Chapter 278

Liu Bei gripped Fei Guan's hand tightly.

"Thank you, Binbo, for sparing the people of Yizhou from the suffering of war!"

"I intend to appoint you as the Prefect of Shu Jun; what do you think?"

Fei Guan was excited and bowed deeply.

"Thank you, my lord!"

Liu Bei added,

"I will write a letter to Liu Zhang, telling him not to harm your family, otherwise I will certainly not be polite."

Fei Guan was moved.

"Thank you, my lord."

Liu Bei nodded; in truth, he was worried about Fei Yi's safety.

Logically speaking, Fei Guan was Liu Zhang's cousin and also his brother-in-law, so he shouldn't harm his family.

In Chengdu,

Liu Bei's troops had already arrived at the city gates!

Outside the city, the military camps were filled with thousands of banners, and the formation was orderly.

Battering rams and catapults were prominently displayed, and there were even hundreds of elephant troops outside the city showing off their power!

The morale of the defending soldiers was low.

Liu Zhang sat down dejectedly.

"Fei Guan has actually surrendered to Liu Bei, without even firing a single arrow!"

His heart was like dead ashes; both his old generals and his relatives had turned against him.

"Could it be that Liu Bei is truly the one destined by heaven?!"

"Report~!"

"My lord, urgent report from Baishui Pass!"

Liu Zhang?

"Could it be that Zhang Lu is also taking the opportunity to attack?"

Zhang Song cupped his hands.

"My lord, Baishui Pass is currently being attacked by Ma Chao, a fierce general under Liu Bei; I fear Hanzhong has already been taken by Liu Bei!"

Zhang Song didn't know the specific situation in Hanzhong, but scaring Liu Zhang was still possible.

Liu Zhang stood up abruptly, then sat down dejectedly again.

"Liu Bei has actually wiped out Zhang Lu as well?!"

He couldn't muster even a shred of desire to resist in his heart.

Wang Lei quickly said,

"My lord, Baishui Pass is easy to defend and hard to attack, and Chengdu's walls are high and sturdy; our army can hold out for several years without a problem. Liu Bei cannot stay in Yizhou for long!"

Liu Zhang felt slightly encouraged; unless absolutely necessary, he didn't want to surrender either.

He knew Liu Bei wouldn't kill him, but he knew which was happier: being a lord or being a wealthy man.

Just then,

A guard came to report again.

"My lord, Pang Xi of Baxi Commandery has announced his defection to Liu Bei and is leading troops toward Luo City to join forces with Zhang Fei."

"What?!"

Unexpectedly, even the Dongzhou scholars who had helped him repeatedly had defected to Liu Bei.

Liu Zhang instantly felt disheartened.

Zhang Song knew the time had come and bowed deeply.

"My lord, the entire territory of Yizhou has rebelled; the situation is already like this, why not... why not surrender to Liu Bei?"

"Surrender?"

Liu Zhang murmured.

"My lord, Liu Bei is benevolent and righteous, and cherishes his reputation; he will certainly not harm you or your family."

Zhang Song urged again.

"My lord, Zhang Lu fought with you for many years, yet was wiped out by Liu Bei in the blink of an eye; it would be better to surrender early."

.......... 0

Wang Lei cursed loudly.

"Zhang Song, you traitor! When you first welcomed Liu Bei into Shu, you must have been persuaded by him to surrender!"

Zhang Song was also angry.

"Wang Lei, the lord listened to your slanderous words and sent Li Yi to Jianning Commandery; what was the result? Li Yi attacked Liu Bei, giving Liu Bei a reason to attack the lord!"

"And you suggested sending troops to guard the north and south separately; what happened? Fei Guan surrendered!"

"I suspect you, Wang Lei, are the spy for Liu Bei!"

Wang Lei was almost angered to death; he was single-mindedly dealing with Liu Bei, yet was being splashed with dirty water!

He trembled uncontrollably with rage.

Liu Zhang waved his hand, feeling somewhat listless.

"Enough, stop arguing. Lord Liu Xuande's prestige shakes the nine provinces, and his benevolence is unparalleled; I am far inferior. Surrendering it is!"

Wang Lei shouted,

"My lord, don't!"

Just then, a guard came to report.

"My lord, there are envoys from Liu Bei outside the city, Sun Tao Qian and Sun Jian Yong are here to visit."

Liu Zhang waved his hand.

"Invite them into the city."

Sun Tao Qian and Sun Jian Yong's attitude toward Liu Zhang remained respectful, which made Liu Zhang feel slightly at ease.

Afterward, Sun Jian Yong stated the conditions to Liu Zhang.

First, to choose a county in Guanzhong as Liu Zhang's fief, and still treat him with the etiquette of a feudal lord!

Second, he could send troops to help Liu Zhang go to the Western Regions to conquer a city and become a king!

The conditions could be said to be quite generous; usually, when such feudal lords surrender, they are placed in the capital under house arrest.

Liu Zhang sighed long.

"Brother Liu Xuande is truly benevolent!"

That afternoon,

The gates of Chengdu were opened.

Liu Zhang held the seal of the Yizhou Governor and left the city to surrender.

"General of the Flying Cavalry, the sinful subject Liu Zhang requests to surrender!"

Liu Bei dismounted and helped Liu Zhang up, sighing.

"Brother Jiyu, I will certainly treat you well."

With this, Liu Bei led his army into the city, while Wang Lei leaped from the city wall, achieving his name for loyalty.

Liu Bei sighed long again and ordered him to be buried with honors!

Next was to accept the surrender of the talents in Shu and settle the hearts of the people of Yizhou.

Liu Bei held a grand banquet in Chengdu to entertain the surrendered civil and military officials.

Dong He, the Magistrate of Chengdu County and father of Dong Yun, was skilled in local governance and an honest official.

There were also scholars like Xu Jing, Peng Yang, Yang Hong, Zhang Yi, and Qin Mi.

Old General Yan Yan, brother-in-law Wu Yi, Liu Zhang's relative Fei Guan, Dongzhou scholar Pang Xi, Lord Huangfu Song's son-in-law She Ding Yuan, Deng Han Xian, Liu Gui, Wu Lan, Lei Tong, and so on.

Leng Bao was originally embarrassed to come, but Liu Bei went to invite him personally, and he defected to Liu Bei with tears in his eyes.

Liu Zhang came over to drink a cup of wine and then left, otherwise, everyone wouldn't be able to relax.

Liu Bei raised his cup.

— Author's Notes —

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