A thousand-year-old family begins with one fighting against ten thousand.

"Of course I'd like to, but how could Liu Bei let us go so easily!"

Sun Jian was tempted, but then sighed.

"Leave this to me."

Wei Hai nodded. "As long as you can still muster the will to fight!"

"Okay, then it's all up to you."

Sun Jian stared intently at Wei Hai, his tiger-like eyes conveying everything without a word.

Jinling.

At nightfall, the main hall of the Chu King's residence was still brightly lit.

Liu Bei ordered his men to prepare a meal and, together with his civil and military officials, stood at the door waiting for Wei Hai's arrival.

"Greetings to the King of Hanzhong."

Wei Hai was led in by a servant and bowed to Liu Bei.

"Please rise, sir."

Liu Bei quickly stepped forward to greet him.

"I had long heard of your name from scholars and calligraphers, but meeting you today has only enhanced my appreciation!"

"It would be my great honor!"

"The King of Hanzhong flatters me. I am but a defeated general. How could I possibly deserve such praise from the King of Hanzhong?"

"Wei Hai is ashamed!"

With the Wei family's name on their side, even the arrogant Guan Yu and the hot-tempered Zhang Fei behaved extremely well at the banquet, drinking to their hearts' content amidst the clinking of glasses.

After several rounds of drinks, Wei Hai finally revealed his purpose.

"King of Hanzhong, Wei Hai has come here with a request."

Liu Bei also put down his wine cup and smiled freely.

"This matter has already been explained in writing. I am willing to see Brother Wentai off so that he may expand the territory of our great Han Dynasty."

"However, Brother Wuya, the Central Plains and the Nine Provinces are ultimately the center of this world, the essence of the world."

"Sir, would you be willing to stay? I would like to take you as my military advisor, and be second only to you in both my literary skills and calligraphy."

Wei Hai shook his head. "The King of Hanzhong has made a mistake in his affections."

"I have known Wentai since childhood. Now that Wentai is at a low point in his life, how can I leave him?"

Liu Bei could hear the firmness in Wei Hai's words and greatly admired this brotherhood. Putting himself in Wei Hai's shoes, he was also unwilling to abandon his calligraphy, Guan Yu, and Zhang Fei for wealth and glory, so he stopped trying to persuade him.

"Very well, I would like to ask Brother Wentai to help me recover the nine counties of Jiangdong. After that, I can leave the Han Dynasty by sea."

"This is the proper thing to do. Wei Hai thanks the King of Hanzhong on behalf of the King of Chu."

"A toast to the King of Hanzhong!"

Wei Hai raised his wine cup and gestured it towards Liu Bei from a distance. After Liu Bei also picked up his cup, he drank it all in one gulp.

During the banquet, they talked about everything under the sun: astronomy and geography with Zhuge Liang, history of the Han dynasty with Liu Bei, the Spring and Autumn Annals with Guan Yu, calligraphy and painting with Zhang Fei, missions with Sun Qian, law with Jian Yong, and military strategy with Zhao Yun...

The guests and hosts had a wonderful time!

……

Apart from the two counties controlled by the Zhu and Gu families, and the prefectures occupied by Yan Baihu, the rest were still under Sun Jian's control.

With Sun Jian's cooperation, these places were quickly brought under Liu Bei's control.

The Zhu and Gu families also directly pledged allegiance to Liu Bei, along with several talented young men from both families.

Among them were Gu Yong and Zhu Heng.

One was the Prime Minister of Eastern Wu in the original history, and the other was a fierce man who defeated Cao Wei's tens of thousands of troops with only 5000 men.

The southern barbarians also retreated to the depths of the dense forest, leaving only Yan Baihu, who still did not obey Liu Bei's orders.

Liu Bei gave Zhu Hengbo 2 troops and ordered him to eliminate Yan Baihu, then lead his troops north to attack Yuzhou and approach Luoyang.

He also kept his word and let Sun Jian go, allowing Sun Jian to leave the Central Plains with his old troops.

Even a broken ship has three nails left, and Sun Jian still has tens of thousands of troops, several generals, and dozens of valiant soldiers under his command. If they fight to the death, they can definitely hold Liu Bei back for a long time.

What Liu Bei lacks most right now is time. He must quickly lead his troops north to force Cao Cao to return, coordinate with Yuan Shao in the north and south, and control Cao Cao.

Even though Liu Bei coveted Sun Jian's subordinates, he still let him go.

……

Ye City.

Cao Cao received a letter from Wei Xue.

Instead of directly advising Cao Cao, Wei Xue made a prediction about the general trend of the world.

According to Wei Xue's speculation, the powerful families of the world would definitely urge Liu Bei to eliminate Sun Jian as soon as possible, and then lead his troops north to relieve the siege of Wei.

Ye City has high walls and thick fortifications, and it is not a city that can be captured in a short time.

Wei Xue suggested that Cao Cao send troops to besiege Ye City and dispatch two generals, Xu Huang and Yu Jin, to divide their forces and head south to garrison Nanyang.

Cao Cao personally led a large army to contain Yuan Shao, and ordered Cao Ren to set off from Bohai to annex the other counties in Ji Province.

He also ordered Zhang Liao to march south from the grasslands, abandoning other counties, and attack Ji Province from Changshan County on the flank.

Only Ye City remained, an isolated city, which forced Yuan Shao to surrender.

Cao Cao laughed heartily after reading the letter.

"Brother Bojing, you're being too cautious. What kind of person is Liu Bei? How dare he try to pull my tiger's whiskers?"

"How high is the city of Ye? How thick are its walls? Can they compare to Hangu Pass, the most formidable pass under heaven?"

"Even a pass as strong as Hangu Pass has fallen to my command, let alone this mere city of Ye!"

"Once I conquer Ye City, I'll let Brother Bojing know that I, Cao Mengde, am no longer the same as before!"

The generals all agreed and asked Cao Cao to lead the attack.

Cao Cao agreed to all of them.

Seeing the performance of Cao Cao and his generals, strategists such as Xi Zhicai showed their worries.

As the saying goes, pride comes before a fall. If the Qi army continues with this momentum, it will not only fail to conquer Ye City, but Yuan Shao's Jin army will also seize the opportunity to defeat it in one fell swoop!

"My lord, Brother Bojing is always a master strategist; perhaps we should follow his plan and divide our forces accordingly!"

Although they knew that Cao Cao was currently in high spirits and unlikely to listen to their advice, Xi Zhicai and the other strategists still tried to persuade him out of a sense of duty.

"No need for further explanation!"

A hint of displeasure flashed across Cao Cao's brow. He, Cao Mengde, had fought in the south and north, fought against foreign tribes, quelled the Yellow Turban Rebellion, and participated in more than a hundred battles, large and small. He was skilled in warfare and possessed great strategic acumen.

Does that mean he couldn't fight without Wei Xue?!

"However, the strategist's words make sense. All soldiers, listen to my command: capture Ye City within seven days. After seven days, I will rest in Ye City!"

"Even if that brat Liu Bei moves swiftly, how could he possibly completely reclaim Jiangdong within seven days?!"

"Yes!"

"Yes, sir!"

"This humble general will certainly ensure that our lord can enter the city to rest within seven days!"

"This humble general only needs 5 days!"

"This humble general only needs 3 days!"

"This humble general will break down this city gate today!"

Whose general is this, that he is so brave?

All the generals looked over, wondering who this person was who dared to utter such arrogant words.

Cao Chun felt that saying three days was already excessive. He only dared to shout three days because he was Cao Cao's cousin. Even if he failed, he would only be punished with three cups of wine. Who would have thought that some of his generals would be even more valiant!

When the generals looked over, they discovered that it was Xu Chu.

That's fine.

There's nothing this simpleton wouldn't dare to shout.

As Cao Cao's most trusted and favored general, he would obey Cao Cao's orders without hesitation, even for a second, even if it meant his death.

"Hahahaha, what a fine Tiger General! Tomorrow you will lead the charge! Xu Huang, you will be the commander!"

"The first to scale the walls will be rewarded with a thousand taels of gold, appointed as a Tiger-Might General, and enfeoffed as a Marquis within the Pass!"