Chapter 242: Sword Pointing to Jingzhou Since there was nothing that could be done, Yuan Shao simply withdrew completely. Before leaving, he originally wanted to try an ambush at Jie Bridge. However, when he found out that the people coming were 3,000 vanguard troops, the large army led by Guan Yu was not fooled, and he even sent cavalry to surround them along the upstream and downstream of the river. Yuan Shao had no choice but to release the dam upstream, break the bridge, and then evacuate. At this point, the area north of the Yellow River was completely controlled by Tian Ze. On the other hand, Yuan Shu attacked Yuzhou with great momentum. Although Tian Yu kept Chen Qun's instructions in mind and was always on guard against Cao Cao, he naturally could not remain indifferent to Yuan Shu's large-scale advance. Yuan Shu became ruthless and relied on his huge advantage in military strength to attack Runan, which he had managed for a long time. Zhang Fei was actually at a disadvantage for a while. Tian Yu had to go to the rescue, and the two sides soon fell into a stalemate. Cao Cao took the opportunity to attack Yuzhou without hesitation, and made rapid progress all the way, capturing several counties in succession and becoming the biggest beneficiary. Yuan Shu was furious, but as things had come to this point, he could not return empty-handed, so he intensified his offensive.
As for the alliance with Liu Bei, if he gave in at this time, he would be at the mercy of others. Yuan Shu was reckless, but not stupid. Faced with such a critical situation, Du Xi made a prompt decision and went alone to negotiate with Yuan Shu. He took the initiative to cede half of Runan County and persuaded Yuan Shu to withdraw his troops. Yuan Shu also took advantage of the situation and took over half of Runan, but left it at that for the time being. Because apart from Ji Ling, there were no other capable generals under his command, and he was able to hold out against Liu Bei's army purely by relying on the lives of his men. Afterwards, Zhang Fei and Tian Yu led the remaining troops and immediately returned to defend the other half of Runan County. As for other counties and prefectures in Yuzhou, they have basically fallen completely. Cao Cao had obviously been planning this for a long time, and because of the war in southern Hebei, he did not have to worry about the threats from Tian Ze and Yuan Shao, so he almost came out in full force. Cao Cao, with his fangs bared, naturally would not miss this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. He did not stop while he was ahead, but continued to attack fiercely. Cao Cao, who led the troops personally, showed his heroic spirit. He first set up camp in Pingyu County and then set an ambush. He defeated Zhang Fei's army, which thought that Cao Cao's army had just arrived and was exhausted, so they launched a night attack. He also deployed a strategy of deceiving an enemy near Ancheng, deceiving Tian Yu who was guarding the city, and took the opportunity to bypass the rear, cutting off Liu Bei's army's retreat and surrounding it. Seeing that there was nothing he could do, Tian Yu had to lead his troops to withdraw before Cao Cao's encirclement was fully formed, and fled back to Nanyang in a panic. After completely driving Liu Bei out of Yuzhou, Cao Cao immediately turned his guns and attacked Yuan Shu. Yuan Shu, who had many soldiers but weak generals, was already exhausted from attacking Liu Bei. When he encountered the more ferocious Cao Cao's army, he inevitably became the logistics captain again. Seeing that the situation was not good, Yuan Shu had to withdraw to Huainan. Cao Cao wanted to continue the attack, but just as he was about to enter the Huainan area, Han Meng, who was stationed in Xuzhou, made some unusual moves. Tolerating Cao Cao's taking over of Yuzhou was Yuan Shao's bottom line, and Yuan Shao would never allow Cao Cao to interfere in Huainan again. After weighing the situation and the pros and cons, Cao Cao had to give up Huainan and instead consolidate his territory in Yuzhou and digest the results of this battle. The surprise attack on Yuzhou was fought extremely beautifully and achieved remarkable results under Xi Zhicai's plan. Because Cao Cao's offensive was fierce and his timing was perfect, the remaining population and supplies in Yuzhou fell into Cao Cao's hands, leaving Liu Bei and Yuan Shu's armies with no chance to move.
Liu Bei's army, in particular, was confused by Xi Zhicai's ingenious plan and fled in panic with only a few thousand people. The remaining soldiers were all either killed or captured. Even the soldiers that Zhang Fei had previously captured were captured by Cao Cao. At this point, Cao Cao had occupied two states in one fell swoop. With a little reorganization, he could mobilize an army of more than 400,000 the following year, and his strength would almost be comparable to that of Yuan Shao. However, Cao Cao's appetite did not stop there. After only half a month of rest, upon learning that Liu Bei was still in southern Jingzhou, Cao Cao suddenly launched another surprise attack on Nanyang County in Jingzhou. Cao Cao's actions were extremely swift, beyond anyone's expectations. Neither Yuan Shao nor Yuan Shu received any news, and when they found out, it was too late. At the same time, Cai Mao's order was also sent to Nanyang County, ordering the officers and soldiers in the county to surrender and not to resist. How could Wen Pin, the prefect of Nanyang who decided to acknowledge Liu Bei as his lord, do such an unjust thing, especially since he had Zhang Fei and Chen Dao by his side? However, the entire Nanyang County was not under the control of Wen Pin alone. Many counties rebelled and many generals turned against him. Only Wen Pin was left guarding Wancheng with his 20,000 defenders and the remnants of Liu Bei's army. Obviously, Cao Cao had planned this long ago. Taking Yuzhou was only the initial goal. Xi Zhicai and Xun Yu wanted to annex Jingzhou in one fell swoop, or at least occupy the two key places of Nanyang and Nanjun. With Cai Mao, an insider with a large army under his command, Xi Zhicai thought the matter was a sure win. As long as Nanyang is captured, Cai Mao will suggest that the nobles of Jingzhou lead their troops to surrender, and Liu Bei will then have to defend the southern part of Jingzhou. However, Cao Cao will rise to become the overlord of the Central Plains spanning three states. Moreover, with Jingzhou as a springboard, Cao Cao will have the opportunity to extend his reach to the other three southern states, fight the north with the south, and achieve hegemony. However, despite all his calculations, Xi Zhicai missed one person, Wen Pin. No one cared about the Nanyang prefect who was temporarily arranged by Liu Biao in advance. Even though Xi Zhicai realized the importance of this person, Liu Biao appointed him shortly before he was assassinated, so Xi Zhicai had no time to carefully inquire and identify the information about this person. Besides, Wen Pin was only in his early twenties at that time, and no one would think what kind of person he was. After all, everyone knows Liu Biao's fighting power. It was very difficult for him to suppress the rebellion in southern Jing. Cao Cao didn't think he had any famous generals under his command, and directly equated him with Yuan Shu. Cao Cao has so many wise and brave generals under his command, and there are many internal supporters in Nanyang. What can a mere Wen Pin do? As a result, it was just a mere Wen Pin who stopped Cao Cao in Nanyang. There was silence in Wancheng. All the nobles and common people were ordered to stay at home and not go out. Only a few soldiers were patrolling, and some were cleaning up the blood and corpses on the streets. Tian Yu stood on the city wall, looking at the general beside him with awe. The general had a firm and calm face and a tall and upright figure, and felt extremely fortunate. Thanks to our lord’s benevolence, we were able to get this man’s help, otherwise Wancheng would have been lost long ago. The biggest crisis in Nanyang County is not outside, but within. With the arrival of a letter from Cai Mao, most of the generals were ready to defect, and Wancheng almost changed its flag. If nothing unexpected happened, even if it did not surrender directly, it would fall into civil strife and be easily captured by Cao Cao. But Wen Pin solved all these problems with great efficiency and vigor. After receiving the letter, Wen Pin immediately summoned all the generals of the rank of colonel and above in Wancheng.
On the surface, he pretended to be indecisive and tested everyone's thoughts. After he understood the enemy and ourselves, he gave an order without hesitation. The swordsmen who were lying in ambush outside quickly stepped forward and killed all the generals who supported surrendering to Cao Cao on the spot. The means are so sharp and decisive that one can't help but marvel. (End of this chapter)