Dong Zhuo fled to Hulao Gate, ordered the city gate to be closed quickly, and shot arrows at random to drive back the coalition of princes. He was still frightened like this. He touched his head with lingering fear and muttered.
"Is my head still there?"
"Is my head still there?"
"Is my head still there?"
This performance made the Xiliang generals next to him speechless. They all looked at each other in silence.
Especially Li Ru, Xiliang's first military advisor, was originally a little dissatisfied with Dong Zhuo's performance on the battlefield.
After all, the Xiliang Army originally had a numerical advantage. It had 350,000 elite troops, most of whom were cavalry. It could be said that the troops were strong. On the other hand, the coalition of princes was only about twenty-five years old. Not only did they have limited horses, but many of them were farmers who had not had time to train. They were really a rabble.
Although Lu Bu was suddenly defeated, as long as Dong Zhuo took the lead and struck the first blow, the outcome was uncertain. It's like losing troops and generals, losing spirit, and losing all morale. To be honest, Li Ru is very sad and disappointed.
After a while, Dong Zhuo recovered a little. Seeing Li Ru shaking his head and sighing beside him, he quickly stepped forward and grabbed Li Ru's hand, asking for advice with lingering fear.
"Wen You, you see that the princes are powerful, why don't we stay out of the way for now and deal with it later."
Li Ru knew that Dong Zhuo was devastated by the defeat, but he didn't expect that he had lost his fighting spirit and was already thinking of retreating. He suddenly felt disappointed again.
Before Li Ru could say anything, the Xiliang generals buzzed and started talking.
"Yes, let's go back to Luoyang, where the city is high, wide and deep and very safe."
"No, the wealthy families in Luoyang are so powerful, it is better to retreat to Xiliang. That is our hometown, and we are not afraid of anyone coming."
"Yes, that's right."
Everyone agreed and agreed. Only Xu Rong remained silent from the beginning and looked at them calmly without knowing what he was thinking.
Dong Zhuo was a little moved after listening to their suggestions and wanted to agree.
Seeing this, Li Ru shook his head helplessly, stood up to stop and shouted, "No, although our army was defeated today, our strength is still there, how can you be so frustrated and come up with such bad ideas?"
The prestige of the military advisor is still there. After all, many Xiliang generals were discovered by Li Ru and asked Dong Zhuo to promote them. He shut them up with just one word.
To be honest, Dong Zhuo was a little angry, thinking that you stood up before I even spoke, and felt a little uncomfortable.
I wanted to have an attack, but I still stayed patient and said in a stiff tone, "In your opinion, this is what our army should be like?".
Li Ru knew that he had exceeded his authority, but he didn't care very much. It could also be said that he thought Dong Zhuo wouldn't care. This paved the way for their future break.
It seems that Jia Xu's strategy can only be used. Wen He really sees far ahead and knows what his lord is thinking.
Li Ru managed to cheer up and said, "Marquis Wen is newly defeated and his troops have no fighting spirit. It would be better to lead the troops back to Luoyang and move the emperor to Chang'an to respond to the nursery rhymes. Recently, children's rhymes in the street market: There is a Han in the west and a Han in the east. The deer walks in There is no such difficulty in Chang'an. I think that the saying "a Han in the west" is due to the great ancestor Gaozu who flourished in Chang'an, the western capital, and passed down the 12 emperors. "A Han in the east" is due to the prosperity of Guangwu in Luoyang, the eastern capital. Now it is also said that the twelve emperors are here. The fate of heaven is coming together. The prime minister will move back to Chang'an, so that there will be no danger."
Dong Zhuofang turned angry and said happily, "It's not what you said, but I really don't understand. This plan is brilliant."
After saying that, he ordered the generals to be summoned back to Luoyang to discuss the matter of moving the capital.
Li Ru saw that Dong Zhuo had made up his mind, so he couldn't persuade him, so he decided to follow the principle of being a minister.
He reminded, "My lord, do not withdraw your troops back to Luoyang in a hurry. You should move slowly to avoid being taken advantage of by the princes."
Dong Zhuo expressed his understanding and motioned for Li Ru to continue.
Li Ru continued, "You can first inform Li Jue and Guo Si to abandon Sishui Pass and come to Hulao to meet up, and let General Xu Rong lead the army back to Luoyang first to make advance preparations. My lord is leading the army back at night, leaving Lu Bu behind. When Li Jue and Guo Si arrive, we can abandon the pass together, so that we will have no worries."
Dong Zhuo fully agreed and ordered "the generals will take orders and secretly plan and act without delay."
The generals agreed and went down to prepare. Li Ru volunteered to inform Lu Bu and also went to persuade him to regain his confidence. Dong Zhuo agreed.
When Li Ru arrived at the Bingzhou camp, they had recovered, and at least their morale was better than that of the Xiliang army. It should be Gao Shun's credit, Li Ru thought secretly in his heart.
As Xiliang's military advisor, the soldiers naturally knew each other, and Li Ru walked straight in without the need for communication.
After a while, they arrived outside Lu Bu's camp. The other generals were not there, only Gao Shun was guarding the door.
Seeing Li Ru arrive, Gao Shun bowed and refused to let Li Ru in.
"My lord is resting inside, and it is inconvenient to see guests. If possible, I would like to inform you."
Li Ru nodded with satisfaction and said with a smile, "It's hard for you to convey this."
Gao Shun was about to refuse when he heard Lu Bu's voice coming from the camp.
"Let the military advisor come in, I'm fine."
Li Ru patted Gao Shun on the shoulder and said with appreciation, "The general has done his duty well, which is very good."
After saying that, he pushed open the door and walked in, leaving only his thin back, leaving Gao Shun confused.
Li Ru pushed the door open and went in. He saw that Lu Bu's complexion was much better and he had recovered a little, and he felt relieved immediately.
Lu Bu knew that Li Ru must have something wrong when he came to see him, so he asked, "I wonder what you are doing, Master Military Advisor?"
Li Ru gave it up and said, "It's nothing serious. I just know that the general is depressed, so I came here to help him."
Lu Bu's expression changed instantly when he heard what he said. He really didn't open the pot and pick up the pot. Isn't this exposing someone's shortcomings?
Lu Bu was a little angry and said, "The military advisor came here to make fun of me on purpose. If so, you can leave. Otherwise, Lu Bu will be rude." As he said this, he was about to see the guest off.
Li Ru continued calmly, "The general should know that there are people outside the world, and there is a heaven outside the world. Besides, the general is not defeated today."
Lu Bu became interested in what he said and urged Li Ru to continue.
"Ask your military advisor for advice."
"Ru saw it very clearly on the tower. The enemy general's last move today should be a stunt, and he was injured unclearly. Calculating, both of you should be injured, but from my perspective, the general should be slightly better." Li Ru affirmed.
"Oh, that's it. Am I not embarrassed today?" Lu Bu said worriedly.
Li Ru continued to deceive, "Of course, the general knows what the coalition of princes call you?".
Lu Bu became interested and asked, "What's your name?"
"Lu Bu is among men, and red rabbit is among horses."
After hearing these eight simple words, Lu Bu's eyes instantly lit up, and his momentum returned with a whoosh, and he didn't look even a little bit decadent anymore.
"Haha, I'm not a military advisor. I don't know how powerful I am."
Seeing that Lu Bu had recovered, Li Ru breathed a sigh of relief and explained Dong Zhuo's plan and order to move the capital in detail. Lu Bu accepted the order happily after hearing it, and planned to find an opportunity to compete with Zhao Yun again. Those who fall, those who find their way back.
After Li Ru completed his mission, he went back to prepare and waited for Xu Rong to go first and return to Luoyang after dark.
