My father Liu Xuande

Chapter 403 Two Bandits Present Treasure
The following afternoon, Lu Su and Liu Ye brought Xue Zhou and Zheng Bao to see him.

Lu Su and Liu Ye were veterans of Liu Bei's army. Although their positions were not high, they wielded great power and were highly regarded by Liu Feng and his son. Their future prospects were limitless.

Therefore, they led Xue Zhou and Zheng Bao straight into the mansion. When Liu Feng received the news, the four of them were already waiting for an audience outside the courtyard.

Liu Feng immediately changed his clothes and then solemnly went out to greet him.

"I apologize for not being able to greet you properly and for any rudeness on your part, gentlemen."

Liu Feng strode out of the courtyard, with Xu Chu following closely behind.

Liu Feng first bowed to Lu Su and Liu Ye, who naturally dared not take offense, repeatedly saying they dared not, while stepping aside and bowing in return.

Beside Lu Su and Liu Ye stood two burly men.

The burly man to Lu Su's left was bronze-colored, robust, and rather ugly, yet possessed a heroic air. The burly man to Liu Ye's right, on the other hand, had fair skin, an ordinary appearance, but his eyes were quite bright and expressive.

These two people were Xue Zhou and Zheng Bao.

At this moment, the two of them, along with Lu Su and Liu Ye, bowed to Liu Feng. Xue Zhou and Zheng Bao were both very respectful, but the difference was that Zheng Bao inadvertently glanced at Liu Feng a few times.

"If we're talking about being impolite, then we are the ones who are impolite."

Liu Ye smiled and cupped his hands towards Liu Feng, saying, "Young Master, you have gained the Emperor's favor on your trip to Luoyang, and the court has rewarded you with the promotion to Left General. Yet we have not yet offered our congratulations. Wouldn't that be extremely impolite?"

Strictly speaking, Liu Ye's words were somewhat frivolous and had the air of insubordination.

But that's just Liu Ye's personality. Although he is bold, meticulous, decisive, and ruthless, he also has a tendency to fawn over the powerful.

Therefore, he would sometimes lose his composure when facing the monarch, whereas Xun You, Lu Su, Guo Jia, Chen Deng, and others would never have done so.

Liu Bei favored Chen Deng and regarded him as a confidant, while Chen Yuanlong was arrogant and self-destructive, often making boastful remarks in front of Liu Bei, but Chen Deng never crossed the line.

Strictly speaking, Liu Ye's words went too far, giving the impression of failing to distinguish between primary and secondary matters.

Therefore, as soon as Liu Ye said this, the eyes of the other five people focused on him in unison. Lu Su's eyes even flashed with a trace of worry. He really did not expect Liu Ye to do such a thing.

Lu Su's gaze involuntarily drifted back to Liu Feng, his eyes filled with worry.

At the same time, Zheng Bao's gaze also turned to Liu Feng, who had been brought in by Liu Ye. At this moment, he was even more apprehensive than Lu Su.

“Mr. Ziyang, how ridiculous.”

Liu Feng burst into laughter, seemingly unconcerned about what Liu Ye had said.

Then, he turned his attention to Xue Zhou and Zheng Bao: "These two must be the brave men Xue Zhou and Zheng Bao, right?"

"This humble subject pays his respects to General Zuo!"

Upon hearing Liu Feng's words, Xue Zhou and Zheng Bao immediately stepped forward, knelt down, and paid their respects.

After they knelt down, Liu Feng stepped forward and took their arms, saying, "Please rise, you two brave warriors."

After helping the two men up, Liu Feng exclaimed, "Previously, Mr. Zijing and Mr. Ziyang strongly recommended these two brave men to my father and me. Only after meeting them today do I understand why they have earned such high praise from you gentlemen."

"This humble subject is unworthy of such praise. I have no particular strengths, but I am willing to serve General Zuo with my life."

"General Zuo is too kind. I am deeply humbled and have no way to repay you. I only ask to be your lackey."

Xuezhou and Zheng Bao were both filled with fear. Liu Feng had now been appointed as General of the Left, Governor of Yangzhou, and Marquis of Wu. Regardless of any of these titles, he was a high-ranking official whom Xuezhou and Zheng Bao had never met before.

Now that Liu Feng had not only appeared before them, but also treated them with the warmth of a spring breeze, how could the two not be excited, feeling as if they were in a dream?

Although Xue Zhou and Zheng Bao were originally from the ranks of river bandits and pirates, they were both intelligent men.

In the original timeline, Xue Zhou willingly served Chen Deng, and his troops became the core of the Guangling Army established by Chen Deng. They later fought against Lü Bu in the north and defended against Sun Quan in the south, making great contributions.

Seeing the desolation of the Jianghuai region, Zheng Bao actually wanted to kidnap Liu Ye and use his personal and family reputation to incite and coerce the people of Jiujiang to follow him south across the Yangtze River.

This shows that he was a bold and decisive person.

But things are different now.

Liu Feng had already recovered Guangling two years ago. Although Sheyang and Yandu, where Xuezhou is located, are remote, they have also submitted to Liu Bei.

Therefore, Xuezhou's power was far less than the historically vast Wanhu Buqu (ten thousand households) of its former troops; it only had a few thousand households and a few thousand Buqu.

Zheng Bao is in the same situation. He is no longer as arrogant as he was in the original timeline and is now very composed.

The two men had long been impressed by Liu Feng's meritorious achievements. When they met Liu Feng and were treated with courtesy, they felt that they had met a wise ruler. It was not surprising that they immediately wished they could die for Liu Feng.

"Today we are delighted to have acquired such a talented individual; we should hold a banquet to celebrate."

Liu Feng pulled Xue Zhou and Zheng Bao inside, earnestly instructing them: "Now that you two have joined me, I will surely value you highly. I fear even a thousand shi is insufficient to measure your talents, so never feel inferior in the future."

Xue Zhou and Zheng Bao were filled with gratitude and wanted to kneel down, but found that Liu Feng was holding their arms and wouldn't let go.

Left with no other choice, Xue Zhou and Zheng Bao could only bow and say, "We have come here with a gift to present to General Zuo. We beg General Zuo not to find it offensive."

"Oh?"

Liu Feng was somewhat surprised. After glancing at Xue Zhou and Zheng Bao, he turned his gaze to Lu Su and Liu Ye.

The former smiled calmly and remained silent, while the latter smiled and said, "I only know that these two have indeed prepared gifts for the audience, but I really do not know what the gifts are."

Liu Feng immediately became interested and laughed, "In that case, please join me in witnessing the gifts from these two valiant men."

Upon hearing this, Xue Zhou and Zheng Bao were immediately invigorated.

They had carefully prepared this gift, hoping to win the favor of Liu Feng and his son.

Soon, Xue Zhou and Zheng Bao brought the gifts, both of which were wooden boxes.

After exchanging a glance, Xue Zhou opened the package first, revealing a radiant gift inside.

"This is……"

Even Liu Feng, who was well-informed and experienced, couldn't help but exclaim in surprise.

It turned out that the wooden box sent by Xuezhou contained a pearl the size of a goose egg.

This pearl is about 18 millimeters in diameter, pure white and perfectly round, and shines brilliantly in the sunlight.

Such a large individual is extremely rare; it's likely that even at the time, it was impossible to find a second one. It's fortunate that Xuezhou was able to find one and was even willing to present it to Liu Feng.

Lu Su, Liu Ye, and the others were all astonished, while Zheng Bao also showed envy.

However, Zheng Bao's envious expression quickly vanished, replaced by a hint of secret delight.

Xue Zhou raised his head and said, "General Zuo, this is something I obtained by chance. I am presenting it to you today to express my respect."

Liu Feng was surprised and hesitated for a moment before saying, "The sage said that a gentleman does not take what others cherish. This item is extremely precious and worthy of being passed down through generations. How could I possibly take Lord Xue's treasure?"

Xue Zhou was shocked to see Liu Feng, Lu Su, and the others looking utterly bewildered. He hadn't expected Liu Feng to refuse the gift, and this realization plunged him into despair. Seeing Xue Zhou's emotional turmoil, Liu Feng realized he'd overacted and quickly reassured him, "While this treasure is rare, in my eyes, it is not as valuable as Bo Yuan's talent."

Liu Feng's expression of pity for talent immediately moved everyone, including Zheng Bao.

Xue Zhou immediately knelt down and kowtowed, saying, "General Zuo's kindness is something I could never repay even if I died ten thousand times. This treasure is rare and only someone as virtuous as you, General, is worthy of possessing it. I implore you, General, not to refuse and to accept this treasure."

Lu Su, a scholar from Xuezhou, also stepped forward: "Young master, you should cherish Xue Boyuan's willingness to serve you and not discourage him."

Liu Feng then sighed, "In that case, I shall accept your offer."

Upon hearing Liu Feng's words, Lu Su and Xue Zhou immediately showed joy on their faces, clearly indicating their sincere desire to give him the treasure.

At the same time, Zheng Bao also rushed out, opened the wooden box in his hand, held it high above his head as if offering it, and shouted loudly: "I am also sincere and earnestly request General Zuo to see this clearly."

Upon hearing this, Liu Feng's gaze naturally fell on the wooden box in Zheng Bao's hand.

The wooden box contained only a piece of shell. After a closer look, Liu Feng realized that it was a tortoise shell.

Liu Feng was surprised. Could the thing that Zheng Bao regarded as a treasure be just a tortoise shell?
No matter how carefully Liu Feng looked at it, he found that it was just an ordinary tortoise shell. Could it be that he opened his eyes wrong?

Fortunately, Zheng Bao shouted loudly at this moment: "This treasure was obtained from a thousand-year-old divine tortoise. There is a golden knife pattern on the tortoise shell, and below the golden knife, there is a character for king! This is the will of Heaven, that the Liu family will become kings!"

Liu Feng was shocked and looked at the tortoise shell again.

Just as Zheng Bao had said, there was a pattern resembling a golden knife on the upper part of the tortoise shell, and below it was the character "王" (king).

The most amazing thing is that this is the natural pattern of the tortoise shell, not a mark left by later injuries.

It is precisely because of this that Zheng Bao regarded it as a prophecy, a rare commodity worth hoarding.

Lu Su and Liu Ye also turned their gazes over, and even Xue Zhou on the ground looked up, but unfortunately, he could not see the scene inside the wooden box.

“It’s actually true.”

Liu Ye was overjoyed and shouted out loud.

Although Zheng Bao proclaims that the Liu family is the king, he has much more in mind than just being a king.

After all, there were countless princes with the surname Liu, so it wasn't really anything special.

The real essence lies in how to interpret the character "王" (king).

If it is interpreted as "the king rules the world," then the character "king" would probably need to be topped with "white."

This is the real reason why Zheng Bao regarded the tortoise shell as a treasure and why Liu Ye was overjoyed.

Liu Feng pondered for a moment, then stepped forward and gently closed the wooden box: "In that case, I will accept it."

Upon hearing that Liu Feng had accepted the offer, Zheng Bao was overjoyed, and Liu Ye and Lu Su also showed delight on their faces.

Liu Feng helped Zheng Bao and Xue Zhou up, then asked thoughtfully, "Boyuan and Dezhang, what are your ambitions?"

Upon hearing this, Zheng Bao and Xue Zhou immediately understood that Liu Feng was asking them whether they wanted to pursue a literary or military career.

Both of them rose to fame for their bravery, decisiveness, and outstanding martial prowess, so naturally they had no intention of switching to a literary career.

The two immediately clasped their hands and said, "We are willing to follow General Zuo in battle."

"good!"

Liu Feng had anticipated this and immediately replied, "You two are loyal and brave men, and you have gathered a crowd to join us. I will report back to you later."

After a moment's consideration, he said, "I intend to appoint you two as captains, each leading a naval battalion of two thousand men. What do you two think?"

Zheng Bao was a river bandit, and Xue Zhou was a pirate. Liu Feng's arrangement was incredibly thoughtful.

Although the rank of colonel has been somewhat devalued, Zheng Bao and Xue Zhou are both powerful rebels, and for them, news from official circles is even more delayed.

Therefore, both Zheng Bao and Xue Zhou were quite satisfied with the position of colonel who could command two thousand men, feeling that they had finally met a wise ruler and that their decision to serve him was the right one.

In their eyes, a captain was a legitimate official with a salary of two thousand shi (a unit of grain), a high-ranking official on par with a prefectural governor.

That evening, Liu Feng hosted a banquet for Zheng Bao and Xue Zhou.

After finishing his shift, Liu Bei also came to Liu Feng's place to attend the banquet.

Zheng Bao and Xue Zhou were essentially disillusioned powerful figures, but they never expected to be able to clear their names and become officials with a salary of 2,000 shi (a unit of grain). They were extremely grateful for the kindness shown to them by Liu Feng and Liu Bei, and wished they could repay them with their lives immediately.

After the banquet, Liu Feng instructed someone to send the tortoise shell with the golden knife prophecy to Liu Bei.

This is a bit too much for Liu Feng to handle. He can accept Zheng Bao's good intentions, but after thinking about it, he decides it's better not to keep the gift for himself.

As for how to deal with his father, that's Liu Bei's own business.

After dealing with all matters, Liu Feng originally intended to continue south to Jiangdong to handle military and political affairs.

However, Liu Bei's maternal love prevailed, and he personally persuaded Liu Feng to stay for several days.

In the past few days, Liu Bei also temporarily put aside his military and political affairs and took Liu Feng to tour the beautiful scenery around Shouchun.

The father and son stood on Mount Bagong, gazing at the Huaihe Plain below, feeling refreshed and invigorated.

The father and son enjoyed a rare picnic, and returned home in the evening, having had their fill of fun.

However, when the two returned to the prefecture, Xun You, Lu Su, and Liu Ye immediately requested an audience.

Liu Feng and his son were somewhat surprised, but they both realized that something big might have happened.

Liu Bei immediately ordered that Xun You and others be invited in.

Xun You, Lu Su, and Liu Ye entered the hall one after another, followed by a middle-aged scholar in his thirties.

Xun You spoke first, introducing Liu Feng and his son: "My lord, young master, this gentleman is Liu Yuanying, the chancellor of Pei State in Runan."

Liu Yuanying?
Based on this information, Liu Feng immediately recognized the other party's identity.

Isn't this Liu Fu?
This person is not very famous and has average strength, but his historical status is not low.

In the Book of Wei, Volume 15, he was ranked first among the six governors.

Look at the people behind him, each one has a bigger background than the last.

Among them were Sima Lang, the elder brother of Sima Yi and governor of Yanzhou; Liang Xi, the governor of Bingzhou; Zhang Ji, the governor of Liangzhou (grandfather of Empress Cao Fang); Wen Hui, the governor of Liangzhou (grandfather of Wen Xian); and Jia Kui, the governor of Yuzhou (father of Jia Chong).

However, Liu Fu died of illness as early as the thirteenth year of Jian'an (208 AD), the same year the Battle of Guandu broke out.

If Liu Fu had lived another year, his historical status would have been more objectively determined.

Because in the winter of the year after his death, Sun Quan led an army of 100,000 to attack Hefei for the first time, and the city of Hefei at that time was built from scratch by Liu Fu.

(End of this chapter)