When Liu Bei arrived in Jiangzhou with Zhang Fei, who was stationed in Yufu White Emperor City, Guan Yu hadn't actually set off yet.

According to Pang Tong's original plan, they didn't actually have to wait for Liu Bei to come over, they only needed to send suspicious soldiers north at the end of April and early May to confuse Zhang Lu.

Then wait until Zhang Lu is unmoved, and then send Wu Yishun and sailors into Han'an and Zizhong, so that Zhang Lu can be convinced that they were just playing a trick to encircle Wei and save Zhao before, so as to lower their defenses.

It will be able to let the main force raid Hanchang, take Hanzhong directly, and capture Hanzhong and Xichuan.

It's a pity that Fa Zheng clearly pointed out the loophole in this plan, that is, Zhang Lu was naturally not stupid enough to leave only 3,000 defenders in the crucial Micang Road.

Once Guan Yu chooses to implement Pang Tong's original plan, the strange soldiers will go north to raid Hanchang, and the people in the area of Danqu and Xuanhan will attack, and they will face the enemy on their backs.

Therefore, Guan Yu was forced to temporarily suspend the plan, and immediately sent someone to Langzhong to invite Zhou Lin to Jiangzhou to discuss the matter of winning over the people.

As a result, more than half a month has passed.

It happened that Liu Bei set off in mid-May and went upstream, but due to the recent rain in the Three Gorges area, he was delayed for more than ten days, and arrived in Jiangzhou at the end of May, where he happened to meet Zhou Lin.

Jiangzhou County Mansion Mansion, standing on the back mountain and looking into the distance, you can see the mighty river waves in the distance and the diving and the Yangtze River.

In the Han Dynasty, Dianjiang County had three rivers confluence and integration, namely Fushui, Western Han Water and diving.

The three rivers meet in the Dianjiang River, and then form a river, which is the Jialing River in later generations, the river surging south, and the Yangtze River in Jiangzhou, that is, Chongqing, converge with the Yangtze River, and finally flow to Jiangdong and turn into the East China Sea.

It just so happens that Langzhong is located along the West Han River, Zhou's business, is from Langzhong, arrived in Jiangzhou, in Jiangzhou to do trade distribution, sell and buy Yizhou specialties, the fleet then departed from Jiangzhou, arrived in Jingzhou Jiangling, after buying and selling goods in Jiangling, continue to go south, to Wu County and then return.

If this process goes well, it often lasts for several months or even a year, and if it does not go well, it may be delayed for a longer time in the event of war or natural disasters. Therefore, the Zhou family is in business, and they make a maximum of two trips to Jiangdong a year.

Zhou Lin didn't go to Jiangdong this year, just a trip to Jingzhou, and just returned last month, bringing Jingzhou wine, roasted tea, paper books, porcelain, ironware, rice, etc., and now he just hasn't gone out in Langzhong.

When Guan Yu sent people to go north along the river, Zhou Lin was buying medicinal materials, salt, Shu brocade and other specialties in some township pavilions in the south of Chongguo County to prepare for the next commercial activity, so he was delayed for a few days and arrived today.

Jiangzhou Wharf is already crowded, Zhou Lin is on an ordinary merchant ship, he stands on the side of the ship overlooking the wharf, and there is a Confucian student who is about thirty years old and nearly forty years old.

"Brother."

Zhou Lin said with a smile: "You see that General Guan has already personally greeted us at the dock. ”

That Confucian student was Zhou Lin's cousin Zhou Qun.

Historically, he was a captain of the Shu Han Confucian, an astronomer, simply put, a metaphysician who watched the heavens to predict good fortune and evil.

Zhou Qun sighed with emotion: "General Zuo is so polite and virtuous, it's moving." ”

"Wait."

Zhou Lin stood on tiptoe and looked into the distance, noticed the flag above the dock from a distance, and said with some surprise: "Brother, it seems that it is not only General Guan." ”

"Oh?"

Zhou Qun asked, "Is there anyone else?" ”

"General Zuo is also there."

Zhou Lin said: "That's General Zuo's banner. ”

Zhou Qun looked from a distance, and as the ship got closer and closer to the dock, he could already see that the dock was being requisitioned by a group of soldiers, and in the crowd, there were more than a dozen people looking at the boat.

The person at the head has a majestic face, grace and luxury, and has the air of a monarch. When Zhou Qun saw it, he said softly: "This person has the appearance of an emperor!" ”

"That's General Zuo."

Zhou Lin said.

Soon the ships docked.

Liu Bei arrived in Jiangzhou this morning.

Knowing that this matter still needed the help of the Zhou family, he hurriedly came to greet him in person.

The officials of all sizes in the city have arrived here, except for Zhao Yun, who went north to be a partial division, and the generals who are scattered all over Jiangzhou and stationed in the military camp, the rest of Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, Tai Shici, Pang Tong, Xu Shu, Sun Qian, and Mi Zhu also came.

This is enough to reflect Liu Bei's respect for the Zhou family.

After all, if you can take Yizhou and Hanzhong, you really need their help.

"Ji Zhi."

After the ship docked, Liu Bei greeted him cordially.

Zhou Lin and Zhou Qun got off the boat, and hurriedly saluted in front of Liu Bei: "Lin (Qun) has seen General Zuo. ”

"No courtesy, no courtesy."

Liu Bei went up to help Zhou Lin up, then looked at Zhou Qun and asked, "Who is this?" ”

Zhou Lin introduced: "General Zuo, this is my brother Zhou Qun, the word is straight, last time I told the general, my brother is good at the art of diagrams, once said that there are five emperors hanging high, there are stars floating in the period, indicating that the country has a virtuous person Sanxing Yanhan." ”

Liu Bei loves to hear this.

At that time, he happily went up and grabbed Zhou Qun's hand and said: "It turns out that Mr. is Ji Zhi's brother, Ji Zhi mentioned Mr. to me several times before, saying that Mr. is extremely accurate, and even the things of Chu Wangxue can be predicted?" ”

When asked about Zhou Qun's profession, he said proudly: "Yes, in October of the previous year, I saw a star appearing between the quail tail stars, and the quail tail star belongs to the Jingzhou division, which indicates that the king of Chu is sick. ”

Liu Bei thought for a while and said: "Mr. is really a god, and the king of Chu suddenly heard the bad news around October of the previous year, so that he fell ill and died at the beginning of last year. ”

When Jian'an was in the twelfth year, at the end of September, the news of Huang Zu's defeat first reached Liu Biao's ears, which made him sick all of a sudden, but the news of Cai Mao's defeat came in October, which directly made him so angry that he couldn't get out of bed.

The main reason is that Liu Biao was still dreaming of dominating the south at that time, thinking that Huang Zu's side could destroy Jiangdong, and Cai Mao's side could take Yizhou.

In this way, judging by the situation at that time, he would soon be able to become the lord of the south.

And Cao Cao has not eliminated the Yuan family, and even Jizhou has not yet been fully acquired, if it really develops smoothly in the direction expected by Liu Biao, it may not be possible to say that it will be able to determine the world within five years.

This made Liu Biao's expectations for Cai Mao and Huang Zu very high at that time, and the result was often that the greater the expectations, the greater the disappointment.

The news of the defeat of the two came over, and Liu Biao died of illness within two months.

Therefore, if Zhou Qun calculated this point before October of the previous year, even if it was a mistake, it was indeed a divine calculation. In the Han Dynasty, when the art of diagramming was extremely popular, it attracted great attention.

Liu Bei had heard Zhou Lin say that Zhou Qun's prophecy was very accurate, so when he saw Zhou Qun at this time, he also paid attention to him and invited him to the county mansion.

Soon the group arrived at the county mansion, and after everyone sat down, Liu Bei took the main position and said to the two: "Ji Zhi, Mr. Zhongzhi, the purpose of my invitation to come here today, I think you all know, please ask Mr. to teach me whether this trip can be successful?" ”

Zhou Qun said: "I saw the five princes before, and the five princes are in the southwest of Yizhou, and the group thought that those who monopolized the land in the west would lose their land. ”

Xu Shu groaned: "At this time, the West has a monopoly on land, including Liu Zhang according to Yizhou, Zhang Lu according to Hanzhong, Han Sui according to Liangzhou, Ma Chao according to Guanzhong, and Song Jian according to Caohan. Sir means that these people are going to lose their land? ”

Zhou Qun nodded and said, "Not bad." ”

Liu Bei was overjoyed and said: "Then my trip north to attack Hanzhong, does it mean that Zhang Lu will lose Hanzhong?" ”

Zhou Qun said: "But it's possible." ”

Liu Bei looked at Zhou Lin and said, "Ji Zhi, I want to use troops against Hanzhong, do you have a way to persuade the people?" ”

"Please allow me to go to the ditch and meet you kings."

Zhou Lin didn't dare to pack the ticket.

Although he does business with people, business is business, friendship is friendship, and he has not done things like buying low and selling high in the past.

Merchant, this kind of operation is normal.

But because there is no sales channel, he is forced to sell things to him at a low price, and he must be unhappy.

So people don't necessarily sell him face.

Zhou Qun suddenly said: "I saw that there was a bright hall last month, I am afraid that there is danger, if you go out of the army, it will be unfavorable, you should be cautious." ”

"Oh?"

Liu Bei looked at Zhou Qun in surprise and said, "Mr. just said that Zhang Lu may lose his ground, why is this trip dangerous?" ”

Zhou Qun explained: "The astrological signs are not static, and they may indicate a long future, and Zhang Lu may not be in the present, but in the future. ”

"In the future?"

Liu Bei was puzzled: "If today, besides me, who else can make Zhang Lu lose his place?" ”

Zhou Qun said: "I saw that the purple wall in the east was dark and the three stars were bright, and I was afraid that there would be changes in the north. ”

Liu Bei's face changed slightly: "What do you mean is that in the future, it will be Cao Cao who will make the western princes lose their land?" ”

Zhou Qun shook his head and said, "I'm just inferring from the astrological display, because I didn't see the sun outside suddenly brightening, so I think this change is in the three princes and not the sun." ”

The ancient astrological theories have their corresponding, for example, Ziweixing corresponds to the Emperor of Heaven, and the five stars of the North Pole are the prince, the emperor, the concubine, the harem, and the Tianshu. The three stars refer to the three stars of Orion, referring to Taiwei, Situ, and Sikong.

Among them, the sun guard is talking about the ministers or generals who assist the emperor.

In Zhou Qun's eyes, the emperor star that now represents Liu Xie, the Son of Heaven, is dim, and there are comets in the galaxy of the five princes in the west.

At least Cao Cao has not yet claimed to be the prime minister, and before the north is recovered, he is still commonplace, so Zhou Qun will feel that the celestial phenomena may be on Cao Cao.

But Liu Bei remembered that Zhou Qun had said that the Five Emperors Throne was hanging, so he hurriedly asked, "What about the Five Emperors?" ”

Zhou Qun replied: "The Five Emperors Constellation was hanging high at that time, and there were stars in it. But then it was dimmed due to the blooming of the three stars, only the Western White Emperor Zhao Rejection Star is still bright, maybe this White Emperor should be on General Zuo, but the Recruiting Rejection Star is now silent. ”

The White Emperor rejects the star?

Gongsun Shu?

Liu Bei remembered this name in his heart.

In that year, Gongsun Shu was based on Shu and cast the city in Yufu County.

Because a well in the city often emits white gas, like a white dragon, it takes this to call itself the White Emperor, and names this city the White Emperor City.

But whether in the stars or in reality, the White Emperor is not a good name.

The White Emperor on the stars is only one of the five emperors, not the Central Heavenly Emperor.

In reality, Gongsun Shu only seized the southwest, and was soon wiped out by Emperor Guangwu Liu Xiu, and did not establish an empire.

So Liu Bei just flashed this thought in his mind, and said in a deep voice: "I am not the White Emperor, nor am I the Sun Guard. I am an auxiliary minister of the Son of Heaven, and I will be edicted by the Son of Heaven to conquer the thieves from all directions, and one day I will destroy Cao Cao and save the Han from danger. If Zhang Lu stands in front of me, I will destroy Zhang Lu, and if Cao Cao comes, I will defeat him in the same way. ”

Zhou Qun was surprised: "It is naturally good for General Zuo to have such ambitions, but the celestial phenomena are like this, if he forcibly levies, he is acting against the sky, how can he force it?" ”

"It's not me who goes against the sky."

Liu Bei looked around at everyone and said, "But the ancestral inheritance is on me, and I have to do it." This battle is my last chance to get Hanzhong and Yizhou, if Zhang Lu gets Xichuan, with Hanzhong in the north and Yizhou in the south, in just a few years, he can raise hundreds of thousands of soldiers, I must not let him gain power. ”

"Big brother is right."

Zhang Fei also shouted: "If it is really against the sky, it will tear this day." My eldest brother was born in the clan and has been fighting in the south and north for many years, if the Mandate of Heaven cannot be continued by the Great Han, how can the eldest brother have today's momentum, which shows that the Mandate of Heaven is changing, and it will definitely be on my eldest brother in the end! ”

"Oh?"

Zhang Fei's words made Guan Yu impressed, and said: "The words of the third brother are very reasonable, the ancients "Spring and Autumn" are righteous, "follow the king with people, and follow the sky with kings". However, today's monarch is with others, Cao Cao is not heavenly, my brother is the world's instrument, retreat from the princes, ask for a doctor, in order to reach the king's affairs! ”

Reading "Spring and Autumn" every day is still effective, at least Guan Yu's remarks can be described as every word, which is very reasonable.

Zhou Qun wanted to say something, but Zhou Lin stopped him and said to Liu Bei: "General Zuo, this destiny is impermanent. Otherwise, the destiny is in Zhou, where does it belong to Han? So even a little bit of astrology is not surprising. I am willing to send envoys to convey General Zuo's wishes to them. ”

Liu Bei was very happy and asked, "I wonder if the Zhou clan in Langzhong is willing to go out?" I want to recruit two of you as officials? ”

"I am willing to do the work of dogs and horses."

Zhou Lin replied obediently.

Now Jingzhou has belonged to Liu Bei.

If this battle goes well, Yizhou will also belong to him.

In the future, most of the Yangtze River will be under Liu Bei's rule, and the Zhou family, as a merchant family that relies on the Yangtze River to develop trade, must not be a bad thing to be under Liu Bei's hands.

Zhou Qun saw that Zhou Lin agreed, so he did not refuse, and also arched his hand and said: "Qun is also willing to serve the dogs and horses." ”

Liu Bei was overjoyed and said: "Okay, Zhongzhi is well-read and looks at the sky, which can be described as an example of Confucianism." I will make you the captain of the Confucian Forest, and I will be in charge of the celestial affairs. Although Ji Zhi is a businessman, he has a heart of loyalty to the country, and I will let you be General Zuo as a Zhonglang. ”

"Thank you, General!"

The two thanked each other.

Liu Bei stood up and said loudly: "Since Ji Zhi is my subordinate, now he is going to Danqu to see the seventh surnamed Yi Wang, how can I let you be alone in danger?" I followed this trip and went to Lemon Head in person. ”

Zhou Lin hurriedly said: "General Zuo can sit in Jiangzhou." ”

"It doesn't matter."

Liu Bei waved his hand and said: "I have been crisscrossing the north and south for many years, and I don't know how many battles are big and small, this time I went to Mengtou to meet with the seven surnamed Yi Wang, one is to let them see my sincerity, and the other is to personally interview, so that they can rest assured, if I dare not go, how can I let them know that I value them?" ”

Guan Yu also said: "Big brother wants to go, then I will go too." ”

"I'll go too."

Zhang Fei also shouted.

Liu Guanzhang can't be scattered when he does big things.

Liu Bei nodded with a smile and said, "Okay, then let's go with the three brothers, the two military advisors, and you will sit in Jiangzhou." I personally went to Mengtou and persuaded the Seven Surnamed Yi Kings to get out of the way. ”

"This"

Pang Tong and Xu Shu glanced at each other, quite hesitant.

However, Liu Bei had already decided, so they had no choice but to say: "Only." ”

At the moment, Liu Bei did not hesitate.

On the second day, he only took Chen to no more than 1,000 personal guards, and marched north.

Liu Guan Zhang Sandao went to the meeting, and went to Wakou Pass in person to say that he would surrender to the king!

(End of chapter)