Chapter 244 Mr. is saying that he wants to persuade the enemy soldiers to retreat?
"Husband, can you defend Xiapi?"
Five days after Guan Yu and others went to war, Zhou Ping got up and Gan Qian helped him wash up.
"Why do you ask?"
Zhou Ping felt strange that Gan Qian would not usually ask such questions.
"People in the city are saying that Cao Cao and Yuan Shao have hundreds of thousands of troops to attack Xuzhou. We have been defeated again and we will definitely not be able to defend Xiapi. They are also saying that if Cao Cao enters the city, everyone in the city will be killed.
Everyone was very scared."
"Don't worry, it's no problem to defend Xiapi. Cao Cao can't enter the city."
Zhou Ping comforted him.
After leaving the room, Zhang Wu stood guard outside the room with a bow and arrow on his back.
The servant Ah Shui hurried over and said, "Young Master."
"What's wrong?"
Zhou Ping asked, he asked Ah Shui to go out every day to inquire about the rumors in the city, and wanted to know what the people in the city were thinking.
Ah Shui shook his head: "Young Master, the people in the city are very scared and feel that General Liu cannot defend Xiapi!"
"Did anyone say they wanted to leave the city and surrender?"
"That's not true. The people of Xiapi all know that Cao Cao is cruel and easy to kill. He will die if he goes out of the city to ask for surrender. They all said they would rather die in battle and starve than go out of the city and be beheaded by Cao Cao."
"That's good, continue to inquire, and tell me that General Liu has a good strategy to defeat the enemy, so don't panic."
"promise."
Zhou Ping took Zhang Wu and a dozen guards out of the house and went to the Prefectural Mufu.
Along the way, we encountered a lot of patrolling soldiers and few people going out.
"Young Master, does my lord really have a plan to retreat from the enemy?"
Zhang Wu couldn't help but ask.
"Not yet." Zhou Ping responded calmly.
"Then... how about you let me shoot Cao Cao?" Zhang Wu asked again.
Zhou Ping turned to look at Zhang Wu and said with a smile: "Your idea is very good, but it's just impossible to do it."
"Why? I have a red rabbit horse. I can go straight to Cao Cao. When I get close, I will raise an arrow and shoot him. I am confident that I can kill Cao Cao."
Zhang Wu has obviously been thinking about this idea for a long time.
"It's good that you have red rabbits and horses, but you can't get close to Cao Cao. Even if you can get close, Cao Cao is protected by Dian Wei, and he is wearing armor. If you can shoot him so easily, won't I let you go?"
"
"Then how can we make Cao Cao retreat?"
Zhou Ping said: "Don't worry, I have an idea in my mind. As long as the lord agrees, we may be able to relieve the siege of Pi."
"Really! What do you think?" Zhang Wu asked anxiously.
"Haha, if my lord agrees, you will know it."
Zhou Ping stopped talking and went outside Liu Bei's house.
I happened to see Zhuge Jin and Zhuge Liang getting off the carriage in Zhizhong.
"Tzuyu, Kongming."
Zhou Ping handed the horse to the guards and walked towards them.
"gentlemen!"
Zhuge Liang first bowed to Zhou Ping.
"Have you heard about General Zhou?"
Zhuge Jin asked directly.
"What did you hear?"
Zhou Ping was a little confused.
Zhuge Jin came over with Kong Ming and said: "The people in the city and the officers and soldiers in the army all say that the city cannot be defended, and they are terrified!"
"What do Zhuge Zhizhong think?"
"Alas!" Zhuge Jin shook his head, "If my lord had used Sir's strategy and asked Yun Chang and others to lead only a thousand men to fight, and then return immediately after the victory, there would be no situation like this. Now that the soldiers are defeated and the soldiers are timid, if they want to
I'm afraid it will be even harder to defeat the enemy!"
"Brother, why are you so discouraged? Although we didn't win the battle, our troops and horses are still there. There is enough food and grass in the city to defend the city. Cao Cao repeatedly slaughtered the people of Xuzhou, but the people in the city have no intention of surrendering to survive. They are all willing to defend the city and die together.
There is no intention to surrender in the city. Even if there are 200,000 troops besieging the city, they can't break it. Cao Cao and Yuan Shao have joined forces of more than 100,000 troops, and the transportation of food and grass is inconvenient. As long as we hold Xiapi in February and March, they will retreat on their own.
." Zhuge Liang took a step forward and said.
Zhou Ping was very satisfied after hearing this: "What Kong Ming said is as I thought. Although Cao Cao has many soldiers and horses surrounding the city, we also have a lot of defenders. They can't break the city by force. Unless the city is in chaos, otherwise they can't enter."
We can't reach the city. Cao Cao has repeatedly massacred the people of Xuzhou, but no one wants to surrender. Therefore, we can have no worries in Xiapi, as long as we hold on."
"Hahaha, Kong Ming thinks more than me!"
Zhuge Jin smiled and entered the house with Zhou Ping.
Guan Yu, Zhang Fei and Mi Zhu were already there, and Liu Bei was sitting at the top with a worried look on his face.
"Greetings, my lord!"
After Zhou Ping, Zhuge Jin and Zhuge Liang saluted, they sat on the side seats.
Zhang Wu stood outside the door, separated from Xu Chu.
"Sir, you must have heard that the soldiers and people in the city say that the city cannot be defended?"
Liu Bei asked Zhou Ping.
Zhou Ping nodded and said, "Ping has heard about it."
"If I had listened to Sir's words that day, maybe the army would not have been defeated..."
Zhou Ping quickly interrupted Liu Bei: "My lord, the matter has come to an end. It is useless to talk about the past. Now we should think about how to withdraw from the enemy and relieve the siege."
Liu Bei sighed: "Cao Cao's 100,000 troops besieged the city. I heard that Zhang Xiu and his 20,000 troops were about to arrive. 30,000 troops from Qingzhou were surrounding Ju County. Sun Quan from Lujiang was also leading his troops to attack Wan County.
I heard that we have been victorious for a while, but it seems that the Jiangxia soldiers cannot hold Lujiang anymore. We have also been defeated for a while, and it is not easy to retreat the enemy and relieve the siege!"
"By the way," Liu Bei continued, "Chen Yuanlong sent a letter and sneaked into the city last night, saying... let us abandon Xiapi and retreat to Guangling. He also said that if Cao Cao and Yuan Shao get to Xiapi, they will definitely meet
They fight each other and have no time to go south. Even if they lead their troops to go south, we will be safe if we defend by the river. Moreover, if Guangling cannot be defended, we can retreat to the east of the river."
"Abandon the city and retreat?!" Zhou Ping said in shock.
Others were also surprised.
"Brother, how can we abandon the city and retreat!" Guan Yu was reluctant at first.
"Yes, brother, although we didn't win the battle, we can still defend Xiapi. If Cao Cao can't attack, why should we abandon the city?" Zhang Fei followed up.
"My Lord, I agree with what Yuan Long said. Cao Cao's 100,000 troops are besieging the city, and Zhang Xiu's troops are coming again. We have been defeated for a while, and now the soldiers and people in the city are afraid. If we continue to defend, we are afraid that the city will collapse!" Mi Zhu said
.
"Tzuyu, what do you mean?"
Liu Bei asked Zhuge Jin.
Zhuge Jin first glanced at Zhou Ping and replied: "Xiapi is now difficult to defend. If we can retreat to Guangling, we will indeed have a way out. If not, we can retreat to Jiangdong. However, now that the city is surrounded on all sides, we
It’s not easy to retreat!”
"Before Zhang Xiu's troops arrive, let's lead all the troops to charge and break out. I think it won't be too difficult," Mi Zhu said.
Liu Bei waved his hands and said: "We are out, what will happen to the people in the city? Will Cao Cao let them go?"
"This... my lord, I don't care about all these things now. I just wait until one day to kill Cao Cao to avenge them!" Mi Zhu replied.
"No!" Liu Bei said resolutely, "The people of Xuzhou are willing to serve me as their shepherd, and the people of Xiapi have entrusted their lives to me. How can I live up to their trust? Let alone abandon them and leave. This is absolutely unacceptable.
!”
"If we bring the people with us, we may not be able to break out!"
"If we can't take the people with us, then we won't leave!"
Liu Bei seemed to have imagined the scene of people being slaughtered, his eyes were angry and his tone was firm.
"If we don't leave, how will we defend the city?" Mi Zhu asked again.
"Brother, why don't we take all our troops and horses and go out of the city to fight to the death with Cao Cao? I don't believe we can't kill Cao Cao!"
Zhang Fei shouted loudly that he believed that the defeat a few days ago was because he had too few troops.
"No, we are not ready to fight to the death." Liu Bei shook his head.
"What should we do?" Zhang Fei really couldn't think of any other way.
Liu Bei looked at Guan Yu and saw that his eyes were half-squinted, and he seemed to have no idea of a good solution.
He looked at Zhuge Jin again and saw that he also had his head slightly lowered, obviously helpless.
Liu Bei looked at Zhou Ping again and saw that he had his head slightly raised and a smile on his face. He was playing with a wine gourd in his hand. It seemed that he had an idea in his mind.
"Sir, what do you think?" Liu Bei asked.
Zhou Ping replied: "My lord is based on benevolence and cares about the people. He certainly cannot abandon the people and ignore them. Moreover, my lord has been in Xiapi for many years. If you abandon him now, you will lose the hearts of the people of Xuzhou and the hearts of the people in the world. Therefore,
Never abandon the city and leave."
After Liu Bei heard what Zhou Ping said, he felt satisfied and continued to ask: "Sir, do you have any strategy to defend the city and retreat from the enemy?"
"With the current situation, it is difficult for us to go to war, and even if we go to war, it will not be easy to win. Although we can hold on to the city, Langya is attacked by Qingzhou soldiers. Xuyi has 10,000 soldiers, and the three counties of Yangzhou also have 20,000 soldiers, but they
It is also difficult to come in for reinforcements. Xiapi is now a lonely city without help. Fortunately, there is enough food and grass in the city, so we should be able to defend it for the first half of the year."
"It's just that Cao Cao will not be surrounded and unmoved. According to my expectation, it will be difficult for them to break the city, and we are unwilling to go to war. Cao Cao may divert the Si River and Yishui River to flood the city. By then, the soldiers and people in the city will be even more afraid."
"How is that going to happen?"
Liu Bei couldn't wait to hear what Zhou Ping had to say. He just wanted to know how to hold Xiapi and make Cao Cao and Yuan Shao retreat.
Zhou Ping replied: "My Lord, if you want to defend the city, you must retreat from the enemy."
"General Zhou also said just now that we can no longer fight. Since we can't fight, how can we retreat from the enemy?" Mi Zhu asked.
Liu Bei then said: "Yes, sir, you should explain it more clearly! How do we defeat the enemy?"
"advise."
Zhou Ping only replied one word.
"advise?!"
Liu Bei and everyone else were puzzled.
"Sir, are you saying that you want to persuade Cao Cao to retreat?"
Liu Bei couldn't believe that these were the words of Zhou Wen'an, a man with outstanding resourcefulness.
"Sir, don't be joking. How can we persuade Cao Cao's troops to retreat?"
Guan Yu looked at Zhou Ping with wide eyes at this time. He also felt that Zhou Ping's words were incredible.
"Hahaha... I know, sir, he wants to go out of the city to see Cao Cao in person and persuade him to withdraw his troops." Zhang Fei laughed.
Zhou Ping looked at Zhuge Jin and Mi Zhu again and saw doubts on their faces. Only Zhuge Liang nodded slightly, as if he was thinking something.
"How could Cao Cao be willing to withdraw his troops?!" Liu Bei still couldn't believe that Zhou Ping would think like this.
Zhou Ping smiled: "My lord, everyone, Cao Cao is trying every possible means to capture Xuzhou. Of course he will not be willing to retreat, and I don't want to persuade him to retreat."
"Sir, if you don't want to persuade Cao Cao to retreat, why do you want to persuade him again?" Liu Bei asked urgently.
"My Lord, Cao Cao is not the only one who is besieging the city!" Zhou Ping said slowly.
Liu Bei suddenly realized: "Could it be that Mr. Yuan Benchu wants to persuade Yuan Benchu to withdraw his troops?"
"Hahaha... Yes, in addition to Cao Cao's troops and horses, there are also General Yuan's troops and horses outside the city!"
Zhang Fei said quickly, proving that he had thought enough.
"Yes, my lord, Cao Cao strongly invited Yuan Benchu to send troops to come with him. In fact, Yuan Benchu has no intention of attacking Xu. If we can persuade the troops in Jizhou and Qingzhou to retreat, then Cao Cao's troops will retreat on their own. If they don't retreat, we will also
You can repel it."
"General Zhou said it so lightly. Yuan Benchu had an extraordinary relationship with Cao Cao, and Cao Cao helped him destroy Gongsun Bogui. Now that they have joined forces, how can they retreat lightly." Mi Zhu didn't agree with Zhou Ping's idea.
"Yes, sir, how can we persuade Yuan Benchu to withdraw his troops?"
Liu Bei also felt that this method was not feasible.
Zhuge Jin then said: "Sir, are you thinking too simply? General Yuan has raised troops. If there is no gain, how can he retreat easily?"
"Haha, if there is no benefit to him, of course he will not retreat, but if he is given a large profit, he may agree to retreat." Zhou Ping said with a smile.
"What kind of huge profit should I give him? Do you want to give Xuzhou to him?" Liu Bei asked urgently. This was the question he was most concerned about.
Zhou Ping shook his head: "No, Xuzhou is the foundation of the lord, of course we cannot give it away."
"What benefit will it give him?"
"My lord, is the imperial seal we obtained in Wancheng still there?" Zhou Ping asked Liu Bei.
Liu Bei hesitated for a moment and then nodded.
"We can hand over the Imperial Seal to Yuan Shao in exchange for him retreating."
Guan Yu and Zhang Fei knew that Liu Bei had obtained the imperial seal, but Mi Zhu and Zhuge Jin did not know.
At this time, everyone who heard Zhou Ping talking about it looked at Liu Bei in astonishment.
"Can Yuan Benchu retreat with the imperial seal alone?" Liu Bei thought for a moment and asked.
Zhou Ping replied: "With just a jade seal passed down to the country, it is certainly difficult to make him retreat, but Ping has his own reasons. Even if he does not want to retreat, as long as he orders his troops to retreat ten miles and camp, Xiapi can be saved."
Already."
"General Yuan holds the emperor hostage and holds great power. If he is allowed to obtain the imperial seal, will it happen..." Zhuge Jin said worriedly.
"No, Cao Cao and his lord's troops are still there, and Liu Jingsheng is also in Jingzhou. Even if Yuan Shao has this idea, he will not take any action at this time."
Liu Bei was thinking, nodded slightly, and said: "If Yuan Benchu gets the imperial seal, he may be asked to retreat. However, now that the city is surrounded on all sides, how can you get out of the city if you want to go to Ye?"
"Yes, there are enemy soldiers surrounding the city on all sides, how can you get out of the city?" Mi Zhu asked.
"Breakthrough." Zhou Ping said calmly.
Liu Bei shook his head: "If Yunchang Yide can easily break through the siege, sir, how can he break through without force? How about asking Yunchang to go to Yecheng to see Yuan Benchu?"
Zhou Ping hurriedly said: "My lord, please let Zhongkang and Ziwei escort me out of the city to Yecheng. Now in Xiapi, there are Cao Cao's troops to the west, Jushu and Wen Chou to the south, and Yan Liang to the east.
To the north are Cao Ren and Xu Huang leading the troops. Cao Cao and Jushu are guarding the west and south. Neither side can break through. To the north are Cao Ren and Xu Huang. These two are good at leading troops, but they are not easy to break through. Only to the east, Yan Liang
Although he is a brave general, he is not good at using tactics. I can break out of the city from the east and then turn back to Yecheng."
"Even from the east, there are 20,000 soldiers besieging the city. How many soldiers and horses will Sir lead to break out of the city?"
"One hundred people."
"One hundred people?! How could this happen?" Liu Bei asked in shock.
Zhou Ping smiled and said: "My lord, Ping has his own strategy to break out of the encirclement. He can call Gan Xingba here."
Liu Bei was half-convinced, and Zhou Ping was unwilling to reveal his plan now. He had to wait until Gan Ning arrived, so he had to send someone to call Gan Ning.
