Chapter 486 Nothing is normal

In Jicheng, Youzhou, a team of horse-drawn carriages knocked at the city gate under the cover of night. The defenders dropped a rope on the city wall, got the other party's token, and quickly opened the door to welcome the convoy in.

The convoy arrived in front of the official residence in Jicheng. Zhao Yun had heard the news long ago and came out to greet them. He asked Guo Jiaqi, who had hurriedly got off the carriage, "Why are you here, sir?"

Previously, Guo Jia and Tian Yu went to Beixincheng to guard against the Southern Xiongnu, and Zhao Yun was stationed in Jicheng. But now Guo Jia came back quietly and entered the city overnight. Zhao Yun wondered what emergency had occurred?

Guo Jia looked solemn. He ordered his soldiers to carry a large bundle of bamboo slips out of the carriage and said to Zhao Yun, "Go in and talk."

Seeing that Guo Jia had never been so nervous before, Zhao Yun hurriedly took Guo Jia into the study. After Guo Jia entered the room, he did not hesitate to ask someone to open the bundle, and tubes of bamboo slips fell out.

He bent down to pick them up, placed them one by one on the table, and said, "General, please take a look."

Zhao Yun didn't understand what was going on, so he quickly opened the scrolls one by one and found that they contained intelligence from various places in Youzhou over the past few months.

Guo Jia said: "Guorang is responsible for gathering intelligence in Youzhou, so during this period, all military intelligence and spy reports were sent to Beixincheng."

"But a few days ago, when I checked the intelligence, I found something was not right."

Zhao Yun looked at the piles of bamboo slips and was confused in his anxiety. He said quickly, "Please help me solve this puzzle, sir."

Guo Jia took a bamboo slip and unfolded it, pointing and saying, "This is the routine patrol cavalry sent by Youzhou. The route is from Youzhou to the coastal dock of Xuzhou."

"It departed from the Piaoyuyi Wharf in Yuyang, and headed south along the coast, successfully passing through Jizhou and Bohai Sea. However, when it entered Qingzhou, it was stopped and told that it could not pass."

Zhao Yun was puzzled when he heard this: "Could it be that Yuan Qingzhou is dissatisfied with the Donglai naval battle and is deliberately making things difficult for us?"

Guo Jia shook his head and said, "But the docks for sea routes and ships are always open. If that's the case, why stop the cavalry who are also members of the Yuan family?"

He pulled out another bamboo slip and said, "The spies in Jizhou said that there have been many small groups of unknown troops moving south of the Yellow River, especially at night."

Zhao Yun was puzzled and asked, "How many people are there? Is there anything unusual?"

Guo Jia said in a deep voice: "Not many, about one or two hundred people."

Just as Zhao Yun breathed a sigh of relief, he heard Guo Jia say, "But this situation has continued for more than a month, and it's not just this route, it's happening on several routes!"

Zhao Yun then became alert, "Which direction is it going?"

Guo Jia replied: "It is Taishan County in the easternmost part of Yanzhou!"

Zhao Yun's expression became serious. "If the information is true, the scale of the troop transfer is really not small, but why is it Taishan County?"

"Could it be that Cao Cao saw Yuan Tan recruiting Taishan bandits and became jealous, and wanted to get a piece of the action?"

Guo Jia sighed: "That's the problem."

"It does make sense that they deployed troops in batches with the intention of a surprise attack on the Taishan bandits, but the longer it takes, the easier it will be to be exposed. Now there is no news from this group of soldiers. What are they doing?"

He pulled out another bamboo slip, "This is the information sent back by the spies from Qingzhou and Langya."

"The soldiers under Yuan Qingzhou were deployed along the border, from Taishan County in Yanzhou to the north of Xiapi in Xuzhou, and their whereabouts were discovered."

"Why did Yuan Qingzhou do this?"

Zhao Yun realized that this was indeed a strange matter and asked, "Could it be that these two sides knew each other's details and wanted to attack each other?"

He immediately shook his head, "No, there is a problem."

"This kind of large-scale troop movement cannot be without a purpose. There must be a purpose behind it."

"The key is, has Yuan Qingzhou informed you, young master?"

Guo Jia clapped his hands and said, "General, you hit the point!"

"If Yuan Qingzhou were to use military force, he would definitely tell you. After all, both sides are descendants of the Yuan family. If they don't know everything, there will inevitably be accidents of misjudgment."

"If he informed you, it means that he acted honestly. Even if he didn't tell you the inside story, he should have given you some hints."

"But if we conceal it and keep you in the dark, I'm afraid there will be big problems!"

Zhao Yun was horrified, "Sir, are you saying that Yuan Qingzhou wants to harm you?"

Guo Jia sighed, "I don't know either, but combined with Yuan Qingzhou's movements, I found that we had overlooked something before."

"After this incident, Yuan Qingzhou may have some grudges in his heart, or even worse!"

Zhao Yun asked hurriedly: "What's the matter?"

Guo Jia's face was solemn, "The young master gave birth to a boy!"

"One is fine, but the key is two!"

"These are the only two male heirs of the third generation of the Yuan family. What do you think Yuan Qingzhou would think?"

Zhao Yun was horrified, "Sir, you are right. Yuan Qingzhou's mentality may indeed change greatly because of this!"

"Should I send a letter now to remind you, young master?"

Guo Jia sighed: "If we send a letter now, it will take at least seven or eight days to reach Xuzhou."

"After all, considering the distance, you have already reached Xuzhou. If you have reached Guangling, that would be good. After all, there is General Taishi there, so he should be safe."

"But if it's in Haixi."

Zhao Yun suddenly stood up and said, "Please take charge, sir. I will lead the troops to Xuzhou now!"

"If we wait until something happens to the young master, it will be too late to set off!"

Guo Jia nodded and said, "General, you are right. I think so too."

"Now our clan depends entirely on the young master. If something happens to him and Youzhou is taken over by the Yuan family, where will we go?"

"Nothing must happen to you, young master!"

Zhao Yun strode out, "Yun understands!"

"I'll trouble you, sir, with all the affairs in the city!"

Soon, Zhao Yun led hundreds of fully armed elite cavalry, ordered the gates of Jicheng to be opened, and galloped to the Piaoyuyu Wharf in Yuyang County.

Zhao Yun took the lead, holding a torch, leading the cavalry to march quickly in the night. He looked back at the soldiers behind him, who were the most elite and experienced group in Youzhou.

Not to mention the equipment, from weapons to armor to stirrups, they are all the best, and now is the time for them to come into play!

In Qucheng, Donghai, the banquet was still going on. Ju Shou and Mi Fang chatted casually and got a general idea of ​​what was going on in Donghai.

He frowned and said, "Does the governor think that Yuan Qingzhou didn't give Liu Yuzhou any face during these conflicts?"

Mi Fang was already a little drunk at this time. When he heard this, he was furious and threw the wine cup to the table. He said incoherently: "I, I'm telling the truth!"

"I admire Master Xianyi very much. At his age, he has accomplished something that I may never be able to do in my lifetime, or even dare not think about. I admire him very much!"

"But I have great disrespect for Yuan Qingzhou!"

"He has no feelings for us at all, and his actions are too much!"

"If I hadn't considered the overall situation, I would have fought with him a long time ago!"

Ju Shou and Yuan Xi looked at each other, "Does General Guan think so too?"

Mi Fang looked unhappy, "Who knows!"

"I can't control him!"

"He spends all day training the navy. Does the East China Sea need the navy?"

"General Guan endured the provocations several times from Yuan Qingzhou's side. He was bullied right at the door, but he still swallowed his anger. If that's the case, then what's the point of training the navy?"

After saying that, Mi Fang took another big gulp of wine.

Ju Su saw that it was getting dark outside and asked, "General Guan has been training the navy?"

Mi Fang said incoherently: "That's right, he doesn't even come back at night, he just stays on the boat, I don't understand what he's thinking!"

Seeing that Mi Fang was becoming more and more confused, he turned sideways and whispered to Yuan Xi: "Master, I always feel that something is not right."

"General Guan is not attending the banquet today, but it should not be to neglect you. He must have a reason for being so cautious."

After hearing this, Yuan Xi nodded and said, "I think so too. It seems that the situation in Xuzhou is strange and not as good as I thought before."

"I need to meet with General Guan and ask him what happened."

Mi Fang was so drunk that he stood up and walked out with Yuan Xi, "Sir, please come over once and see me, little sister?"

Yuan Xi smiled bitterly and said, "I'm afraid it's not in accordance with etiquette."

Mi Fang drunkenly said: "What's the matter with etiquette? I'm her elder brother, and I agree, so it's in accordance with etiquette!"

"Sir, do you hate me?"

Yuan Xi said helplessly: "That's not the case."

Ju Shou and Lu Xun could not help but smile bitterly at each other when they saw this. Although Mi Fang now held a high official position and had entered the ranks of the gentry, his actions were still a little awkward.

Several people present, including Sun Li, knew that they were going to the women's inner quarters, so it was not appropriate for them to follow Yuan Xi. Ju Shou glanced at Lu Lingqi who was gnawing on her pork elbow, and Lu Lingqi finally reacted.

She reluctantly put down her elbow and walked out, cursing Mi Fang in her heart for disturbing her meal.

If Yuan Xi goes to see his lover, wouldn't it seem stingy if I follow him?

She followed Yuan Xi slowly. Mi Fang turned around and said, "Lady, sir."

Yuan Xi hurriedly said: "She will go with me."

Mi Fang had no choice but to pull Yuan Xi to the small building where Mi Zhen was, and shouted loudly: "Little sister, the envoy is here to see you!"

Mi Zhen had already seen several people coming through the crack in the window of the small building. He was feeling uneasy and wondered why his brother was acting so absurdly!

What does this appear to be?

As a result, when Mi Fang raised his voice, Mi Zhen heard it and his eyes went dark in an instant.

She was so ashamed and angry that she almost wanted to jump off the building. How could she have such an unreliable brother!

Mi Fang called out a few more times, but seeing no response, she laughed and said, "My little sister is shy, I'm afraid she's just shy."

Mi Zhen's eyes went dark again, and he immediately wanted to pick up the table and throw it down to knock Mi Fang unconscious.

Mi Fang called out a few times, but seeing that there was complete silence inside, he said angrily, "Your Excellency, please do as you please. I will go back to accompany you for drinking."

He pushed Yuan Xi forward, with a meaningful smile on his face, "This is a great opportunity, you must not miss it."

After saying this, he staggered back.

Yuan Xi stood on the ground awkwardly, and Lu Lingqi laughed at him, "This brother is really extraordinary."

"How about I leave too?"

Yuan Xi hurriedly said: "Don't, if you leave, I can't clear myself even if I jump into the Yellow River, and it will also damage the reputation of the Mi family girl."

Lu Lingqi said disdainfully: "He has the will but not the guts!"

At this moment, a maid pushed the door open and came out, saying respectfully, "Miss, please come upstairs with your Excellency and Madam for a chat."