Three Kingdoms: My Strategy Simulator

Zhang Fei's reckless remarks caused many people in the tent to burst into laughter, and some people secretly despised him.

Sima Yi was undoubtedly the one who despised Zhang Fei's reckless behavior the most.

However, Sima Yi's expression did not show the slightest change, and he did not even interrupt when others were analyzing. Only at this moment did he speak.

"Teacher, I have a superficial idea. Please correct me."

"But it doesn't matter."

Li Ji signaled Sima Yi to speak.

Sima Yi bowed to everyone, looking low-key and humble.

This made Pang Tong curl his lips obviously and mutter.

"What are you pretending to be?"

Even though Sima Yi was very scheming, he was still a little immature after all.

In the process of interacting and communicating with a group of students day and night, it was not difficult for smart people like Zhuge Liang, Pang Tong, and Xu Shu to perceive Sima Yi's true character.

Sima Yi ignored Pang Tong's sarcasm, but regarded it as a good opportunity to make a name for himself.

"Teacher, from my point of view, the situation in Xuzhou has shown signs of internal and external troubles. Cao Cao and Yuan Shu are attacking from both sides, and Tao Qian and the Xuzhou noble families are harboring ulterior motives from within."

"If you want to resist foreign aggression, you must first stabilize the internal situation."

"The Xuzhou army has been defeated repeatedly and its morale is low, but it still has tens of thousands of soldiers available."

"So if Liu Huangshu can replace Tao Qian, organize the military forces in Xuzhou, and combine the forces of Xuzhou and Yangzhou, even if Cao and Yuan's forces are strong again, they can still be resisted."

"The army is now in Xiaqiu County, which is still more than 200 miles away from Xiapi City. It will take about seven days to march. We can delay the march and arrive at the right time when Cao's army starts to approach Xiapi again."

When Sima Yi said this, he paused slightly, and said with a bit of ferocity in his still childish eyes.

"By then, the situation in Xuzhou will take a sharp turn for the worse. If Liu Huangshu arrives in Xiapi City and enters the city under the pretext of 'assistance', Tao Qian will not refuse even if he is wary."

"At that time, Liu Huangshu only needs to smash the cup as a signal, and then prepare internal support in the city in advance. In an instant, he can capture Xiapi City and unify the forces of Xuzhou in the name of Tao Qian, and the dilemma will be mostly solved."

This plan is not complicated, but it hits the nail on the head.

Tao Qian, there is no other choice.

Cao Cao raised his army in the name of "revenge". Once Tao Qian fell into Cao Cao's hands, Cao Cao would definitely kill Tao Qian no matter what.

Therefore, no matter how the situation in Xuzhou developed, the others might be able to surrender, but Tao Qian alone would definitely not surrender to Cao Cao.

Once Cao Cao began to besiege Xia Pi City, Tao Qian's remnants of troops who retreated to Xia Pi City would not be able to hold on to Xia Pi City for long.

Therefore, when Liu Bei led his army to Xia Pi City and asked to enter the city, Tao Qian could not and dared not refuse.

As long as Liu Bei's army entered the city, Tao Qian would be like a fish on the chopping board. The only difference would be whether he was cooked beautifully or ugly.

In Li Ji's opinion, this plan can only be said to be very Sima-style, and it is also a simple and effective method at the moment.

But as Li Ji expected, as soon as Sima Yi finished speaking, Liu Bei shook his head and refused.

"My purpose in entering Xuzhou this time is for the greater good, to protect the people of Xuzhou, not to seize power. Although this plan may be effective, I am unwilling to use it."

Suddenly, Sima Yi's face became slightly stiff.

The young version of Sima Yi had neither many opportunities to come into direct contact with Liu Bei nor was he as well-informed as Liu Bei.

In Sima Yi's view, even if Liu Bei's governance and reputation were based on the words "benevolence", it was just a slogan for the outside world. With the huge Xuzhou in front of him, how could such a great opportunity be limited to just one word "benevolence"?
If Xuzhou is gone, then it is really gone;
Even if Ren De is lost, more territory can be earned.

Seeing this, Sima Yi subconsciously thought that Liu Bei was pretending, and continued to persuade him.

"Uncle Liu doesn't need to worry about damaging his reputation, as long as he does it in secret."

"Tao Gongzu was so old and had suffered a series of defeats. He announced to the public that he was bedridden and entrusted Xuzhou to Liu Huangshu. The world would have believed him without a doubt."

After hearing this, Liu Bei burst into laughter.

"Colonel Sima, no matter how well you do this, you can still hide it from the world, but you can't hide it from someone with ulterior motives. There's no need to mention this matter anymore."

If Liu Bei really wanted to seize Xuzhou from Tao Qian, he would have been persuaded by Li Ji long ago. Why would it come to this?
Even Li Ji couldn't persuade Liu Bei on this matter, let alone Sima Yi.

It was only because Liu Bei was so patient because Sima Yi was Li Ji's disciple.

Seeing Liu Bei's resolute tone, some generals in the tent who were not very moral and were very tempted by the suggestion of a surprise attack on the old man Tao Qian, also gave up the idea of ​​joining in and persuading him.

"Yes."

Sima Yi frowned slightly, bowed and retreated.

However, even if Liu Bei did not adopt Sima Yi's advice, the issues Sima Yi raised hit the nail on the head.

The Yuan and Cao families are coming at you with great force. If Liu Bei and Tao Qian cannot work together and are caught up in internal and external troubles, the situation will be very unfavorable.

Subconsciously, Liu Bei looked at Li Ji, who remained calm, and asked.

"Does Zikun have any good ideas?"

Li Ji stood up and saluted, then answered calmly, "The analysis of the staff just now has described the situation quite thoroughly, and I also agree that 'to resist foreign aggression, we must first stabilize the internal situation'."

"Since you are a benevolent lord who does not want to seize Xuzhou's foundation, you should do the opposite and speed up your march to reach Xiapi as soon as possible."

Liu Bei nodded repeatedly and asked, "And then?"

Li Ji chuckled and said, "My lord, you are so kind, how difficult will it be to regain Tao Qian's trust?"

Right now, Tao Qian has been defeated in succession and is probably confused.

At this time, Liu Bei led his army straight into Xuzhou. It was normal for Tao Qian, who was completely confused, to be wary of Liu Bei.

Some brothers, when in trouble, are willing to spend all their wealth to help each other;

But there were also cases where brothers were arrested together, and the other's name was mentioned eight hundred times in the three-page confession, and after escaping in a hurry, they went to take care of their sister-in-law.

It is always said that routines can win people's hearts, but sincerity is often the killer move.

Since Liu Bei had no intention of seizing Xuzhou, given his charm, why should he worry about not being able to gain Tao Qian's trust?
After Li Ji said this, Liu Bei suddenly understood.

Immediately, Liu Bei, realizing the urgency of the situation, discussed with Li Ji and decided to temporarily hand over the army to Li Ji.

Liu Bei used Zhou Tai as his guard, and Zhang Fei led 7,000 cavalry to protect him along the way. They rode at full speed all the way to Xia Pi City to meet Tao Qian.

The distance from Xiaqiu County to Xiapi City requires about seven days of marching time for infantry.

But with the cavalry riding at full speed, it was more than enough for them to reach Xia Pi City in two days, covering more than 200 miles.

Especially since the movements of Cao's army had been clearly explored, and the road to Xiapi City was basically a plain, there was no need to worry about Liu Bei's safety. (End of this chapter)