Wei Xiaobao's Three Kingdoms Adventure

Chapter 123 No one can tell what will happen in the future
Wei Xiaobao returned to Xudu and went to see Guo Jia first.

Wei Xiaobao learned from Guo Jia that Zhang Xiu had surrendered again when Cao Cao attacked Wancheng for the second time. Even though Dian Wei had been killed and Cao Ang had been injured, and Cao Cao had even been ambushed by Zhang Xiu's pursuers on his way back to Xudu, Cao Cao still accepted Zhang Xiu's surrender.

Wei Xiaobao certainly hoped that Cao Cao would massacre Wancheng, and then kill Zhang Xiu, Jia Xu and Tang Zhou to avenge Dian Wei. However, when he learned that it was Guo Jia who persuaded Cao Cao to surrender, he couldn't understand it.

Wei Xiaobao asked, "Jia Xu is full of tricks. If he can feign surrender once, aren't you afraid that he and Zhang Xiu will feign surrender a second time?"

Guo Jia said, "Zhang Xiu's first feigned surrender was simply because he believed Liu Biao of Jingzhou would send troops to his aid. He also colluded with Yuan Shao beforehand, which allowed him to resort to this tactic of feigning surrender against the Prime Minister. However, Liu Biao proved cowardly and retreated from the battlefield, while Yuan Shao's indecision led to the missed opportunity for a surprise attack on Yanzhou. When the Prime Minister attacked Wancheng again, how could Zhang Xiu have retained any sense of right and wrong?"

Wei Xiaobao was still filled with resentment and said, "These three people killed Dian Wei and my Jueying. Even if the Prime Minister can tolerate this, I will make them pay with their lives."

Guo Jia said, "Sir, Yuan Shao has now unified the north and is eyeing Yanzhou and Xudu covetously. If we lose our composure due to personal vendettas, Yuan Shao will likely take advantage of our situation."

Wei Xiaobao, remembering Zhuge Liang's instructions, was afraid to cause trouble, so he told Guo Jia, "Liu Bei has already secured Xuzhou's defenses, and Yuan Shu's Shouchun City was attacked by Sun Ce a few days ago. Now is the perfect time to recapture Yuzhou. Once Yuzhou is pacified, even if Yuan Shao plots something bad again, we can focus on dealing with him."

Guo Jia was silent for a long time before he slowly spoke: "Sir, there is something I hope you can answer."

"Why are you being so serious about this?"

Guo Jia continued, "I observed the stars at night and saw a faint imperial star shining over Xuzhou. Could it be that the Han Dynasty will eventually belong to the Liu family?"

Wei Xiaobao asked back, "Are you asking me whether Liu Bei became the emperor in the end?"

Guo Jia nodded.

Wei Xiaobao laughed heartily and said, "Have you forgotten that revealing the secret of heaven will shorten your life?"

Guo Jia sighed and said, "I dare not hide anything from you, sir. I don't have much time left. I only want to know this one thing before I die."

Wei Xiaobao had long considered Guo Jia a friend, but he was only thinking about returning home. He was also partial to Liu Bei and disliked Cao Cao, so he looked down upon the civil and military officials in Cao Cao's camp. Hearing Guo Jia's words, he felt uncomfortable and asked hurriedly, "With such great ability, is there no way to save the situation?"

"Since this is your fate, why waste your energy trying to change it?" Guo Jia pulled a piece of silk from his sleeve. "I've prepared a plan to defeat Yuan Shao and pacify the north. I'll give it to you tomorrow. This is the last thing I can do for you. If the world ultimately falls to the Liu family, I'll have cleared Yuan Shao's obstacle for Uncle Liu. But I can't understand why Liu Bei refuses to take Xuzhou. Even if he wants to become emperor, he'll find it difficult to challenge the imperial court."

Wei Xiaobao scratched the back of his head and said, "Since you want to know, I'll tell you. Liu Bei did become emperor in the end, but the world was divided into three parts, with Cao Cao's son and Liu Bei each taking one."

"I see."

Wei Xiaobao continued, "But now it seems to be different from the original situation. Originally, Cao Ang was going to die, and Liu Bei did not make his fortune in Xuzhou."

"How could this be?"

"I don't know either. Anyway, the situation is already chaotic, so I can't say for sure who will become the emperor in the end. Let alone what's happening to you now, I'm afraid the young emperor of the Qing Dynasty is not Xiao Xuanzi anymore. I heard from Xiao Xuanzi that the old emperor particularly likes Concubine Dong E and is very likely to pass the throne to her son, Prince Rong."

Guo Jia nodded and said, "Emperor Ling originally favored Concubine Wang and intended to pass the throne to the current emperor. It's ridiculous that heroes like He Jin and Dong Zhuo thought they could usurp power and rule the country dictatorially, but they both lost their lives. In the end, a fake Liu Xie became the emperor." Wei Xiaobao said, "Perhaps everything went haywire from the day Dong Zhuo made Liu Xie the emperor."

After saying this, Wei Xiaobao suddenly felt a sense of relief as if he had gotten rid of a burden.

Guo Jia said, "The heavens have their own laws, and the earth has its own laws. How can the principles of the heavens and the earth change because of people?"

Wei Xiaobao cursed in his heart, "What a bullshit justice! God wouldn't let the common people suffer so much. It's you power-hungry people who have messed up the world."

Guo Jia continued, "In any case, the Prime Minister's greatest threat right now is Yuan Shao. I agree with you. If we want to compete with Yuan Shao, we must first eliminate Yuan Shu. If we can use Liu Bei to force him and Yuan Shu into a fight, the Prime Minister will reap the benefits."

Wei Xiaobao nodded quickly and said, "I think so too."

Guo Jia and Wei Xiaobao reached a consensus and went to see Cao Cao together.

After Cao Cao pacified Wancheng, he was still worried about Yuan Shu, the restless factor. After listening to Guo Jia's advice, he decided to let Liu Bei attack Yuan Shu.

Xun Yu was worried that Liu Bei’s power was growing and that he would inevitably become the second Yuan Shu.

Wei Xiaobao kept Zhuge Liang's instructions in mind and did not dare to say much.

Guo Jia said, "Liu Bei was once a subordinate of Yuan Shao. Now he has been granted an imperial title by the court and is a relative of the emperor. Even if he captures Shouchun, he will not dare to attack Xu Du like Yuan Shao did."

Cao Cao's forces were much smaller than Yuan Shao's at the time. If he divided his forces to attack Yuan Shu, he would be worried that Yuan Shao would launch a surprise attack on Yanzhou. After much deliberation, he said, "I'll have to trouble you, sir, on this matter."

Wei Xiaobao said, "Just tell me what you want. I'm just running errands for the Emperor."

Cao Cao said, "I appoint you General Guarding the East, and Governor of Xu Province, and send you to Xia Pi to monitor Liu Bei."

Wei Xiaobao laughed in his heart: "Isn't this just letting me spy on myself?"

Wei Xiaobao pretended to be embarrassed and said, "Xuzhou is too hard. There is a shortage of food everywhere. If I go there, I will have nothing to eat or drink just like I did in Chenliu."

Cao Cao consoled him, saying, "I will send General Xiahou Dun to escort you to your post, along with two hundred thousand dan of grain. As for Liu Bei, I will make him Governor of Yu Province. This will give us a legitimate reason to attack Yuan Shu."

Xun Yu wanted to persuade him again, but was stopped by Guo Jia.

After the meeting, Cao Cao said to Wei Xiaobao, "Sir, you were in Xuzhou when the emperor got married. His Majesty hasn't seen you for a long time and has been worried about your safety and has asked about you many times. How about you come with me to see the emperor before we leave?"

Wei Xiaobao had been hiding because he was worried that Cao Cao would discover that there was something wrong with his relationship with the fake Liu Xie. Now that he heard Cao Cao take the initiative to propose to meet Liu Xie, he readily agreed.

(End of this chapter)