Three Kingdoms: I switched to Liu Bei, why are you crying, Cao Cao?

Chapter 27: Being a military advisor, taking advantage of the situation

After Liu Bei and others received the military sticks, the discipline in the army became more strict.

Especially the strong soldiers under Zhang Fei, all of them praised Liu Bei's virtue.

After a few days, the army looked brand new and no longer had the disorganized look of the past.

Compared with all these advantages, the only disadvantage was that Zhang Fei received thirty military beatings and had to lie in bed for two days.

As for Guan Yu and Liu Bei, the executioners did not dare to punish them too harshly, so they did not suffer much harm.

After this incident, Zhang Fei became more restrained. Although he did not treat his soldiers as well as he should, he was much more kinder than before.

As for Xu Shu, the instigator of this incident, he was naturally happy to see it succeed.

Some time passed like this, and in the blink of an eye it was March.

Seeing the return of spring, Liu Bei could no longer hold back his excitement. He just wanted to quickly ask Qin Zhen to come out of seclusion to assist him and accomplish great things.

So he chose an auspicious day and summoned Xu Shu from the army to question him:

"It is now almost March, and the spring ploughing season is approaching. Yuan Shu is recruiting soldiers and collecting heavy taxes, while Cao Cao and Lu Bu are not taking any action. If this continues, when will we be able to achieve anything great?"

Seeing Liu Bei like this, Xu Shu smiled and said:

"My lord, why are you so anxious? You must know that Zixuan's plans have always come true."

"He said Yuan Shu will perish, so Yuan Shu will destroy himself!"

"We are not taking action now because the time has not come yet. Our army can gather our strength and wait for the right time to act!"

Seeing that Xu Shu did not understand what he meant, Liu Bei could only sigh:

"Whether things succeed or not depends on fate, but now you have been living in the city for more than a month."

"Although I have received your plan, I don't know the details. It would be helpful if I could ask for your advice again!"

Xu Shu heard this and finally understood what Liu Bei meant. He couldn't help but smile and said:

"So I know that the lord wants Zixuan to help him!"

He thought for a while and then said:
"Half a month has passed since we met that day. I think Zixuan should consider it carefully even if he wants to."

"It happens that today's weather is fine, so we can go and see it."

"No matter what happens today, we have to let Zixuan come to help the lord!"

Liu Bei was delighted to see that Xu Shu finally understood his idea, and he quickly stood up and said:
"In that case, let me go and call my second and third brothers!"

But as soon as he stood up, Xu Shu laughed and said:

"My lord, please don't start a war!"

"Zixuan has always liked quietness. If the two generals go there, he will be unhappy."

"My lord, just follow me, and I will ensure that you can see Zixuan!"

When Liu Bei heard this, he readily followed the advice and walked towards Qin Zhen's courtyard with a few guards and Xu Shu.

When I reached the front of the courtyard and knocked on the door, a servant opened the door and asked:

"Who's knocking?"

When he stuck his head out, he saw Xu Shu, Liu Bei and others standing outside.

The servant knew Xu Shu and said with a smile:

"Where did Mr. Xu come from?"

“It doesn’t matter where I come from!”

Xu Shu smiled kindly and said:
"The key is whether your master is at home? Why is he here?"

The servant said hurriedly:
"Sir, the master is writing in the study!"

"If you wish to see me, please allow me to inform you!"

"No need to report!"

Seeing this, Xu Shu turned around and smiled:

"It's rare that Zixuan is not with his family today, my lord, please follow me!"

After saying this, he walked straight into the courtyard.

Upon seeing this, Liu Bei hurriedly apologized to the servant and ordered the guards to wait outside the door before he followed Xu Shu into the courtyard.

When the two entered Qin Zhen's house, Liu Bei said anxiously:
"Please don't enter if there is any dispute. Yuan Zhi is like this, I'm afraid you will be unhappy!"

Seeing Liu Bei being so cautious, Xu Shu smiled and said:

"My lord, there is no need to worry. Zixuan and I have always lived next door to each other."

"He doesn't like empty formalities either, and he didn't even announce when he came to my house!"

"If he wasn't at home, we wouldn't be able to get in. Now that he's at home, what's there to be afraid of?"

"Besides, this boy has always been lazy. If we let someone know, he might come up with many excuses!"

"Since we have brought the lord here today, we must capture him!"

"Just wait a moment, my lord, and watch what I do!"

Liu Bei felt relieved when he saw Xu Shu's determination to win. He then heard Xu Shu talk about another side of Qin Zhen, and became very curious. He couldn't help but ask:
"I just heard that you are writing a book in your study, but I wonder what book you are writing?"

Seeing Liu Bei asking, Xu Shu grinned and said:

"Zixuan has written so many books! He has written about astronomy and geography, military tactics, formations, poetry, literature, rituals and music, everything!"

As he spoke, he shook his head and smiled:

"I don't know where this kid learned all this knowledge."

"Just the two books, Evolution and Ethics, are so profound that I feel I have benefited a lot from just reading a few of them!"

Liu Bei was fascinated by this and said:
"Sir, you are truly a genius. If you can really come out of retirement, I will definitely read your masterpieces carefully in the future!"

In this era, there are many people who write books, but there are few people like Qin Zhen who create theories.

From this we can see that Qin Zhen's talent was by no means just a momentary cleverness, but a great wisdom that encompassed both ancient and modern times and was inclusive.

Thinking of this, the two came to a study room, and Xu Shu smiled and said to Liu Bei:

"My lord, please wait here and I will go over to explain it to you!" After saying that, he walked towards the study with his hands behind his back. When he looked inside, he saw Qin Zhen sitting in front of the desk with an upright posture, holding a brush, and writing something on a bamboo slip.

Seeing this, Xu Shu walked into the study room with his hands behind his back, and said with a leisurely smile:

"Zixuan has a very leisurely life, spending all day at home writing books for fun, unlike us, who are in the camp all day exposed to the wind and sun, with no peace!"

Listening to Xu Shu's words, Qin Zhen paused with his brush, slowly raised his head, and said with a smile:

"I was wondering who was whispering outside, but it turned out to be Xu Yuanzhi."

"I told you that you have a good job, so why do you come to my house and hang out all day?"

"They were discussing something outside the door just now. Could it be that they are here to steal chickens and dogs and want to take one or two of my chickens back home?"

"You are so good, Qin Zixuan, you have such a sharp tongue!"

Xu Shu laughed in silence and said:
"I came to visit you with good intentions, why are you speaking so harshly to me?"

"Just because someone didn't keep his word!"

Qin Zhen put his pen on the inkstone and looked at Xu Shu:
"I said I would come here to apologize, but how many days have passed? Where is he? Where is the thorn?"

Seeing that Qin Zhen still remembered this incident, Xu Shu smiled bitterly and said:
"I am too busy with military affairs to come to you!"

"Well, since it happens today, I will apologize!"

As he was speaking, he saw a broom behind him, picked it up and said:

"I will use this to apologize. If Zixuan wants to beat me, then he can do so!"

He walked a few steps to the table, handed the broom to Qin Zhen, and lowered his head.

Qin Zhen smiled when he saw this, took the broom and said with a smile:

"Come closer so I can fight you too!"

Xu Shu listened, gritted his teeth and took another step forward.

Qin Zhen raised the broom and was about to put it down when he hurriedly said:

"Zixuan, wait a minute!"

"What? Yuanzhi wants to go back on his word?"

Qin Zhen looked at Xu Shu with a smile.

Xu Shu shook his head and said:
"Once a gentleman has spoken, he cannot take it back. How can he regret it?"

"Then I will keep my promise, but I wonder if Zixuan is willing to keep his promise?"

"Zixuan clearly promised my lord that he would take up his post after a few days of consideration. Now half a month has passed. Why has Zixuan ignored me? Why is that?"

"Do you know that my Lord has been waiting so long that he is heartbroken and can't sleep all night?"

Facing Xu Shu's question, the smile on Qin Zhen's face gradually faded, and he slowly put down the broom in his hand. After a long while, he murmured:

"If Yuanzhi says so, the envoy must be outside the house!"

"Why not have a meeting?"

When Liu Bei heard this, he was delighted and hurried into the study. He bowed to Qin Zhen and said:
"So I know I can't hide it from you, sir. The preparation is right here!"

"When I heard your words that day, I felt like my mind was suddenly enlightened. I wish I could come to visit you every day!"

"It's a pity that the military affairs are complicated and there is no time to relax."

"It is because I have some free time today that I specially invite Yuan Zhi to come and visit you, sir."

"I hope you will not give up my stupidity and come out to help me. I am very lucky that you enlightened my ignorance and saved me from trouble!"

After saying this, he bowed his head in thanks and bowed deeply to Qin Zhen again.

Seeing Liu Bei like this, Qin Zhen could only sigh. When it comes to enthusiasm, Old Liu is really passionate and hard to refuse.

After thinking for a while, he stepped forward and helped Liu Bei up and said:

"How can I be so worthy of your invitation? Since you have not abandoned me, I am willing to serve you like a dog and a horse!"

When Liu Bei heard this, he burst into tears of joy and quickly grabbed Qin Zhen's hands and said:
"Now that we have your help, our army can accomplish its mission!"

Old Liu has been wandering for more than ten years, and until now, he finally found his first strategist!

The joy in his heart is naturally beyond words.

He immediately grabbed Qin Zhen and refused to let go, saying:
"Now that you have come out of seclusion, it is a great honor for us. I would like to ask you to be my military advisor. I wonder if you are willing to accept this."

Seeing this, Xu Shu also laughed and said:
"The responsibility of being our army's military advisor can only be shouldered by Zixuan. I hope Zixuan will not refuse."

Seeing the two's expressions, Qin Zhen shook his head and said:

"Wait a minute, you two. If I were to become a military advisor, it would only do harm to our army!"

"Even if you want to take the position, you must use a pseudonym!"

The two were stunned when they heard this. Liu Bei said hurriedly:

"What are you talking about, sir? Why is it harmful rather than helpful for you to be a military advisor?"

Xu Shu thought about it, frowned and said:
"Is Zixuan afraid of Cao Mengde?"

When Liu Bei heard this, he immediately remembered that Qin Zhen was Cao Cao's adviser. Although he had resigned, Cao Cao still did not give up.

If Cao knew that Qin Zhen was under his command, he might have sent troops directly to snatch Qin Zhen back!

Not to mention Cao Cao, even Yuan Shu and Lu Bu would probably not be able to sit still if they heard Qin Zhen's offer to join his army.

Thinking of this, he sighed slightly:

"It's all because I'm incompetent. Although I have your help, it's hard to promote your name!"

But Qin Zhen saw this and smiled again:

"You two are wrong. The reason why I have to change my name is because our army is going to take advantage of the situation!"

"It will be difficult to accomplish anything if you show up in public. Only by using a pseudonym can you leverage your power and accomplish great things!"

Hearing Qin Zhen's words, Liu Bei's expression changed, and he immediately bowed and asked:
"Sir, please tell me in detail what it means to fish in troubled waters. I'm all ears!"

Upon hearing this, Xu Shu also looked at Qin Zhen, obviously also curious about this attempt to take advantage of the situation.

(End of this chapter)