Three Kingdoms: I, Yuan Shu, Loyal Officials of the Han Dynasty

Chapter 38 Defeating the Allied Forces of the Princes is as easy as turning one's hand.

Yanzhou, Juancheng.

The cold wind, carrying rain and snow, pounded against the creaking windows, making even the flickering candlelight tremble.

The flickering light revealed a handsome face. He was dressed in a black cloak, sitting upright at his desk, his eyes gentle and deep as he gazed at the report in his hand. The cloud patterns on his sleeves rose and fell as he reviewed the report, like clouds rolling and unrolling.

The bamboo slips that had been reviewed on the desk were piled up like mountains, while minor officials outside continued to come and go, bringing in newly submitted memorials.

Ordinary people would be overwhelmed by the sheer volume of government affairs, but with every gesture he made, he issued and dispatched various decrees, calming the tense situation of being besieged from four directions.

Suddenly, he heard the door open slightly. He put down the bamboo slips and looked up to see three people wearing straw raincoats and hats, walking slowly into the room amidst the wind and snow.

The man in the lead coughed lightly, removed his straw hat, revealing a pale, sickly face, and said with a smile:

"Wenruo, thank you for your trouble these past few days."

The two people beside him also took off their bamboo hats; they were Xun You and Cheng Yu.

Seeing that there were only three people, Xun Yu's eyes flashed with disappointment, but he didn't pay much attention to it and just focused on handling government affairs, distracting himself from talking to them.

The Huainanzi says: "Those who are good at swimming drown, and those who are good at riding fall. Each of them brings disaster upon themselves because of their own preferences."

Today, all the feudal lords of the world have risen up to attack us. We cannot defeat them by force. Even those who are good at using strategies may die by their own schemes.

Why take risks when you have the ambition and talent?

“What Wenruo said, how could I not know it?”
However, wealth and honor are found in danger; with the emperor in hand, the lord's great cause can be accomplished.

Now that His Majesty is heading east to Luoyang, this is a once-in-a-millennium opportunity, and perhaps the only chance for the Lord to survive.

If I don't seize this opportunity, it might delay things further. You know I don't have time.

"you"

Xun Yu wanted to advise him again, but those who achieve great things are not judged by temporary success or failure; they should plan carefully.

However, considering Xi Zhicai's health, and knowing that she couldn't persuade him this time, she could only sigh.

"Very well, since our lord did not return with us, you must have a plan to repel the enemy. We should do our best to help you. Please tell us."

Xi Zhicai, accompanied by Xun You and Cheng Yu, arrived at Xun Yu's desk, where he displayed a map hidden in his sleeve and offered guidance to everyone.

"The allied forces of the feudal lords marched out from four directions, with an army of nearly 280,000, seemingly the strongest in the world and unmatched."

Just like the old story of the anti-Dong Zhuo coalition, there are hidden crises beneath the alliance. We cannot confront them head-on now; we must defeat them from within!

He pointed to the area north of the river where Wen Chou's army was stationed, and began to recount his story, accompanied by coughing sounds.

"Among the warlords, Yuan Shao is the most powerful, but he can send cavalry from Bingzhou to welcome the emperor, unlike Yuan Shu and Liu Bei who are determined to defeat our army."

Now I order Wen Chou to deploy 120,000 troops north of the Yellow River, firstly to intimidate and force our lord to abandon the emperor and return to his aid;
Secondly, it was to confuse and appease the feudal lords.

Yuan Shu, Liu Bei, and others were blocked on their way to Luoyang and had no choice but to fight a decisive battle with our army in the Yan and Yu regions.

At this time, if Yuan Shao were to sit back and reap the benefits in the north and welcome the emperor, he would likely bring disaster upon himself, and I would instead persuade the other warlords to join forces against him.

Thirdly, Yuan Shao was unwilling to be the first to engage in battle with our army, thus depleting his own strength and allowing the other warlords to benefit.

Therefore, although Yuan Shao's army was large, its real intention was to seize the emperor, and its fighting spirit was the weakest.

Wen Chou is currently repairing weapons and building many boats north of the Yellow River. He is waiting for us and the other lords to be exhausted before leading his full-strength army across the Yellow River to conquer Yan and Yu in one fell swoop.

Therefore, Yuan Shao is a man who would risk his life for the sake of the emperor's interests, but would cherish his life for the greater good of the alliance of warlords. He is truly not a threat.

To defeat them, one could spread rumors that Yuan Shao had left Bingzhou to welcome the emperor, thus sowing discord among the warlords.

Secondly, we should order Cao Ren to lead 30,000 troops to guard the area south of the Yellow River. If Yuan Shao crosses the river, we should attack him halfway across, which should be able to hold off the enemy for a while and buy us time.

Thirdly

His voice was weak, and after struggling to speak this far, he could no longer hold on and hunched over, coughing violently.

Cheng Yu gently patted his back, took the map, pointed to the four provinces of Ji, Qing, You, and Bing, and then said, "Thirdly, Yuan Shao started his rebellion from Bohai, swallowed up the land of four provinces, raised a million troops, and seemed to sweep across the north, with overwhelming power and no one to rival him."

In reality, it's like a snake trying to swallow an elephant—it's riddled with internal troubles!

Gongsun Zan of Youzhou was trapped in Yijing, but his strength remained.

Although Tian Kai of Qingzhou was marginalized and his influence gradually diminished, he still had a chance to fight back.
The Xiongnu in Bingzhou are greedy and fickle; they have only been appeased temporarily. If they are offered great benefits, they will surely rebel.

Zhang Yan of Jizhou is a bandit from the Black Mountain. Now that he has no food for the winter, how can he not come down the mountain to plunder?

After Cheng Yu finished speaking, he bowed and said, "I will go north to persuade them of these four things, so that the four provinces will be thrown into chaos and Yuan Shao's army will collapse without a fight."

The three watched him turn and leave, then returned his bow.

Xi Zhicai wiped the blood from his lips with a handkerchief, then pointed to the map again, mentioning Yuan Shu, Liu Bei, and Lü Bu one by one, and spoke slowly.

"These three can be defeated one by one."

Now, our army has been led by our lord to send 10,000 cavalry to welcome the emperor, and the rest of the troops have been mobilized from across the entire territory, totaling approximately 90,000 soldiers.

Cao Ren is stationed south of the Yellow River, and his forces number 30,000; he should not be moved lightly.

The remaining 60,000 men, even if they simply hold their ground, given the vast size of Yan and Yu provinces, would find it difficult to withstand a combined attack from the other states.

Only by concentrating superior forces, avoiding the strong and attacking the weak, and avoiding the real and attacking the unreal!
Lü Bu had fewer than seven thousand soldiers and only a few generals; he was a petty and unrighteous man.

All we need to do is launch a crushing attack with 30,000 troops, inflicting a devastating defeat on them, and they will surely be tempted to turn back.

After that

Before he could finish speaking, Xun You turned and left.

"Then they used Xuzhou as a lure!"

Compared to a full-scale battle against my superior forces, Xuzhou in the rear is almost completely unprepared for Lü Bu, making it as easy as taking candy from a baby.

This matter is easy, but Lü Bu is unparalleled in this era, so I must lead Dian Wei and his entourage.”

He bowed again to Xun You as he left, leaving only the two of them sitting facing each other by candlelight, smiling at each other. Xun Yu nodded slightly.

"No need for further explanation, I already understand."

I led 10,000 men under Yu Jin to temporarily hold off Liu Bei for a period of time.

"Once we wait for Gongda to succeed and news of Xuzhou's change of hands arrives, Liu Bei will undoubtedly be defeated, and all lost territory can be recovered."

He gazed intently at his frail old friend before him, his eyes filled with worry.

"Yuan Gonglu led 100,000 troops northward, but now only 20,000 remain. Yingchuan is not like the area north and south of the Yellow River, which has natural defenses. How can Zhicai stop him?"

"I have heard that those who are good at fighting, whether in ancient or modern times, will either preserve the land or lose the people, or preserve the people but lose the land. Therefore, they will preserve both the land and the people and will not contend with the gains or losses of a single place or time."

Yuan Shu is too powerful to be defeated by force. Since he wants to take Yingchuan, I will give Yingchuan to him.

In contrast, Luoyang was burned to the ground by Dong Zhuo, leaving the people impoverished and everything in ruins.

Now we should fortify our defenses and clear the fields, and before Yuan Shu arrives, relocate all the people of Yingchuan to Luoyang.

At that time, I will lead the remaining 20,000 troops with Xiahou Dun to defend Xu County, Yangdi, Yangcheng and Xuanyuan Pass.

These three locations, connected by a single pass, form a line that can block Yuan Shu from entering Sili and advancing on Luoyang to the north, and guard the gateway to Yanzhou to the east, connecting Yanzhou and Sili, so as to prevent the lord from being cut off from his return route while welcoming the emperor.

"If that's the case, although we've lost most of Yingchuan, I have a clever plan to incite internal strife within Yuan Shu. Once you've pacified the other three warlords, you can come back and reclaim the lost territory with me."

Amidst coughs, he put his straw hat back on, his steps faltering yet resolute, forging ahead against the swirling snow.

"If that's true, defeating the allied forces of 280,000 princes would be as easy as turning one's hand."

(End of this chapter)