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

Chapter 67 Big-eared thief, you dare!
On that day, due to Liu Bei's withdrawal, Xun You was able to free up his forces and led 20,000 troops to provide reinforcements, while Xun Yu led the remaining troops to garrison Yanzhou in preparation for any eventuality.

Xu County, which was on the verge of collapse and was about to fall within a few days, was thus stabilized and secured.

Yuan Shu then heard from his soldiers that Ji Ling's offensive in Yuzhou had also been thwarted, and Guan Yu was the one who had deployed his troops to confront him. The remaining territories of Liang, Chen, and Pei had all been occupied by Liu Bei.

His gaze turned cold, and he cursed.

"You big-eared scoundrel, I wondered where Xi Zhicai got his reinforcements, but it turns out you betrayed your alliance and defected to Cao Cao."

At this moment, someone reported that General Ji Ling had sent someone to bring a man named Jian Yong, who was said to be an envoy of Liu Bei.

Yuan Shu laughed upon hearing this, and said to everyone:

“This big-eared thief seized my prefecture and county for no reason, and he still has the nerve to send an envoy to criticize me.”
Let us all see what else he has to say.

In the central command tent, Yuan Shu sat in the highest seat, looking down at the ministers inside.

When Jian Yong entered, he slightly raised his eyes and saw that in the candlelight, his unfathomable face showed no joy or anger, only that indifferent and cold voice seemed to come from the clouds.

"Your lord Liu Bei was originally a humble and lowly person who wove mats and sold shoes."

I have long heard of his benevolence and virtue, and he has explained the greater principles to me. I address him as a lord and invite him to join the alliance to fight against the traitors and unite as one to restore the Han dynasty.

Does he still remember the promise made in the letter that day that we would serve as Han officials together in front of the Emperor's palace?

How dare you assist a traitor to coerce the emperor, betray the alliance and abandon righteousness, and seize my prefectures and counties for no reason? Is this the behavior of a benevolent person?

"Now that I have summoned you here, do you come to surrender? Do you come to beg for forgiveness?"

As soon as he finished speaking, the military general on the right brandished his sword, while the civil official on the left had a strange look in his eyes. Jian Yong stood alone in the hall, drenched in cold sweat.

The atmosphere in Yuan's camp was very different from that in Liu's camp. In Liu's camp, the lord was always approachable and treated all of them, the civil and military officials, as friends and brothers. Everyone trusted him.

Liu Bei's system of governance was based on relationships and personal connections. People were willing to help him simply because of their feelings for Liu Bei. So even if there were no benefits, even if they had to abandon their families and homes, even if they were at their wits' end, no one would betray him.

However, Jian Yong's impression of Yuan's camp was completely different.

The oppressive atmosphere here felt like an invisible net had been cast, tightly binding and entangling the diverse thoughts, purposes, and interests of the ministers within the tent. The net wove and coalesced, ultimately converging into a single voice and a single will!
He is Yuan Shu, and he is the manifestation of the collective will of the entire Yuan camp!

Under this collective will, even dragons must coil up and tigers must bow down. Even those as talented as Zhou Yu and as brave as Sun Ce were trapped in the net, "willingly" serving Yuan Shao, but ultimately unable to escape.

The entire Yuan camp was like a physical six-horse chariot, with Yuan Shu standing alone on it, his sword drawn, invincible in every attack and battle.

This kind of person, Chen Yuanlong, do you think he is not a wise ruler?
How did such a powerful ruler come to be portrayed as arrogant, short-sighted, and destined to become nothing more than a skeleton in a tomb?
Before you left, you told me that Yuan Gonglu was a scoundrel, ignorant and easily fooled.

This...is this trying to screw me over?

At this moment, facing Yuan Shu directly, Jian Yong felt a chill run down his spine, because he was not facing a single person.

On the high platform, under the flickering candlelight, what was clearly illuminated was a monster that embodied the collective will in one person.

If in Jian Yong's eyes, his lord Liu Bei was no more than a reincarnation of Emperor Gaozu, then the man before him seemed to be the Qin Emperor, who swept across the six kingdoms and had all his subjects.

Please surrender? Please apologize!
Jian Yong lowered his head deeply, forcing himself to calm down, believing himself to be neither humble nor arrogant.

"Lord Yuan, you are wise enough to know that my lord Liu Xuande would never dare to be your enemy."

Now the Han dynasty is in decline and the world is in ruins. If not Lord Yuan, who can bring peace to the world? If not our lord, who will support the Han dynasty? When the General's order arrived, our lord knew of Lord Yuan's loyalty and righteousness and had no doubts. He immediately obeyed the order to punish the traitors, in order to fulfill the agreement that we should be in the same palace as the emperor and acknowledge each other as subjects.

It was clearly Lü Bu who betrayed his lord and defected to Cao Cao, disobeying Yuan Shao's orders and taking advantage of the situation to attack Xuzhou and seize my lord's territory.

My lord has fallen to this state, with no way forward or backward, and no foundation to establish himself. This is not for anyone else, but all because of Yuan Gong.

This is not to blame Lord Yuan, but to show my lord's willingness to lose Xuzhou and spare no effort to help Lord Yuan.

At this critical juncture, I was fortunate to receive the Emperor's wise guidance. He addressed my lord as Imperial Uncle and bestowed upon me the title of Governor of Yuzhou, granting me control over all the prefectures of Yuzhou.

If that is so, my lord would not dare to seize Yuan Gong's prefectures and counties. Instead, we will only attack and occupy the existing territories of Yuzhou under Cao Cao as a foundation for our base, thus fulfilling our alliance against Cao Cao.

My lord also knows that Yuzhou has already fallen into Yuan Shao's hands. At this time, the temporary control of Yuzhou is only due to the circumstances. Now we can draw up a written agreement to borrow Yuzhou for our use.

When we attack Lü Bu and reclaim Xuzhou, we will surely return Yuzhou. My lord Liu Bei is known for his benevolence and integrity, and the world knows this. Lord Yuan need not worry.

In contrast, Cao Cao held the emperor hostage to command the feudal lords, deceiving the emperor and acting like a traitor to the country. All the feudal lords under heaven should unite to attack him.

Our two families have joined forces to raise the banner of attacking Cao Cao. This is an act that aligns with the opportune time, the favorable location, and the popular will.

I earnestly hope that Lord Yuan will prioritize the greater good of the alliance and prevent Cao Cao's scheme of two tigers fighting over the same prey from succeeding. In the land of Yu Province, where the three kingdoms contend, it would be a situation where the snipe and the clam fight, only to allow Cao Cao to reap the benefits. A wise man would not do such a thing.

Jian Yong bowed deeply and remained kneeling for a long time, not daring to rise.

What does Lord Yuan think?

"What a big-eared thief! He lost Xuzhou and is now trying to make up for it here."

Yuan Shu chuckled softly, his gaze fixed intently on Jian Yong, his expression meaningful.

Liu Bei's arrival to borrow Yu Province was indeed unexpected. However, Liu Bei, who currently lacks top-notch strategists, can lose Xu Province just as easily as he gains it, and he can lose Yu Province just as easily as he gains it. He is nothing more than a skeleton in a tomb, and he will be captured sooner or later. He is not worth worrying about.

If Yuzhou said it was borrowed from him, then it really was. When he has the time, he can send troops to take it back.

In contrast, Cao Cao possessed both literary and military talents, and had a gathering of wise men. If he were to gain the emperor's favor, he would be in a completely different league, which was the real threat he was currently facing.

Ideally, this battle would annihilate Cao Cao in one fell swoop. Even if it falls short, we should still inflict a severe blow on him, leaving him unable to rise again for several years.

Right now is not the time for him to withdraw from Xu County, give Cao Cao a chance to catch his breath, and turn around to compete with Liu Bei for Yu Province.

How could Liu Bei seize such an opportunity, snatch food from the tiger's mouth, and pull chestnuts out of the fire? Did he have such a strategist by his side? Who gave him this idea?
This is why I have to weigh the pros and cons and calculate the gains and losses now. If it were the original Yuan Shu, he could have just said, "You big-eared scoundrel, you dare to come and seize my prefectures and counties?" and he would have ordered Ji Ling to send 100,000 troops to crush you on the spot.

As Yuan Shu pondered, he grew increasingly depressed in the hall. Contrary to Jian Yong's expectations, it seemed that none of the wise men Chen Deng had mentioned came to Yuan Shu's camp to offer advice or urge him to prioritize the greater good of the alliance.

Upon hearing the words, "You big-eared scoundrel, you've lost Xuzhou, so you've come here to make up for it,"...

Jian Yong panicked immediately.

He looked at the civil officials on his left and the military officers on his right, and was so anxious that he could hardly sit still.

Where are the wise men? Where are the strategists?
Someone should come and try to persuade them!

It wouldn't be good for either of us if our two families got into a fight, would it?
(End of this chapter)