Chapter 48: United Troops 10

  The child was intently herding the sheep when he suddenly heard someone calling his name, so he turned around to take a look and recognized that it was Li Bo, the blind elder from the village.

  But Sun Xin, this child has been exceptionally clever since childhood. As soon as he saw that Li Bo had so many people following him, he knew that this matter was not ordinary. So, although Li Bo kept calling out to him, he still refused to respond and instead ran forward while staring at those people, leaving the sheep behind unattended.

  "I don't know them, I really don't know them! Don't come over here, none of you should come over here!" Sun Ping also seemed to be scared out of his wits. As soon as he saw the seven or eight people wearing official robes or armor standing behind Old Man Li, he felt that something was off and turned around to run. No matter how loudly the people behind him shouted for him to stop, he refused to do so. Conveniently, there was a crooked-necked tree not far ahead, and Sun Ping climbed up it like a monkey in just a few movements, sitting down on a branch to warily gaze at the group of people below. After all, the psychological world of adults is vastly different from that of children!

  Xiang Liang, Fan Zeng, Xiang Yu and others followed Li Bo, who had already received the gold from Xiang Liang, to the crooked-neck tree. They looked up at Sun Ping in the tree and shouted at him. Fan Zeng yelled: "Kid, don't be afraid! We're not bad people! Come down quickly, we have something to ask you, after that, we'll leave, okay?"

  But Sun Ping was extremely cunning and pretended to be completely ignorant. When asked to come down, he didn't say a word, only shaking his head vigorously.

  "Who is your father? Little kid?" Xiang Liang asked hastily, his tone somewhat urgent. In his view, as long as he asked the child what his father's name was, then the child's identity would also be confirmed.

  "I don't know, I don't know! I just don't know!" Who knew that the child would be so stubborn and say "I don't know" several times in a row.

  "So, how did you end up here? You shouldn't have been living here all along, right? Is that so? So, how did you end up here? You shouldn't have been living here all along, right? Is that so?" Fan Zeng asked the little kid with a bit of patience.

  "I don't know, I really don't know." The child replied. Xiang Liang listened and couldn't help but shake his head repeatedly, thinking to himself that this child was probably instructed by an adult to say "I don't know" no matter what stranger asked him, otherwise he would bring disaster upon himself.

  "Where is your ancestral home? Where did you originally live?" Fan Zeng continued to ask.

  Sun Ping shook his little head and said: "I don't know, I really don't know."

  The winter wind blew through the branches of the trees, making a sharp whistling sound. The sandstorm seemed to be getting bigger and the sky and earth looked even more desolate. Seeing that several adults couldn't even handle one small child, Xiang Yu couldn't help but feel anxious. He was about to get angry when Fan Zeng spoke up again: "Child, child! Can you come down and take us to see your family? Is that okay?"

  As soon as he heard the old man wanting to take them to meet his family, Sun Ping's eyes became even more fearful and his voice grew shriller: "No, no! I don't want to go! I won't let you know my family! I want to herd sheep, I want to herd sheep!"

  "Your sheep can't run, really can't run! I'll send someone to watch them for you, isn't that enough? Your sheep can't run, really can't run! I'll send someone to watch them for you, isn't that enough?" Fan Zeng's patience made Xiang Yu so angry that he couldn't help but think: "With such a little kid, why so much nonsense? He's really getting old and muddled! He's really getting old and muddled!"

  But no matter how hard Fan Zeng tried to persuade him, Sun Ping just wouldn't come down. It was clear that he refused to cooperate with them. When Xiang Yu saw this, he suddenly became enraged and shouted at Sun Ping in the tree: "You little kid, are you coming down or not? If you don't come down, I'll shoot my bow! If you don't come down, I'll shoot my bow!"

  Naturally, Xiang Yu, although famous for his bravery, would not really shoot an arrow at a defenseless child. He just wanted to scare the kid a little.

  But what surprised everyone was that this little kid was unexpectedly bold and said that if these adults forced him again, he would jump down from the tree! For a while, Fan Zeng, Xiang Liang, Xiang Yu, and others were also at a loss, looking at each other in dismay. Later, it was Fan Zeng who turned to the villager Li Bo and said, "Why don't we trouble you again to take us to the village and let us see his family? Once we meet his family, the mystery of this child's identity will be solved!"

  Everyone listened to Fan Zeng's words and thought they made sense, so they led the large team of people and rushed towards the village.

  Under the leadership of that Li, Xiang Liang and his party finally entered a small courtyard of a peasant family. Pushing open the door, they saw an old woman sitting in the house rubbing corn! However, what made Xiang Liang and others feel puzzled was that after they entered the house, this old woman did not even turn her face, her eyes fixed on one direction, and when she heard someone coming in, she asked: "What kind of people are you? What's your business here?"

  Fan Zeng immediately turned to the old woman and said, "Old lady, these two generals are descendants of Xiang Yan, a famous general of Chu State. They heard that Sunzi is a descendant of King Helü, so they came to ask about the situation. Old lady, can you tell us how Sunzi ended up here?"

  What made everyone feel inexplicable was that the old woman's face changed greatly after hearing Fan Zeng's words, and her tone became very unfriendly. She said sternly: "Sun Xin is not from outside, he was born here."

  As soon as they heard this, Fan Zeng and others naturally knew that there must be a hidden story behind it. So, Xiang Liang ordered Fan Zeng: "Continue to ask!"

  Then Fan Zeng asked the old woman again, "Old lady, old lady, since Sun Xin is not from outside but was born here, then who is his mother? Where is she now?"

  Fan Zeng's meaning is very clear. Since you said he wasn't from outside, but was born locally, then you should naturally know who his biological mother is. This way, it can be known what the true identity of Sun Xin is.

  But when that old woman heard the question about Sun Xin's mother's name, she still said in a bad mood: "How do I know? She didn't even tell me who she was until her death."

  Everyone was stunned again when they heard this. Then, Fan Zeng asked: "So, old man, where is Sun Xin's mother now?"

  The old woman sighed and said: "Where? Dead and buried! She's now in the grave."

  "Dead? How did she die?" Fan Zeng was also confused for a moment and couldn't help but ask in surprise.

  "Why did she die? Wasn't it because of giving birth to that child!" The old woman seemed to be somewhat displeased with Sun Xin's mother, as if she wanted to keep some secret for her, but was not quite willing to do so.

  When Fan Zeng heard this, he had no choice but to give up. Yes, since Sunzi's mother was already dead, there was no one left to prove the child's identity. After hearing this, Xiang Liang waved his hand at Fan Zeng and said, "Forget it, forget it! There is no concrete evidence, and no one can testify against him. Let's just go back! Alas, we've made a wasted trip!" As he spoke, Xiang Liang turned around to leave. But just then, a loud, impatient shout came from behind them: "What? No proof? Who said there was no evidence?"

  The first sentence almost scared Item Liang and others, and they immediately turned their heads to look at the old woman again. It was found that the old woman had already stood up, but because her eyes were blind (Fan Zeng had just waved his hand in front of her eyes), she was naturally very inconvenient to move.

  The old woman got up, opened a wooden cabinet, and fumbled inside for a long time before finally pulling out something, holding it in her hands, feeling it repeatedly, and then suddenly throwing it to Fan Zeng and the others.

  Fan Zeng saw the old woman throwing something at him, so he hastily caught it and quickly rummaged through it. Sure enough, soon after, he found a silk book inside and took a look at it. Good heavens! That silk book was actually a will left behind by King Huai, explaining his identity. Xiang Liang and Xiang Yu were overjoyed after reading it. Afterwards, they put Sun Ping on the carriage and led the troops to set off.

  Liu Shanhe was originally staying in his own lodge, feeling depressed by himself. Suddenly, a young boy knocked on the door and came in, telling him that Mr. Zhang Liang had asked him to come, saying that Mr. Zhang Liang would set off immediately and invited Liu Shanhe to see him at noon.

  Liu Shanhe was startled and hurriedly drove his horse to follow the little boy to Zhang Liang's residence. After searching east and west, he finally found where Zhang Liang lived. At this time, Zhang Liang was packing up his luggage, preparing to set off.

  As soon as Zhang Liang was packing his things, Liu Shanhe's tone carried a hint of helplessness, saying: "Sir, are you really leaving?"

  "Oh, I want to return to Korea as soon as possible, there are some things that need to be taken care of." Zhang Liang first yielded his seat to Liu Shanhe, then seemed to say with a heavy heart.

  "Also, I don't know when Mr. will set off?" Liu Shanhe asked hastily.

  "Ah, I think we should wait until General Xiang Liang welcomes back the King of Chu's grandson before making our move." Zhang Liang said as he poured a cup of good tea for Liu Bang and presented it to him with both hands.

  Liu Shanhe pondered for a long time, holding his tea cup and saying slowly: "Alas, with Master Fan's rebirth to assist him, it seems that half of the world will belong to the Xiang family."

  Liu Shanhe said this, naturally also in feeling and speaking. When he saw yesterday, Fan Zeng's high theory, naturally also very respectful, and for Fan Zeng's words, deeply appreciated. It can be said that Fan Zeng gave him a thick gift as soon as he met Xiang Liang, and his move was really high and couldn't be higher.

  After listening to Liu Shanhe's words, which seemed to be filled with a lot of helplessness, Zhang Liang was taken aback at first, and then said thoughtfully: "I think it's not entirely the case. In today's turbulent times, heroes are emerging one after another, as the saying goes, 'great heroes emerge in chaotic times.' Now that the warlords are competing for power, it's hard to say who will rule the world in the future. However, looking at the current situation, Chen Wang has just been defeated and killed, and now the only option is to support Xiang Liang's nephew. They are currently strong and powerful, winning battle after battle, and their prestige is greatly enhanced. Therefore, in my humble opinion, Your Excellency has no other choice but to rely on Xiang Liang's camp and the King of Chu."

  Liu Shanhe felt a surge of gratitude after hearing Zhang Liang's words. He knew that this was another crucial move that Zhang Liang had made for him. What is a superior person? It refers to someone who can offer timely guidance and advice at critical moments, that kind of person is called a superior person.

  While Zhang Liang was about to leave, he specially called Liu Shanhe and told him the plan, which was also a way to repay Liu Shanhe for their friendship. Otherwise, who would be willing to go to such trouble? It's worth noting that Zhang Liang's previous words were all for Liu Shanhe's sake!

  Liu Shanhe was well aware that if he didn't keep Zhang Liang, it would be his own incompetence. Since he crossed over to this place, basically everything was still the same as before, including people and events, even the environment was similar. It was like a game of chess, with the board exactly the same as before, now it's up to Liu Shanhe to make his move. But currently, he had few soldiers and generals, if there wasn't someone to guide him, he definitely wouldn't be able to achieve great things, his past ambitions would be in vain.

  Liu Shanhe nodded frequently after hearing Zhang Liang's words. He naturally knew that this was actually Zhang Liang's explanation to himself before leaving. However, what he wanted was not just a few words, but Zhang Liang himself! Thinking of this, Liu Shanhe knew that when the time came, he should take action decisively, otherwise, the opportunity would likely slip away in an instant.

  Thinking of this, Liu Shanhe quickly stood up and walked to Zhang Liang's side, saying urgently: "Sir, Liu Ji pays his respects again!" As he spoke, Liu Shanhe bent one knee, bowed twice, lowered his head, and made a deep bow to Zhang Liang. It should be known that in those years, this kind of kneeling ceremony was a very grand etiquette, second only to the highest specification of the kneeling ceremony.

  Therefore, when Zhang Liang saw Liu Shanhe making such a big ceremony for him, he was extremely surprised and hastily said: "Your Excellency, Your Excellency, you..."

  Zhang Liang was momentarily speechless, both excited and perplexed. After all, no matter how talented he was, he was just a scholar who could be bought for a price. And for scholars like him, even if they were exceptionally gifted, without a platform, it would all be in vain. This platform referred to the power of a certain faction or a powerful individual. Of course, even if one managed to attach themselves to such a powerful force, if the master did not listen to their ideas, it was equivalent to nothing.

  "Sir, sir, I want to invite you as my military advisor, please agree with me, please must agree with me!" Liu Shanhe said with extremely sincere emotions. Here, he is no longer inviting Zhang Liang as his military advisor, but begging him.

  "My lord, ah, the bright color, this is not to be, this is absolutely not to be! I am just a humble scholar, how dare I receive such a great honor?" Zhang Liang said as he helped Liu Shanhe into his seat, looking very flustered.

  "Sir, please don't say that scholars are not useful! In the past, Su Qin and Zhang Yi were also scholars, but weren't they also well-versed in strategy and tactics, with words flowing like a river? Compared to them, you naturally surpass them! Liu Bang came from a humble background and relied on his brothers' support to achieve what he has today. Without guidance from a superior person, it would be difficult for me to accomplish great things. Today, thanks to your teachings, I feel enlightened, as if my mind has been opened. Even if I were to bow three times and knock my head nine times, it wouldn't be excessive! So, Liu Ji dares to request again, asking you to condescend to become my military advisor, and I will forever be grateful for your great kindness!"

  Liu Shanhe's words were heartfelt, and naturally left Zhang Liang speechless. Indeed, when others have already spoken to this extent, it's not easy to add anything more. What struck a chord with Zhang Liang even more was Liu Shanhe's attitude - it was truly sincere! Just the other day, he had witnessed with his own eyes how Xiang Liang and his nephew treated their uncle Fan Zeng with arrogance. If he were to assist someone like that, would he be able to utilize his talents at all? On the other hand, looking at Liu Ji, although he came from a humble background, on one hand, he could grasp his ideas with remarkable clarity, and on the other hand, he could apply them in various ways. What was even more valuable was that he could listen to advice humbly, never acting as if he were superior to others - this kind of character was exactly what Zhang Liang needed. Therefore, Zhang Liang finally said to Liu Shanhe: "Sir, since things have come to this point... Ah, I'll do it like this: I, a humble man, can come to your camp to offer my services, but..."

  Liu Shanhe was overjoyed when he heard that Zhang Liang had agreed to be his military advisor, but as soon as he heard Zhang say "but", he knew there must be more to it, so he listened carefully.