When Lu Bu was still unhappy about the cancellation of the Hongmen Banquet for no reason and was wondering what to do next, he was suddenly summoned by Xiang Yu.
After a whole day passed, Xiang Yu finally did not forget this meritorious warrior who brought a major turning point in the decision-making of the Chu army. As soon as he had time, he called him over.
Led by Han Xin, Lu Bu came to the main tent again. As soon as he entered, he saw that there was more than one Xiang Yu inside: on the left and right sides, there were old men who looked to be in their seventies or eighties, and a man in his forties who looked like a general.
Although the two were sitting close to each other, there was a hint of anger between their brows, probably because they had just argued and were on bad terms.
Lu Bu's eyes turned slowly in a circle.
As for the former, with his old bones, who could still stay in the barracks, he could only think of his father-in-law Fan Zeng; and as for the latter...it was hard to say about the others, but his brows were somewhat similar to those of Xiang Yu who was sitting in the main seat, so he guessed it was Xiang Bo.
The identities of these two people were indeed Fan Zeng and Xiang Bo, just as Lu Bu had guessed.
In order to buy time and find a way to survive, Liu Bang sent out three envoys in one day, all carrying generous gifts, to explain the situation to Xiang Yu.
Although Xiang Bo was unaware that Liu Bang had a trick up his sleeve to win over King Huai, he knew the seriousness of the situation and tried his best to maneuver it for him. Fan Zeng did not want to see Xiang Yu, who had finally come to his senses and seen through Liu Bang's treacherous face, fall into the trap again, so he tried his best to stop him. As a result, whenever an envoy from the Han army came, the two would engage in a verbal battle and tit-for-tat, which annoyed Xiang Yu greatly.
In Xiang Yu's view, on one side was a loyal counselor, and on the other side was his most trusted and dear uncle. Both of them usually devoted their all to the Chu army's planning without any selfish motives, but for some reason they just couldn't get along with each other.
He was not good at speaking, let alone mediating. Every time he encountered such a situation, he could only feel helpless and keep a wooden face, watching the two people quarreling and turning a deaf ear to them.
Lu Bu's eyelids twitched slightly.
This subtle scene actually seemed familiar.
He couldn't help but think of the quarrel between his wife's uncle Wei Xu and Gao Fuyi, which made him feel very troubled...
"See you, General."
Lu Bu put aside those messy thoughts, raised his voice and saluted, his words were sonorous and powerful.
Even with his brows lowered, he could clearly feel the gazes of the three people instantly focused on him.
Fan Zeng looked at him with a kind gaze that was full of "a teachable young man", Xiang Bo's gaze seemed calm but was actually full of doubt, only Xiang Yu's eyes contained appreciation and he secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
"No need to be so polite." Xiang Yu responded in a deep voice, and then offered him a seat: "Sit down."
“Yes.”
Unlike others, Lu Bu did not try to refuse verbally, but sat down with great determination.
"I am overjoyed to have Fengxian come to surrender, and I also have the letter of surrender..."
Having said this, Xiang Yu paused slightly.
The position of "Doctor" that he had originally dreamed of was clearly within his grasp, but as soon as he gazed at Lu Bu, who was extremely heroic, eloquent, and had a bit of fierceness and arrogance in his eyes, he inexplicably felt a surge of admiration for him.
—Heroes are hard to come by and should not be bound by conventional rules.
Xiang Yu made up his mind in an instant, without blinking, and said: "How about appointing you as Lian Ao?"
Fan Zeng listened calmly without reacting, while Xiang Bo frowned and looked at Lu Bu with a bit more inquiry and shock.
What kind of ability did this man have? What extraordinary feat did he accomplish under his nose that he was not aware of? Why did he receive such a grand appreciation from the arrogant Xiang Yu
It should be noted that Lian Ao was the combination of Lian Yin and Mo Ao, and was only ranked after Ling Yin, You Yin, Da Sima, You Sima, and Zuo Sima. Although he was only a middle-level military officer among the military officers, for an unknown person like Lu Bu, it was a step to heaven.
Just like Han Xin, who had joined the Chu army for two years, first followed Xiang Liang and later joined Xiang Yu's army. During this period, he fought in many battles, fought bloody battles, and accumulated many merits before he was promoted to the rank of Ji Ji Lang Zhong.
This speed of promotion is already quite good in the eyes of others.
Who would have thought that Lu Bu would leap forward and surpass him!
What Xiang Bo found most incredible was that Xiang Yu's tone contained a clear inquiry for the first time - if the man in front of him was greedy and asked for a high official position, would Xiang Yu be willing to let him bargain or even agree to it
There was a blank look in Lu Bu's eyes.
What is Lian Ao
He was unfamiliar with the official positions in the State of Chu that had been abolished three hundred years later. Although his cheap brother Han Xin gave him a general explanation, he did not expect Han Xin to jump so many levels, so his explanation stopped at the level of Langzhong, and he never mentioned Lian Ao, who was above that.
His eyes were bright and full of expectation: "Excuse me, General, how many soldiers can this company Ao... lead?"
Xiang Yu was silent.
Fan Zeng's eyes twitched slightly, and he kindly said, "Although Lian Ao is not capable of leading troops, he has the important task of assisting the commander in supervising the transportation of food and grass..."
When Lu Bu heard this, he was stunned.
No matter how nice it sounds, isn't this just a person transporting food and grass
He can't do it!
He was used to being a general who gave orders, so he would willingly come to the Chu camp to be a soldier again. He did not come to relive his old dream of accumulating merits in the army and being promoted step by step, and being rewarded with titles and official positions, but he came for the life of his old enemy's ancestor!
Seeing that he had been deceived by this evil God and inexplicably lost the opportunity to assassinate Liu Bang at the Hongmen Banquet, the most urgent task was to find another opportunity to get close to Liu Bang.
Fortunately, he asked clearly, otherwise if he really became a small official helping to transport grain and fodder, he would have to wait until the next life before he could touch a hair of the slippery Liu Bang again!
If he had this much free time, he would be much more reliable even if he went to the front line as a charging soldier!
Seeing his eyes wide open, as if he had some objection, Xiang Bo, who was already worried about Liu Bang's life, could no longer suppress his inner irritation and mocked him, "You are a newcomer and although you are quite good, you have never been to the battlefield and have not made any achievements in the army. If the general had not appreciated you, how could you have risen to the high position of Lian Ao? Even if you have lofty ambitions, you should not be too ambitious."
He didn't know what kind of extraordinary achievements this young boy named Lu had made, but his arrogant and conceited attitude really showed that he had no idea of his own limitations!
Lu Bu narrowed his eyes.
Xiang Bo, who was so treacherous and shameless without any self-awareness, inevitably reminded him of Wei Xu, a jerk who had mediocre ability but was treated especially well by him because of his wife's uncle-in-law, but in the end betrayed him more decisively than anyone else because of a favor.
Even though the stupid traitor he looked down upon was speaking in a sarcastic tone, he would just treat it as a fart. Why would he get angry
He just said slowly: "Zuo Yin, please don't misunderstand me. I didn't know what position Lian Lian Ao held just now. How could I be so arrogant as to think it was too low? On the contrary, I know that my achievements are insignificant. If I rashly take such a high position, it would be difficult to convince the people... I admire the might of the general Julu. If the general doesn't mind, please reward me with the position of a halberd doctor. In this way, I can accompany the general and keep company with Brother Han."
While saying these nice words, Lu Bu's mind was busy calculating.
Being a halberd-bearing doctor beside Xiang Yu has its own advantages: he can chat with his brother and colleague Han Xin in his spare time, and it is easier for him to monitor the movements of the Han army on weekdays.
Besides, the person who had the best chance of meeting Liu Bang, apart from the vanguard, was Xiang Yu himself.
Being a vanguard requires risking one's life to fight one's way out, and may not necessarily get close to Liu Bang. But if Liu Bang was determined to meet Xiang Yu, it must be in a special occasion where he had to appear with a small entourage, which would be more advantageous for him to wait for an opportunity to act.
In the past, he had worked for a long time as Dong the thief's adopted son in name but actually his personal attendant. He was very familiar with this job, which was much easier to handle than the crappy job of transporting food and fodder.
Xiang Yu had heard a lot of flattering words recently. Not only had his ears become callused, but he also rarely took them to heart.
But the praise and admiration that came out of the straightforward expression of this warrior who was very much in his favor were different after all.
—Xiang Yu’s mouth corners slightly raised, and he was in a very good mood.
Moreover, the post of Halberd-bearing Doctor was the position he had originally wanted to prepare for Lu Bu. Seeing that Lu Bu had a clear plan for his actions and his statements were coherent, he was even more satisfied, so he nodded in agreement without hesitation.
After hearing this, Fan Zeng added the word "smart" to his impression of the warrior in front of him: rather than serving as Lieutenant General in the grain transport department where it was difficult to make a career, although the official position was higher, it was indeed not more pleasing to the other party than the halberd-bearing man who accompanied Xiang Yu on his daily trips.
Lü Bu, totally unaware that he had been given an unprecedented stamp of "smartness" on his forehead, forced himself to regain his spirits after leaving the main tent and went to collect the uniforms of his personal soldiers and the seal of the doctor holding the halberd.
In the Han camp, Zhang Liang, a smart man, had to make new adjustments to the plan after seeing that all the envoys had returned in failure and disaster was imminent. He quickly had someone forge an imperial edict from the King of Chu, and then had someone dress up as an envoy from Pengcheng and send it to the Chu camp.
Liu Bang was shocked at first, then hesitant.
No matter the consequences or difficulty of forging a royal edict, it was much more serious than the superfluous blood-stained shirt. Even the blood-stained shirt was exposed, let alone the royal edict
Zhang Liang said calmly, "Please rest assured, General. As long as the king does not expose it, no matter how false the edict is, it will become true."
In just two days, even if the envoy rode at full speed, he could only reach Pengcheng.
Waiting for the King of Chu to respond and send an envoy would take another two days. I'm afraid the Han army has been annihilated by the Chu army. What's the point of asking for reinforcements
Since delaying time doesn't work, the only option is to forge a royal edict.
As long as it was sent out openly, even if Fan Zeng had doubts and wanted to prove that the royal edict was false, it would not be done overnight, and it would buy them time to react. If Xiang Yu became furious because of this, it would be even better, as his anger would be directed at the King of Chu who leaned towards the Han army, and they would have a chance to catch their breath.
To verify the authenticity of the edict, the key lies in the King of Chu alone.
As long as the King of Chu does not want to be a puppet of the Xiang family and tries to check the powerful Xiang Yu, he cannot do without the support of the Han army, which will silently cover for them.
Liu Bang was tempted when he heard this: "Then who should be the one to deliver the imperial edict..."
He was reluctant to send out his trusted generals as he was destined to face death. However, this trip was crucial to the survival of the Han army and he could not afford to make any mistakes.
Before Zhang Liang could speak, Li Shiqi stood up and said, "I beg the general to grant me the order. I am willing to carry this imperial edict and go to the Chu army as an envoy."