New Three Kingdoms Tales: Starting as the expressionless Liu Bei

"I, in tears, issue this imperial edict, summoning heroes from across the land to lead righteous armies into the capital to defend the emperor, pacify the realm, eliminate traitors, and revive the Han dynasty!"

As soon as the two stepped out of the outhouse, they heard Cao Cao's loud voice finish reading the imperial edict.

Liu Bei was overjoyed, his mind racing: Now that Yuan Shu had been taken to the outhouse and told everything, Yuan Shu would no longer question Cao Cao in public, thus suppressing the strange tendencies of Cao Cao.

Just as I was thinking this, a questioning voice suddenly came from the crowd.

"Wait a minute? Something's not right with this edict!"

Ok?

Liu Bei was stunned. For the first time, an undisguised look of surprise broke through his impenetrable, expressionless face.

Fortunately, everyone's attention was focused ahead, and no one noticed. Otherwise, this momentary lapse in concentration would have been fatal.

Liu Bei looked in the direction of the voice and saw that the speaker was none other than Yuan Shao. This left him even more bewildered.

According to the script, it should have been Yuan Shu who questioned the authenticity of Cao Cao's edict. Now, Yuan Shu has been silenced, but Yuan Shao has jumped in. Isn't that absurd?

Liu Bei's expression returned to its cold and stern look, and his mind began to race.

Yuan Shu, standing to the side, was even more shocked. According to Liu Bei's words, that line was clearly his own; how could Yuan Shao have stolen it?

Could it be that during the brief moment of his secret conversation with Liu Bei, Yuan Shao had already been corrupted by something strange?

Cao Cao glanced at Yuan Shao, his face darkened, and a hint of anger welled up in his eyes, but he managed to suppress it.

"What's wrong?"

Yuan Shao did not notice the change in Cao Cao's expression. After thinking it over carefully, he raised a question to Cao Cao.

"The emperor is young and has been confined to the inner palace by Dong Zhuo. Besides, he has never even seen his subjects. How could he possibly have sent this edict to you?"

Cao Cao's face flushed red, and he said through gritted teeth:

"General Ben is right!"

"How could the emperor, who is only nine years old, write such a magnificent edict?"

"This edict was drafted by me, Cao Cao, on behalf of the Emperor!"

When he finished speaking, Cao Cao raised his face, his expression full of pride, and the blush on his face faded almost entirely.

Liu Bei was on high alert, his mind racing with calculations.

If Cao Cao had truly entered a state of supernatural transformation, how should he have dealt with it?

If Yuan Shao's life was truly in danger, he would only have one option left: to have Guan Yu and Zhang Fei enter a bizarre state and engage in a fierce battle with Cao Cao.

However, all the other warlords were clearly on Cao Cao's side. If they were to break ties with Cao Cao at this point, how could they possibly proceed with the story of "killing Hua Xiong while the wine was still warm"?

The course of history is about to change drastically.

Yuan Shu's face turned ashen, and he was cursing inwardly.

That bastard son of Yuan Shao, raised by a maid, has truly lost his mind. Is he blind? Couldn't he see the look in Cao Cao's eyes just now? He clearly wanted to devour him alive!

But Yuan Shao seemed blind, completely oblivious to the changes in Cao Cao's expression.

Upon hearing Cao Cao's last sentence, Yuan Shao was so angry he laughed. He stood up, dusted off his clothes, and spoke with disdain.

"So it was a forged imperial edict."

The other lords also rose up one after another, vying to curry favor with Cao Cao.

"Hahaha, Cao Cao's forged edict is truly concise and powerful, every word striking at that traitor Dong Zhuo's sore spot!"

"Yes, yes, Cao Xueqin's skill in writing truly impresses us!"

Hearing the flattery from the crowd, Cao Cao's expression softened considerably. He smiled slightly and turned to ask Yuan Shao a question.

"May I ask, General Yuan Shao, if Dong Zhuo can confine the Emperor to the deep palace and treat him like a plaything, why can't we treat the Emperor like dirt and use him for our own purposes?"

Yuan Shao: ? ? ?

Yuan Shao was completely bewildered. "Didn't we come here to attack Dong Zhuo? What do you mean by that?"

Cao Cao's words were even more treacherous than those of a traitor, and ten times more like those of Dong Zhuo.

Logically speaking, at this time, most of the warlords were still nominally loyal to the Han Dynasty. According to normal thinking, as soon as Cao Cao uttered these words, the warlords should have swarmed him and chopped him into mincemeat.

However, when he heard that not only did none of the surrounding lords stop him, but they were also clapping and cheering, Yuan Shao was completely dumbfounded.

No, none of you have any intention of restoring the Han Dynasty?

Yuan Shao didn't dare ask aloud; his mind was still buzzing, and he even wondered if he had misheard. Could he be dreaming?

But Cao Cao's next words completely woke him up; he hadn't misheard, and this wasn't a dream.

Cao Cao weighed the forged imperial edict in his hand and looked at Yuan Shao, who was still in a daze.

"Furthermore, General Yuan Shao, every single word in this edict in my hand is something the Emperor wanted to say but dared not say."

"Although this edict is fake, it is more real than the real one."

"I predict that once this edict is promulgated throughout the land, it will surely terrify the bandits and inspire heroes to rise up."

The other feudal lords quickly followed suit and echoed his sentiments.

"Yeah yeah!"

Immediately afterward, Cao Cao fixed his gaze on Yuan Shao. The amiable smile on his face froze instantly, and his eyes turned into a blank, numb gaze as he stared straight at him.

He remained silent, staring intently at Yuan Shao, making Yuan Shao feel increasingly uneasy.

After a long silence, he asked in a cold voice.

"General Benchu, tell me, am I right or wrong?"

"Uh, this..."

Yuan Shao dared not respond and turned to look at both sides. He saw that the other warlords, like Cao Cao, were also staring intently at him.

Only Liu Bei and Yuan Shu nodded slightly, desperately signaling to him with their eyes: You're right.

Yuan Shao's Adam's apple bobbed. Although he didn't know what had happened, he was very sensible and quickly nodded, forcing a look of admiration on his face.

"Mengde is absolutely right!"

"People say that Cao Mengde was a capable minister in times of peace and a cunning hero in times of chaos. Seeing him today, I can confirm it's true!"

"Hahahaha..."

After the praise, Cao Cao's expression finally returned to normal, and his face regained some color. Most importantly, he once again showed that kind smile.

"Thank you for your praise, General Benchu. I have not only drafted this edict for the Emperor, but also devised a strategy for all of us to quell the rebellion."

Two soldiers carried a map forward. Yuan Shao took a deep breath and felt a wave of dizziness.

In a daze, he realized that his back was already soaked in cold sweat.

Liu Bei walked silently behind Yuan Shao and whispered a reminder.

"General Benchu, please sit down."

Yuan Shao glanced at Liu Bei before snapping out of his daze and allowed him to help him back to his seat.

Seeing that Liu Bei remained calm and composed throughout, his face showing no emotion, and that he would not change his expression even if Mount Tai collapsed in front of him, he couldn't help but feel a little suspicious.

What's wrong with me today? Why is everything so strange?

Yuan Shao was preoccupied and had no interest in listening to Cao Cao's strategy for suppressing the rebels. He recalled the letter he had received that morning, which contained only one sentence.

If you do not become the leader of these eighteen warlords, tonight will be your death night.

Yuan Shao asked all the guards on duty outside the house, but none of them had seen anyone deliver the letter. The letter had appeared in his room out of thin air.

That's why he was so uneasy when Sun Jian recommended him as the leader of the alliance, and even seriously suspected that Sun Jian was behind it.

He didn't want to be the leader of the alliance, but he was afraid he would really die tonight, so he had no choice but to agree.

After experiencing this series of strange events, Yuan Shao had another suspicion in his mind: Did these warlords join forces with Cao Cao to make trouble for him?

Could that letter have been written by Cao Mengde?

While Yuan Shao was pondering the events unfolding before his eyes, Liu Bei had already reviewed what had just happened and formed a preliminary guess.

Cao Cao had clearly been on the verge of becoming unpredictable, his face flushed red with anger, like a volcano about to erupt.

But after the group of feudal lords flattered him, his expression softened.

In particular, Yuan Shao's last few words of praise completely calmed Cao Cao's anger.

In other words, speaking well of Cao Cao can reduce the degree of his eccentricity.

It seems that Cao Cao's eccentricity can be controlled in reverse. Remembering how these warlords had been desperately flattering him from beginning to end, Liu Bei seemed to have something on his mind.

Could it be that these feudal lords know something?

Liu Bei returned to his seat and mentally reviewed the plot. Hua Xiong was about to attack Chenliu City.

Once the wine is warmed—no, wait until the incident of beheading Hua Xiong without wine is over—I will become the nineteenth warlord. I wonder if there will be any title bonuses then?

Wait and see.