Chapter 56

Lu Bu on the side was anxious; he had been eyeing the position of Inspector of Bingzhou for a long time.

"Foster Father, I will go over right now and kill that scoundrel Liu Bei!"

Dong Zhuo stroked his beard.

"Fengxian, don't panic; I have my own plans."

"Buying horse bones with a thousand gold? That makes sense. Forget it, it's just an Inspector of Bingzhou; give it to him, and by the way, piss off that old brute Lu Zhi!"

Lu Bu was depressed; couldn't he be that horse bone?!

Jia Xu actually had the answer in his heart long ago.

He received the order and went to Liu Bei's place again.

Liu Bei readily agreed!

Afterward, Liu Bei followed Jia Xu to Dong Zhuo's residence, drank and toasted with Dong Zhuo, and drank Dong Zhuo under the table!

Dong Zhuo, however, felt that this Liu Bei was quite honest; wine quality is character quality, after all!

At the court meeting the next day, the ministers were in an uproar.

Dong Zhuo actually recommended Liu Bei as the Inspector of Bingzhou!

Dong Zhuo listed Liu Bei's merits.

"Emperor, Liu Bei was actually oppressed by the Ten Eunuchs; such a meritorious official should not be buried."

The Emperor, and the former Prince of Chenliu, had an excellent impression of Liu Bei.

"What the Minister of Works says is very true. Liu Liu Xuande is a heavy minister of our Great Han; he is loyal and honest, and we cannot let an honest man suffer. Why not enfeoff him as a Township Marquis as well?"

The ministers' mouths twitched and their eyelids jumped; this Liu Bei had abandoned Lu Zhi and switched to the upper-level route!

With both the Emperor and Dong Zhuo appreciating Liu Bei, wouldn't he take off instantly?!

Ding Yuan Kui looked at Dong Zhuo and quickly persuaded,

"Emperor, Liu Bei is still young; it won't be too late to enfeoff him after he performs more meritorious service."

Liu Xie was very regretful.

"Alright then, let's follow the Grand Tutor's words."

Minister Wang Yun and Cao Cao exchanged glances; neither expected that the previously loyal Liu Bei was also a turncoat!

Dong Zhuo said loudly,

"Yesterday, Liu Xuande came to my residence and we chatted until late at night; he is indeed a loyal person!"

The meaning was: Liu Bei is my man; it's so obvious, everyone understands, right!

Everyone had already cursed Dong Zhuo and Liu Bei together in their hearts!

Other ministers' minds became active.

Liu Bei, a seller of straw sandals, could become the Inspector of Bingzhou by submitting to Dong Zhuo; if I submit, wouldn't I take off too!

"Liu Bei is known as loyal, and even Lu Zhi's student can do this; what do I have to be ashamed of!"

"Dong Zhuo gives too much; if I were Liu Bei, I wouldn't refuse either!"

"Exactly, if the world wants to scold, they'll scold Liu Bei first!"

With Liu Bei acting as the "horse bone," many fence-sitting ministers found reasons for themselves and soon submitted to Dong Zhuo.

Dong Zhuo was overjoyed; he didn't expect Liu Bei's leading role to be so effective.

"Liu Xuande is truly a lucky general; I'm afraid old brute Lu is about to be pissed to death now! Haha."

What made Dong Zhuo even happier was that Cao Cao actually leaned toward him too!

"Mengde has also figured it out; good, good!"

Dong Zhuo held a family banquet and called Liu Bei, Cao Cao, and the ministers who had submitted to him to come and drink.

After three rounds of drinks,

Dong Zhuo was surprised to find that Liu Bei's eyes were actually brimming with tears.

"Liu Xuande, why are you crying while drinking?"

Liu Bei cupped his hands.

"Lord Dong, this wine is too spicy."

Dong Zhuo was unhappy.

"Liu Xuande, what's the matter? Tell me quickly!"

"Who bullied you? I will make the decision for you!"

Liu Bei sighed.

"Lord Dong, today I received a letter from Teacher Lu, who scolded me, saying I was currying favor and acting as a treacherous minister... Teacher Lu said he was going to be pissed to death by me."

"Haha, that's truly..." Dong Zhuo laughed loudly; if Lu Zhi was pissed to death, he estimated he could add several more dishes.

"Cough, cough," Li Ru coughed.

Dong Zhuo reacted and coughed.

"Liu Xuande, don't worry; Lu Zijian is just senile. The Great Han is peaceful now, and it's all thanks to the new Emperor's merit; he will understand in the future."

Dong Zhuo thought for a while.

"Fengxian, go pick a blood-sweating horse for Liu Xuande."

Lu Bu's mouth twitched; this Liu Liu Xuande is truly lucky!

After this incident, Dong Zhuo trusted Liu Bei even more!

Spare (2) Group 893...

Cao Cao thought to himself,

"Could it be that this Liu Bei is truly submitting to Dong Zhuo? Is he this short-sighted?"

Dong Zhuo also showed his magnanimous side.

He selected a large number of famous scholars, such as Han Fu, Liu Dai, Kong Zhou, Zhang Zi, Kong Rong, Ying Shao, and Zhang Miao, to serve as local Prefects and other important positions.

He even let bygones be bygones.

He enfeoffed Ding Yuan Shao, Wang Kuang, Bao Xin, and others, who hated him and had resigned, as Prefects to show reconciliation.

It's a pity Dong Zhuo thought a bit too much; these people would all be key members of the anti-Dong Zhuo alliance in the future.

Half a month later,

Dong Zhuo appointed himself Chancellor, with the privilege of "entering the court without hurrying and ascending the hall with sword and shoes." From then on, Dong Zhuo's power in the court was in full swing.

Taiyuan Commandery,

Everyone had already received the news that Liu Bei had been enfeoffed as the Inspector of Bingzhou.

Cai Yong cursed,

"My son-in-law is confused; how could he submit to Dong Zhuo!"

Cai Yan's beautiful eyebrows furrowed tightly.

"I think my husband must have some hidden bitterness, or he has some plan."

She looked at Guo Jia.

"Military Advisor Guo, what do you think?"

Guo Jia cupped his hands.

"My Lady is very right. I guess the Lord must want to take advantage of Dong Zhuo losing his vigilance to give him a fatal blow!"

Guan Yu, who had been half-closing his eyes, suddenly opened them, stood up, and strode outside.

Guo Jia quickly pulled him back.

"General Guan, where are you going?"

Guan Yu said firmly,

"Big Brother is in danger; I want to go to Luoyang to accompany him!"