Later generations often said that "there is necessity in chance", and some things seem to have little probability, but in fact, there is a certain number in the dark. No, and at the moment when the monarchs and ministers of Qi focused on Hanzhong, Lin Fei, who was then the secretary of Honglu Temple, had already led the Qi delegation to arrive in Xiangyang, the imperial capital, at the end of the second year of Yankang to pay tribute to the emperor of Han.

As usual, the Han court still sent Shaofu Kong Rong to receive Lin Fei and his party. It is true that this old master had a discord with Cai Jiduo in the past, but for the sake of the rich tribute sent by the Qi State, Kong Rong still set up a banquet for Lin Fei, who was an envoy of Qi, in the mansion. Among the guests who were invited to the banquet that night, in addition to Wei envoy Yang Xiu and Jing envoy Xu Shu, there was also Shu envoy Zhang Song. The tripartite forces represented by these three people all happened to be related to the situation in the northwest analyzed by the monarchs and ministers of the Qi State. At this moment, the envoys of the three kingdoms appeared in the Confucian Mansion at the same time, which can be said to be reasonable, but also revealing an inexplicable coincidence.

Lin Fei didn't know that the northwest had become a hot spot for Cai Ji. However, with many years of experience in dealing with dignitaries and dignitaries, he soon became keenly aware that his envoy was just a cover for the banquet, and the real protagonist of today's banquet was Zhang Song, the envoy of Shu sitting next to Kong Rong.

It is said that according to the Han Dynasty's dedication to appearance and manners, people like Zhang Songzhu and other people with short stature, ugly appearance, and gloomy personality have a high status, and no matter how heavy the power is, it is difficult to be treated by others. However, in the Confucian Mansion tonight, whether it was Yang Xiu, who was born in a famous family, or Xu Shu, who was straightforward, they all took the initiative to show favor to Zhang Song, which made people suspect that the two had other plans.

Cao Cao and Liu Bei want to win over Liu Zhanghu of Xishu? Lin Fei secretly slandered the purpose of Yang Xiu and Xu Shu in his heart, and on the other hand, he smiled and frequently pushed the cup with the other party. Zhang Song on the other end is enjoying the treatment of the stars holding the moon. I also knew very well in my heart that Yang Xiu and Xu Shu were not wooing him Zhang Song at this time, but Liu Zhang, the Shu lord behind him.

It is said that Zhang Song was responsible for asking for help for Liu Zhang. At this moment, seeing that Yang Xiu and Xu Shu both had the intention of friendship, he immediately shook the wine cup in his hand and sighed to himself. "The pine is rough in appearance and short in person, and it is a blessing to be able to win the favor of all the kings. It's a pity that Shu is now deeply infested by Zhang Lu, and the pine is the jade liquid in the mouth, which is also as astringent as bitter water. ”

When Yang Xiu heard Zhang Song say this, he immediately put down the wine cup and said solemnly, "The whole world." It is not the land of the king; On the shore of the land, it is not the king's minister. Wei, Shu, Qi, Jing, and Wu were all sealed by the Emperor of the Han Dynasty, and Wei would never sit idly by and watch Zhang Lu invade Shu! ”

Although Xu Shu was not as quick as Yang Xiu's response. But he also swore and assured Zhang Song, "My lord and your lord are both relatives of the Han clan, if Shu is in trouble, my lord will help!" ”

Zhang Song looked at Yang Xiu with drunken eyes. glanced at Xu Shu again. In the end, he still kept his eyes on Lin Fei's body. In Zhang Song's view, although Qi is far away in the northeast coastal land, it is one of the largest powers in the world after all, and even if it cannot directly intervene in the battle between Liu Zhang and Zhang Lu by force, it can at least have a certain impact on the situation. For example, when Cao Wei fulfilled his promise today to send troops to aid Shu, the movements of the northern Qi state would be directly related to the strength of the Wei army's intervention. So Zhang Song wanted to hear the attitude of the Qi side towards Xishu.

Before Lin Fei went to the envoy, he had Cai Ji personally instructed him to befriend Liu Bei and his family while going to Beijing to pay tribute, and wait for an opportunity to contain Cao Wei. At this moment, facing Zhang Song's gaze, Lin Fei smiled indifferently. "Brother Ziqiao, don't worry. With the Son of Heaven in charge, the princes from all walks of life will never sit idly by and watch Zhang Lu invade Shu. Needless to say, Zhang Lu is not afraid. As soon as the Wei army arrives, it will be able to sweep away the ugliness. ”

However, as soon as Lin Fei's words came out, Zhang Song couldn't rest assured. Because if the Wei army can take Hanzhong with lightning speed as Lin Fei said, then it will be easy for Cao Cao to enter Shu with the situation. Although Zhang Song said that he couldn't get used to Liu Zhang's behavior, he was also quite jealous of the notorious Cao Cao. It is no wonder that Zhang Song's face suddenly became unnatural when he heard what Lin Fei said.

Regarding the provocation in Lin Fei's words, Yang Xiu was also quite embarrassed. If he is full of words, it will make Zhang Song more and more wary of Cao Wei. But if he shows a humble posture, it will appear that Cao Wei is paying lip service but not to the truth. So Yang Xiu had to pretend to laugh lightly, "Brother Lin praises it falsely." The tiger of Qi is also famous all over the world. ”

"Each other, each other." Lin Fei nodded at Yang Xiupi with a smile, and then he picked up the wine cup and toasted aloud to Kong Rong and the guests present, "Come!" Today, I am fortunate to have you wash the dust for Fei, and I am here to give you a cup. ”

Seeing this, Kong Rong, who was the master, also raised his glass and echoed, "Drink together, drink together." ”

For a while, the theme of the banquet turned back to catching the wind for Lin Fei. At this point, everyone only talked about Fengyue, not about state affairs, during which Lin Fei was persuaded by Yang Xiu and others to drink in turn, and kept pushing the cup and changing the lamp until the top of the moon before dispersing. So much so that when he said goodbye to Kong Rong and the others, he was already vain and drunk.

However, when Lin Fei, who was full of alcohol, fell into the ox cart, the ambassador of Qi regained his usual composure and ability in the blink of an eye. Seeing that he straightened his crumpled sleeves, he asked in a deep voice to the brown-clothed man who was acting as an escort beside him, "Zhongwei, when did Shu envoy Zhang Song enter Beijing?" Who did you associate with after entering Beijing? ”

This man called Zhongwei, surnamed Du, name, and the word Zhongwei, is a person from Langya Linyi. This person's current identity on the surface is a wealthy businessman who travels to and from Xu, Yang, and Jingzhou, but in fact his real identity is the intelligence chief planted by Qi State in Xiangyang. Du Du has made a lot of friends on weekdays, and he knows the situation in Xiangyang City well. Therefore, in the face of Lin Fei's cold question, Du Du blurted out almost without thinking, "Hui Langjun, Zhang Song arrived in Beijing on the eighth day of April in the second year of Yankang, during which he had close contacts with Kong Rong of Shaofu, and often went in and out of Confucius Mansion to feast with celebrities. ”

"A celebrity? Who are they? Lin Fei hurriedly asked.

Du Du immediately reported a series of names, "There are Cui Jun, Duxiang Hou Mifang, Langzhong Yimo, Yingchuan celebrity Sima Hui and Huang Chengyan, a famous scholar in Cannan." ”

"Duxiang Hou Mifang is here..."Lin Fei lowered his head and looked back at the list, and said thoughtfully, "So the people invited by Kong Rong are all pro-Nanjing people?" ”

"Exactly." Du Du happily said, "Since the Son of Heaven has set the capital of Xiangyang." The relationship between Han Ting and Liu Bei became increasingly close, and there was a tendency to rely on each other. ”

"Lips and teeth? Han Ting is not afraid of Liu Xuande's self-respect, self-respecting, and the sky? Lin Fei raised his eyebrows and raised his head and asked.

Du Du smiled disappreciatively, "The Son of Heaven has gone through the rebellion of Dong Zhuo and Cao Cao. How dare you summon the princes to Beijing again? The Han court just paid for the Jing army to defend its territory. If Liu Bei dares to have two hearts, not to mention the edict of the Son of Heaven, he can summon all the princes to come to King Qin. The Han court only needs to close the pass, so that Liu Bei can be trapped in the barren land of Jingnan! ”

Du Du's words can be said to have expressed the embarrassing situation of the Xiangyang small court and Liu Bei at the same time. That is, the emperor of the Han Dynasty sits in the land of fish and rice in Jingbei, which has a large population, and only Wen Ping and Li Da can be regarded as generals who can be regarded as independent. His Chinese employment served under Liu Biao and Cao Cao. And the reason why he is staying in Xiangyang now is not so much to obey the Han family, but to say that it is for the foundation of the Wen family in Jingbei, so it is "difficult to leave the homeland". As for Li Da's loyalty to the Han family, although his loyalty is higher than that of Wenpin, he is from the Cai family after all. In terms of fame and age, it is not enough to convince the public. Therefore, the small court of the Han family, which is now in a corner of peace, had to hire Liu Beibu to take care of the family and the courtyard for him.

On the other hand, although Liu Bei's account was called Guan Yu and Zhang Fei, who were called ten thousand enemies, sat in the army, they were suffering from the poverty and sparse population in Jingnan. As a result, they had to be economically constrained by the imperial court in Jingbei. According to Liu Bei's ambitions, he would naturally not be willing to be content with the status quo, and then thinking of the performance of the envoys of Wei, Jing, and Shu at the banquet just now, Lin Fei believed that Liu Bei would make a fuss about the contradiction between Liu Zhang and Zhang Lu. And once Liu Bei gets out of trouble from Jingnan, can Han Tianzi still take care of his imperial uncle like he is now?

Just as Lin Fei lowered his head and thought. And listen to Du Du further introduced. "In addition to the Son of Heaven and Liu Bei, who each takes what they need, the famous people of Jingnan and Jingbei are also in the same breath and have marriages with each other. For example, Pang Lin, the captain of the Xiangyang infantry, married the sister of Jing Guo Shangshu Lang Xi Zhen. Liu Bei's mastermind, Zhuge Liang, also promised to marry the daughter of Huang Chengyan, a famous scholar in southern China. ”

Hearing that Huang Chengyan was going to marry his daughter, Lin Fei's body couldn't help but tremble slightly. But Du Du on the side continued to gossip unconsciously, "It's just the daughter of Huang Chengyan, with a yellow head and black head, and her appearance is not good." Therefore, Zhuge Liang married this ugly girl as his wife, and the township said it. Don't be Kong Ming's choice of women, and you are getting an ugly girl. ”

Hearing Du Du teasing the appearance of Huang Chengyan's daughter. Lin Fei suddenly straightened his face and said coldly, "Marrying a wife should be a virtuous one." In the past, there was a daughter without salt, who said that Qi Xuan, respectively, said that the country was in chaos, and the king of Xuan was from it, and the four opened the public gate, and then set up the prince and worshiped the saltless king. The lady of the Huang family has her own uniqueness, how can she judge people. ”

Seeing Lin Fei's unhappy expression, Du Du quickly turned his head and echoed, "Lang Jun is reasonable. It is said that Huang Chengyan's daughter is a genius, who is familiar with astronomy and geography, and is close to knowing everything from books. In addition, Huang Chengyan's wife is Cai Yan's eldest daughter and Cai Mao's sister. Although Cai Mao's sisters and brothers have moved north to Qi State, there is still Cai Zan in Yan County among the Cai of Nanyang, and Cai Yan is the Taishou of Ba County. Therefore, Zhuge Liang married Huang Chengyan's daughter this time, not only to get the help of the Huang family in Nannan, but also to take advantage of the situation to win over Nanyang Zhucai. ”

It is true that in Du Du's supplement, Huang Chengyan's daughter was described as a rare talented woman in the world, but Lin Fei's face was still gloomy at the moment, as if he could wring out water. Seeing him bow his head and ponder for a moment, he instructed Du Du, "Zhong Wei, prepare a car for Yu, Yu will go out of the city tomorrow." ”

Although Du Du couldn't figure out Lin Fei's bottom, his main task at the moment was to cooperate with Lin Fei's activities in Xiangyang. So he didn't say a word and quickly said, "No." ”

Don't say that Du Du gossip is gossip, but he does things extremely neatly. Early the next morning, Lin Fei dressed as a scribe dressed in a cloth robe and rode into an ox cart prepared by Du Du and quietly left the city, and came to the foot of Da Xian Mountain, which was twenty miles south of Xiangyang City. Xiangyang Da Hyeon Mountain is commonly known as "three hyeon", including Da Shou Mountain (Xia Xian), Zigai Mountain (Zhong Da Xian), Wan Shan (Shang Xian), she is backed by the towering Dajing Mountain, east of the Han River, and Lumen Mountain, separated by a water, to form an east-west confrontation, as strict as the two gates in the north of the Jianghan Plain. It is no wonder that many literati and writers in history will leave a good sentence here.

However, Lin Fei didn't come to Da Xian Mountain today to enjoy the mountains and rivers. After instructing the coachman to park the ox cart at the foot of the mountain, the Qi envoy walked down the ox cart alone and followed the mountain trail all the way up the mountain. Xu was due to the lack of exercise, Lin Feishen walked on the snow for more than half an hour before he was sweating profusely and panting. As a last resort, he had to hold on to the trunk of a tree on the side of the road to rest for a while before hurrying. After resting like this for about two hours, Lin Fei saw through the layers of branches that there were a few yellow and clear grass houses faintly exposed on the mountainside in front of him.

From a distance, these houses look like ordinary mountain houses, and the trees around them are no different from the grass and trees in the mountains. But if ordinary people want to get close to the house, they will end up unconsciously bypassing these houses that are thousands of miles away. However, this kind of trick was not difficult for Lin Fei, and seeing that he was familiar with the layers of woods, he was already standing in front of the firewood in a short time. The owner of the courtyard seemed to have expected Lin Fei to come early in the morning, and before he could report to his home, two twin teenagers in coarse cloth and short clothes opened the door to greet each other, "Senior Brother Zhengjie, Senior Sister Yueying has been waiting in the courtyard for a long time. ”

"There are two junior brothers and apprentices to lead the way." Lin Fei calmly returned the courtesy. Originally, this thatched cottage was the main altar of Momen located in Da Hyeon. In fact, the main altar of Momen was originally located in Yunmeng Mountain, but before being affected by the Yellow Turban Rebellion, the elders of Momen had to migrate from Jizhou to Jingzhou in order to avoid the military disaster. This time, Lin Fei went south to Xiangyang, in addition to paying tribute to the emperor of the Han Dynasty as an envoy of Qi, and also had the important task of contacting Momen for Cai Ji.

At this moment, Lin Fei followed the two teenagers all the way around several huts, and finally stopped in front of a thatched cottage containing Xuemei. I saw the two twin teenagers stretching out their hands to Lin Fei in unison and invited, "Senior brother, please come in." ”

Lin Fei nodded at the two twin teenagers, then took off his shoes and socks and walked into the grass hall to sit down. It is said that the Mo family advocates thrift and advocating frugality, not only the children of the Mo family are coarse clothes and food, but the thatched hall here is also extremely simple in layout, except for the bamboo curtain hanging in the center and a pot of charcoal burning in front of the bamboo curtain. Of course, through the bamboo curtain, Lin Fei could faintly see a slender shadow sitting at the other end of the cottage.

"Zhengjie, why are you here today?"

The cold and familiar question that came from behind the bamboo curtain made Lin Fei's heart tremble slightly. The various rhetoric that I had thought of before finally turned into a wooden sentence, "How is Yueying doing lately?" ”

The woman behind the bamboo curtain obviously didn't expect Lin Fei, who had always been sharp-tongued, to say this. After being silent for a long time, the woman asked again, "Zhengjie, why did you come to the altar today?" ”

The woman's clear and serious voice pulled Lin Fei back to reality. So he immediately reined in his thoughts and replied, "Yu came to the main altar today to invite the elders to go north on behalf of the Lord Qi. (To be continued......)