Late Han Zhao Tang

Chapter 110 Shocked, Lu Bu is my brother
The weather in the clouds is changeable. It was sunny this morning, but a sandstorm started to blow at noon, making the flags flutter and the livestock neigh restlessly.

Lu Bu looked at the Yunzhong Yicong army from afar and his eyelids twitched. What was the difference between them and the Xianbei Hu?

The army in front of them was so long that they could not see the end of the line of cattle and sheep. More than a thousand cavalrymen were scattered outside in twos and threes. In the army, some Hu women were sitting on carts, some were carried on horses by Han cavalrymen; some were staggering on foot, and some were driving sheep and cattle for the Han army.

Seeing that there were few men and many women in his team, Lü Bu was suspicious that Zhang Yu had killed all the men who resisted and only robbed women and livestock. However, it must be said that the men of this Zhang family were too fierce. The fierce Xianbei Hu in the past were actually subdued by Zhang Yu.

"Father!"

Zhang Yu rode ahead quickly and saw Zhang Ji and Lu Bu, then dismounted.

Zhang Ji stepped forward quickly, held Zhang Yu's arm, and said excitedly: "It's only been over a year since we last met, and my son has already been conferred the title of Marquis of Ting. He really has made great progress!"

Lu Bu was tactful and did not join the conversation between the father and son. Instead, he waited for a while, then bowed and said, "Your Majesty's reputation is well known throughout the border. I have heard a lot about it. Now I am here to meet you!"

Zhang Ji was afraid that Zhang Yu didn't know him, so he took the initiative to introduce him: "Jian, Lv Jun Fengxian, a native of Jiuyuan in Wuyuan County. Now that I know that I will go to Chengle, I have led my troops to accompany me. Fengxian is an amazing archer, skilled in bow and horse, and his bravery is well-known in the border areas. Many Xianbei people are afraid of his name!"

"Yu meets Mr. Lu. I have heard of your name for a long time!" said Zhang Yu.

Zhang Yu attacked Lu Bu, who was rumored to be a "wife-loving general". Without looking at Lu Bu's history of betraying his master, just looking at Lu Bu's appearance, one can praise his sturdy figure, which shows that he has the ability to defeat ten thousand enemies.

People in later generations may have different opinions on how good Lü Bu's martial arts skills were. However, Zhang Yu, who was proficient in archery, dared to say that Lü Bu's archery skills of shooting the halberd at the gate were enough to dwarf many people who claimed to be skilled in archery and horsemanship, and he could be called a master archer.

Lü Bu looked at the vast herd of livestock and said with envy: "Your Excellency has led the cavalry out of the border this time, and it seems that you have gained a lot!"

Zhang Yu looked over and saw that Lü Bu seemed to be greedy. Considering Lü Bu's greedy nature, he said with a smile, "Bo Song will give Lü Jun a thousand sheep!"

"promise!"

Hearing this, Lu Bu smiled and declined politely, saying, "Your Excellency has worked hard in the battles outside the border. I dare not accept such a generous gift."

Zhang Yu was very generous and said, "My family Zhang and Mr. Lu are both guarding the border, and our families look forward to helping each other. Mr. Lu has taken the trouble to lead his troops and my father here, so please do not refuse this small gift."

"Thank you, Lord!"

Lu Bu said with a smile on his face.

Zhang Yu's reputation has now spread throughout the border areas. Nowadays, anyone who is interested in a career in politics knows the story of Zhang Yu leading his troops across the border, fighting two fierce battles in one day, killing and capturing too many prisoners, and being made a marquis in one battle.

Lu Bu was proud of his bravery and was envious and jealous of Zhang Yu, who he had heard of. Now Lu Bu went out to the border, mainly because he wanted to make friends with Zhang Yu. After all, jealousy is jealousy, if you want to move up, you still have to lower yourself and make friends with more noble people.

When Lü Bu went to collect the sheep, Zhang Ji asked curiously, "How about Ji'an going out to the border to kill prisoners this time?"

Zhang Yu smiled and said, "During this expedition, we killed nearly a thousand Hu heads, eliminated the women of Xu Yi's subordinates, captured more than 2,000 Hu people, and killed 3,000 captives. Although many of them were old and weak, they were handed over to the court, which is another military achievement."

Compared with the last time when more than 700 people were beheaded, this time more than 1,000 people were beheaded because most of them were old and weak, so the value was lower. But no matter what, the old and weak were also counted as heads, even if there would be a discount, there were also captured Hu people among them. In any case, Zhang Yu had already made a great military achievement in this hunting of Hu people.

Hearing about Zhang Yu's achievements, Zhang Ji took a deep breath and said, "Will Ji'an be promoted again, or given an additional fiefdom?"

Zhang Yu estimated himself and said, "I was promoted to Cavalry Commandant at the beginning of the year, and it has only been three or four months. It is difficult for me to be promoted. The court will certainly order me to move. As for the increase in my fiefdom, I don't know how much it will increase, maybe three hundred, or five hundred. It is impossible for me to be a county marquis."

Zhang Yu's two achievements were made too close together, so it is difficult for the court to give him a major promotion. However, in order to reward Zhang Yu's achievements, the court should remove Zhang Yu from his deputy position and no longer serve as the Protector General of the Xiongnu Wang Rou, but promote him to the position of chief officer.

As for the title, it can be said that the same is true. If Zhang Yu's two achievements were separated by a longer period of time, the court would have conferred him the title of Marquis of Xiang as a reward. But now it is more likely that he will be rewarded with an additional fiefdom, rather than being relocated to the title of Marquis of Xiang.

Zhang Ji was filled with emotion and said, "My ancestor was the highest official in the Zhang family, the governor of Xihe, and then he moved to Yunzhong due to some matters. Ji An traveled to Luoyang for several years, and now he has returned home for only one year, and he has been promoted twice. It is unimaginable!"

What Zhang Yu said had a huge impact on Zhang Ji. He had worked hard at the frontier for so many years to build up that little bit of foundation, but Zhang Yu not only did it easily, he even did it better than him.

Zhang Yu smiled and said, "It's just luck. If Budugen hadn't restrained Qianman, I wouldn't have been able to capture so many prisoners!"

Zhang Ji pondered for a moment and asked, "What are Ji'an's plans when he arrives in Dingxiang?"

"The Guhou tribe of the Lan family has weakened and dispersed, and I was appointed as the Protector General, so I want to reunite the Lan family and move them to another place." Zhang Yu said. Although he was appointed as the Protector General, Zhang Yu had other ideas in his mind. He planned to follow the example of governing the southern part of Zuo, or to take a more radical plan than governing the southern part of Zuo, and try to control the Lan family as much as possible.

Although the Lan clan was weaker than the southern left clan, it still had 2,000 tents, with a population of at least 10,000. If the 2,000 tents in the southern left clan were added, Zhang Yu would be able to control more than 4,000 tents, with a population far exceeding 20,000, or even close to 30,000.

Thirty thousand people may not seem like a lot, but don't forget that they are a semi-agricultural and semi-pastoral Southern Xiongnu. If they need to recruit soldiers and horses, they may have three to four thousand people. Add to that the professional volunteers Zhang Yu has, and unless all the counties in Bingzhou are united to deal with him, Zhang Yu will be able to run rampant in Bingzhou.

Zhang Ji looked at the huge procession, then turned back to look at the more than 200 cavalrymen he led, hesitated, and said: "My father is old and it is difficult for him to take care of the affairs of Chanhewu. Why don't you let Ji'an take charge of the affairs of Chanhewu on my father's behalf?"

Zhang Yu understood his father's intention and asked, "Does my uncle have any objection?"

Zhang Ji shook his head and said, "I have discussed this with my uncle. It would be better if you were in charge of Zhang's business. If Ji'an wants to move Chanhewu to Pingcheng or Neijun, you can let me know."

Zhang Yu's achievements were beyond the reach of his fathers, and considering the future of the family, it would be more appropriate to let Zhang Yu take charge of Chanhewu. Zhang Ji's willingness to move to Chanhewu indicated that he had given up his official position.

Zhang Yu thought for a while and said, "It would be time-consuming and laborious to move Chanhewu, so it is better to stay in its original place. Moreover, it is only more than 200 miles away from Chanhebi Salt Pond. If the fort is in danger or Chanhebi is in trouble, the two can help each other."

Zhang Yu pointed to the long queue and said, "Father, we have captured more than 200 Han people in the army. You can take them to supplement the population of Chanhewu. In addition to the Han people, there are also many Hu women, and some cattle and sheep have been captured. You can take some back and give them to the people in the village."

"it is good!"

Zhang Ji nodded and said with a smile: "As a father, I should tell everyone that this is the grace bestowed by the newly promoted Marquis Zhang."

"Haha!" Zhang Yu laughed a few times.

With the help of Zhang Ji and Lu Bu, Zhang Yu and his entourage successfully returned to the frontier and headed west into Dingxiang County.

Lu Bu seemed to understand Zhang Yu's military achievements during this expedition, and his attitude became more friendly and enthusiastic. However, due to his status, Lu Bu could not flatter Zhang Yu. So after some thought, Lu Bu approached Zhang Ji to establish a relationship with him.

Lu Bu and Zhang rode side by side. In order to enhance their relationship, Lu Bu took the initiative to talk about his hometown.

"Jiuyuan was plundered by the Hu people. My parents are dead. I have to leave my hometown and have few relatives, unlike Mr. Zhang who has relatives around me. Now I don't know what my hometown looks like, and I don't know if I can be buried in my hometown after my death. That's why I often can't sleep all night, and I can only fall asleep by drinking." Lu Bu sighed.

Zhang Ji comforted him, "Fengxian, don't be too sad. Now that things have come to this, you should focus on taking care of your health. I heard that Fengxian likes to drink a lot. From now on, you should drink less and focus on your health."

Hearing this, Lu Bu was touched and said, "I haven't heard Zhang Gong's words of advice for a long time."

After that, Lu Bu got off his horse, looked sincere, and said with his hands clasped: "I have been wandering for half my life, and I hate that I have no relatives by my side. I heard Mr. Zhang's words of advice, which sounded like the words of my parents in the old days. Mr. Zhang is much older than me, and if you don't abandon me now, I am willing to worship you as my uncle."

"Fengxian!"

Zhang Ji was about to dismount to help, but Lu Bu, seeing that Zhang Ji had difficulty walking, took the lead in stepping forward to support Zhang Ji.

Seeing such a sincere Lu Bu, Zhang Ji wanted to refuse, but considering Lu Bu's face and Lu Bu's own martial arts, after some hesitation, Zhang Ji agreed.

Zhang Ji sighed slightly and said, "Fengxian is too polite. The Zhang and Lu families look up to each other and help each other. The relationship between you and me is deep. Fengxian wants to respectfully call Ji uncle, how dare I refuse?"

"Greetings to my uncle!" Lu Bu said with great courtesy.

"How polite!"

Zhang Ji helped Lü Bu up and said, "Fengxian and I can call each other uncle and nephew, but please don't perform grand formalities, I'm afraid it will be difficult for me."

"promise!"

Not to mention that Zhang Ji treated Lu Bu as uncle and nephew because he was concerned about Lu Bu's reputation and was looking for help for the Zhang family.

When Zhang Yu learned the news, he almost fell off his horse.

It should be noted that uncle is also father. As an expert in killing fathers, Lu Bu wonders whether he will swing his sword at Zhang in the future, or whether he will develop into a "slave of four surnames"!
(End of this chapter)