Chapter 22 The world is like chess, the storm is coming
At the end of December, the weather became even colder.
All the leaves of the apricot trees in Chen Mu's courtyard have fallen out, the courtyard is full of fallen leaves, and the withered and yellow weeds have not been taken care of, making it look a bit dilapidated.
On this day, two guests came to Chen Mu's house, one was Xun He and the other was Xun Yu.
Xun He touched the goat's beard that had grown on his chin for several years, glanced at it and said, "Zi Gui, it's time to clean up your yard."
Chen Mu smiled: "I'm too lazy to do anything."
Dian Wei and several guards lived next door, but Chen Mu didn't treat them as his own, and he was too lazy to do anything, so the yard seemed messy.
Such a perfunctory excuse left Xun He speechless.
Xun Yu lowered his head and said nothing.
The three of them entered the house and sat around the stove.
Chen Mu poured hot tea and said while brewing: "I only have clear tea. I wonder if Mr. Gongshu is used to it."
"It doesn't matter."
Xun He took the tea cup, glanced at something on the bookshelf not far away from the corner of his eye, and said with a smile: "Zi Gui also loves to play chess?"
That was a game of Go. Before the Eastern Han Dynasty, Go was called "Yi", but it was also called Go among the people.
Xu Shen, a famous Confucian scholar of the Eastern Han Dynasty, recorded in "Shuowen Jiezi": "Yi is also Go."
At the end of the Han Dynasty, Go was very popular, and Cao Cao was particularly fond of playing Go. By the Jin Dynasty and the Northern and Southern Dynasties, it was almost a national sport. In the Southern Liang Dynasty, not only were there 480 temples, but every household had black and white chess pieces.
Chen Mu glanced at it and said with a smile: "It's just for occasional entertainment."
Xun He felt a little itch and said, "Why not play a game of chess?"
Chen Mu said modestly: "How can Mu's mediocre chess skills compare to Mr.'s?"
"Just play the next game as you like."
Xunhe insisted.
Seeing that he really wanted to play chess, Chen Mu stood up and said, "Then I'll go get the chess."
Take the Go board and two boxes of chess pieces to the stove and set them down.
The two sat across from each other.
"Guess first."
Xun He took a few chess pieces.
Chen Mu thought for a while and placed a piece on the chessboard.
Xunhe opened it with his hand and found four pills inside.
"The ego acts in darkness."
Chen Mu took the sunspots over. The number of Go moves in the Han Dynasty was very different from the number of Go moves in modern times.
For example, the chessboard path was 19X19 in later generations, with 180 chess pieces on each side, but now it is 17X17, with 150 chess pieces on each side. In later generations, black stones went first, and in the Han Dynasty, white stones went first.
Moreover, there were four seats in the Han Dynasty to prevent imitation of chess. In terms of layout? In fact, the layout of Go in the Han Dynasty was much smaller than that of later generations.
After all, there are too many restrictions? It’s not as crisscrossed and varied as the 19-way chessboard.
Xun He pinched a white stone, thought for a moment, placed it diagonally below the seat in the upper right corner of his body, at the fifteenth fifth, and said rather casually: "The child is back."
"Um?"
Chen Mu's Go game was a wild piece, and he did not hesitate to place a piece on the 15th position of the 7th of the 3rd line diagonally below Xunhe's upper right corner seat.
In ancient times, Go was mainly about cultivating one's moral character. In the early stage, it focused more on layout. It was like fighting in the middle game.
But the modern chess game is different. It is fought from the beginning to the end, pressing every step, and the fighting is far more brutal than in ancient chess.
Xun He had never seen anyone fail at the beginning? A little surprised? He simply started to operate the upper right corner first, and then posted a piece on the left side of his third hand. At the same time, he said: "I heard that you recommended Yuan Benchu and Yuan Gongli to go to other places.
As an official?"
"That's what happened."
Chen Mu gave birth to another son.
"Did you know that Yuan Benchu is the general's assistant? Yuan Gongli is the tiger general and the lieutenant general?"
While talking, Xun He had already laid out several chess pieces, occupying the upper right corner, and was about to encircle and kill the chess pieces in Chen Mu's corner.
"Of course I know."
Chen Mu responded with a smile. He had already ambushed two sides on the outside. If Xun He wanted to defeat him, it would not be that easy.
"Since you know it, why do you recommend them for no reason?"
Xun He's tone became much more indifferent.
He originally thought that Chen Mu was on his side? Whether it was to stop him from doing useless work? Or to help him save Lu Qiang.
But Yuan Shao and Yuan Shu are the keys to his plan for the coming years? Chen Mu suddenly made a cross-cutting move, which made Xun He a little angry.
Chen Mu pretended to be confused while playing chess, and asked doubtfully: "Why can't Mu understand Mr. Gongshu's words? Yuan Benchu and Yuan Gongdao are both outstanding people. Is it wrong for Mu to appreciate their talents and recommend them?"
"Chen Shangshu!"
Xun He's tone became more serious, he addressed his official position, and said indifferently: "What are your intentions?"
Xun Yu on the side took a sip of tea. This tea was bitter, but only after tasting it did he realize its sweetness. Only at the last moment could he understand its sweetness.
After Chen Mu used his backhand to reorganize the chess pieces connected to him in the upper right corner, he began to lay out the pieces in the lower left corner and said calmly: "Mr. Gongshu, don't be anxious. Do you know what the emperor's attitude towards the general is now?"
Xun He held a white stone in his hand, but it has not yet been found. He thought deeply: "The general is in charge of the Northern Army and is the head of the officials. The emperor naturally has great trust in him."
"hehe."
Chen Mu smiled and shook his head: "No, the emperor doesn't like Shi Hou, but loves Dong Hou. The louder the voices in the court asking the emperor to establish a prince, the emperor's disgust for the general will become deeper. I can only say that the general
This time I made a bad move, and I shouldn't have pushed the emperor so hard."
Xun He frowned. He asked the general to do this move. The purpose was naturally simple. First, he wanted to test the emperor's tone. Secondly, if Liu Bian really became the prince, he would be able to do so when the palace changes in the future.
Enter the palace according to the imperial edict.
After all, going to the palace to kill the eunuchs without an edict and going to the palace to kill the eunuchs on the prince's order have two different meanings. The former is suspected of being rebellious, while the latter is upright and upright, and will not be criticized.
This move is actually a bad move in Chen Mu’s eyes?
Xun He was a little dissatisfied and said: "What if the emperor hates the general?"
"Of course the general is in danger."
Chen Mu sighed.
"hehe."
Xun He also laughed: "The general has done nothing wrong, and there is no queen in the palace. The emperor has executed him for no crime. How can he convince everyone?"
"Of course the emperor will not punish the innocent, but he will only divide the military power of the general."
Chen Mu lost another son and said slowly: "Actually, both Shi Hou and Dong Hou are His Majesty's sons. Whoever ascends the throne is indifferent to His Majesty. But you have to understand that Liang Ji is the first
, Your Majesty will never let the general take over the power and another Liang Ji appears."
Xun He's expression changed, it was indeed true.
Even if Shihou ascends the throne, he is only a teenager, and power will inevitably be in the hands of General He Jin and Queen He.
By that time, the whole world of the Han Dynasty will depend on the personal character of the general.
A person with good moral character is Huo Guang, who will assist the emperor in Zhongxing.
The one with bad moral character was Liang Ji, who was so domineering that even the emperor dared to poison him.
The emperor is not stupid. Both his sons are his sons. He can accept whoever ascends the throne. The only thing he cannot accept is that another Liang Ji will appear in the future.
So no matter what, it is true that all military power cannot be in the hands of He Jin alone.
Thinking of this, Xun He realized that what Chen Mu said was indeed true. He frowned slightly and savored the taste: "So, it is the emperor's intention to transfer Yuan Shao and Yuan Shu away?"
"no."
"Um?"
"That's what I meant."
Chen Mu grinned, showing his big white teeth.
Xun He's face turned slightly dark. Are you kidding yourself?
"Is Shangshu Ling trying to please the emperor?"
Ding.
The chess piece was played a heavy weight.
"No, I'm helping the general."
when.
Chess pieces tap on the chessboard.
"I don't see how this will help the general."
Xun He lost another son.
"hehe."
Chen Mu sneered and said: "Mr. Gongshu, I'm afraid you don't know. If I hadn't told you, the emperor might really have murderous intentions for the general. Now it's good that the military power has been divided. There is always hope."
Xun Yu looked around and analyzed their conversation. Xun Yu didn't know that Emperor Ling of the Han Dynasty would die the next year, but he vaguely guessed that his brother seemed to be planning something for the general.
In fact, the Xun family were originally supporters of He Jin. Historically, everyone including Xun Shuang and Xun You served as He Jin's staff.
Xun Yu himself was also conquered by He Jin in 189, but He Jin himself refused to listen and was killed by the eunuchs.
Therefore, it is not surprising that Xun Yu can appear here. He was ordered by his uncle Xun Shuang to come here to help his brother Xun He. This is also the reason why he agreed to the conquest of Shangshutai and stayed by Chen Mu's side.
Because Xun Yu was secretly monitoring Chen Mu's every move.
After all, although Chen Mu had helped their party members, he was also involved with the eunuchs, which made Xun He uneasy. He felt that he was both good and evil. He was afraid that Chen Mu would ruin his and others' plans, so he sent a clever tribesman to keep an eye on him.
It's also a good thing to wear.
It's a pity that Xun Yu has been with Chen Mu for a month and found nothing. It seems that his life is so monotonous. Going to and from get off work every day has almost become a fixed pattern.
"I see."
"Sir, you have figured it out."
"Well, I'm just thinking, is this the emperor's intention, or did you wake it up."
"Sir, please don't forget that the general is now in charge of the military. If I hadn't acted as a matchmaker for him and allowed Zhang Rang's son to marry his sister, I'm afraid it would be worse than it is now."
"No one knows what you are thinking at this time or that time."
"Don't worry, I won't be stupid enough to go against the future emperor. If the emperor hadn't already shown signs of it, I wouldn't be willing to do such a thankless thing."
"If that's the case, that's for the best."
Snapped.
A white stone hung in the upper right corner, blocking the "qi" on the left side of the two black stones, and knocked out both of the black stones' eyes.
Xun He is also a smart man. He may not be a monster with an intelligence above 90, but he is also very human. After a little thought, he understood what Chen Mu meant.
No emperor wants military power to be in the hands of one person. Whether it is the Lu family in the former Han Dynasty or Huo Guang, Liang Ji and others in this dynasty, they are all learning from the past.
Including Emperor Ling of the Han Dynasty in his early period, he also lived during the period when eunuchs were in power.
At that time, Wang Fu and others killed General Dou Wu, took control of the government, and committed evil for more than ten years.
Emperor Ling of the Han Dynasty also grew up and slowly took control of power before he killed Wang Fu and completely took the power into his own hands. He was very aware of the dangers of powerful ministers and would never let He Jin end up like that.
Therefore, if there is a real conflict between the emperor and the general, there must be only two choices. One is to kill the general to prevent future troubles. The other is to divide the military power of the general to prevent all power from being in the hands of He Jin.
Chen Mu's suggestion was to suggest the second option to the emperor. In a sense, he did help the general.
Thinking of this, Xun He took out the two sunspots he had eaten, and the sound of them falling became much softer.
The two of them had played more than eighty moves. Since seventeen-way chess was far less complicated than nineteen-way chess, the chessboard was already dotted with more than eighty chess pieces densely crisscrossed together.
Chen Mu was two eyes behind. He didn't panic at all. He surrounded Xun He from the side and slowly attacked Xun He's dragon. At the same time, he said: "Mr. Gongshu, why don't you get to know Mu. At that moment the year after tomorrow, what will you do?"
What's the plan?"
Xun He smiled and said: "What else can we plan? That's all."
"Going into the palace to punish eunuchs?"
Chen Mu noticed that the white chess began to climb up the second path, and he was already vaguely planning to completely attack the layout of his upper right corner. The upper right corner would lose two eyes first, and then the remaining six pieces would be slaughtered. Then his dragon head would be gone, and the corners would collapse.
.
But it was not that there was no chance to save it. It was just that he thought for a moment and did not connect the six pieces in succession. Instead, he directly discarded the six pieces on the upper right and turned to the four pieces on the left side of White's chess.
It seems that these six stones are willing to lose blood, because after giving up, black will lose fifteen points, and after surrounding and destroying four white stones, it will only gain nine points.
Therefore, Xun He was also very confused about Chen Mu's choice and didn't understand why he did it.
But since the middle hand gave him an opportunity, Xun He certainly would not let it go. While playing chess, he said: "Of course it is. Isn't this the suggestion you made to me at the beginning?"
"I'm afraid it's more than that."
Chen Mu smiled and said: "I discovered a very interesting thing recently. In Jizhou, Yuzhou and the Sanhe area, many powerful families are hoarding food and making weapons in large quantities."
Xun He said calmly: "In these troubled times, we have to protect ourselves, but the minister is overly worried."
"Maybe."
Chen Mu captured four of White's pieces one step ahead of schedule. White counterattacked on the next move and captured six of his Black pieces.
"In recent years, the emperor has divided tax collection into different states. This method is indeed very sophisticated."
Xun He took out his six pieces of black chess and said with some profound meaning: "Divide and take them, just like Su, Qin, and Zhang Yi combining vertical and horizontal. However, although this method is good, it will have endless consequences, and the world may be in chaos again.
"
Chen Mu nodded: "Yes, because of this, I have already made recommendations to the emperor, asking him to stop immediately and restore the original tax system after collecting the tax for the last time next year."
"Will your Majesty listen to you?"
"To be honest, with His Majesty's greed... I guess not."
"Alas, that eunuch has one more crime."
Xun He pretended to sigh.
"really."
Chen Mu smiled.
Although this suggestion was made by him, the eunuchs would not say it, and neither would the party members.
So the charge of bewitching the emperor to collect taxes naturally fell on the eunuchs.
The most important thing is that Emperor Ling of the Han Dynasty was too greedy.
This year, the palace was also overhauled, and the money for the West Garden was almost spent. There should be very little money left in the inner treasuries of the Shaofu and Shuiheng.
The emperor points to the last tax of this year and will continue to spend extravagantly next year.
Although there will be another batch next year, with more than half of the tax cut already, the world's powerful will probably hold their noses and admit it.
But it may not be that easy to get someone who is both greedy and has already reaped the benefits to stop.
After all, it is like an addict. Once you have tasted that taste, you will know the taste and you will never forget it.
Therefore, when it reaches that point and the powerful families in the world are greatly dissatisfied, not only will there be one more reason to kill the eunuchs, but they will definitely gain the support of most people.
"Zi Gui has a great strategy and is good at strategizing. Why don't you join us in assisting the general in killing the eunuchs? You can also make a great contribution in the future."
Xun He focused on fighting in the middle game, and after the layout was completed, he began to hunt Chen Mu in the corners.
"What Mr. Gongshu said is indeed reasonable. Mu also said earlier that Mu's eldest brother Liu Xuande was originally a clan member of the Han Dynasty and had always been loyal to the Han Dynasty. Now he defeated Zhang Chun and Zhang Ju in Liaodong. He took the lead and was not afraid of death.
He is the perfect choice to help the general."
While Chen Mu pretended to be retreating, he completed a two-handed counterattack. When the six pieces of the white triangle and the three pieces of the black triangle were fighting at the bottom, he used the white piece to make a fuss about the difference in the fight, showing the enemy that he was weak, and released his own black piece.
The weak point of tight outer air tempts him to eat his lower left two pieces, but he uses the outer triangle as a cover to escape with one piece.
Xun He took advantage of the situation and captured his two pieces. Looking at the chess game that had already reached more than a hundred moves, although it had not reached the end, it had already reached the end of the middle game. His upper right corner and lower left corner were all white, and the lower right corner was also scattered.
After occupying five-eighths of the territory, he couldn't help but smile and said: "What is Zigui's opinion on His Majesty's decentralization of powers?"
Chen Mu pretended to think, and after a while, he said: "As I expected, the emperor may follow the example of the former Han Dynasty and divide the southern army and the northern army. The northern army will still be led by the general, and the southern army will be led by eunuchs.
, Mr. Gongshu can start from this aspect."
"What does Zigui mean?"
"Eunuchs are eunuchs after all. How many of them can be good at military affairs? The generals who will lead the army below must still be selected from those who are good at recruiting and fighting."
"I see."
Xun He nodded and stared at the half of the country in the lower right corner of Chen Mu. As long as he captured this place, he would have three-quarters of the whole game. Basically, there was no need to wait until the end, the middle game was over.
He has already won.
Chen Mu made a flying chess move in the left corner and continued: "As long as the general controls the Northern Army and the Southern Army mixes in some sand, it would be best if they can interact with the guards guarding the palace gate. If they make a secret friendship, then
For a few of you, when that moment comes, it will be miraculous."
The staff in He Jin's mansion were clamoring all day long about killing the eunuchs. Later, the news leaked out, which had a lot to do with these people's poor awareness of confidentiality. But there are only three people in this room now, and they didn't mean to kill the eunuchs when they said they wanted to.
He shouted, but he really planned to take action, so it was completely on the table and there was no taboo at all.
Chen Mu was originally a two-faced man. He had to persuade the eunuchs to collude with him, and he had to be famous to make friends with the party members. If the situation was normally evenly matched, it would still be quite difficult to become a coward. But it was a pity that after the death of Han Ling Emperor, the power of the eunuchs became unbalanced. Then this
When the time comes, you must turn to the party members. This is what smart people do.
Therefore, Chen Mu will definitely not inform, and Xun He and Xun Yu are basically members of He Jin's faction. If they inform, they will accuse myself. Therefore, the three of them must avoid the issue of Han Ling Emperor's death. In addition, there was no taboo at all about killing eunuchs.
"Don't Zigui have a specific solution?"
Xun He is still surrounding and killing in the lower right corner.
Specific method?
Chen Mu thought for a while and replied: "Things are planned by people, and accomplished by God. No strategy in this world can be 100% successful. Most of them still have to make adjustments and changes based on the actual situation. When that time comes, just adapt to the situation."
Why in history was it Yuan Shao who led Xiyuan's troops into the palace after He Jin was killed?
That was because He Jin no longer had military power at that time.
It was not that he was deprived of power by Emperor Ling of the Han Dynasty, but there happened to be another rebellion in Liangzhou. Emperor Ling of the Han Dynasty asked Huangfu Song to lead the Northern Army to Chang'an, so the troops and horses in Luoyang at that time were all in the hands of Jian Shuo.
He Jin had to send Guan Qiuyi, Zhang Liao, Bao Xin, Wang Kuang, and Zhang Yang to recruit troops from other places to temporarily recruit troops to prepare for the attack on the palace.
As a result, He Jin was killed by the eunuch before they came back.
If He Jin's faction hadn't planted an important chess piece in the Xiyuan school, Yuan Shao, it is estimated that there would not have been a battle for hegemony in the future. When the eunuchs support Liu Xie to ascend to power, there is a high probability that it will be another Five Marquises during the Huan Emperor period, and maybe Han The kingdom can continue for decades.
But now everything has changed.
Chen Mu has greatly changed history. The Liangzhou rebellion has been put down. It is still unclear whether Han Sui will resurrect the next year. So He Jin still controls the Northern Army, so Luoyang's military power is far stronger than in history. Half a point.
Coupled with the gathering of warlords from all walks of life, the number of people in Luoyang may exceed 100,000. They are like a powder keg. If they are not careful, if they explode, they will immediately be torn apart, causing rivers of blood to flow and corpses scattered everywhere.
At that moment, Chen Mu was probably just sitting back and watching the chaos in Luoyang, and then followed Liu Bei back to manage his Qingzhou well, and finally plotted against the world.
As for Xun and their plans?
how to say.
Different visions will naturally lead to different long-term perspectives.
Xun He only focused on that corner and ignored the entire world. When the situation changes drastically in the future, it will be the day he makes a miscalculation.
Chen Mu smiled slightly. On the surface, he seemed to have just driven away Yuan Shu.
But in fact, he also understood that Yuan Shao was tied to the party members and could not be transferred away. Not to mention Cao Cao, he had no official career, and he would not pay attention to you if you recruit him, so there was absolutely nothing he could do about him.
So all along, Chen Mu had only one purpose.
That is to create that explosive barrel and weaken the strength of other princes.
In addition, the plan is to make arrangements around Qingzhou, try to reduce the influence of the party members in Jizhou, and try to find ways to make Lao Cao's life in Yanzhou more difficult and prevent him from developing stably.
At least Bao Xin cannot be retained. In the future, he will either be transferred from He Jin or find a way to kill him. Cao Cao cannot be allowed to easily capture Yanzhou.
Hearing Chen Mu talk about adapting to changes, Xun He smiled and shook his head: "It's just that although Zi Gui's strategy is unparalleled, his chess skills are much worse. He failed several moves in a row, but he didn't show the ability to adapt to changes. Do you know that I will make the next move?" , your lower left dragon tail is about to be slaughtered, and at the end of the middle game, that’s when you lose.”
"oh?"
Chen Mu smiled and said, "Really?"
"Zigui can't see it?"
"I can't figure it out, sir, please enlighten me."
"Then I'm off."
Xun He placed the last word on Twelve Thirteen, like a white star, lighting up all the white words in the lower right corner.
Just like Othello, almost in an instant, all the black stones in the lower right corner were wiped out, leaving only a few peripheral chess pieces that were originally used as supporting pieces. Black chessmen only had a quarter left on the chessboard.
It can be said that the situation is over.
Although the game has not yet ended, anyone who knows chess will understand that with such a huge disadvantage, Black has no way to recover.
Xun He laughed and said, "Hahaha, how about it?"
Chen Mu nodded: "Sir, your chess skills are indeed exquisite."
"Admit defeat?"
"No, I admit everything except myself. I don't like to admit defeat."
"Don't admit defeat?"
Xun He shook his head and said, "Why hold on?"
Chen Mu turned to look at Xun Yu and said, "Wen Ruo has been watching for so long, have you noticed anything?"
Xun Yu frowned and thought: "I vaguely feel that something is wrong, but I can't think of anything wrong."
Chen Mu laughed, put the last piece of stone in his hand gently, and said softly: "This is what's wrong."
The position of this chess piece is at nine-eleven, located on the second road to the right of the central Tianyuan.
After this move, Xun He wondered: "What's wrong with this move?"
Xun Yu quickly glanced at the chessboard and said suddenly: "So that's it, so that's it... You have been plotting against your brother from the very beginning."
"what happened?"
Xun He realized the seriousness of the matter and hurriedly scanned the chessboard.
You can see that this chess piece is connected with a remaining peripheral line left in the upper right corner. In addition, the upper left corner is the black chess piece. The black chess piece is actually above, forming a huge piece of white chess position in the upper right corner.
’s formation.
"this!"
Xun He opened his eyes wide, and quickly raised a piece to block it, but after searching for a long time, he found that he was already lagging behind. When Heizi blocked all the upper plates, he could not find a way to block his upper right hand.
The escape passage connecting the corner and the lower right corner comes out.
"Mr. Gongshu."
Chen Mu picked up the tea cup and took a sip, and said calmly: "Sometimes, you have to look further. If you always only focus on the local and immediate situation, and fail to see the general trend, it will inevitably be a waste of all previous efforts and a complete failure."
Xun He threw down the chess pieces and said with a wry smile: "You kid, you didn't know where you learned how to play chess, but you can still play like this."
"Concession."
Chen Mu smiled slightly.
At this point, there is no need to stop. He killed Xun He's big dragon in the upper right corner. Even though the lower left corner and lower right corner are now Xun He's territory, because he has more heads and more money, it seems that
It was just an equalizer, but at the end of the game, I was still in the lead at the end, so it was the end now and there was no need to waste any more time.
"It's getting late, let's go back."
Xun He stood up. He had gotten the answer he wanted. Although he lost the game, he came back with a full harvest.
"I'll see you off sir."
Chen Mu also stood up and followed, and the three of them walked to the door.
Xun He said: "Farewell."
"Walk slowly."
Chen Mu stood at the door, watching Er Xun's leaving figure, still maintaining a calm smile.
Things in the world are like chess, so how can focusing on the present compare with focusing on the future?
What will happen in the future, Chen Mu doesn't know.
But Chen Mu knew very well that the sky above Luoyang next year would be full of strong winds and dense clouds.
On the eve of a storm, people with umbrellas will be blown away with their umbrellas, and people with houses will have their houses collapsed.
Only by staying out of things can you find peace.
Maybe.
There is no need to wait until Dong Zhuo burns Luoyang.