xymnovel Chapter 14 An Epic Victory!
Chapter 14 An Epic Victory!
Unfortunately, at this critical juncture, Yuan Yao is ultimately unable to form an alliance with Liu Bei.
Liu Bei didn't even need to answer this himself; Mi Zhu answered for him.
Even the reasons are readily available—
"What is your status in the Zhong family? Lu Bu was the head of Xuzhou back then!"
Yuan Yao then knew there was no point in negotiating.
At least on the issue of forming an alliance, the two sides are completely unable to reach an agreement.
In Liu Bei's eyes, Yuan Yao's words about Zhong Shi were meaningless, so why waste his breath?
Mi Zhu was slightly disappointed. He had thought that this young master Yuan would have some profound insights, but he was nothing special. He had really overestimated him.
"Young Master Yuan, I shall take my leave now," Mi Zhu said neither humbly nor arrogantly. "Furthermore, my lord is a benevolent and virtuous man who would not go back on his word. Once I return to camp, I will certainly ensure your brother's safe return."
"No, please wait a moment, Mr. Zizhong!" Yuan Yao seemed to have just come to his senses and quickly said, "There's one last thing. Let's discuss how to withdraw our troops."
"retreat?"
"right."
Yuan Yao stated his price without further ado: "Three thousand shi of grain, two hundred sets of armor, plus fifty warhorses. How about it, Lord Liu, can you accept these terms?"
"Young Master Yuan!" Mi Zhu was almost laughing in anger: "You think you can bribe my lord? Don't be delusional! How could my lord be swayed by such a paltry gain! Besides, even if you don't retreat, so what? A mere five thousand weak troops, do you think you can withstand my army?"
"Mr. Zizhong, you misunderstand," Yuan Yao explained. "This is not a bribe I gave to your lord, but a bribe your lord gave to me. Otherwise, I would have led five thousand weak troops to pursue and kill him, so that he could not retreat in peace."
Mi Zhu rubbed his ears, thinking he must have misheard.
Or perhaps Yuan Yao has gone mad, uttering such outlandish and absurd words?
However, Yuan Yao's expression was very serious: "I know that Mr. Zhong cannot make the decision on this matter. It's alright, you just need to convey my words to Lord Xuande."
"you--"
"Oh right, we also need to bring this."
Before Mi Zhu could speak, Yuan Yao interrupted him and pulled something out of his pocket.
It was also a silk scroll.
Unlike Yang Hong's previous one, this silk scroll was only the size of a palm and could not contain many words.
Yuan Yao folded it up and stuffed it into Mi Zhu's hand: "Give this to Prefect Liu, and he will understand what I mean."
Mi Zhu didn't want to say anything anymore, he just felt that he had come for nothing.
The only saving grace was that this man surnamed Yuan was quite principled and didn't forcibly detain him—which saved his brother-in-law from worrying.
Soon, Mi Zhu returned to Liu Bei's camp without incident.
Upon seeing Mi Zhu return, Liu Bei and the others all breathed a sigh of relief.
In fact, Liu Bei was very reluctant to send Mi Zhu as an envoy. He felt that there was nothing to discuss in this battle, and even if the other side wanted to surrender, there was no need to waste words. He could just push through and be done with it.
However, Mi Zhu felt that Yang Hong had some influence here, and besides, Yuan Yao dared to send his brother-in-law over as a hostage. If he were to back down and not dare to go, wouldn't that tarnish the reputation of Liu Bei's army?
"It's good that Zizhong is safe and sound." Liu Bei was very happy, and then casually instructed, "Yide, go and send the messenger sent by the Yuan family back."
Then he asked Mi Zhu in detail, "Zizhong, what did that Yuan family lad tell you?"
Mi Zhu curled his lip: "Just a cliché."
He then repeated Yuan Yao's arguments, such as Cao Cao holding the emperor hostage to command the feudal lords and about to unify the Central Plains, making him too powerful to control. He suggested that the two sides form an alliance to resist the traitor Cao Cao.
After hearing these words, not only Liu Bei, but everyone else was amused.
Does Yuan Yao really need to teach them whether Cao Cao was a traitor or not?
In fact, Liu Bei's campaign to attack Huainan was his way of escaping from Cao Cao. Once they had eliminated Yuan Shu, the number one rebel who had usurped the title of emperor, they would naturally have a showdown with Cao Cao, the number two rebel.
Liu Bei sighed, "Yuan Shu's son can't even understand this simple principle. It seems he's nothing special. It's laughable that Yuan Shu appoints his relatives and friends, and now he's even sending him to support Shouchun."
"And there's something even more ridiculous!" Mi Zhu sneered. "That Yuan family lad actually said that we should bribe him with three thousand shi of grain, two hundred sets of armor, and fifty warhorses, or he wouldn't let us go."
"Is this really true?" Liu Bei laughed loudly. "Are there really such foolish people in the world? Zizhong, are you deliberately trying to deceive me?"
"Every word is true." Mi Zhu suddenly remembered something and casually took out the silk scroll that Yuan Yao had given him: "Oh, he also asked me to pass this on to the magistrate."
Now, since Mi Zhu was a trustworthy gentleman, even if he looked down on Yuan Yao, he would not open the package without permission since Yuan Yao had asked him to deliver it to Liu Bei. Therefore, he did not know what was written on it.
Then we saw Liu Bei casually pick up the silk scroll, and his smile froze a second later.
Mi Zhu quickly realized something was wrong: "My lord, what's wrong?"
Liu Bei remained silent, then suddenly stumbled and almost fell to the ground.
"Brother!" "My lord!"
Everyone rushed forward to help Liu Bei up.
Liu Bei waved his hand, indicating that he was alright, then turned to Guan Yu: "Yun Chang, immediately organize a retreat! Also, allocate another three thousand shi of grain, two hundred sets of armor, and fifty horses from the army to leave in place to bribe Yuan's pursuing troops!"
Mi Zhu was shocked and confused, not understanding what had happened. He was about to capture Shouchun, then take Jiujiang, and head straight for Yuan Shu's last stronghold, Lujiang.
How did the situation suddenly take such a dramatic turn for the worse?
The next second, he suddenly caught sight of the silk scroll in Liu Bei's hand.
There were only five simple words on it.
"The secret imperial edict hidden in the belt has been leaked!"
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"Your Highness, Liu Bei has retreated!"
Huang Yi, who had just returned from Liu Bei's army, stared in disbelief as the enemy retreated like a tide, without the slightest hesitation.
"Excellent!" Yuan Yao clapped his hands and immediately ordered, "General Cao, organize a pursuit immediately! Mobilize the entire army!"
"Wait!" Huang Yi quickly advised, "Could it be a trap? I just returned from the enemy camp and scouted out a lot of military intelligence. Liu Bei's army is strong and well-equipped; why would they retreat so easily?"
"Stop babbling!" Yuan Yao raised his hand to hold Huang Yi down, and once again instructed Cao Xing: "Remember, make a big show of it, but don't actually chase after them. Just make some contact."
Cao Xing accepted the order: "Yes, sir!"
Yuan Yao turned to Huang Yi and said, "Brother-in-law, it's your time to shine! Quickly write me a super-gorgeous victory report!"
The next day, Wancheng received this urgent report of victory, delivered overnight.
At first, everyone thought they had misread it.
The document states that after Yuan Yao led his army to Shouchun, he launched a surprise attack on the 50,000 enemy troops attacking the city without removing their armor or saddles.
Yuan Yao, riding a white horse, personally led the charge. Like a whirlwind sweeping away clouds, he won battle after battle in a short while, routing Liu Bei's army and causing them to collapse at the first touch.
Everyone was stunned.
No, everyone suspects that you, Yuan Yao, might have exaggerated your battle achievements, but no one will blame you. It's normal to be unable to defeat a ruthless person like Liu Bei, and it's only human nature to embellish your achievements.
But you've gone too far by spouting such nonsense!
Do you think nobody knows anything about military matters?
A few days later, Yuan Yao's vanguard returned to Wancheng, carrying with them a large amount of captured supplies, including countless grains, armor, and horses. The only drawback was that they had captured too few prisoners.
Everyone was stunned once again.
So that incredibly absurd good news was actually true!
You can make up stories about what you've actually seized, but how do you fabricate real spoils?
Furthermore, Liu Bei's hasty retreat is an irrefutable fact verified by multiple sources!
So when Yuan Yao, who had deliberately been a step behind, returned, the entire city of Wancheng was in an uproar.
Yuan Yao, who had returned with an epic victory, was not in a hurry to report to Yuan Shu. Instead, he took a detour and came to an inconspicuous little house in Wancheng.
Upon entering the small house, he waved to dismiss everyone else, leaving only himself and the owner of the place inside.
"Lord Yan," Yuan Yao asked with a smile, "did you teach me anything today?"
"Your Highness," Yan Xiang sighed, remaining silent for a moment.
The two sat in silence for a long time until Yuan Yao almost couldn't help but hum, "I'm standing right in front of you, do you see how much I look like I used to?" Yan Xiang finally spoke.
"Things have come to this point, and this old minister has nothing more to teach. Your Highness may do whatever you wish to do. However... I am old and unworthy, and I beg permission to retire."
The meaning is clear: Yan Xiang does not believe that Yuan Yao, who has made unparalleled contributions, will fail in his coup this time. On the contrary, he has a great chance of success. However, he still has a mental block and is unwilling to join.
"In that case, Lord Yan, you might as well reconsider." Yuan Yao was quite patient: "I am preoccupied with trivial matters, so I will take my leave now."
After leaving Yan Xiang's residence, Cao Xing couldn't help but complain to Yuan Yao, "That fellow is so ungrateful."
Yuan Yao, however, was very certain: "No, Yan Xiang will definitely join us."
Cao Xing asked, puzzled, "Why?"
Yuan Yao: "Intuition."
Cao Xing: "Intuition?"
Yuan Yao: "That is, to believe without any reason."
Cao Xing: "...So you were just guessing!"