Chapter 232

Chapter 232: The Sleeping Dragon and the Young Phoenix

Can a strategist not ascend the throne? Volume 7: Eight Hundred Qin Rivers, Occupying Guanzhong, Chapter 232: The Sleeping Dragon and the Young Phoenix

Pang Tong?

This is clearly not a case of a coincidental name; it’s the Pang Tong from Jing Province.

His arrival surprised even Qiao Yan.

It’s no wonder she reacted this way.

Even those least familiar with the history of the Three Kingdoms would likely remember the saying, “With the Sleeping Dragon or the Young Phoenix, securing the world is within reach.”

Whether or not they can secure the world is another matter, but Pang Tong, the Young Phoenix, is no ordinary talent, as Sima Hui’s evaluation placed him on par with Zhuge Liang.

Hearing that Zhuge Liang and Pang Tong had met, and in a manner almost akin to a dispute, it feels like a destined encounter.

Zhuge Liang, following Xun Yu’s advice, moved from Xuzhou to Bingzhou to study at Leping Academy, avoiding the chaos of Jing Province as he did in history. Yet, he still managed to meet Pang Tong, a native of Jing Province, at Hongwen Hall in Chang’an. Who could say this isn’t fate?

Qiao Yan, suddenly intrigued, set down her brush and prepared to head to Hongwen Hall.

Perhaps out of some mischievous curiosity, she felt it was a pity that Yang Xiu, due to a reading comprehension issue, had been sent to serve as a messenger for Lü Bu and wasn’t present to witness this historically resonant scene.

It would have been fitting for him to see this.

However, her earlier debate with Yang Xiu in Luoyang was a self-selected topic, while this encounter between Zhuge Liang and Pang Tong felt more like a formal debate.

When Qiao Yan arrived at Hongwen Hall, she saw two young men of similar age standing opposite each other, surrounded by a circle of older scholars, creating a rather amusing scene.

The boy standing opposite Zhuge Liang looked ordinary but had an outstanding demeanor. According to the messenger, he appeared simple and honest when silent, but when he spoke, his brilliance shone through.

“Listening to this, he seems a bit like Military Advisor Xun?” Qiao Yan remarked with interest.

Cui Jun, who had welcomed her at the door, wasn’t sure if her interest stemmed from Zhuge Liang, whom she had been observing due to the cotton seed separator, or the newly arrived Pang Tong.

He said, “I just had someone inquire. Pang Tong is fourteen this year, a member of the Pang family from Xiangyang. He originally came to Chang’an with his cousin Pang Shanmin to see the sights.”

Cui Jun pointed to a young man in his twenties in the crowd and added, “His father is Pang Degong, a recluse from Xiangyang.”

He continued, “Pang Tong heard about Hongwen Hall and asked his cousin to bring him here. He didn’t plan to speak initially, but when someone mentioned Xu Zijiang and Xu Wenxiu, discussing the early days of character evaluation, he and Zhuge Liang exchanged a few words. Their views diverged, and they ended up arguing.”

“I can tell,” Qiao Yan replied.

Although she arrived quickly, debates like this don’t take much time.

Young talents like Zhuge Liang and Pang Tong, though young, are well-read and articulate, so there’s no room for repetitive arguments.

Missing the earlier part of the debate didn’t stop her from understanding their points based on what followed.

Zhuge Liang believed that evaluating someone should be based on their talents, abilities, and limitations, with a fair and thorough assessment. He emphasized honesty and accuracy, avoiding exaggeration or ambiguous comments.

Pang Tong, on the other hand, argued that in these troubled times, where good people are scarce compared to peaceful eras, it’s essential to praise those with decent character more highly. This would encourage others to follow their example and foster a sense of morality.

“Speaking of which, this seems similar to the initial idea behind the ‘Miscellaneous Talks’ section in Your Lordship’s Leping Monthly Report,” Cui Jun noted.

Back then, the section wasn’t about recording trivial matters like Yuan Shao counting wheat but served as a column promoting good deeds to inspire the people of Bingzhou.

However, once the people of Bingzhou were well-fed and clothed, Qiao Yan felt the column’s impact was limited and decided to shift the report’s focus to entertainment.

She nodded, “Indeed. An extreme example of this idea is Guo Linzong, who also promoted the idea of redemption in his character evaluations.”

So, in a way, Pang Tong’s perspective is a product of its time.

But that doesn’t mean Zhuge Liang’s pragmatic approach is without merit.

Placing someone in a position beyond their capabilities could cause greater harm to society.

However, Zhuge Liang added a nuance to his argument, suggesting that this mismatch should be called “pragmatic but not definitive.”

Qiao Yan glanced at the records of their arguments, quickly scanning their earlier points.

It’s no wonder Pang Tong held such views.

His uncle, Pang Degong, was a renowned character evaluator in the Jingxiang region, though he rarely spoke and lived in seclusion in Lumen Mountain.

Pang Tong, still young and ambitious, believed that using such evaluations to promote moral integrity could prevent the chaos caused by refugees in Nanyang and the banditry in Jing Province.

Of course, his argument wasn’t about forcing his uncle out of seclusion but about becoming a credible evaluator himself.

In this debate, he displayed a competitive spirit.

He could be considered a potential maverick.

Qiao Yan, seeing this, didn’t openly support either side but smiled as she watched Zhuge Liang and Pang Tong face each other.

Though they were too young for official appointments, she could already glimpse their future achievements, and it pleased her.

As for the fact that only Zhuge Liang was under her command, while Pang Tong, a native of Jing Province, wasn’t yet—

He was already in Sili; where could he run?

This also reflected Qiao Yan’s confidence in herself.

Though she hadn’t been in Hongwen Hall for long, the scholars present, while focused on Pang Tong and Zhuge Liang, couldn’t help but notice her arrival.

The eighteen-year-old female marquis with the golden seal and purple ribbon was unmistakable in Chang’an.

What set her apart was her continued military authority and decision-making power even after welcoming Liu Yu to the throne.

Her actions of supporting the adult Son of Heaven and declining the position of Grand General had convinced even Xun Yu and Lu Zhi of her loyalty to the Han dynasty.

But this didn’t change her image as a powerful minister in the eyes of many.

In this fragmented world, while many were drawn to Liu Yu’s wisdom, those with real talent would still choose to serve as his close advisors.

Living in the temple, or becoming Qiao Yan’s subordinate to conquer the four directions, probably more people would choose the latter.

So instead of going through a round of screening by the four masters of Hongwen Hall, it’s better to directly negotiate with Qiao Yan.

There’s no guarantee that you won’t be noticed by her and rise rapidly.

This is exactly where Qiao Yan’s confidence in recruiting Pang Tong comes from!

But this convergence of gazes puts pressure on someone.

This person, of course, is not Qiao Yan, nor is it Zhuge Liang and Pang Tong, who feel like they’ve met their match, but Tian Feng.

He is responsible for recording the discussions of scholars in Hongwen Hall, so even though Zhuge Liang and Pang Tong are young, they are still within the scope of recording.

Coincidentally, just as the two began their debate, he was caught by Cui Jun.

Cui Jun really didn’t recognize Tian Feng, he just felt a bit familiar because Tian Feng had the same Hebei accent as him, so he often chatted with him, which is different from Xun Yu being told by Qiao Yan to pretend not to know Tian Feng.

But whether he really didn’t recognize him or pretended not to, Tian Feng is now at the center of everyone’s attention.

When Qiao Yan reached out to pick up the previous records, Tian Feng’s mind was already in a tense state, fearing that Qiao Yan would notice his discomfort.

Yuan Shao’s strategist sneaking into Chang’an’s Hongwen Hall, a place for recruiting, if others knew, they would probably laugh at Chang’an for being infiltrated like this, and also say that Tian Feng is not following the rules.

If he could go back.

This could very well become one of the reasons for Qiao Yan to launch a campaign against Yuan Shao.

He must not leave such a handle!

Tian Feng tried to lower his presence.

Just as he was writing, he also lamented that Qiao Yan already had a considerable number of talents under her command, especially those from the Yingchuan faction, who expanded at an astonishing speed as she entered Guanzhong and supported the Son of Heaven, playing a remarkable role in enacting laws, implementing tuntian, and recruiting talents.

Now, how come there are such young and talented people again.

Looking at Zhuge Liang and Pang Tong, it’s not hard to imagine what kind of demeanor these two will have in a few years.

But thinking about the numerous talents in her Leping Academy, it’s not just these two, Tian Feng simply gave up thinking about it.

Still immersed in his thoughts, it didn’t stop him from continuously writing, faithfully recording the words of these two.

Fortunately, this multitasking didn’t last long, at least not until Tian Feng subconsciously thought “I should remind the Lord to be alert about this” and also wrote it down, the voices of the two stopped with Pang Tong’s words “Why not see the evidence in the future”, and Tian Feng could also pause his pen.

It was at this moment that the two, who were still arguing, both looked towards Qiao Yan.

Seemingly embarrassed for attracting the attention of the Marquis of Leping and affecting the normal communication here, they first apologized to the surroundings with a bow, then stood straight.

The sound of Qiao Yan clapping broke the silence that had momentarily fallen.

“Interesting.”

Her “interesting” could be considered a compliment, as her next words were: “Years ago, I and Yang Dezu outside Dingzhong Temple in Luoyang, presented our strategies to the famous scholars in the temple, at that time Xu Zijiang commented with ‘the young phoenix has a clear voice’, today seeing your debate, it inevitably reminds me of that time.”

In this sentence, she actually compared Zhuge Liang and Pang Tong to herself and Yang Xiu.

But upon careful thought, everyone also felt it was indeed similar.

Back then in Dingzhong Temple, Chen Ji was also there, and today he is here too.

Just that the Xu You, Xu Shao, Chen Lin of that time have been replaced by today’s Xun Yu, Wang Yun, Cui Jun.

The weight is no less than back then, but even more.

Not to mention there’s also Qiao Yan, the Grand Marshal and General of Agile Cavalry here.

But this makes one think, from then to now is less than eight years, Qiao Yan has gone from being the “young phoenix” being commented on to the one holding the reins of power today, also—

Today’s commentator.

She said: “Back then, Mr. Zijiang gave me a word of hope, which led to my subsequent audience with the Son of Heaven, today encountering this scene, if I can comment a bit, it might as well be a continuation of talent, passing the torch.”

Seeing that both Zhuge Liang and Pang Tong had no objection to her commenting, she raised her hand to signal, and immediately someone brought paper and pen to her.

In the moment of spreading the paper before her, her gaze inadvertently swept over the people present.

After all, Hongwen Hall is a place for selecting talents for the Han court, she now needs to focus on solidifying her position while seeking further advancement, it’s not suitable to have too much contact with these people, but should naturally wait for them to jump into her bowl.

At least after securing the position of Grand Marshal, through the scheduling of talent positions, arrange those who have the potential to become confidants closer to her.

So she actually only came here once when it was first completed.

But today’s unexpected debate between Zhuge Liang and Pang Tong gave her a legitimate reason to come here, and an opportunity to create a beautiful story.

Who can say this is not a kind of luck.

Her moment of contemplation with the pen was just a flash, and everyone saw her write twelve words on the paper.

These twelve words seem to be both a comment on the two youths and a couplet for Hongwen Hall.

Because on the paper it clearly reads—

“Laughing and talking with great scholars, the phoenix sings; coming and going, the talented roam like dragons.”

After writing these two lines, she looked towards Zhuge Liang and Pang Tong, smiling: “You two are just young, why not take the names of Sleeping Dragon and Young Phoenix, but you haven’t fully learned yet, this is an exaggerated statement, meant to encourage young people to emulate your striving to be first, but five years later, I want to see this statement become true, do you two dare to try this name?”

This “exaggerated statement” corresponds to Pang Tong’s viewpoint, while “this statement become true” clearly reflects Zhuge Liang’s thoughts.

Zhuge Liang and Pang Tong looked at each other, then turned back to meet Qiao Yan’s gaze, simultaneously bowing to her, replying: “We are willing to accept your words.”

Just as Qiao Yan thought, the person who was commented on in the past, now in power, seeing the youths debate, gave another word of hope, this is a beautiful story that will inevitably be spread along with the name of Hongwen Hall.

Both of them are not the type to retreat from the world, each has their own ambitions, having this name to push them is undoubtedly an unexpected joy.

The only problem is…

Pang Tong, after standing up, saw his cousin in the crowd, suddenly realizing something.

He originally came to Hongwen Hall to see the sights, but this “We are willing to accept your words” seems like signing a five-year observation period contract!

Even though Qiao Yan didn’t explicitly say it, forcing him to fulfill the name of Young Phoenix in front of her five years later, but if he returns to Jing Province, can he really grow to rival Zhuge Liang?

Pang Tong, looking at Zhuge Liang who is only two years younger, couldn’t help but fall into deep thought.

He seems to already have a positive answer in his heart.