Xu You did not keep him guessing. He said directly, "Second Young Master, although you drove Yuan Shao away, that was all you did. You did not kill him. Yuan Shao could attack and return at any time."
"If the Son of Heaven shows you favor, and Yuan Shao later recaptures Ye City and learns of it, what do you think will happen to the Son of Heaven?"
"It is not that the Son of Heaven is unwilling. He does not dare."
"Simply put, Second Young Master, the value you have demonstrated so far is not enough to earn the Son of Heaven's trust. Do you understand? You must first have enough troops to defend Ye City."
After Xu You explained it this way, Yuan Xi finally understood, but he still could not help saying, "But I have no troops. How am I supposed to defend Ye City?"
Xu You said, "Simple. Recruit soldiers and buy horses."
Yuan Xi said, "The Son of Heaven has to grant me an official post first! Without one, on what authority can I recruit soldiers and buy horses?"
Xu You said, "You need enough troops first! Without enough troops, how would the Son of Heaven dare grant you an official post?"
Yuan Xi said, "I..."
Yuan Xi felt that he had fallen into a vicious circle.
He had no troops, so the Son of Heaven did not dare trust him, much less grant him an official post; but without an official post from the Son of Heaven, he had no way to recruit soldiers and buy horses.
There was simply no solution!
In the end, Xu You said, "Actually, Second Young Master, you have overlooked something. You can recruit soldiers and buy horses without an official post. It will just... cost a little more