Chapter 580

“Haha. Milord. This Liu Bei really knows you well!” Zhang Liao said to Lu Bu.

Lu Bu did not reply. He simply looked back at Yuzhou and harrumphed. After that, he sped up his horse.

Zhang Liao could not help but smile and shook his head at this. Liu Bei really did understand that Lu Bu was impulsive. Even Cao Cao was afraid of this kind of Lu Bu.

Liu Bei who received Lu Bu’s message was afraid of irritating Lu Bu. To ensure that Lu Bu was happy, he had Nancheng’s gates open up. He was basically saying that he had no intention of stopping Lu Bu. Lu Bu is free to leave as he pleases.

It was truly strange to allow someone that plundered your home to leave so subserviently. Yet, Liu Bei had no other choice. He could only smile as he gets beaten up.

“Would Liu Bei cry when he finds out that Milord have actually changed?” What would Liu Bei think when he finds out that Lu Bu was no longer as rash as he used to be? The message he gave Liu Bei were mostly just threats. If Liu Bei had really attacked, Lu Bu would have chosen to abandon Yuzhou’s citizens.

Meanwhile, Liu Bei walked up and down anxiously. His wives that had returned to him now that Runan was safe did not know how to placate him. Finally, Guan Yu arrived at the residence.

“Brother!” Guan Yu saw Liu Bei and called out to him.

“Brother! The Yangzhou Army are too inhumane!” Guan Yu’s expression was so horrible that Liu Bei was startled.

“Second Brother. Speak slowly.”

“Brother! Nine out of ten acres of land outside are empty! I’m afraid Yuzhou…” Guan Yu hesitated at the end. Yangzhou was thorough with their actions. Even the people were being migrated. They left only a bit of provisions for the ones that can’t or won’t leave. The only citizens that were guaranteed to be left behind were the ones in Runan. The others have already been taken away by the Yangzhou Army.

“I know that!” Liu Bei knew things were bad but he did not expect it to be this bad. They were completely wiped out. The number of citizens left behind at Runan would only be eighty thousand at most.

“All of the citizens in the surrounding area were enticed by Yangzhou. They only cared about immediate benefits. None of them remembered how much suffering you have gone through for them!” Guan Yu was angry. He was especially angry at the citizens from Dingcheng. This is because at least half of Dingcheng’s citizens originally came from Xuzhou. Liu Bei had took pity on them and brought them away from Cao Cao’s evil clutches. Yet these citizens now chose to abandon Liu Bei.

“Second Brother. No need to say anymore.” Liu Bei waved his hand. Liu Bei never had such good intentions of saving the people. They were just to help him and his White Eared Heavy Infantry escape from Cao Cao’s Tiger Cavalry. It is only by hiding himself with the citizens that Cao Cao did not dare to attack.

“Milord! Report!” A messenger knelt down towards Liu Bei while Liu Bei was still feeling distressed.

“What’s the matter?” Liu Bei frowned.

“Milord! Several thousand citizens are outside the city! They are requesting Milord for shelter!”

“Several thousand citizens?” Liu Bei and Guan Yu were stunned. After a while, Guan Yu laughed. “Hmph! These people have a conscience. They know that Brother is the one that saved them! The ones that left with that Slave of Three Surnames would surely starve along the way!”

“Brother. Could there be a trap?” Guan Yu suddenly asked. Would Lu Bu leave behind several thousand people for good intentions? Was it possible that these several thousand people came from somewhere else?

“Hm? Let’s go take a look.” Liu Bei said. He had to go and personally take a look when the scale of refugees were at the thousands. Liu Bei was also happy to see that there were still people that trusted him. Although it was a relatively small number, it was still manpower.

However, Liu Bei’s smile quickly turned into a frown when he saw the refugees. The several thousand people seeking shelter were all the old and crippled. Some of them had even been discharged from service by Liu Bei.

Liu Bei’s expression turned pale. Lu Bu did not only take away Yuzhou’s population. He even left behind all the old and crippled for Liu Bei.

“Respectful Lord! Imperial Uncle! Please open the gates and let us in!” The citizens below the walls banged on the city gate. The gate was closed because the Gate Captain was afraid that there would be spies mixed in with these people.

“Brother. Should we open the gate?” Guan Yu asked. He was also angry when he saw the citizens. These nuisances were not manpower but parasites. Guan Yu knew that they could not open the gates but at the same time, he could not abandon them.

Could they open the gate? If they do so, Liu Bei would have to provide for these people. As Liu Bei still had thirty thousand soldiers to feed he may not even have enough provisions to take in these citizens. After all, these citizens did not have any ability to work. On the other hand, if Liu Bei chose not to open the gates, his reputation as a benevolent Lord is finished.

The refugees only had enough provisions to last them for a few days so it was quite likely for them to starve to death outside of Runan.

While Liu Bei was struggling to make a decision, one of the refugees shouted. “Milord. Please open the gates and be charitable. We used to work as your soldiers. Please open the gate!” They did not want to die from the cold when they slept outside the city.

“Milord. Some of our soldiers that have retired from injuries seem to be there.” Some of Liu Bei’s men could recognize their fellow soldiers.

Liu Bei’s heart was full of complaints. If he could use them as soldiers, he would have long taken them in. After thinking for a moment, he gnashed his teeth and gave the order. “Open the gates!”

“Milord. If we let them in, where would we put these nuisances… no, where would we put these citizens? Also, we may not have enough provisions left.” One officer asked. They could not just let these people in and then do nothing. They would need to provide food, dispatch someone to take care of these citizens and arrange a place for the citizens to live.

“Did you not hear my orders? Open the gate!” Liu Bei roared.

“Yes! Yes!” The officer no longer dared to say anything once he saw Liu Bei become angry. He had his subordinates open the gates.

Liu Bei also wanted to prevent these people from entering the city but he could not do so since there were a lot of soldiers watching. He could not afford to lose popular sentiment. He could only grit his teeth and endure his grievances.

“Where is Gongyou’s envoy now?” Liu Bei asked.

“According to the time, the envoy should be at Xinye right now.”

“Good. Let us hope Gongyou manages to gain something from this trip.” Liu Bei was now placing his hopes on the envoy dispatched to Jingzhou. If the envoy is successful, he would no longer be short on provisions. Feeding these parasites would not be a problem. Otherwise, Liu Bei would have to be cruel.

Although Lu Bu could not obtain Yuzhou, he had learned from his mistakes and took away fourty thousand people. The remaining thirty thousand were either recruited by Liu Bei or were amongst the casualties at Nandun. Cao Cao had also taken some people with him when he left. Liu Bei only had thirty thousand troops and eighty thousand citizens left. The only city he had left was Runan. The other places were in ruins.

Even if Liu Bei attempts to be militaristic, he could only have fifty thousand troops at most. He would no longer be a threat. Once the crisis at Lujiang is over, crisis will return to Yuzhou.

On the other hand, Xu Shu was busy at Shouchun. He had to take care of four hundred thousand people. This include tasks such arranging a place for them to stay and registering their household. It was fortunate that Yangzhou was no longer lacking in provisions or these people could not be supported.

Lu Bu raced towards Lujiang without stopping. The Urban Army was also gathering at Xinye, ready to attack Jingzhou when the battle starts to save Liu Mang. War was once again approaching Jingzhou, Jiangdong and Yangzhou.

Meanwhile, Liu Mang Liu Hanyang was still in the mountains with the barbarians.