Lu Bu: My wife comes from two thousand years later

On August 194, AD, exactly eleven months had passed since Yuan Shao and Cao Cao attacked Bingzhou the previous year. Lu Bu issued the anti-rebellion manifesto written by Cai Yong to all the provinces and counties in the world, denouncing Yuan Shao and Cao Cao for their crimes of leading troops to attack the emperor in order to seize the throne, which led to the emperor's death!

The message was sent by flying eagles and spread throughout the country in just a few days. Upon hearing the news of the emperor's death, some princes were heartbroken, some were overjoyed, and the happiest person among them was Yuan Shu.

"The one who will replace the Han Dynasty is Dangtu Gao!"

At the Yuan Mansion in Shouchun City, Yuan Shu held the manifesto. His focus wasn't on the crimes of Yuan and Cao, but on the fact that the emperor was dead. With a touch of emotion, he said, "My name is Gonglu, and Tu means road. This is exactly what the prophecy says! Tell me, is it true or not?"

The civil and military officials present looked at each other, and no one dared to speak.

His lord has wanted to become emperor for a long time. In the past, when the emperor was still in Chang'an, he only dared to think about it but not to do it. Now that the emperor is dead and the Han Dynasty has no successor, it is inevitable that his lord will become emperor!

Yuan Shu ignored the silence and continued, "We control six counties in Yuzhou and five in Yangzhou. Even though that slave girl Yuan Shao once led the anti-Dongguan alliance, what's the big deal? We still only have Jizhou, and we were beaten to a pulp by Lü Bu. This is truly a disgrace to our Yuan family!"

"And then there's Lu Bu, who boasts of his unrivaled martial arts prowess and how powerful he is. But in recent years, he's only had one province, Bingzhou, and couldn't even deal with the lingering Southern Xiongnu."

"Not to mention Cao Mengde. He was driven back to Yanzhou by Lü Bu a few months ago, and now he has killed the emperor. He doesn't stand a chance. As for Gongsun Zan, Kong Wenju, Tao Qian, Liu Biao and the like, they are not even worth mentioning."

Because Dong Zhuo died early and there was no Lu Bu roaming around Yanzhou, a butterfly effect occurred among the local forces in the south. Historically, Liu Pi, a Yellow Turban who had originally occupied Yingchuan and Runan in Yuzhou, took advantage of the situation to defect to Yuan Shu, who was also sending troops to Yanzhou when Cao Cao defeated the Yellow Turbans in Qingzhou three years ago, thus incorporating Yingchuan and Runan into Yuan Shu's territory.

The governor of Yangzhou, Chen Wen, was killed by Yuan Shu the previous year. The court then put the two Lis in control and did not send Liu Yao to succeed him as the governor of Yangzhou. Wang Lang, who was supposed to be the prefect of Kuaiji last year, was also replaced because the people who controlled the court were not Li Jue or Guo Si. Except for Wujun, which was occupied by the local warlord Yan Baihu, the other six counties of Yangzhou all came under the control of Yuan Shu.

Because Cao Cao had set his target on Lu Bu, he only defeated Yuan Shu who wanted to take advantage of the situation three years ago and did not take any other military action against him.

In terms of territory, Yuan Shu is indeed the most powerful prince at present. In addition, as the legitimate son of the Yuan family, it is not surprising that he has the ambition to become emperor.

Chief Clerk Yan Xiang advised, "Although you occupy a rich and vast territory, your soldiers are not as brave as those in Bingzhou, and your civil and military officials are not as numerous as those in Yanzhou. The Han Emperor has just died, and proclaiming yourself emperor at this time would be unpopular. I think there is no rush. You should respond to Lü Fengxian's anti-rebellion manifesto and invite Tao Gongzu to join you in marching to Yanzhou. First, eliminate Cao Mengde, then observe the situation and take your time."

Although Yuan Shu was itching to do so, he was not stupid. He knew that it was inappropriate for a foreigner like him to rush to proclaim himself emperor right after Liu Xie's death. However, when it came to asking him to fight Cao Cao, he hesitated.

"Master Yan's words make sense, but... the last time Cao Mengde was trapped in Henei, I, Tao Gongzu, and Zang Xuangao of Mount Tai all launched an expedition to Yanzhou, but to no avail. Now that he's back, we're no match for him. I think we should take Xuzhou first."

Yan Xiang said, "This time is different from last time. Cao Mengde killed Your Majesty and has lost the support of the people. In the north, there are Lü Fengxian and Gongsun Bogui. Yuan Benchu ​​is busy with his own affairs. Liu Jingsheng is a relative of the Han Dynasty and dares not send troops to help Cao. This is a great opportunity to take Yanzhou. If you can eliminate Cao Cao, then Tao Gongzu of Xuzhou will be a piece of cake. Most of the land in the south will belong to you. Then you can advance west to take Jingzhou and Yizhou. Even if you can't defeat Lü Bu in the end, you will have occupied most of the territory and can be crowned emperor!"

Yuan Shu was filled with enthusiasm at Yan Xiang's promise, but thinking of his two defeats by Cao Cao, he still felt a little intimidated. He said, "Even if Cao Mengde loses popularity, he is still Cao Mengde. Tao Gongzu is a coward and weak man. He may not dare to send troops to Yanzhou. We should pick the weak ones first. I think we should attack the easy ones first. After we take Xuzhou, Yanzhou will be semi-encircled by us. By then, I can slowly grind him down and finish him off."

The reason why Yuan Shu insisted on attacking Xuzhou first was not only because he was a little afraid of Cao Cao, but also because he wanted to let him go, or to let Yuan Shao go. After all, no matter how much he and Yuan Shao disagreed, they still had the same surname, Yuan. Now seeing Yuan Shao being bullied so badly, while his own career was thriving, in comparison, his resentment and dissatisfaction with Yuan Shao were reduced a lot.

He would be unable to gain control of the north for a long time. Rather than letting Lü Bu or Gongsun Zan occupy the four northern states, it would be better to give them to Yuan Shao. Yuan Shao would inevitably face a double attack from Lü Bu and Gongsun Zan. If he then allied with the southern princes to attack Cao Cao, both would be doomed. It would be better to spare Cao Cao for now, allowing him to devote some of his energy to aiding Yuan Shao. Even if he couldn't resist Lü Bu and Gongsun Zan, he could at least buy Yuan Shao some time.

Once Yuan Shu made up his mind, no one could persuade him, so he decided to seize Xuzhou first.

…………

In Pingyuan County, Pingyuan Commandery, Qingzhou, Liu Bei had been crying for a whole day and night upon hearing that Liu Xie had died unexpectedly. He had cried so much that he was a little dehydrated.

"Brother, the dead cannot be resurrected. Even if you cry for three days and three nights, His Majesty will not come back to life. Your own health is more important!" Zhang Fei advised, holding a bowl of water.

"Third brother is right. Please accept my condolences!" Guan Yu lowered his long phoenix eyes, still with the expressionless face that remained calm even if Mount Tai collapsed in front of him.

Liu Bei looked up at his two sworn brothers and said bitterly, "Brother, I don't deserve the surname Liu! I'm the descendant of King Jing of Zhongshan, and I have two younger brothers to help me, but I've been working so hard all these years and have accomplished nothing. Now, His Majesty was killed by the two treacherous Yuan and Cao, and I don't even have the ability to avenge him. I don't deserve the surname Liu! Wuwuwu..."

After Liu Bei finished speaking, he covered his face and cried bitterly again.

Zhang Fei placed his bowl on the table and said, "Didn't Lü Fengxian issue a manifesto to eliminate the treacherous officials? I think he'll send troops to Jizhou soon. Gongsun Bogui has already wiped out Liu Yu's former subordinates, the Wuhuan, and the Xianbei. Big brother, instead of crying here, why don't you go ask him for more troops? My second brother and I will use this time to intensify our training. Then, together with Lü Bu, we will attack Jizhou from both east and west, kill Yuan Shao first, and then find an opportunity to march south to eliminate Cao Cao. Wouldn't that be our revenge?"

After hearing this, Liu Bei stopped crying and said, "Third brother, what you said makes sense, very reasonable! I will go to Youzhou to find Bogui and set off today."

He tried to stand up, but his legs were numb from kneeling for too long. He fell back down after just a stir. Guan Yu went up to support him and said, "There's no need to rush for half a day. Big brother, you haven't eaten or rested for a whole day and night. Get well first. I'll accompany you to Youzhou tomorrow."

"Yes, second brother is right!"

Liu Bei said this, picked up the clear water on the table and drank it all, then ordered, "Hurry and prepare the meal!"