Chapter 82: Arrogant and Stupid, the World's No. ! Guo Jia: I Forgot Xiao Fang! (First Order)
Dramatic changes in the southeast?

Liu Bei looked towards the east as Xiao Fang pointed.

The southeast is dominated by the two thieves Lu Bu and Yuan Shu.

Yuan Shu now controls Yangzhou, and on paper his power is the strongest in the world. Even Lu Bu is superficially under Yuan Shu's protection.

Although Yuan Shu was strong, he was defeated several times by Cao Cao when he previously ruled Nanyang, which seemed to have left him with a psychological trauma.

Therefore, after moving east to Huainan, although his strength increased dramatically, he never dared to provoke Cao Cao again.

Since Yuan Shu was afraid of Cao, what drastic changes could have happened that would have forced Cao Cao to have no time to look south?

As for Lu Bu, although he was nominally the lord of Xuzhou, his situation was actually similar to that of his original state. He only controlled the two counties of Pengcheng and Xia Pi.

In this situation, would he dare to provoke Cao Cao?

After thinking about it, Liu Bei couldn't figure out the reason, so he asked:

"I don't know what the dramatic changes in the southeast that Jinglue is referring to are. Why would Cao Cao have no time to take care of the area south of Xudu?"

Wen Pin, the newly surrendered general, also looked at Xiao Fang curiously, wanting to see with his own eyes just how capable this legendary military strategist Xiao was.

Xiao Fang took a sip of tea and slowly said four words under the gaze of everyone:

"Yuan Shu proclaimed himself emperor!"

This statement came out.

Everyone in the hall was stunned and there was complete silence.

The expressions of everyone, including Lao Liu, were as if they had heard the most incredible thing in the world.

The next moment, the hall exploded like thunder.

Since Dong Zhuo's rebellion, the imperial power has been lost and the emperor's authority has been completely lost.

Even though he is now revered by Cao Cao in Xuchang, all the princes in the world know that the emperor is just a decoration, a puppet in Cao Cao's hands.

The princes did not say these truths, but they all knew them in their hearts.

But everyone knows that the emperor is only in name only, yet they still want to use the emperor's banner to attack cities and seize territory.

Whoever occupied a state or county would first submit a petition to the emperor in the hope of obtaining his seal of appointment.

Why?

It's just for the sake of legitimacy.

The Han Dynasty had fallen apart into pieces, but among the people of the world, there were still many who missed and supported the Han Dynasty.

Only when you have the emperor's appointment and the recognition of the imperial court can you legitimately win the hearts of the people and rule the people under your rule.

Therefore, even a strong man like Yuan Shao, although he was extremely uncomfortable with Cao Cao's "welcoming" of the emperor, still had to send envoys to Xu Du against his will to express his loyalty to the emperor.

Yuan Shu and I are both descendants of the Yuan family. Even if you are a playboy and arrogant, you should still have some basic political common sense, right?

Are you really so arrogant as to usurp the throne and become a traitor who usurps the Han Dynasty in the eyes of the world?

Do you really want the people under your rule to betray you with a clear conscience?
Give the princes of the world a legitimate reason to fight against you, the traitor who usurped the country?
Could Yuan Shu be so stupid?

This is why everyone is surprised and suspicious about Xiao Fang’s prediction.

"Jinglue, you have always been very good at planning. There should be no doubt about your predictions."

"But I always feel that Yuan Shu shouldn't be so stupid as to dare to go against the will of the world and claim the throne as emperor."

Liu Bei recovered from his shock and could not help but express his doubts.

Everyone nodded. It was obvious that Liu Bei's words also expressed the common doubts in their hearts.

Xiao Fang sighed softly.

To be honest, he thought about it for three days and three nights, but still couldn't figure out why Yuan Shu proclaimed himself emperor.

But since Lao Liu asked, I can only come up with a reasonable explanation after the fact.

"Yuan Shu has always been ambitious and arrogant."

"On paper, he now controls the entire Yangzhou, has Lu Bu as his ally, and Sun Ce as his lackey. He has more than 100,000 elite soldiers and generals under his command."

"Just looking at the strength on paper, let alone Cao Cao, even Yuan Shao is three points inferior."

"In terms of ambition, Cao Cao and Yuan Shao all have it, but in terms of arrogance, all the princes in the world combined are not as good as Yuan Shu alone."

"The strongest paper strength in the world, coupled with this arrogance, will fuel his ambition and turn it into a raging fire to replace the Han Dynasty."

"What's more, he has the imperial seal obtained from Sun Ce."

"In addition, there is a folk prophecy that 'the one who will replace the Han Dynasty is Dangtu Gaoye', which is somewhat related to his courtesy name Gonglu."

"With all these factors, isn't it reasonable for Yuan Shu to brazenly claim the throne?"

After some analysis, Xiao Fang came up with a reason that at least made sense to him.

Liu Bei seemed to understand something, and the doubt in his eyes gradually disappeared.

"As Military Advisor Jinglue said, this villain Yuan Shu really has the potential to usurp the throne and usurp the Han Dynasty and cause chaos!"

Liu Bei clenched his fists gradually, and a hint of anger flashed across his eyes.

As a descendant of the Han Dynasty, he has always regarded it as his responsibility to support the Han Dynasty. If someone dared to openly usurp the Han Dynasty, how could he not be angry?

"If Military Advisor Xiao's calculations are correct, if Yuan Shu proclaims himself emperor, it would be a blatant provocation to the Han court controlled by Cao Cao."

"Cao Cao claimed to serve the emperor and punish the disloyal. If Yuan Shu proclaimed himself emperor and he did not punish him, wouldn't that be like watching the emperor and his own authority being trampled upon?"

"If he goes to attack Yuan Shu, he will naturally have no time to look south and invade Nanyang."

"Then you can free up your hands, my lord, and concentrate your forces to capture Xinye, then cross the Han River to the south to capture Xiangyang and take control of Jingzhou!"

Wen Pin suddenly understood something deeper and said excitedly.

Liu Bei's expression changed, and then he realized the deep meaning behind Xiao Fang's previous conclusion that due to the drastic changes in the southeast, Cao Cao had no time to look south.

But this time, he still had doubts about whether Yuan Shu dared to proclaim himself emperor.

"It is almost February now. I expect Yuan Shu to be crowned emperor in the next few days."

"Let's wait patiently for a few more days, waiting for Deng Ji's reply and the news from Huainan."

"I believe that within a few days, we will know the result."

Xiao Fang also knew that his prediction was too "sensational", so he was naturally not in a hurry to persuade Liu Bei to believe it. Liu Bei had no choice but to follow Xiao Fang's advice and temporarily put aside his speculation. On the one hand, he mobilized food and grass, and on the other hand, he reorganized the surrendered soldiers to prepare for the capture of Xinye and the approach of the Han River.

...

Xudu.

More than 40,000 Cao troops have gathered outside the city, sharpening their swords and ready to go.

Inside Sikong Mansion.

Cao Cao has put on his armor and held his sword, and he and his advisers and generals are gathered in front of the map, making final plans before the expedition.

"According to the speed of his footsteps, Zixiao should have captured Ye County by now, and the victory report should be on the way."

"As soon as the victory report arrives, my 40,000-man army will immediately march southward, passing through Ye County and attacking Wancheng directly."

"At that time, I personally led the main force to besiege Wancheng, which was guarded by Guan Yu. Zixiao led the army to continue southward to seize Chaoyang and block Liu Bei's northern reinforcements. Miaocai and Zilian led the army to seize Bowang and other counties around Wancheng..."

Cao Cao pointed at the map and deployed the tasks in an orderly manner.

The generals received the orders one by one, and their fighting spirit gradually grew stronger.

"If Liu Bei hadn't rescued the old villain Tao Qian, we would have taken Xuzhou long ago."

"This time when we go south, we must kill Liu Bei and never let him revive again!"

Cao Cao turned around and swept his murderous gaze over all the generals.

"Don't worry, Sikong, Hong will personally cut off Liu Bei's head!"

Cao Hong was the first to jump out and uttered wild words excitedly.

All the generals challenged each other eagerly, and each of them clamored to kill Liu Bei.

Looking at the generals who were eager to fight, Cao Cao nodded with satisfaction, his eyes burning with determination to win.

Suddenly, he discovered that among all the generosity and confidence, only Guo Jia was silent and frowning, as if he was worried about something.

"Fengxiao, this surprise attack on Ye County and the overall plan to capture Nanyang were all your work."

"Why do you look so worried?"

Cao Cao saw that Guo Jia had concerns, so he pointed them out in public.

Guo Jia came back to his senses, looking somewhat embarrassed, but said:

"Jia previously proposed this plan to Sikong, but he did not take Xiao Fang into consideration. Now I think it was indeed inappropriate."

"This person's wisdom is unfathomable. Jia is a little worried. What if he sees through my plan?"

Cao Cao's expression changed slightly, and the determination on his face suddenly faded a little.

Before he could speak, Cao Hong smiled disapprovingly:
"Feng Xiao, Xiao Fang is just a poor scholar. Even if he has some wisdom, how can he see through your trick? I think you are worrying too much."

Guo Jia coughed lightly, but smiled bitterly:

"General Zi Lian, have you forgotten that I, Guo Jia, also come from a humble family?"

Cao Hong was stunned, and then he realized that he had spoken without restraint and inadvertently offended Guo Jia.

He scratched his head, feeling embarrassed for a moment, not knowing how to save the situation.

Guo Jia did not mind, and said seriously:
"Of course, there are many strategists among the scholars, but there are also many extraordinary people among the poor families."

"Although Xiao Fang was born in a poor family and had no reputation before, he was able to use his wisdom to single-handedly support Liu Bei from the dead end to the present day, where he defeated Zhang Ji and Liu Biao. This shows that he is very intelligent."

"Jia believes that we must not underestimate this man, otherwise we will end up like Zhang Ji and Liu Biao!"

In his speech, Guo Jia made no secret of his importance to Xiao Fang.

Cao Hong was speechless.

Cao Cao, who had been silent on the side, nodded slightly and said:
"Feng Xiao is right. There are many talented people like you among the poor families."

"This Xiao Jinglue is indeed a rare talent in the world and should not be underestimated!"

Cao Cao first agreed with what Guo Jia said, but then changed the subject:
"But even though Xiao Fang is resourceful, he is now far away in Xinye, helping Liu Bei in his vain attempt to swallow up Jingzhou. How could he have expected that I would suddenly send troops south at this time?"

"To put it another way, even if he was on guard and my army was on hold, how could he have guessed that you, Fengxiao, would offer me a plan to order Zixiao to lead a special force and take a shortcut to attack Ye County?"

"If he can really predict to this extent, then it's not called being resourceful, but rather having a divine eye and foresight."

At the end of his speech, Cao Cao raised a joking smile.

All the generals laughed and agreed.

The worry on Guo Jia's face faded a little bit. After thinking for a moment, he sighed in self-mockery:
"Sikong's words make sense. Maybe Jia is really worrying too much."

Seeing that Guo Jia's doubts were dispelled, Cao Cao smiled proudly, waved his hand and shouted:

"Don't wait for Zixiao's victory report. Pass the order down. The army will move immediately--"

The word "pull" was not even uttered.

A tiger guard rushed in, half-knelt on the ground holding up the battle report.

"Reporting to Sikong, General Zixiao has an urgent report."

Everyone's spirits were lifted.

Cao Cao's eyes lit up and he said with a smile, "Zixiao's victory report came at the right time."

As he spoke, he took the silk book and began to read it with great interest.

After looking at it for a few times, his body trembled and the smile on his face gradually froze.

"Liu Bei sent Zhang Fei to lead the reinforcements to rush into Ye County, set up an empty city plan to lure our army into the city, and then ambush us with heavy troops?"

"Our army was defeated?"

"Niu Jin died in battle?"

"this--"

Cao Cao read out the contents of the urgent report in a trembling voice, raised his head in shock, and looked at Guo Jia with disbelief.

Guo Jia's originally relaxed expression suddenly changed in shock.

The palace was in an uproar.

(End of this chapter)