The Three Kingdoms: Zhaolie, the strategist, and the rise of the Han Dynasty

Chapter 120: Use the cards in your hand to defeat Cao thieves
But Lu Bu was just about to pull Liu Bei into the camp for a chat.

But someone interrupted him:

"Marquis Wen has come a long way and must have had a hard time. Let's talk in the city."

Everyone looked and saw that it was the military advisor Li Yi.

Lu Bu saw that this man was young, but was able to follow Liu Bei, and everyone around him respected him.

I didn't dare to confront him rashly, so I bowed, looked into those pure and spotless eyes, and asked:

"Who are you?"

Li Yi raised his eyes and answered loudly:

"I am a humble Li Ziyu, serving as the military advisor of Xuzhou."

Li Ziyu?
Lu Bu's handsome face darkened and he focused his eyes on recalling.

This name sounds very familiar.

Chen Gong reminded quietly:

"It was this man who devised a plan to defeat Cao Cao's army in Pengcheng."

"When I was in Yanzhou before, I had many exchanges with merchants from Xuzhou. I'm afraid that this person also instructed me in the conversation."

"This young man is so young, yet he has been appointed as the military advisor of Xuzhou. He should not be underestimated."

Oh?
Lu Bu originally bullied Li Yi because of his young age and did not take him seriously.

But after hearing what Chen Gong said, he looked at him carefully.

I saw him standing tall in the evening light, his brows like a hanging moon and his eyes like bright stars.

He is elegant and graceful, with a dignified bearing.

He is indeed a noble young man, handsome and elegant.

Lu Bu immediately cupped his hands and said solemnly:
"So you are the famous Li Ziyu. I have heard of your great name for a long time."

"...I don't deserve it. General, you must have come a long way and it's been hard. My lord has prepared a banquet in the city."

"If the general does not mind my brief conversation, how about inviting him to have a chat in the city and rest his horse for a while?"

Li Yi wanted to directly invite Lu Bu into the city for a chat.

This saved him the trouble of inviting Liu Bei into his tent, which helped Liu Bei resolve the embarrassment.

Because Lu Bu knew that Liu Bei was a knight-errant, he wanted to please him and asked his wife to come out to meet him.

According to the rules of scholars, this is not in accordance with etiquette.

But for the Ranger, it is a way to build closer relationships.

Liu Bei is now the governor of a state, and he must not violate the laws of propriety and allow Lu Bu to do whatever he wants.

So Li Yi helped Liu Bei reject this invitation.

On the way, Li Yi asked Liu Bei:
"My Lord, how do you feel?"

Liu Bei frowned and shook his head helplessly.

"As you said, sir, Lu Bu's words are inconsistent and he has no sense of etiquette."

"If this person stays around for a long time, I'm afraid he will cause trouble."

He and Lu Bu were not very familiar with each other. He had just exchanged a few polite words with him, but Lu Bu immediately called him "good brother".

Liu Bei didn't know how he suddenly had a brother, and he didn't nod in agreement.

I am the governor of Xuzhou, and I am here to take you, Lu Bu in.

Do you think this is appropriate?
Liu Bei was speechless at Lu Bu's "high EQ" behavior.

It seems that I will have to discuss with the military advisor later about where to transfer Lu Bu.

Let him go anywhere, as long as he doesn't get in the way.

On the other side, Lu Bu was riding on a horse and passing through Xia Pi along the way.

Before my eyes, I see the bustling streets and alleys of the city; in my ears, I hear the crowing of chickens and the barking of dogs.

The fields are fertile and the land is lush, with no worries about floods or droughts.

I couldn't help but sigh:
"There are constant wars in the Central Plains, how can Xia Pi be the only one to prosper?"

Lu Bu was puzzled as he had stayed in Yanzhou for the past year.

The houses there are dilapidated and people's lives are in decline.

There is no human habitation within ten miles, and no crowing of chickens or barking of dogs within a hundred miles.

When I came to Xia Pi and compared the two, I was amazed.

Zhang Liao, who was riding beside him, couldn't help but sigh:
"When I passed by Pengcheng before, I didn't realize how prosperous Xuzhou was."

"Now that I have arrived in Xia Pi, I know that Liu Xuande has the means to govern the people and is able to share wealth with them."

The wealth of Xia Pi far exceeded that of other counties in Xuzhou.

This shocked all of Lu Bu's followers, and they all lamented that Liu Bei had capable people and means.

He was able to transform Xuzhou, which had been plundered by Cao Cao, into what it is today.

It's really amazing.

Hou Cheng suddenly came over on his horse and said to Lü Bu in a serious tone:
"Marquis Wen, Liu Xuande is rich in Xuzhou, has excellent soldiers and sufficient food. If we can borrow troops from him now."

"Can we fight back to Yanzhou and seek revenge on Cao?"

Lu Bu was stunned when he heard this. Yes, why didn’t he think of asking Liu Bei to borrow troops and food?
Since Liu Bei had been willing to secretly provide him with food and fodder before, he probably wouldn't mind lending him some troops.

Make yourself a comeback.

"Gongtai, what do you think?"

Lu Bu sought advice from wise men.

Chen Gong hesitated for a moment, frowned and said:

"It is difficult for a strong guest to suppress the host. Liu Bei's foundation in Xuzhou is already solid. It is really impossible to plot against him."

"If we can borrow troops from Xuzhou, we may be able to seek revenge on Cao Cao."

Whether it was the literati led by Chen Gong, or the military generals such as Zhang Liao and Hou Cheng, they all advocated borrowing troops to fight back to Yanzhou.

Why is Lu Bu’s group so obsessed with Yanzhou?
Because Yanzhou was the only province that supported Lu Bu.

Although Lu Bu was born a warrior from a border area, he was unexpectedly popular among the scholars of Yanzhou.

As early as when Chen Gong and Zhang Miao rebelled against Cao Cao, their slogan was to invite Lu Bu to "jointly rule Yanzhou."

As soon as Lu Bu arrived in Yanzhou, he proclaimed himself the governor of Yanzhou and brought with him a team of Yanzhou staff.

Chen Gong became his military advisor and Zhang Miao became his logistics chief.

Apart from the veteran generals from Bingzhou, the rest of Lu Bu's subordinates are all backbones from Yanzhou.

They risked betraying Cao Cao and accompanied Lu Bu in starting a business.

Once they lost, Cao Cao returned to power.

Then Cao Cao must give them a game of elimination of the three tribes, right?

So can't everyone think about fighting back to Yanzhou?

Lu Bu pondered for a while, then said:
"Okay, I'll explain this to Liu Xuzhou later at the table."

"I just hope he's willing to lend me troops."

Chen Gong did not forget to remind:
"Marquis Wen, please remember not to lose your manners during the banquet. Now that you are living under someone else's roof, you should keep a low profile."

"……understood."

Lu Bu waved his hand impatiently.

Half an hour later,
Lu Bu and other civil and military officials rushed to the main hall.

However, before the banquet began, Liu Bei received two urgent letters.

One was from Guo Gong of Liang State, and the other was from Liu Chong, the King of Chen State.

The contents of the two letters were the same, both saying that Cao Cao's army was invading the State of Chen.

Guo Gong of Liang State had already sent troops to seek help from Liu Chong, but was afraid that he could not stop Cao Cao's army.

So I begged Liu Bei to send troops to support us.

"How could Cao Cao deploy his troops so quickly?"

Liu Bei frowned. He never expected that Cao Cao had just settled the war in Yanzhou without even taking a break.

Declaring war on the State of Chen directly would be too sudden.

"What do you think, Military Advisor?"

Liu Bei handed the letters from Guo Gong and Liu Chong to Li Yi.

Li Yi took a quick look and analyzed:
"Guo Gong has already surrendered to Xuzhou and is willing to use the power of Liang State to become a vassal of Xuzhou."

"If I don't save him now, I will lose trust in others."

Liu Bei nodded, "Cao Cao is using his troops against the State of Chen, so I think Envoy Guo is also concerned about the dangers of losing one's teeth."

"I am worried that after Cao Cao destroys the State of Chen, he will attack the State of Liang."

"That's right." Li Yi nodded.

In fact,
After Cao Cao destroyed the State of Chen, he directly abolished the country and changed it into Chen County.

As for the State of Liang, Cao Cao actually destroyed it at the same time as he destroyed the State of Chen.

Because the State of Chen was weaker than Cao Cao imagined.

After destroying the States of Chen and Liang, Cao Cao gained a huge amount of wealth.

In the State of Chen, he obtained the grain reserves accumulated by Liu Chong and Luo Jun over the years.

It is most likely that the Liang State dug up the tomb of King Xiao of Liang.

King Xiao of Liang, Liu Wu, was born to the same mother as Emperor Jing of Han.

At the instruction of Empress Dowager Dou, Liu Wu obtained the fertile Liang land.

According to historical records, its treasury held tens of billions of gold and silver, and more jewels and jade than the capital.

There are hundreds of thousands of weapons of various types in the warehouse.

To the extent that Empress Dowager Dou once hoped that Emperor Jing would pass the throne to Liu Wu.

But in the end Liu Wu still failed to become emperor.

But he built himself a huge royal tomb.

He buried all his huge wealth in the mausoleum, thinking that his mausoleum would last forever.

Unfortunately, he met a professional tomb robber - Cao Cao.

In order to raise military funds, Cao Cao set his sights on the tomb of King Xiao of Liang after he conquered the State of Liang.

Although King Xiao of Liang arranged many professional personnel to build the mausoleum during his lifetime, it was to prevent tomb robbers.

But the devil is always one step ahead of you.

Cao Cao was more professional in this area. Under his command were many tomb-robbing lieutenants and generals who were proficient in tomb robbing.

According to historical records, Cao Cao and others even directly destroyed the coffin of King Xiao of Liang.

The golden jade robe and the night-shining pearl were pulled off his body.

afterwards,

The tomb of King Xiao of Liang was in a mess, but Cao Cao collected tens of thousands of kilograms of jewels, gold, silver and jade.

For this reason alone, Liang State must be saved!
We cannot allow Cao Cao to obtain such a huge amount of wealth.

Otherwise, all previous efforts to restrict Cao Cao would be in vain.

Moreover, this will greatly shorten the power gap between Cao and Liu.

"What about the State of Chen?" Liu Bei asked again.

"Chen and Liang are closely related, so they should be saved."

Li Yi thought without hesitation, "Besides, Prince Chen Liu Chong is from the same clan as my lord. He is also loyal to the Han Dynasty and cares about the court and the country."

"For this reason, we can't just stand by and watch someone die."

Liu Chong's bloodline is purer than Liu Bei's or Liu Ye's. He is the great-great-grandson of Emperor Ming of Han, Liu Zhuang.

"Okay, then who do you think should be sent to rescue them?" Liu Bei asked Li Yi for his opinion.

"Put this matter aside for now. Lu Bu and others are already waiting at the table. Don't delay."

"Deal with Lu Bu first, and then discuss aiding the states of Chen and Liang."

Liu Bei followed his advice and went to the main hall with Li Yi.

After both parties finished their greetings, they took their seats according to the order of host and guest.

Liu Bei ordered a banquet, with each person serving eight dishes.

They are all home-cooked dishes such as chicken, fish, eggs, and steamed cakes.

But for the extremely distressed Lu Bu Group, it was a rare and delicious meal.

After enjoying the singing and dancing, Lu Bu gathered his emotions and let out a sigh.

Seeing this, Liu Bei asked:

"Why does the general sigh so deeply?"

Lu Bu shook his head helplessly, and sighed with tears in his eyes:
"Since Bu killed Zhuo Dong and left, none of the generals in Guandong were willing to give Bu sustenance. Instead, they all wanted to kill Bu as soon as possible."

"But my dear brother is willing to take Bu in when he is in danger."

"I have been wandering around for half my life, and I only regret that I have never met a wise master."

At this point, everyone looked at each other in surprise.

Could it be that?
Lu Bu paused for a moment and said, "If I had met a wise master, I would not be in such a predicament."

call……

Li Yi breathed a sigh of relief and almost thought that Old Liu was going to have another son.

Liu Bei tried to appease Lu Bu and said:
"The general has the courage of a tiger, and is both powerful and famous."

"What does a temporary failure mean?"

"I don't have much talent or virtue, but I believe that a real man should act in troubled times, even in adversity."

"We should also be humble and wait for the right time, and not fight against fate."

Liu Bei shared his life experience with Lu Bu absolutely out of good intentions.

This is also Lao Liu's own philosophy of life and strategic vision.

Don’t give up even in the face of adversity, but remain patient.

Wait for the right time to change the situation instead of blindly fighting against fate.

Liu Bei is certainly qualified to say this.

In history, he
If there had been even the slightest hesitation during the defeat in Xuzhou and the defeat in Xinye.

It is impossible to establish the Shu Han regime.

In the face of Liu Bei's well-intentioned reminder, Lu Bu turned a deaf ear.

I am still sad, "We are defeated today, it will be hard to rise again."

“But I don’t know where I will go?”

Liu Bei was stunned, and now he understood.

It seems that Lu Bu is not expressing his feelings here, but is trying to show his pity for himself.

"If the general is in trouble, I will help him."

Liu Bei maintained his usual expressionless character and spoke calmly.

Lu Bu was overjoyed when he heard this and said quickly:
"I have long heard that you, my dear brother, have been cultivating the land and training the troops in Xuzhou, and defeated Yuan Tan in Qingzhou and Yuan Shu in Guangling."

"It is majestic and famous all over the world."

"The people of the counties and prefectures of Xuzhou that I saw along the way were full of vigor and vitality, which is a testament to your great achievements in civil and military affairs."

"Now my dear brother is in Xuzhou, with well-trained soldiers and sufficient food."

"But my foolish brother has just been defeated in Yanzhou and is in trouble."

"If we can borrow 8,000 men and horses, Bu will be able to revive his army and retake Yanzhou."

"It is not necessary to bother you here."

Hey!
This Lu Bu is so arrogant.

He asked to borrow so many soldiers and horses.

Everyone frowned and cursed inwardly.

It’s not that they in Xuzhou can’t produce anything.

But even if they borrowed 10,000 men from Lu Bu, the question is, can you afford to support them?

Doesn’t Lao Liu have to supply the food and fodder himself?
Otherwise, if they starved to death, they would be Lao Liu's people.

Everyone in Xuzhou was infuriated by Lu Bu's shameless behavior.

In particular, generals such as Guan Yu and Taishi Ci all glared at him with anger uncontrollable.

Lu Bu could sense that something was wrong with the atmosphere.

Although he prided himself on his bravery, this was Xuzhou after all, Lao Liu's territory.

Being at the mercy of others, Lu Bu dared not act recklessly.

Seeing that everyone looked angry, he just laughed and said:

"…I was just joking."

"If you are really in trouble, I shouldn't force you."

Liu Bei is kind and righteous, but that doesn’t mean he is stupid.

Know what should be helped and what should not be helped.

Especially Liu Bei was really annoyed by Lu Bu's constant calling him "good brother", and his good impression of him had already been ruined.

"To be honest, General, I have three armies retreating from Xuzhou."

"Both the soldiers and the horses were exhausted and could not stand up to fighting."

"But since the general has come to me in desperate situation, I will not stand by and watch him die."

"Later, I will send some food and fodder to the general's camp."

Lu Bu was overjoyed when he heard this. Liu Bei is such a loyal and honest man!
With this food and fodder, he could finally breathe a sigh of relief.

Lu Bu and his subordinates believed that they did not lose to Cao Cao, but only to insufficient logistics.

In the early stage, Lu Bu's army kept fighting Cao Cao.

Unfortunately, a severe famine broke out in Yanzhou last year and locusts were rampant.

The two families' original tug-of-war turned into a war for food.

I don’t know how Cao Cao managed to survive.

But Lu Bu's situation is really difficult.

The money and food that Liu Bei secretly provided him could not support the entire army.

No matter how capable Zhang Miao was, he could not directly create food.

At that time, the limited food was concentrated in the hands of local powerful people.

So Lu Bu came to Chengshi, wanting to eat at the rich man's house.

This is where the Li Dian family has been entrenched for a long time.

The leader of the clan was Li Qian, Li Dian's uncle.

Li Qian had long served Cao Cao and had followed him on his campaigns in his early years.

Cao Cao also wanted to get the money and food from the Li family, so he asked Li Qian to go home to "comfort the counties."

The word "comfort" is used very cleverly here. Those who don't know might think that Cao Cao is giving money and food to appease the people.

In fact, Li Qian was definitely asked to raise money and grain, but as for how he would raise it, it is unknown.

Coincidentally, when Li Qian returned home he ran into Lu Bu who was there to eat at the rich man's house.

In order to protect his clan and avoid a fallout, Li Qian decided to leave the city to appease Lu Bu's army.

They also prepared several fat cattle, dozens of stones of wine, and ten thousand Hu cakes.

Go out of the city and treat Lu Bu's army to a feast.

Li Qian originally wanted to persuade Lu Bu to withdraw his troops, but Lu Bu's deputy driver Xue Lan and governor Li Feng forced Li Qian to rebel against Cao Cao.

Li Qian refused and was killed by the two men.

In the end, Lu Bu's army didn't even get to eat the meal. Instead, Li Qian's younger brother Li Jin saw his brother being killed.

He rushed out with his clan members and beat up Lu Bu's army who had not eaten.

It can be seen that the people in Lu Bu’s group are really reckless. Can’t you wait until you finish your meal before negotiating the terms?
This incident illustrates two issues.

One is that food is really important in war. Even a powerful army like Lu Bu’s would be beaten if it didn’t have food.

The second is the powerful people in the late Han Dynasty, most of whom had money and soldiers and were able to compete with the warlords.

After receiving the money and food promised by Liu Bei, Lu Bu secretly wondered if he could ask for more, so he asked tentatively:
"I didn't come to Xuzhou to be a scoundrel or to eat and drink for free."

"If you can use me, I will do my best."

Liu Bei and Li Yi looked at each other.

Li Yi nodded slightly, indicating that he should continue to set a trap for Lu Bu.

Liu Bei then spoke:
"Now that the general has been defeated by Cao Cao, he has no place to stand, and no place for his men and horses to rest."

"I can lend you a piece of land so that you can rest and recuperate your troops."

"After I recover my strength, it won't be too late to seek revenge on Cao Cao."

"What do you think, General?"

Lu Bu was overjoyed, it seemed that his display of loyalty just now had paid off.

Just by saying a few words, you can get a piece of land for free.

He thought to himself that even if he couldn't borrow soldiers, it would be great if he could borrow a city to rest.

It's better than wandering around with people and horses.

Besides,

Along the way he saw that Xuzhou was well-organized under Liu Bei's governance, and the country was safe and the people were happy.

If he stops in any county here and recruits soldiers, it won't take long for him to make a comeback.

"That's great, but I wonder which piece of land you would like to lend me?"

Lu Bu opened his mouth and asked.

Li Yi saw that the time was ripe and Liu Bei had done enough good, so it was time for him to take action.

So he stood up and continued:
"The general came suddenly, and it's not easy for me to make arrangements right away."

"General, please let your men and horses rest here for a while, and we will inform you after we have discussed it."

Lü Bu had no doubts and said:

"It's okay. It should be so."

"It is Bu who is being rude and abrupt and causing trouble for Guizhou."

After receiving the blank check from Liu Bei, Lu Bu was in a good mood and even spoke more politely.

Li Yi continued:
"Just now the general said that if General Liu can use the general, the general will do his best."

"I wonder if this is true?"

Lu Bu was stunned. He never expected Li Yi to ask this question.

……

……

(End of this chapter)