Hearing this, Lü Bu could not help asking, "Your Majesty, why not let me lead the troops? And isn't thirty thousand far too few? Ma Chao has over a hundred thousand men!"
Thirty thousand against a hundred thousand-even he would have to weigh those odds.
Though Zhao Yun's prowess was not much inferior to his, he could not win a battle with such a vast disparity in strength. Even Zhang Liao might not manage it.
Liu Xie shook his head. "The fighting in Jing Province is important. Fengxian, as a senior general, you must not move lightly. Let Zilong accompany me to relieve Chang'an."
"Most of Ma Chao's troops are Qiang slaves, with scarcely any elite soldiers among them. Thirty thousand elite troops will be enough to lift the siege of Chang'an."
Though Lü Bu was unwilling, he understood the greater picture.
So he gritted his teeth and stepped back.
Liu Xie looked at Zhuge Liang again and said gravely, "Kongming, I am taking part of the army with me. I leave Jing Province in your hands."
"I know this is a heavy burden, but... I hope you can shoulder it."
"Rest assured, Your Majesty!" Zhuge Liang said solemnly.
Liu Xie rose and patted his shoulder, then strode out of the command tent, his steps especially firm.
Zhao Yun followed close behind, but Lü Bu suddenly stepped forward and stopped him.
This peerless warrior, the mightiest general under heaven, who fought with unmatched valor on the battlefield, now had reddened eyes. Gripping Zhao Yun's hands tightly, he said, "Brother Zilong, I leave it to you."
"You must kill that villain Ma Chao for me!"
He understood why only his granddaughter had been sent out while Lü Lingqi remained in Chang'an. As her father, how could he not know his own