Three Kingdoms: My Strategy Simulator

At that moment, the late autumn night wind was already causing many soldiers to rub their hands and stamp their feet involuntarily.

But Cao Cao, standing barefoot on the cold ground, with only a thin robe draped over his body, felt a burning passion in his heart, even more intense than on his wedding night.

Soon, after a hurried journey, Cao Cao, panting for breath, rushed to the gate of the camp and saw Xu You standing not far away, gazing up at the starry sky, one hand behind his back and the other on the sword at his waist, exuding the air of a renowned scholar.

Instantly, a bright and enthusiastic smile spread across Cao Cao's originally well-defined face, and with open arms, he strode towards Xu You, calling out loudly.

"I was wondering why magpies were chattering incessantly outside my tent in the middle of the night, making it difficult for me to fall asleep. It turns out my friend Ziyuan has arrived."

Hearing this, Xu You finally moved his body, which had become somewhat numb and stiff from the cold, and slowly turned around.

However, when Xu You saw Cao Cao's radiant smile and the simple robe he was wearing, he couldn't help but be quite surprised.

Originally, Xu You was somewhat worried that Cao Aman, known for his narrow-mindedness and suspicious nature, even if he didn't refuse to see him, would give him a hard time to test his attitude and intentions.

But to Xu You's surprise, Cao Cao personally came to greet him, looking as if he was about to go to bed.

This momentary愣(lèng)愣 made Xu You not bow to Cao Cao immediately according to etiquette.

Seeing this, Cao Cao's expression did not change. He walked up to Xu You and took the initiative to salute, saying.

"Ziyuan, we haven't seen each other for months. How is your health?"

At this moment, Xu You experienced a courtesy that he had not felt at Yuan Shao's place for many years, which moved him deeply, and he quickly returned the salute.

Just as Xu You lowered his head to return the salute, he noticed that Cao Cao was barefoot.

"Mengde, why are you walking barefoot?"

"Because upon hearing of Ziyuan's visit, my heart was stirred. I only remembered my shoes halfway here. To avoid making Ziyuan wait anxiously and suffer the cold wind outside the camp, I didn't turn back to tidy up my clothes and shoes."

Saying this, Cao Cao showed a touch of appropriate embarrassment and shame, and cupped his hands, saying. "Please forgive my discourtesy, Ziyuan."

Xu You's eyes trembled slightly, almost unable to conceal his emotional turmoil.

At this moment, Xu You couldn't help but recall Yuan Shao's various shortcomings and his disregard for him. Comparing this with Cao Cao's current courteous treatment, Xu You couldn't help but feel a sense of regret that he should have joined Cao Cao earlier.

Cao Cao, who had taken in Xu You's unconcealable micro-expressions, had an idea. Before Xu You could speak, he stepped aside to make way, inviting Xu You to enter and reminisce about the past.

Xu You, who had come with the intention of joining Cao Cao, naturally would not refuse. While still maintaining the demeanor of a renowned scholar, he walked side by side with Cao Cao into the camp.

Seeing this, Cao Cao's heart was greatly relieved.

Xu You's solitary visit had already made Cao Cao feel that it was full of profound meaning.

Now that Xu You had entered Cao Cao's camp alone, even if Xu You had no intention of betraying Yuan Shao, Cao Cao could completely control Xu You with this.

Otherwise, once this matter reached Yuan Shao's ears, he would definitely not tolerate Xu You.

Following that, while Cao Cao led Xu You into the Cao camp, he intentionally led Xu You towards the camp where the elite troops were stationed, introducing them to Xu You from time to time to show the strength of his army.

However, in terms of elites, Cao Cao had indeed honed many elite veterans in the flames of war, but the number of truly powerful soldiers in Cao Cao's army was very few.

Therefore, Cao Cao pretended to be relaxed and took Xu You around the camp where the elites were stationed, but he did not forget to explain that these were only a part of them, and then invited Xu You to the military tent for tea.

After some enthusiastic pleasantries, Cao Cao asked seemingly casually.

"Weren't you serving under Benchu before, Ziyuan? Could it be that you've come to act as a lobbyist on behalf of Benchu this time?"

Xu You shook his head and replied.

"Mengde, you don't know, Yuan Shao secretly hates me for strongly advocating an alliance with you before and wants to kill me, so I had no choice but to resign and retire."

"Now I am just a commoner, preparing to leave Ji Province, so I came to visit Mengde along the way."

Cao Cao was overjoyed in his heart, but showed a look of regret on his face, saying.

"Ziyuan is truly a great talent. Your wisdom can be compared with that of Marquis Guoshi. How could Benchu be so muddleheaded?"

After a pause, Cao Cao poured a full cup of fragrant tea for Xu You, saying.

"I didn't mean to bring up your sad affairs, Ziyuan. Please don't mind. Today, let's only talk about the wind and snow and not about official matters."

Immediately, even though Cao Cao was quite anxious, he slowly reminisced with Xu You, talking about their youthful friendship, until Cao Cao casually asked.

"Ziyuan, are my soldiers strong? How do they compare with Benchu's?"

Xu You sipped his tea gracefully and replied casually.

"Mengde, please don't be offended. If we're just talking about the facts, not to mention the Vanguard of Death, even compared to the Great Halberd Warriors, they are far inferior."

This caused Cao Cao's expression to change slightly.

Xu You didn't even seem to lift his eyes, and continued to say.

"To be honest, Yuan Shao was previously worried and unwilling to let the Vanguard of Death and the Great Halberd Warriors and other powerful troops be depleted here, so he always held back during the attack on Jieqiao."

"Now that the news has spread that Yuan Gonglu of Yu Province has been besieged in Ruyang City by Marquis Guoshi, and is on the verge of desperation, Yuan Shao has now made up his mind to break through Jieqiao as soon as possible at all costs."

"I wonder how Mengde plans to deal with Yan Liang, Wen Chou, Zhang He, and Qu Yi, as well as resist the attacks of the Vanguard of Death and the Great Halberd Warriors?"

(PS: Gao Lan was killed in battle by Zhao Yun, and Qu Yi filled the vacancy of the Four Pillars of Hebei.)

Cao Cao paused his tea-drinking action and replied with a calm expression.

"The art of war lies in strategy. Although the Four Pillars of Hebei are brave, and the Vanguard of Death and the Great Halberd Warriors may be strong, I also have good strategies to defeat them?"

"Oh?"

Xu You chuckled and said. "I regard Mengde as a close friend, and I came to tell you this matter late at night. Since Mengde already has a plan in mind, then I was being nosy. Goodbye."

After saying that, Xu You pretended to get up and leave.

Cao Cao hurriedly dissuaded him, replying. "Ziyuan, please don't be offended. In fact, I really don't have a plan to defeat the enemy and can only resist for three to five months."

"Really?" Xu You asked again.

Cao Cao changed his words again, replying. "One month is more than enough."

"In less than a month, there will definitely be heavy snow, so Mengde will have no worries, and I can leave Ji Province with peace of mind."

After Xu You finished speaking, he wanted to cup his hands and bid farewell again.

Under such back-and-forth probing, Cao Cao also understood that Xu You must have a good plan and no longer concealed it, replying.

"If Benchu launches an attack with all his elite troops, and the water in the Qinghe River is low now, I'm afraid I can only rely on Jieqiao to resist for ten days at most, and I'm feeling very distressed."

"If Ziyuan has a good plan to teach me, I will definitely remember this kindness and share wealth and honor with Ziyuan."

What Xu You was waiting for was undoubtedly this sentence, and he replied. "If you blindly resist the enemy with isolated forces, you will only court death. Only by defeating them quickly with a surprise strategy can you turn defeat into victory."

(End of this chapter)