All kinds of situations can happen on the battlefield, especially when facing an ambitious and ruthless opponent like Cao Cao. The situation on the battlefield is even more complicated. The appearance of an opportunity may be only for a moment, but it may also be in the blink of an eye and put one in a passive position.
In the battle with Shi Huan's army, Yang Rui had grasped the opportunity very well. This was mainly due to the use of his flying pet, the asymmetry in the information he obtained from the battlefield, and the mobility of the cavalry.
However, the battle with Shi Huan's army also seemed to have exhausted Yang Rui's good luck. Even with his flying pet scouting from the air, similar opportunities didn't appear for a day.
Previously, Yang Rui wanted to use the mobility of the cavalry to surround Fengqiu County and annihilate the enemy. However, the effect of reducing Cao Cao's strength wasn't great. This situation persisted until nightfall.
Yang Rui had been calculating the approximate time when Cheng Yu, Guo Jia, Guan Hai, and Yu Jin would lead the army. In the evening, he led the 60000 cavalry and met up with them 100 li east of Fengqiu County.
"According to what Milord said, the marching formation used by the Cao army should be called the 'Serial Whale Swallowing Marching Formation'. The formations are able to move at the same time, combining movement and defense. It is difficult for ordinary soldiers to form an effective attack and it is easy to fall into the formation …"
When the two armies met up, Yang Rui described the situation during the day to Cheng Yu, Guo Jia, Guan Hai, Yu Jin, and the other generals. Everyone frowned. Only Guo Jia spoke after thinking for a while.
"Fengxiao, do you have a good plan to defeat the enemy?"
Seeing that Guo Jia had seen through the Cao army's marching formation during the day, Yang Rui immediately asked.
Xiahou Dun's Cao army had already entered Fengqiu County. It wasn't that Yang Rui didn't want to stop them during the day, but after the Cao army changed their formation, they had maintained it until they were near Fengqiu County. Yang Rui felt somewhat helpless.
"The Cao army's formations are interconnected and difficult to separate. Apart from facing the enemy head-on and fighting with true strength, there is no good way to deal with it …"
Originally, Yang Rui had high hopes when he asked Guo Jia. Given Guo Jia's ability, there was no need to mention it in Yang Rui's eyes. However, he didn't expect Guo Jia to shake his head and give such an answer.
This situation was beyond Yang Rui's expectations. He had originally thought that by the time Guo Jia arrived, the Cao army's marching formation would not be difficult to break. However, the result was somewhat surprising.
After listening to Guo Jia's explanation for a while, Yang Rui finally understood. What Guo Jia meant by breaking a formation was to completely remove the fatal flaw of a certain formation. At the very least, it could make the enemy's formation lose its effect.
In reality, not all formations had fatal flaws. This meant that there were some formations that could only counteract its effect and not completely make it lose effect. For example, Cao Cao's Serial Whale Swallowing Formation was one such formation. Guo Jia's Qianji Black Armored Battalion could also be considered a similar existence.
Facing the Cao army's formations, Guo Jia could only make the enemy and himself truly display their strength. However, he could not remove the effects of the enemy's formations. This was also why Guo Jia said that there was no good way to deal with it.
In any case, Yang Rui first ordered his soldiers to set up camp and set up camp east of Fengqiu County for the night.
On the morning of the second day, before the sky had completely brightened, the scouts with flying pets had already sent back news. Approximately 300,000 Cao soldiers had already left the city. Using the same marching formation as before, they headed towards the northwest of Fengqiu County, towards Hulao Pass.
In response to this news, Yang Rui only shook his head slightly and did not immediately send out any orders.
After a night of thinking, Yang Rui had already thought things through. Right now, his most important goal was to push Cao Cao's forces out of Yan Province and complete his control over Chen Liu County and the surrounding areas.
Although Yang Rui felt somewhat helpless about Cao Cao's troops retreating, he did not plan on sending in troops to fight head on with them. He did not want to do something that would cause him to lose eight hundred of his own men.
In the current situation, Cao Cao had used the battle exemption medallion all over the important cities in Chen Liu County. Yang Rui did not want to pay the price to fight head on with Cao Cao's retreating troops. Basically, he had tacitly approved of Cao Cao's retreat.
Cao Cao had made up his mind to leave and Yang Rui did not have the intention to stop him. The situation in Chen Liu County and the surrounding areas became strange. The efficiency of Cao Cao's forces retreating from Chen Liu County greatly increased.
Under the suggestion of Cheng Yu and Guo Jia, Yang Rui set up the Qianji Black Armored Battalion in the northeast of Fengqiu County near the tributary of Ji River. It was like a dagger clutching the neck of Chen Liu County and forcing Cao Cao's forces to quickly retreat.
At the same time, Yang Rui also sent orders to the Xianbei Five Generals and Wuhuan Five Generals in the northeast and southeast of Chen Liu County. He ordered them to steadily approach and take over the empty areas after Cao Cao's forces retreated. He also ordered them to put pressure on Cao Cao's forces that were still in Chen Liu County.
On the third day of Yang Rui's attack on Chen Liu County, Yuan Shao's forces in Ji Province in the north began to move. They placed hundreds of thousands of soldiers at four or five strategic locations north of the Yellow River and pretended to cross the river to attack Yang Rui's territories such as Pingyuan City and Puyang City. This was to restrict Yang Rui and support Cao Cao.
However, Yang Rui had already made arrangements for Yuan Shao's possible movements. After the scouts on flying pets discovered the situation, Taishi Ci's Navy on the Yellow River immediately sealed off the relevant areas.
Taishi Ci's Navy only took out a small portion of its strength to take on the task of transporting flying pets and logistics. Most of its warships were scattered on the surface of the Yellow River, making it very easy to dispatch them.
It could be said that just facing Taishi Ci's Navy was enough to make it difficult for Yuan Shao to break through. Furthermore, Yang Rui had placed heavy defenses in Pingyuan City and Puyang City. As such, the pressure from Yuan Shao in Hebei was not that great.
As for the Marquises in Xu Province and Yuzhou, they were just waiting to see what would happen. For example, Yuan Shu and Liu Bei were hoping that Yang Rui, Cao Cao, and Yuan Shao would start fighting and reap the benefits.
In this situation, the Gan Ningshui Army that Yang Rui had placed in Wenshui and Sishui seemed to be a waste. However, it was better to be prepared. After all, Yuan Shu and Liu Bei's appetites were not small. Who knew when they would reveal their fangs?
On the other hand, Cao Cao's forces in Chen Liu County were retreating like the tide. Yang Rui did not have a good opportunity to exhaust Cao Cao's forces. However, he would not let Cao Cao have an easy time either. He had already deployed the Golden Hawks and Flame Falcons to the vicinity of Hulao Pass.
Even though Cao Cao had temporarily used the token to exempt himself from battle at Hulao Pass, the paths to pass through the pass were all close to the Yellow River. Even if Cao Cao's troops had the Serial Whale Swallowing Marching Formation, they would still suffer if they did not die from the attacks from the air.
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