Before Wang Chang came to Xu County in Guanzhong, he received two temporary official positions.
One is naturally an open identity as an envoy. As the tribute envoy of the General of the Cavalry of Guanzhong, he congratulated the emperor Liu Xie and offered gifts. The other identity is an insignificant sent by Wen Si.
In fact, these two identities are both obvious, because everyone knows that as envoys, they are actually sentinels to some extent.
Even though Fei Qian and Cao Cao were in opposition, they were still a family member of the Han Dynasty on the surface.
Both sides built inscriptions specifically used to entertain envoys to accommodate envoys like Wang Chang. Then because of such a special inscription, there were many official documents on both sides, which were passed on to each other through this inn.
This has some meanings similar to later embassies.
Of course, neither Fei Qian nor Cao Cao would be so naive that he thought that the other party would tell himself honestly about everything, so collecting information within the default range will of course become a potential job for the personnel sent by both parties within the inns.
As for Wang Chang’s other things that are hidden under the identity doll, it’s hard to say...
The weather these days has been very clear.
The sun was shining brightly and there was no cloud in the sky, but this clearness did not make everyone feel comfortable, especially those Cao soldiers who were monitoring Wang Chang and others outside the inn.
Because the weather is clear, the distance is very long. These Cao soldiers only need to stand on the high platform of the sentry tower to see the movements of the yard and the gate in the inn in the distance.
"Why do you need to monitor? Why don't you just arrest me?" A soldier said impatiently, "Aren't they enemies? Why do you have to do this?"
"You don't understand this..." An older soldier next to him said, "This is called "the two countries will fight and behead them..."
"Then the bullshit, who was killed last time, wasn't that the young man still a little dissatisfied.
『Who is that? Oh, are you talking about the one from Runan last time?』 The older nodded and said, 『Isn’t this clear? The two countries are fighting! It’s a “country”. Then the Yellow Turban bandits in Runan last time are such a nonsense “country”? Hey, here… the people are here! Everyone stares at them carefully and recognizes the people!』
I saw a fleet of trains at the inn before the gate, and then more than a dozen people came out of the inn and arrived at the gate to greet Wang Chang.
"Welcome the King's Envoy!" A middle-aged man in the lead brought everyone to salute,
Wang Chang did not put on any airs, but got out of the car quickly, "Are you Chen Guanling?"
"It's right below." Chen Bin nodded.
The files he had read in Chang'an quickly emerged in Wang Chang's mind...
Chen Bin.
Chenliu people.
The face is white and has three long whiskers, without scars.
Because of his poor family, the young man traveled to Guanzhong with a caravan. Later, he entered the Shoushan Academy Palace and obtained a job as the post of the exam. He was transferred to Xu County as the inn.
Wang Chang bowed to Chen Bin, and then Chen Bin introduced Wang Chang to other personnel in the inn.
Wang Chang's hearts appeared one by one the files that he saw in Wenshi, and then his eyes touched a guard on one side, nodded slightly, and smiled and gave in to Chen Bin, and walked into the gate of the inn.
This is used to entertain the official figures of both parties, so there are not many idle people. The inn is also relatively clean and tidy, with trees, shrubs, ground walkways, etc. I don’t know if it was because of the daily cleaning or the temporary cleaning, but I can’t see any debris and dirt.
Chen Bin led Wang Chang inward and arrived in the main hall, and invited Wang Chang to sit down again.
Wang Chang asked Chen Bin to sit in the upper head together, and the two of them gave in another humility.
Everyone around them stood silently, saying that it was OK to watch the show, or that it was OK to measure each other. Anyway, after Wang Chang and Chen Bin sat together on the top, the rest of the people sat down one after another.
Chen Bin once again introduced the officials and related facilities in the inn to Wang Chang and others, and also roughly described some of the current situation in Xu County. Wang Chang also introduced the personnel he brought, and then talked about the subsequent work arrangements. The simple meeting between the two parties ended, and everyone took their leave, each of them busy with their own affairs, leaving Chen Bin and Wang Chang in the hall.
"Tomorrow, people from the Dongshutai will come to visit the King's envoy, and there may be some ridicule... Please don't care about the envoy..." Chen Bingong bowed and said, "If the King's envoy has no other orders..."
Wang Chang was stunned for a moment, "Damn it? What does it mean?"
Chen Bin smiled and said, "The people in Shandong are arrogant and regard Guanzhong as the Western Rong, so... but they will not lose their etiquette, but the words may be a little... Perhaps this is also a Shandong strategy. They intend to provoke and disrupt our stance. I hope the envoys can be clear and do not fall into such a trick."
In fact, it was not only Cao Cao who was like this for Fei Qian's envoys, but in the Three Kingdoms in history, it may be a tradition to mock each other among the envoys. When Zhang Wen visited Shu, he debated with Qin Mi. When Zhang Feng was envoys Wu, he joked with Zhuge Jin about the country's title. Even if there were envoys, he could mock the monarch in person, or deliberately irritate him to test the other party's reaction to obtain more information, which can be regarded as an interesting phenomenon in the history of diplomatic relations among the Three Kingdoms.
Wang Chang nodded to show his understanding.
Chen Bin paused for a moment, then smiled and said to Wang Chang: "Wang is engaged, Guanzhong... everything is fine?"
Wang Chang noticed the change in the name of Chen Bin, and then he also noticed that Chen Bin seemed to caress the jade pendant on his waist intentionally or unintentionally. He couldn't help but say in surprise: "Director Chen... Could it be..."
Seeing that Wang Chang's eyes fell on the jade pendant, Chen Bin took it and handed it to Wang Chang. Wang Chang took it and saw that there were eight small characters engraved on the inside of the jade pendant, "Yun a gentleman, and great success." If it were an ordinary person, he would probably think it was a blessing sentence, after all, this sentence does have the meaning of blessing.
But only those from Wensi knew that except for those officials placed in the Ming Dynasty, most of the other people who were active outside had no seals of Wensi, but were similar to small objects like this that Chen Bin took out.
The jade pendant that Chen Bin took out was already a very obvious "hint". Perhaps it was because Wang Chang's identity was relatively safe, or perhaps it was because Chen Bin had received relevant instructions before, so he took out the jade pendant with the words "A gentleman is a gentleman, and a great success in the game."
There are also some more hidden objects, such as sentences like "Dongfang Xuyu Gaozhi" and some other sentences, which are relatively less straightforward. People who are not inside Wenshi, basically don't know these secret codes very well.
At the same time, these utensils that represent identity may not be jade pendants, but may also be a wood carving, or an embroidered text on a wallet, etc.
Before Wang Chang arrived in Xu County, he always thought that Chen Bin, the so-called director in the inn, was just an ordinary minor official, not a member of Youwen Si. The deputy director who looked a little deep was also the commander of the guard. The man named Chang Fang was from Youwen Si. As a result, Chen Bin was the main leader.
Chen Bin smiled and said, "It's just real."
Wang Chang suddenly realized.
That's true. If Chen Bin hadn't taken the initiative to express his identity, even Wang Chang would have thought that Chen Bin was just a cover for protecting Chang Fang, who would have thought that Chang Fang, who often acted secretly, was the cover for the fact that the real person in charge was openly and righteously?
After confirming each other's identities, there seemed to be a little more intimate between the two.
Chen Bin briefly introduced Wang Chang about the current situation in Xu County.
Wang Chang nodded and suddenly asked: "The emperor... what decision is there now? Is this Prime Minister Cao so arrogant like a rumor?"
Chen Bin smiled, "It is not necessarily arrogance, but it is true that autocracy is true. If you are engaged in the process of meeting the emperor and have some questions, you might as well be more careful..."
Wang Chang nodded, "Well, thank you for the reminder, I will pay special attention."
"The people from Shandong, especially those in Yingchuan, have relatively different words and deeds from Guanzhong. Since the king has been engaged in this place, on the one hand, it represents the lord, and should not be too cowardly in his actions, and on the other hand, it should not be too radical to make the situation worse... The king's work is sure to be clear about the degree, so I won't say much... In Yingchuan, it is not a united mind. If the king's work has something to do, you might as well start from this direction..."
Wang Chang nodded to indicate that he was taught.
Chen Bin said some more things, and then said that he would give Wang Chang a welcome banquet tonight, and asked Wang Chang to rest first, so he said goodbye.
In the next few days, Wang Chang had been conducting a rough investigation of the situation in Yingchuan, the current political situation, economic development, military system, and the operation of civil plans in the next few days with the help of Chen Bin. These investigations were mixed with banquets of various Yingchuan gentry or famous scholars, talking to these people and exploring each other's ideas.
At the same time, Wang Chang was also received by Xun Yu. Xun Yu said that Cao Cao would arrive in Xu County soon and the celebration would be held as scheduled. He also asked Wang Chang if he had any needs and whether he needed any additional subsidies.
After Wang Chang's observation, he had a deeper understanding of Xu County or Yingchuan. Wang Chang would record these perceptions in detail every night...
Wang Chang felt that in Yingchuan, or Yuzhou, or even the wider Shandong area, the vigorous spirit and enterprising consciousness of the early Han Dynasty had basically been wiped out. Basically, all people in Shandong expressed their expectation of peace and hoped that the chaos in the Han Dynasty would subside as soon as possible, but they did not seem to have the courage to give up everything in order to fight for this kind of peace.
This situation made Wang Chang feel that people from Shandong were very conflicted.
People in Shandong look very proud, and may also be called arrogant. They always express the glory of their ancestors, the inheritance of their families, the precipitation of history, etc. At the same time, they regard themselves as the orthodox Han Dynasty. They always adhere to a high-ranking attitude towards Guanzhong, but behind this attitude, there is a hint of fear...
Many children of the gentry, even some ordinary people in Yingchuan, believed that Xu County's military operations were ruthless and unimaginable. Of course, their ideas also have roots. Whether it was Yuan Shao, Yuan Shu, or Fei Qian, they did not really attack Xu County. Even if it was a critical moment, they were eventually "repelled".
They either attributed these victories to themselves or felt that they were the role of the emperor, but they did not think that they were the contribution of the soldiers...
This is very strange, but it seems to be reasonable.
This psychological sense of security and self-indulgent mood have weakened their sensitivity to external changes, making them most satisfied with the current situation, and believe that this confrontation will continue. Some people even think that it will be more beneficial to Shandong in the future.
This kind of psychology may be an important reason why they are unwilling to accept Cao Cao or are unwilling to completely surrender to Cao Cao. After all, what they are more proud of is "literary achievements", rather than the "martial strategy" they have abandoned...
On that day, Wang Chang wore a casual outfit, but with a few guards, he walked out of the inn and headed towards the market in Xu County. Today he was wearing an ordinary gherkin robe, which was almost similar to the guards around him, and it was also the type of robe that ordinary families often wore in Xu County.
As soon as he left, Wang Chang noticed that there were two people dressed in a farmer's costumes under the corner opposite the inn, following from afar. He knew that these two people were sent by Cao to monitor him, and he was not surprised at all, and continued to walk slowly along the street as usual.
The tracking and surveillance of diplomatic envoys is almost a tacit act of both sides.
When Wang Chang attended the banquet in Xu County these days, he often felt some gaze following him, no matter where he went, who he talked to.
After leaving the inn, heading east, passing three streets, you will reach the East City of Xu County. This is a market between the wealthy and the peaceful areas of Xu County. To the north is a wealthy area, high-ranking officials and noble people all live in Lifang to the north, and to the south of the market is a civilian area. Some handicraftsmen and ordinary people live there, so there are polarizations in this market. On the one hand, there are expensive luxury goods, exquisite utensils, expensive food, etc. On the other hand, there are cheap items, rough and simple food.
Wang Chang walked slowly along the market. The closer he was to the market, the more pedestrians and vendors were coming. The stalkers behind him followed him, and they didn't even hide his whereabouts.
On the premise that both parties understand each other's existence, the purpose of the stalker is no longer to secretly track the target, but to clearly stick to the target and prevent the target from conducting any intelligence transactions or secret activities. In other words, such stalkers will not care whether they are discovered or not. The focus of their work is to follow the target and always put pressure on them. If they can also find some hidden clues or lurking personnel while affecting the target's actions, it will naturally be an additional gain.
"It's very clumsy." Wang Chang secretly commented, feeling that these stalkers really have no technical content at all, but he still carefully observed to see if someone was deceiving him and developing some real and real tracking methods, deliberately using this clumsy tracking method to make him relax his vigilance.
Wang Chang walked in and out at the streets and alleys, and the store entrance, swaying around, and then confirmed that there were indeed other traps. Not far behind these two clumsy followers, there were a few people who looked like children of the gentry. In fact, they followed Wang Chang. Sometimes when their eyes met, they would subconsciously turn their heads and pretend to watch the goods in the surrounding shops.
Wang Chang laughed and continued to stroll around the market slowly. From time to time, he walked into the store, and seemed to be very interested in purchasing all kinds of items, and asked the guard to carry them in large and small bags...
"What's wrong, something is wrong..." Behind Wang Chang, among the real stalkers behind the two "farmers", an elderly man seemed to feel something strange, "Did you two find something? Why do I feel something is wrong?"
"What's wrong?" the young man asked, "It seems that they are just here to go shopping in the market and buy things, so there seems to be no problem?"
The elderly touched their beards, "Well... but I just thought something was wrong... Wait, how many people were they when they came out? Are they five or six?"
"Uh... are there five?" The young man hesitated.
Because the robes worn by Wang Chang and the guards are almost the same, they are both ordinary Gebu robes. At the same time, many people in Xu County, Yingchuan are wearing the same color. If they don’t look at the front, just by their backs and clothes, they may not be able to tell the obvious difference between Wang Chang’s people and Yingchuan people.
At the same time, the two unconcealed "farmers" staring openly in front of the inn were the two unconcealed "farmers". Then the second group of followers followed Wang Chang and others before they followed a little further. Therefore, they did not have a deep impression of how many people Wang Chang was leaving the inn.
"Go and ask, how many people have come out?" The old stalker was a little panicked. He instinctively felt that it might have been missing, "Ask clearly!"
When the young man heard this, he quickly rushed forward for a while, and didn't care about being exposed. He caught up with the two "farmers" and asked a few questions in a low voice, then came back with a somewhat bad expression: "One said it was five people, the other said it was six people... Damn, they couldn't even remember the number of people..."
"It's broken... there must be six people! It must be!" The old man stamped his feet in a hurry, "One is missing! One is missing! It must have left at the street intersection with a lot of people just now! It must be!"
"Then we..." the young man was a little at a loss, "What should we do? Should we follow us or look for it?"
The old man was silent for a long time, "No, maybe I was dazzled... We just kept up... In fact, there might be five people, only five people..."
"Ah?" The young man was a little surprised.
The elderly looked over with a squint, "It is the responsibility of the previous person to not count the number of people... It is our responsibility for not following the person... Since the previous person told us that there were five people, we followed the five people... Is there any problem?"
Chapter completed!