Chapter 398 Showing off one’s edge
In the military camp in southern Hebei, Guan Yu stared at the map on the wall and fell into deep thought.
Suddenly, Guan Ping came hurriedly and opened the tent door: "General, Mr. Cheng is here."
Guan Yu heard this and immediately said with a gleam in his eyes: "Please come in!"
Before Guan Ping left the house, the hot-tempered Cheng Yu had already hurried into the tent.
As soon as he entered the door, Cheng Yu's eyes were attracted by the map on the wall.
The aggressive coalition forces' flags are still concentrated in the area south of Gaotang, with their target directly at Jizhou.
Although the Yellow River is not as dangerous as the Yangtze River, there are only a few places that can accommodate large-scale military crossings. Gaotang is undoubtedly still the most suitable location.
"Military Advisor Cheng, you've come at the right time. I have something important to discuss with you." Guan Yu said solemnly.
Upon hearing this, Cheng Yu smiled slightly.
"It seems that you and I have a tacit understanding!"
Guan Yu narrowed his eyes slightly: "I see, no wonder you, General Cheng, came here in person. Your Majesty still has some ideas about this battle."
"How many more soldiers do you need?" Cheng Yu asked straight to the point.
"At least three hundred thousand!" Guan Yu said without hesitation.
For this battle, the princes of the Central Plains put all their efforts into it, and the ultimate goal was Jizhou.
Yuan Shao and Cao Cao each sent out more than 300,000 troops, and Sun Ce also sent out nearly 200,000 troops. It can be said that they put all their efforts into it, and almost all men over the age of fourteen were dragged to the battlefield.
On his side, the nearly 200,000 troops of Sili were firmly pinned down by Liu Bei, and Zang Ba was also being desperately pulled back by Yuan Shu.
Apart from himself, the only main legions left were Xu Huang's 100,000-man army and Gan Ning's navy.
The navy led by General Cheng Pu and others will be responsible for the defense line and transportation issues on the Yellow River.
Although Gan Ning's navy is strong, his opponent is Zhou Yu, and it will be difficult for him to break free from his restraint.
Therefore, he and Xu Huang were the only ones who faced the more than 600,000 troops from the Central Plains princes.
With the quality of his soldiers, if they hold out and fight a war of attrition, relying on the manpower from Jizhou, it will not be a problem to hold the city.
But Guan Yu was not content with this.
He is the fastest sword in Da Qi, good at attacking but not defending, and unwilling to just defend.
His idea was to take the initiative and use offense as defense.
"Leave Xu Huang's troops behind to guard southern Hebei?" Cheng Yu asked.
Guan Yu shook his head and looked at Qian Zhao beside him.
"I need Brother Gongming to cooperate with me. Zijing can be the commander of the Ji'nan area."
Upon hearing this, Qian Zhao clasped his hands together, his eyes filled with determination.
As Guan Yu's deputy for many years, he knew Guan Yu's character very well and knew that this was the most appropriate choice at the moment.
The current situation is different from the past. This time, we have to take some risks.
By using offense as defense, even if he was defeated, Guan Yu was confident that he could curb the momentum of the Northern Expedition of the Central Plains princes. If he just defended himself, if there was a loophole due to insufficient strength in the rear, it would be troublesome.
Seeing this, Cheng Yu nodded slightly.
Before coming, Tian Ze had already made arrangements that Guan Yu could handle the affairs of Jizhou as he pleased.
With Xu Rong in Youzhou providing support, and Qian Zhao in southern Ji, there would be no trouble as long as Guan Yu was not defeated too quickly.
Jizhou has a population of no less than five million and no less than half a million young and strong people. As the most obvious weak point on the border over the years, the military preparations have never been relaxed.
These 500,000 young and strong men have all undergone rigorous training, and with a little grooming they can become qualified Class C soldiers.
Tian Ze's regular combat troops are of Class A and Class B, Class C is often used for logistics, and the rest are militia and village militia. Although they are Class C soldiers, their quality is not bad, and they are much better than the average level of soldiers in the Central Plains, but they have never really experienced war.
This time, Guan Yu has to be pulled out to calm the situation.
"Yunchang, are you ready? Our opponents in this battle include nearly half of the heroes in the world!" Cheng Yu said solemnly.
Guan Yu narrowed his eyes slightly, his expression was normal, and his calm tone was full of confidence: "No problem, let me see the princes of this world."
Among the five generals under Tian Ze, except for the special existence Xu Rong, Guan Yu is the most respected, even Zhang Liao is inferior to him.
However, because of Tian Ze's combat strategy, Guan Yu has not achieved any outstanding results in these years.
Although most of them were victories, none were as dazzling as Zhang Liao's, and Guan Yu was also holding a grudge.
This northern expedition by the princes is his best opportunity.
Tian Ze had already prepared for this battle, and Guan Yu just slightly adjusted the strategic plan.
The original plan of delaying the coalition forces of the princes and then using offense as defense to weaken the enemy seemed too conservative to Guan Yu and would easily boost the enemy's morale.
It would be better to defeat them in one battle!
Guan Yu has the confidence and ability to do so!
Seeing Guan Yu in such a state, Cheng Yu said no more.
As someone who often partners with Guan Yu, he knows best how strong Guan Yu is. In many previous battles, Yuan Shao would choose to avoid Guan Yu's edge, which is why although Guan Yu won every battle, he was not very conspicuous.
But now, Guan Yu has become a huge mountain that the princes in the Central Plains have to face, and he can finally show his prowess.
With the quality of Jizhou's young and strong people, there shouldn't be much of a problem. Even if there is a problem, I have my talent to back it up, and Cheng Pu and others to support us, so at least we won't lose too badly.
After carefully considering the pros and cons, Cheng Yu chose to support Guan Yu's decision without hesitation.
"His Majesty knows your character, so he has transferred 100,000 elite soldiers from Bingzhou to Jizhou. For this battle, I can transfer 400,000 soldiers from Jizhou to you." Cheng Yu looked at Guan Yu with a sharp gaze, and there was also a hint of madness in his eyes.
It was not only Guo Jia who wanted to cripple the princes in the Central Plains in one fell swoop and end the war ahead of time. Cheng Yu had been dreaming of it even more. How could he give up this opportunity? He started working on Tian Ze early.
Now it seems that his preparations were not in vain.
Guan Yu is still Guan Yu!
"So many troops have been drawn from Bingzhou?" Guan Yu frowned and asked when he heard this.
"There won't be any problems in the North, right? After all, that fellow Lu Fengxian..."
Guan Yu, who valued loyalty more than life, never had a good impression of Lu Bu.
Cheng Yu smiled faintly, he knew Tian Ze's character very well. Ever since Tian Ze told him that Lu Bu would never betray, he began to make his own plans.
"Lü Fengxian will not cause any problems. He is currently marching north with my army to Jiankun. Even if he wants to cause trouble, he has no chance."
"Besides, Tian Chou is still here."
As Tian Ze's younger brother, Tian Chou has always been unknown, but he has always been fulfilling his promise.
His footprints were left all over the northern grasslands, and countless Hu people regarded him as a teacher and a father. Even if Lü Bu wanted to rebel, he had no foundation.
Neither the Han nor the Hu people would support him.
After all, although it is a country within a country and is given sufficient autonomy, Tian Ze has never stopped doing the ideological work that needs to be done.
The civil officials who were poached from the Jixia Academy and sent to Lü Bu's rule did a lot to spread the ideas of the Great Qi.
Guan Yu felt relieved after hearing this.
At the same time, I couldn't stop getting excited.
Five hundred thousand troops are at our disposal!
He has waited too long for this battle!
(End of this chapter)
