Tiger Owl

Chapter 153 Sima Recommends Talent
At the same time that Jia Xu visited Cai Mao, Sima Hui once again came to the Left General's Mansion in Wancheng to pay his respects to Liu Bei.

After capturing Nanyang Commandery, Liu Bei quickly expanded his army by 10,000, bringing his total strength to 40,000.

However, Liu Bei also had a problem: he lacked capable strategists. Although Liu Qi recommended Yi Ji to him, Yi Ji himself seemed good, but he was only skilled in government affairs and was not quite up to the task of being a military advisor.

Liu Bei wrote a letter to Sima Hui, earnestly requesting him to recommend talented individuals.

Inside the official residence, Sima Hui smiled and said to Liu Bei, "Xuande has finally realized his problem. Over the years, Xuande has been running around, but what he really lacked was a strategist to advise him."

Liu Bei sighed and said, "How could I not know that? It's just that I don't have a solid foundation and can't retain talent! Now that I have Nanyang Commandery, I have finally gained a little foundation, and I don't want to lose it again. To be honest, Brother Decao, my desire for strategists is growing stronger and stronger. I earnestly request Decao to recommend some good talents."

Liu Bei wasn't asking Sima Hui for talent; he was asking Sima Hui's faction of royalists for talent.

Sima Hui stroked his beard and said, "Yin Mo and Xu Shu were both very talented, but unfortunately Xuande arrived a step too late. Yin Mo and Xu Shu both went to Yuzhang County. However, Cui Zhouping and Shi Guangyuan are both quite good. Why doesn't Xuande use them?"

Liu Bei sighed and said, "At that time, I was in Xinye, with few soldiers and little land, and I was in dire straits. I was afraid that I would delay them."

Liu Bei spoke rather subtly, but the key point was that Cui Zhouping and Shi Guangyuan were not the strategists Liu Bei wanted. However, Liu Bei could not say such things, so he could only say that at the time, his empire was too small to accommodate them.

Sima Hui understood that Cui and Shi did not meet Liu Bei's requirements.

After a moment of contemplation, Sima Hui smiled slightly and said, "Jingxiang is a land of hidden talents. I can recommend two extraordinary individuals to Xuande. One is Huang Chengyan's son-in-law, whose surname is Zhuge, given name Liang, courtesy name Kongming, and nickname Wolong. He comes from the prestigious Zhuge clan of Langya Commandery. His father, Zhuge Gui, was once the Prefect of Taishan Commandery. He followed his uncle Zhuge Xuan to Yuzhang Commandery. After Zhuge Xuan's death, he lived in Xiangyang. Although he is young, he has extraordinary talent. Gan Ning sent people twice to invite him to serve in the government, but he refused."

"Why doesn't this Mr. Zhuge agree?" Liu Bei asked curiously.

"Due to differing political views, Kongming was a staunch royalist, and Gan Ning clearly did not meet Kongming's criteria. Although Liu Biao was his wife's uncle, Kongming was unwilling to serve Liu Biao."

Liu Bei nodded. Sima Hui was a representative figure of the royalist faction in Jingxiang, and it was estimated that Zhuge Kongming was also a key member of this faction.

"You just mentioned two great talents."

Sima Hui chuckled and said, "There is also Pang Tong, the nephew of Pang Degong, whose courtesy name is Shiyuan and nickname is Fengchu. He is the most outstanding member of the Pang family, with exceptional talent, no less than Zhuge Liang. He also possesses extraordinary abilities. In Jingzhou, we often say, 'The Crouching Dragon and the Young Phoenix,' possessing either one can bring peace to the world—"

Sima Hui hesitated for a moment, then said, "When Xuande asked me to recommend talents to you, I knew that the time had come for these two to come out of seclusion. It all depends on whether Xuande has the opportunity."

Liu Bei was excited and quickly asked, "Then how do I find them?"

Sima Hui thought for a moment and said, "They both live near Xiangyang, but Pang Tong is not in Jingzhou recently. He went to Bashu to travel. Xuande can try Kongming first."

Liu Bei hesitated for a moment and said, "Although Jing Sheng has reconciled with me, Cai Mao and others have already laid a trap. If I go to Xiangyang, I'm afraid my life will be in danger if I'm discovered. Could you please invite Mr. Kongming to Nanyang?"

Sima Hui smiled slightly and said, "Kongming lives in Wolonggang, Longzhong, west of Xiangyang. You don't need to go through Xiangyang to get there. You won't be discovered by Cai Mao if you go to Longzhong."

Liu Bei was still a little hesitant; he actually hoped that Zhuge Liang would come to Nanyang to find him himself.

Sima Hui noticed Liu Bei's hesitation and said earnestly, "Xuande, as you know, our faction is actually a very loose alliance, a group of like-minded people gathered together, not a tightly organized faction."

Although Kongming is a member of our faction, he is completely independent. I only recommended him to you because of your sincerity. In this era, it's not just the ruler who chooses his ministers, but also the ministers who choose their rulers. I must remind you, Gan Ning has now captured Jiangxia County. He can bypass Xiangyang at any time to invite Kongming. If Kongming is moved by his sincerity and is invited away, you won't even have time to cry.”

Liu Bei, looking ashamed, said, "I know I was wrong. Don't worry! I will go to Longzhong as soon as possible to invite Master Kongming."

Early in the morning, Huang Chengyan rode a donkey to his daughter's house. When Huang saw her father arrive, she was very happy and quickly invited him into the house.

"Where is your husband? I need to speak with him."

"My father-in-law is looking for me?" Zhuge Liang appeared at the door of the study.

"There is indeed something to discuss!" Huang Chengyan handed the donkey to his daughter and went straight into the study, with Zhuge Liang following him in.

The father-in-law and son-in-law sat down, and Mrs. Huang served them some tea.

After his daughter left, Huang Chengyan whispered, "Sima Hui went to Nanyang County a couple of days ago and recommended you to Liu Bei. Liu Bei will come to invite you personally in the next couple of days. Let me give you a heads-up: Cai Mao has laid a trap in Xiangyang to capture Liu Bei, and he also has many spies in Longzhong. Liu Bei is taking a risk by coming to invite you. Treat him well and have a good talk with him. Let him only make one trip! It would be pointless to invite him three or four times."

Huang Chengyan knew his son-in-law well; he was a proud man. If Huang Chengyan hadn't reminded him, Liu Bei wouldn't have been able to persuade his son-in-law to leave on his first visit. He would have needed to make at least three visits to show his sincerity.

Longzhong was nominally part of Nanyang Commandery, but in reality it was under the control of Liu Biao's army. Cai Mao stationed 3,000 troops in Longzhong, so Liu Bei's arrival there was indeed very risky.

If Liu Bei were discovered by Cai Mao, his life would likely be in danger, so he had to warn his son-in-law.

Zhuge Liang smiled and said, "Father-in-law, rest assured! I will not let Liu Bei be in danger."

Huang Chengyan added, “Liu Bei is a man who has seen the world. If you want to earn his respect, you must demonstrate your true abilities and convince him that you have talent. That’s all I have to say. My dear son-in-law, think it over carefully.”

After saying this, Huang Chengyan drank his tea and rode away on his donkey.

When Madam Huang entered the study, she saw her husband deep in thought and asked, "What does Father want with my husband?"

Zhuge Liang sighed and said, "Sima Hui recommended me to Liu Bei, and I'm afraid Liu Bei will be coming to visit in the next couple of days."

"This is a good thing! Why is my husband sighing?"

Zhuge Liang gave a wry smile and said, "Now is not the time for me to come out of seclusion!"

Madam Huang advised, "Uncle's condition is not good, according to Mother. He only has one or two years left at most. Jingzhou and Xiangyang are about to be thrown into chaos. If my husband is absent at this crucial moment, it will be very detrimental to his long-term development."

Zhuge Liang agreed with his wife's words. Liu Bei was no longer down on his luck in Xinye; he had territory now, and Nanyang Commandery was well-connected. Would Liu Bei impulsively march on Guanzhong? They really couldn't delay any longer.

Two days later, Liu Bei, accompanied by Guan Yu and escorted by hundreds of soldiers, arrived at Wolonggang. They inquired about Zhuge Liang's residence, and Liu Bei went up to knock on the door. After a short while, the door opened, and a young man appeared.

Liu Bei quickly clasped his hands in greeting and asked, "Is this Mr. Zhuge?"

The person who opened the door was Zhuge Liang's brother, Zhuge Jun. He was taken aback for a moment and then smiled, "Are you Liu Bei, sir?"

"That's me!"

"Is Your Majesty here to see my elder brother? Please come in and have a seat."

Is your brother not here?

"Unfortunately, my elder brother had to go out on urgent business. He specifically instructed me that if my uncle arrives, please ask him to sit down for a while, and he will return as soon as possible."

"Okay! I'll wait for him outside for a moment."

Zhuge Jun didn't force the issue and simply closed the door. They waited for more than two hours, and by the afternoon, there was still no sign of Zhuge Liang. Guan Yu was getting annoyed.

“This man is extremely rude. Since he knew you were coming, he made you wait for more than two hours. This is not how you treat a guest. You should leave, brother. He is probably just a name without substance and doesn’t dare to come and see you.”

Liu Bei sighed and said, "Since we're already here, let's wait patiently! We've endured so many years, what's a couple more hours?"

Guan Yu had no choice but to suppress his anger and wait until the afternoon before Zhuge Liang finally arrived.

(End of this chapter)