Chapter 6, Self-Directed

  At that moment, Xun was possessed by the spirit of Beiying Factory's Biaozi. He squeezed his eyes shut and when he opened them again, they were brimming with hot tears: "I originally lived in Beidi Le Lang, where it often snows heavily in winter. As a child, my parents would take me to play in the snow. Now the scenery is just as before, but both my father and mother have passed away one after another. Thinking of them while facing this scene, I feel desolate. What wonderful works can I still create?"

  As soon as these words came out, both Cao and Miss Cao changed color. Miss Cao slightly furrowed her eyebrows, looking a bit embarrassed, but immediately naturally transformed into three parts apology and seven parts sympathy, slightly bending her knees to say: "It's all my fault for bringing up Mr. Hongfu's painful past. Mr. Hongfu is indeed a benevolent and filial gentleman...can't help but make me think of my mother who passed away..." As she spoke, she raised her sleeve to cover her face and turned to leave.

  It was a huge stone that had fallen into his stomach. Only to hear Shi Kuan say, "But it's because of my brother's fault, I didn't know that Hong Fu had such sad thoughts, and he still wanted to drag you out to enjoy the snow. Let's go back to the house and talk about it."

  It's better to go back to the house and talk about it later. However, what he didn't expect was that when the two returned to Xun's bedroom, sat down facing each other, and opened his mouth, saying: "Hong Fu, how do you think Cao's daughter is? Is she to your liking?"

  Xun Wen was shocked: "Third brother, what do you mean by this?"

  After asking that one sentence, he suddenly stopped talking and changed the subject: "Hong Fu is coming to Xuzhou for the first time. I suppose you don't know much about the situation here. However, yesterday I also discussed with Cao Shu Yuan about the upper and lower levels of the state government. I wonder what Hong Fu thought after hearing it?"

  Xun Xin said, "You're moving too fast, what do you want to say?" He had no choice but to improvise and say, "I don't have any thoughts. I just heard that... it seems like Tao Shi Jun's physical condition isn't good?"

  He nodded slightly: "Tao Miao Jun is already in his sixties, and I'm afraid he doesn't have much time left. Now that Dong Zhuo has seized power, the Emperor is on a western campaign, and the road to Guandong is blocked. If Tao Miao Jun were to pass away, I'm afraid there won't be a new governor coming to take his place - even if one did come, it would likely be some treacherous eunuch's arbitrary appointment, and the province wouldn't accept him. The only way to keep Xuzhou safe is for Tao Miao Jun's two sons to inherit their father's position."

  Xun furrowed his brow and asked: "If it's not a vassal state, how can father and son inherit from each other?"

  He smiled wryly and said, "The times are like this, where can we still take care of many things?"

  Ximen Qing asked again: "But I heard from Sanlang and Cao Youyuan that neither of Tao Gong's two sons is any good?"

  Nodding slightly: "Therefore, it is necessary to have good ministers to assist, and the upper and lower levels must be united in order to resist external enemies and keep this region safe. Tao Zong had already made plans for this early on, and this summer he sent Zang Ba to garrison troops at Kaiyang, in order to occupy its strategic location, defend against the enemy from Chenliu and Xuchang to the east, and divide the forces of Qingzhou to the north - as for facing south towards Yangzhou, there is the Yangtze River blocking the way, so there's nothing to worry about."

  It's clear in Huan's heart that Tao Qian is going to make Xuzhou an independent kingdom for the Tao family, but for local scholars in a chaotic world, who cares if it's ruled by Liu or Tao, and maybe later even Lü? As long as they can maintain peace and keep enemies at bay, they're worth supporting. But what was Huan getting at with these words to himself?

  He looked at him quietly, not responding, waiting for his next words. Suddenly, Shi Kuan leaned forward slightly, getting closer and speaking in a low voice: "Nowadays, the five counties of Xuzhou, Tao Gongzu is above, under him there are three people who have gained great favor, holding the power of the state officials, do you know that?"

  Xun's mouth said: "Hearing San brother's words the other day, the master of this place, Cao Shu Yuan, must be one of them. Moreover, his brothers Cao Hong and Cao Zhong are also Tao Shi Jun's confidants. But I don't know who the other person is?"

  He raised his hand, stretched out two fingers and replied: "In Donghai County, there is a certain Zuo Zhong, who is currently serving as the Xu State Bie Jia Cong Shi. Do you know him?"

  What else is unknown? This Mi Zhu, also known as Mei Zuo, was one of Liu Bei's early strategists. He followed Liu Bei everywhere, although he didn't have much talent, but always received preferential treatment - just like his half-teacher Sun Qian Sun Gongyu was the same kind of person. Moreover, this Mi Zhu had a younger brother named Mei Fang, who later betrayed Guan Yu and surrendered to Eastern Wu.

  But he wouldn't say that to Shi Kuan, and instead just cupped his ear and asked: "Please tell me more." Shi Kuan replied: "The Mei family has been merchants for generations, with a fortune of over 100 million, and they have at least tens of thousands of servants and guests. It's said that the military expenses of the state in recent years have mostly been supported by them. They also have a younger brother named Mei Fang, courtesy name Zifang, who is also a famous scholar in the state and serves as a county official. The Cao and Mei families are Tao Gongzu's left and right arms; if they can work together with one heart, then even if Gongzu is not present, Xuzhou can still be at peace..."

  Xun nodded and asked: "From what you said, it seems that the two families are not on good terms at present?"

  "It's true. The Mei family resented the Cao family for being outsiders, while the Cao family, with their long history of wealth and power, looked down on the Mei family as merchants... This is where Tao Gongzu couldn't let go..."

  Xuanyuan was secretly laughing in his heart - do you need to say anything? I had already guessed this. According to historical records, when Tao Qian was about to die, he gave up his two sons and did not pass on the family business, but instead wanted to give Xuzhou to an outsider Liu Bei. It is said that it was Mei You who conveyed the message, and personally presented the seal of the governor to Liu Bei in Xiaopei. Later generations discussed this and felt that there must be a conspiracy behind it, thinking that Mei You had fabricated the will in order to seize power or protect Xuzhou. However, many of Tao Qian's old generals were deeply dissatisfied with this, so later Cao Bao welcomed Lü Bu into the state and drove Liu Bei away. But historical records do not mention that Cao Bao was an outsider, nor do they reveal the underlying reasons for the conflict between Mei and Cao. Now, listening to Yan Kuang's words, it makes sense - during that time, local protectionism was strong, and local scholars often looked down on outsiders, while officials also looked down on families who engaged in trade. Therefore, the Mei family would not get along with the Cao family, which is unexpected but reasonable.

  But he still didn't understand, what was the point of saying these things to himself? Suddenly, a flash of inspiration struck him - could it be that his family planned to cling to Cao Cao's thigh and join forces with him to deal with Mi Zhu? If so, they had to think of every possible way to prevent Liu Bei from entering Xuzhou, otherwise, when the time came, the Mi family would rise in power, and both the Cao and his own families would be doomed... If history were not affected by the butterfly effect and continued to develop according to inertia, it was possible that he would still have to live under Lü Bu's rule for a while... What year did he run to Jiangdong anyway? Why couldn't he remember it clearly?

  But he did not expect that Cao Pi would say something like this next - "If Cao and Mi do not get along, then Xuzhou will be unstable. And if you want Xuzhou to be stable, it all depends on us brothers."

  Xun Yi's eyes were misty: "Third Brother, what exactly do you want me to do? Please speak clearly."

  He smiled faintly and suddenly disappeared again: "Hong Fu just saw the young lady of the Cao family, I wonder what impression she gave?"

  He was shocked: "Impossible... could it be that Third Brother wants me to marry into the Cao family..."

  "It's indeed the case, Hong Fu is a clever person," said Kuang Xin with a relieved smile. "If Hong Fu can form an alliance with the Cao family... Mei Zhu has a younger sister who is still at home, and Tao Gongzu is willing to go as my representative to propose the marriage. At that time, our two families will be related through marriage, and it won't be difficult for me to mediate between the two families and make them harmonious."

  I'd rather not go! It's all because of your own wishful thinking! But why do you insist that I marry Miss Cao, while you go and marry Mei Zhuang's sister instead? Can't we just swap roles?

  Cao Jiao is ultimately a minor character in history books, his daughter looks average and has a pleasant appearance, but she's not exceptionally beautiful... According to the novel, this Miss Cao was later given to Lü Bu as a concubine? Not sure if it's true or not. And that Mi Zhu, with a family fortune of millions, is the richest man in Xuzhou, it's said that after Liu Bei was driven out of Xuzhou by Lü Bu, he relied on the wealth of the Mi family to regroup... When it comes to prestige, the Mi family signboard is much more dazzling than the Cao family signboard - not like the Cao family still stuck in Dongjun.

  And Mi Zhu's sister, that was Mi Fu Ren who later followed Liu Bei. As the saying goes "Only great heroes are fond of beauty, it is true that they are elegant and refined". Cao Cao and Liu Bei were both wolves in the pack when it came to women. Cao Cao liked other people's wives, while Liu Bei liked women with white skin. In Xuzhou, he took in a woman named Gan Fu Ren and compared her to the beautiful jade-like beauty all day long. At night, who knows whether he was holding the beauty or playing with the jade... Anyway, Liu Bei's taste wouldn't be bad, I reckon Mi Fu Ren must have been a stunning beauty of her time.

  If only I could snatch Liu Bei's woman ahead of time, that would be so fulfilling. But he just had to monopolize this sense of accomplishment - speaking of which, having Madame Mi fall into your hands, you can't even feel the pleasure of having a famous woman, it's not as good as giving her to me...

  So, if it's a wide-open mouth, say that you're willing to marry Miss Cao, and let Yun go marry Mei Zhi's sister. Who knows, maybe Yun will really move his heart. But in reality, he is not willing to marry Miss Cao at all. It's not that Miss Cao is not beautiful, she may not be a stunning beauty, but she must be qualified, plus her healthy skin tone and unusual appearance, charm, who knows, maybe even add 10 or 20 points. However, marrying into the Cao family with Cao Bao, who was originally just a casual acquaintance, never thought about it before... Can't we just raise our sights a bit higher, so that we can have more hope for the future by relying on our father-in-law?

  But before Xun could refuse, Kuan had already spoken out of turn and settled the matter: "I have already discussed this with your elder brother and fourth younger brother, and I have also sent a letter to your father. Such a wonderful thing, I'm sure he will agree."

  I see, so it was all premeditated! Then why did you deliberately arrange for me to meet Miss Cao? And what's with the pretentious question "What do you think of her?"? Regardless of whether my impression of her is good or bad, even if Miss Cao were blind and deaf, or a third-rate version of Phoenix, hadn't you all already made up your minds?! You'd written to Yisi without even asking, wouldn't she have agreed to the marriage with the Cao family, which would help our family gain a foothold in Xuzhou?

  It suddenly dawned on Xun that the "Snowy Encounter" scene from this morning was completely staged by the director, and he had unknowingly played along, pretending to be moved to tears. It turned out that not only him, but also Miss Cao, were actors in this play. And the director had written, directed, and acted in it himself! He had already been on high alert against this third brother, yet he still fell into his trap!

  I am the dividing line of striving

  The "main station six frequency advertisement" for a week has ended, I saw many people online saying that after being recommended, they gained at least 200 new followers every day. Why did I only gain less than 600 followers in this whole week? Is it because I promoted too early? I'm both sweating and crying... Starting today, I'll switch to the "historical channel's categorized picture rotation recommendation", I wonder what kind of effect it will produce?

  In short, I will continue to update twice a day and work hard on creating content. I hope readers won't be stingy with your recommendations, collections, and especially your comments - reader comments are an important driving force for authors' creation!