Chapter 1315

In the end, what matters is not whose words are true, but who can gain the upper hand.

But there is one point in it that Duan Yu says which will surely evoke empathy.

That is, the achievements Duan Yu mentions in the "Manifesto to Suppress the Rebels" are by no means fake.

Duan Yu campaigned in the Western Regions, expanding the territory for the country, yet his brother died tragically in Hedong Commandery.

Afterwards, he returned to Hedong for his brother; this is righteousness.

Moreover, Duan Yu did not lead an army into Hedong Commandery, but only brought his personal guard cavalry to punish the Wei and Fan clans who harmed his brother.

For Huangfu Song and Zhu Jun to use this as an excuse to send troops to surround and kill Duan Yu is clearly contrary to ritual and law.

In terms of both emotion and reason, Duan Yu occupies the moral high ground.

Not to mention the subsequent events where Yuan Ji led the Baibo Army to surround and suppress Duan Yu.

Liu Yu is not worried about anything else now, only that Duan Yu is now openly wanting to set things right, and a fight is bound to happen.

The Luoyang imperial court cannot possibly let Duan Yu act like this in Chang'an.

Of course, since Duan Yu has already disseminated the "Manifesto to Suppress the Rebels" in this way, he has also completely fallen out with the Luoyang imperial court and is preparing for open war.

What Liu Yu worries about is that Luoyang is empty; if they want to campaign against Duan Yu, they will definitely mobilize troops from various regions.

Since they are mobilizing troops, will they also make him send his?

If they make him send troops, should he send them or not?

This is where the difficulty of the question Gongsun Zan just asked lies.

Whether the "Manifesto to Suppress the Rebels" is true or not does not matter.

The winner is the king, the loser is the bandit.

If Duan Yu wins, then this "Manifesto to Suppress the Rebels" will be as true as it gets.

If Duan Yu loses, even if this "Manifesto to Suppress the Rebels" is true, it will be considered false.

The difficulty lies in how they, who were originally staying out of the matter, should choose.

As members of the Han imperial clan.

Liu Bian is the eldest Imperial Prince, and Liu Xie is also an Imperial Prince.

This is all a struggle for the throne within the Liu family itself.

But if one chooses the wrong side, and fails, that is total destruction.

After Gongsun Zan asked this question, everyone in the hall was also waiting for Liu Yu's answer.

"Bo Gui, everyone... let us temporarily not discuss the truth or falsehood of this manifesto; such a major event is absolutely not something to be believed based on one side's words."

After deliberating for a long time, Liu Yu slowly opened his mouth to say: "Presumably, the Luoyang court will surely handle this matter properly, and we need only wait and see."

Gongsun Zan sat down with the "Manifesto to Suppress the Rebels" in his hand, his expression looking slightly disappointed.

The victory banquet to celebrate Gongsun Zan's merit in driving away the Xianbei ended hastily after the arrival of a "Manifesto to Suppress the Rebels."

And Gongsun Zan, the protagonist of the banquet, rode his white horse with a retinue of attendants back to his mansion in Ji County after drinking.

No sooner had Gongsun Zan returned to his residence than his clansman Gongsun Yue, who looked somewhat similar to him, strode before him holding a "Manifesto to Suppress the Rebels" he had picked up on the streets of Ji County.

In the main hall of the mansion, a copy of the "Manifesto to Suppress the Rebels" was also placed on the side table next to Gongsun Zan.

"Big Brother, Big Brother, it's a big deal!"

Gongsun Yue walked into the room with an excited expression on his face.

However, seeing the white paper placed on the table next to Gongsun Zan, Gongsun Yue was slightly stunned and said: "Big Brother, you already know?"

Gongsun Zan nodded, then tapped the manifesto placed beside him.

"You are talking about this manifesto, right?"

Gongsun Yue nodded quickly and said: "Big Brother, this manifesto is everywhere in Ji County now. Is Duan Yu openly rebelling?"

Gongsun Zan shook his head and said: "The Governor just said that whether it is a rebellion or not is still up for debate, but that Duan Yu..."

"I actually really want to meet him."

Gongsun Zan slowly tapped the manifesto on the table and said: "Lu Shi died because of Duan Yu, and Xuan De also has many grudges against Duan Yu. That Duan Yu is known as a tiger general of the age, and I am not convinced."

"My fellow student Fu Xie once wrote to me mentioning Duan Yu. Although this man has many military achievements, his actions are extremely overbearing. Relying on the ferocity of his Liangzhou cavalry, he does not put the heroes of the world in his eyes. I just don't know if his Liangzhou cavalry can match my White Horse Volunteers!"

Gongsun Zan, with his sword-like brows furrowed, revealed a look of expectation in his eyes.

"Does Big Brother want to fight Duan Yu to avenge Lu Shi?" Gongsun Yue asked.

Gongsun Zan took a deep breath and said: "The Governor has a soft personality. I know what he is worried about; he is worried about whether the imperial court will mobilize the Youzhou cavalry and Wuhuan cavalry to campaign against Duan Yu."

"However, I really want to try and see what that tiger general of the age is truly made of."

"Lu Shi's revenge must naturally be taken. There was no opportunity before, but perhaps this opportunity is coming soon."

"Big Brother's White Horse Volunteers have never had an equal; even the Wuhuan cavalry and Xianbei cavalry are no match for them, so why fear that Liangzhou cavalry?"

Gongsun Yue kept boasting on the side: "Duan Yu's opponents have always been old, weak, and disabled soldiers; when has he ever had a strong enemy?"

"If you ask me, as soon as he encounters a truly strong army, his reputation for being undefeated will inevitably be shattered."

Gongsun Zan chuckled.

In the eighth month, in Langya State of Xuzhou, within the city of Kaiyang.

At this time, Liu Bei, sitting in the study of the State Chancellor's mansion, also had a "Manifesto to Suppress the Rebels" in front of him.

The study was decorated with a strong sense of ancient charm and was well-lit.

Liu Bei, dressed in brocade, sat behind the desk, lowering his head to read the "Manifesto to Suppress the Rebels" in front of him seriously.

Besides Liu Bei, there were four other people in the study.

Zhang Fei and Guan Yu were kneeling on the lower left side of Liu Bei.

Jian Yong and Sun Gan were kneeling on the lower right side of Liu Bei.

The eyes of all four were on Liu Bei.

The contents of the "Manifesto to Suppress the Rebels" had already been read by all of them when it was presented to Liu Bei.

Liu Bei, with a calm expression, set the read "Manifesto to Suppress the Rebels" aside.

Then he sighed softly and said: "I thought that with the Yellow Turbans removed, the world would be at peace and the people would finally be able to rest and recuperate. Once Duan Yu's 'Manifesto to Suppress the Rebels' is issued, the people of the world will inevitably be dragged into it again."

"Sigh..." Liu Bei sighed and said: "When the world prospers, the people suffer; when the world is in chaos, the people also suffer. Once the flames of war spread, I don't know how many commoners will suffer."

"My lord is benevolent."

Jian Yong and Sun Gan bowed to Liu Bei.

"Cough, Big Brother, why are you worrying about this for nothing? It's not you who is making the people suffer." Zhang Fei shouted loudly: "If you want to talk about who is making the people suffer, it's that Duan Yu; he is the one who started the dispute."

"This brat is clearly trying to rebel, just looking for an excuse."

"I saw long ago that this brat has the heart of a wolf and is not a good person."

Guan Yu, on the side, gently stroked his beautiful beard and nodded: "Big Brother, I think Third Brother is right. Duan Yu is indeed wolf-hearted. If the imperial court recruits troops from all directions to suppress Duan Yu's rebellion, Big Brother can just take this opportunity to wash away the previous shame."

Hearing Guan Yu mention washing away the previous shame, Liu Bei subconsciously wanted to reach out and touch his ear.

But the movement of his raised hand stopped in mid-air.

The humiliation from Duan Yu still aches faintly to this day.

If he cannot take revenge and wash away the shame, this knot in his heart will be hard to untie.

Now it depends on how the imperial court will deal with Duan Yu.

"My lord, your subordinate estimates that the imperial court will soon mobilize troops from all directions to suppress Duan Yu. My lord should make preparations in advance. The Grand Tutor will surely recommend my lord to lead the troops on the expedition."

Jian Yong slowly said: "My lord has gathered three hundred thousand Yellow Turbans in Qingzhou, and a strong army has been formed; you naturally have the strength to fight. If you can make great achievements while suppressing Duan Yu, it is not impossible to become a provincial governor in the future. This kind of opportunity must not be missed."

Hearing this, Liu Bei nodded slowly, then looked at Guan Yu and Zhang Fei and said: "Second Brother, Third Brother, you two need to train the troops as soon as possible. If the imperial court issues a summons, we will immediately send out the troops!"

"Haha, I've been waiting for your order, Big Brother." Zhang Fei laughed and said: "This time I must stab Duan Yu one hundred and eighty transparent holes!"

Guan Yu narrowed his phoenix eyes, a sharp light flickering in them; he was already in a state of eager anticipation.

Mid-August, at noon.

Wei Bridge, two miles north of Chang'an.

Hundreds of people, led by Li Ru, were standing on the south bank of the Wei Bridge, facing the scorching sun, looking towards the north bank.

Behind Li Ru, Chen Qingan, Zhang Liao, Cao Hong, Xia Houyuan, and others were standing quietly in armor.

Not far away, dust and smoke were slowly rising.

A team composed of hundreds of heavy cavalry was slowly heading towards the Wei Bridge.

Among the hundreds of heavy cavalry, two carriages were being escorted.

And next to the two carriages, there were two giant black tigers, comparable in size to fine Dayuan horses, following along.