One Gained, One Released, The Time Has Come

The surrender of Qiao Rui was another great surprise for Liu Bei.

He did not have many generals under his command; aside from Guan Yu and Zhang Fei, the others were hardly capable of shouldering heavy responsibilities.

While Qiao Rui's martial arts were nothing to boast about, he possessed a wealth of experience!

When it came to the number of troops commanded, even Liu Bei himself had likely never led as many men as Qiao Rui had.

Such a general might lack the initiative for aggressive expansion, but he was more than sufficient to hold down a region. As long as he did not encounter a main force like that of Cao Cao, there was basically no need to worry.

Liu Bei immediately smiled at Qiao Rui:

"For the General to be willing to surrender is truly a blessing for our army!"

"How could Bei possibly be unwilling?"

"General, please rise quickly; there is no need for such a grand gesture!"

He hurriedly helped Qiao Rui up, his face beaming with smiles.

Seeing this, Zhang Fei also grinned. In truth, Qiao Rui's display of being ready to face death earlier had filled him with admiration.

Seeing such a warrior defect, he was naturally delighted.

Only Qiao Rui, seeing Liu Bei's benevolence, felt increasingly guilty and said:

"In the past, Rui only knew of blind loyalty and not the greater righteousness. Now, having been enlightened by the strategist under your command, I sincerely wish to abandon darkness for the light!"

He looked toward Qin Tian, his face full of conviction as he asked:

"May I ask for the name of the gentleman? I dare to request it."

Hearing this, Liu Bei smiled and said:

"This is a great talent under my command, surnamed Wang."

Before he could finish the word, Qin Tian bowed and smiled:

"This humble one is surnamed Qin, given name Tian, courtesy name Zixuan!"

"If I caused any offense just now, I hope the General will forgive me!"

Hearing Qin Tian reveal his true name, Liu Bei was startled, while Qiao Rui gasped in shock:

"Is the gentleman that Qilin talent?"

He had been wondering why he had never heard of such a figure under Liu Bei's command; he never expected it to be the former chief strategist of Cao Cao!

No wonder his actions were so eccentric, yet contained such profound meaning!

However, upon hearing this, Qin Tian shook his head:

"Mere empty fame, not worth mentioning!"

Zhang Fei, standing to the side, asked curiously:

"Strategist, didn't you say you wanted to conceal your identity? Why reveal it now?"

Qin Tian smiled at him:

"Can one hide it for a moment, and expect to hide it for a lifetime?"

"Our army is about to rise; sooner or later, it will be discovered. If it is not necessary, why bother concealing it?"

"Furthermore, the General is a man of honor. Since he has joined our ranks, there is no need for secrets!"

Seeing the two of them act this way, Qiao Rui could not help but feel puzzled. Liu Bei, noticing this, hurriedly explained the matter of Qin Tian's alias.

Hearing the reason, Qiao Rui was even more moved.

He thought to himself that he was merely a surrendered general who had just joined, yet Liu Bei and Qin Tian trusted him so deeply—how could he not be moved?

He immediately bowed to Liu Bei and Qin Tian:

"My Lord, Strategist, rest assured. Although Rui knows of this, I will not speak a single word of it to outsiders!"

Seeing Qiao Rui like this, Liu Bei was naturally even more pleased, but after a moment of joy, he worried:

"Although the General is willing to defect, I do not know where your family is. If you join our army, will it bring disaster upon them?"

Hearing Liu Bei show concern for his family first, Qiao Rui felt a stir in his heart, but then he became dejected:

"This is also what this humble one worries about. My family is still in Huainan, which is why I was willing to die earlier!"

"Now that I have saved my own life, I cannot look after my kin at home!"

Men are mostly like this; when the heat of the moment takes them, they agree to everything.

Only afterward do they consider the consequences.

However, Qin Tian had already anticipated this and smiled at Qiao Rui:

"As for the General's family, it is not difficult to protect them!"

"May I ask the General, what is the nature of your friendship with Zhang Xun?"

Qiao Rui did not know why he brought up Zhang Xun, but after thinking for a moment, he said:

"Reporting to the Strategist, this humble general and General Zhang share a deep friendship!"

"We have known each other for many years; we are close friends indeed!"

If it were not for his good relationship with Zhang Xun, he would not have risked his life to save him.

"If that is the case, then it is simple!"

Qin Tian smiled at Liu Bei:

"My Lord can send General Qiao to meet with Zhang Xun and release him, ordering him to ensure the safety of the general's family. In this way, the general will have no worries behind him!"

Upon hearing this, Liu Bei felt his spirits lift; he had not thought of this angle.

Since Zhang Xun was unwilling to surrender, it would be better to trade him for the loyalty of Qiao Rui.

When Qiao Rui heard this, he was momentarily stunned:

"Is the Strategist saying that General Zhang was also captured by your army?"

He clearly remembered that Zhang Xun had escaped yesterday; how could he have been captured by Liu Bei so suddenly?

Seeing his reaction, Zhang Fei grinned:

"Didn't expect that, did you? Everything you lot do is exactly as our Strategist predicted!"

He then recounted what had happened the previous day to Qiao Rui, naturally omitting the part about his wager with Qin Tian, and mentioning only the capture of Zhang Xun.

Qiao Rui listened, completely dumbfounded.

He thought to himself that despite Zhang Xun's immense confidence yesterday, he had still ended up captured by Qin Tian.

Qin Tian was truly their nemesis.

It was one thing to be defeated by Qin Tian at Kuangting, but now that he had changed employers, he could still capture them just the same!

Thinking of how he had just been mocking Qin Tian, he shook his head and sighed:

"Sir's talent is something this Rui admires. If not for you, my life would have been lost!"

"However, this Rui is merely a deputy general, while General Zhang is the commander. How can you release him just for my sake?"

Qin Tian looked at him with a serious expression:

"It is not for the sake of your rank, but for your sense of honor. As long as we can ensure the safety of your family, why should we not release a mere Zhang Xun?"

As a perennial second-in-command, Qiao Rui had heard more praise today than in his entire life, and he felt an immediate urge to die for one who truly understood him!

With Liu Bei and the Strategist treating him this way, if he did not give his all, he would not be able to forgive himself.

"Since the Governor and the Strategist treat me with such kindness, how could this Rui dare not offer his life in service?"

Seeing Qiao Rui pledge his loyalty once more, Liu Bei was overjoyed and said to Zhang Fei with a smile:

"In that case, Yide, take the General to find Zhang Xun!"

Hearing this, Zhang Fei nodded toward Qiao Rui:

"General Qiao, follow me!"

Qiao Rui, having just scolded Zhang Fei, felt a bit embarrassed and quickly said:

"General Zhang, please do not be so formal. My courtesy name is Lebin; you may address me by that!"

Zhang Fei did not mind and laughed:

"Then you can just call me Yide as well!"

The two put aside their past grievances and headed out of the camp together.

Seeing the two of them in such a state, Liu Bei walked over and said to Qin Tian with a smile:

"Thanks to the Strategist's guidance, Third Brother has changed a great deal!"

He noticed that Zhang Fei seemed much kinder to others now, and all things considered, this was Qin Tian's doing.

"This is the General's own merit; what does it have to do with me!"

As Qin Tian spoke, he felt a sense of relief; if Zhang Fei continued to change like this, he would surely accomplish great things sooner or later!

Knowing that Qin Tian was being modest, Liu Bei did not dwell on it, but asked:

"There is one more thing I do not understand!"

"Previously, the Strategist said that we must capture Zhang Xun to take Xiang County. Why release him now?"

Qin Tian knew the old Liu would ask this, so he smiled:

"My Lord, the situation has changed, and so must our plans!"

"It was not that we could only take Xiang County by capturing Zhang Xun, but that it would be more convenient to do so, which is why I planned his capture."

"Now that we have Qiao Rui, he can also be of use. Since Zhang Xun will not surrender, it is better to trade him for Qiao Rui's loyalty!"

"Furthermore, in the current situation, keeping Zhang Xun is not as good as releasing him. Since he is now indebted to our army, he will surely repay it in the future."

"I observe that Yuan Shu's days are numbered. By releasing one general today, who is to say he might not bring us tens of thousands of elite troops in the future?"

His planning for the old Liu in Huainan was not merely about territory.

The entirety of Yuan Shu's foundation was the target of their schemes!

One had to realize that after Yuan Shu died, his forces did not immediately vanish, but instead splintered into four or five factions.

Leaving Zhang Xun by Yuan Shu's side would allow them to gather Yuan Shu's former subordinates in the future!

Only by continuously absorbing the power left behind by Yuan Shu could Liu Bei rise at the fastest possible speed to contend with the various warlords of the world.

Listening to Qin Tian's words, Liu Bei could not help but marvel once again at Qin Tian's deep foresight.

Almost every step was calculated for the road ahead.

There was simply no need for him to worry; no wonder Old Cao's development had been so smooth!

With a strategist by one's side, things were just that seamless.

Thinking this, he hurriedly asked:

"Then what should our army do now?"

Qin Tian replied without a moment's hesitation:

"The opportunity to take Xiang County has arrived. My Lord, go and demand money and grain tonight, and our army can then plot to seize Xiang County!"

"As for Lu Bu, if he truly refuses to provide the supplies, I shall deal with him after we have taken Xiang County!"

Having said this, he began to laugh:

"My Lord, rest assured. Whatever our army is meant to take, he will give it whether he wants to or not!"

"No matter how he chooses to respond, our army will never suffer a loss!"

Watching Qin Tian's smile, Liu Bei felt a chill in his heart and could not help but offer a silent prayer for Lu Bu.

He only hoped Lu Bu would be sensible; otherwise, his strategist was not someone to be trifled with.

With this thought in mind, Old Liu felt reassured and began to prepare to enter the city for grain that evening!

After concluding his discussion with Liu Bei, Qin Tian paid a visit to Zhang Xun's camp.

Once he confirmed that Zhang Xun was willing to protect Qiao Rui's family, he ordered them to be escorted south.

Grateful for Liu Bei's kindness, Qiao Rui stayed behind with peace of mind, agreeing to help Liu Bei command the captured Yuan Shu soldiers.

In an instant, this added over three thousand troops to Liu Bei's forces, significantly increasing the strength of his army.