My Father in Law is Lu Bu-Chapter 727

In Bohai, the Governor's residence had its name changed to the Yuan Residence. Despite this, the Governor of the area still had to show respect to the person living inside.

“Husband. Look. The flowers are blooming again.” A middle aged woman pointed to the plum blossoms in the rear courtyard.

“They are so fragrant. They remind me of how we met. You were young and brash while I was a maiden waiting for marriage. You put a flower on my head and promised to love me for three lifetimes. You said you would travel the land with me. But where is that Yuan Benchu now? Where is that passionate and ambitious Yuan Benchu? Tell me!” The woman shook the man beside her.

The man may be dressed in a dignified manner but he did not respond. His eyes were lifeless as he stared at the flowers. He remained unmoved by the woman's shaking.

This was Yuan Shao Yuan Benchu, the former leader of the coalition against Dong Zhuo and was once a dominant warlord of Hebei. Now he was just a prisoner with a stroke.

Yuan Shao became like this after losing to Cao Cao and having his power usurped by his own son. Though he was still alive, he was now paralyzed and was like an empty husk.

“But maybe this is for the best. Your son is now Grand General. You used to be so busy but now you are free to keep me company. When Shang retakes Hebei, we can build a house in the mountains, raise wintersweet flowers and spend time admiring the flowers and the moon. Wouldn't that be lovely?” The woman continued to speak. After a while, she grew tired and left the man to bask in the sunlight alone.

“Wintersweet…” The woman did not notice the loneliness in Yuan Shao's eyes. In a daze, he stared at the flower that grew more beautiful during the cold. After a while, his gaze turned cold.

“Rebellious son!” Yuan Shao cursed. Though he included Yuan Tan in it, most of it was directed towards Yuan Shang. Yuan Shao had really doted on his youngest son. He gave Yuan Shang everything Yuan Shang asked for. He even made Yuan Shang the Governor of Bohai as he saw his young self in Yuan Shang.

But the deeper the love, the deeper the disappointment. Not only did Yuan Shang not comfort him after he lost to Cao Cao. Yuan Shang betrayed his father and seized power despite the fact that Yuan Shao would have handed over power of Hebei to Yuan Shang eventually.

The defeat was already bad enough since he never expected to lose to someone who was usually under him, the fat Cao Cao. Then came Yuan Shang's betrayal. The subsequent shock immediately made him catatonic. He may have slowly regained conciousness over the past few days but his movements were still uncoordinated.

Yuan Shao did not tell others that he was awake. The only one who knew was probably Xun Chen. Yuan Shao knew he would not be able to hide this from a smart guy like Xun Chen when Xun Chen was by Yuan Shao's side.

Meanwhile, Yuan Shao also listened to all the important matters from the gossips of the servants. These servants don't know much but they paid attention to matters regarding the Yuan Family.

Yuan Shao was put in Bohai not because Yuan Shang was being filial. It was because only Youzhou was left in the entirety of Hebei. Bohai was also given to Yuan Shang. That was why Yuan Shang put his father here.

Yuan Shao had thought in the past. What did he do to deserve this? The two sons that had the right of inheritence were both trash that squandered his foundations. Yuan Shao regretted not listening to Ju Shou and Tian Feng's suggestions. Had he done so, he may be sitting on the throne of Xudou right now.

But now? Yuan Shao did not think much. It was just like his wife had said. There was no need to think about military and national affairs. He could just rest and leave everything to his unfilial sons. At the same time, he wondered when Mengde would finally take Youzhou and end his life.

His wife soon came back looking pale. “Hurry up! Take the Grand General. No, take the Lord and go!” The woman said before correcting herself. The Grand General was now her son.

“Hm?” Yuan Shao was puzzled only for a short moment. He quickly realized why his wife was panicking. Cao Cao has finally arrived.

“So you finally realized? My worthy little brother Mengde!” Yuan Shao smiled bitterly. The days of peace was finally over.

***

Yuan Xi had a terrible expression. After a day of scouting, he found out that Cao Cao had indeed send his army to Bohai. Yuan Xi did not find out earlier because Cao Cao had left the tents and stoves there to confuse Yuan Xi.

Yuan Tan was silent. If Cao Cao had already send his army to Bohai, then his Qingzhou Cavalry would not return had he dispatched them.

But what confused Yuan Xi was why Cao Cao chose to attack Bohai instead of Fanyang. This was like putting the cart before the horse.

Yuan Xi looked back at Cao Cao's camp. There were at least a hundred thousand less troops. With this, the number of troops between Cao Cao and the Yuan brothers were about the same.

“Bohai. Bohai.” Yuan Xi muttered for a long time but was still unable to figure out why Cao Cao attacked Bohai. But this did not change Yuan Xi's plan. Since Cao Cao dared to divide the troops, then Yuan Xi would take this chance to attack.

“Divide and conquer?” The others also have the same idea. Cao Cao originally have about three hundred thousand troops which was a problem. But now they only have about two hundred thousand troops. Zhang He's elites were also elsewhere.

“Pass down my orders! Have General Wen Chou abandon Bohai and return to Fanyang with his Xiandengying!” Yuan Xi ordered. He wanted to use Bohai as bait to have Cao Cao spread his forces and then destroy Cao Cao's main army. After that, they would set up camps everywhere and drive Cao Cao away step by step.

“Cao Cao Cao Mengde. Since you made a mistake, do not blame me for driving you out of Youzhou!” Yuan Xi exclaimed.

“Understood!” The others all nodded. As long as Yuan Xi method was right, they would be able to chase out Cao Cao. The Yuan Family will then rise again.

“Divide and attack? Give up Bohai?” Many people in the Yuan Army were excited but one person panicked. This person was Yuan Shang. He suddenly screamed and shouted. “Out of the question!”

Yuan Shang's expression shocked everyone. What wrong with him? They then had a thought. Wen Chou was Yuan Shang's subordinate and Bohai was Yuan Shang's territory. Why would he not be angry when they were ordering his men and giving up his territory without his approval?

“Oh? Is the third son unwilling to give up Bohai? Losing Bohai for the whole of Hebei. I am sure the third son knows which is better!” Yuan Tan said sarcastically. Bohai was not his to begin with so he would be happy to lose it. This way, Yuan Shang would also be weaker after they drive Cao Cao away. Why would Yuan Tan not welcome such a beneficial outcome?

Yuan Xi frowned. When did he ever try and snatch power from Yuan Shang? He was simply asking Wen Chou to come to Fanyang. In the end, he still needed Yuan Shang's consent. Second, Bohai was just a county. Even if you lose it, you can choose any of the four states in Cao Cao's hands after driving him away. “Third Brother. It is my thoughtlessness for not discussing this with you in advance. As long as we can defeat Cao Cao, you can choose any of the four states in Hebei!” Yuan Xi promised benefits to Yuan Shang. Yuan Shang can obtain any state he wants if he does not make trouble and defeat Cao Cao.

“Yes. Each of these four states are more prosperous than Bohai. Are you so short sighted brother?” Yuan Tan did not give up the opportunity to mock Yuan Shang.

“I said no means no!” Yuan Shang replied ferociously.

“Third Brother?” Yuan Xi was also getting angry. These teammates were pig teammates. How could you win with a teammate that refused to win?

“Choosing any of the four states? Even if you give me all four states, once that person comes out, none of us can think of obtaining Hebei and becoming Grand General!” Yuan Shang added ferociously.

“That person?” The others were confused.

“Oh? Is there anyone in Bohai who can stop us from obtaining Hebei? I am the eldest son and the rightful heir of the Yuan Family! Unless our father is alive to say otherwise, even you have to address me as Elder Brother!” Yuan Tan said arrogantly. He believed himself to the legitimate heir to Yuan Shao. If Yuan Shao was the Emperor, then he would be Crown Prince. Yuan Shang is at most the pampered prince.

“Congratulations brother! You got it right! Father is not dead! He is in Bohai!” Yuan Shang coldly revealed the truth. If he was to be out of luck then everyone can be out of luck. The reason the Yuan Brothers turned on each other to begin with was because of Yuan Shao's death. If Yuan Shao was found to still be alive then both brothers and all their retainers would have to kneel in front of Yuan Shao.

Everyone was so shocked that they could not react to Yuan Shang's words.

“What did you say?” Yuan Tan was dumbstruck. He did not dare to believe his ears.

“I said that our father, Yuan Shao Yuan Benchu, is at Bohai right now! He is inside Nanpi City!” Yuan Shang shouted.

“This…” Everyone's eyes grew wide in disbelief. This would become a huge joke if it was true. These people here were all loyal subjects of Yuan Tan and Yuan Shang. In order to serve their Lords, they have repeatedly framed each other.

It won't be good for any of them if Yuan Shao comes out. Would he blame his children for turning against each other or would he claim the rest of them to be traitors for provoking the two into fighting each other?

These people all know Yuan Shao very well. If you anger Yuan Shao, you will die. That was the fear that was deeply ingrained in them.

Everyone say that Yuan Shao is second rate since he lost to Cao Cao but these people did not think so. This is because Yuan Shao fought for and earned his foundations. He did not blindly inherit it from others.

Yuan Shao's birth mother was a servant. For an illegitimate child like him to become the heir was proof of his competence. But his fame was only one point. The second important point was his decisiveness in killing.

In the past, the eunuchs were the ones in power. Yuan Shao who was He Jin's advisor repeatedly advised He Jin to kill the eunuchs and prevent future problems but He Jin kept hesitating. In the end, He Jin was assassinated by the eunuchs. Yuan Shao then attacked the palace with his uncle. He ordered the gates closed to prevent anyone from escaping. He then ordered his men to kill every eunuch regardless of their age. There were more than two thousand deaths and some of them were just regular men without beards mistaken as eunuchs.

This demonstrated how ruthless Yuan Shao could be. Cao Cao was paranoid but he only ended up killing a few people. Yuan Shao would kill everyone if they were even remotely a threat. His name alone struck fear in the hearts of eunuchs.

Now, Yuan Shang and Yuan Tan's subordinates all felt that same fear. If Yuan Shao returns, they would all suffer his wrath.

Yuan Shang nodded in satisfaction seeing the fear in their eyes.

“No! That's impossible! Yuan Shang you liar!” Yuan Tan shouted. He refused to believe that his father was alive as Yuan Shang had already held a funeral for him. How could someone who is declared dead still be alive?

“I'm lying? What do I gain for lying? Will you give me more troops or surrender to me? What a joke!” Yuan Shang said coldly. Yuan Shang openly admitted to faking his father's death.

“No… No!” Yuan Tan could not accept it. Though he did not seize power outright, he did not stop Yuan Shang from doing so. In fact, he encouraged Yuan Shang to do it so that he himself may rise to power. He had long been dissatisfied by his father's favoritism for Yuan Shang. So dissatisfied that he also wanted his father to die.

If their father returned, would the rest of them be able to survive?

The only person who wasn't afraid of Yuan Shao's survival was Yuan Xi. He had no desire for power at all. In truth, he was the most loyal amongst Yuan Shao's sons.

Were it not because of Cao Cao, Yuan Xi would have stayed out of this family feud entirely. Now that he heard Yuan Shao was alive, he was filled with hope. He hoped that his father could return and lead them to victory like he did against Gongsun Zan.

“Report!” Another messenger came in and gave his report. His report immediately shattered the hopes of those that still believed Yuan Shao to be dead. This is because the report said that Yuan Shao's banner were raised at Bohai. It meant that Yuan Shao had woken up and returned to battle.

Yuan Shang's last hope was extinguished. It would be fine if Yuan Shao was killed by Cao Cao or remained unconcious. In such a situation, they could still rush to Bohai.

“Yuan Xi!” Just as Yuan Xi was thinking about how to welcome their father's return, his two brothers turned towards him.

“Elder Brother? Third Brother?” Yuan Xi was not a fool. He could clearly feel their killing intent. He then widened his eyes in realization. These two brothers were afraid that Yuan Shao would return and settle accounts with them. The two brothers who shared the same fate. If Yuan Shao returns, he might kill the two of them but not Yuan Xi. That was why these two wanted to kill Yuan Xi. If Yuan Xi dies, Yuan Shao's remaining children would be Yuan Shang and Yuan Tan so he may choose not to kill them.

Yuan Xi quickly figured out his brother's intentions and smiled bitterly. “Brothers. If I wanted to compete with you for that position, I would have done so earlier. Why wait until now?” Yuan Xi tried to persuade his brothers.

“That was before. The situation is now different.” Yuan Tan glared ferociously. In the past, Yuan Xi could not compete with his two brothers at all because Yuan Tan was the eldest son and Yuan Shang was the favored son. No matter what he did, it would not work. But now, Yuan Shao knows that his two sons are rebellious sons. In that case, Yuan Shao only has Yuan Xi left. More importantly, Yuan Xi's ability was much higher than his two brothers. Although Yuan Tan and Yuan Shang were happy that Yuan Xi's leadership was able to help them defeat Cao Cao and destroy that traitor Xu You's army. However, they also felt extremely jealous.

They were all Yuan Shao's son so why was Yuan Xi better than them?

Yuan Tan and Yuan Shang were both useless. The problem was that they were also ambitious and overestimates themselves. They have the belief that everything that stands in their way is wrong and that no one was allowed to be better than them.

In the past, they could surpress these feelings as they had to rely on Yuan Xi to defeat Cao Cao. But now its different. If Yuan Shao comes out, they would only face death. Because of that, they turned hostile.

“Brother! Our enemy right now is Cao Cao!” Nobody wanted to die. Yuan Xi was also the same. He continued to persuade his brothers than Cao Cao was the real enemy.

“Uncle Cao will just imprison us once he wins. We still have a way to survive. But our father will kill us once he returns!” Yuan Shang shook his head and replied.

Yuan Xi had no reply to that. These two brothers were determined to kill him and would rather believe in the enemy over their own father.

“Fine then! I want to see what the two of you will rely on to kill me!” Yuan Xi will not just sit there and wait for death. If he wanted to live, he would have to rely on himself.

“Men! Kill Yuan Xi!” Yuan Tan was the first to give the order. He and Yuan Xi were half brothers but they did not have a deep relationship. Yuan Shang who shared both parents with Yuan Xi was no less merciful and also gave his order to kill Yuan Xi.

Though the both of them have already given the order, their generals did not move.

“This…” They did not know what to do. Yuan Xi was their Commander.

“What's wrong? Do you want to rebel?” Yuan Tan and Yuan Shang both shouted angrily.

“But he is the Commander?” One general said hesitantly. Yuan Xi was the one commanding all three armies but now they are going to attack him?

“Hmph!” Yuan Shang sneered. “Did this Commander give you food, power or salary?” His questions left the soldiers speechless. They now remembered that their real bosses were Yuan Tan and Yuan Shang. Besides that, they were also afraid that Yuan Shao would return and settle accounts with them.

The general gritted his teeth and the clasped his fist at Yuan Xi. “Commander. I am sorry. Brothers! Follow me! Take Yuan Xi's hate!” In the end, they all chose to serve their Lords.

“I won't show mercy either!” Yuan Xi also replied coldly. He would definitely resist if they wanted his life. “Bingzhou Troops! Follow me!”

“Kill! Kill! Kill!” Everyone in the barracks started killing each other. Originally, Yuan Tan and Yuan Shang's men were teaming up to get rid of Yuan Xi. As Yuan Xi was already weaker to begin with, it should not be too much trouble.

However, the battle spiraled out of their control. First, a general serving under Yuan Shang accidentally attacked a general from Yuan Tan's army. Before he could apologize, Yuan Tan's general attacked back. Both of them were injured and from there, they started fighting each other to kill.

Yuan Shang and Yuan Tan had been fighting each other for so long that it was not surprising for their subordinates to also hold grudges with each other. In the end, the entire battle turned into a three way fight.

Meanwhile, Cao Cao's army was very confused outside the walls of Fanyang. What was going on? Was it a military exercise or is the enemy having a shouting contest to see who has the loudest voice?

***

Yuan Shao Yuan Benchu returned to the battlefield at Nanpi. He had no choice but to appear as Cao Cao's army had arrived with one hundred thousand men including Zhang He and the Dajishi.

Wen Chou only had a total of about twenty thousand men. How could they fight Cao Cao? Even if Wen Chou's men were all elites, they could not win when outnumbered five to one. As a result, Wen Chou went to Yuan Shao to say his farewells. He was ready to fight to his last breath. His farewell to Yuan Shao unexpectedly brought Yuan Shao back.

Yuan Shao may have given up but he was still afraid of death. As he had already died once, he did not want to experience it again.

Yuan Shao's efforts also came with benefits. As a start, the morale of Wen Chou's men skyrocketed. Meanwhile, Zhang He was faced with misfortune.

Zhang He's Dajishi were truly elites. However, they originally belonged to Yuan Shao. It was their loyalty that allowed Yuan Shao to kill Ju Yi. When Ju Yi was ready to fight to the death, he found that the Dajishi did not obey him at all. In the end, Ju Yi could only die filled with hatred.

Zhang He quickly learned how aggrieved Ju Yi felt before his death as the same thing almost happened to him. The Dajishi and the Xiandengying were about to fight when Yuan Shao showed up. After that, the Dajishi instantly defected. The reason they surrendered to Cao Cao to begin with was because of Yuan Shao's death. Without any loyalty to tie them, they followed whoever provided them food.

But now, their object of worship has returned alive. The Dajishi was boiling with excitement and immediately rebelled. Were it not for the dozen spies that Cao Cao planted to keep watch of Zhang He, he would have lost his life there.

“Milord. This Zhang He deserves death!” Zhang He kowtowed in front of Cao Cao with blood all over his body. He did not expect Cao Cao to personally lead the army here. Zhang He felt ashamed. He was the one who suggested finding Yuan Shao and had wanted to prove himself in this battle.

Zhang He was a surrendered general seemed to be favored by Cao Cao. This caused the other generals to mock Zhang He. Fortunately, Zhang He had a good temper. Were it anyone else, they would have already started a fight. Although Zhang He endured the mocking, it does not mean that he would simply accept it. That was why he wanted to earn merit so that he could shut up the other generals. In the end, he suffered a humiliating defeat and almost lost his life.

Cao Cao narrowed his eyes. He had the intentions of killing Zhang He. Zhang He being defeated was simply one thing. Cao Cao had made plans for Zhang He's defeat and even betrayal. The spies he placed in Zhang He's army was his backup plan. However, Cao Cao did not expect Yuan Shao's reputation to be so great that the Dajishi immediately defected without even fighting the enemy and almost killed Zhang He.

Now, Yuan Shao has two trump cards in his hand and has enough leeway to attack or retreat.

Even if Cao Cao has an army of one hundred thousand, he would not be able to do anything if Yuan Shao really wanted to escape with the heavy cavalry. This is because Cao Cao have no soldiers that could stop the two heavy cavalry. The Dajishi was meant to keep the Xiandengying in check but now even the Dajishi have become enemies.

“Yue Jin. Hurry up and send a letter. Have the Tiger Cavalry come to Bohai!” Cao Cao was determined to capture Yuan Shao.

“Milord. The Tiger Cavalry are our elites!” Yue Jin hesitated. He wanted to say that the Tiger Cavalry may be powerful but they could not fight against both the Dajishi and the Xiandengying on their own. The Xiandengying on their own were equally matched with the Tiger Cavalry. If the Dajishi joins the battle as well, the Tiger Cavalry would face heavy casualties.

“Are my words not loud enough? Do you not understand me?” Cao Cao smiled at Yue Jin.

Yue Jin immediately became frightened seeing Cao Cao's smile. He had given this smile to many people before in the past. The most recent one was Xu You. In the end, Xu You is dead.

“Understood!” Yue Jin nodded and quickly made the arrangements.

Zhang He was still kowtowing on the ground. The ground may be muddy but there were still stones on it. After kowtowing many times, Zhang He's head was full of bloody.

“I deserve to die! I deserve to die!” Zhang He continued to kowtow as he shouted. He looked so miserable that even the Yanzhou generals felt pity for him and pleaded leniency.

After a hole formed on the ground, Cao Cao waved his hand. “Alright enough. Get up.”

Zhang He stopped kowtowing but he did not dare to get up.

“Did you not hear me asking you to get up?” Cao Cao said again.

“I dare not!” Zhang He really did not dare to get up. He did not simply lose an elite unit, they went to the enemy and could mess up Cao Cao's plans.

“It is not your fault.” Cao Cao sighed. He did not expect Yuan Shao to have such prestige that the Dajishi that Cao Cao had been using for a while would just defect on the spot.

Cao Cao underestimated Yuan Shao. He did not expect Yuan Shao to be able to keep fighting. He believed that even if Yuan Shao did not die, he would be close to it. Who knew that Yuan Shao could return to the battlefield?

Cao Cao now felt a sense of sympathy towards Yuan Shao for having such a useless son. This Yuan Shang was full of ambition but have no determination. Why did he not just eliminate future troubles? If Yuan Shang was too afraid to kill his father, the least he could do was make sure his father remains handicapped for life. But as you can see here, Yuan Shao is living healthily.

Cao Cao then looked at Zhang He with a sense of appreciation. If Zhang He intended to betray him, he had every opportunity to defect back to Yuan Shao. But Zhang He came back to Cao Cao despite covered in wounds. He came back even though he might be executed for his failure.

“Junyi. Not only did you not commit any offense. You were actually meritorious.” Cao Cao reassured him.

“Huh?” The other officers were in disbelief. This was clearly favoritism. How could it be meritorious when you lose an entire elite unit? If this was the case, they could all surrender to Yuan Shao right now.

Even Zhang He himself could not understand and dropped back down in a panic. He thought that Cao Cao was being sarcastic.

“Sigh.” Cao Cao knew that Zhang He could not understand and explained. “The stronger the Grand General, Yuan Shao Yuan Benchu, the better it would be for us.”

Originally, Cao Cao planned to capture Yuan Shao and use Yuan Shao's identity to disrupt the morale of the Yuan brothers. He did not expect Yuan Shao to actually appear with a large army. But in this case, there is a second strategy. He would use Yuan Shao's momentum to frighten the Yuan brothers. After all, one usurped authority and the other rebelled. Both of them were useless trash. They had every reason to be afraid that their father would return and spank them.

Zhang He's defeat helped Yuan Shao to spread his momentum.

“Lets go! Come with me to meet Brother Benchu!” Cao Cao did not think that these brutes would understand. These things were all about human relations and strategies. These generals may be good at fighting but they did not know how to think about such things. If they could, Cao Cao would have to consider killing them.

It is just like Yang Xiu who was so smart he could guess his superior's thoughts. But in the end, he did not realize that his superiors were most afraid of people who can see through their thoughts.

“Understood.” Zhang He did not understand it and neither did the other generals. Normally, military generals live longer than civil officials provided that they do not die on the battlefield. This is because unlike the civil officials, they have the mindset of not bothering to think when they could not understand something.

Cao Cao soon surrounded Nanpi with his army. He then advanced towards the city with heavy infantries in front to protect him.

“His Excellency, the Prime Minister of the Han, Cao Cao Cao Mengde is here to see Grand General Yuan!” A loud messenger shouted that Cao Cao wanted to meet Yuan Shao.

This message spread through the city and eventually Wen Chou brought the message to Yuan Shao.

“Milord. I think it would be better not to meet Cao Cao. He is just a villain who only won by mere luck. Now that you have returned, you will surely retake Hebei and march onto the Central Plains!” Wen Chou was someone who dared to speak boldly to Yuan Shao. His words implied that Yuan Shao would go on to become Emperor even though the Emperor's surname is Liu. Very few warlords would dare to proclaim themselves Emperor.

“I will meet him. Why wouldn't I?” Yuan Shao's was of different opinion. He did not believe Cao Cao defeated him by mere luck. If this was the case, Yuan Shao would be extremely unlucky. The man who was once below him now stands above him. Yuan Shao never imagined that a massive army would be outside his walls ready to attack him. And now, Cao Cao's massive army of one hundred thousand stand outside.

Since losing to Cao Cao at Guandu, Yuan Shao and Cao Cao have not seen each other. In the past several years, Yuan Shao's hair had turned gray from the heartbreak.

“Let's go, Wen Chou. It is time to meet this old friend of mine.” Yuan Shao smiled calmly. A defeat was a defeat. If Yuan Shao still could not accept that, he would not be awake right now. Yuan Shao was now looking forward to see the friend that had defeated him.

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