Chapter 252: With our absolute advantage, does it matter if he surrenders for real or for show? Ten times the number of troops, the final battle to encircle and kill Lu Bu!
Chen Gong, Lu Bu's strategist.

But at the critical moment when Shouchun City was in turmoil and Lu Bu was about to be destroyed, he suddenly sent his confidant to meet him in secret!

Could it be that Chen Gong also plans to betray Lu Bu?

This thought flashed through Liu Bei's mind, but he immediately felt it was a bit ridiculous.

Chen Gong was Lu Bu's chief adviser and had followed Lu Bu since their time in Yanzhou. He had been with Lu Bu through many ups and downs and had never betrayed him.

Are you going to betray Lu Bu this time?

"My Lord, please meet this confidant of Chen Gong first and hear what he has to say."

Xiao Fang also had the same curiosity in his heart.

Liu Bei then suppressed his suspicion and ordered the confidant to be brought in.

A moment.

A man in black was escorted into the tent and knelt before Liu Bei.

"I am here on the orders of my master to express my intention to surrender to General Zuo. I hope you will accept my offer."

There was an uproar in the tent.

Be it Old Liu or the other generals, all of them looked surprised.

Chen Gong, the strategist who had followed Lu Bu for many years and never left him, actually wanted to betray Lu Bu and turn to Liu Bang.

"Chen Gongtai was Lu Bu's strategist. Lu Bu listened to him and respected him very much. Is he really going to betray Lu Bu?"

Liu Bei naturally didn't believe it so easily and questioned it immediately.

"My master said that if Lu Bu had taken his words seriously and followed his advice, he would not have been defeated by Cao Cao and lost Yanzhou."

"Back then, he welcomed Lu Bu, only because he mistakenly believed that Lu Bu was the hero who killed Dong Zhuo and a loyal minister of the Han Dynasty, and that he could serve him as his leader to deal with Cao Cao, the brutal Han thief!"

"Now he finally sees clearly that Lu Bu is nothing but a fickle, disloyal, heartless and shameless villain!"

"Now he has finally come to his senses and decided to abandon Lu Bu and join General Zuo, a truly benevolent and wise leader!"

"I also ask General Zuo to be magnanimous and give him a chance to assist General Zuo in supporting the Han Dynasty, so as to make up for the various mistakes he made in following Lu Bu before!"

The black-clad man's righteous defense revealed Chen Gong's motive for abandoning Lu Bu.

Liu Bei stroked his thin beard and looked at the man in black, savoring the reasons he gave.

He is no longer the Liu Xuande who was naive and cunning in political strategy. Even if the man in black said something very convincing and his reasons seemed perfect, it is not so easy to believe him.

"My master has entrusted me with a secret letter to General Zuo as a token of his sincerity in surrendering."

"My master said that this letter can help General Zuo to kill Lu Bu in one fell swoop, in order to avenge his theft of Xuzhou."

Seeing that Liu Bei didn't believe him, the man in black took out another secret letter from his arms and presented it to him with both hands.

Liu Bei's eyes lit up slightly, and he ordered Chen Dao to read the secret letter out in public.

Chen Dao took the secret letter, cleared his throat, and read it aloud in the tent.

As the generals listened, their eyes lit up.

Chen Gong declared that Lu Bu had decided to abandon Shouchun and lead his troops to break out and join Yuan Shao.

Tonight, Lu Bu will order Gao Shun to lead more than 3,000 soldiers and horses to break out from the east gate under his banner, pretending to go to Xuzhou to surrender to Yuan Tan.

Lü Bu himself would take advantage of the fact that Liu Bei's main troops were in the east and the north was left with few troops, and lead his troops to break out from the north gate, seize the warships of the water camp, cross the Huai River, and go north to Guandu to surrender to Yuan Shao.

Chen Gong presented this secret to Liu Bei as a gift to show his sincerity in surrendering.

"military adviser!"

Liu Bei couldn't help but look at Xiao Fang.

Facts have proved that Xiao Fang's judgment was correct, and Lu Bu really wanted to break through.

If Chen Gong's letter was genuine, it would mean that he had revealed all of Lu Bu's plans for escape.

Then all he had to do was to deploy heavy troops to the north of Shouchun, and then he could wait for Lu Bu to take the bait and annihilate him in one fell swoop!
But the prerequisite is that Chen Gong's surrender is genuine and the information in this secret letter is true.

"Does your master really want to surrender to my Lord?"

Xiao Fang's sharp eyes shot towards the man in black, as if he wanted to see through his heart.

The man in black looked generous and said with a salutation:
"I, your master, swear to heaven that if he does not sincerely submit to General Zuo, I will sever his head and body and leave him without a burial place!"

Xiao Fang nodded slightly and said:
"Then you should reply to your master, and my lord will treat him like a gentleman and believe his oath."

"You must remind him of his oath. If he betrays me and falls into my hands in the future, don't blame me for being merciless!"

What this meant, of course, was that he believed Chen Gong's surrender.

Xiao Fang expressed his opinion like this, so Lao Liu naturally believed it and said happily:
"What the military advisor said also means to be prepared."

"Then you should return to Shouchun as soon as possible and report back to Chen Gongtai. I, Liu Bei, have prepared a welcome drink in my tent, waiting for you to drink and discuss the world with me!"

The man in black was overjoyed. He thanked Liu Bei again and again, then left excitedly.

"Jinglue, do you really believe that Chen Gong is sincere in surrendering?"

As soon as the man in black left, Lao Liu asked.

This time, it was Old Liu's turn to be cautious, and he was still suspicious of Chen Gong's surrender.

Xiao Fang was quite familiar with Chen Gong.

This man decisively betrayed Cao Cao when Cao Cao attacked Xuzhou, stabbed Cao Cao in the back and wanted to kill him. It is obvious that he is not a good person.

After all, Cao Cao was his lord. Even if he did not treat him with the same absolute trust as he did Xun Yu, at least he did not treat him unfairly.

Chen Gong was able to launch a rebellion and betray Cao Cao under such circumstances, simply because of political differences and because Cao Cao was not controlled by the Yanzhou gentry. This shows his character. It may be a bit too much to describe him as disloyal and unrighteous, but it is far from the image of uprightness and loyalty in later generations.

Moreover, Xiao Fang remembered that in history, when Cao Cao attacked Xuzhou, Chen Gong, facing the unfavorable situation of Lu Bu's defeat, had colluded with his subordinates such as Hao Meng to launch a mutiny to seize Lu Bu's military power.

Given this dark history, it is not unreasonable for Chen Gong to choose to abandon Lu Bu again in this critical moment.

Furthermore, given Lu Bu's character, it would be strange if his subordinates did not betray him.

"Whether Chen Gong surrendered sincerely or pretended to surrender, it doesn't really matter."

"As for the plan he revealed about Lu Bu's escape, whether it's true or false, it doesn't matter."

"My lord, you only need to know that our goal is to capture Shouchun and kill Lu Bu. As for whether Chen Gong surrendered truly or falsely, it is irrelevant and will not affect the overall situation."

Xiao Fang gave his conclusion in a calm tone.

Liu Bei's heart was slightly shocked, he seemed to understand but not quite, he could only say:

"I still don't quite understand what you said, Military Advisor. Please explain it to me."

Xiao Fang then ordered his soldiers to move the Shouchun sand table back into the big tent.

"Before the so-called confidant of Chen Gong came, we had already determined that Lu Bu would abandon the city and break out. The next thing we need to confirm is where he will break out from."

"My lord, please see that Cao Cao is in a critical situation. After Lu Bu breaks out, he will definitely not surrender to Cao, but only to Yuan."

"Since you want to surrender to Yuan, you only have two options: either go east to Xuzhou to surrender to Yuan Tan, or go north across the Huai River to Guandu to surrender to Yuan Shao."

"This means that Lu Bu's escape direction can be narrowed down to the north and east."

Xiao Fang pointed his feather fan at the sand table and continued:

"And the number of soldiers that Lu Bu can use now is about 8,000 at most, while our army currently has at least 70,000 soldiers besieging the city."

"This means that we can at least deploy about 30,000 troops in the north and east to block Lu Bu's breakout."

"So whether or not Lu Bu uses the strategy of making a feint to the east and attacking the west that Chen Gong mentioned, our forces in both directions have an absolute advantage and are enough to intercept Lu Bu and prevent him from escaping."

After analyzing the comparison of military strength, Xiao Fang put away his feather fan and bowed, saying:
"So, Fang's strategy is that you can deploy 30,000 troops in the north and east to block the enemy, and respond to all changes with the same strategy."

"In this case, we don't need to worry about whether Chen Gong surrendered sincerely or pretended to surrender, and we don't need to worry about whether Lu Bu divided his troops to attack the east and west, or concentrated all his forces to break out from one side. They can't escape the palm of your hand."

"In the face of our absolute military superiority, no matter how Lu Bu jumps up and down, it is nothing more than a dying struggle!"

Xiao Fang proposed a strategy to encircle and kill Lu Bu.

Liu Bei stared at the sand table, chewing on every word Xiao Fang said. He gradually understood and a resolute and cold look gradually ignited in his eyes.

He suddenly remembered that his current strength was so strong that even he himself was not used to it.

Seventy thousand versus eight thousand, a nearly ten-fold advantage in military strength. Whether Chen Gong surrenders or not really has nothing to do with the overall situation.

"The military advisor is right. In the face of an absolute military advantage, no matter how Lu Bu tries to break out, it will only be a desperate struggle!"

"Just as the military advisor said, we will deploy heavy troops in the north and east, waiting for Lu Bu to fall into the trap."

"This time, I will destroy Lu Bu!"

...

It is late at the east gate of Shouchun.

Eight thousand soldiers of the Lu army have gathered at the foot of the city, and all of them look nervous and anxious.

Lu Bu held the halberd in his hand and stared at the water outside the city, as if he was making a final decision.

"Marquis Wen, the water level outside has dropped to the knees, enough for the soldiers to wade and march."

"The time is almost right, let's go."

Gao Shun stepped forward and asked for instructions.

Lu Bu withdrew his thoughts from reality, took a deep breath, and shouted in a deep voice:
"Gao Boping, I order you to lead 3,000 soldiers as the vanguard and clear the way. I will personally lead the main force to follow."

"Remember, if you are blocked by the enemy, just charge forward. Do not retreat even a single step without my order!"

Gao Shun's heart was shocked and a hint of surprise flashed in his eyes.

He obviously did not expect that at this critical moment, Lu Bu would entrust him with an important task and make him the vanguard.

You know, since the battle of Xuzhou, when his Xianzhen Camp was destroyed, Lu Bu has rarely entrusted him with important tasks.

Now that he has regained trust, Gao Shun was moved and said:

"Don't worry, Lord Wen. Shun will fight to the death and carve out a bloody path for Lord Wen!"

Lu Bu showed satisfaction and patted him on the shoulder:

"Bo Ping, whether I, Lü Bu, can survive this disaster depends entirely on you."

"It's getting late, let's go."

Gao Shun did not hesitate, bowed and said goodbye, then left the city with his sword in hand.

The city gate was opened, the drawbridge was lowered, Gao Shun rode his horse, sword in hand, and led three thousand soldiers, waded out of the city, and marched eastward.

Lu Bu stood on the top of the city wall, watching Gao Shun and the three thousand vanguard troops go away and disappear into the night.

"Gao Boping, since you are loyal to me, fight to the death tonight to prove your loyalty to me to the world..."

After muttering to himself, Lu Bu swung his halberd and shouted:
"Pass the order down, the remaining troops, immediately turn to the north gate to break out!"

As soon as this order came out, the faces of the three generals, Cao Xing, Hao Meng and Wei Xu, changed drastically.

(End of this chapter)