si-mexico Chapter 139: Pampered: General Gongsun, My Lord Brings You a Letter
Chapter 139: Pampered: General Gongsun, My Lord Brings You a Letter
"By the way, Shan Jing, how did you respond to Gongsun Du in Liaodong regarding the grain purchase?"
Gongsun Zan pressed Shan Jing for answers.
When this topic came up, Shan Jing looked ashamed:
"My lord, Gongsun Du said that Liaodong has experienced a once-in-a-decade snowfall this year, and the already scarce grain supplies have been further damaged, so there is really no surplus grain to sell."
"Never mind, I never expected him to provide much food anyway."
Gongsun Zan sighed softly.
In reality, Gongsun Du and him had absolutely no relation whatsoever, except for sharing the same surname.
Gongsun Zan was well aware of the food shortage in Liaodong.
However, after Yuan Shao blocked the trade routes, grain from Ji Province could only be smuggled out of the local people.
The price is extremely high and the quantity is very limited, which is simply a drop in the ocean.
Now that his neighbor Gongsun Du is also out of reach, Gongsun Zan can only pin his hopes on Qingzhou, hoping to get some grain from there.
But soon, the messenger sent to Qingzhou informed Gongsun Zan.
Kong Rong said that Qingzhou also had no surplus grain due to years of war.
Gongsun Zan, of course, did not believe Kong Rong's nonsense.
Enraged, he wanted to send troops to attack Kong Rong.
But before he could mobilize his troops, news arrived from Yuan Shao's side.
In order to protect his "ally", Yuan Shao specially dispatched his eldest son Yuan Tan with 50,000 troops, who joined forces with generals Yan Liang, strategist Xin Ping and others, and stationed themselves in Qinghe County, which is located at the border of Ji and Qing provinces.
If Gongsun Zan makes any move, these 50,000 troops will definitely take the opportunity to launch a surprise attack on Youzhou.
Enraged, Gongsun Zan had no choice but to abandon his attack on Kong Rong.
Kong Rong was overjoyed to learn that Yuan Shao was willing to "protect him".
In high spirits, he personally wrote a Han dynasty poem for Yuan Shao.
That Han dynasty poem praises Yuan Shao as a person who is both responsible and loves peace.
However, what Kong Rong didn't know was...
Before long, Yuan Tan and his 50,000 troops will become the sharp blades aimed at him!
This Han dynasty poem has become an irony no less than awarding a peace prize to Hu Zi.
……
"Heh, so this is Ukyoto Heisei?"
"Compared to Dongjun and Pengcheng, it is far behind."
Man Chong patted the snowflakes off his clothes and followed the Mi family caravan into Youbei Pingcheng.
Although the city was large, the hunger on the faces of the people could not be concealed.
It's difficult to say whether Liu Yu or Gongsun Zan had the right or wrong governing philosophies.
To the surprise of the Mi family caravan...
Their arrival caused a sensation throughout the entire city!
Soon, squads of soldiers ran into the street and surrounded the Mi family caravan.
"This……"
The head of the Mi family caravan broke out in a cold sweat.
The people of Youzhou are known for their fierce and unyielding nature; it seems that's no exaggeration.
Are you a merchant caravan from Jizhou?
A man who looked like a general stepped out of the group and asked the head of the Mi family caravan.
"Reporting to the general, we are the Mi family merchant caravan from Xuzhou."
Upon hearing the answer, a look of surprise flashed across the general's face, followed by a surge of elation!
"Quickly, quickly, come with me to see General Gongsun!"
The general pulled the head of the Mi family merchant caravan toward the governor's mansion.
Yes, this person is Shan Jing.
Since Kong Rong also refused to sell grain, the grain supply in Youzhou has been dwindling.
The entire city's population, including a large number of soldiers, was on the verge of starvation.
Gongsun Zan himself, in order to set an example in saving food, also changed to eating only one meal a day, just enough to keep him from starving.
Shan Jing was a discerning man; when Cao Cao took Xuzhou, the Mi family's merchant caravan naturally became Cao Cao's people as well.
The fact that Cao Cao sent the Mi family's merchant caravan here means he must be here to do business with Gongsun Zan!
Although we don't know how ruthless Cao Cao's business was, it at least gave the people of Youzhou a glimmer of hope.
In the governor's mansion
Gongsun Zan personally came out to greet the head of the Mi family caravan.
Seeing the smiling face on Gongsun Zan's face, the head of the Mi family caravan was momentarily dazed.
Merchants were almost at the bottom of society in this era of scholars, farmers, artisans, and merchants.
Even if they were members of the Mi family's caravan, when had they ever received such treatment while traveling?
Who is Gongsun Zan?
That guy is the real power behind Youzhou, the White Horse General who commands respect in the northern frontier!
But today, in order to buy grain, Gongsun Zan actually took the initiative to extend goodwill to the Mi family's caravan.
Shaking his head, the head of the Mi family caravan banished these miscellaneous thoughts from his mind.
To put it bluntly, Gongsun Zan wasn't giving them face, but rather giving face to Cao Cao, who was behind them.
Furthermore, Youzhou is now truly on the verge of running out of food.
Without food, Gongsun Zan himself dared not imagine what would happen next.
Suddenly, Gongsun Zan's gaze sharpened slightly.
He caught a glimpse of Man Chong, who was hiding behind the head of the Mi family caravan.
Perhaps it was because Man Chong had repeatedly acted as an envoy for Cao Cao's camp that he possessed an extraordinary temperament.
Or perhaps Gongsun Zan had a strong intuition; the moment he saw Man Chong, he felt that Man Chong might be the real person in charge of this caravan.
Gongsun Zan then coughed and invited the Mi family caravan into the main hall.
His eyes, however, remained fixed on Man Chong.
Sensing Gongsun Zan's gaze, Man Chong stepped forward confidently and bowed to him, saying:
"My name is Man Chong. I greet General Gongsun."
Gongsun Zan instantly understood.
He invited Man Chong to sit in the first seat below the governor's mansion.
Then, he asked Man Chong:
“Mr. Man, this general and Mengde are old acquaintances.”
"Why did Mengde send you here?"
Man Chong smiled, unmoved by the adjective "old acquaintance".
What does it matter if we've known each other for ages?
When it comes to fighting for interests, we will still fight for them.
What Lord Cao Cao wanted was balance.
Now that Gongsun Zan is weak and Yuan Shao is powerful, our lord should naturally help Gongsun Zan.
However, given time, Gongsun Zan may become stronger than Yuan Shao, and the lord might even send him as an envoy to Yuan Shao to provide him with some support.
"Reporting to General Gongsun, my lord has sent me here for two purposes."
"The first objective is to hope that General Gongsun can defend Youzhou well and prevent Yuan Shao from taking it over."
Upon hearing this, Gongsun Zan's eyes gradually became playful.
If he remembers correctly.
On the surface, Cao Cao and Yuan Shao are still allies!
However, this is a chaotic world, and it is perfectly normal for allies to turn into enemies.
Regardless of who becomes the hegemon of the four provinces of Hebei (Ji, You, Bing, and Qing) and the ruler of the four provinces of the Central Plains (Yan, Xu, Yu, and Si), a decisive battle that will determine the fate of the world will inevitably erupt one day.
As for the southern states...
Hmm, to be honest, despite its large size, the development level of the south in the late Han Dynasty was far less than that of the north.
This is the first of three large-scale southward migrations.
It was not until at least the early Northern Song Dynasty that the economy and population of the southern prefectures surpassed those of the north.
The forces that occupy the nine northern provinces (the previous eight plus Liangzhou) will only be able to sweep across the world in the future.
Due to the natural barriers of the mountains and the Yangtze River in western Sichuan, as well as the emergence of rare talents like Zhuge Liang, this timeline may be delayed.
But no one can deny that the Western Jin Dynasty's ability to unify the Three Kingdoms had little to do with the Sima family itself.
They merely stood on the shoulders of Cao Wei, using the powerful national strength that Cao Wei had accumulated over many years in the northern nine provinces to achieve unification.
And this moment.
In the eyes of the world.
Whoever can conquer the northern states will not be far from unifying the world.
Gongsun Zan, Yuan Shao, Cao Cao, Yuan Shu, and others were well aware of this.
thus.
Gongsun Zan agreed to Man Chong's warning:
"Don't worry, Mr. Man."
"Not only can I defend this small territory of Youzhou, but I will also launch a counterattack and invade Jizhou, making that brat Yuan Shao flee in disarray!"
……