Liu Bei and Gongsun Zan had been classmates for many years. By chance, they met when King Qin was on his way to Luo. They simply combined their forces to form one town.
While the two were looking at the river, another group of men and horses came from the west. The leader was brightly armored and showing off his power. Even though they were far apart, one could still clearly feel his heroic aura. It was none other than Sun Jian, Marquis of Wucheng.
"General, the visitor is Sun Wentai, the governor of Changsha." A young general in white armor came first to report: "I want to make an appointment with us to cross the river together."
Hearing this, Gongsun Zan nodded to show that he knew. On the contrary, Liu Bei was happy and said quickly: "Please come quickly."
As the saying goes, heroes emerge from youth. At the age of seventeen, Sun Jian was famous in his hometown for his bravery. He was recruited as a false captain by the county guard. At the age of eighteen, he recruited more than a thousand warriors as a county commander to defeat the rebels who had tens of thousands of soldiers. He was a thief in Xuchang, and then he fought in the north and south. He was awarded the title of Marquis of Wucheng for his military achievements. The heroes in the world knew that he was brave and brave.
Not long after, Sun Jian, who had settled his troops, and surrounded by four generals, rode on horseback to meet Gongsun Zan. The white-horse Yi Cong who passed by all bowed their hands and saluted, saying: "Junhou."
With a few cries of horses, Sun Jian reined in the green-maned divine horse and jumped off the horse with one leg. He looked around and said with a smile: "I have heard about the name of General White Horse for a long time. He is a talented and romantic man. Today, I See, it really lives up to its reputation.”
Although he led his army on a starry night and traveled thousands of miles overnight, Sun Jian was still full of energy and spoke with great vigor.
In terms of reputation, Sun Jian is as good as Dong Zhuo. Both of them were awarded titles based on their military merits. Now hearing him praise him so highly, Gongsun Zan was overjoyed: "The words of a prince are serious. How can Bogui dare to say 'talented and romantic'? He is a prince. Now, Once you see your true appearance, your prowess is far better than the rumors."
Cheng Pu, Huang Gai, Han Dang, and Zu Mao stood aside, silently listening to the noble family's greetings.
From the time Sun Jian dismounted until now, Liu Bei has never had the chance to talk to him, but Gongsun Zan has not forgotten his classmate and introduced him on his behalf: "This is my brother who has been with me since childhood. Liu Bei is the commander of Pingyuan. He is the empress of King Jing of Zhongshan and Han Dynasty." The great-great-grandson of His Excellency Emperor Jing, the crown prince of the imperial family."
"Xuande has met the king." Liu Bei saluted.
When Sun Jian saw his extraordinary appearance, his face was like a crown jade, and his lips were greased, he naturally would not look down upon him. He held his hand and smiled and said, "Since he is from the Han Dynasty, there is no need to be too polite."
With his eyes slightly tilted, Sun Jian looked at the tall and arrogant man standing behind Liu Bei. One of them had a leopard head, ringed eyes, and a tiger beard.
"Who are these two gentlemen?"
Liu Bei handed over his hand, his attitude neither humble nor arrogant: "Guan Yu and Zhang Fei are sworn brothers."
Next, he asked about their official positions. After hearing that neither of them had official status, and that one was a horse archer and the other was an infantry archer, Sun Jian sighed sadly: "It's like burying a hero! When all the evildoers are punished, I will definitely ask for credit for you."
After several conversations, the relationship between the three people improved greatly, and they agreed to build a bridge to cross the river together in half an hour.
During this period, an episode occurred.
During the discussion, a young general passed by the horsemen and said he wanted to see his father, but it turned out to be Sun Ce, the son of Sun Jian, Marquis of Wucheng.
Although he is only fourteen or fifteen years old now, he is still a young man with a leading role, but he is already particularly eye-catching.
Not to mention his handsome appearance, he showed no sign of timidity in front of Gongsun Zan, Liu Bei and others. One look at him and it was clear that this boy was definitely no ordinary creature.
What Sun Ce said later made everyone raise eyebrows. It turned out that this time he was in a hurry and failed to order all the troops and horses. He only had two thousand elite cavalry and four generals around him. Sun Ce acted alone without telling Marquis Wu Cheng and his mother Wu. , when asked, the son plausibly said: "The troubled times are coming, men should fight for supremacy in the world and fight for hundreds of bloody battles, instead of staying behind."
Liu Bei, who was nearly thirty years old, only exchanged a few words with Sun Ce before he fell in love with him and praised him repeatedly:
Giving birth to a son should be like Sun Bofu.
at the same time.
Inside Hangu Pass, in the Han military camp.
Brothers Xiahou and Cao are both here.
Lu Li frowned and raised his eyes to look into the distance.
As time went by, local heroes arrived one after another and each found a place to camp. For more than two hundred miles, smoke continued to rise from the kitchens. It was obvious that they were in urgent need of rest and morale correction after a long journey.
Seeing this, Zhao Yun said to Lu Li: "Brother, the righteous army has arrived at Guanxia. We should send an envoy to carry the Queen Mother's decree and inform the three armies to prevent them from going astray and forming an alliance with Dong Zhuo."
Zhang Yang also advised him in the same way.
Even though he knew the effect would be ineffective, Lu Li decided to give it a try and ordered his deputy Zhang Jing to go out to deliver the imperial edict.
It's a pity that all the heroes are here now, but Zhang Jing has never seen such a formation before. He shied away many times, fearing that he would be chopped off by the local princes who were leaning towards Dong Zhuo and Yuan Wei.
In desperation, Zhang Yang decided to leave the customs in person, with only two soldiers by his side.
[In the 15th town, adapt to changes and act bravely when the situation arises. Zhang Yang, the governor of Shangdang, has a childlike character]
According to the original process, Zhang Yang should not have appeared here, but as a prince in the fifteenth town, it can only be said that the arrival of the time traveler has changed many things beyond recognition.
"General Lu, my brother ordered us to obey the orders, please give me the order." Xia Houyuan was impatient, and before Zhang Yang came back, he came up with a pass to attack Dong.
Since the other party came to surrender entirely for the sake of his elder brother Cao Cao, Lu Li could not treat him as a subordinate, so he gave some gentle words of persuasion and said:
Before you have a clear understanding of the situation, you must not act in a hurry. You must wait and see what happens to avoid being flanked by others and cutting off your escape route.
Xiahou Dun was convinced of this, and together with Cao Ren and Cao Hong, he followed to dissuade his clan brothers.
At this moment, nothing had happened yet. Xiahou Dun's eyes were clear, and he had only done one thing to make him famous. Someone insulted his master, and as a young man, he drew his sword and killed him.
Thinking about it this way, it is understandable that none of the four of them have any military exploits, so they are now anxious to go out to fight and express themselves.
Of course, understanding is understanding, Lu Li will never go into battle easily.
At this moment, the heroes rose up and the world was shocked.
As King Qin's edict was reported to various roads, the states of Jing, Xu, Yu, Yan, Qing, and Ji were shaken. Heroes with their own agendas rushed to Hangu Pass. I am afraid that the light knights who usually hide in the countryside have also attracted the crowd. Come and choose a wise master to take refuge with.
The reality was just as Lu Li expected.
There was a Pingyang Weiguo man named Le and Jin who originally wanted to seek refuge with Cao Cao. However, Meng Degong was far away in Luoyang and could only come to Guanxia.
After hearing his name, Lu Li was overjoyed and went out to greet him personally.
Yue Jin, one of the five good generals, is famous for his daring and bravery. He must be the first in every battle, fight hard and break through the strong points, and he will not fall into any strong position.
Perhaps due to historical inertia, or something else, as soon as he came out of seclusion, another fierce general came to join him. He said that his surname was Li Mingdian, and he was from Julu, Shanyang. Since he had the same temperament as Zhao Yun, both had a bookish spirit, so the two of them came to him. We had a great time talking.
Where were Lu Bu and Ding Gong?
Such a camp can fight in the world!
At this moment, Lu Li, surrounded by fierce generals, aroused a surge of pride in his heart. He wished he could lead his troops to charge into the camp immediately, killing people when others were blocking them, and killing gods when blocking gods.
However, Dong Zhuo, who was in trouble, was also in a good mood. This was because he had just received the news that the 20,000 county soldiers he had left in Xiliang were on the way and could cross the Yellow River in the afternoon at the latest to join the army.
As for where the news came from, it was naturally from the rebel leader Ma Teng——
At first, Ma Teng and Han Sui formed an alliance and rebelled together. Later, they were suppressed by Dong Zhuo and Huangfu Song and returned to the Han Dynasty.
Compared to Huangfu Song, a pure minister who was devoted to the Han Dynasty, Ma Teng was closer to Dong Zhuo because they were the same kind of people.
Inside Dong Ying's tent, Ma Teng, who was the first to lead the troops to rush to the rescue, raised his hands and said, "The Yuan family of Runan is famous in the world, and has disciples and former officials throughout the thirteen states. Therefore, many people from all walks of life are willing to help you."
"Haha, I really didn't expect that the first person to come to support you would be Shoucheng!"
Dong Zhuozhi was so proud that he sat cross-legged on the table, as if he had the overall situation in hand.
On the side, Duke frequently looked at the heroic young man behind Ma Teng and thought to himself: This must be Ma Chao, Flying General Jin Ma Chao.
Later, Tongguan defeated twelve fierce generals in Cao's camp, and Jiamengguan defeated Zhang Fei, Zhang Bao, Huang Zhong, and Yan Yan. He was worthy of the name of a flying general and worthy of the former owner of this name, Lu Bu.
Perhaps he noticed that someone was looking at him, Ma Chao glanced sideways, and the two eyes met. Duke gave a friendly smile and directly praised: "Heroes come from young, I think the son of General Hezhong is quite extraordinary, can you tell me?"
Generally speaking, only men can take the word after they reach adulthood, but there are always exceptions.
Sun Jian's eldest son, named Bo Fu.
He expressed his words at such a young age, which shows that Sun Jian has high hopes for him. Ce, Ce Ming refers to the appointment of officials by the court, talisman, and tiger talisman, which are carried by the general. What is the purpose and there is no need to elaborate.
Ma Teng didn't know this, but he firmly believed that his eldest son Ma Chao was not weak. The reason why he never asked anyone to name him was because he couldn't find a suitable person.
When Duke asked, he already had a guess in his mind and said readily: "Not yet."
"So, how about I pick a word for him?"
Having said this, Duke walked up to Ma Chao with a sincere smile on his face, but felt uneasy in his heart: picking up words is not a trivial matter, and is mostly done by elders. His move is undoubtedly taking advantage of Ma Chao.
"You are already a senior official with thousands of stones at the age of weak crown, and your reputation is famous in Xiliang. If you can give my son a calligraphy, I would be happy to ask for it."
What Ma Teng said is true. Duke became the Sima of the army when he was weak. He was comparable to the former Han Dynasty champion, so he was naturally qualified to give Ma Chao the title. The most important thing is that he was Dong Zhuo's son-in-law. With this relationship, Why worry about your own future?
Hearing this, Dong Zhuo put his hands on his hands and laughed. He was not a dim-witted person. He naturally saw that Ma Chao was extremely extraordinary. He had understood the spirit of war before he had even passed the age of the general.
At this critical juncture, it is of course a good thing to get closer to Ma Teng, who has just joined Ma Teng.
Duke patted Ma Chao on the shoulder and said in a kind tone, "Zi, are you willing?"
"I have heard of the general's name a long time ago. As Aweng said, you can only get it if you ask for it."
For Ma Chao, having a word means he can serve as an official and fight on the battlefield. In addition, Duke is indeed a well-known figure in Xiliang, so he has no objection in his heart.
"This son is the eldest son of General Hezhong, and his courtesy name is Mengqi."
Meng and Bo have the same meaning, indicating that he is the eldest in the family, and "Qi" is the complement to Chao.
Average.
Historically, Ma Chao was originally named Meng Qi, and Duke did not make any magical changes. In fact, he just wanted to get closer to him.
"Meng Qi, Meng Qi..."
Ma Teng recited a few words in a low voice, and then smiled and said: "Okay, okay, get up, you can stand upright, stand tall on the sky and the earth, and reproduce the reputation of our ancestor, General Fubo, Ma Yuan."
Hearing his father talk about his ancestors, Ma Chao also smiled and said in response: "Chaoding lives up to my uncle's encouragement today!"
Seeing Ma Chao express his gratitude and call himself uncle, Duke couldn't help but laugh again.
This trip to the end of the Han Dynasty was able to meet so many heroes, be Ma Chao's elder, and experience the happiness of starting a family and starting a business. It was truly a worthwhile trip!
For the generals in Dongying's tent, this episode diluted the solemn atmosphere before the war.
Only Jia Xu still frowned and reminded: "My Lord, the top priority is to recruit all the princes in the name of Grand Tutor Yuan Wei."
"Yes, the eunuchs have occupied Jiaozhao and are guarding the pass. In order to prevent the heroes of the towns from being deceived, the princes should send envoys to express their great righteousness and make an alliance with their blood. They will enter Luo together and kill the ten regular servants. Give the great man a bright future." Li Ru agreed.
Hearing this, Dong Zhuo stopped smiling and looked up outside the tent. It was just after noon.
So, he ordered: "Shu Ying, go on a trip for my brother to meet the leaders of various people. Remember to bring the Taifu's handwritten letter with you."
Dong Zhuo didn't give too many instructions because he knew that his younger brother Dong Min knew what to do.
Hearing this, Dong Min hurriedly came out to accept the promise, and then led more than ten riders out of the camp gate.
If you want to sum up the current situation in the most concise words, it would be one word:
chaos!
Zhang Yang, who had been out of seclusion alone for two hours, returned successfully, and Lu Li noticed that there was a trace of blood on the saber on his waist, which was obviously a sign of trouble.
But Zhang Yang didn't care about anything else and directly told Lu Li and others that there were seventeen towns with troops stationed outside the customs.
In the first town, he understood all the scholars, read the nine classics, and Han Fu, the governor of Jizhou, had a literary festival.
In the second town, he talked loudly, knew the present and learned a lot about the past, and the governor of Yuzhou, Kong Bo, was named Gongxu.
In the third town, he was filial, kind and kind, and he treated his scholars well. Liu Dai, the governor of Yanzhou, was named Gongshan.
In the fourth town, Wang Kuang, the prefect of Hanoi County, was known as Gongjie.
In the fifth town, to provide relief to the poor and rescue the emergency, with great ambitions, Chenliu prefect Zhang Miao, nicknamed Meng Zhuo.
In the sixth town, he was kind to people, intelligent and learned. Qiao Mao, the governor of Dongjun, was named Yuanwei.
The seventh town is Zhongzhi Yuanliang, elegant and elegant. Yuan Yi, the prefect of Shanyang, has the courtesy name Boye.
In the eighth town, there is a man who is resourceful and wise, good at martial arts and writing. Bao Xin, the Prime Minister of Jibei, whose courtesy name is Yuncheng.
The ninth town is a sage sect that is hospitable and courteous to virtuous people. Kong Rong, the prefect of Beihai, has a literary career.
In the tenth town, Zhang Chao, the prefect of Guangling, whose courtesy name was Meng Gao, was outstanding in martial arts and majesty.
In the 11th Town, he was a benevolent gentleman, virtuous and kind-hearted. Tao Qian, the governor of Xuzhou, was named Gongzu.
The twelfth town is famous for Qiang and Hu, and has Shengwen Yixia. Ma Teng, the prefect of Xiliang, has the courtesy name Shoucheng.
The thirteenth town has a sound like a huge bell and a majestic appearance. Gongsun Zan, the prefect of Peking, is named Bogui.
In the fourteenth town, there is a world-renowned hero, unparalleled bravery, and Sun Jian, the Marquis of Wucheng and the prefect of Changsha, named Wentai.
Lu Li had heard about the princes of the above fourteen towns. They were originally among the army fighting against Dong, but now Yuan Shao, Yuan Shu, Zhang Yang, and Cao Cao were missing.
[Making friends with heroes, befriending heroes, later general and Nanyang prefect Yuan Shuzi Highway]
[The fourth generation and the third Duke, the old official with many families, the Marquis of Qixiang and the Governor of Bohai Yuan Shao were named Ben Chu]
In fact, if you really want to talk about it, they are not absent. Although the Yuan brothers are in Luoyang, the situation outside the customs is all caused by them. Meng Degong will definitely not be in such a grand situation. It is estimated that he will fly over after the situation is stabilized.
As for Zhang Yang, it is just around the corner.
However, in order to fill the vacancy, or to create a big scene, four local princes whose names they had never heard of appeared outside the pass.
Langya Prime Minister, Chen Yuan.
Chen Guoxiang, Zhao Bo.
Dongyang Cheng, Cai Yutao.
Yingchuan Cheng, Li Qinian.
Subconsciously, Lu Li looked at Xun Yu. The Xun family belonged to a large family in Yingchuan. The other three people didn't know him. They should know this Yingchuan Prime Minister Li Qinian, right?
Unfortunately, Xun Yu looked confused, obviously not recognizing anyone.
Think about it, the dignified heir of the Xun family can directly negotiate with the county governor, how can he remember a small county magistrate with a price of 600 shi?
Even though it was Zhao Yun, he was speechless for a while: now the princes are meeting to form an alliance, and under the Hangu Pass, there are tigers and dragons on the throne, and three little people have actually sneaked into it——
Normally, you can run across a county. If you don't come here, you can barely see it. But looking at the world, it can't really be called a stream, especially the princes of the other fourteen towns. They can be defeated by a casual attack.
In other words.
Loyalty can be learned, but it is a bit overestimating one's own abilities.
The only exception is Zhao Bo, the Prime Minister of Chen State. The king of Chen State is a clan member of the Han Dynasty. The current Chen King Liu Chong is the great-great-grandson of Emperor Ming of the Han Dynasty. Among the clan members of the Han clan who hold real power today, he is the most courageous, good at using bows and crossbows, and has superb archery skills. The Yellow Turban Rebellion of 2008 not only did not cause damage to Chen State, but instead increased its population dramatically - after all, people from neighboring counties came here to seek refuge.
Now that the Prime Minister of the country is going on an expedition on his behalf, I am afraid that he has recruited many strong men under his command.
"May I ask, General, which princes have a righteous heart?"
Now that the situation was mostly clear, Xiahou Dun no longer concealed his edge and asked directly:
"And which of the rats are willing to fall down and be willing to advance and retreat together with us?"
"Han Fu, Han Jizhou, this man is worthy of the name of a famous person in the country. Although he is a disciple of the Yuan family, he understands the righteousness and has decided to come to join us at a later date."
"After Liu Dai and Liu Yanzhou mourned King Hui, they heard that the young emperor was in trouble and were willing to help the Han Dynasty. After the army and horses were reorganized, they came to seal the alliance."
"Kong Rong and Kong Beihai are saints passed down by blood. They love the Han Dynasty and are willing to form an alliance with us."
"Tao Qian was hesitant at first, but after seeing me showing the Queen Mother Yi's decree and Lu Shangshu's handwriting, he immediately agreed to form an alliance."
"Gongsun Zan, the governor of Peiping, and Sun Jian, the Marquis of Wucheng, became very excited after knowing what had happened. If their subordinates had not stopped them, they would have already mobilized their troops to attack Dong Zhuo's camp."
Han Fu, Liu Dai, Kong Rong and others were either the sons of Gongqing, relatives of the Han family, or great scholars of the time. Gongsun Zan and Sun Jian were also famous heroes. Lu Li felt honored to be able to form an alliance with them, and immediately ordered people to slaughter the cow again. Kill the horses and prepare what is needed for the alliance.
Not long after, ten people arrived at Hangu Pass. Cao Cao also hurried over with Pan Ming, ignoring the three unknown people who came to join the crowd. Lu Li, Zhao Yun and other generals went out to greet them in person.
During the whole process, Dong Zhuo and his party members were surprisingly quiet and did not send troops to disturb them, because they were also busy meeting alliances and discussing strategies to break through the border.
At the end of the day, yin and yang merge, and all things come into being.
"Now that we have great righteousness, we must establish an alliance leader. Everyone will obey and restrain us, and then we will march forward."
The great Confucian Kong Rong was given pears when he was four years old. He was famous far and wide, and he was the direct descendant of the sage Kong. Only by having him preside over the ceremony could he demonstrate his great righteousness.
After he finished speaking, ten people, including Lu Li, handed over their hands.
"A certain person is only the Prime Minister of a county, and now he comes to serve as King Qin on the orders of King Chen. He is not worthy of the position of leader of the alliance."
Chen Guoxiang Zhao Bo took three steps back to show his determination, while Langya Prime Minister Chen Yuan, Dongyang Prime Minister Cai Yutao, and Yingchuan Prime Minister Li Qinian also had self-awareness and retreated humbly.
Seeing this, Cao Cao, the captain of the Dian Army, looked around: "Wuchenghou is a fierce general in this world and can be the leader of the alliance."
Han Fu, Liu Dai, and Tao Qian were all governors, with low positions and powerful positions. If one of them was to be elected as the leader of the alliance, the other two would definitely refuse to accept it. Gongsun Zan and Kong Rong were both prefects and were not qualified to be the leaders of the alliance.
Among all the people present, only Sun Jian had a transcendent status. Although he was the governor of a place, he still held the rank of marquis.
However, Sun Jian shied away and said: "I am only one of the civil and military leaders, so how dare I hold the position of leader of the alliance?"
Emperor Guangwu loved Confucianism and valued classics, and the country had always
Recruiting scholars based on Confucianism, but he was from a humble background, not a Confucian scholar, and with Kong Rong, a disciple of a saint, suppressing him, it was really hard for him to agree, even if he really wanted to.
