Brother, stop curling up! You're curling up like the founder of the Han Dynasty!

Initially, Liu Bei did not intend to eliminate Yuan Shu.

Unexpectedly, Yuan Shu was able to allow the various prefectures and counties of Nan Zhong to claim territory as their own.

This gave Liu Bei the opportunity to formally eliminate the Nan Zhong.

Liu Bei could rightfully accept the wealth, land, and mansions accumulated by the powerful Nan Zhong family.

Choosing to conquer the world naturally eliminates the opportunity to govern the world together.

Liu Bei entrusted Guan Yu and Sun Jian with the subsequent plans to eliminate Jingzhou and Yangzhou, and mobilized troops from Yong, Yan, Qing and Luoyang to launch a full-scale attack on Bingzhou and Jizhou.

At the same time, a large number of manifestos were printed and distributed, exposing the crimes of powerful families in Hebei who seized land and houses and forcibly abducted men and women. They called on the common people and slaves of Hebei to rise up and fight back, and allowed powerful families who were willing to respond to the new policies to surrender voluntarily.

Instead of issuing a proclamation to attack Yuan Shao, Liu Bei directly targeted the powerful clans in Hebei who were not responding to the new policies.

Yuan Shao is currently holding his troops in Nanpi, and it would be time-consuming and laborious to lure him out of the city.

Rather than doing that, it would be better to directly sever Yuan Shao's base in Hebei.

If Yuan Shao sends troops to rescue them, then attack his troops who are leaving the city.

If Yuan Shao refuses to send troops, he will lose the hearts of the people in Hebei.

The art of warfare always prioritizes winning hearts and minds.

In the seventh year of Zhangwu (198 AD), in June.

Liu Bei arrived in Ye City.

Zhang Liao, the Prefect of Wei Commandery, Zhou Yu, the Attendant of the Imperial Censorate, and Ma Chao, the Attendant of the Military Affairs Bureau, led the civil and military officials of Ye City to come out and welcome them.

After exchanging pleasantries and greetings, Liu Bei inquired about the war in Hebei and related matters.

Zhou Yu said respectfully, "As Your Majesty predicted, upon hearing Your Majesty's proclamation, the powerful families and clans of Hebei have all fortified their defenses and returned to their respective counties, and some of their private troops in Nanpi have also returned. Yuan Shao was unable to stop them."

Everyone has selfish motives.

Although the powerful clans of Hebei recognized Yuan Shao as their "Second Emperor," this was on the premise that Yuan Shao, as the Second Emperor, could protect the fundamental interests of these clans.

Once they realize that Yuan Shao cannot hold out, some of these powerful clans will inevitably choose to gather troops and defend themselves.

As for the fact that Liu Bei would defeat them one by one, although some wise people could see the root of the problem, not everyone is wise, nor is everyone willing to sacrifice their own interests for the greater good.

They only wanted to rule the world together, not to live or die with the Zhong Kingdom.

Even though Yuan Shao repeatedly emphasized this point and even resorted to force, he could not stop the departure of this group of private soldiers.

Liu Bei forced Yuan Shao to divide his troops simply by using a proclamation.

Zhang Liao then added, “The Zhen family of Zhongshan State has frequently opened their granaries to provide relief to their neighbors in recent years, earning them a good reputation. After the proclamation was issued, the Zhen family also sent their retainers to Ye City to express their support. However, since the Zhen family uses most of their money and grain to provide relief to their neighbors, they are different from other powerful families who hold their own armies and defend themselves.”

Liu Bei was very satisfied with Zhen's awareness and praised her, saying, "She did not hold troops to defend herself, but was able to survive in Zhongshan. Zhen has won the hearts of the people. She should be rewarded handsomely and made an example of her so that the powerful families of Hebei can understand that those who follow the new policies will prosper."

Zhang Liao continued, "I once asked the Zhen family's retainers why they were giving away their wealth. They said that the Zhen family had a daughter named Zhen Mi, who was fifteen years old. She did not learn needlework but only loved reading, wanting to learn from the successes and failures of the past to warn herself. Seeing that there had been years of famine and that people were selling their valuables to survive, the Zhen family took the opportunity to buy a lot of gold and silver treasures because they had a lot of grain stored up."

"Most of the Zhen family believed that the Zhen family was about to rise to power. Only Zhen Mi told her mother that seeking treasure in chaotic times was not a good strategy. A common man is innocent, but possessing a treasure is a crime. Now that the people are suffering from famine, it is unwise to take advantage of the situation to make money. The Zhen family all agreed that Zhen Mi's words made sense, so they did this."

Upon hearing Zhang Liao's words, Liu Bei understood Zhen's intention.

They sent people to respond and specifically told Zhang Liao that Zhen was knowledgeable, reasonable, benevolent, and loved the people. They also said that Zhen's relief efforts for her neighbors were all done by Zhen Mi, and that this was to make Zhen Mi famous.

With fame comes future wealth.

Without hesitation, Liu Bei said, "Report to Lady Zhen that if she is interested, she can be sent to the palace as a concubine."

Liu Bei now has Empress Cai Yan, Consort Gan Mei, Consorts Diao Chan and Dong Bai, and beauties Dong Xiu and Zhang Ning. He wouldn't mind adding Zhen Mi as a beauty.

The purpose was to establish the Zhen family as a model, which conveniently granted them wealth and status.

As for how Zhen passed the message through Zhang Liao, Liu Bei did not investigate further.

If the water is too clear, there will be no fish. As long as the message Zhang Liao conveys is beneficial to the country and does not violate the law, Liu Bei will not investigate it further, nor will he make a big deal out of it and make Zhang Liao feel like he is walking on thin ice in the future.

Although Liu Bei promoted the theory of public opinion, which restrained the emperor's power and moved from rule by man to rule of law, the theory of public opinion was still in its infancy. It needed to develop and mature, and there might even be a trough in the process. Only after being reborn from the ashes could it truly take root in people's hearts.

Just as the aristocratic oligarchs taking turns to be emperor is a trampling on the theory of public opinion.

Everything has its own inherent stages of development; nothing is accomplished overnight.

If a new starting point is not established in time after the climax, it is easy to collapse and end up becoming a mess. When the emperor finds that he cannot control the development of the situation, he will fall into a state of inaction, and his original diligence will turn into procrastination in his daily governance. Whenever he finds an opportunity, he will want to ask for leave to be lazy.

Even Liu Bei could not guarantee that the accumulated problems of the three reigns could be solved after three emperors.

To date, no regime has proven that it can remain as powerful as it was two or three hundred years later.

The most important reason for this is that the problems have become deeply entrenched and difficult to reverse.

Even if the emperor is diligent, without matching abilities, it is difficult to solve the accumulated problems.

Just like Emperor Chongzhen.

In terms of diligence, he can be compared to Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Di.

In terms of ability, he is less than one-tenth of the two.

In addition, there were too many accumulated problems at the end of the Ming Dynasty. Even if Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Di had personally gone there, they might not have been able to succeed, let alone Chong, who was less than one-tenth as successful.

With Liu Bei's decree issued, Zhen's retainers happily returned home.

Of the Zhen family members today, only Zhen Yao, a male adult, is still alive.

Choosing to respond to Liu Bei was actually to protect his family.

after all.

Those that can stand the test of time all have one thing in common: a large number of males!
For example, the Xun family of Yingchuan had eight dragons.

For example, Sima Yi later became known as Sima Bada.

Looking at the Yuan family of Runan, they have an even larger number of brothers, sons, nephews, and illegitimate children.

The fact that Liu Hong was able to be sidelined was due not only to the realities of the power struggles between his relatives and eunuchs, but also to the fact that he had no brothers and his sons were too young.

Although Liu Bei had no biological brothers or nephews, he had four sworn brothers when he first started his career, and now he has gathered a bunch of disciples.

After Guan Yu defeated Yuan Shao, Lu Kang sent his grandson Lu Yi to Luoyang. Liu Bei, mindful of Lu Yi's loss of his father at a young age and Lu Kang's unwavering loyalty to the Han Dynasty, took the fifteen-year-old Lu Yi as his eighth disciple.

This is also to solidify power.

To prevent future succession from being stolen by conspirators after the throne is handed over to a new emperor, who would then ruthlessly trample on the epoch-making plans that Liu Bei painstakingly built, such as the close relationship between the army and the people, the new policies to protect the common people, and the Pingluo Tongyi.

As for whether any of Liu Bei's eight disciples would try to sabotage his plans, Liu Bei was not worried.

The reason why a genius can be called a genius is that a genius has wisdom that far surpasses that of ordinary people.

Whether the third generation of his disciples can inherit Liu Bei's ideas and ambitions is another matter.

After receiving Liu Bei's affirmative reply, Zhen Yao did not hesitate at all. He immediately distributed all his wealth to help the people in the surrounding area, and then took his elderly mother, wife, children, nephews, nieces, and younger sister Zhen Mi with him to Ye City.

Along the way, following Liu Bei's instructions, they spread the word extensively. Within a single day, voices of envy and jealousy were everywhere.

Both were powerful and influential families in Hebei. The Zhen family was able to become imperial relatives, while other powerful and influential families, even if they attached themselves to Liu Bei, could only end up losing 99% of their wealth.

He failed to preserve his family business and gain status.

However, circumstances are beyond our control.

Whether it was jealousy or envy, it couldn't change the fact that Liu Bei was launching a powerful attack on Hebei.

The shrewd and powerful families decisively chose to emulate the Zhen family, voluntarily distributing their money, grain, land, and houses to commoners and slaves in response to Liu Bei's new policies. They also sent their retainers to Ye City to express their submission.

Without exception, all of these people brought along women from their families who were not yet family members, such as daughters, sisters, or clan women.

These women all share a common trait: they are well-educated, beautiful, and virtuous.

Obviously.

Liu Bei's standards for taking wives and concubines have long been thoroughly studied.

For example, Guo from Anping was frugal and simple by nature, disliked music, and often admired the character of Empress Ma of Mingde.

Examples include the Qin family of Handan, the Xue family of Zhao, and the Fan family of Changshan.

Although Liu Bei did not directly select these beauties as he did Zhen Mi, he enrolled them in the Luoyang Women's Academy, where they taught as female instructors and resided in the Lang Palace.

Although he didn't get into the palace as he wished, it was still a meteoric rise.

The palace was filled with Liu Bei's trusted confidants.

Even if she is not chosen by Liu Bei to enter the palace in the future, she can still obtain a noble status in the palace and find a suitable person to marry.

The number of powerful families in Zhongshan, Changshan, and Zhao surrendering to the government is increasing, while those who refuse to surrender are being attacked by Liu Bei. Yuan Shao of Nanpi is feeling the pressure.

Before they could even officially clash with Liu Bei, half of Ji Province had already fallen, and the high-ranking officials of Bing Province had their communication with Nanpi cut off.

The threat of annihilation haunted Yuan Shao's mind every day.

What shocked Yuan Shao even more was that the news that "Guan Yu has captured Echeng and Yuan Shu has committed suicide" reached Nanpi!

too fast!
Yuan Shao originally intended to remain inactive and observe the situation, but before he could find an opportunity to attack, Yuan Shu died!
Two against one?

The advantage lies with me?

Then Liu Bei quickly defeated him by fighting two against one?

"I have fallen for Xu You's scheme!"

Yuan Shao suddenly realized that Liu Bei's so-called three-year agreement was completely unfounded, as Xu You had said, that "a weak opponent is not enough for His Majesty of Han to be remembered in history."

Liu Bei's reason for not engaging in battle was simple: the time was not yet ripe.

In three years, Liu Bei completed the unification and consolidation of his internal ideology, politics, military, economy, and culture.

Now that three years have passed, Liu Bei has the power to wipe out all the powerful clans and noble families in the land!

As for Yuan Shao and Yuan Shu, they were not Liu Bei's chosen opponents from the beginning, but rather two tools, two tools used to gather powerful clans together and deal with them all at once.

Essentially.

The powerful clans gathered under Yuan Shao and Yuan Shu were no different from the powerful clans that rebelled after Liu Bei went on his campaign!

Liu Bei needed a reason to kill them!
Yuan Shao finally understood why Liu Bei allowed powerful clans to go to the North and South. If these clans did not go to the North and South, how could Liu Bei have a reason to carry out killings and plunder their money, grain, and land while maintaining the premise of benevolence and righteousness?

now.

Liu Bei's goal was achieved.

Not only was unification and consolidation achieved within the territory, but powerful families who were unwilling to submit to the new policies also went to the North and South, becoming the achievement that the young soldiers had been eagerly anticipating!

"Now that Liu Bei is powerful, how should I deal with him?" Yuan Shao looked at Guo Tu, Feng Ji, and other civil and military officials, his tone helpless.

For the first time, Yuan Shao felt that the tide of events was irreversible!
Although Yuan Shao lost the battle of Chaoge, he regained his confidence by fighting against the Xianbei and Wuhuan and trained an even more elite and powerful army!
Yuan Shao believed that as long as Guo Tu and Feng Ji devised effective strategies, his troops would be able to stand up to Liu Bei's Lingyan Army.

Unexpectedly, Liu Bei chose to subdue the enemy without fighting!
They just keep playing the game of overwhelming dominance!

Yuan Shao wanted to ask Liu Bei: Where is your courage when you charged into battle with eight hundred cavalry? Why don't you come to Nanpi and fight me!

Liu Bei's overwhelming power made Yuan Shao suddenly feel like an ant king. Although he had a large number of soldier ants, Liu Bei didn't take it seriously at all and simply poured a bucket of water on him.

What does it mean to be overwhelmingly dominant?

This is the overwhelming force of the trend.

This left Yuan Shao with absolutely no chance of winning.

Guo Tu, who is usually full of clever ideas, chose to keep his head down and remain silent.

Guo Tu actually had a solution.

However, there's no need to offer advice anymore.

Liu Bei has launched a full-scale attack, and soon Guo Tu will be able to return to Luoyang to become a minister. Why would he offer advice? Isn't that just making things difficult for himself?

Feng Ji hesitated to speak.

Even a clever cook can't cook without rice. Even if Feng Ji was usually intelligent and good at instigating, he couldn't think of a way to defeat Liu Bei at this moment.

Let's use force.

Liu Bei didn't even bother fighting in Nanpi!
If they don't play in Nanpi, Feng Ji isn't confident of winning.

Seeing that the two most intelligent men were speechless, Yuan Shao became even more depressed.

a long time.

Guo Tu suddenly spoke up: "Your Majesty, why not go to Liaodong? Liaodong is remote and has never been valued by the Central Plains. If you go to Liaodong, Your Majesty can also declare yourself emperor and establish a country!"

In the past, Yuan Shao would have said, "I want to be the ruler of the Central Plains, how can I live a miserable life in Liaodong?"

However, Yuan Shao was now disheartened and, thinking of the bleak future and the lack of any chance to defeat Liu Bei, he hesitated.

Feng Ji remained silent.

However, judging from Feng Ji's expression, he clearly agrees with Guo Tu.

Guo Tu then said, "Your Majesty, I am willing to remain in Nanpi with Prince Tan to bolster Your Majesty's prestige. Your Majesty is not seeking refuge in a corner, but rather making a strategic retreat to await an opportunity. Please rest assured, Your Majesty, I can hold Nanpi for at least a year and will never allow Liu Bei to catch up with Your Majesty!"

Yuan Shao was deeply moved and said reluctantly, "If you, Gongze, defend Nanpi to the death, you may not be able to save your life after the city falls! It would be better to let someone else defend it."

Guo Tu shook his head: "If we change the person in charge, I fear that as soon as Your Majesty leaves, Nanpi will be handed over to Liu Bei. Only I and Yuan Tu are capable of defending Nanpi."

Feng Ji was startled.

Why are you involved with me again?
That damned Guo Tu! This must be a ploy to advance while retreating, deliberately showing his loyalty and grievances to His Majesty so that I would be sent to guard Nanpi!
The traitor has revealed himself!

"Your Majesty! I also believe that what you say makes sense!" Feng Ji hurriedly said, "I am at odds with Prince Tan. If he remains to guard Nanpi, I fear it will jeopardize Your Majesty's important plans." (End of this chapter)