Chapter 88 It's My Turn

Yuan Xi's head buzzed when he saw Guan Yu and Zhang Fei in front, and Liu Bei behind.

Although Liu Bei was badly beaten by Cao Cao and Lu Bu in the following years, and even once took refuge in Yuan Shao, only Cao Cao and Lu Bu could beat him.

Now his troops were not as numerous as the opponent's, and he also had Guan and Zhang guarding the formation. How could he win?

Don't even mention winning, he might not even be able to escape!

Seeing that the opposite side had already set up their formation, Yuan Xi knew that he had to step forward.

He climbed onto the dilapidated city wall and shouted to Liu Bei in the distance, "Is that you, Lord Xuande?"

"Did Lord Xuande come here on the order of Tao Qian, the governor of Xu Province, to exterminate Cao Cao's family?"

Zhang Fei, at the front of the battle, cursed, "Where did this ignorant child come from, spouting nonsense here!"

Yuan Xi shouted, "My father is Yuan Benchu!"

"Zhang Kai, a commandant under Tao Qian, the governor of Xu Province, instigated soldiers to kill Cao Song's family. To cover up his deeds, he even wanted to kill the people of Xu Province who were seeking refuge here!"

"I stopped his evil deeds and beheaded Zhang Kai!"

"The people in the city can all testify to what I said!"

Zhang Fei hesitated upon hearing this and muttered to Guan Yu beside him, "Yuan Shao's son, Second Brother, what do we do now?"

Guan Yu looked back at Liu Bei. Zhang Fei understood and said happily, "We'll listen to Big Brother!"

Liu Bei returned the double-edged sword in his hand to its scabbard and rode forward. As he passed Guan Yu and Zhang Fei, Guan Yu said, "Be careful, Big Brother, and beware of ambushes from hidden arrows."

Liu Bei nodded slightly, rode his horse to within arrow range, and clasped his fist at Yuan Xi on the city wall, "I am Liu Xuande. May I know which son of Yuan Zhoumu is on the city wall?"

Yuan Xi stood up straight and leaned out, "I am Yuan Xianyi, greetings, Lord Xuande."

Liu Bei nodded, "I am here to escort Cao Cao back to his hometown. In principle, since you, sir, have already welcomed Cao Cao, I should retreat."

"But I don't know if you can really send Cao Cao back safely, so please hand over Cao Cao to us for escort. Is that acceptable?"

Yuan Xi naturally knew that Liu Bei wanted to detain Cao Song and negotiate terms with Cao Cao, but if he handed over Cao Song, wouldn't his trip be in vain?

He immediately said, "With Zhang Kai's example, I dare not obey."

Zhang Fei shouted loudly, "If that's the case, then let's have a fight!"

Guan Yu glanced at Zhang Fei, and Zhang Fei muttered and shut his mouth.

Liu Bei said, "I should have led my troops to attack, but there are still people in the city, and there will inevitably be casualties."

"How about this, you and I have a duel. The winner takes Cao Cao. What do you think, sir?"

Upon hearing this, Yuan Xi secretly cried out in his heart.

He looked at Guan Yu and Zhang Fei, who looked confident, obviously having great faith in Liu Bei.

This was not surprising. When Liu Bei first made a name for himself, he relied not on his background, but on his own ability.

The "Dian Lue" records: "Liu Ziping of Pingyuan knew that (Liu) Bei was brave and martial."

The "Records of the Three Kingdoms": "Liu Bei was known as a hero in the world, feared by his generation." The word 'hero' here means bravery.

Guo Jia, Cheng Yu, and Dong Zhao: "(Liu) Bei is brave and ambitious, with Guan Yu and Zhang Fei as his wings."

Bravery comes before ambition, indicating that Liu Bei's reputation was truly earned by his own efforts!

Among the five great swordsmanships of later generations, Liu Bei's Gu Ying method is on the list, making him a founder of a school.

Only a fool would go out and duel with someone like Liu Bei.

He forced a smile and said, "Lord Xuande is a pillar of the country, and my father also admires you very much."

"How dare I rashly resort to arms? If I were to hurt you, how would I explain it to my father?"

Zhang Fei couldn't help but shout, "You little brat has a big mouth. Even your brother Yuan Tan wouldn't dare to say that!"

"When he was fighting in Pingyuan, wasn't he beaten by my brother and fled back into the formation!"

Yuan Xi was stunned. Yuan Tan had suffered a loss?

However, Yuan Tan was quite capable to be able to run back alive from Liu Bei.

He chuckled, thinking about how to delay time. The longer the time, the more variables there would be.

Perhaps Cao Cao's army was nearby. Seeing the change in Fei County, if they rushed over, Liu Bei would retreat without a fight.

Upon hearing this, Liu Bei raised his horse whip and pointed at Yuan Xi, "I will give you half a quarter of an hour. If you cannot make a decision, I will attack the city!"

Yuan Xi thought, 'Well, Liu Bei is decisive in his actions.' The city wall of Fei County is only ten feet high, and there are gaps everywhere. If Guan Yu and Zhang Fei break in, his side will be overwhelmed.

Time passed by, and Yuan Xi couldn't think of a way to break the situation. At this moment, his eyes narrowed, and he saw two plumes of thick smoke rising straight into the sky on the distant hillside.

He took out his binoculars and looked, and was immediately overjoyed.

Guan Yu also saw the fire on the distant hillside, rode his horse to Liu Bei, and said, "Big Brother, someone is signaling with smoke on the hillside. It will definitely be seen after a long time. We can't stay here for long!"

Upon hearing this, Liu Bei waved his hand and shouted, "Attack the city immediately!"

Yuan Xi shouted on the city wall, "Lord Xuande!"

"Our army of 5,000 reinforcements is on its way!"

"I advise you to leave quickly, lest you won't be able to leave by then!"

Upon hearing this, Liu Bei shouted to the crowd, "This is a lie, trying to confuse our army!"

"Follow me and quickly attack the city and capture him!"

The soldiers responded in unison and rushed towards the gaps everywhere.

On the distant hillside, Qu Yi handed the binoculars to Gao Lan and said, "Choose yourself."

"You should have heard of those three people. They followed Tian Kai to deal with Yuan Tan, your eldest son."

"The one in the middle, Liu Xuande, the governor of Pingyuan, used to be a straw sandal weaver."

"The red-faced one next to him is a date seller."

"The black-faced one is a pig butcher."

"You can choose anyone. As long as you defeat one, you can return to Ye City."

"If you can capture one alive, the lord can also recommend you."

Gao Lan held up the binoculars, looked at Liu, Guan, and Zhang attacking the city in the distance, and sneered, "If what you said is true, aren't you looking down on me too much?"

"Although my injury has not fully healed, I am still a general of Ji Province!"

"Let me deal with a pig butcher?"

Qu Yi looked indifferent, "The lord said, anyone will do. The opposite side is just a pig. If you win, he can still fulfill his promise."

"But remember to cover your face before going out, lest you be recognized by Zhang He in the city."

Gao Lan covered his face, flipped over and mounted his horse, and said, "Give me a quarter of an hour, and watch me cut down both the red-faced and black-faced ones under my horse!"

Qu Yi watched Gao Lan raise his spear and ride out, already rushing down the hillside, and hurriedly shouted, "Be careful!"

He thought to himself that this child was still young and vigorous.

Since Qu Yi suffered a hidden loss from Zhao Yun last time, he has become much more honest.

He felt that the star-gazing method that the lord boasted about when changing his identity was not necessarily groundless!

Otherwise, how would he know that the unknown Zhao Yun was so powerful?

This time, Qu Yi went to deceive Gao Lan. Before departure, Yuan Xi specially told Qu Yi to let Gao Lan choose from Liu, Guan, and Zhang.

Qu Yi thought that he knew that Liu Bei was the governor of Pingyuan, and that Guan and Zhang were his two personal soldiers. Were these three all difficult to deal with?

He was full of doubts, but Qu Yi knew that Yuan Xi would definitely not choose these three people for no reason. Yuan Xi was very cunning!