On the arena, the spear shadows of the two men intertwined. Feeling Lu Bu's increasingly fierce attacks, Tong Yuan finally determined the pattern of his attacks.
After fifty rounds of fighting, Tong Yuan used all his strength and unleashed a move he hadn't used in a long time: Hundred Birds Paying Homage to the Phoenix.
In an instant, Tong Yuan thrust out his iron spear with lightning speed, and the iron-blue spear flowers bloomed continuously, enveloping Lü Bu.
Faced with Tong Yuan's elusive spearhead, Lü Bu barely managed to block five or six blows before Tong Yuan knocked the hooked spear from his hand.
"I lost!"
Lu Bu bowed respectfully to Tong Yuan, completely convinced. From the very beginning of their fight, he had never thought he could win, after all, the man before him was the spear god his master had spoken of.
Tong Yuan looked at Lü Bu with a solemn expression: "Young man, the weapon you used just now is not suitable for you. A more open and powerful style is your style. May I ask who your teacher is?"
Lu Bu smiled and said, "My master is Li Yan!"
"Senior brother?"
Tong Yuan was slightly taken aback, then carefully examined Lü Bu: "You are my senior brother's disciple, Lü Bu?"
"Indeed!" Lü Bu nodded, then knelt on one knee facing Tong Yuan: "Nephew greets Martial Uncle!"
"Get up!"
Tong Yuan quickly stepped forward and helped Lü Bu up: "Nephew, you truly deserve to be called a martial arts prodigy. You have such martial arts skills at such a young age. Even your senior brother and I are not as good as you at your age."
Lu Bu humbly replied, "Uncle-Master, you flatter me. I owe my success entirely to Master's meticulous guidance!"
Tong Yuan nodded with satisfaction, then asked, "By the way, didn't you join the army? How come you're here?"
When Tong Yuan first arrived in Luoyang, he had already heard of Lü Bu's reputation and was quite curious about the sudden appearance of such a high-ranking military officer.
Lü Bu smiled and said, "I'm here today to accompany you on this outing, young master!"
"Young Master?"
Tong Yuan was slightly taken aback. There was probably only one person who could make Lü Bu address him as "Young Master" with such respect.
Tong Yuan then turned to Liu Hong and bowed respectfully.
Liu Hong nodded slightly: "Would this valiant warrior like to come up and have a drink with me?"
"It would be my great honor!"
Tong Yuan responded, waved to the little Zhao Yun beside him, and then walked upstairs.
"I was blind and refused your kind offer, sir. I hope you will..."
Liu Hong smiled and said, "Master Tong is wholeheartedly dedicated to serving the country and refuses private offers; this is truly a man of noble character!"
With that, Liu Hong pointed to the seat next to him, "Please sit down!"
"Thank you, young master!"
After bowing, Tong Yuan sat down somewhat awkwardly.
Huang Zhong, Zhang Fei, Xu Chu, the Xiahou brothers, and others standing to the side also looked at Tong Yuan, who was able to defeat Lü Bu, with respect in their eyes.
After sitting down, Liu Hong looked at the little Zhao Yun behind Tong Yuan.
Seeing this, Tong Yuan quickly pulled Zhao Yun forward: "Quickly greet the young master!"
"Zhao Yun greets the young master!" Young Zhao Yun bowed respectfully.
"Alright, alright, no need for formalities, please sit down!"
Looking at the spirited and handsome young Zhao Yun, Liu Hong was very pleased and took him by the hand to sit down next to him.
Zhao Yun is one of the most beloved military generals, and Liu Hong is no exception.
When everyone saw that the emperor was so close to a little boy, they couldn't help but take a closer look at young Zhao Yun.
These people were all skilled in martial arts, and they quickly noticed Zhao Yun's unique qualities, especially his bright and intelligent eyes, which made him a rare genius.
Liu Hong raised his glass: "Come on, everyone, let's continue drinking!"
"Please, young master!"
Everyone raised their glasses and drank them down, and the atmosphere returned to its previous lively state.
Liu Hong did not try to win Tong Yuan over again, but instead asked him about some interesting stories from the martial arts world.
Lu Bu's sharp gaze would occasionally sweep over his junior brother, as if he were pondering something.
Before long, seeing that everyone had drunk enough, Liu Hong put down his glass.
"Alright, that's enough for today, let's go!"
Then, surrounded by the crowd, Liu Hong walked outside.
Just as Guan Yu walked to the counter to pay, the shopkeeper told him with a smile that someone had already paid.
After leaving the martial arts pavilion, Tong Yuan bid farewell to everyone and led Xiao Zhao Yun toward the inn where they were staying.
Back in the palace, Liu Hong began to ponder the matter of the northern grasslands.
The main enemies of the Han Dynasty are still the tribes on the grasslands. Not long ago, Zhang Huan sent news that Tan Shihuai defeated and gathered more than a dozen tribes of the Xianbei in the central region this autumn. His strength is growing and he is showing signs of unifying the grasslands.
If things continue like this, within three years, the ambitious Tan Shihuai will surely wage war against the Han Dynasty.
If we want to deal with and eliminate them, in addition to economic sanctions, building an invincible heavy cavalry force becomes a very urgent matter.
With the continuous expansion of the military horse farms in the Hexi Corridor, the Han Dynasty has more and more high-quality warhorses, and it is not a big problem to build a heavy cavalry force of about a thousand men.
Tong Yuan was Liu Hong's ideal heavy cavalry commander.
Just as Liu Hong was pondering, Jian Shuo hurriedly returned.
"Your Majesty, I have learned the details. The Xianbei man's name is Tuolü. He has lived in Luoyang for over two years and is currently working at the royal ironworks. According to our investigation, he is loyal to the Han Dynasty and has applied to become a Han citizen multiple times..."
Afterwards, Jian Shuo explained to Liu Hong in detail the situation of Tuo Lü and his trip to the martial arts arena to compete.
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