Chen Chong accepted the edict and read it three or four times, feeling absurd. After the Julu Incident, he openly broke with Dong Zhuo. Except for necessary exchanges in daily political affairs, the two never said a word. What's more, there was the assassination case of Fan Chong two years ago. Chen Chong secretly thought that if he fell into Dong Zhuo's hands, thousands of lives would be lost. It should be normal to be cut into pieces by a knife.
Unexpectedly, after Dong Zhuo came to power, he would appoint Chen Chong as the shepherd of Bingzhou in the first month. Chen Chong couldn't believe it. But Huangfu Jianshou brought out the golden seal and purple ribbon that symbolized the status of the shepherd uncle. Seeing is believing. Chen Chong took the seal and ribbon with both hands and sighed to Huangfu Jianshou: "When I was in Hebei, I always thought Dong Zhuo was too greedy and angry, but now He is in control of the government, but he can restrain his heart and temper, which makes me seem narrow-minded."
Huangfu Jianshou said with a smile, "Thanks to Cai Gong and Cao Jun!" He told Chen Chong everything about Luoyang. When Chen Chong heard that Cai Yong had been recalled to the capital, he turned to Chen Qun and said, "Four Didn't Taishan, the Yueqian clan, take refuge with his family in Dongping?" Chen Qun replied: "After all, Cai Gong couldn't bear to leave Xiangzhi, so he stayed in Yuxian County. But who could have predicted that Dong Zhuo would be in sole control of Sheji today? "
Chen Chong was silent. He turned over the seal in his hand and couldn't hide his worry. He said: "Dong Zhuo is narrow-minded after all. If he angers Mount Tai because of me, then I will regret it." After one month's journey, He was quite tired, but when he saw the messenger from the court, he was eager to know the development of the court situation. Even though he had just reunited with his wife, he couldn't care less. He placed Cai Yan in the room, and Chen Chong immediately Returning to the government office, he called Chen Qun, Xu Shu and others to his side, and then discussed the changes in the court situation with Huangfu Jianshou.
Dong Zhuo was always at odds with Huangfu Song because he was jealous of his talents. However, Huangfu Jianshou was a kind-hearted person and was not hostile to Dong Zhuo because of conflicts between his parents. Instead, he said to people: "If there is a gap between the elders, how can the younger ones make up for the mistakes?" Therefore, he had long-term contacts with Dong Zhuo and was deeply loved by Dong Zhuo. This time Dong Zhuo came to power, he was the first to be promoted to an official position. Huangfu Jianshou benefited from his status as the only son of Huangfu Song, and various factions also competed to fawn over him, so that he was well aware of the changes in Luoyang's power.
He didn't meet Chen Chong much, but his father often praised Chen Chong's talents, so he naturally regarded him as a friend and informed him of all the recent changes in the court and the arrangements for merging the state. When Chen Chong heard that Lu Zhi had abandoned his official position and left Beijing, he asked worriedly: "When Lu Gong left, did he say where he would settle down?" Jian Shou shook his head and replied: "Lu Gong said he would go back to Youzhou to recuperate, but Youzhou is so big. , who knows where he is?" Chen Chong heard that Xun Shuang, Han Rong and other family elders had also come to the capital. He thought about it a little and asked Jian Shou, "Can they bring the rest of the clan with them?" Jian Shou Taixi replied. : "When Duke Dong first took charge of the government, many party members were not optimistic about him. Even virtuous people such as Wen Ruo (Xun Yu) abandoned their official posts and returned home. How could the leaders of all ethnic groups bring their queens with them?"
Finally, when talking about the matter of annexing the state, Jian Shou pointed to the green hills outside the city and said with a smile to Chen Chong: "Dong Taiwei moved a few green hills to the dragon's head, so that the dragon's head should shoulder the giant peaks and set the desert in the north. All princes in the dynasty have their capitals. Said, 'With the strength of Mount Tai to reach the North Sea, Mencius said that it is impossible to do it sincerely. I wonder if it can be done with the mind of a dragon!'" This was an insinuation that Kong Rong, Bian Rang and others were not easy to get along with. Chen Chong did not take it seriously and only said: "It is the duty of the county government to recover the lost territory. I went to the court before, but neither the general nor the queen mother responded. I feel uneasy in my heart, now that I have the imperial decree, I just want to do it."
On September 13th, Liu Bei heard the news that Chen Chong was appointed as the shepherd of Bingzhou. He dropped everything in his hands and returned to Jinyang quickly. When he arrived at the county mansion, Chen Chong was chatting and laughing with two scribes: one scribe was wearing a blue robe, a big crown on his head, a steel sword and a long sword on his waist, and wooden clogs on his feet. Hu was sitting at the table with a bold smile, showing a dash of heroism; There is a man with a clear and slender face. He is wearing plain Confucian clothes and a Confucian crown, with white silk shoes placed behind him. He is sitting at attention at the banquet with a smile on his face. He is a handsome gentleman.
When Chen Chong saw Liu Bei coming back, he introduced him to Liu Bei and said that this was the newly appointed governor of Yanmen, Bian Rang, and the governor of Wuyuan, Kong Rong. When Bian Rang heard that this was Liu Bei, he looked him up and down with raised eyebrows, which made Liu Bei feel very uncomfortable. However, after Kong Rong saluted Liu Bei, he sat at the table without saying a word.
When Liu Bei sat down at the table, he asked Liu Bei, "How much credit did Liu Jun have for Shaling's victory over Xianbei?" Liu Bei answered honestly, "Less than three points." Hearing this, he was surprised. He also asked, "How much fault does Liu Jun have for Sanggan's defeat at the hands of Xianbei?" Liu Bei said calmly, "Ten percent." Bian Rang asked further, "Liu Jun has not had many military exploits, but his defeat has not been small. Why can he be so calm?" He replied sternly: "Liu Bei served his country only to die, so why worry about losing? What joy is there in winning?"
When Rang heard the words and praised him, he drank a full glass of wine and said with a smile to Kong Rong: "I have heard about Liu Xuande for a long time, and today I saw him, he is well-deserved." Kong Rong also nodded, softened his expression towards Liu Bei, and commented: "Liu Jun It has the style of Feng Yangxia." Feng Yangxia pointed to the famous Yuntai general Yangxiahou Feng Yi, which shows that although Kong Rong didn't say much, he was very close to Liu Bei in his heart.
The two of them talked about some state and county affairs during the banquet before saying goodbye and leaving. Liu Bei waited until he was the only two people left in the room, then he took off his reserved look and joked to Chen Chong: "I haven't seen you for a month. I didn't expect you to jump over the dragon gate and become my master in the blink of an eye."
Chen Chong didn't mean to joke. He was thinking about the changes in the political situation in Guandong. His face was serious as he analyzed the current situation with Liu Bei: "Xuande, Dong Zhuo made a big mistake in governing. He promoted party members in the court, but now he delegates power to the states and counties. Yuan Benchu was ordered to go to the Bohai Sea. The Bohai Sea is far away from the Eastern Capital, and Dong Zhuo is beyond his reach. But Yuan Benchu is unwilling to do so, and will definitely contact the prefectures and counties in Guandong to raise troops and cause chaos. After this year, peace will probably be unattainable. "
When Liu Bei heard these words, he showed a high-spirited expression. He encouraged Chen Chong and said: "Ting Jian, there are many unsatisfactory things in life. The big river flows eastward, and only those who can go upstream are the dragons. It is difficult to cross the mountains. Only those who can travel across glaciers are heroes. Since the Yellow Turban Rebellion, I have been waiting for the day to come. Now that I have a place to use, I can repay the world. What sorrow can I say?"
Chen Chong looked at Liu Bei after hearing this and saw him standing upright with a sword. The gloom in his heart was swept away, and he was filled with pride. He stopped talking about the chaos in the court and asked Liu Bei: "Now Dong Zhuo's fate I am the shepherd of Bingzhou, and I am asked to take over the whole country and drive out Hu Chen. Although the words are righteous, the court does not send a single soldier. In fact, it is trying to drive away the tiger and devour the wolf, causing both me and Xianbei to suffer losses. Xuande, now September is the season when horses are getting fat. There are 30,000 Jun soldiers and 20,000 Hu soldiers in Bingzhou counties. Do you dare to fight with Xianbei?"
Liu Bei smiled while talking about swords and replied: "The invaders can go, and I can go, so what should I be afraid of?"
The two decided on the strategy of attacking Xianbei in the north first to stay away from the government, and immediately began to mobilize county soldiers from various counties. This time, Dong Zhuo appointed Chen Chong as the shepherd of Bingzhou, but did not promote Liu Bei. This was because he had evil intentions to sow discord. As the saying goes, Chen Chong always assisted Liu Bei, and his official position was at most the same as Liu Bei's. The two had just cooperated well. But this time Chen Chong was placed above Liu Bei, and it could be said that there was a conflict between elder and younger. Many brothers had grudges due to fame and fortune, and finally went their separate ways, but the two of them were not affected at all. This time, Chen Chong mobilized troops from the three counties of Xihe, Shangdang and Taiyuan and handed them over to Liu Bei as commander. He still accompanied them as an aide in front of others and behind them. Bian Rang, Kong Rong, Tao Qiuhong and others temporarily stayed in Jinyang to work. When they saw this, they all said: The friendship between Liu and Chen is probably difficult for Bao Shuya and Guan Zhong to match.
By September 30th, soldiers from the three counties gathered in the north of Jinyang City. There were 20,000 Hu soldiers from Meiji Wangting and 10,000 Baibo soldiers, led by Dajiequ Zhiyasi and Guo Da respectively. Although the soldiers were less than half of April's army, the people who watched the new army in the north of the city said that the soldiers were in high spirits and were as straight as swords. They had not seen many sick and old soldiers. Even the Knights of Sanhe came, and I am afraid they had something to do. Not as good as.
When the time came to go to war, Chen Chong was arranging his armor at home. Cai Yan took off his shirt and touched the hideous scar on his back and waist until he rubbed Chen Chong's severed finger. She shed tears sadly. She couldn't help but ask: "If a man If we don’t fight with swords, will there be nothing left to do?”
Chen Chong knew that she was sentimental, so he stopped what he was doing and said to her with a warm smile: "Unlike Xuande, I won't charge forward. Unless I encounter a defeat, I will definitely be fine."
Cai Yan wiped the tears from his eyes and sighed: "Why did you lie to me? If that's true, where did your scars come from?" Chen Chong stopped talking. Cai Yan asked him to wait for a moment, then took out a medicine jar the size of a wine bottle from his luggage, pulled off the lid, and found a strong smell of medicinal wine.
Both of them coughed when they smelled it. Chen Chong smiled bitterly and said, "Where did you get this folk remedy?" Cai Yan didn't say anything. He dipped his delicate hands in medicinal wine and rubbed it on Chen Chong's scar until the skin became red and hot. She asked Chen Chong if the medicine was effective. Chen Chong couldn't bear to disappoint her, so he said: "The itching has been reduced a lot."
Cai Yan carefully sealed the medicinal wine and packed it in Chen Chong's marching bag. He found Wei Yan and told him: "Chang Wen, you are the closest to Ting Jian under his command. Remember to help Ting Jian apply it once a day." "Wei Yan nodded repeatedly and promised to protect Chen Chong to the death, which made Cai Yan feel at ease.
Under the watchful eyes of his wife, Chen Chong tied his luggage to the saddle and rode Qing Kui out of the mansion. When he saw Liu Bei being sent out by Liu Jia, the two looked at each other and smiled. When they got out of the city gate, they immediately competed in the wilderness. In equestrianism, Liu Bei naturally took the lead and rushed into the military formation first. The army cheered and cheered.
Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, Gu Yi, Linghu Yuan, Yang Hui, Helian Fanmo, Guo Da, Yang Feng, Hu Cai, Liu Xuan, and Qiqu Zhiyasi also entered the formation one by one. After counting the number of soldiers, Liu Bei With an order, the 60,000-strong army was like an arrow shot from a full bow, disappearing into the vast mountains of Bingzhou with blinding speed. They flew over six mountain ranges and traveled 550 miles. Three days later, In the afterglow of the setting sun, the arrow reached its destination and was firmly nailed to the foot of Pingcheng City.
