Chapter 37

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The allied forces and Dong Zhuo's army engage in a daily routine of attacks and defenses. The allied forces cannot break through, and Dong Zhuo's army does not want to fight, so the situation drags on in a state of limbo. It seems that Yuan Shao has completely forgotten his previous vow to be irreconcilable with Dong Zhuo. He has already gained enough fame, and if he could capture Hulao Pass and advance to Luoyang, his name would truly be known throughout the land.

Chen Xi looked at the bloodstained Hulao Pass; the siege was so brutal, with people falling every day.

"Zichuan, how much longer do you think it will take us to reach Luoyang?" Zhang Fei asked with a depressed look. His last severe injury had already recovered to ninety percent, and according to Zhang Fei himself, along with Guan Yu and Zhao Yun, his strength had actually increased.

"Almost there. Dong Zhuo hasn't been seen on the city walls for several days. It seems that Dong Zhuo's army is about to abandon the pass and flee," Chen Xi said calmly. "By the way, Third Brother, what do you think of Lü Bu?"

"Lü Bu?" Zhang Fei's face showed some disgust, but he then scratched his head. "To be honest, he is indeed a formidable warrior, but I really don't like his character. What's up, Zichuan?"

"I'm planning to form a lineup of dream warriors, with you as the basic requirement," Chen Xi said expressionlessly.

"Huh? That sounds pretty difficult. I'm a top-notch warrior, you know!" Zhang Fei lifted his head with a look of loneliness in his eyes.

"Almost killed by Lü Bu..." Chen Xi rolled his eyes and said.

"Zichuan, aside from Lü Bu's character, his own power alone would make it difficult for us to recruit him," Zhao Yun said, appearing silently behind Chen Xi.

"Are you saying you don't mind us trying to recruit him?" Chen Xi turned his head and noticed not only Zhao Yun but also Guan Yu and Liu Bei were there.

"Lü Bu is indeed a hero. If Zichuan wants to try recruiting him, it's worth a shot," Liu Bei said, giving a clear answer. In his view, if this far-fetched idea doesn't have a significant impact, as long as Chen Xi is willing to try, he doesn't mind wasting some time.

On the other side, Li Ru was following Dong Zhuo's orders, reviewing documents. After finishing this batch, he estimated that the tung oil would be almost ready. The next step would be to gather all the treasures and wealth, then leak the news to lure the Guandong rats into the trap and burn them to a crisp.

"Hmm?" Li Ru looked at the memorial, thought for a moment, and then took a blank imperial edict from the side, filled it with some content, and stamped it with the jade seal. He then casually threw the memorial aside and continued reviewing the next one. At this moment, Li Ru held great power.

Under the lamplight, the memorial clearly stated that the Governor of Beihai, Kong Rong, and the Governor of Xuzhou, Tao Qian, jointly recommended the Han royal relative, Liu Xuande, as the Governor of Taishan. It was followed by a long list of flattering words.

Li Ru, relying on his intelligence system, knew that Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, and Zhao Yun were Liu Bei's subordinates, and naturally had an interest in recruiting such powerful warriors. With the Chancellor delegating power to him, he had to diligently consider the Chancellor's interests. Even if this line of action might not be useful now, it could be valuable in a few years when they mobilize the nation's forces and march out of the Hangu Pass. Liu Bei was a piece he saw potential in.

"Who are you?" Lü Bu asked, puzzled, as he saw an old man drinking wine in his house.

"I'm just a messenger. Someone asked me to deliver a letter to you, saying it was to thank General Lü for his actions in Bingzhou, so I'm delivering this letter to you," the old man stood up, took a letter from his chest, and handed it to Lü Bu.

Lü Bu's face was expressionless, but the struggle in his eyes was hard to hide. He took a deep breath, took the letter from the old man, and said to a servant behind him, "Give him some money and send him out of Luoyang."

"Thank you." The old man bowed and quickly walked out.

Lü Bu opened the letter and quickly read through it. He then closed the letter in surprise, his face showing the shock he felt. He reached out and crushed the entire letter into powder, and said to another servant, "Call Wenyan to discuss matters!"

The next day, Li Ru sent someone to inform Lü Bu to excavate the imperial tombs in Luoyang and gather the treasures. Lü Bu, citing his injuries, did not agree.

Upon hearing this news, Li Ru frowned slightly but did not pressure Lü Bu further. Instead, he ordered Li Que to excavate the imperial tombs, which was a lucrative task for Li Que!

"Li Wenyou, how dare you treat me like this!" Lü Bu roared in anger, locked in his inner room. He remembered the letter's warning that if he excavated the imperial tombs, he would be branded a traitor, and the entire Han royal family would never truly accept him!

Thinking about the letter's claim that Li Ru would set fire to the entire city of Luoyang, even Lü Bu felt a chill. The number of people who would be displaced was unimaginable. Hadn't he fought the Hu people in Bingzhou to protect the people? This fire would destroy the entire city of Luoyang, with a population of a million!

"General!" Zhang Liao called out loudly from the doorway.

"Wenyan, how is the investigation going?" Lü Bu asked with a gloomy face.

"The entire city of Luoyang is already filled with tung oil. If I hadn't specifically investigated, we might still be in the dark," Zhang Liao said with a look of anger. "What is Li Ru planning to do?"

"He plans to burn down Luoyang and move the capital to Chang'an," Lü Bu said calmly.

"What?" Zhang Liao shouted, and then all the pieces fell into place. "Fengxian, what should we do?"

"There's not much we can do. If we react too strongly, the Bingzhou soldiers will be cut off in Luoyang. Xu Rong has already been recalled," Lü Bu said with a dark face. "We can only take it one step at a time. I just declined the task of excavating the imperial tombs. Li Ru is always suspicious of us."

"Fengxian, let's go back to Bingzhou after this. The men are waiting for us. Let's go back there and not get involved in these ridiculous matters. We'll fight our own battles against the Hu people, and they can fight for their emperor," Zhang Liao said with a hopeful look at Lü Bu.

Lü Bu was silent, thinking of Bingzhou. He wanted to go back, but he didn't dare.

Since Ding Yuan brought him, who didn't want to come to Luoyang, to support the emperor, since Ding Yuan left most of the Bingzhou soldiers behind, and since the lack of soldiers to defend the border led to the Hu people invading, he no longer had the courage to return.

"Fengxian!" Zhang Liao interrupted Lü Bu's thoughts.

"We can't go back," Lü Bu said coldly. Prepare for the upcoming battle. We have a tough fight ahead, and protecting our Bingzhou soldiers is more important than worrying about these far-fetched things!