My father Liu Xuande

Chapter 660 Generous Rewards
Upon hearing this, Liu Feng simply nodded slowly but remained silent.

Zhang Song and the others were sweating profusely. They wanted to say something to persuade them, but they couldn't find a suitable topic to start.

Liu Feng remained silent for a long time, then suddenly rose, slamming his hand on the table. His eyes, sharp as he swept over the assembled officials, said, "Since that's the case, let's temporarily follow the consensus. Since the Zhao family is so eager for fame and fortune, I, the general, will grant them this opportunity. If they fulfill their duties diligently, past grievances will be forgiven; but if there is even the slightest mishap—"

At this point, he slammed the teacup in his hand down on the table with a clang: "Don't blame me for settling all old and new scores!"

Liu Feng made his decision, but his actions were unexpected. Instead of showing any displeasure, he personally led his entourage to the Zhao family's gate and invited Zhao Yan to take up the position of Prefectural Governor.

The following day, he submitted a memorial to the court, recommending Zhao Yi as the magistrate of Chengdu County.

The Zhao family, having achieved their wish, made a complete 180-degree turn and respectfully welcomed the family outside the mansion gate.

Zhao Yan, along with his son Zhao Yi and clan elders, prostrated themselves to welcome him. The grandeur of the procession and the thoroughness of the etiquette drew attention from all.

Liu Feng secretly wondered: If the Zhao family becomes arrogant because of the emperor's favor, how should we deal with them?

Severe punishment would discourage the scholars of Yizhou, while leniency would damage the commander-in-chief's authority.

Unexpectedly, Zhao Yan was well-versed in the art of knowing when to advance and retreat, and declined the official seal three times before finally accepting it.

Zhao Yi also acted with great respect, showing no arrogance whatsoever.

An incense table was set high in front of the mansion gate, and banners fluttered in the wind.

Holding the seal of the Prefectural Governor, Zhao Yan wept and said, “I have lived in Chengdu for fifty years and served as governor and prefect of three dynasties. Only you, General, have shown me special favor and appointed me Prefectural Governor. I am of average appearance and am far inferior to my two cousins, not to mention that there are many talented people in Sichuan and Chongqing. I dare not have such a presumptuous thought. I never expected that you, General, would not despise me and entrust me with such an important task. I will do my utmost and serve you with utmost loyalty.”

Unaware of the hidden meaning, the onlookers were all deeply moved, praising General Liu for his magnanimity and Lady Zhao for her understanding and tact.

After the recruitment was completed, Liu Feng intended to leave immediately.

The show is over. Are we going to stay and watch the smug faces of the Zhao father and son?

Let them be arrogant; there will always be a day to settle scores, and that day will surely not be too far off.

Just as Liu Feng was about to leave, Zhao Yan respectfully stopped him and pleaded, "My lord, please come into the study for a chat. I have something to report."

Liu Feng paused for a moment, then slowly nodded and went into the study.

As soon as the two sat down, a maid served tea and then carefully withdrew, closing the door behind her.

Just as Liu Feng was thinking about how to get rid of Zhao Yan, the latter suddenly stood up, knelt down in front of Liu Feng with a thud, and burst into tears.

Liu Feng was greatly shocked, both surprised and suspicious, not understanding what Zhao Yan was up to.

After a moment's hesitation, Liu Feng tentatively asked, "Why are you so sad? Please get up."

"Your Excellency, Yan is deeply aggrieved, hence his sorrow."

Zhao Yan wept bitterly, wiping his face with his sleeve, and said in a sorrowful voice, "My lord, please understand! My family has lived in Shu for generations. Since my ancestor, Lord Jie, our family has produced many officials and scholars. My uncle, father, and two elder brothers all held high positions, ranking among the Three Dukes. Only I, Yan, am unworthy, having wasted my youth and never fulfilled my ambitions. Whenever I see the register of our family's achievements, I often cannot sleep at night, my clothes soaked with sweat."

At this point, he choked with emotion and could not continue. After a long pause, he finally finished speaking: "Ever since I heard that General's banners had entered Shu, I, Yan, have been eagerly awaiting your arrival, wishing I could immediately serve under your command. However, I feared my talents and learning were insufficient, and dared not recommend myself. Now, I am deeply grateful that General has not rejected me and has entrusted me with the position of Assistant Governor. This kindness is like being given a second chance! Although I am dull-witted, I will certainly do my utmost to serve you. If I fail to live up to your trust, may Heaven and Earth not forgive me!"

After saying this, he prostrated himself on the ground and bowed twice, tears staining his blue robe. His voice was filled with sorrow but also with a resolute determination.

Liu Feng showed a look of gratitude on his face, but inwardly he sneered repeatedly, not believing a word of his so-called promise of service.

However, Zhao Yan's next move took Liu Feng by surprise.

"Please take a look, my lord."

Zhao Yan took out a silk scroll from his bosom, raised it above his head with both hands, and presented it to Liu Feng.

Liu Feng took it in surprise, opened it and saw that it contained some numbers, including grain, wealth, cloth and silk, and many treasures.

Taking the opportunity, Zhao Yan raised his head and explained from the side, “Your Excellency is wise! Having received such special favor and been appointed to the position of Prefect, how could I not devote myself wholeheartedly? Now, seeing the empty granaries of Chengdu and the famine of the people, my heart is consumed by grief. I wish to offer the Zhao family's ancestral reserves: 8,000 shi of rice, 5,000 shi of wheat, 12,000 shi of millet, and 10,000 shi of soybeans, to be delivered entirely to the state granaries to alleviate their dire straits.”

"Furthermore, I have heard that the state treasury has been looted by Liu Zhang and Cao Ang. I am willing to sacrifice my family fortune to relieve their suffering. I will offer 2,400 bolts of Shu brocade, 13,000 bolts of silk, 22,000 bolts of hemp cloth, 600 catties of gold, 200 catties of silver, and 2 million copper coins to fund the army."

"Furthermore, my clan has been intermarried with the major prominent families of Shu for generations, and our old friends are scattered throughout Sichuan. I am willing to sign a military pledge that I will travel among these families and raise another 50,000 shi of grain within ten days! If even one hu or one dou is lacking, I will gladly accept military punishment!"

Even with Liu Feng's current status, he couldn't help but gasp.

Unexpectedly, Zhao Yan was so extreme, and the Zhao family was so wealthy. With the resources of just one family, they could produce 30,000 to 40,000 shi of grain, thousands of bolts of Shu brocade, tens of thousands of bolts of silk and hemp cloth, nearly a thousand jin of gold and silver, and two million copper coins.

No wonder there's an idiom that means someone is richer than a country.

Although the Zhao family hasn't reached that point yet, the amount of money they've donated is probably already equivalent to half a year's worth of taxes from Yizhou.

At the same time, Liu Feng also discerned many other meanings from Zhao Yan's words, which reminded him of a Hong Kong movie he had seen in his previous life.

There's a classic line in the movie: "I can talk, and I can love my country too."

Although it seemed somewhat comical, Jimmy's handsome face overlapped with the somewhat aged face of Zhao Yan, the scholar before him.

Liu Feng had never understood why Zhao was so bold, nor why she was opposing him.

Only now do I realize that all of this was just a means to an end, merely a way to gain a foothold in the social hierarchy.

Just as Liu Feng had guessed, Zhao Yan and his son Zhao Yi worked very hard after taking office, making the most of their influence among the powerful clans in Chengdu. They even secretly promised a lot of benefits. In just ten days, they raised more than 70,000 shi of grain, more than 6 million copper coins, thousands of bolts of Shu brocade, and tens of thousands of bolts of various silk, hemp and cotton cloth for Liu Feng.

In addition to the grain, goods, and cloth, the Zhao family also provided some military equipment and armor. This included more than 4,000 long and short weapons, more than 200 shields, more than 300 powerful bows, more than 200 crossbows, more than 800 pieces of leather armor, and even more than 30 sets of iron armor, enough to equip a standard captain's battalion, that is, 4,000 men.

With a touch of pride, Zhao Yan addressed Liu Feng, saying, "I am honored that Your Excellency has entrusted me with this important task. I have been able to fulfill my mission and have now raised some funds, which should be able to temporarily alleviate the urgent crisis in Chengdu."

While Liu Feng was overjoyed, he was also shocked and worried.

The reason was simple: the Zhao family's influence in Shu County was far beyond his expectations.

Fortunately, the Zhao family is currently on his side and has made numerous contributions to prove themselves. Moreover, the most important task at hand is to defeat Cao Ang and Liu Zhang as quickly as possible; everything else can wait.

While Zhao Yan and Zhao Yi were procuring provisions, copper coins, and other supplies for Liu Feng, Liu Feng received an urgent battle report from Jingzhou, which detailed the defeat at Xinye.

This should be considered the first setback for the Left Army on the battlefield. Although the losses were not significant, less than a thousand men, it served as a wake-up call for Liu Feng.

If Jia Kui and Dong Xi hadn't been extremely cautious and proactively shifted from a full-scale attack to a focused probing after discovering the unusual situation in Nanyang, Jia Kui's troops would likely have walked headlong into Cao Cao's trap.

At that time, it would not only be a loss for Jia Kui's troops, but the two counties in northern Jingzhou and even the entire Jingzhou would fall under Cao Cao's military might. Even Shu, where Liu Feng was personally stationed, and Yangzhou in the lower reaches of the Yangtze River would be severely affected by this.

Realizing this, Liu Feng began to reflect on himself and found that his success over the years had made him arrogant.

If it were during his early years as commander, he would have focused all his efforts on blocking Cao Ang at Guanghan in preparation for his return. He would not have adopted a long-term strategy of "casting a long line to catch a big fish," but would have chosen to take over Shu as quickly as possible.

In addition, his mindset shifted from valuing and fearing Cao Cao to underestimating and disregarding him.

Putting everything else aside, the fact that Liu Feng actually thought Cao Cao would follow his lead and enter Hanzhong, heading south to fight at Jiameng Pass to rescue Cao Ang, already completely exposed his mentality.

Cao Cao was a military genius at the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty. Although later generations can criticize Cao Cao for his various shortcomings, it is precisely these shortcomings that prevented Cao Cao from unifying the world like the founding monarchs of various unified dynasties.

However, Cao Cao's extraordinary military talent and keen sense of opportunity still made him a true military strategist in the late Eastern Han Dynasty, and he was undoubtedly the number one military figure in the world.

How arrogant and ignorant was Liu Feng to think that such a person would fight to the death at Jiameng Pass?
As expected, Cao Cao outmaneuvered them, using a feint to the east while attacking the west, and found the weakness in Liu Feng's army in Jingzhou to strike.

Realizing this, Liu Feng was determined to go all out to eliminate Cao Ang as soon as possible. The active support of Zhao Yan and his son provided a solid material foundation for Liu Feng's upcoming actions.

When news of the defeat at Xinye reached Jiangzhou, Zhuge Liang had already exercised his discretionary power, appointing Jiang Qin as the commander-in-chief and leading 6,000 troops down the river to reinforce Xiangyang overnight. At the same time, he also mobilized Huang Gai's naval forces along the Jiameng line to regroup and return to Jiangzhou.

Liu Feng affirmed Zhuge Liang's deployment and ratified the order.

At the same time, he ordered the troops of Liao Hua, Lü Dai, Cuan Yang, Xi Zhen and others to gather in Chengdu in preparation for the final battle.

Four days later, the troops were fully assembled.

The surrendered Shu troops in the city were reorganized and reorganized over the course of nearly a month, and were put in charge of taking over the defense of Chengdu.

Thanks to the efforts of Zhao Yan and Zhao Yi, the powerful clans and gentry of Chengdu managed to gather more than 17,000 able-bodied men to assist the army in its march and transport supplies and provisions.

Two days later, Liu Feng set out from Chengdu with his personal guard of 3,000 men, Gan Ning's 6,000 naval troops, Sun Ce's 3,000 cavalry, Lu Xun, Huang Zhong, Wei Yan, Lü Meng, Wen Pin, Ling Tong, Zhang Nan, Feng Xi, Quan Cong, Lü Dai, Liao Hua, Fu Tong, Xi Zhen, Cuan Yang, and Xi Zhen's 30,000 infantry, as well as Huang Quan's 4,000 Shu troops, totaling 46,000 troops by land, sea, and naval forces. In addition, there were more than 17,000 civilian laborers, making a total of more than 64,000 men. He falsely claimed to have an army of 200,000 and marched on Fancheng.

As a result, only about 10,000 Shu soldiers remained in Chengdu, with no left of the Left Guard Army.

This seems quite dangerous, after all, Chengdu is a newly surrendered city, and it is blocking Liu Feng's rear. If it turns against them, the impact on the Zuo Mu army will be enormous.

However, if you look at the map, you'll find that even if something happens in Chengdu, the impact won't be that significant.

Because Liu Feng still held Luocheng and the Yangtze River.

There are over 100,000 shi of grain in Luocheng. With the grain transported in recent days and the grain stored in Xindu County, the total grain reserves have exceeded 250,000 shi.

With these 250,000 shi (a unit of dry measure) as collateral, it would be enough to sustain the Left Army's food supply for two and a half months. Given Chengdu's current strength, let alone two months, it wouldn't even last two weeks.

Moreover, at this time, Chengdu was governed by Zhang Song and others, and Zhao Yan and his son Zhao Yi had also brought a group of families to join them, so there were almost no hidden dangers.

Even if Cao Cao's army were to break through to the city walls, capturing it would be a pipe dream. The city walls, standing a full seven zhang high, were enough to drive Cao Cao's army, which lacked siege equipment, to despair.

This is only one aspect. Secondly, the Left Army on the eastern front has already besieged Fucheng. The distance between the two places is only two hundred and twenty or thirty li, and it is a vast plain.

Under these circumstances, Liu Feng not only did not fear Chengdu's betrayal, but even hoped that Cao Ang and Liu Zhang would return to Chengdu.

This sounds unusual, but if you think about it carefully, you'll discover the secret behind it.

What remains in Chengdu today?
There were only two or three hundred thousand bushels of grain in storage, and over a hundred thousand elderly, weak, women and children crying for food.

Cao Jun was able to capture Chengdu within a few days through a coordinated attack from within and without, but he was unable to transport back the millions of shi of grain and other supplies that he had previously transported away.

Once Cao Cao's main force leaves, how can these supplies possibly sprout wings and fly away?

Under these combined factors, Liu Feng boldly left the Shu army to guard Chengdu, while concentrating all the forces of the Left Army on the western front, along with Huang Quan's more than 4,000 elite Shu troops, and marched directly north, intending to achieve victory in one battle.

After abandoning Chengdu and losing Luocheng, Cao Cao's army managed to establish a foothold in the northeastern corner of the Chengdu Plain, but had virtually no fortified cities to rely on.

None of Fancheng, Guandi, or Shifang were large cities; they couldn't even accommodate the remaining troops of the allied forces.

In fact, Cao Ang, Cao Ren, and Sima Yi also understood this, so they were also hurrying to transfer supplies, especially grain, to Mianzhu, and eventually to Fucheng.

If Liu Feng attacks Fancheng at this time, Cao Ang and his men will inevitably face considerable difficulties. This is because, according to reconnaissance, Cao Ren and his men had previously prioritized transferring the remaining supplies stored in the irrigation area to Fancheng.

(End of this chapter)