Chapter 011
Loyalty and filial piety...
These four words are extremely incompatible with the Yellow Turban rebels.
But when Qiao Yan said this, even though the Tian brothers felt that they were experienced veterans of the world, they did not see any signs that the other party was lying.
Moreover, in this speaking situation, there is really no need for the other party to wave the banner of justice.
As a victor, she naturally stands in a superior position.
As a loser, Tian Tao had no capital to be willful.
As the head of the Tian clan, he knew that he had to do his best to preserve the Tian clan's vitality. To this end, he could even consider temporarily cooperating with the Yellow Turban Army.
So if Mr. Yan Qiao really wanted to represent Liang Zhongning and let them do things for him, he could have adopted a more efficient approach.
Hitting the snake at its most vulnerable part is the most effective method for powerful clans like them.
As long as she holds the lives of young people like Tian Yan, she will be able to make them surrender.
For this reason, Qiao Yan's words could hardly help but cause the cell to fall into a brief silence, and for a moment, the only sound could be heard was the breathing of everyone present.
It was not until a while later that Tian Tao asked in a hoarse voice: "What is loyalty and filial piety?"
The person he was questioning did not even shake the lantern in his hand for a moment.
She replied without changing her tone: "Be loyal to the Han Dynasty and be filial to your parents."
If the Yellow Turban Army were here at this moment, they would probably beat her into a monster right away.
It just so happened that Bu Ji and Zhang Bo led their confidants into Puyang City and met Liang Zhongning in the city. No matter how much Liang Zhongning looked down on his two colleagues, he had to be on full alert, so he didn't have that many extra people to supervise the prisoners.
In addition, Qiao Yan's reputation under General Liang Qu was gradually increasing because of the title of "Sir". If he wanted a quiet environment for conversation, it would not be difficult to achieve.
Long before she stepped into the prison, she had already sent away the people who were supposed to be sent away, and also ensured that no Yellow Turban soldier would hear the four words "loyalty to the Han Dynasty".
Tian Tao was startled when he heard this, and then asked, "How is Yu Yanzhou?"
In fact, most of the powerful people in Yanzhou are realistic. Among the three things mentioned by Qiao Yan, "for Yanzhou", "for the Han Dynasty" and "for both loyalty and filial piety", the only three words that touched him were "for Yanzhou".
If it weren't for this mentality, in the original historical trajectory, he would not have turned against Cao after weighing the pros and cons because of Chen Gong's conspiracy to welcome Lu Bu into Yanzhou, and even took on the role of luring Cao Cao into the city to ambush him.
Loyalty, filial piety and righteousness could not completely convince the head of the family, but there was one sentence that could.
Qiao Yan replied: "Return peace to Yanzhou."
When she said this, in Tian Tao's sight, although the light in the prison was a little dim, it did not prevent him from seeing clearly that the other party was still holding the lantern in his right hand, but had placed his left hand behind his back.
The action of standing with hands behind the back should have made the person seem more arrogant, but for some reason, this "Yellow Turban Military Advisor" who had already made a great start, inexplicably restrained his edge.
At the same time, that still young face also drooped a little, probably because of the pressure of the lower jaw, coupled with the gentle smile on her face, making her look completely different from when she first entered the prison.
Like another person...
Or someone that Tian Tao should have seen before!
After Qiao Yan coughed lightly, Tian Tao suddenly had a flash of enlightenment in his mind, but the next moment he found that the other party had retracted his strange behavior and returned to his previous state.
A name lingered on his lips, but he never said it.
I think Qiao Yan's reminder in this way, rather than saying it directly, was a hint that we both knew.
Before Tian Yan could recover from the brief back-and-forth question and answer, he heard his father suddenly ask, "I know what you mean. What do you need us from the Tian family to do?"
Tian Yan was not as experienced as his father and second uncle, but the years of getting along with them were enough for him to judge at this moment that although his father's words could not be regarded as surrender, he had indeed put away his hostility towards the other party.
Unfortunately, in this conversation between the two parties, he had no room to interrupt.
There was something in the almost tacit eye contact between the two parties that he couldn't quite understand.
The gloomy and dim light and shadow in the dungeon were driven away by the lantern in Qiao Yan's hand, breaking it into a mixture of light and darkness that made him feel a little strange.
At the boundary between light and darkness, the little boy, who was at most half his age, understood his father's attitude and said without hesitation, "There are two things I need the assistance of Patriarch Laotian for."
Until Qiao Yan walked out of Puyang Prison, the system still felt a little unreal, as if in a dream.
[This theory of loyalty and filial piety...why does it sound so weird? 】The system muttered.
It had previously tried to stop Qiao Yan's plan to join the Yellow Turbans by saying "You are the descendant of a loyal and righteous person", but when it really heard such a glorious statement from her mouth, and when it was said during the negotiations with the powerful Tian family, it inexplicably felt that something was not right.
She is not the original Qiao Yan who was born and raised there.
How much sense of belonging does she have towards this Han Dynasty, which has reached the end of its dynasty and has been stripped of a layer of vitality because of the Yellow Turban Rebellion? Even if the system does not have the ability to read minds, it feels that it can make a rough judgment.
I’m afraid not.
Of course, she did receive the original owner's memories.
However, I have seen clear instructions on this in the system's pre-job training. The transmission of this kind of memory, at best, allows the host to receive the past events of the original owner in the form of a bystander, with the emotional elements completely stripped away.
Therefore, there is no situation where the current Qiao Yan would be bound by the family ties of the original owner.
In this case, there is no way to talk about loyalty, and there is no way to talk about filial piety either.
Qiao Yan was strolling on the streets of Puyang at this time.
Probably because the Yellow Turbans occupied the city, there were almost no people on the streets. She did not hesitate to explain to the system in a low voice: "It is not important whether one has loyalty or filial piety. In the late Han Dynasty, whether one is a counselor or does anything else, having a reputation for righteousness is always more secure than having an ordinary background."
[But...what do you want Dayi to do? 】The system is a bit unclear.
Qiao Yan smiled and continued, "You should know Kong Rong?"
How could Kong Wenju of Beihai not know? 】
"Kong Rong of Beihai hid Zhang Jian to avoid disaster, and there is also the story of him giving away pears when he was young. This story spread for many years and he became a famous scholar. Later, the prime minister Yang Ci recruited him as an official."
"Even Zhuge Kongming was known as Crouching Dragon before he served Liu Xuande."
"There were many talented people in the late Han Dynasty, but those who deserve to be called famous scholars and masters have to be discounted first. If you can't stand out from the crowd, how can you be sold at a high price? Don't you think so?"
「Is that so?」 】The system thought about it and felt that this was indeed the case.
The so-called waiting for a price to rise means that there must be a price first.
"Then, what reputation in this world is more effective than serving your country and avenging your parents by going into the enemy camp alone?"
"You really chose a good identity for me."
Qiao Yan walked slowly. If you didn't get close to hear what she said, you would probably just feel that she was indescribably free and easy while strolling in her spare time.
However, the system felt that these few numbers spoken from Qiao Yan's mouth were incredibly powerful.
When it thought about how it had previously been guiding Qiao Yan in devising a series of strategies for Liang Zhongning to break through the Tian family's fortress, it felt very proud that the other party had the hope of becoming a top strategist. But now, it felt that it had underestimated her in the face of her true thoughts!
The coldness in her eyes when she raised them was clearly as sharp as a knife.
that is……
The system couldn't help but sigh: [Liang Zhongning was really deceived by you! 】
Who would have thought that Qiao Yan's assistance in breaking through Tian's fortress was not to win his trust, nor to feed the Yellow Turban Army so as to gain the position of a counselor, but just to have a more suitable environment for conversation with Tian and to take advantage of the opportunity of the three Yellow Turban armies' reunion to do something more important.
Even in the process of achieving her goal, she didn't care at all about the casualties caused to both sides in the previous battle of the fortress no matter how smoothly it went. Her always calm appearance revealed an indescribable cold-heartedness.
"You sympathize with him?"
[No, no!] 】The system answered quickly. [I am a counselor system, not the saint system next door. 】
Before coming to this world, he had at least studied.
In the war planning during the Three Kingdoms period, if one had the idea that one could really convince people through reason and compassion, it would be better to withdraw from the fight as soon as possible, because any war would inevitably involve casualties.
Even if one does not have to do what Cheng Yu did, who "plundered the counties and provided three days' worth of food mixed with dried meat" in order to raise military rations for Cao Cao, one does not have to feel any psychological burden about the necessary sacrifices.
If this is true, the system would be worried that Qiao Yan would be tied up by something at a critical moment.
This mentality is just right now.
Moreover, if her plan could really be realized and Yanzhou could be pacified at an early date, Tian would have nothing to say.
Qiao Yan was keenly aware of what the system meant by "next door", but now was obviously not a good time to inquire about this matter, not to mention that the system asked the next question: [But how can you be sure that Tian will help you? You must know that if you hadn't taken action, the other party would still be enjoying peace in his own fortress. 】
"If you ask this, you are still underestimating the role of the local party." Qiao Yan replied.
But this is not difficult to understand. The system has always behaved very humanely, but it did reveal some lack of social skills in its words.
"Do you know who I was imitating in prison just now?" Before the system asked, she answered the question herself and explained, "It was the father in Qiao Yan's original impression."
Qiao Yu was the prime minister of Rencheng.
"What a coincidence. I saw in Tian's records two days ago that Tian was invited to attend a banquet hosted by the governor of Dongjun, and he was one of the attendees."
She brought back to Puyang all the files she had found in the fortress, and it was proven to be not in vain. In the passage "At the prefect's banquet, the son of Liang Guoqiao's grandfather attended the party. He had his father's manners and he enjoyed talking with him very much", Qiao Yan saw the hope of forming a united front with the Tian family.
If Tian Tao and Qiao Yu had only met once, she might not have dared to directly use the banner of being an old friend of Ren Chengxiang. She would have had to negotiate in a roundabout way, and might even choose to give herself more bargaining chips. But now there is no need to be so troublesome.
"Strictly speaking, the definition of a township party comes from the Zhou Dynasty system, where 500 households make up a party and 12,500 households make up a township. Neither the Liang State where the Qiao family is located nor the Rencheng State where Qiao Yu is appointed, nor the Dongjun County can be considered township parties. However, as people from Yanzhou, they naturally have a relationship of sharing weal and woe. This is the starting point for the conversation."
Qiao Yan grasped this connection just right.
This was reflected in the two things she and Tian Tao just discussed.
If she directly asked Tian Tao to hand over the hidden forces that the Tian family might still have in Puyang City, or asked the other party to help in other ways, Tian Tao might still hesitate and think about whether her attempt to build a relationship would be another form of abandoning the donkey after it has done its work.
But the two things she mentioned were both things that Tian Tao could accomplish with his words without further harming himself.
That's no problem.
The first thing was to learn from the head of the Tian family which fortresses around Puyang had a bad relationship with the Tian family and was easy to attack.
She soon got Gao's answer from Tian Tao.
What could even be considered a pleasant surprise was that, perhaps because the spirit of chivalry was prevalent during the Han Dynasty, Tian Tao once planned to hire knights to resolve the personal feud between the Tian and Gao families, and even sent people to survey the layout of the Gao family's fortress.
The painted scroll was among the files brought back by Qiao Yan.
With a map, we can attack more effectively and there is no need to use any tactics to lure the enemy.
Of course, Qiao Yan had his own thoughts on how much to believe and how much to doubt.
The second thing is Dian Wei.
Qiao Yan asked whether Dian Wei had some connection with the Tian family.
If she could get more information, it would also give her more confidence in her previous plan of recruiting bodyguards.
According to Tian Tao, Dian Wei was able to be employed by the Tian family because one of his fellow villagers killed someone for righteousness in Chenliu in his early years and was taken in by the Tian family after fleeing to Dongjun.
It is not surprising that many powerful people in the late Han Dynasty hid their populations.
After all, the man was not found, so the matter was dropped.
When the Yellow Turban Rebellion broke out, this man immediately mentioned Dian Wei's bravery to Tian Tao. As for why Dian Wei was invited smoothly, it was because Dian Wei's fellow villager had done him a favor in the past.
And this person——
This person did not die in the previous battle to break into the fort!
This is really great news.
According to what Tian Tao said, this debt of favor from early years was obviously not that simple. At least Dian Wei's unfavorable fight was not enough to repay it.
But what Qiao Yan did not expect was that when she approached Dian Wei, this brave warrior, who was known for his martial arts prowess, flatly rejected her offer to release the other party's fellow villagers in exchange for his temporary use by her within three months.
"This deal can be done, but we have to use a different approach." Dian Wei said in a rough voice after hearing what Qiao Yan said.
The restraints on him were slightly looser than the ones Liang Zhongning had used when he first captured him, but he was still in a state where he couldn't break free even with brute force.
But the warrior has the courage of a tiger and his dignity remains unchanged even if he is bound by shackles. This is fully demonstrated in Dian Wei.
Qiao Yan asked with interest: "How about changing the method?"
Dian Wei's sudden objection made her realize that although he was successfully lured into a trap and captured by her, he was not completely brainless. Otherwise, Cao Cao probably would not have appointed him as a captain in the future and let him patrol around the camp to protect his safety.
This is at least a position that requires commanding hundreds of personal soldiers, and it also requires some resourcefulness.
Dian Wei's answer was indeed very interesting. He said, "Just keep him locked up and provide him with food."
After thinking about it, Qiao Yan understood what Dian Wei meant.
The identity of this fellow villager is special after all - he was hidden by the Tian family because he committed murder. If he was released directly, he would still be considered a fugitive prisoner.
The territory of Yanzhou is now in such a barren and food-deficient state that if he wants to survive he can only look for those towns and counties where people live.
But these places either faced the threat of the Yellow Turbans passing through or might have captured him and brought him to justice. So in this situation, it seemed that he had no choice but to join the Yellow Turbans.
But the Yellow Turbans were not safe either, and casualties were inevitable in the fighting.
Even if he escaped with Dian Wei, with such a powerful general who was invincible, there was no guarantee that he would be safe and sound in the face of war.
But being in jail is very different.
Being captured by the Yellow Turbans also means that actions were taken to resist the Yellow Turbans first.
If the Yellow Turbans win, given Qiao Yan's position in Liang Zhongning's team, it won't be too late to release him then.
But if the Yellow Turbans were defeated, he would become a righteous hero. Even if his fight against the Yellow Turbans was not enough to clear him of all his crimes, it would at least reduce a lot of his guilt.
If you are lucky, it would be even better if the imperial court wants to change the reign title for good luck due to the Yellow Turban Rebellion.
It should be known that since the founding of the Han Dynasty, there have been more than 130 general amnesties of varying degrees, including but not limited to reasons such as the death of the previous emperor, the accession of the current emperor to the throne, the coming of age ceremony, the establishment of the queen, the establishment of the crown prince, the establishment of the temple, etc. There was also a type of amnesty when changing the reign title.
Serious crimes were reduced to minor ones and the offenders were pardoned.
According to this statement, it is safest to put the person in jail.
This is the position where the victorious side can retreat safely after the war subsides.
Dian Wei is not stupid...
Qiao Yan complained in his heart, but did not show any strangeness on his face. He just replied with an approval.
Keeping the person in jail would not only not cause any loss to her, but would instead be a safety guarantee. In this way, Dian Wei would be handing a handle over her.
But there was no need to say this to Dian Wei, as he seemed quite proud of himself for thinking so deeply about it.
After such a deal, everyone is happy.
Qiao Yan got a brave guard, Dian Wei got a chance to move around, and the villagers who had been kind to Dian Wei got a safe place to rest.
No, there are still injured people.
It was none other than Liang Zhongning.
You have to know that the food in the prison is divided from the grain stored in the fortress. He would rather give people only a bowl of porridge a day to keep them alive. When he divided the food among them, it was like cutting his flesh with a knife. Now even the generals he had his eyes on followed Qiao Yan!
When he thought that with the other party's strength, he might be able to send Mr. Yan back to Gaomi easily, all the excuses he had made up before were useless. Perhaps he would receive news of Qiao Yan's departure within a few days. He felt a toothache and heartache.
But curiosity is still worth being curious about.
"I wonder how you convinced this man to work for you?" Liang Zhongning decided to steal a trick, maybe it would come in handy in the future.
"He said he had long admired Master Zheng's name, so..."
"So you want to follow and learn from me?" Liang Zhongning's face was full of disbelief.
Judging from Dian Wei's physique, it's clear that he is not suitable for studying Confucian classics! This reason is not convincing at all!
If that was really what he said, General Liang Qu would have suspected that Dian Wei had ulterior motives.
"No," Qiao Yan shook his head. "He said that he couldn't learn it by himself, and he would urge his son to learn in the future. Now he wants to get to know me first, so that it will be convenient for his son to become his disciple in the future."
“…”
Liang Zhongning was silent for a long while before he replied, "To be honest, sir, my father thought the same way."
As for the results...
Perhaps this is the only name that looks a bit cultured.
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