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

Zhuge Dan nodded slightly, agreeing with what Wen Qin said.

After all, they currently only have seven thousand infantry and cavalry in total.

With seven thousand infantry and cavalry, the reason they were able to turn Hedong upside down was simply because they took advantage of a time difference.

The current situation is that Xiahou Dun in the north is definitely rushing towards Hedong like a mad dog.

Cao Cao, who was in Guanzhong to the west, had probably received the news and was rushing to Hedong.

The two Wei armies combined must have numbered at least 70,000.

With a tenfold difference in troop strength, their seven thousand men were clearly insufficient.

Given the disparity in troop strength, concentrating forces to defend Anyi and waiting for the emperor to lead the main force is clearly the safest option.

But Xiao He insisted on sending cavalry again to seize Pubanjin, so "greedy" that he also wanted to blockade Cao Cao west of the Yellow River.

The problem is, Wenqin only has three thousand cavalry.

To be honest, Pubanjin is not a natural fortress. With only 3,000 soldiers, how could you stop a Wei army that is more than ten times larger from crossing the river?

If the Wei army were all infantry, it would be fine, but with your cavalry advantage, you could barely manage to put up a fight.

But they also have cavalry, and elite Xiliang cavalry at that!

Although Wenqin is young and confident, he still possesses the composure one would expect.

"Don't worry, I have my own methods to make Cao Cao only look at the river and sigh. Your three thousand iron cavalry are enough to hold out until the emperor sends a large army to take over the defense."

Xiao He smiled mysteriously, reassuring Wen Qin.

Wenqin's face lit up with delight, and he listened attentively.

Xiao He then calmly and methodically explained his foolproof plan to him.

Wenqin suddenly realized, and bowed with delight:

"The Grand Marshal's plan was indeed thorough; it turns out that with just a few simple measures, we were able to stop Cao Cao's army from crossing the river!"

"I understand what to do, I'll set off now!"

Wen Qin immediately received the order and led three thousand cavalrymen to set off immediately, traveling day and night towards Pubanjin.

Xiao He stood atop the city wall, watching the iron cavalry depart into the distance, and smiled with a wave of his hand:
"Pass down the order to tell the soldiers to eat and drink well and wait for the Emperor to lead the main force to join forces."

...

Guanzhong.

Thirty li west of Tongguan lies Huayin County.

Forty thousand Wei troops were stationed here.

According to intelligence, Liu Bei is leading his main force to attack Huguan.

The three Han armies attacking Bingzhou totaled 300,000 men, nearly three times the size of Guan Yu's southern army.

On the surface, Bingzhou appears to be the main target of the Han army's attack.

Cao Cao, however, did not personally lead the main force to Bingzhou to take charge of the overall situation.

After all, he had suffered too many losses at the hands of Liu Bei, which had already left him with psychological trauma.

He was afraid that Liu Bei would use a feint attack to lure the enemy away from the mountain again in this battle.

What if he leads the main force to Bingzhou, but Liu Bei feigns an attack and changes course to the south to launch a fierce attack on Tongguan?
With the fall of Tongguan, Han cavalry could reach Chang'an within a single day.

If Chang'an is lost, the Wei Kingdom will be finished.

Because Liu Bei had the advantage of the Yellow River for water transport, after his army changed course, he only needed to cross the Yellow River and could reach Tongguan by waterway within three days.

However, when you returned to Tongguan from Bingzhou, you traveled entirely by land.

In terms of speed, you can't keep up with Liu Bei's pace.

Therefore, Cao Cao could only choose a compromise.

Forty thousand mobile troops were stationed in Huayin.

If Tongguan is in danger, we will immediately head east to provide reinforcements.

If Bingzhou is lost, the army can march north from Huayin and reach Puban in two days at most, and enter Hedong to reinforce Bingzhou in three days.

This was the best solution Cao Cao could think of that could satisfy both sides.

"Xiahou Ba and Li Tong of Tongguan have repelled Guan Yu's two attacks in succession, and Tongguan is as solid as a rock."

"Regarding Huguan, the Grand General has repelled several attacks by Liu Bei, and Huguan remains unharmed. Your Majesty can rest assured." "Regarding Jingxing Pass..."

Sima Yi read aloud the battle reports sent from each front.

Cao Cao stroked his fine beard, toying with the teacup in his hand, a satisfied smile playing on his lips.

After delivering the final intelligence report, Sima Yi smiled easily:
"Based on the current intelligence, all our passes are impregnable, and the five armies of the Big Ear Bandit have all been defeated by our army. Our defense line should be stable."

Cao Cao nodded slightly, clearly quite satisfied with the result.

"Where is Xiao He? Where is that Xiao He?"

Jia Xu, who had been listening attentively, suddenly uttered this remark.

Cao Cao's smile vanished instantly, and he looked up sharply at Sima Yi, a hint of apprehension in his eyes.

Sima Yi took out a piece of intelligence and smiled:

"Grand Commandant Jia, there's no need to worry. Xiao He is currently inspecting grain supplies in Dingtao, which is a long way from the front lines. We have nothing to worry about."

Cao Cao breathed a slight sigh of relief, but was still reassured, and took the intelligence report from Sima Yi's hand.

"That traitor Xiao is a master strategist, appearing and disappearing like a ghost. If he were on the front lines, I wouldn't be able to sleep..."

Cao Cao murmured to himself, his brow furrowed with deep apprehension as he carefully examined the intelligence report in his hand, afraid of missing a single word.

Cao Cao's brows finally relaxed completely once he confirmed that the intelligence was accurate.

Cao Cao tossed the intelligence report onto the table and sneered with a relaxed expression:

"Wenhe, that big-eared scoundrel has indeed fallen for your divisive tactics. Now that we've suppressed that Xiao traitor, I can rest easy."

The Wei ministers in the tent all breathed a sigh of relief and burst into laughter.

The atmosphere was lighthearted yet ironic.

Jia Xu's lips curled up slightly, and he stroked his white beard, his expression showing some relief.

Cao Cao finished the tea in his bowl, waved his hand, and said:

"Then send an order to the generals, telling them to remember my instruction to hold firm and not fight, and to continue to defend the passes."

"If we can defeat the false Han in this battle and turn the tide for our Great Wei, they will all be heroes of our Great Wei."

"Tell them that I will reward them handsomely!"

Sima Yi accepted the order.

Lighthearted laughter filled the tent.

Only Yang Fu sat in the corner, his brows furrowed as he stared at the map.

This young strategist from Liangzhou had made a contribution by offering advice during Cao Cao's campaign against Ma Chao, leaving a lasting impression on Cao Cao.

After Cao Cao lost the two provinces of You and Ji and retreated to Chang'an, in order to make up for the dwindling talent pool and to win over the powerful clans of Yong and Liang, he promoted a large number of strategists and generals from Yong and Liang.

Yang Fu was among them, becoming a strategist capable of participating in strategic planning.

"Your Majesty, I believe that the troop deployment at each pass is reasonable, except that the troops at Ji Pass are too few. Should we add another five thousand elite soldiers?"

After a long period of deliberation, Yang Fu suddenly spoke up.

The moment those words were spoken, the entire tent fell silent.

All eyes turned to the young strategist from Liangzhou, then to the map, landing on the inconspicuous fortress.

Cao Cao's relaxed expression vanished, replaced by a furrowed brow and a wary gaze fixed on Jiguan Pass.

Hedong, Hanoi, Wangwu Mountain, the Yellow River waterway... all came into view.

Before Yang Fu could elaborate, Cao Cao suddenly saw through the flaw and nodded emphatically:
“Yang Yishan is right. Although Jiguan is small and has not been attacked by the pseudo-Han people, it should not be underestimated.”

"I remember that Jiguan Pass was guarded by Xiahou Wei with two thousand soldiers, which is indeed too few. You can calculate whether we can spare three to five thousand elite soldiers to reinforce the defense?"

The words trailed off.

Du Ji rushed in, holding a silk scroll high, and knelt down, crying out:
"Your Majesty, an urgent report from Hanoi."

"Two days ago, the bandit Xiao led 7,000 infantry and cavalry in a surprise attack on my Ji Pass and succeeded. Xiahou Wei and Hou Cheng were both killed in battle, and my 2,000 defenders were completely wiped out."

"Jiguan City has been captured by the Han army!"

Bang!

The teacup Cao Cao was playing with fell to the ground with a thud. (End of Chapter)