Three Kingdoms Mythology World.

Chapter 2688 Li Ru visits, Bao Xin enters lightly.

"My lord, has there been any change to the list of the feudal lords of heaven and earth?" Li Ru asked again.

"No change!!" Upon hearing this, Dong Zhuo's face turned slightly ashen.

He originally thought that by acknowledging the Yongzhou Cauldron as his master, he could surpass Lin Mu and rank first on the list, but unfortunately, he didn't!
"What? Impossible!!!" Li Ru's expression changed drastically upon hearing this.

He was very clear about Dong Zhuo's true strength, and according to his assessment, Dong Zhuo's ability to claim the Yongzhou Cauldron as his own would definitely surpass that of Lin Mu!

But if he doesn't have it now, it means Lin Mu's hidden strength is even deeper!

"My lord, could it be that Lin Mu... has also accepted the will of the Nine Cauldrons of Heaven and Earth as his master?" Li Ru voiced the worst possible guess.

"The Liangzhou Cauldron!!!" Li Ru and Dong Zhuo exchanged a glance and said in unison, "That's the guess!"

At this moment, they have confirmed that the increase in Yizhou's wealth is due to the Liangzhou Cauldron, and Lin Mu's consistent position at the top of the list of feudal lords proves that he possesses the Liangzhou Cauldron!

“After the Yongzhou Cauldron recognized its master, no unusual phenomena occurred in the area near Sili, proving that the Liangzhou Cauldron in Lin Mu’s hands is more perfect than the Yongzhou Cauldron!” Dong Zhuo said with an extremely solemn expression.

As Lin Mu revealed glimpses of his true nature, they became even more wary of him.

"My lord, Lin Mu went to join the Guandong Allied Army despite our temptations. Could it be that he just wanted to be on the list of the feudal lords of heaven and earth? And he may not know that he could be on the list even if he didn't go to Suanzao..." Li Ru guessed.

Good heavens, Li Ru saw right through Lin Mu's actions.

“If it’s really as you expect, then we can contact and appease Lin Mu,” Dong Zhuo said with a gleam in his eyes.

Recently, they have also been secretly contacting various warlords, using both enticement and threats in an attempt to undermine the coalition from within. Unfortunately, they have not succeeded.

"I'll make the arrangements!" Li Ru said immediately.

Afterwards, Li Ru took his leave and immediately went to carry out the order.

……

In the camp where Lin Mu was located, west of Suanzao City.

Lin Mu was drinking and chatting with Huang Zhong, Le Jin, and others.

Lately, many warlords have been bored out of their minds. But Lin Mu is extremely busy.

In recent days, he has been constantly traveling back and forth between Yanzhou, Youzhou, and Bingzhou to arrange and understand the latest battle situation.

Although the allied forces of foreign tribes agreed to some trade requests, they did not withdraw their troops. Under the pretext of opposing Dong Zhuo, they marched south to invade the Han Dynasty.

Yanmen County was no match for the fierce steppe troops, and many cities fell directly to them.

However, it seems that in order to make their pretext look better, they did not carry out looting and massacres, but instead tried to appease the people of the city.

This is one of the reasons why they were able to quickly capture many border cities.

Of course, he didn't rob ordinary people, but that didn't mean he didn't rob wealthy families... Many local gentry families did not escape their ruthless slaughter; not only were all their property stolen, but the Manchus were also killed.

Of course, during this process, Dian Wei's troops did not fail to put up resistance. After luring the enemy deep into their territory, they annihilated several branches of the tribal coalition, killed more than 100,000 steppe cavalry, and acquired nearly 80,000 excellent warhorses.

As for prisoners of war, none!
Lin Mu was talking to Huang Zhongle and the others about the situation at the border.

At that moment, a messenger rushed in: "My lord, someone outside requests an audience."

There was a visitor!

A moment later, a thin man dressed in black walked in.

"Wenyou, aren't you afraid of death? How dare you come to Suanzao City!!" Lin Mu said menacingly, staring at the man in black.

It turns out the visitor was Li Ru!
……

……

Just as December began, Sun Jian led his 500,000 elite troops, their banners obscuring the sun and their armor gleaming, marching like a mighty torrent of steel towards Liang County.

The top-tier lord players in the Huaxia region are mostly in the Guandong Rebellion faction.

However, many lord players still seek other paths, such as joining Dong Zhuo! If a player joins Dong Zhuo, will Dong Zhuo accept them? Yes!
Many lord players were directly promoted to the rank of general (ranks 7, 8, and 9), and were sent to various passes to block the allied forces, while also serving as scouts for Dong Zhuo's camp.

Basically, both sides were fully aware of the movements of their generals, the marching of their armies, and so on. Any attempts to use underhanded tactics were essentially futile.

Sun Jian, the vanguard general, did not wait for the supplies in Suanzao to be fully replenished before taking action. He first led his troops to camp in front of Liang County, the first city in Sili, Henan Province.

Behind Sun Jian followed a large army of players. They wanted to follow Sun Jian, but because of his jealousy of Lin Mu, Sun Jian held the extraordinary in contempt for them and refused to accept them. However, he did not drive them away, but simply had them follow behind his army to assist him.

Sun Jian's sudden arrival threw the defending generals into a panic. Everyone had said the allied forces wouldn't attack so quickly; how could they have attacked after only ten days?!
Sun Jian's troops temporarily set up camp ten miles away from Liang County.

After that, they began sending people to investigate the situation in the city.

"My lord, after investigation, there are no divine generals in the city!" Zu Mao hurriedly entered Sun Jian's tent to report.

"Without a divine general, taking Liang County is as easy as taking candy from a baby." Sun Jian laughed heartily upon hearing this.

Zu Mao and his colleagues were also very excited, as the time to make their mark was now!
Sun Jian only brought four powerful generals with him: Cheng Pu, Huang Gai, Han Dang, and Zu Mao.

Sun Ce and his men, along with the rest of their troops, were still in Suanzao.

He led 500,000 light cavalry ahead of time this time, intending to launch a blitzkrieg, quickly capture Liang County, and advance into Sili.

However, before he could even start fighting, a piece of bad news arrived.

……

Late at night, at Dong Zhuo's residence.

Dong Zhuo summoned Hua Xiong and others to prepare to carry out his treacherous plan, and at this time, Sun Jian reported that he was marching towards Liang County.

"It seems that Sun Jian, the vanguard general, intends to attack Luoyang via the Sishui Pass route," Li Ru judged.

"We must win this first battle! What do you all think?" Dong Zhuo declared, setting the tone.

"Father, do not worry. I regard the lords outside the pass as nothing more than weeds. I am willing to lead a fierce army to cut off their heads and hang them at the gates of the capital," Lü Bu said defiantly.

"Haha!! With Fengxian by my side, I can rest easy!" Dong Zhuo laughed loudly upon seeing the incredibly brave Lü Bu.

"My lord, Sishui Pass is a city I usually defend. Please allow me to go and guard it. Cutting off Sun Jian's head will be as easy as taking something out of a bag. I will definitely win the first battle for you!" Hua Xiong didn't want Lü Bu to steal the credit, so he immediately volunteered.

"This humble general is willing to go!" Li Su, Niu Fu, and Hu Zhen also stepped out of the table and knelt on one knee to ask for orders.

"In that case, you four will go to Sishui Pass to meet the enemy overnight. After you have made meritorious contributions by killing enemy generals, you will be rewarded accordingly," Dong Zhuo said in a deep voice.

"Thank you, Prime Minister!"

……

In the city of Suanzao, at the camp of Bao Xin, the Chancellor of Jibei, Bao Xin and his brother Bao Zhong were inspecting and training their troops.

“Brother Zhong, Sun Jian has led 500,000 light cavalry to march on Liang County,” Bao Xin said softly.

"Brother, what is the deeper meaning behind your mention of this?" Bao Zhong asked meaningfully, as if he knew what Bao Xin was thinking.

“Sun Jian is known as the Tiger of Jiangdong. The current leader has appointed him as the vanguard. If he wins the first merit, his status in the coalition will rise significantly. At that time, it may have a great impact on our influence in the coalition.”

"Although we have some fierce generals, they are nothing compared to the fierce generals under Sun Jian. If he really makes great contributions, he will probably surpass us in the decision-making of the allied forces in the future, and at the same time, his position on the list of the feudal lords will be more secure!"

After listening, Bao Zhong frowned, pondered for a moment, and said, "Brother is absolutely right. So how should we deal with this? Are we just going to watch Sun Jian win the credit?"

Bao Xin shook his head slightly, a knowing glint in his eyes, and said, "Of course we can't just sit idly by. Although we can't directly fight him, we can find another way, such as taking a side road to attack Sishui Pass, capturing the pass ahead of time, and seizing the credit!"

Upon hearing this, Bao Zhong's eyes flashed with excitement: "Brother, your plan is brilliant. I am willing to be the vanguard general!"

“Good! You will lead 200,000 light cavalry along the trails to Sishui Pass,” Bao Xin said firmly.

“Yes, sir!” Bao Zhong shouted.

“Brother, I have already made arrangements for Sishui Pass. You can take it easily!” Bao Xin said confidently, looking like he was in charge of planning.

(End of this chapter)