Chapter 368 A Guess

In a valley west of Ganquan Mountain, earthen forts are also being built.

Ma Teng paid to hire manpower, and Ma Chao also sent more than a thousand weak slaves to the front line.

More than 3,000 people mined sand and mixed it with mortar to rebuild the walls on the site of the former Han Dynasty palace.

The ground had been compacted and hardened in the past. What needed to be done now was to dig it again, lay drainage channels, and construct ground buildings.

Just before nightfall, Black Bear drove here.

With the arrival of the black bear, a spare campfire was lit in front of an earthen cave that had been dug earlier.

Ma Yun welcomed the black bear into the cave. She was not unfamiliar with caves.

I lived a hard life and suffered a lot during my childhood.

There was a bright candlelight in the cave, and after a simple meal, they got down to business.

Only if she is served happily can Ma Teng and Ma Chao on the front line feel at ease and work hard.

Serve each other and run in both directions.

After a simple wash, Black Bear lay on the warm kang. Just as he was about to fall asleep, he heard Ma Yun say, "Yesterday, Shangdang County Magistrate Cui Yan sent someone to lobby my second brother. My second brother couldn't resist the request and sent the gift list to me."

"What does Cui Yan want to do?"

"I don't know. I just sent a gift list and didn't say what I came for."

Ma Yun hastily added, "I have already returned the gift list, but judging from the messenger's words, it seems that he wants me to say something good for Cui Yan."

"You did the right thing. Cui Yan caused a disaster that led to the extermination of his clan."

Black Bear couldn't help but smile as he spoke: "They were at a loss as to what to do, and mistakenly thought that I would want to annex Hebei. Their prediction was wrong, but the arrow was on the string and had to be shot. It was like riding a tiger. If they dare to get off the tiger's back, the tiger will definitely eat them."

Ma Yun's eyes turned: "My husband, are you saying that they are plotting a rebellion?"

"I don't necessarily want to rebel, but once this kind of thing starts, it can't be stopped."

Black Bear also felt a little tricky and couldn't understand the Hebei people's operations.

"In short, the most valuable thing between people is mutual trust. Yuan Shang is cruel and bloodthirsty. If he knew, he would definitely raise his knife. The most terrifying thing is that Yuan Shang knew but pretended not to know."

The black bear looked at the dark roof of the cave. The biggest advantage of the cave was its extreme silence. Even the slightest sound of the wind in the night sky could not be heard here.

He was extremely calm: "Cui Yan and his men don't know whether Yuan Shang knows about this, so they don't dare to gamble."

As he spoke, he rolled over and stood up, his eyes sparkling in the dim light, and he muttered to himself, "It seems that Liu Bei is going to eat a ready-made big piece of fat meat."

Ma Yun also sat up. Seeing that Black Bear was deep in thought, she raised her hand and pulled open another silk quilt and draped it over Black Bear's shoulders.

Black Bear sorted out his thoughts, raised his hand and pinched Ma Yun's cheek: "It doesn't matter who you give it to, you just have to explain it to him clearly."

"My husband, are you saying that Cui Yan will defect and join Lord Xuande?"

"Well, Hebei people are arrogant. If they see me ignoring them like this, they will definitely get angry and embarrassed."

Black Bear lay down again, speaking indifferently as if it had nothing to do with him, or as if he was talking about renting out the ranch: "I want to see what Liu Bei chooses."

Ma Yun was nervous and subconsciously grasped Black Bear's arms with both hands, "He won't want to attack Hebei, will he? I heard that Hebei is rich and Liu Xuande is a contemporary hero. If he gets hundreds of thousands of soldiers from Hebei, wouldn't that be like Emperor Guangwu in the past?"

"It depends on how he chooses, and also on how the people of Hebei choose."

Black Bear said calmly: "If the people of Hebei really want to abandon the Yuan family, then they must make their position clear: whether they want to support a new emperor or obey Huainan. If they want to support a new emperor, the lineage of King Pingyuan has a suitable candidate, who is more orthodox than King Huainan Liu Fu."

But if he supported Liu Fu of Huainan, then what would the blood feud of Cao Cao's massacre of Hebei soldiers count for?
If you support Liu Fu, you will inevitably be in the same camp as Cao Cao. What will Liu Bei think?
So if the people of Hebei wanted to cooperate with Liu Bei, they had two options: either support Liu Bei to become king or emperor, or support a member of the royal family of King Pingyuan to become emperor.

The last question is, does Liu Bei dare to become king or emperor?
He had just left here, and turned around and proclaimed himself king and emperor with the support of the people of Hebei and Youzhou... Would Liu Bei dare to do that? Would the people of Hebei dare to do that?
Besides, Hebei people also want to save face. So will they come to an agreement and play themselves?

For example, General Liu Xuande, the Zhenbei General, was unstoppable and marched straight to Yecheng, winning the city in one battle, and Hebei was conquered with just a single edict?

Anyway, there is no strategic location to defend between Youzhou and Yecheng. If Liu Bei is brave enough, it is possible for him to directly besiege Yecheng and block Yuan Shang and his entire family in Yecheng.

During the siege, a small accident by Xiao Xu could lead to the fall of Yecheng.

Liu Bei was from Youzhou and had long been praised by the world.

If Yuan Shang died or was captured after the capture of Yecheng, what stance would the people of Youzhou under Yuan Xi take?
Thinking clearly about the possible room for maneuver, Black Bear couldn't help but smile: "Liu Fu's son is with me, and Liu Bei's two daughters are also with me. If Liu Bei were to seize control of Yan and Zhao, he would surely be troubled by the lack of successors."

Seeing him talking about this, Ma Yun pursed her lips secretly, lying on Black Bear's left arm, raising her hand and drawing circles: "My husband also wants an heir?"

"Well, there's no rush for this kind of thing. I have plenty of time."

Black Bear soothed her gently, saying that if he didn't soothe the open-minded woman around him, who knows, next time he comes, there might be dozens of women with successful childbirth experiences ready.

The issue of offspring can be a big deal or a small one, even if you really evolve and cannot have offspring.

But with such a huge foundation, it is not difficult to have a few legitimate heirs...it’s not like I really need these people to inherit anything.

Having a backup plan can increase the stability of the organization.

After comforting them, Black Bear ordered Dian Wei, who was on duty outside the cave, to extinguish the lights and candles, and the cave fell into darkness and silence.

The kang was warm beneath him, and holding the person in his arms, Black Bear relaxed and fell asleep quickly.

As I was about to go to sleep, my thoughts wandered, and I always felt that when there were abundant reserves of resources in the future, I could start building the mausoleum.

When you feel upset, just go to your own mausoleum and lie down and sleep for a few days. It should help you relax.

Anyway, he has now reached the point where he can do whatever he wants.

On the other side, Liu Bei and Tian Yu slept with their feet touching.

It was only after Tian Yu confirmed that Liu Bei was still the trustworthy big brother that he brought Qian Zhao into the chat.

Qian Zhao is a very good breakthrough point. I heard Tian Yu mentioned Qian Zhao intentionally.

Liu Bei's legs and feet cramped for no apparent reason. He rolled over and rubbed his ankles, saying with lingering fear, "I am now truly a homeless dog. All I want is to find a place to settle down and make achievements in the new dynasty. I dare not think about anything else."

Tian Yu also stood up, shirtless: "Brother, this opportunity cannot be missed. From the letter from Guan Zijing, it can be confirmed that his mind has changed. This is a great opportunity."

"Don't mention this kind of thing again."

Liu Bei raised his hand and patted Tian Yu on the shoulder, saying in a gentle tone: "People are suffering but have no feet."

"The Grand Marshal led his troops twice, but with only a few thousand cavalry, he was able to defeat the Xiongnu in the first battle and force the Xianbei to surrender and annex Hexi in the second battle. You and I are from border counties, how arrogant are we to dare to fight with the Grand Marshal?"

Liu Bei's tone became more serious: "If the Grand Marshal is angry and resentful, and forces the Hu people to be the vanguard, there will be no one left in Yan and Zhao."

When it comes to destruction, the one in Guanzhong is professional.

Unless it was absolutely necessary, Liu Bei did not want to lead his brothers to make meaningless sacrifices.

After Huangfu Song pacified the main force of the Yellow Turban Army in Hebei, he served as the governor of Jizhou for a period of time.

At that time, Liu Bei's military merits were converted into the rank of county lieutenant. He knew very well how Huangfu Song required them to implement martial law, and how he eliminated the remnants of the Taiping Dao under martial law.

Letting Black Bear do it would only make him more cruel than Huangfu Song.

(End of this chapter)