(All rights reserved. Reproduction is prohibited!) First published in Adventurer's Paradise.ezla.com.tw)
He Jin, who had left the palace and returned to the General's Mansion, could not fall asleep for a long time because he was still troubled by the results of the conversation between the monarch and him.
"He Fu! He Fu!"
He Jin roared as he walked to the door of the house and called out his servant's name. After about 15 minutes, an old man with pale hair appeared in front of He Jin.
"Master, you called me?"
The old man's sleepy eyes were still wide open, and he did not know what was going on. He was still buttoning his clothes that he had not put on properly.
“... Immediately invite Yuan Shao, Meng De, and the name list on this piece of paper to General Manor!”
He Jin pondered for a moment before taking out a piece of paper from his pocket and handing it over to He Fu cautiously. At this moment, He Fu also felt He Jin's murderous aura. His eyes, which had not yet woken up, instantly lit up.
He Fu nodded submissively and turned around to leave. He Jin pondered for a moment and suddenly called out to him,"Also, this matter is no small matter. You must be careful if anyone is following you when you leave from the back door…If Lord Cai still hasn't rested, please invite him over!”
When He Fu heard this, he nodded again to confirm. After seeing He Jin wave his hand to signal for him to hurry up, he hurriedly left the door.
Looking at He Fu's departing figure, He Jin's extremely worried expression appeared once again. He muttered to himself,"This might be the greatest challenge in my life. The winner will leave my name in history. The loser might also be beheaded…Emperor, you really gave me a difficult problem!”
The Cao Gang was one of the four major gangs in the world. Along with the Horse Gang, the Zhanlian Gang, and the Taiping Heavenly Dao (Yellow Turban Thief), they had lived in peace for many years because of the terrain and customs.
At first, the Cao Gang was just a small union that gathered at the ferry port with the help of laborers to transport goods. Later on, due to the development of shipping in the Han Dynasty and the participation of many fishermen, it gradually formed a local underground force.
Due to the development of river transportation in the south, the fertile land, and the hard work of the current leader Cai Pi, the Cao Gang's current strength could not be compared with the Yellow Turban Army, but its current situation was different from before. Now, it had become the target of the southern military clans.
Due to geographical reasons, the military clans in the south were not affected too much by the Yellow Turban Army. Therefore, the strength of each military clan was very strong, and the one who was currently in the limelight was none other than the governor of Yizhou, Liu Yan, who originated from the Liu family.
Liu Yan's territory, Yizhou, was vast. Although it did not have as long a history as Luoyang and Guanzhong, it was still the elite area of the Qin State. Moreover, Liu Yan had a large number of soldiers and generals, and countless scholars and generals. Liu Yan, who hoped to expand his territory, naturally noticed the growing strength of the Cao Gang. If he could use the advantage of the Cao Gang in water transportation, he would have a very high advantage in the future when he might start a war.
Of course, other than Liu Yan, people like Sun Jian, the " God of Archery " after Sun Wu, and Zhang Lu, who currently occupied Hanzhong, had also contacted Cai Pi many times to discuss cooperation. However, Cai Pi did not respond for a long time. However, he did not expect that his gang would announce that they would cooperate with Ding Yuan of Jingzhou after a period of silence. They also signed a technical alliance agreement with Zhang Chou of the Zhan Gang. From then on, they would share the profits on land and on the river.
This result was truly shocking to the soldiers in the south, but it was not difficult to notice that Cai Pi's beloved daughter had already married Liu Biao, who was an aide in Ding Yuan's army, before the alliance was formed. This was indeed a strong nepotism. However, those who truly understood the situation were even clearer. Because the geographical environment of Jing State was better than other regions, this was the reason why Cai Pi chose Ding Yuan in the end.
Since the Yellow Turban Army had spread to the north like locusts in a very short period of time and was currently restraining the main military force of the regular army in the court, the Cao Gang and the Zhan Gang, which had lost the special attention of the central government, had become a powerful local force that could dominate the southern martial arts world. This power had also strengthened Ding Yuan because of the alliance between the Cao Gang and the Zhan Gang. In just a few months, the Jingzhou governor, Ding Yuan, who had always been looked down upon by the southern military families and thought that he would be taken away by the surrounding forces sooner or later, had become one of the overlords who could compete for the world.
As soon as Lu Bu withdrew his Qi, Zhang Liao and the others didn't even have time to curse before they charged at the reckless Cao Gang. Although these people's martial arts were only at the level of a three-legged cat, and they could be knocked down with one or two moves, there were too many of them. The crowd was limited by the small space and worried about accidentally injuring their own people. For a moment, they were tied up and couldn't show their true strength.
"What is Boss doing? Why did he provoke these local ruffians for no reason? This is the so-called strong dragon does not suppress the local snake. Even if we brothers want to be flexible, there is no need to use this method.”
As Gao Shun spoke, he knocked down a Cao Gang lackey who was slashing over with a kitchen knife, muttering to himself with some dissatisfaction.
"Humph! Who knew what he was thinking? Anyway, these scumbags were annoying. He would take this opportunity to vent his anger along the way!”
Bai Jin was good at using the spiked club. Just as he was about to block a Cao Gang lackey who didn't know what was good for him, he smashed his club on the man's head.
Just as a bloody scene was about to happen, Lu Bu blocked the mace with a burst of energy and said half-jokingly,""It's enough to make them break their bones and unable to move. Why take their lives at any time? It's not like we're at war now, so don't be too serious!”
Hearing Lu Bu's words, Zhang Liaoyi and the rest were stunned! Bone fracture? Was there a mistake? The other party was really attacking him with a knife and a spear?
However, because Zhang Liao had been with Lu Bu for a long time, he knew that Lu Bu's words must have made sense. He continued,""Just do as Big Brother says. We don't have to get into trouble that we shouldn't. We just have to teach them a lesson and let them know that the 'strong dragon' is just not showing its might!”
If even Zhang Liao, who was usually so cautious, said this, then Lu Bu probably had other intentions. Bai Jin and the others understood and no longer wanted to kill the other party. Instead, they focused on making sure that the other party no longer had any ability to attack. All of a sudden, the Cao Gang thugs lying on the ground scattered like ants, wailing.
Seeing this, Lu Bu looked around in satisfaction and nodded. Suddenly, a strong wind blew from the left. He smiled again and said indifferently,"Finally, there's a decent one on stage. However, isn't this the main character?”
A cloud of red mist spread out in front of Lu Bu. Lu Bu waved his hand, and a powerful energy formed a wall of energy that prevented the red mist from advancing.
The red mist's attack was unable to cross the opponent's lightning pool. With a light shout, the red mist turned into a pair of dyed blades and stabbed at Lu Bu with all its might.
As expected, the effect of the full power was more effective than before. The qi wall that Lu Bu had created earlier instantly collapsed, and in the blink of an eye, the pair of daggers pierced through Lu Bu's chest.
However, before the newcomer could enjoy the joy of victory, he realized that the situation was not good. He wanted to pull the sword back in one breath, but it remained in its original position without moving. In this uneasy state, he felt a numbness at his waist and suddenly, the world spun and he fell into someone's arms.
Looking at this woman who was not like a man, but had a fragrant and warm touch, Lu Bu raised his eyebrows and said,"It smells so good! May I know your name, Miss?"
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