It was noon, giving the gradually cold weather a hint of warmth.
"Get out of the way! Get out of the way!"
Two soldiers opened the way in front, shouting at the top of their voices and riding tall horses to drive away the crowd. Behind them, a prison van came clumsily into Chengdu.
A heroic man sat cross-legged in the prison car, his eyes closed and his expression peaceful.
"who is this?"
People on both sides of the road pointed.
"I heard it's General Zhang Ren."
"Why was such a big official arrested?"
"I heard that the general sent troops to Chu without permission."
"Chu State? Those are the three major powers. Are we going to go to war with Chu State?"
"They sent out troops privately! They sent out troops privately! I heard that they lost the battle. No, the king was furious and ordered him to be escorted to the capital."
"Oh, but, it would be better not to fight."
"Is this what you want? It depends on what the officials think. Let's go, let's continue doing business."
Whether it was fast or slow, the team escorting the prison van gradually moved away. The vendors on both sides continued their shouting, and the people who stopped gradually dispersed.
The restaurant next to the city gate was filled with sounds of injustice.
"It's a shame that Duke Zhang failed to achieve his goal. Is it true that God is going to destroy Shu?"
A pair of fists lightly hit the table, making a muffled sound. This seemed to be just a trace of anger vented by the young men.
Looking up, I saw many young scholars scattered around on the second floor of the restaurant. They were originally gathering here to discuss the current situation, and it was just a coincidence to see Zhang Ren being escorted into the city, but the scholars all sighed with regret.
"Right now, the Qin State is attacking at the doorstep! If Lord Jijiu hadn't already planned it, I'm afraid we'd be outside Mianzhu Pass right now, and those people in the court would still be holding General Zhang back!"
"Now that the Chu State has taken care of Liu Bei, I am afraid that it will invade Shu in the coming year."
Everyone looked depressed.
The world is changing, and heroes are vying for the throne. These young scholars see it in their eyes and are anxious in their hearts.
Another boy stood up.
"Although my king is merciful, those people in the court must not do anything to hurt Mr. Zhang. Everyone, we should jointly submit a letter to rescue Mr. Zhang!"
"That's right! Sign a petition to rescue Mr. Zhang!"
"Jointly submit a letter to rescue Mr. Zhang!"
The scholars were so excited that they seemed to be twisted into a rope.
······
Zhang Ren didn't know what his arrival would bring to Chengdu City. At this time, he was walking step by step into the sky prison wearing clang shackles. The jailer who received the prisoner was very polite and took him into a very clean single room.
A spacious single room, most of the cell was surrounded by wooden bars, a wooden door as high as one person was open, and a large lock was hung on the door. There was a large stone bed in the cell with a quilt on it. What surprised Zhang Ren even more was that there were some wooden tables and chairs placed in the cell, and there was someone waiting for him here.
"Fa Zheng?"
Zhang Ren was stunned.
It was after receiving Fa Zheng's letter that he decided to take the risk and send troops. In terms of crime, Fa Zheng was his accomplice. Fa Zheng dared to come to Tianlao to see him at this time, which was really beyond Zhang Ren's expectation.
However, Zhang Ren had no intention of bringing Fa Zheng into trouble. In his opinion, after his death, the Kingdom of Shu would rely on Fa Zheng.
Fazheng still had time to pick up the jug and pour wine into another wine glass, then raised his head and said to the jailer.
"I'll talk to the general. You guys wait at the outer gate."
this!
Even though it was Lord Jijiu's order, the leading jailer hesitated for a moment before stepping forward to remove Zhang Ren's shackles, leading the men out and closing the iron door.
"Aren't you afraid that others will know your relationship with me?"
Zhang Ren was a little surprised. He was good at fighting, but he felt inferior to these devious methods. He was not polite and sat down next to Fazheng, picked up the wine glass and drank it all in one gulp.
“Good wine!”
Of course it was good wine. This was the treasure Fazheng had been looking for for a long time. He filled another glass for Zhang Ren.
"Dry!"
The two raised their glasses and drank together.
Fazheng filled up the wine glass again, put down the jug, and then spoke.
"General, why don't you die in Jiangling?"
This is just chatting to death.
Zhang Ren was stunned, not knowing what to say. He asked as he took a sip of his wine.
"Does the military advisor want me to die in Jiangling?"
Fazheng sighed and shook his head slightly.
"I hope you capture Jingzhou."
Fazheng's words made Zhang Ren's right hand clenched into a fist unconsciously.
Why doesn't he hope to conquer Jingzhou for the King of Shu?
It's a pity that he underestimated Taishi Ci, and Fazheng underestimated Chu.
From the battle between the vanguard army, to the fierce battle between him and Tai Shici's Chinese army, and then to the final attack on the food and grass. When was it not that the Chu army was at a disadvantage, and when was it not that the Chu people were trapped and still fighting?
Jingzhou had been under Sun Ce's rule for just over two years, but Zhang Ren was also confused by the fact that the generals and people here wanted to be Chu.
"If it can pave the way for my king's dominance, why would Zhang Ren die?"
"However, the Chu army is so strong that it is difficult to win quickly. Our king's edicts are coming one after another. The morale of the army is shaken and the food and grass are lost! If I insist on attacking by force, the chance of winning is only 50%. Even if I succeed, I am afraid that I will only capture Jiangling with only two or three thousand soldiers. Then What’s the point?”
Fazheng slapped the table with a loud bang.
"madness!"
"Winning is the greatest meaning!"
"As long as Jiangling is captured, the king will definitely increase his troops to attack! Sun Ce can only return to rescue. If he still has enough troops at that time, he may be able to survive in Jiangdong. If he has lost most of his troops in Xuzhou, even Jiangdong will be defeated by Shu, Wei, and Han If the three families divide it, the world will be a different story."
This is exactly the scene Fazheng described to him in his letter.
Zhang Ren sighed and drank the remaining wine in the glass.
"The military advisor underestimated the Chu State. Although I was trapped in a cage, I also learned from the subsequent news that Xu Han lost his life without fighting due to shrinking his troops; Zhuge Liang concentrated his superior forces to pursue and intercept Zhou Yu's surprise troops who penetrated deep into Xuzhou, but they were defeated instead. He was defeated. Ji Shubing arrived at Xiaopei and surrounded him without fighting, and used a trick to capture the city. In the end, only Xiapi City was left, but was betrayed by the family and opened the door to welcome the Chu army into the city. Liu Bei fled in panic and was captured. "
"Sun Ce's 100,000-strong army is marching northward, but it is increasing instead of decreasing. Where is the situation envisioned by the military advisor?"
Fazheng listened to Zhang Ren slowly finish, then drank the wine in his hand and sighed.
"When you attacked Jiangling, Ji Shu just besieged Xiaopei to observe the situation. Even if all your troops and horses were defeated, as long as Jiangling was captured and the king advanced, Sun Ce would dare not to return to the army?"
"That's all, you failed to trust me after all. Now that the matter has come to this, talking about these things is just to show off your words."
Fazheng stood up and walked out slowly.
"I will get you out. You don't deserve to die here, and those who are loyal to the country don't deserve to die in this prison."
Zhang Ren glanced at Fazheng's back, then turned to look at the wine glass in his hand. He was not afraid of death. Even if the King of Shu wanted to kill him, he would accept it calmly.
But Zhang Ren really felt bad.
He sent troops for the sake of the king of Shu and the country of Shu. He retreated for the sake of the King of Shu and the country of Shu.
He knew that Fazheng was also for Shu. The only difference between the two was that Fazheng was far more radical and perverse than Zhang Ren.
boom!
The iron door of the outer door was closed, and Fazheng left.
Zhang Ren picked up the wine pot and poured himself another glass of wine.
