Three Kingdoms: My Strategy Simulator

Although Li Ji somewhat hoped that Tao Qian would have evil thoughts and take the initiative to send someone to intercept and kill Cao Song, completely antagonizing Cao Cao, Li Ji also knew that this possibility was very slim.

Tao Qian did have a Commandant named Zhang Kai under his command, who came from the Yellow Turban Army in Qingzhou. During Cao Cao's suppression of the Qingzhou Yellow Turbans, Zhang Kai led his troops south to join Tao Qian.

It's just that although Cao Song carried a lot of wealth, it wasn't enough to make Tao Qian tempted.

Moreover, because Tao Qian had allied with Liu Bei early on, no one had invaded Xuzhou so far, and Cao Cao also did not have the courage to do so. There was no animosity between Tao and Cao.

Tao Qian had always adhered to the idea of firmly defending Xuzhou and had no intention of expanding outward at all.

Or rather, Tao Qian was powerless even if he wanted to expand.

If Xuzhou was obtained by Liu Bei, it would be the foundation for contending for the Central Plains, and a powerful army could emerge from Xuzhou to dominate the Central Plains.

But with Xuzhou in Tao Qian's hands, it was a place surrounded by the four states of Yang, Yu, Yan, and Qing, suitable for defending the territory, but quite weak for expansion.

More importantly, Tao Qian became more and more of a fence-sitter as he got older, which was why Li Ji was secretly dissatisfied and intentionally persuaded Liu Bei to replace him.

Tao Qian was able to allow Xuzhou to enjoy temporary stability in the troubled times, not because of his great talent, but because he relied on the alliance with Liu Bei to deter the surrounding warlords.

However, since the campaign against Dong Zhuo, Tao Qian's behavior has repeatedly been to avoid offending anyone. He treated his ally Liu Bei with a cooperative attitude, but shirked his responsibilities when it came to sending troops.

When Yuan Shu was fighting in Jingzhou, Li Ji had Liu Bei send a letter to Xuzhou, intending to ask Tao Qian to send troops from Xuzhou to attack Yuzhou from both sides.

However, Tao Qian's response was to decline politely on the pretext of illness, which made Li Ji very dissatisfied. Otherwise, if Tao Qian had sent troops in response, wouldn't they have gained more than just the city of Ruyin?

......

Inside the State Shepherd's mansion in Tan County, the seat of government of Xuzhou.

(PS: The actual seat of government of Xuzhou is not Xia Pi, but Tan County in Donghai Commandery.)

Cao Song's grand move of relocating his family naturally couldn't be hidden from Tao Qian.

If Tao Qian still had some courage during the campaign against Dong Zhuo, Tao Qian's face had visibly aged in the years after the end of the campaign against Dong Zhuo.

The reason for this was that Tao Qian had seen how big the Han Dynasty was in the battle against Dong Zhuo, which caused Tao Qian to have nightmares for several months after returning to Xuzhou.

In the past, Tao Qian also considered himself a brave general, having fought in the army for many years, and once served as the Commandant of Yangwu, pacifying the Qiang rebellion in the Three Auxiliary Regions.

However, after witnessing the bravery of fierce generals such as Lu Bu, the wisdom of strategists such as Li Ji, and seeing the powerful troops of the world such as the Xiliang Iron Cavalry, the Bingzhou Wolf Cavalry, and the White Horse Volunteers.

Tao Qian's ambition completely dissipated unconsciously.

Before serving as the Governor of Xuzhou, Tao Qian also served as the chief official of Shu County, and was known for his integrity in politics. During his tenure, he was known to be clean and honest, and he had never even贪过 five hundred coins.

However, after Tao Qian returned to Xuzhou, he began to change his past ways, constantly suppressing the Xuzhou gentry, and while wantonly accumulating wealth and exploiting the people, he tried his best to befriend the surrounding warlords of Xuzhou.

The alliance with Liu Bei was still maintained, and even generous gifts were sent to Yangzhou during festivals to Liu Bei, Li Ji, Guan Yu and others.

However, Tao Qian also did not antagonize Yuan Shu, Cao Cao, and others.

Unconsciously stroking the document sent back from Langya State, Tao Qian couldn't help but feel a little lost.

Tao Qian still didn't know how long he could稳稳 hold the position of Governor of Xuzhou, and he understood that he was old and weak, and it was difficult for him to compete with the heroes.

More importantly, Tao Qian knew that his sons Tao Shang and Tao Ying were both mediocre, proficient in eating, drinking, whoring, and gambling, and knew nothing about governing politics and military strategy.

Even if Xuzhou was passed on to Tao Shang and Tao Ying, not to mention that it would be difficult to resist foreign enemies, there was a risk of dying at the hands of the gentry under their rule.

Tao Qian rubbed his cloudy eyes with some difficulty, and came back to his senses in a daze, and finally put aside this document in his hand.

Now Tao Qian only wanted to ensure the stability of Xuzhou, and then accumulate more wealth for his two unfilial sons, and finally sell Xuzhou at a good price, in exchange for the wealth and stability of his descendants.

Cao Song's hundreds of carts of wealth made Tao Qian quite tempted, but after thinking twice, in order to avoid antagonizing Cao Cao, Tao Qian still gave up this tempting idea.

'Let Cao Song leave, let the people of Xuzhou suffer for a few years, and hundreds of carts of wealth can be accumulated in a short time.'

Tao Qian thought so, and then issued a document, ordering officials and generals at all levels in Langya State not to hinder Cao Song, and to provide Cao Song with some convenience within the scope of their duties, in order to send Cao Song safely out of Xuzhou.

With this document issued, the officials of various prefectures in Langya State naturally did not dare to make things difficult for Cao Song.

Wherever Cao Song's mighty family relocation convoy passed, they were successively treated with courtesy by the chief officials of various prefectures and counties, and there was no shortage of those who set up banquets to take the initiative to please Cao Song.

Tao Qian was unwilling to offend Cao Cao, and the officials of various prefectures in Langya State, which bordered Qingzhou, also had their own little thoughts.

Born in troubled times, Tao Qian showed his incompetence and cowardice, and the officials of various prefectures naturally wanted to please Cao Song, perhaps leaving themselves a way out in Cao Cao's camp.

As for this series of banquets, Cao Song almost never refused anyone, and generously made promises to all the officials.

When Cao Song took his young son Cao De through Dongwan County in Langya State, there was another round of feasting and merrymaking, which opened Cao Song's eyes and made him feel very gratified. He even showed his ambition and exclaimed that it was wonderful.

When the banquet ended, Cao Song's legs were so weak that he couldn't even get on the carriage, and he barely managed to climb onto the carriage with the help of his young son Cao De.

Cao Song looked at Cao De, who had also consumed a lot of energy, and nimbly jumped onto the carriage, unable to help but sigh.

"I'm old......"

The carriage slowly started, carrying Cao Song to the temple outside the city for the Cao family convoy to rest.

After all, the convoy was huge, with more than a hundred carts of goods alone, and nearly a thousand people including maids and servants.

It might not be possible to free up such a large place in the city for the convoy to rest temporarily, and it would be troublesome to enter and leave the city, plus Cao Song was quite信佛.

So on the way to Qingzhou, the Cao family convoy mostly rested in temples outside the city.

After Cao De was seated in the carriage, he took the initiative to massage Cao Song's legs and acted coquettishly.

"Where is Father old? Not to mention that Father almost made those three beautiful maids unable to bear it just now, and wherever Father passes along the way, who doesn't respectfully call Father the Old Grand Commandant?"

These words made Cao Song's heart burst into joy, and he said.

"De'er knows how to make his father happy, fortunately he is not like Mengde."

A trace of unnaturalness appeared on Cao De's face, but the action of massaging Cao Song's legs became more gentle, and he said.

"Elder Brother is now the master of Qingzhou, worthy of being a hegemon, I need to learn more from Elder Brother."

Cao Song stroked Cao De's hand and said with a smile.

"De'er, don't worry, although Mengde is usually disrespectful, if Father personally asks him to find you an official position in Qingzhou, Mengde will not dare to disobey."

(End of this chapter)