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

Three days later, in Chang'an.

Guan Yu and Xiao He led 50,000 Han troops and gradually arrived at the Chang'an camp, where they successfully met up with Zhang Fei, who was already waiting.

When the Han army completed its consolidation, its strength had reached an astonishing 250,000 men.

At this time, Cao Cao was not sitting idly by and waiting for his doom.

With his meager force of 60,000 men, he constructed a seemingly impregnable defensive line centered on Chang'an.

Forty thousand troops were stationed in Chang'an, and their main task was to block the Han army's attack on Chang'an.

The remaining 20,000 troops were stationed west of Chang'an, on the south bank of the Wei River.

These 20,000 troops bear a dual mission.

On the one hand, they needed to form a pincer movement with Chang'an, supporting each other so that if Chang'an was attacked, they could quickly send troops to support it and strike the Han army from the flank.

On the other hand, they must firmly guard the Wei River crossing to ensure the uninterrupted water transport of grain to Chang'an.

...

Within the Han camp.

Inside the large tent, an exquisite and detailed model of Chang'an had been built, clearly showing the city and its surrounding topography, defense layout, and other features.

Guan Yu stood with his hands behind his back in front of the sand table.

At this moment, Zhang Fei was standing to the side, holding a bamboo stick, explaining the defenses of Chang'an City to the sand table.

"Judging from Cao Cao's posture, he is probably unwilling to give up Chang'an and plans to gamble the entire army to defend it to the death."

"It's a pity that Chang'an is located on a plain, with no strategic terrain to rely on. It has no natural defenses. How could Cao Cao possibly hold it with a mere 60,000 troops?"

"I believe we should make full use of our superior numbers and divide our forces to sweep through the cities on both sides of the Wei River, turning Chang'an into an isolated and helpless city."

"At the same time, we must also send out cavalry to raid the Wei army's grain supply route along the Wei River and cut off Cao Cao's grain supply from Longxi."

“The Wei army is small while our army is large. Cao Cao must know our intentions. On this Guanzhong Plain, he certainly wouldn’t dare to, nor would he be able to, divide his forces to resist.”

"I am confident that Chang'an will fall within three months!"

After saying that, he forcefully shoved the bamboo stick into the sand table.

Given Zhang Fei's fiery temper and inability to keep secrets, and considering the extremely sensitive matter of deposing the crown prince, Guan Yu and Xiao He tacitly chose not to reveal it to him for the time being.

At this moment, Zhang Fei was naturally only thinking about how to capture Chang'an.

Guan Yu nodded slightly, indicating his approval of Zhang Fei's strategy.

All the generals expressed their agreement.

After all, Chang'an is no longer the same as Tongguan.

If the Wei army occupies Tongguan, it can block the Han army in the east, leaving the Han army with no way to fight back.

Even with a million soldiers, the Han army was unable to maneuver effectively in the face of this narrow pass, leaving them with no opportunity to use their strength.

Chang'an is located on a vast plain, with no natural defenses on all sides, and is completely flat.

The Han army could have used its main force to confront the main Wei army in Chang'an, while simultaneously sending out several elite infantry and cavalry units to sweep through the cities north and south of Chang'an and raid the Wei River supply route.

Cao Cao was utterly powerless to resist this tactic.

Having lost its geographical advantage, the disparity in national strength between Wei and other states became glaringly obvious.

Moreover, upon hearing of the fall of Hanzhong, the Wei army had lost its reinforcements, which would inevitably lead to a significant blow to morale and greatly weaken its combat effectiveness.

"I believe Yide's strategy is feasible!"

Guan Yu nodded in agreement, then turned his gaze to Xiao He and asked:

"Bowen, what do you think of Yide's strategy?"

Xiao He smiled slightly and nodded:
"He also believes that Yide's strategy is feasible, and father-in-law can immediately order its implementation."

"but…"

Changing the subject, Xiao He glanced at Nan:
"This plan is feasible, but it will take several months to capture Chang'an. Just don't forget about Yangping Pass; the Crown Prince hasn't given us much time." Guan Yu immediately understood Xiao He's implication.

He wanted to quickly capture Chang'an and seize this extraordinary achievement before Liu Shan could.

"Bowen's words make sense. Could it be that there is another better plan?"

Guan Yu then asked.

Xiao He smiled mysteriously and said slowly:
"There is a plan that might allow us to quickly capture Chang'an in just a few months!"

Guan Yu's eyes lit up, and he quickly asked:
"How should we quickly break through this barrier? Bowen, please explain clearly."

All the curious gazes of the crowd turned to Xiao He.

"Father-in-law, don't forget that the people of Chang'an must be terrified right now. The people in Chang'an have lost faith in the puppet Wei and Cao Cao, and countless people want to find another way out."

"If we can show kindness and recruit these wavering individuals, we can gather an army and, with the help of both inside and outside forces, take Chang'an ahead of schedule!"

Xiao He pointed to the sand table in Chang'an and slowly explained his plan.

The tent erupted in excitement, everyone beaming with delight, as if they had been enlightened.

"Bowen's plan is a strategy to win hearts and minds!"

Guan Yu wholeheartedly agreed and praised:
"Very well, I knew it, Bowen, you must have a brilliant plan."

"Then let's use Zhang Fei's strategy to weaken the outer defenses of Chang'an, and use Zhang Bowen's strategy to control Chang'an from within!"

The grand plan to capture Chang'an was thus decided.

The next step was to select people who could be recruited.

Xiao He then took out the list he had prepared in advance.

This list was carefully selected after much deliberation.

Most of the people on this list are from the two rivers region. Most of them are only personally serving the puppet state of Wei, while their families remain east of Tongguan.

This increases the likelihood that they will be recruited.

Furthermore, they share a common trait: they were not originally Cao Cao's followers.

Most of these people were surrendered officials who came under Cao Cao's command during his campaigns in the east and west.

These people's loyalty to Cao Cao was naturally extremely low.

Their families are mostly from the two rivers region, and they were not Cao Cao's loyal subjects. Now they are facing the collapse of the Wei Kingdom.

Such people naturally have the best chance of being recruited and choosing to abandon Wei and join Han.

"Everyone else is secondary; only this person, if we can persuade him to surrender, will make the fall of Chang'an as easy as turning one's hand!"

Xiao He looked resolute and pointed to one of the names, as if this person's surrender would determine the fate of Chang'an.

"Zhang He!"

Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, and Zhao Yun all uttered that name in unison.

All eyes turned to Zhang He in surprise.

It should be noted that Zhang He's current official position is General of the Cavalry of Cao Wei.

Given that Cao Cao did not appoint a Grand General, this official position was already considered the highest among the military generals of Wei.

Moreover, over the years, as Cao Cao retreated from Hebei all the way to Guanzhong, Zhang He remained loyal and never betrayed him.

Given that such a person might be recruited, would he betray Cao Cao and submit to the Han Dynasty?

“Zhang He commands a large army and enjoys considerable prestige within the Wei army. If he is willing to surrender to our Han Dynasty, he can naturally act as an inside agent to help us break through the gates.”

Guan Yu nodded slightly, then changed the subject and asked:

"But Bowen, have you considered this: given Zhang He's status and position, is it really possible for him to be persuaded to surrender?" (End of Chapter)