Cao Cao made up his mind and planned to fight to the death with Yan Liang in the street pavilion.
Among the indignation of all the ministers, Xun You was the only one who remained silent, his face looking like he was deep in thought.
"Gongda, what do you think of this battle?" Cao Cao asked
Xun You was about to leave, and he held up his hands and said: "Your Majesty, I just feel that the strategy of simply holding on does not seem to be the best strategy."
"How do you say this?" Cao Cao looked surprised.
Xun You said slowly: "The soldiers and horses of the Yan bandits are five times that of our army. It is said that the grain and grass they stationed in Chang'an are as much as two million dendrobium, and more grain and grass are constantly arriving from Guandong.
This shows that Yan Thief is fully prepared to fight a protracted war with Da Qin."
Cao Cao nodded slightly, indicating that he understood what Xun You said, and motioned for him to continue.
"Looking back at our Great Qin, now that His Majesty has ascended the throne for the first time, the morale of the officers and soldiers has indeed been boosted. However, due to the barren land of Longxi and Liangzhou, the supply of food and grass can only be barely adequate. I think that with the current situation, our army will not be able to
Conducive to long-term war"
After hearing Xun You's words, Cao Cao fell silent. His originally passionate and determined momentum was half gone in the blink of an eye.
"Gongda's words are reasonable. The problem of food and grass is indeed not easy to solve." Liu Ye also frowned secretly, expressing his agreement with Xun You's statement.
The worried Cao Cao saw Xun You's calm face and knew that he must have a plan, so he asked: "Does Gongda have a solution?"
Xun You coughed dryly, "I think that if you want to solve the problem of insufficient food and grass, you can only choose to fight quickly."
Quick fight?
All the ministers in the palace were slightly shocked but looked even more unconfident.
The Chu State has a total army of 200,000. You may not be able to hold on with only 40,000 to 50,000 troops, but you still want to fight quickly. Isn’t this wishful thinking?
"Gongda, please explain more clearly, what is the way to fight quickly?" Cao Cao knew that Xun You would not talk nonsense for no reason. Since he proposed a quick war, he had his own strategy for a quick war.
Sure enough, Xun You smiled and said calmly: "The street pavilion is located at the entrance of Longshan Avenue. The terrain must be dangerous. Your Majesty only needs to send more than ten thousand troops to seize the dangerous point. It will not be a problem to hold off the rebels for ten and a half days. But here
At that time, Your Majesty can lead the main force southward and defeat Lu Xun's partial troops in one fell swoop."
"Once the partial division defeats the Chu army, the morale of the army will be shaken. At this time, your majesty will lead the victorious army back to the north and go to the street pavilion to kill the Chu army by surprise. It will surely defeat the main force of the enemy army in one fell swoop."
Xun You spoke his plan in a leisurely manner, and when he heard this plan, Cao Cao became energetic and suddenly seemed to be enlightened.
This tactic of first defeating the weak enemy, reducing the power of the flanks, and then concentrating the force against the main enemy was something that Cao Cao had tried repeatedly when he was exploring the Central Plains.
If so, then Xun You's strategy can indeed allow him to defeat Yan Liang's massive attack in a short period of time
After pondering for a long time, Cao Cao slapped the table and said: "What Gongda said is absolutely true. We cannot afford to delay this war and must win quickly. According to Gongda's plan, I will personally lead the army and go to Qishan first to defeat the little Lu Xun."
As soon as the tactics changed, everyone in Cao's army suddenly became excited again.
Then, Cao Cao looked around at the officials and said sternly: "The street pavilion is crucial and it is of great importance. I don't know who you want to be willing to take on this important task. Guard the street pavilion for me and hold back the army of Yan thieves."
As soon as he finished speaking, the people at the bottom of the steps came out of the queue and said with emotion: "My son is willing to lead an army and go to guard the street pavilion."
Cao Cao raised his eyes and saw that the person who generously asked for a battle was none other than his own yellow-bearded son, Cao Zhang.
Nowadays, Cao Cao has lost troops and generals year after year, and has lost almost all his good generals. Now there are only a few people in the army who can be called good generals, such as Xia Houyuan and Cao Zhang.
At this critical moment, Cao Zhang was able to stand up decisively and ask for a fight without fear of the powerful enemy. Cao Cao was pleased and could not help but nod slightly with a look of approval on his face.
Cao Pi, who was standing next to him, saw this and could not help but frown secretly, flashing a hint of fear.
Now that Cao Cao has proclaimed himself emperor, he has also appointed Bian as his queen. Logically speaking, as the eldest son, Cao Pi should be made the crown prince.
The fact is that Cao Cao did not appoint anyone as the prince, which led outsiders to speculate that Cao Cao was still hesitant on whether to appoint Cao Pi or Cao Zhang as the prince.
The ministers are all guessing that the prince Cao Zhang is very brave and the country is weak now. When foreign enemies invade, it seems that Cao Zhang is more suitable to be the prince.
As for Cao Pi, although he is the eldest son, he is not good at fighting. It is okay to be a defensive leader in peacetime, but in these troubled times, he does not seem to have much advantage.
Moreover, after the Cao Zhi incident, Cao Cao was suspicious of Cao Pi, and there was a grudge between father and son. Cao Pi thought that this must be the reason why Cao Cao delayed making him the crown prince.
Now that the country is facing a crisis, Cao Zhang generously asks for a battle. If he can successfully defend the street pavilion, he will have made great military exploits for the Qin Dynasty. His reputation among the officials will be greatly increased, and Cao Cao will value him more.
If one thing goes down and the other goes up, if you just sit back and watch Cao Zhang make great achievements, then Cao Pi will be further and further away from his position as crown prince.
Thinking of this, Cao Pi didn't have time to think too much and went out of his way. He raised his hand and said generously: "I am willing to lead the army to guard the street pavilion. Even if I fight to the last man, I will never let the rebel army cross the street pavilion."
Cao Pi also stood up and asked for a fight, which surprised Cao Cao.
You know, Cao Pi has always been pampered. For so many years, he has never even been on the battlefield. At such a critical moment, he can actually take the initiative to fight at the risk of his life. How can this not surprise Cao Cao?
Cao Zhang frowned slightly, knowing that this was his brother, trying to steal credit from him.
"I am very pleased that you have such a heart for the country." Cao Cao nodded in approval, but then said: "It's just that this battle is of great importance, and you have never been on the battlefield. Let your brother go to this street pavilion."
Cao Pi's heart was shocked, and the generosity on his face suddenly disappeared, and a trace of disappointment flashed in his eyes.
At this time, Cao Zhang smiled at him and said: "Brother, just stay at home with peace of mind. I'll leave it to my brother to kill the enemy in battle and share my father's worries."
Cao Zhang's words were insinuating that Cao Pi was useless and could not share his father's worries.
Cao Pi felt unhappy, but he still pretended to be concerned and said: "As for the frontline matters, Lao Ziwen will take care of you. You must not let your father down."
"Brother, don't worry. I will defend the street pavilion for my brother until my father's army comes to my rescue." Cao Zhang said, patting his chest.
Cao Pi had no choice but to retreat sadly, but he was unwilling to do so. He turned around and gave a secret wink to someone.
At this time, another person in the class stood up and said with cupped hands: "Your Majesty, I would like to assist the third prince to guard the street pavilion."
Cao Cao looked around and saw that the person asking for a fight was Wu Zhi.
"The street pavilion is of great importance. Zhang'er really needs a right-hand man. Since you have such courage, I will grant your request." Cao Cao didn't think much and immediately approved Cao Zhang's request.
After the plan was decided, Cao Cao ordered Cao Zhang to lead his army to the street pavilion and then go down to the stronghold on the road and seize the main entrance of the five roads.
Afterwards, Cao Cao dismissed the court meeting, and all the soldiers and horses moved according to the plan.
In the afternoon of that day, Cao Cao led 40,000 soldiers and horses, with Xia Houyuan as the vanguard, and headed south from Jicheng to Qishan Mountain.
Cao Zhang led 10,000 infantry and cavalry and marched quickly to Jieting.
…
When Cao Cao launched his army, the main army led by Yan Liang had already entered Chencang.
After setting up camp, Yan Liang received an urgent report from Qian County, the vanguard Wen Chou, saying that Cao Cao had sent his son Cao Zhang to lead his army to guard the key points of Jieting.
"It seems that all the counselors around Cao Cao are not dead yet. They know how to let Cao Cao occupy the street pavilion to prevent our army from entering the Longxi Plain," Fa Zheng said with emotion.
Street pavilion?
This familiar place name brought many old memories to Yan Liang's mind.
In the past history, Ma Su was defeated by Zhang Jia in the street pavilion, which ultimately brought Zhuge Liang's first Northern Expedition to naught.
Today, history has changed, but the importance of street pavilions remains.
"The traitor Cao used his son to guard Jieting. He must have wanted to lead the army to defeat our Yizhou Army first, and then return to Shijieting. While our army's morale was shaken, he could catch us by surprise." Fazheng revealed Cao Cao's plan in one sentence.
Purpose
Yan Liang nodded slightly and murmured: "Lu Boyan is good at defense but not good at offense. If we really fight, he may not be Cao Thief's opponent. It seems that I must capture the street pavilion before he is frustrated."
While deep in thought, Yan Lianghuan glanced at the ministers in front of the tent. Suddenly, his eyes stopped on that young face.
An interesting idea suddenly came to Yan Liang's mind
"Where is Ma Youchang?" Yan Liang suddenly shouted
Ma Su was startled and rushed out of the queue. He cupped his hands and said, "I'm here."
Yan Liang shouted loudly: "I order you to go to Qian County quickly to assist the Hussar General and convey my decree to him, saying that I am ordering them to set off immediately, lead the vanguard army to seize the street pavilion for me, and eliminate Cao Zhang's son."
Ever since the Wuxi Man rebellion was put down and Ma Di offered his offensive strategy, Yan Liang has been delegating Ma Di, a young talent, to local areas for training. In these years, Yan Liang has been conquering the east and west, and Ma Di has rarely had the opportunity to stand out.
Now, during this important battle, Yan Liang suddenly sent Ma Su to the front line. How could Ma Su not know about this intention of cultivation and reuse?
At that moment, Ma Su was overjoyed and accepted the order generously.
Ma Su, Deng Ai and other talented people are all leaders among the younger generation of the Chu Kingdom. With the importance Yan Liang paid to Ma Su, how could he forget him?
And Yan Liang knows very well that even if Ma Di is a jade in the rough, it must be carved before it can become a rare and beautiful piece.
Zhuge Liang in history, although he valued Ma Su, did not know how to carve beautiful jade. He asked Ma Su, who had never personally commanded an army, to take on the important task of guarding the street pavilion. As a result, Ma Su, the general star, fell rapidly before he could rise.
Of course Yan Liang would not make Zhuge Liang's mistake, so he used this battle to let Ma Di go and experience it.
In the vanguard army, in addition to Wen Chou, there was also Xu Shu, an excellent military planner. In this way, even if Ma Su was inexperienced, Xu Shu would still be there to watch over him and prevent a catastrophe.
Moreover, Ma Su in history was killed in a street pavilion, but Yan Liangjin sent Ma Di to the street pavilion to make contributions. Subconsciously, there was an arrogance to mock history.
So, Ma Su took Yan Liang's will and set off that day, flying on horseback to the front line under the starry night (To be continued...)