The 51st time Yuan Shao and Ma Teng disputed over the alliance leader, Ma Fu killed Mu Shun with one shot.

  Banners fluttering, spears and halberds like a forest, the camp surrounded by Zaozhuang, stretching for hundreds of miles. The eighteen rebellious princes gathered at Zaozhuang to discuss important matters.

  In the courtyard, Yuan Shao sat in the middle, while the other lords were arranged on both sides according to their official ranks.

  Yuan Shao first said: "Yuan is incompetent, temporarily occupying this position, and hopes that everyone will tolerate it!"

  Ma Teng glared at Yuan Shao with great dissatisfaction and did not respond.

  Cao Cao, with his sharp ears and keen eyes, had already seen through this scene. He smiled and said: "Now that all the heroes have gathered together, we should elect one person as the alliance leader. I wonder what General Yuan thinks about it?"

  Yuan Shao laughed heartily and said: "It should be so, it should be so."

  As soon as Yuan Shao's words fell, Wang Kuai, the governor of Hebei Province, hastily said: "General Yuan has been a high-ranking official for four generations and his family members are all over the world. He has always been respected and admired, and should be the leader of the alliance!"

  Yuan Shao was quite modest and quickly pushed back: "If we talk about status, General Ma of Xinye is the descendant of the famous General Ma Yuan, and he has just defeated Li Jue and Guo Si, making Dong Zhuo fear him. We should make him the leader of our alliance."

  "What new news, it's just an empty title, and most likely it was given by that traitor Dong! " Zhang Yang, the Taishou of Shangdang, always spoke straightforwardly. In front of all the lords of the world, he didn't even want to give Ma Teng a bit of face. ?? Hu Bao Qi 51

  Ma Teng suddenly became enraged, pointing at him and saying: "A person who speaks nonsense is also worthy of being the Taishou of the Upper Party? At most, he is only suitable for selling dogs and shoes!"

  Zhang Fei, who was standing behind Liu Bei, heard Ma Teng's words and thought that he was making a veiled attack on his elder brother, who had once sold straw sandals. He burst out in anger: "When did my elder brother ever provoke you? What is this barbarian from the west doing here, shouting and yelling? Why don't you hurry back to Xiliang to tend to your horses?"

  Ma Teng was inexplicably scolded by a nameless little soldier, and he was so angry that he drew his sword and wanted to kill Zhang Fei with one slash.

  The groom rushed forward to stop him!

  Cao Cao then coughed heavily several times and shouted in a loud voice, "Can all of you listen to what I have to say?"

  The originally noisy courtyard suddenly fell silent, and Cao Cao continued: "Everyone, we are here to rebel against Dong Zhuo, not to show off our eloquence and quarrel in this place! If you really want to quarrel, go to the street and find a shrew to quarrel with for three days and three nights. Please don't embarrass yourselves here! Dong Zhuo is watching, the people of the world are watching, and the Emperor is anxiously waiting for you all in the palace!"

  The groom saw Cao Cao compared to other princes, and his vision was indeed not ordinary. He immediately applauded and praised: "General Cao's words are indeed correct, indeed correct!"

  Cao Cao carefully looked at the groom and pointed to him, saying to the various lords: "Do you all know who this young brother is? He is the groom! He is the groom who defeated Han Sui and Gao Gan! He is the groom who was made a marquis within the passes before he even wore a hat! Has he ever spoken of his military exploits since coming to Xianyang? Has he ever boasted about his illustrious family background? He remains unruffled by honor or shame, uncompetitive and unambitious - this is what a true man should be!"

  Yuan Shu, the governor of Nanyang, said with disdain: "Brother Meng De, your words are wrong! A humble horse keeper is just ashamed to speak up, how can he compare with you all? What if he defeated Han Sui? Didn't he still lose the battle of An Yi? What if he defeated Guo Si? Isn't Guo Si still alive and well? I say Brother Meng De, what's the use of saying so much? Now, let's just choose an alliance leader, and whoever is chosen must be obeyed. If anyone disobeys, they will be killed without pardon! This is a simple matter, why are you all hesitating? Besides, all the lords present have experienced countless battles, there's no need for Brother Meng De to lecture here!"

  When Cao Cao heard this, he was so angry that he almost vomited blood. After returning to his seat, he said to Cao Pi, Li Dian and Yue Jin behind him: "This kid is not worthy of discussion! Let's just wait and see what happens."

  The groom saw Yin Feng laughing secretly all along, so he asked him why he was smiling.

  Yin Feng lowered his head and said, "A plate of loose sand can't form any climate. I felt before I came that we were just here to watch the excitement! Now it seems not only very lively but also very ridiculous!"

  Ma Chao suddenly broke out in a cold sweat, gazing from afar at Cao Cao who sat upright and sternly, and suddenly realized that what was happening now seemed to be different from the so-called historical records he had read.

  Cao Cao doesn't seem to be a big traitor, and he didn't go to assassinate Dong Zhuo either. As for ruthlessly killing Lü Bu's family, that is even more unfounded.

  Yuan Shu saw that all the lords were silent, so he said: "Now that a great enemy is before us, we have no time to waste. I think this is what we should do: those who agree with my elder brother as the alliance leader, please stand on the right side; those who agree with Ma Teng as the alliance leader, please stand on the left side; and those who want to be the alliance leader themselves, please stand in the middle!"

  As soon as Yuan Shu finished speaking, most of the eighteen vassals stood on the right side, while only Ma Fu stood by Ma Teng's side.

  Zhang Yang then sarcastically said to Ma Teng, "Stop fighting! You've won two battles and now you're getting arrogant! Look at yourself, the position of alliance leader is not something that can be taken turns sitting on, it's definitely not going to be your turn!"

  Ma Teng, who had always been proud and arrogant, had never been treated with such contempt. At this time, he was already thoroughly disappointed in the various lords. He pointed at Zhang Yang and cursed: "What are you? A guy who hasn't achieved anything yet still has the face to stand here? Don't be a laughing stock for the party anymore!"

  Zhang Yang's general, Mu Shun, heard Ma Teng insult his lord and immediately stabbed at Ma Teng with his spear. Ma Chao had also been looking on in disgust and with a flick of his wrist, took Mu Shun's life. The various lords were shocked into terror.

  Yang Jian saw Ai being killed and picked up his long spear to engage in a fierce battle with Ma Fu.

  Cao Cao hastily signaled for Yue Jin and Li Dian to step forward and stop them.

  Yuan Shao pointed at Ma Chao and said: "You killed a great general in front of the formation, are you rebelling?"

  The groom stood up the long gun in his hand, and the gun handle suddenly entered the ground three points. Yuan Shao was so frightened that he trembled all over, and only then did he regret not bringing Yan Liang and Wen Chou when he came out to fight. According to the groom's momentum, if he wanted to take his head, it would be as simple as taking something from a pocket.

  Liu Bei, who had been silent all along, suddenly said: "Mu Shun deserved to die, Governor Zhang does not have to be sad for him."

  Director Zhang wiped away tears from the corner of his eyes and said: "Nonsense! Who are you? What right do you have to speak here?"

  Gongsun Zan saw Zhang Yang being so rude to Liu Bei, immediately stood up from his seat: "This man is the descendant of Zhongshan Jingwang, in terms of generation, he is the imperial uncle of the current emperor, isn't Governor Zhang being too impolite to him?"

  Zhang Yang also didn't know whether it was true or false, and could only say: "Zhang certain has lost his beloved general, I hope you won't blame me!"

  Liu Bei continued: "The name of Ma Teng has long been renowned throughout the land, and today I see that he is indeed not an ordinary person! He is so presumptuous and lacks respect for his elders, speaking only two words before drawing his spear. This behavior is extremely impolite! Think about it, if this spear had really struck Xing Shu, wouldn't it have meant the loss of a great general among the lords' armies? The Western Liang soldiers would surely have vowed to avenge their commander's death, and thus we would have started an internal conflict before even fighting against Dong Zhuo. How could we not be defeated?"

  Yuan Shao was dissatisfied with Ma Chao killing Mu Shun in front of him, but after listening to Liu Bei's words, he also felt that there was reason. Moreover, since Ma Teng had a strong army at his disposal, Yuan Shao could not do anything to Ma Chao, so he said: "Zhang Taishou is grieved and angry about the change in circumstances. Since you all have elected me as the leader of this alliance, I will say something fair and just in front of you all. Mu Shun's assassination of Ma Teng was indeed wrong, but the crime does not deserve death. Now that things have come to this pass, I think it would be best for Ma Taishou to lead the vanguard in attacking Dong Zhuo, atone for his guilt and establish merit. What do you all think?"

  All the vassals had previously only heard that Ma Fu was very formidable, now they have seen it with their own eyes, who dares to say no.

  As for Ma Chao, killing Mu Shun was not a rash move. During his garrison at Li Jue's camp, Yang Fu had sent him a letter by carrier pigeon, telling him to take this opportunity to establish his authority and make the vassals tremble with fear, so that he could have a foothold in this chaotic world.

  Ma Fu's thoughts were also like this. In a chaotic world, people's hearts are floating, if not seen with one's own eyes, the masses would definitely not believe it. Now taking down Niu Shun, this small role, is also a test of strength for those who look down on the Western Liang army and think they are superior, various lords, a warning to them.

  Ma Teng did not expect Ma Chao to be so bold. After returning to the camp, Ma Teng immediately summoned Ma Chao, first thanking him for saving his life, and then warning him that in the future, he must not be as reckless as today in front of all the other lords.

  The groom took the opportunity to speak up for Ma Teng: "That Yuan Shao is not even one-tenth as capable as you, what qualifications does he have to be the alliance leader? He's simply relying on his ancestors' reputation."

  "This is the way of the world today. The aristocratic families are in power, and the various factions are flourishing. I thought that after our great victory over Li Jue and others, and with the emperor's generous rewards, the heroes of the land would look at us differently. But it seems they still don't take us seriously! Never mind, it seems being an alliance leader isn't easy either. Let's just observe for now. As for Yuan Shao wanting you to be the vanguard, let's wait until tomorrow when all the lords have formally sworn allegiance... They won't move a single soldier, and they think I'll move a single foot soldier?..."