Lu Bu tasted the sweetness of victory over the Wei army, which was very easy to bully. As he advanced eastward, he would always look around personally, and when he set up camp to repair, he would send out spies to explore the way. He was always looking forward to the arrival of more fat sheep to deliver food.
Unfortunately, things did not go as planned. After that, they only encountered a few waves of enemy troops sporadically, and none of them exceeded five thousand in number.
Lu Bu was not too dissatisfied. Whenever he encountered an enemy, he would personally lead his troops to charge and eat up all the prey like a wolf or a tiger.
After all the food and baggage were rolled up, he released the old, weak, sick and disabled prisoners on the spot, and strung the remaining strong soldiers together with ropes into a long line, which was placed in the middle of the army, and then marched forward with the soldiers surrounding them.
He paraded through the city with an arrogant and relaxed attitude, as if he had a big target on his forehead that said "Why don't you come and attack me?"
To Lu Bu's great regret, even though he tried so hard to provoke, he still did not encounter a large number of enemy forces again until his army entered the eastern border of Chu.
The journey was very boring. Apart from the 20,000 people sent by Wei Baozi, there was not even any fun along the way. Lu Bu was really bored.
He was disappointed and full of doubts.
—Where have all the people gone
What he had no way of knowing was that, because the war to conquer Yan, Zhao and Qi was too smooth, the armies of the princes inevitably became afraid of the notorious Chu army and retreated greatly.
Moreover, seeing that the Chu army was being held back by Ying Bu and had no time to look north, the princes, who already had their own ulterior motives, became even more distracted and secretly began to compete with each other for a share of the spoils of war, igniting the seeds of internal strife.
The only ones who were dissatisfied with this were Ying Bu and Wu Rui, who were exhausted from running for their lives under the fierce pursuit of the angry Chu cavalry.
But their situation was too difficult. Even though they later accidentally learned that the princes had delayed attacking Chu and forcing Xiang Yu to withdraw his troops, it was because of their short-sightedness, short-sightedness and greed that they were in such an embarrassing situation... There was nothing they could do except curse a few more times when they took a break.
Although the situation was slightly better after Ying Bu entered Jiujiang, as a king, he was forced to flee like a stray dog in his own territory, which was really a loss of face and his life was in danger.
He truly regretted his impulsive behavior, and hated Liu Bang who gave him this bad idea. If it weren't for the Han envoy's solemn oath, which sounded better than singing, how could he have fallen into this big trap and really been the first to destroy the lair of the Overlord of Western Chu, and become the one who got in trouble
How could Ying Bu know that if Liu Bang was able to get out of the pass smoothly, with his eloquent tongue, he would most likely be able to stabilize the secret fighting among the princes and act according to the plan.
But something went wrong in the most important place, Xianyang.
Sui He finally persuaded Grand Marshal Zhou Yin to rebel against Chu. When everything was ready except for the final push, unexpectedly, the boat capsized at the most critical moment - Zhou Yin could not even make a decent splash and was killed by Lu Bu's arrow. The remaining troops were in a panic and had to be captured one by one.
Xianyang was in chaos for only a few hours before things returned to normal.
However, after Liu Bang received Sui He's military report that "the great cause has been accomplished", he was already extremely anxious and feared that the night would be long and he would have more troubles, so he secretly took Hanzhong and took the Ziwu Road.
He led an army of 30,000 and marched rapidly through the rain. After a night's work, they finally arrived at Bashang again.
However, before he could feel a myriad of emotions arising from reliving the old days, the scene that came into his eyes was enough to make his eyes tear up.
—Bashang, which should have been deserted, was actually occupied by tens of thousands of elite soldiers from the State of Chu who were ready for battle!
After receiving the gift of Wei prisoners from his brother, Han Xin no longer had any worries.
Seeing through Liu Bang's cautious temperament, he guessed that he would not go straight to Xianyang, but would most likely go to Bashang first to wait and see. So he led the 45,000 Guanzhong troops left by his brother and stationed them at Bashang, waiting for the enemy to tire themselves out.
He had just sat down when the Han army, covered in mud, appeared.
Liu Bang was horrified and broke out in a cold sweat.
Was it Sui He who betrayed him and Fang who spread false information to trick him, or was there something wrong with Zhou Yin
Seeing that Liu Bang was in a state of confusion, how could Han Xin, who was waiting for an opportunity, give him a chance to figure things out
In the huge Chu camp, Han Xin was undoubtedly the one who knew best the deep hatred between his brother and Liu Haozi.
Not to mention that Liu Bang had evil intentions and was always looking for opportunities to stir up trouble, which would eventually become a great threat to the State of Chu. Even if it was only for the purpose of venting his anger for his brother, he would have done his best to capture Liu Bang alive.
At Han Xin's command, the Chu army, which had been ready for battle, rushed forward like a tiger out of a cage and slaughtered the frightened Han army.
Liu Bang was naturally no match for him.
Because he had no idea of the situation ahead, he hoped to get out of the pass even in his dreams, but he did not dare to rush out of the pass blindly. He could only retreat westward with hatred and rush towards Hanzhong.
Seeing that Liu Bang was abandoning his army and was about to flee westward, Han Xin would not let him go and immediately led his army to chase him.
Seeing that their commander had fled, the Han army, which was already afraid of the Chu army, lost their fighting spirit and huddled together. Although they had no formation, they could only be slaughtered by the Chu army in a panic. They even managed to block Han Xin's pursuit by accident.
Even after being stopped for a moment, Han Xin still did not give up.
Thinking of his brother's concern for him guarding Xianyang alone and his willingness to give up the opportunity to kill Liu Bang, Han Xin pursued the enemy relentlessly despite knowing the danger of advancing deep into the enemy territory alone.
Seeing that the Chu army was gaining momentum and pursuing them relentlessly, the Han soldiers who were desperately trying to escape became more and more desperate.
In a moment, Han Xin had chased for several miles, with more than a thousand Chu soldiers and cavalry following closely behind him, as if they would not stop until Liu Bang was torn into pieces.
On the other hand, Liu Bang still had a group of trusted generals and more than 600 scattered cavalrymen around him.
But being chased all the way, the army's morale is more than just broken.
Even though Liu Bang hated the Chu general who kept chasing him and wanted to fight back, he was helpless due to the low morale and had to flee again.
However, the more panicked one is, the easier it is to make mistakes, not to mention that this was only Liu Bang's second time walking along the Ziwu Road.
He was fleeing for his life while having to pay attention to the movements of the pursuers. One moment he was not paying attention, his beloved horse's hoof stepped on empty air, causing it to neigh in shock, causing him to fall off the horse's back, frightening him to death on the spot!
Fortunately, although his chariot was not as fast as the black horse and the jade lion, it was definitely not an ordinary horse. After a moment of panic, it struggled to get up and continued to gallop forward.
All this trouble inevitably delayed them for a while, and Han Xin and his group were getting closer and closer.
Liu Bang groaned inwardly, turned around and shouted: "Why do wise men kill each other? You are so talented, but you are buried by the King of Chu. Why don't you let me live? I will repay you in the future!"
Han Xin had a blank expression on his face, as if he had not heard anything. Instead, he took advantage of the moment when the enemy was distracted and looked back, and bravely chased after him, closing the distance between them.
Seeing the pursuers approaching, and his followers all panicking and losing all their fighting spirit, Liu Bang sighed, looked up to the sky and said sadly: "I never thought that today would be the day of my death!"
He was full of ambitions, but how could he be willing to die in such a miserable way at the hands of Xiang Ji, a rough and uncouth man
As soon as he finished speaking, something strange happened.
Although the sky was overcast and windy, it had rained heavily all night last night, so neither side took it seriously.
Just after Liu Bang shouted this, a strong wind blew up in an instant, and dead branches and leaves flew everywhere, covering the sky.
This evil wind blew suddenly from the east to the west, and suddenly from the south to the north, making it so chaotic that it was hard for everyone to tell friend from foe and made it difficult for them to move forward!
Even though Han Xin was well-versed in military knowledge, he was still shocked by this sudden phenomenon.
"Don't let Liu escape, chase him!"
His reaction was quick. He immediately drew out his halberd and threw it recklessly towards the approximate direction where Liu Bang had been previously. Then, braving the fierce wind, he advanced forward while shouting orders.
However, although the Chu soldiers also reacted and tried their best to chase, they were left with only a hundred or so Han cavalry who had also lost their way.
As for the cunning Liu Bang himself, he took the opportunity to escape and disappeared without a trace.
well!
This unprecedented great opportunity still let that thief Liu escape!
Why is the weather so weird
Why am I so incompetent!
Han Xin felt extremely upset after his initial surprise when he thought that he was so well prepared yet still let the ruthless Liu Bang trick him right under his nose.
Thinking that his brother would be disappointed once he knew what happened today, he felt filled with guilt.
Until next time…
I must not be so careless next time!
Han Xin, who was filled with shame, was thinking about Lu Bu, but he didn't know that his cheap brother not only chased the rat for him, but also unfortunately failed.
He led 5,000 strong cavalry and drove 8,000 captives all the way. When he arrived at the old land of Chu in a swaggering manner, he saw the devastation and felt heartbroken.
Damn it, that bastard Ying Bu had so cruelly squandered the capital that the foolish king had worked so hard to accumulate to compete for the throne of the world!
In Lu Bu's eyes, these battered cities were simply hateful evidence that Ying Bu was deliberately destroying his four-year plan!
Even though it was a headache for him, he could only assign some people to stay behind, re-promote officials, rebuild the destroyed city walls, and distribute food and fodder to appease the local elders.
Fortunately, the people of Chu have always been loyal to the Overlord. Even when they suffered a sudden disaster, they only hated the traitor to the core.
The burning, looting and harming people along the way by Ying Bu actually made the people of Western Chu more united, and they were more inclined to support the mighty King Xiang who was willing to rush to avenge them.
The process that Lu Bu originally thought was quite difficult turned out to be effortless.
On the contrary, because he took the initiative to ask people to help a little and said a few words of comfort, the surviving elders of Chu were grateful and took the initiative to donate the only remaining food in their homes.
Seeing that they looked haggard and hungry, yet they turned around and pledged their loyalty to him, Lu Bu felt quite unhappy.
Unexpectedly, that fool was famous for his killing outside and his reputation in Chu was so high that he was deeply respected and worshipped by the people.
These foods...
If he wasn't a heartless person, there was no way he could have taken it on.
Seeing that this young but handsome general had a sullen look on his face but did not take a penny and only left some soldiers to help them rebuild their homes, the people of Chu were even more surprised and delighted.
Seeing that Lu Bu looked in a hurry and had not even had time to eat a hot meal, they continued to head south to join up with the main army and did not dare to try to keep him.
Only after reluctantly watching Lu Bu's elite troops walk away did he dare to ask the general's name.
When they heard that it was General Lu Bu, Lu Fengxian, who was highly respected in Qi, everyone suddenly realized what was going on and said, "No wonder!"
It seems that the rumors in the market are indeed credible.
Although General Lu seems to have a bad temper, he is actually handsome and has a kind heart.
The only thing to blame is that hateful Ying Bu, who was ungrateful and attacked his former master. He was also cruel and caused chaos everywhere, causing the king and his generals to work hard everywhere.
At this time, Lu Bu had an inexplicable evil fire burning in his chest. He was completely unaware that his reputation had been spread by some foolish people into a strange appearance that even his own mother would not recognize.
Apart from comforting the people in the cities along the way, he did not stay for long and focused on getting on with his journey.
Five days later, he finally arrived at Lingbi, where the flag of the Chu army's headquarters was erected.
At this time, no one in the Chu camp failed to recognize the famous General Lu.
Although the Chu soldiers were surprised to see him suddenly, they did not hesitate and let him go immediately. They also sent someone to lead him to the main tent where Xiang Yu was.
Lu Bu was also calm and composed, not realizing how great it was to be able to march straight into his lord's tent at any time.
When he and the soldier arrived at the main tent, Xiang Yu had obviously received the news in advance and gave orders in advance, just waiting for him to arrive, without even the time to report again. The personal guards standing in front of the tent bowed and respectfully invited him in.
"Your Majesty!"
Lu Bu strode in with his head held high, calling out loudly, and at the same time took out something from his waist and threw it forward neatly.
Xiang Yu was quick-eyed and quick-handed. Even though the black shadow was coming at him quickly, he still caught it steadily with a "snap".
He frowned slightly and looked carefully. It turned out to be the Longyuan Sword that he had entrusted to the other party before leaving.
Without waiting for him to say hello, Lu Bu sat down at the nearest seat with his long legs crossed lazily, the corners of his mouth slightly raised, and his pair of tiger eyes seemed to be sparkling as he stared straight at Xiang Yu.
Xiang Yu tilted his head slightly and looked at it intently.
Although Lu Bu was still deliberately putting on airs, the excitement between his brows could not be concealed no matter what: "I will live up to the king's trust."
Xiang Yu pursed his lips.
He looked deeply at his proud beloved general, a soft light flashed across his eyes, and then there were huge waves.
When the waves gradually subsided, he tightened his grip on the hilt of the sword and asked in a deep voice, "How is Xianyang?"
Lu Bu snorted and said calmly, "Zhou Yin has colluded with the Han thieves and has already rebelled. There is also a lobbyist sent by the old thief Liu hiding in the mansion. We have caught him red-handed, so there is no doubt about it. If the king has any doubts, you can return to the capital and interrogate him slowly. All the officials who interfered in the matter are still kept—"
"No need." Xiang Yu said without hesitation: "I will obey you first."
It's a good thing that you, this fool, finally came to your senses and knew what's right for you!
Lu Bu's mouth curled up unconsciously, and he reluctantly praised the foolish king in his heart, and added: "The capital is now guarded by Zhang Han and Brother Han. Although Zhang Han is a little timid, he is loyal and reliable. Brother Han is even more intelligent and can handle things properly. With the two of them guarding the capital, the king can rest assured."
Xiang Yu nodded slightly.
Without waiting for Xiang Yu to ask anything else, he perked up and asked about the battle situation on the front line, which he was more concerned about.
Hearing that Xiang Yu had not lost his mind and had immediately withdrawn the battle line when he learned that all the princes had rebelled, he ordered the main force to retreat backwards and only sent Long Ju and Zhongli Mei to continue southward to pursue Ying Bu and Wu Rui... Lu Bu widened his eyes, unable to hide his surprise.
The foolish king is willing to use his brain? !
It’s time for red rain to fall from the sky!
Noticing Xiang Yu's puzzled look, Lu Bu quickly suppressed his surprise and sincerely agreed, "Your Majesty is wise. Just let those two young chickens peck each other!"
Xiang Yu: “…”
His eyelids twitched slightly, and he looked at his beloved general, who had a fair complexion, red lips, delicate features, and was clearly younger than anyone else, hesitantly. The words lingered on his lips for a long time, but he wisely swallowed them.
Once his intuition is exposed, his beloved will surely be furious... and he will have to deal with it.