While Liu Chan was steadily digesting the fruits of victory, he actively took the lower-level route and won the hearts of the people from the bottom.
Li Hui, on the other hand, was secretly sent by Liu Chan. He passed through Tushui and bypassed Cunjian County in advance. With only a hundred soldiers to guard him, he was lightly dressed in disguise and went south along the Yangtze River into the hinterland of Nanzhong, heading towards the Dian Lake...
Of course, his mission was neither a beheading nor a hundred warriors to capture Dian Lake.
He is going to take the upper-level route.
Even the powerful families in Nanzhong are not monolithic, and one cannot apply one-size-fits-all approach to this. It is necessary to identify the forces that can be drawn together, and to both unite and fight.
Only by establishing the broadest united front can Ji Han avoid Wang Mang's mistakes and pacify Nanzhong as quickly as possible.
Although the Yong family is the only one in Yizhou County, there are still other families existing in the three eastern counties.
In addition to the Yong family, there are three other famous families: Meng, Huo and Cuan.
Needless to say, the Meng family was one of the initiators of the rebellion. It was impossible to get him to surrender without first crushing his illusions on the frontal battlefield.
The Huo family, the family from which Huo Huan, Yong Jie's dog-headed strategist, was born, can basically be regarded as a vassal of the Yong family. It is very difficult to instigate rebellion.
"Then...are we going to Dianchi Lake to return without success?" Li Yi listened to his father talking about the situation of other families, and the more he listened, the more frustrated he became.
Li Hui glared: "My father hasn't finished speaking yet, why are you so anxious? If you can't hold your breath, how can you achieve great things in the future?"
Less than three sentences can be turned into a lesson to his son. This is true for Lao Liu, the same is true for Li Hui, and perhaps many fathers in the world are like this.
"Who said we were going to Dianchi Lake? We are going back to our hometown of Yu Yuan."
Li Yi was stunned: "Go back to Yu Yuan?"
Yu Yuan is not far southeast of Dian Lake, closer to Fuxian Lake.
"That's right." Li Hui nodded and said, "The prince has high hopes for his father, how can he return without success now. Although the other families have nothing to do for the time being, for the Cuan family, his father is determined to win."
"Why is this?" Li Yi was a little confused.
Li Hui smiled: "My father had an aunt who married into the Cuan family back then. Now Cuan Xi, the head of the Cuan family, is my father's uncle and your great-uncle."
"..."
Li Hui and his son went down the river much faster than Liu Chan's news that he had captured Cunjian County.
The Yong family and Meng Huo didn't know that the northern army had already arrived. At this time, Nanzhong was still in a state of tightness on the outside and looseness on the inside.
The further they went into the hinterland, the more relaxed the interrogation was when entering the city. They only had to throw coins to clear the way, and Li Hui spoke with a fluent local accent. They entered Yuyuan County easily.
"Father, even if the Cuan family is related to me, if the two sides are at war now, we will come directly to them...will they be detrimental to us?"
Li Hui finally smiled happily this time: "My son can have such worries, it is very comforting to my father's heart, haha."
But he's clearly unfazed by that.
When a familiar person found the Cuan family's mansion in Yu Yuan, Li Hui gave his name without hesitation, which made Li Yi feel nervous.
However, after a while, not only did no one come out to catch them, but they were also received extremely warmly by the Cuan family.
"De'ang, you and I haven't seen each other for a long time, and the children have grown up. We must stay here longer and let my uncle fulfill his duties as a landlord, huh? Hahaha..."
Li Yi was confused. He was just a nephew with a different surname. Did he need to be so close to his great-aunt?
He was still young at the time, so he really didn't have much impression of this great-aunt.
That night Cuan Xi held a family dinner in honor of Li Hui and his son. During the dinner, Li Hui also met his long-lost aunt.
Li Hui never mentioned the matter of instigating rebellion, and Cuan Xi didn't ask what Li Hui's visit was for. They just talked about their farewells, and the host and guest enjoyed themselves.
After the banquet was over, Li Yi supported his father, who was shaking his head and talking nonsense, back to his room to rest.
Just after entering the room, Li Hui opened his eyes that were hazy with alcohol. They were clear and clear, and there was no hint of drunkenness.
"Father, what are you...?"
Li Hui smiled and said: "If you want to win over the Cuan family, you must show your sincerity. But after all, you and I are behind enemy lines. How can we be really drunk as a father?"
"Father is still thoughtful."
"Tonight, I ordered the accompanying guards to cheer up. If things go wrong, we will rush out of the mansion immediately." Li Hui said seriously, "The guard at Ximen is an old friend of my father. After leaving the mansion, he ran straight to the west gate and fled."
Li Yi nodded and said, "Yes, let's go now."
Later, after making arrangements, Li Yi returned to the room, feeling uneasy, but saw that Li Huizheng had finished washing himself and was about to go to sleep with a calm expression.
"Well, it would be great if the child had such determination as his father." Li Yi sighed, becoming more and more convinced of Prince Liu Chan.
The prince was a few years younger than me, and he had already led the army and commanded Ruoding, but he was uneasy just pretending to do this, which was too far behind.
Li Hui smiled and said: "As a father, I have such determination because I have confidence in my uncle. The arrangement just now is just in case. I don't expect anything to happen tonight. As long as I spend tonight safely, I can talk to him about business tomorrow."
Then Li Yi curiously asked him why he had so much confidence in this person.
How can a relative who is said to be close but separated by a layer of distance, said to be far away but not far away, be reliable based on kinship alone?
"In fact, your great-aunt has been admired for a long time since the king came to Jiameng Pass." Li Hui said, "He was originally the magistrate of Jianling, a large county to the west of Dian Lake. Do you know why he was dismissed from office? "
Li Yi shook his head. He couldn't remember what happened so long ago.
"I've been talking to people all day about 'Xuande Gong is the master of the Ming Dynasty' and so on, and he was used as a handle." Li Hui couldn't help laughing when he thought about it, "My father was the postal supervisor at the time, and he was also implicated. Deposed.”
Li Yi didn't expect such a thing to happen.
After that, the power of the Cuan family in Yizhou County gradually declined, and was suppressed by the Huo family, who actively clung to the Yong family.
The father and son chatted for a while and then turned out the lights early.
After a peaceful night's sleep, Li Hui slept peacefully until daybreak. He knew that he had made the right bet and immediately went out to talk to Cuan Xi about the business.
It happened that Cuan Xi had been waiting for him early, and it seemed that he knew that he had something to say. The two of them looked at each other and smiled without saying anything.
Li Hui sat across from Cuan Xi and said straight to the point: "Uncle, now that the Yong family and Meng Huo are rebelling, it is a great opportunity for uncle to make contributions. If he can make contributions to quell the rebellion, the Cuan family will surely rise. Why hasn't uncle done it earlier?" Prepare?"
"Alas." Cuan Xi sighed, "De'ang, my uncle has always treated you well. The chaos in Nanzhong just wants to keep the Cuan family safe, so why do you need to use clever words to harm your uncle?"
"Hui Hui didn't want my uncle to miss this God-given opportunity, and how could he harm his uncle?" Li Hui looked sincere and unashamed.
Cuan Xi whispered: "The Yong family and the Meng family have been planning for a long time, and Jiangdong is secretly supporting them. Now there is Yue Xi Gaoding in the west, and Zang Da Zhu Bao in the east. They are very powerful... Even if Xuande Gong is a talented man, how can he Pingnan?" It's easy. Our Cuan family is going against the trend at this time, isn't it just hitting an egg against a stone?"
"Hahahaha!" Li Hui laughed uproariously, as if he had heard a big joke.
Cuan Xi saw his nephew laughing so hard that it was even inappropriate, and he couldn't help asking: "Why is De'ang laughing? Isn't that the truth?"
Li Huiwu laughed to himself for a long time, and finally managed to stop. He waved his hands nonchalantly and said: "What my uncle said about Yong Kai and Meng Huo is nothing more than ringworm and scabies. Like these short-sighted people, the king and the prince are overjoyed." You can decide with your hands. Going against the trend? Can uncle really see where the trend is?"
Cuan Xi frowned: "Uncle, I am honest with you, but why did you make such a joke?"
"Uncle, do you know that our army has divided into three groups and moved southward? The rebels are like chickens and dogs, vulnerable to attack?" Li Huiyao handed over to the north and said seriously, "The prince personally led an army to attack Yizhou County. How can people like Yong Kai and Meng Huo resist?"
Cuan Xi was startled, and hurriedly leaned forward and asked, "Prince? But that ever-victorious prince who shot Lu Meng, killed Lu Xun, captured Xiahou, captured Xu Huang, first conquered Jingzhou, and defeated three counties?"
Now, thanks to Lao Liu's deliberate efforts to promote his son, Liu Chan's name is resounding throughout Jingyi and Cuan Xi, even as far away as Nanzhong.
"Haha, how many princes can your Majesty have? Of course it is the prince Liu Gongsi." Li Hui proudly said with his chest raised, and he was proud of you.
Cuan Xi sat back slowly, with a surprised look on his face: "That's not right. The Yong family and Meng Huo started fighting not long ago. How could the soldiers and horses to suppress the rebellion arrive so quickly?"
Li Hui picked up a plum and put it into his mouth, chewing it slowly and swallowing it. Although the plum was sour, it made his mouth and tongue salivate.
Then he calmly smiled and said: "If you don't believe me, just wait here with Hui. I believe that in a short time, the prince will be able to capture Cunjiang. It won't be too late for me to make a decision by then, so as not to say that my nephew is cheating on me again. How about that?" Hahaha..."
(End of chapter)
