My younger brother Zhuge Liang

Chapter 218 This moment is just like that moment

Half a month after the Battle of Mengjin.

Lu Bu, who had made meritorious service twice but was also wounded by a crossbow, finally sat in the padded and shock-absorbing carriage and slowly returned to his residence in Xudu.

After breaking through the enemy's formation and killing Yan Liang that day, Cao's army won a small victory and also defeated Yuan's army's morale.

However, the main force sent by Yuan Shao was still led by the famous general Qu Yi, and the overall battle situation in Henei still did not change decisively.

When he was in Xuzhou, Lu Bu, who had been defeated repeatedly and had lost his morale, regained his confidence after he luckily killed Yan Liang, who was in poor condition, in a sneak attack. Later, he was used by Cao Cao again and was taken to Huai County to fight against Qu Yi.

The two armies fought a fierce battle, with heavy casualties on both sides. Cao Cao tried to take advantage of the fact that Yan Liang was dead and the cavalry sent by Yuan Shao was seriously damaged, and used his mobility to outflank and destroy Yuan's army.

But Qu Yi had always been good at defeating cavalry with crossbows, and Gongsun Zan was a lesson for him. Even though Cao Cao had studied the reasons why Gongsun Zan suffered a loss and made some adjustments, Qu Yi had also been improving in recent years, and in the end, both sides suffered losses.

Lu Bu felt that he was on the rise, and relying on the momentum he had gained from killing Yan Liang, he wanted to charge into Qu Yi's central army.

In the end, it was proved that in the Battle of Mengjin, he just took advantage of the chance of a sneak attack and the fact that Yan Liang had just run for dozens of miles and was in poor physical condition.

This time, Qu Yi had been on guard and would not go to the front line at all. He also had a dense array of halberd guards beside him and a crossbow formation outside, making it impossible for the enemy to rush over.

Lü Bu eventually paid the price in the Battle of Huai County, being shot by several crossbow arrows that had first arrived in the camp. Most of them failed to penetrate his armor, only one left a through-wound in his thigh, and several others killed Lü Bu's horse.

Fortunately, in order to prevent Lu Bu from escaping, Cao Cao did not allow him to ride the Red Hare in these two battles, so it was not a pity if he was shot to death.

Fortunately, at the last moment, Lu Bu realized that he could no longer lead the team to break through. When he was about 150 meters away from Qu Yi, he used his special five-stone strong bow and armor-piercing arrows to shoot in the direction of Qu Yi, and also shot Qu Yi with an arrow, causing Qu Yi to be seriously injured as well.

After all, there was no chance for the "Shooting the Halberd at the Gate" to happen in this time and space. Zhuge Jin traveled through time a few months before the Shooting the Halberd at the Gate was supposed to happen and changed the subsequent course of events, preventing Liu Bei from going back and submitting to Lu Bu.

Therefore, the world still does not fully understand Lü Bu's reputation as a sharpshooter. Qu Yi only guarded against Lü Bu's cavalry charge, but neglected to guard against cold arrows, which was a price he paid.

However, Qu Yi lived up to his reputation as a famous general. He endured the pain and did not let the news of his being shot spread. He also ordered his guards to cut off the arrow shaft and imitated Liu Bang's trick of "the enemy shot my toe" to maintain morale. After forcing Cao's army to retreat, he ordered his troops to withdraw in an orderly manner and then passed out.

As Cao's army retreated, the morale of Yang Chou's garrison in Huai County was greatly shaken that day.

After all, the Huai County defenders did not know that Qu Yi was also seriously injured. They only saw that the reinforcements who were "besieging the city and attacking the reinforcements" were repelled by the besieging troops.

A military commander and a small group of other officers in the Huai County garrison began to contact Yuan Shao, offering to surrender in exchange for their lives and their official positions. Qu Yi himself was already injured and unable to command the battle, so he let his deputy general lead the surrendered general Sui Gu and others to attack the city, and used the internal response to surrender and kill Yang Chou.

It can only be said that Yan Liang, Lu Bu, and Qu Yi all paid the price for their arrogance or "arrogance". Whoever was arrogant suffered casualties. The same was true for Hou Cheng, Song Xian, and Wei Xu before.

After Lu Bu of Cao's army was injured and left the battlefield, Yuan Shao continued to increase his strength.

Just a few days later, generals Guo Tu and Wen Chou were sent to reinforce Qu Yi. After hearing that Qu Yi was seriously injured and unable to perform his duties, Yuan Shao asked his literati to submit another petition, recommending Guo Tu as the Inspector of the Imperial Guards, although he knew that Cao Cao would not approve it. The Inspector of the Imperial Guards recognized by the Xudu court was still Zhong Yao.

Cao Cao was very worried and once again asked his trusted adviser Guo Jia and others for advice.

Guo Jia thought about it again and again, and offered a suggestion: "Your Excellency is in charge of Henei, and you have a basis in national law and justice. Yuan Shao previously used Qu Yi as a cover to attack Henei, all under the pretext of punishing the traitor Yang Chou.

Now that Huai County has been captured and Yang Chou has been killed by Sui Gu, who surrendered to Qu Yi, it is better to try to make peace with Yuan Shao temporarily, delay for a few months, and then make long-term plans. You only need to hint to Yuan Shao: accept his excuse for attacking Hanoi, and the court will guarantee that it will not pursue the matter.

We have temporarily accepted the counties east and north of Huai County in Henei that Yuan Shao has occupied, and we do not ask to take them back. But we hope that Yuan Shao will immediately cease fire and stop attacking Yewang, Wen County and other places, so that our army will at least have a buffer on the other side of the Yellow River north of Luoyang.

If Yuan Shao had insisted on attacking after Yang Chou's death and the imperial court had already put down the rebellion, he would have been disrespectful to the imperial court."

Cao Cao thought it made sense. Indeed, Yuan Shao had only wanted to create friction until now, but had not dared to officially start a war or openly betray the court. This showed that Yuan Shao was still afraid of the greater good.

Historically, before the Battle of Guandu, Yuan Shao hesitated for about half a year to find a more sufficient excuse to start a war. In the end, he waited until the Yidaizhao broke out before starting the war.

Although Cao Cao didn't know these things that had not yet happened, he knew Yuan Shao's temper too well.

With Yang Chou's death, the deadlock was temporarily resolved.

Cao Cao stroked his beard and agreed with Guo Jia's idea in principle, but he couldn't help asking a few more questions: "Feng Xiao's trick may be able to temporarily delay Yuan Shao for a few months, but it is absolutely impossible to delay it forever.

If we can gain a few months now, what should our army do to ensure that the balance of power will be significantly reversed when we go to war with Yuan Shao again in the future?

If we just rest and recuperate, train soldiers, store grain, and build weapons, then these few months will be meaningless. While we are resting, Yuan Shao is also resting. He has so many more people and fields than the court, and time is on Yuan Shao's side! "

Guo Jia was well prepared for Cao Cao's concern and responded immediately: "The few months of respite that Jia has won for you are certainly not a waste of time to recuperate, but to give you more opportunities to win over foreign aid, win over local princes to the court, and solve your worries.

Yuan Shao dared to start a war now, he must have tried to win over the local lords, hoping to attack us from the side and rear. Liu Bei of Yangzhou, Liu Biao of Jingzhou, Liu Pi of Runan, Zhang Xiu of Wancheng, Duan Wei of Guanzhong, and Ma Teng of Longxi could all be won over.

The imperial court was previously on the defensive, because as long as Yuan Shao had no intention of starting a war, we dared not win over other princes in advance to oppose Yuan Shao and stimulate him. In terms of winning over the princes, the imperial court was destined to be the one who struck back.

Although Yuan Shao took the initiative, we used an excuse to stop him. Doesn't this give us time to win him over and make amends? "

After listening to this, Cao Cao finally understood.

Indeed, Yuan Shao could have secretly planned to win over people to deal with him, but he could not win over people to deal with Yuan Shao in advance.

So after Yuan Shao had taken some action, he suddenly stepped on the brakes, which was very disadvantageous to Yuan Shao!

Yuan Shao had already played all his diplomatic cards, and I haven't had the chance to play them yet, so I need this time difference to play them.

So Cao Cao was very flexible and even asked the court to send envoys to privately acknowledge Yuan Shao's vested interests and use humble words and manners.

On the other hand, he had already sent messengers to contact Zhang Xiu, promising him a high position and generous salary, and directly conferred the title of county marquis on Zhang Xiu in order to win him over. He also secretly sent several groups of people to promote Duan Wei and Ma Teng, to meet Zhang Xian, the governor of Changsha who was behind Liu Biao, and Sun Ce, the governor of Wujun who was behind Liu Bei...

Yuan Shao was very concerned about his reputation and wanted to maintain his righteous position, but he was forcibly pulled back by Cao Cao's wrist.

……

Of course, Lu Bu, who had just returned to Xu Du injured, had no idea how Cao Cao was fighting with Yuan Shao and how he was urgently trying to win over other princes from other garrisons, nor did he care.

The only thing that made Lu Bu feel relieved was that he helped kill Yan Liang and injured Qu Yi, and Cao Cao was still trustworthy in fulfilling his reward.

On the first day of the great court meeting after Lü Bu returned to Xu Du, the emperor issued an edict to restore Lü Bu to his post as Right General.

The process was able to proceed so quickly, probably because Lu Bu personally braved the arrows and stones and was hit by a crossbow arrow sent by Qu Yi who first entered the camp, which pierced his thigh.

They have worked so hard, if the promotion is delayed, it will make other generals feel disappointed. At this critical juncture, Cao Cao cannot be stingy with official positions.

When Lü Bu became the Right General, he should have held a banquet and received many gifts. However, he had to give up drinking recently and was injured so he couldn't eat and drink too much, so he used this as an excuse to decline the offer and didn't plan to hold a banquet.

Many high-ranking civil and military officials in the Xudu court were actually afraid of such occasions. Lü Bu was nominally a high-ranking official, and it would be embarrassing not to go after receiving the invitation. If he went, he was afraid that Cao Cao would be suspicious. Now that Lü Bu took the initiative to say that he could not hold a banquet because he was recovering from his injuries, these people were relieved.

This is the best! It is convenient for everyone! Leave some room for us to meet again in the future.

However, even though I won't be attending the banquet, I still have to give gifts, just smaller ones.

In just a few days, Lu Bu received hundreds of gifts. As he was injured, he had no intention of opening them, so he asked Yan Shi and Diao Chan to help him open them.

After all, Yan was a woman of modest means, and not from a prominent family, so she didn't have much experience. Seeing her husband accepting so many gifts from important officials in the court, she was actually quite happy.

Thinking that the Lu family would slowly rise again after coming to the capital, he read out the gift lists to Lu Bu in great detail.

In comparison, although Diao Chan was more humble, she was born as a servant of a rich family and had come from a bloody struggle circle. Her vision was better than Yan's. She couldn't help but persuade:
"Sister, this may not be a good thing. If you ask me, my husband is now in a dangerous situation, so he should avoid making friends with court officials to avoid Cao Cao's suspicion. Don't return those small gifts below 20 pieces of colored silk in the future. It's better to let people say that we don't know the rules. Just pick a few special gifts and pay attention to them."

Although Yan Shi was not very knowledgeable, she was self-aware and listened to advice. Over the years, she also knew that she was not as good as Diao Chan.

So she quickly re-sorted the list, put aside the gift lists of the courtiers who were just nodding acquaintances, and only focused on picking out a few who had given expensive gifts, and asked Lu Bu to decide:
"My dear, I didn't expect that when you returned to the position of Right General, the one who gave you the most generous gift was General Dong Cheng, a total of 300 pieces of colorful satin, 30 ingots of horseshoe gold, and a lot of rare jewels.

Isn't General Wei more honorable than the generals in front, behind, left and right? Since he is a superior, why does he have to send such a heavy gift? If I don't return the greeting, wouldn't it be too rude?"

After listening to his wife's report, Lu Bu also raised his eyebrows slightly and said calmly: "General Wei is a relative of the emperor, but he doesn't hold much power. Maybe he thinks that his status is superior and he doesn't need to avoid suspicion. Who else sent expensive gifts?"

Yan carefully sorted through them, picked out a few and pointed at them, saying, "There are also two deputy generals and two lieutenants, all of them are here."

Lu Bu took the gift list, but he couldn't see anything in common among these people.

He thought about it, took all the gift lists, and threw them into the charcoal brazier to burn.

Yan was shocked and wanted to ask why, but was stopped by Diao Chan.

Lu Bu looked at the ashes in the charcoal basin and said, "I don't know why they sent such expensive gifts, but we should not publicize it. People don't know who is more important and who is less important. Most of these people are of lower status than me, so we should not return the greetings one by one.

The general of the guard ranks higher than me, so of course he has to return the greeting. Other officials who rank higher than me, no matter how small the gift is, such as Zhao Si Tu and Yang Tai Wei, all have to return the greeting. Forget about Xun Yu, he is too smart and can easily see that I am guilty. "

Lu Bu originally did not have this kind of political intelligence, but after a few months in Xudu, he also summed up some tricks to save his life under Cao Cao's nose. Although in the eyes of wise men, it was still relatively clumsy.

……

For the next three days, Lu Bu returned the greetings to all those who had sent him gifts and whose official positions were higher than his, from the highest to the lowest, despite their injuries.

His leg was injured, so he was carried by the guards. Seeing how cautious he was, Zhao Wen and Yang Biao, the mascots, told him not to be polite and to go back and rest. Others thought he was just being cautious and didn't think much of it.

With the help of Zhao Wen and Yang Biao, when Lu Bu returned to pay his respects to Dong Cheng on the third day, no one noticed him.

Dong Cheng was given the position of General of the Guards as a relative of the emperor after he escorted the emperor back to the east.

The Han Dynasty system ranked the General of Guards below the General of Chariots and Cavalry, and was the last of the first tier of "Great Cavalry Guards", ranking below the Three Dukes and above the Nine Ministers. So after paying his respects to the Minister of the Interior and the Grand Commandant, it was the turn of the General of Guards.

Compared with the routine attitude of Zhao Wen and Yang Biao, Dong Cheng was very enthusiastic when he met Lu Bu, which formed a sharp contrast.

Lu Bu was suspicious and wondered if Dong Cheng really had something to do with him.

At this moment, there was no one around, so Lu Bu asked directly: "I am just a surrendered general, why is General Wei so polite..."

Dong Cheng immediately said, "Why is it that Lord Wen is so distant? We have known each other for ten years. We were both ministers in Chang'an. When Minister Wang was in power, Lord Wen was above me.

The world is unpredictable. In the past ten years, many famous ministers and generals have been extremely powerful, but they have disappeared in the blink of an eye. Dong Zhuo, Wang Situ, Li Jue, Guo Si and others, who was not powerful in the court at the peak of their power? Where are they now?
In such a turbulent time, the right thing to do is to endure. Although Wen Hou has suffered a minor setback, you have been through many ups and downs, so how dare Cheng compare with you based on your current official title!"

These words touched Lu Bu's heart directly. Lu Bu could not help but stare into a daze for a long time, lost in nostalgia for the glorious past.

Dong Cheng did not interrupt him, but just let Lu Bu recall.

After an unknown amount of time, Lu Bu finally pulled his thoughts back to normal, and suddenly felt a sense of alert: Why did he feel so similar to the feeling he had seven or eight years ago when Wang Yun invited him to drink?
At that moment, at this moment.

(End of this chapter)