Chapter 310: The foundation for destroying Wei lies in this battle! We are learning from it, not copying it. Lure the tiger away from the mountain is the best way!
Inside the Chinese military tent.

All the generals of Chu State gathered together.

The blood of all the generals was boiling, and the fighting spirit was burning on their faces.

Everyone's eyes were focused on the silk book in Liu Bei's hand.

They knew that it contained detailed confidential information about the Wei army's outposts and defenses between Xiangcheng and Guling to the north.

The secret was in hand, which meant the chances of successfully launching a surprise attack on Guling and burning down the Wei army's grain camp increased greatly.

This also means that Liu Bei summoned them here tonight to convey the order for a surprise attack.

If the burning of Guling is successful, we can burn all the millions of bushels of grain and fodder of the Wei army!

With the loss of food and grass, the 160,000-strong Wei army would surely collapse and fall into chaos without a fight.

It is very likely that this victory will lay the foundation for the Great Chu to destroy Wei.

This is an unprecedented achievement!

Naturally, the generals were eager to try, and they all hoped that Liu Bei would choose them to take on this important task.

"Your Majesty, Cao Cao's attack on Hanzhong is imminent."

"Yuan Shao is now ill, and his army's morale is bound to be shaken. This is a perfect opportunity for us to deal him a fatal blow."

"In order to prevent the long night from causing more trouble, Guo Tu and his men may become aware of our military's intentions. I think we should act immediately."

Xiao Fang's tone was firm.

"Jing Lue's words make sense. It's better to wait till the night is long and dream too much. We should use the troops immediately!"

Liu Bei threw the silk book on the table, slowly stood up, and swept a resolute and stern look over the generals.

"I have made up my mind. I will personally lead 20,000 elite infantry and cavalry to go north of Xiangcheng and launch a surprise attack on the Wei army's Guling granary!"

"I want to start a fire to burn all of Yuan Shao's food and destroy the morale of the Wei army!"

The generals' faces changed slightly.

what's the situation?
Our own king, is he going to go out in person and launch a surprise attack on Guling fifty miles behind enemy lines?

It’s too risky!
"My king, how can you go there in person? If anything goes wrong, the sky will fall!"

"Let me do this kind of thing!"

Zhang Fei, concerned about Liu Bei's safety, was the first to jump out and oppose.

All the generals requested to fight, all of them wanted to launch a surprise attack on Guling on behalf of Liu Bei.

Liu Bei waved his hand to interrupt the generals and said resolutely:
"This battle is a matter of success or failure. Only if I lead the army myself can I inspire the soldiers to fight!"

"You don't need to argue anymore. I have decided that I must lead the army to launch a surprise attack on Guling!"

Seeing Liu Bei's determination, the generals could no longer object and could only look at Xiao Fang.

"Ahem, it's not wrong for the king to personally lead the army to launch a surprise attack on Guling."

Xiao Fang actually agreed with Liu Bei's decision.

All the generals were shocked.

In fact, to be honest, Lao Liu’s decision was indeed not wrong.

Guling is an important granary location, and Yuan Shao will definitely arrange heavy troops to guard it.

Although it was a sneak attack, the Wei army was not made of paper and would never collapse at the first blow.

This battle will surely be an unprecedentedly fierce and arduous battle.

The soldiers of the Chu army who participated in the battle had to be determined to advance and not retreat, and to fight even more fiercely than usual, in order to break through the enemy camp.

In this situation, what is tested is the will of the soldiers.

What else can better boost morale and fighting spirit than the lord personally taking the lead?
In fact, whether it was the Battle of Guandu in history or the Battle of Guandu in the current timeline, Cao Cao personally led the army to attack Wuchao.

The difference is that in the former, Xu You provided intelligence and Cao Cao won.

The latter tried his luck in a surprise attack, but was discovered by Yuan's scouts halfway and had to return to Guandu in vain.

"However, the key to our defeat of Yuan Shao does not lie in the surprise attack on Guling, and Your Majesty does not have to go there in person."

"As for the surprise attack on Guling, there is no need to mobilize 20,000 troops. Three thousand cavalry will be enough!"

Xiao Fang suddenly changed the subject.

Old Liu was stunned.

Everyone was stunned, even Zhang Fei widened his eyes, thinking he had heard it wrong.

How come the surprise attack on Guling and the burning of Yuan Shao's food supplies were not the key to defeating Yuan Shao?
Besides, even if Liu Bei did not go there in person, he would not send only 3,000 cavalry.

The granary is an important place, so Yuan Shao must have stationed a large number of troops there. If you go to raid it with only 3,000 cavalry, aren't you just asking for death?

"Jinglue, I...I am a little confused."

Liu Bei looked at Xiao Fang with confused eyes.

"Yes, Prime Minister, I am confused too."

"You said that the king does not need to go in person. I agree with that. But you said that we should only send 3,000 cavalry. Isn't that a joke?"

Zhang Fei also opened his eyes wide and started yelling.

Xiao Fang ignored Zhang Fei and looked at Liu Bei and asked:
"Everyone knows that Guling Granary is an important place. Yuan Shao will definitely deploy a large number of troops to defend it."

"Let's not talk about tens of thousands of people, at least there must be at least 10,000 people."

"Even if we sent 20,000 soldiers and horses, bypassed the Wei army sentries along the way, and successfully launched a surprise attack on Guling, how could we break through it in the blink of an eye?"

"Then the question is, if Yuan Shao learns that the granary has been attacked and sends his entire army to siege it, how will Your Majesty respond?"

Liu Bei was stunned for a moment.

Wasn't the plan of attacking Guling already agreed upon beforehand? Why did such a question suddenly arise when the final step was approaching?

Moreover, Xiao Fang's question seemed extremely fatal.

It's not only about the outcome of this battle, it's even about his life! "The Prime Minister is right. We overlooked this point beforehand."

"It is entirely possible that Yuan Shao will mobilize his entire army to encircle us. Even if we capture Guling and burn his food supplies, I am afraid that our entire army will be wiped out!"

"It seems that the king cannot lead the army there in person!"

Pang Tong realized the seriousness of the matter.

Liu Bei shuddered and suddenly realized something.

"If Yuan Shao knew that Guling was attacked, he actually had two choices."

"First, mobilize all your troops to rescue Guling, and encircle and kill our surprise attacking army along the way."

"The second is to take advantage of the emptiness of my camp and raise a large army to attack my camp."

"If there had not been the Battle of Guandu, Yuan Shao would have most likely chosen the latter, and our chances of winning would have been very high. In the end, Yuan Shao would have lost both ends, failing to save the Guling granary and capture our main camp."

"But with the precedent of the Battle of Guandu as a precedent, Yuan Shao may not necessarily choose the latter."

Xiao Fang took a sip of tea to moisten his throat.

Before he could continue, Liu Bei's eyes moved and he spoke first:
"In the Battle of Guandu, Cao Cao personally led his army to attack Wuchao. If Yuan Shao knew that Cao Cao personally led the army, he would have regretted not raising a large army to intercept him."

"Then in today's battle, if he knows that I also sent troops to attack his granary, he will definitely learn from the lesson of Guandu and mobilize all his troops to surround him."

"If I lead the army myself, even if I succeed in burning Guling, I will most likely die under the siege of Yuan Shao's army, which is several times larger than mine."

"Jinglue, is this what you mean?"

Liu Bei finally understood Xiao Fang's deep meaning.

"That's exactly what I meant. We are only learning from the Battle of Guandu, not copying it!"

Xiao Fang smiled slightly.

All doubts in everyone's mind were dispelled, and their eyes were suddenly clear.

But then, new questions arose in everyone's mind.

Since a surprise attack on Guling would most likely be a one-way battle to death, why did you, Prime Minister Xiao, go to so much trouble to plan this strategy?
Isn't this just because you are full...

Everyone's confused gazes were once again directed at Xiao Fang.

Xiao Fangze put down the tea bowl and looked at Liu Bei with an apologetic look:
"I am to blame for this. I did not inform the king of my plan in time."

"The surprise attack on Guling was actually just one part of my plan. It was just to lure the tiger away from the mountain."

"The key to truly defeating the Wei army and winning this battle is to take advantage of the enemy's empty camp and destroy it in one fell swoop!"

Lure the tiger away from the mountain, take advantage of the enemy's weakness and defeat them in one fell swoop...

Liu Bei's thoughts were racing, his eyes were flickering, and the doubt on his face gradually turned into surprise.

"I understand."

"The sneak attack on Guling was just a bait, designed to lure Yuan Shao to mobilize all his main forces to surround the king!"

"Once his army leaves, the main camp will be empty. Our army can take advantage of the situation and rush out in full force to capture the main camp in one fell swoop."

"If this happens, the morale of the Wei army will collapse and they will flee in defeat."

"In this battle, the winner is still our army!"

It was Pang Tong who understood Xiao Fang's profound meaning in an instant.

The full picture of Xiao Fang's plan was finally fully revealed to everyone.

Inside the tent, all the generals were shocked and amazed.

"That's it, that's it..."

"Jinglue, all your arrangements turned out to be a trick to lure the tiger away from the mountain!"

"This kind of strategy is really unpredictable!"

Liu Bei suddenly realized the truth and was so surprised that he couldn't help but exclaim in admiration.

"Prime Minister, your plan is really well hidden. I almost got confused by you!"

Zhang Fei's brain circuit was a little slower, and he finally realized it, but he was puzzled:
"But why did you send 3,000 cavalry to attack Guling? According to what you said, aren't these 3,000 cavalry going to die?"

Without waiting for Xiao Fang to explain his doubts, Pang Tong said with a smile:

"General Yide, how could the Prime Minister allow three thousand soldiers to die?"

"With just a little disguise, the three thousand cavalry can create the appearance of a mighty army, and Yuan Shao will believe that it is the king himself who is leading the army to attack."

"This is the only way to trick Yuan Shao into mobilizing his entire army to surround us."

"And it was precisely because they were cavalry that they were able to take advantage of their speed to shake off the Wei army's blockade and escape safely."

"This is why the Prime Minister sent 3,000 cavalry to feint and attack Guling."

Zhang Fei suddenly realized, slapped his forehead, and said nothing more. He just gave Xiao Fang a thumbs up.

Xiao Fang smiled and bowed to Liu Bei:

"My king, there is no time to waste. Otherwise, we will have troubles later. Let's act as soon as possible."

The doubt on Liu Bei's face and the worries in his heart were all swept away.

He glanced at the generals again, his expression showing that he was confident and determined to win.

"Zhang Wenyuan listens to orders!"

"I order you to lead three thousand cavalrymen, under my banner, to pretend to launch a surprise attack on Guling!"

"The rest of you, generals, gather your troops and wait for Yuan Shao's main force to leave. Then follow me and rush out in full force to destroy the enemy camp!"

All the generals accepted the order with a roar, their blood boiling and their fighting spirit burning.

The imperial edict was passed down.

That night, Zhang Liao led 3,000 cavalrymen, took the Wei army scouts sent by Xun Chen and set up defenses, left the Xiangcheng camp, and headed towards Guling, dozens of miles away.

Liu Bei was stationed in the main camp, commanding an army of 80,000, ready to launch an all-out attack on the Wei camp!
(End of this chapter)