Chapter 5 4. Three chapters of the agreement

Liu Bang's comprehension is very high, and he can see through a little bit.When Zhang Liang met Liu Bang at the beginning, after several conversations, he sighed and said: "Pei Gong is a gift from heaven!" That is to say, Liu Bang is very talented and his understanding is different from ordinary people.Zhang Liang and Liu Bang were talking about something in "The Grand Duke's Art of War", a treasure he got by lifting an old man's shoes. The book talks about "the art of the emperor's south".When Zhang Liang talked about these things with other people, no one could understand them. Only Liu Bang could understand them at once. That's why Zhang Liang sighed. It seems that Liu Bang was born with the potential to be an emperor, although on the surface, he is A true rogue.

After accepting everyone's advice this time, Liu Bang also showed his strong understanding and acted immediately.In order to appease the people of Xianyang and stabilize the situation, Liu Bang decided to hold a "Congress of People from All walks of life in Xianyang".With the help of the household registration files preserved by Xiao He, the notice of the meeting was quickly distributed to every village and community in the counties of Xianyang.There are two kinds of people participating in this meeting, one is the leaders of various communities, known as "elders";This "Congress of People's Representatives from All walks of life in Xianyang area" can be said to be full of black and white figures.

In the Bashang barracks, a high platform was temporarily built. Liu Bang climbed onto the high platform, faced the elders and heroes in Xianyang area, and delivered a famous speech called "Three Chapters of the Covenant" by later generations-"Elders, you were killed by the tyrants of the Qin Dynasty." I have been suffering from harsh punishments and strict laws for a long time! Those who dare to criticize the government will be exterminated, and they will be executed in public when they gather together to discuss the scriptures. I, Liu Ji, have an appointment with the princes from all walks of life. The first to enter the pass will be the king. It is the king of Guanzhong, and Guanzhong will be governed by me. Today, I made an agreement with the elders of Xianyang that only three laws will be retained in the future-killer, death, wounding and robbery. The rest of the Qin law will be abolished.

"Officials perform their duties as usual, and people's lives continue as usual. The reason why I came here is to benefit the people and eliminate harm, not to plunder or harass the people, so don't worry. It happened a few days ago The incident of soldiers looting property is due to Liu Ji’s lax management of the army, and I apologize to the elders in Xianyang. I will investigate and deal with these soldiers who harassed the people one by one, and return the looted property to the master.” After the meeting, Liu Bang sent a propaganda team to the urban and rural areas of Xianyang to publicize the "Three Chapters of the Agreement".The people of Xianyang supported Liu Bang's policy very much, and came to labor with wine and meat.Liu Bang declined and said: "There is a lot of food in the warehouse, and the army is not short of food, so don't spend money!" After hearing this, the people loved the new King Qin even more.Seeing this, Zhang Liang nodded frequently, "It seems that this Liu Ji is really the material to be an emperor!"

Today, the wind and the sun are beautiful, although it is already winter, but the weather is warm.Liu Bang was in a good mood, and took Fan Kuai, Xia Houying and dozens of guards to the countryside to promote the "Three Chapters of the Covenant".A group of people came to a village in Bashang. The people in the village heard that the king of Guanzhong had come, and they helped the old and the young to come out to welcome them.The "elders" of the village community held a bowl of wine in both hands, offered it to Liu Bang, and said, "My lord, this is the wine brewed by the winery in our village. There is nothing good in the backcountry, so I offer this bowl of water wine to Liu Bang." Your Majesty, please express our feelings!"

As soon as Liu Bang heard that it was wine, he immediately became energetic. He took the wine bowl from his elders, drank it down, wiped his mouth with his sleeve, and praised: "Good wine! The taste is pure, and the lips and teeth are fragrant!" Seeing that this great king is so forthright and approachable, completely different from the high-ranking Qin king and those domineering princes and nobles in the past, he was overjoyed. Liu Bang stood on a high place and asked, "Did all the folks know about the 'Three Chapters of the Covenant'?" A five or six-year-old child jumped up and down and said, "I know, I know!" Everyone laughed when they saw this.Liu Bang also laughed from ear to ear.He walked down, hugged the child in his arms, and said, "Okay, tell me what is the 'Three Chapters of the Covenant'. If you are right, Grandpa will give you honey to eat."

The child probably learned to read and write from the teacher in the village, and also learned some of the teacher's manners. He shook his head and recited: "The murderer dies, and the wounding and theft are punishable!" Liu Bang repeatedly said: "Good memorization, good memorization!" Then he took out a piece of honey from his bosom and put it in the child's hand.Liu Bang was greedy, and he carried these snacks with him, so he took a bite whenever he remembered them. Putting down the child, Liu Bang was about to turn around and leave when he suddenly stopped. He seemed to see a very familiar face in the crowd.When he searched carefully, the face disappeared again.Liu Bang's strange behavior was noticed by Fan Kui, and he hurriedly stepped forward and asked, "Pei Gong, what's wrong?"

Liu Bang thought for a while, and felt that he might be delusional, "Impossible! How could he appear here?" Liu Bang waved to Fan Kui and said, "It's okay, let's go back to the camp!" The group set off to return to the barracks. After Liu Bang and his party walked away, the mysterious old man came out from behind a mud wall, looked at the backs of Liu Bang and others, and fell into deep thought. After dark, the old man appeared in the previous wine shop.Now the order in Xianyang City has returned to normal, and the merchants have started to operate. After the curfew that has been implemented for many years is lifted, the enthusiasm of the common people is bursting out. Even in the night, the streets are still bustling with pedestrians.

In addition to the old man, there were two tables of guests in the restaurant. After drinking for a while, the old man pretended to go to the toilet and went to the backyard with the owner of the restaurant.The old man asked: "Is there any new progress?" "I just received a secret report today that Ziying's secret envoys have summoned tens of thousands of Qin troops outside the customs. They are raising food and grass, and reorganizing the team. They should be able to return soon." The boss reported anxiously. The old man was silent.The owner of the restaurant urged: "My lord, what should we do? Do we sit on the mountain and watch the tigers fight?"

"Looking at what Liu Ji has done in recent days, it looks like an emperor, 'Three Chapters of the Covenant', comforting the people, restraining the soldiers, and sealing up the treasury, all done in a decent manner!" The old man answered irrelevantly. The owner of the restaurant asked, "Could it be that my lord wants to help him by revealing Qin Jun's actions to Chu Jun." The old man shook his head, "I've already promised not to interfere in Qin's affairs anymore, forget it! Let's leave everything to fate!" "Promise? To whom?"

"Old friend!" After finishing speaking, the old man walked out of the courtyard and disappeared into the crowd on the street. In the Bashang barracks, Liu Bang was in his tent, and all the generals had dispersed.Liu Bang lay down on the mat on the ground, and grabbed a leg of lamb from the Shigui (a vessel used to hold cooked meals in ancient times) on several tables. The wine is poured directly into the mouth. Suddenly, he remembered the familiar face that had passed by in the crowd during the day.Liu Bang was puzzled, even though he glanced at it in a hurry, he would not recognize that face, but if it was really him, how could he appear in Xianyang?Liu Bang bit off a piece of meat from the leg of lamb, chewed it slowly, and then shook his head, "What do you want to do so much? Impossible, suspicious!"