Chapter 289: The Momentum of a Lone Army

"First, you said that Lema can at most be a noble concubine, and becoming a primary wife is absolutely impossible. Let me ask you, during the Wei and Jin dynasties, Li Feng planned a military coup, wanting to kill the Sima Shi clan and seize power. The plot was leaked and he was killed by Sima Shi. All those involved in this case were exterminated to the third degree of kinship. At that time, Li Feng's daughter had already married Jia Chong, so she escaped death and was exiled to Lelang, and Jia Chong also divorced her. Later, the Wei world finally became the Sima family's, and Jia Chong also married a woman from the Taiyuan Guo clan, becoming an important minister of the new dynasty. At that time, if someone told you that in the future, Jia Chong would reconcile with the daughter of the criminal who harmed the Sima family, and would welcome her back as his primary wife, what would you say?"

The barbarians present didn't know this historical allusion, but they understood the general story. Hearing Wang Yang's question, they all looked at Guo Shao.

Guo Shao knew this was a trap and avoided answering:

"I only said that the Zouye's daughter cannot be a primary wife; don't drag in a bunch of irrelevant things and divert attention. Jia Chong's matter is completely different from today's matter; Seeing Liu Cheng is not Jia Chong, and the Zouye's daughter is not Li Feng's daughter."

"I am just asking you, if someone told you at that time that in the future, Jia Chong would reconcile with the daughter of the criminal who harmed the Sima family, and would welcome her back as his primary wife, what would you say?"

Wang Yang's voice was neither fast nor slow, and he asked again.

Guo Shao put on an appearance of not wanting to pay attention.

Wang Yang was not impatient either, and directly answered on Guo Shao's behalf, slowly:

"You would say: absolutely impossible."

Guo Shao knew Wang Yang's tongue was sharp, so he didn't entangle with Wang Yang and kept a tight grip on the point:

"Noble clan marriages have their own laws! Lema is not a woman from a noble clan; how can she be the primary wife of the Liu clan of Hedong? Do you think that just by relying on your glib tongue, you can speak nonsense and create something out of nothing?!"

Wang Yang waited for Guo Shao to finish speaking with a relaxed expression, and said slowly:

"Let me ask you again: if a month ago—let alone a month ago, just five days ago—someone told you that the imperial court was going to abolish the policy of sealing off the Wenyang tribe, open the barbarian road, and conduct trade, what would you say?"

Guo Shao's expression turned cold and fierce:

"This is your insidious scheme to harm my barbarian tribe."

Wang Yang's eyes carried a smile:

"No, I hadn't arrived yet, and you didn't know there was a heaven beyond heaven and a Han beyond the barbarians. You would have told the person who told you this news: 'The Han court has its own rules! The Wenyang tribe is not a subordinate of the Han lands; how can the barbarian road be opened? Do you think that just by relying on your glib tongue, you can speak nonsense and create something out of nothing?!'"

Wang Yang imitated Guo Shao's tone perfectly. Le Luo Luo, Da Da Damu, and others couldn't help but laugh along.

Guo Shao's face was tight. He didn't know if he would have said that if such a situation had really happened, but he understood that he absolutely could not admit it, so he pretended to be disdainful:

"I wouldn't have said that at all. The imperial court can open the barbarian road, but Lema cannot become a primary wife."

Le Luo Luo frowned. He knew rationally that Guo Shao's words were likely true, but emotionally, hearing Guo Shao repeat such words again and again made him feel disgusted. This was like a guest coming to a house, praising the host's son for being excellent and saying he could get into Peking University in the future. A relative of the host in the side said it was absolutely impossible, and based on his grades, he could at most get into Beijing Normal University. As a result, the two argued. Although the host knew the relative's words were true, on one hand, he had a glimmer of hope, and on the other, hearing the relative emphasize again and again that his son couldn't get into Peking University, how could he feel comfortable?

This was the subtlety of human nature—false words wrapped in honey are always more pleasing than bitter truths.

Wang Yang retorted: "Then in that case, if before I arrived at the Wenyang tribe, someone told you that the Wenyang tribe was going to submit to the imperial court, you wouldn't have said 'absolutely impossible' either?"

Guo Shao, regardless of anything else, bit the bullet: "Naturally. Even if the Wenyang tribe submits to the imperial court, Lema cannot be a primary wife."

Guo Shao carefully avoided Wang Yang's pit while biting the theme tightly, but he didn't realize that he had already fallen into Wang Yang's "great rhythm." It was like a rower focusing entirely on dodging the rocks in front of him, while holding the rudder and oars tightly, not daring to relax. Although he passed one dangerous bay after another, he forgot that he was being carried by the rapids. As long as he was still in the rapids, the destination he was about to reach was already destined.

Le Luo Luo had a stiff face, while Wang Yang's expression was vivid, puzzled:

"That's not right. You fled from the Han to the barbarians. Of the two biggest possibilities, one is avoiding enemies and the other is having committed a crime. The thing you least want to see is the barbarian tribe submitting to the imperial court. Besides, you fled the Han territory, which is the crime of abandoning your registration and fleeing for your life. You must be afraid of the imperial court pursuing you. If the Wenyang tribe submits, what will happen if the court settles old scores? If they dig up something that shouldn't be dug up... In short, if you knew that the Wenyang tribe might submit, you shouldn't have joined the Wenyang tribe in the first place!"

Tuoshan and the others all looked at Guo Shao, each with their own thoughts.

Damn!

"Ruhaka! This is Ruhaka!!!"

Guo Shao stood up suddenly!

Ruhaka is a barbarian word, meaning to slander someone for no reason, splashing dirty water on them, similar to "slandering" in Han Chinese. Guo Shao used the barbarian language here, indicating that the primary target of this sentence was to be said to the barbarians, not Wang Yang.

Although Wang Yang didn't know the meaning of Ruhaka, he guessed it was something similar, and laughed:

"Right. So you should have said 'absolutely impossible' when you heard about the submission."

"You—" Guo Shao's footing was slightly chaotic, and he was sweating on his back.

"I don't blame you, really. A frog in a well doesn't believe there is an ocean, and a summer insect doesn't believe there is ice. Shallow people often hold on to their square-inch views and judge the existence of the world. When they hear something beyond their cognition, they have to say 'create something out of nothing'; when they hear something beyond their knowledge, they have to say 'speak nonsense.' Of course, some people like to say 'absolutely impossible'..."

Wang Yang glanced at Guo Shao as he said this. Although the barbarians in the seat had different thoughts, hearing this, they couldn't help but laugh.

Guo Shao felt a breath stifled in his chest, urgently thinking of words to refute. Wang Yang's words didn't stop, vivid and colorful:

"Someone can recite *Dream of the Red Chamber*—absolutely impossible. Someone can interpret the ancient and modern allusions of the Hanliu Hall poems—absolutely impossible. Someone can prove that the *Ancient Text Classic of History* is a fake book—absolutely impossible—"

Guo Shao was stunned when he heard the first two examples, wanting to refute but having no way to start. When he heard the third example, he immediately understood and seized the opportunity to counterattack:

"Simply nonsense—simply fabricating! Do you think you can just talk nonsense here? Just this sentence proves that your words are false and completely unbelievable! You even dare to say that the *Ancient Text Classic of History* is fake? Who proved it?! Who can prove it?!"

Wang Yang smiled and closed his fan:

"Not talented, it is precisely yours truly. My proof that the *Ancient Text Classic of History* is a fake book is known to everyone in Jingzhou who is slightly familiar with literature. You can ask anyone to verify the truth. Look, you are limited by your background and vision, and you think it is 'absolutely impossible' again, right?"

Fell into the trap!

Guo Shao's face changed, and he immediately realized that this was the bait thrown by Wang Yang! This person deliberately made the first two examples unclear, making me unable to start, and then used the third example to lure me into the trap by taking advantage of my eagerness to refute. How insidious!!! But how could the *Ancient Text Classic of History* be a fake book? Even if it were, how could it be proven? How is this possible...

Guo Shao was shocked and hesitant. On one hand, he couldn't believe the *Ancient Text Classic of History* was fake, and on the other hand, he felt Wang Yang didn't need to lie about such things. Just as he was thinking about how to phrase it, he heard Wang Yang close his fan, his voice clear:

"Your wisdom is insufficient, your knowledge is limited, and you have been living in the deep mountains, not knowing the years, like a crucian carp trapped in a rut, like a hibernating insect confined to a hole! You don't know the changes in the world, you don't know the migration of time and fate, and you don't understand the principles of opportunity. As for the future of the Wenyang tribe, my future, and Lema's future, it is even less for you to predict!"

"The Wenyang tribe will make contributions and be rewarded in the future. Can you predict what the achievement will be? I will hang what seal at my waist in the future, and rank in what terrace, can you predict it? I recognize Lema as my adopted sister; my future is also Lema's future. The great river flows day and night, and the world is like a turning candle. Today, the Son of Heaven has an open mind, aiming for great harmony, and opening the barbarian road is just the beginning! This is a time of renewal and the gathering of wind and clouds! Do you dare to say that in the future, no matter what, no matter how, Lema has no chance at all to become Seeing Liu Cheng's primary wife? Do you dare to say it?"

Wang Yang pointed his folding fan at Guo Shao, his gaze like a sword.

Guo Shao was sweating all over, his expression changing several times. Just as he was about to speak, Wang Yang returned his fan and said:

"What's more! My original words were 'not completely impossible.' What does it mean?

"The Han envoy's words are correct. I believe the Han envoy..." Tuoshan was the first to express his stance. He didn't care at all whether Lema was a wife or not, but the timber trade matter could not be underestimated. He first put on a posture of trust to lower Wang Yang's defenses; if there really were a problem, it would be easier to spot the flaws, and if there were no problem, then by being the first to stand up and support the Han envoy, he could be considered to have established a friendly relationship in advance.

Tuoshan continued: "However, let's forget about earning merit or anything like that; we should just do business."

Wu Wu Erke and the others all nodded in agreement. As long as there is money to be made, they don't want to hear about doing any hard work.

That is not up to you...

Wang Yang smiled: "That is naturally up to you. I was just saying it, that's all."

Da Da Damu didn't have so many thoughts; he purely felt that what Wang Yang said made a lot of sense, and he followed up by saying: "I also feel there is no problem; it is indeed as the military advisor said, he is wrong. The military advisor is not of the noble clans, so it is normal that he does not understand this."

Guo Shao: Idiot...

Guo Shao felt some regret. He shouldn't have brought up the Lema matter earlier. Originally, the main point was to expose the sinister intentions behind the timber trade, and the Lema marriage was just mentioned in passing. He didn't expect this brat to seize upon the four words "absolutely impossible" to make a big deal out of it, instantly reversing the situation. It was truly painting a snake and adding feet, losing much for a small gain! This person attacked back and forth; on the surface, he was debating whether Lema was a proper wife, but his real intention was to disintegrate the barbarians' trust in himself and diminish the weight of his own words!

For instance, in warfare, he first burned my grain supplies, pulled up my strongholds, and ruined my foundation. At this time, although the main forces of both sides have not yet engaged, I have already become an isolated army! The timber business has not yet been debated, but he has already seized the initiative and won more than half the battle. What a brilliant method... As expected of the Langya Wang clan, the head of the noble families; their foundation is unfathomable. I wonder which branch this disciple belongs to? However, regarding the timber business, even if he can deceive everyone else, at the very least, that person will not be deceived by him...

——————

Note: ① The "Hanliutang Poems" are the poems of Chen Yinke. The use of allusions in poetry is divided into "classical allusions" and "modern allusions." Classical allusions take events from ancient times as references, while modern allusions take events from the present time to create references. There are also those that combine ancient and modern allusions (classical allusion for a modern event). For example: "The youth loves to write poems about young ladies, not expecting to see them being aired out today. (This is a modern allusion; it was a joke between my friends and me at the time.) The child does not take lightly the craft of carving and engraving, the pearl tray has its own words of conviction. (This second couplet is a classical allusion, using the stories of Yang Xiong and the Rites of Zhou.) Yuzhou is already old with Nanke dreams, why not have the posture of the forest beneath the North Sea? (The third couplet on the surface uses the classical allusion of Kong Rong knowing Liu Bei, but it actually writes about a real event that happened at the time, so it is a combination of classical and modern allusions.)"

Classical allusions are slightly better, but like modern allusions, if I don't annotate them myself, except for the friends who were present at the time and those who heard about the twists and turns, no one can interpret them accurately. Mr. Chen's use of allusions in poetry is subtle and the meaning is remote; it has always been called difficult to understand. Among the published annotators, Hu Wenhui is considered the best.

② Let me talk about the publication of the physical book. I haven't mentioned it since the last time I talked about it, and as a result, some friends were actually deceived by pirated photocopied booklets! Everyone, don't be fooled. Due to various reasons, the release date of the book is tentatively scheduled for the end of September. Every chapter will have the author's notes and annotations. When it hits the market, whether it's signed copies, special signed copies, or publisher distribution channels, I will let you all know.