Wait, please don't call me Emperor Zhaolie

Chapter 69 The advantage is mine!

The fourth year of Chuping, late July.

When the news that Qingzhou Governor Liu Xuande was deploying troops in Pingyuan reached Yanzhou, it caused Liu Dai to be somewhat frightened.

A man's reputation is like the shadow of a tree. Over the years, Liu Bei defeated powerful enemies in Qingzhou one after another, and was able to defeat the Yellow Turbans who numbered hundreds of thousands.

What's more, if he were to deal with him now, he would deeply regret having listened to Yuan Benchu's words, which led to him provoking a powerful enemy.

After analysis by his staff, it was finally understood that Yuan Shao was afraid that Liu Xuande and Gongsun Zan would attack Jizhou from both sides, so he brought the disaster to Yanzhou.

Liu Dai couldn't help but secretly curse Yuan Shao, "You were the leader of the coalition against Dong Zhuo in the past, don't you feel uneasy about harming your old friend like this?"
His own family knows his own business. It is simply impossible for him to lead the army to resist Liu Bei.

As a famous scholar with many years of experience, asking him to talk about filial piety, brotherhood, benevolence and forgiveness, and being able to speak eloquently, but asking him to lead an army to fight is clearly making things difficult for him.

After much thought, the only option was to find Cao Mengde to discuss matters. At least he had led an army to fight against Dong Zhuo and had much more military experience than him.

Hearing hurried footsteps in the hall, Liu Dai immediately stood up, stretched his neck, stood on tiptoe, and looked out the door eagerly.

Seeing Cao Mengde wearing a military cap, he was overjoyed and got down from his seat to greet him, saying, "Mengde is here. I have been waiting for you for a long time."

"Greetings, Mr. Liu!" Cao Cao bowed and saluted.

Liu Dai held his hand affectionately and said, "Meng De has come from Puyang. I feel relieved now. It seems that I can entrust all military affairs to you."

Cao Cao pretended to decline, then accepted the order. When Liu Dai asked him what countermeasures he had,
He first looked up to the sky and laughed, then said with confidence: "Ever since Cao Cao learned that Liu Xuande defeated Gongsun Du, he guessed while he was farming in Qingzhou that he would return and would definitely raise an army to attack, so I advised Liu Gong to temporarily withdraw his troops and station them in Liaocheng while I returned to Puyang to recruit elite soldiers and generals."

"I have brought many talented soldiers with me. Xiahou Yuan and Xiahou Dun are both brave and wise. Cao Ren, Cao Hong, Cao Chun and others from the Cao clan have even more outstanding strengths."

"We also asked Zhang Mengzhuo for many officers who were skilled in military formations. Together with the soldiers from various counties and the support of the nobles, there were no less than 40,000 people in total. It was easy to defeat Liu Bei's exhausted army."

Cao Cao laughed and said, "It would be fine if Liu Xuande doesn't come. But if he does, his reputation will be ruined and he will be defeated by Cao Mengde."

Liu Dai was overjoyed to hear such a bold statement, and couldn't help but confirm, "Is Meng De really so sure?"

Cao Cao said with a smile: "Don't worry, Lord Liu. A few days ago, I wrote to Bao Xin, the governor of Jibei, asking him to attack the Qingzhou army from both sides. Even if Liu Bei has the strategy of a famous general, how can he not be defeated?"

"Good! Good!" Liu Dai said good several times. It seemed that Cao Mengde did have the talent to command the army, at least he was much better than him in this aspect.

Although the governors under his command sometimes pretended to obey him but actually disobeyed him, they were still very helpful at critical moments.

This is especially true for Cao Cao. Even though he was born a eunuch, he was loyal to the court from beginning to end and was not afraid of power, which was particularly rare.

I heard that he had recently had some disputes with the famous scholar Bian Rang and left the banquet in anger.

I have to give Meng De some advice when I have time. Although these celebrities have bad tempers, they are nice people and there is no need to care about them so much.

Liu Dai took the talisman from the table and solemnly entrusted it to Cao Cao.

"Meng De, I will entrust you with the important task of resisting Liu Xuande and defending Yanzhou."

Cao Cao nodded slightly and said, "I will definitely live up to Mr. Liu's important responsibility!"

Then he asked to leave, return to the barracks to reorganize, and then recuperate to meet the enemy. Liu Dai readily agreed and waved his hand, saying: "Meng De, just go ahead and do it boldly. I will allocate the food and supplies, and I will definitely not miss a grain of rice."

Looking at Cao Cao's departing back, he stroked his beard and said with a smile: "Although Meng De is small in stature, he still has great ambitions!"

Mr. Cao, who had already walked far away, of course did not hear this sigh.

At this moment he was extremely excited, and he walked out of the mansion quickly with the talisman in his hand. Xiahou Dun, Xiahou Yuan, Cao Ren, Cao Hong and others who were waiting at the door all came closer.

Cao Ren, who had a tuft of brown beard on his chin and a sturdy build, was the first to come forward and ask, "Brother, has Lord Liu entrusted you with the military power?"

Cao Cao gently displayed the talisman in his hand.

This attracted congratulations from everyone, who said that they could finally show off their skills and realize their ambitions.

Cao Cao told them to mount their horses, saying that there were too many people and too much chatter here to continue the conversation, so they should go to the military camp first.

After arriving at the camp, Cao Cao placed the seal on the table and sighed slightly: "It's a pity that the military power of a state only belongs to me, Cao Mengde, temporarily. If I could really control the power of the state, even Yuan Benchu ​​would not be in my eyes."

"It's difficult to make a big move in just one county. I heard that the position of Yangzhou governor is still vacant."

"I want to ask someone to recommend me as the governor of Yangzhou, but I can't find a suitable person. If I can help Liu Dai defeat Liu Xuande, maybe he can recommend me as the governor."

This is why Cao Cao tried every means to help Liu Dai. As for Yuan Shao, he didn't want to ask for help anymore.

Xiahou Dun heard this and said, "Of course. If Meng De defeats Qingzhou Governor Liu Xuande, he will surely become famous again. As a famous scholar, Liu Dai is very concerned about his reputation and will definitely repay the favor."

Some people thought differently. Xiahou Yuan said with some concern: "Meng De, Liu Xuande defeated 400,000 Yellow Turbans in a previous battle, which attracted the attention of the world. Now he has defeated Gongsun Du in Liaodong. I heard that Gongsun almost died in the chaos."

"When facing Liu Xuande on the battlefield, don't be lucky and be more cautious. I'm afraid..."

"Hey!" Before Xiahou Yuan could finish his words, Cao Ren interrupted him and said, "In my opinion, Miaocai is overly concerned. A general should be brave and strive to be the first to move forward. Being afraid in the face of things will only make it easier to fail."

Cao Ren was known for his bravery and fighting prowess, and was one of the best soldiers under Cao Cao. Upon hearing what he said, Xiahou Yuan suddenly stopped talking.

If I go on, it would seem that he is really afraid of him like a tiger. Only Cao Ren is a hero of the time, while Xiahou Miaocai is afraid of Liu Bei like a cicada.

Cao Cao saw that the atmosphere in the tent was a little tense, so he stood up and said with a smile: "Miao Cai's words are not without reason. As a general, even if there is no outstanding achievement, you need to take precautions in advance and think before taking action."

"Zixiao is right. A good commander should be fearless in the face of danger and have the courage to face difficulties. What the two of you said is the way to be a general. If you can learn from each other's strengths and weaknesses, you can become a famous general in the future."

After Cao Cao's words, the atmosphere between the Cao and Xiahou families eased slightly.

Cao Cao then said, "No matter what, this time Yanzhou will recruit 40,000 soldiers. Yuncheng and I will attack Liu Xuande from two directions, one in front and one in the back. If he dares to come, he will be defeated without a doubt."

When he was chasing after Shen, he fell into an ambush by Xu Rong and was defeated from both sides.

This time, he had the advantage in military strength, and Bao Xin was attacking Liu Bei's rear wing. No matter how you looked at it, his chances of winning were far greater than in the Battle of Bian River a few years ago.

(End of this chapter)