Chapter 308: Achievers

After Zhuge Xuan heard the news of Zhu Hao's death, he became active again. Since Zuo Rong had rebelled, he might not be without a chance!

But when he heard Zhuge Liang's objection to staying in Yuzhang, he was puzzled and said, "Zuo Rong killed Zhu Hao and rebelled against Liu Yao. Liu Yao should lead his troops to fight him, right?"

"Then we can just sit back and watch the fight and reap the benefits, right?"

"Perhaps Liu Yao will make friends with us in order to avoid making enemies on both sides?"

Zhuge Liang listened and said, "Uncle, there is nothing wrong with what you said before. Zuo Rong's actions have angered heaven and people. Given Liu Yao's character, he is likely to raise an army and attack us."

"But my uncle's subsequent thoughts are very problematic."

"Why did Liu Yao want to befriend his uncle?"

"You know, the actions of Yuan Gonglu, the man my uncle has taken refuge with, may indicate he is up to something bad."

Zhuge Xuan's face froze, "Before I took office, I didn't know he would do such a ruthless thing!"

"I'm afraid he's going to declare himself emperor!"

Zhuge Liang heard this and said, "If Yuan Gonglu really declares himself emperor, the Zhuge family will be stuck on this boat!"

"By then he will be the enemy of everyone in the world. If my uncle follows him, he will be dragged into the water!"

Zhuge Xuan still had hope, "Now that the Han Dynasty has collapsed, what if Yuan Gonglu really succeeds?"

"Besides, he has been very kind to me, how can I betray him now?"

Seeing that Zhuge Xuan was stubborn and unrepentant, Zhuge Liang tried to persuade him: "I have seen Yuan Shu as a man who is brave but not wise. He is ambitious and can't even control Sun Ce. He will surely cause trouble in the future."

"Yuan Shu has the heart of a jackal, but Sun Ce is a tiger and wolf. Now Yuan Shu can't control Sun Ce. When Sun Ce becomes powerful, Yangzhou will be in danger."

"Liu Yao has tens of thousands of soldiers and horses waiting to see us, Zuo Rong is a fickle villain, and Sun Ce is very ambitious. Given my uncle's current situation, how can he survive between these three parties?"

"For now, we should leave Yuzhang as soon as possible, so that we can have a chance of survival."

Zhuge Xuan knew that his nephew had a mature view of the world, even better than himself, and was tempted for the moment, but then he thought, Zhuge Liang was not completely unprepared. Hadn't his group been blocked by Tao Qian's army and Cao's army in Fei County before?

He thought for a while and said, "Although what my nephew said makes sense, no one knows the outcome until the last moment."

"I decided to wait and see. If nothing works, I'll still have time to escape."

Seeing that he could not convince Zhuge Xuan, Zhuge Liang sighed inwardly, thinking that he still could not understand the world and turn the tide.

Zhuge Xuan said, "But my dear nephew, you don't have to follow me into danger."

"If it is really as you expected, and I harm you because of my own selfish desires, how can I be worthy of your dead father?"

"Liu Jingsheng of Jingzhou is on good terms with me. I want to send you to Jingzhou for refuge. This way, if something unexpected happens, my entire Zhuge family won't be trapped here."

Zhuge Liang knew that Zhuge Xuan had made up his mind, so he had to nod and agree.

A few days later, escorted by a group of soldiers, Zhuge Liang took Zhuge Xuan's handwritten letter, Zhuge Jun and his two sisters out of Xicheng and went to Jingzhou to join Liu Biao.

Chen Deng's letter was also sent to Yuan Xi, who was training troops in Jicheng.

After reading it, he handed it to Guo Jia and said, "What do you think about the conflict between the two factions in Guangling County?"

Guo Jia smiled and said, "Isn't this a good thing?"

"This situation is most in line with your wishes, right?"

"You have established a free school to encourage the opinions of hundreds of schools of thought. How could you allow these schools to dominate?"

"As long as both sides do not cross the line, and the fight continues until both sides have only one breath left, it will be more advantageous for you to come out and clean up the situation, right?"

Yuan Xi smiled and said, "Sir, you still understand me, but it's hard to grasp the right measure. I hope Mr. Yuanlong can control the situation."

Guo Jia said: "Yuan Long is talented enough to handle things on his own, so nothing should go wrong."

"It is Ziyi who crossed the river alone to help Liu Yao. His courage and insight are admirable."

Yuan Xi sighed, "He was worried that Sun Ce would attack and destroy Liu Yao, and he went there for the people I mentioned in the letter."

"If those people can get one, it will be a big profit. If I can win over Lu Xun, then I will be satisfied."

After hearing this, Guo Jia asked in confusion, "That fourteen-year-old boy from the Lu family?"

"His grandfather Lu Kang fought against Sun Ce for two years, and more than half of the Lu family members died or were injured, but I didn't see what kind of ability this Lu Xun had."

Yuan Xi smiled and said, "Maybe it's because I'm not old enough to show my talent."

"The current head of the family is Lu Ji, and Lu Xun is his nephew. Although he is in charge of the family on his behalf, it should be after Lu Kang's death."

"But speaking of it, if there is anyone in the world who can inherit what you have learned throughout your life, this person can be ranked in the top three."

Guo Jia was stunned when he heard this. He did not expect Yuan Xi to have such a high opinion of this Lu family member. However, finding someone in this county depends entirely on luck. Guo Jia did not take it to heart after hearing this.

What he was most worried about at the moment was another matter, so he said, "Mr. Han Yu should have met Lu Bu."

"If everything goes well, once the news gets back, we can start dealing with the Montenegrin Army."

"But if Lu Bu refuses to join forces, or even helps the Black Mountain Army, it will be very troublesome."

Yuan Xi was also unsure, because Lu Bu often acted according to his own preferences, making it difficult to predict his actions.

He said: "Lü Bu's power is crucial in welcoming the emperor."

"If half of Bingzhou is not enough to satisfy him, I am prepared to pay a greater price."

Guo Jia suddenly thought of something and looked strange.

Yuan Xi asked curiously, "What do you think, sir?"

Guo Jia suppressed his laughter and said, "I dare not say."

Yuan Xi was confused. "What is there to be afraid of? Why would I ever care about these things?"

Guo Jia smiled bitterly and said, "Young Master got married too early. It's too late now. If I tell you, I'm afraid Madam Zhen will hate me."

Yuan Xi finally understood and almost spit out the tea in his mouth: "Sir, you really dare to think so."

Guo Jia said confidently: "What's the big deal? The marriage between the two families is the best guarantee for cooperation."

"If you can marry Lu Bu's daughter, not only can you destroy Yuan Shu and Lu Bu's cooperation plan, but you can also bring Lu Bu's power to your own use."

"And considering your current reputation and ability, isn't he better than Yuan Shu's son?"

Yuan Xi sighed, "Now that I'm married, I'm afraid this strategy won't work anymore."

Guo Jia's eyes flashed coldly, "Young Master, you still worry too much. Those who accomplish great things do not care about trivial matters. If you want to subdue Lu Bu, the best choice is to divorce Madam Zhen and marry a girl from the Lu family, or let Madam Zhen give up the position of the main wife."

"Anyway, the Zhen family can't say anything in front of the Yuan family."

Yuan Xi was dumbfounded. Guo Jia's idea was too sinister!

He recalled the chaotic scene when he first met Lu Lingqi, and said with a wry smile: "Don't let my wife hear this. How could I do such a thing."

After hearing this, Guo Jia shook his head with regret: "This will indeed affect your reputation. If we do it now, the gains will outweigh the losses."

"But if you are really forced into a desperate situation, this is a way out."

"Young Master, you should be less aggressive in your ambition to dominate the world. This choice will save many lives."

"Sir, look at how Emperor Gaozu and Liu Xuande treat their wives and concubines, and you will understand how a man fighting for the world should treat the women around him."

Yuan Xi felt a little heavy in his heart. Guo Jia said it very clearly that wives and concubines were like clothes and could all be discarded for the sake of the great cause.

He said in a hoarse voice: "I still want to try another way."

After hearing this, Guo Jia burst into laughter.

"I admire you for that, sir."

"Although Jia feels that the young master's choice is not the best, he has never lost his original intention."

"In the past, Jia felt that the young master was a bit soft-hearted, but after a few years, Jia found that he was also a bit arbitrary."

"The path you are taking may not be worse than what Jia said. After all, Jia is not a person who has no plans left."

"If the young master becomes a figure like Gaozu, Jia is actually a little worried that he will end up being abandoned after his rabbit is dead."

"Now that the young master has shown more humanity in his actions, we, the subordinates, can actually feel more at ease."

After hearing this, Yuan Xi bowed and said, "Thank you for your guidance, sir."

Guo Jia sat up straight and said, "The key to attacking the Black Mountain Army lies in Lu Bu, but it is Yuan Shu who determines Lu Bu's attitude."

"Lu Bu's attitude is ambiguous, and Yuan Shu is getting anxious. He is now sending Zhang Xun, Qiao Rui and others to the northern part of Yuzhou to threaten Lu Bu."

Yuan Xi's mind was moved. "The situation of the marriage between the two families is unclear. Yuan Shu's move may also be aimed at Liu Xie, the emperor who returned to the east. I'm afraid there are also people around the emperor who are colluding with Yuan Shu."

Guo Jia praised: "You are wise, my lord. If Yuan Shu wants to be emperor, it would be more legitimate if he staged a cession of power. So the emperor is in some danger."

"But Jia doesn't know who is Yuan Shu's thorn around the emperor."

Yuan Xi said: "It may be Yang Feng and Han Xian."

A hint of surprise appeared on Guo Jia's face. He guessed that Yuan Xi must have an independent set of intelligence channels to be so sure. His lord was no simple man!

Yuan Xi was secretly proud of himself when he saw that he had frightened Guo Jia.

He himself did have a thorn in his side, and that was Dong Zhao, who now followed Zhang Yang to welcome the emperor and was appointed as a minister.

However, for Dong Zhao's personal safety, Yuan Xi never had any contact with Dong Zhao.

The reason why he was able to guess who Yuan Shu had planted was thanks to the knowledge of later generations.

Yang Feng, Han Xian and Cao Cao competed for the throne. After being defeated, Yang Feng surrendered to Yuan Shu, which shows that there was some collusion between the two sides before.

The force that Yuan Shu had infiltrated in advance was the Baibo bandits' force!

Among the princes of this era, not a single one is easy to deal with. Not only can everyone fight, but they also have their own strengths in diplomacy and placing spies.

Not to mention Yuan Shu, the one who is more powerful than Yuan Shu is Cao Cao.

If Yuan Xi had not taken action in advance, Dong Zhao would have become Cao Cao's man long ago.

Even if Dong Zhao was not there, there was still Dong Cheng, who was the first to send a letter to Cao Cao asking him to welcome the emperor.

Yuan Xi was also puzzled. Most of the people with the surname Dong were from Dong Zhuo's clan, but in the end they all supported Cao Cao. The reason behind this should be very difficult to explain.

He had an idea at the beginning that the positions of Dong Zhuo and Cao Cao were actually the same at the beginning. Both were die-hard royalists. Cao Cao was able to establish connections with Dong's clan members, and his diplomatic intelligence capabilities should not be underestimated.

The peak of his strategic maneuvers was when Yuan Shu proclaimed himself emperor. Sun Ce immediately betrayed Yuan Shu. The shadow of Cao Cao was involved in this, as evidenced by the marriage of Cao Cao and Sun Ce after Yuan Shu's defeat.

Cao Cao obviously looked down on Sun Ce, otherwise he would not have said such comments as "It is difficult to compete with such a fierce guy" to evaluate Sun Ce.

猘, a mad dog. -- "Shuowen Jiezi"

He thought Sun Ce was a mad dog, but he was still willing to marry him. In addition to Sun Ce, Cao Cao also wanted to marry Zhang Xiu, who killed his son Cao Ang.

It can only be said that in order to achieve his goals, Cao Cao had a magnanimity that Yuan Xi himself admitted was beyond his reach.