Chapter 16 How dare Liu Bei tease me? Lu Bu's face is a little swollen!
Xia Pi City, the provincial capital.

Another banquet is going on.

The new ruler of Xuzhou was in high spirits at the moment, and was drinking with his generals with a smile on his face.

This was the nth time that Lu Bu had held a banquet since he captured Xia Pi, expressing his joy at having turned the tables and become the master of a region again.

"Father-in-law, the reason why I can sit here today is none other than you."

"Gongtai, if it weren't for your plan, I wouldn't have been able to successfully launch a surprise attack on Xia Pi."

"You two have made great contributions. This glass of wine is in honor of you."

Lu Bu raised his wine glass high and praised the two men.

Cao Bao laughed and drank the glass in one gulp.

Chen Gong did not move the wine glass in his hand, and there was no smile on his face. Instead, he looked like he was worried.

Lu Bu was displeased and swallowed his saliva:
"Gongtai, although we lost Yanzhou, we have now gained Xuzhou. Why are you still so sad?"

Chen Gong was startled, his brows furrowed, and he put down the wine glass in his hand.

"Marquis Wen currently controls only the two counties of Pengcheng and Xiapi. It is still too early for him to control Xuzhou."

"Now that Yuan Gonglu has taken over Guangling, given his ambition, he will not be satisfied with just controlling Xuzhou through an alliance with Wenhou."

"The alliance between Wenhou and Yuan Shu is extremely fragile. Yuan Shu may break the alliance and seize Xuzhou by force at any time."

"Although Liu Bei suffered two disastrous defeats, he is still alive. Now he has retreated to Haixi and received support from the Mi family. His vitality will surely recover."

"And in the west, Cao Cao and Wen Hou are mortal enemies, and they are determined to take Xuzhou. How can they tolerate Wen Hou occupying Xuzhou?"

"With such internal and external troubles, it is really not the time for Marquis Wen to host a banquet and enjoy himself."

Chen Gong acted like a wise man, analyzed the situation eloquently, and gave Lu Bu earnest reminders and warnings.

A sneer appeared on Lu Bu's lips, which contained a hint of sarcasm, as if he was mocking Chen Gong's unfounded worries.

"Gongtai, do you really think that I'm hosting this banquet because I'm slacking off?"

"I have already thought of a solution to your concerns!"

Lu Bu was playing with the wine glass, with a conceited sneer on his sharp face.

Chen Gong was stunned and looked at Lu Bu with a blank look.

"As the saying goes, if Liu Bei dies, I will have to face Yuan Shu and Cao Cao alone."

"So not only will I not force Liu Bei to death, I have also sent Cao Xing to Haixi to persuade Liu Bei to surrender to me."

"Given Liu Da'er's current predicament, if he knew that I had spared his life, he would surely be overjoyed and grateful, and would gladly surrender."

"After he surrenders, I intend to follow his previous treatment of me and place him in Xiaopei."

"In this case, what do I have to fear from Cao Cao and Yuan Shu?"

With a conceited smile on his face, Lu Bu revealed his plan.

Chen Gong suddenly realized that it was no wonder that Cao Xing was not present.

It turned out that Lu Bu had concealed it from him and sent his confidant Cao Xing to Haixi to persuade Liu Bei to surrender.

Xiaopei is located northwest of Xia Pi, and can be used to resist Cao Cao's attack to the west.

To the south, it formed a pincer attack with Xia Pi to prevent Yuan Shu from outflanking Xia Pi's flank.

In other words, this move not only eliminated the internal threat of Liu Bei, but also prevented the external threats of Cao Cao and Yuan Shu.

"I didn't expect that Marquis Wen had already made such a brilliant plan in secret. This plan can be said to kill three birds with one stone. It's brilliant, brilliant!"

Chen Gong's face turned from cloudy to bright, and he couldn't help but reveal that he was looking at him with new eyes.

Lu Bu's eyes lit up with pride, and he sneered:

"Everyone in the world thinks that I am just a brave but foolish warrior. Unfortunately, they all underestimate me!"

Cao Bao and other Danyang military leaders, Wei Xu and other generals, all hurriedly agreed and congratulated him.

Lu Bu laughed and raised his glass again:

"Gongtai, stop worrying and have a good drink with me."

"After we finish drinking, maybe Cao Xing will have already brought Liu Bei's letter of surrender..."

The words are not finished yet.

The sound of hurried footsteps interrupted the moment when a general, looking hurried, rushed into the hall.

"I pay my respects to Lord Wen!"

The one half-kneeling on the ground is Cao Xing.

"What I said really came true. Cao Xing has indeed returned."

Lu Bu's smile became more and more proud, and he stretched out his hand:
"You've worked hard on this trip. Where is Liu Bei's letter of surrender? Present it to me."

Cao Xing looked embarrassed, but he saluted and said:
"Reporting to Lord Wen, I went to Haixi but found nothing. Liu Bei is no longer here!"

Lu Bu was stunned and the smile on his face disappeared instantly.

Chen Gong also put down his wine glass and looked at Cao Xing with vigilance.

"What do you mean when you say Liu Bei is gone?"

Lu Bu suddenly sat up straight and shouted sternly.

"When I went to Haixi, Haixi City was already an empty city without a single soldier." "After investigation, I learned that Liu Bei had led his army to sail south a few days ago, and the Mi family had also emptied their money and property and left with Liu Bei!"

There was an immediate uproar in the lobby.

Lu Bu was stunned, his face full of shock and astonishment, his body stiffened there.

Just a moment ago, he was still full of confidence, believing that Liu Bei would be sensible and beg.

In the blink of an eye, Liu Bei ran away?

Lu Bu felt like he was being made fun of.

"The big-eared thief actually refused to surrender to me and went south to the sea?"

"What does he want to do? Where is he going to escape to?"

Lu Bu became furious and slammed the table and shouted.

Cao Xing's forehead was covered with sweat and he had no idea how to answer.

Chen Gong jumped up, walked a few steps to the map, and scanned the map with surprised eyes.

After a moment, the surprise on his face turned into astonishment.

"Guangling has been occupied by Yuan Shu, and Jiangdong is also under the control of Sun Ce. It is impossible for Liu Bei to go to these two places when he goes south."

"I guess Liu Bei wants to go west along the Huai River and then go to Runan via the Wo River."

"Cao Cao and Yuan Shu's forces have weak control over Runan. Liu Bei must want to seize Runan as his foothold!"

Chen Gong took a picture of the map and figured out the mystery.

Then there was a strange look in his eyes, and he murmured:
"Liu Bei's move of escaping from a desperate situation can be regarded as a brilliant strategy for survival."

"But his subordinates, such as Sun Qian and Jian Yong, are all mediocre. Who came up with this brilliant plan for him to escape?"

While Chen Gong was speculating, Lu Bu came to the map, his thoughts racing, staring at it for a while, and finally he understood.

"You big-eared thief, I wanted to give you a way out, but you didn't know what was best for you and actually wanted to escape!"

"Do you think you can escape from my grasp?"

Lu Bu turned around angrily, waved his hand and shouted:

"Pass the order down, gather three thousand soldiers and horses immediately, I will personally pursue Liu Bei!"

This statement came out.

Chen Gong's face changed and he urged:
"Marquis Wen, calm down. Xia Pi has just been pacified. How can Marquis Wen lead his army far away so easily?"

"I'm afraid Liu Bei has already passed Xutai by now. Even if Wen Hou chases him, I'm afraid he won't be able to catch up!"

Lu Bu's anger was immediately extinguished by Chen Gong's words, and he calmed down.

"Chen Gong is right. If I lead my army far away, what should I do if Yuan Shu follows my example and launches a surprise attack on Xia Pi?"

"I can't bear to let the big-eared thief get away like this~~"

Lu Bu weighed the pros and cons in his mind and clenched his fists.

At this time.

Seeing this, Cao Bao stepped forward and asked generously:

"Marquis Wen, Leopard knows the terrain of Xia Pi very well. I am willing to lead my Danyang army to pursue the big-eared thief!"

Cao Bao betrayed Liu Bei, so he was naturally afraid that Liu Bei would flee to Runan and make a comeback one day.

What if Liu Bei returns to Xuzhou one day and comes to settle the score with me?
The best option would naturally be to take advantage of the fact that Liu Bei is still weak and unwilling to surrender to Lu Bu and wipe him out in one fell swoop.

When Lu Bu heard this, he immediately became excited and said happily:
"Okay, okay, father-in-law, you will lead your troops to the west immediately and kill that big-eared thief for me!"

"promise!"

Cao Bao got the order and left in a hurry.

Lu Bu personally escorted him out of the hall and looked towards the Huai River with a cold look in his eyes.

"Big-eared thief, if you can't be used by me, don't blame me for being ruthless!"

...

Huai River, Xutai River Basin.

At dusk, Liu Jun's fleet, disguised as merchant ships, arrived here.

Liu Bei and Xiao Fang stood side by side and looked towards the north bank.

This city, which originally belonged to him, now has a flag with the word "Yuan" on it.

At the ferry terminal, there were dozens of grain ships docked, and Yuan army soldiers were unloading grain from the ships continuously.

"Yuan Shu~~"

Liu Bei clenched his fists slightly, with a hint of annoyance in his eyes.

The fact that he was the governor of a state and had to leave his hometown was naturally due to Yuan Shu's contribution.

Although Liu Bei had a good temper, how could he not have some hatred towards Yuan Shu?

Xiao Fangyuan looked towards the direction of Xuyi, and a gleam of light suddenly flashed in his eyes.

"My lord, let's take advantage of this opportunity to break through Xutai and rob Yuan Shu's food and supplies. This will also be a way for us to vent our anger before we leave."

(End of this chapter)