Chapter 125 Partners
After eating and drinking his fill, Zhong Yao left the city.

Black Bear stood on the top of the city wall and watched Zhong Yao's boat floating on the Wei River. He felt that the changes in the world were full of contrasts.

Before sending out the troops, who could have imagined that for half a month, he would actually be having meals with Zhong Yao and they would become accomplices?
The benefits of mutual cooperation are huge, and that is enough.

After looking out for a while, Black Bear heard Du Ji's stomach rumbling and waved to him. Du Ji was a little reluctant, but the two guards urged him to go forward, so he had to go forward.

The black bear led the hungry Du Ji for a walk to the blockhouse at the corner of the city wall. Du Ji saw the black bear climb the ladder to the top of the blockhouse, so he gritted his teeth and followed.

Standing here, you can see the rippling surface of the wide Wei River.

Black Bear said, "I didn't mean to kill Zhang Shi. He was just unlucky. The patrol soldiers at night would not hold back. You should understand that."

Zhang Shi died, and took the main officials of Jingzhao Yin with him.

He wanted to retreat to Zheng County in the east, but unfortunately he was unlucky and was intercepted by Lu Bu, and his entire army was wiped out in the blink of an eye.

Zhang Shi, a native of Hedong, died, but with him died the leaders of the contemporary scholars under the rule of Jingzhao Yin.

So far, only three cities, Lantian, Xinfeng and Tongguan, have been occupied in Guanzhong. There are more than twenty large and small cities and towns nearby that have maintained their original status and are watching the changes in the situation.

These represent population and material resources, but lack combat effectiveness.

Whether an army can fight can be roughly judged by pulling it out to march in a square formation.

So if Black Bear wants to mobilize these manpower quickly, he needs the assistance of Zhong Yao and Du Ji.

It won’t be too late to digest it after defeating Yuan Tan’s offensive.

This winter, you can digest it slowly.

Du Ji didn't know whether he should avenge Zhang Shi. The cost of revenge was too high. He couldn't afford it, and neither could the people of Jingzhao Yin.

During the silence, Black Bear continued, "You heard it just now. Zhong Yao is in a very difficult situation now. He was forced to leave Hongnong and come to Guanzhong. He didn't dare to see Ma Chao, but came to see me first."

Du Ji nodded slightly and asked, "General, are you going to protect Guanzhong?"

He also understood Zhong Yao's concerns. Only by obtaining an alliance with the Huya Army could the influence of Zhong Yao's official positions, such as the Inspector of the Imperial Guards, be effectively supported.

Otherwise, if he ran away naked to join Ma Chao, it would be difficult to stabilize the army.

Now Zhong Yao was carrying out the king's order and holding the Tiger Teeth Army to his own advantage. He used this force to integrate the army and assigned another 5,000 men to Black Bear to help defend Tongguan.

As long as Tongguan is defended, it means that the Yuan family is just a facade and there is nothing to be afraid of. The prototype of the Guanzhong coalition will be finalized.

"My Guanzhong, I will naturally take good care of it."

Black Bear pointed to the direction of Tongguan without hiding anything. "Yuan Tan can only attack from here. I can hold the pass with my own troops and the 5,000 men that Zhong Yao promised. But I don't trust the others. I hope you can act as Jingzhao Yin and recruit soldiers and collect food and fodder for me."

Recruiting soldiers is not conscription. Conscription is to allocate quotas to each county, and each county will select suitable registered men. Recruiting soldiers is very simple, and it all about spending money to buy lives.

Not only strong men from the countryside applied for the job, but also the poor and powerful who came with their servants and followers.

You have to give people opportunities, you can't kill them all with one blow.

The army is a very magical group. As long as they are gathered into a group, ensured to have enough food, and trained hard, it is very easy to integrate.

Regardless of whether it was the Jingzhao soldiers that were about to be recruited, or the 5,000 men that Zhong Yao had agreed to transfer, as long as they closed the camp for training, the Qingzhou soldiers would be stationed next to them.

Then a month of intensive training would be enough time to fight against Yuan Tan who came from afar.

Du Ji felt it was a little absurd. He always felt that there was something wrong with the Qingzhou soldiers stationed in the city. How could they be so loyal to Black Bear?
This group of Qingzhou soldiers had been in Black Bear's hands as prisoners for barely two months, yet they were surprisingly obedient.

If this army falls into Black Bear's hands, with proper military management and training, it might become like the Qingzhou soldiers again.

Seeing Du Ji silent, Black Bear continued, "I don't like fighting. After expelling Yuan Tan, I will close Tongguan, rest the people, and not recruit soldiers for three years. When I trade with Jingzhou, I will buy all kinds of equipment from Jingzhou to restore Guanzhong."

Not conscripting soldiers does not mean that there will be no temporary recruitment. The size of the troops that Black Bear brought into Guanzhong alone is no less than that of Ma Teng’s Liangzhou troops.

This headquarters is capable of handling a war involving tens of thousands of people, so there is really no need to recruit additional soldiers.

"Three years of rest?"

"Yes, just three years. Something unexpected will happen in the world in the next three years. No matter if it's Cao Cao or Yuan Shang, neither of them can last for three years."

Black Bear raised his hand and peeled off the yellow mud wall of the tower and crushed it in his hand: "No matter who wins, they will send troops to test Guanzhong. You Xizhou scholars are no longer a force to be reckoned with. Only outsiders like me can coordinate all parties."

Du Ji frowned. Due to the special nature of Guanzhong, there were almost no princes with the surname Liu in the Guanlong area, so there was a lack of vibrant clan groups among the people.

This has led to a serious lack of outstanding royal family members who could serve as leading figures among the Guanlong scholars since the chaos at the end of the Han Dynasty.

The position of the Hongnong Yang family was very awkward, as it was too close to Luoyang. Even though they were touted as the Confucius of Western Province, it was still difficult for them to unite the more unfortunate scholars of Liang Province.

It was difficult for the Yang family to become the true leader of the scholars in Xizhou, and there was also the rebellion of Li Jue and Guo Si. So even though the emperor had fallen to Xizhou, he failed to seize the opportunity.

If we had quickly gotten rid of Li Jue and Guo Si back then, why would we need to consider the face of the Ruying scholars now?
It is possible that Du Ji was serving as the governor of Yuzhou and letting the children of the prominent families in Ruying work as officials under him.

The emperor's westward migration was the best opportunity for the scholars in Xizhou in the past two hundred years.

As a result, it was destroyed by Wang Yun, and failed to suppress Li Jue and Guo Si's gang.

After so many years, when the scholars of Xizhou recalled and reviewed the incident, their hatred towards the scholars of Bingzhou must have been very strong.

Du Ji didn't want to speak much, he was not like Zhong Yao.

All of Zhong Yao’s chips are in Guanzhong. If he loses, he will also lose his family.

Du Ji was different. If he didn't cooperate, he would just die; but as long as he didn't die, any changes in Guanzhong in the future would be his opportunities.

Seeing him silent, Black Bear couldn't help but sneer, and then restrained his smile: "I wanted to talk to you before, but I was worried that you would look down on me. After Zhong Yao came, I came to talk to you. If you still do this, I will send troops to attack Zheng County tomorrow, and then use the men who were forcibly conscripted from Zheng County as the vanguard to attack Duling. If we repeat this cycle, all counties and cities will be destroyed, and more than 10,000 men and women will die in vain."

"General, what is the difference between what you did and what Dong Zhuo and Li Jue did?"

"You can obey them, why can't you obey me?"

Black Bear stared at Du Ji and said, "The Central Plains is in ruins. When Yuan Shang and Cao Cao decide the winner, no one will let Guanzhong rest and recuperate. I have also seen the atlas that Zhong Yao brought. Including the 30,000 households in Hedong, the current registered population is 220,000 households, a million people. This population is neither too high nor too low, and is very suitable for attack."

"I am only a young man now, and I have no intention of competing with Cao Cao and Yuan Shang. I will take Guanzhong and rest for more than 20 years. When the population reaches 3 million, I will send troops to Hangu Pass and implement the old Qin policy."

Du Ji suppressed his displeasure and frowned.

Seeing how stubborn he was, Black Bear completely lost his patience: "Since you are unwilling to set an example for the scholars in Guanzhong, then I don't want you anymore. Dong Zhuo and Li Jue don't dare to kill you, but I do." After saying that, he turned around and left along the stairs.

Du Ji slowly exhaled when he saw the black bear walking away.

He glanced at the other side of the city wall again, and then muttered in a low voice: "Thieves are bandits!"

Enduring the intense nausea, Du Xi couldn't help but dry-heave twice.

If his family had not been in Duling, he would have shouted abuse just now.

Zhong Yao was willing to cooperate, but he refused!
Even if he didn't cooperate, the killings caused by Black Bear's troops attacking various cities were also caused by Black Bear. What did it have to do with him, Du Ji?
The people of Guanzhong have suffered so much hardship, so they are not afraid of more.

After being treated so contemptuously, the anger on the black bear's face had disappeared when he returned.

After returning to the city wall, he sat cross-legged and continued to examine the cowhide map left by Zhong Yao.

Conquering cities and territory inch by inch is the way bandits and robbers do things.

It seems that I am still deceived by General Huya's skin and want to use political means to quickly solve the problem.

Du Ji was very restrained. If he had really given this guy a few thousand soldiers, he would have probably pointed at his nose and jumped up and down and cursed at him.

After all, fewer people were killed.

After thinking for a while, Black Bear suddenly stood up, raised his hand to grab the golden helmet and shouted: "Send a message to Wang Wei, follow me to attack Duling!"

"Here!"

The two bodyguards turned around and left, delivering messages to the military camp in the city.

At the blockhouse, Du Ji sat on the ground with an empty stomach and took some time to recover some strength.

When I walked down the stairs, I saw an army gathering in the military camp inside the city, while a group of Qingzhou soldiers outside the city began to enter the city to change shifts.

Du Ji couldn't help but think about the possibility of the black bear attacking Zheng County.

As a result, the infantry in the city were seen marching out of the west gate lightly equipped, and more than 300 captured volunteers and militiamen who participated in defending the city were organized to serve as auxiliary troops, pushing carts to transport armor, equipment, food and fodder.

The camp soldiers and auxiliary soldiers formed a team of a thousand people and filed out of the city in the scorching sun in the morning.

On the captured chariot, Yuan Shu acted as the driver, Gao Shun guarded on one side with a shield, and Black Bear stood in the middle.

Behind this chariot were two small drum carts, leading a team of a thousand men slowly westward along the road.

On the city wall, Du Ji's body was shaking and his eyes went dark, as if he had fainted from hunger.

North bank, military camp.

Zhong Yao sat at the head of the table, and the Tiger Guards who followed him all the time were holding the staff granted by the emperor.

Ma Chao, the military commander, sat at the bottom. He was no longer the leader of the camp. All the commanders of a hundred men or more in the camp sat on Ma Chao's left and right, listening to Zhong Yao's orders together.

Just like what happened to Hei Xiong, Zhong Yao started by telling the story of Yuan's attempt to capture Chang'an and install a fake emperor.

Everyone who heard this changed color. Dong Zhuo brought an emperor to Chang'an, and this emperor brought countless sufferings to Guanzhong.

Now the Yuan family wants to find an emperor for Guanzhong. Who would be happy about this?
"Although General Huya and Cao Sikong have a personal grudge, we cannot abandon state affairs because of it."

Zhong Yao said in a slow tone: "I will select 5,000 elite infantry and cavalry to station at Tongguan and cooperate with General Huya to intercept the invading bandit army. Does Mengqi have any doubts?"

How could Ma Chao dare to refuse?
Without the food and fodder supply from Zuo Fengyi, these 8,000 troops would starve, and Ma Teng did not have that much rations.

Ma Teng applied for food in Guanzhong on the grounds that Liangzhou was too poor to support the army, and was settled in the Huaili area.

Ma Teng and his men did not eat taxes, salaries or military pay, but the food they obtained from the land they reclaimed from their own military settlements.

Therefore, the 8,000 troops currently assembled cannot do without Zhong Yao's logistical supplies.

In addition to these 8,000 troops, Ma Teng will send another 3,000 troops, and Han Sui will also send an army which is on the way. When combined, they will be all the troops that helped Hedong resist Yuan's troops.

The 3,000 men sent by Ma Teng have not set out yet, so Ma Chao's influence on the current army is very limited.

When the subsequent troops sent by Han Sui arrived, they would offset Ma Teng's troops and prevent Ma Chao from stealing the military power.

Zhong Yao was guarding Ma Chao tightly, and at this moment, he also gained the support of the Tiger Tooth Army.

Under such circumstances, Ma Chao could only serve as a temporary military commander and did not dare to interfere with the military power.

It was one thing for him to have good personal relationships with military officials at all levels, but it was another thing to expect these people to starve and join him in breaking away from Zhong Yao and rebelling against the court.

So the matter is that simple, the fake general Black Bear with Tiger Fangs can be on par with Zhong Yao; Ma Chao, the real commander-in-chief, can only obey orders and has no power to resist.

Zhong Yao successfully took back the command of the 3,000 troops, and then heard an official report: "Mingsir, the South Bank Tiger Teeth Army has divided its troops into 1,000 and is marching westward. Look at the carriage, it is General Tiger Teeth who is leading the troops personally."

"Don't worry about it. He and I are now of the same blood. From now on, you don't have to ask about the affairs of the South Bank."

After Zhong Yao finished speaking, he looked at Ma Chao and said, "Meng Qi, lead your troops across the river, and you go to assist General Hu Ya. If there are any disobedient people, persuade them to surrender if possible, and cooperate in eliminating them if you cannot persuade them."

Ma Chao stood up and saluted: "Yes. I think the reason for sending troops this time may be that Jingzhao Yin Zhang Shixin died, and his former officials are bound to be resentful and do not want to be under the command of General Huya."

Looking at Zhong Yao, Ma Chao suggested: "Your Excellency, why don't you send an order to Jingzhao to make all counties obey the command of General Huya."

Zhong Yao listened and looked at his trusted clerk: "Issue a notice saying that the former Jingzhao Yin Zhang Shi was in collusion with the bandits and was beheaded by General Hu Ya in battle. Order all the counties in Jingzhao to obey General Hu Ya's control. Anyone who resists will be punished for collusion with the bandits."

"Here!"

The clerk turned around and started writing the draft, and Ma Chao also took his leave.

Walking out of the tent that belonged to him, Ma Chao raised his head, squinted at the scorching sun, and put on the helmet in his hand.

He endured the discomfort and walked towards the small camp where his personal soldiers lived.

In just a few days, he was back to his original state, which made him feel very uncomfortable.

Zhong Yao's evil slander against Zhang Shi made Ma Chao work even more diligently. He dared not delay and quickened his pace.

(End of this chapter)