——Yuan Shao had no choice but to retreat.
Even though he was unwilling in his heart, the pressure from Jizhou State eventually forced him to suppress all his anger.
Gongsun Zan’s offensive was fierce, capturing several cities in Jizhou State in just over a month.
His White Horse Righteous Followers were unstoppable and unmatched in battle.
Now that Yuan Shao, the backbone, was not in Jizhou State, the Jizhou defenders found it hard to resist.
Gongsun Zan even publicly stated he would appoint his general as the governor of Jizhou State.
This forced Yuan Shao to step back.
Outside Linzi City.
Yuan Shao sat on horseback, his gaze fixed on the towering city gates, his brow tightly furrowed, and he said in a deep voice:
"If I ever return, I, Yuan Shao, will surely flatten this place and wash away today’s sha!"
Indeed, for him, this retreat was undoubtedly a humiliating defeat.
Even though he had already seized two counties, so what?
His intention with such a grand show, even having the court decree to declare Lu Zhi’s cris, was to win a brilliant battle for all the world to see.
But now it was evidently a failure.
"Master."
Upon hearing this, the generals Qu Yi, Yan Liang, Wen Chou, and others were also unwilling and wanted to stay and fight Lu Zhi.
Especially Qu Yi, who had been repeatedly defeated by Guan Yu, felt his honor was tarnished, the sense of sha lingering in his heart.
But before anyone could speak, Yuan Shao raised his hand to interrupt, solemnly said, "No need for words."
"This matter is my sha, my fault, unrelated to you all."
Scanning the crowd, Yuan Shao said earnestly, "In this campaign, all of you have made great contributions. When we return to Jizhou State and drive Gongsun Zan away, there will be ample rewards!"
As a leader, how can one not take responsibility?
Yuan Shao always holds this responsibility, and the more critical the situation, the clearer his thoughts beco.
All the soldiers were moved upon hearing this.
Yuan Shao did not linger, imdiately leading his army to retreat.
Inside Linzi City.
Gu Tao watched Yuan Shao’s army depart, brimming with fighting spirit, and said, "Lord Lu, why don’t we take this opportunity to pursue and kill Yuan Shao?"
But Lu Zhi shook his head, sighed lightly, "Our army has suffered heavy losses in this battle. If we rashly pursue, and encounter Yuan Shao’s ambush, the loss might outweigh the gain."
"Let’s wait."
"When Yuan Shao’s army retreats, it will be our day to counterattack."
If Liu Bei’s troops were still here, he might have chosen to assault, as Liu Bei’s generals could hold off Yuan Shao’s commanders.
But now things were different.
The more critical the mont, the less impulsive one should be.
What he was doing now was coordinating with Gongsun Zan’s offensive to stretch Yuan Shao’s battle line.
The strength of Jizhou State was indeed strong.
It could support Yuan Shao’s wars on two fronts.
But as long as Yuan Shao could be defeated in several battles, Jizhou State would turn against him.
The families supporting him needed to see tangible benefits.
If they received no benefits at all, and Gongsun Zan posed a threat to their safety,
then his so-called rule over Jizhou State would truly co to an end.
Lu Zhi understood this very clearly.
After considering, he summoned soone to imdiately send soone to Bingzhou State, hoping to invite Ding Yuan to jointly attack Yuan Shao.
With the combined forces of You, Qing, and Bingzhou.
To attack Yuan Shao together.
Taking advantage of this opportunity to directly eliminate Yuan Shao!
...
Yuan Shao indeed was a deity against adversity.
Even with the current situation as it was, he still had no intention of giving up Pingyuan and Jinan counties.
These were the achievents he must preserve.
If not, the aristocratic families of Jizhou State would inevitably express dissatisfaction.
Everyone needs to see benefits.
Moreover, after battling Lu Zhi for several months, he was fully aware of Lu Zhi’s current strength.
To him, Lu Zhi was not the greatest threat.
As long as he could withstand Gongsun Zan’s offensive, Lu Zhi would crumble without a fight then.
Hence, he rely left Gao Lan and Zhang He to lead twenty thousand elites to guard the two counties against Lu Zhi.
And he himself imdiately returned to Jizhou State.
The foundation of Jizhou State gave Yuan Shao imnse confidence.
——The third year of Hanxing, July.
After returning to Jizhou State, Yuan Shao imdiately began his deploynt.
First, he ordered Shen Pei and Yan Liang to lead the main forces to garrison Yijing, building defensive lines relying on the Yishui and Ju Ma Rivers.
And set up beacons from Zhuojun to the Zhongshan line, with crossbow forts every ten miles.
Trying to use this to block Gongsun Zan’s most elite White Horse Righteous Followers.
Moreover, he set his sights on the Zhang Yan of the Black Mountain Army.
Zhang Yan was now allied with Gongsun Zan.
But for an ard force with a bandit nature like the Black Mountain Army, as long as enough benefits were given, it could influence the situation.
He sent soone to see Zhang Yan.
Promised not to send troops to attack their base camp.
And offered gold, silver, and jewels, allowing them to attack Bingzhou State.
Moreover, he once again reported to the court, appointing Cao Cao as General of the Eastern Expedition, wanting to stir discord between Cao Cao and Lu Zhi, and also let Cao Cao closely monitor Liu Bei.
The generals under Liu Bei left a deep impression on Yuan Shao.
As long as Liu Bei couldn’t find a chance to act,
then Lu Zhi attempting to counterattack the two counties would be exceedingly difficult.
The most critical thing was that the na of the current "Righteous Cause" was in his grasp.
Though the Han Dynasty was now rely existing in na, like a centipede dying but not stiffening.
This kind of thing called righteous cause.
Though seemingly useless to many, it still greatly boosted the morale of the soldiers.
The most crucial thing was — Liu Yuu’s remaining descendants had already fled to Jizhou State.
This gave Yuan Shao many more opportunities!
He, while preparing the three armies, declared the cris of Gongsun Zan in the na of the court.
——Plotting against the royal family, rebellion!
Issued decrees to various lords to punish Gongsun Zan.
This kind of so-called decree obviously would not be heeded by anyone.
But this act also influenced Lu Zhi’s plan, causing Ding Yuan, who originally intended to participate, to hesitate once more.
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