Chapter 57: Guo Jia Visits

  "My lord, Guan Yu is brave and fierce, with the courage of a thousand men. If used properly, he will surely have the effect of turning the tide of battle. Now that the war situation is critical, General Zhang Jiao has taken advantage of us several times, if this continues, the imperial court will certainly be displeased. Today's battle, if it weren't for Guan Yu, our army would have been defeated without a doubt." A slender scholar with piercing eyes beside him spoke up to advise.

  "Li Ru, what you said is extremely true. After several battles, although I have elite soldiers under my command, I lack good generals, and we've been defeated repeatedly. The imperial court will surely be enraged. As for Guan Yu, although he's brave and fierce, he's also arrogant. I wanted to recruit him, but he refused me time and again. Li Ru, do you have a good strategy? Dong Zhuo may be incompetent in battle, but when it comes to saving his own skin, no one can match him. After suffering several defeats, Dong Zhuo hid in his tent and didn't even take the field. Otherwise, who knows, he might have been torn apart by Zhang Jue and others, chopped into minced meat."

  However, Dong Zhuo had one advantage, which was that he loved talent, especially brave and fierce generals who were good at killing enemies. Dong Zhuo liked them very much, firstly because they could protect his safety and prevent him from losing his life, secondly, they could make achievements for him by killing enemies, increasing their merits, getting reused by the imperial court, and exchanging for a greater future.

  Li Ru's eyes rolled around for a while, and finally, he shook his head helplessly. "Does the lord not know? Guan Yu is Liu Bei's sworn brother. I observe that Liu Bei is a man with hidden ambitions, and his aspirations are not small. Therefore, in several battles, I did not suggest using him again, because if this person achieves military merit and receives rewards from the imperial court, he will surely 'turn into a dragon once he encounters wind and rain', and when the time comes, his power will be full, and he will become a hidden dragon, which would be unfavorable to the lord."

  "Huh? This Liu Bei, is he really as you said? I think he's just a cripple who lost an arm, with no soldiers or troops under him, relying on nothing but Guan Yu." Dong Zhuo sneered.

  Li Ru narrowed his eyes, revealing a sly smile. "Your words are incorrect, my lord. Liu Bei appears to be gentle and kind on the surface, but in reality, he is cunning and calculating, with a deep mind. However, you can still make use of Guan Yu, who can help you kill enemies and achieve victories."

  "What about Liu Bei?" Dong Zhuo nodded and asked.

  "Hmm, ignoring him is also a good idea. It's better to let the two of them have their differences, and maybe we can even win over Guan Yu to serve our lord." Li Ru whispered with a sly smile as he leaned in close to Dong Zhuo.

  "This plan is excellent, if we can get Guan Yu, I will be able to roam the world without worry." Dong Zhuo nodded his head, stroked his plump and oily chin, and burst out laughing.

  "Huangfu General, what about this Guo Tu? Isn't he Xu Feng's cunning plan to lure us into the city and ambush us?" Sun Jian felt that something was not right when he heard that Huangfu General planned to attack the city at night, so he advised him again.

  "Wen Tai, you're worrying too much. The Guo family is a noble family with an irreconcilable feud against the Yellow Turbans. As soon as Xu Feng entered the city, he slaughtered three large families, killing over a thousand people. Although the other three families weren't killed, their wealth was plundered by Xu Feng. Do you think it's possible for these noble families to surrender and rely on Xu Feng? It's absolutely impossible."

  "But also can't help it, what if there's a trick, the consequences are unthinkable." Sun Jian said with doubts in his mind.

  "Xu Feng is treacherous and ruthless, relying on the hostages from the noble families to bully us. We can't do anything about him, and this opportunity is too good to miss. Just thinking about Xu Feng's ruthlessness makes Huangfu Song grit his teeth in anger. However, he has tried several times to deal with Xu Feng but failed, and doesn't dare to attack the city hastily. Now that he has finally caught the chance and surrounded Yangzhai, Huangfu Song is determined not to let this opportunity slip away. He believes that Xu Feng will never tolerate the noble families, and the noble families cannot possibly rely on the Yellow Turbans."

  Shaking off the doubts in his heart, Sun Jian gritted his teeth and nodded in agreement. "Alright, I'll take a gamble." In their previous battle, many of his soldiers had been killed or wounded under his command, and General Cheng Pu had been injured. Under heavy siege, Xu Feng had managed to escape easily, which was a great shame for Sun Jian. Therefore, he also looked forward to another duel with Xu Feng, to eliminate this Yellow Turban rebel.

  Seeing Sun Jian's determined expression, Huangfu Song nodded, "Wentai, since that's the case, hurry up and prepare. Tonight at midnight, when the fire signal is lit, we'll charge into Yangzhai together and slaughter Xu Feng and his men, eliminating this great scourge for the imperial court and clearing out the rebels."

  "General, someone is asking to see you."

  "Who is it?" The sky had already darkened, and Xu Feng had just arranged for the troops to rest when he suddenly heard someone asking to see him. He was taken aback for a moment. If it were one of his own soldiers, there would be no need for such formalities. Everyone knew that although Xu Feng was ruthless, that was only towards the enemy. Towards his own soldiers, Xu Feng rarely put on airs.

  "Guo Jia."

  "What? Guo Jia... Quick, please come in. Forget it, I'll go myself." Upon hearing Guo Jia's name, Xu Feng was overjoyed and had originally wanted to have someone invite him in, but thought better of it and hastily tidied up his clothes before personally going out to greet him.

  "Is it you?"

  "It's me."

  Xu Feng did not expect that Guo Jia was actually the slender scholar he had met at the academy, the same one who had spoken out multiple times without fear of his own good looks.

  "It's been a few days, Commander Guo is as usual." Seeing Xufeng, Guo Jia's expression was normal, with a smile on his face, like an old friend, chatting and laughing freely. He didn't show the slightest tension or fear towards the killing intent and stern military demeanor of Xufeng's army.

  Xu Feng nodded secretly, this Guo Jia, just relying on his courage and demeanor, is a man beyond compare.

  "Let's talk inside." Xufeng said with a smile to Guo Jia, who nodded and followed him into his study.

  By the candlelight, Xu Feng carefully examined Guo Jia. In his heart, he nodded secretly. Although Guo Jia wore a simple green robe, he was slender and handsome, with bright eyes that seemed like deep pools of water, giving off an air of mystery, as if others could never see through him, but he could see through others. Seeing Guo Jia's smiling mouth and occasionally glancing at himself, Xu Feng smiled awkwardly: "I don't know why Brother Guo came here in the middle of the night, do you have any advice?"

  "Haha, General, you're joking. I'm just a weak scholar, how dare I be arrogant in front of you? You are the commander-in-chief of the three armies, with tens of thousands of elite soldiers and many powerful generals under your command. I didn't come here for anything else, but to ask: is Guo's family satisfied with their sincerity towards you? If Guo's family relies on you, what do you plan to do?" Guo Jia asked with a smile.

  "Can you represent the Guo family?" Xu Feng was secretly delighted, thinking that it seemed the Guo family had already developed a dependent mentality. Last time, he quietly let Xue Cheng return the Guo family's money and grain intact, and spared Guo Tu's life, it seems that this Guo family master has been moved.

  "General, why must you ask what you already know? If it weren't for the General, I would still be suffering from hunger and cold in a humble cottage outside the city, enduring wind and rain. Now that I can clear my parents' names and return to the Guo family, I owe it all to the General's kindness." Guo Jia bowed his hands and smiled.

  "Haha, it seems you are indeed a member of the Guo family. I have long admired your reputation, but unfortunately, we have never had the chance to meet. You can rest assured that I, Xu Feng, will definitely protect the Guo family's integrity. In the future, if the Yellow Turbans rise to power, the Guo family will be the most prominent family in the world. However, you must not harm the common people or do anything unlawful." Xu Feng patted his chest and guaranteed sincerely.

  It's worth it just for Guo Jia alone.