Xiaopei.
A spy hurriedly came to the city and reported the news to Lu Bu.
"Marquis Wen, the fighting between the two sides lasted until dawn. It was extremely fierce. Although the Huainan army was well prepared, under the charge of Guan Yu and Zhang Fei, they were finally forced out of a hole, allowing the two men to escape back with the remaining soldiers. Xiapi City."
Lu Bu nodded when he heard the news from the spies, "How many troops and horses did Huainan lose after this battle?"
"It's not clear yet!"
The soldier's tone paused, "But looking at the tragic battle yesterday, the number of casualties should not be small."
Lu Bu nodded, "Continue to inquire. If there is any new information, report back immediately."
"I obey my orders."
Lu Bu looked at the spy's leaving figure. After thinking for a long time, he turned to look at Chen Gong, who had been silent, and asked with a smile.
"Gongtai, after last night's battle, do you think Liu Xuande still has the strength to fight?"
Chen Gong raised his hand and said, "Although Liu Xuande's troops were defeated, it shouldn't be a problem to defend the city.
Moreover, after this battle, Huainan's soldiers and horses also suffered heavy losses. It may not be that easy to continue to launch a strong attack. Let's see what Huainan Yuan Shu thinks next? "
Lu Bu frowned and said, "Gongtai, do you mean that Yuan Shu from Huainan will send troops to support us?"
Chen Gong nodded, "It is very possible that although Zhang Xun's troops and horses have suffered heavy losses, they have the upper hand after all. I believe that Yuan Shu of Huainan will be willing to take advantage of this opportunity to completely capture Xuzhou.
Moreover, there are many soldiers and horses in Huainan. The 50,000 soldiers and horses brought by Zhang Xun are only part of Huainan. If you really want to increase the number of troops, it should be no problem. "
Lu Bu thought carefully and said, "If Yuan Shu in Huainan continues to increase his troops, wouldn't Liu Xuande in Xuzhou be in danger?"
Chen Gong waved his hand, "Xiapi City is extremely strong, and there is sufficient food in the city. As long as Liu Xuande insists on defending the city, it will not be easy for Yuan Shu in Huainan to break the city no matter how many troops he has."
At this point, Chen Gong's tone paused, and then, without waiting for Lu Bu to answer his words, he continued.
"Marquis Wen, what I'm in trouble with now is that they have reached a deadlock. Can we find something to do during this time?"
Hearing this, Lu Bu was stunned for a moment and asked doubtfully, "Gongtai, do you want to help Liu Xuande defeat the Huainan soldiers?"
Chen Gong shook his head, "If we help Liu Xuande defeat the Huainan soldiers and horses, I'm afraid Liu Xuande will not only not be grateful, but I'm afraid it will be us who will deal with him next. We will never do such a thing."
Lu Bu frowned, "Since you won't help Liu Xuande, do you want to help the Huainan soldiers and horses conquer Xuzhou?"
Chen Gong waved his hand, "None of them, Marquis Wen. Even if we help Huainan soldiers and horses defeat Xuzhou, it will only give Huainan Yuan Shu an advantage. What benefits can we get?"
At this point, Chen Gong's tone paused, and then, without waiting for Lu Bu to answer his words, he suddenly sneered and continued.
"Marquis Wen, in addition to Xuzhou Liu Xuande, our current enemy must not forget that there is also Yanzhou Cao Mengde."
After hearing this, Lu Bu's eyes lit up, "Gongtai, do you mean to take advantage of the stalemate between Xuzhou's troops and Huainan's troops to attack Yanzhou?"
Chen Gong nodded, "Marquis Wen, the battle between Xuzhou soldiers and Huainan soldiers and horses is fierce now, and they can't take care of us. No matter what we do, they can't do anything."
At this point, Chen Gong paused and shook his head with a wry smile, "It's just that the situation in Yanzhou is unclear now. If we attack rashly, if we fail, it may be detrimental to our army!"
Hearing these words, Lu Bu nodded, but remained silent.
The Huainan soldiers and Xuzhou soldiers and horses are currently fighting fiercely. If they attack Yanzhou at this time, it is indeed the best time.
But the defeat by Cao Mengde was still fresh in his mind. If he wanted to attack Yanzhou, he had no foolproof strategy and must not do it easily.
Although he is temporarily settled in Xuzhou now, this is because Cao Mengde did not take the opportunity to attack. Once his anger is aroused, I am afraid that Xuzhou, the place where he settled, will also become uneasy.
It is precisely for this reason that Chen Gong and Lu Bu are very cautious about this matter. They have never mentioned attacking Yanzhou.
At this time, if Cao Mengde knows about the attack on Dingtao in Yanzhou, he will probably send troops to support him immediately, or even lead the troops himself.
If that were the case, it would be like the Battle of Yanzhou again.
Chen Gong smiled bitterly and let out a long sigh. Just as he was about to speak, rapid footsteps suddenly came from outside the door, and soon Zhang Hu's voice came from outside the door.
"Marquis Wen, Mr. Wen Xing has come to ask for an audience."
When he heard that Wang Kai was coming, Lu Bu couldn't help but be startled, and then his heart suddenly jumped up and he said loudly.
"Let him in quickly."
Wang Kai's main task was to build houses, those defensive buildings that frustrated Xiahou Dun.
It can be said that Wang Kai is almost the busiest person in Xiaopei now. He rarely has time to go back to the city every day. He came to see Lu Bu in a hurry today because he must have something important to say.
Not long after, Lu Bu looked at Wang Kai, whose cheeks were already tanned, and hurriedly walked in from the door. He asked eagerly without waiting for him to ask.
"Wen Xing, what happened when you came back this time?"
Wang Kai hurriedly cupped his hands and said with a wry smile, "Marquis Wen, it's not a big deal, but I caught a suspicious person, so I came here to see him."
"Looking suspiciously?"
Lu Bu was stunned for a moment, then he breathed a long sigh of relief, waved his hand, and said with a smile, "Wen Xing, seeing you coming in a hurry, do you think something happened?"
Wang Kai hurriedly handed over his hand, "This time something is a bit strange, so I rushed back to ask for a meeting. Please don't blame me, Marquis Wen."
Chen Gong asked tentatively, "Mr. Wenxing, could this suspicious person you mentioned be the work of the enemy?"
Wang Kai shook his head, "I don't know much about it, so I brought him to see Marquis Wen."
Lu Bu smiled and said, "Wen Xing, in that case, can you tell me what happened?"
Wang Kai cupped his hands and said slowly, "Marquis Wen, this person is not a local. After arriving in Xiaopei, he did not enter the city and just wandered around the newly built houses.
He looked at the house and where the refugees lived. He even wanted to eat with the refugees. "
Hearing this, Chen Gong waved his hand, "Wen Xing, this is not surprising, right? Maybe this person is a refugee. Seeing that life here is good, maybe he wants to stay?"
Wang Kai shook his head, "Impossible. This man is wearing a long robe. Although he is dusty, he definitely doesn't look like a refugee."
At this point, Wang Kai's tone paused, and then, without waiting for anyone to answer his words, he continued.
"And some people saw him taking out copper coins, which shows that he is definitely not a refugee."
After hearing these words, Chen Gong's expression became solemn, "He is rich and wearing a robe. It seems that he should not be a refugee, and he is wandering around, especially around the house."
Having said this, Chen Gong suddenly turned his head to look at Wang Kai and asked slowly, "Wen Xing, according to you, this person is so interested in the defensive line, and it is most likely the enemy's work! "
After hearing this, Wang Kai nodded, "Mr. Gongtai, I thought the same way at the beginning, so after hearing the news, I immediately sent someone to capture him and then inquire."
Lu Bu's eyes lit up, "Ask what it is, is it the enemy's writing?"
Wang Kai shook his head with a wry smile, "Marquis Wen, that's why things are strange. This man's whereabouts are so strange, but he said that he was not an internal agent of the enemy. Moreover, he also said that he wanted to see Marquis Wen, saying that he had something important to do. Report."
"important things?"
Lu Bu asked slowly, "What is the important thing he said?"
Wang Kai shook his head, "This person didn't say anything, he just said he wanted to see you."
Lu Bu frowned, "He never said why he wanted to see me?"
Wang Kai shook his head, "If it were anyone else, I wouldn't take it seriously, but this person said it with great confidence, so I have to take it seriously.
Moreover, this man also said that what he wanted to tell Marquis Wen was related to Xiaopei's safety, so I could only bring him here for verification. "
"Xiao Pei's safety?"
Hearing this, Lu Bu laughed and said, "Wen Xing, after hearing what you said, I suddenly became interested. Since you have brought him, let him come in. I want to take a look, little one." What exactly is Pei’s safety?”
Wang Kai responded and went out to fetch someone. After a while, he returned to the room.
"Marquis Wen, people have brought it."
Lu Bu nodded and looked at the person behind Wang Kai.
The person behind Wang Kai is a young man with a dark complexion and delicate features. He is wearing a gray robe and looks somewhat elegant.
When the young man saw Lu Bu, he hurriedly took a step forward, cupped his hands and said, "I, Xu Shu, have met Marquis Wen."
"Xu Shu?"
When Lu Bu heard this unfamiliar name, he turned to look at Chen Gong, but saw that the other party also shook his head slightly, indicating that he had never heard of this name.
"Xu Shu, I heard that you have something important to say and want to see me. I don't know what you want to talk about. Can you tell me?"
Xu Shu cupped his hands and said slowly, "I would like to ask, does Marquis Wen think Xiaopei is safe?"
Lu Bu frowned, "Why did Mr. Xu say this?"
Xu Shu shook his head, "Marquis Wen, if Cao Mengde leads an army to attack Xiaopei, how sure is Marquis Wen that he can stop it?"
Chen Gong took a step forward and said loudly, "Don't talk nonsense. Even if Cao Mengde comes in person, he can't break Xiaopei."
Xu Shu smiled slightly, "Could it be that the defense line being built is what Marquis Wen is relying on?"
Wang Kai frowned, "So what, do you think our defense line can't stop Cao Mengde's army?"
Xu Shu shook his head, "I know that this line of defense just blocked Xiahou Dun's troops, but once thousands of troops come to attack, this line of defense can be defeated in an instant. What will we use to defend ourselves?"
Wang Kai was immediately furious, "Do you think our defense line is Zhihu's and can be easily breached?"
Xu Shu shook his head, "I admit that this line of defense is fine if it can resist a small group of soldiers, but it will be vulnerable to the impact of a large army."
Wang Kai continued to say something, but was stopped by Lu Bu with a wave of his hand, "Mr. Xu, since you said that defense is not enough, in your opinion, how should we defend?"
Xu Shu cupped his hand and said, "Marquis Wen, the best defense is to attack."
After hearing this, Lu Bu nodded, "In your opinion, what should we do?"
Xu Shu handed over again, "Marquis Wen and Xiahou Dun were defeated and have retreated to Dingtao. At this time, Dingtao is empty and it is also the best time to attack.
Marquis Wen only needed to send troops and he would be able to capture Dingtao easily.
By then, our army has occupied the front line, and naturally there is no need to guard against Xiaopei behind, and this is the best defense method. "
"What nonsense!"
After hearing this, Chen Gong sneered, "Mr. Xu, let me ask you, what if we attack Dingtao and attract Cao Mengde's army?"
Xu Shu shook his head, "Please rest assured, Marquis Wen, Cao Mengde will never come to rescue Dingtao at this moment."
Lu Bu was stunned for a moment and asked doubtfully, "Mr. Xu, why is this? Could it be that Cao Mengde just watched Dingtao being taken away by me and remained indifferent?"
Xu Shu waved his hand, "Please don't worry, Marquis Wen, Cao Mengde has more important things to do and can't take care of this yet.
Although Ding Tao is very important, it is still a few points behind what Cao Mengde is doing now. "
As soon as these words came out, everyone present was surprised, "Mr. Xu, what is so important?"
Xu Shu smiled slightly and said slowly, "Welcome the Emperor."
"Welcoming the Emperor?"
Chen Gong's expression changed, "Mr. Xu, how did you know that Cao Mengde was going to greet the Emperor?"
Wang Kai was even more shocked and shouted, "Are you Cao Mengde's masterpiece?"
Xu Shu did not answer the two men's words, but looked at Lu Bu with burning eyes.
Lu Bu was also shocked when he heard this. After thinking for a long time, he slowly asked, "Mr. Xu, can you explain this?"
Xu Shu smiled slightly and said, "Marquis Wen, don't you suspect that this is Cao Mengde's work?"
Lu Bu waved his hand, "Mr. Xu, if you were Cao Mengde's spy, I'm afraid you wouldn't tell me about this matter. I'd rather you tell me the reason for this?"
Hearing this, Xu Shu's eyes lit up and he hurriedly handed over his hand, "Thank you Marquis Wen for your trust. I can guarantee that it is definitely not Cao Mengde's work."
At this point, Xu Shu's tone paused, and then, without waiting for anyone to answer his words, he continued.
"The reason why I know this is because when I happened to arrive in Puyang, I met the soldiers and horses sent by Cao Mengde, so I made this judgment."
Wang Kai frowned, "Mr. Xu, just because you saw Cao Mengde's troops in Puyang, you thought he went to greet the emperor?"
Xu Shu nodded, "That's right."
Wang Kai was stunned for a moment, "Mr. Xu, is it inappropriate to make such an important judgment based on just this one thing?"
Xu Shu shook his head, "Mr. Wenxing, in the Battle of Yanzhou, Cao Mengde had just defeated Marquis Wen, and it was time to take advantage of the victory to pursue the victory. However, Cao Mengde sent his troops to the west. What on earth was going on?
Moreover, there are rumors that the emperor will return eastward. Combining these two things, it will be easy to make a judgment. "
