Chapter 195 Li Ying: If you can't beat them, join them

Liu Bang, the first emperor of the Han Dynasty, proved a truth: the talents of a county are enough to govern a country.

Liu Bang's base was composed of peddlers and hawkers from Pei County, Li Yuan was composed of the Guanlong Group of military aristocrats, Zhu Yuanzhang was composed of a group of poor childhood friends from Fengyang, and Hong'an produced more than 200 generals and commanders of the Republic.

From aristocratic families to common people, contrary to our normal perception, the big cause that seems to change the world does not seem to need talents from all over the world. At least in the initial stage, only one region and a small group are enough to grow and develop.

But this requires a key person to discover the talents in a county.

What is talent?

It is said that gold will always shine, but for a piece of gold, it only needs a piece of rag to cover it and it will never see the light of day.

There are good horses only when there are good horse trainers.

Why is there a lack of talent? Because I am not a good horse trainer, so I don’t think anyone can be a good horse.

Without Liu Bang, the so-called three heroes of the early Han Dynasty would be a failed assassin, an incompetent security guard, and a county magistrate's secretary who wanted to rebel.

Without Liu Bei, the Martial Saint would be a desperado who fled his hometown after committing a crime, the Three Generals would be butchers who returned home every day to calculate the purchase and sales of raw pork, and the Wise Saint would be a self-media and farming expert who sang "Song of Liangfu" and gave advice on how to deal with the country.

Now, in Li Ying's eyes, Cao Jie has become as great as Emperor Gaozu of Han, Emperor Zhaolie, and Emperor Wu of Wei.

He is no longer young, and time has long worn away the heroic spirit in his heart.

If given a choice, he would live a stable life as a rich man and be happy.

But traveling all over the country when I was young developed a bad temper, which is sometimes difficult to suppress.

Just like how he would cause trouble for Zhu Family Village whenever he disagreed with something, and was used to solving problems with force, this showed that his skill in cultivating his Qi was not yet fully developed.

"Brother, why are you looking at the moon here?"

Seeing that his boss was not there, "Ghost Face" Du Xing left the banquet to look for him. They had been master and servant for many years and had a very good relationship. Moreover, Du Xing was a loyal man who knew how to repay his kindness.

After the expedition against Fang La, Du Xing was one of the few remaining heroes in Liangshan. He finally resigned from his official position and returned to his hometown, where he became a wealthy man together with "Putian Diao" Li Ying, and lived a good life.

Of course, within a few years, the Jin people moved south and Shandong became a lost territory. No one knows what the final outcome was.

Li Ying pinched his short beard and looked up at the bright moon in the sky: "Du Xing, if I were born ten years later, I would definitely do something. What a pity! I am almost forty..."

"Brother, age is not the only thing that matters when you are ambitious. Besides, you are not even forty yet, so you still have a long way to go!"

"Alas!" Li Ying turned his head and looked at Du Xing, who was drunk, and said, "You have been living in my farm for these years, burying yourself in trivial matters all day long, helping me manage the family business, but you are not happy and have no freedom."

"Brother, what are you talking about? If it weren't for you, I wouldn't be where I am today. I would have died of poverty in the Liao Kingdom."

Du Xing had two benefactors, one was Li Ying and the other was Yang Xiong.

If these two people get into trouble, given his personality, he would help them even at the cost of his life.

"Du Xing, I'd like to let you go, what do you think?"

Du Xing's face froze, and he said anxiously: "Brother, Du Xing is not going anywhere. Back then, you gave me a bite to eat and handed over such a huge family business to me to manage. Du Xing will never forget this kindness. In this life, Du Xing only wants to follow you."

"I know you, Du Xing, are a loyal and righteous man, but...Shandong is about to change!"

Li Ying was not a brainless warrior. He made his fortune as a merchant when he was young, so he had a quick mind. When he thought about what had happened recently, he felt a chill on his back and his scalp tingling.

First of all, he knew clearly that he had let a thief into his home.

If the three families in Dulonggang were united, Liangshan would not have been easily invaded successfully.

Of course, Hujiazhuang had set a bad precedent. Secondly, the heavy taxes imposed by the imperial court also affected the survival of Lijiazhuang. Although it was a local tyrant in Dulonggang, Dongping Prefecture, and was not forced to go bankrupt like those small landlords, it was still greatly affected.

I could make a lot of money in the early years, a little money in the years before that, but these years I have to invest money in the fields.

Wouldn’t that mean the family will be ruined in the future?
If his Li family is ruined, there is no chance that the entire Shandong province will be spared.

Rebellion! The only thing left is rebellion!
Finally, he saw Cao Jie's ability as a leader.

He is so young, but he has been able to gather so many heroes. If he is given a few more years, he will be able to achieve even greater success.

If this person rebels, how can Dulonggang, which is right next to his bed, be spared? !

"Brother..." Du Xing didn't think too much about it. He just felt that Cao Jie and his group were very loyal and worthy of making friends. Moreover, Li Ying was hit by a hidden arrow from Zhu Biao. If he didn't avenge this, he would be unworthy of being a servant.

As for revenge, Du Xing couldn't do it on his own and could only seek help from his brother Cao.

"I, Du Xing, always listen to my elder brother."

Li Ying sighed, "I am confused, but I can't make a decision. Oh! Let's take it one step at a time! Du Xing, Brother Cao has conquered Hujia Village and is attacking Zhujia Village. He obviously doesn't want to make a big fuss. If he has any requests, you should agree to them on my behalf."

"If we blatantly attack Zhujiazhuang, the imperial court will not sit idly by, right? Will it bring trouble to my brother?" Du Xing asked.

"Brother Cao has set up a net that will drag the Zhu family down. There is no way they can escape. I don't know if they can survive this New Year..."

Li Ying shook his head. Such a huge family business might be destroyed overnight. For a moment, he felt desolate.

Thinking back then, the old man of the Zhu family asked him, Li Ying, and Hu Taigong to sign a mutual protection treaty to jointly deal with bandits. It was still fresh in his mind.

Less than ten years had passed, and the old man of the Zhu family had already passed away. The third son of the Zhu family was arrogant and domineering, and looked down on the Hu and Li families.

Even if Cao Jie had not arrived, it was only a matter of time before the three companies fell apart.

Now, Zhujiazhuang is on the verge of destruction.

Li Ying's eyes flickered. Although he had not yet made up his mind, he already had an idea: If Liangshan can destroy Zhujiazhuang without any effort, what's the harm in me joining his sect?

"Du Xing, you go and drink with me, don't neglect the heroes."

Du Xing clasped his fists and said, "Don't worry, big brother."

"Ugh!"

Li Ying sighed again. He had tens of thousands of taels of wealth, but the only brother he could show off was "Ghost Face" Du Xing.

"Compared to Brother Cao, I, Li Ying, am only worthy of being a rich man!"

No comparison, no comparison at all.

Anyway, that much money was spent without blinking an eye, and Li Ying was reluctant to part with it.

At the banquet, Cao Jie transformed himself into a master of success.

Guo Sheng, the new investor, was so fooled that he wanted to go outside the pass with Lu Fang immediately.

As for the "God of Death" Bao Xu, a rough man, he completely surrendered after exchanging martial arts with the heroes.

If you can't beat them, join them. This is the law of survival for warriors and the weak.

(End of this chapter)