Lu Bu: My wife comes from two thousand years later

Zhang Mo didn't know much about Gao Lan. According to historical records, during the Battle of Guandu, Cao Cao led his troops to attack Wuchao. Zhang He suggested rescuing Wuchao, but Guo Tu suggested attacking Cao's camp. Yuan Shao adopted Guo Tu's strategy and ordered Gao Lan and Zhang He to lead the army to attack Cao's camp. However, Cao's camp was well defended. By the time Cao Cao broke through Wuchao and set fire to Yuan Shao's granary, Gao Lan and Zhang He had no signs of breaking through Cao Cao's camp.

At this time, Guo Tu felt that he had harmed Yuan Shao, but did not want to take the blame, so he spread a rumor that Zhang He was about to be defeated after hearing that Wuchao was captured, and he even scolded Yuan Shao for not listening to his advice.

When Zhang He heard this rumor, he thought that Yuan Shao would definitely kill him to take the blame, so he simply surrendered to Cao Cao with Gao Lan. After that, Zhang He was highly valued by Cao Cao, made many military achievements, and became one of the five best generals of Cao Wei. However, there is no historical record of Gao Lan.

What Gao Lan said earlier today was basically the same as the news reported by the Flying Eagle Team that day, but the latter part was news that the Flying Eagle Team could not detect.

"No sooner had I left than Liwu and Anguo were occupied by Gongsun Zan's army. They had five thousand men at the time, plus the rebels and tribesmen from various tribes. I was left with only two thousand men, and there was no way to fight back. I had originally intended to lead my troops to Changshan to seek out Captain Qian, but Gongsun Zan sent someone to persuade me to surrender just as I was leaving. The person said Captain Qian had secretly defected to the King of Yan, and that even if I went to Changshan, the result would be the same: I would either surrender to Great Yan or die in battle."

"I didn't know the truth of the news, and I realized it wasn't limited to Zhongshan this time. There must be people colluding with the enemy elsewhere. If the entire state was full of bandits, I was afraid they would be wiped out before I could even reach them. So I pretended to surrender to the King of Yan. After becoming their ally, I learned that my two lieutenants had already been bribed. One took advantage of my absence to surrender to the enemy, and the other took advantage of my departure to open the city gates and meet the enemy."

Gao Lan bowed again and apologized, "I have failed to govern my subjects properly. Please punish me, Princess!"

"Do you know who bribed these two people?" Zhang Mo asked.

"I asked them before, but they both refused to tell me. Later, I sent someone to investigate secretly and found out that not only had they bought a lot of new things in their homes, but they also took in two beautiful concubines. These were all bought for them by the steward of the Wuji Zhen Mansion."

"Zhen family? Are you sure?"

Gao Lan nodded, "Sure!"

Qu Yi added, "He has no personal grudge against the Zhen family. There are so many wealthy families in Zhongshan, there's no reason to single out his family for slander."

Zhang Mo nodded and asked, "What position have you held in Zhongshan recently? What have you been doing?"

Gao Lan replied, "Gongsun Bogui didn't seem to trust me. Although he still appointed me as a captain, he didn't give me much power. Before the king sent troops to Jizhou, I could only secretly investigate the officials and families who had betrayed him. It was not until the king won a great victory in Dingtao that I led the troops to eliminate the two traitors Li and Gan. I also stopped those who wanted to flee Jizhou."

Qu Yi glanced at Zhang Mo and interrupted, "If he had made any move before the king defeated Gongsun Zan, I would have naturally believed he was feigning surrender. But now, it's entirely possible that he saw Gongsun's defeat and feared being punished by the king, so he's acting like a loyal minister who's now turned against the king. I simply can't tell the difference between loyalty and treachery, so I brought him here for the princess to examine."

"How can General Gao prove his innocence?" Zhang Mo asked.

Gao Lan bowed, "No matter how much I say, it's all likely a lie. I dare to ask the princess to summon Zhao Zilong to testify on my behalf."

"Zhao Yun?"

Gao Lan nodded. "General Zhao was present when Gongsun Bogui asked the guilty minister for the secrets of the Tang Dynasty."

Zhang Mo couldn't help but think of the battle of Shiyi. Zhao Yun led 3,000 white horse volunteers and 10,000 infantrymen, but lost to Anren's 1,500 Golden Eagle Guards. This battle was indeed due to the Golden Eagle Guards' fearlessness and fighting for their lives, but it was also because Zhao Yun underestimated the enemy from the beginning, otherwise the Golden Eagle Guards would most likely be wiped out.

According to Zhao Yun's steady character, he underestimated the enemy because the intelligence he had obtained before was wrong, and this wrong information was given by Gao Lan, so this cannot be false!

Thinking of this, Zhang Mo immediately said, "I believe in the general's innocence. When the king returns, I will explain this matter to him clearly. The general will stay in Yecheng for the time being!"

Qu Yi was surprised. "You believe him so soon? Why don't you ask Zhao Zilong to ask? Or are they in cahoots? Zhao Zilong was once a big shot around Gongsun Zan and was completely loyal to him. The White Horse Volunteers were all led by Zhao Zilong. And didn't that guy surrender because he was captured by the king and had no choice? He might not be sincere."

Zhang Mo gave him a meaningful look and smiled without saying anything. Qu Yi was stunned for a moment, then suddenly remembered something. His handsome face flushed slightly and he whispered, "Whatever the princess says, that's it..."

"Alright, you two must have worked hard all the way back. Go back and rest!"

Gao Lan clasped his fists in gratitude and took his leave, but Qu Yi lingered. "My mansion hasn't been occupied for a while, so I guess no one's cooking. It's getting late, so it's time for dinner. Is it okay for me to have a meal here?"

Zhang Mo looked at him suspiciously and said in an official tone, "General, you've returned from suppressing the civil unrest. Normally, I should host a banquet for you, but the king is away on a campaign, and it's not appropriate for a woman like me to dine alone with a man from another country. General, please return home. I'll have someone bring you a sumptuous dinner later!"

"That's too troublesome. It's much easier to eat here and take it back!" Qu Yi said shamelessly.

Zhang Mo's intention to avoid suspicion was obvious, but this guy was just playing dumb. She took a deep breath and said slowly, "Then the general will go to the dining room and wait. Ah Chu, please wait for me to entertain General Qu!"

She emphasized the word "treat", and Qu Yi shuddered and couldn't help but remember... this woman had learned medical theory from Zhang Ji in the past and could "cure" people!

"General, please come in!" Xu Chu came over and imitated A Mo, emphasizing the word "please".

Qu Yi glanced at the ferocious Xu Chu, curled his lips, and stood up. "Forget it, I'd better go home!"

After sending Qu Yi away, Juxiang glanced at Zhang Mo quietly and asked cautiously, "General Qu still has evil intentions towards the princess..."

"It's not necessarily that he covets me. This guy gets cocky when he succeeds. That's his nature. Just suppress him! Next time there's a war, let Zilong, Junyi, and Shihui (Gao Lan's pen name) go and give him a break. Competition will put him under pressure."

Juxiang nodded, walked over to a nearby table, and wrote down today's events between Gao Lan and the Zhen family in a notebook. She then asked, "According to General Gao, the Zhen family secretly betrayed the Tang Kingdom from the very beginning. They wanted to lure in foreign enemies to force the King and Princess into a desperate situation, forcing them to seek his help. He could then use this opportunity to push his sister into the King's concubine. Provoking war for their own selfish reasons is truly despicable."

Zhang Mo said calmly, "It's not just him who betrayed. Whether they betrayed from the beginning, or just followed the crowd, or knew about it but kept it a secret, it doesn't really matter. It's all betrayal!"

"Then how will the princess deal with the Zhen family?"

Zhang Mo gently stroked the arrow hidden in her left sleeve with her right hand and said with a smile, "Hasn't it been dealt with?"

Juxiang muttered, "Princess, do you know that's not what I'm referring to?"

"Let's wait and see. If he's content, it's not impossible to let him go! Prepare for the next few days, and I'll be going outside the city to inspect the spring plowing work!"