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

Chapter 264 This war of national annihilation is an unparalleled achievement! Xiao He: No matter how many tricks Cao Cao uses, I will simply and brutally defeat him!
Cao Cao is on his deathbed!

The Wei army broke camp and retreated north!

This is fantastic news!

The tent erupted in excitement in an instant, with all the ministers of Chu filled with exhilaration.

"Damn it, this is truly a blessing from heaven! Our stone projectiles have eyes; they actually blasted that traitor Cao half to death!"

"If Cao Cao dies, how can his useless sons hold up the situation? The Wei Kingdom will surely collapse!"

"If that's the case, wouldn't Your Majesty be able to easily recover the Central Plains and unify the world without lifting a finger?"

"Heaven has eyes! Heaven has eyes!"

Zhang Fei was the first to jump up, shouting with wild excitement.

The ministers all nodded in agreement.

Huang Zhong leaped to his feet and laughed heartily:
"Your Majesty, we cannot let the Wei army retreat unscathed. We must launch a full-scale pursuit."

"If we can take advantage of the fact that Cao Cao is seriously wounded, the Wei army is leaderless, and their morale is low, and annihilate them in one fell swoop, even if Cao Cao is not dead, the Wei army will be doomed!"

Huang Zhong's words immediately ignited the fighting spirit of the generals.

Cao Cao's 140,000-strong army was the main force and most elite force of the Wei army.

If this force were annihilated in one fell swoop, the Wei army would not only suffer minor damage and weakened, but it would be a devastating blow.

With no more mobile troops available, Wei's northward advance will be unimpeded and unstoppable.

Not to mention the Xuchang-Yuzhou area, the entire Wei state south of the Yellow River will collapse.

The Central Plains can be pacified in the blink of an eye!
Liu Bei was naturally filled with excitement, and he immediately jumped up, ready to order his troops to attack.

"Your Majesty, what if this is a trap set by Cao Cao to lure our army into battle?"

Xiao He, however, casually countered with a question, interrupting Liu Bei's impulsive act.

The royal tent fell silent instantly.

Liu Bei's expression immediately shifted from excitement to wariness. After a moment's thought, he said:
"Bowen, do you mean that Cao Cao feigned his imminent death to lure our army out of Suiyang City in pursuit, so that he could ambush and defeat us?"

Xiao He was not certain, and only nodded slightly:
"I only have this guess. After all, Cao Cao is known for his cunning, and his subordinates, such as Cheng Yu and Jia Xu, are all treacherous individuals. We must be wary of them."

Liu Bei sat down, stroking his fine beard thoughtfully, and his boiling fighting spirit was suppressed.

Zhang Fei, however, became anxious and hurriedly said:
“Bowen, when we broke through the earthen mound last time, didn’t the King and you use that telescope to see that Cao Cao was hit by a stone bullet?”

"Those stone projectiles were so powerful that if Cao Cao had been hit, he would have been smashed to pieces on the spot, or at least half-dead."

"If that's the case, then why should we be afraid of this and that? I think Cao Cao is definitely not using a trick this time."

Zhang Fei's words resonated with some people.

The generals, in particular, were eager to make contributions in the war against Wei, and were naturally eager for battle.

Moreover, if this battle is won, it will not only be a war to recover the Central Plains, but may directly turn into a war to destroy the country.

Who wouldn't want such a tremendous achievement?

Xiao He remained calm as ever, and slowly said:
"At the time, we did see Cao Cao get hit, but we couldn't determine whether he was killed or seriously injured."

"This battle concerns the fate of the nation and the lives of 100,000 soldiers. General Yide, we cannot make a decision based solely on luck."

Zhang Fei shuddered; his burning desire for battle was instantly extinguished by Xiao Hepo.

"Bowen's words are reasonable. We cannot confirm whether Cao Cao was seriously injured by the attack."

"If that's the case, the Wei army's retreat now is indeed, as Bowen said, a possible trap set by Cao Cao. We must not act rashly."

Liu Bei stroked his fine beard and nodded repeatedly, completely calming down.

Zhang Fei scratched his head, looking unwilling, and said:

"But Your Majesty's purpose in leading your troops north is not to defend Suiyang, but to capture Xuchang and recover the Central Plains."

"Regardless of whether Cao Cao is bluffing or whether the Wei army is truly retreating or feigning a retreat, we can't just sit here in Suiyang and do nothing."

"Should we still march north?"

Zhang Fei's rant immediately jolted Liu Bei awake, and his gaze involuntarily turned to Xiao He again:

“What Yide said makes sense. According to our original strategy, after defeating the Wei army, we should drive north to take Chenliu and cut off Xuchang and even Yuzhou in the south.”

"Now that the Wei army has retreated, it seems we have no reason not to take advantage of the situation and advance north."

Xiao He smiled and said:

"We will naturally advance north, and we will pursue them. How can we miss this opportunity to switch from defense to offense and seize Chenliu?"

"However, we should pursue them, but not relentlessly. Instead, we should proceed cautiously, not giving Cao Cao any opportunity to ambush or deceive us."

Liu Bei's eyes lit up, and he immediately understood Xiao He's meaning.

Zhang Fei's plan was to send out 100,000 troops to relentlessly pursue and attack the Wei army.

If Cao Cao were truly on the verge of death, such a tactic could have taken advantage of the Wei army's wavering morale and dealt them a heavy blow.

However, if Cao Cao was treacherous, such aggressive tactics could easily lead to a rash advance by the lightly armed forces, making them vulnerable to an ambush by the Wei army.

Xiao He's tactics were much more conservative.

You, Cao Cao, are retreating? Well then, I'll make you retreat. My 100,000-strong army will follow you step by step.

If you retreat ten miles, I will advance ten miles; if you don't move, I won't move.

Liu Bei agreed wholeheartedly and then gladly said:
"Bowen's plan is the most prudent. I hereby command the army to march north from Suiyang and pursue the Wei invaders step by step!"

The order was given, and the morale of the 100,000 Chu soldiers was greatly boosted.

As a result, the gates of Suiyang City and all the camps were opened wide, and the Chu army poured out in full force to begin the pursuit of the Wei army.

To ensure the safety of the main force, Liu Bei, at Xiao He's suggestion, divided the army into two parts.

Huang Zhong led 40,000 troops as the vanguard.

Liu Bei personally led 60,000 main forces, following behind the vanguard at a distance of 20 li.

The two armies, one in front and one behind, supported each other.

The Chu army was in pursuit, while the Wei army retreated northward along the Sui River.

Seemingly fearing a large-scale pursuit by the Chu army, the Wei army did not dare to retreat too quickly, retreating north at a speed of thirty li per day.

Within seven days, the Liang Kingdom's cities, including Xincheng, Ningling, and Xiangyi, were all abandoned by the Wei army.

The Chu army won five battles without shedding a drop of blood, and its forces have already penetrated into the territory of Chenliu County, directly piercing the heart of the Wei state.

...

On that day, the Wei army abandoned its camp at Ningling City. The main force of the 60,000 Chu army disembarked one after another and took up residence in the abandoned camp left by the Wei army.

Just two days prior, Huang Zhong's vanguard abandoned their camp after passing this point and continued northward in pursuit of the Wei army.

The camp was abandoned.

Liu Bei rode slowly to inspect the camp.

"Your Majesty, we have been chasing Wei troops all the way from Suiyang to Ningling, and we can see military equipment and supplies left behind by Wei troops everywhere along the way."

"This is clearly a sign that the Wei army is retreating north in a panic, that morale is low, and that soldiers are deserting."

"I think it's most likely true that Cao Cao's life is hanging by a thread."

"In my opinion, we can no longer pursue them step by step like this. We should hurry and join forces with Huang Hansheng, and with a combined force of 100,000, we should relentlessly pursue and attack them. We must not allow the Wei army to retreat to Chenliu."

"Chenliu is a fortified city in the world. If the Wei army holds the city and does not fight, then our situation will be passive."

"The Wei army has at least 140,000 men. If they hold Chenliu and don't come out, it won't be easy for us to break through."

Zhang Fei followed closely behind, muttering to himself incessantly.

The words "eager for battle" were written all over their faces.

Liu Bei slowed his horse down and remained silent in thought.

Based on the available intelligence, Cao Cao was clearly not in imminent danger of death, but at least seriously injured.

If that's the case, wouldn't it be a missed opportunity if we didn't take advantage of the situation and relentlessly pursue and crush this main force of 140,000 Wei troops?

Just then, a messenger arrived on horseback.

"Your Majesty, General Huang has military intelligence to report."

"The Wei army stopped its northward retreat at Huating Ferry and began to dig deep trenches and build high walls, adopting a defensive posture."

“A large number of ships are heading south along the Sui River from Chenliu to Huating Ferry. General Huang judged that the main force of the Wei army would retreat to Chenliu by water in one go, but left tens of thousands of troops to defend Huating and block our army from pursuing them.”

"General Huang requests instructions on whether to launch an immediate attack on the Wei camp at Huating, so as not to miss the opportunity and allow the Wei army to retreat unscathed."

Upon hearing this battle report, Zhang Fei became even more anxious, scratching his head and cheeks.

Liu Bei's fighting spirit was also aroused, and he turned to Xiao He and Lu Xun to ask for their opinions.

"Your Majesty, I believe that the morale of the Wei army has indeed collapsed, and a large number of soldiers have deserted."

"I believe that this is an opportunity that should not be missed. Your Majesty should immediately order General Huang to launch a swift attack on Huating!"

Lu Xun spoke up resolutely, his tone firm and decisive.

Liu Bei's spirits lifted, and he quickly looked at Lu Xun, asking:

"Boyan, why are you so certain?"

Lu Xun pointed to the ground and smiled meaningfully:

"I rely on the military cooking stoves left behind by the Wei army!"

Military kitchen?

Liu Bei looked blankly at him, failing to understand the implied meaning.

“Whenever I passed by an abandoned Wei army camp, I counted the cooking stoves left in the camp and found that the number of cooking stoves was constantly decreasing.”

"A reduction in military cooking facilities means a reduction in the amount of food cooked, which in turn indicates a reduction in the number of Wei soldiers."

"Judging by common sense, this means that a large number of Wei soldiers must be fleeing."

Liu Bei's gaze fell to his feet, and he exclaimed with delight:
"If that's the case, then it confirms that a large number of Wei soldiers are deserting, and their morale must be in disarray. Should our army take advantage of this and launch a fierce attack on Huating?"

The words trailed off.

Zhao Yun stepped forward and said:

"I have read some history books and remember that when Pang Juan fought Sun Bin, Sun Bin used the method of reducing the number of cooking fires to make Pang Juan mistakenly believe that his army had fled and that his army's morale had collapsed, so he pursued and attacked relentlessly."

"In this way, Pang Juan fell into Sun Bin's trap and suffered a great defeat."

"What if Cao Cao also used this tactic, misleading our army with the order to reduce the number of cooking fires, making them think that his soldiers were deserting and that the army's morale was in chaos, thus inducing our army to launch a large-scale pursuit?"

Liu Bei suddenly recalled this anecdote and became alert again.

Lu Xun, however, seemed to have expected this, and smiled:
"What General Zilong said is exactly what Cao Cao wanted to hear."

"Given Cao Cao's cunning and Cheng Yu and Jia Xu's wisdom, they must have been able to deduce that we would come up with this plan to reduce the number of cooking stoves."

"Since we have thought of this plan to reduce the number of cooking fires, we will naturally be wary, thinking that the Wei army is imitating Sun Bin, and we will not dare to pursue them relentlessly."

"This is exactly the effect that Cao Cao wanted."

Having said that, Lu Xun took a deep breath and said confidently:

"Therefore, I believe that Cao Cao intentionally reduced the number of cooking fires so that our army would learn from Sun Bin's strategy of reducing the number of cooking fires when he defeated Pang Juan, and would not dare to pursue and attack relentlessly."

"The Wei army is actually demoralized, with a large number of soldiers deserting. They are now in a hurry to board ships at Huating Ferry in order to escape back to Chenliu in one go before their true strength is completely exposed."

"Your Majesty, I believe that we should order General Hansheng to launch a swift attack on Huating, lest we miss the opportunity to decisively defeat the Wei army!"

Liu Bei suddenly realized what was happening and quickly looked at Xiao He:

"Bowen, what do you think of Boyan's judgment?"

Xiao He remained calm, but asked:
"Boyan, let me ask you a question: what if Cao Cao had predicted your prediction?"

Lu Xun was taken aback.

Liu Bei's once clear eyes became confused again.

Zhang Fei scratched his head and complained:

"Boyan, Bowen, what exactly do you mean? What plan to reduce the number of cooking fires? What prediction of your prediction? I'm completely confused by you."

"I just want to know if there were large-scale desertions in the Wei army, if their morale had collapsed, and if we can relentlessly pursue them?"

Xiao He smiled and said slowly:
"Actually, we don't need to count the military mess halls. Whether there are more or fewer mess halls, it can be faked and doesn't prove anything."

Having said that, Xiao He stopped smiling and bowed to Liu Bei:

"Your Majesty, I believe that Your Majesty may issue an order for Huang Hansheng to lead his troops in a fierce attack on the Wei camp at Huating at dawn tomorrow."

"Our main force will not linger, but will travel day and night to Huating, and should be able to arrive by tomorrow morning."

"If Cao Cao is up to no good, he will surely ambush our vanguard with a large force. When our main force arrives in time, we can defeat him from both inside and outside."

"If the Wei army is truly in disarray, then we will join forces and defeat them in one fell swoop."

"Let's not worry about whether he's bluffing or not, or whether he's reducing or increasing the number of cooking stoves. Let him change his tactics all he wants, we'll just use this simple and brutal plan to defeat him!"

(End of this chapter)