Transmigrating to the Three Kingdoms as Lu Bu: I Have a Pseudo-Apocalypse System

At the top of Xinye City, the defending troops abandoned by Deng Ji raised a white flag and surrendered.

When Lü Bu led his army into the city, he found it in ruins, with houses collapsed by stones everywhere. In the streets and alleys, abandoned soldiers knelt on the ground, trembling with fear.

A surrendered soldier knelt before Lü Bu's horse, trembling as he pleaded, "General, we were all abandoned! Deng Ji ran away with his cronies! Please spare our lives!"

Lu Bu frowned: "Deng Ji escaped?"

The surrendered soldier said, "Yes, he escaped from the south gate and took the waterway to Fancheng."

Zhang Fei grinned and said, "That scoundrel, he's fast! Brother, I'll go after him!"

Lü Bu waved his hand: "No need, Yun Chang is already lying in ambush at the ferry. If nothing unexpected happens, Deng Ji won't be able to escape."

Just then, a troop of cavalry entered the city from the south gate; it was Guan Yu's unit.

Guan Yu spurred his horse forward, dismounted, clasped his hands, and said, "My lord, I am guilty. I failed to stop Deng Ji, allowing him to escape on a ship with only a few of his personal guards. I only managed to intercept a few hundred of Deng Ji's soldiers!"

Lu Bu sighed, "Oh well, if we didn't intercept him, we didn't. He's not an important person anyway."

……

July 17th, afternoon.

Xinye County Government Office.

Lü Bu sat in the main seat, listening to reports from all sides.

Guan Yu said, "My lord, in this battle we captured over 1,800 soldiers from the Xinye garrison and seized a number of weapons and armor. Of the 500 elite soldiers led by Deng Ji, all but those who died in battle surrendered."

Lü Bu nodded: "How should we settle the surrendered soldiers?"

Xu Shu replied, "My lord, I have conducted a preliminary screening. Most of them are locals from Nanyang, and many were forcibly conscripted rather than being loyal to Liu Biao. I suggest that those who wish to join the army be enlisted, and those who do not wish to join should be given travel expenses and dismissed."

Lü Bu said, "Alright, you can arrange this matter."

Xu Shu clasped his hands in a fist and said, "Yes, sir."

Zhang Fei said, "My lord, Xinye City has been badly damaged. Many houses have been destroyed, and dozens of civilians have been killed or injured. Should we provide some relief?"

Lü Bu said, "Order the treasury to be opened and grain distributed for relief. The families of the dead and wounded should receive compensation. Furthermore, soldiers should be mobilized to help the people repair their houses. Now that Xinye belongs to the court, the people are my subjects, and must not be neglected."

Zhang Fei grinned and said, "My lord is so kind! I'll go and do it right away!"

……

In Xinye City, in front of a collapsed house.

An elderly woman knelt before the ruins, weeping uncontrollably. Her son had been crushed to death inside the house, her daughter-in-law had been seriously injured, and her five-year-old grandson was crying in terror.

Zhang Fei led a group of soldiers over and, seeing this scene, felt a pang of pity.

He dismounted, walked to the old woman, and knelt down, saying, "Old woman, don't cry. I am a general under the Prince of Jin, sent by the Prince to provide relief to you. Your son is dead, the court will provide compensation; your daughter-in-law is injured, the court will send a physician to treat her; and the court will also take care of your grandson."

The old woman looked up, her eyes blurred with tears: "Really?"

Zhang Fei said, "My word is my bond! Men, clean this house and find anything usable. Then take the old woman, her daughter-in-law, and grandson to the temporary shelter and arrange for a doctor to treat them!"

The soldiers shouted in unison, "Yes, sir!"

The old woman knelt down to kowtow, but Zhang Fei quickly helped her up: "Old lady, don't do that. Prince Jin said that Xinye now belongs to the court, and you are now subjects of the court. The court will naturally take care of you. Get up and come with my men."

The old woman nodded through her tears, took her grandson's hand, and followed the soldiers.

Zhang Fei watched her retreating figure and sighed. Turning to his personal guards, he said, "Pass down the order: go door-to-door to check how many people are still affected by the disaster. Provide temporary shelter and food for all those whose houses have been damaged. Register the injured and deceased and provide them with compensation."

The personal guard clasped his hands in a fist salute: "Yes, sir!"

……

Evening, Xinye County Government Office.

Xu Shu was organizing documents when Lü Bu walked in.

"Yuanzhi, you've worked hard," Lü Bu said.

Xu Shu rose and bowed: "Your Majesty is too kind. This is my duty. I am currently compiling statistics on the registered population of Xinye, as well as the grain and provisions in the granaries and treasury."

Lü Bu nodded: "Although Xinye is small, it is the gateway to Nanyang. Once we take Xinye, only Fancheng will remain unconquered in Nanyang. After I take Fancheng, everything north of the Han River will fall to the imperial court."

Xu Shu said, "My lord, I have something to report."

Lü Bu said, "Speak."

Xu Shu said, "There are only a few hundred bushels of old grain left in the granary of Xinye, and the treasury is completely empty. It seems that Liu Biao never intended for Deng Ji to defend Xinye to the death, but only used him as a spy."

Lü Bu laughed and said, "As expected, Liu Biao is good at maintaining the status quo but not at advancing. He only sent Deng Ji to guard Xinye to see what I could do. Now that Deng Ji has brought the intelligence back, he should be afraid."

Xu Shu said, "My lord, I have another plan. Liu Biao's generals Wen Ping, Cai Mao, Kuai Liang, and Kuai Yue have differing attitudes. Wen Ping is Liu Biao's loyal follower, while Cai Mao, Kuai Liang, and Kuai Yue may be outwardly loyal but inwardly estranged. If we can divide and weaken them, it may have a remarkable effect."

Lü Bu nodded: "I am aware of this matter. Cai Mao, Kuai Liang, and Kuai Yue have been secretly in contact with me for some time, but they have not made it public yet. Once my army approaches Xiangyang, they will take action."

Xu Shu's eyes lit up: "So my lord had already made arrangements. I was overthinking it."

Lü Bu laughed and said, "Yuanzhi is new here and doesn't know many things yet. Take your time, you'll know in time."

……

July 18th, early morning.

Outside Xinye City, 20,000 elite Han cavalrymen stood in formation, ready to depart.

Lu Bu stood on his horse at the front of the formation, closely followed by Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, Dian Wei, Xu Chu, Xu Shu, and others.

Lu Bu glanced at the sky and said, "Let's go! Our destination: Fancheng!"

The war drums sounded, and the bugles blared.

Twenty thousand iron cavalrymen, like a rolling torrent, headed south.

……

July 19th, afternoon.

Outside Chaoyang County, a troop of elite Han cavalry galloped towards them.

The county magistrate, surnamed Li and named Wen, was a local official in his forties. He stood on the city wall, watching the dust rise in the distance, his face pale.

The county magistrate's voice trembled as he said, "Your Honor, the Han army is here! What should we do?"

Li Wen gritted his teeth: "What else can we do? Surrender! The two thousand defenders of Xinye were wiped out in half a day. Our numbers aren't even enough to fill their teeth!"

The county magistrate said, "Yes, but what about the lord's side..."

Li Wen waved his hand: "My lord? My lord is in Xiangyang; distant water cannot quench a nearby fire! Send the order to open the city gates and prepare a surrender document!"

A moment later, the gates of Chaoyang City opened wide, and Li Wen led the officials to kneel by the roadside.

Lu Bu rode forward and looked down at him, saying, "Stand up and speak."

Li Wen rose shakily, bowed deeply, and said, "I, Li Wen, the magistrate of Chaoyang County, along with all the officials and people of the city, respectfully welcome His Highness Prince Jin. Chaoyang wishes to submit to the imperial court and begs His Highness Prince Jin to spare our lives."

Lü Bu said calmly, "Now that you have submitted, you are a subject of the Han. Issue the order that the Han army, upon entering the city, shall not commit any offenses. You will temporarily remain as the county magistrate, and rewards will be distributed after the battle."

Li Wen was overjoyed and repeatedly kowtowed, saying, "Thank you for your grace, Prince Jin! Thank you for your grace, Prince Jin!"

……

July 20th, evening.

Outside Huyang County, the same scene played out again.

The county magistrate, surnamed Zhao and named Rui, was a pragmatic man. Seeing the Han army pressing in, he surrendered the city without a word.

Lü Bu appeased him as before, and ordered him to temporarily serve as the county magistrate.

At this point, except for Fancheng, the major northern tribes of Nanyang Commandery had fallen into Lü Bu's hands. Even the counties he didn't yet control were simply places he hadn't had time to send people to take over. Once Lü Bu sent people to take them over, it was estimated that no one would put up a stubborn resistance.