My father-in-law Guan Yu, I persuaded Liu Bei to launch a surprise attack on Xiangyang at the beginn

Chapter 223: You left your home and career behind, and now you return home in glory! Announce Cao Cao's crimes, and the whole state will rebel!
Dusk.

To the west of Xia Pi City, the Chu army surrounded the camp.

On the watchtower, Liu Bei and his ministers were observing the situation in Xia Pi City from afar.

In addition to the original generals, there is a new face behind him.

Mi Zhu, the new Minister of Agriculture of the State of Chu.

As the original shareholder of Liu Bei's group, after Liu Bei was promoted to duke, he appointed Mi Zhu as the Minister of Agriculture of Chu State, in charge of the tribute grain and millet in the world, and ranked him as one of the Nine Ministers.

This honor and favor is indeed great, and it is worthy of Mi's contribution of abandoning her family and career to follow Liu Bei.

At this time, Mi Zhu no longer needed to go on the expedition with the army. He only needed to stay in Yingtian and live out his retirement from nine to five.

However, when Liu Bei's army was approaching Xia Pi, he specially ordered Mi Zhu to personally escort the food and fodder to the front line in Xuzhou for delivery.

There was no other reason, he just wanted Mi Zhu, a Yuancong from Xuzhou, to enjoy the glory of returning home in glory.

"Zi Zhong, do you still remember those old times in Xuzhou?"

Liu Bei raised his hand and pointed at Xia Pi City in the distance, then turned around and looked at Mi Zhu with a smile.

Mi Zhu looked at the familiar city and the familiar mountains and rivers in front of him, and old memories came flooding back.

Back then, when Liu Bei was supported and took over Xuzhou, he was in a glorious position as the deputy driver...

He helped Lu Bu steal Xuzhou, spent all his money to support Liu Bei, but still failed. He was forced to abandon his family and career, leaving his hometown to follow Liu Bei on his journey across the world.

All the past events came to mind one by one, and Mi Zhu was filled with emotion.

In the end, all of it turned into the joy of returning home in glory and pride.

Mi Zhu put away his thousands of thoughts and sighed:

"How could I not remember those old days? Xuzhou is my hometown after all."

"To be honest, I never dreamed that one day I would be able to follow the Duke of Chu back to Xuzhou and return to my homeland."

"Lord Chu, can you tell me that I am not dreaming right now?"

Mi Zhu became increasingly emotional, and his words became a little inappropriate.

Liu Bei sighed, patted Mi Zhu on the shoulder and said with a smile:

"Zi Zhong, I'm telling you, you're not in a dream. Everything you see is real."

"After thirteen years, we are back in Xuzhou. You, Mi Zizhong, have returned home!"

Mi Zhu laughed heartily.

After a few words of emotion, Liu Bei put away his emotion and changed the subject:
"But we have only fought our way back to Xuzhou. If we want to recapture Xuzhou, we must first conquer Xiapi City!"

Liu Bei turned to his ministers and asked:
"Everyone, Cao Cao fled to Pengcheng, but left Zang Ba to guard Xiapi. What do you think Cao Cao's intention was?"

As soon as the words fell, Pang Tong sneered:
"Cao was simply afraid of being surrounded in an isolated city, where his life and death were uncertain, so he didn't dare to defend Xia Pi himself and fled to Pengcheng first."

"Xia Pi is related to the survival of Xuzhou. Cao Cao is reluctant to give up Xuzhou, so naturally he is also reluctant to give up Xia Pi."

"That's why he left Zang Ba, the local tyrant, to guard Xia Pi while he went to Pengcheng to wait for Xiahou Dun's reinforcements. He would then return to Xia Pi and defeat our army with internal and external support."

Pang Tong exposed Cao Cao's strategic intentions in just a few words.

"Shi Yuan has a point."

Mi Zhu nodded slightly and then said:

"Back when the Duke of Chu was the governor of Xuzhou, Zang Ba pretended to obey him but secretly disobeyed him. When Lü Bu stole Xuzhou, not only did he not rescue him, he even surrendered to Lü Bu."

"After Cao Cao conquered Xuzhou, Zang Ba led the Taishan army to surrender to Cao Cao and offered his sons and nephews as hostages. As a result, Cao Cao appointed him as the governor of Xuzhou and entrusted him with the affairs of Qingzhou and Xuzhou."

"Xuzhou is Zang Ba's base. Cao Cao must have known that he would not surrender to the Duke of Chu and hand Xuzhou over to him, so he left him to defend Xiapi."

As the former deputy governor of Xuzhou and a powerful man in Donghai County, Mi Zhu was well aware of the dark history of local tyrants like Zang Ba.

Liu Bei nodded slightly, and looked at Xia Pi with a cold gaze:

"It seems that it is impossible to persuade Zang Ba to surrender. This thief will resist to the end. The only way is to capture Xia Pi by force!"

As soon as the words fell, Pang Tong smiled and bowed:

"Lord Chu, I have a plan that will take Xia Pi without a single soldier."

Liu Bei's eyes lit up and he hurriedly asked Pang Tong what good ideas he had.

Pang Tong pointed behind him and sneered:
"West of Xia Pi is the Si River. It's late spring and the beginning of summer, and it's the time when heavy rains are falling and rivers are swollen."

"Why don't you, Lord Chu, dig up the Si River and flood Xia Pi with it!"

Liu Bei's expression brightened, and he suddenly realized.

Pang Tong wanted to imitate the battle in Huainan, where Xiao He used water to flood Shouchun, and use the Si River to flood Xia Pi!

"Lord Chu, Shi Yuan's plan is a brilliant one to quickly capture Xia Pi."

"When Cao Cao defeated Lü Bu, he was able to dig the Si River to flood Xia Pi and eventually capture the city."

"With this successful precedent, this plan can be used!"

Mi Zhu recalled the old days, and a hint of joy appeared in his eyes and tone.

Liu Bei was delighted for a moment, but then he frowned and shook his head.

"If Xia Pi is flooded, it can certainly be conquered, but don't forget that this flood not only drowns Zang Ba's Wei army, but also the people in the city."

"The reason I flooded Shouchun was because Cao Ren had driven all the people out of the city. I didn't have to worry about harming the people, so I could flood Xiapi with all my might."

"I have just returned to Xia Pi, and I have already abandoned the lives of the people in the city in order to capture the city and plunder the land. How am I any different from Cao Cao?"

As soon as these words were spoken, Mi Zhu suddenly realized and the joy on his face immediately faded.

The reason why Liu Bei was popular in Xuzhou was because Cao Cao massacred people in Xuzhou and treated the people of the state as grass. Although Liu Bei's reign was short, he was able to implement benevolent policies for the people.

You, Cao Cao, were able to massacre Xuzhou twice. In order to capture Xia Pi, you could have used any means and flooded Xia Pi without caring about the lives of the people.

Can I, Liu Bei, do it?
Of course not!

"Lord Chu's words make sense. It was Tong who was inconsiderate and neglected the prerequisite for Cao Ren to drive the people of Shouchun out."

"It seems that the plan to flood Xia Pi should indeed be carefully considered."

Pang Tong nodded and frankly admitted his negligence.

The proposal to break the city was temporarily stuck here.

When everyone was unable to come to a conclusion, they gradually quieted down and looked at Xiao He almost out of habit.

At this time, Xiao He had never expressed his opinion, but just stared at Xia Pi City with a thoughtful look in his eyes.

Liu Bei was very familiar with that look. He must have been brewing some brilliant plan in his mind.

"Bo Wen, do you have a plan for conquering Xia Pi?"

Liu Bei asked expectantly.

Xiao He indeed had a plan in mind, and he looked at the mountains and rivers of Xuzhou in front of him, and said meaningfully:

"Just now, Lord Chu said, if you don't care about the people in the city, how are you any different from Cao Cao?"

"This is why, even though Duke Chu has been away from Xuzhou for over ten years, he still retains his popularity among the people, and why the people still miss him."

"This is also the reason why, after Cao Cao's defeat at Xiaxiang, cities like Donghai County and Tan County all defected and submitted to the Duke of Chu."

"Public opinion is like an invisible knife. If used properly, it can be more lethal than a real blade."

"Let's capture Xia Pi, starting with the people's hearts!"

The people's hearts! These two words sounded like thunder, causing Pang Tong, Mi Zhu and others to suddenly realize something.

Liu Bei also seemed to understand something and asked hurriedly:

"Then according to Bo Wen's opinion, how can we use the people's support to help me conquer Xia Pi?"

Xiao He's eyes were like knives, shooting towards Xia Pi City first:

"Lord Chu should personally write a letter to the soldiers and civilians of Xia Pi, stating that we have returned to Xuzhou to defeat Cao Cao and avenge the people of Xuzhou who died at his hands."

"This manifesto is intended to stir up hatred among the city's citizens against Cao Cao, to encourage them to betray Cao and rebel against Wei, to shake the resolve of the city's defenders, and to prevent Zang Ba from fully resisting our army."

Then, Xiao He looked at Mi Zhu again:
"Mi Taichang was a famous scholar in Xuzhou. Although he had been away from home for many years, the network of relationships that the Mi family had cultivated over the years should still be quite a bit."

"Next, please ask Mi Taichang to use your connections to lobby the nobles and aristocrats in the various counties and prefectures, explain the interests at stake to them, and persuade them to recognize the situation and rally to the Duke of Chu."

"Especially the Chen family. If we can convince them to take the lead in defecting, I predict that all the major families in the state will rise up and rebel against Wei and join Chu!"

Upon hearing this, Liu Bei and Mi Zhu's expressions changed and they looked at each other.

The Chen family.

This is a very important family in Xuzhou, a top family that can influence the hearts and minds of the scholars in the state.

The leaders were Chen Gui and his son Chen Deng.

Liu Bei was able to inherit Xuzhou from Tao Qian because of the joint support of Mi Zhu and Chen Deng, and only then was he able to ascend to the position of governor.

Later, Cao Cao was able to defeat Lu Bu and capture Xuzhou with the help of Chen Deng and the Chen family.

However, not long after Cao Cao took Xuzhou, Chen Deng died young due to illness.

In order to weaken the influence of the Chen family on Xuzhou, Cao Cao seemed to deliberately support Zang Ba as the governor of Xuzhou, and used the method of boiling a frog in warm water to expel the Chen family from the core of power in Xuzhou.

By now, Chen Gui was already old and had been staying at home all year round to enjoy his retirement. He was rarely seen in important positions in Xuzhou, from the provincial capital to the county government.

Chen Dengli made great contributions, but his son Chen Su was just a legal official in Xia Pi County.

Faced with Cao Cao's abandonment of his usefulness, who would believe that the Chen family did not harbor any resentment?

But Cao Cao had already unified the north and was in power. He wanted to suppress your Chen family. What could you do?

Even if you are dissatisfied in your heart, you dare not speak out.

So when Liu Bei returned and Xuzhou showed signs of changing hands, wasn't it reasonable for the Chen family to defect?

After understanding this, Mi Zhu happily said:
"Military Advisor Bo Wen is right. Lord Chu, I will personally go to Huaipu and convince Lord Chen to step forward. I will then raise my arm and call on the scholars of Xuzhou to ally with you!"

Liu Bei naturally accepted it with pleasure.

After taking a breath, Xiao He finally said:
"It's not just Xia Pi that has a blood feud with Cao Cao; it's the entire Xuzhou."

"The Duke of Chu wants to capture not only Xia Pi, but the entire five counties of Xuzhou!"

"Therefore, the Duke of Chu should issue a manifesto and post it in Xiapi, Pengcheng, and Langya counties, listing Cao Cao's numerous crimes, including the two massacres of Xuzhou, and calling on the people of all counties and prefectures to rise up and abandon Wei and join Chu!"

"Let's launch a massive psychological warfare campaign and let Cao Cao personally taste the bitter fruit of his massacre in Xuzhou!"

After hearing this, Liu Bei completely understood the whole picture of Xiao He's plan.

In short, it is to attack the heart first, and then take Xuzhou without fighting!

"Okay, I'll follow Bowen's plan and start a war of hearts and minds with Cao Cao!"

Liu Bei then made a decision and adopted Xiao He's plan.

So Liu Bei personally wrote a "Letter to the Military and Civilians of Xia Pi", copied thousands of copies, and shot them into the city of Xia Pi.

At the same time, he ordered Pang Tong to write a "Proclamation to Punish the Traitor Cao" and ordered his spies to post it in the five counties of Xuzhou.

Mi Zhu used his connections to lobby the wealthy and powerful families in Xuzhou, and personally went to Huaipu to persuade Chen Gui to defect.

Within ten days, the whole state was in an uproar.

As one manifesto after another was posted, all of Cao Cao's atrocities of massacring the city were brought to light.

The people of Xuzhou had buried the blood debt with Cao Cao deep in their hearts, and it was also brought up.

The hatred of the people of the state towards Cao Cao was finally rekindled.

The defection began.

Siwu, Liang Cheng, who was under the command of Xia Pi, took over the counties of Lu and presented a letter of allegiance without waiting for Liu Bei to divide his troops to attack them.

The five counties of Jiqiu, Kaiyang and Yangdu in the southern part of Langya State announced their surrender to Wei.

Even in Pengcheng State, where Cao Cao, the Duke of Wei, was personally in charge, the two counties of Wuyuan and Lu You defected to Chu.

In less than half a month, anti-Wei waves rose one after another in the five counties of Xuzhou. Except for half of Pengcheng State and the northern counties of Langya, most counties had announced the change of flags.

The people in Xia Pi City were also in a state of unrest, with thoughts of rebelling against Wei and surrendering to Chu growing everywhere.

Fortunately, the Wei army led by Zang Ba were his direct Taishan soldiers who had followed him for many years, not soldiers from Xuzhou. They barely resisted the Chu army's psychological warfare tactics and temporarily ensured that Xia Pi did not defect.

However, the entire Xia Pi County, except for Xia Pi City, all other counties had surrendered to Chu.

Xia Pi City has become an isolated city.

...

Pengcheng.

"The people of Yangdu rebelled, killed the county magistrate, and surrendered to Liu Bei. The southern part of Langya surrendered to the pseudo-Chu without a fight."

"The day before yesterday, the last county of Xia Pi was captured, and its magistrate also announced his surrender to the pseudo-Chu. From then on, only Xia Pi City remained in our hands."

"Yesterday, news came from Wuyuan that the county's civilians stormed the county government office, forcing the county magistrate to declare a surrender to Chu..."

Xun You had a bitter face as he silently read out the news of betrayal that was coming in like snowflakes.

"enough!"

The more Cao Cao listened, the angrier he became, and he slammed the table and shouted angrily.

Xun You shuddered and had to shut his mouth, not daring to read any further.

Cao Cao snatched up the urgent reports, flipped through them at random, and cursed:

"These unruly people of Xuzhou are so bold! How dare they rebel against me!"

"And this bunch of officials, they eat my salary, how dare they not be loyal to me, and actually surrender to the big-eared thief without a fight!"

"Why would these disloyal, shameless people of Xuzhou rebel against me?"

"How hateful! How hateful~~"

Cao Cao roared like thunder, tore up all the information in his hand and threw it all over the ground.

Xun You and other counselors looked at each other, and none of them dared to speak frankly.

You are pretending to be confused because you understand.

If you had not been so brutal back then, slaughtering everyone in Xuzhou without leaving a single chicken or dog alive, blocking the Si River, and killing every household in Xuzhou who owed you a blood debt, would they have surrendered to Liu Bei so easily?
You felt great pleasure in killing him back then, but now that you're reaping the consequences, you're still pretending to be wronged...

Everyone knew it, but no one dared to expose it.

After roaring, Cao Cao drew his sword and shouted:
"I have received your order to transfer troops from Yecheng to Qingzhou, and then march south from Langya to attack Gan Ning's troops in Donghai."

"I will personally lead the army eastward from Pengcheng, defeat the main force of the Big Ear bandits, and lift the siege of Xia Pi."

"Wherever the cavalry passes, all cities that surrender to the pseudo-Chu will be slaughtered!"

"I will once again massacre Xuzhou and let the people of Xuzhou know what the consequences of betraying me are!"

(End of this chapter)