Chapter 728 Undercurrent
Chapter 728 Undercurrent
Surprisingly, Hedong is much more stable than Pingyang.
Perhaps this has something to do with the fact that they are not facing too strong military pressure.
The most important task of the Hedong counties at present is to send personnel to transport food and fodder to the front lines of Chenguan and Minchi.
Chenguan is close and it is relatively safe behind the pass, so this work is not that difficult.
Minchi was much more dangerous. Therefore, they only sent the food and equipment to Shan County, and let Wang Mi figure out the rest. Anyway, he had been distributing houses and fields in recent years, and reclaimed some wasteland and distributed it to refugees. He had a large population under his control, no less than 50,000, so it was no problem to transport some able-bodied men and women.
It was already evening when Qiao Yu arrived at Anyi County, the capital of Hedong Prefecture.
The countryside in early September was extremely quiet, even a little too quiet.
Qiao Yu came to the old house of Wei family in Anyi and looked around.
This is a family in decline.
Many years ago, it might have been a prominent family or a famous wealthy family in the north, but the bloody storm more than 20 years ago caused this family to suffer heavy losses - just like the Pei family at that time.
But the Wei family was not as lucky as the Pei family.
Pei's family turned their fortunes around thanks to women.
The thief Shao was obsessed with his mistress and took good care of the Pei family, attracting many of the Pei family's descendants to flee east to work for him. Even Pei Kang, one of the elders of the clan, became one of the three dukes of the Liang State.
Wei took a wrong step.
I heard that Wei Jie had contact with Shao Xun because of his wife Le. But in the end, he took his mother to Jiangxia, where he retired, and died a few years later - it was too easy for northerners to get sick and die suddenly when they went to the south.
Wei Jie's brother Wei Li stayed in the north and first served as a Palace Attendant. Later, he was dissatisfied with Wang Yan's monopoly of power and the rise of people of low status like Shao Xun. In addition, Luoyang could not pay his salary, so he lived a difficult life and resigned and returned to his hometown of Anyi.
When Liu Cong heard about this, he recruited him to serve as an official. Wei Xu also looked down on the Xiongnu and thought it was a shame for a family like the Anyi Wei family to serve the Xiongnu. He thought it would be better for him to serve Shao Xun, so he refused.
Liu Cong was furious and killed him.
Of course, this is the only way to go. Wei Yu can die, but the Wei family cannot be destroyed. Otherwise, the Pei family, Xue family, Liu family, and the local tyrants who depend on them will feel threatened.
If there were no external enemies, it would be fine, but the Shao thief is here, and we must not lose our composure at this time. The crime is only committed by Wei Yu, and no one else is involved.
The Wei family also gave in and sent several of their sons to serve as officials.
To be honest, these Wei family members really have no talent.
When Jia Nanfeng was in power, all the outstanding children of the Wei family were swept away, leaving only Wei Jie and Wei Xu who were somewhat famous. After their deaths, there was an obvious talent gap in the Hedong Wei family.
Qiao Yu looked down on the children of officials, let alone those who went to Luoyang and Bianliang to be officials where the competition among scholars was even more intense.
This family is finished, and now it can only serve as a source of money and food supply for the Han Dynasty.
After watching for a while, Qiao Yu saw some Wei soldiers peeking out from the wall, so he asked his followers to go forward and knock on the door.
After a while, someone brought him in.
About half an hour later, a man came out of the dog hole at the backyard wall of the Wei family manor and ran away. He first went to the vegetable field of a gardener not far away, took the horse, and then rode away. In the second half of the night, he arrived at a Wei family manor at the junction of Anyi and Wenxi.
After verifying his identity, he hurried in.
"Shu Nu, why are you here? Is there something wrong?" Wei Zhan, who was entertaining guests in the garden, stood up and asked.
"Brother, Qiao Yu is here to supervise the supply of food and grass and the men, and he is carrying the order from the prefect." Shu Nu replied.
"Is he the only one here?" Wei Zhan frowned and asked.
"There are more than ten followers. The envoy of the Lord of the Mansion will not arrive until tomorrow. Qiao Yu came here the night before and asked the mansion to make some preparations. Tomorrow morning, 100,000 bushels of grain and 200,000 bundles of hay will be transported to Pingyang."
"Is it so urgent?" Wei Zhan thought.
After saying that, he waved his hand to let his cousin leave and said, "I'll come find you later."
The rat slave retreated as he was told.
The guest sat aside and watched calmly.
The Wei family of Hedong has long been known as a prominent family.
During the Cao Wei period, Wei Ji was highly valued. From then on, this branch became the main branch.
But it wasn't very famous at that time.
Wei Ji's son Wei Guan was quite capable and brought honor to the family, which achieved further development. All of his children married into prominent families.
The eldest son married the daughter of He Shao of Yangxia.
The second son, Wei Heng, married the daughter of King Hun of Taiyuan.
The third son, Wei Yue, married the daughter of Pei Kai from Hedong.
The fourth son, Wei Xuan, married Princess Fanchang. …
Wei Guan's daughter almost became the empress of Emperor Hui. If Jia Chong hadn't secretly manipulated it, there would be no Jia Nanfeng.
After Wei Guan, his grandson Wei Li was killed by Liu Cong, and Wei Jie died in exile in the south of the Yangtze River. This branch of the family was completely in decline.
Wei Zhan was the grandson of Wei Lie, the former guard general of Pengcheng, and the son of Wei Shao, the magistrate of Guangping. Judging from his seniority, he should be the nephew of Wei Guan and of the same generation as Wei Heng. He was also the uncle of Wei Wei and Wei Jie.
Wei Zhan had a sister, Wei Shuo, who was the famous Lady Wei, Wang Xizhi's calligraphy teacher. She married Li Ju of Jiangxia - not Li Ju of Pingyang, as his background did not make him eligible to marry a daughter of the Wei family.
Such a glorious family would suddenly become empty and gradually decline.
"Daoshu, the descendants of the Wei family are in Jiangxia, Jianye, and Hedong. They are scattered all over the place and have spread out their branches and leaves. There is no worry that the family will be overthrown. Since you have returned to the north, you must be determined to revive the family." The guest stroked his beard and said, "At this moment, you should make a desperate effort, otherwise you will be forgotten by the crowd."
Wei Zhan sat down, looked at the visitor, and said, "Jing Si (Pei Xian) has returned from Youzhou. I guess he has already decided on Lord Liang?"
Pei Xian was struck by this question and remained speechless for a moment.
Wei Zhan was amused by his appearance and said, "Jing Si is really not cut out to be a lobbyist."
Pei Xian blushed when he heard this.
Not only is he not fit to be a lobbyist, he is not fit to be a general either, and he is even considered a jinx...
He surrendered to Sima Yue and was defeated.
He fled to Hua Yi in Jiangzhou, and Yi died.
He then attached himself to Wang Jun of Youzhou, who died again - Wang Jun's ex-wife Wei Xiu was the niece of Wei Guan and the cousin of Wei Zhan.
Only Lord Liang dared to employ him. The luck of Taibai Star Spirit is truly amazing!
"Forget it." Wei Zhan smiled and shook his head, saying, "Qiao Yu was originally in Xiurong, but returned from Taiyuan to urge forage. It seems that Lord Liang's troops are not far away."
"Hasn't the army been dispatched?" Pei Xian asked, "Hou Feihu conquered Changzi County and beheaded more than 3,000 people."
"This is to clear the gates, not to send a large army." Wei Zhan patiently explained to Pei Xian: "If Hou Feihu crosses the Wuling Road and attacks Pingyang directly, it may be possible."
So that's what's going on! Pei Xian really doesn't understand these things.
“Jing Si——” Even though there were no outsiders around, Wei Zhan still subconsciously lowered his voice and asked, “How does Lord Liang treat Madam Pei?”
Hearing this, Pei Xian snorted coldly and said, "You don't even care about your face!"
Wei Zhan looked at him helplessly.
Pei Xian took a deep breath and said, "My younger sister has been well-educated, gentle and beautiful since she was a child. She felt sorry for Shao Xun and took good care of him. But Shao Xun was thinking of committing an insubordination..."
"That's enough!" Wei Zhan wanted to get up and beat this guy, but he held back and asked, "I heard that Madam Pei gave birth to three sons for Lord Liang. When Lord Pei passed away last time, Lord Liang took time out from all his affairs to accompany Madam Pei to relax and soothe her grief. I have never seen a king or a duke love a woman so much. Jingsi, it doesn't matter if you don't understand, there are people in the Pei family who do. Today, tell me the inside story of Bianliang, and I will consider it again."
"Does this require further consideration?" Pei Xian asked in surprise.
If he were Liu Cong, he would have abandoned his army and fled to Chang'an. What else is there to consider? How to lose? How to lose with dignity?
"The Wei family can't stand the turmoil anymore." Wei Zhan told him the truth: "If the benefits are not big enough, I'd rather not move."
Pei Xian was not a fool after all. After thinking for a long time, he said shyly, "Mr. Liang really likes my sister..."
After listening to Pei Xian's words, Wei Zhan roughly understood what he had expected.
I don't like it, but I can have three children? How is that possible!
And there are three sons, which makes sense.
Wei Zhan suddenly stood up, looked at the bright moon outside, and thought for a long time.
"Daoshu, I have delivered the message." Pei Xian said, "Liu Cong no longer trusts the Pei family. In the battle of Xishi Fort, many of the Pei family's descendants and followers rebelled. Wang Mi reported it to Pingyang, which is a bit tricky. Some people in the clan are worried that Liu Cong will be crazy and want to attack the Pei family, so they want to make a big move. The Xue and Liu families have always been of the same blood, and they will also take action together. If we all take action, but the Wei family does not, it will be no good regardless of victory or defeat."
Although Pei Xian is not very capable, there is nothing wrong with what he said.
Assuming that the Pei, Xue, and Liu families launched a rebellion and were eventually suppressed by Liu Cong, would the Wei family really be free of suspicion? Not necessarily. Liu Cong might take the opportunity to deal with them and make them no longer able to cause trouble.
If the three families succeeded in their rebellion and at the same time Duke Liang's army invaded Pingyang, the Wei family would be in an even more embarrassing situation.
Pei Xian is now the Censor of Liang State. He not only represents the Pei family, but also Duke Liang.
I asked you to rise up and return to the right path, but you refused to do so. If this had not happened, it would be fine, but now it has definitely come to you, and if you don't show any resistance, you will definitely be punished in the future, and it will be justified.
"Jingsi, how does Lord Liang want us to do it?" Wei Zhan sat back and asked.
"It's very simple, just come closer and listen." Pei Xian waved his hand and said.
Wei Zhan shook his head and laughed, then leaned his ear over.
After a moment, he pondered and said, "This is not difficult. But we need to grasp the timing well. If we take action and Lord Liang is still hesitating in Luliang Mountain, it will not be good."
"Just wait for the news." Pei Xian said.
(End of this chapter)