Chương 323: Chen Liu

He paused, glanced at Yuan Shao's expression, and continued, "Moreover, the one temporarily in charge of Ji Province is the late emperor's younger brother, the current emperor's uncle, and also a 'good friend' of our lord, Prince Liu Ce of Yan. Moreover, our lord has been a member of a family that has held high office for four generations, and enjoys the utmost respect throughout the land. He will surely welcome you with open arms.

Once our lord arrives in Ji Province, he can establish a foothold in Bohai County and gradually plan to conquer the entire province. This will be the foundation for his hegemony."

Upon hearing this, there was a slight tremor in the room.

This is indeed a reliable plan; they had discussed this escape route before they fled.

Liu Ce was a member of the Han imperial family, a legitimate imperial uncle. He had a good relationship with Yuan Shao. Back in Luoyang, the two of them, along with Cao Cao, drank together at Zuichunlou and visited brothels.

Both morally and logically, we should accept it.

Jizhou's wealth and natural defenses truly make it a rare and valuable base of operations.

Before Yuan Shao could nod, Xu You chuckled.

This guy took a step forward, tapped his finger heavily on the location of Ji Province, and said in a sharp voice: "Gongze, you are wrong! Who is Liu Ce? He is the fierce man who flattened the Xianbei royal court... destroyed the Goguryeo kingdom and sealed the wolf's lair! He is the King of Yan personally appointed by the late emperor, holding the three provinces of You, Ji and Bing, with a cloud of strategists and a rain of fierce generals under his command. His power is terrifying."

"Who is our lord? A renowned scholar, a man of great influence, a hero who dares to confront even Dong Zhuo to his face. Do you think he's some harmless little rabbit? If you go and surrender to Ji Province, which he's temporarily governing, what will he think?"

He leaned forward, his fingertips tracing the map to the location of Bohai Commandery, his tone becoming more serious: "Even if he were to grant you the position of Prefect of Bohai out of consideration for the Yuan family and your status as a friend of our lord, what good would it do? A commandery under such circumstances, constantly hampered by Prince Liu Ce of Yan, with your provisions and troops entirely in his hands—it's ostensibly a courtesy, but in reality, it's house arrest!

Can our lord endure such a life of dependence?"

Xu You straightened up and sneered, "This isn't a foundation for hegemony; it's clearly a prison!"

Guo Tu's face froze, and he opened his mouth to argue, but Xu You raised his hand to stop him, saying, "I know what you're going to say. The current imperial uncle, the lord's friend? Back then, General He Jin was the emperor's brother-in-law, and the Ten Attendants should have killed him, but they did. In chaotic times, what do favors matter? Only the territory you hold in your own hands is real!"

The room became eerily quiet; you could hear even your own breathing.

Yuan Shao frowned slightly, his fingertips moved away from the location of Ji Province, and a cold glint flashed in his eyes.

Xu You's words struck at his deepest concern.

He was Yuan Benchu, the eldest son of the prestigious Yuan family of Runan, a family that had produced three high-ranking officials for four generations.

(Although he was born out of wedlock in his early years, he was adopted by Yuan Cheng and became the legitimate eldest son of the main branch.) How could he have ever had to live under someone else's roof and be at the mercy of others?

"In your opinion, if we don't go to Ji Province, where should we go?" Feng Ji asked in a deep voice, breaking the silence.

"Back to Runan!" Guo Tu immediately replied, pointing to the location of Runan Commandery in Yuzhou on the map, his tone urgent.

"Runan is the ancestral home of my Yuan family. Our clan members, disciples, relatives, and former officials are all scattered throughout the commandery. With a century-old foundation, we can command a hundred responses at a moment's notice! Runan was the largest commandery in the Eastern Han Dynasty, with a population of over two million. Its grain and military resources far surpass those of Bohai, and it is even comparable to a whole province!"

He grew increasingly excited as he spoke, saying, "Kong Zhou, the governor of Yuzhou, is nothing more than a scholar-official with no military power and no ambition. If you return, my lord, you can control all of Yuzhou in the blink of an eye! What great undertaking could possibly fail us?"

Those words are all true.

Even Chunyu Qiong nodded and said, "Gongze's words make sense. Returning to Runan is like returning to our own home base, where no one can hinder our lord."

Xu You shook his head, and this time even Feng Ji sighed.

"What about the highway?" Feng Ji only said three words.

Guo Tu's face turned pale instantly.

Yuan Shu, also known as Yuan Gonglu, is the second son of the Yuan family of Runan. He has now fled Luoyang and is heading to Nanyang County.

Runan is the ancestral home of the Yuan clan. Whoever occupies Runan holds the power of discourse within the Yuan clan.

If Yuan Shao were to return to Runan, a power struggle between him and Yuan Shu over the status of legitimate and illegitimate sons would inevitably erupt, leading to internal strife before even launching a campaign against Dong Zhuo.

This is the biggest joke in the world, and also the most fatal blow to Yuan Shikai's reputation.

"It's not just the highways," Xu You added, pointing to the border of Runan.

"Runan is located on the eastern Henan plain, flat and undefended, too close to Luoyang. Dong Zhuo's Xiliang cavalry could march straight into Runan from Luoyang in three days. If our lord has barely raised his troops, Dong Zhuo's army will arrive, leaving no room for maneuver. How can we establish a foothold?"

Yuan Shao's brows furrowed even more deeply as his fingertips slowly traced the map, passing over Hanoi, Nanyang, and Xuzhou, his eyes growing increasingly bewildered.

Damn it, the world is so big, yet there's nowhere for me, Yuan Benchu, to hide?

"What about Hanoi?" Chunyu Qiong asked in a deep voice, pointing to Hanoi County north of the Yellow River.

"The governor of Hanoi, Wang Kuang, is a confidant of our lord and listens to his every word. Hanoi is bordered by the Taihang Mountains to the north and the Yellow River to the south, and it faces Luoyang across the river. It can be used to intimidate Luoyang when advancing, or to defend itself by relying on the river when retreating. It is also convenient to contact the warlords in Guandong. It is better than running into obstacles everywhere."

"We cannot linger in Hanoi," Feng Ji immediately shook his head.

"Hanoi is only one prefecture, with limited population and provisions. It can only serve as a temporary base for troops, not support your great cause, my lord. We can't rely on Wang Kuang's territory forever, acting as guest generals. What's the difference between that and living under someone else's roof?"

Silence fell again in the room.

Looking at the map, Yuan Shao felt a tightness in his chest. He had a great reputation and a belly full of ambition, but after escaping Luoyang, he couldn't even find a place to settle down.

Just then, Xu You suddenly stepped forward, pressed two fingers heavily on the location of Chenliu County in Yanzhou on the map, looked up at Yuan Shao, his eyes flashing with a burning light, and said in a firm and resounding voice:

"My lord! We will not go to Ji Province, nor return to Runan, nor stay in Hanoi. Only Chenliu is the safest place for you!"

All eyes instantly focused on those two words.

Xu You leaned down, his fingertips tracing a circle along the boundary of Chenliu, speaking rapidly, each sentence hitting the nail on the head:

"First, Chenliu has connections, so there's no need to rely on others! Zhang Miao, the governor of Chenliu, is a close friend of our lord from our youth. He fought alongside us and Mengde in the past, sharing life and death. He's absolutely reliable!"

He paused, then continued, "Liu Dai, the governor of Yanzhou, Qiao Mao, the prefect of Dongjun, and Yuan Yi, the prefect of Shanyang, are all our lord's core allies. Yuan Yi is even our lord's cousin! The entire Yanzhou is our home. When our lord arrives in Chenliu, Zhang Miao will surely recognize our lord as his overlord, open the gates to welcome him, and provide him with all the provisions and weapons he needs without any hindrance!

We don't need to worry about Han Fu's feelings, nor do we need to contend with Yuan Shu for clan ties. This is our lord's own territory!"

Upon hearing this, Yuan Shao's eyes lit up instantly.

He thought of Zhang Miao, the friend he grew up with. Back in Luoyang, Zhang Miao had said more than once that if he ever needed anything, he should just go to Chenliu to find him.