After listening carefully to Cao Cao's analysis of the current situation, Cao Hong, Xiahou Dun and Xiahou Yuan were unwilling to accept it and wanted to refute it. However, after careful consideration, they sadly found that they could not think of how to refute it.

There is no way. Cao Cao’s recent remarks have revealed the cruel reality. Now Cao Cao’s army has no better choice.

The military situation was urgent. After discussion, the four men quickly made a decision. They planned to escape as soon as Yuan Shu's army arrived, leaving Yuan Shu in Chaoyang to block Liu Biao's pursuers.

While Cao Cao was talking about Yuan Shu, Yuan Shu arrived.

A soldier came to report that Yuan Shu had arrived outside Chaoyang City.

Upon hearing that the sucker he had been waiting for had arrived, Cao Cao was secretly delighted and immediately took Cao Hong and others out to greet him.

Outside Chaoyang City, Yuan Shu was extremely pompous. He went out with a canopy, entered with a sedan chair, and even the ceremonial guards who accompanied him were all dressed in gorgeous clothes. It was so grand that if you didn't know better, you would have thought it was the emperor on a tour.

Obviously they were out to march and fight, but Yuan Shu behaved like he was out for a picnic, which greatly dissatisfied the generals of Cao Cao's army who had been fighting hard at the front line.

Cao Hong had a bad temper. Seeing Yuan Shu swaggering around like this, he couldn't help but curse in a low voice: "The battle hasn't even been won yet, and Yuan Gonglu is already putting on airs? Does he think he's the emperor?"

Cao Cao signaled to Cao Hong with his eyes not to talk nonsense, so as to avoid causing trouble.

Although Cao Hong was hot-tempered, he knew the seriousness of the matter and immediately kept silent.

Cao Cao took the initiative to greet Yuan Shu's carriage, straightened his clothes, and then greeted him respectfully, "Why didn't you inform me in advance that the general was coming? I could have sent someone to clean up in advance and set up a banquet to entertain him so as not to be impolite."

Seeing Cao Cao's humble attitude and words that were in line with his own wishes, Yuan Shu laughed happily and said, "Meng De, you are so thoughtful. I will definitely do it next time, next time."

Cao Cao smiled on his face, but he sneered in his heart: "You idiot, your doom is coming. It's hard to say whether there will be a next time."

Although he despised Yuan Shu, Cao Cao put on a full show. He immediately invited Yuan Shu to the city and held a grand banquet to show his respect and obedience to Yuan Shu.

Yuan Shu, this idiot, was no match for Cao Cao, the best actor. He was fooled into confusion and didn't know what was going on.

However, Yan Xiang, the chief clerk beside Yuan Shu, was not someone who was easily fooled. He frowned, suspecting that Cao Cao must have some plan.

As expected, after Cao Cao said a lot of good things and praised Yuan Shu highly, he took the opportunity to make a request: "General, our army is fighting on the front line and has consumed a huge amount of food and grass. Now you and I are allies and in the same camp. Can you lend a hand and provide some support?"

When Yuan Shu heard Cao Cao asking for food and money, he sobered up a little, and his hazy eyes quickly regained clarity. He looked at Cao Cao with a smile and began to shirk his responsibilities: "Meng De, you don't know. Money and food are difficult for Shu to handle."

The Yuan family had three officials in four generations and had been prepared for the current situation. However, no matter how much savings there were, there would come a day when they would be squandered. Therefore, Yuan Shu had no intention of agreeing to Cao Cao.

Yan Xiang, who was sitting next to Yuan Shu, breathed a sigh of relief, feeling that his lord was unusually wise and intelligent for a moment.

Cao Cao came up with another plan when his plan failed. He deliberately gritted his teeth and said to Yuan Shu: "General, if you are willing to provide some of our army's food and wages, I am willing to give up all the catapults in my hands."

"Are you serious, Meng De?"

Yuan Shu was stunned with astonishment, and looked at Cao Cao with an incredible expression, as if he was looking at a fool.

You should know that before this expedition, Yuan Shu had secretly been coveting the catapult in Cao Cao's hands, and on the way here, he had been thinking about what means to use, whether it was stealing or cheating, anyway, he had to get the copycat version of the giant stone cannon from Cao Cao.

Yuan Shu was also afraid that the price could not be negotiated and he would be sternly rejected by Cao Cao. After all, only a fool would sell such a siege weapon.

Unexpectedly, Cao Cao was such a fool that he used the trebuchet as a bargaining chip just for a little food.

Yuan Shu was about to agree, but Yan Xiang jumped out to stop him: "My lord, no, our army also has the Mohist Classic. If we want to obtain the giant stone cannon, we only need to order the craftsmen to copy it. Why spend so much money?"

Yan Xiang believed that Cao Cao had bad intentions and should not have agreed to give him money and food.

Even in Yan Xiang's eyes, Cao Cao, who was the best in both civil and military affairs, was a rare talent among men, and his existence was a great threat to Yuan Shu. He had top-notch counselors like Chen Gong, and many brave generals and heroes like Cao Ren, Xiahou Dun and Xiahou Yuan, and he himself was both civil and military.

If Cao Cao had not had a small number of soldiers and had not suffered several major defeats that led to a shortage of money and food, he would have long since become a soaring dragon and a ruling tiger. How could he have fallen to the situation he is in today?

Therefore, Yan Xiang firmly opposed this matter. When Yuan Shu heard his advisers strongly dissuading him, he also felt a little shaken.

Cao Cao secretly hated Yan Xiang for ruining his plan, but he continued to persuade Yuan Shu calmly: "Master Yan is wrong. Studying the Mohist Classic, drawing blueprints based on the principles, and even making the giant stone cannon all take time. Now that the war is imminent, distant water cannot quench immediate thirst. The rear general should try his best to seize the present moment."

After hearing what Cao Cao said, Yuan Shu thought about it carefully and felt that it made sense.

Having traveled through mountains and rivers to come here, it is natural that he has to fight quickly and decisively. And when attacking strong cities like Xiangyang and Fancheng, the more cards he has in his hand, the better.

Especially siege weapons such as stone cannons must be firmly controlled in one's own hands.

Yan Xiang wanted to persuade him again, but Yuan Shu had made up his mind and finally did as Cao Cao wished.

In this way, Cao Cao got the food and grass that could solve his urgent needs. After returning, he immediately summoned all the generals and announced: "Tomorrow evening, we will secretly gather the main force and withdraw the camp after nightfall."

Cao Cao’s idea was very simple. He would withdraw from the battlefield under the cover of night and sell out all his teammates.

Anyway, we have food now, which can sustain us for a while.

At this time, Yuan Shu was still kept in the dark and thought that Cao Cao would cooperate with him to attack Xiangyang and seize Jingzhou.

As a result, early the next morning, Yuan Shu summoned his generals Ji Ling, Li Feng, Lei Bu and others, deployed the army in the field, and prepared to attack Fancheng.

The army was mighty and powerful. Yuan Shu rode in a chariot with a canopy on his head, looking very proud and confident: "Hahaha, Liu Jingsheng, you dare to be an enemy of the Yuan family of Runan, you deserve to die!"

Yan Xiang looked at Cao Cao coldly and said, "General Fenwu, attacking Fancheng is a great achievement. Why don't you volunteer to be the vanguard and show your strength?"

Cao Cao knew that Yan Xiang was deliberately looking for trouble with him. As the saying goes, a man has to bow his head under the eaves, but he was about to escape, so naturally he was unwilling to send troops to attack the city and waste his family's wealth.

But in order to avoid Yuan Shu's suspicion, Cao Cao had to find an excuse to shirk his responsibility: "Our army has already captured Xinye and Chaoyang counties. Now it is like a spent force. It is difficult to penetrate the silk of Lu. We must rest for a few days before we have the strength to continue fighting."

Yan Xiang didn't believe a single word Cao Cao said.

According to the intelligence he collected, Cao Cao's army captured Xinye and Chaoyang mainly with the help of catapults, and the soldiers in the army had not experienced several fierce siege battles.

Both morale and physical strength are maintained in a fairly perfect condition.

Yan Xiang, who already had a prejudice against Cao Cao, saw Cao Cao shirking his responsibility and immediately sneered at him, "General Fenwu, do you want to preserve your strength?"

When Yuan Shu heard this, he was a little unhappy and looked straight at Cao Cao: "Meng De, is this true?"

Cao Cao had always been Yuan Shao's man before, and his relationship with Yuan Shu had never been good, so Yuan Shu did not trust him at all, and even had a lot of suspicion towards him.

If Cao Cao's help was not needed in this battle, Yuan Shu would even have thought about directly annexing Cao Cao's troops to strengthen himself.

Yuan Shu had done this kind of thing before.

The thousands of elite soldiers trained by Sun Jian were directly annexed by Yuan Shu after Sun Jian's death, leaving Sun Ce with no chance at all.

From this, we can see that Yuan Shu is a really greedy person. As the leader, he has no vision at all and even cheats his own younger brothers.

How could Cao Cao not know Yuan Shu's true nature?
Seeing Yuan Shu's suspicion, Cao Cao had to defend himself again: "General, Yan Zhubu, it's not that our army is conserving its strength, it's just that this battle is too important. We must conserve our energy and prepare for the subsequent fierce battles. What's more, with the help of catapults, it won't be difficult to break the city. If Yan Zhubu insists that our army go to battle, then I will gladly accept the credit for taking Fancheng."

After saying this, Cao Cao deliberately put on an expectant look, with a smile on his face, and looked at Yuan Shu.

Yuan Shu was very nervous when he saw this. He thought, if he led a large army to support the battle, but failed to achieve any success, wouldn't Cao Cao steal all the limelight?

There will definitely be rumors spreading at that time. If I am outdone by Cao Cao, how can I convince the people in the future?

Cao Cao has already captured the two cities of Xinye and Chaoyang, and now he will take Fancheng. This southern expedition to Jingzhou has become a stage for Cao Cao. Cao Cao has already been shining brightly on the stage. If he ends up being dull and bleak, how will people in the world view him?

No!

This is absolutely not okay!
Yuan Shu was born to be a person who liked to be in the limelight. If Cao Cao wanted to preserve his strength, he would become very suspicious.

But Cao Cao now seemed eager to try and wanted to show off his achievements, so Yuan Shu couldn't help but feel suspicious.

In the end, Yuan Shu still felt that he had siege weapons like catapults in his hands, so how could he lose with a flying dragon riding on his face?
In this way, it would be a piece of cake to capture Fancheng. Instead of handing over such a great achievement to Cao Cao, it would be better to take it for himself.

After making up his mind, Yuan Shu waved his hand and said to Cao Cao in a generous tone: "Meng De, since your soldiers are exhausted, it's okay to rest for a while. But you and I must make it clear that after you capture Fancheng, you can't refuse to fight again if there is another battle."

Yuan Shu began to think in his mind that the two cities of Xiang and Fan were actually one and the same, both being the gateways for Jingzhou to defend against external threats. Therefore, if Fancheng was attacked, Xiangyang would definitely send reinforcements.

In this way, he could let Cao Cao lead his army to block the attack, and then take the opportunity to bring the main force into Fancheng and pick the big peach in front of him.

With 100,000 armored soldiers in Jingzhou, stopping the enemy is definitely a tough job, with great risks and little benefit, it is simply a thankless task.

But it is different if we take Fancheng. Not to mention that Fancheng is rich and prosperous, the strategic significance of this city alone is extraordinary and the benefits are enormous!
In almost the blink of an eye, Yuan Shu calculated the gains and losses clearly, leaving the fat for himself and leaving the hard bones for Cao Cao to chew, not even wanting to share a bowl of soup with him.

Cao Cao himself was a master of tactics and strategy, so how could Yuan Shu's little tricks be hidden from his sharp eyes?
Therefore, Cao Cao remained calm, just smiled and agreed: "Of course, if there are reinforcements coming to Xiangyang, I will do my best to stop them, as long as the general does not forget the alliance between us."

Yuan Shu was delighted to see Cao Cao agree, and couldn't help showing a smile on his face: "Of course I haven't forgotten. After we take Xiangyang and capture Liu Biao, you and I will share Jingzhou. I will never break my promise!"

"Okay, then it's a deal between you and me!"

"a man of his words!"

The two sides shook hands, seemingly cooperating, but in fact they each had their own ulterior motives.

Yuan Shu treated Cao Cao as a tool. Once you captured Xiangyang and Fancheng and occupied such strategic locations, who would be stupid enough to share Jingzhou with you?

In Yuan Shu's eyes, Cao Cao was simply stupid for actually believing in a piece of paper alliance.

In Cao Cao's mind, Yuan Shu was also a fool whose brain had been kicked by a donkey.

I'm going to run away tonight. What does what happens after tomorrow have to do with me?

When reinforcements arrive from Xiangyang, you can handle it on your own!

Both of them had smiles on their faces and the atmosphere was very harmonious. As for what each of them was thinking in their hearts, perhaps only they themselves knew.

Boom~Boom~Boom~
The catapult swung its wooden pole and threw huge stones two hundred steps away, hitting the city wall with a loud bang like an earthquake.

Yuan Shu was personally supervising the battle at the front line. Seeing this scene, his blood boiled: "The catapult is truly a powerful weapon! With this weapon in hand, we can easily destroy the most fortified cities in the world! Hahahaha!"

He was so surprised that the catapult Cao Cao gave him was so powerful that it far exceeded his imagination.

Yuan Shu, who originally felt a little distressed for allocating a batch of food and fodder to Cao Cao, now felt that the money was well spent.

Even Yan Xiang, who had been opposed to this matter before, was shocked speechless after seeing the tremendous power of the catapult with his own eyes.

For the first time in his heart, he felt fear and uneasiness about Mohism because of the unknown technology.

The Mohist mechanical arts, which were once extremely prominent during the Xian Qin Dynasty, disappeared after the battle of Afang Palace. However, they are now popular again with the help of giant stone cannons.
Even the counselor Yuan Huan could not help but remind Yuan Shu: "My lord, this thing is made according to the records in the Mohist Classic, imitating the giant stone cannon. And it is said that the power of the authentic giant stone cannon is several times greater than this. Both the range and power are far beyond the catapult owned by Cao Mengde."

When Yuan Shu heard this, his face changed several times and he became more and more uneasy.

Having never seen the power of the stone cannon and having only heard about it from others, Yuan Shu didn't take it too seriously before.

But at this moment, he had witnessed the tremendous power of the catapult with his own eyes, and his heart was filled with emotions, and it took a long time for him to calm down.

And a catapult with such terrifying power is actually just a copycat version?

So how earth-shatteringly powerful would a genuine stone cannon be?
Yuan Shu didn't dare to imagine, if Wang Jing used the giant stone cannon to attack his own nest, could his own nest, Nanyang City, really withstand it?
Just by slightly deducing it in his mind, Yuan Shu broke out in a cold sweat.

Although Nanyang is a big city, it is far inferior to the two cities of Xiangfan in terms of geographical advantages and city wall defense. How can it withstand the bombardment of the giant stone cannon?

Can't stop!
It's impossible to stop it!

Seeing Yuan Shu's uncertain expression, Yuan Huan immediately guessed what he was thinking and took the opportunity to say, "My lord, Cao Mengde doesn't have the money to develop a better trebuchet, but we do. However, in order to achieve results as soon as possible, we should ask Cao Cao to hand over the design drawings, and then we will gather craftsmen to make improvements. This will greatly improve efficiency."

"What Yao Qing said is absolutely right. This general will gather the craftsmen and spare no expense to successfully replicate the giant stone cannon. I will never let Wang Yuanxu enjoy the benefits alone!"

The more Yuan Shu listened, the more he thought it made sense, so he immediately sent someone to ask Cao Cao: "Come here, help me get General Fenwu here."

"Yes!"

The messenger has gone.

But a moment later, the messenger came back, but the news he brought back was not good news: "General, Cao Cao has escaped!"

"Ran!?"

Yuan Shu couldn't believe his ears. Fancheng was almost taken and victory was imminent. Why were you, Cao Cao, running away?
"Are you sure you read that correctly?"

"General, I guarantee with my life that Cao Cao's camp is empty. They must have deserted the battlefield!"

Yuan Shu was furious and immediately sent people to the camp where Cao Cao's army was stationed.

After arriving there, they found that the entire camp was indeed empty. Even the food and fodder had been loaded onto trucks and taken away. They left in such a hurry without even saying hello. It was obviously premeditated.

"Cao Mengde, how dare you bully me like this!"

Yuan Shu was immediately furious. He was a man who cared a lot about his reputation, and Cao Cao's move clearly showed that he did not think highly of him, so he would rather betray his friend and flee overnight.

Just when Yuan Shu was furious, Cao Cao had already crossed the Yangtze River and started his journey back north.

He did not dare to enter Yuzhou via the official roads of Wuyin and Kunyang for fear of being blocked, so he deliberately took a detour, heading east first, crossing Queshan, and entering Runan along the rugged mountain road.

Langling County is located on the north bank of the Huai River and controls the northern throat. It has an extremely important strategic location and is the first line of defense for Yuzhou in defense of Jingzhou.

It's a pity that the person who rules here now is a pedantic Confucian scholar who has neither ambition nor breadth of mind. This so-called celebrity is, after all, nothing more than an incompetent person who only knows how to talk about lofty theories and complain about life.

Cao Cao led an army of 10,000, who had traveled across mountains and rivers, and their men and horses were exhausted. If Kong Jun had had some ability, he would have only needed 3,000 soldiers to kill Cao Cao outside the city of Langling.

However, Kong Jun did not send out troops. Instead, he was even more afraid that Cao Cao was using the city as a pretext to attack Guo and was worried that Cao Cao would do something bad to him, so he simply refused to allow Cao Cao to enter the city.

But after refusing, Kong Jun was afraid that this move would anger Cao Cao, so he agreed to provide him with food and grass, hoping to buy peace with money. (End of this chapter)