The whole of Xu Du was in chaos. Cao Cao rode his warhorse and chased after Liu Ye. But in the end, he did not even see Liu Ye's shadow. He thought that Liu Ye would have returned to Xu Du, but Xun You, who was in charge of Xu Du, shook his head and said that he did not see Liu Ye at all. Liu Ye had joined Cao Cao's army alone with Liu Xun. It could be said that he did not have any attachments. In Xu Du, other than Cao Cao's residence, the rest were just worldly possessions. Liu Ye did not care about them at all!
"Hate! Hate! I had eyes but failed to recognize gold and jade! "Cao Cao's intestines were about to turn green with regret. Such a great talent had been let off by Cao Cao just like that! He recalled the scene when Liu Ye first spoke. At that time, it should have been when Liu Ye wanted to report to him about the ballista! But because of his misgivings and suspicions towards Liu Ye, he gave up such an opportunity!
The wisdom of the ancients was very scary! Liu Mang relied on a pile of books to modify the ballista. As for Liu Ye, he relied on Cao Cao's information about the ballista and the old-fashioned ballista to modify it. Although it only had a range of 250 steps and could only fire twice, as long as Liu Ye was given time, he could definitely design something much better than this!
"Lord, it's fine if we can't catch up!" Guo Jia was also very helpless. It was his fault that he was one step too late! If he did not drink and discovered the ballista earlier, Liu Ye might have been working under Cao Cao now! Guo Jia had also heard about the scene of Cao Cao treating Liu Ye from the other generals. Liu Ye wanted to say a word but was unable to do so and was even chased out. Even Guo Jia himself could not accept such a scene!
Guo Jia was once loyal to Yuan Shao. It was because of the Yuan Shao's disdain and incompetence that Guo Jia switched allegiance to Cao Cao. Therefore, scholars still had integrity. Once you touched this integrity, you might leave!
"Fengxiao, don't you know? I'm scared, I'm really scared! "How could Cao Cao not be scared? Such a great talent was missed by him. It would be fine if he went to live in seclusion, but if he changed his allegiance to someone else, then he would be a huge threat! What Cao Cao was most afraid of now was that Liu Ye would side with his biggest enemy, Yuan Shao and Yuan Benchu. Cao Jun and Yuan Shao's armies were already three times stronger than each other. If Liu Ye went to Yuan Shao's side, it would be a big problem!
"Don't worry, my lord!" Guo Jia comforted Cao Cao, "Ziyang will not side with Yuan Shao and Yuan Benchu!" Guo Jia was not speaking empty words. It was a fact. Even someone like Cao Cao was wary of Liu Ye, not to mention Yuan Shao who did not even spare a glance for the Han dynasty. If Liu Ye sided with Cao Cao, he would be able to get a position as one of the Nine Ministers. Even if he went to Yuan Shao's side, he would still be able to get a position as one of the Nine Ministers! Not to mention an official position, he would at most be able to be a small official! Those positions with real power were already occupied by the Hebei aristocrats! At that time, even if Yuan Shao wanted to put Liu Ye in an important position, there would be a lot of Hebei aristocrats who would step forward to undermine him. That was why Guo Jia believed that Liu Ye was a smart person. He would definitely not side with Yuan Shao! Furthermore, Yuan Shao did not even care about the ballistae. He had always thought that the battle at the Yangtze River was fake. From his point of view, Jiangdong and Jingzhou only had a few tens of thousands of soldiers. What's the point of it? Once he destroyed Cao Cao's army, they would all run away. That was why the only one who did not send a congratulatory gift to Lü Bu and did not talk to Lü Bu about buying the ballistae was Yuan Shao. He was arrogant because he had the capital!
"My Brother Benchu's personality has really helped me a lot!" Cao Cao also found joy in the midst of bitterness. He did not care about Liu Ye for now. First, he had to deal with the big problem in front of him, Yuan Benchu! "Fengxiao, do you really have the confidence to make a replica of the ballistae?" If Liu Ye was Cao Cao, he would not be worried at all. After all, Liu Ye was the one who invented it. He naturally knew how to make it. But now, he needed Guo Jia to prepare it. Guo Jia was a top strategist, but he was not good at mechanisms!
"My Lord, there is no need for Jia to do this. There will naturally be Xudu's craftsmen to analyze it!" Mechanisms were not Guo Jia's forte. That was why Guo Jia did not want to embarrass himself. With Xudu's craftsmen around, it would be fine to teach them! He did not believe that they could not make a new one even if they dismantled the ballistae. Furthermore, they had the basic blueprints from Liu Ye's tent.
"There is no problem with the ballistae here! What we need now is for my Lord to defend Guandu! " What Guo Jia wanted now was for Cao Cao to defend against Yuan Shao's onslaught. Only by defending Guandu could the ballistae display their power. If Guandu was broken, there was no need to talk about anything else!
"Don't worry, Fengxiao. Your Lord, although I am old and dim-sighted, I am not an idiot. With 100,000 troops in hand, Guandu will not be broken for at least three months!" Cao Cao had his own confidence. If it was not for the fact that Cao Cao had become a Feudal Lord, Cao Cao would be a general who was proficient in both civil and military matters. One must know that before Cao Cao became a Feudal Lord, he had participated in the suppression of the Yellow Turban Rebellion. At that time, under General Huangpu Song's command, Cao Cao would often give good suggestions. Moreover, at that time, Cao Cao would often lead the army to charge, just like Lü Bu! Taking the lead, Cao Cao became more and more like a Lord. He also knew the value of his own life and taught his subordinates how to charge and break through enemy lines. As for Lü Bu, because of his love for battle and his high martial arts, he did not completely change! However, these two people each had their own advantages and disadvantages!
Lü Bu's advantage was that as long as Lü Bu did not die, his fighting spirit would not be extinguished. Therefore, the Lvbu's Army's soldiers were very strong. They dared to fight with their lives on the line and their morale was high. After all, their Lord was the God of War! As long as there was Lü Bu, there would be a place for them to attack! The disadvantage was that once Lü Bu died or was besieged! It would be a fatal blow to the morale of the entire army! After the three heroes fought Lü Bu, the eighteen Feudal Lords were able to take Hulao Pass. That was because the defenders in Hulao Pass no longer had the morale to continue defending. Even the God of War was defeated! How could they still be a match for the God of War!
Cao Cao changed his command in the rear. This way, his safety would be guaranteed. He would not lose his Lord in one battle and cause the entire vassal state to collapse. However, at the same time, it also meant that the soldiers under Cao Cao would never become the number one soldiers in the world like the Lvbu's Army. This could be seen from the battle between the Ferocious Cavalry and the Bingzhou Wolf Cavalry!
Although the Ferocious Cavalry was terrifying, they were still lacking compared to the Bingzhou Wolf Cavalry. In a direct confrontation, they would only be suppressed by the Lvbu's Army!
Cao Cao was being modest when he said that he could stop the Yuan Shao's Army for three months with a hundred thousand soldiers. If he really wanted to defend to the death, Cao Cao could at least defend for half a year! Moreover, the Yuan Shao would at least lose a few hundred thousand soldiers. Otherwise, they would not be able to break through Guandu!
"Hehe, then Milord, I promise you that I will definitely build the ballistae before Guandu is broken!" Guo Jia also joked. He knew that Cao Cao was under a lot of pressure. Now, he was trying his best to share the pressure with Cao Cao!
"You prodigal son! Don't collect my corpse ah! " Cao Cao laughed as he punched Guo Jia. Only when he was with Guo Jia could Cao Cao truly laugh! Otherwise, in other places, Cao Cao's every word and action would reveal a message to others, even at home! Ever since Cao Cao's death, Cao Cao realized that even his sons were unfamiliar with each other. There was less familial affection and more of a strict relationship between superiors and subordinates! This was truly a tragedy!
The Battle of Guandu had begun! Yuan Shao's Army continuously attacked the Guandu camp. Cao Cao did not use Cheng Yu's method of dividing the troops to attack Qingzhou in Xuzhou and Langye. Instead, he divided the hundred thousand soldiers into two groups and took turns to defend Guandu. This was to prevent Yuan Shao's Army from advancing. Cao Cao's Navy also hid in the camp to avoid the battle. The ballistae also needed to be loaded with warships.
The scale of the battle was getting bigger and bigger. At the beginning, there were only a few thousand people probing the enemy. Later on, there were tens of thousands of people attacking. In the end, even Yuan Shao lost his patience and launched an all-out attack! The Yellow River basin above Guandu became the Red River basin. The entire river was filled with corpses and blood, dying a large area red!
Liu Mang did not know about the battle in Guandu. What he knew was that Liu Mang was already married! Only now did he truly have the title of Lü Bu's son-in-law. Now, he could truly tell others that his father-in-law was Lü Bu!
Lady Lu's change also made Liu Mang very curious. The Lady Lu who used to be barbaric, unreasonable and powerful all day long has disappeared. Instead, she has become a gentle and considerate person, always thinking about Liu Mang. If Liu Mang did not recognize the birthmark on Miss Lu's chest, he would have thought that Lü Bu had two daughters! Liu Mang either did not marry, or he married three! His main wife was Lu Lingqi, his second wife was Yuan Fang, and his beloved concubine was naturally He Yu! He Yu did not dare to appear in the name of Qiao Yu, so she could only become Liu Mang's concubine. That night, Liu Mang was very busy! When he woke up the next morning, his waist was about to break!
Now, Liu Mang was truly moving in the direction of Shouchun! After passing through Shiting and Shucheng, he was almost stopped by Zhang Liao and Zang Ba from Shucheng to stay for a few more days. However, Liu Mang had something to do, so he left! The army arrived at Hefei in a few days. Hefei was not a modern provincial capital. The current Hefei was just a county! After the war, it was very desolate, and there were not many people. Therefore, the army entered the city and directly set up camp. When the army arrived at Hefei and set up camp, the scouts in front suddenly brought back a piece of news that made Liu Mang's balls ache. Shouchun had already been occupied! There was a green war flag with a big "Liu" written on it!
Green war flag? Liu? Liu Mang almost thought that this was the war flag of Jingzhou's Liu Biao, but in the end, he realized that it was impossible. This was because Jingzhou's Liu Biao was just a city guard. It was impossible for him to stretch his hand so far to Shouchun. Even if he could reach Shouchun, what use would Shouchun have for him? It was not in Jingzhou, and it was thousands of li away from Jingzhou! How could he defend such a place even if he conquered it?
Shouchun was also close to Cao Cao's territory. Liu Biao was afraid of Cao Cao, so he let Wancheng's Zhang Xiu block him. He was a coward who could live the life of a retired emperor of Jingzhou. How could Liu Biao come out and face Cao Cao directly?
After that, the scouts came back with another piece of news. On top of the green flag, there was a flag with the word "Guan". This was the flag of the main general!
Guan? In the entire Three Kingdoms, there were only a few people with the surname Guan! For example, Guan Ping, Guan Xing, and Guan Yu. The most important thing was that these people were all from the same family! Now, with the addition of a green flag, it was clear who this Liu was!
"Running Imperial Uncle Liu Bei, Big Eared Liu?" Liu Mang finally guessed who the person who occupied Shouchun was!
That's right, it was really our dear Running Imperial Uncle Liu. After Imperial Uncle Liu tricked Lü Bu, he let Lao Cao obtain Xuzhou. Unexpectedly, Imperial Uncle Liu also took a bite out of Lao Cao and directly occupied Xuzhou. He even used the Qingzhou soldiers that Lao Cao gave him, forcing Lao Cao to personally lead an expedition. He also pretended to be a grandson in front of Yuan Shao. First, he got rid of Liu Bei, this grandson! Yuan Bairi was also included in the deal. It could be said that it was a buy one get one free deal.
After being chased out of Xu Province by Cao Cao, Cao Cao could not exterminate Liu Bei because of his two sworn brothers Guan Yu and Zhang Fei. In addition to Yuan Shao's coercion, Cao Cao could only send Liu Bei out of Xu Province like he was sending off a plague god. Who knew that Liu Bei did not go to Qingzhou to cross the Yellow River to reach Hebei, instead he went to Runan of Yuzhou. This was because Liu Pijun, a loyal fan of Liu Bei, was there. In any case, he still had twenty thousand Yellow Turban Army. In addition to the ten thousand people that Liu Bei brought with him when he escaped from Runan, he had thirty thousand main force. Every time Liu Bei left a place, he would bring with him a large number of commoners. This time, when he left Xu Province, he was no exception. He brought with him nearly half of the Xu Province's commoners. If Cao Cao was not forced by Yuan Shao, he might have really chased after Liu Bei for a thousand miles. From the commoners that he brought with him, as well as the commoners of Runan, he transferred twenty thousand strong men to form an army of fifty thousand.
How could a small Runan support 50,000 soldiers? Therefore, Liu Bei Bei sent his general Guan Yu to occupy Shou Chunying and Ruyin. If not for fear of provoking Lü Bu's old hatred by getting too close to Lujiang, he might have directly occupied Hefei.
"Liu Bei occupied Shou Chun!" Huang Zhong, Xu Sheng, and Gan Ning were thinking. This was not good news! Although Shou Chun was dilapidated, it was still Yangzhou's capital. After being attacked by Cao Cao, it was repaired by Yuan Shu. The one who had the final say was Yang Hong. This was because the repair of Shou Chun was his handiwork. Although Yang Hong's stratagem was always a blunder, don't forget that he was still aware of the general situation. He also knew that only when Yuan Shu was well, he would be well. Therefore, the walls of Shou Chun were built very sturdy under Yang Hong's supervision. He did not know how many Liu Bei's soldiers were in Shou Chun. If there were tens of thousands of them, then it would be difficult to deal with them by relying on Liu Mang's subordinates.
Gan Ning had 12,000 navy, 3,000 City Guard, and 3,000 Black Flag Army soldiers. Altogether, it was only 18,000 soldiers. If there were 18,000 soldiers in the city, then it would be really difficult to deal with. Should they retreat and ask Lü Bu for soldiers?
"Good news! This is really good news! " When everyone was in a dilemma, the most optimistic person was Liu Mang. Liu Mang clapped his hands and smiled as if he had encountered good news.
"Hungry?" Everyone looked at Liu Mang's expression changed. Huang Zhong even suspected that the last time the Lord brought him back, the psychological pressure was too great, so he became mentally unstable.
"Why are you all looking at me? Isn't this good news? "There were many people who had a grudge against the Lvbu's Army. However, there are only two people who can make Lu Bu's army suffer and be very aggrieved! One was Cao Cao and the other was Liu Bei. For example, Sun Ce had a grudge against the Lvbu's Army. If Sun Ce hated the Lvbu's Army, it would be Sun Ce who was at a disadvantage. However, it would be the Lvbu's Army who was at a disadvantage to deal with these two Vassals.
Lao Cao could not touch him now. He was still counting on Lao Cao to help the Lvbu's Army resist Yuan Shao. If they were to attack Cao Cao from both sides, the only one who could do anything was Yuan Shao. After all, Yuan Shao had 300,000 troops. If Lao Cao was defeated, the next opponent would be the Lvbu's Army. Although the Lvbu's Army was strong, they could not resist 300,000 troops. Therefore, Lao Cao could not be defeated. On the contrary, Liu Mang planned to help Lao Cao. At least, he would have more opportunities to exhaust Yuan Shao. He would let Yuan Shao and Cao Cao sink deeper into the war.
On the other hand, Liu Bei did not have so many misgivings. Originally, if Escapist Liu ran to Hebei, the Lvbu's Army would be very depressed. This was because Hebei was too far away. The Lvbu's Army could not reach Hebei. But now, Escapist Liu ran to Runan. Now, he even went to Shouchun. Isn't this looking for hatred? What's more, Liu Mang also knew that Escapist Liu would take away a lot of people wherever he went. Shouchun was lacking in people. Therefore, Liu Mang decided to eat Escapist Liu. If not for other reasons, he would fight Escapist Liu for the sake of those people.
What's more, the one who would be the happiest to beat Escapist Liu was his father-in-law. Lü Bu also hated Liu Bei to the bone. If not for Liu Bei and Cao Cao working together, Lü Bu would not have run to Lujiang. As for now, he was not stupid. He was not a fool. Why would he abandon the 12 counties in Xu Province and come to Lujiang to fight with Sun Ce and then occupy Shouchun where there were only a few people?
"Now, let's organize the army in Hefei." Liu Mang let his subordinates begin to prepare. Hefei was also a territory that Liu Mang wanted to occupy. Therefore, it did not matter if he reorganized the army here. Shouchun was tall. Although it was attacked by Cao Cao, it had been repaired. Therefore, it was not worse than Wancheng City.
Liu Mang was not Sun Ce. He did not have a hundred thousand troops. He only had less than twenty thousand people. More than half of them were navy. Therefore, Liu Mang could not afford a siege. Even if he could afford it, how could he defend Shouchun?
Therefore, he must use something to attack the city. This thing was a new weapon that Liu Mang wanted to experiment. In other words, it should be the second generation improved version of the ballista.
Liu Mang was not in a hurry. Although he had to wait until he took Shouchun to build the docks and warships, Liu Mang still had a lot of things to think about. Building a ship was not something that could be done easily. Once there was something wrong, it would be too late to change it. Therefore, these days, Liu Mang had been discussing with the top craftsmen about how to build the ship.
Now that Shouchun was occupied by Liu Mang, Liu Mang had time to think about the warship before he prepared the new weapon.
"Uncle Hong. Help me put up the recruitment posters all over Hefei. " Liu Mang's co-wife, Yuan Shu's daughter, Yuan Fang, called Yang Hong Uncle Hong. Liu Mang naturally called him Uncle Hong.
"Yes!" Yang Hong nodded. This recruitment poster was Liu Mang's plan. However, it was not implemented very well in Lujiang. After all, Lü Bu still had to consider the price of offending the nobles. Therefore, with the help of Lu Family's Lu Jun, who recommended several talents, Old Chen almost gave up the plan. However, even if Old Chen gave up, Liu Mang would not give up. Nobles? Liu Mang also knew that this was a big force. It represented a level of power. They occupied 2% of the world's population and 80% of the world's resources. But even so, so what? These aristocratic families were too decadent. They were just a feudal aristocratic family. In Liu Mang's plan, they would be eliminated and a new class would replace them. Liu Mang was the person who promoted the emergence of this class. When the heavy armor could no longer withstand the arrows, when the nobles could no longer control the officialdom, when there was no one to cultivate the land, it was time for the new class to replace the old nobles. This was the reason why Liu Mang did not hesitate to destroy most of the nobles in Wancheng city. Although Yang Hong kept reminding Liu Mang, he was always interrupted by Liu Mang's "I know my limits".
If Chen Gong did not need the recruitment order, then let Liu Mang use it. When Liu Mang left Wancheng city, he got Lü Bu's promise that the Shouchun region, including Hefei, Gushi, Anfeng, Hefei, Lujiang, would belong to Liu Mang. Liu Mang could do whatever he wanted.
What he needed from Liu Mang was a powerful navy and a steady supply of provisions.
"Uncle Hong, not only Hefei, you let Chengyu send the cavalry of the City Guard to Gushi, Anfeng, Chengde, Lujiang and spread the recruitment order. If possible, you can also sneak into Shouchun. You can even send people across the Ying River to spread the recruitment order." In the entire Shouchun region, there were limited talents. Therefore, Liu Mang wanted to spread the fishing net. He wanted to fish for talents. Only by getting those talents could he stand firm in this chaotic world.
Yang Hong believed that with the support of the nobles, he could obtain the world. And Liu Mang's idea was indeed supported by those talents. The 21st century was the world of talents. The same applied to the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty. The end of the Eastern Han Dynasty was also the era of talents. Obtain talents and obtain the world.
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