Overlord!

Chapter 219 North and South divide the world into three parts
This marriage was carefully planned by Cao Cao's counselors, and Man Chong came here because of his mission.

At this time, do you feel that his behavior is superfluous?
Then you have to seriously think about whether you have fallen into the trap of Cao Ying’s counselors!

You can accuse Cao Cao of being vicious, you can accuse him of being frivolous and complacent, you can even accuse him of losing a lot of battles, and you can question his military ability.

But facing such a treacherous hero, a transcendent figure who is known for his suspicion and cunning, and yet he suspects that he is plotting a business trip and making unnecessary mistakes, then I am afraid it is not because of his lack of ability, but because he is stupid and does not realize it.

When Sun Ce heard Jia Xu's analysis, his expression immediately became serious. He never believed that Cao Cao, Xun Yu, Guo Jia, Cheng Yu and others would not even consider this and make some superfluous moves.

Then why did he have to marry Jiangdong?
Before Sun Ce could think clearly, Jia Xu continued to analyze calmly: "Cao Cao's words cannot be trusted. The second part of his deceit is to lose control of his behavior and get himself into a desperate situation."

Then Jia Xu walked to the map, pointed at Runan, and said: "Now the only one connecting Cao Cao and Runan is the county of Runan. Cao Cao sent a partial general to guard the three counties of Xincai, Ruyin, and Longkang, with a force of five thousand. This will prevent our Jiangdong army from marching northward."

After speaking, Jia Xu's big hand crossed a large area from east to west, pointed to the territory of Jingzhou, and said: "If you follow Cao Cao's words, he takes Nanyang, and I take Jiangxia, it can be said that I am trapped in a desperate situation."

"As far as Hezonglianheng is concerned, it is equivalent to being surrounded by enemies on three sides. To the west is Xiangyang Liu Biao, to the south is the Huainan army, and to the east is Xuzhou Liu Shijun."

"If the situation reaches this point, Cao Cao will be in a situation where he has enemies everywhere, which is what a wise man would not do."

Sun Ce couldn't help but nod. Expanding your power depends not only on how much territory you expand, but also on how many powerful enemies you will be adjacent to after your territory expands!
Therefore, although Nanyang is rich, taking it rashly will not be conducive to hegemony and will involve a lot of military and financial resources.

This situation is just like when Tao Qian surrendered to Xuzhou. Whoever takes control of Xuzhou will be easily surrounded by enemies on all sides and lose his army.

After analyzing the situation, Jia Xu respectfully handed over to Sun Ce and said: "The general is talented and powerful, and he will be able to overcome difficulties and quell the chaos. If the general creates an army in the Central Plains, how can he abandon Xuzhou and attack Nanyang?"

Sun Ce immediately stood up and felt suddenly enlightened!
Bring yourself into Cao Cao, and everything becomes clear immediately.

Originally, he was attacked from both sides by Huainan and Xuzhou.

If he attacks Nanyang again, he will be attacked on three sides.But what if it’s the other way around!
If he attacks Xuzhou, he will be attacking a major enemy!
Therefore, although the wealth of Nanyang Banjun is similar to that of Xuzhou, the strategic situation is completely different!
Whether to attack Nanyang and create a strong enemy, or to attack Xuzhou to create a strong enemy.Sun Ce knew what to choose without even thinking.

A hero like Cao Cao is definitely not a fool like Lu Bu. He will definitely make the right choice.

After listening to Jia Xu's analysis, everyone in the hall became furious and their expressions changed.

I almost fell into the trap of Cao Cao!
He just wanted to send people to stabilize Jiangdong. The envoy reiterated the friendship between the two sides in Jiankang City and swore that he was gathering the army to attack Liu Biao of Jingzhou and had no intention of harming Jiangdong.

As a result, taking advantage of the paralysis in Jiangdong, they advanced quickly and captured Xuzhou with lightning speed!

If once he is allowed to take Xuzhou, the Central Plains will be completely pacified by Cao Cao. The south can refuse to defend the Huaihe River, and the north can defend the Yellow River.

With the wealth of the Central Plains, the king's career has been completed.

Sun Ce was also extremely afraid. Once this happened, Cao Cao would really become like Zhu Wen and Chai Rong!

Therefore, Sun Ce shouted angrily: "What a treacherous Cao thief, with a sweet talk and a sword in his heart. If he were not a man under my command who could make quick changes and make clear judgments, he would be a hero for a moment, but he would be so treacherous in the danger!"

Man Chong also looked at Jia Xu in shock, his face expressionless.

It was really hard for him to believe that there could be such a person in the world who was so intelligent and capable of planning and making good judgments. His ability to cultivate authority and maintain victory was like a genius.

Our own counselors have been planning carefully for months, and they analyzed it thoroughly in just a few sentences!

If this person is not eliminated, if he is able to gallop in Jiangdong, he will become a good and peaceful person and become his own formidable enemy!

Seeing Man Chong's horrified and livid face, Sun Ce was completely furious and shouted: "Traitor! What else can you say? If you dare to come here to deceive me, someone will set up a bronze cauldron and cook him to death!"

But at this time, Man Chong's resolute and fierce temper broke out. He was brave and resourceful, without any fear, and said: "General Sun, I, Man Chong, can be killed. But Chong's death is not a pity. I can only lament that all the people in this world will die." The lives of the people will be reduced to ruins, and the great Han Dynasty will be turned into ruins. For the general's plan, the general has gained hundreds of thousands of soldiers and civilians. Please listen to my last words, general. If the general is still angry, it will not be too late to kill me again."

Everyone in the palace gritted their teeth, especially Zhang Fei, who wanted to jump up and eat his flesh and blood.He was so angry that his beard and hair stood out, and he shouted: "Such a despicable person can't keep his word, why do you need to talk and talk? The general can kill him, and then immediately mobilize all three armies to attack Yuzhou. In this way, we can surround Wei and rescue Zhao, and Xuzhou is captured." With the siege, we can capture Cao Cao's Central Plains."

Sun Ce looked solemn and made no reply.

If possible, Sun Ce naturally hopes to break into Runan and relieve the siege of Xuzhou.

But the problem is that the territory of Huainan is thousands of miles away.The three towns in Huainan only have a few thousand troops in total.The only ones who could set off immediately and march towards Runan were Zhou Yu from Shouchun and Lu Meng from Lujiang, with about 4000 people.

It would be fanciful to expect these 4000 men to break through Li Tong, Li Dian, Cao Hong and other troops who were defending Runan.

The whole of Huainan suffered from severe drought and military disasters, and was almost turned into ashes.

After conquering Shouchun and destroying Yuan Shu, Sun Ce's main force had to return to Jiangdong, otherwise Huainan would not be able to supply enough food.

To go to Jiangdong to relieve the people, they have to cross hundreds of miles of white land. There is really no way to supply a steady stream of food, grass and medicinal materials to the tens of thousands of troops on the front line who have suffered heavy casualties.

At this time, even if Jiangdong urgently mobilizes the three armies and rushes northward for reinforcements, it will be a month or two before the [-] troops are assembled and arrive in Shouchun from Jiankang.

It was precisely when Cao Cao saw the emptiness in Huainan that he dared to send troops confidently.

Since ancient times, not many princes would mobilize their troops to conquer other countries when there was a severe drought in their territory and the land was thousands of miles away.

There was a severe drought in Yanzhou before. Cao Cao and Lu Bu only fought in Yanzhou, and Yanzhou was completely destroyed. Cao Cao relied on dismantling his troops, leading beasts to eat people, and getting Yuan Shao's support to survive.

But the price was that Yanzhou was almost depopulated, so that Cao Cao had to move his headquarters from Yanzhou to Yingchuan, which had just been conquered for less than a year.

So is Sun Ce willing to risk Huainan being turned into a ruin, the people devastated, and the world being persecuted? He raises his three armies angrily and fights Cao Cao to the death?

Seeing Sun Ce suddenly thinking deeply, Man Chong rushed ahead of Zhang Fei and continued: "Even if General Sun raises his troops now, it's probably too late. My lord, General Cao, is good at using his troops. He can change like a god and move forward without hesitation. It will be inevitable at this time." We have reached Xuzhou. We can conquer it when the army arrives. Xuzhou has been secured, so why should the general waste his people and money?"

Zhang Fei shouted angrily: "My lord is a hero in the world. He is generous and generous, and all the soldiers are willing to fight to the death for him. My brother is a majestic tiger, brave enough to defeat the three armies, and guard the country of Pei. How can he be easily defeated by you and other treacherous people?"

Sun Ce and Zhang Zhao care about each other, which is also confusing.

Cao Cao's plan so far is treacherous and cunning, but it is not a masterpiece.

Throughout the ages, there have been too many cases of strategic fraud in Zhuxia.

There are countless cases of even directly deceiving the opponent, swearing that the two sides will be forever good friends, taking advantage of the enemy's paralysis and slackness, directly marching with troops, and destroying the enemy.For example, the false path destroyed the Guo, Chu, and Han realms.

A generous man like Gaozu was able to sign an agreement with Xiang Yu, swearing that they would not invade each other, and then launch a fierce attack while the other side was withdrawing.

Sun Ce thought it was normal for a treacherous man like Cao Cao to use his schemes to paralyze Jiangdong.

Moreover, he was not fighting Huainan, but Xuzhou.

Although Sun Ce was angry, he would never get so angry that he lost his mind.

Therefore, Sun Ce really couldn't understand where Cao Cao had the confidence and courage to defeat Liu Bei quickly.That's Liu Bei!One of the heroes of the late Han Dynasty, it should be said that today, apart from Cao Cao and Sun Ce, he is the most capable of conquering and fighting among the princes.

As long as he doesn't see Cao Cao's flag, he will turn around and run away, ride away alone, and sell Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, his wife and children.If Cao Cao holds on to the city, even if he mobilizes all three armies, he may not be able to capture Xuzhou quickly.

In particular, Liu Bei does not need to face Cao Cao's troops directly this time.

The famous general Guan Yu was guarding the country of Pei.He has been building a fortress in Xiaopei Gao, building many stones and stones for defense, and storing tens of thousands of stones in grain.

If Cao Cao marches from Pei, he will definitely be blocked by Guan Yu under Xiaopei City for several months.

Once Cao Cao seizes his troops in a fortified city, his current strategy will have little effect.

If he couldn't win a quick victory, even if he was caught by surprise and Jiangdong couldn't come to his rescue, it would be completely useless.

Jiangdong could easily thwart Cao Cao's attempt to dominate the Central Plains as long as he waited until the water rose in summer and marched by boat.

He and his advisers must have some plan that Sun Ce hasn't thought of yet!So much so that Cao Cao had the confidence to defeat Xuzhou in one battle.

Such a risky plan looks like Guo Jia’s handiwork!
And Man Chong immediately said: "This is exactly the mission I was ordered to come here. My Lord is true to his word. He indeed wants to attack Nanyang and defeat Liu Biao in Jiangxia with the general."

"If the general doesn't believe it, you can send more troops to Huainan to observe the current situation. Whether to march to Xuzhou or Jiangxia, the general will decide!"

Man Chong had a strong demeanor and was obviously deceiving, but he seemed to be being honest and honest, telling Jiang Dong frankly that even if he saw the situation clearly, there was only one way to go.

He was also very confident. General Cao wanted to attack Nanyang, but before attacking Nanyang, why not spend a month or two detouring to Xuzhou?
When Jiangdong's reinforcements arrive at the three towns in Huainan, the overall situation in Xuzhou has been decided. Jiangdong will definitely be able to make a choice whether he chooses to take Jingzhou with his lord, or whether he chooses to cross thousands of miles of red land and fight to the end with himself in a year of severe drought.

Sun Ce rolled his sleeves and snorted coldly, shouting: "Put him in jail for now!"

Zhao Yun immediately directed the two guards to move forward and tie Man Chong down.

After Man Chong was suppressed, Liu Ye immediately suggested: "General, whether Cao Cao's words are true or not, we should also immediately assemble the three armies to reinforce Huainan to watch the current situation."

Sun Ce nodded decisively and said: "Gu and Liu Shijun are close to each other, and Xuzhou Gu is bound to rush to help. He ordered Jiefan's army, equipped with dragon and bird assault cavalry and black armored cavalry to assemble immediately, with Tai Shici as general, and cross the river northward at starry night. .”

"Chang Shi summoned [-] soldiers again, and the lone general personally supervised them as backup."

If Cao Cao has not yet conquered Xuzhou when the army arrives in Xuzhou, there is no need to hesitate at all. The army will immediately help Liu Bei resist Cao Cao.

If Xuzhou was conquered by Cao Cao in such a short period of time, then Sun Ce would have to consider marrying and forming an alliance with Cao Cao.The army could only be forced to move westward and take over the Jiangbei city of Jiangxia County from Cao Cao.

At this time, the strategic significance of Jiangxia's status and unification of Jingyang exceeded that of a lost Xuzhou ally.

But Sun Ce still couldn't figure out, if Liu Bei didn't see Cao Cao's flag and fled, how could Cao Cao have the confidence to capture Xuzhou in such a short period of time.

In a month or two, it's not certain whether he can defeat Xiaopei, which is heavily guarded by Guan Yu, right?

Did he mistake Liu Bei for Tao Qian?

Although there were still doubts, under Sun Ce's will, Jiangdong's civil and military forces began to assemble troops and mobilize food and grass resolutely.

The envoy, consisting of one person and three horses, immediately went to Xuzhou to inform Liu Bei and remind him to be on guard against Cao Cao's army.

Only Zhang Fei, who was left by Sun Ce's orders, was left in the hall. Zhang Fei had actually not been in Jiangdong for a short time. As a guest general, he came to help in the battle for less than a year.

Last October, Sun Cecai and Liu Bei defeated Ji Ling on the banks of the Huaihe River. At that time, Zhang Fei had just arrived in Wuxian to recuperate from his injuries.

After recovering from his injury, he went to Huainan to help in the battle.

Liu Bei had no objection to this and did not ask Zhang Fei to return to Xuzhou at the critical moment when Sun Ce attacked Huainan.

The exchange of letters between Zhang Fei and Liu Bei has never been interrupted. After the two communicated, they reached a consensus. Zhang Fei assisted in the battle in Jiangdong for a period of time, and after repaying his kindness with meritorious deeds, he said goodbye to Marquis Wu and led his troops back.

He, Zhang Fei, is not a mean, unkind, unfaithful person.At the critical moment, Marquis Wu helped Liu Bei with food, grass, ordnance to help Liu Bei out of trouble, and he also saved Zhang Fei's life. No matter what, Zhang Fei had to fight hard in Jiangdong and repay his kindness before he could say goodbye.

But now, Xuzhou is in trouble, and his lord may be in danger of overthrowing. Zhang Fei really has no choice but to return north anxiously.

Sun Ce still had a good impression of this majestic and fierce general. He walked up to him and said, "Yide does not need to be anxious. I have sent troops to rescue him at night. You can serve as a vanguard under the command of Taishi Zhonglang and set off first to save the people." Your lord."

Zhang Fei quickly thanked me and said, "General, I am kind and righteous. I am very grateful."

Sun Ce raised his hand and said: "You are loyal and righteous, how can I stand in the way? Previously I gave you the post of lieutenant general, and you refused to accept it as a guest general."

"The lonely second sister, Siyi, has a heroic appearance and extraordinary talent. She can be called a tiger girl in the general family and a strange woman in the world. Now she is of marriageable age. The suitor has stepped through the door!"

"I have always been interested in you. I want to marry my sister to you, but I am afraid that my sister will be entrusted with someone unkind and will not be kind to anyone I meet."

"You are going to Xuzhou. If Liu Shijun is still there and defeats Cao Cao, you will have made outstanding achievements and can return to Liu Shijun's command. My second sister, who is alone, will also marry someone else."

"But if Liu Shijun has been defeated and you have nowhere to go, are you willing to return to Jiangdong?"

There is no need to say the rest.If Liu Bei is defeated and nowhere to be found, he and Zhang Fei will have to make a decision after following the army back to Jiangdong. Don't even think about playing the drama of being in Cao's camp and being in Han's heart.

Either marry Sun Ce's sister in a down-to-earth manner, and serve Jiangdong with all his heart from then on.

Or just fall into the trap and become a bandit, find a place to occupy the mountain and become the king.

It was impossible for Sun Ce to marry his sister to him, and allow him to half-heartedly use Jiangdong as a backup. Once there was news about Liu Bei, he would abandon his wife and son, and then go to Liu Bei.

Zhang Fei, whether he was in Shuhan or Jiangdong, he could not escape the fate of becoming a foreign relative.

Zhang Fei was even more confused at this time. He, Zhang Fei, would never forget Wu Hou's sister, that stunning beauty, even if he only saw her once.

To marry a wife, you should marry Yin Lihua, and to become an official, you should hold a gold medal.

How could he, Zhang Fei, have never felt this way? It would be a blessing in life if he could marry that strange woman through the ages. What more could he ask for?

Moreover, Zhang Fei admired and respected Wu Hou from the bottom of his heart for his talent.

If the lord is defeated and his whereabouts are unknown, how can Zhang Fei ignore Jiangdong's kindness and justice, ignore the wise king and the beautiful lady, and would rather fall into the trap and become a bandit than cut off his kindness?
Zhang Fei was completely unable to make a decision for a while.

Fortunately, Sun Ce was very generous and patted his right arm and said, "Don't make a hasty decision. You can rescue Xuzhou first, and then make a reply after careful consideration."

(End of this chapter)