Do you want to try my sword sharp? I won't suffer either. Is Yuan Shao really a worthless person? He was the prince who was most likely to unify the world during the Three Kingdoms period, and he was not inferior to Cao Cao in terms of strength or background. However, later generations only know that he was resourceful and played a good hand of cards to a sparse level. In fact, he was also a brave dragon slayer boy, and he was the first person to draw his sword against Dong Zhuo in the face of the powerful Dong Zhuo. Today, let's understand why Yuan Shao, a man who was once famous all over the world, finally lost his family and ended up depressed.
Yuan Shao was born in the late Eastern Han Dynasty, a famous family of the Runan Yuan clan, and since his great-grandfather Yuan An, five of the fourth Yuan clan have paid tribute to the third duke. However, his biological mother was an extremely lowly maidservant, and it coincided with the early death of his father Yuan Cheng, so he was raised by Yuan Cheng's right wife.
The right wife is Yuan Shu, and Yuan Shao is a son, but he is deeply loved by his uncle Yuan Kuan, and his status gradually surpasses that of his concubine Yuan Shu. Yuan Shao has been befriending Haojie since he was a child, imitating the four princes of the Warring States and meeting visitors at home.
Yuan Shao only accepted people with status, which also made him develop a character of being broad on the outside and taboo on the inside. Therefore, Guo Jia and Gou may eventually choose to leave him.
Since the death of Emperor Ling of Han, the government of the Eastern Han Dynasty has been controlled by the ten permanent attendants, and who becomes the emperor is up to them. However, such a status also threatened the great general He Jin. On the decision to get rid of the castrated party, He Jin and Yuan Shao reached an agreement. Yuan Shao did not want to use his own forces to get rid of the castration party, so he suggested that He Jin invite Dong Zhuo to enter Beijing. However, on Dong Zhuo's way into Beijing, He Jin was eliminated by the Ten Constant Attendants.
Yuan Shao originally thought that he would replace He Jin as a general, but Dong Zhuo's ambitions far exceeded his imagination. Dong Zhuo eliminated all the ministers who disobeyed him, and Yuan Shao's uncle Yuan Kui was not spared. Therefore, Yuan Shao and Cao Cao formed an anti-Dong Zhuo alliance.
These eighteen princes just started to gain momentum, forcing Dong Zhuo all the way to move the capital to Chang'an. However, Yuan Shao's indecisive character was gradually exposed, and the eighteen princes did not listen to the dispatch, each harboring ghosts. Soon after, the alliance collapsed. Yuan Shao had to retire to the Bohai Sea and wait for the opportunity.
Soon after, the Han emperor Liu Xie fled in Chang'an, and the first person he thought of was Yuan Shao when faced with no one to serve. But Yuan Shao felt that having an emperor in his hands would affect his own development, and he didn't care: love who raises whom, anyway, I don't raise. Therefore, this also gave Cao Cao the opportunity to coerce the Son of Heaven to order the princes.
Yuan Shao saw that Cao Cao was growing stronger and stronger, and he knew that if Cao Cao did not get rid of it at this time, he would suffer future troubles in the future. So in 200 AD, the Battle of Guandu was launched. The battle was originally without suspense, and Cao Cao believed that his chances of victory were only one level. But it is a pity that Yuan Shao always makes mistakes again and again, and he does not care about the problems of disagreement among his advisers, as long as whoever gives a plan listens to whom, and who makes a mistake, he will scold him. This also caused Xu Yu to leave him. Later, Xu Yu reported to Cao Cao that Yuan Shao had stored all the grain and grass in Wuchao. And the general stationed in Wuchao, Chun Yuqiong, is still an alcoholic. When Cao Cao learned the news, he immediately led several thousand men and horses to Wuchao overnight, and set fire there, leaving Yuan Shao without military supplies. Without the support of food and grass, even if Yuan Shao had more troops, he could not do anything. In the end, Yuan Shao was defeated by Cao Cao at the Battle of Guandu. Despite the defeat at the Battle of Guandu, Yuan Shao remained one of the most powerful princes of the time. However, he made a huge mistake, that is, he did not stand up and wanted to pass the position to his youngest son, Yuan Shang. This decision directly led to contradictions and strife within the Yuan family. Yuan Shao's two sons killed each other and were eventually used by Cao Cao to successfully eliminate the power of the Yuan family. In the end, Cao Cao eliminated the Yuan forces in the north without a single soldier.
In general, if Yuan Shao lived in the peaceful and prosperous era, he must have been an outstanding statecraft. However, in the chaotic times of the late Eastern Han Dynasty, he could not avoid making mistakes again and again.