Xi Zhicai looked at Kanyu in front of Cao Cao, with thoughts in his eyes.
"It's been so many days. Yuan Jiujiu must have arrived at the front line. I don't know how many troops he will bring this time. I'm thinking if I were Yuan Jiujiu, how could I fight this battle in the easiest way? If
What would you do if you were him?"
Cao Cao raised his head and asked Xi Zhicai his question.
"First of all, we don't know how many troops Yuan Shu has gathered, but the war in Youzhou has not yet ended, and the war in Liangzhou has not been extinguished. The only soldiers who can gather in Xuzhou are Xuzhou and Yanzhou, plus the soldiers he has gathered from
The total number of soldiers and horses brought back from Liangzhou will not exceed 250,000.
This force is almost the same as ours, but he now has an advantage, that is, the unified government orders, and all the troops and horses in Xuzhou are assigned to Yuan Shu.
If I were Yuan Shu and wanted to conquer Yangzhou, I would definitely seize some points to attack."
After Xi Zhi finished speaking, he looked at Cao Cao.
"Do you mean to seize the fact that there is no trust in the alliance between us and Chen Wen?"
Cao Cao was not a mediocre person either. As soon as Xi Zhicai spoke, he understood what Xi Zhicai was thinking.
Yangzhou is different from Xuzhou. The entire civil and military forces in Xuzhou are loyal to Yuan Shu. However, in Yangzhou, there are three heroes competing for hegemony. To be precise, it is two heroes competing for hegemony. No one of them will follow the command of others sincerely. If he were Yuan Shu, he would definitely
I will also seize this point to make an article.
"Actually, I'm not afraid of Yuan Shu increasing his troops in Guangling County, because we have deployed heavy troops here. It would be difficult for him to go south from Wu County.
But I was afraid that he would take the wrong approach. Knowing that we had strong troops and horses here, we continued to confront each other here. Then I detached an elite force to surround Wei and rescue Zhao, and went to Jiujiang County to attack Chen Wen.
If this happens, Chen Wen will definitely be flustered, and he will most likely ask Lu Bu to lead his army back for reinforcements. If Yuan Shu is attacking Dantu at this time, it will be in trouble."
There was no action from Yuan Shu for such a long time, and Xi Zhicai was also panicked. After all, Yuan Shu was a tiger. What was truly terrifying about a tiger was not his claws, but the moment he seized the opportunity to pounce on his prey. Now
Yuan Shu was unable to move, which left them somewhat at a loss as to what to do.
"If Yuan Shu really divides his troops to attack Jiujiang County as you think, how should we respond?"
After hearing Xi Zhicai's analysis, Cao Cao's brows twisted into the Chinese character "Sichuan".
"Lord, if we want to prevent Yuan Shu from dividing his troops, there is only one way. Fight him out and force him to fight us decisively."
Xi Zhicai glanced at Cao Cao. In order to prevent the situation he expected from happening, he could only take the initiative and ask for a battle.
In this way, we can test the actual strength of Yuan Shu's troops, and secondly, we can also dispel Yuan Shu's idea of dividing his troops.
After all, our side has deployed 200,000 heavy troops here. If you, Yuan Shu, dare to divide your troops, then I don't mind directly breaking through Wangdu's defense line and see what you do?
"Do you really want to ask for a fight?"
After hearing Xi Zhicai's words, Cao Cao was still a little hesitant. You must know that Jizhou's soldiers and horses are the best in the world. This is not a joke, but a real and solid record.
Whether it is the crusade against Dong Zhuo, the battle of Youzhou, the battle of Bingzhou, the battle of Yanzhou, including the current battle of Liangzhou, the Jizhou Army has demonstrated its strength with illustrious military exploits.
No prince dared to say that he could win when facing the Jizhou army. Otherwise, Cao Cao would not have given up when he heard that Yuan Shu went south to Xuzhou and went south to Yangzhou to avoid the war.
Now Xi Zhicai wants to take the initiative on his own, which he is unwilling to do in his heart.
"Lord, if we take the initiative to ask for war now, the initiative is in our hands. Whether to fight or retreat is all up to us. But once Yuan Shu makes a move, the initiative may change hands. If he really sends troops to Jiujiang County,
After Lu Bu leaves, we will have to face Yuan Shu's army alone. This battle is inevitable. It is better to fight early than to fight late."
Only then did Xi Zhi see Cao Cao's fear. After all, the current situation was different from what he had thought at first.
Originally, they planned that the best way for Yuan Shu to capture Yangzhou was to go south from Guangling, so that they could both defeat themselves and deter Chen Wen, and they could easily resist Yuan Shu's offensive by relying on the city wall's defense line.
But Yuan Shu is not a fool. He has stood still for so long. He must be waiting for him somewhere else. Instead of Yuan Shu taking action, it is better to take the initiative now and force Yuan Shu to fight with him.
"Well, if you continue to fight, you will be subject to chaos. Since this battle is inevitable, let's beat the drums and gather the generals. I will lead the army north to fight Yuan Shu to the death."
After listening to Xi Zhicai's words, Cao Cao also made up his mind. Since this battle is inevitable, let's start the war. Now that he has Lu Bu to help him, it will be difficult to fight if he really has to wait for Yuan Shu to make his move.
.
"My lord is wise."
After hearing that Cao Cao agreed to send troops, Xi Zhicai directly cupped his fists and saluted.
"Dong dong dong."
As soon as the gathering drum sounded, many generals gathered in Cao Cao's tent.
"Mengde, why are you playing drums?"
The generals gathered together, and Lu Bu sat at the second seat, looking at Cao Cao with doubts in his eyes.
"Feng Xian, I'm calling everyone here to send troops north to fight Yuan Shu decisively."
Cao Cao glanced at Lu Bu and directly expressed his thoughts.
"A decisive battle with Yuan Shu?
Meng De, aren't you being a bit hasty? Wouldn't it be better for us to rely on Dan Tu's front line of defense to resist Yuan Shu's march south?
Why rush north?
I hope Lu Bu’s confusion can be solved.”
When he heard that Lu Bu was going to fight Yuan Shu in the north, Lu Bu was immediately confused. What the hell is this? Do you want to kill him?
"Feng Xian, now both of us have deployed heavy troops here, but Yuan Shu has not moved for such a long time. I suspect that his troops have not arrived yet, so he does not dare to act easily.
The so-called strike first and then be controlled by others. When Yuan Shu has all his troops and horses, he will definitely hit us with a thunderous blow. Instead of doing this, it is better to take the initiative and take advantage of his unpreparedness to catch him off guard.
Moreover, I am also afraid that he will implement a strategy of dividing his troops now. One army will confront us here, and another elite army will be sent from Xiapi to attack Jiujiang County. At that time, Chen Zhoumu will definitely be transferred to lead the army back.
In this way, if our troops and horses are scattered, Yuan Shu can gather his troops and destroy them. In this case, our sect will be defeated in this battle."
Facing Lu Bu, Cao Cao could only make the problem more serious, otherwise he was really afraid that Lu Bu would refuse to send troops, and he would be in trouble then.
"Is that really going to happen?"
When Lu Bu heard what Cao Cao said was so serious, he couldn't help but wonder, is it really that serious?
"Fengxian, we are now both prosperous and disadvantaged.
Do you think I want to go north to fight Yuan Shu now?
Don’t I know that Jizhou has elite soldiers and horses?
I really have no choice. Now we go north to fight Yuan Shu. Even if we lose, we can still retreat to Dantu, and he doesn't dare to divide his troops rashly.
But when Yuan Shu's troops really arrive at Jiujiang County, we will have no chance."
Cao Cao glanced at the suspicious Lu Bu and spoke to him seriously.
"Okay, I understand. Send troops when it's time to send troops. Sooner or later, there will be a battle. This is unavoidable."
Since Cao Cao has said this, Lu Bu has nothing else to say. After all, he is now considered to belong to the same group as Cao Cao, and it is expected that Cao Cao will not do anything stupid.
"Well, then go back and prepare your troops. The army will set off early tomorrow morning and head north for a decisive battle."
Seeing Lu Bu's cooperation, Cao Cao was relieved, and then directly announced the order to go north.
