Chapter 417 Split

In the winter of the 22nd year of Xingping, the battlefield in the Central Plains that had been fought for more than half a year suddenly fell into an eerie calm. Xu Rong and Gao Shun each led troops to station at the border of Xuzhou. The chaotic interior of the Central Plains began to be taken over by the imperial court, and officials took office and settled matters. Refugees were given food and wages.

At the same time, the Ministry of Industry also sent people to start laying the fourth railway in Kaifeng. This one was laid directly to Shouchun, although Shouchun is not in the hands of the court yet.

As if the war had not been fought for more than half a year, after Cao Cao retreated to Xuzhou, he fought with Xu Rong and Gao Shun several times, constantly harassing the opponent's retreat, or accumulating water to attack, causing a lot of damage to Gao Shun and Xu Rong. Trouble forced the court to go on the defensive.

At least on the surface, this was a victory for Cao Cao.

However, only Cao Cao knew that the imperial court was just stopping to gather momentum. If Xu Rong and Gao Shun continued to fight, he would still have the opportunity to continue to wear down the opponent's forces until they were all exhausted.

However, after Xu Rong and Gao Shun went on the defensive, the imperial court began to quickly digest the Yanzhou and Yuzhou they had obtained. This step-by-step approach was what Cao Cao did not want to see, but they had already switched from offense to defense. Cao Cao tested it several times. After finally failing to break in, they were forced to call a truce.

That's right, it was not the court that was forced, but Cao Cao. At this time, Cao Cao actually wanted to fight more than Lu Bu. After the battle line was lengthened, Cao Cao could continue to consume the enemy's troops by harassing the enemy's food routes, but if the opponent stopped Starting to turn the rear into his own territory would be fatal to Cao Cao.

The imperial court chose the strategy that Cao Cao least wanted to see. Cao Cao was obviously not happy, but taking the initiative to fight now was just asking for trouble.

"The defeat is certain!" Guangling, Chen Mansion, Chen Deng looked at his father and said calmly.

There is no danger to defend Xuzhou. Even if the Huaihe River waters can block the Guanzhong Army for a while, this is not the Yangtze River, and it is not at the level of a natural moat. If Lu Bu rushes to attack, he is likely to suffer a big defeat here. In that case, Cao Cao still has It was possible to fight back, but after Lu Bu captured Yuzhou and Yanzhou, he chose a strategy of playing it safe and fighting step by step, which blocked the possibility of Cao Cao's final comeback.

There are currently many scholars who support Cao Cao. Under the current situation, within one or two years, Cao Cao can raise an army of 200,000, but it will be difficult to say after one or two years.

Lu Bu didn't even have to do anything, Xuzhou would collapse on its own. The reason is simple. Xuzhou couldn't afford to support so many wealthy families. Cao Cao brought these wealthy families into Xuzhou. Although he nominally asked these people to come to Guangling to open up wasteland, who would really want to Come here to open up wasteland?

During this period of time, many people have come to ask Chen for help, either explicitly or covertly, to establish themselves in Xuzhou.

Chen Gui looked at Chen Deng and said, "My son's life was also saved by Duke Cao."

However, Chen Gui was so good at life that he was saved by Hua Tuo once before. When he relapsed, Cao Cao happened to retreat and ordered Hua Tuo to help Chen Deng diagnose and treat him, so that he escaped again.

"The child knows, but the Chen family doesn't want it?" Chen Deng's rhetorical question was very straightforward. Of course, the life-saving grace must be repaid, but what should the family do?

Chen Gui was speechless and asked after a moment: "Is there really no other way?"

"Father, you can think about it this way. Guanzhong's army has bows and crossbows that can shoot a hundred steps, but Cao's army only has rudimentary weapons, not even shields or leather armor. Although there are many people, what is the outcome?" Chen Deng asked rhetorically.

Lu Bu's fight against the princes now is just like when the bow and arrow first appeared, the party with bows and arrows fought against the party without bows and arrows. The difference is that bows and arrows are actually easy to imitate, but the Vulcan Cannon, Thunder God, and Thunder God Crossbow that Lu Bu brought out this time Can't be counterfeited.

After Chen Deng saw the drawings of the Tai Chi furnace, he had already determined that Cao Cao or all the princes in the world, including the now-dead Yuan Shao, had been thrown away by Lu Bu for an era, just like the transition from stone to bronze. .

Only this time it was more violent.

Chen Gui can certainly understand, but the system at Lu Bu's side is not friendly to a family like theirs.

"If father is worried about the Taiwei, there is no need." Chen Deng said with a smile.

"Oh?" Chen Gui looked at Chen Deng in confusion: "What's the explanation?"

"Actually, as long as you follow the new court laws, you can sit back and relax." Chen Deng said with a smile.

The court’s new law?

Chen Gui felt a little distressed. How could he not know this truth? But according to the new law of the court, at least the Chen family's land could not be kept. It was said to be under the control of the court, but in fact it was returned to the court. They collected some taxes. Unlike before, In comparison, it's a world of difference.

Even before Lu Bu came out of seclusion, as one of the three major princes, he had a power similar to that of Yuan Shao and Cao Cao. Why were there so few scholars who surrendered to him? Even many talents under Lu Bu's command have fled away and do not want to serve Lu Bu? It was because this law was very unfriendly to the gentry class that it drove away many gentry members or those who aspired to join the gentry class.

"Dad is still worried about the Chen family's land?" Chen Deng asked with a smile when he saw Chen Gui's demeanor.

"Otherwise?" Chen Gui asked rhetorically, no matter what time, this land is the foundation. Lu Bu took the land from the scholars, which meant that he was extirpating himself from the world.

"All things in the world rise and fall. If one thing declines, another will rise. Although you will lose your land, there are still greater benefits in it." Chen Deng said, taking out a drawing from his arms, which was exactly what Cao Cao gave him. Everyone’s Tai Chi furnace drawings.

"What... is this?" Chen Gui looked at the drawing blankly, wondering why his son showed him this thing.

"The Tai Chi furnace is the core of the Tai Chi cart." Chen Deng said with a smile.

"What does this thing have to do with what you and I said?" Chen Gui asked confused.

"Since this thing can create everything out of nothing, and can make the Tai Chi car move without animal power, can it be used in other places? If we can master this thing, we can do a lot of things." Chen Deng said with a smile.

Chen Gui frowned and looked at the drawing. After looking at it for a long time, he couldn't see what it had to do with Tai Chi.

"Father, the decline of the noble clan is irreversible. Even if we fight with death, we will only turn into a cup of loess in the end. If we want the family to prosper forever, going against the trend will only lead to death. Only by following the trend can we survive. , The current situation in the world has changed from the moment Taiwei captured Jizhou." Chen Deng said with a smile.

Since you can't beat him, you still have to fight to the death. In Chen Deng's opinion, it is a very stupid thing. What everyone should do is to follow the trend, instead of just focusing on the small profits and even risking their lives.

Holding on to the glory of the past and rejecting new things, apart from leaving a reputation of being ignorant of current affairs, Chen Deng really can't think of any other benefits?

In the past, there were three pillars of confrontation, but now it seems that Cao Cao and Yuan Shao are not qualified to fight against Lu Bu at all.

Rather than holding on to the glory of our ancestors and accompanying all the scholars as the old era falls, it is better to put aside the vain glory of the past and embrace the new thing.

Chen Deng had a hunch that this Tai Chi furnace would bring about earth-shaking changes to the world, and now it might just be the beginning!

"That's it!" Chen Gui sighed and said: "I am already old. The Chen family will ultimately want you to make the decision in the future. How to do this matter is up to you."

"Thank you, father." Chen Deng smiled and said, "Don't worry, father, Deng will not disappoint him."

Chen Gui nodded and didn't say anything more. He was actually very worried. He didn't know whether his son's choice was right or wrong. According to past rules, powerful officials like Lu Bu would never end well, but now the world seems to be It has indeed become different. He has become accustomed to the old way of thinking. In fact, even if Chen Deng has explained Chen Deng's argument in detail, he still seems to understand it.

Just out of recognition of his son's ability and vision, Chen Gui chose to believe in his son, which also showed that he had lost confidence in Cao Cao. Just as Chen Deng said at the beginning, Cao Cao is now...defeated!

Naturally, Cao Cao didn't know that the Chen family and his son had secretly planned to surrender. Now various problems in Xuzhou began to arise one after another as the Guanzhong Army stabilized.

The noble families began to compete with each other for territory. Instead of just opening up wasteland, they began to find ways to snatch it from the local wealthy families.

Disputes between the wealthy families in Xuzhou and the wealthy families in Yingchuan and Yuzhou occurred from time to time.

Cao Cao wanted to target Lu Bu. This increasingly serious internal problem required constant coordination and resolution. He began to suppress the wealthy families in Xuzhou. There was nothing he could do about it. The place was so big and no amount of adjustment would be enough. It would be better to use the direct forces of Yuzhou and Yanzhou. To suppress the Xuzhou forces and suppress the Xuzhou forces, they mainly use the forces of Yanzhou and Yuzhou.

This is also the reason why Chen Deng began to look for another way out. After all, the reason why he surrendered to Cao Cao and abandoned Liu Bei in the first place, no matter how high-sounding it was, was actually because of interests.

Those who join forces with each other will break up if the benefits are exhausted. Now Cao Cao has begun to lead the Yanzhou and Yuzhou forces to oppress the Xuzhou forces. Although the Chen family has not been pressured, the benefits have indeed been exhausted, and the Chen family can only find another way out.

In addition, the most important thing Cao Cao did was to actively contact Jiangdong to discuss how to fight against Lu Bu. After all, if Lu Bu captured Xuzhou, Jiangdong and Jingzhou would definitely be the next step.

On the Jingzhou side, Nanyang and Shu sent troops at the same time, and it was almost impossible to stop them. In the end, only Jiangdong was left. How could they stop it?

Their lips are dead and their teeth are cold. At this time, they naturally have to join forces to resist Lu Bu's southern invasion.

At this point, Jiangdong basically supports Sun Quan and Cao Cao to join forces to fight against Lu Bu.

At the same time, Cao Cao was also actively training his troops and setting up defense lines. Although the Vulcan Cannon was powerful, it was not impossible to deal with it. After several battles, Cao Cao found some tips for dealing with the Vulcan Cannon.

For example, digging gullies can reduce casualties, even using Thunder Thunder and Thunder God Crossbow.

Furthermore, if they choose to fight on a rainy day, it will basically be a sword fight between the two sides, and the firearms will basically misfire, so Cao Cao spent this period of time training his soldiers' ability to fight in the rain.

The other is to build a dam. You can't hit it from the front. As long as you dare to come, I will release water to wash you away. The biggest feature of the Jianghuai area is the crisscross waterways. Making full use of this can greatly limit heavy attacks like the Vulcan Cannon. City weapon...