Three Kingdoms: I switched to Liu Bei, why are you crying, Cao Cao?

Chapter 79: Yuan Huan offers advice

It was almost a consensus among the surrounding princes that Liu Bei had no wise men under his command.

After all, if Liu Bei had a military advisor to assist him, he would not have ended up like this.

Yuan Shu and Lu Bu, who didn't defeat Liu Bei?
Ji Ling, in particular, once led 30,000 troops northward, scaring Liu Bei into asking Lu Bu for help. It was only thanks to Lu Bu's shooting of the halberd at the gate that Pei County was saved.

This is also why he was so angry.

Because in Ji Ling's eyes, Liu Bei was the weakest among the three.

He was able to send 8,000 men to the north for defense simply because Liu Bei's marching route was rather special, not because Liu Bei was stronger than Lu Bu.

It can be said that if this battle was fought by Lu Bu, Ji Ling would not be so angry. It was only because it was Liu Bei that he was so furious.

That's 8,000 men! The opponent is Liu Bei!
He really couldn't think of how Chen Lan could have been defeated. The only possibility was that Chen Lan was greedy for merit and acted rashly.

Of course, this is not Ji Ling’s fault.

In fact, under Qin Zhen's calculations, Yuan Shu didn't care about Liu Bei's troops at all.

From Yuan Shu's perspective, Liu Bei's ability to capture Pei State was due to the efforts of Lu Bu and his traitors, and had nothing to do with Liu Bei.

In addition, Yuan Shu did not have an intelligence organization as powerful as Cao Cao's.

Yuan Shu didn't even know that Liu Bei had two new advisers under his command!
Even Yuan Shu didn’t know, let alone Ji Ling and Yuan Huan.

Therefore, when they heard Chen Lan's words, they naturally felt puzzled. Ji Ling immediately said angrily:

"Don't talk nonsense. Who doesn't know Liu Bei's method of deploying troops? It's nothing more than a surprise attack at night!"

"If you hadn't underestimated the enemy, how could the enemy have broken into the city?"

But at this time Chen Lan had already given up, and immediately shouted:
"General, listen to me. The enemy's planner is no small matter!"

"If the general does not listen to me and still underestimates the enemy, he will surely be defeated by the enemy one day!"

Ji Ling was stunned for a moment by his sudden shout. Seeing this, Yuan Huan hurriedly said:
"General, please tell us in detail why we lost the city!"

After hearing this, Chen Lan sorted out her thoughts and told her about her experiences in the north.

Ji Ling and Yuan Huan couldn't help but nod when they heard Liu Bei's army capture two cities.

It was because they heard that Liu Bei's army had entered Jiujiang that they sent Chang Nu to garrison in Xiacai.

After hearing that Zhang Fei came to ask for a fight after Chen Lan entered the city, Ji Ling said in a deep voice:

"The enemy is coming to fight, why don't you fight?"

Chen Lan immediately asked back:
"General, you know that I am going to resist the enemy. How dare I underestimate them?"

"Because I'm afraid the enemy has a plan, I dare not fight!"

When Ji Ling heard this, his brows furrowed for a moment. If things were really as Chen Lan said, then Chen Lan really did not underestimate the enemy!
Then why did they lose? He thought so and continued to listen to Chen Lan's story.

It was not until Chen Lan mentioned the moment when Liu Bei's army disappeared that Ji Ling hurriedly asked:

"Where did Liu Bei's army go?"

Seeing his expression, Chen Lan said bitterly:
"I didn't know, so I hurriedly led people out to investigate. It turned out that the enemy had already divided its forces and moved westward along the Huai River. I thought that the enemy had not moved for a few days and might have discovered that our army was moving the capital."

"I know the importance of the general, and I am afraid that it will delay our army's relocation of the capital, so I have no choice but to lead the army in pursuit."

"I didn't expect to be ambushed by the enemy!"

"I saw the enemy had ambushed them, so I led my troops to attack them. I wanted to return to Dangtu, but I found that Dangtu had been seized by the enemy!"

"It turned out that after I left the city, the enemy army disguised themselves as my soldiers and went to take the city. The Dangtu garrison commander was not prepared and opened the city gate to let the enemy in."

"General, think about it. Have I failed to follow your orders?"

"But the more worried I am, the more I feel that I have fallen into the enemy's trap. It's not that I am careless."

"So I knew that the general wanted to kill me, so I dared to say that I was innocent. If I were not boasting, even if the general came in person, I would probably fall into the enemy's trap!"

Listening to Chen Lan's words, Ji Ling's face was already filled with solemnity.

After hearing the last two sentences, I couldn't help but wonder in my heart, what would happen if he really was in Dangtu?
As he thought of this, he suddenly felt a chill on his back.

Just as Chen Lan said, if he were in that situation, he would be caught too!

It was hard for anyone not to fall into the trap, because they were moving the capital at the time, and the movement of Liu Bei's army was towards their supplies!

It's like someone grabs the tail of a snake. If you look back, you'll be hit with a stick. If you don't, you'll be stabbed with a knife. Whether you look back or not, you'll die!

Thinking of this, Ji Ling was too lazy to argue with Chen Lan, and turned to Yuan Huan and said:

"Sir, the enemy's plan is so amazing, what should we do?"

But Yuan Huan did not respond, but asked Chen Lan:

"General, do you know how Xia Cai was lost?"

When Chen Lan heard the word "General", she knew that her life was safe, so she hurriedly said to Yuan Huan:
"I don't know the details, but I know that after the enemy defeated me, they didn't seem to return to Dangtu, but marched directly to Xiacai. Maybe they also used the trick of deceiving the city!"

"I think the enemy's planning ability is extraordinary. General Chang Nu may have fallen into the enemy's trap!"

"When I heard the news, I didn't dare to delay and hurried to report. I didn't expect that I would be tied up by the general as soon as I got outside the city!"

He knew that Yuan Shu valued Yuan Huan very much, so he made an excuse to ask him to help him escape punishment first.

Yuan Huan also knew what he meant, so he simply said to Ji Ling:
"It seems that this may not be General Chen Lan's fault."

"Although he is guilty of losing the city, now is the time to use people. Why not let the general make up for his crime and make meritorious contributions?"

Ji Ling heard this and knew that Chen Lan could not be killed. However, he had just turned against her too thoroughly and it was not easy for him to apologize now. He could only snort coldly and said:

"Forget it, come here, untie General Chen Lan and take him away to have a good rest!"

Chen Lan was unhappy at this, but she didn't show it. After the guards untied her, she bowed and said,

"Thank you for your kindness, General. I will take my leave now!"

After saying this, he walked out of the hall.

It was not until Chen Lanxing left the hall that Ji Ling stood up and asked again:

"Sir, Liu Bei's army has taken four counties and can march to Shouchun today. What should we do?"

But when he asked again, Yuan Huan shook his head and sighed:

"General, the current priority is not to think of a countermeasure, but to quickly send spies to find out how Liu Bei's army is advancing!"

"Liu Bei is holding our army's relocation capital hostage. I'm afraid he already knows where our army will relocate the capital."

"If he suddenly launches a surprise attack, it will be difficult for the Xincai garrison to hold on!"

"We have already lost Xia Cai and Shouchun has lost a barrier. If we lose money and food again, we will all fail to live up to your majesty's trust!" Ji Ling suddenly reacted after hearing this.

Now that Liu Bei's army knows where the money and food are, isn't Yuan Shu in danger?

Thinking of this, he hurriedly ordered people to go and find out the movements of Liu Bei's army, mainly to explore the Huai River line.

After more than a day of scouting, the spies reported back that they had found no trace of Liu Bei heading west.

Ji Ling heaved a sigh of relief, but Yuan Huan shook his head again:
"If there is no danger in the west, the enemy's intention is in the east. The enemy has a very good plan. Lei Bu's troops may be in danger!"

"Go and tell Lei Bu to leave Yinling and return to Shouchun!"

"Withdraw all the troops stationed in Xiquyang and other places, and our army will just hold on to this city!"

When Ji Ling heard Yuan Huan's advice to withdraw the defenses from the two cities, he was surprised:
"Withdraw all our troops? Isn't that like handing the city over to the enemy?"

When Yuan Huan saw that Ji Ling hadn't reacted yet, he said in a deep voice:
"It's not that we are giving it to the enemy, but that our army is having trouble defending it!"

"General, you must know that the person who is planning with Liu Bei is no small matter!"

"It's not enough that Dangtu fell, but Xiacai also fell at the same time. This shows that the person who planned this is very good at understanding people's hearts."

"If he can defeat Chen Lan and seize Dangtu and Xiacai, he can use the same method to seize Yinling and Xiquyang!"

"Originally our army was on the defensive. Now that someone like this is plotting, we must be extra careful. How can we expect to get away with it?"

"Besides, now that the northern line has been lost, Lu Bu will attack fiercely upon hearing the news. If Liu Bei takes Xiquyang, Lei Bu will be isolated and it will be difficult for him to hold on."

"If the general listens to me, quickly withdraw the garrisons from the two cities."

"Otherwise, if our army loses the Thunder Book, there will only be 17,000 people in the city. How can we resist the attacks of Liu Bei and Lu Bu?"

Originally, in Yuan Huan's mind, more than 10,000 soldiers and horses were definitely enough to defend Shouchun.

But after listening to the enemy's plan, he had a feeling that the enemy's strategist probably didn't care how many soldiers you had to defend the city!

As the saying goes, the best strategy is to attack the enemy's plans, the next best is to attack their alliances, the next best is to attack their troops, and the worst is to attack their cities.

This time, Liu Bei captured Dangtu and Xiacai by using a strategic strategy!
I'm not playing a bloody game with you, I'm just playing a conspiracy!
When facing such an enemy, the city wall is just a barrier, and troops are the key to defeating the enemy.

Faced with Yuan Huan's conclusion, Ji Ling did not dare to slack off and hurriedly sent someone to pass on the message.

After giving the order, Ji Ling still felt uneasy and frowned again:

"Now Sun Ce is in the south and his threat has not been eliminated. Now Liu Bei is so powerful, and there is also Lu Bu with his troops at his side."

"Our army is already losing ground. What will happen if this continues?"

He originally thought that the real enemies were Sun Ce and Lu Bu, but he didn't expect that Liu Bei was the most ruthless one!

Compared to Sun Ce, Liu Bei is closer to them and can mobilize more troops!
Even though Sun Ce controlled three counties, in fact, the 20,000 troops he could mobilize were the maximum.

But Liu Bei is different. His more than 10,000 soldiers are only the front. If necessary, he can continue to send more troops!
With only 10,000 soldiers and horses, they were able to achieve such results. It was hard to imagine how Liu Bei would perform if he launched a full-scale attack!
Therefore, he is becoming more and more anxious now.

But when Yuan Huan heard his words, his expression suddenly froze and he said:

"What did the general just say?"

Seeing this, Ji Ling couldn't help but wonder:

"I wonder what's going to happen if this continues!"

"No, the last sentence!"

As Yuan Huan spoke, he suddenly took a step forward and muttered:
"Sun Ce is in the south. Liu Bei is in the north and Lu Bu is at the side."

As he spoke and walked, his expression began to change.

Seeing this, Ji Ling was stunned and said:

"Sir, why is this?"

But as soon as he finished speaking, Yuan Huan paused, his eyes lit up:
"General! I understand!"

He turned around and said to Ji Ling:
"I may have a plan that can defeat the enemy!"

When Ji Ling heard this, he was cheered up:
"Sir, what strategy do you have to defeat the enemy?"

As soon as he asked this question, Yuan Huan looked determined:
"Our army may be able to cause hostility between Sun and Liu, and use Lu Bu to create chaos and attack the enemy from within!"

Ji Ling was surprised when he heard this.

"They have joined forces and come here, how could they easily become enemies?"

Yuan Huan immediately stroked his beard and smiled:

"Although they came together as a united army, they each had their own agenda. Now it seems that Lu Bu did not forcefully attack Yinling, which shows that he had no intention of taking Huai."

"But this man is greedy by nature and will definitely want to take Shouchun's money and grain."

"Both Sun Ce and Liu Bei focused on capturing cities, which shows that both families were interested in Huainan."

"Our army can start from here and plot a war between the three armies!"

"Liu Bei's army has gained the upper hand, and our army must reduce its forces. It is better to take the initiative to give Xiquyang and Yinling to Liu Bei."

"You can first secretly withdraw Lei Bu's troops, then spread the news that our army is preparing to withdraw from these two cities, and let him prepare his troops to move in."

"At the same time, mobilize troops to reinforce Hefei and spread the news that Liu Bei has captured various cities, giving Sun Ce the illusion that Liu Bei will take the land north and south of the Huai River."

"So, if Sun Ce sees that he cannot take Hefei, he will be afraid that Liu Bei will take Shouchun first, so he will definitely go north first to fight Liu Bei for Shouchun."

"Liu Bei took Xiquyang and Yinling, cutting off Lü Bu's path to advance. Lü Bu will also be resentful!"

"When the time comes, the three families will gather under the city and hold each other back. We can then defend the city and wait for the enemy to retreat!"

When Ji Ling heard this, he looked thoughtful, thinking about the pros and cons.

Just as Yuan Huan said, since we have to withdraw our troops anyway, it would be better to withdraw voluntarily than to wait for the city to be taken.

If we can use two undefendable cities to create resentment among three families, it will be a sure-fire business!
But thinking of this, he hesitated again:

"But what if Liu Bei doesn't want these two cities?"

As soon as he said this, Yuan Huan shook his head and said:
"If he doesn't want these two cities, then these two cities will be taken by Lu Bu."

“Although I can’t make the two families hostile to each other, I can force Sun Ce to go north!”

"As long as we can get Sun Ce to go north, our army will still have a chance to succeed."

After listening to Yuan Huan's words, Ji Ling thought about it carefully. Facing the current situation, it seemed that they could only deal with it in this way!
As long as they can keep the two cities of Shouchun and Hefei, they will have a chance to start over.

After making up his mind, Ji Ling no longer hesitated and hurriedly sent someone to implement Yuan Huan's plan.

(End of this chapter)