The Duke of Shu Han began guarding Jingzhou in place of Guan Yu.

Chapter 302 I laugh at Zhuge Liang's lack of strategy and Mi Wei's lack of wisdom.
"I remember Shizhi's family was from Huxian County, Hongnong Prefecture?"

Sima Yi looked at the handsome young man in front of him and liked him more and more.

Why didn't I discover these talented young people sooner?
Xu Shu was really lucky!
This was not the first time Wang Jun had been ordered to see Sima Yi, and he was already quite composed in his response:
“The lower official is indeed a man from the lake.”

Sima Yi: "Are you married?"

Wang Jun: "Fortunately, I have gained the favor of Xu Sili, who has already married his daughter to me."

Sima Yi sighed inwardly, not at all jealous of Xu Shu over such a trivial matter.

Continued:
"Now that Huxian County has been captured by the Shu bandits, has Shizhi heard any news of his relatives?"

Upon hearing this question, Wang Jun's face darkened noticeably, and he gritted his teeth, saying:
"The families of this humble official are all loyal and virtuous officials of the Wei dynasty; they would never betray their principles and serve the traitors!"

"If anyone is a traitor, even if they are an enemy, I am willing to kill them with my own hands!"

"Hehe, Shizhi, don't get agitated, that's not what I meant..." Sima Yi said with a gentle laugh.

"Look, Zhang Junyi and Guan Ping have been fighting for a long time, and they are said to have had their share of victories and defeats, right?"

"Presumably, quite a few bandits have been captured."

“I admire Shizhi’s loyalty and talent, and I am willing to write a letter to ask him to send an envoy to talk to Guan Ping about the exchange of hostages.”

"If we could bring Shizhi's parents and relatives back, wouldn't that fulfill both loyalty and filial piety?"

Upon hearing this, Wang Jun repeatedly expressed his gratitude.

But the next moment, his tone suddenly changed:
"If Sima Gong truly has a grudge against the Left General and finds it difficult to work with him, why not entrust important matters to Xu Sili?"

"Others may not know the close relationship between you and Xu Sili, but as your son-in-law, I naturally know a little about it."

Sima Yi regretted not discovering Wang Jun earlier.

He understood her hint immediately after she had only made a light, indirect remark.

The negative hand said:
“It’s not that I don’t trust your maternal uncle. It’s just that his talents are beyond those of a soldier.”

"If we force him to take command of the battle, I fear he might make a mistake."

"As for Zhang Junyi, although I dislike him, what can I do? He is a valiant general recognized by the late emperor."

"If it weren't for that, why would I have let your maternal uncle come... Sigh! Let's not talk about it anymore, let's not talk about it anymore."

Sima Yi shook his head and sighed deeply.

"Let's not talk about those upsetting things."

"You came from Shaanxi and Tianjin. Have you noticed the movements of the Shu bandits along the way?"

Upon mentioning military affairs, Wang Jun immediately became solemn:
"I am carrying confidential information and dare not get too close to the flat ground."

"However, when passing through Anyi, we encountered local scouts."

"I heard from them that the Shu bandits have recently suddenly moved south and occupied the salt lake, allowing merchants inside the pass to exchange grain and cloth for 'salt permits' so that they can sell salt back to various places inside the pass."

Sima Yi showed no surprise, clearly having already heard of this matter:

"Have the scouts ascertained whether the Shu bandits directly handed over the official salt from their residences to salt merchants, or whether they appointed salt officials to repair irrigation canals and produce salt?"

Wang Jun recalled for a moment and said, "They should all be there."

"Although the scouts did not see the salt official of Ji Han with their own eyes, they learned that Mi Zhu and his son had crossed the river and had already arrived at Yi Shi."

"Then let Miwei go."

“Mi Zhu is skilled in the art of commerce, and he is most likely here to oversee salt affairs.”

Seeing that Sima Yi was lost in thought and remained silent.

Wang Jun hurriedly said, "Please forgive my bluntness."

"Our army originally pinned its hopes on Zhuge Liang's insufficient food supply."

"Who would have thought he had such a capable man under his command, who could come up with such a brilliant plan? I'm afraid our army will be the first to run out of rations!"

Upon hearing this, Sima Yi burst into laughter.

He disagreed, saying:
"How could I not know that Zhuge Liang had capable men under his command?"

"For example, there was a man from Nanyang named Wang Lian, who served as the Salt Commissioner in Shu many years ago, procuring military provisions for Liu Bei."

“If he were to take charge of the salt lake this time, I would indeed have to be wary.”

“But Donghai Mi Zhu has been living a life of luxury in Shu for many years. Apart from that ‘Mi Shi Paper,’ he has long been detached from worldly affairs. I heard that he has been bedridden for a long time this year and has not been able to leave his room… What can he do in Hedong?”

"In my opinion, Zhuge Liang was out of ideas and Mi Wei lacked wisdom, so he had no choice but to summon that old man from Chang'an to pretend to appease people."

Having said that, without giving Wang Jun a chance to explain, he immediately dismissed the guest, saying:
"You must return to Zhongtiao Mountain immediately and tell your maternal uncle that protecting the grain supply route would be a great achievement, and that you must not give the Shu bandits any opportunity to take advantage of the situation!"

Wang Jun was immediately discouraged and dejectedly took his leave. But after leaving the camp, he couldn't help but rein in his horse and look westward.

Looking at the heavily fortified and well-organized Han army camp not far away.

I thought of that famous prime minister of the Shu Han dynasty.

I thought to myself, how could such a person be easily outwitted?
Not to mention that Mi Zhu was just a front for Mi Wei to come to Hedong to participate in the war.

With the assistance of the wise and brave General Ji Hanwei, Zhuge Liang would be like a fish in water, or a tiger with wings.

Did Sima Yi really not see through all the details behind this?

Perhaps the one who is truly at his wit's end is himself!
Whatever.

Anyway, I've been offering my best advice today.

No matter what happens in the future, I will be able to preserve my reputation.

Thinking of this, Wang Jun couldn't help but recall the profound words Xu Shu had entrusted to him before he headed north:
"If Sima Zhongda and Zhang Junyi cooperated seamlessly, why would the Crown Prince need to heavily rely on your maternal uncle?"

"If the nation can defeat the traitors without us, your brother-in-law and your wife, then it has won. What benefit would that bring to us?"

Many people in Luoyang privately say that Xu Shu is a sycophantic and opportunistic person.

Hearing Xu Shu's two words of advice seems to further confirm his petty and self-serving nature.

However, Wang Jun spent a long time with this superior official who was also his maternal uncle (father-in-law).

I always felt that he wasn't a truly villainous person.

What exactly is my uncle planning?

A glint of light flashed in Wang Jun's eyes.

They quickly covered it up and rode south.

……

The day after meeting with Zhuge Liang, Mi Wei, using his father Mi Zhu's name, personally visited two salt ponds in the southern suburbs of Yi County.

The Cao Wei soldiers guarding the two pools have been transferred, leaving only laborers responsible for drawing water and drying salt.

Mi Weibing completed the takeover without bloodshed.

The subsequent distribution of salt permits was handled by the accompanying clerk, Duwei.

Mi Wei made the trip here not only to see the Yuncheng Salt Lake, which would later be known as the "Dead Sea of ​​China," but also because he wanted to see it.

He also wanted to personally inspect the smaller female salt pond to the west.

This lake was later known as the Salt Lake.

Because the salt deposits left after the pond water dries contain too much salt, the quality of the salt produced is not high.

It will only be activated as an emergency measure if Dongchi is unable to operate normally due to a disaster.

Otherwise, few people would pay attention to it normally.

In later generations, it was gradually abandoned.

However, Mi Wei, as a person of later generations, was well aware that the nitrate board, rich in nitrates and sulfates, was by no means a useless waste.

On the contrary, it was an important part of ushering in the industrial age.

Of course, given the level of social productivity in this era, engaging in industry, farming, or gunfights is pure nonsense.

It would be an extraordinary achievement for him to have managed to develop gunpowder in his lifetime.

However, using this massive amount of nitrate slag to produce organic fertilizer and thereby increase grain production is still a promising avenue.

Compared to firearms, which are far too lethal for this era.

Chemical fertilizers are likely the real game-changer.

If we can increase grain production by 20% or 30%, wouldn't that be more reliable than creating 10,000 hamburgers or 100,000 roujiamo out of thin air?

It might even greatly alleviate the cyclical contradictions of future land distribution and overpopulation, thus allowing future generations to enjoy a few more years of peace and tranquility!
In short, after inspecting the area for several days and determining that the natural resources here should, or probably could, satisfy his ambitions.

Mi Wei left behind his accompanying civil officials, taking only Deng Ai, the chief clerk, and Yang Xi, the chief secretary, to join Ju Funa's scouts and return north together.

Afterwards, they crossed the Sushui River to the north, passing through Jie County but not entering.

They galloped away on horseback.

Three days later, they arrived at a Han army camp outside Jiang County.

(End of this chapter)