The Three Kingdoms: Rise to Power Starting with Intercepting Liu Bei

Seeing Mi Zhen's hysterical outburst, Qin Xuan decided to go all the way and see her through to the end.

Turning to Xue Rengui beside him, he said, "Take her with us, let's go see Mi Biejia and the others!" After saying that, he left the prison cell directly.

Xue Rengui immediately summoned the two guards outside the door and led the distraught Mi Zhen, who was still muttering to herself, to follow Qin Xuan's steps.

Quickly navigating the dark and damp prison corridor, they arrived at the place where death row inmates were held. Familiar screams echoed from the cells, bringing the distraught Mi Zhen back to her senses.

"Big...Big brother, it's my big brother's voice! Qin...Qin Xuan, please...please let him go!"

Mi Zhen broke free from the guards' restraints and ran to Qin Xuan, pleading desperately that she couldn't bear to see her family suffer so much.

But Qin Xuan ignored her and instead shouted at the two guards, "Keep an eye on her, don't let her in!"

The two guards dared not be negligent and immediately restrained Mi Zhen tightly.

After doing all this, Qin Xuan entered the death row cell. Inside, he saw countless instruments of torture. The Mi brothers were tied to a wooden frame and being whipped. Their pampered bodies were covered in wounds, and the immense pain made them suffer unbearably.

Only Mi Zhu was still gritting his teeth and persevering, while Mi Fang had long since fainted from the pain.

Upon seeing Qin Xuan's figure, Mi Zhu, who had previously lost his spirits, immediately perked up and launched into a barrage of verbal attacks at Qin Xuan.

Qin Xuan hadn't expected Mi Zhu to be so resilient, so he ordered his men to give him another round of whipping.

After the other party relented, Qin Xuan slowly began to speak:

"Mi Zhu, Mi Zizhong, you should know why I'm taking action against you. Can Liu Bei really hold onto Xuzhou?"

Upon hearing Qin Xuan's words, Mi Zhu struggled to raise his head and looked at him, speaking slowly in a very weak voice:

"Qin...Qin Yichen, I...I, Mi Zhu, have nothing to say. You...you'd better release us! The Mi family and Liu Bei have already formed a marriage alliance. If you don't release us, you...!"

Before Mi Zhu could finish speaking, Qin Xuan interrupted him:

"Mi Zhu, Mi Zhu, you're still daydreaming. Do you think I gave Xiapi to Liu Bei because I was afraid of him?"

"Let me tell you, this is a dead end I prepared for him. Once I'm free, I'll eliminate him. As for you!"

Qin Xuan paused here, cleared his throat, and continued loudly:

"You're such an ambitious man! To climb up to Liu Bei, you didn't hesitate to marry your beautiful younger sister to a decrepit old man old enough to be her father. Did you even consider how she felt?"

Upon hearing this, Mi Zhen, who was struggling to break free of the guards' restraints outside the prison cell, immediately quieted down. She wanted to hear why her elder brother had taken it upon himself to betroth her to that old man, Liu Bei.

When Liu Bei and his two brothers came to visit the Mi family that day, Mi Zhu made a point of having her come out and meet them. At the time, she didn't take it seriously at all, but now she realizes that it was back then that she was the one who secretly confirmed it.

"Hahaha!" Upon hearing Qin Xuan ask this, Mi Zhu seemed to be on drugs, his entire demeanor changing drastically, and he laughed loudly as he said:

"Liu Bei is a member of the imperial family. What's wrong with Mi Zhen marrying him? If she gives birth to a son, our Mi family will be connected to the imperial family. And if Liu Bei's power grows and he achieves unparalleled feats in restoring the Han Dynasty, our Mi family might rise to even greater heights!"

"Her feelings are unimportant. She'd rather be Liu Bei's concubine than marry a rich young man!"

When Mi Zhu's words reached Mi Zhen's ears, the seventeen or eighteen-year-old girl burst into tears. It turned out that her life had already been arranged. The thought that if Qin Xuan hadn't confiscated their property, she would have married Liu Bei in the future made Mi Zhen unable to hold back her tears any longer.

With all his might, he broke free from the guards' restraints and rushed to the cell door, shouting in a voice trembling with sobs:

"I'd rather die than marry that old geezer Liu Bei!"

After saying that, the girl did something that surprised everyone present—she slammed her head against the earthen wall next to her.

"No~~No!"

Mi Zhu never expected his younger sister to appear outside. When he saw what she was doing, he immediately let out a heart-wrenching roar.

"Bang!"

Fortunately, Xue Rengui reacted quickly, keeping a close eye on the other party's actions. Just as the other party's head was about to hit the wall, he placed his hand on the wall, thus preventing a tragic situation.

Because Mi Zhen was prepared to die, she used tremendous force. Although Xue Rengui's hand cushioned the impact, she was still knocked unconscious. If Xue Rengui hadn't supported her, she probably would have fallen heavily to the ground.

"Quickly, what are you waiting for? Find a doctor to take a look and send him back to my residence to rest!" Qin Xuan was stunned at first, then reacted and shouted at Xue Rengui.

Mi Zhen was quite a beauty, and it's a real pity that she passed away so young.

Another reason is that Qin Xuan needs her to stabilize the Mi family's business network. The Mi family has a considerable number of industries in various states of the Han Dynasty, and if they are utilized properly, they can be transformed into a sophisticated intelligence agency.

"Goodbye, Mi Zhu!"

After saying these farewell words, Qin Xuan left the prison, leaving Mi Zhu standing there in a helpless rage.

After Qin Xuan left, the guards continued to torture Mi Zhu. Eventually, unable to withstand the torture, he had no choice but to sign a document admitting his crime of secretly possessing armor and intending to rebel.

Having obtained complete evidence, Qin Xuan ordered the execution of everyone in the Mi family except for Mi Zhen after lunch that afternoon, thus essentially wiping out the entire Mi clan.

On the other hand, after being diagnosed by the doctor, Mi Zhen was found to be fine, but she was just too heartbroken and needed to rest more.

Looking at Mi Zhen, whose eyes were vacant and face haggard, Qin Xuan felt a little embarrassed. After all, such a blow was too great for a woman. In order to help her get out of the shadow of being betrayed by her own brother, he threatened her:

"The evidence of your Mi family's rebellion is irrefutable. Your elder brother and younger brother are doomed. As for you, you can stay in my manor as my maid, or I can send you to Liu Bei!"

Upon hearing this, Mi Zhen, like a startled rabbit, grabbed Qin Xuan's hand, appearing extremely agitated, and muttered to herself:

"No...no, I won't go to Liu Bei's place! I...I'll stay in your household as a maid!"

The thought of Qin Xuan sending her to Liu Bei's side made Mi Zhen extremely resistant. She would rather be killed than have to serve an old man.

"Alright, then let's see how you perform. If you do well, I'll give you your freedom!"

Thus, the pampered young lady from a wealthy family became a maid in Qin Xuan's mansion, beginning her humiliating life.

············

On the same day, Cao Cao, returning to Yanzhou, after a long and arduous journey, led over ten thousand defeated soldiers back to Puyang.

Outside Puyang City, looking at the city tower not far away, Cao Cao finally breathed a sigh of relief. The journey had been fraught with danger. First, on the night of the retreat, Xue Rengui led a surprise attack and suffered heavy losses.

They were ambushed by another army within the territory of Taishan County, suffering losses of over a thousand men. When they returned to their main camp in Puyang, only less than ten thousand men remained.