Chapter 15: Xue Rengui vs. Zhang Yide (Part 1)

The dawn, like a sharp blade, cleaved the silent night and welcomed the rising sun.

Today, for reasons unknown—perhaps because the continuous arrival of Han reinforcements exerted some pressure on the Yellow Turbans, or perhaps because the enormous casualties they had suffered over the past few days were becoming too much for them to bear.

Or perhaps due to both factors combined—the Yellow Turbans, contrary to their usual practice, did not launch an active assault today.

At this moment, Li Xiang was quietly standing with Xue Rengui before the camp gates of Liu Bei's forces.

However, rather than calling it the camp gate of Liu Bei's forces, it was more accurate to call it the camp gate of Gongsun Zan.

Presently, Liu Bei was merely a leader of volunteer forces with fewer than a thousand men under his command; how could he possibly qualify to establish an independent camp? It was only because he and Gongsun Zan shared the same master that Gongsun Zan permitted Liu Bei to share a camp with him.

Indeed, had it not been for Liu Bei's status as a disciple of Lu Zhi, he would not have even qualified to enter the main hall for the military council yesterday.

In the distance, Gongsun Zan and Liu Bei were seen walking swiftly over, closely followed by Guan Yu and Zhang Fei.

"To think that General Li has graced us with his presence; this truly brings great honor to my humble quarters." Before they even arrived, Gongsun Bogui's voice rang out from afar.

At this time, Gongsun Zan was still exceptionally forthright and generous. Moreover, as a hardliner against the northern barbarians, Gongsun Zan held deep admiration for the decree to exterminate the barbarians that Li Xiang had issued years ago. Seeing Li Xiang now, Gongsun Zan felt as though he had met a kindred spirit.

"Hahaha, General Gongsun has struck terror into the northern frontiers over the years, slaughtering the Xianbei and Wuhuan tribes until their very names evoke fear. I have long admired you in spirit, and today I am finally fortunate enough to meet General Gongsun face to face," Li Xiang said with a courteous smile.

Everyone helps to carry a sedan chair, and since Gongsun Zan was being so polite, Li Xiang naturally responded in kind.

Besides, praising someone costs nothing, and who knows, it might even yield unexpected benefits.

"I wonder who this general might be?" Li Xiang asked, feigning curiosity.

At this point, Li Xiang finally steered the conversation toward Liu Bei, for after all, Liu Bei was the very reason he had come here today.

Know yourself and know your enemy, and you will never be defeated. Li Xiang came today to sound out the bottom line of the three brothers of the Peach Garden. If he could probe the skill effects of these three brothers today, it would make dealing with them as enemies in the future that much easier.

As for why Li Xiang pretended not to know Liu Bei, it was naturally because there had been too many people in the main hall yesterday, and Lu Zhi could not possibly introduce everyone one by one. He had only introduced those of higher status and special standing, such as Liu Yu and Yuan Shao.

Liu Bei was merely a minor leader of volunteer forces holding no official military rank, even if he nominally served as Lu Zhi's disciple. Given Lu Zhi's temperament, he would certainly not waste words on him on such a momentous occasion.

"I am Liu Bei, style name Xuande, a descendant of Prince Jing of Zhongshan. These two are my sworn brothers: Guan Yu, style name Yunchang, and Zhang Fei, style name Yide."

Before Gongsun Zan could speak, Liu Bei took the initiative to step forward and answer first.

Although Gongsun Zan was somewhat displeased by this, he ultimately said nothing. As martial brothers, the two of them naturally could not let such a trivial matter create a rift between them. Furthermore, after years of association, Gongsun Zan had grown somewhat accustomed to this behavior from Liu Bei.

"So it turns out to be the Peach Garden sworn brothers, renowned throughout the lands of You and Yan. I truly had eyes but failed to recognize Mount Tai. I never expected General Liu to be a member of the imperial clan; I have been terribly remiss, terribly remiss," Li Xiang said politely.

During this massive Yellow Turban rebellion, quite a few people had rapidly made names for themselves.

In the Central Plains, Cao Cao was the most famous, having devised strategies multiple times to beat back the Yellow Turbans, while in the north, the fame of the three brothers Liu, Guan, and Zhang was the most resounding.

Guan Yu and Zhang Fei had led troops on several occasions to charge straight into tens of thousands of enemy forces, forcing the Yellow Turban commander Cheng Yuangzhi to retreat in defeat time and time again, completely suppressing the Yellow Turbans in Youzhou.

Such a spectacle was remarkably abrupt, given that the Yellow Turbans held the overall advantage throughout the war. Consequently, the fame of Liu, Guan, and Zhang in the northern regions grew day by day.

Under these circumstances, Li Xiang's remarks were not difficult to understand.

"To think that General Li has heard of my humble name," Liu Bei said, feigning surprise.

"General Liu is being too modest. The reputation of the Peach Garden brothers has long spread far and wide across the northern lands; how could I possibly not know of it? Quelling this Yellow Turban chaos will still require men of great talent like General Liu to frequently exert themselves," Li Xiang replied with his customary courtesy.

"Ding! Congratulations to the host for obtaining 9 summoning points from Liu Bei. Current summoning points: 291."

Li Xiang never expected that Liu Bei would contribute summoning points to him just like that, especially since he had already prepared himself for a protracted struggle.

Little did he know that although the Han Dynasty was already showing signs of mortal peril, it had not yet reached the stage of total collapse that would come later.

At this time, although Liu Bei harbored ambitions, they had not yet reached that extreme degree. It was naturally not as difficult as Li Xiang had imagined for him to farm summoning points from Liu Bei.

"Hahaha, General Li, these two sworn brothers of Xuande both possess the courage of ten thousand men. On that day, the performance of the general behind you was also peerless in bravery. Why don't the two of you engage in a friendly spar of martial arts?"

At that moment, Gongsun Zan suddenly spoke up.

As the host of this place, seeing that the two men were chatting to a point where he could hardly get a word in edgewise, Gongsun Zan immediately spoke up to change the subject.

Hearing these words, Li Xiang silently gave Gongsun Zan a mental thumbs-up. Wasn't this precisely one of the purposes of his coming here in the first place?

Even so, Li Xiang still wore a look of hesitation on his surface, while secretly giving a hand gesture to Xue Rengui.

The reason he only sent Xue Rengui and did not even bring Xiang Tian was naturally because Li Xiang wanted to keep a trump card up his sleeve for the time being.

Moreover, if Xiang Tian were to display his sharp edge too early, then when Chi You—who would eventually be balanced into the Yellow Turbans—made his move, Li Xiang might not be able to exploit and entrap the heroes of the late Han era to the maximum extent.

If that Chi You could unexpectedly slay a few more of these future formidable generals who would become his greatest enemies, Li Xiang would be even happier.

Upon seeing his lord's covert signal, Xue Rengui, with his extraordinary capabilities, naturally understood his lord's intent. He immediately stepped forward on his own accord. "It is precisely what I desire, and I would not dare decline."

...

On the drill ground, Xue Rengui, clad in white armor and mounted on a white horse, stood steadfastly to one side, holding his halberd.

Opposite him was Zhang Fei, style name Zhang Yide, clad in black armor and mounted on a black horse.

Given the realm of their martial arts, both could naturally sense the immense and profound aura emanating from their opponent. Neither dared to be careless, and they stared intently at each other, each searching for a flaw in the other's stance.

However, once martial arts reached the level practiced by these two, flaws might still exist, but they were certainly not something that could be discerned in a short span of time.

Yet neither made a move; this was merely a martial spar after all, not a life-and-death struggle on the battlefield.

Battlefield combat emphasized speed, ruthlessness, and precision, with the ultimate goal of inflicting maximum damage on the enemy.

In a drill ground spar, however, both held back their full strength. When masters fought under such conditions, whoever struck first was actually more likely to reveal a flaw.

After a long while, Zhang Fei—who was not yet the battle-hardened Third Master Zhang of the future—ultimately could not withstand the pressure and made the first move.