In order to show his respect for Ding Huai, Yang Ci had set up a banquet in the manor that night to welcome Ding Huai. Other than Yang Ci, Huangfu Song, Lu Zhi, and Ding Yuan, Yang Ci also invited another person. From Yang Ci's behavior, it seemed that he admired this person very much.
This person was about thirty-five or thirty-six years old. He was eight feet tall, had a white face and a long beard, had a yellow scarf on his head, and was wearing a light yellow Confucian robe. He gave off the feeling of an otherworldly expert. Ding Huai had sensed that this person was not simple the moment he saw him, but when Ding Huai heard this person's name from Yang Ci's introduction, his mood could only be described with one word: shock. If one were to use four words to describe it, it would be extremely shocking, because this person's name was Zhang Jiao.
Zhang Jiao was from Julu. During the reign of Emperor Ling of the Han Dynasty, he had spread the Taiping Road to hundreds of thousands of people and spread it throughout the eight states of Qing, Xu, You, Ji, Jing, Yang, Dagon and Yu. In February 184 AD, Zhang Jiao launched an uprising and declared," The sky is dead, the yellow sky shall rise; The slogan of "Year in Jiazi, the world is in good luck" was directed at the Eastern Han government. It was known as the "Yellow Turban Uprising" in history. Its influence spread throughout the country and greatly shook the rule of the Eastern Han government. In October of the same year, Zhang Jiao died of illness. As a result, due to the crazy suppression of the Eastern Han government and the constant internal strife of the Yellow Turban Army, not long after, the Yellow Turban Army directly led by him was suppressed. However, after that, there were continuous uprisings in various places, which eventually led to the destruction of the Eastern Han Dynasty.
From Yang Ci's introduction and the current time, it was clear that Zhang Jiao had not started the Yellow Turban Uprising yet. He had only been spreading talismans to save people, treating illnesses, and winning over people. However, from the fact that Zhang Jiao could appear in Situ Yang's mansion, it could be seen that Zhang Jiao had the ambition to conquer the world. Perhaps it was because Zhang Jiao's followers hadn't reached the level that would make Zhang Jiao have the ambition to conquer the world, so the uprising hadn't started yet.
In fact, one of the most important reasons why Zhang Jiao could appear in Situ Manor and be on good terms with Huangfu Song and Lu Zhi was that he was the disciple of Old Deity Nanhua. Zhang Jiao didn't know that Zuo Ci was under Old Deity Nanhua. At this moment, Zhang Jiao was only using his medical skills to gather information about the imperial court.
After hearing Yang Ci's introduction, Zhang Jiao also liked Ding Huai, who was only twelve years old.
From their conversation, Ding Huai realized that although Zhang Jiao was only a failed scholar, his knowledge was far beyond that of ordinary failed scholars. It seemed that it wasn't that Zhang Jiao was incompetent, but that the officialdom at the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty was too dark. If Zhang Jiao had been able to get an official position, how could there have been such a Yellow Turban uprising that shook the foundation of the Great Han Dynasty?
At the same time, Zhang Jiao's shock was no less than Ding Huai's. He didn't expect that this twelve-year-old child would have as many secrets as he did. It seemed that this child would not be someone ordinary in the future. He had the idea of betrothing his youngest daughter to Ding Huai, thinking that Ding Huai would be useful to him in the future.
Thinking of this, Zhang Jiao made up his mind and said to Ding Yuan,"Lord Ding, I have something to tell you.”
Ding Yuan also had a very good impression of Zhang Jiao. Ever since Ding Huai's accident two years ago, Ding Yuan had naturally developed a kind of respect for people with superb medical skills. It could be said that it was because Daoist Priest Zuo Ci had saved Ding Huai's life.
"Please speak, Brother Mo Ping," Ding Yuan said.”(Because there was no record of Zhang Jiao's name in history, I could only make one up.)
Zhang Jiao said," I have a daughter who is eleven years old this year. She looks very dignified and is one year older than your son. I have the intention to climb up the social ladder and am willing to betroth my daughter to your son to form a good relationship with Qin and Jin. I wonder if Lord Ding is willing?"”Zhang Jiao sounded a bit modest. Since he described his daughter as dignified, it was obvious that her appearance was not ordinary.
Before Ding Yuan could reply, Yang Ci had already clapped his hands and said,"Wonderful, that's good. This old man can be a witness.”Two years ago, Yang Ci had been seriously ill. If not for Zhang Jiao's miraculous treatment, Yang Ci would have become a pile of bones. At this moment, Yang Ci saw Zhang Jiao taking the initiative to propose marriage with Ding Yuan because Zhang Jiao wanted to get close to Ding Yuan. In the social environment at that time, the difference between the two families was indeed too big. Yang Ci was worried that Ding Yuan would object, so he quickly spoke before Ding Yuan did. He hoped to use his face to make this happen and repay Zhang Jiao for saving his life.
As expected, although Ding Yuan had a good impression of Zhang Jiao, Zhang Jiao was only a doctor. But Ding Yuan was a provincial governor. The difference in status between the two was too great. They were definitely not a match of equal status. If Zhang Jiao didn't want to win Ding Huai over to his side, he wouldn't have made such a request. In the last years of the Eastern Han Dynasty, Ding Yuan would never agree to Zhang Jiao's request.
Hearing Zhang Jiao's words, Ding Yuan was quite unwilling. However, Yang Ci strongly agreed with this idea. He frowned and was about to find a reason to refuse when Yang Ci, who had been observing Ding Yuan, saw his expression. He knew that what he said just now was not enough, so he quickly interrupted Ding Yuan and said,"Jianyang, this old man thinks that this matter will succeed. Mo Ping is the direct disciple of Nanhua Old Deity. Not only is he proficient in medicine, but he is also talented. He is indeed a rare talent in our Great Han Dynasty. Moreover, this old man also likes Mo Ping's daughter very much and has already taken her in as a god-granddaughter. This way, it can be considered a match of equal status.”
Ding Huai didn't think as much as Ding Yuan did. He couldn't wait for his father to agree. Ding Huai knew that Zhang Jiao's youngest daughter was Zhang Ning, a famous beauty in the Three Kingdoms. If it wasn't for his parents 'orders and the restrictions of the matchmaker's words, Ding Huai would have stood up and agreed to this marriage long ago. At this moment, seeing that his father still had concerns, he couldn't help but feel anxious. At this moment, Yang Ci's interruption made Ding Huai feel very excited. Heh, there's a chance.
As expected, after hearing Yang Ci's words, Ding Yuan was a little moved. After thinking for a while, he agreed to this marriage.
Seeing that Ding Yuan had agreed, Zhang Jiao was overjoyed. He took out a piece of expensive coral jade and gave it to Ding Huai as a keepsake. However, Ding Huai had come to Luoyang in a hurry and did not bring anything with him. Ding Huai had an idea and asked Yang Ci for a brush, ink, paper, and inkstone. After thinking for a while, he wrote a poem and gave it to Zhang Jiao as a keepsake.
This poem was actually a slight modification of the Tang Dynasty poet Li Shangyin's Untitled: Tonight, the stars and the wind, the marriage in Situ Manor was decided. There are no colorful phoenix wings on the body, and the heart is connected with one point.
When Zhang Jiao read out the poem, everyone was shocked. They had only heard of Ding Huai's title as a gifted scholar. After all, they had never seen it with their own eyes, so they were somewhat suspicious. However, they did not expect Ding Huai to be able to write such a classic poem in such a short period of time. Everyone could not help but applaud him. No one doubted him anymore, and they looked at Ding Huai in a new light.
As Ding Huai was young and could not drink, everyone toasted Ding Yuan one after another. Not long after, Ding Yuan was already slightly drunk. Following that, everyone took advantage of the alcohol to curse the eunuchs for being in power and lamented their inability to eradicate Zhang Rang and the other eunuchs for the court.
At this moment, Ding Huai saw Zhang Jiao's face lit up with joy when he heard the conversation. Although it was only for a moment, Ding Huai saw it. Ding Huai's heart was bright, but he remained silent. He was even more calculative.
In fact, as Ding Huai, he couldn't wait for Zhang Jiao to mess up the big guy. Only then would Ding Huai have a chance to realize his dream. If he exposed Zhang Jiao now, it wouldn't be a pity for Zhang Jiao to be killed, but the Great Han Dynasty would at least last another hundred years. This was not what Ding Huai wanted to see.
Moreover, Zhang Jiao had no signs of rebellion. Even if he reported him now, Yang Ci and the others wouldn't believe him. Moreover, he was only twelve years old.
However, Ding Huai had figured out one thing tonight. Zhang Jiao, Huangfu Song, and Lu Zhi had been in contact with each other, so he had figured out their background. If Zhang Jiao raised a rebellion in the future, the two of them would definitely not be Zhang Jiao's match. During the Spirit Emperor era, only Huangfu Song and Lu Zhi were worthy of Zhang Jiao's attention.
However, man's plan was not as good as God's plan. What Zhang Jiao had never expected was that he would die in October of the same year. After Zhang Jiao's death, Zhang Liang and Zhang Bao were not enough to convince the masses, causing the Yellow Turban Army to fall apart and be defeated by the Eastern Han court one by one. As a result, the Yellow Turban Uprising ended in failure, and Huangfu Song became a famous general of his generation.
Otherwise, under Zhang Jiao's leadership, it was still unknown who would emerge victorious between the Eastern Han army and the Yellow Turban army. After all, Zhang Jiao's name had too much influence in the Yellow Turban army. Moreover, there was no lack of generals and marshals in the Yellow Turban army, such as Guan Hai, Zhou Cang, Liao Hua, Zang Ba, Han Lie, and Chu Yan, who were enough to fight against the generals of the Eastern Han army. This was because during the Spirit Monarch era, many of the famous generals and strategists of the Three Kingdoms had yet to come out of seclusion. They either lived in seclusion in the mountains or were too young.
Zhang Jiao's death was undoubtedly a fatal blow to the Yellow Turban Army. In order to compete for the position of commander-in-chief, the brothers Zhang Liang and Zhang Bao did not give in to each other. Although they did not go to the extent of fighting, they did things their own way and did not help each other. Generals like Chu Yan, Guan Hai, Zhou Cang, and Liao Hua were unwilling to accept Zhang Liang or Zhang Bao's commands, so they led their own troops. The endless internal strife of the Yellow Turban Army allowed Huangfu Song, Lu Zhi, and the others to successfully quell the Yellow Turban Rebellion.
Ding Huai's heart was in a mess. He had become Zhang Jiao's son-in-law. Was this a blessing or a curse? Only Yang Ci, Huangfu Song, and Lu Zhi knew about this matter. The three of them were his father's best friends. Moreover, this matter was because the three of them had protected Fang Cheng. In terms of responsibility, the three of them would not lose a single one, so the three of them would definitely not report it to the Emperor. When it came to Zhang Jiao's rebellion, as long as he actively led the army to quell the rebellion, he would definitely be able to seal the mouths of these three old antiques and make them think that he was putting righteousness above family.
As for himself, he could also rely on this relationship to ask Zhang Jiao for a token or something before he died. He could try to accept as many Yellow Turban soldiers as possible and gather strength for his future path of conquering the world. In this way, it might not be a bad thing to become son-in-law with Zhang Jiao today.
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