My father-in-law Guan Yu, I persuaded Liu Bei to launch a surprise attack on Xiangyang at the beginn

Chapter 197: How can you win against the immortals? The divine soldiers descended from the sky, and all the trees and grass looked like enemies, frightening Cao's army to pieces!
"Xiao...Xiao He?"

"He is actually Liu Bei's military advisor, the god-like figure that was driven away by my second brother?"

Cao Pi muttered to himself, his voice hoarse and trembling, his eyes looking as if he had seen the most incredible scene in his life.

Of course he knew about Xiao He's clever plans.

Otherwise, Liu Bei would not have been able to rise so quickly, conquer Jingzhou, pacify Jiangdong, dominate half of the south of the Yangtze River, hold the position of the legitimate emperor, and command the world in just a few years.

Otherwise, his father Cao Cao would not have suffered repeated defeats and lost many soldiers and generals when fighting against Liu Bei.

Otherwise, Cao Cao would not be so angry as to exterminate the three clans that drove away Xiao and the fool.

But in Cao Zhi's impression, Xiao He was nothing more than a strategist with extraordinary wisdom.

What shocked him today was that not only was the other person extremely intelligent, but his literary talent and rhetoric were also unparalleled in the world!
Is that human being?
"Could it be that Xiao He is really an immortal from otherworldly realm as the rumors say?"

"If that's the case, how could father possibly defeat Liu Bei with such a divine assistant?"

Cao Zhi's head was buzzing and he couldn't help but shudder.

A declaration of war was sent across the Fei River that day to Shouchun City on the west bank.

...

The east tower of Shouchun City.

Cao Ren was standing with his sword in hand, looking at the situation of Liu's army on the opposite bank from afar.

"According to my scouts, the Liu army on the other side has no more than 20,000 soldiers and horses, and they have already camped on Bagong Mountain."

"According to the orders of the Zhenjun General, the main forces of our army have been deployed on the west bank, facing the enemy's main camp across the river."

"Although the enemy has a naval advantage, our army has twice as many troops as theirs. If they dare to cross the river and land, they will be courting death."

"In addition, we have also arranged a large number of patrols along the upstream and downstream day and night. If the enemy's follow-up troops arrive or try to sneak across from other places, they will not escape our eyes and ears..."

Li Dian pointed at the large camp set up along the coast outside the city and talked incessantly.

Cao Ren nodded slightly, turned his gaze to the south, and asked:

"How is the war going in Chengde City? Does Wenyuan have any military reports?"

Liu Ye coughed dryly and said with a bow:
"General Zhang just received a military report this morning. Since our main force moved north, Liu Bei has been attacking Chengde day and night with his army."

"General Zhang led our soldiers in bloody battles, repeatedly repelling Liu Bei's attacks, but they suffered heavy casualties."

"The situation in Chengde City is not optimistic."

Cao Ren frowned deeply.

Although Zhang Liao was a talented general, he had too few troops after all, and the Chengde he defended was far less solid than Hefei.

What's more, the enemy he faced was not a weakling like Sun Quan, but a tough guy like Liu Bei.

Cao Cao was repeatedly defeated by Liu Bei, let alone Zhang Liao?

"It seems that we cannot be satisfied with merely blocking the enemy east of the Fei River. We must also find a way to defeat them as soon as possible and recapture Zhongli Huaiyin and other cities along the Huai River."

"If we delay any further, Chengde City will fall, and the main force of the Big Ear Bandits will head straight for Shouchun. The situation will be extremely unfavorable to us."

Cao Ren stroked his thin beard and his face gradually became gloomy.

Generals such as Li Dian also agreed.

"If our army wants to defeat the enemy, we must first be able to cross the Fei River. However, the enemy currently has a naval advantage, so it will be difficult for our army to cross the river."

Liu Ye sighed softly and poured a bucket of cold water.

Cao Ren looked at the other side of the river and murmured:

"If we could somehow lure those two thieves, Gan Ning and Ding Feng, across the Fei River and annihilate them on the west bank..."

The words trailed off.

A man rode a horse into the city and climbed up the city wall holding a book high.

"General Zhendong, an enemy envoy has crossed the river on the east bank and delivered a declaration of war!"

War letter?

Cao Ren's eyes moved, and his heart became inexplicably excited. He waved his hand and ordered it to be read.

"My nephew, Cao Zhi, has been ordered by General Gan Ning of Han'anbei to issue this declaration of war to my uncle..."

Cao Ren's expression suddenly changed.

Li Dian, Liu Ye and others were also shocked.

This declaration of war was actually written by the captured Prince Cao Zhi?
The junior officer continued to read.

This is an extremely provocative declaration of war filled with contempt.

Gan Ning declared arrogantly that if Cao Ren had the courage, he would let his army cross the river and the two armies would fight a decisive battle under the city of Shouchun.

If he is not brave enough, he should abandon Shouchun and flee back to the north as soon as possible, otherwise he will follow in the footsteps of Xiahou Yuan and Cao Hong.

Li Dian and his men were all stunned. They looked at each other and secretly glanced at Cao Ren.

At this time, Cao Ren's face was ashen, his fists were clenched, and his eyes were burning with anger.

He was obviously not only angry about Gan Ning's arrogant provocation, but also angry that this letter of war came from Cao Zhi!

Being able to write a declaration of war for the enemy and humiliate his own uncle means that Cao Zhi is afraid of death, except for Liu Bei!
As the son of Cao Cao, not only did he surrender to the enemy, but he also shamelessly wrote a declaration of war for the enemy army, despising and humiliating his own uncle?

Where is your integrity, Cao Zhi?

Where do you regard the reputation of the Cao family and the face of your father Cao Cao?

"brush!"

Cao Ren didn't wait for the lieutenant to finish reading. He snatched the declaration of war and couldn't wait to read it carefully.

"No way, how could the son of Meng De be so shameless and cowardly? This couldn't have been written by Zijian..."

A voice of luck continued to echo in Cao Ren's mind.

next moment.

Cao Ren's eyes widened, and the anger in his eyes turned into extreme disappointment.

He was very familiar with the handwriting in the book. If it wasn't Cao Zhi's, whose handwriting could it be?

The last glimmer of hope was shattered.

"Zijian, ah Zijian, your father is the Prime Minister of the Han Dynasty, the greatest overlord of the time!"

"How could you be so cowardly and coerce yourself into doing something that would dishonor your father's reputation?"

"It seems that Meng De's decision to support Cang Shu is a match for you. You are truly unworthy of being the crown prince of the Cao family..."

Cao Ren gritted his teeth, his face full of disappointment and anger, and tore the battle report in his hand to pieces.

Afterwards.

Cao Ren's eyes shot towards the other side, murderous intent blazing up, and he shouted angrily:
"Reply to that Jinfan thief, if he wants to fight, I will fight." "I will let him cross the river and let him come to die!"

Once this recipe comes out.

Liu Ye was startled and reminded:
"General Zhendong, calm down. The Jinfan bandits' declaration of war is clearly a provocation. They want to provoke you into retreating and allowing their army to land on the west bank."

"Has General Zhendong forgotten the lesson of the battle at Ruxu Fort?"

Cao Ren's body shuddered, and he instantly became a little more sober.

The Moon Formation!
These three words immediately flashed through Cao Ren's mind.

In the Battle of Ruxukou, Liu Bei used provocation to trick the three Caos into withdrawing their troops and allowing their army to land.

As a result, Liu Bei defeated the Tiger and Leopard Cavalry with this unique Que Yue formation!
This battle shook the world, how could he not know about it.

After rolling his eyes a few times, Cao Ren said in a deep voice:

"It is still unknown how long Chengde City can hold out. I must quickly defeat the enemy in Hedong so that I can return south to Chengde."

"That thief from Jinfan wants to cross the river, which is exactly what I want. I will use his trick against him and let him cross the river. Then I will defeat him halfway across!"

Liu Ye was about to speak again.

Cao Ren interrupted with a wave of his hand, a hint of arrogance on his lips:
"I know, Ziyang, you're worried that the enemy will repeat their old tricks and set up the Moon Formation again."

"Although this formation is powerful, it's designed to counter cavalry. It's useless against infantry. Ziyang, you can see the flaw, right?"

"If the enemy really sets up the Moon Formation, I will use twice as many infantry as they do to break it and see how those Jinfan bandits can resist!"

When Liu Ye's words of advice were about to come out of his mouth, they were abruptly blocked by Cao Ren.

Cao Ren is right.

The Queyue Formation is indeed very effective against cavalry, and can effectively block cavalry attacks with chariot formations.

In this battle, as long as they don't make the same mistake of charging with cavalry and instead advance steadily with infantry, how can Gan Ning be defeated?
"General Zhendong is right. Even the Queyue Formation is not invincible. It will be easily broken by our infantry."

"Furthermore, the fighting in Chengde City is intense. We should take this opportunity to quickly defeat Gan Ning and Ding Feng's forces so that we can return south to rescue Chengde."

Zhang Zhao also stood up and agreed with Cao Ren's plan.

Liu Ye thought about it again and again and could only remain silent.

Cao Ren no longer had any concerns. He looked around at the generals and shouted sternly:

"I want you all to brace yourselves. Tomorrow, I will join me in a bloody battle at Feishui and annihilate the enemy in one fell swoop!"

The generals accepted the order with great enthusiasm.

...

The next day, the sun rose in the east.

More than 20,000 soldiers of Liu's army gathered at the Feishui ferry.

Hundreds of warships of all sizes were lined up in the water camp, ready to go.

Xiao He stood on the shore, holding a telescope in his hand, observing the situation on the other side from afar.

The towering Shouchun City stands on the west bank of the Fei River and is clearly visible.

On the opposite bank, nearly 40,000 Cao troops gathered on the shore, sharpening their swords, waiting for them to cross the river and "die."

"Cao Ren, do you think I can still set up the Queyue Formation? I won't..."

Xiao He raised the corner of his mouth slightly, and then shouted:
"Send a message to General Anbei, the army will cross the river immediately and attack the west bank of the Feishui River!"

The order was passed down.

At Gan Ning's command, nearly 20,000 soldiers immediately landed.

As the horn sounded, warships left the water camp and began to rush towards the west bank of the Fei River.

West bank.

Cao Ren immediately held his sword and looked towards the east bank with the same determined look.

When Cao Ren saw countless warships of Liu's army sailing out of the water camp and attacking the west bank, a sarcastic sneer appeared on his lips.

"Do you think I, Cao Ren, am mediocre and incompetent? Do you think I'll repeat the same mistakes as at Ruxukou just because of a mere Queyue Formation?"

Cao Ren smiled coldly, whipped his whip and shouted:

"Pass the order, the entire army retreats, and let the enemy cross the river and land."

The command flag was waved and the order to retreat was given.

More than 40,000 Cao troops, in more than a hundred large and small formations, moved like huge beasts and began to retreat clumsily.

It is easy for an army to move forward but difficult to retreat. If you are not careful, the morale of the army will be disrupted.

However, Cao Ren was confident enough to stabilize the morale of his troops and keep the formation in order during the retreat.

East bank of the Fei River.

Seeing Cao's army retreat, Xiao He shouted without hesitation:
"Send a message to Su Fei, and follow the plan!"

Above the central army, a large red flag was raised, swaying in the wind.

On the Bagua Mountain behind him, Su Fei heard Xiao He's order and immediately ordered the soldiers to raise the battle flag.

In an instant, thousands of battle flags were suddenly raised, fluttering in the wind all over the mountains.

Immediately afterwards, the sound of war drums and shouts of killing rose like thunder.

This sudden change was like tens of thousands of soldiers appearing on Bagua Mountain in an instant, waving flags and shouting, showing off their might.

Looking from the west bank, it seemed as if the entire Baguan Mountain was filled with soldiers, and every tree and grass looked like an enemy!
The retreating Cao army soldiers were all shocked to see so many soldiers suddenly appear on the other side of the river, and their expressions changed.

Cao's army, the morale has been shaken.

Immediately afterwards, screams of terror suddenly rang out one after another from the rear of Cao's army.

"We've fallen into a trap. Liu Bei's main force is on the other side of the river. The enemy has a million strong army!"

"The front army has been defeated, the enemy is coming, let's run away!"

"General Zhendong has fled back to Shouchun City. He has abandoned us. Let's flee back to Shouchun..."

It was Liu Zan's secret move of pretending to surrender to Cao's army that was launched.

Following Xiao He's instructions, he ordered his soldiers to shout loudly to disrupt the morale of Cao's army.

In front of them, on Bagua Mountain, countless Liu army soldiers descended from the sky, and all the trees and grass looked like soldiers. Behind them, their own army screamed in fear, and the Cao army, which was in the process of retreating, was thrown into chaos in an instant.

There will be chaos without fighting!

"What...what's going on?"

Cao Ren looked at the dramatic changes in front and behind him, and the confidence and sarcasm on his face turned into astonishment and confusion.

(End of this chapter)