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

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Inside the governor's mansion in Yanzhou, Cao Cao sat at the head of the table, holding the latest intelligence that had just been delivered, a long-lost smile on his face.

Cao Cao's expression puzzled the crowd below. It was just a piece of intelligence sent by Guo Jia; what was there to be happy about?

"My lord, what is it that makes you so happy? Don't just think of yourself, tell us too!"

The speaker was Dian Wei, who had just been promoted to colonel. He had performed exceptionally well in the Battle of Puyang last year and was thus promoted to colonel by Cao Cao.

As Cao Cao's personal bodyguard, only Dian Wei dared to disturb Cao Cao's good mood in public. Although the others also wanted to know, no one dared to speak up.

Cao Cao replied with a smile:

"Hahaha, Fengxiao sent a message saying that Qin Xuan of Xuzhou wants to conspire with me and Yuan Shu to kill Lü Bu!"

"Do you think I should be happy?"

However, his explanation did not please the people present; on the contrary, they were somewhat surprised, since Lü Bu was currently stationed in Xiaopei, which was under the jurisdiction of Qin Xuan of Xuzhou.

Why would Qin Xuan want to deal with Lü Bu for no reason? Lü Bu's garrison in Xiaopei has relieved Qin Xuan of the defensive pressure from Yanzhou. Shouldn't the two sides have a closer cooperative relationship?

"My lord, could this be a trap? Qin Xuan and we have a deep-seated hatred for each other. Now he wants to conspire with us to get rid of Lü Bu. Logically speaking, this doesn't make any sense at all."

Xun Yu stepped out from the ranks of civil officials, cupped his hands, and asked, worried that this was a scheme deliberately used by the other side to lure them into a trap!

"My lord, Lord Xun is right. This could very well be a trap they've set!"

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As soon as Xun Yu spoke, others immediately followed suit, urging Cao Cao not to agree to the cooperation. They were well aware of Lü Bu's fighting prowess, and if Qin Xuan's Great Snow Dragon Cavalry were added to the mix, they would truly be no match for him.

"Alright, why are you all in such a hurry? I haven't finished speaking yet!"

Seeing that he had so many rational subordinates, Cao Cao felt gratified, and then added:

"According to the envoy, when Lü Bu retreated to Xiaopei, he considered taking the city by force, but he was defeated by Qin Xuan's troops and also lost a lot of Bingzhou wolf cavalry."

"If Chen Gong hadn't proposed a plan to exchange hostages for territory and strictly control their supplies, Qin Xuan would never have agreed!"

"Now that Lü Bu wants to attack Yuan Shu's Liang Kingdom, he is worried that we will launch a sneak attack from the rear, so he proposes a joint operation."

"Lu Bu is a fickle and unpredictable man, and Qin Xuan naturally wouldn't let him go, so he wanted to take this opportunity to eliminate him!"

These were all written in Guo Jia's letter. After all, he knew that Cao Cao would not believe it easily, so he specially sent someone to Xiaopei to find out the information before sending the letter to Cao Cao.

Furthermore, Guo Jia strongly urged Cao Cao to agree in his letter, arguing that this was an excellent opportunity to eliminate Lü Bu, and that once this golden opportunity was lost, it would be even more difficult to annihilate Lü Bu.

"This~~~"

Upon hearing this, everyone realized what had happened, and after considering Lü Bu's character, they felt it made some sense.

His nickname "the slave of three surnames" reveals his lack of loyalty and his penchant for patricide. After leaving Chang'an to join Yuan Shao, he even sought to seize Yuan Shao's Ji Province, demonstrating that Lü Bu was an ambitious man.

Who would dare to recruit him?

"My lord, since that's the case, we should agree to their request, but we should also have a backup plan, because who knows what unexpected things might happen."

Xun Yu also reminded Cao Cao that while cooperation was important, they still needed to be wary of Qin Xuan. It was better to be safe than sorry; if this was a ruse orchestrated by Qin Xuan and Lü Bu, they would be the ones who suffered in the end.

"Yes, Wenruo, I understand. I'll reply to Fengxiao immediately, and the three parties will join forces to eliminate Lü Bu!"

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Just as Cao Cao received the message from Guo Jia, Qin Xuan also received a letter from Liu Bowen.

He never expected that this was the will of Heaven to destroy Lü Bu. He never expected that Cao Cao, after suffering such a great loss, would still have the energy to seek revenge. It has to be said that the wealth of these aristocratic families is truly substantial.

It hasn't been that long, and you're already thinking about revenge. It seems your background is truly extraordinary.

That's good, it saves me from worrying that Cao Cao won't join me.

After confirming Cao Cao's participation, Qin Xuan immediately wrote a letter to Liu Bowen.

Let him stay in Yuzhou to help Yuan Shu resist Lü Bu's army. Otherwise, before the encirclement is even sealed, Lü Bu will have already occupied Liang, and then we will be in a passive position.

Then Qin Xuan mobilized 5,000 Great Wall Legion soldiers and the Great Snow Dragon Riders to lead Yuwen Chengdu to Pengcheng, where they joined forces with Lü Bu and awaited the opportune moment to start the war.

With Li Jing and Zhang Juzheng in charge, there was naturally nothing to worry about.

As for Qin Qiong, he led 8,000 Xuzhou soldiers to garrison Guangling, to guard against Liu Bei of Yangzhou.

Since Liu Bei joined Liu Yao, he has stationed five thousand men in Danyang and recruited soldiers there to expand his power.

So much time has passed, Liu Bei must have guessed that what happened back then was a setup, and he will definitely try every means to get revenge. In addition, Qin Xuan stole his young wife, what man could tolerate that?

Therefore, Qin Xuan specifically ordered Qin Qiong to send troops to garrison Guangling to prevent Liu Bei from launching a surprise attack on his rear.

In the unlikely event that Liu Bei were to launch a surprise attack, Qin Qiong's military command abilities would be sufficient to hold out until Li Jing came to the rescue.

Lu Bu, who was getting impatient waiting in Pengcheng, was relieved to learn that Qin Xuan was on his way with his troops.

God knows how he got through these days.

Although I had my wife and daughter with me, I felt as anxious as when I was waiting for the results of an exam.

"General Lü, General Xue asked me to inform you that Lord Qin should arrive this afternoon. Please don't worry!"

Outside the guest room, a guard kindly reminded them that this was a special arrangement by Xue Rengui.

These days, Lü Bu has been coming to Qin Xuan every day to ask when he will give him an answer, making it so that he can't even handle his daily official duties.

"Okay, I understand!"

A slightly pleased voice came from inside the guest room.

Around 3 PM, Lü Bu and Chen Gong arrived at the Prime Minister's residence to greet Qin Xuan. After all, they were currently living under someone else's roof, so it was normal for them to adopt a humble attitude.

When Qin Xuan entered the Prime Minister's residence, greeted by Xue Rengui, Lü Bu, who had been waiting for a long time, surprisingly took the initiative to greet Qin Xuan, appearing very enthusiastic.

"Brother Qin, you've finally arrived! I've been waiting with bated breath. Even General Xue is getting annoyed by me; he gets a headache every time he sees me!"

Lu Bu strode up to Qin Xuan, patted Qin Xuan's arm warmly, and immediately assumed the role of the elder brother, trying to get closer to Qin Xuan.

Qin Xuan was only eighteen or nineteen years old, while Lü Bu had already reached his thirties. In this respect, it was not unreasonable for Qin Xuan to call himself his elder brother.

Seeing Lü Bu's enthusiasm, how could Qin Xuan not understand the other party's true intentions? Wasn't he just afraid that I wouldn't agree?

This time, I'll send you to hell to fulfill your wish.

Qin Xuan thought this in his heart, but on his face he showed a warm demeanor and did not dislike being addressed as Lü Bu.

"Lord Wen, have you been waiting impatiently? This time I've brought five thousand men, plus Ren Gui's ten thousand troops, I guarantee you'll conquer Liang!"

Upon hearing this, Lü Bu laughed heartily and clapped his hands, saying, "Excellent! Excellent! With these 15,000 elite soldiers, plus my own 10,000 troops, Yuan Shu's territory will be a piece of cake!"

Upon hearing that Qin Xuan had brought so many men, Lü Bu laughed even more unrestrainedly, as if success was just around the corner.