Lu Bu: My wife comes from two thousand years later

"If Qu Yi doesn't want to be surrounded, he has to capture my Juyi Village before he can march into Taiyuan. Sir, you have never been to my village. My city wall is almost as high as that of Jinyang City. Even if he is willing to sacrifice human lives, he may not be able to capture it." Zhang Mo said.

Jia Xu nodded and said, "In that case, we will dispatch a force and send them to help Hanoi under the name of the Black Mountain Army."

Speaking of the Black Mountain Army, Zhang Mo became furious. "Zhang Yan is so disloyal. Last time, Yuan Shao promised us a million grain and fodder to join forces to suppress him, but Bingzhou refused. This time, Bingzhou is in trouble and he was asked to send troops to help, but he refused. I really misjudged him."

A bandit is a bandit, and he is not a man of honor!

Hearing Zhang Mo complaining that Zhang Yan did not send troops to help, Jia Xu was slightly surprised. How could Zhang Yan be blamed for being unjust in this matter?

Although Bingzhou did not agree to Yuan Shao's request last time, the lord not only asked Zhang Yan to take back the ownership of Taiyuan and Yanmen counties, but also demanded the right to mobilize troops under the "one county, two systems" policy. This was completely an act of taking advantage of the situation. Although he did not agree, he used the threat of interests to maintain the alliance with Zhang Yan. This time Zhang Yan refused to send troops to help, and we can't blame him for being disloyal.

He had always thought that this matter had been agreed to by A-Mo, but when he heard her say this today, he realized that she had no idea at all.

At that time, he wondered. Knowing A-Mo well, she wouldn't be such a short-sighted person. The military and civilians of the "One County, Two Systems" would eventually belong to Bingzhou. Why rush to come? And at this time when Zhang Yan was suffering, wasn't this deliberately trying to make her feel uncomfortable?

Jia Xu looked at Lu Bu, but saw that Lu Bu had been silent all the time and was hesitant to speak, with an expression that he had done something wrong but was afraid to admit it. Jia Xu then understood that not only was the lord acting on his own initiative, but he also concealed the matter from Amo afterwards.

"This, this is not Zhang Yan's fault, it's my fault..." Lu Bu hooked Amo's hand with his fingers under the table and said hesitantly.

Zhang Mo turned around, looking at him in confusion. Lü Bu took the plunge and told her everything. He concluded, "I regretted it the moment I sent Zhang Yan's messenger away that day. You were pregnant at the time, and I was afraid you might get upset and have a miscarriage. I also thought the messenger wouldn't be too difficult, so I didn't tell you about it, and I forgot about it afterwards."

He quickly held her hand and said, "I'm pregnant, don't be angry, I know I was wrong."

Lu Bu admitted that he was short-sighted again that time. He had been trying hard to change his habit of taking advantage of others, but whenever he saw an opportunity, he couldn't help but take action without considering the long-term consequences.

Zhang Yan was loyal, but he also had a temper. He returned the five counties voluntarily. If Lu Bu had accepted this and stopped, Zhang Yan would still have stabbed him in the back for the two states of Bingzhou. However, Lu Bu demanded other benefits under the guise of not breaking the alliance. Although Zhang Yan had realized that the troops under the "one county, two systems" would sooner or later belong to Lu Bu, and he also wanted to give them to him to consolidate the alliance between the two sides, but the timing was wrong, and Zhang Yan must have been unhappy.

This time the situation changed, and it was Yuan and Cao's turn to attack Bingzhou. While Zhang Yan was watching with gloating, he was also waiting for Lu Bu to ask him for help, and then he would ask for some benefits so that Lu Bu could have a taste of how he felt at that time.

As for whether Bingzhou would be completely conquered by Yuan and Cao, thus endangering Heishan, Zhang Yan was not worried at all. Although Lu Bu and his wife were shameless, they were indeed good at fighting. At the very least, they could defend Taiyuan County and Yanmen County. When the time came, he would take advantage of the fact that both sides were tired of fighting, and send troops to the south to help his subordinates recapture Fukouxing and Baixing, and restore the glory of Heishan.

Seeing Lu Bu's nervous expression as if he was afraid that she would be angry, Zhang Mo's heart softened.

The man before him was a true-to-life Lu Bu of ancient times. Even if one had seen his own historical end, even if his life trajectory had changed since the age of twenty, how could a character formed over twenty years be changed overnight? His penchant for cheapness and superficiality would occasionally arise.

But she also knew that he had been trying hard to change, to be a qualified lord. He had learned to respect the wise and humble, not to put on airs, not to treat his subjects and people with a condescending attitude, and would humble himself to chat with the people in the countryside and understand their lives. He could also clearly distinguish between rewards and punishments, and not reward his subjects based on his own preferences. Moreover, he was not vulgar or lustful, and would not hesitate to reject women sent to him for marriage.

These qualities were not possessed by the historical Lu Bu.

Overall, he has done a good job and we can't ask for too much.

"I'm not angry. It's okay. Without Zhang Yan, we can still join forces with Yuan Shu." She lowered her voice slightly and said playfully, "Let Yuan Shu do what you did in history."

Lu Bu understood that his wife wanted to gather Yuan Shu to attack Cao Cao's lair, but the conditions now were different from those in history. Cao Cao did not massacre the city or kill famous scholars, so Chen Gong, Zhang Miao and others would not betray him. Although Cao Cao's main force had gone out to fight, it would not be easy for Yuan Shu to capture Yanzhou.

Hearing Zhang Mo mention Yuan Shu, Jia Xu twirled his beard and smiled, "Amo, I think the same thing as you. Not only Yuan Shu, but we can also ally with Tao Qian. Although he is an old lamb, he still has fanged wolves at his side."

"Mr. Wenhe, are you talking about Zang Ba of Mount Tai?" asked Lu Bu.

In the dream, he had many interactions with Zang Ba. Although the other party did not formally recognize him as his master, when Cao Cao attacked him in the third year of Jian'an, Zang Ba led his troops to help him.

According to what Zang Ba said to himself during a conversation in a dream, when he was young, Zang Ba broke into a prison to save his father and killed the prefect. Later, he became a fugitive and wandered around. It was also because of saving his father that his reputation for filial piety and bravery spread throughout the countryside.

During the Yellow Turban Rebellion, he defected to Tao Qian and became the Cavalry Commander. Later, he joined forces with Sun Guan, Wu Dun and other Taishan bandits to station troops in Kaiyang County, Langya State, Xuzhou, and gradually became a local overlord.

Now Zang Ba has actually left Tao Qian and is no longer considered his subordinate. However, if Tao Qian invites him to join the army to Yanzhou and offers him benefits, this guy will surely be unable to sit still.

"I'm afraid Tao Qian doesn't dare to stroke Cao Cao's beard!" said Lu Bu.

Jia Xu laughed, "This time, Yuan and Cao sent troops to Bingzhou with such a lame excuse. It may seem morally justified, but it's also telling everyone in the world that they can use this as an excuse to attack anyone in the future. If these two unite, apart from Bingzhou, who can resist them? Which other vassal states in the world can stop them? Even Yuan Shu wouldn't be able to withstand a combined duo of these two."

Jia Xu had unknowingly picked up some of Zhang Mo's idioms, and he heard him summarize, "So, if we don't want to become another Bingzhou, those people will naturally unite with us. And we're not sending them to confront Yuan Shao and Cao Cao head-on. We're just sending troops to harass Cao Cao's rear. Tao Qian still dares to do that."

"Furthermore, if he doesn't take action now, once Yuan Shao and Cao Cao have destroyed Lü, the next thing he'll have to do is take over Youzhou and Xuzhou. Gongsun Zan is stupid and refuses to form an alliance with me in Bingzhou, but Tao Qian is not stupid. And Yuan Shu, if he can cause trouble for Yuan Shao and Cao Cao, he will definitely be the first to jump out. My lord, don't worry, this can be accomplished."

Jia Xu's expansion strategy was the same as Zhang Mo's, which was to first eliminate the two major forces of Yuan and Cao. If Cao Cao could be eliminated, he felt that he could temporarily give the south to Yuan Shu. In comparison, Yuan Shu was much easier to deal with than Yuan Shao and Cao Cao.

After listening to Jia Xu's analysis, Lu Bu said, "I will send envoys to Xuzhou and Yuzhou!"

Jia Xu nodded and said, "My lord, please leave for Shangdang as soon as possible in the next two days. I feel more at ease with you keeping me in charge. Amo will be able to stay in Taiyuan."

Lü Bu hesitated and said, "Taishi Ziyi has led his troops to Henei. There's only one threshold left on the Jingxing Road. A-mo is pregnant now. I'm worried about Taiyuan. How about Mr. Wenhe go to Shangdang to command the battle?"

Jia Xu said, "Yu Fuluo is a fence-sitter. If he sees the strength of Yuan and Cao, he might switch sides again. I can't stop him. If you are really worried, I will stay in Taiyuan to help you, and I will make sure nothing goes wrong."

Zhang Mo said, "No need. I'm not going to the battlefield to kill the enemy. I'm just checking intelligence every day. Why should I bother with it? Besides, we have Gongming, A Chu, and Mr. Lu in Taiyuan. It's okay! Mr. Lu, you should go to Shangdang with Fengxian and take Shiyuan and Zhongda with you to gain some experience. Xiaozhi and Kongming can stay in Jinyang to help me organize and analyze the intelligence."

"Okay!" Jia Xu nodded in agreement.

Amo said this because she was not very confident in her lord. Yuan Shao had Tian Feng and Ju Su by his side. If her lord did not have a counselor, it was possible that he would be in trouble.

To be honest, comparatively speaking, he felt more at ease with Amo. Although she could not go to the battlefield to kill the enemy, she was good at overall planning and command, and she had a very smart mind. It was difficult to plot against her.

Although the lord is brave and invincible, he is only good at tactics and battle command. He is far inferior to Amo in overall planning and arrangement. He is also relatively straightforward, and I am really worried if I don't follow him.

Lu Bu also knew that Amo was afraid that she would fall into someone else's trap. If she really left Wenhe in Jinyang, she would be even more worried.

After all was said and done, Jia Xu bowed and took his leave. As he reached the door, he suddenly remembered something and turned back to ask, "Amo, what about those people you captured two years ago? What are you going to do with them?"

"Which people?"

Zhang Mo was stunned for a moment, then realized that he was referring to Yuan Shang and others.

"To be honest, I rescued Tian Feng and his family just to build a good relationship with them. I thought that after Yuan Shao died, I could recruit them to surrender. As for Yuan Shang, I just thought Yuan Shao loved him the most, so I captured him."

"What about now?" Jia Xu turned back and sat down again.

"Now……"

Before taking hostages into battle?

Zhang Mo hesitated. A man of high character like Tian Feng would never be threatened in front of the battlefield even if he had to kill his wife and children with his own hands. Ju Su and Yan Liang would not betray Yuan Shao for this either. Doing so would only arouse the hatred of Jizhou's civil and military officials towards Bingzhou, making them more united in their hatred of the enemy.

As for Yuan Shang, Yuan Shao has been preparing for war for the past two years. This time, he has joined forces with Cao Cao to launch such a large-scale war. Will he retreat because of a child?

War is no joke. It involves tens of thousands of soldiers and logistics, hundreds of thousands of manpower and huge amounts of material resources. You, my lord, cannot just stop fighting.

From Yuan Shao's perspective, if he retreated for the sake of a child, not only would his alliance with Cao Cao be broken, but the people of Jizhou would also be extremely disappointed in him, and his path to dominance would basically come to an end. No matter how much Yuan Shao loved his son, he could not accept the threat to retreat.

As for Zhang Mo, she could throw a bowl of manure at Zhang Yan's tens of thousands of soldiers, but she couldn't send a group of women and children to the front line. If the other party was not threatened, would she really kill a group of women and children as sacrifices?

"It's still the same now. War is a matter between men. Why make things difficult for a group of women and children?" Lu Bu held Amo's hand tightly and answered for her.

If he were Yuan Benchu, he would definitely compromise when he saw his son being taken to the top of the city wall. In his heart, no grand ambitions were as important as his wife and children.

But Lu Bu didn't want to test Yuan Shao's choice with his own choice. If Yuan Shao chose to continue advancing, he could only kill Yuan Shang as a sacrifice. Killing a child would not have any impact on the battle situation, but Amo would feel very uncomfortable.

Jia Xu said, "My lord, you have misunderstood me. I know Amo would not do such a thing. The reason I asked this is not to threaten Yuan Benchu ​​with Yuan Shang, but to threaten Cao Mengde."

Lu Bu: ???

Zhang Mo: …

Jia Xu's wrinkled fox eyes revealed a conspiratorial smile. "When Yuan Benchu ​​is wise, he is very wise. But when he is confused, you can't wake him up even if you pour a river of water on him. Besides this, he has another peculiar problem: he always blames others for his own mistakes, and others for their mistakes."

"If you threaten him with Yuan Shang, whether he continues to advance or retreat, he will ultimately blame you for everything, and will completely regard Bingzhou as his mortal enemy, a war that will never end. And what about threatening Cao Mengde with Yuan Shang? Do you think Cao Mengde will retreat because of a child?"

"Definitely not." Lu Bu answered without hesitation.

Lu Bu knew very well what kind of person Cao Cao was. Not to mention other people's sons, as long as it would help his hegemony, he would not compromise even if you threatened him with the lives of his entire family. In this respect, Cao Mengde was exactly the same as Emperor Gaozu.

Jia Xu laughed and said, "So, Yuan Benchu ​​himself may not care about his son's life, but if Cao Mengde does not care about his son's life, do you think Yuan Benchu ​​will still be on good terms with his brothers without any grudges?"

"poison!"

Lü Bu understood, looked at Jia Xu and laughed heartily, "Amo said you were a poisonous scholar. That's a fitting assessment. Your tactics of sowing discord are truly venomous!"

Poisonous scholar? Jia Xu raised his eyebrows and looked at Zhang Mo with some confusion. Zhang Mo's eyes twitched and she glared at Lu Bu unhappily. This guy was so outspoken when he was proud.

Lu Bu realized that he had spoken too quickly and explained with a dry smile, "Amo didn't mean any harm when she said that about you. I just think you're very capable and your strategies are vicious. That's all. There's no other meaning."

Jia Xu laughed heartily and said, "Madam is my mentor. This is a wonderful evaluation!"

Zhang Mo smiled awkwardly, "I don't dare to be a mentor, I just hope you're not angry."

Jia Xu said, "Why should you be angry? When it comes to poison, my lady and I are equally skilled. We can be called the great poison master and the small poison master."

She led the bandits to massacre people in Henei, threw feces on Zhang Feiyan, lured Heishan to attack Yecheng, and captured the families of civil and military officials in Jizhou. He also heard that she had arranged for Yuan Shao's counselor Xu You to farm in the village. Compared with the things this girl did, he didn't seem that vicious, right?

"If Cao Mengde doesn't accept the threat, should we kill Yuan Shang?" asked Lu Bu.

Jia Xu shook his head. "Killing or not isn't the most important thing. Just let Yuan Benchu ​​know that Cao Mengde doesn't care about his son's life or death. Afterwards, you can tell Yuan Benchu ​​that you two have attacked Bingzhou without any reason. This is unkind and unjust. I took the child hostage because I had no choice. Unexpectedly, Cao Mengde is so heartless and unrighteous, not caring about your son's life or death. However, Bingzhou cannot really kill the child. So, return the child. If Lord Benchu ​​still wants to do unjust things, Bingzhou can only fight to the end."

After hearing what Jia Xu said, Zhang Mo couldn't help but sigh again, it's really poisonous!

As a young boy, Lu Bu earned a reputation for being generous and righteous, but the label of being unkind and unjust was put on Yuan Shao and Cao Cao, making them unable to raise their heads. Then, when Yuan Shang was returned on the battlefield, Yuan Shao was really in a dilemma.

If he advances, he will confirm his unjust reputation; if he retreats, this battle will be in vain, and no matter what he does, it will be wrong!

And if Cao Cao saw through Jia Xu's plan and did not ignore Yuan Shang's life or death, the war situation in Henei would be stabilized. Once this plan was implemented, Bingzhou would be a sure win.

Moreover, there is actually room for maneuver as to Cao Cao's final decision!

Compared with conspiracy, open conspiracy is worthy of the IQ of a top strategist!