Chapter 120 Yuan Shao's Conspiracy
"I am willing to go and cut off Hua Xiong's head and present it to you!"
Just as Tian Ze was thinking about what to do now that he didn't bring Guan Yu with him this time, Zhang Fei beside Liu Bei couldn't help it and stepped out and spoke loudly.
Seeing Zhang Fei, who was eight feet tall, with a leopard head and round eyes, a swallow chin and tiger beard, and a voice like thunder, all the princes in the tent could not help but nod secretly.
What a great general!
Today's Liu Bei is no longer the unknown figure in the original historical trajectory, but a powerful and legitimate lord with considerable status.
Yuan Shao ordered his attendants to hold a cup of hot wine in his hand and pass it to Zhang Fei: "Okay! General Zhang, please drink this cup."
Zhang Fei, who originally disliked Yuan Shao, was praised like this, and his dissatisfaction with Yuan Shao dissipated a little, but he still looked at Liu Bei.
Seeing that Liu Bei's expression did not change, Zhang Fei raised his hand to block the wine in front of him and said, "Please wait a moment, everyone. I will be back soon. It won't be too late to drink more wine."
After saying this, Zhang Fei ignored Yuan Shao who was a little embarrassed, walked out of the tent with his Zhangba Snake Spear, mounted his horse and headed straight for the gate of the camp.
Yuan Shao, whose movements were frozen in mid-air, calmly put away the wine bottle and put it aside, smiling slightly and saying: "General Zhang is truly a man of character. How lucky is Liu Liang to have such a sworn brother!"
Liu Bei bowed humbly and said, "Master, you are too kind. Yide is straightforward, so I am a little rash. It was not my intention. I hope you will forgive me."
Yuan Shao waved his hand and said with a smile: "Alas, why do you say that, Liu Liangguo? Yide's temperament is very similar to Yan Liang and Wen Chou under my command. I like him very much."
Tian Ze felt nothing as he listened to the two's hypocritical words.
Although he didn't like this kind of thing, he had long been accustomed to it.
Everyone is carrying the fancy sedan, and greetings with ulterior motives are indeed necessary sometimes. Although they are not very nutritious, they can be the beginning of cooperation when they are needed in the future.
It was normal for Yuan Shao and Liu Bei to like each other because they had no conflict of interest in the short term and there was even a possibility of them becoming allies.
This kind of leisurely move to win over people has become an instinct for Yuan Shao, otherwise how could he have friends all over the world?
The same is true for Liu Bei.
Tian Ze couldn't do this.
There is a huge gap between knowing and doing. Tian Ze is very clear about this, but he just can't do it.
It is fine to passively respond to greetings, but Tian Ze cannot and does not want to take the initiative to interact with these potential enemies.
Not long after the sound of the war drums reached the sky, huge cheers rang out again, and it was unclear whether it was from the enemy or ourselves.
While everyone was worried, Liu Bei and Tian Ze looked calm.
"My lord, Zhang Yide is an extraordinary martial artist!"
Seeing Tian Ze's expression, Guo Jia immediately understood the reason and whispered.
"His martial arts are on par with Yunchang's, and he's the best in the world." Tian Ze sighed.
It’s a pity that such a powerful general could not be obtained by himself.
As expected, Zhang Fei's wild laughter soon appeared outside the tent. He stood in the tent carelessly and threw Hua Xiong's head at Yuan Shao's feet: "Hua Xiong is just a mere idiot. I can take his head as easily as taking something out of a bag!"
All the princes were shocked and couldn't help but look at Liu Bei and Zhang Fei again.
I am afraid of comparison in everything.
If Zhang Fei had quickly fought Hua Xiong at the beginning, no one would have thought anything of it.
However, all the brave generals under the command of various princes died easily at the hands of Hua Xiong. It would be amazing if Zhang Fei did such a thing again.
"General Zhang, you are truly a brave general!"
After Yuan Shao finished speaking, he picked up the wine jar from the side and held it up with both hands: "General Zhang is mighty, please drink this cup to the full!"
Zhang Fei glanced at Liu Bei again, and saw that Liu Bei was smiling. He then happily took the wine glass, drank it all, and said cheerfully: "Good wine!"
Tian Ze on the side smiled slightly.
It was indeed good wine; it was the Yuye wine he was selling, aged for five years. This cup could be priced at eight hundred coins.
Zhang Fei wiped his lips and said loudly: "Leader, now that Hua Xiong has been killed, when should we go into Guanzhong and capture Dong Zhuo alive?"
The smile on Yuan Shao's face froze slightly, and he glanced at Yuan Shu unconsciously.
But Yuan Shu looked at him blankly, not understanding what he meant.
At this moment, Zhang Fei was no longer a small soldier as originally claimed, but a general commanding thousands of troops. Although his words just now were a bit arrogant, they did not anger Yuan Shu. At most, he just felt a little unhappy.
Yuan Shu is not stupid. Zhang Fei's martial arts are obviously top-notch in the world. Liu Bei now is not a character he can easily control. Why bother himself with trouble?
Seeing that the scapegoat was unwilling to take the blame, Yuan Shao sighed inwardly and had to speak up himself: "General Zhang is right. Let's wait for the coalition forces to reorganize the troops and take Sishui Pass in one fell swoop."
Watching this group of people playing the game of you look at me and I look at you, Tian Ze vaguely understood what was going on and couldn't help but smile knowingly.
How interesting.
His insight was far better than that of ordinary people. He could tell at a glance that although Zhang Fei looked relaxed, he actually had some internal injuries. He probably forced himself to exert his potential in order to kill Hua Xiong quickly.
After all, Hua Xiong is not a weakling, and although Zhang Fei is brave, he is not the type like Guan Yu who is good at quick battles.
However, Zhang Fei's physical condition is still there. He just can't use his full strength in the next few days. He will be fine in a few days.
Soon, although Yuan Shao slowed down the progress, the coalition forces still successfully occupied Sishui Pass.
When the news reached Luoyang, Dong Zhuo was shocked and immediately summoned Li Ru, Lu Bu and others to discuss the matter.
"My lord, now that things have come to this, we have no way out. If we want to preserve our hegemony, we have no choice but to fight to the death." A fierce look flashed in Li Ru's eyes.
"To resist foreign aggression, we must first stabilize the internal situation. The Yuan family in Luoyang, especially Yuan Wei's family, cannot be left here, otherwise chaos will easily arise."
Li Ru knew very well that although he and his men, as warriors from Xiliang, had occupied Luoyang and suppressed the ministers by force, this did not mean that they could sit back and relax.
We were just strangers living here, and our origins were humble, so we were not accepted by the scholars at all.
Although he has a large number of troops under his command, it is difficult to say how many of them are truly loyal to him.
The aristocratic families headed by Yuan Wei have extensive influence in Luoyang. They almost took control of Luoyang in the first place, so it is not impossible for them to start another rebellion in Luoyang.
Once the general situation is over, it is hard to say whether the Bingzhou Army and the Central Army under their command will still be willing to listen to them.
Therefore, before conquering the coalition forces, the Yuan family, the leader among the aristocratic families, must be destroyed, otherwise there will be endless troubles.
Although doing so would further isolate them from the noble families of the world, they had no choice at all because they had now been pushed to the brink.
After proposing this strategy, Li Ru's heart sank.
He knew this was a bad idea, but he had no choice.
It seemed that Yuan Shao had drawn the line against our side. With Yuan Shao's political acumen, how could he rashly raise an army and serve as the leader of the alliance? Could it be that he really didn't realize that he might very likely destroy the Yuan family?
Although Dong Zhuo was Yuan Wei's former subordinate, under the current political background, Yuan Wei was Dong Zhuo's master, and doing so would be unacceptable to the world.
But considering Dong Zhuo's current reputation and situation, what difference would it make whether he was killed or not? He even dared to depose the emperor, so how could he, who was born in Xiliang, care about this?
Li Ru vaguely sensed Yuan Shao's plan.
When Yuan Wei, the current head of the Yuan family, and Yuan Ji, the next head of the Yuan family, were around, Yuan Shao, the illegitimate son, could only rank behind them, and even lower than Yuan Shu, and would never have a chance to rise to the top.
As long as these two people died, the remaining ones would not be the eldest sons and there would be a lack of orthodoxy, and Yuan Shao would have the opportunity to integrate the resources of the Yuan family.
Especially now that he is the leader of the anti-Dong movement, it is natural for him to take up the banner of revenge for the Yuan family.
Li Ru's strategy was equivalent to clearing away obstacles for Yuan Shao.
But Li Ru also had his own calculations when he proposed this plan.
Now that Yuan Wei and Yuan Ji are dead, Yuan Shao and Yuan Shu will inevitably fight over Yuan family resources. Yuan Shao's various calculations were all for this purpose, so how could he be willing to be under Yuan Shu?
In this way, the princes in Guandong will have more possibilities to split up, and the crisis in Luoyang can be resolved.
After thinking through the whole process, Li Ru couldn't help but feel a chill in his heart.
If it was really as he guessed, then this time the princes' attack on Dong Zhuo was a huge conspiracy by Yuan Shao. The depth of the plan and the sinister intention were so shocking.
It seemed that everyone had become chess pieces on the chessboard of this world role model, and he could manipulate them at will. His control was truly terrifying.
(End of this chapter)
