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

Chapter 248 Yuan Shao is old, Xu You actually suggests emulating Tao Qian (5th update)
Yuan Shao fell silent.

Yuan Shao had considered the question raised by Xu You.

After sending Yuan Shang and Yuan Tan to fight Cao Cao to prove who was more qualified to succeed him, Yuan Shao had considered this possibility many times.

Yuan Shao had been a figure who had been involved in both official and civilian affairs for over twenty years.

Yuan Shao had seen far too many cases of the fate of those who lost power, and their descendants.

Take General He Jin, for example. After he was beheaded by the Ten Attendants, almost none of his relatives, friends, or nephews met a good end.

The only ones who survived were He Jin's daughter-in-law, Madam Yin, and his grandson, He Yan.

However, it wasn't that the mother and son had any extraordinary talent to turn the tide; it was simply that Cao Cao was attracted to Lady Yin's beauty and her status as the daughter-in-law of a great general, and took her as a concubine.

Otherwise, Lady Yin and her son would also perish in the chaos of war.

Han Fu, whose Ji Province was seized by Yuan Shao, had his eldest son's leg broken, and Han Fu himself hid in the toilet and committed suicide with a book knife used to scrape bamboo slips; Gongsun Zan, who was once extremely powerful, set himself on fire at Yijing Tower.

Once Yuan Shao also completely loses power, his fate will not be much better than others.

"What are your thoughts, Ziyuan?"

Instead of directly stating his thoughts, Yuan Shao asked Xu You a question.

At this moment, Yuan Shao was in a state of indecision and confusion, and was unable to make a decision on his own.

Seeing Yuan Shao, who was once full of vigor, dared to raise loyal followers, and dared to challenge the world, now living in his twilight years, Xu You couldn't help but sigh inwardly.

Three roads.

Xu You raised three fingers, his tone becoming serious. During this time, Xu You had also carefully considered Yuan Shao's future.

"The first condition is to make peace with Cao Cao and cede Hebei to him. Whether out of consideration for past friendship or to appease the people of Hebei, Cao Cao would have to grant Yuan Shao a nominal position among the Three Dukes. In this way, all power in the north would fall into Cao Cao's hands, and the Yuan family would become a family that holds the Three Dukes position for five generations. From then on, Yuan Shao and his descendants would only need to stay away from military affairs and, like the Yang family of Hongnong, write books and establish doctrines. By degrading Yuan Shao alone, they could preserve the entire Yuan family. Later, they could intermarry with the Cao family, and then the Yuan and Cao families would become as inseparable as the Xiahou and Cao families."

If Xu You's first escape route for Yuan Shao succeeds, it could end the years of war in the north ahead of schedule, and also end the chaos of warlord conflicts ahead of schedule.

If this is true, Xu You would also be recorded in history.

However, getting Yuan Shao to lower himself to Cao Cao's level was even more difficult than killing Yuan Shao.

If Yuan Shao had been willing to swallow his pride, he could have surrendered immediately after the Battle of Guandu, instead of stubbornly holding out for a year and still hesitating.

Taking a deep breath, Yuan Shao completely ignored Xu You's first suggestion and asked, "What about the second option?"

Xu You seemed to have guessed that Yuan Shao wouldn't choose the first path, and merely shrugged slightly before speaking again: "The second option is to abandon Hebei, flee to Liaodong, and replace Gongsun Du. Even if you can't become emperor in the Central Plains, you can still become king in Liaodong. In this way, Yuan Shao can preserve the Yuan clan, launch campaigns against Goguryeo in the east, attack the Wuhuan in the west, and conquer the various barbarians in Liaodong in the south. He can also recruit talented people, establish schools, attract refugees, and extend his influence overseas. In the future, after the Central Plains falls into chaos, he can also cross the sea to seize the counties of Donglai and make a comeback!"

Compared to the first option of compromise, Xu You's second option was filled with murderous intent.

Although Yuan Shao's power and prestige are not what they used to be, a Yuan Shao in his prime, along with Xu You's wisdom and the civil and military talents such as Yan Liang and Wen Chou, still has a great chance of defeating Gongsun Du.

however.

Yuan Shao was a man who was outwardly fierce but inwardly cowardly, and who was good at scheming but indecisive; he was afraid to risk his life when undertaking great tasks, and he would forget righteousness when faced with small gains.

When Cao Cao and Liu Bei discussed heroes over wine, they used the dragon as a metaphor for the heroes of the world. The dragon can be large or small, can rise or hide; when large, it stirs up clouds and mists, when small, it hides its form; when rising, it soars through the universe, when hiding, it lurks within the waves.

Just like a hero, he is flexible and adaptable. Even in adversity, he can humble himself and wait for the right time.

If one is truly a hero, one would surely adopt Xu You's second path: to retreat in order to advance, to humble oneself and hold one's ground in Liaodong, and to wait for the opportune moment.

But a pity.

Yuan Shao was not a hero.

Although Xu You's second option sounded exciting, Yuan Shao had already lost the courage to launch an eastern expedition to Liaodong.

Yuan Shao still did not express his opinion on Xu You's second option, but instead directly asked Xu You about the third option.

The third point, Xu You said, was more complicated: "Imitate Tao Qian."

Yuan Shao suddenly looked up and met Xu You's gaze. His eyes flashed with a chilling light: "Ziyuan, do you want me to hand over Hebei to Liu Bei?"

Xu You sighed softly: "Benchu, how many counties and prefectures in Hebei can you still control now? To put it nicely, you're handing Hebei over to Liu Bei; to put it bluntly, you're just gaining a reputation. Just like Tao Qian, who claimed to have ceded Xuzhou, but in reality only gave up the devastated Xiapi, and even his Danyang soldiers didn't listen to Liu Bei. Tao Qian, a crude and uncouth warrior, still earned the reputation of 'ceding Xuzhou three times.' How can your reputation be inferior to Tao Qian's, given that you come from the Yuan family, a family that has held high office for four generations?"

"In this world, if Yuan Shao cannot defeat Cao Cao, then only Liu Bei can contend with him; and Liu Bei has an innate advantage over Cao Cao. That is, Liu Bei's surname is Liu, and he is a descendant of Emperor Gaozu of Han! In the past, Wang Mang usurped the Han throne, and Emperor Guangwu, as a descendant of Emperor Gaozu, rose up in Hebei, swept away all the warlords and gained the world, thus ensuring the continuation of the Han Dynasty for four hundred years. If Liu Bei can also extend the Han Dynasty like Emperor Guangwu, then Yuan Shao's good name will surely be recorded in the annals of history; in this way, he will neither have to go to the Liaodong frontier nor have to bow down to Cao Cao, the descendant of a eunuch."

Xu You understood Yuan Shao.

The fact that Yuan Shao placed emulating Tao Qian as the last point was also based on his prideful nature.

For Yuan Shao, face was more important than life and death.

Yuan Shao lowered his head and remained silent.

Xu You's three paths were all difficult choices for Yuan Shao.

Yuan Shao lost face by being subordinate to Cao Cao.

Going to Liaodong to become king is a dangerous process. If one is not careful and is killed by Gongsun Du, it would be even more humiliating.

Following Tao Qian's example and ceding Hebei to Liu Bei, Yuan Shao would still be subordinate to Liu Bei, but Liu Bei was surnamed Liu and a descendant of Emperor Gaozu. Yuan Shao could completely let Liu Bei inherit his ambition to restore the Han Dynasty and kill the traitor Cao Cao.

Although Yuan Shao secretly hoped to one day usurp the throne from the Han dynasty, at least for now, his official slogan was still to restore the Han dynasty and eliminate the traitor Cao Cao.

As long as Yuan Shao doesn't rush to declare himself emperor like the Skeleton King after acquiring the imperial seal, Yuan Shao will be a subject of the Han Dynasty. If Liu Bei truly becomes emperor and is able to revive the Han Dynasty three times, Yuan Shao will be a loyal subject of the Han Dynasty.

As for the process?

The winner takes all, the loser is condemned, and no one cares about the process!
Xu You did not disturb Yuan Shao's contemplation.

Even if three options were proposed, given Yuan Shao's nature, he would not be able to make a decision immediately.

Yuan Shao couldn't make a decision without taking three to five days, or even half a month.

Silently leaving the room, Xu You's eyes gleamed: "Benchu ​​has already lost the right to compete with Cao Cao. Shen Pei, Feng Ji, Guo Tu, and Xin Ping have all found new masters. I also need to consider the future."

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(End of this chapter)