Chapter 374 Blind Optimism
On October 16, Liu Biao finally built an altar four miles east of Xiangyang and proclaimed himself King, calling himself King of Jing.

He proclaimed himself king and refused the enthronement of the new Huainan Dynasty.

However, at this final moment, Liu Biao still did not dare to call himself the King of Chu, and instead used the title of Jing, which was similar in nature but slightly less influential.

Naturally, Lady Cai was made queen and Liu Qi was made crown prince.

Almost at the same time, the Liu family of Changsha accepted the enthronement of the new Huainan Dynasty and established the State of Changsha.

Cao Cao was appointed as the General of the Western Expedition by the new court of Huainan, and was given the power to command the three divisions, and he officially marched towards Luoyang.

Under Cao Cao's command, Xiahou Dun was appointed as the Governor of Henan, Cao Ren was the Inspector of the Imperial Capital, and they marched towards Luoyang together with Xiahou Yuan.

At the end of the month, all information on changes in various aspects was summarized and placed on Black Bear's desk.

It was snowing in Hexi at this moment, but the wind was strong and the sunlight was strong during the day, so the snow could not accumulate.

"Man Chong broke away from Cao Cao and became the governor of Yuzhou."

Black Bear was slightly disappointed, and Yang Xiu, who had followed him to Hexi, was standing beside him, also looking disappointed.

Yang Xiu had already chosen to enter officialdom, and Yang Biao committed suicide for his country. For Yang Xiu, avenging his emperor and father as soon as possible was the true righteousness, loyalty and filial piety. Naturally, it was impossible for him to be foolish and observe mourning for three years.

For a man of such great talent and reputation as Yang Xiu, Hei Xiong only let Yang Xiu serve as an ordinary secretary.

It can't be said that you are deliberately suppressing or oppressing me. You are not willing to endure this little grievance, and you still have the nerve to use the power of Guanzhong to seek revenge?

After experiencing the great changes in Xudu and the independence of Huainan, Yang Xiu also suffered a huge blow and was silent most of the time.

Black Bear didn't care how Yang Xiu changed, and he finally understood Cao Cao's feelings.

It is safest to keep someone like Yang Xiu by your side; at least in the short term everything is controllable because Yang Xiu can be dealt with at any time.

Just don't let Yang Xiu have access to military power or be a military officer. In this way, Yang Xiu, who has no military power, can be dealt with quickly.

Black Bear continued to read the military intelligence reports from Nanyang. Much of the information was unverified and was just hearsay and inference.

For example, Li Dian broke away from Cao Cao and was appointed as the governor of Qingzhou by the Huainan court; the person who competed with Li Dian was Zang Ba, who was the governor of Xuzhou, General of Andong, the Marquis of Mengyin.

The governor of Yanzhou is Xiahou Yuan, and it is completely unknown how much control he can actually have.

There were also many titles that had no practical significance at all. Even Zhou Yu was among those who were given titles in Huainan. Giving Zhou Yu his official position, general title, and nobility had no meaning at all.

The only person who made Black Bear feel something was Man Chong. This man actually sold out Cao Cao very readily. It was unknown whether he could grow into a candidate for the overlord of Central Plains in the future.

Cao Chun, a suspect involved in the sudden death of the previous emperor, naturally did not get an official position this time and naturally became a commoner.

But Cao Cao and Cao Ren both found ways to arrange a position for Cao Chun, and the Cao family managed to keep Cao Chun.

He must be kept. If Cao Chun is sacrificed, how will Cao Ren view Cao Cao?
He was determined to keep Cao Chun no matter what the cost, which was probably the reason why Cao Cao abandoned Yuzhou.

Otherwise, if Cao Cao did not give up voluntarily, how could a county magistrate like Man Chong, who started out as a cruel official, have the ability and resources to take over Yuzhou?
Black Bear picked up his pen and wrote a reply to Zhou Yu, emphasizing his different attitudes towards Liu Biao and Huang Zu, and allowed Zhou Yu to attack Huang Zu and his descendants on his own.

Anyway, even if Zhou Yu doesn't take action, Liu Biao will do it.

Liu Biao has given up hope and will try his best to clear away all hidden dangers around him before he dies.

Paving the way for his son is one thing, but training troops and promoting a group of combat-capable officers is also a key consideration.

After closing Zhou Yu's bamboo slips, Black Bear looked at another volume of official documents sent by Fu Xun, which was very long.

Black Bear read ten lines at a glance and saw that the content was roughly similar to Zhou Yu's, so he didn't find it strange.

After flipping through a few more scrolls, he did not find the information he was looking for, so he asked several secretaries who had previewed the official documents, "What official title did Huainan give to Liu Xuande?" The secretaries looked at each other and then at Yang Xiu, who stepped out and bowed, "Your Majesty, as far as I have seen, I have never heard of the false court granting Liu Xuande any official title."

Black Bear turned his head and looked at Yang Xiu: "So do you think Liu Fu was granted the title or not?"

Yang Xiu felt a little pressured, but he still followed his own judgment and answered: "I will grant an official position to induce Liu Xuande. I think Liu Xuande's defense document is on the way."

"I think so too."

Black Bear put down his pen and said to the two guards at the door, "Open the curtain."

"Here."

The two bodyguards lifted the fine felt curtain, turned around and walked out of the tent, raising their hands to hang up the curtain.

The light in the tent suddenly brightened. Black Bear stood up and walked to the door of the tent, looking out at the vast dry yellow grassland outside the tent. "Let's not worry about these things outside the Great Wall. Tell the army that anyone who discusses the false dynasty outside the Great Wall will be demoted back to the Great Wall or his hometown."

Yang Xiu and several others bowed their hands in unison, while the historian Zhang Chang, standing beside them, picked up a pen and wrote quickly in cursive script.

What kind of punishment is this?
If the morale of the army is disturbed, it is also a concern for the families in the rear; but the punishment is to send them back home...

In fact, there is nothing to disturb, as the counties in Hexi and eastern Liangzhou have already made preparations for war.

Even for many people...even if Guanzhong rebels, they have the confidence to fight back!
With their military confidence extremely inflated, how could they care about whether Liu Bei would surrender to the enemy?

Besides, Liu Bei is a defeated general who has only recently emerged.

Liu Bei's influence has been greatly weakened, and his change in position will not interfere much with the troops in Guanzhong.

On the contrary, Cao Cao was highly guarded by officials and soldiers everywhere and was regarded as the most powerful enemy after Hebei in the future.

From the beginning to the end, Hebei was the only powerful enemy in the eyes of the officials in Guanzhong.

As for the King of Huainan who proclaimed himself emperor and the hundreds of thousands of Jiangdong soldiers, they were not worth mentioning.

The military confidence was so strong at this point that Black Bear realized that if he slammed on the brakes again, people around him would generally think that he was making a big deal out of nothing.

Black Bear had no way to deal with this, as there were many things he couldn't rely on.

To put it bluntly, the slaves rescued and captives recruited in the battle of Hexi...now actually hope that Guanzhong will rebel so that they can fight back to Guanzhong and become the most powerful people.

There is already a busy and optimistic mood in the army, and this mood infects everyone.

It seemed that apart from the severe cold climate and the changeable and difficult-to-prevent geological disasters, there was nothing that could slow down the offensive of their own army.

Whether it was the Hehuang Qiang or anything else, it seemed like taking something out of a bag.

Black Bear really doesn't like this kind of atmosphere... The army should strive for self-improvement instead of relying on itself for everything.

The world is too big. If I really have to lead every army myself, why would I spend money to maintain an army with high salaries and benefits?
As the area of ​​control became larger and larger, only a series of wars that could be fought back and forth could train batches of mature military officers and officials.

No matter how many favorable battles you have, what can you cultivate?
Cultivate a group of reckless men who can only lead the charge?
If there are too many people like this, how can we enrich the grassroots in the future?

He walked out of the tent alone, the wind blowing on his face, and his heavy arrow-proof cloak fluttering slightly.

It didn't take long for him to make up his mind to rest and recuperate next year, and to gradually adjust the army from the smallest details.

If a suitable military structure cannot be assembled, then this group of core military officers should be purged, kicked out, and a new group of military officers should be promoted.

(End of this chapter)