The soldiers in Cao's camp were a little slack after waiting all morning, but after receiving the order to start the battle, they quickly gathered together. The generals selected their elite troops to line up and move forward. On the way to face Guan Yu, Cao Cao called Zhang Liao to his side.
"Wenyuan, how much do you know about Lan Ziyu?" Cao Cao asked about things that had nothing to do with the war.
Zhang Liao originally thought he was asking about strategies to defeat the enemy, so he drafted the tactics he had prepared. When he walked up to him, he actually asked about the situation in Lantian. After thinking briefly, he replied: "This man was originally a farmer outside Xiaopei City. He knows how to plant crops." He has all kinds of vegetables and fruits, can tell stories, is good at cooking, and is familiar with General Gao and Miss Lu..."
"Does he have any other special skills? For example, is he good at divination?"
It is not new that farmers can grow fruits and cook, and Cao Cao already knows that Lantian can make up stories. He just wants to know whether he can deduce the future. After all, what Cao Cao is most worried about now is whether the Wei Kingdom he has worked so hard to build can last.
Losing to an opponent in a war means that his skills are inferior to others, but being robbed of the fruits of victory from within is the most unacceptable thing for Cao Cao. The Twelve Prophecies basically talk about the Cao family and Sima. Sima Yizhen, who looks at the wolf as an eagle and cares about the prime minister, will really Backstab yourself?
There are currently two points that Cao Cao has to doubt, and they are also the core reasons why he is entangled in the authenticity of the prophecy.
The first is that during the Battle of Ruxu, he was awakened by the dream of "Three Horses Feeding Trough". Cao Cao believed that such a strange dream must have something to say; the second was that "Sima Yi faked his illness to gain Cao Shuang". Cao Shuang was Cao Zhen's eldest son and Cao Cao's adopted grandson. , often playing with Cao Cao's grandson Cao Rui. The problem is that Cao Shuang is just a young boy at the moment. Will he become a rival with Sima Yi in the future?
Cao Cao had strict management on the children of his clan. In addition to learning poetry and etiquette, he had little contact with outsiders when he was young. Many generals and officials with foreign surnames did not know Cao Shuang's name. It is hard to believe that Lantian, who was far away in Jiaozhou, knew about it. This is consistent with common sense. Contrary to that.
Cao Cao had no memory of the Cao Fang and Cao Mao mentioned in the prophecy. He planned to check it carefully after returning to Yecheng, but Cao Cao wanted to find out about Sima Yi as soon as possible. He had cooperated and struggled with the Henan nobles for many years. After the deaths of Xun Yu and Xun You, the nobles continued to If it's bad, it's hard to use Sima Yi to achieve a short-term balance. Cao Cao doesn't want to fall into an endless cycle.
Seeing that Cao Cao asked the question seriously, Zhang Liao knew that the boss's question had to be answered carefully, so he clasped his fists and said: "When the general was in Xuzhou, he didn't actually know Lantian. He only mentioned it occasionally in the mouths of General Gao and Miss Lu. Recently, the relevant information was After screening, it seems that this person is very good at astronomy and astrology, but there is no information mentioned in the divination."
After hearing this, Cao Cao's expression became even more serious, "Astrology doctors belong to the same family. Since Lan Ziyu is good at predicting stars, it's not surprising that he can do divination..."
"Your Majesty, is this related to combat?" Zhang Liao asked cautiously.
Cao Cao shook his head and did not answer. He walked forward with a worried look. Cao Ren, Xu Huang and other generals next to him looked at each other, and the word "demon method" popped up in their minds again.
Half an hour later, the two armies met three miles north of Deng County.
Cao Cao and Guan Yu were old friends and acquaintances, and out of courtesy they agreed to reminisce in front of the battle.
Guan Yu had been treated well by Cao Cao in Xudu before, and his words in the clasped fist salute were not too fierce. Guan Yu said that Cao Cao's past kindness had been returned when Zhan Yanliang solved the siege of Baima. He was now a former general under the command of the King of Hanzhong, and he was under the Emperor's Ming Zhao and Liu Bei's orders. He ordered the Northern Expedition to King Qin, and took out the parrot's robe given to him by Cao Cao and tore it up as a sign of severance between Cao Cao and General Cao Liu.
On the other hand, Cao Cao was not angry when he saw this situation, nor was he gnashing his teeth like when he faced Liu Bei in Hanzhong. Instead of his usual heroic demeanor, he spoke softly, which surprised the generals present.
At the end of his words, Cao Cao sighed: "Although I don't want to fight Yunchang, I don't want Liu Xuande's plan to succeed. I want to see Yunchang again today."
"General Cao wants to fight in front of the battle? Guan Yu will definitely accompany you today." Guan Yu pointed his big hand back, and Zhang Fei, Pang De, and Guan Ping behind him were sharpening their swords. No one wanted to miss this good thing of becoming famous.
Before Guan Yu cut off his robe and severed his righteousness, he still called Cao Cao Prime Minister. Now he did not want to belittle him too much, and he was not willing to address him as King of Wei, so he replaced him with General Cao.
Cao Cao was a proficient political expert, so he naturally understood Guan Yu's title thoroughly. He couldn't help but nod secretly, thinking that Guan Yunchang had a noble nature and was as pure as jade, and he was really a man.
Cao Cao shook his head gently: "We are all late now, so why bother to fight bravely? Since the two armies are fighting, fighting should be the main thing."
"Now that we've finished reminiscing about old times, let's go back to the formation and arrange a fight..." Guan Yuxin said that fighting between generals and soldiers can be done. Anyway, the outcome of the final battle will be the same. With Ziyu's help, it is absolutely impossible to lose.
Just as Guan Yu was about to turn around, Cao Cao suddenly called out: "Yun Chang, wait a minute..."
"General Cao, is there anything else?" Guan Yu frowned slightly.
"I heard that Lan Ziyu has a great talent. Can you please come and see me before the war begins?" Cao Cao asked with a smile.
Guan Yu was shocked when he heard this. What was Cao Cao's thief trying to do? At this time, a battle between the two families is imminent. What if Ziyu makes a mistake? Thinking of this, he sternly refused: "Ziyu is the pillar of the King of Hanzhong, how can he easily go to the dangerous battlefield? General Cao should not play tricks, we will see the real results on the battlefield."
"There is no such thing as..."
Before Cao Cao could explain his words, Guan Yu on the opposite side had already turned Red Rabbit around without looking back. He could only return to the formation angrily under the protection of Xu Chu.
After a while, the war drums of the two sides roared, and the two armies lined up to attack.
The Jingzhou army fought in high spirits and marched in unison, while the opponent's Cao army's formation was slightly inferior. In addition to the reason that the battle started in the afternoon and the "lazy day", Cao's soldiers also had insufficient winter clothes. In the cold wind of the first month, their bodies felt like being cut by knives. Walking is not so uniform.
The two sides fought, weapons screamed, and the sound of killing was loud.
Cao Cao has been uneasy because of the prophecy, and he was even more upset because he didn't see Lan Tian just now, so he didn't focus on the battlefield at all. He relied on the generals and commanders of each army to fight. However, the result was that they fought independently and could not form a unified force. and effective offense.
"Your Majesty, the clouds in the sky have thickened, and it may rain soon. Our soldiers are wearing thin clothes..." Zhang Liao quickly came to Cao Cao's command.
Cao Cao looked up at the sky, and sure enough, clouds were gathering in the sky. The rain in the first month was not heavy, but it lasted for a long time, which greatly affected his marching operations.
"Wenyuan, why are you here?" Cao Cao asked in surprise.
"No troops have appeared today. The cavalry led by the last general is still waiting in the rear..." Zhang Liao kept his mission in mind. His cavalry was used to contain Gao Shun. He would never move if the enemy could not move.
Cao Cao frowned and said to himself: "Guan Yunchang also played a tactic for me and actually hid Gao Shun's trap. Is there any other plan?"
Suddenly, a strong wind blew across the field, and the canopy above Cao Cao's head was almost knocked over. Another force from the north joined the battlefield, and Cao Cao's army was obviously the one that suffered the most.
