As the administrative seat of the Zhao Kingdom, there was a splendid and prosperous city both inside and outside the city.
Countless villages and farmland surround the city. Less than half a mile from the official road to the east city, there is a rural pavilion.
There are many houses around, small bridges and flowing water. Originally, there were a large number of farming families living outside the city.
Although the fields around big cities like this basically belong to wealthy families, these people are inherently dependent on them.
But after the war came, aristocratic families relocated and people fled, leaving the place full of depression.
The people who came out of Handan City slowly walked to the pavilion. Liu Bei looked at the people around him and said to Zhang Liao: "Send someone over to take a look."
Zhang Liao turned his head and shouted to the soldiers under the tower: "Go over and see what's going on over there."
"only."
The soldier hurriedly ran down the mountain, called for more than ten scouts, got on his horse, and ran towards the pavilion over there.
Liu Bei and others were watching on the mountain. They saw the soldiers passing by and negotiating with the people over there for a while, leaving more than ten people watching. One person quickly ran back.
"Report."
The scout captain who went to check the situation came to the foot of the mountain and reported back: "General, people from the city came out and said that Yuan Shao died of illness and they are willing to surrender."
"oh?"
Liu Bei was surprised and said: "Bring people here."
"only."
The captain went back again.
After a while, the soldiers took the people to the foot of Tushan.
Liu Bei and others had also descended from Tushan and were waiting. They saw that the person coming was a middle-aged Confucian scholar about forty years old. He was dressed in white plain silk, with a thin face, a goat's beard on his lower jaw, and a sharp look in his eyes.
After the man came closer, he was also looking at Liu Bei and his party. Liu Bei was wearing a black and red silk robe with two swords at his waist.
Chen Mu and Ju Shou were dressed as ordinary Confucian scholars, but Ju Shou was in his forties after all, not as good-looking as Chen Mu, and his appearance was not very good. Chen Mu was already thirty-two years old this year, but he looked like a teenager.
Thirteen years old, with fair and shiny skin, she was looking at him with a smile.
"Xun Chen, a native of Yingchuan, whose courtesy name is Youruo, is currently the chief historian of Mr. Yuan's account. Could it be that the two of you are the King of Qi and the Shaofu?"
Xun Chen looked at it and asked slightly surprised.
Chen Mu was not surprised that Xun Chen could guess the identities of himself and Liu Bei. As the leader of an army, Zhang Liao's general armor could be seen by anyone who was not blind.
From April to the beginning of autumn in July, Zhang Liao has been stationed outside Handan City for three months. It is impossible for people in the city not to know who the general of the army in the east of the city is. Since they see his general's attire, they can also
Guess the identities of Liu Bei and Chen Mu.
In this world, except for a few people like Liu Bei, Guan Yu, Zhang Fei and Chen Mu, there should be no one else who can make Zhang Liao and Zhang Wenyuan, the chief general of the Qingzhou Army's Wansheng Army, stand behind him honestly.
Liu Bei nodded and said, "It's Gu. Are you Xun Chen? Wen Ruo's brother?"
"Chen has met King Qi."
Xun Chen quickly saluted seriously again. He and Xun Yu were brothers. They were several years older than Xun Yu. Xun Yu was thirty-six years old this year and he had just turned forty. Although the two brothers were their own masters, they had this
The friendship was there, so Liu Hui asked him to be the envoy to represent the city's surrender.
Liu Bei raised his hands in vain and said: "Excuse me, is Chang Shi here to surrender to Yu Gu on behalf of Yuan Shao?"
Xun Chen sighed and said: "Mr. Yuan has been vomiting blood since Jieqiao. He has been bedridden for the past few months and has been unable to move. After autumn, the weather turned cold. Maybe he caught wind and cold and relapsed. Last night, he suddenly vomited blood.
After two battles, he died. I discussed with the generals in the city and felt that there was no point in persisting. There was not much food and grass in the city, so it was better to surrender to the King of Qi."
Vomiting blood?
Good guy, Yuan Shu just vomited more than a bucket of blood, and Yuan Shao even vomited more blood than his younger brother. Maybe the Yuan family has some hereditary disease.
Chen Mu couldn't help but think in his heart.
In the Han Dynasty, ten dou of dendrobium was equivalent to one stone, which was equal to one hundred and twenty kilograms. Two dou of vomited blood was equivalent to twenty-four kilograms, which is about four to five kilograms, more than four thousand milliliters of blood. This is the amount of blood in a normal adult's body.
blood volume.
If the records in "Book of the Later Han" and "Three Kingdoms" are correct, and if what Xun Chen said is true, then the two brothers Yuan Shu and Yuan Shao were so angry that they vomited out all the blood in their bodies.
This unreasonable situation made Chen Mu couldn't help but wonder at this moment whether the Yuan brothers had some ancestral digestive tract disease.
In fact, he had studied the Yuan family earlier, and remembered that many people in the Yuan family, except Yuan Wei, died young, including Yuan Shao and Yuan Shu's father, Yuan Feng, who also died young. If Yuan Shao really vomited blood and died in two fights,
Maybe there really is a genetic disease here.
"Yuan Shao is really dead?"
Liu Bei was in a daze for a moment, not knowing whether to be happy or sad. Although he and Yuan Shao had no friendship, they had known each other day and night for nearly a year back then. Although their positions were different now, they could still be considered old friends.
Xun Chen sighed and said: "Yes, Mr. Yuan's family is all in Yecheng. Now that the Yuan family has been defeated, we have no way to join us. Therefore, I want to pray to the King of Qi to allow us to hold the coffin and send Mr. Yuan back to Yecheng for burial."
, after the funeral, we are willing to dedicate the city, hand over the Jizhou Mu seal, surrender to the King of Qi, and we will never break our promise."
Chen Mu on the side had doubts and asked: "How do we know whether you are telling the truth or a lie, and how do you prove that Yuan Shao is really dead?"
"If the young master doesn't believe it, he can send someone to the city to verify the authenticity."
Xun Chen replied.
Chen Mu thought for a while, then turned to Liu Bei and said, "Brother, this matter is of great importance. We should immediately send someone to notify General Xianyu and let him report to the emperor to see how the imperial court makes a decision."
Xun Chen was dissatisfied and said: "Death is the most important thing. Although Mr. Yuan has a rift with the court, he is the fourth and third prince of the Yuan family after all. Reporting to the court takes at least a few days. How can we let Mr. Yuan's body lie like this?"
In the city? There is a shortage of supplies in the city now, and there is a great mourning ceremony. If you can't die immediately, you may be ruined."
The most famous ancient tomb of the Han Dynasty excavated by later generations is the tomb of Mrs. Xin Zhui in Mawangdui. According to archeology, it can be known that the reason why her body has not decayed for thousands of years is because the Han Dynasty already had excellent anti-corrosion technology, which can save as little as
It takes a hundred years or even a thousand years to prevent the corpse from decaying.
This chapter is not finished yet, please click on the next page to continue reading the exciting content! However, what you must know is why ordinary people cannot be immortal for a thousand years. Naturally, it is because the people have no money, and the dignitaries can take advantage of their privileges.
For example, scrub with alcohol, cover with various sterilizing spices, and then soak with mercury.
But now that Handan City has been surrounded for several months, Sima Yi secretly released the food and grass in the city, allowing the people in the city to contact the high-ranking officials in Shexian County, who sent people to send them in. Other supplies were in very short supply.
Therefore, if Yuan Shao is really dead, given the current situation in Handan City, there is really no way to embalm him. The fourth and third sons of the Yuan family are famous all over the world. Even if Yuan Shao is considered a traitor by the court, he still needs to have a little dignity.
Leave it to him, so it would really not be a good idea to leave his body to rot.
Liu Bei hesitated for a moment.
Chen Mu then said with a smile: "General Xianyu is a close confidant of the Emperor. Even if the Yuan family wants to surrender, General Xianyu should accept the surrender on behalf of the Emperor. If he surrenders to us, he will be acting on his behalf and may be accused by the world of disrespecting the imperial court. Brother,
Since it has taken too long to send someone to deliver a message to the emperor, why not listen to General Xianyu’s opinion."
"Um."
Liu Bei nodded: "Fourth brother has grown up and sees that the emperor is sitting high in the hall. Although I have been ordered to punish the thieves, even if the Yuan family surrenders, it should be surrendered to the emperor, not to Gu. General Xianyu is your majesty's confidant. This matter
It should really be handled by General Xianyu, Wenyuan, please go and ask General Xianyu in person to come over and talk about it."
"only."
Zhang Liao was ordered to leave.
Liu Bei invited Xun Chen to sit in the camp first.
About three quarters of an hour later, Xian Yufu came over with Yan Rou.
Everyone sat in rows, with Liu Bei naturally taking the main seat, Chen Mu sitting under his right hand, followed by Xian Yufu, Yan Rou, and Zhang Liao.
Xun Chen sat opposite them.
After the banquet, Liu Bei said to Xianyu Fu: "General Xianyu, this is Yuan Shao's envoy, Chief Shi Xunchen. Because he has an old relationship with Gu, he came to say that he would lead his army to surrender to us. General Xianyu is a close confidant of the emperor.
What does the general think about this matter?"
Xian Yufu said happily: "Is this serious?"
Xun Chen quickly said: "Of course it's absolutely true. If the general doesn't believe it, he can send someone to the city to check. Mr. Yuan's body is now in the city."
Liu Bei said: "Logically speaking, it is a good thing that Yuan Jun is willing to surrender, but as a minister alone, without the emperor's edict, I might not be able to accept Yuan's surrender on behalf of His Majesty. I wanted to report to Your Majesty, but the back and forth took a long time, and I was afraid it would be delayed.
The decay of Yuan Shao's body made Yuan Jun feel resentful, so the matter was left to the general for decision."
Xian Yufu glanced at Yan Rou, who nodded. They were an army affiliated with Liu Yu. It would be good for them to destroy Yuan Shao as soon as possible. Once Yuan Shao died, they would soon become famous, so they all wanted Yuan Shao.
Die soon.
Seeing that Yan Rou thought it was okay, Xian Yufu said: "In that case, I will send someone to the city to have a look. But we don't recognize Yuan Shao. I'm afraid even if we enter the city, we won't know whether it is true or false."
Liu Bei and Chen Mu looked at each other. They were the only ones who knew Yuan Shao here.
But the problem is that they both have high status and risked running to the city to see if Yuan Shao's body was real or fake. Wouldn't that be a trap for themselves?
Liu Bei thought for a while and said: "When I was fighting against Dong, the Duke and I were supervising the transportation of grain and grass in the rear. The army had seen Yuan Shao's people with our own eyes. I, a few brothers, and Yuan Hao also recognized him, but I'm afraid it would be inconvenient for us to go there."
, after the person who goes there meets Yuan Shao, he should write down his appearance and describe it when he comes back, and that should be enough."
Xianyu Fu said: "Then according to what King Qi said, King Qi is also a minister whom your Majesty trusts. It doesn't matter who makes a decision or not. Your Majesty will not blame us. Why don't King Qi also send people to the city to have a look? If Yuan Jun is sincere
If you surrender, we will discuss it together."
This is a statement of high emotional intelligence. Liu Bei stroked his beard and smiled and said: "Very good, then just follow General Xianyu's words. Wenyuan, you send someone to the city to have a look."
Xian Yufu said to Yan Ju: "Anping, go there yourself."
Yan Rou always had courage. Even though she knew that the city was a dragon's pond and a tiger's den, she was still unafraid and accepted the order: "Wei!"
After everyone had a banquet, they set off to Tushan again.
The team that had been waiting in the pavilion came over, and Xun Chen followed his words and presented Yuan Shao's sword, Jizhou Mu's seal, and the official letter of surrender to Liu Bei and Xian Yufu.
Liu Bei and Xian Yufu were overjoyed after seeing this, and asked Yan Rou and a lieutenant sent by Zhang Liao to follow the people into the city to observe the situation.
Xun Chen was naturally kept as a hostage, but on the surface, it was said that negotiations on surrender would continue.
They went back to the camp to continue the discussion. Yan Rou and Zhang Liao's deputy general Wang Hu brought more than 20 soldiers into the city. If these soldiers entered the city, it would definitely be a wolf entering the tiger's mouth.
But they are envoys. Killing them will obviously anger the Qingzhou Army and Youzhou Army outside, and will also put Xun Chen who stays outside in danger. Therefore, as long as the defenders in the city are not stupid, they will not do such a thing.
, unless the guard has a grudge against Xun Chen.
After Yan Rou and Wang Hu entered the city, they saw that the city was indeed covered with silk. White cloth was the most basic cloth, and cloth of other colors needed to be dyed. Therefore, even if there was a shortage of supplies in the city, as long as there was no shortage of cloth, there would be no shortage of white cloth.
Along the way, the soldiers were crying and wailing one by one, with no fighting spirit. Yan Rou even saw many soldiers sitting paralyzed under the city wall. With Yuan Shao's death, they seemed to have lost all motivation.
In fact, Yuan Shao's internal affairs in Jizhou were not too bad. The people under his rule could not be said to be rich and powerful, but they still had food to eat.
Therefore, the people of Jizhou still have some mixed feelings about Yuan Shao. Some people are grateful to him, while others feel that he has rejected the previous state shepherd, Wang Fen, and therefore do not like him.
But no matter what, at least Yuan Shao did not treat the common people too harshly, allowing millions of people in Jizhou to live a relatively stable life for more than ten years, and the soldiers under his command also loved him. At this point, he was still able to maintain part of his military morale.
This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading! But as the news of his death came, faith collapsed, and Yuan Jun soldiers all looked sad. Although some officers managed to maintain it, they did not completely collapse, but after the morale of the army was weakened, Li Jun
The collapse is obviously not far away.
Yan Rou kept everything in the city in mind, and followed the envoy of Yuan Jun to the door of Handan Prefect's residence. At this time, there were people at the door to greet them, it was Liu Hui and Jiang Yiqu.
"I am Liu Hui, who is in charge of governing the country, and this is General Jiang Yiqu. Please come to the house to have a chat."
Liu Hui and Jiang Yiqu both wore plain clothes and had white cloth tied to their foreheads. As Yuan Shao's subordinates, they also had to wear filial robes to show respect.
Yan Rou then said politely: "My condolences to you two, one is Yan Rou, the captain of the general Xianyu."
"This is Wang Hu, the captain of General Zhang of the Wan Sheng Army. My condolences."
Wang Hu also responded politely.
The two of them entered the mansion, leaving their weapons and soldiers outside the door. They walked through the vestibule and reached the front hall, where they smelled a strong scent of spices.
Yan Rou and Wang Hu looked over and saw many soldiers guarding the front hall, and many generals were crying and howling inside.
When I walked to the door, I saw a mat placed in the center of the hall. Lying on the mat was a middle-aged man in gorgeous clothes. His face was pale and expressionless. The surroundings were covered with spices. The smell came from the mat.
.
"Can I take a closer look?"
The two of them looked at each other for a while. Since they were three to four feet apart, it was hard to tell whether the death was real or fake. Yan Rou couldn't help but ask Liu Hui.
As soon as he said these words, the generals around him glared angrily, and someone shouted: "How dare you humiliate my lord?"
Yan Rou hurriedly said: "That's not what I meant, but I can't see clearly from too far away."
Liu Hui thought for a while and said: "It's okay to take a close look, but it can't be too long."
"Someone knows."
Yan Rou then moved closer, about ten feet away, and stretched her neck to observe.
I saw that the middle-aged man's chest did not rise and fall, and his throat did not move. He seemed to have completely lost his breath, but this was not entirely certain.
Wang Hu and Yan Rou looked at each other for a long time, and Yan Rou asked in a low voice: "Do you think he is really dead?"
"I can't tell."
Wang Hu scratched his head. He was so far away and couldn't detect his breath or feel his pulse. What should he do?
In fact, it is very rude for them to do this, because according to ancient etiquette, after a person dies, after purifying and bathing, he must be placed on a mat for condolences. However, you cannot touch the condolence process. When the condolences are over, put it in
When the coffin is placed, the mat and people will be carried in together.
So let alone Yuan Shao's noble status, even if you are an ordinary family, if you still come close to touch someone's body after death, your family will probably fight you to the death.
But they came to see if Yuan Shao was really dead or faked. How could they verify it if they didn't get close?
Yan Rou was quite smart, and she thought of a way out of desperation, and said to Liu Hui: "Jiang, although we and Mr. Yuan are enemies, our general has always admired Mr. Yuan. Please let me come forward and kowtow to Mr. Yuan.
Burn incense to show respect."
Liu Hui nodded and said, "Yes!"
Yan Rou then approached, took a stick of incense, knelt down and kowtowed in front of Yuan Shaoling, kowtowed three times, put the incense into the incense burner, then ran to Yuan Shao's body and knelt down, pretending to kowtow again.
But when he knelt down, he deliberately leaned forward a little, closer to Yuan Shao's hand, and then bowed his head. As a result, because he leaned too forward, his hands seemed to have accidentally touched Yuan Shao's hand on the mat.
arm.
The cold corpse-like touch came over, and Yan Rou knew something in Liu Hui's scolding. She quickly knelt down and took two steps back, saying: "The crime deserves ten thousand deaths. The crime deserves ten thousand deaths. Because I am too sad,
But I accidentally came across the body of Mr. Yuan, please do it."
"Now that you've seen everything, you can go."
Liu Hui snorted coldly.
Many of the generals around looked bad. This behavior was very rude. Under normal circumstances, they should have been arrested and killed long ago. However, Yan Rou was a messenger, and she also had a reasonable reason.
So there was no action.
Yan Rou had confirmed that the person lying there was indeed dead, so she winked at Wang Hu, got up from the ground and walked backwards.
When the two of them left the mansion, Liu Hui said, "It's inconvenient to send more."
After that, he went back with Jiang Yiqu.
The same people go in, and the same people come out.
Yan Rou, Wang Hu and others breathed a sigh of relief. After exchanging a few words with each other, they left Handan City and reported to their respective commanders.