Chapter 82: The Art of War with Words

  Zhang Liao, Gao Shun and Chen Deng were left behind by Lü Bu to set up camp, which can also be said to be on guard against any potential threats. If anything happens, with Zhang Liao as the main commander and Chen Gong as his assistant, they would be able to handle it completely.

  Lü Bu, Chen Gong and Liu Mang entered the governor's mansion of Yangzhou under the leadership of Sun Ce and Zhou Yu. Sun Ce's army was very good at doing things, letting Lü Bu take the upper hand, while Sun Ce himself took a lower position, showing his respect for Lü Bu, which caught Lü Bu's attention, but made many civil and military officials behind Sun Ce unhappy.

  A drinking party began amidst the polite conversation.

  Beautiful women danced, delicious food and drink, it can be said that this is the best meal Liu Mang has had since following Lü Boss.

  After three rounds of wine, Lü Bu was very satisfied with Sun Ce's hospitality.

  "General Lü Bu's martial prowess is unmatched in the world, a war god among soldiers, and we warriors can't help but admire him! Come, let us offer General Lü a cup of wine to show our respect!" Sun Ce had always admired Lü Bu's military skills, and he had long considered Lü as his goal. At Tiger Trap Pass, he suppressed the eighteen vassals, and in the chaos of war, he could take the head of the enemy general.

  Lü Bu's martial arts have reached the pinnacle, the pinnacle of refining the spirit! Sun Ce looked at him with burning eyes, he had also entered the realm of refining the spirit, but there was still a distance from the pinnacle, so he truly respected Lü Bu as a warrior.

  "Hmm!" Lü Bu nodded "Sun Ce, Sun Bofu, the Little Overlord of Jiangdong, has already entered the Refining Spirit stage at such a young age, you're not bad either!" Sun Ce was indeed not bad, and Lü Bu was only about as strong as Sun Ce at this time. However, that was only referring to martial prowess; in other aspects, he couldn't compare to Sun Ce.

  At that time, he was still a small main thin when Sun Ce was so big, where did he look like Sun Ce who had already fought for a large Jiangdong.

  "Better than your father!" Lü Bu thought of Sun Ce's father, the only person who could make Dong Zhuo uneasy, and also the only one who had defeated Dong Zhuo's Western Liang army.

  Their conversation has even reached the level of dialogue between elders and juniors, with one sentence from the uncle and one sentence from the nephew, harmonious and joyful, without anyone knowing that these two had never met before.

  "What kind of person was my father in the eyes of Wen Hou!" Everyone thought that Sun Jian was greedy and wanted to occupy the jade seal, which led to his death by a hail of arrows. But in Sun Ce's eyes, his father was always a tall figure.

  "Your father?!" Lü Bu took a sip of wine and said, "Sun Ce is indeed a loyal and patriotic man. He did defeat Dong Zhuo in Luoyang, but he secretly kept the imperial jade seal."

  Is he a ambitious hero in the chaotic world? But when all the eighteen vassals were thinking about their own survival, only Sun Jian was still thinking about how to conquer Chang'an and overthrow Dong Zhuo.

  It's hard to judge a person, after thinking for a long time, Lü Bu only responded with four big words "The General Star has fallen!"

  "Fallen Star!" Sun Ce muttered to himself, savoring the four big words. The ancients had a reverent attitude towards the universe and its stars; being compared to a celestial star was the highest form of affirmation for someone.

  Lü Bu was originally an enemy of Sun Jian, got full recognition from his enemy?

  Father, your spirit in heaven can rest now.

  Lü Bu's praise of Sun Jian greatly increased the affection between them. Their conversation had already reached a level where they were addressing each other as uncle and nephew, with one calling the other "Uncle" and the other responding with "Noble Nephew", their joy was palpable, yet no one knew that these two had never met before.

  Sun Ce's deliberate flattery and Lü Bu's calm acceptance, however, had already turned into Lü Bu's taking advantage of the situation in the eyes of the many Jiangdong officials.

  When ordinary people are praised, they will naturally say "where, where", and politely decline with phrases like "overpraising". But Lü Bu won't, what he says is straightforward, one means one, two means two.

  All the more so since what they said was true anyway.

  At last, a scholar from Jiangdong couldn't bear it anymore and stood up with his wine cup. "General Lü, the sage said that one who has reached the ultimate is a teacher. Today, I, Qin Song, have a question to ask for your guidance!"

  Qin Song, also known as Wenbiao, was a native of Guangling. He was an advisor to Sun Ce and also a member of the Jiangdong aristocracy. The stability of Jiangdong is also attributed to his efforts.

  "I dare not ask, what words can be spoken directly!" As soon as Qin Song opened his mouth, Lü Bu knew that someone was looking for trouble.

  As expected, Qin Song's mouth curled up with a hint of cold smile "I'd like to ask General Lü, having traveled extensively and knowing the heroes of this world, please point it out!"

  "Boasting of heroes over a cup of wine?!" Liu Mang was taken aback, but looking at Lü Bu's scowling face, he knew it wasn't that simple.

  "What nonsense are you talking about?! Sun Ce is a lord, and Lü Bu is also a lord. As lords, they should govern one side. A lord who has been wandering around for so long is simply mocking you, Lü Fengxian, like a homeless dog, having no territory of your own all these years."

  "Get down from the table!" Sun Ce frowned. He didn't invite Qin Song out to mock Lü Bu. "Don't blame me, Lord Wen!"

  Isn't it ironic that Lü Bu doesn't have a base? Liu Mang also understood, Old Man Chen Gong is not here, if he were here, naturally there would be Old Man Chen Gong to come out, now on the scene are only Liu Mang, Lü Bu and Zhang Liao.

  Zang Ba also heard it, he was a war general and didn't have such good eloquence. The lord was humiliated, so naturally he would be furious and draw his sword.

  But was intercepted by Liu Mang.

  Do you want to make a move in Sun Ce's great hall? Not to mention the guards outside, even inside the great hall, there are no less than five of Sun Ce's generals. If we really make a move, even if Liu Mang and Zang Ba and Lv Bu have the same martial arts skills, they will still be defeated. What's more, being provoked into making a move isn't telling others that our Lv Bu army is made up of barbarians?

  "Qin Song, isn't that Mr. Qin Wenbiao? Matters of heroes should naturally be inquired about by heroes themselves! May I ask if you are a hero?" Qin Song's question was fundamentally unanswerable; if one answered the latter part about being a hero, it would be equivalent to accepting Qin Song's sarcasm, and if one took offense at the former part about traveling extensively, it would reveal one's lack of magnanimity.

  So Liu Mang could only give him a sarcastic remark, "Sir, are you a hero?" If Qin Song said yes, that would be shameless, heroes are evaluated by others, how can one claim it himself? If Qin Song said no, then it's simple, the topic he brought up wouldn't need to be discussed.

  Liu Meng did not expect that this old man named Qin Song was also very narcissistic "Not a hero, but well-read in the classics and knowledgeable about the words of the sages, respected by one family's surname! Revered by one family's ancestors!"

  Respect one family's surname? Respect one family's ancestor? This old fellow boasts and doesn't forget to mock.

  For Lü Bu, what kind of title would drive him crazy is naturally the "Three Surnames' House Slave" as said by Zhang Fei, and Qin Song's current words are no different from that.

  Liu Mang had already seen Lü Bu's face gradually turn cold, and his hands were also put behind his back.

  Good! Good! Good! You're so shameless, old Qin Song, I'll play along with you!

  Liu Mao was also amused by the old man, and Zhang Yan said, "I've long heard of Guangling Qin Song, that Qin Wenbiao's learning is profound and vast, a great scholar in the land. Today I see him and indeed it is so!"

  "What's wrong with you?!" Zang Ba was confused, this Qin Song was almost pointing at the master's nose and scolding him, but Liu Han Yang not only didn't help the master counterattack, but instead even flattered Qin Song.

  Liu Mang did not respond to Zang Ba but instead smiled and looked at Qin Song.

  "Oh, my name has become like this!" Qin Song just wanted to see the joke of Lü Bu's army. Lü Bu was a person with both good and bad reputation, some literati could tolerate him, such as Chen Gong, Chen Deng and Zhou Yu, who all looked at Lü Bu with favor.

  However, some people cannot tolerate him, especially those so-called guardians of orthodoxy, such as Kong Rong and Qin Song.

  "If you're a clever and studious young man, I can give you some pointers!" Qin Song stroked his beard, while Lü Bu's army was truly humiliated, being scolded like this yet still smiling and accepting it.

  Go ahead and laugh, you'll be crying later!

  "I've heard that Mr. Qin Song has eight great virtues, renowned throughout the world. Today, with everyone present, I'll tell you all about it!" Liu Mao's mouth curled up into a faint smile, which others couldn't see, but Lü Bu, sitting in the main seat, saw clearly.

  Qin Song is going to be unlucky. Liu Mang's scolding skills are something that Lü Bu has witnessed, and on the city wall of Yangcheng, he was able to infuriate Cao Cao so much that he almost wanted to kill Liu Mang with his own hands, which shows just how skilled Liu Mang is.