Ji Han Liu Zhang

"Duke Wei!"

In Chang'an in November, the sky was covered with leaden clouds and the cold wind was howling. Goose-feather-like snowflakes moved freely in the air and took a long time to fall onto the already white ground.

Liu Zhang, wrapped in a fur coat, stood under the corridor, quietly admiring the snowstorm at the end of the Han Dynasty, while listening to Xun You's report on the news from Xudu. However, the news Xun You handed over was as fierce as the snowstorm before his eyes.

To Liu Zhang's surprise, Cao Cao pretended to be the emperor and issued an edict to make Yuan Shao the Duke of Wei. He tried to please Yuan Shao like a bootlicker, and he almost sent his family to Yecheng.

"Who made the suggestion, or was it Cao Mengde's own plan?" Liu Zhang still cared about Xun You. While motioning Xun You and him to go into the house to enjoy the warm fire, he asked Xun You a question.

While questioning Xun You, Liu Zhang speculated about the candidate for the strategist who would give advice. Guo Jia? Cheng Yu? Dong Zhao? I think the candidate should be one of the think tanks in Cao Cao's shogunate.

Xun You paused for a moment and did not respond immediately. After a moment, he said, "According to the news from Xudu, my cousin Xun Wenruo made a suggestion, Cao Mengde accepted it, and sent the chief architect Kong Rong as an envoy to Yecheng to present Yuan Shao as Duke of Wei."

"Xun Wenruo?" Liu Zhang exclaimed in surprise. He found it a little difficult to understand. He knew that in history, when Dong Zhao suggested that Cao Cao be given the title of Duke, Xun Yu strongly advised against it. As a result, Cao Cao was not allowed to be given the title of Duke while Xun Yu was alive.

The Wei Chronicles cryptically records that in the second year after Xun Yu's death, "the next year, Taizu (Cao Cao) became Duke of Wei." The word "su" clearly reveals the fact that Xun Yu and Duke of Wei could not coexist.

But now, Xun Yu was eager to make Yuan Shao the Duke of Wei, which inevitably made Liu Zhang confused. After all, this matter was somewhat unreasonable and not something Xun Yu would do.

"It is indeed his cousin." After Xun You understood Liu Zhang's confusion, he affirmed it strongly, indicating that the one who suggested that Yuan Shao be made Duke of Wei was indeed his cousin Xun Yu.

At this moment, the two men walked to the door of the conference room. Liu Zhang stepped into the conference room and sat down first. Xun You was half a beat slower than Liu Zhang. He sat down calmly after Liu Zhang took his seat.

"What do you think is the reason why Wen Ruo did this?" Liu Zhang asked Xun You. For Xun You, who was the uncle and nephew of Xun Yu and was familiar with and understood Xun Yu, it was the most appropriate person to ask Xun Yu about the reasons behind his actions.

"It's nothing more than trying to show goodwill to Yuan Shao." Xun You began by saying, "Now that you have accepted the position of King of Qin, in the eyes of outsiders, this is a clear proof that you and Cao Mengde have joined forces. Especially in the eyes of Yuan Shao, Yuan Shao must be afraid of your joining forces with Cao Mengde. As a result, he is bound to be resentful of Cao Cao."

"After all, Cao Cao started his career in Dongjun. The post of Dongjun governor was recommended by Yuan Shao. Cao Cao was also appointed as the governor of Yanzhou because of Yuan Shao's strong guarantee. If it weren't for Yuan Shao, there would be few people in Yanzhou who obeyed Cao Cao. For example, the famous scholar Bian Rang from Jiujiang was killed by Cao Cao because he despised Cao Cao."

After a pause, Xun You continued, "So in the eyes of others, Cao Cao is a member of Yuan Shao's court, but in Yuan Shao's eyes, Cao Cao is just his henchman."

"But since Cao Cao welcomed the emperor to Xu, Cao Cao first took the title of general and Yuan Shao as the Grand Commandant, who was under Cao Cao, and his intention to disobey Yuan Shao was obvious. Later, Yuan Shao invaded Hedong, and while Yuan Shao's army was in Hedong, Cao Cao secretly planned to attack Yecheng."

"All these things have shown that the relationship between Yuan Shao and Cao Cao is like a broken mirror. Yuan Shao must have thought that Cao Cao did not remember the old favor and colluded with his enemy, you. He must have a deep resentment towards Cao Cao and hate him."

"At this time." Xun You smiled calmly, "If Cao Cao doesn't show some goodwill to Yuan Shao, next year in the sixth year of Jian'an, Yuan Shao might march south with his army and plot to take over the Central Plains." "So my uncle Wen's suggestion to make Yuan Shao the Duke of Wei was a temporary measure."

"Expediency." Liu Zhang nodded slightly when he heard this word. The difference between a politician and a statesman lies in the word "expediency" and whether they have far-sighted vision and plans.

As the Shangshu Ling, Xun Yu was loyal to the Han Dynasty and would naturally stop others from calling themselves Dukes. However, Xun Yu took the initiative to express that Yuan Shao could be the Duke of Wei. In Liu Zhang's view, this was just a politician's expedient means.

This incident reminded Liu Zhang of the time when Sun Quan proclaimed himself emperor. Zhuge Liang, who was in charge of the affairs of Shu Han, did not get angry or break off the alliance. Instead, he congratulated Sun Quan based on the actual situation and made an alliance with Sun Wu to divide Cao Wei in half.

Even though he secretly wanted to destroy Sun Wu, who had broken their alliance and had a blood feud with Cao Wei at Yiling, Zhuge Liang judged the situation and made a wise decision when Cao Wei was powerful and needed to join hands with Sun Wu to fight against it, showing the flexibility that a politician should have.

"Wen Ruo is indeed a talented person who can assist the king." Liu Zhang sighed. In terms of governing the country and communicating with others, Xun Yu should be no less capable than Zhuge Liang and they can be on par with each other.

However, Zhuge Liang, who was worshipped in the Temple of Martial Arts, was a well-known all-round talent in both civil and military affairs. Compared with Zhuge Liang, Xun Yu was indeed inferior in popularity and overall ability.

"Yuan Shao would be delighted to receive the title of Duke of Wei, but I don't know whether Yuan Shao will accept it."

Liu Zhang thought about Yuan Shao's attitude towards being conferred the title of Duke of Wei. Given Yuan Shao's personality, he thought Yuan Shao would definitely be very happy and would probably accept it with pleasure.

However, the title of Duke had only been bestowed on Wang Mang before, and it was awarded by Cao Cao under the pretense of the emperor's order. Tian Feng, a think tank from Hebei who was by Yuan Shao's side, would have advised Yuan Shao to decline the title.

Therefore, Liu Zhang speculated that Yuan Shao would decline the offer the first time and would not be so impatient to accept the reward from Duke of Wei the first time the imperial edict arrived.

"Yuan Shao has not yet agreed." Xun You responded, "According to the news from Yecheng, Yuan Shao considers himself the leader of the princes in the world and has made great contributions to the Han Dynasty in the past when he defeated Dong Zhuo. He wanted to accept the offer immediately when the imperial edict arrived."

"However, a group of advisers strongly advised him that Cao Mengde had evil intentions and that he should refuse the title three times before accepting it, otherwise it would be too embarrassing, so Yuan Shao refused the title of Duke of Wei."

"Now the chief architect Kong Rong has returned to Xudu, but Kong Rong, who had just reported back, could not rest. After receiving the news from Xudu, Kong Rong headed north again and presented the Duke of Wei reward to Yuan Shao for the second time."

"Yes." Liu Zhang nodded and smiled, "I think Yuan Shao is a man who likes fame. Yuan Shao will accept the title from Duke Wei sooner or later. However, Yuan Shao accepting the title from Duke Wei means he has accepted Cao Cao's goodwill. I am afraid Yuan Shao will lead his troops to invade Hedong again."

"It's hard to say." Xun You shook his head and said with a smile: "Yuan Shao's appointment as Duke of Wei does not mean that he has accepted Cao Cao's overtures. He can also choose not to accept Cao Cao's overtures." (End of this chapter)