My father Liu Xuande

Chapter 160: Strong on the outside but miserable on the inside
At this moment, Liu Bei was writing a letter to his eldest son, feeling quite pleased with himself.

Because what Tao Qian couldn't accomplish by spending tens of millions of coins, a million bushels of grain, and thirty to fifty thousand elite troops from the Xuzhou treasury, Liu Bei succeeded.

That is the Greater Xuzhou Plan.

Tao Qian nearly emptied the Xuzhou treasury for his Great Xuzhou plan, and repeatedly formed alliances, creating a huge momentum that almost brought him to the brink of success.

But Tao Qian forgot that in chaotic times, the final showdown is all about fists and who can fight the best.

Everything you've done so far has been solely aimed at weakening the enemy's fighting strength and increasing your own.

Unless a bloodless victory is achieved, a battle will ultimately be fought to determine the final victor.

Tao Qian, however, was no match for Cao Cao and ultimately suffered a crushing defeat.

As mentioned before, Xuzhou is actually located on a plain, which is easy to attack but difficult to defend. Only a few strongholds can protect it.

When facing Qingzhou to the north, it must rely on the canyon formed by the Yi River and the Shu River, while the Wulian Mountain serves as a shield on the side.

The best route for Qingzhou to enter Xuzhou is through the river valley between two canyons. This area is not only a smooth road, but also has very fertile land that produces a large amount of grain, enough to sustain the war effort.

The Yellow Turban Army from Qingzhou marched south to Xuzhou, choosing this very route. They were defeated by Zang Ba at the Lianghe Gorge near the border of Qingzhou and Xuzhou.

Historically, after Liu Bei was defeated by Cao Cao and even lost his second brother, he fled north from here to Qingzhou, then traveled to Hebei to seek refuge with Yuan Shao. This shows the importance of this route.

Of course, besides this road, there was another route at the time, which was the coastal passage.

However, because the coastal areas had not yet been eroded into plains, the coastal roads were rugged and narrow, and the low-lying areas were often submerged during high tide, making it difficult for the army to pass.

This is one of the two major obstacles in the northern border of Xuzhou.

The second greatest obstacle in the northern border is also in Langya County, located in Kaiyang.

To the left of Kaiyang are two mountains and a river.

The two mountains are Mount Meng and Mount Niqiu, the latter being the origin of Confucius's name.

Confucius' parents named him Kong Qiu because of Mount Niqiu. However, what is ridiculous is that after Confucius became famous, the pedantic Confucian scholars changed the name of Mount Niqiu to Nishan to avoid using the name of Confucius. This is extremely brainless.

Mount Meng and Mount Ni both run east-west and are almost parallel. Between the two mountains lies a passage about ten kilometers wide at its widest point, running north-south, and is also accompanied by the Wu River, making it an ideal choice for large armies to march through.

North of Mengshan, there is the north-south Yishan Mountain, which presents a formidable obstacle.

In the first year of Xingping (190 BC), Cao Cao launched his second attack on Xuzhou, and his army took this route.

Kaiyang was at this crucial juncture; holding Kaiyang would cut off the waterway supply route for the army's southward advance. In fact, Cao Cao's inability to encircle Tancheng was also due to his failure to capture Kaiyang, which prevented him from utilizing waterways for supplies.

Moreover, the Wu River connects the State of Lu and Lu County. Although there is a gap in the middle that prevents it from being connected with the Si River, this road is still an important passage from Tancheng to Lu County, suitable for large armies to pass through, and its status is quite high.

Therefore, Liu Bei's next goal was to find a way to acquire the four counties of Feixian, Huaxian, Nanwuyang and Nancheng in Taishan Commandery south of Mengshan. This would completely integrate the northern defense line of Xuzhou, extending hundreds of miles in depth, and would no longer be something Cao Cao could easily break through.

Tao Qian's original intention was simply to seize Fei County and Hua County, using them as bases to block the river valley passages of Mengshan and Nishan.

Now Liu Bei has even taken over the State of Lu, which is far more perfect than the dream territory that Tao Qian painstakingly built in the past.

On the west side, the capture of the upper corners of Rencheng and Pei states further completed the topography of Pengcheng.

During the Western Han Dynasty, Pei State was the place where the Liu family rose to power. It was a very large prefecture-state, governing a total of twenty-nine counties, making it a behemoth.

However, during the Eastern Han Dynasty, Pei State ceded a large amount of land to surrounding prefectures and kingdoms, reducing it to only twenty-one counties, and its shape became a strange three-sectioned structure.

The three fan blades cover most of the county town, divided into three parts: northwest and south.

The northern part, with Xiang County as its capital, comprised six counties and was closely related to the three kingdoms of Lu, Rencheng, and Pengcheng, as well as Shanyang Commandery.

Especially Pengcheng; by acquiring this northern region, one can rely on counties such as Feng and Pei to shield Pengcheng and advance into the Central Plains.

The western fan-shaped area, centered on Qiao County, also included six counties, and was largely integrated with the Liang and Chen states, forming a mutually supportive network. These areas were interconnected by a dense network of rivers, including the Wo River.

The southern fan-shaped area was centered around Qi County, the capital of Pei Commandery during the Western Han Dynasty, but it was generally closely connected with the two commanderies of Xiapi and Jiujiang.

The entire Pei Kingdom lacked a central cohesive force, and geographically it leaned more towards the surrounding commanderies and kingdoms, which can be considered the essence of the division of commanderies and kingdoms in the Eastern Han Dynasty.

Now, Rencheng and Lu have been acquired by Liu Bei, and the northern part of Pei will also be within his grasp once Chen Gui is reinstated. Xuzhou will soon lose its former status as an easy place to attack and difficult to defend.

All of this was merely what Liu Bei gained from leading 10,000 troops to attack the State of Lu.

How could this not make Liu Bei feel smug and complacent?

Unfortunately, just as Feng'er said, the military strength of Xuzhou was still too small.

If Xuzhou truly possessed a mighty army of 100,000, it could not only swallow up the entire territory of Pei State, but also easily capture strategic locations such as Liang State and Shanyang County.

Then, another 30,000 elite troops were led south from Pei County to Jiujiang. My second brother led 4,000 elite troops out of the east city, while Feng'er led 10,000 troops up the river to attack Liyang.

At that time, a single battle will be enough to capture the skeletons in the tomb.

Kong Wenju was truly a remarkable man.

Unfortunately, they had run out of supplies and had no choice but to temporarily withdraw their troops and return to Tancheng.

While Liu Bei was feeling quite pleased with himself, he wrote a letter to his son praising his achievements.

Cao Cao was furious in Juancheng.

"Guo Gong is a self-proclaimed scholar. He first served as a lackey of a traitor in Liangzhou, and now he has attached himself to Liu Bei. What virtue or ability does he have that warrants a report to the Chancellor of our state?"

Enraged, Cao Cao drew his sword. If Guo Gong had been in front of him, he probably would have chopped him into a dozen pieces long ago.

Xun Yu, Cheng Yu, Xi Zhicai, Man Chong, Xiahou Dun, Cao Ren, Cao Hong, Yu Jin and other trusted advisors and generals gathered in the hall at this time.

They were originally going to discuss how to proceed with the next phase of military operations, but then received news of a new development.

After learning that Liu Bei had defeated Guo Gong and taken over the State of Lu, he surprisingly released Guo Gong. It seemed that Guo Gong had already reached a peace agreement with Liu Bei and even recommended Zang Ba, one of Liu Bei's cavalry commanders, as the prime minister of the State of Rencheng.

The importance of Rencheng State was known to everyone in the three provinces of Yan, Yu, and Xu.

Rencheng itself controls the Si River, and across Nanyang Lake from Rencheng, there is a city called Kangfu, which also belongs to the Rencheng Kingdom.

This city is just as important as Rencheng, as it controls the passage to Yanzhou.

On the map, this place appears to be a plain, but in reality, it is full of swamps, with only a narrow passage leading through Kangfu.

Cao Cao launched two campaigns against Xu Province in history. After his base was raided by Lü Bu, he returned to defend it via this route.

At that time, Cao Cao laughed at Lü Bu for being ignorant of military affairs and Chen Gong for lacking strategy. If he had sent a troop to garrison Kangfu and another elite force to take control of Liangfu City in Taishan County, Cao Cao would have been unable to return.

This is not an exaggeration; it's true that we can never go back.

At that time, both Jiyin County and Shanyang County rebelled.

If Cao Cao wanted to return to Yanzhou, he could only go back to Juancheng, Dong'e, and Fanxian. To get there, he could only take the Kangfu and Liangfu routes.

Kangfu is the closest, while Liangfu is a longer route.

Lü Bu indeed severely lacked strategic vision, a fact that has repeatedly cost him dearly throughout history.

Therefore, Cao Cao was quite clear about the importance of Kang Fu.

But now, Kangfu County, along with Rencheng Kingdom, has fallen into Liu Bei's hands.

"Shameless big-eared man, it was all your persuasion that prevented me from leading troops to Xuzhou to punish him."

Cao Cao paced around the hall, sword in hand, occasionally making feints as if slashing. He was truly seething with hatred for Liu Bei: "But this fellow is ungrateful. Instead, he invaded my province and occupied my counties and kingdoms. Does he really think I, Cao Cao, am weak and incompetent?"

Xun Yu, Cheng Yu, Xi Zhicai, Man Chong and other civil officials and strategists all lowered their heads and remained silent.

For them, Rencheng Kingdom is important, but now it's just a minor ailment. Lu Bu and Chen Gong are the real threats.

As long as Cao Cao doesn't change his mind and abandons Lü Bu and Chen Gong to attack Liu Bei, we won't say a word no matter how harshly you criticize him.

We can't deny our leaders the right to vent their frustrations verbally, can we?

Xiahou Dun was somewhat taken aback. He hadn't expected that the young man who had come to Qiao County years ago would be so ruthless, infuriating Mengde to this extent. When he first met him, he had thought the other man was a kind and loyal person. How could he have turned out like this?

Cao Ren did not know Liu Bei. When Liu Bei went to Qiao County, Cao Ren had already gone south to become a bandit and had even raised a group of several hundred people.

As for Cao Hong and Yu Jin, they naturally obeyed Cao Cao's every command.

Cao Cao hurled insults for a long time, but he didn't come up with anything new. He could only attack Liu Bei for having big ears and having sold straw sandals.

But Liu Bei didn't care.

However, Cao Cao was very rational this time. He cursed, but never mentioned turning back to attack Xuzhou.

Just kidding. We finally managed to severely injure Lü Bu, why didn't we take advantage of his weakness and finish him off instead of attacking the well-equipped Xuzhou?
At the beginning of the year, it was thought that Liu Bei had just taken over Xuzhou, the state was unstable, people were restless, and there was no strong army to hold it, so he wanted to take over Xuzhou as a base.

After these six months, Liu Bei had pacified Zang Ba in the north, taken over Guangling in the south, and even defeated Guo Gong. He was no longer the weak and insignificant general he once was.

After Cao Cao finished cursing, he threw his sword aside, sat back down, and said to Cheng Yu, "Zhongde, it seems I'll have to trouble you again."

Cheng Yu naturally understood what Cao Cao meant, and stood up to ask, "My lord, if Lord Liu makes any demands, how should I respond?"

Cao Cao knew that Cheng Yu was asking him for conditions.

Now that Yanzhou has become a stronghold, we must appease Liu Bei.

Otherwise, if Liu Bei really went mad and sided with Lü Bu, even if it angered Yuan Shao, Cao Cao would only have one option left: to cross the river.

Now that Liu Bei has acquired Rencheng and Guo Gong is in Liang, they certainly have the power and the possibility to interfere in Yanzhou. We must be on guard.

At this moment, Cao Cao felt extremely frustrated. How could Liu Bei's rise to power be so rapid?
If it weren't for the fact that he personally led the sabotage in Xuzhou, he would have really thought that his subordinates had let him off the hook.

Despite her frustration, Cheng Yu's question still needed to be answered.

"I can use my position as Governor of Yanzhou to recommend Zang Ba for the position of Chancellor of Rencheng State. However, Xuande must guarantee me that he will not occupy any more counties or prefectures in Yanzhou. Otherwise, I will personally lead my troops to defeat him."

As the governor of Yanzhou, Cao Cao's memorial was naturally more reasonable than that of Guo Gong, the governor of Yuzhou, which also made Zang Ba's appointment as chancellor of Rencheng more legitimate.

However, Cao Cao also kept this in mind. Since he had recommended Zang Ba for the position of Chancellor of Rencheng, he could naturally win Zang Ba over and transfer him to another post later.

Overall, however, this was beneficial to Liu Bei, and could be considered a concession and a sign of Cao Cao's sincerity.

As for the future, that will naturally depend on who is stronger and who is weaker at that time; ultimately, strength will speak for itself.

However, Cheng Yu was not satisfied. His brows were still furrowed, as these conditions were still too difficult.

Rencheng Kingdom is already in Liu Bei's possession. If you want to take it as a benefit, you have to get Liu Bei's consent first.

“My lord, Rencheng is already in the hands of Magistrate Liu. I fear that Magistrate Liu may not be grateful for your kindness.”

Cao Cao was also a little embarrassed, knowing that Cheng Yu was not referring to Liu Bei at all, but was clearly referring to himself.

But he couldn't think of a good idea for the time being, so he could only humbly say, "Zhongde, since you are the envoy, you may try to speak."

Cheng Yu didn't stand on ceremony and simply held up one finger: "Hulu County".

Upon hearing this, Cao Cao immediately shook his head vigorously.

Why did Cheng Yu want Hulu County, but Cao Cao resolutely refused to give it to him?

Because this county is also located in an extremely important position.

It is located on the opposite bank of Nanyang Lake, on the same side as Kangfu County, and at the confluence of the Sishui, Nanshui and Sishui rivers in Nanyang Lake. It is also a vital transportation route connecting Pei County, Liu County and Pengcheng.

If even Hulu County were given to Liu Bei, then Liu Bei would have complete control over the entire Nanyang Lake and Weishan Lake, and Rencheng Kingdom would be completely integrated with Xuzhou, eliminating any threat to the Xuzhou army.

Therefore, Yanzhou will lose all the coastal cities located in Nanyang Lake, Weishan Lake and around these lakes, and will also lose its naval support. The Xuzhou navy only needs to rely on Hulu and Rencheng, especially Hulu, to easily block the entrance to the lake, making it impossible for the Yanzhou navy to enter the lake again.

How could Cao Cao be willing to give up such a strategically important location?

He was reluctant to give it up, but Cheng Yu dared to take it.

Cheng Yu understood that if he wanted to fulfill Cao Cao's request for an envoy mission, he would likely have to bring something truly valuable to his possession, or he would just be wasting his time.

Unless Liu Bei and his advisors were all brain-dead, they wouldn't take advantage of the situation to plunder and demand the lake and land.

Even if we take a step back, is it really impossible for Liu Bei to conquer Hulu?

How can this be.

With only a few dozen local yamen runners and soldiers, and not even county troops, how could Hulu resist Liu Bei's fierce army?

Liu Bei was simply wary of Cao Cao and Yuan Shao, who was behind Cao Cao, and thus did not openly break off relations to take action.

"How can this be allowed? This place must never be given."

Cao Cao shook his head in refusal, only to find Cheng Yu completely unperturbed.

After Cao Cao looked at him, Cheng Yu continued leisurely, "My lord, not only should we give you the lakes and land, but also Gaoping, Nanpingyang, Xiaqiu, as well as Feixian, Nanwuyang, Nancheng and Huaxian in Taishan Commandery."

Seeing Cheng Yu rattle off eight county names in a row, all of which were located in strategic locations, Cao Cao nearly lost his temper again.

At this moment, Xun Yu stood up and bowed, saying, "My lord, the most urgent task at present is to appease Liu Bei in Xuzhou and prevent him from joining forces with Lü Bu. Although these counties are important, they are not the most important thing right now. My lord should put the greater good before personal gain."

Xun Yu was extremely intelligent; as soon as Cheng Yu finished speaking, he knew what the other party was thinking.

It's nothing more than using the tactic of first criticizing to elevate the argument.

He acquired enough chips but didn't use them in the end. Doesn't that demonstrate Cheng Yu's personal ability?

If no bargaining chips are available, and all the scheming and maneuvering are exhausted, it is only through persuasion that Liu Bei is finally convinced to concede.

But where is the credit?

Nobody can see it.

Xun Yu, as the leader of the Yuzhou faction, was quite close to Cheng Yu.

Although Cheng Yu was a native of Yanzhou, he was always misunderstood by the locals.

After joining Cao Cao, he quickly and naturally developed a closer relationship with Xun Yu, becoming an important ally of the Yuzhou faction.

Xun Yu couldn't refuse to help with this.

Moreover, Xun Yu also believed that Cheng Yu's actions were correct and reasonable.

Therefore, he took the initiative to express his opinion, which strengthened the legitimacy of Cheng Yu's request.

Following closely behind, Cao Cao's strategist Xi Zhicai also chimed in, saying, "Your Excellency could also recommend Liu Bei's men as magistrates of various counties, thereby sowing discord between Liu and Lü. If they can be instigated to fight each other, it would be like using one tiger to devour another."

Xi Zhicai was a true member of the Yuzhou faction, recommended by Xun Yu. Since the leader of his own faction had spoken, he couldn't just sit idly by. Besides, what Xi Zhicai said made a lot of sense.

This made Cao Cao realize that whether it was Hulu or other counties, they were all cities under Lü Bu's command, and had nothing to do with him, Cao Cao.

More importantly, if these were all handed over to Liu Bei, he would be bordering Lü Bu and would threaten Changyi, the capital of Shanyang Commandery.

At this time, Shanyang County and the neighboring Jiyin County were both territories of Lu Bu's staunch supporters.

As Xi Zhicai said, if these counties could be used to provoke a conflict between Lü Bu and Liu Bei, Cao Cao's attitude would be quite different.

Later generations knew that Cao Cao was about to defeat Lü Bu, but at the time, Cao Cao was actually quite worried.

To this day, Cao Cao and Lü Bu have been evenly matched, and this time the target of their attack is the fortified city of Juye, which is home to many scholars and has reinforcements from the outside, making it a very difficult city to conquer.

Cao Cao sat in his seat, his face drooping, and did not reply, as if he were deep in thought.

In fact, he could guess what Cheng Yu and Xi Zhicai were thinking, and he could also guess part of Xun Yu's thoughts.

Even someone as demanding as Cao Cao felt that Xun Yu, Cheng Yu, and Xi Zhi were mature and experienced in governing the country, and that some personal considerations were unavoidable.

The most pressing issue now is how to make a choice.

(End of this chapter)