In early February of the 25th year of Jian'an, the month-long prisoner redemption transaction ended, and Liu Bei and Lan Tian rushed to Xiangyang without stopping.

At this time, the Battle of Fancheng had ended, and all of Guan Yu's main forces were stationed in Xiangyang to rest and recuperate. In addition to meeting Guan Yu, Liu Bei also wanted to provide pensions and rewards to the soldiers.

The warship headed westward against the current. The wind on the Yangtze River was still biting. Only the midday sun shone directly on the bow of the ship. Only then did Liu Bei and Lan Tian walk to the deck to warm themselves in the warm sun.

"Ziyu, although the Art of War says, 'Soldiers are crafty.' But during this period of negotiations with Jiangdong, why did you continue to deceive Zhuge Ziyu and Sun Zhong?"

Liu Bei did not intervene in Lan Tian's negotiations, but when Lan Tian described Lü Meng's problem, he was standing beside him. Sun Quan may have misunderstood that he was testifying. He admitted that there was nothing wrong with killing Lü Meng. Lan Tian deliberately framed Cao Cao. This behavior was Liu Bei's worst behavior.

Incomprehensible.

Lan Tian looked at the nearby banks of the Yangtze River and saw green buds sprouting from the vegetation on the small trees. He looked at Liu Bei and replied solemnly: "The knowledge of the word "Bing" goes beyond this. Soldiers have visible soldiers, invisible soldiers, and visible soldiers.

He is a man holding a spear, a warrior of the flesh; an invisible soldier, the sun, the moon, the stars, the wind, clouds, water and fire, the spirit of the mountains and rivers, all things and phenomena can be soldiers, as the saying goes, the sound of the wind and the crane, the grass and trees are all soldiers."

Although Lan Tian didn't answer the question, Liu Bei still nodded appreciatively and repeated: "What a 'wind is roaring, cranes are roaring, and grass and trees are all soldiers'. It's a pity that Ziyu no longer has the ambition to command thousands of troops, otherwise he will become a famous general with more experience."

Lan Tian smiled slightly: "Actually, my understanding of 'soldiers' is more than that. Diplomacy, politics, economy, culture, etc., everything can be used as a soldier. Brother-in-law, do you think reporting the Yangtze River can be used as a soldier?"

"The Yangtze River newspaper can punish good and promote evil. It can influence the outside world with rumors and incite people. It can be said that killing people with words without seeing blood can certainly be used as soldiers..." Liu Bei nodded in affirmation.

"My brother-in-law's territory is peaceful and peaceful, and the people are prosperous. However, Sun Quan's money and goods are now flowing out in large quantities. Jiangdong will surely fall into a period of poverty with little money and goods in a short time. If the rumors in the Yangtze River News are an invisible force, the economic damage will be a real blow to the gentry and people."

, To stabilize society and prevent chaos, does Sun Quan still have the energy to plan for Jingzhou?" Lan Tian continued to explain.

Originally, Liu Bei wanted to keep the prisoners as corvees, and was worried that there would be trouble if the prisoners were ransomed by Sun Quan, but Lantian insisted on exchanging the prisoners for ransom, and Liu Bei still gave him full trust. Now after hearing the explanation, he suddenly realized.

"Ziyu, the depth of his strategy is terrifying..."

"Cultural or intellectual wars take too long and cannot be penetrated overnight, so I won't go into details. In ancient times, there were diplomatic methods of combining vertical and horizontal forces, but in the end they would still be terminated by war. I deliberately

Attributing Lu Meng's death to Cao Cao does not allow Sun Quan to attack Cao Cao with all his heart, but only increases the conflict between Sun and Cao's family. As long as Sun Quan does not cause trouble in the southeast, it is only a matter of time before my brother-in-law completely defeats Cao Cao."

After hearing this, Liu Bei patted the guardrail, carefully digested what Lan Tian had just said, and finally said meaningfully: "I have met many brilliant people in my life. Ziyu's understanding of 'soldiers' far exceeds that of others. Listening to your words is worth ten years of reading.

Liu Bei is so lucky."

"Behead generals and seize flags, capture cities and territories, and conquer the world. This kind of 'soldiers' is the simplest, most effective and fastest. Emperor Gao and Xiang Yu only fought for four years. The Han Dynasty has experienced more than three hundred years. It is said that it is easy to conquer the world but difficult to rule it. We

The political and economic 'soldiers' mentioned just now are mainly used to govern the world, or to fight against powerful foreigners, such as the Huns and Xianbei north of the Great Wall..." Lan Tian continued to add.

"It is easy to conquer the world, but difficult to govern it. Since Ziyu said this, he must have an economic plan to help the world. When the world is settled in the future... I will have nothing to worry about..." Liu Bei laughed heartily.

Liu Bei continued to ask Lan Tian for advice and exchange views on the use of "soldiers". Unknowingly, the warship had arrived in Jiangxia.

At this time, the sky had darkened and they were unable to turn into the Han River and head north. Liu Bei and Lan Tian planned to rest in Jiangxia for a night and take Fazheng to Xiangyang tomorrow.

The scene on the dock made Liu Bei speechless.

All ships loaded with money, food and property were docked at Jiangxia's wharf.

In addition to the 300 million used by Sun Quan in E County, only 30% of the remaining 700 million ransom was coins and gold, and the rest was mostly silk, furs, metal utensils, grains, beans and other items.

The hundreds of ships were very eye-catching. Fazheng was worried that the ransom would be lost, so he asked Li Yi's Jiaozhou navy to guard them and count the numbers every day to ensure that they were correct.

Anyone who sees such a huge wealth will be jealous. As for how to distribute the ransom in the end, Liu Bei and Lan Tian need to decide.

After Fazheng met Liu Bei and exchanged greetings, he asked about how to deal with the ransom: "Your Majesty, you just saw it at the dock. What do you think of dealing with those belongings? If they are stored at the dock for too long, there will be chaos, and General Li's navy is not good either.

Get away..."

"The amount of 700 million property is indeed not small. I'm afraid greedy people will take risks." After Liu Bei knocked on the case and murmured for a few times, he turned to Lantian and made suggestions: "Ziyu, you have done a great job in repelling Sun Quan's sneak attack this time."

, anyway, you got the money back through negotiation, why not let General Li transport it all back to Jiaozhou, because Jiaozhou also needs funds for its development."

Lan Tian waved his hand after hearing this: "Although Jiaozhou is not rich, it is self-sufficient. I suggest that 100 million yuan and grain be returned to the Jingzhou public warehouse, and the remaining goods should be divided into three parts, and one part should be used to build Wuchang City.

One portion was used to reward the soldiers who fought in the defense of Jingzhou and the Battle of Xiangfan, and the last portion was used to compensate the soldiers who died in the two wars."

"General Lan's allocation is reasonable and well-founded. I second the proposal." Fazheng handed over his hand and asked for orders.

Liu Bei nodded slightly: "It is indeed very reasonable. Let's do as Ziyu said. Originally, I wanted to take Xiaozhi to Xiangyang, but now I can only help you keep the divided ransom, and then we can go back to Chengdu together."

"I obey." Fazheng nodded.

At night, the three of them, the monarch and his ministers, chatted about war, negotiations, and Lantian's views on "soldiers" in Jiangxia over small dishes and wine.

Fa Zheng, drunkenly, raised his glass and complimented Lan Tian: "I claim to be from a famous family, but compared to General Lan's knowledge, it's like a horse compared to a unicorn, a jackdaw..."

Liu Bei was startled when he heard this, thinking that this sentence sounded very familiar.

Lantian looked embarrassed and interrupted quickly: "Xiaozhi is wrong. As the saying goes, my talents will be useful. We two have different strengths. As long as we can help the king to support the Han Dynasty, any horse or unicorn will be the same..."

"Well...General, you are so humble..." Fazheng smiled.

At this time, Liu Bei changed the topic and joked: "Ziyu has caused Zhuge Ziyu a lot of harm. I wonder if Kong Ming will feel sorry for his brother if he finds out. I heard that Sun Quan sent Ziyu to negotiate with Cao Cao and wanted to spend one billion.

The price will be sold out after the ban...ahem..."
Chapter completed!