Chapter 348: Harvesting the Sangyu, the general trend Huang Zu was undoubtedly a warlord in Jiangxia. Even though he had stepped down, his warlord temper could not be changed. When he heard that Wen Pin dared to touch his son, he was naturally furious. After all, who is Wen Pin? He is just a general under Liu Biao! However, his son is the governor of Jiangxia and is the representative put forward by the Huang family. It would be fine if his son had committed a serious mistake, but he just wanted to come to reinforce Anlu, how could that be considered a serious crime? Even if the matter comes to light in front of Liu Bian, it is only natural for a son to save his father! But Wen Pin took the chicken feathers as a token of authority and insisted on confining his son to his home. It’s okay for Liu Biao, but how dare you, Wen Pin, a person with no foundation at all! The relationship between father and son is hard to break, even though Huang She stabbed him in the back, causing the father and son to turn against each other. But once Huang She was in danger, Huang Zu forgot everything that had happened before. "Is what Shi Yuan just said true? Has Wen Pin really punished She'er?" In anger, Huang Zu once again confirmed the authenticity of the matter with Pang Tong.

When Pang Tong saw him asking, he knew that the matter was settled, and immediately smiled at him and said: "This was spread by a spy in Liu Zhengdong's army. If Mr. Huang doesn't believe it, you can go and verify it!" As soon as he said that, Huang Zu believed most of it. There was no reason for Pang Tong to lie to him. After believing this, he became even more angry, and cursed with his hands behind his back: "How can this be possible? You are a mere idiot. Do you really think that my Huang family will allow you to bully and humiliate them?" However, after walking around a few times, he realized that something was wrong. Although Pang Tong had no reason to lie to him, the current situation might have been planned by Pang Tong. After all, if Liu Bei had not sent troops to Anlu first, there would be no need for his son to ask for troops. "You are so good, Pang Shiyuan. Duke De and I are old friends. How dare you bully me like this?" Although Huang Zu was old, he was not stupid and realized the role of Pang Tong. "I know you have always been good at making plans, and although Wen Pin has made mistakes, isn't it you who planned it?" But Pang Tong was not panicked at all when he heard this. He just shook his head and said with a smile: "No, Mr. Huang has misunderstood me. Although I have plans, they are only for military affairs." "The Huang family and my Pang family have been friends for many years. How dare I plot to murder Brother Gongli?" "To be honest with you, Lord Huang, the plan to attack Anlu was indeed proposed by me, but this plan was only to mobilize the troops in the city to leave." "If Brother Gongli leads his troops out of the city, he will be captured by our army, but I can guarantee that Brother Gongli will be safe." "But I didn't expect Wen Pin to be so bold and reckless that he dared to order the capture of Brother Gongli." "Mr. Huang, you might as well think about it. Liu Zhengdong now occupies four states. Sooner or later, the world will be pacified." "The Huang family's assistance to Liu Biao is against the will of heaven, so I intend to lead the Huang family onto the right path.

"But Huang was loyal to Liu Biao, yet he treats her like this!" "Before, Mr. Huang was determined to defeat the enemy, but he changed his generals at the last minute, which led to the father and son becoming enemies." "Now Brother Gongli was only seeking troops for his father, but he was slandered and convicted by this villain Wenpin." "Although I have made mistakes, they are far less than Liu Biao's mistakes!" "Mr. Huang is also an elder. How can you ignore the main point and blame me for offering advice?" His attitude was sincere. He first said that he did offer a plan, but his purpose was to win over the Huang family. He then said that compared to his own mistakes, Liu Biao obviously did not take Huang's case seriously. In comparison, it is obvious that Liu Biao and Wen Pin are more inhumane. Huang Zu had not intended to delve into the matter too deeply, but after hearing this he naturally began to blame Liu Biao again. "Although you are not a good person, what you said is reasonable. Liu Jingsheng disregarded our old friendship, which is really hateful!" "But now that I have retired and am at home, what can I do?" Having said this, Huang Zu let out a long sigh, a look of helplessness appearing on his face. If he was still the former governor of Jiangxia, he would have led his troops to join Liu Bei without hesitation. But now he is just a rich man. Although he has some power in Anlu, he really can't do anything to Wen Pin. However, Pang Tong was waiting for his words, and he immediately smiled and said: "This is not difficult to do. As long as Mr. Huang cooperates with our army, it will be accomplished!" "I know that Mr. Huang's former subordinates, Lü Jie, Deng Long, and Su Fei, are all under Wen Pin's command." "As long as Mr. Huang writes a few letters to them, and they cooperate with each other, Liu Zhengdong will be able to defeat them!" "If we act this way, not only will Mr. Huang's anger be relieved, Brother Gongli will be released, and the Huang family will also have achieved a great feat!" "This is a plan that achieves three goals at once. Does Mr. Huang have any interest in it?" When Huang Zu heard this, he glanced at Pang Tong and said coldly: "You want to use my son's life and property to exchange for your advancement?" "My son is still in Wen Pin's hands. If the truth is revealed, his life will be in danger!" "Mr. Huang is wrong. Is Tong such a selfish person?" Seeing that he did not respond, Pang Tong continued to persuade him and shook his head quickly, saying: "In a military fight like ours, who wouldn't bet their lives on it?" "The current situation in the world is not as good as before. If the Huang family wants to continue to be rich and powerful, how can they get it without working hard?" "It should be noted that Liu Zhengdong is different from Liu Jingsheng in that he started from humble beginnings." "Liu Jingsheng still has to rely on us, the Jingzhou soldiers, to maintain the overall situation."

"Liu Zhengdong has many talented people under his command, and he doesn't need any help from the nobles at all!" "Now is the time for us to sacrifice our lives. If Huang Shi doesn't do his best, he will surely be defeated in the future." "Mr. Huang, you must know that there is nothing else in Jingzhou, but there are many poor scholars!" It is almost a consensus among people all over the world that Liu Bei likes to promote people from humble backgrounds. Now, under his command, Guan, Zhang, Qin, Zhao, Sun Qian, Jian and Yong, who among them is not born a commoner? Even Liu Bei's brother-in-law Mi Zhu, who was said to be from a noble family, was actually just a businessman. In comparison, it was more difficult for the nobles to make a name for themselves under Liu Bei, not to mention that Qin Zhen, the second-in-command, was constantly putting pressure on them. This made it much more uncomfortable for the children of the gentry to serve under Liu Bei than under Liu Biao. If the Huang family doesn’t help now, why should Liu Bei use the Huang family’s descendants in the future? Not to mention, because Liu Biao promoted education, he had many children from poor families under his command. If you don't show your interest before Liu Bei takes over, you will just be lost in the crowd. Huang Zu naturally knew this truth, but he still had a little fantasy about Liu Biao. "Does Shi Yuan really think that Liu Bei's entry into Jingzhou is a foregone conclusion?" He looked at Pang Tong, and seemed to be making a final struggle in his heart. As long as Pang Tong nodded, he would agree. The result is obvious. If Pang Tong felt that Liu Bei could not seize Jingzhou, he would not have taken up the official post. "Of course. Not to mention that Mr. Huang didn't help, even if Liu Zhengdong hadn't come here, Qin Zhen alone could have captured Jingzhou!" Pang Tong responded to Huang Zu's question with his eyes, and said with a deep look on his face: "Does Mr. Huang think that Liu Jingsheng alone can be a match for Qin Zixuan?" "I am not praising you again. Qin Zhen is truly a rare talent that only appears once in hundreds of years." "Let alone Liu Jingsheng, even if Jiang Shang was reborn, I'm afraid it would only be an approximation." "Now that this person is in the south, how can Liu Jingsheng control him from going north?" "If we can't stop them from heading north, won't Jingzhou fall into their hands sooner or later?" This was not because he wanted to scare Huang Zu on purpose. In fact, he also felt that Qin Zhen was Liu Biao's biggest threat! Even if Liu Bei had not sent troops, Liu Biao would have been defeated if Qin Zhen had been given a year or two! He also thought about whether he should show himself in the opposite direction, by first joining Liu Biao's army and trying to compete with Qin Zhen. But after careful analysis, he found that he had almost no chance of winning. Because Qin Zhen is no longer fighting alone. Behind him, there is a system of institutions that he has established. Whether it is the economy, policies, military personnel, quality of generals, or logistical strength. The reason why Liu Bei was able to expand so quickly was inseparable from Qin Zhen’s various institutional reforms. Facing such an opponent, they would be as powerless as the six kingdoms facing the Qin Kingdom.

In other words, all the princes in the world will be gradually annexed like the Six Kingdoms. This is the general trend of the world. Even if Qin Zhen dies, it will basically not be reversed. This is also the reason why he is in a hurry to come out. If he doesn't come out now, he will have no place to stand! This is true for him, and also for the Huang family to which Huang Zu belongs. Facing Pang Tong's explanation, Huang Zu knew that Liu Biao was probably doomed, so he said: "Well, since Jingzhou is no longer defensible, how can I defy fate?" "But now Wen Pin is guarding Xiling. If I give you the letter, how will you contact the soldiers in the city?" Since Wen Pin was guarding the city, it was obvious that he wanted his trusted men to guard various places. In this case, how did Liu Bei contact everyone? But Pang Tong smiled and said that this also needs Huang Gong to do it! As he spoke, he gave Huang Zu a solution. While Huang She was imprisoned by Wen Pin, Huang Zu could send someone directly to the city to plead for mercy. On the surface, he pretended to be submissive to Wen Pin, but secretly he asked his trusted confidants to contact the generals in the city. In this way, once the contact is made, someone can be sent to deliver the letter without anyone noticing. Huang Zu saw that Pang Tong even needed help to deliver the letter, so he pointed at Pang Tong and scolded him: "Good Pang Shiyuan, I, Huang, have to bear all the hard work, but you are the one who gets the credit!" "If this is accomplished and my Huang family is still angered in the future, I will definitely hold you accountable!" Pang Tong saw him laughing and scolding, and immediately understood it. He hurriedly said that he would help Huang Zu get credit once the matter was accomplished. After hearing this, Huang Zu said no more and signaled Pang Tong to leave on his own, and he would handle it himself. After getting the promise, Pang Tong went out of the city and persuaded Zhang Fei to withdraw his troops immediately. Zhang Fei naturally didn't understand what he meant. He thought, aren't you going to persuade them to surrender? Why are you retreating? Upon hearing this, Pang Tong immediately informed Zhang Fei of what had happened in the city and advised: "Now Huang Zu should help our army to capture Xiling. If we take Anlu first, this plan will be difficult to achieve!" "We can pretend that our strategy has failed, retreat back to the camp, and even withdraw the ambush troops." "If Wen Pin sees this, he will surely think it is a good plan, and our army can defeat them by cooperating inside and outside." "If not, even if we take this city, it will be difficult to take all of Jiangxia!" After hearing the persuasion, Zhang Fei stopped talking and led his troops towards Liu Bei's camp. As for the road, he called on Zhang Liao and Wei Yan to withdraw the ambushing troops on the road. The two armies combined, totaling nearly 20,000 people, returned to Liu Bei's camp. When Wen Pin's spies saw this, they reported the news to Wen Pin. When Wen Pin saw that Liu Bei had withdrawn so many troops, he was overjoyed. Hearing that Zhang Fei had not even taken Anlu, he called Yi Ji and said with a smile: "If it is as you said, had Liu Bei been confined to Huangshe, he would not have taken Anlu." "The ambush failed, and the ambushers withdrew back to the camp!" Unexpectedly, Yi Ji was not happy when he heard this, but sad instead, and sighed: "I know Liu Zhengdong is a righteous man. He started his army with righteousness. If our army is not defeated today, it will surely be defeated tomorrow!" Although his prediction was correct, he was not happy at all.

Because this means that Liu Bei's benevolence and righteousness are not just words, but actual actions. As long as Liu Bei holds on, the soldiers under his command will surely fight to the death. It was obvious that their defeat was only a matter of time as they went against such a tyrant. Having sighed like this, he took his leave without waiting for Wen Pin to speak, and returned to his house, feeling sad. Wen Pin was unaware of Yi Ji's literary flaws. He only knew that he had defended himself against Liu Bei's attack once again. As long as he holds his ground and doesn't come out, Liu Bei should be unable to do anything to him. But he didn't know that Huang Zu's confidants were heading towards Xiling City at this time. A mutiny planned by Pang Tong was brewing in the city. (End of this chapter)