Three Kingdoms: Cao Cao is stunned when he reveals his time-traveling identity.

"Lord Xun, what do you think Yuan Shao will give us?"

Su Chen smiled calmly, without directly answering Xun Yu's question.

This has caught Xun Yu off guard.

Xun Yu's expression faltered slightly, and after a moment of contemplation, he spoke:

"I'm afraid Yuan Shao will definitely not agree to the compensation."

"Yuan Shao was a man who thought highly of himself and was stubborn and self-willed."

"Jingming, doing this will only anger him."

Xun Yu and Yuan Shao had been dealing with each other for so many years.

He had a thorough understanding of Yuan Shao's personality.

Even if Su Chen brings up the matter of the traitor.

But if Yuan Shao ignores it, nothing will actually happen.

This alone is not enough to control Yuan Shao's fate.

Upon hearing this, Su Chen shook his head and said:

"Under normal circumstances, given Yuan Shao's personality, he would definitely not agree."

"But now, we have his 50,000 troops at our disposal."

"Based on this alone, it doesn't matter whether he's labeled a traitor or not."

Even Yuan Shao had no choice but to bow his head.

Upon hearing this, Xun Yu was taken aback at first, then looked at Su Chen with confusion:

Why is Jingming so certain?

"Yuan Shao has more than 200,000 troops under his command."

Even though our army captured 50,000 of their troops, they still had more soldiers than our army.

"Moreover, our army cannot convert these 50,000 troops."

"If we include Yuan Shao's troops on the border, the number would probably be over 300,000."

"How could he possibly bow down to our army for the sake of 50,000 men?"

Fifty thousand soldiers is a lot.

But Yuan Shao wasn't helpless without those 50,000 troops.

On the contrary, if this angers Yuan Shao...

He led his army to attack Yanzhou directly.

At that time, we can still reclaim those 50,000 troops.

Despite having 50,000 surrendered soldiers, it would have been virtually impossible to execute them all.

If they suddenly launch an attack midway, Cao Cao's army will be too numerous to suppress.

Therefore, it's impossible to move these troops right now.

Su Chen shook his head and said:

"Yuan Shao wouldn't do that."

"Because these 50,000 soldiers were the elite of his army."

"My use of the 'seeing enemies in every bush and tree' tactic was precisely to send the wrong message to Yan Liang and Wen Chou."

"They will think that our army has captured Xuzhou and obtained a large number of troops."

"Therefore, the northern army was larger than they had imagined."

"Therefore, even Yuan Shao would not dare to be careless."

"Moreover, the relationship between Gongsun Zan and Ma Teng and Yuan Shao will only become more and more tense."

"He always had 300,000 troops under his command, but he would only send a maximum of 100,000 troops."

"As for the rest, we must be wary of our surroundings."

"Losing these 50,000 troops is not a trivial matter for Yuan Shao."

Instead, they directly removed half of his controllable troops.

"He can't bear to part with it."

Hearing Su Chen's confident words, Xun Yu could only nod silently.

It's not that he didn't know these things.

Rather, he dared not be so sure.

Unlike Su Chen, who already knew what would happen in the future and could make inferences based on the conclusions.

If Xun Yu were to consider it, there would be far too many possible factors.

"However... no matter what Yuan Shao offers, we cannot accept it."

Just then, Su Chen slowly spoke.

Why?

Xun Yu was even more bewildered.

Isn't this the compensation Su Chen wanted?

Yuan Shao offered it, but Yuan Shao refused to accept it. How could Yuan Shao, with his temperament, tolerate that?

Seeing this, Su Chen waved his hand and said:

"It's definitely not a direct rejection."

"Instead, they just give a perfunctory answer and show their dissatisfaction."

"The problem isn't what we want, but what they want to give."

"The main purpose of these 50,000 troops is to serve as leverage in the standoff."

"We definitely have to return it to him."

"However, we must wait until we return victorious from Yangzhou before we can proceed."

"Lord Xun, you should understand what I mean, right?"

Su Chen has figured it out.

Xun Yu's ideas and strategies were indeed very strong.

This strategist of his was almost without any weaknesses.

But... his only flaw is that he's too upright.

He has absolutely no ulterior motives, making it easy for others to figure out his tricks.

In his eyes, Su Chen's schemes were all cunning ideas.

But given the current situation, it seems we have no choice but to listen to Su Chen.

Thinking of this, Xun Yu rubbed his forehead and said in a deep voice:

"Fine, Jingming, I'll do as you say."

"At least, the three cities have now been returned."

"It is enough that Yuan Shao will not dare to attack easily for the time being."

Xun Yu disapproved of Su Chen's behavior from the bottom of his heart.

However, he had also witnessed Su Chen's methods.

Each time, it had an unexpected effect.

Since that's the case, he didn't ask any more questions.

Now, Xun Yu's task is not just to resist Yuan Shao.

Most importantly, we must keep a close eye on the major aristocratic families of today.

With Cao Cao absent, there were quite a few troublemakers among the gentry of Yanzhou.

However, dealing with the aristocratic clans was something Su Chen simply couldn't do.

Therefore, the two reached a decision without prior consultation.

Xun Yu was in charge of internal affairs, while Su Chen was in charge of external affairs.

Everything had to be done in such an orderly manner until Cao Cao returned.

Xun Yu was exceptional in managing domestic affairs, but his military abilities...

It's not that it's lacking.

All I can say is that it's too easy for people to see through it.

Therefore, Cao Cao usually left Xun Yu to guard the rear whenever he went on a campaign.

The main purpose was not to make Xun Yu pay attention to defending against attacks from both sides.

Instead, Xun Yu was tasked with suppressing the aristocratic families.

Even today, many gentry families, including those in Yanzhou and Xuzhou, still hold prejudices against Cao Cao.

But when Cao Cao was alive, they dared not speak out against him.

When Cao Cao went to war, all sorts of demons and monsters emerged.

If Xun Yu hadn't been there to keep things in order, it would have been really difficult to handle.

as predicted.

Before long, Yuan Shao's letter had been delivered.

A large portion of it is a forced explanation for the misunderstanding regarding the capture of the three cities.

The important thing is compensation.

It can supply enough food for an army of 100,000 for half a year.

There is also a large amount of supplies, enough to equip 50,000 troops.

To be honest, this compensation is quite substantial.

But for the overall situation, it is still far from enough.

"Jingming, how should we respond?"

Xun Yu knew that Su Chen had terrible handwriting.

They might as well just have someone else write it for them.

A clerk... who can't even write...

"Actually, there's no need to write anything."

"Misunderstandings are easy to explain, and we appreciate Mr. Yuan's good intentions."

"But to prevent misunderstandings from happening again."

"I will treat these 50,000 brothers well."

"I earnestly hope that Lord Yuan will reconsider."

Su Chen waved his hand and spoke directly.

Upon hearing this, Xun Yu was slightly taken aback.

Wasn't it supposed to be said in a more tactful way?

Doesn't this mean they don't want to give it?

Su Chen noticed Xun Yu's worry and smiled calmly:

"Don't worry, Lord Xun."

Not everyone thinks like you.

"Yuan Shao will understand after he sees it."

After Su Chen finished speaking, he gave a sly smile.

This smile left Xun Yu utterly bewildered.

Why do I feel...?

This guy doesn't seem to be considering the bigger picture.

Instead... they were trying to extort Yuan Shao in various ways?

……