I, Liu Bian, Sanxing Han Dynasty

Chapter 573 Seeds of the Young Generation
"Come here!"

"Come here!"

"Come here if you can!"

"Come here if you can!"

That night, outside the Nanping Gate of Luoyang City, an unprecedented "conflict" was taking place.

One of the two parties in the conflict was riding a horse, holding a whip, looking down from a high position; the other party was originally standing on the ground with his hands on his hips, but later simply sat on the seat with his legs open.

Each gesture was more mocking than the other.

"Don't imitate my speech if you have the ability!"

"Then why don't you come over here!"

But unlike their words and gestures, the actual actions between the two were very restrained, or there was no action, it was all talk.

Looking at the arrogant Pang Tong, Yuan Yao refused to admit defeat, thinking to himself: "Do you really think I'm stupid? If I get mad at you and hit you, wouldn't that be my fault?"

In that case, even if he had a good time tonight, he would definitely suffer a great loss from his father when he returned: As the son of the Minister of Justice, how could he not understand the law?

If Yuan Yao dared to refute by saying that he knew it, he would be breaking the law knowingly, which would be an even more serious crime!
Pang Tong saw that the other party was not fooled. He was at a disadvantage in terms of numbers and equipment, so it was impossible for him to take the initiative, otherwise those petty officials would not be able to help him.

Soon someone couldn't stand it anymore. A man on horseback beside Yuan Yao was dissatisfied with Pang Tong's behavior and said, "This colleague is so rude. Let me teach him a lesson for you!"

Upon hearing this, Yuan Yao turned around and asked, "Are you stupid? Don't you see that those petty officials are waiting for us to take action?"

"Even if I have to be shackled, I will still stand up for my brother!"

Yuan Yao frowned: "To risk one's life because of anger is what a coward does. If you are so impulsive today over a small matter, how can you handle big things in the future!"

Taking advantage of the opportunity when Yuan Yao was teaching his younger brother a lesson, Pang Tong also took a break and even had time to drink a bowl of water handed to him by Xu Shu.

"Shi Yuan, do you want to take a break? I will take over from you."

Pang Tong shook his head and said, "Yuanzhi should conserve his energy. If the other party is really stupid enough to rush over, I will have to rely on Yuanzhi to save me!"

Upon hearing this, Xu Shu tightened his grip on the sword at his waist and said, "He is just a little playboy, nothing to be afraid of."

Before he became an apprentice, he was a famous knight in the village.

Afterwards, Xu Shu heard Yuan Yao's words of admonishment and couldn't help saying, "I never thought that this playboy from Luoyang is actually different from others. It sounds like he has great ambitions!"

Xu Shu did not lower his voice when speaking, but Yuan Yao could hear it clearly.

He immediately said dissatisfiedly: "I have great ambitions, unlike you who are just seeking for profit."

Xu Shu immediately retorted: "I have never seen a man of great ambition who would seek revenge for every slight, and yet his methods are as childish... immature."

"You!" Yuan Yao was finally enraged.

Lies don't hurt, truth is the knife.

He wanted to cause trouble through this method, not only because he was embarrassed by being detained by the police, but the most important reason was his father's scolding and punishment of him. He felt that he was innocent - his father looked down on the police and common people, it was okay, but not him?
Is it just because his father is the Minister of Justice?

This time, seeing that Yuan Yao was really angry, it was the turn of the people around him to talk and persuade him.

"Alright!" Hearing his companion's advice, Yuan Yao became even angrier. "They say that every failure makes one wiser. I've already suffered at the hands of these petty officials. How can I be so foolish?"

Seeing that Yuan Yao knew what was going on, his companions began to flatter him again.

The people sitting by the tea stall were staring at him with annoyance.

Yuan Yao also knew that with these people blocking him today, it would be difficult for him to make noise peacefully, so he simply asked, "Rat, do you dare to tell me your names?"

Xu Shu, however, did not indulge him at all: "Isn't it an insult to tell your name to a rude person?"

……

Soon, the two sides started another round of verbal battle.

But compared to Pang Tong, Xu Shu might be more experienced and much better than Yuan Yao in terms of sarcasm.

But Yuan Yao retained his rationality and never really took action.

Liu Bian and Guan Yu, standing on the top of the city wall, saw all of this.

As children of the rich and powerful, some are well-read and determined to govern the country and ensure the people's well-being, but some are illiterate and only know how to dissipate all day long.

Liu Bian said: "I originally thought that Yuan Yao was just a playboy, but I didn't expect that he had some brains."

After hearing this, Guan Yu was not sure whether Liu Bian was praising Yuan Yao.

However, just by looking at Yuan Yao's disturbing behavior tonight, he no longer had a favorable impression of Yuan Yao. Although he was already in a high position, Guan Yu remained true to his original intention.

Guan Yu asked, "Your Majesty, do you want to take care of this?"

Liu Bian said: "I saw someone has gone back just now, so he must be looking for Kong Ming. Let's see what Kong Ming has to say."

"However, I think those people who mocked Yuan Yao performed quite well."

While they were talking, someone had already reported back, and the identities of those people had been discovered.

Now, Liu Bian became even more interested.

He said to Guan Yu: "The people who are confronting Yuan Yao below may seem to be one party, but in fact they are two parties. They followed the two generals An Dong and An Nan, and they are both outstanding talents of the time."

Guan Yu agreed and said, "Just now I saw that they were all fearless. They are indeed the best choice for the time being."

However, Guan Yu thought that since these people were able to establish connections with General Anton and General Annan, they must have good backgrounds. Instead, his appreciation for these people was not as great as when he first did not know their identities.

Moreover, he also thought of his brother Liu Bei. Although An Dong and An Nan had returned, Liu Bei, as the General of An Xi, still stayed in Nanzhong. At the same time, Zhang Fei and Xu Huang were still in the Western Regions and had not returned. Although he had long accepted this as an inevitable fact, he still missed them in his heart.

Guan Yu was not good at hiding his emotions, and Liu Bian had noticed this.

He said: "Nanzhong is different from Jingyang. There are many barbarians in it. Moreover, after Xuande went there to quell the rebellion, there has been no rebellion in the past two years. If there is no prestigious person to guard it, there may be changes."

Guan Yu immediately replied: "Serving the country is our duty, and there is no need to worry about the love between men and women. Besides, we have the same aspirations and feelings, so even if we are thousands of miles apart, what does it matter?"

"However, Yide has been stationed in Liangzhou for many years, and now he has gone west to the Western Regions. He will return to the capital to report on his work in just over a month." Liu Bian said, and seeing Guan Yu's moved expression, he added, "Don't misunderstand, Yunchang. Yide and Gongming have made great contributions in the Western Regions, and it is natural for them to return to the capital."

Guan Yu: Now he is even more moved. What should I do?
Time passed quickly as the king and his ministers chatted.

Zhuge Liang finally arrived late. At this time, Yuan Yao was not the only one who was arguing with Xu Shu outside the city, but also Yuan Yao's companions.

But Pang Tong and Xu Shu were not afraid at all, especially Lu Yi who joined the battle halfway. At such a young age, he had never experienced the dilemma of a ruined family with only a few remaining people, so he was very sharp-tongued.

Although there were only seven people in total, and there was also a ten-year-old Lu Ji, but in terms of eloquence, it was a one-sided suppression.

Yuan Yao was now caught in a dilemma. If he retreated at this moment, wouldn't he be fleeing in panic? But if he didn't retreat, he would have no way to argue.

Just at this moment, he finally caught a glimpse of Zhuge Liang coming out of the city, and for a moment he actually felt like he had found his savior.

At that moment, Yuan Yao ignored everyone else and turned his horse slightly, shouting to Zhuge Liang: "Zhuge Kongming, I've been waiting for you for so long, and you finally show up!"

It sounded as if he stayed here just to wait for Zhuge Liang to appear.

Zhuge Liang was of course familiar with Yuan Yao. On the way here, he had learned from the officers that Yuan Yao was looking for trouble, and just now he learned that a passerby had a conflict with Yuan Yao because he could not stand it.

He took a closer look and found that four of them had clearly eaten at his house not long ago.

Zhuge Liang ignored Yuan Yao and stepped forward to bow to Xu Shu and the others, saying, "Thank you for your help in holding this man back so that he won't disturb the people."

Then he looked at Zhou Yu, Lu Yi and Lu Ji and said, "These people look unfamiliar to you. Are they acquaintances of yours?"

Xu Shu smiled and said, "We didn't know each other before tonight, but we are new acquaintances."

After that, Xu Shu introduced the two parties to each other, but because Yuan Yao was in front of him, he only used a convenient name to address him. He then said to Zhuge Liang, "Originally, we only wanted the four of us to delay that guy, but Gongjin and Boyan saw injustice and spoke up for justice."

Zhuge Liang heard this and bowed again, saying, "In that case, I would like to thank you all once again for your righteousness!"

"Enough! Do you think I don't exist?" Yuan Yao, who had been serving as a background board for a long time, couldn't help but speak out - you guys are calling your friends here, so wouldn't I become a clown?
Hearing Yuan Yao's voice, Zhuge Liang turned his head and gave Yuan Yao a straight look.

Naturally, he was extremely dissatisfied with Yuan Yao in his heart - it was already late at night, he had seen off the guests who came to visit him and was preparing to go to bed, but they all went out of town because of Yuan Yao.

As soon as Zhuge Liang opened his mouth, his tone was no less sarcastic than Xu Shu's: "Who did I think it was? It turns out to be the eldest son of the world-famous Minister of Justice Yuan!"

"Those who know this will understand that Lord Yuan's eldest son has a unique hobby and likes to ride his horse at night. Those who don't know this will think that Lord Yuan's eldest son is worried that Lord Yuan has a good reputation in Luoyang, so he deliberately did something disgusting and wanted to contribute to Lord Yuan's reputation!"

As soon as Zhuge Liang opened his mouth, he was poking at Yuan Yao's lungs.

Others might not know his father, but how could Yuan Yao not know him?

When his father was the lieutenant of Changshui, his carriages and horses were luxurious and extravagant, and everyone who saw him would give way to him. Could the folk saying "Yuan Changshui, the ghost on the road" be false? It was only after his father became the governor of Henan that things gradually changed.

But in this matter, his father only allowed the county officials to set fires, but not the common people to light lamps.

Yuan Yao felt aggrieved, but facing Yuan Shu's pressure, he had no choice but to obey.

"What? Aren't you leaving yet? Then I will visit you tomorrow." Zhuge Liang said slowly.

At this moment, Yuan Yao suddenly realized that he and Zhuge Liang were not opponents of the same level at all - he had just been thinking of exploiting the loopholes in Zhuge Liang's governance, but Zhuge Liang had already stood at a higher level and cut off the source of the problem.

He could foresee that if Zhuge Liang came to visit, his father would not be able to avoid him.

"Just wait and see!" Yuan Yao said two harsh words and was about to tell his companions to admit defeat and leave, when he suddenly heard Zhuge Liang continue to say -

"When I meet the Minister of Justice someday, I will tell him this."

"Do you dare not mention the Minister of Justice?"

Zhuge Liang was not provoked at all, and said frankly: "I am an official in the same court as Lord Yuan. When I encounter matters involving Lord Yuan, I must be frank with him! Moreover, with your reckless style, why should I avoid your strengths and use your weaknesses?"

After hearing this, Yuan Yao gritted his teeth, finally got off his horse, and bowed to Zhuge Liang, saying: "I am a little rude today, I hope you won't blame me."

Then he turned back to look at his companions, who also dismounted from their horses.

Zhuge Liang turned his body slightly and said to Yuan Yao: "The one you should thank today is not me, but the gentlemen who stopped you from doing anything wrong."

As he spoke, Zhuge Liang first gestured to Pang Tong and a few others, then looked at the minor officials.

"When did I say thank you?" Yuan Yao was speechless.

But seeing Zhuge Liang's behavior of suing his parents over a disagreement, he could only bow again and say, "Thank you!"

Seeing Yuan Yao's perfunctory thanks, Zhuge Liang did not argue with him this time. Instead, he said, "You were able to discover the loopholes in the night market in just a few days. Why don't you use this talent for the right purpose?"

Without waiting for Yuan Yao to speak, Zhuge Liang said, "That's all I have to say. Please do as you please!"

After hearing this, Yuan Yao silently mounted his horse, but did not gallop away. Instead, he rode slowly towards the outside of the city.

After that, Zhuge Liang started chatting with Zhou Yu and others whom he had just met.

However, it was already late at this time, so Zhuge Liang did not talk with them for long. He agreed to meet again tomorrow and then left.

Although Pang Tong, Zhou Yu and others were planning to visit the night market, they were delayed and did not feel like continuing to visit the night market, so they went back home.

On top of the city gate, Liu Bian and Guan Yu watched the farce disappear into thin air.

Guan Yu had a lot of praise for Zhuge Liang: "If my guess is correct, he ignored Yuan Yao at the beginning, and it was intentional."

Liu Bian agreed, "That should be the case. First, give Yuan Yao the impression that he is not taken seriously. Then, when the Minister of Justice is mentioned, Yuan Yao will instinctively think that Kong Ming will be able to convince the Minister of Justice to punish him severely."

"I, Guan Zhi, is not very old, but he has done things in such an orderly manner. He not only calmed people's hearts, but also admonished Yuan Yao in the end. The younger generation today should not be underestimated!"

After hearing this, Liu Bian couldn't help laughing.

He then said, "People like Yuan Yao still know how to restrain themselves, but some playboys are ignorant and can cause trouble."

The existence of these playboys made Liu Bian realize that some bad habits have always existed.

Guan Yu responded, "In this case, we should urge officials to strictly enforce the law, and at the same time, we should try our best to avoid their worries of offending the powerful."

Liu Bian certainly understood this principle, but no matter how strict the law is, it is still enforced by people.

It is known as the beacon of separation of powers, and the nine life-long justices are said to be free from political influence...but in reality, without political stance first, why should the president, as the representative of the party, appoint them?

"Yun Chang, accompany me to Hongdu Gate School tomorrow!"

If we want to break out of the cycle of history, we need to develop productivity.

Liu Bian didn't know how far he could go, but he wanted to at least leave a seed.

(End of this chapter)