Chapter 342 A Ray of Dawn

After another four or five days, Liu Bei led his army out of Wankou.

He rode his horse around and couldn't help but sigh.

During the period when he legally served as the governor of Yuzhou, he and Cao Cao rode in the same car and sat at the same table, and they got along very happily.

At that time, Cao Cao was indeed very close to him and trusted him. For example, before defeating Lu Bu, Cao Cao discussed with him the tactics of how to counterattack and attack Yuan Shao in the future.

It has only been more than four years, and now a blood feud has broken out between the two sides.

As he looked out, Liu Bei began to miss his life as the Governor and Mu of Yuzhou.

I couldn't help but think of Chen Qun. Considering the current situation and Chen Qun's advice back then, I felt somewhat regretful.

What I regret is not that I didn’t listen to Chen Qun’s advice, but that I didn’t do things well.

At that time, Chen Qun advised him not to get involved in Xuzhou and to focus on managing the eastern part of Yuzhou.

But that was Xuzhou, Tao Qian and Mi Zhu invited him warmly, and Kong Rong and Chen Deng supported him.

Anyone else at that crossroads would most likely make the same choice as him.

So there is nothing to regret, the only thing to regret is not doing it well.

As Liu Bei was reminiscing about the past, Zhao Yun arrived with a carriage and said, "My lord, Lu Su, the envoy from Huainan, wants to see you."

Liu Bei thought Lu Su was here. When he turned his head to look at the carriage that had just stopped, Lu Su, who was standing in front of the carriage, bowed and said, "Lu Su from the East City of Xia Pi greets you, Your Excellency."

Lu Su was from Dongcheng, Xia Pi. Dongcheng was located in the southernmost part of Xia Pi, almost as a protrusion embedded in Jiujiang County, so in terms of culture, Lu Su called himself a Huainan native.

When Yuan Shu was wreaking havoc in Xu and Huai, he wanted to appoint Lu Su as the chief of East City. Lu Su realized at a young age that Yuan Shu was more concerned with destruction and killing, and was not good at management.

Therefore, Lu Su refused the appointment and moved south to Juchao with his clan servants and fellow villagers to seek refuge with Juchao chief Zhou Yu.

Lu Su, now 31 years old, was not very famous when Liu Bei took over Xuzhou, and Lu Su was too close to Yuan Shu.

Even if he wanted to, he did not dare to join Liu Bei. Liu Bei fought with Yuan Shu several times, but initially failed to inflict heavy damage on Yuan Shu.

The heroes and powerful people who were watching between Xuzhou and Huai would not act rashly. If Liu Bei had taken over Xuzhou and repelled and defeated the invading Yuan Shu, it is possible that the powerful people in Huai would have erupted from within and killed Yuan Shu directly.

When the two met, Liu Bei, upon hearing Lu Su's self-introduction, suddenly fell into deeper memories and thought of Chen Deng.

After Sun Ce's death, Cao Cao and Sun Quan became friends with each other. Chen Deng, the governor of Guangling County, was forced to retreat and Dongcheng was upgraded to a county. Chen Deng died of a sudden illness just a few months after taking office as the governor of Dongcheng County.

If Chen Deng were still alive, how could the situation between Xu and Huai be like this now?

Liu Bei thought with regret and bowed to Lu Su: "When I first heard about Dongcheng, I couldn't help but think of my old friend Chen Yuanlong. I wonder why Mr. Lu came here?"

"I came here specifically to mediate between you and Cao Cao."

As Lu Su spoke, he saw Liu Bei's face change and he looked disgusted, and he did not hide it: "If that's the case, Mr. Lu can go back now."

"It's a pity that you are putting yourself in danger without knowing it."

Lu Su smiled and pointed at the carriage, "Please talk to Cao Cao's envoy before I come to bother you again."

After saying this, Lu Su pulled the reins and pushed forward with a little force from his hips. The horse under him understood and walked away.

Inside the carriage, Chen Qun lifted the curtain, got off with a guilty look on his face, and bowed deeply: "Greetings to Envoy Liu."

"Long article?"

Liu Bei immediately dismounted upon seeing this, while Chen Qun kowtowed with his head on the sandy ground, choking with tears and saying, "Envoy~!"

"Long article, hurry up."

Liu Bei supported Chen Qun, who was crying and limp. Chen Qun could no longer conceal his sadness and grievance.

Liu Bei was not able to help Chen Qun up at all now. Chen Qun was crying loudly and mumbling something incoherently.

Liu Bei could only roll up his sleeves to wipe the tears, dust, sand, snot and saliva from Chen Qun's face. Chen Qun was under too much pressure and grievances during this period, but Xun Yu and Xun You were straightforward and committed suicide one after another, preserving the reputation of the Xun family.

The suicides of many old ministers such as Yang Biao, Sima Fang, Geng Ji, etc. were like mountains pressing down on the scholars of Ruying, especially those of Yingchuan.

Chen Qun also wanted to die, but he really couldn't die.

If he really died, the scholars in Yingchuan would inevitably become scattered, lose their organizational ability, and be at the mercy of others.

When Chen Qun was tired of crying, Liu Bei asked the two accompanying officers, Chen Dao and Yuan Chen, to support Chen Qun on the left and right and bring him to the shade of a tree on the roadside.

Chen Qun sat down, rubbed his face several times before he managed to calm down, and said to Liu Bei: "Sir, the throne is vacant and the world is without a ruler. Lord Liu of Huainan was the first to claim the throne and defeated Sun Quan's army of more than 100,000. Now he has become a great power in the world and is loved and supported by Xu Yang's people."

Liu Bei had just taken the water bag from Zhao Yun and uncorked it. He had just handed it to Chen Qun when he was shocked: "Does the long article mean that Cao Mengde will persuade Liu Shijun of Huainan to ascend the throne?"

"That's right. Envoy Liu is from Pei State, and the people of Yuzhou will not refuse him. Since the emperor was killed, the people of Yanzhou have been in a state of panic. If you can persuade and support the new emperor, Yanzhou will be at peace."

Chen Qun drank a sip of water carefully and said to Liu Bei, "I heard that the Grand Marshal of Guanzhong is plotting to establish the State of Changsha in Jingnan. Now Liu Jingsheng and his son, Huang Zu, Pang Tong and others have already developed a dislike for it. If the title of King of Huainan is given, Liu Jingsheng and his son will not say that they will send troops to support it, but they will also be happy to do so and will not hinder it."

Liu Bei remained silent and analyzed the responses of Liu Biao and his son by himself.

Chen Qun said: "The King of Huainan has sent envoys to the north to the land of Yan and Zhao. With the sharpness of the Grand Marshal, the Yuan family is really uneasy. If the Yuan family responds, how can the King of Huainan not convince the people with his virtue and achievements, and the imperial seal in his hand? Even Liu Jiyu of Yizhou can be easily brought under control."

Liu Bei listened without arguing, for he also knew that the Liu family in various places were deeply bound by the shackles of name.

If the King of Huainan proclaimed himself emperor and sent people to confer titles on Liu Biao and Liu Zhang, these two people would definitely support the new emperor.

The powerful royal families and vassal states in various places all supported the new emperor, and the emperor's last shortcoming was made up.

Seeing Liu Bei acquiesce to this, Chen Qun said: "The title of Huainan must be afraid of the power of the Grand Marshal. The reason why the late emperor was killed was because the Grand Marshal failed to capture Xudu and withdrew his troops without authorization, which isolated the late emperor and led to his murder by the traitorous ministers."

We have to admit that there was a traitor who murdered the emperor, but we cannot put the blame on the Cao family.

This was the original motivation behind the Cao family's push for Huainan to become emperor, and it is also the unanimous goal of action for the Yanyu scholars now.

Only after getting rid of Cao Cao can we fish these people out of the dirty water.

The crime of assassinating the emperor is too serious, and few people can bear it.

Chen Qun looked at Liu Bei seriously and said, "Sir, the world is about to be divided. Do you want to maintain the alliance with the Grand Marshal, or obey the emperor of the new dynasty?"

Liu Bei was silent, and Chen Qun continued, "No matter how you choose, if you are between the Grand Marshal and the Huainan New Dynasty, you will never get any advantage. Today, on behalf of the people of Yuzhou, I have agreed with Lu Zijing's words, and the people of Yanzhou and Yuzhou will naturally obey the Huainan New Dynasty. But Cao Cao is powerful, and the Huainan New Dynasty is quite afraid of him."

"The meaning of the long article is that Huainan wants to use me as an aid to curb Cao Mengde's power?"

"Exactly."

Chen Qun lowered his voice: "Lu Zijing has revealed Huainan's bottom line. He will appoint you as the governor of Xuzhou and lead the general of chariots and cavalry to open a government. When the new dynasty of Huainan is established, anyone who opens a government can participate in state affairs. If this cannot be done, it will be difficult to unite the forces of all parties to resist the Grand Marshal."

After a pause to let Liu Bei digest the news, Chen Qun whispered again: "Yuan Shang of Hebei, the governor of Jizhou, led the General of Cavalry to open a government. As for Cao Cao, the governor of Yanzhou was appointed General of the Western Expedition, and he not only opened the Western Expedition Shogunate."

The four generals were originally nobles and could legally establish the shogunate.

But the shogunate is the shogunate, and the kungfu is the kungfu.

In other words, in this round of adjustments, Cao Cao only had a Western Expedition Shogunate that could legally accommodate his old subordinates. It was not upgraded to a public office, so he could not participate in the discussion of state affairs.

Liu Bei frowned as he listened: "Will Qingzhou be given to Zang Ba?"

"It should be like this. Zang Ba was appointed as the governor of Qingzhou and the general of Zhendong. My state appointed Sun Ben as the governor of Yuzhou and appointed him the general of Wei."

Chen Qun did not hide anything and told the information he knew. Finally, he said in a low voice: "The crown prince of Huainan is now held hostage in Guanzhong. The king of Huainan has no other heirs."

Liu Bei understood some of the implications in Chen Qun's words, but also some of them he didn't understand.

But looking at Chen Qun's expression and eyes, Liu Bei saw loneliness, stubbornness, paranoia, and a hint of restrained excitement.

(End of this chapter)