Xiaoqi

"Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!" Cao Cao was yelling at Yu Fuluo for being stupid.Yuan Shao, who had already read the letter, was even more ferocious, and roared furiously: "The thieves ruined my big business! They are all a bunch of stupid pigs. The success is more than failure. Go to death! I am also angry! huh huh"

Gritting his teeth and yelling, Yuan Shao was so angry that his cheeks turned red, his nose was as thick as a cow, and he opened his mouth to pant rapidly, but he still couldn't vent his anger, his breath was stuck in his chest and he couldn't get out.Extremely uncomfortable.

Lu Bu's handsome face also changed drastically at this moment, from blue to red, unpredictable, and finally a slightly pale expression appeared on his face.But he didn't lose his composure as badly as Yuan Shao and Cao Cao did.He yelled and cursed, but his face was gloomy and thoughtful, and his expression couldn't help but dim.

Compared to Yuan Shao and Cao Cao who had never fought Li Li head-on, and Zhang Yang, Xu You and Xun Yu who had never had close contact with Li Li, Lu Bu was the only one in the room who knew Li Li well.

During this secret meeting, Cao Cao, Yuan Shao, Zhang Yang, Xu You and others seemed to be extremely contemptuous of Li Li in their speech and behavior. Will respectfully call Li Li the Great General.

The so-called ignorant is fearless.

From Lu Bu's point of view, Yuan Shao and the others were too arrogant to look at anyone, because only people who had never met Li Li would speak so brazenly and ignore Li Li's existence.However, those who have really been in close contact with Li Li will never and dare not despise Li Li, let alone slander Li Li rudely.Because in Lu Bu's heart, Li Li is a respectable opponent, and even a rare wise overlord in this world.It's a pity that Lu Bu and Li Li are not the same people after all, neither of them are willing to be inferior to others, and because of Dong Zhuo's death, they have formed a feud, and the contradictions cannot be reconciled. They are destined to be enemies in this life, and there is no possibility of turning enemies into friends.

However, this did not prevent Lu Bu from respecting Li Li.Perhaps in the eyes of Yuan Shao, Cao Cao and others, Xiliang Li Li is just a low-achieving student at the age of weak crown, as old as their son, no matter how capable he is, he is not to be feared.But Lu Bu did not despise Li Li because he was young. On the contrary, he was quite afraid of Li Li and regarded him as his lifelong enemy.

In fact, Lu Bu was like Yuan Shao and others in his early years, he didn't pay much attention to Li Li at all, and even dismissed him.Back in the day, when Li Li was promoted to Captain of Longxiang but had no real power, and wandered around Chang'an City all day with nothing to do, Lu Bu was already a popular person around Dong Zhuo. When he first heard Li Li's name, he didn't take it seriously at all. Forget that there is such a person as Li Li in Chang'an City.When Li Li was released to Wuwei County as the prefect, he was ordered to see him off. That was the first time he had close contact with Li Li face to face.At that time, the two sides didn't talk too much, and they didn't say more than five sentences in total. It was a hasty meeting and nodding acquaintance, which was really not worth mentioning.

However, it was Li Li who had been forgotten by him, and when he returned to Chang'an after a year, he was so majestic and powerful, with tens of thousands of soldiers in his hands, so dominant that Dong Zhuo didn't dare to underestimate him. , personally dispatched a group of generals from the Xiliang Army out of the city to meet them.That time Lu Bu lied that he was in poor health, deliberately shied away, and did not go to welcome Li Li into the city, and it was from that moment that Li Li officially entered his sight, let him remember that there is still Li Li in the Xiliang Army. The real power general who underestimated.

Since Li Liyi returned to Chang'an, he immediately became the focus of the people's discussions in Chang'an City. After Lu Bu, he became a popular person in front of Dong Zhuo. infighting.After that, Lu Bu and Li Li faced each other several times, but they were all at a disadvantage and suffered a big loss.However, he didn't know at the time that he had become a stepping stone for Li Li to gain prestige in the Xiliang army. Every defeat in the struggle meant raising Li Li's reputation; prestige reached its peak.It seems that he has surpassed Lu Bu and has become a powerful presence in the Xiliang army.

Lu Bu was always ignorant of the deep intentions hidden in it. It wasn't until Chen Gong instructed him after escaping from Xiliang that he sorted out the clues and suddenly realized.It's a pity that he understood it too late, and he realized it later. After he had thoroughly figured out the whole story, the general trend was over, and it was too late to regret.

Looking back at the unbearable past.Lu Bu felt extremely bitter in his heart, and thoughts of shame, shame, resentment and admiration flooded into his mind.

It stands to reason that Lu Bu should hate Li Li to the bone, except for the shame and hatred.There is no way to talk about admiration, but it is not the case.Actually.Deep down in his heart, Lu Bu really admired Li Li.To respect Li Li, all this stems from the fact that Li Li kept his promise in Wuguan City and let him lead his troops to leave.

Throughout Lu Bu's nearly 20 years of combat career, he has never bowed his head to anyone, let alone begged for mercy.Even in front of Ding Yuan, Dong Zhuo and others, he was just acting on the occasion, seeking a way to get promoted.In fact, Ding Yuan and Dong Zhuo were not taken seriously.For him, recognizing someone as a adoptive father is just a shortcut to seek promotion, and it is not an exaggeration to say that he is doing whatever it takes to achieve his goal.But on the frontal battlefield, he never conceded defeat to anyone.Because he himself is the embodiment of invincibility, the invincible god of war, no one can defeat him on the battlefield.

There is a saying: the green hills outside the mountains, the buildings outside the buildings, one mountain is higher than the other.

On the night of the Chang'an battle, Lu Bu led his troops to attack, instead of rescuing Wang Yun and the emperor, Li Li took away Mei Wu and cut off his retreat.Later, Lu Bu led his troops to escape from Chang'an in the starry night, but Li Li took a shortcut and rushed ahead of him to Wuguan.

That night, Lu Bu felt despair for the first time in his life, feeling that death was approaching step by step, so close at hand.But he was so helpless that he didn't even have the courage to fight to the death, so he dismounted and bowed his head to admit defeat, begging Li Li to spare his life.

That night, after more than ten years on the battlefield, Lv Bu, the god of war who was invincible in the world with the Fang Tianji in his hand and the red rabbit horse under his crotch, stood in front of Li Li and bowed his head begging for mercy. Take this in exchange for your own life.

At that time, Lu Bu didn't have any shame or shame in his heart, his only thought was to survive, and he had nothing else to ask for, and he had nothing else to do.To his surprise, Li Li actually kept his promise, let him go decisively, and let him lead his troops to leave without further making things difficult or obstructing him.

It was from that moment that Lu Bu felt both hatred and shame towards Li Li, but also in awe.Because he really felt Li Li's strong self-confidence and the king's mind that everything is in the palm of his hand. Maybe the world is afraid of him, Lu Bu, but he can't see the slightest fear in Li Li's eyes. All he sees is Li Li's overwhelming power Pride, and the heart of a strong man who is fearless.And this is exactly what Lu Bu does not have, or he once had it, but since beheading Ding Yuan as a gift for promotion, he has completely lost this heroic mind and fearless strong heart.

After fleeing to the Central Plains, the person Lu Bu hated the most was Li Li, and the person he respected most in his heart was also Li Li.Because he really lost to Li Li, a crushing defeat, a complete defeat, and an unconvinced defeat.And the reason why he respects Li Li is not because of Li Li's high martial arts skills and his powerful generals, but because of Li Li's broad mind, heroic spirit, and his promise.If the scene under Wuguan City was changed, Lu Bu would never let Li Li go, and he would definitely get rid of Li Li.But Li Li was able to let him go calmly, and he didn't send troops to hunt him down afterwards, allowing him to lead the crowd to leave.With Li Li's self-confidence and mind alone, Lu Bu thought he couldn't do it, but Li Li really did it, and he didn't have any regrets from the beginning to the end.

Two years later, Lu Bu once again formed an alliance with Yuan Shao, Cao Cao and others to deal with Li Li and his Xiliang army.His real intention is very simple and pure, that is, he wants to use the power of the allied forces to fight Li Li in an upright manner, regain the dignity and confidence he once lost, and avenge his shame.Therefore, he never thought of using intrigue to win the victory, let alone collude with the barbarians to send troops to harass Liangzhou, so as to achieve the goal of victory.But now he learned from Yuan Shao and Cao Cao that the barbarian Yu Fuluo sent troops to Liangzhou was actually supported by Yuan Shao, and his purpose was to drag the Xiliang army on the battlefield of the Xiongnu grassland, so as to create a new situation for the allied forces. Taking advantage of the fighter opportunity, they attacked the Xiliang army back and forth, and succeeded in one fell swoop.

This made Lu Bu feel ashamed. No one present could understand better than him how much and how deeply the Huns and barbarians harmed the border of the Han Dynasty.The reason why he joined the army in the early years was to resist the burning, killing and looting of the barbarians, and he was determined to destroy the barbarians and expand the territory for the great Han.It's a pity that time has passed, and his original ideal of joining the army has gradually faded away and become unattainable, but his hatred for the barbarians has never been reduced by half, and he has always regarded the barbarians as his lifelong enemy.

After sorting out his thoughts, Lu Bu sat there quietly with a dejected expression, without saying a word.The ambitions that had sprouted before suddenly disappeared, and there was a sense of waning interest.Therefore, he turned a blind eye to Yuan Shao, Cao Cao, Xu You and others who yelled at Li Li, and watched with noncommittal eyes, frowning slightly from time to time, and a look of contempt and disgust flashed in his eyes.

"Huh!" In the inner hall.Except for Lu Bu, everyone scolded dryly.He didn't sit down again until he was out of breath.He sighed and calmed down.

In fact, there was another person in the room who was somewhat similar to Lu Bu's state of mind, and he only echoed his words symbolically, but did not actually curse Li Li blatantly.This person is Cao Cao's confidant counselor Xun Yu.

Xun Yu has far-reaching strategies and unique vision. He is calm when encountering major events and listens to thunder in a silent place.There is indeed Wang Zuozhi's talent.But he is different from other counselors, others are always around the lord, trying to figure out the lord's thoughts, but Xun Yu never deliberately caters to Cao Cao's thoughts.The reason why he voted under Cao Cao's command.Since then, I have devoted myself to assisting Cao Cao because Cao Cao is indeed a rare hero in the world, and he is loyal to the Han Dynasty.

Xun Yu didn't know about the fact that Yu Fuluo and other tribes of the barbarians jointly sent troops to harass Liangzhou this time, and he didn't hear Cao Cao mention it until recently.However, this incident has nothing to do with Cao Cao. It was completely planned and implemented by Yuan Shao. Its purpose was to contain Li Li and his Xiliang army, so as to create a favorable opportunity for the allied forces to attack Sili by surprise, and strive to defeat Xiliang in one fell swoop. military.The reason why Xun Yu was sure that this matter had nothing to do with Cao Cao was because Cao Cao had no extra money and food to support Yu Fuluo's troops, even if he wanted to, he would not have the ability.

Looking at the princes of the towns in the Central Plains, only Yuan Shao has this strength, and only Yuan Shao can do this kind of thing.Just like how he advised He Jin to secretly summon Dong Zhuo, Ding Yuan and others to lead troops into Beijing in his early years, he would do whatever it takes to achieve his goals, and he could come up with almost any trick or trick. people.The most important thing is that Jizhou has enough money and food. Yuan Shao has been rich and powerful in recent years. He even sponsored Lu Bu to recruit troops and buy horses. His purpose was to let Lu Bu send troops to destroy the black bandits.

This time Yuan Shao repeated his old tricks, secretly funding the barbarian Yu Fuluo, prompting Yu Fuluo to join forces with other grassland ministries to send troops to harass Liangzhou.It's a pity that the nature of the barbarian army is difficult to change, and they did not act according to Yuan Shao's true intentions. They changed the invasion of Liangzhou into a large-scale invasion of Liangzhou, and then Li Li personally led the army to swear to the Northern Expedition.It’s just beyond everyone’s expectation that Yu Fuluo’s barbarian army has as many as 10,000+ cavalry, which is strong enough to make the princes of the Central Plains look at each other, but such a powerful force was completely defeated by the Xiliang Army, and finally 10,000+ The barbarian army was wiped out, and the Xiliang army won a complete victory.

Not only Yuan Shao and Cao Cao couldn't figure this out, even a top-notch wise man like Xun Yu couldn't figure out why the barbarian army was defeated so badly. How could the Xiliang army rely on to wipe out 10,000+ barbarian army so easily?

"Uncle Zhi, you have been in Sili for a long time, and you are quite close to the Anyi camp, and you are well informed. Have you ever heard who is this Zhou Yu who defeated Yu Fuluo's barbarian army?" After finally calming down, Yuan Shao He asked in a low voice, frowning.

After Zhang Yang heard the words, he shook his head blankly, and thought about it: "I don't know the origin of this Zhou Yu. I only know that this person is a scribe who was conscripted by Thief Li when he traveled to Yangzhou. Count the time." According to the past promotion practice of the Xiliang Army, it is impossible for this person to be reused by Li Thief so quickly, and he is not qualified to be on his own.

But this time Thief Li was uncharacteristically promoted Zhou Yu. Before the expedition, Zhou Yu was awarded the position of Zuo Zhonglang. Is the general of the army.Afterwards, Zhou Yu led the troops to attack in secret, so that my secret agents didn't notice it. It wasn't until the news of the victory in Qinglang Valley spread like wildfire that the secret agents sent back the secret report belatedly. "

"Yangzhou Zhou Yu?" After Zhang Yang finished speaking, Cao Cao suddenly murmured, squinting his eyes and said, "This Zhou Yu's name sounds very familiar. Ten years ago, Luoyang ordered Zhou Yi to have a son under his knees. He was extremely intelligent, and there was a Luoyang prodigy. The name of this son is also Zhou Yu. I worked under Zhou Yi back then, and I met this son once. He was a five or six-year-old boy at that time, but he was handsome, smart, and very pleasant. Could it be that Zhou Yu under Li Thief is the son of Lujiang Zhou Yi?"

Before Cao Cao finished his sentence, Xun Yu continued, "Your Majesty is right. Zhou Yu is the son of Luoyang Commander Zhou Yi! You don't know that Zhou Yu is not an unknown person, but he was far away in Yangzhou before. The fame does not spread to the states of the Central Plains, so you have never heard of it. However, my subordinates have heard of this person. It is said that he is handsome, suave, proficient in the six arts, both civil and military, and especially good at rhythm. Those who are talented and have good deeds call him 'Mei Zhou Lang'."

Chapter 601

Xun Yu is well-informed and knowledgeable, has a wide range of friends, and is well-read and memorized. He knows a thing or two about celebrities in various states and counties.

Seeing that Yuan Shao, Lu Bu and others knew nothing about Zhou Yu, Xun Yu continued: "Zhou Yu is 21 years old, the same age as Li Li from Xiliang, and he fought with Sun Jian's son Sun Ce for more than a year in his early years. Long. I can't believe that he is now serving under Li Li's command. When he first joined the Xiliang Army, he was very popular with Li Li. He led the army to the grassland alone, and won the battle. He became famous in the first battle. This move is really unexpected. It’s really time and fate, it’s amazing!”

Cao Cao looked disappointed, and sighed softly: "It turns out that this Zhou Yu is really the son of Zhou Yi. He was just a child back then, but now he is a general with tens of thousands of soldiers alone. It really is like a dream!

While sighing, Cao Cao forced his mind and said sternly: "This son cleverly used the fire bull formation to destroy Yufuluo's 10,000+ barbarian army in one fell swoop. He became famous in the first battle, which shows that he is talented and extraordinary. But the most What surprised me was Li Thief. If I remember correctly, Li Thief was crowned in May last year. He is only 22 years old now. At such a young age, he can boldly delegate power and use Zhou Yu, who is also young, to lead the army. , this kind of magnanimity is the most terrifying!"

Yuan Shao frowned, and said in a deep voice: "Zhou Yu's son ruined my big business, Li Thief is even more cunning and treacherous! Before that, we sent a lot of secret agents to monitor Li Thief's every move, hoping to be able to grasp his whereabouts at the first time, so as to timely Huimeng sent troops, but I didn't expect that we were finally deceived by Li thief. This thief stayed in the camp all day long, so that Xiaozuo mistakenly thought that the Xiliang army's battle was not going well, and stalemate. Unexpectedly, this move hit Li thief's plan All the tricks and tricks are kept in the dark and they don't know it. It's too late when they realize they've been fooled. The Xiliang Army's Northern Expedition has won a complete victory, so Thief Li can completely free up his hands to deal with me Waiting for the long-planned Great War in the Central Plains. Yu Fuluo, a stupid pig, wasted more than [-] shi of my food and grass, and now everything has been in vain. I am also angry!"

Seeing that Yuan Shao became more and more angry and angry, Cao Cao quickly comforted him: "Brother Benchu, calm down. The matter has come to this point, no matter how angry Brother Benchu ​​is, it will not help. Relying on the barbarians to contain the Xiliang army is not the right way after all. I have also persuaded Brother Benchu ​​that barbarian thieves have always succeeded more than ruined them. They are useless. Now the facts are just like what I said before. I only know how to burn, kill and loot blindly, and I don’t understand the overall situation. What is strategy. Today’s defeat, although it seems sudden, is actually inevitable. It’s not a pity for a barbarian to die. It’s a pity that those 10,000+ horses, if I Waiting for this war horse, why are you afraid of Li thief, why are you afraid of Xiliang Xiaoqi?"

After finishing speaking, Cao Cao sighed, his face was full of pity.

indeed.If the mounts of 10,000+ barbarian troops appeared on the land of the Central Plains, no matter which vassals got them, their strength would inevitably increase several times, and in time they would be able to compete head-on with the Xiliang army.Not afraid of Xiliang cavalry.It's a pity that this matter can only be thought about, but it will not become a reality.

After all, one side's soil and water support one side's people, and the reason why the barbarians have repeatedly violated the border and survived for hundreds of years is that they rely on war cavalry.If the princes of the Central Plains had tens of thousands or even more than a hundred thousand cavalry, the surrounding barbarian nations would have perished long ago, and the border of the Han Dynasty would have been settled long ago.Relatively speaking, the reason why Xiliang's army was tyrannical in battle and cavalry was precisely because Xiliang had never been truly peaceful, surrounded by powerful enemies, forcing the people of Xiliang to raise horses and practice riding and shooting in preparation for wartime.

"Forget it, the matter has come to an end, it's useless to say more." After calming down, Yuan Shao finally let go of his anger, and said seriously: "Time is not waiting for me. I agreed to finish the assembly of the allied forces within half a month. Now it seems that we must join the alliance as soon as possible. To form a powerful allied army, I believe that all the allied forces will be assembled within ten days, and then attack while Li Bie is still in the grassland, and try to attack Sili in one go, and go straight to Chang'an! Do you have any objections? "

Cao Cao shook his head slightly, indicating that he had no objection, and then Lu Bu and Zhang Yang nodded in agreement.

Seeing this, Yuan Shao stood up and said loudly: "At first, I didn't expect the barbarian army to succeed. Now that the barbarian army is completely wiped out, I will give it a go. After the other princes lead their troops to join the alliance , the allied army has more than [-] soldiers and horses, which is far more than the soldiers available in the hands of Li Thief. Even if we face a decisive battle, we will not be afraid of Li Thief! Come join us."

While talking, Yuan Shao walked towards the door, and then stood at the door and told Zhang Yang: "Uncle Zhi, I entrust you with the garrison camp and the altar of the alliance, and they must be completed as soon as possible!"

"Don't worry, Mr. Yuan, I started preparations a month ago, and now everything is ready, just wait for the princes from all walks of life to lead their troops, and then we can join the alliance and move in." Zhang Yang continued.

"That's very good. Everyone, Yuan takes the first step and bids farewell!" Yuan Shao patted Zhang Yang's arm to show his approval. Yan Liang and Wen Chou strode away.

Lv Bu followed Yuan Shao, took Chen Gong, Cheng Lian, Wei Xu and others straight away, and disappeared outside the courtyard gate in a blink of an eye.

Cao Cao and Zhang Yang didn't have a close relationship, so they didn't say much to each other. After Lu Bu left, Cao Cao and Xun Yu walked out of the courtyard and walked slowly without haste.

Suddenly, Cao Cao stopped, turned his head to look at the East Wing courtyard behind him, and said with a light smile, "This fellow Zhang Yang is quite scheming, he chose the place where Thief Li used to live for us to have a secret meeting. The other vassals' subtle eyes and ears can avoid the Xiliang army's subtle operations. This shows that Zhang Yang's mind is clever, no wonder he was able to lie dormant under Li thief's nose for so long!"

Xun Yu nodded thoughtfully, and said in a low voice: "Zhang Yang was originally a courageous general, but unfortunately he has become a follower of power, his blood is exhausted, and it is difficult to become a great weapon. This time Yuan Shao chose Hanoi County as the place for the alliance, so he undoubtedly trusted Zhang Yang very much and relied heavily on it. However, for Zhang Yang, this matter has both advantages and disadvantages, good or bad is unpredictable!"

"Oh? Wen Ruo is worried that the alliance might repeat the same mistakes that Chen Liuhui made in the past?" Cao Cao asked casually in a slight daze.

Xun Yu nodded lightly, thinking about it and said: "Yuan Shao does have some abilities, but unfortunately he likes to take the edge of the sword, is suspicious and fickle, and is very happy. He is really not the best candidate for the leader. The Central Plains Alliance did not need to use conspiracy and tricks originally. , you only need to contact the princes in secret in advance, and then you can act openly and aboveboard without covering up, because the allied forces are so involved, it is impossible to escape the spying eyes and ears of the Xiliang Army. Moreover, the Central Plains Alliance itself is an upright conspiracy. Even if Li Li knows, so what, does he dare to take the lead in sending troops to intercept and kill all the princes?"

After a pause, Xun Yu continued: "Tonight, the lord and Yuan Shao and other four princes confided together to raise 30 troops. Afterwards, there will be a few more troops coming. At that time, the strength of our allied forces will increase by at least another 40. In this way, more than [-] allied forces jointly attacked Sili. Even if Li Li took precautions, he could not stop the advance of hundreds of thousands of allied troops. If we waited steadily and advanced step by step, Li Li would have nothing to do. Outside of the decisive battle, our allied forces had no choice but to block the attack and retreat slowly.