dognovel Chapter 12 Su Yu offers a plan to make Sun Jian owe Cao Cao a favor.
Chapter 12 Su Yu offers a plan to make Sun Jian owe Cao Cao a favor.
Su Yu's Camp
Cao Cao, with a smile on his face, strode inside.
"Ziyi, do you know what happened on Yuan Shu's side?"
Su Yu gently waved his folding fan and smiled:
"My lord, if I'm not mistaken, the grain supplies that Yuan Shu sent to Sun Jian were probably robbed on the way, right?"
Cao Cao opened his eyes wide and exclaimed in admiration:
"Ziyi, you're amazing!"
"Just as you predicted, Yuan Shu's supplies failed to reach the front lines where Sun Jian was stationed."
"Furthermore, Yuan Shu ordered his troops not to have any further contact with Sun Jian."
"It seems they intend to shift the blame to Sun Jian."
"Tsk, Yuan Benchu is ruthless."
"His move directly caused Sun Jian and Yuan Shu to become estranged and suspicious of each other."
Su Yu nodded, feeling a similar sense of apprehension towards Yuan Shao's camp.
Don't be influenced by the fictional account and think that Yuan Shao was incredibly incompetent.
In fact, even at the time of the Battle of Guandu, the gap between Cao Cao and Yuan Shao was still very large, and Yuan Shao was undoubtedly the strongest warlord in the land.
Moreover, Yuan Shao had many strategists under his command.
People like Xu You, Tian Feng, Ju Shou, and Xun Chen (Xun Yu's fourth brother) were all among the most outstanding strategists in the land.
Yuan Shao himself was a fairly competent ruler, skilled in both overt and covert strategies.
For example, Pan Feng, the peerless general under Han Fu, was said in later generations to have died under Hua Xiong's blade because he drank poisoned wine given to him by Yuan Shao.
There was also the scheme to seize Ji Province from the mere territory of Bohai Commandery, which led to Han Fu's bloodless surrender.
It is easy to imagine that Yuan Shao's behind-the-scenes schemes were quite extensive.
Why did Yuan Shao lose to Cao Cao?
As the saying goes, Yuan Shao's success and failure were both due to his personality.
As is well known, Yuan Shao had many talented people under his command.
In addition to top-notch strategists such as Xu You, Ju Shou, Tian Feng, and Xun Chen, there were also advisors such as Guo Tu, Feng Ji, Xin Ping, and Shen Pei.
These strategists were practically independent figures, each holding their own domain.
Often they know that the suggestions from their colleagues are good.
But in order to prevent their colleagues from gaining more political power, they must oppose for the sake of opposing.
For example, Guo Tu and Feng Ji are notorious rivals.
Shen Pei and Xu You also harbored a deep hatred for each other.
A man as upright and incorruptible as Tian Feng was regarded as an enemy by everyone except Ju Shou.
The constant internal strife and the conflicting strategies of each advisor were the real reasons why Yuan Shao lost to Cao Cao at the Battle of Guandu.
From Tian Feng's imprisonment to Ju Shou's dismissal, and then to Xu You's defection to Cao Cao, the infighting under Yuan Shao intensified.
In contrast, Cao Cao's camp was peaceful and harmonious.
Firstly, apart from later strategists like Jia Xu, most of Cao Cao's advisors were recommended by Xun Yu.
In the face of many major events, they were able to work together to devise the best plan for Cao Cao, rather than fighting their own battles.
On one side, internal strife is rampant; on the other, there is unity.
The winner and loser are obvious at a glance!
But now.
The internal strife within Yuan Ying was not as intense as it would be more than a decade later.
Yuan Shao during this period was definitely a formidable enemy that deserved close attention!
Fortunately, Yuan Shao did not yet regard Cao Cao, who was developing his strength in a low-key manner, as an enemy, but rather as a "little brother".
Sometimes, playing it safe and developing your skills in a low-key manner isn't necessarily a bad thing.
A tree that stands out in the forest will surely be felled by the wind; what is more dangerous is one that flaunts itself in the marketplace.
Suddenly, Su Yu cupped his hands in a respectful gesture and said to Cao Cao:
"My lord, without supplies, Sun Jian will soon be defeated by Hua Xiong."
"After his defeat, my lord can do this and that... so that Sun Jian will owe you a favor!"
Cao Cao's eyes lit up instantly after hearing this.
Previously, Su Yu tricked Liu Bei into ambushing Hua Xiong, which was essentially sending Liu Bei to his death.
But now, Su Yu is advising Cao Cao to help the defeated Sun Jian.
Not only will it not cause any losses to Cao Cao's army, but it will also make Sun Jian grateful to Cao Cao.
Mr. Cao's execution ability is always very strong.
Soon, he led Su Yu, Xiahou Dun, Cao Ren and other generals to the only way to retreat to the allied camp in an instant!
……
Two more days have passed in the blink of an eye.
Looking at the dwindling grain supplies, Sun Jian's face was filled with frustration.
"Why hasn't the grain been delivered yet?"
"Could it be that Yuan Shu has broken his promise and is no longer willing to supply our army with provisions?"
Even Sun Jian, who had initially had confidence in Yuan Shu, couldn't help but develop strong doubts about him at this moment.
"My lord, why don't I go back to the allied camp and urge Yuan Shu to quickly transport the grain here!"
Han Dang, one of the four generals standing beside Sun Jian, offered him some advice.
"Alright, I'll leave this matter to you, Yi Gong (Han Dang's courtesy name is Yi Gong). Make sure Yuan Shu delivers the grain as soon as possible!"
Han Dang bowed and took his leave.
Among the generals under Sun Jian, he was a northerner and skilled at horseback riding.
Therefore, it didn't take too long to return to the Allied camp.
We set off in the morning and arrived at the camp by evening.
But before Han Dang could even enter Yuan Shu's tent, he was driven away by Yuan Shu's soldiers!
"Leave far away!"
"My lord has decreed that anyone under Sun Jian's command who comes within one step of the main camp will be killed without exception!"
Ji Ling, Yuan Shu's most valiant general, stood at the entrance of the allied forces' camp, carrying a three-pointed double-edged sword, blocking Han Dang.
Han Dang said angrily:
"What does Lord Yuan mean by this?"
"The provisions he sent to my Sun family army should have arrived at the front two days ago."
"Why has no grain or fodder been transported out to this day?"
Upon hearing this, Ji Ling instantly lost her temper.
"That scoundrel Sun Jian, has he no shame?"
"They disguised themselves as the Xiliang army, robbed our army of supplies, and then tried to act as if nothing had happened and demand a second batch of supplies?"
"Heh, do you really think our army is a pushover?"
Hearing this, Han Dang's face showed confusion.
But the next moment, Ji Ling's three-pointed double-edged sword was already attacking him!
Han Dang quickly took out his weapon to defend himself against Ji Ling.
Seeing that he could not obtain any more information from Ji Ling, Han Dang had no choice but to leave Yuan Shu's camp and return to the front line to report the news to Sun Jian.
By the time Han Dang returned to the front lines, Sun Jian's army had already gone without a meal.
The soldiers were still enduring the hunger, but the feeling of hunger was unbearable.
Skipping a meal is barely acceptable.
However, if the supplies fail to arrive in time, Sun Jian's army will surely collapse without a fight!
With a heart full of fear, Han Dang told Sun Jian about being stopped by Ji Ling.
"What!?"
"Disguised as Xiliang soldiers, to rob grain supplies?"
Sun Jian was completely confused.
If he really stole the grain, that would be one thing.
But the key issue is that he has never done this!
"not good!"
"My lord, without Yuan Shu's supplies, I'm afraid our army will no longer be able to stay on the front lines."
"Please, my lord, issue the order to retreat immediately!"
Huang Gai, Cheng Pu, and Zu Mao volunteered in unison.