Zhang Zhao also saw the changes that had taken place in Jiangnan, and couldn't help but regret his rejection of Liu Xin's invitation. So he deliberately inquired about various rumors about Liu Xin, analyzed Liu Xin's character, and finally concluded that Liu Xin Liu Xin will definitely invite him to come out again. But it has been two months since Liu Xin came to Jiangnan, but he has never come to invite the two of them. Not to mention Zhang Hong, even Zhang Zhao himself is a little unsure. He just said to Zhang The words Hong said were just words of comfort. In fact, he had no confidence at all.
While the two were chatting, a family boy suddenly came to report that Mr. Liu, the general manager of the four states, was here to visit. Liu Xin came up with the official position of the general manager of the four states by himself, and then asked the Queen Mother He to issue the edict, but he changed this It feels good to have the title written on the name sticker. After all, compared to Jingzhou Mu Lai, this unprecedented official position allows him to manage the four prefectures of Si, Jing, Liang, and Yi more legitimately.
Hearing that Liu Xin had indeed come to visit him in person, Zhang Hong was so impressed with Zhang Zhao that he quickly raised his hands and asked, "Zibu, if Mr. Liu proposes to invite us to serve as officials again this time, do you think we should decline again?"
Zhang Zhao was secretly rejoicing. He had just said too much to comfort Zhang Hong. If Liu Xin never came to invite him, the embarrassment would have been huge. Now that he heard that Liu Xin really came to visit, how could he dare to No matter what the situation is, he quickly said: "Absolutely not! Mr. Liu can condescend and come to the door in person. If he has any request, we must first agree to it. Remember, remember."
Zhang Hong nodded and said, "Everything will be at the command of Brother Zibu."
The two of them straightened their clothes and came to the door together, only to see a handsome and tall young man in white standing in front of them. Yu Fan turned around from behind the young man, cupped his hands and said: "Two gentlemen, my lord. I’ll see you come in person.”
Although Zhang Zhao and Zhang Hong had never met Liu Xin, they had heard of his name for a long time. They hurriedly saluted the young man in white and said, "Common people pay homage to you, sir."
Liu Xin laughed and said: "You two gentlemen don't need to be polite. The two gentlemen did a great job in saving the people of Xuzhou. Liu knew that the two gentlemen were indifferent to fame and fortune and did not care about gold and silver, so he only brought Just a little something to express my feelings, and I hope you two gentlemen won’t make any excuses.”
As soon as he finished speaking, two personal guards came up from behind and handed two paper bags to Zhang Zhao and Zhang Hong. Although these two people were confused, they were both well-educated people, but they It's not easy to open it and check it in front of so many people.
Liu Xin seemed to have read through their thoughts and said with a smile: "Gentlemen, why don't you open it and take a look?"
Since the person who gave the gift was so encouraging, Zhang Hong couldn't hold back his curiosity for a long time. He gently opened the paper bag in his hand, and a fragrance came out. It was the tea that he and Zhang Zhao loved so much, and it was better than what they drank. The tea leaves are more fragrant.
The tea leaves in these two paper bags are all produced from the best wild tea trees. The yield is inherently low, and the stir-frying techniques are not yet skilled, so the best-quality tea leaves do not exceed three kilograms in total. Yu Fan didn't dare to keep a pound for himself, so he dedicated all of it to Liu Xin. As soon as Liu Xin made a move, he gave Zhang Zhao and Zhang Hong a pound each, which was more than what he had left. This shows that he was very interested in it. The attention of both people.
Of course, Zhang Zhao and Zhang Hong still don't know how precious this tea is, but literati are so refined, and the tea leaves given to them by Liu Xin are just what they want. If Liu Xin gives them some jars of good wine, their realm will be better. A bit worse.
Zhang Zhao and Zhang Hong were inexplicably moved and quickly let Liu Xin into the hall. The two looked at each other and prostrated on the ground together, saying: "The common people are very grateful to you for being able to come to the door in person. In the future, if you can be of use to the common people, the common people will definitely do it." Work hard!"
Ju Shou and Yu Fan didn't expect that they had rejected Liu Xin's invitation last time, but this time they took the initiative to serve, and their expressions were startled. Liu Xin was not surprised, because he knew that in history, these two people were also in the After Sun Ce came to visit with gifts, he readily agreed to Sun Ce's invitation and eventually became Jiangdong's minister.
Liu Xin smiled and helped the two of them up, and said: "Since ancient times, reading the books of sages has brought goods to the emperor's family. The two gentlemen are full of talents and can serve the country. It is my great fortune and the fortune of all the people in the world." "
Zhang Zhao and Zhang Hong repeatedly said they didn't dare. After everyone sat down again, Zhang Zhao quickly ordered his servants to bring tea, but it was brewed with the tea leaves that Liu Xin had just given them. As expected, the fragrance of the tea was refreshing and refreshing.
Liu Xin drank tea for a while and then said: "To be honest with you two gentlemen, the people who came across the river have been basically settled, but they have been repeatedly harassed by mountains and rivers recently. I wonder if you two gentlemen have any good advice for me?"
Zhang Zhao and Zhang Hong both knew that Liu Xin was testing their talents, and their expressions couldn't help but become serious. After they came to Jiangnan, they were also fortunate to see several issues of Dahan Express published in Xiangyang. Regarding Liu Xin's handling of the relationship with Shanyue We already have some understanding of the policy and have had some discussions in our daily chats.
Zhang Hong thought for a while, then stood up and said: "Shanyue is mainly distributed in Danyang, Yuzhang, Kuaiji and other mountainous areas. There have been frequent rebellions since the time of the late emperor. When the official army came to attack, they hid in the mountains, so they kept suppressing them. If The policy of encouraging Shanyue to move to the plains promulgated by the Lord some time ago has been implemented. Not only can the chaos in Shanyue be gradually calmed down, but also the problem of population shortage in Jiangnan can be alleviated. It can be said that it kills two birds with one stone. However, my subordinates believe that the people of Shanyue will not be willing to leave the mountain easily. My lord should use other strategies to deal with it."
Liu Xin nodded and said: "It seems that Mr. Ziqi knows a lot about Shanyue. He must have already had a countermeasure in mind?"
This was an opportunity to express himself. Zhang Hong was not modest and handed over his hand and said: "I have lived in Guangling for a long time. It is only separated from Danyang by a river. I always know the habits of mountains and rivers. Copper and iron are produced in the mountains, and I often make weapons by myself. The people also like to fight bravely and fiercely. If we just go in and suppress them, we may not be able to achieve full success. For the current plan, we must not fight with them, but try to force them out of the mountains!"
Liu Xin pondered: "If we don't fight, how can we get him out of the mountain?"
Zhang Hong stroked his beard and smiled and said: "Back to my lord, Shanyue also makes a living by growing grains. My lord should divide his troops to guard the dangerous places, separate and surround Shanyue, build more camps, but not fight with them. Wait until the grains are mature. , sent troops to grab the harvest. There will be no food to harvest as the mountains go up, so we will inevitably be hungry and have to go out of the mountains at this time."
This method was exactly what the Eastern Wu general Zhuge Ke used to deal with Shanyue in history, and eventually led to Shanyue moving out of the mountains. From then on, the Yue people completely integrated with the Han people, and the troubles of Shanyue were completely eliminated. Liu Xin's historical knowledge of this period Most of them come from the Romance of the Three Kingdoms, and there are not many records about Shanyue in the romance. It was only after he arrived in the south of the Yangtze River that he felt the threat posed by the Shanyue people to the Han people migrating from the north. As for the methods used by Zhuge Ke, he knew nothing about them. As far as I know. However, Zhang Hong was inspired to come up with this method after seeing Liu Xin's policy on dealing with Shanyue published in the Dahan Express.
Liu Xin thought for a moment. Although he felt that this method was a bit damaging, he still nodded and said: "In Liu's opinion, Ziqi's method is feasible. If it goes well, after this autumn harvest, the various tribes in Shanyue will have to move out of the mountains and forests and integrate into us." Dahan Ziqi, Liu will now appoint you as General Pingyue to take charge of Pingyue affairs. The deputy commander of the Seventh Army, Feng Lie, and below, will be at your disposal."
Zhang Hong was overjoyed and bowed again: "I will definitely fulfill my mission!"
Liu Xin waved her hand and said: "Liu still has something difficult to decide. I wonder if you two gentlemen can give me some advice?"
When Zhang Zhao saw that Zhang Hong had obtained the official position, he quickly raised his hands and said, "My lord, please speak."
Liu Xin said: "Since the beginning of winter last year, Liu has sent troops to the Xiongnu grassland twice. Although he returned with great victory, it will take some time to pacify the Xiongnu grassland. Also, the Western Region Protectorate has been abandoned for many years, and Liu Xin also intends to do so. To be rebuilt. Therefore, in the foreseeable future this year and next, Liu’s main strength will be placed in the northwest."
After a pause, Liu Xin continued: "The power Liu mentioned does not only refer to the army, but also includes financial, material and human resources. However, both Cao Cao and Yuan Shao are eyeing them, and Liu is worried about them. In recent years, Jing and Yizhou have been rich and prosperous under Liu's rule, but they can never sustain two wars. Liu would like to ask the two gentlemen if there is any way to start a war between Cao Cao and Yuan Shao. , allowing Liu to take care of Western affairs with peace of mind?"
Since he wanted to ask about the "two Zhangs in Jiangdong", Liu Xin certainly had no reservations about the current situation and his own thoughts. Even his original plan to attack Liu Yao and force Yuan Shu, the "disaster" from the north, was revealed.
Of course, such a dilemma would not be easily solved. The hall suddenly fell silent. Zhang Zhao and Zhang Hong both lowered their heads and began to think quietly.
After a long time, Zhang Zhao raised his head, raised his hands and said: "My lord, although there are no two masters in the country, Cao Cao and Yuan Shao each have their own kings, and sooner or later there will be a war, but according to my subordinates, Cao Cao will never take the initiative to provoke a war. Duan, at least not for now. Because Cao Cao is far inferior to Yuan Shao in terms of military strength and food and grass. If the two families want to go to war, the only possibility is to let Yuan Shao send troops first."
Liu Xin originally made a two-year non-aggression agreement with Cao Cao, hoping that Cao Cao would use these two years to take the initiative to attack Yuan Shao. However, judging from Cao Cao's inaction in the past six months, Liu Xin already knew that his judgment was wrong. Cao Cao was cautious, and he had many capable men under his command, so he would not let him make the mistake of blindly moving lightly. This is why Liu Xin later changed his mind and wanted to promote a war between Yuan Shu and Cao Cao, so as to create an opportunity for Yuan Shao to start a war. main reason.
Liu Xin was not surprised that Zhang Zhao could analyze to this point. She nodded and motioned for him to continue.
Zhang Zhao was encouraged by Liu Xin, and his confidence greatly increased, and he continued: "My subordinates believe that Yuan Shao has always been indecisive. Even if Yuan Shu sends troops to attack Cao Cao, it is hard to say whether Yuan Shao will send troops. Therefore, my subordinates think that the lord intends to take advantage of Yuan Shu." I'm afraid it won't work to promote a war between Yuan Shao and Cao Cao."