Chapter 264: Zhang Liao's Request, Xu Shu Goes North In fact, Qin Zhen had never thought about how to deal with Lu Bu. The main reason is that he still had some use for Lu Bu before, and even if Lu Bu did not take the initiative to attack this time, he still wanted to keep Lu Bu. After all, Lu Bu is a man who is brave but not wise, and is only interested in profit. He can be used to disrupt the situation in the Central Plains! When Yuan Shao goes south in the future, it will be beneficial to keep Lu Bu no matter whether Cao Cao or Yuan Shao wins. But the reality is that Lu Bu is too restless, does not have the ability to be a prince, and has a desire to secede. Seeing that they were about to dominate one side, they actually wanted to learn from Liu Biao to balance the situation of all parties. They could not accept this action, and Chen Deng also wanted to expel Lu Bu, so under the influence of various factors, he prepared to destroy Lu Bu. But after all, this matter had just begun to be planned, and he had not prepared a way out for Lu Bu in advance. After Zhang Liao's question, Qin Zhen fell into deep thought. If Lu Bu was really captured by him, how should he deal with him? Thinking of this, he turned his gaze to Zhang Liao in front of him and asked curiously:

"I am also surprised by this. Lu Bu is a man who only cares about profit and forgets righteousness. He appoints people based on personal connections. He is not a wise leader." "General, you are such a loyal man, why do you care so much about a villain like Lu Bu?" In fact, this is also a very strange thing for him. Lu Bu has countless shortcomings. But he had a group of loyal members under his command. Not only Gao Shun, but even Zhang Liao was quite loyal to Lu Bu. In the original course of events, even though Lu Bu was defeated in Xia Pi, Zhang Liao did not surrender to Cao. It was not until after Lu Bu's death that Zhang Liao led his troops to surrender to Cao Cao. Similarly, Cheng Lian, Cao Xing and his good friend Zhang Yang, who were his old subordinates, were all very loyal to Lu Bu. This is obviously not just the treatment a villain can get. So seeing Zhang Liao like this, he simply asked him all at once. In response to his question, Zhang Liao shook his head and sighed, as if he had a deep meaning: "The Lü Fengxian you know is different from the Lü Wenhou we know." "When he was in Bingzhou before, Marquis Wen was not like this!" As he spoke, he told Qin Zhen about Lu Bu's rise to power. It turns out that Lu Bu's current character was not achieved in a day. As we all know, Lu Bu was from Jiuyuan County, Wuyuan Commandery. As soon as he appeared in the novel, he joined the Alliance of His Father's Avengers. But in fact, Ding Yuan himself was not Lu Bu's adoptive father, nor even his former master. Because Lu Bu was skilled in archery and horse riding and had been defending the north against foreign invaders for many years, he was not a subordinate of Ding Yuan. It was not until the death of the previous governor Zhang Yi that Ding Yuan took office and recruited Lu Bu, Zhang Yang, Zhang Liao and others into his army. At that time, everyone gathered together and wanted to do something for the Han Dynasty. But less than a year later, Dong Zhuo entered the capital and used Li Su to lure Lu Bu to kill Ding Yuan.

As a result, Lu Bu was gradually corrupted. He not only coveted money and women, but also began to fight for power. But during this period, Lu Bu was still ignorant and was quite loyal to the Han Dynasty. This is also the reason why Lu Bu persuaded Wang Yun to reward Dong Zhuo's property to the ministers, generals and officers, and even persuaded Wang Yun to recruit the generals in Liang Province. It can be said that if Wang Yun had listened to Lu Bu's words at that time, perhaps the situation in the world would be different. But unfortunately, Wang Yun was not a capable person and ruined the good situation. Afterwards, Lu Bu was defeated and first surrendered to Yuan Shu, but was feared by Yuan Shu. Then he surrendered to Yuan Shao, where he made great contributions but was almost assassinated. Finally, he joined Zhang Yang's army, but was threatened by Li Jue and Guo Si. Like Cao, after experiencing the hardships of reality, Lu Bu became more selfish. The reason why Lu Bu later launched a surprise attack on Yanzhou was also instigated by Chen Gong. Even Chen Gong's original plan was to use Lu Bu as a shield and let Zhang Miao and Zhang Chao be the main ones. As for what happened later, Qin Zhen knew all about it. After Lu Bu was defeated and occupied Xuzhou, he gained autonomy, but he became more arrogant and greedy. After Hao Meng's rebellion, Lu Bu completed the final step of his transformation into a powerful hero and began to appoint people based on personal connections. It can be said that Lu Bu's situation was closely related to the people's hearts in this chaotic era. Dong Zhuo, Yuan Shu, Yuan Shao, Chen Gong and others were all driving forces. At least in the eyes of generals such as Zhang Liao and Gao Shun, this is the logic. Until now, Zhang Liao and Gao Shun are still willing to be loyal to Lu Bu, not because they cannot distinguish right from wrong, but entirely because of Lu Bu's previous personal charm. It was only after Qin Zhen's words that Zhang Liao suddenly came to his senses and surrendered. Otherwise, if Qin Zhen wants to subdue Zhang Liao, he may have to use some tricks. But now even though he has surrendered, he still hopes that Qin Zhen can give Lu Bu a chance to survive. When Qin Zhen heard this story, he was secretly moved. He seemed to see the process of a pure boy from a remote area being polluted by material desires. The dragon slayer eventually becomes the evil dragon, perhaps this is the mental journey. In fact, in a sense, if he had not accumulated knowledge two thousand years later, he might not have done better than Lu Bu. Over the past decade, he has not changed the feudal society, but he has been changed a lot by the feudal society. Lu Bu is a commoner from the frontier. He cannot foresee the future. It is not easy for him to reach this point. But no matter how much Zhang Liao whitewashes Lu Bu, it cannot change the fact that Lu Bu is now a villain. Therefore, after listening to Zhang Liao's speech, he said to Zhang Liao in a deep voice: "If what the general said is true, Lu Bu's behavior is understandable."

"But there is a good saying in Buddhism: to save others, you must first save yourself." "Of course, Lü Fengxian has reached his current position with the help of many people from the outside world. However, if Lü Bu had been determined, he would not have ended up like this!" "He has done evil to our army several times, and now he has listened to the words of a villain and marched forward. This is a serious crime." "I will forgive him today, but after we are defeated tomorrow, it will be difficult for you to forgive me!" When Zhang Liao heard this, his face became gloomy, and he knew that this was unrealistic. After all, there are too many grievances and hatreds between Lu Bu and Liu Bei! Although they have experienced several separations and reunions, it is no longer possible for the two families to reunite. Now Qin Zhen went north in person, obviously because Liu Bei did not trust Lu Bu. Even if he persuaded Qin Zhen now, Liu Bei would not spare Lu Bu's life if Lu Bu was defeated in the future. Thinking of this, he sighed and said: "That being said, Liao and Wen Hou have a history, how can we not save his life?" For a moment, he placed his hope on Qin Zhen again and bowed down and said: "I know you are very wise, sir. Do you have any plan for this?" Qin Zhen looked at his sincere expression and frowned: "So, General, do you really want to plead for Lü Bu in the future?" After all, reality is not a novel, and he didn't know whether Zhang Liao had ever pleaded for Lu Bu in the original process. But seeing Zhang Liao's current appearance, he was sure that if Lu Bu was defeated in the future, Zhang Liao would most likely plead for mercy! This behavior is not only unhelpful to Lu Bu, but may also drag Zhang Liao into the water. After thinking about it for a while, he came up with an idea and said to Zhang Liao: "If the general really wants to save Lu Bu's life, then there is a way." "However, this method requires the general to decide for himself. If the general is willing, I can spare Lu Bu's life!" "But this method goes against the general's wishes. I wonder if the general is willing to do it?" Zhang Liao was delighted when he heard this, but then he frowned and said: "Sir, do you mean that I should become the enemy of Marquis Wen and help you seize Xuzhou?" "That's right. This is the only way to spare Lu Bu's life!" Seeing that he reacted immediately, Qin Zhen nodded and said: "Originally, I came here to persuade the general to surrender, not because I wanted him to become an enemy of Lu Bu." "General, all you need to do is recruit your troops and capture Xuzhou in the future, and that will count as a success." "However, the general did not contribute much in this battle, so even if he did make a contribution, it would be difficult for him to receive a reward." "But if the general can help me defeat Lu Bu first and then take Xuzhou, this will be a great achievement." "When we deal with Lu Bu tomorrow, General, you can ask for mercy from the lord based on your merits." "Given the lord's love for talent, he will most likely spare Lu Bu's life for the general's sake."

"If not for this, Lu Bu's life would be in danger, and I am not willing to plead with him!" Although he valued Zhang Liao very much, he would not plead for Lu Bu just because of Zhang Liao's request. If you want to save Lu Bu, Zhang Liao must do it himself. Otherwise, given Lao Liu's resentment towards Lu Bu, he would most likely execute him as soon as they met. He and Lu Bu have no relationship, so there is no need for him to have a conflict with Lao Liu over this matter. But if Zhang Liao had turned to the light, defeated Lu Bu first, and then pleaded for Lu Bu, Old Liu would have admired Zhang Liao's loyalty. As for whether Lao Liu would agree to keep Lu Bu, Qin Zhen estimated that he would. Because using Lu Bu's life to win over a wise and brave general like Zhang Liao was quite attractive to Lao Liu. Moreover, Liu Bei could tolerate a guy like Ma Chao who killed his own father and regarded the enemy as his father. Compared with Ma Chao, Lu Bu's survival rate is still quite high. Of course, using this method, Lu Bu can only save his life at most, and it is impossible for him to lead the troops. The best ending is to be like Ma Chao, to keep one's tail between legs and spend the rest of one's life in fear. If unification could be achieved faster, with Lu Bu's bravery, he might be able to go out and fight against foreign tribes in the future. However, this method is obviously contrary to Zhang Liao's current desire not to be an enemy of Lu Bu. It depends on what Zhang Liao chooses. So after saying this, he added another sentence to Zhang Liao: "It's hard to have the best of both worlds. To be honest with you, General, I have made a plan for the overall situation." "To defeat this fellow Lu Bu, the outcome can be decided in a matter of seconds!" "General, if you want to save Lu Bu's life, you must make a decision quickly, lest you miss the opportunity!" "If the general still needs to consider something, you can think about it here slowly first. When you have figured it out, you can call me at any time!" Having said this, he turned and left, leaving Zhang Liao alone in the prison to think. He knew that this would be a difficult task for Zhang Liao, but he believed in Zhang Liao's wisdom. This meeting with Zhang Liao also gave him an idea of ​​how to persuade Gao Shun. Since Zhang Liao is now thinking about saving Lu Bu's life, will Gao Shun do the same as Zhang Liao? If that's the case, then maybe he can give it a try after Gao Shun wakes up! Thinking of this, Qin Zhen left the cell and no longer disturbed Zhang Liao. As Lu Bu arrived at Yinling, Zhang Liao in prison finally agreed to Qin Zhen's plan - to be Qin Zhen's vanguard in capturing Xuzhou! After receiving Zhang Liao's response, Qin Zhen was overjoyed and directly ordered Zhang Liao to persuade the captives to surrender. At this point, Qin Zhen, with the help of Zhang Liao, persuaded a large number of captives to surrender, and the number of soldiers under his command reached 15,000. But because he was not sure now, he did not take action against Lu Bu, and still stationed his troops in Zhongli without advancing. He also knew that this move would anger Lu Bu, so he ordered all the troops in Quyang to withdraw to Shouchun. At the same time, he ordered Yuan Huan to be the main general in Shouchun, and ordered him to hold on for a few days and wait for reinforcements.

Faced with Qin Zhen's arrangement, Yuan Huan and others were naturally puzzled, but they had no choice but to follow orders and move the workshop machines directly into the city. After receiving the news, Lu Bu was very angry when he saw that Qin Zhen did not send out troops, so he led his troops directly to attack towards Shouchun. As Lu Bu's troops gradually advanced deeper into the enemy territory, the various messengers arranged by Qin Zhen began to arrive one after another. When Liu Bei received the letter, he was leading his troops to attack Wuhu where Zhou Yu was. Upon seeing the letter, he called everyone to discuss the matter. When Zhuge Liang saw that Qin Zhen was planning to seize Xuzhou in the north, he directly suggested to Liu Bei: "Now that Sun Ce is holding his ground, it will be difficult for our army to achieve results in Jiangdong in the near future." "Since the military advisor is determined to seize Xuzhou, my lord should help him with all his might!" When Liu Bei heard what he said, he ordered Zhao Yun to sail north and ordered Lu Su to provide support. At the same time, an envoy also arrived in Langya where Zang Ba was. And this messenger was none other than Xu Shu, Xu Yuanzhi, the current Prime Minister of Pei under Liu Bei! (End of this chapter)