Super Cultivation System of the Three Kingdoms

Chapter 1088 Meng Da’s Thoughts

On the Nanzheng city wall, Meng Da had a dark face and stared blankly at the mountain road ahead.

"General..." A man who looked like a servant walked over, causing Meng Da to turn his head to look. However, the moment he saw this man, his stinky face, which looked as if his parents had died, instantly turned into a smile.

"So it's Manager Zhang. Why are you bothering to come up to the tower at this hour? Is it possible that Chief Zhang has some instructions?"

The steward had an old face like pine bark, without any expression, and he spoke mechanically, "My master said that the general has been guarding the city alone for a long night, which is really hard, so he specially prepared some wine, please come and chat with me."

Meng Da's eyes suddenly sparkled with light.

"Meng Da is a crude man, but he is still taken care of by Zhang Changshi. I really admire him. I will leave now. Please lead the way, Mr. Steward."

Under the leadership of Manager Zhang, General Meng Da came to the gate of a mansion very respectfully, took off his sword, and then walked in.

In a brightly lit hall, sat a middle-aged man dressed as a Confucian scholar. It was Zhang Song.

Zhang Song did not stand up, but sat in the main seat and extended his hand in an invitation gesture.

"General Meng Da is guarding the city late at night. I am a scholar of no use. I have prepared some wine to relieve your fatigue. Please take a seat."

Meng Da was a little flattered. He took off his boots, walked into the hall, came to his seat, saluted with his fists, and then sat down.

"The Emperor's favor towards you is strong. On the way to Hanzhong, His Majesty issued an edict to make Prince Liu Zhang the Crown Prince and to appoint you as the Chief Clerk of the Crown Prince's Palace. The Chief Clerk is the head of the officials in the palace, which shows how much His Majesty and the Crown Prince value you. When the new Emperor ascends the throne, you will surely be the Prime Minister and one of the Three Dukes. Even so, you still gave up the warmth of Chengdu and came to the front of the army in person. This really makes me admire you very much."

Zhang Song was neither sad nor happy when he heard this. Instead, he waved his hand and signaled the manager to leave.

Meng Da was a little surprised: "What is this, Chief Secretary..."

Zhang Song glanced at him and said straight to the point: "General Songguan, you are quite brave and strategic. Now you are promoted to the position of Lieutenant General. I wonder if you are satisfied?"

When Meng Da heard this, cold sweat immediately broke out on his forehead. He took a step forward, fell to his knees on the ground, and pounded his head like garlic.

"I am originally from Fufeng. In the past, due to the disaster of Dong Zhuo, and then the quarrels between Cao Cao, Yuan Shu, and Liu He, I moved my family to Shuzhong to avoid the war. If it were not for your Majesty's support, my family would have starved to death in the wilderness, and how could we be here today? I will never forget your majesty's kindness, and I will never dare to have any unreasonable thoughts."

Zhang Song just looked down at him with an expressionless face. He slowly picked up a bottle of wine, took a sip, and then a smile suddenly appeared on his dry bark-like face.

"Oh my, General, why do you have to do this? Please stand up quickly."

He said so, but his eyes were full of disdain.

Meng Da looked up at him, and Zhang Song immediately smiled. This made Meng Da breathe a sigh of relief and stand up.

He wiped the sweat from his forehead and asked tentatively, "Why did the Chief Secretary suddenly ask about this? Could it be that His Royal Highness the Crown Prince is suspicious of me?"

"Hmm?" Zhang Song looked surprised. "How could the general think of this? Absolutely not. I just saw that the general's martial arts and wisdom are extraordinary, and I felt that I valued the talent for the country, so I was moved. There is no other intention."

"Nothing... no other intention?" Meng Da still seemed a little unconvinced.

Zhang Song straightened his expression and said firmly, "I have no other intention."

"Huh..." Meng De was completely relieved and sat down again.

"The Chief Secretary is indeed a pillar of the country. If you can say a few good words for me in front of Your Majesty and the Crown Prince, I will never forget your great kindness."

Zhang Song lowered his head to drink, glanced at Meng Da with a smile on his face.

"Haha, General, you are too kind. The world is in turmoil right now, and heroes are vying for supremacy. Song recently received news that Liu He defeated the coalition forces of Cao Cao and Sun Jian outside Hulao Pass and Hangu Pass respectively. Sun Jian died in the battle, leaving only Sun Ce to lead the remnants to escape. Cao's army suffered even more heavy losses. All of Jingzhou's 50,000 soldiers and horses defected. Generals such as Xiahou Dun, Xiahou Yuan, Cao Hong, Cao Chun, Yu Jin, Le Jin, and Li Dian were all killed in the battle. The army that attacked Hulao Pass originally numbered nearly 200,000, but now it is less than 50,000."

"Hiss..." Meng Da was incredulous. "How could Liu He have such a skill? The battle report from a few days ago said that Cao Cao had the upper hand. Why did the situation change so drastically?"

Zhang Song laughed and said, "Who is Cao Aman? How can a descendant of a eunuch be compared with a hero like Liu He? Liu He had been secretly plotting with Liu Bei, the then governor of Shangdang, and Liu Xuande more than ten years ago. Liu Bei had been pretending to be hypocritical over the years, and seemed to have the intention of betraying the court, which led Cao Cao to take the initiative to form an alliance. In the battle of Hulao Pass, Liu Bei suddenly turned against Cao Cao, so how could Cao Cao not be defeated?"

Meng Da's eyes widened as if they were bells. "Is this true? Liu He is so far-sighted, it's really... really too scary..."

Zhang Song glanced at him and asked, "General, what do you think of our army's strength compared to Luoyang's?"

Meng Da was a little hesitant: "This... each has its own merits, it's hard to say..." Zhang Song shook his head: "Zi Jing's words are not what he means. I have dismissed the attendants, and there are only you and me here. Could it be that Zi Jing doesn't trust me?"

"No, no, I have always admired the Chief Secretary. How dare I lie to him?"

"In that case, why don't you tell the truth, General?"

Zhang Song's eyes were fixed on Meng Da. Meng Da felt a little guilty, so he avoided his gaze and deliberately lowered his head to drink.

"This... Since the Chief Secretary has asked, I dare not disobey. In my opinion, even if we put all our national strength into Sichuan and Shu, let alone compare with Liu He of Luoyang, even if we only have the Liangzhou Legion, it will be extremely difficult to contend with it."

"In tonight's battle, although our army set up an ambush and temporarily repelled Zhang Liao, the enemy's weapon, the Purple Gold Dragon Cavalry, suffered very little damage and was not injured. Even if General Zhang Ren could seize a few cities, it would be difficult to shake the foundation of the enemy in Liangzhou. Now that the battle at Hulao Pass has ended, when Guan Yu and Cui Jun return with the main force of the Purple Gold Dragon Cavalry, our army will not be able to capture the entire Liangzhou, and I'm afraid that Hanzhong..."

Having said this, Meng Da suddenly stopped and secretly glanced at Zhang Song's reaction. After all, if someone really wanted to investigate these few words of his, he would be charged with disturbing the morale of the army and having evil intentions.

Zhang Song suddenly laughed out loud, "Hahahaha... Well said, well said... Hahahaha... General Meng Da is very knowledgeable, it's no wonder that I think so highly of you."

Meng Da was somewhat confused by his words.

"Changshi, what are you doing..." He felt a little uneasy.

Zhang Song put down his wine bottle and said, "What the general said just now is similar to what I and Fa Xiaozhi think. It can be said that heroes think alike."

"Fa Zheng Beijia?" Hearing this name, his heart trembled again.

Fa Zheng has been very successful in Yizhou in the past few years. Five or six years ago, he was just a magistrate of Pi County, but now he is the deputy governor of Yizhou. Like Zhang Song, he is a popular figure in front of the crown prince Liu Zhang and is deeply trusted by him. They are both people that he has to look up to.

Zhang Song nodded and said, "That's right. To be honest with you, General, Xiaozhi and I have been secretly observing you for a long time. You are quite prestigious in the army, and Your Majesty and the Crown Prince have also praised you."

"Oh? Really?" Meng Da seemed to see hope.

"Alas... What a pity..." Zhang Song suddenly sighed, causing Meng Da's heart, which had just risen in excitement, to suddenly skip a beat.

"What a pity."

Zhang Song looked at him with a look of regret, "It's a pity that the general is not from Yizhou. Zhang Ren, Yan Yan, Ling Bao and others, as well as the Wu and Huang families of Yizhou, all want to exclude foreign generals like the general, and they often make slanderous remarks to Your Majesty. Your Majesty still needs to rely on their reputation in Yizhou, so even if Xiaozhi and I often make suggestions for the general, it is always difficult to be effective."

Hearing this, Meng Da became angry and punched the table.

"Zhang Ren is a bastard. I have noticed that he is always making things difficult for me. He is narrow-minded and I will kill him sooner or later!"

"Oh? Kill Zhang Ren?" Zhang Song looked him up and down.

"Haha, it's not that I look down on the general, but given the general's status, if he wants to kill Zhang Ren, I'm afraid..."

Meng Da's expression suddenly dimmed, but he was still somewhat indignant.

"Alas... it's hateful, it's really hateful... Is it true that I, Meng Da, will never be able to make a breakthrough in this life?"

Zhang Song said at this time: "That may not be the case. There is a rare opportunity right before us. If we succeed, we can kill Zhang Ren alone, let alone his entire family, with just one word from the general."

Meng Da's eyes lit up, he stepped out again and knelt in front of Zhang Song.

"If the Chief Secretary has any good advice, please help me realize my ambitions and avenge my previous humiliation. Meng Da will never forget it!"

"Hahaha..." Zhang Song stood up, walked over, and helped him up personally, which made Meng Da even more flattered.

"This opportunity is easy and difficult at the same time. The key is whether the general has the courage or not."

Meng Da said firmly: "As long as you can help me turn the tide, I will obey your orders!"

"Okay!" Zhang Song grabbed his hands and said, "General, you are a man of few words. I will speak frankly to you. This opportunity is..."

He pointed outside the palace and said, "Offer Hanzhong to the Emperor of Luoyang!"

(End of this chapter)