Jia Xian

  Gao Fei followed Beigong Boyu to a stone house carved into the rock wall, while Zhao Yun, Xiahou Lan and Pei Yuanshao closely followed behind him, not leaving Gao Fei's side for an inch. The atmosphere of Luodu Valley made people feel very tense, from the moment they entered, they only saw Beigong Boyu alone, but all four of them vaguely felt that thousands of eyes were staring at them.

  The tables and chairs in the stone house were all polished with stones. Beigong Boyu gestured for Gao Fei and Li Wenhao to sit down, while Zhao Yun and others stood behind Gao Fei.

  After the three of them sat down, Beigong Boyu said: "I didn't know that Your Excellency was coming, and I failed to welcome you from afar. Please forgive me!"

  Gao Fei replied with a smile: "Brother Beigong, you're too polite. You and I are both from Liangzhou, so we can be considered half-fellow countrymen. Since we're fellow countrymen, why bother distinguishing between each other?"

  Bei Gong Bo Yu is a northerner after all, and his temperament is quite bold. He never liked beating around the bush, so when he heard Gao Fei's words, he immediately showed his true colors. After laughing loudly, he said in a loud voice: "Since that's the case, I won't stand on ceremony with you either, Your Excellency. It's my good fortune that you've condescended to visit my humble abode. There's a saying... Ah yes, it's called 'the humble cottage brings honor'. I'm a straightforward person, so I won't mince words. What teachings do you have for me on your esteemed visit here?"

  Gao Fei hastily said, "Oh, that's right. I met Brother Li along the way and learned that he was invited by Brother Bei to come to Xining. Coincidentally, I also have a friend in Xining, so I came over to take a look and bother Brother Bei's place. Please forgive me."

  Beigong Boyu turned his head and took a look at Li Wenhao, seeing Li Wenhao nod slightly, then said: "Lord, you're too polite. I and Lord are both from Liangzhou, we can be considered half-fellow countrymen. Since you've arrived here, don't be polite with me, just treat this place as your own home. You can stay for as long as you want. Come in!"

  As soon as the voice fell, a big man in barbarian attire walked out of the stone house and replied: "What orders does the host have?"

  Beigong Boyu said: "There is a noble guest in the valley, go and instruct them to bring some good wine and meat."

  The barbarian in Han attire nodded and retreated, turning around and walking out of the stone hut, immediately followed by the sound of rapid footsteps.

  Bei Gong Bo Yu glanced at Zhao Yun and others behind Gao Fei's back, feeling that among the three people, Zhao Yun was extraordinary and had a heroic appearance. The Hu people respected heroes, so he couldn't help but ask: "I wonder how to address this brother behind the lord?"

  Gao Fei turned his head and glanced at Zhao Yun, indicating that he should answer himself. Zhao Yun bowed and clasped his fists, saying: "I am Zhao Zilong of Changshan!"

  Bei Gong Bo Yu had not heard of Zhao Yun's name, but he was already three-tenths pleased with him. Since the barbarians were convenient and didn't pay much attention to etiquette, he immediately pointed to the empty stone bench around him and said: "Since you three are Lord Hou's attendants, coming here shouldn't be slow either. Why don't we sit down together and drink wine and eat meat?"

  Zhaoyun, Xiahoulan and Pei Yuanshao looked at each other in dismay, their faces showing difficulty, none of them dared to speak out, after all they were under Gao Fei's command, without Gao Fei's order, they did not dare to act arbitrarily.

  Gao Fei smiled and said to Zhao Yun and others: "All sit down, it's rare for the host to be so generous."

  Zhao Yun and others dared to sit down only then. The six people sat around a round stone table, which had a bit of the atmosphere of a drinking party.

  Then Beigong Boyu and Li Wenhao again praised Gao Fei's merits, saying that he was young and promising, with a bright future ahead of him, and possessing both literary and military talents. Gao Fei, who was being flattered, felt somewhat elated.

  Before long, the wine and meat were on the table, and everyone was having a great time eating and drinking without any restraint. After they had enough to eat and drink, Beigong Boyu had someone arrange rooms for Gao Fei and others, and he saw them off with Li Wenhoul.

  When they returned to the stone house, Beigong Boyu changed his attitude and sternly asked: "Wenhou younger brother, where did you meet this Marquis? You brought him here, aren't you afraid of ruining our big deal?"

  Li Wenhou chuckled and said to Beigong Boyu, "Brother, don't worry, this is exactly what I had in mind. Think about it, Gao Fei is a man from Liangzhou, and his achievements in pacifying the Yellow Turbans in Hebei have already spread throughout Liangzhou. With his current reputation, if we use his name to make a rallying cry, we can definitely recruit many Han Chinese young men. Isn't that why you brought back so many famous scholars from Wuwei, Zhangye, and Jiuquan?"

  Bei Gong Bo Yu said: "His reputation is louder than other high-ranking officials, but after all, he is a Houye conferred by the imperial court. Can a dignified Han dynasty's nobleman really be of one mind with us?"

  "Brother, since he has come here, he can't escape our control. Everything will be decided by us. The only thing is that I don't know what the Qiang people have prepared."

  Bei Gong Bo Yu said: "Xian Ling Qiang, San Lang Qiang and Bai Ma Qiang are all almost ready, just waiting for Shao Dang Qiang. I estimate that we can start next month."

  Li Wenhou smiled and said, "That's good. As long as these Qiang people rebel, my younger brother and I can take advantage of the situation and rise up. Taking advantage of the fact that the Yellow Turbans in the Central Plains have not been pacified, we can first plunder Jincheng, then advance to Longxi and Hanyang, and finally press on to the Three Auxiliaries. Once we break through Chang'an, we can occupy the area west of Guanzhong."

  Bei Gong Bo Yu said: "Your attention is not bad, but what we lack now is a wise and resourceful person. Jin Cheng people Bian Zhang and Han Xu have some wisdom, I have already sent someone to invite them, and it is estimated that they will arrive in two days. At that time, use the name of Dou Xiang Hou Gao Fei to start the uprising, and after occupying Guanzhong, eliminate him under the pretext of clearing up the rebels' crimes. Are Guanzhong and Liangzhou not our brothers?"

  Li Wenhou gave a thumbs up and said with a gloomy smile: "Brother is indeed brilliant."

  Bei Gong Bo Yu called for someone again, instructing to send a few more jars of good wine to Gao Fei and others. To him, Gao Fei was an important card in his hand, and he didn't dare to be slow.

  The sky was getting late, Gao Fei sat in the stone house, looking at the flickering lamp, thinking about what kind of words to use tomorrow to persuade Beigong Boyu and Li Wenhoul to follow him. Just as he was thinking, he saw Zhao Yun standing outside the door, and first saluted him: "Your Excellency!"

  "Zi Long? It's so late, you haven't rested yet? Come in!" A wooden board replaced the entire door, and with a slight push, one could enter. There was no sense of security at all, and Gao Fei hadn't even blocked the board at the entrance, so there wasn't even a door.

  Zhao Yun responded with a sound and entered the stone house, walking straight to Gao Fei's side, sticking to Gao Fei's ear and whispering for a while.

  Gao Fei's face changed color as he listened, and he hastily asked in a low voice, "Is everything you said true?"

  Zhao Yun said: "A thousand truths and ten thousand certainties, I was just thinking of going to relieve myself, and unintentionally saw it, right here not far away."

  "Strange," said Gao Fei, "I rarely see anyone around here. What's the point of capturing so many Chinese?"

  Zhao Yun shook his head and said, "Lord Hou, I still vaguely feel that someone has been monitoring us from a distance. I've had this feeling since we entered this so-called valley."

  "I also vaguely felt it, but I just can't put my finger on what's wrong. What about Xia Houlan and Pei Yuanshao?"

  "In the room, let's be on high alert and come here if there's any sudden situation. Master Hou, do you think we've entered a den of thieves? This group of people make a living by selling human beings!"

  Gao Fei shook his head and said: "I'm afraid it's not that simple. How many Chinese people have you seen in total?"

  "There are almost a dozen or so, and judging from their attire, they should all be Confucian scholars who have received a good education."

  Gao Fei suddenly felt that something was off, and he thought of the historical event where Beigong Boyu and Li Wenhoul held Bian Zhang and Han Sui hostage to rebel together. He suddenly felt a chill on his back, wondering if he would also be taken hostage like Bian Zhang and Han Sui to rebel?

  Inside the stone house, the magpies and sparrows were silent. Except for Zhao Yun and Gao Fei's breathing sounds, only the sound of the candle flame jumping could be heard. Outside was also eerily quiet. This silence lasted only for a moment, and then the two people heard a very light and gentle footsteps, slowly approaching the stone house.

  "Shh, someone's there!" Gao Fei and Zhao Yun were both skilled in martial arts, so their hearing was still good. After detecting something off, they simultaneously said to each other.

  Gao Fei then motioned to Zhao Yun to sit down, and hastily poured a cup of wine from the table for Zhao Yun. He said loudly: "Come on, Zilong, you've been following me for so long, no merit but hard work, thanks for your hard work."

  Zhao Yun immediately understood Gao Fei's meaning, took over the wine, smiled and said "Thank you, Lord Hou", and drank the wine in one gulp. At this time, the footsteps had also stopped, and a figure appeared in the night at the entrance of the stone house.

  "Your Excellency's presence is a great honor, and I regret not being able to meet you during the day. Now, visiting at such a late hour may be inconvenient, please forgive me for any trouble caused. But I wonder if Your Excellency would be willing to have a conversation with me?" The visitor wore a black long gown, with both hands clasped in fists, and the wide sleeves fluttered slightly in the night wind outside the stone house. His face was indistinct, and under the cover of darkness, he seemed like a spirit emerging from the black night, but his speech was fluent and standard Mandarin.

  Although Gao Fei had not seen the man's face, he could be certain that this person was not a barbarian. Barbarians couldn't speak such polite and courteous words, and their tone would never have such pure and proper official language. He immediately stood up and bowed towards the night outside the stone house: "The guest has arrived, please come in!"

  The man took a step forward, and his whole person gradually emerged from the night's shroud. Under the light of the stone house, his face was revealed. He was not tall, between thirty-five to forty years old, with a sturdy build, and a complexion that showed a hint of bronze. His chin had several inches of green whiskers, and under his thick and clear eyebrows, there was a pair of eyes shining like jewels. His broad forehead displayed wisdom beyond ordinary people, and in his calm demeanor, there was a hint of melancholy that could move anyone, yet made him seem profound and hard to fathom. He stood with an air of elegance, exuding a sense of refinement.

  "Who are you?" Gaofei saw that this person was dressed in Han attire and was extremely elegant, he had never seen anyone like him before, not even the famous Confucian scholar Lu Zhi looked as comfortable as him, so he couldn't help but ask.

  That man smiled slightly and bowed his head, saying: "I am Jia Xun, styled Wenhe, a gentleman of Wuwei."