novelraw Chapter 586: The Little Cannon Fodder of the Three Kingdoms 28
Chapter 586: The Little Cannon Fodder of the Three Kingdoms 28
What was Chancellor Cao, who was being missed by his childhood friend at this moment, doing!
If earlier, the infighting among the sons of the Yuan clan was annoying, even letting the entire Cao Camp watch a great show for a time, then now, the Chancellor had his own troubles.
"Zihuan, Zizian, and even Chong'er are like this!"
Was his heir not attractive enough?
Since ten years ago, Chancellor Cao had stirred up a great circle, intending to use the struggle for the heir position to eliminate some local forces. However, aside from some initial conflicts at the very beginning, in the end, especially in recent years, with the visibly growing strength of the neighboring Great Jing right next door, they simply couldn't even muster the will to fight anymore.
Not to mention his several sons, even the aristocratic clan forces below showed little interest in the heir position. Taking sides might happen, but to pay any significant price for it?
Oh, then they were truly sorry.
With that effort, it would be better to urge the younger generation of their families to strive for improvement, diligently studying literature and practicing martial arts. Even if that day truly came in the future, and they lost most of their lands and private troops.
As long as they still had talent, it might not be the only thread of hope for the family's prosperity.
Of course, on the surface, everyone spoke very beautifully: "Ah, Chancellor, now that a powerful enemy is at our side, we should be united against the enemy, and must absolutely not harm ourselves through internal strife."In the end, they never forgot to mention the lesson from the earlier infighting among the sons of the Yuan clan.
In short, taking sides? Impossible.
Even the Han ministers who frequently stirred up trouble earlier, and even the emperor himself, had now quieted down considerably.
They no longer spent all day thinking about fighting for power.
In short, on the surface, both the court and the common people seemed to be in a state of harmony and peace? Looking back at his own family, it was also a picture of brotherly love and respect, fatherly kindness... and filial sons?
Not to mention Zihuan and Zizian, two brothers from the same mother, even the youngest son Cao Chong, who was previously doted on and pushed forward, had a good relationship with his older brothers.
Chancellor Cao: "..."
"Forget it, the situation is like this. It's only normal that people's hearts yearn for peace."
Several months later, upon receiving news that the opposing army was pressing on the border and had captured several cities with lightning speed.
At this moment in the Cao Camp, from the emperor and chancellor above, down to the civil and military officials, there was actually a sense of reality: it finally came, the last shoe has finally dropped.
"Wenruo, this day has finally come after all!"
In the flickering lamplight, Chancellor Cao, now nearly seventy, couldn't help but sigh deeply to the white-robed scholar beside him.
The man opposite nodded slightly.
"Young Master, no matter what, over these years, you and I have exhausted our human efforts. Now it's nothing more than a matter of destiny."
Beside him, Xun Yu's expression remained as usual. Clearly already at the age of knowing destiny, at a glance, his entire person still carried an air of handsome elegance and refinement. Due to years of burning incense, the fragrance of orchids lingered around him, lasting for a long time.
Now clad in a plain-colored long robe woven from moon brocade, he remained calm and composed even with a great enemy at hand, appearing even more exceptionally graceful amidst the ethereal moonlight.
If An Ning were here, she would surely sigh with emotion: time never defeats true beauty, it's truly no lie.
No wonder history books recorded him as having "extraordinarily beautiful demeanor and grace."
However, what would truly surprise her was this Chancellor Cao. Compared to his original trajectory, his lifespan had actually lengthened considerably.
But soon, thinking of the large income from the medical module over these years, and the health-preserving tea and wine that were always snapped up in a frenzy whenever sold, with prices driven higher and higher.
Thinking about it, it wasn't really unexpected.
After brief consideration, aside from some admiration, An Ning didn't dwell on it further, quickly turning her gaze to her own Yue'er.
If nothing unexpected happened, as the only heir of this generation. Whether internally or externally, Yue'er's level of danger was self-evident. Over these years, if not for An Ning's thorough protection and her own formidable martial arts skills, it would be no exaggeration to say the dangers were numerous.
Moreover, she was now on the battlefield.
On the other side, however, inside the military tent, after a pot of warm wine, the lord and his minister soon looked at each other and smiled.
"Yes, human efforts have been exhausted, so there should be no regrets. In this life of mine, Mengde, to have obtained Wenruo is truly the greatest fortune of this lifetime."
After a cup of wine, the two quickly discussed tactical strategies, and the Cao Camp opposite also entered a state of readiness for battle extremely quickly.
As An Ning expected, between the two sides, the attacks against A Yue were the most fierce, carrying a sense of desperation, like a cornered fish fighting to the death.
Capturing the leader first to capture the bandits was one reason. As the only adult heir, once something happened to her, unless the Jing Emperor herself personally took action, no matter who became the commander-in-chief, there would inevitably be concerns about achievements overshadowing the sovereign and the tail wagging the dog.
With all this and more, amidst the turmoil of people's hearts, it might not be their chance to catch their breath.
Fortunately, over these years, whether in martial arts, military strategy, or even medicine, Her Highness the Crown Prince had not practiced in vain. For rear logistics, aside from An Ning, there was also Minister Zhuge, an extremely responsible, near-perfect, and exceptionally talented and intelligent capable person.
The two originally had a master-disciple relationship, and now their cooperation in offense and defense was also extremely seamless.
In the year 224 AD, less than two years after the Crown Prince personally led the expedition, the southern forces had already all been incorporated under Great Jing.
In the final battle, atop a tall warhorse, looking at the common people and soldiers ahead with the city gates wide open, nearly weeping with joy. And the aristocratic celebrities now kneeling on the ground, vying to show goodwill to the future new ruler.
Undoubtedly, at this moment, Her Highness the Crown Prince couldn't help but think of many things.
The common people, the low-ranking soldiers, longed for stability, longed to have enough to eat and wear, with light corvée and low taxes. And since they originally belonged to the same country, it wasn't surprising that they didn't resist their arrival, even weeping with joy.
After all, along the way, as the heir, she had indeed consistently followed her Mother's early way of doing things. Every time a city was captured, after the Great Jing troops were stationed, the first thing was to restore people's livelihoods.
Along this entire journey, military discipline was also strict.
If not for this, even this war wouldn't have needed to drag on for so long.
However, those local aristocratic clans who might lose land, even privileges under the new dynasty, did offer some resistance, that's true, but to say they tried their hardest, even to the point of a desperate fight to the death, was far from it.
The disparity in strength was one reason, but there might not be other factors involved.
Indeed, what Mother said was correct. The Crown Prince thought to herself:
Only when driven to a dead end will people fight with their backs to the river. For most aristocratic clans, stable inheritance is the most important thing.
Even if ahead is a narrow single-plank bridge, it is still a thread of hope.
Just like the common people of the previous dynasty, unless they truly couldn't survive, as long as there was a sliver of hope, how would they stake everything on a rebellion?
Strictly speaking, in this regard, whether aristocratic clans or ordinary common people, the difference isn't really that great.
In the morning light, atop a tall, sturdy horse, the Crown Prince, clad in a crimson battle robe with a bright and handsome face, gently waved her hand. Instantly, waves of cheers erupted and resounded throughout the entire city!
However, at this moment on the city tower, watching the approaching soldiers, someone was indeed furious, raising the long sword in his hand, wanting to cut someone down, but saw the person behind him shake his head almost imperceptibly:
"Third Brother, let it be!"
"Since it is the heartfelt desire of the people, how can I again stir up disaster and disregard lives!"
Moreover, now the enemy is strong and we are weak. Aside from disregarding the lives of our brothers and even our soldiers, what meaning would it have!
A moment later, they heard that person sigh:
"After all, that Jing Emperor indeed has great breadth of mind and is definitely not someone who cannot tolerate others. Just look at the situation of those earlier feudal lords and their ministers' families. With the situation having reached this point, there is no chance for reversal, so why add the lives of you brothers to it?"
"But... but!"
Looking at the crowd below who, after not resisting for long, began discarding their armor and helmets, even wishing to welcome the enemy troops with their own bodies.
The tall man called Third Brother couldn't help but spit fiercely: "But in all conscience, Big Brother, didn't you cherish and treat these aristocratic clans and common people well earlier?"
And now!
Just looking at these people's actions, how could it not make one's heart feel stifled?
And those local powerful clans, earlier they hadn't tried to learn from the north, trying their best to make the people prosperous and content, improving the treatment of the soldiers below. But those people, as soon as they mentioned handing over fields and private troops, even when they just slightly hinted at it, without really taking action, it was as if their lives were being taken, frequently causing disturbances.
They weren't even willing to truly hand over that tiny bit.
Yet now, facing this one from the north, they instead all act like quails. They almost can't wait to offer up their land, property, and hidden households with both hands, wagging their tails and begging for mercy.
These people... these people!
They are utterly shameless!
Just thinking about it, the tall, sturdy man before him couldn't help feeling anger rushing to his head.
Even more than the enemy before him, what the man hated more now was not the powerful enemy in front, but these two-faced opportunistic scoundrels behind him.
However, after this battle, there was a small interlude.
Looking at the Jiangdong messenger before her and hearing his purpose, even the Crown Prince couldn't help being slightly taken aback for a moment.
Not long after, An Ning also received a letter rushed over by her dear daughter, Her Highness the Crown Prince.