Mao Jie frowned and had not spoken for a long time.

He could understand Sun Ce's concerns, but he knew better that neither of these conditions could be achieved, especially the latter. Yanzhou was originally a territory that belonged to Yuan Shao. From Liu Dai to Cao Ang now, several Yanzhou governors were all disciples and former officials of the Yuan family. Yuan Tan himself was personally appointed as the governor of Yanzhou not long ago. If it were not for the strength of the Jizhou family, he would not be able to tolerate other forces, the Yanzhou family would have chosen Yuan Tan long ago.

If Cao Ang controls or even kills aristocratic family that has connections with Yuan Tan, the Yanzhou family will turn against each other directly or even raise an army to resist. Even those families who have no connection with Yuan Tan will not sit idly by and watch Cao Ang do so. Supporting different factions is a survival strategy in troubled times. How could they let Cao Ang dominate?

"King, Shu Jie said frankly that doing so... will only force Yanzhou to become enemies with the King."

Sun Ce was not surprised at all and asked slowly: "Do you mean Yanzhou by Yanzhou or the Yanzhou family?"

"Yanzhou family."

"It doesn't matter." Sun Ce smiled and said, "It's a matter of time sooner or later."

Mao Jie couldn't help but take a breath of cold air. He could understand the meaning behind Sun Ce's words. One of the basis of Sun Ce's new policy was to seize land from the aristocratic families and curb annexation. Whether to seize or redeem it was just a different means, but the purpose was the same. The reason why the Yanzhou family refused to choose Sun Ce was that they refused to give up the land in their hands. They wanted to gain both the land and the benefits of industry and commerce. The benefits of industry and commerce were very rich, but the land was basically. Without food, there was no meaning in gold and silver.

Since the first year of Zhongping, Yanzhou has been one of the centers of the battlefield. The people of Yanzhou have a deeper understanding of the importance of food than anyone else. In the years when Dong Zhuo was in charge, his memory of selling rice for hundreds of thousands of yuan was unforgettable.

Sun Ce obviously knew that his differences with the Yanzhou family were difficult to resolve, so he tended to solve the problem by force, and for this reason he pushed the Yanzhou family to Yuan Tan's side, becoming an enemy, and refused to give in. It has to be said that Sun Ce's actions were very sinister and risky, but also a very rational choice. Since negotiations were impossible, then find a reason to eliminate them. Once defeated, the Yanzhou family could only be slaughtered by him.

Mao Jie endured his anxiety and reminded him: "King, Shu Jie is ignorant. Although the king is far-sighted and spares no effort to suppress it, in terms of the current situation, it is not wise for the king to turn the Yanzhou family into an enemy."

"Then tell me, if the Yanzhou family supports Yuan Tan, how will the situation evolve?"

"This..." Mao Jie pondered for a moment. He knew that if he could not convince Sun Ce and made Sun Ce realize the danger of doing so, his mission on this mission would have failed. "In front of the king, Jie did not dare to speak of his troops, but Sui River and Si River were dangerous, not as good as Dahe, Suiyang, and Rencheng were not as solid as Puyang. Although the five states were rich, the attacks from three routes might not last long. Once the time wasted, the king's efforts to waste for several years would be lost. Isn't that a pity?"

Sun Ce laughed silently. "Kongcao is humble. I just said that you are a rare wise man, worthy of being a master of Yanzhou. You are right. If Yanzhou chooses to support Yuan Tan and Yuzhou becomes the front line, it will be very stressful for me. But I have thought about it, let alone Yuan Tan may not be able to invade Yuzhou. Even if I can, I can bear it. At worst, I will give up Yuzhou and retreat to Jiangdong. I want to ask Gongcao again, after Yuan Tan reoccupied Yuzhou, should he accept the current situation in Yuzhou, or restore the original state and distribute the land and household registration to the aristocratic family?"

Mao Jie was shocked and stared at Sun Ce for a while, but couldn't say a word. Obviously, Sun Ce had considered all the issues he considered, and it was more thorough and far-reaching than him. What will happen to the Central Plains after Yuan Tan seized Yuzhou? Many people may not have considered this issue, but Sun Ce had considered it.

The aristocratic families in Yuzhou have been cleaned up by Sun Ce, and most of the land was distributed to ordinary people. Yuan Tan took over Yuzhou, should he maintain the status quo, or would he redistribute these lands to the aristocratic families? If it was the former, the aristocratic families who followed him would not agree. If it was the latter, the people who obtained the land would not agree. They either crossed the river with Sun Ce or fought back. No matter what the result was, Yuan Tan would encounter trouble.

Of course, the greater possibility is that when Yuan Tan's troops were at the city, the people of Yuzhou realized that the stable life in front of him was about to no longer exist. In response to Sun Ce's call, the whole people were soldiers and fought to the death with Yuan Tan and resisted the enemy abroad. It may be reluctant to let them take the initiative to attack Yanzhou or Jizhou, and in order to protect existing interests, they would not hesitate.

In this way, the front line of Sui River is the battlefield and Yanzhou is the front line.

Mao Jie felt very uncomfortable when he thought of the Yanzhou people who migrated to Yuzhou taking up weapons and fighting for Sun Ce. This was the sin of the Yanzhou family, and this was the sin of these people. They could not let the Yanzhou people live and work in peace, and they could only make a living in Yuzhou, which was already a dereliction of duty. They also forced the Yanzhou people who left their hometown to take up weapons and fight Yuan Tan. Wouldn't it be a helping evil and accomplice for the tiger?

Mao Jie felt bitter in his heart, and even he felt ashamed of what he said. "The king, if he does not teach the people to fight, he is said to abandon it, and he may not be a wise ruler."

Sun Ce chuckled twice. "Kongcao, you want to be guilty of this." He owed his body and said lightly: "Although the world is safe, forgetting the war will lead to danger. I still understand this principle. Although it is not that there are martial arts lecture halls in counties, I never dare to forget the martial arts spirit, nor will I forget it. I also hope that the people under my rule will not forget it, otherwise they will become two-legged sheep in the eyes of others if they are rich but not strong."

Mao Jie suddenly remembered the famous "Shi Lun" and suddenly realized it. When he thought of the millions of households in Yuzhou suddenly turning into millions of soldiers, his scalp was numb, and a burst of cold air rushed up along his backbone.

——

Mao Jie left Wei Zhen to discuss Sun Yi and Cao Ying's marriage, and he traveled day and night to return to Changyi.

After hearing Mao Jie's experiences, especially when he met Sun Ce, Cao Ang's face looked ugly, and Chen Gong was even more uneasy. His face turned red and white, and he didn't say anything for a long time.

Sun Ce made the worst plan. Can the Yanzhou people bear the same price? Once they form an alliance with Yuan Tan, they will tear up with Sun Ce. Cao Ang suffered limited losses. Whether he surrendered to Yuan Tan or gave up Yanzhou, he still has many choices, but the Yanzhou family will face the result of a desperate bet. If Yuan Tan is defeated by Sun Ce again, the Yanzhou family will end up even worse than the Yuzhou family.

However, it was not realistic to ask them to agree to Sun Ce's request. Even if they were willing to send their families to Sun Ce as a charity, the Yanzhou family would not be willing to cut off their ties with Yuan Tan, and it was even more impossible to sit idly by and kill those who contacted Yuan Tan directly, especially after knowing Sun Ce's decision.

There is at least a front-line opportunity to cooperate with Yuan Tan. They are not profitable when they cooperate with Sun Ce.

Chen Gong closed the door to thank the guests, thought hard for two days, and finally came up with a plan: neither ask for help from Sun Ce nor surrender to Yuan Tan, and maintain the neutrality of Yanzhou as much as possible. If Yuan Tan comes to attack, then rely on Yanzhou's own strength to fight back. Sun Ce will not take the initiative to start a war with Yanzhou, and Yuan Tan will not force Yanzhou to Sun Ce's side. Besides, Yuan Tan did not send troops voluntarily, and he was just to perfunctory the court and might not be willing to do his best.

Mao Jie, Wang Yu and others agreed with Chen Gong's suggestion. Although this is a temporary solution, it is better than being helpless. The situation in the world is not yet determined, and it is not a way to stay and wait and see. Cao Ang did not object. For him, maintaining is the best choice.

After obtaining the unification opinion, Cao Ang sent Wang Yu to Yecheng to visit Yuan Tan according to Chen Gong's plan, explaining Yanzhou's attitude and hoping to reach a tacit understanding with Yuan Tan. Yanzhou will not take the initiative to attack Yuan Tan, but if Yuan Tan wants to get involved in Yanzhou, Yanzhou will not surrender. He will definitely fight to the end and even surrender to Sun Ce. Chen Gong, Mao Jie and others contacted the Yanzhou family to provide them with more manpower and material resources, and to keep Yanzhou neutral as much as possible.

If the Yanzhou family wants to win more benefits, they always have to show their strength and prove that they are qualified to do so.

In order to show his determination, Cao Ang adjusted the defense areas of the generals, and Cao Ren led his troops to guard Dongwuyang, and personally led his troops to Puyang, ready to prevent Yuan Tan from entering Yanzhou.

——

In the end of February, Wang Yu arrived in Yecheng.

As Chen Gong expected, Yuan Tan had no interest in competing with Sun Ce. He had been the governor in Yanzhou for several years and knew the thoughts of the Yanzhou family and did not want to force the Yanzhou family to Sun Ce's side. However, what he should do on the scene had to be done, so he immediately made a tit-for-tat arrangement, sent troops to Liyang, and sent Wei County prefect Dong Zhao to Guantao and guard Yecheng.

Both sides looked across the river, and seemed to be tense and about to touch, but in fact they had no intention of taking the initiative to attack.

Yuan Tan's main attack direction was Heishan. He had all his elite troops and stepped up the encirclement and suppression of the Heishan army. He fought several consecutive battles and defeated Yu Du, Kuqi, Wulu and others one after another. Seeing that the situation was not good, Zhang Yan led the main force to fight. The two sides fought fiercely in the Longlu Mountain area, with each other casualties. In the face of Yuan Tan's attack, Zhang Yan could not stand it and had no choice but to ask Sun Ce and Bai Bo's army for help.

Sun Ce has no good feelings for Zhang Yan. A thief is just a thief. He just has no ambitions, does not burn incense, and he crams for the moment. After so many years, he has not made any progress at all. It is simply embarrassing to be defeated by Yuan Tan on his territory.

Sun Ce perfunctorily told Zhang Yan's envoy and agreed to arrange for Lu Su to send troops to Hanoi to meet Zhang Yan. Zhang Yan received the reply and complained secretly that he was defeated by Yuan Tan, so he dared not enter Hanoi. It is easy to go out of the mountain and it is difficult to go back to the mountain. If Yuan Tan intercepted it, it is difficult for him to retreat back to the mountain. If he is not good at it, he would not be wiped out by the army. In desperation, he had to retreat to the depths of Taihang Mountain and move towards Handan and Zhending to avoid Yuan Tan Fengrui.
Chapter completed!