I did it all for the Han Dynasty!

Chapter 436 Dark under the lamp

What do you mean by "Yuan Tan has already arrived in Qingzhou"?

Everyone was surprised and suspicious.

Liu Miao also made public the secret of the mobilization of grain supplies in Hebei.

Although the data is complex, it is still clear that Hebei's grain supplies mainly went to three directions.

Xingyang, Dingtao, and Dong'e.

In Xingyang, Yuan Chunqing and Chunyu Qiong confronted Cheng Pu and Wen Pin.

At Dingtao, Yuan Shao personally led a large army to oversee the area.

The only strange thing is that the grain and fodder being transferred to Dong'e is that it was sent to Dong'e.
In the fifth year of Qin Shi Huang's reign, General Meng Ao attacked Wei, capturing Suanzao, Yan, Xu, Changping, Yongqiu, and Shanyang, taking twenty cities in total. The Eastern Commandery was first established.

Dongjun, as an exclave of the Qin state, played a crucial role in Qin's unification of the six states!

It is bordered by the Yellow River to the north, Mount Tai to the east, the Central Plains to the south, and Luoyang to the west.

This place is practically the most crucial gateway for communication between the North and the South, bar none.

In fact, judging from the current battle situation, Xingyang, Dingtao, and Dong'e are located to the west, center, and east of Dongjun, respectively.

The capital city of Ye in Hebei is located just north of Dongjun. With the help of canals in three directions, it is easy to transport grain to the front line. This was a point that Zhou Yu was quite cautious about before, because he thought that the Yuan army's consumption was lower than that of the Han Dynasty. Therefore, he did not want to fight a decisive battle with the Yuan army near Dongjun.

Now that they know the direction of Yuan Jun's grain and supplies allocation, the advisors present all realize that Dong'e is actually more convenient for the concentration of grain and supplies from the north.

"From this perspective, there is indeed a large part of Yuan's army in Dong'e, and it is highly likely that it is the Guanzhong army led by Yuan Tan... But why would Yuan Tan go to Dong'e?"

Dong'e is located on the south bank of the Dahe River, right at the foot of Mount Tai.

From a military perspective, this should have been a dead end. Therefore, neither Zhou Yu nor anyone else expected that Yuan Shao's army would gather its forces here.

After all, even if the real goal was to seize Qingzhou, wouldn't it be more time-saving and effortless to simply walk through Pingyuan County to the north of Qingzhou?

"Yuan Tan's goal is not to occupy Qingzhou."

Liu Miao then patted another letter: "This is Yuan Tan's battle plan."

"?"

Everyone's eyes became glazed over.

How could Liu Miao have gotten his hands on something like this?
Could it be some kind of conspiracy or trick by the enemy?

“Yuan Tan intends to enter the former territory of the State of Lu from Dong’e.”

The former territory of the State of Lu?

Even Lu Su, who was fairly familiar with the Qing and Xu regions, was somewhat bewildered at this moment.

What was Yuan Tan doing in the State of Lu?
The State of Lu was surrounded on three sides by Mount Tai, Mount Lu, and Mount Meng, and to the west were Lake Weishan and Lake Daye, making it practically a dead land!
Confucius once commented on the State of Lu: "When Qi changed, it became like Lu; when Lu changed, it became like the Way."

This already demonstrates how isolated the State of Lu was during the Spring and Autumn Period.

If the Lu State was merely used for defense due to its geographical isolation, then it was a suitable place to be separated by mountains and rivers.

But if used for offense, this is a death trap! A complete disaster!

However, Lu Su quickly realized something!
In Sun Tzu's *The Art of War*, there is a specific explanation of the concept of a "death trap"—

Those who fight swiftly will survive, while those who do not will perish—this is a death trap!
A battlefield where a swift and decisive battle guarantees survival, while failing to do so will result in total annihilation, is called a "death ground"!
Yuan Tan wasn't looking for death!

He went to fight!

But where will he fight? And with whom will he fight?
In this regard, no one can outthink Pang Tong.

Pang Tong immediately said, "If Yuan Tan really went to Lu, then his intentions are nothing more than three."

"Firstly, we'll go through Rencheng and Lanling, and then directly reach the area around Pengcheng!"

However, Pang Tong quickly rejected this approach.

"What Yuan Tan sought was swift warfare, not desperate warfare."

“If he really takes this route, he will inevitably be trapped in a narrow place, and if the war goes against him, he will be wiped out. Moreover, there is Jiuli Mountain to the north of Pengcheng as a stronghold. Yuan Tan should know that there are heavy troops in Pengcheng. Even if he suddenly travels lightly and quickly, at most he will cause some disturbances and cannot play a decisive role.”

Upon hearing Pang Tong's words, Liu Miao nodded slightly.

This route is too dangerous, with a very low success rate, even lower than the Ziwu Valley strategy. Yuan Tan would most likely not choose this route.

"The second route is to take the mountain path and sneak from Mengyin to the back of the Qi Great Wall where General Zang Ba is stationed."

However, Pang Tong quickly hesitated again, saying, "If we launch a sudden attack, it is indeed possible to break through the Qi Great Wall and take Muling Pass. But now that Yuan Tan has not taken Qingzhou, even if he takes Langya, he will only be running from one dead end to another."

"unless……"

Liu Miao took a deep breath: "Unless Yuan Tan can not only take Qingzhou, but also annihilate all of Lü Bu's troops, then he can sail the seas and completely open up the situation on the eastern front!"

This was Yuan Tan's battle plan for this battle!
Yuan Tan has probably gone mad this time, taking such a risk to seek an opportunity to fight; he's practically gambling with his life!
"He's still a young punk, but he's more energetic than an old punk."

But Sima Yi took the intelligence report, silently reviewed it, and noticed something suspicious. "Your Majesty, what do you think Yuan Tan should do to attack Qingzhou, or even annihilate General Lü Bu's army?"

"To travel from Lu to Qi, one must pass through another pass on the Qi Great Wall—Jinyang Pass."

"Jinyang Pass is one of the three major passes of the Qi Great Wall. Taking it is no less difficult than taking Muling Pass or even Hulao Pass. What makes Yuan Tan think he can definitely take this place and get to Qingzhou?"

"Moreover, the Bingzhou Wolf Cavalry under General Lü Bu's command are all elite troops. Although he is supporting Liaodong, the Wei Yue and Cheng Lian he left behind are both famous generals! What makes Yuan Tan think he can definitely defeat them?"

Liu Miao was speechless.

These things were not recorded in intelligence.

Liu Miao hadn't thought much of it at first, but now that Sima Yi had brought it up, he clearly realized that Yuan Tan's plan was somewhat flawed.

Jinyang Pass, one of the three passes of the Qi Great Wall, is very famous in the Qi-Lu region.

According to the Records of the Grand Historian, twelve vassal states, including Jin, Lu, Zheng, and Song, jointly attacked Qi. Qi then gathered its troops at Pingyin, fortified the gates, and defended the area for a considerable distance, thus achieving victory.

After that, the State of Qi invested heavily in this project, and with its abundant resources, it managed to build the Great Wall of Qi, which stretched from the sea in the east to the Ji River in the west, making the other states tremble with fear.

Moreover, Liu Miao only learned when he arrived in Langya that the famous story of Meng Jiangnu crying at the Great Wall actually took place at Jinyang Pass, on the Qi Great Wall, and had nothing to do with Qin Shi Huang himself...

With such a formidable pass, what could Yuan Tan possibly use to attack it?
Furthermore, what Sima Yi said was also correct.

Although Lü Bu is gone, the cavalry and defenses of Qingzhou are still there.

As far as Liu Miao knew, Lü Bu had made a fortune in previous trade between the Han Dynasty and Liaodong and Hebei. His army was indeed large in number.

Conservative estimates suggest that Qingzhou still has 30,000 soldiers.

What made Yuan Tan think he could annihilate all these troops? Or even annihilate them before Liu Miao and Lü Bu could react?

This isn't just unbelievable; it's downright absurd!
But at this moment, this was indeed the tactic Yuan Tan had chosen!
"Suck it!"

In the silence, a voice broke the silence.

Everyone looked up and saw that it was Jia Xu who was drinking the last bit of broth from the bowl...

Being watched by so many people made Jia Xu increasingly shy and embarrassed.

Perhaps it was a case of "he who eats another's food is bound to him," but Jia Xu actually gave Liu Miao a reminder—

"How did Your Majesty know Yuan Tan's tactics?"

"Naturally, we'll use strategy..."

Liu Miao suddenly realized something!

The others also realized it instantly!

There must be an inside agent of Yuan's army in Qingzhou!

Otherwise, how could Yuan Tan have devised such a risky tactic!

"Damn it! Those two from the Yuan family are truly heartless!"

Liu Miao was spitting as he spoke, completely oblivious to the feelings of the two letters on his desk.

"Yes!"

"There's definitely a spy!"

Although Lü Bu was appointed as the Grand General of Han, he was essentially still a warlord who controlled the two provinces of Qing and Xu.

This also means that the administrative power of the Han Dynasty could not actually reach this area too much.

The equal distribution of land and the establishment of military garrisons were completely absent here!
The landlords and powerful families of Qing and Xu prefectures are still living very well! Very well!

Now that the decisive battle between Han and Zhao is imminent, how could they remain completely silent?
"Playing the victim?"

Liu Miao quickly began the process of elimination.

Chen Gong? Impossible.

Although Chen Gong had a history of offenses, he was still a man of strong character and it was absolutely impossible for him to meet with Cao Cao again.

Wei Yue? Cheng Lian? Wei Xu?

These were all generals who had followed Lü Bu from the beginning, and Lü Bu was extremely generous to them, so it shouldn't be them.

Who else?

Who else has the ability to accomplish such a great thing?

In reality, there are very few people who have both the ability and the motivation to do this.

Liu Miao didn't even need to give the answer.

Lu Su, who was familiar with the officials under Lü Bu, turned extremely ugly: "Chen Deng, Chen Yuanlong!"

(End of this chapter)