Five days later, Liu Bei carried Zhuge Liang's tailor-made strategy for him and sailed on Yunmengze with Cai Ji and Sun Ce. Due to the limited space on the dhow for the meeting, in order to ensure fairness, Cai Ji, Liu Bei, and Sun Ce each brought only one personal bodyguard to board the sailboat for the meeting. Cai Ji was guarded by Zhao Yun as usual, and Liu Bei took Xin Chen to board the ship. Sun Ce was conceited and Wu Yong originally planned to go to the meeting alone, but under Zhou Yu's persuasion, he finally reluctantly brought Zhou Tai, who was skilled in water.

Although Cai Ji, Liu Bei, and Sun Ce are also old acquaintances, it is the first time that they have gathered together in such a closed environment. At this moment, I saw five men and one woman sitting in a circle in the cabin covered with reed mats, the curtains hanging low all around, and a copper stove with incense burned in the room. There were four other pretty maidservants outside the cabin, one of them was working on the stern of the boat, two were controlling the sails, and the last one was cooking tea on a small stove.

If it weren't for the fact that the periphery of the sailing ship was surrounded by the warships of Cai, Cao, Sun, and Liu. Those who don't know think that the nobles on the ship are going to enjoy tea and scenery. It's a pity that the men and women in the cabin don't have such leisure and elegance at all. Especially Liu Bei, who is in his forties, looked at Cai Ji and Sun Ce, who were more than ten or twenty years younger than him, but whose territory was several times larger than himself, and his mood was really mixed. Back then, when Liu Bei entered Xuzhou, Sun Ce was just a member of Yuan Shu's minions. And Cai Ji was only an orphan girl, and was almost given to Liu Bei as a concubine by the local Duan family elder in Longkou. But who would have thought that only ten years later, the three of them would sit on the same boat and discuss how to move the capital and divide the princes. And he, Liu Bei, is also the weakest party among the three.

However, being able to bend and stretch and add two cheeks is the consistent tradition of the old Liu family, so no matter how embarrassed you are in your heart. No matter how unwilling he was, Liu Bei still put on a calm and idle posture on the surface, waiting for the two juniors opposite to make the first move.

In fact, at this moment, not only Liu Bei was silent. Even Sun Ce, who seemed to be arrogant on weekdays, suddenly became reserved at this time. After boarding the ship, he only politely exchanged a few words and never spoke again. The reason why Sun Ce behaved like this was that Zhou Yu had instructed him to strike backwards before getting on the boat, and secondly, Sun Ce also wanted to see how Cai Ji handled Liu Bei, the old fox.

Seeing that the two big men in front of him were playing silence with him, Cai Ji quietly got straight to the point, "The Son of Heaven summoned Yu and others to the north to escort and move the capital, I don't know when General Zuo and Prime Minister Cao Cheng will set off?" ”

Liu Bei's eyelids were picked, and he asked rhetorically. "Escorted north with Cao Mengde? How can a lonely thief be punished? ”

As soon as Liu Bei's words came out, Sun Ce's tiger eyes suddenly narrowed into cat's eyes, and he couldn't help but think in his heart: Yes. The lonely and other people were edicted to crusade against the Cao thief, and the court should also express it.

Of course, Cai Ji would not sit idly by and watch Liu Bei divide the offensive and defensive alliance between her and Sun Ce, so at this time, he listened to her follow Liu Bei's words and complimented her in a voice as crisp as a silver bell. "General Zuo and Marquis Wu were in danger of the Son of Heaven. Summoned King Qin, set things right, is really a model for the princes of the world, the minister of the Han Dynasty, and the two of them have already been in the heart of the emperor. Cai Ji paused when he said this, and after seeing Liu Bei and Sun Ce both showing their expressions of usefulness, he changed the conversation, "However, Cao Cao is still after Cao Shen. The Son of Heaven remembered that his ancestor was the founding father of the Han Dynasty, and promised to take the opportunity of the Cao family to repent. I also ask General Zuo to be considerate of the benevolent heart of the Son of Heaven. and Cao Chengxiang turned the war into jade silk. ”

"Turn hostility into friendship?" Liu Bei raised his hand and pointed to the camp with the word "Liu" fluttering on the opposite side, and snorted angrily, "How can I explain to the fallen soldiers under my command!" ”

Sun Ce also echoed the righteousness and said, "General Zuo is reasonable, this time there are many casualties in King Jing Yang's son, how can he turn war into a jade silk with his words." ”

Seeing this, Cai Ji secretly slandered the Jiangdong Sun family's easy-to-change nature of speculators in his heart, and on the other hand, he patiently continued to negotiate with Liu Bei, "I don't know how General Zuo can release Cao Gong?" ”

Liu Bei swept Cai Ji and Sun Ce at a glance and said, lifted his long sleeves and showed three fingers and said, "Fengtianzi went south to Xiangyang; ceded the four counties of Nanjun, Nanyang County, Zhangling County and Shangyong; The child is sent as a hostage. ”

Cai Ji listened to what Liu Bei said, and suddenly felt the roots of his teeth sour, and thought

The founding kings really had a lion's heart. Liu Bei's first article is not difficult to understand, after all, Liu Ying's upper and lower clothes and belts have been fighting for life and death for several months, such as today's son moving south to Xiangyang, which finally made Liu Bei have an explanation in politics, which does not affect his name of loyalty and righteousness of Uncle Liu Huang. Although the third article is suspected of deliberately humiliating Cao Cao, it is still reasonable. But the second one is an exaggeration. You must know that Sun Ce was just a Guangling County in Fengxi Ze before. At present, Liu Bei is about to swallow four counties with one mouth. Although the actual controller of Shangyong is Liu Pan, Liu Biao's subordinate, according to Liu Bei's current strength, as long as he has the name of a teacher, it is not a problem to win Shangyong. More importantly, several Jingzhou counties that Liu Bei planned were precisely within the scope of Xinwangji. Once these counties were assigned to Liu Bei, it meant that Liu Xie had to obtain Wang Ji from elsewhere.

So Cai Ji then asked Liu Bei tentatively, "General Zuo, the Son of Heaven moved the capital to Xiangyang, and the three counties of Jingbei are afraid that they will all be divided into Wangji." ”

Liu Bei raised his eyebrows and asked, "The two of you and the princes of Xu Du have already reached a conclusion on this matter?" ”

When Cai Ji heard Liu Bei ask this, he knew that he must have a follow-up move, so he took the opportunity to say, "This matter is inconclusive." I don't know if General Zuo has a high opinion? ”

"I don't dare to do it." Liu Bei waved his hand and said, "If the two of you don't give up, you will listen to the old man." ”

"General Zuo, please speak." Prime Minister Cai Jijaw invited. Sun Ce also pricked up his ears, wanting to hear what Liu Bei would say next in favor of himself. It's just that Sun Ce never expected that Liu Bei's next words would almost take him to the pit.

Seeing Liu Bei's waist straightened, he said solemnly, "The Son of Heaven moved the capital to Xiangyang, and Yu and the others, as courtiers, should dedicate a county to serve as Wangji." Lone for the clan, here to lead by example, dedicated to Zhangling County as Wangji! ”

Looking at Liu Bei doing the sky-high asking thing with a righteous attitude, Cai Ji couldn't help but sigh, the ancients paid attention to etiquette and shame, and at the end they realized that it was themselves who cared most about etiquette and shame. Liu Bei's so-called dedication to the county as Wangji is completely generous to Cao Cao. And the Zhangling County that he sacrificed was a small county carved out of the original Nanyang County after Cao Cao occupied Jingbei. In other words, Liu Bei even borrowed flowers to offer Buddha. It is also the smallest of the bouquet of flowers.

In addition, Liu Bei's posture of such a "high" is also putting pressure on Cai Ji and Sun Ce in disguise. After all, they are also the escorts appointed by the Son of Heaven, so they have to sacrifice one county or divide several counties of the Son of Heaven as Wangji. Of course, it is not Cai Ji's turn to attack this matter now, because Sun Ce on the side can't help but take the lead in vetoing. "No! Jiangxia County is exchanged for the flesh and blood of Jiangdong Erlang, how can it be handed over lightly! ”

No wonder Sun Ce reacted so strongly. Jiangxia County is the only county government in Sun Ce's current jurisdiction that borders Xiangyang County, and it is also the most important stronghold of the Wu army in Jingzhou. In order to seize Jiangxia, Sun Jian, Sun Ce, father and son had fought several fierce battles with Liu Biao and Cao Cao, and it was only recently that Sun Ce took advantage of the momentum of Chibi's victory to completely take the entire territory of Jiangxia. As Sun Ce said, Jiangxia was exchanged for flesh and blood by his Jiangdong Erlang, how could he give it to the Son of Heaven for the sake of a false name.

Facing Sun Ce, who uttered disrespectful words, Liu Bei showed a sneer of contempt. Then he turned around and looked at Cai Ji with interest, and there was a great tendency to wait for Cai Ji to "reveal his original form". However, how could Cai Ji be as speechless as Sun Ce, and listen to her thoughtful response. "The land under the jurisdiction of Lonely is far away from Xiangyang... If not, he will dedicate the tax of a county to the Son of Heaven to show his loyalty. ”

Sun Ce saw that Cai Ji happily echoed Liu Beiti, and he couldn't help but feel anxious in his heart. You must know that at the end of the Han Dynasty, most of the areas south of the Yangtze River were extremely backward compared to the Central Plains. For Sun Ce, the tax of a county is not a small amount. Therefore, as soon as Cai Ji's words fell, Sun Ce couldn't wait to play the scoundrel. "Yangzhou is sparsely populated. It is not as rich as the Central Plains. The tax of a county cannot be afforded by a lonely. ”

Seeing that Sun Ce was unwilling to dedicate his land to be the king of justice or to pay taxes to the Son of Heaven, Cai Ji thought that Liu Bei would continue to use the moral stick of loyalty to Sun Ce. Who would have thought that Uncle Liu Huang on the other side suddenly made a 180-degree turn, waved his hand generously at Sun Ce and said, "In this case, the old man will give Nanyang County to Wu Hou." ”

As soon as Liu Bei's words came out, Cai Ji suddenly screamed in his heart: Not good!

And Sun Ce obviously didn't expect Liu Bei to come out like this. He couldn't believe his ears, and hurriedly asked, "Give Nanyang County to Lonely?" Is this true? ”

Liu Bei twisted his long beard in his hand and said happily. "Wu Hou and Gu jointly sent an edict to defeat the Cao thief, and now the two counties were cut from the Cao thief and presented to the Son of Heaven. Wouldn't it be a matter of beauty in the world? ”

After listening to what Liu Bei said, Sun Ce was slightly stunned at first, and then laughed embarrassedly, "General Zuo is reasonable, reasonable!" ”

At this point in the talks, Cai Ji realized that the three requirements made by Liu Bei this time were not the lion's mouth at all, but carefully designed after careful consideration. Liu Bei had no intention of annexing Nanyang and Zhangling counties from the beginning, and his previous lion opening was nothing more than a bluff, and then gradually led Cai Ji and Sun Ce into the trap he had set in advance. Now it is still the capital of Xiangyang, and the three counties of Jingbei are divided into Wangji, but one of them has become the "Wangji" dedicated by Liu Bei to the Son of Heaven, and the other county has been successfully used as incense bait to win over Sun Ce to open his eyes for him. That is to say, Liu Bei not only won the reputation of a loyal man with a three-inch incorruptible tongue, but also separated the alliance between Cai Ji and Sun Ce, and finally let Cai Ji hemorrhage and give the Son of Heaven a county's tax in vain.

In a trance, Cai Ji seemed to see a young and slender figure standing behind Liu Bei. It was this figure that left a name for the ages in another time and space. Even if the tongue fights the group of Confucianism, the grass boat borrows arrows, and the east wind are only the words of novelists, it is difficult to hide their dazzling edge. Thinking of this, Cai Ji couldn't help but let out a heartfelt sigh in his heart: After all, Lone is underestimating Wuhou......

"What objection does Qi Hou have?"

Liu Bei's inquiry pulled Cai Ji's thoughts back to reality. It is true that she was put on a position by Liu Bei today, but she was not annoyed and angry because of this. In fact, the reason why Cai Ji would say that he would pay all the taxes of a county to the Son of Heaven was not simply coerced by Liu Bei, but because he considered that Liu Xie hurriedly moved the capital to Xiangyang, and he must be in urgent need of money and food when everything is in ruins. Cai Ji provided money and food to the imperial court at this time, which not only helped Liu Xie gain a firm foothold in Jingbei to contain the Cao, Liu, and Sun families, but also helped her to plant eyeliner in the small imperial court of Xiangyang. So at this time, Cai Ji only smiled indifferently and bowed his hand to Liu Bei, "General Zuo's words made Ji Ji suddenly open." ”

When Cai Ji, Liu Bei, and Sun Ce were boating in Yunmengze and holding a closed-door meeting on the boat to discuss how to divide Cao Jun's territory in Jingbei, Sima Lang and Cao Ren, who were Cao Ying's representatives, could only stand on the shore and stare dryly. Seeing that Cai Ji and the others had been floating on the lake for more than an hour, but there was no sign of the meeting, Cao Ren, who had always been impatient, couldn't help but ask Sima Lang who was standing beside him, "Boda, you said that Cai Ji and Sun Ce can persuade Liu Bei to release the lord?" ”

Sima Lang listened to what Cao Ren said, but he turned around and smiled bitterly, "Zixiao really thinks that Cai, Sun, and Liu are boating in Yunmengze for the prime minister?" ”

Cao Ren, who heard what Sima Lang said, was moved, and hurriedly asked, "What do you say about Boda?" ”

Sima Lang did not directly answer Cao Ren's question, but turned around and pointed to Liu Beijun's camp opposite and asked, "According to Zixiao's opinion, how many days can Liu Bei's camp be taken with the strength of Cao, Cai, and Sun?" How many days will Prime Minister Cao Cheng be rescued? ”

"As long as the Cai and Sun families respond from the side, they can set foot on Liu Bei's camp in one day, and they can save the lord and go out of the city in three days!" Cao Ren patted his chest and said.

Cao Ren's words are not bragging. It must be known that fighting a war is the most important thing to pay attention to momentum, Liu Bei has not been able to take Dangyang City for several months before, and the morale of the army has already shown a decline. On the Cao side, the morale of the Cao army soared with the arrival of the Qi-Wu coalition army. In addition, Cao, Cai, and Sun enjoyed an absolute advantage over Liu Bei's troops in terms of troops. In this case, Cao Ren didn't even need to win a big victory, he only needed to break Liu Bei's troops to cover Cao Cao's breakthrough.

Sima Lang looked Cao Ren who was full of confidence up and down, and then asked with a smile, "In that case, why do Cai Ji and Sun Ce have to talk to Liu Bei?" ”

When Cao Ren heard Sima Lang say this, he first froze for a moment, and then came back to his senses, "Could it be that Cai, Sun, and Liu have other plans!" ”

The eldest prince is afraid that he will lead the wolf into the room this time-Sima Langwu sighed in his heart. In fact, anyone with a discerning eye can see that Cai Ji and Sun Ce are tigers and wolves, and if Cao Ying can't meet their plans, the Qi-Wu coalition is likely to turn from reinforcements to Cao Cao's life-saving talisman in an instant. However, with the current situation, Cao Ying cannot say a "no". So for the sake of the overall situation, Sima Langxuan even changed the conversation and reminded Cao Ren in a serious tone, "General Zixiao, no matter what the plans of Cai, Sun, and Liu in the future, the rest of them will be able to save the prime minister first!" (To be continued......)