The Three Kingdoms: Hindsight is 20/20, and the Three Revivals of the Han Dynasty

Chapter 72: Yuan Shao's Ambitious Spirit of Conquering the World with 100,000 Infantry and Cavalry
Having witnessed the might of Yuan Shao's 100,000 infantry and cavalry, Liu Bei remained speechless for a long time.

All of a sudden.

Liu Bei lost interest in the cavalry battalion that Yuan Shao was about to assign.

Having witnessed the majesty of Mount Tai, one naturally cannot regard the insignificance of other mountains.

After a long time.

Liu Bei slowly spoke, his tone solemn: "General, you have assembled 100,000 infantry and cavalry to contend for the world. Among all the heroes of the world, who can rival you?"

As Liu Bei uttered these words, a sense of bewilderment arose within him. Could he truly mediate between Yuan Shao and Cao Cao, leveraging their power to strengthen himself?

Yuan Shao, who was standing on horseback to the side, had a faint smile on his lips.

Yuan Shao decided to march south last June, but it wasn't until February of this year that he finally reached Liyang.

It wasn't that Yuan Shao was hesitant, but rather that he wanted to concentrate his forces.

In addition to winning over the forces in Zhangzhou and other prefectures that refused to submit to Cao Cao, he also needed to conscript the elite infantry and cavalry of the four prefectures of Qing, Ji, You, and Bing, as well as the Wuhuan, Xiongnu, and Xianbei tribes that had submitted to him.

In the end, 100,000 elite soldiers, 10,000 warhorses, and more than 200,000 laborers were selected!

This was the only time during the more than ten years of war at the end of the Han Dynasty that 100,000 infantry and cavalry were combined into one army for a single expedition!
The deterrent effect of 100,000 infantry and cavalry was also very obvious.

Before the war even started, Yuan Shao had already received a lot of "surrender letters" from south of the Yellow River, and the number of "surrender letters" was increasing day by day.

The Book of Documents says: "Treat me well and I will be your friend; mistreat me and I will be your enemy."

"Now, I have gathered the elite forces of four states and assembled the heroes of various tribes. With 100,000 infantry and cavalry whose banners blot out the sun, all the lands north of the Yellow River are under my command. Is this not a divine mandate for the kingship?"

"Look at Cao Cao: He used the weak ruler of Xuchang to exploit the common people, and used the name of the royal army to overstep his bounds! The number of refugees from Yan and Yu fleeing south is endless, and the number of people surrendering their letters to the north from the Yellow River is increasing daily."

"The scoundrel of the cold-blooded eunuch, I will capture him sooner or later!"

Yuan Shao laughed again.

In one speech, he established the standard of the kingly way based on the Book of Documents, used 100,000 infantry and cavalry to prove that "the kingly way is ordained by Heaven", packaged the superior military strength, the submission of foreign tribes, and the surrender of powerful clans as the result of "benevolence and pacification of the people", and contrasted it with Cao Cao's "tyranny and loss of the way", thus arguing that only his own side was the kingly army ordained by Heaven.

Compared to the banquet a few days ago, Yuan Shao, with the support of 100,000 infantry and cavalry from Liyang, exuded an even more imposing aura of a powerful figure, a man whose family had held high office for four generations and whose disciples and former officials were spread throughout the land.

As they were talking...

A cavalry unit emerged from the Liyang camp and headed straight for the earthen mound where Yuan Shao and Liu Bei were located.

It was Wen Chou, Yuan Shao's cavalry general and supreme general.

To Wen Chou's left and right were Xin Ping and his son Xin Zhe, who had returned to the Liyang camp ahead of time.

"This humble general, Wen Chou, pays his respects to the Great General!"

Wen Chou was a burly man with a face full of scars and a broad back and thick waist. He had a murderous aura between his brows and his every move exuded power.

Yuan Shao smiled, a hint of pride in his son having made his colleagues proud.

"How does my General Wen Chou compare to Xuande's Guan Yu and Zhang Fei?" Yuan Shao stroked his magnificent beard and then asked about Guan Yu and Zhang Fei.

Liu Bei feigned shock: "General Wen's imposing presence is unmatched by Guan Yu and Zhang Fei. But if Guan Yu and Zhang Fei were to attack together, General Wen would certainly be no match for them."

The implication is that Guan Yu and Zhang Fei are no match for Wen Chou in a one-on-one fight, but if it's two against one, Wen Chou won't be able to hold his own.

He used clever words to praise Wen Chou in front of Yuan Shao.

Yuan Shao laughed: "Xuande is too modest. Although Wen Chou is brave, he is at most evenly matched with Guan Yu and Zhang Fei. If there is an opportunity in the future, Guan Yu and Zhang Fei can have a match with Wen Chou. Regardless of the outcome, I will reward them handsomely."

Liu Bei responded in agreement: "Thank you for your kind words, General."

Wen Chou frowned secretly, clearly dissatisfied with Yuan Shao's assessment of Guan Yu and Zhang Fei. However, with Yuan Shao present, Wen Chou suppressed his dissatisfaction.

Wen Chou knew how to conduct himself properly; it was Wen Chou's duty as a trusted general to save face for Yuan Shao.

If Liu Bei were to protest loudly because of a single word from Yuan Shao, he would not only fail to earn Yuan Shao's praise, but would also mislead Liu Bei into thinking that Yuan Shao was "lax in his governance."

[We'll discuss this further with Liu Bei after we leave the main camp.]

Wen Chou, harboring resentment, followed Yuan Shao respectfully.

Yuan Shao then introduced Liu Bei, saying, "Xuande, I promised to assign you a battalion of cavalry. This is Xin Zhe from Yingchuan, temporarily serving as the cavalry commander. He will be at your command from now on."

The Xin family of Yingchuan?

Liu Bei's gaze swept between Xin Zhe and Xin Ping, and seeing their striking resemblance, he immediately understood Yuan Shao's true intentions.

Yuan Shao doesn't trust me; I underestimated him.

Liu Bei's initial excitement vanished after witnessing the might of Yuan Shao's 100,000 infantry and cavalry and learning that Xin Zhe had been appointed as the cavalry commander.

Instead, it is replaced by: being cautious and meticulous.

When fighting Yuan Shao, we must be as cautious as we were when fighting Cao Cao in Xuchang.

At the camp gate.

The military supervisor, Ju Shou, stood on his horse.

Upon seeing Yuan Shao's return, Ju Shou, disregarding Liu Bei's presence, bluntly rebuked him: "The fate of 100,000 troops rests on the shoulders of the General. The General should be more cautious."

"Now, not only does the General disregard his own safety, but he also leaves the camp without consulting anyone to meet with a stranger of unknown origin. Does the General still remember the past when eunuchs murdered ministers?"

Ju Shou's rebuke suddenly rang out, and Yuan Shao's smile vanished abruptly.

You're just looking for trouble!
Yuan Shao's judgment was correct; Ju Shou really was here to cause trouble.

Yan Liang earnestly advised Yuan Shao not to appoint Yan Liang to lead an army alone, but Yuan Shao did not listen, which led to Yan Liang suffering heavy losses at Baima, with his army almost being wiped out.

Before Ju Shou could even speak, Yuan Shao left the camp and ran two hundred li to welcome Liu Bei, which infuriated Ju Shou!
Ju Shou felt that he was just like Fan Zeng by Xiang Yu's side, diligently repaying Yuan Shao's kindness in recognizing his talent, but Yuan Shao disliked him for being fussy and indecisive.

Ju Shou was also proud, unwilling to flatter or fawn.

Upon learning that Yuan Shao had not only personally welcomed Liu Bei from two hundred li away but also assigned a battalion of cavalry to him, Ju Shou's temper flared up again. He directly made sarcastic remarks about Liu Bei at the camp gate, comparing him to eunuchs like Zhang Rang who had executed General He Jin.

"Supervisor Ju, Xuande is my honored guest, not someone of dubious origin!" Yuan Shao barely suppressed his anger. If Liu Bei hadn't been by his side, Yuan Shao would have already lost his temper.

Ju Shou sneered: "Dong Cheng and the others are all dead, only Liu Bei is still alive. Those who serve their sovereign do not die for their lord, but instead flee to all corners of the world to deceive the world and steal fame. They are either greedy for life and afraid of death, or they have ulterior motives."

Ju Shou's hostility towards me is truly immense.

Liu Bei gripped his riding whip tightly, but did not utter a word to prove his innocence.

If you try to prove your innocence when you are falsely accused, you will fall into their trap.

The more you explain, the more troublesome it becomes, and the more you try to cover it up, the worse it gets. If you're not careful, the other party will seize on any grammatical errors.

The best approach is to follow the sixteen-character mantra: exacerbate the conflict, muddy the waters, fight poison with poison, and play dumb.

He secretly gave Xu Shu a hand gesture.

Xu Shu laughed knowingly: "In order to get rid of the Left General, Cao Cao really went to any lengths. Even the people around the General were willing to become his blades. The world is indeed unpredictable."

　Asking for monthly ticket
　　
　
(End of this chapter)