Chapter 10: Dong Zhuo: I once wanted to be a loyal minister! Really!
Xiliang!
This is Liangzhou, located in the west of the empire, so it is also called Xiliang!
Since the founding of the Eastern Han Dynasty, this place has been a very uncomfortable place for the empire!
The Qiang people here are a big cancer, which has continuously affected the energy of the Eastern Han Dynasty for two hundred years. A large amount of gold and silver treasures, and countless military expenditures of the court have been invested in this bottomless pit!
Some people say that this is all because of the Qiang people, so just kill them all.
But some people have calculated that it is difficult to kill all the Qiang people!
They have horses, and they will run away when the Han army comes. Liangzhou is so big and desolate, it is difficult to kill them all. If they cannot kill them all at once, then they cannot adopt the strategy of massacre.
Some people say that the powerful local families in Liangzhou are all heartless. The reason why the Qiang tribes repeatedly rebelled is often forced by the powerful local families in Liangzhou!
Because whenever the Qiang people rebelled, the powerful families could first join the Qiang people in sacking the county town, looting the small and medium-sized craftsmen, and making a fortune first.
After the imperial army arrived, they sold the rebellious Qiang people, so that they would have treasure and merit!
Therefore, they believe that unless all the powerful families in Liangzhou are killed at once and a major purge is carried out from top to bottom, Liangzhou will always be a bottomless pit that will never be filled!
Because Liangzhou is so desolate, the wealthy powerful people have no other good way to make money except inciting the Qiang people to rebel.
Even now, everyone knows that Liangzhou is a trap, and that the families in Liangzhou are powerful and have bad consciences, but no one will publicly point this out.
Today's Liangzhou is somewhat similar to Liaodong in the late Ming Dynasty. Everyone is accustomed to asking for money, food, and officials from the empire through Qiang rebellion.
This is already a whole chain of interests. All powerful families in Liangzhou, and even some powerful families in the center, can continuously draw blood from this chain of interests.
The big man is constantly bleeding through this chain.
There was even a suggestion from someone above the court to give up Liangzhou!
Just like giving up some counties in Bingzhou, give up Liangzhou!
You Liangzhou people are cheating the imperial court of their money every day. Your conscience is broken and you can no longer take it. The empire doesn’t want you anymore. You can do whatever you like!
But this suggestion was rejected!
The Liangzhou problem has never been resolved!
Today, the imperial edict from the imperial court came through!
"Hey, hey, the imperial court finally remembered us Kansai warriors? I thought the imperial court had already forgotten us!" A super muscular man covered in flesh said dissatisfiedly.
He is Dong Zhuo, now a martial artist in Liangzhou and the eldest brother elected by the powerful Liangzhou family. Everyone in Liangzhou recognizes him. He has also become a channel of communication between the Han Empire and the people of Liangzhou.
"Those Guandong people are just pretending. If we really want to fight, they can't!"
"Yes, we still have to rely on our Kansai warriors! It's a shame that the Yang family's disciples are all over the world, but now they don't recognize themselves as Kansai people after becoming rich. It's really abominable!"
The lieutenants in the camp kept complaining about the empire and openly complained about the lack of interest in the high-ranking officials of the imperial court. I'm sorry to them, but no one felt that this situation was inappropriate!
Because the vast majority of Liangzhou people see it this way!
Just like people in Bingzhou have opinions about the imperial court, people in Liangzhou also have opinions about the imperial court, and people in Hebei still have opinions about the imperial court!
Even the powerful aristocratic families in Jingzhou and Yangzhou in the south still had objections to the imperial court! Because the upper echelons of the imperial court were firmly occupied by aristocratic families from the Central Plains, not even the aristocratic families in Hebei, which Guangwu relied on to make his fortune, could reach the upper echelons, let alone a barbaric land.
Jiangdong, aristocratic family in Jingzhou?
Among the thirteen states of the Han Dynasty, there were only a few who had no objections to the imperial court!
"Xian son-in-law, what do you think?" As soon as Dong Zhuo finished speaking, the buzzing camp that was noisy just now suddenly fell silent, and there was no sound at all!
Dong Zhuo had two sons-in-law, one was named Niu Fu, he was Dong Zhuo's military heir, and he might also be the next boss of Liangzhou after Dong Zhuo's death.
There is also a son-in-law named Li Ru. He is a man of culture and a very capable scholar, but he comes from a genuine poor family, not even a humble family!
There is a chain of contempt among officials in the Han Dynasty. People of the Yuan family and the Yang family look down on other aristocratic families, and aristocratic families look down on declining aristocratic families. A declining aristocratic family is a poor family!
Paupers are not from poor families; paupers are weaklings and two-legged sheep. They are not human beings, and they are not treated as human beings by aristocratic families.
Although a child from a poor family is looked down upon by aristocratic family members, at least aristocratic family members will still think that you are a human being and that you are the same kind as everyone else, but it is now in decline.
And powerful children are no longer looked upon as human beings.
I'm just a rich idiot. It's embarrassing to even say a word to you! If it weren't for the sake of your money, I wouldn't say a word to you!
And Li Ru was at the bottom of the contempt chain. He was not even from a humble family, nor was he a local tycoon. His ancestors were not wealthy, and his family had no money. He finally came to Luoyang, and a doctorate was almost the best.
He doesn't even have the value to be used. He's a weakling with no money, so what value can he be used for? You say he's smart? When has there ever been a shortage of smart people in this world?
Later, Li Ru came to Liangzhou, was favored by Dong Zhuo, and became Dong Zhuo's son-in-law. He also had the idea that a scholar would die for his confidant.
"My father-in-law can send troops, but there is no need to send the main force."
After setting the tone, Li Ru began to state his reasons: "The reason why my father-in-law is where he is today is not because of how much you have contributed to the Han Dynasty, nor because of how many Qiang rebellions you have put down, but because of your
strength!"
"Father-in-law, you have a heavy army now. The cavalry directly in your hands is 20,000. Coupled with my father-in-law's reputation, if necessary, you can even have 50,000 cavalry!"
"If 50,000 cavalry went straight to Guanzhong, straight to Chang'an, and straight to Luoyang, it would be enough to shock the world. It was precisely because of this possibility that the imperial court considered suppressing instead of coaxing."
"So no matter what, strength is the most important thing."
Having said this, Li Rupi laughed twice without a smile. Except for a fat man who was still eating meat in a low-key manner, the others only felt a chill in their hearts.
"Hey, it's hard to tell the truth. It doesn't matter whether my father-in-law wins or loses in this battle!"
"Needless to say, my father-in-law won the battle, and various rewards, gold and silver treasures followed. But if my father-in-law lost, would something happen? No, if my father-in-law also lost, then there would still be Han troops left along the way.
How many?"
"The strength of the imperial court has been weakened, and the Northern Army in His Majesty's hands has been further weakened. The Yang family and the Yuan family will only be happier!"
"Eh? Wenyou, are you saying that both the Yuan family and the Yang family have disloyal intentions?" Niu Fu suddenly asked.
"No, no, no, of course they have no disobedience. What's the benefit of rebelling against them? Their current situation is almost the best. His Majesty is doing all the bad things, and all the benefits must be shared with them.
Is there anything better than this in the world?”
"They are loyal to the court and the Han Dynasty, but they may not be loyal to the emperor of the Liu family! It seems contradictory, but this is the aristocratic family!"
Victory is easy, but as long as the Han army suffers heavy losses in defeat, the court will still have to rely on Dong Zhuo, because at that time the importance of the Xiliang soldiers and horses in Dong Zhuo's hands will be greatly increased.
After thinking about the political issues, Dong Zhuo patted his head vigorously: "Hey, back then, Dong Zhuo also wanted to be promoted and make a fortune and serve the empire until he became a general. But it's not that I don't want to be a loyal minister, it's because the world doesn't allow it.
Loyal ministers have a way out..."
After the imperial edict was issued, Dong Zhuo went out with his personal guards of three thousand flying bear troops. On the way, he also recruited three thousand powerful cavalry from Liangzhou families and four thousand Qiang cavalry. The total number was ten thousand, which was called thirty thousand!
When Dong Zhuo set off, it was already the twentieth day since the empire came.
In the military tent in the military camp, the three brothers Bai Qi, Xiang Yu, Ying Zheng, Zhang Jiao and many senior officials gathered here. Placed in the center was a huge sand table.
"Now that Lu Zhi has left, the leader of the Han army is the former deputy general Zong Yuan. Although he is also a good general, he is only a good general."
"Tomorrow I will lead 10,000 Yellow Turban warriors out of the city to attack the nearby landlords and acquire young men, food, and supplies. The Yellow Turban Army is like a rogue bandit. Their greatest advantage is mobile warfare, but now they are trapped in Guangzong City..."
"As long as we take action, we can destroy the productivity of the Han army. As long as a certain city is passed by the Yellow Turban Army, the local prefect and county magistrate dare to directly hack the Han army's treasury, saying that it has been consumed."
"As long as we take action, we can get a steady stream of men who are too poor to survive and have only one life left. There are really many such men!"
"Where does the loyalty come from in the mind of such a person? It's just that he will fight with whoever gives him a bite of food. With ten thousand yellow scarf warriors in hand, I can give you ten thousand warriors in one month.
Wan Dajun."
"If Zong Yuan sees our changes and can't help but send troops to eat me, it will be simple. Today's Han army only has more than 80,000 people. If he sends out 10,000 people, I can easily defeat him in a frontal battle.
Destroy them."
"It's not impossible to dispatch 20,000 people and use the terrain to cripple them. If we dispatch 30,000 people, I will go in circles with them, find flaws in the movement, create traps, and then kill them!"
"As for more than 30,000 people, then Brother Yu can join you, Taoist Master, to lead the elite troops to directly attack the Han army's central camp."
"In this way, the Han army can be completely wiped out before Dong Zhuo's cavalry arrives. In three months, the entire Jizhou may be under control."
"What if Zong Yuan can sit still? What if there is an expert in the Han army who sees through your plan and refuses to leave the camp no matter what?" Zhang Liang suddenly asked.