In May of the fourth year of Jin Jianxing, the news of Shi Le's capture of Wang Jun finally reached Luoyang. When Sizhou Thorn Shi Zu received the letter, he couldn't help frowning and muttering.

When the group of officials was present, Cai Bao arched his hand and said: "Today, the slave has broken the big Sima, and its momentum is becoming solid, and the ground is connected with me, Puyang and Dongping may encounter the police, and the general should be sent to the town to guard it." ”

Zu Ti didn't answer, as if he hadn't heard, he muttered for a while before he smiled and said, "This is a matter of course, how can I not know?" Why should Shi Xuan worry too much. ”

Zu Shizhi is becoming more and more majestic, but if it weren't for the wartime, he has always been gentle and generous to his subordinates, and rarely used words to block people, but for this Cai Bao Cai Shixuan, his nose has never been a nose, his eyes are not eyes, and he doesn't know why, he is angry when he sees him. It's just that Cai Bao is old and qualified, and he once served as the Taishou of Changle and Qinghe counties, and he came to meet Zu Ti when his soldiers entered Chenliu, so Zu Ti was embarrassed to blow him away directly. But after several years of staff, Cai Bao is still just an inconspicuous member of many who have no actual function.

After Zu Ti blocked Cai Bao, he immediately raised his head, looked around at the generals, and said with a slightly bitter smile: "Phi Jian is stubborn and stubborn, and he is in a confrontation, Pei Wenyue is not as good as me, if there is no Tao Shixing, how can he repeatedly defeat Hu Kou?" But when it comes to strategizing and grasping the overall situation, I am not as far away as Pei Wenyue...... In the past, Pei Kailai Luo, passed Pei Wenyue, saying that Wang Pengzu was old and faint, and if the slave attacked Youzhou urgently, I am afraid that he would be defeated before he was half a year old, and I have not yet believed it. Now it seems that even the distant affairs of the thistle cannot escape Pei Wenyue's eyes like a torch. ”

When Pei Kai said those words, there were only Zu Ti and Wen Qiao present, and none of the generals present could hear it, but now when they heard Zu Ti say it, they couldn't help but gasp.

Then Zu Ti asked, "Who can go and guard Yandong to prevent the slaves from going south?" ”

The governor Xu Gong immediately asked for an order, saying: "The end will be Taishan people, adjacent to Jibei and Dongping, and they are accustomed to Yandong Dongtu, and they are willing to be the emperor of Minggong!" ”

Zu Ti thought for a while, shook his head slightly, and said: "With the ability of Qing, it is enough to garrison a county, but the river defense is long, and it is not the only one who can be appointed by the Qing - I should be the secretary of Dongping Internal History......" Then he pointed to the last person: "The sub-room can be the internal history of Puyang." He turned his head and ordered the secretary Kong Jun to immediately draft a recital and report it to the imperial court.

But after all the generals withdrew, Li Ju came back lame, and said to Zu Li in a low voice: "I'm afraid that Huan Xuanxin is in Jiankang, and it is not appropriate to grant heavy responsibilities......"

Huan Xuan is the "sub-room" named by Zu Ti just now, he is a native of Yuzhou County, who once took refuge in Nandu, and was appointed by Sima Rui as the prime minister's house. After Zu Ti occupied Qian County, Sima Rui sent Huan Xuan to return to his hometown to help, and he was also appointed to work in the scene.

Therefore, Li Ju believes that Huan Xuan is labeled as Jiankang. Previously, Pei and Zu were ordered to go on a northern expedition, but they only went to Luoyang, Jiankang immediately ordered the troops to retreat, and Zu Li's old generals were just gone, Li Shihui, a general who had been fighting in the Central Plains and looking forward to rescue day and night, was full of disgust with the Jiankang regime. So, Ming Gong, how can you believe that Huan Xuan is so young?

Zu Ti smiled: "I have tried to say to you, people do not distinguish between north and south, they should all work together to restore the old frontier." Huan Zi Room is more than two years old under my curtain, and he is loyal every day, isn't it credible? Besides, he has always been honest, how can he do it for Jiankang? Waving his hand: "Needless to say—I will enter the customs to the Son of Heaven in the future, and the world will be willing to obey?" ”

Li Ju frowned and asked: "The previous dynasty ordered to summon, and we all implored Ming Gong to go to Chang'an, but Ming Gong didn't listen, why did he decide to enter the customs today?" ”

Zu Ti replied: "You persuaded me to answer the call, but I thought that Pei Wen was about to enter the customs and had to be awarded the service, and I stopped stabbing Shi Er, if I was willing to go, the high position could be done." However, the person who summoned me before, Suo Juxiu, also wanted to use me to check and balance Pei Wenyue, if I didn't notice and went rashly, how would Pei think of me? ”

Li Juyi pursed his lips: "Duke Ming treats Duke Pei too well. ”

Zu Qi Zhengse said: "If I don't know Pei Wenyue, how can I have today?" In the past, in Jiankang, food and clothing were in a dilemma, and in desperation, he actually sent a guest to pretend to be a thief and loot. When I returned to Yuzhou, I had to supply more grain and materials from Xu Fang, otherwise, I am afraid that I will not be able to stop between Yingchuan and Xiangcheng so far, and it will be difficult to get along with Qing and others and recover Luoyang. If people treat me with kindness, how can I not repay them? ”

Li Ju said: "Pei Gong invited himself to enter the customs, he had to serve as a servant, and now he is in charge of the country's politics, and the first number one general is still unwilling to be with Ming Gong - I am afraid that his heart today is not as good as that day." ”

Zu Ti smiled slightly, and said then wait and see-"I refused to ask for a high position for me before the appointment, but because of the politics of Suo and Liang, I was afraid of my virtue, and I was estranged from him, and it was easy for Suo Juxiu to find an opportunity for the two of us......"

Pei Gai and Zu Ti often exchanged letters, and in view of their friendship over the years, the content was relatively frank. Pei Gai said in the letter, I thought that as soon as I entered the customs, I could join hands with Suo, Koji and others to fight against Hu Kou, who knew that they would guard against me and thieves...... I didn't want my colleagues to quarrel with each other, so I had to make Hu Kou take advantage of the situation, so I took a step back. Even if he is in the middle of the service, he has been with Suo Qi and Liang Fen for a long time, and he has to ask for it, and he really doesn't have the energy to ask for a high-ranking official for his ancestral brother. You wait first, wait for me to gain a firm foothold in Guanzhong, and I will repay myself.

As for Zu Ti, although he is also keen on fame, he really does not have the luxury of ascending to the sky in one step, with his family background and resume, he has to be appointed as the assassin of Sizhou, and the general military and political affairs of Henan, for now, he is satisfied. Besides, he was reluctant to enter the customs and face Suo Qi, Lu Yun and others.

Zu Ti looked down on Suo and Koji, the heroes of the world, he felt that the only people who could be ranked with him were his old friend Liu Kun and his new friend Pei Gai. Suo, Koji and even Liang Fen's Guanxi scholars, although they are basically the same as Zu Li in terms of family background, they are all the male heads of a county, but Zu Li really didn't take them seriously.

Because the source of the gate valve was originally a scholarly family in the Han Dynasty, it had to rely on poetry and books to pass down the family, and there was a scholarly background, so that the generations of eunuchs could be able to maintain the family name, expand the family business, and grow strongly. However, after Dong Zhuo's rebellion at the end of the Han Dynasty, the area west of Huayin was controlled by Li Dao, Guo Yan, Han Sui, Ma Teng and other military leaders for a long time.

Dunhuang Suoshi is famous from Suo Jing, the father of Suo Qi, and it is only a generation of 2,000 stones. Although the ancestor of the Jincheng Koji clan was the Han Emperor Shangshu Ling Ju Tan, he was convicted and cut to the people, and changed his surname to avoid trouble, and then the entire Eastern Han Dynasty was completely silent; During the Han Ji and Cao Wei periods, there were several famous koji clans, such as koji yan, koji guang, etc., basically all of them were armed rebels. The Wushi Liang clan is just a side branch of the Xie County Liang clan......

In contrast, the cultural level of the Kanto region is much higher, although the Han Dynasty mourned, it is not wasted, the old clan has Yingchuan Xun clan, Hongnong Yang clan, Boling Cui clan, etc., the new clan has Wenxi Pei clan, Xiangling Jia clan, Langya Wang clan, etc., all Xuanhe. Even if the remote Youzhou has been ruled by Liu Yu and Yuan Shao, and also emphasizes culture and education, Fan Yangzu's family has produced 2,000 stones since the Han Dynasty, how can those Guanxi Yankees be compared?

So you let Zu Shizhi enter the customs and bow to the Kansai layman, how can he be willing to do it? And if it is purely subdued by force, even if it is not mentioned by Pei Gai, the great enemy is not suitable for fighting at present, Zu Qixin said that what is the difference between me and Suo, Koji and other military leaders? In the face of Li Dao and Guo Yan, I will never be Zhang Ji!

Therefore, Suo Qi was confused by Liang Fen, and thought very beautifully, and wanted to summon Zu Ti to lead his troops into the customs to balance Pei Gai, but Zu Shizhi just found an excuse and refused to make the trip. Until today, because he heard that Pei Gai had killed Suo one by one and took charge of the country, Zu Ti had the intention of entering the customs.

Of course, the former edict has been rejected and has become invalid, whether he can enter Chang'an depends on whether the court under Pei Cai's control is willing to summon him. Zu Ti therefore said to Li Ju: "Now that Pei Wenyue is in power, he will have an edict in the near future, summon me to Chang'an, and discuss major matters with him." ”

Li Ju still didn't believe it, who thought that in less than five days, there was really a book called from Chang'an Kuaima, and worship the ancestor Pingli County Gong, plus the rank of hussar general, only on the military number, but above Pei Gai!

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Zu Ti took his son Zuji, generals Li Ju, Wei Ce, etc., raised 5,000 troops, passed through Huayin, and went to Chang'an. Ten miles away from the city, I saw the banners in front of me, the carriages and horses were lined up, Pei Gai and Liang Fen actually led hundreds of officials out of the city to greet them in person.

Zu Shizhi couldn't help but be startled, hurriedly rode forward, and then turned over and bowed down. After Pei returned the salute, he took a step forward, grabbed Zu Li's hand, and asked with a smile: "Is it smooth for Zu Jun to come here?" ”

Zu Ti hurriedly said: "Gong Pei is now an important minister of the imperial court, and he is in charge of national affairs, why should he come to greet him in person?" How dare Zu be......"

Pei Gai said with a smile: "Zujun don't give birth to points, you still call me a word." My ancestor and I have made friends from Jiangdong, like brothers, working together, supporting each other, and even today, how can we not welcome it? ”

In fact, Pei Gai's words have not been said thoroughly, although he and Zu Ti are kind, have a good friendship, and have the same interests, they both want to expel Hu Lu and restore the society, not only friends, but also "comrades", so that even if he is in charge of national affairs, it is impossible to treat Zu Ti as an ordinary subordinate. But more importantly, his soul originally came from later generations, and he originally revered General Zu who "crossed the river and swallowed Hu Qi generously". Crossing over to the intersection of the two Jin Dynasty, how can you not know the ancestors and scholars? It's like crossing over to the turn of the two Song Dynasty, if you can't see Yue Pengju, then it's better to hang yourself directly with a rope - why are you here?!

In this chaotic and dark historical period, in Pei Gai's view, the only one who can shine for a generation and then shine through future generations is Zu Shizhi - although many people prefer Liu Yueshi, but he thinks that Liu Kun is far inferior to Zu Qi.

In this case, Zu Ti's status in Pei Gai's mind is not just a friend, a comrade, a colleague, and a subordinate. Since they met, his attitude towards Zu Ti has naturally been different from that towards others, and in the eyes of later generations, there is probably only such a speculation as "compatibility". But in fact, Pei and Zu may not be completely compatible in terms of personality or temperament, and in a sense, Pei should have been deliberately flattering Zu Ti......

Pei Gai led Zu Ti to meet with the hundred bureaucrats, and then led him into Chang'an City. The two of them walked side by side, and Zu Ti lowered his voice and said, I am here to give an edict, and I am also here to resign from the official - "The hussar should be a letter for himself, and I will retire as a general of Wei and even a protector and a leader." "Actually, he wants to be a cavalry general, only a head shorter than Pei Gai, but when he speaks, he has to be more humble to be polite.

Pei Gai shook his head: "The merits of the ancestors are combined into hussars, if there is no help from the ancestors, how can there be today?" And Liu Yueshi has been listed as the third duke, how can Zujun be left behind? ”

The appointment led by Pei Gai actually scared Liang Fen, Pei Wei and others that day. Liang Fen pondered, did I finally misunderstand the relationship between Zu Ti and Pei Gai's main and auxiliary positions? Why did Pei Caiken put Zu Ti on his head? Look at Suo Qi, how can you exchange the general's number with Ko Yun?

Pei Wei privately reminded Pei Gai: "Zu's merit is not under the covenant, if he is respected, I am afraid it will be difficult to restrain it in the future." Why did Wenyue come up with this decision? ”

Pei Gai's answer to this was: "I and Zu Shizhi are in love, what is the difference? In the past, I was in Xufang, Zu Shizhi was in Yuzhou, and I backed him; Now I want to unify Guanzhong first, Zu Shizhi is in Sizhou, and he is my backing, how can I not give it in a high position to show selflessness? If you talk about the throne, Wang Jun was the great Sima in the past, but he couldn't predict state affairs, how is it different from an empty title...... "Now the most important crown on my head is "Lu Shang Shushi", which is actually in charge of the government, so do you care that others are only slightly higher than themselves in the name?

Pei Wei muttered: "In this way, is it the intention of Wei Wu to be the commander and transfer the general to Yuan Benchu?" ”

Pei Gai hurriedly shook his head: "Uncle this comparison is inappropriate, if the sky has eyes, it will not make me fight with my ancestors, just like Cao and Yuan!" "Let's not mention that my current status and thoughts are different from Cao Cao's originally, even in the future, I don't want to have trouble with my ancestors, until I meet in the army - uncle, don't say this, it's too unlucky!

Pei Gai's thoughts, now that Hu Kou has not been extinguished, especially the growing strength of Shile in Hebei, Pei and Zu must unite and unite with the outside world. This is not the time when Cao Cao and Yuan Shao could sit down and share the cake like Cao Cao and Yuan Shao back then, why do you want to go so far?

After Zu Ti entered Chang'an, he rested for one night, and then went to pay homage to the Son of Heaven. Sima Ye was also very happy to see him coming, but looking at the ancestor general standing in front of him, although he was respectful, his appearance was not outstanding, and he was a bit like an ordinary village farmer...... You see, Pei should sit next to him, and his demeanor will be far better. Sure enough, family background is also related to a person's style, ancestor ...... But in terms of his family background, he should be a little more majestic than Suo Qi's goods, right?

After that, he gave a banquet and hospitality, accompanied by Pei Gai, Liang Fen, and Xun Song, but they were just empty greetings. It wasn't until the evening of this day that Pei Gaizi set up a private banquet at home and talked with Zu Ti alone, and the content finally went deeper......