Three Kingdoms: Daily settlement helps Liu Bei revive the Shu Han dynasty.

Liu Bei and Lu Yong had just returned to the camp.

Zhao Yun hurriedly came to him, looking somewhat dejected, and said:

"Lord Xuande, I have just received a letter from home. My elder brother has passed away due to illness, and I must return to Changshan to handle the funeral arrangements."

Liu Bei reached out and grasped Zhao Yun's right hand, his tone sincere:

"Zilong, go back without worry. Come find me after you've taken care of your affairs."

I have written to Bogui, asking you to remain in my army.

From this day forward, you belong to me.

Zhao Yun was deeply moved upon hearing this.

Gongsun Zan not only did not value him, but was also somewhat wary of him, and in recent years he has become increasingly cruel and ruthless.

But Liu Bei shared his ideals and beliefs and confided in him wholeheartedly.

Guan Yu and Zhang Fei also treated him like a brother.

He truly did not want to leave Liu Bei.

Zhao Yun knelt on one knee, his voice choked with emotion, and clasped his hands in thanks, saying, "Thank you so much, Lord Xuande!"

"Still calling him Lord Xuande?" Lu Yong teased with a smile from the side.

Zhao Yun was taken aback for a moment, then quickly changed his address, saying, "Thank you, my lord!"

"Good, good, good!" Liu Bei reached out and helped Zhao Yun up, expressing his great satisfaction.

Lu Yong walked to Zhao Yun's side and whispered a few words in Zhao Yun's ear.

Zhao Yun's expression shifted slightly, then he clasped his hands in a fist salute and said, "Rest assured, strategist, I will not fail in my mission. My lord, strategist, I will take my leave now!"

Liu Bei nodded and said, "Zilong, go and return quickly."

Liu Bei and Lu Yong escorted him to the camp gate.

Zhao Yun bid farewell and mounted his horse.

Seeing Zhao Yun about to speed away, Lu Yong suddenly shouted again, "If that man refuses to come, tie him up and bring him here!"

Zhao Yun turned around on his horse, clasped his hands in a fist salute, and replied, "Rest assured, strategist!"

Liu Bei watched Zhao Yun's figure gradually disappear, and finally couldn't help but ask, "Strategist, what did you say to Zilong? And who was that person?"

Lu Yong turned to look at Liu Bei and smiled slightly: "A strategist more capable than me."

"boast."

"..."

-----------------

Youzhou, Ji County.

Gongsun Zan has had a very difficult time these past two years.

Since his defeat to Yuan Shao at the Battle of Jieqiao, he had suffered repeated defeats and was beaten badly.

He just couldn't understand how he had suddenly gone from suppressing Yuan Shao to being suppressed by Yuan Shao.

Just as he was looking at the map with a headache,

A guard suddenly entered and reported to Tian Kai: "General, a messenger from Lord Tian requests an audience!"

Gongsun Zan composed himself and replied, "Let him in."

The messenger sent by Tian Kai presented a letter from Liu Bei.

Gongsun Zan opened the package and quickly browsed through it, feeling that it was somewhat unreal.

So I looked at it again carefully.

After reading it, he was still somewhat skeptical, staring at the envoy and asking, "Did Liu Bei really defeat Cao Cao? And is he even going to cede Xuzhou to me?"

"General, this is absolutely true!" The messenger kowtowed and said, "Liu Xuande's messenger, Jian Yong, is currently in Lord Tian's army."

"Why doesn't Xuande take the position of Governor of Xuzhou himself?" Gongsun Zan asked in confusion.

"The envoy said that Liu Bei, grateful for the kindness shown to him by his lord and in accordance with the oath of alliance, is willing to cede Xuzhou to him!"

The messenger's words filled Gongsun Zan with mixed emotions.

In his view, Xuzhou was a huge, tender piece of meat, and who wouldn't want to pounce on it and take a bite?

But Liu Bei was different; he was actually willing to give it away!

This made Gongsun Zan recall their past once again.

The two forged a deep friendship when they studied under Lu Zhi in their early years.

Liu Bei raised an army, but his luck was bad, and he wandered around with nowhere to settle down.

Gongsun Zan, on the other hand, had already been enfeoffed as the Marquis of Duting and appointed as a General of the Palace Guard, making him a prominent figure in Youzhou.

Later, Liu Bei, having nowhere else to turn, came to seek refuge with him.

Seeing his disheveled appearance, Gongsun Zan felt sorry for him and recommended him to be a separate commander.

It was from that time that Liu Bei officially embarked on his official career, and he gradually rose to the position of Chancellor of Pingyuan.

Unfortunately, Gongsun Zan made a terrible mistake later on: he killed Liu Yu, the governor of Youzhou, who had a high reputation and popular support!

From then on, he suffered repeated defeats and everything went wrong.

Just when he felt lonely and helpless,

Unexpectedly, his former down-on-his-luck classmate suddenly offered him the most sincere comfort.

To be honest, Gongsun Zan knew his old classmate Liu Bei all too well.

Despite his gentle, refined, honest, and simple nature, Liu Bei was actually an ambitious man at heart.

He actually gave up Xuzhou to me.

It is clear that Liu Bei truly regarded himself as a beloved friend, a brother, and a close relative!

Gongsun Zan's eyes welled up with tears. He raised his hand to wipe them away, and said in a hoarse voice, "Go back and tell Jian Xianhe that I agree to all three of Xuande's conditions!"

Liu Bei proposed three conditions:

First, they requested that Zhao Yun and the borrowed soldiers be kept by their side;

Second, he requested that Guangling Commandery be handed over to Yuan Shu in exchange for passage.

Third, he hopes that those who wish to leave with him will be allowed to accompany him.

The first and second conditions were no problem for Gongsun Zan at all!

He was already wary of Zhao Yun.

Imagine, a teenager could actually fight to a draw with Wen Chou, one of the well-known "Four Pillars of Hebei"—who would believe it?

Moreover, Zhao Yun was once under Yuan Shao's command.

This made Gongsun Zan, who was not particularly shrewd or ambitious to begin with,

He always suspected that Zhao Yun might be a spy, so he never thought of giving him an important position.

Now that Liu Bei wants Zhao Yun and two thousand soldiers, Gongsun Zan is naturally happy to do him a favor.

But then I thought about it again...

It seems that the soldiers I lent to Liu Bei before were all low-ranking men.

A pang of guilt welled up in Gongsun Zan's heart, and he said to the messenger:

"Besides Zhao Yun and those two thousand soldiers, I will also allocate one thousand elite cavalry from Youzhou to Xuande."

So he said to the messenger, "In addition to Zhao Yun and the original two thousand soldiers, I intend to allocate another one thousand elite cavalry from Youzhou to Xuande!"

The envoy respectfully said, "My lord and Liu Bei are truly like Bo Ya and Zi Qi of our time!"

Gongsun Zan nodded slightly, revealing a long-lost smile.

Regarding the second condition, Gongsun Zan's considerations were as follows:

Yuan Shu was his ally, and could even be considered his leader.

Without Yuan Shu to restrain Cao Cao, Gongsun Zan would have been left all alone.

Moreover, Yuan Shu had long coveted Guangling Commandery, and giving it to him would solidify their alliance.

As for the third condition...

common people?

Gongsun Zan only cared about aristocratic families and gentry; he didn't care about the lives of commoners.

After receiving Gongsun Zan's reply,

Tian Kai, the envoy, then returned to Qingzhou with the newly appointed governor of Xuzhou appointed by Gongsun Zan and the troops that Gongsun Zan had allocated to Liu Bei.

……

At present, Tian Kai of Qingzhou is locked in a fierce battle with Yuan Tan.

Despite being a rich second-generation, Yuan Tan was quite capable in battle.

Historically, Yuan Tan defeated Tian Kai in 195, and Tian Kai fled to Youzhou.

Later, Liu Bei recommended Kong Rong as the governor of Qingzhou, attempting to maintain his own power base in Qingzhou.

However, Yuan Shao and his son showed no respect and expelled Kong Rong in just one year.

Kong Rong's wife and children were captured, and he fled alone, leaving Qingzhou completely in Yuan Shao's hands.

This also declares that

Liu Bei's strategy of siding with Yuan Shao failed completely, leaving him isolated.

After all,

Yuan Shao and Cao Cao never truly considered Liu Bei as one of their own.

Or perhaps they're not even from the same circle.

The result of forcing it in...

That means I'm being made a fool of.

Ultimately, he lost both his home and his people, and wandered the world...

Now, Xuzhou is entirely under Gongsun Zan's control, and the three provinces of Qing, Xu, and Yang are now connected in a line.

If Gongsun Zan can pull himself together and stop making such blunders,

Therefore, whether it was Cao Cao or Yuan Shao, conquering any of these provinces would probably not have been as easy as it was in history.

Jian Yong didn't have to wait long.

The men sent by Gongsun Zan to take over Xuzhou arrived in Qingzhou with the troops allocated to Liu Bei.

Jian Yong looked closely,

It turns out he was the one appointed as the governor of Yanzhou by Gongsun Zan.

However, because Yanzhou was occupied by Cao Cao,

The unlucky fellow who has neither dared nor dared to take up his post to this day—Shan Jing!