Actually, Deng Zhi didn't really want to be the emperor's special envoy.
Although Deng Zhi has always served in the court as a civilian official, Deng Zhi's original intention was to be a general who commanded the army in battle. Really, the descendants of Deng Yu paid special attention to such a capable man Wu.
But unfortunately, Deng Zhi has only had one chance to lead troops in battle until now, and that was during Liu Bei's first Northern Expedition. As Zhao Yun's deputy general, Deng Zhi led the suspected troops out of Baoxie Road.
Different from the history, the Han army won this time, so Deng Zhi also gained some military exploits and was given a military position in the army. But Deng Zhi was so happy that he always thought of himself as a general.
But unfortunately, after that time, Deng Zhi never had the opportunity to lead troops in the Northern Expedition. He always stayed in Chengdu to handle government affairs and logistics.
This made Deng Zhi very unhappy. He was obviously very capable of leading troops.
But no matter what, Deng Zhi was still a civil servant, and this time he was sent as envoy to Jiangdong again.
There is no way. When going to other countries as an envoy these days, the important thing is to send an envoy with a familiar face but not a familiar face. Please refer to the treatment of Zhuge Liang when he was talking to other scholars.
If you don't have any skills, there will be no second result except being embarrassed.
Deng Zhi once sent an envoy to Soochow after Lu Meng failed to attack Jingzhou, and promoted the reconciliation between Soochow and the Han Dynasty and renewed the alliance.
During this mission, Deng Zhi showed extremely high adaptability and courage, and his talent was highly praised by Sun Quan. All of these are Deng Zhi's natural advantages when he was sent as an ambassador to Soochow.
In fact, there is another person who is more suitable to be sent as envoy to Jiangdong than Deng Zhi.
Fei Yi.
After all, Fei Yi was not only someone highly recognized by Sun Quan, but also a guy with a lot of personal connections in Jiangdong. Ten years of Jingzhou espionage career had brought Fei Yi a lot of benefits.
But the problem is that Fei Yi is in Chang'an now. Zhuge Liang has also seen Fei Yi's talents other than espionage and is vigorously cultivating this political genius. Fei Yi can't escape at all.
In this case, if you, Deng Zhi, don't go on mission, who else will be suitable?
Therefore, Deng Zhi was entrusted with the title of special envoy of the Emperor to go to Soochow to question Soochow's violations.
Of course, if it is just a simple question, a few harsh words and then the two countries declare war, there is no need for an old face like Deng Zhi to take action. The original intention of sending Deng Zhi to take action is not to directly break the relationship with Soochow.
Therefore, the real purpose of Deng Zhi's mission was to clarify the current relationship with Soochow, to find out Soochow's specific thoughts and bottom line, and to strive to obtain maximum benefits through negotiations.
"The court's discussion this time is to take back the two counties of Jingnan and force Soochow to become a vassal and pay tribute." Deng Zhi said to Zhang Xi.
Now, Deng Zhi and Zhang Xi are already talking in the study of Zhang Xi's mansion in Jiangling. There is no need to avoid taboos about some things, just say them directly.
So
"Who's talking about this?! Are you so ignorant?!" Zhang Xi asked with a sneer.
As long as you just want to return Soochow to Jingnan County, it is considered a serious negotiation process. Ask for a high price, and you will pay back when you land.
But you said that asking Sun Quan to declare himself a vassal and pay tribute was not to negotiate, but to cause trouble.
Sun Quan can change from the King of Wu of Wei to the Supreme of Wu, but if you ask him to change from the Supreme of Wu to the King of Wu of Han, believe it or not, he will directly attack Jiangling with his army! ! !
Deng Zhi also smiled disdainfully and said, "There are always some young people who think that governing a country is black and white, that there are no two days in the sky, and no two masters on the earth. You can just ignore them."
Well, to put it this way, it’s a bit of a cover-up.
Earlier you said it was "the discussion of the court", but now it has become "young people". This "young man" is so powerful, he can actually influence the discussion of the government? !
Well, I still have to ask someone to check later to find out which noble son this is, and he is being used as a weapon by interest groups without any brain.
Most of the nobles of this era have a comrade-in-arms relationship with Zhang Xi, and it has only been a long time since the founding of the People's Republic of China, and their friendship with each other is still not cold. ! !
But now
"Let's be practical. What are the conditions of the court?!" Zhang Xi asked proactively.
Deng Zhi was on an envoy from Chengdu and passed through Jingzhou, not just to ask for a drink of water. For such a big matter, he came to inform Zhang Xi and seek Zhang Xi's opinion, then there would be a big problem.
Therefore, Deng Zhi and Zhang Xi were not polite and went straight to the topic.
As for Chengdu, the definition of Soochow's sneak attack on Jingzhou must first of all be condemned.
Even if it does not count as betraying the alliance, an argument for violating the border without reason is definitely needed.
This is a matter of national interest, and Soochow must admit its mistake, otherwise the Han man's face will be lost.
This condition is easy to say and difficult to say.
The big man wants face, but Soochow doesn't want face? !
Yes, what Sun Quan did was basically not very authentic, but if you ask him to take the initiative to admit his mistakes as a country leader, where will his face be lost? !
This is probably the first difficulty in Deng Zhi's mission to Soochow, but it is also the most insignificant difficulty.
Face cannot be used as food, and the real core interests are the troublesome part of Deng Zhi's mission this time.
"The imperial court can acquiesce that Soochow will occupy the three counties of Jiangxia, Wuling, and Lingling, but the court also hopes that this mission will allow the Lord Wu to sign a contract acknowledging that all three places belong to the Han Dynasty, and Soochow is only on temporary loan."
Deng Zhi continued to speak, while Zhang Xi wanted to smile bitterly the more he listened.
This scene is quite familiar.
Yes, Zhang Xi can also understand what the court means.
Now that the three counties of Jiangxia, Wuling, and Lingling have been occupied by Soochow, the Han Dynasty has no way to take them back immediately. Therefore, for the sake of face, and also for the sake of sending troops in the future, they want to force Soochow to admit the return of the three counties. Dahan is only temporarily loaned to Soochow.
But the question is, how could Sun Quan agree to this?
At that time, the late emperor and Sun Quan had been careless about the ownership of Jingzhou for several years. In the end, they did not figure out who lent Jingzhou to whom.
Sun Quan was fed up with this dumb loss, and finally sent troops to snatch it. Under the combined effect of a series of internal and external factors, the demarcation of the Xiangshui River came into being, which barely came to an end.
But even so, Soochow's coveting of Jingzhou has never stopped.
Lu Meng's sneak attack on Jingzhou failed before, and later he attacked Jiangling and Xiangyang in an attempt to attract the Jingzhou army to return for reinforcements.
How could he, Sun Quan, write such a document? !
He had been tricked by the late emperor before, and now he was asked to admit that Jingzhou belonged to the Han Dynasty. Then what excuses and reasons would he have for using troops against Jingzhou in the future? !
Don’t you want the fertile plains of Jingxiang? !
Is the Yangtze River Defense Line no longer needed? !
The land we finally conquered is just borrowed. Military morale, people's morale, and national integrity, don't we need these? !
From the perspective of a big man, Zhang Xi can understand what the people in Chengdu think and the significance of this condition.
But the problem is that Sun Quan most likely cannot understand it.
"Furthermore, the imperial court also hopes that Soochow will return the public security land. This is not owned by the three counties. It was occupied by Soochow and should be returned." Deng Zhi said and suddenly smiled, "Now it seems that this matter is not mentioned. Whatever."
Of course, there’s no need to mention it. The police officer has already taken it back. Although the price is a bit high, at least it has ensured that Jiangnan has a foothold of its own.
"The court's discussion is roughly like this." After Deng Zhi finished speaking, he looked at Zhang Xi with a smile and asked, "I don't know what the general has to say. Zhi should act according to his orders."
This is the main purpose of Deng Zhi's visit to Jiangling this time - to ask Zhang Xi's opinion.
What opinions can Zhang Xi have?
"I'm afraid Bo Miao will have to work hard on this mission." Zhang Xi only said this sentence.
Deng Zhi just smiled and understood what Zhang Xi meant, but he had no choice. This was his mission.
In Zhang Xi's opinion, this mission was destined to be fruitless.
In fact, Deng Zhi was also mentally prepared for this. He was just trying his best to make the big man look better.
It is simply impossible for you to go back to the territory that was conquered by others' ability.
All he wants is to be decent.
Judging from the negotiation conditions put forward by the court, the court may not be unaware of this. In the end, the two countries will still meet at war. What they are doing now is just delaying the arrival of this moment.
After all, no one is ready, but they must make an explanation to each other and not completely break up.
So after Deng Zhi consulted Zhang Xi's opinion, he didn't stay any longer and went directly across the river to Jianye to meet Sun Quan.
This trip will take at least a month.
After all, it is a state negotiation, and it is common for the two sides to test the bottom line and push each other back and forth.
Furthermore, Deng Zhi's trip to Jiangdong this time was not just to argue back and forth with Sun Quan. He also wanted to visit some famous people in Jiangdong, and use them to influence public opinion in the government and the public, and influence the decision-making of the Soochow court.
Therefore, during this month of mutual negotiations, Jiangling will most likely have to maintain the balance of power.
It is unlikely that there will be another dispute in a short time.
Zhang Xi immediately took the opportunity to make some adjustments to Jingzhou's personnel.
Although he does not have the right to appoint personnel, he has the right to make adjustments. Especially when it comes to adjustments involving military affairs, Zhang Xi still has the right to make direct adjustments.
For example, Wang Ji, the governor of Jingzhou, was transferred to Jiangling to take charge of Jingzhou's defense. Zhang Ni, the defender of Fan City, was transferred south to station in Ying County to guard against the invasion of the Soochow Army in Jiangxia. Deng Ai, who had just returned to Jingzhou, was transferred to the north to guard Nanyang. Wenpin still No change, continue to guard Xiangyang.
As for Zhang Xi himself, it's already September, the autumn harvest is over, and he has to go to Chang'an.
The day for your daughter to get married is coming, and as a father, you have to attend! ! !
After adjusting the defense to Jingzhou, Zhang Xi led fifty personal guards north to Chang'an.
(End of chapter)
