Chapter 487: The Food Raid
Cao Cao and Yuan Shao received the news from Yizhou nearly ten days later than Xun You.
When they learned that Yizhou had fallen, they felt like they had been hit by a heavy blow, and they all sat down on the ground in a daze.
Although they were unwilling to let Yizhou fall into Liu Bei's hands, they could not accept it falling into Tian Ze's hands even more.
This means that their chance of a final comeback is gone.
The importance of Yizhou to the world situation was not only clear to Tian Ze, but they knew it even better.
With the loss of Yizhou, the situation was hopeless.
In a sense, they can now prepare for their funeral.
All efforts seem to be meaningless.
"How ridiculous, how ridiculous!" Yuan Shao couldn't help but say sadly.
He could no longer suppress the anger in his heart and spat out a mouthful of blood.
Only he himself knew how much he had paid to maintain the situation in Qingzhou. It was not enough to describe it as sleepless nights.
But now, it has become a complete joke.
All efforts were in vain.
A pair of big hands supported the shaky Yuan Shao, and Cao Cao's eyes were full of determination: "Benchu, we haven't lost yet!"
"Although Yizhou is lost, Zhongyuan, Jingzhou and Yangzhou are still in our hands, and our soldiers are still alive. How can we give up so easily!"
"You must believe in Liu Xuande. Believe that Liu Xuande can defend Jingzhou!"
Yuan Shao raised his head and looked at Cao Cao's determined face. A complex look flashed in his eyes, including unwillingness, helplessness, and a hint of admiration for Cao Cao's persistence.
He took a deep breath, resisted the discomfort in his body, and slowly stood up. "Meng De, now that things have come to this, if you have any good ideas, just tell me."
Seeing this, Cao Cao breathed a sigh of relief.
Yuan Shao has always been the greatest source of confidence for the Central Plains princes to maintain the situation. If Yuan Shao collapses, without someone to support them, they will no longer have any hope.
"If Yizhou is lost, Sun Ce will surely be alert and send a large army north!"
At this moment, Cao Cao's quick wit was used to the limit and he figured everything out in an instant.
In the face of extreme adversity, Cao Cao did not fall, but instead stimulated even stronger will and ability.
"This is our chance!"
Shen Pei's eyes lit up when he heard this, and he quickly said, "What Cao Gong said is right. If the Qi army is completely unprepared, relying on the strength of the Jiangdong navy, we can definitely..."
"Impossible." Xu You denied Shen Pei's guess without hesitation.
"The Qi army knew the news earlier than our army, and guessed the possibility of Sun Ce sending troops, and they have already started to make arrangements."
He casually handed over some information to everyone.
Although it seemed like just a simple troop movement by the Qi army in recent days, combined with the possibility of Sun Ce sending troops, it was obvious that the other side had been prepared for this.
"Xun Gongda is a smart man who can often anticipate the enemy's actions. It is not surprising that he guessed this in advance." Mao Jie agreed.
Although the intelligence he received was not as complete as Xu You's, he was able to infer this conclusion by integrating the information.
"Don't expect the Qi army to make mistakes. At most, they may just react slowly," Cao Cao concluded.
This is the final conclusion he drew from years of fighting with Tian Ze. The biggest characteristic of Tian Ze's fighting style is stability, just like Yuan Shao likes to use force to suppress others, he likes to win by surprise and use speed to defeat slowness.
Looking back at the few times when Tianze suffered losses in battle, it was not because he made any mistakes, but because they seized the initiative and made plans in advance.
Cao Cao believed that even if Xun You did not realize in advance the possibility of Sun Ce's participation in the war.
At the moment Sun Ce sent out his troops, intelligence had already begun to be transmitted to the north.
In any case, the Qi army would not fall into the trap and at most would be caught off guard.
The atmosphere in the tent was so heavy that it was almost suffocating. Everyone passed the information handed over by Xu You around, and their faces became increasingly gloomy.
Cao Cao narrowed his eyes slightly and slowly scanned the tent. "Since the Qi army is already prepared, a strong attack is obviously not the best strategy. But we can't just sit there and wait for death. We must take the initiative to attack and find their flaws."
Cao Cao's voice was low but revealed unquestionable firmness.
At this moment, everyone's eyes were focused on Cao Cao.
Tian Ze was good at fighting a favorable battle, Yuan Shao was good at fighting an unfavorable battle, and Cao Cao was best at turning the tide when facing a desperate situation.
Yuan Shao clenched his fists, his knuckles turning white, and said in a deep voice: "Meng De, what should we do now?"
Cao Cao walked to the map in the center of the tent, slowly slid his finger across it, and his eyes rested on the northern part of Qingzhou.
"The key to winning this battle lies in food and grass!"
Xu Huang led 100,000 cavalrymen south to fight for food and morale, while Cao Cao had also long been eyeing the Qi army's food supplies.
The strategy of raiding for grain has always been Cao Cao's favorite, but when dealing with the Qi army with full logistics, Cao Cao never had the chance to use it.
But the situation is different now.
Tens of thousands of cavalrymen have penetrated deep into their own territory alone, and are dispersed. The logistical pressure is absolutely enormous. What kind of flaw is this?
Cao Cao had started thinking about this matter early on, but because Gan Ning's logistics were too good, he never found an opportunity.
But now, if the war expands again, Cao Cao does not believe that the logistics of the Qi army can be taken care of.
You know, this is the logistical support for an army of at least 500,000. The supply line for the tens of thousands of cavalrymen under Xu Huang is so long that it is not an exaggeration to say that one baggage carrier has to support one cavalryman.
Cao Cao's eyes were sharp and his finger fell heavily on the northern coastal area of Qingzhou, which was one of the key nodes for the transportation of food and fodder for the Qi army.
Although Jizhou has thousands of miles of fertile land, there are too many places that need to be supplied with food and fodder, and it has not been developed for a long time, and there are heavy troops stationed in the surrounding areas.
Therefore, most of the Qi troops that went into battle this time were transported from Liaodong by sea to the Donglai area, and then transferred to the front line by Gan Ning's army.
"Everyone, most of the Qi army's food and fodder is transported from the sea to the inland via this route, and then distributed to the various camps. If their supply line can be cut off, Xu Huang's cavalry will be like a tree without roots. Even if they are strong, they will have little fighting power if they are hungry."
Shen Pei frowned and said, "What Cao Gong said is very true, but the coastal areas are strictly controlled by Gan Ning's navy, and the defenses on land are probably also very heavy. How can our army break through their blockade and successfully harass Qi's food supplies?"
Cao Cao smiled slightly: "If it was before, we really would have no way. But now, we will have the support of the Jiangdong navy."
It is always easier to attack food supplies than to transport them.
Cao Cao was well aware of this.
No matter how tight the Qi army's defenses were, it was impossible for every point in such a large area to be impregnable, especially when they concentrated their forces at one point.
As long as they can accurately find the key grain storage areas of the Qi army, use the navy to transport troops, and launch surprise attacks, they will have a great chance of success.
The key issue now is where the Qi army stores its grain.
(End of this chapter)
