Chapter 3: The Messenger

  "What kind of tricks is Tao Qian and his son trying to pull?"

  Our Lord Guan was thoroughly confused by TAO Qian and his son TAO Ying. When TAO Qian first presented the token of Xu Zhou Mu, Liu Bei was already greatly shocked. When TAO Qian presented it again, Liu Bei had a hunch about his intention and his heart skipped a beat, breathing rapidly. However, when TAO Ying jumped out to sing this tune, Liu Bei was completely bewildered.

  "Big brother, have you gone mad?!" The one who shouted this was Tao Kui, the nephew of Tao Qian and the cousin of Tao Ying. He had once served as the governor of Jiaozhou in Eastern Wu and was currently only 17 years old. Although he didn't even have the qualifications to join the banquet and drink together, under his fiery personality, Tao Kui still exclaimed: "Xuzhou is our family's foundation, how can we let it be taken away by others?!"

  "Brother, your words are wrong!" Tao Ying loudly retorted: "Xuzhou is the land of the Han family, Father is only a substitute for the Son of Heaven to govern one side, how can you say that I am the foundation? The ancient saying goes: 'The heavenly mandate has a constant, only those with virtue reside in it', Liu Sheng's uncle is a great descendant of the Han family, virtuous and respected, both civil and military, and drove thousands of miles to defeat Cao's villainy, saving millions of lives in Xuzhou from water and fire, he should replace Father and take charge of Xuzhou!"

  Taoyi's eyes widened, and for the first time he discovered that his second brother was not only honest but also stupid! The officials from Xuzhou who were standing beside him were all stunned, sizing up Tao Ying as if they didn't recognize him. Tao Qian was even more bewildered, staring at his son in shock for half a day without being able to say a word.

  "Governor Tao, are you joking?" Liu Bei broke the silence, asking Tao Qian in a tone of utmost surprise.

  "No, no." Tao Qian finally came to his senses, hastily shook his head, and again held out the seal with both hands to Liu Bei, saying sincerely: "Lord Xuande, although your humble servant is ignorant, what he just said was exactly what this old man was thinking in his heart. Today's disturbance has caused chaos, and the royal authority is not established. As a member of the Han imperial family, Lord Xuande should take the lead in supporting the state. This old man is aged and incompetent, and is willing to yield Xuzhou to you. Please do not decline, I will personally write a memorial to the court."

  "Tao Qian, you are joking." Liu Bei hastily knelt down on both knees, clasped his fists and bowed, extremely solemnly saying to Tao Qian: "Although Liu Bei is a descendant of the Han dynasty, my merits and virtues are shallow, I fear that being the prefect of Pingyuan is not suitable for me. Now, for the sake of righteousness, I have come to assist you. You utter these words, could it be that you suspect Liu Bei has intentions of annexation? If such thoughts arise, heaven will not bless us!"

  "As expected." Tao Ying sneered in her heart, "Liu Bei, ah Liu Bei, your acting skills are indeed superb, but unfortunately, they're not quite there yet! — If you really didn't want to seize Xuzhou, why did you secretly clench your fists just now?"

  "Uncle." After muttering to himself, Tao Ying hastily cupped his hands and said: "Uncle, please don't decline, listen to me for a moment. The rebel Zhang Kun was greedy for wealth and took lives, bringing great disaster to Xuzhou. Cao's bandits took advantage of the situation and launched an attack, killing millions of soldiers and civilians in Xuzhou. The city walls were on the verge of collapse, but fortunately, Uncle led his troops to rescue us, driving away Cao's army and saving the lives of millions of people in Xuzhou. This is a great achievement indeed! In terms of both emotion and reason, my father should yield Xuzhou. I hope Uncle will consider the welfare of the soldiers and civilians in Xuzhou and take over from my father to govern Xuzhou."

  "Cao's troops have not retreated!" Tao Jie angrily shouted, "Cao thief is still surrounding the city on all sides, and may launch a surprise attack at any time!"

  "Shut up! Your brother is talking to Lord Guan, don't interrupt!" Tao Qian angrily rebuked.

  "Third brother, you don't have to worry about this," Tao Ying turned to Tao Ji and said sincerely: "Third brother, haven't you heard of General Guan Yu's great reputation for warming up wine and beheading Hua Xiong? Haven't you heard of the three generals Liu, Guan, and Zhang's heroic feat in defeating Lü Bu? And what about General Zhao Zilong's battle at Jieting, where he defeated Wen Chou and made Yuan Shao lose his helmet and armor, causing his army to flee in disarray? They are all now in Xuchang City, so why worry that Cao's army won't retreat or that Cao will not be destroyed?"

  Tao Ying turned to the officials and military officers from Xuzhou who were present, and asked: "Gentlemen, generals, what do you think? Is it true or not?"

  Most of the civil and military officials nodded in agreement, and Guo Fang even loudly echoed, "The second young master is absolutely right. With Lord Xuan De and Generals Guan, Zhang, and Zhao here, even if Cao's army has a million soldiers, we can still rest easy..." Before he could finish speaking, however, Guo Fang was already intimidated by his older brother Guo Zhu's glare, and his voice involuntarily trailed off.

  Tao Qian had already spoken to this extent, and Liu Bei had no other choice but to nod his head in agreement, saying: "Sir Tao's kindness is as deep as a mountain, and I, Liu Bei, will never be able to repay it even if I die ten thousand times. However, since Cao's army has not yet retreated, we should first discuss the matter of withdrawing our troops. Once I have driven away Cao's army and lifted the siege on Xuzhou, then we can settle this matter."

  "Lord Guan's words are extremely correct." Xu Shu also stood up and respectfully said to Tao Qian: "Although the lord is well-intentioned, now that Cao Cao's army is pressing in on the city, we should discuss strategies for repelling the enemy. Once peace is restored, we can reconsider the matter of yielding the position."

  "Well, in that case... let's retreat the Cao army and discuss it again." Tao Qian hesitated for a moment, then finally withdrew his seal and looked at Tao Ying again, his gaze complex.

  "Withdrawing the Cao army? Easy to say." Tao Qian sneered in his heart, thinking that if the Cao army was so easy to withdraw, they would have done so long ago. Why wait for Liu, Guan and Zhang's 2-3 thousand troops? But it's also good, as long as you're willing to come out of the city and fight a decisive battle with Cao Zei, regardless of the outcome, Uncle and we can reap the benefits."

  At this time, Tao Qian again asked Liu Bei about the strategy of retreating troops. Liu Bei thought for a moment and replied seriously: "There is a saying that 'first courtesy then military', I should first send a letter to Cao Cao to persuade him to make peace. If he doesn't agree, I will lead my army to fight against him without delay."

  "What's the use of advising reconciliation?" Tao Qian almost burst out laughing at Liu Bei, thinking to himself: If Cao Cao could accept a plea for peace, he would have accepted someone else's advice long ago. What's the point of you, a mere weaver and shoe seller, trying to persuade him?

  "As expected, a slippery head." Tao Ying's heart laughed even colder, "I was wondering why Liu Bei would write a letter to Cao Cao when he rescued Xuzhou. It turns out that he wanted to preserve his strength and didn't want to engage in a fierce battle with Cao Cao to exhaust himself."

  Tao Qian obviously did not expect Liu Bei to give such an answer, and after a long time, he nodded and coughed, saying: "It's okay, it's okay."

  Seeing Tao Qian agree with his suggestion, Liu Bei immediately ordered someone to bring pen and ink, wrote a letter to Cao Cao in front of everyone, advising Cao Cao to stop the war. After finishing the letter, Tao Qian stepped forward and asked respectfully: "Uncle, this letter, please let me arrange for someone to deliver it to Cao Cao?"

  "Then trouble you, young master." Liu Bei didn't think much of it and handed the silk with the written words to Tao Ying after sealing it in a lacquer box. Tao Ying respectfully received it with both hands and quickly went out to arrange for someone to deliver the letter after getting Tao Qian's consent.

  …………

  After Tao Qian left, the banquet ended quickly. As Tao Qian was old and ill, he couldn't keep Liu Bei company for long, so he ordered Mi Zhu brothers to arrange for a place for Liu, Guan, Zhang, and Zhao to rest, and also asked Chen Deng and Tao Ji to arrange wine and meat to entertain Liu Bei's troops, and arranged a campsite for Liu Bei's troops. Tao Qian himself returned to his bedroom with the support of Tao Shang to rest.

  After arriving at a deserted place, Tao Qian suddenly whispered to Tao Shang: "Send someone to find your second brother and let him handle the matter quickly. Come back immediately, as I have something to discuss with him. Don't disturb others."

  Tao Shang was taken aback by his father's order, and Tao Qian urged him impatiently: "Hurry up and arrange it, remember not to let others find out." Only then did Tao Shang nod and quickly arranged for someone to summon Tao Ying.

  …………

  At the same time, Liu Bei made an excuse to restrain his soldiers and not disturb the people, temporarily sending away Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, and Zhao Yun. He went alone with Mi Zhu brothers to the government office to rest. On the way, Liu Bei smiled and asked Mi Zhu: "Zizhong, Tao's two sons seem different from what you described?"

  Mi Zhu also found it strange. "Logically speaking, Lord Cao invited Xuande to take over Xuzhou, and he should have strongly opposed it along with the Crown Prince. Why did he express his support and even propose to yield Xuzhou before Lord Cao?"

  "Or he was intimidated by Cao Cao just like our lord, so they came up with the same idea to pass on the hot potato of Xuzhou to Lord Liu Bei." Zang Ba interjected: "Or this is actually our lord's intention, otherwise with his limited ability, he wouldn't be able to say so many suitable and proper words."

  "It wasn't at the behest of Tao Shi Jun." Liu Bei shook his head, smiling and said: "I can see that he took the lead in proposing to give up Xuzhou, the look of surprise on Tao Shi Jun's face was absolutely not fake, this point is enough to prove that Tao Shi Jun had never been in contact with that Tao Er Gongzi before."

  "Has this foolish kid finally woken up and become clever?" Zou Jing also felt that Tao Qian's surprise was not feigned, and sighed: "Regardless of whether this Master Tao has come to his senses or not, by taking the lead in proposing to yield Xuzhou to Lord Xuande, he inadvertently added some trouble for Lord Xuande. If it were our lord who first proposed yielding Xuzhou to Lord Xuande, then no one in Xuzhou would dare oppose it - but now that this Master Tao has taken the lead in proposing to yield Xuzhou, some people have the audacity to oppose it."

  "It doesn't matter, I never had the intention of annexing Xuzhou anyway, let Tao Gongzi play his little tricks if he wants to." Liu Bei replied casually, then furrowed his brow and muttered: "Speaking of little tricks, what Tao Gongzi said later was indeed a trick. He said that as long as I'm here, we don't have to worry about Cao's army retreating. On the surface, it seems like flattery, but in reality, it's a test of my determination to defeat Cao, and an attempt to provoke me into leaving the city to fight Cao."

  Mi Zhu suddenly pulled the reins of his horse, and after a moment's careful recollection, he exclaimed in a low voice: "As Lord Guan said, I also felt that something was not quite right. Tao Gongzi's words seemed flattering and courteous, but actually they were a clever probe, urging Lord Guan to send troops to retreat from Cao while at the same time blocking the road for Lord Guan to take over Xuzhou immediately, forcing Lord Guan to first retreat from Cao's army before discussing state affairs."

  Liu Bei nodded silently, acknowledging that Zuo Ci's words were not wrong. On the side, Zuo Fang said disdainfully: "Does that rustic also have this skill? It's probably just a coincidence."

  "It's probably just a coincidence." Liu Bei sighed quietly and said in a low voice, "Anyway, this Tao Er Gongzi is not that simple."

  "Get out of the way! Get out of the way!"

  Suddenly, a tense shouting voice came from the front of the street. One of the Xuzhou hundred men rushed over, grabbed the reins of Mi Zhu's horse, and shouted with sweat all over his face: "Don't drive, something big has happened! General Cao Jiao ordered me to see Master immediately, where is Master?"

  "Don't be in a hurry, speak slowly, what's going on?" asked Zou Zhu.

  "Second Master... Second Master!" The hundred men, wiping away sweat, stuttered and shouted: "The Second Master has left the city!"

  "Has the second son left the city? Where did he go?" Zou Jing was shocked, thinking that now Cao's army has surrounded the city on all sides, leaving the city is to look for death, what is Tao Yingxiao doing by leaving the city?

  "He went out of the city to send a letter! To Cao's camp to send a letter!" The hundred men shouted in unison: "The second master said that he is the son of the lord, and should make an effort for the military and civilians of Xuzhou. Therefore, the second master brought the letter of persuasion from Xuande, and personally went to Cao's camp to deliver the letter! The second master also said that if he doesn't come back, please ask us to kowtow to the lord on his behalf and apologize, saying that he can no longer serve under the lord!"

  Liu Bei, Mi Zhu and Mi Fang were all stunned, the surrounding Xuzhou soldiers and civilians were also shocked, saying that they never thought that the legendary weak and incompetent Tao Er Gongzi would have such bravery and righteousness, to personally go to Cao's camp to deliver a letter of surrender for the sake of sparing the lives of Xuzhou's soldiers and civilians from being slaughtered by Cao's army!

  "The master is resting in the mansion, follow me." This matter being of great importance, Zuo Ci did not dare to be slow and hurriedly led the hundred men to urgently rush to the Tao Mansion to deliver the message. The arrangement for Liu Bei to rest at the government hostel was entrusted by Zuo Ci to his brother Zuo Fang.

  "It seems I was overthinking." Watching the hurriedly departing back of Tao Qian, Liu Bei let out a sigh of relief and smiled to himself: "Tao Qian's words were not wrong, foolish people are indeed foolish. Not even understanding the mocking intent in my letter to Cao Cao, he dared to personally deliver it to Cao's camp. This Tao Er Gongzi will definitely not return."

  "Not right!" Calculating to this point, Liu Bei suddenly remembered something and hastily turned to Zuo Fang beside him and asked: "Zifang, in Cao's camp, is there anyone who knows this Tao Er Gongzi?"

  "It's unlikely anyone will recognize him." Mei Fang said casually: "Tao Er Gongzi is a recluse who rarely goes out, spending his days practicing martial arts or reading books. Even in Xuzhou City, not many people know him. As for the Cao army, it's likely no one knows him."

  "This is good." Liu Bei sighed and said slowly: "Fortunately, no one in Cao's camp recognized the two gentlemen - otherwise, the two gentlemen would have been hard to escape from the poisonous hands. Tao Gong is old and ill, if he receives the news of his son's misfortune, I'm afraid..."

  "Ah, how could I have forgotten this?" Zou Fang suddenly exclaimed and came to her senses. She leaned in close to Liu Bei's ear and whispered: "Don't worry, Lord Xian, someone from Cao's camp will definitely recognize the Second Master!"

  Liu Bei remained calm and composed, turned his horse's head and said: "Governor Mi, please arrange for the inn to be prepared. I will go see Ambassador Tao, as Second Master Tao has gone out of the city to send a message, deeply entering the dragon's lair and tiger's den. I must go before Ambassador Tao to request orders to go into battle and rescue Second Master."