"Governance of Hong Kong by Hong Kong people."
These six characters, like a gateway to a new world, brightened Xun Yu's eyes.
"Does Commander Lu mean to govern Xuzhou by following the methods of the ancient Dragon Kingdom and Hong Kong during the primeval era, implementing the 'Xuzhou people govern Xuzhou' approach?" Xun Yu asked urgently.
He felt as if he had obtained a key, and whether this key could unlock a new chapter was worth trying.
"Precisely..." Lu Yu nodded. "The so-called 'Xuzhou people govern Xuzhou' is also known as 'Xuzhou people control Xuzhou'! The first 'govern' refers to governance, and the second 'control' refers to checks and balances!"
Lu Yu continued, "The Danyang faction, the renowned scholars faction, and the commoners faction are not confined to Xiapi city but are widespread throughout every prefecture and county of Xuzhou. Instead of getting entangled in the vortex of these forces, it would be better to extend a free hand and let Xuzhou become a self-governing state under Lord Cao!"
"As long as Xuzhou can provide Lord Cao with soldiers, grain, horses, and equipment, all other political powers and military authority can belong to the 'Xuzhou Gang'... This is the so-called 'Xuzhou people govern Xuzhou'."
Lu Yu here introduced the concept of the "Xuzhou Gang," which refers to the Danyang, renowned scholars, and commoners factions!
As Xun Yu was still carefully pondering Lu Yu's words, Lu Yu's speech continued.
He did not give Xun Yu much time to think too deeply...
Or rather, Lu Yu intended to finish speaking everything before allowing Xun Yu to piece it all together.
"What I've spoken of so far concerns the governance of Xuzhou. Next, I will discuss the checks and balances of Xuzhou, the so-called 'Xuzhou people control Xuzhou'..."
"It's actually quite simple. Lord Cao and Commander Xun can simultaneously court the Danyang faction, the renowned scholars faction, and the commoners faction. The Danyang faction's military power will remain unchanged, the renowned scholars faction's administrative authority will also remain unchanged, and at the same time, the commoners faction will be granted the power of supervision and thorough investigation."
Lu Yu's theory, in essence, was to completely separate the judicial and public security departments from the administrative departments...
Mutually checking and balancing each other.
Upon reaching this point, Lu Yu paused, then continued, "In this way, the renowned scholars faction's administrative authority can check the Danyang faction's military power, the commoners faction's supervisory authority can check the renowned scholars faction's administrative authority, and finally, the Danyang faction's military power can check the commoners faction's supervisory authority..."
"Mutual checks and balances, complementing each other. In this manner, no matter which city or county, all three factions will strive to perform well before Lord Cao. Which one would dare to stab him in the back?"
This...
It could be said that Lu Yu's words increasingly piqued Xun Yu's interest. At one point during the conversation, Xun Yu felt it was impractical, but after hearing everything and contemplating it carefully,
He suddenly realized that Lu Yu's words were not only eloquent but also contained many profound principles of "checks and balances."
'Xuzhou people govern Xuzhou, Xuzhou people control Xuzhou'... The more Xun Yu pondered, the more he found it flavorful.
His eyes lit up. He had a faint feeling that this strategy was feasible and could work!
It was strange, really. The complex situation in Xuzhou, which Liu Bei couldn't grasp, Cao Cao hesitated over, and Xun Yu himself pondered repeatedly without finding an optimal solution, was explained so thoroughly by Lu Yu...
Xun Yu's admiration for Lu Yu grew by another notch. It was still the same two points: Lu Yu's insight and judgment were beyond compare!
Seeing Xun Yu fall silent, Lu Yu proactively asked, "Commander Xun, what do you think of this method of 'Xuzhou people govern Xuzhou'?"
"Good! Excellent!"
Even Xun Yu, at this moment, could not find enough words to express his feelings.
Just as Lu Yu proposed, the method was simple yet extremely effective.
"Commander Lu..." Xun Yu stood up. "Today, I, Xun, have truly learned a great deal. I will immediately write to Lord Cao regarding the memorial to appoint Liu Bei as the Prefect of Xiapi and the strategy of 'Xuzhou people govern Xuzhou.' I believe he must be eagerly awaiting it in Xuzhou, right? Haha..."
Slightly stroking his beard...
Xun Yu was planning to return to his residence. After all, he needed to meticulously summarize Lu Yu's words from today and send them out. This... was not an easy task!
"By the way... Commander Xun..." Lu Yu seemed to recall something and stood up, adding a sentence.
"Does Commander Lu have any other words for Lord Cao?"
Erk...
The words were on the tip of his tongue, but Lu Yu ultimately swallowed them back. It seemed that for some reason, the thoughts he had just had could not be articulated so plainly.
Lu Yu immediately changed his statement, "It's nothing, I just hope Lord Cao returns to Yanzhou soon and resolves the threat of Lu Bu quickly..."
"This matter..." Xun Yu nodded, then patted Lu Yu on the shoulder. "Commander Lu, rest assured. Once my letter arrives in Xuzhou with these two ingenious strategies of yours, given Lord Cao's wisdom... he will likely make a decision on the strategy immediately. After he has settled the various prefectures of Xuzhou, he will certainly return to deal with the threat of Lu Bu!"
In reality, Lu Yu wanted to say that Cao Cao should return even faster...
It was currently January. At the latest, Lu Bu must be defeated before April. This was very important.
As for the reason, Lu Yu suddenly recalled a record from the "Zizhi Tongjian" concerning the fourth year of Chuping.
In early April of the fourth year of Chuping, a great drought struck, and not a single drop of sweet dew fell across all thirteen prefectures of the Han Dynasty for four months...
It wasn't until the end of August that the first rain arrived.
The most direct impact was the drought and locust plague. Locusts are particularly fond of warm and dry environments, and drought also leads to their massive reproduction and rapid growth.
Under the twin calamities of drought and locusts, it was destined that this year... the grain harvest in July would be impossible.
Currently, the large stockpiles of grain in Yanzhou were concentrated in Puyang city. In other words, if Cao Cao could not defeat Lu Bu before April and recover this grain, then the entire Yanzhou would once again face a severe grain crisis this year.
The "Zizhi Tongjian" records that in July of the fourth year of Chuping, one hu of grain had soared to seven million coins.
What did this mean? Digging up the tomb of a descendant of King Zhongshan of Jing would yield gold and silver treasures worth only tens of millions, not even enough to buy a few hu of grain.
The most exaggerated part was that the scope of this drought was the entire thirteen prefectures, and the scope of the locust plague was the entire seven prefectures of the Central Plains. This was known as "seven prefectures' locusts"...
It was no exaggeration to say that despite Cao Cao's current favorable situation, if he really couldn't defeat Lu Bu before April,
Then... this year, he would be constrained by grain and fodder, having no opportunity to deal with the threat of Lu Bu. If this dragged on for another year, there would be many new variables!
Alas... the problem was that this couldn't be said directly.
He couldn't possibly tell Xun Yu or Old Cao.
"The Zizhi Tongjian says that after April there will be a great drought, lasting until August, with no rain, dry riverbeds... and crop failure!"
If he really said that, Old Cao and Xun Yu would likely consider him a madman.
Now, he could only subtly remind Xun Yu... to have him persuade Old Cao to return quickly.
"Commander Xun, please mention it again, and ask Lord Cao to return early and quickly resolve the threat of Lu Bu..." Lu Yu did not forget to urge him again...
"I have noted it down. If Commander Lu has nothing else, I shall take my leave." Xun Yu cupped his hands.
Lu Yu also cupped his hands in return. "I shall escort Commander Xun..."
Pushing open the door, Xun Yu looked around, intending to find Cao De, but where was he?
In the entire courtyard, there was only Cao Anmin.
At this moment, Cao Anmin quickly stepped forward.
"Your subordinate Cao Anmin, pays respects to... Commander Lu..."
Cao Anmin almost called him "Benefactor," but the words were held back.
This was the first time Lu Yu had met Cao Anmin. The young man was quite handsome, at least much more so than Zhuge Liang...
Wait, something seemed wrong. Many ancient texts described Zhuge Liang as a great handsome man. Could it be due to his young age, not yet fully developed?
"Cough cough... You are young master Anmin, indeed. My apologies, my apologies..." Lu Yu returned the greeting...
When thinking of Cao Anmin, the first thing that came to mind was the Battle of Wancheng.
When Cao Cao made the mistake that all men make, when Zhang Xiu surrendered and then rebelled, when Dian Wei held the rear and died in battle, when Cao Ang died in battle, at the critical moment, Cao Anmin handed his horse to Cao Cao and also died in battle, leaving only Cao Cao to escape.
In Lu Yu's view, being able to make the gesture of giving one's horse to another on the battlefield was equivalent to handing over the hope of survival to someone else, and leaving one's own life on that battlefield.
Not many people could do something like this. For Old Cao, Cao Anmin was one, Cao Hong was another, and... Ji Bei Taishou Bao Xin was also one.
Lu Yu greatly admired these individuals.
"May I ask what position Young Master Anmin holds currently?" Lu Yu asked curiously...
He wanted to poach talent.
Lu Yu wanted to recruit every brave warrior who viewed death lightly into the Dragon Roar Camp.
"Your subordinate..."
Cao Anmin was about to say he served under Commander Xun as a minor general of the Tooth Gate, when Xun Yu preempted him.
"Commander Lu, I was just about to mention this to you..."
"Young Master Anmin has been working under me, Commander Xun. However, my duties are mostly clerical, which has hindered his martial skills..." As he spoke, Xun Yu proactively requested, "Why not let Young Master Anmin join the Dragon Roar Camp? It would allow him to charge into battle for Commander Lu, and also not let his martial skills go to waste. What do you think, Commander Lu?"
Heh...
Lu Yu thought that Xun Yu, with his keen insight, had seen through his intention to poach talent and had deliberately spoken this way.
He was immediately overjoyed. "Since Commander Xun is so generous, I can only be delighted."
With a word, Lu Yu turned to Cao Anmin. "Young Master Anmin, how about this: pack up today and report to General Wen Lie at the Dragon Roar Camp tomorrow? What do you say?"
Wen Lie was Cao Xiu's courtesy name. Although Lu Yu was the de facto commander of the Dragon Roar Camp, Cao Xiu was the one who trained the soldiers and led battles. Therefore, Lu Yu directly arranged for Cao Anmin to report to Cao Xiu!
As soon as these words left his mouth...
For Cao Anmin, this was simply—happiness arrived too suddenly.
To serve under his benefactor was not only to fulfill the wishes of his father and grandfather but also... his own dream!
Furthermore, what was the Dragon Roar Camp? Setting aside the daily ration of one jin of meat, the merits the Dragon Roar Camp had achieved since its establishment were countless.
It was no exaggeration to say that the Dragon Roar Camp was a place that every low-ranking soldier in Cao Cao's army dreamed of.
Cao Anmin was stunned...
For a moment, he didn't know how to express his excitement.
Xun Yu reacted first and gave him a sudden clap on the back.
"Commander Lu is taking you into the Dragon Roar Camp; this is your good fortune. Why aren't you thanking Commander Lu quickly?"
Oh... only then did Cao Anmin react... "Thank you, Commander Lu. Your subordinate will surely spill his blood, go through fire and water, and never falter..."
Erk...
Hearing this, Lu Yu felt a bit awkward.
These warriors, always talking about spilling their blood, going through fire and water... Do they really not care about their lives at all?
Speaking of which, what fun is there in fighting and killing? Playing happily with his sister at home, teaching young Kongming military strategy as if raising a child, eating and sleeping well, and learning new knowledge every night. Wasn't all of this, far from the battlefield, more appealing?
Life was not just about the battlefield; there was also poetry and the distance!
"Alas..." Lu Yu sighed in his heart... He felt his realm had ascended again. He helped Cao Anmin up. "Alright, remember to report on time tomorrow... General Wen Lie is quite strict in leading troops, so be mentally prepared."
"Your subordinate obeys..." Cao Anmin bowed again.
Lu Yu looked at him carefully again. He looked like a soldier now...
Very good, another member has been added to the Dragon Roar Camp...
Lu Yu pondered how to describe Cao Anmin.
To call Cao Anmin a fierce general who fought bravely would be a bit exaggerated. It was better to call him a chivalrous general who could disregard life and death.
...
Meanwhile, Xun Yu and Cao Anmin slowly exited the Cai residence.
Lu Yu sat alone in his study, beginning to meditate, or perhaps, to ponder new issues.
Although the current situation was very favorable, due to the great drought in April, if not handled well, it could quickly take a turn for the worse.
Lu Yu had to consider the situation in the worst-case scenario.
For example... Cao Cao could return on schedule, but encounter new problems when attacking Puyang city!
Chen Gong and Lu Bu, one a scholar and the other a warrior, along with the Bingzhou wolf cavalry and the Eight Valiant Generals, if they cooperated, even with fewer troops, relying on ample grain and strong city defenses, it would be difficult for Cao's army to conquer it if they attacked forcefully.
And from Chen Gong's perspective, Lu Bu's advantage was ample grain, while Cao Cao's disadvantage was a lack of grain.
As long as Chen Gong's brain wasn't kicked by a donkey, he would definitely not attack Cao Cao proactively, but would choose to defend the city... or even employ scorched-earth tactics!
With the delay, the Battle of Puyang would become a protracted war. With the great drought in April, locusts in June, and a failed harvest in July, this would be another story for Old Cao.
Whoosh...
Thinking of this, Lu Yu let out a long sigh.
"Thinking about it, it feels like a time of crisis and peril..."
Lu Yu complained softly...
Looking at the frequent droughts in the Han Dynasty, this great drought covering all thirteen prefectures could be considered the greatest drought.
By July, not only Yanzhou would be short of grain, but even other prefectures and counties, and even the black market, would be short of grain. Currently... everyone was waiting for this year's harvest, and even the black market was not well-off...
Of course, except for Puyang city!
This was rather awkward. By July, it would not be a question of money but of survival. Lu Yu estimated that he might have to call Cheng Yu back from the tomb-robbing field and have him moonlight as a chef. Perhaps he could even concoct some human-flesh buns to survive the famine!
Bah... human-flesh buns?
That was too wishful thinking. If the grain harvest failed, and there was no flour, where would the human-flesh buns come from!
The thought of Cheng Yu's chilling human-flesh jerky made Lu Yu feel like he was going to throw up the breakfast he had eaten.
The urgent priority was to prepare early, to stockpile grain, and to create some renewable food sources.
At this moment...
Lu Yu saw "Zhuge Liang." This kid, always carrying a small schoolbag, happily going to school and happily returning from school, carefree...
At this moment, Lu Yu's mind was filled with thoughts of getting grain. Seeing him like this, he inexplicably wanted to hit him!
He had initially thought that by coaxing Zhuge Liang over, he could get a lot of help and make things easier for himself, but it turned out this was a burden!
"Kongming..." Lu Yu called out loudly.
Zhuge Jun heard Lu Yu's call and quickly ran over respectfully.
In his eyes, both Cai Yan and Lu Yu were his mentors. In this era, mentors were equivalent to fathers. Lu Yu was the father, and Cai Zhaoji was the mother...
This comparison was not an exaggeration at all.
"Master Lu, what are your orders?" Zhuge Jun quickly asked.
Erk... Lu Yu paused, then said, "Seeing as you're always so oblivious, today, I'll teach you some knowledge beyond books."
Ah... beyond books?
Zhuge Jun was slightly stunned. What was this for?
As if sensing his mood, Lu Yu smiled, "Don't be afraid, it's nothing shady. Today, your Master Lu will teach you a skill—Great Transformation of Grain Storage!"
That's right, Lu Yu was going to transform grain.
As people say, a clever wife can't cook without rice, but... today Lu Yu was going to try the "picking up wheat to operate a mill—risk-free and ten thousand times profitable Great Transformation of Grain Storage!"
...
...