Chapter 169 Yuanfu and Maocai
Liu Feng still knew very well that with such an expansion, the strength of the troops could almost double, but the number of new recruits did not exceed 40%. The ratio of old to new was 4:6, which was very benign. of military expansion.
Sun Ce is still campaigning in Wu County. He may not have time to trouble Liu Yao this year, so Liu Feng will have at least half a year to train his troops.
Liu Bei closed his eyes and pondered for a moment. Under Liu Feng's hopeful gaze, he smiled, and then nodded: "Yes."
At this point, Xuzhou's army expansion plan was temporarily finalized, and Guangling Naturally, Liu Feng had the final say. Since Liu Bei approved it, he would do what Liu Feng wanted.
As for the northern part of Xuzhou, Liu Bei has already discussed it with Liu Feng.
He will naturally discuss with Guan Yu and Zhang Fei later, but unless there is another major problem, he will not discuss with Liu Feng again.
"Then what do you think of Liu Jingsheng and Liu Zhengli's dispatch of envoys?"
Liu Bei guided the topic to the next question.
Liu Feng has naturally considered this issue for a long time.
When he saw his father asking, he immediately replied: "Liu Jingsheng is very ambitious. He may have thought of going with us."
Liu Bei stroked his short beard and muttered: "You mean he also wants to get involved. Yangzhou? "
"Exactly."
Liu Feng was very confident. In history, Liu Biao even turned enemies into friends with Yuan Shu to plot Yangzhou, and even lost the life of his confidant Zhuge Xuan. .
After that, Liu Biao also sent his nephew Liu Pan, the most capable of fighting in his direct lineage, to lead Huang Zhong to attack Yuzhang. It can be said that he did not take it lightly.
Liu Pan defeated Sun Jiajun many times. He was also one of the most powerful generals in Jingzhou. With Huang Zhong as his assistant, he commanded the elite of Jingzhou. He was a great threat no matter how you looked at it.
It is a pity that Liu Pan met Tai Shici.
Since Tai Shici was recommended by Sun Ce as the captain of Jianchang, he was responsible for controlling Haihun, and supervising Liu Yao in the six counties of Yuzhang to surrender and reject Liu Pan. As a result, Liu Pan disappeared and was no longer a bandit, and he was never able to take another step beyond his reach.
Liu Biao's image of a good old man in the interpretation is actually the same as Tao Qian's, very aggressive. Tao Qian only fought from two sides, but Liu Biao attacked from all four sides.
Drive away Yuan Shu from the north, provoke Liu Zhang from the west, send troops to Jiaozhi from the south, and encroach on Yuzhang from the east.
After entering Jingzhou, he chopped off the heads of more than fifty clan thieves, which shocked Kuai Yue. God knows when Kuai Yue gave his advice, he suggested that Liu Biao kill a few of them, kill chickens to scare monkeys, and recover the others.
But Liu Biao promised Kuai Yue that he would be fine, but on the same day, he ordered to kill them all, which shows that he is definitely not a good person.
Liu Feng was not surprised that Liu Biao wanted to get involved in Yangzhou, but he was not sure for the time being which county in Yangzhou Liu Biao was interested in.
Liu Feng guessed that Liu Biao was most likely interested in Lujiang County.
If it is still the same as in history, if you want to get involved in Yuzhang County, there is no need to form an alliance with Liu Yao. You can just send troops directly from Changsha and go by water. At this time, Zhou Shu, the prefect of Yuzhang, He was about to die of illness and had no power to resist him.
However, Liu Feng could not tell Liu Bei that based on the history of later generations, Liu Biao must be eyeing Lujiang.
So, Liu Feng thought for a moment and expressed his thoughts from a different angle: "Father, if what Liu Jingzhou wants is Yuzhang, then he will most likely make a truce with General Zuo and use General Zuo to To contain Liu Yangzhou, so that he can calmly send troops to devour Yuzhang."
"Now he is forming an alliance with Liu Yangzhou with great fanfare, obviously aiming at Lujiang."
These days, Yuzhang is actually a treasure land, with a vast territory, rich real estate, extremely rich mineral and timber resources, and large areas of paddy fields.
It is a pity that the development cost of this treasure land is also quite scary.
This place is shrouded in miasma all year round. Han people are prone to miasma, with a mortality rate of 12/10, which is already terrifyingly high.
In addition, Yuzhang County is mountainous, and there are many Shanyue, Nanman and other tribes hidden in it. There are hundreds of small people and even tens of thousands of large people. From time to time, they go down the mountain to loot.
Even if you occupy Yuzhang County, you will need to invest a lot of resources if you want to establish a stable rule.
Comparing Lujiang with Yuzhang, they are completely different.
Although there are tens of thousands of barbarian tribes hiding in the Dabie Mountains next to the Lujiang River, these barbarians are relatively gentle in temperament and are very Chinese. They are not like those in Yuzhang who frequently go down the mountain to plunder homes and supplement household income.
Moreover, the land here is mature, the population is large, and it is connected to Jingzhou by land and water. Once the Lujiang River is captured, there is a chance to take over Yangzhou.
How can Liu Biao still like Yuzhang if he has a chance to win Lujiang?
"Liu Jingsheng is so courageous."
Liu Bei clicked his tongue, feeling dissatisfied.
But at this time, Guangling only had his son's 10,000 troops. Even after the army was expanded, there were only 20,000. No matter which side he faced, he was weak.
This made Liu Bei feel unwilling, but also helpless.
"Father, how can we allow others to snore on the side of the bed."
Liu Feng was not afraid: "Since Liu Jingsheng has reached out to us, this alliance can only He wants to take advantage of us, so we can take advantage of him."
"How can we let others snore on the side of the bed?"
Liu Bei took a moment and nodded happily: "Feng. This is a great thing, so how do you plan to use Liu Jingsheng?"
"Since he wants the Lujiang River, let him get it. We can take all the east side of the river. Although the Lujiang River is better than Yuzhang, if you want to secure the Lujiang River, you still need to control the key points north of Yuzhang and close to the Yangtze River waterway. Otherwise, Lujiang will easily be cut off from Jingzhou."
Liu Feng sneered: "Let's not talk about it until he takes Lujiang. "< br>
Liu Bei burst out laughing. Lujiang is a Yangzhou prefecture and Yuan Shu's confidant. If it is robbed, how can Liu Yao renew his alliance with Liu Biao? Yuan Shu will also have to fight against Liu Biao.
However, Liu Bei then reminded: "Liu Zhengli is not simple. He went to Yangzhou alone, but he was able to lead a tens of thousands of troops under Yuan Shu's nose, and he also won over Xu Gong, Wang Lang, and Zuo Rong. , Xue Li, supported Zhou Shang, and took Jiangdong back from Yuan Shu's mouth."
"Such a resourceful man, Feng'er, you can't underestimate him, but he fell into his hands. The axe. ”
Liu Feng nodded in agreement, and he was also thinking hard about how to deal with Liu Yao.
Although historically Liu Yao died of illness two years later, Liu Feng was worried. After all, Liu Yao was defeated and fled to Yuzhang.
The probability of death from illness in Yuzhang is much higher than in Jiangdong.
If Liu Yao continues to stay in Jiangdong, Liu Feng thinks that there is a high probability that the other party will not die of illness, at least not so quickly.
So far, Liu Feng has not been able to come up with a countermeasure, so he can only thank Liu Bei for the reminder.
The words of the father and son have already established Xuzhou's different attitudes towards Jingzhou and Yangzhou.
Jingzhou is a potential enemy who will eventually face each other on the battlefield, while Yangzhou is a short-term ally who uses each other.
After unifying this understanding, Liu Bei and his son could call together counselors such as Chen Deng, Lu Su, and Liu Ye to discuss the specific details.
"There is one last thing I want to discuss with you."
Liu Bei suddenly spoke, and what he said surprised Liu Feng.
Although he didn't know what Liu Bei wanted to say, Liu Feng expressed his obedience.
Liu Bei smiled with satisfaction, looking at Liu Feng with eyes full of pride and pride.
"I have received news before that envoys from Yuan Jizhou and Cao Yanzhou will arrive in Tancheng in the near future. There are also envoys from Guo Gong, the governor of Yuzhou, who will also visit Tancheng with gifts. As a result, in a few days , four state shepherds and an envoy from the governor gathered in Tancheng. "
Speaking of this, Liu Bei's face flashed with satisfaction. When had he ever enjoyed the feeling of being so valued.
Following that, Liu Bei continued: "My father wants to take this opportunity to serve you."
Yuanfu is an extremely important coming-of-age ceremony in ancient China.
The word Yuanfu comes from the combination of the two words "Yuan" and "Fu". "Yuan" means the head, and "Fu" refers to the action of wearing it, so "Yuanfu" can be understood For head decoration or clothing.
In ancient Chinese society, this ceremony was not only a sign of adulthood, but also a symbol of personal social responsibility. More importantly, it also meant that Liu Feng would obtain the rights of an adult man.
Many people in later generations believe that Yuanfu is Japanese culture. In fact, that is really ridiculous.
Whether it is the word Yuanfu or the ceremony represented by these two words, it is Chinese traditional culture from beginning to end.
Japan just admires Chinese culture and imitates it.
"Etiquette·Shi Guan Li": "On the auspicious day of the order month, Yuan clothes will be added."
Han Zhengxuan's note: "Ling and auspiciousness are both good. Yuan is the first."
This Han Zhengxuan is none other than Qingzhou Zhengxuan. He is still alive and well at this time. Even his son is not dead yet.
Liu Feng looked at Liu Bei in surprise and asked uncertainly: "Father, is this...appropriate?" The reason Liu Feng asked this was because, after all, his real age was only ten years old.
Liu Bei smiled confidently and said: "Why is it inappropriate? Gan Luo became prime minister when he was eight years old, and my son is already ten years old. How can he not be a prime minister at this time? Besides, I met with Governor Guo before, and he wanted to recommend you as the prime minister. I am very happy to be the father of the most talented person in Yuzhou.”
Guo Gong wants to recommend himself as the most talented person in Yuzhou?
Liu Feng was really surprised now.
This Guo Gong is too knowledgeable.
For Liu Feng, when a famous person like Guo Gong recommended him to become a talented person in Yuzhou, it was like a pie in the sky falling on his head.
Liu Feng remembered very clearly that historically Liu Bei would recommend Yuan Tan as the most talented person this year.
Liu Feng originally planned to take the initiative to ask Liu Bei to recommend Yuan Tan as the most talented person in history. Maocai came to exchange for Yuan Shao's favor and stabilize the north of Xuzhou.
Unexpectedly, Liu Bei had no similar thoughts at all. Instead, he concentrated on paving the way for his precious son.
It seems that as Xuzhou's power continues to expand and grow, Liu Bei's decision-making will obviously diverge from history.
You will have to pay attention to this in the future.
When Liu Bei talked about this, he seemed very happy: "At that time, my father can declare that you are the governor of Guangling County and the governor of the Jiangdong war. In this way, everything in the south will be handled by my father. I'll give it all to my son."
Liu Bei said happily, but Liu Feng couldn't see the happy expression. Instead, he frowned more and more as he listened.
Liu Bei observed Liu Feng's silence and became a little worried: "Why is my son unhappy? Is there anything you can't tell your father directly?"
Liu Feng shook his head: " The kid just feels something is wrong.”
The benefits of being recommended as a talented person are huge. The simplest benefit is that as long as Liu Feng is recommended as a talented person, Liu Bei can directly appoint him to important positions in Guangling County.
If Liu Bei can capture Yangzhou in the future, Liu Feng can even directly serve as the shepherd of Yangzhou.
After all, he has the status of Maocai.
Although doing so will have many sequelae and negative effects, these are troubled times. Moreover, Liu Feng is still very prestigious within the Xuzhou Group, especially within the core, and will not cause division within Xuzhou.
Historically, Yuan Tan actually controlled two and a half counties of Qingzhou long ago, and has always been in a dominant position.
However, he suffered from lack of status, so his qualifications were never qualified. It was not until Liu Bei recommended him as a Maocai that Yuan Tan became the governor of Qingzhou.
This shows the arrogance of Maocai's identity.
Cao Cao's eldest son Cao Ang was just promoted as filial and honest, and Cao Cao was so happy that he couldn't help but feel satisfied with Cao Ang. He boasted in front of Xiahou Dun, Cao Ren and other clans all day long.
Maocai is a level above Xiaolian, not to mention that it was recommended by a famous person in Yuzhou like Guo Gong.
If Liu Feng could be praised by Guo Gong as a talented person, he would really crush Cao Ang and Yuan Tan.
But there are not no problems. There are two main problems.
First, Liu Feng was only ten years old, which was too young. Although Gan Luo was eight years old and was the prime minister in front of him, it was still easy to cause confusion and opposition from the nobles.
Secondly, there is the issue of knowledge.
Although regarding this point, in the late Eastern Han Dynasty, the trend of fraud was rampant, and the only examination in the Han Dynasty was the central palace examination, which had become a formality in the middle and late Eastern Han Dynasty.
But there are still disadvantages brought about by age.
People will be deceived by people in their 30s and 40s, allowing an ignorant dandy to become a talented person, but it is impossible to believe that a ten-year-old child is full of knowledge and has good virtues.
Therefore, Liu Feng felt that this was a pie with poison, and Liu Bei was obviously attracted by this pie.
If it were placed in the peaceful era twenty years ago, the ten-year-old Maocai would have shocked the world. Even now, it would definitely cause turmoil in Xuzhou. More importantly, as long as he persists for a few more years, Maocai will completely lose his halo as he grows older.
Even if I want to take up the post of Yangzhou Shepherd in the future, I won’t need Maocai’s bonus at all.
The simplest example is the Yuan Shao family.
Because Yuan Tan did not have Maocai connections in recent years, even though Zang Hong had been transferred, he has been unable to succeed Zang Hong as the governor of Qingzhou.
On the eve of the Battle of Guandu, Yuan Shao directly arranged for his nephew Gao Gan to serve as the shepherd of Bingzhou, and his second son Yuan Xi to serve as the governor of Youzhou. However, they did not have the bonus of Maocai, so they could be removed at will.
In Liu Feng's view, sacrificing so much for a talented person now is really not worth the gain.
However, Liu Bei did not want to miss such an opportunity. He once again persuaded Liu Feng: "My son is talented and intelligent. He matured early and is only talented. There is nothing to worry about."
Don't persuade him. Fortunately, Liu Bei's persuasion made Liu Feng make up his mind: "Father, I think it's not okay."
Liu Bei's face froze, and he became a little unhappy. I have worked hard for you, but you don't appreciate it.
"Mao Cai, the pillar of the country, is to select talents for the country."
Liu Feng hurriedly explained: "Father, there are so many talented people in a state, it is possible to select those with Mao Cai. , only one person per year. Even if he is not a great Confucian scholar, he is still good at economics and studying classics. The child will naturally remember his father's love for him, but his father's actions may be contrary to his wishes. "< br>
Liu Bei came to his senses when he heard the words "destroying the seedlings and encouraging the growth".
Seeing this, Liu Feng quickly continued: "Besides, there are many talented people in Yuzhou. My father can win people's hearts with such talented people and manage Yuzhou. This is the most important thing at the moment."
Liu Bei was finally convinced by Liu Feng. He also knew that recommending Liu Feng as a talented person at this time would have too many negative effects, but Liu Bei just couldn't bear it.
It’s no wonder that none of Yuan Shao, Cao Cao, Gongsun Zan, Kong Rong, and even Chen Qun and Chen Deng were born in Xiaolian.
Only Liu Bei climbed up from the bottom by relying on military merit, and he was lucky enough to meet a celebrity like Chen Ji who appreciated him and promoted him.
Chen Ji never looked down on him, so Liu Bei vowed to repay this kindness to Chen Qun.
For this reason, Liu Beicai particularly wanted to make Liu Feng a talented person. This was not only his father's love and expectation for his son, but in a certain way, it was a kind of compensation for himself.
But Liu Feng analyzed the problem so clearly, Liu Bei could no longer deceive himself and others, and could only recognize the facts.
Liu Bei sighed, but said with considerable reluctance: "In that case, the talented man from Yuzhou should think about it as his father."
Liu Feng would naturally have no objection.
After the father and son finished their discussion, Liu Feng said goodbye and left.
He and Liu Bei both had a lot of things to deal with and were very busy.
After leaving Liu Bei's place, he first went to greet his grandmother and mother, chatted with them for a while, and then returned to his small courtyard.
At this time, Liu Fa, Lou Shi and others were already waiting.
Liu Feng walked directly to the main seat and took a seat. With his wave, the others also took their seats.
"How are you doing these days?"
Liu Fa stood up first, with a little excitement on his face, and placed a large flat wooden box on the table in front of Liu Feng.
Later, Liu Fa said with some joy, pride and excitement: "Young Master, this is the white paper and quill pen we developed."
"Oh!?"
When Liu Feng heard this, he was very happy and reached out to open the box.
What comes into view is a stack of white paper.
The size of these papers is about 16 karat in later generations, about 7 inches by 9 inches.
The whole paper is white, but there is still a little yellow inside.
Liu Feng reached out and touched it, and felt that the paper had good flexibility, and the surface had a slight gritty feel. It was far less smooth than later generations of paper, but it was already quite outstanding.
In the box, there are three simple quills made of goose feathers, and polished ink is already prepared on the desk.
Liu Feng tried to dip his quill pen into ink and then write on the paper.
What surprised Liu Feng was that the writing on the paper did not fade and was still clearly visible. This undoubtedly proved that the quality of the paper was enough to match the quill pen.
Liu Feng praised loudly: "Good! Very good!"
(End of this chapter)