Runan Commandery, Yu Province
Pingyu City — Administrative Hall
Yuan Shu sat in the seat of honor, while below him Zhang Miao, Jin Shang, and the other civil and military officials took their places on either side.
“My lord!” A middle-aged man dressed in fine brocade robes, his eyes bright and alert, rose to his feet and bowed to Yuan Shu.
“According to my calculations, our army has now accumulated five hundred thousand shi of grain.”
“This is sufficient to support an army of one hundred thousand men for several months.”
“In addition, Zhang Yang of Henei and Yufuluo, Chanyu of the Southern Xiongnu, have both sent messages.”
“They have stated that once Your Lordship marches into Yan Province, they will join forces with you and aid you in defeating the enemy.”
“Buzz—”
The hall erupted into commotion the moment he finished speaking.
The civil officials discussed the news excitedly, their faces full of delight.
The generals rubbed their hands eagerly, wishing they could lead troops into Yan Province immediately and win glory for Yuan Shu.
“Hahaha!” Yuan Shu laughed heartily, feeling immensely pleased with himself.
As expected, I am the one favored by Heaven.
Looking at the speaker, he said:
“Yan Xiang, after the meeting, send replies to both men immediately.”
“Tell them that I will soon march.”
“Once the enemy is defeated, I shall reward merit accordingly.”
“Understood.”
The man in brocade was none other than Yan Xiang, Yuan Shu’s chief strategist.
Upon hearing the order, he immediately accepted it.
“My lord, I request permission to lead the campaign!” Ji Ling was the first to rise.
With a determined expression, he cupped his fists and shouted respectfully.
“My lord, we also request permission to fight!” The other generals naturally refused to be outdone.
“Haha!” Yuan Shu smiled broadly.
“Seeing your eagerness for battle greatly pleases me.”
“But be patient.” Turning back to Yan Xiang, he asked:
“Yan Xiang, how many troops do we currently have available for war?”
The generals immediately fell silent.
Even Zhang Miao slowly stroked his beard and shifted his gaze toward Yan Xiang.
“My lord.” Yan Xiang replied solemnly:
“Our total military strength currently stands at one hundred and twenty thousand men.”
“However, Liu Biao of Jing Province has relocated his administrative seat to Xiangyang.”
“Xiangyang possesses towering walls and formidable defenses, protected by mountains and rivers. It cannot be taken without at least two hundred thousand troops.”
“Hmph!” Yuan Shu’s face darkened.
With a cold snort, he said:
“Liu Biao killed one of my beloved generals. One day I will personally see him executed!”
Back when the coalition was campaigning against Dong Zhuo, Yuan Shu had already begun plotting to seize the richest commandery in the Central Plains—
Nanyang Commandery.
Its registered population alone exceeded two million people.
In terms of wealth and prosperity, it was unmatched throughout the Han Empire.
In the end, Nanyang did indeed fall into Yuan Shu’s hands after the anti-Dong Zhuo campaign concluded.
Having secured the realm’s richest commandery, he dispatched his fierce general Sun Jian to continue operations against Jing Province.
However, after Yuan Shu occupied Nanyang, Liu Biao, Inspector of Jing Province, finally reacted.
He immediately moved his provincial headquarters from Hanzhou to Xiangyang.
Xiangyang lay in northern Jing Province, at the junction of Nanyang Commandery and Nan Commandery.
Mountains protected its eastern and western flanks.
The Han River guarded its southern side.
To the north stretched a basin.
And Nanyang Commandery happened to occupy that basin.
Faced with such a defensive position, Yuan Shu was dumbfounded.
After several campaigns, not only did he fail to take Xiangyang, but he also lost Sun Jian on the Jing Province battlefield.
Thus, although Yuan Shu hated Liu Biao bitterly, he simply did not possess the strength to capture Xiangyang.
In fact, he had to worry constantly that Liu Biao might launch a counterattack and reclaim Nanyang.
This was why, despite controlling the richest commandery in the empire, he had established his main headquarters in Runan instead.
As for Xu Qiu, the original Administrator of Runan, he had little choice but to surrender his seat to Yuan Shu and let him do as he pleased.
After all, Yu Province could be considered the ancestral power base of the Yuan clan.
“Then there is Liu Chong of Chen State, who currently governs part of Yu Province.”
Yan Xiang continued:
“He commands thirty thousand armored troops.”
“Although he has shown no intention of intervening, Your Lordship cannot afford to ignore him.”
“Enough.” As he listened, Yuan Shu grew increasingly irritated and interrupted him.
“Yan Xiang, just tell me directly.”
“How many troops can I actually use for the campaign into Yan Province?”
Yan Xiang paid no attention to the interruption.
Without hesitation, he replied:
“No more than seventy thousand.”
“Seventy thousand?” Yuan Shu pondered the number.
I have seventy thousand troops. Add Mengzhuo’s fifteen thousand. Zhang Yang and Yufuluo can probably scrape together another twenty thousand. And there is also Tao Qian of Fagan.
This is in the bag.
Having worked out the figures in his mind, Yuan Shu rose to his feet.
“Yan Xiang.”
“Immediately issue a proclamation in the name of Inspector Jin Shang.”
“Send it to all the warlords under Heaven.”
“I, Yuan Shu, shall, by the middle of this month, lead an army of five hundred thousand northward into Yan Province to assist Inspector Jin in suppressing the rebels!”
Although the actual calculations only amounted to a little over one hundred thousand soldiers, and perhaps two hundred thousand if grain porters and civilian laborers were included, none of that prevented Yuan Shu from proclaiming an army of five hundred thousand men.
“Understood.” Yan Xiang showed no objection whatsoever.
After all, exaggerating troop numbers was standard practice.
“Liu Xiang! Jin Shang!” Yuan Shu’s voice turned serious.
“Once this meeting concludes, immediately assemble your forces.”
“Within five days, lead twenty thousand men as the vanguard to Kuangcheng in Chenliu.”
“Repair and strengthen the defensive works there while awaiting the arrival of the main army.”
“Your Lordship, please reconsider!”
Before Jin Shang and Liu Xiang could acknowledge the order, Yan Xiang’s expression changed, and he hurriedly stepped forward.
“My lord, according to the information I have gathered, the four southwestern commanderies of Yan Province have already been abandoned by the Yellow Turbans. If our army marches from Chenliu, not only will the supply of provisions be difficult, but the losses incurred during the march will also be enormous.”
“In my opinion… We should instead launch our campaign from Liang State, advance into Jiyin, capture Rencheng, and then send a letter to Tao Qian. In this way, we can form a north-south pincer attack. The Yellow Turbans will surely be defeated.”
After hearing his proposal, the assembled officials and generals felt that Yan Xiang’s reasoning made sense.
At present, the four southwestern commanderies of Yan Province were desolate for hundreds of li, with scarcely a trace of human habitation.
If they marched from Yingchuan into Chenliu and then turned east to attack, they would essentially be taking a huge detour.
No matter how one looked at it, it was not cost-effective.
Yan Xiang’s plan, on the other hand, would save both time and effort while also drawing Tao Qian into cooperation, stretching the Yellow Turbans’ defensive line.
“And do you think I haven’t considered that?”
Yuan Shu glanced at the assembled officials and generals, his face full of confidence.
“However, Yan Xiang seems to have forgotten one person.”
“That person is Cao Cao.”
“At present, Cao Cao has his troops stationed at Neihuang.”
“He is equally eyeing Yan Province with great ambition.”
“Moreover, he has the assistance of a certain illegitimate son of the Yuan clan.”
“So tell me, gentlemen—do you think Cao Cao will refrain from sending troops into Yan Province?”
“Hiss—”
The officials and generals suddenly understood, and many involuntarily sucked in a breath of cold air.
“My lord is wise!” The crowd immediately voiced their admiration.
“So you’ve all realized it now?” Yuan Shu’s confidence soared as he continued:
“If our army enters Rencheng, Cao Cao will certainly move his forces into Dong Commandery.”
“Once I have crushed the Yellow Turbans, I will inevitably have a battle with Cao Cao.”
“Although Cao Cao is nothing more than a fool… He is, after all, merely a dog belonging to that bastard son of my Yuan family.”
“To personally contend with him would lower my status.”
“Now that righteousness is on my side…Since Cao Cao has already withdrawn from Yan Province, there is no need for him to return.”
“The Yellow Turbans of Yan Province are nothing but chickens and dogs waiting to be slaughtered. I, Yuan Gonglu, can destroy them with a mere wave of my hand!”
“And after this campaign…We shall surround Chen State as well.”
Yuan Shu’s eyes gleamed with ambition.
“Once Chen State falls, Yan Province and Yu Province will be linked together as one.”
“With Nanyang also in my possession, which of the warlords under Heaven will still be able to stop me?”
“Wow…” The hall erupted into excited discussion.
“My lord is wise!”
“My lord’s foresight is unmatched! I am deeply impressed!”
“My lord possesses extraordinary talent!”
The officials and generals were practically overflowing with excitement, as if injected with stimulants.
Looking at Yuan Shu now, many regarded him with newfound awe.
They had never imagined that this had been Yuan Shu’s plan all along.
If Yuan Shu truly succeeded…
Then perhaps they, too, could dream of earning the merit of assisting a future emperor in founding a dynasty.
At this moment, even Yan Xiang no longer voiced any objections.
With Jin Shang currently in their camp, they possessed the banner of legitimacy.
If they moved to recover Dong Commandery under that banner, even Cao Cao would not dare send troops lightly.
However, all of this rested upon one crucial prerequisite:
They had to defeat the Yellow Turbans.
If they failed, the consequences would be disastrous.
Yet at this point, even Yan Xiang did not regard the Yellow Turbans as much of a threat.
— The end of the Chapter–
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