Tiger Guards

Chapter 333 Methods of Struggle
Liu Biao's envoy team stayed for several more days, and at Zhao Jiqiang's insistence, Fu Xun reluctantly agreed to stay.

However, when they headed south, Wei Yue also led several dozen cavalrymen through the pass.

Sparrow Valley, Post Station.

Wei Yue and his group arrived through the wind and snow, making the inn even more crowded.

They spotted each other immediately.

The postmaster tried to approach him, but Wei Yue pushed him away and went straight up to the people sitting around the fire pit, asking, "Who are you?"

Pei Qian stood up and cupped his hands in greeting: "What do you mean, General? We are merchants from Hedong."

"Business travelers?"

Wei Yue scrutinized Pei Qian carefully. Pei Qian took out his bamboo tally and offered it to him, but then took it back and refused to give it to him: "Who are you, General?"

"General Who Pacifies Bandits, Wei Yue."

After Wei Yue finished speaking, he directly reached out and snatched the bamboo tally from Pei Qian's hand. He saw that it was stamped with the seal of Wenxi County Government, and the identity information was Pei Qian, courtesy name Wenxing from Beixiang.

After examining the bamboo tally's craftsmanship, Wei Yue lowered his brows and scrutinized Pei Qian, then handed the tally back, saying, "My apologies for my disrespect."

His gaze swept over Pei Qian's left and right sides. One was burly, with a loose leather coat over what appeared to be close-fitting armor; the other was thin, with a slightly protruding forehead. His coarse features alone made Wei Yue lose interest in asking him any further questions, and he guessed that this mercenary-looking man was probably an accountant.

"Give me the best feed for my horses, and you'll be well paid for the reward and the feed!"

Wei Yue dragged his slightly stiff and inconvenient left leg and turned to leave. He glanced at his personal guard, who then took out three gold ingots and threw them to the postmaster in front of everyone.

The postmaster caught the general with both hands and held him protectively in his arms: "General, please rest in the inner hall."

"Ah."

Wei Yue agreed, and two bodyguards went to the inner hall ahead of him. After confirming that there were no problems, Wei Yue went in.

I found that the firewalls here were very hot and the space was spacious, but the lighting wasn't very good.

On the heated kang beds built on both sides of the room, a dozen or so men dressed in official robes were sitting or lying down.

Upon seeing Wei Yue enter in full armor, those whose eyes had adjusted to the dim light inside the room rose to their feet, saying, "Greetings, General."

"No need to be polite."

Wei Yue casually waved his hand and sat down on the edge of the kang (heated brick bed) closest to the fire wall. His personal guards came forward to help him pull off his combat boots, and his feet immediately started steaming.

Wei Yue placed his combat boots near the fire wall to dry, then lay down on his side deep inside the heated kang (a traditional heated brick bed), as more and more of his personal guards poured in.

The postmaster also brought over an oil lamp to provide lighting for the place.

The guards who followed Wei Yue on the journey were already exhausted, and only such inns or towns along the way were safe.

Apart from a few people who stayed outside to keep watch, most people followed Wei Yue and went to sleep as soon as they lay down.

In the outer hall, gusts of cold wind squeezed in through the cracks in the door.

Seeing that Wei Yue and his group were staying in the inner hall and not coming out, Pei Qian waited until the postmaster finished his work before going over to ask, "Is the house cleaned up?"

The postmaster glanced at a few of Wei Yue's personal guards and said, "I have already ordered people to clean up."

"Okay, I'll prepare a more substantial dinner, so it won't be too difficult for you."

After Pei Qian finished speaking, he walked towards the door, and his entourage also stood up.

The postmaster quickly stepped forward to open the door and personally escorted Pei Qian and his party out, leading them to a small courtyard in the backyard.

The area is indeed still being cleaned, mainly to rekindle the kang (heated brick bed), which will take some time.

Pei Qian reached out and touched the heated kang bed under the straw mat. It was warm to the touch. He said, "Let's make do with this for now."

Wang Can also had an indifferent attitude. This was how he trekked northwards. When traveling along the Wuguan Road, it was already quite good to have a place to shelter from the wind.

Wang Can sat on the edge of the heated kang and said, "Wei Yue has arrived. We will leave first thing tomorrow morning."

"No, no matter how fast we go, if Wei Yue comes after us, we will have no chance of escaping."

Pei Qian pondered for a moment and then said, "After passing Huoyi, we will visit the temple of Emperor Yao. If Wei Yue comes to ask us tomorrow morning, we will give him the same answer."

Zhao Ji also arranged for envoys to go to Jingzhou, but instead of choosing people from Jinyang, he chose Guanqiu Xing and Guan Shang, who were left in the Marquisate of Pingyang.

Guan Shang recovered from his injuries, but missed too many opportunities.

Since Guan Shang was still young, Zhao Ji planned to send him to Jingzhou to broaden his experience, earn some merit, and hopefully get a promotion.

Only after Pei Qian, Wang Can, and others joined forces with Guanqiu Xing and Guan Shang could they have the ability to resist Wei Yue.

The fear now is that Wei Yue might suddenly make a move, like killing the envoy and using a fait accompli to force Zhao Ji into a corner.

Unfortunately, Wei Yue didn't care about their identities. Once he confirmed Pei Qian's background, Wei Yue didn't want to cause any trouble.

Knowing that Pei Qian's entourage was Liu Biao's official envoy, Wei Yue did not want to cause any unnecessary trouble.

He might not know Zhao Ji very well, but he knew Lü Bu very well. Zhao Ji accomplished what Lü Bu wanted to do but couldn't; to do such a thing under Zhao Ji's nose was practically suicide.

Wei Yue came to persuade Zhao Ji, not to seek death.

And so, the next day, Wei Yue ate and drank well and set off as usual; while Pei Qian and his party, filled with fear and apprehension, detoured to the west bank of the Fen River before finally arriving in Jiangyi, taking two days longer than expected.

In the East Courtyard reception room of the Grand Marshal's residence.

Wei Yue changed into a brocade robe, took a bath, and came to see Zhao Ji looking refreshed.

Today, Zhao Ji is preparing a feast with mutton. A castrated ram that is half a month old is used to make soup from its bones, and the mutton is frozen solid and then sliced ​​into thin pieces.

Between Zhao Ji and Wei Yue's tables was a charcoal brazier, inside which were two layers of pebbles that had been roasted and heated.

Wei and Vietnam fought their conquests in the north and south; what kind of food hadn't they seen?

Just by looking at the structure of the charcoal brazier that was brought over, you knew how to eat it.

After the servants left, Zhao Ji used chopsticks to lightly dip the mutton fat into the pebbles around the pot, as if to moisten it.

He then placed slices of meat on top and said, "Today we will enjoy cooking lamb and drinking wine, and not discuss official business, so as not to hurt our harmony or spoil our mood."

Wei Yue frowned upon hearing this: "Has the Grand Marshal already made up his mind?"

"It's not that I intend to make things difficult for the General, but the current situation is good for me and good for the General."

Seeing the mutton slices change color on both sides, Zhao Ji picked one up and put it in his mouth, chewing as he said, "Liu Biao has devoted himself to supplying the court. If he is attacked, how will the people of the world view the court and the General? If the General is really worried about insufficient grain reserves, he might as well lead the army when the weather warms up and support the Emperor to enter Wancheng. In this way, there will be no worries next year."

With food so close at hand, Lu Bu's main force certainly wouldn't have any problems obtaining it.

The people of Ruying are the ones who are suffering the most. The disaster victims are hard to help, and Cao Cao and Yuan Shu are eyeing them covetously.

If Lü Bu truly retreats to Nanyang to recuperate, the people of Nanyang will be overjoyed in the short term.

As for Nanyang, once Lü Bu retreated there, even if Cao Cao attacked and plundered the Ruying region, he wouldn't dare to occupy it, because it would be useless.

Cao Cao didn't even dare to send troops to occupy Ruying, let alone take the initiative to enter Nanyang to fight Lü Bu to the death.

Upon hearing this, Wei Yue also picked up some meat and grilled it, falling into deep thought.

Was the greater good of the imperial court really important to Lü Bu?
Ensuring the integrity of the newly formed Eagle Army is the most important thing.

But this is tantamount to betraying Ru Yingren. Betraying is easy, but regaining their support and cooperation will be difficult.

Wei Yue thought for a moment and then said, "If we retreat to Wancheng, what will happen if Liu Biao runs out of supplies? Furthermore, what will happen if the people of Ruying obstruct us?"

"Then do it quietly."

Zhao Ji lowered his voice: "When my envoy arrives in Jingzhou, Liu Biao will stop transporting grain and store it in the Xiangyang area. In this way, the General can send troops south and lead the Emperor on a personal expedition. During this time, I will intervene to mediate. At this point, the General's troops will reach Wancheng, and Liu Biao will also be transporting grain to Wancheng. All the transported grain will end up in the General's hands. In this way, what harm is there in the upheaval in the Central Plains?"

Wei Yue listened with narrowed eyes. This initial stage was exactly what the people of Nanyang, Ruying, and Yanzhou wanted to see.

The unexpected turn of events was Zhao Ji's mediation.

As Wei Yue focused intently on his thoughts, the slices of mutton on the pebbles sizzled, already dried out from the roasting.

The only variable is Lü Bu. When the army arrives in Nanyang, will Lü Bu be able to stop his actions in the face of Zhao Ji's mediation?

This is not something Lü Bu can stop at will; too many strategists surrounding him will try to persuade him to stop.

However, it was difficult to express this issue to Zhao Ji.

Wei Yue picked up a piece of charred meat and put it in his mouth, then picked up another piece to grill: "What if Cao Cao attacks Chenliu and Yuan Shu attacks Chen State during this time?"

"This matter is actually not difficult at all."

Zhao Ji had already calculated this many times, and said with a smile, "If the General leads his troops south to escort the Emperor, and Cao Cao and Yuan Shu do not move, it means they are happy to see Liu Biao perish. What they are happy to see is certainly not good for the General's long-term interests. Such a thing should not be done."

Wei Yue countered, "What if they send troops?"

"This shows that Liu Biao is colluding with treacherous officials. General, you may attack as you see fit, and I will not interfere. In addition, I will send troops to Hanoi to rescue Chenliu."

Zhao Ji took a sip of warm water and said in a slow, deliberate tone, "I hope the general understands that his intestines are full of maggots. If we don't kill the maggots in his abdomen, they will devour his lungs and will inevitably burst out of his body."

Wei Yue also sensed this, and slowly nodded: "I will advise him in person. However, this matter will surely displease the General."

"Between anger and life, I choose life; if he insists on choosing anger, I will not stop him."

Zhao Ji smiled nonchalantly, "Because of me, he decisively defeated Cao Cao and was appointed Grand General, reaching the pinnacle of power and achieving lasting merit. What more could he possibly want? If he's still not satisfied, then we'll all perish together. I'll retreat to Bingzhou, and among the heroes of the land, who can do anything to me?"

Wei Yue remained silent, let out a long sigh, picked up the wine bowl to gesture, then tilted his head back and drank by himself, his expression bitter.

Zhao Ji, on the other hand, remained calm and composed. If one doesn't have the awareness to part ways and start over, then one is destined to be sliced ​​up and devoured piece by piece by an ally like Lü Bu.

The more you care about gains and losses, the more likely you are to be manipulated by Lü Bu, the Xiongnu, or other forces.

If you adopt a stance of smashing the roof with a stick, these scoundrels will actually start talking to you politely.

(End of this chapter)