Chapter 22: Talent Surpasses Others by Eight Degrees

  Just as all the officials were having fun making poems, a county guard came to Ao Lie with a wine cup and said: "I have long heard that the governor has two sons, Dragon and Tiger, and the second son, Ao Lie, is both civil and military. In the past, he wrote excellent works such as 'Flying General's Order', 'Farewell to Lü Bu' and 'Joyful Reunion'. Today is Mid-Autumn Festival, officials from all over are gathered together, why not ask General Wei Far to compose a poem to match the beautiful scenery?"

  Gongsun Zan whispered in Ao Lie's ear, "This person is Cui Yan, the governor of Zhuo County, originally from Qingzhou. Due to the Yellow Turban Rebellion, he fled to Youzhou." Cui Yan? Another famous figure of the Three Kingdoms! In history, Cui Yan was a high-ranking official under Cao Cao, specializing in internal affairs and known for his good looks and elegant appearance, which earned him Cao Cao's favor. After Cao Cao became the King of Wei, during an audience with the Xiongnu envoys, he had Cui Yan sit on the throne in his place while Cao Cao himself stood behind Cui Yan, holding a knife and acting as an attendant.

  Looking at Cui Yan, Ao Lie discovered that he was indeed the same as described in historical books, with a clear and bright face, four-foot-long beard, and a majestic appearance. He was truly a handsome man. Raising his cup filled with white wine, Ao Lie stood up and said to Cui Yan: "So you are Brother Ji Gao, I have long admired you. As I am still young and not used to drinking, I will substitute tea for wine. Here's a toast to Brother Ji Gao." According to the Eastern Han custom, people within the same twelve-year cycle could address each other as brothers, unless they were blood relatives or had a teacher-student relationship. To show respect, they would add an honorific title before "brother", which is why Ao Lie called Cui Yan "Brother Ji Gao".

  Cui Yan smiled and raised his wine glass, clinking it against Ao Lie's in a toast. Then he said: "I request that General Wei Yuan create another masterpiece; I will listen with rapt attention." When Cui Yan spoke, the officials in the hall all turned their eyes to Ao Lie, waiting for his next move. After all, rumors are empty words, but seeing is believing - although Ao Lie's reputation as a master of both literature and martial arts was well-known to everyone, who had actually seen him compose poetry with their own eyes? One can't fake things on the battlefield, but when it comes to composing poems, there are many ghostwriters.

  Today, I and my teacher climbed the Youzhou Tower, and I felt a lot of emotions. In the past, Jiang Taigong received orders from two generations of Zhou rulers and achieved great things; Yan Zhao Wang treated Yue Yi with courtesy, and he broke through 72 cities in Qi, making his name known for thousands of years; Prince Dan of Yan knew how to use Jing Ke, and Jing Ke died for his lord, plotting to assassinate the King of Qin. Looking back at our great Han dynasty, now the imperial relatives and eunuchs are fighting endlessly, and the borders are being invaded by barbarians year after year, which is indeed a matter of life and death for the Han dynasty. However, those who live in high positions do not think about supporting the state to repay the emperor's kindness, nor do they think about making politics clear and clean to bring peace to the people, so many talented scholars with ambitions cannot find a way to serve the country, which makes my heart feel sad. Now, I have received the favor of Brother Ji Xiao, so I will take the Youzhou Tower as the theme and compose a poem.

  The people in the hall listened to Ao Lie's words, and they all had the same feeling. For a moment, they were speechless, and some loyal patriots couldn't help but beat their chest and stamp their feet, tears streaming down their faces. Ao Lie secretly observed Cui Yan's expression and saw that his face flashed with sadness. The words he spoke earlier were not only heartfelt, but also aimed at digging a corner of Cao Cao's wall! The target of the dig was naturally Cui Yan, the able minister of internal affairs. Ao Lie knew that Cui Yan had always had the thought of being loyal to the great Han in his heart, otherwise he would not have stopped Cao Cao from becoming emperor in history and ended up dying a miserable death in prison. Now, because of his arrival, the trajectory of history has also changed, and he saw Cui Yan first, so there was no reason to give up easily. Moreover, Cui Yan was still serving under his father's rule at this time. He was completely the one who got the moon first by building a tower near the water. Even if he couldn't let Cui Yan join him, he had to leave a good impression of being loyal to the king and defending the country on the opponent, at least to avoid Cui Yan joining Cao Cao.

  After a moment of contemplation, Ao Lie said in a low and solemn tone: "In the past, I have not seen men of old; in the future, I will not see those who are to come. As I ponder the vastness of heaven and earth, I am overcome with sorrow and tears fall."

  Listening to Ao Lie's low hum, the literary officials present were all moved, some bowed their heads in contemplation, and others nodded in appreciation. Even those military generals who didn't understand literature were deeply impressed by Ao Lie's song, which was both profound and accessible.

  After a moment of silence, someone shouted: "Great! Indeed wonderful!" Then, a burst of applause erupted simultaneously in the hall and courtyard. Among the hundred officials present, all praised Ao Lie's "Song of Youzhou" without exception.

  Cui Yan was also shocked at this moment. To know that Cui Yan is not only a capable minister of internal affairs, but also a famous scholar, the so-called famous scholar, is one who has poetry and songs circulating in the world, can be called a famous scholar. In Cui Yan's eyes, Ao Lie's "Yu Zhou Tai Ge" song, the sentence fell out of balance, the words did not rhyme, but the ordinary words seemed to contain a kind of artistic conception that made people yearn for it. The more he thought about it, the more he savored the endless aftertaste.

  After a while, Cui Yan composed himself from the shock and bowed to Ao Lie: "Yan has heard of General Wei's great work today, and it has broadened my horizons. I admire you! I admire you!" By reason, Cui Yan was the governor of Zhuo County, and Ao Lie was General Wei, who was a sixth-grade official in the Eastern Han Dynasty. Although they were from different systems, Cui Yan's position was still higher than Ao Lie's. There was no reason for him to bow to Ao Lie, but he did so anyway, which shows that Cui Yan was a broad-minded person who could put aside his official position and bow to someone with greater knowledge than himself.

  Chui Yan could do so, but Ao Lie couldn't be calm about it. Firstly, Ao Lie was younger than Chui Yan; secondly, Chui Yan's official position was higher than his own; most importantly, Ao Lie had the idea of taking Chui Yan under his wing, how could he let him leave a proud impression? So, Ao Lie hastily stepped forward two steps, bowed and returned a courtesy to Chui Yan, saying: "Seasonal brother, are you tired?"

  Cui Yan stood up straight, looked at Ao Lie and stroked his beard, saying: "The world's talent is only one stone, General Wei Yuan occupies eight dou alone!" Ao Lie was taken aback by the words, weren't these the words people used to praise Cao Pi, Cao Cao's son? How did Cui Yan use them on himself? On the side, Gongsun Zan burst out laughing and stood up, walking to the front of the two men, saying loudly: "General Wei Yuan is indeed worthy of being called a talent of eight dou, I admire him." The three men looked at each other, laughed simultaneously, and a sense of mutual appreciation arose.

  The banquet continued, and the local governors, premiers, and county magistrates reported to Liu Yu on the situation in various parts of Youzhou over the past year. Liu Yu listened seriously to everyone's account and occasionally put forward targeted opinions or issued some orders. After a whole two hours, the officials from all over finished their reports, and Liu Yu also had a general direction for the governance of various places in Youzhou.

  Then, Liu Yu raised his wine glass and said to the hundreds of officials: "Fellow colleagues, I am not good at drinking, and I cannot toast each of you one by one. I will take advantage of this opportunity to propose a common toast to everyone, let's drink!" Because Liu Yu had been stationed on the border for many years, he was also not used to referring to himself as "this humble prefecture" or "this great official", but instead referred to himself as "this general". This self-reference is also reasonable, as Liu Yu concurrently held the position of General of Pacifying the Border.

  Everyone raised their wine cups and toasted: "Wishing the governor good health and prosperity..."

  When everyone had finished drinking, Liu Yu put down his wine cup and said: "In a moment, let my son Ao Lie replace me to toast each of you one by one. I hope all of you will come with enthusiasm and leave with satisfaction!" Everyone heard this and laughed as they took their seats.

  Ao Lie hastily walked to the center of the hall, made a bow with his fists and said: "Lie Shang is still young and cannot drink wine, so I'll use tea instead of wine to toast you gentlemen." After finishing speaking, he picked up his cup, filled it with white water, and first went to offer it to his master Wang Ao. Ao Lie's actions again triggered a burst of applause...

  "Is that old man Wang Ao, the master of General Ao? I didn't expect General Ao to not only be well-versed in both literature and martial arts, but also so respectful of his teacher and the Tao!"

  "A young man achieves success, yet remains humble and composed, knowing etiquette and respecting his teachers' ways. How rare! How rare indeed!"

  "It's indeed true that a tiger father has no ordinary son! With Liu Youzhou having such a son, what more could he ask for?"

  "Give birth to children as if they were Ao Wei's descendants!"

  Watching Ao Lie's actions, Cui Yan's eyes lit up with a ray of light, and he thought to himself: Ao Wei is indeed different from the others, but unfortunately, he is still young. I will observe him for a few more years, and if he still has such demeanor when he grows up, there is hope for the revival of the Great Han.

  A group of officials directly under Liu Yu were also whispering to each other. Shi Huan looked at Yan Rou and said, "Zhong Xing, I told you so, Ao Wei is a man who values loyalty, my judgment is not wrong." Yan Rou glanced at Shi Huan and said lightly, "General Ao spared your life, it's General Ao's magnanimity, has nothing to do with your judgment." Tian Kai came over and said, "I think General Ao will definitely achieve great things in the future. Youzhou now has a governor, and later there will be General Ao, our Youzhou can rest easy." Qi Zhou, Xian Yu brothers and others also nodded frequently in agreement. Yan Rou looked at everyone and smiled, "It seems you all acknowledge the governor as the leader?" Shi Huan was taken aback and said, "Don't you think so, Zhong Xing?" Before Yan Rou could speak, Tian Kai beside him said, "Zhong Xing has long acknowledged the governor as the leader, otherwise, how would he consider himself a subordinate? It's just that Liu Yu didn't see it." Shi Huan heard this and looked at Yan Rou who was smiling but not speaking, suddenly enlightened: "Good one, Yan Zhong Xing, you've been hiding it from me!"

  Not to mention Yan Rou Shi Huan and others whispering, at this moment Ao Lie had already finished the wine for Wang Ao Jing. He refilled a cup with white water, turned around and walked in front of Gong Sun Zan, offering him a toast. Afterwards, he went on one by one, and naturally, there was no lack of praise from the officials for Ao Lie. Ao Lie smiled humbly and returned the courtesy. With every gesture, he seemed to have possessed a few qualities of a monarch. This made Cui Yan, who had been secretly observing Ao Lie, feel even more emotional.

  After the banquet, Ao Lie arranged for people to prepare rest rooms for hundreds of officials. Because there were too many officials coming, it was impossible for the state government building to accommodate so many people. Only a few people, such as Gongsun Zan and Cui Yan, stayed in the state government building, while other officials with lower status were arranged by Ao Lie to live in inns within the city of Ji County. As a result, all the inns in the city were suddenly full.

  Ao Lie specifically instructed to arrange for inn expenses, and all the expenses would be recorded on the private account of the state government building, without using any money from the official treasury. This move won him praise from many people. Fortunately, now that the frost daughter is making gold silk leaves, it has already taken shape and sales are also very good. Ao Lie's uncle, Ao Lao Zhang, even took several carts of gold silk leaves to sell in Jiangdong, and heard that the returns were also very impressive.

  The gold silk leaves sold for a price equivalent to gold in Jiangdong, a rich and prosperous land. It was precisely because of the income brought by the gold silk leaves that Ao Lie had the capital to take on all the food and lodging expenses of the officials, recording them on his own account.

  At night, Cui Yan sat in a guest room of the state government office, reading by candlelight. A faint knock at the door interrupted Cui Yan's quiet enjoyment. Cui Yan walked to the door and opened it to see Ao Lie standing alone outside.