After Zhang Lu spent several days crossing Micang Mountain, he was relieved that there were no pursuers behind him. However, at this moment, he suddenly received news that there was an "enemy" in front of him!
Although it is not certain that he is an "enemy", he is not one of our own...
After a moment's hesitation, Zhang Lu also understood the principle of "it's a blessing, not a disaster, but a disaster cannot be avoided" - it was too late to turn around and go back, not to mention the lack of people and horses, and the Micang Mountain Road behind them, how could they possibly escape?
So Zhang Lu chose to take advantage of the fact that the "enemy troops" hadn't come yet, wash up first, and put on the robe of the Celestial Master. He couldn't lose the magnanimity of the Celestial Master!
Then wait for the other party to come...
After the army with the Chu army's banner arrived, the leader flew forward in armor and turned out to be a golden and jade general!
"Isn't Marquis Hanning in front of us?" the Chu army general shouted.
"It is this Heavenly Master!" Zhang Lu replied with his head held high.
"Are you facing Marquis Hanning at the front?" The Chu army general seemed to have not heard and asked again.
Zhang Lu frowned a little, thinking that the other party didn't hear clearly. Just when he was about to answer again, Yan Pu stepped forward and whispered a few words in his ear. After Zhang Lu heard this, his eyes became a little annoyed.
However, there was no attack in the end, and he answered honestly again: "The Marquis of Hanning, Zhang Lu, is here!"
General Jinyu of Chu State finally understood what he was saying. He quickly landed in front of Han Ninghou's army and called on the Chu army to slowly come forward.
Seeing this scene, the generals of Tianshi Mansion were a little nervous, and the soldiers also grasped their weapons.
The Jinyu general of Chu State seemed not to have seen it, and cupped his hands to Zhang Lu and said: "Master Ninghou of Han is fine! Hearing that the Xiliang bandit army invaded Hanzhong, my king could not sleep at night, and he was not satisfied with the food. He was afraid that reinforcements would not be able to arrive, so Hanzhong
The people and the Marquis of Hanning were robbed... Alas! It's a pity that it's a step too late. Since the Marquis of Hanning is here, I guess Hanzhong has been completely occupied, right?"
Zhang Lu was unhappy for a while when he was told by the general of the Chu army, but he still replied: "Yes...Nanzheng has been lost! It's just that the Xiliang bandit army is brutal, and our Tianshi Dao is firmly established in the hearts of the people in Hanzhong. With a decree, we can win the army."
One hundred thousand, if His Highness the King of Chu is willing to assist, it would only be a matter of seconds to regain Hanzhong."
While not irritating the Chu army, Zhang Lu also tried his best to emphasize his "popular aspirations" in Hanzhong.
Yan Pu smiled bitterly to himself - he naturally heard what Zhang Lu was thinking!
A few days ago, Yan Pu also analyzed the current world situation for Zhang Lu on the road.
Now that Han, Wei, and Chu have stabilized themselves, it is time for a new round of war. The "temporarily stable" years of the past six or seven years may be completely broken.
As the stronghold of the forces supporting the Han Dynasty, "Hanzhong" was undoubtedly very dangerous under such circumstances.
In the past, Hanzhong was able to be preserved not only because of its geographical advantage, but also because Guanzhong was in decline, Longxi was in chaos, and Liu Zhang in Xichuan was a waste, so it was "invincible".
But now Hanzhong has become the focus of chaos in the world. Just a "geographical advantage" is not enough to protect yourself!
For today's plan, you can either choose one and surrender, or be prepared to conquer the world.
Of course, the latter was entirely to take care of Zhang Lu's face, and Yan Pu never thought of this possibility.
As for choosing one, the Wei State, which is auxiliary to the Han Dynasty, is definitely out of reach. There are only two choices - the Han Dynasty and the Chu State!
Both options are actually not very good...
The former was emotional, and Zhang Lu had a lot of resistance. Although Yan Pu also explained that taking refuge in the Han Dynasty is not the same as taking refuge in Liu Zhang. It is completely possible to win over Ma Teng and Han Sui and unite with the Xiliang Clan to resist the suppression of the clan.
But it is still foreseeable that Zhang Lu’s treatment will definitely not be that good!
the latter……
In the case of Chu State, first of all, the geographical location is not suitable. If Chu State wants to enter Hanzhong, its location is very "out of place". It is difficult to walk along the "Badong-Bazhong-Micang Mountain" route, and it is almost impossible to go against the Han River!
As a result, Chu State may not be able to regain Hanzhong at all for a long time. If only Bazhong is left in the end, Zhang Lu will be almost as surrendered as a "naked" surrender.
So for the Chu State, the significance of Zhang Lu's existence is just that "it may be useful when attacking Hanzhong in the future."
Similarly, for Zhang Lu, there is no guarantee of remuneration...
Of course, the difference between the two is that if you join the Chu State, your personal safety will be guaranteed, but you may not achieve much in your official career, especially since Zhang Lu is more concerned about the mission of Tianshi Dao, so I am afraid that the Chu State will not assist him.
I'm afraid it will be the same as Yu Ji. To build a Taoist temple, you have to go to the Taishi Bureau for approval, and all teachings must be submitted to the Taishi Bureau for review before issuance, so as to implement the "values" of the Chu State.
Neither of the two options were good, so Zhang Lu would definitely choose the second one. After all, his feud with the old Liu family was not just a matter of words.
only……
Since "neither is very good", Zhang Lu is not in a hurry to make a decision, but "if he must choose," he will choose Chu.
And this was Yan Pu’s judgment a few days ago!
Now the first thing that was beyond Yan Pu's expectation had occurred - Chu State actually entered Bazhong first.
This makes Yan Pu a little worried about the current situation of Hanchang and... the current purpose of Chu State!
Yan Pu could guess that Zhang Lu's hope that the Chu army would help him regain Hanzhong would not be fulfilled, no matter how much he emphasized his role in Hanzhong. However, Yan Pu did care about the Chu army's subsequent reaction.
As for Zhang Lu himself...
Based on Yan Pu's understanding of him, Zhang Lu should be able to make the right choice in the end, but he still hasn't learned to make the choice at the best time, and will "struggle to the death" first.
After listening to Zhang Lu's words, the golden and jade general of Chu State smiled and said: "Don't worry, Marquis Hanning! My king always thinks of the people in the world, and the people of Hanzhong are also the king's heart. He will definitely find a way... It's just that it's so big
The last general has no control over the matter, and now he is just following the orders of Commander Zhao to greet Lord Han Ninghou."
Zhang Lu felt depressed after hearing this. The other party seemed to cater to him, but he always emphasized the concept of "the Chu State will save the people of Hanzhong" and never mentioned "supporting the Hanning Marquis". The meaning of this is self-evident.
Seeing Zhang Lu's serious face, Yan Pu stood behind Zhang Lu and asked: "I wonder what the general's name is? And... what's the situation in Hanchang now?"
The gold and jade generals are still top-notch even in today's era of constant "inflation". However, there are too many gold and jade in Chu State, so it's not easy to guess by guessing!
"No respect, no respect, the last general is Chen Dao, the commander of the Second Wancheng Division in the Wangjing Theater. Now I, Commander Zhao of the Wangjing Theater, am personally in charge of Hanchang. Marquis Hanning does not need to worry." Chen Dao said with a smile.
Zhang Lu:……
Zhang Lu really wanted to ask: Why is your Commander Zhao in charge of "my" Hanchang?