Chapter 379: Stalemate 02

  Liu Shanhe then listened as Zhang Liang continued to say: "I, a humble subject, wish to borrow General Xiang Liang's power to restore my state of Han and fulfill the unfulfilled wishes of my ancestors. To comfort their spirits in heaven! When that time comes, I will exhaust all my strength to assist Your Excellency in seizing the world!"

  After hearing Zhang Liang's promise, Liu Shanhe felt relieved and repeatedly said yes, tightly grasping Zhang Liang's hand, saying: "Alright, alright, then it's settled! It's settled!"

  Since Xiang Liang brought back Hua Wang Sun Xin from the remote and desolate countryside to the main military account, due to his young age, he was temporarily raised by Yu Ji. On this day, Xiang Liang arranged for all the heroes to come to the main account, then followed Fan Zeng and Xiang Yu into the inner account, inviting Hua Wang to discuss matters in the main hall. However, Hua Wang, being too young and having grown up in a different environment, was naturally a bit shy and refused to meet people. Seeing his uncle and Fan Zeng kneeling there with very serious expressions, Xiang Yu felt amused and said to Fan Zeng: "Mr. Fan, when can we destroy the cruel Qin dynasty?" The implication was clear, that is, how can we do real work with this little kid?

  Fan Zeng listened and suddenly came up with a plan, saying to Xiang Liang: "General, we can't delay the big thing at present. In my opinion, we can first pretend to pass on the king's decree and announce our decision to destroy the cruel Qin dynasty. After all, as long as this cruel Qin is not destroyed, we will not be able to rest easy!"

  Xiang Liang listened to Fan Zeng's words and felt that they were reasonable, so he nodded in agreement. In fact, Xiang Liang had already thought about what the various lords should do next, and now he just wanted to ask King Huai to come forward and announce the decision in front of him, making it legitimate and legally binding. Who would dare disobey then? However, since King Huai was afraid of being seen by people and didn't want to go out, but the great cause of destroying Qin couldn't be delayed, Xiang Liang had no choice but to follow Fan Zeng's plan and take action.

  Inside the grand tent, it was originally bustling with people's voices, and everyone was staring at the empty main seat. However, their king, Sun Xin, had yet to make an appearance, which couldn't help but make these powerful men feel somewhat perplexed and also a little ridiculous. What a big deal about a small kid who still needs to attend court and govern! It's really laughable! But then again, this throne is not something that just anyone can take on.

  But soon the whole tent fell silent, because everyone at this time saw that three people had entered the tent. These three people were Fan Zeng, Xiang Liang and Xiang Yu.

  Only these three people walked quickly to the main seat of the big account, Xiang Liang glanced around at the crowd, and a burst of air came out of his nose. He hummed and said: "Everyone please sit down! Everyone please sit down!"

  It wasn't until Xiang Liang said this that everyone dared to sit down, and they all sat in their own seats, quietly waiting for Xiang Liang to speak. In fact, everyone's heart was very clear: although the King of Chu was established by Xiang Liang, after all, he is still the King of Chu! He is just too young to govern, so today I, Xiang Liang, will act on behalf of the king and issue a decree, and everyone must listen carefully.

  "As our king is still young and afraid of death, this matter of accepting the congratulations of the people will have to wait until after the capital has been established. Next, I will read out the king's edict. In order to follow Heaven's will and respond to the people's hearts, and together eliminate the cruel Qin, we hereby appoint Xiang Liang as Duke of Wu Xin, as a high-ranking general; Xiang Yu as Grand Marshal, as second-in-command. Fan Zeng as Military Strategist, Chen Yin as Supreme Pillar of State, Liu Bang as Governor of Pei...".

  As Xiang Liang said this, Zhang Liang slightly bowed his head to Liu Shanhe and said: "Congratulations, sir! Congratulations, sir!" Liu Shanhe smiled and did not deny it.

  Then, only to hear Xiang Liang continue: "Ying Bu, as Duke of Duan Yang; Chen Ping, as Left Military General, Xiang Bo, as Assistant General... Sealed Ji Bu, Zhong Lidi, as Flag General. In addition, except for the above rewards, other major and minor generals will remain in their original positions!"

  Just as Xiang Liang had finished speaking, the heroes present began to discuss and debate. At this moment, an old man walked out from among the crowd on both sides, came into the account, knelt down and bowed, saying: "General, please accept my bow! May I ask, didn't King Chu grant me any official position?"

  The old man raised his head, beaming with a smile, and continued to speak to Xiang Liang: "I am Shun Tong, formerly a doctor in the service of the Second Emperor in Xianyang. Later, because of my sharp tongue, I got into big trouble, so I escaped back to Xue Di. Now that I hear the King of Chu has been found, naturally someone like me is needed. So, I have come especially to answer the call. Please, General, examine me clearly."

  After listening to Shusun Tong's words, Xiang Liang felt that there was some meaning to it. It seemed that all kinds of talents were present! Thinking about Hua Wangsun Ping, she was just a little sister who didn't know anything, and since she had been living in the countryside for a long time, she was naturally very shy. Now, Xiang Liang was worried about how to teach her to become a wise ruler. But now, it seemed that he didn't need to worry himself, as a teacher for the king had appeared! So, Xiang Liang asked Shusun Tong with great joy: "So, you understand all those things about etiquette and rituals between rulers and ministers?"

  "Reporting back to General, I can say that I am very familiar with those things." Uncle Sun Tong replied with great confidence.

  "Oh? That's great! In other words, you can teach a child who doesn't understand the rules of the court to become... one... one..." At this point, Xiang Liang couldn't say anything more. Actually, he wanted to say that he would change Prince Hui into an intelligent and wise king. However, due to his inarticulate words, he failed to express that meaning."

  That uncle Sun Tong said with great confidence: "It's not that I'm bragging, but for me, this kind of thing is simply a familiar road!"

  "Alright! From now on, you will stay by the side of King Huai and follow Chen Yin, the Duke of Zhou, to assist King Huai in governing the state. As for what position to confer upon you," At this point, Xiang Liang hesitated again, because he was indeed not familiar with such matters of conferring positions. He then said evasively: "As for your position, let's wait until we report back to King Huai and decide afterwards." This time, Xiang Liang gave a relatively clear response.

  "Thank you, General!" Upon hearing this, Uncle Sun Tong couldn't help but burst into laughter, his eyes twinkling with delight, and he bowed repeatedly to express his gratitude.

  Just then, Liu Shanhe, who was sitting upright and still, suddenly poked Zhang Liang from behind. Since the two had been leaning against each other from start to finish, this also provided a convenient way for mutual reminders between the two people.

  Liu Shanhe thought: Since he had already learned that Zhang Liang's main task this time was to rely on the Chu army to restore the state of Han, and now that those who should be rewarded have been basically rewarded, it is an opportunity to talk to Xiang Liang. So he used his hand to poke Zhang Liang from behind as a reminder. Zhang Liang understood immediately, so he quickly got up, almost bumping into Shunsun Tong who had just withdrawn with a full load.

  Zhang Liang stood up in the middle of the military tent, bowed his hands to Xiang Liang and said: "General Xiang, oh, Wuxin Jun, King Huai has just been established, and everyone's hopes are pinned on him. Qi, Zhao, Wei, and Yan have all restored their countries, but only the state of Han has not been restored yet. Zhang Liang has had his heart set on restoring Han for many years, and he has wandered around for many years for this reason. I hope that Wuxin Jun can report to King Huai and grant permission to establish a king for Han and restore the state of Han. If so, Zhang Liang will die without regret!"

  Xiang Liang listened to Zhang Liang's words and felt that this was not a difficult task, nor did he need to send troops or grant titles. What he needed was just a name. So he said: "What's the difficulty? Is there still a descendant of the Han royal family?"

  Zhang Liang, seeing the potential, naturally felt more at ease and continued: "That Korean public, for being generous and kind, and extremely popular among the people, was once enfeoffed as the Lord of Hengyang. If we can establish this person as king, the Koreans will surely be grateful and forever submit to Chu." Zhang Liang's words were also very clever, saying both the advantages of establishing Korean public Zhong as king and that if he could really be established, it would make Korea wholeheartedly surrender to Chu, which was what Xiang Liang wanted to see.

  Xiang Liang nodded repeatedly after hearing this, thought for a moment and replied: "Alright, I will now act on behalf of Prince Hui! You can help Han Gongzi Cheng to rebuild the State of Han next!" In Xiang Liang's view, since it was Zhang Liang's proposal, it was only natural that he should take the lead in helping the person Zhang Liang wanted to establish complete the great task of restoring their state.

  Just then Fan Zeng suddenly said to Xiang Liang: "General, General! Haven't we already discussed that we must keep Zhang Liang in the army?"

  Because it happened suddenly, Fan Zeng didn't care about it anymore and simply said what he had discussed with Xiang Liang behind the scenes. In fact, Fan Zeng's intention was not malicious at all; he just wanted to recruit more talents for Xiang Liang to quickly eliminate the cruel Qin dynasty, which would also fulfill his own wish. Zhang Liang was indeed a rare talent, and only Fan Zeng could see his value. If he didn't bring Zhang Liang into the Chu army's camp to serve the same master, it was likely that in the future, he would have another powerful opponent. Moreover, facing such an opponent, he might not even have the power to fight back.

  But as soon as Zhang Liang heard Fan Zeng's words, he was also taken aback. Originally, he had already agreed to stay with Liu Shanhe and serve him, but now Fan Zeng had brought up the matter, naturally putting himself in a very passive position.

  Originally, that day in the main military account, he urged Liu Shanhe to actively promote Xiang Liang as the King of Chu, and after being hooked away by Fan Zeng, he felt a bit down, feeling that his face was not going well. Fortunately, he also came from good intentions, so naturally Xiang Liang would not blame him. However, in Xiang Liang's mind, his predecessor must be more important than himself. In this way, the possibility of staying under the Chu army account is also very small. On the other hand, through these few days of cold eyes looking at the Xiang family uncle and nephew, they are all self-willed and arrogant, not suitable for him to work in front of them. Therefore, when Liu Bang proposed that he should serve him yesterday, Zhang Liang agreed.

  However, at this time, Zhang Liang quickly thought of a response, which was to go and busy himself with the restoration of the Han state. This was also a very good reason, and it was something that had just been agreed upon in front of everyone, so naturally there would be no suspicion.

  At this time, there was one person who was scared enough, and that person was Liu Shanhe. As soon as Liu Shanhe heard Fan Zeng say so, he couldn't help but feel a sense of wariness, his eyes immediately fixed tightly on Zhang Liang, thinking to himself: Oh my god, I had already agreed with Mr. Zi Fang! Now I, Liu Shanhe, have few soldiers and am weak, and the only one left who can be relied upon is this Zhang Zi Fang!

  For a moment, Liu Shanhe's expression was very solemn, as if he was afraid that the duck that had already been caught would fly away again.

  At this time, almost everyone's attention was focused on Xiang Liang. He seemed to be nonchalant and said: "Ah ~ with Mr. Fan's help, can't we destroy the Qin Dynasty? Moreover, after Korea is restored, can Zhang Liang return to the Chu army camp again?" The meaning of this sentence is already very clear, that is, in the general's account, as long as there is only one Fan Zeng, and as for Zhang Liang, he is no longer interested.

  Zhang Liang heard this, knowing that he could not stay here for long, so he nodded to Xiang Liang and said: "Please ask Wu Xinjun to thank the King of Huai on behalf of Zhang Liang!" After finishing speaking, he hastily retreated. It wasn't until then that Liu Shanhe's face was no longer so pale. Because just now, he had really been scared out of his wits. And at the same time, a faint smile that was almost imperceptible had quietly appeared on the corner of his mouth.

  "After a pause, Xiang Liang continued: 'Everyone listen, King Huai has another decree.' He then pretended to pull out another silk book from his armor, unfolded it and read solemnly: 'Liu Bang, Xiang Yu! You two lead your troops to attack Chengyang together. Xiang Bo, Song Yi, Fan Zeng, you three lead your troops to the west to attack Zhang Han! Set off in three days, no mistake is allowed!'"

  The commanders who were called out one by one all responded with a "yes" after receiving their orders, and then returned to their seats. In this way, Liu Shanhe, based on Zhang Liang's suggestion, first attached himself to the Chu army, and then plotted to conquer the world, finally opening the curtain on his overall strategy.

  In a small courtyard in Fengxiang, inside an embroidered bed curtain, a pair of mandarin ducks were making merry.

  Among them, the two were Fan Kuai and Lü Zhi who had just been married for a short time. Under the persuasion of her sister Lü Yu, Lü Zhi finally agreed to marry Fan Kuai. At first, Lü Zhi was still unhappy, but after one night, she really became Fan Kuai's person, and Lü Zhi seemed to have changed into another person. Every time she thought about that almost unforgettable night, Lü Zhi would blush and her heart would beat faster. Moreover, she would often savor the taste of that night. It turned out that as a woman, there was such happiness. Being a woman is really good!

  That night, Lü Zhi was transformed into a real woman by Fan Qiang. Although Fan Qiang was a rough and unrefined man, he had great strength, and on their wedding night, he exhausted Lü Zhi to the point of near-death. Just one night, and Lü Zhi couldn't bear to part with him again. But she couldn't stay with him either, for as a main general in Liu Shanhe's army, Fan Qiang had heavy responsibilities. On the second day after their wedding, Fan Qiang reluctantly bid farewell to his new wife. The military camp was calling him back.

  However, Fan Kuai, who had just tasted the pleasure of being with a woman, would not let go of any opportunity to return and be intimate with his new wife again. That night, Fan Kuai took advantage of Xiao He's order for him to return to their base in Fengxiang to escort grain supplies to the front lines, and returned home once more. As soon as he entered the house, without saying a word, he swept Lv Rou into his arms and carried her into the bedroom, where they began making love. One was like wildfire, the other like dry firewood. It was a passionate encounter, with neither able to gain the upper hand.

  After finishing, Fan Kuai took off his clothes and got out of bed, busy preparing to leave. However, he was pulled by Lü Tong, who also came out of the big account, and said in a soft voice: "You've just gotten married, but you're leaving your wife at home to guard her chastity, this is too inhumane."

  "Alas, aren't we in the military? If it weren't for Xiao He sending me back home to transport grain, I wouldn't be able to get intimate with you tonight!" Fan Kuai said with a smile, but was suddenly and unexpectedly grabbed around the waist by Lü Zhi, and a thrilling sensation instantly spread throughout his entire body once again.

  "But if I don't return in time and delay important matters, it's a capital offense! ～" Fan Kuai naturally knew that military discipline was like a mountain, and he said while buttoning up.

  "Alas, if I had known it would be like this, I'd rather not have married a military man like you!" Lü Fang sighed sorrowfully.

  "Others' sisters aren't like that either, how can they live while you cannot?" Fan Kuai said to Lü Zhi, still tidying up his clothes.

  "Sister? At the very least, a sister would have had children to accompany her and wouldn't be so lonely!" Lü Fang said with a pout.

  "That's good, just hurry up and have one, isn't it?" Fan Kuai said with a smile, touching Lv Rou's belly. At this time, under the lamp light, Lv Rou was so beautiful that she seemed even more charming than during the day, giving Fan Kuai a different kind of happy feeling. In fact, he also knew that Lv Rou married him because of Liu Bang's arrangement. The depth of their brotherly love can be seen from this! Not to mention other things, just for this matter alone, I must help my third brother conquer the world!"