"Jia Xu of Nanyang and the young lord Zhang Lei are here to surrender to you! We invite Your Highness, King Of Shu, to come down and negotiate! " Jia Xu shouted at Liu Mang's army. Such a scholar's voice was loud and clear in the dark night. It was very surprising.
"Surrender? Come down from the city wall? " Jia Xu's shout caused the people in Shouchun to explode. Originally, the Xiliang Cavalry's sudden appearance in Shouchun had already caused the civil and military officials of Shouchun to be ashamed and angry. If they were to be rushed into the city, it would be a chaotic battle.
Now, it was revealed that Zhang Xiu was dead and Jia Xu was asking to surrender! These were not the problems. The most important problem was that he actually wanted Liu Mang, the Lord of Yangzhou, to come down from the city wall to negotiate? Did he come here to ask for surrender or to persuade him to surrender?
"Hmph! Jia Wenhe, if you are here to surrender, then hand over your hands! Bind your hands and kneel on Shouchun. We will lower the basket and pull you up before we talk! "Xu Shu said coldly, rejecting Jia Xu's request. You still want to come down from the city wall to negotiate? Liu Mang was the King Of Shu and the Lord of Yangzhou. With such a noble status, how could he come down from the city wall? If there was a trap and they captured Liu Mang, then what could these people do?
"Is Your Highness, the King Of Shu, really not willing to come down from the city wall to negotiate with Jia Xu?" Jia Xu continued to ask.
"That's right! Jia Wenhe, even if Your Highness, Zhang Xiu, personally came, he would not be received by the King Of Shu. You, a mere strategist, came to surrender. Where did your confidence come from? What qualifications do you have for my Highness to personally negotiate with you? "The scholars of Yangzhou were also angrily rebuking Jia Xu.
"Mr. Wen He, this, this!" Seeing the anger of the civil and military officials of Shouchun, the two generals of the Xiliang Cavalry were a little flustered. This time, they really came to surrender. Looking at Jia Xu's arrogant attitude, they were really afraid that they would screw things up.
"It's fine! Just watch. His Highness the King Of Shu will definitely receive us, "Jia Xu said very calmly.
Jia Xu was indeed here because of the death of Zhang Xiu. He was looking for a new master, but Liu Mang was not necessarily his choice. Jia Xu had his eyes on three people. One of them was Yanzhou's Cao Cao. Cao Cao had almost pacified Hebei and controlled the four provinces of Hebei. It could be said that he was the most powerful warlord in the world. Following Cao Cao would be the safest choice. However, Jia Xu had his scruples. The child beside him was not even five years old. Zhang Xiu and the Zhang family had a deep grudge against Lao Cao. Zhang Xiu had killed Lao Cao's favorite eldest son, his favorite general Dian Wei, and his nephew Cao Anmin. He even almost killed Cao Pi. If he surrendered, Lao Cao might use Jia Xu, but he would not let go of Zhang Xiu's only bloodline. Although Jia Xu did not want to follow Zhang Xiu, he still had some feelings for him after so many years. Another scruple was that Cao Cao had a lot of civil and military officials. Although Jia Xu was talented, it would be difficult for him to play a role in the Cao Cao Group. After all, all the important positions in the Group had been occupied by others.
The second person was Sun Ce of Jiangdong. If surrendering to Lao Cao was just icing on the cake, then surrendering to Sun Ce was like sending charcoal in snowy weather. This was because Sun Ce of Jiangdong was lacking in horses and heavy cavalry. His only Yuzhou Cavalry was destroyed by the Lvbu's Army. That was the foundation of Jiangdong for many years. It can be said that if Jia Xu were to bring 5,000 Xiliang Cavalry to Jiangdong, he would certainly be honored as a guest of honor by Sun Ce.
However, if he wanted to go to Jiangdong, he would need to cross the Yangtze River. If there was no one to contact, it would be very difficult to do so.
The last person was the King Of Shu of Yangzhou, Liu Mang. The addition of the Xiliang Cavalry to Liu Mang's Army could not be considered as sending charcoal in snowy weather. After all, Liu Mang's Army was also part of the Lvbu's Army. The Lvbu's Army already had the world's number one heavy cavalry, the Bingzhou Wolf Cavalry. There was also Zhao Yun's White Horse Cavalry. Therefore, the need for cavalry was not as high as Sun Cejun's. However, it could not be considered as icing on the cake. This was because Lü Bu and Liu Mang's Army were still too few. Liu Mang's main force of Yangzhou was only about 15,000 people. This was the reason why when Liu Bei and Zhang Xiu's Army entered Yangzhou, Liu Mang could only avoid the battle. The entire Lvbu's Army, including Lujiang, only had a little more than 60,000 people. If it was just a second-rate warlord like Zhang Xiu, it would not matter as long as the troops were enough to deter the small fry. He was just waiting for the right price and did not have any ambition. However, the Lvbu's Army was different. When Jia Xu was in Nanyang, he had been paying attention to the Lvbu's Army. From the time they occupied Lujiang and then Yangzhou, they wanted to expand. They wanted to compete for hegemony in this chaotic world. How could they dare to submit to others? 60,000 soldiers might seem like a lot, but in fact, it was not enough to compete for hegemony. Sun Ce had 70,000 soldiers. If he wanted to enlist, he could have 100,000 soldiers. When Sun Ce attacked Wancheng, the Jiangdong nobles had 100,000 soldiers. In the battle of Guandu, Yuan Shao had 300,000 soldiers. Although Lao Cao fought hard, he still won. Now, he had 100,000 soldiers. Once Hebei was pacified, it would not be impossible to restore Yuan Shao's 300,000 soldiers. Even Liu Biao of Jingzhou had 70,000 soldiers stationed in Jiangxia to compete with Jiangdong. There was no need to talk about Xiangyang. In any case, he could gather 50,000 to 60,000 soldiers. If he wanted to conquer the world, these 60,000 soldiers were not enough. With the addition of the Xiliang Cavalry, Liu Mang would have three heavy cavalry units. Who would dislike having more elite soldiers?
Jia Xu was also observing the battle of Yangzhou. It could also be considered as a test. Although Jia Xu had a good impression of Liu Mang, if Liu Mang lost and Liu Bei won, then Jia Xu might join Liu Bei's Army or join Cao Jun. The life and death of Liu Mang's Army had nothing to do with him. However, if Liu Mang won, then Jia Xu would have to consider joining Liu Mang in Yangzhou. Liu Bei had already been crippled in the battle of Yangzhou. Hu Che Er didn't understand, but Jia Xu could see that Liu Bei had no chance in the struggle for hegemony in the Central Plains. If he couldn't even take Yangzhou, then don't even talk about Liu Mang's revenge. Once Lao Cao recovered, then Liu Bei would only have two choices. Either be destroyed or surrender. Jia Xu wouldn't want to follow such a person with no future.
Now that Liu Mang had won the battle of Yangzhou, it could be said that he had completed Jia Xu's first test. Now, it was time for Jia Xu's second test. He wanted to see if this King Of Shu, Liu Mang's reputation was undeserved or if he really had courage. If Liu Mang didn't want to come down, then Jia Xu would only give Liu Mang two incense sticks of time. If Liu Mang didn't come down, then Jia Xu would take his 5,000 Xiliang Cavalry to turn around and surrender to Cao Cao. With Jia Xu's character, if Zhang Lei died, then so be it! As long as Jia Xu was fine, then it was fine. Jia Xu would really do this. How could he not know that Liu Mang might have sent troops out from the other two gates to surround him? That was why he didn't set up camp so that he could leave immediately. Two incense sticks of time was Jia Xu's limit.
And if Liu Mang could come down from the wall, then Jia Xu wouldn't be able to do anything even if he surrendered! This wasn't just to test Liu Mang's courage, it was also a big gift from Jia Xu. That was his reputation, a reputation that could truly spread throughout the world.
What was that in Jia Xu's hands?! It was the Xiliang Cavalry and even Zhang Xiu's youngest son, Zhang Xiu. The master of the Xiliang Cavalry was Zhang Xiu. And Zhang Xiu was the enemy of the Lvbu's Army. Lü Bu's favorite general, Zhang Fan, had died at the hands of Zhang Xiu. Half of the Bingzhou Wolf Cavalry had died and almost all of them were wiped out. The alliance of the three forces had almost destroyed the Lvbu's Army. This kind of hatred was really hard to resolve.
And once Jia Xu surrendered with Zhang Lei, then Liu Mang's reputation would spread throughout the world. If he could let go of this kind of hatred and accept the son of his enemy, then how magnanimous would he be? He had the ability to tolerate people. If he could even tolerate his enemy, then what about other talented people? Of course, he would be able to tolerate them. This was a chaotic world, where etiquette was broken and music was bad. However, people paid special attention to reputation. Just like Liu Bei's hypocrisy, there was a group of loyal people who had been brainwashed to follow Liu Bei. Otherwise, how could a straw sandal seller have such achievements? And he had failed so many times. Even Yuan Shu, the descendant of the Three Princes, had only failed once before he was eliminated. However, Liu Bei was like an undying cockroach, relying on his benevolent reputation. Lao Cao captured Liu Bei and did not kill Liu Bei because he was afraid that killing Liu Bei would incite public anger.
If he chose to go down the city wall, not only would he be able to subdue Jia Xu's 5000 Xiliang Cavalry, but he would also be able to spread his name throughout the world. If he did not go down the city wall, then Jia Xu would turn around and leave, increasing Cao Cao's support and making it a stumbling block in his struggle for hegemony.
This was the choice that Jia Xu left for Liu Mang on the city wall. Two incense sticks of time was neither too long nor too short. It was up to Liu Mang to choose between the two fates.
"Milord, be careful of a trap!" Xu Shu advised earnestly.
"That's right! Milord, what if this is a fake surrender! "Liu Mang also advised Liu Mang. Both of them did not believe in Jia Xu because Jia Xu's reputation was too ugly. Furthermore, why would Jia Xu want to take Liu Mang's entrance exam? Did he have the qualifications?
"Hm?!" Liu Mang frowned. He did not know what to do. It was not a trap. Calculating the time, the City Guard and the Black Flag Army should have already arrived at the ambush location. The Bingzhou Wolf Cavalry was also in the city. Even if he was captured, Jia Xu would not be able to escape.
"He is indeed Jia Xu, Jia Wenhe!" Just as Liu Mang was hesitating, a familiar voice came from behind him.
"Wen Hou, Milord!" The civil and military officials on the city wall greeted Lü Bu.
"Father-in-law!" Liu Mang also stepped forward and knelt beside Lü Bu. This action made Xu Shu frown, but he did not say anything.
"This person is indeed Jia Xu, Jia Wenhe!" Others might not know Jia Xu, but there was no reason for Lü Bu not to know him. When Dong Zhuo was still alive, Lü Bu had seen him before. He was appointed as a minister by Dong Zhuo and was one of the Three Ministers and Nine Ministers. However, this person rarely spoke. If Dong Zhuo did not ask him, Jia Xu would not answer. As time passed, he was naturally forgotten.
Later, Lü Bu killed Dong Zhuo under Wang Yun's instigation, and Jia Xu disappeared without a trace. Originally, the two should not have crossed paths, but Wang Yun's order to punish Jia Xu forced him into the limelight. That order had Jia Xu's name on it. Therefore, in order to protect himself, Jia Xu fought back and persuaded Li Jue and Guo Si to lead the troops to attack Chang 'an again. At that time, Li Jue and Guo Si had hundreds of thousands of troops under their command. Most of them were Xiliang's elites. Because of Dong Zhuo's death, they only had a few thousand garrison troops and Lü Bu's men. If Li Jue and Guo Si attacked the city, even Sun Wu would not be able to defend it. Lü Bu would also not be able to escape because of his family. However, Jia Xu was indeed a wily old fox. In order not to completely offend Lü Bu, he sent a letter to Lü Bu before they attacked Chang 'an. At that time, Lü Bu and Wang Yun also had a conflict. Lü Bu could not sacrifice himself for Wang Yun, so he took the opportunity to leave. This allowed Lü Bu to leave Chang' an as soon as possible and avoid being besieged by Li Jue and Guo Si.
Because of this, Lü Bu had a deep impression of Jia Xu. Although the sky was dark, Lü Bu could clearly see the scene below by the light of the torch. Jia Xu's face appeared in front of Lü Bu's eyes.
"Father-in-law, what about Zhang Xiu's death?" If Jia Xu was telling the truth, then what Jia Xu said afterwards should also be true.
"I don't know whether Zhang Xiu is dead or not, but I know that I didn't kill Zhang Xiu. Zhang Xiu can't die because of me." After listening to Chen Gong's plan, Lü Bu still showed mercy to Zhang Xiu. Lü Bu was still very confident in his martial arts. Although Zhang Xiu suffered numerous injuries, none of them were fatal. With Zhang Xiu's ability, he could recover after resting for more than ten days.
However, now that Zhang Xiu was dead, it was hard not to overthink.
Before Lü Bu could explain clearly, Xu Shu's exclamation came from the other side. "My lord, what are you doing?" Liu Mang's figure had already disappeared from the city wall!
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