Three Kingdoms: I, the eldest son of Cao, a loving father of a great man!

Lu Bu thought for a moment and said, "Send out scouts immediately to investigate the situation. If they find anything bad, send a message to me."

The guards quickly agreed and retreated.

"Come here, gather all the generals to discuss the matter." Lu Bu ordered.

Not long after, generals such as Xu Chu and Dian Wei arrived at the central military tent.

"Greetings, General." The generals said in unison.

Lu Bu waved his hand to signal everyone to stand up.

"My dear ministers, please take a seat." Lu Bu said.

Everyone sat down on the left and right, waiting for Lu Bu to speak.

Lu Bu glanced at everyone and said slowly, "I received news today that Cao Cao led his army to withdraw from Yanzhou."

"As expected of a relative of the Han royal family, you know how to adapt to changing times." Wei Xu couldn't help but sneer.

Lu Bu glared at Wei Xu and said, "Wei Xu, I don't care what hatred or grudges you have, as long as they don't affect the overall situation."

Lu Bu was an extremely cautious person, especially in this situation.

"I understand." Wei Xu nodded and agreed.

"I have decided to continue heading north and take the opportunity to attack Shouchun." Lu Bu said in a deep voice.

The generals were stunned. This time Lu Bu said the same thing again.

"No, Cao Mengde has just withdrawn his troops, and it is not appropriate for our army to pursue him." Pang Tong objected.

"The Prime Minister is a relative of the Han royal family. How can we abandon him? Moreover, the Prime Minister is in danger now. How can we just sit there and do nothing?" Wei Xu said loudly.

"The Prime Minister has General Taishi Ci by his side. With him around, the Prime Minister will be safe." Xu Shu also retorted.

“General Taishi Ci is indeed a brave warrior, but he is only a military commander after all and cannot replace the prime minister.

If the Prime Minister were in danger, not only would we be unable to rescue him, but we might even risk his life.

Therefore, I think it is not appropriate to pursue the victory, but to take steady steps and slowly erode Cao Cao's territory." Xu Shu said.

Pang Tong and Wei Xu started arguing.

Lu Bu listened quietly.

In fact, Lu Bu himself felt that he should not continue to attack Shouchun. After all, Cao Cao had many experts under his command. Even Taishi Ci might find it difficult to resist, let alone himself.

However, Lu Bu was an extremely proud man, and he was unwilling to admit that he was no match for Cao Cao.

So he chose to continue attacking Shouchun, even at a huge cost.

"Okay, stop arguing." Lu Bu finally spoke.

Pang Tong and Wei Xu stopped hurriedly.

"I have decided to order General Wen Chou to lead the main force to attack Pingyu, and I will personally lead 50,000 infantry and cavalry to accompany him." Lu Bu said.

Pang Tong and Wei Xu hurriedly tried to dissuade him, saying, "General, this is absolutely inappropriate."

"What's wrong?" Lu Bu asked angrily.

Pang Tong said hurriedly: "General, think about it, Pingyu is less than 400 miles away from Shouchun. If our army attacks Pingyu

Cao Cao will definitely send a large number of troops to reinforce Pingyu.

By then, our army will be attacked from both sides and will surely be defeated. Moreover, Pingyu is Cao Cao's old nest and has strict defenses.

If we attack rashly, we will not only suffer heavy losses, but will also be defeated one by one by Cao Cao."

"That's right, General, please think twice." Wei Xu also said.

Lu Bu's face turned pale, and he gritted his teeth and said, "Well, since you two gentlemen don't support me, I will ask for someone else's help."

Pang Tong and Wei Xu knelt down and apologized, then said, "General, we have no intention of looking down on you.

Pingyu is heavily defended. If our army attacks forcefully, the losses will be too great, which may affect the strategic deployment. Therefore, I implore the general to think twice."

Lu Bu took a deep breath and said, "Okay, I will let you go for now. But remember, if you tell even a single lie, don't blame me for being ruthless."

"Thank you for your forgiveness, General. We will never deceive you." Pang Tong and Wei Xu thanked him. "Retreat." Lu Bu waved his hand.

Pang Tong and Wei Xu respectfully took their leave and walked out of the central military tent.

After the two men walked out of the central military tent, they looked at each other with cold light flashing in their eyes.

"Pang Shiyuan, do you really think I'm a fool?" Wei Xu said with a sinister smile.

Pang Tong smiled and said, "Same here."

"General, Lu Bu has already sent out his troops." A spy came to report.

Cao Ren laughed loudly upon hearing this: "Lü Bu has indeed lived up to my expectations."

Xun You shook his head and said, "General, our army has just withdrawn from Shouchun. How could Lu Bu attack our army so easily? I suspect Lu Bu is cheating."

"Gongda's concerns are very true." Cao Ren looked at Xun You with appreciation, and then asked, "What do you think, Gongtai?"

Xun You hesitated for a moment and said, "Lü Bu would not send out troops without a reason. I think he has received the news."

"Why?" Cao Ren asked with interest.

Xun You said: "I have observed that although Lü Bu is brave and good at fighting, he likes to attack at night, so his scouts will definitely not reveal their tracks.

But now his scouts have ventured out into the sunlight, evidently having received some news."

"Then according to Gongtai, who leaked this matter?" Cao Ren asked.

"Apart from Lu Bu himself, there are the advisers under his command." Xun You said affirmatively.

Cao Ren frowned. This Lu Bu was really cunning.

"In that case, I will prepare a generous gift for Lu Bu!" Cao Ren said with a smile.

"General, what do you want to do?" Xun Yu asked puzzledly.

Cao Ren smiled mysteriously: "Mr. Gongda, guess what."

"Well, I am stupid and cannot guess the general's intention." Xun Yu said with a wry smile.

"Hehe!" Cao Ren smiled and patted Xun Yu's shoulder: "Don't worry, Mr. Gongda, I guarantee that this gift will satisfy Lu Bu."

"I hope so." Xun Yu muttered.

Cao Ang also learned the news that Lu Bu was leading his troops to attack Shouchun.

"Lu Bu is a smart guy." Cao Ang said with a smile.

"My lord, Lu Bu's attack on Shouchun may be an opportunity for us," Guo Jia suggested.

Cao Ang said: "Feng Xiao, I am not a fool. Lu Bu is testing me."

"My lord is wise!" Guo Jia said admiringly.

Guo Jia, Zhuge Liang, Jia Xu and others all knew the reason why Lu Bu did this. He simply wanted to use the capture of Shouchun as a breakthrough point to take Xuchang directly.

Cao Ang snorted coldly: "Feng Xiao, do you think Lu Bu can succeed?"

"It's very difficult!" Jia Xu expressed his opinion first.

"Yes, even if we take Shouchun, the dilemma Lu Bu will face in the end will still be the same," said Guo Jia.

Cao Ang said: "Since you all think that Lü Bu cannot take Shouchun, why should I send troops to help him? I don't want to see any more battles that will drain the national treasury."

Jia Xu and Guo Jia shut up immediately. They really couldn't find an excuse to refuse Cao Ang's reason.

"Send a message to Zhao Yun, and order him to lead the Feixiong Guard south to Pingyu City. Make sure to capture Pingyu within three days." Cao Ang ordered.

"I obey your order." Zhao Yun received the order.

Cao Ang turned to look at Xun Yu: "Wen Ruo, Lu Bu is leading his troops to attack Shouchun. Do you think we need to send troops to support him?"

"I don't think it's necessary." Xun Yu shook his head.

"Why?" Cao Ang asked. (End of this chapter)