My younger brother Lü Fengxian

Chapter 287: Intercepting Guan Zhang
"We only have enough weapons to equip the core members of each sect. Although there are many religious families supporting us, the food supply is still a drop in the bucket. It can only supply us for three months at most."

Hearing his brother's question, Zhang Bao answered immediately, but there was some hesitation in his tone, and it was obvious that he did not have much confidence.

"It doesn't matter!"

"Although our army is incomplete in weapons and lacks food and fodder, the Han court is not much stronger."

"Today, natural disasters and man-made disasters continue. First, the Xianbei invaded, and then the Xiongnu, Western Qiang, and Wuhuan caused trouble. The Yellow River burst its banks, the Yangtze River dried up, locust plagues arose, and frost fell in June!"

"All these signs indicate that the Han Dynasty will end and a new dynasty will rise!"

"Therefore, second brother, don't lose heart!"

Seeing this, Zhang Jue keenly sensed the emotions in his second brother's heart and immediately spoke out to comfort him.

"Big brother is right. It is me who has lost my resolve!"

Zhang Bao was also encouraged by his brother Zhang Jue's words, and a sense of determination resurfaced in his heart.

"How are the leaders of the various states and counties and their followers gathering?"

After comforting his second brother Zhang Bao, Zhang Jiao turned his attention to his third brother Zhang Liang.

"The believers from various states and counties have arrived one after another. The believers from Danyang will arrive in Julu this month, and the believers from other states and counties will all be in place before the agreed date of the uprising on March 5 next year. The number of believers will be about 300,000."

Zhang Liang immediately reported the situation of each state and county to Zhang Jue as if he knew everything about it.

"very good!"

Seeing that the plan was going very smoothly, Zhang Jue nodded with satisfaction.

"How is Luoyang's commander Ma Yuanyi preparing?"

"Although the Han court is weak, a rotten ship still has three pounds of nails. If we engage in a head-on battle, my followers will probably suffer heavy casualties!"

Zhang Jue thought of the most important link in the uprising and immediately asked Zhang Bao.

"Don't worry, brother. Ma Yuanyi is a cautious person who acts in an extremely organized manner. He has not only won over the emperor's eunuchs Feng Yan and Xu Feng, but he has also secretly recruited a lot of forces from the imperial guards. When the time is right, he will surely be able to attack the palace and capture Liu Hong."

Zhang Bao replied.

"Well, if Ma Yuanyi can succeed, the Han court will be leaderless, and our major events can be decided almost overnight. This matter cannot be neglected. You arrange for reliable people to contact and share what you have."

Zhang Jue let out a breath and felt relieved.

"I have arranged for your disciple Tang Zhou to travel to Luoyang. He has been a member of the sect for many years and is worthy of our trust."

"That's settled then. Next we brothers need to discuss some specific arrangements..."

After Zhang Jue asked the two men to come closer, the three brothers began to discuss in a low voice in the dim secret room.

Just when Zhang Jiao and his brothers were plotting to overthrow the Eastern Han court, Lu Yi also brought Lu Bu and Gao Shun to Zhuo County in Youzhou.

Although Zhuo County was a frontier area, it was also one of the ports for trade between the Han Dynasty and the Wuhuan people in Youzhou. In addition, it had not yet been caught up in the flames of the Yellow Turban Rebellion, so it was still quite lively.

Lu Yi had been scouting for the target for many days, and he took Lu Bu and Gao Shun and went straight to the market in Zhuo County.

Even if he had only read the first episode of Romance of the Three Kingdoms, he would know that Liu Bei met Guan Yu and Zhang Fei when he was buying straw sandals in Zhuo County.

With the help of Guan Yu and Zhang Fei's military force and Zhang Fei's donation of all his family wealth, he was able to gather 500 people to participate in the imperial court's war to suppress the Yellow Turbans, thus beginning his journey to late success.

The purpose of Lu Yi's trip was specifically to intercept Liu Bei and recruit Guan Yu and Zhang Fei into his service before he could subdue them.

There is no need to say much about how Zhang Fei drove back Cao Cao's million-strong army at Changbanpo.

Guan Yu was a martial saint who killed Yan Liang, Wen Chou, and Hua Xiong while drinking warm wine.

Except for Lu Yi's second brother Lu Bu, it was difficult to find an opponent in the entire late Han Dynasty and the Three Kingdoms period.

Moreover, what is even more commendable is that these two are not just generals like Xu Chu and Dian Wei under Cao Cao.

Zhang Fei cleverly captured Liu Dai and Yan Yan, demonstrating the talent and wisdom of a qualified commander. Apart from his love of drinking and whipping his soldiers, he was the best in terms of loyalty and ability.

Guan Yu was a cross-era war god who flooded seven armies and shocked all of China.

If Guan Yu had not been betrayed by Mi Fang and Fu Shiren, he would not even need Liu Bei and Zhuge Liang in Chengdu to take action. He could have attacked Xu Du and brought back Emperor Xian of Han by himself.

How could Lu Yi forget these two top-notch SSR generals?
However, unlike Zhang Fei, who had lived in Zhuo County for generations and had considerable property, Guan Yu came to Zhuo County after fleeing after killing someone in his hometown.

Lu Yi once sent people to Guan Yu's hometown to inquire about his whereabouts but failed to find Guan Yu.

Later, Lu Yi thought about it and realized that if he were Guan Yu, he would not reveal his whereabouts because he would be afraid of being retaliated and wanted by the government after killing a powerful and high-ranking gentry in his hometown.

After searching for two years, Lu Yi simply decided to sit back and wait, hoping that he would not change the inertia of history too much and could still wait for Guan Yu in Zhuo County according to the original trajectory.

Fortunately, Lu Yi's luck was not bad.

After searching for several years, Lu Yi finally met this historical celebrity whom he had long admired but who was now unknown in Zhuo County.

"Brave man, your mung beans are of good quality. I wonder how much they are worth?"

Lu Yi and the other two stopped in front of a mung bean stall.

Guan Yu, who was originally sitting on a bag of mung beans, stroking his beard and reading a book, frowned when he heard this and put down the half-volume Spring and Autumn Annals in his hand. He looked at the three people standing in front of him with his sparkling almond-shaped eyes with some doubt.

The sixth sense unique to warriors made him immediately aware of the extraordinary person who came.

Especially the young man with the strongest physique made Guan Yu, who was proud of his martial arts, secretly frightened.

However, Guan Yu had traveled all over the country for many years and his horizons had been broadened.

He knew that although this sturdy young man was the most skilled in martial arts among the three, the one who really made the decision was the handsome young man in front of him who was looking at him with a smile.

"My business is different from that of ordinary merchants. If the person is poor, I won't take a penny. If the person is a high-ranking official, I will sell him even if he is worth a fortune!"

"You three are all wearing gorgeous clothes, you are either rich or noble. I don't want to do business with you. Leave quickly and don't delay my studies!"

Although Guan Yu was afraid of the strength of the three men, the pride in his heart made him raise the half-volume of the Spring and Autumn Annals in his hand again and ignore the three people in front of him.

Guan Yu was always proud of his superiors but intolerant of his subordinates, and he bullied the strong but not the weak. No matter how powerful Lu Yi and the other two were, he would never feel the slightest fear.

"You red-faced man, do you know who is standing in front of you? How dare you be so rude!"

Lu Bu became furious when he heard this.

Although he could also sense Guan Yu's extraordinary qualities, no one, no matter who it was, could humiliate Lu Yi in front of him.

"Humph!"

Although Gao Shun didn't say anything, the uncontrollable anger on his face revealed the anger in his heart.

"Oh? Are you here to fight?"

Seeing this, Guan Yu sneered, slowly and carefully put the half-volume of the Spring and Autumn Annals in his hand into his arms, his face turned unfriendly.

"slow!"

However, Lu Yi looked at the proud Guan Yu in front of him with burning eyes.

Instead, I felt waves of joy in my heart.

If Guan Yu wasn’t arrogant, he wouldn’t be Guan Yu.

If he was obedient and allowed himself to be easily subdued by himself, Lu Yi would be worried that he was just finding a fake.

"I was rude because I failed to discipline my subordinates properly. Please don't blame me, brave man!" Lu Yi explained after bowing deeply to Guan Yu.

"To be honest, I am not here to buy mung beans. I am Lu Yi, the governor of Yanmen County. I heard that there are two heroes in Zhuo County, so I came all the way to meet them."

"After meeting the brave man today, I know that this trip was worthwhile!"

"Yanmen Governor Lu Yi?"

Guan Yu was shocked when he heard this.

In recent years, Lu Yi's reputation has grown day by day. No other hero in Hebei can surpass Lu Yi's name, so Guan Yu has long been familiar with Lu Yi's name.

"It turned out to be Lord Lu who was here in person. Guan Yu was blind and ignorant. Please forgive me, Lord Lu!"

It would be fine if Lu Yi was just famous, but if Lu Yi was the same as the corrupt officials at the end of the Han Dynasty, Guan Yu would not be so polite.

Lu Yi not only made great military achievements against the Hu people, but also successively put down the rebellions of the Xianbei and Xiongnu, saving countless lives.

On the other hand, Lu Yi worked hard to govern Yanmen County and opened the door to benevolence and righteousness, so his reputation for benevolence and righteousness spread far and wide in Hebei.

Even though Guan Yu was wandering around to avoid being wanted by the government, he knew about Lu Yi's good deeds.

Guan Yu admired Lu Yi the most because he was a capable and humble person, and especially a famous figure who was so kind and righteous to the people.

Therefore, he couldn't help but feel excited when he saw Lu Yi appear in front of him today.

"Ignorance is not a crime. I am the one who has the audacity to visit you. I wonder if I have disturbed your business?"

"But meeting is fate. It's a cold winter, so we can have a warm drink and chat. I wonder if Guan Zhuangshi would be willing to go with me?"

Lu Yi behaved very friendly.

On the one hand, he had long admired Guan Yu's deeds, and on the other hand, he also wanted to leave a good impression on Guan Yu.

"Oh my... Guan Yu is lucky enough to meet the Lord today. What are a few bags of mung beans worth?"

Guan Yu showed excitement at first, but the joy on his face soon faded.

"Guan Yu wanted to invite you and the two warriors to drink and apologize, but I am short of money, so I am sorry to make you laugh."

"Ha ha ha ha……"

Seeing this, Lu Yi burst into laughter.

"Master Guan, have you forgotten that I just said I came to meet the two heroes today?"

"Today's banquet does not require Guan Zhuangshi to spend money, nor does it require Lu to prepare it. There are heroes who will arrange it for us!"

"Oh?"

Hearing that Lu Yi was so confident, not only Guan Yu was confused, but even Lu Bu and Gao Shun were full of suspicion.

"Come with me!"

Lu Yi smiled and led everyone to a butcher shop.

Quite a few people had gathered in front of the pork stall in the butcher's shop. As soon as Lu Yi and his four companions approached, they heard several people arguing with the waiter.

"Waiter, your Zhang's Meat Shop sells meat, and I'm here to buy meat. Why don't you go get the meat after I've paid for it? Why do you keep me waiting in this cold winter?"

"That's right, that's right. You, Zhang, are really bad at doing business. How can you let the buyer wait?"

"Go get the meat, go get the meat!"

"My dear guests, I am not trying to make things difficult for you. It is just that without my master's order, I cannot bring out the meat!"

The thin waiter kept apologizing when faced with the siege of the crowd, but no matter what everyone said, he refused to take the meat.

"The wine and meat are settled!"

Lu Yi turned around and smiled at Guan Yu, then pushed everyone aside and came to the waiter.

"Waiter, I know your master has placed the half pork in the well over there to prevent others from stealing the meat. I wonder if what I said is true?"

"How did the guest know?"

The waiter was stunned when he heard this and asked in surprise.

"Haha, besides knowing that the meat is in the well, I also know that you, Zhang Fei, once said that anyone who can move the millstone can take all the meat in the well. I wonder if this is true?"

"Hey...how do you know everything?"

Upon hearing this, the waiter widened his eyes and asked in disbelief.

"Since the meat is in the well, why don't you take it out quickly?"

"If you delay any longer, I will go to the butcher next door to buy meat!"

Seeing this, several buyers nearby came forward and urged the buyer to hurry up.

"The meat is indeed in the well, but there is a millstone pressing on the well. The millstone is so heavy that I can't push it away. You have heard what the guest said just now. My master did tell anyone who can push the millstone away can take the meat away for free."

"If any of you have the ability, you can give it a try. It's nothing to always embarrass a servant like me!"

The waiter was really annoyed by the urging of everyone and started to complain angrily.

"Just try it!"

"I come!"

The noise attracted many people who came to watch the show. As soon as the waiter finished speaking, a sturdy man walked out of the crowd and came to the millstone.

He spat into his palms a few times, then he bent his waist and grasped the half-man-wide millstone with both hands and lifted it up.

"Hey!"

What surprised everyone was that the man's face turned red but the millstone did not move at all.

"Can you do it? If not, get out of the way and let me do it!"

No one wanted to give up the opportunity to eat free meat, so everyone came forward and tried to move the millstone.

But the millstone was very heavy, and the men tried their best to lift it, but it did not budge at all.

"It is my great honor to meet you today. I only have brute force, so I can take this opportunity to move the grinding stone to get some meat for you!"

Guan Yu was moved when he saw this, and immediately spoke to Lu Yi in a serious tone.

"Then I, Lu, would be disrespectful to refuse it!"

Lu Yi knew that Guan Yu had a strong sense of self-esteem, but he was just a fugitive and had nothing to show for himself except a few bags of mung beans. He was so eager to show off in front of him so as not to be looked down upon by him, so Lu Yi naturally agreed.

"If you are not interested, please get out of the way!"

Guan Yu pushed everyone aside, came to the heavy millstone, and tried his luck.

"rise!"

Then, his tiger eyes lit up and he groaned.

The millstone that had crushed dozens of Yanyun men was lifted up steadily by his hands, causing the surrounding people to gasp in shock...

(End of this chapter)