The Three Kingdoms Fight for the Deer

Chapter 535 Zhong Yao Reception
"Yes!" Yan Pu took the order and left.Yan Pu led the army to chase for four full days, marching without rest along the way, but he was very surprised that Zhuge Liang's army was not found after arriving at Yangping Pass.

"Yang Ren, is it true that Zhuge Liang hasn't come back?" Yan Pu asked Yang Ren as soon as he arrived at Yangping Pass.

"No, Zhuge Liang's soldiers and horses only passed here once, and they never came back after going to Hanzhong." Yang Ren has been waiting for Zhuge Liang to come back at Yangping Pass, but he didn't wait.

"Damn it, where did Zhuge Liang go? Did he really go to attack Shangyong?" Yan Pu couldn't grasp Zhuge Liang's thoughts, so he could only lead the army back to Chengdu.After returning to Chengdu, Yan Pu sent people to Shangyong to inquire again, but in the end there was still no trace of Zhuge Liang, which made him very puzzled.

Not long after Zhuge Liang's army disappeared, Yang Song sent someone on a fast horse to send a secret letter to Li Yuan, telling Li Yuan that Zhuge Liang sent troops to attack Hanzhong, and then disappeared suddenly.

Ten days later, Zhuge Liang's soldiers and horses had arrived in Chang'an. He had already sent someone to Chang'an to send a letter to Chang'an prefect Zhong Yao in advance. , so now they are allies.

Zhong Yao in "history" is actually a very powerful figure. In his early years, he served as Shang Shulang and Huangmen Servant, and he made great contributions to helping Emperor Xian of the Han Dynasty return to the east, and he was named Dongwu Tinghou.Later, he was entrusted with an important task by Cao Cao, serving as the captain of Sili, guarding Guanzhong, and made outstanding contributions.After the establishment of Cao Wei, Zhong Yao successively served as Tingwei, Taiwei, Taifu and other positions, and was repeatedly named Dinglinghou. During the period of Emperor Wen of Wei, he, Hua Xin and Wang Lang were the three princes.

"Today I finally saw Mr. Kong Ming's demeanor. You have worked hard on this journey, please go to the city to rest." Zhong Yao invited Zhuge Liang into the city.Zhuge Liang asked Zhang Fei to camp outside the city, and he entered the city alone.

When everyone came to the prefect's mansion, Liu Yao had arranged a banquet in advance, and everyone sat down among the guests and hosts. As soon as they sat down, Zhong Yao said, "I heard that Mr. Kong Ming came from Hanzhong. I don't know how the battle with Zhang Lu will be. "

Zhuge Liang said with shame: "Although I only lost some soldiers and horses, I have actually lost to Zhang Lu."

"Could it be that Zhang Lu really has such a great ability?" Zhong Yao didn't believe it. He knew that Zhang Lu didn't have much ability. If it wasn't for the superior geographical location of Hanzhong, Cao Cao would have attacked Hanzhong a long time ago.

"I'm ashamed to say that I was going to pretend to attack Shangyong and ask Zhang Lu for an excuse, but Zhang Lu saw through my plan, ambushed me in the city, and added troops to Yangping Pass, cutting off my retreat and preventing me from returning to Chengdu. So I had no choice but to come to Chang'an." Zhuge Liang did not hide the facts, but told the truth of the matter completely.

"I see. It seems that Zhang Lu still has capable men, but I heard that Liu Zhang once formed an alliance with Zhang Lu. Why did you suddenly attack him?" Zhong Yao asked deliberately. Knowing what kind of person Liu Bei is, and the fact that Liu Bei is the real murderer of Liu Zhang's murder has been constantly rumored recently, so Zhong Yao has already confirmed that Liu Bei is a hypocrite.

"Mr. Zhong misunderstood. It is Liu Zhang and not my lord Liu Bei who formed an alliance with Zhang Lu, so we are not allies at all. What's more, Hanzhong is a unique place. Zhang Lu is incompetent. Sitting here is a waste, so my lord will Go and attack, and do so for the sake of General Cao." Zhuge Liang involved Cao Cao's interests in order to cover up Liu Bei's injustice.

"The reason why Hanzhong was attacked was for the sake of my lord. Please, Mr. Kong Ming, explain to me." Zhong Yao was puzzled.

Zhuge Liang explained: "I heard that General Cao has unified Hebei. I believe he will continue to expand in the near future. He will either send troops to Chang'an to attack Xiliang, or go south to attack Li Yuan. However, Li Yuan and Ma Teng have formed an alliance, so no matter what Whichever side he attacks will be restrained by the other side, so my lord will take the initiative to propose an alliance with General Cao, and then help him deal with one of Ma Teng and Li Yuan. As long as we occupy Hanzhong, we can attack Shangyong to contain Li Yuan. If you go north, you can advance to Xiliang to contain Ma Teng."

After hearing this, Zhong Yao smiled lightly. Although what Zhuge Liang said was reasonable, it was also for his own benefit. However, it was normal for them to have such thoughts, so he did not continue to ask this question.

Zhong Yao opened another topic and said, "Mr. Kong Ming, since your army has come here and we are allies, there is something very important that I must tell you, but before that I have a question to ask."

"Prefect Zhong, please tell me."

"Dare to ask Mr. Kong Ming, whether Liu Bei is worthy of our trust, and whether he is reliable at critical moments, after all, we were once enemies." Zhong Yao fixed his eyes on Zhuge Liang, as if he wanted to see through Zhuge Liang's heart.

Hearing what Zhong Yao said, Zhuge Liang knew that Zhong Yao must have something very important to say. Although he was stared at by the other party, he was very calm, shaking the goose feather fan gently in his hand, and said with a smile: " Whether we are trustworthy, General Cao should be more clear, otherwise he will not agree to our alliance request, let me ask, in this world, who else can you form an alliance with besides us, Ma Teng? Li Yuan? Or far away? Shi Xie from Jiaozhou?"

Zhong Yao's expression was slightly dull when he heard this, because he didn't expect Zhuge Liang to answer like this.Zhuge Liang continued: "There will be no permanent enemies or allies in this world. There are only permanent interests. Right now our common enemies are Li Yuan and Ma Teng. An alliance is the best way for us, so Cao Cao The general will agree to this request, he formed an alliance with my lord Liu Bei not because he trusts us, but because he has no other choice, does Zhong Taishou understand?"

Zhong Yao's heart was shocked after hearing these words, because Zhuge Liang's answer is really powerful, even if they don't trust Liu Bei, so what, because they can't form an alliance with other princes except Liu Bei, whether it is Xiliang Ma Teng or Li Yuan The enemy of Xiaoshi, let alone they have already formed an alliance, so they must find a reliable prince to form an alliance. At present, they have no other candidates except Liu Bei, so even if they don't trust them, they can only form an alliance with Liu Bei, but the only thing to be thankful for is Liu Bei also hated Li Yuan very much.

The other people at the table all showed dissatisfaction when they heard Zhuge Liang say this. Zhong Jin, Zhong Yao's younger brother, was about to stand up and scold Zhuge Liang, but Zhong Yao pulled him down with one hand, and said with a smile: "I finally understand why Mr. Kong Ming can be regarded as such by others. Your lord will use you as a military adviser, come, congratulate us on the success of our alliance!" Zhong Yao raised his wine glass after finishing speaking.

(End of this chapter)