Three Kingdoms: Wolong's brother-in-law, tricking Liu Bei into seizing Jingzhou

Tongguan, Han camp.

The snowstorm that lasted for several days finally came to an end and the sky cleared up again.

Liu Bei stood outside the camp gate with his hands behind his back, his eyes not looking towards Tongguan, but towards the distant north.

"Zilong and Ling Gongji and the others should have launched an attack on Puban Pass by now. I don't know if it was successful or not."

"The sky has cleared up and the temperature has warmed up again. I'm afraid the Yellow River will thaw in a few days."

"If Zilong and his men fail to capture Puban Pass in time, once the Yellow River thaws, won't their retreat be cut off?"

Liu Bei stroked his thin beard, muttered to himself, with a hint of worry in his eyes.

Behind him, Xiao Fang smiled faintly and said comfortingly:
"My spies in Guanzhong have no information about Cao Cao's main force heading north. This at least proves that Cao Cao has not yet realized our intention to cross the river on ice."

"We have 40,000 soldiers and horses in Hedong, three times the enemy's strength, and 3,000 White Horse Volunteers. Your Majesty also ordered Ling Tong and his men to build the Hanwei Cannon in advance to bombard the city."

"We are fully prepared. As long as the river in the Puban area freezes over, we will be able to capture Puban Pass!"

Xiao Fang's judgment gave Liu Bei some confidence, so he nodded heavily:

"Jing Lue's words make sense. We are fully prepared for this battle, and we have God's blessing. Unless Cao Cao sends reinforcements to Puban in time, this plan will be--"

Before the word "Cheng" came out of his mouth, Ma Su came running towards him in a hurry with a happy face.

"Your Majesty, General Zilong and his men's battle report has arrived!"

Ma Su came running and excitedly presented the silk book in his hand.

Liu Bei was cheered up, took it and started to unfold it impatiently.

Ma Chao, Huang Zhong, Zhang He and other generals in the tent suddenly stood up, and their expectant eyes turned to the battle report in Liu Bei's hand.

Liu Bei took a look and suddenly burst into laughter:

"Hao Bodao's plan to cross the river on ice has worked. Zilong and his men have succeeded. Puban Pass has been taken over by the Han people!"

The tent was in an uproar. All the generals felt relieved and were extremely excited.

Liu Bei then showed the victory report to all the generals.

Three thousand white horse volunteers landed at the ferry first, Zhao Yun killed Liang Xing, Han Wei bombarded Puban Pass, Li Dian was killed by Zhao Yun again, and 15,000 Qin soldiers were killed or wounded...

The course of the Puban battle was described in detail in the victory report.

"Congratulations to your Majesty for having such a great talent as Hao Zhao. With God's blessing, your plan to cross the river on ice has been successfully completed!"

"Now that the gate to Guanzhong has been opened, our army's road to defeating Qin and destroying Cao is unimpeded!"

Xiao Fang smiled and bowed to Lao Liu.

Fa Zheng also stepped forward and bowed, cupping his hands and saying with a smile:

"Your Majesty, upon hearing the news, Cao will surely raise a large army and march north at night in an attempt to retake Puban Pass."

"We should also set out immediately to head north to meet General Zilong and his men at Puban Pass, just in case."

Liu Bei laughed loudly and said proudly:
"Pass on my order. The army will immediately cross the Yellow River and head north, from Hedong to Puban Pass."

"My army marched into the Guanzhong Plain, and our cavalry attacked Chang'an."

"In this battle, I will not withdraw my troops until I have destroyed Cao and Qin!"

...

Tongguan.

Inside the mansion, the fire was blazing and the air was filled with the aroma of wine.

On this freezing night, Cao Cao was sitting around the fire, sipping wine and chatting with his ministers.

Outside Tongguan, the Han army's offensive had been suspended for more than ten days, and the two armies officially entered a period of confrontation.

Cao Cao could finally breathe a sigh of relief and no longer be tense all day long.

I am in a very good mood today. The temperature has dropped sharply and it is freezing cold, so I summoned a few advisers to come around the fire and cook wine.

"What about the situation on the other battlefields? Do you have any latest reports?"

Cao Cao asked casually while sipping his warm wine.

In the past, such questions were always answered by the strategist Guo Jia.

When Guo Jia was about to speak, Zhang Song's eyes rolled and he spoke first:
"Your Majesty, the rest of the battle lines are as solid as a rock."

"After Guan Yu attacked Wuguan for seven consecutive days and suffered thousands of casualties, he had no choice but to suspend the offensive and station his troops outside the city."

"In Yizhou, the General of Chariots and Cavalry relied on the strategic location of Baidi City to repel the attacks of the Han Army's Jingzhou Corps several times."

"As for Bingzhou, Zhang Fei and his Bingzhou Han army are now trapped in a high and thick ravine and are freezing."

"All my defenses are foolproof. Your Majesty, please be at ease."

Hearing Zhang Song's proud answer, Cao Cao felt more relaxed. He smiled slightly and drank the whole glass of wine.

Guo Jia swallowed his saliva when Zhang Song snatched his lines away. There was a hint of dissatisfaction in his eyes, but he didn't dare to show it.

"Since all the fronts are as solid as a rock, I feel at ease."

"Come, come, come, I will cook wine with you all tonight, let's drink to our heart's content!"

Cao Cao was in a good mood and raised his glass with a smile.

Zhang Song laughed loudly and was the first to raise his glass.

The other ministers also raised their glasses.

Only Jia Xu was playing with the wine glass in his hand, his brows furrowed, as if he was worried about something else.

"Wenhe, are you worried about something?"

Cao Cao saw a hint of worry in Jia Xu's expression.

Jia Xu was startled, then he regained his focus and looked at the snow outside the hall. "It was a warm winter a few days ago, but it suddenly snowed heavily overnight, turning it into a freezing cold winter."

"This sudden change in the celestial phenomena makes me feel a little worried, but I can't tell what I'm worried about for the moment."

Jia Xu's words were ambiguous. Cao Cao didn't understand what he meant, but his eyes couldn't help but look outside the hall door.

"When the heavy snow fell, the roads were covered with snow, and the Han army's food and grass transportation was blocked. After a few days, the weather turned warmer, the ice and snow melted, and the roads became muddy, making the transportation of food and grass even more difficult."

"However, the transportation of our army's food and fodder is conveniently connected to the Wei River, so it is not affected at all."

"So, this heavy snow in winter is actually good for us. Wenhe, you should be happy. Why are you so worried?"

Zhang Song made an incessant analysis, with a smile on his face and a hint of sarcasm in his eyes as he glanced at Jia Xu.

Cao Cao nodded slightly, agreeing with Zhang Song's analysis.

"Yongnian, you are wrong."

Jia Xu shook his head and looked back towards Chang'an:
"We have the convenience of the Wei River, but in such cold weather, the Wei River will surely freeze over, and the transportation of our army's food and fodder will also be affected."

Zhang Song was speechless.

Jia Xu was from Liangzhou and had lived in Guanzhong for a long time. He naturally knew exactly when the Wei River would freeze.

However, Zhang Song was from Shu, where there was no extreme heat or cold. He had never seen any river freeze in the winter.

As an "outsider", Zhang Song naturally did not take the freezing of the Wei River into consideration, something that was beyond his experience and knowledge.

"Frozen..."

Guo Jia's expression suddenly changed, as if Jia Xu's words reminded him of something.

After his eyes rolled rapidly, Guo Jia put down his wine glass with a bang and said with a bow:

"Your Majesty, I am afraid that Puban Pass may be lost. Please send more troops to Puban Pass as soon as possible!"

Cao Cao was stunned.

Zhang Song and other ministers all looked at Guo Jia with confused and suspicious eyes.

"There is no report of the Han army attacking Puban Pass. Why does Feng Xiao say this?"

Cao Cao put down his wine glass and looked questioningly.

Guo Jiateng jumped up, walked a few steps to the door of the hall, and pushed the tightly closed door open.

As soon as the door of the hall opened, a sharp wind and snow blew in, sweeping away all the warmth in the hall in an instant.

Everyone shuddered and hurriedly wrapped their clothes tightly, all surprised by Guo Jia's unexpected and strange behavior.

"Jia Wenhe just mentioned that with such cold weather, the Wei River will surely freeze over."

"Since the Wei River freezes over, the Yellow River will also freeze over naturally."

"What if the Han army takes advantage of the frozen Yellow River to cross the river and attack Puban Pass?"

Guo Jia pointed at the wind and snow outside the door and expressed his concerns.

Cao Cao's expression suddenly changed.

Jia Xu stood up in a hurry and bowed to Cao Cao:

"Your Majesty, I understand. I have been worried just now, but I can't figure out what I am worried about."

"After hearing what Fengxiao said, I finally understood that I was also worried that the Han army would cross the river on ice and launch a surprise attack on our Puban Pass."

Cao Cao took a deep breath and his face suddenly became as gloomy as iron. Although the wind was biting, a layer of cold sweat broke out on his forehead.

"What you are reminding me is that I actually overlooked the fact that the Yellow River would freeze over. If the big-eared thieves take advantage of the situation to attack Puyang, wouldn't the natural barrier of the Yellow River be useless?"

Cao Cao suddenly slammed the table and shouted:

"Order Yu Jin to march 20,000 troops to reinforce the defense of Puban Pass immediately."

"Also, send fast horses to Puban Pass and order Li Dian to send soldiers to break up the river surface to prevent the Han army from crossing the river on ice!"

Two orders were issued in succession.

However, Cao Cao could no longer sit still, and he stood up and paced around the hall. The mood of drinking wine around the fire just now was gone.

At this time, Zhang Song had come back to his senses and figured out what was going on. There was a hint of embarrassment on his face.

The Yellow River was frozen, and he failed to take care of such a crucial matter as crossing the river on ice in time. His inferiority compared to Guo Jia was obvious.

What's more, Qin's defense strategy was basically based on his. The fact that there were only 15,000 troops stationed at Puban Pass was also his doing.

If Puban Pass was lost, wouldn't he be to blame?

The more Zhang Song thought about it, the more guilty he felt, and a trace of cold sweat quietly broke out on his forehead.

After rolling his eyes a few times, Zhang Song pretended to be relaxed and said with a smile:
"Your Majesty, this snowstorm always comes and goes quickly. In a few days, the weather will warm up and the Yellow River will soon melt even if it is frozen."

"Even if Liu Bei thought of crossing the river on ice, it would take several days to send a message to the generals in Hedong, and it would take several more days for the Han army in Hedong to gather at Puban Pass. By the time they wanted to cross the river on ice, the weather would probably have warmed up and the ice would have thawed."

"I think Liu Bei may not be able to seize this fleeting opportunity, so Your Majesty does not need to worry too much."

Cao Cao, who had been pacing back and forth with an anxious look on his face, gradually stopped and the gloom on his face dissipated again.

"Well, what Yongnian said makes sense."

"After all, this year is a warm winter. This snowstorm came suddenly. The big-eared thief was caught off guard. He wanted to take advantage of the Yellow River freezing over these few days to cross the river on ice and attack our Puban Pass. How easy would that be?"

Cao Cao nodded slightly, his heart settled, and he sat down again, holding the wine glass in his hand again.

"boom!"

The tightly closed door was suddenly pushed open and the royal guards rushed in.

"Your Majesty, General Li has just sent an emergency letter. Nearly 40,000 Han troops are crossing the river on ice to attack our Puban Pass. Your Majesty, please send reinforcements as soon as possible!"

Cao Cao's face turned pale with horror, and the wine glass in his hand fell to the ground with a clang. (End of this chapter)