Chapter 356
Chapter 356 – Liu Bei in Hongnong
The retreat order and reorganization were in a chaotic at first, but all Tong's subordinates handled the pressure well .
After Tong assigned his skills to Zhang He, Zhang Liao, Li Feihong, and Lu Bu, Tong sent the Mountaineer to Fagan County .
As usual Li Feihong traveled on the fastest horse along with Zhang He, whom Tong also ordered to go along with Li Feihong to practice reading the HUD map .
Both Zhang He and Li Feihong had reached Fagan County before Gongsun Du forces arrived . Again, Li Feihong opened his teleportation portal, which linked to his private dimension, and all Mountaineer Legion siege the county from the inside .
The county fell without much of a resistance .
After dropping off Zhang Liao, Lu Bu, Ding Yuan, and their soldiers here, Li Feihong rested in the county, waiting for the next mobilization .
Gongsun Du's remaining forces came as they had predicted, which Zhang Liao captured Wang Men and chased away Gongsun Du to the south .
Zhang Liao carried the near-death Wang Men to Tong, who was meditating in Fagan city hall .
"Tong, I've brought the killer . "
Tong did not even bother opening his eyes . He waved his hands to chase them away .
"Threat his wounds and throw him in a dungeon . We'll decide his fate when we return to Ye . "
"…"
Zhang Liao cupped his fist and left along with the crippled man, who stared at Tong in shock .
Behind Tong's back, two spirits with scar-like injuries on their body floated in the air . The broken parts mended by 1/100 a millimeter per minute, which was healing Tong's souls in a snail speed .
Still, Tong did not care about it right now . At the moment, he was about to break through his bottleneck .
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After years of training, Tong crossed the threshold of a four-winged demon as his fourth soul had awakened .
When Hua Shi died, Tong did his best to withhold his desire for revenge against Sun Fang and the Sun Household . In the end, he did not order his men to hunt for the Sun Family, and the system rewarded him by weakening his sin of Wrath for the second time .
And now, He Xing's killer, Wang Man, appeared in front of Tong . This time, he reined his temper again, which achieved the third amendment of this sin .
Thus, [Wrath] awakened!
The newly awakened soul of Wrath also born with the same injuries that the others had .
Wrath's appearance was the same as Tong's current look in this world . Instead of having an angry look like its name, Wrath wore a modern black suit and a tie, a funeral uniform . The expression on the soul's face was as if he had been crying for days .
Tong gazed at the sad soul, who had swollen eyes and traces of tears on his face . Looking at Wrath, Tong had the urge to cry as well .
"They will pay for their crimes . For now, come to me and rest . "
All souls returned to Tong's body, and he could feel the increase in his strength .
'Khan has four wings . Now, I've caught up with him! Next time I see him, I won't let him run away again!'
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September 187, A . D .
A few months after the war at Luoyang's region passed . Many forces scattered to different cities and provinces .
Gongsun Du fled to Puyang which he refuged under this city's minor lord for the time being .
Cao Cao returned to Xuchang and did not make any military movement . Instead, he developed Xuchang and Runan's domestic, stabilizing the order and economic power . Unlike Tong's affiliate cities, the harvest and income taxes in his territories had surpluses, which Cao Cao could use these to improve his military in the future .
Yuan Shao marched through the central plain and reached Xiapi in peace . Upon entering Tao Qian's affiliate capital, Yuan Shao took over the control of Xu Province, pacifying many commanderies at once .
Xiaopei Commandery, Xiapi Commandery, Langye Commandery, Pengcheng County, and nine other counties fell into the hands of the Yuan Clan . Former subordinates of Tao Qian, such as Mi Zhu, Chen Deng, and others also joined Yuan Shao's forces as they wanted to keep their posts .
At the west, many changes occurred as well .
Liu Yang, Ma Teng, and others retreated all troops from Hongnong to Chang'An . All of Khan's forces returned to Liang Province, licking their wounds and preparing for a campaign against Liu Yan at Yi Province .
Yuan Shu seized this opportunity to occupy the strategic cities of Hongnong and Luoyang . With three major commanderies under his control, Yuan Shu could not stop dreaming and glancing at his Imperial Seal .
Sun Jian, Sun Ce, Sun Fang, and all their subordinates followed after Yuan Shu and maintain their post at Luoyang .
Liu Biao, Huang Zhong, and Huang Zu returned to Xiangyang, preparing to mobilize their army south to pacify Changsha, Guiling, Wuling, and Guiyang Commandery, which were under the threat of Shanyue Tribes . During this period, Liu Biao was busy enlisting many scholars and talented generals to his side, reinforcing his Jing Province .
Budugen and his troops retreated to Ji Commandery, which he rebelled against the Gongsun Clan and claimed it as his own .
The Silver Axe Legion also march to Beiping Commandery, which was once Gongsun Zan's Capital City . Xu Huang, Gao Shun, Zhang Bao, Zhang Liang, and others took over the control from the Gongsun Clan, making this city one of Tong's affiliate cities .
All Gongsun Du's subordinates, who knew about the rebellion, fled to Xiangping, joining forces with Gongsun Kang, who was Gongsun Du's son .
Kong Rong of Beihai kept his promises . Once he returned to his territory, he sent messengers to Ye City with a letter of submission . Beihai agreed to join Tong's forces without a fight as they wanted to side with the empress .
Unfortunately, they did not know about He Xing's death yet .
As for the minor lords, they withdrew to their home cities in peace .
Zhang Miao went back to Chenliu .
Kong Zhuo returned to Qiao .
However, an incident occurred among Qiao Mao's ranks . Liu Dai, a subordinate under Qiao Mao, killed his lord and took over the city as the new governor .
Xun You, Xun Yu's cousin, and all Xun Clan members had relocated to Ye City as they followed the footsteps of Xun Yu's success . The Xun Clan officially declare their stance that they would support Tong instead of Cao Cao .
In the end, nothing was defined in this chaotic world . As long as political power and greed involved, anything could happen .
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Meanwhile, Liu Bei, Guan Yu, and Zhang Fei, who had been traveling westward, reached Hongnong City .
Instead of encountering the Xiongnu Army, they found Yuan Shu's forces entering the city . The three brothers had to inquire the info from the surviving locals .
"It's Lord Yuan Shu! Lord Yuan Shu scared the Xiongnu away!"
"I heard Lord Yuan Shu routed Xiongnu Army at Wu Gate, and they turned tail and ran away!"
"No, no . I heard Yuan Shu's generals are all valiant . Each of them slaughtered like 1,000 men with one hand!"
The three brothers frowned as they looked at each other in disbelief . They booked a room inside an inn, consulting about the events .
Liu Bei mumbled as he was still in deep thought, "It's too weird . Xiongnu soldiers are strong, and that Khan is many times stronger . Why did they retreat from Hongnong?"
Zhang Fei grabbed a wine jar and chugged it as usual, "Maybe we've already killed all of their strongest men? They didn't even defend Luoyang or the Hangu Pass .
"No, that shouldn't be it . Xiongnu had the advantage, yet they retreated . That Khan also forsook his men at Hulao Gate when they could have resisted the alliance forces . "
Guan Yu drew a map of Luoyang, Hongnong, and the Yellow River . He stared at it with widened eyes as if he received enlightenment .
"They fled because they were afraid of Zhang Tong and Yuan Shu's coalition?"
Hearing Guan Yu's comment, Liu Bei turned to his second brother, "Coalition? I thought all alliance with Zhang Tong ended the moment everyone left him . "
"Yuan Shu did not participate in our meeting . He might have another idea . "
Guan Yu drew another map with small stones and rocks on a tea table, simulating Wan, Hongnong, Luoyang, Bing Province, and Xuchang .
"Look here, Xuande . Yuan Shu owns Wan Commandery, and he has just taken Hongnong . Then, Luoyang is unoccupied, so he will eventually take it as well . "
"And?"
"Yuan Shu's territory is now connecting to Zhang Tong, Xiongnu, and Cao Cao . As a matter of fact, he's in the middle of all territories . "
Liu Bei stared at the pseudo map as he imagined the geography of four warlords' territories .
Khan occupied Liang Province and Chang'An .
Zhang Tong had Bing Province and Ji Province, controlling the northern plain .
Cao Cao lurked in the central plain, governing Xuchang and Runan .
Then, Yuan Shu with three cities in the middle .
"Yuan Shu has become a buffer between Xiongnu and others!"
"Exactly . This is probably Xiongnu's plan . I think they knew that Yuan Shu isn't their opponent, so they pretend to withdraw back to Chang'An . "
"That still doesn't make sense, though . If Xiongnu wanted to bait Yuan Shu into Hongnong, why did they move to Luoyang to lose their soldiers?"
"I have no idea . Khan's action also doesn't make sense to me . "
Silence enveloped the room as Guan Yu and Liu Bei lacked the analysis ability to decipher the entire situation .
Zhang Fei, who did not care about the current situation, looked outside the window, "What should we do next? Should we disband our forces?"
Liu Bei's eyes gleamed, thinking about how Tong dominated the Northern Plain . His jealousy and anger swelled in his heart .
"Let's visit Yuan Shu . Since we have an army, we should obtain some prestige and a noble title . Since he's going to get Luoyang soon, he should be recruiting scholars and generals . "
Guan Yu nodded in approval, "Indeed . We should also establish our connection with the officers, so we can bring them to our side . We need more officers and strategists for our platoons . "
Since the three brothers were rootless, they marched to Hongnong City Hall, seeking an audience with Yuan Shu .
Unfortunately, Yuan Shu had already left Hongnong to Luoyang with the Sun Clan forces . Currently, only Yuan Shu's nephew, Yuan Yin, and a few civil officers stayed behind to maintain the city order .
Without a choice, Liu Bei visited Yuan Yin, paying respect to this newly instated governor .
When they got inside the city hall, they found a thin short man sitting on the governor seat, working on several scrolls on his desk .
Yuan Yin had sunken cheeks and messy hairstyle, yet his face did not look intimidating or scary to others . Instead, his eyes and expression were warm, which gave an image of a gentle officer .
Liu Bei relieved that they found a gentle and hardworking man instead of an egotistic overlord . He cupped his fist and bowed to Yuan Yin .
"I'm Liu Bei of Ji, and these two are my sworn brothers . We're here to seek employment from Lord Yuan Shu . "
Yuan Yin smiled and nodded, "Do you have a band or an army with you?"
"Yes . We have a platoon of 5,000 militias with us . Actually, we had participated in the coalition against the Xiongnu, but Yuan Shao and Zhang Tong disbanded the coalition, so we have no place to go . "
"Very well . You can join our army . Since you already have 5,000 troops, I'll make you our 5,000-man commander . How is that sound to you?"
Inwardly, Liu Bei clicked his tongue since he had expected more . He bowed to Yuan Yin and accepted the title anyway, "Thank you for your trust . I won't let you down . "
With this, Liu Bei and his two sworn brothers became a part of Yuan Shu Army .
