At the end of the Han Dynasty: a stingy husband from his hometown

Chapter 258: Virtuous and talented people congenial, filial piety and uprightness offer advice

Since ancient times, being weak has been the original sin.

Liu Zhang first lost Bajun and then Hanzhong, and then everyone rebelled and separated from their relatives. Zhao Wei, Wu Yi and others all surrendered to Zhou Qi one after another.

The tree fell and the hozen scattered, the wall fell and everyone pushed.

It had not been long since Liu Zhang inherited Yizhou's foundation, and he still failed to win over people's hearts. Regarding the Dongzhou people's invasion of Yizhou's old people, his inaction also aroused resentment among Yizhou officials and people.

This is why.

With Yizhou besieged on all sides, no one was willing to stand up and fight to the death for Liu Zhang.

Historically, when Liu Bei entered Shu, the reason why so many people were loyal to Liu Zhang was because after the Yizhou rebellion, Liu Zhang adjusted his strategy and began to gradually use local scholars.

Moreover, at that time, Liu Zhang had been ruling Yizhou for more than 20 years. Coupled with his tolerant personality, he gradually gained the support of many people.

Jingzhou, Xiangyang City.

Zhou Qi looked at the continuous battle reports coming from Bajun, and his depressed mood due to Xi Zhicai's death finally changed a little.

He summoned his subordinates Wen Wu to come over and said: "Yuan Zhi personally entered the dangerous situation. He first persuaded Zhao Wei and Wang Shang to surrender, and then designed to kill Zhang Ren and force Wu Yi to surrender."

"Now Lingbao, Deng Xian, and Wu Ban have all surrendered. Yan Yan has led his troops to capture most of Guanghan County, and Zhao Wei has even captured the key to the entire county."

"The situation in Yizhou is very good. Gu Yu leads the Jingzhou soldiers and horses to march westward, and Yizhou will be conquered in one battle. What do you think?"

"My lord is wise!"

Uniform shouts resounded throughout the chamber.

This time, no one spoke out against it.

They all knew that this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to capture Yizhou. If they could occupy the entire territory of Yizhou, the general would at least be able to rule across the river from the northern princes, and his hegemony would be achieved.

That means that their choice to follow the general is not wrong.

Thinking of this, everyone looked excited, and the generals in the army even asked for battle.

Just when Zhou Qi was dispatching his troops and preparing to lead his troops into Yizhou, Yizhou envoys Wang Shang and Fazheng came with surrender orders.

After Zhou Qi learned the news, he was naturally surprised and happy, and cordially received the two of them.

Zhou Qi accepted the seal and ribbon from Yizhou Mu and held a banquet in honor of the two of them. When the banquet was over, he took the two of them and said slightly drunkenly: "I am very happy today. Do you two know why?"

Wang Shang smiled and said: "I must be happy to capture Yizhou and occupy the south."

Zhou Qi shook his head, and then said seriously: "I am not happy to get Yizhou, but because these two talented people came to join me."

"Liu Zhang is weak, and sooner or later Yizhou will be taken by an orphan. What's the point?"

"However, Wenbiao is well-known among Yizhou scholars and is a talented person of the generation; although Xiaozhi is young, he is extremely intelligent and may not be as good as Zhicai in the future."

"Compared to two talented people coming to invest, what does Yizhou mean?"

When the two heard Zhou Qi's words, although they knew that the general was trying to win people's hearts, they still felt warm in their hearts.

After sending the two of them to rest, Zhou Qi felt a little drunk, but did not go into the house to sleep. Instead, he stayed alone in the courtyard, looking at the stars in the sky, and missing the late Xi Zhicai.

"Zhicai, Gong Jin is now 23 years old and can already stand alone."

"Yuan Zhi also set up a plan to turn Yizhou upside down without spending a single soldier in Jingzhou, and then forced Liu Zhang to surrender."

"You have a successor. If the spirit in heaven knows about this, please don't worry."

"After this incident, Yuan Zhi has made outstanding achievements. Even if he is promoted to Military Advisor Zhonglang General and takes your previous position, no one would dare to say anything."

"In addition to Gong Jin and Yuan Zhi, Xiao Zhi also comes to like each other."

"This person is very ambitious and talented in the past, and he is good at scheming. He will definitely be reused in the future."

Zhou Qi was chattering to the stars in the sky, and unknowingly drank a few more glasses of wine.

"My lord, Faxiao wants to see you directly."

At this moment, Dian Wei walked in and whispered to Zhou Qi.

Zhou Qi calmly wiped the tears from the corners of his eyes, straightened his clothes, cheered up and said, "Please!"

"I have been nagging late at night, please forgive me, General!"

Fazheng came in, smelled the smell of alcohol on Zhou Qi's body, his eyes moved slightly, and he bowed down to apologize.

Zhou Qi helped Fazheng up and said: "Xiaozhi's visit at this time must be important. It's also my fault that I miss Zhicai too much and drank a few more glasses of wine. That's why I behave like this. On the contrary, I'm neglecting Xiaozhi."

When Fazheng heard this, he couldn't help but suddenly realized, and then secretly said in his heart: "I never thought that the general is still a person who values ​​love and justice."

Zhou Qi led Fazheng to sit down, and then ordered people to serve melons, fruits, desserts and tea. Then he said slightly reproachfully: "On the day your ancestor passed away, I happened to be ordered by the imperial court to lead the troops to calm down Fufeng on the right. He rebelled and went all the way to visit Master Dharma."

"At that time, I hit it off with Xiao Nao, and I specifically told him that if you encounter difficulties in the future, or if you want to become an official, you can come and see me."

"When Li Jue and Guo Si were causing trouble in Chang'an, and when I learned that the price of food in Guanzhong had skyrocketed, people were dying of hunger everywhere, and nine out of ten houses were empty, I was very worried about Xiaozhi's situation. I even sent people to look for it at one time. Unfortunately, the Legalists had already disappeared. Go to the empty building.”

"I never thought that Xiaozhi did not come to join me, but went to Yizhou."

Listening to Zhou Qi's slightly reproachful words, Fazheng felt a warm current flowing through his heart.

Since the death of his father and grandfather, the Legalist family has begun to decline. Especially when Li Jue and Guo Si caused trouble in Chang'an, Fa Zheng almost starved to death.

Fortunately, his friend Meng Da from the same county came to his aid and moved the Legalists to Yizhou, so Fa Zheng survived.

When Fazheng fled to Yizhou, he had not yet reached the crown and his life was quite difficult. Fortunately, in order to win people's hearts, Wu Yi took good care of the foreign scholars who fled to Yizhou, so that he could survive those difficult years.

After Fazheng was crowned, he was recommended by Wu Yi to Liu Zhang, but he could not be reused, and he was also depressed.

Over the years, Fazheng has experienced the ups and downs of the world.

He did not expect that the general who had become a vassal state in Xiangyang would still remember him, a young man whom he had only met once.

He was not given much importance by Liu Zhang, but when he came to Xiangyang he was treated with courtesy.

With such a huge gap, even if your mind is as strong as the Dharma, your nose will feel a little sore.

He stood up, bowed deeply to Zhou Qi, and sighed: "I never thought that the general would still remember the name of Fazheng."

Zhou Qi stepped forward and took Fazheng's hand, saying, "How could you not remember?"

"Xiao Nao's composure and intelligence left a very deep impression on me at the beginning. I had long expected that Xiao Nao would become a great person in the future, and I thought I could recruit you when you are older."

"I never thought that you would go to Yizhou and join Liu Zhang."

Fazheng smiled bitterly and said: "To be honest, when Li Jue and Guo Si caused trouble in Guanzhong, I did think about coming to join the general."

"However, the price of food in Guanzhong was extremely high at that time, and my family was not wealthy, so I had to dismiss my servants and barely make ends meet."

"Had it not been for the help of my friend Meng Da from the same county, he would have starved to death long ago." "Later, Li Jue and Guo Si sent troops to plunder and plunder, and they had no choice but to flee to Yizhou with Meng Da."

"Compared with Yizhou, which is adjacent to Youfufeng, the general's rule is too far away."

"We are all refugees. It is not easy to travel long distances through several princely territories."

"It is for this reason that I stayed in Yizhou."

Listening to Fazheng's previous experiences, Zhou Qi couldn't help but sigh: "I think back on how prosperous You Fufeng was as one of the three assistants, but he was ruined by Dong Zhuo, Li Jue, and Guo Si."

"In troubled times, human lives are like straw."

At this point, he looked at Fazheng with bright eyes and said: "Although I am not talented, I have the ambition to cut off the evildoers, wipe out the rebellion, and restore the world to a bright and prosperous world. I am filial, have a strategic mind, have a good plan, and have the knowledge of the world. Zhicai, are you willing to help me?"

Fazheng had long wanted to seek refuge with Zhou Qi, and this time he took the initiative to invite Miao to come to Xiangyang as an envoy for this purpose.

Now that he saw that the general had such a high opinion of himself and took the initiative to lower his status to recruit him, Fazheng did not hesitate at all and worshiped directly: "I am willing to die in the service of the lord in order to repay the kindness of knowing me."

When Zhou Qi heard this, he couldn't help laughing out loud and said: "If I have to be filial and upright, the world will be settled!"

Zhou Qi's hearty laughter also made Dian Wei, who was guarding him, look surprised.

As the leader of Zhou Qi's bodyguard, he knew that since Xi Zhicai died of illness, his lord had not laughed to his heart's content for a long time.

But he didn't understand how charming this Fa Zheng was, which actually made the general change like this.

After Fa Zheng recognized his master, he immediately stopped holding back and said solemnly: "My lord, do you know why I came here late at night?"

Zhou Qi also felt strange and asked, "I don't know."

Fa Zheng said: "I came here to solve Yizhou's problems."

When Zhou Qi heard this, he couldn't help but feel a little moved in his heart and asked, "What future troubles are there for Yizhou?"

Fazheng took out a thick roll of Yizhou map from his arms, laid it out on the desk, took a lamp and pointed at the mountains, rivers, and marked areas of various barbarian tribes.

He looked at Zhou Qi and said: "Although the land of Bashu is fertile and wild for thousands of miles and is the breadbasket of the world, it also has high mountains and dangerous roads, and there are many barbarians and large clans that have existed for hundreds of years."

"Especially in the South Central region, there are many large tribes that have taken root here since the founding of the Western Han Dynasty. They have had very close relations with various tribes and barbarians for hundreds of years."

"My lord has taken possession of Yizhou, but if he cannot manage it well, once the Yizhou tribes and barbarians occupy the dangerous mountains and rivers and land and rebel, they will become a serious threat. It will take a lot of manpower and material resources to pacify them."

When Zhou Qi heard this, his face became serious.

In fact, this is what Zhou Qi has always been worried about.

Barbarian rebellions in the land of Bashu were not uncommon. Even when Liu Bei and Zhuge Liang were in power, rebellions continued.

Especially after Liu Bei's death, almost all the southern and central regions rebelled. The Shu Kingdom nominally occupied Yizhou at that time, but its actual ruling area may only be half of Yizhou's territory.

Even if there were rebellions in various places, Zhuge Liang did not lead his troops to quell the rebellion, but instead temporarily pacified them.

It was not that Zhuge Liang was weak, but that the Battle of Yiling defeated Shu. At that time, Shu had foreign troubles and was unable to suppress the rebels in the south.

It was not until Zhuge Liang came to power and worked hard to master the rule that he personally led his army deep into the barren land. With the combination of kindness and power, the rebellion in Nanzhong was quelled in one fell swoop.

Later, Zhuge Liang enforced the law fairly regardless of Han people or barbarians, and reused many Yizhou generals, which gradually eliminated these hidden dangers.

But now, the situation in Yizhou is still not optimistic.

Zhou Qi was naturally aware of this hidden danger, and immediately said with a serious face: "Please Xiaozhi teach me."

Fa Zhengdao: "Yizhou has been suffering from problems for many years, and hidden dangers cannot be solved overnight."

"But now, there is an imminent hidden danger, and that is Zhao Wei and those Yizhou generals who first rebelled against Liu Zhang and then surrendered to the lord."

When Zhou Qi heard this, he couldn't help but frown slightly and became wary.

He knows, however, that in history, those who have a reputation for justice must retaliate.

Wu Yi was kind to Fazheng, but Zhao Wei was at odds with the Dongzhou people. Zhou Qi was also worried that Fazheng would abolish public affairs for personal reasons and maliciously criticize Zhao Wei.

However, after Zhou Qi has been in power for so many years, he has long been able to keep his emotions and anger a secret.

Although he was wary in his heart, he asked calmly on the surface: "Why did Xiaozhi say this?"

Fazheng did not answer directly, but asked rhetorically: "My lord, do you know why Liu Yan and Liu Zhang, their father and son, have successively used people from Dongzhou, but deliberately suppressed scholars from Yizhou?"

Although Zhou Qi had an idea in his mind, he did not say it out loud. Instead, he deliberately asked: "Why?"

Fa Zhengdao: "Yizhou has high mountains and dangerous roads, coupled with the large number of barbarians, the restrictions imposed by the court are far inferior to those in the Central Plains."

"The aristocratic families here have been here for hundreds of years, and most of them are married to each other, and the relationship is very close."

"If Liu Yan reuses local scholars in Yizhou, he will be dismissed sooner or later. Who has the final say in Yizhou at that time is not yet known."

"It is for this reason that Liu Yan reused Dongzhou scholars from other places and formed the Dongzhou Army."

"Although Liu Zhang is secretive, he also knows the relationship well, so he allows the Dongzhou people to suppress the Yizhou scholars and strengthen his own strength."

"In the final analysis, Yizhou is still too isolated and the wealthy families are too powerful, so we have to guard against it."

"Nothing else."

"Yan Yan surrendered to his lord, so that all Ba County broke away from Liu Zhang's rule in a short period of time and came under the rule of the general."

"If the major families in Ba County are not connected with each other and have in-laws, how can Yan Yan alone achieve this?"

Hearing this, Zhou Qi couldn't help but secretly nodded.

Fazheng continued: "Yan Yan is not an isolated case."

"Zhao Wei raised his arms and shouted, and all the officials and wealthy families in Yizhou rebelled. This shows the close connection between them."

"Zhao Wei first elected Liu Zhang as the lord of Yizhou, and then led the crowd to rebel and sacrifice Yizhou."

"Today he can rebel against Liu Zhang for his own benefit, but in the future he may rebel against his lord again for his own benefit."

"What's more, Zhao Wei's contribution to disrupting Yizhou and forcing Liu Zhang to surrender, how should my lord reward him?"

"If the reward is too heavy, he may not be able to support his own troops and establish a separate empire."

"If the reward is too light, he will definitely hold a grudge, and he may not rebel again in the future."

Zhou Qi pondered for a moment and said, "I don't know what to do if I transfer him out of Yizhou and promote him to a higher position?"

When Fazheng heard this, he smiled and said: "We already have [-] troops in front of each other, no less than one of the princes. If we raise our arms and raise our arms, we may not be able to recruit tens of thousands more troops."

"If the lord really wants to ascend openly and secretly, reduce his military power, and transfer him away from Yizhou, will Zhao Wei agree?"

Zhou Qi was silent when he heard this.

(End of this chapter)