That night, inside and outside the city of Nanzheng, the streets were filled with the sound of chanting scriptures and the clear and melodious sounds of bells and chimes. People spontaneously came out to greet him on the streets, burning incense and paper.
Yang Song was busy until late at night. The next morning, he left Nanzheng with his entourage, went south along the Mian River from Hanzhong, and headed straight for Shangyong.
A messenger had already gone ahead to report the news, and Shen Dan personally went to greet him outside the city, which surprised Yang Song a little. Brother Shen Dan had always looked at him coldly, so why did he change his attitude today
The banquet had already been set up in the mansion. After the greetings and the seats were taken, Shen Dan saw that his face was full of sorrow and he sighed endlessly.
Yang Song asked, "What worries you, General?"
Shen Dan sighed, "Liu Qi sent troops to Fangling, and I'm afraid he's planning to attack Shangyong. I was just about to ask Master for help, but I didn't expect you to come first."
Yang Song nodded slightly: "When Cao Cao occupied Nanyang, the general's official title was granted by Cao. General Liu naturally thinks that you are a member of Cao's party. Shangyong is adjacent to Nanyang, which is like a thorn in the back. How can we not be on guard?"
Shen Dan said helplessly: "I asked the court for an order at that time, not to surrender to Cao, but the court was controlled by Cao Cao. How could I disobey the order when the edict was issued?"
Yang Song twirled his beard and said, "Cao Cao is called the Prime Minister of Han, but he is actually a traitor to Han. Since the general only has his heart set on the imperial court, why don't you go and join Liu Qi of Jingzhou?"
"What did you say?" Shen Dan was shocked and stared at Yang Song.
He could never have imagined that this greedy guy would say something shocking as soon as he entered the city.
Yang Song smiled and said, "Since Liu Xuande was killed, I have seen that the only person who can revive the Han Dynasty in the world is General Liu. He is a relative of the Han Dynasty, has the land of Jingzhou, has many soldiers and sufficient food, and the scholars are loyal to him. He is the best person to fight against Cao."
"Humph!" Shen Dan's face darkened and he sneered, "You came here to ask for help, but you persuaded me to surrender to others. Master Zhang is really blind."
Yang Song laughed loudly, "Hahaha, what a fool's talk!"
Shen Dan was furious and asked, "Is what I said wrong?"
Yang Song shook his head and sighed, "How ridiculous that the general is unable to recognize destiny with his mortal eyes. He didn't know that Master had already opened his heavenly eyes and had seen that the dragon energy in the imperial city was rising, and it must be on Liu Qi."
"Really?" Shen Dan was surprised.
Zhang Lu had a very high prestige in Hanzhong. His ancestors had already achieved enlightenment, and he also had the ability to communicate with ghosts and gods, so everyone feared him
Yang Song sneered, "General, do you really think I came to Shangyong to ask for help? Shangyong's thousands of troops are just a drop in the bucket. I was ordered to go south this time to Jingzhou to make friends with Liu Shijun. Master, considering our past friendship, took the risk of revealing a little secret. It's up to you, General, to decide."
“This…” Shen Dan was stunned, frowning.
He had known that Ma Teng had sent troops, and guessed that Yang Song came here to ask for help. Knowing that he was no match for the Western Liang army, he deliberately threatened to use Liu Qi's troops to shirk responsibility. However, he never expected that his prediction was wrong.
At this time, Liu Qi had already completely occupied Nanyang and had recently sent reinforcements to Fangling. This was also the truth. Although Shen Dan was making excuses, he was actually worried in his heart.
While they were feasting, a soldier suddenly rushed into the hall and reported: "General, something bad has happened. Wei Yan has led his troops to attack, and Commander Zhao has been killed by him."
"What?" Shen Dan stood up in shock, his face changed drastically.
Fangling is adjacent to Shangyong, and he had already sent troops to defend along the way, but he still couldn't resist.
Yang Song held the wine glass and said slowly: "General, it's time to make a decision."
"Brother..." At this moment, Shen Yi came in in a panic, his clothes were tattered, and his face was panicked: "The bandits from Zhushan came out and robbed our goods."
The Shen family mainly dealt in mountain products such as medicinal herbs and animal skins. They traveled between Daba Mountains and Qinling Mountains and had close contacts with the Qiang and Ba people. However, they were often robbed by bandits, especially after the Yellow Turban Rebellion, when banditry became more rampant.
The two brothers Shen Dan gathered local militiamen, eliminated bandits and made great achievements. They wiped out all the bandits in the territory and became local warlords.
"These bastards are so bold!" Shen Dan was furious and gritted his teeth and said, "I will not be a human being if I don't avenge this."
Shen Yi swallowed his saliva and said, "Brother, this group of thieves is different from the previous ones. They came together, with as many as two to three thousand people, all carrying the flag of Jingzhou."
"What did you say?" Shen Dan was shocked again and murmured, "Could it be that he came here in response to Wei Yan?"
Yang Songyan said: "Even the bandits and robbers can distinguish between good and evil, and they come to join General Liu because of his reputation. Is the general's knowledge not as good as these bandits?"
Boom boom boom—
Just as he was hesitating, there was a sudden drumbeat from the top of the city wall. Shen Dan was startled and shouted, "Why are you beating the drum?"
"Report—" The defenders came to report again: "Wei Yan has arrived at the city and is challenging us to a fight."
"Are you coming so quickly?" The Shen Dan brothers looked at each other and hurriedly ran to the top of the city wall.
Yang Song also stood up and asked Sun Qian, who was sitting below him, "Sir, should we go take a look?"
Sun Qian nodded and smiled, "General Liu is sure that as long as the troops are at the gates of the city, Brother Shen Dan will surrender with all his men, so of course we have to go."
"How does he know?" Yang Song was stunned for a moment, then followed Sun Qian and said with a smile: "Is there anything wrong with what I said just now?"
Sun Qian nodded and smiled, "Sir, what you said is absolutely correct. I think Brother Shen Dan is already interested, so I will definitely reward him handsomely."
Yang Song chuckled and said, "It is my duty to satisfy General Liu."
When the two men arrived at the top of the city wall, they saw a group of people outside the city. They were in neat formation, with bright armor, and their helmet tassels and robes were all red. Leading them was a general with a face as red as a date. He held a big sword and looked very majestic.
Yang Song was shocked and asked, "Could it be Guan Yu? Why did you say it was Wei Yan?"
Sun Qian said with a smile: "This is Wei Yan! General Guan has long eyebrows, phoenix eyes, and a two-foot-long beard, which makes him look even more majestic."
Wei Yan raised his sword and shouted, "Shen Dan, you have surrendered to Cao Cao and helped Zhou to commit atrocities. If you can turn from evil to good, I will forgive you. If you hesitate for even a moment, I will kill you in the city and leave no one alive."
Yang Song was in doubt and murmured, "Are the red-faced ones... so domineering?"
Shen Yi thought that he was no match for Wei Yan, and said, "Liu Qi is a relative of the Han Dynasty, and Nanyang has already been taken over by him. Cao Cao is too far away to reach him. In order to protect the clan and the people in the city, we should open the city!"
Shen Dan sighed softly, turned his head to look at Yang Song who was pointing fingers, and nodded silently.
Just as they were about to give the order to open the city, suddenly dust rose up from the north and people gathered. A group of people and horses came in a noisy manner, like cattle and sheep. In a blink of an eye, they arrived at the foot of the city, making a lot of noise.
“Brother, this is bad!” Shen Yi’s face changed drastically. “It’s the bandits from Zhushan… There’s also the Qinling Tiger over there, hiss—the three wolves from Bashan are here too…”
Seeing the row of bandit leaders wearing different clothes and with defiant expressions standing at the foot of the city, Shen Yi sucked in a breath of cold air. These were all the people they had driven out and suppressed, and they had a deep hatred for them.
Shen Dan looked serious: "We must not open the city gates at this time. We must first go out of the city and negotiate with Wei Yan to make these bandits retreat before they can surrender."
Shen Yi looked at the thieves fearfully and asked, "Who dares to leave the city?"
All the officers and officials bowed their heads. These bandits were cruel and ruthless. They had hated them for a long time. Wouldn't it be suicide if they left the city
"If the general can trust me, I am willing to go!" At this moment, Yang Song came walking over with his hands behind his back, "I want to make friends with Liu Qi, I'm sure Wei Yan will give me some face."
Shen Dan was overjoyed, and the two brothers bowed and thanked him, saying, "Thank you very much, sir."
Yang Song puffed out his belly, pulled his beard and said calmly: "But these days, without money, who would be willing to do things for you?"
Shen Dan knew Yang Song's temper, so he clasped his fists and said, "As long as you can make this happen, I will give you thirty gold coins as a reward."
Yang Song raised his palm and shook it: "Fifty!"
Shen Dan gritted his teeth and said, "Okay, it's a deal!"