Chapter 31: Despair

  Yuan Shu's mansion, clothes fluttering, cups and chopsticks intertwined.

  Yuan Shu beamed with joy, chatting and laughing freely, especially towards Chen Gui, he repeatedly expressed his gratitude.

  Chen Jue was a member of the Chen family in Guangling. Although the Chen family was not as prominent as the Yuan family, which had produced three high-ranking officials over four generations, they were still a powerful and influential clan. Chen Jue was not enthusiastic about pursuing an official career, but he was known for his noble character and had a good reputation among scholars. He had been friends with Yuan Shu since childhood, and their relationship was that of half-teacher, half-friend.

  Yuan Shu's biggest frustration now is that although he is the legitimate son of the Yuan family, his reputation is far inferior to that of Yuan Shao, who was born out of wedlock. Just look at the people around Yuan Shao and then look at those around him, and it's clear how big the gap is between their connections. Chen Gui, as a renowned scholar, did not attach himself to Yuan Shao but instead drew close to Yuan Shu, which is extremely rare for Yuan Shu.

  This time, Chen Gui surprisingly agreed to be his envoy and went to invite Lü Bu, a martial artist, not only giving Lü Bu great face but also giving Yuan Shu great face. Chen Gui apologized to Jia Xu at the city gate, he himself didn't mind, but the coachman told Yuan Shu in detail, making Yuan Shu even more delighted. In a good mood, he talked more and his attitude was better. Whether it was the celebrities on stage or the wandering swordsmen below, Yuan Shu expressed warm welcomes, occasionally telling one or two jokes, causing laughter throughout the hall.

  A man in a green robe hastily walked over and whispered a few words into Yuan Shu's ear. Yuan Shu's face sank, extremely unexpected: "Defeated?"

  Chen Gui heard the tone was off, and hastily walked over, inquiring with his eyes. Yuan Shu shook his head disappointedly: "Han Yu brother, unexpectedly Lü Bu is just a man with an empty reputation. He was defeated by Zhang Xiu."

  As soon as this was said, Chen Gui was stunned, and so were the others. The atmosphere in the hall suddenly became cold and quiet.

  Yuan Shu was disheartened. He had originally wanted to take advantage of Lü Bu's great victory over Zhang Yang, make friends with the heroic youths in the capital, accumulate popularity and at the same time deal a blow to the Emperor. Who would have thought that Lü Bu would be so disappointing and actually lose to Zhang Yang? This made him lose face.

  "Alright, I lost. So what?" Yuan Shu laughed and put on a nonchalant air: "We don't need to let someone who's just seeking fame and fortune ruin the mood. Let's keep drinking."

  The literati in the hall had never had a good impression of warriors, and they were already uncomfortable with Yuan Shu hosting a banquet for Lü Bu. Now that they heard Lü Bu was defeated, they didn't need to force themselves to flatter a warrior, which was exactly what they wanted. The wandering knights and swordsmen below the hall did have some respect for Lü Bu, but since he had fallen, they were delighted to see his downfall. At this time, they also followed Yuan Shu's lead, cheering and shouting as they drank wine.

  No one mentioned Lv Bu again.

  ……

  Outside the east city gate, Lü Bu's face was cold and he occasionally glanced at the city gate.

  He hoped that Chen Gui's figure would appear in the city gate. However, he was disappointed, and the city gate was cold and deserted, just like his mood at this moment.

  Lü Bu let out a long sigh, turned his horse's head around and said in a hateful tone: "Leave!"

  ……

  The palace was bustling with activity, Liu Bei held a grand banquet in the Dragon Washing Garden to celebrate Zhang Fei's victory.

  Zhang Liao won, although he was very happy, but did not lose his mind. He was extremely grateful to Liu Bei, if it wasn't for Liu Bei giving him the imperial horse, precious spear, and also giving him the guiding chart, today he would not have been able to be Lu Bu's opponent, perhaps in the first combination he would have been injured under Lu Bu's hands.

  What made him even more grateful was that Liu Bei, with the dignity of the Son of Heaven, cheered him on from the city gate, inspiring his courage and enabling him to overcome his fear and bravely face Lü Bu, finally achieving a breakthrough at the critical moment.

  Now, he has stepped into the realm of demigod with one foot, just like Lü Bu. This is something that was previously unthinkable, but now it has become a reality. With those seven diagrams, he has even more possibilities and may even surpass Lü Bu in the future to become the true number one master under heaven.

  Although he didn't know how far he could go in the end, he was full of fighting spirit.

  Liu Bian was also delighted, as Zhang Xiu's battle with Lü Bu had created an opportunity for him to win over Lü Bu and receive the Bingzhou army. More importantly, Zhang Xiu's sudden breakthrough gave him a semi-divine general, which provided greater security.

  As an emperor, he was always worried about his own life and had no sense of security, otherwise he would not have been intimidated by Xu Zhi.

  ……

  Liu Bian was delighted, and Tang Ying was also delighted.

  There were too many people from Xiliang present, shouting and yelling, the noise was deafening. Tang Ying wasn't very used to it, after politely drinking a few cups of wine, she excused herself, bringing two palace maids with her, and left the banquet first. Although the sky had already darkened, she didn't directly return to the rear palace, but instead went to the Chetou Hall where Liu Bian was handling government affairs.

  The emperor, of course, wasn't just drinking and admiring flowers every day, he had a lot of government affairs to deal with. Tang Ying was originally not good at these things, but Liu Bian was even more incompetent, so she could only help him out with difficulty.

  But it was not in the palace, Princess Wan was reading a memorial, and she heard Tang Ying's footsteps. She rubbed her eyes and smiled: "You've had enough fun, you finally remembered me."

  Tang Ying slapped her forehead, only to remember that she had already entrusted the government affairs to Princess Wannian. Looking at the neatly stacked memorials on the desk, Princess Wannian must have been busy here for a whole day.

  "I, on behalf of His Majesty, thank you, Princess."

  "Hehe, empty words are useless, let's get to the point." The princess rubbed her brow, speaking and laughing as she briefly explained the situation. After finishing her tasks, she stood up and left.

  Tang Ying took a look and secretly rejoiced, the level of Princess Wan was much higher than hers and Liu Bian's. With this helper, she would be able to relax a lot in the future. She picked up several important memorials, preparing to take them back to the palace, and wait for Liu Bian to return at night to let him take a look first.

  Leaving the palace, Tang Ying thought to herself as she walked forward. When she reached the corner of the hall, she suddenly raised an eyebrow and slowed down her pace, waving her hand at the attending palace maid. The maids understood and handed a lantern over to Tang Ying, bowing their heads and retreating. Tang Ying held the lantern and walked along the corridor for over ten steps before stopping.

  A handsome young man with a fair complexion stood at the head of the corridor, quietly watching Tang Ying approach.

  Tang Ying's mouth slightly curled up, revealing a hint of playfulness that Liu Bian had never seen before: "Do you have something to say to me?"

  "The voice of the people of Xi Liang can be heard throughout the palace, disturbing everyone's sleep."

  "The people of Xiliang are just making a fuss, they haven't done anything like Yuan Shao and Yuan Shu, setting fires and killing people, yet you can't sleep? Tang Ying's mouth twitched: "However, it's not easy to get you to come find me on your own initiative. What, have you figured something out?"

  The young man smiled bitterly: "I just wanted to remind the imperial concubine to be careful not to invite wolves into her home. In these difficult times, Your Majesty should be cautious and vigilant, as if treading on thin ice, and respond carefully, lest you seek temporary pleasure and bring disaster in the future."

  The third update is here! Please recommend and collect!