Three Kingdoms, Myth

Ever since Lü Bu sought refuge with him, Yuan Shu felt as though his world had suddenly brightened. His confidence, which had been relatively limited before, swelled immensely with Lü Bu by his side. Not only did he plan to humiliate the already defeated Yuan Yao further, but he also considered avenging Sun Jian in one fell swoop.

With the Imperial Seal in hand, a mighty general by his side, fertile lands under his control, and tens of thousands of seasoned soldiers, Yuan Shu believed that Heaven itself was guiding his rise. How could he refuse such an opportunity?

However, Yuan Shu was still a man of his word. He had promised not to take Sun Ce's Imperial Seal, and he stood by that promise. Yet, for reasons he couldn't quite explain, every time Yuan Shu saw Sun Ce, he couldn't help but admire the young man's striking appearance. Compared to Sun Ce, his own sons seemed weak and unworthy.

"Be my son, Bofu," Yuan Shu would say whenever he passed by the Sun residence and saw Sun Ce practicing martial arts in the courtyard. "My own sons are useless; I want you to be my heir."

Sun Ce was speechless. He couldn't understand why Yuan Shu kept insisting that he become his son.

Ignoring Yuan Shu, Sun Ce continued practicing, pretending not to hear him. By now, Sun Ce had realized that Yuan Shu harbored no ill intentions towards the Sun family, something Huang Gai and the others had confirmed.

Yuan Shu had seen the Imperial Seal that Sun Ce possessed. Though he had gazed at it with both fascination and greed, Yuan Shu had restrained himself, leaving without saying a word. This had even impressed Huang Gai and the others. Though Yuan Shu might occasionally do foolish things, he was undeniably a man of his word, a hero in his own right.

"If only my sons were like you, I could die without regret," Yuan Shu sighed, shaking his head. "Keep up your training, Bofu. In a few days, I'll take you with me to deal with Liu Biao!" Yuan Shu had grown so fond of Sun Ce that he no longer addressed Liu Biao by his courtesy name, calling him by his given name to show his contempt.

"What?!" Sun Ce stopped mid-motion, turning to face Yuan Shu.

"I told you I would avenge your father," Yuan Shu laughed heartily. "Train well. I'll give you three thousand soldiers to lead as the vanguard. Oh, and you can take my token to see Fengxian. He's in Runan now. Ask him to give you some pointers. He truly deserves the title of the world's greatest general. After the Battle of Hulao Pass, he reached a new level, stronger than ever!"

With that, Yuan Shu laughed and left. Sun Ce, still processing the news, was soon joined by Zhou Yu, who had emerged from behind the main hall doors.

"Bofu, your opportunity has arrived!" Zhou Yu said with a smile.

"I've waited so long for this. I will kill Liu Biao!" Sun Ce exclaimed, slashing his sword through the air. The fake mountain in the courtyard was cleaved in two. "I've finally reached the peak of Qi Refinement and touched the threshold of internal energy projection. I will avenge my father!"

"I'll be your advisor when the time comes," Zhou Yu replied, smiling. "I'm seventeen now. It's time I made my mark on this world."

"I'll count on you," Sun Ce nodded. "But why have you been avoiding Uncle Gonglu lately? Before, you were always so straightforward with him."

"He wants me to be his adopted son..." Zhou Yu replied with a tone of helplessness. "He seems to be quite interested in me."

The two exchanged glances and sighed in unison, before bursting into laughter.

"Though I hate to admit it, Yuan Gong truly is a man of integrity. But he's easily swayed by others, often making decisions without much thought. If he's kept in check, he might show the qualities of a hero. But if left unchecked, he could cause a disaster," Zhou Yu reflected on Yuan Shu's past actions, feeling a mix of admiration and concern.

"Indeed. Before I came here, I even considered trading the Imperial Seal for shelter. But Uncle Gonglu didn't say a word about it," Sun Ce replied with a wry smile. He, too, was a man of honor.

Since arriving in Runan, Yuan Shu hadn't taken advantage of the Sun family. Instead, he had protected them and promised to avenge Sun Jian, never neglecting any member of the Sun clan. For this, Sun Ce was deeply grateful. Unlike other warlords, the Little Conqueror couldn't bring himself to betray someone who had shown him such kindness.

Sun Ce had made up his mind: once he avenged his father, as long as Yuan Shu continued to treat him and his family well, he wouldn't hesitate to serve Yuan Shu. As for becoming his adopted son, it wasn't an unbearable prospect. If he was going to pledge his loyalty, it made sense to strengthen their bond. Besides, staying close to Yuan Shu would allow him to better protect his family. As for grand ambitions, those were thoughts for another day.

"Report! My lord, we have news from Jingzhou. The entire leadership of Jingzhou has been heavily intoxicated after drinking with the famous scholar Liu Weishuo from Yuzhou. It's estimated that they'll be unable to handle state affairs for at least five days!" Yan Xiang reported, bowing slightly.

"Huh?" Yuan Shu was taken aback by the news. "Are you certain this intelligence is accurate?"

"My lord, we must march immediately! If we delay, we'll miss this golden opportunity!" Yan Xiang, though not a top strategist, knew the importance of seizing the moment. Especially now, with Lü Bu on their side, their army's ability to break enemy formations was unmatched.

"Good!" Yuan Shu exclaimed with joy.

At this point, Yuan Shu hadn't yet become arrogant or overly confident. Although he occasionally made rash decisions, his wealth and the pride of his noble lineage meant that he had no need to exploit the people under his rule.

In truth, Yuan Shu simply didn't care about the common folk, so while some criticized him for inaction, the people of Yuzhou lived in relative prosperity. They appreciated having a leader who left them alone, free from additional taxes or burdens.

In difficult years, someone like Yuan Shu might be seen as irresponsible. But thanks to Yuzhou's consistent good harvests, his inaction was viewed as enlightened governance. The common people were quite satisfied with an official who didn't interfere with their lives.

As long as Yuan Shu didn't demand higher taxes, Yuzhou remained peaceful. The local officials might curse his inaction, but the people enjoyed prosperity.

Yuan Shu's pride was evident in his governance of Yuzhou. To him, the local officials were mere servants of his Yuan family, and anyone who stepped out of line would be swiftly dealt with.

Because of this, talents like Zhou Yu, Lu Su, and Zhang Zhao acknowledged that while Yuan Shu might become arrogant if successful, they also recognized his potential as a heroic figure. Given the strength of the Yuan family in Yuzhou and the region's solid foundation, if Heaven continued to favor Yuan Shu, defeating him would be a formidable challenge.

In essence, Yuan Shu's future success hinged on favorable conditions. If fortune smiled on him year after year, even the most desperate efforts of Cao Cao and others would lead to their demise. Yuan Shu wouldn't need complex strategies to win; a simple, straightforward approach would suffice. Unfortunately, relying on good fortune is always a gamble...