My father-in-law Guan Yu, I persuaded Liu Bei to launch a surprise attack on Xiangyang at the beginn

Xiahou Dun felt as if he had fallen into an icy abyss, a chilling sensation running down his spine.

Liu Bei's series of plans were truly extremely cunning and insidious!
Not only did they see through their scheme to sow discord, but they also went along with it, launching a surprise attack on Ji Pass and advancing their troops into Hedong!

The entire nation's army of over 400,000 men, who invaded from south to north in five routes, was actually providing cover for the surprise attack on Jiguan Pass!
Is this a strategy that a human could come up with?

"That Xiao He, is he human or demon? What kind of freak is he? What kind of monster is he...?"

Xiahou Dun was trembling, his tongue was tied in knots, and his face was contorted with endless horror.

"After hearing that the Emperor had used Grand Commandant Jia's strategy to sow discord, Huai felt uneasy."

"Huai was thinking that Liu Bei had an extraordinary magnanimity and always trusted the people he used. He dared to entrust Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, Zhuge Liang and other non-Liu Bei officials with the responsibility of protecting the country."

"Like Zhuge Liang, who was often entrusted with the important task of guarding the capital, if it were a matter of plotting to usurp the throne, Zhuge Liang would have had a much better chance than Xiao He, yet Liu Bei was completely unprepared."

"If Liu Bei didn't suspect Zhuge Liang, then there's no reason for him to suspect Xiao He, is there?"

"But Liu Bei didn't use Xiao He during this invasion, instead sending him to inspect the grain. It seems he was indeed suspicious of him, and he fell for our divisive tactic."

"After much thought, Huai felt that this did not fit Liu Bei's character and temperament, and that there was something suspicious about it."

After Guo Huaiyang's lengthy analysis, he sighed:
"Now it seems that we underestimated Liu Bei. He never suspected Xiao He in the slightest."

"On the contrary, he still obeyed Xiao He's every word, and even used his tricks to lull us into a false sense of security, allowing him to launch a surprise attack on Ji Pass and break through our defenses in Bingzhou in one fell swoop!"

Xiahou Dun shivered again, and the last vestiges of doubt in his eyes vanished.

At that moment, a hint of shame flashed across Xiahou Dun's face.

He felt ashamed for Cao Cao, ashamed for Jia Xu, and ashamed for their petty-mindedness.

They believed that Cao Cao would inevitably become suspicious of ministers like Xiao He who had "achieved great merit and threatened the emperor's authority," especially since Xiao He was not a member of the Cao family.

Cao Cao was the emperor, and so was you, Liu Bei. Cao Cao would be suspicious, and so would you, Liu Bei.

They even believed that it was only natural for a monarch to be suspicious of his subjects.

Unexpectedly, Liu Bei used his uprightness and his magnanimous spirit to slap Cao Cao in the face, and slap the faces of all of them!

Not only did Liu Bei not suspect Xiao He, he also turned the tables on Cao Cao, making Cao Cao's scheme backfire.

Cao Cao and all of them, in front of Liu Bei, Xiao He, and their ministers, all became clowns!
"Big-eared scoundrel, Xiao He, you two treacherous ministers are truly cunning and treacherous villains!"

Enraged, Xiahou Dun launched into a hysterical tirade.

Guo Huai frowned, but cupped his hands and said in a deep voice:

"General, things have come to this point. The most important thing now is to figure out how to salvage the situation."

"Now Xiao He must have led his army into Hedong. The next step will definitely be to capture Anyi, seize the entire Hedong prefecture, and seize the ferry crossings at Puban and Longmen to block the Yellow River and prevent our Yongliang troops from coming to our aid."

"If that happens, then my Bingzhou will be in grave danger!"

Although Guo Huai was young and his official rank was several levels lower than Xiahou Dun's, he was clearly more composed and had sharper insight than Xiahou Dun.

Xiahou Dun felt as if he had been struck on the head, and suddenly woke up from his hysteria.

"You're right, we absolutely cannot let that traitor Xiao take over Hedong, otherwise the consequences will be unimaginable, we absolutely cannot!"

Xiahou Dun nodded repeatedly and hurriedly asked:
"Boji, according to your plan, how should I mend the situation after the sheep have escaped?"

After a moment's thought, Guo Huai cut the nails off the railway:
"Liu Bei abandoned his attack on Huguan, which must be because he has already learned of the success of Jiguan. I predict that he will lead his main force into Hedong to join Xiao He."

"The General should lead his troops north to Jinyang, and then south to Hedong, striving to be the first to enter the prefecture's capital, Anyi."

"At worst, if Anyi cannot be defended, at least Puban must be defended to ensure that the passage between Bingzhou and Guanzhong is not blocked."

"At the same time, the General should quickly seek help from the Emperor, inform him of Liu Bei's complete plan and strategy, and request that the Emperor immediately lead his army across the Yellow River to Hedong to intercept the Han army." "Only in this way can we hope to protect Hedong Commandery and Bingzhou!"

Guo Huai launched into a long and detailed plan.

Xiahou Dun nodded repeatedly, his face regaining some confidence, and snorted coldly:
"It seems that although Xiao Ze attacked Jiguan, the situation in Hedong has not yet reached the point of no return."

"Xiao's troops are limited after all. Even if he manages to seize Anyi by chance, he would never dare to divide his forces to take Puban."

"I believe there is still hope for the situation in Hedong!"

Seeing Xiahou Dun regain his confidence, Guo Huai frowned and quickly reminded him:
"General, haven't we learned a painful lesson from the fall of Jiguan Pass?"

“That person is Xiao He. Even if he only has a few thousand soldiers, we must not underestimate him in the slightest.”

"That's a god-like person who can turn the impossible into the possible!"

Xiahou Dun was jolted awake by Guo Huai's sharp rebuke, realizing how foolish his optimism had been.

Now that things have come to this, what right do you have to look down on Xiao He?

Looking for death?
"By my order, assemble the troops immediately and follow me to Hedong!"

"Quickly send a messenger to Guanzhong to request aid from His Majesty, immediately—"

From the top of the fortress, Xiahou Dun's panicked screams rang out.

...

The seat of Hedong Commandery was Anyi City.

A Han flag had already been raised above the four gates.

"Everything is as the Grand Marshal predicted. The forces of the pseudo-Wei in the heart of Hedong Commandery are indeed weak, with less than a thousand soldiers guarding the capital Anyi."

"Our army has easily captured Anyi in less than half a day."

On the city wall, Wen Qin's face burned with a hint of smug sarcasm.

Zhuge Dan smiled and cupped his hands, saying:
"With Anyi captured, Hedong Commandery now belongs to our Great Han. Grand Marshal, shall we build a city and simply wait for His Majesty to lead the main force to join us?"

"It's too early to talk about Hedong County being ours now."

Xiao He gave a cold laugh, then raised his hand and pointed west:
"Wen Zhongruo, I order you to lead all the cavalry and immediately march westward, heading straight for Puban. You must block the Yellow River before Cao Cao does!"

The smiles on Zhuge Dan and Wen Qin's faces vanished instantly, and they exchanged a glance.

Zhuge Dan, with his superior wisdom, immediately grasped Xiao He's deeper meaning.

At this time, Cao Cao must have already learned of the fall of Jiguan Pass and the execution of Xiahou Wei.

With Cao Cao's wisdom, he must have already calculated their entire plan and guessed Xiao He's strategy of marching north from Hebei to attack Bingzhou.

If we defend Hedong, Cao Cao will surely lead Wei's mobile forces to cross the Yellow River from Guanzhong immediately to save Hedong.

Pubanjin was the most convenient route for the Wei army to enter Hedong.

Therefore, Xiao He ordered Wen Qin to lead a light cavalry force westward day and night, in order to seize Puban Ferry and block the Yellow River before Cao Cao crossed it.

At that moment, Zhuge Dan pointed out Xiao He's deeper meaning.

"I understand what the Grand Marshal means."

Wen Qin suddenly understood, but then changed the subject, his eyes showing concern as he said:
"But Qin only has three thousand light cavalry, while Cao Cao can mobilize at least forty thousand infantry and cavalry."

"I'm worried that even if I manage to capture Puban Ferry first, these three thousand light cavalry alone will likely be insufficient to withstand Cao Cao's ten times larger army crossing the river!" (End of Chapter)