Liu Bei personally went to Guanyi to meet Lu Su, which made Lu Su a little flattered.
Liu Bei is a world-famous hero, and Lu Su is only a little famous in Jiangdong, and has always appeared as an aide to Sun Quan. In terms of official status, Liu Bei is the general of the left, and he Lu Su is still just a general. White body.
Therefore, Lu Su was very moved by Liu Bei's courtesy and corporal.
But he was moved. At most, Lu Su had a good impression of Liu Bei, and he still had to do what he should do.
First, we need to test Liu Bei's plans and plans. If Liu Bei doesn't plan to resist Cao Cao, then there is no need for Jiangdong to form an alliance with Liu Bei.
As a result, after Liu Bei stated that he was at odds with Cao Cao, he also stated that he was now without troops and generals, and planned to seek refuge with Wu Ju, the prefect of Cangwu, in order to make a comeback. It would be damned if Lu Su could believe this nonsense.
Lu Su had already inquired when he came. Although Liu Bei was defeated in the northern part of Jingzhou, you really can't say whether Cao Cao or Liu Bei won in the battle of Changbanpo. To say that Liu Bei has suffered heavy losses now and has no troops. Who will believe it?
But everyone knows this routine.
Compared with Cao Cao, Liu Bei is indeed short of major generals. It is indeed a bit difficult to rely on the troops he has at hand to fight against Cao Cao.
The purpose of Lu Su's trip was to form an alliance with Liu Bei, not to trick Liu Bei into becoming cannon fodder and help them defend the upper reaches of the Yangtze River in Jiangdong.
This kind of thing is good for both parties, but it also requires the cooperation of both parties.
So Liu Bei was crying because Lu Su really didn't care about bargaining before cooperation. Everyone knows that.
After some conversation, Liu Bei finally saw Lu Su's style.
Indeed, as Zhuge Liang and Xu Shu said, Lu Su's way of dealing with others gave people a feeling of spring breeze, which was very comfortable.
When discussing practical matters with Liu Bei, every word was informative, never hidden, and sincerely expressed his purpose. While Liu Bei was convinced, he also felt full of sincerity.
But because of Zhang Xi's series of introductions, the more Lu Su behaved in a grand and perfect manner, the less Liu Bei dared to be careless.
This person is indeed a person worth getting along with. When it comes to differences between the two parties, he will also treat each other sincerely, say what needs to be said, and use reason to convince you.
But he shouldn't have said anything. He didn't say a word, and he would never leave you any excuse. He was just a very good diplomat.
"This man's talents may not be inferior to mine!"
This is Zhuge Liang and Xu Shu's evaluation of Lu Su afterwards.
Lu Su was indeed outstanding in talent. Not only did he meet Liu Bei, but he also roughly understood the true situation of Liu Bei's army and the current military strength and logistics of Liu Bei's army. Then he invited Liu Bei to send people to Jiangdong to meet Sun Quan and discuss the alliance together.
What comes and goes, Sun Quan sent someone to show his sincerity, so whether it succeeds or not, Liu Bei will have to send someone across the river to reply.
Therefore, Liu Bei temporarily accommodated Lu Su and then continued the meeting.
This time it was a serious military meeting. The generals and counselors all gathered to discuss the alliance with Jiangdong.
There is really no need to discuss this matter. How can these Jiangxia soldiers be the opponent of Cao Cao, who has an army of at least 300,000 men?
An alliance must be formed, but how to form this alliance, what obligations each party will bear, and what benefits they can obtain, this needs to be carefully discussed by everyone.
Therefore, this military meeting was actually to give a plan, and then ask Zhuge Liang to take these plans to Jiangdong to talk with Sun Quan.
Yes, the candidate to go to Jiangdong must be Zhuge Liang.
Zhuge Liang was the one who understood Jing Xiang's situation best among all the people present. He was simply the only candidate to go to Jiangdong.
But Zhuge Liang also made a request—that Zhang Xi accompany him.
This made Zhang Xi very happy, and originally wanted to follow him to Jiangdong to see it.
I’m not sure what route this world is going to take, but if it’s a romance line, wouldn’t it be a pity not to go and see the various famous scenes like the Battle of Chibi? !
Furthermore, whether it is a historical line or a fictional line, there is no real danger in Zhuge Liang's trip to Jiangdong. Even if there is danger, it is Zhuge Liang who is in danger and has nothing to do with Zhang Xi.
It can be said that it is a public trip, and it is said that you can watch a lot of good shows and experience the magnificent Battle of Chibi in person.
So Zhang Xi originally wanted to go along. When Zhuge Liang said this, Zhang Xi immediately agreed.
And Zhuge Liang wanted Zhang Xi to go to Jiangdong, but his purpose was not simple.
Zhuge Liang can't guess what Jiangdong's attitude is towards Cao.
However, when Zhuge Liang thought about it, there were three key points in persuading Jiangdong to resist Cao Cao. As long as he grasped two of them, it would basically be done.
One is the determination of Sun Quan, the leader of Jiangdong. As long as he can convince Sun Quan to decide to resist Cao Cao, the matter will be half settled.
This matter is actually not difficult. Sun Quan sent Lu Su across the river, which itself showed his intention. Now Zhuge Liang is crossing the river, which is nothing more than strengthening his belief.
The second is to win the support of the Jiangdong military.
This is more troublesome.
Some of Jiangdong's military are private soldiers of aristocratic families, some are members of the veteran generals of the Huaisi Group, and the last part are the Sun family's confidants.
Zhuge Liang has also heard about the virtues of the Jiangdong family. They are basically the same as those of the Jingzhou family. They are okay in the downwind game, but just hope that they can beat the headwind game.
Moreover, in the composition of Jiangdong's military strength, the people from the Huaisi Group currently have the upper hand. As long as the leader of the Huaisi Group, Zhou Yu, is dealt with, this matter will be much easier to handle.
But Zhuge Liang and Zhou Yu have no intersection. Let alone friendship between the two, I am afraid that Zhou Yu may not have heard of Zhuge Liang.
But Zhang Xi is different. Zhang Xi did fight against Zhou Yu in E County, and even "repelled" Zhou Yu. Although Zhou Yu retreated on his own initiative, he was able to block Zhou Yu's attack. Zhuge Liang did not believe that Zhou Yu had no power over Zhang Xi. impression.
By the way, it is also a signal to the Huaisi Group in Jiangdong - don't think that we are here to ask for help. We also have famous generals here who are comparable to your Zhou Lang. We are just cooperating.
The best way to deal with a family of literati is to be sensible.
But when it comes to military generals, showing off force is the best way to persuade them.
This is the reason why Zhuge Liang plans to ask Zhang Xi to go with him. I will talk about the civil officials, but Zhang Xi will have to calm down the generals.
Of course, when it comes to controlling the situation under Liu Bei's account, the best candidate is Er Ye.
But the second master was busy organizing Jiangxia's military affairs, and he brought a general of the second master's level there. Zhuge Liang felt that he was not there to calm people down, but to bully others.
In terms of popularity, the most famous commander-in-chief in Jiangdong at this time, Zhou Yu, was not even half as famous as the second master. If the second master went there, it would not be a way to suppress the situation, but a crushing one, which would easily arouse the rebellious psychology of the Jiangdong generals.
Wen Wu is the first, Wu Wu is the second.
As for the third key point, it is actually the aristocratic families, but this is not important. As long as Sun Quan firmly resists Cao Cao and the Huaisi Group headed by Zhou Yu agrees to send troops, the remaining aristocratic families will not cause any trouble in the short term.
Therefore, after formulating the budget and bottom line, Liu Bei sent Zhuge Liang as the chief envoy and Zhang Xi as the deputy envoy. Under the leadership of Lu Su, they crossed the river to Jiangdong to discuss with Sun Quan about forming an alliance against Cao Cao.
A small boat sailed down the river and arrived at Chaisang from Xiakou in less than a day.
Lu Su also arranged for Zhuge Liang and Zhang Xi to rest in Guanyi first, and then went to see Sun Quan himself and reported to Sun Quan what he had seen and achieved during his trip to Jiangxia.
Zhuge Liang and Zhang Xi, who were resting in the post, definitely didn't know what Lu Su and Sun Quan had talked about. However, Zhuge Liang still had to find a way to get to know the situation in Jiangdong first.
Therefore, Zhuge Liang asked Zhang Xi to go to Chaisang Street in the name of purchasing to find out what the current public opinion in Jiangdong was about Cao's invasion.
Zhang Xi felt very strange. How much of the news he picked up on the street was true? Most of it was just gossip, wasn't it? !
If you really want to find out inside information, just go to your brother's house and visit him. Then you'll know everything. !
Zhuge Jin is now in Jiangdong, and it is said that he is doing well.
In response, Zhuge Liang just smiled and said nothing.
Zhang Xi didn't quite understand Zhuge Liang's mentality, but since Zhuge Liang didn't want to go, he probably had his reasons, so he should just do what Zhuge Liang said.
In the name of going out for shopping, Zhang Xi left the post house and headed to Chaisang Street.
This is Zhang Xi’s true experience of seeing the big cities of this era after he came to this world.
Xinye, Xiling, and E County are all small counties. Compared with big cities like Chaisang City, they are still a little inferior.
However, unlike the big city Zhang Xi imagined, the market in Chaisang is not that prosperous. It may also be related to the recent occupation of Jingzhou by Cao Jun, and the market feels a bit depressed.
But no matter what, it is still much better than Xinye and Xiling. No matter how depressed it is, there are always people buying things in the market, and there are still people chatting in the wine shops.
Zhang Xi first bought some daily necessities, then took these things and found a wine shop for a meal.
Eating is not important, but asking what people in the restaurant are talking about is the most important thing. Zhang Xi spent more than half an hour eating this meal.
After finishing the meal, Zhang Xi had almost done everything he needed to ask. He quickly packed up his things and returned to Guanyi to report to Zhuge Liang.
"Now the people in Jiangdong are really worried about Cao's army in Jingzhou. They are afraid that Cao's army has the intention to go south. They will fight, surrender, or flee. Everyone has his own plan."
This was the news that Zhang Xi had inquired about, and Zhuge Liang was not too surprised after hearing it, but continued to ask, "In the opinion of Yuan Chang, are the people in Jiangdong more those who want to fight, or more those who want to surrender? !”
Zhang Xi curled his lips and said, "Military advisor, when the people heard that Cao Jun was going south, how could they bother to talk about surrendering in a restaurant in time of war? It was just the Jiangdong family manipulating public opinion. Of course, there are many people who want to surrender."
Zhuge Liang was stunned when he heard this, a little embarrassed. He was not pretending to be cool.
That's right, Zhang Yuanchang is also a wise man. How can he not see through such a trivial matter? !
At that moment, he stopped pretending to Zhang Xi and said to Zhang Xi, "It's true as Yuan Zhang said. Can you tell me in detail who are the Yan Zhan?!"
"This is the talker"
(End of chapter)
