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

Cao Cao's body trembled slightly, and he glared at Cheng Yu.

Cao Chong, Sima Yi, and the others were all taken aback.

Cheng Yu is determined to defend Puyang to the death!
Yanzhou has been abandoned, and all troops have been withdrawn to Hebei. Three hundred thousand Chu troops will arrive soon, yet you insist on holding Puyang?
are you crazy?
“Puyang is the capital of Dongjun. The city is well-fortified, and the surplus grain in the city is enough to support 7,000 soldiers for one or two years.”

"I believe that as long as I stay, even if Liu Bei has a million-strong army besieging the city, I can defend Puyang as solid as a rock."

"By holding Puyang, I have planted a nail for Your Majesty south of the Yellow River, ensuring that the banner of our Great Wei will never fall and that the people of Yanzhou can retain a glimmer of hope."

“When Your Majesty regroups and recovers its strength, and then leads your army south to reclaim Yanzhou, your minister and Puyang City will be able to act as your inside agents, allowing Your Majesty to easily gain a foothold on the south bank.”

"This is why I am staying to defend Puyang."

Cheng Yu explained his motives in a very detailed and eloquent manner.

A glint of light suddenly flashed in Cao Cao's dull eyes.

It would be a lie to say that they didn't want to recapture Yanzhou.

The words he just said to Cao Chong were merely angry outbursts born of repeated defeats and a severe blow to his morale and confidence.

Once he has healed his wounds and regained his strength, how could he not lead his troops across the river to fight again in the Central Plains?

But at that time, they were blocked north of the Yellow River. How easy would it be to break through the Yellow River?
If Cheng Yu can hold onto Puyang, it will be equivalent to securing a ferry crossing on the south bank and a foothold.

If he had crossed the Yangtze River with his army at that time, used Puyang as a breakthrough point, and recovered Yanzhou, wouldn't it have been much easier?
However, all the counties in Yanzhou were abandoned, leaving only the isolated city of Puyang to defend. Who would have the courage to take on such a near-death mission?
Cheng Yu, however, stepped forward and volunteered to defend Puyang to the death, which was exactly what he wanted.

“Cheng Zhongde, you are from Yanzhou. You know that defending Puyang is a matter of life and death, yet you still volunteer to defend it to the death.”

"You wouldn't be using this as an excuse to defect and join that big-eared thief, would you?"

Cao Ren, however, remained indifferent, throwing cold water on the situation with a sarcastic tone.

The death of his eldest son Cao Tai and his own injury by Zhang Liao were both inextricably linked to Cheng Yu's miscalculations.

His questioning at this moment was inevitably tinged with emotion.

Cao Cao was startled, and a hint of doubt suddenly flashed in his eyes.

Cao Ren's concerns were not without merit.

Cheng Yu was from Yanzhou, and with his ancestral homeland of Yanzhou about to fall, it seemed reasonable for him to switch allegiance to Liu Bei.

"Cao Zixiao, you underestimate me, Cheng Yu!"

Cheng Yu snorted coldly and said proudly:
“I, Cheng Yu, have followed Your Majesty in starting the uprising in Dongjun for nearly twenty years. I have gone through countless hardships and dangers with Your Majesty, and I have never wavered in my loyalty to Your Majesty.”

“When Lü Bu attacked Yan Province, I did not betray Your Majesty. When Your Majesty was in grave danger during the Battle of Guandu, I did not betray Your Majesty either. How much more so now?”

"Besides, I have already sent my wife, children, and the entire Cheng clan to Ye City. If I had any intention of betraying the King, why would I have done this?"

"Cao Zixiao, I can tell you, even if you betray the King, I, Cheng Yu, will never betray the King!"

Cheng Yu was furious and, spitting as he launched into a tirade against Cao Ren.

Cao Ren was so angered that his face turned red and he was speechless.

Cao Cao's suspicions dissipated, and he immediately said seriously:
“Zhongde, you have followed me for twenty years. We are not only ruler and subject, but also sworn brothers who have shared life and death. I have no doubt about your loyalty to me!”

Cheng Yu's expression changed from indignation to gratitude, and he bowed respectfully.
"Your Majesty knows your subject well. I will gladly die for Your Majesty to repay your kindness!"

"If Your Majesty trusts me, please grant my request. I will risk my life to defend Puyang for Your Majesty!"

Cao Cao quickly helped Cheng Yu up, his eyes filled with tears. He then praised Cheng Yu profusely.

The two presented a picture of mutual understanding between ruler and subject.

He acted as if nothing had ever happened when he was furious and almost killed Cheng Yu during the great defeat at Xingyang.

"Then it's settled. I'll give you seven thousand elite troops, Zhongde. You must hold Puyang and wait for me to regroup and make a comeback to reclaim the Central Plains!"

Cao Cao patted Cheng Yu heavily on the shoulder and made his decision.

Cheng Yu was overjoyed and hurriedly accepted the order, wanting to express his determination again.

At this moment, Cao Chong couldn't help but remind him:

“Father, Commandant Cheng’s courage in standing guard over Puyang alone is truly commendable.”

"But over the years, every city that Liu Bei attacked has been breached without exception."

"Moreover, the Chu army now numbers nearly 300,000 men and is coming in a fierce attack. Can Commandant Cheng and his 7,000 soldiers really hold Puyang?"

Cao Cao's heart skipped a beat, and his expression suddenly changed.

Yingtian, Hefei, Shouchun, Xiapi, Xuchang, Luoyang…

The names of fortified cities flashed before my eyes in an instant.

Which of these cities wasn't renowned as the most fortified city in the world?

But which one could withstand Liu Bei's iron fist?
As Cao Chong said, why should Cheng Yu and Puyang City be an exception?
Cao Cao suddenly realized that the hope that Cheng Yu wanted to hold onto was actually so slim as to be negligible.

“Zhongde, Cang Shu is right, you…”

"Your Majesty!"

Cheng Yu bowed again and said with deep emotion:

"Your Majesty, I will do everything in my power to defend Puyang to the death."

"Even if the day comes that Puyang cannot be defended, I will live and die with Puyang, and die for Your Majesty!"

"I still have a plan. Even if I die, I can still severely damage the Chu bandits and make that big-eared thief pay a heavy price."

"I even have the chance to perish together with Liu Bei!"

Upon hearing this, everyone was taken aback.

Cao Cao's hesitant gaze was instantly replaced by surprise.

Cheng Yu was determined to die for his cause and was willing to live and die with Puyang City. He had no doubt about this unwavering loyalty.

But Cheng Yu still had a plan that could severely damage the Chu army, and even lead to his own demise with Liu Bei.
This was completely unexpected by Cao Cao.

"Zhongde, what brilliant plan do you have to kill that big-eared thief?"

Cao Cao suppressed his surprise and asked impatiently.

Cheng Yu shook his head and said seriously:
"This plan of mine concerns the survival of our Great Wei and to whom the world belongs. Please forgive me for not being able to speak of it clearly."

"Your Majesty, I only ask that you trust me and give me a chance to die for Your Majesty and turn the tide for our Great Wei!"

Turn the tide for the nation!

These four words, like a sharp blade, instantly shattered Cao Cao's remaining hesitation.

"Very well, since Zhongde has such confidence, I will trust you!"

Cao Cao threw away his cane, straightened his clothes, and bowed laboriously to Cheng Yu:
"Zhongde, my life and the survival of our Great Wei are all in your hands."

"Please accept my bow, Cao Cao!"

Cao Cao bowed as well, and Cao Ren and the others had no choice but to reluctantly follow suit.

Cao Cao's bow deeply moved Cheng Yu, and tears immediately welled up in his eyes.

"Your Majesty, I am departing. Take care!"

With tears in his eyes, Cheng Yu bowed deeply to Cao Cao.

She then wiped away her tears, turned around and strode off the ship without looking back.

Cao Cao, staggering, chased after Cheng Yu to the side of the boat, watching him disappear into the throng of people.

"Let's set sail and cross the river."

After a long while, Cao Cao waved his hand weakly.

The mooring lines were loosened, the sails were hoisted, and the warship slowly sailed away from Puyang Ferry, heading towards the north bank.

The wind on the river was strong, and it felt like a knife on the face.

Cao Cao, however, did not seek shelter in the cabin. Instead, he stood motionless at the stern, leaning on his cane, gazing at the south bank.

As they got further and further away from the south bank, Cao Cao's reluctance grew stronger.

Even the corners of her mouth twitched slightly, and a hint of tears welled up in her eyes.

"Farewell, Central Plains. I hope that one day, I, Cao Cao, can conquer it again..."

A sigh of helplessness, yet also of reluctance, echoed from the stern of the ship.

Cao Chong, Cao Ren, Sima Yi, and other ministers all sighed in unison…

Within two days, tens of thousands of Wei troops crossed the river and retreated to Hebei.

Cao Cao immediately ordered that a large number of troops be stationed in important towns such as Liyang on the north bank of the river, and that laborers be mobilized to build fortifications, ditches and high walls to prevent the Chu army from crossing the river and invading Hebei.

Cheng Yu then led 7,000 elite Wei troops to Puyang City, where they worked day and night to build fortifications and strengthen the city walls.

To ensure the loyalty of these 7,000 Wei soldiers, Cheng Yu selected soldiers who were all from Hebei, whose wives, children, and elderly parents were all in Hebei. This way, he could ensure that they would have something to care about and would not dare to betray him in the face of danger.

To demonstrate his determination to burn his boats, Cheng Yu ordered a fire to be set on fire after the Wei army crossed the river, burning Puyang Ferry and all the boats and rafts to the ground.

This fire also completely extinguished the hopes of the seven thousand Wei soldiers who wished to abandon the city and flee north. These Hebei soldiers, in order to live and reunite with their wives and children, had no choice but to defend Puyang to the death.

As for the tens of thousands of officials and civilians from Yanzhou who remained at Puyang Ferry, Cheng Yu also destroyed their hopes of fleeing to Hebei with a single fire.

Thus, these tens of thousands of people from Yanzhou could only scatter and flee like frightened lambs amidst a chorus of curses directed at Cheng Yu.

Cheng Yu stood atop the city wall, expressionless, watching his fellow villagers leave, grumbling and cursing.

“Commander Cheng, you are from Yanzhou. How can you treat your fellow townsmen like this? How will your descendants live in Yanzhou?”

After hesitating for a long time, Jiang Ji finally couldn't help but ask.

On the day he saved Cheng Yu, Cao Cao cut off several of his fingers. After that, he stayed in Puyang to recuperate and was never summoned by Cao Cao again.

Perhaps unsure how to deal with Jiang Ji, Cao Cao ordered that Jiang Ji be left in Puyang to assist Cheng Yu when crossing the river.

Cheng Yu detected a hint of dissatisfaction in Jiang Ji's words, but he simply sneered and said dismissively:
“After the Battle of Yanzhou, I, Cheng Yu, was already infamous in the eyes of the people of Yanzhou. Let them curse me if they want, why should I care?”

Jiang Ji was slightly taken aback, then his heart tightened.

Back then, when Cao Cao and Lü Bu were fighting for control of Yan Province, Yan Province suffered a severe drought, and both armies had to halt their battles due to lack of food.

To solve Cao Cao's food shortage, Cheng Yu made a drastic decision: he used human flesh to make dried meat to serve as military rations.

In chaotic times, cannibalism is not uncommon.

Whether you're a soldier or a commoner, you can eat in private, as long as you don't make a fuss about it. If you eat openly, everyone will turn a blind eye.

After all, people need to survive first.

However, it was unprecedented for someone like Cheng Yu, an official, to openly organize his soldiers to eat human flesh.

From then on, Cheng Yu's reputation in Yanzhou became infamous.

Even after Cao Cao established the Wei Kingdom, he remembered Cheng Yu's contributions and originally wanted to appoint him as one of the Three Dukes. However, because of his dark history, which was criticized, he could only appoint him as Commandant of the Guards.

Back then, Cheng Yu was willing to use his fellow villagers as human food to protect Cao Cao. Today, he only set a fire, cutting off his fellow villagers' hope of escaping north to Hebei. What does that amount to?

"For the sake of the King of Wei's foundation and the great Wei dynasty, he disregarded his own life and posthumous reputation. Among all the ministers of our great Wei, only Commandant Cheng is willing to do so."

"I, Ji, am ashamed to admit that I cannot match Commandant Cheng's loyalty to our Great Wei..."

Jiang Ji then bowed to Cheng Yu, expressing his deep admiration.

Cheng Yu smiled, but instead helped Jiang Ji up and bowed respectfully.
"On that day in the tent, Zitong risked his life to shield Yu from a sword in order to save Yu. Yu didn't even have time to thank him for saving his life."

"Zitong, please accept my bow, Cheng Yu!"

Jiang Ji quickly helped Cheng Yu up, but said calmly:
"Commander Cheng, you are exaggerating. Ji stopped the King of Wei only out of a sense of justice. If it were anyone else, Ji would have acted justly."

"Ji only did what a subject should do, Commandant Cheng, there's no need for thanks."

Cheng Yu understood Jiang Ji's implication and thus put away the gift.

Just then, the sentry on the city wall suddenly screamed:
"Chu troops have appeared in the south of the city."

"Warships appeared in the upper reaches of the Yellow River, also flying the banner of the Chu army."

"Chu cavalry are approaching Puyang along the south bank."

On the city wall, alarms were immediately raised.

Cheng Yu and Jiang Ji turned their heads and saw that, sure enough, the Chu army's land, water, infantry, and cavalry forces were attacking from all directions, including the east, west, south, and the Yellow River.

"Liu Bei, you've finally arrived."

"If the King of Wei had listened to me back then, he would have killed you long ago. How could you be so arrogant today?"

Cheng Yu clenched his fists, gritted his teeth, and spoke with deep regret.

After Liu Bei lost Xuzhou, he was forced to flee to Xuchang and took refuge under Cao Cao's roof.

He and Guo Jia, along with several others, repeatedly persuaded Cao Cao to kill Liu Bei.

However, Cao Cao was wary of Liu Bei's reputation and wanted to use Liu Bei's influence in Xuzhou to deal with Lü Bu, which is why he rejected their request.

For him, the greatest regret in his life was that he failed to persuade Cao Cao to kill Liu Bei, which ultimately led to the disaster he is in today.

"Three hundred thousand Chu troops, Commandant Cheng, can we really hold Puyang?"

Jiang Ji frowned deeply, his eyes and tone clearly revealing a lack of confidence.

Cheng Yu stared intently at the approaching Chu army and murmured:
"Even if I cannot hold Puyang, I will make Liu Bei pay a heavy price..."

Jiang Ji glanced at Cheng Yu secretly, sensing something meaningful in his words.

Cheng Yu turned around to face Jiang Ji and asked seriously:

"Zitong, we are both subjects of Wei. Are you willing to fight to the death with me, Cheng Yu, to serve our country?"

Jiang Ji felt a slight tremor in his heart, and a surge of passion welled up within him.

Then, with a bow, he said with a sigh:

"Since I, Jiang Ji, am a subject of Wei, I will go through fire and water for the Great Wei without hesitation."

"I am willing to follow Lord Cheng and fight to the death for the Great Wei!"

Cheng Yu nodded slightly, a look of satisfaction on his face.

Within two days, 300,000 Chu troops gathered at the foot of Puyang City.

The army set up camps on all sides, surrounding Puyang City like an iron barrel.

Gan Ning's naval forces also blockaded the Yellow River, cutting off the connection between the north and south banks.

During the siege, the various prefectures and kingdoms of Yanzhou had already surrendered at the mere sight of the enemy, changing their flags and becoming the property of the Chu state.

The entire area south of the Yellow River and east of Hangu Pass in Henan Province had been annexed by Chu.

Puyang became the last city of Wei south of the Yellow River.

A truly isolated city!

Dusk.

Liu Bei, Xiao He, and Guan Yu were already standing side by side on the watchtower, gazing at the situation of Puyang City.

"The entire Henan region is now under our control. What use is this mere isolated city of Puyang to the overall situation?"

"Bowen, what do you think Cao Cao and Cheng Yu, the ruler and his minister, really intend to do with this?"

Liu Bei was clearly quite puzzled by Cheng Yu's "suicidal" behavior.

"Cao Cao's move is probably to use this isolated city to show that he has not given up the Henan region, and to use Puyang as a foothold for his future southward expansion."

As for Cheng Yu…

Xiao He looked across the land of Yanzhou and continued:
"Back then, Cheng Yu used the meat jerky made from the people of Yanzhou to serve as military rations for Cao Cao, which made him infamous in Yanzhou."

"If Cao Cao had gained control of the country, history could have covered up his crimes. But if Cao Wei had been destroyed, Cheng Yu would have been infamous for eternity in history."

"In my opinion, Cheng Yu is willing to risk his life to die for Cao Cao. Regardless of whether Cao Wei is destroyed or not, he can at least earn the reputation of a loyal minister in history."

Liu Bei seemed to understand something and couldn't help but recall the past.

When Cao Cao was short of food, Cheng Yu personally led an expedition to plunder all the food supplies from the people of his hometown, Dong'e County, causing most of the people in Dong'e County to starve to death.

Afterwards, Cheng Yu saw that the grain was still insufficient, so he simply used the human flesh of the people in his hometown to make dried meat to serve as grain for Cao Cao.

Therefore, Cheng Yu earned the infamous title of "Ghoul of Yanzhou".

Bearing such a bad reputation, even the maverick Cao Cao dared not appoint him as one of the Three Dukes, but could only appoint him as the Commandant of the Guards.

Cheng Yu only has two ways to clear his name.

Either Cao Cao gained power and was protected by the halo of being a founding hero, which would have made historians somewhat more lenient towards him.

Alternatively, they could die for Cao Cao, using the reputation of a loyal minister to overshadow their infamy as a "ghoul."

Upon understanding this, a hint of disgust flashed across Liu Bei's face:

"The traitor Cao Cao massacred the city, and Cheng Yu ate people. These two, lord and minister, are indeed birds of a feather, sharing the same stench!"

Guan Yu's half-open eyes also burned with hatred as he stroked his magnificent beard and said:
"Your Majesty, have you forgotten that Cheng Yu not only eats people, but also repeatedly instigated Cao Cao to kill your brother when he was in Xuchang?"

"This thief is our enemy, both nationally and personally; how can we let him off lightly!"

Liu Bei suddenly recalled this old incident, a murderous glint flashing in his eyes, and then looked at Xiao He:
“Yun Chang is right. This traitor has a national and personal grudge against me, and I will not spare him.”

"Bowen, in your opinion, how should I break through this city of Puyang?"

Xiao He pointed at Puyang and sneered:
"With my 300,000 troops, each one could drown Puyang with a single spit. Why bother with any more tricks or schemes?"

"Your Majesty, surround the city from all sides and launch a fierce attack. Raze Puyang to the ground as soon as possible, lest the city run out of food and supplies and that traitor Cheng Yu start eating people again."

Liu Bei's expression hardened slightly, and his eyes instantly hardened with determination.

So he took a deep breath and pointed:
"By my order, from this moment forward, 300,000 troops shall launch a relentless attack on Puyang from all sides, day and night!"

"Within ten days, I will have Cheng Yu's head roll!" (End of Chapter)