Three Kingdoms: Rebirth of Liu Bei, the Zhaolie

Liu Bei said these words to gauge the opinions of these people.

Then, he selected the most capable dozens of people from among those who were willing to follow him.

In Liu Bei's view, although these people were mountain bandits, they had a certain level of martial prowess. They were just unlucky to have encountered Liu Bei, Guan Yu, and Qian Zhao, who were all exceptionally skilled in martial arts and courage.

The three or four hundred strong men at the foot of the mountain had mostly been conquered by Liu Bei's martial prowess and benevolence.

They watched in horror as Liu Bei and his nine men easily captured Xu Wushan;

Seeing Liu Bei's behavior after conquering the mountain stronghold, they all felt that he was a virtuous and benevolent man worthy of following, and that their parents and relatives would be able to have someone to lead them on Xuwu Mountain so that they would not go hungry.

Since they had no worries about home, they were naturally willing to go out and make contributions.

Therefore, as soon as Liu Bei finished speaking, the three or four hundred strong men raised their right hands and shouted:

"I'm willing to follow!"

"At such a young age, one should explore and adventure more."

"We have always stayed in the Central Plains of Han China and have never been to experience the scenery beyond the Great Wall."

"Let the Xianbei people beyond the Great Wall see the true men of the Central Plains."

Liu Bei glanced at the crowd and saw that nearly 90% of the three or four hundred men were willing to follow him.

He was overjoyed.

"There are three or four hundred of you, and I can't possibly take them all down the mountain. I can only select a few dozen from among you."

"Of course, those of you who weren't selected shouldn't be discouraged. In the future, when the country faces difficulties, I will come back to Mount Xuwu to recruit men. At that time, I will need you."

"Therefore, even if you are not selected and remain in the stronghold, you must diligently practice martial arts in preparation for the future."

Therefore, Liu Bei sent Qian Zhao, Guan Yu, and Zuo Zi into the crowd to carefully select them. During the process, he made sure to conduct a thorough inquiry with them, taking into account their experience, martial arts skills, and special skills.

About half an hour later.

The three men selected twenty-five men from among three or four hundred strong and capable men. All of them were simple and honest young men or brave teenagers with strong muscles and bright eyes.

Basically, the most elite people have already been selected.

After looking around for a while, Liu Bei noticed that Qian Zhao, Guan Yu, and Zuo Zi had missed a few people, so he picked out three more from the crowd.

In this way, a total of twenty-eight people were selected.

Liu Bei's gaze swept over the faces of the twenty-eight men one by one, and he was very satisfied. He couldn't help but exclaim with delight:

"Only twenty-eight of you will follow me to the borderlands."

"I believe this journey will have a huge impact on your lives and leave an indelible impression on you."

"These next few days, you should all pack your things, say goodbye to your families, and be prepared to come down the mountain with me at any time."

"Here you are."

Twenty-eight people responded in unison, their voices echoing through the woods.

Such a spirited response reveals their inner excitement.

Liu Bei and Qian Zhao exchanged glances, both of them quite satisfied.

At this moment, King Wulu suddenly shouted:

"Then what should I do? What are your plans for dealing with me?"

Liu Bei smiled and asked:

"Wu Lu, are you willing to follow me beyond the Great Wall?"

"I am your prisoner now. I will do whatever you tell me to do."

"King Wulu shouted loudly."

Liu Bei smiled, realizing that the Five Deer King had once again passed the buck back to him, and immediately understood his intentions. Therefore, he said:

"In that case, you shall also come with me beyond the Great Wall to the western Xianbei."

"Here you are."

Wu Lu Da Wang also loudly agreed.

Liu Bei knew he had completely won over his heart, and for a moment he couldn't help but feel a little smug.

"From now on, you will be my lord, the Five Deer King? But..."

King Wulu paused, then glanced at the twenty-eight chosen individuals. "While we have sensed your heroic spirit and righteous virtue, we still do not know your name..."

"Ah, it was my oversight."

Therefore, Liu Bei told everyone his name and place of origin.

But he still kept something in reserve and did not tell them the specific township.

King Wulu nodded and said:

"So it's Liu Bei, Liu Xuande of Zhuojun! From now on, you are our lord. My lord, please accept my five-fold bow!"

As he spoke, he bowed deeply to the ground, giving Liu Bei a grand salute.

Liu Bei reached out his hand in a gesture of support:

"We are both just ordinary folks, there's no need for formalities."

King Wulu straightened up and said:

"Today, I, King Wulu, have led all my comrades from Xuwushan to become your disciples. This is truly a cause for celebration!"

Upon hearing this, Liu Bei almost burst out laughing.

The word "comrades" in particular inexplicably reminded him of the "all the comrades of the Axe Gang" in the movie "Kung Fu Hustle".

"Wu Lu, why are you suddenly speaking in such a formal, literary way? It's quite unusual. There's no need for that."

Liu Bei laughed.

Those present couldn't help but laugh.

"I just thought it would be more formal this way."

Wu Lu Da Wang, however, had a serious expression on his face.

This made everyone find it even funnier.

Liu Bei thought to himself: This fellow would be a good comedian if he went on stage to perform crosstalk.

I couldn't help but smile.

King Wulu continued solemnly:

"My lord, your righteousness, benevolence, and martial prowess have made it our great fortune to have you accept us as your followers. We, Wulu, have nothing to repay you with but the two great treasures of our stronghold—the Giant Sword and the Night-Shining Pearl—to express our sincerity."

Upon hearing this, Liu Bei thought to himself: This fellow really knows how to handle things, has extremely high emotional intelligence, and has a promising future...

Originally, after Liu Bei conquered the mountain stronghold, all the treasures of the stronghold were considered spoils of war and belonged to the victor. Why would you, King of Wulu, need to offer them up?

This Wulu king is clearly using someone else's resources to curry favor.

It's simply doing someone a favor and being generous with other people's money.

Liu Bei outwardly said:

"The Juque sword you speak of, could it be the one forged by Ou Yezi, the famous swordsmith of the Yue Kingdom during the Spring and Autumn Period?"

King Wulu nodded and said:

"Exactly."

Liu Bei did not believe it:

"As far as I know, the Giant Sword has been lost... its whereabouts remain a mystery. How did you obtain it?"

King Wulu immediately said:

"If my lord does not believe me, you may come with me to the main hall of the stronghold and take a closer look, and you will know the truth."

"it is good."

So, the group climbed the steps from the fifth checkpoint and returned to the main hall of the mountain stronghold.

King Wulu took out a wooden box and a sword case more than three feet long from behind the screen.

Open the wooden box.

Inside was a luminous bead emitting a pale blue light.

Everyone was amazed.

Then he opened the bronze sword case, which emitted a dark green light.

Then they saw a three-foot-long sword lying horizontally in the velvet cloth.

Liu Bei picked up the long sword and saw that the scabbard was made of crocodile skin.

He immediately drew his longsword from its sheath.

But the dragon's roar was low and deep.

The long sword was drawn from its sheath, and a chilling aura seemed to emanate from it.

Liu Bei examined the so-called "Juque Sword" closely and found that it was a ring-pommel sword with a broad, blunt, and heavy blade that was extremely hard. The edges on both sides were also incredibly sharp and exuded a menacing aura.

He held the sword upright and saw eight bird-script inscriptions on the blade near the guard: "Sword made by King Goujian of Yue".

He couldn't help but smile:

"Wu Lu, Wu Lu, this Juque sword was forged by modern people in imitation of the ancient sword design. It is not the Juque sword forged by Ou Yezi."

"Xuande, let me see."

Qian Zhao was also a sword enthusiast, and upon seeing this sword, his eyes immediately gleamed with an unusual light.

Liu Bei handed the Juque sword to Qian Zhao.

Wu Lu Da Wang was puzzled:

"How can you tell that it's a modern imitation?"

Liu Bei smiled and said:

"The most obvious difference is that the five swords that Ou Yezi forged for King Goujian of Yue—Juque, Zhanlu, Chun Jun, Shengxie, and Yuchang—were all bronze swords. But this sword is an iron sword."

The three swords that Ou Yezi later forged for the King of Chu—Longyuan, Tai'a, and Gongbu—were the true iron swords. Among them, the Longyuan sword was the first iron sword Ou Yezi forged.

Upon hearing this, King Wulu could not help but be convinced.

The giant sword he kept hidden was indeed an iron sword.

"My lord, isn't an iron sword much sharper than a bronze sword? I hope you will accept it."

Wu Lu Da Wang was rather embarrassed.

Liu Bei looked at the giant iron sword that Qian Zhao was playing with, and indeed liked it very much, so he said:

"I can accept this Giant Sword. But where did you plunder it from?"

The King of Wulu blushed slightly.

"This giant sword, as well as the luminous pearl, were stolen from a wealthy merchant in Tuyin County. He moved his entire family and fortune to Xuzhou to escape the Xianbei rebellion, and we plundered most of it along the way."

Upon hearing this, Liu Bei frowned deeply and shook his head helplessly.

……

It can pierce through copper cauldrons and cut through iron whetstones, and its mortar can be split open like rice grains, hence the name Juque (Great Gate).

—From Yuan Kang's "Yue Jue Shu" (Records of the State of Yue)