Ji Han Liu Zhang

At night, the stars and the moon were hanging in the sky, and there was a small light in the main camp of Cao's camp.

After a day of marching, Cao Cao, who should have been very tired, did not fall asleep. Instead, he gathered his generals and counselors in the central military tent to discuss how to fight against the Hebei army and win the victory in this battle.

"Baima and Yanjin cannot be defended." Guo Jia was the first to speak, abandoning the strategy of blocking Yuan Shao's army from crossing the Yellow River at Baima, Yanjin and other ferry crossings. His intention seemed to be giving up the barrier of the river.

"Why?" Cao Cao asked, and he looked at Guo Jia, his most trusted strategist.

Guo Jia explained: "There are many river crossings, and Yuan Benchu's soldiers are twice as many as ours. It is difficult for our army to block all the crossings. We have to run around and get very tired. We are controlled by Yuan Benchu. The art of war says that we should be controlled by others, not be controlled by others. This is not what the art of war does."

Dong Zhao, who was appointed as the governor of Weijun but failed to take up the post, affirmed: "What Guo Jijiu said makes sense. If we want to use the dangerous river to block Yuan's army from Hebei and move south, it is not a good strategy. We should think of a better plan."

"That's what I think." Cao Cao nodded in agreement. He also affirmed what Guo Jia said: "The danger of the river is not an insurmountable mountain and river obstacle. There are many crossings that can be used for the passage of the army. It is indeed difficult to block them all."

"What good plan can you make to show your filial piety?" Cao Cao asked.

At the end of summer, when the autumn wind was just rising, the shadow of the campfire outside the tent of the central army was swaying, which matched the unsettled mood of the people in the tent. Facing the Hebei army, most of them were unsure.

When everyone was dissatisfied, Guo Jia answered Cao Cao's question: "Jia intends to abandon Baima, Yanjin and other ferry crossings, retreat a hundred miles, hold off Yuan Shao at Guandu, and then defeat him when the opportunity arises."

"Hmm?" For a moment, the generals in the tent couldn't help showing puzzled expressions. And it was not only the generals who looked puzzled, but many counselors also looked confused.

Xiahou Yuan came forward and said, "Guo Jijiu, you so easily gave up the dangerous crossings of Baima and Yanjin to Yuan Benchu, allowing the Hebei army to move south freely. Isn't this just opening the door to thieves?"

"Then the Yuan army will march south, Yanzhou will be destroyed by them, and then the Yuan army will rely on their cavalry, which is twice as much as ours, and march straight to Xudu. Wouldn't we be in danger by then? Even if we do something, it will be useless."

Guo Jia shook his head calmly and responded, "General Xiahou, I don't mean to give up Bai Ma and Yan Jin outright. Instead, we should defend them for a while. When Yuan Shao's army moves south and we have no time to defend them, we will give up Bai Ma and Yan Jin. We will fight and retreat, and retreat to Guandu to fight with Yuan's army."

"Fengxiao, go on." Cao Cao motioned for Guo Jia to continue explaining his point of view.

"As for why we chose Guandu to confront Yuan's army? And General Xiahou was worried that Yuan's cavalry would go straight to Xu Du." Guo Jia explained slowly.

"First, Guandu is close to Xudu, only about 200 miles away, so the food route is short. If we fight Yuan's army at Baima and Yanjin, the food route will be twice as long, which is not a good thing for our army that is short of food."

"At the same time, if we hold Guandu, the food supply route of Yuan's army will be extended, which can slightly consume Yuan's food reserves. This is beneficial to our army but harmful to Yuan's army. This is one of the reasons."

"Secondly, Guandu is surrounded by water on three sides. To the north is the Guandu River, to the east is Zhongmu Lake, and to the west is Putian Lake. The middle is extremely narrow, only a few miles long. Our army can defend here, which can offset the advantage of Yuan's army." "After all, the passage is narrow. Even if Yuan's army wants to attack us, they can't deploy too many troops at once."

"Third, although the terrain of Guandu is flat and without any obstacles, the water network here makes up for it. The Yingou River, Honggou River, Pu River, Ji River, Bian River, Sui River and other water networks are barriers. The Yuan army has more cavalry than ours, which is disadvantageous to our army. When the time comes, we can use the water network to eliminate the threat of Yuan army cavalry."

"Setting up camp at Guandu, it will be inconvenient for Yuan's cavalry to go south, so they will go straight to Xu Du." Having said this, Guo Jia glanced at Xiahou Yuan, who at this moment had a thoughtful look on his face.

The night wind was howling, and at this moment a gust of south wind blew into the central army tent. The lights in the tent became dim, and the shadows became confused, but the people in the tent remained unmoved and only pondered Guo Jia's suggestions.

Soon, Cao Cao clapped his hands and sighed, pointing at Guo Jia and praising him: "This is my Zhang Liang."

Facing Cao Cao's praise, Guo Jia showed no joy. He only added: "It is just setting up camp at Guandu to block the enemy. If we want to defeat Yuan Benchu, we need to find an opportunity and wait for it."

"Well." Cao Cao's expression gradually became solemn. As Guo Jia said, fighting and retreating to Guandu could certainly block the offensive of Yuan's army, but if they wanted to defeat Yuan Shao, relying solely on blocking at Guandu would be like cooking without rice.

In addition, the problem of food and fodder was also very urgent. The Central Plains was a place where wars were fought on all four sides and wars were waged year after year. Although Cao Cao had developed large-scale military farms, it could only solve the problem temporarily but could not completely resolve the problem of food and fodder shortage.

However, only by stabilizing the front line and maintaining a stalemate will we have time to look for opportunities to fight. Otherwise, if we are defeated miserably, we will not even have the chance to hold out against Yuan Shao, and there will be no chance of winning this battle.

The night was as dark as ink and gradually became late at night. During the march, Cao Cao would not let the civil and military officials stay up late. He needed to give them some rest time. He called for the meeting to be adjourned and only left Guo Jia.

After everyone dispersed, Cao Cao led Guo Jia out of the central army tent and came outside the tent. The sky was uncovered, but there were stars all over the sky and a crescent moon hanging in the sky. It was the scorching heat of July, and the weather had turned cooler.

"Cough cough." A gust of autumn wind swept past and pierced his skin. Guo Jia couldn't help but cough twice.

Cao Cao heard the movement behind him. He asked someone to fetch a cloak and put it on Guo Jia himself. He looked at Guo Jia with a gentle expression and asked, "Fengxiao, do you think I can defeat Yuan Benchu ​​and win this battle?"

"Of course, your Excellency is a man of unrivaled power and talent. Yuan Benchu, a mere mediocre talent, is no match for you." Guo Jia responded affirmatively, giving an unquestionable answer to Cao Cao's question.

"Hahaha." Cao Cao laughed loudly for a few times. He waved his hand and said, "I am not sure of winning this battle. How can Fengxiao be so sure?"

"It's based on Jia's vision." Guo Jia also smiled as he explained, "In the past, Jia thought Yuan Benchu ​​was the leader of the princes and had the heart to save the world and the people, so he went to Yecheng to join him. However, after meeting him, he was greatly disappointed. He was just an average person and not capable of handling major events. So he ran around looking for a wise leader. Later, he met you and realized what a talent you are." (End of this chapter)