A light snowfall at the beginning of winter could not cool the burning atmosphere in the Central Plains. After a standoff and probing battle between the armies of Cao and Liu, Guan Yu finally could not hold back and led his troops northward, while Zhang Liao retreated to Kunyang.
It was chilly outside, and a stove was burning in the tent. Zhuge Liang received a secret report from Hanzhong and discussed with Guan Yu: "My lord, your troops have encountered heavy snow when they set out from Baoxiadao, making it difficult to advance. I have ordered Yide to quietly return to Wuguan, and asked the general to send 20,000 elite troops to attack Chang'an from Lantian."
Guan Yu stroked his beard and smiled, "Fortunately, my third brother was not poisoned too deeply. Now that he can go to the battle, I will dispatch troops. I will divide my troops into four routes to conquer the Central Plains. With the Eastern Wu in Xuzhou to contain him, even if Cao Cao is in Xuchang, he will be difficult to resist."
Zhuge Liang nodded and said, "Cao Cao was seriously ill, but he went to Liaodong. He must have known that it was impossible to do anything, and he went to fight the Xianbei just for the sake of his reputation after his death. No matter Guanzhong or Yuzhou, as long as we break through one of them, Cao's army will collapse and it will be just a matter of time before we can recover the Central Plains."
Guan Yu frowned slightly, "Cao's army has stationed a large number of troops in Kunyang, blocking Mount Lu in the west and Rushui in the east. This month's confrontation is impenetrable. Zhang Liao is a good general of the time, his martial arts are comparable to mine, and he is also well versed in military strategy. I wonder if the military advisor has any strategy to deal with the enemy?"
Zhuge Liang smiled and said, "As the saying goes, there is always a loophole in a hundred precautions. Cao's army is now on the defensive, and sooner or later there will be a loophole. A victorious army wins first and then fights. The key to a safe strategy is to be cautious. Since you know Zhang Liao's bravery, you should wait for an opportunity to act and be careful of his counterattack."
Guan Yu stroked his beard and smiled proudly, "Zhang Liao defeated Sun Quan at Xiaoyaojin because the Jiangdong generals were all rats! I treat the generals in Cao's camp as grass, how can I let them come and go as they please?"
Zhuge Liang nodded and said, "It was because of Yunchang's might that Zhang Liao did not dare to send troops rashly and retreated to Kunyang. This is the throat of the Central Plains of Nanyang. In the past, Emperor Guangwu fought a great battle here, and the Han Dynasty continued for two hundred years. Now the general is counterattacking the Central Plains and fighting in Kunyang. With the people of the imperial city, why should we worry about not winning?"
Guan Yu's eyes flashed with a gleam of light, and he said loudly: "Although I dare not compare myself to the ancients, since the two brothers became sworn brothers, I have been determined to revive the Han Dynasty and recover Luoyang, so as not to let down my late brother's trust."
While they were discussing, Fu Kuang returned to the camp. His armor was torn and he looked very embarrassed. He apologized and said, "I was not able to take Yique Pass and was ambushed by Cao's army before I reached the pass. Please punish me, General."
Guan Yu was surprised: "I didn't expect that this place is heavily guarded. What should I do?"
Zhuge Liang signaled Fu Kuang to stand up, comforted him, ordered him to retreat and rest, and said: "Although Cao Cao has marched north, he has already made arrangements for the aftermath. In Guanzhong, Xiahou Yuan is the general, Xun You is the military advisor, Cao Ren is the general in Huainan, Zhang Liao is left to guard Zhongyuan, and Jia Xu is the military advisor. This man is good at planning and has a careful mind. I am afraid he has already expected that we will attack from the side road."
Guan Yu said worriedly: "I know that Jia Wenhe is very scheming. Cao Mengde is even ashamed of himself. We need to be very cautious with this man in the army."
Zhuge Liang smiled and said, "Don't worry, my lord. I have already predicted the battle of Yique Pass. This move is just to alert the enemy."
Guan Yu asked in confusion: "What is the meaning of this move, military advisor?"
Zhuge Liang said: "The Funiu Mountains stretch for hundreds of miles and are very steep. After this battle, they will surely strengthen their defenses. I intend to mobilize Cao's troops and set up a confusing formation to make it difficult for them to distinguish their true strengths and false strengths, so that we can defeat the enemy in one battle."
Guan Yu stroked his beard and asked, "Fukuang's army has been defeated, what countermeasures does the military advisor have?"
Zhuge Liang said, "You can order Yang Ling to attack Yique Pass. I have ordered Wen Pin to send troops from Jiangxia. There is Wusheng Pass there, which can take us directly from Dabie Mountain to the heart of Runan. This is the way that King Zhuang of Chu planned to dominate the Central Plains. If we take this pass, we can directly attack Qiao County, and the Central Plains will be in chaos."
Guan Yu frowned and said, "If we go deep into the enemy territory alone without any support, I'm afraid it will be difficult to accomplish anything. If we only send a small force to harass, I'm afraid it will be difficult to win."
Zhuge Liang smiled and said, "Since ancient times, the art of war has always been to use surprise tactics to achieve victory. Only by combining the surprising and the normal can we achieve the magic of the art of war. I will use the surprising troops to bluff the enemy and make them tired of their defense. They will definitely reveal their weaknesses, and Zhang Liao will not dare to send troops to harass the rear. Now I can wait for an opportunity to advance."
Guan Yu nodded and said, "Military Advisor, your opinion is excellent."
Zhuge Liang said: "Now that the two special forces have been mobilized, we should advance from the front. Zhang Liao will guard Kunyang and block the main road to the Central Plains. General, you can send a small army to take Mopo and let them save themselves. I have my own countermeasures."
Guan Yu said: "Mopo is guarded by Le Jin, and it can form a pincer attack with Kunyang. Only Gan Xingba can do it."
"Yunchang and I have the same idea!" Zhuge Liang nodded and smiled, then ordered to go to the tent, with Gan Ning as the vanguard, and lead the troops to attack Mopo directly.
Gan Ning gladly accepted the order and left. He was unable to follow Liu Qi on the western expedition this time because he was left in Nanyang to wait for battle. He had been waiting for a long time, and finally the time had come for him to show his skills.
Mopo is located to the east of Lushan, with only some hills and rivers. To the east is the flat Kunyang area.
Gan Ning personally led the troops in the front, and Su Fei followed behind. As they were marching, the sentry horses in front suddenly stopped, and the guards came to report that there were guards patrolling on the hillside ahead.
Gan Ning saw the flags flashing in the distance and sneered, "Cao's army is indeed prepared, but it's just a mantis trying to stop a chariot."
As he was observing, an army came charging up the hillside. One general held his sword and shouted, "I am Cao Xi, a general of Wei. Who dares to invade?"
Gan Ning deployed his troops, stepped forward and sneered, "Since Cao the thief usurped the throne, people's hearts have been divided. There is no one left to use, only useless children from this clan."
"Today I will let you know how powerful I am!" Cao Xi was furious and urged his horse to fight.
When the two horses met, Gan Ning swung his broadsword, and with just one move, Cao Xi's upper arm became numb. He was terrified and turned his horse to flee.
"Useless guys indeed!" Gan Ning laughed and led his troops to chase after them.
The Han army rushed to the mountain in one go, Cao Xi was defeated and retreated. Cao's army was in chaos. The two armies fought for a while and then abandoned their camps and fled.
Gan Ning wanted to chase him again, but Su Fei reminded him, "Le Jin is a general of Cao's army. How can we use such a useless man? I'm afraid there is a trap ahead."
Gan Ning smiled and said, "These clan members are only in important positions because of their fathers' merits. In fact, they have no real ability. Even if Le Jin is in the front, what do I have to fear?"
Gan Ning led his troops forward and chased them across two mountain ridges. The Mopo camp was already in sight ahead. Upon hearing the news, Le Jin hurriedly led his troops to come to the rescue.
The two generals fought for only ten rounds when suddenly drums sounded in the rear camp, and Le Lin on the left and Cao Xi on the right led their troops to charge.
Gan Ning laughed and said, "What can such a small trick do to me?"
Facing such an ambush, Gan Ning was well prepared. Instead of retreating, he advanced and fought hard with Le Jin, ignoring the ambushes on both wings. Just then, Su Fei arrived with his troops from behind and urged them to come to support. The two armies fought in a melee, and Cao's army was surrounded. Seeing that his men and horses were in chaos, Le Jin retreated in embarrassment.
It was already late at night, Gan Ning urged his troops to kill for a while, seized countless weapons, and then rested in Cao Xi's camp.
All the generals were delighted with the great victory. Su Fei patrolled the camp carefully at night, but saw no sign of Cao's army attacking. They relaxed their vigilance and prepared to capture the Mopo camp in one fell swoop the next day.