The day after the snow is sunny and the temperature warms up slightly.

Yuan Mai summoned Zhang Ji alone in the study. After chatting for a while, he went straight to the point.

"Mr. Zhongjing, the Han Dynasty is in danger, and the emperor is suffering in Xuchang. As a descendant of the Yuan family, he has received the emperor's kindness in the world, but he cannot save the emperor from danger. My father and son are ashamed of the ancestors of the Yuan family, and the emperors of the Han Dynasty!"

Yuan Mai pretended to be heartbroken and acted very deeply, but actually squeezed out a few tears.

Seeing Yuan Mai like this, Zhang Ji was shocked and hurriedly comforted him: "Why is the young master like this? Let Ji listen and share his worries together?"

Yuan Mai nodded and talked happily: "Since Cao's thief moved His Majesty to Xuchang, he was disrespectful and domineering. When Xuchang was shooting, the emperor shot and killed a deer, and all officials shouted "Long live". Cao's thief went over his post and came out to receive congratulations. It was a great rebellion!"

"The emperor seems noble in the palace, but in fact he is imprisoned. He has to ask for what he does, what he eats, and the people he sees without exception. Even if His Majesty sleeps with the noble lady, Cao thief has to ask clearly!"

Zhang Ji heard the look of anger after hearing this: "This Cao thief is so ruthless? I thought he was a virtuous minister, but I didn't expect that he would do such a rebellious way. How different is this behavior from Dong Zhuo?"

Yuan Mai dared not comment on whether Cao Cao was a loyal or a treacherous minister, but his current position determines that Cao Cao must be slandered.

"No, this Cao thief is even worse than Dong Zhuolai!"

"Where did the young master hear this news?"

Zhang Ji looked incredible. He had never heard of Cao Cao's reputation as bad as Nanyang? Some people even praised Cao Cao for his good governance.

Yuan Mai picked up the teacup in front of him and moistened his throat. He said slowly: "The emperor was trapped by the thief Cao, and his every move was under the surveillance of the thief, and he didn't even provide any pens and ink. In desperation, His Majesty had to bite his finger and write a "blood edict" to fight against the thief. He hid it in the jade belt and gave it to his uncle Dong Cheng, who ordered him to plot to kill the thief Cao!"

Speaking of this, I was afraid that Zhang Ji would suspect that after all, such a confidential matter could not be known to everyone.

Added: "After receiving the edict, Dong Guoji conspired with Wu Zilan, Wang Zifu, Zhong Ji and others to kill the thief. Later, he recruited Liu Huangshu and Xiliang Ma Teng to join the gang. However, Cao Zhe was cautious, and Ma Teng and Liu Bei were afraid of being killed. He took the opportunity to escape. This was caused by Liu Huangshu who sent someone to notify his father, so I knew about it!"

"Since so many people know it, it seems that this matter must be true. Why is my great man so many disasters and difficulties? He went to Dong Zhuo, and Cao Cao came again!" Zhang Ji sighed regretfully.

Yuan Mai pretended to behave: "My father launched an army to attack Cao this time to revive the Han Dynasty. However, the 'Ling Edict' is not in his hands, and it is unreasonable to make people distinguish right from wrong. Therefore, Mai called Mr. Zhongjing to the mansion this time, hoping that Mr. Xuchang and get the edict from Dong Guojiu. In this way, he can fight against the thief with just a legitimate reason!"

After hearing Yuan Mai's words, Zhang Ji did not consider it and agreed generously: "Since the young master gave me the order, Zhang Ji would go to Xuchang. I have a private house in Xuchang. In the past few years, I have often stayed for a few days and visited my colleagues from the past. If I go to Xuchang, it should not attract the attention of Cao Zhe."

Yuan Mai clapped and applauded: "It's great. The news of Mr. coming to Hanoi has not yet spread. When he goes to Xuchang, Cao Zhe will definitely not think that it is related to our Yuan family. This matter will be accomplished! I just don't know if Mr. Dong Guojiu is familiar with him?"

"I know Dong Cheng, but I'm not familiar with him. Nodding a friend!" Zhang Ji thought for a moment and replied.

Yuan Mai nodded: "Since you know each other, you can talk. After getting to know each other again and again, the gentleman gradually became familiar with Dong Guojiu. But he was cautious. If he rashly asked him about the robbery, he would never admit it. The gentleman must live in Xuchang and slowly gain his trust in order to get the 'robbery'."

Zhang Ji stood up and hugged his wrist and said, "This is true. It is related to the survival of the country. Zhang Ji will naturally be cautious. Without further ado, if I stayed in Hanoi for a long time and leaked the news, it would be bad. Taking advantage of the snow in the wild and the pedestrians on the road, I rushed to Xuchang through the snow, lived for a year and a half, and took the imperial edict in my hand to inform the world and kill the thieves of Cao together!"

After the discussion, Yuan Mai personally sent Zhang Ji out of the mansion and asked if he needed to send a guard to escort. Zhang Ji politely declined, saying that the people were too conspicuous, which would easily attract Cao Jun's attention. He only took a few apprentices to the way.

After Zhang Ji left, the north entered a relatively quiet period. The weather was cold and the earth was frozen. All forces remained silent, like dormant insects, silent.

After Sun Ce pacified Jiangdong, the chief secretary Zhang Hong believed that Moling was located in the south of Zhongshan and controlled the Yangtze River in the north, and had the aura of a king. He suggested that Sun Ce place the capital here.

According to Zhang Hong's suggestion, Sun Ce built a large-scale construction in Moling to expand the scale of the city, moved more than 100,000 people from various counties in Jiangdong, and thickened and increased the city walls, deep ditches and high barriers.

After only more than half a year, Moling County, which originally had only 30,000 people, became a big city with a population of 170,000 to 180,000, and was renamed Jianye. It became the political, military, economic and cultural center of Jiangdong.

There were only four counties in Jiangdong, namely Danyang, Wujun, Kuaiji, and Yuzhang, with a population of 900,000.

Due to the wars in the Central Plains, many people crossed the river to take refuge. In just five or six years, the population in Jiangdong increased dramatically, reaching 1.3 million.

Yuzhang was vast and sparsely populated. Sun Ce divided Yuzhang into three parts according to Zhang Zhao's suggestion, divided it into three counties: Yuzhang, Luling and Poyang, and sent hundreds of thousands of newly moved people to these three counties to settle and reproduce the population, making the land in Jiangdong prosperous and prosperous.

Jiangdong, Jianye, Sun Mansion.

After hearing Dong Zhao's purpose, Sun Ce nodded slightly, his thick eyebrows and tiger eyes exuded a breath of arrogance.

"Well, I understand Dong Gongren's words. Ce is very grateful for Cao Gong's love. But what Cao Gong said about begging his niece to his brother Sun Kuang, he still needs to report to his mother before he can reply. Please stay in the inn for a while and wait for a day or two before I will reply to Cao Gong!"

Dong Zhao bowed and said, "What Wu Hou said is so true. With the old lady here, we naturally need to report it to the old man!"

Dong Zhao had just left, and a handsome man walked out from behind the screen with a handsome face, elegant manners and a handsome man. It was Zhou Yu, who was 25 years old, who was now named the prefect of Yuzhang and the general of military advisor by Sun Ce.

In recent days, he has been stationed with Huang Gai and Han Dang's troops, and confronted Huang Zu, the prefect of Jiangxia under Liu Biao, across the Yangtze River. When Sun Ce heard that Cao Cao sent an envoy to visit, he sent someone to recall Zhou Yu Xingye to discuss countermeasures.

"Haha... The reason why Bo Fu did not immediately agree to Cao Cao's betrothal to Ji Zuo was because he was afraid that Cao Cao would be short of Cao Cao in terms of seniority, right?" Zhou Yu had an elegant smile on his face. He sat next to Sun Ce and said calmly.

Sun Ce grinned, glanced at Zhou Yu, and said with a smile: "Gongjin is simply a worm in my stomach, I can't hide anything from you!"

"Cao Cao suddenly sent someone to give him official positions and get married to us Jiangdong, which was obviously caused by the attack on both sides of Yuan Shao and Liu Bei. However, we enjoyed the benefits of the fisherman. Moreover, we originally wanted to capture Lujiang and Huainan, but Liu Bei took the lead in occupying him. Since Cao Cao was willing to cooperate with us, he agreed to his request!" Zhou Yu talked happily while drinking tea.

Sun Ce's eyes were like a raging: "I naturally understand this. Jiangdong has been wiped out now. If we want to expand our territory, there are only three ways. One is to praising the river and attack Jiangxia. The second is to attack Shouchun or Lujiang through Ruxukou, and the third is to conquer Changsha. Liu Biao has been in Jingzhou for many years and has more than 100,000 troops under his command. The people's hearts are in favor, and it is difficult to achieve it for a while...

Liu Bei was in Huainan and the people were not attached to him. Recently, we marched towards Runan again. We were taking the opportunity to attack Huainan. Since Cao Cao was willing to join us, it would be great. However, the matter of begging his niece to the fourth child was troubled by me. If I agreed, wouldn’t I have to call Cao Cao “Uncle”? I don’t want to eat this!”

I knew that Sun Ce was the most competitive, but I didn’t expect that he would not suffer any losses in this matter. Cao Cao sent his brother-raising daughter to Jiangdong to Jiangdong to breed the children for the Sun family and called Cao Cao "Uncle"!

"Cao Cao is to win the trust of us and show his sincerity to unite with us. If Bo Fu rejected this marriage, I am afraid Cao Cao would be too worried!" Zhou Yu said in a deep thought, with a look of worry on his face.

Sun Ce said unwillingly: "I can agree to Cao Cao's other conditions, but it's not enough to be betrothed his niece to the fourth brother. I am both a prince, so I don't want to be Cao Cao's junior!"

Zhou Yu thought for a moment, then suddenly had a plan in his heart, slapped his legs and said, "I have it!"

"The plan is out? Gongjin quickly tell me!"

Sun Ce couldn't wait to ask, if there was a two-way plan that would not offend Cao Cao and would not belittle his identity, it would be best!

Zhou Yu smiled and said, "I heard that Cao Cao's fourth son Cao Zhang is fifteen or sixteen years old this year and has not married yet. Sun Ben's daughter is exactly fifteen or sixteen years old this year. She has not betrothed by others yet. We can be betrothed Sun Ben's daughter to Cao Cao's son. In this way, the general and Cao Cao are peers, so there is no need to worry about causing Cao Cao's concern!"

"Haha... This plan is great!" Sun Ce laughed when he heard the high-five, "Okay, that's it. I'll send someone to invite my brother over later."

Sun Ben is Sun Ce's cousin, he is 38 years old this year, and has three sons and six daughters in his family.

Zhou Yu proposed to marry Cao Zhang with Sun Ben's third daughter. Sun Ben has not made much contribution over the years, but he was appointed as a general due to his family relationship with Sun Ce.

Since Sun Ce needed their father and daughter, Sun Ben would naturally not refuse. Besides, Cao Cao was a hero of the times, and being a relative of such a big man was also a shameful thing. Therefore, after hearing Sun Ce's request, he agreed on the spot: "Why do you have to be polite Bo Fu? My daughter is your daughter, but it's up to you, your uncle, to make the decision!"

Sun Ce was very satisfied with his cousin's answer and nodded, "Since that's the case, things will be settled. I will tell Dong Zhao the decision later and ask him to go back and report to Cao Cao!"

The next day, Sun Ce summoned Dong Zhao and said his meaning. Cao Cao's niece could be betrothed to his brothers, but in order to deepen their relationship, he also betrothed to Cao Cao's son and asked him to go back and convey his meaning to Cao Cao.

"If Mr. Cao is willing, Lord Dong will come to Jianye directly next time with Mr. Cao's niece. My Sun family will definitely be ready to marry you. When you return, you can bring my niece back to Xuchang. In this way, you have me and I have you. Our Sun and Cao families are one!"

Dong Zhao bowed and said, "My marriage is a major matter, and the officials dare not make decisions. Let me go back to see Mr. Cao and come to reply to Mr. Wu again!"

In the chilly and cold wind, Dong Zhao brought his followers and took seven or eight days to return to Xuchang with a quick horse, conveyed Sun Ce's meaning to Cao Cao, and asked him to make a decision.

After hearing this, Cao Cao stroked his beard and laughed: "This Sun Bofu is really interesting, and he will not be willing to eat it at all! I am forty-five years this year. Sun Ce is just a young man with a smell of stinky milk. I betrothed my niece to his younger brother and take him as a nephew. Isn't it wrong? This guy actually treats him with his own way and betroths his niece to my son. He really doesn't give up any land!"

"Mr. Cao, I used the excuse to go to Sun Ben's house to have tea. I met his daughter once, and I am also a lady from a noble family!" Dong Zhao added beside him.

Cao Cao laughed: "I just said it casually. I have never seen any storm and waves before. How could I be jealous with him as a junior? Sun Ce didn't say that he wanted to be with my peers, even if I call me a 'brother' for my whole life, I wouldn't be angry! On the battlefield, I still rely on my strength to speak, and I will never judge success or failure by relatives!"

After hearing Cao Cao's words, the civil and military officials in the hall praised: "Cao Gong is broad-minded, like the bright wind and bright moon. We deeply admire him!"

Cao Cao immediately made a decision, ordering Dong Zhao to prepare a carriage, bring a betrothal gift, and send his cousin's niece to Dongwu, and then marry Sun Ce's niece to Xuchang, Sun and Cao families through marriage, strengthening their relationship.

After the marriage, Cao Cao was unable to let go of Liu Bei's hatred of attacking Runan. Although it was November, there were mountains in the north of Xuchang, and the temperature was slightly higher than that in the Yellow River area. He ordered people to prepare cold-proof items, regardless of the cold winter month, and prepared to attack Runan and avenge their revenge.

While sending an envoy to Jiangdong, he asked Sun Ce to send troops to attack Liu Bei on both sides. Cao's troops took Runan, Sun Ce took Lujiang and Huainan, and divided the land together and sweared to kill Liu Bei.

When Sun Ce heard that Cao Cao was preparing to attack Liu Bei, he secretly dispatched troops and ordered Cheng Pu, Sun Jing and Zhu Zhi to go to Chaisang to replace Zhou Yu in garrison, and ordered Zhou Yu to lead Han Dang and Huang Gai to cross the river and attack Lujiang. He and Taishi Ci, Jiang Qin, Zhou Tai and others were ready to go through Ruxukou, attack Huainan, and kill Guan Yu!
Chapter completed!