Han officials

Chapter 182 Liu Bei's New Direction [Two-in-One]

Liaodong's remoteness is a disadvantage, but sometimes it is also an advantage.

When the "Letter to the Elders of Youzhou" and the "Exhortation to Punish the Rebellious Gongsun Bandits" were posted outside the Liaodong County Government, people west of Liaoze still knew nothing about it.

Gongsun Zan was still leading his troops to attack the counties of Jizhou, and his subordinates were still exploiting Youzhou.

Perhaps because he knew he only had one chance, he acted so ruthlessly, just like a bandit.

However, Youzhou was in turmoil, but Yuan Shao in Hanoi was smiling happily.

Since Dong Zhuo retreated to Chang'an, Yuan Shao was too lazy to even act and directly returned his troops to Yanjin from the Mengjin front.

If stationing troops in Mengjin was aimed at Luoyang, then stationing troops in Yanjin would be inexplicable.

After all, Yanjin is located in the rear of Henei County, and is even closer to Ye County than the seat of Henei County.

In this situation, anyone who is interested can actually see what he is thinking.

At least, Yuan Shao's subordinates already knew it.

……

That day, Hanoi camp.

There was a group of scholars in tall hats and wide sleeves gathered together, with Yuan Shao sitting at the top of the group.

Soon, a scout came in to report, "Gongsun Zan's army defeated Han Fu in Anping and has already entered Julu."

Upon hearing this, Feng Ji smiled and congratulated Yuan Shao, "Congratulations, my lord! Jizhou is within reach."

After all, behind Julu County is Wei County. If Gongsun Zan were to reach Wei County, Jizhou would be finished.

However, Yuan Shao was worried at first, then happy. After a moment, he couldn't help but sigh, "Gongsun Bogui is so fierce and fierce. He is really impressive!"

Even though Gongsun Zan's army did not aim to capture cities and territories, it only wanted to defeat Han Fu's army.

But being able to penetrate into Jizhou so quickly and force Han Fu into a defensive position is not something that an ordinary person can do.

Seeing Yuan Shao's emotion, many civil and military officials in the hall couldn't help but nodded.

In fact, in their original plan, they wanted to use Wei Zhe, the governor of Liaodong, as a knife.

After all, in Youzhou, when it comes to military prowess, no one can surpass Wei Zhe.

In this way, Wei Zhe naturally became the best choice to put pressure on Han Fu.

However, after Wei Zhe repeatedly defeated Dong Zhuo and recaptured Luoyang, they no longer dared to do so.

Although Wei Zhe was a good fighter, he was too good, so Yuan Shao was afraid of making things worse.

For this reason, after the Battle of Mangshan, Yuan Shao specially tested Wei Zhe.

After confirming that he had no intention of Jizhou, Yuan Shao and others continued their plan to kill with a borrowed knife.

However, Yuan Shao did not expect that Gongsun Zan, a mere border general of Youzhou, could be so fierce.

This made Yuan Shao happy, but also a little worried.

Seeing Yuan Shao's expression, Xu You, who had known him for many years, quickly guessed what he was thinking.

Xu You then laughed heartily and said, "Brother Benchu, why worry? Gongsun Zan is just a reckless man. No matter how vicious he is, he is just a chess piece. Jizhou is not something a warrior like him can covet!"

After saying this, Xu You smiled sarcastically and said, "He's just a mere Northern Cun, who in Jizhou can obey him?"

After hearing this, Yuan Shao thought about it and his expression immediately eased up.

Indeed, Gongsun Zan now seems to be brave and invincible, but he is actually weak inside.

The people had not yet submitted to him, the officials had not yet obeyed him, and even the powerful families in Youzhou had few who recognized him.

It was easy to defeat Han Fu, but it was extremely difficult for Gongsun Zan to recover the counties of Jizhou.

After all, he had neither fame nor qualifications, and he couldn't even start his career with a legitimate reason.

As for Gongsun Zan's self-proclaimed noble family background, it was nothing compared to Yuan Shao's family background of three generations of officials.

At the end, Feng Ji even laughed at me rather bluntly: "You are just the king's vanguard!"

After mocking Gongsun Zan, Feng Ji turned to Yuan Shao and said with reverence, "When you ascended the throne at a young age, your reputation spread throughout the land. When you faced the demise and enthronement of the emperor, your loyalty and righteousness were unwavering. When you rode away alone, Dong Zhuo was terrified. When you crossed the Yellow River and headed north, Bohai bowed to you. Now, if you can mobilize the soldiers of one county and gather the people of Jizhou, you will surely terrorize Hebei and spread your name throughout the world."

"By then, even if the Yellow Turbans remain treacherous and the Black Mountains are rampant, if we march eastward, we can secure Qingzhou; if we return to defeat the Black Mountains, we can destroy Zhang Yan; if we turn our forces north, Gongsun will surely be defeated; if we intimidate the Rong and Di peoples, the Xiongnu will surely submit. We will march north of the Yellow River, unite the lands of the four provinces, recruit heroes and talents, gather a million-strong army, welcome the emperor to the Western Capital, restore the ancestral temples in Luoyi, and issue orders to the entire world to conquer those who have not yet recovered. Who can withstand such a fierce battle? In a few years, this achievement will be easy."

As soon as Feng Ji said this, Yuan Shao was overjoyed.

I have to say that Feng Ji is worthy of being a scholar, even his flattery is extraordinary.

After all, the highest level of flattery is to make the flattery sound as if it were true.

For example, Yuan Shao nodded repeatedly at the future that Feng Ji had planned for him, and was very satisfied.

So that night Yuan Shao sent his nephew Gao Gan and Xun Chen of Yingchuan as envoys to Yecheng to persuade Han Fu to give up his throne.

……

The next evening, at the Yecheng Prefecture Governor's Mansion.

When Xun Chen saw Han Fu for the first time, he felt relieved.

Because he found that Han Fu had a frown on his face and looked anxious.

Therefore, he immediately changed his plan and asked Han Fu three questions straight away after sitting down:
"You think you are kind and tolerant, and you have the support of the world. Who can compare with the Yuan family?"

"In times of crisis, he speaks decisively, and his wisdom and courage surpass all others. Who can compare with Yuan?"

"Who better to benevolent than the Yuan family, whose kindness has benefited families all over the world?"

As soon as these three questions were asked, Han Fu's already ugly expression became even more embarrassing.

However, Han Fu, who was upright in character, hesitated for a moment and finally said helplessly:
"I might as well."

After these words were spoken, Xun Chen felt 30% more confident.

After all, persuading someone to surrender is nothing more than undermining the other party's confidence and devaluing them.

Once the other party really accepts this hint, then this surrender is 80% likely to be successful.

Xun Chen then revealed his true intentions, saying, "Yuan Benchu is a hero, and he will not be content to be inferior to you. Ji Province is a treasure trove of wealth. If Yuan Benchu and Gongsun Zan join forces, you will be in imminent danger!"

"However, the Yuan family is an old ally of yours. The best plan for you now is to give Jizhou to the Yuan family. If the Yuan family gets Jizhou, Zan will be unable to compete with them, and will surely show you great kindness. With Jizhou becoming a close ally, you will gain the reputation of yielding to the wise, while you can also live in peace. Isn't this the best of both worlds?"

I have to say that from the perspective of a lobbyist, Xun Chen has done a very good job.

During this conversation, Han Fu's thoughts were basically led by Xun Chen throughout. Especially when facing the tremendous pressure from Gongsun Zan, he even gradually felt that what Xun Chen said made a lot of sense.

After hesitating for a moment, he actually nodded slowly.

Seeing this, Xun Chen was overjoyed and rushed back to Hanoi to report the news overnight.

However, Xun Chen missed one point, that is, no matter how easy it was for Han Fu to be persuaded, he was still the governor of Jizhou.

It is his instinct to be afraid of death and it is also his instinct to be greedy for power.

Just as he was rushing towards Hanoi, the "Letter to the Elders of Youzhou" and the "Exhortation to Punish the Rebellious Gongsun Bandits" finally reached Yecheng.

Geng Wu, the chief secretary, Min Chun, the deputy driver, Li Li, the governor, and others, who had been trying to persuade Han Fu not to give up the throne, were immediately excited after receiving the news, and shouted that God had a vision.

Geng Wu, the chief secretary, was even more blunt and forceful in his admonition: "Why do you, sir, think so little of yourself?"

"Although Ji Province is a remote place, it has a million soldiers and enough grain to sustain it for ten years. Yuan Shao is a lone stranger with a poor army, and he depends on me for survival. He is like a baby in my palm. If I cut him off from breastfeeding, he will starve to death. How could I have fallen to the point of giving up my position as governor?"

Upon hearing this, Deputy Governor Min Chun nodded repeatedly in agreement, saying, "With General Zuo's support outside, Gongsun Zan's bandits will not be able to hold out for long. We only need to hold our ground and not move out, and they will surely be defeated."

At the same time, Han Fu breathed a sigh of relief after reading Wei Zhe's manifesto.

After hearing the advice from his subordinates, he immediately changed his mind.

So after hesitating for a moment, he finally nodded slowly and said, "Then let's recall the Heyang garrison first."

You must know that the governor's two assistants, Zhao Fu and Cheng Huan, have tens of thousands of powerful crossbows stationed in Heyang.

Once Han Fu recalled these more than 10,000 soldiers back to Yecheng, not to mention Gongsun Zan, even Dong Zhuo would have no chance of breaking into the city.

So when Yuan Shaoxing led his men to the outside of Yecheng, he was turned away.

In an instant, Yuan Shao's face became gloomy and his eyes were full of murderous intent.

……

At the same time, Gongsun Zan, who was in Anping State in Jizhou, naturally also received the news.

"Ah~ Wei Zhe, I will fight you to the death!"

In the general's tent, Gongsun Zan's eyes were bloodshot and he roared to the sky with his eyes wide open.

However, seeing this situation, none of the surrounding generals dared to persuade him.

There's nothing we can do about it, because the "Exhortation to Punish the Rebellious Gongsun Bandits" is too vicious.

Tsk tsk! Who can bear the label of being unfaithful, unfilial, unkind, and unjust? Even Dong Zhuo couldn't handle it!
This is exactly what makes Gongsun Zan feel extremely aggrieved.

He didn't understand why the teacher didn't help him but instead helped Wei Zhe, an outsider.

You must know that he is Lu Zhi's disciple, he is!
But no matter how angry he was, Gongsun Zan could not change the trend of public opinion at this moment.

After a long while, Gongsun Zan, who had finally suppressed his anger, finally spoke: "How is Youzhou doing?"

Seeing Gongsun Zan's cold eyes, the messenger was a little frightened, but he still forced himself to report: "General, the four counties of Youbeiping have been lost, and the main camp in Zhuo County has also been occupied by Taishi Ci..."

After the messenger finished speaking tremblingly, Gongsun Zan unexpectedly calmed down.

He slowly walked up to the messenger, then suddenly drew his sword and beheaded him. Immediately, a stream of blood splashed onto Gongsun Zan's face like a fountain.

However, his expression did not change at all. Instead, he slowly put his sword back into its sheath.

"You are such a daring spy! How dare you forge military orders and disrupt our army's morale? You truly deserve death!"

As soon as Gongsun Zan said this, the generals in the tent understood what he meant.

Then Yan Gang, Shan Jing and others immediately understood and agreed.

However, after leaving the general's tent, every general couldn't help but look worried.

After all, Youbeiping County and Zhuo County Camp are the foundation of their attack on Jizhou.

Now that they have lost these rear supplies, they have become like a rootless stream.

If we fail to capture Ye City quickly, I'm afraid defeat is imminent.

However, although Yan Gang and Shan Jing were worried, they never gave up hope of taking Jizhou.

However, Liu Bei, who was full of worries, returned to his camp and made another choice after careful consideration.

"Move camp!" In front of Zhang Fei and Guan Yu, Liu Bei said with a firm face: "We will leave tonight!"

Even though marching late at night is a taboo in military strategy, Liu Bei couldn't care less at this moment.

When they heard Liu Bei say this, they were shocked.

Although Liu Bei had some complaints about Gongsun Zan's use of the enemy's territory to attack Guo during this period, that was all.

If they leave now, all their efforts during this period will be in vain.

However, without waiting for Jian Yong and others to ask, Liu Bei took the initiative to tell them what happened in the tent.

Then, looking at the shocked expressions of Jian Yong and the others, Liu Bei wept and said, "It's not me, Liu Bei, who is treacherous, it's Bo Gui who is unkind and unjust!"

Guan Yu was the first to react upon seeing this, and he immediately said with emotion, "Brother, why blame yourself? Gongsun Zan acted unethically, and we were deceived by him. Leaving now is nothing more than abandoning the dark and joining the light!"

Speaking of this, Guan Yu felt that Liu Bei's decision was absolutely right.

After all, he didn't want to be implicated by Gongsun Zan in the future and be labeled as disloyal, unfilial, unkind and unjust.

After thinking for a moment, Zhang Fei and others had to admit that drawing a clear line with Gongsun Zan was indeed the best way at the moment.

Otherwise, even if Gongsun Zan occupied Jizhou, their reputations would probably be ruined like Lu Bu's.

But Zhang Fei asked the most crucial question: "Brother, where are we going after leaving Jizhou?"

Zhang Fei didn't mind returning to his hometown in Youzhou, but his brother probably wouldn't be willing to do so.

In fact, this is indeed the case.

Looking at the stars in the night sky, Liu Bei was silent for a moment and finally said, "Let's go to Qingzhou!"

"I heard that Kong Beihai has recently been attacking the Yellow Turbans in Qingzhou and is recruiting talented people from all over the place. This might be our chance."

After hearing what Liu Bei said, Guan Yu and others had no objection.

Thus, in the vast night, Liu Bei's troops disappeared into the wilderness...

(End of this chapter)