou Xin, the prefect of Guiyang, excavated the Longshui River (in Hunan) and improved the waterway, which was called "Liutong" to strengthen transportation in Lingnan.
Fourthly, when the Xianbei raided Youbeiping, Xia Yu led his troops in pursuit, inflicting a great defeat on the Xianbei and temporarily stabilizing the situation. Among them, Junmi ordered Gongsun Zan to display his prowess, and the name of the White Horse Cavalry reached the ears of the emperor.
Fifthly, Sun Jian, the Sima of Wu Commandery in the southeast, recruited more than a thousand soldiers and joined forces with Chen Yin, the Prefect of Danyang, to defeat Xu Sheng in Kuaiji and pacify the southeast. Sun Jian became famous for his achievements.
Xu You looked at the bamboo slips and suddenly felt that he hadn't had enough.
He picked up his pen again and added a paragraph at the end of the letter.
Another interesting fact is that Cao Cao, a native of Pei State, whose courtesy name was Mengde, was the son of Cao Song, the former Grand Commandant, and was twenty years old.
This autumn, he was recommended for the position of filial and incorruptible official and appointed as the Northern Commandant of Luoyang.
Upon assuming office, this man immediately commissioned the creation of five-colored large clubs, which he then hung in front of the government office to proclaim the law: anyone who dares to violate the law will be severely punished, regardless of whether they are powerful or influential.
Earlier this month, the uncle of Jian Shuo, a eunuch, violated the law by walking at night. Cao Cao personally took a five-colored rod and beat him to death in the street.
Luoyang was shaken, and powerful figures disappeared.
This man became famous, and children in the capital cried at night, saying, "Cao Cao is coming!"
As Xu You wrote this, the corners of his mouth curved slightly.
He and Cao Cao had known each other for a long time, at a banquet hosted by Yuan Shao.
This man was not tall and had an unremarkable appearance, but his eyes were surprisingly bright, and he spoke in a booming voice without any restraint.
During the banquet, someone mentioned the disaster of the Party Prohibitions, and everyone fell silent. Only Cao Cao slammed his fist on the table and stood up, saying, "When eunuchs are in power, the country will not be a country."
Everyone present was taken aback, and Yuan Shao quickly changed the subject.
Afterwards, Xu You asked Yuan Shao who this person was. Yuan Shao smiled bitterly and said, "Cao Mengde of Pei State. This man is good in every way, except that he is too sharp-tongued. Sooner or later he will suffer a great loss."
Xu You wrote about Cao Cao at the end of the letter, not because he felt that this matter had any direct connection with Liu Bei.
He simply felt that the fact that someone dared to beat an eunuch's uncle to death in Luoyang was something worth remembering.
After writing the letter, Xu You rolled up the bamboo slips, sealed them with wax, and handed them to the messenger waiting outside the door.
"Deliver it to our lord day and night!"
The messenger accepted the order and departed.
Xu You stood at the door, watching the messenger's figure disappear into the night.
The autumn wind swept through the alley, making his robes flutter loudly. He adjusted his collar, turned, and went back into the house.
With the lamplight dim, he sat at his desk, reviewing his conversation with Zhang Rang from beginning to end to make sure he hadn't missed any details.
Then he blew out the light and lay down in the darkness.
Zhang Rang's road was not easy to build, and it was even more difficult to maintain.
Zhang Rang was greedy, suspicious, and capricious. If you said the wrong thing or did something wrong, he might turn on you.
But this path must be maintained.
Because there is no news from the inner court within this imperial court, the people in the outer towns are like blind and deaf people.
Hou Chong's case serves as a cautionary tale. If Xu You hadn't received the news in Luoyang in time and rushed there overnight, Hou Chong would probably already be on his way to exile.
Xu You closed his eyes, recalling a long conversation he had with Liu Bei before he left Liaoxi, and a slight smile curved his lips.
He always remembered the words Liu Bei said that night.
"Ziyuan, you are in more danger in Luoyang than I am here."
"I am in western Liaoning, with soldiers and men by my side. You are in Luoyang, surrounded by enemies, unarmed. Be careful in everything you do."
Xu You smiled and said, "Don't worry, my lord. I may not have many other skills, but I do have the ability to save my own life."
Luoyang, a city bustling with activity and throngs of people during the day, is like a giant beast with its mouth agape at night, ready to close its teeth at any moment.
He turned over, banishing those thoughts from his mind.
Go to sleep; there's always tomorrow.
The messenger traveled north without stopping, covering more than two thousand li (approximately 1,000 kilometers) from Luoyang to Yanglecheng in western Liaoning, a journey that took him more than ten days.
When the letter arrived, Liu Bei was inspecting the training of the Trapped Camp.
Gao Shun had only been in office for a little over a month, but he had already selected five hundred people from the villagers.
The selection criteria are extremely strict; height and physical strength are not considered, only two things are taken into account.
First, can they react immediately upon hearing a command? Second, can they maintain their formation during repeated drills?
Gao Shun said that the lifeline of infantrymen is not individual bravery, but collective obedience.
No matter how skilled a person is, if they move around randomly in the formation, they become the weakness of the entire formation.
Liu Bei stood at the edge of the training ground, watching the five hundred men lined up in formation.
After more than a month of training, they are far from being proficient, but they can already see some progress.
Gao Shun stood at the front of the formation, holding a small flag in his hand. He would advance when the flag was raised and stop when it was lowered.
Five hundred people marched forward in unison as the flags rose and fell, the sound of their footsteps gradually becoming more orderly from the initial disorder.
Gao Shun's gaze swept across the formation like a hawk's. When he found someone who was a beat behind, he strode over to them without scolding them, but simply stood in front of them and looked at them without saying a word.
That look was more unbearable than any reprimand.
As Liu Bei was watching, Han Dang strode in from outside the training ground, holding a silk scroll in his hand.
"My lord, a secret message from Luoyang."
Liu Bei took the letter, broke the wax seal, and unfolded the bamboo slips.
Xu You's handwriting came into view. Liu Bei read it from beginning to end with a calm expression, only raising his eyebrows slightly when he read about a certain person.
After reading the letter, he put it in his sleeve and said to Han Dang, "Gather everyone for a meeting tonight."
That night, the council hall of the Commandant's Office was brightly lit.
Shan Jing, Wang Lie, Jian Yong, Cheng Yu, Cheng Pu, Han Dang, Tian Yu, Xu Rong, Gao Shun, Liu Deran, and Hou Cheng gathered together.
Liu Bei placed Xu You's letter on the table and briefly explained its contents.
Guo Xun was appointed governor of Youzhou, but he had some reservations about Liu Bei and wanted to transfer him away.
Xu You, through his connection with Zhang Rang, arranged for Zhao Bao to be appointed as the governor of Liaoxi, in order to counterbalance Guo Xun.
After hearing this, everyone had different expressions.