The Three Kingdoms Voyage

Chapter 278 Pirate Empire Unity is Strength
Sun Shao was taken aback for a moment, then laughed, half sitting and half leaning on the table, looked at Zhuge Ke with a half-smile, and then at Zong Yu: "One hundred thousand dollars?"

"One hundred thousand dollars." Zong Yu nodded solemnly, his face expressionless, as if he would not add another money, but his eyes were fixed on Zhuge Ke.Zhuge Jun came to visit suddenly and revealed to him Zhuge Ke's opinion that 20 is the highest price. If it exceeds this price, both parties will give up and cannot compete with each other, and Sun Shao will take advantage of it.Zhuge Jun told Zong Yu that although he did not participate in the transformation of the Liannu, he knew that the cost of the Liannu was no more than 20 yuan, so both Zongyu and Zhuge Ke believed that if the price was [-] yuan, Sun Shao would definitely sell it. .

The key to this is that the two parties cannot backtrack. Although they have been connected through Zhuge Jun, they seem to be in harmony with each other, and they are afraid that the other party will put themselves together. On the surface, they will unite with Sun Shao to bargain, and secretly raise the price.

"One hundred thousand dollars." Zhuge Ke also nodded, and added with a smile: "Your Highness, most of the crossbows are made of wood, only the runner and the crossbow are made of metal, and I estimate the cost is [-] to [-] dollars." , you sold us [-], you already made some money."

Sun Shao couldn't help laughing, he didn't speak, he picked up the teacup to drink tea, and looked at Zong Yu and Zhuge Ke from the teacup with playful eyes. Although the two men tried not to exchange eyes, they couldn't help but feel a little uneasy. It fell into Sun Shao's eyes.He smacked his lips and said with a smile: "It seems that my people don't take it too seriously. You are still breathing, and now join hands to bargain with me, right?"

"Your Highness was joking, there is nothing wrong with it." Zhuge Ke and Zong Yu said in unison, neither of them wanted to implicate Zhuge Jun.

"It doesn't matter." Sun Shao waved his hand, signaling them to be calm and calm, "There is a so-called unity is strength, have you finally realized the truth of this sentence now? Remember when Sun and Liu teamed up to defeat the mighty King Wei in Chibi and turned the tide. , Helping the building to collapse, but it is a pity that Sun and Liu have been sharing different dreams in the future, wasting great opportunities many times, otherwise, there may not be Wei Guo now."

Zong Yu sighed silently, he was too clear about the struggle between Wu and Shu these years.To be honest, if it weren't for Cao Cao's capture of Hanzhong in the 19th year of Jian'an and the pressure on Chengdu was too great, Liu Bei would probably have fought with Sun Quan.Perhaps it was God's will, if Cao Cao conquered Hanzhong later, and waited until Liu Bei and Sun Quan were both defeated, then the situation in the world would be another matter.Sun Shao said that unity is strength, and Zong Yu deeply agreed, but he couldn't express it in this situation.

"You two are people who know the general situation, um, so does Zigao." Sun Shao nodded at Zhuge Ke, his condescending demeanor was natural and calm, Zhuge Ke and Zong Yu didn't have any dislike, obviously both felt very uncomfortable with this situation Normally, they listened quietly to Sun Shao, a little nervous in their respect. "Since this is the case, then there is no need for you to buy any Liannu. Go back and think about how to persuade peace. It is really not a wise move to make such a mess for a local tyrant in Yizhou. The two of you are half to eight Two, no one can eat anyone, so why bother to cause more damage? With Zhang Yi, Wu State will not get Yizhou, or if Zhang Yi is not returned, Shu State will not have any substantial losses. For the moment, it is better to Withdrawing the army and preparing for the southern expedition will be more practical."

Zong Yu had an idea, he thought for a while, and quickly said: "My prime minister intends to march south, but he is limited by the lack of food, grass and armaments. If the king can support some, it will not be difficult to put down the chaos in Yizhou. It really doesn't matter much."

Sun Shao patted his leg: "That's right, Deyan, you go back and tell Kong Ming that as long as he is willing, I can support him in his southern expedition. If he wants food and grass, he wants armor and armor. When necessary, I can also support him." Send troops to assist you. Hehe, you don’t know, I have nearly [-] Funan elites who are proficient in mountain jungle warfare. As long as you open your mouth, they can enter Yizhou to fight at any time. After Yizhou is pacified, if the two sides cooperate If everything goes well, the connection between Yue and Shu will be more convenient. In the future, the goods from Chengdu will not need to be transshipped by the Yangtze River, and can directly go to Funan County through Yizhou and Yongchang. The commercial road in the jungle should flourish. As far as I know, some barbarian merchants are now entering the Shu Kingdom from there, but the soldiers are in chaos and it is very dangerous, and not many people are willing to leave."

Sun Shao spoke with gaudy hype and high spirits, but Zong Yu poured a basin of cold water from head to toe.What are you kidding, you sent troops to help?Whether it is Liu Bei or Zhuge Liang, it is definitely impossible to agree.As for the commercial route, Zong Yu also knew a little about it. It started from the time of Emperor Xiaowu, and many barbarian merchants in Chengdu came from that route, just as Sun Shao said. Well, that road is difficult to walk on the one hand, and on the other hand, it is because the government of the state of Shu cannot manage it at all. The merchants along the way are often robbed by the natives.If Yizhou can be pacified and management can be strengthened, it is very possible that this trade route will prosper. Now that Sun Shao has captured Funan, with his emphasis on commerce, merchants are at least safe in Funan. The only thing that is not safe is Yi It's all in the state and Yongchang County.

"My lord, when will you hand over the Liannu to us?" Zhuge Ke couldn't help interjecting when he saw that they were talking lively.

"I won't sell it anymore." Sun Shao waved his hand: "You all go back. Since the two sides want to make peace, why should I sell you Liannu? merit."

Zhuge Ke suddenly became anxious.What Zong Yu thinks, he doesn't know very well, looking at him like this, he doesn't seem to care if he buys it or not, if Wu Guo doesn't buy it, he has no interest, but Wu Guo is different, Sun Deng still wants to rely on these Liannu increased the weight of his words.

"Yuan Xun, go back and tell Zigao, with you as a general here, it is enough to be worth a hundred Liannu." Sun Shao said with a smile: "I won't talk empty words with you, I have already presented to the emperor and asked The Son of Heaven came forward to make peace, and at the same time, I wrote a letter to the King of Wei, hoping that he would also persuade the King of Wu and the King of Shu. It is better not to fight this battle. I really can't be idle, and there is no need for my own people to fight my own people Ah. Look at me, I took down Funan in just one year, earning a lot of money, and counting the money makes my hands cramp. We big Han people, if we don’t just focus on our own people and unanimously speak out , It's very easy to get rich. I hope you can all give me some thin noodles, and talk about it if you have something to say, how about it?"

Zong Yu and Zhuge Ke looked at each other in blank dismay, no one expected this result.Zhuge Ke weighed it quickly, nodded immediately and said: "The king's benevolence and righteousness are all over the world. If the king comes forward to mediate, it will be successful immediately. I will reply to the prince and go back to Changsha to persuade the peace. If I can get away with it, it will be considered a big deal." Fortunately, if there is any disagreement, please ask the king to come forward."

Sun Shao nodded, then turned his gaze to Zong Yu.Zong Yu hesitated for a moment, thinking that doing so might not be a good thing.If Sun Shao really has this heart and talks to the emperor and Wei Wang Cao Cao, he will not only have a moral advantage, but also a strength advantage. , The State of Yue attacked its east, the State of Wei attacked its north, and the State of Shu attacked its west, and the fall of Wu State was imminent.

"Dare to obey."

"It's so good." Sun Shao was overjoyed, and immediately discussed the issue of food with them.This time he won Funan, and he took over almost all of Fan Man's 30-year savings, not only a mountain of money, but also a large amount of food.Funan is located in an alluvial plain with criss-cross waterways and a well-developed rice planting industry. Fan Man plundered relentlessly, and the grain he had accumulated was enough for ten years. , Funan lost too much troops, with these reserves, Fan Manzu could defend Temu City for a few years, exhausting Sun Shao to exhaustion.Now that he is rich and powerful, his voice is of course much louder.

After negotiation, Sun Shao supported Sun Deng with [-] shi of rice, enough for his [-] troops to eat in Changsha, and then supported Zong Yu with [-] shi of rice, and sent them a ship to transport them by sea to the South China Sea, and then landed from the South China Sea. Go up the water, turn to Xiangshui via Lingqu, and go straight to Changsha County.This kind of arrangement can only be done by people like Sun Shao who are on the two boats of Wu and Shu. Otherwise, this batch of rice will be intercepted by either the Shu army or the Wu army.

Before sending them away, Sun Shao repeatedly took care of them, hoping that they would spend some time persuading their kings to calm down after they went back, and not to make a big fight over a trivial matter.Zhuge Ke and Zong Yu nodded and left.When Zong Yu was about to leave, he entered the palace to bid farewell to Queen Guan Feng. Guan Feng gave him another gift, in addition to [-] shimi, and a boat full of Funan specialties such as precious stones, peacock feathers, ivory, etc. Zong Yu I was so happy that I smiled and said goodbye happily.

At the same time, Sun Shao asked Xiahou Hui to write two letters in his own hand, one to the emperor in his name, and at the same time to repay the credit, he asked the emperor to mediate the disputes between Wu and Shu and re-initiate the plan of the Western Expedition, and one to Xiahou. In the name of Huihui, he wrote to Empress Cao Jie, telling her that Sun Shao sincerely supports the royal family, and hopes that the emperor can stand up and preside over the overall situation. dignity.

At the same time, there is also a long gift list.

The two letters arrived in Luoyang City at the beginning of the twelfth lunar month in the fourth year of the Republic of China.

Prime Minister Yang Biao rushed to the palace as quickly as possible after receiving the news. He was 83 years old, but he was still in good spirits. Like an old man over eighty years old.As soon as they met, Yang Biao bowed and saluted, and said loudly, "Congratulations, Your Majesty."

"What is there for me to be happy about?" The emperor smiled and shook the gift list attached at the back, and said half-jokingly: "Just because of this gift? Although there are a lot of these things, compared with Sun Qing's income this time, It's really shabby."

Yang Biao shook his head and smiled: "Your Majesty, what I congratulate is not the gift, but the heart of His Highness the King of Yue. Although he has won Funan, his strength has soared, and he has surpassed the two countries of Wu and Shu, and he can compete with the Kingdom of Wei. Contest, but he still has His Majesty in his heart, this is the most rare thing."

"Yes, yes." The emperor said in a relieved voice: "Speaking of which, his current territory is not much smaller than my big man. With such strength, it is indeed rare to be so respectful to me as an emperor. Prime Minister, He wants me to mediate the dispute between Wu and Shu, do you think it is possible?"

"It's feasible." Yang Biao said without thinking, "And it's imperative."

The emperor didn't say a word, just smiled faintly, listening to Yang Biao's explanation.

"Your Majesty, after the dismissal of the soldiers, the world is at peace. Wu and Shu are at war again, and they have not notified the court until now. It is clear that there is no court in their eyes." Yang Biao put away his smile, with a bit of evil spirit on his face: "The war between the four kingdoms Among them, the strength of these two countries is the weakest, and they are so arrogant, if His Majesty cannot punish them, what is His Majesty's prestige? Will the King of Wei still obey His Majesty's will?"

The emperor smiled wryly and nodded. It's not that he doesn't understand the truth, but he must have strength to mediate. People like him may not even be able to leave Luoyang City, and no one in Wu and Shu will listen to him. It would be better to pretend to be deaf and dumb if no one listened to him. If Wu Shu didn't come to report, he would pretend not to know either.

"Now the king of Yue has asked His Majesty to mediate, which shows that he has a court in his eyes. As long as he talks about King Wei, Wu Shu will not dare not listen. It is the honor of His Majesty if the matter is completed. If it fails, then King Yue and The king of Wei will definitely not give up, with their strength, wouldn't it be easy to wipe out Wu and Shu in one fell swoop?"

The emperor curled his lips: "The king of Yue also wrote a letter to the queen, hoping that the queen will come forward and ask the king of Wei to cooperate. However, I have no confidence in whether the king of Wei can cooperate. Maybe he is watching my joke, maybe he is sharpening his knife. , just wait for Wu Shu to lose both sides, so that he can take advantage of it, and at this time, will he stand behind me?"

"Here is the key." Although Yang Biao spoke in a pompous manner, he still had no idea whether he could persuade Cao Cao to be the most important thing. Sun Shao's letter to Empress Cao Jie must have seen the key to this.However, he still seemed very confident: "Your Majesty, with King Yue coming forward, the matter is already half done. If King Wei is restrained by him, even if King Wei is unwilling to help His Majesty sincerely, it must be difficult for him to benefit from it." .Since the King of Yue has already proposed, why don’t Your Majesty pass on the letter of the King of Yue to the world, and borrow the people of the world to help him. The world hopes for peace, and there are not many people who hope that Wu and Shu will go to war.”

"I can only try, I hope he can convince King Wei."

The emperor's confidence is seriously lacking.Last time Sun Shao proposed that the imperial court should summon Wei and Shu to jointly send troops to Xiliang to retake the Western Regions. Unexpectedly, after two years of arguing, they finally broke up. Taiwei Jia Xu was very disappointed and died in depression.

"Your Majesty, should the King of Yue be rewarded for his conquest of Funan and the South China Sea this time?" Yang Biao reminded.

The emperor frowned, stretched out a white finger and scratched his eyebrows: "How to reward? He is already a prince, and if he is promoted again, I can only give him the position of emperor. He is now the general of Fuyi." , and then go up, is the general, is he willing to come to Luoyang to serve?" At the end, the emperor couldn't help laughing, but the smile was more bitter.

"Of course the position of emperor cannot be given." Yang Biao said lightly: "However, the position of general is not necessarily impossible. The position of general is higher than that of Sangong, but it is not without precedent for Sangong to be appointed outside. When Zhang Wen used Xiliang , then served as a Taiwei, and now Sun Shao lives in the South China Sea and serves as a general, why not? Or, Wen He passed away, and the post of Taiwei has been vacant. , 73, 84, if the Emperor of Heaven doesn't summon himself, it's really hard to say how many days the minister can support. There is no one in Luoyang now, is it possible that His Majesty wants to let two of the three princes be vacant, but is he reluctant to give it to a loyal minister like the King of Yue? "

The emperor frowned slightly, thoughtfully.This problem is really difficult to solve. Among the hundreds of officials in Luoyang, there is really no one who can be compared with a veteran like Yang Biao, not even Jia Xu who just passed away.Among the four kingdoms, including the most domineering king of Wei, Cao Cao, are more or less scruples about Yang Biao. Once he passes away, who else can hold these people down?
Perhaps it is still a good choice for someone like Sun Shao who can at least maintain respect for the royal family on the surface to be a general.

"Okay, then follow the prime minister's opinion." The emperor sighed: "Prime Minister, you have to take good care of yourself, although King Yue is powerful, compared with the prime minister, he is still too young, I'm afraid he can't control the situation. "

"Your Majesty, I have confidence in the King of Yue." Yang Biao persuaded, "I believe that he will be able to handle it better than I. After all, the big man can maintain this situation until today. The fire is not extinguished. On the other hand, it is also the result of the mediation of the King of Yue. Although he has won many victories and expanded his territory, his strength in my Han territory has not increased. To maintain this situation, for him, It is always better to respect the Son of Heaven than to fight by yourself."

The emperor grinned, but said nothing. He knew that this was the reason why he was safe and sound, but it hurt his self-esteem to say the least from Yang Biao's mouth.

After Yang Biao left, the emperor took the letter and went to the Jiaofang Palace where the queen lived.The Jiaofang Hall was originally a palace in the Weiyang Palace in Chang'an. It was called the Jiaofang Hall because the walls were covered with pepper mud and had a fragrance. It was originally lived by Queen Wei, and it became a custom later.When the emperor was in Chang'an, he could not even find the shadow of Jiaofang Hall, but the name left a deep impression on the emperor. After rebuilding Luoyang, he specially built a Jiaofang Hall as the residence of the queen. Cao Jie lives now.

Before entering the palace, she could smell the faint fragrance of pepper orchids from a distance. The queen who had already received the news was kneeling inside the threshold, ready to greet her with low eyebrows.The emperor showed a smile, and his already burdened back straightened a lot.

Although the queen's surname is Cao, she is a virtuous queen.Not only is she capable, but more importantly, her respect for the emperor is immeasurable. Every time the emperor comes to Jiaofang Hall, she has to go to the door to greet him.

"Queen, get up." The emperor bent down, lifted the queen up with both hands, and led her into the hall.Because the glass from King Yue was installed on the roof, the hall is much brighter than before. When the sun is shining, His Highness can read and write without lighting a lamp.The sunlight from the skylight was falling on the chime clock that King Yue paid tribute to, and the gold ornaments on the clock face were shining brightly.

"My son pays homage to Father Emperor." Prince Liu Xing knelt beside the desk and said in a childish voice.The emperor pulled him up with a smile on his face, stretched out his hand to touch his pink face, and said with a smile: "Xing'er, are you studying?"

"Going back to my father, my son is reading "The Battle of Funan" after listening to my mother."

""Funan War"?" The emperor looked curiously at the books spread out on the case, and turned to look at the queen: "When is the new book, why haven't I heard of it?"

"It was sent by Xia Houhui, the wife of the king of Yue, with the letter. The first book published by Funan New Bookstore, the ink smell is still very fresh." Cao Jie replied with a smile, holding the book in both hands and handing it to the emperor: "Your Majesty, please Look."

The emperor took it in his hand, turned straight to the catalog page, scanned it quickly, and said with a smile: "Is this the battle to conquer Funan?"

"It seems to be true. Chenqie and Xing'er just read it together. He was anxious to read the picture, but he didn't have time to read the article carefully."

"Ai——" the Son of Heaven sighed a long time: "His Royal Highness the King of Yue opened up the territory too fast, one year in Liaodong, one year in Yizhou, and it is only the fourth year now, and he has We took down Funan. The prime minister told me just now that he should be named a great general. I am very worried, if he takes another place next year, how will I make him. "

"Probably not in the short term." The queen smiled slightly: "I heard from Mrs. Yue Wang's letter that winning Funan this time is already a coincidence, if it wasn't for Fan Man's underestimation of his strength and rashly splitting up the attack , the King of Yue can only occupy a small piece of land at most, and can't hurt Funan's bones. Now Funan has been taken, but Funan's land and household registration are far more than those of Yue State. If he doesn't spend some time to clean up people's hearts, how can he rest assured? expedition?"

"That makes sense." The Son of Heaven nodded in agreement, thought for a moment, and then said, "By the way, do you think King Wei will support me in mediating the dispute between Wu and Shu?"

Cao Jie paused, bowed and saluted and said: "I will do my best, hoping to persuade my father to help His Majesty. As a relative of the state, how can he not be as good as a younger generation of His Highness the King of Yue?"

The emperor smacked and felt something was wrong.Cao Jie seemed to be reminding him that the king of Wei is the father of the queen. According to the habits of the great Han, if there is a general, it is usually a foreign relative. If Cao Cao is ignored and Sun Shao is the general, Cao Cao will No comments?If he obeys the law and violates the law, he will not object, but he will not contribute, then it may be difficult for the emperor to mediate the war between Wu and Shu with Sun Shao's power alone.

Then let Cao Cao be the general, what should Sun Shao do?If he is also unhappy, wouldn't it be a bigger loss?

The Son of Heaven was a little embarrassed and kept silent, just subconsciously flipping through the book page by page.

Seeing the gloomy look on the emperor's face, the queen knew that her words had hit the emperor's weakness.Although she is virtuous, she is a woman after all, and it is impossible not to fight for the rights of the family.If the Cao family was overwhelmed by others, then she would not be a queen for long.However, she couldn't bear to see the Son of Heaven suffer, hesitated for a moment, and then said: "Your Majesty, neither the King of Wei nor the King of Yue will actually come to Luoyang to serve. For them, maybe the difference is not that big."

The emperor glanced at her, and pondered: "The position of the third prince? Do you mean the Taiwei?"

The queen nodded, then shook her head again: "Your Majesty, Duke Yang is already 83. If you don't make preparations early, once he abandons His Majesty, Your Majesty is in a hurry. Where can I find a pure minister like Yang Gong who has both ability and political integrity?" ?”

The Son of Heaven thought for a moment, Yang Biao had already mentioned this issue just now, and now the Queen has mentioned it again, it seems that this issue is imminent and cannot be delayed any longer.He thought for a while, and then asked: "What is the queen's opinion?"

The queen smiled lightly: "I am a concubine and a woman, how dare you make unreasonable remarks on this. Why don't your majesty discuss this matter with Yang Gong, he has been in politics for nearly a year, and he will definitely be able to find a perfect plan for your majesty."

The emperor smiled, nodded, stopped talking, and read the book in his hand softly.

(End of this chapter)