Ji Han Liu Zhang

Liu Zhang turned his back to the civil and military subordinates, holding a fishing rod and fishing in the Han River. However, he had some bad luck today. He hadn't seen any big fish take the bait for a long time, but only palm-sized small fish biting and swallowing the hooks.

After continuing to fish like this, Liu Zhang felt tired after a while. He thought to himself that today was not his auspicious day, and he probably wouldn't be able to catch any decent big fish to use as the main course of today's dinner.

Huang Quan, the chief registrar, was the only one who dared to approach Liu Zhang when he was fishing. One reason was that he held the secret as the chief registrar, and another reason was that Huang Quan had the identity seal of Liu Zhang's uncle, so he You won’t act cautiously or worry about anything.

Huang Quan came to Liu Zhang's side and reported to Liu Zhang in a low voice: "Jian Xi has sent back the latest information on Shangyong."

"What do you say?" Liu Zhang had not seen a big fish bite the hook for a long time, and most of his temper had been worn away. He put away the fishing rod and put it aside, and invited Huang Quan to sit down, and the two started chatting on the bank of the Han River.

Huang Quan slowly said: "The wealthy Shen family pretended to be defeated for a few games, causing Jingzhou coach Cai Mao to underestimate the enemy and blindly urge the Jing soldiers to pursue the Shen family. The Shen family took advantage of Cai Mao's carelessness to set up an ambush. Cai Maozhong had no time to respond and abandoned his army and fled. Now the Jing soldiers have been defeated and returned to Fangling."

In a different time and space, Cai Hao and Zhang Yun were still picking on each other. Liu Zhang shook his head and showed a speechless expression. He knew the strength of Cai Hao and Shen's troops. Cai Hao had more than 10,000 Jing soldiers, and The Shen family only has about 5,000 people. The double advantage is even greater than the advantage of Huaihai's 800,000 to 600,000 people. Cai Mao actually lost all this, to a small tyrant in the valley like the Shen family. .

But this is the case with military affairs. Sometimes the number of troops cannot determine the outcome of a battle. It can only be said to have a slight advantage. Guandu and Chibi are both clear evidence of this.

"Cai Mao is so unbearable, shouldn't he be punished by Liu Jingzhou?" Liu Zhang teased. He had the attitude of watching a show. Liu Biao took advantage of the situation and wanted to secretly capture Xicheng and Shangyong while he was attacking Hanzhong. Putting Xicheng and Shangyong, which were originally under the control of Hanzhong County, under the control of Jingzhou, had very bad intentions. Now that he heard that Jingzhou's military use was unfavorable, of course he was happy.

But Huang Quan shook his head: "The news coming from Jingzhou is that the official said that the use of troops this time was unfavorable. It was because Wenpin, the captain of Cai Mao's account, was greedy for merit and rushed forward, so it led to a big defeat. It was not It’s Cai Mao’s fault.”

"Wenpin, Wenpin named Zhongye?" Liu Zhang raised his head with a sarcastic attitude.

"Huh?" Huang Quan was stunned by Liu Zhang's question. For a small role like Wenpin, he didn't understand why Liu Zhang asked the previous question, but he didn't think much about it. After thinking about the details of the document handed over by Xia Jianxi, he He nodded: "Captain Wenpin, his nickname is indeed Zhongye, I don't know how Ming Gong knew it."

"Oh, Zhang Song was on a mission to Jingzhou earlier. When he came back, he talked about the people in Jingzhou. He told me about Wenpin. He said that this person has general talents and is extraordinary." Liu Zhang responded casually.

Huang Quan smiled calmly: "I guess Zhang Song made a mistake. The people in Jingzhou said that Wenpin was greedy for merit and had a big defeat, so he caused a big defeat. Now Wenpin's wife has been detained, but no punishment has been given yet. ...A person like Wenpin, who is eager for quick success and regardless of risks, is not a good general."

Liu Zhang showed a playful expression: "We don't know. Zhang Song has something to say. Cai Mao is not a good man, and he did things that he has done to blame... Where is Wenpin now? Whether Cai Mao has detained Wenpin. "

"That's not true, but it's not that Cai Mao didn't want to be detained, but that Wenpin was unfortunately caught by the Shen family after the defeat of the Jing soldiers. We arranged for Shen family to report carefully, saying that the Shen family planned to sell Wenpin. It’s a good price, even if Wenpin said that he is a captain, it’s worth a few hundred gold.” Huang Quan reported in detail.

Liu Zhang thought for a moment and then asked about Zhang Lu's movements: "Zhang Lu went down the Han River and went up Yongyong. Did Zhang Lu come into contact with the Shen family?"

"Zhang Lu arrived at the boundary of Xicheng, but he only stationed troops outside Xicheng and has not yet been closely connected with the Shen family. Our people said that Zhang Lu and the Shen family are still having envoy exchanges." Huang Quan explained the situation, and then speculated on the situation: " Zhang Lu is a lost dog, and the Shen family is being persecuted by Jingzhou. Cai Hao hates the Shen family to the core, and Quan thought that the Zhang Lu and Shen families might unite and join forces to deal with Cai Hao."

"It's possible." Liu Zhang nodded in approval and said, "Let's see first. Hanzhong is determined. Many matters need to be taken care of. Let Zhang Lu, Shen and Cai Mao fight in Shangyong. We can only sit on Diaoyutai. .”

"What Ming Gong said is that I don't know what Ming Gong will get if he sits firmly on the Diaoyutai and fishes for a long time today." Huang Quan joked.

Huang Quan's words touched Liu Zhang's pain. Although he was not an air force fishing today, he only caught a few small fish, which was not much different from the air force. Liu Zhang sighed: "The fish in Hanshui are really cunning. , it’s easy to get my way, but when I order my soldiers to throw their whips to cut off the Han River, these fish will have nowhere to escape.”

Liu Zhang and Huang Quan looked at each other and laughed.

……

Liu Zhang, who had not caught enough fish, gave up the idea of ​​​​retreating after catching a big fish, got up and returned to the official temple in Nanzheng with Huang Quan.

"Gong Heng, the post of Hanzhong Prefect is still vacant. I haven't found a suitable candidate for the time being. How about you take the job first." As he walked, Liu Zhang said something.

When Huang Quan heard this, he felt his breathing become tight. The Grand Administrator of Hanzhong was a high-ranking official with two thousand stones, but he was not even thirty yet. The Ming Gong in front of him actually handed the position of Grand Administrator of Hanzhong to his butt so lightly.

It was rare that Huang Quan didn't accept it immediately. He thought about it for a moment and said, "Since it's your intention, I won't refuse."

"Gong Heng, that's what I like about you. You're refreshing and very different from others." Liu Zhang smiled cheerfully. As the throat of Yizhou, Hanzhong would not be at ease unless someone close to him was in charge. Secondly, he will send troops to Guanzhong in the future. As the nearest rear, Hanzhong should need good people to guard it. When it comes to intimacy and ability, there is naturally no more suitable candidate than Huang Quan at the moment.

The two of them walked to the Mingtang of the official temple and walked in one after another. Inside the Mingtang, Peng Yi looked like he had been waiting for a long time.

"How are Li Xiu and Yang Ren?" Liu Zhang asked after he sat down. The captured army commander Li Xiu and the wine worshiper Yang Ren were captured Hanzhong ministers, and they had some abilities. Li Xiu, in particular, was quite capable. He had the ability to fight dust, but within a few months he built a fortified city called Xinyang Pingguan on Zouma Ridge. Therefore, Liu Zhang had the intention of recruiting surrender and sent Peng Yi to surrender.

Peng Yi was waiting for Liu Zhang to ask questions, and he answered: "Ming Gong, Army Commander Ma Li Xiu is a man who knows the current affairs. I asked him if he was willing to surrender, and he said, 'He is about to be captured, so why not surrender?'" Peng Yi said. He couldn't help but smile when he saw this. He thought about how justified Li Xiu was in saying this. It seemed that changing the family was not a shameful thing for Li Xiu, but an extremely common thing.

Liu Zhang was also amused by Li Xiu's words. He smiled and shook his head: "This Li Xiu is a wonderful man. I'll meet him one day... How about offering wine to Yang Ren." Peng Yi concentrated attentively. , he sighed: "Yang Ren is a little silly. He said that there is only one master in his heart, and that is Zhang Lu, but he doesn't know the envoy or Yizhou Mu... Moreover, Yang Ren has something to say, It is said that if he is to be executed, his face should be facing the east. If Zhang Lu is in the east, he will naturally face the east."

"This Yang Ren is somewhat loyal." Huang Quan spoke quickly and praised Yang Ren. He did not criticize and damage Yang Ren's loyalty because Yang Ren and them were enemies. He even praised Yang Ren in front of Liu Zhang. Yang Ren.

Peng Yi frowned. He didn't quite agree with Huang Quan's words: "The great loyalty and righteousness in the world lies in loyalty to the Han family. As a scholar, Yang Ren believed in the ghost way of Tianshi Dao and forgot that the sages were close to ghosts and gods. And Yuan Zhi's commandment is now even more stubborn, thinking of serving Zhang Lu and dying, just to make the world laugh..."

At this point, Peng Yi raised his hand and asked Liu Zhang for orders: "Ming Gong, Yang Ren is stubborn and stubborn. It is better to kill him and hang his head on the top of Nanzheng City to teach the Han sergeants and people to know the fate of being loyal to Zhang Lu."

"Let's keep it first. Although loyalty and righteousness come first, Yang Ren can be regarded as a person with such small loyalty." Liu Zhang denied Peng Yi's words and planned to keep Yang Ren alive.
-

Above average.

Hearing what Cai Mao's envoy said, Shen Yu's heart suddenly burst into flames. He didn't expect that Cai Hao would be so arrogant after a defeat. He didn't take him seriously, and the envoy who sent him to surrender was talking arrogantly. , it still carries a somewhat threatening tone.

It's just that although Shen Yuan is angry, he can't speak out because his father Shen Gong and brother Shen Yi are in charge.

Duke Shen was old and very knowledgeable about the world. After listening to what the messenger Cai Mao said, he still had a slight smile on his face. He was not angry because of what the messenger Cai Mao said. He only asked one question after the messenger Cai Mao finished speaking. : "You Chu people were defeated earlier. I captured a lot of Chu people here. Some of them have status, such as Du Wei Wenpin, Tun Chang Wen San, etc. These people spent a lot of food and grass, but killing prisoners is an unknown thing. , I don’t want to kill them, I wonder if your General Cai Zhonglang is willing to redeem them..."

When Cai Mao's envoy heard this, he couldn't help but feel angry on his face. Shen Gong's words were nice, saying that he couldn't bear to kill the prisoners, but the envoy understood the deep meaning of Shen Gong's words and warned him that all the people of Chu have been defeated. After a while, how dare you be so arrogant? This is a slap in the face.

But Messenger Cai Mao seemed to have noticed something. The anger on his face instantly dissipated and was replaced by a slightly surprised expression. This was because he heard the words "Duwei Wenpin" in Duke Shen's words, and Captain Wenpin was already a dead man among his lieutenant generals, and he was even more of a dead man who took the blame.

As a close confidant of Cai Mao, envoy Cai Mao immediately wanted to report back to Cai Mao quickly after learning that Wenpin was not dead, so he pretended to be angry at the words of Duke Shen: "Gong Shen, if you don't want to destroy your family, you can do it now. Release the sons of my Chu army, otherwise..."

Before the envoy Cai Mao finished speaking, Shen Yu couldn't help but jumped out. He sarcastically said: "Your Majesty, my father and I have agreed on a price. The captain is five hundred gold, the commander is two hundred gold, and the soldiers are ten. Gold, at this price, you should hand over the gold as soon as possible."

"Hmph." Messenger Cai Mao snorted coldly, waved his sleeves vigorously and left.

Duke Shen looked at the retreating figure of Cai Mao's envoy, and sighed softly: "Jingzhou is so frivolous towards us, and it is in vain that we have defeated them. It shows that Jingzhou is not a good place to belong."

Shen Yi nodded. He had previously given a strategy of defeating Jingzhou's soldiers first, and then surrendering after obtaining favorable conditions. However, he did not expect that Cai Mao was out of luck and only wanted to annihilate his Shen family.

After thinking about this, Shen Yi suggested to Shen Gong: "Father, we can't hesitate any longer. We should join forces with our master to resist Jingzhou's soldiers."

……

Fangling.

Zhang Yun frowned deeply, his eyes widened, and he looked directly at the envoy who had just returned from the Shen family: "You mean Wenpin is still alive?"

The messenger nodded quickly: "Wen Duwei is indeed alive and has not died in the battle. Now Wen Duwei is being detained by the Shen family. The Shen family has said that she wants five hundred gold in exchange for Wen Duwei's life..."

"Please step back." Zhang Yun waved his hand to ask the envoy to leave. Seeing Zhang Yun's poor expression, the envoy already had the intention of retreating. He hurriedly bowed out and left the room to Cai Maohe. Zhang Yun, and several of their close associates.

Zhang Yun tightened his eyebrows and turned to look at Cai Hao, the chairman. Cai Hao, like him, had a somewhat unsightly look on his face.

"General Zhonglang, how should we deal with it? Do we want to redeem Wenpin?" Zhang Yun asked tentatively. Wenpin had a life-saving grace for Cai Mao. Now that Wenpin is alive, Cai Mao has a chance to repay him. .

Cai Hao just didn't answer. After a long time, he sighed heavily: "Damn it, how did Wenpin survive?" Cai Hao said this harshly, completely forgetting that Wenpin gave him a horse to prevent him from dying in the battle. He only thought about Wenpin's life-saving grace on the battlefield, which left him with hidden dangers.

You must know that Cai Mao put all the blame for the defeat to the Shen family on Wenpin. He originally thought that Wenpin would die on the battlefield without proof, but he did not expect that Wenpin was still alive. This gave him a toothache. What if Wenpin Although he was not too afraid to expose the matter when he came back, relying on his in-law relationship with Liu Biao, it would ruin his reputation to some extent. If he came out to fool around, it would not be good to have a bad reputation.

"Wenpin cannot live. He should die and deserve to die." Cai Mao made a decision.

Zhang Yun looked helpless: "Wenpin is now in the hands of the Shen family, but life and death are not controlled by us... Moreover, the scouts sent back news that Zhang Lu was defeated and retreated to Hanzhong, and now he has arrived in Xicheng, and Zhang Lu and the Shen family are closely related. Qian, I’m afraid the two families will unite against us.”

"Zhang Lu is just a lost dog, and Shen is just a humble little tycoon. Even if the two families join forces, what can they do to me." Cai Mao didn't take it seriously. He said sadly: "As soon as the reinforcements from Xiangyang arrive, The army marched to annihilate the Shen family, but the captured captain Wenpin unfortunately died in the rebellion. It sounds so satisfying."

Zhang Yun's eyes lit up when he heard this. (End of chapter)