I am not a counselor, I am trying to survive in the late Han Dynasty

Chapter 7 What do you think of me?

Marching at night was tantamount to torture in this era.

The boundless darkness gave people an innate fear, and the cold wind made Cao's soldiers tremble when they set out on the road late at night.

An oil lamp was lit in the carriage. Cheng Yu was half asleep and half awake, murmuring in his sleep:
"Does Yuan Zhi know why I have to come here in person at night?"

Xu Shu said respectfully:

"Please let Cheng Gong announce it."

"Hey, you know, I'm just afraid of damaging my face, so I won't say it." Cheng Yu sighed. He looked at the soldiers winding forward like ink dragons on the dark road outside, and said with a wry smile, "Yes, I will judge After seeing the fat pig, I also realized that this person was not a trivial person. An ordinary yellow turban thief would never say such a thing, let alone set up camp in Liangshan under my nose.

I'm afraid that Zang Ba is ready to make a move or has surrendered to Lu Bu. If he doesn't care, he will threaten Dongping. "

Zang Ba was originally a member of Tao Qian's tribe. During the crusade against the Yellow Turbans, he was worshiped as a cavalry captain. Later, he and Sun Guan, Wu Dun, Yin Li, Chang Xi and others recruited troops to dominate Kaiyang. Cao Cao was not afraid of them before, but now Cao's army has experienced the Battle of Puyang and is already very weak. If they fight with them again, the consequences will be disastrous.

These thieves are not moving now because they are afraid of Cao Cao's previous reputation. If they find out that Cao Cao's army is now extremely weak and join forces with Lu Bu to fight, Cao Cao will have to skin him even if he doesn't die. At that time, he will have no choice but to defect to Yuan Shao. .

Therefore, Cheng Yu must explore the truth personally.

"Yuan Zhi thinks, how should we deal with the enemy?" Cheng Yu's eyes were burning. This was a way to test Xu Shu.

Xu Shu said calmly:

"I heard before that Liangshan is a waterfront, and thieves will hide in small boats and wait for opportunities to cause chaos.

Our army took the lead with a large number of flags and sounded drums to lure the enemy. The enemy would not dare to move lightly and sent small boats to check the actual situation.

We will ambush the boat in the reed swamps in advance. If a thief comes forward, we will capture him in one fell swoop and question the thief's true identity.

If they are just ordinary thieves, we will order them to surrender. If they do not surrender, we will destroy them. If they are the Five Taishan thieves, we will retreat temporarily and report to Duke Cao Ming to make plans. "

Cheng Yu showed a hint of surprise in his eyes, nodded and said:
"Neither arrogant nor impetuous, he truly has the air of a general."

The governor was a subordinate officer recruited by Cheng Yu himself, and he was one of Cheng Yu's own. No matter how great Xu Shu was in the future, he would still like to thank Cheng Yu for his recommendation. The less arrogant and impetuous Xu Shu was, the happier Cheng Yu was.

Yes, Cheng Yu personally came to Liangshan more to investigate the enemy's situation. If it was just a small group of bandits, it would not be a big problem even if they were not wiped out.

But if there are five Taishan thieves, Cheng Yu will immediately report to Cao Cao and change Cao Cao's future military strategy. There must not be such a nail on the east side of Juancheng.

Xu Shu struck while the iron was hot and said:

"If the thieves are just a group of thieves, I am willing to wear armor and hold a sword to fight against the thieves for the public. If the thieves are really Taishan thieves, after the verdict is made, I will never let the public put himself in danger."

Who wouldn’t want to have such a loyal and capable subordinate? Cheng Yu frowned with joy, patted his thigh and said:
"Okay, Yuan Zhi, when the thieves are eliminated and they return to the city, I will ask for credit for you!"

·
The whole army trekked for a day, making no sound all the way, passing Linqiu, which had become an empty city, and crossing the Huzi River. The forwards soon saw the large pool of water.

Although the Liangshan Lake at this moment has not developed to the eight hundred miles as majestic as it will be in later generations, the light of the water reaches the sky, the white mist blocks the sun, and the dense reeds cover the entire water area, dividing the waterways that are difficult to fathom. Xu Shu looks at it with all his eyes. , saw the inconspicuous little dot in the water in the distance, it was Liangshan.

"Duan is a good place to be a thief." Xu Shu murmured.

Cheng Yu looked at the water with a solemn expression. He waved his hand gently and ordered his men to set up camp, and then sent his men to find a few fishermen around to inquire.

Liangshanbo can be called a paradise in troubled times. There are hundreds of fishing boats of various sizes parked on the waterside. In the afternoon, the fishermen are drying nets or cooking on the shore, creating a lively and busy scene.

When the fishermen saw a group of people coming, they greeted them with smiles. But when they saw their faces clearly, the fishermen all looked frightened. They saw that there were many archers in Cao's army, and the fishing boats parked on the shore could not be untied. These fishermen jumped into the cold water one after another, and no one responded to the greeting.

Cheng Yu was a little embarrassed to see this, but he knew it. Now Cao Jun's reputation in this area is extremely bad, and those who don't run are the ones with bad intentions.

He calmed down and immediately asked the army to play the drums and horns, put up the two flags of Cao and Cheng, and told the people in the mountains that I, Cheng Yu, was here. If you are not afraid of death, just come and touch me.

Xu Shu took the initiative and said:
"Mr. Cheng, please select most of the refugees who came to Juancheng with me and take Mr. Ai first.

However, it turned out that Mr. Ai was cunning and deceived the refugees to escape, which was very bad. He also asked Cheng Gong to send more soldiers to follow him. "

Cheng Yu fell in love with Xu Shu's thoughtfulness more and more, and said warmly:
"Yes, this fat pig is very cunning. You should be more careful to avoid falling into his tricks."

He asked people to take Mr. Ai out and throw him on the ground. He also selected eighteen fishing boats, sent soldiers to escort Mr. Ai, and selected a few refugees to board the boats.

Mr. Ai kept sobbing on the boat. He had given up and continued to beg for mercy in front of Cheng Yu. Just as he was about to be dragged to the boat, Mr. Ai suddenly screamed strangely:

"My mother-in-law Xu Shu! How can you do such a thing? Aren't Cao Cao's subordinates neither a thing nor a thing? You are Liu Bei's favorite counselor. You are a good person. Good people cannot harm others! Help me, Help me, I don’t want to die!
I see how you end up, I see how you end up! "

Cheng Yu listened to Mr. Ai's barking and couldn't help but sneered:
"You dare to bark and drive a wedge between you and me when you are about to die. You really don't know how to live or die."

Xu Shu also sneered and said:

“This kind of person is talking nonsense and has already started talking nonsense.

Today I am by Cheng Gong's side. If anything goes wrong, just take care of me. "

Cheng Yu laughed loudly and patted Xu Shu on the shoulder:

"Yuanzhi, what are you talking about? How can I trust this thief? You can go wherever you like!"

Xu Shu shook his head firmly:

"Mr. Cheng, today I have to prove my innocence, so I will always be by Gong Cheng's side."

Cheng Yu twirled his beard and chuckled, admiring Xu Shu even more.

According to the previous deployment, he had begun to send troops to patrol around, looking for other fishermen and thieves. In the evening, there was indeed a harvest. Wen Ji reported excitedly, saying that a group of thieves had surrounded them. There were about dozens of thieves. Their clothes were in tatters and their weapons were worn out. They didn't look like elite soldiers of the Taishan bandits, but more like the remnants of the Yellow Turbans.

Cheng Yu then breathed a sigh of relief, wiped his dry eyes, and said calmly: "That's good, gather them together and annihilate them, um... forget it, leave a few alive, and ask carefully about the situation on the mountain and that place I was relieved about the origin of the fat pig after that.”

Wen Ji said eagerly:

"The money and food..."

"How much food can a few bandits have?" Cheng Yu stopped Wen Ji.

Which mountain is free of thieves these days?

Especially around Cheng Yu, those who didn't want to die all went to the mountains to become thieves. They were called strongmen, that is, a group of refugees who did not dare to die obediently. As long as there was no Zang Ba behind them, it didn't matter. Cheng Yu didn't bother to search for this water. Look for them in Boliang Mountain.

Xu Shuhan smiled and said:
"Mr. Cheng, wait a moment."

He leaned into Cheng Yu's ear and whispered:

"My brother Zifeng wants to make great achievements, but regrets the lack of opportunity. I also ask Cheng Gong to make it happen."

Cheng Yu had never been a good person, but after Xu Shu's reminder, he suddenly touched his head.

Yes, he doesn't care about fame, he just wants to achieve his goal, as long as he is not a Taishan thief.

But with so many of his subordinates, it is unrealistic for them to be as unfavorable as he is, especially for Cao Cao, a fellow countryman from Wenji. Just when he wanted to make a contribution, he lost so miserably in the Battle of Puyang and held it in for so long. It’s time to think of ways to get some credit.

Cheng Yu waved his hand:
"Yuan Zhi, give me the order!"

Xu Shu nodded to Wen Ji and said warmly:

"Although these thieves are in rags, they may not be Taishan thieves, nor may they have no remaining members.

When the eldest brother discovered this group of people, he had done a great service. He asked him to quickly surround them and not let them escape. He also brought more soldiers and horses to catch them all. If the thieves were willing to surrender, the eldest brother would not do it. If we kill them all, we can still sneak into Liangshan and steal some money and food. "

Wen Ji smiled broadly and couldn't help but nod his head.

Accumulating experience in fighting bandits is an excellent tradition of Cao Jun's veteran generals, but the key is how to report the battle to the superiors. It is a university question. Wen Ji's relationship with Cheng Yu was not good before, and his so-called brave charging was not in Cheng Yu's eyes. It is a pile of things that cannot be put on the table. Before the Cao Cao case, he was still a pawn who had not made any achievements.

Now it's good. With Xu Shu, a considerate official of Cheng Yu, speaking to him, he will definitely have a bright future in the future.

"Brother, please bring more soldiers and horses. We can report to Duke Cao in the future. But we must be extra careful and take away all the archers and crossbowmen in the army, just in case! Even if it is a treacherous plot, our army will fire thousands of arrows. Big brother is very considerate." Xu Shu came to Wen Ji's side and whispered.

Wen Ji smiled brightly and whispered:
"Yuan Zhi is really a mature and prudent man! I'm so lucky to have you as my eldest brother! I'll go right away."

"As for eldest brother, without eldest brother, I would have become rotten meat in the cauldron. I have to have eldest brother to take care of me."

Xu Shu's words made Wen Ji feel light all over. He felt extremely useful and thought that he would have to praise his good brother in front of Cao Cao in the future.

beat!
When fighting a big battle, bring more soldiers and horses to build momentum!

Cheng Yu was well-informed and could tell what Xu Shu and Wen Ji were talking about as soon as he opened his eyes.

But Xu Shu is his favorite talent, and Wen Ji is Cao Cao's fellow villager. Now it is determined that there is no danger, and Cheng Yu is too lazy to take care of it, so he might as well just do this as a favor.

He waved his hand and told Wen Ji to get out of here. Wen Ji was overjoyed and immediately went out excitedly, preparing to mobilize all his troops to catch the drowned dog.

You must know that Cheng Yu has a bad temper and is strict in running the army. How can he have such a good thing that he is sure that nothing is wrong and still allows his subordinates to perform meritorious deeds?
As soon as Wen Ji greeted him, all the generals came forward shamelessly and asked Wen Ji to take them to perform meritorious deeds. It didn't matter whether they divided the money or food. The main thing was to report on the battle in the future. Otherwise, if 2000 people went out to report a great victory and then won nothing, only Cheng Yu dares to write this kind of military report.

Watching his men leave happily, a calm smile appeared on Cheng Yu's face:

"Hey, these dogs kill talent."

Hearing that everything was fine, he had already relaxed a lot.

Who wants to fight Zang Ba when they have nothing to do? Cheng Yu doesn’t want to anyway.

He scratched his hair, feeling tired, and yawned:
“I’ve always hated this kind of thing, but thinking about it, it’s something I should do.

With Yuanzhi here, I can sit back and relax. "

Xu Shu grinned:
"Gong Cheng is a man who does great things. He kills people and eats meat to ruin his reputation. Others are unwilling to do it, but Gong Cheng is willing to do it. This is really a great perseverance."

Xu Shu's words were obviously full of yin and yang, but Cheng Yu was so relaxed at the moment and so sleepy that he didn't hear it.

He smiled when he heard this, sighed proudly, and gestured in front of his eyes with the index and middle fingers of his right hand:
"My eyes are always good at seeing people. When I met Mr. Cao, I knew that he was the one who could rectify the world.

Without him, the world would be in chaos. For Cao Gong, what does it mean for me, Cheng Yu, to suffer some infamy?
Mr. Cao is my confidant. Even if all the infamy in the world belongs to me, what will happen? "

Cheng Yu said this with great passion.

To be honest, he had been holding these words in his heart for a long time. When someone asked him before why he had such a different attitude towards Liu Dai and Cao Cao, he kept laughing and said nothing. Now that he finally confessed his feelings to others, Cheng Yu felt extremely comfortable. .

But Xu Shu, who was good at observing words and expressions, did not answer his words this time. Instead, he asked with a smile:

"What did Mr. Cheng say?"

"I said Mr. Cao is my confidant?" Cheng Yu said subconsciously.

"No, it was before."

"Before..." Cheng Yu mused suspiciously, "I said I've never looked at people well with my eyes?"

The expression on Xu Shu's face gradually turned ferocious. He moved closer to Cheng Yu, put his hand on his shoulder, and whispered:
"Then what does Mr. Cheng think of me?"

(End of this chapter)