In the heartland of Yanzhou,the ancient town of Chenliu stood as a silent witness to the passage of time.On the official road outside the county seat,a figure approached from the far horizon,like a specter emerging from the mists of a long journey.Dust clung to him,telling tales of miles traversed under the unforgiving sun and capricious winds.His attire,once perhaps a symbol of another world,was now in tatters,his shoes worn thin by the weight of his journey.And upon his back,an enigma-a backpack of strange design,an anachronism in this age-old land.Despite the unruly beard that masked his visage and the general disarray of his appearance,the spark of youth still glinted in his eyes,hinting at a story yet to be told.
As his gaze fell upon the three majestic characters"Chenliu County"emblazoned on the city wall,a tempest of emotions welled within him.Tears,like pearls of hope and despair,cascaded down his cheeks."Good heavens!Good earth!I have triumphed against the odds to reach Chenliu!Long-eared miscreant,your reckoning is nigh!"he cried,his voice carrying the weight of his entire journey.
This young man was Lin Yu,a soul torn from the modern era and thrust into the maelstrom of history.In a twist of fate that defied all logic,during his sojourn back to his rural abode in his own time,slumber had become a portal,transporting him to the twilight days of the Eastern Han Dynasty.
In this era of darkness,the imperial court was a den of corruption and decay.Eunuchs,like venomous serpents,writhed and schemed,sowing chaos within the very heart of the government.Their malevolence had opened the floodgates for Dong Zhuo's tyrannical entry into the capital,seizing the imperial power like a thief in the night.Lin Yu,realizing the nightmare he had awakened into,felt his heart plunge into the abyss.This was the harrowing epoch of the Three Kingdoms,a crucible of war and strife where lives were as fleeting as the morning mist.
After the initial shock had subsided,like a phoenix rising from the ashes,Lin Yu began to plot his survival in this tempestuous sea of chaos.His knowledge of history was his compass,guiding him through the fog of uncertainty.He knew that the future would be a grand tapestry woven by the three kingdoms of Wei,Shu,and Wu.After much soul-searching,he set his sights on Liu Bei,a decision that would set in motion a series of events that would change his destiny.
Liu Bei was a name that resonated with honor and righteousness,a beacon of hope in a world gone mad.To follow him,Lin Yu knew,would be no easy path.The early years would be fraught with hardship,a crucible that would test his mettle.But he also envisioned a future,a promised land in Sichuan,where peace and prosperity awaited,a life of feasting,dancing,and the harmonious melodies of music.
Fortune seemed to smile upon him,for the place of his unexpected arrival was not far from Pingyuan County,where Liu Bei held the mantle of county magistrate.With hope in his heart and determination in his step,Lin Yu set forth towards Pingyuan County,seeking to pledge his loyalty to Liu Bei.
Liu Bei welcomed Lin Yu with open arms,seeing in him a glimmer of hope,a new star in his constellation of followers.Under his command were the likes of Guan Yu and Zhang Fei,mighty warriors whose names struck fear into the hearts of enemies.But in the realm of intellect and strategy,there was a void.Lin Yu,with his silver tongue and an uncanny ability to decipher the complex web of the world's affairs,filled that void.Liu Bei regarded him as a kindred spirit,a confidant,and bestowed upon him the position of assistant county magistrate.
All seemed to be proceeding along a path strewn with the petals of promise.However,as the ancient sages once said,"A visionary may be revered,but one too far ahead may be shunned as a heretic."Lin Yu's modern sensibilities and ideas were like a double-edged sword.While they held the potential for great change,they also clashed with the traditional views of Liu Bei.Their differences,like the grinding of tectonic plates,led to friction,and soon,fierce arguments erupted between them.Liu Bei,bound by his own beliefs and the loyalty of his brothers,remained silent in the face of these conflicts.But Zhang Fei,with his fiery temper and unwavering loyalty to his brother,could not abide Lin Yu's perceived insolence.In a drunken haze,a tempest of rage overcame him,and his powerful hands delivered several stinging blows to Lin Yu.Lin Yu,seeking justice,turned to Liu Bei,only to be met with disappointment.Liu Bei,in a decision that would sever the bond between them,sided with Zhang Fei.This betrayal filled Lin Yu's heart with a burning fury,a conflagration that would not be easily quenched.
With a heart heavy with resentment and a newfound determination,Lin Yu made a solemn vow.He gathered his meager possessions,his eyes fixed on the southern horizon,and set out on a new journey-to seek refuge with Cao Cao.As he removed the large travel bag from his back,his thoughts were a maelstrom of anger and regret."Since you,Liu Bei,have shown such callousness,do not expect mercy from me,"he muttered bitterly.
A quick inspection of the bag brought a sigh of relief.In his former life,tired of the urban chaos,he had planned an idyllic retreat in his hometown.The bag was filled with treasures of a different kind-crop seeds,symbols of hope and sustenance.Before he could reveal these gifts to Liu Bei,he had been cast aside like a broken tool.But he knew that these seeds held the potential for a new beginning,and he would safeguard them for a more opportune time.
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With the travel bag once again slung over his shoulder,Lin Yu made his way towards Chenliu County town.History,like an invisible hand,guided his steps.According to the annals of time,at this moment,Cao Cao should have emerged from the ashes of his failed assassination attempt on Dong Zhuo,seeking refuge in Chenliu County.Here,he was a force of nature,rallying troops,amassing horses,and issuing a false imperial edict to summon the feudal lords to rise against Dong Zhuo.
Sure enough,after a series of inquiries that led him through the labyrinthine streets and byways,Lin Yu found Cao Cao's military camp on the outskirts of Chenliu County town.Despite the failure of his audacious plot,Cao Cao's name had risen like a phoenix,its fame spreading far and wide.In the camp,a white flag,as pure as the driven snow and emblazoned with the word"Loyalty,"fluttered high in the wind,a symbol of hope and a call to arms.It drew in the desperate and the brave,the refugees fleeing the ravages of war and the able-bodied men seeking purpose.The camp was a beehive of activity,a melting pot of different fates and dreams.
Seeing the serpentine queue that stretched from the camp gate like an endless river,Lin Yu found himself at a crossroads.The sheer number of people waiting was a daunting sight,a reminder of the chaos that reigned outside.To join this queue would mean an eternity of waiting,a slow march towards an uncertain future.Moreover,to simply blend in with the common masses would likely condemn him to the fate of cannon fodder,with no hope of ever reaching Cao Cao.In this age,family background was like a gilded key that opened doors,and Lin Yu had none of the trappings of nobility.
But Lin Yu was not one to be deterred by the odds.In a moment of inspiration,a spark of audacity lit up his eyes.He straightened his back,his posture now that of a king among peasants.With his head held high,he strode out of the queue with a confidence that bordered on the divine.His every step was a declaration of his intent,a challenge to the status quo.The people in the queue watched in stunned silence,and then a chorus of indignant shouts filled the air.
"How dare you cut in line!"
"Yes,get back and queue properly!"Lin Yu turned his head,his eyes scanning the crowd with a mixture of amusement and disdain."Queuing with you common folk would be a fruitless waste of my time,"he said,his voice carrying a tone of superiority that cut through the air like a knife.
These words,like a spark to dry tinder,ignited the fury of the crowd.
"Who are you calling'common folk'?!"
"Do you seek death?!"
Lin Yu raised his head,a haughty smile playing on his lips."I do not single out any one of you.I mean that all of you present here are but insignificant cogs in the wheel of fate."
His words,laced with arrogance and provocation,were like a war cry.The crowd,their faces contorted with rage,surged forward,ready to unleash their wrath upon him.But just as the storm was about to break,a troop of soldiers,clad in armor that glinted like the sun on water,came charging towards them like a tidal wave.At their head was a burly general,a colossus of a man.His iron armor was a work of art,each plate fitting together like the scales of a dragon,and his face was a mask of fierceness,his eyes burning with the fire of a thousand battles.An aura of slaughter surrounded him,a palpable presence that made the very air tremble.
"Who is causing this mayhem?"he roared,his voice like thunder,shaking the ground beneath them.His eyes,large as the orbs of the celestial bodies,swept over the crowd,and in that instant,the refugees,who had been so full of bravado just moments ago,were reduced to silence.Their bodies froze,fear coursing through their veins like ice,and they dared not make a move.
Seeing this display of power,the general nodded with satisfaction.The soldier responsible for registration quickly recounted the events to him,his words painting a vivid picture of Lin Yu's audacious actions.The general turned his cold,calculating eyes upon Lin Yu,his voice a whip of authority as he barked,"Since you are here to enlist,you should know your place and abide by the rules of the camp.Queuing is a simple matter of discipline.Why do you stir up trouble here?"
Facing this interrogation,Lin Yu remained unfazed.He smiled,a smile that held a hint of mystery,and clasped his hands in a respectful yet confident gesture."May I inquire the general's name?"
"I am Cao Hong,a general in front of Duke Cao's tent!"
Lin Yu's heart skipped a beat.This was no ordinary encounter.Cao Hong,the cousin of Cao Cao,a name that carried weight in these troubled times.
"General Cao Hong,I am Lin Yu.I have come today not as a common recruit but with a matter of utmost importance to meet Duke Cao,"Lin Yu said,his voice steady,like the deep waters of a river that flows unperturbed by the chaos on its banks.
Cao Hong looked Lin Yu up and down,his eyes narrowing with suspicion.A dismissive sneer curled his lips."Duke Cao is a busy man,occupied with the affairs of state.He has no time for every vagabond who claims to have something important to say."In this era,the influence of noble families was an omnipresent force,a chain that bound society.Lin Yu's disheveled appearance and lack of noble lineage made him an easy target for contempt.
But Lin Yu was not one to be cowed.With a calm demeanor that belied the tension in the air,he said,"Please trouble the general to inform Duke Cao that I hold the key to the problems that beset him.He will surely recognize the value of our meeting."
Cao Hong's heart was stirred by Lin Yu's words.Unlike the other peasants and ruffians who cowered before him,Lin Yu stood his ground with an air of self-assurance that was both intriguing and unsettling.Could this man truly be someone of consequence?In recent days,Duke Cao had bemoaned the lack of worthy talent,like a thirsty man in a desert searching for an oasis.Cao Hong knew he could not afford to be hasty in dismissing Lin Yu.
"Wait here.I will report to my lord,"Cao Hong said,his eyes fixed on Lin Yu,trying to decipher the enigma before him.With a final,searching look,he turned and made his way towards the tent,his armor clinking with each step,leaving Lin Yu standing there,a solitary figure surrounded by a sea of expectant eyes.
Seeing the situation unfold as he had hoped,a faint smile tugged at the corner of Lin Yu's mouth.And those able-bodied men,who had earlier regarded him with hostility,now watched him with a newfound sense of awe.Their eyes,once filled with anger,now held a glimmer of respect,as if they were witnessing the birth of a legend.