The flag is fluttering, facing Yuan Shao's hundreds of thousands of troops, Lu Bu seems to have returned to the former tiger prison pass, with the halberd in his hand and the crotch to dismount, he will be the heroes of the world. Before the Tiger Prison Pass, Lu Bu became famous all over the world, and it was also before the Tiger Prison Pass that Lu Bu met a fierce opponent. At that time, Yuan Shao was the leader of the princes' alliance, but today's Yuan Shao is the overlord of Hebei, and Lu Bu is looking forward to competing with those fierce generals under Yuan Shao.

Almost the same as in front of the Tiger Prison Pass back then, after Lu Bulian beheaded the three generals of Wangmen, Si Yuanjin, and Jiao Touch, Yuan Shao had to send his henchman Tiger General Wen Chou, and thanks to Yuan Shao's advice to follow the advice of Fu Zhi, Yan Liang was left in front of the tent to listen. It is difficult to defeat Lu Bu by Wen Chou alone, and only the joint efforts of Yan Liang and Wen Chou can ensure a draw.

Back then, in the Tiger Prison Pass, Yuan Shao saw Lu Bu's personal martial bravery, and today, Yuan Shao has learned Lu Bu's ability to command troops. The Flying Bear Army led the horse in the joint camp led by Lu Bu, almost breaking through Yuan Shao's Chinese army, if Yuan Shao ran fast, maybe he would ask Lu Bu to capture him alive.

However, although Lu Bu is brave, his weaknesses are also extremely obvious, compared to Yuan Shao, who controls the entire territory of Hebei, Lu Bu is much poorer. But with the addition of horses, Lu Bu is far inferior. Although the Flying Bear Army is strong, if it loses its horses, the Flying Bear Army is a little stronger than the average foot soldier.

The war was at a stalemate for the time being, but the longer it dragged on, the more unfavorable it was for Lu Bu. Lu Bu wants to fight quickly, but the problem is that Yuan Shao, who has already learned Lu Bu's power, is smart, no matter how Lu Bu provokes, he will never show his head, and occasionally he can't hold back the battle, that is also a shallow taste, and never give Lu Bu a chance.

……

The words were divided into two ends, Lü Bu and Yuan Shao reached a stalemate in Linqu, but Yuan Shao's ally Cao Cao also began to attack Xuzhou. Compared with Yuan Shao, Cao Cao is obviously better at figuring out people's hearts. He did not rush to kill the army, but sent an envoy to Xuzhou under the banner of sending troops to help. It is said to be a negotiation, but in fact it is a bribe.

Xuzhou is not monolithic, in the past, Chen, Cao, Tao, Mi four, with Tao Qian's death, the four families each chose the team, of which Chen, Cao two families chose Lu Bu, and the Mi family is to choose to follow Liu Bei, as for the last Tao family, with Tao Qian's death, Tao Shang, Tao Ying and then two people were silent, so that most people think that the Tao family has declined.

But a big family, even if it declines, is not an overnight thing. Pottery merchant and Tao Ying are both literate and martial, although their abilities are not outstanding, but the heart to revive the family business has never died. In Xuzhou, the Tao family is also popular, although it is not as good as the Chen and Cao families, but if the Tao family comes forward, it can still persuade many small and medium-sized families. The purpose of Guo Jia's trip was actually to persuade the Xuzhou family to abandon Lu and join Cao through the Tao family.

The role of the Tao family is just to match, and when Guo Jia contacts Chen Qun, the Tao family will be useless. However, Guo Jia is a master who knows how to be a man, he did not alienate the Tao family because of the loss of the Tao family's effect, but assured the Tao family that his lord will no longer anger the Tao family because of his father's death in Xuzhou, as long as the Tao family is dedicated to doing things, they will be able to achieve their wishes in the future.

Guo Jia's promise can be said to be great news for the Tao family, there are objections within the Tao family to take refuge in Cao Cao, after all, the hatred of killing his father is not shared, if Cao Cao wants to clean up the Tao family in the future, then it is better to let the lord of Xuzhou be Lu Bu, although it cannot be reused, at least the family is safe. But now with Guo Jia's promise, most of the Tao family's heart disease has gone, and he is even more obedient to Guo Jia's orders, and he is more concerned about Guo Jia's safety than his own safety.

Through Chen Qun, Guo Jia met Chen Deng. There are two major families under Lu Bu, the Chen family and the Cao family. Among them, Cao Bao's daughter married Lu Bu, but the Chen family was more important to Lu Bu than the Cao family. The reason is very simple, Chen Deng can be the mastermind, but Cao Bao is a thing that has more than enough success and more failure.

As for why Guo Jia found Chen Deng instead of Cao Bao, it was also because compared to Cao Bao, Chen Deng's vision is more long-term, Guo Jia believes that Chen Deng will not fail to see what will happen to Lu Bu, who was attacked by Yuan Cao.

"Chen Deng has seen Mr. Guo and admired Mr. Guo's name for a long time, but it's a pity that he has never had the opportunity to see him." Chen Deng said with a smile to Guo Jia, who came to visit.

"Brother Chen is polite, Guo is also famous for Brother Chen's name for a long time, and seeing Brother Chen today is really better than seeing it, and it is even more famous when you see it." Guo Jia hurriedly said politely when he heard this.

"I said the two of you, can you not praise each other like this, I have goosebumps." Chen Qun on the side said while rubbing his arms.

The guests and hosts sat down, everyone was a smart person, Chen Deng guessed Guo Jia's intention, and Guo Jia also knew Chen Deng's personality. At this time, he was just waiting for his own offer. Chen Deng is very smart, but unfortunately he is burdened by the family, no matter what decision is made, the main purpose is to ensure the interests of the Chen family in Xuzhou, Guo Jia only needs to ensure that the interests of the Chen family are not lost in Xuzhou, even if Chen Deng does not agree immediately, Guo Jia will not have any danger.

The negotiations went smoothly, although Chen Deng did not immediately agree to Guo Jia's solicitation, and said that the matter needed to be discussed with his father, but Guo Jia understood that if he did not object, he would acquiesce, and once Chen Deng was really persuaded by himself, then his family could seize Xuzhou before Yuan Shao. Unless Yuan Shao wants to start a war with his own family, he can only look at his own eyes.

After agreeing with Chen Deng to come back in three days, Guo Jia got up and prepared to leave, but he didn't want to see the Chen family's housekeeper come in at this time to report that Cao Bao was visiting. As soon as Chen Deng heard this, he wanted Guo Jia to leave through the back door, and was unwilling to let Guo Jia meet Cao Bao, but Guo Jia shook his head after hearing it and said: "Yuanlong, don't do bad things, don't be afraid of ghosts calling the door, if I leave through the back door at this time, wouldn't it make that Cao Bao grab the handle?" Let him in and find out what he is here for. ”

Chen Deng thought about it and felt that this was reasonable, although he knew that Cao Cao would not watch Yuan and Lu fight, but after all, Cao Cao had not sent troops to Xuzhou at this time, if Cao Bao wanted to use Guo Jia to say that he collaborated with the enemy, he could also take this opportunity to say that Cao Bao was Lu Bu's enemy at this time. This kind of war of words, Chen Deng is really not afraid of Cao Bao.

Cao Bao rushed into Chen's house angrily, and when he saw Guo Jia, he ordered someone to take it down without saying a word. Chen Deng was furious when he saw this, and with an order, the private soldiers of the Chen family immediately surrounded Cao Bao and the others.

"Chen Yuanlong! Don't you want to rebel? Cao Bao shouted angrily.

"Humph! Cao Bao! I think you're the one who wants to rebel! Chen Deng snorted coldly.

"Chen Yuanlong, now that everyone has obtained all the stolen goods, do you still want to quibble? This Guo Jianai is Cao Cao's subordinate, you meet him privately, isn't it a rebellion? ”

"You also know that Mr. Guo is under the command of Cao Yuanjun, so do you know that the Lord is now an enemy of Yuan Shao? Cao Yuanjun sent Mr. Guo to discuss the joint efforts of the two families to fight against Yuan, but you sent someone to arrest Mr. Guo, is there not enough enemies of the suspect? Chen Deng asked loudly.

Cao Bao was speechless. Although everyone knew in their hearts that Cao Cao had bad intentions, the problem was that Cao Lu had not really started a war at present. was questioned by Chen Deng, Cao Bao was really a little worried about the responsibility that led to Cao Lu's war. Lu Bu's son-in-law didn't treat his father-in-law very well, and he originally wanted to take this opportunity to show his face in front of his son-in-law, but he didn't make meritorious service but caused trouble.

"Yuanlong, don't be annoyed, I think Mr. Cao is also the protector, so he did something wrong." Guo Jia spoke out to be humane. After persuading Chen Deng, Guo Jia said to Cao Bao warmly: "Mr. Cao, now that Yuan Shao has unified Hebei, my lord is deeply worried that once he goes south, he will be unable to resist, so he intends to form an alliance with Wen Hou to resist Yuan Shao. You don't have to be confused for a while, so that Yuan Shao can get the benefits of a fisherman. ”

"Uh...... Mr. Guo is not strange, it was Cao who was reckless. Cao Bao hurriedly borrowed the slope to get off the donkey, apologized to Guo Jia, and warmly invited Guo Jia to live at Cao's house temporarily. However, Chen Deng said coldly at this time: "Go to your Cao family? What if you don't have good hospitality? I think it's better to let Fengxiao stay in Chen Deng. ”

"Yuanlong Mo Zheng, as the main minister, it is better for me to live in the post house." Without waiting for Cao Bao to refute it, Guo Jia had already spoken.

Seeing that the main owner opened his mouth, Chen Deng and Cao Bao were not easy to fight, but Chen Deng was very dissatisfied with Cao Bao's actions today, and glared at Cao Bao fiercely. And Cao Bao also felt a little unreasonable, and after a few gossips with Guo Jia, he said goodbye and left. After Cao Bao left, Chen Deng said to Guo Jia: "Thanks to Feng Xiao's guidance today, otherwise I would have to let this Cao Bao grab a handle." ”

"Yuanlong is too modest, this Xuzhou can be called a wise man, except for the long text, there is only your Chen family father and son. Our lord once said that if you get Chen Yuanlong, you will get even 100,000 soldiers. ”

"Huh...... Cao Gong has won the prize. Chen Deng hurriedly said modestly.

When Guo Jia and Chen Qun said goodbye and left, Chen Deng hurriedly went to the back house to meet his father Chen Qi. Compared with Chen Deng, Chen Qi is more worthy of the words "old treacherous and cunning". Seeing his son coming, he didn't need Chen Deng to speak, Chen Qi had already spoken: "Yuanlong, now that you are the head of the Chen family, don't always come to ask your father's opinion." ”

"Father, the stakes are very high, and the child is still a little undecided."

“…… Are you worried that Lu Bu will be the final winner? ”

"Yes."

"Yuanlong, what's your surname in this world?" Chen Qi shook his head and asked Chen Dengdao.

"Uh...... The surname is Liu. ”

"Hehe, even if you know your surname Liu, why do you hesitate? It's just a stopgap measure. Although Lu Bu was brave, it was difficult to defeat Yuan Cao and join forces. But although Yuan Cao was strong, he was not necessarily able to block the edge of the court. No matter what you decide today, you must remember that the Chen family's foundation is the most important thing, and personal honor and disgrace are secondary. ”

“…… Father saw it? Chen Deng asked a little embarrassed when he heard this.

"Hmph, you are my child, I still don't know your temperament?" Chen Qi snorted coldly.

Chao Qin and Twilight, this is not a good word. As the head of the Chen family, Chen Deng naturally wanted this face. It's just that for the foundation of the Chen family, sometimes I have to give up my personal face, as the so-called fish and bear's paw can't have both. Chen Deng wants to keep the Chen family's foundation in Xuzhou, so the name of this repeated villain will have to be carried on his back.

"Yuanlong, become a king and defeat a king, this truth has been told to you many times by my father, why haven't you thought about it today?" Chen Qi looked at Chen Deng with an angry look and asked.

"It's not you who are ashamed, of course you say it easily." Chen Deng muttered to himself in his heart, but he still admitted his mistake and said: "What my father taught me is that it is the child who is in love." ”

"How are you going to reply to Guo Jia?" Chen Qi asked again.

"This, the child wants to go back to Xiaopei first and meet Zang Ba."

"Hmm...... That's also a person who knows the times, but you're gone, what should you do now? ”

"The boy wants to ask his father to come forward."

"Huh...... For the father. Chen Qi smiled when he heard this.

Chen Deng hurriedly said: "My father is old and strong, if my father doesn't come forward, the child is also worried about what kind of moth Cao Bao will rise again." ”

"Well, for the sake of the Chen family, for the sake of my father, I will help you once."

"Thank you, father."

……

Early the next morning, Chen Deng left Xiapi, and Guo Jia immediately received the news when Chen Deng left, but Guo Jia did not feel any dissatisfaction with Chen Deng's departure at this time. Because just as Chen Deng left on the front foot, the Chen family's invitation was sent to the post house on the back foot, and Chen Deng's father, Chen Qi, invited Guo Jia to be a guest at Chen's house.

If you want to win over the Chen family, it is far from enough to win over Chen Deng, the key is for Chen Qi to nod. Many of the major events of the Chen family can only be implemented by Chen Jue. Guo Jia, who was invited, did not dare to slack off, and took Chen Qun to Chen's house together.

In order to leave a good impression on Chen Qi, Guo Jia put away his usual prodigal style, but Chen Qi was not satisfied with this at all. After greeting each other, the two sides went straight to the point, Chen Qun is not an outsider, since he can agree to match Guo Jia, then he must have defected to Cao Cao in private. However, in order to avoid suspicion, Chen Qun still found an excuse to retire and went to the Chen family's living room to drink tea and wait, as for Guo Jia, he was taken to the back house by Chen Qi.

It wasn't until he entered the Chen family's back house that Guo Jia told Chen Jue the truth. There is no one around, and there is no need to beat around the bush, Cao Cao wants to persuade the Chen family to surrender, what price is he willing to pay, this is what Chen Jue is most concerned about. As for any temptations, Chen Qi put them all down.

"Fengxiao, the old man is loud, can I call you a virtuous nephew?"

"Mr. Chen is polite, you can call Guo Jia anything." Guo Jia hurriedly replied.

"Virtuous nephew, Cao Gong wants a certain Xuzhou, I don't know what the Chen family can do?"

"Hmm...... Before Guo Jia came to Xuzhou, the lord once said to me that he should be kind to the Chen family and try his best to meet the Chen family's request, but I don't know what the Chen family wants? Guo Jia kicked the question back to Chen Qi.

"Huh...... The Chen family is not demanding, as long as Cao Gong can ensure that the interests of the Chen family in Xuzhou are not damaged. If you can, please also ask Cao Gong to allow my son Chen Deng Guangling to guard the county. ”

"Yuanlong's talent, it's a bit condescending to be a county guard." Guo Jia said with a smile.

Chen Jue didn't say anything when he heard this, he reached out and picked up the teapot on the table and poured water into an empty teacup, until the tea overflowed the teacup and flowed everywhere on the table. Putting down the teapot, Chen Qi looked at Guo Jia and said: "Virtuous nephew, when the water is full, it will overflow, and if the moon is full, it will be lost, the Chen family does not have that blessing to monopolize Xuzhou, as long as the Chen family's family business can be passed on, the Chen family will be satisfied." ”

Guo Jia nodded secretly when he saw this, people's hearts are not enough to swallow elephants, and the success or failure of many things is actually caused by greed. The Chen family has Chen Jue, an old guy who keeps his mind clear, and it is difficult to pass it on.

"Yuanlong is so blessed, there is Mr. Chen on the side. Mr. Chen can rest assured that the affairs of the Chen family are covered by Guo Jia, but I don't know if Mr. Chen needs Guo Jia's service? ”

"Huh...... The virtuous nephew just needs to sit back and watch a good show. ”

……

Guo Jia came and went in a hurry, and Cao Bao was still thinking about who to ask to ease his relationship with Guo Jia, when he received the news that Guo Jia had left Xiapi and went to Xiaopei with his entourage. Cao Bao couldn't help but regret after learning about it, as the head of the Cao family, the interests of the family are the top priority, Cao Bao didn't want to become a grasshopper on a rope with Lu Bu, marrying a daughter was just to ensure the interests of the Cao family in Xuzhou, and Lu Bu was willing to marry the daughter of the Cao family, but also out of consideration for being able to get the support of the family in Xuzhou.

Seeing Yuan Shao's army attacking, Cao Bao also had a faint premonition that the wind and rain were coming. It is not advisable to hug Lu Bu's thighs tightly, and it is even more undesirable to abandon his family business and go south to cross the river to avoid trouble. The roots of the Cao family are in Xuzhou, and after leaving Xuzhou, the Cao family is nothing. Since he can't give up his family business, and Lu Bu's thigh is not necessarily very reliable, Cao Bao can only consider finding another buyer.

There are two choices in front of Cao Bao, either Cao Cao or Yuan Shao. It was impossible for Sun Ce to go north before Jiangdong was stable, so Cao Bao didn't think about it. Who can you turn to? Although Yuan Shao is powerful, the problem is that there are many families under him, and Cao Bao is gone, and he may not be valued by Yuan Shao.

Compared with this, Cao Cao is different, because of the killing of the famous man Bian Rang, the Yanzhou family was quite dissatisfied with Cao Cao, and when Lu Bu entered Yanzhou, Cao Cao killed the Yanzhou family in order to kill chickens and monkeys, although the family survived quickly, the relationship with Cao Cao was quite tense. In order to avoid the intensification of the conflict with the Yanzhou family, Cao Cao moved the administrative office to Xudu after driving Yuan Shu out of Yuzhou.

The icing on the cake is never as good as charcoal in the snow! Cao Bao is not a completely stupid person, he also thought about finding a way to get on the line with Cao Cao, but he didn't expect to be impulsive, and he let go of the opportunity in front of him. At that time, Cao Bao regretted it as soon as he left Chen's house, but he couldn't pull his face to invite Guo Jia, so he had to go back first, thinking about finding an excuse to go again the next day. But he didn't want to send someone to invite him the next day, but he was preempted by the old immortal of the Chen family. Cao Bao dared to glare at Chen Deng, but he didn't dare to offend Chen Qi, so he could only wait patiently for another day, but he didn't expect that Guo Jia would leave Xiapi on the third day......

"Thief God, did you deliberately get along with Lao Tzu?" Standing in his own yard, Cao Bao scolded the sky to vent the depression in his heart, and before he could vent his resentment enough, he heard that the family came to report, saying that the old head of the Chen family sent someone to post and ask him to come to the house.

Starting from his heart, Cao Bao didn't really want to see the old fox of the Chen family, but as the head of the Cao family, he couldn't refuse without a legitimate reason at this time, and when he was in a dilemma, a staff member next to him came up with an idea and said: "The head of the family, since you don't want to go, it's better to excuse yourself and excuse yourself." ”

"To put it mildly, what am I busy with?" Cao Bao asked angrily.

"The head of the family, you forgot, before the lord left, he handed over the important matter of the dispatch of grain and grass to you." The staff reminded when he heard this.

"Yes, yes, that's it. You, go and reply to the Chen family, just say that the master I will go to the granary to check the accounts, and I will visit when I have time. Cao Bao nodded yes again and again.