Kuangfu Han Dynasty

Chapter 9 Good people have to be pointed at guns?

"If it succeeds, my husband will live up to General Zuo's many years of kindness, and your ideal of assisting him to pacify the world can continue. How can the old lady not be happy?"

Zhang Shao stood up and took a step back, bowing his head to Chief Xu: "Is it because of the bad reputation of abandoning the Lord, being laughed at by others, and not being able to start well and end well, making my mother feel guilty and shed tears all day long?"

"Or will you shock the world with one fell swoop and make yourself loyal and filial?"

"These two paths are right in front of you. Please make your choice, Mr. Xu!"

Silence, the courtyard fell into a strange silence. Facing Zhang Shao's moral kidnapping again, Xu Shu said nothing, his face was serious, and he didn't know what he was thinking.

And what about Zhang Shao?After he said these words quickly, he lowered his head, with cold sweat on his forehead, and even dared not look into Xu Shu's eyes?Why, you feel guilty.

Even though Zhang Shaofang looked like he had a lot of wisdom, he was actually just pretending. How would he rate himself for this whole plan?Fifty at most!Can't even reach the passing mark.

There was no way, this was a hasty thought. Before Xu Shu entered the door, Zhang Shao had never thought of it.It wasn't until she overheard the conversation between mother and son that Mrs. Xu showed Zhang Shao what "loyalty" was. Xu Shu showed her pure filial piety and full apology for Liu Bei, which Zhang Shao felt could be used.

When Zhang Shao rescued Mrs. Xu who had hanged herself, he could repay the favor he owed her, and the matter would be settled.Don't let Xiahou Ba go smoothly after that. The second uncle is an honest man and is too easy to fool.But who knows when he will react and come back to take Xu Shu away?Zhang Shao must consider whether this will be the only chance for him and Xu Shu to be alone!

Therefore, Zhang Shao could only catch up and put it on the shelf. In just half a quarter of an hour, he pieced together a rough plan of "faking surrender to Cao Cao and launching a rebellion of Nanjun heroes after the battle of Chibi".

If given time to polish it slowly, Zhang Shao would be confident that he would be more convincing, but he would not be able to organize his language and logic in detail.Among them, the most difficult one to explain is "why Cao Cao is certain to be defeated", which can only be left ambiguous, with excuses being made about ghosts and gods, and hoping that Xu Shu will be as superstitious as other ancients.

But after all, Xu Shu is a wise man whose name is recorded in history books. Will he be gullible?
Zhang Shao felt unsure, because in this plan, all the risks were borne by Xu Shu. He had to personally contact the anti-Cao forces and wait for the frontline defeat, which he did not know whether it was true or false.Cao Cao is suspicious, and there is a risk of exposure at every moment. Xu Shu must risk his own future and the life of his mother!
Is there a false surrender and a backstab in line with Xu Shu's own principles?Zhang Shaoke clearly remembers that in the Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Xu Shu was deliberately sent as an envoy to Liu Bei by Cao Cao after his mother died. This is a typical example of how a gentleman can bully Xu Shu, and he was unable to return to Liu Bei because of his integrity. ...And what does Xu Shu think at this moment?
The more he thought about the loopholes, the bigger the loophole became. Zhang Shao lowered the plan score by another twenty. He was prepared to laugh a few times and pretend that this had never happened after Xu Shu flatly refused. He at least tried it and had no regrets.

"This matter came from my mouth and reached Mr. Xu's ears. I believe he will not betray me. Besides, I, an eight-year-old child, tried to recruit him into his gang to stab Cao Cao in the back. Who would believe it?"

It's embarrassing to say that in the entire plan, only Zhang Shao was in an absolutely safe position.

Xu Shu finally stopped staring at Zhang Shao, but closed his eyes, and began to pinch his eyebrows with his left hand. He was really tired these days.Xu Shu had never slept a wink since his mother was separated. He stayed awake for three days and two nights, running hundreds of miles back and forth between Hanshui River and Dangyang. His body had reached its limit, and his heart was filled with the guilt of betraying his lord and the hatred for his mother who was imprisoned by Cao Jun. Desperately angry.

Not to mention that within a short moment of entering the house today, he suddenly encountered the shock of his own mother committing suicide, which made Xu Shu even more exhausted mentally and physically.

Before it was over, he didn't even bother to take a sip of water. Zhang Shao suddenly told him a lot of shocking things, from foretelling that Lu Su, the envoy from Jiangdong, would come to join the alliance, to predicting that Cao Cao would be defeated, and to inciting Xu Shu to "false surrender". "To plan for great things.Carrying out one item alone is enough for a person to digest it for a long time, but suddenly it is packed together and stuffed together. Such a large amount of information almost makes Xu Shu's brain almost shut down, and his head is still buzzing.

That's why Xu Shucai has been led by Zhang Shao. When it comes to unexplainable strange things, he even subconsciously seeks the prophecy prophecies told by Mr. Shui Jing to forcefully explain... If it were the usual him, he would not be like this.

Fortunately, Xu Shu finally managed to hold on to his last shred of reason. He closed his eyes for a moment and quickly went through what had just happened in his mind, slowly figuring out the stakes involved.Only then did he open his eyes again, and it seemed that he had regained some of his former clarity.

Xu Shu's eyes when looking at Zhang Shao were no longer shocked, but more sympathetic. The first words out of his mouth were neither agreement nor rejection.

"Ashao, do you miss your mother very much?"

What does it mean?Zhang Shao was stunned, hesitating and not knowing how to answer. In fact, he didn't think about Xia Houjuan at all. This body was controlled by the will of the time traveler. The scenes of loving mothers and loving children in his memory were like watching flowers through the fog.

What Zhang Shao really wants is to get rid of his status as a prisoner and hostage as soon as possible and return to Liu Bei's group as soon as possible.If he can succeed, with his foresight and foreknowledge of the general historical process, he can comfortably be a small shareholder in this life, with glory and wealth at his fingertips. The most important thing is that he has the right to choose what kind of life he wants to live.

On the other hand, if he did nothing and allowed the situation to develop, Zhang Shao would most likely be taken back to the north together with the Liu sisters as trophies.What will happen to them?Zhang Shao didn't even dare to think about it.Although he regarded Liu Ruyu as a passer-by when they first met, after a few days of sharing hardships, although it did not reach the level of "sister-brother love", at least it was considered a girl next door. It would be best if the tragedy could be prevented.

Although Zhang Shao was protected by the Xiahou family and his life would not be in danger after being kidnapped, he was the son of an enemy general after all, and his fate would fluctuate with the battle between Cao and Liu.Every relative of the Wei generals killed by Zhang Fei will bear grudges against Zhang Shao. Overt or covert hostility will grow more and more. If the Xiahou family can protect him for a while, can they protect him for the rest of his life?
Just for the sake of warmth and food, Zhang Shao had to kneel down and lick many people against their will. Do you think they are all as easy to talk to as Xiahou Ba?Thinking about it makes me tired. I live like a little mouse living in a cat's nest. I am terrified all the time. I probably won't live long.

Having said that, things in the subconscious cannot be erased after all. When he mentioned Xia Houjuan, Zhang Shao couldn't help but burst into tears, just like when he faced Zhang Bao's corpse before.Zhang Shao was a little embarrassed and was about to reach out and wipe it, but unexpectedly Xu Shu had already walked over and held him in his arms like a teacher.

"A Shao, I understand that we are all children who want to return to our mother."

Xu Shu probably understood Zhang Shao's behavior. This child must have witnessed his brother's death and burst out with wisdom that was not obvious in the desperate situation, like a jade split by thunder and washed away by heavy rain.He must have encountered some strange encounters, and then he was not sure about some things.But in the final analysis, it's all because I want to go home, that's why I'm so anxious, so...well, I'll do whatever it takes.

Suddenly being hugged by an adult man, Zhang Shao felt a little embarrassed, but what was this warm and comfortable feeling in his heart?

Consciously calming Zhang Shao's mood a little, Xu Shu let go of him, squatted down, looked Zhang Shao in the eyes, and said seriously: "Please don't worry, although Xu Shu is incompetent and unfaithful, I have received great kindness from my lord, and I should treat him as a confidant." If I can ensure my mother's safety, even if I risk my life, I will definitely help you and Sister Hou return home!"

Although Xu Shu's hometown, Yingchuan, was under the control of Cao Cao, his family was not a Guan clan, but a "Shan Family", which was even poorer than a poor family. It was a single family. Since his father died early, he had almost no contact with relatives.Besides, after the chaos in the Central Plains, the distant relatives of the Xu family had long been scattered all over the country, so Xu Shu's only concern was his mother.Zhang Shao was immediately overjoyed: "Sir, are you... agreeing?" He could pass the exam with [-] or [-] points, but what good thing could he do?
However, Xu Shu shook his head: "I only promise to try to help you return home. As for the rest, I can't guarantee even a single sentence, unless..."

"Unless what?" Zhang Shao still wanted to fight for it.

Xu Shu smiled. He had been passive just now, but now he began to regain the initiative in the conversation little by little by empathizing with Zhang Shao and comforting him.

"Unless you can first tell me what kind of adventure you had, why you were able to tell me the name of Lu Zijing, the envoy from Jiangdong, and how you predicted Cao Cao's defeat!"

It seemed that this was unavoidable, so Zhang Shaosui no longer deliberately concealed it: "It was a dream. In Dangyang Changban, after I fell from my horse, I had several strange dreams until I woke up..."

……

Just like that, the storytelling session started in the yard.

Zhang Shao said that he dreamed that his father Zhang Fei was yelling at the Changban Bridge with a spear, which scared the tiger and leopard knights so much that they did not dare to pursue him.

And General Zhao Zilong was so brave that he rescued Adou in Changban.

Then I saw Lu Zi coming gracefully and met General Zuo; finally Xu Shu went north, Mrs. Xu hanged herself in grief, and Xu Shu regretted it for the rest of his life...

Anyway, combined with the recent real events, it doesn't sound so embarrassing.

Xu Shu listened very seriously: "Did you still dream about the defeat of Cao's army?"

"Of course." Having said this, Zhang Shao began to remain silent again, still unwilling to reveal the specific information about the Battle of Chibi.Firstly, what he knows may not be accurate, and what he says may be wrong. Secondly, he also wants to keep a trump card for himself.

Xu Shu was very considerate, and when he saw Zhang Shao's hesitation, he did not force him, but nodded and said: "That's enough, that's enough."

Although he didn't show much emotion on his face, Xu Shu was a little excited in his heart and thought to himself: "If this is true, could it be a prophecy sent by God who couldn't bear to see the Lord's defeat?"

The Later Han Dynasty was the dynasty that believed in the prophecies of Chenwei the most, because the process of Emperor Guangwu's victory over the world was indeed mixed with a mysterious flavor.

For example, when Guangwu was in Hebei in his early years, he was chased by Wang Lang and fled in embarrassment with his men. When they arrived at the Hutuo River, the locals told them that the ice on the river had long since melted and there was no ferry.The pursuers were about to arrive, but Liu Xiu was unwilling to give up and sent Wang Ba to check again.Wang Ba saw that this was indeed the case, but in order to avoid a public collapse, he blatantly lied when he came back, saying that the river was frozen and solid and could be crossed.

As a result, when Guangwu arrived at the Hutuo River, the thawed river ice miraculously solidified!They crossed the river without any danger.However, Hebei is the territory of Wang Lang. Where can we go safely next?Just when he was still hesitating, an old man in white suddenly appeared out of thin air on the side of the road, pointing to the distance and saying to Guangwu: "Work hard! Xindu County is guarding Chang'an City, and we will go eighty miles here." Guangwu and others rushed there immediately, and sure enough, He gained the allegiance of Ren Guang, the governor of Xindu, and gained his first territory.

This is not a folk rumor, but a true story recorded by Taishi in "Dongguan Hanji".As for the meteor that fell into Wang Mang's army in the Battle of Kunyang and the sudden thunder and rain that appeared when the two armies clashed, they were even more bizarre.

Although Xu Shu didn't like this very much, his teacher Mr. Shui Jing believed in it and felt that it proved that the destiny of Guangwu was in Guangwu. As for the people who believed in it, there were even more people.

Now Zhang Shao has also encountered something strange. If Xu Shu was still under Liu Bei, he would not hesitate to use these prophecies to publicize it, because this can prove that Liu Bei's career in supporting the Han Dynasty was helped by God!
But as a strategist, there is one most basic principle that he must not violate when making judgments.

Xu Shu said: "I believe what A Shao said is true, but if I rely on these alone, it is not enough to believe in Cao Cao's defeat. As "Wu Sun Tzu" said, military affairs should not be based on ghosts and gods, and should not be imitated. Prophecies cannot be verified by divination."

So it turned out that Zhang Shao couldn't laugh or cry. He had pretended to be a magic stick before, so it seems that he should use this trick as little as possible in the future.

However, Xu Shu said again: "But I believe in another person's words that 'Cao Cao will be defeated'."

oh?Has anyone else made similar predictions?Zhang Shao was curious about who it was: "Sir, you are referring to..."

Xu Shu looked to the east: "It's Kong Ming!"

Yes, yesterday morning when Xu Shu left Hanjin and came north, Kong Ming was about to sail south with Lu Su to Jiangdong to mediate the alliance, but he still came in a hurry to say goodbye to Xu Shu and said these words.

"Although my lord is newly defeated, those who can help the people will win the hearts of the people and defeat Cao Cao's army in the future."

The slender hand holding the hair fan pointed at the turbulent Jianghan and said to Xu Shu: "Brother Yuanzhi, be careful when you go. The tripod foot shape I predicted in Longzhong will come true!"

(End of this chapter)