Chapter 39: Get rid of Liu, Guan and Zhang's weapons!

  Just as Cao and the others were working together to solve the economic crisis in Yan Province, a plan to drive away wolves and swallow tigers was being staged on the land of Xuzhou. Sun Qian arrived at Xuchang and expressed his intention to join forces with Cao, who agreed and consented to the two families sending troops together! Yuan Shu flew into a rage upon hearing about the alliance between Cao and Liu, and sent 100,000 soldiers to attack Xuzhou. Liu Bei led his army in resistance against Yuan Shu, and the two sides were locked in a stalemate near Huainan.

  Inside Liu Bei's military camp, Guan Yu's face was flushed with sweat as he clasped his fists and said: "Brother, our army has been locked in a stalemate with Yuan Shu for a long time. If the grain supplies from Xuzhou do not arrive soon, I fear that our army will be unable to hold on!"

  Liu Bei looked at Guan Yu and said: "Guan Yu? I also have this worry, and have repeatedly urged Xuzhou to send grain, why hasn't it arrived? Is there some problem in Xuzhou?"

  Guan Yu stroked his beard and said, "Big brother, Xu Zhou has three younger brothers leading the army to garrison, there shouldn't be any problem, unless... unless Lü Bu launches a surprise attack on Xu Zhou?"

  Liu Bei was taken aback upon hearing this; if so, Xuzhou would be lost!

  "Big brother, big brother, I'm sorry to you!"

  Just as Liu Bei was worried, Zhang Fei's loud voice echoed throughout the entire military camp. As soon as Liu Bei heard it, he fainted, Xuzhou must have been lost!

  "Big brother, big brother?" Liu Bei was soon awakened by someone and also knew the whole story of Xuzhou's loss. Alas, he was too greedy, Xuzhou was not yet stable, Lü Bu was eyeing it covetously, and he had already sent troops out. But apart from sending troops, did he have any other way? Probably not. The scattered morale of the army in Xuzhou must be proven by Liu Bei's fighting, to rally the soldiers' hearts!

  After Liu Bei's defeat, Lü Bu still sent back Liu Bei's family and let him station in Xiaopei. Later, Yuan Shu's general Ji Ling led a large army to attack Xiaopei, but Lü Bu performed the "Gate of Shen" spear technique, resolving Liu Bei's crisis, allowing him to stay in Xiaopei!

  Lü Bu soon stabilized his foothold in Xuzhou, and under the pretext of Zhang Fei stealing military horses, he led troops to attack Xiaopei. He seized Xiaopei, and Liu Bei retreated with his remaining forces towards Yuzhou. Along the way, he encountered Yang Feng and had him killed through a plot.

  On that day, in a small county town within the borders of Yuzhou, Liu Bei and his men were eating dry rations and discussing the future course of action for their army. Liu Bei looked at everyone and said: "Everyone, our army is currently wandering around the borders of Yuzhou, Huainan, and Yanzhou. If we continue like this, it won't work out. Does anyone have a good plan?"

  "My lord, Xuzhou is no longer a place for us to settle down. We should seek another place to develop ourselves!"

  Liu Bei nodded and asked: "Does Gong Yu have any plan?"

  "My lord, according to my plan, you should choose a group of heroes to follow and serve you, waiting for the right moment to take action and achieve great things!"

  "Who does Gong Yu think can be sent?"

  "My lord can send Cao Mengde, this man has an alliance with our army, he will surely take him in. Moreover, Your Majesty is now in Xudu, we may be able to plan one or two things!"

  Liu Bei listened and thought it was reasonable. Then he said: "What Gong Yu said is reasonable, please let Gong Yu be the envoy and go to Xudu!"

  "Yes, milord!"

  Soon, Liu Bei arrived at Xuchang with his remaining troops to surrender to Cao Cao. Cao Cao led his civil and military officials to welcome him outside the city of Xuchang, where they exchanged formalities before hosting a banquet for Liu Bei at the residence of the Minister over the Masses to console and comfort him.

  Cao sat in the main seat and looked at Liu Bei saying: "Xuande, it's been many years since we last met, Xuande Gong is still as elegant as ever!"

  Lv Rui observed Liu Bei from the side, thinking to herself: "How can all the rulers of the Three Kingdoms be so... unusual? Cao Cao is not worth mentioning, he's just a type that blends into the crowd. As for Sun Quan, Lv Rui had never seen him before, but judging from records, was he some kind of genetic mutation? His eyes and hair looked like those of a foreigner! And Liu Bei, his ears were huge, and those hands could reach past his knees, wasn't that just an unevolved ape? The heroes of the Three Kingdoms are many, each one more bizarre than the last, it's like a zoo!"

  Liu Bei looked at Cao Cao, thinking to himself: "Isn't this another one of your tricks, Cao Mengde? I, Liu Bei, have ended up in such a predicament. However, he didn't reveal his thoughts and instead cupped his hands and said: "I, Liu Bei, am not talented and lack the ability to govern Xuzhou, which is why I've ended up in this situation today. Now, my only hope is to serve as a minor general under your command, Sir!"

  Liu Bei's heart is really deep, where is the former overlord? Not a bit of grandeur! Yuan Shao was considered an idiot, but others died with dignity and shouted loudly before their death: "How did I, Yuan Shao, end up like this?" Liu Bei, this person, judging from now, would never have such behavior, similar to Han Fu. No wonder even Cao Cao was deceived by Liu Bei!

  Cao smiled and said, "Xuande is being polite. Lü Bu is a tiger-like man, Xuande losing Xuzhou was not his fault. Xuande has great talent, even if he were to be demoted, he would still be used according to his abilities!"

  "Thank you, Sir!"

  Liu Da'er? I'll ask you a question. "I've heard that Liu Xuande is skilled in hunting, and our lord also enjoys hunting. Can Liu Xuande show us his skills?"

  Liu Bei looked over in the direction of the voice. A child's words, a child who could stay in the main hall of the Sima Mansion? Who was it?

  Cao Cao saw Lü Bu and said, "Xuande, this is my adopted son, Lü Bu. He's good at hunting. Xuande, if you also enjoy hunting, we can go out and hunt together!"

  Liu Bei listened and cupped his hands, saying: "It turns out to be Young Master Hou. Xuan De has paid his respects. Xuan De also likes hunting, but the technique is not as good as that of Xuan De's two sworn brothers. If Young Master Hou and Prime Minister Siku like it, I can go hunting with the two of them tomorrow, I don't know if Prime Minister Siku has time?"

  "Haha, Zhuge Liang has such a refined interest, how can I, Sima Yi, be left out? Let's go hunting outside the city tomorrow!"

  Later, Cao held a dinner party for Liu Bei at the Imperial Chancellor's mansion. After the dinner party was over, Liu Bei and his three men took their leave, while Cao remained behind with several of his trusted advisors.

  Cao asked: "Everyone, what do you think of Liu Bei?"

  Cheng Yu was the first to speak out: "My lord, Liu Bei is not a man who can be kept around. He has a deep mind and if we don't get rid of him, he will surely become a great threat in the future!"

  Cao Cao looked at Cheng Yu and said: "What makes you think that Zhongda?"

  "Your Excellency, Guan Yu and Zhang Fei are heroes who can withstand ten thousand enemies, yet they submit to Liu Bei. This shows that Liu Bei is a man of great ability. And as for Tao Qian yielding Xuzhou to him, how could Liu Bei be an ordinary person? In the past, Your Excellency used the name of the Han imperial family to entice Liu Bei to take action, but now he doesn't mention anything and only wishes to serve as a general under you. Isn't this suspicious?"

  Cao nodded and said: "Zhongde is right, however?"

  Guo Jia saw Cao Cao's embarrassed expression and stood up to say: "My lord, Liu Bei cannot be killed. If Liu Bei is killed, there will be no one in the world who will surrender to my lord! Please think thrice, my lord!"

  Cao Cao stroked his beard and said: "Feng Xiao's words are reasonable. When Liu Bei was in danger, he came to serve me. If I were to kill him, the world would not be satisfied. Zhong Da's words also make sense, so let's send someone to keep an eye on Liu Bei! Tomorrow's hunt is also a test, you all go and prepare!"

  "Yes! My lord!"

  "Uncle, I have something to say!"

  "What's wrong, Rui'er?"

  "Uncle, Rui'er has been studying hard recently. The alliance between Qin and Jin is actually a clever plan for the prosperity of the Qin state. Uncle can also use the alliance between Qin and Jin to separate Liu Bei from his master and servant!"

  "What does Rui'er mean?"

  "Uncle, have you forgotten about your sister-in-law?"

  That's right, there is also Mi Shi, with her around, can distinguish between Liu Bei and his subordinates, after all, it's about being distant from those who are not close! Thinking of this, Cao smiled and said: "Rui'er is indeed clever! Zhongfu knows what to do now!" (At this time, Cao Ang had already separated from the Minister of Works' mansion and had his own residence. The distance between Cao Ang's Zhonglang General's mansion and Cao's Minister of Works' mansion was not far.)

  The next day, Cao took Lü Bu and went out hunting with Liu Bei and his two brothers. In ancient times, hunting was a way to discover many problems, otherwise Cao would not have used the name of hunting to urge Liu Xie later! However, Liu Dae was very cautious, all the way following the rules, obediently, without anything special, honest like a kitten, making it impossible for others to take advantage of him.

  After the hunt, Liu Bei and his two companions followed Cao Cao back to the Prime Minister's residence. The three of them took their seats in their respective positions. Suddenly, Lv Rui shouted: "Liu Xuande, you have a big nerve! How dare you hold a sword in the Prime Minister's residence? Don't you know that outsiders are not allowed to bring swords into the Prime Minister's residence?"

  Liu Bei was taken aback, what's going on? Was he outsmarted? Liu Bei cupped his hands and said: "Lord Hou, Sir Sima, Zhuge Liang really didn't know, forgive me, forgive me!"

  Cao nodded and said: "Xuande doesn't have to be like this, those who don't know are not guilty. Xuande handed the weapon over to his servant and left the Sima Mansion, then returned it!" Hehe, Rui'er is indeed clever, the hunt didn't scare Liu Bei, this time he came with a strong momentum!

  After Liu Bei and his two companions handed over their weapons to Cao Cao's attendants, they took their seats. At this time, Cao Ang and Zhen Ji also arrived at Cao Cao's mansion. When Cao Cao saw Cao Ang, he introduced him to Liu Bei: "Xuande, this is Mengde's eldest son, Cao Ang, styled Zixiu!"

  "Zi Xiu has met General Liu!"

  "Indeed, Cao's son is a talented young man. Xuande couldn't help but feel envious, wondering when he would have such an excellent son!"

  "Xuande is being polite, but his son is useless and still needs Xuande's guidance!"

  Liu Bei looked at Mi and said: "This woman must be Cao Gong's excellent daughter-in-law. I wonder which family's daughter she is?"

  Cao Cao looked at Mi Zhuang and burst out laughing, saying: "Xuande, it turns out that there is a predestined relationship. This woman, Mi Zhuang, is the younger sister of Mi Zhu from Xuzhou. Xuande, surely you are aware of this?"

  Liu Bei's heart suddenly sank, what's going on? Zuo Ci's sister is Cao Cao's daughter-in-law, and the wife of his eldest son? How come I didn't know this? Did Zhongzi deceive me? Or was it because of the Xuzhou affair? Thinking of this, Liu Bei's mind kept racing, is that really what happened? But he still said: "So that's how it is, it seems that Xuande and Cao Gong have a predestined relationship!"

  Liu Bei was about to take his leave after casually having some dishes at the Prime Minister's mansion, when Zhang Fei suddenly shouted: "Where is my weapon?"

  Liu Bei hastily covered Zhang Fei's mouth and said, "General Cao must be amused! My third brother is too rash! Please return the sword to Xuande, General Cao!"

  "Lord Guan, our weapons have been taken away by the lord and melted down to be cast into new coins!"

  "What?" As soon as Lü Bu said this, Liu Bei and his two companions were shocked, Cao Cao was also shocked.

  Cao shouted in his heart, Rui'er, your majesty is impressive, but don't melt other people's troops, isn't this still me cleaning up the mess?

  Liu Bei was thinking in his heart: Is Cao really going to use this to attack himself? Today's events were too many, Zhen Mi's sister is Cao's daughter-in-law? His three brothers' weapons were also confiscated? What's going on?

  Cao Cao nodded and said: "Xuande, Rui'er was being reckless. I'll apologize on his behalf! Why don't I have a better weapon made for you three instead?"

  Liu Bei hastily bowed and said, "General Ssu-ma is too polite. Hsüan-teh has already made up his mind to be General Ssu-ma's subordinate general. What use would he have for such a weapon? Please don't bother, General Ssu-ma!"

  Then Liu Bei pulled Guan Yu and Zhang Fei out of the Sima's mansion! Cao was speechless, glared at Lü Bu, scolded him a few words and left!

  At night, Lü Rui looked at the three brothers' weapons and thought to himself, "Heh heh, these are indeed good stuff. What materials are these? It's said that the three brothers' weapons were made from meteorites from the heavens as their base material? If that's really the case... then I've struck it rich again! (12,000 characters sent out, thanks to readers for your votes!)