Lu Xuan led the people outside the camp, and the sound of increasingly passionate war drums could be heard in the distance.
The sound of drums rumbled, resounding throughout the heaven and earth.
In the distance, on the official road leading to Xuyi County, a large army came galloping forward. First came a cavalry of more than a thousand people. The horses galloped, trampled by horse hooves, and rolled up countless smoke and dust. The cavalry was fierce.
Then, there was the dark army, with flags flying in the air, showing an impressive momentum.
After Lu Xuan saw it, a trace of appreciation flashed in his eyes.
Almost all of Liu Bei's cavalry were brought from the north. They were elites who had followed Liu Bei for many years and had very strong combat effectiveness.
During the period when Liu Bei was in Gongsun Zan, Zhao Yun got along with Liu Bei for a period of time. Zhao Yun trained the cavalry for Liu Bei and ensured the combat effectiveness of this group of cavalry. Although Zhao Yun returned to his hometown in the north, the foundation of Liu Bei's cavalry was extremely solid.
In addition, Liu Bei's infantry consists mainly of Tao Qian's Danyang soldiers and elite soldiers recruited from Xuzhou, with a number of about 20,000.
Liu Bei's military strength is not weak.
Lu Xuan waited quietly. After a while, the cavalry stopped and the infantry formed a formation.
Liu Bei put on armor and rode out.
He came to the front of the formation, but did not stop. Under the protection of his personal guards, he continued to walk forward and stopped eighty steps away from Lu Xuan's camp. Liu Bei's eyes were bright and he shouted loudly: "The great Han Xuzhou Mu Liu Bei
, I am waiting here for Ambassador Lu. I wonder if Ambassador Lu dare to leave the camp for a while?"
"My lord, no."
Kuai Liang immediately advised: "Liu Bei is said to be unparalleled in benevolence and righteousness. But Chen Deng, who is beside Liu Bei, acts ruthlessly and does things regardless of means. Such a person is quite dangerous. Please think twice, lord."
Zhou Yu echoed: "There is no need to go out. My lord just needs to talk to Liu Bei at the gate of the camp."
Other people gave advice one after another.
Lu Xuan looked relaxed and chuckled: "When my army arrived in Xuyi County, Liu Bei was too scared to leave the camp. That's a joke."
He got on his horse and rode out.
Zhou Tai led He Laoliu and other personal guards, quickly followed, and left the camp with Lu Xuan.
Not long after, Lu Xuan and Liu Bei met outside the camp.
The two sides were only ten steps apart, and both could clearly see the expressions on each other's faces.
Liu Bei smiled slightly and said: "When Lu Shijun was in his early twenties, he took charge of one side and made great military exploits. I think back then, when I was this age, I was still struggling around. Comparing people with each other made me angry.
Dead man, Liu Bei is nothing compared to Lu Shijun."
Lu Xuan said: "Liu Shijun is too humble. Lu Xuan's current achievements are all just a coincidence. Are you planning to talk to me about Mi Zhu when you called me out today?"
The pupils in Liu Bei's eyes shrank.
Somewhat surprised.
Lu Xuan took the initiative to talk about Mi Zhu's affairs. This was to seize the initiative and avoid being passive.
Liu Bei found that Lu Xuan was difficult to deal with, so he cheered up and said with a smile: "Lu Shijun is indeed young and smart. When I talk to Lu Shijun this time, I really want to talk about Mi Zhu."
Lu Xuan raised his head and glanced at the personal guards behind Liu Bei.
Liu Bei brought more than ten personal guards.
They are all elite soldiers.
But Lu Xuan's eyes suddenly looked at one of them.
This man's skin is fairer. Even though he is wearing the clothes of ordinary guards, standing among the guards is completely different from ordinary guards. People who are soldiers and people who are not soldiers are completely different concepts.
The most important point is that this man's appearance is somewhat similar to Mi Fang's.
Lu Xuan instantly judged his identity.
This is Mi Zhu.
Lu Xuan felt confident and said with a smile: "Liu Bei, when you talked to me about Mi Zhu, you planned to coerce me, saying that if I withdraw, you will release Mi Zhu. If I don't withdraw, you will kill Mi Zhu, right?
?”
Liu Bei's expression changed drastically.
Even though he was calm and determined, he couldn't help being shocked.
From the beginning, Lu Xuan was the first to talk about Mi Zhu's things, and he controlled the rhythm. He talked about Mi Zhu's things first, and directly guessed Liu Bei's next words.
For a moment, Liu Bei didn't know what to say.
His rhetoric was snatched away by Lu Xuan.
Liu Bei raised his hand to stroke his beard to hide the embarrassment on his face, shook his head and said: "Lu Shijun, I..."
"Don't talk."
Lu Xuan reached out his hand again to stop Liu Bei from speaking.
Liu Bei frowned deeply. He never thought that he would be so passive when facing Lu Xuan.
Liu Bei was unwilling to be suppressed and said again: "Lu Xuan, you..."
"Do not talk."
Lu Xuan interrupted again, his eyes were sharp and he said sternly: "If I'm not mistaken, among the guards behind you is Mi Zhu. You pretended to negotiate with me in front of Mi Zhu because you wanted to negotiate with me.
To achieve the purpose of driving a wedge between Mi Zhu and me."
"Your means of alienation are too simple."
"Threat me to withdraw my troops and agree to release Mi Zhu. If I refuse, tell Mi Zhu and the soldiers under my command that the people Mi Zhu is loyal to are cold and ruthless. They don't take their subordinates into consideration and don't care about their lives at all."
"So, it's not worth being loyal to Lu Xuan."
"Further, you can use this to undermine my military morale."
"right?"
"Is this the rhetoric?"
Lu Xuan shook his head and sighed: "Liu Bei, this method is too despicable. I heard that you, Liu Bei, are a benevolent and righteous person, and you take benevolence and righteousness as your benchmark. Now you are playing tricks, showing off your tricks, and manipulating people's hearts. This is true.
Is it benevolent?"
Ding!
Liu Bei's heart suddenly jumped.
He looked at Lu Xuan in front of him and was shocked as never before.
He participated in the crusade against the Yellow Turbans in his early years. It has been more than ten years now and he has met countless people. From high-ranking officials and nobles to traffickers and lackeys, no matter who they are, Liu Bei can communicate well and deal with them well.
The Lu Xuan in front of him was so unexpected.
Liu Bei was stunned.
For a moment, he didn't know how to explain it.
If Liu Bei didn't bring Mi Zhu out, he could deny it and deny Lu Xuan's words. Anyway, denying Lu Xuan's words would have no impact. However, Liu Bei brought Mi Zhu out in order to let Mi Zhu see Lu Xuan's true face.
The most important point is that yesterday he met Mi Zhu specifically and made a promise, saying that after testing Lu Xuan, Mi Zhu would be released no matter what the outcome.
Now, his temptation has lost its effect.
Lu Xuan blocked his mouth with benevolence and righteousness. If Liu Bei made the conditions openly again, it would be a slap in his own face.
Benevolence and righteousness are Liu Bei's bottom line.
It's the basis of how he does things.
Once he loses this foundation, he will have no other outstanding features, so Liu Bei cannot give up no matter what.
After all, Liu Bei is an experienced person. He instantly adjusted his mentality and cheered up: "Lu Shijun is young and promising, and his eyes are very discerning. I came to negotiate this time, and I did bring Mi Zhu with me."
"But, I don't intend to threaten you."
"I just told Mi Zhu that I wanted to see how Lu Shijun responded. And I said that Mi Zhu would be released no matter what. Now that Lu Shijun has made a breakthrough, there is nothing to say. I will release Mi Zhu."
Liu Bei looked at Mi Zhu and said solemnly: "Zizhong, you and I have not been together for long, but we fell in love with each other at first sight. Although I am reluctant to let you go, it is useless to keep you now. I will let you go back."