Since the emperor Huang Shu has praised all opportunities, he has made plans for the border areas. -------"Dai Shou" by Chen Zongyuan of Song Dynasty
It is said that in Chang'an Tongwen Inn, Boss Zhong was imprisoned because his nephew Zhong Yao offended Li Jue, so he turned to Chen Long for help. Chen Long took advantage of the situation and surveyed the situation in Chang'an City. He was surprised to find that in addition to the four tiger generals Li Jue, Guo Si, Zhang Ji, and Fan Chou, there was also a rare strategist in the world, Jia Xu. Moreover, these people were loyal to Dong Zhuo. If they wanted to rescue Zhong Yao and reinstate him, they had to think of a more comprehensive method.
Chen Long thought over and over again and came up with a way to intercept Dong Zhuo's letters. Dong Zhuo is about to lead an army to put down the Xiliang rebellion, and Chang'an belongs to his old troops. If there is any conspiracy between them, they will definitely communicate in advance. Seeing that both Guo Jia and Zhou Buyi agreed, Chen Long stared at Lu Chang and mused slightly: "There are two key figures, one is Li Jue and the other is Jia Xu. We have few people, and Li Jue is in a high position, so he must be heavily guarded. I am the only one." I'll go in person and hope to gain something. For Jia Xu's side, I'll leave it to Lu Chang." Lu Chang hurriedly made a military salute and said, "Don't worry, my lord!"
Chen Long continued: "Lü Chang, you and I are just secretly watching Li Jue and Jia Xu outside the house to ensure our own safety. If someone who looks like a messenger comes, I'm afraid we won't be able to intercept him in time, so we might as well let him in and wait until he comes out. , follow him outside the city, and intercept the reply from Li Jue or Jia Xu." Lu Chang obeyed the order.
Chen Long asked Lu Chang to prepare the bed and clothing for the night trip, and then said to Guo Jia and Zhou Buyi: "Feng Xiao, Yuan Zhi, to ensure the safety of the inn tonight, we can only bother you two to take turns keeping vigil. You two will talk to Boss Zhong again and find out A few guys are helping and guarding the entrance to the corridor of the guest room." Guo Jia and Zhou Buyi knew that Chen Long was worried about their mistress's safety, so they nodded in agreement.
Lu Chang asked Boss Zhong for help, and quickly obtained two pairs of black clothes, found two pieces of black cloth, and dug a few holes to make a black mask. After asking about the locations of Li Jue's mansion and Jia Xu's mansion, the two of them jumped over the wall from the dark place of the inn and rushed to where they were being watched.
Shan Bian Chen Long found a big tree outside the courtyard wall of Li Jue's residence, jumped into the treetop, and was hidden among the thick leaves, just enough to observe the entire Li Jue's residence. The mansion is tight inside and loose at the outside. There are no fewer than dozens of guards guarding the front and back doors, and there are also some shadowy secret sentries scattered across the roofs of the house.
Chen Long adjusted his breathing, waited patiently, and slowly judged the locations of the living room, study room, bedroom, etc. of Li Jue's mansion, focusing mainly on the door of the mansion. Chen Long judged that Dong Zhuo's messenger must have a token to enter and exit the city gate at night. According to the psychology of Dong Zhuo, Li Jue and the messenger, they should deliver letters full of secrets that are not humane to outsiders under the cover of darkness, so as to Get some security.
The night was dark, except for the two lanterns hanging high in front of the mansion, illuminating the armor of the gatekeepers like iron blood. Just after midnight, a black shadow quietly floated out from the corner of the alley at the door. Looking around, no one was around. He slowly walked to the door of the mansion and waved the token in his hand. Chen Long thought: "Here we come!"
The guard guarding the door saw the token clearly, and a general personally led the messenger all the way into the study room lit by red candles, and then went straight to the bedroom in the backyard alone. The location was consistent with Chen Long's judgment. The lights in the bedroom came on, and soon Li Jue, wearing a robe, hurriedly opened the door and stepped out, heading straight to the study. The general was standing guard in front of the study door.
After a while, the messenger walked out of the study, and the gatekeeper sent him out of the house in person. Li Jue slowly walked out of the study, looked around at the sky, and walked back to the bedroom.
Chen Long jumped down from the tall tree and flew along the alley to the exit of the side street. Sure enough, he saw the messenger walking through the dark night and into an alley between houses, unaware that someone was following him behind him. At the end of the alley, there was a horse tied up, and Chen Long suddenly realized that the messenger, fearing that the sound of hoofbeats in the dark would attract attention, actually placed the horse in a secret alley, which shows how invisible the things he delivered were.
The messenger pulled the reins on his horse and was about to gallop when he suddenly felt a pain in the back of his head. He immediately fainted and fell off the horse. Chen Long held him up, first searched the messenger's breast pocket, first took out a metal token, and then took out a sealed letter.
Chen Long placed the courier's body upside down on the saddle, pulled the horse around the main street, and went straight to the inn along the alley. Fortunately, he didn't encounter any soldiers patrolling the city in the dark night. Boss Zhong had already received the instructions and personally led two loyal men to guard the back door. When he saw Chen Long coming back, he hurriedly opened the door and led the horse into the courtyard.
Chen Long tied the messenger into a rice dumpling in the stable in the backyard of the inn, took off his two pairs of smelly socks, stuffed them into his mouth, and ordered Boss Zhong's loyal staff to keep a close watch on him. Taking the token and letter, he went straight to his bedroom.
The bedroom was a suite, and the living room outside was brightly lit. Even Zhang Ning was waiting for Chen Long and Lu Chang to return. As soon as Chen Longfu entered the room, the three of them quickly stood up to greet him. Chen Long threw the letter and token on the tea table. Guo Jia's eyes lit up, he tore open the letter and looked at it. Zhou Buji picked up the metal token and looked at it carefully.
After reading the letter, Guo Jia presented the letter to Chen Long and said: "As expected, Dong Zhuo has long been disobedient. In the letter, Li Jue said that all the troops in Judao were well prepared, just waiting for Dong Zhuo's return. And he was loyal to the court. Zhong Yao was specifically cited as an example of the retaliatory actions of officials who were preparing for Dong Zhuo's cession of territory and hegemony. Once Dong Zhuo's army arrived in Xiliang, the army would set off in the name of crusade against the rebels and stationed in the distant Wuwei, Liangzhou. and other places, he proclaimed himself the governor of Liangzhou, and from then on he divided himself into one side and was no longer subject to the emperor's orders."
Chen Long read it hastily, handed the letter to Zhou Buyi and said, "In that case, why don't they garrison Chang'an Jiancheng?"
Zhou Bujie said first: "If the army is stationed in Chang'an and the army is delayed in sending troops to attack the rebels, it will leave too many traces, and even a fool can see that he has treason."
Guo Jiadao: "Exactly. How can others be allowed to sleep soundly on the side of the so-called couch? Chang'an is not far from Luoyang, and it is a choke point. It is a majestic city in the world. If he occupies this city to form a separatist regime, He Jin will never be able to tolerate him. He will inevitably unite with warlords from many places. After a joint encirclement and suppression campaign, Dong Zhuo's Xiliang army might not be able to defend Chang'an, and would have to flee the Gobi and become horse bandits. Instead, they took advantage of the situation and went to Liangzhou to separate the regime. They only said that it would take time to put down the rebellion, and the emperor was far away, so naturally they could Firmly establish the base."
Chen Long thought to himself that the analysis of the two military advisors was very reasonable, and nodded: "I'm afraid this is also the strategy proposed by Jia Xu to separate one side. Dong Zhuo can take this opportunity to become the king and hegemon in Liangzhou, far away from Chang'an. He Jin is beyond his reach, and I can only turn a blind eye. When the wings are full, the Xiliang cavalry will go straight to Chang'an, who knows that it will not succeed." Thinking about Jia Xu's strategy and competing with Zhuge Kongming later, Jiang Wei was the harvest of Zhuge Liang's expedition to Xiliang. Zhuge Liang wanted to attack Wei from Hanzhong and Xiliang. The situation was very good, and he could meet Sima Zhongda, and it was a perfect year. But I don’t know if Lu Chang will gain something from Jia Xu’s side?
Guo Jia smiled and said: "Since Dong Zhuo has no intention of occupying Chang'an for a long time, it will be easier to handle. Zhong Yao's life can be saved."
Chen Long smiled and said: "Feng Xiao's strategy is unparalleled, and he is not inferior to Jia Xu. Tell me what you think?"
Guo Jiajun's face glowed, and he said calmly: "With just one letter, Zhong Yao will return safely."
Zhou Busuo asked: "You mean to find someone to imitate Dong Zhuo's handwriting and write a letter to Li Jue to ask him to release him? It seems that the reason is not sufficient."
Chen Longdao: "The idea of filial piety is exactly what I want. In the fake letter, I only need to write that Zhong Yao is a famous scholar in Yingchuan. Killing him is afraid of causing turmoil among the major families in Yingchuan, as well as material disputes among court officials, and attracting the emperor's attention. It's not good. Let Li Jue put the overall situation first, let Zhong Yao go quietly, and restore the official to his original position. Don't delay the important matter of separatizing Liangzhou for Zhong Yao."
Zhou Busuo said: "The plan is a good one, but when Dong Zhuo comes, doesn't he immediately betray him?"
Chen Long laughed and said, "I think they will be busy sending troops to Liangzhou to live a happy life. I'm afraid Li Jue won't even ask about such trivial matters."
Zhou Busuo's mind turned around and he chuckled: "My lord, this is a wonderful plan. Dong Zhuo doesn't even know about this, and he won't even mention it. Haha, how wonderful!"
Chen Longling heard footsteps coming from outside and said with a smile, "The person delivering the message must be Lu Chang." Sure enough, Lu Chang's voice came from outside the door: "Lord!"
Chen Long ordered Lu Chang to come in. Lu Chang had not yet changed his clothes for the night, and reported: "My lord, my subordinates have been squatting all night, but there was no movement in Jia Xu's house, so I came back first."
Chen Long and others remembered that it was already dawn. Chen Long put the token into Lu Chang's hand and was about to speak. Suddenly his hand shook and the token fell to the ground with a clang. Lu Chang hurriedly leaned over to pick it up and raised his head. Seeing Chen Long frowning tightly together.
Zhou Buyi also noticed something strange about Chen Long, and suddenly realized: "Although there is a token to send messages, who can imitate Dong Zhuo's handwriting!"
Chen Long nodded silently, and Zhang Ning beside him quickly comforted him. Guo Jia suddenly laughed and said: "Don't worry, my lord. There is a master of calligraphy in the prison now. If you don't need him now, when will he be better?"
Chen Long, Zhang Ning and others laughed heartily when they woke up the dreamer. Chen Long said: "This is also Zhong Yao who saved himself!"
Early the next morning, Chen Long called Boss Zhong and asked: "Boss Zhong, you said that you have taken care of everything. Is it okay to go to the prison to see Zhong Yao?"
Boss Zhong said: "There is no problem with this. I have already taken care of the head of the prison. My nephew is suffering in prison." Chen Long thrust a letter into his hands and ordered: "You can take this letter and the pen Put it in the food box, take it to the prison, and ask your nephew to imitate Dong Zhuo's handwriting and copy it to me, and I will have a clever plan to get him out of trouble."
Boss Zhong was overjoyed. At noon, he picked up the food box and went straight to the prison. He also gave the prison boss a large piece of silver. The prison boss accepted the bribe and knew that Zhong Yao had always been loyal, so he allowed them to meet alone in the prison.
At night, just after midnight, Lu Chang, dressed in black, appeared at the door of Li Jue's house. The metal token flashed in the light, and the gatekeeper general sent Lu Chang into the study without saying much.
After a while, Li Jue arrived. After reading the letter, Lu Chang said: "My lord said, there is no need to reply to the letter. Just do what he said in the letter tomorrow." Li Jue Nuonuo agreed and asked: "I wrote yesterday, lord. Have you ever received it?" Lu Chang said: "No, I guess not so soon. My lord heard that you imprisoned Zhong Yao, and the news has been spread to Luoyang. I was worried that you would suppress other officials too loudly, so I only asked me to send another one. Seal it over."
Li Jue was originally quite doubtful about the letters sent two nights in a row, but after hearing this, his doubts have long since disappeared. Besides, it is not difficult to let go of Zhong Yao. When he is full-fledged, he can attack Luoyang and settle accounts with him. He hurriedly sent Lu Chang out of the house, but Lu Chang went to the inn without mentioning it.
Early the next morning, the cell boss took a large number of keys, jingled and opened Zhong Yao's cell door and said, "Zhong Yao is very happy! He has been restored to his original post! You, sir, are great, and don't bear any grudge against the villain!"
Zhong Yao suppressed his smile and said, "Wherever I am, it's all under the care of the prison boss, so I didn't suffer." Following the prison boss, he walked straight out of the prison with the green light.
Boss Zhong had already prepared a carriage and was waiting outside the prison door. The uncle and nephew were extremely happy to see each other. Zhong Yao took his uncle a few steps onto the carriage, lowered the curtain, and asked hurriedly: "Uncle, where is my great benefactor?"
