si-mexico Chapter 479 Liu Bei has lost again? The small-town exam-taker makes his appearance!
Chapter 479 Liu Bei has lost again? The small-town exam-taker makes his appearance!
Luochengwai
The war broke out quickly.
Zhang Ren led his troops in fierce battles, repeatedly defeating Liu Bei's army's attacks.
Upon hearing this, Liu Bei's expression gradually changed from a smile to a gloomy one.
He can't be stopped in Luocheng!
Otherwise, the Dongzhou faction would think that Liu Bei was ignorant of military affairs and would look down on him.
This is not conducive to ruling Yizhou after it is taken over!
"Yun Chang, Yi De, try your best to capture Zhang Ren alive!"
"If Zhang Ren resists to the death, then kill him!"
Liu Bei said through gritted teeth.
Cao Cao's camp was vast and powerful, with a galaxy of brilliant generals.
On the other hand, Liu Bei's side was the opposite; he didn't have enough talented people under his command, and the generals he could still use were still Guan Yu and Zhang Fei.
It's like returning from years of battle with the same factory configuration.
However, Zhang Ren was not Yang Huaigao Pei.
Seeing Guan Yu and Zhang Fei launching surprise attacks on him from different directions, Zhang Ren immediately retreated into the formation to avoid direct confrontation with Guan Yu and Zhang Fei.
With their exceptional martial skills, Guan Yu and Zhang Fei, like sharp blades, chased after Zhang Ren.
A slight smile curved Zhang Ren's lips.
He drew his bow, nocked an arrow, and shot it at Guan Yu!
"Pfft!"
Guan Yu was shot in the left arm by an arrow, and excruciating pain struck him instantly.
Upon seeing that Guan Yu was injured, Zhang Fei was greatly alarmed and quickly led Guan Yu back to their own lines.
With the retreat of Guan Yu and Zhang Fei, Zhang Ren once again repelled Liu Bei's attack!
The foremost general of Xichuan shines with his unique brilliance here.
……
Night fell
The army doctor removed the arrow from Guan Yu's arm.
Because it wasn't a poisoned arrow, and because Guan Yu was physically strong, the arrow didn't seriously injure him.
However, for the next two weeks, one should not engage in strenuous exercise, and even less should one carry the Green Dragon Crescent Blade to participate in battle.
Liu Bei looked worried.
Without Guan Yu's participation, it would undoubtedly be more difficult for our side to defeat Zhang Ren.
The situation for Liu Bei now is much more difficult than in the original history.
Huang Zhong, Wei Yan, and a number of other generals from Jingzhou were almost all intercepted by Cao Cao's camp.
If there's really no one else available, we can't exactly have Zhuge Liang rush up with a feather fan and fight Zhang Ren one-on-one, can we?
Zhuge Liang cupped his hands towards Liu Bei and said:
"My lord, Zhang Ren is extremely rebellious, as is Wang Lei, the magistrate of Luocheng."
"Our forces are limited, so we should change course and attack Jiangzhou, Mianzhu and other places."
Liu Bei asked in confusion:
"Kongming, the governor of Jiangzhou, Yan Yan, I've heard, is also a veteran general who is good at fighting."
"This man will not surrender to our army directly."
"And Mianzhu is located after Jiangzhou, where Li Yan is stationed..."
Liu Bei suddenly stopped, realizing the subtext in Zhuge Liang's words.
Zhuge Liang waved his fan, his eyes full of confidence.
To be fair, Zhuge Liang should thank Su Yu.
Historically, he only had the opportunity to personally go to the front lines and offer advice more than 20 years later.
And now, he has developed this ability ahead of time.
Having been driven out of Jingzhou, Zhuge Liang lost his status as the "socialite of Jingzhou" and naturally could no longer serve as the logistics chief like Xun Yu.
Having no other choice, he had to change jobs and become an all-rounder!
Who knows, one day, there might actually be a scene where Zhuge Liang, wielding a feather fan, charges forward to fight an enemy general one-on-one.
……
Mianzhu
The prefect of Mianzhu at the time was none other than Li Yan.
Here's a little-known fact: Li Yan is from Nanyang!
Yes, that's the Nanyang that Zhuge Liang referred to as "cultivating the land in Nanyang".
The top leaders of the Dongzhou faction are all from other places.
They formed an alliance of outsiders and stood on equal footing with the locals of Yizhou.
Li Yan was very good at navigating the officialdom.
Born into a prominent family in Nanyang, he should have joined either Yuan Shao's or Yuan Shu's camp according to his original life trajectory.
After all, the Nanyang aristocratic families, the Yuzhou aristocratic families, and the Jizhou aristocratic families were naturally superior to others in the aristocratic circles at the end of the Han Dynasty.
However, the Li family offended Yuan Shu and the Yuan family.
To avoid trouble, Li Yan followed his uncle to Xiangyang to seek refuge with Liu Biao.
Liu Biao valued Li Yan highly, not only inviting Sima Hui and Pang Degong to promote him, but also appointing him as the magistrate of Zigui County, intending to let him gain seniority for a few years before promoting him to prefect.
But Li Yan fully utilized his initiative in the skill of job hopping.
His grandfather had a good relationship with Wu Yi's grandfather when he was still alive.
Using this connection, Li Yan and Wu Yi secretly contacted each other and led three thousand soldiers, along with some local people from Zigui, westward into Shu.
It's like Liu Biao spending a lot of money to support his mistress for a long time, only to have her snatched away by the neighbor next door. He was furious and planned to go to war with Liu Yan.
But Liu Biao could only talk the talk; given the situation in Jingzhou, he couldn't and wouldn't actually risk his life to fight Liu Yan just to vent his anger.
Furthermore, a few months later, Liu Yan died, and Zhang Lu "cut off the Shu Road," separating Jingzhou and Yizhou by Hanzhong, so Liu Biao could no longer cause trouble for Liu Zhang.
After switching jobs, Li Yan entered the upper echelons of the Dongzhou faction and was regarded as a confidant by Wu Yi.
Two years ago, Li Yan was promoted to Prefect of Mianzhu.
In the original history, ten years later when Liu Bei entered Sichuan, Li Yan was the magistrate of Chengdu.
The duties were similar to those of Shen Pei, the magistrate of Ye City, a position of great power and influence.
Such a person betrays others...
The impact on Liu Zhang was immense!
And this moment.
In the Prefectural Government of Mianzhu
Li Yan is meeting with the envoy sent by Zhuge Liang.
The envoy's name was Jiang Wan, one of the few people from Jingzhou who traveled a long distance to join Liu Bei after Liu Bei arrived in Yizhou.
Jiang Wan was actually the same age as Zhuge Liang.
"Jiang Wan, right?"
"Since you are neither eloquent nor good at arguing, this prefect doesn't quite understand why Liu Bei would send you as an envoy."
Li Yan tapped his fingers lightly on the table, his gaze fixed on Jiang Wan as if trying to see right through him.
Jiang Wan, trembling with fear, clasped her hands in a fist and said:
"My background and status are vastly different from those of Prefect Li. It is my honor to be able to see Prefect Li in person."
Li Yan's brows gradually relaxed.
He liked the feeling of being superior.
Jiang Wan's humble attitude pleased Li Yan greatly.
But Jiang Wan suddenly changed the subject:
"Does Prefect Li know that a good bird chooses its tree to perch on?"
"Liu Zhang doesn't even have the prestige a lord should have."
"Is Prefect Li truly willing to be buried alive with such a person?"
Li Yan laughed and scolded:
"You audacious scoundrel! How dare you curse the governor like that?"
"Logically speaking, I, the governor, should drag you out and execute you."
"But... I think what you said makes sense."
"As members of the Han imperial family, Liu Bei is a more worthwhile investment."
"The governor is like a stagnant pool; he's utterly boring and uninteresting."
Jiang Wan feigned delight and said:
"I thank you for your kindness, Prefect! In this way, I might even receive a beautiful woman as a reward from my lord when I return!"
"Whoosh! This is wonderful!"
As he finished speaking, Jiang Wan's saliva dripped from his mouth.
This comical performance made Li Yan very happy.
But as Jiang Wan stepped out of Li Yan's residence, a slow smile crept onto her lips.
Yes! I, Jiang Wan, am just a small-town exam taker, not even from a poor, destitute family.
As for studying, I only managed to become somewhat knowledgeable by stealing books from my distant cousin Liu Min's house, by shamelessly becoming a servant in his household, and by begging my cousin to teach me.
But I, Jiang Wan, can endure it!
What I have in abundance is patience and time.
What you have now, I, Jiang Wan, will have in the future as well!
……
P.S.: An honest person could not become the leader of Shu Han after Zhuge Liang's death, and he did so for twelve years.