Three Kingdoms

The winner gets everything, the loser loses everything. From the moment it was born, there was no fairness in this world.

Gao Gan was kneeling on the ground. His helmet fell off at some point. His messy hair was hanging down. There was a bruise on his left cheek that he didn't know where. The flesh was turned outwards, but it was no longer bleeding. It was gone, leaving only dried blood clots mixed with dust.

Compared with the pain on his face and body, Gao Gan was more in pain in his heart.

Although he is Yuan Shao's nephew in terms of seniority, he is actually only two or three years younger than Yuan Shao. He is now on his fourth year. In the Han Dynasty, the average life expectancy was gradually approaching, especially as a general who commanded the army. As I get older, my energy and physical strength are gradually declining. I am no longer as energetic as I was when I was young. I don’t care even if I stay up for days and nights.

Human evolution also follows the laws of nature. All species with reproductive function are generally healthy and have the strongest vitality before entering the breeding period. However, once the breeding period is over, the overall function begins to decline, because nature only needs to ensure the premise of species reproduction. Well, as for humans with extremely long reproductive periods, they are naturally no longer within the scope of biological evolution.

A general's reputation does not last long. When he is young, he is motivated but has no experience. When he is old, he has accumulated experience but damaged his body. Even if he forces himself to go to the battlefield, he may not have a good result.

Being shrouded in the battlefield, dying on the battlefield in the prime of life and not suffering the pain of old age may be the obsession of many generals.

Like a high-ranking official. He was once high-spirited and felt that he could successfully establish a career, stand alone, and hold local power. He even felt that he was only one chance away from Yuan Shao.

But now, it's all over...

The Chenliu Gao family had great talents, high ambitions, and outstanding civil and military skills. Therefore, Han Fu and Yuan Shao valued him as a high-ranking official. The family also placed great hopes on him. Even if these were not mentioned, what would happen to the children in the family? Will my child have to bear the sign of a failed father for the rest of his life?

Compared with the pain in the soul, the physical pain is nothing at all. At this moment, the nearly forty-year-old senior official was as disheartened as a haggard tree.

"..."

Fei Qian said a few words, but when he looked down, he found that Gao Gan was motionless. If the morning breeze hadn't ruffled his messy hair, he might even have been suspected of being carved out of wood.

"Well..." Fei Qian pinched the short beard on his chin, stared at Gao Gan for a long time, and lost interest in talking. He waved his hand and said, "Come here, loosen the restraints... Give him a few guards as well." Untie them and send them back... By the way, what's the name of the injured one? Yuan..."

"Yuan Yu Yuan Chunqing..." Zhang Xiu added.

"Yes, let's go together too." Fei Qian looked up to the sky and yawned, as if he had eaten everything and suddenly lost interest.

Gao Gan raised his head and was in disbelief. Even when several soldiers came forward, pushed him and released him, he still didn't react.

Zhang Xiu glared at Gao Gan fiercely, then followed Fei Qian in a dog-legged manner, asking as he walked: "Lord, this...are you going to let go like this?"

"What else?" Fei Qian replied.

Zhang Xiu was stunned for a moment and said: "This... subordinate doesn't mean anything, I just think it's a pity..." Zhang Xiu turned and stared at Gao Gan, his eyes running up and down Gao Gan's neck and waist, as if He seemed to be thinking about where to strike next.

For Fei Qian, Gao Gan was like a fart, so he let it go. But for Zhang Xiu, even a lame sheep felt no different from a fat sheep when it was his first prey. He had not yet fully enjoyed it. For Zhang Xiu, it felt like a pity to let go of the sun.

Fei Qian didn't even take another look at Gao Gan. Just now, he could confirm that Gao Gan's energy and spirit had basically been defeated. Even if ten or twenty more such people were put back, it would be of no use. , you can continue to hang around under Yuan Shao, but it is basically impossible to lead the army alone. Not all people, like Saint Xiaoqiang, can get up again and again.

After this battle, although Yuan Shao's troops were crippled, they only lost the high-ranking cadres and regular soldiers. As for the subsequent auxiliary soldiers and civilians, most of them were still in the mountain roads and were not here. Therefore, overall, Yuan Shao's losses were not too great.

In addition, the release of Gao Gan and Yuan Yu not only showed his tough attitude, but also took care of Yuan Shao's face to some extent. Yuan Shao's anger was naturally inevitable and would not be too embarrassing. In any case, if Yuan Shao wants to attack Taihang again, he must gather more troops. In this way, Yuan Shao must weigh again.

Although it is certain that there will be some root cause of illness in Yuan Shao's heart, at least Yuan Shao does not dare to act rashly in the near future, at least until he has digested Gongsun Zan.

The extra time is enough for Fei Qian to build some permanent military forts at several mountain passes in Taihang.

The soldiers in the military camp don't need to be many, five hundred or eight hundred is enough. As long as they are stuck somewhere, it is enough to make anyone who wants to pass the mountain road groan.

After defending this direction, the next focus will be changed.

"The general needs to be given some face..." Fei Qian comforted Zhang Xiu and looked into the distance, "...there are still opportunities...don't worry, this feat is indispensable to you..."

…………………………

Fei Qian, the general of Zhengxi, had just ended the battle here, and the battle in Luoyang had just begun.

The emperor's abbot Fu Wan entered the palace gate with an expressionless face under the leadership of Huangmen, preparing to meet the Han emperor Liu Xie.

Fu Wan was a martial artist from Langya East and was the successor of Fu Zhan, a famous official in Zhongxing. The Fu family is a Confucian family and is famous for its study of the Book of Songs. Since Emperor Xiaowu, there have been many famous Confucians and officials in the family. Fu Zhan's father, Fuli, was once the teacher of Emperor Xiaocheng. Fu Zhan was once the chief situ and Marquis of Yangdu in Emperor Guangwu's dynasty, and he was highly relied upon by Emperor Guangwu.

Fu Zhan's fifth-generation grandson was named Fu Wuji, and he was a great scholar in this dynasty. In the first year of Yonghe, he and Yilang Huang Jing collated the "Five Classics" of Zhongshu and the harmonious Qi techniques of various schools of thought. Fu Wan is the grandson of Fu Wuji, and his wife is Princess Yang'an, the daughter of the filial emperor. His daughter is the queen of the day.

Therefore, although Fu Wan is not very proficient in political strategy, under such a family background, he has been somewhat influenced by his ears and eyes, not that he does not understand everything.

In front of Chongde Hall, Huang Xian saw Fu Wan coming and took a few steps forward to salute.

Fu Wan also stopped for a moment, returned a half salute to Huang Xian, with a smile on his face, and said, "General Huang, how are you doing lately?"

Huang Xian said solemnly: "Thanks to the father-in-law of the country." Then he led the way.

Fu Wan smiled, and while slowly following Huang Xian forward, he said softly: "Heluo has been uneasy recently, and the general needs to pay more attention to your majesty's safety."

Huang Xian stood in front of the main hall, raised his hands again and said, "The abbot has a strong word. This is a certain responsibility. I will definitely fulfill my responsibilities with all my heart."

Fu Wan still smiled, nodded, and then walked into the hall. With every step he took, his smile became less and less. When he reached Liu Xie, he was no longer smiling at all, and he saluted Liu Xie respectfully.

Liu Xie asked Fu Wan to sit down and chatted for a while. Fu Wan also picked out some interesting things that happened in the city and told Liu Xie about them, and he looked very happy.

After a while, Liu Xie seemed to have suddenly remembered something and said unhurriedly: "The queen knew that she wanted to come to see you, so she specially made a sachet... um..."

Liu Xie touched his sleeve, then changed to another sleeve, frowned and said: "It must have fallen at the Queen's place... Ah, who is that, go to the Queen's place to get it..."

Liu Xie pointed with his hand and asked a Huangmen eunuch who was waiting on the side to get the sachet.

The Huangmen eunuch raised his eyebrows, then bowed to accept the order, stepped back a few steps, and left the hall.

Liu Xie stared at the Huangmen eunuch walking away, then sighed and said softly: "I am called the Emperor, but I am actually in prison..."

"Your Majesty!" After bowing down and bowing to the ground, "I am incompetent and deserve death..."

Liu Xie smiled, stretched out his hand, and said, "You don't have to do this if you love me. It's not your fault." Over the years, Liu Xie has also looked away. After all, there are things like complaining and occasionally talking about it. It is good for mental health, but if you talk about pouring out your bitterness to everyone all the time, what is the difference between that and a resentful woman?

Fu Wan frowned and turned to look outside the palace. His drooping gray eyebrows moved, he squinted his eyes and whispered: "Your Majesty, if you feel that this thief is an eyesore, I have my own method..."

Liu Xie waved his hand and said: "If you don't remove the root of the tree, pruning the branches and leaves is useless."

"Your Majesty," he bowed before bowing, his hoarse old voice trembled a little, as if he was pleased that Liu Xie was so sensible, "Your Majesty is so intelligent, and given time, he will surely revive the great Han Dynasty and become a great leader in military affairs!"

"Guangwu..." Liu Xie raised his head slightly and cast his gaze into the distance with a hint of longing, but he quickly took it back. He looked at Fu Wan and whispered, "Aiqing, outside the city... what's going on right now? ?”

"Your Majesty, Marquis Wen has arrived in Xingyang..." Fu Wan also moved closer and lowered his voice for fear of being heard, "You are blocked in the tiger prison and cannot enter..."

"Hulao?" Liu Xie pondered.

Yang Biao had established his foundation in Heluo, so how could he not be prepared for the Shandong nobles? Although there are not many troops stationed in Hulao, it is not easy for Lu Bu to attack.

Lu Bu came under the pretext of supporting Liu Xie's pro-government, which naturally hit Liu Xie's pain points. Liu Xie was so homeless that he even refused Fei Qian's offer to stay and insisted on coming to Luoyang. Wasn't it just to regain the glory of the Han Dynasty here and realize his original dream?

However, the coldness of reality still made Liu Xie's face feel so cold that it hurt.

Except for the marginalized ministers such as Dong Cheng, Liu Xie was unable to control the court at all, and even the imperial court had Yang's manpower. Although in terms of material supply and corresponding attitude, it was inferior to those in Chang'an. Times have improved a lot, at least Yang Biao still respects him on the surface, and sometimes lets Liu Xie take charge of small things, but Liu Xie knows in his heart that there is no fundamental difference from when he was under Dong Zhuo.

Not even as good as Wang Yun. At least Wang Situ would patiently explain his own ideas to Liu Xie in as much detail as possible when Liu Xie and Wang Yun had different views on something and had other ideas. To some extent, it also allowed Liu Xie to understand some key points of governing the country.

The things Yang Biao brought were basically trivial matters, such as whether the palace repairs should be carried out this month or next month, whether there should be five or six porridge shacks for the refugees outside the city, etc. Liu Xie chose a certain answer, and it would not affect the overall situation.

But that's not what Liu Xie wants, he wants more...

It was obviously impossible for Yang Biao to give it, so Liu Xie had to find a way on his own. And given the current situation, Lu Bu, who was obviously not good at government affairs, was naturally the best choice to defeat Dong Cheng and others. , anyway, these people felt that the situation could not be worse than the current situation, so Liu Xie, Fu Wan and others hit it off immediately, and they just held up small colorful flags to welcome them.

Let Lu Bu fight like a hawk and dog outside, and then control the power of the court. Wouldn't everyone be happy with this situation?

"Your Majesty..." Fu Wan whispered, "Gong Yang must know about the attack on Hulao... It only takes three to five days from Zheng County to Luoyang... If... Go to Hulao and control your troops and horses..."

After Fu finished speaking, he glanced at Huang Xian at the door of the hall. What Fu Wan meant was to suggest that Huang Xian should take the staff and axe, and then go to Hulao Joint to control the troops and horses to welcome Lu Bu into the pass.

After all, there are not many generals in hand now, and if you don't have some courage, you may not be able to do this. This is one of them.

Moreover, Fu Wan had a deeper consideration. Huang Xian was the person who served General Fei Qian of the Conquest of the West. Fu Wan naturally knew this. Therefore, if Huang Xian really accomplished this matter, it meant that General Fei Qian of the Conquest of the West would also be betrayed by Yang. Biao's hatred was so deep that there was no room for turning between the two. So even if Yang Biao rushed back to Luoyang, he would definitely not be able to make any waves under the pressure of Lu Bu and Fei Qian.

The third aspect is that after Huang Xian controls the soldiers and horses at Hulao Pass, if the Shandong nobles do something, it will naturally involve Fei Qian, the general of the Western Conquest, and then let the dog bite the dog.

The most important thing is that Fu Wan feels that although Huang Xian fulfills his duties, the soldiers in the ban must be in his own hands. For example, his son Fu De is a very suitable candidate, and Fu Wan is also a good candidate. Don’t avoid relatives, we are a family after all, it will be natural when the time comes, ah, haha...

After listening to Fu Wan's words, Liu Xie's eyes wandered for a moment. After pondering for a moment, he nodded slowly and said, "Maybe we can give it a try..."