Haha…
Cao Cao’s laughter, which shook the roof tiles, echoed through the government office again.
His laughter was tinged with more audacity and confidence. Yuan Shao, Gongsun Zan, Liu Biao, Yuan Shu… the four forces he worried about the most were actually fighting each other.
Good! With them fighting, Cao Cao had an opportunity. As for other forces like Zhang Yang of Henei, the wandering Lu Bu, and Liu Bei of Pingyuan, with Yan Province’s current strength, Cao Cao truly didn’t put them in his eyes.
Xu Province, the granary of the Central Plains, was a must-have!
“Zi Xiao, Miao Cai…” Cao Cao immediately issued orders…
“Your subordinate is here!” Cao Ren and Xiahou Yuan stepped forward with clasped hands.
“You two will lead the three-thousand vanguard army directly to Dongguan City. I will personally lead a hundred thousand troops following closely behind!”
“Your subordinate accepts the command!” Cao Ren and Xiahou Yuan exchanged a glance and accepted the command of the vanguard general.
Between Xu Province and Yan Province lay the commanderies of Qiao and Pei in Yu Province. The only areas where Xu and Yan bordered were Mount Tai Commandery in Yan Province and Dongguan City in Xu Province. South of Dongguan City was Langya Commandery, and south of Langya Commandery were Donghai, Xiapi, Guangling, and Pengcheng.
To conquer Xiapi City, the administrative seat of Xu Province, the first priority was to take Dongguan City and Langya Commandery in the northernmost border.
Lu Yu mentally reviewed the map of Xu Province. Cao Cao’s deployment avoided Yu Province and struck directly at Xu Province, starting with the easier targets and moving to the harder ones, gradually encroaching. It was flawless!
However… speaking of Dongguan City, Lu Yu’s mind conjured up five rather shy characters – “Dongguan Style Full Service!”
If, one had to add another number, it would definitely be ninety-nine eight…
For a moment, he inexplicably felt a sense of nostalgia, the so-called appreciating fragrant skin and smooth jade, secretly savoring jade flutes… Cough, cough, cough… Lu Yu shook his head abruptly. How could he think of such things at this moment? This Dongguan is not that Dongguan. Xu Province has many beautiful women, but most of them don’t offer a full service anymore!
While Lu Yu was lost in thought, Xi Zhicai finally woke up from his astonishment. He cast a meaningful glance at Lu Yu, his face still pale…
Cao Cao saw through his thoughts and slowly walked up to him, patting his shoulder. He thought to himself, *Zi Cai, Zi Cai, you’ll get used to it. Yu’er is, after all, my Cao family’s descendant. If the ‘seed’ is good, it’s only natural for his insight and judgment to be astonishing. These days, I’ve already started planting seeds in batches. You don’t know, my old waist… is very tired!*
Of course, though Cao Cao thought this way, he spoke quite politely. “Zi Cai, for this campaign to conquer Xu Province, the crucial responsibility of the overall strategist for the three armies will be entrusted to you!”
Oh… Xi Zhicai quickly clasped his hands and accepted the order. “Xi will surely not fail Lord Cao’s trust!”
This deployment is also fine…
Lu Yu nodded slightly. As the saying goes, if Zhicai doesn't die, Guo Jia won't emerge. In terms of strategy, Xi Zhicai is quite formidable. This offensive against Xu Province is considered foolproof. Tao Qian’s demise is merely a matter of time.
However… Lu Yu’s mind spun. It’s always wise to guard against others.
Even though… Cao Cao wouldn’t slaughter Xu Province, and the famous scholar Bian Rang was not dead, Lu Bu behind the scenes still had to be guarded against. To put it plainly, the generals defending Yan Province must be reliable, at least somewhat reliable!
Just as he thought this.
Cao Cao continued to give instructions. “Wen Ruo, Yuan Rang, Meng Zhuo… the heavy responsibility of defending Yan Province will be entrusted to you. My life and fortune, Cao Cao’s, are all in your hands.”
Wen Ruo, Yuan Rang, Meng Zhuo…
Heh heh… Lu Yu just went “heh heh.” Three people in total, two of whom were unreliable.
As for Xun Yu, there’s no need to say more. With him around, Yan Province would not be lost on the surface.
But Cao Cao’s cousin, Xiahou Dun, and Zhang Miao, the Administrator of Chenliu, were a disaster! They were like deep pits…
In Lu Yu’s memory, Xiahou Dun never won a battle in his life; he could be called a perpetually defeated general. Moreover, Xiahou Dun’s troops were mostly from Qing Province. It was obvious to even think with one’s toes that Xiahou Dun could discipline these unruly Qing Province soldiers? This was simply a joke!
As for Zhang Miao… he was even more of a disaster. If according to historical records, when Lu Bu plotted against Yan Province, the first person he allied with was this Zhang Miao. This wasn't just stealing home; it was almost stealing all of Cao Cao’s underwear.
Unreliable…
Instantly, Lu Yu felt three black lines descending from his temples…
“Lord Cao… in my opinion, it would be better to send General Xiahou, who is skilled in warfare, to campaign in Xu Province, and General Zi Xiao, who is skilled in defense, to garrison Yan Province. Especially the northern border of Yan Province, Puyang City, where a large portion of our army’s grain and fodder is stored, and it cannot afford to be lost!”
Lu Yu directly proposed.
In fact, Lu Yu meant well, and his words were sufficiently tactful. Conquering Xu Province offered great merit, while defending… it was difficult to find merit in such a task.
It was obvious that Lu Yu was trying to help Xiahou Dun gain credit!
However… if Lu Yu hadn’t brought it up in court, it would have been one thing.
But now that he had brought it up, the meaning changed. Wasn’t this clearly saying that Xiahou Dun couldn’t defend Yan Province, couldn’t defend this vast granary?
“Kid, who are you saying can’t defend Yan Province? Can’t defend Puyang?” Xiahou Dun suddenly stood up. He had a hot temper.
Anyone who plays LoL or King of Glory knows that the worse a player is, the angrier they get…
“General Xiahou… you misunderstood my meaning,” Lu Yu explained. “My point is that General Xiahou is more adept at attacking. He will surely break through like a bamboo when campaigning in Xu Province! If he were to defend, it would be a waste of General Xiahou’s abilities!”
“Hmph…” Xiahou Dun snorted coldly. His temper flared up. The more you tell me not to do something, the more I want to do it… “Brother, I will defend Yan Province! Isn’t Puyang City a key strategic point for military rations? I insist on personally garrisoning it! I put my words here: if even a single stone of grain is lost from Puyang, or a single county is lost, I, Xiahou Dun, will present my head!”
At this point, he had made a military pledge!
Lu Yu was speechless. He suddenly felt that reasoning with someone with a hot temper was like playing a lute to a cow. As the saying goes, a scholar meeting a soldier… it’s truly impossible to reason.
“Miao Cai has commanded troops for many years; garrisoning Puyang City is not a problem. I am very confident.” Cao Cao’s words seemed to be comforting Xiahou Dun, and also telling Lu Yu to stop bringing up the matter.
Lu Yu felt bitter…
Cao Cao stepped into two pits, and yet… he couldn’t even get past the first pit!
Then there’s no need to say more, the other pit… Administrator of Chenliu, Zhang Miao, would be even more problematic.
He was Cao Cao’s classmate at the Imperial Academy. “Records of the Three Kingdoms” specifically mentioned that before Cao Cao campaigned in Xu Province, he said to his family, “If I don’t return, you can seek refuge with Meng Zhuo! He will treat you like his own children…”
As a result… in the blink of an eye, this good classmate helped Lu Bu steal Cao Cao’s hometown. It was exactly like the saying: “The person you love most is by your side, your best friend is across from you!”
Alas… unreliable…
Lu Yu sat down again helplessly. Persuasion was impossible. The only plan now was to talk more with Xun Yu and urge him to be extremely careful!
However… besides these two deep pits, within Xu Province… there was still one person, no, to be precise, there was still one family that needed to be prepared in advance and deployed early!
Lu Yu’s eyes darted…
This family was precisely the Zhuge clan. Zhuge Jin was eighteen this year, Zhuge Liang was twelve, Zhuge Jun was seven, and Zhuge Yan… Lu Yu didn’t even know how old he was!
In short, Lu Yu figured he had to bring this prominent family from Langya Commandery in Xu Province over!
Imagine, if Zhuge Liang could be educated from a young age, he wouldn’t believe that Zhuge Liang wouldn’t join Wei!
As the saying goes, like a fish in water. That person who would pose the greatest threat in the future, the one who sold straw sandals… if Zhuge Liang were gone, it would be like a fish without water… at the mercy of others, at the mercy of being cooked!
Thinking about this… how many troubles could be saved in the future!
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