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

Chapter 249 Zhuge Liang secretly invites Xu You to Liaodong, Yuan Shao intends to resign (1st update)
Although Xu You had expressed his support for Yuan Tan, it was merely a temporary measure.

At that time, Yuan Shang insisted on killing Xu You in order to please Shen Pei, so Xu You had no choice but to temporarily support Yuan Tan in order to protect himself.

However, Xu You never truly sided with any of Yuan Shao's sons!
In Xu You's view, Yuan Shao was in his prime, and supporting his son at this time was tantamount to putting the cart before the horse, or even going against the natural order.

Since ancient times, the struggle for succession has been fraught with uncertainty while the ruler is still alive.

Even though there were rules such as "establishing the eldest son as heir, not the most virtuous, and establishing the son of noble birth, not the eldest son," the real decision-making power still rested with the ruler.

If the ruler lives a long life, the greatest threat is often not external enemies, but his own son.

Therefore, while Shen Pei, Feng Ji, Guo Tu, Xin Ping and others openly supported Yuan Shang or Yuan Tan, Xu You's attention remained fixed on Yuan Shao.

As long as Yuan Shao's ambition remained, his sons would not be able to seize the Yuan family's legacy.

Today, I am offering three suggestions to Yuan Shao, but in reality, I am also testing whether Yuan Shao still harbors ambitions to contend for supremacy.

The result of the test left Xu You deeply disappointed.

Although Yuan Shao was not old, his mind was already old and decrepit.

Yuan Shao hesitated on the first path because he couldn't let go of the honor of being a member of a family that had held high office for four generations, and he was unwilling to bow down to his former subordinate.

The second option, which Yuan Shao hesitated on, was simply because he lacked the courage to go to Liaodong and suffer hardships.

The third option was simply surrendering to Liu Bei in a more dignified way, and it was not fundamentally different from the first option.

Since Yuan Shao had no ambition, Xu You had no choice but to find another way out.

In Hebei, many want to kill Xu You. If no plans are made soon, Xu You will surely die at the hands of Yuan Shang, Shen Pei, and others.

Xu You didn't want to die yet; in this chaotic world, preserving his life was his primary concern.

Back at his residence, Xu You took out a letter from a hidden compartment. It had been secretly delivered by Zhuge Liang a few days earlier.

The letter contained only a few words, asking Xu You if he intended to go to Liaodong to avoid disaster. If he was willing to go, Zhuge Liang could provide him with money, food, and guards.

How shrewd was Xu You?

Although Zhuge Liang did not make any demands, the more he did so, the greater his demands seemed.

Gongsun Du, a powerful figure in Liaodong, traveled overseas, attracting many people from the Central Plains to seek refuge in Liaodong, such as Guan Ning, Bing Yuan, Wang Lie, and Guo Yuan from Beihai. In addition, a large number of refugees poured into Liaodong, bringing with them agricultural techniques, which greatly increased Liaodong's grain production.

Under Gongsun Du's rule, there were rumors in Liaodong that "the strong do not bully the weak, the powerful do not oppress the lonely and widowed, and merchants treat everyone fairly in the market, young and old." Compared to the turbulent Central Plains, this made the region extremely popular with scholars and commoners.

However, Gongsun Du was not content with just a small corner of the world. After his power gradually increased, he had someone pretend to be a deity and buried a large stone in the place where the local earth god was worshipped. The stone was shaped like the crown stone of Emperor Xuan of Han.

He then proclaimed himself Marquis of Liaodong and Governor of Pingzhou, built temples for the two ancestors of the Han Dynasty, set up an altar south of Xiangping City according to ancient customs, worshipped Heaven and Earth in the suburbs, held a ceremony of personally plowing the fields, reviewed the army, rode in a magnificent carriage with nine ribbons of banners erected in front of the carriage, and the honor guard carried flags decorated with yak tails, while cavalrymen wearing feather headdresses galloped to protect him.

Like an emperor!
Upon careful consideration, Xu You could guess Zhuge Liang's general intentions, which were nothing more than coveting the strategic resources of Liaodong.

Resources such as scholars, defeated soldiers and refugees, high-quality warhorses, salt fields, and mines were available, but Zhuge Liang could not directly conquer Liaodong and could not use force to demand that Gongsun Du offer up resources.

Since force was not an option, he had to rely on intellect. However, Liu Bei already lacked strategists and was unable to send another one to Liaodong to devise a plan.

Therefore, Zhuge Liang took a liking to Xu You and was very clear about Xu You's predicament.

Yuan Shang and Xu You cannot submit.

Xu You was unwilling to submit to Yuan Tan. He hadn't even considered Yuan Xi or Yuan Mai.

The only person Xu You could pledge allegiance to was Liu Bei!
As Yuan Shao's prestige declined, many talented and ambitious people wanted to join Liu Bei.

If Xu You wants to stand out, he must make great contributions.

Relying on one's status as a former subordinate of Yuan Shao and acting arrogantly based on seniority would be absolutely unacceptable under Liu Bei, whose core decision-making team was not lacking in strategists like Xu You.

If Xu You wanted to make great contributions, he had no choice but to accept Zhuge Liang's invitation to go to Liaodong. This was also one of the ways Xu You could avoid disaster and save his life.

After reading the contents of the letter again, Xu You put it back.

Now is not the right time to go to Liaodong.

Xu You needed to wait for Yuan Shao to make his final decision before he could carefully plan his future path.

After Xu You proposed three paths to Yuan Shao, Yuan Shao locked himself in his inner room and refused to see anyone, even Liu Shi.

When Yuan Shao came out of the inner room, he was different from usual, giving people a sense of relief.

Yuan Shao summoned Xu You again and told him his final decision: "I have decided to resign from the position of Grand General and no longer supervise the military and political affairs of Hebei."

Looking at Yuan Shao's relaxed and carefree expression, Xu You couldn't help but recall Yuan Shao twenty years ago, who was just as relaxed and carefree, displaying the demeanor of a noble scion.

“Benchu, it’s easy to step down, but it’s very difficult to take it back,” Xu You said, looking directly at Yuan Shao.

Yuan Shao chuckled lightly: "Just as Ziyuan said before, how many counties and prefectures can I still control in Hebei? Youzhou is already controlled by Liu Bei, Qingzhou by Xiansi, Jizhou by Xianfu, and Bingzhou by Yuancai. My orders probably can't even leave Lunu City now. What is there to be attached to?"

There was a pause.

Yuan Shao continued, “I have carefully considered the three paths Ziyuan mentioned. If I were to cede Hebei to Liu Bei, how would my sons react? If Liu Bei truly has the destiny to contend with Cao Cao for the world, he would surely have enough ability to deter those who are not convinced and would not repeat the mistakes of Xuzhou.”

"Where does Yuan Shao intend to go after he steps down?" Xu You asked again, seeing that Yuan Shao had figured it out.

Yuan Shao glanced eastward, a hint of nostalgia in his eyes: "I originally intended to return to my old residence in Runan, but given the current situation, Cao Cao would certainly not allow me to go. So I will stay at my old residence in Bohai for a while."

“Perfect timing. I also need to go to Zhuojun, so I will go with Yuan Shao.” Xu You did not hide Zhuge Liang’s secret letter and said frankly, “Zhuge Liang intends to establish diplomatic relations with Liaodong. I am preparing to go to Liaodong to facilitate this matter.”

Yuan Shao sighed softly: "It is my fault that I was unable to let Ziyuan enjoy wealth and honor. It is good that you go to Liaodong. After I step down as Grand General, I will no longer be able to protect you. If you stay in the Central Plains, your fate is uncertain."

Because there was no deliberate attempt to conceal it, Liu heard Yuan Shao and Xu You's conversation clearly, which terrified her.

"A retired general?"

"Give Hebei to Liu Bei?"

"How can this be?"

Strong doubts churned in Liu's mind. After years of hard work, he thought he could smoothly let Yuan Shang inherit the Yuan family's legacy. Unexpectedly, first Yuan Tan competed for it, then Yuan Xi refused to accept it, and then Liu Bei suddenly appeared to compete for Hebei.

"We must inform Xianfu immediately!"

　First update is here! (I'm going out today, so the next update will be later this afternoon.)

　　
　
(End of this chapter)