The days of the third year of the first peace are gradually coming to an end, and the day after tomorrow is the beginning of the fourth year of the first peace. Pen × fun × Pavilion www. ｂｉｑｕｇｅ。 infoThe entire Xiaqiu City suddenly looked like it didn't want to be the same as usual. Although everyone doesn't have much money and thoughts to celebrate New Year's Day because of the troubled times, the festive atmosphere on the surface still has to be expressed. Most of the people hung two red lanterns in front of their houses, some of them were covered with cloth and some were made of red paper, but these lanterns were not as good as the 24 red lanterns hanging in front of the Surabaya house. After all, it was made of fine Shu brocade. Not only is the material superior, but the lantern is also embroidered with all kinds of festive patterns and blessings like never before, which suddenly increases the luxury of this lantern.

For this novelty, the people of Xiaqiu felt fresh. Since the 28th of the New Year, the day of the New Year's Day, the lanterns were hung out, and almost every moment there were so many people watching and pointing and discussing. Sometimes there are so many people that the gate of Surabaya Ju is surrounded by water. If this situation is likely to affect the business of Surabaya Ju in normal times, it will be a headache, but at this moment, after Surabaya Ju has already closed the door for vacation, it doesn't matter whether the gate is gambled or not. Even the people in Surabaya House are secretly proud when they look at the door every day and are so lively.

It is noon now, and in the greenhouse on the third floor of Surabaya House, Li Sheng, Zhong'er, De'er, Da Niu, and Xiao Rui are enjoying a banquet that completely belongs to their children. This was proposed by Li Sheng, saying that it was to increase the affection of the brothers. In his opinion, anyway, now that Surabaya House is completely out of business, the third floor is empty, so it is better to use it as a "waste", so that De'er and others, who have never enjoyed it, will be happy before the year.

After all, these are troubled times, people are just one day at a time, no one knows what the situation will be tomorrow, rather than worrying about the unknown future all day long, honestly fearful, to properly enjoy the life in front of you, let yourself leave a good memory while still alive. Therefore, Li Sheng will not only propose to make new tricks on the red lantern to make everyone happy, but also ask Mrs. Li to "rent" the third floor of the Surabaya House for herself, hold a "children's" feast, and invite her friends and brothers to rub it well, which can be regarded as letting them go in style.

It's all ghosts together, and this meal is very lively and casual. In their eyes, there is no such thing as "eating and not speaking". Everyone is always gulping down vegetables and talking about all kinds of problems with laughter. Because the lantern downstairs is so special, some people talk about it.

"It's really extraordinary. The boss is the boss, and it's so amazing to come up with an idea at random. When Zhong'er proudly said that the lantern was also the idea that her brother Sheng came up with, what immediately came up was the flattery of the previous boss De'er. As he spoke, his two eyes shining with clever light suddenly looked at Li Sheng in a strange way: "Boss, that one is so beautiful, isn't it...... Also available ......"

"You want?" Li Sheng asked him with squinted eyes.

"Hmm." De'er nodded like a chicken pecking rice, "Not only do I think, but everyone wants to have such a beautiful lantern in their home." De'er said this, but it caused the approval of Da Niu and Xiao Rui.

"Cut! Do you still want that? Did you know that the county magistrate wanted to ask for a lantern for 3,000 yuan, and we all agreed. Bell pouted when she heard this, and said in a milky voice. She deliberately chilled them. She is still more familiar with De'er and others than Li Sheng, so when everyone chats together, she is all talking nonsense.

Although there was obviously some ridicule in these words, both De'er and the others and Li Sheng understood that it was Deng'er deliberately raising the bar with them.

"Alas! Bell, you hurt our hearts when you say that. What are we, how can we compare with the county order. Although he has a lot of money, he doesn't have a relationship with our boss. The Boss is not a money-conscious person. In contrast, it seems that we have a better chance, after all, we are the eldest brother. De'er straightened his face and gave this explanation in a strange tone. In an instant, he made Zhong'er and the others giggle.

"De'er, your serious appearance is really funny." Zhong'er bent down and pointed at De'er and smiled. She had never seen De'er so funny. In her eyes, De'er was majestic, indifferent, and flattering, but she could never say such a laughable thing.

"Of course!" said De'er agreed solemnly. He was reserved for a moment, but he laughed out loud like everyone else. He felt very happy, and always felt that after stepping down, his life was the same as when he was the boss before. Although everyone is less respectful to themselves, they have a deeper relationship with themselves. And he is more open than before, and it turns out that there is very little smile on his face every day. In this way, he felt very happy and happy.

At this time, Li Sheng, who had been watching them fight, laughed incomprehensibly, he compared to the window, pointed to the bell on the side, and opened his mouth lightly, "There is naturally no problem if you want that lantern." While I can't really give you the ones out there, I've been making a few smaller ones for you a long time ago with some of the leftover stuff from last time. Although the lantern is not suitable for hanging on your door, it can be carried in your hand. I don't know, do you want it? ”

"Of course I do." De'er and the others nodded hurriedly. Although they had already asked for lanterns, in fact, they were not sure that the boss in front of them would really agree. In their hearts, they were ready to be disappointed, but they never thought that their boss had already helped them think about it.

"Well, the boss is so good." De'er and the others sighed in their hearts.

However, what they didn't know was that Li Sheng didn't plan to give them things cheaply. "Don't be happy just yet. Although this lantern has been prepared for you for a long time, it is still a question whether you will be able to take it or not. I will ask you a few questions after the Chinese New Year's Eve, that is, tomorrow after the New Year's dinner. If you can answer, there will be lanterns to play with during the Chinese New Year, and if you can't answer, then you can watch and do it yourself. Li Sheng smiled strangely and said his decision.

"Boss, isn't this a difficult question? You'd better not test our books. Although we also read the book for a few days, after all, the time is too short to memorize anything. As soon as De'er heard this, he immediately raised the restriction on this question.

"Rest assured. Not in books. Li Sheng chuckled and shook his head. As soon as he saw that everyone lowered their brows when they heard this, he quickly spit out the words "But ......".

"Boss, but what......" The most impatient bull asked in his own voice, which was much larger than the average person.

"However, it still requires you to use the knowledge in the book." Li Sheng smiled and told his final mystery: "I will tell you a story about one person tomorrow." That man is the highest martial artist right now, but he will most likely be our enemy. I ask you to think of a way to deal with him after I'm done. Don't say it's difficult, I can tell you clearly that the solution to him is already in that story. As for whether you can find a way in the story, it's up to you. ”

"Oh!" When everyone heard this, they immediately responded in unison. Don't look at them one by one, they usually laugh and laugh with Li Sheng, but when they talk about such a "serious" thing, they are really as serious as adults.

"Good." Li Sheng nodded with satisfaction. Now that this is done, there is no other question to speak of. At that moment, he chatted with everyone again, raising the atmosphere of the banquet again. As a man who has had a little, but still some life experience, he knew what he was doing on such a joyous occasion.

Under his guidance, the banquet ended happily. When everyone went out through the back door of the Surabaya House, they all had happy smiles on their faces.

New Year's Day is coming. At this time of the New Year, I am afraid that the happiest person is a child like De'er.

However, another year has passed. In Li Sheng's mind, it seemed to represent another step away from the day when Cao Cao carried out the massacre of Xuzhou. Will you be able to keep the names of your friends and relatives as you hope? Li Sheng was worried, frowned tightly, and let out a long sigh. He himself didn't know about it.

"It's all up to heaven." Li Sheng thought so. He looked up at the overcast sky and suddenly felt his own insignificance and powerlessness. He clearly understands that there is no way for him to change the fate of this Xuzhou at the moment. As an outlier in this small time, his current strength Li Sheng is not able to set off even a single wave under the general trend of history.

*****

On the night of the Chinese New Year's Eve, heavy snow like goose feathers fell over Xiaqiu City, and the wind howled to hide the faint crying sound in the wilderness. The weather suddenly turned cold, and as a city person, it was probably not clear how many of the displaced people outside the city would die because of the cold of the day during the festival. Because they seldom go out of the city after the twenty-eighth. Although it is said that Ruixue is a mega year, this good year is still a matter of the future after all. Whether they will survive this winter is still unknown to those outside the city.

The land of Xuzhou is a stable place in troubled times. Especially in this local county to the south, because of the close connection with the forces of Xuzhou's ally Huainan Yuan Shu, it became more and more secure. There is no curfew here. The so-called city defense is just a few small soldiers who yawn and look listless there. They were sent in turns, a group of sentry posts who were only responsible for one hour, and when the time came, they could go home to celebrate the holiday with their families. In this era of war and chaos, nothing is more important to most people than to live safely with their families.

At this moment, there are very few people on the street, except for a few people who are really in a hurry on the street, most of the people are in their own alleys and alleys with the surrounding neighbors, relatives and friends. During the Chinese New Year, when it was not yet midnight, everyone rarely shared each other, and there was probably such a lively picture.

In addition to the people of the Li family and the newly admitted Li Sheng, there are also the De'er family and the Da Niu and Xiao Rui families. Because, a few children have to get together to play, and the adults who can't rest assured naturally have to come. Of course, this is not a burden for the Tavern of Surabaya. De'er's family has a relatively small population, and to be honest, it is De'er and Song Bo. There are a little more people on Da Niu and Xiao Rui's side, but there are only four people: Da Niu, Xiao Rui, Lao Zhou (Da Niu's father) and his daughter-in-law (Da Niu's mother). That's just six people in total. It's just that the people in Surabaya have a few more catties of rice and a few more pairs of chopsticks.

The New Year's dinner is naturally very joyful in the presence of so many people. The dozen or so dishes that came up in a row always bottomed out in a moment in everyone's sweeping like a storm and clouds. When the emptiness in the belly was filled, several imps gathered into a pile and occupied the largest room in the middle. They want to play with themselves, and what kind of gossip their parents and elders want is something they don't want to care about.

Suddenly, there was a knock at the door.

"Shop, shop! Is anyone else? The voice of a slightly helpless middle-aged man came.

"What's wrong? Don't you know that the Tavern Inn is closed at this time? Although it is always unpleasant to be interrupted during a reunion, Mrs. Li, as a businessman, still understands the truth of making money in harmony and does not directly turn the other party away. She said as she opened the door to the tavern.

Under the red light of the lantern, a tall scribe wearing a felt hat looked at Madame Li who opened the door with a slight apology. "I'm really sorry, I couldn't go back to my hometown before the holiday because I was delayed by something on the road. I'm in a hurry right now. It's late tonight, and it's snowing all the time, and the roads are probably blocked, and it's unlikely that I'm even sleeping in the suburbs. Could you please make it convenient for me to spend a few nights, and when the snow stops, I will be willing to pay three times the accommodation. The scribe pleaded with great earnestness. He had apparently asked more than one before.

"I see." Mrs. Li nodded clearly, then turned sideways and made way for a passage: "You can come in." Who doesn't have an urgent matter when they go out to run errands in this winter, and it's common to be delayed. However, we will never do business during the Chinese New Year, if you think we are high, it is better to live in front of a friend's house, and don't talk about anything about money. Our Surabaya residence is not always looking for money. She said with a smile, and led the scribe directly to the room in the middle of the house.

"We have been closed for the past two days, and this room has not been used for the past few days, so please wait here for a while, and I will let someone clean it up." As soon as she entered the room, Mrs. Li asked the scribe to sit down first, looked around the room where everything was still the same as before the festival, and politely apologized to the scribe. She knew that these literati were very particular in some aspects.

"Don't bother Madame. At such a special time, it is possible to have such a room. I'm already satisfied. As he spoke, the scribe took off his mantle and revealed a handsome countenance.

I saw that on the white face with a sharpened chin, two sword eyebrows flew into the back of the temples, and a pair of eyes as bright as stars under the eyebrows shone with wisdom. His forehead is plump and smooth, his nose is straight and high, and when he is not speaking, the two red lips that are tightly pursed but slightly upturned always give people a feeling of easy approachability, and the three clear whiskers that have been left behind add a bit of elegance to the air. He had a large skeleton and was more than eight feet tall, which was rare among scholars at the time. This appearance suddenly made Mrs. Li, who was standing aside, look at her eyes: "What a handsome person." ”

"Are you from Qingzhou?" After summoning the maid below to warm up some Chinese New Year's Eve dishes for this guest, Mrs. Li chatted with the guest with nothing to do. As a successful businessman, she understands that she can't make her guests feel overlooked, especially when it's a family reunion like this.

"No, I'm from Xuzhou. My hometown is in Langya Yangdu. The guest rubbed his stiff and cold hands, which had been outside for a long time, and said.

"Yangdu? Are you from the Zhuge family? Mrs. Li guessed when she heard this.

"How does Madame see that?" The guest was slightly startled when he heard this, but he smiled faintly, and admitted very happily: "My name is Zhuge Xuan." ”

"What's so hard to guess then?" Mrs. Li chuckled and replied, "With the momentum of a guest, there is no doubt that he should be a child of the family." And the family that exists in Langya Yangdu is only one Zhuge family. ”

"Oh, Madame is a delicate person." Zhuge Xuan smiled and bowed his head, which can be regarded as acknowledging Mrs. Li's reason.

"Of course, as a businessman who welcomes customers from all over the world, the more news you know from all directions, the better. It's not surprising that you can guess the preferences of your guests from just a few words. Although it was not surprising, there was still a faint sense of smugness on Mrs. Li's face when she heard the appreciation.

"Hehe, that's that! However, Mrs. Iguan is by no means an ordinary businessman, just like the Mi family in this state, and there is always some gentleman's demeanor in her words. Zhuge Xuan said.

"It's just a small business, how can it be as big as a Mi family." Mrs. Li was unfazed by these words and did not react at all.

Waiting for the wine and food to come up, just like that, the two of you say a word, and I say a word. Although they have never met, they have gradually become acquainted with each other, and gradually have the recognition of each other as friends. Mrs. Li thinks that this guest Zhuge Xuan still has some real talents, and he doesn't only know how to talk like ordinary children of the family. And Zhuge Xuan also felt that the owner of this hotel was not an ordinary businesswoman, she knew a lot of things, whether it was piano, chess, calligraphy and painting, or a subset of classics and history, she could make sense a little, almost enough to Cai Yan back then.

"Sure enough, there are hidden dragons and crouching tigers in the world." Zhuge Xuan sighed in his heart while chatting. If it weren't for the fact that the person in front of him was a woman, he really had plans to persuade her to come out.

At the moment, the two talked to each other, but the more they talked, the more speculative they became, and the more they talked, the more they felt that they hated each other, and gradually forgot the passage of time.

Suddenly, an extremely discordant loud noise came from next door, completely interrupting the communication between the two.

"What's going on?" Zhuge Xuan was taken aback and looked at Mrs. Li with a slightly strange look.

"A few imps are playing around. Don't worry, I'm going to let them be quiet. Mrs. Li said but stood up.

"Kids? That's a funny tightness. Zhuge Xuan waved his hand, but there was a yearning expression on his face: "Children are very happy, they are a gift from God to our generation." ”

"Sir is very fond of children?" Mrs. Li's eyes widened, as if she had never thought that such a tall adult would have such delicate emotions.

"Hmm." Zhuge Xuan nodded heavily: "I don't have any heirs myself, so I naturally yearn for those who have children." Pardon me, Madame, for my reluctant request: may I see these children? Zhuge Xuan made a very presumptuous request.

"What's wrong with that?" Mrs. Li smiled and immediately agreed.

So, the two of them got up, and Madame Li led them through the deliberately created corridor to the next room. As soon as he approached, he heard a thunderous shout from inside: "Impossible? How could Lu Bu be as easy to deal with as you said? He's the best in the world. Mrs. Li understood that this was the voice of Da Niu. She didn't know what the little ghost was discussing, but she vaguely heard that it seemed to be related to Lu Bu, the flying general of this dynasty, but she didn't understand what it was about. So, she smiled at Zhuge Xuan a little apologetically, and was about to push the door in.

"Wait." Zhuge Xuan stopped Mrs. Li's move, "I still want to hear it." He whispered. He also found it very interesting that the children in it could debate the major events of the day, and wanted to hear what they had to say.

The debate in the room continued.

Obviously, some people did not agree with Da Niu's words, and as soon as Da Niu's words fell, someone immediately retorted: "It's very simple to deal with Lu Bu, as long as you can give him enough benefits, he can even sell his father to you." Just like the last time Dong Zhuo used the Red Rabbit Horse to let him deal with Ding Yuan, and this time Wang Yun and Wang Situ used a serial scheme to let Lu Bu deal with Dong Zhuo. They all use Lu Bu as a knife. This is Li Sheng's voice

"Boss, you said that 'Dong Zhuo used the Red Rabbit Horse to let Lu Bu deal with Ding Yuan' I understand, but what about this serial scheme?" The other boy in the room asked. Mrs. Li could tell it was Xiao Rui's voice.

"That's a story, ......!" Li Sheng in the room deliberately lengthened his voice, and he was obviously losing everyone's appetite.

"Boss, say it, say it!" For his behavior, everyone in the room was already unbearable, and couldn't help but urge again and again.

"In other words, Wang Situ's family has a maid, named Mink Zen, who is twenty-eight years old, has the appearance of a shy flower in the closed moon, sinks fish and geese, and is good at singing and dancing, which can be called a heartthrob. Wang Situ knew that Lu Bu and Dong Zhuo both liked women, so he decided to use Mink Chan as bait, which made Lu Bu and Dong Zhuo turn against each other: he asked people to send someone to a banquet for Lu Bu one day before, and let Lu Bu meet with Mink Chan at the banquet, saying that this Mink Chan was his righteous daughter, and hoped to marry Lu Bu as a concubine. At that time, Lu Bu was fascinated by the mink Zen, and there was still a reason not to agree, so he immediately set a date with Wang Situ to win the marriage. And on the second day of this fate, Wang Yun invited Dong Zhuo to his home for a banquet, and also let Mink Chan and Dong Zhuo meet, saying that he wanted to give Mink Chan to Dong Zhuo. Dong Zhuo naturally agreed, and brought Mink Chan back that night. Such a thing would naturally be known to Lu Bu. So, Lu Bu went to interrogate Wang Situ. Wang Situ said that Dong Zhuo forcibly took Mink Chan away. Because Dong Zhuo is Lu Bu's father-in-law, Lu Bu naturally has no way to ask him face to face. Coupled with the provocation of Mink Chan at both ends on the other side, the gap between Dong Zhuo and Lu Bu is naturally getting bigger and bigger. For Dong Zhuo, Lu Bu is a rebel who molests his concubine. For Lu Bu, Dong Zhuo was the one who took his wife and concubine. Lu Bu is an arrogant guy, and he naturally can't bear the hatred of taking his wife. Therefore, he accepted Wang Situ's invitation and joined the ranks of the conspiracy against Dong Zhuo, and finally stabbed Dong Zhuo to death after tricking Dong Zhuo out of Yiwu Fort. Because in this series of plans, Wang Situ's strategy is one ring after another, so it is naturally called a 'chain plan'. Li Sheng coughed softly, and made a thrilling plan clear in concise words.

However, he made it clear here, but the people who listened there may not be able to smell some of the true meaning because of this:

"Brother Sheng, do you think I can be as beautiful as that mink chan in the future?" This is the question of the little girl after listening to it. Although she is young, she is still a woman after all, and she naturally cares mainly about her appearance.

"Cut, what's the use of not being beautiful? And you can't eat it. Boss, do you think Lu Bu and Dong Zhuo are big fools? actually made a stiff fight for a woman. What do they want a woman to do? Is it for food? After refuting Zhong'er's question, the two incomprehensible imps asked again. They are still young, and they probably don't understand the problems between men and women.

After listening to their words, Li Sheng seemed very helpless, so he had to ask De'er, who had not spoken since he finished telling the story: "What do you think?" ”

"I think Lu Bu here seems to be a little pitiful. He really likes Mink Chan, so he will betray his master again for the sake of Mink Chan. But Mink Chan here doesn't seem to like Lu Bu very much, everything she does is done by Wang Situ's will, and there doesn't seem to be her sincerity. De'er said this, and he was full of sympathy for Lu Bu.

"I said De'er, we don't understand the problem of the human heart. How the mink chan is to Lu Bu is not our concern after all. I just want to ask you, is it easy to deal with Lu Bu in such a way? Isn't it a no-brainer. Li Sheng's questioning directly brought their minds back to how to deal with Lu Bu.

All of a sudden, the room fell silent, and it was clear that everyone was thinking about such a question.

After a long time, Na De'er reluctantly admitted: "This is indeed a way. ”

As if hearing someone admit it, Li Sheng became happy and made a summary of what he said: "Everyone in the world knows that Lu Bu's martial arts are the best in the world, but his character is not good. Don't look at the current situation where he Lu Bu first voted for Yuan Shu and then Yuan Shao, it seems that he is popular everywhere, but in fact, with his past of killing two masters, although the princes of Kanto want to have his force, they have never been at ease with him. They will inevitably use him against their most dangerous enemies, and then after using him, they will also categorically abandon him, ignore him, suppress him, and even move to kill him. It can be said that the current Lu Bu has always been in danger. This is something he can't change, if he has to change, unless he becomes a prince himself. However, whether it is as someone else's subordinate or as his own self-reliance, he Lu Bu will never have a good end. As a minister, we won't talk about it. When it comes to this self-reliance, Lu Bu seems to be very self-aware, thinking that he can't even beat Li Dao and Guo Yan's generation, so how can he come to this Kanto to fight the world. The few princes who are now based in this Kwantung region, such as Yuan Shao, Cao Cao, Liu Bei and others, are much stronger than Li Dao and Guo Yan. ”

"Good saying!" Before the children inside could react to their boss's words, Zhuge Xuan, who was standing outside, shouted loudly. He didn't pay attention to the surprised eyes of Mrs. Li beside him at the moment, but pushed open the door of the guest room and strode in.