Yuan Shao, the father of Fanghua in the Three Kingdoms

Chapter 559 Planning a retreat

News of the fall of Hefei soon reached Shouchun, and Yuan Shu's subordinates, who were already panicking, became even more frightened.

From the time Yuan Shu proclaimed himself emperor to the beginning of the war, even though Yuan Shu's subordinates thought about the situation from a rather pessimistic perspective, they never imagined that Hefei would fall first when the defense line around Shouchun was in Jinzhong!
Although Hefei is not a big city, it guards Chaohu. If Shouchun cannot hold it, this is the most important retreat for Yuan Shu and his ministers to retreat to Jiangdong. Now that this retreat is cut off, Shouchun can only fight with his back to the wall!

Immediately, some subordinates suggested that the tens of thousands of troops who were confronting Yuan Tan in the Hongze Lake area at the junction of Xuzhou and Jiujiang should be withdrawn.

It is said that this army, led by General Ji Ling and Qin Yi, originally had high hopes before the war, but after the war, it was disgraced due to various reasons.

He first attacked Guangling Tangyi, but was blocked by Chen Deng and Taishi Ci. He had no choice but to join up with Lei Bo and Chen Lan who were attacking Xiapi, and finally captured Xiapi.

This is because Liu Bei was attacked by Cao Cao in the rear and gave up Xiapi in a hurry. Otherwise, Yuan Shu's two combined armies might not be able to defeat them.

After the two armies reunited and captured Xiapi, they suddenly became more courageous and tried to attack Tancheng to the north, but were blocked by Cao's army. Before everyone could figure out the situation, the situation suddenly changed again. Yuan Tan led the army southward. , and at this time Cao Jun actually abandoned Tancheng!

Yuan Tan occupied Tancheng without hesitation and used it as a stronghold to attack Zhongli in the direction of Shouchun. Zhongli was an important part of Shouchun's defense. After hearing the news, Lei Bo, Chen Lan and Ji Ling Qin Yi hurriedly Block it from the north of Xiapi.

However, Yuan Tan's military strength was really strong, and his troops were extremely brave. In one battle, Yuan Shu's two armies were defeated step by step.

At this time, Cao Cao's army occupied Pengcheng and also launched an attack towards Yinling in the direction of Shouchun. This time Ji Ling, Lei Bo and others were completely panicked. They didn't know that Cao Cao and Yuan Tan had secretly joined forces and wanted to He must completely defeat his army and then attack Shouchun!
If Zhongli's line of defense was broken, everyone would definitely be accused by Yuan Shu, so Ji Lingleibo quickly mobilized all the troops in Tancheng. Ji Ling and Qin Yi were responsible for blocking Cao's army, and Leibo and Chen Lan were responsible for blocking Yuan Tan.

But at this time, Zhao Yun, who had been taking no action, finally moved.

He mobilized all his troops and horses, marched rapidly westward from the Guangling border, captured Xiapi with lightning speed, and completely cut off Yuan Shu's army's supply route.

This was beyond Yuan Shujun's expectations, and also beyond Yuan Tan's expectations. He originally pretended to attack Zhongli and waited for an opportunity to cross Hongze Lake south to seize Xiapi. In this way, he could occupy the entire Xiapi County, but he did not expect to be attacked by Zhongli. Zhao Yunjie got there first!

Yuan Tan naturally couldn't swallow this breath, but under Guo Tu's advice, he knew that there was absolutely no benefit in breaking up with Yuan Xi at this time. After all, Zhao Yun was just and legitimate to regain the lost ground, so he had to swallow the bitter pill for the time being and attack Zhongli.

At this time, Ji Ling and Qin Yi were complaining, not only because they were at a disadvantage in numbers, but also because Yuan Tan, with the help of Guo Tuxinpi's several advisers, used his troops so fiercely that in less than half a month, the army was broken. Ji Ling and others from Liangdao were retreating steadily, and could only rely on Zhongli's city to defend themselves.

But the one that made Yuan Shujun feel the greatest threat was Cao Cao's army.

Cao Jun's army in Pengcheng was already a great threat, but its main force defeated Zhang Xun Qiao Rui in Chen State in the north. After Qiao Rui was seriously injured, Zhang Xun could no longer support it alone. Cao Jun took advantage of the situation and advanced step by step and entered Runan County. .

You must know that Ruyin at the southernmost point of Runan County is only separated from Shouchun by the Huai River. The two cities face each other across the river. If it is occupied by Cao Cao, Shouchun's defense line will be completely broken!

Now in Shouchun City, Yuan Shu once again convened the ministers to discuss matters. Yuan Yin in the crowd looked at the panicked ministers and sighed in his heart. This is really different from what he thought before the war started.

It seemed that every opponent was not that strong, but once they started fighting, they suddenly discovered that they couldn't defeat any of them!
Yuan Yin saw the ministers making various suggestions and suggestions, but they all responded to the same question vaguely.

Sun Ce, who had previously been the most capable of Yuan Shu's subordinates, now used the excuse to attack Jiangxia and sit on the mountain to watch the fight between tigers and tigers. If he did not help Yuan Shu, he would not be able to change the current situation at all.

Yuan Yin thought that Yuan Shu might have regretted it. Most of Yuan Shu's territory was conquered by Sun Ce, but Yuan Shu was always on guard against the opponent, which caused Sun Ce to become independent and independent. Now he has broken up with Yuan Shu by sending a letter!
However, everyone under Yuan Shu's command shared the opinion of being on guard against Sun Ce. After all, Sun Ce was too ambitious. If he allowed himself to grow stronger, he would sooner or later turn around and bite Yuan Shu.

Another point is the selfishness of Yuan Shu's subordinates. Sun Ce has too many capable people. If they are all reused by Yuan Shu, then Yuan Shu's official positions will obviously not be enough.

However, Yuan Shu's subordinates misjudged the situation despite all their calculations, which led to Yuan Shu's premature break with Sun Ce. As a result, Sun Ce not only stood by and watched, but also secretly helped the ferocious tigers to erode Yuan Shu's territory in Yangzhou!

That's all. After all, Huainan is as wealthy as Jizhou. Even if a strong enemy attacks, it can still defeat the opponent through a steady stream of logistical supplies.

But no one expected that a huge locust plague would put the Huainan granary in a hurry. The five armies seized this golden opportunity and launched an attack on Yuan Shu in unison!
Yuan Yin sometimes even doubted whether Yuan Shu's independence was a violation of God's will, so he was punished by God?
But it is useless to say anything now. The fact is that breaking with Sun Ce in advance resulted in being isolated and helpless, and he could not defeat Cao Cao and the three sons of the Yuan family head-on. Not only did Yuan Tan and Yuan Xi put great pressure on Yuan Shujun, but Yuan Shangjun also went south to encroach on Ying. Sichuan.

Yuan Shu's current situation is riddled with holes, and even a top strategist would be overwhelmed by this situation.

After all, if there are a few holes in the roof, they can be repaired. Now that most of the roof has collapsed, how can we repair it?

Everyone was arguing for a long time, but no consensus was reached at all. Yuan Shu's face became more and more ugly, and he waved his hand and said: "I'm tired, we will discuss it tomorrow."

When the courtiers dispersed, only a few Yuan family's children, including Yuan Yin, Yuan Yao, and Huang Yi, were left in the hall. Yuan Shu sighed and said to Yuan Yin: "Is the situation very bad now?"

Yuan Yin thought for a while and sighed, "Zhonggong, don't blame me for speaking harshly to my brother. It's best to plan your escape in advance now."

Yuan Shu's face darkened, and he squeezed the armrests of the dragon chair with his hands, "Is there really no hope left?"

Yuan Yin sighed, "It's not impossible, but the hope is slim."

"Neither Lu Bu, Cao Cao, nor Yuan Benchu's three sons are easy to deal with, especially the ones who pose the greatest threat are undoubtedly Cao Cao and Xiu Hu."

"These two men have so many powerful generals. If Sun Bofu were here, they could still fight against them, but with all due respect, none of my brother's generals can resist these two men now." "Now if I give Runan two It may not be impossible to make a comeback in a year, but now that the food and grass are empty and the morale of the frontline troops is unstable, even if 20 troops fall from the sky, can they still fight on an empty stomach?"

Yuan Shu slammed the armrest, "I don't understand. Cao Mengde's Yanzhou was also hit by the disaster. How could he not be affected?"

Yuan Yin thought of the rumors of dried human flesh and sighed: "Zhonggong, some things are not that simple."

"Zhonggong thinks how many of the current Manchu officials are sincerely serving Zhonggong?"

Yuan Shu looked very ugly and cursed in a low voice: "They are all feeding unfamiliar wolves!"

Yuan Yin shook his head and said, "I've never seen anything like this."

"For some people, Zhong Gong was indeed kind to them and gained their loyalty, just like Zheng Hun who would rather escape than surrender to the fierce tiger."

Yuan Shu's face turned pale and he cursed: "Liu Fu is so cunning that he easily gave away Hefei!"

Yuan Yin shook his head and said: "That's not the problem. Most of the people whom Zhonggong treats well are scholars. But these people are good at domestic affairs, but not good at fighting."

"However, Zhonggong treated the generals with inferior backgrounds, such as Sun Ce Qiaorui, a little harshly, which led to him losing his heart as a general. This was also the reason for many defeats."

"On the other hand, Cao Cao's fierce tiger and his generals all came from humble backgrounds. Those people had a strong desire to climb up. Cao Cao's fierce tiger did not begrudge his official position, thus gaining their undying loyalty."

"Compared to Cao Cao who relied on his own clan, the fierce tiger was more obvious. His generals were all promoted from the bottom. I don't know why he was so accurate in judging people. The people he found were all the best among them. It really made him I also have to admire it.”

Yuan Yao listened on the sidelines, his face even duller, and he couldn't help but said: "He is just lucky..."

"Shut up!" Yuan Shu shouted: "You can't defeat his city with thousands of people with tens of thousands of people. He is lucky, but what about you?"

Yuan Yao couldn't help but lower his head in shame as his face turned red.

Yuan Shu turned to Yuan Yin, "What retreat did my brother say?"

Yuan Yin thought for a while and said, "If things go wrong, if Duke Zhong doesn't want to be together, he may have to bow to others."

Yuan Shu couldn't help but shudder after hearing this. Of course he didn't want to die!

So Yuan Shu said anxiously: "Tell me quickly, what's the way?"

Yuan Yin stretched out a finger and said, "The first one is to ask the emperor to surrender."

Yuan Shu blurted out: "Absolutely impossible!"

Yuan Yin nodded and said: "It's really meaningless. The emperor is already in name only. If we ask him to surrender, the princes in the world will not pay attention and will still eat us up."

"So the second way is to ask Yuan Benchu ​​to surrender."

Yuan Shu was furious after hearing this and slapped the armrest of the dragon chair, "This is even more impossible!"

"How could I bow to the slaves of the Yuan family!"

Yuan Xi sighed, "But doesn't Mr. Zhong see that all the people who beat us are related to Yuan Benchu?"

"Cao Mengde is his eagle dog, not to mention the three sons of the Yuan family, Lu Bu is his in-laws, and Liu Xuande is his guest general. Don't you think, Duke Zhong, that as long as we bow our heads to Yuan Benchu, everything will be solved?"

Yuan Yao and Huang Yi nodded repeatedly after hearing this. Although they were unwilling to give in, they had to admit that what Yuan Yin said made sense!

Yuan Shu said with a gloomy face: "Is there no other way?"

Yuan Yin sighed: "Yes, but this third way is not so safe."

"Let's hand over the Zhong family's imperial title to someone who has a quarrel with Yuan Benchu, so as to drive a wedge between the two and take advantage of troubled waters."

"If it can cause both sides to suffer losses, we may not be able to make a comeback in the future."

"But Mr. Zhong needs to understand that the person we want to bow to must have a lower status than Yuan Benchu. In this case, Mr. Zhong still cannot save his face."

(End of this chapter)