Promotion

  Three thousand steps of gentle walking, with the sun on their heads, everyone is uncomfortable.

  "Brother Xuande." Guan Yu called out softly to Liu Bei.

  "What orders does the lord have?" Liu Bei responded.

  Gao Tzu shook his head and asked, "Brother Xuande is a noble of the Han imperial family, yet now he can only be a military marquis under me, which is somewhat beneath Brother Xuande..."

  "What the lord says is reasonable. I have never thought of such things before. As long as it is for the country and to fulfill my loyalty, I will not refuse." said Liu Bei.

  Gao Tzu said: "Brother Xuande, don't you have any lofty ambitions? As a man of honor and integrity, shouldn't we strive to achieve something in this chaotic world?"

  " Ambition? I'll say it out loud, and I'm not afraid of being ridiculed by my superiors. I indeed had grand ambitions in the past, but now all I want is to quell the Yellow Turbans, return home to farm, get married, have children, and live a peaceful life. This is what I desire most."

  "Miserable and unfulfilled, a mediocre life, even in death, few people would know. I'd rather not have such days. I observe that Brother Xuande's appearance is extraordinary, his whole body shrouded in an air of nobility. With just a bit of effort, he will surely become a great and wealthy man in the future. Brother Xuande, we've known each other for many days, I killed Zhang Jue and Zhang Liang, later the imperial court will definitely give me a great reward... I'm a person who loves talent, you're also a talented person, why not follow me from now on? We brothers will meet soon, share good fortune together, isn't that wonderful?"

  "This... I appreciate your kind intentions, but I'm afraid I'll disappoint you due to my rough nature and limited knowledge." Liu Bei said.

  Gao Fei heard that Liu Bei had never followed his own mind, he let out a long sigh, glanced at Guan Yu and Zhang Fei with a slanted gaze, and softly said to Liu Bei: "Brother Xuan De having two virtuous brothers like Yunchang and Yide by your side is also a blessing. Unfortunately, I Gao Fei don't have the same good fortune as Brother Xuan De. If only I could get the combined strength of three people, I would certainly be able to make a name for myself in the imperial court, leave my mark on history, and not waste my years."

  Liu Bei is not a fool, and he naturally heard the intention of pulling him into his heart. He also guessed the real purpose of Gao Fei's solo attack on Xiayang this time. Isn't he having the same idea as Gao Fei? Always mixing rice under someone else's hands, he really doesn't live up to the royal blood flowing in his body. Moreover, he is already twenty-eight years old this year, and time waits for no man. How many more twenty-eights can he have? He politely declined Gao Fei, and from his words, he replied that he had no ambition at all, but only covered up himself. However, his heart always remembered that he was a royal nobleman and should have a good way out.

  Gao Fei didn't ask any more questions, and Liu Bei also didn't say anything else. The two people were so calm all the way.

  After returning to the camp, Gao Fei did not give any more orders. Except for the normal patrol in the military camp, there was no movement at all. He hung Zhang Liang's head on the flagpole, high up, to show off his honor. After all, the real commander of this army is Lu Zhi, and the true affiliation is the imperial court, not his private soldiers. In addition to trying to make a name for himself, he also needs to cultivate his own private soldiers.

  "Sir, you called for me?" Lu Heng entered Gao Fei's tent and bowed.

  Gao Fei nodded and said: "You've come at just the right time. I was going to ask you, how many of my old subordinates who followed me like you are still left?"

  "Sir, apart from me, there are nineteen others who have been following closely by my side."

  "Out of these nineteen people, how many can be as clever as you?"

  Lu Heng thought for a moment and said: "The master's meaning is..."

  "I want to promote two reliable people, although I have led this army of 20,000, but the real confidants are only a few."

  "There's a grown-up, named Fei An, who is quite clever and at least has never made any mistakes when handling tasks under his subordinates."

  "Aren't you afraid that I'll promote him and he will surpass you?"

  Lu Heng smiled and said, "It is the duty of a subordinate to do things for his superior. I have recommended Fei An to you, sir, and I believe you will not neglect me. Why should I worry?"

  Gao Fei chuckled and said, "What you said is right. Nowadays, the only person I can trust is you alone. Even if you recommended Fei An to me, he wouldn't be able to replace your position in a short period of time. Moreover, I won't treat you unfairly either. As long as you are willing to follow me wholeheartedly from now on, your position in my heart will never be replaced by anyone."

  "Thank you for your kindness, sir. I will call Fei An over right away, and you can ask him yourself."

  "Go get Fei An."

  "Promise!"

  Lu Heng came out of the tent and soon brought a man with him. The man had yellowish hair and beard, was thin but sturdy and tall, about 1.8 meters high. A pair of sinister eyes sparkled with cunning and agility, standing there looking like a bamboo pole from the outside, but in fact, upon closer inspection, it's not hard to discover that every muscle on his body is just right, very tight.

  "Understood! We will see the master!" Lu Heng and Fei An bowed together.

  Gao Feng said: "No need for courtesy, Lu Heng you go and call Zhou Cang and Guan Hai together!"

  "Promise!"

  Lu Biao walked out of the camp, and Gao Fei said: "Fei An, where are you from?"

  "In response to your words, I am from Wudu in Yi Province."

  "How old is he this year?"

  "Twenty-three!"

  Gao Fei saw that Fei An's answers were smooth and satisfactory, so he nodded his head in approval and continued: "Do you know why I called you here today?"

  "I don't know!"

  "Wasn't it you who was guarding outside my tent last night?" Gao Fei's words carried a hint of coldness, spoken slowly.

  "Exactly what I said!"

  "Fei An! How dare you steal my things?" Gaofei suddenly shouted loudly.

  Fei An hastily knelt on the ground, his upper body straight, and clasped his fists: "Your Excellency is wise, I wouldn't dare steal your things even if I had ten times the courage. I was guarding outside the tent all night and never took half a step inside..."

  Gao Fei had only twenty personal guards, and although not everyone knew each other's names, they were all familiar with each other's faces. He remembered that it was Fei An who took his watch last night, so he suddenly came up with a plan to test Fei An. He slapped his thigh loudly and shouted: "Do you dare to deny it? Quickly tell me, where did my gold go?"

  Fei An lowered his head and said slowly: "The adults' property has always been managed by Lu Tun, let alone the fact that there is no gold in the camp, even if there was, I would never dare to take it from under the tiger's nose. How could I do such a thing as stealing from my own master?"

  Gao Fei was just talking nonsense, but after thinking carefully, it seemed that his belongings were indeed being kept by Lu Heng. As for how much wealth he had, he hadn't asked, because he didn't need money at the moment. Seeing Fei An's calm and composed demeanor, he chuckled and said: "Get up, from today on, you're a military marquis."

  Fei An raised his head in surprise, staring at Gao Fei, stunned for a moment before regaining his composure. He immediately knocked his head and said: "Sir, please forgive me, but I cannot obey your orders."

  "You... you actually dare to disobey my orders?" Gao Fei said with some surprise.

  "My lord, I am a subordinate of Lu Tun's, although we both belong to your personal guard. However, you suddenly promoted me to military marquis while not promoting Lu Tun, which is somewhat too inhumane. In terms of merit and martial arts, Lu Tun is superior to me and should have received your promotion first. Therefore, I risk my life to request that you promote Lu Tun first. As for me, I am not capable of being a military marquis, but I can still handle the position of captain of the personal guard."

  "Hmm, your words are quite reasonable. Don't worry, I will promote Lu Heng, and both of you will become Marquises. Can you rest assured now?"

  "Your Excellency, I have a clear understanding of myself. Currently, there are only five Marquises in your army, and I do not consider myself to be on the same level as them. I also don't have such great abilities. I still think that being the Captain of the Imperial Guard is more suitable for me."

  "The captain is too young, and there are only about fifty people under his command. Since you don't want to be a military marquis, why not take over as the garrison commander instead of Lu Heng?"

  "Thank you, sir, for promoting me!"

  Just then, Lu Xiang walked in and said to Gao Fei: "Sir, Zhou Cang and Guan Yu have arrived and are waiting outside the account!"

  "Let them in!"

  Zhou Cang and Guan Yu came in from outside the tent together and said in unison: "We pay our respects to you, sir!"

  Gao Fei said: "No need for formalities! Are you two truly surrendering to me?"

  Zhou Cang and Guan Yu looked at each other in dismay, but since surrendering to Gao Feng, everything had been going smoothly, with them being extremely cautious and thinking they hadn't done anything out of line. They didn't know why Gao Feng would ask such a question. The two men knelt down in unison and kowtowed to Gao Feng, saying: "Your Excellency is wise and powerful, we admire you greatly and dare not have any disloyal thoughts!"

  Gao Feng saw Zhou Cang and Guan Hai express their intentions, then said: "Get up, I don't mean to blame you. You two were originally Yellow Turban bandits, since you surrendered to me, you are my trusted advisors. Now I lead the army to attack Xiaquyang, today I see that the city walls of Xiaquyang are strong and the defenses are strict. If our army attacks the city strongly, I'm afraid there will be heavy casualties. So, I want to ask you two to do something for me, if it succeeds, you two will be the first to achieve this battle!"

  Zhou Cang and Guan Yu looked at each other, then bowed their hands together: "Sir, if you have any orders, we two are willing to go through boiling water and walk through fire for you, without hesitation!"

  Gao Feng heard such bold words and loudly shouted: "Good, I want you to have this heroic spirit! You two take off your Han army uniforms, change into casual clothes, wrap your heads with yellow scarves, and go to Xiayang to pretend to surrender!"

  "'Surrender?' asked Zhou Cang and Guan Yu in surprise."

  "Good! The defense of the next city is very strong, and a strong attack will definitely suffer losses. It's better to take it by strategy. I've already killed Zhang Jue and today I killed Zhang Liang, so Zhang Bao must be furious and hate me to the bone. That's why I arranged this way: first, you two were originally Yellow Turbans; second, it's also a trust in you two. I've taken you as my confidants. I know that although you two are military marquises, the soldiers under you don't take orders very well. If you two can achieve something in this matter, I think no one will dare to speak ill of you again."

  "Sir, I am willing to go!" said Zhou Cang.

  Guan Hai saw Zhou Cang and replied brightly, seeing the hopeful look in Gao Fei's eyes. He gritted his teeth and spoke out boldly, "Sir, what should we do? Please instruct us!"