The elite did not migrate south

Chapter 51 How can one survive long if one eats little and has many worries?
Liang State, Suiyang.

A group of people came here in a mighty manner.

The soldiers in front of the city gate didn't know whose family the young man was traveling from, so they didn't dare to stop him. They didn't even check and quickly let him go.

The carriage seemed to have already determined its direction and was hurrying towards the Prime Minister's Mansion in the north.

The soldiers at the city gate looked at the direction they were going, wiped the sweat from their foreheads, and fortunately did not stop them.

When the carriage stopped at the Prime Minister's Mansion, the door was opened and the carriage entered the mansion without any hindrance.

When the servants closed the door, a man came out of the carriage.

This man was eight feet tall, with a refined and easy-going face, a long beard, and a typical image of a scholar-official.

"Meet the General Zhengnan!!"

The officials in the palace hurriedly bowed deeply to him.

This person is the General who Conquers the South, Zhuge Dan.

This person is a descendant of Zhuge Feng, the Inspector of the Imperial Guards of the Han Dynasty, and a cousin of the late Prime Minister Zhuge Liang of the Shu Han Dynasty.

But judging from his appearance, he is somewhat similar to Zhuge Liang, except that he looks less tired and more wealthy.

When he was young, he served as a secretary, then as a county magistrate, and later as the Chief Censor and Shangshu.

He was well-versed in Confucian classics, and was friends with Xiahou Xuan and others, spending the whole day in idle conversation. Cao Rui hated idle conversation very much. He believed that these guys who were seeking fame and reputation were of no use to the country, so he dismissed him.

Later, when Cao Shuang came to power, he promoted Xiahou Xuan along with him, making him the governor of Yangzhou and adding the title of General Zhaowu.

Unfortunately, Cao Rui was not wrong. This person really only knew how to have idle conversation.

He was unable to help Cao Shuang and turned a blind eye to everything that happened in the court.

Even after Xiahou Xuan and others were killed, Guanqiu Jian was furious and wanted to raise an army to attack the Sima family, but Zhuge Dan remained unmoved.

Historically, he even helped the Sima family to send troops to fight against Guanqiu Jian.

Obviously, he didn't understand that once Guanqiu Jian was killed, he would be the next one to be killed.

Apart from his last name, he has nothing in common with his cousin, and is just a short-sighted guard dog.

He was not a loyal minister of Cao Wei as people later said. He was just a foolish military leader who wanted to continue his rule in the local area. He stabbed Guanqiu Jian in the back when he was fighting for righteousness, and only took desperate measures when the Sima family wanted to deal with him.

Although he repeatedly emphasized that the reason he raised the army was to attack the Sima family, the real reason was that the Sima family wanted him to enter the government and remove his military power, so he raised the army to attack them.

Therefore, there is really nothing wrong with the dragon-tiger-dog theory.

Of course, he is not completely without any strengths. He has a great reputation and can win people's hearts. The soldiers are willing to fight to the death for him. His superficial work is very good.

Zhuge Dan stroked his beard and asked, "Where is the general?"

"Please follow me."

Several guards were about to go in, but Zhuge Dan glared at them and said, "You just stay here!"

The guards dared not speak.

Zhuge Dan followed the man into the inner room alone.

"Dan pays homage to the General!"

After entering the inner room, Zhuge Dan hurriedly bowed to the person sitting in the upper seat.

Sima Shi appeared here at some point. He sat in the upper seat with a gloomy face, staring at Zhuge Dan below.

"Get up."

"Thank you, General."

Zhuge Dan hurriedly stood up, then looked at the scholar sitting next to Sima Shi in surprise.

This man was about the same age as Zhuge Dan, but he did not have Zhuge Dan's aristocratic and wealthy air. He had a dark complexion and a thin body, and looked more like a farmer working in the fields.

But Zhuge Dan did not dare to underestimate this man at all.

"General Zhenwei!"

The man hurriedly bowed and greeted Zhuge Dan.

He is the Governor of Yanzhou and General Zhenwei Deng Ai.

Although he doesn't look rich, don't get me wrong, Deng Ai came from a prominent family, the Nanyang Deng family.

However, Deng Ai's situation was rather special. He lost his father at a young age and his life was more difficult than that of other aristocratic families, but he also truly experienced life at the bottom of society.

Deng Ai's starting point was much lower than those insects of the time. In the early days, he was forced to move north and be taken to Runan to farm because of the great kindness of Emperor Taizu Wu.

He had once herded cattle and cultivated the land, and because he had studied, he worked as a minor official guarding straw, working hard in the local area for twenty years. Until he climbed to the position of Dian Nong Gongcao with his many merits.

When he went to Luoyang to report and present the book, he met the noble man who changed his destiny, Ma Yi of Xuanwen Company.

Sima Yi saw at a glance that this guy was not a human being, not a mediocre person.

He was directly recruited to be an official in the Taiwei Mansion and was called as his confidant.

Deng Ai made great contributions to the State of Wei. While others were still talking big, discussing metaphysics, and singing songs, he never forgot his original profession, farming.

He submitted a memorial to Sima Yi, proposing to develop water conservancy projects and military farming, and Sima Yi agreed. Deng Ai was a good farmer, and within a few years, the national strength of Wei began to soar, and areas like Huainan became extremely prosperous.

He made great contributions along the way, became a prefect, and repelled the enemies. Now, he has been promoted to the position of Governor of Yanzhou.

Sima Shi valued him very much and told his younger brother Sima Zhao many times that this man was strong and could be of great use.

Seeing Deng Ai also appear here, Zhuge Dan narrowed his eyes.

Sima Shi was different from his brother. He was not good at pretending. If Sima Zhao were here, he would have held Zhuge Dan's hand and become brothers. If Cao Mao were here, he would have become Zhuge Mao.

Sima Shi was indifferent. He asked, "Why is Lord Zhuge so late?"

Zhuge Dan quickly replied, "Please forgive me, General. The Wu bandits are ready to make a move, so I dare not leave rashly."

Sima Shi gestured for Zhuge Dan to sit down. Zhuge Dan thanked him and sat on his left.

"Mr. Zhuge, Shi Ji should have told you the details."

"You have seen my situation. My eye disease is getting worse. I am worried until the bandits are eliminated."

Zhuge Dan secretly looked at Sima Shi beside him. Sima Shi's condition looked really bad. He was pale, skinny, and his voice was noisy.

"Please rest assured, General. All the people in the world are willing to serve the court and repay the king's kindness, even at the cost of their lives. Many bandits are nothing to worry about!"

Zhuge Dan had a loud voice, and just by looking at his appearance, anyone would think that he was a capable minister of the time.

In front of him, Deng Ai was no different from an old country man.

Sima Shi then started chatting with him about the situation in the Central Plains.

Sima Shi knew what Zhuge Dan wanted. He just wanted to protect himself. He didn't take Zhuge Dan seriously at all. If he could defeat Guanqiu Jian, he could hand over part of Guanqiu Jian's power to Zhuge Dan.

Compared with Guanqiu Jian, Zhuge Dan's threat is too low. It's not because his power is too small, but mainly because of the difference in the main general.

Even if Zhuge Dan accepted Guanqiu Jian's power completely, he would not be afraid. What is there to be afraid of as a gate dog?

Zhuge Dan was also excited. If he could receive the inheritance left by Guanqiu Jian and wait for Sima Shi to die, who in the world could deal with him? He could stay in the local area and continue his current life.
The two had a pleasant conversation and reached a common goal in many areas.

Deng Ai just looked at them calmly without saying a word.

Deng Ai appeared here only to be brought by Sima Shi to show to Zhuge Dan.

Deng Ai didn't like these things very much. He wanted them to end soon so that he could go back to farming.

After chatting for a long time, Sima Shi felt a little unwell, so he asked Zhuge Dan to go and rest first and decided to continue the discussion after an hour.

Only then did he look at Deng Ai standing beside him.

But his expression was not as cold as when he treated Zhuge Dan.

"Shi Zai, I have read your memorial. Your thoughts are correct and thoughtful. Agriculture is indeed the foundation of victory. Food is more important than military strength."

"Since you feel that local officials are neglecting agriculture and are solely focused on socializing and soliciting favors, with a superficial and dishonest style, then you can dismiss and replace them as you see fit. There is no need to report this to me; you can handle it yourself."

"Also, you suggested establishing rewards to encourage the people to accumulate grain and reduce taxes. I agree with all of this. The responsibility of eradicating this extravagant and wasteful trend in the world is now left to you."

Deng Ai was stunned and quickly stood up.

"Thank you so much, General."

Sima Shi was about to say something when he started coughing violently again. This time, he finally subconsciously wanted to cover his left eye.

Deng Ai was horrified.

"I'm fine, don't worry. I'm just a little tired these past few days. Everything is going on."

Sima Shi said this with gritted teeth.

"There are more and more letters coming from Luoyang."

　Because everyone is pushing me so hard, I will update one more chapter. Since it is confirmed to be on the shelves on October 1st, I have to control the number of words, otherwise it will affect the subsequent recommendation position. I can only say that I didn’t choose the right time to start writing. I hope everyone will wait a little bit. Lao Lang has been accumulating manuscripts and waiting for it to be put on the shelves. It’s really exciting!

(End of this chapter)