Chapter 608 Excalibur whispers and moves the palace gate
Chapter 608: The Divine Sword hums to move the palace, you just finish singing and I will appear on stage
Sima Yi said: "The general will personally lead 8,000 people, dance in the dust and smoke, plant many flags, and claim to the outside world as a 30,000-strong army, and march directly to Western Hubei."
"It's known to the outside world as a 30,000-strong army?"
Cao Cao, Cheng Yu, and Xun Yu looked at each other. The three of them were all heroes of the world. Sima Yi only said this, and they understood his plan, but no one understood it. Cao Cao said with great interest: "
Even if Zhang Xiu believes it to be true, after all, there are only 8,000 troops. Xi'e is also a fortified city, and there are elite troops stationed in Bingzhou, so it may be difficult to capture them in a short time, right?"
"It doesn't matter if you can't speed up."
Sima Yi said: "As long as our army comes out in a fierce attack posture, Zhang Xiu's army will send troops to help Xi'e. In my humble opinion, those who come to help Xi'e will probably be the Bingzhou army stationed in Bowang."
"Why?"
Cao Cao looked at the map and said with a smile: "Western Hubei is not far from Wancheng. Wouldn't Zhang Xiu send troops directly from Wancheng?"
"Although Zhang Xiu is young, he is the leader of the generals. He is expected to know the art of war. When he heard about the attack on Xi'e, he would naturally know that the general has officially launched the offensive of the Western Expedition. So is the only way to attack Xi'e? Is it possible?
Are there other soldiers and horses lying in ambush? As long as Zhang Xiu can think of this, he will never dare to touch Wancheng's soldiers and horses."
"In Xi'e, Bowang is important, but it is because the two cities are the east and west gateways of Wancheng. If Wancheng is lost in the end because of Xi'e, wouldn't it be a small loss but a big loss? Therefore, I believe that it is not a last resort and the situation is critical.
At that time, Wancheng’s Bingzhou troops will definitely not be dispatched lightly! So it is very likely that the troops will be mobilized from Bowang.”
"As it should be."
You should use a knife!
Let's talk about it like this, the fifth watch has passed, you can hear the rooster crow in the distance, the window paper is white, but the sky is about to dawn.
"It's just that I don't know how many remnants of the noble clan there are in Beihai now. I'm afraid they may not be able to do it alone."
"Although Kong Wenju was dim-witted and incompetent, he was in the end a direct descendant of a sage. He governed in Beihai for many years, established a wide range of schools, respected literature and Confucianism, and was actually very popular among the people."
Cao Cao then said to Cheng Yu and Xun Yu: "Zhongda and Yuan Rang are in charge of Nanyang. I will lead the army to conquer Hanoi personally. You two will follow me to the hall to summon all the generals for discussion."
Seeing Cao Cao's face looking tired, everyone noticed and were preparing to leave. Sima Yi bowed and said, "In that case, I will set off for Wuyang in three days."
"I probably don't know."
Cao Cao glanced at Xun Yu, smiled, then stood up slowly, walked a few steps indoors, came to the window again, gently pushed open some gaps, and looked out. The night was quiet, and the only sound was the sound of bamboo.
, it took a while before he replied: "Wen Ruo, please tell me, is Wang Zheng in a hurry to seize the two counties in Jiangdong?"
At this point, he turned to Xun Yu and said, "I remember last year, did envoys from Beihai Kingdom come to ask the emperor to send officials to go to the herdsmen?"
"If Zhang Xiu really refuses to send Bowang's army and horses to help, our army's feint attack in Xi'e will probably turn into a real attack. Xi'e is also the left wing of Wancheng, but compared with Bowang and Wancheng, it will approach Wancheng from here.
There are mountains and rivers on the way, so the march will take a little longer, but as long as Xi'e is captured, once the troops approach Wancheng, Zhang Xiu will also feel fear and will most likely leave the city and surrender."
"Taking fire under the cauldron?"
"Does the lord want to launch troops against Hanoi and Nanyang at the same time?"
If he had known that the opponent was so troublesome, not to mention the father's hatred, even if the whole family died in Xuzhou, Cao Cao would have ignored it and mobilized all his troops to Qi County to annihilate Wang Zheng in one fell swoop.
"As long as Bowang rushes to help Xi'e, the general can use his light cavalry to cross twice the route and take Bowang. This is to attack the east and attack the west, and to divert the tiger away from the mountain."
"Very good." Cao Cao pointed his halberd and shouted: "Wen Ruo will summon this person tomorrow and tell him that both the general and the emperor have agreed to this matter. The imperial court will not only send officials, but is also willing to help them drive away the bandits!"
"Once tempted, they will turn against Wang Zheng. The Xuzhou Army will not sit back and watch Beihai fall, and the Jizhou Army will also think of attacking first and attack Xuzhou after taking Beihai!"
Although Wang Zheng and Cao Cao have not had a direct conflict for a long time, they seem to have already understood each other and regard the other as their lifelong enemy.
"He dares to be so eager to open up frontiers, and he can be so eager. But what about the situation here? I see that there will be overthrow in the near future. If I don't rush forward, won't I just sit back and wait for death?"
Xun Yu replied: "But there is such a thing."
Xun Yu was silent for a moment, then looked sideways at Sima Yi and said, "Zhongda, Zhang Xiu fell into the trap and won't send troops from Wancheng. But if he doesn't allow Bowang's defenders to go to help Xi'e, what should we do?"
"My lord, this plan can be said to kill two birds with one stone!"
"Otherwise, I'm afraid Zhongda's plan will be difficult to succeed."
"good."
It's a pity that mortals don't have such exaggerated foresight. If it did, Cao Cao would have snatched Wang Zheng out of the chaos and killed him as soon as he defeated Zhang Rao!
That's right, as Wang Zheng's power expanded and he won more and more battles, Cao Cao's regrets were no longer the same as before.
Why?
"Originally, the capital of the king's government was in Xiapi, which was fine. Now that he is in Shouchun, hey, it's too far away."
Cao Cao knew the elegant meaning of Xiange when he heard it. What Xun Yu meant was that the key point of Sima Yi's plan was to bluff, and if Zhang Xiu wanted to fall into the trap, he had to make him think that this was the Yanzhou Army's Western Expedition.
It’s time for the army and horses to rise up and go all out!
If Zhang Xiu learns about the simultaneous fighting in Hanoi, this strategy will not work.
Why the hell did you use a whip in the first place?
Cao Cao walked back to the table and sat as steady as a mountain, with a calm and confident look on his face: "Liu Jingsheng is a clan member of the Han Dynasty, and he is a minister in the same palace as this general. He is ambitious and wants to invade his territory. He is not justified by reason."
, we should all inform this matter to prevent it from being taken advantage of by thieves!"
Indeed, the main reason why Wang Zheng is as famous as he is today is because Cao Cao did not pay too much attention to him at the beginning and regarded Wang Zheng as an ordinary Yellow Turban bandit.
Sima Yi smiled calmly, "That's okay."
Sima Yi's plan was roughly clear. Ten thousand men and horses were obviously not too many, but he still had to divide his troops into two groups. One group would pretend to attack Wuyin so that Cai Heng did not dare to act rashly. The other group would attack the siege city in Xi'e fiercely. When Bowang came to help, he would kill him.
Returning the carbine, taking advantage of the emptiness in Bowang City, they attacked with light cavalry. Last year, Zhang Ji and Liu Biao fought for several months. Every city in Nanyang was going through wars, and the city walls must have been damaged. They suppressed them with the power of thunder, and they were unexpected. They should be taken.
Not difficult.
Cao Cao smiled slightly, with surging confidence in his eyes, "As the saying goes, a tiger father has no dog sons. My nephew is as high-spirited and energetic as his father. He is also a young man with a strong spirit. He is thinking about achieving great achievements and establishing prestige.
, if he is allowed to take Beihai, where will he look next?"
Cao Cao looked up at the starry night sky. After a while, he suddenly asked: "You said that Yuan Shao and Wang Zheng had a private agreement. Did Liu Biao ever know about it?"
Cao Cao nodded and motioned for Sima Yi to continue.
"But are you still there?"
"The general's miraculous calculations are beyond the reach of my ministers."
In response to Sima Yi's flattery, Cao Cao just smiled slightly, but this smile had an indescribable meaning, as if he was mocking himself, but also seemed to be smiling bitterly, "What a clever plan?"
"Although I am not willing to do so, I can honestly say that in terms of martial arts, this son is far superior to me, Yuan Shao, and all the princes. However, if martial arts is too strong, it is a good thing, but it is not necessarily a good thing."
"Help Beihai drive out bandits?"
"Since Wang Zheng has the intention to go south, he naturally does not want Liu Biao to know about it, so as not to be prepared."
Xun Yu smiled slightly and said calmly: "Mr. Cheng is so complimentary. Zhongda's talent is like a cone in a bag. If he sees it immediately, he will not be recommended by Yu. Sooner or later, he will be able to show his prominence and be appreciated by the Lord."
, will not be buried for long.”
Because anyone with a discerning eye can probably estimate what Cao Cao's strength is now. He has only 70,000 to 80,000 soldiers and horses, right?
In this case, after excluding the troops stationed in Xudu and other places, how many of these 70,000 to 80,000 people will be left to participate in foreign wars?
At most 30,000 to 40,000 people could bear the sky.
As a result, while attacking Hanoi, they also attacked Nanyang. How many soldiers and horses can you have on this route?
"Killing two birds with one stone is not enough!" Cao Cao's tiger eyes shone brightly, which was extremely intimidating: "We also need to remove the fuel from the bottom of the cauldron!"
"Why?"
"King Ji governed nine counties, of which Langya and Pengcheng were occupied in the Zhongping period. Taishan, Xiapi, and Donghai were acquired in the second year of Zhongping. The remaining Beihai, Guangling, Jiujiang, and Lujiang were all newly annexed. However,
In two or three years, this son's territory has doubled continuously. Hey, since ancient times, who has ever seen people opening up territories so easily and so quickly?"
Of course, even so, Cao Cao still hated his nephew very much.
Naturally, he wanted to recruit ordinary talents, but Wang Zheng's ability was so great that Cao Cao asked himself, even without Xia Houmao, he might not be able to suppress Wang Zheng, and naturally he couldn't tolerate it.
Cheng Yu then stroked his beard and sighed: "Zhongda is indeed a handsome young man. Because of this, Wen Ruo, I am fascinated by your pair of wise eyes, and you know people too well."
"I understand what my lord means."
Cao Cao smiled and said: "In the end, he died at the hands of the royal general Wu Sheng. Wouldn't his people be resentful?"
"Of course it's Langya!"
Xun Yu was speechless. What he said is true. Cao Cao's current situation is indeed not optimistic. After all, the gap between the two in terms of hard power is indeed not small. If he does not take advantage of these six months to speed up his pace to develop his power, how can he compete with Yuan Shao?
Jizhou's strong crossbow to contend?
"Since my lord has made a decision, I should follow my orders." Xun Yu said seriously: "But if we want to divide our troops into two groups, we must not only defeat publicity quickly, but also block the news and prevent Zhang Xiu from Nanyang from knowing it."
Xun Yu thought for a moment and said in a deep voice: "Are you too eager?"
Xun Yu nodded and said: "Wang Zheng has spent the past few years trying to save his troops. Although he has been victorious in consecutive battles, he has also consumed a lot of materials. Although Beihai is a new area, it has the advantage of fishing and salt. If it can disturb this place, it will definitely affect its connection.
Down deployment.”
Cheng Yu couldn't help but said: "Lord, this plan can certainly cause civil strife in Beihai and delay the progress of the royal government, but is it possible that it will give Linzi Yuan Tan an advantage and allow him to take advantage of Beihai?"
Before he finished speaking, Cao Cao cut him off with a wave of his hand, "Then let the envoy go to Linzi to visit my nephew on his way back to Beihai."
Hearing this, Xun Yu and the other three looked at each other for a while, and when they reacted at the same time, Sima Yi immediately perked up and said first, "What do you want, general?"
"That's right." Cheng Yu nodded repeatedly: "When Liu Biao learns about this, he will be very vigilant and stand ready. This will not only increase the difficulty of Wang Zheng's future campaign, but also after most of the Jingzhou Army's troops are drawn to the south, the northern defense line will naturally be weak.
, Zhang Xiu even asked for help, but it was useless."
He suddenly sighed, stood up immediately, and slapped the desk hard, "If it was a clever plan, how could I let this kid accomplish anything under my nose?"
"Yuan Shao has formed an alliance with Wang Zheng. I believe it is nothing more than a false promise. On the surface, there is a temporary truce. Is he really willing to sit back and watch Wang Zheng continue to grow? Let Yuan Tan give some help to the Beihai people, such as secretly sending some ordnance, food and cloth, and arranging troops.
It's just a fake horseman who is acting as a bandit and causing trouble everywhere in Beihai."
"As you command!"
"They should still be there." Xun Yu smiled casually: "Since Beihai has fallen into the hands of Wang Zheng, they have nowhere to go and have no home."
Before Xun Yu could answer, Sima Yi on the side said in astonishment: "General, are you going to send troops to Beihai?" He woke up as soon as he said this and secretly cursed himself for being stupid.
"That's the best!"
Cao Cao thought for a moment, clapped his hands and laughed, looking around and said: "Although it's just an arm's length talk on paper, this guy already has the status of a famous general."
"Zhongda's calculation is very subtle." Hearing this, Cheng Yu smiled and said, "I think it is feasible."
Xun Yu asked: "How do you plan to remove the firepower from the bottom of the cauldron?"
Cao Cao glanced at Sima Yi, laughed, and didn't say anything more. He just continued to say to Xun Yu: "But Xudu is really far away and beyond reach. Therefore, although I and the emperor have this intention, they can't rush it. Therefore,
He will first select some people to sneak back to Beihai with him, contact loyal people, and wait for the opportunity."
Sima Yi blurted out and praised: "Wonderful, wonderful! What a good plan! I heard that Gongsun Zan destroyed the Youyan Saltworks before he burned himself, and even ordered General Zhao Yun to go to the Bohai Sea to cause trouble. Yuan Shao must be short of salt now. Even if he forges an alliance, if the Beihai
With this piece of fat exposed, it’s hard not to be tempted.”
Cao Cao laughed and said: "Having said that, if it only takes 10,000 troops to surrender Zhang Xiu, then I would like to take care of Hanoi Zhangyang before the spring plowing. What do you think?"
"eager?"
"Well, you ask Yuan Rang to prepare his troops and make preparations. I will inform you when things are ready in Jingzhou and Beihai."
"Even so, it would be of great benefit to me to discover it earlier."
"Tell them that at this time, this Zhuzi is only thinking about heading south, to Jingzhou, Beihai and Jiujiang, one to the south and one to the north. They are thousands of miles apart. As long as they don't make a big noise at the beginning, they will probably ignore it and neglect to take precautions. Once the opportunity comes,
When mature, you can rise up and conquer Beihai!"
Sima Yi had already thought out the plan very carefully, so he would naturally participate in the attack on Nanyang. However, since he had been in the army for a long time, he was young, and his surname was not Cao, he naturally could not have the opportunity to lead the army alone, so Cao Cao asked him to go to Wuyang to meet him.
Xiahou Dun went on the expedition as a military advisor.
When Wang Zheng was concerned about Jingzhou, he did not forget to use the imperial seal as bait to sneak into Yuan Shao, just to delay Cao Cao's development and let him and Yuan Shao fight to the death as in the original history.
Although Cao Cao didn't know that in Wang Zheng's heart, he was actually more afraid of him than Yuan Shao, he did the same thing. Seeing that Yuan Shao was about to invade, he still did not forget to light a fire for the Beihai Kingdom, thinking that it would disturb the rear.
Although the overt confrontation has not yet begun, the secret plan has been laid out.
This is exactly what it is: The Divine Sword hums to move the palace, and after you sing, I will appear.