Can I get to the other side?.

Chapter 311 Can an ordinary person recognize my Eight Gates Golden Lock Formation?

Puyang City, official warehouse.

"This damned Cao thief! Not only did he take the people away, he also didn't even leave a grain of rice for this general!"

Lu Bu ordered his men to open the door of the official granary. Looking at the empty granary without even a grain of rice left, he could not help but kick over the grain bin next to him and stood there cursing.

They entered Puyang City without any hindrance.

Just as the village chief of Huangniu Village said, there was not even a single defender in the city, and the army successfully occupied the entire Puyang City.

But this is a completely empty city!

Just like Huangniu Village, most of the people in Puyang City were taken away by Cao's army, leaving only some elderly and disabled people.

Not only that, even food and supplies were not spared. They did not gain any benefit from occupying the city, and they also had to be responsible for the elderly and weak in the city.

Therefore, even though he took the city without any injury, Lu Bu did not feel very happy. Instead, he was depressed and full of anger.

Because what he wants is victory, a big victory!
The honor of a military commander is to defeat the enemy head-on and win, rather than not seeing even the shadow of the enemy from the time of crossing the river and then taking a city inexplicably.

The land was recovered, but the wanted thief was not seen.

More importantly, he represents the face of the imperial court, and he has to take care of the elderly and the weak in the city.

How can he achieve meritorious service? How can he make progress?

"Not only Puyang, I'm afraid that the troops, supplies and people of the entire Dongjun and even the entire Yanzhou have been taken away by Cao thieves."

A voice came faintly from behind Lu Bu.

It was Sima Yi.

Although the series of misjudgments dealt him a heavy blow, he had now adjusted his state and calmly analyzed and assessed the current situation.

"At first I thought Cao would defend Yanzhou to the death, but I was wrong. He had no such idea at all."

"I just went to ask the people in the city. Half a month ago, Cao's army began to withdraw food and supplies and began to plunder the people everywhere."

“He can’t just do this in Puyang.”

"Puyang is the seat of Dongjun. Giving up this place is equivalent to giving up Dongjun. If Cao Cao intends to defend Yanzhou to the death, he will not give up Dongjun."

"In my opinion, Cao thief is planning to abandon Yanzhou."

Sima Yi said in a deep voice that he had previously misjudged the situation and overestimated Cao Cao's determination to resist, which was the fundamental reason for his misjudgment.

But he now understood Cao Cao's intention, but he really couldn't think of any reason why Cao Cao would retreat in this way.

"Give up Yanzhou?"

Lu Bu was surprised after hearing this, then looked at Sima Yi suspiciously and asked, "Are you... sure?"

Feeling the suspicion and disbelief in Lu Bu's eyes, Sima Yi's eyes twitched and a great sense of shame emerged in his heart.

As a strategist, he was actually questioned by Lu Bu, a stubborn man who only knew how to lead troops in battle, but he had no way to refute anything.

It was because he made wrong judgments several times before.

If they had crossed the Yellow River and entered Dongjun earlier as Lu Bu suggested, they might have been able to catch up with the retreating Cao army.

Sima Yi took a deep breath, suppressed the frustration in his heart, and said: "Lord Wen, trust me again, I will definitely be right this time."

"Cao's bandits are going to evacuate so many people, supplies, and troops, so they can't move quickly. We should head straight to Guandu and hunt down the enemy!"

"If we can capture Guandu, Yuzhou will be in the hands of Duke Wen!"

If we continue to occupy the counties of Yanzhou one by one, it will undoubtedly be a waste of time and give the enemy a chance to retreat.

The best way is to lead the troops to chase after them immediately!
Hearing Sima Yi's firm words, Lu Bu thought for a moment and finally agreed, saying in a fierce voice: "Then chase!"

We can't find the enemy's location at the moment. Instead of wandering around Yanzhou like a headless fly, we might as well go straight to Guandu.

It would be best if we could catch up with the retreating enemy troops. If not, we can at least confirm the enemy's situation. It is impossible for Cao Cao to give up even the important place of Guandu.

He was not afraid that the enemy would ambush him.

He was afraid that the enemy would not fight him!
After deciding to adopt Sima Yi's suggestion, Lu Bu immediately ordered the infantry to recapture the major cities in Yanzhou, while he himself assembled 5,000 Bingzhou cavalry and headed straight for Guandu.

……

Just as Sima Yi expected.

Cao Cao did not intend to hold on to Yanzhou.

Before learning the news that the imperial army was marching, he had already ordered Cao Ren, who was stationed in Yanzhou, to begin evacuating the population, supplies and the few soldiers and horses from various counties of Yanzhou to Yuzhou.

All that's left are empty cities.

The reason why the evacuation was slow was that they had to pretend to be evacuated so as not to be noticed by Sun Quan and others.

However, the imperial army has now moved south, and Sun Quan also needs to start dealing with the enemy and has no time to spare, so there is no need to worry about increasing the speed of retreat at this time.

The mobilization of troops had already been completed, and now the main things being withdrawn are the population and supplies from Yanzhou.

Yanzhou is located in the Central Plains and has a large population and abundant resources. If it is given away for free, it will undoubtedly strengthen the enemy's strength.

The best option is to take them all away.

Guandu.

A series of pontoon bridges were built across the water, and the people were crossing the river in long lines under the supervision and drive of the soldiers. In addition, there were horse-drawn carriages and ox-drawn carts loaded with food and supplies.

"Hurry up! Hurry up!"

"One by one, dawdle!"

"If you don't hurry up, I'll beat you up!"

The soldiers of Cao's army held whips in their hands and shouted at the people fiercely, urging them to cross the river. Anyone who walked a little slower would be whipped.

Although the people who crossed the river were full of resentment, they did not dare to resist facing the armed soldiers of Cao's army and could only choose to swallow their anger.

After all, this is Cao Cao's army, the army that once massacred Xuzhou three times!

Not far from the shore.

Cao Ren looked at the people crossing the river in large numbers, turned his head and asked an unusually young general beside him, "Zidan, where are the troops from the imperial court now?"

Cao Zhen thought for a moment and answered truthfully: "According to the news sent back the day before yesterday, Lü Bu has crossed the Yellow River into Dongjun and captured Puyang City."

"We don't have much time." Cao Ren frowned upon hearing this and said in a deep voice, "They have already entered Dongjun. It won't take long for them to find out that we have withdrawn our troops from Yanzhou."

"We must speed up the retreat."

Cao Zhen sighed, "General, it's not that I don't want to speed up, but I just can't."

It is not an easy task to retreat with so many civilians. After all, civilians are not the army, and it is extremely difficult to manage them.

Even though they had retreated several days in advance, nearly half of the people still had not yet retreated, so it would take quite some time.

"Try harder." Cao Ren knew the task was arduous, but he had to urge him, "Zhang Liao has already led his troops into Xuzhou and will fight Sun Quan soon."

“When the two sides are fighting fiercely, it will be a good opportunity for our lord to lead his troops to Jiangdong. Before that, we must guard Guandu well and never let Lu Bu enter Yuzhou before we send troops to Jiangdong, thus ruining our lord’s plan!” If so many people are not evacuated, the impact will be unimaginable when Lu Bu leads his troops to attack us.

But Cao Cao was reluctant to give up the people.

Cao Zhen gritted his teeth and said, "Yes!"

Cao Ren nodded. Just as he was about to give a few words of advice, a soldier came up on horseback and reported to him anxiously, "General, Lu Bu is leading 5,000 cavalrymen straight to Guandu and has already reached Wuchao!"

"what?!"

Cao Ren's expression suddenly changed when he heard this.

I was greatly shocked.

Although he had anticipated that the enemy would attack Guandu, he was still not prepared for such a quick move.

They took over Dongjun just the day before yesterday, and today they have reached Wuchao. This shows that after entering Dongjun, the enemy did not lead the entire army to attack Jiyin and Shanyang counties.

He headed straight for Guandu, obviously having noticed their intention to retreat.

How could a common man like Lu Bu have such sharp insight?

Cao Zhen reacted immediately, clasped his fists to Cao Ren, and said solemnly: "General, I will lead the Tiger and Leopard Cavalry to stop the enemy!"

Guandu is the top priority.

The Tiger and Leopard Cavalry were also deployed here.

But Cao Ren refused without hesitation, shaking his head and saying, "No! According to reliable intelligence, Lü Bu's Bingzhou Wolf Cavalry is no less powerful than the Tiger and Leopard Cavalry. You are no match for Lü Bu. If you go, you will surely die."

"You continue to stay and evacuate the people and supplies. I will lead the troops to stop Lu Bu!"

He had fought with Lu Bu before, and he knew very well how terrifying this guy was. Even with the Tiger and Leopard Cavalry, it would be difficult to resist him.

"General, how can this be possible?"

Cao Zhen's expression changed, and he said anxiously: "The garrison at Guandu only has 10,000 infantrymen. How can they resist Lu Bu's 5,000 elite cavalry?"

Lu Bu's bravery is unparalleled in the world. He was able to defeat Sun Ce and kill him when he led a thousand cavalrymen. What's more, he now has a full five thousand cavalrymen!
It should be noted that infantry is always at a disadvantage against cavalry!

Cao Ren did not explain, but said calmly: "Don't worry, I have my own way to stop Lu Bu, and I will mobilize troops immediately."

"Lü Bu... humph, this time I will make sure he never returns!"

Hearing Cao Ren's confident words, Cao Zhen's heart was slightly shaken. Although he couldn't guess Cao Ren's thoughts, he still followed his orders and assembled the army.

……

Wuchao.

Lu Bu had already led his troops here. He led 5,000 cavalrymen all the way from Dongjun and indeed found clues and traces of Cao's retreat.

"General, according to our scouts, Cao's army is currently evacuating civilians and food supplies from Guandu. Everything is just as the military advisor said!"

Gao Shun reported the information obtained by the scouts truthfully.

Lu Bu was in high spirits, and gave Sima Yi a thumbs-up, praising him: "The military advisor is indeed as good as a god. I knew it was right to listen to the military advisor!"

Upon hearing this, Sima Yi breathed a sigh of relief.

This time, nothing went wrong. Everything was just as he had expected. Cao's army gave up Yanzhou and withdrew to defend Yuzhou.

Otherwise it would be really shameful.

After calming down, Sima Yi continued, "Lord Wen, we must hurry up and attack now. We must not let Cao's army evacuate the people so easily."

"Besides, Cao's army is currently organizing the people to cross the river. If we suddenly attack them, they will certainly not be able to organize a defense in a short period of time. This is a great opportunity for us to capture Guandu!"

If we don't attack now, when will we attack?

We must kill the enemy by surprise!
"Don't worry, leave it to me!"

Lu Bu had been looking forward to fighting the enemy for a long time. Upon hearing this, his eyes were filled with fighting spirit. He agreed immediately and ordered the army to continue advancing towards Guandu.

But not long after, the army stopped advancing.

Because there was a large army blocking their way.

It’s Cao’s army!

Seeing the enemy coming to fight, Lu Bu was extremely excited and laughed, "Good job! I'm itching to fight!"

"Since you dare to present it to me, I will gladly accept this gift to His Majesty as a token of his great victory in the first battle!"

The Cao army in front of him not only did not flee from him, but also dared to fight against his 5,000 elite cavalry with infantry. It seems that his reputation has been underestimated!
Lu Bu was about to lead his troops to charge.

"Wait a minute, Lord Wen!"

Sima Yi's expression changed, and he reached out to stop Lu Bu. He stared at the Cao army not far away with great vigilance, and said in a deep voice: "I'm afraid there is a trick here!"

Hearing these familiar words, Lu Bu's face suddenly fell, and the good impression he had finally developed towards Sima Yi disappeared again.

He said impatiently: "What kind of trick is that? He only has 10,000 infantrymen. How can he resist my 5,000 elite cavalry?"

"Just wait and see how I, the general, will break through their army formation!"

It would have been fine if he had listened to Sima Yi before, but now the enemy was right in front of him and Sima Yi still stopped him and said it was a trap. Wasn't he kidding him?

Sima Yi shook his head and said, "Lord Wen, it's not that I'm suspicious, but since the other party knows your name, they dare to come with 10,000 infantrymen to stop us, which shows that they are very confident."

"Besides, this formation on the opposite side... is the first time I've seen it."

Sima Yi looked at the strange formation of the enemy not far away. He felt as if he had seen it somewhere before, but he couldn't remember where.

But his intuition told him that this formation was very strange.

"Bullshit formation!" Lu Bu snorted coldly, saying disdainfully: "I have elite cavalry at my disposal. Any formation will collapse in the face of my iron hooves! We just need to break through the formation, and they will be lambs to be slaughtered!"

After saying that, Lu Bu no longer listened to Sima Yi's dissuasion. He left a thousand soldiers outside for support, and then led four thousand cavalry alone to attack the enemy!
The momentum is like thunder rolling out of the blue, extremely terrifying!

Sima Yi felt a headache when he saw this.

The art of war is divided into three types: the yin and yang of war, the strategic plan of war, and the situation of war. What he learned was the strategic plan of war, and the formation of troops belongs to the art of yin and yang of war.

The military situation is the simplest, with one man guarding the pass against ten thousand, the enemy being numerous and we being few, and the weak defeating the strong. Historical figures such as Overlord Xiang Yu and Marquis Huo Qubing are in this category.

Lu Bu is also a leader in the military situation school.

But the Yin and Yang of military affairs is more complicated. The virtual is real and the real is virtual. The famous Han Xin, Marquis of Huaiyin, Jiang Shang, the ancestor of military strategists, and Sun Wu, the military saint, all follow this principle.

The Yin and Yang of military affairs naturally restrains the military situation.

Lu Bu was brave, but if he met a master of the Yin and Yang of war, he would definitely be no match for him. Otherwise, how could Xiang Yu have been defeated by Han Xin?
The formation in front of him was very complicated and he couldn't understand it. If Lu Bu rushed in rashly, he would most likely suffer a great loss.

But Lu Bu wouldn't listen to his advice right now, and there was nothing he could do. He could only hope that his intuition was wrong and that Lu Bu could defeat this Cao army in one fell swoop.

Among Cao’s army, on Longyan Terrace.

Cao Ren looked at Lu Bu who was charging at him aggressively, and could not help but smile coldly. He waved his hand and ordered, "How can a common man know the art of war? Today I will show you my Eight Gates Golden Lock Formation!"

(End of this chapter)