Seeing that Xun Yu, who was highly respected, could not persuade Prime Minister Cao, none of the counselors wanted to touch Cao Mengde's troubles anymore, so they unanimously kept silent. As a result, Cao Mengde was the only one left in the study. The sound of heavy breathing and the roaring of a mad dog kept ringing wildly.
"I have made up my mind. I will immediately mobilize one hundred thousand elite troops to march eastward to defeat the bandits. You are willing to accompany me, okay?"
Cao Mengde was furious and greeted all the eighteen generations of Gongsun Ming's ancestors. The anger in his heart still did not subside much. In the end, he slapped the document fiercely, and in anger he proposed to lead an army to Qingzhou in person. meaning.
"Ming Gong, the little thief Gongsun is running rampant, and it is indeed worthy of punishment. However, our army is not ready to fight until now. Although the morale is high, the men and horses are exhausted, so it is not appropriate to spend time on an expedition."
"Since Ming Gong is determined to fight against thieves, we should join him as Jiwei. However, the grain and fodder of the various states and counties can only be enough to last until the next summer. If we use it again, we may not be able to take over the supply. This is not a blessing for the country. Please think twice." indivual."
"We admire Duke Ming for his hard work for the country. Why would we not want to follow the expedition? However, although Yuan Benchu was defeated, his foundation still remains. It is not appropriate for our army to move lightly."
Xun You and others had been following Cao Mengde for more than a day or two. They already knew what Cao Mengde's temper was. As soon as they heard him ask such questions, they knew that Cao Mengde had no intention of going eastward at all. Such pretense was just to ask the counselors to give in. He just handed him a ladder to get off the stage, and the counselors were happy to cooperate with him, so the voice of admonishment soon became louder.
"Ming Gong, someone has a plan that may make Gongsun and his son have no time to take care of themselves."
Not all the advisers understood Cao Mengde's temperament so well. No, among the people's suggestions, some of Jia Xu, who had just joined Cao Mengde's subordinates, couldn't wait to stand up and offer suggestions.
"Oh? If Wen He (Jia Xu's nickname) has any clever ideas, please tell me and listen."
What Cao Mengde needed at this time was not someone to offer advice, but the people's comfort to ease Xia Houyuan's heartache over his defeat and to find a way out of the Eastern Expedition. Because of this, Jia Xu's action of offering advice inevitably seemed a bit ignorant. Naturally, the current affairs were not very lovable. However, due to human feelings, Cao Mengde never responded coldly, but there was clearly a hint of impatience in the tone of his questions.
"Ming Gong should know that there is not only Gongsun Ming in Youzhou, but also Gongsun Du in Liaodong County. He has tens of thousands of elite soldiers. He has repeatedly violated the rules and is ambitious. He is really not a good person. Together with Gongsun Ming, he should be called the second Youzhou Damn, now the Youzhou Shepherd is hanging in the air, why doesn’t Ming Gong make Gongsun Du the Youzhou Shepherd.”
Jia Xu didn't know much about Cao Mengde's temperament, but despite his ability, it wasn't difficult to tell that something was wrong in Cao Mengde's tone. He couldn't help but feel a slight regret in his heart, but everyone stood up. He could only pretend to calmly explain his plan.
"Well... what if he doesn't accept it?"
To put it bluntly, Jia Xu's plan was just to drive away the tiger and devour the wolf. The plan was not complicated. If Gongsun Du was willing to take the bait, it would be a good idea to draw firewood from the bottom of the cauldron. The problem was that Cao Mengde had no confidence in making Gongsun Du obedient. The reason is very simple. Two years ago, Cao Cao sent people to confer him the title of General Huwei and Marquis of Yongning Township. As a result, Gongsun Du didn't even pay attention to him. Now he wants to get grain from the fire. If Cao Mengde wants to do it, I'm afraid it won't be possible at all. Probably nothing.
"Ming Gong just publicly announced the edict. No matter whether Gongsun Du accepted it or not, Gongsun Ming would not dare to stay in Qingzhou any longer. He would have to withdraw to Youzhou urgently. When he heard that he was withdrawing in a hurry, Gongsun Du would be suspicious. When the war breaks out, disputes between the two families are unavoidable. At this time, Duke Ming can again enthrone Tadun as the great chanyu of Wuheng, and he will not worry about the chaos in Youzhou."
Jia Xu smiled confidently and unhurriedly explained the follow-up methods in detail. Even after hearing this, Cao Mengde and his ministers all nodded.
"Okay, just as Wen He said, come and get the edict!"
Cao Mengde was deeply afraid of Gongsun Ming, a hero who suddenly rose up. At this time, he was holding back Gongsun Ming as soon as he heard that he could use two edicts. How could he be unhappy, so he quickly made a decision... …
"Send the order and ask all the troops to speed up the march. Anyone who dares to delay will be killed!"
At Xudu, Cao Mengde was still working hard to protect Linzi, the last strategic location in Qingzhou, but he didn't know that Xiahou Dun had already abandoned Linzi City two days ago and fled along the Zishui River Valley into Mount Lu. After two days of arduous trekking, they had only traveled more than fifty miles. This speed was difficult to satisfy Xiahou Dun. There was nothing else to say. Even if he had arranged an ambush for his troops at the outer edge of the river valley, he could not guarantee that he could actually attack. The retreating Youzhou Army was chasing after them. Once they were caught up by the Youzhou Army in such a narrow terrain, the entire army would be wiped out. This was a result that Xiahou Dun never wanted to see.
"Fire the arrow!"
It was hard to say whether the pursuers were coming, but the ambush suddenly appeared - just when Xiahou Dun's generals had just left their mouths, a loud roar suddenly sounded from the cliff at the entrance of the small peak, and then a large number of ghosts The archers of the state army leaned out from the cliff and threw waves of arrows at the vanguard of Cao's army that was caught off guard. In an instant, there were screams of tragedy, and a large number of Cao's soldiers died. Don't understand what happened.
"Damn it, the whole army stops, prepares for battle, prepares for battle!"
Not only the forward soldiers who died in vain could not figure out how the Youzhou Army could ambush here, Xiahou Dun was also very confused. For no other reason, his withdrawal was a temporary decision and he was extremely decisive. It should be impossible to be captured. The Youzhou Army knew in advance, but now there was clearly a large number of Youzhou Army ambushes on the cliff at Xiaofengkou. This cruel reality really made Xiahou Dun stunned.
"Stop the attack, the entire army is on alert!"
Seeing that Cao Jun was defeated, Lu Tao, who was standing at the highest point of the cliff, immediately issued a ceasefire order. Although his face was as calm as ever, the tone of the order was full of refreshing pride. Nothing else, he was He was ordered to lead 5,000 infantry troops to lurk here in the west. It was just that he couldn't eat well and sleep well. The most troublesome thing was that there were so many mosquitoes in the mountains. The whole army was bitten all over, including himself. , Fortunately, all these hardships have finally paid off. As long as they can hold on to such a strategic location as Xiaofengkou, Xiahou Dun's troops will never be able to escape and be annihilated here. This is undoubtedly a great achievement. Lu Tao has no reason not to feel very happy about such easily obtained military exploits...
