After arranging the specific affairs in Jiangling, Liu Cong left Fei Yi and Wei Yan behind, took Pang Tong and Xu Feng, and led 3,000 cavalry to continue southward towards the four counties of Jingnan.
The closest to Jiangling is Changsha County. Liu Cong decided to go to Changsha County first. Changsha County has the general he wants to have!
On the official road, Liu Cong and his entourage were galloping on horseback. Xu Feng, who was beside him, suddenly pointed ahead and said, "My lord, there seems to be someone in front of me."
Liu Cong looked in the direction of Xu Feng's finger. A carriage was parked in the middle of the road, but there was no horse. The shaft of the carriage was stuck on the ground.
A scribe in green clothing stood in the middle of the road and waved his arms when he saw Liu Cong and his party.
"Let's go over and take a look!" Liu Cong ordered.
"My lord, let me let the general go and investigate first?" Xu Feng said.
"Hahaha, as far as the eye can see, there is only one scholar, so why should you be afraid? Come with me!" Liu Cong smiled heartily, and then took the lead in riding away.
Dozens of horsemen surrounded the carriage and the young man. Liu Cong rode forward and asked, "Who are you? Why are you here?"
The young man bowed to Liu Cong and said: "I am from Yicheng, Xiangyang. I am Ma Su and Ma Youchang. In the car are my fourth brother Ma Liang and his book boy."
Ma Su! Ma Liang!
"I've heard about Ma Su's Wuchang for a long time. I wonder why You Chang is here?" Liu Cong heard these two names, got off his horse and walked to Ma Su to return the salute, with a concerned look on his face.
Ma Di sighed: "My fourth brother and I came to Jingnan for a visit, but unexpectedly we met the Wuxi barbarian tribe. My fourth brother argued with them, but was beaten and injured."
"My fourth brother's school boy was so anxious that he took a beating for my fourth brother. I took out all the gold and silver and offered my horses, and they stopped and left."
The Wuxi barbarians are entrenched at the junction of Wuling County and Changsha, with a population of nearly 200,000.
Perhaps the Wuxi barbarians are not very clear about it, so Shamoko has heard of it. In history, Liu Bei's crusade against Jiangdong was to send Ma Liang as envoy to Wuxi, and gave Shamoko official titles, gold, silver, grain and silk.
After accepting Liu Bei's reward, Shamoko sent troops to help him conquer Soochow. In the Battle of Yiling, he was killed by Lu Xun's army!
Liu Cong was a little embarrassed for a while, "Is this Ma Liang related to the Wuxi barbarians? However, this wave is so beautiful that it is an advantage for me!"
Ma Su opened the curtain of the carriage and found a scribe in dark red clothes lying inside. He had a bruised nose and a swollen face, and a tuft of white hair on his right eyebrow. Next to him was a little book boy with a big bulge on the back of his head, and the blood that had flowed out had dried up.
"I really can't take them two away by myself. Please ask this general for help. They all need to be treated quickly." Ma Di implored Liu Cong with an urgent look on his face.
"Shan Rong, how far is this place from Yiyang?" Liu Cong asked.
They have now entered the scope of Changsha County, but the administrative seat of Changsha County is Yiyang.
"My lord, it's about sixty miles away. The general has already sent someone to inform Han Xuan, the governor of Changsha." Xu Feng thought for a while and said.
"Send someone to tell him again and ask him to wait. Just say that I have something important to do." Liu Cong said calmly.
When Ma Su heard this, he realized that the young man in front of him might not be an ordinary general, but he was eager to save people and didn't ask any questions.
"My lord, if you want to be benevolent and righteous in the world, you should save people first." Pang Tong knew Liu Cong's thoughts well, and he also knew the name of the Wuchang of the Ma family, so he naturally wanted to win over the two of them for Liu Cong.
Liu Cong looked at Pang Tong appreciatively, nodded and ordered: "Shanrong, bring a horse and mount the carriage. Send out thousands of horses to check whether there are doctors here in the direction of Yiyang."
"No!" Xu Feng took the order and left.
"Thank you, general, thank you, general!" Ma Di kowtowed to Liu Cong repeatedly.
"Hey, you don't have to be like this, you Chang. I have long wanted to visit the five permanent members of the Ma family, especially your fourth brother. I don't want to see you here today. It's all God's will." Liu Cong supported Ma Su and said.
Everyone carried the sedan chair, and the gentle words of comfort and words of respect made Ma Su feel a little embarrassed and deeply grateful.
"Don't you know the name of the general?" Ma Su looked at the soldiers setting up the carriage and asked with relief.
"Oh, I forgot to report my family name. I'm Liu Cong!" Liu Cong said to Ma Su, then pointed at Pang Tong and said, "This is Pang Tong, the Phoenix!"
Pang Tong also greeted Ma Su, and Ma Su returned the courtesy: "It turns out that Mr. Liu and Feng Chu are here. Ma Su is rude!"
While several people were laughing and chatting, Xu Feng led the people back: "My lord, there is a village five miles ahead. The soldiers found out that there was an old man named Zhang Ji (Zhang Zhongjing) inside, who was proficient in medical skills. He asked us to take people there.
past."
Liu Cong's heart trembled, "What a good day is today?"
"Let's go immediately!" Liu Cong mounted his horse and ordered.
"promise!"
Ma Di also got on the carriage and took care of Ma Liang and the little book boy.
The group of people were all riding horses and galloping, and within a short time they arrived at the village that Xu Feng was talking about.
When the soldier was about to knock on the door, Liu Cong stepped forward in person. The person who opened the door was a middle-aged man, followed by two children.
"My father has been waiting for you for a long time. Please come in!" the middle-aged man said to several people.
"Shi Yuan, You Chang, and Shan Rong followed me in. Except for the soldiers who carried people in, the rest are waiting outside the village!" Liu Cong ordered.
"promise!"
When they entered Zhuangzi, Liu Cong and others smelled a very strong smell of herbs.
After crossing the front yard and entering the main room, I saw only a figure from behind. Although his hair was white, his back was straight. He was holding a bamboo fan in his hand and gently fanning the stove for brewing medicine.
"Dad, we're here." The middle-aged man stepped forward and said.
"Bring the injured person in and place him on those two straw mats." The old man turned around and looked at everyone, pointing to the two straw mats spread on the ground with the bamboo fan in his hand.
Several soldiers behind Liu Cong placed Ma Liang and the little book boy on the straw mat and exited the main room.
The old man stood up slowly, walked to the two of them, peeled off Ma Liang's clothes, looked at it, and then turned to look at the little book boy.
Ma Di watched this scene nervously, but did not bother Zhang Zhongjing.
After breaking off the little book boy's head and looking at the bag on the back of his head, and then touching the dried blood, Zhang Zhongjing sighed: "Let's prepare for this little baby's funeral."
Hearing this, Ma Su looked sad, and Liu Cong looked at the boy lying on the straw mat. He was only ten years old, and in later generations, he would still be a primary school student.
But now, he died young because of these troubled times. Thinking of this, Liu Cong no longer felt as happy as he had just met the Ma brothers and the medical sage Zhang Zhongjing.
Liu Cong clenched his fists tightly and looked unhappy, but he knew that if this troubled world did not end, more people would die.
According to history, the world was divided into three parts. The three kingdoms fought for years, and the people who suffered the most were always the people.
Although it is said that after the establishment of the Western Jin Dynasty, the government was chaotic and corrupt, which led to the Wuhu chaos in China, this was only the fundamental factor.
At the beginning of the founding of the Western Jin Dynasty, the population was only over 16 million, so they had to attract barbarians into the interior to increase the population.
From an objective perspective, the decades of war between the Three Kingdoms and the consumption of the three countries' separate administrations were important factors in the slow growth of population during the Three Kingdoms era.
Therefore, the introduction of barbarians into China in the early years of the Western Jin Dynasty was also a last resort strategy, but it was still caused by the sparse population.
Ma Su's eyes were full of tears: "This child was brought by my fourth brother to serve as a pedagogue for Bing'er (Ma Liang's son). Yesterday, the child's parents sent the child away with great expectations. But today..."
Poor families in this era are more willing to send their sons to rich families to study. If they can read half a word, they will not have to face the loess and back to the sky like the older generation in the future.
In this era of difficult education, poor families in China have realized the importance of studying. Even if they have no money to send their sons to school and hire a husband, they will try their best to choose a good path for their children.