The Three Kingdoms Voyage

Chapter 291 The Pirate Empire Returns to the Sea
Sun Shao was filled with emotion.

I don’t know if it’s a coincidence, or if it’s because of good genes. Among Xiahouyuan’s nephews and nephews, there are many talents. Xiahoushang is his follower. Compared with Xia Houyuan's sons, they are somewhat inferior.

Xia Houxun has seven sons, except for the eldest son Xia Houheng who married the daughter of Cao Cao's younger brother Cao De who died early and was especially favored by Cao Cao. , the other sons are all excellent, the second son Xiahouba and the third son Xiahou are good soldiers, the fourth son Xiahouwei is loyal and likes to be a ranger, the sixth son Xiahouhui and the seventh son Xiahou are still young, but they are the same as Xiahouxuan brothers and sisters Showed signs of precocity.However, the smartest one is Xia Hourong who is talking about geometry in front of everyone.

Xia Hourong, whose alias is Youquan, is Xia Houyuan's fifth son. He is 19 years old this year. When he was young, he showed abnormal memory.During the East China Sea alliance, the four kings agreed to cease fighting. Yang Xiu, Cao Zhi's think tank, was recalled by the emperor to Luoyang for the funeral, and then sent back to Yue as an official. Cao Zhi felt uneasy, so he sent Xia Hourong, who had always had a good relationship with him, sent to the East China Sea.

Sun Shao had no impression of Xia Hourong. He couldn't remember such a person in the Three Kingdoms, but Xia Houhui reminded him in time. Xia Houhui said that if there is anyone in this world who can be compared with Xia Hourong, only the child prodigy Cao Chong and his side Zhou Buyi, although their brother and sister are smart, but in front of Xia Hourong, they are all clever.

Yang Xiu, who just came to Sun Shao's side, also said that Xia Hourong is very smart. Although he is still young, he has already shown considerable talent. Although there are many talents in Xiahouyuan's family, the one with the highest achievement should be Xia Hourong, who is good at physiognomy. The famous Zhu Jianping once said that because Xia Hourong was too smart, he might be jealous of heaven and die early.Zhu Jianping is a well-known iron mouth in Yecheng. He once accurately predicted that Xia Hourong's third brother, Xia Houcheng, would die young, and vowed that Xia Hourong would not live to be 13 years old. The appearance of Xia Hourong's early death is gone, and he will definitely become a famous official of a generation.

Sun Shao didn't believe it at first, but after meeting and talking with Xia Hourong, he believed it.He even suspected that the kid in front of him was the real time traveler. Otherwise, how could he have thought of the split line on the gear without a teacher based on a few essays about geometry published by Zhao Shuang?
Although what Xia Hourong said is not very precise, but based on Sun Shao's superficial impression, Xia Hourong seems to have touched the most essential problem, but his mathematics level still needs to be improved. After all, trigonometric functions are not just fantasy. I can think of it.However, for a young man who usually never regards these as knowledge, but only as extracurricular readings, he is already outstanding.

Seeing Lu Hao led up by Lu Hong, Sun Shao smiled and clapped his hands lightly. "The East China Sea is really lively today. A few more talents have come. You Quan, Zhao Jijiu has also studied the issues you mentioned. You may wish to discuss them separately. Maybe you can help each other."

Xia Hourong nodded: "Dare not to obey orders."

Sun Shao beckoned Lu Hong to bring Lu Mao and others to him, and asked them their names and places of origin one by one. He had heard of some of them, and had no impression of some of them at all, but he welcomed them very politely, and then invited them Go to a banquet together.During this period of time, scholars from all over the country came to Yue, and Sun Shao's Yingyang had banquets every day, and it could be said that the seats were always full, and the wine in the glasses was not empty.

Sun Shao asked Lu Mao about Lu Xun's situation. He already knew about Lu Xun being transferred back to Jianye by Sun Quan to report on his duties, but he didn't know much about his third sister, Sun Xiuying, but it was useless to ask Lu Mao. Mao and Lu Xun basically had no relationship, and even if they did, they would not care about Sun Xiuying's affairs. Sun Shao couldn't help being a little disappointed, but he couldn't say much.The eldest sister, Sun Yuanying, has already arrived in Qiantang, and the second sister, Sun Yuying, and his wife will soon come, but the third sister, Sun Xiuying and Lu Xun, don't seem to be coming anytime soon.

The dinner was very lively. Twenty or thirty scholars who had just arrived attended the banquet. Some had been here for a while, and some just arrived today like Lu Hao. Everyone greeted each other, and some were lively and kept talking. Inquiring about everyone's situation, there are quite a few people who are well-known, but not many people have actually met them, and there are even people who have never met through letters. Now that many rumored celebrities appear in front of them, everyone is naturally a little bit Excited, some greeted enthusiastically and handed over their name badges, while others approached with some trepidation to strike up a conversation.Although Xia Hourong seldom shows up in front of outsiders, and his reputation is not very good, he made a name for himself in front of everyone today. As Xia Houhui's uncle, he has the inherent advantage of being close to Sun Shao, so no matter what There were not a few of them who came here just for fame, or just to make connections. The toasts one after another quickly filled Xiahou prodigy with all kinds of meat and eight vegetables.

Sun Shao looked at the scholars talking and laughing happily, feeling beautiful in his heart.Singing and fighting in front of the emperor, he played a good show, suppressed the ambitions of Wei, Shu and Wu, and also won a good reputation. Now the scholars of the Han Dynasty all know that he is the real loyal minister and the real king of Yue, Sun Shao. Taking the rise and fall of the Great Han Dynasty as the mainstay of their responsibilities, Yue State is the place that values ​​talents the most, the most active and advanced place, whether it is literature or classics, the level of Zhuya College is obvious to all, as for the study of science and technology, That is second to none.Although Wei, Shu and Wu also began to build similar academies, no matter in terms of scale or strength, it is impossible for at least ten years to have any academies that can be compared with Zhuya Academy. The bulletin was sent to all counties and counties, and more and more scholars came to Yue to seek development, especially those whose family background was not enough, it was difficult to get development opportunities through normal channels.

Sun Shao has two purposes in doing this. On the one hand, he wants to recruit talents to further enhance the strength of the Yue State. On the other hand, he also needs to enrich the scholars from different sources in various fields to prevent the Yue State from becoming controlled by several aristocratic families. At the same time, this can also promote the Three Kingdoms of Wei, Shu and Wu to change their past habit of relying on aristocratic families to a certain extent.

From the current point of view, he has basically achieved these two goals, and the swarms of scholars have been enriched in various positions one after another. The reputation of the application further spread to various places. The post system that was specially strengthened for the release of the Dahan Gazette played an important role. Scholars who have personally experienced the benefits of the Yue Kingdom used the post post system to share the vast land and resources of the Yue Kingdom with many opportunities. Good news has been sent everywhere, and a bigger wave of scholars is coming.

The level of education popularization at this time is far less than that of later generations. Although these scholars are only more than 2000 people, they represent the elite power of the Han Dynasty. The country of Yue has changed from a small country to a large and extensive country. Vietnam is about to change from a big country to a truly powerful country.

The power of knowledge is infinite.

"Your Highness!" A middle-aged scholar of medium build interrupted Sun Shao's train of thought. Sun Shao subconsciously raised his cup, looked at the middle-aged scholar with gray hair on his temples, and was about to say a few polite words. But he felt that this person looked familiar, he was stunned for a moment, then he patted his head, laughed loudly, then pointed at him and said, "Jiujiang Jiang Ziyi?"

Jiang Gan laughed, his face was full of complacency, but he pretended to be modest and bowed his body: "Jiang Gan has spent half his life, and I heard that His Highness employs people who don't stick to one pattern, so I came here to ask for your favor."

Sun Shao was very happy.Ever since he met Jiang Gan in Wancheng, he has always been curious about what kind of person the real Jiang Gan is. Later, after inquiring under the spy of Zhou Bing, he found out that Jiang Gan was very different from the man in the novel. He is proficient in vertical and horizontal skills and is famous for his ability to argue. When he was young, he was alone in the rivers and Huaihe Rivers and rarely met opponents. However, he has not been able to develop. Firstly, it is because his family background is average and no one recommends him. Second, his own temper is also a bit strange. , It is said that his conduct is also a bit improper, somewhat similar to Guo Jia back then, but his network is far worse than Guo Jia, so he has not been able to develop.Jiang Gan said that he wasted half his life, which is basically reliable.

"Mr. Ziyi, after leaving Wancheng, will you be safe?" Sun Shao enthusiastically pulled Jiang Gan, clinked glasses, and drank it all in one gulp.Jiang Gan was overwhelmed by flattery for a moment, quickly drank his wine, and sighed a little: "I dare not lie to Your Highness, Wancheng has made a small contribution, but unfortunately the world will be peaceful in the future, and there will be no use for it, so I came to Yue Kingdom to ask His Highness to reward me with a bowl of rice." eat."

Sun Shao couldn't help laughing, he looked at Jiang Gan for a moment: "Zi Yi, come to me tomorrow, I have a suitable job for a talented person like you to do."

Jiang Gan was overjoyed, he was so happy that he lost his composure, he was trying to get close to him with a shy face, and he was ready for Sun Shao to perfuse him with a few words, but he never expected that Sun Shao would give him a chance so directly.Thinking of what happened to him in the first half of his life, Jiang Gan suddenly felt a little sad and almost shed tears.He quickly lowered his head and bowed deeply: "Don't dare to disobey. Jiang Gan will come to wait for instruction tomorrow."

Xia Hourong tried his best to open his sleepy drunken eyes, glanced at Jiang Gan who was leaving in a small step, and grinned: "Your Highness really has a bright eye, and he immediately fell in love with a talented person."

Sun Shao turned his head, glanced at Xiahou prodigy whose face was flushed from drinking, and whose eyes had become a little blurred, grinning his teeth, "Why, what do you think?"

Xia Hourong sneered a few times: "If you talk about Jiang Gan, he has eloquence, but he is lustful, good at drinking, and unrestrained. If you want him to accomplish something big, I'm afraid it will be difficult for people to rest assured. Please, Your Highness." It is good to be talented if you are thirsty, but if you employ people like you have accumulated salary and don't distinguish between good talents and stupid ones, I'm afraid it will hurt your highness's reputation."

"Uncle." Xia Houhui saw that Xia Hourong was unrestrained, and actually accused Sun Shao of being ignorant in front of so many people. Knowing that Xia Hourong had drunk too much, he didn't know how serious it was, so he quickly stopped him and ordered someone to come forward and take Xia Hourong. Helped out, turned around and apologized to Sun Shao.Sun Shao smiled, "Don't worry, I won't argue with a drunk kid like him."

Xia Houhui heaved a sigh of relief, turned around and followed out.Yang Xiu, who was sitting on the other side, took a look, cocked his mouth, smiled calmly, then picked up his wine glass, and gestured to Sun Shao, who also raised his glass in return, and the two drank together. And do.

"Dezu, have you made arrangements at home?"

"Okay." Yang Xiu said lightly: "My mother is old and doesn't want to travel far, so I left two younger brothers to take care of her, and I came to Qiantang alone."

Sun Shao raised his eyelids and nodded with a half-smile.Yang Xiu didn't bring his family, which means that he didn't intend to settle down in Yue. Like his father Yang Biao, Yang Xiu probably valued Luoyang's court more.When he entered Cao Cao's prime minister's residence, he was forced to do nothing. Now the situation in the court has improved compared to the original situation. For him, of course, it is still a honor to be a Hanchen.If the emperor hadn't personally told him that this was his father Yang Biao's will, I'm afraid he might not be willing to come.

Fortunately, Sun Shao has long been accustomed to such things, and he never expected that he could make the heroes of the world bow down.However, for such a thoughtful person, no matter how talented he is, it is impossible for him to confide in him.

Trust is mutual.

……

The sea breeze was blowing gently, the microwave was rippling, and the huge sea ship was shaking slightly with imperceptible amplitude in the light wind.Xia Hourong sat up from the soft couch and lay down under the blanket.The maid next to her came in, knelt on the couch, stretched out her hand to prop up the window edge, and a cool sea breeze with a fishy smell blew in, clearing Xia Hourong's mind.

"Mr. Xiahou, Madam has taken care of you, please go to her boat to eat morning food (breakfast) after washing up."

Xia Hourong didn't say anything, just nodded, turned his face sideways, looked at the distant sea with water and sky through the window, and thought carefully about what happened last night.He originally planned to pretend to be crazy, so as to test Sun Shao's reaction, but he didn't expect that the wine in Yue Kingdom was strong, there were too many people toasting, and the task was not completed, so he became a little dizzy.He vaguely remembered that in the end it seemed that Xiahouhui had blocked him, and now Xiahouhui left a special message to let him go to eat court food. Obviously, he might have said something that he shouldn't have said, so Xiahouhui wanted to wake him up. Meet him as soon as you come, so as not to cause another accident.

According to seniority, Xia Houhui is Xia Hourong's junior. Although Xia Hourong has been training his mind according to the sage's teachings, he is still a young man after all. He is still very unconvinced to be taught a few words by a junior who is younger than himself. .However, he knew his purpose of coming, so he didn't dare to be careless. After lying on the warm bed for a while, he still got out of bed, and after being groomed by the maid, he rushed to Xiahouhui's cabin.

The 16-year-old Xia Houhui is tall and slender, with a manly headband on his head, and a tight-fitting bean suit with narrow sleeves, which looks very capable. Khan, it looks like I just finished my morning exercise.

"Uncle is up?" Seeing Xia Hourong, Xia Houhui smiled and cupped his hands like a man.

"En." Xia Hourong replied blankly, without even arching his hands, he calmly accepted Xia Houhui's salute.A round-faced female guard next to her looked down and was about to explode, but Xia Houhui stopped her calmly.

"Sit down, uncle, I'll come after I change my clothes." Xia Houhui saluted, and led the female guards into the inner cabin.Xia Hourong looked around, and saw that although Xia Houhui's cabin was not very big, it was very clean, and there were not many decorations inside, but there was a small bookshelf on the bulkhead next to it, and there was a desk next to the bookshelf, which was neatly arranged. There is a stack of papers.Xia Hourong walked up to the front, glanced at it, his eyes could not help but froze, and the words "Tianzhu Geography" were impressively written on the manuscript.He glanced around with some guilt, stretched out his hand to remove the white jade paperweight that was pressing on the manuscript, and gently opened the stack of manuscripts, but was disappointed again immediately.

The manuscript was written in characters he did not understand.

He flipped through it quickly, hoping to find the Chinese characters he was familiar with. Unfortunately, there were not many Chinese characters on the whole stack of manuscripts, but he didn't get nothing. The pictures above still attracted his attention.

The most eye-catching thing is a triangular map. From the map, it seems that this place faces the mountains on one side and the sea on both sides.Xia Hourong turned the pages page by page, and slowly saw some clues. This triangle should be Tianzhu, and the dozen or so small pieces are the countries on Tianzhu, but he doesn't know the names of these countries. I saw a familiar place name: Ceylon.Ceylon, like a dewdrop on a blade of grass, is at the apex of the triangle.

Xia Hourong couldn't help being interested.Ceylon is a small country in the Southern Man. He has seen this name in relevant history books, but he has never considered where this country is and what it is like. He suddenly saw information about Ceylon here, and he was very curious.

Soon, Xia Hourong found a map of Ceylon at the back. From the map, Ceylon is an island with many mountains and forests, because many signs indicating mountains and forests are drawn on the map.Xia Hourong was watching intently when he suddenly heard footsteps behind him. He quickly put the manuscript away and put the white jade paperweight back. When he looked up, he found Xiahou Hui, who had changed into a woman's attire, was looking at him quietly.

Xia Hourong was very embarrassed, as if he was a thief but was caught, his face was flushed.

"Uncle has the ability of photographic memory, have you ever remembered this information?" Xia Houhui took his seat calmly, and then motioned for Xia Hourong to also take a seat. The maids came over with two food tables and poured a bowl of fish porridge And a plate of dim sum and two plates of pickles were placed in front of them.

"This... I didn't mean to peek." Xia Hourong said eagerly: "Besides, I don't know these words."

"It doesn't matter." Xia Houhui smiled and said, "If Uncle A doesn't remember it, then I'll show you after I finish translating it."

Xia Hourong glanced at Xia Houhui suspiciously, not knowing what she meant. If Ceylon was the next target of Yue, why did she show him information about Ceylon?
"Do you know Tianzhu?" Xia Houhui asked casually after taking a mouthful of fish porridge, chewing slowly.

Xia Hourong shook his head.He only knew the name Tianzhu, but he didn't know the exact location.

"Then do you know the Western Regions?" Xia Houhui glanced at him, asked again, and then took a mouthful of porridge to his mouth.

"Of course the Western Regions know." Xia Hourong cheered up.After the Wancheng Army Elimination Conference, Cao Zhi, who had just tasted the bloody smell of the battlefield, considered that the Central Plains might not have any battles to fight in a short time, so he shifted his target to the Western Regions. He collected a lot of information about the Western Regions, and Xia Hourong helped him organize them. , and also helped him make a sand table, and the two often discussed things about the Western Regions around the sand table.

"The Western Regions go south across the Congling Ridge, which is about a thousand miles away, which is Tianzhu." Xia Houhui smiled slightly, and wiped his mouth with the cotton towel on the case: "The king said that when the chariot general returns from the northern expedition, he will be with him." Before going out to conquer the Western Regions, we need to capture Tianzhu. Starting from Tianzhu to attack the Qiangs in the Western Regions is more convenient than transporting grain from Guanzhong."

Xia Hourong froze for a moment, stopped the spoon in his hand, and stopped talking.His most important goal in coming to Vietnam was to see if Sun Shao said that he would attack the Western Regions with Cao Zhang. But now he found that he didn't need to test it out, because Sun Shao had already collected a lot of information about Tianzhu. Obviously it was not a whim, but a long time of preparation. With or without Cao Zhang, he might have to fight Tianzhu.

"Then... when are you going to make a move?"

"The country of Yue was founded, and all industries are waiting to be prospered. Funan has a population of one million, but there are very few Han people. If you rush to the expedition, Funan's foundation will not be stable." Xia Houhui said, eating casually: "And Tianzhu is not Funan, it is Its area is about three times that of Funan, and its military strength is much stronger. With the current strength of the Yue Kingdom, it is almost impossible to successfully capture Tianzhu."

"Is Tianzhu very strong?"

"It used to be strong, but it's not weak now." Xia Houhui put down his bowl and wiped his mouth: "About the time when the Qin Dynasty was established with Qin Shihuang, there was a male king in Tianzhu called Ashoka. When he was the strongest, he had 60 elephants, [-] infantry, [-] cavalry, [-] chariots, and a navy..."

"So powerful?" Xia Hourong frowned.If Tianzhu had such strength, not to mention the Yue Kingdom, which had just been established, I am afraid that the entire Han Dynasty might not be able to win. Perhaps only Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty had the strength to contend with it at that time.

"But that's in the past." Xia Houhui smiled lightly: "Now Tianzhu has been torn apart. After that Ashoka, the nobles fought for power and profit, and soon civil strife broke out, and their strength was greatly weakened. Finally, they were invaded by the Da Yuezhi , Recently, the Da Yue Clan has also been in chaos, tired of coping with the harassment of a new country in the west, and their control over Tianzhu has declined. This was originally a great opportunity for Tianzhu to become stronger again, but unfortunately, they not only failed to seize this opportunity, but split into more than a dozen countries, large and small.”

Xia Hourong frowned even tighter. He put down the spoon in his hand, pondered for a while, and sighed: "If you fight against the outside world, you must first settle down inside. This is true in China, and so is the barbarians."

"Of course." Xia Houhui nodded, and added with earnestness: "Throughout the ages, the heroes who expanded the territory often died at the hands of the villains who fought for power and profit. My king has made every effort to break this curse. Uncle, you May help him?"

　Xia Hourong, the character is young.Young and intelligent, he can write at the age of seven, recite a thousand words a day, and know it by eye.Emperor Wen invited him after hearing about it.There were more than a hundred guests, and when they played the thorn, they wrote down the names of their hometowns and towns. This is the so-called "jueli thorn" in the world.The emperor was very surprised.In the defeat of Hanzhong, in the thirteenth year of Rong's reign, he left and right to mention him, but he refused, saying: "Your relatives are in trouble, how can you escape to death!" 'It was fighting with swords, but there was no formation.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)