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

Should the people be handed over to Liu Bei?

Everyone was bewildered, unable to grasp the meaning of Cao Chong's words for a moment.

“Liu Bei has always been benevolent and righteous. If I drive all the people out of the city, Liu Bei will surely treat them well.”

“If the people of a city leave the city, the grain and fodder they leave behind can belong to our army, and we can continue to supply them for several more months.”

Cao Chong revealed his motives.

Xinpi and the others suddenly realized what was happening, and their spirits lifted.

Cao Chong didn't want to rob the people of their grain and leave behind a bad reputation, but he had no choice but to solve the problem of grain shortage.

So they had no choice but to settle for second best and drive the people out of Ye City, forcing them to leave their grain behind.

"Young Master Cangshu's plan is truly a brilliant one that achieves the best of both worlds!"

"Our army not only gets supplies but also avoids infamy, and we can also feed tens of thousands of people to the big-eared traitor, increasing his supply burden. Isn't this a win-win situation? It's a three-birds-with-one-stone strategy!"

Xin Pi praised Cao Chong highly and immediately showered him with flattery.

Cao Chong frowned and sighed helplessly:
"The people of Ye City are subjects of my Great Wei, and should be protected by my Cao family. Now, not only can I not protect them, but I also have to drive them out of their own homes. I am truly ashamed."

Sinpi, feeling utterly stifled by the cold shoulder, could only swallow hard and cough awkwardly.

The generals' spirits soared, and their morale was boosted.

At this moment, Chen Tai said in a deep voice:
"The people's food rations were already very limited. They were only fed the bare minimum each day to ensure they wouldn't starve. They didn't have much money to spare."

"Even if we drive him out of the city and take their supplies, we can only last for two or three months at most."

"Young Master Cangshu's plan is only a temporary solution; it can only alleviate the immediate crisis, but it still cannot allow us to hold out until the Big-Eared Bandit retreats."

The hall fell silent instantly, and the joy on the faces of the generals was extinguished by Chen Tai's cold water.

Xin Pi hurriedly counted on his fingers for a while, then frowned:
“My lord, Xuanbo has a point. Relying solely on the grain left behind by the people will only delay the inevitable when the food runs out, but it cannot solve the problem at its root.”

Cao Chong's heart skipped a beat, and he quickly lowered his head to calculate, his face gradually clouding over again.

Discussions arose in the hall, and the generals became anxious once again.

Chen Tai's eyes darted around a few times, then he cupped his hands and said:

"Young Master Cang Shu, if we want to solve the food problem once and for all, we must open up the food supply route to the outside world. Please, Your Majesty, send another batch of food to Ye City!"

Everyone was shocked and looked at Chen Tai with surprise.

You make it sound so easy, kid.

With Liu Bei's 300,000-strong army surrounding Ye City, how could Cao Cao possibly send supplies in?

Will it fly in?

"Xuanbo, you know this is impossible!"

Cao Chong's gaze seemed to be asking Chen Tai, "Are you just daydreaming?"
Chen Tai opened his mouth as if to speak, but swallowed his words and glanced back at his colleagues.

Since Liu Bei was able to obtain the layout map of the Ye City granary, he must have had an inside agent in the city to pass on intelligence to him.

Perhaps among the generals present was Liu Bei's inside man.

With this in mind, Chen Tai leaned closer and whispered something in Cao Chong's ear.

As Cao Chong listened, his tightly furrowed brows gradually relaxed, and his dull eyes began to brighten.

"What do you think of this plan, Young Master Cang Shu?"

Cao Chong stood up and paced around the hall, unable to make a decision for a long time.

After weighing his options for a long time, Cao Chong took a deep breath and resolutely said:

"While your plan is ingenious, it's hard to say whether it's foolproof. Whether it can fool Xiao He's eyes is also unknown."

"But now that things have come to this, your plan is our only chance to turn the tide, and we have no choice but to take the risk."

"Let's gamble on whether the Cao family's fate is not yet sealed!"

...

The next day, an envoy from the State of Wei, carrying a letter from Cao Chong, left the city and arrived at the Chu camp.

When two countries are at war, envoys should not be killed.

Liu Bei naturally treated the envoy with courtesy and received him.

The messenger delivered the letter, written by Cao Chong, to Liu Bei:

I have always known that Lord Xuande is benevolent and righteous. Now that Ye City is besieged and the people of the city are suffering from hunger and hardship, I cannot bear it. I wish to send them out of Ye City to save their lives. I hope that Lord Xuande will accept them!

Liu Bei then dismissed the messenger and showed Cao Chong's handwritten letter to his ministers.

"Unexpectedly, this Cao Chong is quite benevolent and righteous, which is quite different from his father."

Liu Bei nodded slightly, not hiding his admiration for Cao Chong.

Xiao He read the letter, but gave a cold laugh:
"This Cao Chong was indeed not as cruel as his father Cao Cao, but his actions were not entirely out of benevolence and righteousness."

"He wanted the grain and fodder in the hands of the people of Ye City, but he was too embarrassed to openly rob them like Cao Ren did, so he came up with this trick."

"By dumping the people on us, he can avoid following in Cao Ren's footsteps and also obtain all the remaining grain and fodder from the people to relieve the urgent crisis of running out of food. It can be said to kill two birds with one stone."

Xiao He hit the nail on the head.

Liu Bei suddenly realized what was happening, but said:
"Although Cao Chong's actions were driven by personal motives, they were still a thousand times better than those beasts like Cao Ren who preyed on the people!"

After saying this, Liu Bei asked everyone if the army had enough provisions to feed the tens of thousands of people in the city.

"Our army has enough provisions for 300,000 troops. Adding a few tens of thousands more mouths to feed won't bankrupt us," Lu Xun replied without hesitation.

Liu Bei nodded slightly and then said:
"If that's the case, then let me reply to Cao Chong. I grant his request and am willing to take in these tens of thousands of people."

Upon hearing this, the generals were taken aback.

"As Grand Commandant Xiao said, Your Majesty knows that this is Cao Chong's plan, so how can you grant his request?"

"That kid Cao Chong has gotten rid of the burden of tens of thousands of mouths and obtained so much grain, so he can live on for several more months. Wouldn't that delay our time to capture Ye City?"

Gan Ning was the first to stand up, and his words clearly showed his opposition.

All the generals nodded in agreement.

Liu Bei, however, did not hesitate at all, and said solemnly:
"Of course I know this is Cao Chong's plan, but if I don't agree, what if he has no other choice but to follow Cao Ren's example?"

"The Cao family are mostly brutal people. If pushed too far, they are capable of anything."

"If I do not save these tens of thousands of people, how am I any different from the traitor Cao Cao?"

Gan Ning's expression hardened, and he instantly realized what was happening.

This king is completely different from all the heroes under heaven. He follows the way of the king, upholds benevolence and righteousness, and walks a path that is completely different from that of the feudal lords.

Therefore, the guiding principle cannot be based solely on self-interest.

The hearts of the people are as worthless as toilet paper to the Cao family father and son.

But to the King of Chu, it was as weighty as Mount Tai!
Having figured this out, Gan Ning wanted to offer advice, but knew he couldn't, and was speechless for a moment.

At this moment, Xiao He, who had remained silent until now, smiled:
"Xingba, Your Majesty has not only not suffered a loss by taking in these tens of thousands of people, but has actually made a fortune."

"This is divine assistance to Your Majesty; you must quickly conquer Ye City!"

Gan Ning was taken aback.

The generals were taken aback.

Liu Bei also looked surprised and quickly glanced at Xiao He.

Everyone was confused. How could they take in tens of thousands of civilians and quickly capture Ye City?
"The most obvious benefit of Your Majesty taking in these tens of thousands of people is that you have won their hearts."

"The second advantage is that Ye City is now devoid of civilians, with only Wei soldiers remaining. Your Majesty no longer needs to be hesitant to act rashly and can act decisively to quickly conquer Ye City!"

Liu Bei was greatly encouraged and asked with delight:
"Bowen, do you perhaps have a brilliant plan to quickly capture Ye City?"

Xiao He raised his hand and pointed south, giving a meaningful smile:
"Does Your Majesty still remember what methods you used to capture Shouchun during the Battle of Shouchun?"

The Battle of Shouchun.

Xiao He's words brought Liu Bei and the others back to those days.

"The Battle of Shouchun, the Battle of Shouchun..."

Liu Bei gently tapped his forehead with his fingertip and said:

"If I remember correctly, it was a plan devised by Liu Bowen that led to the flooding of Shouchun, forcing Cao Ren into a corner and forcing him to abandon the city and flee..."

"Your Majesty, I understand!"

Lu Xun, who was standing nearby, suddenly woke up and said excitedly:
"Back then, Grand Commandant Xiao devised a plan, ordering Yang Xiu to offer a suggestion to Cao Ren to drive all the people of Shouchun out of the city. Only then did the King no longer hesitate to act rashly and divert the Fei River to flood Shouchun, ultimately defeating it."

"Now that Cao Chong has taken the initiative to drive the people of Ye City out of the city, Your Majesty will no longer be afraid to act rashly. You can then follow the example of the Battle of Shouchun and divert the Zhang River to flood Ye City!"

"This must be Grand Commandant Xiao's plan to quickly capture Ye City!"

The tent was in an uproar.

Liu Bei suddenly understood and looked at Xiao He with delight.

Xiao He nodded slightly and smiled faintly:
"What Boyan said is pretty much what I meant."

Liu Bei suddenly remembered something and asked in surprise:

“Bowen, you previously said that Cao Chong’s band of rebels would not sit idly by and wait for their supplies to run out. They would definitely take action, and then we would have a chance to quickly capture Ye City.”

"Could it be that you, Bowen, foresaw that Cao Chong would drive all the people out of the city, and thus conceived the plan to flood Ye City?"

Xiao He coughed a few times, then gently rubbed his forehead with his fingertips:

"You could say that. It's fortunate that Cao Chong was in charge of the overall situation. If it were Cao Cao, he probably would have taken away the people's food supplies without hesitation and left the people of the city as reserve food for the army."

"As for the plan to flood Ye City, Cao Cao used this plan to destroy Ye City when he was attacking the Yuan clan. We can borrow it and let Cao Cao taste the taste of karma."

Liu Bei was completely dispelled and couldn't help but burst into laughter:
"Good, good, good! What a wonderful flood of Ye City! What a cycle of karma!"

"Very well, I will use Bowen's plan to reply to Cao Chong and order him to quickly send the people of the city out!"

When Gan Ning and the other generals learned that taking in these tens of thousands of civilians would bring such great benefits, they were naturally overjoyed and no one questioned it.

Liu Bei immediately summoned the Wei envoy and instructed him to inform Cao Chong that he had granted Cao Chong's request.

The Wei envoy breathed a sigh of relief and hurriedly bowed and left happily.

The envoy had barely left when Xiao He said:

"Your Majesty, I have something to say. I believe that Cao Chong's decision to drive the people out of the city was not merely for the purpose of killing two birds with one stone, as I mentioned earlier."

"The first two objectives are merely superficial. In my opinion, Cao Chong has a third hidden objective."

Liu Bei's expression immediately became alert, and he hurriedly asked:

"Bowen, what was Cao Chong's third objective?" (End of Chapter)