Eastern Han Dynasty, not the Three Kingdoms

Dong Zhuo sat in the hall, his face gloomy as he said, "Just now in the court, Yuan Shao actually dared to openly oppose my dethroning of the Young Emperor. I was so angry that I wanted to kill him on the spot!"

Li Ru hurriedly stepped forward and replied with a bow, "My lord, please calm down. Please listen to me. The Yuan family has been officials for generations, and three of them have been officials in four generations. They are quite prestigious both in the court and among the people, and their foundation is very deep. Now my lord wants to accomplish something big, and it is at a critical moment. If you force too much at this time, it may backfire and cause strong disgust and fierce resistance from the people. Why don't we be patient for the time being and send troops to capture him secretly, so as to avoid causing unnecessary uproar." Dong Zhuo frowned and thought for a moment after listening. He felt that what Li Ru said made sense, so he slowly nodded in agreement.

Dong Zhuo immediately dispatched a team of elite soldiers to Yuan Shao's residence, intending to capture him without anyone noticing. However, when the soldiers arrived at Yuan Shao's residence, they discovered that Yuan Shao and Yuan Shu had already hurriedly left Luoyang with their entourage and servants, and had disappeared long ago.

When Dong Zhuo heard the news, he was immediately furious. He slammed the table in anger and stood up, shouting, "The hateful Yuan Shao is so bold that he dares to escape. I am so angry!" He immediately gave orders without thinking, asking the extremely brave Lu Bu to lead a team of cavalry to chase Yuan Shao at a high speed. At the same time, he sent the fierce general Hua Xiong to lead a team of troops to chase Yuan Shu with all their strength. They must be captured and must not let them escape.

Lü Bu led his cavalry in a relentless pursuit of Yuan Shao, their horses' hooves kicking up clouds of dust. They painstakingly followed Yuan Shao's likely escape route, finally finding him in a deserted area the next day. Yuan Shao, his face shrouded in panic and terror, was desperately driving his horse towards Jizhou, as if pursued by an evil spirit.

Seeing this, Lü Bu's eyes flashed with a cold gleam. He shouted, "Yuan Shao, don't run!" Then he spurred his horse forward and charged like a whirlwind. Yuan Shao's retainers saw this and hurriedly drew their weapons to fight, but the disparity in strength between them and Lü Bu was too great. Lü Bu wielded his Fang Tian Hua Ji with such force that after a few rounds, the retainers were defeated one after another, some even being knocked off their horses.

At this critical moment, a dark-faced man suddenly emerged from the nearby woods. He was a towering figure, wielding a 10-foot-long spear. His eyes widened, and he charged at Lü Bu, roaring like a tiger. Undeterred, Lü Bu drew his halberd and engaged the dark-faced man. Lü Bu's moves were as swift as lightning, his halberd's shadows swirling, each strike carrying a tremendous force. The dark-faced man, however, showed no sign of weakness, relying on brute force and exquisite skill to wield his spear with impenetrable force, struggling to hold on. In a blink of an eye, the two had already engaged in sixty or seventy rounds, the air around them whistling as if stirred by their intense fighting. Gradually, the dark-faced man began to lose strength, his moves began to falter, and his breathing became rapid.

At that moment, another red-faced man, brandishing a gleaming broadsword, rushed forward and joined the fray. Tall and imposing, he held an imposing presence, his sword whirring with every swing. He and the dark-faced man coordinated, one attacking while the other provided support, and for a time, they engaged Lü Bu in a fierce, agonizing battle. The flashes of swords and halberds gleamed incessantly, the clash of metal clashing was incessant, and the cries of battle were deafening. Under these two combined attacks, Lü Bu felt immense pressure, and beads of sweat began to form on his forehead. Yet, he fought bravely, refusing to retreat.

After a long, fierce battle, Lü Bu, seeing that Yuan Shao already had a backup, knew it was impossible to succeed and that further struggle was pointless. With a cold snort, he turned his horse with a gloomy expression and led his cavalry back. The black-faced and red-faced men were also exhausted and panting, their clothes soaked with sweat. Watching Lü Bu's retreating figure, they breathed a sigh of relief. The black-faced and red-faced men exchanged a glance, both eyes revealing shock.

Yuan Shao had escaped death, and still feeling terrified, he quickly stepped forward to thank his two saviors, saying with gratitude, "Two brave men, I am Yuan Shao, courtesy name Benchu, from the Yuan family of Runan. I am deeply grateful for your help. I will never forget your kindness!" However, the black-faced and red-faced men decisively declined. The black-faced man quickly waved his hand and said, "Brother Yuan, there is no need to be so polite. When I see injustice, I will always help."

Then, the black-faced man continued, "We have another older brother, and he is the leader among us brothers." After that, a white-faced man came forward.

Liu Bei stepped forward, bowed to Yuan Shao with a smile, and said, "The Yuan family of Runan has three nobles for four generations. I have long heard of your great name." He then introduced them, "Brother Yuan, this red-faced man is my second brother, Guan Yu, courtesy name Yunchang. This black-faced man is my third brother, Zhang Fei, courtesy name Yide. The three of us are sworn brothers."

Yuan Shao took a closer look and saw that Liu Bei had a handsome face, ears that reached down to his shoulders, and eyes that were as bright as stars. Although he was dressed simply, he had an extraordinary demeanor.

Guan Yu's eyes were slightly narrowed, his eyebrows were slightly raised, his face was as red as a date, and he looked majestic. His green robe fluttered in the wind, as if the god of war had descended to the earth.

Zhang Fei had a leopard head, round eyes, a swallow chin, a tiger beard, a face as black as charcoal, a burly and strong body, and an unparalleled heroic spirit.

Guan Yu clasped his fists slightly and said calmly, "Greetings, Mr. Yuan." Zhang Fei said nonchalantly, "Hey, I'm Zhang Fei!"

Liu Bei then began to introduce himself: "Mr. Yuan, I am Liu Bei, a descendant of King Jing of Zhongshan. In my early years, I made a living by weaving mats and selling shoes. Witnessing the chaos and suffering of the people, I wished to uphold justice and save the people." After hearing this, Yuan Shao couldn't help but show more respect for Liu Bei and the others. The look in his eyes changed as he looked at them. He said, "So you are a descendant of King Jing of Zhongshan. Brother Xuande, it's a pleasure to meet you today!"

Liu Bei looked at Yuan Shao with concern and asked, "Mr. Yuan, I wonder why you are in such danger and being hunted here?"

Yuan Shao sighed deeply, anger and helplessness flashing in his eyes. Inwardly, he cursed Dong Zhuo's tyranny and despotism. As a descendant of three generations of high officials, how could he tolerate Dong Zhuo's reckless behavior? He must overthrow him completely. He spoke slowly, "Xuan De, you may not know this. Dong Zhuo is ambitious and vain. He wants to establish another emperor and control the government. Naturally, we cannot sit idly by. I have fought against Dong Zhuo and condemned his treasonous actions. But Dong Zhuo is so tyrannical that he doesn't even take us seriously. He even wanted to kill me. That's why I had to flee. Now I plan to return to Jizhou, recruit troops, and amass strength. Then I will seek out the emperor and support him to fight against Dong Zhuo's evil deeds."

Liu Bei then pressed on, "Brother Benchu, where is the Emperor now?" Yuan Shao stroked his beard and said solemnly, "The Emperor has been taken away by Lu Zhi's troops." Liu Bei's face lit up with surprise, and he quickly exclaimed, "Oh, Lu Zhi is my teacher! I never thought it was my teacher who took the Emperor away." Liu Bei secretly thought that with his teacher around, the Emperor's safety would be temporarily assured, and through him, he could better contribute to upholding the people. He quickly bowed to Yuan Shao and said, "Brother Benchu, your righteousness is truly admirable. I am willing to lead my brothers to support you and contribute to pacifying this chaotic world and supporting the Emperor." Liu Bei thought that if he could cooperate with a figure like Yuan Shao, perhaps he could more quickly realize his ambition to uphold justice throughout the world and give himself and his brothers greater opportunities to display their talents.

Guan Yu stood aside, stroking his long beard and nodding slightly, expressing his approval of Yuan Shao's actions in his heart. He thought to himself that although Yuan Shao was a little arrogant, he was not vague about this righteous matter, and perhaps he was worth following.

Zhang Fei widened his eyes and said in a rough voice: "Okay! Let's work with Yuan Gong to get rid of Dong Zhuo!" Although Zhang Fei was reckless, he now understood that fighting against Dong Zhuo was a just act. He only wanted to have a good fight and eliminate the harm to the world.

When Yuan Shao heard what Liu Bei said, he was also happy. He thought that Liu Bei and his brothers were very brave. If he could use them for his own purposes, it would be like adding wings to a tiger. His own cause might be more successful. He then valued Liu Bei and others even more.

Liu Bei and Yuan Shao hit it off immediately and decided to set off together, rushing to Jizhou. They were filled with ambition and determination, hoping to quickly recruit troops in Jizhou and amass a powerful force to achieve their common goal.

Meanwhile, Hua Xiong led a large force in pursuit of Yuan Shu for two days. However, perhaps due to bad luck or faulty intelligence, Hua Xiong pursued Yuan Shu in the wrong direction and was unable to find any trace of Yuan Shu. Desperate, Hua Xiong returned empty-handed, leading his exhausted soldiers back to Luoyang. Hua Xiong was filled with regret and resentment, but now that things had come to this, there was nothing he could do but return to report.