Chapter 54: Lumenshan Studies
In front of Lumen Mountain, Black Bear held Zhen Mi's hand and looked at a pair of sika deer on both sides of the mountain path, which was even more magical.

This world is full of magical legends. The most recent one is that when Yuan Shao was fighting Dong Zhuo, he dreamed of getting a precious sword called Si Zhao. After waking up, he saw the sword beside him, as if it were a gift from heaven.

A little further away was the Taishan celebrity and minister Hu Wuban, who was invited to a banquet by the Black-armored Ghost Cavalry sent by the Lord of Taishan, and was asked to deliver a letter to his son-in-law, the Water lord of the Yellow River.

There is a similar legend about the Lumen Mountain in front of us. In the middle period of Jianwu, Liu Xiu and Xi Yu toured here, and they both dreamed of the mountain god.

After waking up from the dream, they talked about it and compared it with each other, and found that the mountain gods they dreamed of were actually the same, two sika deer.

So Liu Xiu ordered Xi Yu to build a shrine on this mountain and carve two stone deer on both sides of the mountain road.

People called this place Lumen Temple, so the name of the mountain was changed to Lumen Mountain.

Later, Xi Yu built a manor in the eastern suburbs of Xiangyang and took the local surname. The Lumen Mountain area was also given to Pang Degong by Xi Yu's descendants for him to teach and live in seclusion.

Originally, Pang Degong lived in Yuliangzhou at the foot of the mountain, which was very close to Liu Biao's Eagle Tower.

Liu Biao often held banquets at Yingtai. On the other side of the Han River was the famous scholar Pang Degong from Jingxiang, so it was reasonable for him to invite him.

But Pang Degong didn't like Liu Biao. In order to avoid conflict, Pang Degong lived in seclusion in Lumen Mountain to teach.

In order to avoid irritating Liu Biao, he gave lectures on the east side of Lumen Mountain, far away.

As for the old house in Yuliangzhou, it was given to Mr. Sima Hui, the Water Mirror, to live in.

Also because of the historical origins of Lumen Mountain, although this is the place where Pang Degong gave lectures, there are many descendants of the Xi family from Xiangyang here.

Pang Tong and Xi Zhen were close friends; Pang Tong's younger brother Pang Lin even married Xi Zhen's sister.

The situation in Jingzhou has been stable in recent years, and the size of the student population at Lumen Mountain has also taken shape.

Among them, Pang Tong and Zhuge Liang were tied for the top spot. The second-in-command of Pang Tong's faction was Xi Zhen, and the second-in-command of Zhuge Liang's faction was Ma Liang.

Pang Tong was the nephew of Pang Degong, and Zhuge Liang treated Pang Degong as his disciple.

In short, in addition to Liu Biao, Cai family, and Kuai family, another new group of scholars with strong cohesion was formed under Pang Degong.

Naturally, this group of scholars had conflicts in terms of line and strategy with the scholars of the official school founded by Liu Biao.

Black Bear had no illusions about the scholars of Lumen Mountain; he just wanted to bring Zhen Mi here for a spin.

Lumenshan School is located on a gentle slope on the east side of the mountain, with houses built in steps.

The most eye-catching thing is that there is a large bamboo and wood awning on the slope, which should be the place where Pang Degong gave lectures.

Black Bear and Zhen Mi came to the foot of the slope. On the side of the road stood an irregular waist-high stone pillar with four characters "Lumenshan School" carved on it.

There was no one on duty, and there were no fences or walls.

It cannot protect you from thieves or robbers, nor from wild beasts in the mountains.

The four accompanying white-robed soldiers stood on the left and right sides of the mountain gate with spears in hand and their arms akimbo. Black Bear, Zhen Mi, and Taoist soldier Lu Bu walked up the steps together.

As I got closer, I saw dozens of scholars listening to a lecture under a large shed. There was no barrier outside the shed, and several passing mountain people wearing short clothes and carrying their prey sat on the ground to listen to the lecture.

There were also a dozen or so wandering scholars who had not formally entered the mountain gate and could only listen outside the shed.

Black Bear looked around and recognized Xu Shu sitting in the front row. He didn't expect that this person would leave the manor so soon.

But it is understandable, as the common people in Jingzhou all know that the students from Lumen Mountain do not get along well with the provincial government.

There must be irreconcilable conflicts between the Lumenshan faction and Liu Biao.

On one side are the pioneering and enterprising people, and on the other side are the pleasure-seeking conservative people.

The two factions are very close, you are in me and I am in you.

It is not a simple regional distinction, but purely a difference in ambitions.

To put it simply, Pang Degong and his gang looked down on Liu Biao and felt that Liu Biao was not someone worth serving.

In a sense, it means that Gan Ning is not well-educated, otherwise he would have been able to make it to Lumen Mountain.

Thinking in his mind, he accompanied Zhen Mi to listen to the lecture on the Five Classics. After about an incense stick of time, the old man stopped lecturing and a group of scholars stood up and bowed to see him off.

The scholars and mountain people who were listening outside the bamboo shed also stood up and saluted. After those people walked away, the mountain people left first, followed by the scholars.

Even if they wanted to discuss it, they had to leave the Lumenshan school area and discuss it outside.

Some whispers also reached Black Bear's ears, and he realized that the person giving the lecture was the great Confucian scholar Song Zhong, a key leader who assisted Liu Biao in officially opening the official school and the Small Imperial College.

Those who left with Song Zhong were Pang Degong and Sima Hui. It was probably just a temporary academic exchange.

Great scholars and lecturers of official schools such as Song Zhong would come to Lumen Mountain from time to time to exchange ideas; Pang Degong and Sima Hui would also go to the official school to give lectures.

While thinking, Xu Shu walked out of the bamboo shed, first inspecting the tall and strong white-robed guards following behind Black Bear, then casually glancing at Zhen Mi, whose face was covered by two layers of white gauze scarves, and then said: "This is the first time that my Lumenshan School has weapons other than swords."

"That's not true."

Black Bear turned his head and looked up at the Fang Tian Ji held by Lu Bu: "Before this place became the Lumen Mountain School, there must have been weapons entering and leaving and stationed here."

After a few words of banter, he did not show any weakness and carefully looked at the powerful and vigorous Xu Shu. He also saw other scholars coming from both wings, and there was a hint of semi-encirclement.

At this moment, Black Bear wanted to laugh.

Through the brass mask, he couldn't help but laugh: "I heard that you are the military advisor appointed by Liu Yuzhou, I think you can settle accounts." "I was negligent, you are worthy of being the commander of Baiequ."

Xu Shu handed the scroll to Black Bear and asked, "Will the general still help my lord Liu Yuzhou?"

"I still have some things to do. Liu Yuzhou and I can just go our separate ways."

Black Bear flipped open the bamboo slips and read the contents. He was not surprised and said, "I did not kidnap Jiang Ji for no reason. This old villain raised the apricot yellow flag to invite me to meet him on the shore. He also hid a painter by his side who wanted to draw my appearance. So I took revenge on him."

"As for Yuan Huan, I know that he is a student of Liu Yuzhou and a former official. I feel that although he can keep the people safe under Cao Cao's command, he is more of an accomplice to the evil. I couldn't bear to see him go to waste, so I took him to Hebei."

"And the two Yuans, the kidnapping is true, the use of this as an excuse to escape is true, and my role as an envoy of the Yuan family is also true."

Black Bear rolled up the bamboo slips and handed them back to Xu Shu, staring into his eyes: "I, the two Yuans, and Liu Yuzhou have a common enemy. The enemy of my enemy is my friend. There is nothing to be ashamed of."

He looked around at the scholars of Lumen Mountain who were surrounding him and said, "Compared to Liu Jingsheng and his son, I dare to draw my sword against Cao Cao."

Xu Shu put away the bamboo slips and gestured, "Come in and discuss in detail."

"it is good."

There was no need to refuse. Holding Zhen Mi's wrist, the two followed Xu Shu to the wooden shed and took off their shoes. The other scholars also took off their clogs.

These people just looked at Zhen Mi a few more times out of curiosity and had no intention of delving into her specific identity.

Sitting together, Pang Tong, as the landlord, bowed and said, "I am Pang Shiyuan from Xiangyang. I wonder what you think of the dispute between Yuan and Cao?"

"The Yuan family is on the verge of collapse. Yuan Shao is too ill to make a decision, but he is wishful thinking that his two sons can swear an oath to make peace. I have no other good ideas. I want to kill Yuan Tan to eliminate the hidden danger, but Yuan Shang cares about the relationship between brothers."

Black Bear carefully looked at Pang Tong and the scholars around him, and continued: "Yuan Shang is a man of both civil and military talents, with a broad mind and a resolute character, but he has two shortcomings. One is that he shares power with Yuan Tan and the people of Yingchuan, and the other is that he is young and has little prestige. When I left Hebei, I had already killed Guo Tu and Xin Ping, and cut off most of Yuan Tan's humerus."

"If Cao Cao cannot defeat Yuan Shang within three years, Yuan Shang, in his prime, will surely be able to prosper Hebei within ten years and easily achieve the hegemony of Duke Huan of Qi and Duke Wen of Jin."

"In the future, it will be easier to find divine weapons, so there may be opportunities to become the best."

After making his comment, Black Bear smiled at Pang Tong: "As for Yuan Tan, he has found a safe place to go. Whether he can succeed or not will be determined next year."

Even if Yuan Shang successfully squeezed Yuan Tan out of Hebei, there was still a big bomb buried next to Yuan Shang, and the fuse was in his hands at the moment.

At this time, Zhuge Liang, who was eight feet two or three inches tall and had a white face and no beard, held a feather fan with a dust-tail and folded his hands, and said, "I am Zhuge Kongming of Langya. I have come from Liangpei. Do you know the current situation in Xuzhou?"

"I crossed the Si River twice. The villages on both sides of the river were dilapidated and the settlements were withered. Between Pengcheng and Xiapi, there was only one Taolin Manor with people, and the rest was deserted wherever I looked."

"The paddy fields that once stretched across the country have now become swamps and rotten land; the country roads are covered with thorns, and groups of tigers and leopards ravage the banks. The common people are in dire straits."

"South of Pengcheng and north of the Huai River, nine out of ten houses are already empty."

After a brief pause, Black Bear continued, "My fleet sailed through Huai and Si twice and encountered very few boats. You can imagine how dilapidated it was."

After hearing this, Zhuge Liang bowed and thanked him with a depressed look. Someone else asked about the situation in his hometown.

As long as the black bear has experienced or seen something, he will give an answer.

Except for Yingchuan, most of the counties and kingdoms under Cao Cao's rule were in a difficult situation.

It is not an exaggeration to say that the Central Plains was in ruins. It originally had some vitality, but after the Battle of Guandu, the Central Plains was completely ruined.

As the meeting was drawing to a close, Pang Tong asked again, "General, you have traveled extensively throughout the world and have a wealth of experience. In your opinion, if the people of Chu surrender to us, will there be peace?"

"The population of the four states in the Central Plains is about four million, and Cao Cao has more than 200,000 soldiers available for combat. However, the land is vast and the population is sparsely distributed, so 100,000 soldiers are the maximum number that can be used at a time."

Black Bear said his own estimate and asked Pang Tong: "Only Nanyang in Jingzhou is in ruins. Jiangxia was severely defeated by Sun Ce. The population of the remaining counties is at least over 2 million. If we surrender to Cao Cao, how can we let Jingzhou rest and recuperate because of his suspicion?"

Seeing that some scholars looked gloomy, Black Bear continued, "The defeat of Cao Cao in Wancheng in the past was a deep shame. Now that he has taken Jingzhou, how dare he let the people of Jing defend Jingzhou? He will definitely implement the law of alternate labor! The counties are all soldiers from other states. How can the people of Jingzhou, both men and women, live in different places? "

It must be admitted that Cao Cao's system of altered labor service was very powerful. The larger the territory, the more people he could kidnap.

The more people are kidnapped, and the more they keep each other in check and balance, the safer Cao Cao will be.

Compared to his own hijacking, Cao Cao is the biggest kidnapper in the world.

Looking around at these people, Black Bear sneered: "The law of wrong labor is not terrible. How could the families of Kuai, Huang, and Cai be harmed by wrong labor? It is for a humble and despicable person like me. My family has been destroyed in the past five or six years. I have no relatives in the world!"

People couldn't see Black Bear's facial expression clearly through the brass mask, but they could conclude that the hatred between this General Bai E Qu and Cao Cao was irreconcilable.

"I'm not exaggerating. It's because Jingzhou is rich and populous. Jingzhou is not in chaos. It has rested for 20 years. When the population is 4 to 5 million, how can the people of the Central Plains stop it?"

"This is truly the foundation of a king or hegemon. If you do not take advantage of this gift from heaven, you will harm others and yourself."

Black Bear straightened his sleeves and turned to look at Xu Shu: "Mr. Yuanzhi, I will say goodbye now. I will lead my troops to Xinye within half a month."

"Wait for good news from Commander Qu."

Xu Shu stood up. He had been avoiding the chaos in Jingzhou for many years and was from Yingchuan, so he seldom cared about places further away.

Now it sounds like the damage caused by the Battle of Guandu was shocking?
The other scholars also stood up to see him off. Although they had never seen Black Bear's face, they could remember him clearly.

As for his current voice, this Baiequ Shuai is in his thirties or fifties. In a few years, his body shape will change, and his voice will also change accordingly.

I guess when he takes off his mask and comes to Lumen Mountain to study, few people will be able to recognize him at a glance.

(End of this chapter)