Grape Letter Delivery

After Gao Shun finished drilling his troops at the training grounds, he returned to the Xianzhen Battalion and found a bamboo basket in his tent; his subordinates informed him that a farmer had delivered it from Xiaopei City.

He vaguely sensed it had something to do with Lan Tian, but upon opening the basket, he found only grapes. Could it be that he had gone to such lengths just to deliver these?

Gao Shun was a cautious man. He removed all the grapes and finally discovered the bamboo slip at the bottom of the basket. Lan Tian's message was concise and to the point: he wanted Lu Bu to rescue Liu Bei.

Gao Shun possessed a high degree of political awareness; he would not allow his friendship with Lan Tian to shake his loyalty to Lu Bu.

He kept one bunch of grapes and sent the rest to Lu Lingqi, informing her that there was a letter at the bottom of the basket.

Lu Lingqi owed Lan Tian a favor, and whether she chose to repay it was entirely up to the young lady herself.

After receiving Lan Tian's grapes, Lu Lingqi's face was filled with happiness. She learned to place the grapes in a wooden bucket and set them in the well water to chill.

While the grapes were chilling, Lu Lingqi hid in her boudoir to carefully examine the bamboo slip. Unfortunately, the few short lines contained nothing about her, and while she was annoyed, she still treasured the slip.

Although the handwriting was quite unsightly, it was a gift from Lan Tian. Lu Lingqi did not know how difficult it was for this fellow to practice calligraphy, let alone carve characters onto bamboo; being able to recognize them at all was already quite an achievement.

Though Lu Lingqi had a bold personality, she was not stupid. Regarding Lan Tian's request, she would not foolishly go to Lu Bu herself, but instead first served the washed and chilled grapes to her mother, Lady Yan, to taste.

The autumn grapes were dark purple and black, ripened to perfection. Lady Yan tasted one, nodded in approval, and asked, "These grapes have an excellent texture, even better than the ones you picked in Xiaopei. Where did my child find them?"

"General Gao happened to encounter them in the city. He knew I liked them, so he bought some and sent them over," Lu Lingqi said.

"Boping is of noble character. The General having him guide you can be considered a keen eye for talent," Lady Yan sighed.

"Mm, although General Gao does not follow Father like Zhang Liao or Cheng Lian did since Bing Province, his exceptional talent and self-disciplined style have earned him Father's deep trust."

Lady Yan understood Gao Shun's character well. As she ate a few grapes, she suddenly remembered that young farm boy. "Lingqi, do you remember that farm boy from before? Back in Xiaopei, you often went to his house to sponge off his food and drink."

"Mother, you mean Lan Ziyu? That fellow is very skilled at farming. I imagine he is doing quite well in Xiaopei, but..."

"But what?"

Lu Lingqi paused before sighing, "It's just that Ji Ling is currently attacking Xiaopei. With swords and spears having no eyes, I wonder if the innocent will be caught in the crossfire."

"The world is in chaos now; these affairs of state are not for us women to worry about," Lady Yan shook her head.

"Daughter has heard that Yuan Shu is vindictive. Since Father delayed the marriage date with Shouchun, he will surely offend that man," Lu Lingqi said with some concern.

Lady Yan sighed, "The General plans for the long term, but it is a pity that your marriage has been delayed."

"Daughter is not worried about marriage. If Ji Ling breaks through Xiaopei and Yuan Shu then joins forces with the various generals of Mount Tai to attack, wouldn't our Xu Province be in danger?" Lu Lingqi continued.

Lady Yan was very surprised to hear this and asked in shock, "Did someone teach you this? Was it Chen Gongtai?"

Lu Lingqi shook her head, "I just had a sudden realization when I saw the bamboo basket that held the grapes. Mother, do you want to remind Father? Those subordinates of his all have their own private agendas."

"Mm, I understand this principle. Only one's own family shares a single heart. I will take some grapes over in a while and take the opportunity to remind him," Lady Yan said.

The autumn weather remained unbearably hot. At noon, Lu Bu sat in the back courtyard pavilion drinking wine to cool off, and Lady Yan followed, bringing the chilled grapes.

"Does Xiapi have these as well? Where did you find them, Madam?" Lu Bu asked while eating.

"General Gao happened to come across them and bought them for our daughter. You are benefiting from Lingqi's good fortune," Lady Yan said with a light laugh behind her sleeve.

"Boping has become more tactful lately. It is a pity that the fellow doesn't drink; it is truly a great regret in life," Lu Bu sighed.

"General, what does this bamboo basket look like to you?" Lady Yan asked with deep meaning.

"It's square; what do you think it looks like?" Lu Bu did not understand her intent.

Lady Yan pointed to a grape in the basket and said, "If this were our Xiapi, the entire basket would be the Qing and Xu regions. General, don't you think it looks like that?"

"Hahaha, Madam is actually lecturing me on military strategy. Interesting, interesting. What else?"

"If Liu Bei's Xiaopei is broken by Ji Ling, and then Yuan Shu joins forces with the generals of Mount Tai to the north, I fear your Xu Province will be entirely surrounded by Yuan Shu," Lady Yan finished, popping the grape representing Xiaopei into her mouth.

Lu Bu had been leaning back in his chair, but upon hearing this, he felt a sudden chill down his back despite the sweltering heat. He sat upright and asked, "Who taught you these words, Madam?"

"No one taught me; it was merely a realization I had," Lady Yan feared she had spoken out of turn and worried Lu Bu might scold their daughter, so she took the responsibility upon herself.

"Madam speaks with reason. To save Liu Bei is to save Xu Province. Quickly, help me change," Lu Bu stood up.

Due to the urgency of the situation, Lu Bu donned his armor and set out ahead with Cheng Lian.

Accompanying the two were only a thousand personal guards. Before departing, Lu Bu ordered Gao Shun to remain behind to guard Xiapi and ordered Zhang Liao to lead the rear guard to Xiaopei to meet him.

At this time, Ji Ling's massive army had already set up camp twenty miles outside of Xiaopei. Zhang Fei led three hundred cavalry out of the city to challenge them, fighting two bouts with Ji Ling that ended in a draw.

Zhang Fei was fierce and invincible. After experiencing this, Ji Ling decided to have his army surround and attack Xiaopei. With thirty thousand troops attacking in waves, Liu Bei could only send men to defend the city walls to the death.

Once the great battle at Xiaopei began, all the nearby farmsteads closed their doors and windows, fearing they would be caught in the crossfire.

Gan Ji saw Lan Tian sitting in the room in deep thought and asked, "Why was the scheme you set for Qian'er ineffective? If Xiaopei City falls, I worry that Yuan Shu's men will not be as courteous as General Gao. Won't your sister be in danger?"

"Rest assured, Godfather. There are several thousand troops in Xiaopei, enough to resist Ji Ling for several days. I predict Lu Bu will surely come to the rescue," Lan Tian said confidently.

"I hope so. I should have brought your sister back earlier," Gan Ji sighed.

After Gan Ji finished speaking, Lan Tian seemed to think of something. He opened the door, slipped out of the house, and headed toward the small woods behind the house.

"Tian'er, where are you going?" Gan Ji asked, lowering his voice as he followed behind.

"Godfather, you go back first. I'm going to the back to relieve myself."

Gan Ji was speechless, thinking to himself that it wasn't as if there wasn't a chamber pot in the house. Since you aren't farming anymore, you brat, don't you need to save some manure to fertilize the vegetables?

By the evening of the second day of Ji Ling's siege, he knew that Xiaopei was short on troops and grain and could be taken in another two or three days. Just then, a scout suddenly reported that a force was galloping toward them from the south.

Ji Ling was greatly alarmed upon hearing this, thinking to himself, Could it be that reinforcements for Liu Bei have arrived? He immediately sounded the gong to withdraw his troops and cease the siege.

After retreating to the camp, scouts reported again that the cavalry unit was flying a banner bearing the character "Lu."

By this time, Ji Ling knew the newcomer was Lu Bu, though he had no idea if the fellow had come to assist him or Liu Bei, so he promptly ordered the entire camp to remain on high alert.

Once Lu Bu's vanguard arrived, they set up camp to the southwest of Xiaopei, no more than three or five miles away from Gan Family Village.

Outside the house, Lan Tian saw the torches stretching out like a long dragon and guessed that the mediator, Lu Bu, must have already arrived at his post.

This matter was as good as settled.