He originally intended to surrender to Wei, so why did he end up restoring Han?

Chapter 104, Year 198 (Part 2)

"This is—you—this..." The messenger was bewildered, pointing to the stick and then to himself, indicating that he did not understand.

The mob leader said coldly, "We won't kill you, but God might!"

Having said that, he grabbed the messenger and pulled him upstairs. The mob behind him also grabbed Cao Cao's guards and followed him. The group arrived at the top floor of the hotel.

This inn is the property of a relatively small aristocratic family. This family knows that it would be futile to use their meager funds to confront the larger families head-on, like throwing an egg against a rock. It would be better to invest in food, clothing, shelter, and transportation. Because people may not need the products produced in workshops, but they can never escape the necessities of food, clothing, shelter, and transportation.

And so this three-story hotel was built. Because of its reasonable prices, complete facilities, and the economic boom, its daily revenue was quite considerable. However, the hotel's reputation is probably about to take another step forward.

The messenger was grabbed by the collar and led away unsteadily. Just then, the leader of the mob stopped, for he had reached his destination: the window on the third floor.

"I'll just throw you down there and let God decide whether you survive!"

Having said that, he lifted the messenger up, completely ignoring the messenger's desperate pleas, and threw him down.

Other rioters followed suit, throwing the annoying Cao army guards down with them. They briefly experienced the feeling of flying before slamming onto the street with a dull thud, like heavy sacks hitting the ground.

And so, a scene of objects being thrown from a high-rise building unfolded in Xuzhou. When the security forces arrived, they only saw the Cao army delegation members groaning and crawling on the ground. They were lucky, because although the building had three floors, the vertical distance from the windows to the ground was no more than 4 feet, so most of them were still alive when they fell.

Upon hearing that someone was causing trouble, the security personnel, feeling their jobs were in danger, immediately ordered the arrest of all the troublemakers and sent the injured to the hospital for treatment, at least to prevent them from dying in Xuzhou.

The interrogation was not progressing well. The people had only heard that Cao Cao's envoy had arrived in Xiapi and had spontaneously gone to resist him. Even the leader of the mob, whom they had temporarily elected, said so. This indicated that this was not a simple matter of maintaining order. Someone had deliberately leaked the news of Cao Cao's secret visit and incited the people to take rather irrational actions to resist Cao Cao.

But now there's not a single clue, and those who heard the rumors can't say where they came from, making the investigation incredibly difficult for these new-style police officers. However, one thing they are certain of is that someone doesn't want Cao Cao and Liu Bei to reconcile.

As for these common people, they are really not easy to deal with. The simple sentiments they have shown are obviously a very positive emotion. If they are suppressed indiscriminately, who knows what might happen later and the people will no longer support Liu Bei.

After this commotion involving throwing something out the window, Cao Cao's plan to reach an open alliance with Liu Bei failed once again. This meant that in the subsequent course of the war, even when facing the same enemy, the two sides could not cooperate openly. They either had to unite in the name of the Han Emperor, or their cooperation would depend on the level of understanding between them.

Although Liu Bei could not cooperate with Cao Cao on an official level, he could still supply Liu Xie (Emperor Xian of Han) with tribute, and Emperor Xian of Han regained some autonomy through this. Another reason why Cao Cao dared to usurp imperial power was that there were indeed very few warlords in the land who truly respected the emperor.

Moreover, after this serious diplomatic incident, Liu Bei suddenly became very passive in diplomacy. Cao Cao had really found a weakness in Liu Bei and immediately began to attack him relentlessly, almost cursing Liu Bei into oblivion.

Chen Deng knew this was a major dereliction of duty on his part. The intelligence department had focused its main efforts on the Jiangdong region, which prevented the undercurrents within Xuzhou from being investigated in a timely manner. Therefore, after learning of this, he not only issued a strict order for a thorough investigation but also went to Liu Bei to apologize with a bundle of thorns on his back.

Unlike some people who take all the credit for themselves and blame others for their mistakes, Liu Bei was a responsible and good man.

Immediately after the incident, a well-trained doctor was dispatched to treat the delegation members. At the same time, several high-ranking officials went to apologize to the delegation and offered compensation exceeding the usual amount. In short, efforts were made to minimize negative publicity as quickly as possible.

At the same time, none of the officials who had indeed committed serious dereliction of duty escaped punishment; they were all demoted. Even Chen Deng, a veteran official, could only accept his fate and punishment. However, he was still in charge of the intelligence agency. Liu Bei's explanation was that as long as the culprit was found and the truth was revealed to the world, this matter would not be investigated further.

After fighting for half a year, Ma Teng and Han Sui, these two extraordinary men, actually shook hands and made peace again. They said that there had been a villain sowing discord between the brothers, but now the misunderstanding between the two brothers had been resolved, and the matter should be left as it was.

While reconciliation is a rare and heartwarming story in most literary works, in this material world it's like a battle between two sides, where all those who unfortunately die are considered to have died in vain.

Moreover, although the words of shaking hands and making peace sounded good, the two were still wary of each other. In addition, Cao Cao's troops had taken advantage of the infighting between the two to consolidate the Guanzhong region. Seeing this situation, Ma Teng and Han Sui could only choose to preserve their strength and slowly retreat to Liangzhou.

These Liangzhou warlords went into hiding again, waiting for Cao Cao to reveal a weakness so they could return to Guanzhong.

By the end of Jian'an 2 (200 AD), Yuan Shao had completely cornered Yijing, leaving Gongsun Zan with no hope of a comeback and only able to count the days until his death. Other anti-Yuan Shao forces, such as the Black Mountain bandit Zhang Yan, were also powerless to stop him, as Yuan Shao's army was now stronger than in history.

Liu Bei was also partly responsible for this. Large quantities of agricultural tools from Xuzhou were put into the market, sparking a buying frenzy among almost all the warlords. These warlords then distributed these iron tools to farmers through sale or rental. With readily available tools and no longer burdened by insufficient animal power, the area that one person could cultivate increased significantly, leading to the development of 197...

Hebei Province experienced a bumper harvest that year.

Such a bumper harvest was the common expectation of almost everyone in Hebei. With more grain, farmers had greater confidence in the future. The incomes of powerful families also increased, naturally bringing them joy. The army's logistical supplies became abundant, making them overjoyed. Thus, everyone was satisfied, except for the world where Gongsun Zan was wounded.

Moreover, these iron tools could be further processed into weapons and equipment once they reached the Hebei region. Yuan Shao strengthened his military preparedness in this way, and the armor coverage of his Mo Xia army increased significantly, confirming the rumors that he was the strongest warlord in the Eastern Han Dynasty.

Because Liu Bei dared to sell strategic resources, Yuan Shao considered him merely an ordinary warlord without ambition. He believed that when Yuan Shao, the handsome, dashing, and exceptionally talented heir to a family that had held high office for four generations, marched south, Liu Bei would most likely have to surrender. Especially now that Yuan Shao had easily disrupted the reconciliation between Liu Bei and Cao Cao, defeating him was even more impossible.

Yuan Shao, considering the considerable supplies Liu Bei had provided him, felt a sense of unease. He wondered how much he would offer to win Liu Bei over after his surrender, and where he would place Liu Bei after the war, when the empire was unified, to ensure the people's complete acceptance while simultaneously monitoring Liu Bei's every move. Caught in this optimistic vision, Yuan Shao indulged in a sweet fantasy.

Liu Bei deserves credit for the development of Hebei, a fact that cannot be denied. This is precisely why Yuan Shao's rebellion against Liu Bei was incomplete, even his basic public condemnation was somewhat incoherent.

On one hand, he wrote to Liu Xie denouncing Liu Bei for wantonly attacking Han officials and calling him a traitor to the Han; on the other hand, he sent Liu Bei a private letter saying that those words were only meant for his subordinates, and that Hebei actually hoped to maintain friendly relations with Xuzhou and that trade should not be stopped.

The powerful families in Hebei also made connections with Liu Bei and others through trade. Some of these families just wanted to make some money and did not want to bet on Liu Bei; others genuinely thought Liu Bei was interesting and seemed like someone who would achieve great things, so they chose to send talented people from their families to Liu Bei. However, those who did this were in the minority, and most people still favored Yuan Shao.

Previously, Liu Biao's Jingzhou was in great turmoil because of Liu Bei's recommendation of Yangzhou as governor, and there were even anti-Liu Biao armed forces at one point. However, after Liu Qi successfully joined Liu Bei's forces, the chaotic situation in Jingzhou began to improve.

Because those who had previously opposed the Cai and Kuai families' control of the state government now had a name to speak of, those aristocratic families who were dissatisfied with the fact that key positions had been taken sent their best sons to Liu Qi. This way, even Liu Biao couldn't cause trouble, and Liu Biao himself wasn't planning to cause trouble for these aristocratic families.

With these people no longer staying in Jingzhou to cause trouble for the Cai family, their policies were quickly implemented. Therefore, the political trend in Jingzhou did not become increasingly turbulent as Liu Biao aged, as it had in history, but rather tended to unite around Liu Biao and his son Liu Cong.

On the other hand, when Liu Qi arrived in Xuzhou, Liu Bei specially led his troops out of the city for thirty miles to welcome him, in order to leave a good impression on his nephew.

Liu Qi's current position is Governor of Yangzhou, which is technically equivalent to Liu Bei's position as Governor of Xuzhou. Both publicly and privately, Liu Qi deserves to be welcomed by Liu Bei outside the city. As a result, when Liu Qi saw Liu Bei, he immediately performed a grand ceremony, knelt down, kowtowed, and called him Uncle.

Liu Qi was also feeling wronged. He was the first in line to inherit the position of Governor of Jingzhou, but he was forced out by his own father's men. Then he was worried that he might be "forced" to commit suicide at any time, so he followed the imperial envoy all the way to Xuchang.

Then, in order to escape from Xuchang smoothly, Liu Qi followed the advice of his subordinate Pang Tong and deliberately pretended to be a ridiculous person who was arrogant and incompetent. He slipped out of Cao Cao's grasp and finally arrived in the territory of his good uncle Liu Bei. Liu Qi lost control of his emotions and banged on Liu Bei's head several times.

Liu Bei dared not let him continue to play with his head like that. He stretched out his long arm and helped Liu Qi up, saying earnestly, "Nephew, there's no need for this. We are equals."

Liu Qi quickly regained his composure and began introducing his officials to Liu Bei, who in turn showcased his civil and military officials. The two then chatted and laughed all the way back to Xiapi.

After a period of detailed discussions, Liu Bei finally gritted his teeth and ceded several cities in Jiujiang Commandery to Liu Qi (excluding Dongcheng, which, although located deep in the heart of Jiujiang Commandery, was administratively part of Xiapi State). Liu Qi temporarily became Liu Bei's vassal, and when the time was right, Liu Bei would let him go and become the governor of Yangzhou.

Unlike other warlords who either made great strides or moved forward with small but rapid steps, Sun Ce's life was not so easy, or rather, the life of the entire Jiangdong region was not easy.

Initially, Liu Bei's inexpensive yet high-quality goods did help stabilize the situation in Jiangdong. Seeing that Sun Ce had finally stopped causing trouble, prices in the market began to stabilize. They settled down and resumed their normal lives and work, no longer thinking about fighting Sun Ce.

The entire Jiangdong region has been developing steadily for nearly a year. There are no mountain bandits or outlaws, only laborers who want to improve their lives.

And so, the peaceful and harmonious situation continued until the end of the year, when Sun Ce's army began to feel that something was wrong: why was the tax revenue in the treasury not even half of what it used to be?

Zhou Yu immediately sensed something was wrong and began reviewing the records of these counties from previous years. He then realized that sometimes knowing too much isn't a good thing. The tax revenue of these counties in Jiangdong had plummeted compared to previous years! Their tax revenue had vanished!

Just as Zhou Yu was directing his officers to investigate where the problems had occurred, the leader Zhang Zhao and his elder brother Zhang Ji also approached him, saying that the situation in Jiangdong was quite abnormal: although there had been no large-scale activities in Jiangdong since the withdrawal of troops that year, and the policy towards the people had been to allow them to rest and recuperate, a large number of displaced people had appeared in various parts of Jiangdong under these circumstances.

After some investigation, a chill ran down Zhou Yu and his men's spines. These refugees were not bankrupt farmers, but rather legitimate salt field workers, blacksmiths, apprentice craftsmen, laborers, and other important manufacturing talents.