Ye Lin was currently pondering in his mind. Damn, I've transmigrated this time. Should I join Dong Zhuo or Yuan Shao?
But no matter who I join in the future, this Wang Kuang, who smells like Shandong scallions, is a guy with no future. This Wang Kuang will kill his own brother-in-law to side with Yuan Shao, showing how insane he is!
Historically, this Wang Kuang was killed by Cao Cao on the pretext of avenging Humu Ban's family.
Ye Lin certainly didn't think his cheap brother-in-law, "Fang Yue, the famous general of Henei," had much political future either.
Even Zhu Jun, Fang Yue's former superior, who was famous throughout the country for quelling the Yellow Turbans, didn't end up well.
Considering the previous owner's connection, Ye Lin might pull Fang Yue in the future to prevent him from rushing out to be cannon fodder for Wang Kuang, and being "defeated in less than five moves by Lü Bu before being speared under his horse" at Hulao Pass.
At this moment, the officials under the Prefect, such as the Gongcao, Zhubo, and several county heads, began to speak their minds, with the majority supporting "Two countries at war, do not kill envoys."
The rest, like Han Hao, thought that Henei Commandery had the advantage of both time and place, and was a rare commodity. They should wait and see what price the imperial court would offer, right?
The prefect, sitting in the center, naturally knew the price the court was offering. His brother-in-law, Humu Ban, had made it clear in his letter: as long as they abandoned the campaign against Dong Zhuo, the court would forgive everything. Wang Kuang would be directly promoted from Prefect of Henei to the Commandant of Sili!
Of course, the letter also stated frankly that since the court had killed the entire Yuan Clan of Luoyang, everyone else could be pardoned. However, Yuan Shao was not on the list. If anyone presented Yuan Shao's head to the court, they would be immediately made a marquis and given a position as a provincial governor!
Kill Yuan Shao and bring his head to surrender to the traitor Dong Zhuo? Wang Kuang didn't dare to truly consider such a thing. As the one who initiated the campaign against Dong Zhuo among the Guandong Lords, Prefect Wang couldn't bring himself to betray his allies and accept the offer.
Besides, he and Yuan Shao, Cao Cao, and Bao Xin had all been in He Jin's staff for many years, and were good brothers.
Now, Dong Zhuo had even murdered the Young Emperor and Empress He, and had also executed and displayed the heads of Tai Fu Yuan Wei and Tai Pu Yuan Ji of the Yuan Clan. How could Wang Kuang betray Yuan Shao and the Guandong Lords?
The Guandong Lords' campaign against Dong Zhuo was justified by the greater good. First, they sought revenge for the Young Emperor and Empress He, and second, they wanted to eliminate the traitor Dong Zhuo!
In fact, if Dong Zhuo hadn't killed the Young Emperor at the very beginning of the Guandong Lords' uprising, their original slogan would have been to restore the Young Emperor's throne and eliminate the Dong bandit!
It could be said that Dong Zhuo's killing of the Young Emperor was a brilliant move, but his subsequent killing of the entire Yuan Clan who remained in Luoyang was a terrible one!
The Guandong Lords' alliance against Dong Zhuo saw Cao Cao as the first to respond. In December, Cao Cao, also known as Cao Mengde, answered Qiao Mao's call to arms, and the other eleven lords followed suit in January.
The alliance was said to be at Suanzao, but initially, the various prefectures and commanderies stationed their troops in different locations:
Yuan Shao and Wang Kuang were stationed in Henei, Kong Zhou in Yingchuan, Han Fu in Ye County, Yuan Shu in Nanyang, and Zhang Miao, Liu Dai, Qiao Mao, and Yuan Yi in Suanzao. They didn't all gather outside Luoyang as depicted in Romance of the Three Kingdoms.
That spring, only Liu Dai, Kong Zhou, Zhang Miao, Qiao Mao, and Zhang Chao met in Suanzao. When they were about to swear their oaths, these Prefects and Prefects hesitated to take the lead. They ended up recommending Zang Hong, the Guangling's Gong Cao. Zang Hong then adjusted his clothes and ascended the altar, drinking blood and reciting the covenant. His words were filled with emotion, and tears streamed down his face; everyone who heard him was moved.
Yuan Shao's soldiers from Ji Province were stationed in Henei, and Wang Kuang was both pleased and worried. Yuan Shao, with his prestigious family background, was someone Wang Kuang wanted to support as the leader of the anti-Dong Zhuo alliance. However, Yuan Shao was only the Bohai Prefect at the time, with a great reputation and a high profile, but his actual strength wasn't the strongest among the lords.
In terms of combat strength, Sun Jian, the Prefect of Changsha, had the strongest five thousand soldiers. In terms of numbers, Han Fu, the Governor of Ji Province, and Yuan Shu, the Prefect of Nanyang, each had nearly ten thousand soldiers, and Ji Province and Nanyang were wealthy, with ample supplies of food and weaponry.
Yuan Shu was a Rear General and the Prefect of Nanyang. Nanyang Commandery was near the imperial capital, and it was also the Yuan Clan's backyard, with connections everywhere. The commandery's seat was Wan, and it governed thirty-seven counties, with a population of two million four hundred thousand, making it the largest commandery in the Eastern Han Dynasty.
Therefore, among the Guandong Lords, Yuan Shu had the highest family status and the strongest overall military and political strength. Because of this, Yuan Shao, the leader of the alliance, assigned Yuan Shu to be in charge of the allied forces' logistical support.
At the time, Yuan Shao only controlled Bohai Commandery in Ji Province. Bohai Commandery was considered a large commandery within Ji Province, but it only had eight cities, with 132,389 households and a population of 1,106,500. It administered five counties: Nanpi, Dongguang, Zhangwu, Yangxin, and Xiu, as well as three marquisates: Gaocheng, Chonghe, and Fuyang.
In terms of strength, Bohai Commandery accounted for less than a quarter of Ji Province, and less than half of what Yuan Shu controlled in Nanyang Commandery.
With the resources of a single commandery, Yuan Shao barely managed to gather an army of 5,000 men. He claimed to the outside world that he had over 10,000, but he always had to rely on Han Fu, the Governor of Ji Province, who had a strong army and ample supplies, for provisions.
Therefore, when the alliance against Dong Zhuo began, Yuan Shao simply led his army to the front lines in Henei Commandery. After all, Wang Kuang, the Prefect of Henei, was an old colleague and friend. They had all worked together under General-in-Chief He Jin. Wang Kuang was known for his lavish spending, so it wouldn't be right to let the allied leader's army go hungry.
"My Lord, the Guandong Lords have allied to punish Dong Zhuo. In the martial world, when people are together, they must be loyal, and all must be united. But, I wonder what the Alliance Leader has to say about the people sent by the court?"
Ye Lin finally couldn't hold back and pierced through the paper-thin pretense!
For a moment, the tent became eerily silent. Everyone's eyes focused on the famous general Ye Sima of Henei. Even Fang Yue, his brother-in-law who sat at the head table, widened his eyes, as if he couldn't believe those words had come from his own good-for-nothing brother-in-law.
In the late Han Dynasty, the probability of outstanding talents emerging from aristocratic families was, of course, much higher than from ordinary families and merchant households.
But in the eyes of his brother-in-law, Fang Yue, this Ye Lin was always loyal and brave, but he was a greedy, lustful, and clueless buffoon. What was this, he almost arrived late for roll call today, and suddenly he'd had an epiphany?
"Prefect, we'd like to hear more! Does the Alliance Leader have anything to say?" Han Hao glared fiercely at Ye Lin, surprised at how this guy's political instincts had suddenly exploded, and immediately followed up with a question.
"Prefect, Yue also wishes to hear more!" Fang Yue turned and clasped his hands, following suit.
Fang Yue's words were a clear indication that he was unaware of the dealings between Prefect Wang and the Alliance Leader. Everyone should keep their eyes open and not give him any face!
Logically, since Wang Kuang had raised troops in Henei, the first choice to win over would be Duyu Fang Yue. After all, Fang Yue was a famous general of Henei. He had followed the previous Prefect, Zhu Jun, and killed countless enemies, earning numerous merits. The county soldiers under his command were strong and fierce, and he was the hope of Henei.
However, the Prefect was originally called the Prefect, and in the Qin and Han dynasties, a Prefect was definitely not the civil official of later generations. The Prefect was originally a military position and later also managed civil affairs, tax collection, and the selection of Filial and Incorrupt and Outstanding Talent. The Duyu was originally called a Captain, and in many border counties without a Prefect, the Duyu would take on all the responsibilities of the Prefect, not to mention that the Duyu, like the Prefect, was a high-ranking official with a salary of two thousand shi, who could establish their own office.
Therefore, in Henei Commandery, the possibility of an outsider Prefect, who had just been appointed, getting along with the local powerhouse Duyu Fang was not high. It was even more ridiculous to think they would live in harmony and overcome difficulties together.
Ye Lin had already figured it out:
If Wang Kuang was truly planning to follow Yuan Shao's orders and imprison the imperial envoy, and then kill him, he, the narrator, would need to find an opportunity to persuade Yuan Shao to spare the envoy's life!