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

Chapter 185 Liu Bei and Cao Cao's plans coincided; they used Xu You to create chaos in Ye City (5th update)
On the battlefield, Yuan Shang saw flames soaring into the sky in the direction of Cangting Ferry, and was both surprised and delighted: "Heaven has not forsaken me!"

Tonight was a rollercoaster of emotions for Yuan Shang.

They thought they had seen through Cao Cao's plan to raid the camp, but instead they found themselves surrounded on all sides.

If it weren't for the desperate efforts of Yan Liang and Wen Chou in protecting the flanks, Yuan Shang would have already lost his life.

What Yuan Shang regretted even more was that Yan Liang had previously advised him to be wary of Cao Cao's plot, but Yuan Shang listened to Feng Ji and refuted Yan Liang.

Yuan Shang inherited Yuan Shao's temperament; even knowing he was wrong, he absolutely refused to bow down and admit his mistake to Yan Liang.

Seeing Cao Cao's main camp ablaze, Yuan Shang's gloom vanished, replaced by the ecstatic joy of surviving a calamity.

"Break through immediately!"

Seeing that Cao Cao's army was losing its footing due to the fire in their camp, Yuan Shang didn't hesitate and led his personal guard cavalry to gallop towards Dongwuyang, not even caring whether his main army could keep up.

Yan Liang intended to take the opportunity to order a full-scale counterattack, launching a pincer attack on Cao Cao's army from both inside and outside, but suddenly he saw that Yuan Shang's banner had already fled in panic!

They were immediately stunned and speechless: Young Master Shang ran away? What happened?
Cao Cao was equally surprised and suspicious: "Yuan Shang actually ran away? Could it be another trap?"

Cao Cao was pondering how to deal with Yuan Shang's surprise attack on his camp, but unexpectedly, the enemy fled without lingering after the successful attack. This puzzled Cao Cao: Since the surprise attack was successful, shouldn't they have launched a pincer attack from both sides?

"My lord, return to the camp immediately! Beware of the troops approaching from the plains!" Guo Jia rushed over and urgently warned.

Cao Cao suddenly realized that the battlefield at Cangting Ford bordered Qingzhou, which could indeed attract Yuan Tan!
"Retreat quickly!"

Cao Cao did not hesitate to order the retreat.

However, when Cao Cao led his troops back to his camp, there was no trace of the "Yuan army".
All that remained was a scene of utter devastation.

Cao Cao frowned, his mind filled with doubt.

Guo Jia, who followed closely behind, also frowned slightly: Could it be that Yuan Tan was behind this?
"Quickly find out who launched the sneak attack!" Cao Cao demanded sternly.

A moment later, Xiahou Yuan led the still-shaken deputy general who had been left behind forward.

The lieutenant nervously presented a letter: "Reporting...reporting to the Minister! The bandits are using the banner of 'Tao Sheng, the Chancellor of Changshan,' and the leader claims to be...an old friend of the Minister. After successfully raiding the camp, they retreated, and also...also kidnapped Military Advisor Xu, leaving this letter behind!"

"Xu Ziyuan has been kidnapped?!" Cao Cao's expression changed drastically, and he snatched the letter. The letter contained only one sentence: "Brother Mengde, I've borrowed Xu Ziyuan for now. Don't worry about him." It was signed: "General of the Left, Liu Bei."

Upon seeing the name "Liu Bei," Cao Cao's anger surged, and his face grew increasingly sinister.

After a long while, Cao Cao suppressed his anger and instead clapped his hands and laughed: "Well done, Yuan Shang! He actually has such abilities! I, Yuan Shao, have raised such a courageous son!"

He immediately reassured the deputy commander left behind at the camp: "Tonight's defeat was not your fault, but rather due to my poor planning. Issue the order to reward the entire army!"

The deputy general who stayed behind thought he would be punished that night, but Cao Cao not only did not punish him but also rewarded him with wine and meat. He was overjoyed and left with deep gratitude.

Cao Cao tucked the letter into his robes, then beckoned Guo Jia to join him in the main tent, and ordered Xu Chu to guard the tent and prevent anyone else from approaching. Soon, Cao Cao's barely suppressed roar echoed from inside the tent: "You big-eared scoundrel! How dare you do this!"

Cao Cao was furious.

They could have captured Yuan Shang alive in one battle, but unexpectedly, Liu Bei seized the opportunity at the crucial moment, and their pent-up anger can be imagined.

Guo Jia remained silent, watching Cao Cao vent his anger in the main tent.

Only after Cao Cao's anger subsided did he approach and pick up the letter that Cao Cao had thrown to the ground.

After a careful glance, Guo Jia's voice slowly rang out: "My lord, please calm down. Liu Bei came under Tao Sheng's banner, and Yuan Shang was probably unaware of it."

"Hmm?" Cao Cao was slightly taken aback, then recalled Yuan Shang's hasty and disheveled escape on the battlefield, and suddenly realized: "So that's how it is. I was wondering why Yuan Shang would ignore the good opportunity to be attacked from both sides and only care about leading his personal guards and cavalry to break through the encirclement in a panic. It seems that Liu Bei's sneak attack tonight was not part of Yuan Shang's plan."

After pacing for a moment, Cao Cao analyzed, "Liu Bei is using Tao Sheng's name because he doesn't want Yuan Shang to know; Yuan Shao knows that Liu Bei is good at fighting, but he doesn't let Liu Bei come to Dongwuyang. It seems that Yuan Shao has become suspicious of Liu Bei."

Guo Jia added: "Our lord once said that Liu Bei is a wise man, and if Yuan Shao were still alive, Liu Bei would find it difficult to truly establish himself in Hebei; however, he also needs to rely on Yuan Shao's power to gradually develop, so he dares not disobey his orders lightly. This time, he appeared in Dongwuyang under the name of 'Tao Sheng,' which is probably because Yuan Shao wanted to take advantage of Yuan Shang's command of troops to reduce Liu Bei's military power. Liu Bei was unwilling to let his troops be completely defeated by Yuan Shang, so he carried out this plan; after raiding the camp, he quickly retreated, also because he was unwilling to fight our lord to the death at this time."

Cao Cao also realized the key point and sighed, "It's a pity we lost Xu You. Xu You was very knowledgeable about the strengths and weaknesses of Hebei. Without Xu You, we will lose the advantage of knowing the enemy when we attack Hebei in the future."

Guo Jia laughed and said, "Xu You has always been arrogant and disrespectful to our lord, which has long made the generals resentful. Our lord has tolerated him because he is an old friend and made great contributions at Guandu. Liu Bei's capture of him has saved our lord from future troubles. We might as well deliberately leak this news to Shen Pei in Liyang. I'm afraid there will be a good show to be staged in Ye City."

Cao Cao laughed, "Fengxiao is only afraid that Ye City will not be in chaos! If Shen Pei knows that Xu You has returned to Ye, how can he let it go?! Very well, since Yuan Shao does not dare to personally go to Dongwuyang to fight me, I will not benefit much from staying here. I might as well return to Xuchang, sit and watch Ye City fall into chaos, and see if Yuan Shao can still sit peacefully in Ye City!"

Meanwhile, Guan Yu, looking at the drunken Xu You, asked in bewilderment, "Brother, I don't understand. Xu You is not one of Cao Cao's confidants, so what harm would capturing him do to Cao Cao?"

Liu Bei smiled calmly: "General, Xu You was key to the defeat at Guandu, but his defection was also due to Shen Pei's unauthorized arrest of his family. Now I will send Xu You back to Ye City, and the General may spare his life out of consideration for our past friendship. However, Shen Pei's two sons died because of Xu You, how could he be so easily spared? Let the two of them fight each other in Ye City, so that there will always be villains plotting against me in the dark."

Guan Yu suddenly realized: "Yuan Shang has always been close to Shen Pei, and might persuade Yuan Shao to kill Xu You. If that's the case, why not have someone leak this news to Yuan Tan as well, so that his brothers can fight each other?"

Upon hearing this, Liu Bei laughed heartily: "Yun Chang is absolutely right! If the brothers Yuan Tan and Yuan Shang fight amongst themselves, and the General is bogged down by it, he will have no time to plot against you and me for military power!"

Both Cao Cao and Liu Bei were now focused on the infighting among Yuan Shao's civil and military sons.

Cao Cao was dissatisfied that Yuan Shao refused to come to Dongwuyang to fight, while Liu Bei was dissatisfied that Yuan Shao used Yuan Shang as a pretext to reduce his military power.

The two of them, without prior consultation, had the same idea.

Xu You, who was lying drunk on horseback, was still unconscious.

When Xu You opened his eyes, he found that he was no longer in the camp at Cangtingjin.

"here it is?"

Upon seeing the unfamiliar soldiers, Xu You was stunned and fell off his horse, collapsing to the ground with wide eyes.

　Chapter 5 is here! No work during the day, only endless overtime at night. Please vote with monthly tickets!
　　
　
(End of this chapter)