Plan to cut off the nine states

If given the chance to make a new choice, Mr. Bao Dun felt that he would rather lead his family and children to seek refuge elsewhere than stay and become the Lord of Runan City.

"Is there any news from Huaizhou?" Bao Dun asked the soldiers who came in.

The soldier shook his head and couldn't bear to answer directly, "Liang Jun sent an envoy from outside the city."

"No, Liang Jun just wants me to surrender. There is nothing to say."

The soldier responded, turned around and retreated.

"Wait." Bao Dun changed his mind, "Please come in. Maybe Liang Jun can be a little more reasonable this time."

Bao Dun refused to stay at the government office and was still giving orders in his own courtyard. The generals came in one after another to report on the defense of the city. There was no change compared to yesterday. The more he listened, the more chilling he was. Bao Dun interrupted the speaker and said to several generals. : "It seems that the Sheng family will not send reinforcements."

A general said: "Third Master, please don't be depressed. Losing Runan will be detrimental to Huaizhou. The Sheng family will not die without saving it. I think they are mobilizing troops and generals. Let's hold on a little longer..."

Bao Dun smiled, "Runan is not an important portal in Huaizhou. The Sheng family has no intention of sticking to it. We still have to find a way on our own."

The generals were silent for a long time, and one of them said: "Do you want to surrender to Liang Jun?"

"As long as we can keep the soldiers and civilians in the city safe, we can surrender to anyone. Runan is the city of Luozhou."

"The King of Liang is not the lord of Luozhou. He just happens to occupy Dongdu and several counties. He doesn't even occupy half of Luozhou."

"Even so, King Liang has many soldiers and generals, and he is still the overlord of Luozhou."

The generals looked at each other, and another one said: "If we just change the flag, surrendering to King Liang is fine, but King Liang wants to send troops into the city, and also wants to seize the third master's position as city lord..."

"The city leader has never been what I wanted. I am grateful if someone is willing to take over. If Liang Jun can guarantee that he will not commit any crimes after entering the city, it will be okay to let them in."

The generals were silent, feeling that Bao Dun was depressed, but they could not think of a better way.

A general ran in hurriedly, with a panicked look on his face, "Third Master, something strange is coming..."

Bao Dun was startled and stood up and said: "Liang Jun attacks the city? Everyone be prepared. If Liang Jun uses force, Runan City will never surrender..."

"Liang Jun did not attack the city." The general said hurriedly: "It's the envoy..."

"What happened to the messenger?"

"The messenger seems... it seems..."

"Be more neat." Bao Dun shouted.

"It seems to be the Grand Governor Xu Chu..."

"Are you sure?" Bao Dun was even more surprised.

"It looked very similar. I ran over to tell the third master, but I didn't take a closer look."

"Where is the messenger?"

"We have entered the city and are heading this way. We should arrive soon."

Bao Dun led the generals and strode out of the hall and went straight to the courtyard gate, where they happened to bump into the envoy.

Xu Chu entered the city alone, walked forward quickly, cupped his hands and said with a smile, "Long time no see, Third Master."

Bao Dun blushed. When he saw Xu Chu again, he was not only surprised, but also a little ashamed, "I didn't expect... I really didn't expect..."

"I have no official position now. If Third Master respects me, please call me 'sir'." Xu Chu first solved the awkwardness of calling me.

Bao Dun laughed dryly and said, "Mr. Xu, please come in. Let's have a wine and a banquet to welcome Mr. Xu."

"I'll be leaving the city soon to resume my duties. A cup of tea will suffice."

The generals were also at a loss like Bao Dun. They gathered the two people into the living room. After getting Bao Dun's hint, they left one after another and started talking to each other as soon as they got outside.

"The appearance hasn't changed, but he looks like a different person."

"Yes, not like the Governor, and certainly not like the King of Wu."

"What on earth is going on?"

In the hall, Bao Dun was sitting on pins and needles. After taking a sip of tea, he simply stated clearly, "What happened at the beginning was really a last resort. Mr. Xu was far away in Dongdu, but the Huaizhou army had already arrived at the city, and the Sheng family was... …”

"The Sheng family is flying the banner of the imperial court again, but the troops in the Eastern Capital are rebelling. The soldiers and people of Runan prefer to belong to the orthodox. I understand that if I were to defend the city, I would most likely make the same choice."

"Mr. Xu will definitely have a better way to defend the city." Bao Dun sighed.

"It will also attract more enemies." Xu Chu didn't want to talk about the past. "I'm not here to reminisce about the past, but to persuade them to surrender."

"Master Xu, come personally, I am willing to surrender."

"So simple?"

"It's that simple. I don't dare to put forward any conditions. I just want to ask Mr. Xu to give Runan City a favor."

"Please King Liang not to disturb the soldiers and people in the city?"

"Exactly, there are not many soldiers in Runan, no more than 5,000 soldiers at full strength, but there are quite a few civilians, mostly old, weak, women and children, so they do not pose much threat to Liang Jun."

Xu Chu remained silent.

Bao Dun said: "I know this is difficult. King Liang wants money and food, so I will try my best to satisfy him. If he wants hostages, I will personally serve as his attendant."

Xu Chu shook his head, "Mr. Bao, have you ever thought about how long you can protect Runan like this?"

If it were Bao Dun, he would be silent.

"Even if the King of Liang is willing to sell me a favor, it is just a temporary measure. When the Huaizhou army attacks, the King of Liang will either drive the soldiers and people of Runan to fight to the death, or destroy the city and return to the east capital. All the population must follow, or be captured. kill."

This is exactly the outcome that Bowden least dared to imagine but was well aware of.

"I always thought that the troubled times would end soon... Alas, I kept making mistakes again and again. I shouldn't have been this city lord in the first place. I didn't have the ability, but I took on such an important responsibility. I overestimated my capabilities, and now I'm riding a tiger and it's hard to get off... Is there no other choice?”

"have."

Bao Dun stood up and was about to kneel down, but Xu Chu hurriedly helped him up, "Master Bao San, you can't do this. The road I pointed out is not easy to walk on, and it may be more difficult than defending the city."

"As long as it is a way to survive, I will go no matter how difficult it is. As for whether it is a blessing or a curse, I will bear it myself. It has nothing to do with Mr. Xu. I will never forget Mr. Xu's guidance to Runan."

Xu Chu smiled. Bao Dun was an honest man and rarely exaggerated his military strength, but his "never forget" was not worth taking seriously.

"Ru'nan City is small and has no power to protect itself. For the sake of the soldiers and civilians in the city, Mr. Bao San needs to fight back, cross counties and cities, recruit soldiers, and have a chance of survival."

Bao Dun was stunned, "Mr. Xu... is he the lobbyist of King Liang?"

"I think so."

"But Mr. Xu advised me to be independent. Not to mention that I don't have this intention, even if I do, the current situation does not allow it."

"As long as Mr. Bao San has this ambition, it will be easy to take the first step."

"What is the first step?"

"Go north with King Liang and establish military merits."

Bao Dun was stunned again, "According to Mr. Xu's plan, the people of Ru'nan may be saved, but the soldiers will suffer many casualties."

"There is no win-win solution."

Bao Dun pondered for a long time, and suddenly said: "Mr. Xu said to follow King Liang to the north. What does that mean? Isn't King Liang going to the east to Huaizhou?"

"Go east to Huaizhou and north to Jibing. King Liang's plan is huge."

Bao Dun couldn't help laughing, "I don't mean to underestimate you, but... although Dongdu is much stronger than Runan, it is not as solid as a rock. It can barely protect itself. Does it have the spare power to go east and north?"

"Surviving in troubled times is like sailing against the current. If you don't move forward, you will retreat. If you stay in the city, you will only become weaker and weaker. There is no reason to become stronger."

Bao Dun's heart was slightly moved, "Follow King Liang to the north, and then what?"

"If Mr. Bao San is only to deal with King Liang, he doesn't need to surrender. He will hold on. King Liang won't stay here for too long, but Runan won't Live in peace for a while. If Mr. Bao wants to make long-term plans, he should lead his elite troops north, and after making meritorious deeds, he will seek to take over Runan and the surrounding counties and serve as a barrier for the Eastern Capital. After that, it depends on the situation, unite the strong and attack the weak, and continue to expand. As for the future, I don’t know, it all depends on Mr. Bao’s luck. "

"I have never had such a big ambition..."

"From the moment Mr. Bao San decided to protect the soldiers and civilians of Runan, he already had an ambition - to protect a group of people in troubled times, this is a bigger ambition than fighting for the world."

"Haha, Mr. Xu..." Bao Dun thought for a while, "Mr. Xu is going to leave the city soon?"

"Well, I only ask King Liang for one hour."

"Okay , please tell King Liang that I am willing to lead 3,000 soldiers to follow him north. "

"Three thousand is too few."

"There are less than 5,000 soldiers in the city, and some must be left to defend the city."

"Master Bao San still hasn't developed a real 'ambition'."

Bao Dun gritted his teeth, "Give me three days to recruit soldiers, and after three days, I will lead 8,000 people to the north."

Xu Chu bowed, "Almost."

Bao Dun sighed, "I always thought that someone would share the heavy responsibility for me, and never thought that I would have to bear more burdens-it was Mr. Xu who woke me up."

"This road is difficult."

"After all, there is no better way."

Outside Runan City, Ma Wei was drinking in the tent. In addition to the guards, only Gao Shengze was guarding him.

"Is Xu Chu okay? Although he has an old relationship with Bao Dun, Bao Dun once betrayed him and returned to Huai. I'm afraid he won't listen to Xu Chu's persuasion again, right?" Gao Shengze said carefully.

"Hey, for Xu Chu, this is just a small test."

"Haha, King Liang has a keen eye for people, much better than us ordinary eyes." Gao Shengze laughed, not daring to find fault with King Liang.

"Xu Chu is a precious sword. It must be used in the hands of a true hero. Otherwise, he will suffer from it."

"Ask the world, who else can be more worthy of the word 'true hero' than King Liang?"

"Haha, like you, it's just a blunt sword without a blade, but it is inlaid with a lot of gold and silver jewels. Everyone can use it, but it's not very useful. It just looks gorgeous."

Gao Shengze was not ashamed of it. He smiled and said, "I am a blunt sword, so I can stay with King Liang. I am not very useful, but in times of crisis, I can also block the sharp sword for King Liang."

Ma Wei put away his smile, motioned Gao Shengze to pour wine, and murmured, "I won't wait any longer. Xu Chu will either be used by me, or the sword will be destroyed and the person will die. I can't give him to others."

Gao Shengze nodded repeatedly, "Yes, the precious sword must be held in my own hands."

Before finishing a pot of wine, the outside reported that Xu Chu was back.

"How is it?" Ma Wei asked.

"Lord Bao needs three days to recruit soldiers. He will take 8,000 people to follow King Liang to the north."

"How did you convince him to change his mind? Before this, Bao Dun only wanted to stay in Runan. He was willing to provide food and money, but he was unwilling to contribute troops and manpower."

"I told him that to survive in troubled times, you must first have ambition. If you defend a city to death, you will be killed by others sooner or later."

"Haha, I understand. You suggest that Bao Dun first follow me to the north to make merit, and then ask to return to Runan to conquer all sides and change defense to offense, right?"

"Yes."

"If Bao Dun really has such ambitions - he can be used. What about Master Xu? Will you follow me to the north?"

Xu Chu shook his head, and Ma Wei felt angry.