The Pengcheng assembly hall was located in the southeast main hall of the Cishi Residence.
It was different from what Tao Shang had imagined.
The assembly hall was not as magnificent and resplendent as he had guessed, nor was it adorned with carved beams and painted rafters in a majestic and imposing manner…
On the contrary, the construction of the assembly hall was relatively simple and crude: old wooden corridors, grayish-blue bricks and tiles, several rows of worn and chipped benches, and kneeling mats that were neither particularly thick nor thin.
Only on Tao Qian’s main seat was placed a low squatting stool, symbolizing his status as the presiding official.
For a lord of Cishi rank, it was truly rather shabby.
When Tao Shang and Tao Ying, the two brothers, arrived, the officials of Xuzhou who were qualified to participate in the assembly had basically all arrived.
Tao Qian, leaning on his cane, quietly watched the two young men enter the hall.
A slight smile unconsciously appeared on his face, but it disappeared immediately without anyone noticing.
“Father, gentlemen, we two were delayed by some matters and arrived a bit late.
We hope you will forgive us.” Tao Shang cupped his hands and bowed.
Tao Qian nodded slowly and did not get angry because his two sons arrived late.
It was clear that the old man was quite satisfied that the two children had not skipped the meeting…
As for being late to punch in, it was not an issue at all.
The heart of parents under heaven is pitiable.
Tao Qian’s requirements for his two sons were truly as low as they could possibly be.
Tao Shang suspected that in history, Tao Qian’s relatively quick death during the period of his three refusals of Xuzhou had little to do with Cao Cao and Liu Bei, and was probably due to worrying about his descendants, leading to mental and physical exhaustion, and death from haggardness.
“Gentlemen.” Seeing that everyone had arrived, Tao Qian spoke first: “Several months ago, after Cao Cao of the capital failed in his assassination attempt on Dong Zhuo, he fled to Chenliu, organized five thousand righteous troops, raised a great banner, and invited the Inspectors and Administrators of the various provinces and commanderies to join him in attacking Dong Zhuo.
Last month, Qiao Mao of Dong Commandery sent someone with a call to arms, stating that he had received secret orders from the Three Excellencies in the capital, urging the various commandery governors to dispatch troops to aid the emperor…
And Han Fu, the Governor of Jizhou, has also joined forces with Yuan Shao to raise troops in Hebei.
The feudal lords east of the passes have reacted intensely to this matter.
I have repeatedly received invitations from various towns and find it difficult to decline…
Today I have summoned you gentlemen here precisely to discuss this matter.
Attacking Dong Zhuo is of great importance, and after weighing the pros and cons, I truly find it difficult to decide.” After saying this, Tao Qian swept his gaze around, inquiringly observing the people present.
None of those present dared to speak casually; they all waited for Xuzhou’s Four Great Supporting Ministers to speak first.
The so-called Four Great Supporting Ministers of Xuzhou were Mi Zhu, Cao Bao, Zhao Yu, and Wang Lang.
All four were powerful local gentry.
Among them, Mi Zhu was the richest, Cao Bao was the best fighter, Wang Lang was the most talented, and Zhao Yu had the most scheming mind.
Two years earlier, Tao Qian’s successful takeover of Xuzhou, in addition to his own imperial appointment, was most importantly due to the fact that upon arriving in the region, he had made transactional deals with these four great local powers, exchanging policies for their support, which allowed him to firmly sit in Xuzhou.
The question Tao Qian had thrown out was also a difficult one for the Four Great Supporting Ministers.
People of later generations looking at the situation at that time might find it very clear; any middle school student could casually say that attacking Dong Zhuo was an act in accordance with Heaven and the people’s will!
But that was, after all, because of the practices of predecessors.
At that time, Dong Zhuo occupied Guanzhong and controlled parts of the northwest region!
It is well known that Guanzhong has a thousand li of fertile fields, a rich country and strong people.
During the Warring States period, the Qin state, based here, moved eastward to contend for the realm, and none of the six states could match it!
Later, the High Ancestor secretly crossed through Chen Cang from here to attack Chu, and also achieved imperial enterprise, issuing commands to the realm!
Moreover, the Han dynasty’s central army and the main Xiliang forces were all under Dong Zhuo’s control!
Lü Bu had also led the Bingzhou army of Ding Yuan from Bingzhou to submit!
It could be said that the most powerful armies of the Han dynasty were basically in Dong Zhuo’s hands.
Although the local warlords had expanded their armaments due to the Yellow Turban Rebellion, they had not yet reached the peak of the warlord division period!
Currently, they are only in the development stage.
In terms of military strength, they were still subject to central control and could not recruit excessively.
Dong Zhuo was strong and the localities were weak, this point was beyond doubt.
Furthermore, the rumors that Dong Zhuo deceived the ruler and disregarded superiors were, after all, hearsay.
Without seeing it with their own eyes, who dared to guarantee that it was not fabricated nonsense by Dong Zhuo’s political enemies to deal with him?
If Prime Minister Dong and the emperor were as close as wearing the same pants, and the local warlords blindly rebelled, wouldn’t that be slapping their own faces?
“Lord Inspector!” The first to speak was Cao Bao, who was currently in charge of commanding the Pengcheng central army, holding military power and thus having higher authority in discussions, responsible for Xuzhou’s military affairs.
“General Cao, what do you have to say?” Tao Qian hurriedly inquired.
Cao Bao stroked his short beard, pondered for a moment, and said: “Lord Inspector, the situation under Heaven today is murky and uncertain, the overall state unclear.
Now the various feudal lords are raising righteous banners one after another, intending to attack Dong Zhuo.
However, victory or defeat is truly unknown.
Moreover, without a clear imperial edict, once we involve ourselves in this muddy affair, the consequences will be unthinkable.
In my humble opinion, Lord Inspector had better not get mixed up in such messy business!” Upon hearing this, Tao Qian remained silent for a moment, only nodding: “Good, good…” “Lord Inspector, in my humble opinion, it cannot be done!” The one speaking now was Wang Lang, one of the Four Great Supporting Ministers.
He had originally been a disciple of Grand Commandant Yang Ci and enjoyed a reputation renowned throughout the realm.
Tao Qian had always liked people with fame and talent, so he had appointed Wang Lang as the Attendant of the Center for Governance, in charge of Xuzhou’s various offices’ documents, responsible for Xuzhou’s civil affairs.
Tao Qian turned his head to look at Wang Lang: “Jingxing, what is your esteemed opinion?” “Lord Inspector, those who ally with the various feudal lords to attack Dong Zhuo are primarily led by Yuan Shao, Yuan Shu, Bao Xin, Cao Cao, and others!
Leaving Bao Xin and Cao Cao aside for now, the Yuan brothers are descendants of a prestigious family, and scholar-gentry throughout the realm all look up to them!
I have heard that Yuan Shu has already joined forces with Sun Jian, killed Nanyang Administrator Zhang Zi, and taken control of the territory himself.
Nanyang’s household registration numbers in the hundreds of thousands!
With the Yuan clan’s reputation and Nanyang’s population, within two years Yuan Shu will surely become a hegemon in the south!
Now he wants to attack Dong.
If we do not follow, with such a powerful neighbor at our side, how will we deal with the situation in the future?
If Yuan Shu raises troops to question our offense, can Dong Zhuo, far away in Guanzhong, aid our Xuzhou?” Tao Qian continued nodding: “Good…
good.” Among the Four Great Supporting Ministers, Zhao Yu was the most adept at reading the wind and steering accordingly.
Seeing that neither Cao Bao’s nor Wang Lang’s statements had received Tao Qian’s full approval or rejection, he did not express his own opinion but simply asked: “Lord Inspector keeps nodding and saying ‘good.’ I wonder whether it is good to follow Dong Zhuo or good to follow Yuan Shao and Yuan Shu?” Tao Qian was silent for a moment before slowly saying: “Actually, both are quite good…” Listening from below, Tao Shang could not help but want to laugh.
This Tao Qian was talented, yes, but this rolling-meat-with-a-blade kind of personality really had no solution.
He could not openly laugh at him…
After all, mocking one’s own father would not sound good if word got out.
His own status was humble and his words carried little weight; he had no right to speak in this assembly.
But since he had already communicated with Mi Zhu beforehand, whether he could change Tao Qian’s mind depended on him!
Mi Zhu had been sitting upright the whole time, listening to everyone’s words.
Only now did he slowly stand up, look around the room, and finally cup his hands: “My lord, your subordinate has something to say.” Wang Lang’s words and Cao Bao’s words had left Tao Qian’s heart wavering and indecisive.
Seeing Mi Zhu stand up now, he hurriedly said: “What esteemed opinion does the Lieutenant Governor have?
Speak freely!” Mi Zhu cleared his throat and said: “At present, observing from the sidelines in the campaign against Dong Zhuo has its benefits, but responding to the call and dispatching troops is even more advantageous.
First, it can enhance the reputation of our Xuzhou, attracting talented and capable men from all directions to join us.
We do not need to be as irreconcilable with Dong Zhuo as Yuan Shao and Cao Cao; as long as we can achieve one or two victories in the campaign, or perhaps behead a few of his generals, that will be sufficient!
Second, once Dong Zhuo sees the strength of our Xuzhou, in order to check Yuan Shao and the others, he will surely try to win us over, and it is not impossible that he will grant additional imperial appointments.
Third, it will not offend our four neighboring regions, ensuring the people of Xuzhou remain untroubled!
At that time, we can advance to attack or retreat to defend, and all sides will treat our Xuzhou as an ally.
How could this not be stronger than merely observing from the sidelines?
In this chaotic age, rigidly adhering to rules and norms will never last long.
I hope my lord will consider this carefully!” Wang Lang, seeing that Mi Zhu’s opinion basically aligned with his own, hurriedly stood up as well and said: “Lord Inspector, the Lieutenant Governor’s words are excellent!” Zhao Yu, ever ready to trim his sails, saw that Mi Zhu and Wang Lang were in agreement and immediately stood up to echo: “Your subordinate concurs.” Among the Four Great Supporting Ministers, only Cao Bao held a different opinion.
At this moment, his face darkened as he looked back and forth between Mi Zhu and Wang Lang, saying: “You two seem to have forgotten one important matter!” Everyone turned their faces toward Cao Bao, only to hear him speak methodically: “Attendant Wang is responsible for Xuzhou’s civil affairs, Lieutenant Governor Mi for official grain and taxation, but military affairs have always been under my responsibility!
Currently, Zang Ba of Xuzhou has withdrawn his troops and stationed them around Kaiyang, establishing himself as a hegemon.
Sun Guan, Wu Dun, Yin Li, and others have all attached themselves to him.
His power is enormous.
Once our troops march west, if Zang Ba takes advantage of the emptiness to cause chaos in Xuzhou, what then?
Moreover, the campaign against Dong Zhuo is a major affair for all the feudal lords.
If there is an alliance meeting, Lord Tao must attend in person.
Whether the troops can move or not aside, the threat of Zang Ba has not been resolved.
If my lord lightly leaves Xuzhou, and something happens, who will be here to mediate from the center?” Mi Zhu frowned upon hearing this.
The authority over dispatching Xuzhou’s troops currently lay with Cao Bao.
Using this as an excuse to decline was indeed difficult to counter, and what he said was quite reasonable.
Although Zang Ba nominally submitted to Tao Qian, his actions were completely autonomous.
This man had stationed troops in Kaiyang and subdued the various bandits of Taishan for his own use.
His strength was great enough to stand as an equal against Xuzhou’s local forces.
Cao Bao using this as a reason to keep Tao Qian in Xuzhou was indeed justifiable…
After looking around the hall once, Mi Zhu’s gaze fell on Tao Shang.
His eyes instantly lit up.
A living person could not be suffocated to death by urine…
He had an idea!
————————————————————————————– Birth Name: wang lang Courtier’s Name: wang Jǐngxīng