Han Dao world

Chapter 417 Zhou Zhong's Choice
Lujiang County governs Shu County, Zhou's mansion.

Doctor Guanglu Zhou Zhongduan sat in the hall, lowered his eyebrows, and said nothing.

Liu Xun, the prefect of Lujiang, stood under the hall, in a dilemma, with an embarrassed look on his face.Although he sent a letter of surrender to Yuan Shao, he was worried that his status as an old official of Yuan Shu would not be valued by Yuan Shao, so he wanted to ask Zhou Zhong to come forward to strengthen his momentum so as to keep the power of the prefect of Lujiang.

But Zhou Zhong refused to let him in even the door, he had the cheek to force his way in.

Even so, Zhou Zhong still refused to say a word to him.

He was very annoyed, wishing he could just draw his sword and kill Zhou Zhong.

But he dared not.

Yuan Shao has a good name and has a close relationship with Zhou Zhong.If he learned that he had killed Zhou Zhong, Yuan Shao would most likely kill him directly to avenge Zhou Zhong and take Lujiang County into his pocket by the way.

In front of such a famous official of the family, he is not worth mentioning at all.

There were footsteps outside the door, and Zhou Fang, the son of Zhou Zhong, strode in, the armor leaves on his body rustling, and the scabbard around his waist slapped the armor skirt with force.Immediately afterwards, a row of crossbowmen emerged from the wall, ready to shoot.

Liu Xun's personal guards turned pale with fright, and drew their swords one after another, protecting Liu Xun in the middle.

Liu Xun also changed his expression in fright.The weather was hot, so he didn't wear any armor, but only a thin summer suit.Wearing armor and carrying a knife, Zhou Fang was obviously ready to fight.Once they fight, he is not an opponent at all, and he will undoubtedly die.

Having been the prefect of Lujiang for several years, he knew that Zhou Fang was not a good stubble.The brothers have kept a lot of guests, and they are well-known knight-errants who run wild between the Yangtze River and the Huaihe River.But he still underestimated Zhou Fang and put himself in danger.

"I don't know that the lord of the prefecture came to visit, so I am far away from welcoming you." Zhou Fang laughed. "Your Majesty is not yet seated in the hall, let me prepare a banquet for you and me to drink together?"

Liu Xun was sweating all over his face, so he didn't dare to stay for long, so he hurriedly cupped his hands and said goodbye.

Zhou Fang watched Liu Xun go out, snorted disdainfully, went to the hall, and sat down beside Zhou Zhong.

Zhou Zhong raised his eyebrows slightly, and glanced at Zhou Fang. "Wearing armor on such a hot day, won't you be afraid of getting caught in the heat?"

"I'm used to it." Zhou Fang took off the knife belt and put it on his knee. "Ah Weng, even though Liu Xun is leaving, Yuan Shao will definitely come again, so is A Weng avoiding it?"

"What is there to avoid? How dare he kill me?" Zhou Zhong said unhurriedly, poured a glass of water, and pushed it to Zhou Fang. "You like fighting so much, so don't stay idle at home, go to Gongjin's place, maybe you can find a job."

Zhou Fang frowned slightly. "Ah Weng, do you really want to be an enemy of Yuan Benchu?"

Zhou Zhong sighed and shook his head. "Zhuzi, what do you know? Yuan Benchu ​​is close to celebrities, not warriors like you. It's useless for you to stay. It's better to follow Gongjin and wait and see the situation."

He frowned and didn't say any more, so as not to affect Zhou Fang's mood.

As early as in the imperial court, the emperor once mentioned Zhou Yu, but he didn't mention his sons at all.He was a little dissatisfied at first, but now he has to admit that the emperor's vision is more accurate.

What made him even more disturbed was that the emperor had never mentioned Zhou Yu before, and he suddenly mentioned it after sleeping in Huayin and having a vision at night.This seems to show that Zhou Yu's excellence is also part of God's will, and his future achievements may exceed expectations.

For the Lujiang Zhou family, this is of course a good thing.But for his father and son, he was somewhat disappointed.

After repeated weighing, he decided to let the brothers Zhou Fang, who were soliciting guests, go to Zhou Yu and join the army to fight, while he stayed in his hometown and waited for Yuan Shao's arrival.

Based on his old friendship with Yuan Shao, even if he refused to become a minister, Yuan Shao would not dare to do anything to him.

-

Not long after seeing off Zhou Fang, Zhou Zhong received a letter from Yan Xiang.

After reading it, he didn't write a reply, but told the messenger who sent the letter. "Reply to Lord Yan's book, although I, Zhou Zhong, have achieved nothing, I know the word loyalty. I eat Han Lu, and I am a Han minister. Even if the emperor abandons me, I will not commit myself to the new king. At worst, I will retire to farm and study, and I will spend my life."

Satisfied, the emissary left Shu County quickly and returned to Shouchun.

Zhou Zhong then bathed and burned incense, calmed down, wrote a memorial, and ordered someone to take it to Hedong via Jingzhou.

When he picked up the pen, he was a little dazed.

It's only been a few months, but it seems that he has been separated from the court and the emperor for decades, and there is an indescribable alienation and strangeness.

-

Before Zhou Fang crossed the river, he met Zhou Yu.

Sun Ce stationed troops in Shicheng, and after receiving Yuan Shu's order, he quickly crossed the river, entered the territory of Lujiang River, and went straight to Shu County.

Zhou Yu unified ten thousand people and became a forward general.Lujiang is his home county, and he is most familiar with the terrain here, so he is the best candidate to be a striker.

Zhou Yu was also surprised to meet Zhou Fang.

Zhou Zhong passed the imperial edict in his capacity as doctor Guanglu, worshiped Sun Ce as the prefect of Kuaiji, and recruited him into the court.After completing the task, Zhou Zhong did not return to court, but returned to his hometown to recuperate on the grounds of illness.

This is of course a silent resistance to the emperor's use of old officials, and it is also a wait-and-see before the situation is unclear.

Yuan Shao's troops are pressing down on the border. If Zhou Zhong didn't make a decision, he should be wise and protect himself. Why did Zhou Fang lead his troops to join the army?

Zhou Yu faintly felt that Zhou Zhong might have made his choice.

Zhou Yu brought Zhou Fang to see Sun Ce.

After listening to Zhou Yu's analysis, Sun Ce asked Shi Zhang Hong for his opinion.

Zhang Hong is very straightforward. "Yuan Shao acted against the trend. He seemed to be strong, but in fact he was in danger without knowing it. He didn't take root deeply, but he showed his troops and lived a long life, just like Zhibo's siege of Jinyang. He will surely perish himself. The general should immediately march into Lujiang, report to the court, and go down. Ying Limin."

Sun Ce was in the middle of his arms, and immediately incorporated Zhou Fang into Zhou Yu's command, thinking that he was a vanguard, and went straight to Shucheng, the governor of Lujiang County.

Liu Xun, the prefect of Lujiang, was prepared.He has been sending people to monitor Zhou Fang. From the moment Zhou Fang left the city, he closed the city and guarded himself in case of accidents. At the same time, he sent people to ask Yuan Shao for help.

The Zhou family has a great influence in Lujiang, and Zhou Yu is a general under Sun Ce's command. Once he enters Lujiang, he will definitely not be able to control the situation.Only with Yuan Shao's approval and even reinforcements can he fight against the Zhou family and gain a foothold in Lujiang.

This time, Yuan Shao came unexpectedly fast.One day ahead of Zhou Yu, he personally led the army to Shu County.

After arriving in Shu County, he was not in a hurry to arrange city defense and was ready to fight.He left the army outside the city, and he lowered his dignity, dressed in a plain scarf, and brought only dozens of halberds to Zhou's mansion, begging to see Zhou Zhong.

This move caused quite a stir, and countless people were moved by Yuan Shao's virtuous corporal, eagerly waiting for Zhou Zhong's reaction.

As the No. [-] family in Lujiang, even one of the top in Yangzhou, how Zhou Zhong chooses from Zengguan to Taiwei has unimaginable influence.Once he chooses to support Yuan Shao, even if Sun Ce is brave and Zhou Yu is good at fighting, he will not be able to gain a foothold in Lujiang.

Back then, Sun Ce attacked and killed Lu Kang with cruel means, and the people of Lujiang didn't like him at all.

Liu Xun's betrayal of Yuan Shu and surrender to Yuan Shao was not his decision alone, but the common choice of countless officials in the prefect's mansion.

Contrary to everyone's expectations, Zhou Zhong thanked the guests behind closed doors and refused Yuan Shao.

(End of this chapter)