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

The attendants hurriedly relayed orders.

Cao Ren forced himself to calm down, ordered the city gates to be closed, and immediately mobilized laborers to reinforce the city's defenses as quickly as possible.

The generals were in a panic and could only hastily accept their orders.

Le Jin, however, was unwilling to accept this and angrily cupped his hands in a salute:

"General of the Flying Cavalry, although we suffered a defeat in this battle, we still managed to bring back six or seven thousand soldiers. Together with the troops in our city, we still have more than twenty thousand men."

"Why don't we launch a full-scale attack and break out of the city, seize the ferry crossing before the enemy has established a firm camp, and drive the Chu bandits across the river down the Yellow River!"

"We may still have a chance to turn the tide!"

This statement came out.

Cheng Wu's eyes flashed with a sharp light, and he quickly chimed in:
“General You is right. If we can retake the ferry, we can prevent Liu Bei’s army from landing on the north bank and avoid being besieged in Liyang.”

"Otherwise, if we allow the 300,000-strong army of the Big Ears to land, our Liyang City will be completely surrounded, and we will be trapped in an isolated city, with our fate uncertain."

Cao Ren felt a chill run down his spine.

Trapped in a deserted city, their fate hangs in the balance...

Those eight words were like a bucket of ice water, poured firmly over his head, sending a chill down his spine.

Cheng Yu's tragic end involuntarily came to mind.

If Cao Cao fails to defeat Liu Bei and is trapped in an isolated city, wouldn't he be following in Cheng Yu's footsteps?
"General of the Flying Cavalry, you must not fight again!"

Seeing that Cao Ren was once again showing signs of wanting to fight, Jia Kui hurriedly advised him:
"Given the ferocity and elite strength of the Chu army, and the current morale of our troops, even though we have the advantage in numbers, rashly venturing out of the city would likely result in an uncertain outcome."

"If we are defeated again, Liyang will surely fall, our Hebei borders will be wide open, and the Chu army will be able to advance north and directly threaten Yecheng."

"At that time, Hebei was in danger, and the Great Wei was in danger!"

A single sentence was enough to enlighten me.

Cao Ren broke out in a cold sweat and angrily rebuked the two men:
"You two had the upper hand just now, yet you were still defeated by the Chu bandits. Now that the two Chu bandits have joined forces and secured the ferry crossing!"

"You are still overestimating yourselves and actually want to fight. Are you courting death and making me the sinner who caused the downfall of the Great Wei Kingdom?!"

Le Jin and Cheng Wu were thoroughly humiliated and embarrassed, but they still wanted to say more.

"Enough! Stop talking nonsense!"

Cao Ren waved his hand to interrupt, pointing at the two men and scolding them:

"If it weren't for your strong request to fight, Yue Jin, and your insistence on sending troops, Cheng Wu, would I have fallen for Xiao He's treacherous scheme, losing thousands of infantry and cavalry for nothing, and even losing our great general Chang Diao?"

"How can I be misled by you two again and risk the fall of Liyang by forcibly going into battle!"

"My mind is made up. I will hold Liyang and await Your Majesty's reinforcements."

"Anyone who dares to speak of going to war again will be court-martialed!"

Le Jin and Cheng Wu shuddered and had no choice but to shut their mouths, not daring to say another word.

Cao Ren then climbed back onto the city wall, his gaze once again fixed on the ferry crossing not far away.

At this moment, at noon, those battle flags bearing the character "Chu" were clearly visible.

In a daze, he seemed to see Hao Zhao, the traitorous general, standing at the camp gate, looking at Liyang City with a mocking gaze.

"You treacherous Hao, the biggest mistake of my life was recommending you, you ungrateful bastard!"

"If I don't personally tear you to pieces, I, Cao Ren, swear I am not worthy of being called a man!"

Cao Ren's face was contorted with rage, but he could only pound his fists on the battlements while uttering a vicious oath.

...

Yin of Henan, Mengjin.

One by one, the warships slowly approached the shore and entered the ferry terminal.

At the dock, the long-waiting laborers, under the supervision of Huo Jun, the governor of Henan, quickly set to work and unloaded the mountains of grain and fodder onto the warships.

"Your Majesty has ordered that 200,000 bushels of grain be prepared in Mengjin ahead of time, and 5,000 laborers have been mobilized. All the grain will be loaded onto the ships before noon."

Huo Jun, having boarded the flagship, bowed and reported to Liu Bei.

Liu Bei nodded in satisfaction and praised Huo Jun.

Previously, in order to make the attack on Guanzhong more realistic, all the grain and fodder transported from various states were gathered in Luoyang.

Now that the 300,000-strong army has suddenly turned back eastward to attack Liyang, so much grain and fodder will have to be transported from Luoyang to Liyang again, and tens of thousands of laborers will have to be conscripted.

So Liu Bei followed Xiao He's strategy and led his army eastward down the river. When they passed Mengjin, they took the grain and supplies with them to Liyang.

Anyway, it's just a matter of going by the Yellow River waterway, so it's just something to do along the way.

In this way, only a few thousand laborers need to be mobilized, without having to mobilize a large number of people.

"Bowen's 'stealing a sheep while he was at it' was truly a brilliant plan that killed two birds with one stone."

Liu Bei clicked his tongue in admiration, then instructed Huo Jun:
"How much grain and fodder does Luoyang have left? Try to bring more. The more bags of grain and fodder we take with us, the fewer people we need to conscript. We should try our best to avoid burdening the people."

Upon hearing this, Huo Jun immediately made arrangements to transfer another 100,000 bushels of grain from nearby granaries.

Xiao He stopped Huo Jun, his gaze turning towards Li Yang with a smile:

"I have calculated that the battle between Hao Zhao and Deng Ai should have already come to a conclusion, and the good news may be arriving soon."

"We have to race against Cao Cao to get to Liyang, complete the encirclement of Liyang, and set up a defense to prevent Cao Cao from returning to reinforce. I'm afraid there won't be any extra time to pack more supplies."

No sooner had he finished speaking than Ma Su rushed over excitedly, holding a battle report in his hand, and exclaimed:
"Your Majesty, Shi Zai's report of victory, covering eight hundred li, has just arrived."

"The two of them defeated the Wei invaders at Liyang Ferry yesterday. Deng Shizai also killed the enemy general Chang Diao in battle. Our army annihilated nearly 5,000 enemy infantry and cavalry."

"They have now established a camp at the ferry and gained a firm foothold. Your Majesty, please have my main force go there to join them as soon as possible."

Liu Bei was overjoyed and quickly took the battle report from Ma Su's hand to read it.

After glancing at it once, Liu Bei burst into laughter:
"Bowen, just as you predicted, Cao Ren was lured out by Hao Bodao and suffered a great defeat at the hands of those two young men!"

"You've used the same old trick of luring the tiger away from the mountain, and you've succeeded!"

Xiao He, however, had anticipated this and simply smiled faintly:
"Now that the first two steps have been completed, the next step is the third. Your Majesty should lead my 300,000 soldiers to launch a surprise attack and march on Liyang without stopping."

Liu Bei laughed heartily and then patted Huo Jun on the shoulder:
"Zhongmiao, you don't need to transport any more grain. You can transport the remaining grain to Liyang later."

"I must set off immediately, head straight for Liyang, and strike back at Cao Cao!"

Huo Jun smiled, bowed, and said:
"Your Majesty, please rest assured in your attack on Liyang. I will ensure that the provisions are delivered to the front lines in a timely manner and will never let Your Majesty worry about supplies."

So the Chu army loaded 200,000 bushels of grain and fodder and immediately set sail, heading straight for Liyang with the help of the current and wind.

...

Hedong County, Pubanjin.

Boats and rafts, fully loaded with Wei soldiers, were also crossing the river.

The mighty Yellow River comes from the west, makes a big bend at the Hetao line, forming a "几" shape, and its flow direction changes to from north to south.

Once you cross the Yellow River and reach the west bank, you'll find yourself in Fengyi County, one of the Three Commanderies of Guanzhong.

"Pass down the order to speed up the crossing of the river. I need all 90,000 troops to reach the west bank before nightfall."

Cao Cao pointed with his whip, his tone revealing a hint of urgency.

After all, Liu Bei was leading an army of 320,000 men, marching in a mighty force toward Tongguan. The sheer size of his army was unprecedented.

Even though Xiahou Dun had led 40,000 troops to Tongguan, and even though Tongguan was a formidable pass that could hold off ten thousand men, Cao Cao was still uneasy.

The sooner he arrives at Tongguan, the sooner he can feel at ease.

"According to the urgent report sent back by the General yesterday, Liu Bei's vanguard has just passed Shanxian, and his main force should have just passed Henan Yin, and is still several days away from Tongguan."

"Our army will cross the Yellow River tonight and arrive at Tongguan by the day after tomorrow at the latest. We should be able to join forces with the General before the Big Ears bandit."

"Your subject believes that we still have plenty of time."

Cao Chong, who was behind Cao Cao, noticed his anxiety and offered some words of comfort.

Cao Cao's tightly furrowed brows relaxed slightly, but he sighed softly:

"I have naturally read your Uncle Yuanrang's military report, but the sooner we arrive at Tongguan, the sooner I can feel at ease."

"Given Xiao He's omnipotence, I fear he might create some divine weapon again. Your Uncle Yuan Rang will be caught off guard, and with fewer troops, he might not be able to withstand it."

The person Cao Cao feared most was naturally Xiao He.

Back in the Battle of Suiyang, Xiao He casually pulled out the Divine Thunder Cannon, thwarted his earthen mound plan, and even blasted him into a cripple.

That blast truly left him with psychological trauma.

Now, Liu Bei knows that Tongguan is a natural fortress, a place where one man can hold off ten thousand, yet he still wants to mobilize the entire army of the country to attack it. Where does his confidence come from?

Is it merely because the State of Chu is powerful, and because the Chu army is numerous, strong, and well-equipped?
Is it possible that Xiao He and that sorcerer created some earth-shattering siege weapon for Liu Bei, even more powerful than the Divine Thunder Cannon, capable of breaching Tongguan Pass?

That's why Liu Bei was so confident and fearless, leading an army of 300,000 men to march on Tongguan.

With such worries in mind, Cao Cao naturally wished he could grow a pair of invisible wings and fly to Tongguan in the blink of an eye.

Hearing what Cao Cao said, Cao Chong also felt apprehensive and quickly said:

“Father is right. Xiao He is unfathomable and cannot be judged by ordinary standards. We must not underestimate him in the slightest.”

"We should indeed hurry up and cross the river. The sooner we reach Tongguan, the sooner we can feel at ease."

Cao Cao's tense brows relaxed at this moment, and he smiled with feigned ease:

"You need not worry too much. I am merely concerned. As long as our army arrives at Tongguan in time, even if that sorcerer has indeed forged some divine weapon—"

No sooner had he finished speaking than a rider galloped up, dismounted, and knelt before Cao Cao's horse.

"Your Majesty, a urgent military report from the General of the Cavalry!"

The messenger held the silk scroll high.

Cao Ren's urgent report?

Cao Cao stared at the silk scroll, his smile vanishing, and a sense of foreboding suddenly crept into his heart.

Cao Ren was stationed at Liyang.

Currently, Liu Bei's army of over 300,000 is on its way to attack Tongguan, which poses a threat to Liyang.

Why would Cao Ren suddenly send such an urgent report at this time?

Cao Cao swallowed hard, hesitated for a moment, but still took the military report and nervously unfolded it to read it.

The next instant, Cao Cao shuddered, his eyes widened, and he gasped.

"This...how is this possible?" (End of Chapter)