At the gate of Xiangyang City, Liu Bei, who was holding the white Lu Ma, couldn't help but feel a little dazed when he looked at the scene of busy traffic, crowds, and vendors shouting in front of him.

Actually, it is not the first time that Liu Bei has come to Xiangyang.

After Anfeng's defeat, he and Zhang Fei followed the post road to find Guan Yu's whereabouts, until they entered Jiangxia County, and only then did they find Guan Yu waiting for them in Yunshe County.

When the three brothers got together again, they took more than 100 remnants to Xiangyang.

Liu Biao did not express his willingness to accept them, but Liu Qi's secret letter was full of enthusiasm, and Liu Bei really had nowhere to go at this time, so he could only risk being turned away.

Fortunately, Liu Qi did not disappoint him, and with the respect of the emperor's uncle, he forcibly withstood the pressure from the Cai family and persuaded Liu Biao to take Liu Bei in.

At this point, he went to Shinno, as in history.

Today is the second time he came to Xiangyang, after all, he was not as hasty and uneasy as the first time, and he had a little leisure to appreciate the magnificent scenery of Xiangyang, and he couldn't help but sigh that the prosperity of Xiangyang City was not lost to Xuchang City.

Jingzhou, worthy of being the belly of the world, has the convenience of waterways, can crisscross the north and south, and Liu Biao has no less than 200,000 troops, to say that he is not envious, it is a lie.

"Liu Bei visits Brother Jingsheng."

In the palace, Liu Bei bowed his hand to Liu Biao, who was over fifty years old and slightly depressed on the handsome chair.

"Xuande is here, sit down."

Liu Biao, who has white hair, looks like he is in his old age, but in fact, he is only fifty-four years old, and he has such a state to take care of Liu Cong's mother, Cai, who is generally squeezed clean.

"Is there a shortage of ordnance, grain and grass sent to Xinye this month?" Liu Biao's back is a little rickety.

"Thank you, Brother Jingsheng, the grain, grass and ordnance are exactly the same."

Liu Biao is still good to him, although he did not allocate soldiers and horses, but the ordnance, grain and grass are sent according to the use of 2,000 people, Liu Bei can recruit enough soldiers and horses in Xinye, "I came here today to report to Brother Jingsheng." ”

"Oh?"

Liu Biao yawned and smiled sleepily: "What great news?" ”

"Cao Cao is seriously ill, have you ever heard of Brother Jingsheng?"

"I heard."

Liu Biao, who was sitting on the main seat, took a sip of tea, stretched his waist, and said in a lazy tone: "The scholars who participated in the poetry meeting in Jingzhou also said this after they came back, saying that it was Lu Bu's son-in-law Lin Mo who wrote a scolding essay on the three generations of Cao Cao's ancestors at the poetry meeting, and Cao Cao was critically ill after seeing it. ”

After calming down, Liu Biaocai sighed with emotion: "This kid is young, and he has such an amazing talent, which is enough to last for a hundred years." ”

Liu Bei, who had been calculated by Lin Mo, could no longer have a trace of good feelings, and after a flash of disdain in his eyes, he arched his hand and said: "Brother Jingsheng, Cao Cao is famous, but he can coerce the Son of Heaven to order the princes to come, and the heart of usurping Han and self-reliance is obvious to everyone in the world."

When I was in Xuchang, I met His Majesty twice in private, and every time I talked about national affairs, His Majesty wept bitterly, and he looked forward to us exterminating the national thieves and returning to power.

Brother Jingsheng, you and I are both descendants of the Han family, at this juncture, we should serve the country and raise troops to resist Cao, at this time Cao Cao is in danger, if Brother Jingsheng personally leads a strong force to Xuchang, I believe that he will be able to sword the national thief, support the court, and save the Son of Heaven from fire and water.

Isn't this move a great news to report to Heaven and the people? ”

The words that come out of the mouths of successful people are the secret to climbing to the top.

And from the mouth of a desperate person like Liu Bei, Liu Biao naturally scoffed.

"Xuande, I won't tell you, I'm already an old man in my fifties, and I don't have much time left, I have no intention of power, and I don't want to dominate among the princes."

As he spoke, he turned his head and glanced at the map of Jingxiang Nine Counties hanging behind him, and smiled with relief, "I just want to protect the territory and the people, and I will grow old here." ”

At first hearing, Liu Bei was indeed a little surprised.

Sitting on the nine counties of Jingxiang, with no less than 200,000 soldiers, and the abundance of money and food in the treasury still overwhelms Cao Cao, how can he be so lazy.

Liu Bei's eyes sank, turned around, and continued: "Brother Jingsheng, since ancient times, a corner of peace will not last long, Cao Cao has long coveted Jingxiang Nine Counties, if Brother Jingsheng does not take the opportunity to make trouble, when he relieves his breath, he will definitely come south to attack."

Brother Jingsheng is a wise person, and he should know the truth of being prepared for danger in times of peace. ”

Obviously, Liu Biao's words should be like a morning bell and dusk drum to wake him up, but it caused him to laugh loudly and finally coughed with laughter, and Cai Shi on the side hurriedly smoothed his breath on his back, "Master, don't be excited." ”

Cai's is twenty-eight years old, his face is like a hibiscus out of water, not stained with dust, and a pair of eyes like stars, which seem to be breathtaking, even if he is wearing a loose light red dress, he can also get a glimpse of his proud figure.

It's no wonder that Liu Biao will be exhausted on her.

"Xuande, Jingzhou has the Yangtze River moat, and the combat power of Jingxiang Water Division is not weak, and it is a fool's dream to annex Jingzhou with his northern iron horse."

Liu Biao, who came to the end, held Cai's jade hand and sighed: "And I, a Jingxiang soldier, can fight in water, but not as good as Cao's army in land warfare." So, Cao Cao and I, it's best to be at peace, and once the battle starts, no one can eat well. ”

Having said that, Liu Bei already knew that what Cao Cao said when he was cooking wine and talking about heroes in Xuchang City was completely good, Liu Biao was really a caretaker.

"Brother Jingsheng's words made me wake up like a dream, but I was ignorant."

"Come on, come on, Xuande, don't talk about other things, stay in Xiangyang tonight, and we can have a long talk."

"It's better to be respectful than to obey."

said that it was a candle night talk, but in fact, after dinner, Liu Biao went to bed with Cai's support.

Early the next morning, Liu Bei got up early in the morning to bid farewell to Liu Biao and was about to return to Xinye.

This is how it is under the fence, even if you clearly know that now is the right time, but the other party does not listen, you can only do it obediently.

As soon as he walked out of the city gate, he saw his son Liu Qi sitting on a horse, as if waiting for Liu Bei.

"Childe." Liu Bei nodded.

"Uncle Huang."

After taking the initiative to make a gesture of please, Liu Qi went hand in hand with Liu Bei, "Please don't resent your father, in fact, my father was not like this in the early years." ”

"How dare you, it's just that I am a little puzzled in my heart." When Cao Cao said that Liu Biao was a caretaker of the family, Liu Bei also disagreed, after all, he was a person who rode into Jingzhou alone to clean up the chaos, and it was impossible not to have some power and scheming.

"Does Uncle Huang know the four major families of Jingxiang?" Liu Qi rode a horse, looking nonchalant.

"The four families of Huang, Cai, Kuai, and Pang, I heard that these four families are capable of producing people in large numbers and have shared most of the burden of governance for Brother Jingsheng."

Liu Bei's words were so tactful that even Liu Qi couldn't help but want to laugh.

The power of the four major families has penetrated into the military and political affairs of the nine counties, from Taishou to the county Cheng, from the general to the Sima, it is almost impossible for people who are not from the four major families to take power.

"Among the four major families, the Cai family is the most powerful, especially after the Cai family married his father and gave birth to Liu Cong, most of the people in the army have been replaced by Cai family cronies."

Liu Qi turned his head and glanced at Xiangyang City behind him, biting his lower lip and turning white, "The Cai family's sisters and brothers are popular with the outside world, and they deceive and hide from the inside, so that my father can't understand the truth about many things."

Coupled with Cai's habitual charm, his father he."

After the words, Liu Qi was a little ashamed to speak.

But speaking of which, the doubts that had been haunting Liu Bei's heart were finally solved.

He finally understood why Liu Qi would bypass Liu Biao's secret letter to invite him to Jingzhou, because the Cai family was too favored, and most of the troops were Cai Mao's faction, in this context, Liu Biao was very likely to do something stupid.

Even if he doesn't want to do it, someone will do it for him.

Therefore, Liu Qi needs foreign aid, and at this time, his identity as an imperial uncle will have an immeasurable role.

"Among the other three major families, are there any supporters of Gongzi?" After figuring out the reason, Liu Bei got straight to the point.

He was keenly aware that Liu Qi's situation was too imaginary for himself, and he was at the end of his rope.

Perhaps, after he ascends the throne, he will have the opportunity to let Jingzhou embark on the road of resisting Cao and saving the country.

Liu Qi frowned, and said in a low voice: "Only the Huang family headed by Jiangxia Taishou Huang Zu supports me, the Kuai family and the Cai family have one nostril to breathe, and the Pang family has two ends, and they never express their stance on this kind of thing." ”

That situation is not too bad, Liu Bei thought.

However, the strength of the Huang family can't even fight against the Cai family, let alone a Kuai family.

"If you can win over the Pang family to stand on the side of Gongzi, the situation may be eased." Whether he was quoted for help, or when he was at the end of his rope, Liu Bei felt that he should help Liu Qi.

What's more, abolishing Chang Liyu has been the way to take trouble since ancient times, and he and Liu Biao are both descendants of the royal family, and they also have the responsibility and obligation to correct mistakes.

"The little nephew understands this section, but"

Liu Qi shook his head weakly, "I have visited the Pang family many times, but I have found nothing. ”

"Who is the head of the Pang family?" Liu Bei asked.

"The famous sage of the Pang family is Pang Degong, a famous scholar in Xiangyang, but he ignores family affairs, and now he can lead the Pang family is a new generation of leaders Pang Shiyuan.

Pang Degong is his uncle, who once praised him for his talent in helping the country and stabilizing the country, and called him a phoenix. ”

Liu Qi paused and said in a sullen voice: "It's a pity that Pang Tong is a person, and the immortal trail is uncertain, and I have never seen him." ”

Feng Xiao Pang Shiyuan?

Helping the country and stabilizing the country?

These words were piled together, which made Liu Bei, who originally just had the attitude of helping Liu Qi and helping himself, shocked.

He really needs a wise man who looks up to the world and strategizes to assist him, Lu Bu is just a dying person After getting Lin Mo's assistance, he can crisscross the two states, and his strength has skyrocketed.

I don't know how talented this person is compared to Lin Mo

"Childe, where does Pound live?" Liu Bei asked quietly.

"Yuliang Zhou."

Liu Qi pointed to the west and said, "Thirty miles to the west, there is an embankment in the south of Da Xian Mountain, where Pang Degong lives. ”

Then his eyes flashed, "Uncle Huang wants to visit in person?" ”

"Although he ignores family affairs, after all, he is Pang Shiyuan's uncle, and I am willing to move with sincerity to persuade the Pang family to support Gongzi." Liu Bei looked at the west and was distracted.

He hoped that he could persuade the Pang family to help Liu Qi.

More hopeful. Pang Tong can help himself.

The economy of the country and the world, the stability of the country. The person who can afford these eight big characters should be able to wrestle with Lin Mo.

Even if he was fascinated by Lin Mo's talent in the past, he never thought that Lin Mo's attainments in strategy would be as invincible as Lu Bu's achievements in martial arts.

As the cradle of the world's talents, Jingzhou and Yingchuan, Cao Cao accounted for one, so the strategists under his command were like clouds.

Then, as long as he can pull Pang Tong under his command, he will have the opportunity to wash away the decline.

After all, since Pang Tong is behind the Pang family, if Pang Tong is willing to help, it is equivalent to waiting for the support of the Pang family.

Once Liu Qi ascends to the throne, it will definitely be impossible for him to lie dormant in Xinye County, and it is not too much to divide a county for himself.

At that time, the support of the Maison is particularly important.

Pang Tong may have been the key figure in my turnaround.

"So, thank you Uncle Huang!" Liu Qi bowed towards Liu Bei.

In the distance, on the gate of Xiangyang City, a big man wearing a black armor and a tasseled helmet is squinting at the two.

"How many times?" As the contemporary ruler of the Cai family, the general of Jingzhou, and Cai Mao, who is in charge of the 120,000 army, stared at Liu Bei and Liu Qi who were in parallel.

"Counting today, it's the third time I've met, I met once on the day I came to Xiangyang, and not long after, Gongzi went to Xinye in private, plus today, a total of three times." The sergeant on the side responded to Cai Mao in a low voice.

"The human heart is insufficient."

Cai Mao snorted coldly, "I didn't forcibly stop the lord from taking him in, I just thought of his status as the emperor's uncle, and today I tried in vain to persuade the lord to launch a war, which almost put the people of Jingzhou in the middle of fire."

Now that he has gotten along with Liu Qi too closely, it seems that it is time to find a suitable time to clean him up. ”

Then, Cai Mao turned his back to the sergeant and said in a deep voice: "Keep an eye on it, who Liu Qi has seen and where he has been, and no one is allowed to be left behind." ”

"Admiral, rest assured!" After the soldiers were in charge, they turned around and went down the city pass.

Cai Mao's right hand grasped the hilt of the sword at his waist, pulled it out and withdrew it, listening to the sound of the sword, his squinted eyes filled with devouring longing.

In Jingzhou, the Cai family has worked hard for many years, and finally pushed Liu Cong to this point.

Judging from the current situation, as long as there are no sideways, as soon as Liu Biao dies, Liu Cong will be on top.

At that time, the Cai family can become the real person in charge of Jingzhou, and if you want to clean up the Huang family, you will have the means.

As determined to push the Cai family to the largest family in Jingzhou, and at the same time the only irreplaceable position, the other three families are his future rivals.

On the contrary, he never looked at Liu Qi in his eyes.

However, Liu Bei's appearance made him feel a little uneasy.

In Cai Mao's eyes, Liu Bei's benevolence and righteousness are fake, but the respect of the emperor's uncle is real, and the bravery of Guan Yu and Zhang Fei is also unadulterated.

On these two points, it must not be tolerated that he and Liu Qi will be mixed together.

(End of chapter)