Yan opened another box, which was full of gold, silver and jewelry. She looked left and right, and liked it more and more. She said to Lu Lingqi happily, "Mother was worried about how to prepare your dowry when you got married, but now it saves a lot of trouble."
Lu Lingqi shook her head helplessly, "Mom, don't you think this is strange?"
"These two Yuans are enemies. Why would this fierce tiger from the Yuan family send us these things?"
Yan Shi didn't take it seriously and said, "This is just for your father's sake. Who wouldn't come to curry favor with us, the famous Marquis Wen?"
Lu Lingqi was speechless. Her mother was good in every way except that her mind was a little unclear.
She said, "Mother, the biological father of this fierce tiger is Yuan Shao!"
"That's the enemy who wants to kill my father!"
"Father, you won't forget all this just because of some gifts, right?"
After hearing this, Yan suddenly realized what was going on and clapped her hands, saying, "Ling'er is right. If your father didn't agree with the flowers, would they want our gifts back?"
"Hey, the things have been delivered to our house, can he still take them by force?"
"No, I'm worried. Wait a minute, I'll go out and take a look first!"
When Lu Lingqi saw Yan hurriedly going out, she couldn't help but stamp her feet and followed her. Her mother was really behaving in an unconventional way!
In the front hall, Chen Gui saw that Lu Bu had been persuaded by him, while Chen Gong still had a stern face and did not speak, seeming unfathomable, so he hesitated.
Chen Gong just gave up like that?
This doesn't seem to be the same as the rumors?
But now he could only strike while the iron was hot and continue speaking.
"Marquis Wen wants to conquer his own territory, so he naturally has to go beyond Hanoi."
"Now, for Wen Hou, it is okay to attack from all sides, but the priorities are different."
"Yuan Shu wants to use Marquis Wen, and he is powerful. Marquis Wen can just pretend to be submissive and wait and see what happens."
"Cao Cao is vicious. Marquis Wen can defend Chenliu and stop him from advancing westward."
"And the Guanzhong region to the west has become a wasteland for thousands of miles because of Li Jue and Guo Si. It is no longer worth occupying."
"Going north to Bingzhou and occupying the Hetao region is the only option for Marquis Wen to expand his business in the future. He can also help Master Xianyi and fight against foreign enemies together."
Lu Bu sat down and all the generals listened, and they all began to think about it. What Chen Gui said seemed to make sense!
Chen Gong spoke up at this time: "After all, Master Xianyi just wants to use Marquis Wen to annex Bingzhou and get a piece of the pie?"
"The road to the north is blocked by the Black Mountain Army. I'm afraid Master Xianyi is planning to let Marquis Wen attack the Black Mountain Army for him, right?"
After hearing this, Lu Bu finally reacted and stared at Chen Gui and said, "So Yuan Xi wants to use me?"
After hearing this, Chen Gui suddenly burst into laughter.
Lu Bu angrily asked, "What are you laughing at?"
Chen Gui showed a mocking look on his face, "I laugh at Wen Hou for not seeing the situation clearly!"
"Yuan Benchu has already started to wipe out the Black Mountain bandits. Does Marquis Wen think that Master Xianyi will be powerless against the Black Mountain Army if they leave Hanoi?"
"My son can definitely ask for help from Jizhou, and together we can wipe out the Black Mountain Army and divide up Bingzhou. How will Wenhou deal with it then?"
Chen Gong said, "If that's the case, why did Master Xianyi abandon Jizhou and befriend Marquis Wen?"
"Isn't he a member of the Yuan clan?"
After hearing this, everyone nodded. This was also the question that puzzled them. Since Yuan Xi had the support of the Yuan family, if he wanted to wipe out the Black Mountain bandits, he could just go to Jizhou and ask Yuan Shao to send troops. Why did he need to join forces with Lu Bu?
Chen Gui smiled slightly, "Because the young master wants to cooperate with Wen Hou for a long time."
"Given the location of Youzhou, you can only fight in the bitter cold land of Liaodong. There, the Gongsun Du family is entrenched, and there are hundreds of thousands of Wuhuan people. It can be said that there is no benefit."
"Only if the two families occupy Bingzhou can they set their sights on Liangzhou and even Guanzhong!"
Chen Gong heard this and said, "I'm afraid it will be very difficult to conquer Bingzhou, right?"
"Not only does it have hundreds of thousands of Black Mountain troops, it also has hundreds of thousands of Southern Xiongnu. Can Master Xianyi take them all?"
Chen Gui smiled, "It is precisely because I can't eat that I want to join forces with Wen Hou."
"If you ask Jizhou for help to conquer Bingzhou, Jizhou will send a governor to take charge of Bingzhou, and you will not gain any benefit."
"Wen Hou and Ben Chu are enemies. If their territories come into contact, conflict will occur sooner or later."
"But if you join hands with Wen Hou to occupy Bingzhou, and you take over the Taihang Mountain area bordering Jizhou, and Wen Hou occupies the Hetao area in the west, then you will serve as a buffer between Wen Hou and Jizhou."
"By then, you can be said to be the mediator between Lord Wen and Lord Benchu, and it is possible that they can make peace with each other."
Chen Gui's words moved all the generals, including Lu Bu.
Everyone knows that Yuan Shao is powerful. Unless there is no other way out, who would be willing to be his enemy?
Lu Bu can't even defeat Cao Cao now, let alone the even more powerful Yuan Shao?
Yuan Xi's suggestion gave Lu Bu a way out. If Lu Bu and Yuan Xi cooperated to seize Bingzhou, they would build a bridge to communicate with Jizhou again.
Another reason was that most of the generals were from Bingzhou. Occupying Bingzhou was in line with their living habits. Secondly, returning to their hometown would be a matter of pride and honor for their ancestors. Therefore, all the generals began to be persuaded by Chen Gui.
Chen Gong said, "There is another question."
"If the two sides join forces, I'm afraid they will have to attack and destroy Black Mountain first, right?"
"Marquis Wen helped Master Xianyi to fight against Heishan. The outcome is still unknown. Even if he defeats him, Marquis Wen will waste lives and food in vain, but will not gain any benefit at all?"
"Even if Master Xianyi later promises to help Marquis Wen fight the Southern Xiongnu, who knows if he will go back on his word?"
Chen Gui smiled and said, "Mr. Gongtai should have heard about the young master's character. Is he the kind of person who does not keep his word?"
"Young Master, please promise me that if Marquis Wen is worried, he can send a general to lead the troops to jointly manage the Black Mountain Pass with you."
After hearing this, everyone thought that Yuan Xi had considered all the possibilities in advance. It seemed that he had capable people under his command!
Chen Gong asked, "Who is the chief strategist under Master Xianyi?"
Chen Gui replied: "Guo Jia is Guo Fengxiao, a native of Yingchuan."
Chen Gong lowered his head and said nothing. Another person from Yingchuan!
He pondered for a while and said, "Henei is short of food and the soldiers are tired. If we attack Black Mountain, the soldiers will need a huge amount of food and fodder, which cannot be collected in a short time."
Chen Gui knew that Chen Gong was bargaining, so he smiled and said, "My lord, you said that although Youzhou is not rich, we can still provide money and food for a big war."
"Youzhou will fully bear the expenses of sending troops on Wenhou's side."
"As for other conditions, we can also discuss them."
Lu Bu had been convinced to about 70%. He really became famous when he was under Yuan Shao's command. He led dozens of cavalry to attack the Black Mountain Army for more than ten days in a row, severely damaging the morale of the Black Mountain Army. At that time, he had completely torn his relationship with Zhang Yan.
Lu Bu was not without the desire for expansion. He also wanted to occupy the richest Jingzhou. Unfortunately, his strength did not allow it, as Yuzhou, where Yuan Shu was located, was blocking Jingzhou to the north.
If he occupied Bingzhou, recruited the cavalry of the Southern Xiongnu and strengthened his own strength, he would have the capital to dominate the world!
By then, going south to deal with Yuan Shu and Liu Biao, or even turning around to attack Youzhou, wouldn't it all be up to me?
Chen Gui reminded that Lu Bu was thinking about marriage with Yuan Shu. Wasn't Yuan Shu using him as a thug to deal with Yuan Shao and Cao Cao?
If he joined forces with Yuan Xi, there would be a possibility of reconciling with Yuan Shao in the future, and Cao Cao would naturally not attack him again.
Weighing the two options, no matter how you look at it, it would be better to give up Yuan Shu and choose Yuan Shao, right?
Chen Gui said leisurely: "We should make a decision on this matter sooner rather than later."
"Because according to the news from Jizhou, they have already started mobilizing money, food, troops and horses, and they are expected to attack the Black Mountain Army in the near future."
"If the Jizhou army enters Taihang Mountain, the passage between Youzhou and Henei County will be cut off, and then there will be no talk of the two sides joining forces."
"Without Master Xianyi's help, I'm afraid it will be difficult for Marquis Wen to deal with Yuan Shu and Cao Cao at the same time, right?"
Seeing that Chen Gong stopped talking, Lü Bu knew that Chen Gong could not think of a reason to refuse for the time being, so he said, "Although I am interested, Henei County is after all Zhishu (Zhang Yang)'s territory, and I can't take over the throne."
"Then please stay for a few more days, and I will write to my uncle to discuss this. What do you think?"
After hearing this, Chen Gui knew that Lu Bu had not yet made up his mind. However, since the time had come, he could not push him any further and agreed immediately.
Lu Bu was in great joy, he laughed and urged everyone to drink, and both the host and the guests were having a great time.
Yan was in the back hall, holding Lu Lingqi, with a conflicted look on her face.
She said, "What do you think this is?"
"Then Yuan Xi sent someone here to persuade my husband to break off the engagement with Yuan Gonglu!"
"In this case, what's the use of the dowry he gave?"
"Why are these Yuan family members so awkward in their actions?"
She was so angry that she paced back and forth in the back hall, "No, this marriage with Yuan Gonglu is over. Where can Ling'er find such a suitable person?"
"I have to talk to my husband. I can't be fooled by Yuan Xi!"
Lu Lingqi hurriedly said, "Mother, this matter is extremely important to father. How can you ruin your father's plan for your daughter's affairs?"
After hearing this, Yan also hesitated and said, "That's right, but if this happens, where can I find a suitable husband for you?"
Lu Lingqi was secretly delighted. She had always been opposed to marrying far away, but now she could stay with her parents for one more day. Who would care about the future?
Yan walked around the room, and suddenly thought of something, and said, "As long as the man across the street doesn't go back, we can keep this dowry for now. It will be useful sooner or later."
"But I see there are quite a lot of things in there, and Ling'er may not be able to use them all. I'll have someone take out some of them and use them as Madam Du's dowry."
"It just so happens that Yang Chou is here to propose marriage. I will help Madam Du pay for the dowry. Marry her off quickly."
"Otherwise, it's not a good idea for her to stay at our house all the time."
Lu Lingqi was anxious after hearing this and whispered, "Mrs. Du is quite pitiful. Why did mother force her to get married?"
Yan glared at him and said, "What do you know, kid? Didn't you see the way your father looked at that vixen?"
"Maybe they have been having an affair for a long time, but they have been hiding it from us!"
Lu Lingqi bit her lip and said, "If father is interested in her, wouldn't it be fine if he just married her?"
Yan said decisively: "Don't even think about it."
"No wiggle room!"