Chapter 534

Chapter 534

At the Urban Army’s camp, Lu Su can be found teaching the soldiers using a blackboard. His lessons were dull but the soldiers studied with great interest as they treasured the opportunity to study. Besides that, they had been told that Lu Su was a great talent. Learning from him would increase their chances of getting promoted.

The Urban Army’s handwriting were terrible but it was fine as long as they could read their own writing. If they ran out of paper, they would simply write it down on their own clothes and revised the material at home before washing it.

Lu Su wiped away his sweat tiredly after three consecutive classes. He had to teach them a total of three times, with three classes each time, every day. With this schedule, Lu Su was one of the most exhausted person in the army. Although he was tired, he was happy. What scholars wanted the most was to be able to spread their knowledge. He believed that with this, there were no other scholars that could be compared to him, not even Confucius.

Confucius has three thousand disciples but Lu Su already has five thousand. All of the soldiers in the Urban Army called him Teacher Lu, much to his satisfaction.

“Teacher Lu! Your explanation was good. It must be tough for you. Come and have a drink!” One of Lu Su’s acquaintance called out as Lu Su was about to take a rest.

Lu Su can’t help but smile. The person that called out to him was the Urban Army’s general, Cheng Yu.

“General Cheng.” Lu Su greeted back respectfully. As Cheng Yu addressed him as Teacher Lu, Lu Su could not be lacking in manners. Before this, the two of them were on opposing sides but now, they were like friends. Cheng Yu even offered tea to Lu Su. As Lu Su was also thirsty, he accepted.

“Teacher Lu, I have some questions I need to ask!” Cheng Yu was the Urban Army’s general but he was not particularly skilled in the art of war. It was precisely because Cheng Yu knew of his weakness that he wanted to supplement his knowledge.

After talking for a while, they realized that it was almost time for lunch. “Come, Teacher Lu! Allow me to treat you to a meal today!”

“No, I cannot.”

“Teacher Lu, are you not giving me face?” Cheng Yu asked, feeling hurt.

“No. It is just that I have classes in the afternoon so I do not have the time to eat with you.” Lu Su explained.

“Haha. So this is the case. Do not worry. You do not need to teach this afternoon!” Cheng Yu laughed.

“General Cheng. What do you mean? Did Yangzhou find a better person to teach?” Lu Su asked. Even if he was a captive, he was still a talented person and had the pride of one. If he was being replaced, the person replacing him must also be talented.

“No!” Cheng Yu shook his head.

“Then why?” Lu Su asked angrily. Do they think he was that compliant?

“Oh! Teacher Lu, you have misunderstood me!” Cheng Yu explained. “It is not that we found someone else and it also not because Teacher Lu is not good enough. It is just that the Urban Army won’t have time to attend class!”

“Are they going on a campaign?” Lu Su made a guess before Cheng Yu could finish his explanation. The Urban Army was currently the group that has the most free time in Yangzhou. They weren’t even dispatched to the battle at Linhuai. Now, the Urban Army was going to be busy again.

“Jiangdong? No!” Lu Su asked and then immediately shook his head. Even though Yangzhou and Jingzhou were now allies and both were enemies with Jiangdong, there was no reason for Yangzhou to help Jingzhou for nothing. Besides that, as long as the Jiangdong Navy was around, Yangzhou’s infantries would have no hope of crossing over the Yangtze River.

“Xudou’s Cao Cao?” Lu Su wondered and then shook his head again. While most of Cao Cao’s forces were in the North, he still had enough soldiers guarding the South. Yangzhou would not provoke Cao Cao at this point in time especially when Cao Cao has a massive army.

“It must be Liu Bei!” Lu Su guessed but he still could not fully understand the situation.

“As expected of Teacher Lu!” Cheng Yu praised, knowing that he could not hide anything from Lu Su.

“General Cheng, there is something I don’t understand. Attack Yuzhou? Will Liu Biao agree to this?” Lu Su asked. Lu Su knew that Liu Mang went to Jingzhou to buy provisions. Liu Biao had also sold the provisions. However, attacking Liu Bei was a different matter. Liu Biao might actively try to prevent this from happening. Liu Bei and Liu Mang would keep each other in check and when Cao Cao attacks, they would end up allying with each other to fight back against Cao Cao. Jingzhou will stay safe the entire time.

If Liu Mang were to annex Yuzhou, he would dominate the Central Plains. If Liu Biao was afraid of Cao Cao, why would he not be afraid of Liu Mang?

“Haha! Teacher Lu! You must not have known!” Cheng Yu laughed and then told Lu Su about how Liu Bei attacked Fancheng and then threatened Liu Biao.

“Has Liu Bei gone mad?” Lu Su was stunned. Attacking Fancheng would offend Liu Biao. Liu Biao would not tolerate this even if he had a good temper. He then thought to himself about the benefits Liu Bei could obtain from attacking Fancheng.

When Cheng Yu talked about how Fancheng fell to Liu Bei in a day, Lu Su wondered if the defenders of Fancheng were idiots. What Lu Su did not know was that Liu Bei intended to act cautiously. He would only attack if it was possible. Nobody knew that Liu Mang also helped Liu Bei to open the gates.

However, if Liu Bei obtained Fancheng, then he would be able to expand his army. Yangzhou who desperately needs provisions should be waiting patiently for Jingzhou to provide provisions.

At this moment, Cheng Yu asked Lu Su about the taste of the steamed bun they had been eating in the past few days. He then said that this is made from the wheat obtained from Yuzhou.

Lu Su was shocked at this. If this was true, Liu Bei had truly suffered double the losses. He had offended people for nothing and was even beaten back to Yuzhou.

Yangzhou can now expand their army and easily capture Yuzhou. They would conquer the Central Plains and would have a chance to fight back against Cao Cao after Cao Cao conquers Hebei.

Lu Su initially thought that Yangzhou would lose the war. He did not really care since he can just go back to Jiangdong. However, the situation would be different if Yangzhou can conquer the Central Plains.

If Liu Mang could conquer the Central Plains, he would be the best Lord. Where else should Lu Su display his talents if not here?

“Teacher Lu? Teacher Lu?” Cheng Yu called out to Lu Su when he noticed Lu Su’s blank expression.

“Hm? General Cheng?” Lu Su finally responded after some time.

“Teacher Lu. You cannot decline my invitation this time!” Cheng Yu laughed.

“Of course! But can General Cheng agree to my condition?” Lu Su asked.

“Condition? Tell me what the condition is first.” Cheng Yu was a bit confused since he is just trying to invite Lu Su for a meal.

“Can General Cheng persuade Advisor Xu to allow me to accompany the Urban Army to Yuzhou?” Lu Su cupped his fist.

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“Go to Yuzhou? Why would you want to go there?” Cheng Yu was confused. Why would a scholar want to go to a warzone?

“As the saying goes, experience is worth more than knowledge.” Lu Su lied with a thick face. It is not like he could admit that he was now confident in Liu Mang and that he wanted the opportunity to meet Liu Mang.

“Of course. I will now go and find the Military Advisor at his home. Teacher Lu, make sure to keep the appointment.” Cheng Yu replied.

“Of course!” Lu Su nodded.

***

“Lu Su wants to accompany the Urban Army to Yuzhou?” Xu Shu asked doubtfully. He was in the official’s hall together with Cheng Yu and Liu Ye. Liu Ye looked like a tired peasant from a rural town as he had been at the dam. If he was not at the dam, he would be at the construction site.

“Yes!” Cheng Yu replied without hiding anything.

“What does he want to do there? Is he thinking of escaping?” Xu Shu asked as Lu Su had nowhere to go besides teach in Yangzhou. He assumed that Lu Su was looking for an opportunity to escape at Yuzhou.

“Err…” Cheng Yu did not know what to say. He could not guarantee that Lu Su had no intentions of escaping since they had been enemies.

“General Cheng. Tell us about your entire conversation with Lu Su in detail!” Xu Shu ordered.

Once Cheng Yu had finished explaining what happened, Liu Ye suddenly laughed.

“Ziyang. What is so funny?” Xu Shu asked. He could not find anything funny about this situation.

“Yuanzhi! It is such a rare thing for a stubborn person to be enlightened! Why should we not laugh at such good things?” Liu Ye laughed.

“Rare thing? Stubborn person? Lu Su Lu Zijing?”

“Precisely!” Liu Ye said with confidence. He was not smarter than Xu Shu but he was acquainted with Lu Su. He could tell that Lu Su wanted to join Yangzhou’s Army but was afraid of being mocked as he had previously vowed not to fight for Yangzhou. However, this would be different if he was just accompanying the soldiers. Any contributions made would be shared with the soldiers and it would be like he joined the army.

“In that case, we must definitely allow him to accompany us!” Xu Shu also laughed after hearing Liu Ye’s explanation. Xu Shu also knew that Lu Su was talented. Lu Su was Jiangdong’s strategist when they attacked Yangzhou. Although he was defeated, Lu Su was not the one at fault for the majority of it.

***

Liu Mang may be a hostage in Jingzhou but there were no restrictions placed on him regarding the flow of information from Yangzhou. If this was not the case, Liu Mang would have made a big fuss and caused everyone in Jingzhou to lose face.

“Is Yuanzhi ready?” Liu Mang asked as he read the letter.

“General Xu Shu is ready.” Jia Xu replied. The objective this time was Liu Bei and Yuzhou. Liu Bei had been fighting against them since Xuzhou and had almost caused the destruction of Yangzhou’s Army several times. It would be strange if Liu Mang did not hold a grudge.

As a result of Liu Mang’s plot, Liu Bei had lost a lot of his soldiers and most of his provisions. Liu Bei also ended up offending Liu Biao. At that moment, Liu Bei only had twenty thousand troops left. More importantly, his advisor Pang Tong was still missing. There was no better opportunity to strike against Liu Bei.

Yuzhou originally had nine counties. As Cao Cao had conquered three of those counties, Liu Bei was left with six counties with several hundred thousand people. Besides chasing away Liu Bei, Liu Mang also wanted these people to expand Yangzhou and control the Central Plains. Only by doing this can Liu Mang compete against Cao Cao.

Liu Mang had mobilized five thousand of the Urban Army and fifty thousand soldiers out of the three hundred thousand being trained by Huang Zhong. He took the outstanding learners from the Urban Army to become 100-man generals as well.

“The Black Flag Army had gone to Lujiang?” Liu Mang furrowed his brows. He wanted to show Liu Bei a large hand but the Black Flag Army who can be said to be one third of his strength was missing.

“This was not Military Advisor Xu Shu’s decision but Marquis Wen’s!” Jia Xu explained.

“It’s my father-in-law again!” Liu Mang said as he pinched his nose. He knew of Lu Bu’s intentions and could only smile wryly. Since Lu Bu transferred the Black Flag Army to Lujiang, the heavy infantries sent to replace the Black Flag Army in Yangzhou would be the Formation Breaker.

“Well. The Formation Breaker isn’t bad.” Liu Mang admitted. He was more afraid that the Xiliang Cavalry switched places with the Wolf Cavalry. Liu Mang could see it happening. Fortunately, it wasn’t the Xiliang Cavalry but the White Horses that were sent to Lujiang. Now, there were two heavy cavalries in Yangzhou.

For the cavalries, they had the Xiliang Cavalry and the Wolf Cavalry. Just five thousand of the Wolf Cavalry would be enough to fight back Liu Bei’s Xiliang Cavalry. Liu Mang’s Xiliang Cavalry also has superior equipment. It would be inevitable for Liu Bei to lose his Xiliang Cavalry.

For the infantries, the Urban Army and the Formation Breaker went up North. The Qingzhou Army numbering ten thousand would be unable to stop them. On top of that, there were still fifty thousand auxiliary troops.

“How is it going at Xinye?” Liu Mang asked. Yangzhou’s main army only needed to wait for provisions to arrive before they could set off.

“Milord have good foresight. Liu Qi is truly talented. With his help as governor, Xinye is well organized!” Jia Xu replied.

“Oh? Liu Moran is so capable?” Liu Mang did not station many soldiers at Xinye. There were only three thousand men there. To Jingzhou, this is something done in good faith.

Jingzhou had originally stationed twenty thousand soldiers at Xinye even though they had formed an alliance. Even after Fancheng was captured, Liu Biao did not move these soldiers. This showed how vigilant he was towards Yangzhou.

On the other hand, Liu Mang only stationed three thousand soldiers at Xinye. This was such a small number that it made those in Jingzhou feel ashamed, especially Huang She and his supporters. They had claimed that Yangzhou would surround and attack Jingzhou but what could three thousand soldiers do?

However, if Jingzhou’s officials had investigated Yangzhou’s general, they would find out that they had been tricked. This is because the general in charge of guarding Xinye was Hao Shao, someone so good at defending cities that he gave Zhuge Liang trouble. He was able to defend Guangzhou against an army several times larger than his own in a small county. As Xinye had been renovated by Jingzhou and also had the Yangtze River, its defenses was even stronger. Jingzhou would most likely need an army of fifty thousand to capture Xinye. Liu Mang could also reinforce Xinye with more troops once the battle starts.

“Huh?” Liu Mang saw the letter concerning Lu Su.

“What’s wrong?” Jia Xu asked. He had seldom seen Liu Mang display surprise.

“Does Wenhe know about Lu Su Lu Zijing?”

“Lu Su?” It was a name Jia Xu took note of after the battle at Lujiang.

“This Lu Su is a talented person!” This was Jia Xu’s crude evaluation of Lu Su. Although Lu Su was defeated in the battle at Lujiang, it was not his fault. The Zhou Family at Shucheng was a useless teammate that not only fail to capture Wancheng but also gave his heavy armor to the enemy. There were also the Jiangdong nobles who continued to impede each other because they wanted to gain merits with minimal costs.

Even with all this, Lu Su had a good strategy to lure the opponent out and capture Wancheng. It was unfortunate that his strategy failed in the face of superior technology. The ballista had completely changed the way ship battles were fought. It was unfair to have Lu Su compete against futuristic technology.

This person was kept in Yangzhou by Liu Mang as he was afraid of Lu Su. Pang Tong was enough of a headache. Although Liu Mang mocked Pang Tong, he knew that Liu Bei was only a problem because of Pang Tong. He could not allow Lu Su to join his enemies. He would rather Lu Su be executed.

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“Lu Su wants to accompany the Yuzhou Army. What do you think?” Liu Mang asked Jia Xu.

“Accompany the army?” Jia Xu was surprised but then he started laughing. “Congratulations Milord. You have produced another talented subordinate!” Jia Xu congratulated while not forgetting to flatter Liu Mang’s skill in finding good talents.

“You are truly sophisticated!” Liu Mang shook his head at Jia Xu. Xu Shu had mentioned in the letter saying that Liu Ye believes Lu Su wanted to join Liu Mang’s side. Liu Ye only knew this as he was acquainted with Lu Su. On the other hand, Jia Xu came to the same conclusion despite not knowing much about Lu Su.

Liu Mang was not afraid of Jia Xu’s knowledge. He was more afraid that Jia Xu would trick him while playing the fool.

Jia Xu can only laugh awkwardly when he was stared at by Liu Mang. He was starting to get accustomed to the cautious life of accompanying one’s sovereign. While others might like to be flattered in this way, Liu Mang hated it.

Liu Mang did not come from the era of humble flattery. If you are going to act humble by saying you are being overpraised, then it is better to just stand aside and let the modern competitive people step forward. At Yangzhou, Jia Xu was trying to be humble and avoid work. That was why Liu Mang dragged Jia Xu out to Jingzhou, where he had to do his best to survive.

“I want the army to set out in three days!” Liu Mang said. Yangzhou had already passed through their dangerous period. Once they capture Yuzhou, Yangzhou would be able to develop properly. Another benefit of obtaining Yuzhou is that Liu Mang would be able to return to Yangzhou. At that time, Liu Mang would become too powerful for Liu Biao to continue keeping him in Jingzhou. It would become Jingzhou who had to give Yangzhou face.

“Yes!” Jia Xu nodded. News that Yangzhou was preparing for war quickly spread throughout Yangzhou and Jingzhou.

***

On a fine day, a raised stage was set for the purpose of announcing appointments. The civil and military officials were all standing around it.

“Military Advisor. It is time.” One guard said to Xu Shu.

“N!” Xu Shu nodded. The ancient people were superstitious. They believed in things like lucky hours. While Xu Shu personally did not believe in such things, he had to pick those hours to raise morale.

With a clear and resounding voice, Xu Shu summoned the important officials to come up the stage. His messengers also helped spread the message with their loud voices.

One by one, all the officials such as Huang Zhong and Liu Ye stepped onto the stage. It did not matter if they were generals or if they were in charge of constructing a dam. It was a very important moment.

“In the past, our ancestor killed the snake, setting the foundation of the Han Dynasty from the violent Qin Dynasty! Recently, there was the Yellow Turban Rebellion which allowed the traitor Dong Zhuo to seize power. Fortunately, there was a hero that killed Dong Zhuo!” Xu Shu praised Lu Bu. Although the real reason was because of Diao Chan, Xu Shu made the story sound heroic. In the future, Lu Bu would no longer be known as the Slave of Three Surnames but a patriotic Han.

“Our Lord Liu Mang is rectifying the Han and was bestowed the title King of Shu! However, there is an impersonator in the West trying to start a rebellion!” Xu Shu said, referring to Liu Bei. If one wanted to dispatch troops, they needed a just cause. Fortunately, Liu Bei was not a saint. It was easy to find reasons to attack one covered in filth.

Xu Shu talked about how Liu Bei betrayed his teacher Lu Zhi, his fellow apprentice Gongsun Zan, and his old allies Tao Qian, Lu Bu and Cao Cao.

“Such a disloyal person must be destroyed for world peace!”

“Our Lord can conquer the Central Plains and bring peace to the world!”

“Kill! Kill!” The soldiers all shouted.

“Where are the generals?” Xu Shu shouted loudly.

“This general is present!” All the generals replied.

“Huang Zhong Huang Hansheng! When the Lord left for Jingzhou, you were given three hundred thousand men! How are they?”

“This general did not fail in his task! The three hundred thousand soldiers are ready to be dispatched with fifty thousand elites!” Huang Zhong replied loudly.

Xu Shu nodded at this. The three hundred thousand soldiers were fake but the fifty thousand soldiers were real. He waved his hand for Huang Zhong to withdraw.

“Where is Zhang Liao Zhang Wenyuan?” Zhang Liao was the next to be called according to their positions.

“This general is present!” Zhang Liao knelt. As Lu Bu and Liu Mang were not around, Xu Shu was the one in charge.

“How are the Xiliang Cavalry?”

“All five thousand warriors are ready for battle! Once the order is given, they will be the vanguards!” Zhang Liao said confidently. These five thousand men were already elites before being polished even further by Zhang Liao. On top of that, they have their new equipment.

“Kill! Kill!” The Xiliang Cavalry that were riding their horses outside shouted. The earth shook while dust clouds filled the air.

“The five thousand Urban Army is also ready!” The Urban Army were no longer rough like before. They were now wise and farsighted.

Aside from the generals that were needed to review the troops, Liu Mang made his entire army do a military parade outside Shouchun. This is to announce to the spies that Yangzhou was going to attack Liu Bei and that they should not interfere if they were tactful.

Xu Shu then started giving orders, starting with Zhang Liao.

“Zhang Liao Zhang Wenyuan! You are to lead your Xiliang Cavalry as the vanguard and create a path for the rest of the army!” Xu Shu had discussed this with the military and civil officials. By sending out the heavy cavalry first, they would make those in Yuzhou to feel nervous. By the time the infantry arrives, their enemies in Yuzhou would already be exhausted.

“This general accepts the order!” Zhang Liao took the command plate. This time, Zhang Liao was not the Commander-in-chief. This is simply because there was someone of higher rank than him participating in the battle. Who could compete for this position against Lu Bu?

“Cheng Yu! You are to support the Xiliang Cavalry by covering their rear and also create a path for the rest of the army!”

“Yes!”

“Xu Sheng! You are to take your men to Lujiang and exchange positions with General Gao Shun! Listen to Military Advisor Chen Gong’s commands!”

“This general accepts the order!” Xu Sheng was not happy with this but nonetheless accepted the order.

Bringing up the rear and transporting the provisions were fifty thousand auxiliary troops. They were now truly part of Yangzhou’s Army. All of their 100-men commanders were elites from the Urban Army. If these troops could do well, Liu Mang could easily bring out another fifty thousand troops no weaker than the Qingzhou Yellow Turban’s elites.

Lu Su was also given a job by Xu Shu to handle the provisions.

Yangzhou had dispatched a total of seventy thousand troops to attack Yuzhou but in terms of strength, they were a hundred thousand men strong. The people of Yuzhou panicked as the rest of the world once again turn their eyes towards the Central Plains.