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

Chapter 234 Xiao He: Luck lies with Liu Bei, not Cao Cao! Lord Chu is destined by Heaven; Heaven helped our Lord Chu conquer Pengcheng?
My late father has passed away!

A new emperor ascends the throne!

Cease the prefectures of Henan!

Upon hearing Ding Yi's words, everyone in the tent was startled, their expressions filled with astonishment.

My late father has passed away... Is Cao Cao dead?
A new emperor ascends the throne... But who is this new emperor, Cao Chong, Cao Zhi, or Cao Pi?
Regardless of who it is, this new ruler of the pseudo-Wei dynasty, upon taking office, actually ceded Henan with a stroke of his pen. Isn't he a true spendthrift?
Liu Bei looked at Xiao He with disbelief.

Xiao He's eyes flickered slightly, but he asked Ding Yi:

"Since you say Cao Cao is dead, then who among the Three Caos succeeded him?"

Ding Yi dared not address him by his given name directly, and could only say:

"We, the new rulers, are the fourth sons of our late father."

The fourth legitimate son was Cao Zhi.

Liu Bei's eyes lit up, and he looked at Xiao He with delight.

Xiao and his rumor scheme succeeded!
Cao Zhi in Ye City clearly believed the rumors that Yang Xiu's plot had been exposed and that Cao Cao had died suddenly from his injuries at the front line in Pengcheng.

So he took the lead and announced his succession in Ye City, thus placing himself on the throne as the Duke of Wei!
As for Ding Yi's visit this time, offering to cede territory to make peace, it was simply because Cao Zhi feared that his succession would be illegitimate and would face fierce opposition from the brothers Cao Pi and Cao Chong.

Perhaps these two brothers might even incite the generals at the front to lead their troops back to Ye City to seize the throne.

When Wei is in turmoil, wouldn't he seize the opportunity to march north and reap the benefits?
Therefore, Cao Zhi sent Ding Yi with the promise of ceding Henan to persuade his Chu army not to take advantage of the situation and march north.

In this way, Cao Zhi could buy enough time to quell the opposition forces within Wei.

As for whether Cao Zhi would cede Henan as promised after the internal situation stabilized, only heaven knows.

As for Cao Cao, he was naturally still alive.

Just yesterday, Cao Cao appeared on the city wall, full of energy, to boost the morale of the Wei army, a sight witnessed by everyone in the Chu army.

Cao Cao was not dead. Upon learning that Cao Zhi had "usurped the throne and established himself as emperor," he was determined to lead his army back to Ye City as quickly as possible to quell the rebellion.

Once Cao Cao's army left, the troop strength in Pengcheng was greatly reduced, which gave them the opportunity to take advantage of the situation and break through.
This was the purpose of Xiao He's scheme involving rumors.

Liu Bei understood this point, and how could he not be secretly delighted?

"Lord Chu, since Cao Zhi is so sincere, I think you should grant his request."

Xiao He nodded slightly, gesturing to Liu Bei.

Liu Bei understood, and then said:
"If that's the case, then I accept your lord's request for peace!"

Ding Yi was overjoyed and thanked Cao Zhi repeatedly, expressing his gratitude and then taking his leave.

"Wait a minute!"

Xiao He stopped him, giving him a meaningful smile:
“When you get back, tell your lord that if he can’t hold onto the throne of Wei, he can go south from Qingzhou and seek refuge with our Lord Chu.”

“My lord, Lord Chu, has always been respectful to the virtuous and humble. If your lord comes to serve me, my lord will surely ensure his wealth and honor.”

Ding Yi was taken aback.

What does this mean? Does it mean they don't have high hopes for Cao Zhi, that he can quell the internal opposition in Wei and secure his position as the ruler of Wei?
Even if Cao Zhi had lost, he was still a man who had once served as the Duke of Wei. Why would he disregard his dignity and go to your Chu state to submit to Liu Bei?
Ding Yi was displeased, but dared not show it. He could only awkwardly agree and hurriedly take his leave.

"Bowen, everything is exactly as you predicted."

"I never expected that Cao Zhi, who seemed only capable of writing elegant poems, would have such audacity to dare to declare himself a duke!"

No sooner had Ding Yi left than Liu Bei sighed with emotion, his words and expression revealing a newfound respect for Cao Zhi.

Xiao smiled, but didn't take it seriously, saying:

"Lord Chu overestimates Cao Zhi. The one with courage is not him, but his mother, Lady Bian."

"I suspect that he only dared to take such a risk because he was instigated by Lady Bian and wanted to save his life."

Liu Bei's eyes flickered, as if he had realized something.

Come to think of it, Lady Bian dared to secretly leak Wei army secrets to Cao Zhi behind Cao Cao's back, risking great danger to save Cao Zhi's life!

Such courage and boldness are not something that ordinary women possess.
"Bowen is absolutely right. This Lady Bian is indeed a ruthless woman who is decisive and ruthless..."

Liu Bei nodded slightly, sighing with emotion.

Xiao He, however, stopped smiling and pointed at Pengcheng:
"As the saying goes, to repel external aggression, one must first pacify internal strife. Now that the Wei Kingdom's rear is on fire, I predict that Cao Cao must have already led a large army north under cover of night, rushing to Ye City to quell the rebellion."

"I estimate that Pengcheng has no more than 20,000 troops left. This is a golden opportunity for us to take advantage of the situation and break through the city."

"Lord Chu, there's no time to lose, let's besiege the city immediately!"

Liu Bei did not hesitate and immediately issued the order.

The scouts quickly reported that about 30,000 Wei troops had left Pengcheng and headed north under the cover of darkness the previous night.

Meanwhile, spies within Pengcheng also sent out the same intelligence, stating that there were only about 20,000 soldiers left in the city.

Cao Chun, Zhang He, Yue Jin, Cao Chong, Jia Xu and many other military generals and strategists followed Cao Cao from Pengcheng northward.

At this time, the general in charge of Pengcheng was Li Dian, and the only one left to offer advice and strategies was Xun You.

As Xiao He had predicted, Cao Cao indeed marched north to quell the rebellion.

With no further concerns, Liu Bei immediately ordered his 80,000 troops to set up camp on all sides of Pengcheng.

Within a day, the Chu army had completely surrounded Pengcheng, cutting off its contact with the outside world.

Inside the Chinese military tent.

Liu Bei had already led his men to surround the sand table of Pengcheng, where they were discussing strategies to capture the city.

"Although Cao Zhi falsely claimed to have received Cao Cao's last edict and declared himself Duke in Ye City, his foundation was not solid. Most of the officials of the puppet Wei regime in Ye City were mistakenly convinced that Cao Cao was dead, and thus had no choice but to accept the fact that Cao Zhi had succeeded him."

"I believe that as soon as Cao Cao appears in Ye City, all the civil and military officials of Wei will immediately abandon Cao Zhi and return to Cao Cao's embrace. This internal strife in Wei can be quelled by Cao Cao in the blink of an eye."

"Cao Cao must have been confident enough to quell the internal strife within twenty days and return to Pengcheng, which is why he dared to leave Li Dian and 20,000 troops to defend the isolated city to the death."

"Therefore, I believe that we must take Pengcheng within twenty days in this battle!"

Pang Tong pointed at the sand table to analyze the situation, but his vision was not limited to Pengcheng.

Liu Bei agreed with this and nodded:

"Shiyuan is right. This time, when we attack Pengcheng again, we should indeed act swiftly and decisively!"

The generals all nodded in agreement.

"The Wei army has suffered repeated defeats and its morale has been dampened. With a fire breaking out in the rear, the army's morale will inevitably be hit again."

"The Wei army left to defend Pengcheng has less than 20,000 troops, while our army has four times that number."

"Low morale and insufficient troop strength are the weaknesses of the Wei army."

Pang Tong changed the subject and continued:
“Pengcheng is surrounded by mountains on three sides. Its city walls are not made of earth but are mostly made of mountain stones, making them far more sturdy than ordinary city walls. This is its advantage.”

"And then there's Li Dian. He dared to volunteer to defend Pengcheng this time, which must be because he was determined to die and wanted to make a name for himself and wash away the shame of being captured by our army."

"With Li Dian's military talent and Xun You's wisdom, if they are determined to fight to the death and defend the fortified city, they should not be underestimated."

"If our army were to launch a strong attack on Pengcheng, even at the cost of everything, we would still suffer countless casualties if we eventually broke through."

"When Cao Cao quells the internal strife and leads his army back south, if our army is exhausted from a prolonged battle and our soldiers suffer heavy casualties, I fear that Cao Cao will be able to retake Pengcheng."

"Therefore, I believe that if we can capture Pengcheng by strategy, that would be the best outcome."

Pang Tong's words caused Liu Bei to frown slightly.

The underestimation of the enemy on the faces of the generals also faded slightly.

Everyone naturally understood that Pang Tong was not exaggerating.

They had already experienced firsthand the formidable strength of Pengcheng during their ten-day siege.

Li Dian was a veteran general in Cao Cao's camp. He was captured during a breakout attempt, not because he was mediocre or incompetent.

It's hard to say what kind of astonishing fighting power such a veteran of Cao Wei could unleash if he were to fight to defend his dignity and wash away his shame.

A cornered beast's struggle, a battle for dignity, cannot be judged by common sense.

"According to Shi Yuan's plan, how should we cleverly capture Pengcheng?"

"this…"

Pang Tong looked somewhat helpless and sighed:
"Among the Wei army in Pengcheng, there are many soldiers from Xuzhou. We can use psychological warfare to induce these Wei soldiers from Xuzhou to defect." "However, Cao Cao suffered a loss in the Battle of Xiapi. Even if Li Dian was negligent, Xun You is always meticulous in his actions and will surely have given him some warnings."

"Besides, this psychological warfare tactic is slow to take effect and may not succeed before Cao Cao's army returns, so..."

Pang Tong stroked his short beard, unable to come up with a better plan at the moment.

At this moment, his gaze turned to Xiao He.

Almost simultaneously, Liu Bei and everyone else turned their gazes toward Xiao He.

In this crucial battle, everyone seemed to instinctively place their last hope on Xiao He.

"Actually, it is not impossible to capture Pengcheng in twenty days without causing too many casualties among my soldiers."

After a long silence, Xiao He slowly spoke.

This seemingly casual remark struck like a thunderclap, invigorating everyone present.

Liu Bei's face lit up with joy, and he asked eagerly:
"Bowen, do you have a solution that satisfies both sides?"

All eyes turned to Xiao He with anticipation.

"My method, while not requiring soldiers to risk their lives to attack the city, does require them to undertake large-scale construction projects."

"Furthermore, I cannot guarantee whether this method will succeed; it will also require a bit of luck."

Large-scale construction?

Leveraging luck?

Xiao He's few words had piqued everyone's interest, making them even more curious.

Xiao He then picked up a bamboo stick and, right there on the sand table, began to gesture and describe his strategy for breaching the city.

At first, everyone looked confused, then gradually understood, and finally gasped and widened their eyes.

"Bowen, your plan to breach the city is truly a wild and unthinkable idea, unprecedented in history!"

Liu Bei was full of amazement, his eyes filled with wonder.

Pang Tong, surprised, nodded and said:

"The strategies employed by strategist Bowen are always unpredictable and cannot be judged by ordinary standards."

"Lord Chu, I believe that this plan is so far-fetched that Xun You would never have guessed it in his wildest dreams, let alone taken precautions against it."

"I believe this plan is worth considering."

Liu Bei stroked his fine beard, staring at the sand table, pondering the strategies described by Xiao He in his mind.

After a moment of contemplation, Liu Bei's eyes hardened with determination, and he resolutely said:

"Without ingenious strategies, how can we achieve remarkable results, and how can we capture Pengcheng within twenty days?"

"Ever since I met Bowen, you have always been able to thwart my plans. I believe that although this plan is ingenious, it will surely succeed as well."

"We will proceed according to your plan!"

...

Ten days later, at dawn.

Forty thousand Chu troops gathered at the north gate of Pengcheng.

Hundreds of military formations, large and small, were arrayed in front of the city, poised to attack.

On the city wall, the sound of gongs and alarms had already begun.

More than 5,000 elite Wei troops were all in position, ready for battle.

"Gongda, the big-eared thief has been making a ruckus for ten days, banging drums and gongs. Is it because you've seen through his tunnel plan and he's exhausted all his tricks that he's finally going to launch a frontal attack on the city?"

Li Dian glanced at Xun You, a hint of sarcasm in his eyes.

Just ten days ago, the Chu army began to beat drums and gongs outside the city all night long, pretending to attack the city.

Xun You quickly deduced that Xiao He was repeating his old trick, using the sound of gongs and drums to cover up the secret digging of a tunnel to enter the city.

So he suggested to Li Dian that a deep trench be dug inside the city wall to block the Chu army's tunnels from entering the city.

Just last night, the Chu army finally stopped beating drums and gongs, and at the crack of dawn today, they immediately set up an attacking posture.

Li Dian naturally guessed that Liu Bei had no choice but to launch a direct attack after his scheme failed.

"That big-eared thief has wasted ten precious days. By now, Duke Wei should have already brought his troops to Ye City and quelled the chaos."

"Ten days from now, Lord Wei should kill Pengcheng. Liu Bei's plan failed, and now he's showing his true colors, ready to attack Pengcheng at all costs."

"Mancheng, the Chu army's offensive will be unprecedentedly fierce. We must be prepared for a tough battle."

Xun You's face showed no trace of sarcasm; on the contrary, he became even calmer.

Li Dian's fighting spirit surged, and he brandished his longsword, coldly snorting:
"I am prepared to fight to the death, you big-eared thief, come and attack me at will."

"Today's battle is the battle for me, Li Dian, to wash away this humiliation!"

Four thousand Wei soldiers gripped their swords and spears tightly, holding their breath and waiting for the Chu army to launch an attack.

In front of the city.

The central army of Chu.

Liu Bei, sword at the ready, stood on his horse, his determined gaze fixed on the north gate of Pengcheng.

The sun has risen, and the enemy city is clearly visible; it is time to attack.

Liu Bei, however, did not order an attack on the city. Instead, he raised his whip:
"Send a message to strategist Bowen: My three armies are in full formation. Tell him to summon Uncle and make our move immediately."

A messenger on horseback galloped back to camp.

Half an hour later, several plumes of smoke rose from the camp and shot into the sky.

On top of the watchtower.

Seeing the thick smoke rising from the tunnel, Xiao He turned his gaze toward Pengcheng and raised his binoculars.

"Lord Chu, whether my plan will succeed depends on whether luck is on your side or on Cao Cao's..."

Time passed by, and half an hour later in the blink of an eye.

Forty thousand Chu soldiers stood arrayed in front of the city, and Liu Bei neither ordered an attack nor ordered them to retreat to their camp.

Forty thousand people just stood there.

Gradually, the Chu soldiers' high morale began to wane, and their minds began to grow anxious.

The soldiers, their eyes filled with confusion and bewilderment, quietly turned to their Lord Chu.

We've been standing in the morning light for almost two hours, and our legs are about to go numb. Why hasn't Duke Chu ordered an attack on the city yet?

The same question echoed in everyone's mind.

Liu Bei remained unmoved, his gaze unwavering as he stared intently at the north gate of Pengcheng.

Sudden.

A faint sense of something unusual reached my ears, and the ground beneath my feet seemed to tremble slightly.

Liu Bei keenly sensed the abnormality, and a hint of excitement flashed in his eyes.

"Boom~~"

A deafening roar, as if the heavens and earth were collapsing, suddenly resounded in Pengcheng.

On the east wing of the city gate tower, a section of the city wall, six zhang long, collapsed without warning.

In an instant, a huge gap appeared in the Pengcheng city wall, which was as solid as a copper wall.

The Chu soldiers witnessed this unbelievable scene and were all dumbfounded.

"Could it be that our Lord Chu is destined by Heaven, and that the heavens sent down this earthquake, causing Pengcheng to collapse?"

The same horrified thought arose in the minds of all 40,000 soldiers.

(End of this chapter)