My father Liu Xuande

Chapter 19 Gift of the Curved Carriage
Guan Yu and Zhang Fei, who were present, were also happy for Tian Yu and Zhao Yun.

At this time, the Second Master was far from being as arrogant as he would become later, and he didn't have the arrogance of confronting Ma Chao and Huang Zhong, thinking that he was the number one person in the Liu family.

In fact, although he ranked second at this time, his actual status was not as high as Zhang Fei's.

Both in terms of their closeness to Liu Bei and their investment in Liu Bei, they were inferior to Zhang Fei.

That's why Liu Bei later left Zhang Fei to guard Xiapi, while taking Guan Yu to resist Yuan Shu.

It was precisely because of the loss of Xiapi that Zhang Fei's position as the second-in-command in Liu Bei's group began to waver, and he was gradually replaced by Guan Yu.

However, the three shared a genuine bond, and Zhang Fei himself had no objections whatsoever. This shows that he not only truly regarded Guan Yu as his second brother, but also genuinely respected Guan Yu and Liu Bei.

"Come, come, let us drink this cup together, wishing Guo Rang and Zi Long to display their talents, bring peace to the people, and report to the court."

The entire audience roared in agreement, and the atmosphere became enthusiastic.

Pan Zhang was also very active in the group, his sincerity was evident, and he wished he could go through fire and water for Liu Feng and Liu Bei immediately.

In short, he was too ambitious.

Who made the Liu family father and son so generous?
Ironically, Guan Yu actually had a good impression of Pan Zhang, whom he had struggled against in his previous life, while Zhang Fei was somewhat disdainful, finding Pan Zhang too crude.

Tian Yu and Zhao Yun shared a common trait: they were both very calm and compassionate towards the people.

Tian Yu served as the garrison commander of the northern frontier for Cao Wei, emphasizing light taxes and levies, prioritizing production, and never squandering the people's resources.

After Liu Bei entered Shu, Zhao Yun took the lead in advising on military discipline, for which he did not hesitate to offend various military leaders and the morale of the army, and even lost his important title of general.

Both of them truly cared about the people.

Having just taken over as magistrates of two counties, whose jurisdictions have been ravaged by war and are in dire need of rebuilding, they couldn't help but think about how to restore people's livelihoods.

Tian Yu and Zhao Yun exchanged a glance, and without prior arrangement, they both wanted to take advantage of Liu Bei's good mood and get some assistance from him.

Putting aside other things, recruiting refugees requires a lot of food, the troops under his command also need food, and resuming farming also requires seeds, farm tools and oxen.

Not to mention the expenses for repairing the dilapidated city walls and houses in the county town, recruiting officials, and restoring production.

In short, there is a lack of money, food, and manpower.

Their leader Liu Bei didn't have many loyal followers. Apart from a few young men he brought from his hometown, Tian Yu and Zhao Yun really had no one else to rely on.

Zhao Yun was the first to speak, asking Liu Bei for help.

Liu Bei smiled mysteriously without saying a word, leaving Zhao Yun completely baffled.

Tian Yu, watching from the side, was completely bewildered, not understanding why Liu Bei's reaction was so strange.

But at this point, his interests aligned with Zhao Yun's, so he had no choice but to bite the bullet and ask for help.

Unexpectedly, Liu Bei remained silent and instead looked at Liu Feng with a smile.

When Liu Feng saw Big Ears' gaze fall on him, he knew that his father wanted him to show off in front of others.

Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, Zhao Yun, and Tian Yu, who are all present, are the most trusted confidants and the most loyal of all.

They are the people Liu Bei trusts most right now, and they are the ones he most wants his son Liu Feng to be loyal to.

Liu Bei was already thirty-four or thirty-five at this time. In the Han Dynasty, when the average age was thirty or forty, he was practically half-buried in the ground.

Seeing how outstanding his son was, he instinctively wanted to speed up the process of establishing Liu Feng's authority.

Liu Feng could roughly understand Liu Bei's thoughts, so he put aside his complicated feelings and cupped his hands towards Liu Bei, saying, "Father, the gifts I prepared earlier will come in handy."

"Oh?"

Liu Bei was taken aback. Amidst all the excitement, he had indeed completely forgotten about the gift.

"Very well, Feng'er, bring it to your father immediately."

Liu Feng agreed, but before he could get up, Pan Zhang, who was sitting next to him, got up and left with a keen eye.

A moment later, Pan Zhang, accompanied by several servants, brought in the curved plow and placed it in the center. Instantly, everyone's attention was focused on the curved plow.

"This... seems to be a plow?"

Big Ears was, after all, from a humble background. Although he was fond of chivalry, weaving mats and selling shoes, it didn't mean he didn't understand farming.

The others were also from humble backgrounds and recognized that the curved plow was used for farming, but they didn't understand why it was so complicated.

The most commonly used plow in the Han Dynasty was the straight-shafted plow, which had a long shaft and a straight shaft.

In comparison, the curved-shaft plow has a much shorter shaft, and the plow itself is curved. It also has many other parts. Compared to the straight-shaft plow, it feels like a bicycle has become a motorcycle.

Liu Bei and the others then focused their attention on Liu Feng, who, without hesitation, demonstrated his control skills and carefully explained the advantages and usage of the curved plow.

As Liu Feng explained, Liu Bei and the others' eyes grew brighter and brighter.

They have realized the usefulness of this farming tool; to put it bluntly, the efficiency of using a curved plow is five to ten times that of a straight plow.

This means that more land can be cultivated with fewer people.

This is undoubtedly a timely help for Chengxian and Lanling counties, which have suffered from the ravages of war and have a small population.

Zhao Yun spoke impatiently, his eyes fixed on Liu Feng, the eagerness in them making the latter feel uneasy.

"Young master, I wonder how many of these curved plows there are?"

"Only one piece available."

Liu Feng's words greatly disappointed Zhao Yun and Tian Yu. No matter how good a treasure is, it's useless if you only have one.

But Liu Feng continued, “The curved plow may seem complicated, but the manufacturing process is not difficult. The biggest problem is that the plowshare and the plowshare itself need to be made of iron, while the other materials are readily available.”

Upon hearing this, Zhao Yun, Tian Yu, and even Guan Yu and Zhang Fei looked at Liu Bei with great interest.

Big Ears was also tempted and made a decision without hesitation.

“This is easy. I will then summon craftsmen and order them to produce curved plows with all their might.”

After a moment's thought, Liu Bei continued, "Before the spring plowing, we should be able to produce a batch. We will then allocate one hundred pieces each to Guo Rang and Zilong."

Tian Yu and Zhao Yun were overjoyed and left their seats to express their gratitude.

Liu Bei ordered his servants to carry the curved plow away and store it properly, and then resumed the banquet.

Having seen the precious curved plow, and having received a personal promise from Liu Bei.

Feeling the strong support from the Liu family, Zhao Yun and Tian Yu were completely relieved and immersed themselves in the banquet.

The luncheon was very lively and lasted for two hours before it ended.

The banquet started just past noon and ended when the sun had almost completely set.

Tian Yu and Zhao Yun felt all the frustration in their chests dissipate in an instant, leaving only boundless enthusiasm and excitement.

Liu Feng drank quite a bit at the banquet, but he was much better off than everyone else present.

Big Ears was so happy today that he got completely drunk.

The others weren't much better off. Pan Zhang even got drunk and performed a sword dance for Liu Feng and Liu Bei in the hall, which drew cheers from the crowd. For a moment, the banquet was filled with joy and harmony.

As a result, everyone was drunk and scattered all over the place. It was Liu Feng who directed the servants to settle them down one by one.

Guan Yu and Zhang Fei naturally lived with their fathers, while Zhao Yun and Tian Yu lived in the official residence. Since they couldn't be sent back at this time, they were also settled in good rooms in the prefectural government.

After finally sending Pan Zhang back, Liu Feng still forced himself to go and pay his respects to Madam Wu and Madam Tian.

The two women felt sorry for Liu Feng and did not keep him to talk any longer, but told him to go back and rest quickly.

(End of this chapter)