After a detailed discussion with Cao Cao, Yuan Shao suddenly realized.
Cao Cao was indeed a man of many plans and good judgments. This move of retreating into advancement was really clever.
What was Yuan Shu's original intention to trap Yuan Shao? Wasn't it just to compete with him for the father-in-law?
Even though Yuan Shu was clamoring to make Yuan Chong the head of the family, how could a child of that age have the right to make decisions about matters within the clan?
Anyone with eyesight knows what's going on.
Yuan Shu wanted to overthrow Yuan Shao, and then make his young boy Yuan Chong his father-in-law. But in fact, he himself was the head of the Yuan family, and Yuan Chong was just an empty post.
But if Yuan Shao takes the initiative to give way to Yuan Shu now, how will the people in the world view this matter?
In the future, most people will think that Yuan Shao understands justice and is sensible. For the sake of the family, even if he is wronged, he is willing to give in and give the position of father-in-law to Yuan Shu to maintain their brotherhood.
On the contrary, what kind of reputation will Yuan Shu receive for being aggressive towards Yuan Shao?
Nature is self-evident.
"Good, very good! God has given me Meng De!"
Yuan Shao was also a very smart person, and he quickly figured out the key.
He immediately clapped his hands, and the worried expression he had just moments ago dissipated instantly.
"According to what Meng De said, I will write a letter in person the next day. A few days ago, Chen Lin from Guangling came to seek refuge. This person writes good articles, so I asked him to polish my letter and send it to the Runan people.
, will definitely win the favor of the elders of the clan."
Cao Cao suddenly changed the subject and talked about another matter.
"Benchu, have you ever thought about it? Why did that letter fall into the hands of Yuan Gongli?"
Yuan Shao was stunned by Cao Cao's words.
He began to lower his head and think carefully.
During this period of time, Yuan Shao has been mainly paying attention to Yuan Shu's actions, and how to find ways to eliminate the negative impact of Yuan Shu's actions on himself.
However, he really didn't take the time to delve into the origin of the letter in Yuan Shu's hand.
If you think about the content of this letter carefully, you will see that it was not written by Yuan Ji to Yuan Shu, but by him to Yuan Yi.
How did the letter written to Yuan Yi fall into Yuan Shu's hands?
"Is it possible that Boye and Gongdao jointly set up a plot to kill me?" Yuan Shao said somewhat unconfidently.
Cao Cao said: "No, Boye is a person who can see the overall situation. Now we are at war with Dong Zhuo. Boye is confronting Liu Yan in Shu. His foreign aid is the soldiers of Jingzhou. If I offend you, I will
At first you blocked the road to Shu and allowed Bo Ye to fight to the death with Liu Yan in Shu, wouldn't you be asking for your own death?"
Yuan Shao nodded: "Yes, Boye is a smart and intelligent person. If he wants to develop in Shu, he will definitely need my support. So who did this?"
Cao Cao said: "In my opinion, this letter may really be written by Yuan Shiji, and it is indeed written to Yuan Yi, but the person who sent the letter deliberately handed the letter to the highway."
When Yuan Shao heard this, he was furious.
"What thief dares to use such despicable tricks to alienate my brother!"
Cao Cao's expression was a little solemn.
"There are not many people in the world who can gain the trust of Yuan Shiji, hand this letter into his hands, and have the ability to deliver this letter to Yuan Gongli. In fact, if you think about it, you will know who it is."
One sentence awakened Yuan Shao.
"Liu Deran!"
Cao Cao sighed.
"Besides this person, I really can't think of anyone else who has this ability."
Yuan Shao raised his hand and slammed the table: "How dare Thief Liu set up such a plan on me? Yuan will definitely not break up with him."
Cao Cao said: "Liu Deran is indeed hateful, but it is not time to argue with him now. It is better to deal with our own affairs first."
Yuan Shao gritted his teeth and said: "How can I break up with him if he has such a plot against me? Meng De doesn't need to say more. I will have my own way to deal with Liu Jian later."
…
…
After Cao Cao left the hall, he saw Xiahou Dun and Xia Houyuan waiting for him outside.
"Brother, why are you so slow to come out? Could it be that Yuan Shao said something to your brother?"
Cao Cao was not in a hurry to answer Xiahou Dun's question.
He just said: "Go back first and then talk about it."
The three people left the mansion together and headed towards their own military camp outside the city.
On the way, Cao Cao told them the exact conversation he had with Yuan Shao.
After Xiahou Dun and Xiahou Yuan listened, they both fell silent.
After halftime, Fang heard Xiahou Dun ask: "The world is getting more and more chaotic. Meng De, what is our future? Are we just going to be Yuan Shao's vassal?"
Cao Cao said: "The fourth and third sons of the Yuan family are very powerful. Since the death of Yuan Shiji, most of the resources of the Yuan family have been divided between Yuan Shao and Yuan Shu. Our attachment to Yuan Shao is also a way to save our lives in these troubled times. However,
After all, we need to build our own foundation like Liu Jian and Yuan Shao."
Xia Houyuan asked: "Mengde, you are now the governor of Shanyang County. After Dong Zhuo retreats, let's develop our own power in Yanzhou."
Cao Cao shook his head.
"Originally, I planned to develop my power in Yanzhou. After all, it is a place in the Central Plains. It is close to our hometown, Qiao County, and we have a wide range of contacts and resources there... But after Yuan Shao and Yuan Shu's quarrel, I felt that Yanzhou was not
It’s not suitable for us anymore.”
Xiahou Dun asked curiously: "Why?"
Cao Cao said: "Nowadays, the world has become more and more chaotic. In recent years, remnants of the Yellow Turbans have emerged from all over the country. Yanzhou is in the middle of the war in the north, with Dong Zhuo in the west, Yuan Shao in the south, and Liu Jian in the north. Although it is a prosperous area in the Central Plains,
, but in the future it will inevitably be the main battlefield where major forces compete. According to Cao’s inference, Yanzhou will become a buffer zone between all forces in the future. Most wars will take place in Yanzhou. By then, the Central Plains will be in dilapidated state.
A place to stand.”
"Nowadays, in order to avoid the disaster of war, the rich and well-dressed men in the north have begun to move south in large numbers. Some of their families have moved to Jingzhou, some to Yangzhou, and some to Yizhou. The world is no longer a world where people leave their hometowns and become humble. If they are in the countryside,
There are frequent wars, what’s the use of staying in this village?”
Xiahou Dun said: "Then we want to leave Yanzhou? Go to develop elsewhere?"
Cao Cao shook his head and said: "No, I will stay in Yanzhou for the time being. There are many useful heroes in Yanzhou. Cao wants to capture their hearts here and bring them under his command, and then look for an opportunity to leave in the future."
Xia Houyuan asked: "Mengde, you must have made a decision, right?"
"Exactly, I just told Yuan Shao in the hall, asking him to eradicate Yuan Shu and occupy Jiangdong in the future. This is actually to pave the way for our family. Apart from me, Cao, who can I safely let go?
Where is Jiangdong?"
Xia Houyuan asked: "Why is Mengde so fond of Jiangdong?"
Cao Cao said: "The land east of the Yangtze River is dangerous but the people are rich. Although it lacks horses and cavalry, it can build a powerful navy that is good at water warfare. In addition, the Yangtze River natural moat can be used as a solid defense. There is also the land of Danyang, which has more elite soldiers."
, no matter how strong the people in the north are, they can still hold on. Moreover, the land east of the Yangtze River is a relatively peaceful place with few wars. If you can hold on to this place and recharge your batteries to watch the changes in the world, it may not be impossible.
Achieve great things.”
"There is no other way. It is better to safely dominate the southeast than to sacrifice tributes to Yuan Shao on the front line with Zhang Miao, Bao Xin, Liu Dai and others in Yanzhou."
After hearing Cao Cao's words, Xiahou Dun immediately raised his hands and said: "We all know Meng De's ability. We should act accordingly and work together to accomplish great things."
Cao Cao smiled and shook his head: "It's hard to say whether it can become a big thing, but in this world, if you can save your life, dominate one side and watch the changes with the times, it's not bad."
…
Subsequently, Yuan Shao followed Cao Cao's design and began to actively recommend Yuan Shu as the father-in-law of the clan.
However, Yuan Shao firmly refused to acknowledge the contents of the letter. At the same time, he began to spread rumors and question the authenticity of the letter.
Yuan Shao's move turned retreat into advance, which was indeed very useful.
Many scholars in the land of Ruying, including several elders of the Yuan family in Runan, felt that Yuan Shao was willing to give up his position as a monk for the sake of the Yuan family, forbearing and retreating, and settling down the trouble. It was very rare.
On the other hand, Yuan Shu, for his own selfish gain, made the entire Yuan family in Runan a state of chaos, which was really a bit ignorant.
Putting this person together with others, he just can't stand up to each other.
In this comparison, Yuan Shu was a bit defeated by Yuan Shaobi.
In addition, Yuan Shao secretly did a very good job in public opinion work, and he actually faintly defeated Yuan Shu in this contest.
Yuan Yi, who was in Yizhou, also sent people to the Yuan family in Runan to explain to the elders that he had never received a letter from his brother Yuan Ji, and it was even less likely that he would deliver this letter to Yuan Shu again.
.
Therefore, Yuan Yi also questioned the authenticity of this letter.
Suddenly, it was Yuan Shu who was forced by Yuan Shao.
After Yuan Shu learned about Yuan Shao's actions, he was so angry that he almost smashed his study to pieces.
But now that the matter has come to this, it is useless for him to continue to lose his temper. He can only continue to fight the public opinion war with Yuan Shao according to the established policy, insisting that the letter is true.
At the same time, Yuan Shu had another idea, which was to hope that Liu Jian would stand up to support him and tell the source of the letter.
But the problem is, Liu Jian's original purpose was to make Yuan and Yuan fight, so how could he easily stand up for justice for Yuan Shu?
However, Yuan Shu's envoy still went to see Liu Jian for this purpose.