"Although I came to be Xuzhou's shepherd by decree, the forces in Xuzhou are complicated now.
In addition to Tao Qian, who had been the governor for several years, there were also large clans like the Mi family, old officials like Chen Gui, Chen Deng and his son, and old warlords like Zang Ba who had the troops to dominate.
If you want to gain a foothold in Xuzhou, you must rely on the power of the Mi family.
So I wanted to marry Mi Zhu and marry his sister. "
"Marquis Wen doesn't need to tell us this. If you think it should be like this, just do it. What do we women know?" said Cao.
Lu Bu chuckled and said, "Aren't you afraid that you guys will be jealous? If that's the case, then you should get closer to Mi Lin more often..."
No one knew what conspiracy Lu Bu was up to.
In order to consolidate power, it is normal for two families to marry each other.
Lu Bu was both a prince-in-law and a shepherd in Xuzhou, so taking a girl from the Mi family as a concubine would not be considered an insult to his family.
It's just a matter of one sentence, why bother?
——
In the next few days, Lu Bu had someone give him a "Luoyang shovel" and led Dian Wei and other guards to dig holes everywhere in the north of Pengcheng.
The hard work paid off, and Lu Bu finally found a coal mine buried only ten feet deep near an iron mine. The coal seam was five or six feet thick, and the coal was of high quality and could be used for coking.
After choosing an address near Surabaya, construction of my own Xuzhou New City began.
Tens of thousands of refugees heard that this new city was built to accommodate them. In the future, they would be able to farm and work in the mines to earn money to buy food. They were all very motivated.
The entire new city planning area is a lively scene, with temporary brick kilns everywhere, collecting soil, kneading mud, making bricks, and firing.
Small brick kilns are smoking day and night.
Mi Zhu did not break his promise and sent craftsmen and grain to support Lu Bu's construction of the new city.
After all, it is still unknown whether Tao Qian or Lu Bu will have the final say in Xuzhou in the future.
However, after a period of communication, Mi Zhu also had a general understanding of Lu Bu.
What surprised him was that Lu Bu not only managed the army rigorously, but also planned the city in an orderly manner.
What surprised Mi Zhu even more was that Lu Bu slightly improved the fire wall used by nobles for heating, and made something called a "fire kang" out of adobe. Charcoal was burned underneath for heating, and the whole house was warm.
And he really discovered coal and iron ore nearby!
Could it be that what Lu Bu said was true, that he really got advice from an expert before building the city here?
In fact, Mi Zhu has never been optimistic about Tao Qian, mainly because Tao Qian is old, he is already over 60 years old at this time.
It is rare to be over half a century old, and he is already considered an old man at this age. Although Tao Qian is still in good spirits and can still lead troops to fight in person, how many more years will he be able to prosper?
His sons are both incompetent, and Tao Qian may not be able to hold a big position in the future after his death.
Mi Zhu was originally optimistic about Liu Bei and felt that he might be able to do great things in the future because of his benevolence and righteousness.
He originally wanted to investigate Liu Bei again. If he felt that this person could achieve great things, he would simply put all his money on Liu Bei.
But now Lu Bu suddenly appeared, with a higher starting point and stronger ability than Liu Bei.
The balance in Mi Zhu's heart gradually began to tilt towards Lu Bu.
He even began to regret it. Why was he so deceived by Liu Bei that he said he wanted to betroth his sister to Liu Bei?
Unconsciously, a month had passed. Tao Qian captured the three counties of Taishan County and returned victorious with his troops.
Naturally, the young master had to hold a banquet to celebrate the victory, and the young master Lu Bu had to go back to Pengcheng to deal with it.
In the main hall of the government office, Tao Qian invited Lu Bu to sit down and said, "I heard that Marquis Wen went to build a new city outside the city? How can this happen?"
You are the shepherd of a state, so you should be placed in the government office! Just because I was negligent in leading troops outside.
When I come back this time, I will ask someone to vacate the government office for Marquis Wen to live in. I can just go back to Xiapi City! "
Lu Bu chuckled and said, "How could this happen? Aren't I taking the lead in the guest room?"
Mr. Tao, just feel free to be your governor in Pengcheng!
After all, you have been operating here for many years, you have experience and connections, and all the counties are yours, so I won’t worry about it.
Now I just want to build my new city quickly. I don’t know about other things, so you should manage it!
If there is another powerful enemy coming, it will not be too late to find me! "
These words hit Tao Qian's heart. He had worked hard for so many years, and now the situation in Xuzhou was very good. How could he give it up to Lu Bu?
After being polite for a while, he reluctantly agreed to Lu Bu's suggestion.
Lu Bu looked at Liu Bei, who was sitting next to him, and Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, Zhao Yun and others standing behind Liu Bei.
He asked with a smile: "I heard that Duke Xuande made great contributions to the Northern Expedition to Mount Tai?"
Tao Qian smiled and said: "Exactly! Xuande Gong and his generals are the vanguard. They are really invincible. They should be the first to contribute!"
Lu Bu nodded and said, "It seems that the Holy Emperor is really wise enough to recognize heroes!"
As soon as these words came out, everyone present was shocked: Why did he keep talking about Liu Xie?
Where did a little brat like him get such insight?
Lu Bu deliberately kept everyone guessing for a while before saying: "Your Majesty has long heard that when the eighteen princes attacked Dong Zhuo, there was a man named Liu Bei. He was loyal to the Han, and his subordinate Guan Yu and Guan Yunchang warmed the wine and killed Hua Xiong.
When I left Chang'an, I specially drafted an edict to be promoted to the rank of Duke Xuande! "
"Oh? Is there such a thing?" Tao Qian secretly screamed!
He was originally very optimistic about Liu Bei and wanted to win him over for his own use.
It seems that Lu Bu is poaching!
Although Liu Bei's face was expressionless, his heart was beating with excitement!
The emperor has actually heard of himself? Do you want to give yourself an official title?
He had been a county captain for many years. In the past two years, he had defected to Gongsun Zan and became the county magistrate of Pingyuan. Now he was working under Tao Qian. He thought that he could receive the magistrate of a county because of his meritorious service this time. .
Unexpectedly, the emperor wanted to appoint him an official?
I just don’t know how big an official I want to give myself? Since it is the emperor who conferred the title, it cannot be justified if he is too young...
Zhang Fei was impatient, so he asked: "Since the emperor has an edict, why didn't you say it earlier?"
Lu Bu glanced at Zhang Fei contemptuously and said, "Pork! I am the shepherd of a state. How dare you, a person with no rank or rank, dare to question me?"
"I..." Zhang Fei was shocked and furious!
Liu Bei quickly winked at Zhang Fei: "Third brother, please don't be rude!"
Zhang Fei was so angry that he stopped talking.
Lu Bu chuckled and said to Liu Bei: "Xuan De Gong, when we first met, your brother scolded me without any reason and then tried to kill me. I had no choice but to fight you off.
The second time we met, you had to go on an expedition with Tao Gong again, so I didn't think about it. Just now, you don’t blame me, do you? "
Liu Bei hurriedly laughed and said: "It was all a misunderstanding in the past! Marquis Wen also traveled all the way, how can we blame Marquis Wen?"
The expression on his face is saying: What kind of official title have been given to me? You should tell me quickly!
