Upon entering Hanzhong city, Zhang Lu paid his respects to Crown Prince Lu Yu, presented the seal of the Hanzhong Prefect and the household registry, and then returned to his Taoist temple.
After bathing, with his hair unbound and spread out, he sat before the mirror. Zhang Lu's wife, Lady Lu, took a comb and gently began to brush his hair.
"What? Still angry with our daughter?" Lady Lu asked.
Zhang Lu smiled. "How dare I? Our daughter is not merely the saintess of the Celestial Master Sect; she is the woman of the Wei Crown Prince. With the King of Wei's immense affection for the Crown Prince, he will surely make an exception and allow our daughter to be the Crown Princess!"
Lady Lu stifled a laugh. "I never would have thought the dignified third-generation Celestial Master of the Celestial Master Sect would be so petty, vying with his son-in-law for his daughter. You're acting like a quarrelsome woman."
Zhang Lu let out a sigh. "The Great Wei abolished Buddhism, Hanzhong surrendered, and the Celestial Master Sect pledged allegiance to the Great Wei. This is good for the disciples and the people here, but only I..."
Zhang Lu paused before continuing, "Only I... have gained a fake son-in-law and given away my real daughter!"
As he spoke, Zhang Lu rose to his feet. He stood with his hands behind his back, walking to the window, his eyes narrowed to slits.
He knew...
His daughter, Zhang Qiying, with her brilliant mind and gentle nature, before Yangping Pass, before the decree to abolish Buddhism... she went to see the Wei Crown Prince late at night. She offered herself willingly... for what reason!
The Sun clan of Jiangdong, the Ma clan of Xiliang, and even Lü Bu... they had all set precedents.
With such examples before him...
Without a marriage alliance with the Great Wei Crown Prince, the Great Wei would never delegate power to the local regions, nor could the Celestial Master Sect develop and expand peacefully across the land of the Central Plains!
His daughter, with her own strength, had made the Great Wei and the Celestial Master Sect trust each other... connect with each other!
Just then...
"Celestial Master Zhang..." Yan Pu's voice came from outside the door.
Zhang Lu collected his thoughts and went to open the door. "Elder Yan, what urgent matter brings you here so late at night?"
Yan Pu took something from his robe. "The Saintess has entrusted me with delivering this to Celestial Master Zhang."
Zhang Lu looked closely. It was a bamboo slip. He quickly took it, his eyes darting with curiosity as he asked, "Is Qiying with the Wei Crown Prince...?"
"Yes!" Yan Pu nodded. "She accompanied the Wei Crown Prince into the sleeping quarters..."
"Heh..."
Zhang Lu let out a helpless bitter smile, the same words echoing again: a grown daughter cannot be kept. Her heart is no longer here.
"You may go," he murmured.
Zhang Lu spoke softly, then gently patted the bamboo slip in his hand and placed it on the table, slowly unrolling it.
Zhang Lu was the leader of the Five Pecks of Rice sect, but he was also a father. When a daughter marries, the father feels the most complicated emotions.
"Ahem..."
With a slight cough, Zhang Lu tried to calm his emotions. He lowered his gaze, attempting to read the letter.
It wasn't his daughter Zhang Qiying's handwriting...
The signature was Cao Yu? This...
Confirming that the bamboo slip was indeed written by Lu Yu, Zhang Lu's spirits lifted, and he began to read the contents carefully.
As he read, he was quickly captivated by the words, and then... immersed in them.
Lady Lu called out to Zhang Lu three times in succession, but he did not respond.
Lady Lu leaned closer and discovered that the content of the bamboo slip was none other than Lu Yu's treatise on the future development direction of the Celestial Master Sect!
During Emperor Shun's reign, Zhang Daoling had spread the teachings of the "Three Officials' Letters" and the "Alliance of the Orthodox Unity" on Mount Heling, healing illnesses and averting disasters for the people, laying the foundation for the development of the Five Pecks of Rice sect.
After the Five Pecks of Rice sect submitted to Wei, how would it develop? Where would it head?
This was something Zhang Lu needed to consider carefully, and it was what he had been agonizing over for days, unable to make a decision.
But within this bamboo slip...
Lu Yu proposed the concept of "Northern Celestial Master Sect" and "Southern Celestial Master Sect," and the idea of relocating thirty thousand disciples. He suggested the main temple of the Northern Celestial Master Sect be established in "Pingcheng" (Taiyuan, Shanxi), and the Southern Celestial Master Sect in the Taixu Temple on Mount Lu!
The Northern Celestial Master Sect, based on the existing doctrines of the Celestial Master Sect in the Bashu region, would undergo a series of reforms suitable for the local conditions.
For instance, it would abolish false practices, rent payment, taxes, and the art of male-female coitus. Instead, it would adopt the "New Precepts of Yunzhongyin" stated within the bamboo slip.
One of the stipulations was that new disciples joining the Celestial Master Sect would no longer pay five pecks of rice, but rather thirty sheets of paper, one brush, and one ink stick, for the purpose of self-cultivation and salvation...
In addition to this, there were seven commandments.
Reading this, Zhang Lu's eyes narrowed...
He could feel that Lu Yu's actions...
The promulgation of these "New Precepts of Yunzhongyin" must have had a special significance.
Of course, the reforms for the Southern Celestial Master Sect were also tailored to the local conditions.
One of these involved establishing the Taixu Temple on Mount Lu as the base, recruiting disciples and spreading the teachings in the southern regions. Internally, it would expand facilities such as the "Baiyun Hall," "Chaozhen Hall," "Alchemy Well," and "Medicine Washing Pool"...
Externally, it would establish dozens of Taoist temples, including the Kangwang Temple, Yongzhen Temple, Baihe Temple, and Taiping Temple...
Continuously expanding the influence of the Celestial Master Sect and the Orthodox Unity Alliance.
These visions, these arrangements for the relocation of thirty thousand Five Pecks of Rice disciples, shocked Zhang Lu.
Most importantly were two points: first, the expenses for the expansion of the Celestial Master Sect and the Orthodox Unity Alliance would be borne by the Great Wei;
Second, the "Celestial Master Sect" would be established as the state religion of the Great Wei, assisting the Great Wei in educating the populace, and even having the authority to supervise and impeach local officials to a certain extent.
This...
Upon reading the final lines, Zhang Lu gasped.
He would never have imagined that while he lost a daughter, his son-in-law, Crown Prince Cao Yu of Great Wei, could achieve such a feat. His sincerity, or rather, the Great Wei's sincerity, was overwhelming!
"Ahem..."
With another cough, Zhang Lu, still emotionally stirred, slowly rose. His body trembled, and his legs faltered, nearly causing him to fall...
He still couldn't believe this was real...
The Celestial Master Sect had become the state religion of the Great Wei, and the Great Wei would spare no effort in supporting the development of the Celestial Master Sect in the Central Plains!
Seeing Zhang Lu almost fall, Lady Lu quickly helped him.
Zhang Lu waved her away. He strode forward with effort, finally turning to look directly into Lady Lu's eyes.
"You have given birth to a good daughter!"
"She is the Saintess of the Celestial Master Sect, but she is also... she is also the Crown Princess of Great Wei! The future Royal Consort of Great Wei!"
At this moment...
As if seeing through Lady Lu, Zhang Lu envisioned the prosperous development of the Celestial Master Sect throughout the Great Wei... envisioned the Celestial Master Sect blossoming everywhere!
The vision his grandfather Zhang Daoling had held with such longing, a vision his father Zhang Heng had not achieved, might now be realized in his generation, Zhang Lu!
Just then...
"Celestial Master, there is an envoy from Liu Bei of Bashu seeking an audience. They speak of the lips and teeth being interdependent..."
This voice made Zhang Lu immediately cautious.
His expression turned stern.
"Hmph..."
As if by reflex, Zhang Lu snorted and waved his hand. "Tell Liu Bei's envoy that I, Zhang Lu, 'would rather be a slave to Duke Cao than a guest of Liu Bei!' Hmph, lips and teeth interdependent... tell him to give up that idea!"
Boom...
These words stunned not only the ghostly soldier outside the door but also Lady Lu.
Zhang Lu's voice continued, "Pass my order: the thirty thousand disciples of the Five Pecks of Rice sect are to migrate to the Central Plains. Tell the disciples that from today onwards, the Celestial Master Sect belongs to the Great Wei, and the good days for everyone have arrived!"
...
...
In the posthouse of Hanzhong.
Zhang Qiying was grinding ink for Lu Yu. After a full half hour, a letter was finally completed.
Lu Yu reread it. Feeling something was missing, he picked up his brush again and added a paragraph. The core content of this paragraph was only four words: "Wartime Grain Storage!"
After finishing the letter, Lu Yu handed it to Dian Wei outside the door, instructing him to send it to Luoyang immediately for King Cao of Wei to review personally.
With these matters concluded, Zhang Qiying curiously asked, "I should not interfere with the military and political affairs of Great Wei, but now that the Crown Prince has obtained Hanzhong, the passage to Bashu has been opened. The entire region of Bashu is bound to be in a state of panic. Is this not an opportune moment to strike south into Xichuan and conquer Bashu? Why... does His Highness the Crown Prince propose 'wartime grain storage'?"
It was not surprising that Zhang Qiying thought this way. Her confusion would be shared by many.
Just as historically Cao Cao, after obtaining Hanzhong, did not immediately march south into Bashu, but instead left Xiahou Yuan, Zhang He, and Xu Huang in Hanzhong to establish defensive lines.
He even left behind the famous saying passed down through the ages: "Having gained Long, why not desire Shu?"
Such a conservative military strategy seemed to completely contradict the record in "Fu Zi"—"After seven days, those who surrendered from Shu said that within Shu, the alarms sounded dozens of times a day, and Bei, even if he executed them, could not pacify them."
This also did not align with Cao Cao's usual military strategy.
Clearly, after capturing Hanzhong, it had exerted immense pressure on Shu, causing widespread panic, yet...
It was precisely based on this premise that historical figures like Liu Ye and Sima Yi had proposed that Cao Cao immediately conquer Shu, taking advantage of Liu Bei's unstable footing and widespread panic, and to strike decisively to capture Bashu!
Sima Yi had even specifically mentioned: "The sage cannot go against the times, nor can they miss the opportune moment." These were all hopes that Cao Cao would not let this opportunity slip away.
But... the problem was that this was not an opportunity.
Because Sima Yi and Liu Ye were considering a southern campaign, a localized battlefield, whereas Cao Cao had to consider the overall situation...
Even with all the advantages of a southern campaign, if there was even the slightest deviation in the overall consideration, it could lead to the lives of hundreds of thousands of soldiers being lost on the Qinling mountain roads.
And in this overall consideration, one point was of utmost importance, and that was - grain and fodder!
Before the troops move, the grain and fodder must move first!
In the Hanzhong region, with the continuous Qinling mountains, transporting grain was extremely difficult...
Xiliang was not a major grain-producing prefecture, and a large amount of grain and fodder had to be transported from Sili, or even Yuzhou. A single misstep could trap tens of thousands of troops in the vast mountain roads, facing a shortage of provisions.
At that time, they would be in a situation where they could not capture the strategic passes, and retreating... would not allow for a complete withdrawal. The risk was not ordinary.
In previous campaigns, Zhuge Liang's five expeditions to Qishan, the third and fourth failures were due to the difficulty of grain supply, which showed that the transport of grain along this mountain road was a huge problem.
And Zhuge Liang's fifth expedition to Qishan was his most opportune one, and the one with the most ample grain supply. This was because Zhuge Liang had implemented the "wartime grain storage" strategy, storing grain locally in Hanzhong to ensure sufficient supply.
It was only a pity that in this most opportune expedition to Qishan... Zhuge Liang passed away... and the Seven-Star Lantern could not extend his life!
This was also why Lu Yu proposed relocating the thirty thousand disciples of the Five Pecks of Rice sect out of Hanzhong, making Hanzhong entirely a place for grain storage...
Perhaps, the results might not be visible in one or two years...
But in a few years... the abundance of grain and fodder here would be enough to support a southern campaign into the region of Bashu.
Moreover...
Lu Yu had a trump card, and he also needed... that child to grow a few more years!
Even... in Lu Yu's opinion, both Zhuge Liang and Liu Bei were currently working for his father, King Cao, and for Cao A'dou...
If Zhuge Liang could govern the Shu region well, with roads not picked up and doors not closed at night... Heh heh, for Lu Yu, that would be a cause for great celebration!
"Are you worried that thirty thousand disciples of the Five Pecks of Rice sect will not adapt to the Central Plains?" Lu Yu asked Zhang Qiying.
Zhang Qiying shook her head. "How can Hanzhong compare to the Central Plains? Moreover... the development strategy of the Northern and Southern Celestial Master Sects you mentioned is astonishing enough. Father will surely... support it. I just feel... I feel it's a pity to not march south at such a good opportunity..."
Zhang Qiying did not finish her sentence...
Lu Yu smiled, and as he smiled, he slowly rose and looked towards the sky through the window.
He uttered the phrase: "Man suffers from discontent. Having gained Longyou, he desires Shu, his greed is like a snake swallowing an elephant!"
This statement seemed to be spoken to Zhang Qiying, and also to himself...
For so many years, Lu Yu's every step had been steady and firm. Governing a great nation... requires guarding against "greed"!
...
...
In Xuchang City, within the imperial palace.
In the deep night, Chongde Hall was brightly lit...
Outside the doors, the Great Wei soldiers stood guard, having replaced the imperial guards. Cao Cao, in casual attire, slowly entered.
Emperor Liu Xie, upon seeing Cao Cao's arrival, quickly rose and rushed forward to greet him. But as he approached, he noticed that Cao Cao's forehead was still bandaged, and there was even the scent of herbs.
This reminded Liu Xie of the last time...
The scene when King Cao of Wei came to see him. That time, Cao Cao was full of vigor, walking with the stride of a dragon, clad in dark iron armor, majestic and awe-inspiring...
But this time...
"In just over a month, has the King of Wei become so haggard?" Liu Xie lamented.
Cao Cao gazed meaningfully at Liu Xie. "The headache is making me haggard day by day, but Your Majesty has also worked hard during this time... Abolishing the recommendation system, implementing the imperial examination, abolishing Buddhism... Your Majesty's efforts are in your heart, aren't they?"
Cao Cao and Liu Xie's father, Liu Hong, were the same age.
Now, standing together, both Cao Cao and Liu Xie appeared incredibly old and frail.
It was as if the years had relentlessly struck their faces, as if trying to tear them apart!
"I heard Your Majesty was waiting for me here." Cao Cao raised his eyes... his tone solemn and serious.
*Hoo...* Liu Xie let out a long sigh and finally uttered the words: "King Cao, is it about time?"
Cao Cao did not reply...
He walked directly to the dragon throne in the main hall. He did not sit, but merely leaned over and touched the dragon throne with his hand... After touching the dragon throne, he touched the imperial desk... including the bright yellow bamboo slips on it, and the coveted Imperial Seal of State, inscribed with the eight characters "Mandate of Heaven, Eternal Prosperity."
Especially the corner inlaid with gold. That was the corner that was chipped when Wang Mang usurped the throne and demanded the Imperial Seal from the Empress Dowager Wang Zhengjun. Wang Zhengjun refused and cursed Wang Mang, and finally, under duress, threw the Imperial Seal to the ground, chipping a corner, which had since been filled with gold!
Of course... the story of the Imperial Seal of State was far more than just this one tale?
Possession brings disaster, returning the perfect jade to Zhao... and Sun Jian, Yuan Shu... all met tragic ends because of this Imperial Seal of State!
The Imperial Seal of State was full of stories, full of bloodstains...
Now it was the turn of Great Wei...
Could Great Wei hold onto it?
After a long period of contemplation, Cao Cao finally spoke loudly, "What a heartbreaking landscape this is! And what a heartbreaking Imperial Seal of State!"
Speaking of this...
With a "clink," Cao Cao, uncharacteristically, clasped his hands towards Emperor Liu Xie, just as... he had bowed to Emperor Liu Hong, the former emperor and Liu Xie's father, when he served as the Colonel of the Western Garden!
—"I thank Your Majesty, and I also implore Your Majesty to personally hand this Imperial Seal of State to my child!"
—"Both Your Majesty and I are old... but my son will prove to the world that Your Majesty's choice was not wrong!"
...
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-wAp..Com-