Three Kingdoms: I, Ma Su, just want to die

Chapter 708 Sima Shi’s Calculation
"What happened again? Why did you ask my Shi Ji to come and report in person?" Sima Zhao raised his eyebrows slightly, feeling a little confused.

Zhong Hui had been loyal to him since he was discovered at the age of 16 and recruited as his staff. Sima Zhao naturally regarded such a capable and loyal talent as his confidant.

So when Sima Zhao gained power, Zhong Hui also gained considerable power, including the right to monitor Luoyang. However, most of the time, Zhong Hui would send someone to report anything he found wrong, but it was extremely rare for him to deliver intelligence in person.

"My Lord, this matter has a huge impact, so we must be cautious." Zhong Hui raised his head, his expression had become serious and loyal again. He then handed the bamboo slips in his hand to Sima Zhao.

Sima Zhao took the letter with a suspicious look on his face, and then glanced at it. However, when he finished reading and put down the bamboo slips, Sima Zhao's face had become extremely gloomy.

"You are such a thief! You still have such a petty mind!"

"Shi Ji, I'll leave this matter to you. Catch the one who's ready. This is a good opportunity to intimidate those old guys in the court!"

"only!"

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The entire Yecheng was surging with undercurrents, and countless turbulent waves were hidden underwater.

However, these things no longer mattered to Sima Shi. If he had been distracted to monitor Yecheng before, his pressure had increased sharply now.

At this moment, he was stationed on the north bank of Baimadu with 50,000 Wei troops, while the Han army on the other side of the Yellow River was flying Ma Su's banner.

At this time, Ma Su's flag had become very glorious. The words "Han General Wu'an Hou Prince Taifu Ma" almost filled the red flag.

Sima Shi still remembers that when he first confronted Ma Su in Liangzhou, there was no title on Ma Su's banner. He never expected that from that time on, he would witness the rise of a military god.

As one of the few witnesses who came back alive from the northwest, Sima Shi was very familiar with Ma Su's strength. Because of this, just seeing Ma Su's flag from a distance, Sima Shi's hands could not help but tremble slightly.

Moreover, this time, Ma Su did not come with a small force. The Han army camp that Sima Shi could see stretched to the horizon.

"What's going on in Yecheng? Where is the team moving the capital?" Sima Shi looked at the Wei army in Henan again and again, then asked with a long sigh.

"Reporting to the general... Situ replied that due to the strong opposition in the court, the preparations for moving the capital are insufficient. Now... we have not started yet."

"Send someone to urge them. If anyone refuses to obey, they will be executed!" Sima Shi's face was calm and he did not seem surprised at all. He just gave the order indifferently and then continued to look at Henan.

At this moment, he was like a sheep cornered by a tiger. Watching the Han army pressing forward with great momentum, he could not see any chance at all.

This is the most crucial battle for their family's survival! Not only can they not lose this battle too quickly, they can't lose too badly!

Well, as a tough guy who strategically moved all the way from the northwest to Hebei, Sima Shi also had some self-knowledge. Facing Ma Su's army, he had no chance of winning. Now his biggest hope was to lose gracefully and delay as much time as possible.

But it was obvious that the Han army did not intend to give him any hope. As more and more intelligence was delivered, bad news came one after another. The Shu general Ju Fu led 10,000 troops from Hanoi to Jizhou to support Xiahou Ba. With the support of the Shu army, the remnants of Xiahou turned the offensive and forced Yang Hu to almost withdraw from Qinghe County.

As for Bingzhou and the north, they were invaded by the Shu army. Under the two-pronged advance of Wang Ping and Ke Bineng, the entire western battlefield was in crisis.

Sima Shi's place was the only place where the fighting had not yet begun. But at the same time, it was also the place that was under the greatest pressure.

"Reporting to the general, the Shu army in Henan has camps stretching for nearly 200 miles. Judging from the number of camps, there should be 150,000 soldiers and horses!"

The scouts sent out to investigate quickly found out the size of the Han army. After this information spread, all the generals in the Wei army camp were afraid.

They only have 50,000 men, while the Shu army on the other side of the river has 150,000! Not only that, Wei's nightmare Ma Su is personally in charge!

The only thing standing in their way was the Yellow River...

"General, why don't we lead our troops to block the Baima Ferry to prevent the Shu army from crossing the river!" Some generals were afraid of the Shu army's offensive, so they suggested to Sima Shi.

"The only thing we can rely on is the natural barrier of the Yellow River. So why not block the ferry with a large army to prevent the Shu army from crossing the river? This may delay them for longer."

In response, Sima Shi glanced at him with a gloomy expression and said coldly,
"What you mean is... there is only one ferry crossing on this section of the Yellow River, Baima Ferry? All we need to do is block this ferry crossing and everything will be fine?"

This sentence stumped the general. After a moment of silence, he retreated obediently.

Sima Shi was right. There was more than one ferry crossing on the Yellow River in Yanzhou. From Hulao to the east, there were dozens of ferry crossings along the entire river.

Therefore, as long as the Han army wanted to force a crossing of the Yellow River, Sima Shi's limited force would be unable to stop them.

“So don’t think about relying on the Yellow River to block the attack. If Ma Su wants to launch a surprise attack, even Tongguan can’t stop him.” Sima Shi snorted coldly and glanced at the generals.

"Pass on my order. The entire army will retreat 15 miles and give up Baimadu!"

Sima Shi's words frightened all the generals. It's too late to think of ways to avoid the battle now, why are you giving the Shu army a chance to fight?

However, Sima Shi did not give them a chance to speak and made the decision without hesitation. Then the 50,000 Wei troops took the initiative to retreat more than ten miles, giving up a large area on the north bank of Baimadu.

Ma Su soon learned that the Wei army had taken the initiative to retreat more than ten miles. After seeing Sima Shi's move, Ma Su raised his eyebrows.

"Has Master Sima become so confident after not seeing him for a few years? He even gave up the battlefield on his own initiative. Does he want to fight a decisive battle with us?"

Taking the initiative to retreat and setting up camp to prepare for battle clearly showed that they were planning a decisive battle. This surprised Ma Su, as he had already made preparations to force a crossing of the Yellow River.

But soon, Liu Yin, who was standing next to him, saw something. He pondered for a moment, then said to Ma Su,
"Sir, this is a conspiracy of the Wei army. They are probably putting on this posture to lure us across the river to fight. In this way, they can limit the battle line to the Baima area and don't have to face the difficulties of fighting on multiple fronts."

"This is all a setup. General, you must not fall into Sima Shi's trap!"

(End of this chapter)