In Guangling City, Taishi Ci strode into the governor's mansion and bowed to Chen Deng who had been waiting inside, saying, "Greetings, Governor. What do you want to see me for?"
Chen Deng hurriedly invited Taishi Ci to sit down, placed a few scrolls of silk in front of Taishi Ci, and said, "The envoy received a letter from Youzhou, and I came to inform you."
Taishi Ci picked up the silk book, read it carefully, frowned, and said with some embarrassment: "Sir, if we make friends with Liu Yao, if we have the opportunity to meet people from Jiangdong, how can we make friends with a few people?"
"Liu Ye?"
"Lu Yi, or Lu Xun?"
"Lü Fan?"
"Bu Zhi?"
"I am ignorant and uninformed. Who are these people? Why is it worthy of your sending an urgent letter?"
Chen Deng said: "Some of these people are already famous, but there are also some I have rarely heard of. I have made inquiries from many sources before I learned about their origins."
After he explained the backgrounds of these people one by one, he said, "Young Master has always had a unique eye for people. Since he wants us to pay attention to these people, they must have something extraordinary."
Taishi Ci thought of how Yuan Xi did not hesitate when he recruited him, Tian Yu and others, and he agreed with him deeply.
He thought to himself that Yuan Xi had such an accurate eye for people. Was there an expert guiding him, or was he himself the expert?
Could it be that he really knows how to stargaze?
Chen Deng pointed at the silk book and said, "The young master specifically said in the letter that if there is any change in Jiangdong, we can find the whereabouts of these people and recruit them. The conditions are up to us to set, and the young master will make the decision in the future."
"As for whether to expand the territory, it is not the most important thing. If there is a chance, you can spy on Jiujiang County west of Guangling, but don't cross the river."
Taishi Ci deeply agreed with this. The Guangling navy had not yet been trained. Even if they crossed the river now, they would not be able to hold on with their current strength.
He keenly sensed a hint of something, "Young Master, what does it mean when you say that Jiangdong has changed?"
Chen Deng thought for a moment and said slowly, "Deng is making a wild guess. Yuan Shu is likely to proclaim himself emperor in the near future."
"What!" Taishi Ci was shocked. "That's impossible. How could he be so bold?"
Chen Deng told Taishi Ci about Yuan Shu's detention of his younger brother and his secret letter to recruit Chen Gui. Taishi Ci was furious when he heard this and said, "How dare Yuan Shu be so audacious!"
Then he exclaimed: "Mr. Hanyu is upright and honest, which is admirable, but Mr. Yuanlong's second brother has no whereabouts since then?"
Chen Deng listened and said slowly: "I'm afraid that my second brother is in danger."
Taishi Ci comforted him, "Things may not be so bad. He may have been locked up."
"If Yuan Shu proclaims himself emperor, the world will not tolerate him. From what I have seen from your words and actions, I believe we will seize the opportunity to attack Yuan Shu together."
"When the time comes, I will lead my troops to attack Yuan Shu's lair, and maybe I can rescue my second brother Yuan Long."
Although Chen Deng felt that there was little hope, he still thanked him repeatedly and said, "However, Sun Ce, a subordinate of Yuan Shu, is indeed difficult to deal with. The other day he even sent his navy to spy on Guangling Port, but fortunately he was repelled by the general."
Taishi Ci laughed and said, "The more the soldiers fight, the stronger they become. I was afraid that he would not come!"
"Sun Ce is indeed difficult to defeat, but if he relies on Yuan Shu and waits for Yuan Shu to become emperor, can Sun Ce alone stop all the princes in the world?"
Chen Deng said, "I'm afraid Liu Yao can't hold on."
"If Sun Ce crosses the river and enters Wujun, he will be able to move southwards with unstoppable force. If he can capture Kuaiji, he will be able to take over Yangzhou. In this way, Yuan Shu will have the capital to become emperor."
Taishi Ci felt the same way. "Liu Yao's envoys have been staying here and have been very polite. I'm afraid that Sun Ce's attack is too intense and they can't hold out any longer."
"What should we do if Liu Yao is defeated?"
"If we send a letter to ask you then, it will be too late."
Chen Deng began to think about it. In the silk book, Yuan Xi hinted that Sun Ce might not follow Yuan Shu to the end. The current situation in Jiangdong was so complicated that Chen Deng was hesitant.
But Yuan Xi let Chen Deng act according to his own will and make his own decisions, which gave Chen Deng even more headaches.
I decide it myself?
This concerns the general situation of the world. How can you be a lord if you just give up the responsibility?
Chen Deng thought about it again and again, and finally said, "How about this?"
"General, send some spies to Jiangdong to find the whereabouts of those people the envoy mentioned. If they are found, find a way to bring them to Guangling."
"On the other hand, I heard that Haixi City has sent several caravans to Annan to look for cotton. This is something that the envoy attaches great importance to and cannot be lost."
"If Liu Yao loses Yangzhou, the sea route for merchants heading south from Guangling will be cut off by Yuan Shu, which will ruin your plans."
"So the most urgent task is to prevent Liu Yao from being defeated so quickly."
Taishi Ci heard this and laughed, "Sir, are you afraid that I am still thinking about the disrespect shown by Liu Yao's envoy?"
"Although I am not talented, how could I let my temper ruin your important event?"
"All matters are subject to Mr. Yuanlong's arrangements."
A few days later, Liu Yao's envoy returned to Jianye, the capital of Wu County, and met with Liu Yao.
When Liu Yao saw him, he said, "You finally came back. Why did it take you so long to come and go?"
Cold sweat oozed out of the messenger's vest. He naturally guessed that it was probably because he had disrespected Taishi Ci that Yuan Xi deliberately left him alone.
Yuan Xi went north to Youzhou and never saw him again. He also let Taishi Ci take full charge of the military affairs in Guangling. How could the envoy not guess that he had offended someone?
He was unable to advance or retreat, and he dared not return to report, so he had to stay in Guangling City.
What made him feel fortunate was that Taishi Ci came to see him a few days ago and said that there was an urgent matter in Youzhou, so Envoy Yuan was in a hurry to go back. Now a letter came from there saying that they could join forces with Liu Yao.
But when it comes to specific matters, Taishi Ci only said that if Liu Yao's riverside port was attacked, Guangling would come to help, but he did not promise anything else.
The envoy didn't know yet that these were all excuses, but having Taishi Ci's promise was better than nothing, so he returned to report to Liu Yao.
Liu Yao was somewhat disappointed but also felt relieved. The more careless the other party was, the more it showed that they had no intention of plotting against Yangzhou.
After all, Yuan Xi was appointed as the governor of Youzhou, and Guangling was an enclave. In the other party's eyes, maintaining the status quo is probably the best option, right?
He asked, "What does the other party want?"
The messenger answered honestly: "The other party has only one request."
"Guangling County is short of officials. If there are young and talented scholars in Yangzhou, we will welcome them all and assign them appropriate positions."
Liu Yao heard this and asked in confusion: "Young scholar? Not an old one?"
The messenger answered honestly: "That's exactly what the other side said."
Nodding, he said, "I understand. You can leave now."
He thought to himself that this was not a difficult task. If the other side wanted young scholars, he could just recommend a few of them.
Anyway, I have Xu Shao to check on us. When the time comes, I will let him make his decision and keep the talented ones. I will send those that Xu Shao doesn't like to send to Guangling.
At this moment, Xu Shao walked in with a gloomy face, holding an urgent letter in his hand.
When Liu Yao saw this, he felt something was wrong and asked, "Mr. Zijiang, what happened?"
Xu Shao handed over the urgent letter and said in a hoarse voice: "Something happened in Yuzhang County!"
When Liu Yao unfolded the bamboo slips, he was suddenly struck by lightning.
Yuzhang Prefect Zhu Hao was killed by Zuo Rong who defected to Liu Yao!
Xu Shao shook his head and sighed, "The governor didn't listen to my advice, which led to what happened today!"
Liu Yao gnashed his teeth and said, "I didn't expect it. I really didn't expect that Zuo Rong, the bastard, would do it again and again!"
"I thought he was a great Buddhist figure because he built a Buddhist temple in Xuzhou and held a Buddha Bathing Ceremony. I didn't expect him to be so vicious!"
In fact, what Liu Yao said was not wrong. Zuo Rong was the first person to promote Buddhism in the south of the Yangtze River. He was an ancestor-level figure in later Buddhism. Without him, there would not have been the grand occasion of 480 temples in the Southern Dynasties.
But it is difficult to distinguish between his heart and his actions. Zuo Rong had a heart that respected Buddha, but his behavior was difficult to comment on.
From Zhao Yu to Xue Li and then to Zhu Hao, perhaps they were all harmed because they only saw the surface?
As a general under Tao Qian, Zuo Rong first defected to Guangling Prefect Zhao Yu, but later took the opportunity to kill him, looted his property and fled to Jiangdong, where he attached himself to Liu Yao.
It happened that Sun Ce had been attacking Liu Yao at this time and had been fighting near Qu'a for more than a year.
The cause of the Battle of Qu'a was that after Liu Yao took control of Qu'a, he forced out Yuan Shu's subordinates Wu Jing and Sun Ben in Danyang, and set up military camps along the Yangtze River to prevent Yuan Shu's counterattack.
So Sun Ce followed Yuan Shu's orders to attack Qu'a, and the first big city on the route was Moling.
The "Jiang Biao Zhuan" records that "at that time, Xue Li, the governor of Pengcheng, and Zuo Rong, the governor of Xiapi, relied on Yao as the leader of the alliance. Li occupied the city of Moling, and Rong stationed in the south of the county."
Xue Li and Zuo Rong were both subordinates of Tao Qian. After they defected to Liu Yao one after another, they were both settled in Moling.
Afterwards, Sun Ce attacked Zuo Rong first. Zuo Rong sent out his troops to fight. Sun Ce beheaded more than 500 people. Zuo Rong retreated back into the city, closed the door and dared not move.
When Sun Ce failed to capture the city, he crossed the river and passed Zuo Rong to attack Xue Li. He defeated Xue Li and forced him to flee in panic. His way was cut off by Sun Ce, so he had to cross the river and surrender to Zuo Rong.
Zuo Rong hosted a banquet for Xue Li and then killed him at the banquet. Then, all of Xue Li's soldiers, property, and family members were taken over by Zuo Rong.
Afterwards, Sun Ce attacked Zuo Rong again, but found no weakness, so he retreated again.
Liu Yao was very unhappy when he learned that Xue Li had been killed, but at that time, Xue Li was not his direct descendant, and he also needed Zuo Rong to restrain Sun Ce, so he did not pursue the matter for the time being.
Liu Yao hesitated again and again, but considering that Zuo Rong was one of the few under his command who could fight against Sun Ce, he finally decided to keep Zuo Rong.
But keeping Zuo Rong by his side was obviously not reassuring, so Liu Yao came up with a plan to let Zuo Rong assist Zhu Hao, the Yuzhang prefect appointed by him, to attack Zhuge Xuan, the Yuzhang prefect appointed by Liu Biao, the governor of Jingzhou.
After Xu Shao learned about this, he said to Liu Yao: "Zao Rong never cares about what others say about him. Zhu Hao is honest and kind, and is easy to confide in and trust others. Tell Zhu Hao to be on guard against Zuo Rong!"
Liu Yao told Zhu Hao, but Zhu Hao didn't take it seriously.
However, unexpectedly, but reasonably, Zuo Rong actually murdered Zhu Hao again!
He used the same tactics he used against Zhao Yu and Xue Li. He first became friendly with Zhu Hao, then hosted a banquet to entertain him, and then sent out all the soldiers to kill him and loot Zhu Hao's wife, daughter and family.
This was a huge blow to Liu Yao. Not only did he lose Zhu Hao, but Zuo Rong also took himself as the prefect of Yuzhang, which meant that Liu Yao lost Yuzhang as well!
Liu Yao's heart was bleeding because he had a special relationship with Zhu Hao, and Zhu Hao's identity was even more special.
Zhu Hao was the son of Grand Marshal Zhu Jun, who was later known as one of the three heroes of the late Han Dynasty!
Zhu Hao was a loyal and honest person, much like his father. He was sent by the Han court to be the prefect of Yuzhang. Both father and son had a very good relationship with Liu Yao.
This appointment by the Han court also reflected Zhu Jun's intention to keep his son away from the vortex of Chang'an and entrust him to Liu Yao.
Now Zhu Jun has just died in the Chang'an Rebellion, and Zhu Haoyou has been killed. It is really sad to see the father and son end up like this.
Liu Yao's eyes were red with anger, and he shouted, "I have harmed Zhu Hao, and I will not be a human being if I don't kill Zuo Rong!"
"Come here, gather all the troops. I will personally lead the troops to attack Zuo Rong to comfort the spirit of the Grand Marshal in heaven!"