Chapter 77 Old Liu, we must be on guard against being stabbed in the back! Liu Biao: Don’t I want face?

Liu Bei was cheered up and asked Xiao Fang what good plan he had.

"My lord, have you forgotten that in the previous battle of Yuyang, Hu Che'er killed Zhang Yun, but Zhang Wenjin captured Cai Zhong alive."

"My Lord, why don't you send an envoy to Xiangyang to use this useless Cai Zhong in exchange for Wen Pin's family?"

"When he is free from all worries, will he still not submit to the Lord?"

Xiao Fang calmly told the strategy of how to persuade Wen Pin to surrender.

Liu Bei suddenly understood.

Cai Zhong is Liu Biao's brother-in-law, the second brother of Cai Mao, and the legitimate son of the Cai family.

Although his military talent was mediocre, his status in the Cai family was second only to Cai Mao.

There was no reason for Liu Biao to refuse to exchange this person for a gift of money.

"Well, this is a very good plan, Military Advisor. I will send Gong You to Xiangyang immediately!"

Liu Bei accepted it without hesitation.

The matter of recruiting Wen Pin to surrender was thus decided.

Xiao Fang took a sip of tea, but then changed the subject:
"It will take some time to persuade Wen Pin to surrender, and there is no need for you to waste time in Xinye City. Now you need to do two things."

Liu Bei's thoughts returned to the present and he immediately thought about the two things Xiao Fang did.

"The first thing, my lord, is to withdraw the troops back to Yuyang and give Liu Biao the illusion that we have no confidence in taking Xinye, so as to paralyze Cai Mao."

"In this way, we can recruit Deng Ji and prepare for a surprise attack on Xinye one day."

Xiao Fang told the first thing.

Liu Bei agreed with this and nodded:

"Military Advisor, your words make sense. Continuing to station troops at the gates of the city will only waste food and grass. It is better to withdraw to Yuyang first to let Cai Mao relax his guard."

"Then give the order to withdraw the troops back to Yuyang tomorrow on the pretext of insufficient food and grass."

"I wonder what the second thing the military advisor is about?"

Xiao Fang held the tea bowl in his hand and suddenly pointed to the north:
"The second thing is to immediately send General Yide to lead 5,000 elite soldiers by water, and secretly march north overnight to reinforce Ye County!"

Ye County?

Liu Bei's thoughts immediately moved from Xinye, the southernmost tip of Nanyang, to Ye County, the northernmost tip, following Xiao Fang's direction.

"Military Advisor Jinglue, aren't we waiting to attack Xinye? Why do you suddenly want me to sneak to Ye County?"

Zhang Fei was outspoken and asked without thinking.

"Aliang, tell me, why is this happening?"

Xiao Fang didn't answer, but looked at his brother-in-law with a smile.

After Zhuge Liang frowned for a moment, a gleam of light appeared in his eyes.

"Nanyang is close to Xudu. The cavalry can reach Xudu in less than two days if they march north."

"My brother-in-law once said that I would never allow anyone to sleep soundly beside my bed. Cao Cao is determined to take Nanyang."

"Liang guessed that he did not send troops before because he wanted to sit on the mountain and watch the fight between the tigers. He wanted to wait until the lord and Liu Biao were fighting and both were defeated before he would come out and reap the benefits."

"However, my lord, using his brother-in-law's strategy, has defeated Liu Biao several times at a very small cost, thus thwarting Cao Cao's wishful thinking of both sides suffering losses and profiting at the same time."

"Now that the lord's strength has greatly increased, Nanyang has become more stable. This is obviously not the situation Cao Cao wants to see."

"Liang guessed that he would lose his patience at this moment and would send troops to intervene in the battle in Nanyang."

Listening to Zhuge Liang's clear analysis of Cao Cao's thoughts, Xiao Fang nodded slightly in approval.

Zhuge Liang took the map and spread it out in front of Liu Bei, pointing at it and continuing:

"If Cao Cao raises a large army to the south, my lord will definitely lead the army north to Ye County to stop Cao Cao after hearing the news."

"Cao Cao may not be sure of a quick victory, and he is even less willing to get involved in a protracted tug-of-war."

"Then, considering Cao Cao's cunning in using troops, and the wisdom of his advisers such as Guo Jia, I guess he would most likely advise Cao Cao to first march a special force lightly equipped to attack Ye County unexpectedly."

"And our army in Ye County only has Liu Pi's 3,000-plus soldiers. If Cao Cao's surprise attack hits, we may not be able to hold on."

"Once Ye County is lost, the northern gate of Nanyang will be wide open, and Cao Cao will be able to lead his army southward and attack Wancheng directly, which will shake the people of Nanyang." "By then, if Liu Biao hears the news and leads his army northward to cooperate with Cao Cao to attack our army, our army will be attacked from both sides, and the situation will take a sharp turn for the worse."

Zhuge Liang's tone became more and more solemn as he spoke.

Liu Bei's brows gradually furrowed, and a chill quietly swept across his back.

Zhuge Liang changed the subject and pointed to the location of Ye County:
"So Liang guessed that my brother-in-law meant to ask General Yide to secretly send more troops to Ye County."

"When Cao's light troops arrive at the city, General Yide will be able to use his superior forces to strike back and catch Cao's troops off guard!"

"If Cao's army is defeated, Cao Cao's plan to attack Ye County with a light army will fail. By then, knowing that the lord is prepared, he will most likely have to give up the intention of marching the army south and intervening in the battle in Nanyang."

After saying that, Zhuge Liang looked at Xiao Fang and said self-deprecatingly:

"Liang is just making wild guesses. I wonder if this is what my brother-in-law meant?"

Xiao Fang's face was full of relief. He patted Zhuge Liang's shoulder and said with emotion:

"Aliang, it looks like it won't be long before you can stand on your own."

This statement certainly acknowledged Zhuge Liang's speculation.

Then he smiled at Liu Bei and nodded:
"My lord, that's exactly what I mean. Cao Cao has always been decisive and quick in his actions. General Yide must set out as soon as possible."

Liu Bei's eyes suddenly became clear, and he couldn't help but exclaimed:
"It is thanks to the military advisor that he has foresight and considered everything. Otherwise, we would have focused on Jingzhou and been stabbed in the back by Cao Cao."

"Okay, let's follow the military advisor's plan."

Liu Bei immediately ordered Zhang Fei to lead 5,000 elite soldiers to travel by water and secretly head north to Ye County overnight.

Sun Qian took his handwritten letter, bypassed Xinye and headed south, heading straight for Xiangyang.

...

Xiangyang.

Within the state capital.

Liu Biao's face turned pale, the corners of his mouth twitched slightly, and the handwritten letter from Liu Bei in his hand was clenched tighter and tighter.

"Ziying is right. Wen Pin, this thief, has indeed surrendered to Liu Bei!"

"I am truly blind. I should have executed him that day!"

Liu Biao finally exploded, grappling with curses and throwing the letter to the ground.

First, Wen Pin refused to come to see him, and retreated to Bainiu Town with several hundred troops, refusing to meet him on the grounds of illness.

Now Liu Bei wants to exchange Cai Zhong for Wen Pin’s wife and children in Xiangyang.

Isn't it obvious that Wen Pin has defected to Liu Bei!

Liu Biao was so angry that the qi and blood in his internal organs were affected, and he couldn't help coughing and wheezing.

"Husband, please calm down. Don't get so angry that you get yourself in trouble~~"

Mrs. Cai was busy serving tea and water, looking concerned.

Seeing that Liu Biao's breath had improved slightly, Madam Cai took the opportunity to say:

"Deshi is still alive. This is actually a great thing. My husband should be happy."

"As for Wen Pin's wife and children, since he has already defected to Liu Bei, there is no point in keeping them here. You might as well use them in exchange for De Shi."

This statement came out.

Liu Biao's face turned pale and he glared at Cai:

"Wen Pin dared to betray me. If I don't kill his family, where will my prestige be?"

"That big-eared thief has repeatedly defeated me and killed my nephew. If I accept his threat and hand over the traitor's family, where will my dignity be?"

"You are a woman who only cares about your brother. How can you ever consider my reputation?"

Mrs. Cai never expected that Liu Biao would get so angry. It was the first time in his life that he was angry with her.

This barrage of angry scolding completely stunned her.

And from what Liu Biao said, it seems that he is not going to agree to Liu Bei's conditions in exchange for his brother?
After being stunned for a moment, Mrs. Cai suddenly came to her senses and fell to her knees.

(End of this chapter)