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

Li Yu feigned a moment of hesitation before saying, "I cannot remain indifferent to Lord Xuande's enthusiasm. I personally wish to present Lord Xuande with ten shi of fine millet and twenty guan of cash to bolster his journey and to express my respect for the Han imperial family. As for providing large-scale financial assistance to the righteous army... please forgive my inability to do so, and I truly dare not presume to do so."

Ten shi of grain, twenty guan of cash!

This is practically treating a beggar like this!

Even Zhang Fei's followers showed indignation upon hearing this.

Zhang Fei's temper flared instantly. He stepped forward and shouted, "Master Li! Do you think this is charity for beggars? Two thousand righteous men have food and supplies for their horses every day, what can you possibly do with this? It's not even enough to fill a gap between their teeth! Those Yellow Turban rebels are not people to be trifled with. If they really attack, how long can your high walls hold them off? Are your guards any better than those bloodthirsty refugees from Julu? In the end, all your gold, silver, silk, and granaries full of grain will belong to them!"

Li Yu's face darkened slightly, but he quickly regained his forced smile: "Zhang, brave warrior, don't be angry, don't be angry. The Yellow Turban rebels will be dealt with by the imperial army. My Youzhou has its governor and prefectural governor in charge, and General Gongsun's iron cavalry. A few petty villains are nothing to worry about. Even if a few bandits do cause trouble, my manor is not made of clay. The men in the manor are strong and healthy, and we have prepared some weapons and provisions. We can hold it up, and when the government troops come to our aid, we should be safe. As for Lord Xuande's righteous army... hehe, I appreciate your kindness, but I really dare not accept the title of 'protection,' nor am I worthy of it."

Li Yu remained unmoved by reason, his words revealing his contempt for Liu Bei's "unknown" civilian armed force, believing that they were using it to amass wealth and might even have wreaked havoc on the region earlier than the Yellow Turbans.

Jian Yong suppressed his anger and tried to argue his case: "Master Li, have you not heard the saying, 'When the nest is overturned, no egg remains unbroken'? If the Yellow Turbans gain power, they cannot be stopped by a single manor or courtyard. Lord Xuande is a benevolent man; all he seeks is to protect the territory and its people, and he is truly one with the local community. Helping him today is not only helping Lord Xuande, but also protecting our own foundation..."

"Mr. Jian!" Li Yu interrupted Jian Yong, "I understand the reasoning. But the manor is indeed short of money and provisions. What I can decide is ten shi of rice and twenty guan of cash. If Lord Xuande doesn't mind, please accept them. If you feel it's insufficient... I can't do anything more. The affairs of the manor are complicated, so I won't keep you two any longer."

Having said that, he picked up his teacup, a clear gesture of seeing the guest off.

Outside the hall, several burly guards and a dozen or so servants, all with wary eyes, took a half step forward.

Zhang Fei was so angry that his chest heaved, his eyes blazed with fury, and his fists clenched so tightly they cracked. He wished he could overturn the coffee table on the spot.

Knowing that further discussion was pointless, Jian Yong forcefully pulled Zhang Fei's arm and coldly bowed to Li Yu: "In that case, farewell. Master Li, I hope you will take care of yourself."

The two men, seething with anger, turned and left Li Family Village.

Behind him, the two heavy gates of the manor slowly closed.

After leaving Li Family Village for a distance, Zhang Fei spat angrily: "Bah! That heartless, greedy old bastard! All he cares about is his own fortune! Just wait, he'll regret this!"

Jian Yong's face turned ashen, and he sighed, "It seems Mr. Zishan's concerns were correct. These powerful figures won't shed a tear until they see the coffin. If we go and check on other families, I'm afraid... the situation will be similar."

They then visited three or four other large households in the north of the city, including the Zhang family, and found that the situations were largely the same.

Some refused to see them, some gave perfunctory responses, and the largest donation was only thirty bushels of grain.

After a day of running around, the grain and money they had raised were not even enough for the army's needs for half a day.

......

Upon returning to camp, Zhang Fei flew into a rage.

"Brother! Those filthy scoundrels are all like misers! Trying to reason with them is like casting pearls before swine! In my opinion, the master is right, we have to be firm!"

Jian Yong's face was also ashen. He shook his head and sighed, "I underestimated the shortsightedness of these people. They won't shed tears until they see the coffin. They always think the war is far away and they can't bear to part with the money in front of them."

Liu Bei sat in the main seat and remained silent for a long time.

Benevolence, righteousness, and self-interest appear so pale and powerless in the face of the petty calculations and wishful thinking of those powerful figures.

Two thousand soldiers were starving and waiting for food; time was of the essence.

Liu Bei raised his head, his eyes filled with remorse: "Father, I regret not heeding your advice earlier! Empty talk of benevolence and righteousness is useless. If I had followed your strategy earlier, we might have already secured the supplies and wouldn't be in this passive situation now."

Liu Liang said, "Xuande, there's no need to blame yourself. At that time, the situation was unclear, and caution was necessary. Now, the situation is pressing, and for the sake of the army, for the sake of suppressing bandits and pacifying the people, I'm afraid... we have no choice but to take expedient measures."

Liu Bei sighed deeply, "Then we will follow my adoptive father's plan!"

He then turned to Zhang Fei and ordered, "Yide, quickly gather five hundred elite veterans and come with me to Li Family Village! Yunchang, you lead the rest of the troops to guard the camp and be vigilant against any unforeseen events!"

"Understood!" Zhang Fei roared excitedly.

Guan Yu frowned slightly, but seeing that Liu Bei had made up his mind and there was a reason for it, he clasped his hands and said, "Brother, be careful. If things don't go well, send a signal immediately."

Liu Bei personally donned his armor and led Zhang Fei and five hundred veteran soldiers, who had undergone simple training and were full of killing intent, straight to Lijiazhuang in the south of the city overnight.

The Li family village clearly hadn't expected Liu Bei to actually resort to force. The village gates were tightly shut, and the strong guards on the walls were drawing their bows and nocking arrows, with many of their hands trembling.

Liu Bei spurred his horse forward and proclaimed loudly, "Lord Li! I have come to borrow grain in order to quell the bandits and bring peace to the people! This is not an attempt to seize it by force, but rather to jointly defend against the bandits! If you are willing to lend it, I will be eternally grateful and will repay you double in the future, and ensure the safety of Li Family Village! If you insist on not lending it... I fear that before the Yellow Turbans even arrive, disaster will break out within the village! I do not wish to see such a situation!"

Li Yu, standing atop the wall, was deathly pale, filled with shock and rage: "Liu Xuande! You...you dare to lead troops to besiege my manor! This is treason! I'm going to the prefectural government to report you!"

Zhang Fei, already impatient, roared, "Stop your nonsense, you old bastard! Men, surround the village and seal it off! Prepare the crossbows!"

Five hundred veterans responded in unison. Led by Pei Yuanshao, their movements were perfectly synchronized. They nocked their bows and crossbows, which immediately made the guards on the wall weak in the knees and lose all their momentum.

Seeing that Liu Bei was serious, and that his own guards were no match for the enemy's forces, Li Yu knew that it was impossible to avoid paying a price today.

What he feared was not Liu Bei's attack on the village at this moment, but rather that he would completely offend this army right under his nose, and that he would probably never have peace again in the future.

Weighing the pros and cons, money is ultimately not as important as one's life and safety.

"Wait...wait!" Li Yu's voice trembled. "Lord Xuande, please calm down! I will lend it! But the grain stored in the manor is limited...I am willing to lend eight hundred shi of grain and five hundred guan of cash! I will present it immediately!"

Liu Bei sighed inwardly, realizing that he would never have resorted to such coercion if he hadn't been forced into this situation.

But he remained outwardly calm: "In that case, thank you for your understanding, Master! I'll draw up a written agreement as proof, and I will certainly return it in the future!"

The effect of making an example of someone was immediate.

The news that Liu Bei had "borrowed" a large amount of grain and fodder from Li Family Village spread like wildfire throughout the powerful clans of Zhuojun.

The other gentry, who had been observing or even preparing to unite to put pressure on the government, were suddenly terrified.

Only then did they truly realize that this seemingly benevolent Liu Xuande already possessed a force capable of crushing any of their private armed forces.