After Zhuge Jin finished instructing Liu Bei, it was already night.
Liu Bei planned to stay with him for dinner and then see him off in person.
Compared with yesterday's barbecue meal, tonight's food was obviously worse.
His hometown was stolen and his military supplies were cut off. Liu Bei felt that as a general, he should share the joys and sorrows with his soldiers, even in private.
In the end, the cook only stewed three chickens, one for Liu Guan and Zhang, and one for Zhuge Jin and Mi Zhu. The pickles and rice were enough.
After the other one was stewed, it was sent directly to Zhuge Jin's home, and Zhuge Jin didn't stop it.
Nowadays, food in the whole city has been controlled and rationed, and you can't buy anything with money.
In these years of war and chaos, the Zhuge family had been in exile for more than a year, and their fields and estates could not be cashed in and taken away.
The small belongings I had saved in my hometown were gradually spent, and my mother and uncle had not eaten meat for several days.
While eating, Liu Bei told Zhuge Jin that he could go out earlier than originally planned tonight.
Because according to the latest intelligence obtained by Guan Yu, Ji Ling has completely removed the patrol sentries on the east and north sides of Huaiyin, so he will not run into enemies when he goes out of the city in the first half of the night, which is very safe.
As for what Ji Ling's action meant, everyone present except Zhang Fei could see it.
"He was still taking a chance. He was afraid that the defeated troops who escaped from Xiapi would not be able to enter the city to report the news and disturb the morale of our army, so he specially created conditions for the defeated troops. Unexpectedly, it was convenient for us to leave the city."
After Zhuge Jin finished chewing a chicken leg, he threw away the clean bones and casually determined Ji Ling's behavior.
Ji Ling has already made things worse for him several times.
After dinner, Liu Bei asked someone to bring a fragrant wood gift box, which contained ten gold horseshoes, some silver collars and East China Sea pearls.
Zhuge Jin declined modestly: "I am not seeking profit, so I offer advice to the general..."
"I didn't say it was a thank you gift. However, there are always old, weak, women and children in your home who are inconvenienced. Because of my delay in traveling, I should prepare some Sichuan information to express my sincere gratitude."
Liu Bei insisted that it was just money and that it was for his family, but Zhuge Jin had nothing to say.
According to the filial piety code of the Han Dynasty, Zhuge Jin could not refuse whether his stepmother would accept money.
That's why there were so many people like Mengchang and Xinling in the pre-Qin and Han Dynasties. Before recruiting talents, they first gave gifts to their parents.
After dinner, Liu Guanzhang followed Zhuge Jin and came to thank him and see him off.
While riding the horse along the way, Liu Bei also explained a few words:
"Normally, when I invited you to make suggestions last night, I should have come to the door in person as a courtesy. But at that time, the military situation was so fierce that I had to personally deploy and block the news, so I asked Gongyou to make a trip on my behalf, disturbing Qingmeng at home. , now it’s time to apologize.”
The horses quickly arrived at Zhuge's house. Mrs. Song did not expect there would be foreign guests, so she came to open the door in person and was surprised.
Liu Bei was also a little surprised when he saw the young female family members.
He had only known Zhuge Jin for a day, and he didn't know if Zhuge Jin was married.
Seeing that Song was a beautiful young woman who looked no older than Zhuge Jin, Liu Bei immediately handed her over:
"Liu Bei, the general of Zhendong, came unexpectedly and disturbed his brothers and sisters. I had no other intention at this time. I came here to see you off. I have some Sichuan information to express my apologies."
Mrs. Song was immediately embarrassed. Fortunately, Zhuge Jin immediately explained: "This is my stepmother."
Liu Bei was shocked: "This is... Madam? I'm so rude and disrespectful."
Zhuge Jin: "It has been twelve years since my late concubine passed away. Two years later, Xian Kao passed away, and three years later, Xian Kao also passed away, leaving her stepmother to depend on Jin and her brothers. This is Jin's mother-in-law next to her. "
Liu Bei suddenly realized that he was Zhuge Gui's successor. No wonder he was so young.
He calculated in his mind that since Mrs. Song was married ten years ago, she must be at least twenty-five or six years old, but she looked to be in her early twenties.
In order to cover up the embarrassment of making a mistake, Liu Bei took the gift box from Guan Yu's hand at the right time and placed it in front of Song.
At the same time, he praised Zhuge Jin in various ways to change the topic:
"Mr. Jungong and his wife must have a good family background and teach their children well, which is why Ziyu is as intelligent and knowledgeable as he is today. Mr. Jungong must be happy that he is alive in heaven.
Preparing for this desperate situation, it was all thanks to Ziyu's righteous planning, generously displaying Lu Wang's great talent and Shi Zifang's grand strategy, so that survival could continue. "
With that said, Liu Bei opened the lid of the gift box himself.
When Mrs. Song saw the ten gold horseshoes and other belongings, she suddenly became more frightened.
It was already early in the morning when her son came back last night, and he didn't tell her what he had talked about with Liu Bei. At that time, she complained that Liu Bei was too bossy.
Unexpectedly, Liu Bei paid so much attention to her son.
"How is this possible? Doesn't Tzuyu only talk about nonsense? I've never heard of him knowing any clever strategies..." Mrs. Song thought suspiciously in her heart.
Little did she know that since yesterday, her son had completely changed, and his strategy and resourcefulness had skyrocketed in an instant.
"This... the general is overly flattering, please take back the gift! Jin'er has always been self-restrained and prudent, but in terms of intelligence, even his second brother is ten times as good as him. How can he help the general? How can he deserve such a high reputation? "
When Mrs. Song said these words, she almost burst into tears. She held on to the golden horseshoe box and pushed it out.
To receive great gifts from others, one must sacrifice one's life for them. How capable can Jin'er be? Can you afford it?
If virtue is not matched, there will be disaster!
When Liu Bei saw this, he felt even more incredible.
He has always had a very good eye for seeing people. When he saw Mrs. Song's pear blossoms with raindrops and tears in her eyes, she knew that she was definitely not pretending to be pretentious. She was really crying.
After all, a son is nothing like his mother, so why did Mr. Song say that Zhuge Jin’s intelligence was nothing more than this? He is obviously an extraordinary and talented person!
Zhuge Jin, who was standing next to him, also noticed Liu Bei's suspicion. He was also afraid of getting in trouble, so he quickly explained:
"The general laughed. My mother has been a widow for many years and rarely sees foreign visitors, so she doesn't know the depth of the world's elite. Although the second brother in the family is five years younger than me, he is ten times more intelligent than me. My mother is used to comparing her younger brothers with her, so she thinks I am stupid. Being stupid is embarrassing but of great use.”
After hearing this explanation, Liu Bei looked at Song with suspicion.
This time Mrs. Song didn't think anything was wrong, and nodded naturally: "It's possible. Since my husband died, I haven't seen many foreign visitors, maybe because I have limited knowledge.
Of the three sons in the family, the youngest is still young. Compared with Jin'er and Liang'er, Liang'er is indeed much smarter. But Jin'er is quite self-aware, and is a kindhearted and self-responsible person..."
These words were spoken naturally, without any hesitation or thought.
Liu Bei thought that was the case, and then an even bigger surprise instantly occupied his mind.
"The intelligence is ten times that of Ziyu... How can such a person exist in the world? I'm afraid it must surpass Zhou Kong, Lu Zhang, Guan Xiao, Sun Wu, right?"
Even though Liu Bei had seen the world, he was still so shocked by this unimaginable existence that he couldn't speak for a long time.
How did he know that the "Liang'er that Song thought was ten times as good as Jin'er" was ten times as good as Zhuge Jin before he was taken away.
However, Liu Bei understood that he had become a monster ten times more powerful than the reborn monster in front of him, and he could not help but be shocked for a whole year.
After a long time, Liu Bei came to his senses and asked urgently with a dry voice: "Sir, how old is your brother?"
Zhuge Jin: "My younger brother is five years younger than me, and now he is ten to six."
Liu Bei: "I wonder where your brother is now?"
Zhuge Jin: "Since the beginning of last year, we split up and fled south. My stepmother and I came here to live temporarily in Guangling, while my second and third brothers all went to Yuzhang, and then moved to Xiangyang.
The general must also know that Xian Kao was once the governor of Taishan County and Ying Shao was promoted to the county magistrate. Before Cao Song died, Cao Cao asked Ying Shao to escort his father back to Yanzhou. After Cao Song was kidnapped and killed by Zhang Kai, Ying Shao abandoned his official position and went to Beijing to Yuan Shao.
When Cao Cao attacked Xuzhou, there were many massacres. My family and Ying Shao have an old relationship. If we don't escape quickly, I'm afraid it will be unlucky. "
Liu Bei had personally experienced all the past events mentioned by Zhuge Jin, and he suddenly felt deeply connected to them.
He felt sad for a while and then returned to the topic: "In that case, why did your husband and his family have to go south in two ways?"
Zhuge Jin: "When I fled south, I barely reached the crown and was unable to raise my second brother, so I had to ask my uncle to take him in. My uncle was originally a guest of Liu Jingzhou, and when he was appointed as the prefect of Yuzhang, he took his second brother to Chaisang to take up his post. .
However, something unexpected happened later. On the way back east, the imperial court appointed Zhu Jun's son Zhu Hao as the governor of Yuzhang. Zhu Hao also recruited the Guangling bandit Zuo to join his army and attack my uncle.
My uncle lost ground and retreated, so he had to rely on Huang Zu of Jiangxia as backup, and sent my second brother back to Xiangyang, under the care of someone close to Liu Jingzhou - I only learned about these things a few months ago. "
Liu Bei listened very carefully, and then realized that there was such a complicated bond.
Of course he had heard about the evil deeds of Guangling thief Zuo Rong. After all, Zuo Rong had taken advantage of Cao Cao's invasion of Xuzhou to kill his former owner Zhao Yu, the prefect of Guangling, looted the wealthy households in various counties, and then fled to Jiangdong.
Liu Bei is now garrisoned in Guangling County, and there is such a shortage of military rations. At least most of them blame Zuo Rong for destroying Guangling County too much and has not fully restored production.
But I never thought that this guy would go to Yuzhang and have sex with Zhuge Jin's uncle Zhuge Xuan.
When Liu Bei heard that "Zhuge Liang was sent to the care of someone close to Liu Biao", he immediately imagined a scenario in which "Liu Biao held Zhuge Liang hostage to control Zhuge Xuan", which made him deeply regretful.
However, Liu Bei was also vaguely aware of an opportunity, because he, Zhuge Jin and Zhuge Liang may have a common enemy:
"Since Ziyu said that his second brother was ten times more intelligent than him and was being raised by Zhuge Xuan, Zhuge Xuan is now being forced by Zuo Rong. If I can defeat Yuan Shu and gain a firm foothold in the future, should I develop to Jiangdong and help Zhuge Xuan? What about Xuan Zhu killing Zuo Rong?
Or maybe lend troops to Ziyu and ask him to assist his uncle... That's it, it's a bit far-fetched to think about. Let's get over the current situation first. "
Liu Bei also realized that he was thinking too much, so he had to put these unrealistic things behind him for the time being. But the idea of "rescuing Zhuge Xuan and making friends with Zhuge brothers" has been like a barb, lingering in Liu Bei's heart.
It’s not easy to find talents. How can you miss such a great talent? Of course, you must show your greatest sincerity and seek it at any cost!
Mr. Tzuyu is like this, and so is his second brother.
