readytorunbook Chapter 507 Afternoon
Chapter 507 Afternoon
War is a high-stakes gamble where lives are at stake. Once you're on the battlefield, there are only three possibilities: either you defeat your opponent, seize their territory, population, troops, and supplies, and grow stronger by stepping on their corpses; or you suffer heavy losses and go home to lick your wounds; or you are swallowed up by your opponent and become nourishment for their growth.
Cao Cao naturally wanted to achieve the first outcome, but he also knew that the possibility of defeating Liu Bei was extremely slim. Therefore, he prepared to settle for second best and fight to the death, and then each of them would go home and compete to see who could recover their health.
In other words, they could fight Liu Bei to the death, but they could not be completely swallowed up by Liu Bei and have their hundreds of thousands of Wei troops become Liu Bei's prisoners.
Jia Kui bowed and said, “If Your Majesty wants to fight Liu Bei, you must cross the Han River. Once you cross the Han River, you will be forced into a desperate situation where you have no way to retreat. If you win, that will be fine, but if you lose, you will have no way to retreat. Therefore, we must build a large number of pontoon bridges on the Han River and the Yi River and other rivers along the way to ensure the army’s retreat route.”
"Secondly, we must control the upper reaches of the Han River to prevent the 'big-eared bandits' from cutting off the upper reaches and causing another flood. Fortunately, the Han River is about to enter its dry season, and there will be no heavy rain in the near future, which is advantageous to us."
"Secondly, the Shu army is adept at flanking maneuvers. If Your Majesty does not want the Shu army to outflank us and block our retreat, you must block their routes in advance, cut off all possibilities of their flanking maneuvers, and force them all to the front lines. Fortunately, the area between Xiangyang and Jiangling is all plains, without mountains, so there are no conditions for flanking maneuvers. Even if the Shu army manages to outflank us, they cannot completely block our retreat, which is very advantageous to us."
"Secondly, we must prevent Zhou Xun's navy from heading north. I heard from Zhu Huan that Zhou Xun has built a new warship that is taller, larger, and stronger than the tower ships. It can easily ram a hole in the tower ships. I suggest that we incorporate the 20,000 Wu troops of Lü Fan and Sun Shao into Zhu Huan's navy, and let Zhu Huan cooperate with Zang Ba to block Zhou Xun's navy in the lower reaches of the Yangtze River. We must not let them enter Hankou."
"Finally, we must do a good job of the retreat after defeat, ensure the safe withdrawal of the army, and never let the retreat turn into a rout."
Cao Cao looked at Liu Ye, who bowed and said, "Liang Dao's considerations are very comprehensive, and I have nothing to add."
Cao Cao then looked at the others, and they all shook their heads. Cao Cao then said, "Let's discuss how to resolve the problem raised by Liang Dao."
Two heads are better than one, and those present were among the smartest people in the world. After identifying the target, they checked for any shortcomings and quickly came up with a specific action plan.
After the discussion ended, Cao Cao slammed his hand on the table and said firmly, "Ziyang, send a challenge to that big-eared scoundrel, inviting him to a hunt at Dangyang. The rest of you, go and prepare separately."
The group bowed and took their leave, and soon several riders on fast horses crossed the Han River to Jiangling to deliver a letter of challenge to Liu Bei.
At the same time, Jia Kui was ordered to withdraw to Wancheng and take charge of Nanyang to prevent Guan Xing from causing trouble in the rear of the Wei army, just as he had done when he cut off Lu Xun in Yuzhang.
Those who have learned from their mistakes are very cautious. Cao Cao suffered repeated defeats under Liu Bei, and his wariness of Liu Bei was at its peak. Naturally, he would not give Liu Bei any opportunity to take shortcuts.
Cao Mengde is no pushover like Sun Quan or Lu Xun; he won't let Liu Bei easily steal his home. If that big-eared thief wants to win, let him attack head-on.
After five days of preparation, Cao Cao ordered Xu Huang to lead the vanguard across the river to attack Zhao Yun, who was stationed at Yishui. He himself led the main force closely behind, while Cao Pi, Sima Yi, and Liu Ye were stationed in Fancheng to ensure the army's logistics and retreat route.
Although Zhao Yun had built a defensive line along the Yi River, even the strongest defenses could not stop an enemy force ten times his size. Helpless, he had no choice but to retreat across the Yi River to Dangyang County, while writing a letter to Liu Bei to report the situation.
Cao Cao then led an army of over 200,000 men on a grand march south.
……
Jiangling.
Enraged by Guan Xing's decision to release Mi Fang and Fu Shiren, Guan Yu broke down in his guard. At dawn, he rushed into Guan Xing's barracks with a leather whip, ready to teach this disobedient son who had turned his back on his own.
Guan Xing was not stupid enough to obediently take the beating. He rushed out of the tent and shouted for help, which angered Guan Yu so much that he grabbed a leather whip and chased after him all over the camp. A great chase scene between father and son began in the huge camp.
Faced with Guan Xing's cries for help, everyone hid in the tent pretending to be deaf, but secretly watched through the gaps in the tent flaps, and pricked up their ears to listen to Guan Xing's wonderful screams.
There were many in the Han army camp who wanted to beat up Guan Xing, but few dared to. The officials of Eastern Wu and the gentry of Jingzhou did not dare to fight Guan Xing themselves, so they placed their hopes on Guan Yu, hoping that Guan Yu could vent their anger and beat Guan Xing so badly that he would be bedridden for months.
Unfortunately, Guan Yu was getting old and couldn't outrun the agile Guan Xing. The more they ran, the further apart the father and son became. Those watching the spectacle from inside the tent were so anxious that they wanted to rush over and help Guan Yu by pressing down on Guan Xing's legs.
After chasing for about a quarter of an hour, Chen Dao suddenly ran up and shouted at Guan Yu's back: "Second General, news has come from Fancheng that Cao Cao has already left Wuguan Pass. His Majesty wants you to go to the command tent immediately for a meeting. Second Young Master, please come along as well."
Guan Yu was also running out of steam, so upon hearing this, he decisively turned around and headed back to the command tent.
Guan Xing followed, but kept his distance from Guan Yu to prevent Guan Yu from suddenly turning around and attacking.
Guan Xing dawdled for a long time before entering the command tent. Seeing Liu Bei, Zhang Fei, Zhuge Liang, Sun Quan, Zhang Zhao, Sun Shao, and others, he wisely shrank to the back of the group and acted as a good boy.
Once everyone was present, Liu Bei got straight to the point: "I have just received news that Cao Cao has left Wuguan and entered Nanyang, but instead of retreating to Wancheng, he has come to Fancheng. Clearly, he is unwilling to accept defeat and is preparing to move south. At the same time, Cao Ren, who has retreated to Jiangbei, is also heading to Fancheng to join Cao Cao. What do you all think about this?"
Zhang Zhao and Sun Quan exchanged a glance, then Zhang Zhao stepped forward and bowed, saying, “Your Majesty, Cao Cao is seriously ill and his days are numbered. This may be his last battle. He must want to fight a major battle with Your Majesty. Therefore, I think the best way is to wear him down, defend Jiangling to the death, and wait until Cao Cao’s morale and the morale of the Wei army are exhausted before launching a full-scale attack. We will surely achieve a victory. If we can wear Cao Cao down to death, that would be even better.”
This is the safest approach. Right now, Cao Cao is the one who's eager for a decisive battle. Since Cao Cao is in a hurry, they don't need to be. They can just slowly wear him down. If Cao Cao dies halfway through, that would be perfect.
Guan Yu, however, had a different opinion. He stroked his magnificent beard and said, "It is good to be trapped in a fortified city, but it would make us look like we are afraid of Cao Cao. Our army has won one victory after another and our morale is soaring. If we retreat at this time, it will be a great blow to our morale. It is not advisable."
"Moreover, we have just returned to Jiangling and have not yet had time to establish a scorched earth policy. The people between Jiangling and Xiangyang have not been evacuated. If Cao Cao cannot wait for our decisive battle and instead launches a massacre in a fit of anger, the Hanjiang Plain may become a sea of blood."
Upon hearing this, everyone's expression changed drastically. Cao Cao had a precedent of massacring entire cities. If he were to carry out a massacre on the Hanjiang Plain, or relocate all the people of the Hanjiang Plain as he had done with Hanzhong, Liu Bei would suffer enormous losses.
Guan Yu continued, "Therefore, I believe we should take the initiative and defeat the Wei army head-on to show the might of the Han army and let the world know that Your Majesty is the rightful heir of the Han dynasty and an invincible and righteous army."