The decisions made in the hut probably set the tone for the meetings held in the county office. Under the pressure www.biquge.info of such impactful news as Sun Ce's death and the retreat of the Jiangdong Army, under the encouragement of Chen Sun's skillful color, and under the threat of Zhang Wujun's strong strength, the decision to surrender to the Jiangxia Army has been accepted by everyone.

They quickly prepared to send envoys to Xiangyang, Jiangxia, and the enemy's military camp on the opposite side to discuss with them the matter of surrender. In addition to the military camp and Jiangxia who directly went to the local principal, the envoy to Xiangyang did not go to see Liu Biao, but to see Cai Mao.

Through the intelligence system of the Yellow Turban Army, Chen Sun naturally understood what kind of people Huang Zu and Cai Mao were, and in order to make them agree to his request to surrender, the envoys who went to Jiangxia and Xiangyang brought a lot of things to win over these two people. This is not only for the current surrender, but also for the future that the forces on his side can live a little more smoothly under Liu Biao.

As for the military camp opposite, they only planned to send one person over empty-handed. Due to the lack of information about these low-level generals in Liu Biao's army, Chen Sun did not know much about the group of enemies opposite, and naturally he did not know what the other party wanted. Moreover, as far as Chen Sun is concerned, discussing the so-called surrender with these low-level officials is only to give them all the proper face, as long as the above road is opened and the order is down, Chen Sun is not afraid that the people on the other side will have any excessive actions - as long as they are still Liu Biao's subordinates.

"Is that really good?" Somehow Zhang Wu always felt that something was wrong in his heart. After hearing that the three envoys sent by Chen Sun had brought different things, this feeling in his heart became even stronger. He thought about it for a while, and suddenly found a big loophole in this plan: "It takes five or six days to go back and forth from here to Jiangxia, and it takes half a month to go to Xiangyang from here, which means that we need to wait at least five or six days before surrendering." And in the intervening five or six days, if the conversation with the guy on the other side does not go well, then we are still in hostility with them. If they come against us for five or six days, will we be able to hold this place? He looked at Chen Sun with a little worry in his eyes.

"This ......" Chen Sun froze for a moment, embarrassed and speechless. At this point, he had to admit that he was indeed lacking in thought.

"Well, then give the messenger another task - to find out what those people want. Give him a limit, as long as he asks for a limit at this limit, let him agree directly. Chen Sun thought silently for a moment, and then made such a decision.

It was the best he could think of right now. That's all he can do without definite intelligence to back it up.

Soon messengers were sent. They are all young people trained by Chen Sun, and they are all flexible and articulate guys, who are very trusted by Chen Sun. As far as Chen Sun himself is concerned, it must be smooth sailing for them to complete such a task. After all, this matter is not harmful to Jingzhou or Liu Biao himself, and there are many benefits to the people who help them speak.

"For such a thing, Liu Biao will not refuse." Chen Sun thought with a smile on his face. He was looking forward to that last moment of settling down - "maybe in a few days." But the first thing to deal with is the guys on the other side. Hopefully, they won't intercept my messenger, or it will be miserable. ”

Until there is a definite result, everyone's heart is hanging in the balance. They all want the best and fear the worst.

But, as Chen Sun himself feared, before the envoys left for Jiangxia and Jingzhou, the first thing they encountered was the enemy in front of them. This enemy is bold in his actions with the aim of recovering Xiyang County. They had to pass through these people's camps before they could talk about going to Jiangxia and Xiangyang.

"Leave it to fate." Zhang Wu also said with a little weakness. If the enemy is an ordinary person, he can guarantee that the other party will not be difficult for the envoy sent by him, but the enemy on the other side is indeed that kind of guy - for the guy who ordered you to attack a Xiyang city, but included all the counties around Xiyang into the target, they really can't be sure that there is something they dare not do.

******

For the envoys who went to various places to "negotiate," the "test" came as scheduled. The officers and soldiers on the opposite side came to them shortly after they left the city, when they tried to approach the camp. It's also a natural thing to do, because they go above board and don't do anything hidden. It would be a surprising thing if the officers and soldiers had not discovered them.

They calmly greeted the person who found them, and then were brought to Li Sheng with a disgraced face. Although they had already stated their identities and intentions, the soldiers did not seem very friendly to them out of hatred for the thieves. Under the push and shove along the way, they suffered a lot, and finally their brains became such an embarrassed appearance.

"You're from over there?" Li Sheng sat on the handsome seat in the big tent, leaned forward slightly, put on a proud look looking down on everything, and asked the three people below with a serious face.

"Yes, we are the people of the Zhang Wu Department of the Yellow Turban Army." One of the three, who was in charge of negotiating with the officers and troops here, replied neither humbly nor arrogantly.

"Oh? The people of the Yellow Turbans? That's an enemy anyway. I'm going to go into the army to encircle you. But I don't want you to send it to the door yourself. Li Sheng said indifferently and laughed softly. The smile looked somewhat strange and terrifying in the eyes of several messengers.

"Someone!" Li Sheng suddenly raised his voice: "Bring these fools who came to the door for me, and when you enter the army at noon tomorrow, I will kill them and sacrifice the flag." ”

As soon as Li Sheng shouted this, several soldiers quickly came in from outside the big tent, suppressed the three people, and wanted to take them outside.

"Wait......!" The man in charge of negotiating with the officers and soldiers shouted.

"What, do you have anything to say?" Li Sheng tilted his head and looked at him sideways, looking at his and his companions' presumably thin body and the pair of triangular soybeans on his face that didn't look very pleasing to the eye.

"I don't want to die yet." The man said with his triangular eyes the size of a bean.

"I know that. No one wants to die in vain, and so do you, and so do I. Li Sheng nodded calmly and said. It's just ......" a smile that made the three of them feel a little hairy on his face again, "You're so stupid." He stupidly came straight to our camp and did such a self-defeating thing. You should be responsible for this, and even if you die, you can't blame me. ”

"Don't you think it's a little weird that we're running out so generously? Don't you want to understand what we're here for? The man looked a little anxious.

"It's a bit odd indeed." Li Sheng's face showed a little playfulness: "But, it doesn't seem to have anything to do with what I'm going to do next." Saying that, Li Sheng shook his head slowly and gracefully: "I am not a person with an unusually rich curiosity. If things weren't what I wanted to know, I wouldn't get to know him. ”

"But it's a matter of life and death for your soldiers." The man shouted, "If you have to attack Xiyang City." It is possible to succeed with your forces, but how many of your soldiers will survive after the siege? We, the Yellow Turbans, are weak, but we don't just stand there and let you slaughter. ”

"Oh? On such a big topic, then I'd like to hear from you. Li Sheng smiled and waved his hand to signal the soldiers to let the three of them go.

"Wait." The man cried out again, "I hope only you know about it." ”

"What?" Li Sheng's face inevitably showed surprise.

"Bastard! Are you trying to betray us? What a damn scourge! Hearing this, the other two companions, whose faces had been calm, suddenly panicked and became angry. They rushed forward with a shouting and were about to beat the man on the spot. Their weapons had been confiscated before they entered the tent, and the only thing they could use now was this fist.

The man was emaciated, and he was no match for the two. He could only retreat and shout, "General, let them stop." ”

"Okay." Li Sheng nodded lightly, motioned to the soldiers in the tent to capture the two people, and then turned to the man and said, "I will kill these two guys first as you wish." However, if what you say does not satisfy me, I am afraid that you will follow in their footsteps if you are very strange. Do you understand that? ”

"Understood!" The man calmed down, wiped the cold sweat from his head, and nodded heavily. After that, both shut up. After a while, the soldiers outside sent the heads of the two people in, and the man opened his mouth as if relieved: "Actually, we came out this time to present the surrender table to Xiangyang, Jiangxia and your place according to Chen Sun's explanation, and negotiate the surrender matter. Xiyang can't hold on anymore, that's a fact. We are willing to dedicate Xiyang, submit to Lord Liu Biao, and become a member of his command. ”

"I see!" Li Sheng nodded and narrowed his eyes, he thought quietly for a while, and then asked another question: "It's just such a thing, you can explain it directly." Why do you have to let me kill those two? ”

"Because I want to take refuge with you, General, and I don't want to do it over there." When asked this question, the man was silent for a while, and then said with a little sadness: "Actually, my parents were killed by Zhang Wu and their Yellow Turban Army. The reason why I joined the Yellow Turban Army is to survive, and secondly, to find a chance to take revenge. Right now, seeing that this Yellow Turban Army is no longer good, I naturally have to have my own plans. ”

"That's it!" Li Sheng nodded understandingly: "Although I'm not sure if the reasons you said are true." But if you dare to ask me to kill those two people, it is enough to prove that you have the intention to take refuge in my side. If someone wants to join me, I will naturally not refuse. Tell me your name. ”

"My surname is Chen, my name is Chen Jing, and my name is Yuanhua." The man replied with a blank face.

"Chen Yuanhua? You go down and get some rest. I'll have to think about what you're going to do later. Li Sheng smiled and gently patted Chen Jing's shoulder and said, "As long as you can be loyal to me, I will naturally not treat you badly." ”

"Yes!" Chen Jing nodded, turned around and left, but after only a few steps, he suddenly turned around as if he suddenly remembered something: "Isn't the lord going to capture Xiyang City?" Why don't you ask me about the layout of Xiyang City? ”

"Something about the attack? Then forget it, since they have decided to surrender. Li Sheng shook his head gently: "I'm afraid I can't stop you." Zhang Wu and Chen Sun, these two guys, I also plan to let them live for another year or two. The soldiers and horses in my hands were preserved because of the chaos in Xiyang. If the northern counties are calm, I'm afraid of ......," Li Sheng said lightly and squinted at him.

"Yes! I understand. Chen Jing nodded and said, cold sweat seeped out on his forehead, he felt the sternness of Li Sheng's eyes, and couldn't help but hurriedly swear: "Lord, I won't tell anyone this." ”

"Words? Did I just tell you something? Li Sheng asked with a roll of his eyes.

"No, of course there is none." Chen Jing hurriedly said and quickly retreated.

After Chen Jing retreated, Li Sheng ordered someone to invite his master and his subordinates, told them about what had happened here, and asked them: "This is how things are going on, do you have any thoughts about this?"

"So, we don't need to fight them?" When Song De, Zhou Li, and Zhou Rui heard this, their eyes couldn't help but darken, and there was an indescribable silence in their words.

"Huh? Don't need to fight? Is that all you want to fight? Li Sheng glared at them, with an indescribable blame in his eyes: "Fighting is to kill people, maybe it's you, maybe it's me, it's more likely to be the people around you and me, our relatives, our friends." Even so, don't you think it doesn't matter? We must understand what kind of war we must fight and what kind of war we cannot fight. The ultimate goal of fighting a war is to obtain benefits and dignity that we cannot obtain by ordinary means. If we can't get these if we don't fight, then we have to fight. But if we can get these without fighting, we can't fight anymore. 'Though the kingdom is great, it will perish if it is warlike, and it will be dangerous if it is forgotten. Have you forgotten this? Others may be impulsive, but as those of us who have mastered the lives of so many people, we must not be impulsive. We have to be calm, we have to think, we have to understand everything, because we have to be accountable to those under us, to the people around us. ”

"Boss......" The three of them shouted, but they lowered their heads in shame: "I'm sorry, boss!" "They realized their mistake.

For a moment, there was silence in the tent. Everyone was thinking about the meaning of Li Sheng's words just now. That's a heart-wrenching word. Although the words were said to Song De, Zhou Li, and Zhou Rui, everyone heard Li Sheng's reminder to himself from these words: "Victory is good, but don't forget the damage caused by the war because there are too many victories." Don't despise war because of victory, ignore the fact that war kills. ”

"Alright. Don't think about it anymore, it's how you deal with what's in front of you. The guys on the other side are very atmospheric, and they don't pay attention to our little county order at all. In their opinion, Master Liu Biao of Xiangyang and Master Huang Zu of Jiangxia are worthy of their targets. They think that as long as the two above are co-opted, the next order will be able to make us obediently obey. Li Sheng said and laughed: "This idea is wonderful. If they do succeed, we are afraid that we will do the same. After all, we are still under the account of Lord Liu Biao. However, now that those two guys have killed me, and the gifts they are going to send have been withheld for me. Although I also understand that these things are more troublesome, they are also a thing that can be used. It's up to all of you to think about how to use it. ”

"Think?" Everyone looked at each other. This matter is far beyond the scope of war, and it is really a headache for these generals. In the entire big tent, as far as they can see, the only ones who can make a decision on this matter are Luo Zhao and Shi Tao. So, Wei Yan and the others closed their mouths tightly, squinting at Luo Zhao and Shi Tao, waiting for their answers.

"What does the lord want right now?" Shi Tao's face was tender, and he lowered his head a little embarrassed, but Luo Zhao generously asked such a question.

"Well, this one!" Li Sheng couldn't help but be stunned when asked, thought for a moment and then replied: "I want to make our Xiyang more consolidated without losing the existing rights, and I don't want to hand over the troops in my hands." ”

"Hmmm! Is this what the lord wants to achieve in the end? Maintain troops and consolidate rule in Xiyang? Luo Zhao confirmed again.

"Yes." Li Sheng nodded heavily.

"Then I think we can accept Zhang Wujun's surrender and let him continue to stay near Xiyang, so that we can have an excuse to continue to maintain our troops. But we can't do it alone, we have to contribute a small amount to it, at least from someone else's point of view. This matter must be handed over to Huang Zu to complete, and let him Xiangyang persuade Lord Liu Biao to agree to this matter. And we ourselves use these jewels to connect Cai Mao and others, so that they can say good things in Liu Biao's ears about our affairs, so that Liu Biao agrees not to take back the troops in our hands. Luo Zhao said after thinking about it.

"How?" Li Sheng asked.

"We can send someone to tell Huang Zu about this matter. Although the Jiangdong Army is retreating at the moment, Huang Zu's courage has been frightened in last year's attack, and he must be very willing to have such a group of men and horses to join his command. Of course, he may think that these soldiers are still too few, but we can impress him with words and vigorously explain to him the benefits of earning this army. As soon as he said the specific operation, Shi Tao quickly picked up, thinking that when Luo Zhao was talking about it just now, he was also thinking about it over there, "As long as Huang Zu can say that Huang Zu can act, the matter here will be considered to be done." As Jiangxia Taishou, who has nearly 100,000 soldiers, he naturally has some arbitrary power on the small issue of accepting thousands of soldiers. ”

"Didn't Zhong Ming say that he wanted to make people think that we weren't behind all this. It's up to us to say everything, won't the other party notice it? Huang Zhong, who has always been calm, raised his own questions in a timely manner.

"It's simple." Luo Zhao smiled: "As long as we make it clear that the enemy first proposed to us to surrender when we speak, we don't dare to be arbitrary, so we have to ask Lord Huang Zu for instructions." Then, when he spoke, he explained the advantages and disadvantages of accepting such a surrendered army to Lord Huang Zu. Master Huang Zu finally judged that nature has nothing to do with us. After all, we told him everything, and we didn't hide anything. ”

"But, how can we guarantee that Huang Zu will listen to us? Perhaps, as soon as he heard what we said badly, he refused. Wei Yan asked with some concern.

"That's simpler. As long as the disadvantages we are talking about are some big or small, but they are not valued by Huang Zu. Shi Tao said softly.

"Like ......?" Wei Yan looked at him puzzled.

"For example, the people's hatred for Zhang Wu and Chen Sun, such as the wildness of those thieves is difficult to change." Luo Zhao reacted quickly, and then said, "These things can be very big or small. What's more, a soldier like Huang Zu only knows how to fight, so he won't pay attention to such a problem at all. ”

"I see." Huang Zhong and Wei Yan both understood a little. They glanced at each other, and they both saw a little fear in each other's eyes: what Luo Zhao and Shi Tao said was aimed at Huang Zu, but they thought for themselves. If they encountered a similar situation, they themselves would indeed not consider these things like Huang Zu.

The hearts of the people? How many generals are considering this now? Maybe when they were young, they also had an ambition to serve the country and the people, but now they are afraid that they are almost worn out.

As for the problem that the wilderness of the thief army is difficult to change, I am afraid that there are many people who do not take this seriously. Most of the generals were arrogant people, and they had always been very confident that they could subdue these people in their own ability.

In this way, Huang Zu will inevitably agree. As long as Huang Zu's side agrees, then Liu Biao's side will no longer object. At that time, we only need to ask people to bring some gifts, and tell Cai Mao about the things here and our requirements, and everything will develop according to our thoughts. Luo Zhao finally concluded.

"Is it so easy to convince Cai Mao?" Huang Zhong and Wei Yan have rarely entered Xiangyang City in these years, they have only heard some rumors about Xiangyang, and according to these rumors and their previous feelings about Cai Mao and the others, they still hate Cai Mao very much. In their opinion, Cai Mao is a villain, a pure villain. Dealing with such villains, they always find it an annoying thing. They were afraid that their apprentice would suffer in their association with such a villain.

"Master, this is a mess of concern. Have you forgotten our relationship with Cai Mao, plus there are so many people in Xiangyang City who speak for us, such a small problem, it is not very difficult to get Lord Liu Biao to agree. It's true that Cai Mao is a villain, but villains will also be icing on the cake. Li Sheng said with a smile.

"Be careful, though!" Huang Zhong shook his chest-length beard and said with concern.

"Yes, Master!" Li Sheng nodded movingly.

"It's weird, though." At this time, Wei Yan suddenly spoke, as if he had thought of something: "Zixu, why do you have to seize the troops in your hands?" You are only a county order, and Xiyang is directly under the scope of Jingzhou. As soon as the matter in front of us is over, it should be safe here, why do we have to have troops? Don't......? When he said this, he stopped abruptly and stared at Li Sheng with burning eyes: "You have always been an adult like Liu Biao, not the lord, do you have a heart of betrayal in your heart?" ”

"Let's just put it that way." Li Sheng was stunned when he heard this, was silent for a while, and finally raised his head and admitted: "Liu Biao is not a master of troubled times, and following him will only end up in the end." According to the current general trend, Cao Cao and Yuan Shao are likely to decide the winner in the next few years, and it is very likely that it will end in Cao Cao's victory, and then he will inevitably have the heart to go south. In Jiangdong, the Sun family has already gained a firm foothold, because they have enmity with our Jingzhou, and they are very eager for our Jingzhou's territory and population, so they also want to go east anytime and anywhere. These two enemies are very powerful, and neither of them can be dealt with by our current lord, Lord Liu Biao. I'm afraid that this war will be together, and the prosperity of the Xiangyang area will come to naught like Xuzhou back then. Li Sheng said faintly, and with his slightly sad words, he expressed the situation that Jingzhou is facing now and even in the future.

"And what do you want to ......?" Hearing this, Huang Zhong and Wei Yan somewhat understood Li Sheng's thoughts.

"The world can't be ruled by Cao Cao, otherwise it will be the misfortune of all the people! Jingzhou can't be occupied by the Sun family, otherwise it will be Jingzhou's misfortune! Li Sheng said these two sentences half-awesomely, and then said his true purpose: "Gather strength, raise the people and accumulate strength, and when the time comes, go to Liu Biao to replace him." With Jingzhou as the foundation, with friendship and benefit as the annex, and then compete for hegemony in the world. ”

"Ah......" Everyone in the tent, including Luo Zhao, Peng Ling and others, who already knew that Li Sheng had great ambitions, couldn't help but be stunned when they heard Li Sheng pour out the ideas in their chests. They looked at Li Sheng in a daze, as if they knew him for the first time: "Is this what a twenty-year-old person thinks?" He is just a small county magistrate at the moment, but the plan in his heart has reached the point of how to build a foundation and compete with the world, which is really ...... It's terrifying. Still, they were excited to carry out such a grand strategy.

"But is that really good? You are indeed stronger than Lord Liu Biao, and it is indeed possible to compete with Cao Cao and the Sun family, but can you guarantee that you can eliminate the Sun family and Cao Cao in just a few years? If you can't, what's the use of being strong? Too many strong forces can only lead to a long-term melee in the world. At that time, I am afraid that you and I will become sinners in the world. After being silent for a while, Huang Zhong slowly asked this question.

"You can't say that." Li Sheng shook his head slightly: "As long as Jingzhou, Yizhou, and Jiaozhou can be obtained, then even if Cao Cao cannot be eliminated quickly, there will be no long-term melee." After all, the momentum has been achieved, and any easy start of war by either side will cause a series of chain reactions. Although this is not as good as the war-free environment after reunification, it is still much better than in previous years.

Moreover, what I have in mind is by no means such a simple thing as the unification of the world, my goal is to make China the master of this world forever, and let our people become the happiest people in this world. Although I understand that this may take hundreds or thousands of years, as long as we find the right path and keep going, there will be a day when we will reach our goal. The world is too big to be what we think we think it is, and if we don't work hard, then we will suffer one day. ”

"What......?" Once again, the crowd was shocked. If the previous words were a burst of drums, then what Li Sheng just said was a huge thunder. Everyone was shocked by Li Sheng's words and didn't know what to say, because it was too much more than they imagined. Their minds have long been a piece of paste, and they can't figure out the slightest clue.

They had no choice but to frown in the end, and told Li Sheng with a little bitterness: "Give us a little time, we need to think." ”