Chapter 22: No Record? Rescue from the Pit?

  Lü Bu returned to Puyang, feeling extremely bored. He missed the carefree days he spent with Guo Jia, wandering around, visiting kilns, and enjoying good food. Although he could occasionally go hunting in Puyang, it eventually became boring as well. Lü Bu drooled every day, thinking about his good times with Guo Jia. Every day, he sent people to gather information, checking if Cao Cao's war had ended. Once it did, Lü Bu would be able to go find Guo Jia.

  Time flies quickly, and soon another year will pass. In this year, Fan County has developed rapidly due to its extremely low taxes, attracting merchants from all over the Han Dynasty to come and do business here. Fan County has become a transfer station for goods between the north and south of the Yellow River, and it has quickly prospered. Looking at the crowded goods everywhere in Fan County, Lv Rui's eyes shine brightly, hehe, at most two years, no aristocratic family in the Han Dynasty can afford to pay the taxes of Lv Rui's Fan County, by then, all these things will be mine!

  This day, Lü Rui took Dian Wei to hunt in the wild and returned to the Marquis's mansion. At this time, an envoy came from Puyang. This person was a school lieutenant of Cao's mansion. After entering the city, he came to visit Lü Rui.

  Lü Rui sat in the main seat and looked at Xiaowei, asking: "What brings you to my Fan County? Is it that Zhongfu wants me to go to Puyang?"

  The lieutenant bowed and said: "Lord Hou, the master is currently on the front line of Xuzhou fighting Tao Qian. I was ordered by Lady Ding to go to Langya to pick up Old Master Cao. It's said that the old master sent someone with a letter some time ago, planning to come to Yanzhou to reunite with the master."

  Lü Ru immediately realized that something was wrong, and had forgotten about this matter. Cao Song had come to Yanzhou with the Cao clan to avoid the battle between Tao Qian and Cao Cao, but was discovered by Tao Qian's men halfway and killed. Cao Cao then launched a second campaign against Xu Zhou and massacred the city!

  Lü Rui then let the school lieutenant go, and he quickly informed Dian Wei to make preparations. He himself was going out of the city tomorrow to play at Mount Tai, accompanied by Xu Chu and Shi Yan. When Dian Wei received this order, he was a bit confused, but still went to execute it.

  The next day, Lü Rui took the three of them and 500 soldiers to Mount Tai. According to historical records, Cao Song was killed on the border of Yan Province and Xu Province, but the specific location and time were unclear, so Lü Rui could only try his luck by going there. Cao Song was not only Cao Cao's father, but also a man with influence, and if he was alive, he would be very useful for the prosperity of Wei State.

  Lü Rui led a cavalry unit and soon arrived near Mount Tai. Lü Rui was able to march so quickly thanks to the invention of the stirrup by Ma Yuan, which had been improved upon at Lü Rui's suggestion and now resembled modern cavalry stirrups, providing stability for riders and facilitating coordinated movement, making it suitable for new recruits to ride horses in battle.

  Lü Bu arrived near Mount Tai and had Xu Shu choose a place advantageous for defense to set up camp. The next day, Lü Bu planned to ascend Mount Tai and at the same time sent out cavalry to scout all around. After all, there were still Yellow Turbans marauding in the area of Mount Tai, as well as Tao Qian's army, mountain bandits, and Northern Sea army, a mix of dragons and snakes, requiring constant vigilance, lest one be swallowed up by others at any moment!

  The next day, Lü Rui took Dian Wei to climb Mount Tai. However, they didn't get very far before Lü Rui came back down. At that time, Mount Tai was still in its original state, with no paved paths and extremely steep terrain. Dian Wei had to carry Lü Rui on his back and they only managed to ascend a few hundred meters before it became difficult to proceed.

  Lv Rui came down from the mountain, patted his clothes and felt really disappointed!

  Just as Lü Bu was thinking about how to find new fun, a team suddenly appeared in front of him. Xu Shu took a look and cupped his hands, saying: "Your Excellency, it seems to be Cao's carriage team?"

  Lü Rui covered his eyes with his hand and looked into the distance. Indeed, the Cao family crest was on top of the large flag, it was Cao Shuang. Lü Rui secretly rejoiced in his heart: It's really effortless to get everything! There is no detailed record in history, even a dead mouse can bring me good luck!

  Lü Rui grabbed a handful of Dian Wei's sleeve, and Dian Wei understood, leading Lü Rui to mount their horses and rush towards Cao Song's group.

  Cao De saw a pair of unknown cavalry teams suddenly attacking, and hastily ordered people to prepare the jing armor. The guards had just formed a circle when Lü Rui shouted excitedly on horseback: "Uncle De?"

  Cao De took a look and was also shocked, saying: "Rui Er?"

  It was indeed Cao Song and his entourage. Lü Bu jumped off his horse and ran to Cao Song's carriage, where he greeted him with a bow. Cao Song was also delighted to see Lü Bu and hugged him in the carriage before they continued on their way to Puyang.

  At night, Lü Rui and his group rested in a broken temple. Lü Rui looked at Cao Xing's large and small boxes of things and couldn't help but shake his head. If there were really pursuers, wouldn't all these things get them killed? Cao Xing was greedy for wealth and would bring about his own death!

  Just as Lü Bu was admiring Cao Song's treasure, a sudden noise came from the main hall of the ruined temple. Lü Bu walked in and saw a servant bound and kneeling in front of Cao Song. Xu Shu saw Lü Bu and immediately stepped forward, saying: "Your Excellency, this is Tao Qian's man! Our whereabouts have been betrayed!"

  Lü Rui was stunned, historically recorded that Cao Song and his party were killed, but why would Tao Qian ambush Cao Song in the Tai Shan area? This is now Zang Ba's territory, Tao Qian rashly sent troops, wouldn't it provoke Zang Ba's displeasure, if so, then the person in front of him can explain the reason.

  Cao De shouted loudly on the side: "Bastard, you're dead!" Then with one knife, he killed the servant.

  Cao De had just beheaded the servant when a scout came to report that a large army of about 3,000 men was discovered ten miles away.

  Lü Rui and the others were stunned when they heard this. Tao Qian had actually sent so many people to surround Cao Song? Lü Rui's mind was screaming: "What the...?! You're writing the Records of the Three Kingdoms, can't you make it clearer?! How could there be 3,000 people?! I only have 500 men, how am I supposed to resist?! And the sky is dark and the terrain is unclear?!" Thinking of this, Lü Rui became anxious and stomped his foot, shouting: "Xiao Xu Xu, what do we do?! What do we do?!"

  Xu Shu was also taken aback at this time. How to let Cao Song and his party, mainly the members of the Cao family, escape safely? This is a thorny problem. Five hundred cavalry against three thousand people? Is there any chance of winning? If so, are there more pursuers behind? Does Tao Qian just target Cao Song or want to fight with the Cao army here? These are all questions!

  Xu Shou's eyes rolled, then he said: "Hou Ye, Cao Lao Taigong, Cao Er Ye, you three follow Murong Ping to the north, passing through Jinan Prefecture, turning at Dong'e Yellow River Ferry, and returning to Puyang. I'll lead a large team of people and family members westward, only rushing to Dong'e!

  Lü Rui had no time to consider the matter when Cao Song said decisively, "Alright, let's follow Mr. Xu's plan!"

  Xu Shu had the four men change into new clothes and then had them ride three horses northward, while Xu Shu himself laid an ambush in a ruined temple and led a large group of horse-drawn carriages westward.

  The temple was soon deserted, and after a moment, a black shadow suddenly rushed into the temple, then carved words in one place. All that could be heard was a "whoosh" sound, the black shadow let out a loud cry, and fell to the ground!

  Xu Shu walked out of the hiding place, muttering to himself: "Really, there are still people!" Xu Shu erased the words left by Cao Song's group going north, leaving only the words of the large army heading west. He took the body of the black shadow and left!

  Lü Rui and his group ran wildly for a whole night, until the sun rose. Only then did Lü Rui and the others rest by a small stream. When Lü Rui saw the water, he hastily ran over and splashed it onto his face with both hands. "Oh my goodness!" Riding horses is really uncomfortable! After running wildly for a day and night, I'm getting dizzy! Riding horses isn't a good thing at all!

  Just as the four of them were resting by the stream, a group of mountain bandits suddenly ambushed from a nearby mountain. The four of them didn't even have time to get up before they were surrounded. Lü Rui looked around and thought, "Oh no, we're done for! We've been wiped out by the mountain bandits!" He hadn't expected this. Was his life as a transmigrator going to end like this? Oh heaven, he had only just arrived here a few years ago! Please spare my life!

  The leader of the mountain bandits looked at the four and said: "Come on, take them all away and hand them over to the king for disposal!"

  Like this, Lü Rui was sandwiched by a mountain bandit and went up the mountain. Damn it, damn it, Xiao Shou Shou, can't you write books with more details? How could there be so many sudden situations?

  Soon, Lü Rui and others were taken to the mountain stronghold. Along the way, Lü Rui saw blue flags with the four characters "Taishan Yizei" fluttering in the wind everywhere!

  Taishan bandits? Zang Ba? Legendary mountain bandits of the late Eastern Han dynasty? If you say they are mountain bandits, Taishan bandits are different from other mountain bandits. Firstly, they rob the rich and help the poor, but they don't listen to the government's orders and have their own laws. In the nearby states and counties of Taishan, they practice autonomy. Zang Ba later surrendered to Cao Cao, who used an imperial edict to divide several counties in Shandong into smaller units and handed over the area around Taishan to Zang Ba to govern. Later, Zang Ba was even appointed as the governor of Qingzhou, which can be considered a feat of governance. However, at that time, Cao Cao was not yet the Chancellor, so how could he convince Zang Ba?

  Just as Lü Rui was thinking about how to escape, Lü Rui and others were taken to the main hall of the mountain stronghold. At this time, a burly man with a full beard, Zang Ba, was sitting in the main seat, drinking tea.

  Tea? Not wine? It seems that Zang Ba and other mountain bandits are different, he is a cultured mountain bandit. Of course, Zang Ba's father was a big landlord near Mount Tai!

  Zang Ba looked at Lü Rui and others, asking: "Who dares to wander around my mountain stronghold? Are you officials sent to spy on military information?"

  Cao Song stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, I am a merchant from Qiao County named Qu Song. This time, I brought my family to flee north, but unexpectedly, we encountered a group of bandits dressed as government soldiers nearby, who robbed us of our property. We were the only ones who escaped, the rest are all dead!" After finishing speaking, he burst into tears.

  Zang Ba didn't even glance at Cao Xiong, but pointed at Lü Rui and said: "You little kid, tell me, where are you people from? If you can't say it, I'll kill all of you!"

  Lü Rui listened and thought it was a very deep city, unexpectedly not believing Cao Song's words, wanting to test a little child before believing. Lü Rui looked at Zang Ba and then burst into tears.

  Zang Ba slammed his hand on the table and shouted: "What are you crying about? If you cry again, I'll kill you! Speak quickly!"

  Lv Rui suddenly conditioned reflex, stood up straight, and stuttered: "I, I'm Qu Rui, this is my grandfather, Grandfather, Grandfather's name is Qu Song, this is Uncle, Uncle's name is Qu De."

  Zang Ba heard this and pointed at Murong Ping, saying: "Who is this person?"

  Lv Rui replied: "This man is our bodyguard. He's said to be from outside the pass, and his martial arts skills are quite good. His name is Ah Ping!"

  Zang Ba looked at the four of them and muttered to himself, "The court is in chaos, the people are suffering. Old folks, since you've been robbed, I wonder what plans do you have for the future?"

  Cao Song hastily stepped forward, crying and saying: "Your Majesty, originally we wanted to return to Qiao County, but my family has already left, I don't know what to do. Today meeting Your Majesty is also a fate, I wonder if Your Majesty can take us in?"

  Zang Ba looked at the four of them, then thought for a moment and said: "Alright, since that's how it is, you four will stay. Since the old man is a merchant, he can help us manage our accounts. Your son can assist him, and your bodyguard can join our mountain stronghold!"

  Cao Song heard this and thanked him, saying: "Thank you, Your Majesty!"

  Zang Ba let his deputy arrange accommodations for Cao Song and the others, after which they began their life in the bandit village on Mount Tai.

  Half a month had passed, and Lü Rui was playing with stones in front of Cao Song's house as usual. Suddenly, he thought about the thrilling rescue, and how he, the Marquis, had become a wild child in the mountains, eating coarse grains every day until his stomach was almost starving! He thought about how great it was to go hunting every day before... Just thinking about this made Lü Rui drool!

  Before long, the day passed and by evening Cao Song and others returned to their room. Cao Song began to sort out the intelligence they had gathered. This mountain stronghold was just one of Zang Ba's outposts. Every month, Zang Ba would come here for inspection. At the same time, Zang Ba controlled the territory around Mount Tai, with his base in Tunyang, not far from here. There were about 500 bandits on the mountain. It was impossible to break through their defenses and charge down. The only way to rescue Cao Cao, Lü Bu and others was to find a way to contact Cao Cao when Cao Song and Cao De went out to purchase supplies.

  Just as Cao Song was thinking of how to contact Cao Cao, Cao Cao had already retreated from Xuzhou and completed his first Eastern Expedition. He stationed his troops in Dong'e, where Xu Shu and others also arrived safely. Cao Cao was overjoyed to see his mother, but upon learning that Cao Song and Lv Rui were missing, he was shocked and immediately sent out secret scouts to search for them.

  In the East Hall of the Taishou Mansion, Cao sat in the main seat and asked: "Zhongde, is there any news about my father and Rui'er?"

  Cheng Yu nodded and said: "Your Excellency, according to the scouts sent out by our army, there is no news of Old Master and Young Master Hou for the time being. However, based on our analysis, if Old Master and his party have not been harmed, they may have fallen into the hands of the bandits in Mount Tai!"

  Cao Cao heard this and said: "Zang Ba? The bandit of Mount Tai?"

  Cheng Yu nodded and said, "Not bad, my lord. If the large group of soldiers lured away the pursuing troops, Old Master and his party would definitely head north to Jinan. However, we did not find Old Master in Jinan City, so he must have disappeared around Tai'an and Licheng, which is exactly the territory of the Taishan bandits!"

  Cao stroked his beard thoughtfully and asked: "Gentlemen, what good strategy do you have?"

  Xun Yu stepped forward and bowed his hands, saying: "My lord, I have a plan that can be tried. If the old master is in the hands of the bandits on Mount Tai, he will definitely be rescued!"

  Cao heard this and his eyes lit up, saying: "Gongda, speak quickly!"

  Xun Yu bowed his hands and said: "My lord, we can use the name of clearing out the remnants of the Yellow Turbans in Qingzhou to lead our troops into Zang Ba's territory. Then, with a large army, we will besiege each of Zang Ba's strongholds. Next, we'll send trusted men disguised as refugees to infiltrate Zang Ba's strongholds and gather intelligence on the old man's whereabouts. Once we discover his whereabouts, we can devise a plan to rescue him!"

  Cao Cao listened and said: "Gongda's plan is indeed wonderful, let's follow Gongda's plan!"

  The next day, Cao Cao used the name of clearing up to surround all of Zang Ba's strongholds with a swift and decisive momentum, then sent out secret scouts to infiltrate each stronghold. Finally, they discovered the whereabouts of Cao Song and his party.

  With the detective's connection, Lü Rui finally felt at ease, hehe, there was a glimmer of hope again, and he could escape!

  After discovering Cao Song's whereabouts, Xiahou Dun called out to challenge him at the foot of the mountain stronghold. Sun Guan led his troops out of the stronghold to engage in battle.

  Sun Quan watched as Xiahou Dun appeared, and let out a loud roar: "Mount Tai's Sun Quan is here, enemy general will die!" After finishing speaking, he charged forward swinging his large blade.

  Xiahou Dun used his spear to parry, then rotated and stabbed multiple times, Sun Guan panicked, in just a few rounds, Sun Guan's weapon was knocked off. Xiahou Dun shouted: "Go die!" The long spear stabbed towards Sun Guan at an extremely fast speed, Sun Guan closed his eyes, my life is over!

  Just then, a loud clang was heard, an iron halberd blocked Xiahou Dun's long spear and rescued Sun Guan, the mountain bandits sounded the golden horn to retreat.

  Returning to the mountain stronghold, Sun Guan was overjoyed and asked: "Who is this brave warrior? Today's great kindness, Sun Guan will surely repay!"

  Then Dian Wei reported back to his family and was called evil, he was a rough man who liked to fight for justice, seeing the government army bullying Sun Guan, he deliberately went to rescue him.

  Sun Guan hastily expressed his intention to recruit Dian Wei, who said he had an urgent matter and wanted to return to his hometown for a trip. He would leave tonight and hoped Sun Guan could give him some dry rations. Sun Guan agreed and ordered Cao De to prepare a box of goods as a reward for Dian Wei. Later, Sun Guan and Dian Wei drank together until late at night.

  Inside the hall, Sun Guan was already drunk and lying on the ground. Lü Bu kicked him a few times in the stomach and said: "You sleep like a dead pig!" Cao De asked at this time: "Evil comes, why not kill him? Meng De, why don't you attack up the mountain?"

  Dian Wei rubbed his head and said: "I'm not clear either, I just came to see my lord Hou, but I heard that Lord Cao seems to appreciate Zang Ba, and doesn't want to offend him, so?"

  Lü Rui listened and said, "Nainai's, Uncle Zhongfa, you're so eager to seek talent? Your father and adopted son are still in the hands of mountain bandits! You think of surrendering now?" Lü Rui glanced at Dian Wei and said, "Evil comes quickly, let's go down the mountain. If this fool wakes up, we'll be done for."

  Dian Wei nodded and put Cao Shuang and Lü Rui into the large box sent by Sun Guan, then went down the mountain.

  At the mountain stronghold's entrance, the guard joked: "Ade, are you sending the evil hero away?"

  Cao De smiled and said: "Yes, General Sun ordered it. He gave the hero a batch of wealth, more than enough, let's go down the mountain!"

  The mountain bandits looked at the box and drooled, but were intimidated by Dian Wei's glare and retreated. They knew Dian Wei was formidable, so Cao Song and his group safely descended the mountain and returned to the Cao army camp.

  When Dian Wei opened the box and let Cao Song and Lü Rui come out, Lü Rui took a deep breath and said, "Nǎinǎi, we're safe!"

  Cao Cao was overjoyed to see Lü Bu and Cao Song, so he hastily gathered his troops and retreated back to Yan Province.

  In the East A Taishou's mansion, Lü Rui used a copper mirror to take a look at himself. Ah, originally a sturdy and robust young master had become a thin monkey on a bamboo pole! This time he really suffered a lot. Hmm, it seems that such dangerous things should not be done in the future. It appears that history books can only point out one direction and cannot affect sudden accidents!

  Just as Lü Rui was lamenting his encounter, Zang Ba looked at Lü Rui with a crooked smile and wrote: "Qiguo Hou Lü Rui came here for a visit". Zang Ba burst out laughing and muttered to himself: "Lü Rui? Interesting, interesting! Cao Song, Cao Cao? I'd like to see if you're the ones who can pacify the chaotic world!"