Chapter One: Where to Go and Where to Come From

  In 192 AD, in the third year of the initial peace of the Han calendar, fourth month.

  A lot of things happened in these four short months.

  The great Han Empire, which had once created countless brilliant achievements, after the Yellow Turban Rebellion, implemented the provincial governor system advocated by Liu Yan, each province governed itself, and later there was Dong Zhuo's chaotic rule, in the midst of turmoil, it was like an old man on his last legs, in the long river of history, shining with a final burst of dazzling glory.

  During the reign of Emperor Xian, the civil officials led by Wang Yun and the scholar-officials were rejoicing over the elimination of Dong Zhuo, the national scourge who had brought disaster to the imperial court. They regarded themselves as the meritorious officials who would restore the great Han dynasty.

  Wang Yun had such ambition and aspiration, which was also reasonable, because the plan that led to Dong Zhuo's assassination was devised by Wang Yun himself, and he even sacrificed his adopted daughter. This great achievement alone made Wang Yun almost instantly become the spokesperson for the entire civil service group. Now that the emperor is young, all policies come from Wang Yun.

  For a time, Wang Yun summoned and controlled all officials, judging right and wrong throughout the empire; although he did not have the title of Chancellor, he was in fact acting as one.

  However, Wang Yun's personality was arrogant and self-opinionated, which was notorious in the scholarly community.

  Many aristocratic families who had made some pro-Dong remarks or actions during Dong Zhuo's reign were settled by Wang Yun, with minor cases being heavily punished and major cases being severely punished, and many prominent families in Chang'an and famous scholars throughout the country could not escape his clutches, all of whom dared to be angry but did not dare to speak.

  It can be said that Lao Wang's power has been established, but the potential enemies are becoming more and more. Many old Dong's who were on good terms with Wang Yun after the event also gradually had a tendency to leave. What's more, some even secretly spread rumors that Wang Yun was the second Dong Zhuo, and claimed that they would once again unite the lords to overthrow him.

  But Wang Yun was not afraid!

  The vassals worked hard for the king? In those years, the so-called eighteen vassals who were subsidized and praised by the aristocratic families to attack Dong Zhuo made a big noise, but in the end? The eighteen vassals split up and each took credit for their own merits. What is called "vassals working hard for the king" is now a joke to Wang Yun. Who got rid of Dong Zhuo?

  What about the eighteen vassal states?

  Stop joking, it was I, old Wang, who used a linked strategy to get rid of this national thief and returned the Han dynasty back to the Liu family. The eighteen vassals combined couldn't accomplish what I did by simply marrying off my adopted daughter.

  What's more, this matter not only made Wang Yun's reputation unparalleled for a time, but also gave him an ace in the hole!

  Lü Bu! The unparalleled Lü Bu under the sky!

  As for the rumors from outside that Lü Bu usurped the throne and killed his father, with a heart as cruel and poisonous as a wolf's, and being unruly and difficult to control, Wang Yun generally responded to them all with scorn.

  Regicide and parricide?

  Who is Lü Bu? The mighty hero who made the eighteen vassals tremble with fear in the Battle of Dingtao. He was called the greatest among men, and his horse, Red Hare, was the greatest among horses. He was the most suitable choice as a sharp blade. But how could Ding Jianyang, an ordinary man, command such a hero? Moreover, Old Ding was stingy and ungrateful, lacking the ability to recognize talent. He used brave generals like Lü Bu as mere clerks or minor officials, and yet he expected to control Lü Bu's temperament under the name of adoptive father and son?

  Dong Zhuo didn't say a word. If it weren't for Lü Bu killing this cheap adoptive father, how could old Wang get the credit for this great achievement?

  Due to the success of the linked strategy, Wang Yun was extremely confident in his own plan.

  Everyone says that Lü Bu is difficult to tame, but that's because you haven't found the right way. Lü Bu indeed has a stubborn personality and unmatched martial arts skills in the world, but in Wang Yun's eyes, he is a very easy-to-control tool. Some brave and powerful men are strong, but once Wang Yun grasped his weakness, Lü Bu couldn't help but obey him.

  Painful woman! Family is everything!

  If it were an ordinary person, these two points would not be considered weaknesses, and even after 2,000 years, they would still be called a model of a good man! However, when placed on Lü Bu's body, it seems like giving the old king a tranquilizer.

  At this moment, Wang Yun felt that the most gratifying thing in his life was to take Ren Hongchang, who was originally just a singer in the palace, as his adopted daughter. Wang Yun had few children and had originally planned to use Ren Hongchang's beauty to win over some political allies for the old Wang family, but he didn't expect to get several times more benefits than he had initially thought.

  If it weren't for her, how could he have achieved such a great merit? And how could he have dared to use the fierce general Lü Bu, who was like a tiger or wolf?

  Look at today, it is exactly the day when Lü Bu formally took Ren Hongchang, who changed his name to Diao Chan, as his concubine. Originally, with Lü Bu's identity, there was no need to make such a big fuss, but Lü Bu still followed the etiquette of welcoming his bride, and this approach only deepened Wang Yun's confidence in controlling Lü Bu.

  At this moment, Old Wang's head, Wang Yun, actually found some real daughter-in-law feeling.

  "Ah!"

  Just as Old Wang was leisurely sitting on the ox cart, heading to the venue, in the wine house at the back of Lü Bu's General Mansion, Qin Xu watched until the figures of Old Xi and others completely disappeared from view. Suddenly, he felt that his strength seemed to be sucked out of him, and with a thud, he sat down on the ground, panting heavily.

  Having confirmed the current era, Qin Xu only felt a sense of powerlessness filling his entire body, followed by waves of fear and unease.

  It can be said that it is the honeymoon period of Lü Bu's army and the literary officials of Chang'an or the scholar-official class. After Dong Zhuo's death, Lü Bu was granted the title of Marquis of Wen, General of Valiant Martial Prowess, and Acting Imperial Inspector due to his outstanding contributions; the troops under his command, including those from Ding Yuan's original Bingzhou province, as well as some of the remaining Western Liang Iron Cavalry left behind by Dong Zhuo, were all incorporated into the combat sequence of the Feathered Forest Guard, with Lü Bu in command.

  It can be said that Lü Bu's current situation is one where he has thousands of iron cavalry under his command, tens of thousands of elite soldiers, and the unparalleled Sky Piercing Camp as his wings. His reputation is unmatched, and today he is also going to marry the adopted daughter of the current Minister of Works, Wang Yun, as a concubine. With both fame and beauty at his disposal, he is truly in high spirits.

  If someone had told him that in just a few years, he would be fleeing everywhere like a stray dog and eventually beheaded by Cao Cao at the White Gate Tower, this person would have to change his molecular structure even if it was the best outcome.

  "This place doesn't seem to be a place where I can stay for long!" Qin Xu rubbed his face with both hands, although he didn't know what he looked like after crossing over, but still wanted to make his complexion look more spirited.

  "Since it's not suitable for Lü Bu to stay here for long, who should he go to surrender to?"

  The sky was getting darker, and the outside of the wine house had already started to light up lanterns. Qin Xu still had no clue about how to leave Lü Bu's army, where to go afterwards. Although Romance of the Three Kingdoms is a classic that almost everyone has read, but if I had to say who left the deepest impression on me, it would be just a few powerful men. It's easier to take shelter under a big tree, for Qin Xu, since he couldn't escape this world, he might as well find a reliable big tree to rely on, rather than fighting for dominance or engaging in fierce battles with those powerful men!

  "Liu Bei, Liu the big ear?" Qin Xu muttered to himself in a low voice, but instantly rejected it: "No, no, no. Now going to follow Liu Bei, although it is possible to leave a name with old Liu now and get familiar with his face, after establishing Shu State later, it will be easier to mix in. However, being from Lü Bu's army has predetermined that this path is not suitable. Not to mention that Old Liu has been walking under bad luck for the past few years, and at least ten or more years of wandering are needed before establishing Shu State. Even if we don't say these things, just Red-faced Guan and Black-faced Zhang alone have no good feelings towards people from Lü Bu's army. If I go, it will be a waste! It won't work, so I won't go!"

  "It's not easy to travel thousands of miles to surrender to Sun Quan, is it? Haha!" Qin Xu was amused by his own thoughts and muttered to himself: "Sun Ce may have been able to pretend well in the early days, but he became extremely ruthless later on. Moreover, he loved to settle scores after autumn, and was good at backstabbing others. Just look at how cruelly he treated the widows and orphans of Sun Ce's family when he took over power, this little scoundrel is not a kind person."

  "It seems that I can only go to Cao Cao, the old big shot." Qin Xu looked out of the window and sighed, "Although Old Cao has many shortcomings, being bloodthirsty and suspicious, it cannot be denied that Cao Cao himself is quite generous towards his subordinates. As long as you don't touch his bottom line, there's no need to worry about the consequences. Hmm! It's him!"

  In the midst of haste, Qin Xu's mind was made up to flee to Cao Cao. Only then did he notice that the noise of people outside the wine house where the warehouse was located was getting louder and more chaotic, as if many people were coming and going in a flurry of activity.

  "Qin Zhubao! General Wei has asked me to come and ask, is the wine and food ready?" Just as Qin Xu was lost in thought, a general's house servant shouted loudly from outside the door.

  "It's almost done, you go ahead and divide the wine and food yourself!" Qin Xu replied subconsciously.

  "Ah!"

  The family seemed unwilling to say anything more to Qin Xu, and after responding with a single word, they hastily left.

  "It's okay, no leakage." Qin Xu let out a sigh of relief, fortunately, the quick adaptation to identity that had been honed over many years in the workplace did not make others feel abnormal.

  It seems that I have to come up with a reason to leave this place quickly! If things go on like this, I will definitely be discovered. This is not the 21st century where the rule of law prevails, it's a place where they can chop your head off without even discussing it with you.

  From memory, Qin Xu's official position was originally the Pingzhou Wolf Rider, now under the Feathered Forest Guard's Fenwu General's Mansion Warehouse Chief Clerk. It sounds like a very important role, after all, the three armies have not moved, and the grain and grass are already in place, but in reality, the responsibility is only similar to that of a housekeeper.

  After all, even if Guo Shun's face is big, he will not really let Lü Bu appoint a 15-year-old to be in charge of the military supplies and food for tens of thousands of troops. Moreover, historically, the relationship between Lü Bu and Guo Shun has never been good, and the trapped camp was finally handed over to Lü Bu's brother-in-law, Wei Xu.

  "Wait a minute!" Qin Xu slapped his forehead hard, and suddenly knew what the unease he had just felt was: "Fifteen years old? How is that possible? You can't mess with people like this!"

  Qin Xu suddenly discovered a very headache-inducing problem. Qin Xu's previous memories told him that this body was only fifteen years old, and still in virtual age!

  No wonder Sima Mao would joke that Qin Xu is Lao Xu's illegitimate son; it's also no wonder that whether it was Gao Shun or other soldiers in the ambush camp, they had such shocked and surprised expressions after hearing Qin Xu's excuses to Sima Mao.

  Perhaps in many YY novels, the protagonist is extraordinary at the age of eight or nine, and even at four or five years old, they are already so capable. But these are just family words.

  Throughout the Three Kingdoms period, there was only one 14-year-old commander, the genius Zhou Gongjin, who had this opportunity under countless coincidences, and has been passed down for thousands of years.

  In this Han Dynasty that has experienced four hundred years of wind and rain, at the age of 15, in an ordinary farming family, he may already be a strong laborer, and some have even married and had children. However, in the official circles of the Han Dynasty, it is a place where seniority is respected, and even Cao Cao, who uses people without adhering to one pattern, would not put a nameless and obscure Lü Bu army "deserter" in his eyes.

  "Alas, this is really frustrating!" Qin Xu was immersed in the disappointment of shattered hopes, feeling somewhat at a loss.