Chapter 478: Disaster-ridden Xuzhou

"Ding--"

The dagger fell to the ground, making a crisp sound.

At this moment, the hall was surprisingly quiet even though there were many people around.

Everyone's eyes were uncontrollably directed to one place, where they saw two tall guards with angry eyes pressing a man to the ground.

The man pinned to the ground was dressed differently from the two guards.

He was wearing a brocade robe. Just looking at the style of the robe, everyone present couldn't help but be amazed. It was so luxurious. If it weren't for the dagger on the ground, no one would believe that the man in the robe was actually an assassin.

Even though he was caught red-handed, even though one of the guards pressed his knee against his back, his carefully maintained beard kept rubbing against the ground, and he even grimaced in pain.

The man did not beg for mercy. Like a wild beast that was temporarily restrained, he stared at the person in front of him with wide eyes and viciousness.

"Mr. Qiao, how do you think we should deal with this assassin?"

The person being stared at by the assassin was Qiao Rui.

Qiao Rui stared at the assassin in a daze, his face full of solemnity. Ever since he joined Chen Deng, he had been organizing banquets for Guangling scholars so that they would know who he was.

For the gentry, fighting and killing is not their main theme; human relationships and worldly wisdom are the only way.

Qiao Rui, who came from a prominent family, was well aware of this, but what surprised him was that he had just sent out an invitation and an assassin had already appeared? !

The Guangling nobles actually disliked him so much? !

You have to know that he is Chen Deng's father-in-law after all. Although his daughter is not his legal wife, she can be considered half a father-in-law!
He invited scholars from various families out of good intentions.

The result was this, was this a slap in his face?!
No, this is a slap in the face of Chen Deng! This is a slap in the face of Liu Bei! This is a slap in the face of the emperor!

Hateful, really hateful!

Fortunately, Qiao Rui was able to control his emotions, but he was still full of hostility when he spoke, "Who are you? Who sent you to kill me?!"

"Humph." The assassin snorted coldly, "A real man never changes his name or surname. I am Zhang Kai!"

Zhang Kai?

Qiao Rui found the name unfamiliar and couldn't tell from the name which assassin he belonged to.

However, Zhang Kai's next words caused an uproar in Qiao Rui's heart.

"Who sent me here? It was of course Lord Yuan of Huainan. What I hate most is disloyal and unrighteous people like you!"

Qiao Rui's head was buzzing, and he staggered back several steps. After a moment, his face flushed with anger. He tried his best to object, "Disloyalty and injustice?! What do you mean by disloyalty and injustice?! I tried my best to persuade him, but Yuan Gonglu ignored me! In the end, he suffered a great defeat! I was almost killed by the villains. Fortunately, I met Yuan Long, so I was able to turn from evil to good! How can I say disloyalty and injustice!"

No matter what Qiao Rui said, Zhang Kai always had a sneer on his face.

This made Qiao Rui furious. As a captain, when had he ever been humiliated like this by an assassin?
Where's his sword?!

"You sharp-tongued brat!"

Qiao Rui grasped the sword at his waist with his backhand, cursed angrily, drew out the sword and a dazzling white light burst out. He was about to let Zhang Kai see his swordsmanship!

However, at this moment, a voice came from outside the door.

"Wait a minute!"

"Mr. Qiao, spare his life!" Qiao Rui's sword hovered in front of Zhang Kai's neck. Zhang Kai's eyelids twitched wildly. Before, he thought that he was like the assassins in ancient times, who had already put life and death aside. But when the time came, he couldn't help shivering, and felt a sense of fear in his heart. If that voice hadn't appeared in time, he would have been beheaded and died.

I just don't know who the person who spoke was.
Soon Qiao Rui revealed the answer.

"Yuanlong?" Qiao Rui's tone was full of confusion.

Zhang Kai secretly said that it was not good. He was too familiar with the name Yuanlong. He would not forget it even in his dreams. After all, the purpose of this trip was to assassinate Qiao Rui and Chen Deng.
"Mr. Qiao." Chen Deng bowed and walked to Qiao Rui's side. When he learned that Qiao Rui had been assassinated, he rushed to Qiao Rui's residence without stopping.

He was not at all surprised that Yuan Shu sent assassins, as Yuan Shu was the type of person who would easily become angry.

After becoming extremely angry, what should I do when I find that I can’t beat the person and I can’t win by scolding him?

Of course, send out assassins.

Regardless of the low risk and small return, Yuan Shu's ruffian nature alone would make him think of this trick first.

Therefore, Chen Deng had already taken precautions. Besides him, there was also Qiao Rui. Who else was a thorn in Yuan Shu's side?
But what surprised Chen Deng was that the visitor was actually Zhang Kai?

He had some impression of Zhang Kai. It was said that he was Tao Qian's captain. Tao Qian sent people to escort Cao Cao's father Cao Song, and the leading captain was Zhang Kai.

During the escort, Zhang Kai brutally killed Cao Song and escaped with the gold and silver.

Even a discerning person could see the strangeness in this. Cao Song was Cao Cao's father. Cao Cao had been eyeing Xuzhou covetously and had great ambitions, but he had no excuse to launch a full-scale attack on Xuzhou.

Even if Tao Qian was a kind and honest person, he would never send people to kill Cao Song's father. If Cao Cao then went there under the banner of revenge for his father, Xuzhou would surely be devastated.

He believed that Tao Qian could not fail to see it. From Tao Qian's act of sending guards to Cao Song, it can be seen that Tao Qian must want to ease the relationship between the two sides.

As for Zhang Kai's greed for gold and silver, it is even more untenable.

Cao Song’s safety is the top priority. The fact that Tao Qian could entrust the matter to Zhang Kai with confidence shows that Zhang Kai is Tao Qian’s confidant, doesn’t it?

He didn't believe that Zhang Kai couldn't tell which was more important, the position of a captain or the gold and silver in front of him.

If Zhang Kai was Yuan Shu's man from the beginning, the problem would be solved.

As for why Commander Tao Qian was Yuan Shu's man.
It was not that Chen Deng was belittling Tao Qian, but that Tao Qian was really old and sometimes had a hard time judging people.

Otherwise, he would not have made important use of people like Zuo Rong. Fortunately, Tao Qian did not let him down at the critical moment and entrusted Xuzhou to Liu Bei.

What a pity. It's too late.
Chen Deng shook his head and did not delve into the issue further.

It was not only Cao Cao who coveted Xuzhou, but also Yuan Shu.

Whether Cao Cao succeeded or not in attacking Xuzhou, Yuan Shu would gain the advantage.

If it succeeds, Cao Cao's troops will certainly suffer losses, and Yuan Shu will kill two birds with one stone by catching the cicada while the oriole is waiting behind. Not only can he get Xuzhou, but he can also defeat Cao Cao and avenge his previous humiliation.

If that fails, Cao Cao will be able to help him weaken the power in Xuzhou. Then when Yuan Shu attacks Xuzhou again, the resistance will not be as great as before.

After careful calculation, Chen Deng felt that Xuzhou was really in trouble. At the same time, he thought of the boasts he had made to Liu Bei in the original development, such as "Xuzhou is rich, with a population of one million" and "it can provide 100,000 infantry and cavalry", and he suddenly felt embarrassed and couldn't help but think: Chen Yuanlong, Chen Yuanlong, you are really good at boasting.

All in all, Zhang Kai was quite courageous and could be considered loyal.

Wouldn't it be such a pity to kill him like this?

(End of this chapter)