Three Kingdoms: Fusion of Entries, Change of Destiny

Chapter 68: We agreed to be “watchdogs” together, why did you suddenly ascend?

Yuan Shu and his brother Yuan Shao took two completely different paths.

Yuan Shao relied on aristocratic families, celebrities, and scholars, while Yuan Shu appreciated knights and warriors more.

But Yuan Shu was the legitimate son of the Yuan family and had a noble status, while Yuan Shao was just a bastard son born to a concubine. Perhaps it really was true that "make up for what you lack."

Yuan Shu valued chivalry and was good at building good relationships with bandits and outlaws.

This is also one of the reasons why he can always quickly replenish his troops after a major defeat.

Bai Rao and Sui Gu of the Black Mountain Army saw this "advantage" of Yuan Shu and took the initiative to go south to join him.

The east gate of Fengqiu City was wide open, two rows of armored soldiers stood with swords in hand, and black banners fluttered in the wind.

Yuan Shu was wearing golden armor, a military cap on his head, and a decorative sword hanging from his waist. He stood with his hands behind his back under the city gate.

Behind him followed generals Ji Ling, Zhang Xun and others, and more than ten scouts were on horseback waiting for orders.

After a while, a cloud of dust suddenly rose on the official road.

More than a hundred knights in dishevel came slowly.

The two leaders were one with a full beard and holding a spear; the other had a face as red as the bottom of a pot and carried a big knife on his back.

They were the leaders of the Black Mountain Army, Bai Rao and Sui Gu.

"Bai Rao greets General Gonglu!" Bai Rao was the first to throw away the stirrup and dismount, kneeling on one knee.

Sui Gu then dismounted, clasped his fists, and said in a loud voice, "I've heard that you value righteousness over wealth and are a man of great courage. We are here to submit to you with our 30,000-man army!"

Immediately afterwards, the hundred or so riders behind Sui Gu also dismounted, knelt on one knee and saluted: "Greetings, General Gonglu!"

Yuan Shu strode forward, his hands lightly supporting him. "Brothers, why are you being so polite? Please stand up!"

Glancing over the slightly tattered clothing of the crowd, Yuan Shu sighed, "Wars are raging in the Central Plains, and Yuan Shao and Cao Cao are bringing disaster to the people of Ji and Yan.

I, Yuan Gonglu, am seeking justice for the people. Your leading your troops to surrender to me is truly a timely help!

"I am willing to sacrifice my life for the general, even if it means death!"

After everyone stood up, Yuan Shu smiled and said, "I have long admired the name of the Black Mountain hero. However, our army is short of food and fodder, so I may have to inconvenience you for a while."

"General, you are wrong!" Bai Rao clasped his fists and replied, "When Zhang Niujiao founded the Black Mountain Army, it was to seek justice for the people. Now Yuan Shao and Cao Cao are exploiting the people and exploiting them. The general and I are exactly the same. If we don't have food, we can just ask the wealthy dog ​​owner for 'borrow'. There's no need for you to worry about it!"

When Yuan Shu heard the three words "Zhang Niu Jiao", a gleam of light suddenly flashed in his eyes.

Zhang Niujiao was born in Boling. In the second year of Zhongping (185 AD), he raised an army in the Taihang Mountains of Hebei Province. He called himself "the general who led the troops" and was an important leader of the early Black Mountain Army.

During the same period, Chu Yan (later changed his name to Zhang Yan) from Changshan also gathered an army of volunteers. The two sides soon joined forces and elected Zhang Niujiao as their leader.

After joining forces, Zhang Niujiao led his troops to attack Yingtao, but was unfortunately shot and killed in the battle.

Before his death, he designated Chu Yan as his successor and asked his troops to "take Yan as the commander", ensuring the continuation of the Black Mountain Army.

After Chu Yan succeeded to the throne, he changed his surname to Zhang and called himself Zhang Yan. Because of his bravery and fighting skills, he was called "Flying Swallow".

He absorbed the various rebel forces such as Yu Du, Bai Rao, and Sui Gu in Taihang Mountains, and his power quickly expanded to one million people, becoming the largest peasant armed force in Hebei Province.

Although Zhang Niujiao was only a flash in the pan, he was known for his loyalty, courage and cohesion, and was a very representative grassroots leader in the peasant uprising.

Yuan Shu liked such heroes of the green forest the most, so he had long been fascinated by Zhang Niujiao, Zhang Yan and others.

"That's great! After we capture Yanzhou, I will definitely provide you with a good supply of reinforcements!" After saying this, Yuan Shu couldn't help but sigh, "It's a pity that I didn't live long enough to see Zhang Niujiao's brilliance with my own eyes."

Bai Rao pondered for a moment and said, "My Black Mountain Army wanted to plead for the people of Weijun and Dongjun, but was shamelessly ambushed by Yuan Shao and Cao Cao and suffered a crushing defeat.

Even more despicable is that Cao Cao used all sorts of unrealistic conditions to deceive the soldiers and civilians of the Black Mountain Army, causing many of our brothers, unaware of the situation, to leave us."

Upon hearing this, Yuan Shu snorted coldly and said, "Cao Man is no different from Yuan Shao, both are hypocritical villains. Once we defeat Cao Cao, we can soon march north to attack Yuan Shao and avenge our brothers!"

"I am willing to be the vanguard and take the heads of Cao Cao and Yuan Shao!" Sui Gu suddenly drew his sword from its sheath, and the blade shone coldly in the sunlight.

Ji Ling, standing behind Yuan Shu, worried that Sui Gu might harm him, tried to step forward to block him. Yuan Shu, however, stopped Ji Ling with his hand and, stepping in front of Sui Gu, shook his sword-wielding hand. He said, "General Baitu, please be patient. I've ordered wine and meat. You've come a long way, so get a good night's rest. Tomorrow, I'll discuss matters with you all, and we'll ensure that none of Cao Cao's troops remain."

……

Plain country.

Guan Yu rushed into the yamen with a letter of intelligence.

Liu Bei, the Prime Minister of Pingyuan, is currently handling official business.

Seeing Guan Yu rushing in, he couldn't help but laugh and said, "Second brother is usually very steady, why did you lose your composure today?"

The Han Dynasty implemented a parallel system of counties and kingdoms.

A county has a county governor, and a country has a prime minister, so the prime minister of Pingyuan is equivalent to a county governor.

Pingyuan State belonged to Qingzhou and had jurisdiction over about 10 counties. It was located in the plain of the lower reaches of the Yellow River. It was a hub connecting Jizhou (Yuan Shao's forces) and Qingzhou (Gongsun Zan's forces), and could also block the route of Cao Cao's expansion to the north.

Speaking of,
After the allied forces of the princes dispersed,
Liu Bei joined his old classmate Gongsun Zan, while Cao Cao joined his childhood friend Yuan Shao.

Gongsun Zan gave Liu Bei a garrison in Pingyuan County, and Yuan Shao didn't even give Cao Cao a piece of land, but only let Cao Cao garrison in Henei.

At that time, Liu Bei was even doing better than Cao Cao.

Later, Cao Cao took over Yanzhou East County and finally had his own territory.

Liu Bei was also promoted to the position of Prime Minister of Pingyuan for his contribution in assisting Gongsun Zan in resisting Yuan Shao.

Cao Cao helped Yuan Shao guard the gate, while Liu Bei helped Gongsun Zan guard the gate.

It can be said that they are both "fellow wanderers in the world" and are finally on equal footing.

But the information Guan Yu brought was like a bolt of lightning to Liu Bei.

"Brother!" Guan Yu extended his hand and handed the information to Liu Bei, saying, "I have learned from a merchant that Cao Cao has pacified the Yellow Turbans in Qingzhou!"

Liu Bei's face, which always wore a warm smile, suddenly froze, and then he asked in disbelief:
"The million Yellow Turbans wreaking havoc in Yanzhou were pacified by Cao Cao???"

Liu Bei attached great importance to the word Cao Cao.

He thought that the Yellow Turbans in Qingzhou would be pacified sooner or later, but he never expected that that person would be Cao Cao!

After Liu Bei came to his senses, he hurriedly took the information from Guan Yu.

After watching Cao Cao's campaign against the Yellow Turbans, a solemn expression crossed his face. "Defeating Sima Ju's army of 400,000 in a single battle—what a fierce tactic! Wasn't Gongsun Bogui no more capable than him back then?"

While Liu Bei was sighing, he continued reading.

Then, his eyes suddenly widened, and he couldn't help but whisper the second half of the intelligence. "Cao Cao pacified the Yellow Turbans in Yanzhou and recruited a million of them!"

"How... did he do that?"

"Recruit a million Yellow Turbans? Does he have enough food to feed them?"

In an instant, a feeling of unwillingness rose from his chest and quickly spread throughout his body.

That's how it is, people.

Just a moment ago, everyone was the same, all "watchdogs".

How come you suddenly gained weight?
What does this make the other person think?
Envy, jealousy, cruelty?

Even, I feel like crying...

Liu Bei was unwilling to accept this and muttered to himself, "Cao Cao has just survived a siege by 100,000 Black Mountain troops. How can he still have the strength to defeat the million-strong Yellow Turbans of Qingzhou?"

After a long while, Liu Bei finally understood and sighed, "There must be a master helping me!"

(End of this chapter)