Chapter 464: Consider Again and Again
Before Ju Hu crossed the Yellow River, Sun Qian, eager for revenge, rode his horse through Taiyuan, Yanmen, Daijun, passed Juyong and entered Youzhou, bringing Black Bear's private letter.

This is a private letter, not an official document.

If Liu Bei insists on sending troops, please write a formal document requesting war in the capacity of General Zhenbei, and we can discuss it later.

If they lose this battle and the six counties of Youzhou are shaken, then don't blame the Grand Marshal's Office for acting on behalf of the court and taking back the seal of the General of Zhenbei.

Liu Bei was able to easily conquer and gather the six counties of Youzhou because he was born in Youzhou and held the seal of General Zhenbei distributed by the Grand Marshal's Office.

This seal can be called a seal of peace in Wang Yi's hand, but in the black bear's hand, it is stained with at least 100,000 levels of blood.

The mountains of corpses and seas of blood of the Xiongnu and Xianbei recast the deterrent power of this seal. With this seal, Liu Bei could certainly gain great advantages, but he would also be restricted.

If he lost the seal of General Zhenbei, it would be a severe blow to Liu Bei.

Now, among the six counties of Youzhou, Black Bear gave him face and recommended four people under Liu Bei to serve as county governors; in addition, Xianyu Fu took charge of one county himself, and Zhuo County was under the jurisdiction of Yuan family to give face to the Yuan family.

In fact, the counties under the jurisdiction of the six counties are still complicated.

Some followed Xianyu Fu and Tian Yu to join Liu Bei, some joined Liu Bei directly, and some remained loyal to Yuan Xi, the governor of Youzhou.

From the beginning to the end, Hei Xiong never appointed anyone to serve as the Governor of Youzhou, and the Shangshu Xingtai in Guanzhong never issued any relevant edict.

Yuan Xi's position as governor of Youzhou was a guarantee and symbol of the breakdown of the alliance between Guanzhong and Hebei.

After reading the private letter, Liu Bei said to Sun Qian: "The Grand Marshal clearly stated in the letter that he would stop Cao Cao from invading Hebei. If our army insists on joining forces with Yuan's army to fight Cao, he will not object. But if we lose the battle, he will hold me responsible for the defeat."

Sun Qian was nervous and felt guilty. He looked up at Liu Bei, then lowered his head again: "My Lord, things have come to this point. Why not wait for the right opportunity?"

"No, Gongyou must not be discouraged."

Liu Bei also insisted: "This battle is unavoidable. But we have to wait for Liaodong's reply. When Xianhe returns, we will know Liaodong's intentions."

Sun Qian was relieved, but felt even more guilty, so he asked, "My Lord, are the Gongsun clan of Liaodong willing to submit to the Grand Marshal?"

"We don't know the outcome yet, but there are rumors that Gongsun Du is seriously ill and hasn't been seen traveling for months."

Liu Bei was also helpless. Now some people from Hebei brought their family property, fellow villagers, and followers to the six counties of Youzhou to avoid the possible war launched by Cao Cao.

Even in Liaodong, some people migrated to or returned to the six counties. Some went to Liaodong to avoid the chaos, and when they learned that Xizhou was peaceful, some wanted to return home, and some wanted to migrate to Guanzhong or Bingzhou.

Especially Bingzhou. After defeating the various Hu tribes, Bingzhou's external attractiveness increased greatly.

Liu Bei then asked, "What does the Grand Marshal think of the Gongsun clan?"

"He said that he conquered the barbarians to spread the prestige of the country and had the merit of protecting a corner of the country, so he wanted to treat him as a marquis of ten thousand households."

Sun Qian answered truthfully that the treatment Guanzhong gave to Gongsun Du was no secret, but many people felt that Gongsun Du would not accept it.

Liaodong has a peculiar terrain. Due to the thousands-mile swamp formed by the flooding of the Liao River, if one wants to conquer Liaodong, only a few months each year are suitable for marching and transporting supplies.

Since Gongsun Du took office, he has been abusing his power and authority. The various Hu and Yi people in Liaodong are basically under Gongsun Du's control. Being used to the life of the de facto King of Liaodong, how could they bow down to the title of Marquis?
After all, Liaodong is far away, and there is a lack of intuitive understanding of the strength of Guanzhong.

Even the Eastern Xianbei still believe that it was the civil war between the brothers Kuitou and Qianman that allowed the passing Han army Sima to take advantage of the situation.

As for the new Xianbei king Budugen who succeeded to the throne, the Eastern Xianbei saw him as a spineless man and there was nothing to worry about.

The Eastern Xianbei have their own tribal pride and will not easily believe that the Great Xianbei tribe will be defeated so easily.

The Eastern Xianbei people close to Bingzhou all held this view, so it is easy to imagine and understand the thoughts and opinions of the Gongsun clan.

After all, the Gongsun clan had never fought with the various forces in the Central Plains, and lacked understanding of the difference in combat power between them. The various forces in the Central Plains had fought each other before, and knew what the other side was like.

By comparing them, we naturally know that Guanzhong is powerful and cannot be defeated.

Liu Bei actually looked down on the title of Marquis of Ten Thousand Households. After hearing what Sun Qian said, he just shook his head and said, "Marquis of Ten Thousand Households is such an honor. Treating him with such respect will only make Liaodong look down on him and make him arrogant. Even though Gongsun Du is old and sick, he will still want to bargain. We should show him power to intimidate him. Treating him with tolerance will only encourage his vicious nature. The Grand Marshal was very resourceful when he was young, but now it seems that he has miscalculated."

Sun Qian also nodded slowly, feeling very regretful.

If Liaodong could be quickly subdued, then Cao Cao's current siege of Liu Yi, the governor of Yingzhou in Donglai, would be equivalent to declaring a war with the Grand Marshal, and it would be reasonable for him to send troops to rescue Liu Yi.

Once the war breaks out, it will not be easy to stop.

As for Qingzhou today, if Cao Cao shows any signs of defeat, there will be a danger of collapse in an instant.

If Cao Cao really manages Qingzhou for two or three years and everyone lives a good life, the internal cohesion of Cao Cao will rise to an immeasurable level.

The people of Hebei are now afraid of both ends. They are afraid that Cao Cao will lead the Qingzhou people to come out in full force like the bandits. Even if they defeat Cao Cao, Hebei will be devastated.

At the same time, they were also afraid that Cao Cao would spend several years concentrating on management, and that the two sides’ systems were fundamentally different, so they would not be able to compete with Cao Cao after he had established himself.

That's why he wanted to win over the people around him and form an alliance to attack Cao Cao.

The best thing would be to expose Cao Cao's true colors directly, and at worst, to delay the time of Cao Cao's explosion. If we delay for a long time, new variables may appear.

Liu Bei then began to ask Sun Qian in detail about what happened during the meeting. He listened to Sun Qian's detailed account and used the dishes on the table to gesture and indicate everyone at the table.

Liu Bei understood immediately and explained to Sun Qian: "Gongyou, it's not that the Grand Marshal is unwilling to send troops, but Zhang Wenyuan is unwilling to break his oath, which makes Zhang Wenyuan famous for keeping his oath. The Grand Marshal said that there is a lack of good generals, and Zhang Wenyuan was unemployed during the banquet. It's really not the Grand Marshal's fault that such a good general was unwilling to ask for orders. He wanted Zhang Wenyuan to lead the troops to the east."

Sun Qian thought about it, and recalled Zhang Liao's statement at that time, and could not help but sigh: "How can I allow a man of such credibility to break his promise to my mortal enemy?"

Zhang Liao's departure from Cao Cao was quite upright. He did not take the troops assigned to him with him, but only led his own troops.

Cao Cao did not send troops to pursue, and Zhang Liao also vowed never to fight with Cao Cao in his life.

Zhang Liao refused to break his oath, and indeed could not find any other unemployed generals who could take charge.

Xu Huang, who was left in Nanyang, was also considered a good general, with the reputation of General Hengye. He was famous for his ability to make thousands of miles raids and to sneak behind enemy lines.

But Zhang Liao was unwilling to break his oath to fight Cao Cao. Even though Xu Huang didn't care originally, he now had to consider the evaluation of the world.

Therefore, Zhang Liao and Xu Huang will not be able to be used on the eastern battlefield in the future.

After Sun Qian figured this out, he sighed again and said to Liu Bei, "The Grand Marshal has repeatedly told me to tell you that we are joining forces to fight Cao Cao, so we must be on guard against Yuan's betrayal and seizing the six counties."

Liu Bei narrowed his eyes and said, "The Grand Marshal is probably worrying too much. Yuan is busy with his own affairs, so attacking me is a small matter, but breaking the alliance is a big matter."

After thinking for a while, he comforted Sun Qian and said, "Yuan Shang has acted bravely and bravely, but he is not this kind of person."

Sun Qian still bowed solemnly: "This is what the Grand Marshal has repeatedly warned me to do. I will also advise you again and again. Please be careful. If my mortal enemy ruins your foundation and career, I will never be able to redeem myself even if I die a thousand times."

Liu Bei then nodded solemnly: "I will consider it carefully, and wait for Xianhe to return to see what Liaodong is willing to do. If Gongsun Du is too ill to send troops, I will carefully consider the matter of sending troops."

The six counties of Youzhou are not under his arbitrary control now.

If the mistakes were bigger, Tian Yu would also have to consider the opinions of his fellow villagers and the people in the state.

(End of this chapter)