My father Liu Xuande

Chapter 422 Recruiting celebrities
The information recorded on the silk scroll sent by Quan Cong was not secretive. It contained information about Liu Feng and Liu Bei's large-scale selection of elite troops and expansion of their army, which aroused the vigilance of Jingzhou and led to their reaction.

Fortunately, while Liu Feng was expanding his army, he also dispersed it. The main force of his navy was located in Jiangbei and Danyang, while the main force of his army was located in Shouchun, Kuaiji and Yuzhang respectively.

This gave Liu Biao and the people of Jingzhou the illusion that Liu Bei and his sons were still focused on suppressing rebellions in the north and internally. This clearly created a closed loop with the concessions Liu Bei and his sons made when Liu Xun defected to Jingzhou more than half a year earlier.

As a result, from Liu Biao's high-ranking officials to the soldiers and common people in Jingzhou, everyone felt that it was unlikely that a war would break out between Liu Bei and his son and Jingzhou.

Therefore, Liu Biao's reaction was also very restrained. Even when he expanded his army, it was not only aimed at Liu Bei and his son, but also took into account the increasing pressure from the north.

If you look closely, Huang Zu, who was right next to Liu Bei and his son, only expanded his army by 5,000 men, while Xiangyang, which was next to Cao Cao, actually expanded its army by 15,000 men by land and water.

After reading the intelligence, Liu Feng relaxed his brow.

Liu Biao's reaction, particularly the proposal to expand the army, was indeed somewhat unexpected by Liu Feng.

Fortunately, this is still within acceptable limits.

Then, Liu Feng opened the second silk scroll.

The above record contains good news: Zheng Xuan and Wang Xiu accepted the invitation to serve on their side.

Zheng Xuan was recruited by Liu Bei to serve as the Chief Clerk of the General of the Cavalry, while Zheng Yi and Wang Xiu were recruited by Liu Feng.

At this time, Liu Feng's appearance greatly increased Liu Bei's strength, which in turn prevented Yuan Tan from forcibly seizing Beihai. Zheng Yi, who died in the battle during Yuan Tan's invasion of Beihai and the siege of Kong Rong, survived.

Zheng Yi was the only son of Zheng Xuan and the father of Zheng Xiaotong, a famous minister of Cao Wei. He was recommended by Kong Rong as a candidate for the civil service examination. Therefore, when Yuan Tan attacked Kong Rong, although he knew he would die, he still led his family retainers and tenants to rescue him.

Because of the Yellow Turban Rebellion in Qingzhou, Zheng Xuan and Zheng Yi lived in Xuzhou for many years. Moreover, Zheng Xuan had a high opinion of Liu Bei and spoke well of him.

Zheng Xuan and Lu Zhi were fellow disciples, and Liu Bei was at least a nominal disciple of Lu Zhi. Therefore, Zheng Xuan could be considered Liu Bei's senior master.

However, Zheng Xuan never liked being an official; he preferred to stay at home, quoting classics and annotating them.

Liu Bei had invited him to serve as an official on several occasions, but he had always politely declined.

Although Zheng Xuan did not leave his post, he still helped Liu Bei a lot during his years in Xuzhou.

Especially because of Liu Feng's appearance, Zheng Xuan did not return to Qingzhou Beihai in the second year of Jian'an as he had in history, but stayed in Tancheng as a guest.

As a result, Liu Bei's influence over the scholars of Xuzhou was greatly expanded.

After all, Zheng Xuan was a renowned scholar of the highest caliber. Even Chen Gui, Chen Deng's father, had to treat Zheng Xuan with the respect due to a disciple.

Now Liu Bei has finally won over Zheng Xuan, who has been appointed as the chief clerk in the General of Chariots and Cavalry's office. It is foreseeable that Liu Bei's reputation will greatly increase as a result.

At the same time, Zheng Yi and Wang Xiu also accepted Liu Feng's offer of service.

After Zheng Yi survived by a twist of fate, he followed Zheng Xuan to settle in Xuzhou.

Now Liu Feng is recruiting Zheng Yi as a clerk in the Ministry of Personnel, and at the same time recruiting Xun Yue, the elder brother of Xun Yu and the elder brother of Xun You, as a clerk in the Ministry of Rites, and recruiting Wang Xiu as a clerk in the Ministry of Justice.

At this time, due to the instigation of a villain, Wang Xiu resigned from his official post and went into seclusion to avoid suspicion. He had been invited by Liu Bei and his son before, and now Liu Feng came to recruit him again. Perhaps unable to refuse the invitation, or perhaps grateful for the praise of Liu Feng and his son, Wang Xiu accepted Liu Feng's offer this time and has now arrived in Tancheng.

After reading the information recorded on the two silk scrolls, Liu Feng turned around and handed them directly to Mi Zhu.

Mi Zhu was somewhat surprised, but after seeing Liu Feng's expression, he immediately felt relieved and began to peruse the silk book in his hand.

Mi Fang was quite curious and went straight to Mi Zhu to take a closer look.

After they finished reading, Liu Feng said to Mi Zhu, "Brother Zizhong, I'll leave the affairs of Qu County to your uncle."

Mi Zhu nodded and replied, "Zisheng, please rest assured, my father will do his best to take care of you."

Liu Feng smiled with satisfaction, then gave another instruction: "Brother Zizhong, you also need to take care of things in Pengcheng. Any technology that helps improve production should be rewarded and commended, whether it be with money or reputation, don't be stingy."

Mi Zhu was somewhat surprised, clearly not expecting Liu Feng to make such a request.

However, Mi Zhu did not object. Especially when he saw Liu Feng's serious and solemn attitude, he realized that the other party really valued it, and his thoughts secretly changed.

At the same time, Mi Zhu responded, "Yes! I will do my best to fulfill Zisheng's words."

Liu Feng then asked Quan Cong, "Where has Wang Shuzhi arrived?"

Wang Shuzhi is Wang Xiu, whose courtesy name was Shuzhi.

Quan Cong hurriedly replied, "We have arrived in Dongguan and are currently traveling down the river. In another three to five days, we will reach Tancheng."

Liu Feng smiled with satisfaction and praised Quan Cong a few times.

Later, accompanied by the Mi brothers, Liu Feng visited the last sesame oil workshop.

The entire sesame oil workshop employs over a hundred people, and even the pressing area has several brand-new courtyards to house the pressing machinery.

After discussing the engagement with the Mi family and inspecting their various businesses in Qu County, Liu Feng set off to return to Tancheng.

Before leaving, Liu Feng made a special trip to visit Mi Zeng.

That evening, Mi Zeng hosted a banquet for Liu Feng.

Because of his business acumen, Mi Zeng had a more advanced way of thinking about technology and commerce, which made him more likely to align with Liu Feng's ideas.

Liu Feng also provided soap production technology and gave it to Mi Zeng for testing.

The reason why the soap-making technique was only brought out now was not because Liu Feng had forgotten it or disliked it, but because the soap-making technique required quite a few things.

First, a large-scale pig herd is necessary, especially since pigs don't have a high fat content these days, which further increases the required number.

Secondly, after acquiring pigs, there also needs to be a market for the pig parts that are not needed in the soap-making process; otherwise, these parts will be wasted, or at the very least, the costs will not be recovered.

Finally, a large amount of seashells and wood ash are also needed.

Similarly, the best material for perfume is distilled alcohol, which is actually much more troublesome than using snow salt, frosting sugar, or sesame oil.

When Liu Feng first arrived, Liu Bei was so poor that even his soldiers were struggling to get enough to eat. Xuzhou was in dire need of rebuilding, so there was no spare capacity to raise pigs or brew wine.

However, now that he has the financial means, Liu Feng is also thinking about acquiring more luxury goods to raise funds.

Mi Zeng was also very interested in this, and the two sides hit it off immediately. For a time, both host and guest were delighted, and Liu Feng even drank too much in his joy.

In his drunken stupor, he felt a beautiful, delicate young woman by his side taking care of him, serving him tea and water, and wiping his face and neck with a warm towel.

When I woke up, she was gone, leaving only the pleasant scent of jasmine, which left me feeling lost and forlorn.

After waking up, Liu Feng bid farewell to Mi Zeng and led his team back to Tancheng.

********
After arriving in Tancheng, Liu Feng returned to his residence to meet with Liu Bei and reported on the affairs of Qu County.

Liu Bei was very satisfied after hearing this, and then discussed with Liu Feng, "I plan to ask Yuanlong to help the Mi family. Yuanlong and Zizhong are bosom friends, having known each other for more than ten years. He will certainly not refuse my request."

What Liu Bei was referring to was the matchmaker. Although Liu Feng had arranged the marriage between the two families himself, Liu Bei, as a father, would certainly have entrusted a matchmaker to arrange the engagement.

Liu Feng's move can only be considered a statement, and it is also a way to lay the foundation for in-depth negotiations with the Mi and Cao families.

Now that the talks are over and there are no problems, Liu Bei will naturally choose a matchmaker.

Liu Feng had no objection to Chen Deng's selection. Both Chen Deng and Mi Zhu were scholars from Xuzhou, although they belonged to the two commanderies of Donghai and Xiapi respectively, and their social status was not comparable.

But what can you do when times are chaotic?

Chen Deng was recommended by Tao Qian and appointed as the Tenant Farm Commandant, where he was stationed in Xuzhou to cultivate land for Tao Qian.

This job is quite complicated and has a very high barrier to entry.

Not only must the person in charge be truly talented and capable of leading a project independently, but they must also have a high reputation and influence within Xuzhou. Otherwise, why would the local gentry and powerful families give you face?

Most importantly, if you want to establish a military settlement, money, grain, and supplies are absolutely essential.

Money is essential to gather manpower, grain is needed to feed farmers, seeds are needed for cultivation, and farm tools and oxen are needed for assistance. Almost all of these things are indispensable, especially grain, which can be said to be the foundation of everything.

When Chen Deng took office as the Tenant Farmers' Commandant, not only did the Chen family contribute greatly, but the Mi family did as well.

Mi Zhu brought a large amount of grain, oxen, and farm tools to Chen Deng from his home, and also spent a lot of money to help Chen Deng gather refugees.

It was thanks to Mi Zhu's strong support that Chen Deng was able to successfully cultivate the land and achieve a bumper harvest that year, bringing Tao Qian an increase in production and income of hundreds of thousands of shi of grain.

More importantly, Chen Deng was different from ordinary scholars. He still had a lot of conscience and did not take Mi Zhu's help for granted just because his clan was more prestigious than the Mi family.

Chen Deng and Mi Zhu became friends, and interestingly, they shared similar political views. They later collaborated to bring Liu Bei to Xuzhou.

When Liu Bei entered Xuzhou, Tao Qian was his benefactor, Chen Deng was his chief contributor, and Mi Zhu was his chief patron and second-in-command. Inviting Chen Deng to propose marriage to the Mi family would be extremely appropriate in terms of reputation, prestige, and status, and would also greatly enhance the Mi family's prestige.

Liu Feng was naturally very satisfied with this.

Then Liu Bei said, "As for the Cao family, let's ask Tao Shang and Tao Ying to take charge. What do you think?"

Tao Shang and Tao Ying were Tao Qian's sons and Cao Bao's former lords. Their personal involvement in proposing marriage for Liu Feng would be a great boost to Cao Bao's reputation, and he would surely be very pleased.

Liu Feng then knelt down with satisfaction and thanked Liu Bei, saying, "Father, I am deeply grateful for your kindness."

Liu Bei smiled with satisfaction and waved his hand, saying, "We are father and son, there's no need for such formalities."

********
A few days later, Xun Yue arrived from Yingchuan, and Liu Feng personally went out of the city ten miles to welcome him.

Xun Yue was the grandson of Xun Shu, a famous scholar from Yingchuan, the nephew of Xun Shuang, the Minister of Works, the son of Xun Jian, and the elder brother of Xun Yu. He was a well-known scholar, classicist, historian, political commentator, and thinker.

His greatest strength was his firm opposition to land annexation. He advocated that those in power should promote agriculture and sericulture to cultivate their character, discern good from evil to rectify their customs, promote culture and education to regulate their civilization, establish military preparedness to maintain their authority, and clarify rewards and punishments to unify their laws.

It can be said that his ideas overlapped considerably with those of Liu Feng, which is why Liu Feng recruited him to take charge of the Ministry of Rites and asked him to raise the political banner for him.

If Liu Feng hadn't been appointed Left General and Governor of Yangzhou, and if Liu Bei hadn't become General of the Cavalry and Governor of Yuzhou, the chances of him successfully recruiting Xun Yue would have been extremely low.

Liu Feng can now proudly announce that his family has entered the threshold of a first-class lord, becoming the target of investment by top-tier aristocratic families in the Central Plains, such as the Xun family.

The Xun family now has two heavyweight figures in Liu Bei's camp: Xun You assists Liu Bei, and Xun Yue assists Liu Feng. This is a privilege that only Yuan Shao and Cao Cao enjoyed.

It is evident that Liu Feng and his son's strength has now been recognized by many people, and these people are almost all among the most intelligent.

Xun Yue had actually hesitated before coming.

As members of the Xun clan of Yingchuan, Xun Yue and Xun Yu, like their respective branches, were not affected by the Party Prohibitions and were actually constantly being recruited by various parties.

However, Xun Yue remained secluded, spending his time at home reading and pursuing knowledge.

On the contrary, the entire Xun Yu lineage entered officialdom. Xun Yan and Xun Chen became officials at a young age, and even Xun Yu himself became a minor official in Yingchuan County at a young age.

Xun Yue, who had never served in office before, naturally hesitated when Liu Feng invited him to serve.

To his surprise, Xun Yan, Xun Chen, Xun Yu, and Xun You all wrote him letters.

Xun Yan and Xun Chen wrote to him, urging him to serve Liu Feng and Liu Bei, father and son, through Xun You.

Because Xun Yu lived nearby and frequently corresponded with Xun Yue, he strongly urged Xun Yue to accept Liu Feng's offer of service after learning of Liu Feng's recruitment. Xun You did the same; upon learning from Liu Bei that Liu Feng had recruited Xun Yue, he immediately wrote a letter and sent it urgently to Yingchuan, persuading Xun Yue to come out of seclusion.

This shows that the Xun family now values ​​Liu Feng and Liu Bei highly, and feels that the Xun family's investment in Liu Feng and Liu Bei is too weak, so they want to find opportunities to increase their influence.

Currently, among the Xun clan, Xun Yan and Xun Chen lead most of their clan to serve Yuan Shao, while Xun Yu and Xun Fei lead a small number of their clan to serve Cao Cao. As for Liu Feng and his son Liu Bei, only Xun You remains.

If it were before, there would naturally be no problem.

However, the strength of Liu Feng and his son Liu Bei has grown too rapidly, which has attracted great attention from the Xun family.

Xun Yue is just the beginning. If Xun Yue can be valued and even given important positions by the Liu family, then Xun Fei, Xun Yan and others will consider going south to join Liu.

This is actually a very real problem.

Despite being the elder brother of Xun Yu and Xun Chen, Xun Yan's position under Yuan Shao was far inferior to that of his younger brother Xun Chen, and Xun Fei did not even serve under Cao Cao.

In that case, switching allegiances is a perfectly reasonable option.

(End of this chapter)