In the eighth year of Jian'an, three major events occurred in Jingxiang, including joy and sorrow.

The first thing was that Liu Biao, the general of Zhennan who was over 60 years old and the governor of Jingzhou, was suddenly appointed as the Grand Sima by the court. This was indeed a good gift for Liu Biao, who had always been famous. Even the Jingzhou soldiers also accepted several cities abandoned by the Cao army in Nanyang and tacitly reached a peace agreement with the Cao army.

Some people who are interested began to speculate whether General Zhennan was afraid of the powerful power of Guanxi and had already planned to join forces with Cao Cao in the Central Plains to check and balance Yan Yan in Guanxi.

The second thing was that the Jiangdong forces headed by Sun Quan once again posed a threat to Jingzhou.

In the fifth year of Jian'an, Sun Ce was assassinated, and Jingxiang was full of praise, thinking that the Jiangxia counties could rest assured from then on. However, in less than three years, Jiangdong once again posed a threat to Jingxiang.

The Sun family in Jiangdong, whose brother died, not only did not disappear with Sun Ce's assassination, but instead became increasingly stronger. His younger brother Sun Quan recruited talents, trained troops, quelled rebellions internally, and attacked mountains and rivers outside. Recently, he has been preparing for war and vaguely attacking Jiangxia.

However, the impact of these two major events is too far away from the daily life of the scholars and people in Xiangyang City. Recently, the third major event has been discussed in the streets and alleys. Liu Zhang of Yizhou sent an envoy Zhang Song to Xiangyang.

Although the two Jingzhou and Yizhou families had been in a bad relationship in the past, and now they can turn swords into jade and silk, what can arouse heated discussions among the scholars and people in Xiangyang City is obviously not a political slaughter, but many interesting talks and stories about Zhang Song, the envoy of Yizhou.

It is said that when Liu Biao met Zhang Song that day, he saw that Yizhou came to make him look unfavorable, he also felt a little contemptuous. Unexpectedly, Zhang Song was very talented and could speak eloquently. He refuted Liu Biao in a few words in the classics General Liu Biao. Cai Mao, Kuai Yue and others were unable to argue with him, and they were defeated one after another. Zhang Song was unreasonable and implicitly mocked the lack of anyone in Jingzhou, which made Liu Biao very angry. Jingzhou talent was full of righteous indignation. He was just for the sake of the two families' alliance, so he endured it and temporarily put it aside.

Many days after that, under the instruction of Liu Biao, the inn where Zhang Song stayed, scholars from Jingxiang went to seek their visit every day, in order to debate the classics with Zhang Song, refute Zhang Song, and recover the face lost by the monarch and ministers of Jing Xiang that day. However, Zhang Song was keen and erotic. Although there were endless people who debated the scriptures every day, they were all defeated and could not refute Zhang Song at all.

Zhang Song became famous in Xiangyang City, and some classic passages of his debate with others spread on the streets and alleys.

Just when everyone thought they wanted to make Zhang Song leave proudly, a young scholar suddenly came outside the inn. He was dressed simply and looked not astonishing. After asking Zhang Song to see him, he immediately debated with him. The two quoted the scriptures and debated the scriptures.

After two hours of debate, Zhang Song, who was arrogant, finally defeated in front of the young scholar. He was not angry, but instead admitted convincingly that he had lost and claimed that he had finally met a confidant in Jingxiang.

Once this incident was reported, it suddenly became a topic of discussion among everyone in Xiangyang City. The young scholar who refuted Zhang Song and earned his face for Jingxiang. His identity was later learned by everyone. It turned out that this person was Pang Tong and Pang Shiyuan, who was famous in Nanzhou.

In the end, even the prefecture was alarmed. Liu Biao specially sent the prefecture bus to eliminate Pang Tong, but unfortunately Pang Tong politely refused on the grounds of serving his parents. However, he did not know each other without fighting with Zhang Song, the envoy of Yizhou. The two had similar feelings and became close friends.

···

Xiangyang City, in the inn.

"Come on, Ziqiao, drink another drink. The Central Plains are poor, even the Xindu Juancheng is not as rich as Xiangyang. If you leave Xiangyang City, you will not be able to drink such mellow wine anymore!"

Zhang Song also had to go on a mission to Juancheng during this trip to see the emperor. When he was about to part, his friend Pang Tong came to the inn to see him off. Zhang Song happily held a banquet for him.

The two of them have similar temperaments and admire each other's talents. While drinking and drinking, they are already drunk and slightly drunk.

When Zhang Song, who was drunk, could not help but sigh when he heard Pang Tong's words. He held the wine pot, and did not care about Pang Tong's presence. He drank to drown his sorrows by drinking himself. He poured his clothes full of wine, but he still didn't care.

Seeing this, Pang Tong grinned, "Zi Qiao, Zi Qiao, why did you have a sad face? You need to know that you are responsible for the important task of the alliance. After you see the emperor, you will definitely be promoted and promoted. When you return to Yizhou, you will be more and more valued. It's not like me--ah,"

"Swish--" Zhang Song sneered at Pang Tong, "With your talent as Pang Shiyuan, it is only a matter of one or two words to join the official position. You just see that Liu Biao, the governor of the state, is useless and a dog guarding the household, so he is unwilling to go to Jingxiang."

As he spoke, Zhang Song slapped the wine pot and said to himself:

"So you can understand the sorrow in my heart most. With my talent as Zhang Ziqiao, if I drive under the command of a hero, it will not be difficult to calm the world. However, I am running for the men of mediocre people, and my talent in my heart cannot be used. In the future, I will inevitably end up with a different body!"

"Ah!" Pang Tong seemed to have a deep feeling of the same feeling. He rolled his eyes and asked:

"Who does Zi Qiao think is the hero of the world?"

"Yan Yanming in Guanxi and Cao Mengde of the Central Plains are the heroes of the times." Zhang Song burped, said with a mouthful of alcohol, leaning his fingers and drinking.

Pang Tong smiled when he heard this, "Zi Qiao's words are wrong. Yan Yan is rampant in the world with the advantage of Guanxi military armor. It is just one thing. Cao Cao holds the emperor hostage, and he is like a loyal person. He is also Dong Zhuo and Li Jue. These two people are famous and untrue. From my perspective, this hero of the world should have someone else!"

···

Outside Xiangyang City, Longzhong.

In the thatched cottage of Zhuge's family, several friends, old or young, gathered together with books and chatted about what happened in Xiangyang City recently.

"Zhang Song is the honor of his ministers and shows off his words and talks. Judging from his words about the classics, he has many implications. He is just a villain who is good at speaking and eloquent. We study the scriptures and are committed to saving the world and governing the country. How can we imitate the sophistry of others? Pang Shiyuan's arguments with him are difficult. Even though he wins cleverly and gains some false reputation, his behavior has fallen into inferiority, which is very unwise!"

Cui Zhouping, the oldest in the grade, spoke first and commented on the recent discussion of "Pang Shiyuan's debate on the messenger of Yizhou" that was being discussed in the streets and alleys of the city. He shook his head and sighed, believing that Pang Tong, a young man who ignored his identity and showed off his verbal advantage, was very unwise to compete with a villain like Zhang Song for a while. He was simply losing his identity and seemed to have gained some reputation, but this would only cause more despises and contempt from other famous scholars in Jingxiang.

Meng Jian and Shi Tao nodded when they heard this. They also thought that Pang Tong seemed to have made a lot of fame in this matter, but they would be despised by many famous scholars in Jingxiang.

Zhuge Liang, who was standing beside him, shook his head, and seemed to disagree with Cui Zhouping's opinion. He was tall and handsome. Although he sat on the mat together, he was still half a head taller than the others. At this time, he shook his head slightly. The other three immediately noticed and looked at him asking one after another. Cui Zhouping even spoke loudly:

"Kong Ming, do you think I made a mistake?"

Zhuge Liang smiled slightly and said:

"You have seen Pang Shiyuan, who is very ambitious and talented, can you be a fool who is called for a moment? He is definitely not aimless. This move must have profound meaning. It's just that we, the people in the mountains and fields, cannot know the inside story. You should just wait and see what happens."

After hearing Zhuge Liang's words, Cui Zhouping couldn't help but ponder. Meng Jianze nodded again and said with a smile:

"Well, Kong Ming can see through it clearly. He had only thought about Pang Shiyuan's clever words and arguments. Now, if Pang Shiyuan is a person who seeks fame and fortune, then the bus in the prefecture will be eliminated. He would probably have been happy to respond to the situation. Why should he ask his parents to serve them and refuse to go?"

"Hey, Pang Shiyuan is not necessarily because he is really unintentional to fame. I think he can see that Liu Jingzhou in the city is just a dragon-loving person, and he is unwilling to surrender to him and drive him. I heard that Pang Shiyuan intends to go to Jiangdong!"

Shi Tao took over the topic, and Meng Jian, who was also living in Jingzhou, also had a deep sense of the same feeling and said in agreement:

"Indeed, Liu Jingzhou is old and has no intention of all directions. Pang Shiyuan's wise and concise people will not want to use it. The Sun family in Jiangdong, who succeeded to the position of brother, is quite energetic. If Pang Shiyuan goes, he may be highly valued, but Huang Zu of Jiangxia will probably be unable to sleep or eat from now on."

"Not necessarily." Cui Zhouping said: "I heard from the mountain people that General Liu Bei of the Left once visited the Pang family. Pang Shiyuan once praised him, who was also living in Xiangyang, and his outstanding stance and tyranny. If the times come, he might not be able to stand out and achieve the hegemony of the country."

As the most famous young talent in Jingxiang, Pang Tong's topic inevitably aroused discussion among everyone present. Zhuge Liang listened quietly. When they mentioned General Liu Bei, he moved his mind and suddenly pulled out a letter from the booklet beside him and said:

"Your lords, Yuan Zhi has written to you."

"Oh, come and let me wait."

As a native of Jizhou, Cui Zhouping, who lives in Jingxiang, has been paying close attention to the situation in the north recently. When he heard that Xu Shu, who was studying in the north, had sent a letter, he became interested and quickly got the letter from Zhuge Liang and took the lead in reading it.

It's strange that when Cui Zhouping read the letter, his face was sometimes solemn and sometimes happy. He felt a little lost in the end. He handed over Xu Shu's letter to Meng Jian and Shi Tao and said with a sigh:

"Ji Shi is reappearing, barbarians are invading each other. But I didn't expect that the Yuan brothers did not want to protect the country and the people, compete for fame and fortune, and they were tragic to each other. The soldiers and people in the abandoned state ignored it. Fortunately, Xu Shu was safe and sound, and he had already served in Bingzhou. What he learned in his life was able to perform. A scholar died as a confidant. This is a rare blessing in this troubled time!"

While Cui Zhouping spoke, Meng Jian and Shi Tao quickly finished reading Xu Shu's letter. It turned out that Xu Shu traveled thousands of miles and sent people to send letters. In addition to telling his past friends about his current situation and explaining the current situation in the north to everyone, he also believed that it was time for everyone to show their ability to help the world and the people, and wanted to invite all those who were living in Jingzhou and had no way to serve the country to go north together and make achievements in the troubled times.

After reading the letters, they had their own thoughts. The northern scholars who lived in Jingxiang were originally left behind because of wars in Hebei, Central Plains and other places. In order to save their lives, they left their hometowns and fled to Jingzhou thousands of miles away. However, in Jingxiang, Liu Biao only believed in Cai, Kuai and others, and many northern scholars had no way to display their skills.

As the situation in the north gradually became clear, everyone really had the desire to choose a wise leader, assist him, and make achievements in troubled times. However, in the final decision, they were inevitably hesitant, so they did not set out to head north.

Nowadays, the Yuan brothers are fighting in internal struggles, and Cui Zhouping's hometown will inevitably suffer from military disasters. He was frowning and looked up and saw Zhuge Liang. He felt a sudden change in his heart:

"Kong Ming, although you married and got married in Xiangyang, you are also from Beizhou. Yuan Zhi strongly invited you to go north in his letter and promised to recommend you. I wonder if you are interested?"

Meng Jian and Shi Tao also turned their attention to Zhuge Liang when they heard this. Zhuge Liang had a lofty ambition and compared himself to Guan Zhong and Le Yi. Although he had not been recognized by everyone for the time being, his fame was not as good as Pang Shiyuan, who was born and raised in Jingxiang, but these people knew his true talents. At this time, they each had their own thoughts. Of course, they also wanted to know if Zhuge Liang had intentionally moved after seeing Xu Shu's letters, and would have also developed the idea of ​​going north to make achievements.

Zhuge Liang understood what everyone was thinking, laughed and shook his head.

"Liang is used to being lazy in the farming process, but he is not as ambitious as Yuan Zhi's ambition to carry a letter with his sword and make contributions to the title of a marquis. If you want to go north, why should you ask me? Just go there. With your talents like you, you can become the governor and the county magistrate, which is not difficult!"

Everyone was not willing to believe it, so they spoke a few more words, but Zhuge Liang kept his mouth shut and did not reveal any news. Cui, Meng and Shi had to give up when they saw this, so they all had a lot of worries and left the Zhuge family one after another.

After the three of them left, Zhuge Liang moved into the inner room. His wife Huang was in the room. When he saw Zhuge Liang turn around alone, he thought something. Although she was average in appearance, she was extremely intelligent. He immediately asked with a smile:

"Cui, Meng, Shi Sanjun, don't leave food, have you left?"

Zhuge Liang shook his head with a wry smile.

"They are in a hurry, and I'm not helping me to stay."

Huang's mind moved and understood Zhuge Liang's implicit meaning. Thinking of Zhuge Liang's recent behavior, he couldn't help but cover his mouth and smile:

"I think it's not only Cui, Meng, Shi Sanjun, but also husband, you are worried recently. I'm afraid you've been disturbed by Xu Jun's letters."

Zhuge Liang spent every day with his wife. He knew her intelligence and he could hide it from her. He could only smile:

"The saints fear the minority, and the fools fear the wise. The wise talent is not as good as the middle-aged, so how can they be exempt from the vulgarity!"

···

On the night, the moon is dull and the stars are sparse.

An uninvited guest visited General Liu Bei's mansion in Xiangyang City.

In the secret room, Liu Bei looked at the other party under the candlelight, Zhan Yan smiled and said:
Chapter completed!