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

Chapter 196 Yuan Shen's Limited-Time Online Release Amidst Adversity, Zhuge Liang Withdraws from Zhen Ding (1st Update)
Yuan Shao's decision to withdraw to Zhongshan at this time was indeed intended to give Yuan Shang a chance.

Ye City is Yuan Shang's home ground.

Whether Yuan Shang can turn Yuan Tan into a sitting duck in Ye City, his home turf, depends on whether he has the ability to act as the butcher.

However, Yuan Shao clearly overestimated Yuan Shang's intelligence and underestimated Yuan Tan's strength.

Outside Handan city.

Yuan Shao frowned as he looked at the two memorials that had been sent to him in succession.

The first letter was sent by Yuan Tan, claiming that Yuan Shang intended to kill his brother.

The second letter was sent by Yuan Shang, claiming that Yuan Tan intended to kill his brother.

The truth is: last night, Yuan Shang sent Shen Peifengji to surround the post station. Yuan Tan angrily rebuked Shen Peifengji for his rudeness, and then a conflict broke out between the two sides. Yuan Tan led 800 cavalry to break through Shen Peifengji's troops and stormed out of the city through the west gate. Afterwards, both Yuan Shang and Yuan Tan chose to submit memorials to Yuan Shao to falsely accuse each other.

Upon seeing Yuan Shang's memorial, Lady Liu burst into tears and demanded that Yuan Shao return to Ye City to establish Yuan Shang's heir and punish Yuan Tan.

However, this time Yuan Shao did not compromise because of Lady Liu's distress. Instead, he first asked Lady Liu to wait in another carriage, and then summoned Xu You and handed him two memorials to read.

"Ziyuan, have I truly chosen the wrong person?" Yuan Shao was now somewhat uncertain.

Despite having the home advantage of Ye City, Yuan Shang failed to subdue Yuan Tan. Instead, Yuan Tan easily broke out of Ye City and accused Yuan Shang of plotting to kill his brother.

Xu You initially didn't want to answer the question, but considering his old friendship with Yuan Shao and the fact that his family was safe and sound, he softened and said, "Young Master Tan is a seasoned warrior with eight hundred cavalry at his disposal. Unless Young Master Shang uses a deadly ambush with crossbows, it's impossible to capture him. Young Master Tan only fought his way out of the city instead of directly attacking Young Master Shang's residence, which clearly shows he was holding back. Although the two are fighting, they both have their limits, so General, there's no need to take it to heart."

After a pause, Xu You suggested, "Although Young Master Shang was the Governor of Ji Province before, the General-in-Chief was still in Ye City, so he couldn't really make all the decisions. Now that the General-in-Chief has gone to Zhongshan to escape the summer heat, Young Master Shang, as the Governor of Ji Province, can act independently in Ye City. It's a good opportunity to observe the abilities of both of them. The General-in-Chief can send someone to deliver a message to the two of them, setting a one-year deadline. Whoever makes the most contributions in the battles against Cao Cao will be the heir."

Xu You's meaning was simple and clear: since they couldn't directly decide who the heir would be, they should let the two of them fight against Cao Cao. Yuan Shang would be stationed in Ye City, and Yuan Tan in Linzi City, one of them could plot against Yan Province, and the other against Xu Province.

Yuan Shao pondered for a long time, then sighed: "Now that things have come to this, we really have no choice but to follow Ziyuan's plan."

Despite being in a disadvantageous position, Yuan Shao demonstrated significantly higher intelligence and decisiveness. He immediately sent messengers to Yuan Tan and Yuan Shang, while also instructing Gao Gan of Shangdang to join forces with Ma Teng and others from Xiliang to harass Guanzhong in order to contain Cao Cao's forces and allow Yuan Shang and Yuan Tan to seize the two provinces of Yan and Xu.

Yuan Shao, on the other hand, continued his journey to Zhongshan to escape the summer heat.

Yuan Shang's sudden falling out with Yan Liang and Wen Chou caused his plan to weaken Liu Bei's military power to fail, which made Yuan Shao somewhat wary of Liu Bei.

This trip to Zhongshan to escape the summer heat was not only to give Yuan Shang an opportunity, but also because Yuan Shao was worried that Liu Bei would take advantage of the conflict between Yuan Shang and Yuan Tan to cause trouble in the rear.

Yuan Shao wasn't stupid. Although he was initially surprised by Yuan Xi's reaction, he gradually understood the key point after leaving the city.

Yuan Shao would not believe that Yuan Xi, who had always been timid and weak, had suddenly become both intelligent and courageous. He would not have believed it without someone's support and guidance.

Although powerful families often choose their eldest son to inherit their business, Yuan Shao had a slightly different idea.

Yuan Shao himself was born to a maid, so he did not discriminate against Yuan Xi, who was also born to a maid. If Yuan Xi was truly intelligent and brave, then Yuan Shao would also have favored Yuan Xi as his heir.

If Yuan Xi had possessed the courage and fortitude of Yuan Tan, or the respect and humility of Yuan Shang, Yuan Shao would have sent him to Bingzhou. Then, of his three sons, one would go to Qingzhou to plot against Xuzhou, one to Jizhou to plot against Yanzhou, and one to Bingzhou to plot against Guanzhong.

Unfortunately, Yuan Xi was weak and timid, so even if Yuan Shao wanted to help him, he couldn't.

As for the person behind Yuan Xi, it wasn't hard for Yuan Shao to guess: apart from Liu Bei, who had pacified the six counties of Youzhou, there couldn't possibly be a second person.

However, Yuan Shao was more troubled by Yuan Xi's efforts to gain Liu Bei's support than Yuan Shang's efforts to gain Shen Pei's support.

Shen Pei was merely a powerful clan member from Wei Commandery; no matter how much trouble he caused, he would only ever be a powerful minister. Liu Bei, on the other hand, had great ambitions and would not remain subservient to anyone for long, making him someone Yuan Xi could not control.

The news that Yuan Shao wanted to go to Zhongshan to escape the summer heat was also sent to Zhen Ding City by Yuan Xi's fast horse messenger.

Subsequently, Zhuge Liang summoned Tao Sheng and Gao Rou and asked them for his leave: "Now that things in Changshan Kingdom are getting back on track, it is time for me to leave Zhending. In the future, I hope that you two will act impartially to prevent further chaos in Changshan Kingdom."

Tao Sheng was taken aback: "Strategist Zhuge, you're leaving already?"

Having grown accustomed to Zhuge Liang's presence in Zhen Ding, Tao Sheng was enjoying a comfortable period. Previously tedious tasks became extremely smooth with Zhuge Liang's help, to the point that Tao Sheng had the misconception that Zhuge Liang should stay in Zhen Ding.

Zhuge Liang chuckled: "As the strategist general under the Left General, I should not interfere in local affairs. If it weren't for the fact that the 100,000 Black Mountain settlers only wanted to be under the Left General's command, I would have left long ago. Now that Brother Wenhui is concurrently serving as the 'Decision Clerk' of the Left General's office, I can leave with peace of mind."

Gao Rou noticed something amiss and asked, "Could it be that the General is going to Zhongshan to escape the summer heat, and Military Advisor Zhuge is worried that the General might misunderstand, so he is leaving to avoid suspicion?"

Zhuge Liang turned to Gao Rou, feigning a moment of hesitation, and said, "That's part of the reason. The 100,000 Black Mountain settlers only surrendered to the Left General and not to the Grand General, which is an insult to the Grand General. For the sake of the stability of Changshan Kingdom, the Left General agreed to the Black Mountain people's demands, but he cannot rely on his achievements and cause the Grand General to lose face. Now that Brother Wenhui is here, the Black Mountain people will not mistakenly believe that the Left General has abandoned them because of my departure, and the Grand General will not misunderstand the Left General because of this."

Gao Rou stared at Zhuge Liang, her expression a mix of inquiry and certainty: "So, when Young Master Xi came to Shangdang to see me and insisted that I enter Changshan Kingdom, it was actually your idea, Military Advisor Zhuge?"

Seeing that Gao Rou had made his point clear, Zhuge Liang apologized to Gao Rou, saying, "I did not mean to conceal anything. As a subordinate, one should seek the best for one's lord and avoid harm. I was also afraid that some petty people would slander and sow discord in front of the General, causing the Left General to suffer injustice. Governor Gao of Bingzhou is the General's nephew, and Brother Wenhui is Governor Gao's cousin. Brother Wenhui has always been fair, just, and compassionate towards the common people. I could only prevent the General and the Left General from having a misunderstanding because of the Black Mountain people by inviting Wenhui to Changshan State."

　Update 1 is here!

　　
　
(End of this chapter)