Chapter 609 Zhang Lu on both sides of the snake and mouse
Zhu Zhi and others have all eaten honey and stone honey, but if you want to ask where these things come from and how they are made, how can they, who read the books of sages, care about such trivial matters.
Finally, Guan Yu and the others found a sugar merchant and asked him where Shimi came from.
Only then did they realize that the stone honey was originally produced in Jiaozhou, and that its place of origin was actually in their Han Dynasty.
But Guan Yu continued to ask how this stone honey was made?
These big sugar merchants knew nothing about it. They just sold it from Jiaozhou and didn't know how to make it.
Guan Yu was a military general and didn't care about this. He sent a letter to Liu Bei on a flying pigeon and handed all the information about Shi Mi's letter to Liu Bei, asking Liu Bei to find a way to figure out the whole story.
But Guan Yu doesn't care, which doesn't mean Zhu Zhi and the others don't care either. Yizhou is close to Yangzhou, and Yizhou can grow sugar cane, which means that Yangzhou can grow sugar cane. Although they don't know how sugar cane is made into sugar, they prevent it.
They cannot help but want to make a fortune.
Now that they know that sugar cane comes from Jiaozhou, the next thing is not difficult for them.
Zhu Zhi and others did not know the steps of making sugar, but it is impossible that the wealthy nobles in Jiaozhou did not know the steps.
Just ask your old friends in Jiaozhou. They can understand the secret.
Zhu Zhi and the others are not worried about these old friends concealing the information. After all, Da Ganjun has already planted hundreds of thousands or millions of acres. Trying to hide the secret of Shi Mi is like hiding one's ears and stealing the bell. It cannot be hidden.
The sugar industry is obviously a golden avenue, and Zhu Zhi and others may not be willing to let go of such a financial avenue.
Hanzhong, Nanzheng, countryside!
At this time, Zhang Lu was a little nervous. Liu Bei, who was staying in Xiangyang City, suddenly sent a message saying that he had come to Hanzhong to discuss with him how to deal with the military situation of the Daqian Army.
The reason why he was nervous was precisely because of this incident. The year before last, he overestimated his capabilities and joined the Central Plains War. He asked his brother to take part in the war with 20,000 troops. He wanted to let the princes of the Central Plains see the strength of his Hanzhong Army, but he did not expect to be beaten by Lei Gong.
His brother Zhang Wei was almost captured by Lei Gong, and his entire army of 20,000 was wiped out.
What frightened Zhang Lu even more was that Cao Cao, who was stronger than him, lost Qingzhou and Xuzhou in the first battle, and was driven to a deserted island overseas by Lei Gong. He could only live this miserable life for the rest of his life.
Cao Cao was not more than 10 times stronger than him in terms of territory or strength, so he was easily crushed by Lei Gong. The total number of Hanzhong's soldiers and horses was only 50,000, of which 20,000 were wiped out by Da Gan's army. If Lei Gong had turned his troops against him,
Trust yourself, he still has a way to survive!
For a moment, Zhang Lu felt regretful. It was not good to just stay in the paradise of Hanzhong. Why did he have to be full and get involved in the wars between various princes in the Central Plains!
Now it’s okay. He offended Lei Gong, the most powerful prince in the Central Plains, for no reason. Daqian had a million troops, and even Sili’s army couldn’t resist him. Hanzhong only had 30,000 defeated soldiers. What could he rely on?
Resist the Thunder Lord's army?
During that time, Zhang Lu was suffering on the stove every day, and he was discussing with his advisers every day how to calm down the anger of Lei Gong so that Lei Gong would not pay attention to himself, a prince who only lived in Hanzhong.
It's a pity that Zhang Lu and his men discussed for a long time and couldn't find any good way. The only idea was to strengthen the contact with Liu Bei. When Lei Gong attacked them, he asked Liu Bei to attack Xuzhou and Yuzhou to contain the Daqian army. Soldier.
At the same time, he also sent the elders of the Five Pecks of Rice Sect to Jizhou to contact the old Taoist brothers, hoping to use this method to make Lei Gong let him go.
During the Eastern Han Dynasty, Taoism had begun to transform from a political knowledge to a religious knowledge, and the founder was Zhang Lu's father Zhang Ling, the famous Zhang Tianshi in history. At this time, the Han Dynasty was learning the skills of Huang Lao There were not many celebrities, but Zhang Ling had a close relationship with other Taoist leaders. He often discussed mysteries and Taoism, and he and Xiangkai also developed friendships.
Therefore, Zhang Lu and Xiang Kai reluctantly became friends. After his envoys came to Jixian, they went to Xiang Kai and told Zhang Lu that he wanted to ask for mercy.
Xiangkai felt that this was an opportunity to make a contribution, so he approached Xu Wei and said that he was willing to serve as an envoy to persuade Zhang Lu to come to Hanzhong to surrender.
Hanzhong is the gateway to Yizhou. If Hanzhong surrenders, Yizhou will be much easier to fight. Xu Wei also felt that if Zhang Lu could be persuaded to surrender, it would be of great benefit to attack Yizhou and unify the world, so he agreed to Xiangkaihe idea.
In Xu Wei's view, it is impossible for Yangzhou and Jingzhou to stop him. Liu Bei's army is not as large as his, his combat effectiveness is not as good as his, the money and food in his treasury is not as good as his, and even the advantage of the navy will soon be gone. It can be said that It was much easier for me to pacify Yangzhou and Jingzhou than it was for Cao Cao.
Only Yizhou is the biggest obstacle to Da Qian's unification of the world. The terrain of Yizhou is that one man is in charge and ten thousand people can't break it. Even if he has advantages in artillery and military strength, he will be wiped out by this terrain.
At the same time, Liu Bei is becoming more and more courageous as he becomes more frustrated. It is impossible for him to surrender voluntarily like Liu Adou. If Liu Bei is really allowed to defend Yizhou, even if he has a million troops, it will be difficult to invade Yizhou.
Therefore, if Hanzhong County is in the hands of Da Qian, the difficulty of capturing Yizhou will be reduced by half.
So Xu Wei sent Xiang Kai as an envoy to Hanzhong to persuade Zhang Lu to surrender, and at the same time ordered Zhang Baiqi of Sili to assist him.
After Xiangkai arrived in Hanzhong, he was warmly welcomed. Zhang Lu even greeted him with the courtesy of a junior. It can be said that it gave Xiangkai enough face.
Xiangkai accepted it politely and directly explained his purpose: "Now the situation in the world is very clear. Daqian has occupied ten states in the world. Only Liu Bei is still hiding in the south corner of the Yangtze River and resisting. But this is nothing more than a mantis trying to block the car. In ancient times, whoever conquers the Central Plains conquers the world. Liu Bei, relying on the barren south of the Yangtze River, has no way of resisting our millions of lions from Dagan, so the world will definitely be unified by Dagan. Do you think so?"
Zhang Lu and others nodded in agreement. In the past, they sat in a well in Hanzhong and looked at the sky, thinking that they were no worse than the princes of the Central Plains.
But after experiencing the Battle of Yuzhou, in which the entire 20,000 elite army was wiped out, they realized that the gap between the Hanzhong Army and the Central Plains princes was like the gap between the elite and the militia. It was a world of difference.
In their opinion, Liu Bei's Jingzhou Army was already more elite and powerful than the Northern and Southern armies back then. However, such a powerful Jingzhou Army was still defeated by Lei Gong's Daqian Army. It is impossible for anyone in the world to stop Lei Gong from getting it. In the world, not even Liu Bei can do it.
Xiangkai smiled and said: "So now is the best opportunity for you to join Daqian. Hanzhong is the gateway to Yizhou, and as long as Yizhou is captured, the world will be unified in less than five years. You will work hard for Daqian's great cause of unification." Established meritorious service.
All Taoist sects in the world belong to the same family, and I have already helped you plead with the ruler. As long as you hand over Hanzhong, you can keep your property, and even the Five Pecks of Rice Cult can be spread in Daqian."
This condition made Zhang Lu's people happy, especially being able to spread the Five Dou Rice Cult was an unexpected surprise.
But Xiangkai added: "All your land must be handed over, and all Taoist temples that will be missionary in the future must be registered with our cadres, and the finances must be made public. If anyone among you embezzles this money, he will also be punished with the crime of corruption."
This is unacceptable to Zhang Lu and others. They think that the money donated by believers belongs to them. Logically speaking, it should be at their discretion. Now it is open and corrupt. This does not mean that they are helping Lei Gong to work. This Taoist priest Why bother in front of them? They might as well take off their Taoist robes and be more comfortable as ordinary people.