In the late autumn of September, the fifth year of Yanxing in the Eastern Han Dynasty, the green earth and fields turned yellow, willow branches were lined on both sides of the glue, fallen leaves were rustling, and geese could be seen flying south in the sky. The war in Qingzhou is coming to an end, and the soldiers in the Han army camp have also begun to take turns to take a rest, or go hiking in the mountains, or pay homage to their deceased friends, or fly eagles to chase rabbits, capture deer and shoot deer. As the Double Ninth Festival is approaching, they can enjoy the autumn. A great time to travel.
Because Linzi fell into the city, Donglai and Beihai counties also lost their will to fight and promised to surrender to Bafu. However, the scene of 3,000 people setting themselves on fire in Linzi City still left a deep impression on Liu Bei. He was worried that there were still some stubborn resisters among them, so he moved the camp to Xiami so that he could be recruited and resettled nearby.
Overall, the recruitment was relatively smooth. Most of the cities in Beihai no longer resisted, but Jimo, the headquarters of the Guan brothers, still did not agree. But the negotiator replied that the defenders in the city had no intention of resisting to the end, and probably wanted some rewards to calm the situation.
The conditions in the counties of Donglai were different. They sent one person to say that they could offer the city, but there were many survivors in the counties who did not want to live under Han rule, and they hoped that Liu Bei would allow them to leave. Liu Bei knew that this was the limit of their compromise, so he agreed and made an agreement with them that if anyone wanted to leave, he would not stop them, but they would either go south to Jiangdong or float to Liaodong, but they could not go to Hebei.
The envoy heard that Liu Bei might want to attack Hebei again. These remnants of the Yellow Turbans had experienced wars for a long time and had no intention of participating in the war again, so they readily agreed. That month, while they handed over the city, they sent envoys to contact Gongsun Du, the governor of Liaodong. Gongsun Du was naturally overjoyed when he learned that someone from thousands of miles away was coming to surrender, and sent hundreds of large ships across the sea. Subsequently, thousands of Qi and Han survivors moved to Liaodong.
At this point, the Qingxu War, which lasted for nearly eight months, finally came to an end. However, Liu Bei did not withdraw his troops immediately. Instead, he led his troops to the seaside and held a banquet for all members of the army. This is because although the war is over, the appeasement of the two states has just begun, and Liu Bei's supervision is still needed to get on the right track. Moreover, since Liu Bei established the shogunate, the battle of Qingzhou has been the most difficult, and the spirits of the soldiers are unprecedentedly exhausted. Such a time to relax and have fun.
On the evening of the Double Ninth Festival, Liu Bei held a banquet in honor of the lieutenants.
Liu Bei was extremely frugal in his daily life. He could only afford three sets of regular clothes, eat only two dishes, and even had only five horses, which were the favorites of warriors. But probably because of the joy and satisfaction after the victory, and perhaps a bit of homesickness during the festive season, he made an exception and made an extravagant decision. On the coast of the Bohai Sea, the Bafu had tens of thousands of seats, and the Huotou Camp slaughtered hundreds of cattle and sheep at one time. Grill and cut them into pieces, place them randomly on the table, and place them with wine, melons, and fruits. More than 100,000 soldiers brought their own plates and ate them at will, so that when the sea breeze blew, meat was floating in the air within a radius of more than ten miles. Many wild dogs smelled the fragrance and gathered together. Upon seeing this, the soldiers threw some bones, and the wild dogs whined and fought for each other, causing everyone to laugh.
At this time, the setting sun in the west has not yet fallen into the mountains of Mount Tai, but a pale yellow moon in the east has already emerged from the sea. The clouds in the sky are like waves, and the waves are rolling now. Under the dim night, the sky and the earth appear to be half red and half clear, which is refreshing and refreshing.
Liu Bei was now dressed in robes, sitting on a hill in the north, feasting with everyone. At this time, he was accompanied by far more than just the generals and lieutenants in the army and the shogunate's advisers, as well as Cao Cao and his entourage from the Yanzhou Prefecture, Zhang Xian and his entourage from the newly formed Xuzhou Prefecture, and Zang Ba, the Taishan thief and his entourage, who had taken refuge this year. There were famous people from Qingxu and even Gongsundu’s envoys.
While they were drinking and drinking, they suddenly heard a rough and hoarse voice roaring, like an ape roaring. It turned out that it was Cao Cao, the former general, Yanzhou Mu, and Hanchang Township Marquis, who was leading the song. As he sang, his voice gradually sobbed, and he stopped and said: "The last time I spent the Double Ninth Festival with my father was during the Zhongping period. At that time, I said goodbye to my father in my hometown, and I was crusading against Dong Zhuo. I thought I would die in Ah. In front of my father, who could have expected that these words would become an eternal farewell. Today, I miss my family on the Double Ninth Festival. Who can I miss?" As he said this, he raised his sleeves to wipe away his tears.
When Liu Bei heard this, he also said sadly: "Back then, the campaign against Dong Gong failed. How many Paoze brothers died in the battle, I'm afraid there are 70,000 to 80,000 people."
Everyone present was filled with emotion when they heard this, and unknowingly they started talking about the frequent wars in recent years, the rise of thieves, how many relatives they had lost their lives in the wars, how many people were missing, and their sighs and sighs were like running water.
"The Sword Comes"
At this time, Liu Bei stood up with his cup in hand. Seeing that he seemed to have something to say, everyone on the hill muted their voices. But Liu Bei did not speak immediately. He first listened to the noisy voices of the soldiers in the south urging them to drink, and then heard the roar of the waves in the north. When he lowered his head, he saw that there were clusters of yellow flowers at his feet, which looked like mist in the night. Liu Bei couldn't help but feel Show a little smile.
He sighed to everyone: "It has been nearly seven years since the late emperor ascended the throne, and the world has been divided for nearly seven years. During this period, there were rebellions caused by Chang Shi, Dong Zhuo usurping power, thieves trying to control it, and thieves like Yuan Shu who stole high positions and plotted to usurp the throne. There are also Liangluan in the west and Xianbei in the north, surrounded by tigers and wolves! Since Wang Mang, the country has never been more difficult than this."
Liu Bei paused, then raised his glass with both hands and said: "But now all this has passed. The moth thieves have been wiped out, and the Central Plains has become peaceful. Only Liangzhou in the west still has a small chaos, but General Fenwu has won a series of battles, and he will surely be able to quell the chaos." Just in the past two years. This is all the credit of everyone here, and I respect everyone."
Everyone dared not even say that, so they raised their glasses in response and drank to indicate it. Liu Bei then smiled and said: "The war is about to end, but I don't know how many years it will take to rule the world again. To put an end to the chaos immediately, you only need to wave your sword, but to govern the people from a horse, it is not possible to rule with a sword. . This will also depend on you, I will respect you here first!" From then on, everyone drank again.
Liu Bei put down his cup, walked up to Cao Cao, put his shoulder on his shoulder and said: "Meng De, when Qiao Gong was alive, he said that you were a capable minister in the world and a traitor in troubled times. Ting Jian and I deeply agree, and today the world General Ping, Ting Jian wrote to me saying that he hopes you can join the imperial court and become the censor Zhongcheng, what do you think?"
After hearing this, everyone congratulated Cao Cao in unison. After all, as mentioned in the previous article, Yushi Zhongcheng is one of the three independent people in the court. Once he can join the post, he will just wait for time to serve as the three ministers in the future. It can be said that it is the dream of the court official. Practical work.
Cao Cao looked embarrassed when he heard this. He put down his cup and said slowly to Liu Bei: "Ming Gong, when everyone elected me as the governor of the state, I promised them that it would take three years to quell the chaos in the state and three years to govern. People's Livelihood has been around for five years now. I am naturally very happy that Ming Gong wants to give me a heavy responsibility, but a gentleman acts in accordance with the times and honors his promise. I hope Ming Gong can allow me to keep my promise."
Liu Bei laughed loudly when he heard this. He sighed: "If Meng De said this, how dare I not be a gentleman if I have the intention? Forget it, Ting Jian and I will write to him and ask him to wait for you for another year." He waved his hand and said to Cao Cao: "There is just one thing, and I have to ask Yanzhou Mu to part with me."
Cao Cao breathed a sigh of relief and replied casually: "What's the matter? Cao Cao will not refuse."
Liu Bei pointed at Zang Ba and others beside him and said with a smile: "Although they are landlords and have become Qingzhou's guardians, in the final analysis, they are just rough people. They are fine with swords and swords, but they don't know how to encourage farmers to teach mulberry trees." , I have to find a governor for them! So I want to borrow someone from Mengde."
"who?"
"Farewell, Lord Xunyu." Liu Bei smiled at Cao Cao, "How about it? Are you reluctant to part with it?"
Cao Cao was silent after hearing this, and the situation became cold for a while. Everyone also heard something was wrong, but Cao Cao suddenly said: "Wen Ruo is not only my assistant, but also my best friend, Ming Gong. I can't make decisions for him. He is now Right here, let him speak for himself."
After hearing this, Xun Yu slowly walked out of the banquet, bowed solemnly to Liu Bei, and then said: "Since it is an order from the imperial court, I dare not refuse."
When everyone saw that he looked as good as a orchid and jade tree, and that there was a fragrance in his manner, their eyes lit up, and they secretly praised in their hearts: There is such a strange man in the world! Liu Bei hurriedly helped Xun Yu up and said to him: "I have long heard about the reputation of King Xun as a talented person. I am so late to see you today!" He then smiled at Zang Ba and others and said, "Not yet. Have you come to see your governor?"
Everyone started laughing again and continued the party until late at night, with only a bright moon hanging high above their heads in the sky.
Everyone drank too much and returned to the camp to rest one after another. Just when Cao Cao was about to lead people away, Liu Bei stopped him and said to him, "Long time no see. Let's go for a walk at night." Cao Cao hesitated slightly. , it was Xiahou Dun who led the people to say goodbye before he agreed.
Liu Bei waved his hand and told Guan and Zhang to rest first, and he walked towards the sea. Seeing this, Cao Cao had no choice but to follow quickly even though he didn't want to.
They walked for a while and stopped on a rock. In front of them was the endless sea. At this time, there were only two of them between heaven and earth. They could hear the sound of waves, birds, and each other's breathing.
Liu Bei suddenly said: "Mengde, have you collected swords recently?"
Cao Cao shook his head and said, "Since I escaped from Luoyang, I have never sheathed my sword again."
Liu Bei looked at Cao Cao's waist and asked, "What sword do you have now? Or Yitian?"
Cao Cao took off the sword from his waist and handed it to Liu Bei. He said, "Yes, they were originally a couple. Qing Zhi is still with Ting Jian. I often regret it."
Liu Bei took out the sword's blade from its scabbard. He saw that the sword was as bright as frost and the blade was as sharp as snow. Looking at the countless waves of light under the moonlight in the distance, he couldn't help but chant: "The sky shines on the sea with countless flowers."
Cao Cao was surprised and said: "You can compose poetry?"
"It was written by Ting Jian. I still can't remember the next sentence." Liu Bei returned the Yitian Sword to Cao Cao and looked into the distance and said, "You are also a famous person in the literary world. Now write a poem?"
Cao Cao wanted to refuse, but when he looked into the distance, he suddenly heard a high-pitched and long call. It was neither a bird nor an ape, but it was extremely ethereal and open-minded. A huge black shadow jumped out of the water, causing huge splashes on the sea surface, and then revealed a clear fish tail. He was stunned, and then realized that it was a Kun whale!
He watched the Kun Whale slowly emerge from the water, spray out a spectacular water column upwards, and slowly swim towards the east. His mind was swaying for a moment and he couldn't control himself. He turned to look at Liu Bei and found that Liu Bei was also looking at him. Liu Bei asked Him: "Do you have any poems?"
Cao Cao smiled and nodded, and read slowly: "To the east is the Jieshi, to see the vast sea. Where is the water? The mountains and islands stand tall. There are thick trees and luxuriant grass. The autumn wind is bleak, and the waves are rising. The journey of the sun and the moon is like going out of it. "The stars are as brilliant as if they came out of it. Fortunately, I sing to express my ambition."
Liu Bei was moved when he heard this, and couldn't help but chant repeatedly: "The movement of the sun and the moon is like it comes from within; the stars are shining brightly, like it is from within."
He smiled at Cao Cao and said: "Mengde, today's great man is only a few steps away from the great cause of rejuvenation." He looked at the bright moon and thought about the people in the world.
He had no idea that Cao Cao beside him was holding the hilt of Yitian Sword tightly, holding it again and again, just like in Luoyang.
(The great cause is almost over)
