Cao Zhang walked quickly towards the man. When he came to him, he was about to ask, but the man spoke first: "Master, are you here to buy groceries again?"
When Cao Zhang heard the man ask this, he already had a rough idea in his mind, and he was sure that the person in front of him was Xu Shu.
Cao Zhang nodded and responded: "Sir, are you waiting for me on purpose today?"
Xu Shu responded: "I am ashamed to be called sir. I just want to make it clear to the young master in person, so that my mother will no longer worry about this matter."
"Sir, just say it." Cao Zhang responded.
Xu Shu said straight to the point: "I am just an unknown person. Why do you want me to recruit you as an official?"
"If I want to help my father achieve great things, he needs the help of famous officials. Naturally, he has to visit many places and recruit talents from all walks of life."
"My husband's chivalrous act of killing someone for a friend and refusing to reveal his identity, and his filial piety to protect his mother, are greatly admired by me."
"I learned that your husband has traveled around the world in recent years and visited famous teachers. He even studied under Shuijing, a famous official in Jingxiang, Sima Hui and Pang Degong. He has a very high understanding of the world's situation."
"Sir, he is both civilized and military, possessing both political integrity and talent. He is exactly what I need. However, I am in Jingzhou and cannot meet him directly."
"I heard that my aunt and your brother are living in poverty, and I wanted to give them some help. But my aunt is very strong-willed and refuses to accept it. I don't dare to force it, so I can only help as much as possible by buying groceries."
"I didn't want to disturb my aunt and make her unhappy. I would like to express my sincere apologies." Cao Zhang spoke eloquently, explaining clearly why he wanted to recruit Xu Shu, and sincerely expressed his apology.
"I heard that the young master composed two first-class poems in a row in the Yuedan Review, which ranked first among all. With the young master's talent and learning, why should I help you?" Xu Shu declined.
"Poems, lyrics, and poems are nothing but leisurely pursuits, and they are far from capable of governing the world and pacifying the people. What's more, if you want to achieve great things, how can it be achieved by just one person?"
"The Emperor of Qin had Li Si in literature and Bai Qi, Wang Jian and others in military affairs to unify the six kingdoms; Emperor Gaozu had Zhang Liang and Xiao He in literature, and Han Xin and Fan Kuai in military affairs, so he could win the battle between Chu and Han for hegemony."
"It can be seen that to pacify the world, we need the help of talents from all walks of life to succeed. Sir, you have the strategy to govern the country and stabilize the country. I hope that you can help me!" Cao Zhang humbly extended an invitation to Xu Shu again.
Seeing Cao Zhang being so sincere, Xu Shu was slightly moved, but he still had some worries in his heart, so he said: "Since the young master sincerely invites you, I will boldly ask the young master a few questions. If the young master's response makes me feel that the young master is trustworthy, Ming Zhu, who I rely on, will go back with the young master."
"But if I feel that it is really difficult for me to help you accomplish your great mission, please support me. Don't force me, and don't bother my mother again. I would like to thank you!" After Xu Shu finished speaking, he stood up and saluted Cao Zhang respectfully.
Cao Zhang understood that the next question Xu Shu was going to ask was a test for himself, and whether he could handle it properly would be the key to whether he could serve his life.
"Sir, if you have any questions, please just ask." Cao Zhang said calmly.
Xu Shu opened his mouth and asked: "Nowadays, the feudal princes in the world are divided and the disputes continue, which has become a chaos. I dare to ask you, sir, who is the culprit of this troubled times?"
Xu Shu's question was to understand how far Cao Zhang's vision and analysis of the political situation had reached.
Fortunately, Cao Zhang likes history, especially books and allusions related to the late Han Dynasty and the Three Kingdoms, and he has read a lot.
He also read many summaries and comments from later generations on the root causes of this troubled time, and naturally he was able to select the answer that he felt was the most insightful.
Cao Zhang did not give an answer right away, but looked thoughtful. After a moment, he said: "I think the root of today's troubled times can be attributed to three people, that is He Jin, Yuan Shao and Wang Yun."
Cao Zhang's answer surprised Xu Shu, and it could be said that it was an opinion he had never heard before.
In fact, Xu Shu had many discussions with his close friends Shi Guangyuan and Cui Zhou when they were in Jingzhou.
Everyone also held their own opinions on this and refused to give in to each other.
Some people believe that during the reign of Emperors Huan and Ling, the eunuchs were favored, officials were corrupt, and the selling of officials and titles was serious. In addition, eunuchs and relatives took turns in power, the government was in chaos, various exorbitant taxes and miscellaneous taxes continued, and various disasters broke out constantly, leaving the people in a state of insecurity. Being in dire straits is the root cause of troubled times.
Some people also believe that the two party bans directly led to the shortage of talents and the restriction of noble families, which caused the court to lack sufficient talents and support, which was the root of the troubled times.
Of course, the harm caused by the outbreak of the Yellow Turban Rebellion was inevitably pointed out as the root cause of the troubled times.
But today, Cao Zhang made a shocking statement, pointing directly at He Jin, Yuan Shao and Wang Yun as the source of the troubled times. However, this was an opinion that Xu Shu had never heard of or thought of.
Xu Shu asked: "Then please explain, Sir, why you said that the root of the troubled times lies with these three people?"
Cao Zhang nodded and began his explanation: "During the reign of Emperors Huan and Ling, there were party restrictions first, which resulted in a shortage of talents in the court. Later, eunuchs and relatives took turns in power, and sales of officials and titles frequently occurred, making the government corrupt."
"But these people only know how to line their own pockets, impose excessive taxes, and ignore the life and death of the people, making the people miserable and even exchanging children for food."
"This gave Zhang Jiao's Taiping Dao the opportunity to penetrate and develop, causing the Yellow Turban Rebellion, which lasted for more than ten years and was repeatedly banned."
"But I think these are the causes of the current troubled times where the princes are divided, but they are not the root cause."
Xu Shu listened to Cao Zhang's analysis and felt approving. He was able to summarize all the arguments among the famous officials in Jingzhou on his own, which proved his high vision.
But Xu Shu was more interested in knowing what Cao Zhang meant by the three root causes, so he was not in a hurry to express his opinion.
"Although the Yellow Turban Rebellion started quickly and swept through eight states in the world, Zhang Jiao and others were a mob after all, and they fought independently and did not know how to cooperate. After the imperial court dispatched three armies to clear out the enemy, Zhang Jiao was killed within a few months. Killing all the Jiao brothers shows that it is difficult for them to achieve great things."
"Although there are moth thieves and tribes scattered all over the world at this time, the Han Dynasty is still there and its foundation is still there. The people can barely survive, but it is not enough to form a chaotic world where the princes are divided." Cao Zhang continued.
Xu Shu listened carefully, his expression becoming more and more solemn. What Cao Zhang said was getting closer and closer to the root of what he wanted to say.
"After the death of Emperor Ling, the new emperor was young and there was a hidden danger of brotherly rivalry. This directly led to a fight between General He Jin and Shi Changshi."
"In fact, He Jin was in charge of the world's military power at that time, and he also had the imperial army at his disposal. As long as he took action directly, it would be easy to eradicate the ten permanent servants."
"But because of his wife's benevolence and indecisiveness, she listened to He Hou's words and did not kill all the ten regular servants, leaving behind future troubles."
"Unexpectedly, Yuan Shao fell into another strategy at this time and proposed to summon Dong Zhuo, Ding Yuan and others to lead troops into Luoyang. He Jin did not accurately judge the situation and adopted this wrong strategy to introduce Dong Zhuo into Luoyang."
"As a result, He Jin and the Shi Changshi killed each other and all died. After Dong Zhuo entered Luoyang, he quickly defeated Ding Yuan. No one could control him. This was the result of him deposing the new emperor, controlling the court, and exercising tyranny."
"Do you think Dong Zhuo's political chaos was caused by Yuan Shao's advice and He Jin's lack of strategy? This is the original source of the troubled times!" Cao Zhang talked eloquently, telling his own opinions...
