The Three Kingdoms: Zhaolie, the strategist, and the rise of the Han Dynasty

Chapter 213: Attack halfway across the river, Ma Chao surrenders Bingzhou in one battle; Yuan Shen leaves, and the fight between brothers begins

But Pang Tong, following Li Yi's orders, came forward to talk about Ma Chao.

Not only did he hope that he could send troops to help the Henan Army threaten Yuan Shao's flank.

They hoped that he would take advantage of the situation to occupy Bingzhou. By then, Xuzhou would not only submit a petition to recommend Ma Chao as the governor of Bingzhou, but would also provide strong support in terms of money and grain.

This is undoubtedly a godsend.

If it were someone else, Ma Chao would not believe it.

But the person who made this promise was the most powerful man in the world, and he had just led the coalition of princes to defeat the arrogant Yuan Shao.

The promise he made was worth more than a thousand gold.

It is truly worthy of serious consideration.

After thinking for a moment, Ma Chao finally agreed to send troops, but put forward a condition.

"I wonder what the general wants?" Pang Tong asked.

"You can ask me to send troops, but after arriving in Hedong, I really hope to meet the Marquis of Tan."

Ma Chao stated his conditions.

Pang Tong's eyes narrowed slightly, thinking that this condition was too simple.

Although the Marquis of Tan was busy with many affairs, if he could just make time to meet someone, he could get that person to send troops.

I've never made such a good deal in my life.

"...Good, I can decide on this condition. I will agree to it on behalf of Marquis Tan, General."

Pang Tong knew that Li Yi would definitely agree to this, so he agreed to Ma Chao's conditions without hesitation.

"Since the general has agreed to this, then our mission here is complete."

Just as Pang Tong was about to say goodbye and leave, Ma Chao suddenly stopped him:
“…Wait a minute!”

Pang Tong was stunned and asked if there was anything else.

Ma Chao raised the corners of his mouth slightly, and smiled:
"I only agreed to raise an army and attack Gao Gan."

"As for whether or not to stay in Bingzhou, I haven't agreed yet."

Ma Chao knew that Bingzhou was Yuan's territory.

Even if he managed to take it, the difficulty of maintaining it would be no less than Liu Bei's starting point in Xuzhou.

First of all, although Bingzhou is a horse-producing area, it is essentially very poor.

At the same time, the local scholars and nobles were all Yuan's followers.

They would not support him, the young master of the Ma family, like the wealthy families in Liangzhou did.

At the same time, the northern counties of Bingzhou were the territory where the Xiongnu people rested and recuperated.

These Huns had already surrendered to the Yuan family, which meant that Ma Chao would still have to face their threats if he went there.

A series of problems made Ma Chao wait and see about going to Bingzhou for development.

It's like you are the son of a company's boss and are temporarily working as a supervisor in the company.

But the boss doesn’t know when to give way, and there are many shareholders in the company.

The president of a listed company now tells you that he has another company that is similar to the company you are currently in.

We would like to invite you to be a director and fully support you in taking the position.

But this was actually an unfinished company, it was in debt, and the place was unfamiliar to everyone.

At the same time, other listed companies are also eyeing it.

If you were Ma Chao, what would you choose?
It’s not that we can’t jump into this fire pit, but everything needs to be discussed carefully.

"……hiss."

Pang Tong took a deep breath and asked in a deep voice:

"The Marquis of Tan has already promised the general that he will submit a petition to ask the general to be appointed governor of Bingzhou."

"General, what are you still hesitating about?"

"...Let's not discuss this matter for now."

Ma Chao waved his hand and quickly changed the subject.

"Go back and tell Marquis Li Tan that Chao will send troops to Bingzhou soon."

"Please don't break your promise, Marquis Tan. You must come and meet Chao."

Pang Tong then realized that Ma Chao wanted to meet Li Yi and negotiate with him face to face.

After all, for someone as ambitious as him, there is no way he would miss such a good opportunity.

But Ma Chao was also worried about a trap, so he wanted to meet Li Yi in person.

After he was convinced that Li Yi had the ability and means to help him secure his position as Governor of Bingzhou.

Perhaps he will consider staying in Bingzhou to develop.

Pang Tong thought to himself that this was the best result he could achieve.

It’s better to wait for the gentleman to come out and “deal with” him personally later.

"……good."

Pang Tong nodded and said, "I will convey the general's intention to my master. Please send troops as soon as possible."

After giving the last word of advice, Ma Chao personally saw Pang Tong off.

He then returned to the camp with great force and announced that the entire army would move out.

All the generals asked Ma Chao where they were going.

Ma Chao said to everyone:

"My father has already surrendered to the imperial court. Now the Yuan family is a traitor, driving the barbarian soldiers to plunder the Central Plains and invade Hedong."

"I will raise an army and attack them in Hedong!"

All the generals came from Yongliang and were good at fighting. When they heard that Ma Chao was going to Hedong to attack the Yuan family, they were not afraid.

However, the generals did not dare to make decisions on such a major matter.

At that time, Ma Chao's cousin Ma Dai was beside him and said to Ma Chao:
"My uncle ordered us to stay here to observe the changes in the situation."

"Before we rashly send out troops, we must first inform my uncle."

Ma Chao's face suddenly changed, and he said sternly:

"My father ordered me to lead the troops here, and I have the right to act at my own discretion."

"If we wait for the imperial envoy to go to Longxi, it will take a long time to go back and forth, wouldn't it delay the opportunity to fight?"

"Besides, the general is away from home and cannot obey the orders of the king. By the time my father gives the order, Hedong will have already fallen."

"Won't the imperial court blame us Liangzhou people?"

Seeing this, Ma Dai had no choice but to follow him.

Ma Chao then gathered more than 10,000 elite soldiers and headed straight for Hedong.

Since most of the troops were cavalry and they were close to each other, they reached Hedong in just a few days.

When the Inspector General of the Capital, Zhong Yao, heard that a large group of troops were coming from the southwest, he was surprised and delighted, and said to his attendants:

"I sent an envoy to Liangzhou in less than half a month."

"How did he come so quickly?"

Zhong Yao himself was actually quite puzzled. Logically speaking, the envoy he sent to Longxi to meet Ma Teng would have taken at least twenty days to go back and forth.

As a result, in less than half a month, the army arrived directly.

However, as long as reinforcements were coming, Zhong Yao didn't want to care about those details.

That is, go out of the city in person to meet the guests.

Ma Chao greeted him, and Zhong Yao knew that he was the son of Ma Teng, so he immediately informed him of the current situation.

Hedong is now mainly facing threats from three directions of troops.

One group was led by Yuan Shao's nephew Gao Gan from Bingzhou, and the other group was led by Hedong governor Guo Yuan.

The last group was led by the Southern Xiongnu Khan Huchuquan himself.

The three armies together have at least 40,000 to 50,000 troops.

The disparity in numbers is staggering.

However, Ma Chao thought to himself that Li Ziyu fought two battles at Guandu and Cangting.

He successively defeated Yuan Shao's armies of 600,000 and 800,000.

Although I don’t know whether this rumor is true, it is an indisputable fact that the outnumbered team won both games.

Since Li Yi can go, I, Ma Chao, can go too!

Ma Chao was young and full of vigor, and he wanted to emulate Li Yi, so he said to Zhong Yao with great pride:

"Please be at ease, Captain Zhong. I regard Yuan's soldiers as nothing, and the barbarians are nothing more than a token of betrayal to me."

"If they dare to invade Hedong, I will make sure they never return!"

Zhong Yao also knew that Ma Chao was extremely brave, but he lacked wisdom and guidance.

Then he responded to him:
"The general is as brave as Lu Bu."

On the other hand, he tactfully offered him advice:

"Yao believes that Gao Gan is powerful and will definitely take the initiative to attack."

"If we don't let them go, we should first camp at the Fen River and wait for them to tire themselves out."

“Then draw it.”

Ma Chao gladly followed his advice and stationed his troops at the Fen River.

He ordered people to cut down trees, erect fences, and build a large camp.

Within a few days, someone reported that Gao Gan, Guo Yuan and Hu Chuquan led an army of 150,000 to attack Hedong.

The army was stationed on the other side of the Fen River. Gao Gan ordered Guo Yuan to be the vanguard and led him to cross the river and take Hedong first.

Guo Yuan then led his Hedong troops to prepare boats and rafts, repair boats, and prepare to cross the river.

When Ma Chao learned the news, he was ready to lead his troops to attack.

Zhong Yao hurriedly stopped him and said:

"Guo Yuan is stubborn and competitive."

"Now their army is strong, and ours is small, so they will certainly underestimate our army."

"If they set up camp where they cross the Fen River, we can attack them halfway across."

"If you strike them when they are at the last moment of their attack, you can defeat them greatly."

According to the explanation in Sun Tzu's Art of War: Marching, attacking the enemy halfway across the river means that the enemy has just landed and has not yet formed its battle formation.

If you attack actively, you can catch your opponent off guard.

Ma Chao gladly followed his advice, and first asked the soldiers to make preparations in advance and sent people to observe the movements on the other side of the river.

Not long after, it was reported that Guo Yuan had rashly crossed the river without any preparation.

Ma Chao was overjoyed, "Just as Captain Zhong expected."

He then mobilized all his troops and ordered Pang De to be the vanguard.

From a high position, they waited for Guo's reinforcements to come ashore.

Guo Yuanjun had prepared the boats, and by the time his men and horses reached the river mouth, the sun was just rising and they were about to go ashore.

Suddenly, we heard shouting and horse neighing from the other side of the river, and a large group of people and horses swarmed over.

Guo Yuan was shocked and asked his attendants what the commotion was about.

After a moment, a young general ran to Guo Yuan and bowed:

"Report to the Lord, a large number of bandit troops have appeared on the other side of the river!"

Guo Yuan hurriedly stood at the bow of the boat to watch, and indeed saw a large number of people and horses swarming in.

The leading general had a face as white as powder and lips as red as vermilion.

He has a slender waist and broad arms, a loud voice and great strength, and wears a white robe and silver armor.

Holding a spear in hand, he rode his horse and led the way.

Guo Yuan was shocked and angry, and quickly pointed with his whip:
"Who is this young man?"

Some of the people around him who knew Ma Chao exclaimed:

"It's Xiliang Jin Ma Chao!"

"It's Xiliang Jin Ma Chao!"

Ma Chao?

Guo Yuan's eyes widened. This was a place where he became famous at a young age, and Hedong was also close to Liangzhou.

He had also heard of Ma Chao's reputation.

"People say that Ma Chao's bravery is as good as Lu Bu's."

"Looking at it today, the soldiers of Xiliang are indeed brave and heroic."

Guo Yuan sighed with emotion and was a little regretful that he had crossed the river first to take the lead.

But there was no way, as he was the lowest-ranking official among the three.

If he doesn't take the lead, who will?

Guo Yuan couldn't help but look back and glanced at Gao Gan and Huo Chuquan behind him.

These two uncles are watching the battle on the other side of the river.

He thought to himself that if he couldn't win the battle, Gao Gan and Huochequan still had soldiers under their command and should be able to come to rescue him.

Now the arrow is on the string and must be fired.

At this time, people around came to persuade Guo Yuan:
"Master, the enemy troops are coming in a hurry."

"Please land quickly and form a formation to resist the enemy!"

Guo Yuan also knew that it was too late to turn around, so he hurriedly got off the boat with the help of everyone.

The soldiers from Hedong rushed to the shore, and suddenly someone shouted:

"The enemy troops are here!"

"The enemy troops are here!"

Everyone was shocked and rushed to meet the enemy.

Before the battle began, a rain of arrows came.

All the brave generals shot towards the sky, and the arrows fell like rain.

The Hedong soldiers who had just reached the shore were shot down by arrows before they could form a battle formation.

After a round of rain of arrows, Ma Chao had led his troops to the river bank.

The Hedong soldiers gathered together, and before they could form a battle formation, Ma Chao's troops arrived.

Once it makes contact, it goes straight in like a steel knife cutting through butter.

"Ma Chao is here, who dares to stop me!"

Ma Chao took the lead, took out a longbow from his horse's back, bent the bow and drew his arrow, and never missed his target.

The person who was driving the boat at that time fell into the water before he could even go ashore.

There were dozens of people on the boat, all of whom were shot into the water by Ma Chao's bow.

Guo Yuan rode his horse and brandished his sword, personally fighting Ma Chao.

The two horses fought for three to five rounds. Guo Yuan was unable to resist and fled in panic.

Ma Chao took advantage of the situation and pulled his spear back, and the soldiers from Xiliang rushed over together.

Guo Yuan ran back to the main force and asked the prepared archers to bend their bows and shoot.

Ma Chao swung his spear and deflected the arrows.

The people in the rear shouted loudly.

Rushed into the enemy camp and slashed with swords.

The archer had no time to retreat, and his bow was broken, and he died tragically under the saber.

"kill!"

"Kill! Kill quickly!"

When Guo Yuan saw Ma Chao's troops rushing forward, he also panicked and frantically commanded his soldiers to rush forward.

The people of Ran had already landed in a hurry, and were now caught off guard.

Although most of the troops marched forward, they were mixed up and formed no formation.

The two armies fought in one place, swords were slashing, arrows were flying.

During the battle, a stray arrow hit Ma Chao's right foot.

The personal guards around him rushed to rescue him.

Ma Chao pulled out the arrow with his hands, then took out a knife and cut off his robe and wrapped it around his feet.

He pointed the gun toward the sky and said loudly:
"Today's battle will definitely defeat Guo Yuan."

"All troops, follow me!"

When everyone saw this, their morale was greatly boosted.

Ma Chao's army swept away Guo's reinforcements like a hurricane.

They marched straight ahead and drove all of Guo's reinforcements into the river.

All that could be heard was the neighing of horses and men, and the soldiers from Hedong all went down to the river to drink water.

Tens of thousands of Hedong soldiers were killed by Ma Chao's army and fled in panic, not knowing where to go.

Guo Yuan took advantage of the chaos between the two armies and rode away.

He ran into a general who was quite fierce and shouted loudly:
"Pound is here!"

Guo Yuan was so frightened that he had no time to react and was chopped off his horse by Pang De.

Pang De jumped off his horse, cut off Guo Yuan's head with a knife, and put it in the bow and crossbow. The people of Hedong were terrified and surrendered to Ma Chao.

Ma Chao ordered his men to drive all of them into the river and drown them.

Hedong prefect Guo Yuan, along with tens of thousands of Hedong soldiers, was defeated in one battle by Ma Chao.

At the same time, Gao Gan, the governor of Bingzhou, and Huchuquan, the Chanyu of the Southern Xiongnu, were standing on the mountain side by side on their horses, watching the battle from across the river.

The two men had just been on the hill and witnessed the entire battle on the other side of the river very clearly.

Gao Gan couldn't help but sigh:
"I have been in Bingzhou for six years, and I have never seen such a strong man."

Huo Chuquan was also frightened.

Among the tens of thousands of soldiers brought by Guo Yuan, there were quite a few of their own troops.

Who could have thought that it would vanish into nothingness in an instant.

Huo Chuquan asked the senior official beside him:

"General, do you want me to go into battle?"

Gao Gan narrowed his eyes and shook his head blankly:

"The situation is over, why bother going any further?"

Hu Chuquan was stunned and asked the senior official, what should we do if we don’t go?
Gao Gan said helplessly:
"Let's surrender to them first!"

Huochuquan was shocked. "If I surrender to Ma Chao, how will I explain to Lord Yuan?"

Gao Gan sighed:

"The situation is hopeless now, so let's just hold back for now."

"Ma Chao will leave sooner or later."

That's right, Bingzhou is different from other big states.

The area is vast and the population is sparse, even if Ma Chao occupied it.

There are no dangerous passes or roads to defend, and it is difficult to see human habitation within a hundred miles.

How could such a large territory not accommodate two tigers?

Not to mention the Three Tigers Southern Xiongnu located in the Hetao area.

You and your ten thousand soldiers can be stationed wherever you like.

Ma Chao has no power or influence here, and no connections.

Gao Gan didn't believe that he would stay in such a barren place for long.

So he decided to pretend to surrender to Ma Chao first, and stabilize him and his army first.

Seeing that the senior official had spoken, Huochequan had nothing to say.

Moreover, in the battle at Fen River just now, he had seen clearly the combat effectiveness of Ma Chao's army.

This kid's talent for cavalry warfare is top-notch. He can attack instantly with lightning speed.

Guo Yuan's Hedong Army was defeated in one fell swoop.

His methods are so ruthless and his actions are so decisive that they are rarely seen in the world.

"...He is indeed a figure from the Central Plains."

Huchequan secretly rejoiced that it was the right decision to make friends with the Han people.

There are still heroes defending this place, so it is really not easy to take it.

Subsequently,

Huochuquan and Gao Gan each sent envoys to cross the river and surrender to Ma Chao.

Then Ma Chao cleaned up the battlefield, and Pang De came with Guo Yuan's head to ask for credit.

Ma Chao personally handed Guo Yuan's head to Zhong Yao.

Zhong Yao took the head and cried bitterly.

Ma Chao was surprised and asked the reason.

Zhong Yao burst into tears and explained to everyone:
"You may not know this, but this Hedong Governor Guo Yuan is my nephew."

Ma Chao and everyone else looked at each other in surprise. They never expected that after fighting for so long, the person they killed was actually Zhong Yao's nephew.

No wonder he knew Guo Yuan so well and said that he would definitely cross the river rashly.

Pang De personally killed Guo Yuan. Seeing this, he hurriedly apologized to Zhong Yao:
"De didn't know that Guo Yuan was Captain Zhong's nephew."

"If Captain Zhong had informed us in advance, De would not have killed him!"

Zhong Yao wiped his tears and comforted Pang De:

"Although Guo Yuan is my nephew, he is a traitor to the country and an accomplice of the tyrant."

"General, you killed the enemy for your country, why should you apologize?"

As a result, everyone was impressed by Zhong Yao's clear distinction between public and private affairs.

By evening, Huchuquan and Gaogan's envoys also knew about it.

They all expressed their willingness to surrender to Ma Chao.

Ma Chao was overjoyed and gladly accepted the surrender of the two men.

He immediately bid farewell to Zhong Yao and led his troops to station in Taiyuan County.

Because this place is the seat of Bingzhou, entering here is equivalent to strangling the political throat of Bingzhou.

Ma Chao knew,

Huochequan and Gao Gan surrendered to him only because they were afraid of his military strength.

Surrender is just a temporary solution for them.

Ma Chao was anxious to conquer Bingzhou so that he could negotiate with Li Yi, so he did not dare to push the two too far.

Otherwise, if we force them into a corner, it will not be so easy to take Bingzhou.

Ma Chao does have some intelligence.

Now that the two are willing to surrender voluntarily, Bingzhou at least belongs to them in name.

If Li Yi had not sent someone to paint a rosy picture in advance, he would have returned to his own Liangzhou to become the "Crown Prince" after fighting this battle.

But since Li Yi had made the promise before, Ma Chao took the opportunity of surrendering Bingzhou as a bargaining chip in negotiations with him.

Immediately, Ma Chao sent someone to write a letter to report the victory to the court.

At the same time, he led his troops northward, straight to Taiyuan and Jinyang.

Not stated.

……

However, Yuan Shao fell seriously ill after his defeat at Cangting.

He ignored state affairs every day and just rested in his room.

That day, Yuan Shao suddenly felt that he was feeling much better than before, and the weather had cleared up.

He ordered his wife Liu to help him go out to bask in the sun.

Madam Liu put a fur coat on Yuan Shao and helped him out of the courtyard.

“…Ugh, cough cough cough!”

As soon as Yuan Shaofu went out, he was blown by the wind and started coughing non-stop.

Madam Liu patted him on the back and advised:
"It's windy outside, why don't you go back to the house and rest."

Yuan Shao shook his head and said, "I want to take another look at my soldiers."

Mrs. Liu was shocked and cursed inwardly, "Are you crazy?"

Your body can't stand the slightest wind, yet you still want to go to the military camp.

There are so many people there and they don't like talking at all. I'm afraid I won't be able to stay there for even a moment.

Mrs. Liu did not dare to disobey Yuan Shao, so she just helped him to the military camp.

Yuan Shao walked in the camp and saw that all the soldiers looked like they had lost their fathers, with sad expressions on their faces.

Yuan Shao's arrival did not cause any ripples at all.

Yuan Shao shed tears and said:

"I led an army of 150,000 and marched south, but most of them were unable to return with me."

"Brothers are separated, relatives and friends are separated, it is all my fault."

After he finished speaking, he couldn't stop crying.

At this time, a scout came on horseback to report.

"Report——"

"Mr. Yuan, there is an emergency in Bingzhou!"

Yuan Shao quickly stopped crying and said:
"Say it!"

"Ma Chao led his troops and defeated Hedong governor Guo Yuan at the Fen River."

"Huchuquan, the Xiongnu Chanyu, and Gao Gan, the governor of Bingzhou, both surrendered to Ma Chao."

"Bingzhou has been lost!"

what! ?

Yuan Shao was shocked to hear the bad news about Bingzhou's defeat, and his eyes went dark.

“…Ugh, poof!”

Yuan Shao was already ill, and when he heard the news that Bingzhou was out of control, his old illness relapsed.

Blood spurted out of his mouth and he vomited several buckets of blood.

He fainted on the ground, unconscious.

Everyone rushed to rescue him, helped him into his bedroom, and asked a doctor to come and treat him.

The doctor tried his best and finally woke Yuan Shao up.

Yuan Shao woke up, opened his eyes, looked around and said:

"...I, can't be resurrected!"

"You can summon all the civil and military officials to discuss the aftermath."

Mrs. Liu hurriedly invited Shen Pei and Pang Ji to come.

Both of them were members of Yuan Shang's faction and held great power.

Madam Liu only invited these two people and announced to the outside world that Yuan Shao had a minor illness and it was not serious.

The news was strictly blocked and Guo Tu and Xin Ping were unaware of it at this time.

By the time Shen Pei and Pang Ji arrived, Yuan Shao was already terminally ill and unconscious.

But he still called the two of them to the bedside and said to them:
"...After I...after I die, you can take my place...you can take my place..."

At this point, Yuan Shao was speechless.

Madam Liu hurriedly held Yuan Shao's hand and asked, "Can Xianfu inherit the throne?"

Cough cough cough! !

Upon hearing Yuan Shang's name, Yuan Shao suddenly became agitated and started coughing non-stop.

Shen Pei and Pang Ji looked at each other and said hurriedly:

"I understand, we will definitely assist the Third Young Master with all our heart!"

…cough cough…cough…

Yuan Shao coughed violently, turned over and screamed, vomited more than a bucket of blood and died.

There is still controversy in the academic community about who Yuan Shao finally appointed as his successor.

Yuan Shao became famous at a young age, and until the last few years before his death, he remained at the top of the world.

Because of his power, he can make unlimited mistakes.

However, among the choices in life, Yuan Shao made only two truly fatal mistakes.

One is that he didn't dare to risk his life to save Wuchao.

One was hesitant about whether to welcome the emperor, but was overtaken by Cao and Liu.

The greatest benefit of being an emperor is that he can gain the reputation of being just.

At the same time, it will make the generals who surrender to you have no psychological burden, and local counties will also be more likely to submit to you directly.

For example, Zhang He and Gao Lan "abandoned darkness and turned to light" and submitted to the imperial court.

As for the disadvantages of welcoming the emperor mentioned by Guo Tu and Chunyu Qiong.

First, it was said that the Han Dynasty had lost its prestige and that there was no point in welcoming the emperor.

But the world had not been in chaos for a few years. As long as Yuan Shao was willing to support the emperor, wouldn't the Han Dynasty have been able to rise up?
Doesn't the usefulness of the emperor depend on the extent to which you princes can support the Han Dynasty?

If Yuan Shao married another girl from the Yuan family to the young emperor, people would only think that these few years were just a minor episode.

We have returned to our normal life of foreign relatives holding the power.

Second, it would be very troublesome if we had to report everything to the emperor since he was by our side.

It is difficult to deal with whether you listen to the emperor or not.

But Yuan Shao could have rarely seen or even not seen the emperor.

I, Yuan Shao, am busy sweeping away the warlords and supporting the Han Dynasty, and am unable to see the Emperor.

Please ask Tian Feng, Ju Shou or Xu You to stay in the court and communicate with the emperor.

If anything goes wrong, it's the contact person's fault.

What trouble could there be if I, Yuan Shao, don’t know about it?
In short, the benefits of welcoming the emperor are obvious, but the disadvantages of welcoming the emperor can all be overcome.

Yuan Shao's attitude towards the emperor is actually very similar to that of many people.

Until now, some people still cannot understand the point of using the emperor to control the princes.

The plan of the ministers and the wish of the people.

I can only sigh that all my original ambitions have come to nothing.

In the end, the Three Kingdoms is a game of you sing and I take the stage.

In the end, everything ended up being a wedding dress for others.

……

After Yuan Shao died, Shen Pei wrote his will on his bedside.

The instructions clearly stated that Yuan Shao would make his third son Yuan Shang his heir.

Afterwards, Mrs. Liu fell in front of Yuan Shao's body and cried bitterly.

Everyone went to persuade her, and Mrs. Liu said:
"I am too sad to take care of things, please ask Mr. Shen to preside over the funeral."

Shen Pei agreed and took care of the funeral while handling military and national affairs.

He then hurriedly invited Yuan Shang into the hall and summoned civil and military officials to come and congratulate him.

Mrs. Liu was jealous by nature. She had entrusted the funeral to Shen Pei just to free up her hands to deal with Yuan Shao's concubine.

When Yuan Shao was alive, Madam Liu did not dare to act rashly.

After Yuan Shao's death, Madam Liu took sole control of the harem, and with her young son succeeding to the throne, it can be said that she had the utmost power.

He summoned warriors and ordered them to bring out all five of Yuan Shao's favorite concubines.

The concubines begged for mercy, but Madam Liu ignored them and ordered the warriors to strangle them all to death.

After killing all the concubines, Madam Liu thought to herself:

"When my husband was alive, he doted on these bitches."

"Now that I have killed him, his ghost will go to the underworld and meet my family member. Will he not complain to me?"

Then he ordered people to shave the hair of all the concubines.

They also stabbed their faces with knives and burned their bodies in the fire.

I was satisfied only when it was burned until it was unrecognizable.

When he returned to attend the funeral, Yuan Shang was already in mourning and wailing loudly.

Seeing her mother coming, she wiped her tears, walked up to her and asked in a low voice:
"Where did mother go just now?"

Madam Liu said grimly:

"I will kill all those bitches!"

So he told Yuan Shang everything he had just done.

Yuan Shang was stunned, a look of fear on his face.

Mrs. Liu thought her son despised her cruel methods and was about to explain.

Yuan Shang said:

"My mother killed my father's favorite concubine, and her family will seek revenge."

"It is better to kill them all at once, and not leave them behind to cause harm."

Madam Liu was delighted, "My son has the style of his father!"

Then he ordered the warriors to break into the residences of the families of the five concubines.

No matter the reason, no matter the age.

Anyone alive will be killed.

As soon as Yuan Shao died, a bloody storm broke out.

However, this is just the appetizer.

At that time, Guo Tu and Xin Ping were outside and did not know the internal situation of Yecheng.

Suddenly someone reported that Yuan Shao had died and Yuan Shang had succeeded him.

After hearing this, they were both shocked.

……

(End of this chapter)