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

After a five-day march,

Liu Bei and his party finally arrived safely at Tancheng, the capital of Xuzhou.

These past few days, besides traveling and sleeping, Lu Yong has had virtually no room to make a difference.

Based on the day's performance, the settlement system awarded four consecutive bonuses of +1 Constitution.

The attribute points awarded by the system will be integrated into the host's body, strengthening the corresponding attributes.

However, the higher the corresponding attribute, the weaker the enhancement effect will be.

Three miles outside Tancheng, Tao Qian, accompanied by a group of officials from Xuzhou, personally went out of the city to welcome Liu Bei.

Tao Qian sent out countless envoys, begging and pleading for help from all sides, but not a single feudal lord was willing to lend a helping hand.

In the end, it was Liu Bei, whom he had only met once at the alliance of feudal lords, who extended a helping hand to him.

Although Liu Bei had few soldiers, his two younger brothers were incredibly powerful!

Guan Yu killed Hua Xiong while the wine was still warm, and Zhang Fei fought Lü Bu for over a hundred rounds before gradually losing ground.

On the other hand, in Xuzhou,

Zang Ba, along with Sun Guan, Wu Dun, Yin Li, and others, gathered their troops and stationed them in the Kaiyang area, effectively forming their own force and completely ignoring Tao Qian.

The only generals he could reasonably be considered capable of were Cao Bao and Xu Dan.

Compared to Liu Bei's two younger brothers, the difference between these two was simply unbearable to look at.

Liu Bei has generals but no soldiers, while I, Tao Qian, have soldiers but lack generals. Isn't this a perfect match, a match made in heaven?

Thinking of this,

Tao Qian straightened his robes and, supported by his son Tao Shang, slowly stepped forward to greet them.

After Liu Bei and his men approached

When Tao Qian saw Liu Bei and his entourage looking travel-worn and like beggars, he almost couldn't help but feel a lump in his throat and shed tears.

Even though things are so tough for him, he still comes to help others. He's such a genuine person!

Liu Bei was also secretly observing Tao Qian.

After the Suanzao Alliance,

It's only been a few years.

Tao Qian, who was once a spirited and heroic figure, has become so old.

This inevitably stirred a sense of "the decline of a hero" in Liu Bei's heart.

Seeing that he needed help to walk, yet still personally went out of the city to welcome him, Liu Bei felt a surge of warmth in his heart.

Liu Bei hurriedly dismounted, took a few quick steps to Tao Qian, and bowed deeply, saying, "Greetings, Lord Tao! I am late and have caused you any alarm."

Tao Qian quickly helped Liu Bei up, his voice trembling slightly with emotion: "Xuande, I am already extremely grateful that you came to Xuzhou to help me, how could I blame you for being late?"

Tao Qian glanced at Guan Yu and Zhang Fei behind Liu Bei.

And Zhao Yun, who was heroic and whose imposing presence was in no way inferior to Guan Yu and Zhang Fei, and his two companions.

He immediately said with a face full of joy and envy:

"Congratulations, Xuande, on gaining another valiant general!"

"I have prepared a welcoming banquet. Please, Xuande, come with me into the city so I can give you a proper welcome and wash away the dust of your journey!"

To everyone's surprise, Liu Bei shook his head and said, "Cao Cao's army is massacring the people of Xuzhou. The situation is critical, so let's skip the banquet."

Liu Bei's words moved Tao Qian once again.

He replied, "In that case, please have Xuande lead his troops to camp outside the city. I will send people to deliver wine, meat, and provisions to the soldiers."

"Thank you very much, Lord Tao!" Liu Bei bowed in gratitude.

Since Liu Bei dared to risk offending Cao Cao to come and help, Tao Qian naturally couldn't be stingy either.

He ordered five carts of wine and meat, and thirty carts of grain and fodder to be sent to Liu Bei's camp.

This caused Liu's soldiers, who were used to hardship, to burst into thunderous cheers.

Set up camp

Tao Qian sent a messenger with supplies to invite Liu Bei into the city again, saying he wanted to visit the governor's mansion to discuss military matters.

Liu Bei agreed and entered Tancheng with Guan Yu and Lu Yong.

Tao Qian hosted a family banquet at the governor's mansion.

The dishes weren't particularly elaborate, but the portions were generous, and the wine was a good local wine from Xuzhou.

Tao Qian sat in the main seat, flanked by prominent figures from Xuzhou such as Chen Deng and Mi Zhu.

Liu Bei sat in the guest seat, while Lu Yong and Guan Yu sat to his left.

After a few rounds of drinks, Tao Qian began to talk about the hardships and difficulties Xuzhou had faced in recent years.

Cao Cao was ruthless and merciless, while Yuan Shu harbored wolfish ambitions.

Liu Bei, meanwhile, was doing his best to cooperate with his performance, cursing both Cao Cao and Yuan Shu.

The two of them talked back and forth, and when they got emotional, their eyes even reddened.

Lu Yong was dumbfounded, thinking to himself that with these two guys' acting skills, they would probably be more than qualified to win an Oscar.

After several rounds of drinks and dishes, and after all the feudal lords had been thoroughly insulted,

Tao Qian finally put down his wine glass and stood up, leaning on the table for support.

In an instant, the entire room fell silent.

Tao Qian glanced at Liu Bei, then at Lu Yong and Guan Yu, and said:

"Xuande, I intend to entrust you with the command of the four thousand most elite Danyang soldiers in Xuzhou."

Additionally, you can recruit soldiers on your own within the territory of Xuzhou.

The grain and fodder will be supplied entirely by Xuzhou!

Upon hearing this, Chen Deng and the others all showed expressions of surprise, but no one stood up to object.

Liu Bei was stunned for a moment, then stood up and solemnly bowed deeply to Tao Qian, saying, "Since Lord Tao trusts me so much, I will certainly live up to your expectations."

He thought to himself, "With four thousand Danyang soldiers, plus my original two thousand or so, and some more recruited locally in Xuzhou, it shouldn't be a problem to gather a force of ten thousand."

Although it couldn't compare to Cao Cao's tens of thousands of troops, it should be sufficient for defending the city.

Tao Qian sat down again, waved his hand and said, "Xuande, there's no need for such formalities. The survival of Xuzhou depends on this battle. The stronger your forces are, the more secure Xuzhou will be."

Having said all that, the banquet was coming to an end.

It was already completely dark when Tao Qian ordered his men to prepare three guest rooms for Liu Bei, Guan Yu, and Lu Yong to stay overnight in his residence.

The three people gathered in Liu Bei's room.

Guan Yu spoke first, saying, "Brother, I never expected that Tao Gongzu would value us so much. I misunderstood him before."

Liu Bei smiled slightly, turned to look at Lu Yong, and said, "All of this is just as Huai'an predicted."

Guan Yu raised an eyebrow slightly, then nodded slightly and said, "Just as the strategist predicted, Tao Qian, out of gratitude, has already reciprocated!"

Lu Yong picked up his teacup, took a sip, and then said, "Xuzhou has suffered from war for a long time..."

Moreover, Yuan Shu, a wolf in sheep's clothing, was in power to the south, while Cao Cao, a fierce tiger, was surrounding them to the west.

Tao Qian was dealing with two sides, and was already physically and mentally exhausted.

He had sought help from all sides, but no warlord was willing to come to his aid. He must have felt helpless and desperate.

Our arrival at this time is tantamount to giving him a second chance at life.

Naturally, he would cling tightly to this lifeline of ours.

Upon hearing this, Guan Yu nodded slightly: "So, it's a done deal that Tao Gongzu will recommend my elder brother to the court?!"

"Let's wait and see!" Lu Yong replied with a smile.

Guan Yu stroked his long beard and finally revealed a rare smile.

Liu Bei couldn't help but ask about his worries: "Huai'an, if Cao Cao really retreats, what should we do?"

Upon hearing this, Guan Yu couldn't help but ask, "Why would Cao Cao retreat so easily if he hadn't taken Xuzhou?"

Lu Yong did not rush to answer, but instead dipped his finger in the tea in the bowl and drew a sketch on the table.

He first drew a large circle on the left and wrote the character "兖".

He then drew two circles on the right side and wrote "Xu" and "Yang" on them respectively.

To the north, another circle is drawn with the word "Green" written on it.

"My lord, please observe."

After finishing the painting, Lu Yong said:

Cao Cao formed an alliance with Yuan Shao and Liu Biao.

Tao Qian formed an alliance with Gongsun Zan and Yuan Shu.

The two forces are locked in a fierce standoff, neither willing to yield an inch of ground.

Now, Yuan Shao is locked in a fierce battle with Gongsun Bogui.

Yuan Shu, this terrible ally, was so afraid of Cao Cao that he turned his attention to the territory of his ally Tao Qian.

If Cao Cao doesn't seize the opportunity to take over the weakest province, Xu Province,

So regardless of whether Yuan Shao completely defeats Gongsun Zan,

Alternatively, if Yuan Shu were to take Xuzhou first, Cao Cao would be in a very passive position.

Even if he can't take Xuzhou in one fell swoop this time, he will always come back stronger one day!

Liu Bei and Guan Yu both stared at the tea-stained map on the table.

Qi Qi fell silent.