With Cao Cao by my side, what do I have to fear from the world?

Chapter 188, Liu Bei's Ingenious Plan
Seeing Yuan Shao staring at him with gritted teeth and glaring eyes, looking as if he wanted to devour him, Feng Ji was very puzzled and quickly stepped forward to ask, "My lord, what's wrong?"

"What's wrong?" Yuan Shao sneered, which aggravated his wound, causing his lips to twitch again.

Now, if Yuan Shao speaks even slightly loudly, it will aggravate his wounds. Yuan Shao has lived a life of ease and comfort for many years, but in the last two years, he has suffered a series of calamities.

Last year, he was stabbed twice by Guan Jing, a subordinate of Gongsun Zan. Today, he was stabbed three times by Liu Xie.

Before his old wounds had fully healed, new ones were inflicted, leaving Yuan Shao, who always valued his dignity, lying on his side in bed.

The more Yuan Shao thought about it, the more upset he became, and his hatred for Feng Ji intensified.

Yuan Shao didn't want to look at Feng Ji any longer and ordered, "Come on, take this traitor out and kill him!"

Feng Ji was completely bewildered and had no idea what was going on. He hurriedly protested, "My lord, I'm innocent! Why are you killing me? When did I betray you? Even if you want me to die, you should at least let me die knowing why."

"You dare to argue even when you're about to die? Ouch..." The more agitated Yuan Shao became, the more painful his wound became, causing him to grimace and make a comical expression.

Yuan Shao angrily said, "His Majesty told me personally that you are a traitor, and that you have been secretly colluding with His Majesty for a long time."

Feng Ji felt even more wronged than Dou E, and shouted, "My lord, His Majesty is deliberately sowing discord. His casual remark cannot be taken as evidence."

"Do you think I'm that easy to fool? Then why does Your Majesty know everything?"

"What does His Majesty know?"

Yuan Shao was about to speak, but then he abruptly shut his mouth. There were some things he couldn't say in public.

The room is now full of people, including all of Yuan Shao's civil and military officials.

Can I say anything about instigating Liu Yu to declare himself emperor in front of so many people? Can I say anything about the Imperial Seal of the State? Can I say anything about Yuan Shao's intention to make Yuan Shang his heir?

Yuan Shao waved his hand, "You don't need to argue anymore. My mind is made up. Take him out and kill him!"

Feng Ji didn't even have a chance to distinguish, and Ju Shou, Xu You, and others were also puzzled.

Ju Shou couldn't help but ask, "My lord, what exactly did His Majesty say?"

Yuan Shao shook his head. "There's no need to ask anymore. My mind is made up. I will not wrong him."

The Imperial Seal and the appointment of the heir apparent are not matters that can be discussed casually. Even Yuan Shao had to admit that the emperor was indeed cunning, and Yuan Shao couldn't even tell everyone about it.

Soon, Feng Ji's head rolled on the ground. His death caused widespread panic and anxiety among the people.

After a while, Yuan Shao waved his hand, dismissing everyone, but he kept Liu Bei behind.

Liu Bei outwardly feigned composure, but inwardly he was quite uneasy. He had personally witnessed Liu Xie's assassination attempt on Yuan Shao, a thrilling and dangerous event.

Liu Bei didn't know how to evaluate Liu Xie either.

To say he acted impulsively or without consideration seems inaccurate. Based on Liu Bei's understanding, Liu Xie was by no means an impulsive person.

Even when Cao Cao provoked him so much at the Xutian hunting grounds, Liu Xie remained very calm.

After Guan Yu made his move, Liu Bei was also put in a desperate situation, but Liu Xie did not intervene.

Liu Bei believed that Liu Xie knew when to do what, and that he was not someone who acted rashly and impulsively.

Even if Liu Xie's assassination attempt on Yuan Shao was a spur-of-the-moment decision, he must have thought it through before taking action.

Liu Bei cleared his mind of distractions and said to Yuan Shao with concern, "My lord, you should take good care of your injuries now. You are blessed with good fortune and will surely recover soon."

Yuan Shao waved his hand, gesturing for Liu Bei to sit down.

Liu Bei breathed a slight sigh of relief, indicating that Yuan Shao did not suspect him; otherwise, he would not have been so polite.

Liu Bei leaned forward and sat down to the side with difficulty. Yuan Shao, having suffered a serious injury, not only looked much older but also appeared much weaker.

"Xuande, there is something I don't understand, and I hope you can help me resolve it."

"Please speak freely, my lord," Liu Bei said cautiously.

"When you handed the imperial seal to me, no one else knew, right?"

Liu Bei's heart skipped a beat. Why would Yuan Shao ask such a question?
This suggests that someone must have leaked the secret, but in reality, Liu Bei kept this matter very secret. How could he possibly let others know?

Then, considering Yuan Shao's decisive killing of Feng Ji, Liu Bei suddenly realized that His Majesty must have said something.

Since His Majesty says Feng Ji is a traitor, then Feng Ji must be one, no matter what!

Liu Bei was very clever. After figuring this out, he sighed softly, "That night, after I left your place, I met Feng Ji. Feng Ji asked me repeatedly. I didn't want to tell him, but he said that he was the lord's confidant and that if I told him, he would keep it a secret for the lord. So... I told him."

Liu Bei expressed great remorse, saying, "Although Lord Ming has treated me well, I am new here and everyone is somewhat resistant to me. I had no choice but to tell Feng Ji, hoping that he could put in a good word for me in front of Lord Ming."

Yuan Shao's eyes widened in anger, "Feng Ji actually betrayed me in secret, telling His Majesty all these secrets."

Liu Bei hurriedly advised, "My lord, I think you may have misunderstood something. Everything His Majesty did was at Cao Cao's instigation. His Majesty had no choice in the matter."

"Could it be that he was also instigated by Cao Cao when he tried to assassinate me during the day?" Yuan Shao was skeptical. Liu Xie had made the first move, and Cao Cao hadn't even reacted for a while. How could it be that Liu Xie was controlled by Cao Cao?

Liu Bei said firmly, "This is precisely Cao Cao's brilliance. His Majesty has long been controlled by him. In many matters, His Majesty has no choice but to curry favor with Cao Cao and attempt to assassinate you. I think this was also done to show Cao Cao what he was doing."

"Is that really the case?" Yuan Shao was somewhat bewildered, half believing and half doubting.

"Could it be that His Majesty has been controlled by Cao Cao to such an extent? Is he willing to do anything for Cao Cao?"

Liu Bei countered, "My lord, consider this: if Cao Cao didn't control His Majesty, and His Majesty could make his own decisions, why would my two brothers and I need to assassinate him? Why would I need to come and seek refuge with you? The troops in Xuchang are all under Cao Cao's control. His Majesty has to consider Cao Cao's wishes to do anything. How could he possibly make decisions on his own?"

"But during the day, he attempted to assassinate me with such decisiveness. No matter how I look at it, I feel that he could not possibly be willing to be manipulated by Cao Cao."

Liu Xie's performance during the day was truly remarkable, and even now, Yuan Shao is still filled with lingering fear. Liu Bei then said, "Of course, His Majesty is indeed very capable. It is true that he is unwilling to be controlled by Cao Cao, but he is only temporarily forced into this situation. I think that as long as you, my lord, take His Majesty over, he will surely turn around and help you deal with Cao Cao."

In Yuan Shao's mind, an image flashed before his eyes: Liu Xie helping him, turning the tables and assassinating Cao Cao, causing Cao Cao to scream in agony and desperately beg for mercy.

After a while, Yuan Shao sighed, "No matter what, as long as I can get rid of Cao Cao, I will have no major threat."

Next, Yuan Shao needed to recuperate from his injuries and was unable to command the battle. Cao Cao took the opportunity to launch a counterattack. The battle lasted for a full month, with as many as 30,000 to 40,000 enemy soldiers killed, but only 4,000 to 5,000 casualties, which was only one-tenth of Yuan Shao's army.

Since the start of the war, Yuan's army has suffered 100,000 casualties, while Cao's army has suffered less than 20,000.

Liu Xie often spent time with his soldiers. Although Cao Cao did not allow him to charge into battle, after everyone witnessed his assassination attempt on Yuan Shao, all the soldiers looked at Liu Xie with new respect and admired him whenever they met.

Besides boosting morale, Liu Xie led the rescue team to treat the wounded. For the past month, Liu Xie had to treat more than a dozen people every day. He was very busy, but no one saw him complain at all.

"His Majesty is here!" Whenever Liu Xie appeared on the battlefield, the soldiers would cheer.

Guo Jia greeted him with a smile, “Your Majesty, these earthen mounds were originally your suggestion to build. They have been a great help to us. With these three lines of defense, we have repelled Yuan’s army’s attacks several times.”

Liu Xie smiled faintly, waved to the soldiers, and then climbed the earthen slope.

Looking out from the top, directly in front of the three earthen mounds lies the main battlefield, where Cao Ren and Xiahou Yuan are leading their troops in a fierce battle against the enemy.

Warhorses neighed, and battle cries shook the heavens as the two sides fought fiercely. However, Liu Xie noticed that the scale of the battles in the past few days had been significantly smaller.

Even if Yuan's army wanted to launch a large-scale attack, these three earthen slopes would be insurmountable obstacles for them. Cao Cao had given a strict order that these three lines of defense were the bottom line for Cao's army and that Yuan's army must not be allowed to cross them.

Guo Jia stayed with Liu Xie for a while, then asked, "Your Majesty, what do you think will happen next in the battle?"

Liu Xie said, "Yuan's army has suffered continuous casualties and its strength has been greatly reduced. Although it still has the advantage, its morale is low and its soldiers are demoralized. Next, it should fall into a stalemate. They will maintain a defensive posture and no longer take the initiative to attack."

Guo Jia nodded in agreement, "Even so, we still cannot let our guard down. Only when an excellent and favorable opportunity arises can we turn the tide."

Despite the fact that Cao Cao's army was united and fought tenaciously and with great fighting spirit, they still couldn't give Guo Jiasong a good beating.

Ultimately, Cao Cao's army was simply too small.

Liu Xie smiled mysteriously, "Fengxiao, you're right. I believe the opportunity is about to appear."

Guo Jia looked at Liu Xie in surprise, "Your Majesty, why are you so confident?"

"Fengxiao, I am skilled in divination, have you forgotten?"

Guo Jia smiled as well, and Liu Xie remained mysterious, so he didn't press the matter further.

…………

On this day, Guo Tu came to see Yuan Shao in a menacing manner, and as soon as they met, he pointed his finger at Xu You.

"My lord, Xu You has embezzled money and grain for his own personal gain. His family has been arrested by Shen Pei. The evidence is irrefutable. Please punish him severely."

Guo Tu's statement was well-founded, and it was even discovered by Shen Pei himself.

Yuan Shao was furious. During the month or so that he was recuperating from his injuries, the war had been going against him one after another. His frustrated and depressed mood made him like a powder keg about to explode. He was looking for someone to vent his anger on.

This time, Xu You unfortunately ran right into the line of fire.

Just as Yuan Shao was about to order Xu You's arrest, Liu Bei arrived. Yuan Shao hurriedly asked Liu Bei, "Xuande, what do you think should be done about this matter?"

Yuan Shao now has a very favorable impression of Liu Bei. First, Liu Bei presented the Imperial Seal of the State. Second, when Liu Xie attempted to assassinate him, he deliberately said that Liu Bei was blind to the situation and went to Yuan Shao. This made Yuan Shao even more convinced that Liu Bei would not betray him.

Another point is that Guan Yu and Zhang Fei are both warriors capable of defeating ten thousand men and are highly skilled. By recruiting Liu Bei, we can gain two more peerless generals. This is a sure win.

Guo Tu disliked Liu Bei very much. He looked up at Liu Bei, his eyes clearly filled with hostility.

Upon hearing Xu You's name, Liu Bei remained outwardly calm, but inwardly he was deeply shaken. "His Majesty is truly a visionary; he had foreseen this all along."

When Guan Yu first met Liu Bei, he had already told Liu Bei that as soon as Xu You was caught red-handed, it would be time for Liu Bei to take action.

Liu Bei pretended to ponder for a moment, then sorted out his thoughts and replied, "My lord, as far as I know, Xu You and Cao Cao are very close friends. They have known each other since childhood and were extremely close back in Luoyang."

"Hmm?" Yuan Shao's face grew increasingly gloomy, and he also recalled many past events in Luoyang.

Cao Cao grew up in Luoyang, as did Yuan Shao. Xu You and Cao Cao were childhood friends. When Liu Bei reminded him of this, Yuan Shao suddenly realized that Xu You had indeed known Cao Cao for a long time.

Yuan Shao asked, "Xuande, do you really think Xu You would betray me and go to Cao Cao?"

Liu Bei nodded. "It's very likely. Shen Pei has already arrested Xu You's wife and children. Even if you don't punish Xu You, this incident alone will surely make him anxious and eager to leave you."

Yuan Shao snorted coldly, "Since that's the case, then I'll arrest Xu You right now. How can I sit idly by and watch him betray me and go to Cao Cao?"

Liu Bei shook his head. "My lord, there's really no need for this. Whether you kill Xu You or force him to surrender to Cao Cao, it won't benefit you. Why not use this opportunity to give Xu You a chance to redeem himself?"

"Xuande, what brilliant plan do you have? Tell me quickly!" Yuan Shao immediately became interested.

Liu Bei had already prepared a response, saying, "Your Majesty's grain supplies are all stored in Wuchao. You can send Xu You to join Cao Cao and lure him to Wuchao to burn the grain. This matter is of great importance. Cao Cao is very likely to personally lead his army to Wuchao. As long as Your Majesty makes proper arrangements and sets up an ambush in advance, Cao Cao can be defeated in no time."

Upon hearing this, Yuan Shao was overjoyed and immediately sat up in bed. After resting for so long, his injuries had almost completely healed.

Yuan Shao became increasingly pleased with himself and immediately praised, "This plan is brilliant! Xuande, it is indeed a brilliant plan!"

Although Guo Tu resented Liu Bei, he was not stupid. After careful consideration, he realized that it would be wonderful if this plan could be implemented perfectly.

"Summon Xu You immediately!"

Once Yuan Shao was in high spirits, he became much more decisive in his actions. Before long, Xu You arrived at the main tent.

(End of this chapter)