Compared to Yuan Benchu's ambition, Fei Qian was truly the best example of taking things as they come.
Fei Qian felt that in this high-pressure Three Kingdoms period, so many capable people he didn't even recognize were taking turns on the stage, each leading the way. He had neither martial prowess nor intelligence, so what could he use to compete with them?
Therefore, finding a powerful backer to cling to seemed relatively easier, or at least less risky.
However, before that, there were a few things to consider.
Fei Qian dipped his finger in some tea on the table and started drawing, not using ink so he could wipe it away later and avoid being seen.
Influenced by many classic TV dramas from later generations, Fei Qian did a good job of maintaining secrecy and meticulousness. Many secrets were leaked through details, and if his secrets were leaked, who knew if he would be considered a demon or monster and torn to pieces?
Based on his memory of Han Dynasty maps, Fei Qian roughly drew an outline.
The Eastern Han Dynasty had thirteen provinces: Yong, Yu, Yan, Xu, Qing, Liang, Bing, Ji, You, Yang, Jing, Yi, and Jiao.
Fei Qian first crossed out Liang and You provinces, then erased Yi and Jiao Provinces as well. Liang Province bordered the Qiang and Xiongnu tribes and had been struggling for years, making it unsuitable; You Province was plagued by Hu and Xianbei people who would invade the Han Dynasty whenever they needed something, just like the Japanese devils of later generations. Although Gongsun Zan of the White Horse Cavalry could still suppress them, he would soon be killed by Yuan Shao, making it unreliable; Jiao Province was out of the question; it was still the self-governed land of the Nan Yue people, hot and full of insects. There were no insecticides in this era; Yi Province might be good, but getting into Shu required climbing those plank roads that were harder than ascending to heaven. Climbing from Luoyang to Chengdu without planes, trains, or cars, relying entirely on two legs, was out of the question...
Bing Province—also no good. When Dong Zhuo came to the capital, he killed Ding Yuan, the warlord of Bing Province, and then the Bing Province army followed Lu Bu into exile, leaving Bing Province without any defenses for a long time. The Xiongnu could come and go as they pleased... Cross it out, cross it out—
Qing, Yu, Yan, and Ji provinces... These four provinces were the most severely affected by the Yellow Turban Rebellion. Even now, Yan, Qing, and Ji provinces still had remnants of the Yellow Turban army, and Fei Qian remembered that the wars in these four provinces were the most frequent, almost wiping out the population. Cao Cao's "a thousand miles without the crowing of a rooster" was the best explanation.
Only Xu, Yang, and Jing Provinces remained. Fei Qian stroked his chin, thinking, hmm, Xu Province—if he went to Xu Province, he would have to move again before Cao Cao's father was killed. Otherwise, even if he survived Cao Cao's massacre, the internal strife between Lu Bu and Liu Bei would kill many people. Forget it, too much trouble, exclude Xu Province.
Jing Province, at least before the Battle of Red Cliffs, was still okay, but after the Battle of Red Cliffs, it was divided into three parts, fought over and over, changing hands many times, with countless casualties...
Yang Province, hmm, pretty good. Although the Little Tyrant Sun Jian was short-lived, Yang Province was the last to surrender during the Three Kingdoms period. As long as it wasn't affected by the Battle of Red Cliffs, it wouldn't be conquered by the Wei Kingdom even during Sun Hao's time. Fei Qian heavily marked Yang Province, that's it!
Having solved the problem of where to go, the current problem was to solve food, clothing, shelter, and transportation, or in other words, "money."
At the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, the most common currency was still the Wushu coin, but copper was expensive and scarce, unable to fully meet the needs of trade. Therefore, commoners also used cloth as a general equivalent to calculate value. Gold and silver were rarely used by ordinary people, like large checks in later generations; they had to be exchanged for copper coins at silver shops to be useful.
Fei Qian calculated with his fingers. He had bought two pieces of glassware before, exchanging them for some gold and silver, but the Three Kingdoms was full of war, and prices were bound to skyrocket. How long would this little bit of gold and silver last?
If necessary, he could make a few more pieces of glassware and exchange them for money in Yang Province to start a shop or something.
Okay, this was a path of seclusion, pretty much settled.
What if he wanted to participate in this melee?
Fei Qian wiped all the water stains off the table and then wrote down three names: Cao Cao, Liu Bei, and Sun Quan. He didn't bother considering the other extras.
In terms of victors, the Wei Kingdom's Cao Cao was the best choice, but it was probably also the hardest to get along with in the Wei Kingdom. The boss, Cao Cao, was naturally suspicious, and the capable people under him were all treacherous and clever. With his lack of literary and martial skills, what could he achieve? He might be sent to Xiliang as a county magistrate...
Sun Quan, on the other hand, spent his entire life fighting against the local forces in Jiangdong. Oh, including his father and brother, they hadn't completely resolved the issue in three generations. He was almost kidnapped by the Jiangdong gentry many times, and the near surrender during the Battle of Red Cliffs was the best proof. Could an outsider without roots compete with these local snakes?
Liu Bei... was able to tolerate everything, but this tolerance was also out of necessity. He wandered around, and whoever he relied on was doomed. He relied on Gongsun Zan, eating, drinking, and taking without contributing, and even poaching Gongsun Zan's subordinates; he relied on Tao Qian, occupying a large territory but failing to defend it; he relied on Cao Cao, and Cao Cao trusted him and let Liu Bei lead troops, but Liu Bei ran away; he relied on Yuan Shao, causing the deaths of two of Yuan Shao's fierce generals; he relied on Liu Biao, occupying his son's territory and refusing to return it; he relied on Liu Zhang, and even snatched away his men and territory...
Fei Qian maliciously recalled the irresponsible speculation on later generations' forums: Was Liu Bei a jinx? DeLulu cursed everyone, except for the jinx himself...
Fei Qian's finger tapped on the three names, blurring the writing...
Forget it, let's shelve what can't be solved immediately. Fei Qian's work principles from later generations came into play. Let's put the question of which big shot to rely on for later… …
Fei Qian suddenly felt a little hungry. The two-meal system is just unreliable, making you prone to hunger! Fei Qian called out to the door: "Uncle Fu! Uncle Fu! Is there anything to eat? I'm hungry——" Uncle Fu is good at everything, but he's too stubborn. He would rather allow some food to be prepared at any time in case Fei Qian is hungry, but he just refuses to change from two meals a day to three meals a day, no matter how much Fei Qian tries to persuade him.
The sky is big, the earth is big, but eating is the biggest thing. Forget about Sun, Liu, and Cao, let's eat our fill first. Fei Qian sat cross-legged on the ground without any regard for his image, propping his chin up and thinking, guessing that Dong Zhuo must have received the imperial edict by now. Dong Zhuo is coming soon, and I have to prepare to run away——
Soon, Uncle Fu came in through the door with a plate.
"By the way, there's one more thing," Fei Qian thought to himself, "If I'm going to leave, I have to persuade old Uncle Fu first, I can't just leave him here… …"
A small hill outside Dong Zhuo's army camp in Mianchi.
Dozens of burly Xiliang Soldiers surrounded the foot of the hill. Clearly, there was an important figure on the hill.
Someone had already set up a silk tent, enclosed on three sides, on the flat ground at the top of the hill, leaving only the east side open. A gentle breeze blew, faintly revealing a figure inside the silk tent.
A white-robed scholar with an elegant crown and wide sleeves was kneeling alone on a mat in the middle of the silk tent. On a small table beside the mat were a pot of wine and two or three dishes of snacks. The white-robed scholar was pouring and drinking on his own.
This man had delicate features and a thin, long beard, with a graceful demeanor, but he kept frowning slightly, as if he had an unsolvable problem on his mind.
It was unknown how long had passed when a low voice came from behind, accompanied by the sound of light footsteps: "Brother Wen You, what a refined pleasure!"
The white-robed scholar reached out, took a wine bowl, poured a bowl of wine, and said: "Come, Wenhe, let's not talk about anything else, join me in drinking a bowl."
These two were the top strategists of the Xiliang Army, Li Ru and Jia Xu.
Jia Xu took the wine bowl, sat down askew, crossed his legs, drank it all in one gulp, and put the wine bowl on the table. Without waiting for Li Ru to refill it, he picked up the wine pot himself and poured another bowl, laughing: "The last time I drank with you was three years ago, right? It's really rare——" He glanced at Li Ru, who was kneeling upright, "Hey, it's just you and me here, you don't have to be so proper, right?"
Li Ru held the wine bowl steadily, sat like a bell, slowly drank the wine in the bowl, lowered his eyes, "I'm used to it, I can't change it, just do as you please, don't mind me."
"Okay, okay, as you wish, as you wish." Jia Xu didn't force him. He didn't use chopsticks, but grabbed a piece of beef with his hand and chewed it loudly.
Li Ru didn't care about Jia Xu's rude behavior, as if he didn't see it at all. He gently rolled up his sleeves, put down the wine bowl, looked to the east, and a strange light flashed in his eyes.
"Wenhe, Luoyang is just over a hundred miles away from here. I originally thought that I would never have the chance to come to Luoyang again in this life, but I didn't expect to set foot on this land a second time." Li Ru looked into the distance, as if he could already see Luoyang, his voice was calm, but there was a slight tremor in it.
Jia Xu was just grabbing another piece of beef when he heard this. He paused, put the beef back on the plate, and actually dipped his greasy fingers directly into his wine bowl to wash them, then picked up the wine bowl and drank it in one gulp, laughing loudly, but his laughter sounded a little hoarse, "Yes, that's right, it's been over three hundred years, and we've actually returned!"
"It's been three hundred and thirty-seven years… …"
Jia Xu was stunned for a moment, and said speechlessly: "…This, Wen You, you really calculated it clearly… …"
"How can I not be clear? In these three hundred and thirty-seven years, people like us have been driven to the barren land of Liang, living with the Qiang and Hu people, eating no millet, sleeping without mats, and even this dress, I have almost forgotten how to wear it… …"
"Twenty years ago, my father and I came to Luoyang with Hu merchants," Li Ru said slowly, "The city was tall, the streets were wide, and it was as prosperous as brocade, almost thinking it was not in the human world, and I felt that all the beauty in the world was gathered here… … But I was wrong. Because I was playful, I momentarily forgot myself and bumped into the Li Zheng of the market. That Li Zheng actually drove my father and me out of the market in the cold winter… … Fortunately, a family took us in, otherwise we would have frozen to death that night… …"
Jia Xu was silent, put down the wine bowl, and slowly knelt upright, staring at the east with Li Ru, his eyes deep, "…When I was young, my father… …suffered from food stagnation. I searched all the surrounding tribes, but there was no fine tea to help digestion. It happened that someone from Luoyang came at that time. We knelt down at the door and begged for a little to save my father, but that person… …"
"…That person actually said——" Jia Xu gripped the edge of the table tightly, took a long breath, his fingers turning white with force, "…How can we save the evil and rebellious Hu barbarians… … Ha, ha, ha ha, we are actually evil and rebellious Hu barbarians, only worthy of waiting to die… …"
The two were speechless, silent for a long time.
"Brother Wen You, but in my opinion, this is not a good opportunity either, and… …Although Dong Zhongying is bold and a man of emotion, he is not a good master who can secure the world… …"
"I know it." Li Ru still said lightly, "But time waits for no one. In the days of our fathers, there were still dozens of us who could be called intelligent, but now, how many people can inherit? Two hundred years ago, although our generation failed once, we also forced them to move the capital to Luoyang. Now, what does it matter if I fail again?"
Li Ru poured a bowl of wine, drank it all, and threw the wine bowl out, smashing it to pieces against the rocks: "If it can be done, I will replace them; if it cannot be done, I will disrupt it!"