I did it all for the Han Dynasty!

Chapter 209 Visiting Relatives
Lü Bu believed Guan Tong's words, but Lü Bu still wanted to kill Yuan Tan!

Yuan Tan and Guo Tu in the camp couldn't understand Lü Bu for a moment, staring at each other blankly: "What kind of logic is this?"

Guo Tu was also troubled: "We can't judge Lü Bu by common sense..."

Faced with the ferocious Lu Bu, the two were completely out of options and could only engage in a fierce battle with him.

It seemed that Lü Bu truly hated Yuan Tan. He fought from day to night and still wasn't satisfied, so he ordered his soldiers to light torches and fight Yuan Tan.

After seventy or eighty days, with no food or supplies left in the army, Yuan Tan was forced to abandon the main camp and flee further south!

"Chase!"

Lu Bu didn't even bother to take over Yuan Tan's camp and was about to chase after Yuan Tan, but at this moment a scout came from behind to report that Zang Ba's army was following from behind.

"Zang Ba?"

Lu Bu remembered that he had insulted Zang Ba before, and for a moment he did not know whether Zang Ba was friend or foe. He could only temporarily lead his army back to Yuan Tan's former camp and choose to hold the position there.

"General Lü! It's me! Lu Su! Lu Zijing!"

Compared to Lü Bu's earlier attack on Yuan Tan's camp without uttering a word, Zang Ba was undoubtedly much more polite.

They stopped a few miles away from Lü Bu and sent a messenger to meet him.

Lu Bu never expected that Zang Bajun's envoy would be Lu Su.

"So that's why Zang Ba suddenly captured one of Yuan Tan's captains. It turns out Liu Miao's men were causing trouble from behind!"

Lü Bu still had some goodwill towards Lu Su.

After all, Lu Su had brought many gifts when Lu Bu was still trapped in Xiaopei, and Lu Su had also followed Lu Bu during Hao Meng's rebellion. They were practically life-or-death friends, so Lu Bu allowed Lu Su into the camp.

"Seeing you here, could it be that Liu Miao's idea was to send Zang Ba to attack Yuan Tan?"

Lu Bu had just finished killing people and fighting a battle, and the smell of blood on his body was terrifyingly strong.

If an ordinary person were to stand before Lü Bu at this moment, they would probably be unable to even stand properly, but Lu Su remained calm and composed, and his words and actions were no different from usual.

Lu Su respectfully bowed to Lü Bu: "General Liu, upon hearing that Yuan Tan is coming to attack Jiangdong, you will naturally want to find a way to deal with it. But could it be that General Liu is also involved in the matter of Yuan Tan not providing you with money and provisions and even framing Zang Ba?"

Actually, it's related...

If it weren't for bribing Xu You, Yuan Tan and Guo Tu wouldn't have resorted to such a desperate measure, leading to the current situation. Unfortunately, Lü Bu didn't know the reason behind it and simply nodded in agreement.

"Actually, this was not done by Yuan Tan!"

Lu Bu told Lu Su about killing Guan Tong on the battlefield, and Lu Su didn't know whether to laugh or cry after hearing it.

Only Lü Bu would believe that a general under Yuan Tan could embezzle such a large sum of money and grain.

What about the accountants? What about the clerks? What about the officials in charge of documents?

Even though Yuan Tan had only recently pacified Qingzhou, Lu Su didn't believe that Yuan Tan hadn't established such rules and regulations. How could a military general possibly decide on such matters involving the interactions between two forces?

Although Lu Su had already guessed that Guan Tong was probably the wronged ghost that Yuan Tan had put forward, he still couldn't help but sigh—

"Shandong is home to many virtuous men!"

Yuan Tan had only just pacified Qingzhou, so his favors to the local scholars and generals were certainly not very great. Even so, there were still righteous men like Guan Tong who were willing to die for him, which makes people sigh at the noble sentiments of the people of Qi and Lu.

At the same time, Lu Su secretly did some calculations.

Are there few people like Guan Tong in Jiangdong?
Absolutely a lot!

Liu Miao's policies in Jiangdong provided countless destitute refugees with their own land, enabling them to support themselves in the chaotic world.

Even if only one-tenth or even half of these people are willing to die for their lord as generously as Guan Tong, that would still be a terrifying number!

With these people as his foundation, Lu Su could find no reason why Liu Miao could not achieve great things.

“Even now, some people don’t understand why our lord is so ruthless in suppressing powerful families and curbing mergers… But after hearing about Guan Tong’s matter today, I realize how brilliant our lord is.”

Composing himself, Lu Su knew he still had to deal with Lü Bu.

"Why was Zijing distracted just now?"

"It's nothing. I'm just lamenting how crude Yuan Tan's management skills are, allowing others to embezzle the general's money and provisions so easily."

Lu Su decided not to expose Yuan Tan's deception of Lü Bu again, but instead asked Lü Bu, "Now that the misunderstanding has been cleared up, does the general intend to withdraw his troops?"

"Withdraw troops?! Humph!"

Lu Bu let out a disdainful snort.

“His father, Yuan Shao, wanted to kill me back then! I let it go before, but now that he’s right in front of me, wouldn’t it be a waste not to kill him?”

Lu Su: "..."

Despite his best efforts to understand Lü Bu's thought process, Lu Su found himself unable to comprehend him...

However, Lu Su quickly gave up on his own.

After all, no normal person would do something like killing Ding Yuan first and then Dong Zhuo, let alone taking advantage of the fact that Xuzhou was undefended to launch a sneak attack on Liu Bei, the only lord who accepted him at the time. Therefore, Lu Su did not force himself to understand Lü Bu.

Lu Su knew that, at least for now, Yuan Tan could not be killed! Although Yuan Tan had been adopted out by Yuan Shao, he was still Yuan Shao's eldest son. If he died at the hands of Lü Bu, no one knew whether Yuan Shao would directly send troops to attack Xuzhou.

If Xuzhou were to fall into Yuan Shao's hands, it would definitely not be a good thing for Liu Miao!
As for Lü Bu, Lu Su knew that he was always the type to respond to gentle persuasion but not force.

If Lu Su were to directly ask Lü Bu whether he was afraid of Yuan Shao, he had no doubt that Lü Bu would rush over and kill Yuan Tan right now...

Lu Su could only say tactfully, "Now that Yuan Tan has fled south, what benefit would you gain even if you chased after him and killed him?"

"Instead of wasting energy chasing after Yuan Tan, why doesn't the general immediately lead his troops north to attack the poorly defended Qingzhou?"

Lu Bu raised an eyebrow: "Qingzhou?"

"Yes! Qingzhou!"

Lu Su's tone was extremely enticing: "Yuan Tan already had few soldiers, and now most of them have been captured by the general. I suppose there aren't many troops left to defend Qingzhou."

"If the general were to take Qingzhou now, he would be able to enjoy the entire Qing and Xu regions. With such power, it wouldn't be an exaggeration to call him the 'King of Qi,' would it?"

King Qi!

This title made Lü Bu's breathing become heavy!
He ruled over Qing and Xu provinces and proclaimed himself King of Qi!
If it could be so, what more could one ask for?
Fortunately, Lü Bu hadn't completely lost his senses, and quickly waved his hand, saying, "What do you mean by King of Qi? Have you forgotten the saying that no one but a member of the Liu family can be king?"

Lu Su hurriedly apologized to Lü Bu: "It's not that I'm instigating General Lü to actually become king and dominate, but I just think that if you really conquer Qingzhou, wouldn't you be sitting on the former territory of Qi? Even if you can't become king, you'd probably be a 'fake King of Qi,' right?"

The fake King Qi!
That's a great title!

Lu Bu's eyes immediately lit up!

But the thought of Yuan Tan made Lü Bu hesitate again...

"General, rest assured. Since Yuan Tan dares to attack Qingzhou, he is Liu Biaoji's enemy. Although there is no news from our lord yet, I'm sure our lord will not let Yuan Tan go."

After hearing Lu Su's assurance, Lü Bu nodded repeatedly: "If that's the case, then that would be for the best!"

"Zijing is absolutely right! Qingzhou is currently undefended. Why should I pursue Yuan Tan south instead of attacking Qingzhou?"

Lu Bu then suddenly made a hesitant request to Lu Su: "When Zijing returns to Zang Ba's camp now, please apologize to him for me."

“I had heard of his reputation before, and he must be a righteous man. I shouldn’t humiliate him so easily.”

"Of course, if he has any complaints, he can come and find me!"

Lu Su blinked his eyes...

Is Lü Bu... apologizing?
Lu Su smiled knowingly, suddenly realizing that Lü Bu's personality wasn't entirely stupid and cunning; on the contrary, Lü Bu sometimes seemed quite adorable, which explained why Gao Shun remained loyal to him.

"I will naturally explain the reasons to General Zang Ba, General Lü, please do not worry about this matter!"

Lu Su then bid farewell to Lü Bu, saying, "I wish you a resounding victory and the complete takeover of Qingzhou!"

"Hahaha! Of course!"

Lü Bu was arrogant and boastful, even asking Lu Su, "If I really become the fake King of Qi, would you be willing to be my prime minister?"

Lu Su refused even the Han emperor's offer of service, so how could he possibly serve Lü Bu?
Lu Su shook his head: "The talents of Chen Gong, Chen Deng and others under General Lü are far superior to mine. How can I have the face to serve as General Lü's prime minister?"

"If General Lü can truly capture Qingzhou, then I will definitely prepare generous gifts to congratulate him."

"Okay! It's a deal!"

Lu Bu finally left Xuzhou and headed north towards Qingzhou, where the military forces were weak, determined to become the "fake King of Qi" that Lu Su had mentioned!
Lu Su was finally relieved and began to send letters to Wu Jing, who was stationed in Huainan, and Zhang Zhao in Jiangdong, asking them to send troops together to launch an ambush on Yuan Tan from all sides!
Upon receiving orders, Wu Jing immediately blocked the upper reaches of the Huai River, completely blocking Yuan Tan's route back north.

Zhang Zhao also ordered Yan Baihu and Yuan Shu's son Yuan Yao to set off from Jinling, cross the river, and search for Yuan Tan.

Yuan Tan was now trapped in a small area, with no room to maneuver.

A guard suggested that Yuan Tan abandon his troops and return to Hebei, but he was rebuked by Guo Tu.

"Now that the roads to the north are completely blocked by Zang Ba and Lü Bu, and the eldest son is unfamiliar with Xuzhou, how could he possibly escape?"

Yuan Tan dared not abandon the protection of the army, but led these remnants of his troops westward, hoping to break through the Huai and Si regions.

However, the sudden appearance of Jiangdong soldiers shattered Yuan Tan's last hope.

Seeing himself surrounded, Yuan Tan touched the sword at his waist, already prepared to draw his sword and commit suicide.

"There are only Yuan family members from Runan who died in battle, not Yuan family members from Runan who surrendered!"

……

Actually, there are some!

Upon seeing Yuan Tan, Yuan Shu's son, Yuan Yao, immediately exclaimed, "Brother, how have you been?"

"When General Liu heard that my elder brother had come to visit his family, he specially ordered me to come and meet him!"

Visiting relatives?

Yuan Tan, who had already resigned himself to defeat and death, suddenly froze.

Why did you come all this way, only to be chased and defeated by Lü Bu? Was it all just to visit relatives?

(End of this chapter)