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

After taking control of all the officials in Xuzhou, Qin Xuan immediately issued several decrees to the people of the city in Tao Qian's name!

First, Qin Xuan was appointed as the general of Xuzhou, commanding all the troops in Xuzhou. He would have absolute power during wartime, and anyone who disobeyed him would be executed immediately without exception!

Secondly, all the grain in the city was placed under Qin Xuan's management, and the city's residents were allocated a daily allowance, with priority given to the soldiers of Xuzhou!

Third, a strict curfew will be implemented, and people are strictly prohibited from going out at night!

These three decrees were intended to completely and thoroughly control Tancheng. The most important of them was the second one: during times of war, food was of paramount importance.

Even if some people in Xuzhou opposed Qin Xuan's rebellion, his men were starving and couldn't cause any trouble.

To ensure that all the grain was in his hands, Qin Xuan also ordered Xue Rengui to lead the Great Snow Dragon Riders to personally visit the homes of powerful and wealthy families and ask them to contribute some of the grain.

After driving away those officials, only Liu Bowen and Qin Xuan remained in the Xuzhou governor's mansion.

"My lord, isn't your second decree somewhat inappropriate? I'm worried that those powerful clans won't just obediently compromise. They might take advantage of the chaos to cause trouble, or even collude with Cao Cao's army outside the city!"

At this moment, Liu Bowen expressed his concerns with great worry. In his view, Qin Xuan's actions were undoubtedly somewhat radical, and if things were not handled properly, it could cause even greater unrest. With the small number of troops they currently had, they simply could not control the situation.

After listening, Qin Xuan smiled faintly and immediately explained:

"Bowen, don't worry. It's alright if they cause trouble. With Xue Rengui and the Great Snow Dragon Riders' fighting strength, dealing with them will be a piece of cake. Besides, with a formidable enemy at hand, they can still distinguish between what's important and what's urgent."

"If you cooperate obediently, all the better. But if you don't, don't blame me for being impolite!"

"Our top priority now is to defeat Cao Cao and recover the counties of Xu Province."

"After the previous battle, Cao Cao's army suffered heavy losses. We only need to focus on defense and wait for the right opportunity!"

Liu Bowen then realized that Qin Xuan had thought of everything so thoroughly, while he himself had not considered such a comprehensive approach at all.

In the days that followed, everything in Tancheng developed as Qin Xuan had envisioned. The powerful families in the city cooperated without objection, and some even contributed more grain than expected.

················

Just as Qin Xuan was baring his fangs to threaten Tao Qian, Cao Cao was furious, and a great opportunity was lost.

It would be infuriating for anyone to see their plans to capture Xuzhou thwarted by someone else.

"Useless! You're all useless! Tens of thousands of soldiers couldn't even take down a few thousand! If word gets out, people will laugh at us!"

In the central command tent, Cao Cao was furiously berating his generals. The loud noise made the guards outside the tent tremble with fear.

"My lord...they are too powerful! The brothers simply can't hold them off! That black-armored legion is well-trained, well-equipped, and well-coordinated. Our soldiers simply cannot mount an effective counterattack!"

"The most terrifying of all is that white-armored iron cavalry known as the Great Snow Dragon Riders. Their combat power is extremely strong; their individual combat strength surpasses that of ordinary soldiers. Even I am somewhat afraid of them!"

"If it weren't for my powerful warhorse, I would probably be dead under their swords."

Xiahou Dun, feeling utterly defeated, felt a pang of resentment upon hearing Cao Cao's angry outburst. It wasn't that they were incompetent, but rather that their opponent was too strong. He immediately disregarded the occasion and retorted to Cao Cao.

The people inside the military tent looked at Xiahou Dun with incredulous expressions, each muttering to themselves:

"It has to be you, Xiahou Dun! You dared to speak up when our lord was angry; you're truly courageous!"

Cao Cao, who was already furious, was stunned by Xiahou Dun's sudden words. After a moment, he directed all his anger at Xiahou Dun, and roared at him:

"Yuan Rang, are you taking advantage of my ignorance, Cao Mengde? Are there really that many ordinary cavalrymen with extraordinary martial prowess in this world?"

"I think it's precisely because of your weakness and incompetence that you've come up with such outrageous lies!"

Not satisfied with venting his anger, Cao Cao grew angrier and angrier, losing his temper and shouting loudly towards the outside of the tent:

"Come here! Xiahou Dun lied about military intelligence, shirked responsibility for fear of battle, drag him away and behead him!"

Upon hearing that Xiahou Dun would be punished according to military law, all the generals in the tent knelt down and begged for mercy:

"My lord, General Xiahou's crime does not warrant death. Please show mercy!"

"My lord, please forgive Yuan Rang. You know he's not that kind of person!"

"My lord~~~!"

······

The cries of the crowd rose and fell, all begging for Xiahou Dun's life. As his sworn brothers who had fought for many years, they could not allow Xiahou Dun to die like this.

Faced with the pleas of his generals, Cao Cao immediately regained his composure and looked at his strategist Guo Jia with a pleading gaze.

As Cao Cao's confidant, Guo Jia immediately understood Cao Cao's meaning: he wanted him to step forward and give the other party a way out, because as a leader, he could not lose his authority in front of his subordinates.

Thinking of this, Guo Jia cupped his hands and bowed, saying:

"My lord, this is a critical juncture, a time when we need capable men. General Xiahou is one of your trusted generals. If we kill a trusted confidant at this time, the morale of the army may be shaken."

"Moreover, General Xiahou's words are not entirely unfounded. You witnessed the situation firsthand; that mysterious army was truly formidable. I beg you, my lord, to rescind your order and punish them leniently!"

Seeing the way out Guo Jia offered, Cao Cao wavered and fell into deep thought, recalling everything he had seen at that time.

"My lord~~" The generals pleaded again upon seeing Cao Cao's expression.

Seeing that he had been given a way out, Cao Cao stopped putting on airs and leniently let Xiahou Dun off the hook.

"Yuan Rang, since everyone has pleaded for you, you may escape the death penalty, but you cannot escape punishment. Go to the military officer and receive thirty strokes of the rod!"

Xiahou Dun breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that his life was spared. After apologizing, he left the central command tent and went to the military officer's office to receive his thirty strokes of the cane.

After this brief incident, Cao Cao dismissed his generals and left, leaving only Guo Jia to discuss countermeasures.

"Fengxiao, now that reinforcements have arrived in Xuzhou, a direct assault is probably not the best strategy. What do you suggest we do next?"

Cao Cao's army has suffered heavy casualties and is incapable of launching another strong attack. He is unwilling to give up just like that, so he can only place his hopes on Guo Jia and hope that the other party can come up with a good plan.

Faced with Cao Cao's question, Guo Jia had already devised a plan:

"My lord, we have already captured more than half of the counties in Xuzhou. Tao Qian only has Tancheng left, an isolated city. The other counties simply cannot spare any troops to rescue Xuzhou."

"Furthermore, Yuan Shao is constantly at odds with Gongsun Zan and has no time to attend to this, while Yuan Shu is also eyeing Xuzhou covetously. According to reliable intelligence, he has already brought his troops to Guangling. Therefore, we only need to besiege it without attacking!"

"Cut off the city's water supply and starve them out. I believe they'll surrender without a fight before long!"

After hearing Guo Jia's strategy, Cao Cao's eyes lit up; this plan couldn't be more perfect.

Pengcheng, Xiapi, and other prefectures and kingdoms have already been almost completely destroyed by him. Now, Tancheng has a large population and its food consumption is increasing day by day. As long as his water supply is cut off, he can defeat the enemy without lifting a finger. Even if there are reinforcements, it will be of no use.

"Alright, Fengxiao, it has to be you! Let's do it your way: surround them without attacking, starve them out!"

"Qin Xuan, I, Cao Cao, will remember you!"

Cao Cao muttered to himself, "I've got my eye on Qin Xuan."