Three Kingdoms

Sleepless nights.

Inside the yamen of Hsiaoqi Mansion, the lights are brightly lit.

Pang Tong stood in the hall, facing Sanfu's map, sneered a few times, and then immediately ordered: "Go and tell the cook to slaughter the pigs and sheep after dawn, and prepare to reward the soldiers!" 』

The guard standing outside the hall responded loudly, and then went down to deliver the order with some excitement. Although there is some chaos inside and outside the city now, seeing Pang Tong's attitude, the guards and servants in the Husband's office were naturally excited.

Over the years, Pang Tong's most important job in Guanzhong was to prepare for the next battle. Now that the end is imminent and his opponent Dalong is helpless, how can he not be happy?

To a certain extent, as the rulers at the top of the Han Dynasty, whether it was Cao Cao, Fei Qian, Pang Tong or Xun Yu, they all realized that there were big problems with the talent strategy that the Han Dynasty had implemented for a long time.

The system of promoting filial piety and integrity is not bad in its original intention, but now, when it comes to promoting filial piety and integrity, it is in the name of "provincial excellence, ministry excellence, national excellence", but in fact it is a product of "province concern, ministry concern, national concern". False propaganda, expanding the efficacy, and then once these things become popular, they are busy recovering the advertising dollars they invested before...

Therefore, both Fei Qian and Cao Cao have explicitly or covertly changed to a talent system that focuses on promoting talents. This does not mean that Fei Qian and Cao Cao have entered a stage where merit is supreme, but it is different from the previous Han talent system. Comparatively speaking, it is more focused on judging people based on their talents. Don't listen to the advertisements but focus on the efficacy.

Cavalry General Fei Qian and Pang Tong had many communications and exchanges. It can be said that Pang Tong was the person who best understood what Fei Qian wanted to do. Of course, Pang Tong himself also read many documents on his own, and then he felt more and more what Fei Qian wanted to do. What he said is correct. This is why Pang Tong, although he was born into a noble family, became more or less a big fan of Fei Qian and changed his job to become a gravedigger of the old noble family.

A system cannot be distinguished simply by the words good or bad. At the beginning of the Han Dynasty, the recommendation system was once a powerful tool to break the power of the old aristocracy.

Because in the early Han Dynasty, although Liu Bang was nominally the leader of the Han Dynasty, in fact, the counties and counties were not completely counties, but were places that Liu Bang had no control over. This was why Liu Bang and his descendants continued to fight. This is an important reason for enfeoffing various feudal lords and then continuously reducing them.

The purpose of enfeoffment was to control the local area and divide the old nobility, but the dragon slayer turned into an evil dragon after all, and wanted to cut down the vassal again.

After two or three generations of hard work, hard-working parents are often prone to raising lazy children. The centralization of power by Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty finally approached the peak of the Han Dynasty. With one order, the whole country was mobilized to attack in the east and west, conquer the south and the north, and the banners were He pointed out that no one dared to disobey, but it was a pity that Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty failed to control it. In the later period, it collapsed, and he launched some weird policies, selling titles, white deer coins, etc. Anyway, he committed suicide in whatever way he could, which led to the central court's credibility. Gone never to come back...

So much so that in the current era of the Han Dynasty, people from all over the country play in different places and do not play with the Central Chaotang. On the surface, it seems that the Central Chaotang is the squad leader and everyone is a good classmate. But in fact, who can the squad leader control? What can you control? Eat, sleep, or pocket money?

If we want to unite the whole class again, we can only use the four words "seeking advantages and avoiding disadvantages".

If you want to pry open the local gentry system that has been fragmented and independent for three to four hundred years, just relying on a few laws is not enough. Only after this sudden change can Fei Qian truly penetrate the local area, and then he can It can turn the generals of the sky from falling, and wash away the corrupt winds of the great man!

Cut off foreign aid, trigger civil strife, and then use the power of a lion to fight a rabbit to subdue the three auxiliary gentry in Guanzhong! And eradicate all opponents who jump out! In this way, it will clear the way for the Hussar to move forward in the next ten or twenty years!

The night wind stirred up, causing the flags in the Husband's office to roll violently, as if they were about to rise into the sky, straight into the sky.

Pang Tong stood with his head raised and his hands behind his back. He looked through the night sky and seemed to see countless soldiers holding torches high and marching under the hussar flag. Their murderous aura stirred up waves in the whole world. !

……ヽ(`З’)?……

When Pang Tong in the Husband's office ordered the manpower prepared from various places to be mobilized, some of the wealthy nobles in Guanzhong's third auxiliary office were running around in a hurry in the night, setting up their own arrangements, and some were still sleeping. Sleep in the dream of your own creation.

Even if Pang Tong secretly planned it, there would be no traces. In fact, many things have already had signs, but most people have not noticed...

Take the caravans in the vicinity of Chang'an as an example. They have obviously decreased a lot during this period. Even after Fei Qian and Cao Cao negotiated peace talks, they did not seem to have recovered. Only some caravans of the Cui family, the Pei family and the Zhen family were traveling.

Of course, this doesn't seem to be a big deal. After all, there are chaos everywhere and the caravans come and go intermittently, which is normal, but it is the first time that they are so rare now. But the problem is that most people are focused on the rising commodity prices and do not pay much attention to the reduction of caravans.

It is undoubtedly difficult to catch fish directly in flowing water, such as a river, without specific tools, but if you cut off the water flow, slow down and reduce the water volume, so that the water surface drops, and then catch fish, It's relatively simple.

In the past, there were a large number of caravans and a large flow of people, just like the rapids of water and high water levels. It was of course more difficult to see the trajectory of fish clearly, but now...

But Yi naturally didn't notice this problem.

In the past few days, he had been forced to stay at home. All the servants and servants were equipped with weapons. They even recruited some so-called strong men to live in the outer courtyard. They ate, drank and practiced every day, sharpened their guns in battle, and prepared for the worst. Civil unrest is a double-edged sword. If you are not careful, you will cut yourself. But if you use it well, it can also be a sharp weapon against the central court...

The emperor is the representative of all the people in the world and enjoys the support of all people. Therefore, the thing that the emperor fears most is not the middlemen taking advantage of both sides, but the rebellion of the people. Once the people rebelled, the emperor and his family alone could not quell the rebellion. They could only rely on middlemen. Therefore, civil unrest can not only prove that the emperor made huge mistakes in certain policies, but also demonstrate the importance of middlemen.

Just like after the Party's imprisonment, the Yellow Turban Rebellion broke out, and then Emperor Ling of the Han Dynasty had to completely deny the Party's imprisonment, reinstate many people's official positions, and finally put down the rebellion, and then all the scholars in the world praised Huangfu Song...

Que Yi wanted to become the second Huangfu Song. Queyi felt that the "Juetian Law" was more harmful to the gentry than the party. Similarly, if Queyi won the victory against the "Juetian Law", it would naturally be close to the praise of Huangfu Song.

Chaos has been sown, and all that's left is waiting.

Que Yi and others have carefully calculated that this move is risky, but it is worth a try.

Just like if you don't smash the pot twice, how can you show the level of a tinker? If you don't knock out a few more cracks when the master is not paying attention, how can you have any reason to ask for more benefits?

What's more, my family is just buying and selling. Even though the price of food is indeed a bit high, can it be done if there are still people willing to buy it? If someone buys it, it means that the grain price is acceptable to some people. Since some people can accept it, why can't the grain price be set higher?

Although the truth, or the fallacy, generally made sense, after nightfall, I still couldn't sleep well. He finally lay down and closed his eyes. After a while, he was awakened by the sound of footsteps. When he opened his eyes, he saw his steward arriving in front of the room with a look of panic on his face.

"What's the matter?" ” But Yi didn’t even bother to put on his socks, he just stepped on the wooden floor, making a creaking noise and walked out, “Tell me quickly, what’s the news? 』

The steward reported in a low voice: "My lord... something big has happened, something bad has happened..."

Queyi felt a buzzing in his head, a slight spinning feeling, and almost fell down. After pausing for a moment, he took a deep breath and asked sharply: "What's going on?" 』

The steward fell to the ground and did not dare to raise his head, "Your Majesty... After nightfall, Chang'an blocks the intersection and sends out many soldiers... It seems that a team is coming here..."

"What? ! ” But he couldn’t believe his ears, “Who is coming? Where did the three assistants of Chang'an come from? But the hussar is back? ! No, no! There are so many people staring at Wuguan Lantian. How can they know nothing if the hussar is flying around? What's more, there was no order to mobilize soldiers in the surrounding counties... Where did these soldiers come from? 』

"This, this... is small... is small, I don't know..." The steward lowered his head and answered in panic.

Queyi and others dared to stir up civil unrest behind their backs because they felt that all the hussars were outside and would be unable to turn around for a while. There was a time lag. By the time the hussars returned, the chaos would have spread, and then the hussars would It must be like the choice made by Emperor Ling of the Han Dynasty when he faced the Yellow Turban Rebellion. Either the entire political foundation will burst, or he can only compromise...

Of course, Qu Yi and others believed that the Hussars would choose to compromise. Because Fei Qian still has a foreign enemy of Cao Cao on his side. If Fei Qian refuses to compromise and causes the entire area to erode, although Quyi and others will be retaliated by Fei Qian and suffer many casualties, Fei Qian will also be defeated by Cao Cao in the end. If Que Yi and others survived, they would be Cao Cao's heroes.

But now that Hussar has not returned, why did Chang'an Sanfu suddenly have soldiers?

No matter whether Que Yi could miss Qi Jie or not, the queue of people holding high torches was getting closer and closer. Que Yi hurriedly led people to the wall of his own manor, and his hands almost shook out of fear on the way. Falling down the steps...

The fire was getting closer and closer, but Qu Yi's face became paler and paler.

The servants and guards around Queyi also looked at each other in confusion, and some even looked at each other secretly, and then thought about the escape route. Although it is said that Que Yi has recruited some strong men to act as guards, these warriors have no intention of risking their lives for Que Yi...

However, I don’t know why, maybe it was luck, or maybe some other reason, the fire did not turn in at the intersection of Queyi Manor, but headed towards Linjin County!

"Huh..." Queyi breathed out a breath of air. At this moment, he realized that his back and between his buttocks were all wet. The night wind blew, and it was freezing to the bone. He was hit several times in a row. sneeze.

Since he didn't come to his own manor, maybe it wasn't his fault?

But what else is going on?

However, he trembled and bowed down the village wall, then walked back slowly step by step, thinking in his heart, are these people going to Linjin? What do you want to do?

Also, where did these people come from?

Although now he no longer had to face soldiers and armor, which made him somewhat relieved, the confusing changes still made him feel uneasy and even had an ominous premonition...

……ヽ(.\u003eд\u003c)ｐ……

The soldiers naturally came from Longyou.

While Que Yi and others were nervous, Jia Xu had also arrived at Youfufeng.

Speaking of which, Jia Xu has his own residence in many places, including one in Longyou, one in Youfufeng, and one in Chang'an...

There are also some here in Huaili.

Rabbits like to have multiple nests.

According to Jia Xu's personality and habits, living in other people's homes or inns cannot provide the same sense of security as one's own, so Jia Xu lives in his own home as much as possible.

Even though I am running around here and there, I am still most comfortable when I am at home.

It’s just that Jia Xu still doesn’t know where his home will be in the future. Perhaps when the world is peaceful, he will follow Li Ru’s footsteps and head west to see if the end of the world is really like a hussar. As it is said, there is the sea beyond the mountains, and there are mountains across the sea...

Jia Xu glanced at his courtyard again, with a look of reluctance in his eyes, but he waved back resolutely, then raised his head and walked out.

As Jia Xu walked out step by step, more than ten soldiers walked in holding clay pots of kerosene in their hands, pouring them out from the hall in the inner courtyard until outside Jia Xu's gate.

There was a little bit of black kerosene, flowing slowly under the light of the torch, reflecting a strange light, winding like a snake.

Jia Xu walked straight to the war horse without any pause, and then got on his horse. Behind him were the soldiers following closely. Each soldier wears a helmet and is neatly tied up, silently waiting for Jia Xu's order.

Jia Xu stretched out his arm, and then made a move forward to urge the horse forward, and the soldiers behind him gave a few brief orders in a low voice, and then lined up to follow.

Several torches rotated in the air and then fell into the courtyard.

A moment later, a fire broke out, and Jia Xu and others on the long street seemed to be halfway out of the flames. The cold light on the armor, with the coldness of death, actually suppressed the people behind them. The flames that filled the sky only dared to roar bluffly behind him, but did not dare to step forward...

He Quan, the magistrate of Huaili County, also stayed up all night.

After Jia Xu arrived at Huaili with some people at dusk, He Quan felt something was wrong, but the problem was that He Quan did not have the courage to fall out with Jia Xu immediately...

Moreover, He Quan didn't know what Jia Xu's intention was in returning to Huaili. If he was just passing by and then fell out, wouldn't he be exposing himself?

Huaili is a large county in Youfufeng with a large natural population. When there are more people, they naturally have to eat more. When the price of rice rises, if each person pays an extra hundred or ten dollars, the whole county will be worth millions!

This business was simple, direct, brutal and effective, and He Quan was moved.

Although he was a little nervous and uneasy at the beginning, as more and more money flowed into his pocket like water, He Quan became immersed in such a sense of fulfillment and happiness.

Anyway, so many people are pushing up food prices, and I am not the only one. Even if I don’t push up food prices, others will do it. Anyway, even if I do it, others may not find out. In the end, As long as he waits for the hussar to come back and if he wants to investigate the hoarder, he can just grab a temporary scapegoat and kill him with a click, wouldn't everything be fine?

However, Jia Xu's sudden arrival made He Quan a little unsure. After much thought, he finally decided to wait until dawn and send someone to visit Jia Xu to find out what he was saying...

After making up his mind, He Quan felt a little sleepy. However, just as he fell asleep, he was awakened by the commotion outside. His anger suddenly rose, and he walked outside angrily, "What's the noise?" 』

The servant serving nearby pointed to a courtyard wall and said, "Your Majesty!" The city is flooded! 』

"What happened?" He Quan turned his head and looked around. The area was so brightly red that it made half of the sky look like it was bleeding!

Many people in the city were also awakened from their dreams, and then made various screams, like boiling water being boiled on a fire.

He Quan was shocked, and while he ordered people to investigate, he hurried to the front yard. Before he entered the main hall of the government office, he heard the sound of soldiers' armor, and a group of soldiers rushed in, illuminated by the light of torches. Jia Xu, dressed in armor, held his sword and held his head high as he entered.

The servants and attendants on duty outside either stared blankly at Jia Xu rushing in like this, or stood aside with no ideas and were at a loss. Some of the loyal ones were rolling over to congratulate him. Running around...

A voice sounded loudly, "There are thieves and thieves today!" Burn and attack the city! From now on, the entire city of Huaili will be under martial law! All common people should keep their own doors and do not participate in chaos! But those who disobey orders will be subject to military law! 』

Jia Xu's face was cold and hard, as if he didn't see He Shen's figure. He just raised his head and moved forward. Beside Jia Xu, the Longyou warriors and soldiers rushed in like wolves and tigers, and quickly took control. There were points on the left and right, but He Quan's soldiers and guards wanted to resist, but the sword flashed immediately and blood splashed!

He Quan was so frightened that he turned around and left. Several servants also hurriedly tried to close the door to the courtyard, but the soldiers took a few steps and kicked it open!

"Jia Wenhe!" What do you want? ! 』

Seeing that he couldn't escape, He Quan raised his voice and dared to ask.

"You are colluding with the thieves!" Enter the rioters! Jia Xu shouted, "Why don't you just surrender quickly!" So as not to bring disaster to the whole family! 』

Hearing this, He Quan trembled, "What, what..."

Jia Xu waved his hand, and the two soldiers rushed forward, pushed the guards around He Quan away, then took him hostage and brought him to Jia Xu.

Jia Xu tilted his head slightly, half-smiling but not smiling, "Commander He, it was reported... that you colluded with the thieves to burn down a certain courtyard and assassinate a certain person?" 』

"ah? ! absurd! Absolutely no such thing! Absolutely no such thing! He Quan jumped to his feet and said angrily, "This... this is framed by someone!" 』

"Haha... Then why did a fire break out at night when someone returned to Huaili?" If I hadn't been alert, I would have perished in the sea of ​​fire..." Jia Xu waved his hand casually, "As for whether he was framed... we will know after I find out! Take it down! 』

He Quan screamed that he was wronged, but no one responded. All He Quan's attendants and servants around him were kneeling deeply on the ground, as if they were burying their heads in the soil, and they did not dare to express their anger. …