"A nobody from Zhuojun actually killed Han Meng and captured my son alive!"

"Xu Ziyuan, what are you guys doing?"

In Julu City, military flags fluttered in the wind, and countless soldiers and horses moved about.

Yuan Shao, the Eastern Cao Yuan of the Great Han General's Office, the Commandant of the Capital Region, and the Governor of Ji Province, a man from a family that had held high office for four generations, was currently raging at Xu You.

Xu You's face turned pale and then flushed, and sweat beaded on his forehead.

He and Yuan Shao were classmates and friends, but their life paths diverged drastically afterward.

Yuan Shao, due to his father and uncle's connections, as well as his own abilities, made rapid progress in his official career, becoming a powerful minister in the Han Dynasty and a regional warlord.

After the Battle of Mengjin, He Jin saw that Yuan Shao was very dedicated to besieging and killing Liu Wei, so he valued him highly and regarded him as his right-hand man.

Seeing that he had too few troops in the capital, Yuan Shao proposed to go to the provinces to recruit soldiers, cultivate his power, and curb the influence of those clan-based governors.

He Jin immediately used his power to transfer Han Fu, the governor of Ji Province, to the court to serve as the Imperial Censor, while Yuan Shao led a group of his confidants into Ji Province to take over the position of governor.

Leveraging the prestige of the Yuan family, he successively won over heroes of Ji Province, including Yan Liang, Wen Chou, Han Meng, Tian Feng, Ju Shou, Shen Pei, Guo Tu, Lü Xiang, Lü Kuang, and Ma Yan.

Chunyu Qiong and Xu You from the capital also came to seek refuge.

He then campaigned against the invading Yellow Turban Army in Qingzhou and incorporated 100,000 Yellow Turban soldiers into his army.

In addition, Ji Province was originally the granary of the Han Dynasty. Yuan Shao had manpower, food, and a strong army, and quickly took control of all the counties and prefectures north of the Yellow River, from Ye City to Bohai.

Meanwhile, Gao Lan, who was stationed in Changshan State, commanded three thousand elite cavalrymen left behind by Han Fu. He used the pretext of the Black Mountain bandits running rampant in the Taihang Mountains to the west to ask Yuan Shao for money and grain, feigning compliance.

Initially, Yuan Shao's main focus was on suppressing the Yellow Turban Rebellion in the east. Later, when the Yellow Turbans were defeated and fled, Yuan Shao turned back and discovered that Gao Lan had ulterior motives.

Therefore, Yuan Shao personally raised an army of 10,000, with Yan Liang and Wen Chou as his left and right generals, and Tian Feng as his strategist, to prepare for a campaign against Changshan and Zhongshan.

At the same time, Yuan Xi, Xu You, and Han Meng were dispatched with 1,000 elite cavalry and 5,000 infantry as vanguards to garrison near Wuji County on the north bank of the Hutuo River, preparing to attack Changshan from two directions.

But to his dismay, after all the arrangements were in place, he received the bad news that Yuan Xi had been captured and Han Meng had been killed, which naturally enraged him.

"My lord, this man is too fast. He killed General Han Meng in one move. Before the second young master could react, he was subdued at close range."

"We were afraid of hurting the Second Young Master, that's why we dared not make any moves!"

Xu You hurriedly explained.

It happened so fast! In the blink of an eye, the man had killed Han Meng with a single slash!

"General Han Meng is one of your three tridents, my lord, and his martial prowess is outstanding."

"If even he failed, how can I, a mere scholar, possibly succeed?"

"Fine, fine, I don't want to hear your explanation. What should we do now?"

Yuan Shao stared intently at Xu You with a dark expression, thinking to himself, "If you don't come up with a plan for me, I'll chop you up!"

“This man specifically requested to negotiate with our lord. I think it would be best to go and talk to him to see what his intentions are!”

What good ideas could Xu You possibly have?

That's it?

Yuan Shao was furious and turned to Tian Feng, asking, "Yuan Hao, what suggestions do you have?"

"My lord, I have been thinking about this issue ever since Ziyuan returned from Wuji."

Tian Feng frowned. "This man is said to be a commoner from Zhuojun, and he even participated in the battle in Youzhou."

"Was his conflict with the second young master solely due to the women of the Zhen family?"

"Furthermore, this person just happened to appear at the crucial moment when we were waging war against Gao Lan. What does that tell us?"

Isn't Tian Feng deliberately showing off his intelligence?

Yuan Shao was somewhat displeased: "Yuan Hao, stop beating around the bush and get straight to the point."

Cough cough!

Tian Feng blushed slightly and then said, "According to reliable intelligence, after King Liu Wei of Yunzhong and Governor of Youzhou quelled the rebellion of Zhang Chun and Zhang Ju, Liu Yu relinquished the governorship of Youzhou to King Liu Wei of Yunzhong and escorted the rebel leaders back to the capital himself."

"Youzhou is now under the control of that prince. This boy is ambitious and has his sights set on Jizhou. He is probably already plotting to take action against Jizhou!"

"I suspect their involvement in the sudden changes at Wuji Zhenjiazhuang!"

Yuan Shao pondered, "And then what?"

"This man specifically asked our lord to go and negotiate. In case our lord is face to face with him, he might launch a surprise attack just like he did with the second young master and capture our lord alive."

"Wouldn't this cause Ji Province to fall apart?"

"I absolutely do not approve of our lord going to negotiate with him!"

Tian Feng firmly stated, "I believe that for our lord, we should stick to the original plan and resolve the issue of Changshan Kingdom first!"

Upon hearing that his life was in danger, Yuan Shao immediately fell into deep thought.

If the other side can capture Yuan Xi, why can't they do the same and capture him as well?

Once he's caught, Jizhou is finished.

However, his beloved second son, Yuan Xi, was being held hostage by someone else!

Seeing Yuan Shao stroking his beard in thought, Tian Feng continued, "My lord, the other side is using the Second Prince as a bargaining chip; they are definitely using Xiang Zhuang's sword dance to target Liu Bang."

“If the lord ignores him, would he kill the second young master? Since he wants to negotiate with the lord, he must want to get benefits from you.”

"With the second young master gone, he'll get nothing. What's the point?"

"I am 99% certain that they will not kill the Second Young Master, my lord, please rest assured."

"We can resolve Gao Lan's issue according to the original plan, and then we can go back and negotiate with the other party."

"Perhaps he kidnapped the Second Young Master to stop your grand plan to wage war against Changshan."

Tian Feng's words were insightful and incisive, not only getting close to the truth of the matter but also providing a solution.

If Liu Wei were to hear Tian Feng's remarks, he would be greatly shocked.

If Yuan Shao had adopted Tian Feng's suggestion, Liu Wei's plan to lure Yuan Shao into Baiyangdian would have been completely thwarted.

However, Yuan Shao was Yuan Shao, indecisive and still hesitant at this moment.

Although Tian Feng's words made perfect sense, he was very worried about his son's safety.

Seeing that Yuan Shao was hesitant to make a decision, Tian Feng was about to urge him again when Xu You, who was deep in thought, suddenly brightened up and looked at Tian Feng thoughtfully.

"My lord, Tian Feng has misled us!" Xu You cried out.

Yuan Shao and Tian Feng were both taken aback and looked at Xu You with puzzled expressions.

"Ziyuan, what makes you say that?" Yuan Shao immediately pressed.

“My lord, Tian Yuanhao is a close advisor to the eldest son!” Xu You said sinisterly.

What!

As if awakened from a dream, Yuan Shao looked at Tian Feng with a gloomy face.

Upon hearing Xu You's words, Tian Feng inwardly cried out in alarm!

Xu You is a troublemaker. What was clearly the best course of action for Yuan Shao's current situation was completely distorted by Xu You's words.

"Yuan Hao, are you perhaps helping Tan'er?"