Chapter 415 The moment of unification! [Votes requested]

It's raining.

Cao Wei's army had cut off the connection between Shudu and surrounding cities.

Continuing to the south, generals such as Cao Ren and the regular troops captured cities in Shu and swept away the enemy.

In fact, there are not many enemy troops left.

Liu Bei was in charge of Yizhou for only two years, and his initial accession to the throne was not orthodox, so his foundation was not solid.

He was defeated in this battle without any power to resist, and it was not a defeat that happened overnight.

Instead, it was the advantages that Cao Wei had accumulated in the past that burst out at this moment and conquered Yizhou.

It rains continuously.

Cao Cao’s tent was not far outside the city.

Yizhou's counterattack was no longer effective and it no longer had the ability to leave the city to attack Cao's camp.

So Cao's camp was outside the city.

Cao Cao stood in the big tent of the camp, on a small hill, looking out at the city ahead.

In addition to Dian Wei and Xu Chu behind him, there was another person, the detained Zhang Fei.

After he was captured alive, he was like a dead pig, not afraid of boiling water. He was let go of his arms, ate and drank every day, and slept when it was time.

Because Cao Cao had captured him once before and spared his life.

So when Zhang Fei was captured this time, he actually learned how to be polite.

Given his temper, anyone else would have cursed at him.

But he couldn't curse Cao Cao and was very honest.

"Zhang Yide, will you surrender?" The speaker was Xu Chu.

Zhang Fei shook his head: "My two brothers and I have sworn brotherhood, and I will never serve two masters."

He paused and looked at Cao Cao not far away: "We can't beat you, we have to admit it.

If it were anyone else, even if I couldn't beat him, I would fight him to the end, and at most I would die. I, Zhang Fei, can't be a traitor."

"But Cao Mengde, you have lost, so I have nothing to say.

You fought against foreign tribes. Although I followed my elder brother and wandered around, every time I heard that you killed foreign tribes, I felt happy.

Although you are hostile to my brother, I don't hate you."

“It’s a pity that my eldest brother was forced to run around because of you.

Otherwise, if my brother were in your position, he would not do worse than you."

Cao Cao looked at the light rain outside the tent and said calmly:
"Liu Xuande always thought about making a difference one day."

"But if he doesn't read history books, doesn't know history, and doesn't value learning, how can he govern the country?
Does he know when and what strategies to implement to benefit the people?

"Being an emperor is completely different from fighting for the world and winning people's hearts by virtue of benevolence and righteousness. He won't be able to go far on the path of being an emperor."

Zhang Fei opened his mouth and wanted to refute.

But after thinking about it, there seems to be nothing to refute.

Cao Cao was not belittling Liu Bei.

In history, after Liu Bei gained power, he was tricked by the Jiangdong people and became so happy that he forgot about his former homeland and indulged himself in being surrounded by beautiful women in gorgeous clothes.

It’s not that he is a bad person, but he can’t become a powerful ruler.

Liu Bei often acted on impulse, for example, he indulged Zhang Fei, Guan Yu, and some people around him and did not correct their mistakes.

By analogy, he may not see clearly or deliberately take it lightly and fail to enforce the law.

His character of magnifying small things led to the subsequent defeat at Yiling.

Cao Cao said, "My men will attack the city later. After they capture the city, I will kill Liu Bei first, then Guan Yu, and finally you.

Let the three of you brothers die together."

Zhang Fei was stunned: "You want to kill my brother?"

Cao Cao: "Should we keep him? Is he a military man who can stabilize the country, or a scholar who can keep the country safe? What's the point of keeping him?"

Zhang Fei's eyes widened, and he suddenly asked, "If I fight for you, can I save my brother's life?"

Cao Cao sneered: "I have thousands of generals and civil officials under my command. Do you think I should release Liu Bei?"

Zhang Fei said anxiously:

“Now that you have conquered the world, my brothers have almost no one they can trust except me and my second brother.

He himself is not a fool. As long as the world is at peace, he will never take any action that would lead to his own death.

What's more, if you let him go, I will serve you and never do it again, what do you think?"

Zhang Fei and Guan Yu are generals who can compete with Zhao Yun and Huang Zhong.

These two men are like two sharp blades. If used against others, they are weapons of killing.

Only Cao Cao had many powerful generals under his command who could suppress the two men and prevent them from making any big waves.

But they were closely tied to Liu Bei and it was difficult to persuade them to rebel.

In history, Cao Cao tried every possible means but failed to get Guan Yu to join him.

Of course, for a period of time, Guan Yu had some ideas.

But Cao Cao's attempt to marry Madam Du failed.

Cao Cao certainly loved talents and wanted to unite the internal strength of China for external use.

How much strength you can unite largely determines how much you can accomplish. This is an iron rule.

But he doesn't have to choose Guan Yu or Zhang Fei.

Conquering Yizhou was his last chance for Liu Bei, Guan Yu and Zhang Fei.

If Guan Yu and Zhang Fei did not surrender, Cao Cao would not have kept them.

And Liu Bei is more like a key.

At this moment, Zhang Fei wanted to save his life, and unknowingly changed his attitude and offered to serve him.

Because of his loyalty to Liu Bei, Zhang Fei chose to betray and defect to Cao Cao.

Cao Cao did not comment: "You can go down."

Someone took the dejected Zhang Fei away and put him under custody.

"Your Majesty, I'm going to attack the city." Dian Wei said.

Cao Cao nodded slightly.

If Cao Wei wanted to capture a city today, it would not be difficult to break through the defense if the enemy did not have equal generals guarding it.

Cao's army immediately launched an offensive.

Dian Wei, Xu Chu, Zhao Yun, and Ma Chao climbed up the city wall one after another.

How can Guan Yu alone defend it?

This is the benefit of a strong country with many generals.

All the generals climbed up the city wall together, while the heavy cavalry attacked the city gate from below. After several combined attacks, the city gate was shattered.

----

Inside the city.

Liu Bei was shaking all the time.

He was not afraid, but he knew that he would never have another chance.

There was no chance in this life, and it was time for everything to end. In the past, he had never been willing to accept this.

So he ran around.

But this time, he tried his best to plan and manage Yizhou and created a huge situation.

But in a real confrontation, we lost because we couldn't even put up a decent fight.

This made Liu Bei despair and realize that he had no chance at all.

Never.

Cao Wei's advantages were reflected in all aspects, including the fact that all the people around Liu Bei were placed by Cao Cao.

It was because of these people that Cao Cao felt confident in letting him run his business in Yizhou.

Because Cao Cao knew that he couldn't jump out no matter what.

Liu Bei sat in his mansion, tears silently falling.

He cried for the decline of the Han Dynasty, for the love of brotherhood, for the defeat in battle, and for the death of Liu Biao.

But most of the time I cry for the situation and for others, but this time I was crying for myself.

He tried his best, but saw no hope.

This time I have really given up and the road has come to an end.

Liu Bei wiped away his tears.

He has made some arrangements, hoping to protect his family and give them a good end.

He called for Mi Zhu, the chief of his ministers and the one he trusted the most.

Over the years, Mi Zhu helped him a lot. When in Xuzhou, he followed Tao Qian's orders and assisted him. He followed Liu Bei, who had almost nothing at the time, and abandoned his family and career to travel around.

Liu Bei trusted Mi Zhu as much as he trusted Guan Yu and Zhang Fei.

They are the top circle in Yizhou, and the others are outsiders.

"Zi Zhong, the one I feel most sorry for is you."

“You followed me for many years, but I never achieved anything.

Today, the city is about to fall, and Cao's army will arrive in an instant. I have nowhere to go. I can't run away anymore. I only have some money left, and I entrust it to you along with my family."

"There is a secret passage in this house. You take my family there. From now on, life and death will depend on fate."

Mi Zhusheng had a short beard, a kind face, and wore a civil servant's robe. His eyes were calm:
"Xuan De, there is something I want to ask you.

In those days, Cao Mengde wanted to recruit talented people from all over the world. If you join us, you will be trusted and respected. If you lead Yunchang and Yide to fight in Cao's army, you will have a chance to be famous.

How come till today?

Why did you join all the different parties but not Cao Mengde's army?"

Liu Bei was unwilling to explain further.

He had had this dream since he was young, and he would never give up until he did it.

"The first time I saw Cao Mengde, I had a feeling that he seemed to be able to see through people's hearts. I am under his command, and if I am not careful, I will die in his hands. Rather than living in fear of death, it is better to fight for myself."

"But it's too late to say this now."

"Zi Zhong, I'm leaving my family in your care. Please leave quickly, or you won't be able to leave if it's any later."

Mi Zhu said slowly, "Xuan De, have you ever thought about this? I am also a member of Cao Wei. What if you entrust your family to me? Isn't it like entrusting someone to the wrong person?"

Liu Bei laughed dumbly: "You can't."

"These years, sometimes I didn't want to leave, but you always enlightened me, saying that the world is so big, there are still many places where I can't achieve my ambitions and I must not lose my spirit.

In Xuzhou, Jingzhou, and even Yizhou, it is because of your support and encouragement that I have been able to persevere step by step until today."

"If you were from Cao Wei, why did you support me all the way west, step by step to where I am today?"

"Okay, you don't need to persuade me anymore. I chose this path myself. Now I've reached the end. I've seen the scenery at the end and I have no regrets.

You go quickly. "

Mi Zhu said to himself: "Think about it again, could it be that the King of Wei instructed me to do this?

He wants you to come all the way west, become the one who stirs up trouble, and indirectly work for him."

"Not long after you arrived in Jingzhou, Jingzhou was in turmoil. After Liu Biao's death, you supported his eldest son and used tricks to speed up the division of Jingzhou, which also indirectly pushed the main forces of Jingzhou to surrender to Cao as soon as possible.

When you came to Yizhou, Zhang Song, Fa Zheng and others joined you and drove away Liu Zhang, which laid the hidden danger for the turmoil in Yizhou.

It also reduced obstacles for Cao Wei to rule Yizhou."

"If the King of Wei were to do all these things himself, firstly, there would be a lot of resistance, and secondly, it would take longer than it does now!"

Liu Bei stood up suddenly and stared at Mi Zhu:

“This is impossible, how can he know what will happen in the future?
What if things get out of his control and go in the most unfavorable direction? "

Mi Zhu said: "You are right, so he has planted the most unexpected hidden pawns around you to push things forward and ensure that things are under his influence and control and develop in the direction he hopes.

If there are changes, he will adjust in time. "

"He used me to push you, so I advised you to do something many times in the past.

Yunchang and Yide both listen to you. From another perspective, they are also being used by 'him'.

You helped him gather the surrounding Nanyi tribes, which resulted in the elimination of most of the Nanyi's forces this time.

You help him deal with Meng Huo and lure Meng Huo out of southern Xinjiang.

If he were to do all these things, how long do you think it would take?
By keeping you as his opponent, helping him gather more opponents time and time again, and then he can concentrate his strength to get rid of these people. How much faster will it be and how much time will it save?
He used the time saved to deal with the foreign tribes in the north."

Liu Bei looked straight at Mi Zhu:

"You...are the one he buried next to me? This...makes too much sense."

“It doesn’t make sense, I just explained it to you.

After you were defeated in Xuzhou, someone contacted me. I hesitated for a long time. But Cao Wei was becoming more and more powerful, and had already gained nine-tenths of the world. I also have a family and descendants, so I have to leave a way out for myself and them.

Gradually, I got in touch with that place.”

Mi Zhu pulled out a short blade from his sleeve and handed it to Liu Bei:

"Xuan De, please kill me.

I have sent my family away, but I still feel sorry for you. I will repay you with my life!"

Liu Bei was stunned for a while, then suddenly burst into laughter.

He once again felt the absurdity that Yizhou had never belonged to him, but to Cao Cao.

No, even he himself was Cao Cao's, and Guan Yu and Zhang Fei were all being used unknowingly.

At this moment, Liu Bei was so heartbroken that he could hardly breathe.

Everything in the past is like a nightmare.

Everything he was once proud of, complacent about, and obsessed about, all became illusory.

If Cao Cao were alive, he might tell Liu Bei that he didn't need to be sad.

After all, Boss Cao had hung up on him but he didn't.

Cao Cao could predict many things, but he couldn't.

Liu Bei laughed louder and louder, until tears flowed and he burst into tears.

The gate of the mansion shattered with a slam, and Cao's army poured in from outside.

The time of unification has come.

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(End of this chapter)