Along with the official reply to Liu Zhang, Pang Tong had dispatched a personal letter of his own.
Did Pang Tong actually share a bloodline with Pang Xi? The honest answer was no, not really.
But Pang Tong was a master at manufacturing connections where none existed.
Since Pang Xi hailed from Henan, a region that had historically fallen under the Jingzhou sphere of influence, now Pang Tong decided they were now distant kinsmen of the Jingzhou Pang clan.
Once you were family, everything became much easier to discuss.
Standing atop the battlements of Jiangzhou and watching the messenger gallop into the distance, Zhao Yun could not quite wrap his head around the logistics.
"Is Liu Zhang truly not worried that our lord will simply establish his own power base after defeating Pang Xi?"
"Of course he is not worried," Pang Tong said, shaking his head.
"Because we have no grain."
The two began a leisurely stroll through the city as Pang Tong took the opportunity to map out the convoluted politics of the Shu region for Zhao Yun.
Back during the rebellion of Zhao Wei, Ba Commandery had been split into three.
Ba, Yongning, and Guling. Later, Yongning was reverted to Ba Commandery, Guling became Badong, and the original Ba was renamed Baxi.
The people of Shu were strangely obsessed with the "Ba" name. Otherwise they would not have kept renaming things just to keep the word in the title.
Zhao Yun, however, was focused on the man in question. "So Baxi Commandery was originally Ba Commandery, and Pang Xi is the Taishou, Grand Administrator. there?"
Pang Tong pulled Zhao Yun toward a roadside tea stall, tossed ten coins to the owner, and settled in. "It is a messy story," he began. "Years ago, Liu Yan had rebellious ambitions. He sent Zhang Lu and Zhang Xiu to attack Hanzhong, specifically to cut off the roads leading to the imperial capital."
Zhao Yun's expression hardened. "The Grand Administrator of Hanzhong at the time, Su Gu, was a loyal subject of the Han."
Pang Tong took a sip of the coarse tea. It was bitter and scratchy on the throat.
He took a few more gulps, a mocking smirk playing on his lips. "Zhang Lu's mother... she was a woman who practiced longevity arts and maintained a youthful appearance. She was a very frequent guest at Liu Yan's estate."
That one sentence was all it took. Zhao Yun understood instantly.
"Liu Zhang considered the whole affair a family embarrassment. In the fifth year of Jian'an, he executed Zhang Lu's mother and brother.
In retaliation, Zhang Lu allied with local tribal leaders like Du Huo and Pu Hu to revolt.
Liu Zhang ordered Pang Xi to suppress them, but he failed. By the sixth year of Jian'an, the three commanderies were renamed."
Pang Tong's narrative was fragmented, but Zhao Yun pieced it together quickly. Finishing his tea, Pang Tong summarized the situation with biting clarity.
"The chaos in Yizhou Province stems from the moment Liu Yan abandoned the heart of a Han official. With a leader like that, men like Zhao Wei simply followed suit, leading to the weak Liu Jiyu, Liu Zhang we see today.
Liu Jiyu's rashness in killing Zhang Lu's family caused the Hanzhong revolt. His weakness led to the rebellion of Shen Mi and Gan Ning. Even the defection of Pang Xi and Li Yi was just a matter of vultures fighting over scraps."
Pang Tong's mouth curled into a sneer of pure disdain. "A bunch of Han traitors, the lot of them."
Zhao Yun remained silent, downing his tea in one go. The climate in Jiangzhou was growing stiflingly hot. It was only May, yet the heat already rivaled the peak of summer in Jingzhou.
Pang Tong rose and went to light a lamp. He intended to write another letter to Liu Zhang. With a sovereign so simple-minded and prone to acting on impulse, Pang Tong felt it would be a waste of ink not to poke the man a few more times.
By the time the letter was finished, dawn had broken. As he stretched his weary limbs, he realized someone was standing behind him. After the initial startle, he beamed.
"My lord! When did you return? How long have you been standing there?"
Liu Bei chuckled. "I have been here since Shiyuan started persuading Liu Jiyu to release more grain so we could better deal with rebellious generals like Pang Xi.
Shiyuan, your genius truly knows no bounds."
Pang Tong's embarrassment faded slightly. Liu Bei then shared the latest news from the Guanzhong region.
"Han Sui has formed an alliance with Zhang Heng, Liang Xing, and others to punish the traitor Cao Cao.
They claim to have a hundred thousand men. They only invited Ma Chao to join after the alliance was formed, and now they are in a locked in stalemate with Zhong Yao and Xiahou Yuan at Tong Pass."
"With a hundred thousand troops on their home turf, how could they possibly lose to Cao Cao?"
Liu Bei mused. He could not wrap his head around it. Guanzhong was Han Sui and Ma Chao's backyard. If I, no, if my brother Yunchang were commanding that force, they would be at the gates of Xuchang by the end of the year.
Pang Tong laughed, pointing at the letter he had just finished. "What is so hard to understand?
If Han Sui and Ma Chao are of one heart, Guanzhong is an impregnable fortress.
If they have divided hearts, they will be picked apart one by one."
Liu Bei sighed and shook his head, hoping the letter he had sent to Ma Chao would provide enough of a warning.
He then pulled a thin booklet from his robe. "Shiyuan, here are the Lightscreen Notes."
Pang Tong's eyes lit up. Ignoring his exhaustion, he sat at his desk and began to devour the contents. Liu Bei watched him from over his shoulder, occasionally chiming in.
"What do you think of the strategy for the first Northern Expedition, Shiyuan?"
"Taking Longyou allows us to cut off the Hetao region and threaten Guanzhong. From there, the whole region is within our grasp."
Pang Tong could not find a single flaw in the logic.
"The Kirin of Tianshui, Jiang Wei?" He vaguely remembered the name.
"The future generations seem to grieve for him as well. Now we finally know who he is. But Tianshui... that is going to be hard to reach from here."
As he turned the page, Pang Tong's brow furrowed. "Ma Su. He deserves to be executed."
He slammed his hand on the desk. "Even killing him will not soothe the rage. Once Jieting is lost, it can never be recovered."
He had no comments on the authenticity of the Memorials of the Expeditions, but the Battle of Shiting drew a genuine sneer.
"I told you. Kongming keeps insisting on the importance of allies, and look where it got him. Sun Wu just kept pushing and pushing."
However, his eyes widened when he reached the sections from the Book of Jin. But for Pang Tong, the biggest disappointment was something else entirely.
"Where are the pictures of the Everlasting Chang'an?"
"Oh, those," Liu Bei said with a grin. "Ji Chang and Gong Yan found them too difficult to replicate, so they did not draw them. But we all got a very good look."
Pang Tong stood there, frozen in regret.
---
Since Liu Bei was exhausted from his trip from Gong'an, the two of them ended up sharing a bed for a long overdue rest.
Liu Bei caught him up on Ma Su's new life, the changes in the Jiangling navy, and the arrival of Gan Ning's elite guards.
In return, Pang Tong explained the plan for the letter to Pang Xi.
Soon, the voices in the room faded into rhythmic snoring. A passing servant quietly closed the door.
They slept late, and it was already mid-afternoon when Liu Bei woke up. Pang Tong was already gone.
After washing up, Liu Bei headed toward the eastern part of the city. Jiangzhou was a unique place in his eyes.
The confluence of three rivers with six distinct banks, where the muddy and clear waters swirled together. It was a sight that never ceased to amaze him.
Liu Bei walked along the main road for about fifteen minutes until he reached the farmland. He spotted a man dressed in scholarly robes working in the fields and called out from a distance. "Zhao Zuo of Langzhong. How have you been lately?"
The man straightened up and shouted back, "Thanks to the luck of the Governor of Jingzhou, Liu Xuande, I am still alive."
Liu Bei laughed heartily. A few minutes later, the two of them were sitting on the edge of the field.
Before them were flourishing rice paddies, with commoners scattered about weeding or catching pests.
Behind them, at the river's edge, the frame of a water-powered mill was beginning to take shape, with craftsmen and villagers moving back and forth.
Liu Bei went over and spent two coins on a pot of coarse tea. He poured a cup for Zhao Zuo and took a sip himself. "Does Prefect Zhao still only wish to focus on farming?"
Zhao Zuo's expression was complicated. As a Prefect, he had failed to hold the city.
But this Liu Bei... he was leading the charge in teaching farming techniques, he was not disturbing the peace, and he was building water wheels and mills for the public good.
His attitude was the polar opposite of Li Yi's, and he had won the hearts of the people with ease. Zhao Zuo felt almost redundant.
This is a good lord, Zhao Zuo concluded.
But he also remembered the day Liu Bei attacked. He had sworn before the people and the soldiers that he would die with the city.
Time had proven Liu Bei's character, and more and more commoners were coming to Zhao Zuo, begging him to just serve the Imperial Uncle already.
This made it even more awkward for him. Why does everyone have to remember what I said?
When Zhao Zuo did not answer, Liu Bei continued, "Do you know Pang Xi, Prefect Zhao?"
"I have met him twice," Zhao Zuo admitted. "My family is in Langzhong, which is under the jurisdiction of Baxi." The Zhao clan was a prominent family in the area.
"I have a favor to ask of you, Prefect Zhao."
This is it.
Zhao Zuo seized the opportunity, suppressing his excitement. "Do not say favor, my lord. Just tell me what you need."
Looking him in the eye, Liu Bei said slowly, "I want you to take a trip to see Governor Pang Xi."
Zhao Zuo blinked, but he did not hesitate for long. He gritted his teeth and said, "Fine. But I also have an ungracious request. I want you to go see General Yan Yan."
Liu Bei was thrilled. He grabbed Zhao Zuo's arm and laughed. "What is so hard about that?"
He had heard the name Yan Yan before. He was the defender of Jiangzhou, but after the gates were opened using Li Yi's head, the old general had vanished.
Liu Bei had assumed he had fled to Chengdu to report the loss. Now, Zhao Zuo was telling him that Yan Yan was still in the city.
Once the word "lord" left his lips, Zhao Zuo felt a massive weight lift from his shoulders. He was an open book now.
"Old General Yan has a sort of foolish loyalty toward Liu Zhang.
But he is a man of honor and righteousness. He has guarded Jiangzhou for over twenty years.
He loves the people and treats his soldiers like his own sons.
He knows the geography and the people of Shu like the back of his hand. If you can persuade him to join us, he will be of immense use."
Liu Bei burned the description into his memory.
Just hearing it made him like the old man already. "I will not fail your trust."
With his final worry settled, Zhao Zuo finished his tea and bowed. "I hope my lord will prepare a horse for me. Now that I have my orders, I should leave early."
He politely declined Liu Bei's suggestion to wait until morning.
As he galloped away, Zhao Zuo felt a strange sense of peace. As a member of a prominent Langzhong clan, he had felt that Yizhou Province had been shrouded in a suffocating, stagnant air ever since Liu Yan took over.
The elders had told him stories of the past. How the rulers built the Dujiangyan irrigation system and turned the Chengdu plains into fertile land.
Back then, Sichuan was vibrant and full of life.
And now? Zhao Zuo felt like he was seeing that vibrancy once again, centered right on the Governor of Jingzhou.
No. Liu Xuande would soon be the Governor of Yizhou Province.
Zhao Zuo was certain of it.
The scholars of Shu had been waiting for this spark of life for far too long.