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

Chapter 186 Liu Bei devises a plan to deceive Xu You, and Yuan Shang is once again sabotaging his own cause (1st update)
"Mr. Xu has fallen from his horse!"

A cry of surprise drew the surrounding soldiers to gather around.

A robust young man rode up on horseback, leaped forward, and bowed respectfully: "Yuan Lin, a native of Runan and a captain under Governor Yuan of Qingzhou, greets Mr. Xu."

Yuan Tan's men?

Xu You stared in astonishment at Yuan Lin, who introduced himself: "Why am I here?"

Yuan Chen remained calm: "Last night, we were ordered by Governor Yuan to launch a surprise attack on Cangting Ferry. We unexpectedly encountered a drunken Mr. Xu. I had accompanied Governor Yuan to the General's banquet in Ye City, so I knew Mr. Xu and took him away from the danger."

Take them away from the danger zone?

Do I need you to take me away?

Xu You frowned: "You captured me here, are you trying to use me to claim credit?"

Yuan Chen hurriedly said, "Mr. Xu has misunderstood. Governor Yuan often tells his men that if Shen Pei had not arrested Mr. Xu's family without authorization and the General had not punished Shen Pei, Mr. Xu would not have gone to Cao Cao, and there would have been no defeat at Guandu. This was the General's mistake, not Mr. Xu's fault. Therefore, after I saw Mr. Xu last night, I thought of bringing him back."

"Is that really true?" Xu You squinted at Yuan Chen. "You are also a member of the Yuan clan?"

Yuan Chen shook his head: "I dare not claim kinship with those who have served as high-ranking officials for four generations. I only wish to do my best to serve Governor Yuan."

As they were talking...

Another man rode up on horseback, exclaiming with delight, "Mr. Xu is awake?"

Xu You looked up and carefully examined the person, but couldn't recognize him. He looked at Yuan Chen with a puzzled expression.

Yuan Chen hurriedly introduced to Xu You, "This is Xiahou Bo from Qiao County. He is also a captain under Governor Yuan. Last night, Captain Xiahou and I went to launch a surprise attack on Cangting Ferry."

"Xiahou?" Xu You felt a little dizzy.

Yuan Chen added, "Although Commandant Xiahou is also from the Xiahou clan of Qiao County, he is not a close relative of Xiahou Dun and others. We two serve Governor Yuan!"

Xiahou Bo bowed to Xu You and said, "Greetings, Mr. Xu."

Xu You was taken aback for a moment, returned the greeting, and then asked, "Where are you taking me?"

Xiahou Bo and Yuan Chen exchanged a glance and said, "We were just about to ask Mr. Xu for his opinion. We have already sent someone to deliver a letter to Governor Yuan. Mr. Xu may go to Pingyuan to see Hua Yan, or to Yecheng to see the General, or to Zhengding to see the Left General. However, I think that if you go to Pingyuan, you may be slighted by Hua Yan; if you go directly to Yecheng, you may be slandered by Shen Pei. It would be better to go to Zhengding to see the Left General first. The Left General and Governor Yuan have always been on good terms, and he is also dissatisfied with Shen Pei's arbitrary actions and harm to the virtuous."

Yuan Lin also said, "The Left General and the Grand General are on good terms, and can speak well of Mr. Xu. Although Mr. Xu has surrendered to Cao Cao, given Cao Cao's character, he will certainly not value those who have surrendered. If Mr. Xu can reconcile with the Grand General, wouldn't that be wonderful?"

Xiahou Bo and Yuan Chen sang in unison, and Xu You couldn't help but be moved.

If Xu You had truly enjoyed his time with Cao Cao, he wouldn't have felt he had lost all purpose in life and resorted to drinking to drown his sorrows.

However, after the Battle of Guandu, eight or nine out of ten of the Hebei troops were wiped out, and seventy or eighty thousand were buried alive by Cao Cao. Countless people in Hebei hated Xu You, which made Xu You hesitate again.

Seeing this, Yuan Chen made the decision for Xu You directly: "Since Mr. Xu has concerns, then listen to me. Let's go to Zhengding to see the Left General first, and then discuss the matter further."

Upon hearing this, Xu You did not refute it.

With the help of the soldiers, he mounted his horse again and rode silently toward Zhengding.

What Xu You didn't know was that Yuan Chen and Xiahou Bo were deliberately arranged by Liu Bei to escort Xu You to Zhen Ding. Their rhetoric was also taught by Liu Bei, with the aim of first tricking Xu You into going to Zhen Ding, and then using Xu You to create chaos in Ye City.

At this moment, Liu Bei was still outside Dongwuyang City, flying Tao Sheng's banner, and even deliberately sent people to question Yuan Shang about why he "abandoned his army and fled".

Yuan Shang was already terrified last night because of Cao Cao's ambush on all sides. This morning, he was questioned by Tao Sheng's messenger. Yuan Shang was so angry that he kicked the table and cursed: "Tao Sheng is just a bandit from the Black Mountain. He survived by betraying his former master. If it weren't for the support of the General, how could he have his current status? He eats my Yuan family's food and dares to question me? A thief is a thief. He is disloyal to the core."

Yan Liang and Wen Chou, who were below the hall, did not echo his sentiments.

Although Liu Bei questioned Yuan Shang under the guise of Tao Sheng, Yan Liang and Wen Chou also harbored the same question: how could they turn defeat into victory when Yuan Shang, as the commander-in-chief, had run away!
In the eyes of Yan Liang and Wen Chou, if Liu Bei hadn't run away quickly, he would probably have been killed by Cao Cao.

He merely used Tao Sheng's name to question Yuan Shang a few times, but instead of humbly admitting his mistake, Yuan Shang cursed Tao Sheng for being an incorrigible thief. Tao Sheng had saved the lives of Yuan Shao's entire family, including Yuan Shang's life!

Feng Ji noticed the displeasure on Yan Liang and Wen Chou's faces and whispered, "Young Master Shang, you can have Yan Liang and Wen Chou set up camp outside the city to create a pincer movement."

Yuan Shang was already ashamed and angry after suffering a defeat and being questioned by Tao Sheng's envoy. Seeing the attitude of Yan Liang and Wen Chou, he became even more dissatisfied. He immediately adopted Feng Ji's advice and ordered the two generals to set up camp outside the city.

Yan Liang and Wen Chou were even more disheartened to see Feng Ji slandering them again, and Yuan Shang even echoing his words. They did not refute him, but each gave a cold snort and left on their own.

This scene infuriated Yuan Shang even more: "Yan Liang and Wen Chou, relying on the General's favor and seeing my defeat yesterday, have been disrespectful to me. They are truly rude! Now that my military prestige has not been established, if Yuan Tan finds out, I will surely be ridiculed again. Feng, do you have any good advice for me?"

Feng Jinian nodded and immediately had an idea: "Young Master Shang, do not worry. Yan Liang and Wen Chou have always been loyal only to the General. As long as the General adopts Young Master Shang as his heir, even if they are disrespectful now, they will still be loyal in the future. Last night, Cao Cao's main camp was burned. I predict that he will retreat soon. No matter what happens, as long as Cao Cao retreats, it will be a great achievement for Young Master Shang. Young Master Shang can write in the battle report that Tao Sheng disobeyed military orders without authorization, which almost led to the defeat of the army. Fortunately, it was Young Master Shang's bravery that allowed him to defeat Cao Cao. Then, take the opportunity to ask the General to demote Tao Sheng to another post and select another trusted confidant to serve as the Chancellor of Changshan."

Yuan Shang pondered for a moment and said, "What you say makes sense, sir. Let's follow this plan! First, let's send someone to find out if Cao Cao has withdrawn his troops."

Yan Liang and Wen Chou left the city in low spirits and joined forces with Liu Bei outside the city.

Seeing the displeasure on the faces of the two generals, Liu Bei asked gently, "What is it that makes you two generals angry?"

Yan Liang sneered angrily, "Who else could it be? It's Feng Ji stirring things up again!"

Wen Chou went even further, saying, "Young Master Shang is ashamed to see me, and using the pretext of our strategic position, he ordered us to camp outside the city. Humph, how laughable!"

"It's nothing, Generals, please don't take it to heart. Although we were ambushed by Cao Cao last night, I also burned down Cao Cao's main camp, so it was a draw." Liu Bei said gently, "I have some wine in my camp, and I would like to share it with you two. Let's let this unpleasant matter pass."

Liu Bei's words of comfort eased the tension in Yan Liang and Wen Chou's hearts. They both bowed and said, "We wish to drink with General Zuo!"

　Update 1 is here!

　　
　
(End of this chapter)