HLnovel Chapter 212 Betrayal and alienation in progress! Is Cao Cao about to raise an army?
Chapter 212 Betrayal and alienation in progress! Is Cao Cao about to raise an army?
"You fart!"
“Sun Ce is nothing but a vicious dog that I have raised. How dare he betray me?”
Runan
Imperial Palace
Yuan Shu slammed over the honey water placed next to the dragon throne and cursed loudly, not believing for a second that Sun Ce would dare to betray him.
Yang Hong forced himself to say:
"Your Majesty, Sun Ce has no hostages remaining in Runan. Previously, Sun Ce's mother and younger brother had already been taken to Jiangdong by Zhou Yu."
Thinking of this, Yuan Shu was furious!
Someone like Sun Ce, who was not trusted by Yuan Shu, would naturally be kept as a hostage in Runan.
However, Yuan Shu was not fooled by Zhou Yu's deception and actually approved Zhou Yu's request to take Sun Ce's hostages to Jiangdong.
In Yuan Shu's view, Zhou Yu was, after all, a member of the Zhou family, which had produced two generations of high-ranking officials, and a truly prestigious family in the Lujiang region.
How could such a prestigious family possibly deceive him?
Unexpectedly, Zhou Yu not only brought back the hostages left behind by Sun Ce.
They also took all several hundred members of the Zhou family to Jiangdong.
In later generations, if we were to describe it in one word, it would be "smooth and mellow".
After the Zhou family, it was clear that they were going to follow Sun Ce.
At this point, Yuan Shu had no leverage over Sun Ce.
Where are Sun Ben and Wu Jing now?
"Sun Ce has fled; surely the other two can't betray me too?"
"Send word that they must come to Runan immediately to see me."
Yuan Shu waved his hand, but there was no air of dominance about him.
The dragon robe draped over Yuan Shu's shoulders looked somewhat comical due to his gaunt figure.
Yang Hong's face turned extremely grim.
Although Sun Ben and Wu Jing were not of the same mind as Sun Ce, they were, after all, relatives.
With Sun Ce becoming independent, it's hard to guarantee that Sun Ben and Wu Jing won't follow him and flee.
Two days later, Yang Hong received confirmation.
Sun Ben and Wu Jing abandoned their territories in the Huainan region and, with Zhou Yu's assistance, sailed to Jiangdong.
Yang Hong didn't even know how to describe this news to Yuan Shu.
at the same time
Under Zhou Yu's deliberate instigation, rebellions broke out one after another in the Huainan region.
More and more powerful clans abandoned their loyalty to Yuan Shu, choosing instead to establish their own independent regimes or join Sun Ce.
Even Liu Xun, a general under Yuan Shu who was of the same clan as Liu Ye, led 30,000 troops to declare independence in Chaohu.
In a short time, Huainan was completely out of Yuan Shu's control.
The last pure land may be Shouchun City.
If things were like this in Huainan, the powerful families in Nanyang were even more whispering and exchanging pleasantries with Liu Biao, clearly intending to abandon Yuan Shu.
The only place that remains relatively stable is Runan.
But the elders of the Yuan family in Runan were desperately trying to clean up Yuan Shu's mess.
There was no other way; once Yuan Shu was finished, even if they fled to Ji Province to seek refuge with Yuan Shao, their status and treatment would certainly not be as good as they would be under Yuan Shu.
after all.
When Yuan Shao asked these elders of the Yuan family for their support, they completely ignored him.
They can't be down on their luck and then shamelessly expect Yuan Shao to treat them like his living father, can they?
All of this was relayed back to Runan.
Yuan Shu simply smiled and remained silent, then turned and returned to the Runan Imperial Palace, where he played with the imperial seal, singing and dancing with great pleasure.
Yang Hong was drenched in cold sweat, and Ji Ling was trembling with fear.
crazy!
Everything's gone mad!
……
荆州
In the Xiangyang Council Hall
Liu Bei specially traveled from Xinye to this place to volunteer for the mission to Liu Biao:
"Brother, Yuan Shu's declaration of himself as emperor presents an excellent opportunity to recapture Nanyang!"
"I humbly request that my elder brother grant me 50,000 troops. I will certainly live up to your trust and bring Nanyang back into the territory of my Jingzhou!"
Liu Biao squinted slightly, fiddling with a string of prayer beads, ignoring what Liu Bei was saying.
Liu Bei was not in a hurry and quietly waited with his hands clasped in front of him.
This is also characteristic of Liu Biao.
When faced with a tricky situation, I always remain silent for a while, while my brain is actually quickly weighing the pros and cons.
"Xuande, do you want to be the commander-in-chief?"
Liu Biao suddenly asked a question.
Liu Bei immediately cupped his hands and said:
"To be honest, that's exactly right, brother."
Liu Biao laughed loudly, got up from his seat, circled around the area two or three times, and then said:
"You can be the head coach if you want."
"But are you confident you can persuade Cai Mao and Kuai Yue?"
Liu Bei clasped his hands and said:
"I only wish to help my brother recapture Nanyang."
"As for those lands in Nanyang, I don't want them. You can leave them to your brother to handle."
Liu Biao nodded.
Liu Biao, of course, did not believe what Liu Bei said.
But what's the harm?
In Liu Biao's eyes, whether it was Cai Mao, Kuai Yue, or Liu Bei, they were all pawns in his strategy to control Jingzhou.
To be honest, Liu Biao's feelings for Liu Bei were very complicated.
Liu Biao knew perfectly well whether Liu Bei was capable or not.
But the problem is that he is too capable.
Liu Biao was very worried that Liu Bei would overthrow him and replace him.
They also worried that Liu Bei was too weak to effectively counterbalance Cai Mao and Kuai Yue.
Therefore, Liu Bei and Cai Mao and Kuai Yue must not have a close personal relationship.
Maintaining a hostile relationship was exactly the situation Liu Biao wanted to see.
The competition between the two forces can both help Liu Biao expand his territory and bring peace and prosperity to Jingzhou. Why not do it?
Otherwise, Liu Biao would be so worried that he wouldn't be able to sleep all night.
"Alright, Xuande, I promise you, you will be the commander-in-chief for this expedition to Nanyang."
"As for Cai Mao, I'll take care of that for you."
"Brother, I am deeply grateful for your trust!"
"Rest assured, Bei will always be your loyal subject, and will always cheer for you and Young Master Qi!"
Liu Biao smiled, served tea, and gestured for Liu Bei to take his leave.
Liu Qi was Liu Biao's eldest son, and also the eldest legitimate son born to Liu Biao's first wife.
But the problem was that after Liu Biao arrived in Jingzhou, he married Cai Mao's sister, Lady Cai, as his second wife.
Lady Cai was young and beautiful, and she gave birth to Liu Biao's youngest son, Liu Cong.
The eldest son, Liu Qi, is still considered the eldest legitimate son.
However, the youngest son, Liu Cong, was a legitimate son, not a son born out of wedlock.
The eldest son had no powerful families in Jingzhou to support him, while the younger son had the strong support of Cai Mao and Kuai Yue.
Liu Bei's youngest son, Liu Cong, was only six years old, while his eldest son, Liu Qi, was older than him.
To be honest, Liu Biao, who was almost sixty years old, really didn't think he had many years left to live.
If Jingzhou is handed over to the youngest son Liu Cong in the future, it will inevitably become a puppet state of Cai Mao and Kuai Yue.
But if it were handed over to his eldest son, Liu Qi, he might not be able to handle it.
Annoying!
Every warlord has his own troubles.
If we're talking about the only happy warlord lately, it's probably our Boss Cao.
Look, before the official battle with Yuan Shu even began, Yuan Shu suddenly unleashed his full power!
After so many years of fighting, this is the first time I've encountered such an easy and crushing victory!
……