Compared with Cao Cao's irritability and anxiety in Yanzhou, Liu Biao in Jingzhou was much calmer after learning that the Son of Heaven was still in Luoyang and Liu Yu entered Beijing to govern.

Liu Biao pursues the golden mean, he has his own political ideas and ambitions, but he has never wanted to control the whole world, so he has a wait-and-see attitude towards the Son of Heaven and Luoyang, as long as the court does not attack Jingzhou, then he will not take the initiative to provoke Luoyang. As for Liu Yu's entry into Beijing, although Liu Biao has different views, he also knows that the general trend is difficult to disobey, so he still holds the idea of taking one step at a time.

Since Zhang Ji broke into Nanyang from Guanzhong, at first Liu Biao was ready to join forces with Liu Bei of the garrison in Luyang to send troops to encircle and suppress Zhang Ji, but the strategist Kuai Yue suggested that he not do it for the time being, and then see how the situation changes. Anyway, since Nanyang County became the ruler of Jingzhou, there has not been any time when it has been completely under Liu Biao's rule, so Liu Biao has let Zhang Ji's uninvited go.

Liu Biao is sitting firmly on the Diaoyutai here, but Liu Bei is sitting on pins and needles, because he has a very bad feeling since he learned that Liu Yu is in charge of Luoyang. Liu Bei is now actually trying to survive between Cao Cao, Liu Biao and Luoyang, and the reason why Cao Cao and Liu Biao allow him to exist is because both sides need him to be sandwiched in the middle to act as a shock absorber, but Liu Yu obviously does not need Liu Bei to exist as a shock absorber.

Liu Yu is in charge of Luoyang, and in the future, he will definitely require all states to send New Year's gifts to Luoyang, and Liu Bei, a small stone blocked in the southeast corner of Luoyang, is obviously a bit in the way, Liu Yu will definitely find a way to either incorporate Liu Bei's team, or force Cao Cao and Liu Biao to get rid of Liu Bei.

Liu Bei 11,000 didn't want to be co-opted by Liu Yu, he was now anxious to find a safe place to stay, and Zhang Ji's arrival undoubtedly gave him hope. In Liu Bei's opinion, his current life is not good, and Zhang Ji is also not happy, and their two forces have the foundation to unite.

In order to realize his intention to unite with Zhang Ji, Liu Bei sent Jian Yong to Wancheng to meet Zhang Ji.

Zhang Ji and Zhang Xiu's uncle and nephew had just settled in Nanyang, and they were very worried that Liu Biao would join forces with Liu Bei to deal with them. So when I heard that Jian Yong came to pay a visit, I warmly received Jian Yong.

Jian Yong said to Zhang Ji: "Nanyang is a place of anointing, and the fact that the general can come shows that he has a long-term vision." It's just that the general has ever thought that with your current strength, can you hold Nanyang? ”

Zhang Ji frowned and said nothing, but Zhang Xiu asked Jian Yong with a dark face: "Whether you can keep Nanyang or not, that's my uncle's business, do you think that Liu Xuande's soldiers and horses alone can help us?" ”

"Jin Yu (Zhang Xiuzi) must not be unreasonable to Mr. Xianhe!" Zhang Ji spoke out and drank Zhang Xiu.

"Mr. Kenwa. To tell the truth, with the soldiers and horses under my command, if Liu Biao attacks with all his might, he will naturally be unable to resist, but even if my uncle and nephew defeat Nanyang, it will definitely make Liu Biao break a few front teeth! However, Liu Biao still has to deal with Jiangdong Sun Jian and Yangzhou Yuan Shu, is it possible for him to transfer all his troops and horses to Nanyang? ”

Since Zhang Ji has been able to mix with the devils like Li Dao and Guo Yan in Guanzhong for so many years, it is naturally not something that Jian Yong can scare and fool with a few words.

"The general's words are true. But did you miss the Luoyang side? Liu Yu has entered Beijing to govern, according to what he did when he was in Youzhou, he must urge the states to pay the New Year's endowment to the imperial court, and when the time comes, will you pay or not? ”

"Of course I don't! The imperial court wanted to ask Jingzhou to collect the annual tax. Just go to Liu Jingsheng, it's about our birds! Zhang Xiu interjected with some dissatisfaction.

"Hehe, the young general said this well. However, if Liu Jingsheng said to the imperial court that you occupy Nanyang. Blocking the road, and not handing over the annual tax to the court under the pretext, do you think the court will send troops to recruit you? ”

"We are not even afraid of Liu Biao's army of 100,000. Why are you afraid of the soldiers and horses in Luoyang! "Zhang Xiu is like a cannon that does not ignite spontaneous combustion, always rushing to speak.

"The young general is so ambitious! To tell the truth, our soldiers and horses are not less than yours, but when I think of Liu Yu's wolf-like son, Xuande Gong can't sleep at night. As far as I know, Liu Shiren seems to have not tasted defeat since he led the army, if he thinks that you have refuted his father's face, do you think he will lead the army to the crusade? ”

"Even if Liu Shiren sends troops, you will be the first to clean up!"

"Hehe, the young general is right, if Luoyang sends troops, we will naturally bear the brunt, but once we are defeated, is it your turn next?"

Jian Yong's eloquence is really good, and he has been smiling at Zhang Ji's uncle and nephew's cold words, but the last sentence he asked made Zhang Ji and Zhang Xiu's hearts tremble.

Zhang Ji had probably guessed Jian Yong's intention, and he didn't think that Liu Bei still sent someone to entertain his Yaxing at this time, so he said to Jian Yong bluntly: "Mr. Xianhe is here to persuade you and me to join forces, right?" ”

Jian Yong nodded solemnly and said, "In today's situation, for you and me, cooperation is beneficial to both families, and fighting is defeat. Since we are all trying to survive in the cracks, why not put aside suspicion and hostility, unite sincerely, and join forces with the outside world? ”

Zhang Ji pondered for a long time, and said to Jian Yong: "Mr. Xianhe is right, when this time of survival, you and I should indeed join forces, but how to join forces, there must be a charter, I don't want to be with a kind and vicious jackal anymore!" ”

When Zhang Ji said this, he naturally meant something. At the beginning, he was repeatedly used by Li Dao and Guo Yan in Chang'an, and in the end, he simply left Li Dao and left Guanzhong. There is a saying that "once you are bitten by a snake, you are afraid of the well rope for ten years", Zhang Ji is now very vigilant about the joint matter.

Jian Yong saw that Zhang Ji already had the intention of uniting, and he did not force the alliance to be signed immediately, so he said: "I will return to Luyang to inform Xuande of the results of the talks, and the general can rest assured that we will work out the action regulations after the joint operation of the two sides in the shortest possible time, and then send it to the general for consideration." ”

Zhang Ji felt that Jian Yong's trip was full of sincerity, so he agreed to Jian Yong's proposal, and waited for Liu Bei to come up with a joint agreement that was mutually acceptable.

After Jian Yong replied to Lu Yang, he reported the process of the meeting to Liu Bei in detail, and Liu Bei had a plan in his heart after listening to it. Liu Bei wouldn't tell Jian Yong, he didn't really think about uniting with Zhang Ji at all, what he was thinking about was how to swallow up the more than 10,000 people and horses that Zhang Ji brought from Guanzhong! Liu Bei didn't tell Jian Yong what he really thought, not that he didn't think Jian Yong was credible, but that he felt that this matter needed to be done at the same time, and Jian Yong, who likes to talk big, is undoubtedly the most suitable person to be responsible for contacting on the surface.

Liu Bei soon came up with a very fair joint alliance, in which Liu Bei did not covet the territory occupied by Zhang Ji's uncle and nephew, but only asked the two sides to maintain military progress and retreat together in the future, and when one party encountered danger, the other party should spare no effort to rescue.

After Zhang Ji saw it, he felt more satisfied, so he agreed with Liu Bei for a time, and then the two sides secretly burned incense and sacrificed to the sky at the foot of Hengshan Mountain between Luyang and Wancheng, and formed an alliance with blood.

Just when Liu Bei and Zhang Ji were making small moves in private, in the countryside of Xiangyang, more than 200 miles away from Wancheng, in a valley surrounded by mountains on three sides, a nineteen-year-old white-faced scholar was discussing the situation in the world with several visiting friends.

This place, which is surrounded by mountains on three sides, is located forty miles west of Xiangyang and is known locally as Longzhong. The mountain here is not high and elegant, the water is not deep and clear, the land is not wide and flat, the forest is not big and lush, there are cranes on a blind date, the pine fence is green, just like a fairyland outside the world. This young scholar who talked about the world with his friends, named Zhuge Liang, the word Kongming, came from the Langya Zhuge family, and now lives in seclusion in Longzhong.

Kong Ming was born in the fourth year of Emperor Guanghe, Lingdi, and was born in a family of officials in Yangdu County, Langxie County. Zhuge is the Lang evil wang clan, Kong Ming's ancestor Zhuge Feng once served as a lieutenant in the Western Han Dynasty when Emperor Yuan was a lieutenant, and his father Zhuge Gui once served as a county governor of Taishan. Kong had a fateful youth, his mother Zhang died of illness when he was three years old, and his father died of illness when he was eight years old. Kong Ming has an elder brother, called Zhuge Jin, and a younger brother named Zhuge Jun, when their parents died, they followed their uncle Ge Xuan to Yuzhang to take office, and later the officials of the imperial court faction replaced Zhuge Xuan, Zhuge Xuan came to Jingzhou to defect to Liu Biao.

The year before last, Zhuge Xuan died of illness in Xiangyang, and after the three brothers handled the funeral for their uncle, the older Zhuge Jin went down the river to Jiangnan to find a way out, while Zhuge Liang and Zhuge stayed in Longzhong to keep filial piety for their uncle.

At this time, Zhuge Kongming, in the words of later generations, was still a young angry young man, he liked to recite "Liang's Father's Yin" on weekdays, often did not know that the sky was high and the earth was thick, and he actually compared himself to Guan Zhong and Le Yi, and the nearby villagers disdained this arrogant young man, only Shi Tao, Cui Jun and Meng Jian and others believed in his talents, and came to Longzhong from time to time to talk to him.

On this day, the four friends gathered in Longzhong, Meng Jian asked Zhuge what he thought about the Son of Heaven returning to Luoyang and Liu Yu entering Beijing to govern, Zhuge thought for a while, and then said: "This time the Son of Heaven is still in Luoyang, which is very strange, it seems to exceed everyone's expectations, but for the Han, it is a fortunate thing." Liu Yu has no ambitions, and he is responsible for generosity, benevolence and harmony, and he will preside over the court situation, unlike when He Jin and Dong Zhuo were in power, they killed countless people at every turn, and blood flowed like a river. ”

"According to what you say, wouldn't that be a celebration for the whole world, so that everyone can sit back and relax in the future?" Shi Tao somewhat disagreed with Zhuge 's analysis and retorted.

"Brother Guangyuan, let me finish my words. Liu Yu's generosity and benevolence are both good and bad. Because if there is chaos today, the states do their own thing, and Liu Yu is generous, it will inevitably make it difficult to implement the orders of the imperial court to the states, and Liu Yu's son of the tiger and wolf will definitely not sit back and watch his father be bullied by the states. ”

"Then in Kong Ming's opinion, who will this world end up into?" Cui Jun asked.

Kong Ming shook his head, indicating that he couldn't see clearly. (To be continued......)