Chapter 192 Qiao Sisters...
The direct lineage Zhang Fei mentioned is based on the saying "the relationship is no closer than five degrees of mourning".
From his somewhat halting statement, Liu Bei understood that this relative of Qiao Yan who was unfortunately killed by Zhang Fei was actually her cousin.
Qiao Rui himself was usually quite proud of being from the same clan as Qiao Yan, and he often mentioned it as a topic of conversation to his subordinates, which made all his subordinates who surrendered to Liu Bei aware of this.
But it was precisely because of this kinship that Yuan Shu became so angry and humiliated after Qiao Yan rejected his offer of cooperation that he took his anger out on others and sent Qiao Rui, a relatively reliable general under his command, to the front line to fight Liu Bei and others.
Of course, this can also be interpreted as him giving his men a task to grab the first credit.
This is what is happening now.
While Liu Bei ordered his men to recruit the captives in the area and bury the dead nearby, he began to feel worried.
Guan Yu comforted him, "General, you don't have to worry so much. The relationship between Bingzhou Governor and Liang State Qiao's family has never been close. When fighting against Dong, Yuan Benchu came up with the sneaky trick of asking Qiao Bingzhou for grain, and his fellow clan member Qiao Mao did not try to stop him. Instead, he wanted to get a share of the profits. It is said that up to now, there are not many Qiao clan members serving in Bingzhou, and the exchanges are just so-so."
"Qiao Rui served the traitor Yuan Shu. We were ordered by the emperor to kill him, so it was our duty to kill him. If Yide had not killed Qiao Rui, we would be the ones suffering today."
"That's right," Zhang Fei said hurriedly, "Yun Chang is right. Qiao Mao is shameless and was treated as a soft persimmon by Hua Xiong and Hu Zhen. Yuan Shao was just scolded by Qiao Bingzhou in the street, and the scolding was for dragging his feet and not attacking."
"It's OK for Qiao Rui to die, but we have gotten rid of a threat to the people."
Seeing Liu Bei looking at him, with a look that seemed to warn him not to speak out of turn, Zhang Fei then whispered, "Anyway, I killed the man, so I'll just take the blame and beatings. Besides, she can't really control us..."
Liu Bei felt helpless towards Zhang Fei.
This matter is not as simple as he thought.
Qiao Mao died at the hands of Hua Xiong and Hu Zhen in an accident during the campaign against Dong Zhuo. The murderers were also from Dong Zhuo's side.
But Qiao Rui died in their hands.
But in name only, Liu Bei owed Qiao Yan a favor.
Not to mention the Yellow Turban Rebellion, even during the campaign against Dong Zhuo, if Qiao Yan had not led his troops to the north and taken away many of Dong Zhuo's soldiers and guards, it would not have been so easy to break through Chenggao's defenses.
It was also difficult for Liu Bei to establish military merits with the manpower at that time, and then to get the position of Prime Minister of Jinan after the war.
Qiao Yan's current strategy of first conquering Liangzhou and then pacifying Chang'an is a move that is being coordinated from both inside and outside with Liu Bei's teacher Lu Zhi.
If he had followed the most standard procedure, he should have gone to Liangzhou like Lu Zhi's other disciples, instead of attacking Yuan Shu here.
Even compared with people like Gongsun Zan who tried to seize Youzhou, Liu Bei was already a loyal minister of the Han Dynasty, and he also had achievements in the past two years in Jinan State, but he still had to make excuses for his mistakes.
But things have already happened, and they have only just entered Yuzhou. There is no reason to blame their own people.
He planned to send Qiao Rui's body to Liang State first, then send someone to deliver a letter of apology to Qiao Yan, and deal with the rest after the attack on Yuan Shu was over.
He will face a tough battle next and doesn't have much time to think about it.
Yuan Shu must have underestimated this bandit-suppressing general, which is why he won the battle first.
But in Runan, or in the territory of Yuzhou, Yuan Shu could mobilize much more clan power and connected forces than him.
He must be careful enough.
But the news of Qiao Rui's defeat and death undoubtedly caused an uproar within the Qiao family.
Because the Pei State attacked by Liu Bei was adjacent to the Liang State, it took only one day for Qiao Rui to die and his body to be delivered to the Qiao family in Liang State.
Faced with the corpse in the hall, the Qiao clan members gathered there looked at each other in bewilderment.
According to their previous thinking, since Qiao Yu died in the Yellow Turban Rebellion and Qiao Xuan died of illness soon after, the Qiao family should indeed show some attempts to win over Qiao Yan, the Marquis of Leping. However, the ones they could rely on more were Qiao Mao and Qiao Rui.
These two people were on good terms with Yuan Shao and Yuan Shu respectively, and it seemed that they were able to rise to prominence with the help of Yuan's connections.
This was especially true after the death of Emperor Ling of Han, when Qiao Yan lost his greatest supporter.
But what they never expected was that first, Qiao Mao, the governor of Dongjun, was ridiculously beheaded at Hulao Pass, and then Qiao Rui, a general used by Yuan Shu, died in the first battle to welcome Liu Bei's attack on Yuzhou.
In just two years, the male members of the royal family that they had high hopes for died in battle one after another, and it was Qiao Yan who was the winner.
Not only did she gain a firm foothold in Bingzhou, but even Liangzhou was frightened by Bingzhou's iron hoof!
If we talk about who is the most famous governor of the time, it may not be Yuan Shao who supported Liu Bian to ascend the throne, but Qiao Yan who made a name for himself with his military prowess.
"What should we do now?" the elder in the Qiao family's ancestral home asked in a deep voice.
Obviously, he was not asking how to handle Qiao Rui's funeral arrangements.
Before the living have decided on their future, Qiao Rui’s death is not that important.
What he asked was, after the deaths of Qiao Mao and Qiao Rui, would they choose to cultivate a young talent to re-enter the officialdom, or would they directly choose to join the army of Bingzhou Mu?
If Qiao's family was richer, he wouldn't have to face such a dilemma.
However, although Qiao Xuan held a high position at that time, he was upright and honest, and had no intention of promoting or supporting people of the same clan. Those who had some ability were really unlucky.
They can't produce a decent talent at the moment!
Relying on the latter may not necessarily be a reliable approach.
The current situation of the world being divided into two makes Qiao Yan, who is entrenched in Liangzhou and Bingzhou, seem to have extremely amazing power. But if she fails to rescue Liu Xie from Chang'an City, and instead gets labeled as the one who oppressed Dong Zhuo and killed Liu Xie, then after Yuan Shao and Liu Yu have dealt with Gongsun Zan, will she be the next rebel?
The collapse of a tall building only takes a moment.
In this comparison, Yanzhou is much more peaceful.
With the strength he has accumulated in Dongjun and his current title as the governor of Yanzhou, it is only a matter of time before Cao Cao can take control of Yanzhou.
He had taken action to overthrow Dong Zhuo, and had to give an explanation to the current court in Chang'an. He also had an appointment from the court in Yecheng. As the official in charge of Yanzhou, it didn't seem like his situation would change in a short period of time.
In addition, he had friendships with Qiao Xuan and Qiao Yan. Even if he successfully transferred Liang State to his name and let his people govern it, it would not do anything harmful to the Qiao family.
After this discussion, it seems that staying here is the most appropriate option.
"We still need to send someone to Bingzhou to talk to Qiao Yeshu about our difficulties and gain some support from our connections. This will also help us select promising talents from our clan and recommend them for promotion."
The Qiao clan elder paused for a moment and continued, "Besides that, we might as well show some goodwill to Cao Yanzhou. Although Liu Bei, who killed Ziwei, was a general who slew bandits, he was also the prime minister of Jinan under the command of the governor of Yanzhou, and we have to listen to his orders."
Someone interrupted and said, "But there is no guarantee that Liu Bei will not be able to defeat Yuan Shu and occupy Yuzhou..."
It is useless to rely solely on Cao Cao to restrict Liu Bei.
Before he could finish his words, he was glared at by the clan elder.
This man suddenly realized that the need to make friends with Cao Cao was obviously not just out of the desire to vent Qiao Rui's anger, but also for another reason.
If the Qiao family could select a suitable young man again, they would have to go through the route of recommending a filial and honest person. According to the usual practice of nomination by local officials, the best person to recommend would be Cao Cao.
But there are some unspoken rules that really don’t need to be spoken out loud.
The elder of the Qiao clan went on to say: "I think Cao Yanzhou can also be a relative of the Qiao clan, and we can establish another level of relationship, but let's wait two years before we decide."
Two years is enough time for them to see whether Qiao Yan can hold on to his current position.
And this "after two years" may have some other meaning.
These last words were heard by the two sisters who were heading here because of their father's death.
After they exchanged glances, they saw the fear in each other's eyes.
But when they saw their father's body in the hall, they didn't care about the shock for a moment. Their hearts and eyes were filled with the grief of losing their mother at an early age and then their father at this time.
When Qiao Rui went to serve under Yuan Shu, he once said that once he had established himself there, he would bring them sisters over as well.
At that time, I must find a house that is sturdy enough to prevent my two daughters from being accidentally seen by Yuan Shu.
However, the person had not yet been taken away, and today we are separated forever.
After the chaotic wake and funeral, the two sisters finally had the leisure and energy to think about their future.
The Qiao sisters are less than fourteen years old, but their eyes and eyebrows reveal their elegance and grace when they grow up. They are truly a pair of beauties rarely seen in the world. Now, in mourning clothes and with tear marks on their faces, they look even more beautiful.
As the elder sister, Qiao Lan held her younger sister Qiao Ting's hand and whispered, "I heard that Madam Bian of Cao Yanzhou was born into a prostitute family, but many people at that time didn't care that she followed the army. During Dong Zhuo's rebellion, she was able to escape from Cao Yanzhou and leave Luoyang, and evacuate with her family members in the capital. I only remember that she was favored because of her beauty. I think the elders of the clan also have this intention."
"Or maybe the marriage partner is Cao Yanzhou's eldest son, but that's... not what I want either."
"Sister, the only two people in the Qiao family who are suitable to be the gift for this kind of relationship-seeking are you and me. Are we really going to be offered to Cao Yanzhou in two years?"
Qiao Ting shook his head desperately.
Although she didn't know who she would marry in the future, she absolutely didn't want to be sent away in such a way without her control.
"I have an idea," Qiao Lan continued, with a look of determination in her melancholy eyes: "Why don't we run away secretly and seek refuge with the Marquis of Leping in Bingzhou?"
"You once told me that you had corresponded with Zhen Jie who was studying at Leping Academy. She said that she felt free and comfortable there, and Qiao Bingzhou treated her as just an ordinary student in the academy, not Qiao Zhen from the same clan. Women there can study, practice martial arts, and even become officials. Given her personality, I don't think she would treat us as bargaining chips."
Qiao Ting looked at his sister in shock.
In this day and age, leaving the protection of your family and running away, even if the person you are going to seek refuge with is a relative in another state, is probably not a good thing.
But when she heard this choice, although she was surprised, she subconsciously said -
"We have no parents, and even the Qiao clan can't be our support. The only one we can rely on is her. My sister and I can read and write, are proficient in music and classical books, and have a basic understanding of mathematics. Rather than giving us away to someone else, it would be better to train us into your confidants."
Qiao Lan nodded: "Yes, that's right!"
And it was not as difficult as they had imagined for them to escape.
Before Qiao Yan performed the Jishui sacrifice, he had walked past the Qiao family's ancestral home once. There were no solid barriers like a fortress here, only the outer walls of an ordinary old house.
This is not a difficult barrier to climb over.
Moreover, no one expected that the two sisters, who looked particularly weak during the day due to dealing with the guests at the funeral, would make a prompt decision to escape at night.
They hastily cut the men's clothes left by their father at home into sizes suitable for them, packed up some valuables and money, and ran out of Qiao's territory.
But just running away is not enough, as the distance from Liang State to Bingzhou is not short.
Fortunately, there was plenty of trading traffic between Bingzhou and Yanzhou.
So they used their money to buy some Liang specialties and pretended to be traveling merchants going to Bingzhou to try their luck. After paying a fee, they joined the caravan and became a seemingly inconspicuous part of it.
This greatly reduced the risk of traveling and also greatly reduced the probability of Qiao finding them after discovering their disappearance.
Qiao Yan, who had no idea that he was about to welcome a pair of sisters to join him, was discussing Sun Ce's actions in Yangzhou with Xi Zhicai and Guo Jia.
Guo Jia put down the letter handed over by Qiao Yan and said with emotion: "The methods of the Wujun family are really vicious. It's a pity that they underestimated Sun Ce's ability to command troops."
There was another driving force behind Gao Dai's death.
Sun Ce invited Gao Dai to have a chat and used Zuo Chuan as a topic to bring them closer, which was not a wrong choice.
To learn about something you are not so familiar with for the sake of a famous person can be regarded as a sign of respect for the wise and humble.
However, the news was revealed by Gao Dai's relatives and friends only after the meeting. Before the meeting, someone told Gao Dai that Sun Ce hated being surpassed the most. If he could not answer the question in the dialogue of Zuo Zhuan, something bad would happen.
So it would be better to just say that you don't know and let Sun Ce show off a bit, and that would fool the person.
But when this news came out, Gao Dai was already in trouble!
Sun Ce had already rushed towards Wang Sheng and others.
This tiger, still in its infancy, showed its extraordinary ability to lead the troops and break the deadlock even when being attacked from both sides.
Speed is of the essence in war. Once he has seized enough military rations from Zou Ta, Wang Sheng and others, he will turn around to attack Xu Gong and quickly end the battle in Wu County.
Unfortunately, winning the fight does not mean you have truly won.
"Xu Gong cannot possibly be Sun Ce's opponent, but Sun Ce's cruel actions against Wu Jun will inevitably intensify the conflict between him and the four surnames of Jiangdong."
If he behaved more radically, Lu Kang would probably turn against him.
After all, he is from the Huating (Wujun) Lu family, not the Lujiang Lu family, and he is also a Wujun native in terms of roots.
Sun Ce's originally good situation will inevitably fall into a state of anxiety again.
"This is a good thing for us," said Qiao Yan.
Even though she gave Sun Ce an official position and farm tools, they were all enemies after all, so it was good enough not to add fuel to the fire. "If things continue like this, Sun Ce will not have the energy to take action against Yuan Shu and Liu Biao in the short term."
"In other words, if you trap a tiger in a cage, its claws can only reach out to enemies in the same cage."
What are enemies in the same cage? Of course they are the Jiangdong noble families and Shanyue tyrants!
These people - must be killed completely with the help of Sun Ce's sharp blade!
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