To be honest, Tao Qian’s words resonated deeply with Tao Shang in his heart.
Having the foresight and mindset to see the benefit of a snipe and clam fighting while the fisherman profits was one of the important qualities of a successful person.
Old Tao Qian’s idea of joining the alliance against Dong Zhuo while avoiding the heavy and taking the light, playing both sides, suited Tao Shang’s taste very well.
So he praised him with the words “sly old fox.” This term was one that Tao Shang generally did not use lightly…
it was reserved only for his own people!
But ideas are plentiful while reality is harsh.
Today’s Tao Shang could not give Tao Qian a thumbs up.
The reason was simple: Tao Shang had come from the future and was very clear about the benefits this joint campaign against Dong Zhuo would bring…
Whether in ancient or modern times, benefits are generally divided into two types: one is economic benefit, and the other is called social benefit.
Tao Qian feared unnecessary losses.
He only saw the economic benefits, but he did not see the social benefits.
Historically, many people such as Cao Cao, Liu Bei, Yuan Shao, Yuan Shu, Sun Jian, Gongsun Zan and others gained fame throughout the world through this campaign against Dong Zhuo.
Especially in the local provinces and commanderies, they won the support of many pro-Han aristocratic families and powerful clans.
In the subsequent warlord expansion campaigns, each one’s strength advanced by leaps and bounds.
Perhaps these results were something the warlords themselves had never expected—it was completely unintentional planting of willows that grew into shade.
Therefore, sometimes blindly preserving one’s strength is not entirely correct.
“Father, this son does not quite support your opinion.” Tao Qian had not expected his son today to have so many thoughts and opinions: “My son, what do you mean by this?” Tao Shang carefully chose his words for a moment: “Father, since the Yellow Turban Rebellion, the court’s control over the local regions has already greatly weakened compared to the past.
Now Dong Zhuo has usurped power and the Son of Heaven is young.
The powers of the various commandery administrators and provincial governors have already begun to rise.
In this son’s view, whether this campaign against Dong Zhuo succeeds or fails, the regional powers in Guandong will inevitably begin to expand before long.
The local aristocratic families and powerful clans, seeking survival amid the chaos, will also inevitably begin to align themselves with different warlords.
At this critical juncture, for our Xuzhou to protect itself, we must continuously expand our strength.
This strength includes both our own actual power and our reputation…” Tao Qian’s eyes began to widen.
Although these words made sense, they were not particularly novel…
What shocked Tao Qian the most was that these words had actually come from Tao Shang’s mouth.
Could it be that wiping one’s ass with official documents could actually produce wisdom?…
This old man will have to secretly try it himself someday.
“My son, continue speaking.
Say whatever you have to say, there is no harm.” Tao Shang continued: “Father, this campaign against Dong Zhuo is an opportunity to expand the fame of our Tao family.
As long as we can distinguish ourselves in this anti-Dong alliance, we will surely gain the support of the pro-Han aristocratic families.
This will be greatly advantageous for Father to firmly sit in Xuzhou in the future.” Tao Shang racked his brains and finally managed to get these words out coherently and completely.
“My son, who taught you to say these words?” Tao Shang: “……” What an unserious father.
The fire is already burning the eyebrows and you’re still asking who said this.
If the hole on your ass were a bit bigger, you could shit out your worries.
“Dad, if I say these words are my own, would you believe it?” “Of course not.” Tao Qian spoke decisively.
Even his own father didn’t trust him.
He really should drag the soul of his previous self back into the body and give it three hundred lashes to make it reflect properly.
“Then Dad, who do you think said these words?” Tao Qian said with an air of wisdom: “Looking across all of Xuzhou, in this old man’s view, only a few people like Mi Zhu, Zhao Yu, and Wang Lang possess such insight…” Tao Shang nodded and said, “Then it was Mi Zhu who said it.” Tao Qian’s face turned a bit dark: “…” The perfunctory attitude was indeed too obvious.
Did this kid think his own father was stupid?
“Rebellious son, get out!” The second truth Tao Shang learned after coming to this world was that people who could leave their names in the history books were certainly much stronger than ordinary people.
Even Tao Qian, whose ability was described as mediocre in the mouths of later generations…
that so-called mediocrity was relative.
Compared to other warlords, it was mediocre; compared to ordinary commoners, it was the commoners who were more ignorant.
A person like this could not be casually brushed off, at least not treated like an idiot.
From the conversation just now, Tao Shang knew that although his words had slightly moved Tao Qian, after all, his previous self had never concerned himself with government affairs, so Tao Qian did not trust him.
Looking at Tao Qian’s current attitude, for this campaign against Dong Zhuo, he intended to go through the motions without exerting real effort.
He needed to find a way to change this mindset.
The same words spoken by different people would definitely have different effects.
From the conversation just now, Tao Qian had mentioned three people’s names.
Presumably these three held different weight in Tao Qian’s heart compared to others.
Mi Zhu, Zhao Yu, Wang Lang…
It seemed that to persuade Tao Qian, he would need to ask these three to take action.
Tao Shang arrived at the rear courtyard of the Inspector’s residence.
Immediately, a plainly dressed red-faced fat man came forward and bowed in greeting.
The fragmented memories in Tao Shang’s mind allowed him to recognize this man as the residence’s old steward, Tao Hong, who had followed Tao Qian for many years.
“Young Master, the carriage is ready.
Will you be going for an outing today, or to hunt the rabbits you like best?” Tao Shang curled his lip, looking at his previous self’s limited ambitions: He couldn’t hunt tigers, but couldn’t he hunt foxes, wolves, or deer?…
He had to hunt rabbits and liked them the most.
“I’m not doing idle things today.
Prepare the carriage and take me to Mi Zhu’s residence.” The old steward looked somewhat incredulous: “Young Master, Young Masters Sun and Zhou have been inviting you for several days in a row to go on an outing and recite poetry.
You never delayed such things before.” “People have to learn to make more friends, make new friends!” Tao Shang smiled and patted the old steward’s shoulder.
“Today I’ll stand those two up.
Let’s go to Mi Zhu’s mansion.” The old steward looked at Tao Shang with somewhat bewildered eyes, but he could not disobey.
“Young Master, although Master Mi recognizes you, it is only a nodding acquaintance.
You have never had any dealings with him.
How about this: this old servant will prepare a few gifts, have someone deliver them first in your name, and then you pay a formal visit.
That way it won’t seem too abrupt.” Tao Shang nodded.
It was only proper to reciprocate with gifts; this Tao Hong was quite good at handling affairs.
“Good, then I’ll trouble Uncle Hong.
Also prepare a visiting card and send it along with the gifts.
Say that I, Tao Shang, am paying a visit, so they can make preparations.” The old steward frowned upon hearing this: “Young Master, although you hold no official post, you are after all the Inspector’s eldest son.
Sending a card to Mi Zhu—isn’t that being overly humble?” Tao Shang shook his head: “Just do as I say.
There’s nothing wrong with being a bit humble.” After all, he was asking someone for a favor, so it was better to lower his posture first.
As for acting arrogant, the time for that had not yet come.
Mi Zhu was a wealthy merchant of Xuzhou and the head of the Mi family.
His ancestors had engaged in farming and reclamation for generations, with family wealth exceeding a hundred million.
In plain terms, they were powerful local landlords.
Although Tao Qian was the Inspector of Xuzhou, he had only been in office for two years.
To establish himself in Xuzhou, he necessarily had to win over the Mi family.
So upon taking office, he immediately appointed Mi Zhu as an Assistant Officer.
The so-called Assistant Officer, in plain terms, if Tao Qian was a high official, then Mi Zhu was like the provincial party secretary.
…………
Xuzhou, Mi Residence.
In the center of the hall, the gifts sent by Tao Shang were displayed.
Beside them stood a middle-aged man who looked no more than thirty years old.
He had refined features, a neatly trimmed short beard on his chin, and his brocade clothing was spotlessly clean.
At first glance, he was clearly a very self-disciplined person.
Mi Zhu’s eyes were fixed directly on the gifts in the hall.
He was not particularly concerned about these gifts.
After all, the Mi family was extremely wealthy, and in the Central Plains of the Han dynasty, the number of people richer than him could be counted on one’s fingers.
These things truly did not catch his eye.
It was mainly the person who sent the gifts that surprised him greatly.
Of course he recognized the Inspector’s eldest son.
Two years ago when Tao Qian had just taken control of Xuzhou, he had recruited the four major powerful clans into service to help himself gain a firm foothold in Xuzhou.
Among those powerful clans was Mi Zhu himself.
Using the Mi family’s deep roots in Xuzhou as capital to support Tao Qian, Mi Zhu’s condition had been the promise of important positions.
The bigger the business one did, the greater the political backing needed.
This was a mutual benefit.
Mi Zhu felt that the deal between him and Tao Qian was very worthwhile.
Of course, every businessman hoped to make the business last longer.
Mi Zhu was a shrewd businessman among businessmen.
He hoped even more to make the dealings between the Mi family and the Tao family continue like a long, steady flow—not just for Tao Qian’s generation, but for the next generation as well, ideally making this business last for countless generations…
Therefore, Mi Zhu had set his sights on Tao Qian’s two sons, hoping to befriend them as preparation for the future.
The problem was that, after only a few contacts, Mi Zhu had been disappointed.
Tao Qian’s sons…
how should he put it?
They were really lacking in wisdom!
Not only were his two sons dull and rigid, but they were also foolish and did not strive for progress.
As sons of the Inspector, instead of thinking about associating with Xuzhou’s high officials and nobles, they spent their days on romantic pursuits, reciting poetry, hunting with falcons and chasing dogs…
In short, they were not people who did proper things!
After figuring out the true nature of Tao Qian’s two sons, Mi Zhu had given up on the need to continue investing in these two boys.
He was a businessman, and businessmen only paid attention to projects that could produce returns.
Tao Qian was a good project, but his two sons…
were trash.
“Brother!” A round, plump man with a cheerful face trotted all the way into the hall.
He clasped his hands toward Mi Zhu and said breathlessly: “The Inspector’s eldest son sent a visiting card and is coming to pay a visit.
Big Brother, how should we handle this matter?” The person who entered was Mi Zhu’s younger brother, Mi Fang.
Mi Zhu stroked his short beard and muttered to himself: “The trash has arrived…” “Huh?” Mi Fang looked a bit confused.
“I mean…
the eldest young master has arrived.
We must not be neglectful, brother.
Quickly follow me out to welcome him.”