Late Han Zhao Tang

Chapter 17 Winning People’s Hearts
Zhang Yu vaguely remembered Sun Zi. When Cao Rui entrusted his son to the care of Sima Yi, Sun Zi used his personal means to change Cao Rui's dying decision, and eventually made Sima Yi and Cao Shuang become the ministers entrusted with the care of Cao Rui's son, indirectly helping Sima Yi usurp the throne of Wei.

Judging from the outcome, Sun Zi was the culprit for the fall of Cao Wei. However, judging from the political situation of Cao Wei at that time, it was not a big problem to choose Sima Yi as the minister to take care of the orphans. After all, Sima Yi's experience in serving three generations of the Cao family was enough to convince people of his talent and loyalty.

On the other hand, given Zhang Yu's humble background, he did not have many options to choose from, and any outstanding person was worth making friends with.

After Zhang Yu and Li Song informed him in advance of their visit, Sun Zi waited in front of his thatched cottage.

After a while, Zhang Yu and the other two appeared in front of Sun Zi, who stepped out of the courtyard to greet them.

"I am sorry to disturb Yanlong while he is reading the scriptures by coming to visit you today!" Zhang Yu bowed.

"nothing!"

"Ji'an, Bosong, please come in!"

Sun Zi held out his hand to lead the way for the three people, saying, "My family is poor, and I hope you will forgive me if I cannot provide you with a good reception!"

Zhang Yu joked: "A mountain is not famous for its height, but for the immortals living there. A river is not famous for its depth, but for the dragons living there. For example, although Ziyun (Yang Xiong) lived in a humble room, his virtue was sincere. Just ask yourself, is his room humble?"

"Ha ha!"

Sun Zi nodded and smiled, and said to Li Song: "Ji'an is not only outstanding in martial arts, but also in literary talent. A mountain is not famous for its height, but for the immortals living there. A river is not famous for its depth, but for the dragons living there. These two sentences are concise and profound, and they are not something that ordinary people can understand!"

Li Song took Sun Zi's arm and said with a smile: "Ji'an is good at speaking, and can make people feel like they are in the spring breeze. You and I can't compare to him!"

"Of course!"

While Li and Sun were joking and chatting, Zhang Yu looked around the room.

The house was extremely simple, with a thatched roof and very little thatch, showing that it had not been taken care of. The door was half-slanted, and the color of the door panel had turned white due to years of exposure to the sun.

A muddy hoe was leaning against the earthen wall, and a pair of muddy straw sandals were neatly placed next to the hoe. Apparently, Sun Zi worked in the fields to make a living while studying with Wang Hong.

Although the desks and seats in the house are old, they appear quite clean because they are regularly maintained.

Zhang Yu sat on a bamboo mat and asked, "Does Yanlong usually farm?"

Sun Zi lifted the jar and poured water for the three people, and said with a smile: "Zi's family is not well off, so when I followed you to study the classics, I often worked in the fields to earn food."

"When I was at the frontier, I seldom did any farming, but I often herded cattle and horses!" said Zhang Yu.

"How about herding cattle and horses?" Sun Zi asked curiously.

"When we first started herding, we rode our horses and shouted at them to prevent the cattle and horses from running around. Later, we raised a big yellow dog and taught it to drive the sheep, which made things much more convenient!" said Zhang Yu.

"My brother also raised a dog to guard the house. Unfortunately, it barked at the villagers and was killed and eaten by my brother." Sun Zi said humorously: "From then on, I like to eat dog meat!"

"From now on, whenever Yanlong comes to visit, Ji'an and I will prepare a feast with dog meat!" Li Song said with a smile.

After some casual chatting, the atmosphere became lively.

Zhang Yu pondered for a moment and asked, "You came from Zhongdu, which is adjacent to Hedong County in Sili. I have heard that Hedong has many outstanding people since ancient times. I wonder if Yanlong can recognize any outstanding people in Hedong?"

Sun Zi pondered and shook his head, saying: "Although Zhongdu is close to Hedong, I am from a poor family and it is difficult for me to meet the talents of Hedong."

"Hmm~"

After a moment's silence, Sun Zi thought of his childhood classmates and said with a smile, "But there is one person that Ji An would be interested in!"

"who?"

Sun Zi took a sip of water and said, "His surname is Xu, his given name is Huang, his courtesy name is Gongming, and he is from Yang in Hedong. He lost his parents when he was young and was raised by his eldest sister. He is quite a warrior, but because his family is poor, he decided to join the army."

"When I went to Hedong to study, I was a classmate of Gongming. He practiced riding and shooting in the morning and read military books in the evening. He was respected by the villagers."

"Oh?"

Hearing this, Zhang Yu was immediately interested. Xu Huang was one of the five best generals of Wei State. Regardless of his military prowess, his military proficiency alone would have earned him a place in the Three Kingdoms period at the end of the Han Dynasty.

"I wonder where Xu Gongming is now?"

Sun Zi thought for a long time and said, "When I went from Jiexiu to Qixian to study, I didn't know where Gongming was. I heard from people in Hedong that Xu Gongming might be an official in Hedong County."

Zhang Yu took note of this and said to Li Song, "If I am lucky enough to go to Hedong in the future, I might be able to pay a visit to Xu Gongming and see if I can make friends with him!"

"In addition to Xu Gongming, the Wei family in Hedong has two talented people. Although I have never seen them, I have heard of their good reputation. The elder brother Wei Ji, whose courtesy name is Bo Ji, is well-versed in historical allusions and is wise and resourceful; the younger brother Wei Gai, whose courtesy name is Zhongdao, became famous at a young age and has extraordinary talent and learning." Sun Zi said.

Zhang Yu nodded without saying anything. Compared with his brother Wei Ji, perhaps Wei Zhongdao was more famous in later generations. After all, Cai Yan was quite famous in later generations, and she also made her ex-husband Wei Zhongdao famous.

"In addition to the guards, there are also great families in Hedong, such as Heng, Yin, Fan, Pei, and Guanqiu. Among them, there are outstanding people. They often go to Luoyang to study and associate with the great families in Guanzhong and Guandong."

After a pause, Sun Zi suddenly asked, "Does Ji'an know the difference between Guandong and Guanxi?"

"Have heard a little bit!"

"Do you know whether Bingzhou belongs to Guanxi or Guandong?" Sun Zi asked.

Zhang Yu frowned and thought. If Sun Zi hadn't asked him suddenly, he really wouldn't have cared about whether Bingzhou belonged to Guanxi or Guandong.

"Bingzhou is located on the frontier, and it may be difficult to integrate into Guandong," said Zhang Yu.

Sun Zi smiled and said, "The area from Mount Xiao to the east of the Yellow River is called Guandong, and the area from the west of the Yellow River is called Guanxi. Bingzhou belongs to Guandong."

Then, Sun Zi said meaningfully: "Although Bingzhou is located in the frontier, it is adjacent to Hebei, and the big families have exchanges with each other. For example, the Cui family of Shangdang and the Cui family of Qinghe merged into one family, and the Wen family of Taiyuan had in-laws with the Yan family of Langya, the Liu family of Zhongshan, and the Li family of Gaoping."

"The relationship between the two places is close due to the in-laws and officials, so how can it be said that Bingzhou belongs to Guanxi and not Guandong?" In many people's impressions, Bingzhou forms a single geographical unit due to its mixture of Han and Hu people and its crisscrossing terrain of mountains and rivers, and it has little exchange with Hebei.

In fact, the great families of Bingzhou and the noble families of Hebei have more or less some relationship. In this case, how could Guandong separate Bingzhou from Bingzhou?

For example, when Wang Yun was in power, he placed his hopes for the revival of the Han Dynasty on the scholars of Guandong rather than relying on the military generals of Guanxi.

The fact that Lu Bu was exiled to the Central Plains and was accepted by various princes and Yanzhou gentry was also potentially related to Bingzhou's belonging to Guandong.

Similarly, Bingzhou had a similar experience to Guanxi because of its long-term confrontation with the Hu people. In some ways, Bingzhou and Guanxi had a common experience.

Zhang Yu hesitated for a moment, then asked, "What about the people of Yandai?"

Sun Zi poured a glass of water for Zhang Yu and said with a smile: "Yan Dai belongs to Bingzhou, so why can't he claim to be from Guandong? If Ji An wants to accomplish something, he not only needs the appreciation of Lord Chang Wen, but also needs to be famous in Bingzhou before he can achieve anything!"

Zhang Yu nodded slightly, cupped his hands and said, "Thank you Yanlong for your guidance. I wonder when you will go to Luoyang Imperial College to study?"

"We will go to Luoyang around August, and there is still more than a month left!" said Sun Zi.

"I wish you great success in your studies!"

"Thank you!"

After chatting with Sun Zi for a while, Zhang Yu said goodbye to Li Song and Zhang Maoshan and left.

On the way, Li Song and Zhang Maoshan were chatting, while Zhang Yu was recalling what he had talked about with Sun Zi today.

Although Sun Zi was born in a poor family, he had great potential and was a rare talent. During the conversation today, Sun Zi even gave Zhang Yu some pointers on the future path.

First, he needed to gain Wang Hong’s appreciation and obtain some of Wang’s resources; second, he needed to become famous in Bingzhou and enhance his own reputation.

Zhang Yu sighed and thought to himself, "Sun Zi is talented and intelligent. If we can make friends with him now, we can prepare for the future. If we give money and silk directly to Sun Zi, I'm afraid he will refuse it, and it will be difficult to show him kindness."

Suddenly, Zhang Yu thought of something and stopped.

"Moshan!"

"exist!

"Take your money and go to Zhongdu quickly. Hire a band in the city to celebrate Sun Yanlong's admission to the Imperial College. The band should play gongs and drums all the way. The noise must be magnificent."

Zhang Yu put his arm around Zhang Maoshan's shoulders and said, "Go to Sun Yanlong's house, buy furniture for him, leave money and silk for his brother and sister-in-law, and tell them that Zhang from Yunzhong congratulates Sun Yanlong on his admission to the Imperial College."

"Why?"

Zhang Maoshan was confused and didn't know why Zhang Yu did this!

"Stupid!"

Zhang Yu patted Zhang Maoshan's head and said unhappily, "Sun Zi's family was poor. He was raised by his brother and sister-in-law. Otherwise, how could he be where he is today?"

"Ride your horse to Zhongdu quickly, and remember not to be stingy with your money!"

As he spoke, Zhang Yu pulled at Zhang Maoshan's shabby clothes and said, "Buy yourself some clothes on the way, and don't be stingy with the money."

"okay!"

Zhang Maoshan was quite happy and assured, "Please rest assured, brother, I will definitely get this done!"

After Zhang Maoshan left, Li Song seemed to be thinking about something and said, "Ji'an wanted to retain his favor with Yanlong, but was afraid that Yanlong would not accept it, so he started with his brother and sister-in-law!"

"Of course!"

Zhang Yu smiled and said, "Sun Yanlong is talented and ambitious, and is appreciated by Duke Changwen. Ordinary small favors are not enough to make him interested. Therefore, if you want Yanlong to remember the kindness of you and me, you have to start with his brother and sister-in-law."

In his previous life as a businessman, Zhang Yu made friends with people of all kinds and met many different kinds of people.

Sun Zi is a typical example of this type of person. He likes money, but not like giving it away as alms. Moreover, compared to money, Sun Zi prefers official positions.

With Zhang Yu's current status, he could not obtain an official title, so he could only start from other places.

After Zhang Yu's in-depth analysis of Sun Zi, he found that Sun Zi was raised by his brother and sister-in-law since he was a child. In order to cultivate Sun Zi's studies, the brother and sister-in-law spent all their property, so Sun Zi was very grateful to them. Therefore, instead of giving money to Sun Zi, it is better to reform the law and give fame and fortune to Sun Zi's brother and sister-in-law.

His brother and sister-in-law were shown favors, and because of Zhang Yu's many good words, no matter what Sun Zi thought, he naturally owed Zhang Yu a favor.

When he understood the deep meaning of Zhang Yu's actions, Li Song couldn't help but look at Zhang Yu again.

When it comes to showing favor to Hao Zhao, Li Song just thinks that Zhang Yu is at most considerate. But when it comes to showing favor to Sun Zi, it is completely based on political schemes, which makes the young Li Song a little scared.

"What's wrong?" Zhang Yu asked when he saw Li Song staring at him.

Li Song shook his head and praised, saying: "What Ji'an did today to show his kindness is not what ordinary people do."

"You need to use tricks to win over outsiders, but treat your relatives with sincerity!"

Zhang Yu put his arm around Li Song's shoulders and said with a smile, "Bo Song and I grew up together and are as close as brothers. Naturally, he is not the same as outsiders."

Hearing this, Li Song couldn't help but curse himself. As Ji An said, he and I grew up together, and our feelings are different from those of outsiders. He will naturally treat me with sincerity, so how could he treat me the same as outsiders?
"Maoshan is still young and I'm afraid he can't accomplish anything. I might as well go with him!" Li Song took the initiative to say.

Zhang Yu pondered for a moment and said, "There's no need to go together. You can just write down the details on the bamboo slips and let Maoshan do it one by one!"

"it is good!"

(End of this chapter)