Chapter 257: Decision Before Battle
Outside the city of Liyang, Zhang Xiu, wearing ordinary armor, observed with a dozen cavalrymen.

Whether it was Liyang City or Liyang West City, the flags hanging on the city walls were dim and difficult to flutter.

In order to encircle Liyang City, Cao's army has built a new city at Liyang Wharf.

To the north of the two cities of Liyang, there were two lines of defense of Cao's army with trenches, fences, and earthen ramparts.

Throughout the winter, apart from a small number of messengers entering and leaving Liyang City, there were no other changes in these two cities.

Everything that should be eaten and burned has been almost consumed.

The size of a city determines how much supplies it can store. The larger the city, the more supplies it can store.

But if you want to stably guard a big city, you need more troops.

The more people there are, the greater the consumption.

Therefore, a city has an upper limit on its defense, unless it is a very strong city that can use less manpower and has enough space inside for material reproduction.

Liyang City is important because Liyang Ferry is important. It is not a natural barrier but a key transportation hub.

Before Yuan Shao died of illness, he launched two wars, Guandu and Cangting, on the south bank of the Yellow River; therefore, Liyang City was always just a transportation transit hub for Yuan’s army and had not undergone any special construction.

There was a lack of time to expand the Liyang City, so during Yuan Tan's garrison, a new city was built to support the old city and enhance the defensive capabilities.

Therefore, Xicheng lacks heritage compared to Liyang City.

Even if Liyang City fell into ruin, there were still many houses in the city, and the fuel could be used for a long time even if the houses were demolished.

Zhang Xiu observed for a moment, raised his hand and pointed to the west city: "Go and persuade them to surrender."

Five or six knights escorted a man forward, and the leader held high the apricot-yellow flag.

When they were thirty or forty steps away from the city gate, a dozen crossbowmen on the city wall fired arrows, and the two men fell off their horses immediately.

At the same time, the city gate opened and more than a dozen unarmored men rushed out, some holding swords and shields, some holding spears.

Immediately afterwards, there was another round of powerful crossbow fire from the city. The people sent by Zhang Xiu pulled the wounded who had fallen off their horses onto their horses, then turned around and ran.

The soldiers who rushed out picked up the arrows and retreated without hesitation.

"The fighting spirit is still there. It's really lamentable that Yuan is so popular."

Zhang Xiu sighed, observed and comforted the wounded, and led everyone back to the camp.

At this moment, the surface of the Yellow River was frozen, and carts of firewood and supplies were transported to the north bank.

The outskirts of the dock town were expanding. When Zhang Xiu came back, he saw some soldiers digging into the ice of the Yellow River to get water. They used the ice water and mixed it with mud from the north bank to make mud balls the size of a head.

The mud balls made a few days ago have frozen and are piled up. Looking at them from a distance, it looks like reviewing heads.

Passing through the outer area, we saw craftsmen inside assembling the Thunderbolt car.

There is no fear of waterlogging in the area around Liyang. Spring floods or spring rains will not cause any mud or puddles.

This means that spring rainfall, as well as climatic factors such as melting ice and snow, spring floods, etc., will not interfere with the fighting here.

In the small town at the dock, patrol soldiers were constantly coming and going.

Zhang Xiu dismounted, took off his helmet and held it in his hand, then strode to meet Cao Ren who was in charge of the front line.

Cao Cao's main force has assembled in Chenliu and is ready to join the war in the north at any time.

However, it is not clear what Guanzhong will do at the moment, so Cao Cao chooses to wait and see for the time being and give Black Bear some face.

When he arrived, Cao Ren was staring at the small wooden ornaments on the table in deep thought. Most of them were small models of offensive and defensive weapons.

In addition to ladders, siege vehicles, shields, and thunder chariots, there were also some equipment that Zhang Xiu was not familiar with.

Cao Ren just glanced at Zhang Xiu without saying hello, and continued to stare intently at the small model on the table, thinking about the siege plan in his mind.

Theoretically speaking, with the current numbers and morale of Cao's army, they can learn from Gan Ning.

Gan Ning's siege tactics were too barbaric. How could he use ladders, archers and crossbows to shoot at the defenders on the city walls indiscriminately in order to cover the heavy infantry's attack?

This tactic is too crazy. The archers have to ignore their own casualties and shoot at the defenders on the city from a disadvantageous height. The siege infantry have to brave the arrows from both sides and fight with the defenders.

With the number of bows, crossbows and arrows currently in stockpile by Cao's army, they can completely suppress the defenders. As long as the defenders are suppressed, the casualties of the archers will be very low.

But the problem lies in the heavy infantry that is attacking the city. If they are suppressed by such a strong crossbow unit, the siege infantry will also suffer indiscriminate attacks.

Among the various divisions of Cao's army, who can select five hundred or even three hundred fearless warriors?
There is never a shortage of brave warriors in the army, and the biggest problem is how to motivate these people to fight.

Guanzhong’s strength is visible to the naked eye in suppressing Cao’s army.

For example, when a battle is about to begin, you would select brave warriors who would break into the enemy lines and be the first to reach the enemy. Ordinary rewards of money and materials can only select ordinary warriors.

As for the imperial court providing retirement care for the wounded and disabled, no one in Cao's army dared to have such a luxurious idea.

The effects of generous rewards and pensions are unsatisfactory. The key lies in the future prospects of Cao's army.

Everyone is fighting so hard, isn't it all for a future?
The Guanzhong side’s performance was so strong that the lower-level Cao army members lost their fighting enthusiasm.

Being a soldier is more of a necessity due to one's status.

The previous struggles have lost their meaning to most soldiers.

This is the most terrifying thing. One hundred thousand Hun heads wiped out the spirit of struggle and hard work within Cao's army.

The result was that in the first battle of the new year, Cao Ren could not find any brave warriors who could be trusted to lead the expedition.

Arrows are very valuable, and the armor of the first troops is even more valuable.

If the city is captured in one go, the arrows and armor will still be there, and it will just take a lot of manpower to repair them; if the West City is captured, Liyang City will also be easy to deal with.

They were afraid that too many arrows would be shot into the city and the first soldiers to climb into the city would also be killed.

The loss of supplies is a small matter; boosting the morale of the defenders is a big deal.

While Cao Ren was deep in thought, another general came in, put his helmet on the table, looked unhappy, and ignored Cao Ren.

Zhang Xiu went to see, and it was Zhang Liao.

Zhang Liao had already started the withdrawal process, and this kind of doubt and suspicion made Zhang Liao very dissatisfied.

Unlike Xu Huang's restraint and patience, Zhang Liao has a strong temper.

Seeing Cao Ren's expression, Zhang Liao said, "Give me 5,000 archers and 1,200 strong men under my command, wearing double armor, it will be easy to break this city."

Zhang Liao felt that he could do what Gan Ning could do.

Cao Ren coughed twice and said, "General Wenyuan's troops have been fighting since last year and have been in the army for eleven months. They should retreat to rest. General Wenyuan, please do not worry about the battle of Liyang." Zhang Liao was about to speak when Xu Huang came in. Xu Huang saluted Cao Ren solemnly and said, "General, my troops are fully equipped and can retreat south at any time."

"Well, thank you, General Gongming."

Cao Ren extended his arm to signal, and when Xu Huang sat down and took off his helmet, Cao Ren turned his head to look at Le Jin, who had been sitting in the corner with a weak presence, and said, "General Wen Qian, what changes have occurred in the enemy army recently?"

"There are many scouts in Henei, some from Weijun, some from Shangdang and Hedong."

Le Jin was short and stocky, three times shorter and stockier than the short and stocky Cao Ren. Le Jin's neck was almost invisible, and his face looked fierce. "Especially in the Shangdang direction, the Black Mountain Army also showed signs of mobilization and assembly."

Cao Ren frowned: "What about the direction east of the river?"

"It should be a routine investigation. Shang Yao, the governor of Hedong County, is unknown and is a powerful but small-time official. Now that Hedong is empty, even if Shang Yao wants to send troops, he has to consider the feelings of the people in the county."

Le Jin glanced at the others and continued, "It is the Hongnong County Governor Gan Ning who has been making frequent moves recently. He recruited Zhang Sheng and selected a thousand strong men as his army, which is quite elite. I heard that after Hei Zhenbei withdrew his troops, he sorted out his equipment and gave priority to replenishing Gan Ning's troops. Now Gan Ning has no less than 7,000 soldiers on land and sea."

He was the actual commanding general of Henei County, while the Henei County Magistrate Liu Xun was just a nominal governor and was not as good as Le Jin in commanding battles.

After Liu Ye joined the bandits, Liu Xun's position became suspicious. Although he still led his old Lujiang troops, he was also included in the scope of this withdrawal.

Withdrawing troops doesn't mean letting them go back to the rear to rest. How can that be possible?
It was to move from the front battlefield in Liyang to the eastern front to prevent Yuan’s army from launching a counterattack in Qingzhou.

Although the Qingzhou tyrants took advantage of the chaos to break away from Yuan Tan's control, they were soon beaten black and blue by Zang Ba and Lu Qian.

It was impossible for Cao Cao to allow Zang Ba, the governor of Qing and Xu states, to annex the powerful people in Qing state, so he beat them badly, but these people still maintained a semi-independent status.

Zang Ba also gave up the idea of ​​annexation and bullied these people a lot.

If Yuan launched a new counterattack on the eastern front, these powerful people would most likely return to his side.

Yuan Tan was transferred away and replaced by a senior official. Everything can start from scratch, so these powerful people do not have any heavy historical baggage.

"Seven thousand?"

Cao Ren muttered to himself and could only pray silently for Xiahou Dun in his heart.

Black Bear must give compensation to Gan Ning who stayed behind. These seven thousand soldiers may just be the beginning.

After the spring plowing is over, the army under Gan Ning's command will certainly continue to expand until they can launch an attack.

What is even more distressing is that both Black Bear and Gan Ning are actually good at naval warfare tactics.

This means that the river channel below Hongnong Shanjin is a smooth road for the Guanzhong army; the dangers of Hangu Pass and Hangu Road are like a joke.

Xiahou Dun's defense line was destined to be very embarrassing. If he dared to station a large army in Mengjin and Xiaopingjin, he had to be mentally prepared to be divided and attacked from both sides.

If there is no defense, the Guanzhong soldiers can easily disrupt and divide the Luoyang Eight Pass defense system.

He even used troops as wildly as Black Bear and dared to cross Luoyang and send troops to Guandong.

The Guandong Plain is vast. As long as the black bear advances along the canals, all the military and civilian settlements built by Cao's army around the canals for irrigation will be destroyed.

So Cao Cao garrisoned Chenliu with his assembled troops because he was considering this issue.

Especially the army that was reorganized from the Qingxu Yellow Turban Army. If Black Bear were allowed to break into Dongping, the eastern part of Dongjun, and the northern part of Juye Lake, the Qingxu Yellow Turban Army stationed there would most likely change its flag and mutiny.

How could Cao Cao suppress so many surrendered generals and soldiers after losing the Qingzhou soldiers who were reorganized from the Qingxu Yellow Turban Army?
The Cao army has three hearts, one is Cao Cao himself, one is the Qingzhou soldiers, and the other is the Xudu court.

If any one of them is taken out, the current Cao army will inevitably collapse.

Xu Du has no crucial significance to Black Bear, and Cao Cao’s life or death is actually not that important.

The reorganized Qingxu Yellow Turban Army is the key. During this period, some rumors have been spreading in the Central Plains, which are very absurd.

He said that he was the reincarnation of God, and changed his name to Black Bear, and wanted to use water from all directions to extinguish the Yan Han.

Therefore, Cao Cao did not dare to cross the river with his main force easily. He could only rotate the front-line troops, withdrawing Zhang Liao, Xu Huang and others, and letting them garrison in Dongping and Rencheng areas.

Supervising Qingzhou is one thing, but keeping close tabs on the Yellow Turban Army in Qingzhou and Xuzhou is a matter of life and death for Cao's army.

Now even if the Qingzhou soldiers stretched out their heads for Cao Cao to chop off, it would be difficult for Cao Cao to make up his mind.

After losing the Qingzhou soldiers, he was only half a step away from death and the annihilation of his clan.

Cao Cao is in a passive position. If he burns the Qingzhou soldiers and captures Hebei before the Qingzhou soldiers are burned out, then Cao Cao will have more room to maneuver.

In this way, the Qingzhou soldiers will lose their status as ballast, but even if they are gone, it will not affect the survival of the Cao family.

As Cao Ren listened to Le Jin's various information reports, he felt more and more that this battle would be difficult to fight.

Before the Guanzhong troops were dispatched, the various units of Cao's army began to restrain their actions.

Zhang Liao and Xu Huang sat there with no emotion on their faces. Only they themselves knew what they were thinking.

A huge crisis of trust has arisen, and the relationship between Cao Cao, these surrendered generals, the Qingzhou soldiers, and the Xudu court has become sensitive.

Cao Ren, who was good at attacking and famous for his bravery, also felt that the situation was not good. Conflicts arose when he tried to stop Zang Ba from annexing Beihai, Jinan, Donglai and other places.

Cao Cao regarded Qingzhou as his back garden and planned to take care of it in the future.

As a result, when Chang Ba rebelled, Zang Ba led a group of garrison commanders and stood by and watched.

Under the current situation, Chang Ba is almost certain to rebel. If the situation gets even worse, Zang Ba and his gang are very likely to cause collective chaos.

Xuzhou was in chaos. What would Liu Fu in Huainan think?
Although Cao Ren was in a heavy mood, he did not feel any frustration. He just felt that now was the time to burn his boats.

We must capture the two cities of Liyang before the Guanzhong army intervenes and before the reinforcements from Hebei arrive!
As for the previous strategic plan of forcing the Hebei soldiers to assemble on their own initiative, then defeating them in a field battle, and then completely suppressing and destroying Hebei... he could no longer take care of it at this moment.

If we are delayed here, when the spring plowing is over, the soldiers from Guanzhong and Liu Bei will come to fight. By then, we will be at a disadvantage with enemies from all sides and will have neither the time nor the opportunity to destroy Hebei.

A strategic plan that has lost its implementation space might as well be abandoned directly.

Cao Ren decided to act alone. He suspected that Cao Cao was unwilling to lead his troops across the river because he wanted him to do something that would have a negative impact.

After the meeting, Zhang Liao, Xu Huang and others returned to their camp; Shi Huan, who was inspecting the camps, also evacuated and entered the small dock town.

Le Jin was also there, so Cao Ren told Shi Huan his views.

We cannot play according to the plan. Facing the Black Bear who deploys troops swiftly and Yuan Shang whose troop strategy is unclear to anyone, if we do not want to be passive, we must play whatever cards we have!

Otherwise, it is possible that you will suffocate to death while holding the cards.

After hearing this, Shi Huan saw that Le Jin did not object, but Cao Ren was firm, so he said, "The governor's concern is quite reasonable. Our army has been holding out here for half a year. Our army's plan cannot be hidden from the world. Hebei has no choice but to respond and join forces with me for a decisive battle."

"But now that Liu Bei's power has been revived, the cunning old thief Liu Biao has passed the throne to his son. His son is said to be upright and will definitely support Liu Bei with all his strength. Liu Bei alone is enough for our army to go all out. How can we have the energy to manage Hebei?"

After Shi Huan expressed his opinion, Cao Ren went to see Le Jin again. Le Jin was more steady and said, "General, the Jiyin troops will cross the river tomorrow. Lord Zhongde is known for his foresight. Why don't you ask Lord Zhongde for advice?"

(End of this chapter)