Chapter 12: The Grand Enfeoffment of the Ministers

  Last time, Li Yu led the army to fight against Lü Bu again and returned with a great victory! After counting the soldiers and horses, although they won, they suffered heavy losses. Among the 170,000 cavalry who followed him in pursuit of Dong Zhuo, more than 30,000 were killed, more than 20,000 were seriously injured, and more than 50,000 were lightly injured! Then, after clearing the battlefield, they obtained a lot of spoils! More than 50,000 captured soldiers surrendered, and they got more than 40,000 war horses, countless grain and military supplies! Swords, helmets, and armor worth tens of millions! Li Yu ordered the troops to return to Tianshui City!

  This is truly a triumphant return with all three armies singing in unison!

  But at this time, Li Yu had a surprise, just arriving near Tianshui City! Only to see the officials and soldiers of Tianshui City standing in two rows! The civil and military officials of Yizhou, led by Guo Jia and Chen Gong, came out of Tianshui City thirty miles away to welcome General Li Yu's triumphant return! Liu Bei personally waited at the gate of Tianshui City for Li Yu's return! Many ministers did not understand why Liu Bei personally came from Chengdu to Tianshui City to welcome Li Yu! Liu Bei said with a smile, "Who among you can be like my fourth brother Li Yu, wholeheartedly devoted to the country? When he goes into battle, he must win!" I also personally welcomed you! Moreover, there is another reason, that is, the death of Cheng Yuanzhi. Cheng Yuanzhi followed Liu Bei from the Yellow Turban Rebellion to the present! Now he died in battle, and Liu Bei was heartbroken for a long time! He thought that he must see off this brother who had gone through life and death with him! Moreover, Liu Bei wanted to give Li Yu a surprise last time because of Mi Fang's unhappiness.

  At this time, Li Yu was welcomed by Guo Jia and Chen Gong, among others. Li Yu felt surprised and said: "Why are you here again? Is there any change in Hanzhong or Jingzhou? My brother ordered me to lead the army to support!" Chen Gong stroked his green beard and smiled: "General, why ask this question! Your prestige is so great, who dares to offend our Yizhou border again?! Today, His Majesty has personally ordered us to welcome you thirty miles away, waiting for your triumphant return! His Majesty will personally wait for you in Tianshui City!"

  Li Yu looked at Guan Gong and Zhang Fei on both sides, then invited Guo Jia and Chen Gong to lead the civil and military officials to ride in sedan chairs and horses with himself back to Tianshui City. Also, he ordered the whole army to form up and prepare to enter the city.

  The three armies are in formation, marching in unison! The banners and flags are waving high, the pennants fluttering in the wind! General Li Yu's majestic banner is leading the way! The cavalry is lined up neatly, with General Li at the center, flanked by several high-ranking generals: Guan Gong on his right, Zhang Fei on his left, and Zhao Yun following closely behind. In the third row are Xu Huang, Zhang Liao, Zhang Ren, Gao Shun, Leng Bao, and Wu Yi.

  The great army arrived at the gate of Tianshui City, and Liu Bei personally recited the Great Wind Song of Han Gaozu Liu Bang: "The great wind rises, the clouds fly high, the power is added to the sea, and returns to the hometown. Where can I get a brave warrior to guard the four sides?" Then he walked to Li Yu's horse and wanted to lead Li Yu's horse into Tianshui City! Li Yu dared not do so! The etiquette of ancient monarchs and ministers cannot be chaotic! Although Li Yu believed that Liu Bei would not kill his meritorious officials like his ancestor Liu Bang, after all, if he was given a chance to speak now, it would be difficult for him to avoid being like Han Xin in the future! Li Yu immediately turned over, got off his horse, and knelt down in front of Liu Bei! Guan Yu and Zhang Fei, Zhao Yun, and others also turned over, got off their horses, and knelt down on the ground! Li Yu knelt on the ground and then took over Tian Feng's final report to inform Liu Bei: "Report to the king, today's battle with Dong Zhuo, our army participated in a total of 480,000 people, and Dong Zhuo's army had a total of 760,000 soldiers! Han Sui and Ma Teng's Xiliang army were annihilated, and their commander Yan Xing was beheaded. Zhang Heng was killed, Cheng Yi was killed, Cheng Lian was beheaded, Song Xian was beheaded, and Dong Wen was executed! The national thief Dong Zhuo escaped! Our great general Anbei General Cheng Yuanzhi died on the battlefield! 107,597 cavalrymen were lost! 32,257 war horses were lost! 153,765 infantrymen were killed in battle! 38,000 crossbow arrows were lost! 52,936 sets of armor were lost! 27,327 war knives were lost! 472,232 units of grain and grass were lost! After annihilating Dong Zhuo's entire army, 273,297 soldiers were captured, and after removing the old, weak, and disabled soldiers, 103,272 able-bodied soldiers were obtained! 153,201 war horses were seized! 401,237 sets of armor were seized! 386,295 war knives were seized! 3,209,217 units of grain and grass were seized! The report is complete! Please instruct the king!"

  Liu Bei listened quietly, then personally helped Li Yu and Guan Gong, Zhang Fei three people up, tightly hugged together and kept saying "Hardworking brothers!" The four brothers were in tears and hugged each other! After a while, they separated, and Liu Bei said to the three armies: "Today we have taken down Tianshui City! From now on, we don't have to fear Dong Zhuo's evil anymore! This is a battle that will be remembered for generations to come! From now on, our army doesn't have to be passive and defend everywhere. The gate of Yizhou has been closed to Xiliang and Chang'an! This is your credit! Your credit will be remembered forever! However, the deceased are already gone, and those brothers who died in battle for Yizhou, I, the king, will not forget you! The people of Yizhou will not forget you! You can rest assured that I have ordered the families of the fallen brothers to receive heroic treatment, with government subsidies for four seasons a year! And I have also ordered the Minister of War, Liu Ba, to compile a list, your names will be engraved on the Heroes Monument in Chengdu for eternity! Four seasons will be used for sacrifices! As for the matter of granting titles to the meritorious generals, it is all arranged by General Li Yu, and I, the king, have no objections!

  The officers and soldiers of the three armies shouted: "Long live King Xing of Han! Long live! Long, long live!" They shouted dozens of times, and the echo shook the mountains.

  Liu Bei personally led the chant: "Wolf smoke rises, looking north at the rivers and mountains! Prepare to sing!"

  Li Yu and Guan Gong. Zhang Fei, Zhao Yun, Xu Huang, Zhang Liao, Zhang Ren, Gao Shun and others personally led the way, singing a military song with great loyalty to report to the country! The three armies sang in unison, "Wolf smoke rises, Jiangshan looks north, dragon rises, horse neighs, sword energy is like frost, heart is like the vast Yellow River water, who can resist for twenty years? Hate wants to go crazy, long knife points, how many loyal souls are buried in foreign lands, what a pity to die for the country, sighing and regretting, no words, tears fill the eyes. Horse hooves go south, people look north, people look north, grass is green, yellow dust flies. I wish to guard the land and reopen the territory, China wants to let the four directions come to congratulate! Wolf smoke rises, Jiangshan looks north, dragon rises, horse neighs, sword energy is like frost, heart is like the vast Yellow River water, who can resist for twenty years? Hate wants to go crazy, long knife points, how many loyal souls are buried in foreign lands, what a pity to die for the country, sighing and regretting, no words, tears fill the eyes. Horse hooves go south, people look north, people look north, grass is green, yellow dust flies. I wish to guard the land and reopen the territory, China wants to let the four directions come to congratulate! Come to congratulate! This song shakes the heavens and earth, leaving a name for eternity! Immortal for centuries! Even Guo Jia, Chen Gong, Fa Zheng and other civil officials are singing loudly now! Many people also came to Tian Shui City to welcome Li Yu's triumphant return, and the city gate is welcoming him with cheers from the common people!

  The singing is over, Liu Bei pulls Li Yu, and the two stroll along the road leading into the city, with Wen Wu Bai Guan following behind. The civil officials are led by Guo Jia and Chen Gong, followed in order by Liu Ze, Tian Feng, Fa Zheng, Liu Ba, Zhang Song, Guo Youzhi, Mi Zhu and others. The military officers are led by Guan Yu and Zhang Fei, with Zhao Yun, Xu Huang, Zhang Liao, Zhang Ren, Gao Shun and others closely following behind, each keeping pace with Liu Bei and Li Yu's footsteps.

  When Liu Bei walked to the front of the two city towers, Lu Zhi and Zhu Xie, two great Han dynasty meritorious generals, separately presented him with firecrackers from both sides. The city tower above dropped down firecrackers! Liu Bei accepted the firecrackers presented by Lu Zhi, Li Yu accepted the firecrackers presented by Zhu Xie, and the two of them respectively lit up the firecrackers on both sides.

  Firecrackers on both sides lit up quickly! Crackling and popping sounds echoed - the noise rose and fell, one after another, deafening and shaking the sky! The cloud of smoke lingered for a long time. Soldiers and civilians on both sides beat drums and gongs to welcome Li Yu's triumphant return ceremony. Liu Bei held Li Yu's hand and walked into Tianshui City towards the commander's mansion.

  When he was still less than a kilometer away from the commander's headquarters, Liu Bei suddenly shouted: "Li Hanxing, the god of war, the great general is mighty!"

  All civil and military officials, three armies of soldiers, all the people in the city stood up and shouted: "Li Hanxing war god, great marshal mighty!" At this time, the sound spread to the nine heavens, shaking the earth! This is their heartfelt shout! A true cry from the heart!

  Li Yu is now helpless, but also very happy! It's clear that in the future he will be at the forefront of the storm! So it also proves that Li Yu was once truly brilliant!

  A distance of one li, and it took nearly an hour to walk!

  Liu Bei led Li Yu into the commander's headquarters and surprisingly let Li Yu sit with him on the throne! Li Yu knelt down to the ground, saying he didn't dare. Liu Bei invited him several times, but Li Yu refused to comply. Only then did he stop. Liu Bei ordered that a seat be given to Li Yu, allowing Li Yu to sit beside him. The rest of the civil and military officials were all given seats, sitting below them.

  Liu Bei spoke up and said: "Today's great battle has come to an end, except for General Cheng Yuanzhi, all the other generals are present! Now let us discuss merits and rewards!"

  Everyone knelt down on the ground and said: "Thank you, Your Majesty!"

  Liu Bei said: "Discussing merits and rewards, whose is the first merit?"

  All the civil and military officials below shouted in unison: "The Great General!"

  Li Yu could only smile foolishly!

  Liu Bei burst out laughing and said: "I want to grant you, my fourth brother, wealth and honor! I reward the Grand Marshal of the Eastern Expedition, General Han Xing Hou - Li Yu Li Han Xing! Grant Li Yu a treasured sword, behead first and report later! Also, posthumously grant Li Yu nine xie, add yellow jade! No need to bow or name in edicts, no need to rush when entering the court. Attendants will wait at the steps, wearing swords and shoes on the throne! In the future, if the king's son succeeds, he must treat you with the respect of an imperial uncle, otherwise, it would be considered disloyal and unfilial! This is wealth! As for riches, I want to grant my fourth brother, reward with a thousand catties of gold, a million strings of cash! Grant twenty counties as fiefs! All income from the fiefdom will be managed by you, my fourth brother! Autonomy in distribution! Haha!"

  Li Yu was shocked! This is a story about emulating Huo Guang! He didn't dare to do such a thing! Liu Bei's rewards were too great! And also let the future king, or imperial prince, or imperial uncle treat him with courtesy after his death. The meaning of this is that after I die, Li Yu, you will be the supreme emperor! Li Yu knelt down on the ground and said: "Big brother, this matter absolutely cannot happen, please stop it!"

  Liu Bei said, "You're right! This is what you should do, fourth brother!"

  Li Yu repeatedly declined, but Liu Bei refused to give in. Finally, Li Yu said: "Then my brother has lost! But the territory of 20 counties and a thousand catties of gold, ten thousand strings of cash, my brother does not want! Please, Your Majesty, bestow these rewards on the meritorious generals and the families of the deceased generals!"

  Liu Bei looked down and knew that Li Yu would never accept it no matter what! It's all over now!

  Moreover, not a single one, all the civil and military officials of the entire dynasty did not accept any money or rewards! This is why Liu Bei's Yi Province has such a good reputation! Because all the officials are honest and work for the people with one heart, there is no corruption at all! So now Liu Bei's Yi Province surpasses the other eight provinces of the current Han Dynasty!

  Liu Bei personally appointed civil and military officials: "Appointing the loyal and righteous Marquis Guan Yu, who was summoned to conquer the West, to be exempt from bowing and not using his name in imperial decrees. When entering the court, he does not need to hurry. Attendants will wait at the steps, and he can wear his sword and shoes when ascending to the throne! He will continue to guard Xiangyang City!"

  Guang Gong got up and knelt down on the ground, saying: "Thank you, brother Wang, for the reward. I, your younger brother, accept the order!"

  Liu Bei continued to bestow rewards: "Appoint Zhang Fei, the Brave and Martial Marquis of Xicheng, as the General Who Conquers the South. He shall be exempt from formalities such as bowing and naming in imperial decrees, and he shall not hurry when attending court. His attendants shall wait at the steps, and he shall wear his sword and shoes when ascending to the throne! He shall continue to guard Jiangzhou City!"

  Zhang Fei also got up and knelt down on the ground, rubbing his hands and said: "I, old Zhang, thank you for your reward, big brother! Hehe! But give me some wine, okay? Fourth brother doesn't let me drink wine, I haven't had a drink in several months! Big brother what, no need to be polite, no need to read the imperial edict, no need to rush into the court. Attendants by the steps, sword and shoes on the throne! I, old Zhang, don't care about any of that, as long as there's wine!!"

  Liu Bei loved these three brothers, with their straightforward personalities! Liu Bei burst out laughing, and not just him, but the entire court of officials and military officers were all smiling. Liu Bei immediately spoke up, saying: "Wine! From now on, when the royal wine is brewed, you'll drink first, and I'll drink later, okay? Third brother!" Zhang Fei chuckled and said: "No need for that, just move the brewery to my house and we're good!" Liu Bei chuckled and said: "Alright, big brother agrees! Tomorrow, we'll set up a branch of the royal wine brewery in your Jiangzhou city!" Zhang Fei burst out laughing and said: "Thanks, big brother!"

  Liu Bei rewarded many generals:

  * Appointed Zhao Yun as General Who Conquers the North, stationed at Tianshui City. Also posthumously appointed him with the title of Zan Bai, with a decree that his name would not be mentioned, and he would not have to hurry when entering the court. He was also allowed to wear his sword and shoes while ascending to the throne! Then, he also appointed Zhao Yun as Duke of Guan Jun!

  * Appointed Xu Huang as General Who Guards the East, stationed at Xiapi City.

  * Appointed Zhang Liao as General Who Guards the West, stationed at Qishan Pass.

  * Appointed Yan Yan as General Who Guards the South, left to guard Chengdu Wangcheng.

  * Appointed Zhang Ren as General Who Guards the West, stationed at Xiaomen Pass!

  * Appointed Wu An Guo as General Who Pacifies the East, stationed at Yangping Pass!

  * Appointed Ji Yi as General Who Pacifies the West, and vice-general of Qishan Pass!

  * Appointed Zang Ba as General Who Pacifies the North, and vice-general of Tianshui City! (At this time, Zang Ba had already secretly attacked Liu Bei!)

  * Appointed Gao Shun as General Who Pacifies the South, and vice-general of Xiaomen Pass!

  * Appointed Zou Jing as Left General, and vice-general of Xiapi City!

  * Appointed Huo Jie as Right General, and vice-general of Yangping Pass!

  * Appointed Deng Mao as Front General, and vice-general of Zipeng!

  * Appointed Zou Dan as Rear General, and vice-general of Zipeng City!

  * Appointed Wu Wei as Military General, and vice-general of Chengdu Wangcheng!

  * Appointed Leng Bao as General Who Pacifies the Nation, and vice-general of Jiangzhou City!

  * Huo Jun was appointed as General Who Breaks the Barbarians, and Huo Yi was appointed as General Who Punishes the Rebels. Both were left in the commander's headquarters to await orders.

  * Fan Qiu was appointed as General Who Pacifies the East, and vice-general of Tianshui City!

  Many generals knelt down and thanked An Gong, saying: "Long live the king! Long live the king! Long long live the king!" Liu Bei continued to grant rewards: "Appoint Guo Jia as Left State Minister, Zhongxiao Marquis! Appoint Chen Gong as Right State Minister, Renyiyue Marquis! Appoint Lu Zhi and Zhu Kuang two old generals as Grand Master of Education and Vice-Minister of Education in Yizhou, concurrently serving as Principal and Vice-Principal of the Military Academy in Yizhou! Appoint Fa Zheng as Tingwei, in charge of all officials and criminal cases within the borders of Yizhou! Appoint Tian Feng as Weiwei, in charge of all military suggestions and cooperation with major military regions to formulate daily training work! Appoint Liu Ba as Minister of Agriculture, formerly known as Daxingnong, changed by Li Yu, in charge of all land production within the borders of Yizhou! Appoint Mi Zhuo as Minister of Taxation, in charge of all taxation and economic issues within the borders of Yizhou! Appoint Liu Huo as Vice-Minister of Education, concurrently serving as Deputy Principal of the Military Academy, Minister of Casting, and President of the Technical Institute! Appoint Zhang Song as Shangshuling! Appoint Huang Quan as Taipu! Appoint Jian Yongzhi as Taichang!"

  Many officials knelt down to thank him! After three months, the war finally came to an end!