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

Chapter 210 Liu Bei pleads poverty to Yuan Shao and then abducts Yan Liang and Wen Chou (1st update)
A few days later, Liu Bei arrived at Lu Nu. He sent Su Shuang and Zhang Shiping home to prepare, while he and Yuan Xi entered the city to see Yuan Shao.

Upon learning that Liu Bei had left Zhuge Liang in Zhuo County and that Yuan Xi had appointed Zhuge Liang as the Chief Administrator of Youzhou, Yuan Shao's face immediately turned ugly.

If Liu Bei hadn't been there, Yuan Shao would have been cursing: "Liu Bei left Zhuge Liang in Zhuo County to keep an eye on me, and my son even appointed Zhuge Liang as Chief Administrator? How am I supposed to win over the officials and commoners of the seven counties of Youzhou? Does my son also have to keep an eye on me?"
At this moment, Yuan Shao was completely unaware that it was precisely his favoritism towards Yuan Shang that led to this outcome step by step: after Yuan Xi did not want to leave Youzhou for Bingzhou, the officials in the rear were won over by Yuan Shao to support Yuan Shang. Rather than letting Yuan Shang control Youzhou, Yuan Xi preferred to let Liu Bei control Youzhou.

Yuan Xi's attitude is simple and clear: anyone who doesn't support Yuan Shang is a friend!

Liu Bei took in Yuan Shao's reaction.

A barely perceptible smile curved at the corners of his lips. Liu Bei cupped his hands in greeting and began to plead poverty: "Reporting to the Great General, Youzhou is located on the border, and the barbarians frequently invade, making it extremely difficult to mobilize troops. Although I and Prince Xi have worked together diligently for over a month... we have only managed to gather three thousand elite soldiers. I implore the Great General to allow Generals Yanliang and Wen Chou to each lead two thousand elite troops to accompany me, to bolster the prestige of this expedition."

Upon hearing this, Yuan Shao felt a dull ache in his teeth!

You and Xianyi only contributed three thousand soldiers together, yet you dare to ask me to contribute an additional four thousand? And you want Yan Liang and Wen Chou to accompany you as well?
Turning his gaze to Liu Bei, Yuan Shao's tone suddenly turned cold: "Oh? Does Xuande really only have a mere three thousand soldiers capable of fighting? Among these three thousand soldiers... there are probably also Xianyi's subordinates, right? Could it be that Xuande is pitying the soldiers' fatigue and is unwilling to fight with all his might?"

Liu Bei's heart skipped a beat, but his face grew even more respectful. He quickly bowed and explained, "General, please forgive me! It is a misunderstanding! As the art of war says, 'It is not the size of the army that matters, but the proper deployment.' This westward march to Guanzhong is intended to harass and contain Cao Cao's forces, not to launch a large-scale attack on cities and strongholds. Therefore, it is best to use elite troops! The three thousand elite soldiers that I and Prince Xi lead are all battle-hardened warriors from Youzhou, each capable of taking on ten men! Furthermore..."

He paused, his tone becoming heavier: "Youzhou has a small population and poor land, and years of war have exhausted its people. I truly cannot bear to conscript more laborers, only to increase their suffering, and I also worry that this would damage the General's reputation for benevolence and compassion. It is by no means a matter of sparing our strength!"

Hearing Liu Bei's reasonable and subtly flattering explanation, Yuan Shao was speechless for a moment: "They said they were selected elites, so why force some rabble to fill the ranks?"
Bringing too many people and running out of supplies becomes a burden.

Yuan Xi, standing to the side, also complained of poverty: "General, General Zuo is indeed facing difficulties in Youzhou. Although he has brought enough elite troops and fierce generals this time, his prestige is indeed insufficient to raid Guanzhong."

Hearing Yuan Xi's support, Yuan Shao felt even more aches and pains: Whose son are you anyway? Can't you even tell who you're on?

“What Xuande says makes sense. Yan Liang and Wen Chou can accompany you.” Suppressing his inner turmoil, Yuan Shao frowned, pondered for a moment, and after weighing the pros and cons, finally spoke, but changed the number of troops Liu Bei had requested: “However, the number of troops must be reduced. Each of them can lead a thousand elite soldiers. These two thousand men will be selected from the ten thousand garrison troops in Changshan Kingdom, choosing the most skilled infantry and cavalry. What does Xuande think of this arrangement?”

Upon hearing this, Liu Bei was secretly delighted!
Originally, Liu Bei's suggestion to send Yan Liang and Wen Chou with their troops was merely a test, and he did not have high expectations for it.

Unexpectedly, Yuan Shao agreed so readily!

Although the number of troops was halved, being able to bring these two men to harass Guanzhong was already an unexpected advantage!
When Liu Bei came here, he already had a capable team of generals, with Pang Tong and Xu Shu as strategists, Guan Yu, Zhang Fei and Huang Zhong as generals, and Yuan Chen, Xiahou Bo, Xin Zhe, Jiao Chu and Zhang Nan as deputies, and he also selected his own elite troops.

Now, with the addition of Yan Liang and Wen Chou leading two thousand elite troops from the Changshan garrison, the fighting strength of this army is no less than that of the five thousand elite troops composed of fierce generals and strong soldiers that Cao Cao used when he raided Wuchao.

This number of five thousand is precisely the scale that Liu Bei was most adept at commanding and coordinating.

Commanding a large army requires exceptional talent and experience; the more troops one has, the more difficult it becomes to command. For Liu Bei, at present, he is only suited to commanding fewer than ten thousand troops. This perfectly illustrates the fundamental military principle: the strength of an army lies not in its size, but in its skillful deployment.

If the strategy is sound, the generals are of one mind, and the soldiers are brave and fierce, then a small force can defeat a large one. However, if the strategy is flawed, even an army of 100,000 can suffer heavy losses and flee in panic, just like Yuan Shao did at Guandu.

Watching Liu Bei and Yuan Xi take their leave together, Yuan Shao suddenly felt an indescribable sense of frustration and stagnation: he was the one who was plotting and manipulating Liu Bei, but at this moment he felt as if he was being led by the nose by Liu Bei.

After sitting alone for a long time, Yuan Shao sighed deeply and tried to console himself, saying, "So be it... As long as Liu Bei can harass Guanzhong and tie down Cao Cao's main force, allowing Xianfu to make achievements in Yanzhou and establish enough military merit to subdue everyone, it will be worth it. Besides, with Yan Liang and Wen Chou in the army, they can closely monitor Liu Bei's every move."

Thinking of this, Yuan Shao felt somewhat comforted.

Since Wen Chou was stationed in Zhengding at the time, Yuan Shao first summoned Yan Liang, who was in Lunu, and instructed him to go to Zhengding to transfer troops to join Liu Bei in entering Shangdang.

Yan Liang was both surprised and delighted.

When Yan Liang followed Yuan Shang to Dongwuyang, he could have turned the tide of the battle, but Yuan Shang abandoned his army and fled without authorization, which led to the failure of their mission. This made Yan Liang feel quite frustrated.

Yuan Shang escaped, feeling relieved, but Yan Liang lost his military merit.

For soldiers, without military merit, days of marching and fighting are nothing but a waste of effort.

It's not like Yuan Shang can eat the meat and drink the soup while Yan Liang can only smell the aroma.

In contrast, following Liu Bei was much more comfortable: not only could one drink soup and eat meat, but one also received countless rewards for merit. Even Jiao Chu and Zhang Nan, who were not among the top generals in Hebei, could eat and drink their fill.

"This time, when we raid Guanzhong, we must make a big fuss. The reason I sent both of you to Liu Bei's command is to make Cao Cao mistakenly believe that my focus of attack is on Guanzhong, not Yanzhou. Currently, there are too few people in the army who support Xianfu. I need Xianfu to make more contributions before I can make Xianfu my heir. You have been by my side for a long time and know the key to this. Do not disappoint me!"

Yuan Shao solemnly instructed, without mentioning that he had been led by the nose by Liu Bei, and assumed that it was a deliberate arrangement for Yan Liang and Wen Chou to go together.

After a brief pause, Yuan Shao's tone suddenly became more serious: "Although I employ Liu Bei, I must also be wary of him. After you two go to Bingzhou, pay close attention to Liu Bei's every word and action. If there is anything strange or suspicious, remember to send a message back immediately! After you return, you must carefully explain it to me in detail."

Yan Liang was immediately alarmed: The General is suspicious of the Left General again. Who is this villain stirring up trouble again?
　Update 1 is here!

　　
　
(End of this chapter)