Lord Liu Has a Mastermind Behind Him!

At Liu Bei's sudden letter, Lu Bu couldn't help turning to Chen Gong and Chen Gui.

"Ever since our army defeated Liu Bei last year, he's been staying in Xiaopei without making another move!"

"Why has he suddenly sent a messenger now?"

Chen Gong answered without hesitation.

"Liu Bei is certainly unwilling to serve under another. First he allied with Cao Cao, then withdrew to Xiaopei. Now he's suddenly sent a letter—he must be plotting something!"

"We can kill his messenger and make him abandon the idea!"

Seeing this, Lu Bu knew Chen Gong had always been wary of Liu Bei, which was why he spoke that way.

Though Lu Bu had little regard for morality, he wasn't a bloodthirsty tyrant either. Liu Bei wasn't coming with an army, after all—just a messenger. What was there to fear?

At once, he turned to Chen Gui and asked,

"What does the esteemed gentleman think?"

Chen Gui stroked his beard and smiled.

"As the old saying goes, 'When two armies are at war, do not kill their envoys!'"

"Liu Bei is renowned throughout the land for his integrity. He isn't at war with the general now, so killing his messenger would be quite inappropriate!"

"Besides, whether Liu Bei has some plan or not will be clear once we read the letter."

"His messenger is already here. Why hesitate to see him?"

"Your words are exactly to my liking!"

Lu Bu glanced at Chen Gong with disdain.

"I wonder what Liu Bei could possibly do. It's just a letter—how could he scheme against me?"

After a mocking remark, he ordered the messenger to come in.

When the messenger entered, Lu Bu asked,

"What does Xuande want to discuss with me?"

The messenger was only a minor clerk. Hearing the question, he hurriedly replied,

"Since Yuan Shu has plotted to usurp the throne, my lord has specially invited the general to join him in putting down the traitor!"

"My lord's letter is here. Please read it, General!"

Hearing that Liu Bei wanted him to join in attacking Yuan Shu, Lu Bu turned to Chen Gong and smiled smugly.

You said he was plotting. Is this what you call a plot?

He took the letter and skimmed through it.

Chen Gong had been mocked by Lu Bu several times and was already displeased. But with matters of state taking precedence, he could only wait nearby. As soon as Lu Bu finished reading, he asked,

"My lord, what did Liu Xuande say in his letter?"

"What else? Liu Bei wants to take Pei Commandery and has invited me to advance alongside him!"

As he spoke, Lu Bu held out the letter.

Chen Gong quickly took it and read it. After a long while, he furrowed his brows.

Seeing this, Chen Gui didn't even look at the letter before smiling at Lu Bu.

"General, this shows that Yuan Shu has lost the people's support. Everyone under heaven wants to attack him. This letter is proof!"

Lu Bu nodded repeatedly.

"Exactly. It's fortunate I had your wise counsel, or I might have ruined everything!"

While the two were talking, Chen Gong finished reading the letter and said,

"My lord, Liu Xuande must have a plan. You must not agree lightly!"

Annoyed at being interrupted, Lu Bu retorted,

"Gongtai, you keep saying Liu Bei has a plan. Then tell me, what plan does he have?"

Chen Gong considered for a moment.

"Liu Bei has barely ten thousand troops. He sent this letter because he wants to use our army to seize Pei Commandery!"

Before he could finish, Lu Bu sneered.

"Gongtai, do you really take me for a fool?"

"If that were his plan, would I not see through it?"

"Let me ask you: if I refuse to advance with him, what can he do?"

"This..."

Faced with Lu Bu's challenge, Chen Gong faltered.

How was he supposed to know what Liu Bei could do?

His instincts simply told him that Liu Bei was up to no good.

As for what Liu Bei's army might be plotting, he truly couldn't figure it out!

Seeing that Chen Gong had been stumped, Lu Bu turned to Chen Gui again.

"What do you make of this, sir?"

"Does Liu Bei really have a plan?"

Chen Gui smiled at his question.

"I have yet to read the letter, so I shouldn't speak on its contents. May I take a look?"

Lu Bu heard him and snatched the letter from Chen Gong's hands, then passed it to Chen Gui.

"Have a look, sir!"

Chen Gui read the letter for a while, then looked up.

"Forgive this old man. My years have made me dull, and I can't see any scheme in the letter."

"Perhaps Gongtai is right after all."

"But in my view, Liu Bei's sending an envoy is a good thing."

"Yuan Shu is powerful now, and our army cannot stand against him alone. Pei County is the gateway to Xuzhou. If we can befriend Liu Bei, it will do our army no harm!"

Lu Bu furrowed his brows.

"Oh? By your reasoning, you want me to agree to Liu Bei's proposal?"

Seeing this, Chen Gui knew Lu Bu's suspicions had flared up again. He smiled.

"No, that isn't what I mean!"

"I only say this because the general has no allies on any side and could benefit from befriending Liu Bei."

"As for whether to accept the proposal in this letter, how could I presume to decide? The general should make that choice himself!"

"I came today to urge the general not to get involved with the traitor. Since the general has already agreed to send Yuan Shu's envoy back, I shall take my leave!"

His words were exceptionally tactful. He made it clear that he had Lu Bu's interests at heart while also showing that he wouldn't interfere with Lu Bu's decision.

Lu Bu felt much more at ease and hurriedly smiled.

"Only you could be so levelheaded, sir. With you here, I have nothing to worry about!"

"By the way, I heard you say earlier that our army would send an envoy to the imperial court. As it happens, I have something I'd like to present to Lord Cao in hopes of securing the post of governor of Xuzhou. I'd like Yuanlong to go as my envoy. What do you think?"

Chen Gui nodded.

"If the general commands it, how could my son refuse?"

Lu Bu smiled at that.

"I'll need you and your son to help shoulder my burdens. Then I'll have nothing to worry about!"

"That's all I have to say. You may go!"

Chen Gui then took his leave of Lu Bu and walked out of the residence.

As for what might happen next inside, he couldn't be bothered to find out. He simply made his way home.

As soon as he entered the inner courtyard, a middle-aged man hurried out and asked,

"Father, did Lu Bu reject Yuan Shu's envoy?"

The man was Chen Gui's eldest son, Chen Deng. He was ambitious from a young age, had read widely, and was bold and forthright. At thirty-four, he was in the prime of his life.

Seeing Chen Deng ask, Chen Gui stroked his beard and smiled.

"It's settled. Lu Bu has agreed to send his daughter back and formally break with Yuan Shu!"

Chen Deng breathed a sigh of relief.

"Good. As long as Lu Bu breaks with Yuan Shu, Xuzhou and Huainan won't be connected into a single line. Then these two traitors can be eliminated!"

At this, Chen Gui shook his head.

"Watch what you say! No outsider must learn of the plans you and I have made!"

Chen Deng smiled and stepped forward to support Chen Gui.

"Don't worry, Father. I've already sent everyone away. There's no one around now, so we can speak freely!"

Seeing how prudently Chen Deng had handled things, Chen Gui nodded in satisfaction.

"I knew my son would be careful. Your father is very pleased!"

As he spoke, he let Chen Deng support him into the main hall. As they walked, he continued,

"Speaking of which, I encountered something while I was just now trying to dissuade Lu Bu. I've thought it over again and again, but can't make sense of it. Deng, help me puzzle it out!"

Hearing that even Chen Gui couldn't figure it out, Chen Deng grew interested.

"What happened, Father?"

"Nothing major. Liu Xuande suddenly sent Lu Bu a letter."

Chen Gui told Chen Deng everything that had happened at the commandery office.

It had to be said that Old Liu's reputation in Xuzhou was remarkably high!

Especially in the eyes of Xuzhou's scholars, many considered Liu Bei a rare and worthy ruler.

Chen Deng and Chen Gui were among them!

Chen Deng had originally planned to help Liu Bei establish himself in Xuzhou. He had even joined Mi Zhu in strongly advocating for Liu Bei to be welcomed into Xuzhou.

Unfortunately, Zhang Fei had let them down, and Lu Bu had seized the opportunity.

Chen Deng was different from Mi Zhu, too. Born into a prominent clan, he couldn't abandon his family and everything he owned for Liu Bei. He could only watch as Liu Bei struggled to get by in Xiaopei.

Still, their old ties remained. The moment he heard this was about Liu Bei, he took the matter to heart. By the time Chen Gui finished, he was frowning in silence.

Seeing Chen Deng like this, Chen Gui stroked his beard.

"On the surface, this does seem like something Liu Bei would do."

"And yet something feels off to me. Can you make anything of it?"

Chen Deng paced back and forth in Chen Gui's sight for a while, then said thoughtfully,

"This is indeed quite unusual!"

"First, Xuande is at odds with Lu Bu and close to Lord Cao. Even if he wants to attack Yuan Shu, he should invite Lord Cao to join him, rather than go out of his way to send a letter to Xuzhou!"

"Second, this letter makes empty promises and offers no benefits. Even Lu Bu knows he shouldn't rush off, so how could Xuande not know? If he knew it would be useless, why send the letter?"

"Third, Xuande lives in Pei County. He can't be unaware that Yuan Shu wants to ally with Lu Bu!"

"But from what you said, Father, the letter never mentioned this. Instead, it went straight to inviting Lu Bu to advance against Yuan Shu!"

"Doesn't that mean that when Xuande sent the letter, he was already certain Lu Bu would break with Yuan Shu?"

At that, he stopped walking and turned to Chen Gui.

"Father, think about it. Yuan Shu and Lu Bu arranged a marriage between their children last year. Yuan Shu has only just come to complete the marriage and seal the alliance."

"There's no rift between them right now. How could Xuande be certain they would fall out?"

As Chen Gui listened, he too noticed something was amiss. He narrowed his eyes.

"Perhaps Liu Xuande heard that Yuan Shu had declared himself emperor and thought Lu Bu would follow the greater cause, so he concluded the two would fall out?"

"No, Father. Lu Bu isn't one to recognize the greater cause!"

Chen Deng said with absolute certainty.

"Someone unfamiliar with Lu Bu might not know, but how could Xuande not know what kind of man he is?"

"If he knows Lu Bu, how can he be sure Lu Bu will turn against Yuan Shu?"

If this had been the old Liu Bei, he really might have done something so naive.

But after being tricked by Lu Bu time and again, how could Liu Bei still fail to see what he was really like?

And the truth was, without their urging, Lu Bu would probably have allied with Yuan Shu this time!

They had only just persuaded him, so how could Liu Bei have known in advance that this would happen?

Chen Gui was a man of considerable intelligence as well. When he realized this, he couldn't help clicking his tongue in surprise.

"Then what explains it? Why did Liu Xuande send this letter?"

For a moment, he suddenly felt he could no longer read Liu Bei.

Since when had Liu Bei become so unfathomable?

Before he could finish speaking, Chen Deng's expression turned grave.

"Father, if my deduction is correct, Lord Liu has a master strategist helping him from behind the scenes!"