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"Confident?"

Li Li frowned slightly, a fierce color flashed in his eyes, and then he smiled coldly and said disapprovingly: "If Ji Yu thinks that this is complacent, then what does it matter if you do what you want?" As for what I have to rely on, Ji Yu has already seen it, and I am sitting in front of you at this moment, isn't that enough? In the face of Liu Zhang's angry face, how could Li Li give him a good face, let alone show weakness.

As everyone knows, although Li Li is modest, he has always been strong in his work. If he was willing to show weakness in public, he would not have fought with Han Sui and Ma Teng repeatedly; If he could show weakness to the alliance of the Central Plains princes, there would be no division war; If he had been willing to show weakness, he would have achieved what he has today.

In troubled times, it is useless to show weakness. Only when we are strong and continue to grow and develop is the only way out; On the contrary, showing weakness means cowardice, and cowardice cannot stand in the world, and in the end it can only disappear and become a speck of dust under the feet of the strong.

So, the word show weakness does not appear to him and does not suit him. Over the years, how could he have ever shown weakness?

However, not showing weakness does not mean that he is upright and stubborn, does not know how to judge the situation, and blindly acts hard and brutally; On the contrary, the root cause of Li Li's achievements today lies in his ability to judge the situation, be flexible, and combine rigidity and softness to make him as strong as he is today.

At the beginning, he and Lu Bu were under Dong Zhuo's account as generals, if he didn't know how to be flexible, didn't know how to forbear, and dared to compete with Lu Bu, I am afraid that he would be strangled by Lu Bu in the cradle before he made his mark. And Dong Zhuo didn't value him at first, so he stayed idle in Chang'an City for several months. But then he won Dong Zhuo's appreciation with his own strength, and finally received Dong Zhuo's great gift, which laid the foundation for his dominance in Xiliang in one fell swoop.

The counterpart to the show of weakness is. The only criterion for surviving in troubled times is to be strong and strive to be strong. This is because in troubled times, human life is like a mustard, the world is struggling in troubled times, mercy is the most common and most easily ignored thing, no one pays attention to the weak, even if sympathy for the weak is powerless. It is only after the troubled times have been pacified that most people have the energy to sympathize with and help the weak; And before that. Everyone must be independent and self-reliant, otherwise they will be lost in the smoke of troubled times.

In troubled times, only self-improvement is possible; Big fish eat little fish. Only self-improvement; Rely on heaven and earth to rely on parents, and ultimately rely on yourself.

?????? At this moment, Liu Zhang tried to argue with Li Li face to face, obviously he was not qualified enough. It's a little too tender.

It is not strong enough. How to compete with the strong?

Seeing that Li Li's face was not good, Liu Zhang suddenly felt sorry in his heart, and the anger on his face receded, replaced by a sad face, his eyes flickered and dodged, as if he was afraid of Li Li, and did not dare to confront him head-on, let alone provoke Li Li. It is not difficult to see from this. Liu Zhang is still afraid of Li Li in his bones; This may have been a fixed imprint when they first met, so that Liu Zhang was still afraid of Li Li many years later. As soon as he saw Li Li's displeasure, he immediately retreated.

I have to say that the friendship between them is indeed very different and different.

When the two got acquainted, they deliberately made friends with a purpose, Liu Zhang was much older than Li Li, but he was willing to be his younger brother, and Li Li was the main thing in everything; However, Li Li did not bully him, but gave him the respect he deserved. Because of this, in Chang'an for more than a year, the two got along very well and indeed formed a deep friendship.

But after many years, Liu Zhang thought that he would no longer have to be afraid of Li Li, and he could straighten his waist and have a fair dialogue with him on an equal footing. But as soon as he showed a little sign of it, he was slapped on the ground by Li Li, and he had no temper at all. Not only that, seeing that Li Li's face was not good, and he seemed to be angry, he immediately softened, and his waist, which was finally straightened, immediately fell down, just like when they first met, he didn't have the courage to confront Li Li head-on.

It's really one thing for one thing, like a pack of wolves. From birth to the time they learn to hunt, they establish their affiliation and find their place in the pack, which will not change for the rest of their lives.

"The elder brother was angry, and the younger brother did not mean to offend the elder brother. However, Yizhou is the foundation left by my Liu ancestors, and it has been followed for more than 400 years. It's what my brother said, it's really difficult for a foolish brother to obey his fate, and I ask my brother to bear with me if it's rude. Although Liu Zhang's tone when he spoke was a little lacking in confidence and his words were soft, his expression was extremely resolute, his eyes were firm, and he seemed to make his position clear. Obviously, he still gritted his teeth and did not let go, still trying his best to hold on, without the slightest intention of compromise.

After Li Li heard this, instead of being angry, his brows were furrowed, and his expression was calm, so that people could not see a trace of joy and anger. Then he smiled indifferently and said calmly: "What the virtuous brother said is extremely true. Since Gaozu was crowned by the Han King to lead Yizhou, Yizhou is the land of the Han Dynasty, and all along, no matter how the position of Yizhou Assassin is alternated, the princes who sit here are all relatives of the Han family. It was not until ten years ago that Ling Zun succeeded him as the state pastor, and then passed it on to the virtuous brother; It has experienced the Eastern and Western Han Dynasty for more than 400 years. Therefore, it is not an exaggeration to say that Yizhou is the foundation handed down by the ancestors of the Liu family. It can be seen that the virtuous brother is a loyal, filial piety, benevolent and righteous person, and he is deeply admired and gratified by his brother. ”

As he spoke, Li Li paused, and then said: "That being the case, presumably the virtuous brother will not forget the promise he made in the past to serve his brother's mansion. At that time, the elder brother promised the virtuous brother that once the time was ripe, he would escort the virtuous brother to Yizhou and inherit the position of Yizhou pastor, and the virtuous brother promised the younger brother: 'In his lifetime, only the foolish brother is the first to look forward'.

To this day, Brother Wei has already fulfilled his promise and tried his best to help the virtuous brother ascend to the position of Yizhou pastor, but there is no news after the virtuous brother mentions Yizhou. Brother Xian did not forget the ancestral teachings, but he left behind his promise to me, and has turned a deaf ear for many years, not to mention that Brother Xian did not send troops to help me resist the princes of the Central Plains, and there is no trace of the taxes and food paid in the past six years. Shouldn't the virtuous brother explain this behavior in detail and give me an explanation? ”

"Ahh This ??????" Liu Zhang's voice changed when he heard this, and his face turned pale in exclaim, and he was stunned for a long time, but he was speechless.

Indeed, Li Li's words made Liu Zhang unable to refute, even if he wanted to explain, he was still forceful, laborious, and powerless. In fact, as Li Li said, he deliberately befriended Li Li back then, and originally only wanted to make friends with Li Li, not seeking tangible benefits, but only seeking to save his life, so as not to die in vain. Unexpectedly, after getting acquainted with Li Li, there was an unexpected gain, and Li Li promised him in person that once the time was ripe, he would help him return to Yizhou and ascend to the position of Yizhou pastor. Liu Zhang was immediately overjoyed, very excited, and couldn't help but repay the favor, and solemnly promised Li Li that if he could return to Yizhou to inherit the position of state pastor, he would definitely take Li Lima as the leader in his lifetime and never lose up.

In the spring of the following year, after making a promise to each other, Li Li fulfilled his promise and sent Shi A and a group of elite guards to escort Liu Zhang back to Yizhou, and gave him an edict to become the pastor of Yizhou, helping him to sit on the position of state pastor and withdraw the nine counties of Yizhou without danger. However, after Liu Zhang took charge of Yizhou, except for the 30,000 stone grain and grass provided to support Li Li during the Great War, he neither obeyed Li Li's orders nor donated any money and grain, just like a stone ox entering the sea without any news.

Now, Li Li once again mentioned the oath and promise of the year, Liu Zhang was speechless, and the most important thing was that he had no intention of fulfilling his promise at all, let alone obeying Li Li's orders. In other words, the reason why he solemnly promised at the beginning was nothing more than to win Li Li's trust, trying to use Li Li's hand to help him escape from Chang'an and return to Yizhou to inherit the ancestral industry. As for the promise made to Li Li, it was just a play on the spot, and it was a perfunctory thing that happened to coincide with the meeting, and it was completely expedient, and it was not intended to be fulfilled at all.

In fact, after Liu Zhang returned to Yizhou to become the state pastor, he threw his previous promise to Li Li out of the clouds and forgot all about it. After so many years, if Li Li hadn't mentioned the promise he had made again, maybe Liu Zhang would never have thought of it in his life, and he would have regarded it as an old thing that could not be looked back on, and he didn't want to think about it, let alone fulfill his promise.

Not only that, after Liu Zhang ascended to the position of Yizhou pastor, he was once secretly proud, thinking that Li Li was so foolish for a while, and he was so naïve that for the sake of the so-called friendship and an impossible promise, he willingly helped him to clear the obstacles and take charge of Yizhou in peace. For this reason, Liu Zhang was complacent, and for a long time he was proud, and even despised Li Li for a time, laughing at Li Li Although he had the ability to be the enemy of the princes of the world, he was defeated in the hands of him Liu Zhang. was deliberately flattered by him, and deliberately befriended him, so he played Li Li around, and then was ruthlessly used by him, "lost his wife and broke his soldiers" still didn't know it, and he was still waiting for him to come in Chang'an to offer money and food.

Liu Zhang, who thought he had a plan, had already forgotten his past after six years as a state pastor, and although he still had a little guilt in his heart about failing Li Li, he never thought of trying to make up for it. However, what he never dreamed of was that the old past, which had long been left behind by him, was brought up again, and the "party" was sitting next to him at the moment, "collecting debts" in person.

At this moment, Liu Zhang's face was red, his face was full of shame, his head was lowered, and he was restless, not knowing what to do.

"Ji Yu is a noble person, and he may have forgotten his past promise, but the foolish brother has never forgotten for a moment, and has always remembered it in his heart, and he still remembers Ji Yu's voice and smile when he solemnly promised. The words are still fresh in my ears and fresh in my memory. ”

Seeing that Liu Zhang hesitated for a long time and didn't say a word, Li Li smiled indifferently and said slowly: "It's been six years since the incident, maybe Ji Yu doesn't remember the original promise." However, the virtuous brother should know that the foolish brother was born poor, his parents died early when he was a child, he is self-reliant, diligent and thrifty, never takes advantage of others, and does not want to owe others favors, but he is a little childish, and others will have to pay me back sooner or later. To tell you the truth, today I am going to ask for debts, and it is time to fulfill my promise. ”

―――――― To be Continued ―――――――――――― (To be Continued......