Three Kingdoms: I rely on system loopholes to survive

Zhang Yunwei wore a hat and a wide belt, had a beautiful beard, a fair face and light eyebrows, and when he walked, there was the fragrance of iris wafting in the air.

Zhong Ping frowned slightly. The clans in Jingzhou were too "ritual-oriented". The custom of burning incense, wearing pendants and wide belts was so popular. There were already incense balls burning in the inner room. Kuai Yue and Zhang Yun were also fumigated with different incense. He was between the two and just wanted to cover his nose and cough. Zhong Ping had never missed Xun Yu as much as he did now.

Although Xun Yu also loved incense, and there was even a story about Xun Ling leaving incense, most of the incense he used were white aconite, cloves, and yellow incense. The incense he used was just sweet cassia, sandalwood, and grass... The fragrance was mellow, refreshing, and never had such a strong smell.

"Confucius said, 'When serving your parents, you should advise them frequently. If they do not follow your advice, you should still respect them and not disobey them. You should also work hard for them without complaining.' Could it be that the eldest son still harbors resentment towards you, my lady?" Zhang Yun had a smile on his face, but his question was questioning.

When serving parents, we must learn to give gentle advice. If parents do not accept our opinions after expressing them, children should still maintain a respectful attitude and should not violate filial piety. They should continue to work hard for them without any resentment.

Liu Qi's face darkened. After Liu Biao became seriously ill, he did have a disagreement with Madam Cai over the issue of officials not being able to enter the inner court, and there had been some inappropriate words spoken between them. This was what Zhang Yun was referring to, implicitly implying that he had been unfilial.

“If a person’s conduct is upright, he will act without being told; if a person’s conduct is not upright, he will not act despite being told.”

Brother Zhong Pingxin, why did you fall twice in the same place? Have you forgotten that it was because Madam Cai slandered you as unfilial that your uncle replaced your brother Liu Cong in the throne?
"Teacher, what do you think the Master meant by 'a small child should wait for the beating, but a big one should flee'? Everyone gets angry and loses his mind. Do parents who punish children without knowing the right measure mean that their children should just sit there and die? Do parents who scold and abuse children for no reason expect their children to just endure the suffering?"

"I heard that if the superior's behavior is upright, even without giving orders, the subordinates will follow consciously; but if the superior's behavior is improper, even if he gives orders, the subordinates will not obey. Isn't this also the saying of managing a family? It can be seen that blindly following is not the true meaning of Confucius, right?"

Zhang Yun glanced sideways, sizing up the man who spoke. He saw that he had an upright figure, and wore a dark black cloth crown on his head, secured with a jade hairpin, with a vermilion crown tassel tied under his chin. He had red lips, white teeth, and a short beard on his face, and looked young.

Looking down, the clothes have no embroidery, but are just ordinary silk. The waist is tied with a large belt, and dangled with small fish ornaments carved from pearls, tortoise shells and unknown shells, which seem to be played with by the owner often, and they all look extremely shiny.

"The envoy came from Jiaozhou. Did he come to judge the family affairs?"

Zhang Yun looked unhappy. He stood up suddenly, and the belt on his waist jingled. "This is so rude. I don't think Envoy Liu is really willing to lend you troops, is he?"

Kuai Yue quickly tried to smooth things over, acting like a good guy: "The eldest son has come with his troops to save Nanjun from danger. There are priorities. Since the deputy driver has received the letter from the lady, why don't you go into the palace with the envoy to discuss the matter of fighting against Lu Bu together?"

Zhong Ping's fingertips gently stroked the tortoise-turtle fish pendant on his waist. This was a gift from Madam Gan before he left. The journey to Nanjun was long, and Madam Gan was afraid that the few people would get dizzy on the boat, so she specially made a mint ointment and put it in the fish's belly. He used the sleeve of his robe to cover himself and rubbed a small piece under his nose while drinking tea. Instantly, the cool air rushed straight to his head, suppressing the annoying fragrance by three points.

Zhang Yun snorted coldly, his eyes becoming more fierce. Seeing that he was about to speak, Kuai Yue turned around and tugged at his sleeve, and whispered, "It's important, it's important. Are you going to wait until Lü Bu's troops are at the gates of the city before you continue to indulge in verbal sedition?"

"Why don't you go and meet the madam first?" Zhang Yun was still aggressive, but his expression had calmed down and he sat down as he was told.

Zhong Ping raised his eyelids slightly, and saw that although Zhang Yun was arrogant, there was still an opportunity to make use of him. He bowed and stepped forward, and said calmly: "Although Lü Bu is brave, he has no discipline in marching. He came to Nanjun for Chen Gong's plan. I am ordered by Liu Shijun to take the Baiqi soldiers to Jingzhou. I am willing to set up a trap to defeat the enemy and relieve the danger in the county." Zhang Yun disagreed: "Although Lü Bu is strong in battle, he has only a few thousand soldiers and is not good at swimming. We are in the county city, with strategic locations to defend and soldiers to use. As long as we make proper arrangements, we can defeat the enemy in one or two days."

Liu Qi had a grudge against Zhang Yun in the past, and he immediately laughed out loud: "Is it really as what you said? Why do I only hear that Lü Bu conquered two cities in one day, but I haven't heard of any victory for you guys?"

Zhang Yun's face turned red, and veins on his forehead popped out. He argued, "Losing a city cannot be considered a defeat... That was caused by civil strife!... Jingzhou was in the hands of its master, and Lu Bu took advantage of the chaos to win. How can we be considered a defeat?" Then he said something difficult to understand, such as "the courage of a common man" and "whoa", which made Liu Qi, Zhu and Feng laugh. The seats were filled with a happy atmosphere.

Seeing that Zhang Yun looked angry, Kuai Yue signaled the maid to replace the cold drink while looking at Zhong Ping, implicitly asking for help.

Zhong Pingzheng was watching with great interest. When he received Kuai Yue's gaze, he felt happy. He thought that this old man was really addicted to acting. He had been acting since they just came in until now. He really didn't know where so many great acting masters came from in these clans.

"Since the other driver said that it would only take a day or two to repel the enemy, I wonder when Nanjun will send troops to meet the enemy? We can also help."

When Zhong Ping saw a new cold drink in front of him, he lowered his head and took a sip, his fingers trembling slightly. After a while, he put it down with a normal expression, as if he thought it was not chaotic enough and took the initiative to add fuel to the fire.

"Of course, it will be in the next two days..." Zhang Yun calmed down and stopped talking about meeting Madam Cai. He stood up and glanced at Liu Qi, "My Lord and the envoy, please go to the water camp with me to discuss the plan of sending troops tonight. The wind and waves will be strong at night, so you two should stay in the camp and wait for the general to repel the enemy."

Zhong Ping and Liu Qi looked at each other, and a pure and harmless smile appeared on their faces: "Others are sure to win, so we should follow them."

When Kuai Yue heard that the troops were to be dispatched tonight, his heart was slightly moved. If Zhang Yun had not said it now, how could he have not heard a word of it? He could not help but have many thoughts in secret, but he still looked amiable on the surface. He arranged the carriage early and personally sent the three people to the door.

"What is the cold drink on the table made of? It's incredibly bitter!" Zhong Ping didn't bother to appreciate the splendor of the carriage. As soon as he got in the car, he complained to Liu Qi in a low voice.

Zhang Yun passed by, snorted and laughed, and glanced at the two "kids" sitting side by side. He said nothing, but his contempt was obvious.

"It's probably Coptis chinensis, Sophora flavescens or something like that." Liu Qi looked confused. He thought it tasted good and not too bitter, but it was the first time he saw the same thing and he looked at it a few more times.

Zhong Ping fell into deep thought after hearing this: "No wonder it smells like medicine... Could this be the predecessor of herbal tea?"

(End of this chapter)