Silver Fox of the Three Kingdoms

Chapter 187

At the beginning of June in the ninth year of Jian'an, Liu Bei reorganized his army and horses. About [-] elite soldiers, with thousands of carriages and carriages, marched southward.

He has a good reputation in the Wancheng area in the north of Nanyang. Not only the tax is extremely low, but he also patrols the counties to help the people survive and solve many people's living difficulties. He has a high prestige among the people.

Hearing that Liu Bei was leaving, the people of Wancheng wanted to keep him, but Liu Bei had no choice but to thank the people of Wancheng for their kindness. Among the countless people sending him off, he left Wancheng with a large army and went to Xinye. and go.

A few days later, when the army arrived in Xinye, Liu Bei visited Deng Mao, the magistrate of Xinye County, and met Shen Chen in the Xinye County Government.

"Sir."

In the backyard of the county government office, Liu Bei was both surprised and delighted to see Shen Chen who was already taller than him again.

In the past two years, he has been adhering to what Shen Chen told him at the beginning, and kept a low profile as much as possible. Although he secretly made friends with Jingzhou heroes, such as Yi Ji, Li Yan, Han Ran and others, he never took the initiative to make friends with Jingzhou celebrities. , not to be suspected by Liu Biao.

At this moment, Shen Chen was already waiting in the hall, Liu Bei was naturally overjoyed after seeing Shen Chen, while Shen Chen cupped his hands with a smile and said, "General Zuo, Brother Yuanzhi."

When Liu Bei came to visit Deng Mao, he did not bring anyone else, but only Xu Shu.

Xu Shu and Shen Chen looked at each other, and both of them smiled.

During the Battle of Cangting, when Liu Bei invaded Yingchuan, Xu Shu brought his mother, family and friends south to join Liu Bei. Now that his long-cherished wish has been fulfilled, he was very happy, and greeted Shen Chen with a smile, "Ah Chen."

The three sat down.

Liu Bei looked Shen Chen up and down and said, "I haven't seen Mr. Xiao for two years, and he seems to have changed again. His physique is much stronger and he is taller than me."

Shen Chen said with a smile: "Thanks to General Hong Fu, I have been able to live in daily life for the past two years. I have practiced martial arts every day, and I have indeed improved."

"That's fine, that's fine."

Liu Bei sighed, and then said: "The king of Chu asked me to attack Liu Zhang for him. I took into account the friendship of the same clan and couldn't bear to attack him. What do you think?"

Shen Chen said: "It is human nature to consider the friendship of the same clan, but in order to restore the great cause of the Han Dynasty, the general still needs to make a choice. What's more, Liu Yan and Liu Zhang father and son had misbehavior in their early years. They once built a chariot with thousands of rides , there is a theory like Zixia doubting the sage in Xihe. This rebel is also, why should he care about friendship?"

"Forehead"

Liu Bei thought for a while, and then said, "Liu Zhang guards the natural dangers of Bashu, and I'm afraid it will be difficult to break through."

Shen Chen smiled and said: "It's okay, I'm not sure about attacking Bashu, but it's not a problem to wipe out Liu Zhang's invading enemies. I have written to the King of Chu before, ordering him to give gold and silk to the barbarians in Wuxi, and to grant them official positions, so that they can open up the road , General, don’t worry about going to Wuling, I will accompany you when the time comes.”

"That's good."

Liu Bei nodded. Although he had never been to Yizhou, he was in Jingzhou after all, and occasionally went south to Nanjun to visit Liu Biao. He walked around and went to Wuxian, Zigui, Yiling and other places to see the natural dangers of the Yangtze River.

To some extent, the waterway going all the way up the Yangtze River is considered a relatively easy path, but even so, it is very steep.

Along the way, there are countless mountains and steep cliffs. It is said that Yufu Baidi City after passing Wu County is even more natural danger.

So Liu Bei was also full of worries about this attack on Yizhou.

After pondering for a while, Liu Bei said again: "Mr. Xiao planned for me in Kunyang back then. Now the best strategy has been achieved. In the north, Yuan Shao and Cao Cao are fighting, and both tigers are defeated. We can wait and see the situation in the world from Nanyang, and then attack Yuzhou to win the battle. Jiye, but now that Liu Zhang is going to be attacked, is it because he wants to take Yizhou instead?"

Shen Chen smiled and said, "No, have you forgotten, General, that I also said that you can attack Yuzhou when you advance, and you can look at Jingzhou when you retreat?"

"Jingzhou?"

Liu Bei hesitated and asked, "King of Chu?"

Shen Chen shook his head and said: "I think the king of Chu has the heart to proclaim himself emperor. Once we attack the army sent by Liu Zhang, he will defeat the Jiangdong army and Yizhou army one after another. His power will shake the world, and he will definitely be crowned emperor in the south. Is the general going to challenge him?" Will the new emperor succeed in his mission?"

Liu Bei said angrily, "Naturally not. I am committed to the court. How can I join forces with rebellious officials and thieves?"

"It's natural."

Shen Chen pointed to Jiang Shan and said: "At that time, the general can wait for the time to move. For example, after Yuan Shu proclaimed himself emperor, many people rebelled against their relatives. At that time, the general will raise his arms and there will be countless people gathered in Jingzhou, then a great event can be accomplished."

When Shen Chen was against Kunyang at the beginning, he also said that the best strategic goal was to make Yuan Shao and Cao Cao in the north stand in a stalemate and delay Cao Cao's pace of unifying the north.

The only bad strategy is to occupy Jingnan first, wait for the situation to change, and then find a way to seize Yizhou as a foundation and divide the world into three parts.

Now that their best strategy has been achieved, it is natural to start a new plan.

Cao Cao has already moved to Yanzhou, and it is not realistic to think that he can attack from Nanyang as before, so after the attack and attack are not available for the time being, he must consider the issue of retreat and defense.

It just so happens that the north has not yet decided the winner, and Liu Biao's ambitions are already high, so before Cao Cao unifies the north, it is the best choice to win the south first.

Yes.

Shen Chen actually knew that in the end Cao Cao would unify the north.

The reason for this judgment is based on the fact that Yuan Shao died early in history, and the ups and downs in life hurt the mind the most. Once some people with a bad heart are too happy or sad, they are likely to grow old all night, or even die within a few days.

Although the outcome of the Battle of Guandu this time was not as miserable as it was in history, it was not much worse.Only more than 2 of the more than [-] troops returned to Jizhou, which must have dealt a heavy blow to Yuan Shao.

Therefore, Shen Chen felt that even if it lasted for two more years, it probably wouldn't last long. In the end, Cao Cao would still unify the north, but the pace of unification would inevitably be much slower.

And the time they gained was their best chance to get the whole south.

Especially now that Liu Biao is becoming stronger and stronger, and his ambition to become emperor is gradually expanding. Once he becomes emperor, Liu Bei will have an excuse to attack him.

Yuan Shu is like this.

Immediately after he proclaimed himself emperor, the people rebelled against their relatives, and Sun Ce took this opportunity to seize Jiangdong and establish the foundation of Soochow.

So Shen Chen's new strategy now is to let Liu Bei follow Sun Ce's example. Once the time is right and Liu Biao proclaims himself emperor, he will raise the banner of resistance and take the opportunity to take Jingzhou into his hands.

If it is to seize the same ancestral foundation, Liu Bei will naturally not bear it.

But if Liu Biao proclaimed himself emperor, he would lose all morality, and he would become a chaotic minister and a traitor, and everyone would punish him if he got it.

Therefore, upon hearing Shen Chen's words, Liu Bei nodded slightly and said, "Well, what Mr. Xiao said is very true. If it is true what Mr. Xiao said, if the king of Chu defies the world's shame and proclaims himself emperor, I will show myself to the emperor and launch an army to crusade. "

Shen Chen said again: "Before that, the general should base himself in Jingnan and ask the King of Chu for a lot of supplies, property, food, weapons, and armor to win over the southern barbarians and strengthen himself. Otherwise, with the current army of the King of Chu , it is not easy to capture Xiangyang."

"I see."

Liu Bei stroked his beard and said: "I will go to Xiangyang tomorrow to meet the King of Chu and ask for supplies."

He will do it himself.

After all, working for you can’t be for nothing, right? I can contribute people and efforts, but you also have to pay for food and grass. This is a matter of course.

Shen Chen went on to say: "The king of Chu has also conscripted me now, and I will definitely go with the general at that time. After the general arrives in Xiangyang, he can stay for a while. I will go to Wuling to investigate the terrain and understand the situation of the local barbarians, and then go with the general. care about."

"The people of the southern barbarians have always been tough and tough. Those barbarians are immature and don't understand etiquette."

Liu Bei said worriedly: "Mr. Xiao is going alone, I'm afraid of danger."

Shen Chen said with a smile: "That's not true. Didn't the King of Chu already send someone to give him gold and silk to make friends with the barbarians? At that time, I will ask the King of Chu for another batch of property, and promise to lure him with money. I think nothing will happen."

"What if I let Zilong Ziyi go with Mr. Xiao?"

Liu Bei made an opinion.

Shen Chen thought for a while, then nodded and said, "Alright."

The two discussed some details, chatted for a long time, and finally parted reluctantly.

When he was sending Liu Bei and Xu Shu out, Xu Shu suddenly turned his head and said to Shen Chen, "Ah Chen, I heard that son Liu Qi asked Jiangxia County Prime Minister to help Huang Zu Liu Pan escort food and grass. Do you know about this?"

"I let him go."

Shen Chen said with a smile.

Xu Shu frowned and said, "The king of Chu has always loved son Cong but not son Qi, and the Jingzhou family also supports the second son more. Isn't it true that the eldest son is gone?"

This is actually a bad thing for them.

Because even if Liu Biao dies in the future, if Liu Cong, who is supported by the Jingzhou family, wants to win Jingzhou, he still has to fight against so many Jingzhou families. It is not easy to implement.

Shen Chen smiled and said: "I advised the king of Chu to appoint son Qi as his heir, and I have reminded him about Mrs. Cai. I think he will be suspicious if he checks the eyes and ears of the mansion. Zhao Gao and Li Si are in front, and the king of Chu will not let Cai Mao go. Kuai Yue and the others did nothing wrong."

"Since the king of Chu has already persuaded him to appoint son Qi as his heir, why did he let him go to Jiangxia?"

Xu Shu was a little puzzled.

Shen Chen murmured: "Brother Yuanzhi doesn't know the situation of Gongzi Qi. Mrs. Cai, Cai Mao, Kuaiyue and others may have the intention of harming him, so they persuade him to go to Jiangxia to avoid disaster. If things change in the future, the king of Chu will make him a Heir, that will naturally intensify the internal friction among the aristocratic families in Jingzhou."

"Oh?"

Xu Shu suddenly felt enlightened, looked Shen Chen up and down, and laughed loudly: "Ah Chen, I only thought that your schemes were always upright, and they were all conspiracy. Why didn't I expect that there would be a lot of bad water?"

Shen Chen also said with a smile: "It's not that I don't know how to use strange things, but most of the time I am upright and use strange things to avoid danger, so I don't want to do it. This is also the difference between me and Cao Cao. It's just that sometimes, I use strange things occasionally. A conspiracy is not a bad thing."

"Hahahahaha."

Xu Shu smiled and said: "You and Kong Ming have the same virtue, well, let's go first."

Liu Bei looked at the two with some puzzlement.

He only understood that it would intensify the internal friction among the aristocratic families in Jingzhou, how and why it would intensify, he didn't know at all.

But now is not the time to inquire about these, Liu Bei cupped his hands to Shen Chen and said, "Mr. Xiao, take your leave."

"General take care!"

Shen Chen also saluted back.

The two of them left the yamen, got on the mounts at the gate of the yamen, and headed towards the direction where the army was stationed outside the city.

It seemed that Liu Bei could vaguely be heard asking Xu Shu something curiously.

For example, why the Jingzhou aristocratic family has internal friction.

And Kong Ming mentioned earlier, who is he?
Seeing their leaving figures, Shen Chen returned to the county office.

He is also ready to go south.

(End of this chapter)