Three Kingdoms: Mistakenly Becoming Liu Bei's Adoptive Father at the Start

Liu Bei's army marched day and night, but when they arrived at the meeting place in Suanzao, they found that the alliance ceremony had already ended.

The various warlords' camps stretched out in a continuous line, their banners fluttering, yet no one came to greet their "unremarkable" army.

Inside the central command tent, the eighteen warlords had unanimously elected Yuan Shao, the governor of Bohai, as their leader and were discussing the matter of advancing on Sishui Pass.

Upon hearing that more troops had arrived, and that they were carrying the banner of "a member of the Han imperial family and Prince Jing of Zhongshan," Yuan Shao was puzzled and summoned their leader to his tent.

Liu Bei, accompanied by Liu Liang, Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, and Zhao Yun, entered the tent to pay their respects.

When Liu Bei announced, "I am Liu Bei, the magistrate of Anxi County, leading righteous troops to join the alliance and jointly punish the traitor Dong Zhuo," a murmur of snickering laughter immediately filled the tent.

Yuan Shu, the governor of Nanyang, was the most arrogant of all. He glanced sideways at Liu Bei and the others, a half-smile on his face, and said, "Who do we have here? Which warlord? It's just a mere county magistrate. The campaign against Dong Zhuo is a matter of great importance to the world. We are all regional governors, gathered here for an alliance. How come so many insignificant people have come to join us? Doesn't that lower the status of the eighteen warlords?"

Yuan Shu spoke loudly, and many of the lords in the tent showed expressions of agreement or disdain, clearly not taking Liu Bei, this "county magistrate," seriously.

At this very moment, Gongsun Zan, the governor of Beiping, was also in the tent.

Seeing Zhao Yun following behind Liu Bei, a sinister glint flashed in his eyes. Instead of offering any help, he whispered sarcastically to the person beside him, "Hmph, bringing a traitorous general, how dare you come to the alliance meeting?"

The sound was just loud enough for Liu Bei to hear.

Zhang Fei was so angry that his eyes widened and his beard and hair stood on end.

Guan Yu's face was also ashen, his hand gripping the hilt of his sword; the two were on the verge of exchanging blows.

Liu Liang took a half step forward, subtly blocking Guan Yu and Zhang Fei's path, and shook his head slightly, signaling them to calm down.

Liu Liang's gaze swept quickly across the people in the tent, finally landing on Cao Cao, the short-faced military officer with sharp eyes.

Cao Cao was thoughtfully observing Liu Bei and his entourage, especially Liu Liang, who stood to Liu Bei's side and in front of him with a composed demeanor.

Their eyes met, and Liu Liang knew his chance had come.

He needed a "performance" to not only secure a foothold for Liu Bei, but also to attract Cao Cao's attention.

Liu Liang spoke loudly, "Lord Yuan, you are mistaken! To punish the traitor Dong Zhuo is a matter for all loyal and righteous heroes under heaven. Why should we discriminate based on rank or social status? Dong Zhuo is tyrannical, arousing the wrath of both gods and men. Every person with blood in their veins desires his demise! My lord, Liu Xuande, is a descendant of Prince Jing of Zhongshan, a member of the Han imperial family. He has the nation at heart, and has personally raised an army to fight across You and Ji provinces, suppressing the Yellow Turbans and bringing peace to the people. Today, he leads eight thousand brave warriors, fully armed and well-supplied, to serve him. Must we turn away these loyal and righteous men, these eight thousand brave warriors, and chill the hearts of all righteous men under heaven, simply because of his lowly rank?"

Liu Liang's words were sharp and incisive. He first attached the grand label of "loyalty and righteousness," then pointed out Liu Bei's status as a member of the imperial clan and his actual military strength, and finally turned the tables on him.

Yuan Shu, humiliated by Liu Liang's public rebuttal, roared, "Who are you? How dare you spout such nonsense! You, a mere county magistrate, dare to discuss loyalty, righteousness, and military prowess?"

Liu Liang smiled slightly and calmly replied, "My name is Liu Liang, also known as Liu Zishan, and I currently serve as an advisor to Lord Xuande on military affairs. I am a man of humble origins and am not well-versed in etiquette, but I know the principles. May I ask, General Gonglu, what is the purpose of this alliance meeting today?"

"Naturally, we should punish Dong Zhuo!" Yuan Shu said impatiently.

Liu Liang sneered, "Since it's about punishing Dong Zhuo, naturally the more soldiers and generals there are, the better, as long as they are of one mind and work together. Although Lord Xuande is only a county magistrate, his ambition is commendable, and his troops are usable. General, you fail to understand his ambition and do not assess his strength, but only look down on him because of his official rank. Isn't this putting the cart before the horse, only causing pain to your friends and joy to your enemies? Do you perhaps think that the great cause of punishing Dong Zhuo can be accomplished simply by having all these high-ranking officials and dignitaries present, without needing the assistance of righteous men from all over the world?"

Liu Liang pressed on relentlessly, his words becoming increasingly sharp, directly accusing Yuan Shu of being narrow-minded and lacking a sense of the bigger picture.

"You...you're being insolent!" Yuan Shu was so embarrassed by the rebuke that his face turned red. In particular, the phrase "the loved ones are hurt and the enemies are pleased" seemed to imply that his exclusion of righteous people would benefit Dong Zhuo, which hit a nerve with him.

Yuan Shu abruptly stood up, his hand on his sword hilt, his eyes flashing with murderous intent: "How dare you, a mere country bumpkin, insult me ​​like this!"

The atmosphere inside the tent suddenly became tense.

Yuan Shu's guards also stepped forward.

At that moment, Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, and Zhao Yun all stepped forward simultaneously, without drawing their weapons, but merely glancing at each other coldly.

Guan Yu exudes an imposing and awe-inspiring presence without needing to be angry.

Zhang Fei, like a tiger about to devour its prey, had a fierce look in his eyes.

Zhao Yun was as steady as a mountain and as sharp as a spear.

The three combined to form an invisible, immense pressure that instantly suppressed the arrogance of Yuan Shu and his guards.

The guards of the other lords in the tent also subconsciously tensed up.

Yuan Shu's face turned pale, and his hand holding the sword trembled slightly. In the end, he did not dare to actually draw it.

He glared at Liu Liang, snorted heavily, and sat down sullenly.

The conflict, from its inception to its suppression, lasted only a moment.

While Yuan Shu and Liu Liang were arguing, Yuan Shao, the leader of the alliance, who was sitting in the main seat, did not say a word to stop them. Instead, he watched with great interest, and there was even a faint smile on his lips, as if he was happy to see Yuan Shu suffer a setback.

Most of the other feudal lords chose to protect themselves and remained indifferent bystanders.

Only Sun Jian, the Prefect of Changsha, clapped his hands and praised, "What Mr. Liu said is absolutely right! The great cause of defeating Dong Zhuo should be undertaken with an open mind! Lord Liu Xuande's loyalty and righteousness, though his army is small, his momentum is strong, and he is more than capable of ruling over other warlords! I, Sun, am extremely pleased!"

Sun Jian, known as the "Tiger of Jiangdong," undoubtedly slapped Yuan Shu in the face with his support, making Yuan Shu even more dissatisfied with Sun Jian.

Looking at Cao Cao, he remained silent from beginning to end, his gaze mostly fixed on Liu Liang, observing Liu Liang's words, demeanor, courage, and the calmness with which he controlled the situation during the conflict.

When Liu Liang mentioned "chilling the hearts of righteous men across the land" and "putting the cart before the horse," a glint flashed in Cao Cao's eyes, and he nodded slightly, seemingly agreeing wholeheartedly.

After Liu Liang's verbal battle with Yuan Shu, the atmosphere eased slightly, but Liu Bei and his party's position remained awkward.

At this moment, Yuan Shao, the leader of the alliance, looked around the tent and said, "Dong Zhuo has seized the capital and is committing heinous acts. Now that we, the eighteen warlords, have gathered, we should march straight to Luoyang with thunderous force. What are your thoughts? Please speak freely."

Many of the feudal lords echoed this sentiment, and in their conversations, they all believed that a large army was pressing in and that defeating Dong Zhuo was imminent.

Yuan Shu was particularly impassioned, declaring loudly, "Alliance Leader, why debate! Our allied forces number in the hundreds of thousands, our banners blotting out the sun. Dong Zhuo, that lowly man from Liangzhou, commands only barbarians from the wilderness; what are we to him? I, Yuan Shu, am willing to lead the vanguard, first capturing Sishui Pass to pave the way for the main army!"

Having said that, he stared at Liu Bei and the others at the end of the table and sneered, "I wonder if some self-proclaimed 'righteous army' with eight thousand armored soldiers and unparalleled loyalty dares to be the vanguard and test their mettle, or if they are just here spouting empty words of loyalty and righteousness while actually being cowardly in battle?"