More than 20 days later, it was the 28th day of the seventh month of the sixth year of Guanghe.

Along the way, Lei Heng asked some small questions from time to time in the name of exchanging experiences with Xi Zhong and studying "Sima Law", inducing Xi Zhong to answer them for himself unconsciously. After these days of "running-in", the tacit understanding between the two has been continuously improved.

On this day, Lei Heng felt that the time was ripe, so he slowly said the question in his heart with his words: "Don't dare to deceive my brother, my foolish brother went to Luoyang this time, not only to serve his master and fulfill his filial piety, but also to prepare to bring money to seek official positions to show his ambitions." If you want to seek ambition and high opinions, what method should you use and what position should you get? ”

"Sure enough!" Xi Zhong sighed heavily, but closed his eyes and said nothing. After a long time, he sighed again and said, "Just use this matter to plan for you." Only, in the future...... Alas......"

Lei Heng knew that Xi Zhong had misunderstood, so he was not in a hurry to explain, and listened to his words quietly.

Xi Zhong pondered for a long time before he replied: "I don't know the intention of the truth, Zhong first tried to find a way to get it." First, Zhongjiu heard that Emperor Ling's West Mansion sold officials, 2,000 stone 20 million, 400 stone 4 million, and Zhengyan could buy it with gold; Second, Emperor Ling conferred the title of Hou Gui on Zhang Rang, Zhao Zhong and other Zhongchang servants, and said that 'Zhang Changshi is my father, Zhao Changshi is my mother', and he can bribe the two to get it; ”

Lei Heng replied with a smile: "The expectation of balance is to show weight......"

When Xi Zhong heard this, he immediately stepped forward and admonished: "It's right." The position of the three princes and the nine kings is just a bird in a cage, and most of the positions such as Jinwu Thorn History have a false appearance, how can they show their ambitions, and they must not be greedy for fame......"

Lei Heng said to himself proudly: "Zhicai misunderstood. My so-called 'position and weight' is to exalt one side, centralize oneself, and not be constrained. ”

"Dominate one side and centralize itself?" Xi Zhong carefully tasted the words Lei Heng said, as if he thought of something, and subconsciously glared at Lei Heng. Lei Heng didn't dodge or dodge, and smiled at him.

Xi Zhong nodded secretly and praised: "Zhengyan is so courageous." After a pause, he asked slowly: "The first emperor is tyrannical, and there is Chen Sheng and Wu Guang Shouyi, and only then can the world compete for deer; Although the Han Dynasty is terminally ill but there is no strong medicine to urge it, is it true that he wants to be this righteous person? ”

Lei Heng smiled faintly and said, "Where are Chen Sheng and Wu Guangjin?" What happened to Wang Kuang and Wang Feng in the green forest, Fan Chong and Xu Xuan? Heng is not only a master of this great event, but also a teacher who will not forget the future from the present, and will not be a bird of this beginning. Seeing that Xi Zhong was confused for a while, he further explained: "Temporarily seek an official position to shepherd one side." If the world is peaceful, Heng is willing to be loyal to his duties and be a capable minister of the world; If the Han loses its deer, he should take advantage of the situation and raise troops to dominate the hero. ”

Hearing these words, Xi Zhong was shocked, and looked at Lei Heng in a daze for a long time, and only after a long time did he ask word by word: "Gaozu Chang Xianyang, looking at Emperor Qin, he sighed and said: Huh, the eldest husband should be like this!" Emperor Tour Huiji, crossing Zhejiang, Liang and nationality are all viewed. He said: He can take his place! I don't know who I want to learn? ”

After considering it, Lei Heng knew that this answer would be the key to whether he could recruit Xi Zhong. Isn't this a lot of foreshadowing just for this moment, but it must not go wrong.

Lei Heng thought carefully: both sentences are very atmospheric, and both of them are ambitious. "The husband should be like this" not only reflects a kind of mind and ambition, but also reverence for the Qin Emperor and affirmation of the Qin Emperor's achievements; "He can take his place" reflects a kind of conceit and ambition, and also implies contempt for the Qin Emperor. In contrast, "the big husband should be like this" seems to have a city, measure, mind, and ambition.

Naturally, it should be the ancestor of the high. Lei Heng was full of confidence, and subconsciously wanted to say the answer, but suddenly woke up: Four hundred years ago, Gaozu Liu Bang killed the overlord Xiang Yu, and in the eyes of later generations, he will inevitably follow the example of the winner, so why should Xi Zhong ask more? The topic shouldn't be so simple, I almost fell for it!

"At this time, it is too early to say that it is too early to emulate anyone, and it is only necessary to seek an official position to shepherd one side, and as for the future, we should wait for the time." Lei Heng replied word by word, and bowed deeply to Xizhong, and said: "Heng knows that it is better to seek others than to seek himself, and he is willing to use what he has learned to make the people of the world live in peace and enjoy their work, be willing to eat and serve beautifully, and hope will help me!" ”

Xi Zhong's eyes struggled, and finally bowed down in front of Qin Fan, and said solemnly: "Zhong, please see the lord." ”

Lei Heng hurriedly stepped forward to help Xi Zhong: "I have the ambition to be talented, it can be said that I am like a fish in water, and I am fortunate to have three lives." ”

When Xi Zhong heard the words "like a fish in water", he instantly felt a sense of encounter, and couldn't help but be a little more loyal, and said humbly: "The lord praises falsely, and he dare not be faithful." The right person wants to 'exalt one side', but I don't know if I have the intention? ”

"The first to ask for one side to be too guarded, and the last to be the captain of Qiang and Wuhuan."

Xi Zhong bowed his hand and said: "The frontier is eventful, the aliens are aggressive, we have no experience in governing yet, I am afraid it will be difficult to perform, and it is appropriate to seek one side too defensively." ”

Lei Heng then asked: "The thirteen states of the Han Dynasty, the four prefectures of You, Merge, Liang, and Jiao are the bitter cold places of the frontier, and Sili is the land of the people in Gyeonggi, which is really difficult to be the foundation. For the rest of Kyushu, I intend to seek to take Jizhou, Gunzhou, and Xuzhou, repair politics and economics internally, and take the north and then conquer the south, is it okay? ”

"The family is in control, the wealthy are everywhere, and the foundation is unstable..."

"Seeking to take the Taishou of Yuzhou and Qingzhou, accumulate grain and stock, pay equal attention to suppression and appeasement, first set the east and then Pingxi, is it possible?"

"In the land of the four wars, the people's livelihood is withering, and it is difficult to grow..."

"Is it possible to seek the Taishou of Yizhou, Jingzhou, and Yangzhou, with abundant products and easy attachment to the people, and to attack the north after occupying the south of the Yangtze River?"

"There are many chaotic aliens, the south ships and the north horses, and the lack of strength to cross the river..."

Lei Heng was puzzled, the Taishou of Kyushu was denied by Xi Zhong, where did he take it as his foundation? Hurriedly got up and got out of bed, bowed deeply, and earnestly asked Xi Zhong for advice: "Heng Lu is dull, Wang Zhicai will teach me..."

Xi Zhong replied with a smile: "Can the lord forget about Qin's annihilation of the Six Kingdoms and the dispute between Chu and Han?" ”

Lei Heng seemed to have an understanding: "Take the land of Qinchuan, enter the two states of Yi and Liang, and sweep the east after taking the northwest..."

"In this way, with the grain and grass of Yizhou, the battle of Liangzhou Ma Qiang soldiers, after capturing Jingxiang, take Siyu in the north and Yangxu in the east, then the great cause can be expected..."

……

Isn't this the "Longzhong pair" known in the previous life? Zhuge Liang suggested that Liu Bei first take Jingzhou, which "bases Han in the north, makes the best use of the South China Sea, connects Wuhui in the east, and passes through Bashu in the west" to occupy the geographical advantage of "the country of force"; Then take the Yizhou of "fertile fields for thousands of miles, the land of abundance" as the backing, echoing Jingzhou, the land of the four wars, repairing the political affairs inside, forming Sun Quan outside, standing by, with Wanluo as the main direction of attack, and Qinchuan as the flank echoing, enterprising the world. Lei Heng carefully pondered the similarities and differences between the aggressive strategies of the two eras.

The same thing is that they have to cross the two states of Jing and Yi, but the difference is the order of the scope of the capture and the strategy of attacking. "Longzhong" suggested that Jingzhou should be taken first and then Tubashu, and Xizhong suggested that he should take Yizhou first and then Yongliang; "Longzhong suggested that "General Yi will take the troops of Jingzhou to Xiang Wan and Luo, and the general will lead the people of Yizhou to go out of Qinchuan", and Xi Zhong suggested that he should take Jingxiang again, imitating the story of Qin's annihilation of the Six Kingdoms to exterminate the major forces in the East.

At present, I need to think clearly about the "priority", as for the future action strategy, we should be improvised, and the top priority is only to determine which county to seek as a foundation.

Lei Heng likes Hanzhong County the most. Regarding the importance of Hanzhong, there are many discussions about the time and later generations. Yang Hong once said to Zhuge Liangyun: "Hanzhong is the throat of the benefit, the opportunity to survive, if there is no Hanzhong, there is no Shu, and the disaster of this family is also." ("Romance of the Three Kingdoms", Volume 41, "The Biography of Yang Hong"). Huang Quan also said: "If you lose Hanzhong, then the three bars will be sluggish, and this is the arm of Shu." ("Romance of the Three Kingdoms", Volume 43, "The Biography of Huang Quan"). Gu Zuyu of the Qing Dynasty said: "Hanzhong Mansion overlooks Guanzhong in the north, covers Bashu in the south, reaches Xiangdeng in the east, and controls Qinlong in the west, and the situation is the most serious. (Gu Zuyu: "Reading the Minutes of History and Public Opinion", Volume 56). If Cao Wei occupies Hanzhong, he will seriously threaten Bashu. For example, in the 20th year of Jian'an, Cao Cao leveled Zhang Lu, "breaking the Hanzhong, the Shu people were terrified", "Shuzhong was shocked dozens of times a day, and although he was cut off, he was not at peace". "Romance of the Three Kingdoms", Volume 14, "The Biography of Liu Ye", notes "Fu Zi". If Shu has this place, it will not only be able to ensure the safety of Sword Pavilion and Chengdu, but also make it a base for the Northern Expedition. For Shu Han, Hanzhong was no less important than Jingzhou.

Moreover, whether it is the rise of Qin, the development of Han, or even the advancement of Liu Bei to the king of Hanzhong in later generations, they all originate from the unique environment of Guanzhong. The land of the Guanzhong Plain is loose and fertile, and there are rivers such as Jing and Wei to provide water sources, which are very suitable for farming. There are Qinling Mountains in the south of Guanzhong, which isolates the north and south; There is Beishan Mountain in the north, which blocks the communication between Xi'an and the north; In the east, there is a longitudinal column of the Kunshan Mountain, which serves as a barrier to Xi'an; In the west, there are Huangshan and Longshan to meet, resisting the intrusion of Western ethnic minorities. If you win Hanzhong, you will be able to get twice the result with half the effort if you capture Yizhou, Liangzhou, and Jingzhou.

Lei Heng thanked him again: "Wangzhi can help me, I want to take Hanzhong County." ”

Xi Zhong even expressed his loyalty: "It is Zhong's long-cherished wish to assist the lord to sweep away the injustices and create a prosperous world, and dare not do his best." Loyal to the news, the current Taishou is a single Yang, a single Wuxuan, and is self-reliant with loneliness and hardship. He served as Taishi Ling, served in the middle, and Guanghe went to Hanzhong in the second year. If the lord wants to take this county, he should start from Zhang Rang and Zhao Zhong, and he must send more money to make him enter the Emperor Ling. It's just that we only have 500 gold, so I'm afraid it's not enough..."

"It's hard for a good woman to cook without rice...... Lei Heng knows that eunuchs are greedy, if there is no heavy profit, how can he speak for himself? Do you have to use those secret weapons? It's better to wait for the opportunity to move in Luoyang, and at the moment it is better to appease Xi Zhong: "Zhicai does not need to worry, as the saying goes, 'there must be a road before the car reaches the mountain', and it is ......not impossible to take one of its counties or other counties as officials at that time."

Xi Zhong nodded, and said: "The opera still has a few shops, hundreds of hectares of fertile land, and I am willing to dedicate it to the lord." ”

Lei Heng hurriedly refused: "Zhicai doesn't have to be like this, Heng has no intention of doing this, and he doesn't dare to accept it!" ”

"Hehe, but things outside the body, only be loyal and 'lend' to the lord, and the lord should take the second volume of the "Sima Law" as a pledge, and he will have more days and honorarium."

"That's fine. Zhicai will be rewarded for this kindness. ”

"Sui Sheng, pass the order, set off after half a pillar of incense, and go straight to Yangzhai County, Yingchuan County."

"No!"