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

Chapter 244 Liu Bei rebels against the Heavenly Gang, Zhong Yao becomes Yuan Shao's spy (1st update)
"I misjudged the situation."

Zhong Yao belatedly realized what was happening and suddenly awoke with a start.

As the art of war says: speed is of the essence in war.

Its core lies in seizing strategic locations with lightning speed in order to gain the upper hand.

But what about Liu Bei?

For the past month, instead of seizing strategic locations, they seem to be afraid that Zhong Yao won't be able to get them.

How can a battle be fought like this?

A sense of absurdity arose spontaneously, and Zhong Yao vaguely felt that he seemed to be playing along with Liu Bei!

Upon learning that Yuan Shao had sent generals to invade the border.

Zhong Yao was worried and overworked:

Or they might send someone to persuade Ma Teng and Han Sui;

Or perhaps they rushed from Hongnong to aid the Pi family;

Or, various counties levied corvée labor and taxes;

Or perhaps they are painstakingly employing a strategy to sow discord;

etc.
What's the point of all this?
Was the intention simply to provide Liu Bei with a perfect stepping stone?

This would allow Liu Bei to gracefully withdraw his troops under the pretext of "Yuan Shao's accusation," and then turn around and put on a show of "being wronged and suffering injustice," thus legitimately preserving his strength and strengthening himself.
In the end, it was another battle between Yuan Shao and Cao Cao, with Liu Bei ultimately benefiting.
Upon thinking of this, Zhong Yao felt a surge of evil fire rush to the top of his head!
I, the dignified Commandant of the Capital Region of the Han Dynasty, was actually used as a pawn by that weaver of mats and seller of shoes.
Shame!
However, the anger, though intense, soon transformed into a deep sense of powerlessness.

The reason is frustratingly simple—we can't beat them!

If they couldn't defeat Liu Bei, then the initiative would fall entirely into Liu Bei's hands.

Given the bravery and strategic acumen of Liu Bei's troops, if he were truly to seize Pi's territory, Zhong Yao wouldn't even need to lead troops to Pi's aid.

The decision of whether to "fight" or "not fight" rested entirely on Liu Bei's mind, while Zhong Yao could only wait passively!
"What a blunder! We should have abandoned our support for the Pi family and retreated to Anyi to wait for an opportunity!" Zhong Yao lamented inwardly.

The situation would be completely different if the standoff took place in Anyi.

Liu Bei's battle lines will inevitably be stretched out, and the transportation of military supplies and provisions will also reveal fatal flaws.

But now?

Deeper into Pishi, Zhong Yao's supply lines were stretched out, and he also bore enormous logistical pressure!
The daily food and fodder consumption of Ma Chao's more than 10,000 infantry and cavalry alone was an astonishing figure, and this food and fodder could only be obtained by Zhong Yao through forced requisition in places such as Hongnong and Hedong.

The longer it drags on, the heavier the pressure will be for Zhong Yao.

In contrast, Liu Bei not only dragged things out, but also had the leisure to cultivate land in the Fen River Valley!
The neat rows of fields, exuding a leisurely atmosphere, seemed to add fuel to the fire, mocking Zhong Yao: I'm just playing around, come and hit me if you dare!

While I was thinking.

Then a rider flew down to the city of Pi.

Upon seeing the cavalry below the city, Zhong Yao's pupils contracted instantly, and he subconsciously took two steps back.

The newcomer was none other than Huang Zhong, who once shot an arrow that flew up the city wall and was said to have the skill of hitting a willow leaf from a hundred paces away!
Huang Zhong chuckled, and without saying a word, he drew his bow and shot another arrow that flew up to the top of the city wall. The arrow was wrapped in cloth, just like last time.

Although the arrow did not hit the general on the city wall this time, it landed steadily on the wall, and the precision of the force made the soldiers on the wall even more wary.

Zhang Ji picked up the arrow, tore off the cloth, glanced at its contents, and his expression changed drastically. He quickly dismissed his attendants, leaving only Fu Gan standing, and then handed the cloth to Zhong Yao. Zhong Yao, upon seeing the contents, was also filled with surprise and doubt.

The cloth contained the following writing:

Since the Commandant of the Capital Region is a close confidant of Cao Cao, he should know about my agreement with Cao Cao.

now.

I first stopped Guo Yuan from attacking Jiangyi, then retreated to Huchuquan and plundered Jiangyi. I also persuaded the powerful families of Jiangyi to help the poor officials and people, putting the interests of the people first.

Xia Zhao and Deng Sheng wanted to attack Pi Shi, but I did not send any generals to help them; Ma Chao came from afar and was exhausted, but I did not take advantage of his predicament and humbly yielded to the Commandant of the Capital Region.

In this world today, heroes fight over trivial matters, causing the people to suffer and starving to death. I do not wish to see the people of Hedong suffer, so I have established military farms in the Fen River Valley to support the people.

I will not stay in the Fenhe Valley for long. I will reclaim wasteland here, and the beneficiaries will also be the people of Jiangyi. How could the Sili Commandant not know my profound intentions?

My agreement with Ma Chao is a gentleman's agreement. The Commandant of Sili should remember Mengde's kindness in recognizing and rewarding me, and should only act as a witness, not to interfere. He should not meddle any further.

If you still have doubts, you can ask Mengde.

That's my intention; please reply quickly.

"What does Liu Bei mean by this? Is he trying to deceive me?" Zhong Yao's eyes darkened.

He repeatedly refers to Cao Cao as Mengde and cites past events, seemingly in a humble tone, but actually subtly questioning Zhong Yao: Are you really Cao Cao's confidant? I've been so modest, yet you're still pressing me? Could you actually be a spy planted by Yuan Shao under Cao Cao? Otherwise, why are you constantly sabotaging your teammates?
Fu Gan hurriedly took the cloth and looked at it. After seeing the contents, Fu Gan felt a bang in his head and exclaimed in astonishment, "According to Liu Bei's intentions, he deliberately surrendered to Yuan Shao in the north, but in reality, he was conspiring with Sikong to kill Yuan Shao?"

Zhang Ji's speculation had already shocked Fu Gan, but Liu Bei's secret letter now shocked him even more.

Zhang Ji's impact was no less than that of Zhong Yao and Fu Gan.

Zhang Ji initially guessed that Liu Bei wanted to take advantage of the conflict between Yuan Shao and Cao Cao to reap the benefits, but after reading Liu Bei's secret letter, Zhang Ji became less confident in his previous guess.

Following the line of thought that Liu Bei conspired with Cao Cao against Yuan Shao: everything Liu Bei said made sense, while Zhong Yao was constantly obstructing Liu Bei.

Liu Bei had already established military farms in Jiangyi, so Zhong Yao turned a blind eye and simply sent some troops to raise flags.

As a result, Zhong Yao persuaded Ma Teng and Han Sui to send troops, rushed from Hongnong to aid Pi Shi, and levied corvée labor and taxes in various counties, exhausting the people. He also secretly released Guo Yuan, Hu Chuquan, and Deng Sheng to Hebei, all in an attempt to make Liu Bei a target of Yuan Shao's suspicion.

No matter how you look at it, Zhong Yao seems more like a spy planted by Yuan Shao next to Cao Cao.

Seeing Zhang Ji looking at him with suspicion, Zhong Yao glared at him and said in a low voice, "Is De Rong doubting me?"

"The Commandant of Sili has misunderstood. Liu Bei has always been cunning, and this letter may not be true." Zhang Ji quickly denied it, but in fact, there had been a moment just now when Zhang Ji doubted Zhong Yao.

After pondering for a moment, Fu Gan suggested, "Regardless of whether what Liu Bei said in his letter is true or false, sending a letter at this time must be for a purpose. We should wait and see."

Zhang Ji echoed, "I think so too. The situation is unclear at the moment, so we should remain unchanged in the face of all changes. The Commandant of the Capital Region sent a battle report to Xuchang earlier, so the Minister of Works should have received it by now. If Liu Bei and the Minister of Works have a private agreement, the Minister of Works will definitely send a messenger on horseback to deliver the order. There is no need to rush in the next few days."

Zhong Yao strolled to the crenellations, looked at Huang Zhong who was still standing below the city walls, and suddenly shouted, "If you're not leaving, is there anything else you want to convey?"

Huang Zhong shouted in response: "General Zuo told me to wait here for your reply. You can give me a verbal message or write it back to me."

Zhang Ji whispered a reminder: "This matter should not be publicized, lest it ruin the Grand Commandant's grand plan. The Commandant of the Capital Region can write back to Liu Bei, but the content should not be too explicit, lest Liu Bei use it to sow discord and arouse the Grand Commandant's suspicion."

Zhong Yao took a deep breath, frowned and snorted coldly: "Perfect, I also want to test what Liu Bei is really thinking."

　Chapter 1 is here! Requesting monthly votes at the end of the month. If I get 1000 monthly votes, I'll continue updating 10,000 words daily next month.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)