In September of the second year of Han Tianyou, Yuan Shao died of illness in Yecheng.
The failure of the Battle of Guandu destroyed Yuan Shao's dominance of the world, and the fighting between his three sons left Yuan Shao helpless. In the end, the arrogant Yuan Shao died of sorrow and anger.
Long-term stagnation of heart energy led to extreme physical weakness. When Yuan Shao died, he was as skinny as a stick, without any trace of his former magnanimity. Before his deathbed, Yuan Shao struggled to make the last decision in his life - to officially pass on the throne to his third son, Yuan Shang!
This decision was not only Yuan Shao's original intention, because he liked Yuan Shang the most among the three sons, but it was also due to pressure from the surrounding people. A group of people headed by Liu, including Shen Pei, Feng Ji and other close advisers, firmly controlled the situation near Yecheng. The generals stationed in Yecheng were also in their camp. Yuan Shaoruo chose Yuan Tan or Yuan Xi are afraid that a civil strife will happen soon! Choosing Yuan Shang to succeed and taking high-pressure measures against Yuan Xi and Yuan Tan may be able to control the situation.
However, Yuan Shao could never have imagined that just ten days after his death and just after the funeral, a civil war between the three brothers would inevitably break out!
After Yuan Tan led his remnant troops to garrison in Nanpi, under the guidance of brothers Xin Ping and Xin Pi, he gained the support of local aristocratic families. Based on the original soldiers who had followed him all the way from Qingzhou, he recruited men and horses from all over to expand his strength, and soon Soon the number returned to more than 30,000 troops. Yuan Tan expanded his army so aggressively because he knew very well that most of the confidants around his father Yuan Shao supported Yuan Shang's succession. Once Yuan Shang came to power, he would not be able to tolerate him. The battle between the brothers was imminent and had to be launched.
After learning about Yuan Shao's death and Yuan Shang's succession, Yuan Tan ordered the whole city of Nanpi to be deserted and set up a mourning hall at the garrison to pay homage to his father's spirit in heaven. After that day, Yuan Tan issued a proclamation, calling himself General Chariot and Cavalry, claiming that his father Yuan Shao was the deceased. He was destined to succeed to the throne, but he was tampered with by his close associates and forged a suicide note, which fully shows Yuan Shang's ambition. For the sake of family justice, we should mobilize a large army and use all our strength to eliminate the traitors.
Not to be outdone, Yuan Shang immediately mobilized troops near Yecheng to fight. In terms of military strength, the number of people loyal to him in Jizhou far exceeds that of Yuan Tan! Youzhou Mu Yuan Xi and himself were born from the same mother, and their relationship was stronger than that of Yuan Tan. Although Yuan Xi also wanted to seize the throne, the gap in strength forced him to give up. As Yuan Shao's nephew, Bingzhou Mu Gaogan would only promote peace and would not stand on either side of Yuan Tan or Yuan Shang, making the war in Hebei worse.
In October, the armies of Yuan Tan and Yuan Shang fought in Zhongshan. Yuan Tan took the lead and was extremely brave, and his soldiers worked very hard. Therefore, although his troops were smaller than Yuan Shang's, he still gained a certain advantage and his offensive was stronger than Yuan Shang's. However, Yuan Shang's army gathered in a hurry. Although the troops were sufficient, Yuan Shang's appeal was still weak, so he had to be on the defensive as soon as the battle began.
Yuan Tan launched an army to storm Zhongshan City, but failed for several days. However, as Yuan Shang's follow-up troops arrived one after another, the flow of grain, grass and baggage continued, and the advantages and disadvantages of the two armies suddenly became apparent. Yuan Tan's troops were limited and he only relied on support from the Nanpi area, and his food and baggage supplies were only adequate. Yuan Shang's troops assembled in Zhongshan have reached 50,000. Yuan Shao's accumulation in Hebei over the years has been hoarded near Yecheng. There is no need to worry about food, grass and baggage. He can just send a team of troops to transport them.
Subsequently, Yuan Shang sent troops to counterattack. The two armies fought for more than ten days, with casualties everywhere. Yuan Tan finally gave up and led his army back to Nanpi. Yuan Shang raised his troops and wanted to pursue him, but found that none of his generals had such intentions. After asking Feng Ji privately, he found out that Yuan Shaoxin was dead, and his two sons started fighting among themselves. These generals of the Hebei Army all felt that it was against human ethics to fight against each other, and they were ashamed of their former master Jiuquan. The soul below, so it is not very hard. There is one reason that Feng Ji has not yet explained, that is, during the expedition to Hebei, Yuan Tan had spent time with these generals, fighting desperately on the same battlefield. Now, these generals couldn't bear to ask them to chase Yuan Tan.
After Yuan Shang found out, his anger and blood surged up at first, and he wanted to cut off these people's heads to calm down his anger. As a minister and subordinate, how could he not give orders? He is also suspected of having an affair with an enemy! Afterwards, I calmly thought about it. Although I and Yuan Tan have different mothers, they are also brothers. Their father's body is still cold. They are so at odds for power and position. They may not have the honor to meet their ancestors in the future, so let Yuan Tan go. Ma, send someone to appease him. If he understands his situation, that's all. If he is still stubborn, then you will have the moral upper hand and you can lead your troops to attack again.
Just when Yuan Shang had just returned to Yecheng from Zhongshan, a warning message suddenly came from the south. Guan Yu wanted to take advantage of the internal fighting in the Hebei army to launch an expedition to the north. His army had already crossed the Yellow River and was heading towards Gaotang in a mighty manner. Come! The Jiangdong Army stationed in Liyang also showed signs of gathering!
Yuan Shang is not afraid of internal fighting with Yuan Tan, but he is very afraid of Jiangdong's military thinking. With his father Yuan Shao's ability, he led an army of more than 200,000 and was defeated by Zhou Yu, let alone Yuan Shang? His ability is not as good as that of Yuan Shao, and his prestige in Hebei is even less than that of Yuan Tan.More than half were lost in the Battle of Guandu, and half of the defeated troops were barely collected. In addition to the remaining county troops, the number was nearly 100,000, but the combat effectiveness was not as good as before. Even if Yuan Shang held on to the city, Yuan Shang I dare not let go.
Yuan Shang was frightened by the unusual movements of the Jiangdong Army. On the one hand, he dispatched various armies to Gaotang for reinforcements, and on the other hand, he sent fast horses to Youzhou and Bingzhou to prevent Yuan Xi and Gao Gan from sending reinforcements. One day later, good news came from Nanpi. Feng Ji and Guo Tu joined forces to persuade Yuan Tan. In order to keep Hebei safe, the two brothers joined forces to fight against the outside world. Yuan Tan followed Yuan Shang's order, but all the wealth in Nanpi belonged to him. , and can recruit troops and lead troops. Upon hearing that Jiangdong's army was invading, Yuan Tan took the initiative to send 10,000 troops to assist Yuan Shang. Yuan Shang provided all food, grass, baggage, and armor.
Yuan Shang was overjoyed. No matter what Yuan Tan's original intention was, there was no threat to him at the moment. Yuan Shang dared to use the 10,000 horses sent by Yuan Tan. As for military supplies and food and grass, the minimum supply was enough. Is it still necessary? Use your own money and food to support Yuan Tan's soldiers?
The coalition forces of Yuan Shang and Yuan Tan rushed all the way to rescue Gaotang. When the news spread back to Jiangdong, Zhou Yu hurriedly summoned Liu Bei and blamed Guan Yu for blindly sending troops. Liu Bei did not know about this beforehand. Guan Yu only informed him in a secret letter after sending troops. However, Liu Bei could not clearly tell Guan Yu that he had acted without permission, so he had to take on the responsibility himself.
Zhou Yu couldn't help but secretly get angry. It seemed that all his efforts to integrate the Liu Guan brothers into the Jiangdong Group were in vain. Guan Yu is a powerful man in the world. Guan Yu has an aloof personality. How can these two people live under him?
At this time, it was not easy for Zhou Yu to show off his face on the spot. After all, the overall situation had been decided, and Liu Bei's signature could play some positive role. Zhou Yu was not optimistic about Guan Yu's northern expedition alone. He knew that Yuan Shao had been running Hebei for many years, the people were prosperous, and the soldiers returned home. Even though many men and horses were lost in the battle of Guandu and he was unable to march south, he still had more than enough troops to defend the city. , food, grass and baggage are no longer a problem. From this point of view, if Guan Yu's army goes deep alone, he will definitely lose.
Zhou Yu and Liu Bei agreed that Guan Yu's move violated military law, and as Guan Yu was eager for revenge, he would not do it next time. If he violates military regulations again, he will be dealt with according to military law. On that day, Zhou Yu sent a quick horse to notify Gao Shun stationed in Liyang. The suspected soldiers who were originally used to confuse Yuan Shang were withdrawn and were officially sent An army marches north, be careful, support Guan Yu's troops, and don't be too eager to fight.