The Duke of Shu Han began guarding Jingzhou in place of Guan Yu.

Chapter 69 Donkeys and mules versus sparrows, wheat versus millstones

Chapter 69 Donkeys and mules versus sparrows, wheat versus millstones
Soon, the group arrived at an official residence at the foot of Baqiu Mountain.

This place is said to be the administrative center where Lu Su stationed his troops in Baqiu.

Not only does it occupy a strategically important location, but its scenery is also absolutely stunning.

Up close, one can see the orchids and irises interspersed, lush and verdant.
From afar, one can see the lake reflecting the sky, a vast expanse of blue.

The phrase "embracing distant mountains and swallowing the Yangtze River, vast and mighty" perfectly describes this place.

Even without the world-famous Yueyang Tower that later became known, it is still a scenic spot.

In Mi Wei's words, he can take great photos from any angle.

Except for the clearly newly replaced "General of the Cavalry" flag.

That thing was really an eyesore, so everyone simply decided to ignore it.

On the way, Ma Liang did not forget to give the two young men, who were on their first mission, some advice:
"My lords, do not underestimate the small banquet that Zhuge Ziyu has prepared."

"Since he is Sun Zhongmou's confidant, how we deal with the Sun family tomorrow and how the two families will get along in the future should be decided today."

"Therefore, we must be careful in our words and deeds, and we must not lose our integrity..."

Miwei nodded repeatedly to indicate that he understood.

Small meetings are held for big things, and big meetings are held for small things.

It's an old tradition that's been around for thousands of years.

While they were pondering, the group, guided by their servants, arrived at the main hall of the official residence.

Zhuge Jin and his son were already waiting.

The two sides took their seats as host and guest, and Ma Liang was about to say some polite words.

Unexpectedly, two more guests arrived.

Mi Wei looked unfamiliar, but when he saw Ma Liang's expression stiffen slightly, he knew that nothing good was coming.

He secretly inquired with Fei Yi, but Fei Yi didn't recognize him either, and could only confirm that he was not a famous scholar from Yizhou.

He entered Sichuan with his paternal uncle when he was young, much earlier than the Mi Wei family.

Fortunately, Zhuge Jin then revealed their identities:
"So it's Zi Tai (Hao Pu) and Jun Yi (Shi Ren)!"

"Better to arrive at the right time than to arrive early, please take your seats quickly!"

Well, so it was those two traitors!
Even Fei Yi didn't give him a friendly look.

Who would believe that these two just happened to be there?
Mi Wei ignored Fu Shiren, but glanced at Hao Pu a couple more times.

There's no way around it; the way he surrendered back then was just too bizarre.

(Fu) Shiren could at least be said to have been forced by circumstances.

Hao Pu was tricked into surrendering the city by Lü Meng when the border was demarcated at the Xiang River.

After deceiving everyone, he was still ridiculed in public by Lü Meng.

Kill people and kill your heart.

What's even more bizarre is that this man didn't learn his lesson.

Later, he mistakenly trusted a Cao Wei spy named Yin Fan in Eastern Wu.

Eventually, his secret plot was exposed, and he was forced to "commit suicide."

If we were to rank the honest people of the Three Kingdoms period, Mi Wei believes Hao Pu would easily be in the top three.

Soon, the servants brought out wine and food.

Zhuge Jin, with a cheerful smile, called over two uninvited guests and together they toasted Ma Liang.

Ma Liang was certainly no pushover; he smiled and drank about a third of the cup.

The meaning is self-explanatory.

Shortly after the banquet began, the two sides had already completed a bloodless exchange.

"Ke, you are the junior, come and toast Ji Chang!"

Everyone looked at the slightly chubby boy sitting at the lower end of the table upon hearing the voice.

however.

Zhuge Ke ignored his father.

He was so engrossed in peeling and eating oranges that he kept his head down.

They smacked their lips as they ate, making quite a bit of noise.

Only after Zhuge Jin sternly shouted, "Distinguished guest is here, do not be rude!" did he leisurely raise his head.
"These southern oranges are sweet and juicy."

"Seeing that the northerner wasn't used to the food, the child quickly ate it all!"

Moreover, most of those present were scholars.

Ma Liang and Zhuge Jin were both top-notch diplomatic talents of their time.

How could they not understand the allusion that Zhuge Ke was referring to in the phrase "oranges from the south turn into trifoliate oranges in the north"?

As the saying goes, an orange grown south of the Huai River is an orange, but grown north of the Huai River it becomes a trifoliate orange.

In light of the current situation, isn't this exactly describing Hao Pu and (Fu) Shiren, two traitors?

You are a traitor under your Lord's command, a despised traitor.

Under my lord's command, it is not impossible for it to be transformed into an orange.

Why don't you accept the drink?

All I can say is that Ma Liang was indeed shrewd and calculating.

He did not argue with a junior, thus losing the demeanor of an envoy.

But I simply turned my back, letting the father and son play good cop and bad cop; I simply couldn't tolerate those two traitors.

Upon seeing this, Hao Pu and (Fu) Shiren could only turn pale.

However, while Zheng must maintain a proper demeanor, Fei Yi, who was accompanying him, didn't need to be. Emboldened by a bit of alcohol, he immediately began to sing:
"The phoenix soars, and the steeds spit out their food."

"Donkeys and mules are ignorant and continue to eat as before."

As soon as the song ended, Ma Liang smiled.

The two traitors looked even more embarrassed and had no choice but to cover their faces with their sleeves and drink alone.

Of course it will be embarrassing.

Mi Wei chuckled inwardly.

Although he was not good at poetry, Fei Yi's poem was straightforward.

The three of them were compared to a phoenix.

The image of a steed spitting out its food is used to refer to Zhuge Jin's welcoming banquet.
As for the ignorant donkey and mule, they were naturally two surrendered people who were used as pawns.

Even Zhuge Ke was criticized.

After all, he was also "taking a break" (a form of gluttony).

However, this is ultimately Zhuge Ke's home turf.

After a moment's thought, he began to sing:
"We planted the parasol tree to await the phoenix."

"What kind of sparrow dares to call itself Lai Xiang?"

"Why not launch it back to its homeland!"

My family treats phoenixes with the utmost respect; where did you come from, you ignorant sparrow?

Get out of here!
At this moment, Miwei had a sense of déjà vu, like watching people argue online in a past life.

Don't be fooled by how politely they put it.

Essentially.

One person calls the other a stupid donkey.

One person insulted the other, calling them a wild bird.

Its aggressiveness is at its maximum.

At this point, a mere poem was no longer sufficient to express the full talent and spirit of the two.

First, Fei Yi looked down at the soup dumplings on the table.

He immediately ordered his servants to bring him pen, ink, and bamboo slips, and began to write with lightning speed.
Mi Wei stepped forward and took a look; it was a fu-style article about wheat.

Of course, writing about wheat was just a pretext.

It's still essentially about attacking the opponent.

Zhuge Ke was not to be outdone.

He then turned around and wrote a poem in response.

Miwei went up to look curiously and saw that it said "millstone".

Even when grinding against wheat, the attack remains at its maximum.

Mi Wei knew he didn't have the quick wit to write on the spot.

As for copying poems, those who memorized and recited the entire poems were mostly Tang and Song dynasty poems.

It doesn't fit with this old-fashioned version of Han Fu, so there's no point in showing it off.

I casually picked up a sweet orange and became one of the orange-eating crowd, while also getting some Vitamin C.

Soon, two eloquent prose poems were completed.

Zhuge Jin then prepared to invite Ma Liang to come forward and offer his opinion.

Moreover, he already had a plan in mind.

This was not only to make the two young men famous, but also to set the final tone for today's "small banquet".

That is:

Both the Sun and Liu families are full of talented individuals, each excelling in their own way, and will remain evenly matched "friendly neighbors" in the future.

However, before he could even raise his voice...

Zhuge Ke suddenly put down the bamboo slips and turned to Mi Wei, who was peeling an orange:

"Can you write poetry?"

Miwei didn't understand and shook his head.

Have you ever eaten an orange before?

Miwei was still puzzled, and nodded.

"Did you eat southern oranges or northern trifoliate oranges?"

This time, Miwei understood.

Zhuge Ke wasn't satisfied with just arguing with Fei Yi, so he's provoking this deputy envoy now.

If you answer that you'll eat oranges, you'll be just like those traitors like Happ.

If your answer is to eat bitter orange, you're just a fool asking for trouble.

Anyway, we can always find an angle to attack.