Weird Three Kingdoms

Chapter 3679 The cold light of the setting sun illuminates the returning sails; deep clouds conceal the perilous banners.

Zhuge Liang stood at the bow of the boat, looking calmly at the place in Caizhou where there seemed to be some lingering smoke.

Beside him stood Cai Mao, his face ashen, gazing at his ruined home, tears streaming down his face.

Zhuge Liang glanced at Cai Mao, "The Cai family has now truly 'becomes a survivor after being placed in a desperate situation.' While Caizhou was desirable, it also restricted the Cai family's expansion. Now, the Cai family has broken free of this small territory, like escaping a cage, and your clan has been spared—a stroke of good fortune amidst misfortune. As our lord said, the road ahead is long, but we will reach our destination. The world is vast; where can't the Cai family go? Where can't they take root and flourish? General, be like the mighty Han River, washing away the old dust; the future is long!"

Cai Mao took a deep breath of the sour noodles. Even with Zhuge Liang's comforting words, he still felt bitter inside.

The Han River flows swiftly, day and night.

The ship broke through the shimmering waves, carrying survivors of the disaster, and sailed towards an unknown but also new direction full of possibilities.

Behind him lay the dilapidated Cai Zhou, perhaps a lament for an era.

Cai Mao composed himself, then a thought suddenly struck him. His gaze swept over Zhuge Liang twice, and finally, unable to contain himself, he asked in a low voice, "Kongming, did you... plan to set this fire after arriving in Caizhou?"

Zhuge Liang's gaze sharpened, then he smiled and said, "Uncle, you jest! How could I be so? It's getting late, Uncle, you should rest early..."

Cai Mao watched as Zhuge Liang turned and went back to the cabin. Although he really wanted to get to the bottom of things, he also knew that even if he got to the bottom of things, what difference would it make?

As long as we look back after the fact, everyone can become a Zhuge Liang.

Cai Mao was no exception.

Now, after experiencing the Cai Zhou incident, as he pushes things forward step by step, he suddenly realizes that it seems Zhuge Liang's shadow is present in every step...

Cai Mao seemed to remember that Zhuge Liang said something about "spare my life" after learning that Cao Ren had arrived. Now that he thought about it, did it mean that Zhuge Liang's original plan was to turn Caizhou into a huge fire, but the Cai clan was too slow to evacuate completely, so he changed it to blocking the enemy instead of...

After all, the prevailing winds at the time...

Going back a step further, did Zhuge Liang already have the idea of ​​setting up an ambush in Caizhou when he was receiving him?
Furthermore, did Zhuge Liang begin planning these things as soon as he received the news?

If that's the case, then Zhuge Liang...

Is the current state of the Cai family in Caizhou also part of Zhuge Liang's plan?
Cai Mao couldn't help but shudder.

Because Tsai Mao also had experience in 'politics'!

What kind of Jingzhou would be the best for the General of the Cavalry?

Jingzhou, of course, has no local 'powerful figures' whatsoever!
Previously, the aristocratic families in Jingzhou were a complex mix, numbering about ten in total, but now...

Because of Fei Qian, the Pang and Huang families had already migrated north in large numbers in the early years, settling in the Guanzhong and Hedong areas. After Cao Cao arrived, the Ma and Zhang families went to Hanzhong and Sichuan. Although the Cai family remained strong, the Kuai family, another major power in Jingzhou, was defeated by Jiangdong Xiaodao in Jiangling and never recovered.

Now, Caizhou of the Cai family has also turned to ashes...

Therefore, it can be said that there are almost no local strongmen in Jingzhou who can wield absolute power. If the General of the Cavalry were to arrive, he could use the names of the Pang and Huang families to directly implement the new Tianzheng policy on the ruins of Jingzhou!
This……

Cai Mao stared wide-eyed at the cabin Zhuge Liang had entered, a chill running down his spine. "Damn it...damn it...this...could this also be part of his plan..."

But even if Cai Mao has guessed some things, what can he do now?

In this battle, Cai Mao's elite private army was almost completely wiped out, and many of his relatives also died in battle. He himself was in a sorry state, his prestige was ruined, and if he wanted to make a comeback, he would have to rely on the help of the General of the Cavalry...

So what else can we do?
Cai Mao lowered his head, sighed softly, and sat on the bow deck, remaining silent for a long time.

The covert battles inside and outside Xiangyang City came to an end with Cao Ren's minor victory and Cai Mao's crushing defeat.

However, the game in Jingzhou continues.

……

……

Although Cao Ren was unable to completely wipe out Caizhou and kill Cai Mao as he wished, he gained an inspiration from this battle!
We must take the initiative to seize any chance of survival!
Take the Cai Mao and Cai Zhou incident as an example. Although Cai Mao eventually escaped, if the attack hadn't been launched in advance, with bait and an ambush laid, but instead, if the attack had waited until Cai Mao found an opportunity, such as when Li Dian and Liao Hua were attacking Xiangyang and Fancheng, he could have suddenly infiltrated the city...

Cao Ren turned his attention back to the map surrounding Xiangyang.

Although the area around Xiangyang and Fancheng is currently heavily besieged by various units of the Flying Cavalry, Cao Ren has found a glimmer of opportunity!
That is because General Fei Qian was far away on the front line in Heluo, confronting the Prime Minister's main force, and had no time to come to Jingxiang to personally command the battle!

The various cavalry forces besieging Xiangyang, including Pang Shanmin, Liao Hua, Li Dian, Xu Huang and Gan Ning in Jiangling, shared the same goal but were not under each other's command!
Sima Yi, stationed along the Songshan line, could be considered a trusted confidant of the General of Chariots and Cavalry, but his seniority was still relatively low...

Xu Huang was a veteran general who had followed the General of Chariots and Cavalry since his early years, but he might not be convinced by aristocratic scions like Pang Shanmin...

Li Dian was a surrendered general, while Liao Hua's power base was not yet stable, so the two might not have been so close!

Cao Ren concluded that there must be rifts between his various units, and there might even be suspicion between them!

One type of rice can feed a hundred different kinds of people!

This is the case in the Central Plains region of Shandong; how could the cavalry's territory completely avoid such drawbacks?!

"This is not a monolithic entity; it is surrounded by wolves! If we can incite infighting among them, making them suspicious of each other, and even turn them against each other..."

A bold, almost insane plan quickly took shape in Cao Ren's mind.

He needs a breakthrough!

Cao Ren was looking around the map when he spotted a place.

Wancheng.

This place is an "old friend" of Cao Cao's army.

Previously, Pang Shanmin used the early tunnels to break through Cao's city defenses and reoccupy Wancheng. But conversely, during the period when Cao's army occupied Wancheng, didn't they give the ladies of Wancheng a new pair of lace panties that revealed a little bit of skin?

Moreover, Cao Ren believed that there must be some grain and supplies stockpiled in Huang Zhong and Pang Shanmin's base camp!
If we can strike this place hard, it will not only relieve the pressure on Xiangyang, but also...

"Pass on the order!" Cao Ren's voice was resolute. "Immediately select elite elite soldiers from the army, those familiar with the Sichuan-Chongqing accent..."

……

……

Night in Wancheng.

Originally positioned as a commercial city, and repeatedly humiliated during the war, Wancheng simply could not match the majestic and somber atmosphere of Xiangyang.

Pang Shanmin and Huang Zhong's main forces have moved south to participate in the siege of Xiangyang and Fancheng, leaving few troops to defend the city.

Who would have thought that Cao Ren would still dare to launch a night attack on Wancheng despite being surrounded by enemies from both the north and south?
Especially after Han Hao withdrew from Xinye, Wancheng breathed a sigh of relief, feeling that there was no longer any threat from Cao Cao's army in the surrounding area, and the night patrols became somewhat lax.

At midnight, a group of about two hundred "defeated soldiers" appeared in a sorry state outside the south gate of Wancheng.

They were ragged, their armor torn, and they bore obvious signs of battle. They spoke with a heavy Sichuan accent. The leader claimed to be a subordinate general under General Xu Huang, who was ordered by strategist Zhuge Liang to escort a batch of important equipment to the Xiangyang front. However, they were intercepted by Huang Gai's navy from Jiangdong and suffered heavy losses. They had to go ashore and barely managed to break through to this place. However, they lost their way and mistakenly arrived at Wancheng. They requested to enter the city to rest and resupply.

This kind of "lie" sounds absurd and full of loopholes to some people, but for the military academy student in Wancheng, he neither knew Xu Huang nor knew whether Zhuge Liang was the strategist. He only saw that these people were dressed like cavalrymen, looked disheveled, and had accents that sounded somewhat like those from the Sichuan region...

In an attempt to verify the official document, the defeated soldiers actually produced an official document and a worn-out, damaged official document...

The garrison officer had never seen any official documents from Sichuan in his life, let alone the so-called "Xu Huang's" handwriting, so how could he possibly tell the difference between genuine and fake documents? He would simply check the format of the documents to see if they conformed to the standards of the Flying Cavalry Army, and whether or not they bore Xu Huang's seal.

Is it difficult to make a stamp?
As for the original details in the shadows, they were blurred due to the water immersion, and there was also insufficient light in the middle of the night...

By this point, the garrison commander had largely given up on suspicion, but for safety's sake, he still didn't order the city gates to be opened. Instead, he had these men cross the drawbridge and rest below the city walls. Then, he lowered some food and water down from the city gates, leaving these "defeated soldiers" to wait below the walls until dawn before dealing with them.

After reaching the city walls, the "defeated soldiers" behaved unusually "well-behaved," neither complaining nor cursing, only asking for some food and water, and resting temporarily in the corner of the wall near the city gate.

The garrison commander finally breathed a sigh of relief and ordered the archers and other soldiers who had been secretly preparing to withdraw. After all, these "desperate soldiers" had acted so reasonably that it was somewhat unreasonable for the garrison commander to continue pointing swords, spears, and arrows at them...

However, as the night deepened and the dew grew heavy, at dawn, when most of the people in the city were exhausted and asleep, and even the soldiers on duty on the city walls were drowsy, these "desperate soldiers" moved like ghosts!
Meanwhile, twenty or thirty elite soldiers of Cao Cao's army also infiltrated the city through a secret passage left in secret. Working together from the inside and outside, they occupied the city gate in the blink of an eye and killed the unsuspecting sentries and patrols.

These people had a very clear goal: to head straight for the granary area in the north of the city.

Oil was poured on and torches were thrown in.

In an instant, towering flames shot into the sky above the Wancheng granary area!

Fueled by the wind, the fire spread rapidly, devouring the mountains of grain and brand-new weapons.

The firelight illuminated half the night sky, and thick smoke billowed straight into the clouds.

Chaotic shouts, cries for help, and the clashing of weapons echoed throughout Wancheng.

By the time the garrison commander and his soldiers rushed to the scene, the men had already fled in the chaos, leaving behind only the granaries engulfed and consumed by flames...

"Fire!" The garrison officer, left with no other choice, exclaimed, "Put out the fire first! Guard the four gates! Thoroughly investigate any spies within the city! Send a message to the magistrate general: Wancheng is under attack!"

……

……

Huang Zhong received an urgent report from Wancheng.

"What?! The granaries burned down?!"

The veteran frowned.

The soldiers from Wancheng who came to deliver the news didn't really know the details of what had happened. They only knew that someone had launched a sneak attack on Wancheng, and that it seemed to be some defeated soldiers with a Sichuan accent...

"Sichuan and Shu defeated soldiers?" Huang Zhong was taken aback.

"It must be Cao Cao's army in disguise!" Pang Shanmin, having also learned of this, rushed over. "The Sichuan army is definitely not the enemy, and we've known Kongming for many years. How could they do something so unwise?"

Huang Zhong nodded; he also knew Zhuge Liang.

Indeed, compared to the so-called "Sichuan and Shu" routed soldiers, Huang Zhong believed that it was Cao Cao's army that took the opportunity to cause the sabotage.

Faced with this situation, Huang Zhong naturally had to lead his troops back to provide relief.

Pang Shanmin also wanted to return, but Huang Zhong stopped him. Huang Zhong explained that even if Cao Cao's army attacked Wancheng, it would likely be a small force and not a major concern. The real danger lay in the journey itself. If Cao Cao's army ambushed them along the way, it would be extremely dangerous for Pang Shanmin, who lacked martial arts skills…

Moreover, Wancheng did indeed have some supplies and provisions in its granaries, but now that it has been burned, sending too many people back would only lead to a shortage of provisions. It would be better for Huang Zhong to lead his own troops back, while Pang Shanmin and the others would stay with Li Dian and Liao Hua, which would be relatively safer.

Liao Hua agreed with Huang Zhong's analysis, so Pang Shanmin had no choice but to stay in Liao Hua and Li Dian's army. Huang Zhong selected 300 of his own soldiers, plus 300 auxiliary soldiers, and headed back to Wancheng.

Huang Zhong did not rush the march.

Although Huang Zhong's historical achievements were not as eye-catching as those of the other Five Tiger Generals, the Battle of Dingjun Mountain solidified his unshakeable position!
In the Battle of Dingjun Mountain, Liu Bei did not have the upper hand.

At that time, Zhang Fei had not been defeated by Cao Hong for long. Oh, it was Zhang Fei plus Ma Chao who couldn't defeat Cao Hong...

If this were written in a novel, someone would probably start accusing me of being stupid...

Of course, historically, after Ma Chao surrendered to Liu Bei, he never had many soldiers and often just played a minor role.

Liu Bei's army was in a state of panic and morale was not high. It was only when Liu Bei personally led his troops to attack Ma Ming Ge Road that a new breakthrough was found. Then, at Dingjun Mountain, Huang Zhong seized the opportunity when Xiahou Yuan had divided his forces and launched a surprise attack on Xiahou Yuan's main camp, killing Xiahou Yuan. This secured the advantage in the battle for Hanzhong and laid the foundation for the final victory in the battle for Hanzhong.

At that time, Liu Bei had already launched two campaigns to collect taxes and provisions. If he still couldn't capture Hanzhong after the third campaign, he might never have been able to take Hanzhong again. Without Hanzhong as a buffer, Sichuan would face multiple threats from Cao Cao's army, and it would be hard to say whether there would still be a Shu Han.

Huang Zhong's extraordinary intuition on the battlefield prevented him from being blinded by anger or rushing back to Wancheng to put out the fire.

He keenly sensed the presence of a trap.

This fire wasn't just burning the supplies; it was more likely an attempt to throw Huang Hansheng off balance and lure his mobile force into a pre-set trap!
If so, he discovered the ambush set up by Cao Cao's army when he was about thirty miles away from Wancheng.

Seeing that Huang Zhong had seen through their ambush, Cao Ren did not pursue the matter further and led his troops to retreat.

Huang Zhong led a small force, so after seeing Cao Cao's army retreat, he did not pursue them relentlessly. Instead, he conducted a thorough reconnaissance before entering Wancheng.

The fire in Wancheng has been largely extinguished, but the damage is irreparable.

The city was in ruins, and the people were filled with fear. Rumors of arson by the "defeated soldiers of Sichuan" had already spread among the still-shaken populace, with suspicions pointing to Zhuge Liang and Xu Huang's troops.

Huang Zhong ordered his soldiers and officers to reassure the people in the city and to correct the claim that the "desperate soldiers from Sichuan" had set fires. However, it was clear that the people of Wancheng did not entirely believe what Huang Zhong's soldiers said, since some of them had indeed heard and witnessed the actions of the "desperate soldiers from Sichuan" that night...

Looking at the charred granary, Huang Zhong's face was so gloomy it could drip water.

Although Huang Zhong didn't quite understand why Cao Cao's army was pretending to be "defeated soldiers from Sichuan and Shu," he sensed an air of conspiracy.

……

……

Cao Ren's treacherous scheme was like an intricately woven spider web, far more complex than simply burning grain supplies and framing Sichuan.

His goal was to disrupt the entire Jingbei Cavalry Army's strategy and create a larger breach!
Just as Huang Zhong was extinguishing the remaining embers and redeploying defenses in Wancheng, a heavily wounded soldier, his armor stained with blood, charged into Liao Hua and Li Dian's camp near the north of Fancheng.

Like the siege camps built in Wen County, these large-scale siege camps that besiege the entire city and block the city gates cannot be built with a wave of the hand.

Liao Hua and Li Dian have already spent a considerable amount of time here, and it is clear that they will need to spend even more time to complete the construction of this siege camp.

When attacking a city or camp, one must not only face the fortifications such as watchtowers, guard towers, ditches, and barricades in the direction of the city, but also guard against the possibility of attacks from Cao Cao's reinforcements. Otherwise, it would be ridiculous to be surrounded by the Yellow Turbans in the North Sea, with three layers inside and three layers outside, only to have them break through by a single rider.

What? Gunpowder?

Liao Hua and Li Dian had previously encountered heavy rain. Heavy rain not only caused the gunpowder to become damp, but also made the ground muddy and soft, washing away dug ditches, and so on…

Liao Hua and Li Dian are now tasked with gradually moving the military camps and supplies from Danjiangkou to Fancheng. Once the siege camps are completed, they can surround Fancheng from three sides and begin the siege.

Although Fancheng is not as grand as Xiangyang, it is not an ordinary small county town either. It has barbicans, battlements, gate towers, siege towers, catapult platforms, and so on...

Li Dian, Liao Hua, and the others hadn't expected that Huang Zhong would return to Wancheng so soon after, and then this "Wancheng soldier" would arrive. Upon hearing the news, they rushed back from the front lines where they were building the camp, only to find the messenger covered in wounds.

The blood-stained "Wancheng soldier," weakly uttering fragmented words like "General Huang," "Tiger Leaps the Ravine," "ambush," "Cao Cao's army," and "Wancheng in danger," before Liao Hua and the others could press him for details or reveal any other information, suddenly let out a muffled groan, his head lolled to the side, and he died...

Inside the tent, the atmosphere instantly froze.

Liao Hua, Li Dian, and Pang Shanmin, who remained there, looked at each other in bewilderment!