Bronze door through time and space

Chapter 597 The Beginning of Troubled Times
Zhang Fei's courtesy made Yan Xu choose to stay. Although this was exactly his purpose, being begged to stay was different from asking to stay on his own. In the former, he could put on airs and enjoy it all with peace of mind.

However, Yan Xu did not live and eat for free. Although his classical Chinese was more Buddhist, he could draw inferences from other things. Moreover, Taoism also had a tradition of integrating Confucianism, Buddhism and Taoism. It was more than enough for him to give Zhang Fei some advice.
"It seems that you have no interest in learning." Yan Xu put down the bamboo slips that the Zhang family had taken great pains to obtain, and said to Zhang Fei, who was shaking his head but could not concentrate on reading at all.

Zhang Fei, who was wearing a scholar's shirt, couldn't help but blush. He respected Yan Xu very much. Although they had not met for a long time, he could feel that the other party's knowledge was the most profound and extensive he had ever seen. His explanations were also different from those of the previous masters, which were vague and confusing. Instead, he went from the simple to the complex. Even though he could understand it, he still...
"Haha, it doesn't matter. In addition to studying, I am also proficient in martial arts and military tactics." Yan Xu said with a smile, and Zhang Fei immediately breathed a sigh of relief and hurriedly said.

"I'll have someone prepare the straw targets for the bows and arrows right away!"

Archery is one of the six arts of a gentleman. Zhang Fei had learned it before, but he was not very proficient in it and did not like it very much. However, it was better than sitting in the house.

"No need, just accompany me to stretch my muscles." Yan Xu waved his hand and walked towards the open space barefoot.

Zhang Fei didn't understand, but he followed anyway. Then he saw the gentleman taking off his clothes, revealing a body of muscles that had been tempered by thousands of knives and axes. His eyes widened.

"What are you standing there for? I do know a little bit about fighting and kicking." Yan Xu moved his muscles and bones cracked.

Zhang Fei, standing by, could tell that the sound came from the master's feet, rising higher and higher, and finally penetrating through his fingertips. Just by simply clenching his fist, he could hear a muffled sound, as if something was being crushed. However, he was very sure that there was nothing in the master's palm. He immediately took a breath of cold air, and at the same time felt ecstatic.

It is true that he respected scholars, but Zhang Fei was more fond of martial arts. It was just that he had never met an opponent before, so he was overjoyed. He didn't care about his scholarly demeanor. He took off his clothes, swung his fist as big as a casserole and smashed at the enemy. Then he was knocked to the ground with a bang, and was completely stunned.

"Your footing is unstable, your movements are too big, and there are too many flaws." Yan Xu retracted his fist and said leisurely.

"Come again!" Zhang Fei was not a man who gave up easily. He jumped up, but this time he was not so impulsive. He stood firm and continued to fight. Then he was knocked to the ground again, and still didn't know how he fell.

Yan Xu didn't care about that and stopped teaching. He used a set of smooth little combos to make Zhang Fei lose his mind. It didn't matter if he roared like thunder, as the louder the louder, the winner would be. It wouldn't be possible for the three brothers to fight Lu Bu side by side.

In the evening, with a bruised face, Zhang Fei personally roasted a lamb. This time he didn't eat a single bite, but just waited on Yan Xu while he ate. His intentions were known to everyone.

Yan Xu ignored him, finished his meal, and left a few words before getting up.

"Get up early tomorrow."

"Yes, sir!" Zhang Fei said happily.

Yan Xu had witnessed how exaggerated the physique of a monster like Zhang Fei was. At night, his body was swollen like a pig's head, and in the morning only some marks were left. It seemed that he had not gone too easy on it.

Yan Xu did not start from the beginning when it came to teaching Zhang Fei. Firstly, there was no need to do so, and secondly, he did not intend to accept a disciple. After all, the Second Master was watching over him, and he could not mess up the generations.

Zhang Fei's talent was unique in Yan Xu's life. With just ordinary boxing and kicking skills, he reached the peak of Ming Jin without any guidance, because his body instinctively adjusted his movements and force, without further comprehending An Jin and Hua Jin, which was purely unnecessary.

When you can smash a rock with one punch, skills are completely unimportant unless you meet someone who can also smash rocks.

However, there are no more than ten people in the entire Three Kingdoms who can compare with Zhang Fei in terms of talent.

What’s even more interesting is that Yan Xu sensed that there was something in Zhang Fei’s body that had not been stimulated, otherwise he would not have revealed that he knew martial arts and would have been able to just eat and drink for free and wait for the Three Heroes of Peach Garden.

Time passed quickly, and the news of Zhang Jue's rebellion finally came, and the government also posted a notice.

In Yan Xu's opinion, neither Zhang Jiao nor Liu Hong are smart people.

Zhang Jiao rebelled only for the sake of increasing his power, but as a result, the thirty-six factions scattered across the country forced the people to become bandits, and he went from saving the people to bringing disaster to the world. This was truly an unprecedented act.

Emperor Ling of Han, Liu Hong, was not much better. In order to save money, he decentralized military power and allowed local areas to recruit soldiers and suppress bandits on their own, which resulted in a situation of warlords ruling their own countries.

In fact, if you look deeper, it was also a helpless move by these two people. Zhang Jue was good at religion, but rebellion was beyond his ability. In addition, the class system in the Han Dynasty was strict, and there was a strict monopoly on knowledge, which led to the fact that there were no talents under his command. After all, who would be a rebel if they could enter the officialdom?

Just like Water Margin, Liangshan really became powerful after those heroes who were originally generals were forced to go up the mountain. Before that, it was just a group of rabble, and the only reason they could cause such a big mess was because of the support of the Song Dynasty.

In this situation, Zhang Jue only had religion to rely on, and he used it very well as a glue and slogan for struggle.

However, reality forced him to delegate power to the commanders of the thirty-six factions, because he was simply unable to command and control such a large situation.

Hundreds of thousands of people, a mob with no military training, unless Han Xin comes, power will have to be delegated.

This is also the reason why the massive Yellow Turban Rebellion collapsed so quickly in the later period, because there was no specific strategic goal and clear commander-in-chief from top to bottom.

Moreover, after the enthusiasm subsided, those generals who had plundered a large amount of wealth and tasted the taste of power changed their hearts and began to regard the Yellow Turban Army as their own strength. In this way, the thirty-six Taiping Dao factions became the thirty-six Yellow Turban forces, and became a loose sand.

Otherwise, with the power of the Yellow Turban Army at its peak, if they occupied a state step by step, the Han Dynasty might have entered the era of separatism ahead of time.

However, Emperor Ling of Han, Liu Hong, was also helpless, because he did not expect that the followers of Taiping Dao had penetrated into the palace. If Zhang Jue's disciples had not informed them in advance, they might have been killed.

This made Liu Hong completely lose his sense of security and confidence in his ministers, because he didn't know who he could trust.

In fact, before this, Liu Hong had already shown signs of giving up.

There were many emperors who sold official positions and titles, but Emperor Ling of Han was the only one who was so professional and dedicated in doing so.

But Liu Hong also had his helplessness. If he was a tyrant, he would have just sat there waiting for the country to be destroyed. But the problem was that he was not stupid. He could see how serious the problems facing the Han Dynasty were, and he made many efforts and changes.

But at that time, his situation was similar to that of Zhu Youjian. Although he was smarter and more capable, when orders could not be accurately executed and implemented, the more he did, the more mistakes he made, and the more infamy he received.

The merits go to the ministers, and the mistakes naturally belong to the emperor. This is what Liu Hong faced.

Finally, Liu Hong was forced to overturn the table and said, "Since you don't cooperate, then don't play."

Supporting eunuchs and selling official positions and titles can not only disgust those ministers, but also bring money into one's own treasury, which can be said to kill two birds with one stone.

In fact, when the emperor began to rely on eunuchs, it meant that he no longer trusted his ministers, or that the situation of forming factions for personal gain had become serious enough to threaten the imperial power. This forced the emperor to reuse eunuchs who were more familiar and trusted around him, and to use all means to attack court officials.

As for selling official positions and titles, firstly, Liu Hong needed money to do things, and secondly, it was to break up the interest groups in the court. If they were not broken up, when all the ministers stood in the same camp, the emperor's words would be like farts.

This is also the reason why Liu Hong remained indifferent even though the Yellow Turban Army caused such a big commotion and let each state and region deal with it on their own. He wanted to use the Taiping Dao to weaken local forces and aristocratic families.

Doing so is tantamount to raising a tiger to harm oneself, but Liu Hong actually had no choice. Either wait for death or take a gamble. Obviously, he chose the latter.

It's a pity that Liu Hong died too early. He was gone before he could clean up the mess, and the exact way he died remains a mystery.

If Liu Hong hadn't died, at least Yuan Shao, Cao Cao, and Liu Bei would definitely not dare to act recklessly. With this group of rising stars and fierce generals like rain, the Han Dynasty might not be able to last for another few decades.

Unfortunately, he died early, and after Dong Zhuo's turmoil, the reputation of the Han Dynasty and the royal family was completely trampled into the mud. This was the real beginning of the chaotic times.

(End of this chapter)