I did it all for the Han Dynasty!

Chapter 289 Giving the World a Surprise

Liu Miao, dressed in simple clothes, listened quietly to Lu Su's analysis while resting his chin on his hand.

The other generals also agreed with Lu Su's words.

Yuan Shao's size was so immense that no one knew whether his seemingly light punch would suddenly gain force and shatter the entire battle.

Therefore, Guanzhong must not be lost under any circumstances; otherwise, the entire western battlefield risks falling into ruin.

However, everyone also noticed a problem—

Yuan Shao's move aimed to weaken far more than just Cao Cao's power in the Central Plains.

What will happen to Qingzhou once Liu Miao sends reinforcements to Guanzhong?
Although Lü Bu was brave and had a reputation for being good at fighting, no one believed that he could withstand Yuan Shao.

Guanzhong is important, but Qingzhou is just as important!
Even Qingzhou was more significant to Liu Miao than Guanzhong was!
After all, even if Yuan Shao really seized Guanzhong and captured Nanyang, at least Xiangyang could ensure that Jingzhou would not be harmed.

But if Qingzhou falls, Yuan Shao will immediately be able to drink from the Huai River and advance his army to the Yangtze River!
Such consequences are something that absolutely no one wants to see.

Now is the time for Liu Miao to make a crucial decision.

Guanzhong?

Or Qingzhou?

……

Liu Miao's fingers, which were supporting his chin, moved slightly up and down. However, Liu Miao did not rush to make a decision. Instead, he asked the crowd, "What do you all think I should support?"

"Qingzhou".

"Yes! It must be Qingzhou!"

"Yuan Shao was humiliated at Langya last time, so we must find a way to take Langya first!"

Liu Miao's staff has now expanded to a very large scale.

Zhang Zhao, Zhang Hong, Lu Su, Lü Meng, Lu Yi, Jia Xu, Liu Ye, Pang Tong, Zhuge Liang, Zhuge Jin, and Kan Ze and Quan Cong, who were successively recommended by Zhang Zhao...

These people must each have their own opinions.

Moreover, these people were used to being around Liu Miao and knew that he wouldn't get angry over words, so they all expressed their opinions, practically blowing the roof off.

Liu Miao listened carefully to everyone's opinions while also observing their reactions.

Besides Jia Xu, who remained silent as usual, there were two others who also did not say much, sitting quietly on their mats, seemingly separate from the other people arguing.

"Kongming, Boyan, what do you two want to say?"

When Zhuge Liang and Lu Yi heard Liu Miao suddenly call out their names, they quickly stood up and bowed to Liu Miao.

Zhuge Liang scanned the crowd, showing no sign of stage fright.

"My lord, Yuan Shao will not easily attack Qingzhou!"

Although Lu Yi did not speak, he nodded in agreement with Zhuge Liang.

"Oh?"

Liu Miao became interested.

"Why?"

"Everyone just said that Yuan Shao will definitely not let go of the matter of Langya and will definitely seize Langya to humiliate me. Why does Kongming think that Yuan Shao will not easily attack Qingzhou?"

Zhuge Liang said, "A warlord like Yuan Shao would not be concerned with petty gains and forget the bigger picture."

"The Langya Alliance was indeed a disgrace to Yuan Shao, but since Yuan Shao has chosen to swallow his anger, we should know that Yuan Shao has chosen to accept this matter."

"Since you have accepted this matter, Yuan Shao's revenge will not come too quickly. Or rather, since Yuan Shao has already endured it, why not endure it for a little longer, wait until he defeats Cao Cao, annexes the Central Plains, crosses the Yangtze River, destroys Jiangdong, captures our lord alive, and then avenges his great grudge in one fell swoop?"

There is no doubt that Yuan Shao had an extremely strong sense of self-esteem.

However, Yuan Shao's will was also exceptionally strong.

Yuan Shao was not the kind of person who would immediately retaliate after suffering a loss; rather, he was the kind of person who would try every means to kill the other party after suffering a loss.

That's why Zhuge Liang said that capturing Langya was not what Yuan Shao wanted most.

What Yuan Shao wanted most was for Liu Miao to completely submit and obediently kneel before him and submit to him... and to do all this, it was obviously only possible after completely defeating Cao Cao.

And the most important thing is——

"Yuan Shao, there is no need to launch a full-scale attack on Qingzhou."

"The fact that Lü Bu and Yuan Shao used the Ji River as a boundary gave them a natural geographical advantage."

"After the Ji River, the Qi Great Wall served as a stronghold, which was equally easy to defend and difficult to attack."

"After the Great Wall of Qi, the flat land of Linzi is the most suitable for cavalry charges. Lü Bu once helped Yuan Shao defeat the Black Mountain bandit Zhang Yan, so Yuan Shao must know the threat of Lü Bu leading cavalry in battle."

"There are three difficulties in attacking Qingzhou from the north, but attacking the Central Plains would solve the problem once and for all. We can enter Xuzhou from Yuzhou and then surround Qingzhou. With Yuan Shao's wisdom, he couldn't possibly have missed this point!"

In conclusion, Zhuge Liang believed that Yuan Shao would not mobilize tens of thousands of troops to attack Qingzhou as he had done when attacking Guanzhong.

After all, even Yuan Shao couldn't afford to fight on three fronts and commit heavy troops to all three!

Zhuge Liang's words were undoubtedly thought-provoking, and Liu Miao asked Lu Yi, who was standing behind Zhuge Liang, "Does Boyan also think so?"

Lu Yi nodded without hesitation.

"Brother Kongming's understanding of Yuan Shao's character is extremely accurate, and the probability of Yuan Shao attacking Qingzhou is indeed not high." "However, what I want to say is actually something else."

"What's the matter?"

"Brother Kongming explained why Yuan Shao wouldn't attack Qingzhou. I would like to ask why he insisted on supporting Guanzhong!"

Over the years, Lu Yi has honed his skills by following Liu Miao, Zhou Yu, and Zhang Zhao, and his youthful naiveté has completely disappeared.

Some people were quite surprised when they saw Lu Yi, thinking that Lu Yi was simply the second Zhou Yu!

However, compared to Zhou Yu's heroic bearing, Lu Yi was undoubtedly more reserved and composed.

But Lu Yi's subsequent words completely shattered everyone's perception of him—

"The reason why you are worried about the war in Guanzhong is that you are worried that this army will suddenly turn from a feint into a real force and march out of Guanzhong through Wuguan to threaten Xiangyang and Xuchang."

"But... Emperor Xiaowu once said: If the enemy can go, so can I!"

Upon hearing this, Liu Miao also laughed.

My son is so grown up, he can even quote famous sayings?
Seeing Liu Miao's gaze, Lu Yi felt a little shy, but still explained his plan in its entirety—

"Since Yuan's army can turn a feint into a real attack, why can't we switch from defense to offense?"

Upon hearing this, everyone suddenly sat up straight!

Liu Miao clearly realized what Lu Yi was about to say, and nodded to Lu Yi with satisfaction.

As if greatly encouraged, Lu Yi quickly continued, "Right now, Yuan Shao has a large army and many generals, and his power is overwhelming. This puts our army on the defensive in every way, and we can only adopt a defensive posture."

"But as the art of war says: the strategies of war are nothing more than the orthodox and the unorthodox, and the variations of the orthodox and the unorthodox are inexhaustible. The orthodox and the unorthodox give rise to each other, like an endless cycle, who can fathom it!"

"The shift between reality and illusion happens in an instant, just as the difference between offense and defense is also only a moment!"

"After our army arrives in Guanzhong, we must not simply adopt a defensive posture, but rather find a way to turn defense into offense and catch Yuan Shao off guard!"

Lu Yi also analyzed this war, which involved the entire world and would determine the fate of the world for decades or even centuries to come—

"As Brother Kongming just said, Yuan Shao will not easily attack Qingzhou, so the battlefield in Qingzhou will most likely be peaceful."

"As for the Central Plains, although Yuan Shao's army is numerous, several times larger than Cao Cao's, firstly, Cao Cao is skilled in military tactics and is no less capable than Yuan Shao; secondly, Cao Cao now represents the imperial court, has a sense of righteousness, and enjoys popular support."

"Therefore, even if Yuan Shao led his troops in a fierce attack, it would be absolutely impossible for him to easily defeat Cao Cao and take control of the Central Plains."

"The two forces are very likely to be locked in a tug-of-war in some areas. For example, Yanjin and Baima on the south bank of the Dahe River, or Guandu and Chenliu near the Honggou Canal."

"Cao Cao will inevitably use these major rivers to block Yuan Shao's advance and thus maintain the progress of the battlefield."

"It seems that Qingzhou, the Central Plains, and Guanzhong may all be forced into a defensive posture in the future."

"But Yuan Shao controls Hebei, and his manpower and resources are far beyond what we can match. Moreover, since the war is in the north, our losses will inevitably be far greater than Yuan Shao's... If this continues, even if we can hold out on three sides, the final victory will surely belong to Yuan Shao!"

Liu Miao and Cao Cao were already at a disadvantage in the war, so simply remaining "undefeated" was far from enough.

Something major must happen on the three battlefields to cause a shift in the balance of power, thus ultimately leading to Yuan Shao's complete defeat.

But can we rely on Cao Cao?

If Xu You hadn't betrayed Cao Cao, he might have given Cao Cao a "divine guidance" and told him the direction of Wuchao, and Liu Miao might have believed Cao Cao.

But for now, let's just forget about it!
If Cao Cao is unreliable, then what about Lü Bu?
Without a doubt, Lü Bu is even less reliable!
Liu Miao's side can only rely on themselves!

By opening a breach in the Guanzhong battlefield, shifting from defense to offense, and thus creating chaos in the other two battlefields, Yuan Shao suffered a crushing defeat!

And this is Lu Yi's strategy!

What Liu Miao should have pursued was not merely to defend Guanzhong!

What Liu Miao wanted to achieve was to defeat Yuan Tan, push back from Guanzhong, and become the one to break the deadlock!
No one expected that Lu Yi, who looked so gentle and mild-mannered, would have such an aggressive strategy!
Destiny must be in your own hands!
Even though the Central Plains is the main battlefield of this war, it does not mean that the key to breaking the deadlock is necessarily in the Central Plains!

Lu Yi's unconventional approach undoubtedly broadened everyone's horizons.

Even Liu Miao exclaimed, "Boyan has truly given me a wonderful surprise!"

With Liu Miao saying this, everyone clearly knew his final decision.

Liu Miao stood up and drew his sword.

"Since Boyan has given me a surprise, I will give the world a surprise in return!"

“I had previously promised Fengxiao that as long as Wenyuan led his troops to Guanzhong.”

"But now it seems that it was a bit conservative..."

Liu Miao smiled slightly.

"Order Zhou Yu and Taishi Ci to be the vanguard and immediately head north to guard all the key passes in Guanzhong!"

"I hereby order Huang Zhong, Zhu Huan, Xu Huang, Zhang Liao, and other generals to accompany me to Guanzhong!"

Liu Miao has already decided to personally lead the expedition!

"Last time at Langya, Yuan Shao chickened out and didn't fight a proper battle."

"This time, I'm going to give him a big surprise and see if his face, which I slapped last time, is healed yet!"

(End of this chapter)