The Duke of Shu Han began guarding Jingzhou in place of Guan Yu.

Chapter 348 A general who doesn't understand arithmetic is not a good scholar
Runan Commandery (formerly Ruyin of Wei), Xiang County.

"When I got up this morning, I saw that there was frost on the trees."

Wang Ping casually picked a yellowed leaf and said indifferently.

Kou Feng was wiping his armor when he heard this. He moved closer to the fire and exhaled:
"We've both been in Yuzhou for many years, so we should know that the autumn frost is not enough to seal off the river."

"The only way to block the Wei people's grain transport is with our bows, spears, and fire arrows."

Upon hearing this, Wang Ping shook his head and said:
"Of course I won't pin my hopes on luck."

"In fact, according to General Wei's strategic planning, Cao Hong should have launched his final attack before the river froze over."

Kou Feng then looked up:

"Then what are you sighing about?"

Wang Ping turned around and said:
"I was just calculating how to minimize the burning of grain while hindering the enemy's grain transport."

"Don't laugh yet, I don't mean to be old-fashioned."

"Just think about it. If we win this battle, with our army's strength, it will be inevitable that we will be able to control the Ying River to the south, won't it?"

"Once we control Ying and Ru at the same time, then we should be able to contend with the Wei army on the Huai River, right?"

"I know that the imperial court's grand strategy is to take Hebei first, and then plan for Huainan."

"Even if there is no major battle on the Huai River next year, we will still have to station troops there."

"Won't the supply of military provisions then depend on Ying and Ru from now on?"

"It's always good to store up more food."

Kou Feng thought for a moment, then stopped and stared intently, saying:
"Your reasoning is correct."

"But what do you plan to do?"

Upon hearing this, Wang Ping flicked away the yellow leaves and squatted down in front of Kou Feng:
"I've been calculating these past few days, and the water journey from Shouchun to Yanling is about six or seven hundred li."

"The Wei army's grain ships are small but fast. Fully loaded, they travel upstream northward. If we estimate they travel sixty or seventy li a day, that would take ten days."

“The empty boats are going south downstream, and based on observations over this period of time, it is much faster than going north, which is five days.”

"Whether it takes ten days or five days, it is impossible for the same batch of ships to travel the entire distance; it is necessary to transport the goods in segments."

"Just like our army between Jiangling and Jiangxia, and between Hanzhong and Guanzhong."

“I know that!” Kou Feng replied.

"General Wei invented the water-powered granary in Jiangling in his early years! I heard that the Prime Minister was inspired by this and built something called the wooden ox and flowing horse on the Shu Road... Anyway, it all means segmented and warehouse-based transportation."

“This is it!” Wang Ping nodded.

“There were also capable people in Cao Wei, who must have known that segmented transportation was more economical than transporting it all the way through.”

"And that's the key point. According to my calculations, taking Ruyin alone would be enough to cut off Yanling's food supply..."

Upon hearing this, Kou Feng burst into laughter:
"You've analyzed so much, I thought you had some brilliant insights, but in the end, isn't it still about attacking Ruyin?"

"That's where the capital of Cao Wei's Ruyin Commandery is located. Even if you hadn't told me, I was going to go down the river to attack Ruyin anyway!"

Upon hearing this, Wang Ping waved his hands repeatedly:
"is not what it means!"

"I mean, taking down Ruyin is enough; there's no need to touch the other cities!"

"Because most of the grain ships traveling upstream and downstream have stored it in Ruyin!"

Kou Feng was taken aback upon hearing this, not understanding what he was saying.

Wang Ping patiently explained:
"Didn't I just say that a ship traveling south is much faster than one traveling north?"

“From Shouchun to Yanling, Ruyin is an important transportation node, located roughly halfway (one-third) of the entire route, and even closer to Shouchun.”

"If the two ships depart from Yanling and Shouchun at the same time, they will most likely meet in Ruyin."

"Of course, the actual journey would not be so smooth, and there would be all sorts of unexpected events. Moreover, there are other smaller towns and granaries along the way where we can stop and change ships, and it may not necessarily be Ruyin."

"But generally speaking, on the same day, the number of ships accumulated in Ruyin must be greater than those elsewhere."

"If we burn all these ships, the supply of grain ships to Yanling, Chenjun, and Chenliu will be greatly reduced in a short period of time!"

"At the same time, we only burned the ships, but that doesn't affect the grain reserves in other cities besides Ruyin..."

Wang Ping went on and on explaining, leaving Kou Feng completely bewildered.

Finally, he asked hesitantly:
Where did you learn all of this?

"Of course I read scriptures!" Wang Ping said matter-of-factly. "Don't you usually read scriptures?"

As he spoke, he pulled out a well-worn paper book from his pocket.

The cover prominently displays the five characters "Commentary on the Nine Chapters on the Mathematical Art".

Kou Feng blushed instantly and said in a strange voice:
"Prince Jun, you're already a general! You've read so many classics, are you going to become a scholar of the Five Classics in the future?!"

……

Chen Liuguo (county), Wei family.

"General, Xi Hong, the Water Conservancy Commissioner of Yuzhou, has sent a messenger to report that the Duck Weir has breached, and the water has overflowed between the Wei and Sha rivers, covering an area of ​​more than ten li!"

Upon hearing the scout's report, Mi Wei closed his military manual and said to his men:
"Cao Hong has missed his chance to return south via the trail." "Next, it depends on whether he is willing to escape by boat."

Upon hearing this, Zhuge Qiao stepped forward and said:
"Wei has few ships, and large armies are currently gathering in Xuchang and Yanling, so it may be difficult to move quickly."

"If they disperse and retreat, Xi Hong can command the navy to attack them calmly."

"Furthermore, the Wei army's food supplies are running low and they cannot sustain this for long. If I were Cao Hong, rather than waiting to be killed, I would rather burn my boats and fight to the death at Weishi."

Upon hearing this, Mi Wei smiled faintly:
"Don't judge others by your own standards!"

"Cao Hong has served Cao Cao for many years. Even if he doesn't possess the latter's wisdom, his insight is still extraordinary. Perhaps he has some brilliant moves that we haven't anticipated..."

Before he could finish speaking, another scout came to report that the Wei army in Yanling and Xuchang had made some unusual movements.

They seem to be preparing to abandon the two cities, join forces, and attack Weishi together.

Upon hearing this, Zhuge Qiao frowned.

Although he was certain that Cao Hong would not retreat but advance, and would come sooner or later.

But I didn't expect them to arrive so early and so decisively:

"Generals Kou and Wang should have just broken through the blockade of Xiang County and had not yet had time to raid the grain supply route again."

"Cao Hong should still be able to obtain five or six days' worth of food supplies, so why rush to abandon the city and attack at this time?"

“That’s why I always say we must not underestimate our opponents,” Miwei exhaled softly.

"Being bound by military law, lower-ranking soldiers were not allowed to enter the granary, so their perception of the stored grain was dulled, and they could only make vague inferences based on some external appearances."

"So those ideas of 'quenching thirst by looking at plums' and 'borrowing your head' are only used to appease the morale of the army."

"The Wei army currently in the two cities sees the grain ships coming and going on the Wei River and their morale remains high. If they send troops now, they still have a good chance of winning."

"If, after a few days, the soldiers discover that the grain ships have not returned, their morale will surely collapse. If we then send troops, there will be no chance of victory."

"Cao Zilian is a true veteran!"

Thus began the seemingly protracted battle in Yanzhou, which was actually a long-running war of words between the two head coaches.

Finally, the final battle was inevitable.

In this battle, on the Han army's side...

Commander Mi Wei, having rested and prepared, had by this time assembled nearly 30,000 troops.

Meanwhile, on the east and west flanks, Changshe had 10,000 elite troops remaining under Xiang Chong.

The garrison in Chenliu numbered five thousand.

In addition, Guan Ping had 10,000 men behind him in Dongjun, and Wang Ping had about 2,000 knights raiding behind enemy lines.

In total, the number of soldiers exceeded 60,000.

Meanwhile, the Wei army...

Cao Hong's main force numbered only about 20,000, and they had come from a distant route, having been divided into troops from Huainan.

In addition, there were 5,000 remnants of Wang Ling's army and 20,000 soldiers from Yanzhou that Guanqiu Jian had urgently drawn from various places.

In total, there are only 45,000.

In terms of total troop strength, the Han army clearly had the advantage.

However, Guan Ping was tasked with the political mission of separating the North and the South, so he could not act rashly.

Unless absolutely necessary, it would be more valuable for Xi Hong's fleet to remain on the waterway.

The garrison troops stationed in Chenliu were also to be used to block Guanqiu Jian's troops from Yanzhou, and could not be moved either.

In fact, not long after Cao Hong retreated to Yanling, Chenliu reported that Guanqiu Jian had suddenly abandoned Waihuang and crossed the river south to Yongqiu, seemingly intending to join forces with Cao Hong.

If successful, the Battle of Weishi will inevitably be fraught with difficulties.

Therefore, Mi Wei not only could not recall the troops from Chenliu, but also had to send reinforcements at any time.

As for Wang Ping and Kou Feng, who were hundreds of miles behind enemy lines, there's no need to mention them.

The only troops that Miwei could mobilize were Xiang Chong's main force from Changshe.

So on the day of the decisive battle, on the flat land south of Weishi.

The actual number of troops involved in the battle was approximately 40,000 for the Han army and 25,000 for the Wei army.

The Han army clearly had the upper hand on paper.

But if we only consider the number of cavalry.

The Wei army numbered nearly six thousand, while the Han army numbered just over seven thousand.

This advantage is not so obvious.

"As I said before, this battle will ultimately be decided by the cavalry."

On the Wei army's platform, Cao Hong pointed his whip northward with unwavering resolve.

(End of this chapter)