Chapter 216: Gongsun is destroyed, Hebei returns to Yuan! God is also helping Liu Bei! The mysterious scholar who offers a brilliant strategy!

Huainan, Yangquan City.

This city is where the Yingshui River, Huaishui River and Bishui River meet.

Cao Cao led tens of thousands of soldiers and stationed them outside the city for more than two months, but he still failed to break the city.

"Zhang Liao led his army to defend Yangquan without fighting, while he led the main force to station troops outside the city, forming a horn with Yangquan City."

"At the same time, send out a small force to rob our grain ships on the Yingshui River and cut off our food supply, so that we can't concentrate on attacking Yangquan."

"These four slaves of Lu Bu have learned their lesson from the battle of Xia Pi and have become smarter this time."

Inside the central army tent, Cao Cao held in his hand an urgent report about the burning of a grain ship that had just been delivered, his annoyed face mixed with a bit of approval.

As he spoke, Cao Cao showed the urgent report in his hand to his advisers and generals.

After Xun You read it, he nodded and said:
"Lü Bu has indeed learned the lesson from the battle of Xia Pi. His current deployment of troops and countermeasures are quite effective."

"However, this should not be Lu Bu's ability, it should be the work of Chen Gongtai."

When mentioning Chen Gong, Cao Cao couldn't help but show an expression of love and hate on his face.

"Gongtai, Gongtai, you would rather follow Lu Bu and acknowledge the traitor Yuan Shu as your father than come back to me!"

"Are you determined to accompany Lu Bu till the end? Why bother?"

Cao Cao pounded the table lightly with his fist.

"Sikong, Liu Bei has surrounded Nanjing now. I don't know how long Sun Ce can hold out."

"We have already wasted too long in Yangquan. We can't delay this any longer!"

Guo Jia spoke in a serious tone, stood up and pointed at the map:
"Jia thinks that confronting Lu Bu head-on is no longer a solution. We must use a surprise attack to win."

"Sikong can launch a feint attack here with his main force to contain Lu Bu, but send the Tiger and Leopard Cavalry to Xuzhou secretly, and then go south from Xuzhou via Sishui to launch a surprise attack on Xutai."

"If Xuyi is captured, our cavalry can march straight along the Huai River, heading west, and attack Shouchun from behind."

"If this happens, Lu Bu will be attacked from both sides and will surely be defeated!"

Cao Cao stood up, put his hands behind his back, stared at the map, and nodded slightly.

Xun You followed behind him and praised:
"Feng Xiao's plan is a clever one, Sikong, you think this plan is feasible and will definitely break the current deadlock."

The dark clouds in Cao Cao's eyes disappeared, and a sneer appeared on the corner of his mouth. He said happily:
"Okay, Fengxiao, this plan is brilliant!"

"I will lead the Tiger and Leopard Cavalry from Xuzhou to the south, attack from both sides, and seize the city before Liu Bei can capture it—"

Before he could finish his words, a personal guard entered the tent and reported that Dong Zhao had returned and wanted to see him.

Cao Cao's eyes lit up.

Dong Zhao went to Jiangdong to announce the imperial edict, but he was also tasked with spying on the progress of the war in Nanjing and poaching Liu Bei's power!
Cao Cao then temporarily put the surprise attack on Xuyi on hold and ordered Dong Zhao to be sent in.

A moment.

Under Cao Cao's expectant gaze, Dong Zhao entered the tent and bowed to pay homage.

The tone and expression seemed particularly solemn, which made Cao Cao feel a bad premonition.

"Gongren, is everything going well on this trip to Jiangdong to announce Liu Bei's decree?"

"How is the war in Jinling going? How long can Sun Ce hold out?"

Cao Cao pretended to be calm and asked with a smile on his face.

Dong Zhao took a deep breath, clasped his hands solemnly and replied:

"Reporting to Sikong, when Zhao crossed the river, Liu Bei had already captured Jinling and killed Sun Ce!"

boom!
It was like a thunderclap, exploding in the big tent.

The smile on Cao Cao's face disappeared, and his eyes suddenly widened and turned pale with horror.

Xun You, Guo Jia, Cao Ren and other counselors and generals all suddenly changed color and were shocked.

The news that Dong Zhao brought back was so shocking that it instantly caused an uproar in the tent.

"Kimihito, this is no joke!"

"I heard that Nanjing is the strongest city in the world. Even though the little tyrant was defeated by Liu Bei many times, he still has the strength to defend the city."

"How long has Liu Bei been in Jiangdong before he conquered Jinling?"

"Then the little tyrant was killed by Liu Bei?"

"This is impossible, how is this possible!"

Cao Ren was the first to jump up and asked with a little excitement.

All the generals were unconvinced and excited discussions broke out.

"Shut up, everyone!"

Cao Cao, who had recovered from his shock, waved his hand to stop the generals from talking in surprise.

The tent immediately fell silent.

Cao Cao tried his best to suppress his inner shock and said in a deep voice:

"Gongren, how did Liu Bei capture Nanjing so quickly and kill Sun Ce? Tell us everything!"

Everyone held their breath, and pairs of questioning and confused eyes turned to Dong Zhao.

After Dong Zhao sighed, he silently told the details of the Battle of Nanjing and how Sun Ce abandoned the city and was killed by Liu Bei.

The tent fell into deathly silence.

The doubts in everyone's eyes gradually dissipated, and they looked at each other. In addition to shock, there was also a hint of horror in their eyes.

As strong as Sun Ce was, even Cao Cao was afraid of him, but he was killed by Liu Bei in a blink of an eye!

What kind of military strategy does Liu Bei have?
From the surprise attack on Liu's camp to abandoning the city and fleeing, Sun Ce was killed step by step by Xiao Fang's brilliant strategies.

What a clever strategy this is!

Liu Bei's military strategy and Xiao Fang's wisdom actually made the generals in Cao's camp feel a little terrified.

"This Xiao Jinglue is so smart and almost evil. No wonder Nanjing was vulnerable and Sun Ce died at the hands of Liu Bei."

"It seems that Liu Bei's control of half of Jiangnan is a foregone conclusion. No one in the world can suppress him..."

Cao Cao let out a long sigh, his mouth filled with sighs and lamentations, his brows revealing a hint of helplessness.

There was a sigh in the big tent.

"Liu Bei's military strategy is indeed different from the past. Xiao Fang's brilliant strategy is indeed a bit like that of a sage."

"However, Sun Ce was defeated so quickly because he killed too many people and lost the support of the people in Jiangdong."

"We can no longer underestimate Liu Bei, but we don't have to lose confidence. Sikong's strength is still far superior to Liu Bei's!"

Seeing that Cao Cao was too wary of Liu Bei and seemed a little discouraged, Guo Jia spoke to comfort him and cheer up Cao Cao and his generals.

"Feng Xiao is right!"

"Liu Bei's ability to command troops has indeed improved greatly compared to the past, but compared to Meng De, there is still a huge difference."

"Liu Bei is able to have the power he has today, thanks to Xiao Fang's ingenious strategies. Without his assistance, how could he be so unstoppable!"

Cao Ren also stood up and agreed loudly. Cao Cao's sigh of helplessness gradually faded, but he suddenly remembered something and looked at Dong Zhao again.

"Gong Ren, what is the result of the court appointing Xiao Fang as the Shaofu? Is he willing to go to Xudu to take up the position?"

A glimmer of hope flashed across Cao Cao's eyes, although it was not great.

Dong Zhao's face was immediately filled with indignation.

"That Xiao Fang not only disobeyed the order on the spot, but also made wild statements, saying that he would assist Liu Bei in going north to Xudu, welcoming the emperor, and returning to the old capital!"

"Liu Bei also claimed that after he welcomed the emperor back to the old capital, he would submit a petition to the emperor to confer the title of Three Dukes on Xiao Fang..."

Dong Zhao was filled with indignation and recounted everything that had happened to him when the imperial edict was announced in Nanjing.

Cao Cao frowned and his expression became increasingly gloomy and ugly.

Originally, he used this method with the intention of trying to poach Xiao Fang away from Liu Bei, but he actually did not hold out much hope.

However, Xiao Fang not only saw through his intentions, but also revealed his dark history of massacring the people of Xuzhou, and publicly expressed his determination to be his enemy to the end.

Even Liu Bei dared to make the bold statement that he would lead his troops north to capture Xu Du and bring the emperor back to the old capital!

How outrageous this is for the master and his servant!
What contempt they have for him!

"Country bumpkin!"

Cao Cao slammed the table, furious:
"He is just a country bumpkin. I used the position of Shaofu to win him over. This is unprecedented in history. Yet he is so ungrateful that he even dares to slander me!"

"And Liu Bei, didn't he just conquer Jiangdong? How dare he be so arrogant and look down on me like this!"

"If I don't kill these two villains Liu Bei and Xiao Fang, I will never be able to get rid of the hatred in my heart!"

Cao Cao was deeply enraged.

All the generals in the tent were also indignant, and they all shouted that they wanted to destroy Lu Bu first and then go to Jiangdong. They must chop off the heads of Liu Bei and Xiao Fang to avenge Cao Cao.

Guo Jia and Xun You looked at each other and wanted to persuade Cao Cao, but seeing that Cao Cao was angry, they did not know how to speak.

"Report——"

"Hebei urgent report!"

The personal guards rushed into the big tent holding up the silk letter with the battle report.

"My lord, an urgent report from Hebei says that Yuan Shao captured Yijing a few days ago, Gongsun Zan set himself on fire, and his army was completely wiped out!"

The big tent, which was originally filled with angry voices, suddenly became quiet.

Everyone, including Cao Cao, shuddered, and the anger on their faces instantly turned into fear.

Is Gongsun Zan dead?
Yijing fell?

This meant that Youzhou could be conquered by issuing an edict, and Yuan Shao had finally accomplished the feat of unifying Hebei.

Then the next step will definitely be to turn the gun around and deal with Cao Cao and them.

In no more than three months at the latest, Yuan Shao, this giant crocodile, will surely lead an army of hundreds of thousands to march south and drink from the Yellow River.

This is the most powerful overlord in the world, whose strength is even greater than that of all the princes in the world combined!
Compared with Yuan Shao, what are Lu Bu and Liu Bei?

How could people not be horrified and frightened?

Cao Cao came back to his senses from his shock, snatched the silk book, and hurriedly unfolded it to read.

The ferocious anger on his face gradually disappeared, his brows were deeply furrowed, and his expression became more and more gloomy and cold.

After a long time, Cao Cao put away the silk book and let out a long sigh of helplessness.

"Baima Gongsun was finally defeated."

"It seems that even God is helping the big-eared thief."

"We can't take Huainan, and Jiangdong can only be taken over by that big-eared thief."

"Everyone, return to the north and prepare to fight Yuan Shao who is coming south with the troops from the four states!"

...

Jinling, the Left General’s Mansion.

"Nothing in the world, no one in the world can escape your eyes, Jinglue."

"Gongsun Bogui was defeated by Yuan Shao after all."

Liu Bei held in his hands the information about the fall of Yijing and the destruction of Gongsun Zan, and he could not hide the regret in his words and expression.

Back then, he and Gongsun Zan were both students under Lu Zhi, and they were classmates.

Before rescuing Kong Rong in Beihai, the two had fought side by side against the alliance of Yuan Shao and Cao Cao.

Learning today that his former classmate had passed away, Old Liu naturally felt sad.

"My lord, you and Gongsun Zan were classmates, so it is understandable that you feel sad about his death."

"It's just that Gongsun Zan was stubborn and self-righteous. He killed Liu Yu first and lost the support of Youzhou people, which made him deserted by his friends and relatives and attacked from all sides."

"After being defeated repeatedly by Yuan Shao, he became discouraged and built a castle in Yijing, hiding away from the battle. He spent all his time with women. When his subordinates were surrounded by Yuan Shao, he did not rescue them, causing all his subordinates to lose their morale."

"His defeat can be said to be his own fault. It is not worth your regret and worry."

In just a few words, Xiao Fang pointed out the root cause of Gongsun Zan's defeat.

Liu Bei seemed to be thinking about something, so he put away his regrets and focused his attention on the second piece of information.

"Sun Quan was lucky. He survived the battle of Haiyan, but one of his eyes was shot blind."

"As the military advisor predicted, he sailed north to Huainan and surrendered to Lu Bu..."

As he watched, Liu Bei couldn't help but frown:
"After Sun Quan fled to Huainan, he actually recognized Lu Bu as his adoptive father!"

"Lü Bu allocated him more than a thousand soldiers and ordered him to stay in Lu'an and summon the former members of the Sun family in Jiangdong to join him. He has already obtained several thousand soldiers and horses."

As he spoke, Liu Bei showed the second letter of intelligence to Xiao Fang.

After reading it, Xiao Fang raised a sneer at the corner of his mouth:
"In order to protect Jiangdong, Sun Ce recognized Yuan Shu as his adoptive father. In order to regain Jiangdong, Sun Quan recognized Lu Bu as his adoptive father."

"These two brothers of the Sun family are indeed like brothers, and the father and son pair of Lu Bu and Yuan Shu are also really like father, like son."

There was a burst of laughter in the hall, and all the counselors and generals despised Sun Quan's shameful behavior.

"Gongsun Zan has been defeated, and Yuan Shao has unified Hebei. It will take at most three or two months for him to march south to the Central Plains."

"Cao Cao must concentrate all his efforts on resisting Yuan Shao and will have no time to move south."

"While we are pacifying Jiangdong, we must also quickly formulate a strategy to cross the river, capture Huainan, and destroy Lu Bu."

"And this battle must be fought and resolved quickly. Otherwise, if it is delayed until Yuan and Cao decide the winner and they can spare their time to look south, we will be in a passive position."

Zhuge Liang spoke out to remind everyone.

Liu Bei agreed with this and immediately asked for a map to be spread out, preparing to discuss with Xiao Fang and other advisers a strategy for quickly taking Huainan.

At this time.

The Bai Li Guard entered and bowed, saying:
"My lord, there is a black-robed scholar outside the palace, claiming to be a disciple of Mr. Shui Jing. He has a plan to quickly capture Huainan, and he wants to present it to you in person!"

(End of this chapter)