Three Kingdoms: My Strategy Simulator

Suddenly, many people couldn't help but look at Ma Chao with a little more envy and jealousy.

Being personally taught military books by the Prime Minister is not only an honor, but also shows that the Prime Minister values ​​him very much.

People like Ma Chao, who have a temperament like a wild horse, are more susceptible to softness than to hardness.

Ma Chao was so grateful to Li Ji for his kindness that he bowed and thanked him immediately.

Of course, this was just a small episode for Li Ji.

Li Ji had long understood that Ma Chao was a donkey that obeyed the will of others. The more he showed that he valued Ma Chao, the more cautious Ma Chao would be in everything.

And because Ma Chao was indeed somewhat wild and difficult to tame, and had acquired many of the habits of the Qiang people, Li Ji naturally had to put in some effort if he wanted to use Ma Chao well.

Even if Cao Cao failed to capture him, it was undoubtedly a great victory, and it was even enough to establish a complete victory.

Immediately, Li Ji sent a fast horse to Guandu to deliver a military order, ordering all troops to rest for a while and then lead the army across the river to recover the Han territory, without giving Cao Wei any chance to breathe.

Especially when the military report sent back by Zhang Fei had already crossed Mengjin and entered Bingzhou.

For a time, people all over the world had not yet recovered from the fall of Zhao State and the Battle of Guandu, but the mighty Northern Expedition Army had already set off a new wave.

[In two months, Cao Wei will be destroyed! ]

This is the front-page headline of the latest newspaper under the rule of the Han Dynasty, which not only briefly states the current situation of Cao Wei.

It pointed out that the Northern Expedition Army, totaling nearly 500,000 troops, under the command of the Prime Minister, had crossed the Yellow River and were about to sweep across Hebei to take back the last piece of the map of the Thirteen States of the Han Dynasty.

Wherever the newspaper passed, almost everyone was excited and cheered.

The world will be settled and the Han Dynasty will rise!
Especially in Shouchun City, it was decorated with lights and colors, just like a festival.

At this moment, the territory of Cao Wei was in the midst of war, with waves of Han troops constantly attacking cities and seizing land, recovering lost territory.

Cao Wei was surrounded by enemies on all sides. It had no strategic locations to defend and almost no soldiers to use.

Two months was just enough redundancy time given by Li Ji to avoid any mistakes.

In Li Ji's judgment, half a month...

In half a month at most, the Han troops that had begun to advance into Jizhou with unstoppable force would be able to lay siege to Yecheng.

How long can Cao Wei hold on to just the city of Ye?

Especially when Li Ji looked at the latest secret report sent from Yecheng, he looked more relaxed, and even felt that he was only one step away from unifying the world.

The content of this secret report described that after Cao Cao was escorted back to Yecheng, his headaches continued to occur day and night, and he fainted more often than he was awake. Cao Wei searched everywhere for a miracle doctor to diagnose and treat him.

Because of this, it is Cao Pi who is now presiding over the crumbling Cao Wei in Yecheng.

Li Ji did not underestimate Cao Pi's ability.

However, the foundation of Cao Wei was now destroyed. It was like a thatched house with leaks on all sides. How could it withstand the surging momentum of the Northern Expedition?
However, while Li Ji was delighted, he still patiently continued to deduce the situation of the Northern Expedition to confirm whether Cao Wei still had any possibility of a comeback.

From the intelligence reports, we can learn that Cao Pi, knowing that he was no match for his opponent, had already ordered the continuous gathering of troops, forced the recruitment of young and strong men, and ordered the cities under his jurisdiction to resist with all their might, intending to defend Yecheng to the end.

Even Cao Pi, who is now in charge of the overall situation, probably understands that this desperate defense is just a last-ditch struggle.

After careful consideration, Li Ji felt that the 20,000 elite troops Cao Cao had left in the northern part of Jizhou to guard Youzhou seemed more like a variable than the Yecheng that he was prepared to defend to the death.

And that elite force was led by Cao Zhang.

"Can Cao Zhang do anything surprising in this situation?"

Li Ji thought carefully.

Even Li Ji realized that he was in Cao Zhang's situation and felt powerless to change the situation.

These 20,000 troops could not change the general situation. Whether Cao Zhang chose to return to Yecheng or attack elsewhere, it would not change anything...

However, Li Ji suddenly thought of a blind spot and frowned slightly. He was a little doubtful about why Cao Cao would leave such an elite force and even let Cao Zhang lead the troops personally.

The outcome of the Battle of Guandu had already been decided, but Gongsun Zan in Youzhou was still fighting against the Wuhuan tribes and had no time to move south.

'Could it be that Cao Cao was not sure whether he could lead the Wuhuan to plunder Youzhou and hold back Gongsun Zan, so in order to protect the rear, he placed Cao Zhang in the northern part of Jizhou?'

“How strange…”

The more Li Ji thought about it, the weirder it seemed to him, and he even felt inexplicably uneasy.

After thinking about it, Li Ji, who was paying more and more attention to this little weirdness and unreasonableness, simply sent someone to invite Zhou Yu and Zhang Song over to discuss the matter with them.

Zhang Song thought for a moment and said, "Prime Minister, perhaps this is just what Cao Cao did to be safe."

Instead, Zhou Yu pondered for a long time before speaking.

"Could it be that the Prime Minister still feels that the Wuhuan rebellion has nothing to do with Cao Cao, and that is why he sent Cao Zhang to lead the troops in the north?"

After a pause, Zhou Yu continued to remind him, "Could it be Lu Bu's doing?"

"It is true that Lu Bu has many shortcomings in his personal morality, but he was born in Bingzhou and is particularly hostile to foreign races. I would not expect this to be the case." Li Ji denied this speculation.

Upon hearing this, Zhang Song also proposed a hypothesis and said.

"Then... maybe it was done by Xun clan in secret, taking advantage of the opportunity of Cao Wei opening up trade with the foreign tribes on the grasslands, secretly instigating the Wuhuan rebellion, in an attempt to relieve Cao Cao's worries."

This made Zhou Yu nod his head slightly, thinking that it was indeed possible.

It is not uncommon for noble families to secretly communicate with foreign races.

The Wuhuan's rebellion seemed premeditated, which was not like the usual style of the foreign tribes on the grassland. It seemed more like someone leaked intelligence from the Central Plains, which allowed the Wuhuan to act in this way.

Even if Xun Yu committed suicide, the Xun family's reputation had already been ruined, and Zhang Song felt that it was not impossible for the Xun family to do so.

While Li Ji, Zhou Yu and Zhang Song were still discussing the matter, another urgent report was sent in by Gu Wei.

When Li Ji took it and put it on the table, Gu Wei reminded him with some concern.

"Prime Minister, this time... I'm afraid it's not a victory message."

Li Ji was slightly stunned, and quickly opened the urgent report on the spot. After reading it quickly, he froze on the spot and his face changed drastically.

Zhang Song and Zhou Yu, who noticed something was wrong, asked hurriedly.

"Prime Minister?"

"Did something serious happen?"

Li Ji took a deep breath, slowly put down the urgent report in his hand, and said in a cold voice.

"The Xianbei went south to Bingzhou, and Yide's troops were attacked by the main force of the Xianbei... and were badly defeated."

For a moment, Zhou Yu and Zhang Song's expressions also changed.

Zhang Song blurted out.

"How could the General of Chariots and Cavalry, who has an army of 100,000 men, be defeated in one battle?"

"Prime Minister, how many Xianbei troops are heading south?" Zhou Yu asked anxiously.

Li Ji said solemnly.

"There are no less than 200,000 Xianbei cavalrymen fighting against Yide's troops. I'm afraid the entire Xianbei has come out in full force..." (End of this chapter)