Your Majesty, please spare Diao Chan; your yang energy is too strong.

This created a situation.

Neither Cao Cao nor Yuan Shao could defeat the other.

Yuan Shao wasn't stupid, and naturally he wouldn't foolishly fight Cao Cao, so in the end he could only turn his attention to Zhang Yan.

At that time, there was nowhere for him to stay in the entire Ji Province.

The only way out is to escape from Jizhou.

They sought refuge with other feudal lords.

All I need to do is wait for him here.

This is just the benefit that Cao Cao and Yuan Shao ultimately gained in this war.

Not only did they receive the support of the Zhen family.

It also stirred up a storm in the world.

They tricked Cao Cao, Yuan Shao, and Zhang Yan all at once.

...........

Now let's talk about the second major benefit.

That's the letter he just wrote.

Why did Zhou Heng say that Cao Cao would definitely not be able to defeat Yuan Shao?

Aside from the possibility that the enemy will withdraw their army from Youzhou.

That was the letter he wrote earlier.

Because he would allow Yuan Shu to launch a surprise attack on Cao Cao's rear at the most crucial moment.

Cao Cao was unable to attend to both ends.

Even if they achieve some victories in the subsequent battles.

They had no choice but to return to provide assistance.

This is tantamount to trapping Zhang Yan.

Zhang Yan was just a pawn of Zhou Heng from beginning to end.

However, this piece has to act according to Zhou Heng's ideas.

That's the ruthlessness of this plan.

Let's turn our attention back to Yuan Shu.

Why did Zhou Heng's plan shock Liao Hua so much?

Because this is equivalent to simultaneously scheming against all the feudal lords in the world.

Logically speaking...

Yuan Shu is now surrounded by enemies on all sides. News has just arrived that Yuan Shu is being besieged by several major warlords at the same time.

They could only parry, with no power to retaliate.

It is impossible to launch a proactive attack.

Because for him, it would be a losing proposition.

However, Zhou Heng had a reason that compelled him to take action.

It is believed that this will continue after Yuan Shu declares himself emperor.

Now I'm also feeling the malice from all over the world.

Why did Yuan Shu dare to declare himself emperor? Besides the fact that he held the imperial seal and was the most powerful warlord in the land.

The most crucial reason was that he believed Yuan Shao would choose to support him.

After all, we all share the surname Yuan.

And they're brothers.

If Yuan Shao were to respond, then he would truly be the emperor in name and in fact.

But Yuan Shao did not respond.

In this way, Yuan Shu was left fighting alone, surrounded by enemies on all sides.

It's equivalent to Yuan Shao betraying him.

How could this not enrage him?

But there was nothing that could be done.

He now wants to get out of the quagmire of war.

It's practically impossible.

However, Zhou Heng had a way to extricate himself from the quagmire of war.

That was to take advantage of the great battle between Cao Cao and Yuan Shao.

They seized the opportunity to launch a surprise attack on Xuchang.

Take down the emperor.

As long as the emperor is in his hands, he holds the nominal legitimacy.

If the emperor were to issue another abdication edict.

Wouldn't that be perfectly legitimate?

It could even eliminate a huge hidden danger like Cao Cao.

Why not?

Why is the world now united in its condemnation of Yuan Shikai?

A major reason for this was Cao Cao's interference.

If it weren't for Cao Cao's order to quell the rebellion.

Even if some people were dissatisfied, so many feudal lords wouldn't have acted at the same time.

A very simple truth.

With the world in chaos, no one would risk destruction by offending Yuan Shu.

If he could eliminate Cao Cao, his situation would undoubtedly be much better.

Even Cao Cao was defeated, so why would the other warlords invite such humiliation upon themselves?

First and foremost is Sun Ce.

He was originally a general under Yuan Shu.

If Cao Cao were to encounter any problems, he would undoubtedly turn against him immediately.

Continue to be Yuan Shu's loyal dog.

After all, he only has a few thousand soldiers under his command.

If Cao Cao were to be defeated and forced to retreat...

Yuan Shu's next target must be to eliminate this traitor.

In order to protect themselves, they had no choice but to turn against each other.

As for the other feudal lords, they were not worth mentioning at all.

What kind of people were Lü Bu and Liu Bei?

Does he even deserve to be taken seriously by Yuan Shu?

Do you think Yuan Shu would not choose to attack Cao Cao under these circumstances?

Will.

Even if he didn't have that vision, it doesn't mean that none of his subordinates did.

However, this has ironically made the situation in the world even more unpredictable.

Yuan Shu, who was originally surrounded by enemies, instantly became Cao Cao.

Gongsun Zan, who was previously defeated, may sweep in again.

Of course, this is only a possibility.

It's practically impossible.

First of all, after Cao Cao was attacked by Yuan Shu in the rear, he would absolutely not pay any attention to Yuan Shao.

We will definitely do our best to deal with Yuan Shu.

Similarly, once Gongsun Zan gets a chance to catch his breath, he will definitely return to Ji Province, and Yuan Shao will have no time to deal with Cao Cao.

In this way, a delicate balance was achieved between the two sides.

They will definitely choose to deal with internal problems first.

They will only deal with external threats when they have the time and energy.

In this way, the situation will return to normal.

It seems as if Zhou Heng did nothing at all.

This brought the situation back on track.

But after Zhou Heng's outburst, all the feudal lords in the land will surely be swept up in it.

Let's look at Liu Biao first.

As a member of the Han imperial family, he is now old and has long lost the desire to contend for supremacy.

So even if Yuan Shu declared himself emperor.

He ignored it.

But that doesn't mean he didn't have any thoughts in his mind.

If Cao Cao were to encounter a crisis...

Liu Biao was definitely not going to sit still.

Why was he able to sit still before?

That's because, in his view, with Cao Cao and the other warlords of the land taking action, Yuan Shu was bound to be defeated.

There's absolutely no need for me to take action.

Why should I go through all that trouble and effort to do something that's thankless?

Wouldn't it be better to focus on developing the economy?

Moreover, Sun Ce had already rebelled.

It poses absolutely no threat to me.

But what if the situation takes a sudden turn for the worse?

Then Liu Biao would have to consider it.

I am, after all, a member of the Han imperial family. If the Han dynasty still exists, then I am a member of the Han imperial family.

If the Han dynasty weren't here, then I'd be nothing but a worthless member of the Han imperial clan.

Once Yuan Shu defeats Cao Cao, his next target will definitely be himself.

Because Sun Ce would definitely defect without a doubt.

He wasn't worried about Sun Ce and Yuan Shu before because Yuan Shu and Sun Ce had become enemies.

How could Sun Ce, with only a few thousand soldiers, be a match for him?

Even if he killed his father, there was nothing he could do.

Yuan Shu rashly declared himself emperor, and the whole world condemned him.

But as Cao Cao's situation deteriorated rapidly... he had no choice but to consider it.

After Yuan Shu wiped out Cao Cao, his next target was Jingzhou.

Moreover, any normal person would use the strategy of driving away tigers and wolves.

He wanted Sun Ce to attack Jingzhou.

Why must it be Sun Ce?

Because Liu Biao killed Sun Ce's father.

The hatred between the two sides is irreconcilable.

Whether Sun Ce likes it or not, he will definitely fight Liu Biao with all his might.

With Yuan Shu's support, wouldn't he feel worried?

Therefore, whether it was to protect Cao Cao or to protect himself, he could not stand idly by.