Although Liu Bei has been very courteous to Pang Tong in recent days, he has never shown a clear attitude on whether to retain it or not, because he thought that Zhuge Liang deliberately recommended Pang Tong to him like someone who threatened him. Could it be that he really considers himself as if he recommended Guo Jia to Xun Yu? Or maybe he has the possibility of testing himself.

Liu Bei was worried that if he really decisively recruited Pang Tong, he would indirectly reveal his incomplete trust in Zhuge Liang. After he obtained Zhuge Liang, he went through the Eastern Wu, occupied Jingnan, and occupied Nanjun, and successfully expanded the territory he controlled. At present, he could not lose Zhuge Liang's loyalty to him, so he was unstable.

Two days later, Liu Bei thought that he had not met Pang Tong for two days. If he remained indifferent like this, he might have left. Therefore, with a very contradictory attitude, he decided to go to Pang Tong's residence in person for a visit, so that he could fully demonstrate his importance to him and also to relieve Pang Tong's heart.

After arriving at the villa where Pang Tong lived, Liu Bei found that Pang Tong was fiddling with something on the stone platform in the courtyard, but because he was facing his back to him, he couldn't see clearly. He reached out to stop the servant beside him who was about to inform him, and walked to the right side of Pang Tong, and then he saw clearly that Pang Tong was using the bronze quotation used as a measuring instrument.

"I don't know if Uncle Liu is here, so I'll forgive you if I have any mistakes."

Although Pang Tong said this, he did not mean to look up at Liu Bei. He lowered his head and reached out to take out a piece of jade on the table, and gently placed it on the right copper plate that was originally at the same height as the left. In an instant, the copper plate on the right quickly sank due to the change in weight. Seeing this, Pang Tong still maintained his original posture and looked at Tong Quan and said to himself:

"At the end of the Spring and Autumn Period, the Qin people invented this interesting object called 'Quan'. As long as the objects placed on both sides of the copper plate are not completely equal in weight, there will inevitably be a shift in the center of gravity."

On the surface, what Pang Tong said was just some knowledge involving measurement, but Liu Bei didn't mean it at all. He seemed to understand what Pang Tong wanted to convey through this copper quotation, so he stepped forward and picked up a jade that seemed to be exactly the same size as jade from the table and placed it on the other side of the copper plate. As a result, the heights on both sides changed significantly, but they still could not be maintained at the agreed height level. Liu Bei sighed and said to Pang Tong:

"If the object placed on the other side cannot have exactly the same amount as it, it is probably difficult to maintain the balance."

Pang Tong smiled knowingly. He took away the jade that Liu Bei placed on the copper tray, and took out one from the scattered jade pieces and replaced it. As a result, the trays on both sides gradually returned to the same height:

"It depends on whether the person who is placed has the ability to pick out the same amount of the same object at a glance..."

After this meeting, Liu Bei had secretly made up his mind to take Pang Tong for his own use, just like the two pieces of jade in the tray on the copper quotation. He wanted to use Pang Tong to balance Zhuge Liang's position in his camp.

Not long after, the news that Pang Tong was left in Jiangling was spread to Wu County. After Lu Su learned about it, he hurriedly wrote to Liu Bei, saying that Pang Tong's ability was not just able to govern a land of only a hundred miles. He had some conflicts with him in Eastern Wu due to different political views. Now he realized that Pang Tong was correct in the previous debate. Wu Hou Sun Quan also intends to use Pang Tong as a military advisor again, so he hopes that Liu Bei can send Pang Tong back to Jiangdong.

However, at this time, Liu Bei had discovered that Pang Tong's weight was very comparable, and his position was different from Cao Cao, who had a brilliant lineup of strategists like stars. Xu Shu, whom he trusted very much before, was already in Cao's camp. Even if he was there, it would be difficult for him to be a rival to Zhuge Liang and Pang Tong, so Pang Tong himself would not let him go no matter what.

In the end, Liu Bei officially became Pang Tong as a ruling chief, second only to Zhuge Liang, the military advisor General, in terms of status, but was equivalent to the right-hand man of the governor. For a person who had just started an official, Liu Bei was promoted exceptionally.

Although Pang Tong was officially appointed, it does not mean that Liu Bei trusted him more than Zhuge Liang. Once during the banquet, Liu Bei suddenly mentioned the incident when he went to Jingkou to meet Sun Quan:

"I heard that during the meeting at Jingkou, Zhou Yu secretly warned Sun Quan to detain me to control Jingzhou. Mr. Wang had often served as Zhou Yu's Gongcao for many years. If this really happened, he would definitely know it. I wonder if it was correct?"

In fact, Liu Bei secretly questioned whether Pang Tong had participated in the formulation of this plan. Pang Tong calmly responded after hearing this:

"It is true that the governor told me that the emperor was a hero today. If this continues, it will definitely become a huge obstacle to the expansion of Jiangdong and East China's power, so I thought about this plan. However, I thought that consolidating the Sun-Liu Alliance at this time is crucial to you and Sun Quan, so neither the lord nor the Jiangdong would want to cause any huge trouble. At that time, not only will the Sun-Liu Alliance established with great difficulty be in a state of collapse, but also will give Cao Cao from the north a chance to take advantage of it."

Liu Bei nodded frequently as he listened to Pang Tong's words. Zhuge Liang, who was sitting opposite Pang Tong, did not doubt that there was any fraud in what he said, because Pang Tong had no need to lie on this issue. To be honest, it would dispel some of Liu Bei's concerns about him.

At the same time, the news that Pang Tong became an official in Liu Bei also spread to Yecheng. Cao Cao was shocked when he heard about it. He told Sima Yi and Jiang Ji:

"At the beginning, I heard that Sima Hui said, "Sleeping Dragon, Phoenix Chicken" could be at peace with the world. Now, looking at the current world, Liu Bei has occupied two of the "Five Abundances". His strength is limitless, and we will work harder in the future."

But Sima Yi expressed a different view on this:

"It depends on whether Zhuge Liang and Pang Tong are really united. If not, then Liu Bei will not only not receive any help, but instead has laid a disaster next to him with his own hands that will sprout at some point..."

Cao Cao did not understand Sima Yi's words at first, but he also realized that Pang Tong and Zhuge Liang were both extraordinary. The words of both of them were loyal to the same master will inevitably lead to open and secret struggles and calculating each other in the future:

"Okay, let's wait to watch the show. But after getting two top strategists, I think Liu Bei will definitely make big moves in the past two years. In your opinion, will he go north, fight east or west next?"

Jiang Ji's view on this is:

"I think that the Sun-Liu alliance has just been married and consolidated, and there will be no major friction in a short period of time. Although the Prime Minister was defeated in the war to conquer Sun Quan twice, his basic strength has not been shaken. Liu Bei now only occupies the five counties in southern Jingzhou, and his strength is not enough to compete with you. In comparison, Liu Zhang in Yizhou is weak and incompetent, and has been consumed by Zhang Lu in Hanzhong for a long time. His strength is relatively weak. I think if Liu Bei wants to move troops, he will definitely attack Liu Zhang."

Sima Yi also agreed with Jiang Ji's point of view and strongly suggested that Cao Cao speed up the pace of progress westward:

"Yes, the Chief should take action to attack Hanzhong as soon as possible. Otherwise, after Liu Bei occupied Yizhou, the land of Hanzhong would definitely be taken into his possession. It would be too late if we take action again."

After discussing with Cheng Yu, Jia Xu and others, Cao Cao also specially consulted Xun Yu and Xun You who were far away in Xudu, and they received unanimous approval. So Cao Cao asked Sima Yi again what to do next.

Sima Yi had long considered this: "The first thing we need to do now is not to rush to rise up. If we attack Hanzhong, then the land of the Three Auxiliary will be the first to be affected. If the Prime Minister rashly raises up, it will surely arouse the alertness of the Western Liang forces such as Ma Chao and Han Sui who are guarding Guanzhong. If they are forced into the southwest, it will inevitably be a hidden danger to our rear advance in the southwest. In the process of bringing the army deep into Hanzhong and Bashu, it is very dangerous to have such a powerful and unstable military force behind us."

After listening to Sima Yi and Jiang Ji's analysis, Cao Cao said nothing. He stood up and waved the pen in his hand, accurately marked the map of Ma Chao, Han Sui, candidates, Cheng Yin and ten military group bases scattered in various parts of Guanzhong. Then he drew forks in these marked places one by one, turned around and said to Sima Yi and Jiang Ji:

"Since there is a hidden danger before and after, then we will destroy them..."

Cao Cao's words were exactly what Sima Yi and Jiang Ji said. Seeing that Cao Cao's eyes were so firm, they seemed to see the dawn of success in advancing west. So they bowed to Cao Cao together and said:

"The Prime Minister is wise..."

After leaving Cao Cao's study, Sima Yi and Jiang Ji took a few steps and saw the panting Sima Lang running towards them. Because they were juniors, Jiang Ji respectfully bowed to Sima Lang as soon as they met. Sima Lang hurriedly replied to Sima Yi in anger:

"Quick...go home quickly...Chunhua wakes up..."

As soon as he heard this, Sima Yi immediately ran out of the prime minister's mansion. At this time, he didn't care about the specific strategy of moving west to Hanzhong. All he thought about was Chunhua's figure...

After rushing into the doorstep, he headed straight for Chunhua's room. When he stood at the door sweating profusely, he saw Zhang Chunhua sitting on the bed holding Sima Shi's arms. He looked very happy and satisfied.

At this time, Sima Kui, who was standing next to the bed, saw Sima Yi who was already out of breath:

"Second brother..."

After hearing Sima Kui's voice, Zhang Chunhua's happy smile suddenly stiffened. She twisted her neck, which seemed to have been stiff, and looked in the direction of the door along Sima Kui's eyes until she looked at Sima Yi's eyes...

"Brother Zhongda..."

Seeing that Zhang Chunhua's expression instantly changed from embracing Sima Yi's joy to seeing his own worries, and wanted to get up and walk towards him, so he quickly stepped forward and sat on the edge of the bed:

"You just woke up and were still weak, so you need to rest for a while."

Seeing the touching scene after the couple reunion after a long separation, Sima Kui stepped forward and picked up Sima Shi who was already asleep, smiled and took the younger brothers out of the room, and gently closed the door, giving them a completely independent space.

Before Sima Yi could speak, Zhang Chunhua spread his arms and hugged Sima Yi's neck tightly and hugged him:

"It's great that you're fine... Zhao Rui told me that you can't come back, I'm really afraid of you..."

Sima Yi gently patted Zhang Chunhua's back and comforted:

"Silly girls, they are all mothers who say such stupid things. You and your master are here, how could I leave you?"

After saying that, he gently held Zhang Chunhua's shoulder and moved his face away from his chest, stretched out his hand to wipe away the tears from the corners of her eyes:

"It's you, do you know that the coma that has not woken up for so long makes everyone worry about you..."

Speaking of this, Zhang Chunhua couldn't help but cry with joy. She once again pressed her cheek against Sima Yi's chest and reached out to wrap her hand around his waist:

"No matter what happens in the future, you don't leave us again..."

Sima Yi nodded and stretched out his hand to gently stroke Zhang Chunhua's head:
Chapter completed!