Shouchun, Golden Hall.
A grand banquet was being held in the hall.
Yuan Shu sat on the Dragon Throne and was drunk.
The officials sitting in front of the hall all had worried expressions.
"All of you have bitter faces. Is my royal wine not fragrant enough?”
Yuan Shu asked in dissatisfaction.
The officials were slightly taken aback.
Advisor Yan Xiang could not help but cup his hands and say,""Your Majesty, both Lu Bu and Sun Ce have rebelled, and Huainan is suffering from a great drought. With such internal and external troubles, we really don't have the mood to drink and make merry.”
"Yan Xiang, are you mocking me?”
Yuan Shu understood the meaning behind his words and his face darkened.
Yan Xiang hurriedly said,"I dare not. I just want to ask Your Majesty to put the state affairs first."”
"That's right, Your Majesty. On the front lines of Xuyi and Hefei, our army is locked in a stalemate with Lu Bu and Sun Ce.”
"But at the front line of the Lower Cai, the Crown Prince only has two thousand soldiers. This general thinks that we should send more.”
General Qiao Rui took the opportunity to speak.
Yuan Shu laughed coldly." Do you all think that I am a fatuous ruler who only knows how to seek pleasure and has no interest in state affairs? You all underestimate your Son of Heaven!"”
Yan Xiang and Qiao Rui were stunned, their eyes filled with confusion.
"Lu Bu and Sun Ce will never use their own troops to fight to the death with me so that Cao Aman can reap the benefits.”
"As for Cao Aman, he was waiting for Lu Bu and Sun Ce to fight with me until both sides suffered heavy losses before he personally went down.”
"Therefore, my country is as stable as a rock!”
"What I want to do is wait for that bastard son Yuan Shao to swallow Hebei and lead his army south to fight to the death with Cao Cao.”
"At that time, the two of them will both be injured, and I will be able to reap the benefits.”
Yuan Shu's face was full of conceit as he made a decision.
Yan Xiang and Qiao Rui didn't know what to say.
Yuan Shu said proudly," Now you understand. I drink and enjoy myself because everything is under my control. I don't have to worry about it!"”
Qiao Rui was silent.
Yan Xiang said," Your Majesty, what you said is reasonable. However, I heard that Cao Cao recently got a new hermit to assist him. This person is very intelligent. If he offers Cao Cao some strange plan, the consequences will be unimaginable."”
"Hermit? How intelligent?"
The corner of Yuan Shu's mouth curled up into a mocking smile as he sneered,""How can I not know how many wise people there are in this world? Cao Cao's subordinates are only people like Xun Yu and Cheng Yu. How can there be any strange people or hermits?”
Yan Xiang was ridiculed, he looked ashamed and lowered his head, not daring to speak again.
Yuan Shu's eyes fell on Qiao Rui and he smiled.""Qiao Qing, I heard that you have two daughters under your knee. Both of them have the appearance of a fish and a goose. They are called Second Qiao. Is that true?”
"I…I do have two daughters, but both of them are mediocre in appearance.”
Qiao Rui hurriedly denied.
"Whether it's ordinary or not, that's for me to judge.”
Yuan Shu waved his hand and said,"Call the two of them into the palace now and let me take a look."”
Qiao Rui frowned, and anger flashed in her eyes.
Yuan Shu was clearly coveting the beauty of his two daughters and wanted to take them into the palace as concubines!
"Your Majesty, my two daughters have recently caught a cold and are recuperating in bed. I'm afraid they won't be able to enter the palace to meet the Saint.”
Qiao Rui was angry, but she did not dare to show it. She could only make excuses.
Yuan Shu smiled and said," It's fine. I have plenty of time. It won't be too late for you to send them to the palace after they recover."”
Qiao Rui was in a dilemma and did not know how to answer.
At this moment.
The Royal Guards rushed in and shouted,"Your Majesty, a large Cao army is approaching from the north of the city!”
The smile on Yuan Shu's face instantly disappeared.
He smashed his wine glass, jumped up, and shouted,"How could the Cao army appear outside Shouchun City? Who lied about the military situation? I want his head!”
"There are indeed Cao Cao's troops approaching outside the city.”the Royal Guard called out in a trembling voice.
Yuan Shu's expression changed. He didn't have time to think and could only leave the palace and rush to the city wall.
He climbed up the city wall.
Yuan Shu looked up and his face froze.
From the north of the city, there were indeed countless Cao troops that were rushing over like a flood.
"Why would so many Cao troops appear in Shouchun? What's going on?"
Yuan Shu's voice was hoarse, and his eyes were filled with panic and confusion.
Yan Xiang was the first to wake up. He said anxiously,"Your Majesty, could it be that Cao Cao's light army has broken through Xiacai City and crossed the river to attack Shouchun?"”
Yuan Shu's heart thumped, but he shook his head fiercely.""Impossible! Cao Aman clearly wanted to sit on the mountain and watch the tigers fight. How could he have attacked my Xia Cai City?”
At this moment.
Cao Cao's army was already in formation north of Shouchun City.
Cao Cao appeared outside Shouchun City under Dian Wei's protection.
"Cao Aman!"
Yuan Shu shouted, his eyes bulging.
Cao Cao pointed his horsewhip at Yuan Shu and shouted," Yuan Shu, how dare you claim to be the Emperor? I am here today to kill you, you traitor!"”
"Cao Aman, Cao Aman ~"
Yuan Shu was both shocked and angry. He gritted his teeth.
Cao Cao nodded to Dian Wei.
An object appeared in Dian Wei's hand. With a roar, he threw it at Yuan Shu.
This unexpected scene shocked Yuan Shu so much that he hurriedly retreated.
"Bang!"
That thing fell onto the city wall and landed right in front of Yuan Shu.
It was a bloody head.
It was Yuan Yao's head!
"Yao 'er-"
Yuan Shu's expression changed and he let out a howl of grief and indignation.
The Crown Prince's death meant that Xiacai City had fallen.
The Yuan soldiers around him were all panicking and shocked.
"The rebels on the city walls, listen up. I, Cao Cao, have been ordered to crusade against the traitor Yuan Shu. If any of you dare to help King Zhou become Jie again, Yuan Yao will be the end!”
The bloody warning reverberated throughout Shouchun City, shaking the entire Yuan Army.
Cao Cao smiled coldly and left.
Only then did Yuan Shu come back to his senses. He shouted hysterically,"Release the arrows and kill that Cao thief!"
Cao Cao had already walked far away, out of the range of the arrows.
"How could this be? The Cao thief clearly wanted to sit on the mountain and watch the tigers fight. Why did he suddenly attack Xiacai and kill my Yao 'er?”
Yuan Shu held his son's head and shouted in anger.
Yan Xiang suddenly realized something and cupped his hands." Your Majesty, this must be that mysterious hermit who came up with this surprise attack for Cao Cao. That's how he managed to catch the Crown Prince off guard!"”
"Strange Hermit, it's that guy again!”
"When I find out who he is, I will definitely tear him and Cao Aman into pieces and avenge my son!”
Yuan Shu's angry roar echoed on the city wall.
Outside the city.
Tens of thousands of Cao troops had already set up camp and were preparing to surround Shouchun.
In the central tent.
Cao Cao stood with his hands behind his back, looking at the Shouchun City Defense Map with a determined expression.
"Sikong, now that we have surrounded Shouchun, once the news spreads, the morale of Yuan Shu's northern and southern troops will most likely collapse.”
"As a result, the situation has changed.”
"Sun Ce and Lu Bu are afraid that Sikong will take Shouchun and occupy Huainan. They will definitely lead their troops to fight for it.”
"At that time, if our army attacks Shouchun for a long time without taking it down, and the Sun and Lu armies arrive, the situation in Shouchun will be complicated.”
Xi Zhicai reminded.
Cao Cao nodded slightly." Zhicai is right. It seems that we have to be one step ahead and break through Shouchun as soon as possible."”
Xi Zhicai sighed." However, Shouchun is a strong city. All the grain and fodder that Yuan Shu plundered in Huainan are gathered in the city. Moreover, there are still four to five thousand soldiers in the city. It will not be easy for our army to break through quickly.”
Clearly, the strategist in front of him didn't have a good plan at the moment.
Cao Cao frowned and fell into deep thought.
"Sikong."
Xi Zhicai reminded him,"Why don't we send someone back to Xu Capital and ask Young Lady to beat around the bush and ask Young Master Su if there's a good plan?"”
"I want to, but my son-in-law has to go on a long journey at this juncture. I don't know where he is now.”
Cao Cao said helplessly.
Xi Zhicai was startled and couldn't help but sigh,"If that's the case, the next battle will be difficult to fight."”
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