Han family achievements

Chapter 555 Flame
Nanyang County, Xinye.

In an inconspicuous teahouse outside the city, Liu Bian was holding a teacup and discussing with the waiter which tea was the best.

"Speaking of this tea, sir, our Xinye is the best, and speaking of Nanyang County, there are few comparable ones in the world..."

The waiter glanced at the black-armored soldiers standing outside and smiled with extreme caution.

Liu Bian took a sip, smacked his lips, and said, "I still think it's not as good as the tea from Shuzhong or Yuzhou. The tea produced there, especially the new tea, is colorful, fragrant, sweet, and refreshing. It leaves a lasting aftertaste."

The waiter shook his head and said, "Sir, you don't know that tea from Shu is very difficult to produce. Even if it is produced, ordinary people can't drink it. It is more valuable than gold. It is said that the tea from Yuzhou is hidden by the nobles and is not available on the market at all. Let alone our small Xinye, even the emperor in Luoyang City is said to have never tasted it..."

Liu Bian frowned, looked at Huangfu Jianzhang behind him, and said, "Second Master, is what he said true?"

Huangfu Jian chewed on an apple and said disdainfully, "Sir, don't listen to his nonsense. The best tea is still Youzhou tea or Qingzhou tea. The others... Your Majesty... How did you say it, they taste like chewing wax? Yes, they taste like chewing wax."

One called him "Second Young Master" and the other called him "Young Master". With the soldiers outside, the waiter couldn't guess the identities of Liu Bian and the others. He glanced at the boss who was hiding behind the door curtain and said quickly, "You two guests are right. I am too ignorant."

Liu Bian glanced at him and said with a smile: "Your words show that you are well-educated and knowledgeable. Second Master, give me the money."

Liu Bian didn't explain anything to the waiter. He put down his teacup, got up and left the teahouse.

The second young master quickly took out a handful of copper coins, slapped them on the table, took the apple out of his mouth, and followed Liu Bian.

The waiter looked at the brand new copper coins and his expression changed slightly.

This was the first time he saw the newly minted "Jian'an coins" in Xinye.

Liu Bian left the teahouse and looked towards a village not far away. He said, "That young master, hasn't come back yet?"

Huangfu Jianchang looked a little strange, and said, "No, I sent someone to keep an eye on it. There is only one servant boy here."

Liu Bian touched his chin and said to himself: "Does this mean that I have to visit you three times? I don't have that much time..."

Huangfu Jian was very confused. Zhuge Liang was only very young and had no talent. Was it worth it for His Majesty to make a personal trip just because Zhuge Xuan was showing off everywhere?

Liu Bian turned his head and looked towards the southeast, and said, "I heard that Liu Bei has recruited quite a few talented people recently?"

The second son of Huangfu threw away the apple he had just eaten and said, "Yes, Zhuge Xuan recommended his nephew, Zhuge Jin, who was also Zhuge Liang's elder brother. Xun Pushe recommended his good friend Xu Shu. It is said that the right Sima admired the two of them very much. He often slept in the same bed with them and chatted all night long. They were closer than the two sworn brothers."

"Zhuge Jin, Xu Shu?"

Liu Bian seemed to be thinking about something, then nodded and said, "They are indeed all good talents, but they are still far from being able to compete with Cao Cao."

Huangfu Jian carefully observed Liu Bian's profile and did not dare to respond.

Ever since Guan Yu killed Zuo Rong and Liu Bei recovered Jingzhou, Liu Bei's name has been resounding throughout the Han Dynasty, and his fame has spread throughout the world, with the implication that he has surpassed Cao Cao.

Liu Bei had always been known for his benevolence and righteousness, and he was also a member of the royal family. Although he had more defeats than victories over the years, he did not have any "bad records" compared to Cao Cao. Therefore, many people wrote directly to the emperor, asking Cao Cao to abdicate and let Liu Bei take over as the Grand Marshal.

This voice gradually gained ground in the court and the public, and within the "Yingchuan Party", and Liu Bian had already received quite a few memorials.

Liu Bian naturally didn't care about these things. He just said it casually, waved to Dian Wei who was not far away, and said: "Let's go, Wujun is waiting anxiously."

Dian Wei led the horse over. Huangfu Jianchang suddenly looked a little worried. He stepped forward and whispered, "Sir, should we make some arrangements with Wujun? After all, Wu Jing was just executed. There may be some people in Wujun who will harm your majesty."

Liu Bian jumped on his horse, looked in the direction of Wujun, and laughed loudly, "No more waiting, let's go!"

Huangfu Jianchang saw that Liu Bian did not respond, so he put the apple back and hurriedly mounted his horse to accompany Liu Bian eastward, shouting as he walked: "Sir, do you want to go to Jingzhou? Guan Yu is quite resentful in Jingzhou."

"No." Liu Bian denied it bluntly.

Guan Yu was a capable man, but he also had character problems. He was fine before he became famous, but once he became famous, he looked down on everyone except his good big brother.

In Jingzhou, he not only looked down on the gentry of Jingzhou, but also bullied the officials, which made the people of Jingzhou very dissatisfied, and memorials impeaching him were seen every day.

Jingzhou is relatively stable among the Thirteen States of the Han Dynasty, so it is better to make some trouble.

If there is no trouble, how can the court intervene?

Liu Bian and his group walked further and further away before the teahouse owner and the waiter dared to come out. Looking at the backs of the hundreds of imperial guards, both of them had solemn and uneasy expressions on their faces.

The waiter whispered to the boss, "Should we leave as soon as possible? These people must be very powerful."

Just as the boss was about to nod, he saw a cavalryman turn around and gallop towards him.

The two were startled, their legs trembled and their faces turned slightly pale.

The guards rushed over and shouted, "Tell your young master a message. Tell him that Luoyang is dangerous and he should not go there if he has nothing to do."

After saying this, he rode back at full speed again.

The boss and the waiter looked at each other, and their expressions became even worse.

"What should we do?" the waiter asked the boss.

The boss snorted in annoyance and said, "You must have said too much just now. What else can we do? Let's pass the message to the mountain."

The waiter took another look at the disappearing cavalry group and felt uneasy.

What does "Luoyang is dangerous, don't go there if you don't have to" mean?
As it was getting dark, a horse appeared on a small path and headed straight for the small village at the foot of the mountain.

Zhuge Liang was riding a horse with a ruddy complexion, holding a book in his hand, still unable to put it down and reading with great concentration.

When they got to the front door, the servant boy pulled the reins and said, "Sir, why did you come back just now? Several groups of people have come to visit."

Zhuge Liang sat on his horse, pretending not to hear anything. He looked at it for a while, then jumped off the horse and said with a smile, "I stayed at Mr. Huang's place for a few days. Mr. Huang is very knowledgeable, covering the past and present. These few days are better than ten years of reading!"

The servant was about to tie the horse, and seeing his expression, he suddenly came closer, looked at him carefully, and said, "Sir, is there any good news? Why are you so excited?"

Zhuge Liang subconsciously touched his face, then smiled even more, and strode inside and said: "If I hear the truth in the morning, I can die in the evening."

The book boy felt something was wrong, so he quickly tied up his horse and chased after him, saying, "Sir, is there something good going on? Are you going to come out of retirement? Recently, many important people have sent us invitations to come out of retirement. Oh, the eldest son also wrote a letter. He was recommended to the Right Sima by Marquis Wucheng and is highly valued..." Zhuge Liang ignored him, took the book, and lay directly on the small bed, still reading, and said intently, "I won't go out for the time being. I'll talk about it next year for the exam."

The book boy suddenly got a start and remembered something. He squatted down beside Zhuge Liang and whispered, "There was news from the teahouse at the foot of the mountain that a group of imperial guards were escorting two noble young men passing by. The leading noble young man was very special and noble. He waited for the young man for a whole day but didn't see him. He left during the day, but before leaving, he left a message for the young man."

Zhuge Liang shifted his gaze from the book, his smile faded, and he looked at the book boy and said, "Imperial Guard, young master? How old are you, and what are you talking about?"

The servant said, "They are the imperial guards, the kind they have never seen before. They are wearing heavy black armor, riding tall horses, and are fierce. The leaders seem to be around 25 or 26 years old, and are called 'Young Master' or 'Second Young Master'. Their clothes may seem ordinary, but they are actually exquisite and gorgeous. Their words and actions seem to be trying to find out something. The words they said are: Luoyang is dangerous, don't go there if you don't have anything to do."

Zhuge Liang opened his eyes slightly, put down the book unconsciously, slowly sat up, and looked outside the dark door with a slightly solemn expression.

The servant boy's heart skipped a beat, and he asked, "Master, do you know about them? Who are they? Does this sentence mean that you are not allowed to enter Luoyang again?"

"No."

Zhuge Liang frowned and said, "What this means is that I cannot enter Luoyang for the time being. I am escorted by the Imperial Guards. I am about 25 or 26 years old and have a noble status... There are many such people in Luoyang. As long as someone with an important mission or someone close to Your Majesty leaves the capital, the Imperial Guards will be sent to escort them. But why did they choose me?"

Zhuge Liang was only eighteen years old this year. Although he had already shown his talent, he only praised the younger generations among some aristocratic families, raised their reputations and paved the way for the future. He himself did not show anything.

The Zhuge family had long since fallen into decline, and the only person now serving in officialdom was Zhuge Liang's elder brother Zhuge Jin, who served as a deputy governor under Liu Bei, a position neither high nor low.

What kind of person would take notice of a young man from a noble family who has no apparent talent or is nothing special?
From Zhuge Liang's perspective, a young man like him was just an ordinary person among the thousands of aristocratic families in the Han Dynasty, and there was nothing special about him that would attract the attention of the bigwigs in Luoyang City.

"Young Master? Young Master?" Seeing that Zhuge Liang remained silent for a long time, the servant boy called out repeatedly.

Zhuge Liang came back to his senses, picked up the book again, and lay down, smiling, "If you don't want to go, then don't go. Let's go to another place in a few days. I still have a few books to read."

The book boy's eyes lit up, he lay down beside the bed and whispered, "Master, have you guessed who it is?"

Zhuge Liang's eyes were clear and his face was ruddy. He said, "I don't know. You can write to my brother and tell him that I want to work as a farmer to sharpen my mind and will not take up an official post for the time being. Liu Xuande... ask him to be careful and not get involved in factional disputes. The current emperor hates factional disputes the most."

Seeing that he was unwilling to speak, the book boy had no choice but to stand up and look at the books in the room, lamenting, "Moving again..."

Zhuge Liang was reading a book, and his eyes inadvertently looked out of the dark door again, towards the east.

He learned a piece of news from Huang Chengyan: the imperial navy was making a big move.

Since the beginning of last spring, the Han navy has been concentrated in Wujun, with a total of 20,000 people, and has stockpiled a large amount of food and fodder.

This move greatly frightened Yuan Shao in Yangzhou, who even withdrew his troops from the Nanhai County where he was confronting Shi Xie, and was extremely vigilant against any actions of the imperial court.

"Your Majesty, what are you going to do? Now is not a good time to pacify Yangzhou..." Zhuge Liang was curious, but just curious, and once again looked at the words in the book in his hand.

Liu Bian, with a small number of guards, headed eastward to Pei County and Pengcheng.

At this moment, the situation in Pei County was tense and a very serious confrontation occurred.

The city defense soldiers of Pei County and the soldiers of the Censorate surrounded the three prison carts in the street, with their swords drawn and cursing at each other.

"So what if you are the Censor? This is Pei County. Without the permission of the Lord of the Prefecture, what rights do you have to arrest people?"

"We are the Censors! If you dare to stop us again, we will arrest not only you but also your Lord!"

"Try grabbing one. Have you asked about the knife in my hand?!"

"I don't believe you dare to rob! You dare to rob the prisoner in public, it is a capital crime! You, your palace master, and your envoy, must be buried with him!"

"Then take one away and try!"

Both sides displayed their shining swords and were only one step away from each other, ready to fight.

But obviously, they were concerned about each other and did not take any action on their own, they just kept shouting.

At this moment, Pei County Governor Zhao Yu was standing in front of Yuzhou Governor Liu Yao, with a face as hard as steel. He said in a deep voice: "Sir, half of my subordinates have been arrested and are about to arrest me. I am here to surrender now. You can take my head and ask for credit from Tian Zhongcheng and the court! If you can't do it, I have brought my sword..."

As Zhao Yu spoke, he drew his sword, rolled up his sleeves, and rubbed it hard.

Liu Yao was shocked to see Zhao Yu was really going to cut his throat in front of him. He rushed over, held his hand, and said angrily: "What do you want from me!?"

Liu Yao was also speechless and his face was full of resentment.

Pengcheng had been massacred because of Zuo Rong's rebellion. Apart from that, the most important county for water transport was Pei County.

Now, Tian Feng brought his men and horses, holding the evidence, and arrested people according to the list. Not to mention the Pei County government, even the governor's office was taken away.

The entire Pei County was in chaos and people were in panic, it was even more terrible than in previous years!
Zhao Yu sneered and said, "Liu Shijun, you are the governor of Yuzhou, you are the most powerful here. Even if Tian Feng is the Chief Censor and holds the imperial edict, he cannot act so recklessly! The whole Pei County is in chaos, and we, as the parents of the country, are we just going to be like this? We didn't even say hello!"

Zhong Yao snatched away his sword, frowned and looked outside the door, his expression changing again and again.

He was naturally dissatisfied with Tian Feng. This dissatisfaction was not a one-day thing, it started when Tian Feng went on a killing spree in Xiang County.

However, things are different now. Tian Feng is now the Chief Censor and holds the imperial edict. Who can do anything to him?
Back then, Tian Feng was just the prefect of Pei County, yet he dared to threaten him, the governor of a province. Now, even if he mobilized the imperial guards and attacked Pei County, Liu Yao would not be so surprised.

Looking at Zhao Yu's expression, he knew that if he didn't show up, he would have no chance to be the governor. He took a deep breath and said in a deep voice, "Follow me."

Zhao Yu picked up his sword and followed Liu Yao silently.

Tian Feng's behavior greatly disrupted the government affairs of Pei County. In particular, Zhao Yu was planning to repair the fields and dredge the canals, and tens of thousands of people were waiting with open mouths. As a result, most of the officials from top to bottom were captured by Tian Feng.

How can we do this? Who dares to do this?

At this time, inside the inn, Tian Feng sat quietly, looking at the list on the table with a thoughtful look on his face.

This list was very ordinary, with mostly businessmen and some large and small aristocratic families on it, all of whom were insignificant. Except for two names, it seemed that they were written with great effort, with dark and thick ink.

Mi Fang, Mi Zhu.

(End of this chapter)