The Maojin knife from the late Jin Dynasty

Chapter 4 Gentlemen's Agreement
With Liu Cong's guidance, the rebel army successfully crossed the Yellow River and then entered the Taihang Mountains from Zhiguanxing.

Liu Cong stood on the mountain peak and looked down at Wang Mi's rebel army entering the Taihang Mountains. Hu Yanhao next to him said to Liu Cong:

"Young Master, this Wang Mi's rebel army is just a bunch of rabble. If I wait for the elite men to fight, I'm afraid that a single confrontation will make this rebel army timid and then they will flee. Why should I be so polite to you, Master?"

Hu Yanhao is Liu Cong's wife. Although she is older than Liu Cong, she is very respectful to Liu Cong.

"It is precisely because he brought such an army that Wang Mi was able to stir up troubles in the Central Plains and make the Jin court uneasy. This shows Wang Mi's ability even more!"

Liu Cong shook his head and said, "Besides, there are only a few people who have raised the Han flag to vote for me now, and now there are finally famous people coming to vote for it. How can we neglect it and add some twists and turns to my great cause!"

"Young Master is righteous!" Hu Yanhao saluted Liu Cong and sighed after hearing Liu Cong's words.

"Huh?" Liu Cong, who was watching Wang Mi's army passing Zhiguanxing, suddenly let out a soft voice of confusion.

Hu Yanhao followed Liu Cong's doubts and looked down. To be honest, he had seen too many of Wang Mi's troops climbing up the mountain in scattered pieces. The formation of the army became more and more crooked as they climbed the mountain. Some of the soldiers even needed to be captained by a hundred soldiers. He had to be whipped with a whip before he could continue climbing.

Therefore, compared to the regular army, Wang Mi's rebel army was really poor in organization and discipline.

But now, a neat and rhythmic army suddenly appeared. The two of them walked side by side, with about three guards separated from the front and back. They formed a straight line and continued to advance in an orderly manner at Zhiguanxing.

Of course, it is unrealistic to say how neat and unified this formation is, but with other more scattered rebel armies as a comparison, such a neat and unified insurgent army becomes particularly conspicuous.

It was like a firefly in the darkness, at least it caught Liu Cong's eyes for a moment.

Liu Cong said with emotion, "This Wang Mi is indeed not to be underestimated. There are people who train soldiers inside. Please pay attention to it for me."

"No!" Hu Yanhao responded to Liu Cong's order.

In the following days, the rebels basically spent their time on the road, marching almost thirty kilometers every day. With food provided by Liu Yuan's troops, at least there was no problem in rushing to see Liu Yuan.

Because he was on the road, he didn't have much training. He basically arrived at the place to set up camp. After dinner, Liu Tai took Chu Jijiu and started teaching the soldiers how to read before dark.

Because the sun has set for almost half an hour, there is basically no chance to teach.

After all, the materials on hand are still too scarce. The rare campfires in the army are mainly used for night guarding and patrolling. It is impossible to use them to teach Liu Tai's camp soldiers, so if you want to learn knowledge, you can only hurry up. time.

But even so, Liu Tai could feel that Zuo Guocheng, where Liu Yuan was located, was getting closer and closer.

Because following this direction, villages gradually appeared. Although these villages were fully armed when the army approached, closed the village gates, and made a posture of confrontation at any time, the existence of villages here shows that there is order here. .

As for Wang Mi, who was about to meet his old friend Liu Yuan, his mood was somewhat complicated, he was happy and worried at the same time.

However, he did not show it in front of the rebels, but Liu Tai, Wang Zhang and others could still see that Wang Mi was a little anxious and uneasy.

After all, Wang Mi has not yet decided what kind of status he will gain after surrendering to the Xiongnu and Han Dynasty.

However, these things have nothing to do with Liu Tai. Perhaps more accurately, Liu Tai has no influence on these things at all.

At this time, the only thing Liu Tai could do was to learn as much knowledge as possible from this era and train his troops well.

However, just as Liu Tai settled down to enrich himself, Chu Jijiu, who was teaching Liu Tai, looked a little solemn.

Finally, when they were getting closer and closer to Zuoguocheng, Chu Jijiu said to Liu Tai after finishing a lesson:

"The camp owner and Wang Shuai share the same love as father and son. Aren't they afraid that Liu Yuan, who is of Xiongnu blood and has the heart of a tiger and a leopard, will host a banquet at Hongmen?"

When Liu Tai heard what Chu Jijiu said, he raised his head and looked at Chu Jijiu and said, "Chu Jijiu, you have bad intentions!"

"How can the camp leader know whether Liu Yuan will secretly plot against Wang Shuai?" Chu Jijiu said sternly, "No matter what, the camp leader and Wang Shuai are as close as father and son. Just a reminder, there will be no such thing." Incorrect!"

Liu Tai thought for a moment, looked directly at Chu Jijiu and said, "You can't test the human heart, especially if you have preset thoughts. No matter what Liu Yuan does, it will only deepen suspicion in Uncle Wang's eyes."

"Everything is for Wang Shuai's safety, isn't it!" Chu Jijiu looked at Liu Tai, feeling a little irritated and couldn't help but reply.

"But the person who reminded me may not have good intentions, right?!" Liu Tai said calmly while looking at Chu Jijiu.

When Chu Jijiu heard Liu Tai's words, he choked up for a moment, with a slightly melancholy look on his face, and said:
"The camp owner really doesn't look like a 12-year-old childish person. He is really a wise man. I don't know why he made such a judgment."

Liu Tai shook his head and said, "Not to mention that Liu Yuanhai and Uncle Wang are close friends.

Even if we take a step back, Liu Yuanhai's purpose in naming the country Han was to attract people who were dissatisfied with the Jin Dynasty and harbored feelings for the Han Dynasty.

Now that Uncle Wang has gone to seek refuge, even if it is just as a benchmark, I believe that Liu Yuan will never treat Uncle Wang badly.

The Jin court and the Han Dynasty, at least being a Han is more attractive, isn't it! ? "

"Is the Great Jin so bad that the camp leader would rather join the Xiongnu than choose the Great Jin!" Chu Jijiu couldn't help but sigh.

Liu Tai didn't expect that Chu Jijiu would say such a thing.

To be honest, if one casually travels from the bottom of history to the top, he would hesitate to surrender to the Jin Dynasty or the current Xiongnu and Han Dynasty.

Even though Da Jin technically has the support of the Han people, as long as those who come here think more comprehensively, they will basically not choose Da Jin.

The reason is very simple, that is, the Nine-Rank Zhongzheng System.

If you come from a rich family, it's easy to say, but if you don't have any rich family to rely on, then no matter how many meritorious services you make, your status will be determined when others know your origin.

In contrast, the Xiongnu and Han Dynasty at least had the habit of the strong minority being king, and the Han people's inspection system, at least there was a system for upward passage.

In addition, as the north moves toward the integration of Han culture, Han talents will inevitably continue to be reused. To a certain extent, if you want to have a sufficient stage, you can only choose the Xiongnu Han Kingdom.Liu Tai thought of this and said to Chu Jijiu, "Chu Jijiu, you should be from a rich family, and the Jin Dynasty has always been kind to aristocratic families, so it is a natural gift for Chu Jijiu that you have the Jin court in your heart. It is a tribute to the glory of the Wei and Jin Dynasties." , I naturally yearn for it.”

"In this case, camp leader, why don't you advise Wang Shuai? Wouldn't it be wonderful if he changes sides, takes off his armor, surrenders with courtesy, and still retains his status as a marquis!" Chu Jijiu said to Liu Tai with further persuasion. .

"Because the glory of the Jin Dynasty belongs to the aristocratic family, but the pain of the Jin Dynasty belongs to the common people!" Liu Tai said with emotion,
"Not to mention that I am the queen of King Jing of the Han Dynasty, and I am a ruined country to the Jin court. I am someone who will never be reused!"

When Chu Jijiu heard Liu Tai's words, his face couldn't help but twitched, but he sighed helplessly, but as if he thought of something again, Chu Jijiu said:
"Battlemaster, don't belittle yourself. Liu Kun and Liu Yueshi are the Liu family of Youzhou. After King Jing of Zhongshan, they were also reused by our Jin Dynasty. It can be seen that the Jin Dynasty has absolutely no intention to despise the Liu family."

"I don't have a brother-in-law of the Sima family, and he was thrown to Bingzhou. The whole court ignored him. Isn't this just exile?"

Liu Tai shook his head, stretched out his hand to stop Chu Jijiu, and wanted to say something else.

Liu Tai said, "Chu Jijiu, I don't want to continue arguing with you on this point. This will only hurt the harmony between you and me.

I admire your loyalty to the Jin court, but let me explain first that my position is by no means the same as that of the Jin court.

As long as you stand on the side of the Jin court, I will not listen to your plan. "

When Chu Jijiu heard Liu Tai's words, he took a deep breath and said, "Then the camp leader and Liu Yuan have the same position!"

"I don't know!" Liu Tai shook his head and said, "It mainly depends on how far Liu Yuan can do it.

Observe his words and his actions. Isn't this the same principle you taught when offering wine?

If he is really the hero of the world and can understand how difficult it is for ordinary people like us, then why shouldn't Uncle Wang sacrifice his life for him? ! "

"You don't know the difference between Huayi and Huayi!" Chu Jijiu couldn't help but said solemnly after hearing Liu Tai's words.

"I know!" Liu Tai nodded and said, "For a wealthy family like yours, seeing the difference between China and Yi, how can we Han people do anything for the Huns?

But for the lower-class Han people like us who have no room for advancement in the Jin court because of the nine-level Zhongzheng system, precisely because of the differences between Hua and Yi, the Xiongnu Han Kingdom must ask us Han people to help them govern the world and have a better chance of getting ahead. ,Is not it? ! "

Liu Tai looked at Chu Jijiu calmly, and had to say that he had become a lot more shameless after coming to this era.

But Liu Tai was very calm and had no regrets about making such a choice.

Because the main contradiction in this era, at least not yet, has not risen to the contradiction between the Wuhu and the Han people, or even the contradiction between the people of the Jin Dynasty and the nobles of the aristocratic families.

Up to now, even though Liu Yuan has called the country Han, it actually still belongs to the continuation of the contradictions of the Eight Kings Rebellion.

Because the current Liu Yuan, Wang Mi and Liu Ling are, strictly speaking, a confluence of forces under Sima Ying, the runner-up of the Eight Kings Rebellion. In fact, not only Wang Mi and Liu Ling, but also Shi Le have decisively joined Liu Yuan. .

Because Sima Yue, the winner of the Eight Kings Rebellion, relied on Liu Kun, Wang Jun, Gou Xi and others to become the final winner and took control of the court. It can be said that he has a strong army and strong horses.

If it weren't for the internal struggle for power, Liu Yuan's Huns and Han Kingdom could almost be destroyed with a wave of his hand.

And even now, Liu Kun's existence alone has restrained the Xiongnu and Han Dynasty, making Liu Yuan's life very difficult.

Therefore, regardless of the fact that Wang Mi led the rebel army to surrender to the Xiongnu Han Kingdom, strictly speaking, the Xiongnu Han Kingdom is the definition of the country established by Liu Yuan for later generations.

Liu Yuan himself worshiped Liu Chan as Emperor Xiaohuai, built shrines for the three ancestors and five sects below Han Emperor Gaozu for worship, inherited the orthodoxy of the Han Dynasty, and claimed that he also belonged to the Han Dynasty.

The orthodoxy of the Han Dynasty was in the Xiongnu...

To be honest, if Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty knew this, would he crawl out of Maoling?

But no matter how you put it, although surrendering to the Huns and Han Kingdom may make people feel a little bit emotionally uncomfortable, in fact, people in this world really have no time to use the word treason to describe Wang Mi, Liu Tai and others. .

Especially for the people at the bottom, after they experienced the life of the Jin Dynasty that rushed towards the end of the dynasty from the beginning, especially after the devastation of the Eight Kings Rebellion, in fact, they were still very accepting of the sudden appearance of the Han Dynasty. of.

When Chu Jijiu heard Liu Tai's words, he opened his mouth to say something, but couldn't.

Because what Liu Tai said is true. Compared with the struggle for power among the aristocratic families in the Jin court, although Liu Yuan was a Huns, he had more opportunities for the people at the bottom.

Especially since Wang Mi surrendered to Liu Yuan so decisively now, Liu Yuan was afraid that he would give Wang Mi a heavy reward.

Compared with Liu Tai who came to conclusions based on his perspective, Chu Jijiu, who came from a wealthy family, was able to make accurate judgments very decisively after being reminded by Liu Tai.

That is, Wang Mi will definitely become Liu Yuan's trump card in the future to check and balance the Xiongnu headquarters. What Wang Mi's arrival will bring to Liu Yuan is not only an improvement in military strength, but more importantly, the Han Kingdom that he originally only called himself. It really inspired the attraction of Han talents.

When he thought of this, Chu Jijiu slumped helplessly on his chair, looking very lonely.

The future of the Jin Dynasty is getting more and more bumpy, but the officials at the center of the Jin Dynasty are still fighting for power and gain, without any awareness of the danger at their feet.

"Hey!" Liu Tai looked at Chu Jijiu's disappointed look and sighed helplessly, then said,

"Chu Jijiu, I know that my actions have caused you to lose your freedom and make you feel uncomfortable.

How about this, wait until I get to Zuoguocheng and find a new wife, and then let you leave? "

"Will the camp leader let him go?" Chu Jijiu couldn't help but asked in a deep voice after hearing Liu Tai's words.

"Your heart is not here. I can send people to watch you for a while, but how can I still watch you for the rest of my life!"

Liu Tai shook his head and said, "In that case, why don't we make a gentleman's agreement? When the time comes, if you want to leave, then leave. Of course, if you want to work for Uncle Wang, then I will recommend you!"

"Uncle Wang..." Chu Jijiu heard Liu Tai's words and smiled, "Battlemaster, your Uncle Wang is ready to join Liu Yuan!"

"I only listen to Uncle Wang anyway. As for who Uncle Wang is loyal to, it's none of my business!" Liu Tai smiled slyly at Chu Jijiu!
(End of this chapter)