Chapter 176: Shouchun Events, Old Liu's Troubles Among the heroes at the end of the Han Dynasty, although Lao Liu's life was full of ups and downs, he had many noble people around him. Whenever Liu Bei was at the end of his rope, a noble person would come to help him. This is how Liu Bei was able to rule the world for decades without being defeated. However, in Qin Zhen's opinion, there were only five people who could truly be considered Liu Bei's benefactors. The first one was his elder from the same clan, Liu Yuanqi. Thanks to his financial support, Liu Bei was able to study under the great Confucian scholar Lu Zhi when he was a poor teenager. This allowed him to come into contact with circles that were not accessible to his original class. The second and third were Zhang Shiping and Su Shuang, two big merchants from Zhongshan. It was with the support of these two that Liu Bei had the foundation to start his career. The fourth one is Mi Zhu, who helped Liu Bei when he was in most difficult time. And the fifth one is Zhuge Liang in front of him.

If it weren't for Liu Yuanqi, Liu Bei would not have been able to come into contact with the upper class. Without Zhuge Liang, there would be no subsequent division of the world into three parts. He changed the world situation with his own strength, gave the Han Dynasty a new lease of life, and turned the term "prime minister" into an exclusive noun. He is the only one of his kind in history. So after Liu Bei's introduction, Qin Zhen took a close look at Zhuge Liang's appearance. The man was wearing a simple plain Confucian robe and a small crown on his head. He was of similar build to him. Although he had no beard yet, he already had some black hair on his mouth. His face was not angular, but he had thick eyebrows, bright eyes, a delicate appearance and a very friendly image. After reading it once, he grabbed Zhuge Liang's hand and said: "I have heard Ziyu mention your name, so I asked Ziyu to invite you here. Now I see that you are indeed a handsome man!" Having said this, he couldn't help but sigh that Comrade Zhuge had finally arrived. It was worth it that he had emphasized this matter to Zhuge Jin before. While he was speaking, Zhuge Liang felt something strange. He thought that this military advisor was just as his brother said, with the demeanor of an elder! But he didn't expect that Qin Zhen would value him so much! You have to know that this is the first time they have met, and Zhuge Jin and Qin Zhen are not related, so there is no reason for her to be so affectionate to him. It seems that this Qin Jun must think highly of his brother and wants to promote him as well. No wonder Zhuge Jin wrote to him asking him to come over and help! As he pondered this, he smiled modestly and said; "Mr. Qin, you are too kind. I am not even an adult yet. I came here to learn from you. I don't deserve such high praise!" Liu Bei was watching from the side, and he smiled at Qin Zhen and said: "Military advisor, please do not underestimate Kong Ming. I see that Kong Ming has a rather extraordinary appearance, but in fact, he has a lot of talents, and he is no less talented than Zi Yu!" It is said that Lao Liu and Zhuge Liang were a perfect match.

Even before Zhuge Liang came of age, it was apparent that he was an extraordinary person. When Qin Zhen heard this, he laughed for a while. He thought that in this world, anyone could look down on Kong Ming except him! He then asked if anything had happened in Shouchun during this period. Liu Bei also knew Qin Zhen's habits and expressed his opinion directly: "There is no rush for this matter. Let's go into the city first. The military advisor will sit in the same carriage with me. We will talk after we enter the mansion!" Seeing this, Qin Zhen knew that Liu Bei also had something to tell him, so he simply nodded, got into the carriage with Liu Bei, and headed towards the city. Along the way, Liu Bei told Qin Zhen about the general situation of Shouchun during this period. The first thing to come was naturally the arrival of the imperial envoys. Not long after Qin Zhen went south, the imperial envoys arrived in Shouchun. There were many things to do when the envoy arrived this time. First, he announced the emperor's tribute to Liu Bei. The reward was as Liu Ye had known before. Liu Bei was appointed General of the Eastern Expedition, with the title of Acting Envoy, and was in charge of the military affairs of the three states of Yu, Xu and Yang. At the same time, the title of Liu Bei's ancestor Liu Zhen was restored. On the grounds of Liu Bei's great achievements, he was changed from Marquis of Yichengting to Marquis of Lucheng County. After him was Liu Fu, who was appointed as the governor of Yangzhou; by chance, Guan Yu was recommended by Cao Cao as the Marquis of Han Shou Ting and promoted to the rank of Lieutenant General. Qin Zhen remained the Marquis of Yiyangting, with an additional fief of 500 households and was promoted to the rank of General of the Five Officials. Qin Zhen secretly pondered over this news. No matter how history changes, Cao Cao's preference for Guan Yu is still obvious. Even though he did not work under him, he was still appointed Marquis of Han Shou Ting. He felt that he had not done anything, but he was appointed as the General of the Five Officials. You must know that the officials appointed by the imperial court are of different value from those appointed by Liu Bei. Logically speaking, Cao Cao should pay them wages. However, given the current situation, the salary may not be received. Thinking of this, he naturally expressed his congratulations to Liu Bei. When Liu Bei heard this, he laughed heartily. In fact, what made him happiest was not being named General Zhengdong, but the restoration of his status as a relative of the Han royal family. Now that his ancestral title has been restored, he is naturally considered the first person to bring honor to the family. Now that the imperial court has appointed him, who dares to call him a mat weaver and shoe seller? Qin Zhen naturally understood Lao Liu's mentality. In fact, in history, Liu Bei's identity as a clan member was never recognized by the imperial court, and he was never appointed as the Emperor's Uncle Liu. This has led to Liu Bei's family background being criticized. And now in this timeline, Liu Bei has been recognized as a clan relative. Although he is not as good as the Emperor Liu in the novel, he is also a glory to the family. Liu Bei can't help but be happy!

After he smiled for a while, Qin Zhen started asking other questions. When Liu Bei saw this, he took out a piece of crystal clear glass from his bosom and said: "It turns out that this thing was made under the supervision of the military advisor. I thought it was something else, but it turned out to be colored glaze produced in the Western Regions!" Seeing the block of glass in Liu Bei's hand, Qin Zhen couldn't help but say happily: "Could it be that this thing has been able to produce stably?" As mentioned earlier, the manufacture of glass involves many industries, so he was naturally delighted to see the finished product. However, Liu Bei saw this and shook his head: "This thing is difficult to make. The craftsmen worked in the furnace for more than a month and only managed to make one batch!" "The piece in my hand was also carefully selected!" "Although this colored glaze is profitable, it is difficult to make!" Colored glass was a rare item in this era, especially at this time when the Kushan Empire in Central Asia was in decline and the chaotic situation made such items even rarer. Scarcity means high prices and high profits! However, if there is no stable output, it is naturally impossible to produce goods. Qin Zhen saw this and advised Liu Bei: "There is no need to rush this matter. As long as we can improve the technology, our army will be able to profit from it sooner or later!" In fact, glass is not particularly difficult to make. It’s just that there are no alkaline lakes in the Central Plains, so it is not as easy to make as in the Western Regions. But after giving such advice, he looked at what Lao Liu was holding and said in a strange way: "My Lord, can you show me this?" When Liu Bei heard this, he handed the item to Qin Zhen and said with a smile: "It looks nice, but it's of little use!" But Qin Zhen took a look and smiled: "How can this thing be useless? If it can be made carefully, it will be of great use!" Because he saw that the glass had become transparent and there were no bubbles inside, it seemed useless, but in fact it could be made into a lens. Through polishing technology, objects such as telescopes and reading glasses can be manufactured. The telescope alone has a wide range of military uses. If their scouts were equipped with one on the battlefield, it would be a dimensionality reduction attack against the enemy scouts. Similarly, in this era when candlelight is commonly used for reading, the eyesight of older scholars has long since declined! As long as these lenses can be made into reading glasses, it will be a lucrative business. Glass itself is a luxury item. If you add a little gold or silver border to it, it wouldn't be too much to sell it for tens of thousands of dollars, right? If it were a limited edition and a little hype, maybe someone would buy it if it was sold for hundreds of thousands of dollars! To put it bluntly, at the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, money simply lost its liquidity, but it did not disappear. As long as something that can pry open these money appears, the money stored by the nobles can be taken back! Looking at the lens for a moment, he felt as if he saw a large amount of military expenditure, and said to himself:

"My Lord, let me study it for a few days and then exchange it for money!" Seeing this, Liu Bei nodded and smiled: "I know that the military advisor is good at making money, so I will wait patiently for good news!" In fact, Qin Zhen has become the backbone of Lao Liu. When Qin Zhen was away, it felt like there were some things he had no place to discuss. Now that Qin Zhen is back, Liu Bei feels that everything is going smoothly. He then asked him about Qin Zhen's trip to the south. This also includes all matters related to Mei Cheng. Qin Zhen naturally told him everything, including the investigation of the Mei brothers, Chen Ce and others. There were some things he did not write in the letter and had to tell Liu Bei in person. He even did not hide the details of his plan to get rid of Mei Cheng and told him everything. Because this matter was not glorious, although it was done very cleanly, there was no guarantee that it would be overturned by someone with ulterior motives in the future, so he needed to let Liu Bei know these details first. After Liu Bei heard the hidden details, he realized that Qin Zhen had done so many things in the south, and he couldn't help but sigh: "So, Mei Cheng is just as the military advisor said that day, he has a rebellious mind!" He had a bad impression of Mei Cheng, but Mei Cheng did a lot of things after all. In a sense, Qin Zhen's way of getting rid of Mei Cheng also helped him do something he wanted to do but couldn't do. Thinking of this, Liu Bei said to Qin Zhen: "I already know about this matter, but it's the military advisor who has to take the trouble to deal with it!" "Although Mei Cheng is not useful, he has made contributions. Since his family is small, he should not be treated unfairly!" Seeing this, Qin Zhen nodded and said: "I have also made arrangements for this matter. Mei Cheng has no family, so I will let Mei Qian give him a grand funeral. It won't be considered unfair treatment!" If we were to say what the best thing about Mei Cheng is, it would be that he has no wife or children, and his parents died early. The only relative he has is Mei Qian. In this situation, being able to leave a good reputation for Mei Cheng is already a great favor. When Liu Bei heard this, he felt complicated. He has always been a man who follows his heart when doing things. Therefore, most of the time, he can speak frankly about what he does. But since the struggle for hegemony began, more and more things have begun to happen that go against one's will. For example, he plotted against Sun Ce before, and now he is plotting against Mei Cheng. These actions were contrary to his previous code of conduct and could be considered as going against his will.

But in a sense, these actions are necessary. Just like when they were under the city of Shouchun, if they didn't plot against Sun Ce, then Sun Ce would plot against them. For example, the current plan for Meicheng is theoretically to put away the bow after the bird is killed. But if we don't plan against Mei Cheng and let him do whatever he wants, the trouble he causes in the future will only lead to more deaths. Are his actions right or wrong? Does it conform to his philosophy of 'do not do evil for the sake of small gains, and do not refrain from doing good for the sake of small gains'? Thinking about this, Liu Bei sighed for a moment: "I once heard the military advisor say that there is a danger of valuing small principles and losing the big principles!" "When I heard this, I just told Yuan Zhizhi that I already had this in mind." "But now, if I don't have the help of a military advisor, I'm afraid I'll be hindered by Xiaoyi again." "Just like this man Mei Cheng, I had intended to kill him in the past, but after hearing that he had achieved great success, I no longer had any intention of harming him." "It's sad to say that when I heard that Mei Cheng wanted to harm Liu Xun's family, I said that he deserved this disaster. Now that I know the truth, I feel a little ashamed." "Although the person is dead, I still can't bear it." "Now I know the importance of the warning given by the former military advisor!" "But I am worried that this heart is hard to change, I don't know how to correct it?" To be honest, when he first received Xu Shu's message, he didn't take it seriously. He thought that since he knew about it, he would never make the same mistake again. It now seems that these evil things are bound to happen on the road to hegemony. This time it was Qin Zhen who did it. What should he do if Qin Zhen is not there next time? But Lao Liu was so emotional, and Qin Zhen smiled and said: "Please do not lament, my lord. It is because of your heart that the soldiers are willing to fight to the death." "If you don't have this heart, then the foundation of benevolence will be gone, and it will be difficult to accomplish anything!" Seeing Liu Bei's reaction, he knew that Liu Bei was now in a confused period of life. It seems that everything is moving forward, but in fact, there is a conflict between one's original intention and goal. In the original course, this conflict did not break out completely until the Battle of Yizhou, because it was Pang Tong's persuasion that strengthened Lao Liu's determination. And now he has been trying to change Liu Bei's mentality from the very beginning, which naturally makes the conflict directly apparent. Only by overcoming this hurdle can Liu Bei completely transform into a true overlord. But people's thoughts will change, and Qin Zhen is no exception. He used to think that Liu Bei's kindness was a bit too soft-hearted, but after getting to know Liu Bei, he discovered that this was also Liu Bei's strength. It is because Liu Bei is a kind-hearted man who is bound by old friendships that everyone is willing to die for him. Since he cannot change, why force it? While thinking, he smiled and said to Liu Bei: "In my opinion, there is no need for you to change your mindset. The key is to use the right people!"

"When Emperor Gaozu started his career, he was no more than a village headman of Sishui, but he was able to achieve great success, all thanks to his ability to employ people." "Your Excellency is now practicing the way of benevolence and righteousness, and talented and ambitious people will surely come to you. Although villains like them may cause trouble, they can be controlled." "For example, when Zhen used dried plums, he used his determination, and the problem of plums was solved without any effort." "It is difficult for you to do something, but you can do it yourself. As a respectable person, you should be close to wise officials, stay away from villains, and accept advice. Even if you make some minor mistakes, it is not a big deal!" In his opinion, since Liu Bei could not be like Liu Bang, he should strive to be a benevolent monarch. As long as the right people are used, Liu Bei can achieve great things even if he cannot be ruthless. After he finished speaking, Liu Bei nodded and smiled: "From this point of view, you are my teacher. It will be beneficial for me to ask for your advice from time to time!" As he spoke, he seemed to remember something and said to Qin Zhen: "I wonder what the military advisor thinks of Kong Ming?" Qin Zhen was a little confused when he heard this. Although he thought highly of Zhuge Liang, this was after all the first time he met him, and Liu Bei shouldn't have asked for his opinion! While thinking, he smiled and asked: "When I first saw this man, I only knew his extraordinary appearance, how could I know him!" "You are a good judge of people. You spoke highly of this man just now. What do you think of him?" When he asked this question, Liu Bei smiled and said: "If I were to say that I look at Kong Ming, I would look at him as a beautiful jade!" (End of this chapter)