Prancing Horse Xiliang

Chapter 379
The little principal said sadly: "My lord, I don't know. As soon as the Xiliang army attacked the city, Mr. Chen Gong opened the west gate and surrendered. The young master was really defeated. After Xuchang was destroyed, he was already dead."

"what……"

Cao Cao was completely stunned and couldn't recover for a while.

Cheng Yu, Xun You, Liu Ye and a group of generals were also stunned, their eyes widened and their faces were full of disbelief.

The news that Chen Gong would turn his back on Cao Cao was too shocking.

Cao Cao let Chen Jun stay at his lair every time he went out, which shows how much he trusts Chen Gong.

But it was such a confidant who betrayed Cao Cao.

Even for a peerless hero like Cao Cao, Chen Gong's betrayal was a huge blow.

"Lord!"

Cheng Yu was the first to come back to his senses, and called softly.

Cao Cao's face was extremely livid, and he tried his best to suppress the anger in his heart, and asked in a deep voice, "How long ago did this happen?"

The small principal replied, "Five days ago."

General Li Dian hurriedly said: "My lord, Xuchang is the foundation of our army, and we cannot afford to lose it. Now that Luo Zheng has exhausted his army to attack, our army has reached the autumn of life and death. Please, my lord, quickly raise troops and go south to fight to the death with the Xiliang army!"

"No!"

Cheng Yu hurriedly said: "Although our army has repelled Yuan Shao, we have suffered heavy casualties. There are only tens of thousands of exhausted soldiers left. The [-] troops on the front line of Hulao Pass are almost wiped out. There is no chance of winning."

"Uh!"

Li Dian was speechless.

Xun You also nodded and said, "Our army has suffered heavy casualties. There is indeed no chance of winning a decisive battle with the Xiliang army at this time. I think that the Lord should retreat to Xuzhou, and then unite with Liu Qi, Sun Ce, and Yuan Shao to resist Luo Zheng. There is a [-]% chance of winning."

General Le Jin said: "However, Yuan Shao's hundreds of thousands of troops have been burned, and he may not be able to use foreign troops in a short period of time. Sun Ce is fighting with our army. How to form an alliance? Liu Qi in Jingzhou is weak, so he may not dare to fight against Luo Zheng. "

Cheng Yuning said: "It's up to people, so we have to try anyway. As long as we can repel Luo Zheng's Xiliang army, even if Huainan and Lujiang counties are handed over to Sun Ce, it's not impossible. Now Luo Zheng is our army's biggest enemy."

Cao Cao groaned and gave up Xuchang. This was really a difficult decision.

Xuchang is his lair, and giving up Xuchang is equivalent to giving up the entire Central Plains.

If the Central Plains were handed over this time, it would be impossible to take control of the Central Plains in the future.

Cao Cao knows better than anyone that it is no longer the time for princes to rise together. After ten years of fighting, there are only five most powerful princes left in the world today, and among them Luo Zheng who occupies Guanliang and Xichuan The most powerful.

After this battle, Yuan Shao was afraid that he would no longer be able to use foreign troops in a short period of time.

Sun Ceyuan is in Jiangdong, let alone Liu Qi in Jingzhou, he is a puppet, and he dare not provoke Luo Zheng at all.

Once Luo Zheng is allowed to take control of the Central Plains, Cao Cao knows that he will completely lose the foundation of competing in the world.

It is precisely because I understand this that it is difficult to make a decision.

Even a hero like Cao Cao couldn't help hesitating when faced with such a difficult choice.

"Report-"

At this moment, another scream sounded from outside the tent, making everyone's hearts jump a few times in shock.

Amid the sound of hasty footsteps, a small principal rushed into the tent and said in a loud voice, "My lord, we found Xiliang cavalry fifty miles away."

"what?"

Everyone was surprised again, the Xiliang army came so fast.

Cao Cao asked in a deep voice, "How many Xiliang cavalry were found?"

The little school replied: "About [-]!"

"Thirty thousand!"

Cao Cao's eyes froze all of a sudden, and his small eyes rolled around quickly.

Cheng Yu's face changed again, and he said in a concentrated voice: "Master, the situation has changed. It must be that Luo Zheng has already left Hulao Pass and came directly to Guandu. Guandu is only more than four hundred miles away from Hulao Pass, and at most tomorrow Luo Zheng's Xiliang can be killed, and the Central Plains is no longer defendable, in view of this, Yu thinks that our army should quickly withdraw to Xuzhou."

Xun You also said solemnly: "The Xiliang cavalry come and go like the wind. If our army follows Chenliu's official route, we will definitely be overtaken. I think that the Lord should lead the army northward to Dongjun overnight, pass through Puyang east to Rencheng Kingdom, and then from Rencheng country entered Xuzhou."

The atmosphere in the big tent was extremely oppressive, and everyone held their breath.

Faced with the advancing Xiliang army, everyone felt as if a mountain was pressing on their chests, and they could hardly breathe.

Even Zhang He, Gao Lan and other generals from Hebei, who stood behind and had not had time to meet Cao Cao, felt a huge pressure inexplicably.

Cao Cao's face was changing, and he was fighting fiercely in his heart. Facing the biggest decision in his life, Cao Cao, the peerless hero, showed an extremely decisive side. See!"

Cheng Yu hurriedly said: "We still need to set up a suspicious formation before we can get rid of the Xiliang cavalry!"

Cao Cao said 'hmm' and said in a deep voice, "Do it quickly!"

"As ordered!"

Everyone bowed their hands and quickly withdrew from the military tent.

Only then did Cao Cao look at Zhang He, Gao Lan and other generals who had surrendered from Hebei, and said with a smile, "The four must be Zhang He, Gao Lan, Ma Yan, and Jiao Touch?"

"See Mr. Cao!"

Zhang He and other generals did not dare to neglect, and hurried forward to pay their respects.

"The four generals are free!"

Cao Cao quickly stepped forward, helped the four generals Zhang and He, and said with admiration: "Cao is in the Central Plains, and I have heard the names of the four generals. They are all heroes in Hebei, and they are also famous generals in the world! Thanks to the four generals who voted, What a blessing!"

The four generals were all ashamed and said: "The general of the defeated army is so brave, thank you Duke Cao for your praise!"

Cao Cao waved his hands again and again, and said: "This statement is wrong. Victory and defeat are common in military affairs. Cao Cao has led troops for many years, and he has also been defeated by Xiliang Luo Zheng several times. The four generals don't have to be modest. The Central Plains is in dire straits, and the four generals are still willing to vote, which shows their friendship. I am willing to make an agreement with the four generals. If I can repel the Xiliang invading army this time, I will enjoy the wealth and honor with the four generals forever. , never doubt, never forsake the Lord, how about it?"

"See the lord, willing to serve the lord!"

Four generals Zhang He bowed down solemnly, without any other thoughts in his mind.

At this moment, the four generals were all very emotional, and they were all overwhelmed by Cao Cao's demeanor.

Compared with Cao Cao, Yuan Shao was inferior in both his openness and charisma. Zhang Hesi had served under Yuan Shao for many years, and he had never heard such heartfelt words.

To meet such an enlightened master, even if he died in battle, there would be nothing to regret.

"Get up quickly!"

Cao Cao lifted the four generals Zhang He and smiled gratifiedly.

Right now Xiliang's army is attacking with all their strength, and the foundation of the Central Plains is about to be lost. It is because of the concerted efforts of the three armies, when the three armies are putting their lives to work, it is always a big help to have the four wholeheartedly serving, there is no reason to let it go.

(End of this chapter)