Chapter 382

Liu Bei looked up, his lips moving.

When he spoke, his voice carried a trace of imperceptible tremor, but very light, so light that if one didn't listen carefully, they would miss it: "Is this Master Kongming?"

The young man stood inside the door, the snow light reflecting on his profile: "It is indeed I."

Liu Bei stepped onto the stone steps; as he crossed the threshold, the snow on his shoulders fell with a rustle.

He did not pat it, did not brush it, just walked in like that.

The scene shifted, inside the thatched hall.

A stove of charcoal fire, two cups of warm tea, two people sitting opposite each other.

When the young man spoke, his voice was unhurried, as if talking about something he had thought about for a long time:

"Cao Cao possesses a million troops, holding the Emperor to command the lords; this is truly not something to contend with."

"Sun Quan occupies Jiangdong, having passed through three generations, the country is dangerous and the people are attached, with wise and capable people serving him; this can be used as support but cannot be plotted against."

"Jingzhou occupies the north of the Han and Mian rivers, its benefits reaching the South Sea, connecting to Wu and Hui in the east, and communicating with Ba and Shu in the west; this is a land of military importance, but its master cannot defend it, this is surely what Heaven uses to provide for the General."

He paused, reached out to pick up the teacup, took a sip, and put it down again:

"Yizhou is dangerous and blocked, with fertile fields for a thousand miles, a land of heavenly abundance, which the High Ancestor used to achieve imperial success."

"Liu Zhang is dark and weak, Zhang Lu is in the north, the people are prosperous and the country is rich but he does not know how to cherish them; wise and capable scholars are thinking of finding a bright lord."

"The General is a descendant of the imperial house, faith and righteousness are known throughout the four seas, gathering heroes, thinking of the wise as if thirsty; if you cross and possess Jing and Yi, protect their rocky barriers, harmonize with the various Rong in the west, soothe the Yi and Yue in the south, externally ally with Sun Quan, internally cultivate government and reason—"

He looked up at the person sitting opposite him, his voice falling very steadily:

"When there is a change in the world, order a top general to lead the Jingzhou army toward Wan and Luo, and the General himself lead the Yizhou troops out of the Qin River; which of the common people would dare not welcome the General with bamboo baskets of food and jugs of liquid?"

"If it is truly like this, then the hegemony can be achieved, and the Han house can be revived."

Liu Bei sat opposite him, the tea not picked up.

His hands rested on his knees; after hearing the last sentence, he did not speak.

After a long time, he finally spoke, his voice not loud, but every word like water droplets seeping out from stone cracks, heavy and clear: "Master Kongming, are you willing to come out of the mountains?"

The young man put down the teacup, stood up, straightened his robe, clasped his hands, and bowed.

"I am willing to offer the labor of a dog or horse."

The scene froze.

The celestial screen froze on that scene in the thatched hall,

The furnace fire reflected on the two faces, one bright and one dark, but neither of them smiled.

The ground was quiet for a long time.

No discussion, no exclamation; that kind of quiet was not suppressed, it was born of itself, like snow falling on the ground, piling up layer by layer.

Above the clouds, Ying Zheng's voice came down first, lower than usual, as if afraid of startling something:

【Humble in seeking the wise, bowing to ask for the Dao; as a ruler, one should have this perspective and bearing.

Warlords in troubled times are mostly arrogant, only Liu Bei understands respecting talent and cherishing talent; only with such breadth of mind is one worthy of contending for the world!】

Liu Bang's voice carried a hint of contained laughter:

【Judging people without confusion, enduring humiliation without contention, treating people with utmost sincerity, daring to delegate power.

The Imperial Uncle failed for half his life, not because of lack of ability, but because he had not met a good minister.

Being able to settle his heart, put down his status to seek the wise, and gain the desperate loyalty of a peerless wise minister—those who achieve great things are indeed not accidental!】

Liu Che:

【Since ancient times, many have sought talent, but no one is like Liu Bei, utmost sincere and true, consistent from beginning to end.

Three visits in wind and snow, what he relied on was not power, but sincerity!

This is the highest model of an ancient monarch seeking talent!】

Liu Xiu's voice followed closely:

【When the winds and clouds of troubled times rise, the hardest thing to obtain is the meeting of winds and clouds, the mutual knowledge of monarch and subject.

Power is easy to obtain, soulmates are hard to find.

Xuande and Kongming, one monarch and one subject, are monarch and subject, but even more so soulmates in troubled times, worthy of being called the most beautiful encounter in history!】

Yang Jian:

【Warlords in troubled times all look down from high positions, viewing strategists as chess pieces, as tools.

Only Liu Bei puts down the nobility of a warlord, bowing to treat a wise man in cloth clothes with courtesy.

With this one act, his perspective and bearing crush ninety percent of the warlords in troubled times!】

Li Shimin:

【Those who win the hearts of the people win the world, those who win the wise win the destiny of the world!

Liu Bei's three visits in wind and snow, an act of utmost sincerity, had long since captured the hearts of scholars in the world, occupying the great righteousness of troubled times!

Such a perspective is destined to be extraordinary!】

Zhao Kuangyin:

【Schemes can win for a moment, utmost sincerity can win for a lifetime.

False feelings can only exchange for sycophants, only sincere truth can gain the life-and-death following of a peerless wise minister, never leaving or abandoning!】

Zhu Yuanzhang's voice was the hardest, like a stone hitting a stone slab:

【Seeking talent as if thirsty, humble and utmost sincere, not arrogant or impatient, not forgetting the original intention.

Establishing oneself in troubled times, an emperor achieving things, all need to be like this!

Throughout history, all those in power should take this as a model!】

Zhu Di concluded, his voice pressed low and steady:

【There are countless stories of monarch and subject throughout history, only Xuande and the Martial Marquis are the most moving.

The best monarch and subject start with utmost sincere waiting and end with unwavering loyalty until death.

This encounter is unparalleled throughout history!】

On the ground, Liu Bei stood where he was without moving.

Behind him stood Guan Yu and Zhang Fei.

Guan Yu's hand had already left his long beard, hanging at his side, his fingertips slightly curled.

Zhang Fei's fist clenched and then loosened.

Liu Bei did not turn back, but his voice slid slowly from his throat, not heavy, as if talking to himself, and as if talking to the people behind him: "At that time... the wait was worth it."

Guan Yu grunted.

Zhang Fei did not speak, but his head lowered.

Zhuge Liang stood on the other side of the crowd, no fan in his hand; he didn't bring one today.

He looked at the frozen scene on the celestial screen, that door, the person standing in the snow waiting, the snow water half-melted on the stone steps, and the face he saw when he opened the door.

His gaze did not move away, but his lips were tightly shut.

An old soldier of the Shu army nearby glanced at him secretly, saw his Adam's apple move, and looked away again.

On Cao Cao's side, he stood in the front row, behind him were Guo Jia, Xun Yu, and Jia Xu.

He finished watching the entire scene, did not move, and did not speak.

After a long time, he lowered his head—not nodding, but lowering, as if the strength in his neck had been drained by something.

Then he spoke, his voice neither high nor low, as if to himself:

"Cao's recruitment of the wise relies on power, favor, and bearing... but Cao has never waited for anyone in the snow."

Guo Jia's hands were in his sleeves, gripping an unrolled scroll of bamboo slips, his fingertips rubbing back and forth on the edge of the slips.

On Yuan Shao's side, his face was no longer white, but an indescribable color.

His hand gripping his sleeve loosened, hung at his side, then slowly raised to touch his own face, put it down, and clenched it again.

Sun Quan stood by the river, the wind blowing his robe hem with a hunting sound.

He glanced at the door of the thatched cottage on the celestial screen, then looked at the water under his feet, and pursed his lips.

Among the commoners, the child from earlier had already stood up.

The old man beside him pulled his sleeve: "Why are you standing so straight?"

The child didn't turn back: "That person waiting in the snow, how long did he wait?"

The old man thought for a moment: "The scene showed three winters."

The child was silent for a while: "Three winters, wasn't he cold?"

The old man put the pipe back in his mouth: "Cold. But worth it."

【The next countdown will be revealed in three days, please look forward to it!】