nycdaug Chapter 226 Surrender to the Lord
Chapter 226 Surrender to the Lord
Yuan Shao spoke to his key advisors, his words filled with contempt for Liu Xie. However, he was also very glad that Liu Xie was so foolish, otherwise how could he have so easily taken over the Sili region?
"Perhaps it's because the emperor still thinks this world belongs to the Liu family," Guo Tu said leisurely.
Guo Tu's words elicited chuckles from the crowd. Judging from the current situation, Liu Xie might actually have such thoughts.
"If it were before the Yellow Turban Rebellion, it wouldn't be surprising if Liu Xie acted this way, but now the world is an era where strength speaks louder than words, and the era of the Liu family ruling as kings is over."
Xu You boldly said that if this had been said in the past, countless people would have died, but now no one cares anymore.
Furthermore, Xu You and others were eager to see how far Yuan Shao could go, so that they would all be loyal subjects who had followed him.
Yuan Shao said, "However, we cannot let our guard down now. After all, Sili and Luoyang are too close to Chen Er. We must take control of the Yongzhou region as soon as possible, and Sili will only serve as a buffer zone."
"We only need to deploy troops in key areas to collect taxes and recruit soldiers. We can forget about everything else. As long as the river is under our control, they can directly attack Luoyang via the river."
"The focus of my organization's future development should still be on Yongzhou, using it as a base to attack Liangzhou, Yizhou, and even the Western Regions. This is the plan that is in line with the current situation of my organization."
Yuan Shao had discussed these words with several advisors beforehand, and he brought them up today simply to confirm them with everyone and to refine the details.
Feng Ji said, "My lord, I am willing to go to Yongzhou as an envoy to persuade Wan Bang, Chen Nian and others to surrender to you."
"Yes, that's fine. However, Wenyou will accompany you to Yongzhou on this matter. You will work separately. You need to win over the key generals as quickly as possible. As for those minor characters, you can put them aside for now and eliminate them slowly after we control the main areas."
Yuan Shao's plan for Yongzhou was very simple: win over the major powers and eliminate the minor powers, while excluding those who were close to Liu Xie.
"Yes, my lord."
Xu You, who was called upon by Yuan Shao, immediately stood up and answered Yuan Shao, giving Feng Ji a provocative look. Feng Ji was furious, thinking of this guy who only knew how to flatter and scheme.
He's getting cocky again. We must suppress his arrogance during this trip to Yongzhou, otherwise, where will Feng Ji have a place in front of our lord in the future?
Yuan Shao said to Guo Tu, "Gongze, I'm entrusting you with the task of dividing the emperor's court and controlling the palace. You must handle this matter well, understand?"
"Yes, my lord, I will certainly handle this matter well." Guo Tu stepped forward and reported to Yuan Shao.
Yuan Shao was well aware of the power struggles among his advisors. He believed that the key to managing subordinates lay in maintaining balance, and that competition would motivate them to work harder for him.
Therefore, Yuan Shao did not stop such things. On the contrary, he would secretly add fuel to the fire and make the competition between the men even more intense. Only in this way would Yuan Shao feel more at ease. It is not necessarily a good thing for all his subordinates to be united.
"My lord, you need to have some leverage to win over others, right?"
After Yuan Shao finished giving his instructions, Xu You asked him, "I wonder, what price are you prepared to pay to win over those generals, my lord?"
Feng Ji also looked at Yuan Shao. This was related to his mission. If Yuan Shao set too high a bottom line, he wouldn't know what to do. He couldn't just blindly follow suit, could he?
"Money, women, status—whatever they want, as long as I can provide it, we can discuss it."
Yuan Shao said to the three men, "You three are all the same. Whether it's money, women, or official positions, as long as we can afford it, we'll give it to you. Now is not the time to be stingy."
"Of course, it would be even better if you could gain more with the least amount of effort, since we're not exactly wealthy right now."
Hearing Yuan Shao's words, the three understood. Of course, they also knew that this was a test from Yuan Shao for them, to see who could gain the most with the least effort.
The more people he wins over, the higher his standing will be in Yuan Shao's eyes. The three of them secretly resolved to surpass the other two this time, even if it meant sacrificing a little of their own, since they would reap greater rewards in the future.
Yuan Shao played this move quite well. After the three strategists left, he immediately summoned several key military officers and ordered them to strengthen the defenses of Luoyang and the surveillance of the imperial palace.
Everyone leaving the palace must be checked, and if anyone asks, they must say they are searching for remnants of rebels in order to protect the emperor.
Yuan Shao's move was tantamount to placing Liu Xie under house arrest. The 10,000 soldiers deployed inside and outside the palace had to have their basic needs met, and Liu Xie had to endure Yuan Shao's protection of the palace if he wanted to control these soldiers.
Otherwise, if Yuan Shao were to cut off the imperial palace's supplies and turn against him, Liu Xie knew that the result would be disastrous. For the sake of his ancestors' honor, he had to endure it, which was what Jia Xu had taught him.
To become a wise ruler in chaotic times, one must have a strong heart and extraordinary patience. When one is weak, one must withstand external pressure. Only in this way can one achieve final success.
Liu Xie was a young man of great courage. He listened to Jia Xu's advice and chose to endure in the face of Yuan Shao's coercion. He endured in order to accumulate more strength. Liu Xie told himself that when he had enough strength, he would no longer need to endure.
Seeing Liu Xie's ability to endure, Yuan Shao suddenly realized that he might have underestimated this young man. How could someone who could turn the tide under Gongsun Zan's strong pressure be a useless person?
Yuan Shao secretly strengthened his defenses and sent more assassins to infiltrate the palace to gather intelligence. He was determined to find out everything that was happening in the palace, big or small, and the most crucial information was about the strength of the troops and the availability of supplies.
He was unwilling to fight an unprepared battle. His repeated defeats in previous encounters with Chen Er had taught Yuan Shao that to make a move without being absolutely certain of victory was tantamount to suicide.
It can be said that the current understrength garrison division is comparable in combat power to a full-strength regiment of a regular organization in the autonomous region, except that it has fewer artillery pieces, with only three old-fashioned divine weapons.
However, they were equipped with the complete Ayumi Type 2 rifle, instead of the stripped-rifling Ayumi Type 2 B, which was used by many garrison troops.