Choose Liu Bei at the start, I am the only one who knows the plot of the Three Kingdoms.

He wasn't worried about defending the city; with the advantage of the city walls and the strength of his troops, Wei Yan simply couldn't break through.

His biggest concern right now is the city's food supplies!
"Quick! Go find it! Dig three feet into the ground and find the granary that Gu Rubing hid!"

Xiahou Dun sternly gave orders to his generals.

"Once we find it, don't ask for permission, immediately set it on fire! Once it's burned clean, we'll leave right away!"

He knew very well that the Tiger and Leopard Cavalry's greatest advantage was speed. Once the mission was completed, they would immediately flee far away, and Wei Yan's small cavalry force simply couldn't catch up.

A large number of Cao Cao's troops immediately dispersed and searched the city like combs, ransacking houses, breaking into homes, and even digging up some suspicious areas.

However, although Wucheng was small, Gu Rubing had clearly put a lot of effort into hiding this crucial batch of grain.

The granary was extremely well hidden, perhaps disguised as an ordinary residence, or perhaps built underground. Xiahou Dun's soldiers were like headless flies for a short time, and found nothing!
Meanwhile, after Wei Yan retreated, he was anxiously counting the casualties and bandaging his wounds.

He knew that his forces were insufficient and that a direct assault was hopeless; he could only wait for reinforcements from his lord, Gu Rubing.

He immediately dispatched messengers to send another urgent message to Xindu.

Inside the new capital, Gu Rubing received Wei Yan's second urgent report, learning that the five cities had fallen. He was shocked and furious, and immediately mustered 10,000 cavalrymen, ordering them to spare no effort and rush to the aid of the five cities!
However, Wei Yan knew that even at full speed, it would take time for the cavalry to travel from Xindu to the five cities. By the time reinforcements arrived, Xiahou Dun would likely have already found the supplies, burned them, and left!
He had to find a way to stall Xiahou Dun, or... scare him away!

A daring plan formed in Wei Yan's mind.

He immediately summoned all his generals and gave them instructions in a low voice.

"At midnight tonight, divide all our troops into five teams! Men with mouths gagged, horses with hooves wrapped, and quietly withdraw from the camp to hide in the mountains and forests on the east and west sides of the five cities! Remember, leave the tents and campfires in the camp as they are, and do not move the flags!"

Although the generals were puzzled, military orders were absolute, and they immediately obeyed.

That night, the moon was bright and the stars were few. Wei Yan's camp was still dotted with campfires in the darkness, and the banners fluttered slightly in the night breeze. From a distance, it looked no different from usual.

In reality, the camp was already deserted. The more than two thousand cavalrymen, taking advantage of the cover of night and the terrain, quietly disappeared into the nearby darkness like ghosts.

The next day, it was just getting light.

On the third day,
On the fourth day, Wei Yan gave another order, instructing the five small teams hidden in the mountains to each send out a small number of soldiers, carrying straw men made overnight and dressed in tattered leather armor, on long spears, to enter the empty camp in several groups from different directions in a grand manner!
Looking out from the top of the city walls of the five cities, Wei Yan's camp seemed to have expanded considerably overnight, and "reinforcements" were constantly arriving, marching into the camp in a grand procession with banners waving, though not perfectly orderly!
Those scarecrows being carried, concealed by the morning mist and distance, really do look like a continuous stream of new energy!
Xiahou Dun climbed the city wall early in the morning to observe the enemy's situation. Upon seeing this scene, his one eye narrowed and a solemn expression appeared on his face.

"What's going on? Wei Yan's reinforcements have arrived? Why are there so many of them?"

Filled with suspicion and uncertainty, he immediately dispatched his most astute informant to try and get close enough to investigate.

Soon after, the informant reported back.

"General, look closely! A large number of reinforcements have indeed arrived. There are shouts and neighing horses in the camp, and many new tents have been set up. Judging from the number of hearths and the size of the camp, there are probably... probably no fewer than ten thousand men! And they are flying the banners of the King Lie's main cavalry!"

"Ten thousand reinforcements?!"

Xiahou Dun was startled.

If Wei Yan were to receive reinforcements of tens of thousands of fresh troops, the balance of power between the two sides would be completely reversed!

Although he has captured the city, the enemy has superior forces and can easily employ siege or even a more aggressive attack. At that point, it won't be so easy for him to leave!

"Can't wait any longer!"

Xiahou Dun made a decision instantly. They couldn't find supplies anytime soon, but they absolutely couldn't allow themselves and their five thousand elite Tiger and Leopard Cavalry to be trapped here!
His task was to destroy, not to occupy and defend.

"Send word! Collect all the oil and firewood you can find and distribute them throughout the city! Pay special attention to those buildings that look like warehouses or might be hiding supplies!"

A fierce glint flashed across Xiahou Dun's face.

"Since we can't find it, let's burn it all! I refuse to believe we can't burn down the grain he's hidden!"

Once the order was given, the Tiger and Leopard Cavalry acted with extremely high efficiency.

They quickly poured the kerosene and tinder they carried with them and the ones they had looted in the city onto houses, shops, and even streets.

The strong smell of kerosene immediately filled the entire city of Wucheng.

Wei Yan, in the distant mountains and forests, saw thick smoke suddenly rise from many places in the city. Then, flames shot into the sky like evil dragons from every corner of the city!

Fueled by the wind, the fire spread rapidly, soon engulfing the entire five cities and turning them into a raging sea of ​​fire!

"Xiahou Dun! I'll curse your ancestors!"

Wei Yan's eyes widened in fury, and he couldn't help but burst into a tirade of curses.

He knew that Xiahou Dun was going to burn the city down!

He originally intended to use a feint to scare away Xiahou Dun and protect the city and supplies, but he did not expect the other party to be so ruthless and directly cut off his supply lines!

However, he only had a little over two thousand men under his command at the moment. Faced with a city engulfed in flames and five thousand Tiger Leopard Cavalry about to retreat, he dared not step forward to stop them, as that would be tantamount to throwing an egg against a rock.

Xiahou Dun stood outside the city, coldly watching the inferno he had created. After confirming that the fire was out of control and could burn everything flammable in the city, including the grain hidden somewhere, he gave the order without hesitation.

"All troops assemble! Retreat!"

Five thousand elite cavalrymen mounted their horses and, just as they had come, transformed into a swift black torrent, quickly disappearing into the distant horizon, leaving Wei Yan with a sea of ​​fire and ruins.

Only after confirming that Xiahou Dun had fled far away did Wei Yan dare to lead his troops out of the mountains and forests.

He roared as he directed the soldiers to put out the fire.

"Quick! Put out the fire! Every little bit helps!"

However, the fire was simply too large.

Lacking professional firefighting tools, the soldiers could only fight the flames with difficulty by using their personal water bags, water from nearby streams, and covering the flames with mud.

The fire burned for a full day and night before gradually going out as the combustibles were exhausted.

When the 10,000 cavalry reinforcements sent by Gu Rubing arrived at Wucheng, they found only ruins and rubble. The charred wood was still emitting wisps of smoke, and the air was filled with a pungent smell of burning.

The small town that once served as a transit point for grain supplies has been completely transformed and has been almost razed to the ground.

Wei Yan and his soldiers, their faces covered in soot and exhausted, sat on the ruins, their eyes filled with sorrow and helplessness.

When the 10,000 cavalry reinforcements sent by Gu Rubing arrived at Wucheng and saw the scorched earth and ruins before them, everyone's hearts sank.

Although the towering fire had been extinguished, the embers were still warm, and wisps of black smoke rose from the charred wood and rubble like vengeful spirits. The pungent smell of burning permeated the air, making people nauseous.

The crumbling city walls were blackened by smoke and fire, many parts collapsed, and the once relatively intact houses were almost completely razed to the ground, leaving only a few charred wooden pillars stubbornly pointing to the sky. "It's over... With the five cities burned like this, the grain supplies inside must be..."

"Are we...are we going to run out of food?"

"What should I do?"

Panic spread like a plague among the newly arrived reinforcements and among Wei Yan's exhausted soldiers who had fought the fire.

Despair and confusion were written on everyone's faces. Without the support of food supplies, the army was like a rootless duckweed, and its destruction seemed to be only a matter of time.

However, amidst this pessimistic and oppressive atmosphere, Wei Yan appeared unusually calm.

Although his face was covered in soot, his ringed eyes gleamed with a confident light.

He ignored the whispers and horrified stares of the crowd, and strode toward the central area of ​​the city, the area that had been burned most thoroughly and was now almost entirely just the foundation and thick ashes.

This area was originally the location of the government offices of the five cities and several of the largest warehouses, and it was also the area that Xiahou Dun focused on burning.

Under the puzzled gazes of the crowd, Wei Yan walked to a pile of ruins that appeared to be formed from burnt-down roof beams and broken bricks.

He crouched down, carefully identified the location, and then stretched out his large hand, exerting force to move several thick, charred wooden planks that seemed to be scattered randomly but were actually arranged in a specific order!

"Creak... Boom..."

The wooden plank was moved aside, revealing not the expected soil or ashes, but a huge, thick stone slab with obvious signs of artificial chiseling along its edges! There was even an inconspicuous iron ring embedded in the slab!
"This...this is?!"

The soldiers watching widened their eyes in disbelief and gasped in astonishment.

Wei Yan grabbed the iron ring, let out a low shout, his arm muscles bulged, and he pulled upwards with a sudden force! With a dull thud, the huge stone slab was pried open, revealing a dark, downward-extending hole!

A cool breeze, carrying the distinctive scents of earth and grain, wafted out of the cave!

"Quick! Light the torches! Go down and check!"

Wei Yan gave the order.

Several guards immediately took torches and carefully walked down the stone steps at the cave entrance.

Before long, their excited shouts, almost distorted with emotion, came from below.

"General! Supplies! Lots of supplies! All intact! Piled up like mountains!"

When the news spread, the area around the cave entrance was initially deathly silent, but then erupted into deafening cheers!
"The supplies are still there! The supplies are still there!"

"May God protect the King! May God protect our army!"

"General Wei's strategy is brilliant!"

Everyone rushed to the cave entrance, vying to look down.

By the light of the torches, one could see that below was an extremely spacious underground space that had clearly been carefully reinforced and waterproofed. Inside, bags of grain were neatly stacked, stretching like small mountains, in an astonishing quantity!

It turns out that Gu Rubing had anticipated the possible attack on the transit station, so when building the Five Cities Granary, he ostensibly built warehouses as cover, but secretly dug a huge underground grain storage cellar to hide most of the grain there!
What Xiahou Dun burned were just some empty buildings and a small amount of old grain used for disguise!
The elation of surviving the ordeal enveloped everyone, instantly stabilizing morale and boosting the morale of the troops!

However, Xiahou Dun, who had retreated dozens of miles away and was resting in a secluded valley, had a completely different mood.

The more he thought about it, the more something seemed off. The five cities had been breached too easily, and Wei Yan's subsequent reaction was also somewhat strange.

If that small town really had a large stockpile of grain, its defenses shouldn't be so weak. And when I set the fire, although the fire was huge, it seemed... I didn't smell much of the characteristic burnt aroma of burning grain?

"Wait! We might have been tricked!"

Xiahou Dun suddenly stood up, a hint of annoyance and doubt flashing in his single eye.

"The grain supplies probably weren't burned at all!"

He immediately ordered his troops to turn around and sneak back towards the Five Cities.

But when his scouts observed the five cities from afar, they found that the banners with the characters "Gu" and "Wei" had been replanted on the city walls, and some Han soldiers were clearing the ruins and reinforcing the damaged city walls—Wei Yan had quickly recaptured the empty city and begun to deploy defenses.

"hateful!"

Xiahou Dun slammed his fist into a nearby tree, feeling extremely resentful.

He returned in such a disgraceful manner, unable to explain himself to Cao Cao.

He decided to lie low around the five cities and wait for an opportunity.

After Wei Yan recaptured the five cities, he organized people to clear the ruins and repair the defenses while closely monitoring the surrounding area.

He was certain that, given Xiahou Dun's character and dedication to the mission, he would not give up easily and was likely hiding nearby, spying on him.

"Since you're still not giving up, then I'll give you another strong dose!"

Wei Yan's lips curled into a cold smile as a plan to lure the snake out of its hole took shape in his mind.

He deliberately relaxed his control over news within the city, and even secretly sent some clever soldiers disguised as refugees or defeated soldiers to "inadvertently" spread news in the surrounding areas of the five cities.

"Sigh, don't even mention it. Our General Wei is helpless; reinforcements haven't arrived at all!"

"Yeah, there are no tens of thousands of reinforcements. It's all just for show! They're just wooden figures dressed in armor walking around the camp to make a scene!"

"That's right! Now that the war is over, those wooden figures are useless, so they're being burned in the city. There's so much smoke!"

These rumors quickly spread like wildfire, reaching Xiahou Dun's ears.

"A wooden figure? A feint?"

Xiahou Dun narrowed his one eye, his mind filled with doubts.

He remained skeptical of this claim, after all, he had personally witnessed the "reinforcements" entering the camp.

To confirm, he once again dispatched his most elite spies, risking their lives to approach the five cities for reconnaissance.

Soon after, the scouts reported back.

"General, it's absolutely true! In the open space in the southeast corner of the city, there's a large-scale burning of things, with flames shooting into the sky and thick smoke billowing out!"
We could vaguely see that what was being burned were indeed humanoid figures, wearing tattered armor—probably those wooden dolls! The number… probably really was close to ten thousand!

To increase credibility, the spy even added... (End of Chapter)