Chapter 396 You are being instigated by the emperor to rebel, what can you do? This is digging his own grave!

"Bring me the map!"

Cao Cao became very excited and waved his hands and shouted.

Zhang Song was well prepared and presented the map of Jing and Yi that he had prepared in advance to Cao Cao.

Cao Cao looked carefully and found that the mountains and rivers between Yi and Jing states, the passes and fortresses, and even the garrisons of the Chu army were all clearly drawn.

"Yongnian, this map..."

Cao Cao looked at Zhang Song in surprise.

Zhang Song stroked his sparse beard and said with a proud smile:

"In my early years, I had advised Liu Zhang to take advantage of the war between Liu Bei and Yuan Shao in the Central Plains to lead his army out of Sichuan to capture Jingzhou, so I sent a spy to carefully draw this map."

"Unfortunately, Liu Zhang is a weak and defensive ruler, and he has rejected my proposals several times."

"Today I have finally met a great leader like you, the King. This map of Jingyi can finally be put to use."

Cao Cao suddenly understood, a look of praise appeared on his face, and he exclaimed:
"Yongnian is a man of foresight and vision. He is truly a rare talent. If Liu Zhang does not listen to your brilliant plan, how can he not perish?"

Receiving Cao Cao's public praise again, Zhang Song became more and more proud. He rolled up his sleeves and began to plan a strategy for Cao Cao to capture Jingzhou.

For a while, Zhang Song stole the limelight.

The counselors including Guo Jia, Xun You, Cheng Yu, Jia Xu and others could only step aside and had no way to interrupt.

"Well, Yongnian's plan makes sense."

"If I can capture Jingzhou, I can go east along the Yangtze River, take Yangzhou and cut off half of Liu Bei's territory south of the Yangtze River."

"If we cooperate with the troops from Wuguan to the north, we can capture Nanyang and then march straight to Xuchang."

"In this way, Liu Bei will be trapped in a situation where he can neither take care of the north nor the south."

"Well, this is a very good idea."

Cao Cao stroked his thin beard and nodded repeatedly, as if he had opened the door to a new world.

"Fengxiao, what do you think of Yongnian's strategy?"

After a while, Cao Cao remembered that he had other advisers besides Zhang Song.

"Yongnian's pattern is wild and unconstrained, and he has indeed grasped the essence of winning by surprise. I cannot compare with him in this respect."

Guo Jia boasted for a while, then changed the subject:
"But according to Cao's spies, Liu Bei had transferred Lu Xun to be the governor of Jingzhou a month ago and stationed him in Jiangling to command the Jingzhou garrison."

"Ding Feng, Su Fei and several other naval commanders led more than 20,000 naval troops from Xiakou to Jiangling and were under the command of Lu Xun."

"I think Liu Bei's move is clearly because he expected that the king's capture of Yizhou was a foregone conclusion, and he was trying to prevent our army from taking advantage of the situation and advancing eastward to capture Jingzhou."

"Besides, if we want to attack Jingzhou, we must have a navy. We have to start a war and build warships."

"By the time this warship is built, I'm afraid Liu Bei will have already destroyed the pseudo-Wei and pacified Hebei. If we attack Jingzhou by force by then, I'm afraid we will have lost the opportunity."

After Guo Jia's analysis, Cao Cao's originally excited mood gradually calmed down.

After thinking for a long time, Cao Cao nodded slightly:

"Feng Xiao's words make sense. The navy is the biggest problem in attacking Jingzhou. We need to discuss this further."

Zhang Song's face darkened and he glanced at Guo Jia with dissatisfaction.

The grand strategy that he had carefully planned for Cao Cao was rejected by Guo Jia in just a few words. Zhang Song, who was arrogant, was naturally dissatisfied with Guo Jia.

"Your Majesty, I think that since we don't have a navy, we can..."

"Your Majesty, General Yuan Rang has an urgent report!"

The tiger guards rushed in and interrupted Zhang Song's next words.

Xiahou Dun suddenly came to report?
Is there something happening in Guanzhong?

Cao Cao suddenly became alert and had no time to think about attacking Jingzhou, so he ordered the Tiger Guards to do something urgent.

"Ten days ago, Liu Bei defeated the Wuhuan cavalry and killed Tadun. Then, he led an army of 200,000 to cross the Yishui River, captured Yijing, and annihilated the 40,000 Wei troops."

"The fake King of Wei was unable to escape and was captured by Liu Bei, who beheaded him and sent an edict to Youzhou."

"The three states of Ji, You, and Qing have been taken by the Pseudo-Chu."

"Yuan Xi was terrified and sent a messenger to Chang'an with a letter of surrender, offering to surrender Bingzhou to the Qin State."

"Lord Xun did not have time to report to the king, and fearing that Bingzhou would be lost, he ordered General Cao Zixiao to lead the Tongguan garrison troops to rush north to Bingzhou, take over Bingzhou's defense, and occupy all key points in the state."

"General Yuan Rang asks the king to return to Chang'an as soon as possible to prevent Liu Bei from leading his troops westward and taking advantage of the situation to attack Guanzhong or seize Bingzhou!"

A piece of news that shocked the whole hall boomed in everyone's ears like thunder.

There was an immediate uproar in the hall.

"How could Liu Bei destroy the Wuhuan cavalry so easily?"

"Yuan Shang was also killed by Liu Bei. Doesn't this mean that Hebei has been taken over by the Pseudo-Chu?"

"The Yuan family was so powerful and arrogant back then, but I didn't expect them to die at the hands of Liu Bei!"

"It seems that we have to return to Guanzhong as soon as possible. The opportunity to capture Jingzhou has been lost. There is no need to discuss it further."

"Fortunately, Yuan Xi surrendered to my Great Qin. This is a pleasant surprise."

"The big-eared thief took over the three states of Ji, You, and Qing. This time we got half of Yi and Bing. It's not too bad."

"Once the pseudo-Wei is destroyed, the only one left in the world that can compete with the pseudo-Chu is our Great Qin."

"Yes, it seems that it won't be long before our decisive battle with Liu Bei will begin..."

Qin's counselors and generals were all discussing the matter.

Some were shocked, some sighed, some were secretly happy, and some were worried.

"Ugh--"

Zhang Song sighed helplessly and silently put away the map of Jingzhou in his hand.

Yuan Shang's demise naturally meant that the strategy he had carefully planned for Cao Cao was in vain.

"I didn't expect that the Wuhuan people would be so vulnerable under Liu Bei's command." "Fortunately, Yuan Xi surrendered, and Liu Bei didn't get all of the four states in Hebei. With Bingzhou, we have the natural barrier of Taihang Mountain, and we will have some geographical advantages in the future when we compete with the pseudo-Chu for the world."

"Your Majesty, it seems that Jingzhou cannot be captured. Let's return to Chang'an as soon as possible."

Guo Jia was filled with emotion and bowed to Cao Cao to make some suggestions.

Cao Cao recovered from his shock and let out a long breath, sighing:

"Yuan Benchu, oh Yuan Benchu, you led your army south and drove me to Guanzhong in disgrace. You dominated the two rivers, how arrogant you were."

"Did you ever foresee at that time that within a few short years, both father and son would be killed by a mat weaver and shoe seller?"

"For your Yuan family, this is really a great irony..."

After sighing and lamenting, Cao Cao had no choice but to order the army to return north.

As for Yizhou, the Left General Xiahou Yuan was left in charge, and Cheng Yu and Xun You were left to assist. In addition to taking over the seven counties in Nanzhong, they continued to send troops towards Baidi City to ensure that the remnants of Ma Chao and Fa Zheng were eradicated.

All matters were arranged and the ministers took their leave.

Only Guo Jia was left behind.

"Fengxiao, do you see anything unusual about Yuanrang's urgent report?"

Cao Cao handed the urgent report to Guo Jia.

Guo Jia heard the hint from Cao Cao's words and became suspicious. He took the urgent report and read it carefully, trying to guess what Cao Cao was thinking.

Suddenly, his expression changed slightly.

"General Yuan Rang reported in an urgent report that Lord Xun used the king's name to transfer General Zixiao to lead the Tongguan garrison troops to the north to Bingzhou. Could this be what the king is referring to?"

Guo Jia looked up at Cao Cao.

Cao Cao did not answer directly, but stroked his thin beard and said with emotion:

"Wen Ruo doesn't need my seal or tiger talisman. With just a letter, he can mobilize tens of thousands of troops to march north in my name. He is truly a man of high moral character and prestige."

Guo Jia's heart trembled.

He heard deep dissatisfaction with Xun Yu from Cao Cao's seemingly bland and helpless words.

One could even hear a hint of murderous intent.

It is no wonder that kings throughout history have always been most wary of their subjects surpassing their own achievements, and most afraid of not being able to control the military power in their own hands.

According to the Qin military system, the mobilization of nearly 40,000 troops in Tongguan required Cao Cao's imperial edict and tiger talisman.

But Xun Yu had nothing, and he could easily mobilize this army with just a letter.

The key point is that the commander of this army is Cao Ren, a member of the Qin royal family!

From this we can see how high Xun Yu's reputation was in the Qin army and how much trust the generals had in him.

Throughout history, which king would not be wary of such a minister?
What's more, this minister is of a different surname, and his political stance tends to support the Han Dynasty and respect the emperor!
If one day Xun Yu was bewitched by the emperor and wanted to mobilize the army to launch a mutiny and seize his power as the King of Qin, wouldn't it be easy?
What shocked Cao Cao in Xiahou Dun's intelligence was not the killing of Yuan Shang, the destruction of the Wuhuan cavalry, or the surrender of Yuan Xi.

Rather, it was Xun Yu's mobilization of the Tongguan garrison troops.

This piece of news not only shocked him, but also made him break out in a cold sweat.

"Xun Lingjun is the same, the same..."

Guo Jia wanted to say something to defend Xun Yu, but he swallowed the words back when they came to his lips.

As a fellow townsman, he could naturally defend Xun Yu's behavior.

As Cao Cao's most trusted adviser, he could only look at this matter from Cao Cao's perspective.

A resolute look flashed across Cao Cao's eyes, as if he had already made a decision in his heart.

...

The capital of Youzhou was Ji County.

Seven days had passed since the Battle of Yijing, and Liu Bei, commanding an army of more than 200,000, had stationed in the capital of Youzhou.

Wherever Yuan Shang's head was sent, all the counties and kingdoms in Youzhou that were watching surrendered and announced that they would change their flags.

Generals such as Zhang Fei and Huang Zhong had also led the elite troops of the Chu army and successively occupied key locations in Youzhou.

The entire Youzhou has basically been under the control of the Great Chu.

Just as Liu Bei was preparing to lead his troops westward to capture Bingzhou in one fell swoop and completely destroy the Pseudo-Wei, a spy brought back news that Yuan Xi had surrendered Bingzhou to the Pseudo-Qin.

Soon after, the spies brought back news that Xun Yu had transferred Cao Ren's troops in Tongguan to the north, and the Qin army had taken the lead in occupying Jingxing Pass, Huguan, Yanmen Pass and other important passes in Bingzhou.

"It is reasonable for Yuan Xi to surrender to Cao Cao as he had nowhere else to go."

"It was just that Cao Cao had just forced Liu Zhang to surrender and was still on his way back north when Cao Ren quickly headed north to take over Bingzhou."

"I have to say, Xun Yu's ability to make decisions on the spot is truly extraordinary."

"No wonder when Lu Bu attacked Yanzhou, Cao Cao relied on this man's quick response to defend the three cities and keep the hope of taking back Yanzhou."

After Pang Tong sighed, he bowed to Liu Bei:

"Your Majesty, the Qin army has already arrived in large numbers and has stationed itself at various strategic passes. Cao Cao has also taken Yizhou, and will be able to return to Guanzhong in a few days."

"If our army wants to take Bingzhou, we will have to engage in a full-scale war with the Qin army."

"The Qin army has now taken advantage of the terrain. Our army has been fighting for more than a year. The soldiers have traveled thousands of miles and their physical and mental strength has reached its limit."

"I think it is not a wise choice to go to war with Qin at this time."

"In this Northern Expedition, we have seized three states in Hebei and destroyed the pseudo-Wei, which has achieved our strategic goals."

"I think we can temporarily withdraw our troops and stop the war."

Liu Bei nodded slightly and turned to Xiao Fang for his opinion.

"I agree with what Shi Yuan said. The soldiers are too exhausted. It is not the right time to destroy Qin. We can withdraw our troops."

Xiao Fang agreed with Pang Tong's proposal, but then changed the subject:
"However, Shi Yuan just commented that Xun Yu's ability to make decisions on the spot is extraordinary, and I agree with that."

"What a pity! Although his impromptu decision helped Cao Cao seize Bingzhou, he actually dug his own grave!"

(End of this chapter)