New Three Kingdoms Tales: Starting as the expressionless Liu Bei

Outside Fuyang City, Lü Bu took the lead, arriving first like a cold glint of light.

He rushed over ahead of time to scout out the area, to see if there were any ambushes outside the city, and to plan his escape route in case of any unexpected events.

Unexpectedly, as soon as he arrived outside the city, he saw Cao Cao's army arrayed in a square formation outside the city, a dark mass, and he wondered what they were up to.

Lu Bu was dumbfounded. He had never seen such a scene since he started leading troops into battle, and he couldn't figure out what Cao Cao was up to at all.

Was Cao Cao practicing some kind of battle formation, preparing to stab him in the back later? Lu Bu was filled with doubt and suspicion, and his face darkened.

However, he still had a backup plan. Cao Cao's chief strategist, Xun Yu, was still in their hands at this moment.

By using Xun Yu's life as leverage, Lü Bu could extort a hefty sum from Cao Cao.

Putting everything else aside, he'd need at least ten thousand taels of gold, right? Lu Bu was happily calculating in his mind when he turned his horse to leave.

But Cao Cao, as if he had been waiting for him, suddenly appeared before him, a smile on his face, and leisurely recited:

"Ah! Isn't this my virtuous brother Fengxian? I've been longing to see you for so long!"

Cao Cao walked slowly towards him, but in Lü Bu's eyes, each step felt like treading on a magic ribbon, forcing him to repeatedly spur his horse backward.

He abruptly raised his halberd, pointed it at Cao Cao, and shouted a warning: "Cao Cao! Don't come any closer! If you take another step, don't blame me for being impolite!"

Cao Cao smiled helplessly, stopped, spread his hands, and laughed heartily, "Brother Fengxian! I don't even have a weapon in my hand, why are you so afraid of me like you've seen a ghost?"

Lu Bu was slightly taken aback. Upon closer inspection, he realized that Cao Cao's hands were indeed empty.

As a warrior capable of defeating 100,000 men, with his halberd in hand and Red Hare as his mount, is it not up to him whether he leaves or stays?

Thinking this through, he glanced at Cao Cao suspiciously, slowly lowered his halberd, stopped pointing it at the other man, and asked with a frown:

"Cao Cao, what were you doing lurking around behind me just now? Were you planning to betray me? Also, what's the meaning of you moving the entire army outside the city for training?"

Cao Cao squinted and chuckled, explaining slowly and deliberately:

"My dear brother, this is a unique event in our Xuchang city—the Xuchang Military Training Grand Review!"

"I originally intended to have the boys rehearse once first, and then give it a proper performance when my brother arrives."

"Who knew you would arrive first. My scouts had already discovered your whereabouts, so I immediately spat out the rice in my mouth, put down my wine bowl, and ran to meet you without even having time to put on my shoes."

After saying that, he put on a sighing expression and said with a look of disappointment:

"Who would have thought my worthy brother would be so suspicious of me? Am I, Cao Mengde, such a treacherous villain? How could I betray you? Gao Shun is your Golden Iron Beast, Zhang Liao is your Silver Iron Beast, and I, Cao Cao, am your Blue Poison Beast!"

Lu Bu raised an eyebrow. Zhang Liao seemed to have said the same thing last night.

Just last night, Zhang Liao said he was his Silver Iron Beast, Gao Shun was his Gold Iron Beast, and now Cao Cao is calling himself the Blue Poison Beast.

These people have all read "Lolo's Adventures," so they're just bullying Lu Bu because he hasn't read it, right?

Alright, he'll definitely come and see it when he has the chance. For some reason, Lü Bu had a bad feeling, but he couldn't quite put his finger on what it was.

He pondered for a moment, then waved his hand at Cao Cao and said:

"Cao Cao, don't try to fool me with these unfamiliar terms. Since you've already voluntarily left the city, I'll be frank..."

Just as Lü Bu was about to explain his purpose, Cao Cao suddenly raised his hand to interrupt him, chuckling as he said:

"Brother, no need! Liu Bei has already arrived in our Fuyang City with his third brother, Zhang Fei, and they are currently drinking in the city!"

"Since you're here too, why don't we skip Xuzhou City and come to Fuyang City for a show of shooting an arrow at the gate, which will help our two families cease hostilities and make peace."

"Afterwards, let's drink to our peace and go our separate ways. I, Cao Cao, will immediately return to Yanzhou and never again set foot in Xuzhou. And you, Fengxian, can finally rest assured and resurrect Diaochan, and live happily ever after with her!"

As Cao Cao spoke, he walked forward with a smile, intending to pat Lü Bu on the shoulder.

However, Lü Bu was tall and strong, and his horse, Red Hare, was even taller than an average person. Cao Cao couldn't reach him even when he stood on tiptoe. In the end, he could only jump slightly to barely pat Lü Bu's shoulder.

Lu Bu frowned, not paying much attention to Cao Cao's tap, because he had already grasped the key word: Diao Chan.

But doubts remained in his mind. Liu Bei had already arrived in Fuyang City? How could he be so fast?

But then I thought about it again. Liu Bei had the cricket that left its footprints. As long as it left its mark, it could go anywhere in the world. That wasn't so surprising.

After a moment's thought, Lü Bu realized that Cao Cao's suggestion was indeed feasible. Regardless of whether Liu Bei and Cao Cao were satisfied or not, Lü Bu was certainly pleased.

His purpose in coming to negotiate peace was to revive Diao Chan and live a shameless life.

But he wasn't blinded by eagerness. He shook his head and said in a deep voice, "Alright. But my main army is still behind. I'll enter the city after my troops arrive."

Cao Cao chuckled, put his hands behind his back, and said slowly:

"Fengxian, you don't even know how capable you are! You're too afraid to go to the meeting alone?"

"Let me put it this way: of all the warlords under heaven, I, Cao Cao, fear none, except you, Lü Bu; I respect no one else, but I respect you, Lü Bu. In short, I both respect and fear you!"

Cao Cao's sudden shower of praise caught Lü Bu off guard. He raised an eyebrow, a slight smile playing on his lips, but still remained somewhat doubtful: "Really?"

Cao Cao narrowed his eyes and chuckled, "Of course it's true!"

"Think about it, ever since Dong Zhuo entered the capital, Yuan Shu, Yuan Shao, Liu Biao, Tao Qian, Gongsun Zan, Liu Bei, Ma Teng, Han Sui, and now me, Cao Cao, have all successively carved out their own territories and declared themselves heroes, but which of them has ever been able to unify the world?"

"Why is that? It's all because you, Lü Bu, are missing!"

"If you assist Dong Zhuo, he will be able to dominate the capital, breaking into the palace every night, sleeping on the emperor's bed, and wantonly raping the palace women and concubines."

"If you help Liu Bei, he'll dare to declare himself emperor, do you believe it or not?"

"If you help me, Cao Cao, then we won't even need to lift a finger. All you need to do is shoot the halberd at the gate, and we can easily dismiss the soldiers with a cup of warm wine!"

He paused, then his gaze softened considerably as he stared intently at Lü Bu, as if admiring a peerless widow, and softly recited:

"Among men, Lü Bu emerges; among horses, Red Hare emerges—this saying is indeed true. Add to that the peerless divine weapon, the Fangtian Halberd, and the three combined make you truly invincible!"

Lu Bu was overjoyed by the praise and clapped his hands, laughing, "That's right, that's right!"

Cao Cao laughed along, but then his tone suddenly turned somber, and he said, "What a pity, what a pity!"

Lu Bu's smile froze, and he pressed on, "What's a pity?"

Cao Cao shook his head and sighed:

"It's a pity that you've been fighting and defending all these years, eating when hungry and leaving when full, like a wolf king in the moonlight, leading his pack to roam the Central Plains and causing trouble for all the warlords."

"They take you in, and you turn around and seize their city; they want to wipe you out, but they can't defeat you, and instead you harm them."

"So, after much thought, I've decided that rather than letting you fight to the death with all the other warlords, I'd rather take the risk myself."

However, seeing Cao Cao suddenly stop talking, he couldn't help but ask, "What risks?"

Cao Cao chuckled, reverting to his usual playful demeanor:

"I will be your adoptive father, and you will be my adopted son. Let us join forces, form an alliance, and work together to achieve great things. As long as we unite, we will surely crush all the warlords, unify the world, and restore the Han Dynasty!"

Lu Bu raised an eyebrow, wondering to himself, "Why does everyone want to be his godfather?"

He subconsciously looked around, afraid that Zhang Fei might be hiding in some corner eavesdropping, and after hearing what he said, jump out and curse him as a slave to five surnames or six surnames.

He himself has almost lost count of how many surnames he has.

As Lü Bu was pondering this, Cao Cao suddenly became agitated, his voice rising several decibels:

"Lu Bu, listen up!"

"I intend to hand over all the troops to you, making you the Grand Marshal of the Three Armies, solely responsible for warfare. I will provide all the provisions and weaponry."

"I, Cao Cao, am no good at fighting; I'm only suited to sitting in the back garden watching widows dance. But assisting those skilled in battle is precisely my forte!"

Lu Bu did not immediately agree, but pondered for a moment and said, "Let me think about this matter some more. For now, let's enter the city first."

Just then, a great earthquake shook the ground. Lü Bu's vanguard cavalry had arrived, while the infantry were still behind.

Zhang Liao took the lead, galloping wildly, and in the blink of an eye, he arrived in front of Cao Cao and Lü Bu.

Cao Cao turned around and laughed heartily:

"That must be General Zhang Liao, Zhang Wenyuan, under Lü Bu's command! I've heard he possesses the talent of a silver-armored beast!"

"Fengxian, you must nurture such a talent well. Raising more Silver Iron Beast Generals will greatly benefit you!"

Lu Bu chuckled. Although he still didn't know what the Silver Iron Beast was, judging from Cao Cao's words, it must be a loyal and capable general.

He looked at Zhang Liao, nodded, and gave the order:

"Wen Yuan, you lead the army and wait outside the city. No one is allowed to enter the city without my order."

Zhang Liao clasped his hands in acceptance of the order, a barely perceptible sly smile playing on his lips, which Lü Bu did not notice.

(Two chapters today. This chapter and the previous chapter together have six thousand words. Since each chapter has two thousand words, that makes three chapters.)

(Starting this month, the author will strive to write 6,000 words every day, going all out!)