Zhang Fei said dissatisfiedly: "You want to learn from my second brother?"
Zhang Renyan said: "Your brother has given up his seal and gold, and has traveled thousands of miles to find you. Your reputation for loyalty and righteousness has spread throughout the world. I have admired you for a long time. How dare I compare myself with Guan Gong? I am just trying to emulate his integrity!"
Zhang Fei stroked his stubble, looked at Liu Qi and shrugged: "If I had known this, I would have moved my second brother here, and it would have saved me a lot of trouble."
Liu Qi smiled and said, "General, please speak."
Zhang Ren said, "Since the general said that he is of the same clan as Liu Yizhou, helping the general to revive the Han Dynasty is not considered betrayal. Although this is a good idea, I will only follow his father and son if they personally acknowledge it."
Liu Qi thought that since Liu Xun had been captured, it would not be difficult to force him to change people, so he asked, "How about the second one?"
Zhang Ren said, "I am very grateful to the general for his high regard for me. Now Liu Mu and his son regard me as a traitor. I hope the general can explain the situation and clear my name. I, Zhang Ren, would rather die to show my loyalty than be branded as a traitor."
Liu Qi smiled and said, "How difficult is that? When you meet Liu Xun, you can confront the general face to face. The general is loyal and righteous, and public opinion will judge for itself."
Zhang Ren's eyes were slightly stern. Hearing Liu Qi's tone, he knew that Liu Xun might have been captured as well. He sighed, "As a minister, if the king worries, the minister will work hard. If the king humiliates the minister, the minister will die. After the general takes Yizhou, I hope you will treat Liu Yizhou's family well and support the Han Dynasty together. Only then will I feel at ease!"
Liu Qi nodded and said, "Liu Mu and I are from the same clan. Even if the general didn't say it, I would still treat him the same way."
Seeing that they were so tolerant of him and remembering what had happened before, Zhang Ren couldn't help but be moved and his attitude softened a lot. However, he still had some knot in his heart and he needed a promise from Liu Zhang and his son in person.
Liu Qi sent his men to Mianzhu Pass. He was in a good mood along the way. Recovering a good general and pursuing a woman seemed to have the same purpose. The more difficult it was, the more he wanted to get it.
Those who cannot get what they want will always be in turmoil. This strategy did not work on Xu Huang at Wugu Pass, but it works every time on people like Zhang Ren. Not everyone can trust their subordinates like Cao Cao did.
They arrived at Mianzhu Pass in the evening. Liu Qi met Wu Yi's brothers and Zhuo Ying, rewarded the three of them handsomely, and ordered Zhao Yun to lead the troops to take Mianzhu. The rest of the troops prepared a banquet inside the pass to celebrate the victory and met with Liu Xun first.
Liu Qi sighed, "Now the king's way is not yet pacified, and the villains have established themselves. I don't want to fight with my own family, but your father is in the position of governor, but he has no ambition to pacify the country, so I have to resort to this bad strategy. My dear brother has great talent and ambition, why don't you persuade your father to work together with me to eliminate the usurpation?"
Liu Xun snorted coldly: "The winner is the king and the loser is the bandit. You relied on your strong army to invade my territory and seize my foundation, yet you still talk about benevolence, righteousness and morality. How can this be possible!"
Liu Qi said calmly: "So, you are not convinced?"
"I don't accept it!" Liu Xun raised his chin slightly and made a proud expression.
Liu Qi sighed and waved his hand, saying, "Come on, take him out and chop him off!"
Two soldiers came forward and carried Liu Xun out. Liu Xun was shocked and struggled and shouted, "Liu Qi, you always said you wouldn't kill prisoners, why did you kill me?"
Liu Qi said coldly: "The soldiers in Sichuan are all used by you and your son. They have no choice. I should persuade them to give up the dark and join the light, contribute to the country, and be loyal to the Han Dynasty. They still have a chance to change. Since you and your son are so selfish and want to cede land to become kings, and you watch the country sinking but remain indifferent, you are not worthy of being descendants of the Liu family. What's the point of keeping you?"
"Wait!" Liu Xun was taken to the door, stepped on the door frame, and shouted: "I refuse to accept it. The reason we lost this battle was because of Zhang Ren's betrayal. It is also our responsibility to support the court!"
Liu Qi sneered, "You still think Zhang Ren is a traitor. This shows that you and your son don't know how to use people. A simple plot to sow discord can cause your entire army to collapse. Are you still not convinced?"
"Really?" Liu Xun was stunned.
Liu Qi said: "If we use Zhang Ren's plan, although we cannot repel the enemy, we can remain invincible, and I still have troops from the south. But now Yizhou has few soldiers and generals, and only you and your son are left. It's like a mantis trying to stop a chariot. You don't understand the current situation and are really stupid. I only want good ministers to revive the Han Dynasty, not the spoiled children, so push them out!"
Liu Xun was pushed out of the door by the soldiers. He was so anxious that he was sweating and struggling and shouting. He was only pretending to be strong because of his reputation as a child of a noble family. When he saw that he was really going to be beheaded, he immediately cried out.
"Spare his life!" At this moment, a man came quickly and asked the soldiers to wait for a while.
"Father-in-law?" Liu Xun saw that it was Pang Xi, and he did not care to blame him for his betrayal, and hurriedly said, "Please ask father-in-law to plead for me."
Pang Xi hurried to the government office. In fact, Liu Qi had already made instructions, so there was no need to say more. He just released Liu Xun and let his father-in-law persuade him. It would be safer for a third person to come forward at this time.
Halfway through the banquet, Pang Xi arrived with Liu Xun. He first toasted Liu Qi and sighed, "I was confused for a moment and offended my brother! I would like to go back to Chengdu to persuade my father. From now on, I will stand together with my brother and support the Han Dynasty together."
Liu Qi smiled with relief and said, "If the skin is gone, where will the hair be attached? Now the royal family is in decline, and treacherous ministers are in power. As relatives of the Han Dynasty, we should strengthen ourselves, work together, and continue the Han Dynasty."
Liu Xun then asked for Zhang Ren to come over and apologized, saying, "General, you are a loyal and courageous man. I was young and hot-tempered and didn't know how to employ people. I wrongly accused you. I hope you will forgive me!"
Zhang Ren bowed and said, "How dare I do that? Young Master, it's your first time leading an army, so you're bound to be impatient. Since you know I'm doing this with all my heart, I'll die with no regrets."
Seeing that Zhang Ren had no resentment at all, Liu Xun felt relieved instead. He sighed inwardly, thinking that he had wronged him. Such a good general had to be given to Liu Qi. He was reluctant but helpless, and said with emotion:
"Today, the government is in ruins and the people are exhausted. My brother raised his arms and called for gathering loyal and righteous people to revive the Han Dynasty. As the relatives of the Han Dynasty, we have no choice but to do so. I want to go back to Chengdu to persuade my father that the general is both civil and military, and should focus on the overall situation, follow the general of the chariot and cavalry to make achievements and support the court, and don't think about the small Yizhou!"
"I obey your command!" Zhang Ren was extremely surprised. This was the best outcome he could think of. Liu Zhang and his son had surrendered. They were of the same clan and he was also a general under the Liu family.
He turned around and bowed to Liu Qi: "I am Zhang Ren, the last general, and I am willing to go through fire and water for the Han Dynasty, even if I die!"
Liu Qi had put a lot of effort into this matter, and he knew it very well. Now that he could get rid of the burden and find such a wise leader, what regrets would he have in his life
Liu Qi hurriedly helped Zhang Ren up and laughed, "In the past, Weizi left Yin and Han Xin returned to Han. Their names were passed down through the ages. With your help, we are one step closer to reviving Han."
Zhang Ren's ability is slightly inferior to Guan Yu's, but his loyalty and integrity are almost the same. The sense of accomplishment in conquering such a general is indescribable.
He immediately ordered someone to find seats, and Liu Xun sat next to Liu Qi. Zhang Fei pulled Zhang Ren to sit at the same table, and also wanted to talk about the origins of the Zhang family.
Pang Xi said: "I have long heard that the general is a man of both civil and military talents, and his literary talent is amazing. Today we are meeting with our clansmen, and Yizhou is about to be conquered. Why don't you recite a poem to commemorate him?"
Liu Qi paused for a moment, then said with emotion: "Although we won this battle, fighting among the same clan will only make our relatives sad and our enemies happy. This is not what I want! My dear brother is about to return to Chengdu. I will give you a poem before you leave. Please pass it on to your uncle to make my intentions clear!"
Liu Xun clasped his fists and said, "I am all ears!"
Liu Qi stood up and looked around at everyone, then chanted slowly:
"When you cook beans and burn the bean pods, the beans weep in the pot.
We are of the same origin, why are we so eager to fight each other? "