People are greedy.

Especially people like Sun Quan who took advantage because they had both sides.

If you don't occupy it, you won't occupy it.

Anyway, you won't die if you take possession of it.

What if the other party doesn’t care about you?

dont you agree?

Only this time, Chen Zhen severely criticized Soochow's proposal to cede Youzhou, one of the three states in Hebei:

"Liangzhou, Bingzhou, and Youzhou are all bitter and cold places where the people are suffering and the Han Dynasty belongs to them."

"The land east of Hangu Pass, south of the river, the land east of Guandong, and the heart of the Central Plains, is the most fertile place in the world. Now that it is all assigned to the Kingdom of Wu, is it not enough?"

"Master Wu's move is nothing more than trying to steal people's clay pottery while holding gold. It is not a sincere pledge of alliance!"

After hearing Chen Zhen's words, even someone like Sun Quan felt a little hot on his face.

It's just that the Wu State is famous for its boats and can easily communicate with Liaodong. Naturally, Sun Quan cannot give up Youzhou easily.

"The purpose of the two countries' alliance was to destroy Cao Wei. Now that Cao Wei has not been destroyed, they are fighting for the prefectures and states that they have not yet captured. Does the Han envoy think this is also the way to form an alliance?"

Prime Minister Gu Yong understood Sun Quan's intention and asked.

Chen Zhen shook his head, "The Han has sworn to destroy the Cao thieves, so I am determined to fight. If we don't agree at this time, then the Han army will move east and the Wu army will move north."

"When the two countries met in the Central Plains and had a dispute, what should we do? Since they share the world equally, they should be fair and just, and they should not be prevaricated by words that have not yet been obtained."

He looked at Sun Quan pointedly and said, "In the past, Han and Wu teamed up to defeat Cao Cao in Chibi. Does your Majesty still remember it?"

Not to mention Sun Quan, even Lu Xun, who was sitting next to him, had his eyelids twitching.

Because of the Jingzhou incident, he was still one of the masterminds.

Normally, it would be fine for the Wu State to brag internally, but bragging in front of the Shu State was not only risky, but also required a face as thick as a city wall.

After all, the matter of breaking the alliance is really a sensitive topic nowadays.

After hearing Chen Zhen's words, Sun Quan was very unhappy:

So after all is said and done, you Han people just don’t believe us, right?

Now that the words had come to this point, Lu Xun had no choice but to say, "The matter of swearing an alliance does require sincerity."

"However, next to Youzhou is Liaodong. Gongsun Yuan of Liaodong has always had contacts with our country of Wu."

"If we can get help from Gongsun Yuan of Liaodong, wouldn't it be much easier for Wu to conquer Youzhou than it is for Han?"

When Chen Zhen heard this, he frowned slightly. He really didn't know this news.

"Just now Chen Weiwei also said that the Han Dynasty has vowed to destroy Wei, so why don't we, the Wu Kingdom, have the desire to pursue thieves? Therefore, we, the Wu Kingdom, can seize this Youzhou."

Chen Zhen knew that Lu Xun would not lie to him, but he was unwilling to let go easily: "But if you do this, I will lose a state in vain, which is inconsistent with both emotion and reason."

Sun Quan, who was sitting on the throne, finally spoke: "How about exchanging Yanzhou for Youzhou?"

"Chen Weiwei, please take a look," Sun Quan pointed to the map of the thirteen states in the world, "Although Yanzhou is south of the river, it is closely adjacent to Jizhou, so the connection is quite convenient."

"Moreover, the central plains of Guandong are rich and prosperous. This Yanzhou is much better than the bitter and cold places like Youzhou. By exchanging it, the Han Kingdom not only did not suffer losses, but actually took advantage."

Anyway, Yanzhou is located in the center of the hinterland of Wei State, separated from Wu State by Xuzhou and Yuzhou. If you really want to take it, it will be too difficult.

Unlike Youzhou, if it had Gongsun Yuan's support, Wu could reach there directly by sea.

How could Chen Zhen not know what Sun Quan was thinking, but for the Han Dynasty, Youzhou and Yanzhou were equally far away.

One is in the north of Jizhou and the other is in the south of Jizhou.

If the Han Dynasty can really attack Jizhou in the future, it won't matter which one they take.

So after some thought, he agreed.

The news that Han and Wu set up high altars, publicly swore alliances, and vigorously dealt with Cao Wei spread to the north, making Cao Rui, who had barely stabilized the domestic situation, furious.

But that's not the worst news.

After all, the two captives of Shu and Wu had already joined forces.

The worse news is that I heard news from Hanzhong and Longyou that the Shu people sent troops to Liangzhou a few months ago.

Some people say that due to the lack of troops in Liangzhou, the invading Shu army had to surrender in large numbers.

Some people say that it was Liangzhou officials who took the initiative to lead the Shu army into Liangzhou.

Some people even say that it was the Qiang and Hu rebellion in Liangzhou that gave the Shu people a chance...

There are different kinds of news, and opinions vary.

It's just that the news between Liangzhou and Guanzhong is cut off. Official news from the government between the two places has to go through the desert north of Anding, which can only be exchanged every few months.

More information is obtained through the caravan exchanges between Longyou and Guanzhong.

The Shu brocade produced in Shu is a rare and luxurious color in the Central Plains.

Even Cao Rui himself liked it very much.

Woolen materials are even more necessary for the army in winter.

Therefore, although the two sides are at war with each other, the caravan exchanges are becoming more frequent.

Of course, in these caravans, there is indispensable detail from both sides.

It's just that no matter which caravan the news comes from, no matter what the content is, there is one thing in common, that is, the Shu people are marching into Liangzhou, and the situation in Liangzhou is very unfavorable.

Sun Quan proclaimed himself emperor and swore an alliance with the Shu people. Liangzhou was most likely lost. Although he had been mentally prepared for this, Cao Rui was still upset.

Only in the third year after he ascended the throne, he transferred the three auxiliary ministers with real power out of Luoyang, leaving only one Chen Qun who did not hold military power.

In this way, the influence of the auxiliary ministers on the DPRK and China can be quickly reduced so that he can monopolize power.

These methods can be regarded as a person who is well versed in the art of checks and balances and understands the emperor's mind.

If there had not been the matter of Shu and Wu, the next thing he would have done was to learn from Emperor Wu, go beyond the nine-level Zhongzheng system, and issue a talent seeking order to weaken the family's control over the court.

It's just that God doesn't fulfill people's wishes.

Last year's two major defeats in the west and south forced him to continue to compromise with the family in order to secure the stability of Cao Wei's regime.

He had just settled down a bit this year, and before he could breathe a sigh of relief, bad news came one after another. He was so angry that he smashed several teacups in the west hall.

The expensive wool carpet on the floor was soaked by tea splashes and looked a little disfigured.

Cao Rui had no choice but to come to the East Hall and summon the important officials of the court to discuss the matter.

"The Wei Dynasty is the righteousness of the world; the Shu captives steal the western border; the Wu bandits are the barbarians across the Yangtze River. I am the emperor and live in the world, but I am constantly being bullied by the rats."

"I think about those days when Emperor Wu conquered the world with weak troops, Emperor Wen repeatedly suppressed the river, and Sun Quan bowed his head. If I didn't behead the rats of Shu and Wu, how could I have the dignity to go to the ancestral temple to offer sacrifices?"

Cao Rui was still angry and said to the ministers below.

The first person to stand up and object was Tingwei Gaorou.

"The two captives were cunning and had the hidden intention of peeking into the Central Plains. They planned a war and were unwilling to restrain their hands. They used remote areas to expand their military force and made the people miserable."

"The Wei Dynasty is located in the Central Plains. It is suitable to raise the soldiers, repair and manage the soldiers, and treat them with ease. Your Majesty is in charge of the state affairs. Instead of rushing to use force, it is better to stop building palaces and live with the people."

"As long as there is a change between the two captives, and then attack them with elite troops, you will get twice the result with half the effort."

After Cao Pi usurped the Han Dynasty and proclaimed himself emperor, he built a lot of construction projects in Luoyang, changing the two palaces that had existed side by side since the Han Dynasty, and forming a palace layout with Taiji Hall as the center.

Just because the time was short and the war was still ongoing, the palace was never completed.

After Cao Rui ascended the throne, he wanted to move the four divine masters, Emperor Gao, Emperor Tai, Emperor Wu, and Emperor Wen, from Yecheng to Luoyang.

Therefore, construction of the royal ancestral temple began.

At the same time, I want to take this opportunity to expand the Taiji Palace to a few more palaces.

This is what Gao Rou said.

Cao Rui was already very angry. When he heard that Gao Rou not only did not support him, he even advised him to stop recruiting civilians.

He immediately said sternly: "The affairs of the ancestral temple are important affairs of the country, Gao Tingwei, you have passed!"

Gao Rou refused to give in: "Your Majesty, what I'm talking about is the construction of the palace."

Cao Rui could no longer hold back his anger and rushed to his forehead:

"In the past, when Emperor Wen was conquering Wu, the Empress Dowager was guarding the palace in the rear. When it rained heavily, the palace was flooded."

"With her noble body, the Empress Dowager has no choice but to settle down in the water for the sake of the officials and the people."

"Nowadays, there are many leaks in the palace. If the previous incident happens again, does Gao Tingwei want the Empress Dowager and the Empress Dowager to settle in the water again?"

"Do you want to trap me in a place of unfilial piety and be abandoned by the world?"

Gao Rou quickly fell to the ground: "I don't dare."

"Don't you dare to retreat?"

Cao Rui scolded.
To be continued...