Kong Rong, Mi Zhu, Sun Gan, and Jian Yong each met with rejection in turn, and everyone's eyes turned to Chen Deng. Seeing this, Chen Deng knew he had to speak up.
In fact, Chen Deng was extremely pleased with Yuan Xi's arrival.
Teaming up with Yuan Shao was far better than teaming up with Yuan Shu.
Once Liu Bei submitted to Yuan Shao, Qingzhou and Yanzhou would be safe, and they could focus on dealing with Yuan Shu in the south.
Moreover, Xuzhou and Yangzhou were separated by the Yangtze River, making it extremely difficult for Yuan Shu to attack Xuzhou.
But if Liu Bei allied with Yuan Shu, he would become Yuan Shu's vanguard, facing enemies on both sides. Given Xuzhou's size, it simply couldn't withstand the onslaught of Yuan Shao's and Cao Cao's armies.
Therefore, the advantages and disadvantages of relying on either side were obvious at a glance.
Furthermore, Yuan Shu harbored ulterior motives and showed signs of declaring himself emperor, which greatly displeased Chen Deng, who was loyal to the Han Dynasty.
If Liu Bei got mixed up with Yuan Shu again, his reputation would only worsen!
Chen Deng knew that other strategists could also figure out what he could.
Most people were just unwilling to lose face.
After all, Cao Cao, Yuan Shao's henchman, had massacred Xuzhou, and Yuan Shao's army had just defeated the Xuzhou army. The grudges between the two sides couldn't be resolved in a short time.
But relying on Yuan Shao was much better than surrendering to Cao Cao, as the latter truly had a blood feud with the gentry and people of Xuzhou.
Seeing everyone looking at him, Chen Deng said to Yuan Xi, "Why does your son believe that Xuzhou can rely on Yuan Zhoumu?"
"Cao Cao failed to conquer Xuzhou twice. Does your son think Xuzhou is so easily bullied?"
Yuan Xi smiled and said, "I heard that Cao Cao's army has already ceased fighting with Lu Bu's army."
Upon hearing this, everyone's expression changed.
Even a fool knew that Lu Bu had many strong generals under his command. Cao Cao's current stalemate with him and the subsequent truce indicated that neither side felt confident in defeating the other.
Once Cao Cao was free, his next target would definitely be the weakest!
Looking around Yanzhou, the softest persimmon was undoubtedly Liu Bei, who had just suffered a defeat in Qingzhou.
Seeing the tangled expressions on everyone's faces, Yuan Xi felt a little smug.
The battle of Qingzhou had been handled perfectly.
He had crippled Liu Bei, causing him to lose confidence in resisting Cao Cao head-on.
But he hadn't completely destroyed him, leaving him with some strength and hope to deal with Cao Cao.
Hearing Yuan Xi's words, Chen Deng's eyes lit up slightly. The other party was very clever, with one sentence being worth ten, hitting Liu Bei's weak spot perfectly.
He nodded slightly and said, "I have nothing more to ask."
Seeing Chen Deng concede so easily, Yuan Xi was a little surprised. After thinking for a moment, he immediately understood.
Judging from Chen Deng's reaction and the letter he later wrote to Yuan Shao, it was clear that he strongly supported the alliance between Yuan and Liu!
Chen Deng… Yuan Xi recalled the historical records and suddenly realized that this was the talent he lacked the most!
Chen Deng was the Agricultural Commandant of Xuzhou, in charge of agricultural production. He personally investigated the soil conditions of Xuzhou, developed water conservancy, and promoted farmland irrigation.
Under his administration, Xuzhou's agriculture developed well, with abundant rice harvests and happy people.
Thinking of this, Yuan Xi's desire grew even stronger. In the future, when he occupied Youzhou for farming, he would be in dire need of a large number of agricultural talents!
In ancient times, farming was actually a very difficult task.
To ensure that the planted grain could be harvested smoothly, no mistakes could be made in the links of cultivation, fertilization, irrigation, and intercropping.
In any link, any unexpected mistake could lead to a complete crop failure.
Land reclamation in ancient times was even more so. Cultivating new land and planting new crops required taking great risks, one of which was crop degradation.
Crops from the south, when planted in the north, were likely to reduce production, become diseased, or even degrade into completely inedible wild crops after one or two generations due to various reasons.
In this era, there was no shortage of land, but there was a shortage of food.
Nowadays, some of the ancient grains are beginning to decline in production and are gradually being replaced by more efficient crops.
Potatoes and corn are out of the question before the Age of Discovery. One of the best remaining choices is rice.
Under suitable conditions, rice yields far exceed those of other grains.
However, rice also has higher requirements for growing conditions and cultivation techniques. It requires the cooperation of water conservancy, embankments, terraces, leveling land, and soil improvement to be suitable for rice cultivation.
At this time, in the late Eastern Han Dynasty, there was sporadic rice planting in various states in the north, but none had formed a large scale.
Yuan Xi had also tried planting rice in Beixin City, but the effect was not very ideal due to water conservancy and soil reasons.
But the significance of rice is very important, because it and wheat are not competitive, but complementary.
Rice and wheat grow in different seasons. As long as they are arranged properly, the same field can harvest two crops of rice and wheat in one year.
During the Eastern Han Dynasty, Zhang Heng once recorded in "Nandu Fu" that the Nanyang area of Henan had a successful precedent of two crops of rice and wheat.
However, after the wars at the end of the Han Dynasty, agricultural production suffered great damage, and many agricultural technologies were lost.
Only some gentry families have similar books and records, and currently only they can inherit and carry forward this knowledge.
As long as the gentry master knowledge, they will inevitably not be completely eliminated, but relative to land annexation, the inheritance and continuation of knowledge is benign.
Knowledge can do evil, but it can also do good. The more scholar-officials like Chen Deng who are proficient in agronomy, the better.
Yuan Xi's heart surged. In his heart, the importance of talents like Chen Deng was no less than that of Guo Jia.
It was too wasteful for this person to stay with Liu Bei. The current Liu Bei simply did not understand Chen Deng's value!
Moreover, Chen Deng should not be as loyal to Liu Bei as other people, as can be seen from his successive reliance on Lu Bu and Cao Cao.
Although Chen Deng had a local attachment to the gentry of Xu Province and had never left Xu Province, instead managing the Guangling Commandery for many years, it must be said that Chen Deng was quite accomplished in both internal affairs and military matters.
He was not only a civil official but also very strong in military affairs. As Cao Cao's vanguard, he personally captured Xia Pi, defeated Lu Bu, and twice defeated Sun Ce's army in Guangling. He was a very rare talent.
It's just that he died too early.
Thinking of this, Yuan Xi said to Chen Deng, "Mr. Yuanlong, is there something wrong with your health?"
Everyone was stunned. Why bring this up out of nowhere?
Chen Deng shook his head and said, "No."
Yuan Xi pretended to be surprised and said, "Really not?"
"I have a friend who once predicted that Mr. Yuanlong has a hidden illness and even described the symptoms."
Mi Zhu shook his head upon hearing this, saying, "How could such a thing be possible? The young master is probably being deceived."
Yuan Xi smiled and said, "It was impudent of me. After all, a sudden change in complexion to red, tightness in the chest, and irritability are diseases that can endanger life within a few years. It sounds like nonsense."
Upon hearing this, the expressions of Mi Zhu and the others changed slightly, but Chen Deng's expression remained the same. He shook his head and said, "Indeed, it's absurd. Since I belong to Lord Xuande, how could I possibly be irritable?"
He subtly flattered Liu Bei, and Zhang Fei was very happy to hear it, giving a thumbs up and praising, "Mr. Yuanlong, as a cultured man, your words are indeed extraordinary."
Yuan Xi smiled. His goal had been achieved.
Someone must have known about Chen Deng's symptoms before, as can be seen from the reactions of Mi Zhu and the others.
However, Chen Deng pretended not to know, obviously to avoid suspicion. But the poisonous part of Yuan Xi's plan was that Chen Deng's pretense was useless. There must be someone else who knows, and they are already suspecting him.
After all, regardless of whether what Yuan Xi said is true or false, Chen Deng will definitely come to Yuan Xi privately to ask for advice, since this disease endangers life. Who would risk going against themselves?
A moment of silence fell upon the scene.
Seeing this, Yuan Xi said to Mi Zhu, "Brother Zizhong, I've heard that the Mi family is involved in commercial routes. Among them, are there several sea routes to Yangzhou?"
"I came this time at the request of merchants from Ji Province, wanting to ask if the Mi family is interested in cooperation."
"After all, Ji Province is rich in products. If they can be transported to the south, the profits will be quite substantial."
Mi Zhu couldn't help but rejoice, but then he reacted and said awkwardly, "If there's a chance, definitely, definitely, haha."
Liu Bei felt extremely uncomfortable. This son of Yuan Shao is too disgusting, openly poaching his subordinates!
He wasn't unaware of Yuan Xi's slyness, but he had to pretend to be ignorant. How depressing!
Liu Bei could only laugh and say, "Since Young Master Xianyi has said this, let's be frank."
"As long as Governor Yuan still has his heart set on the Han Dynasty, Bei is willing to talk."
The others thought, 'We originally planned to give Yuan Xi a hard time, but after a few probes, Liu Bei has already stated his position?'
What they didn't know was that Liu Bei was afraid of Yuan Xi's ability to poach people and didn't want Yuan Xi to speak any further!
Not to mention Zhao Yun and Taishi Ci, now he's openly poaching people in front of him. Does he have no shame?
Liu Bei was truly afraid, after all, his current strength was far behind Yuan Shao's!
Seeing Liu Bei's reaction, Yuan Xi smiled slightly. This is the effect of reputation among the gentry.
What Liu Bei feared was not himself, but Yuan Shao behind him.
Yuan Xi deeply felt the importance of being born into the right family. This was the world's greatest kindness to him, far stronger than most golden fingers.
It's like a saying in later generations, "Money is not for spending on women, but for showing to women."
The simps of later generations spent countless money and went through countless acts of groveling to their goddesses, only to end up losing both money and women.
And those so-called goddesses, in front of wealthy young masters driving luxury cars, would take the initiative to throw themselves into their arms, without needing a single cent from the other party, just to get into bed.
Because those women weren't stupid either. Compared to a temporary ATM, what they wanted was a long-term meal ticket.
Of course, this also risked being freeloaded on, but one was willing to hit, and the other was willing to be hit.
For these women, being deceived a few times, even dozens of times, didn't matter, as long as they succeeded once.
And now, many of the gentry standing in front of Yuan Xi had the same thoughts as those women.
Reputation is also for the gentry to see.
What is more worthy of investment than someone who started from scratch is, of course, the sons and daughters of prominent families.
It was precisely because of this that things went so smoothly this time. Yuan Xi's strategies and plans were merely icing on the cake.
As for whether he could freeload on the gentry, it depended on how he operated.
Since Liu Bei had already loosened his stance, the two sides began to bargain, from sending troops to defense, from grain to mutual aid.
Time passed unknowingly. At noon, Liu Bei hosted a banquet, but Kong Rong did not appear.
After eating, they continued talking in the afternoon, and this went on for the whole day. But Yuan Xi found that Liu Bei was actually retreating to advance. Although he agreed to an alliance, he did not budge on many conditions, obviously feeling that since Ji Province sent Yuan Xi over, they must be seeking something from Xu Province.
This was quite different from Yuan Xi's previous bottom line, and Yuan Xi became a little irritated in the end.
Seeing that it was getting late, and feeling increasingly dizzy, he suggested discussing it again tomorrow. Liu Bei readily agreed.
When the topic turned to dinner and accommodation, Yuan Xi, feeling resentful, smiled and said, "I've already troubled Lord Xuande with a meal at noon, so I won't eat tonight."
"As for lodging, I can't stand hardship. I've heard that the Mi family's residence is quite good. Could you let me broaden my horizons?"
Mi Zhu's face turned bitter upon hearing this. This person is too wicked, deliberately setting me up!