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

Everyone held their breath; time seemed to freeze, and the surrounding silence was eerily quiet.

Cao Cao's whip froze in mid-air, his mouth gaped wide open to an exaggerated degree, and his eyes bulged as if about to burst.

He was somewhat prepared for the fall of Hulao Pass and could barely accept it.

Otherwise, he wouldn't have mustered his spirits and led an army of 60,000 to retake Hulao Pass.

But the emperor's demise was completely beyond his expectations.

This means that the banner of "righteousness" that he had personally raised was thus severed by Liu Bei.

Without this banner, his Cao Wei regime lost its legitimacy, and he also lost the political capital to contend with Liu Bei.

If he wants to become emperor in the future, he cannot take the path of abdication; he can only forcibly become emperor!
If the fall of Hulao Pass and the siege of Luoyang were devastating military blows, then the killing of the emperor was a devastating political blow.

It doesn't stop there.

Cao Tai's nephew was killed, and his head was sent back to Luoyang as a demonstration!

His eldest son, Cao Pi, has disappeared without a trace, and his fate is unknown!

These blows, like collapsing mountains, pressed down on Cao Cao.

"Heaven has forsaken me, Heaven has forsaken me!"

Cao Cao let out a mournful cry, his blood rushing to his head, and his vision went black as he fell off his horse.

"Your Majesty!"

Xu Chu and the other officials hurriedly stepped forward to help Cao Cao up.

Only Cao Ren remained frozen on his horse, looking dazed.

"My son was killed by the traitor Chu, and Tai'er died at the hands of that big-eared thief..."

Cao Ren muttered to himself, as if his soul had been shattered.

At this moment, endless regret overwhelmed him.

Back then, he was afraid that Cao Tai might be lost, so he arranged for him to be in a sinecure far from the front line, guarding Mengjin Ferry.

Who would have thought that Xiao He's elaborate scheme would turn Mengjin from the rear into the front line?

His well-intentioned arrangement, however, unexpectedly sent his son to the guillotine.

Regret, grief, self-blame... eventually turned into endless anger.

"I will slaughter all the Chu traitors! I will avenge Tai'er!"

Cao Ren, who had been lost in thought for a long time, suddenly erupted, drew his sword, and roared:
"All troops, attack the city! Flatten Hulao Pass and slaughter all the Chu invaders!"

He lost his mind and, disregarding Cao Cao's unconsciousness, ordered 60,000 troops to launch a strong attack on Hulao Pass.

Everyone around was greatly shocked.

Cao Cao has fainted, the emperor has died, and the news will soon spread throughout the army, which will surely shake the morale of the troops.

Hulao Pass is a formidable pass in the world, and its commander is Zhang Liao, a renowned general of the time.

At this point, how could you possibly succeed in attacking Hulao Pass?
The strategists all knew what was going on, but seeing Cao Ren's furious outburst, none of them dared to speak up and stop him.

"General of the Flying Cavalry!"

Only Jiang Ji rushed forward, grabbed Cao Ren's mount, and shouted:
"General of the Cavalry, you must remain calm and not act impulsively."

"The king has fainted and needs you to step forward and take charge of the overall situation. You should immediately lead the army and set up camp on the spot. How can you attack the city in a fit of rage because of the pain of losing your son?"

"Our army's morale is already in disarray. If you fail to capture Hulao Pass, and morale suffers another blow, the consequences will be unimaginable!"

Cao Ren was so enraged that he wouldn't listen to Jiang Ji's words. He pointed his whip and roared:
"Jiang Zitong, don't stop me from avenging Tai'er! Just protect the King and help him set up camp to recuperate. I will personally crush Hulao Pass and kill that traitor Zhang Liao!"

Jiang Ji dared not tolerate his recklessness, gripping the reins tightly and refusing to let go, while pleading with him.

"I told you to get out of my way!"

Driven to desperation, Cao Ren cursed loudly and lashed his horsewhip across Jiang Ji's face.

"Snapped!"

With a crisp crack of the whip, a bloody welt instantly appeared on Jiang Ji's face, causing him to grimace in pain.

Jiang Ji, however, still refused to let go, enduring the pain on his face, and said sternly:

"Cao Zixiao, as a member of the Cao clan, how can you disregard the survival of our Great Wei for your own selfish reasons!"

"If you insist on attacking Hulao Pass today, disregarding the overall situation, you'll have to step over my dead body first!"

Cao Ren's body trembled, his anger abruptly stopped, and the whip he had raised froze in mid-air.

Jiang Ji's posture of remonstrating to the death truly intimidated him, and his furious emotions finally cooled down by a third.

Seeing this, Cheng Yu stepped forward to offer his advice:

"General of the Flying Cavalry, we must avenge the Emperor and your son."

"But now that the king has fainted and the morale of the army has been shattered, it is indeed not the right time to launch a forced attack on Hulao Pass."

"I hope that General of the Cavalry will prioritize the overall situation and think things through calmly."

Cao Ren lowered his whip, and his whole body slumped down like a deflated balloon.

Jiang Ji's remonstrance, which ended in death, and the persuasion of Cheng Yu, an elder statesman, finally brought him back to his senses.

Looking at the unconscious Cao Cao, and then at the triumphant "Chu" banner at Hulao Pass, Cao Ren could only sigh and forcibly suppress his grief over the loss of his son.

"Issue my order: the army shall cease its siege and retreat three miles to set up camp!"

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

Thus, the 60,000-strong Wei army, having completed their formation, had no choice but to slowly retreat three miles and set up camp.

...

Late at night.

When Cao Cao slowly awoke, he looked up and saw another face in front of his bed.

Sima Yi.

After parting ways with Cao Pi in Wen County, he rode at full speed, traveling day and night to Hulao Pass. Coincidentally, Cao Cao had just fainted when he arrived.

"Sima Yi, what are you doing here?"

"What exactly happened in Luoyang? Why was the emperor killed by the Chu army? And what about Zi Huan? Is he alive or dead?"

Cao Cao struggled to sit up and roared at Sima Yi in a fit of excitement.

"Your Majesty, when Prince Zihuan heard that Mengjin had fallen, he knew that we had fallen into Xiao He's treacherous scheme. He originally intended to help Hao Zhao defend Luoyang to the death and wait for Your Majesty's reinforcements."

"However, Prince Zihuan thought that the emperor was also in Luoyang. If Luoyang were lost, the emperor would surely fall into Liu Bei's hands. Therefore, after weighing the options, he had no choice but to escort the emperor out of the city and cross the river at Wushejin to retreat to Henan."

"Unexpectedly, the Chu army intercepted them halfway, and the emperor suddenly attacked and wounded Prince Zihuan, taking the opportunity to jump off the imperial carriage."

"I later learned that the Emperor had died under the blades of the Chu army, and I had no choice but to escort Prince Zihuan across the river..."

Sima Yi then vividly recounted his prepared statement, and also spoke with great grief and indignation about Xiao He's sending troops to Hanoi to exterminate his Sima clan.

"My father, brothers and clansmen were wiped out. I should have been keeping vigil in Wen County, but with the country in peril, I dared not delay important military and state affairs. So I arranged for someone to send Prince Huan to Ye City to treat his injuries. I rushed here overnight to report to Your Majesty."

"Your Majesty, I humbly beseech you to annihilate Liu Bei and Xiao He, to avenge the Emperor and my fallen clan!"

Sima Yi, with tears streaming down his face and filled with grief and indignation, kowtowed deeply to Cao Cao.

Cao Cao originally intended to blame Cao Pi and himself for failing to protect the emperor, but upon hearing that Cao Pi had been injured by the emperor and that Sima Yi's clan had been exterminated by Xiao He, his resentment vanished.

"That treacherous and ungrateful Liu Huan dared to betray me!"

"That fiend Xiao He, I never expected him to be so vicious, daring to use such ruthless methods to wipe out the entire Sima clan!"

Cao Cao unleashed a torrent of angry curses through gritted teeth, then bent down to help Sima Yi up, and solemnly comforted him:

“Zhongda, Xiao He must have done this because you served me, which is why he poisoned your Sima clan.”

"Your Sima clan sacrificed themselves for my Great Wei. You, Sima Yi, are the most loyal minister of my Great Wei. I will remember you forever!"

"Rest assured, I will destroy the false Chu sooner or later, and I swear to kill Liu Bei and Xiao He, my lord and ministers, to avenge the emperor and your Sima clan!"

A strange light flashed in Sima Yi's eyes.

Cao Cao's reaction was within his expectations, but Cao Cao's praise of him as "the most loyal minister of Wei" was beyond his expectations.

Of the dozens of members of the clan, only one brother and one son survived; the price paid was undeniably tragic.

However, exchanging the lives of one's entire clan for the title of "the most loyal minister of the Great Wei" doesn't seem like such a bad deal...

Sima Yi's eyes darted around a few times, then he bowed again with a sigh:
"I am deeply grateful for Your Majesty's great kindness. I will serve the Great Wei with all my might until my dying breath to repay Your Majesty's grace!"

Cao Cao nodded slightly, clearly quite satisfied with Sima Yi's statement.

So he helped Sima Yi up and asked:
"Zhongda, in your opinion, how should I deal with this situation?"

Sima Yi was prepared and replied without hesitation:
"Although the Chu army has the advantage of naval power, its ships transporting supplies still have to pass through the heart of my Yanzhou."

"I believe that Your Majesty should mobilize troops and build boats and rafts on both sides of the Yellow River to harass the Chu army's grain ships as much as possible."

"At the same time, Your Majesty shall order the General to mobilize the troops from Guanzhong and Longxi to attack Hangu Pass from the west, while Your Majesty shall personally lead your subjects to attack Hulao Pass."

"Our army is launching a strong attack from multiple fronts. If that traitor Xiao fails to capture Luoyang after a prolonged siege and his supply lines are disrupted, he will surely have to withdraw sooner or later."

"Thus, the siege of Luoyang will be lifted."

Sima Yi presented a lengthy and detailed strategy.

Cao Cao stroked his beard and nodded, the gloom on his face dissipating slightly.

"However, the key to my strategy lies in whether Hao Bodao can defend Luoyang!"

Sima Yi then added a sentence, turning his gaze to Cao Ren.

All eyes turned to Cao Ren.

After all, Hao Zhao was recommended by Cao Ren, so he was the most qualified to speak on whether or not Luoyang could be defended.

Cao Ren, however, remained resolute and proudly cupped his hands in a gesture of respect:

"Your Majesty, I am not mistaken. Hao Zhao is exceptionally skilled in defending cities. Since I dare to recommend him, I believe he can definitely hold Luoyang!"

Seeing Cao Ren's confidence, Cao Cao had no more worries, so he rallied his spirits and shouted:
"In that case, let's proceed according to Zhongda's plan."

"By my order, starting tomorrow, launch a relentless attack on Hulao Pass day and night!"

The ministers readily accepted the order.

...

In Luoyang, while Xiahou Dun and Cao Cao launched a fierce attack on Hulao Pass and Hangu Pass, the Chu army had already set up its encirclement and was about to begin its siege of Luoyang.

Xiao He did not immediately order an attack on the city. Instead, he summoned his generals in the central command tent to discuss strategies for breaking through the city.

"That Hao Zhao is just an unknown soldier. Our army will surround the city from all sides and launch a strong attack. We will surely capture Luoyang within five days."

"The garrison in Luoyang is only five thousand strong, while our army outnumbers them by at least six times. Taking Luoyang will be a piece of cake."

"If that doesn't work, we'll build massive quantities of divine thunder cannons to blast down the walls of Luoyang, then our army can surge in..."

The generals were determined to win, and their words showed disdain for Hao Zhao, but they were also very confident in capturing Luoyang.

"Everyone."

Xiao He gestured for everyone to stop:

"This Hao Zhao is not as bad as you think. In terms of defending the city, he is no less than Huo Zhongmiao."

"If you underestimate him like this and launch a full-scale attack on Luoyang, you'll probably lose a few teeth."

The generals were shocked and looked at each other with strange expressions.

Clearly, no one expected that their Grand Commandant Xiao would have such a high opinion of Hao Zhao, a minor character.

No less than Huo Jun!
Who is Huo Jun? He was the gatekeeper who held off Cao Cao's army of over 100,000 with only 5,000 men in the Battle of Fancheng.

For a moment, the generals' excited and confident spirit cooled down a bit, and the discussion quieted down.

In the ensuing silence, a young strategist stepped forward, cupped his hands, and said:

"Grand Commandant, I believe that in our campaign to capture Luoyang, winning hearts and minds should be our priority, while attacking the city itself is secondary!" (End of Chapter)