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

Chapter 46 Before even meeting Zhuge Liang, he had already fallen into his trap.

Cao Cao fell silent.

In fact, before the expedition, Xun Yu, Guo Jia and others had advised Cao Cao not to waste his energy on Liu Bei, but to focus on Yuan Shao.

However, Cao Cao insisted that Liu Bei posed too great a threat, and if he could not be eliminated, it would inevitably affect his confrontation with Yuan Shao.

Unexpectedly, Liu Bei was well-prepared and did not give Cao Cao a single chance to question him.

But now that they've come all this way, Cao Cao is truly unwilling to turn back!
a long time.

Cao Cao made a decision: "Zixiao, you lead the cavalry to continue along the direction of Donghai and Langya. If you encounter Zhuge Liang, you can ask him to tell Liu Bei: I have something to say, let's talk face to face."

Cao Ren understood.

Although Cao Cao did not say it explicitly, he was actually already considering withdrawing his troops.

Just as Cao Ren had thought.

After Cao Ren left, Cao Cao summoned Xiahou Yuan, who was in charge of the rear army, and gave him most of his elite troops, ordering him to rush to Baima day and night.

Subsequently.

Cao Cao left some infantrymen in Feng County to guard the supplies and provisions, and sent someone to deliver an appointment letter to Yuan Huan, the Southern Commandant of Pei State, ordering Yuan Huan to temporarily act as the Governor of Xu Province.

Although Yuan Huan had served under Liu Bei, Cao Cao knew Yuan Huan's character.

Yuan Huan had his own set of principles: respect the emperor, honor the feudal lords, and fulfill one's duties in one's position.

Therefore.

Yuan Huan was initially recommended by Liu Bei as a talented scholar, and he devoted himself wholeheartedly to Liu Bei's recruitment efforts.

Later, Liu Bei was betrayed by Lü Bu, and his officers and soldiers scattered.

Yuan Huan sought refuge in the Jianghuai region and was employed by Yuan Shu, where he continued to work diligently.

Later, Yuan Huan followed Yuan Shu in his campaign against Lü Bu, was captured by Lü Bu, and was subsequently employed by Lü Bu, where he also devoted himself wholeheartedly to his duties.

Lu Bu wanted Yuan Huan to criticize Liu Bei, and Yuan Huan said, "I used to follow General Liu, and now that I'm following you, I'll criticize General Liu. After I leave, I'll turn around and criticize you, General Lu, is that alright?"

After Lü Bu was killed by Cao Cao, Yuan Huan was employed by Cao Cao again and continued to do his best.

Yuan Huan didn't care at all about his frequent changes of masters. As soon as he was employed by Cao Cao, he advised Cao Cao to be benevolent and not to mistreat the people.

For Yuan Huan, as long as he did not harm the interests of his former master, he was not considered to have betrayed his master.

Yuan Huan broke away from Liu Bei because Liu Bei was no match for Lü Bu, and he fled from the chaos of the army to Huainan.

Yuan Huan broke away from Yuan Shu because Yuan Shu was no match for Lü Bu, which led to Yuan Huan being captured by Lü Bu.

Yuan Huan broke away from Lü Bu because Lü Bu was no match for Cao Cao, which led to Yuan Huan's capture by Cao Cao.

Even after leaving his former master, Yuan Huan never spoke ill of him.

It was precisely because Yuan Huan upheld righteousness and morality that Cao Cao dared to appoint him as the Southern Commandant of Pei State.

Historical records state that before Liu Bei rebelled against Cao Cao, he first went to the southern part of Pei State to find Yuan Huan, hoping that Yuan Huan would join him in the uprising.

Yuan Huan believed that since he had already served Cao Cao, he could not betray him and was unwilling to join Liu Bei in rebellion; at the same time, Yuan Huan was grateful for Liu Bei's past kindness and was unwilling to become Liu Bei's enemy.

Liu Bei respected Yuan Huan and chose to respect Yuan Huan's wishes.

The county magistrate of Zhi, Qin Yilu, was different. He was first provoked to rebel against Cao Cao by Zhang Fei's words, "Your wife was taken by Cao Cao, and you still want to be Cao Cao's county magistrate? That's too cowardly." As a result, Qin Yilu regretted it after walking a few miles and was eventually beheaded by Zhang Fei.

Cao Cao thus held Yuan Huan in even higher esteem for his adherence to principles of righteousness.

Besides believing that Yuan Huan would not betray him and join Liu Bei, Cao Cao also wanted to restrain Liu Bei by appointing Yuan Huan as the governor of Xu Province.

Cao Cao was a clever man.

The initial plan to capture Liu Bei was to eliminate the threat swiftly.

Upon realizing he couldn't capture Liu Bei, Cao Cao immediately changed his attitude towards him.

For Cao Cao: With the decisive battle against Yuan Shao imminent, the stability of Yu and Xu was of utmost importance!
Cao Cao didn't want to delve into the cause of Che Zhou's death, since it couldn't have been a natural one anyway.

But Cao Cao was certain that Liu Bei would not kill Yuan Huan! And Cao Cao's "face-to-face talk" with Liu Bei also reflected a change in his attitude towards the pros and cons.

If you can't eliminate the enemy, you must temporarily turn them into friends; this was Cao Cao's consistent approach.

The current situation.

Yuan was strong while Cao was weak.

In order to deal with Yuan Shao, Cao Cao accepted Zhang Xiu's surrender at the end of last year.

It is worth noting that Cao Cao's eldest son, Cao Ang, and his beloved general, Dian Wei, both died because of Zhang Xiu, and Cao Cao's wife, Lady Ding, divorced him because of this.

If it were someone else, not executing Zhang Xiu by slow slicing would be considered merciful.

Cao Cao, however, chose to form a marriage alliance with Zhang Xiu, not only marrying his son Cao Jun to Zhang Xiu's daughter, but also appointing Zhang Xiu as General Yangwu.

Cao Cao understood that in the face of the decisive battle with Yuan Shao, his personal grudge against Zhang Xiu was insignificant! The most important thing was to temporarily turn Zhang Xiu from an enemy into a friend and eliminate any future worries.

Therefore.

After weighing the pros and cons, Cao Cao chose to temporarily make Liu Bei his friend.

Since it's a "misunderstanding," then there's something to talk about!
About a hundred li east of Xiaopei, there is a narrow passage.

Several riders stood at the crossroads, with a large banner bearing the character "Liu" hanging high.

not far away.

Dust flies.

Cao Ren led his cavalry to arrive.

Seeing that the mountainside was steep and the forest dense, providing a strategic location for hiding troops, Cao Ren became alert and ordered his cavalry to halt and form a battle formation.

Before the formation was fully established, several more riders approached.

The leader was none other than Guan Yu!

"I, Guan, have been waiting here for a long time on the orders of Military Advisor Zhuge!"

His arrogant phoenix eyes, the crescent-shaped blade he dragged behind him, and his haughty voice all revealed Guan Yu's formidable power, making him a match for ten thousand men.

Although Guan Yu was gentle and humble in front of Zhuge Liang, he was still the same Guan Yu who looked at people with a sidelong glance in front of Cao Ren.

It's Zhuge Liang again?
How could Zhuge Liang have predicted that I would come here?
Cao Ren subconsciously thought of the strategist Guo Jia, who was equally insightful and seemed to be able to foresee the future.

"Commander Guan, it's been a long time."

"The Grand Commandant ordered me to lead the army eastward, and specifically instructed me: If I encounter Zhuge Liang, I should ask him to tell the Left General that the Grand Commandant has something to say to the Left General in person."

Cao Ren spoke politely.

It wasn't that Cao Ren wanted to be polite, but rather that Cao Cao had temporarily changed his attitude towards Liu Bei and needed Cao Ren to be polite!
[The strategist's prediction was right!] Guan Yu exclaimed inwardly.

After leaving Xiaopei, Zhuge Liang once told Guan Yu: If any of Cao Cao's generals come with us, we will be humble and courteous.

Seeing that Cao Ren was indeed as humble and polite as Zhuge Liang had predicted, Guan Yu was amazed and also put away his arrogant sidelong glances, saying:
“My elder brother has already gone to Pingyuan. How can he possibly speak with the Minister of Works face to face?”

"Lord Cao, I won't waste my breath with you. I have something to say: Even a cornered beast will fight, and a bee or scorpion is venomous, let alone the masses?"

“If we provoke him, my elder brother will no longer go north to teach in Zhuojun, but will go south to Runan to gather the old troops of the Yuan family, unite the remnants of the Yellow Turban army, and conquer the area south of Xudu.”

"Why don't you take a gamble? Will the counties of Runan respond with their utmost loyalty? With my martial prowess and Zhuge Liang's strategic brilliance, can we help my elder brother bring his army to Xuchang? And will the emperor of Xuchang, seeing my elder brother's army arrive, coordinate an attack from within?"

Cao Ren was immediately horrified.

Runan was not only ravaged by the Yellow Turbans, but also home to a large number of Yuan family's former followers and officials. If Liu Bei were to march south to Runan, it would pose a significant threat to Cao Cao!

In addition, Liu Bei was renowned, Guan Yu was brave, Zhuge Liang was wise, and the emperor was righteous, so Cao Ren really didn't dare to gamble recklessly!
Guan Yu's threat was simple and direct: If you dare to utter another word, I'd rather kill eight hundred enemies and lose a thousand of my own than let you die.

　At the beginning of the month, I'm asking for monthly votes. [My book dropped off the new book chart, I'm heartbroken.]

　　
　
(End of this chapter)