Liang Guo, Suiyang.
A group of people arrived here in great force.
The soldiers in front of the city gate didn't know whose family's children were traveling, so they didn't dare to stop them and hurriedly let them go without even checking.
The carriage seemed to have already determined its direction and hurried towards the Prime Minister's Mansion in the north.
The soldier at the city gate looked at the direction they were leaving and wiped the sweat from his forehead. Fortunately, he didn't stop them.
When the carriage stopped at the Prime Minister's Mansion, the door opened and the carriage entered the house without any hindrance.
When the servants closed the door, a man came out of the carriage.
This man is eight feet tall, has an elegant and easy-going face, has a long beard, and looks like a standard scholar-official.
"Meet General Zhengnan!!"
The officials in the government hurriedly paid homage to him.
This person is Zhuge Dan, the general who conquered the south.
This is a descendant of Zhuge Feng, the captain of the Han Dynasty, and the cousin of the late Zhuge Liang, the prime minister of the Shu Han Dynasty.
But looking at his appearance, he is still somewhat similar to Zhuge Liang, but he is less tired and more wealthy.
When he was young, he was a minister, then a county magistrate, and later a censor, Zhongcheng, and a minister.
He was quite accomplished in Confucian classics. He was friends with Xia Houxuan and others and talked all day long. Cao Rui was a person who hated talking very much. Cao Rui believed that these guys who were just trying to gain fame were of no use to the country, so he dismissed him.
Later, when Cao Shuang came to power, he promoted Xiahou Xuan to the post of governor of Yangzhou and made him general Zhaowu.
Unfortunately, Cao Rui was not wrong. This person really only knew how to talk.
He was unable to do much to help Cao Shuang and turned a blind eye to everything that happened in the temple.
Even after Xia Houxuan and others were killed, Guanqiu Jian was furious and wanted to launch an army to attack the Sima family, but Zhuge Dan remained unmoved.
Historically, he even helped the Sima family send troops to fight Guanqiu Jian.
Obviously, he didn't understand that once Guanqiu Jian was killed, it would be his turn next.
Apart from his last name, he has nothing in common with his cousin. He is just a short-sighted guard dog.
He was not the loyal minister of Cao Wei as later people said. He was just a stupid military leader who wanted to continue his rule in the local area. He stabbed Guanqiu Jian in the back when he was crusading for justice, and waited until the Sima family wanted to deal with him before he jumped over the wall.
Although he repeatedly emphasized that the reason he raised the army was to attack the Sima family, the real reason was that the Sima family wanted to let him enter the temple and remove him from military power, so he raised the army to attack.
Therefore, there is really no problem with the theory of dragon, tiger and dog.
Of course, he is not without any merit. He has a great reputation and can win people's hearts. The soldiers are willing to fight to the death for him. His superficial skills are very good.
Zhuge Dan stroked his beard and asked, "Where is the general?"
"Please follow me."
Several guards around him were about to go in, but Zhuge Dan glared at them, "You just stay here!"
The guards dared not speak.
Zhuge Dan followed the man into the inner room alone.
"Greetings to the general!"
After entering the inner room, Zhuge Dan hurriedly bowed to the man sitting in the upper position.
Master Sima appeared here at some unknown time. He was sitting on top, with a gloomy face, staring at Zhuge Dan below.
"Get up."
"Thank you, General."
Zhuge Dan stood up quickly, and then looked at the scribe sitting next to Master Sima in surprise.
This man was about the same age as Zhuge Dan, but he didn't have Zhuge Dan's aristocratic background. He had a dark complexion and a thin body. He looked almost like a farmer in the fields.
But Zhuge Dan did not dare to underestimate this man at all.
"General Zhenwei!"
This man hurriedly bowed to see Zhuge Dan.
He is the governor of Yanzhou and the general Zhenwei Deng Ai.
Although he doesn't look wealthy, don't get me wrong. Deng Ai comes from a wealthy family, the Deng family of Nanyang.
It's just that Deng Ai's situation is quite special. He lost his father when he was young, and his life is more embarrassing than other aristocratic families, but he can be considered to have truly experienced the life of the lower class.
Deng Ai's starting point was much lower than that of these insects in the dynasty. Earlier, he had received great kindness from Emperor Taizu Wu and was forced to move north and be brought to Runan to farm.
He once herded cattle and farmed. Because he had studied, he worked as a straw guard. He worked hard in the local area for twenty years.
Until he climbed to the position of Diannong Cao Cao with many merits.
When he went to Luoyang to submit a petition, he met the noble man who changed his destiny, Ma Yi of Xuanwen Company.
Sima Yi could see at a glance that this guy was not a human being...not a mediocre person.
So he was directly recruited as a servant of the Taiwei Mansion and as a confidant.
Deng Ai made great contributions to the state of Wei. While others were still talking about metaphysics and singing songs, he never forgot his old profession, farming.
He reported to Sima Yi that he wanted to engage in water conservancy and farming, and Sima Yi agreed. Deng Ai was a good farmer. In a few years, Wei's national power began to soar, and Huainan and other places became extremely wealthy.
He has made meritorious service all the way, served as the governor, and defeated the enemy. Until now, he has been promoted to the position of governor of Yanzhou.
Master Sima valued him very much and told his younger brother Sima Zhao many times that he was strong and could be used in many ways.
Seeing Deng Ai also appearing here, Zhuge Dan narrowed his eyes.
Master Sima is different from his younger brother. He is not very good at pretending. If Sima Zhao were here, he would have taken Zhuge Dan's hand and called him brother. If Cao Mao were here, he would have become Zhuge Mao.
However, Master Sima was very indifferent. He asked, "Why is Lord Zhuge so late in arriving?"
Zhuge Dan quickly replied: "General, please forgive me. The Wu thief is ready to make a move, but I really dare not leave rashly..."
Master Sima motioned to Zhuge Dan to sit down. Zhuge Dan thanked him and sat on his left side.
"Mr. Zhuge, Shi Ji should have told you all the specific matters."
"You have also seen my condition. My eye disease is getting more and more serious. If the thieves are not eliminated, I will feel uneasy."
Zhuge Dan secretly looked at Master Sima beside him. Master Sima's condition looked really bad. His face was pale and skinny, and his words were noisy.
"Please rest assured, General. All benevolent people in the world are willing to serve the temple and repay the king's kindness, even if they die. A few thieves and bandits are not worth mentioning!"
Zhuge Dan's voice was loud and clear, and just by looking at his appearance, anyone would think that he was a capable minister in this world.
In front of him, Deng Ai was no different from an old country man.
Master Sima then talked to him about the situation in the Central Plains.
Master Sima knew what Zhuge Dan wanted. All he wanted was self-protection. He didn't take Zhuge Dan seriously at all. If he could defeat Guan Qiu Jian, he could hand over part of Guan Qiu Jian's power to Zhuge Dan. .
Compared to Guanqiu Jian, Zhuge Dan's threat was too low, not because his power was too small, but mainly because of the difference between his generals.
Even if Zhuge Dan fully accepted Guanqiu Jian's power, he would not be afraid. Why should he be afraid of the guarding dog?
Zhuge Dan was of course excited. If he could accept the inheritance left by Guan Qiu Jian, and then wait until Master Sima died of illness, who else in the world could deal with him? You can feel at ease where you are and continue your current life...
The two talked happily and achieved unified goals in many places.
Deng Ai just looked at them calmly without saying a word.
Deng Ai appeared here only to be shown to Zhuge Dan by Sima Shi.
Deng Ai didn't like these things very much. He thought that if these things could end soon, he could go back and continue farming.
After chatting for a long time, Master Sima felt a little unbearable. He asked Zhuge Dan to rest first and decided to continue the discussion after an hour.
Only then did he look at Deng Ai beside him.
But his expression was not as indifferent as he was towards Zhuge Dan.
"Shizai, I have read your petition. You are right and thoughtful. Agriculture is indeed the foundation for victory. Food is more important than military strength."
"Since you feel that the local officials do not pay attention to agriculture and only focus on socializing and soliciting requests, and their style is flashy and unrealistic, then remove and replace them according to your ideas. There is no need to report to me, you can handle it yourself."
"In addition, you said that you should set up rewards to encourage people to accumulate food and reduce taxes. I agreed. The responsibility of putting an end to this flashy trend in the world will be left to you."
Deng Ai was stunned and quickly stood up.
"More...more...more...thank you, General."
Master Sima was about to say something, but he coughed violently again. This time, he finally subconsciously wanted to cover his left eye.
Deng Ai was shocked.
"I'm fine, don't worry... I'm just a little tired these days... everything is complicated..."
Master Sima said through gritted teeth.
"There are more and more letters from Luoyang..."
