Chapter 222: Liu Bei got such a rare person, why didn't he report it earlier? Before his death, he entrusted his son to Liu Bei! Old Liu: Go north and capture Huainan!

The name Xiao Fang has long been famous throughout the world, how could Yuan Shao not know him.

In fact, the name Xiao Fang had already entered Liu Bei's vision several years ago, after he captured Xiangyang.

Because Yuan Shao was extremely curious, how could Liu Bei, who had just lost Xuzhou and fled to Nanyang like a stray dog, become so outrageously powerful in the blink of an eye.

So, pieces of information were delivered to his desk, and he finally confirmed that it was a poor scholar from Jingzhou named Xiao Fang who gave Liu Bei advice and helped him win battles one after another and capture Xiangyang.

Yuan Shao's curiosity soon turned into indifference for a person whose reputation he had never heard of before and who was a poor scholar.

"How could there be such a strange person among the poor? The intelligence must be wrong. Let's investigate further!"

With this comment, Yuan Shao kicked the name Xiao Fang out of his mind.

So in the following years, all the information about Xiao Fang was suppressed and no one reported it to Yuan Shao.

It was not until this time, when Yuan Shao was about to lead his troops south and might have to confront Liu Bei, that Ju Su, who had always been upright, had to mention Xiao Fang again to remind Yuan Shao to take it seriously.

"This Xiao Fang, I seem to have heard of his name many years ago."

"As I recall, this man is just a humble scholar. How could he be as amazing as you described?"

Yuan Shao's eyes and expression were still full of doubt.

Ju Su was also well prepared. He asked people to bring out all the suppressed information about Xiao Fang and present it to Yuan Shao again.

Yuan Shao hesitated for a moment, but still picked up the books one by one and looked through them.

In addition to the Battle of Xiangyang, Xiao Fang assisted Liu Bei in capturing Jiangling, breaking Jiangxia, defeating Sun Ce at Eshan, and launching a surprise attack on Chaisang... until the ambush and killing of Sun Ce in Jinling. All these brilliant strategies were reported one by one.

Yuan Shao's eyes gradually widened, and the doubt on his face gradually turned into surprise, until finally he took a long breath.

"How can a mere poor scholar have such a miraculous ability?"

"When Liu Bei was defeated and fled to Xuzhou, he actually got such a rare person?"

Yuan Shao closed the information abruptly, raised his head, and looked at Ju Su in disbelief.

Ju Su remained silent.

"boom!"

Yuan Shao slammed the table, his expression of shock turned into anger, and he asked:

"Liu Bei actually got such a rare person, why didn't you report it to me earlier?"

The counselors looked at each other, all with innocent and helpless expressions.

When Liu Bei conquered Xiangyang, we presented you with the intelligence from our spies, which clearly mentioned the existence of Xiao Fang. It was you who said that it was impossible for such a person to emerge from a humble family and that the intelligence was wrong.

You have already made such a conclusion. If we present the information about Xiao Fang to you, wouldn't that be a slap in the face of you, our lord?

In this case, the only option is to suppress this information.

Now you, Yuan Shao, are blaming us for not reporting it in time. Isn't this just false accusation...

"Ahem, Tu has also heard about this Xiao Fang."

"This man is indeed very wise, but as Gongyou said, the reincarnation of the sage of strategy is a bit exaggerated."

"After all, Jingzhou is thousands of miles away, and we still don't know how much of the information about Xiao Fang is true or false. We naturally dare not easily present such uncertain news to the lord."

Guo Tu had to stand up and excuse himself with a wry smile. After all, he was responsible for gathering intelligence for Yuan's army.

These words of excuse, to some extent, hit the nail on the head for Yuan Shao, and were consistent with his stereotype of people from poor families.

The shock and anger on Yuan Shao's face indeed eased.

"Even though the information about Xiao Fang is exaggerated, it is a fact that Liu Bei has captured Jiangdong and is sharpening his sword to attack Huainan."

"As you said, if Liu Bei takes Huainan first, and takes advantage of the decisive battle between you and Cao Cao to go north to seize Xuzhou and Yanzhou, he will reap the benefits and even threaten our Jizhou rear. What should we do?"

"Liu Bei was able to go from being a mat weaver and shoe seller to owning half of Jiangnan and becoming a regional overlord in just a few years. This shows that he is indeed a man of great talent and strategy!"

"My lord, you must not underestimate Liu Bei."

Tian Feng also spoke again, agreeing with Ju Su's judgment.

Yuan Shao stood up again, walked to the map, stood with his hands behind his back, and pondered in silence.

After pondering for a while, determination appeared in his eyes again.

"You are right. We really can't just leave Liu Bei alone."

"I'll follow your plan. We'll split our forces into two groups and march south."

"I will personally lead the western route, with 160,000 infantry and cavalry, across the Yellow River from Liyang, and head straight to Xuchang to destroy Cao Cao!"

"The Eastern Route Commander Xiansi will lead 40,000 elite troops across the river from Qingzhou to capture Xuzhou and the counties and states in the southeast of Yanzhou. We must suppress Liu Bei on the Huai River line."

"After I defeat Cao Cao and capture Xuchang, I will march south and join Xiansi to deal with Liu Bei!"

Yuan Shao waved his hand and announced the strategy of marching south in a calm yet domineering tone.

All the counselors and generals stood up and accepted the order.

Yuan Shao stepped over the map under his feet, walked out of the hall step by step, stood with his hands behind his back, and looked towards the south with a determined look.

"The time God has left me is short. I must unify the world and wipe out all the bandits in my lifetime!"

"Cao Cao, Liu Bei, no matter you are ugly eunuchs or weavers, no matter you are shoe sellers, don't try to stand in my way!"

...

Jinling, Qiao Mansion.

"Shuang'er, has Military Advisor Xiao arrived yet~~"

Lying on the sickbed, Qiao Xuan asked his daughter with a weak breath.

"My daughter has sent someone to invite him, but Military Advisor Xiao is busy with military affairs, so I'm not sure he will come."

Xiao Qiao frowned, tears welled up in her eyes as she looked at her father's dying body.

Qiao Xuan looked at his daughter crying, and forced a smile on his skinny face, saying comfortingly:

"Back in Chaisang, my father was destined to die. Fortunately, he met Military Advisor Xiao who came to his rescue, allowing my father to live for so long. I am already satisfied!"

"The only thing that worries me now is that after I'm gone, you'll be all alone, and no one will take care of you as a girl."

"Also, your mother and your sister have been separated since then and there has been no news since then. Their lives or deaths are unknown. Sigh~~"

Listening to Qiao Xuan's words of comfort, the tears that Xiao Qiao had been suppressing in her eyes could not stop falling.

When Qiao Xuan was about to comfort him, he heard footsteps behind him. It was Xiao Fang who had heard the news and rushed over. "Father, Military Advisor Xiao is really here~~"

Xiao Qiao didn't expect that Xiao Fang would come here despite his busy schedule. Gratitude appeared on her tearful face and she quickly stood up to greet Xiao Fang.

When Qiao Xuan saw Xiao Fang arriving, he seemed to have a last burst of energy and actually struggled to sit up.

"Mr. Qiao, lie down quickly!"

Xiao Fang stepped forward, held Qiao Xuan down, and wanted to take his pulse.

Qiao Xuan shook his head and smiled bitterly:
"There's no need to take my pulse. Military Advisor Xiao is an extraordinary doctor. He will know that my time has come and even a god cannot save me."

"Thanks to Military Advisor Xiao's treatment, I have lived this long. I am already grateful. Now it is time for me to go."

Xiao Fang was slightly stunned, then he understood what Qiao Xuan meant and could only sigh.

Looking at the dying Qiao Xuan, he didn't know what to say to comfort him for a moment.

"Military Advisor Xiao, my life is imminent. I asked you to come here today because I have something to ask of you before I die. I hope you will agree~~"

Qiao Xuan struggled to get up again so that he could pay his respects to Xiao Fang.

Xiao Fang immediately understood.

No wonder the Qiao family hurriedly sent someone to invite him. It turned out that Qiao Xuan knew that his end was near, and he wanted to ask him to entrust his life to him before his death.

"If Mr. Qiao has any unfulfilled wishes, just tell me. As long as I can do it, I will definitely do it!"

Xiao Fang supported Qiao Xuan again and promised without hesitation.

Qiao Xuan showed joy on his face, and he tremblingly grabbed Xiao Fang's hand, then grabbed Xiao Qiao's hand and placed it in Xiao Fang's palm.

His unexpected action made Xiao Fang stunned.

"Father~~"

Xiao Qiao was even more shocked. Her body trembled and her face became dizzy. She was filled with shock and shame and didn't know what to do.

"Once I am gone, Shuang'er will be all alone, with no one to rely on. How can I feel at ease?"

"So I want to shamelessly entrust Shuang'er to Military Advisor Xiao, and ask Military Advisor Xiao to take care of Shuang'er for the rest of her life on my behalf, so that I can leave with peace of mind."

Qiao Xuan expressed his wish in a pleading tone.

Xiao Qiao's body trembled again, and her pretty face immediately turned red. Only then did she understand why her father was in a hurry to ask Xiao Fang to come.

It turned out that her father was worried about her and wanted to entrust her to Xiao Fang.

The so-called taking care of her for the rest of her life was just a euphemism. In fact, it meant that she would commit herself to Xiao Fang and become his concubine...

Xiao Qiao was touched by her father's love for her, but also embarrassed, so she had to lower her head and only dared to glance at Xiao Fang.

A look of surprise also flashed across Xiao Fang's face. He obviously had not expected that Mr. Qiao's last wish would be to entrust Xiao Qiao to him.

Considering Qiao Xuan's high moral character and prestige, it would be inhumane if I did not agree to his dying request.

So after being slightly surprised, Xiao Fang said seriously:

"I naturally have no choice but to accept Mr. Qiao's entrustment, but I think I should also ask your daughter how she feels."

When Qiao Xuan saw that Xiao Fang agreed, he was overjoyed and immediately looked at Xiao Qiao.

Xiao Qiao rubbed her clothes with her bare hands, bit her red lips with her pearly teeth, her pretty face was flushed, and the word embarrassment flashed in her eyes.

"Since this is father's arrangement, Shuang'er... Shuang'er should obey."

"It is Shuang'er's blessing to have Military Advisor Xiao take care of me for the rest of my life. Shuang'er is naturally willing~~"

After being shy for a while, Xiao Qiao finally answered in a low voice.

Qiao Xuan let out a long sigh, as if relieved of a heavy burden, and quickly turned his gaze to Xiao Fang.

Xiao Fang let go of Xiao Qiao's hand and bowed solemnly:

"In that case, please rest assured, Mr. Qiao. I will do my best to take care of your daughter and will never let her suffer any injustice."

After getting Xiao Fang's personal promise, Qiao Xuan finally put his mind at ease and breathed a sigh of relief.

When Xiao Fangzheng was about to say a few more words of comfort, Xu Chu came in hurriedly.

"Military Advisor, the Lord has sent someone to urgently summon the Military Advisor to the state capital for a discussion, saying that there is news from Hebei."

Upon hearing this, Xiao Fang had no choice but to say goodbye to Qiao Xuan first.

Qiao Xuan couldn't get out of bed, so he asked Xiao Qiao to see him off.

Xiao Qiao blushed slightly and personally escorted Xiao Fang out of the room.

"Okay, just send it here and go back to take care of Mr. Qiao."

Xiao Fang turned around and looked at Xiao Qiao. After a slight hesitation, he raised his hand and wiped away the tears from the corners of her eyes.

"I have heard that your mother and sister are both in Shouchun and are safe and sound."

"When I help my lord conquer Huainan, I will take you to Shouchun so that you and your daughter can be reunited."

"Just take care of Mr. Qiao and wait for my news."

After a few words of comfort and advice, Xiao Fang smiled and turned away.

Xiao Qiao was in a trance, staring blankly at Xiao Fang as he left. She only came to her senses when his figure disappeared from her sight.

Thinking back to Xiao Fang's affectionate behavior just now, and thinking about being reunited with her mother and sister soon, Xiao Qiao's face was slightly flushed with surprise.

...

Half an hour later, Xiao Fang had entered the provincial government and was on his way to the main hall.

"I didn't expect that Mr. Qiao would entrust his daughter to me. I seemed to have agreed to it too readily."

"I have to think about how to tell my wife about this later..."

As Xiao Fang muttered to himself, he had unknowingly stepped into the main hall.

Just as he was about to raise his head, Old Liu came towards him with a silk book in his hand and an excited look on his face.

"Military Advisor, a secret report just came back from Yecheng that Yuan Shao has sent troops south!"

"The time has finally come for us to cross the river and head north to capture Huainan!"

(End of this chapter)