With Cao Cao by my side, what do I have to fear from the world?

Do not do evil because it is insignificant, and do not neglect good because it is insignificant!
This was originally Liu Bei's advice to his son Liu Shan before his death, admonishing him to be a good person and to start with small things.

But today Liu Xie gave this advice to Liu Bei, because there was no more suitable piece of advice.

Liu Bei listened attentively, and after a while, he nodded with shame, "Your Majesty's teachings today will be firmly remembered by me, and I will always be mindful of them in the future, never daring to forget them!"

Zhang Fei was somewhat dissatisfied, feeling that the emperor should at least give his elder brother some face in front of so many people, and even if he was going to reprimand him, he should do so somewhere where no one was around.

He snorted and muttered under his breath, "My older brother has already realized his mistake, that's enough."

Although the voice wasn't loud, many people nearby heard it.

Liu Bei hurriedly turned around, glared fiercely at Zhang Fei, and scolded, "Yide, stop talking nonsense!"

Liu Xie glanced at Zhang Fei and said, "What I say is not important. Face is not given by others, but earned by oneself!"

Everyone present felt the same way after hearing these words. Zhuge Liang glanced at Liu Bei and sighed softly.

In any case, Liu Bei managed to pull back from the brink in time. If he had listened to Pang Tong's advice, killed Liu Zhang, and truly seized control of Western Sichuan, Liu Bei would have been a sinner against the Han Dynasty for the rest of his life and would never have been able to turn his life around!
The reason Liu Xie made Liu Bei suffer some grievances in front of so many people was to make Liu Bei understand that everything has a cause and effect.

Plant good seeds, and you will reap good fruit.

Sow evil seeds, reap evil fruits.

Liu Xie waved his hand, "Get up."

Liu Bei finally breathed a sigh of relief. If the emperor didn't let him get up, the longer he was surrounded by so many people, the more humiliated he would become.

"In addition, there is something I need to make clear."

Liu Xie then looked at Cao Cao and said, “I have investigated the cause of death of Liu Biao and his son. Although the rumors have spread far and wide, I still want to clarify that Liu Biao was old and had health problems. He was not poisoned. As for Liu Qi…”

Liu Xie glanced at Liu Bei, whose eyes darted away. Liu Bei felt that the emperor's gaze was very sharp at this moment, as if he could see right through him.

Liu Xie said slowly, "Liu Qi was not poisoned either. It's one thing for the people not to know the truth, but I hope you can understand that they were not poisoned by Liu Bei."

Liu Xie's words could only barely salvage some of Liu Bei's reputation.

Moreover, Liu Xie's words were loaded with meaning, indirectly warning Liu Bei.

Liu Xie's statement that Liu Qi was not poisoned is both true and false.

Liu Qi was not poisoned; he was strangled to death by Liu Bei!
Today, we've done Liu Bei a favor, helping him salvage some of his reputation, and also given him a warning.

Liu Bei needed to understand that some things shouldn't be ignored just because you've done them.

Liu Bei nodded silently, a little sweat beading on his forehead.

"Alright, in front of so many officials today, you and the Prime Minister should resolve all past grievances."

Liu Xie stepped forward, took Liu Bei's hand, and walked towards Cao Cao, clasping their hands together.

Both of them seemed to have been electrocuted. If Liu Xie hadn't been holding their hands down, they would have wanted to pull their hands away immediately, as if they were both allergic to each other and didn't want to touch each other even a little bit.

Cao Cao's previous reason for sending troops to Jingzhou was because Liu Biao and his son had been murdered. Now that Liu Xie has pleaded for Liu Bei, the matter has been put behind him.

Liu Xie was very sensible; he would stop when things were at their lowest point and wouldn't hold a grudge. Liu Bei was also a man who cared about his reputation.

If this isn't let go, Liu Bei won't be able to stand it, and Zhang Fei and Guan Yu will definitely suffer as well.

That night, Liu Xie held a banquet in the camp to welcome Liu Bei. He and Cao Cao had at least superficially reconciled, and the atmosphere was much more harmonious.

On the Wulin side, the lights were bright and laughter filled the air at night, while on the opposite bank of the river, Lü Meng stood with a worried expression.

He gazed into the distance for a long time, his feelings a complex mix, and couldn't help but let out a long sigh.

Xu Sheng walked over. "Ziming, what are you thinking about?"

Lu Meng, seeing that it was Xu Sheng, replied, "I was thinking, their partying all night, what a great opportunity this is."

Xu Sheng was startled. "Ziming, did I hear that right? Even though we just defeated Cao Cao, we have too few troops. We absolutely cannot cross the river rashly."

Lu Meng was somewhat unwilling. "I understand what you're saying, but warfare is all about surprise. If I lead a raid tonight, they will never expect it."

Xu Sheng hurriedly advised, "Doing this is far too risky. What we need to do now is to hold Chibi. As long as they can't get through, Jiangdong will have a chance to catch its breath."

Lu Meng ultimately abandoned the idea of ​​a sneak attack. With only ten thousand men at his disposal, he realized that it was far too few and ineffective.

Fortunately, Lü Meng did not take any risks; otherwise, Liu Bei and his two brothers would have used Lü Meng to avenge themselves tonight.

Liu Bei was publicly reprimanded and wished he could immediately have a chance to redeem himself. If Lü Meng dared to come to him, Liu Bei would definitely let him taste the power of the twin swords.

"Your Majesty, Pang Tong has arrived."

At the banquet, someone brought Pang Tong before Liu Xie.

When Pang Tong saw Liu Xie, he did not kneel down, but only sighed helplessly, as if he had already realized his fate.

"Pang Tong, how dare you! You don't even kneel before His Majesty?"

Dianman walked over, roared, and grabbed him.

Pang Tong felt a tremendous force on his shoulder, which his frail body was powerless to resist, and he instinctively bent over.

Cao Cao turned to look at Dian Wei, nodded at him, and praised, "Like father, like son!"

Dian Wei chuckled sheepishly, a hint of smugness creeping into his heart.

For many years, Dian Wei had been by Cao Cao's side and rarely had the opportunity to see his son, so he was naturally neglected in disciplining him.

But Dian Wei knew that the emperor had kept his son by his side and had spent a lot of time teaching him.

Pang Tong was forced to the ground by Dian Man, and Pang Tong's face turned red.

I wanted to show off my scholarly spirit, but unexpectedly, I was forced to kneel on the ground by a brat.

"Pang Tong is the foremost scholar in Jingzhou, and was called the 'Young Phoenix' by Mr. Shui Jing. I believe you are truly talented and learned, and even a great talent." Liu Xie took a sip of wine and first affirmed Pang Tong's abilities.

"However, your previous actions showed that you didn't respect me. It's clear that you're not afraid of death. If you're not even afraid of death, why would you be afraid to tell the truth?"

Zhuge Liang looked at Pang Tong with complicated eyes. He and Pang Tong were equally famous, and Zhuge Liang was also considered half a native of Jingzhou. Over the years, he had lived, studied, and grown up in Jingzhou, and he and Pang Tong had more or less crossed paths.

The two were students in the same class and were both top students. Even though they weren't together, they still had a spiritual connection.

Pang Tong felt Zhuge Liang's gaze, looked up at him, and then raised his head to meet Liu Xie's gaze, replying, "I am honored by Your Majesty's praise. I do believe I possess some ability, but Your Majesty is wise and mighty, and the world is about to be unified. What use would I be, even if I had the greatest ability?"

"Pang Tong, how arrogant you are! Does the world no longer have room for you?" Guo Jia sneered disdainfully.

Xun You also said, "Even if the world is at peace, many talented people will still be needed to govern the regions. Even if you become a prefect, your abilities will not be wasted. Do you really want the world to be in turmoil forever?"

Pang Tong was too lazy to explain, since he figured the emperor would kill him anyway, so he decided to just tell the truth.

The world is almost unified, and even if someone like him were to become a county magistrate or a prefect, Pang Tong would find it meaningless.

"I understand."

Liu Xie stood up. "You are confident in your extraordinary talent and ability to govern the country, so you instigated Liu Bei to seize control of Western Sichuan, hoping to use your abilities to help Liu Bei achieve something, right?"

Pang Tong neither nodded nor shook his head.

Everyone stared wide-eyed at Pang Tong angrily, thinking he had gone mad.

Cao Cao also stood up. "Your Majesty, this kind of person must not be allowed to live. He should be killed immediately."

Pang Tong glanced at Cao Cao and said sarcastically, "Prime Minister Cao, didn't you enjoy the feeling of fighting for supremacy in this chaotic world before?"

Pang Tong's words clearly had a hidden meaning, and Cao Cao was immediately enraged, his eyes flashing with a fierce light.

Pang Tong slowly closed his eyes. "Since I can't escape death today anyway, come on, just give me a quick death!"

Liu Xie stepped forward and said to Pang Tong, “Actually, I had already seen it during the Battle of Red Cliffs. You actually came to the Prime Minister to offer the chain strategy. At that time, I was thinking about what your real intention was. Later, I realized that you did not want Jiangdong to be defeated and did not want the world to be pacified as soon as possible.”

Pang Tong smiled and did not argue.

"Frog at the bottom of the well!"

Liu Xie suddenly kicked Pang Tong, knocking him to the ground.

Pang Tong was stunned. He had never imagined that someone would call him a frog in a well.

"What, you're still not convinced?"

Seeing Pang Tong's puzzled expression, Liu Xie sneered, "You think that as long as Jiangdong is pacified, the world will be at peace. That's your idea of ​​the world. But in my opinion, the world is ten times, a hundred times larger than you imagine! You think that Jiangdong alone means you won't have a chance to use your talents in the future? That's ridiculous, utterly ridiculous!"

Pang Tong was somewhat bewildered by the scolding. He felt that in the emperor's eyes, he was like a clueless little kid who had never left the house before.

Liu Xie's words also aroused great interest among Zhuge Liang and others.

Liu Xie pointed eastward, "To the east is the sea, a vast sea with many islands. The vastness of the sea is beyond our imagination."

"To our west, take the Western Regions for example. You all know about them, right? The Western Regions have now broken away from the control of the imperial court. The Western Regions are vast, but further west there are many other countries, including one whose strength is comparable to that of our Han Dynasty. That country is called Rome!"

"To our north, there are the Xianbei; to our south, beyond the Yangtze River, there are other countries. Even if you walk in one direction from birth until old age and death, you will never reach the end."

Liu Xie gestured and briefly explained each direction, leaving not only Pang Tong bewildered, but everyone else as well.

After a while, Cao Cao asked, "Your Majesty, how did you know all this?"

Liu Xie looked up at the sky and said, "If a god appeared to me in a dream, I am willing to believe it is true. In my lifetime, I am also willing to do my best to expand the territory of my Han Dynasty. I hope that one day, all the land under heaven will belong to the king, and all the people on the shores of the land will be his subjects!"

Cao Cao gazed into the distance, muttering to himself, "Is this world truly larger than we imagined?"

Zhuge Liang also gazed into the distance, as if his gaze could pierce through the void and see the other side of the world.

He was still young and eager to make a name for himself. As he had said before, he would return to Longzhong once the world was at peace.

However, his concept of the world was actually similar to Pang Tong's, consisting of the Central Plains, Guanzhong, Western Sichuan, Hanzhong, Jiangdong, Northern Desert, and Western Liang.

But after hearing the emperor's words today, Zhuge Liang realized how vast the world was, ten or even a hundred times larger than the Han Dynasty, and his heart was instantly ignited.

Pang Tong knelt on the ground, looking at Liu Xie in disbelief, "Your Majesty...you...you're telling the truth?"

"Yes, the reason the gods appeared to me in a dream is that they hope I will not be satisfied with the status quo, but will emulate my ancestor Emperor Xiaowu, expand the territory, and make the Han Dynasty stand at the top of the world!"

Pang Tong's hopes were rekindled, but Liu Xie poured cold water on them, saying, "But all of that has nothing to do with you anymore!"

"No... Your Majesty... Please don't kill me. I know I'm guilty. Please give me a chance to atone for my sins."

Pang Tong suddenly became very excited, but then a cold light flashed before his eyes as Liu Xie drew his Qinggang sword.

"If you were the emperor, and someone instigated rebellion and attempted to carve out a territory, what would you do?"

Liu Xie stared at Pang Tong and coldly questioned him.

Pang Tong was speechless, but he was unwilling to give up. The emperor's words had given him hope, and he also wanted to see just how big this world really was.
Pang Tong rebuked himself, saying, "I am indeed guilty of a thousand deaths, but can't Your Majesty give me a chance? I can assist Your Majesty and expand your territory."

Liu Xie remained unmoved, while Pang Tong looked at Cao Cao, somewhat unwilling to give up.

"Your Majesty, you can forgive those who wield absolute power, so why can't you forgive me?"

Cao Cao was so angry he was practically fuming. Wasn't Pang Tong deliberately talking about him? How dare he!

Zhuge Liang approached and advised, "Your Majesty, Pang Tong is indeed guilty of a capital offense, but fortunately, the Imperial Uncle pulled back from the brink in time and was not misled by him. It is a stroke of luck amidst misfortune. Your Majesty, please calm your anger and give him a chance to redeem himself through meritorious service."

Liu Xie stared at Pang Tong, still furious. Zhuge Liang lowered his voice and said, "Your Majesty, the Pang family of Jingzhou is no ordinary family. If we kill him, it will likely cause a stir in Jingzhou."

Liu Xie naturally knew that Pang Tong had a powerful background. He was a member of the Pang family and the nephew of Pang Degong, who was the current head of the Pang family.

One of Zhuge Liang's older sisters was married to Pang Shanmin; both morally and logically, Zhuge Liang had to stand up and plead for him. (End of Chapter)