The sun is setting in the west, and the sky is red, as if the sky is stained with blood.
Cao Cao led his army south and stationed outside the north city of Xiangyang City. After arriving, Cao Cao did not launch an attack, but quickly built defenses to prepare for Wang Can's sneak attack.
In the main tent of the Chinese army, Cao Cao summoned the civil servants and generals.
Cao Cao asked: "Masters, now that we have arrived in Xiangyang, how can we attack Wang Can?"
Man Chong said with a smile: "My lord, attacking Wang Can is not our business, Wu Wang Sun Jian is also involved. Therefore, Chong thinks that we should invite Wu Wang Sun Jian to come to the camp to discuss countermeasures and then make plans."
Cao Ang frowned and said: "Mr. Boning, Sun Jian is also the leader of one party, will he come?"
Man Chong immediately replied: "If Sun Jian is unwilling to come, we will do the next best thing and make an appointment with Sun Jian to meet outside the camp. In this way, the lord has left the camp and Sun Jian has also left the camp. Is that okay?"
Cao Ang continued to ask: "Mr. Boning, both sides are meeting outside the camp. What if Wang Can leads a large army to attack?"
When Man Chong heard this, he was speechless for a while.
Cao Cao was overjoyed when he saw Cao Ang's quick reaction, and a smile flashed in his eyes.
Cao Ang is his eldest son and the eldest son of the King of Wei. He will inherit his inheritance in the future, so naturally he cannot be troubled by his ministers. Now Cao Ang is so favored that he is speechless, which makes Cao Cao happy. Only Cao Ang can stand out and control
Cao Cao's powerful advisers and generals are what Cao Cao wants to see.
However, Cao Cao coughed twice and said in a deep voice: "Zixiu (Cao Ang), don't be rude!"
Cao Ang looked at Man Chong and said sincerely: "Mr. Boning, if I have offended you in any way, please forgive me."
Although Man Chong is a little embarrassed, he is also a magnanimous person.
He shook his head slightly, but said sincerely: "What the Crown Prince said is quite reasonable. If we join forces with Sun Jian, we must negotiate with Sun Jian face to face. But the method of negotiation must be considered well, otherwise the negotiation will not succeed and Wang Can will be advantaged. The Crown Prince is worried
Things must be considered, and Wang Can cannot be allowed to take advantage of it."
Cao Cao stroked his long beard and said with a smile: "It doesn't matter. If Sun Jian doesn't come, we can take the initiative to go south and station ourselves opposite Wang Can's army. When the time comes, we can ask Sun Jian to move the camp together. It's okay."
After a pause, Cao Cao said: "We have arrived at Xiangyang, and Sun Jian is almost there. Boning, you send soldiers to the Wu army's camp and inform Sun Jian to go to our camp. If Sun Jian refuses, tell him that the two armies will move closer to the east city of Xiangyang."
, stationed outside the Shu army camp. But Wang Can has to be considered, so we need..."
Cao Cao looked calm and seemed very calm.
Man Chong clasped his fists and said, "My lord, I'm humble enough to handle this matter right now." After saying that, Man Chong stood up and bowed respectfully to Cao Cao before turning around and leaving the tent.
…
In the Shu army camp, towers and oars have been built outside the camp, trenches have been dug, and fortifications have been constructed.
Such an action is undoubtedly a preparation to stick to it.
Because Zhang Liao and Huang Zhong took action in the north, Cao Cao would have to withdraw once Zhang Liao took action. At the same time, Gan Ning and Jia Xu took action in the south, and Sun Jian would also be forced to retreat by then, so Wang Can did not plan to take the initiative. Wang Can
It would be very difficult for Chan to resist the two armies on his own.
However, it was Zhuge Liang's fault that he became what he is now.
If Zhuge Liang had not caused a flood in Xiangyang, Wang Can would not have been stationed outside the city because of the epidemic. If he had stayed in the city, with the help of Xiangyang's city, he would have been as stable as Mount Tai.
"Report!!"
A soldier hurriedly ran into the Chinese army's tent, clasped his fists and said: "King of Shu, the sentinel discovered Cao Cao's soldiers. They chose many roads to go south. We only captured two Wei soldiers."
Wang Can raised his eyebrows and said, "Bring him in!"
Below, Guo Jia and Xu Shu raised their brows after hearing this, both showing doubts.
The three of them looked at each other, expecting to bring in the captured Wei soldiers.
Not long after, two Wei soldiers wearing armor walked in with their heads held high, staring blankly at Wang Can, with a fierce light in their eyes, not afraid of Wang Can at all. Not only that, these two Wei soldiers looked natural.
, seemed to know that he was going to be captured, and did not have the attitude of being a prisoner after being captured.
Without waiting for Wang Can to speak, one of the soldiers said: "King Shu, you don't need to interrogate us. My King Wei made it clear that we are going to the Wu army camp to invite King Wu to see King Wei to discuss attacking you.
There is no other matter. Oh, there is one more thing to ask, my King Wei would like to say hello to you and ask you to be careful."
Direct, really direct.
Cao Cao had already anticipated this situation and simply let his soldiers deliver the message.
Cao Cao is in the north city of Xiangyang, Sun Jian is in the south city of Xiangyang, and Wang Can's army is stationed outside the east city of Xiangyang. Once Cao Cao sends his soldiers south, they will easily be intercepted by Wang Can's soldiers. Cao Cao has already anticipated this situation, so he let
The soldiers left separately, and the news was directly revealed to Wang Can.
The real secret can only be discussed after Cao Cao and Sun Jian meet.
The soldier who sent the message was arrested, but Cao Cao was not worried.
Wang Can looked at his soldiers just now and asked, "Have any letters been found on them?"
The soldier who reported the message shook his head and said: "To the King of Shu, when we caught these two people, we searched them carefully. We took off all their clothes and searched them, but no letter was found."
After saying these words, Wang Can, Guo Jia and Xu Shu all laughed.
Strip searches are really weird.
The two captured Wei soldiers had a look of humiliation on their faces when they heard this. A normal search would only involve touching them twice, but what they encountered was even more shocking. All the clothes they were wearing were taken off, and then it was clear at a glance.
It was found that there was no letter, which made the two Wei soldiers feel aggrieved. They did not expect to encounter such a thing.
Wang Can sighed and said: "Since it's useless, let them go."
After a pause, Wang Can looked at the two Wei soldiers and said: "You go back and tell Meng De that I advised him to return to Yanzhou early and deal with Yuan Shao honestly. After dealing with Yuan Shao first, and reorganizing his strength, maybe
There is still a chance to compete with me. If he stays and insists on his own way, when the situation changes, Yuan Shao will be the one to deal with him."
After speaking, Wang Can asked the soldiers to take Wei Bing away.
After Wei Bing left, Wang Can said: "Feng Xiao, Yuan Zhi, what do you think?"
Guo Jia pondered for a moment, and then said: "My lord, Cao Cao and Sun Jian were not allies from the beginning. It was because my lord captured Xiangyang that they had to become allies, so Cao Cao sent troops to invite Sun Jian. It's just that Cao Cao and Sun Jian are equals.
As the overlord of one side, it is almost impossible for Cao Cao to want Sun Jian to go to Wei camp. At the same time, Cao Cao and Sun Jian also want to divide Xiangyang, which will definitely cause disputes. I suggest that it is best to alienate Cao Cao and Sun Jian and let them go their own ways."
Xu Shu frowned and said: "Brother Fengxiao, Cao Cao and Sun Jian are not ordinary people. Moreover, Cao Cao and Sun Jian have wise men under their command. It will be difficult for us to use tricks to drive a wedge between them."
Wang Can continued: "Actually, that's not necessarily the case. We are currently adopting a stick-to-it strategy. No matter whether the alienation plan succeeds or not, we can give it a try. Besides, Cao Cao and Sun Jian have reached a unified opinion on the surface, but they also have their own ideas privately.
We have to consider our own interests, and there will definitely be disputes. I think we can give it a try, and it doesn’t matter if it doesn’t work out.”
Xu Shu nodded and said, "In that case, you can try it."
…
When Wu Jun arrived at the south of Xiangyang City, it was already dark.
The army camped outside the southern city, and like Cao Cao, they did not approach Wang Can's army. Cao Cao and Sun Jian moved to the south and to the north, sandwiching Wang Can in the middle, forming a pincer attack strategy.
However, Wang Can has Xiangyang as his back, and he is not afraid of the two of them with Xiangyang as his support.
After Sun Jian set up camp, he immediately summoned his subordinates to discuss the strategy of dealing with Wang Can in the tent. At this time, the soldiers in the camp hurriedly ran into the tent, bowed respectfully to Sun Jian, and then clasped their fists and said, "To the King of Wu,
Outside the camp there are several soldiers who claim to be Cao Cao and want to see the king."
Sun Jian raised his eyebrows and shouted: "Xuan!"
Not long after, the soldiers sent by Cao Cao entered the camp and walked into the Chinese army's tent. There were six of them in total, but only one entered the tent, while the other five were waiting outside.