Chapter 81

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Guo Jia is the most formidable strategist that Taishan has recruited for a long time, so when Chen Xi invited Liu Bei to come over, he clearly told Liu Bei to make the welcome as grand as possible, and he especially hinted that the young Fa Zheng was also very important, urging him to try to win him over.

Liu Bei fully understood Chen Xi's meaning and led all the remaining civil and military officials to welcome Guo Jia. What shocked Chen Xi even more was that he even brought a carriage, an open carriage with a tassel canopy, the highest规格 of all.

Liu Bei personally helped Guo Jia into the carriage, then got in himself, pulling Chen Xi up as well, leaving Fa Zheng looking enviously at the two people in the carriage. Then Liu Bei extended his hand again.

"Xiaozhi, come up too. Although you are young, you are not inferior to your peers. Today I will take you into the city. Remember, don't let your peers laugh at you in the future." Liu Bei smiled and extended his hand to the envious Fa Zheng.

Fa Zheng was stunned. There was actually a place for him. Since he entered Taishan, he could feel Chen Zichuan's abilities, and Guo Fengxiao's intelligence was enough to make him respect. When they two rode into the city, Fa Zheng felt that even if he was envious, he had no right to complain.

Seeing the encouraging look on Liu Bei's face, he foolishly extended his hand, allowing Liu Bei to pull him up as well.

Sitting in the carriage, Fa Zheng swore that Liu Bei was the leader he had been waiting for his whole life. Although sitting in this carriage might not be appropriate now, he believed that he would soon deserve the treatment Liu Bei gave him today!

"I, Fa Xiaozhi, will never be inferior to anyone." Fa Zheng secretly resolved, then stared at Guo Jia with fiery eyes, "The first one I need to defeat is this guy. Only by surpassing him can I enjoy such treatment without feeling guilty!"

Guo Jia glanced at the determined Fa Zheng. In that moment of eye contact, Guo Jia understood that this kid was already burning with ambition, and he was probably determined to outdo him. How naive and ignorant.

Seeing Fa Zheng's eyes, Guo Jia thought of the guy who had beaten him, who had apparently run to Cao Cao. Guo Jia couldn't help but feel a bit angry; he wanted to beat that guy too, as he had been bullied badly by him in the past.

"Calm down, calm down. Why do I always feel a surge of anger when I think of that guy..." Guo Jia began to recall his miserable past, then turned his head with a fierce look, planning to continue to challenge Fa Zheng!

After bathing and changing, Guo Jia put on a moon-white scholar's robe made of Shu silk, tied a golden crown, and wore a jade pendant, holding a sandalwood fan prepared by Chen Xi. He looked like a noble young master, a stark contrast to his previous appearance as a drunkard, exuding an air of pride that made the maids who dressed him blush slightly.

Led by the servants, Guo Jia, now dressed, came to the main hall, where he was met by Fa Zheng, dressed in a pure white brocade robe, exuding a heroic aura. Compared to his previous beggar's attire, it was clear that "clothes make the man" was true.

Entering the main hall, Liu Bei and the others were already seated, with a bronze tripod cooking a fat sheep in the middle of the hall.

Chen Xi had nothing to say about this. He had improved the taste of this dish for a long time, and it was finally acceptable. However, he had told Liu Bei several times to try not to use the bronze tripod to cook anything, but every time a virtuous scholar arrived, Liu Bei would use the bronze tripod to cook mutton.

Eating too much copper seemed to cause some strange diseases. Chen Xi, while eating the mutton, vaguely thought about strange things, completely different from Fa Zheng's gratitude and Guo Jia's amazement. It seemed that using a bronze tripod to cook meat and entertain guests was considered very elegant and grand in this period.

After finishing the simply salted boiled mutton, Liu Bei took Guo Jia and Fa Zheng to see their treatment, which was definitely meant to shock them.

"Zichuan, where is the lord taking us?" Guo Jia asked Chen Xi in a low voice, following behind Liu Bei.

"Didn't you say you envied the wine given by King Zhao on the green jade case? We don't have a green jade case, so we prepared something else." Chen Xi said with a smile, while Fa Zheng listened intently.

"A bronze tripod and wine are enough; enjoying too much more would be excessive." Guo Jia said with a smile, "But I don't mind a wine feast."

Fa Zheng licked his lips. He could never enjoy such treatment at home. The wine and meat were fine, but this noble treatment left a deep impression on his young heart. He couldn't help but think, "A great man, if he cannot enjoy the five tripod feasts in life, should at least be cooked in a tripod after death!"

The princes and kings ate differently from others, and once he reached the position of the Three Excellencies, he could also enjoy this. Fa Zheng felt he should strive in this direction; the great scholars and famous scholars were too weak!

Liu Bei and Chen Xi didn't realize how much this meal had impacted Fa Zheng. Before, he had only heard about it in books and didn't think much of it, but now, after seeing it, he felt this was the highest aspiration in life. What great scholars, what famous scholars, what dining on the morning dew and drinking from the clouds, what simple meals and water from a gourd, could compare to this? The same mutton cooked in a bronze tripod was better than in a clay pot.

Years later, Fa Zheng finally became a marquis and had the right to cook mutton in a bronze tripod at home. He melted a pile of wuzhu coins to make a bronze tripod, cooked the mutton, and took a bite, only to find it still tasted the same. It turned out that the mutton cooked by Liu Bei wasn't good because of the bronze tripod...

Neither Guo Jia nor Chen Xi noticed Fa Zheng's aspiration to cook mutton in a bronze tripod at home. Even if they had noticed, they wouldn't have cared, as it was a lofty goal that required reaching the level of a marquis. Many people never achieved such a status in their lifetime, like the first Flying General, Li Guang, and the second Flying General, Lu Bu, who was already a marquis.

Passing through several moon gates, Guo Jia clearly felt the security becoming tighter until they reached a pavilion, where Liu Bei finally stopped.

"Zichuan, open the door and let Fengxiao and Xiaozhi choose." Liu Bei turned around and said solemnly. He had the key, but to play the red face, he naturally couldn't bring it.

"About this..." Chen Xi was clearly hesitant, glancing at Fa Zheng and then back at Liu Bei. Everyone present now understood what he meant.

"Xiaozhi will not辜负 this gesture today." Liu Bei looked at Fa Zheng and said confidently.

"Alright, since Lord Xuande guarantees it, let it be so." Chen Xi sighed, took out the key, and unlocked the pavilion, pushing the door open to a smell of fresh ink.

"There are about ten thousand volumes of ten-thousand-word books here, and more will be added in the future. The gift for Fengxiao is the choice of one book from here, and he can come back to borrow any books he needs with that book." Chen Xi sighed, "Yes, the same applies to Xiaozhi."

Looking at the books on the shelves, Guo Jia touched one and immediately understood the difference in the paper compared to Cai Hou paper. As Chen Xi had said, this gift was indeed the most suitable for a civil official, far more appropriate than the green jade case.

Fa Zheng no longer heard what Chen Xi was saying. He was now stunned by the room full of books. The young Fa Zheng had already taken a book from the shelf, and it was indeed a ten-thousand-word book, not in vain!

"With this, how many troubles in the imperial cause will be smoothed out!" Guo Jia understood the importance of these things. The identical handwriting made him guess the method used, and from the quantity, he guessed that the cost was not too high. These were enough to solve many problems.

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