Three Kingdoms: My Strategy Simulator

Along the edge of the dense forest, in different directions, it was as if eighteen small suns had risen simultaneously, dispelling large patches of darkness. The glaring, scorching flames illuminated every face.

Inside the dense forest were the panicked and bewildered Cao troops, while outside the dense forest were the Liu troops, exuding an air of grim determination.

If the commotion caused by the ambush set within the dense forest had already made many Cao troops, unable to see ahead, feel uneasy and frightened,

then the sudden rise of the eighteen soaring flames truly plunged the Cao troops into chaos.

Being in the dim dense forest, yet witnessing a raging fire ahead…

Even though Cao Cao's discipline was undeniably strict, and these soldiers, the foundation of his power, were undeniably elite, they were driven by instinct, and everyone felt endangered, harboring thoughts of escape.

Moreover, as the fires along the edge of the dense forest began to rise and expand, the twenty thousand ambush troops hidden outside, accompanied by the stirring war drums, shouted in unison.

"Kill!"

"Kill!!!"

For a moment, even Cao Cao felt alarmed and frightened, as if the ambush troops behind the fire were about to charge over. He tugged on Zhuiying, instinctively retreating.

Suddenly, Cao Cao's expression shifted, the panic on his face quickly receding, and his slender eyes regained their usual calm and wisdom.

This ambush… it's not right!

If Li Ji's forces were truly sufficient to ambush and kill Cao Cao's nearly sixty thousand troops, then he should have waited for more Cao troops to step out of the dense forest before launching the encirclement.

The ambush troops commanded by Li Ji appeared momentarily as if the sky were falling and the earth were cracking, as if they were going to completely bury the Cao troops within the dense forest with the fire.

However, the ambush troops outside the dense forest made a lot of noise, but they never intended to enter the dense forest to pursue and kill. They were merely waving flags and shouting, pretending to be powerful.

More importantly…

Cao Cao looked at the clusters of fire rising at various points along the edge of the dense forest, his heart stirred. He looked up, using the firelight to see the leaves above.

The wind was blowing gently…

Blowing from south to north!

A south wind!

"It's a south wind!!"

Cao Cao's face showed a look of ecstasy, and he blurted out, "Heaven has not forsaken me, Cao Mengde! Heaven has not forsaken me, Cao Mengde!!!"

"Ahahaha, Li Zikun, even if you are almost demonic in your wisdom, could you have foreseen that tonight the wind would just happen to be blowing from the south?!"

The wind could have been blowing in any direction, but for Li Ji, it absolutely could not be blowing from the south.

With the dense forest as the boundary, Cao Cao was to the south, and Li Ji was to the north.

With this south wind blowing, Li Ji's ambush troops would not dare to approach the dense forest by half a step, otherwise, the fire would burn Li Ji's ambush troops to ashes.

Conversely, even if the Cao troops were within the dense forest, with the help of the south wind, this fire would not harm Cao Cao in the slightest.

Perhaps it was for this reason that Li Ji, who had clearly laid an ambush, did not dare to attack into the dense forest, and could only choose to put on a high-profile show of force, trying to startle the Cao troops with this fire, causing them to flee in disarray and trample each other.

Immediately, Cao Cao, with a look of ecstasy on his face, urgently gave several orders to Dian Wei, who was protecting him on the left and right.

At this critical moment, Cao Cao knew that ordinary methods such as flags, horns, and drumbeats would be difficult to calm the chaotic Cao troops. The way to quickly stabilize the morale of the army was simpler and more direct.

Soon, Dian Wei urgently gathered the three hundred personal guards protecting Cao Cao, then mustered his energy and shouted loudly.

"All officers and soldiers, repeat immediately: Lord Cao has lit the fire to determine the location of the small ambush troops. Making meritorious achievements is tonight."

Immediately, the personal guards first repeated this simple sentence loudly with Dian Wei, and then the sound continuously spread towards the distance, and more Cao troops began to repeat it while watching the fire rising along the edge of the dense forest from afar.

In the continuously spreading repetition, the morale of the Cao troops, which had been close to collapse, quickly stabilized.

Apart from Cao Cao's quick wit, more importantly, under the gaze of a large number of Cao troops,

the fires that had been lit in various places in the dense forest did not spread rapidly in their direction, and the unknown ambush troops did not attack into the dense forest either.

These two points made Cao Cao's lie, when it reached the ears of countless Cao troops, become the truth, and the morale of the army naturally stabilized quickly.

Immediately, the two armies faced each other across the fire.

With the "crackling" sound of the fire burning the trees, neither army made any rash moves.

Cao Cao took the opportunity to quickly reorganize the scattered soldiers in the dense forest, as quickly as possible eliminating the panic caused by the army being ambushed.

Li Ji still did not order the ambush troops to attack into the dense forest, but instead felt a bit of emotion in his heart.

If one were to discuss which of the warlords at the end of the Han Dynasty had the strongest ability to command troops, Cao Cao was undoubtedly one of the candidates.

In addition to quickly calming down after encountering an ambush, he also recognized the flaws and stabilized the morale of the army at an incredible speed with a clever method.

This was by no means something that ordinary people could do.

If it were Yuan Gonglu, he would have personally driven away in his carriage as soon as he encountered an ambush, and even Yuan Shao might have retreated from the ambush first.

However, Li Ji observed the movements of Cao Cao commanding the Cao troops. This was clearly an attempt to turn the tables, reorganizing the army and preparing to counterattack the ambush troops.

The thoroughness of his thinking, the decisiveness of his style, the boldness of his actions…

All could be called heroes of the time.

While Cao Cao was reorganizing his army, he was also using the firelight to observe the deployment of the ambush troops outside the dense forest, estimating the number of ambush troops.

About twenty thousand!

Cao Cao, who had been in the military for a long time, took a careful look and came to a fairly accurate conclusion in his heart.

The main point is…

Cao Cao believed that these twenty thousand enemy troops could be swallowed!

There is a saying about morale: "One drum rouses courage, a second diminishes it, and a third exhausts it."

If the ambush troops' attack is unfavorable, their morale will inevitably be frustrated.

Conversely, after the Cao troops' originally low morale is revived, they will once again have sharpness and can be used.

Furthermore, Cao Cao knew that Li Ji should still have a cavalry force in his hands, but near the dense forest terrain, both mounted archery and charging were greatly disadvantageous for the cavalry.

'This is a great opportunity!'

Cao Cao's eyes reflected the fire rising along the edge of the dense forest, but in the depths of his eyes, it seemed as if an even hotter flame was rising.

As long as he defeats the rearguard forces led by Li Ji in one fell swoop, the news will reach Liu Bei's ears, which will inevitably cause him great chaos and put him in a dilemma.

"Clang!"

Cao Cao drew the sword from his waist, pointed it forward, and ordered.

"Advance!"

After a period of reorganization, Cao Cao had regained control of the Cao troops.

It is true that there were fires rising along the edge of the dense forest, but without the help of a strong wind, the speed at which the fire spread to the surroundings was quite limited.

In the direction from the dense forest to the north, there were still large areas that had not been affected by the fire.

On the contrary, under the illumination of the fires, the battlefield could be said to be as bright as day, further providing Cao Cao with the convenience of commanding the army.

(End of this chapter)