Chapter 127 Talking about the past
Cao Rui nodded and said, "Since we can do it, let's do it!"
"The general and the prime minister are both important officials of the country. You should do things with me that others are unwilling to do, so as not to disappoint the late emperor's trust!"
Cao Zhen and Sima Yi naturally agreed.
Cao Rui added: "I originally wanted to try Ruxu. If the days are counted, General Liu Ruo should be near Ruxu, right?"
Cao Zhen said: "Your Majesty, Ruxu is indeed easy to defend but difficult to attack. We have attacked Ruxu many times before but all failed. Ruxu is not something that can be captured in a short time."
"There are only about 10,000 soldiers and horses near Ruxu and Hefei. In addition, our Wei army has suffered so many casualties in this battle. It is really not appropriate to mobilize troops in Ruxu."
Cao Rui nodded and said, "In that case, let Liu Ruo withdraw! Go to Wuqiangkou first and guard the retreat for the Grand Marshal."
Cao Zhen agreed, "I will send someone to transfer Liu Ruo tomorrow morning."
……
Compared with the journey here, the return journey was slower and more leisurely.
Cao Rui didn't have much to do, so he began to talk with generals and ordinary soldiers in order to "investigate" the real situation.
The second general that Cao Rui met began to interest him.
There is no other name, this person's name is Xu Shu.
At that time, Xu Shu was the Right General of the Central Army in the foreign army of Yangzhou. In this battle, he and Le Chen led 15,000 foreign troops to support Man Chong who was defending in Guache, and he indeed made many military achievements.
Cao Rui, riding on his horse, asked with great interest: "Xu Qing's original name was Xu Fu. Was he a knight-errant when he was young?"
Xu Shu, who was also riding a horse beside the emperor, had an embarrassed look on his face: "Your Majesty is right, my name was indeed Xu Fu. But my youthful chivalry eventually led to my downfall, and I have since studied the classics and changed for the better."
Xu Shu is now nearly sixty years old. Before being received by the emperor, he never thought that the emperor would ask such a question.
Cao Rui nodded and continued, "Xu Qing was an official under Liu Bei, right? How many years did you stay under Liu Bei?"
Xu Shu was unsure of the emperor's intention. Now that Wei and Shu Han were enemies, and the emperor mentioned his past under Liu Bei, it obviously did not look good.
Xu Shu said carefully, "Your Majesty, please forgive me. This happened more than 20 years ago. Since I became an official in the Wei Dynasty, I have never had any second thoughts. I hope Your Majesty will understand."
Cao Rui smiled and waved his hands: "Xu Qing has misunderstood. I have no intention of blaming you. Chen Qun, Tian Yu and others have all served Liu Bei. It is just a historical issue. I will not bring up the past. You have made military achievements in this battle, and I should reward you well."
"I am just curious about Liu Bei, Zhuge Liang and others. I heard some descriptions from Huang Quan before, but when Huang Quan met Liu Bei and Zhuge Liang, they had already entered Shu."
"I want to hear from Mr. Xu what happened to these two in their early years."
Xu Shu was relieved after hearing the emperor's words. He held the reins with both hands, raised his head slightly and looked at the mountains in the distance. After thinking for a long time, he said, "Your Majesty, this is indeed a long story. It was almost thirty years ago."
"I remember that it was the sixth year of Jian'an. I had been in Jingzhou with Liu Biao for a long time. When I heard that Liu Biao had placed Liu Bei in Xinye, I went to join Liu Bei."
Cao Rui interrupted and asked, "Why didn't Xu Qing support Emperor Wu and Liu Biao at that time, but supported Liu Bei instead?"
Facing the topic of the emperor's death, Xu Shu gritted his teeth and explained: "Your Majesty, at that time, the Central Plains was in chaos, and I was worried that it would be dangerous to return to the Central Plains, so I did not surrender to Emperor Wu."
"Liu Biao is old and doesn't look like a leader. Besides, Liu Biao doesn't want people like us who are from poor families. Liu Bei is also very prestigious, so I will go to Liu Bei."
"Hahahaha." Cao Rui clapped his hands and laughed: "Xu Qing is indeed loyal. He did not fool me on this issue."
Xu Shu was embarrassed and said, "How dare I deceive you? I am just telling you the truth."
Cao Rui smiled and continued, "Is the relationship between Liu Bei, Guan Yu, and Zhang Fei really that good? Like brothers?"
Xu Shu raised his eyebrows in surprise and asked, "Who told your majesty that? Liu Bei and Guan Yu and Zhang Fei are just monarchs and ministers. It's just that the three of them have been wandering from north to south for many years, so their relationship is naturally closer than that of ordinary monarchs and ministers."
Cao Rui coughed lightly and said, "I also heard about this when I was in the Eastern Palace. It seems that rumors don't count."
Seeing that the emperor was quite easy to talk to, Xu Shu couldn't help but ask, "I wonder why Your Majesty is interested in Liu Bei?"
Cao Rui replied: "Now the country has only two enemies, Western Shu and Eastern Wu. Liu Bei founded Shu Han, so I naturally want to know more about him."
"Huang Quan also asked me the same question as Xu Qing before, and I said the same thing." Cao Rui continued, "But I have also heard many opinions about Liu Bei. Some people belittle Liu Bei and say that he is an old captive and a revolutionary. Some people say that Liu Bei is outstanding and has the strategy of a king or a tyrant. Some people say that Liu Bei is just good at deceiving people."
"I will put aside all these praises and criticisms for now. Mr. Xu has been a subordinate of Liu Bei for many years. I want to hear from you why Liu Bei was able to win people over."
This question is really tricky.
After all, Liu Bei was an enemy of Wei, and Xu Shu was not willing to disparage him. After thinking for a while, he said, "I think Liu Bei won people over by being honest."
Cao Rui smiled and jokingly said, "Liu Bei has been wandering around for many years without a place to stand, and there is no justice in the court to appoint and dismiss officials. There is nothing to reward and appoint, so he can only rely on 'honesty', right?"
Xu Shu helplessly replied, "It is indeed as your Majesty said. However, Liu Bei was always able to get along with ministers like Guan Yu and Zhang Fei, as well as other princes. Liu Bei was indomitable despite years of wandering, and this heroic spirit was also attractive."
Cao Rui sighed, "Perseverance! This is the word Cai Yong used to describe Qiao Gong. It is somewhat similar when applied to Liu Bei."
"But what is Liu Bei's character like? I once heard someone say that Song Zhong told someone in Yecheng that Liu Bei cried because his thigh meat had grown back when he was in Jingzhou? Didn't Liu Bei also whip the Inspector in anger when he was young?"
Although Xu Shu was not aware that the emperor would ask so many questions about Liu Bei today, he still smiled and explained: "Your Majesty has misunderstood. Liu Bei crying is one thing, and his furious whipping of the inspector is another."
Cao Rui asked in doubt: "Is there any hidden story behind this? I have never heard of this."
Xu Shu cleared his throat and said slowly, "At that time, Liu Bei was appointed as the lieutenant of Anxi County because of his meritorious service in defeating the Yellow Turbans with Zou Jing. It was around the Zhongping period, when Emperor Ling of Han was in power."
Cao Rui said: "Zhongping was the reign title of Emperor Ling. Could it be related to Emperor Ling?"
Xu Shu smiled and nodded: "Of course it is related. At that time, Emperor Ling ordered that officials of all ranks who wanted to be appointed to official positions had to pay a fee to buy an official position. Although Liu Bei was only a county lieutenant at the time, he also had to pay the fee."
Cao Rui was surprised and said, "I thought only officials in the court had to pay money. When Tai Huangdi (Cao Song, Cao Cao's father) was the Grand Commandant, he also paid 100 million coins to Emperor Ling."
Xu Shu said, "Even a minor official has to pay. Liu Bei was appointed, but where did he get the money to pay? The Inspector came to Liu Bei to collect the money, but Liu Bei had no money, and he couldn't even see the Inspector."
Cao Rui asked: "After all, it's still about money?"
Xu Shu shook his head: "It is certainly related to money, but it is not just about money. At that time, Anxi County where Liu Bei was located was in Zhongshan State under the rule of Zhang Chun."
Zhang Chun... Why does this name sound familiar to me?
Cao Rui asked, "Is it Zhang Ju and Zhang Chun who caused the rebellion?"
Xu Shu nodded and said, "It was this Zhang Chun. At that time, Zhang Chun was plotting something bad in the county and even asked the court to lead the Wuhuan cavalry, but was rejected by the court. At that time, people in all directions were shaken, and Zhang Chun's intentions to commit evil were already known to everyone in the county."
Cao Rui suddenly realized: "So Liu Bei wanted to avoid Zhang Chun's mess and avoid getting into trouble?"
Xu Shu nodded and said, "I remember Liu Bei and I said so. As for what Liu Bei thought, I really don't know."
Cao Rui just thought it was quite interesting. It seems that judging a person should be viewed from many aspects and not just one side. With more perspectives, there will be more new discoveries.
Cao Rui continued to ask: "What about Zhuge Liang? It was Xu Qing who recommended Zhuge Liang to Liu Bei, right?"
Xu Shu had been embarrassed for the first time, and then he said with all his strength: "This matter is related to me."
"I am originally from Yingchuan. Although I am from Yingchuan like many other officials in the court, my family is not even considered poor, so naturally I will not have any future in the county."
"Later, I came to Jingzhou with Shi Tao from the same county, and met Zhuge Liang in Jingzhou."
Cao Rui said: "I know everything about Zhuge Liang's subsequent events. What I am curious about is how the people of Jingzhou called him 'Wolong' when Zhuge Liang was not an official and had no special qualities at that time?"
Xu Shu thought for a moment and said, "The time of Jian'an was different from now. If scholars at that time wanted to become famous, they still needed people to evaluate them."
"The most famous review is the 'Yuedanping' by Xu Shao from Runan. If you get Xu Shao's review, you will be famous in the world, and your subsequent work as an official or studying will be much easier."
Cao Rui said: "Zhuge Liang has great talent, I know this, but is it necessary to give him a title like 'Wolong'?"
Xu Shu explained: "Your Majesty, this title was actually given to Zhuge Liang by Sima Decao, the Master of Water Mirror."
"Sima Decao took the name Wolong, on the one hand, in order to make Zhuge Liang famous, and on the other hand, because Sima Decao was a great scholar in Jingzhou and had never been able to get along with the scholars in Yingchuan."
"Doesn't the Xun family of Yingchuan have the 'Eight Dragons of the Xun Family'? Doesn't Yingchuan have some divine monarch? Since the people of Yingchuan can say such things, Sima Decao also has the intention to compare himself with the people of Yingchuan."
Cao Rui laughed loudly: "It seems that vanity is the cause of the trouble!"
(End of this chapter)
