Three Kingdoms: I, Liu Feng, do not want to die

Chapter 151: The Vacuum City Plan, the Fate of Liu Feng and Cao Zhen (6K)

Use yourself as bait?

bluff?

Cao Zhen's eyes darkened and he subconsciously glanced at the top of the fortress.

But the fighting on the city wall was silent, and there was not even a single Han soldier on sentry duty!
Looking at Liu Feng again, he was standing alone at the city gate, three parts calm and seven parts arrogant, and he didn't look like he was in desperate situation at all.

Cao Zhen thought of the Han army of about 3,000 people who suddenly attacked the big camp, and Xiahou Shang's words that Liu Feng challenged Xu Huang to a duel and sent four troops out of the city, which made him even more suspicious.

"Generals, do you understand Liu Feng's intentions?"

Cao Zhen did not dare to be careless. He looked around and asked Xiahou Shang, Zhang He, Xu Huang and others.

Zhang He stared at Liu Feng at the gate and speculated in a deep voice: "There are many brave generals under Liu Bei who are good at fighting and rely on their bravery to use deception, such as Zhang Fei who used a small number of cavalry to raise dust in the forest to confuse the enemy at Changban Bridge, and Zhao Yun who did not close the gate of the camp, turned down the flags and spears, and did not sound the drums and gongs at the Han River.

Both of them have stood alone in front of our army and deceived our soldiers. Liu Feng is extremely brave and wise. I think Liu Feng is imitating Zhang Fei and Zhao Yun of the past and bluffing!
We just need to join forces and attack from all sides to capture and kill Liu Feng!"

Xu Huang had a different idea: "Although Liu Feng is brave and intelligent, we are not weak or foolish. If Liu Feng is bluffing, he is underestimating us. From what I know about Liu Feng, he is not a proud and arrogant person. We must be on guard!
If Liu Feng really used himself as bait, and took advantage of our attack on the fort from all sides, he would ambush us from all sides and attack one side. By then, although we have a large number of troops, it would be difficult for us to unite them in a short period of time, and we would be defeated by Liu Feng one by one.

I think we should follow the original plan, first defeat Liu Feng's troops outside the city, and then turn back to besiege and kill Liu Feng, so that we can be sure of success."

Xiahou Shang frowned, "I originally thought that Liu Feng would abandon the fort and retreat in the dark, or divide his troops to guard Wudang, Ling County, Yin County and Zhuyang, or set up an ambush in a place where troops are hidden along the way to stop our army from moving south.

However, although Liu Feng divided his troops to march south today, he also sent troops to attack the General Zhengxi's main camp, challenged the generals to a battle, and refused to defend on his own. This was beyond my expectation, and it was hard not to think too much.

I also think that we should follow the original plan, first defeat Liu Feng's troops outside the city, and then turn back to besiege and kill Liu Feng, so as to be absolutely safe."

Le Chen's thoughts were not as complicated as Zhang He, Xu Huang, and Xiahou Shang's. He asked, "No matter if he is bluffing or using himself as bait, why not lead an army to attack the fort first! With many against few, we can retreat safely even if there is an ambush!"

Xu Huang glanced at Le Chen and said, "The fort built by Liu Feng is easy to defend but difficult to attack. If we don't attack with the whole army, we won't be able to break through."

Le Chen was not convinced and snorted: "General, why do you want to boost others' morale and destroy your own prestige? When my father was alive, I always led the way for him and was the first to attack the enemy. What is there to be afraid of with just a fort? If I cannot win, I am willing to be punished!"

Xu Huang said nothing.

Xiahou Shang's face looked a little embarrassed.

Although Le Chen said this unintentionally, the listener took it to heart.

Xiahou Shang watched the fort being built right under his nose. After Xu Huang arrived, he and Xiahou Shang attacked the fort many times, but each time they ended in failure. This is why Xu Huang believed that the entire army had to be mobilized to break the fort.

But Le Chen thought that he could break Liu Feng's fortress by leading only one army?
Whose face are you slapping?
"General Le, I think this matter needs further consideration." Xiahou Shang coughed twice and added, "In terms of the ability to attack and destroy strongholds, the late emperor also praised the right general for his ability to march straight into the enemy camp."

The implication is: If Liu Feng’s fortress was easy to break, Xu Huang and I would have broken it long ago. How could it be your turn, Le Chen?

Cao Zhen also heard the hidden meaning of Xiahou Shang and rejected Le Chen's request: "General Le, please be patient and let me think deeply."

Speaking from the heart.

Cao Zhen actually regretted it.

Before setting off, Zhang He gave Cao Zhen two options.

One plan was to cannibalize and destroy Liu Feng, and mobilize all the troops in the camp to first destroy the 3,000 Han soldiers who were attacking the stronghold.

One plan is to capture and kill Liu Feng first.

Cao Zhen chose the latter.

But when they arrived at the fort, they found that Liu Feng's response was completely different from what they expected.

This made Cao Zhen very embarrassed.

Adopt Zhang He's suggestion to attack from all sides. Cao Zhen is worried that Liu Feng is really using himself as bait. If he attacks from all sides, it will easily turn out to be what Xu Huang expected: "Being defeated one by one by Liu Feng."

The suggestions of Xiahou Shang and Xu Huang can be adopted. Cao Zhen is also worried that Liu Feng is bluffing. In fact, the Han soldiers who went south really went to Wudang, Lingxian and other places. If the troops are divided into several counties, Liu Feng in the fortress will become unshakable again!
As for Le Chen's proposal, Cao Zhen didn't need to consider it. If the fortress was really so easy to break, Cao Zhen wouldn't have to use benevolence to kidnap Liu Feng and force him to divide his troops.

For a moment, Cao Zhen was in a dilemma.

Liu Feng saw this.

He slowly took out a flaming arrow and shot it into the sky.

As the flare arrows were fired, signal smoke was lit on the top of the fortress.

Seeing the signal arrows and smoke signals, Cao Zhen, Xiahou Shang, Zhang He, Xu Huang and others all changed their expressions.

Cao Zhen's face became even more suspicious, and he subconsciously looked at Zhang He who advocated war.

Zhang He also frowned at this moment, and began to doubt whether his previous judgment was accurate.

Just as everyone was hesitating.

A rider came from behind and reported: "General, there is smoke rising from a few miles to the north."

Soon after, several more riders came and reported to Cao Zhen that smoke was rising from several directions, including the south, southeast, and east!

Without waiting for Cao Zhen to decide.

Dozens of cavalrymen first emerged from the fort, followed by hundreds of elite soldiers, and several rows of archers appeared on the top of the city wall.

As the heavy drum beats sounded, the archers on the city wall began to draw their bows and shoot arrows.

After a few rounds of bows and arrows.

Liu Feng actually led the way and headed straight for Cao Zhen's banner, shouting, "I've heard that you, Cao Zidan, can shoot tigers. Do you dare to fight me?!"

Behind Liu Feng, dozens of elite cavalry and hundreds of powerful soldiers followed closely.

Cao Zhen's expression changed drastically: "How dare you charge into the battle with only a few hundred men? Liu Feng is so arrogant? This is definitely not a bluff!"

If Cao Zhen had suspected that Liu Feng was bluffing before, then when he saw Liu Feng charging at the battle line with hundreds of men, all his doubts were immediately dispelled.

Even Zhang He opened his eyes wide at this moment.

Liu Feng's side had dozens of cavalrymen and hundreds of elite soldiers, but his generals were no more than Tian Qi, Bai Shou, Mei Fu, Liu Xianda, Liu Daozhi, Tian Zhong and others.

Cao Zhen's side had over a thousand cavalry and 20,000 infantry. The generals included Cao Zhen, Xiahou Shang, Zhang He, and Xu Huang, as well as the brave general Le Chen, and many brave lieutenant generals, colonels, and captains.

however.

Liu Feng just led the troops head-on!

bluff?

Are you bluffing and dare to charge like this?
"Divide the troops to resist and beware of ambushes!"

Seeing Liu Feng coming at him aggressively, Cao Zhen suppressed his inner shock and shouted loudly.

Le Chen hurriedly responded: "Don't worry, General. I will stop you later!"

Cao Zhen did not hesitate and ordered Le Chen to lead two thousand soldiers to line up in the west to fight Liu Feng. At the same time, he ordered Zhang He to line up in the north, Xu Huang in the south, and Xiahou Shang in the east to guard against Liu Feng's ambush. Cao Zhen was in the middle to coordinate the troops to prevent any accidents!

however.

Soon Cao Zhen realized something was wrong again.

Le Chen is no match for Liu Feng!
Although Le Chen had more troops than Liu Feng, he was not as brave or good at command as Liu Feng.

Especially after Liu Feng shot and killed several cavalry captains, the two thousand people led by Le Chen became disorganized.

Liu Feng led dozens of cavalrymen and killed Le Chen's two thousand Wei troops like sharp knives.

Le Chen wanted to stop Liu Feng, so he led more than a hundred cavalrymen to charge, but he was almost shot down by an arrow from Liu Feng.

Looking at Le Chen retreating with an arrow in his right shoulder, Cao Zhen's expression also became solemn.

[Liu Feng's ambush troops have not appeared yet. Is this intentional? If I transfer Zhang He and Xu Huang to the west formation, Liu Feng's ambush troops will suddenly rush out and the army formation will be in chaos.]

Think of this.

Cao Zhen handed over the command to his trusted deputy general Qin Liang, and personally led the guards and cavalry to replace Le Chen.

Seeing Cao Zhen go out to fight, Le Chen felt ashamed: "General, it was my fault that I lost my fighting spirit."

Cao Zhen did not blame Le Chen, but just asked Le Chen to return to the battlefield to recuperate.

Subsequently.

Cao Zhen seized the opportunity and led his cavalry guards straight to where Liu Feng was.

A tiger-like roar sounded, and the spear in Cao Zhen's hand stabbed at Liu Feng like a tiger's or leopard's sharp claws.

First-class military generals all have first-class riding skills.

For a mounted warrior, riding skills are the foundation of fighting on the battlefield.

Although Cao Zhen's spear was fierce, Liu Feng's riding skills were also superb.

Even with his back to Cao Zhen, he could easily avoid Cao Zhen's spear.

There was no clash of words, only the stabbing of guns and spears.

Although it is rare for the main general to duel with each other when two armies are facing each other, it is not uncommon for the main general to duel with each other when the two armies are in a melee.

Once the melee begins, it will turn into a fight between people: either close combat, sneak attacks with bows and arrows, or the majority against the minority, or the few against the majority.

Both Liu Feng and Cao Zhen were in their thirties and strong, and were second-generation generals who had received systematic training in riding and archery.

The first confrontation was like meeting a worthy opponent in chess, with both teams evenly matched.

Fighting.

Cao Zhen did not forget to test Liu Feng: "I was almost fooled by you. You didn't have any ambush at all! Today is the day you die!"

Liu Feng saw through Cao Zhen's intentions and taunted him, "If you don't believe me, why don't you see Xu Huang, Zhang He and I fighting?"

Cao Zhen sneered: "I can shoot tigers and capture you. Why should I give the credit to Xu Huang and Zhang He?"

Liu Feng also sneered: "What a coincidence! As long as I can capture you, I won't even need to bother with an ambush!"

Seeing that he could not find out Liu Feng's true thoughts, Cao Zhen became more worried.

They fought for a while.

Seeing that he could not defeat Liu Feng and that Liu Feng's ambush troops had not appeared, Cao Zhen made up his mind and sent someone to transfer Zhang He from the northern camp to join the battle.

Zhang He joined the battlefield, and the situation on the battlefield gradually changed.

Cao Zhen suddenly felt the pressure relieved, and he rode his horse towards Liu Feng again, still testing him with words: "I have already sent Zhang He into the battle, Liu Feng, don't try to deceive me again!"

Liu Feng also responded sarcastically: "If you can't beat me, then you can't beat me. Don't always think that I am lying to you. Since I debuted, I have always fought against the majority with a small number of people. You, Cao Zhen, are no different!"

Seeing that his attempts yielded no results, Cao Zhen stopped fighting with Liu Feng and chose to retreat to the western formation to command his soldiers to surround and kill Liu Feng.

With Zhang He joining, Cao Zhen no longer had to go into battle himself.

The situation gradually turned unfavorable to Liu Feng.

"General Zhengxi, something is strange. No matter Liu Feng wants to use himself as bait or bluff, fighting with us outside the city is a bad idea. Liu Feng's ambush has not arrived yet, which is puzzling." Zhang He rode his horse to Cao Zhen's side with a frown.

Cao Zhen also noticed the weirdness.

If one wants to use oneself as bait to await an ambush, the best strategy is naturally to rely on the defense of the fortress.

If he wanted to bluff, he should have taken the opportunity to return to the city after shooting Le Chen. "Could it be that Liu Feng's division of troops was fake, and the surprise attack on my camp was real?"

"It's unlikely. Going south first and then north, and bypassing our spies, is unlikely. In my opinion, it's better to attack from all sides. I doubt Liu Feng has any ambush at all!"

Zhang He again proposed a siege from all sides.

While under siege, they were restricted by the terrain and could not fully utilize their military advantage.

With siege from all sides, the Wei army, which had several times the number of Liu Feng's troops, could not display its full strength.

Cao Zhen hesitated.

Although Zhang He's inference was bold, Cao Zhen did not dare to believe it.

Liu Feng’s behavior is so weird!
It was so strange that Cao Zhen didn't dare to be careless at all, for fear that Liu Feng's ambush would emerge if he was not paying attention.

"hold on!"

Cao Zhen gritted his teeth and did not accept Zhang He's proposal.

You can never go too far wrong.

Although it was possible to capture and kill Liu Feng by besieging him from all sides, there was also the possibility that he would be killed by Liu Feng's ambushes.

Cao Zhen decided to be cautious.

Anyway, we have more soldiers, so as long as we don’t make big mistakes, we won’t be defeated.

It is better to slowly wear down Liu Feng than to risk being killed in return.

Seeing that Cao Zhen was unwilling to change his tactics, Zhang He stopped advising him.

Cao Zhen was the main general, and Zhang He had fulfilled his duty of giving advice.

What's more, Cao Zhen's worries are not unreasonable. Being cautious will not lead to big mistakes.

Not long after.

Another blast of arrows broke through the air, and smoke rose again from the city walls.

"Another signal fire?"

Cao Zhen and Zhang He looked at each other and saw the suspicion in each other's eyes.

Before the two of them could figure it out.

More scouts came to report that wolf smoke had been lit again in the north, east, southeast, and south, where it had been previously seen.

"What on earth is Liu Feng planning?"

Cao Zhen was furious and hesitated again whether to send troops to take the other three gates.

Just about to give the order.

Another scout arrived: "Report! A large number of Han troops are heading north!"

Cao Zhen was shocked: "Could it be that the second smoke signal is Liu Feng's secret signal to send out an ambush? General Zuo, return to the northern camp quickly! Inform the general of the southern camp and the general of the eastern camp to prepare to meet the enemy."

And deep down in my heart.

However, Cao Zhen was vaguely worried: Why weren't the Han army coming from the north restrained by Guo Huai and Han Rong?
What Cao Zhen didn't know was.

Liu Feng's first wolf smoke was a signal to Wang Ping to withdraw his troops; the wolf smoke rising from Wang Ping's place indicated that Wang Ping had received the signal.

When the smoke signals rose from Wang Ping's position, Guo Huai and Han Rong mistakenly thought that Wang Ping was giving a secret signal to the ambush troops, so they did not dare to pursue him after Wang Ping withdrew his troops.

The second signal smoke was Liu Feng confirming whether Wang Ping had successfully withdrawn his troops.

As for the other signal smoke signals, they were all signs of an invading army.

Seeing that Cao Zhen urgently transferred Zhang He to the northern camp, Liu Feng just sneered and withdrew to the fort.

Then a rapid blast of trumpet sounded from the tower of the fortress.

When the Han soldiers heard the sound of the horn, they quickly retreated back to the fort.

Wang Ping, who was originally going to attack Cao Zhen's northern formation, made a sharp turn and headed straight for the north gate of the fort.

Soldiers had already opened the north gate of the fort and welcomed Wang Ping in.

This sudden change left Cao Zhen stunned.

what's the situation?
Why the withdrawal?
When Xu Huang and Xiahou Shang sent people to report that there were no traces of Han soldiers outside the southern and eastern camps, Cao Zhen finally reacted!
cheated!
It was true that Liu Feng sent troops to rescue the counties, and it was also true that he was bluffing.

ambush?

There is no ambush at all!

At this moment, Cao Zhen had already guessed that the only troops Liu Feng could have fighting in the fort today were the several hundred infantry and cavalry in the western formation. Including the baggage soldiers in charge of food and fodder in the fort, there would be no more than two thousand people at most.

As long as we attack from all four sides, we can break through the fortress in less than an hour!
And now.

After Wang Ping's 3,000 Han troops returned, there was enough manpower in the city to hold out.

The most important thing is: Cao Zhen lost the best opportunity to divide his troops to attack Wudang, Lingxian and other places. The troops are tired today, and they can only go tomorrow. By the time they go tomorrow, Wudang, Lingxian and other places have already built up their defenses.

In other words: Liu Feng used himself as bait to buy a day for the troops to go to Wudang, Ling County and other places. With Kou Anguo, Li Fu and others guarding the counties, Cao Zhen could not easily take the counties. The conspiracy against Liu Feng was naturally useless!

"No wonder! Liu Feng dared to charge my army with only a few hundred infantry and cavalry. He did so on purpose because he was afraid that I would see through his strength! This is truly using oneself as bait! He is so courageous!" Cao Zhen stared at Liu Feng who had returned to the top of the city with a grim face.

Just a difference of one thought and he lost the opportunity to capture and kill Liu Feng!
The world is impermanent.

If Liu Feng was facing artificial intelligence, with its computing power far superior to that of humans, he would have been doomed to be captured and killed the moment he left the city.

However, the difference between humans and artificial intelligence is that humans can never possess the same computing power as artificial intelligence, and their deduction and calculation of the battle situation will also be affected by various factors such as emotions and energy.

Just like the war eagle in the Go world, it can even use the tactic of "outlasting the grandmother" to make the opponent suffer from hypoglycemia.

Between annoyance and resentment.

Liu Feng's loud laughter was heard again from the top of the fortress.

"Cao Zidan, you have more than 20,000 infantry and cavalry, while I have less than 800 infantry and cavalry, and you can't even break my fort! You are so incompetent and cowardly, yet you can become the General of the Western Expedition. It seems that after Cao Cao's death, the pseudo-Wei has no one to use. They are all just vagrants!"

Listening to Liu Feng's laughter and scolding, Cao Zhen felt that his anger was about to rush to his forehead.

"Liu Feng, you bastard! I will kill you!" Cao Zhen cursed angrily, no longer able to maintain his usual composure.

Liu Feng laughed loudly: "You couldn't kill me when I left the fort, how could you kill me when I was defending the fort? Now you can't break into my fort, and you can't threaten me to give up the fort by using the people of the counties. Your anger at this moment is just the barking of your incompetent dog!"

The Han army soldiers on the city wall, at the instruction of Liu Feng, shouted "Wei dog Cao Zhen, is as incompetent as a dog barking."

Cao Zhen, who was already extremely angry, became even angrier after hearing the Han soldiers shouting "Wei dog Cao Zhen, a useless dog barking!" He also felt even more ashamed and angry when he thought about not listening to Zhang He's advice and failing to see through Liu Feng's conspiracy in time.

suddenly,

Cao Zhen spurted out blood and fell off his horse, his eyes closed and he lost consciousness.

"General!"

The guards on both sides were shocked and hurriedly took Cao Zhen back to the city.

Zhang He, Xiahou Shang and Xu Huang from the north, east and south camps were all shocked when they learned that Cao Zhen had vomited blood and fainted, and they all withdrew their troops.

It's dusk.

A spy returned to the fort and said that "Cao Zhen is seriously ill."

"What a clumsy trick. It's not a serious illness. How can vomiting blood be a serious illness? It's nothing more than being ashamed to see people and having to resort to trickery." Liu Feng saw through Cao Zhen's trick at a glance and sneered.

The facts were just as Liu Feng had guessed.

Cao Zhen was greatly humiliated today, and did not want to affect his prestige in the army, so he bit his tongue amid the collective ridicule of the Han army, spit out a mouthful of blood, and pretended to vomit blood and faint.

After returning to the city, he falsely claimed that it was a trap and deliberately leaked the news in an attempt to lure Liu Feng out of the fort again.

Regardless of whether Cao Zhen's deception was successful or not, the impression of Cao Zhen among the officers and soldiers in the army would become the style of a great general such as "if one plan fails, come up with another one", "don't be arrogant because of victory, and don't be discouraged because of defeat", etc.

He has inherited the true teachings of Cao Cao!

Think about it for a moment.

Liu Feng wrote another letter and sent it to the city of Nanxiang, saying, "Liu Feng, the King of Yan in the Han Dynasty, heard that General Cao Zhen was ill, and sent a prescription for his treatment."

The gist of the letter was: First, Cao Zhen's trick of feigning illness was exposed, and then the advantages and disadvantages of both sides in the Nanxiang and Xincheng areas were analyzed to Cao Zhen.

Finally, he said: You can't defeat me, and I can't defeat you. It's useless to fight again. It's better to wait for the victory or defeat of the Battle of Xiangfan. The struggle between Han and Wei is not a one-time thing. The old generals are old, and among the rookies, only you and I have special status and can receive the emperor's order to supervise the military affairs inside and outside. If you want to compete with me, it's not the right time or place.

Seeing the contents of Liu Feng's letter, Cao Zhen could not help but sigh: "Although the Han Dynasty is weak, the famous generals are still here. Ordinary people only know Liu Feng's bravery, but they don't know that Liu Feng's wisdom is even better than his bravery. With this person here, it will be difficult for Your Majesty to unify the Wei Dynasty!"

After discussing with Zhang He, Xu Huang, Xiahou Shang and others, Cao Zhen decided to temporarily stop fighting with Liu Feng and wait for the outcome of the battle of Xiangfan.

As Guo Huai once said: Cao Pi's military order did not mention letting Cao Zhen and others go to Xiangfan, but only asked Cao Zhen and others to capture Shangyong if they had spare strength.

And now.

Liu Feng has successfully crushed Cao Zhen's plan, making it impossible for Cao Zhen to have the absolute advantage to repel Liu Feng.

There is no point in fighting again.

Subsequently.

Cao Zhen also sent someone to deliver a letter to Liu Feng, and agreed that both sides would send soldiers to clean up the battlefield and collect the fallen soldiers.

After receiving the letter from Cao Zhen, Liu Feng sent people to Xiangfan overnight to inquire about the war situation.

And in the Xiangfan area.

Liu Bei had been besieging Fancheng for many days.

The twenty-three camps from various states and counties, including Cao Xiu, Zhang Liao, Zang Ba, Jia Kui, Wang Ling, etc., and the twelve camps from the capital, including Cao Hong, Wang Zhong, Liu Ruo, Xianyu Fu, etc., which were mobilized by Cao Pi, had also arrived long ago.

Because of Sun Quan's participation in the war, Cao Xiu only sent Zang Ba with three battalions to Shiyang to assist Wen Pin, and the remaining twenty battalions all rushed to Xiangyang.

however.

even so.

Cao Xiu and Cao Hong, with thirty battalions of soldiers, were unable to gain any advantage over Liu Bei.

Compared with Xu Huang's previous attack on Yancheng first and then his direct attack on Guan Yu's Weitou and Sizhong, the performances of Cao Xiu and Cao Hong seemed mediocre.

After a month, Yancheng was still in Zhang Fei's hands, not to mention any contact with Fancheng.

Looking at the weather getting colder.

Cao Xiu and Cao Hong also became extremely irritated.

In the big tent.

Cao Xiu slammed the table, furious: "Liu Bei is so hateful. He is deliberately delaying the battle until Fancheng runs out of supplies! If the general fails, we will all be punished by your majesty!"

(End of this chapter)