Old Liu's Reflections, an Old Friend Named Zhao Yun

Faced with Qin Tian's plan to seize the city, Liu Bei fell into thought for a moment.

Just as Qin Tian had said, the plan carried risks!

But compared to the rewards, those risks were nothing!

After all, what war was without risk?

So the key lay with Qiao Rui!

Thinking this, he looked at Qiao Rui and asked,

"General Qiao, what do you think of this plan?"

"If you're concerned about our old friendship, perhaps the military advisor can come up with another strategy!"

This was what Liu Bei did well: he was good at putting himself in other people's shoes. He figured Qiao Rui had only just surrendered, and being asked to do this right away might be hard for him to accept.

If Qiao Rui showed even the slightest reluctance, Liu Bei wouldn't force him, even if that meant failing to take Xiang County.

That was one of Liu Bei's virtues, and part of his personal charm.

Seeing this, Qiao Rui was deeply moved. I've truly found myself a worthy lord, he thought.

If this had been Yuan Shu, he wouldn't have bothered asking a single question about the plan. If he told you to go, you had to go. Even if you didn't want to, you still had to!

How could Yuan Shu ever have been as considerate of him as Liu Bei was?

As the saying went, a man would die for one who understood him. Qiao Rui immediately rose to declare,

"My lord treats me with such kindness. I would give my life to repay you!"

"This plan will succeed. If it doesn't, I, Rui, am willing to die within the city!"

Seeing him ready to face death without flinching, Liu Bei hurried forward, took his hand, and said,

"General, don't say such things. Even if we fail to take Xiang County and our army is defeated, I still wouldn't want you to die. You must cherish your life if you're to accomplish great things!"

Hearing Liu Bei's words, Qiao Rui was deeply touched, beyond what he could express.

Qin Tian watched from the side without speaking. Some things were his to point out, while others were Old Liu's natural gift. There was no need for him to interfere.

Only after the lord and his subordinate had shared a heartfelt exchange did he speak:

"Since we've settled on the plan, General Qiao, you should set out."

"After you leave, our army will arrive within ten days at the latest. I hope you'll act according to the situation. Even if you hear nothing from us, don't panic or act rashly!"

Qiao Rui nodded firmly.

Qin Tian then summoned Chen Dao and arranged the various details.

The most important task was to kill Mei Gan!

To be frank, Qiao Rui was getting on in years, and he had been injured fighting Zhang Fei. Having him kill Mei Gan would be somewhat difficult.

But Chen Dao was different. In terms of martial skill, he ranked third in Liu Bei's army.

He was also top-notch in loyalty and execution.

Qin Tian trusted him with this task!

Once Qin Tian had made all the arrangements, Liu Bei issued the order, sending the two men off with troops under their own command.

After they had left, Liu Bei asked,

"Military advisor, although our army is carrying grain and supplies, why did you tell General Qiao to wait ten whole days for us?"

He always thought carefully over Qin Tian's words. Hearing what sounded like a deliberate delay, he couldn't help wondering why.

As far as he was concerned, once they left Xiapi, they should march at full speed!

Even if they couldn't catch up with Qiao Rui's men, they should be no more than three or four days behind. How could it possibly take ten days?

Qin Tian shook his head at that.

"My lord, did you think we could simply leave whenever we wished?"

"What do you mean, military advisor?"

Liu Bei was startled.

"Weren't we supposed to deal with Lu Bu after taking Xiang County?"

"Could Lu Bu turn against us while our army is away?"

"It's not Lu Bu who will turn against us. It's Chen Gong who will make trouble!"

Qin Tian sighed softly.

"My original plan was to put Chen Gong in jail when we arrived and keep him quiet for a few days. After our army left, he could be released. He wouldn't be able to affect anything important."

"But I didn't expect Chen Gong to be so troublesome."

"He's still in prison, yet he's already causing trouble. He's tried several times to find out who I am. That shows he must already be suspicious."

"Given his temperament, even if he doesn't know who I am, he'll do everything he can to get Lu Bu to attack our army once we leave, to eliminate any future threat."

"And Lu Bu has no mind of his own. If Chen Gong urges him, he'll most likely send troops after us."

Hearing that Chen Gong was the one causing trouble, Liu Bei furrowed his brow and sighed.

"If that's really the case, what should we do?"

He knew how formidable Chen Gong was, and Lu Bu now had a large number of troops.

If Chen Gong persuaded him, their forces would probably be unable to hold out!

But when Qin Tian heard Liu Bei sigh, he knew Old Liu had misunderstood. He smiled and said,

"My lord, don't worry. I didn't sigh because of that. I sighed because Chen Gong can't be killed yet. Otherwise, we ought to kill him!"

"As for whatever schemes Chen Gong might have, there's no need to worry."

"Our army need only withdraw. Whoever he sends after us, we'll make sure they don't come back!"

To be honest, Qin Tian wasn't afraid of Chen Gong.

That fellow was suited to fighting hard battles, but when it came to schemes and stratagems, he was nowhere near Jia Xu!

Just as he'd said, he had sighed because they still needed to keep Chen Gong around to stabilize the situation in Xuzhou for Lu Bu, giving them room to develop.

Otherwise, during these few days in prison, Qin Tian would have had plenty of ways to kill Chen Gong.

But that fellow was like a fly: impossible to kill, yet troublesome to leave alive. That was why Qin Tian had sighed.

It wasn't that Qin Tian, as Liu Bei had assumed, had no way to deal with Chen Gong!

Thinking this, he said to Liu Bei,

"I've considered that Lu Bu has few troops and many prisoners, so he won't be able to send a large force out of the city. If he pursues us, he'll surely send either Han Xian or Yang Feng!"

"When our army retreats, my lord, just station scouts behind us. If they see enemy troops leaving the city, they mustn't alert them."

"If they dare come after us, I'll devise a way to swallow their forces whole and strengthen our army!"

Liu Bei was utterly taken aback.

So the things he considered serious didn't count for anything in Qin Tian's eyes?

How on earth was Qin Tian's mind made?

Why did every difficulty seem to vanish the moment it reached Qin Tian?

It was strange, so strange. He had never had things go this smoothly before. It almost didn't feel real.

Seeing Old Liu fall silent, Qin Tian found it a little odd.

"My lord, why have you gone quiet? Did I say something wrong?"

Only then did Liu Bei come back to himself. He shook his head and sighed.

"It's not that the military advisor said anything wrong. I was just wondering whether you might have descended from heaven."

"Otherwise, how can you see through every scheme the enemy comes up with?"

Hearing Liu Bei's heartfelt words, Qin Tian thought to himself,

I'm no heavenly being. I'm a time traveler!

But aloud, he only smiled and said,

"What heavenly being? I just think things through. If you consider things enough, they naturally become clear."

Liu Bei nodded.

"Perhaps that's so. In the end, I'm simply too slow-witted to figure things out!"

"My lord, don't belittle yourself!"

Seeing Old Liu put himself down every other moment, Qin Tian smiled.

"Everyone has their strengths. Take me, for instance: I've always liked to think things over. I can't sleep until I've figured them out."

"My lord, on the other hand, was born with the ability to draw people close and put their talents to use!"

"Gaozu once said that he was no match for Zhang Liang in strategy, Xiao He in governance, or Han Xin in command of troops. How, then, did he go on to establish an empire?"

"Because he knew his own shortcomings and was good at employing others!"

"From what I've seen, my lord has much of Gaozu's talent for employing people. You should follow Gaozu's example: welcome worthy men in great numbers and put them to work. That is one of your strengths. Don't compare your own shortcomings to other people's strengths!"

Hearing this, Liu Bei smiled.

"I often tell Yuanzhi, 'Sir, you should be my teacher!'"

"Now I see that it's true. Every time I hear your words, I feel I've gained new insight!"

"As for employing talent, I share that ambition!"

"Alas, I have so few talented men under my command, and no one to put to work!"

He gave Qin Tian a pointed look, as if to say, Since we've come this far, recommend a few people for me, would you?

Seeing Liu Bei like this, Qin Tian wanted to complain. Where was he supposed to find talented people right now?

There was no one in Pei Commandery, at any rate. Anyone he could recommend lived far away. As for Liu Bei's future stars, Xiao Ge was only seventeen and still growing up; Xiao Pang was an adult, but Qin Tian had no idea what he was doing. Fa Zheng would be useful, but he was in Yi Province!

They'd all be useful in the future, but Qin Tian couldn't bring them in now.

As for generals, Qin Tian thought it over, then suddenly smiled.

"My lord, don't lament that you have no one to employ. There may be someone who could serve you whom you simply haven't thought of!"

He had remembered: Zhao Yun could serve them!

There was no need to wait until Guandu. Zhao Yun was still a nobody, and with Liu Bei's connections, one letter would be enough to bring him over!

What would Shu Han be without its poster girl?

Hearing this, Liu Bei thought it over carefully.

"If we're talking about men who could serve, there are quite a few. Tian Guorang, Chen Changwen, Taishi Ziyi, Yuan Yaoqing, and others could all be put to good use. Sadly, they've all left me."

Tian Guorang was Tian Yu. He had left only recently to care for his elderly mother, as Qin Tian knew.

As for Chen Qun and Yuan Huan, those scions of noble families were out of the question for now. They wouldn't come until Liu Bei had established a stable foothold!

But Taishi Ci caught Qin Tian's attention.

After all, Taishi Ci had joined Sun Ce very late. For quite a long time, he had been on his own!

Perhaps there was a chance to bring him over.

But what Qin Tian really wanted was for Liu Bei to remember Zhao Yun.

If Liu Bei didn't remember him, Qin Tian couldn't bring him up himself. Zhao Yun was still an unknown nobody, and there was no reason for Qin Tian to know him.

Seeing that Old Liu still hadn't thought of him, Qin Tian quickly prompted,

"Perhaps there's someone who didn't want to leave in the first place, but had no choice and couldn't serve you?"

Hearing this, inspiration struck Liu Bei.

"Now that you mention it, there is one man. He's from Changshan, named Zhao Yun, courtesy name Zilong. He's highly skilled in martial arts, loyal, and courageous!"

"I met him years ago while serving under Gongsun Bogui and wanted to recruit him. Sadly, his elder brother died, and I couldn't get him to stay!"

At last, Old Liu had remembered Zhao Yun. Qin Tian hurried to say,

"This is exactly when we need talent. Since he was once under Gongsun Bogui, he must be a cavalry officer!"

"Our army will need to develop its cavalry in the future. Why not recruit him and put him to use?"

But Liu Bei furrowed his brow.

"Although I'd like to, Zilong may not be willing to come."

Qin Tian thought, If other people might refuse, surely Zhao Yun wouldn't. He hurried to say,

"A man should make a name for himself and establish a career. Since my lord thinks so highly of him, you should at least try. If he truly doesn't wish to come, you can simply leave it at that."

Liu Bei thought that made sense and nodded.

"Since the military advisor recommends it, I'll write him a letter and invite him once we return."

Qin Tian still wasn't satisfied and urged him,

"We need talent right now. The sooner he arrives, the sooner we can put him to work!"

"Why wait until we return? We can write the letter now and have General Guan send someone north with it."

"If things go quickly, it'll take only a month or two to reach him. We could put him to work before autumn!"

"My lord, remember: our army lacks generals. Every additional general is another helping hand!"

He was genuinely worried about not having enough officers. Their territory was still small, so they could manage for now. But after they took Huainan at the end of the year, they'd have a vast territory. Without enough generals, they wouldn't be able to hold what they had taken!

Seeing Qin Tian's eagerness, Liu Bei found it strange. Why did it feel as if Qin Tian thought so highly of Zhao Yun?

In truth, Liu Bei merely admired Zhao Yun's loyalty and courage. He didn't yet know how capable Zhao Yun was at leading troops!

But then he thought of how short-handed he was. Zhao Yun was so loyal and righteous that he could certainly be put to great use. He nodded at once, had someone bring him cloth, and prepared to write a letter to bring Zhao Yun over.

Seeing Liu Bei act so decisively, Qin Tian couldn't help smiling.

If Zhao Yun came, they would have three of the Five Tiger Generals.

Aside from Zhang Fei, Qin Tian would have another choice in the future. As for Guan Yu, he planned to pair him with Xu Shu to guard the rear.

With Zhang Fei and Zhao Yun leading the advance, and Guan Yu and Xu Shu guarding their home, he would have the confidence to help Old Liu establish a firm foothold in the Central Plains!