Brother, stop curling up! You're curling up like the founder of the Han Dynasty!

Chapter 240 Liu Yu's Old Troops in Turmoil, Liu Bei's Superior Strategy of Outwitting His Strategists (Seeking Subscriptions and Monthly Tickets)
Guo Tu ignored Feng Ji's resentment.

If Feng Ji were to die of anger because of this, Guo Tu would be much less troubled.

Guo Tu would be better off spending more time interacting with the civil and military officials at the banquet.

Feng Ji's suspicions were not entirely unfounded.

Although Guo Tu disappeared for three years, he was not under the command of Liu Biao or Zhou Xin, but under the command of Jia Xu.

In the past, Guo Jia advised Liu Bei to persuade Guo Tu to commit suicide in Hebei, and then to use his favor to extract intelligence from Guo Tu.

Liu Bei found Guo Jia's strategy too slow. Just then, Guo Tu and Yuan Si encountered Lü Bu's returning army and were defeated. Guo Tu was also captured alive by Lü Bu.

After that, Liu Bei handed Guo Tu over to Jia Xu.

These past three years have been tough for Guo Tu.

Not only was Jia Xu cunning, but Li Ru, who served under Jia Xu, was equally cunning. Through a combination of kindness and coercion, Guo Tu decisively chose to switch sides and join Liu Bei.

Both Zhong Yao, Xun Yu, and Xun You were former county officials under the governor of Yingchuan, but they all held high positions and wielded great power. Even Guo Jia, a member of the same clan but born out of wedlock, was given important responsibilities, while Guo Tu still accomplished nothing.

To say that he was willing to serve Yuan Shao would be a lie.

Guo Tu felt even more distressed after Liu Bei declared himself emperor.

If Guo Tu had chosen Liu Bei instead of Yuan Shao, he wouldn't be a prisoner now.

Looking at Xu You, who once worked tirelessly for Yuan Shao, he is now the Minister of the Imperial Secretariat and a trusted confidant who can freely enter and leave the palace.

Meanwhile, Zhou Bi, Wu Qiong, Zhang Miao, and others who were also loyal followers of Yuan Shao either died or fled, and none of them fared well.

After three years of dramatic changes in the political landscape, Guo Tu had come to realize that following Liu Bei meant reaping the rewards, while following Yuan Shao meant getting nothing at all.

In particular, Feng Ji's doubts today have strengthened Guo Tu's resolve to serve Liu Bei.

This isn't the first time Guo Tu has acted as an inside man.

Last time, Guo Tu killed Liu Bian in Luoyang.

Both were acts of running errands for others, but running errands for Yuan Shao was fraught with danger and subject to suppression and suspicion from Feng Ji, while running errands for Liu Bei was not only less dangerous but also offered a promising future.

Liu Bei's words still echoed in my ears: I don't need you to tip people off or spy on anyone. I just need you to go to Yuan Shao's side and be his chief strategist, and persuade Yuan Shao to fight me. In the process, you can settle your grievances and avenge your enemies, but don't put yourself in a deadly predicament. What I want is a minister who lives to receive merit, not a dead spy.

Look at these words, and compare them with those of Yuan Shao and Feng Ji; the difference in their abilities is immediately apparent.

In other words, aside from urging Yuan Shao to fight Liu Bei, Guo Tu didn't need to do anything else for Liu Bei. He could even help Yuan Shao set up a trap to ambush Liu Bei. If Liu Bei really fell for Guo Tu's trap, it would be because Liu Bei was too incompetent and Guo Tu was not to blame.

This was far less dangerous than running errands for Yuan Shao.

Just as Guo Tu could justifiably despise Feng Ji, it was because Guo Tu had not attempted to harm Yuan Shao. On the contrary, he boosted the confidence of Yuan Shao and his civil and military officials and reduced their panic.

As for Yuan Shao's inability to defeat Liu Bei in the decisive battle, it was because Yuan Shao and the rest of his civil and military officials were too incompetent, and Guo Tu was not to blame.

The more confident Guo Tu was, the more it proved that he was not Liu Bei's inside man.

Even Feng Ji, who suspected Guo Tu, now only thought that Guo Tu wanted to compete with him for the position of chief strategist.

The next few days.

Guo Tu was doing his best to plan for Yuan Shao, and he pointed out all the problems in Yuan Shao's previous plans and provided improved solutions.

This made Yuan Shao value Guo Tu even more.

However, the more Guo Tu acted this way, the more resentful Feng Ji became.

The problem Guo Tu raised was related to Feng Ji, and Guo Tu even said that "Feng Ji is busy with his affairs, so it must be that his subordinates are not doing their jobs well, which is why Feng Ji has been negligent" and "Feng Ji has limited energy and cannot do everything himself."

In short, in front of Yuan Shao, Guo Tu insisted that Feng Ji was very capable, but that his subordinates were incompetent. As a result, every time Feng Ji questioned Guo Tu, Yuan Shao would refute him and tell Feng Ji not to be prejudiced against Guo Tu, which made Feng Ji so angry that he wanted to draw his sword every time he saw Guo Tu.

What made Feng Ji want to vomit blood the most was that Yuan Shao actually believed Guo Tu's explanation that "the supervisor's subordinates were incompetent" and actually divided the supervisor's position into three parts.

Although Feng Ji still dominates the cast, Chunyu Qiong and Guo Tu have been added to the cast.

The power that was originally held by the supervisory authority, both inside and outside the court, is now divided equally among the three.

If looks could kill, Feng Ji would have killed Guo Tu a thousand times over.

Feng Jiping was arrogant and self-important, and he was also stubborn and only believed in his own ideas. He was unwilling to listen to the opinions of others and was a difficult person to get along with.

When he was the military supervisor, the other civil and military officials could only keep their opinions about Feng Ji to themselves and secretly chat with him.

Now the military supervisor has been divided into three. Yuan Shao originally wanted Guo Tu and Chunyu Qiong to share Feng Ji's military affairs, but the other civil and military officials have taken it a step further.

Many people believe that Feng Ji must have offended Yuan Shao, which is why Yuan Shao appointed Guo Tu and Chunyu Qiong to share the position of military supervisor.

This made Feng Ji even more upset.

This feeling of power being divided made Feng Ji's desire to kill Guo Tu grow stronger.

Unfortunately, Guo Tu was too good at pretending, and Feng Ji couldn't find an opportunity. Instead, he aroused Yuan Shao's dissatisfaction and even rebuked Feng Ji: "People used to say that you were domineering and arrogant, but I didn't believe it. Now I think it must be true."

Feng Ji was so angry that he wanted to just give up and go back to Ye City.

And in Ye City.

The small court supported by Yuan Shao was also in turmoil.

Liu Bei's propaganda offensive eventually made Liu He suspicious of Liu Yu's death.

Liu Yu was the emperor, and he was usually under constant guard. How could he have been assassinated by a Black Mountain bandit?
In particular, the proclamation also contains the line "The one who benefits the most is Yuan Shao". So, who benefits the most from "conspiring to kill He Jin, conspiring to kill Liu Hong, conspiring to kill Yuan Wei and Yuan Ji, conspiring to kill Liu Bian, conspiring to kill Han Fu, and conspiring to kill Liu Yu"?
Clearly, it could only be Yuan Shao!
In this way, the story of "conspiring to kill Liu He and establish himself as emperor" becomes plausible.

Once a ruler becomes suspicious of his ministers, either the minister dies or the ruler perishes.

Because Yuan Shao had too many henchmen, Liu He dared not show any doubt about Yuan Shao. He even beheaded a minister who spoke out of turn during a court assembly and sent his head to Dangyin to show that he had no doubt about Yuan Shao.

It wasn't until Liu Yu's former subordinates, Xianyu Fu, Xianyu Yin, and Qi Zhou, led their troops to Ye City that Liu He dared to confide in them. "Since I ascended the throne, I have had no say in anything. The Grand General has seized power and abused his authority. Every time I see him, I feel like I have thorns in my back. Now, the proclamation I have received terrifies me. If the Grand General defeats Liu Bei, I will surely perish."

Liu He sounded dejected, unsure of what to do next.

He supported Yuan Shao, but was replaced by Yuan Shao.

If he doesn't support Yuan Shao, he'll die at Liu Bei's hands.

Seeing Liu He's puppet-like state, Xianyu Fu had no good solutions and could only try to appease him with kind words.

Back in his tent, Xianyu Fu summoned Qi Zhou, Xianyu Yin, Tian Chou, and Tian Yu to discuss matters. These were all talented individuals from Youzhou who had been instigated by Liu Yu during his time in office.

Tian Chou spoke first: "We have all received great favors from the late emperor, which we must repay! The late emperor's death was suspicious. How could a mere Yellow Turban rebel dare to assassinate him? This is treating us all as fools. If we do not avenge him, we will not be worthy of being called human!"

Qi Zhou, however, said with concern, "That is true, but right now only the General can withstand Liu Bei. If we go after the General because of doubts about the late Emperor's death, it will surely implicate His Majesty and lead to his death. How can we repay the late Emperor's great kindness if we harm His Majesty for a matter of doubt?"

Tian Chou sneered, "Even if the late emperor wasn't murdered by the Grand General's conspiracy, it was His Majesty himself who said that the Grand General monopolized power and made His Majesty powerless in all matters. If the Grand General isn't eliminated, he will surely cause great disaster in the future."

Qi Zhou and Tian Chou disagreed with each other and argued endlessly.

Suddenly, Tian Yu spoke up again: "In the present world, the only ones who can determine the fate of the nation are Liu Bei and Yuan Shao. For Your Majesty's sake, why not surrender to Liu Bei?"

As soon as he finished speaking, Xianyu Fu, Xianyu Yin, and the arguing Qi Zhou and Tian Chou all looked at Tian Yu in astonishment.

Qi Zhou couldn't help but say, "Your Majesty and Liu Bei are irreconcilable enemies. To Your Majesty, Liu Bei is a traitor; to Liu Bei, Your Majesty is a traitor. We can all side with Liu Bei, but Your Majesty cannot. If Your Majesty sides with Liu Bei, how can Your Majesty survive?"

The remaining few people, though silent, agreed with Qi Zhou's words.

Although Liu Bei was used to only killing the leaders of rebels, Liu He was the leader of the rebels in Liu Bei's eyes, so how could he be allowed to live?

Tian Yu disagreed with Qi Zhou's viewpoint, retorting, "Times have changed. If the emperor in Luoyang were still Liu Xie, and the emperor in Yecheng were still the late emperor, then the late emperor would certainly not have survived if he had surrendered."

"But now, the emperor in Luoyang is Liu Bei, the late emperor has been assassinated, and Your Majesty has no prestige as the late emperor. To Liu Bei, Your Majesty is at most a ruler who was forcibly enthroned by the Grand General. Even if Liu Bei wanted to kill a leader, he should kill the Grand General, not Your Majesty."

“I have heard that those who govern the world with filial piety do not harm the relatives of others; those who practice benevolent governance do not cut off the ancestral sacrifices of others. Liu Bei has always been like this, which is why, even now, Liu Bei has not killed the families of Yuan Kui and Yuan Ji. Your Majesty has no heir yet. If you are willing to sincerely surrender, why would Liu Bei kill Your Majesty?”

"Now Your Majesty is being bullied by the General and has no say in anything; moreover, the late Emperor may have been murdered by the General. If the General defeats Liu Bei, even if Your Majesty survives, do you think we will survive?"

Tian Yu's last words startled everyone in the tent.

They were all former subordinates of Liu Yu. Now that Yuan Shao wanted to deal with Liu Bei, he summoned them to Ye City.

If Yuan Shao loses, they can still work together. But if Yuan Shao wins, how could he allow these former subordinates of Liu Yu, who could be turned against him at any time, to exist?
Xianyu Yin walked to the front of the tent, looked around carefully, and then turned around and said, "Guorang is right. Now even His Majesty is suspicious of the General. Even if we do not help His Majesty, Yuan Shao will not allow us to continue to hold power in the future."

"In my opinion, it would be better to surrender to Liu Bei. Anyway, I don't have any family property, and I don't like keeping slaves. Although the new policies are a bit harsh, I can adapt to them. We are all from Youzhou, and we have a connection with Liu Bei. Even if our future is blocked, we can still save our lives."

Qi Zhou remained silent for a moment, then suggested, "Why don't we send someone to Chaoge first? If Liu Bei is willing to spare His Majesty's life, then it won't be too late for us to surrender. Otherwise, if we let His Majesty die for our own lives and wealth, we would be disloyal and unjust."

Seeing that everyone was willing to surrender, Tian Yu offered, "Why don't I go around Luchang Mountain to Chaoge first, while you go to Dangyin first, so as not to arouse Yuan Shao's suspicion?"

And in Chaoge City.

After learning that Yuan Shao was gathering troops from all sides to the area from Ye City to Dangyin, Liu Bei guessed that Guo Tu had successfully instigated Yuan Shao to fight a decisive battle.

Liu Bei disliked fighting arduous battles.

As Sun Tzu's Art of War states: "The method of attacking a city is to be used only as a last resort. It takes three months to build siege towers and ramparts, and three more months to fill in the embankments. If the general, unable to contain his anger, attacks like ants, killing one-third of his soldiers, and the city still does not fall, this is the disaster of attacking a city."

For a city like Dangyin, where Yuan Shao had 50,000 elite troops stationed, not only was the preparation time for the siege long, but the losses of the soldiers were also great.

Gambling with the lives of soldiers has very serious consequences.

Liu Bei, on the other hand, adopted an elite force strategy and never considered using sheer numbers to launch a massive assault on city walls.

Although Liu Bei's 20,000 Lingyan troops had suffered losses in previous battles, the losses were not significant. If he were to launch a full-scale attack on Dangyin, even if he lost a third or a tenth of his troops, Liu Bei would still feel the pain for half a year.

The soldiers of the Lingyan Army were the seeds that Liu Bei would use to control the world in the future; even a platoon leader could become a county magistrate.

Liu Bei would rather not attack than allow the Lingyan Army to launch a reckless assault on the city's defenses, regardless of casualties.

As Sun Tzu's Art of War states, there are four methods to attack the enemy: attacking their plans, disrupting their alliances, attacking their army, and besieging their cities.

Among these strategies, outmaneuvering the enemy is the best approach, while attacking a city is the worst.

The key to winning a war lies in comprehensiveness. First, list out all possible methods, then rank them in order of their optimality, the intermediate options, and the worst one.

Then, adopt the most cost-effective solution to achieve the goal of complete victory; this is the wisdom that generals and commanders should possess.

After Liu Bei decided in the palace to launch a campaign against Yuan Shao, Jia Xu recommended Guo Tu to Liu Bei afterwards.

If it weren't for Jia Xu's recommendation, Liu Bei would have completely forgotten about Guo Tu's existence.

During those three years under Jia Xu's command, Guo Tu almost disappeared from public view. Precisely because of this, Guo Tu's three-year gap in his experience could be fabricated.

Liu Bei understood Jia Xu's intention and sent Guo Tu to instigate Yuan Shao to fight a decisive battle.

If Yuan Shao is willing to fight a decisive battle, the worst possible strategy of attacking the city can be transformed into a strategy of attacking the enemy's strategy, diplomacy, and military force. Whether it is attacking the enemy's strategy, diplomacy, or military force, Liu Bei's losses can be minimized, and the difficulty of defeating the enemy will also decrease significantly.

To ensure Guo Tu's dedication, Liu Bei promised him the high position of Minister.

The Ministry of Personnel only has six ministers, and if one is reserved for Guo Tu, it will be enough to make Guo Tu fight desperately.

Liu Bei's rise to power was so rapid that it altered the life trajectories of many strategists, leading to different choices.

Just like Guo Tu, he became a prisoner before he could be given important positions by Yuan Shao. Guo Tu, like Zhong Yao, Xun Yu, and Xun You, was from Yingchuan and served under Yin Xiu, the former governor of Yingchuan. Moreover, he had connections with Liu Bei from the beginning.

If Guo Tu wanted fame and fortune, the only way was to serve Liu Bei, which was the inevitable trend of the times.

Moreover, Liu Bei's task for Guo Tu was merely to instigate Yuan Shao to engage in a decisive battle; he didn't even need to secretly transmit intelligence. He could even challenge Liu Bei's intellect if he was dissatisfied with him. The level of danger he faced was comparable to that of Lü Bu and Zhang Jiong.

You can achieve merit, enjoy the resources of the enemy, and even play your own role. Where else can you find such a good deal besides Liu Bei?

(End of this chapter)