Chapter 8: The True Form of Shuofang Appears, and the Killer Arrives Later.

  Just as Lü Bu was indulging in his fantasies, Gao Shun had already led a dozen or so men into the camp and entered the tent to see Lü Bu. Lü Bu asked: "Gao Yun Chang, have all the men arrived?"

  "Gao Shun Dao said: 'Reporting to County Lieutenant, the commander of the Cang and Wei troops has gone to comfort the families of the war dead and has not yet returned to camp. Everyone else is present.'"

  Lü Bu nodded in satisfaction. But when he came out of the big tent, he was stunned for a moment. Lü Bu thought there was something wrong and asked Gao Shun again: "Where is the person?"

  Gao Shun pointed at the dozen or so people in front of him and said: "Everyone is here."

  Lü Bu's mouth twitched slightly upon hearing this, and a nameless fire gradually rose in his heart.

  He only saw him raise his hand to point at the soldiers one by one: "One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten, eleven, twelve..." Then he pointed at Gao Shun and himself and counted: "Thirteen, fourteen..." Then he counted on his fingers again: "Fifteen, sixteen."

  After finishing the calculation and confirming that there was no undercounting, he smiled coldly at Gao Shun and said: "Gao Yun would not tell me, but I'm sure there are only sixteen additional soldiers in the northern border army of Shuo Fang?"

  Gao Shun said: "Originally there were eight, and County Magistrate also saw them early this morning. They all died at the hands of Xianbei cavalry."

  Lü Bu's anger was slowly rising and it wasn't easy for him to erupt. He coldly asked, "Where is the armory?"

  Gao Shun listened and didn't quite understand at first, but then suddenly said: "It's right behind the main tent."

  Lü Bu said coldly: "Lead the way ahead."

  Gao Shun led the way to the armory. Gao Shun opened the door, and Lü Bu saw that the room was filled with spider webs, and the racks were empty. Seeing this scene, Lü Bu's teeth chattered with anger. His only thought was to go find that Wang gentleman, take back those two small gold blocks, and then leave this place with Yan Ni. Lü Bu did what he thought, ignoring these people, and returned to the main tent to pick up his Guǐ Jī spear, and as soon as he went out, he got on his horse and prepared to leave.

  Gao Shun saw Lü Bu about to leave and hastily grabbed the reins, asking: "Where is the County Magistrate going?"

  Lü Bu gritted his teeth and said fiercely, "Don't you dare call me County Lieutenant again! Earlier when I came, I even gave that damned official two pieces of gold. Now it's time to take them back."

  Gao Shun asked: "Is County Lieutenant Lü going to abandon us and leave?"

  Lü Bu shouted: "Let me go! I didn't belong here in the first place. Release me!"

  Gao Shun wanted to speak but stopped, his eyes filled with loss and helplessness, and finally slowly released the reins in his hand.

  Lü Bu rode his horse towards the gate, saw a large flag at the gate fluttering in the wind, and the big Chinese character on the flag attracted Lü Bu's eyes like a magnet. He slowed down his horse's pace, and the horse slowly walked to the gate and stopped. Lü Bu looked up at the flag, recalling Gao Shun's lost and helpless expression earlier. Recalling his past experiences with comrades in the military camp. Looking at the character on the flag, thinking about the fight with the Xianbei cavalry that morning, thinking about the real Lü Bu charging towards him, shouting: Barbarian slave, accept your death! Thinking about what the dying horse thief said: Have the Xianbei people ever asked for a reason when killing Han people? Thinking about all this, the anger in Lü Bu's heart was turning into a boiling hot blood. The anger disappeared, but the hot blood was still boiling.

  Lü Bu slowly lowered his head and turned slightly to the back, shouting: "Gao Shun."

  Gao Shun saw Lü Bu ride his horse to the gate and stop. He had been expecting this. When he heard Lü Bu call him, he rushed over quickly. Standing at attention, clasping his fists in salute, he replied strongly: "Gao Shun is here."

  Lü Bu asked faintly: "I ask you... why do you want to let me take the position of county governor?"

  Shu heard this and was initially stunned, then replied: "I have seen General Lv... a strong warrior, killing the Xianbei cavalry is like a tiger entering a flock of sheep. I know I am powerless to take care of my comrades in arms, and letting my brothers follow me will only increase casualties. Therefore, I want to ask General Lv... to lead a group of soldiers from Shuofang to protect our families."

  "Protecting family and children? Protecting the country!"

  Gao Shun said: "Gao Shun requests that County Magistrate Lü stay behind."

  Lü Bu turned his horse's head and walked to the twelve soldiers, seeing that everyone was looking up at him with expectation in their eyes. Lü Bu saw that these soldiers were lined up neatly, and he was also satisfied.

  He dismounted and walked towards the big tent, shouting: "Everyone come in."

  Gao Shun hastily ordered someone to tie up Lü Bu's horse and led the soldiers from the northern regions into the main tent.

  Lü Bu knelt on the couch and said, "I have just arrived and many things are unclear. I'd like to ask, why is the You Beiping military camp so desolate?"

  "Shuofang was originally a key border county of the Great Han, with ten counties established during its heyday and a population of over 130,000. However, after Wang Mang usurped power, the court neglected it, leading to its gradual decline. In the fifth year of Yonghe, the Left Protector of the Southern Xiongnu, Juelong, rebelled and killed the Administrator of Shuofang, and the court began to abandon Shuofang. In the third year of Guanghe, the court abolished Shuofang County and placed it under the jurisdiction of Beidi Commandery, which has been two years ago. Shuofang originally belonged to the Hexi Corridor, where Han people and Southern Xiongnu lived together in a complex situation. The Governor of Beidi, Jia Gu, never valued Shuofang highly, but only because the Administrator Fu Xian advised that Shuofang was an outer screen for the passes and should not be completely abandoned. If Shuofang were to remain, it would serve as a buffer against rebellions by the Southern Xiongnu or raids by the Xianbei, allowing Beidi Commandery to be preserved. Therefore, Jia Gu appointed Wang Gong as the Marquis of Shuofang's Military Affairs and sent some military supplies each year as assistance. However, Wang Gong was a civil official who did not understand military affairs, so most of the military affairs in Shuofang were handled by his subordinates. His subordinates also knew that the court had long since abandoned Shuofang to its fate."

  Lü Bu felt a little sorry for the people here, they were truly pitiful children abandoned by their fathers and mothers.

  Lü Bu asked again: "As for the Xianbei bandits on the border, how can you stop them with just this many troops?"

  "What's wrong?" A soldier below couldn't help but speak out. Lü Bu glanced at him, didn't pay attention to it, and looked at Gao Shun. Unexpectedly, he saw Gao Shun's face turn red and remain silent.

  Lü Bu asked the person who spoke: "Who are you? What was wrong with what I just said?"

  That man stepped forward and said: "I am Cao Zhen, a Wu Chang, since I followed the army, I have never blocked the Xianbei thieves from invading the border..."

  Lü Bu's face darkened as soon as he heard that, and his anger surged up again. A fierce aura burst out from his body, scaring Cao Xing into shutting his mouth.

  Gao Shun also felt Lü Bu's anger, so he said: "Not to deceive you, sir, we are just a dozen or so border troops. How can we stop the Xianbei bandits from invading the border? In fact, we are just scouts, only scouting the movements of the Xianbei. If the Xianbei have any intention of moving south, we will inform Lord Wang."

  Lü Bu said coldly: "What about afterwards?"

  Lü Bu heard this and, with a "crack", slammed his palm on the table. Unexpectedly, Lü Bu's strength was so great that even he himself did not anticipate it, and one corner of the table was smashed to pieces. Everyone saw this and was frightened, hardly daring to breathe loudly.

  Lü Bu said fiercely: "What a fine official Wang is, indeed this is how he governs."

  It's not that Lord Wang is to blame, Lord Wang was originally named Wang Biao. He was the governor of Shuofang County, but when the imperial court downgraded the county to a prefecture, he became the prefect. After Shuofang was assigned to the jurisdiction of Beidi, Jia Kui intentionally kept him in Shuofang to prevent the Xianbei bandits from raiding. Lord Wang had no connections in the imperial court and no wealth, so he couldn't be transferred elsewhere. Local officials were not allowed to leave their posts without permission, but there was nowhere for him to go, nor did he dare to abandon his post. If he didn't leave, he also had no power to stop the Xianbei bandits from raiding the border. Therefore, whether Lord Wang left or stayed, it wasn't possible, and this has been a problem for many years.

  Lü Bu listened and felt a little sorry for Wang Biao. He subconsciously tilted his head to one side, stroking his chin with his finger as he said: "So it seems that this Lord Wang is quite pitiful after all. However, I must say that since you've become soldiers, instead of thinking about how to stop the barbarian slaves from invading the border, you're thinking about how to find out when they'll invade so you can run away with your tails between your legs. Are you ashamed or not? If it were me, I'd have gone back home to farm long ago."

  Everyone was so angry that their faces turned red. Just then, Zang Ba and Wei Xu had comforted the families of the dead soldiers and returned to camp to report back. Gao Shun informed them that Lü Bu had been appointed as the county magistrate. The two men bowed to Lü Bu in unison, saying: "We pay our respects to County Magistrate Sir."

  Lü Bu nodded and responded with a grunt, indicating for them to fall in. Then he asked again, "What about the armory? Doesn't it have any reserve weapons?"

  Gao Shun said: "The northern regions are lacking in resources, and the Xianbei have been raiding our borders year after year. If we store up too many supplies, it would be equivalent to providing aid to the Xianbei instead. Therefore, General Wang has ordered that all military equipment and tools must be carried on one's person, with only a few stored in the official ironworks. Whatever is needed will be forged accordingly. In case of an attack by the Xianbei, everything will be taken away at once. Anything that cannot be taken away will be completely destroyed, not leaving anything for the Xianbei."

  Lü Bu's mood improved a bit after hearing this, it seems that Wang Biao is not entirely useless. He was thinking about what to do next, since he had stayed, he would definitely do his best and not give up easily.

  Then Lü Bu said to everyone: "You all disperse for now, and wait for me to think about it."