Mrs. Liu quickly wrote a letter and gave it to Bai Xiaowen.
Bai Xiaowen didn't care. At this point, if Mrs. Liu wanted her two sons to be safe and sound, she could only follow his arrangements and never act smart.
After getting the letter from home, Bai Xiaowen then sent an envoy to Julu to meet Yuan Tan.
However, as for what official to be granted, Bai Xiaowen did not guarantee it in advance. Instead, he used the tactic of "drag" and asked Yuan Tan to come to Yedu first.
…
The next day, Jushou was respectfully escorted to Yedu by Jiang Yiqu.
Although he was imprisoned in Liyang, Jushou looked good and seemed not to have suffered much.
Ju Shou was quite in favor of Bai Xiaowen inheriting the Yuan family's legacy. Without any hesitation, he changed his title to Bai Xiaowen as his lord.
Bai Xiaowen held Jushou's hand and said, "Sir, you've come just in time. I have a difficult task that no one but you can do."
Jushou said with emotion: "Master, if you have anything to do, just tell me."
Bai Xiaowen whispered a few words.
Jushou was startled at first, then thought about it carefully and said: "My lord, this plan is brilliant. It has the charm of the great ancestor who secretly plotted against Chen Cang in the past. However, if this matter can be accomplished, one person will be needed to help."
"who?"
Ju said: "Former Beihai Prime Minister, Qingzhou Governor, current Shaofu, Kong Rong and Kong Wenju."
Bai Xiaowen frowned and said: "This person is indeed useful. But we can't let him stay in Qingzhou, lest he get rich."
Kong Rong once served as the governor of Qingzhou. Later, Yuan Tan led his army. Kong Rong did not fight, so he abandoned Qingzhou and fled. Later, the Xudu court under Cao Cao's control appointed Kong Rong as a court official, and he first served as a general.
He was a craftsman (third rank) and later served as a Shaofu (ninth rank).
In Bai Xiaowen's view, Kong Rong was one of those empty talk celebrities with limited talents, and he was definitely not the same person as him. When Xun Yu was selecting talents from Xudu, he also asked Bai Xiaowen if he wanted Kong Rong, but Bai Xiaowen decisively rejected him.
He was treated as an ordinary court official and brought to Yedu together.
This kind of empty talk about celebrities has a family foundation in Qingzhou. As the saying goes, "The seats are always full of guests and the bottles of wine are never empty." Kong Rong, who once served as the governor of Qingzhou, is indeed capable of helping Jushou complete Bai Xiaowen's plan.
Hearing Bai Xiaowen's worries, Jushu smiled and said: "Kong Rong is the twentieth generation grandson of Confucius. His words and deeds are all for fear of being inconsistent with etiquette and humiliating our ancestors. Since the Lord has the emperor in his hands, he will only need an edict when the time comes. How dare he
Not coming?"
Bai Xiaowen nodded understandingly.
He couldn't help but secretly think that having smart people around him to counsel the military could really help him check for leaks and fill in the gaps, saving a lot of effort. This is the truth.
Moreover, as an aborigine of this plane, a counselor of Jushu's level must make plans that are 100% in line with the cultural background of the Three Kingdoms plane. This is something Bai Xiaowen sometimes overlooks.
…
Jizhou, Julu County.
Yuan Tan led the troops and stationed in Julu City. He accepted Wang Xiu's suggestion and committed no crime in Luqiu in order to win over the people of Jizhou.
Seeing that Wei Jun was ahead, Yuan Tan had no choice but to continue walking.
Bad news came that Yuan Shang's 100,000-strong army was subdued by his second brother Yuan Xi without any effort!
Even Yuan Shang was severely accused of falsely passing on the inheritance and disregarding human ethics, and was tied up and taken to Yedu for questioning. Feng Ji, the counselor who had been assisting him, was directly beheaded by Yuan Xi, and Shen Pei was imprisoned in Yedu.
There was no news in the city.
Now that Yuan Xi is sitting in the three states, all the generals in Guandu, and the Liyang camp have all surrendered, and the emperor is in his hands with a huge momentum, how should he compete with him?
After Yuan Tan heard the news, he was so worried that his hair was almost turning white. He had no choice but to raise his account and wanted to hear the opinions of the audience.
There were many civil servants in the tent who wanted to persuade "peace". The so-called "peace" was actually a euphemism for persuading surrender. After all, Yuan Tan and Yuan Xi were brothers, and Yuan Tan was the eldest son. The word "surrender" was not appropriate.
Yuan Tan hesitated.
Guo Tu hurriedly said: "My lord, you are the eldest son of Grand Sima. It is your duty to inherit your father's legacy. Since ancient times, how can there be a principle of abolishing the eldest and establishing the young? If you surrender to Yuan Xi, you will definitely be ridiculed by everyone in the world."
Yuan Xi looked at the two or three big and small kittens under the tent with a little worry.
The civil servants were Guo Tu, Wang Xiu and Xin Pi; the military commanders were only Cen Bi, Peng An, Yan Jing and other unknown people.
Yuan Tan couldn't help but sigh: "Now there is a great disparity in strength between Yuan Xi and I. Even if we don't surrender, what will happen?"
Guo Tudao: "My lord can quickly return to Qingzhou and defend it with high walls. Although Yuan Xi has the land of three states, he still has to deal with Cao Cao, so he will definitely not be able to spare the energy to attack my lord! Even if my lord cannot be a great Sima, he can still be a great commander.
Princes, please wait and see what happens in the world. If you surrender, I am afraid you will not be able to become a rich man."
Guo Tu was also frightened to death.
Fengji's head was lying there covered in blood.
His status in Yuan Tan's camp is similar to Fengji's status in Yuan Shang's camp.
Moreover, he has a feud with these two generals, Zhang He and Gao Lan!
If it were a lord like Yuan Shao, Guo Tu would still have the confidence to use his sharp tongue to confuse right and wrong. But if it were Yuan Xi... Guo Tu would wither.
If Yuan Tan surrenders, he, the mastermind, may not be able to escape with his life.
During the discussion, a letter suddenly arrived from Yedu's mother, Mrs. Liu.
Yuan Tan greeted the messenger, read Liu's letter, conveyed the civil and military information, and said: "My mother said that she has asked my second brother to give me a big official position. She told me not to think too much and go to Yedu to see the emperor to express my gratitude. What do you think?
"
Guo Tu hurriedly said: "My lord, you can't believe it. Even if this is the handwriting of the old lady, it may be Yuan Xi's treacherous plot, and he wants to put the lord under house arrest in Yedu. Otherwise, why does the letter not mention anything about the official position? And what's more?
I don’t see the imperial edict issued by the emperor!”
While Yuan Tan was hesitating, the messenger said again: "General, there is also a letter from Da Sima here."
Yuan Tan said: "Why not submit it earlier!" He immediately took the letter. He was most concerned about Yuan Xi's attitude.
Yuan Tan was shocked after reading the letter.
"The second brother said that for the sake of brotherly harmony and not to hurt brotherhood, I am asking the emperor to give me the title of Grand Sima and make him the general! The edict will be issued within a few days."
Yuan Tan couldn't believe it and looked at everyone: "What do you think?"
Xin Pi said: "My lord is the eldest son after all. According to etiquette, he should inherit his father's influence. It is not impossible for the second son to do this."
Guo Tudao: "This statement must be deceitful and should not be taken lightly."
Yuan Tan was a little moved, but because of Guo Tu's words, he couldn't believe it.
Guo Tu offered another plan: "My lord, it is better to station troops in Julu for the time being and wait for the imperial edict to arrive."
Imperial edicts will not be changed overnight. Even the Xudu imperial court under the control of Cao Cao must pay attention to maintaining the prestige of the imperial court. Otherwise, edicts will become increasingly worthless.
Yuan Tan said: "What if the edict really arrives?"
Guo Tudao said: "If this is really the case, my lord has the imperial title, the status of the eldest son, and military power. If he ascends to the top and calls out, the ambitious people in Jizhou who miss my old lord's kindness will inevitably defect and join him. You can come in then.
If you plan to plot against Jizhou, retreating to protect Qingzhou is a sure-fire plan."
King Biejia Xiudao said: "Having said that, we still need to be on guard against Yuan Xi's delaying strategy. If the other party mobilizes a large army to surround us while we are waiting to station troops at Julu, it will be too late to regret it."
Guo Tudao said: "My lord can send more reconnaissance cavalry to conduct reconnaissance in Liyang, Yecheng and other important places. If Yuan Xi dispatches a large army, how can he hide it from my lord's eyes and ears?"