Chapter 733

“Milord! Men! Someone! Come quickl! Take the Lord away and call a doctor!” Wen Chou shouted. Yuan Shao was quickly taken away. Wen Chou then looked at the head that fell to the ground and sighed. Wen Chou could recognize Yuan Xi. He remembers how Yuan Xi always looked at him with admiration. Such a good person did not have a good ending.

Wen Chou carefully put the head in the box and prepared to bury it. “All soldiers, be on alert!” Yuan Shao could leave but Wen Chou could not. He had to prevent Cao Cao from attacking the city.

“Milord. Should we attack the city now?” Xu Huang asked. The other generals wanted to ask this as well. Yuan Shao had just vomitted blood and fainted in public. This would be a huge blow to the morale of Yuan Shao’s army. One could even say that the Yuan Army was currently without a leader.

But Cao Cao shook his head. “No need.” Cao Cao looked at the enemy on top of the walls. Their morale may have taken a blow but a cornered rat could fight with the ferocity of a beast. Besides that, Wen Chou was still around. Attacking the city now would not bring them any benefits. Cao Cao’s strategy had only just begun.

Yuan Shao’s only filial son had been killed by his two rebellious sons. This was a huge matter. Yuan Shao could either kill his two remaining sons and cut off his descendants or he could choose to suffer a lifetime of torture by keeping these two alive. Killing one’s own family. The stain in their reputation is too big. Cao Cao wanted to let this matter torment Yuan Shao until he went crazy. It was not time to push Yuan Shao.

“General. Did Cao Cao’s army retreat?” One soldier asked. Wen Chou could not believe it himself. Cao Cao’s army withdrew as though they did nothing wrong. He didn’t even know where Cao Cao found priests to set up a platform to perform rituals for Yuan Xi.

As there were no signs of an upcoming battle, Wen Chou handed over authority on the city wall to the captain of the city gate and went to see Yuan Shao. Yuan Shao was their real boss.

“Doctor. How is the Lord doing?” Wen Chou asked the doctor nervously.

“The general is in a state of anxiety. There are no serious problems this time but he needs to take good care of his health. He cannot be angered like this again.” The doctor replied. Yuan Xi’s death caused Yuan Shao’s pent up frustratiosn to take a toll on his body.

“Thank goodness.” Wen Chou sighed with relief hearing that his Lord would be alright.

“Xi’er! Xi’er!” Yuan Shao suddenly shouted.

Wen Chou entered the room after hearing Yuan Shao shout. “Milord!” Yuan Shao calmed down after holding onto Wen Chou’s hand. He gave a smile and slept peacefully.

Yuan Shao woke up two days later with Wen Chou watching over him.

“Wen Chou?” Yuan Shao quietly called out.

“Hm? Milord. You have woken up!” Wen Chou shouted excitedly.

“How long have I slept?” Yuan Shao asked.

“You have slept for two days!” Wen Chou replied.

“Two days? Not good! Follow me to the walls. The Cao Army…!” Yuan Shao anxiously said.

Wen Chou shook his head and replied. “Calm down Milord. There are people keeeping watch at the walls. Cao Cao also did not attack in the last two days. They did not even show any intentions to attack.” Wen Chou reported.

Wen Chou was very confused about the movements of the Cao Army. They did not take advantage of the time where the Yuan Army was without a leader to attack and rested instead. Were they stupid?

“Hah. Cao Mengde is not so stupid.” Yuan Shao said bitterly. Cao Cao is a very smart man.

“Milord. Let us abandon this city.” Wen Chou said to Yuan Shao.

“Abandon the city and go where?” Yuan Shao asked back.

“We could…” Wen Chou was about to say Fanyang but then he remembered that Cao Cao have already captured Fanyang. Yuan Xi was also dead.

“Those unfillial sons!” Yuan Shao shouted towards the sky and began to cough again. Yuan Shao could be considered a rare talent. He may not be as handsome as Pan An but he was still a dashing individual that surpassed modern idols. He was talented enough to become the patriarch of the Yuan Family and the Yuan Family was also a prestigious family with several generations being high officials.

However, the Heavens were fair. They may have given Yuan Shao all of this but they also gave him two useless sons that wished Yuan Shao was dead just so they could obtain power. Hebei became so rotten because of these two.

If Yuan Shao had continued to manage government affairs after losing at Guandu, he could have turned things around and even defeat Cao Cao.

However, these two children were not only deceitful but also cruel. They killed their own brother because they were afraid of being killed themselves. Yuan Shao felt as though his world had gone dark. What was the purpose of struggling so hard? Wasn’t it to make sure his descendants could live a wealthy and prosperous life?

Yuan Shao used to have disdain for eunuchs. No matter how much power the eunuchs amassed, they could not have children to pass down their bloodline. Eventually, they would become a thing of the past. But what is the difference between the eunuchs and Yuan Shao right now? One could even say that the eunuchs were better. They don’t have to see their children scheme against and kill each other.

“Milord. If we can’t keep Hebei, we could still escape beyond the Great Wall. With your reputation, we could gather the Wuhuan, Xianbei and Qiang chiefs to support us!” Wen Chou suggested.

Unlike the forceful Gongsun Zan and the persuasive Liu Yu, Yuan Shao dealt with these foreign tribes by first defeating them and then providing aid while threatening to exterminate them. He provided them food in exchange for horses. If they had no horse, they would join his army. It was a stick and carrot policy that made sure the tribes would not starve to death but would also be too hungry to fight back.

These tribes still had the numbers as Yuan Shao never used them to fight against Cao Cao. He believed that these were internal conflict amongst the people of the Central Plains. The tribespeople had no reason to be involved.

“Rely on the tribes?” Yuan Shao smiled bitterly. They had the numbers and they were elite cavalry. It was not impossible to fight Cao Cao with them. However, Yuan Shao was tired of fighting. He no longer had a purpose to fight for. Even if he defeats Cao Cao and become Emperor, that title would simply go to one of his two useless sons. The two of them had killed their own kin once. They would definitely do it again.

“Xi’er! How nice would it be if Xi’er was still alive.” Yuan Shao thought to himself.

“Wen Chou. Help me up.” Yuan Shao said to Wen Chou.

“Yes.” Wen Chou stepped forward and helped Yuan Shao up.

“Take me to the city walls.” Yuan Shao then said to Wen Chou.

“Milord. It is windy up there. The doctor said you need rest.” Wen Chou replied. “I will go up the city walls for you.”

“Wen Chou. You can replace me for other things but not this one.” Yuan Shao laughed. His heart felt clear after he thought things through. Yuan Shao may have two unfilial sons but he also have loyal people like Wen Chou with him. He looked at Wen Chou feeling guilty as he was not a good Lord.

Wen Chou supported Yuan Shao as they walked up the walls. Wen Chou originally proposed to have Yuan Shao carried up but he rejected it. So they climbed the stairs step by step.

Yuan Shao had Wen Chou let go of him after they were on top of the city walls and spread out his arms. There was a bloody smell mixed in with the strong winds but Yuan Shao looked intoxicated.

“Chou. Go and have someone call Cao Cao for me.” Yuan Shao said to Wen Chou.

“Chou?” Wen Chou felt moved by the familiar name. Chou’er was his childhood name. Like his namesake, he was so ugly he was treated like a monster. But then, Yuan Shao took him in. Yuan Shao provided him with food, clothes, dignity and the name Wen Chou.

“Yes, Milord.” Wen Chou turned away. He did not want Yuan Shao to see him cry. “Men! Send a message to Cao Cao’s camp. Our Grand General wants to see him!”

“Understood!”

“This is outrageous! Yuan Shao wants our Lord to go to the city walls? Who does Yuan Shao think he is?” Xu Huang and the others responded angrily. They were angry that Yuan Shao was summoning Cao Cao like a subordinate. When Cao Cao wanted to meet Yuan Shao, he walked up to the city himself.

Only Cao Cao laughed at this. “Benchu can still be considered my elder brother. It is not strange for me to go and pay him respects.”

“Milord?” The others wanted to object but Cao Cao raised his hand to stop them.

“Men, bring me my horse.” Cao Cao ordered. He was soon escorted to the city walls.

“Brother Benchu. Did you summon me?” Cao Cao shouted.

“Aman? Can I still call you that?” Yuan Shao asked back with a smile.

This was Cao Cao’s childhood name. Only his older generation could call him this. Cao Cao immediately got rid of the others who tried like Xu You. But this time, Cao Cao smiled and returned the greeting. “Boss!”

In the past, Yuan Shao was the boss and Cao Aman was the lackey.

“Aman. Do you think I am a failure?” Yuan Shao suddenly asked.

“Hm?” Cao Cao did not know how to reply.

Fortunately, Yuan Shao did not make things hard for Cao Cao and continued to speak. He talked about his past, such as how he endured humiliation for being an illegitimate child before being adopted by Yuan Cheng and then fighting his way to the top. Even his own birth father regretted not keeping him.

Yuan Shao already knew Cao Cao before all of this. Many of his early ideas came from Cao Cao. The two of them had encouraged each other as the both of them were outcasts in their families. They were extremely close.

But the world of nobles was ruthless. These two, once like brothers, eventually became enemies.

Yuan Shao then spoke of his time under General He Jin and how much he hated that man. He talked about how he killed the eunuchs before gaining control of Hebei. After that came his defeat at Guandu.

“Aman. Do you think I am a failure?” Yuan Shao asked again.

“No, brother. If I had not been lucky at Guandu, you would not have lost.” Cao Cao replied sincerely. He then shared the fact that Liu Mang gave him the strategy that helped him win the battle.

“The King of Shu?” Yuan Shao muttered. He had never met Liu Mang and even saw Liu Mang as a clown. After all, Liu Mang’s own father-in-law suffered humiliation in the hands of Yuan Shao. He never expected Liu Mang to foresee his defeat.

“If the King of Shu warned you about this instead, you would be sitting in Xuchang right now.” Cao Cao replied.

“Aman. I had lost from the beginning. I really envy you for having a son like Cao Ang.” Yuan Shao said sincerely. Cao Ang died protecting his father.

Cao Cao became silent when Cao Ang was mentioned. The two of them were fathers that outlived their sons.

“Aman. Will you still accept me as your boss in the next life?” Yuan Shao asked.

“Huh?” Cao Cao was shocked. To accept someone as boss meant you accept being stepped over forever.

“You are unwilling? As expected.” Yuan Shao gave a sad smile.

“No, you are wrong. Not the next life but even in this one. You, Yuan Shao Yuan Benchu is my boss!” Cao Cao replied.

“Aman. I have no resentment towards you for losing. I admit to being defeated! My first and final request to you is for you to spare the people of Nanpi!” Yuan Shao said to Cao Cao.

“Brother Benchu. What nonsense are you talking about? The people of Nanpi are innocent.” Cao Cao laughed.

“Aman. You know you cannot hide this from me. You want to kill them! You intend to punish them to serve as a warning to the others.” Yuan Shao accused.

Cao Cao silently admitted it.

“Aman. Promise me. Please.” Yuan Shao requested sincerely.

Cao Cao closed his eyes for a long time before he nodded.

“Thank you, Aman.”

“Milord!” Wen Chou’s eyes grew wide.

“Boss!” Cao Cao shouted at the same time.

A weak looking figure well off the city walls and onto the ground below. The renowned ruler of Hebei, Yuan Shao Yuan Benchu, has perished.

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