Three Kingdoms: I, Yuan Shu, Loyal Officials of the Han Dynasty

Chapter 333 For now I dwell in the Han court, but one day I will return to the Qi capital.

The State of Qi has fallen?

Upon hearing the latest news from his soldiers, Lü Bu stood frozen in place, lost in thought.

"Destroyed? Is the State of Qi really destroyed?"

He never expected that his surprise attack on the Han army would backfire so badly, as he was tricked by the "Adopted Son Experience Card," resulting in the loss of most of his elite cavalry, with the remaining riders fleeing back to Langya with their armor torn apart.

Having barely escaped back, before they could even regroup, they heard from Chen Gong that the King of Han had recently led his main force to invade Xuzhou under the pretext of his assassination of his adopted son.

They were just cursing the Han army for being unreasonable, but when they were attacking Qi, they hadn't even touched that treacherous "adopted son" yet.

They hadn't even discussed with Chen Gong whether to head north or return to provide reinforcements, or what to do next.

There's no next step!

The State of Qi has fallen; how can we possibly send reinforcements?

Should we lead our defeated troops back to confront the Han King's entire elite force head-on?
To make matters worse, I'm still on the attacking side. I have to withstand the main force of the King of Han and fight the State of Qi again in order to salvage my foundation.

Lu Bu was completely numb at this point.

He was in Langya, having just assassinated the adopted son of the King of Han, but narrowly escaped with his life.

The man had just escaped back when the state of Qi was already destroyed, the reason being: "How dare you harm my adopted son!"
Damn it!

I really just scared a lowly soldier with my halberd; he wasn't hurt at all.

"How could it be so fast?"

Now that we have suffered this calamity, what can we do?

Lu Bu's face was deathly pale, and he muttered to himself. He didn't understand, he couldn't figure it out.

From the moment he made up his mind to betray the King of Han and act erratically, Lü Bu was not unaware that the King of Han might turn his anger on the State of Qi, or even that the State of Qi might be lost—the worst possible outcome.

But it can't be that fast!
He never imagined things would develop so quickly. In his mind, even if the King of Han turned his attack on Qi, and even if Qi couldn't resist, there would still be a process, right?

There is ample time to prepare countermeasures, whether it's returning to provide support or heading north, there is always room for maneuver.

In reality, from the time he was "assassinated as the adopted son of the King of Han" until now, it was only the time it took to escape from defeat, and his troops were still mostly cavalry.

In this short time, the King of Han had just received the intelligence about the "assassination of his adopted son." The subsequent discussions on whether to turn the attack on the State of Qi, and the subsequent conquest of cities and territories, would require a great deal of time.

But the Han army seemed to have no need for intelligence transmission. Before he, the sinner who "assassinated the adopted son of the King of Han," could even escape back, the King of Han had already started the battle.

It seemed that the Han army didn't need to conquer cities and seize territories; they could simply expand their territory. They had just received news from Chen Gong that the King of Han had arrived, and so the State of Qi was destroyed.

Zhang Liao and Gao Shun! Are you made of paper?
Although he took a lot of troops with him when he went on the expedition, he left behind the Trapped Camp and a large number of troops and provisions in Xiaopei, which is the gateway to Xuzhou, in preparation for any eventuality.

Even if the King of Han is powerful and has many soldiers and generals, can't you two even resist and delay until I return to reinforce you?
Xuzhou is such a big city!
In the blink of an eye, it's all gone?
Lu Bu was so shocked by the news that his head was buzzing. If you were to describe his feelings at this moment, they would be comparable to those of Liu Bei when he was discussing war with Guan Yu, and then turned around and saw his third brother enter, crying out: "Xuzhou is gone!"

Liu Bei: Such a large Xuzhou, gone in the blink of an eye.

Seeing Lü Bu stunned, Chen Gong, who was also shocked by the news, quickly tried to persuade him.

"This must be a conspiracy by the King of Han; we have fallen into his trap."

Lu Bu looked at him in confusion, only to hear Chen Gong explain.

"Your Majesty should consider this carefully."

You were just repeatedly attacked at Huanyuan Pass, while the King of Han was thousands of miles away. How could you know so quickly?

Even if a message is sent by express courier over 800 li, the king's troops are all light cavalry, so their speed may not be much slower. Why is our news so delayed, and why is there such a huge gap between us and the King of Han?

This defies common sense.

Lu Bu frowned in thought, "What do you mean, sir?"

"The palace believed that the King of Han had not received the news from Huanyuan Pass at all, let alone knew about the King's assassination of his adopted son, because intelligence transmission could not possibly be so fast."

Since that's the case, the King of Han doesn't possess the ability to foresee the future or to send messages by flying or disappearing into the earth.

How can you presume to question me on the charge of assassination when my king has not even carried out the assassination?

Unless, he already knew that Your Majesty would assassinate his adopted son.

All of this was a trap he had prepared in advance, specifically set up for Xuzhou!

"All that talk of marching north to attack Cao Cao, all that talk of a righteous alliance, all that talk of rescuing the emperor—it's all a lie!"

As Chen Gong spoke, his face grew increasingly pale and his expression increasingly gloomy.

“We were deceived by him and really thought he was going to march north to attack Cao Cao. We started from this point and devised a plan. How could we not fall into his trap and lose everything?”
Because from the very beginning, we got even his most fundamental purpose wrong.

If it weren't for the fact that his grand plan to attack Cao Cao had become known to the world, and that troops from all sides had been dispatched to suppress the rebellion, thus obscuring the truth from the public eye.

If we had known earlier that their aim was Xuzhou, and had devised a plan accordingly, we would have kept our entire army firmly in a defensive posture and sincerely allied with Cao Cao to seek reinforcements. How could we have suffered such a defeat and lost territory today?
True teaching is a vicious cycle: one wrong step leads to another!

Upon hearing this, Lü Bu suddenly realized what was happening, and gritted his teeth, "That old thief has been plotting against my Qi state for a long time. Now, due to a single careless move, I have fallen into his trap. I will avenge this grudge one day!"

Chen Gong offered a few more words of advice and then asked the messenger again.

"Although the King of Han plotted to seize Xuzhou and his plans were far-reaching, I was not without precautions before I left."

Even if the King of Han knew about the assassination of his adopted son and sent troops ahead of time, Xuzhou, though outmatched, was not without the power to resist.

Tell me in detail, how exactly did the State of Qi perish? Why was it so late that we couldn't even send reinforcements?

The messenger soldier answered.

“I was originally a soldier who charged into battle, but I have come from a thousand miles away on the orders of General Li Jun to secretly deliver messages to the King of Qi.”

Your Majesty and strategist, you are unaware that the downfall of the State of Qi was entirely the fault of Zhang Wenyuan!

In pursuit of wealth and glory, Zhang Liao recognized the King of Han as his adoptive father, surrendered Xiaopei, entered Xiapi, gathered his former troops, and recruited surrendered soldiers, making the entire state of Qi a vassal state wherever the King of Han went.

Furthermore, Wei Xu became his henchman, aiding and abetting the tyranny of the wicked. He also allied himself with Zhang Liao, and the two formed a faction, seizing counties and prefectures in the state of Qi and plotting their achievements together.

Lü Bu was furious!
"In my humble opinion, if we had deployed a large force in Xiaopei to block the gate, even if the King of Han attacked, we could have delayed the attack. Why did we suffer such a swift defeat?"

It turns out he was a thief inside the house!

You, Zhang Wenyuan, have treated me well and given me important responsibilities, but I never expected you to be so shameless as to worship that old traitor as your adoptive father, betray me, and ruin the foundation of my Qi state.

And then there's Wei Xu. Despite being a close relative of mine, I appointed him as the military supervisor to monitor Zhang Liao in case of unforeseen circumstances. And this is how he monitored Zhang Liao? He monitored him all the way to the Han camp!

"You wicked scoundrels, colluding with each other in evil deeds! If we meet again, I will surely kill them!"

Seeing Lü Bu's murderous intent, the soldiers were filled with fear and hurriedly echoed his cries.

"Your Majesty is unaware of this!"

General Gao was stationed in Xiapi, making it an impregnable fortress. However, it was these two traitors who conspired with Chen Deng and his son to feign peace talks in order to actually breach the city.

That night, Chen Deng opened the city gates, and Zhang Liao and Wei Xu caused chaos in the city. General Gao fought a bloody battle in the west city, refusing to surrender, and was later forced to his death by Zhang Liao.

Among the soldiers in the Trapped Camp was a righteous man named Li Jun, who was also our commander. He was a man of unparalleled loyalty and righteousness, and he led all the righteous men in the city to resist to the very last moment. Unfortunately, after the city fell, the Han army was too powerful, and no matter how hard we fought, we could not defeat them.

To preserve the vitality of the Qi state and plan for the future, General Li had no choice but to temporarily surrender to the King of Han.

He wanted me to tell the king in person: "Your subject, Li Jun, has received the kindness and righteousness of Duke Gao and the great favor of the king. If I do not think of repaying the country, how am I different from a beast?"
Now, he feigns surrender to the Han, secretly gathering loyal and righteous men, preserving his usefulness, enduring hardship and biding his time, plotting to restore order.

When my king marches south to restore Qi in the Ming Dynasty, he will surely stab the King of Han in the heart to demonstrate the legitimacy of the dynasty!
Though our nation has perished, many righteous men remain; we will not allow wealth and honor to corrupt our loyalty.

"For now I dwell in the Han court; one day I will return to the Qi capital to pay homage to the emperor."

As the soldier spoke, he hurriedly recounted Li Jun's unparalleled loyalty and righteousness that night.

Lu Bu was moved!

"Though the nation and its people have perished, many righteous men remain; wealth and honor will not corrupt their loyalty."

"For now I dwell in the Han court; one day I will return to the Qi capital."

When Lü Bu read the poem again, he was also moved by its loyalty and righteousness.

“Zhang Liao betrayed me, Wei Xu turned his back on me, and even Chen Deng and his son, who were highly valued by me, also colluded with the enemy and betrayed the country.”

It is unexpected that true ministers are recognized in times of crisis. At a time when the State of Qi is on the verge of collapse, there are still loyal and upright men like Gao Shun and Li Jun.

"What a pity! I failed to judge character, neglecting to value this loyal and righteous man, instead appointing treacherous individuals like Zhang Liao, Wei Xu, and Chen Deng as my confidants, thus inviting this disaster. It is too late for regrets now."

Lü Bu sighed for a while, then ordered his men to reward the messenger. After dismissing his attendants and waiting until no one was around, he asked Chen Gong again.

"The destruction of the State of Qi is now clear."

Sir, what am I doing here today?
Please enlighten me.

Chen Gong hesitated for a moment before speaking slowly.

"Now we know that the King of Han is after Xuzhou, and Chen Deng and his son, Zhang Liao, Wei Xu and others have surrendered with their troops. All the counties of Xuzhou have been lost. It will be very difficult for us to take it again."

Moreover, the King of Han had a large army and many generals. It was rumored that he had an army of 830,000 to attack Cao Cao. Although this was an exaggeration, he could still have had 200,000 to 300,000 troops.

Such overwhelming military might, shaking the entire land, if we were to return to Xuzhou now, let alone face their army head-on.

Even if the main force of the King of Han has left, leaving only a small contingent of troops to guard the city, it is not the remnant of our troops that we can attack and defeat.

The most urgent task for Your Majesty is to first seize a province to establish a foundation for your rule.

The grudge of Qi's destruction can be avenged in the future; it is not too late.

Lü Bu nodded. At this time, he had just escaped from Huanyuan Pass by the skin of his teeth and was also the victim of the Qi Kingdom's treachery.

As a result, he turned around and had to lead the remaining troops back to fight against the main force of the King of Han with all his might. Even Lü Bu was a little scared.

Upon hearing Chen Gong's words, he wholeheartedly agreed, "It seems that you, sir, still intend to follow our original plan. Since Xuzhou is beyond saving, we should head north and take Yanzhou as our base?"

Chen Gong agreed and then proceeded to explain in detail.

"Although the speed at which the King of Han attacked the State of Qi has exceeded our expectations."

Fortunately, the State of Qi was destroyed and seized by the King of Han, which was among the worst possible outcomes we discussed earlier after betraying and angering the King of Han.

After Xuzhou was lost, Yanzhou was used to replace it.

The King of Han's campaign against Qi was so swift that we didn't even have time to receive the news, let alone Cao Cao.

While this news is still pending, Your Majesty can emulate the Han King's campaign against Qi, using the prestige of a vassal state to intimidate Yanzhou and hasten its defeat.

The day Cao Mengde receives the news will be the day Yanzhou is lost.

Lü Bu: "!!!"

Good guy!
You really do learn from your mistakes!

We can learn from how the King of Han treated us and apply the same principles to Cao Cao.

This demonstrates the King of Han's strategic brilliance; he was invincible in every campaign.

When he received the news of the fall of the State of Qi, he was completely numb.

How could Cao Mengde possibly defeat him?
“What you say is absolutely right!”

The news that the King of Han had made Qi a vassal state and ordered me to lead the Qi army north to attack Yan had only recently spread throughout the land.

Furthermore, the news of the King of Han's campaign against Qi had not yet reached us, yet the assassination of the King of Han's adopted son, which led to the defeat and ambush, was part of the King of Han's plan to attack Qi. Therefore, it had nothing to do with Cao Mengde's attempt to harm me, as I had previously speculated.

If that's the case, Cao Cao will still consider me an ally and carry out the Cao-Lü alliance against Yuan Shao, completely unprepared for me.

Taking advantage of this opportunity, since a large number of troops from Yanzhou have been transferred to Huanyuan Pass to resist Yuan, the area is now vulnerable. This is a gift from Heaven, why not seize it?
"I will use the pretext of being a vassal state and the might of the King of Han's 830,000-strong army to coerce the counties of Yan Province. Who will not surrender, and who will not fear me?"

Seeing this unpredictable and complex scheme of using the intelligence gap between Yuan and Cao to carry out a backstabbing, Lü Bu understood it immediately and even applied it to other situations.

Chen Gong was also impressed by his talent and said with satisfaction:
"Your Majesty is wise!"

The two men, ruler and minister, looked at each other and smiled, but they never expected that Lü Bu would abandon his suspicions about Cao Cao's betrayal of the Cao-Lü alliance and the fact that the Chancellor of the Han Dynasty was also in league with Yuan Shao, because of the matter of the King of Han's campaign against Qi.

However, Cao Cao was also misled by the incident at Huanyuan Pass, and his suspicion that the King of Qi was also in league with Yuan Shao was growing stronger.

Luoyang.

With Cao Cao leading a large army on a distant expedition, the emperor, who had been kept out of the public eye for a long time, was finally brought out again to preside over the overall situation at the Luoyang court meeting.

That being said, the days of a righteous and upright court were over. With the deaths and extermination of Liu Biao, Liu Yao, Dong Cheng, and others, Xu Huang was also transferred by Cao Cao to Huanyuan Pass to fight against Yuan Shao.

It can be said that at this time, among the many officials in the court, the entire court was loyal to the Han prime minister, so how many were loyal to the emperor?
However, in any case, Xun Yu, who was in charge of the government at this time, could no longer allow the emperor to act recklessly, but he was still much more respectful than Cao Cao.

At this moment, as the officials were discussing state affairs, an urgent military report arrived and was presented to the imperial palace.

"Report! Urgent message from the Prime Minister! Urgent military intelligence from the front!"

Xun Yu hurriedly had him recite it, and when everyone heard it, they realized that Lü Bu had betrayed his promise. He claimed to be allied with Cao Cao, but in reality, he was secretly colluding with the traitor Yuan Shao and had deliberately set a trap at Huanyuan Pass to harm them.

Fortunately, Guan Yu, Liu Bei's sworn brother, was well-versed in military strategy and did not fall into the trap, thus protecting Huanyuan Pass and keeping the enemy out of the gate.

He even turned the tables on Xiahou Yuan, making him pretend to fall into the trap and infiltrate Yuan's camp. In reality, Xiahou Yuan, along with Xiahou Dun, Xiahou Ba, and others, continued to bide their time and plot to overthrow Yuan. This showed his deep foresight.

Therefore, Cao Cao requested the emperor to confer upon Guan Yu the title of Marquis of Hanshou as a reward for his merits.

Upon seeing this, the ministers couldn't help but look strange. No, Xiahou Yuan also went to Yuan's camp to endure hardship and bide his time?
Xiahou Dun and Xiahou Ba are doing all the work, so aren't we short-handed enough?

There is reason to suspect that Xiahou Yuan had also surrendered to Yuan Shao, and Cao Cao was using this as a pretext to protect his own family and clan from being implicated.

But there is no evidence.

As for bestowing the title of Marquis of Hanshou upon Guan Yu, it was simply Cao Cao's routine attempt to win over General Guan, something everyone was used to and no one suspected.

However, the latter half of the letter:

[The alliance between Qi King and Yuan Shao, and between Cao Cao and Lü Bu, is unreliable. We should quickly send troops to Yanzhou to prepare for any unforeseen circumstances.]

(End of this chapter)