Chapter 82: Li Chong's Bet with Zhao Yun

  At this time, Zhou Tai also rushed to the battle group. In order to quickly join the battle group, Zhou Tai did not use a slashing technique, but instead held his large knife horizontally and used the force of his horse's rapid charge to thrust at Zhao Yun's abdomen.

  Zhoa Yun looked at Zhou Tai's incoming knife and his eyes suddenly turned cold. The steel spear in his hand fiercely poked at the tip of Zhou Tai's knife.

  The tip of the knife is the most uneven part of the entire knife, all the force is rushing forward, Zhao Yun's gun tip points down from top to bottom, Zhou Tai only feels that the tip of his knife sinks, and one knife chops on the snowy ground, leaving a huge opening.

  Zhoa Yun's move was extremely risky and confident, with both sides' blades moving at high speed. This move required accurately judging the direction and speed of the opponent's blade, which needed extremely sharp eyesight. However, once successful, it could almost determine the outcome of the battle.

  Suddenly Zhou Tai relaxed his muscles, and Zhao Yun's steel spear popped up from the knife tip, like a poisonous snake suddenly jumping out of the grass, biting towards Zhou Tai's throat.

  Zhou Tai dodged and weaved, but before he could react, the spearhead was at his neck. He felt a chill run down his spine, as if he had fallen into an icy pit. Just as all hope seemed lost, Taishi Ci's spearhead came slanting in, striking Zhao Yun's spearhead with a loud clang. Zhao Yun's spear thrust used clever force, emphasizing speed over power, and relied on the recoil to add strength. As a result, it was not very powerful, and when Taishi Ci's spearhead touched it, it immediately changed direction, grazing Zhou Tai's neck as it passed by.

  Zhou Tai's combat experience was very rich, and he hastily shrunk his head, crouching on the horseback. Zhao Yun's steel spear was pressed against Zhou Tai's back and pulled back, if not for Zhou Tai dodging quickly, this spear would have made him splatter blood on the spot.

  After one move, Zhou Tai walked back and forth at Guimen Pass, both shocked and angry, hastily adjusting his stance.

  "Hahaha... Since you're here, don't leave." Zhao Yun let out a long laugh, his spear shaking out a vast shadow of spears that enveloped both Taishi Ci and Zhou Tai within its might.

  However, Zhao Yun's moves also belonged to the nature of three boards and axes. Seeing that he couldn't kill Zhou Tai and Taishi Ci in seconds, he didn't dare to take risks and fought steadily with the two men until they reached a stalemate.

  At this time, Taishi Ci also came to his senses and realized that Zhao Yun's martial arts should not be as good as Lü Bu, and together with Zhou Tai and Zhao Yun, the flags were equally matched.

  Of course, this is just a comparison. Tai Shi Zi still feels extremely shocked and thinks: Is there any justice in heaven? Gong Sun Zan has produced such a powerful scout, how can others survive?

  Zhou Tai cursed in his heart: "Zhao Yun, aren't you cheating people? With such great martial arts skills, why are you a scout?"

  After more than ten rounds, Taishi Ci and Zhou Tai's offensive gradually rose, gradually suppressing Zhao Yun's gun momentum.

  At this time, Zhao Yun did not continue fighting. Seeing that the two men were not yielding, he suddenly shouted loudly and danced his long spear wildly, forcing them back, then turned his horse and left.

  Taishi Ci and Zhou Tai were also extremely cautious, fearing they would fall prey to a counterattack or the like, so they didn't give chase but instead stood their ground.

  However, Taishi Ci was skilled in archery and quickly took out his bow and arrow, aiming at Zhao Yun's back and shooting an arrow. This arrow was shot hastily, with sufficient accuracy but not much power. Zhao Yun didn't even turn his head, sweeping his long spear backwards to deflect Taishi Ci's strong arrow, then turning around to take out his own bow and arrow to return fire at Taishi Ci.

  Li Chong hastily called out: "Zhao Zilong, wait a moment, listen to me."

  "What does Governor Li have to say?" Zhao Yun heard Li's shout, took down the feathered arrow from his bowstring and placed it on his horseback, shouting loudly.

  Li Zhongtang rode his horse to the back of Taishi Ci and said loudly: "Zhao Zilong, you can only be a scout at Gongsun Zan's place, wasting your martial arts skills. Why don't you join me in creating great things? I, Li Ziyue, guarantee that when you arrive at my army, your position will not be lower than Taishi Ci's. How about it?"

  "Haha... Lord Li, you also underestimate me Zhao Zilong too much. I am not a person who is greedy for power and wealth." Zhao Yun said coldly.

  This sentence is not bragging, if you say that the most virtuous general in the Three Kingdoms is Zhao Yun, he really did not covet wealth, did not indulge in lust, and did not crave power, all of which can be verified.

  Li Chong shook his head and said, "General Zi Long misunderstood my words. As the saying goes, people move towards higher places, water flows to lower places. You have been stuck in Gongsun Zan's place with your talents not being utilized. Working together with me to create great things, saving the common people from fire and water, what is that if not seeking power?"

  Zhao Yun turned his head and looked back, suddenly smiling: "I think Liu Bei Liu Xuan De is the benevolent lord, why don't you and I surrender to Lord Xuande together?"

  Isn't that right? Does Zhao Xiaobai already have the intention of relying on Liu Bei now? Li Zhong suddenly felt that the situation was not good, and he still had to think about how to belittle Da Er Zei.

  With a cold laugh, Li Zhong took the opportunity to say: "Liu Bei is an unfaithful and unfilial person, lacking in benevolence and righteousness. How can he be considered a wise ruler of this generation?"

  Zhao Yun immediately retorted: "I have been to Pingyuan County, which Liu Xianzong governs. Everyone praises Liu Xianzong for his benevolence and loyalty. General Li, you should not speak with a bloody mouth."

  "I spit blood at people, haha...!" Li Chong burst into another fit of laughter and said loudly: "I say that Liu Bei is disloyal and unfilial, inhumane and unjust, I have a basis for it, do you want me to make it clear one by one?!"

  Zhao Yun sneered, "Then I'll listen carefully. If what Lord Li said is true, when General Gongsun is defeated, Zhao Yun will definitely surrender to you. But if Lord Li can't provide evidence, then what? Will Lord Li and Zhao Yun both surrender to Emperor Liu?"

  "What's impossible? Zhao Zilong, dare you make a vow with me by breaking an arrow?" Li Chong asked loudly, secretly rejoicing in his heart.

  Zhao Yun took out the feathered arrow, grasped it with both hands and broke it into two segments. In a deep voice, he said: "Zhao Yun breaks this arrow as an oath. If Liu Bei is not loyal or filial, not benevolent or righteous, Zhao Yun will surrender to Li Ziyue's command. If I violate this oath, may my body be cut by swords and knives."

  "Good!" Li Zhong also took out a feather arrow, broke it into two pieces on the spot, and vowed: "If Li Zhong cannot prove that Liu Bei is unfaithful and unfilial, inhumane and unjust, Li Zhong will surrender to Liu Bei's command. If he violates this oath, he will die by sword."

  After taking the oath, Li said slowly: "When the heroes of Guandong defeated Dong Zhuo at Tiger Trap Pass and defeated Lü Bu, who was it that single-handedly pursued and killed Dong's villain, losing soldiers and generals? It was I, Li Ziyuan, and Cao Mengde, Zhao Zilong. And I ask you, where was Liu Xuande at the time, why didn't he join us in pursuing and killing Dong Zhuo, doesn't this count as disloyalty?"

  Li Zhong's words had barely fallen when Taishi Ci suddenly started coughing violently, thinking to himself: What kind of loyalty is this to the Han court?! It was Cao Cao who led the pursuit and killed Dong Zhuo, but you, my lord, didn't even lose a single soldier, yet you hid in the back and watched the show! I still remember that you wanted to assassinate Cao Cao!

  Zhao Yun was momentarily at a loss for words, not knowing how to refute Li Chong. Indeed, Cao Cao and Li Chong had gained unparalleled prestige by pursuing and killing Dong Zhuo. No matter how well others performed in the Battle of Tiger Trap Pass, they could not compare to Cao Cao and Li Chong's brilliant achievement of infiltrating deep into enemy lines. To put it bluntly, except for Cao Cao and Li Chong, everyone else's loyalty was somewhat inferior.

  Li Chong did not give Zhao Yun a chance to refute, and continued: "On that day, Dong Zhuo set fire to the city, everywhere was a sea of flames, the ancestral temple of the Liu imperial family was also burned to ashes. I ask you, where was Liu Xuan De at that time? On that day, Dong Zhuo murdered the young emperor, where was Liu Bei Liu Xuan De at that time? Is this not unfilial?"

  Zhao Yun's lips moved a few times, but he still couldn't say anything. Indeed, as Li Chong said, when Dong Zhuo murdered Emperor Shao, those who fought to the death with Dong Zhuo were Cao Cao and Yuan Shao, not Liu Bei, who claimed to be a relative of the Han imperial family.

  "Zhao Zilong, I'll ask you again. How many households are there in Pingyuan County? How many soldiers?" Li Chong continued to ask.

  Zhao Yun finally heard a question he knew and hastily replied: "Pingyuan County has about 4,000 households, with fewer than 5,000 soldiers."

  Li Chong sneered: "Zhao Zilong, do you know how many households are in our Yanmen? How many able-bodied men? How many troops?"

  Zhao Yun naturally didn't know about the military and civilian affairs of Yanmen Prefecture. Li Zhong coldly smiled and said: "My Yanmen Prefecture has a total of twelve counties, with more than 30,000 households, but my army's soldiers are less than 10,000 people. Even so, my troops still lack armor, weapons, and military pay. What virtue or ability does Liu Bei have, using the land of just one county to support 5,000 soldiers? Are their military pay, armor, weapons, and horses all falling from the sky?"

  "If Liu Bei doesn't heavily tax the people, how can he afford to raise 5,000 soldiers?" Zhao Zilong retorted back at me!" Li Zhong pointed at Zhao Yun and shouted loudly.

  This passage is not a criticism of Liu Bei, but rather a lamentation of the difficulties of raising an army. Without money and grain, how can one support the troops? And where does this money and grain come from, if not from the taxes imposed on the common people? Li's army was somewhere between taking one out of two and one out of three able-bodied men, yet still felt that there was not enough money and grain. Liu Bei had almost emptied the plains of their able-bodied men in his conscription efforts, and indeed could not bear the reputation of being benevolent.

  Zhao Yun stared blankly at Li Zhong, suddenly sighed, he had always thought that Liu Bei was truly benevolent and loyal. Li Zhong said that Liu Bei was disloyal and unfilial, although Zhao Yun couldn't find evidence to refute it, in his heart he still defended Liu Bei, thinking that maybe Liu Bei had important matters at the time.

  But Li Chong suddenly pointed out that Liu Bei was tyrannical and oppressive in Pingyuan, which was something Zhao Yun could never have anticipated. However, this time he really had no excuse to defend Liu Bei.

  Consider the governor of Youzhou, Liu Yu, who occupies a state with a population of one million people, but his army is only about 100,000 strong. In contrast, Li Chong has an army of merely 10,000 soldiers despite occupying a whole commandery. As for Liu Bei's Pingyuan County, it has a population of just 30,000, yet he has over 4,000 soldiers under his command. No matter what, Liu Bei cannot shake off the reputation of being a poor and militaristic leader.

  It was as if the faith in his heart had suddenly collapsed, and Zhao Yun felt that everything he knew had changed, becoming hypocritical.

  Just then, Zhao Yun heard Li Zhong say in a low voice: "When it comes to being human, one must look at the essence of things and not believe whatever others say. Just like my soldiers, they always say I'm wise and powerful, but I know I'm not wise or powerful at all. They're just flattering me because I give them money and food."

  Li Chong suddenly turned his horse's head and walked away, saying: "As for whether Liu Xuan De is unrighteous or not, it can be seen from whether he saves Gongsun Zan. It is said that Gongsun Zan and Liu Xuan De are sworn brothers. Let's go! You Zhao Zi Long are a loyal and righteous person, I Li Zi Hui do not want to be an enemy of yours, so I will retreat for today and meet again another day!"