ebookland Chapter 234 Time and Space
Chapter 234 Time and Space
Chapter 234 Time and Space
Towards evening, Zhang Chao withdrew his troops.
When he came to Huangfu Jian, he raised his hand with a guilty look and said, "Second Master, I am incompetent and let Lu Bu escape."
Huangfu Jian smiled and pressed his hand, saying, "Don't worry, Governor Zhang. This is to be expected. The white horse under Lü Bu's crotch is called Red Hare, which can travel a thousand miles a day. It was given to him by Dong Zhuo. It is normal that he cannot catch up."
Zhang Chao was in a very awkward and dangerous situation because of his brother Zhang Miao's rebellion. He was somewhat relieved to hear the words of the second young master. He quickly said, "Second young master, Lu Bu is openly plotting a rebellion. Everyone can kill him. I request your permission to lead the army to attack Xia Pi!"
Huangfu Jianzhang had a good grasp of Zhang Chao's thoughts, and smiled even more. He said, "Don't worry, let's meet Envoy Tao first."
Zhang Chao was startled, and immediately said, "Yes. The Second Young Master is very thoughtful."
Huangfu Jianchang walked forward, suddenly put his arm around Zhang Chao's shoulders, and whispered, "Kaiyang County doesn't know my identity, I will pretend to be your personal soldier later, don't let it slip."
Zhang Chao knew the special status of Huangfu Jianzhang, and said without hesitation: "Second Master, rest assured, I won't have to worry about it."
Huangfu Jianchang saw that he was so obedient, his eyes flickered slightly, and he moved closer and whispered: "You can't go back to Xia Pi and Guangling for the time being, how about Donghai County?"
Zhao Yu and others helped Tao Qian into the backyard. After Tao Qian lay down, Zang Ba said, "Sir, Liu Bei is far away in Hanzhong. We don't know how long we have to wait for him to take office. I'm afraid it will be too late."
"Thank you, Second Young Master!" Zhang Chao raised his hand hastily, feeling both pleasantly surprised and happy. At the same time, he was already thinking about how to "repay" this Second Young Master and cling to the thigh of the Huangfu family!
Zhang Chao couldn't help but glance at Huangfu Jianzhang standing behind him and said, "The secret order from the Grand Marshal's Mansion mentioned that the court will select a new governor of Xuzhou, and Envoy Tao will be transferred back to Luoyang to recuperate."
Zhang Chao was calm and raised his hand, saying, "I am late and I frightened you, please forgive me."
Tao Qian and others knew Zhang Chao's intention and nodded politely to Zang Hong.
Tao Qian looked slightly surprised and said, "No! We must not make enemies with Zhang Chao!"
Guan Yu received an order from Captain Huangfu Jian and led 3,000 men to provide support. He should be halfway there now. If he encounters Lu Bu, who has an army of nearly 20,000, he will most likely be in danger.
In the current Han Dynasty, the Huangfu family is definitely one of the most powerful families!
Tao Qian was stunned, and looked at Zang Ba, Zhao Yu and others in surprise.
Tao Qian suddenly became worried and started coughing violently.
"Your Majesty is still wise!"
Tao Qian was already feeling a little exhausted. He had been holding on for so long that his eyelids began to droop. He waved his hands and went to sleep.
In fact, the group had a lot to discuss about Langya County, Xuzhou, and the deaths of Lu Bu and Ding Yuan, but they were also worried about "talking too much to someone they just met", so they nodded.
Tao Qian led everyone to the backyard of the government office, served tea, and calmed down a little before he asked in confusion, "Zhang Taishou, when did you arrive in Langya County? Why didn't I know about it?"
Zhao Yu stepped back silently, his eyes secretly fixed on Zang Ba.
Zang Ba was unwilling, but he had no other choice but to follow him out.
Zhao Yu was worried that Zang Ba would do something bad, so he said in a pointed way: "Brother Zang, I have some concerns with Cao Ren. Give me some time, and it won't be a problem to borrow 5,000 soldiers."
Shi A agreed, called someone over, and rode at full speed to deliver the letter.
Cheng Yu turned his head and looked behind him, saying, "I think that Envoy Tao may not be able to survive until the new governor arrives."
Seeing this, Cheng Yu nodded and said, "Although Dong Zhuo has evil ambitions and no regard for the court, to be honest, he bought the court at least two years. I'm afraid Dong Zhuo himself may not be aware of this."
He always felt that Liu Bei valued his reputation too much, but his ability was limited. Now Xuzhou was a chaotic place with many evil people emerging one after another. Liu Bei might not be able to keep them under control.
At this time, Zang Hong came in, raised his hand to signal, and said to Zhang Chao: "Sir, we have basically sorted it out."
It was Dong Zhuo who, through a stalemate with Yuan Shu and then more maneuvering, bought the court some time to ease the situation and gave Liu Bian space to clean up the northern states.
Tao Qian coughed and said, "I think so too. Zhang Chao is obviously an ambush planted by the Grand Marshal's Mansion. We must be cautious in everything we do."
Tao Qian was about to die, and he hoped that the imperial army would be stationed in Langya County to protect the people.
Zhang Chao was being polite, and subconsciously wanted to give in to Huangfu Jianchang, but he could not help himself and followed Tao Qian to the Kaiyang government office without making a sound.
Huangfu Jian remained calm and sighed in his heart: After all, I can't be lost in the crowd.
Although he was born a bandit and many people called him a scoundrel, he was not stupid at all and he could see what Zhao Yu was thinking!
Zhao Yu felt helpless and had no way to deal with Zang Ba.
Zang Hong quickly raised his hand and said to Tao Qian and others, "Your Excellency, I am too kind to praise you. I dare not."
Zhang Chao raised his hand and said, "In mid-July, I received a secret order from the Grand Marshal's Mansion to go north along the coast. I have been in Ganyu since early August."
Zhao Yu was the former prefect of Guangling. After resisting Wen Chou, he was transferred to Langya County. His successor was Zhang Chao. The two were the prefects of Guangling one after another.
But Tao Qian was about to die, Zhao Yu sighed in his heart, helpless and unable to say more.
Upon hearing this, Cheng Yu looked thoughtful, and suddenly stepped forward and said, "Second Master, this is Guan Yu."
Now, he is still the prefect of Guangling, but he has been away from Guangling for more than a year.
"This Governor Zhang is not completely without ulterior motives," said Cheng Yu.
Zhang Chao said: "The incident happened suddenly, and I don't know the whole story. By the way, since Lu Bu killed Ding Shijun, the court may take major action."
The biggest problem of Langya County is the lack of soldiers.
Huangfu Jian snorted and said, "That's the business of the Grand Marshal's Mansion. I have no right to interfere. Now, the attention of the Imperial City Mansion must be focused on Dong Zhuo."
Although Dong Zhuo also had evil intentions and had no intention of conquering Yuan Shu, objectively speaking, he did hold Yuan Shu back and erected a barrier for the imperial court.
On the other side, Zhang Chao was reorganizing the army and recording merits. At the same time, he quietly spread the news of his transfer to the post of prefect of Donghai County.
After the maid brought the medicine soup and Tao Qian drank half a bowl, he finally breathed a sigh of relief. He looked at Huangfu Song, Cheng Yu and others and said, "Everyone, I guess you are from Luoyang. I wonder if you have any advice for me?"
Tao Qian coughed, his face flushed red, and said with a smile: "This way, even if I die, I can rest in peace."
Now he has to go back to Xuzhou to serve as the governor. This promotion is too smooth and too fast, isn't it?
Tao Qian was somewhat relieved. He admired Liu Bei very much and thought that he was a kind and people-loving man. He felt very relieved to entrust Xuzhou to him.
Huangfu Jianchang saw that Tao Qian was just trying to hold on, so he took the initiative to interrupt and said, "That's enough, take a break."
Huangfu Jian suddenly became alert, stopped, turned to Shi A, and said urgently: "Old Shi, hurry up, send someone to tell Guan Yu to return and don't run into Lu Bu!"
In Yuan Shu's initial rebellion, he was unstoppable and had no rivals. Even Gongsun Zan, a famous general from Youzhou, was defeated.
Tao Qian shook his head silently. After a moment, he asked hopefully, "Grandmaster Zhang, are you planning to station troops in Langya County?"
Tao Qian is too ill now and cannot endure the fatigue of the journey. If he does not leave, the new governor of Xuzhou will certainly be restricted in what he can do.
Tao Qian and others looked at Huangfu Jianchang in surprise. How did this man know such a secret? What was his identity?
Tao Qian, Zhao Yu and others were surprised, but Zhang Chao was not surprised at all. As the second son of Huangfu Lord, how could he not know this?
"Liu Xuande?" Zhao Yu looked at Tao Qian, hesitant to speak.
Zhao Yu looked at him as he was dying, and had so much to say that he couldn't say anything.
Zhang Chao nodded and introduced him to Tao Qian and others: "This is Gongcao Zang Hong, who is both civil and military, and a great talent."
Huangfu Jian blinked for a long time, then thought about the distance, and couldn't help but touch his chin, saying: "Hearing what you said, sir, I was worrying too much. Can we leave Xuzhou and go to Yuzhou?"
Huangfu Jianchang glanced at the city wall again, then disguised himself as Zhang Chao's personal soldier and followed them into Kaiyang.
Tao Qian glanced at Huangfu Jianchang, Cheng Yu, Shi A and others who were dressed differently and were obviously not ordinary guards. He suppressed his cough and said with a smile, "It's not too late. Let's go into the city and talk."
But he had a good teacher, so instead of being punished, he was promoted to the position of governor of Hanzhong.
Zang Ba glanced at him, snorted, and strode away.
Zhao Yu couldn't help it and said to Zhang Chao, "Grandmaster Zhang, does the Grand Marshal's Mansion have any other orders?"
Zhang Chao's Xia Pi was forcibly occupied by Lu Bu, and Guangling was seized by Ding Yuan. It can be said that because of Zhang Miao, Zhang Chao's official career was quite bumpy for more than a year.
Huangfu Jianchang didn't care much about Zhang Chao. Instead, he said with a worried look on his face, "Tao Qian is so ill. I'm afraid he will die on the way to Xuzhou."
Without waiting for Tao Qian to reply, Zang Ba suddenly said with a strange look in his eyes: "Zhang Chao has 15,000 soldiers and Donghai County still has 5,000. How about we keep his 5,000 soldiers?"
Zang Ba could no longer sit still and said, "When I was in Yanzhou, I knew that Ding Shijun was Lü Bu's adoptive father. Ding Shijun treated him very well. How could Lü Bu have the heart to do that to him?"
"Very good."
It was the first time that Tao Qian, Zhao Yu and Zang Ba learned that Lu Bu had killed Ding Yuan, and they were all shocked.
Zhang Chao said, "I will soon take up the post of governor of Donghai, so I will not be able to station troops in Langya County."
Zhao Yu saw Zang Ba frowning, and felt relieved. He said, "Your Excellency is right. I will go to see Zhang Chao later, give him some food and grass, and find out more."
"What about Langya County?" Zhao Yu asked. Langya County now has no soldiers and no money. Let alone Lu Bu, even if there are a few thousand bandits, Langya County cannot eliminate them. At most, they can defend the city.
Tao Qian greeted him at the door, raised his hand politely, and said with a smile: "Grandmaster Zhang has arrived just in time to help us break the siege of Kaiyang. I will definitely write to the court to request credit for Grandmaster Zhang."
The meaning of Zhao Yu's words was very simple. If you can lend, then lend. If you can't lend, don't force it. If you force Zhang Chao into a corner, he might become another Lu Bu, and they will be killed by his sword!
Tao Qian agreed with Zhao Yu's words and nodded, "I'll sleep for a while. I'll have a banquet tonight and test it out."
Zhang Chao subconsciously wanted to turn his head again, but he held back and said, "I don't know."
Huangfu Jianchang couldn't help laughing, turned to Cheng Yu, and said: "Let me tell you a secret, when your majesty insisted on using Dong Zhuo, almost everyone in the court opposed it, including my father."
Cheng Yu said, "After Lü Bu fled back to Xia Pi, he would definitely not give up. Second Master, aren't you worried?"
Zhao Yu saw this and was worried that he might do something bad, so he said to Tao Qian calmly, "Sir, I see those people behind Zhang Chao are probably from Luoyang, and their identities are not simple, they must be related to the Grand Marshal."
Zhao Yu thought for a while and said, "Sir, it's not a bad idea, but you have to be careful and not to anger Zhang Chao. If he doesn't obey, you have to appease him carefully."
Huangfu Jianchang saw that Tao Qian had exposed the truth, but he didn't care. He said, "My information is that the court has not yet decided on the candidate for the governor of Xuzhou. The most likely candidate is Liu Bei. I heard that it was Lord Lu who recommended him to Your Majesty before he died."
Zhang Chao's expression darkened, and he said, "Lü Bu is a man of wolfish ambitions, like a beast, and has no loyalty or righteousness at all. How could a mere foster father care about him?"
Huangfu Jian looked up at the top of the city wall and saw Tao Qian and the others were already waiting. He turned back and whispered to Cheng Yu, "Sir, why do I feel like I missed something?"
Tao Qian lay down on the bed, looking even more haggard, and asked with a short breath, "What do you think?"
Although Tao Qian was a kind person, it didn't mean he was stupid. He heard the hidden meaning of Zang Ba's words clearly!
Zang Ba said decisively: "Sir, today it is Lu Bu. If it is Dong Zhuo or other bandits, who else can come to rescue? You are still the governor of Xuzhou. If you ask him to lend you 5,000 soldiers, can Zhang Chao still refuse to lend them?"
Zhao Yu and Zang Ba searched Huangfu Jianchang and others and also noticed something unusual about the three.
Tao Qian was not surprised. He suppressed his discomfort and said, "Then, what are the arrangements for Langya County?"
Zhao Yu looked thoughtful and said, "Sir, I think we should borrow troops from other places to stabilize Langya County."
"Your Majesty,"
Zang Ba knew that Tao Qian would not live long, and he wanted to seize the throne by force. However, without Tao Qian's support, he would not be able to succeed, and he could not help feeling annoyed.
The Grand Marshal's Mansion actually transferred Zhang Chao to Langya County in July without notifying them!
On the top of the city wall, Huangfu Jianchang, Cheng Yu, and Shi A were watching Zhang Chao's actions and talking about various things.
Tao Qian looked at Zang Ba with a strange expression, then turned to Zhao Yu with a questioning look.
According to the original plan, they needed to escort Tao Qian to Luoyang for "treatment" to make room for the new governor of Xuzhou.
Liu Bei was once the Prime Minister of Pengcheng. This man was capable, but also incompetent. When he was the Prime Minister of Pengcheng, he was defeated by Lu Bu and fled to the sea, without doing anything.
Cheng Yu's face turned serious, and he said, "Your Majesty, this move requires great courage!"
"It would be great if we could just delay it a few more years." Huangfu Jian looked at Zhang Chao and the others and couldn't help but mutter to himself.
If we delay for a few more years, the northern states will be more stable and the court will be able to recover more. By then, it will be easier and more powerful to summon an army and march south to quell the rebellion!
Cheng Yu nodded thoughtfully and said, "Of course the longer the better. However, those rebels will not give the court time."