Chapter 87 Difficult Choices

When Sun Quan and Sun Deng and his son met, they were stunned. Sun Quan stayed in the south for more than a year. Although he did not fight in person, he stayed with the soldiers every day, eating coarse grain, doing rough work, and jumped up a lot, half a head more than Sun Quan. He looked powerful, with a calm and confident smile on his dark face. The prince's military uniform, which has not been worn for about a year, is obviously tight on his body. When he moves his hand, he can see the bulging chest ups and downs, and endless vitality all over his body.

Sun Quan is much older. I haven't seen him for a year. His dark hair is much whiter, and his face looks a little thin. When he saw Sun Deng, he was reading the paperwork. When he raised his eyelids, a wrinkle on his forehead was very clear, setting off some white temples, which looked particularly haggard.

My father is old. At that moment, Sun Deng suddenly had the impulse to jump on his father and cry bitterly. But before he moved, Sun Quan smiled and said, "My prince is back. This time it's the Southern victory, which greatly boosts the prestige of the State of Wu. Congratulations."

Sun Deng immediately put away his impulse and fell on the ground to worship: "My son, I will visit the king."

"Zi Gao, get up." Sun Quan put down the pen in his hand and clapped his hands with a smile: "A worry, why don't you come out to see your brother? I want to see him every day. Why is he back? You hide and don't dare to see him?

Sun Deng's eyes tightened, and then he smiled again. He looked at Sun Wei, who was a little nervous from the back of the curtain. He praised, "A Wei has grown so fast. I haven't seen him for a year. He is a handsome little man."

Sun Quan smiled and waved his hand to Sunlv to his side. He touched his head lovingly and said, "Yes, he not only grows fast, but also reads well, and has good martial arts skills. He is a good child with all literary and martial arts skills. I took him with me to teach him. The military was tired, and it was much easier to see him.

Sun Deng's face remained unchanged. He looked at Sun Ji gently, rubbed his hands, and said embarrassedly, "Father, I don't know that my brother is by my father's side. I didn't bring a gift. It's extremely rude."

Sun Quan laughed and said half-jokingly, "That's not okay. As a brother, how can you have a gift for your brother without a gift? If you don't bring it to me, I don't blame you, but if you don't bring it to me, that won't work.

Sun Deng touched his head awkwardly, suddenly patted his head, and said with a smile, "Father has an edict, how dare my son and minister not obey? It happens that there is a gift for my father, so I will forward it to A Shu. Please forgive me for not inviting me. With that, he took a brocade box from the entourage behind him, sent his hands to Sun Xie's hand, and said with a smile, "Brother, look, do you like it?"

Sun Wei looked at the brocade box in embarrassment, looked at Sun Quan uneasily, and sang, "Father, I..."

Sun Quan smiled faintly: "Since it was given to you by your brother, you can just take it. Open it and see what kind of rare treasure it is."

Sun Xie answered, knelt down beside Sun Quan, and opened the copper buckle on the brocade box. With a "pop", the brocade box opened, revealing a green dragon-shaped jade hook that seemed to be able to drip leaf juice. Regardless of the carving, just looking at the transparent and pure texture, I knew that it was a piece of superior jade. Sunlv shouted in surprise, hurriedly held it in the palm of his hand, and happily showed it to Sun Quan. After a while, he said reluctantly, "Such a beautiful jade, I dare not enjoy it. I'd better ask my father to take it."

Sun Quan's eyes narrowed and gently pushed back: "It's just a piece of jade. Since you like it, I'll give it to you."

Sun Li nodded quickly and hurriedly thanked Sun Deng. Sun Deng smiled and watched Sun Li hurried to the back of the account with a brocade box, but his heart was a little sour. He didn't have to look at the back, just by looking at Sun Xie's look and knew that Mrs. Wang must be behind the account.

A loss surged into his heart. Although Sun Deng wanted to hold back his tears, he still couldn't help it. Two crystal tears slid down his cheeks. Sun Quan looked at it in his eyes, but smiled faintly: "Why, holding a strong soldier in his hand, and I didn't see you afraid after a bloody battle with the Funan people. Why do you show your childish attitude now?"

Sun Deng took the opportunity to bow down in front of Sun Quan and sobated, "My son and minister are unfilial. He is thousands of miles away, and he can't be filial in front of his father. Father, you have been tired for more than a year.

Sun Quan smiled silently and looked at Sun Deng, who was sobbing in front of him. After a long time, he smiled. He reached out and pulled Sun Deng, looked at Sun Deng's face carefully. He opened his mouth and was about to speak, but he couldn't help sighing: "Years make people old, Zi Gao, when you grow up, I will naturally get old. No one can resist this. Things to refuse. Zi Gao, don't be sad. Come on, tell me what your war in Funan is like. I only saw a good news, but I don't know the details of it. I'm very worried. Now that you're back safely, I'm relieved. In the two wars, your performance is good. I'm very relieved. You are better than me in terms of military ability.

Sun Deng shook his head quickly: "How can my father restrain himself like this? The son-in-law won in Funan, not because the son-in-law was good at using troops, but because General Lu, Zhuge Ke and the generals used their lives to repay their father's kindness. In addition, the Queen of Yue also helped a lot.

"Guan Feng?" Sun Quan raised his eyebrows and looked a little surprised. In the good news written by Sun Deng, the first merit was Lv Dai, and the second merit was Zhuge Ke. He said that Yue State helped, but he did not mention Guan Feng. If Guan Feng appears on the battlefield of the South, then the Yue Guobang will not be a small favor.

"Yes." Sun Deng nodded: "This time, he can break through the Southern Army and capture Fan Chang alive. The crossbow of the State of Yue is the first achievement." Sun Deng said the battle briefly. Although he was not present at that time, Zhuge Ke had reported to him in detail, and he also said it well. He carefully talked about the power of the crossbow, and finally told Sun Quan that Sun Shao was going to sell a batch of crossbows to him, but later, because of the competition between the Wu and Shu families, he did not want the State of Wu to be frustrated, nor could not watch Guan Yu suffer losses, so he could only sell none of them, but to support some grain.

"How can he sell such a powerful ordnance?" Sun Quan leaned back and gently stroked the armrest with his fingers: "Is it an excuse?"

Sun Deng was quiet for a moment, and his jaw echoed: "My father is very worried. However, with the surname of the king of Yue, since he mentioned selling, he must have other plans. What's more, what he wants to sell is not one or two pieces, but four hundred pieces, which is almost the sum of the crossbows in Yue. Erchen thought that he probably had a better crossbow, so he wanted to sell this batch of crossbows. At the beginning, he asked for 500,000 yuan for one, four hundred, a total of 200 million yuan, which was not a small amount.

Sun Quan's eyes narrowed and his heart skipped, as if he had stopped for a moment. The meaning behind Sun Deng's words shocked him. Now the power of the crossbow is so great, but Sun Shao still has to deal with it. It must be that he has a more powerful crossbow. The strength of the State of Yue has grown so fast that the State of Wu has fallen behind, but now the gap is getting wider and wider. Is there still a chance to equalize in the future? Going on closer, Sun Shao has now made a lot of money. If he takes Funan, he will take a large granary. As soon as he takes action, it will be 70,000 stone meters. With such a strong economic strength, coupled with the amazing ordnance, if he wants to cooperate with Guan Yu and take action behind the State of Wu, what chance does the State of Wu have to resist?

I can't get through this day.

Sun Quan felt bitter in his mouth. He had expected Sun Deng to come back to help him, but he didn't expect Sun Deng to tell him such a bad news as soon as he met. Thinking of the relationship between Sun Shao and Guan Yu and Cao Wei, he was extremely depressed. Sun Shao had a good relationship with everyone, but he had a bad relationship with his own uncle. He not only reads by himself, but also constantly put pressure on him. The State of Yue is now like a thorn, deeply piercing his back, hurting his heart and lungs, but the whip is too long to reach, scratched and can't be scratched, and can't be pulled out.

The most difficult thing is, how to fight this battle? Since Sun Shao didn't want them to fight, he would definitely think of everything. Sun Deng also said that Sun Shao had called the emperor and asked Cao Qian to mediate together. The battle could no longer be fought. Otherwise, the State of Wu would be surrounded on three sides, just like a flat boat in the sea, which could be overturned by the wind and waves at any time. But if he wants to withdraw like this, he will lose all his face. It's better to send Zhang Yi back to Chengdu when he first arrived in Jianye.

A dilemma! Sun Quan was silent, and his blue eyes were full of pain and unwillingness. He is not a person who doesn't know how to advance and retreat. He bows his head and does a lot of things to endure, but that does not mean that he is a weak person. On the contrary, he is a very strong person. The reason why he can endure humiliation is that he hopes to be famous one day, so he endures for the time being. But now he finds that he doesn't seem to stand out at all. It's that day. Among the four countries, Cao Wei has strength and Liu Bei has a reputation. What does he have? He has enemies! Sun Shao was originally just a small disease of svales, but now he has become a big problem. No matter what situation he laid and what net he cast, Sun Shao broke out of the encirclement effortlessly, and finally threw a bead on his face.

"Will he send troops to threaten behind us?" Sun Quan said to himself.

Sun Deng didn't say anything, but his expression gave the answer: If he insisted on not retreating, Sun Shao's threat of sending troops was inevitable.

"I heard that Gu Yu is a doctor of imperial history in Qian Tang, which is very majestic. Last time, the Shengzhou families were discredited, and even Yu Zhongxiang almost fell down. Sun Quan sighed, "Do you know what Gu Tan is doing over there?"

Sun Deng knew what Sun Quan was thinking. The Gu family stepped on two boats. Now it is very difficult for Sun Quan to do it. Sun Shao is dead. In terms of ability and prestige, Gu Yong is a very suitable candidate, but his son and grandson are officials in the State of Yue. If he himself becomes the prime minister in the State of Wu, the Gu family will hold an important position in Wu Yue, and his strength will expand rapidly. If he can't be the prime minister, it will appear that Sun Quan is not as good as Sun Shao. In the end, it is very likely. Gu Yong was forced to leave the State of Wu. As soon as Gu Yong left, it was not only the Gu family, but probably just the beginning. The Lu family and the Zhang family were likely to leave together. At that time, can Wu still gain a foothold in Jiangdong?

Sun Deng understands Sun Quan's current mood very well, but there are not many choices left for them. If he insists on continuing to limit the development of the power of the Jiangdong people, the Jiangdong people will abandon them. If the restrictions are released, the power of the Jiangdong people will soon be beyond the scope of control. It's not big. At present, all we can do is to give in to the people of Jiangdong and try to control the situation within a certain range.

However, this is only Sun Deng's view, and Sun Quan may not be able to adopt it.

"Zi Gao, how about Zhuge Ke's ability to use soldiers?" Sun Quan suddenly asked, the originally locked eyebrows had loosened, and it seemed that a decision had been made. Sun Deng hesitated for a moment and said cautiously, "He is talented, but after all, he is young, and he still needs his father to be **."

"Well, you can preside over the war in Chaisang. Let Zhuge Ke and Lu Xun assist you. The elite you bring will be led by Zhuge Ke." Sun Quan suddenly stood up and said simply, "I'll go back to Jianye and discuss with the ministers about the candidate for the prime minister. The position of prime minister is always hanging, which is not suitable after all.

Sun Deng was overjoyed and quickly got up to thank him. Of course, he knew that Sun Quan's arrangement was not only to give Zhuge Ke a chance, but also to Jiangdong. The Lu family is also a Jiangdong clan. He and Zhuge Ke, who are responsible for his right and right hands at the same time, will inevitably control each other, and he will benefit the most. With the assistance of these two people, as long as he can calm down the relationship between them, he will be in Jiang There is a source between the people of Dong and Huai Si.

Sun Quan was vigorous and quickly conveyed the decision. As soon as Lu Su, the governor stationed in Lukou, received the news, he immediately understood the meaning. Zhuge Jin and his son had become the representatives of the ministers of Huai Si, and it was time for him to retire. He immediately asked someone to invite Zhang Cheng, the long history, and asked him to draft a resignation from the governor and go back to Jianye to recuperate. As soon as Zhang Cheng heard it, he was stunned at that time. After thinking about it for a moment, he picked up the pen, waved it, and sent his hands to Lu Su.

Lu Su looked at the article written by Zhang Chengdai and sighed: "Zhong Si, your father and brother are all officials in the State of Yue. Don't stay here. Go to the State of Yue. With your ability, you will soon be useful."

Zhang Cheng was not polite and nodded with a smile: "Governor, I'll accompany you back to Jianye. I still have to clean up at home, and then go to Qian Tang to find a chance. Governor, what are you going to do? Don't you want to leave Jianye? Maybe changing the environment is better for your health. Yue Guo has several medical craftsmen in Zhuya Daoshu College. The medical skills are quite unique. The South China Sea is also rich in spices, which is said to be very good for the treatment of diseases.

Lu Su laughed and said, "Thank you, Zhong Si. I know my own body. In fact, it's not a disease, but an old injury. When I was young, I didn't know how to pay attention to my health, so I let my surname Zihu come. Now that I'm old, I'm all out. It can't be cured by any medicine stone. Zhou Gongjin died young. I have lived many more years than him. It's enough.

"Governor..."

Lu Su raised his hand, interrupted Zhang Cheng's words, and said with a smile, "If it's convenient for you, take Lin Zhi away. He has been with me for so many years, but I can't recommend him to be an official. I'm really sorry for him."

Zhang Cheng heard what he said and knew that he had made up his mind. It was useless to say more. On the same day, they tidied up their clothes and went to Chai Sang together to resign from the new supervisor. Sun Deng was very surprised and rushed to Lu Su's residence in person. After a long time of persuading him, Lu Su declined Sun Deng's detention on the grounds of illness.

When Zhuge Ke heard about this, he immediately rushed to Zhang Cheng's residence and advised Zhang Cheng to stay. Zhuge Ke's sister is Zhang Cheng's wife. She just gave birth to a daughter a few years ago, and the couple have a good relationship. Zhuge Ke said to Zhang Cheng that although I am still under Lu Xun, my father may not be able to become the prime minister this time. It can be said that we will definitely achieve our goal in the future. The Lu family has Lu Ji in Yue, and the king will certainly not trust him without reservation. Lu Xun will inevitably give way in the end. Now we need to gather the talents of Huai Si nationality. How can you leave?

Zhang Cheng blocked Zhuge Ke to death with one sentence. He said to Zhuge Ke, yes, Lu Ji is in Yue, and Lu Xun will not get the unreserved trust of the king, but my father and brother are also in Yue, and the official position is much more important than Lu Ji. Can the king believe me?

Zhuge Ke was speechless and had to watch Zhang Chengyang leave. He was unwilling and wrote an urgent letter to Zhuge Jin and his sister as soon as possible, so that they could persuade Zhang Cheng again. When Zhang Cheng returned to Jianye's house, his wife Zhuge had received the news, but before she could say a few words, Zhang Cheng interrupted her: "Madam, do you also think Yuan Xun's future is boundless?"

Zhuge looked at Zhang Cheng inexplicably and didn't quite understand why Zhang Cheng said this. Zhang Cheng is famous for being good at knowing people, but the meaning of his words shows that he is not optimistic about Zhuge Ke, who is in the limelight.

"If you Zhuge family are to lose, you must be defeated by Yuan Xun." Zhang Cheng smiled faintly: "If you believe me, pack up immediately and leave Jianye and Qian Tang with me as soon as possible. If you don't believe me, I can write you a letter of divorce. From now on, we will go our separate ways."

Zhuge hesitated. She knew that Zhang Cheng's words were not a joke. Zhang Cheng has made up his mind to leave the State of Wu, and her family has nothing to do with the King of Yue. It is because of this that she has been trusted by Sun Quan. Her marriage with Zhang Cheng has lost its original political significance.

"I'll go with you." Zhuge pondered for a long time and sighed, "I'm going to say goodbye to my father and mother."

"It should be." Zhang Cheng agreed.

Zhuge went home and said Zhang Cheng's words to Zhuge Jin. Zhuge Jin frowned for a long time and said nothing. Although Zhang Cheng is his son-in-law, Zhang Cheng is only four years younger than him. They have been dating for many years and know each other well. He also admires Zhang Cheng's knowledge. It's just that Zhang Cheng's comment on Zhuge Ke makes him very uncomfortable now. At present, Zhuge Ke is his whole hope, and it doesn't seem to be the root cause of the destruction of the family.

Zhang Cheng cleaned up his home as quickly as possible and left a farewell letter for Sun Quan. He took Cao Gen, Shangguan Xuefei and Lin Zhi to Qian Tang in a light car and went straight to Qian Tang. He did not stop all the way. It was not until Wu County that he stopped in the post pavilion outside the city.

Zhang Wen, who has received the news, greeted him outside the pavilion.

This post pavilion is the post pavilion where Sun Shao sang "outside the long pavilion, on the edge of the ancient road" when he said goodbye to Zhou Xun. The post pavilion is still the post pavilion. The trees are still those trees, and there seems to have been no trace of the years. However, those people at the beginning were no longer those people. Sun Shaoli became king, and Zhou Xun became a general of Yue. However, Zhang Wen, who was known as a young hero with Zhou Xun, was under house arrest at home, and his future was dark.

"Zhong Si, are you leaving too?" As soon as Zhang Wen saw Zhang Cheng, he smiled bitterly.

"Yes, I'm leaving." Zhang Cheng was not polite and said bluntly, "What about you? Do you want to go with me?"

"I'm not you." Zhang Wen shook his head: "Your father and brother are all in Yue. I don't pay attention to Jianye's little family. I can't do it. There are hundreds of people in my Zhang family. How can I say that I can move? Besides, you and the King of Yue have brotherhood. I...hehe, but..."

"Forgive me, a few years of imprisonment will make you like this?" Zhang Cheng shook his head repeatedly and said rudely, "You not only misread yourself, but also misread the king of Yue."

Zhang Wen is silent. It's not that he didn't touch the thoughts of Yue Guo in the past, but he felt guilty when he thought that he used Sun Shao in those years and finally abandoned Sun Shao. In addition, Shen Xuan, who was desperate at that time, is now an important minister of the State of Yue, and he is now under house arrest. He has completely turned over, making him feel a little ashamed to face his old friend. Zhang Cheng asked someone to ask him to meet here. Of course, he knew Zhang Cheng's intention, but after thinking about it, he could not compare with Zhang Cheng. Zhang Cheng's running to Yue would definitely be heavily used soon, but he was not necessarily. This time, Lu Xun became the governor, assisted the grandson of the prince, and led the army to fight against Guan Yu. Lu Xun's nephew Gu Cheng was his brother-in-law, and Lu Xun might give him a chance. Gu Yong, who values him very much, is likely to become the prime minister. He won't help at all. After thinking about it for a long time, he decided to stay and have a look.

When Zhang Cheng saw Zhang Wen coming alone, he probably knew his decision. After a few words of persuasion, he had to leave regretfully.

"Zhang Huishu seems to be smart, but he is actually confused." Leaving Changting, Lin Zhi said unabashedly, "He still has unrealistic illusions about the King of Wu. He is really stupid."

"It's not his fault." Zhang Chengshen shook his head with the same feeling: "These Jiangdong people are all in the State of Wu. It's not as convenient as us. We can leave with a little cleaning up. They want to leave. Not only are there a lot of people, but the most important thing is that the land cannot be moved. If they leave the State of Wu, they will lose at least half of their property. How can they make a decision so easily until the last step?

"I don't think so." Shangguan Xuefei snorted coldly: "The country is vast and sparsely populated. When will there be a shortage of land? He just had no confidence in the king of Yue, and he was afraid that the king of Yue would snear him, so he looked forward and backward. This is the meaning of overcalculation. He is destined to be a cautious person all his life and can't do anything bold.

"Miss Xuefei has wanted to go to Yueguo for a long time, right?" Cao Gen, who had been silent, suppressed his laughter.

"Don't talk about me, don't you?" Shangguan Xuefei glanced at Cao Gen and smiled cheerfully: "Actually, I feel sorry for Zhang Jun. With Zhang Jun's ability, if I had gone to Yue as soon as possible, it would be at least a county magistrate now. Maybe it is possible to be a state. Why did you stay in the State of Wu for a few years, and it has always been a long history.

(to be continued)