When the great snow of AD 192 fell upon Yanzhou, Cao Cao incorporated over three hundred thousand surrendered soldiers in one swift move.
To Cao Cao's astonishment, including the old, young, women, and children, along with Yellow Turban forces from other prefectures and provinces who surrendered at the mere sight of his might, the number of people incorporated in just over ten days reached over a million souls, men and women alike.
He selected the "elite" to be absorbed, forming a new army named "Qingzhou"!
While it was true that the smooth surrender of troops and the allegiance of a million men and women were partly due to the timely snowfall and the depletion of grain reserves among the Yellow Turban armies across the land, it was also inseparable from Yu'er's meticulously crafted deployment, which guided the situation from adversity to prosperity, from subjugation to surrender.
"Huu..."
Gazing at the newly formed Qingzhou soldiers, Cao Cao was filled with deep contemplation and emotion.
Cao Cao knew well how incredibly difficult it was to recruit an army of hundreds of thousands in this era. One either had to rely on a military career or actively connect with influential clans.
Yet, "Yu'er" had, without Cao Cao relying on either, proposed… shifting their focus to the lower strata of the Yellow Turbans, achieving a dramatic increase in army numbers, and the results were nothing short of astonishing.
"Hahaha!" Every time he thought of this, Cao Cao couldn't help but burst into laughter.
"Yu'er has truly made his father rich in one go."
Cao Cao laughed heartily, a touch of melancholy in his voice.
What was once a Yanzhou plagued by internal and external troubles had suddenly turned its internal woes into a great asset. As for the external threats… it was no exaggeration to say that these hundreds of thousands of Qingzhou soldiers provided Cao Cao with the capital to contend for dominion over the realm.
...
News of Cao Cao's incorporation of hundreds of thousands of Yellow Turban soldiers spread like wildfire.
In a short span of time, this piece of intelligence reached every corner of the Great Han, causing a stir across the land.
Qingzhou, a small commandery-state.
At this time, its lord was Liu Bei, Liu Xuande, the Administrator of Pingyuan.
Though it sounded like a state, its territory was actually smaller than a single prefecture of Yanzhou!
The Great Han operated under a system of parallel commanderies and states, where commanderies had administrators and states had governors. To be precise, Liu Bei, as the Administrator of the small state of Pingyuan, was a trivial official, far inferior to a prefecture administrator!
In the darkness, candlelight flickered...
Liu Bei, Guan Yu, and Zhang Fei, under the same roof, were each engrossed in their own activities.
The three sworn brothers, who "slept on the same mat," each had their own little hobbies before they "slept together in the same large quilt" every night.
Second Brother Guan Yu was reading the "Spring and Autumn Annals." He hailed from Jie Liang County, Hedong, his original name being Guan Changsheng. Having committed a crime that resulted in a death, he changed his name to Guan Yun Chang.
During his escape from Jie Liang County, Hedong, Guan Yu encountered this book, the "Spring and Autumn Annals," which he would read throughout his life!
While reading, he would ponder: with so many heroes roaming and conquering, achieving high official positions and titles in the "Spring and Autumn Annals," shouldn't his own life be like that?
Of course, currently following his elder brother in this small state of Pingyuan, with few soldiers, little grain, and surrounded by powerful enemies, his dream of "achieving high official positions and titles" seemed distant.
Third Brother Zhang Fei was skillfully painting beautiful women. He was from Zhuo County. Despite his dark complexion, his imposing appearance with a leopard's head, tiger's eyes, and a bear's jaw, and his lack of refinement, he was actually a cultured man, exceptionally skilled in cursive script, and fond of painting beautiful women.
His dreams, besides achieving great deeds with his elder brother, were to return to his hometown of Zhuo County and repair the statue of Nuwa mending the heavens on the drum tower. Empress Nuwa was the lifelong dream lover of this dark-faced general!
Having cultivated a pair of incredibly strong "qilin arms" by his thirties, Empress Nuwa was also credited with no small contribution!
At this moment, Zhang Fei was meticulously sketching the cheek of "Empress Nuwa," stroke by stroke. It could be said that apart from his elder brother and second brother, Empress Nuwa was his sole spiritual sustenance.
As for Liu Bei, he was currently perusing scrolls of documents on his desk, which were intelligence reports from various regions.
Despite being the Administrator of Pingyuan, Liu Bei had dispatched numerous spies, closely monitoring the every move of each prefecture and state.
His childhood dream was to ride in a "feather-covered chariot," so how could he be content to remain in this small state of Pingyuan, working for his "good friend" Gongsun Zan, accepting his "charity"?
Speaking of which, Liu Bei's appointment as Administrator of Pingyuan was largely due to his cooperation with Tian Kai, the Inspector of Qingzhou and a subordinate of Gongsun Zan, in opposing Yuan Shao.
Frankly speaking, Liu Bei was merely a tool, arranged by Gongsun Zan to guard the southern gateway of Pingyuan for him, a mere "watchdog" against Yuan Shao!
In Liu Bei's view, the world today was a stage for ambitious lords to contend for power…
However, Cao Cao, Cao Mengde, and his situation were quite similar. Liu Bei acted as Gongsun Zan's "watchdog," and Cao Cao helped Yuan Shao defend the southern gateway, arguably acting as Yuan Shao's "watchdog" as well!
"Eh..."
Suddenly, Liu Bei's eyes fixed on something. He discovered something within the documents on his desk.
"Yanzhou... has the turmoil of the Moth Bandits in Yanzhou been quelled?"
When Liu Bei read the intelligence concerning Yanzhou and Cao Cao, he froze, his eyes widening.
"Such swift action, such decisive means!"
Liu Bei couldn't help but exclaim, then he softly recited the latter half of the bamboo slip intelligence. "Cao Cao has quelled the Yellow Turban turmoil in Yanzhou, incorporated three hundred thousand surrendered soldiers, and accepted over a million men and women!"
Upon uttering these words, Liu Bei could no longer suppress the astonishment in his heart.
"How? How was this achieved?"
Instantly, a sense of unwillingness surged within his chest and spread throughout his body.
Humans are indeed like this. Just moments ago, their situations were identical, both being "watchdogs." Suddenly, one of them "got rich in one go," possessing soldiers, generals, and territory. How would the other feel?
Unwilling, immensely unwilling, perhaps even… wanting to cry.
Liu Bei was no different. Both had participated in the Yellow Turban Uprising, both had joined the Guandong Anti-Dong Alliance, and both were ultimately reduced to "watchdogs." The divergence in fortunes between Liu Bei and Cao Cao had suddenly become so vast…
"Alas... alas..."
With an unwilling sigh, Liu Bei shook his head helplessly.
Yet, as he shook his head, the subsequent content of the bamboo slip caught his eye – "Cao Cao is cultivating wasteland within Yanzhou, rewarding farming, to resettle the old, young, women, and children of the Yellow Turban army. Furthermore... he is selecting elite males from the Yellow Turban army to form the Qingzhou soldiers. The surrendered soldiers are loyal, and Yanzhou is brimming with vitality!"
The better Cao Cao fared, the more Liu Bei felt like crying... the more unable he was to remain calm.
He suddenly stood up.
"An expert... Cao Cao in Yanzhou must have an expert assisting him!"
This news made Liu Bei so jealous. At this moment, Liu Bei was truly speechless, and he really was crying.
It was unfair! In this small state of Pingyuan, an assassin had targeted him. Liu Bei, in order to establish a reputation for benevolence and righteousness, not only did not punish the assassin but treated him with exceptional courtesy.
His objective was precisely to attract talented individuals, to attract so-called "experts," to devise strategies for him and devise plans to break the stalemate!
Why had no expert helped him incorporate hundreds of thousands of Yellow Turbans?
Alas... alas...
Cao Cao? Why should an "expert" choose to join Cao Cao!
Yes, Cao Cao had issued a call for talent, eager for worthy individuals, but wasn't Liu Bei's own "call for talent" just as appealing? Liu Bei pondered, if there truly were an expert, he would be willing to sleep with him every night after wiping away his tears!
Unbidden teardrops welled up in Liu Bei's eyes. Unwilling, unbalanced, and resentful!
Just then.
Noticing his elder brother's expression, Guan Yu picked up the bamboo slip and read it carefully. At this moment, he could empathize with his elder brother's unwillingness.
But... it seemed unnecessary!
Guan Yu frowned and said loudly, "Elder Brother, you need not envy that Cao Cao. Three hundred thousand surrendered soldiers, over a million mouths to feed, men and women alike. It seems Cao Cao's granaries are not yet so full! Even with cultivating wasteland, can distant water quench immediate thirst?"
"If these Moth Bandits truly go hungry, it would not be surprising if they caused further trouble..."
Having said this, Guan Yu calmly closed the "Spring and Autumn Annals" and remarked.
"The turmoil in Yanzhou is far from over. Cao Cao's appetite is indeed large, but whether he can truly digest these million people remains to be seen!"
With these words, Zhang Fei, who was painting beautiful women nearby, also stopped his brush.
He suddenly stood up.
"Elder Brother, Second Brother... I think so too!"
...
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