Can I get to the other side?.

Chapter 243: Attack Yuan Shao and unify Hebei!
In the study, many counselors cast their eyes towards Liu Biao, and it was obvious that they were all moved by Cai Mao's words.

If Liu Biao became emperor, they would all be his loyal followers. No one could resist such a temptation. Who would refuse to accept that their future was not bright enough?
"My lord, I think what the military advisor said is absolutely right!"

Pang Ji was the first to agree, with a faint glow of excitement on his face, and said: "Although the legitimacy of the emperor of Xu County is no longer enough to convince the world, he still has the title of emperor."

"If you support him, then use the emperor's name to expand abroad, and when his power grows stronger, you can abdicate and become emperor to achieve hegemony!"

Cai Mao and Pang Ji did not want Liu Biao to become emperor immediately.

What they meant was that Liu Biao was qualified.

They are relatives of the Han royal family. As long as their power is strong enough and the emperor abdicates, many people will be willing to support them.

Even Kuai Liang said, "My lord, didn't the emperor say that he was held hostage by Cao Cao? Cao Cao is attacking Yangzhou right now. You can use this as an excuse to attack Yuzhou and Yanzhou!"

"If we can occupy these two pieces of Central Plains, you will own three states, and then go north to annex Jizhou. By then, even Yuan Shao will not be able to compete with you!"

The three counselors repeatedly advised Liu Biao, all hoping that he would support Emperor Xian of Han, then expand outward in the name of the emperor, and ascend the throne to become emperor in the future.

And they became heroes who followed the emperor!

Facing the eager gazes of his trusted followers, Liu Biao shook his head repeatedly and said solemnly: "The Han Dynasty is in decline. As a member of the Liu clan and a minister of the Han Dynasty, how can I harbor a rebellious heart?"

"Besides, I am the governor of Jingzhou. I just need to manage Jingzhou well. I don't want to dominate the world, nor do I want to invade other states."

Liu Biao did not adopt the advice of Cai Mao and others.

He had no idea of ​​conquering the world or ascending the throne to become emperor. In his opinion, it was enough to manage Jingzhou well and be a good subject of the Han Dynasty.

Upon hearing this, Cai Mao said anxiously: "My lord, a great opportunity is right in front of us, how can we ignore it? You must know that if you don't take what God gives you, you will suffer the consequences!"

"The emperor of Xu County coming to Xiangyang is a hint from heaven to my lord!"

They were really driven crazy by Liu Biao.

Pang Ji and Kuai Liang also tried to persuade Liu Biao to support the emperor and fight for supremacy over the world, but Liu Biao still stubbornly refused and turned and left the study.

……

Jizhou, Yecheng.

Cui Lin, who had gone to deliver the imperial edict to Yuan Shao, had already returned to Yecheng and reported to Liu Xie, "Your Majesty, Yuan Shao is a traitor who has refused to accept the imperial edict on the grounds that it was a false edict from Lord Wen and the General of Chariots and Cavalry."

Sitting on the dragon throne, Liu Xie was not surprised to hear this result. He had never thought that Yuan Shao would surrender with just an imperial edict.

If Yuan Shao could agree, he would not be Yuan Shao anymore.

Although Liu Xie was calm in his heart, he showed anger on his face and snorted coldly: "Since Yuan Shao refuses to repent, we can only fight!"

"Pass on my decree, remove Yuan Shao from his position as general and commander-in-chief! Anyone who follows Yuan Shao will be treated as a traitor!"

This decree represented a complete break with Yuan Shao.

Yuan Shao was labeled a traitor at the court level!
Then, Liu Xie cast his eyes towards the ministers in the hall and said, "Yuan Shao is disloyal. I want to send troops to attack him, but before that, I need to recover Jizhou."

"At present, the counties of Jizhou are still under the control of Yuan Shao. My dear ministers, do you have any good plans?"

During this period of time, Liu Xie has reorganized his troops, and now Yuan Shao has been labeled a traitor. Everything is ready. It is time to send troops to attack the counties of Jizhou and take over the entire Jizhou!

But fighting is one thing, and how to fight is another.

Liu Xie threw this question to his ministers for discussion.

This is not a strategic policy, but a specific way of fighting. For such matters, we still need to pool our wisdom. After all, what we want to capture is Jizhou, not a certain place.

Upon hearing this, all the ministers in the hall became excited.

Sima Yi's eyes were shining.

Because he smelled the scent of credit!
After Liu Xie finished speaking, Sima Yi said before anyone else could speak: "Your Majesty! Yangping and Guangping counties have been occupied. The remaining important places are only Julu, Pingyuan, Anping and Qinghe!"

"If we take these four counties, we can go straight to Hejian County!"

"Hejian County is Yuan Shao's most important place at present. As long as we divide our troops into four groups, conquer these four counties and then reunite with Hejian County, Jizhou will be under our control!"

Sima Yi was afraid that someone else would take credit for his advice before him, so he spoke out the general direction of the attack at an incredibly fast pace.

Upon hearing this, Guo Jia, Jia Xu, Cui Yan, Xun Chen, Yang Xiu and others all cast strange looks at Sima Yi, but the latter just looked at his nose and his heart, pretending not to see everyone's gaze.

Although all the ministers were unhappy with Sima Yi's behavior of stealing the credit, they had to admit that what he said was right.

The most important things right now are these five counties.

Cui Yan then said: "Your Majesty, my family is quite prestigious in Qinghe County. I have two plans to take over Qinghe County!"

"First, send my brothers back to Qinghe County. Led by my Cui family, we will unite with the major families to behead the county governor!"

"Secondly, if beheading the county governor is not possible, then when the royal army is approaching the city, we will launch a mutiny to open the city gates, welcome the royal army into the city, and take over Qinghe County!"

Cui Yan said this with full confidence.

Qinghe County is where his hometown is. It would be a piece of cake for him to take over Qinghe County!
"good!"

Liu Xie approved Cui Yan's plan and said to Zhang He: "Weiwei, you lead 2,000 Yulin Guards and 3,000 Huben Army, and together with the Huben Zhonglang Jiang, we will seize Qinghe County!"

"I accept the decree!"

Zhang He and Cui Yan jointly received the order.

After the two men left, Jia Xu continued, "Your Majesty, the governor of Julu County is suspicious by nature. You only need to send one person to persuade him to surrender, reveal that most of his subordinates have defected, and forge a letter of surrender from his subordinates so that he can be intercepted. He will certainly be panicked."

"Leave Julu County to me, I will take it within ten days!"

Jia Xu never fought a battle without confidence. Since he dared to say such words, it showed that he had a full understanding of the Julu County Governor and was full of confidence in taking Julu.

Liu Xie looked around at many generals, and finally landed on Yuan Xi who was eager to try, and said: "General of Chariots and Cavalry, you lead a group of troops, with the Minister of the Central Secretariat as the military supervisor, to seize Julu County!"

Yuan Xi was stunned and looked at Jia Xu.

Jia Xu also happened to look at him and said with a smile: "General Chariot and Cavalry, I didn't expect that you and I could work together."

Yuan Xi secretly groaned in his heart. Although he didn't want to work with this vicious scholar who had tricked him many times, but the emperor's order came before him, so he could only force a smile and said, "Please give me more advice, please give me more advice."

Since Jia Xu had already spoken out, Guo Jia naturally did not want to be left behind and also spoke up: "Pingyuan County is strategically located, but the food and grass reserves are very small. As long as the north-south traffic is cut off, it will not hold out for long."

"Please let me conquer Pingyuan County."

Guo Jia was calm and composed, looking as if he had everything planned out.

Liu Xie certainly did not doubt Guo Jia's intelligence, and nodded, "In that case, General Anxi will lead a group of troops, with the Chief Censor as the military advisor, to capture Pingyuan County!"

"I accept the decree!"

Guo Jia and Zhang Liao bowed and accepted the order.

Then there is only Anping County left.

The other advisers who hadn't spoken were about to offer their suggestions, but Lu Bu took the initiative and said, "Your Majesty, I will take charge of Anping County!"

Seeing that Lü Bu had offered to take the position, Liu Xie agreed without hesitation: "Then leave it to Lord Wen. I will wait for your good news."

Lu Bu had Chen Gong by his side to give him advice.

No need for counselors.

He probably wouldn't listen to what others said.

After allocating the troops to the four routes, Liu Xie was very excited - he had never fought such a prosperous battle!

This feeling is so fucking good!

He has worked diligently over the past three years.

Even after they captured Ye City, they were still terrified due to insufficient troops and small territory, fearing that Yuan Shao would counterattack Ye City one day.

It is different now. With the conquest of Qingzhou, the arrival of Lu Bu's army, and the growing strength of his advisers and generals, the offensive and defensive situation has changed! As the saying goes, if the enemy can go, I can go too.

Now the one taking the initiative to attack is no longer Yuan Shao, but him!

Lu Bu was equally excited.

Now Yuan Shao's post as general has finally been dismissed, and the position of general is currently vacant. As long as he destroys Yuan Shao, he will surely be promoted to general based on this achievement!
This position is at the end of the generals!
Thinking of this, Lu Bu felt a burning desire to fight all over his body. He wished he could immediately lead an army to attack Hejian County directly and then head towards Yicheng.

Yuan Shao’s head is the stepping stone for him to become the general!
As for Yuan Xi, he was also extremely excited.

"I am already a General of Chariots and Cavalry. If I can kill Yuan Shao, His Majesty will definitely value me even more. The position of the Three Dukes will definitely belong to me!"

"The rise and fall of the Yuan family depends on me... Father, for the sake of the Yuan family, you can rest assured! I am the one who will revive the Yuan family!"

"I will prove to you that I am better than both Yuan Tan and Yuan Shang!"

There was murderous intent in Yuan Xi's eyes.

Ambition has also expanded to an unprecedented level.

Liu Xie suppressed his excitement, took a deep breath, and said in a deep voice: "After taking over the four counties, the four armies will gather together in Hejian County!"

"In addition, Fengxiao, you draft an edict for me and pass it on to Ma Chao and Han Sui. Ask them to attack Bingzhou with all their strength. They must hold back Guo Yuan and Bingzhou's troops and not let him return to Jizhou for assistance!"

"If we let Guo Yuan come back, I will hold them accountable!"

Yuan Shao still has 30,000 troops in Bingzhou, which Liu Xie has always been wary of. Since he plans to take over Jizhou, he must definitely kill Guo Yuan's troops in Bingzhou.

If he were to lead his troops back to provide support, the situation in Jizhou, which had just stabilized, would fall into chaos again. An army of 30,000 would be a huge threat.

Guo Jia bowed and accepted the order.

After making this last arrangement, Liu Xie stood up from the dragon throne, waved the sleeves of his dragon robe, and said condescendingly: "This battle will determine the fate of Hebei!"

"Long live the Han Dynasty! Long live the Emperor!"

Many ministers bowed down one after another, and the cheers from the emperor spread out from Tai'an Hall and reached the sky.

Everyone knows that if this battle goes well, not only Hebei will be pacified in one battle, but also Yanzhou, Yuzhou... the entire north will be pacified.

After the north is pacified, Your Majesty will inherit the foundation laid by Emperor Guangwu.

By then, we will go south along the Yangtze River, and the recovery of Jiangbei, Jiangdong and Jingzhou will be just around the corner.

This is going to be a decisive battle!

……

Liu Xie's intention to remove Yuan Shao from all official positions and titles and label him a traitor was quickly conveyed and spread rapidly outward with Yecheng as the center.

It soon caused an uproar among the people.

Yuan Shao has always had an excellent reputation. Even after Yuan Shu proclaimed himself emperor, he fell out with his own son, and was accused of being a traitor who held the emperor hostage, his halo as a "role model for the world" and a "loyal minister of the Han Dynasty" was only weakened but did not fade.

But this imperial edict was different. It was not a personal accusation from Yuan Xi, but was issued in the name of the emperor, labeling Yuan Shao a traitor!

For a time, people from all walks of life were discussing this issue.

"The governor of Jizhou is actually a traitor who disobeyed the emperor? How is this possible? He was a loyal minister who led the fight against Dong!"

"Yes, when Yuan Shu proclaimed himself emperor, he killed his own brothers for the sake of justice. What a loyal act!"

"I don't think he is necessarily a loyal minister. After all, even his own son said he was a traitor. Would his own son slander his father?"

"I think so too. Moreover, even the emperor has issued an order this time, which proves that this matter is not groundless. He has been holding the emperor hostage for such a long time!"

"If you are not a traitor, why would you disobey the emperor's order?"

"You can only know a person's face but not his heart..."

"What a pity! The Yuan family has three dukes in four generations and has received the grace of the Han Dynasty. Yet, two traitors emerged from the same family. The first one was the false emperor Yuan Shu, and the second one was the traitor Yuan Shao. The Yuan family tradition is corrupt!"

"But Yuan Shao does have a good son. Yuan Xi would rather sever ties with his father than lose his loyalty to the Han Dynasty. What a noble character!"

"The reputation of the Yuan family depends on Yuan Xi."

"Lord Wen is the most powerful general in the world. This time, he will surely defeat the traitor Yuan Shao!"

……

The people were talking about this matter.

Due to Yuan Shao's reputation, many people believed that he was not a traitor, but no matter what, the emperor's will was there.

Yuan Shao was not a traitor, so would the emperor wrongly accuse a loyal minister?

Of course, the biggest evidence is Yuan Xi.

No one thought that a son would throw dirty water on his father and become an enemy of his father. Compared to this, they believed that Yuan Shao was plotting a rebellion.

After all, people only believe what they want to believe.

It is very difficult to build a reputation, but it is not so easy to destroy it. People’s words are scary and every word can hurt you.

……

Bingzhou, Jinyang City.

It has been nearly three months since Guo Yuan was ordered by Yuan Shao to garrison here, and his situation in Bingzhou is not optimistic.

Ma Chao and Han Sui, the former enemies, now jointly sent troops to attack Bingzhou. He was unable to fight back head-on and could only passively defend.

But at the same time, Yuan Shao's order to mobilize troops also came from Youzhou.

Guo Yuan looked at the military order in his hand and couldn't help but sigh: "Send troops back to Hejian, retake Jizhou... How can I spare the time now, ah."

Didn't he want to dispatch troops back to provide assistance?
But Ma Chao and Han Sui held him back tightly, so it was difficult for him to withdraw his troops, and even a head-on fight would be a problem because all the soldiers under his command were infantry.

Infantry has a natural disadvantage against cavalry.

Unless they were prepared in advance and set up various traps, chevaux de frise, antlers, etc., or had heavy infantry like the Xiandeng Camp under Ju Yi, they would be able to fight against the cavalry.

Otherwise the infantry would be sitting ducks for the cavalry.

Cavalry has strong mobility and can play around with and consume the strength of the infantry at will. Even if they cannot defeat them, they can run away, and the infantry can only be slaughtered by them.

The most terrible thing is that the north is mostly plains, which means that the north is destined to be dominated by cavalry, and infantry cannot possibly win.

However, on the other hand, as long as he continued to defend the city, those Liangzhou cavalry who were not good at attacking cities would have no way to deal with him, but the other side did not seem to have any intention of attacking the city.

"General, what should we do now?"

The deputy general at the side asked, his face also full of worry, "The lord's military order has been sent. If we continue to wait and see, we will definitely be criticized by the lord."

"And according to intelligence, the emperor has removed all of our lord's positions and titles, calling him a traitor, and has sent Lü Bu, Zhang Liao, and Yuan Xi to attack the counties of Jizhou."

"If this continues, Jizhou will be taken over by them."

Guo Yuan had a complicated expression. After thinking for a long time, he gritted his teeth and said, "Pass on my military order, mobilize 3,000 soldiers and horses, and leave Jinyang City at night."

"We will retreat in batches and try not to attract the enemy's attention!"

A large-scale withdrawal would make too much noise.

He planned to take a different approach and adopt a phased evacuation method to withdraw the defenders in Jinyang City and give up defending the city.

"promise!"

The deputy general responded respectfully and turned to leave.

(End of this chapter)