Peng Chong led his troops to escape back to Yuyang County. Geng Yan, who went to conquer Youzhou, had questions all over his head. He didn't understand how the battle was fought. None of his own soldiers had ever met Peng Chong. Peng Chong actually ran away first.
Already.
Only later did he find out that it was his brother Geng Shu who defeated the Huns at Jundu Mountain, causing Peng Chong to be timid in fighting, so he fled without a fight. Geng Yan was very happy that his brother had accomplished this great feat, and immediately led his army
Attack Zhuojun.
Zhang Feng, the governor of Zhuo County, had rebelled and surrendered to Peng Chong. Naturally, Geng Yan would not let Zhang Feng go.
Zhang Feng organized Zhuojun's troops to resist Geng Yan, but the difference in strength between the two sides was so great that after only one battle, Zhang Feng was killed and defeated, and many of his men died in the rebellion.
After this battle, the rebellion in Zhuo County was quickly put down by Geng Yan.
After just stabilizing the situation in Zhuojun, Geng Yan non-stop pointed the finger at Peng Chong's other major help, the Fuping Rebel Army and the Huosuo Rebel Army.
These two rebel armies colluded with Peng Chong and caused harm to the local area. Geng Yan divided his troops into two groups, one went to Fuping and the other went to capture Suo, and launched an encirclement and suppression campaign against the two rebel armies.
Geng Yan led the Han army and after entering Youzhou, they swept away Peng Chong's forces in Youzhou. Peng Chong huddled in Yuyang County and did not dare to show his face at all.
As for Peng Chong's other ally Zhang Bu, he is currently receiving Fulong who is on an envoy to Yanzhou.
Fulong was on his mission to Yanzhou this time. He didn't do anything along the way, but he was a governor. Whenever he passed through the counties, he used the banner of the Jianwu court to appease them.
Not to mention, many counties expressed their willingness to submit to Luoyang. Along the way, Fulong recruited more than ten counties. This situation not only exceeded Fulong's expectations, but also exceeded his expectations.
It exceeded Liu Xiu's expectations.
When he learned that Fulong traveled eastward and conquered so many counties, Liu Xiu was overjoyed and praised Fulong as if he was still alive.
Li Sheng refers to Li Shiqi, Liu Bang's famous lobbyist. During the Chu-Han conflict, it was Li Shiqi who persuaded the Qin army stationed at Wuguan and successfully recruited the Qin army's soldiers, which led to Liu Bang's victory over Wuguan without bloodshed.
, the Han army marched straight in and occupied Xianyang, the capital of Qin.
Hearing the news that His Majesty compared himself to Li Shiqi, Fulong was also a little excited. After entering Yanzhou, he arrived at Juxian County, which was Zhang Bu's hometown.
Zhang Bu treated Fulong's arrival with courtesy and went out of the city to greet him personally.
After meeting, Zhang Bu quickly stepped forward, bowed his hands and saluted, and said: "Zhang Bu, I'm here to pay my respects to Doctor Fu!"
Zhang Bu is a typical Shandong man, from Langya, Shandong. He is tall and burly, with a full beard. When he rebelled in Langya County, he was inspired by the Zhutiandu tribe.
Fulong returned the salute and said: "Brother Wen Gong, you are so polite!" Zhang Bu's courtesy name was Wen Gong.
After greeting each other, Zhang Bu said happily: "I learned that Doctor Fu came from afar, and I have prepared a banquet in the city. Doctor Fu invites you!"
"Brother Wen Gong, please!"
The two walked side by side, and then took the same car into the city. In the car, Zhang Bu said cheerfully: "This time, Your Majesty sent Dr. Fu to Yanzhou as an envoy with integrity. I am really flattered by the concession!"
There is no obvious enmity between Zhang Bu and Liu Xiu. Although he bowed to Liu Yong and colluded with Peng Chong, Zhang Bu's soldiers and horses have indeed never fought against the Han army.
At this time, Zhang Bu also wanted to find out what Liu Xiu's attitude was towards him.
In his heart, Zhang Bu was deeply afraid of Liu Xiu and was not willing to be his enemy. In his mind, the ideal situation for both parties was for the two sides to live in peace and coexist in peace and harmony.
.
Fulong smiled at Zhang Bu and said, "Your Majesty attaches great importance to Brother Wen Gong, otherwise, Long would not have been sent as an envoy to Yanzhou."
Zhang Bu blinked his eyes, laughed loudly, cupped his hands to the west, and said, "Your Majesty is treating you so kindly, I don't dare to deserve it!"
The two of them were in the car, chatting with each other and testing each other.
Soon, the car entered the city. Zhang Bu invited Fulong into his mansion and held a banquet in his mansion to entertain Fulong. There were not many people in attendance, but they were all Zhang Bu's confidants.
During the banquet, Zhang Bu and Fulong exchanged cups and chatted about other things, but they wanted to talk happily. After three rounds of wine and five dishes, Zhang Bu gradually started to get to the point.
He raised his hand and looked around at the people present, and said meaningfully: "All of you here are old brothers who followed me and rose up in Langya. We live and die together, and share hardships. I don't know how much blood and sweat we have shed, and how many brothers have sacrificed.
, we captured Langya County, and after that, after a narrow escape, we captured Taishan, Donglai, Chengyang, Jiaodong, Beihai, Jinan, and Qidi counties one after another!"
What he said was not only to show off how powerful he was to Fulong, but also to show Fulong that if Liu Xiu really wanted to appease him, he would have to think carefully about how big an official and high position he would give him.
of the title.
When Fulong heard this, he smiled leisurely and said: "According to His Majesty's wishes, as long as Brother Wen Gong is willing to submit to the court, Brother Wen Gong can be the prefect of Donglai!"
Upon hearing this, the expression on Zhang Bu's face froze. Zhang Hong, Zhang Lan, and Zhang Shou stopped working. These three are Zhang Bu's biological brothers. Zhang Hong was named General Wei, and Zhang Lan was named General Wei.
He was named General Xuanwu, and Zhang Shou was named Grand Administrator of Gaomi.
Bang! Zhang Lan slammed down the table and said in a rough voice: "Prefect of Donglai? What a joke! My eldest brother sits on Langya, Taishan, Donglai, Jiaodong, Jinan counties, the entire Yanzhou, and even
The surrounding counties and counties of Yanzhou are all under the control of my eldest brother, but Liu Xiuxian is only willing to make my eldest brother the governor of one county, which is nonsense!"
Fulong frowned, but before he could speak, Zhang Bu scolded his brother: "Zhang Lan, don't be rude to His Majesty! Do you know what the crime is when you call His Majesty by his first name?!"
Zhang Lan said angrily: "Brother——"
"Okay, shut up!" Zhang Bu pretended to be displeased and reprimanded his brother with a serious face. Then, he turned to look at Fulong and said with an apologetic smile: "My brother is just a rough guy.
My words have offended His Majesty, and I hope Doctor Fu will forgive me."
Fulong suppressed the anger in his heart, cupped his hands, and said calmly: "Easy to say, easy to say!"
Zhang Bu changed the subject and said: "Zhang Lan is outspoken, but what he said is also true. If your Majesty only makes Bu the governor of a county, not to mention Bu's younger brothers, even the soldiers under Bu's command will be dissatisfied.
, if we don’t do it right, it will cause a big mess.”
After speaking, he picked up the wine glass, gently poked the wall of the wine glass with his fingers, but looked towards Fulong.
Fulong said: "Your Majesty has made the decision to appoint Brother Wen Gong as the prefect of Donglai, how can he change it?"
Zhang Bu laughed heartily and said, "It all depends on people! For this matter, I need Doctor Fu to give Bu Duoduo a kind word to His Majesty. I will definitely be very grateful to Doctor Fu!"
Fulong took a deep look at Zhang Bu and did not speak immediately. Zhang Bu was not in a hurry to force Fulong to express his stance. He raised the wine glass in his hand and said, "Doctor Fu, I'd like to give you a drink from Bu!"
The two of them immediately had a drink together.
During this banquet, Zhang Bu expressed his dissatisfaction with Liu Xiu's appointment. He controlled so many counties and had tens of thousands of troops under his command, but Liu Xiu was only willing to make him a prefect, which was far from enough.
Zhang Bu’s expectations.
After the banquet, Zhang Bu sent someone to take Fulong to the inn to rest. After sending Fulong out of the gate, he repeatedly expressed the hope that Fulong could speak kindly to Liu Xiu.
Fulong looked around and saw that there were not many people around. He walked up to Zhang Bu and asked meaningfully: "Brother Wen Gong, do you think the soldiers and horses under your command are better than those of Red Eyebrows?"
Hearing this, Zhang Bu's expression suddenly changed. Fulong continued: "Compared to Deng Feng of Nanyang, so what?"
Zhang Bu's eyes flashed and he looked at Fulong intently. The latter said quietly: "The whole Red Eyebrow army has been wiped out. The remaining Red Eyebrows were also executed for treason. Nanyang Deng Feng's body is now in a different place. We can learn from the past."
, I still remember it clearly, Brother Wen Gong, please don’t follow in his footsteps!”
Gazing at Fulong, Zhang Bu took a deep breath. This was exactly what he feared about Liu Xiu.
The Han army's combat power was too strong. Hundreds of thousands of red eyebrow troops were defeated by the Han army and were completely wiped out. Deng Feng of Nanyang, Yancen of Hanzhong, and even Qin Feng of Nanjun joined forces, but they also failed.
Can beat Liu Xiu.
Therefore, it would be better if Liu Xiu did not march into Shandong. Once he does, it is hard to say how long he can hold on! His expression froze for a long time before he forced himself to smile, which was stiff and ugly. He cupped his hands and said: "Doctor Fu
, I have admired Your Majesty for a long time, I am willing to bow my head to Your Majesty, and I am willing to treat Your Majesty as my subordinates. As long as Your Majesty does not look down on you, I will not hesitate to do anything for Your Majesty!"
To put it bluntly, Zhang Bu is not willing to be Liu Xiu's enemy. As long as Liu Xiu can give him a similar official position and a similar title, he can surrender to Liu Xiu.
However, Zhang Bu's attitude was already very arrogant in Fulong's eyes. You are just a thief, and His Majesty is willing to order you to be safe. Your ancestral graves are already smoking. How dare you negotiate terms with His Majesty now?
?
The corners of Fulong's lips curled up, and he asked slowly: "So, what official position does Mr. Wen think he should be granted, and what title should he be granted?"
Zhang Bu's eyes suddenly lit up when he heard this. He cleared his throat and said, "Bu thinks that if you live in Yanzhou, you can become the king of Qi!"
Fulong was stunned for a moment, then burst out laughing, both angrily and mockingly. He said: "Brother Wen Gong doesn't know the Han system? Under Han law, there is no king with a different surname!"
Zhang Bu certainly knew that the Han family's ancestral system did not grant kings with different surnames. He coughed dryly and said with a smile: "As far as I know, the maximum number of princes can be one hundred thousand."
A 100,000-household marquis is a 100,000-household marquis. In the Han Dynasty, there were about four to ten people in a household. On average, there were almost six people in a household.
One hundred thousand households, that is, 600,000 people. This is almost the same as a king, and even more people than most kings manage.
Fulong looked at Zhang Bu in disbelief. This guy really dared to open his mouth and wanted to be a 100,000-household lord.
You must know that at that time, the marquis with the most jurisdiction only had three counties, namely Deng Yu and Deng Zhonghua. He was also one of the few marquis with ten thousand households in the Jianwu court.
Zhang Bu was doing well. He asked for 100,000 households as soon as he opened his mouth. Fulong even suspected that he was suffering from heart failure.
Seeing Fulong looking at him without saying a word for a long time, Zhang Bu said with a smile on his face: "Bu knows the laws of Han Dynasty, and I don't want to embarrass your majesty. As long as your majesty is willing to enclose 100,000 households, Bu is willing to work hard for your majesty and follow the example of dogs and horses."
It’s a lot of work!”
Zhang Bu knew that he did not have the ability to dominate. He also wanted to find someone to rely on and a big backer, but there was only one condition. He wanted to be an official, a high official, and he wanted to enjoy glory and wealth for generations to come.
Why did he raise his head to rebel in the first place? Wasn't that the reason?
This thief is simply unreasonable! This is the only thought in Fulong's mind. His Majesty's most trusted minister, the right general Deng Yu, is only a marquis of ten thousand households. How is it possible that you want to be a marquis of one hundred thousand households?
"I also hope that Doctor Fu will speak kindly to Your Majesty for Bu. As long as Your Majesty agrees, Bu Jianjian will never forget Doctor Fu's favor!"
Fulong took a deep breath and suppressed the anger in his heart. He cupped his hands to Zhang Bu and said, "I will truthfully convey Brother Wen Gong's wishes to your Majesty!"
"Oh, thank you so much, Doctor Fu!" Zhang Bu's face was full of joy and he bowed to Fulong. Looking at him, it seemed as if Fulong would report to Liu Xiu and Liu Xiu would immediately agree.
