Super Cultivation System of the Three Kingdoms

Chapter 258 Zhang Su's Disaster
Zhongshan County of Jizhou borders Bingzhou and Youzhou at the same time, and therefore produced many wealthy businessmen. They made a fortune by selling war horses and furs to the Han Dynasty, and by selling grain, salt, pig iron, cloth, silk, lacquerware, etc. to foreign tribes.

In the war horse business, the two families of Zhang Ding and Su Shuang were the leaders. They almost monopolized more than half of the war horse trade in Youzhou, Jizhou, Bingzhou and Qingzhou. They also dabbled in other businesses on a huge scale. Some people said that the combined wealth of the two families could be compared to the annual income of a state.

On this day, Zhang Ding and Su Shuang personally escorted a batch of war horses that had just been purchased from the north back to Zhongshan County. After all, the two were not young, so it was inevitable that they were a little tired.

"Shi Ping, not long ago my son-in-law sent me two people, saying that they were in the military's special bathhouse, responsible for massaging soldiers to relieve fatigue, and the effect was excellent. Why don't you come back with me and let them massage us two too, how about that?"

Zhang Ding laughed and said, "Haha, you old man, you got some benefits and you show off in front of me. Your son-in-law is filial, but is my Yunchang not as good as him? He also sent me two people like this."

Su Shuang smiled embarrassedly and said, "Hehe, I can't hide this little plan from you. But let's go to my house first today. Although Lord Liu He is now very successful in his career, he is surrounded by external enemies and things are not going well. Our two useless sons have now officially become county magistrates under his promotion. We should also discuss what we can give him in return."

After hearing what he said, Zhang Ding also nodded.

"Well, what you said makes sense. Apart from other things, in the past two years, with the help of Lord Liu and our two sons-in-law, our business has been growing. Lord Liu has repeatedly defeated the enemy at the border, and it is reasonable for you and me to show some appreciation for it, both publicly and privately. Okay, let's go to your house and discuss this matter properly."

The two of them got on the ox cart and went to the Su Mansion together.

It’s not that they can’t afford a horse-drawn carriage, but the Han Dynasty has a rule that no matter how rich a merchant is, he can only ride in an ox-drawn cart. Although sometimes no one knows when they get off the carriage, they still have to be cautious now that they are in the city.

"Congratulations to welcome the master back home!"

The two of them walked into the mansion slowly. Servants came over one after another, handed them hot towels, took off their heavy coats, and changed into lighter clothes.

"Go, invite the two Jiaofa massage masters that Gongyi sent a few days ago to relieve my and Brother Shiping's fatigue."

"Yes!"

Su Shuang took Zhang Ding and walked into a side room.

The servant brought in hot water, washed the two people's faces, and then left.

"Haha, it's rare that Yunchang and Gongyi are so filial. The decision you and I made back then was really wise."

"Yes, although Lord Liu He is in danger now, in my opinion, he still has a bright future. Especially since he values ​​friendship and loyalty, he will definitely not forget the contributions of our two families in the future."

The two were chatting here, when suddenly a third person's voice was heard in the room.

"You two are in such a good mood, but you don't know that a disaster is about to happen."

The two men were suddenly startled, turned over and took down the sword hanging on the wall next to them, stood back to back, and looked around vigilantly.

"Who! Who are you to break into a private house in broad daylight?"

A black shadow suddenly jumped down from the beam. Zhang Su and the other man only felt a flash of cold light, and the swords in their hands were knocked to the ground.

The two men could tell at a glance that the man in front of them was definitely much more skilled in martial arts than themselves. Resistance would be futile. Even if they called for guards to come in, they would definitely not be able to match the speed of the man's sword.

With their half-life experience of traveling around the world, the two men quickly calmed down.

"Are you here for money, or are you asked by someone to take our lives?"

The man in black had no expression on his face, and said in a stern tone, "Don't panic, I was entrusted by General Liu He to secretly protect your families. Now I accidentally found out some news that is very unfavorable to you, so I showed up to tell you."

The two of them were doubtful.

"Entrusted by Lord Liu? What's the evidence?"

The man in black took out a letter from his arms and handed it to the two of them.

The two took it and looked at it carefully, and the expressions on their faces relaxed a lot.

"This is Lord Liu's handwriting. This kind of cloth was specially brought to him from Xuzhou by Brother Su and I at the beginning of the year. It can't be wrong!"

The two men let down their guard. Su Shuang said, "Excuse me, may I ask what kind of important news you are talking about, which concerns the survival of our two families?"

The man in black said, "Two days ago, my brother secretly found out that the Zhongshan County governor's office deliberately poisoned a batch of war horses and was planning to falsely accuse you of selling sick horses to the court and confiscate your property and exterminate your clan."

The two were shocked when they heard this!

"This... How is this possible? The two of us have always cooperated closely with the Governor of Jizhou and the Governor of Zhongshan. We have never had any conflicts or hatred. How could they..."

The reactions of the two were obviously within the expectations of the man in black.

"Although we have not yet found out the specific reason for their actions, I guess that their real purpose is not against you two. They want to deal with someone else."

After all, Zhang Ding and Su Shuang were no ordinary people, and they quickly thought of a possibility.

"It's Lord Liu! They want to kill a chicken to scare the monkeys! Our son-in-law and son have written to us and mentioned that when Lord Liu governed the local area, he was vigorous and resolute, and offended many local powerful families. They have always wanted to get rid of Lord Liu as soon as possible. They must be unable to fight against Lord Liu, so they want to start with us and look for an opportunity!"

The more the two thought about this explanation, the more likely it seemed, and they couldn't help but break out in cold sweats.

The man in black seemed to think this explanation was very reasonable.

"It seems that this is very likely. Since I have been ordered to protect you two, I will naturally do my best to do it. However, my brothers and I are outnumbered and have no chance of winning a head-on confrontation. We have to think of a foolproof plan."

"As long as I can solve this problem, I will obey your orders!"

The man in black hesitated for a while and said, "We can't win by fighting. There is only one way."

"any solution?"

"hide!"

After hearing this, the two seemed to be in hesitation.

"It's not that we don't want to, but our two families are big, with a lot of people. It's not easy to hide!"

Zhang Ding's face was full of worry.

Su Shuang seemed to have thought of something, and his face became determined.

“It’s difficult, but it’s not difficult.”

"Oh? Brother Su, what's your plan?"

"Abandon your family and property and flee to Yanmen overnight!"

"What!" Zhang Ding was shocked and then shook his head repeatedly.

"No, no, this is the family business that you and I have worked hard for half our lives. I can't bear to give it up like this..."

After he said this, Su Shuang's reluctance was aroused, and he was speechless for a while.

The man in black shouted, "It's already this hour, and you're still thinking about this little bit of property. Which is more important, money or life?"

Zhang Ding said with a look of heartache: "That's true, but this is not only property, but also the hard work of half our lives!"

The man in black groaned for a moment and said, "The governor's mansion has been attacked repeatedly by the Black Mountain Army, and there are not many soldiers left. It will be very difficult for him to deal with the tens of thousands of guards and retainers of your two families. He will definitely borrow troops from the surrounding counties or the governor's mansion, which will take at least several days. You should quickly cash in your property. Three days later at midnight, my brothers and I will escort you to Yanmen. I will send a pigeon to ask General Liu to lead the army from Yanmen to meet you. Abandon what should be abandoned decisively, and do everything as soon as possible. Don't delay!"

"Okay! We two have always intended to give up this lowly job and devote ourselves to him wholeheartedly. Now is the right time!"

(End of this chapter)