Lu Bu: My wife comes from two thousand years later

In the Taihang Mountains, Qu Yi's 20,000-strong army crossed Jingxing unimpeded and arrived at Juyi Village.

Qu Yi did not rush to attack the village, but found an open place outside to set up camp and let the soldiers rest first. He and Qu Heng, with a dozen personal guards, drove their horses to the bank of the Mian River not far from the village.

In the chilly autumn wind, Qu Yi stood on his horse and observed from afar the village in front of him, which left a deep impression on him.

About seven or eight years ago, he led three thousand troops and several thousand bandits to attack a small village with only two or three hundred guards, but he failed to capture it. What impressed him even more was that the bandit leader of the village dared to come out with his few men to rescue the group of elderly, weak, women and children, and even managed to escape from his magic arrows.

The frustration brought by that battle affected him for a long time. Today, when the enemy troops once again arrived at the camp, Qu Yi felt that he must finish what he had not been able to do that year.

"General, how do we attack?" Qu Heng also remembered this mountain stronghold and asked with an embarrassed look on his face.

Back then, there were only two or three hundred defenders in this village, but they still couldn't capture it. Now, looking at the dense crowds of bandits on the city walls, it will be difficult to take down this tough village unless human lives are sacrificed!

Qu Yi remained silent, merely gazing at the village before him. After a long pause, he seemed to have thought of something interesting. He raised his hand and pointed at the Black Mountain flag fluttering in the wind above the village, saying with a smile, "Ah Heng, do you remember the sudden outbreak of plague in our army two summers ago?"

"Of course I remember! The general nearly lost his life to an epidemic, which really worried me. But the general was blessed with good fortune, and he received treatment from a miracle doctor. Not only did he recover from the epidemic, but he also defeated Gongsun in the end."

Qu Yi shook his head. "That's not what I was referring to. I was referring to the time you went to battle on my behalf and were surrounded by the White Horse Volunteers and couldn't escape. Do you remember who saved you in the end?"

Qu Heng was a little confused. "I remember, wasn't it the little doctor who offered the advice? The little doctor looked so strange, it's hard to forget."

He glanced at Qu Yi meaningfully and said jokingly, "General, are you thinking about that young doctor again?"

Qu Yi laughed heartily, "I've been thinking about her day and night for the past two years. The little doctor is my lucky star. This time she's going to help me break through the village again."

Qu Heng looked bewildered. "Didn't Lü Bu take the young doctor as his concubine? When did the general find her? How come I didn't know?"

Seeing Qu Heng acting so foolishly, Qu Yi hit him on the forehead in anger, turned his horse around and headed back to the camp, saying as he walked, "You usually look like a smart guy, but on the battlefield you act like a complete fool?"

Qu Heng followed, saying, "Don't we have Ah Shu? He advocates fighting, and I just need to serve him."

Qu Shu, who had been silent and pretending to be cool, couldn't help but roll his eyes when he heard this.

There was only one exit from Juyi Village, the valley entrance. Qu Yi sent a scout to watch it to prevent the thieves from coming out to attack. He also sent soldiers to chop firewood nearby, preparing to take down the thieves' den in one fell swoop the next day.

In the valley, upon learning that Qu Yi's army was at the gates, Xu You was so excited that he didn't know what to do. Had the day he had been waiting for finally come? Had his lord finally come to rescue them? Could he finally stop being a teacher?

However, in just a moment, his trembling hands suddenly became numb and could not move.

The Third Young Master is missing! The Third Young Master is missing!

How would he explain this to his lord? Would his lord blame him for not seeing the Third Young Master? Furthermore, would these bandits use them as hostages to threaten General Qu? If the village was breached, would the bandits kill them to vent their anger?

Countless questions and panics filled Xu You's mind, and his hand holding the book couldn't help but tremble again.

"Mr. Xu, the Second Master wants to see you."

Just when Xu You was thinking about how to save his life, a soldier's voice suddenly came from the door. Xu You was startled and threw away the book in his hand.

It’s over, it’s over, they really want me to be a hostage!

Xu You, with a pale face and terrified, followed the soldiers to the Juyi Hall. The second-in-command with scars all over his face, Da Ma Jin Dao, was sitting in a seat to the right of the main seat, looking at him indifferently.

Xu You had only met this second-in-command a few times. He felt very cold and indifferent, as if he had never seen him smile.

"Second, Second Boss, please come down. What can I do for you?" Xu You asked calmly.

Guan Hai raised his hand, motioning him to sit down and talk. Xu You walked cautiously to a chair nearby and sat down.

"Qu Yi's 20,000-man army arrived today. His target is Taiyuan County. Heishan and Lu Bu are barely allies. Qu Yi is afraid his retreat will be cut off, so he must first eliminate our Juyi Village."

Guan Hai glanced at the nervous Xu You and continued, "Sir, don't panic. I called you here today to ask you to speak to General Qu. I advocate that Feiyan remain neutral this time. Juyi Village will follow Zhang Feiyan's wishes and will not participate in the conflict between Jizhou and Bingzhou. If he is willing to let her go, I will return Madam Liu to you."

Xu You looked up, surprised, "My Jizhou is at war with Bingzhou?"

Guan Hai nodded. "Yuan Shao and Lü Bu are locked in a fierce battle in Shangdang. Qu Yi is planning to attack Jinyang from Jingxing. He's a bit reckless. Last time, I suggested Feiyan lead 80,000 troops but couldn't capture Jinyang. What can his mere 20,000 men do? I don't want to meddle in other people's business, but if Qu Yi insists on becoming an enemy of Juyi Village, I will have to fight him to the end."

Xu You knew about Zhang Yan's attack on Jinyang two years ago. Not only did Zhang Yan not gain any benefit that time, he seemed to have been beaten badly. As for whether Lu Bu and Zhang Yan were allies and whether this alliance was stable, Xu You didn't know. However, as long as he met Qu Yi, he would know clearly what had happened in the past two years.

Xu You said, "I am willing to resolve the crisis for Juyi Village, but I am afraid General Qu will not believe me. He has penetrated deep into Taiyuan County this time. If you go back on your word, you will cut off his retreat."

Guan Hai said, "I heard that General Qu has a group of very powerful archers. He could send someone to guard the exit."

"How many soldiers are there in your camp?" Xu You asked.

"You saw them training in the square every day. They only have 1,500 elite soldiers. The rest are half-peasants and half-soldiers. They are definitely not as good as General Qu's elite troops. The exit of our village is sandwiched between two mountains. If he leaves only 2,000 men to guard it, we won't be able to leave."

Xu You had been in the village for two years, and he had a rough idea of ​​the number of soldiers here. The elite soldiers that the second-in-command mentioned were those who did not need to farm at all. Apart from these people, the other young and strong men were not much different from farmers.

Xu You asked again, "What about the steel mill in the village?"

Guan Hai understood what he meant and said helplessly, "We built that factory to make armor and weapons, but iron ore is scarce. We haven't accumulated much through purchasing and looting over the years. We also have to make the farm tools needed in the valley, so we only have 500 sets of iron armor."

Xu You couldn't help but sigh after hearing this. It was already extremely rare for a bandit's nest to be able to equip 500 sets of armor, and that's all?

Xu You didn't have much doubt about this data. After all, he had only seen them transport pig iron once in the two years he had been here. Although the factory often emitted black smoke, without raw materials, they could not produce weapons and armor.

As for the three-bow crossbow and catapult, Xu You didn't know about them.

"Oh, by the way, the Third Young Master is not lost. I have temporarily sent him somewhere else. If you want to see the Third Young Master again, you'd better help me to do this. After the battle between Yuan Shao and Lu Bu comes to an end, I will return him."

Xu You was overjoyed, "Is it really not lost?"

Guan Hai asked, "Such an important hostage, do you think I would let him go so easily?"

Xu You thought about it and agreed. He stood up and bowed, "Second Master, keep your word. As long as you can let the three of us go back, I will definitely protect the Juyi Village."

"Since I let you go to see Qu Yi, I will keep my word!"

…………

Guan Hai ordered people to send Xu You out of the city. Qu Yi was very surprised by Xu You's arrival. Two years ago, Ye City was breached by Heishan, and the Third Young Master and Madam Liu were missing. The lord had investigated openly and secretly for two years but had no news. He didn't expect that they were hiding in this village?

After hearing Xu You's explanation of his purpose, Qu Yi disagreed and said, "How can we trust the words of a thief?"

Xu You recounted the number of soldiers in the camp and Guan Hai's plan to Qu Yi, advising him, "Zhang Yan is initially neutral. If you take his base, he will completely side with Lü Bu. You'll only create more enemies for our lord. Furthermore, the Third Young Master and his wife are in the hands of the thieves. If you insist on attacking the camp, their lives will be in jeopardy. How will you explain this to our lord when you return?"

Qu Yi curled his lips, "How can a woman and a child be compared with a great cause?"

"While women and children certainly can't compare to Daye's, from a purely military perspective, it wouldn't be wise for you to attack this stronghold. The gate is easy to defend but difficult to attack. How could you possibly take it without sacrificing the lives of three or four thousand soldiers? Furthermore, I heard from the Second in Command that there's another Bingzhou checkpoint at the exit from Jingxing. How many soldiers would you have to sacrifice to take both?"

Qu Yi smiled and said, "This gate of the village can be breached with only a thousand of my soldiers. As for the Bingzhou Army's checkpoint, I've sent people to investigate. They're not as strong as this small village. Breaking them will be easy."

In fact, because there was Juyi Village on Jingxing Road, Lu Bu did not send troops to set up checkpoints. The checkpoint that Qu Yi mentioned was set up not long ago to fool Qu Yi.

"The general is arrogant!" Xu You snorted coldly.

"Ziyuan, you don't believe it? Why don't you try it tomorrow?"

Seeing that Qu Yi was unmoved, Xu You became anxious again, "General, we really can't fight with Heishan. You are causing trouble for yourself and your lord by doing this!"

Qu Yi laughed heartily and said, "I'm just teasing you! Now that Heishan has made his stance clear, why would I bother looking for trouble? That little village can't escape here, so I'll slowly take care of it after I take Taiyuan."

Hearing that Qu Yi would come to Xia Juyi Village later, Xu You breathed a sigh of relief but his heart also couldn't help but feel nervous. Although that group of bandits was hateful, it was undeniable that he had lived a comfortable and happy life in the past year or so!

He then asked, "General, how will you capture Jinyang City after entering Taiyuan? Last time, Zhang Yan couldn't take it even with 80,000 troops!"

Qu Yi said, "As long as this road is clear, the lord will transfer troops from Jizhou again. This time, the lord will join forces with Cao Gong to attack from the north and south. Bingzhou is already in the lord's pocket."

Qu Yi told Xu You about Yuan Cao's battle plan. Xu You nodded and said, "If nothing unexpected happens, Bingzhou will be invincible."

He was silent for a moment, then suddenly added, "General, if you take Jinyang, then we can take down this stronghold. As long as we completely control Jingxing, even if Zhang Yan sees the situation is not right, it will be too late for him to intervene. Once you take Bingzhou, you can also clean up Heishan. From then on, you can focus on dealing with Gongsun Zan."

"That's exactly what I meant!" Qu Yi said with a smile.

"However..." Xu You bowed to him, "General, when you break into the camp in the future, I hope you can show mercy to the women, children and young men in the valley. Of course, it would be best if we could persuade this camp to surrender."

Qu Yi looked at him with amusement, "Xu Ziyuan, you haven't been bribed by the bandits, have you?"

Xu You immediately straightened his back and angrily scolded him, "Am I, Xu Ziyuan, such a spineless person? I come from a noble family in Nanyang, how could I be a thief?"

His tone suddenly softened as he spoke. "Although these bandits are bandits, they are also a group of righteous bandits. They didn't touch the captured ladies or your concubines at all, and even let the children go to school. Fighting is a man's business, why would they embarrass a group of women and children? If bandits can do this without embarrassing women and children, are you, Qu Yi, worse than bandits?"

Qu Yi suddenly remembered the young bandit leader who had led his troops out of the village to rescue the elderly and the weak a few years ago, and snorted, "Who said I wanted to embarrass women and children? They are just a bunch of women and children. What's the big deal? Is it worth it? Come on, send Xu Ziyuan back to the bandit den!"

"Tsundere!"

Xu You rolled his eyes at him, said this, and turned to walk out of the tent.

Qu Yi left two thousand soldiers to guard the gate of Juyi Village, and led the troops to break through the Bingzhou checkpoint. At the same time, he sent someone to report the situation on Jingxing Road to Yuan Shao.

However, before the news from Qu Yi was delivered, the envoy sent by Cao Cao arrived first. As Cao Cao and Zhang Mo had expected, Yuan Shao hesitated for a long time and was unable to make a decision. Tian Feng wanted to give him advice, but was stopped by Ju Su. Whoever gave advice on such matters would eventually be blamed by the lord, so it would be better to let the lord make the decision himself.

Based on Ju Su's understanding of Yuan Shao, if he had not yet sent troops at this time, he would definitely protect Yuan Shang. But now that hundreds of thousands of troops have gathered, no matter how stupid Yuan Shao is, he cannot ask Cao Cao to withdraw his troops.

Yuan Shao thought about it for two days. He thought about his son's face which was almost carved out of his own, how lively and cute his son was when he was a child, how such a young child would be boiled alive, how helpless and frightened his son must be at this moment, and whether he was crying for his father to save him. Yuan Shao felt heartbroken. He wanted to withdraw his troops and save his son.

He really wanted to withdraw his troops, but when he received the news that Qu Yi requested reinforcements to invade Taiyuan, he became conflicted again.

Guo Yi attacked Taiyuan, Cao Cao attacked Henei, and Lu Bu was unable to take care of both ends. He could also break into Shangdang. Bingzhou and Henei were full of war. This opportunity was so rare. As long as he eliminated the fierce tiger Lu Bu, he could concentrate on dealing with Gongsun Zan, and finally unify the north and then rule the world.

You can't retreat, no matter what you say, you can't retreat at this time!

"My lord, you can't hesitate any longer!" Tian Feng waited for two days without seeing Yuan Shao make a decision, and finally couldn't help but come over to remind him.

"Yuan Shu and Tao Qian in the south are eyeing Yanzhou covetously. The war here on Meng De's side cannot be stalemated for too long. You should make a decision as soon as possible."

Yuan Shao's beard was unshaven, and his eyes were bloodshot. He looked at Tian Feng expectantly, "Yuan Hao, you have always been resourceful. Please help me think of something else. Is there any way to save Shang'er? Is there a way to have the best of both worlds? Think about it, think about it quickly..."

As he spoke, he covered his face and sobbed, "I really can't help it. That's my son, the son I love the most. In the past two years, not a single night has passed without me thinking about him. I wonder if he's been enslaved by bandits? If he has no food to eat or clothes to wear? If he's been bullied by other children? If he's hoping for me to save him? I've been searching for him for two years with no news. Now I finally have news of him, but I can't save him. I have a hundred thousand soldiers, but I can't save my son. Do you know how much my heart aches?"

Tian Feng sighed softly, "I understand your feelings, my lord. I've missed my children these past two years, too. If I could, I would sacrifice my life for theirs. However, with hundreds of thousands of Yuan and Cao troops waiting, how could you retreat just for a child?"

"If you retreat today, the people of Yanzhou and Jizhou will be disappointed in you. More importantly, you will miss this golden opportunity to destroy Lü Bu. Once Gongsun Zan in the east has completely eliminated Liu Yu's former subordinates, and you have become enemies with Lü Bu, then these two forces will inevitably attack Jizhou from both the east and the west."

"My lord, if you retreat now, you will never have another chance!"