The Three Kingdoms: Hindsight is 20/20, and the Three Revivals of the Han Dynasty

The Wuhuan cavalry, who were tasked with surrounding and killing the Tiger and Leopard Cavalry, also suffered heavy casualties.

Seeing Zhang Liao and his fierce soldiers charging forward to join forces with Cao Chun's remaining troops, and considering the soldiers' exhaustion after half a day of fighting, Zhuge Liang did not organize any more troops to encircle and kill them, but instead chose to sound the retreat.

Knowing when to stop while one is ahead is Zhuge Liang's military style.

Although it was expected that Cao Cao would not send any more fresh troops, if Cao Cao secretly transferred Cao Ren and other troops from Julu to reinforce Guanjin, Zhuge Liang and Liu Bei would have to flee in panic.

Although the Tiger and Leopard Cavalry were not completely wiped out, most of them were crippled.

Looking at the more than three hundred warhorses left behind by the Tiger and Leopard Cavalry, even Zhuge Liang felt his heart race.

The purpose of destroying the Tiger and Leopard Cavalry was not only to cripple Cao Cao's heavy cavalry, but also to seize their horse armor!

Hebei was in turmoil, and there wasn't enough food to go around. Naturally, there was no spare capacity for mining, iron smelting, or forging horse armor. Therefore, the simplest and most effective way was to seize the enemy's horse armor on the battlefield!

Cao Cao was able to seize Yuan Shao's horse armor to create the Tiger and Leopard Cavalry, and Zhuge Liang was similarly able to seize Cao Cao's horse armor to create the Tiger and Leopard Cavalry.

"Ming Jin!"

Zhuge Liang made a decisive decision and ordered the soldiers to strike the gong.

As the gong sounded, the Wuhuan cavalry and Daijun cavalry on the battlefield quickly retreated, and Liu Bei, who was fighting Cao Cao, also retreated to the city walls upon hearing the sound.

Cao Cao sensed something was wrong and quickly ordered the gongs to be sounded and the troops to form ranks.

Looking back, they saw Cao Chun leading over a hundred cavalrymen and three hundred Tiger and Leopard Cavalry infantrymen back.

"Where's the horse?"

Cao Cao's tone became more questioning.

Overwhelmed with shame, Cao Chun knelt and kowtowed, saying, "This humble general deserves to die!"

He then recounted how Zhuge Liang had used underhanded tactics such as fire attacks, smoke inhalation, and hook-and-hook attacks. The more he talked, the more frustrated Cao Chun became, realizing that his proud Tiger and Leopard Cavalry could be defeated by Zhuge Liang in such a way.

The Tiger and Leopard Cavalry suffered only a few dozen casualties, but lost more than three hundred warhorses. This loss made Cao Chun even more ashamed.

The most important thing for the Tiger and Leopard Cavalry is not their elite soldiers. If elite soldiers die, they can be replaced by a hundred-man general selected from the army. The most important thing is their warhorses, especially the horse armor on the warhorses, which cannot be made in a short time!

"Zhuge the peasant!"

Cao Cao gritted his teeth, his usually dignified and intimidating image in front of his generals and soldiers turning into a ferocious glare due to the loss of more than three hundred horse armors to the Tiger and Leopard Cavalry.

Despite his resentment, Cao Cao was helpless at this moment and could only swallow his bitterness, ordering a retreat to the camp.

Zhuge Liang was worried that Cao Cao would secretly withdraw Cao Ren's troops from Julu, and Cao Cao was equally worried that Liu Bei would withdraw Zhang Fei's troops from Zhongshan. At present, their military strength was exhausted and they urgently needed to return to camp for reorganization.

Seeing Cao Cao's troops slowly retreating, Liu Bei also led his army into the city.

Upon learning that Cao Cao's Tiger and Leopard Cavalry had left behind more than three hundred sets of horse armor, Liu Bei could not hide his excitement: "In this battle, strategist, we have utterly destroyed the scoundrel Cao Cao's prestige. The scoundrel Cao Cao has lost more than three hundred sets of horse armor, and he will probably not be able to sleep peacefully tonight."

Zhuge Liang, his expression grave, leaned closer and whispered, "My lord, the Wuhuan cavalry have also suffered heavy casualties. They all came for you, and if they hadn't been so fearless, I wouldn't have been able to achieve such a great feat. We should appease them with kind words." Liu Bei's face immediately hardened: "How many were killed or wounded?"

Zhuge Liang sighed softly, "More than a thousand men."

The Wuhuan cavalry numbered only five thousand, and more than a thousand of them died or were wounded while cooperating with Zhuge Liang to annihilate the Tiger and Leopard Cavalry. Liu Bei's excitement at obtaining more than three hundred sets of horse armor vanished instantly, and he sighed, "In order to destroy Cao Cao's Tiger and Leopard Cavalry, I have lost more than a thousand of my cavalry. It is all my fault!"

The battlefield is ruthless, and death and injury are commonplace.

He knew how to soothe the morale of his troops, and he wouldn't become arrogant because of the spoils of war. Instead, he would go to the grassroots level to comfort the most ordinary soldiers. For these Wuhuan cavalry, Liu Bei's reassurance was indeed a good medicine to soothe their hearts after a great battle.

As dusk fell, Liu Bei dragged his weary body back to the government office.

Zhuge Liang presented Liu Bei with the letter that Cao Cao had sent that afternoon, saying, "Cao Cao has sent a letter, wishing to cease hostilities and make peace with you, my lord."

"Cao Cao would actually take the initiative to cease hostilities and make peace? Could it be a trap?" Liu Bei was taken aback. In his memory, Cao Cao was also someone who cared a lot about his reputation. Moreover, both sides suffered losses in today's decisive battle with Cao Cao, so there was no need for Cao Cao to take the initiative to seek peace.

Something unusual must have a reason, and Liu Bei couldn't help but become wary.

Zhuge Liang nodded: "It's just a delaying tactic. But with spring planting just around the corner, we can't fight any longer. Cao Cao has the rich lands of Yan and Yu behind him, and his supplies are plentiful. If you continue to confront him, the consequences will be unpredictable."

This is Liu Bei's disadvantage. Cao Cao always liked to take supplies from the enemy and did not care about benevolence and righteousness. Regardless of victory or defeat, he would destroy the livelihood and future of the counties under Liu Bei's rule. On the other hand, Liu Bei, because he had to uphold benevolence and righteousness, could not act as recklessly as Cao Cao and had to consider the livelihood and future of the counties under his rule.

If Liu Bei, who was already at a disadvantage due to unfavorable timing, lost the support of the people, he would be no longer qualified to compete with Cao Cao.

After a moment's thought, Liu Bei let out a long sigh and said, "Strategist, you can reply to Cao Cao that if he is willing to withdraw his troops, I am willing to release Xiahou Yuan."

Zhuge Liang shook his head: "If we do that, Cao Cao will surely mistakenly think that our lord is guilty. It would be better to do the opposite. We can quickly send scouts to deliver a message to Shi Yuan, instructing him to order the troops in Zhongshan, Changshan, and Shangdang to launch a proactive attack to demonstrate our power."

Seeking peace through struggle leads to peaceful existence, and seeking peace through compromise leads to peaceful end.

The profound meaning behind Zhuge Liang's words is also like this.

Cao Cao's plan was both a delaying tactic and a test: if Liu Bei really agreed to cease hostilities and make peace, Cao Cao would not hesitate to send a large army into Anping to fight Liu Bei; if Liu Bei took the initiative to attack, Cao Cao would weigh the pros and cons of fighting Liu Bei.

Since Cao Cao initiated the war in Hebei, he had to decide whether to fight or make peace. Liu Bei could only have one attitude: if Liu Bei did not withdraw his troops, the war would continue!

As Zhuge Liang had predicted, with the troops from Zhongshan, Changshan, and Shangdang all showing signs of launching offensives, Cao Cao lost interest in continuing his decisive battle with Liu Bei.

After Xiahou Yuan and Cao Chun were defeated, Cao Cao's five-pronged attack on Liu Bei was essentially doomed to failure. However, Cao Cao wanted to gamble one more time, hoping that if Liu Bei couldn't hold out and backed down first, Cao Cao would win.

Just like the Battle of Guandu, if Cao Cao had backed down and retreated due to lack of food, there would have been no burning of Wuchao later.

By early April.

With the fierce attacks from Zhongshan, Changshan, and Shangdang, Cao Cao, seeing that he could not gain the upper hand from any of the three routes, had no choice but to abandon this five-pronged offensive against Liu Bei.

In Xindu City.

Cao Cao looked at Xiahou Juan, who had traveled a long way from Qiao County, and solemnly instructed him: "Isolation is governed by military law, and I will not compromise just because the bandits have hostages. Therefore, I cannot agree to Liu Bei's conditions to exchange for Miao Cai. As Miao Cai's niece, you should perform filial piety. You can enter Guanjin to save Miao Cai's life. Liu Bei will see your filial piety and righteousness, and you are also engaged to Zhang Fei, so he will certainly not make things difficult for you." (End of this chapter)