Chapter 36: Loyalty and Righteousness Cao Cao

  Dong Zhuo and his entourage arrived at the Yangdi area, when Li Ru suddenly said: "The Chancellor has just abandoned Luoyang, and there may be pursuing troops. We can order Xu Rong to ambush outside the city of Yangdi in the mountains; if any troops come chasing, let them pass through; wait until they arrive here and have Wen Hou lead his troops to defeat them, then cut off their retreat and attack. This will prevent those who follow from daring to pursue again."

  Dong Zhuo thought for a moment - indeed! He then ordered his subordinates to set up an ambush.

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  "Big brother! We clearly only have three thousand troops, why did you tell Sun Jian that we have over ten thousand elite cavalry?" Cao Ren asked quietly, puzzled.

  "Heh heh! If the lord hadn't said so, would Sun Jian have felt at ease handing over his 3,000 troops to us?", Li Yu chuckled and patted Cao Ren's shoulder.

  "But... even with Sun Jian's 3,000 troops to support us, our army is only a little over 6,000 men. Dong Zhuo has more than 200,000 troops! The gap is too big!" Cao Ren said with some concern;

  "Pressing on with victory does not depend on the number of soldiers, a defeated army has nothing to fear from a large force! Don't dawdle! Be filial! Go and receive Sun Jian's troops, immediately pursue and attack! There must be no mistakes!" Cao Cao said sternly.

  "Lord...", Before Li Yu could finish speaking, Cao Cao pulled him aside, out of the protection range of Xu Chu and Dian Wei: "Huaide, I know what you want to say! This time we will definitely encounter an ambush, Dong Zhuo is not a fool, he must have set up an ambush. Alas...I don't know if I can return this time! If...I don't come back, you should find another lord to follow! With your talent, you can leave a name in history!"

  With a tinge of sadness, Cao Cao grasped Li Yu's hand and sighed: "No matter what, I must make one final effort for the great Han dynasty! Don't try to persuade me anymore! If I die, I hope you can take care of my family for me. I'm leaving Le Jin and Hua Xiong behind, they will definitely protect themselves well. Farewell, sir!" Cao Cao once again paid his respects to Li Yu with the etiquette due to a junior.

  People say: Don't wait for the environment to adapt to you, you should actively adapt to the environment. Li Yu, who had been living in Eastern Han for several years, fully integrated into the life of the Han people. He already understood what it means - "A gentleman would die for a friend who understands him; a lady would make herself beautiful for a man who loves her."

  No matter how Cao Cao is evaluated in history, at this moment Li Yu was deeply moved. He knelt down on one knee: "My lord will surely win a great victory! Alas, I have no strength to bind a chicken! Alas, alas!" Unconsciously, his eyes were filled with tears. To be able to meet such a master who considers himself is what kind of good fortune!

  He patted Li Yu's shoulder a few times, Cao Cao was somewhat excited, turned around and didn't let others see his face: "Xiahou Dun, Xiahou Yuan, Cao Ren, Cao Hong, Xu Chu, Dian Wei! Follow me to battle! Yue Jin, Hua Xiong protect Mr. well!"

  Li Yu is greedy for wealth and beauty, and is a cunning person who can be clever as a fox at times and stupid as a pig at other times. However, Cao Cao treats him differently, despite their nearly ten-year age difference and short acquaintance. Nevertheless, they have established a deep friendship, with a mentor-and-friend relationship.

  With unwavering determination, Cao Cao led his 6,000 cavalrymen on the road to pursue Dong Zhuo. He left behind Le Jin and Hua Xiong, two generals, as well as a hundred armored soldiers, to protect himself. As he watched Cao Cao disappear into the distance, Li Ru shouted: "Xu Chu, Dian Wei, protect our lord! I await your triumphant return!"

  "My lord, you are loyal and righteous! It's a pity that I couldn't go to the battlefield to kill the enemy!" Li Yu sat on the ground with some despair. "As long as one has the heart, there is nothing that can't be done!", a sturdy man who had been standing behind Li Yu suddenly said this sentence. This person was born with thick eyebrows and big eyes, a square nose and a wide mouth, over eight feet tall, with an air of heroism, but his left wrist was cut off at the root, making people sigh. This person was none other than - Wu Ankang!

  "Xu Yang is right!", Li Yu got up and walked back and forth, thinking about things.

  Since Li Yu saved Wu Ankang from the midst of water and fire, he guided him to regain his confidence. Wu Ankang regarded himself as Li Yu's protector. As Wu Ankang was illiterate, Li Yu even gave him a courtesy name - Xuyang! It means rebirth from the ashes!

  The rising sun is the day of rebirth. Li Yu said this to advise Wu An Guo to forget the past, regain his composure, and what he just said was also said by Li Yu.

  Suddenly, Li Yu stopped in his tracks and shouted to the soldiers beside him: "Are you willing to follow me to pursue Cao Gong?" Perhaps infected by the atmosphere, a group of soldiers shouted: "Willing to follow Mr.!" "Good!", Li Yu applauded and sighed;

  "Alright! Listen to my command! Le Jin, Hua Xiong! Have the soldiers collect the banners of the various lords and bring them here. When the time comes, we will do this and that..."

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  Cao Cao led six thousand cavalrymen in silence all the way, chasing overnight to the border of Xiangyang. Cao Ren rode his horse while observing the surrounding terrain, tonight was a full moon night, very clear, "Big brother! The terrain on both sides is a bit high! There may be an ambush!"

  "There are ambushes, but we must go on! Don't worry!", The corpses along the way had severely irritated Cao Cao's mood. He now hated Dong Zhuo deeply, he was too cruel! How many innocent civilians died along this road! Was his heart made of iron and stone? Didn't he have any mercy at all?

  "Haha! Li Ru's words have come true! Cao Cao, dismount and surrender! ", Suddenly, a large number of soldiers and horses surged out from both sides of the mountain, with a total number of no less than 30,000. Cao Cao was taken aback, just as he was about to give orders, the enemy general Xu Rong ordered his troops to fire arrows, and under a hail of arrows, the Cao army suffered significant casualties;

  Under the protection of Xu Chu and Dian Wei, Cao Cao was not seriously injured, but instead provoked his ferocity. Cao Cao shouted loudly: "Charge out for me! Only by charging forward can we survive!" When the soldiers heard Cao Cao's angry shout, they all charged together, wanting to live; Xu Rong seemed to intentionally let Cao Cao pass, only slightly intercepting him before stopping.

  Because he wanted to surround Cao Cao's pursuing troops! Because in front of him there was still a fierce tiger - Lü Bu!

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  On the way to Chang'an, Dong Zhuo and puppet Emperor Liu Xie sat in the same carriage. Liu Xie was born handsome and had a bit of cleverness compared to his other brother Liu Bian, so Dong Zhuo supported him to take the throne. At this time, he stared blankly at the seat.

  Dong Zhuo: "Your Majesty, I'm so miserable! I'm the most miserable person under heaven, as miserable as a wild grass under a chariot wheel; my misery is like the bitterness of a yellow lotus in a stone crevice!" Liu Xie remained unmoved. Dong Zhuo was having a good time, but now that he's stirred up heaven's wrath and public outrage, he's suddenly come to his senses and started talking about how miserable he is! He's really not human!

  "Your Majesty! You say that I, your old minister, am so loyal to you?! Shouldn't you also be loyal to me?! Ha! Where has there ever been an emperor who is loyal to his subjects?! This is truly a joke! Only someone as despicable as Dong Zhuo could utter such words!"

  Liu Xie still remained silent, and Dong Zhuo finally became enraged: "Look at your arrogant appearance! Do you know that I can help you ascend to the throne? With just one push, I can also pull you down!" An angry Dong Zhuo pushed and shoved Liu Xie in the carriage, but no matter how he scolded him, Liu Xie refused to speak.

  Dong Zhuo also sat there uninterestingly and soon fell asleep;

  Liu Xie was struggling in his heart, and the hand holding the dagger was also trembling abnormally. Should he personally end Dong Zhuo's life, even if it meant death, to defend the imperial dignity? Or should he give up and live a life of shame? After much consideration, Liu Xie gave up. Although he had extraordinary wisdom beyond ordinary people, he lacked the courage and backbone to revive the Han dynasty in this chaotic world.

  If he really had backbone, when he later fell into Cao Cao's hands, he would not have been kept like a pet until Cao Pi came to power and killed him. He had many opportunities but lacked the courage and backbone to change his fate, so he ended up with a tragic end, not even as good as an ordinary citizen.

  Now Cao Cao, Cao Mengde is still a loyal and righteous Cao Cao, Liu Xie is still the original Liu Xie, I don't know if after Cao Cao becomes a generation of heroes, Liu Xie will still be the current Liu Xie!