The Three Kingdoms: Rise to Power Starting with Intercepting Liu Bei

"My lord, you've finally returned! The situation in Yanzhou is not optimistic, and only you can stabilize the morale of the army!"

As soon as Cao Cao returned to the governor's mansion, Xun Yu received the news and rushed over. Before Cao Cao could even catch his breath, Xun Yu began to pour out his grievances.

"Wenruo, how much territory do we have left? Where are Lü Bu and the others now?"

As Cao Cao walked into the court, he asked questions. He had only received general information and did not know the extent of Lü Bu's forces' development. Only Xun Yu knew the details.

"My lord, Lü Bu and his forces have occupied most of Yan Province and are expected to surround Puyang soon. We only have Puyang and the surrounding area left, and we currently have less than 10,000 soldiers left."

"The most important thing is the extreme shortage of food. Once Lü Bu's army adopts a siege strategy, we may not be able to hold out for long."

Xun Yu gritted his teeth and explained their current predicament, especially the recent food shortage, which was particularly severe. At this time, there was a severe drought and a locust plague, resulting in an extreme lack of food.

Faced with such a dire situation, Cao Cao did not panic. Instead, he remained remarkably calm, and after pondering for a while, he gave the following instructions:

"Wenruo, order all the troops to switch to defense and absolutely forbid them from attacking Lü Bu without authorization. Secondly, send messengers to Yuan Shao and Yuan Shu, instructing them not to form an alliance with Lü Bu."

"Lu Bu, that traitor who served three masters, isn't scary. What I'm worried about is Chen Gong, who's by his side!"

As his first strategist, Cao Cao was well aware of Chen Gong's formidable abilities. In his eyes, Lü Bu was merely a reckless warrior, not worth mentioning.

But the fact that these two people colluded together forced Cao Cao to take it seriously.

If Yuan Shao and Yuan Shu were to form an alliance with them again, then Cao Cao's death would be imminent.

"Yes!" Xun Yu immediately understood Cao Cao's thoughts and agreed.

Just as Cao Cao was busy fighting Lü Bu, Li Jing, whom Qin Xuan had sent out, finally returned to Tancheng with his army.

This time, the 10,000-strong Great Wall Army, led by Li Jing, achieved great results. After lying in wait for dozens of days, they launched a surprise attack on Cao Cao's retreat route, not only annihilating a large number of Cao Cao's troops, but also recovering the lost territory of Xuzhou that had been occupied by Cao Cao's army.

Qin Xuan has now occupied all the counties except for Xiapi and Mount Tai.

With Li Jing's return, Qin Xuan handed over all military power to him, including the four thousand Danyang soldiers under Cao Bao's command, who were the elite of the Xuzhou army.

As a famous army in the late Eastern Han Dynasty, the strength of the Danyang soldiers was recognized by the warlords. Cao Cao once praised Danyang as "a place with dangerous mountains, strong and brave people, fond of martial arts and war, and high moral character and strength, a land of elite troops".

Tao Qian was able to secure his position as Governor of Xu Province thanks in large part to the Danyang soldiers under his command. Even Liu Bei once conscripted a large number of soldiers from Danyang County, and some of them later became his elite Baiming troops.

But now, with Qin Xuan's order, Cao Bao's Danyang troops have been handed over to an unknown man to command. This makes Cao Bao feel very aggrieved and uneasy, fearing that Qin Xuan will kill him in the future.

"Husband, what's wrong? You look so listless. Has something serious happened?"

When Madam Cao Bao saw that her husband seemed a bit off as soon as he returned home, looking lost and dejected as if he had suffered some major blow, she quickly stepped forward and gently comforted him.

Looking at his sexy and charming wife, Cao Bao's face still revealed bitterness and worry.

This made her even more worried, since she hadn't seen her husband look so troubled in a long time. He was always beaming, and sometimes, when he was in the mood, he could give her the ultimate pleasure.

"Sigh, it's no use telling you, you're just a woman!" Cao Bao sighed. He didn't think his wife could solve this kind of problem.

"Hmph, how do you know I have no ideas if you don't say anything? Maybe I can actually come up with a solution for you?" Madam Cao said with a dissatisfaction, very unhappy with Cao Bao's condescending attitude.

"You~~~!" Faced with his wife's complaints, Cao Bao immediately put on a stern face and prepared to get angry, but when he thought of his wife's power, he immediately wilted.

His wife came from a famous clan in Xuzhou. Although she had fallen on hard times, Cao Bao still dared not lash out at her. After all, even a fallen phoenix is ​​not a chicken.

He then explained the predicament he was facing, hoping that his wife could think of a solution for him.

"Today at the governor's mansion, Qin Xuan took away my command of the four thousand Danyang soldiers and handed this elite force over to a fellow named Li Jing, leaving me only to lead the Xuzhou army to maintain order within the territory. Isn't he blatantly undermining me?"

"I reckon they'll take action against us next!"

"Li Jing? Who is that? I've never heard of him before." Madam Cao said, quite puzzled. Although she was a woman who rarely left the house, she had heard her husband talk about the generals of various counties in Xuzhou.

She even knew about Xue Rengui, one of Qin Xuan's subordinates, and the five hundred Great Snow Dragon Riders.

"I only found out today that he was a burly man in his forties with a special aura that could only be acquired through years of battlefield experience. Even Xue Rengui and Liu Bowen respectfully called him General Li. He also led two thousand men."

"It seems Qin Xuan's power is unfathomable. He must have more tricks up his sleeve!" Cao Bao said, recalling the scene of their first meeting, which was still vivid in his mind and lingered for a long time.

"This~~~!" After listening to Cao Bao's story, Madam Cao fell into deep thought. As a woman from a prestigious family, Madam Cao had also read some books and wondered if there was any way to help her husband get through this hurdle.

Seeing his wife deep in thought, Cao Bao sighed heavily, pondering a way to break the deadlock. For a moment, the hall fell into a silent void, without a sound.

"Father, Mother, what are you doing?"

After an unknown amount of time, a gentle and melodious voice brought the couple back from their reverie, and they turned their gaze to the person who had entered.

A refined young woman, about sixteen or seventeen years old, dressed in a red ruqun (a type of traditional Chinese dress), with painted eyebrows and her hair styled in a drooping bun, slowly walked towards them.

Her high, straight nose and small, slightly upturned red lips revealed shallow dimples, making it hard to look away. Her face was as white as snow, with a faint blush, like a newly blossoming peach blossom, delicate and beautiful.

"Yuan'er, what brings you here? Why aren't you resting so late?" Cao Bao smiled as soon as he saw his beloved daughter.

"Father, is there something troubling you? Tell your daughter, and I can help you solve your problems." Cao Yuan did not answer Cao Bao's question, but instead showed her responsibility as a daughter to help her family.

"This...!"

Cao Bao was pleased to see how sensible his daughter was, but he hesitated on the surface, not wanting her to worry about these things.

Seeing her father hesitate, Cao Yuan immediately pouted, ready to act cute, as if she wouldn't give up until she got what she wanted.

After observing her daughter's appearance, Madam Cao immediately had an idea and shouted, "I've got it!"

"Really? Tell me quickly, what idea have you come up with!" Cao Bao immediately looked at his wife and asked anxiously, as this concerned the future of their entire family.