Yuan Shao, the father of Fanghua in the Three Kingdoms

Chapter 1451 Determination
In Nanchang City, Yuan Xi entered the posthouse and said to Guan Yu who came out to greet him, "General Guan, how are you?"

Guan Yu did not expect that when Yuan Xi arrived, he did not summon him, but came to visit him in person. He was also a little proud in his heart, and immediately returned the greeting: "Yu and King Jin have not seen each other for many years. I hope everything is going well."

Yang Xiu, who was standing behind Yuan Xi, frowned silently. Guan Yu did not address him as "Your Majesty" but as "Great King", which was equivalent to making his position clear from the very beginning. It seemed that it would be difficult to make any substantial progress in this meeting.

Yuan Xi didn't take it seriously and said with a smile, "It has indeed been a long time. How many years has it been since we last saw each other?"

Guan Yu thought about it and shook his head, "Five or six years? Seven or eight years? I can't remember clearly."

He stroked his graying beard and said, "When Yu first met the King of Jin, it was during the Battle of Qingzhou. At that time, the King was not even twenty years old, but he was able to lead his troops to successively defeat three of my brother's coalition forces, and even made Yu injured and defeated. He was really amazing."

"Unconsciously, a few years have passed, and the king has become more and more extraordinary, with the aura of a king."

As they talked, they went inside and sat down separately. Yuan Xi smiled at Guan Yu and said, "A large part of my achievements are due to your help, otherwise I would have died long ago."

"Whether it was the battle of Guangling against Sun Ce, the battle of Xuzhou against Cao Cao, or the later battle of Wancheng and Xudu, if it weren't for the general and Lord Xuande who held Cao Cao back, I would never have achieved what I have today."

"The foundation of the Jin State also includes the General's proud military achievements."

Guan Yu said solemnly: "Your Majesty, what you said is absurd. I have followed you all my life. Your ambition is what I want. You have fought all your life to support the Han Dynasty and finally left behind this piece of land in the south of Han that you have worked so hard to build. Although you have passed away, I will protect it till my death."

Yuan Xi glanced at Yang Xiu beside him, smiled bitterly, and thought to himself that just as Yang Xiu had expected, Guan Yu would not betray Liu Bei no matter what.

The words just now, especially the praise for Guan Yu's great contributions to the State of Jin, were tests made by Yuan Xi to improve the relationship between the two sides. If Guan Yu softened his stance, it would mean that he still had a good impression of the State of Jin. Yuan Xi could then take the opportunity through Guan Yu to form a compromise plan that would allow the State of Hannan to retain its status while closely binding the State of Jin.

Guan Yu's say in Hannan Kingdom was actually higher than Xu Shu's. As long as he nodded, most of the things would be done. But now it seemed that Guan Yu was very clear-headed and drew a clear line with Jin State right away. This made Yuan Xi feel at a loss as to what to say.

However, Yuan Xi had been tempered by the intrigues and deceptions of the struggle for the world over the years. He knew that if he continued to talk step by step, he would probably not get anything out of it. So he suddenly said something shocking, "If I come here to personally attack Hannan, what will the general do?"

Yang Xiu was shocked. Your Majesty is so straightforward. Aren’t you afraid that Guan Yu will overreact?
Guan Yu said in a deep voice: "I will return to Changsha to gather troops and fight the King of Jin to the death!"

"Forgive me for what I said. King Jin has many famous generals under his command, but I'm afraid none of them can defeat Yu!"

Yuan Xi leaned forward, "But the general also knows the strength of the Jin State. If I go out at all costs with dozens of generals and hundreds of thousands of troops, do you think we can really stop them?"

Guan Yu's expression turned cold. "Since the King of Jin said so, are you determined to be the enemy of Hannan?"

Yuan Xi said, "It's not that Jin and Hannan are enemies, but Hannan is doing something behind Jin's back. The general should know this!"

"What Jin State fears most is being stabbed in the back by an ally. Does Hannan want to do the same to Jin State as Wu State did to Hannan?"

Guan Yu said in a deep voice: "I can guarantee that Hannan will never follow the example of Wu and do something worse than beasts."

Yuan Xi said in a deep voice: "Of course I believe in the general."

"But I don't trust Hannan, because the general is not the ruler."

"If Lord Hannan really wants to go on, will the general stop him?"

Guan Yu paused, "Your Majesty is my eldest brother's son, how can I overstep my authority?"

Yuan Xi sighed: "That's it."

"As people grow older, their ambitions also grow, and they always want to try something different."

"It is true for me, Sun Quan, Cao Pi, and Lord Xuande's son."

"I have no doubt that at that time, the general will definitely stand against my Jin State."

"To be honest, the only person I'm worried about in Hannan right now is the general."

"If the general cannot fight in the future and can only sit and watch our Jin State swallow up the world, what will you think?"

Guan Yu's anger grew in his chest. He snorted coldly, "Your Majesty, your wish is too good."

"Little did you know that the first one to collapse in the future would be the king?"

"I heard that the king has been on the battlefield many times in recent years and has often contracted illness. His health is not as good as it was when he was young, right?" Yuan Xi laughed and said, "I didn't expect the general to be so concerned about my health. I'm afraid he has sent people to find out a lot of information, right?"

Guan Yu sat upright, agreeing, but then he heard Yuan Xi say slowly: "If I am really ill, then the best thing for Jin would be to capture the general right away, or even kill him, and eliminate the only major threat to Jin, wouldn't that be good?"

Guan Yu raised his eyebrows when he heard this. "I really admire your courage. You dare to say such words in front of me!"

"There are only seven steps between you and me. Even if there are thousands of soldiers and horses in the house, Yu is 100% sure to kill King Jin!"

As soon as he said this, he sat up with a slight bend in his body, and his whole body exuded endless murderous aura. The atmosphere in the room suddenly became cold. Yang Xiu was so scared that he collapsed on the ground. Gan Ning, Sun Li and a dozen other guards behind Yuan Xi drew their swords in unison. Several of Guan Yu's personal guards over there also drew their swords at the same time. For a moment, the room was filled with bright flashes of swords.

Facing the fascinating gleam between Guan Yu's eyebrows, Yuan Xi only moved his body slightly, then sat firmly, and said to Sun Li and others behind him: "Put away the knife, General Guan is right, I can't survive at this distance."

"If I'm not mistaken, the general has already put on armor under his robe, right?"

Guan Yu's eyes flashed with a strange color, "The King of Jin is indeed a king." He lifted his robe, revealing a gleaming armor underneath, "Although I am negotiating, I have to be on guard. After all, the safety of Hannan depends on me."

Yuan Xi sighed, "General Guan is not only a martial arts expert, but also a courageous and intelligent man. He is also a top choice. In my mind, the top military commander of this era must be General Guan."

Guan Yu was somewhat proud, but he still did not let down his guard. "I am not so arrogant. The King of Jin, the Great General Zhao Zilong, is not inferior to me."

Seeing that Yuan Xi had been intimidated by him, he was about to speak when he heard Yuan Xi say, "General Guan, do you know what the general trend is?"

Guan Yu thought Yuan Xi was still trying to convince him, so he said in a deep voice: "Guan I don't know what the general situation is, I only know the Han Dynasty."

Yuan Xi smiled casually, "Then let me tell you what the general situation is."

"The Jin State has been able to reach this point today because of the unity of the people and their determination to move forward. From me to the people, we are all moving forward towards one goal."

"For this goal, everyone is willing to sacrifice their lives and shed their blood, so our Jin State has been able to move forward step by step to where it is today."

"The world of Jin is not for me alone, but for everyone. For this goal, I can even sacrifice my life."

His tone gradually turned cold. "I have already appointed the crown prince. Today I will exchange my life for the general's. Now that Jin has changed its ruler, it will surely attack Hannan with all its might. Who can stop it then?"

After hearing this, Guan Yu's hair stood on end. He couldn't believe his ears. The other party was the emperor, yet he was threatening a military general like him with his own life?
For the first time since they met, Guan Yu felt that the situation was out of his control. He subconsciously reached out his hand, tightly grasped the table in front of him, and said slightly out of control: "Is the King of Jin trying to trick me?"

Seeing Guan Yu's actions, Gan Ning, Sun Li and others subconsciously stood in front of Yuan Xi. Although Guan Yu had no weapons in his hands, the lethality of the table in his hands was far beyond that of ordinary people. Who knew when the opponent would suddenly attack?
Yang Xiu, who had finally managed to sit firmly on the side, secretly groaned in his heart, why did you have to provoke Guan Yu, the god of killing, when there are so many people to provoke? Your Majesty, where do you get the courage to do this?
In fact, Yuan Xi was very scared at this moment. He was naturally afraid of death, and he didn't think that if Guan Yu was determined to fight to the death, he could survive.

His only reliance was his knowledge of Guan Yu's character.

Although Guan Yu helped Yuan Xi a lot, he also owed Yuan Xi a lot of favors. Yuan Xi had saved Guan Yu and Liu Bei's lives before, but Guan Yu has not repaid him yet. Of course, this was also intentional by Yuan Xi.

Although Guan Yu now appears to be determined to fight to the death, if he really wants to take action, he will inevitably have reservations. Taking action against Yuan Xi, his benefactor, may make sense in terms of national justice, but what about self-cultivation and personal morality?
Guan Yu suddenly laughed, "Prince Jin, you want to use favors to hold me back so that I dare not take your life, right?"

Although it was winter, a layer of cold sweat instantly seeped out of Yuan Xi's vest, but he still took a deep breath, then slowly exhaled, then raised his head to face Guan Yu and looked into his eyes, "General, can't you tell at a glance whether what I said is true or false?"

Guan Yu stared at Yuan Xi's eyes closely. He had met many friends and countless enemies in his life. Every time he looked at each other, there would be a hint of strangeness in the other's eyes. Some were afraid, some kept their distance, and among them, only the eldest brother and the third brother looked at him with eyes full of closeness and trust.

Now, in Yuan Xi's eyes, there was indeed fear in Guan Yu's face, but unlike before, there was also a hint of calmness and determination in it.

This is the state of mind that one has when facing life and death, and it cannot be faked. Guan Yu did not expect that this would appear in the eyes of an emperor who is about to unify the world and should cherish his life very much.

He subconsciously asked, "King Jin, do you really think so?"

"why?"

Yuan Xi was stunned for a moment, then looked at the sky outside the window, a little absent-minded, "Why?"

"Maybe I have always believed that this world does not belong to me alone. Maybe after so many years, I am tired."

He looked at Guan Yu again, "I just want this world to have fewer deaths."

"It's that simple."

(End of this chapter)