Chapter 161 One Mountain Cannot Tolerate Two Tigers, Unless One is Male and One is Female
Bring the Son of Heaven to command the feudal lords!
So, the question arises.
The current Son of Heaven is in Chang'an. Chang'an is thousands of miles away from Yanzhou, and there are countless passes, cities, and various powerful families in between.
Bringing the Son of Heaven, these three words sound simple, but doing them, how can they be so easy?
Even if Cao Cao leads his troops to Chang'an, passing Li Jue and Guo Si of the Xiliang army will not be easy. They are currently in power, so why would they hand over the Son of Heaven to Cao Cao?
These are the difficult problems that Xun Yu is worried about…
This is also the reason why Xun Yu has not yet told Cao Cao this strategic plan.
…Bringing the Son of Heaven to command the feudal lords, the vision is very beautiful, very grand, but now it seems… it is ultimately just a beautiful idea, and its operability is infinitely close to zero!
Lu Yu could see this very clearly through Xun Yu's eyes.
"Strategist Xun is still worried about the 'bringing the Son of Heaven' issue, right?" Lu Yu pointed it out directly. "Indeed, in terms of distance and troop strength, our Yanzhou is too far from Chang'an. Moreover… the Guanzhong region is filled with warlords, and these warlords draw their swords at the slightest disagreement, completely unreasonable. If we really go to Chang'an to welcome the Son of Heaven back, I'm afraid that before the Son of Heaven is welcomed back, it's uncertain whether Duke Cao can return himself!"
Speaking of this, Lu Yu thought of the complex situation in Guanzhong.
And those formidable names, Li Jue, Guo Si, Ma Teng, Han Sui, Yang Feng, Dong Cheng, Zhang Ji… none of them are easy to deal with!
Lu Yu really didn't think that the Dragon Roaring Camp, with its steel armor, could break through these layers of checkpoints.
However…
Lu Yu continued, a slight smile on his lips.
"Strategist Xun… if, the Son of Heaven returns to Luoyang himself? Then… besides Yuan Shao of Jizhou, the closest to Luoyang is Duke Cao of Yanzhou… departing from Chenliu Commandery to Luoyang City is only a few hundred miles, and the army can arrive in a few days… and Duke Cao is also very familiar with this route… In this way, wouldn't the Son of Heaven be welcomed back?"
This…
Xun Yu's eyes narrowed. What Lu Yu said seemed to be without fault, but upon closer thought, the premise of this sentence was wrong!
How could the Son of Heaven return to Luoyang himself?
Would Li Jue and Guo Si let him?
Along the way, there were checkpoints and Guanzhong warlords… Could he break through?
What is Guanzhong? It is a place that values martial arts. Without a strong fist, let alone returning east, even taking a small step could result in being eaten without even the bones left!
And this is also the biggest reason for Xun Yu's hesitation…
"Officer Lu, your idea is very good. If the Son of Heaven reaches Luoyang, we will indeed have an opportunity, but… the premise is wrong. How can the Son of Heaven return to Luoyang? The situation in Guanzhong is complex, and he may not even have a chance to leave Chang'an City!"
"There will be an opportunity!" Lu Yu smiled slightly…
His eyes rolled, and at this moment… all the memories of the Son of Heaven's eastward return from ancient texts and literature flooded his mind.
In fact, when Lu Yu read the story of Emperor Xian's eastward return in the past, he also found it quite ridiculous.
Chang'an City, the Guanzhong region, with so many powerful figures there, they actually allowed a Son of Heaven with no strength to tie a chicken, and a group of ministers whose combat power did not exceed 20, to slip away. Isn't this pure nonsense?
But in fact…
The Son of Heaven's eastward return to Luoyang was almost inevitable, and there were three reasons for it.
First, the mutual betrayal of Li Jue and Guo Si;
Second, the Sanfu region suffered a drought that was rare in a century, and it lasted for two years…
It must be known that this is different from the drought in the Central Plains for four months!
A two-year drought involved three years of crop failure, and all warlords fought each other due to drought, crop failure, and even competition for water sources.
Who would still care about the Son of Heaven, pay attention to the Son of Heaven, or rather… when everyone can't even feed themselves, who would feed a Son of Heaven who eats without working and a group of officials? The Son of Heaven, officials, and the imperial court are a huge burden and liability!
The third, and most important one, was the great division within the Xiliang army.
Led by the Son of Heaven's maternal uncle Dong Cheng, the old Xiliang troops Yang Feng, the familiar terrain of the governor of Henei Zhang Yang, and the Yellow Turban leader Han Xian who surrendered to the Son of Heaven… they snatched the Son of Heaven from Li Jue and Guo Si, and escorted him back to Luoyang City. Of course, they all had their own ulterior motives, but… that's not important.
In short, the Son of Heaven will embark on the road eastward in a year, and in two years, he will return…
Lu Yu only needed to convey this news to Xun Yu, and the rest… with Xun Yu's intelligence, he would naturally make thorough arrangements.
"Strategist Xun, have you ever heard the next sentence after 'One mountain cannot tolerate two tigers'?"
Lu Yu directly asked Xun Yu…
Xun Yu's eyes rolled, and he subconsciously replied, "Is it… a good woman does not marry two husbands?"
He answered based on the rhyme scheme. Speaking of which, it was quite fair.
"Haha…" Lu Yu laughed. "That works too, but… my next sentence is more fitting than yours, Strategist Xun."
Speaking of this, Lu Yu's eyes rolled, and he directly gave the answer: "One mountain cannot tolerate two tigers, unless one is male and one is female!"
Ah… ah…
Xun Yu felt a bit confused. What did this mean?
What does this have to do with the Son of Heaven's eastward return?
"How did Officer Lu shift the topic back to Xiapi City in Xuzhou? 'One mountain cannot tolerate two tigers' is talking about Lü Bu and Liu Bei, right?"
"No, no, no!" Lu Yu shook his finger and quickly explained, "Strategist Xun, don't be so rigid. All things can be described as 'one mountain cannot tolerate two tigers'. For example, let me ask Strategist Xun, among the warlords in Chang'an City, who is the most awesome?"
Awesome?
Xun Yu understood the first half of the sentence, but he didn't quite grasp the last word "awesome"…
Awesome, awesome? Ox… draft ox, B? What does B mean?
Of course, Xun Yu would not understand that "B" means "class" or "style"!
"Cough cough…" Lu Yu coughed lightly, realizing that his wording was too advanced this time, and immediately explained, "Strategist Xun… awesome means powerful? I'm asking who is the most powerful among the warlords in Chang'an City?"
With that said, Xun Yu understood and immediately replied, "Then it must be Li Jue and Guo Si!"
As soon as these words came out, Xun Yu suddenly realized something.
Wait…
One mountain cannot tolerate two tigers, Li Jue, Guo Si… two… two people?
Whoosh… Xun Yu gasped.
Now, Xun Yu understood… Lu Yu's reminder about "one mountain cannot tolerate two tigers" was not about Liu Bei and Lü Bu in Xiapi City, but about Li Jue and Guo Si.
If you think about it this way?
Xun Yu pondered… Chang'an City was going to be in chaos!
Sometimes, human nature is like this. In times of hardship, good friends can advance together, can eat salted vegetables with relish, and can help each other…
But once successful, once awesome, then… who will be the boss, who will be the second in command, and whose decisions will be followed? That's another story!
If you were to talk about this in detail, it could probably fill a book.
And Li Jue and Guo Si were naturally not exempt. This is a law of history, and it is also a principle that Xun Yu, having read the words of the sages for so many years, could understand!
When two tigers fight, Chang'an City will eventually be in chaos, and when it becomes chaotic…
The Son of Heaven's eastward return will no longer be hopeless!
Thinking along this line, it seemed that the concept of "bringing the Son of Heaven" in Xun Yu's heart was one step closer, a big step closer!
Of course, Lu Yu saw Xun Yu's expression…
He had figured out the first layer.
Actually… there was an interesting little story as to why Li Jue and Guo Si turned against each other.
According to the timeline, Li Jue first became wary of Fan Chou, another Xiliang general, and killed him… At this point, Li Jue and Guo Si's relationship was still good.
Li Jue even often went to drink with Guo Si, and even gave Guo Si some concubines, trying to satisfy his physiological novelty and needs!
Logically speaking, Li Jue was already considerate enough…
He didn't even need these beautiful concubines himself, he kept them specifically for his brother, showing great brotherhood!
But… the problem lay precisely here. Li Jue sending concubines to Guo Si every day offended one woman, yes… it was Guo Si's wife!
She was afraid. In fact… this was easy to understand. If a man kept sending his husband women, any woman would get angry, worry about her status, worry about losing favor one day, and would hate that man!
So… as expected, Guo Si's wife began to sow discord, constantly whispering in Guo Si's ear, saying that Li Jue wanted to harm him!
At first, Guo Si didn't think much of it, but he couldn't stand it after hearing it too many times. The more he thought about it, the more scared he became. Coupled with the fact that Li Jue killed their good brother Fan Chou without batting an eye back then, Guo Si was terrified…
It was from this point on that the two sides began to clash.
Li Jue held the Son of Heaven hostage, Guo Si held the officials hostage, and the two sides fought dozens of battles… The entire Guanzhong was engulfed in war.
Indeed, apart from money, it was women who could make men turn against each other!
These stories, one by one, surfaced in Lu Yu's mind…
Of course, these did not need to be explained to Xun Yu; it was enough to let him realize that Chang'an would be in chaos.
"Cough cough…"
With a light cough, Lu Yu continued, "Strategist Xun, the 'one mountain cannot tolerate two tigers' is one point. To be honest, I have used the five Qi and eight transports, and Yin and Yang and the five elements to deduce further during this time…"
Hmm…
As soon as these words were mentioned, Xun Yu became completely attentive.
"Officer Lu, have you deduced? When will it rain in our Yanzhou and Xuzhou?"
"Mid-August," Lu Yu blurted out. This was all written in books, very accurate… However, he wasn't trying to express that. "Strategist Xun, I'm not talking about that…"
"Then what?" Xun Yu narrowed his eyes. He muttered to himself, did Lu Yu calculate some disaster again?
"It's the Sanfu region!" Lu Yu blurted out. "I calculated with my fingers that the drought this time will last for four months in our area, meaning it will rain in August. But the Sanfu region will be miserable. Chang'an will suffer a two-year drought, and crops for the next three years will fail… And this is an inevitable condition for the Son of Heaven's eastward return!"
Whoa… Sanfu region, two years of drought, three years of crop failure!
Xun Yu's eyes widened, and his mouth opened wide, so wide that an egg could fit inside.
Logically speaking, Xun Yu was a talented scholar who advocated Confucianism. How could he believe predictions from the Yin-Yang school?
But the evidence was right in front of him!
Just now, it was clearly raining in early March, and Lu Yu said there would be a drought in April… Not a drop of rain fell in the entire April. Based on the current situation, it was very likely that Lu Yu's prediction of drought in April in the Central Plains and crop failure in July would come true!
And if he continued to deduce from this, Lu Yu's bold prediction of a two-year drought and three years of crop failure in the Sanfu region… would very likely also come true!
After a moment of surprise, Xun Yu's eyes regained their brilliance. This… was very beneficial to them.
That's right… a severe drought in Guanzhong, and crop failure!
The consequences of this would inevitably lead to infighting among various forces, competing for food and water.
In such a situation, when the warlords could hardly protect themselves, who would care about the Son of Heaven and the officials?
Who would care about the imperial court?
At such a time, if loyal ministers to the Han Dynasty joined forces with some warlords, it would be highly possible to help the Son of Heaven complete the great cause of eastward return!
And wouldn't everything that followed be logical?
Xun Yu suddenly stood up… "Officer Lu, what is your confidence in this prediction of drought in the Sanfu region?"
He was always meticulous, and since this matter directly concerned the progress of "bringing the Son of Heaven," Xun Yu asked again and again.
"Eight or nine chances out of ten!" Lu Yu replied…
Xun Yu nodded immediately. He remembered… that the last time Lu Yu predicted a drought in the Central Plains, he said seventy to eighty percent…
And eight or nine chances out of ten was clearly much more certain than seventy to eighty percent.
"Good! Good! Good!" With three consecutive "good"s, Xun Yu paced back and forth, as if carefully considering and deploying…
It was very difficult to snatch the Son of Heaven back from Chang'an City…
But if the Son of Heaven returned to Luoyang eastward, and was welcomed back from Luoyang, there would be much room for maneuver in between!
"Haha…"
Xun Yu was happy…
The entanglement and contemplation in his heart for some time had finally yielded a result today. Although… this was still just a concept, the most difficult first step had already been taken.
Xun Yu closed his eyes, his brow furrowed in thought. In his mind, revolving around the matter of "bringing the Son of Heaven" by going west to Luoyang, he had already begun to design and write a comprehensive plan.
First…
It was necessary to send more spies to the Guanzhong region to gather intelligence, and to obtain the news of the Son of Heaven leaving Chang'an and the movements of the warlords in Guanzhong as soon as possible!
Second, it was necessary to send envoys to the imperial court more frequently for audiences, and meanwhile, to win the support of some loyal ministers around the Son of Heaven, telling them that Cao Cao of Yanzhou was concerned about the Son of Heaven.
Finally… and most importantly, the road from Yanzhou to Luoyang must be opened up before this. There were some minor feudal lords along the way, all not strong, as long as they were eliminated in advance… it would not delay the opportunity to "bring the Son of Heaven"!
And also…
Xun Yu thought of more than ten points that needed attention. He seemed completely engrossed, sometimes taking out a pen and bamboo slips from his懷 and writing a few strokes, sometimes talking to himself…
Bringing the Son of Heaven, perhaps in Cao Cao's eyes, was a tool for conquering the world!
But in Xun Yu's eyes, it had another meaning, just as Lu Yu had mentioned before—
—The Son of Heaven, this supreme existence that had ruled China for hundreds of years, even though his real power had declined, his nominal prestige still existed, and it was deeply etched in the experiential world of the common people, powerful families, feudal lords, and scholars!
Xun Yu was a representative figure of the Yingchuan powerful families, and he had been deeply influenced by Confucianism since childhood. He served Cao Cao in order to display his talents without reservation and realize his ideals and ambitions, but… honoring and bringing the Son of Heaven was the great path he practiced in his heart!
Now…
He had finally obtained such an opportunity…
To integrate his ideals and ambitions with his heart's great path!
How could Xun Yu not be deeply moved! How could he not go all out?
Looking at Xun Yu's completely engrossed and contemplative appearance, with his eyes closed.
Lu Yu thought… it was better not to disturb him. Anyway… he had reminded him sufficiently, and the specific implementation steps would be arranged by the Yingchuan talent Xun Wenruo.
Of course… the specific operations during the process of bringing the Son of Heaven were also very complicated. Just thinking about it made Lu Yu's head ache!
Fortunately, Xun Yu understood, which basically meant…
This strategic plan for bringing the Son of Heaven was stable, as stable as an old dog!
…
…