Sword drawn from the constellations, poison as its edge.

Chapter 165 Jiang Mingzhe's Version of the Longzhong Strategy

Murong Fu made a promise without hesitation, but Jiang Mingzhe smiled slightly and shook his head.

"Brother, even if you are sincere now, I dare not believe you. If I were to become a king of equal rank, wouldn't that force you to kill me?"

Seeing that he didn't believe him, Murong Fu became increasingly anxious and immediately raised three fingers: "I, your foolish brother, swear a solemn oath to you..."

Jiang Mingzhe laughed loudly and pulled his hand down: "Fine, fine, even if you're magnanimous enough not to kill me, your son will kill my son. As the supreme ruler, I am the only one above all others. How can I allow others to snore beside my bed?"

Murong Fu said in surprise, "If my son were so heartless and ungrateful, how could I have made him the crown prince? But what you said is also true. When I was a child, I heard my father tell stories. Emperor Taizong of Tang killed his brother and imprisoned his father. The death of Emperor Taizu of our dynasty was also somewhat mysterious. I remember my father saying that my ancestor, the Duke of Longcheng, was extremely skilled in martial arts. He dared not say that he could definitely defeat Emperor Taizu of Song. With such martial arts skills, how could he have only lived to be fifty years old? Hmm..."

He dared not say anything that could compare him to a king, but grasped Jiang Mingzhe's hand and said with utmost sincerity, "Then I will bestow upon you a hereditary title of king, with an ironclad certificate, and the right to live and die with the nation! In short, I will never let you down for helping me achieve my great cause."

Jiang Mingzhe laughed and said, "Let's not talk about me. Let's talk about you first. Back then, Liu Bei visited Zhuge Liang three times to invite him to come out of seclusion. At least he had the reputation of being a benevolent and righteous Liu Huangshu. He also had unparalleled generals like Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, and Zhao Yun, as well as capable civil officials like Sun Qian and Jian Yong. Brother Murong's forces are just a gust of wind. Can they be compared to him?"

Murong Fu said urgently, "Brother, don't think I'm uneducated. When Liu Bei invited Zhuge Liang, he was almost fifty years old, while I was only twenty-eight. Liu Bei was my age, but he probably didn't have as much money or manpower as I did! Besides, although Brother Bao and Brother Feng may not be comparable to Guan Yu and Zhang Fei, you are a man of both literary and martial talents. If you were my Guan Yu and Zhuge Liang, how could we not achieve great things?"

Jiang Mingzhe shook his head and said, "I dare not compare myself with the sages of the past. However, since you have such lofty ambitions, I would like to ask you, since you want to restore your country, what preparations have you made so far?"

Murong Fu's expression turned serious, and he slowly said, "This is my family's biggest secret, but since you asked, I will tell you everything I know. Currently, there are about 120 families carrying my family's gold flag, all of which are powerful clans and wealthy merchants from various regions. There are also more than ten families carrying my family's black flag, all of which are officials who can influence a city or region. Many of them have been able to study and take the imperial examinations thanks to my family's support since childhood. In addition, most of the bandit strongholds in Shandong and Hebei are supported by my family, with no less than 30,000 to 50,000 strong men. This is the foundation that my Murong family has accumulated over generations!"

Jiang Mingzhe smiled faintly and said, "It sounds good, but these gold and black flags probably don't know that the Murong family is going to rebel and establish a country. They are willing to submit, but only because the Southern Murong are too powerful. If you really rely on them to rebel, I'm afraid they will scatter like birds and beasts if the situation becomes slightly unfavorable."

Murong Fu exclaimed in surprise, "Brother's words are exactly what my late father said. He repeatedly instructed us that if we were to raise an army, we should wait until the world was in great turmoil, such as when the Song, Liao, and Xia dynasties were at war. Only then could my family choose one to cooperate with, carve out a territory, and then seek a better future."

He couldn't help but hold Jiang Mingzhe's hand tightly and whispered, "Brother, the Crown Prince of Dali is your sworn brother, and I see that several princesses are also fond of you. I imagine you have influence within the Duan family. I wonder if the Duan family has any other princesses or noblewomen who could be your matchmakers? If I become the Prince Consort of Dali, the Dali Kingdom will be a natural ally, and we will be more confident in achieving our goal."

Jiang Mingzhe sighed, “Brother, you’re blinded by a leaf and can’t see Mount Tai. Since you’re willing to marry into the royal family and become a prince consort, why choose Dali? Dali is a Buddhist country where emperors throughout history have shaved their heads to become monks. They value health and well-being and avoid trouble. Even if you become a prince consort, why would he fight for you? If you’re going to be a prince consort, you might as well become a prince consort of Tibet!”

Murong Fu was taken aback, then frowned and asked, "Tibet?"

Jiang Mingzhe nodded affirmatively and said, "Exactly! The Tubo of today is no longer the mighty snow-covered kingdom that even the Tang Dynasty was unwilling to confront directly. On the plateau, countless states are fighting each other. Among them, the legitimate Qing Tang Tubo is suffering greatly between the Song and Xia dynasties, and it longs to restore its former glory. If you become the Tubo prince consort, with the wealth and manpower of your Murong family, you can easily pacify the snow-covered region within ten years!" He waved his hand, as if drawing a large piece of land: "If you become the ruler of the snow-covered region, it will be the great achievement of Songtsen Gampo in the past. If you want to advance further, you can ally with the Song Dynasty to destroy the Xia Dynasty and dominate the vast territory west of the Yellow River. You can also conquer India and sweep away a number of small foreign states. No matter which direction you send troops, you will be in a superior position, with the best situation to attack or defend!"

Murong Fu clapped his hands, his eyes gleaming, and exclaimed, "Brother, what a brilliant plan! My family has always dreamed of establishing a separatist regime in Shandong. However, the Liao and Song dynasties have coexisted for a century, and our family is so powerful that unless they wage a full-scale war, how can we succeed? We have never considered setting up a foothold on the frontier! Alas!"

He suddenly slammed his hand on the gunwale, his face full of regret: "If only we had a genius like my brother earlier, who could analyze the general trend of the world for my father and grandfather, why would we be the Murong of Gusu? We should have been the Murong of Qingtang!"

Murong Fu became more and more excited as he spoke, circling around Jiang Mingzhe repeatedly: "A Tibetan prince consort! Brilliant! I'll find a way to become a Tibetan prince consort, but how can I get to know the Tibetan princess..."

Jiang Mingzhe laughed heartily, putting on a profound and unfathomable look, and calculated with his fingers: "Brother Murong, I have calculated that you are destined to meet the Tibetan princess. Otherwise, why would a Tibetan national teacher travel thousands of miles to Jiangnan?"

"Kumārajīva!" Murong Fu's eyes lit up, and he exclaimed with joy, "It's fate! Isn't this fate to fulfill my wish? My brother, I'll immediately mobilize my men to find out about that Tibetan monk. As long as he's still in Jiangnan, I'm sure I can find him..."

Before he could finish speaking, Jiang Mingzhe patted him on the shoulder and laughed, "No need to bother looking anymore, look over there."

He pointed, and Murong Fu looked in that direction. He saw a small boat carrying three people paddling forward on the lake not far away.

One of them was a boatman, rowing with both hands, sweating profusely, while at the bow was a frowning government official, stretching out his hand as if pointing the way.

Beside the constable sat a handsome Tibetan monk, holding a steel knife to the constable's neck.

Murong Fu exclaimed with delight, "Could this foreign monk be Kumārajīva? It seems he's forcing the officials to lead the way; are they heading to Canhe Village?"

Jiang Mingzhe nodded and said, "It seems there's no mistake, Brother Murong. Now I understand why he burned my third brother in front of your father's grave. I'm afraid he not only has his eye on the Six Meridians Divine Sword, but also wants to use this relationship to go to your family's Huanshi Water Pavilion to find out what's going on!"

Murong Fu laughed loudly, "Does he consider my Murong family a place he can come and go as he pleases? My good brother, watch how I surprise this foreign monk!"

(End of this chapter)