The Rebellious Officials and Traitors of the Late Han Dynasty

Chapter 277 Defeat is decided
In the camp outside the city, Jia Xu and others soon received intelligence that a foul odor was coming from the city.

All the generals looked at Jia Xu with strange eyes.

Jia Xu's expression was calm, as if he had done something insignificant.

"It seems that the enemy will not launch an attack in the short term."

Jia Xu said quietly.

Although the method was not presentable, it must be said that the effect was very good. At the very least, tens of thousands of Yuan's troops had no chance of resistance in the short term and would not risk leaving the city for a field battle.

After all, the other side also has an army of 50,000 to 60,000. Such a large team, and all of them are elite soldiers, will cause great casualties to the Cavalry Army once they go out of the city to fight.

It is people like Jia Xu who force the enemy to not dare to launch an attack at this time.

"Hmph, they dare to come out. I will teach them a lesson." Wei Yan said loudly.

"I know Wen Chang's bravery, but now there are 60,000 enemies, so we should be cautious. Five days later, send 500 dan of food every three days. They won't be full, but they won't starve to death."

Jia Xu estimated that the food in the city would not last for a few days. He just needed to feed some food to ensure that the 60,000 troops would not die, but would have no fighting power. Only in this way could he subdue the 60,000 troops at the last moment.

These people were all elite soldiers and generals that Yuan Shao had gathered with money. Unfortunately, they were all killed in Puyang City because of Yuan Shao's greed, and even affected Yuan Shao's overall situation.

"Yes!" Wei Yan quickly responded.

After witnessing how terrifying Jia Xu was, Wei Yan became very honest in front of him.

"We need to build beacon towers on the banks of the Yellow River to prevent Yuan Shao from taking the risk of crossing the river. Our cavalry will be divided into two parts, ready to rush to the major ferry crossings of the Yellow River at any time." Jia Xu ordered again.

"Don't worry, military advisor. There is a small beacon tower within a hundred steps."

Wei Yan responded loudly.

"Fortunately, it is the Yellow River, and the current is turbulent, which is not conducive to boats crossing the river. Otherwise, it would be very difficult for us to defend against Yuan Shao's attack on this long shore."

Jia Xu sighed.

"I'm afraid it won't be long before Yuan Shao realizes what's going on. By then, he may not rescue these 60,000 troops." Wei Yan was a little worried.

"If that's the case, don't we also have 60,000 troops? The forces are increasing and decreasing. Yuan Shao lost 60,000 troops at the beginning. How can he fight us?"

Jia Xu looked at everyone leisurely and contentedly.

"Some people think that the war between us and Yuan Shao has just begun, but in fact, our war started half a year ago. When Yuan Shao sent his troops to Yanzhou, my war had already begun, and the lord had already begun to make plans."

After hearing this, the generals nodded repeatedly, and their confidence increased significantly.

What can poor Yuan Shao do with so many soldiers and horses?
It has only been a short time and they have already lost 60,000 troops. How can they continue this war?

"Block Puyang, not a single bird can leave the city."

Jia Xu said coldly.

"I will wait for my orders."

The generals responded loudly.

In Yecheng, Yuan Shao’s central army had just set out when they received battle reports from the front line.

Originally, Yuan Shao was very happy that Gao Gan broke through Guandu Port and entered Yanzhou. But in the blink of an eye, a fire in Guandu made him realize that Gao Gan had fallen into a trap.

"The Cavalry deliberately lured Gao Gan to cross the river, and then burned Gao Gan's food supplies. What should we do now?" Yuan Shao summoned his men and asked.

"My lord, food and fodder are secondary. The key is the ship."

Guo Tu smiled bitterly.

"Our ships are all on the south bank. There are not many ships on the north bank. It is difficult for hundreds of thousands of troops to cross the Yellow River. Even if we need to prepare ships, it will take at least ten days or half a month."

When Yuan Shao heard this, he took a deep breath.

If it really takes ten days or half a month, the daylily will be cold. Can Yuan Tan and Gao Gan on the other side hold out for ten days or half a month? Do they have enough food and grass?

"My lord, Puyang is a big city with many wealthy households. The grain stored there should be able to sustain the army for a while longer." Ju Su comforted.

In fact, even he himself would not believe what he said. In the past, there were only 30,000 troops, and perhaps they could hold out for a while longer. But now there are 60,000 troops, and the daily consumption of food and grass is as much as a thousand stones. How long can the food reserves in Puyang City hold out?
He glanced at Yuan Shao, and there was a hint of advice in his words.

Yuan Shao shook his head. If it was only 20,000 or 30,000 troops, it would be fine to give up, but how could he give up easily with 60,000 troops?
"Is there no other way?"

Yuan Shao asked.

"Even if we have the last boat and can cross the river safely, once the enemy attacks us halfway across the river, no matter how many soldiers we have, we will not be able to reach the other side and the losses will be very heavy. What I mean is to take a detour and cross the river from other places rather than confront Qin Shou head-on." Guo Tu persuaded.

What Guo Tu said made sense, but crossing the river from other places was certainly safe, but it was also time-consuming.

Can the 60,000 troops in Puyang City hold out for so long? Moreover, the main force has already set out, and now it is impossible to turn eastward from Yanjin Port and land from other places.

"Forget about crossing the river from other places. Immediately mobilize civilians to build boats. Anything that can cross the river will do." Yuan Shao waved his hand and ordered, "Order Han Juzi and Lu Weihuang to lead 30,000 troops eastward to find other places to cross the river and wait for an opportunity to attack Yanzhou."

Yuan Shao was a smart man with many advisers and strong soldiers. He simply arranged the suggestions of both sides. He could attack head-on or make a detour from the flank. His main strategy was to have the best of both worlds.

Only Yuan Shao could do this.

If it were Cao Cao, he would abandon his 60,000 troops without hesitation, lead the cavalry across the river from other places, and choose the battlefield himself.

For a person like Yuan Shao, all choices were made by the other party, which made him seem very passive.

Qin Shou was different from Yuan Shao. He had the upper hand and started planning very early. By the time the other party reacted, it was already too late.

Isn’t Yuan Shao here a typical example?
If you are led by the nose by others, in the end, the other party will just eat you up completely.

But even so, Yuan Shao didn't know it.

Who told him not to know how to give up?
He should have abandoned Yuan Tan at the beginning and looked for a suitable battlefield elsewhere. He should have relied on his superior forces to launch a head-on attack and defeated the powerful enemy with an upright army.

So far, Yuan Shao has not discovered his own weakness.

The defeat is set.

In the land of Yuzhou.

Guan Yu was talking to a young man, looking very relaxed.

"Zilong, if big brother saw you, he would definitely be very happy."

"Yun also wants to meet Envoy Liu."

Zhao Yun also showed a look of joy.

(End of this chapter)