When Chen Gong heard Xu Shu's words, his expression became solemn, "Mr. Xu, do you mean to say that Cao Mengde is now eager to welcome the emperor back and has no time to take care of Xuzhou's affairs?"
Xu Shu shook his head, "Mr. Gongtai, Cao Mengde has no time to take care of Xuzhou's affairs now, but if our army attacks Dingtao, he will definitely send reinforcements to support us."
Wang Kai frowned, "If this is the case, if our army goes to attack Dingtao, Cao Mengde will still have to come back to rescue. In this case, what's the difference?"
Xu Shu smiled slightly and said, "Mr. Wen Xing, if our army attacks Dingtao now, Cao Mengde will definitely not sit idly by and ignore it, and will definitely send reinforcements.
However, welcoming the emperor is also a very important matter, and there must be no mistakes. Therefore, even if reinforcements are sent, it is absolutely impossible to go all out.
In this way, the attack pressure faced by our army will be much less, and we will have greater certainty. "
Wang Kai was stunned for a moment, "But what if we still can't resist Cao Jun's attack?"
Xu Shu shook his head, "If you can't resist it like this, then don't think about attacking and find a way to leave this place. Otherwise, when Cao Mengde welcomes the emperor back and stabilizes the situation, he will definitely lead the army to come and face it then. If there is more pressure, wouldn’t it be more difficult to cope with it?”
At this point, Xu Shu turned around, cupped his hands to Lu Bu, and said slowly, "Marquis Wen, Xiahou Dun has returned in defeat. Dingtao is empty at this time, and Cao Mengde is unable to provide full assistance. I think this is the right time." This is the best time to attack Dingtao.
Moreover, I am afraid it is also the last opportunity. Once Cao Mengde welcomes the emperor back and his strength increases greatly, I am afraid our army will have no chance to save it. "
When Lu Bu heard Xu Shu's analysis, he couldn't help but secretly agree.
He has been wondering why Cao Mengde didn't lead his troops to pursue him after arriving in Xuzhou for so long.
It turns out that this is the real reason!
At this time, the hall was silent, and everyone present was thinking about Xu Shu's words.
After a long time, Chen Gong suddenly said, "Marquis Wen, I think what Mr. Xu said is very reasonable. This is indeed the best time to attack. If we miss it, we will have no chance again when Cao Mengde comes back."
Lu Bu nodded, turned to look at Xu Shu, and asked slowly, "Mr. Xu, why did you tell me this news?"
Few people knew about the news that Cao Mengde had welcomed the Emperor back east. How did Xu Shu know about it, and why did he take the initiative to tell him?
Xu Shu had long expected that Lu Bu would ask, and hurriedly handed over his hand, "Marquis Wen, I have already told you that this happened to me when I was passing through Puyang."
At this point, Xu Shu's tone paused, and then, without waiting for anyone to answer his words, he continued.
"As for why I told Marquis Wen the news, it's because of the refugees outside the city."
Xu Shu cupped his hands in front of Lu Bu and sighed, "On the way down, I met countless refugees. Some died suddenly in the wilderness, and many more were already dying. There were miserable scenes everywhere.
Only here can we see that the refugees have a chance to survive, so I took the liberty to come here and report the matter to Marquis Wen, hoping that he will not be offended. "
This is also true. Xu Shu has traveled to many places and seen many local scenes, but without exception, refugees are everywhere, wars are endless, and there is simply no life at all.
When he came to Xiaopei, he was really shocked by the situation here.
At first he was attracted by the red houses, but when he got closer, he realized that the people who built these houses were refugees from all over the world.
These refugees were different from the refugees he had seen before. They were full of smiles and full of hope for life.
When Xu Shu saw their energetic eyes and heartfelt smiles, he felt extremely shocked and even suspected that this place was a paradise.
The refugees enthusiastically gave him a bowl of porridge. When he tasted the taste of the porridge, he had secretly made up his mind to protect the only pure land in the world.
The next thing is very clear. Xu Shu found Wang Kai and asked him to take him to see Wen Hou.
Of course, Lu Bu didn't know what Xu Shu was thinking, but he just felt that his analysis was reasonable and his thinking was clear, and he also appreciated it in his heart.
"Mr. Xu, I don't know where you want to go. Can you stay and help me?"
Hearing this, Xu Shu seemed to remember the laughter of those refugees, and he raised his hand without hesitation, "As long as Marquis Wen doesn't despise me for being stupid, I will definitely try my best."
Lu Bu was overjoyed and nodded with a smile, "Mr. Xu, since you want to attack Dingtao, do you have any good strategies to defeat the enemy?"
The reason why he asked this was because he wanted to see what Xu Shu was capable of?
If Xu Shu can tell you how to attack, it means that he does have a plan and can stay around to do things.
Of course, if Xu Shu could not come up with a good strategy to defeat the enemy, Lu Bu had no intention of letting him go, but asked him to manage the refugees.
After all, the number of you is increasing, but the number of management people is gradually running out. Even if Xu Shu doesn't have a plan, he should at least be able to write and do simple things.
The question Lu Bu asked was actually related to Xu Shu's future position in the army.
When Xu Shu heard the question, he raised his hand and said, "Marquis Wen, although Xiahou Dun's soldiers and horses returned in defeat, if we defend the city and our army wants to break the city, even if we succeed, we will suffer heavy losses and the gain will not be worth the loss."
When Lu Bu heard these words, his eyes couldn't help but brighten, and he asked with a smile, "Mr. Xu, in this case, what is the most appropriate way to act?"
Xu Shu smiled slightly and said, "Marquis Wen, if I remember correctly, Zhang Mengzhuo, the prefect of Chenliu, has a lot of connections in Dingtao. Although some of them were eliminated by Cao Mengde, there must be a lot of people left.
If we can unite these people together, when our army attacks the city, we should cooperate inside and outside, and it will be easy to break the city. "
After hearing this, Chen Gong clapped his hands and nodded with a smile, "Okay, it's safest for Meng Zhuo to handle this matter. I believe there will be many people supporting him."
Lu Bu looked at Xu Shu and said with a smile, "Mr. Xu, why don't you work with me for the time being, are you willing?"
Xu Shu deeply cupped his hands and said, "How dare I disobey Marquis Wen's orders."
At this point, Xu Shu's tone paused, and then, without waiting for anyone to answer his words, he continued.
"Marquis Wen, what I just said must be kept confidential. Do not let Liu Xuande of Xuzhou know about it."
Hearing this, Chen Gong smiled and waved his hand, "Mr. Xu, are you worried that Lu Bu will plot against Xiao Pei?"
Xu Shu nodded, "That's true. I saw that those red houses serve as defenses. The effect is indeed obvious. They should be mainly built in the south to resist Xuzhou's attack.
In this way, the south only needs to send a small number of troops to block the coming danger.
And the main force of our army will rush to Yanzhou and capture Dingtao as quickly as possible. Once it is done, even if Liu Xuande finds out, there will be nothing he can do.
By the time our army has occupied Dingtao and Xiaopei, we will already have a detour area where we can attack when we advance and defend when we retreat. As long as we hold on securely, it will be very beneficial to our army. "
Chen Gong frowned, "Mr. Xu, our army has occupied Dingtao and Xiaopei. Although it has a detour, it will still have to face the attacks of Xuzhou and Yanzhou at the same time. Once this happens, how will it be resisted? "
Xu Shu waved his hand and said with a smile, "What Mr. Gongtai said is indeed reasonable. However, Xuzhou Liu Xuande has just taken office and his strength is unstable. Coupled with the restraint of Huainan Yuan Shu, he will definitely not dare to attack in a large scale."
At this point, Xu Shu's tone paused, and then, without waiting for anyone to answer his words, he continued.
"In this way, our army's attack direction is mainly in the north. We will capture Dingtao first, and then attack Changyi in the second step!"
Hearing this, Wang Kai suddenly said, "Mr. Xu, after I go to capture Dingtao, shouldn't I take advantage of Cao Mengde's absence and go straight to Puyang or Juancheng? Why should I go to Changyi?"
After hearing these words, Lu Bu couldn't help but frown slightly, feeling confused in his heart.
According to his plan, there is no doubt that the first step of the attack is Dingtao, and the target of the second step of the attack, as Wang Kai said, should be Puyang or Juancheng.
Wang Kai frowned and said, "If our army attacks Puyang as a second step after capturing Dingtao, once it is captured, it can cut off Cao Mengde's return path. Wouldn't it kill two birds with one stone?
Sometimes Cao Mengde's soldiers and horses are like water without a source. I am trying to destroy them. Wouldn't it be easier? "
When Xu Shu heard what Wang Kai said, he shook his head and asked slowly, "Mr. Wenxing, according to your opinion, Puyang should be captured and Cao Mengde's return route should be cut off?"
Wang Kai nodded, "Yes, that is indeed the case. As long as Cao Mengde has no retreat, I am trying to eliminate him, and it will be much easier."
Xu Shu sighed, "Mr. Wen Xing, when Marquis Wen occupied Puyang, the situation was great, but why did he lose again?"
When Lu Bu, who was sitting at the top, heard these words, he suddenly became angry and snorted coldly, "If it weren't for Yuan Shao of Jizhou, how could I have retreated?"
Hearing this, Xu Shu nodded, "Marquis Wen, may I ask if Yuan Shao from Jizhou has left?"
Lu Bu was stunned, "Of course I didn't leave!"
Xu Shu cupped his hands and said, "Since we haven't left, if we attack Puyang again, with the convenience of a sneak attack, we can successfully regain the upper hand.
But, so what, Jizhou Yuan Shao is still there, the situation will not change, and Cao Mengde is stronger, Wen Hou will face greater pressure. "
Hearing these words, Lu Bu reacted suddenly, remembering the last failure, and cold sweat broke out on his forehead.
He finally understood that if he followed his plan and attacked Dingtao in the first step and Puyang in the second step, it would be considered a success, but the result would be very similar to the last sneak attack on Yanzhou.
Lu Bu still remembers clearly how he made a surprise attack on Yanzhou and easily captured Puyang and Dingtao. Officials from all over Yanzhou also expressed their support. How high-spirited he was at that time, thinking that Yanzhou had fallen into his hands.
Unfortunately, the good times did not last long. No matter how hard I tried, I was eventually driven out of Yanzhou step by step.
Don't you work hard enough?
Lu Bu shook his head and slowly clenched his fists!
Absolutely not!
This time, if I attack Puyang again, think about the current scene, which is exactly the same as the last time I attacked Puyang.
Maybe it was a great victory at the beginning and everyone was rejoicing, but after that, will they face the same situation again?
If we really face the same situation, then all our efforts will be in vain.
Xu Shu sighed, "Even if our army captures Puyang, in our opinion, it has cut off Cao Mengde's retreat.
But as long as you look at this problem from another angle, you will find that what we call cutting off Cao Mengde's retreat is actually just falling into the siege of Cao Mengde and Juancheng.
In other words, after we occupy Puyang, we have to face Cao Mengde's troops and the troops sent by Juancheng at the same time. The situation is already unfavorable, and there is no way to cut off the enemy's retreat. "
At this point, Xu Shu's tone paused, and then, without waiting for anyone to answer his words, he continued.
“The art of war talks about cutting off the enemy’s retreat, often when the enemy wants to escape after suffering heavy losses.
However, in order to completely eliminate the enemy, a method is adopted to cut off the enemy's retreat so that it cannot escape from the battlefield, so that the enemy can be completely eliminated.
And the situation we are in now is definitely not cutting off the enemy's retreat. Instead, it is like falling into a trap. "
After hearing this, the expressions of everyone present changed.
All along, everyone's idea was to fight back to Yanzhou, recapture Puyang, and drive Cao Mengde away.
But now after hearing Xu Shu's analysis, I suddenly discovered that Puyang is an ominous place!
Chen Gong frowned. After thinking for a long time, he suddenly sighed and asked slowly, "Mr. Xu, do you mean that we must not attack Puyang and Juancheng, but instead attack Changyi?"
Xu Shu nodded, "Yes, attacking Puyang is not good for our army, and even if we take it back, there will be no benefit at all.
It would be better to use our troops in the southeast of Yanzhou. As long as we capture Changyi, we can coordinate with Dingtao, and then capture Juye.
After our army has occupied these three cities, even if Cao Mengde wants to lead his troops to attack, he will have to start from Puyang and Juancheng. We can take advantage of this opportunity to develop these three places as the rear of our attack to ensure the supply of manpower and food. Supply, and then slowly plan for it, will it be possible to finally capture the entire Yanzhou. "
At this point, Xu Shu's tone paused, and then, without waiting for anyone to answer his words, he continued.
"And occupying these three places has another advantage, that is, it is far away from Jizhou Yuan Shao. Even if he wants to send troops, the consumption of food will be countless, and it will definitely not last long. This is also equivalent to invisibly weakening Jizhou Yuan Shao. With such strength, it will be much easier for our army to deal with it.”
Hearing these words, Lu Bu's eyes suddenly lit up.
What Xu Shu said makes sense. The main reason why he was defeated by Cao Mengde was because of food and supplies.
Lu Bu didn't expect that Xu Shu could see this problem at a glance and come up with an excellent solution. It was really unexpected!
