Chapter 47: Jia Yu Makes His Move (Part 1)

  Song Xian's proposal obviously hit Lü Bu's weak point.

  Yuan Shao's family background as a third-generation Three Dukes, his reputation as the leader of the alliance of feudal lords, and the support of local aristocratic families were not something that Lü Bu, who was currently residing in Henan, could match. At present, turning against Yuan Shao would not bring any practical benefits to Lü Bu. If he listened to Song Xian's advice and used Yuan Shang's life as a bargaining chip to temporarily appease Yuan Shao, it would give Lü Bu's army enough time to accumulate military strength, which was also a viable option.

  However, although the Black Mountain bandits suffered significant losses in the Handan chaos, their base of one million remained intact. With Zhang Yan's elite troops withdrawing in time, these losses were not even a scratch for the Black Mountain bandits.

  Relying solely on the two hundred mysterious vanguard warriors and over a thousand of Lü Bu's personal guards, it would be laughable to claim that they could annihilate the Black Mountain bandits who had been using the Taihang Mountains as their base and wreaking havoc in northern Hebei for years. In history, Yuan Shao mobilized the forces of four states and three cities, spending a huge amount of resources just to barely suppress them. It wasn't until Cao Cao captured Ye City and again used the imperial court's name to call for surrender that the Black Mountain bandits finally surrendered.

  Xun Yu repeatedly urged Lü Bu to send troops, even going so far as to lower his posture and put on an attitude that he would not rest until the Black Mountain bandits were eliminated and Yuan Shang was rescued. As one of Yuan Shao's most trusted four strategists, Xun Yu was also known for his mastery of military strategy, so it is unlikely that he made such a childish mistake.

  Moreover, Song Xian, as the leader of Lü Bu's personal guard, also clearly expressed his support for Feng Ji's proposal. Is there something fishy going on between the two?

  No wonder Qin Xu thought so, Song Xian had a history of this kind and was very close to Wei Xu who had already defected. Lü Bu's defeat at the White Gate Tower, he was also one of the participants. The days were too comfortable, only seeing that although Lü Bu's army left Chang'an, the cohesion of the troops was extremely strong, and Lü Bu's prestige was extremely high, far from the scene of scattered military morale in Xiapi City, which made Qin Xu underestimate him and did not reassign Song Xian, who was currently under Lü Bu and trusted by him, as the leader of the Imperial Guard.

  Ji's abnormality and Song Xian's previous conviction made Qin Xu highly suspicious that there was something fishy going on between the two.

  But what about the motive? What about the purpose?

  Lü Bu's army and Yuan Shao's army, apart from fighting a battle at Tiger Trap Pass, Song Xian as Lü Bu's personal bodyguard leader had always been with Lü Bu. Guo Tu was one of Yuan Shao's trusted advisors in his campaign against Ji Province. The two men could not have possibly met, let alone conspired together.

  Qin Xu had a headache, he couldn't go tell Lü Bu that he suspected the leader of his trusted Imperial Guard had problems, because he knew long ago that he would betray him in the future.

  Not to mention whether Lü Bu would listen if Qin Xu said these words in his own identity, if Qin Xu dared to do so, he would probably be regarded as a madman by everyone.

  Although relying on his precognition of the Three Kingdoms' history, he might be able to help Lü Bu's army avoid the tragic fate of the White Gate Tower on a large scale, but when it comes to playing tricks with top-notch strategists in the Three Kingdoms, it is not Qin Xu's strong point.

  Lü Bu and Zhang Yang exchanged cups, under the deliberate courtesy of Gong Ji and Xu You, the guest hall of the governor's mansion was filled with joy, Gong Ji excused himself on the grounds that it was not convenient to be late, and made an appointment with Lü Bu to take troops together at noon the next day to rescue Yuan Shang and attack Hei Shan.

  It was clear that it was a plan of Gong Ji, but this was an open conspiracy, belonging to the kind where one knows there must be deceit, but can't quite put their finger on it.

  Qin Xu suddenly felt a sense of powerlessness and defeat.

  Adviser! Why isn't there a strategist with foresight like Chen Gong in the future, who can appreciate Lü Bu and make him rely on his arm?

  Is it really impossible?

  "What's on your mind, Qin Zhubu?"

  Qin Xu was sitting on the threshold of the room, gazing at the Milky Way that would be hard to see again in later generations. However, his heart had lost its appreciation for the beauty, and was a tangled mess. A clear and elegant female voice entered Qin Xu's ears, it was Cai Yan who had disappeared for many days without a trace.

  "Miss Cai! You've finally appeared again!" Seeing Cai Yan, he jokingly said a few words, and Qin Xu felt his mood lift greatly. He said, "It's just that I don't know how long it's been since I've seen such a starry sky, it's quite moving, nothing much."

  "Oh?" Cai Yan seemed to be in a good mood this time when she came back, and after listening to Qin Xu's words, she sat down next to him, took a light breath, and said faintly: "Yes, I haven't taken a good look at the starry sky for a long time either."

  Although it was a pleasant thing to have beautiful women accompany him, Qin Xu's mind was always thinking about Feng Ji and Song Xian at this time. He didn't notice that Cai Yan, although saying she was looking at the stars, had her eyes fixed on Qin Xu's face all along.

  "Is Qin Zhubu thinking why Gong Ji and Song Xian are standing on the same line?" Cai Yan's mouth corner revealed a hint of mischievous smile, suddenly leaning close to Qin Xu's ear and whispering.

  "Yes, these two people... what did you say?" Cai Yan's soft words entered Qin Xu's ears like a thunderclap. Qin Xu suddenly turned his head and stared at Cai Yan with a surprised expression.

  Cai Yan? How could this great talent, who normally doesn't even leave the house or step out of the inner courtyard, know about it?

  Lü Bu and Feng Ji's meeting may not be a secret, but being able to guess Qin Xu's thoughts at once suggests that he must have been quite concerned about Feng Ji and Song Xian's actions.

  For some reason, the scene of his first encounter with Cai Yan suddenly appeared in Qin Xu's mind at this moment. Facing Wei Xun's intimidation, Cai Yan looked terrified and the cow ear knife shining with cold light under the moonlight made a scene that Qin Xu had always found hard to mention, but now it seemed so fitting.

  Tsai Ing-wen! Tsai Ing-wen!

  Luoyang's talented woman, Wei's widow, Xiongnu queen, each of these historical identities made Qin Xu look at this legendary woman with a pitiful gaze from the start. Humiliating Wei, robbing the imperial prison, abandoning Chang'an, killing Cao Hong, fleeing to Hebei, Cai Yan's calmness, bravery, wisdom and even some ruthlessness did not change Qin Xu's view of her, and because of this view, Cai Yan left a deep impression on Qin Xu.

  But now...

  In the history of the Three Kingdoms, anyone who left their name behind was not a good person. Under the strokes of the historian's pen, there were too many unknown secrets. Qin Xu had already deeply experienced this, but he didn't expect Cai Yan to be the same way.

  "Hmm!"

  Qin Xu turned his head too quickly, and Cai Yan's face, which was close to Qin Xu's ear, hadn't even had time to move away, so that when the two people's eyes met, there was another point of contact.

  Smooth, silky, slightly cool, and a bit sweet.

  "Ah!" Cai Yan exclaimed, her delicate hands instantly covering her mouth, her refined face suddenly flushing with a hint of red, her eyes frantically looking at Qin Xu, who was also stunned.

  "Qin Xu, you!" Cai Yan's voice was laced with a hint of embarrassed anger as she suddenly stood up.

  It's common knowledge in medicine that when ordinary people stand up suddenly after sitting for a long time, they will feel very uncomfortable. It can cause dizziness, blurred vision, unsteadiness and other adverse reactions.

  Tsai Yen unfortunately performed it in front of Qin Xu with all her might.

  "Boom!"

  "Ah!"

  Throwing oneself into someone's arms? Soft jade and warm fragrance? That's just a fantasy, try experiencing the feeling of being hit in the face by an object weighing 70-80 kilograms. Qin Xu had just unintentionally savored Cai Yan's sweet lips when the back of his head also came into intimate contact with the doorframe. It really is a case of retribution not being far off.

  "Qin Xu, are you okay?" Cai Yan saw Qin Xu's miserable state and the commotion of the crowd, and didn't bother to find trouble with Qin Xu anymore. He hurriedly pulled Qin Xu up and anxiously asked.

  "Yan sister, I didn't do it on purpose." Qin Xu understood that if he didn't clarify things now, once Cai Yan found out he was fine, the real trouble would begin. Seeing Cai Yan busy checking his injuries, Qin Xu spoke in a breathless tone.

  "Alright, alright, I know. Forgive you, does your head hurt? Is there anywhere on your body that's uncomfortable?" Cai Yan asked with a worried face.

  "Huh? Sister Yan, you're back? Qin Xu, how are you two together? What's going on with Qin Xu?"

  Just like Qin Xu Fan, whenever he thought of Cai Yan, Lu Lingxue's figure would appear. It was easy for him to temporarily forgive Qin Xu's "unintentional" offense through this unexpected event. Suddenly, Lu Lingxue appeared in front of the two and asked in a rapid-fire manner.

  "Uh..." Cai Yan saw Lv Linggui appear, like a child caught stealing sugar, and for a moment didn't know how to speak.

  "Accidentally bumped into each other, Miss Cai is helping me take a look. Ah, big sister, how did you end up here?" Qin Xuan saw Cai Yan's embarrassment and thought she was still hung up on what just happened, so he quickly explained to Lü Linggui.

  "Oh?" Lü Linggui's bright big eyes were filled with suspicion as she looked back and forth between Qin Xu and Cai Yan, seemingly thinking about something. She said, "Father is coming back to say that we will be going to war again on the day after tomorrow, I want to go together too, but I'm afraid Father won't allow it, so I came to ask you if there's any way, Father loves you so much, you can help me persuade him, it'll definitely work!"

  "Damn, almost forgot the main thing!" Qin Xu's eyebrows furrowed, Cai Yan seemed to know something, just about to say it to himself, when a misunderstanding occurred. The situation was urgent, and he could only hope that Cai Yan would take into account his own sake and not make things too difficult for him.

  He glanced at Cai Yan with his head hung low, Qin Xu forced a smile and said to Lü Linggui: "Big sister, you go back first, I'll go see Master later."

  "Oh!" Lü Linggui glanced at the two of them, surprisingly not immediately pulling Qin Xiang away, and instead turned around and walked out of Qin Xiang's courtyard.

  "Miss Cai, just now Qin Xu unintentionally offended you. In the future, I will let Miss Cai deal with it as she sees fit. However, the matter of Lord and Marquis Ouyang making an appointment to attack Heishan together is a serious one. If Miss Cai has any plans to teach Qin Xu, I hope..." Qin Xu saw Lü Linggui walk away so easily and didn't think much of it, and with a stiff upper lip, he spoke to Cai Yan who had returned to her usual demeanor.

  "Am I free to deal with it?" Cai Yan lightly bit her lip, thinking of something, and a blush flashed across her face again, asking in a low voice.

  "Yes!" Qin Xu said with a bitter face.

  "I wonder if Qin Zhubu still remembers Wei Xun?" Cai Yan asked Qin Xu with a faint smile.

  "Wei Xu?" Qin Xu asked in doubt: "Isn't Wei Xu already gone from our army for a long time? How is this matter still related to Wei Xu?"

  "I suppose Qin Zhubu is very curious about what happened between Wei Xun and me that day?" Cai Yan seemed to have not noticed Qin Xu's slightly anxious gaze, and slowly said: "Actually, I mainly wanted to get a name list from Wei Xun's hands that day!"

  "Roster? Isn't it asking Wei Xun to save Cai Zhonglang?" Qin Xu became more and more confused.