Chapter 684

Xu You narrowed his eyes upon hearing this and looked at Seeing Ju Shou, thinking: "How come you old guy came out to tear down my stage today? That's too much!"

At this time, Guo Tu looked at Seeing Ju Shou happily, then looked at Xu You, whose face was not very good, and could not help but bow to Yuan Shao: "My lord! I think what Gongyu said makes a lot of sense! Currently, it is still appropriate for us to rest for a year or a half before starting a war with Cao Cao;"

"Xu You's previous words were a great fallacy! Cao Cao has indeed just taken Xuzhou, but if Xu You wants to rest and digest the fruits and benefits of Xuzhou, don't we need to digest the fruits and benefits of Youzhou and Qingzhou first?"

"The lord is blessed by heaven and comes from the Yuan family, which has been in the position of Three Excellencies for four generations. Even if we currently control three provinces like Cao Cao, in terms of foundation and power, Cao Cao is clearly far from being comparable to you, my lord!"

"Therefore, I think it is better to rest for a year or a half first."

"Hmm..."

Yuan Shao became conflicted upon hearing this: "What you both say makes a lot of sense!"

"Resting does have benefits! But this is undoubtedly the time when Cao Cao is at his weakest; if we don't take the opportunity to take Cao Cao, I am worried that he will become too big to be controlled!"

"I know Cao Mengde very well! This guy is not simple!"

"In addition, we cannot just consider the Cao Cao problem; Su Xuan is actually our true great enemy!"

"I remember you analyzed for me before that Su Xuan is just accumulating strength and cultivating talents for reform, which is why he hasn't expanded outwards!"

"But the time left for us is at most a year or so, right?"

"At that time, Su Xuan will inevitably start expanding outwards with all his might!"

"If we cannot take Cao Cao and the three provinces of the Central Plains before then, and integrate the power of these six or even seven provinces to continue to deal with Su Xuan, we are likely not Su Xuan's match;"

"Therefore, I have made up my mind: three months from now, I will launch a comprehensive attack on Cao Cao, must decide the outcome in one battle, take Cao Cao, and then prepare to fight Su Xuan!"

"What do you think?"

He couldn't wait, worried that if he waited any longer, his chances of winning would be even smaller.

"This..."

Seeing Ju Shou and the others were stunned upon hearing this; clearly, they hadn't expected Yuan Shao to value Su Xuan so much and see things so thoroughly.

Indeed, Cao Cao is just the current enemy, while Su Xuan is the true great enemy!

Although Su Xuan currently only occupies one province, Seeing Ju Shou and the others knew very well through intelligence from all sides how powerful Su Xuan was at this time.

This was only on the surface; how many means and experiences Su Xuan had hidden in secret was still unknown.

After all, there were many things Su Xuan had shown now that they could no longer see through.

For example, those iron carts.

Su Xuan's steel was so abundant that it could be used to build bridges and pave roads, which showed the strength of his foundation.

Nowadays, only by gathering the power of seven or even ten provinces could they ensure they could steadily defeat Su Xuan.

The key was that Su Xuan's new policy was too targeted for scholar-officials like Xu You and Guo Tu.

It made them unwilling to see Su Xuan win.

Even if Cao Cao defeated Yuan Shao, they could actually still defect to Cao Cao to ensure the continuation and prosperity of their families.

But if Su Xuan were the final winner, then the good days for their scholar-official class might be over.

Admittedly, Su Xuan's new policy did not exterminate the scholar-official class, but only limited them to a large extent.

But this was also something the scholar-official class could not accept.

They could contribute, but if you wanted them to cut their own flesh?

That was absolutely impossible.

Therefore, Seeing Ju Shou, Xu You, Guo Tu, and others looked at each other, thought comprehensively, and immediately bowed together: "The lord is wise! Indeed, time waits for no one! We second the motion."

"Haha! Very good!"

Yuan Shao saw that the few people under his command were rarely of one mind when he made a decision, and he laughed heartily, immediately waving his hand: "Since that's the case, then you should prepare quickly!"

"Logistics and the stability of each commandery will be left to you!"

"In addition, we must carry out large-scale conscription, collect money and grain from all scholar-official families, and so on;"

"This time, I want to take Cao Cao in one battle, and then prepare for Su Xuan."

Of course, it was only because he needed Seeing Ju Shou and the others to be of one mind at this time that he was happy.

If it were normal times, he would still hope that the people under his command would oppose each other and divide into different factions, so that he could play balance and not be hollowed out by those below!

If the people under his command were all twisted into a rope and stood together completely, that would be what he needed to worry about!

Wouldn't that become a replica of their Yuan family back then?

Think back then, didn't their Yuan family unite and win over most of the scholar-official officials in the court to gain immense power, force the imperial power, and even take the relatives of the emperor as dogs?

Therefore, in Yuan Shao's view, dividing his subordinates and mastering the balance was very important.

However, everything has its advantages and disadvantages.

Yuan Shao playing this balance game was a very good choice in peaceful times.

But if it were placed in such chaotic times as today, it would only cause most of his power to fall into internal friction, greatly reducing his ability to fight externally.

At the same time, the infighting of his subordinates, fighting for the sake of fighting, and constantly giving conflicting suggestions, would also make it increasingly difficult for Yuan Shao, as the lord, to make accurate judgments, becoming indecisive.

This was reality.