Three Kingdoms

Cao Cao sat behind the desk, his face as dark as water.

Severe drought.

locust.

These two disasters seem to be specially set up by nature to explain to humans what misfortunes never come singly...

After a severe drought, the water level decreases and the soil is solid, which is more suitable for locusts to lay eggs. At the same time, the vegetation after the drought decreases. On the one hand, the remaining plants have less water. When locusts ingest plants of the same quality, their nutrients will naturally be higher. Let the locusts thrive; on the other hand, due to the reduction of vegetation and a series of ecological degradation, the natural enemies of the locusts will decrease, and eventually the locusts will become a disaster.

Locusts move east and south, chasing more plants and more food. But what is interesting is that locusts cannot breed in areas with more than 50% vegetation. In other words, the more plants and food there are, the more likely they are to breed. area, on the contrary, is the place where locusts die.

But Cao Cao couldn't see the demise of the locusts. He now only saw his own imminent demise.

The locusts all over the sky have flown away, leaving behind only wooden piles, stones, and loess that the locusts cannot eat, and Cao Cao's soldiers cannot eat these either.

Cao Cao also ordered the locusts to be caught and eaten, but the locusts moved so fast that even the entire army could not catch a few. It was like tearing off a few hairs of the giant locusts. The locusts still calmly ate all the food. Eat everything, and then fly away covering the sky.

Puyang was originally surrounded by fertile fields, but now it encountered a military attack and then a locust plague, and all the fields were destroyed. Not only that, the locust plague spread throughout Yanzhou, resulting in the only remaining areas under Cao Cao's control, including Juancheng, Fanxian, Dong'a and other places, without food and grass supplies.

The army is out of food!

Originally, the entire situation in Yanzhou was in danger. If we could no longer defeat Lu Bu and retreated after running out of food, I am afraid that the only remaining places such as Fan County in Juancheng would also be in turmoil immediately!

Cao Cao urgently needs a victory, at least a victory!

However, there is not even one...

When Lu Bu rushed to Juancheng on Chen Gong's advice, Guo Gong had already withdrawn his troops. Facing the fortified Juancheng, Lu Bu was powerless, and at the same time he was unwilling to lose his troops under Juancheng in vain, so he withdrew.

If we had to count, this was the only victory.

The rest, no.

Cao Cao led his troops back to reinforce, but Lu Bu caught several flaws and punished him several times. He first defeated Cao Hong, then Xiahou Yuan, and then Cao Cao...

The Qingzhou soldiers dealt with the Xuzhou soldiers, just like I dealt with my son. Then, when they got here, it was reversed. Lu Bu led the Yanzhou soldiers to deal with Cao Cao's Qingzhou soldiers, just like I dealt with his son. They beat Cao Cao until he had no temper at all.

Lu Bu's tactics were actually not complicated. He just used cavalry to bully Cao Cao's infantry formation and kept pulling them from left to right. How could the Qingzhou soldiers who had just transferred from the Yellow Turbans quickly change their formations to deal with it?

Once Cao Cao's military formation showed a flaw, he was immediately caught by Lu Bu and rode fiercely, destroying Cao Cao's formation in an instant, thereby expanding the results of the battle and defeating Cao Cao's military formation.

Although Cao Cao knew Lu Bu's tactics, he had no ability to resist. He could not stop him. After losing Xia Houyuan's only established cavalry, he would always be at a passive disadvantage when facing Lu Bu's cavalry. , simply couldn't keep up with the changes in Lu Bu's cavalry; they wanted to fight, but they couldn't win. Except for Dian Wei, few people could confront Lu Bu head-on. But Dian Wei was an infantry general, so he was missing four legs after all. He could easily kill another part of Cao's army in front like a dog, while Dian Wei could only chase after him with his troops and horses...

In the most dangerous time, Lu Bu even broke through Cao Cao's main camp!

If Army Sima Louyi hadn't sacrificed his life to give up his horse to Cao Cao, Cao Cao might have been lost in that battle...

Because of this battle, Cao Cao even burned his palms. Later, when he learned that Cao Cao was injured, the whole army was shocked and almost immediately fell apart!

Cao Cao had no choice but to hold on and inspect the entire army. Only then did he stabilize the morale of the army again...

On the battlefield, whoever takes the initiative will be more calm. But now, Cao Cao has no initiative at all. He must defeat Lu Bu, at least to restore the impact of successive defeats on his army and Yanzhou.

However, Lu Bu who was located in Puyang, no, it should be Chen Gong, the counselor in the city, also knew this. Therefore, after the locust plague occurred, he withdrew his troops back to Puyang, no longer confronting Cao Cao in the wild, and did not defend the city. He waited for Cao Cao's army to collapse.

Because there is nothing worth fighting for outside Puyang City...

There is desolation everywhere. Even if it is completely given to Cao Cao, Cao Cao will not be able to get any food supplies. It is better to enter Puyang City to reduce the daily consumption of soldiers.

There is no doubt that Chen Gong's strategy is correct.

Although the barracks are now built under Puyang City, Cao Cao has no advantage at all, especially now that the supply of troops has been cut off.

In addition to the dilemma on the battlefield, there are also things that make Cao Cao even more uncomfortable...

It's this bowl of meat.

A bowl of dried meat, which was then boiled in water, turned out to be dark red meat.

It was boiled in plain water, because Cao Cao wanted it, so he added a little salt, but other than that, there was nothing else. I think too much about condiments or spices. After the locusts pass through, I can’t even see any green ones. What else can be used as condiments?

To eat or not to eat?

Cao Cao looked at the bowl of meat and was speechless.

Who is Cao Cao?

Although he has been criticized by the nobles for his origin, it has to be said that both Cao Cao's grandfather and Cao Cao's father are quite good at making money. Therefore, Cao Cao has not lived a hard life since he was a child. It can be said that he has good clothes and good food. It is no exaggeration, but nowadays, let alone good food and clothing, even the most basic and crude food cannot be guaranteed...

Everyone in the tent looked at Cao Cao.

These meats are rat meat sent by Dong'a Chengyu. The food is gone, but there is still meat, rat meat. Everyone here is not stupid, and they all understand what kind of rat this so-called rat meat is.

Cao Cao knew it well.

"Brother!" Cao Hong couldn't bear it anymore. He glanced at everyone in the tent and said loudly, "Brother, there's no need to be like this. Everyone says this meat is rat meat, so who dares..."

"No..." Cao Cao raised his hand, which was still wrapped in cloth, to stop Cao Hong. "The commander is the bravest of an army. If one person doesn't eat, how can the whole army be willing to eat it? Zi Lian doesn't need to say more."

After saying that, Cao Cao picked up the bowl and started to devour it.

The pieces of meat were already a little cold. In addition to some meaty aroma, there was also a strong smell of blood. Cao Cao did not dare to chew it carefully. He took a few bites and swallowed it. When he swallowed it, he felt like he was swallowing. The lumps of hardened phlegm are greasy and strong, causing waves of discomfort in the throat...

Cao Cao resisted and ate the meat.

It's not impossible to do what Cao Hong did. Anyway, he would declare on the outside that this is rat meat, and then distribute it for the soldiers to eat...

But the problem is that there are Qingzhou soldiers in Cao Cao's army.

The morale of Cao Cao's troops is now low, and they really can't afford any more accidents. If there is any more chaos, they may immediately fall apart!

Therefore, although Cao Hong's approach is simple, it has hidden dangers. Therefore, Cao Cao had to eat. By eating, he was equivalent to resisting all the responsibilities this time and the subsequent criticism. Whether it was Cheng Yu's or ordinary soldiers', Cao Cao shouldered it alone!

General Pingdong has already eaten rat meat, what else do the others have to say?

Cao Cao placed the empty bowl heavily on the table. His throat moved up and down, as if he was suppressing something. After a long time, he said in a hoarse voice: "... Zi Lian... I have eaten... spread it out to replenish military supplies." !”

"Wei!" Cao Hong held his hands in tears and accepted the order.

There was silence in the big tent.

"Lord..." Guo Jiagong held up his hand and broke the embarrassing atmosphere. Well, now he should still be Xi Zhicai. Then he turned to look at Xiahou Dun and said, "...someone has a plan that may be able to defeat the enemy... This is also the result of General Xiahou..."

…………………………

In the lobby of Puyang County Government Office.

"What? Are you running out of food and grass?" Lu Bu frowned and asked in a deep voice.

Tian of Puyang prostrated himself in the hall, lowered his head, and said tremblingly: "Reporting to Marquis Wen, there is indeed no food in the city... The four granaries in the north of the city are all empty now..."

Cao Cao has more people and consumes food quickly, but although Lu Bu has fewer people, his consumption is not much less than Cao Cao, because in addition to soldiers, Lu Bu also has many animals with big appetites...

"Marquis Wen!" Puyang Tian took two steps forward eagerly and said, "There is indeed no food in the granary in the city..."

"That's enough!" Lu Bu slapped the table, took a few steps to stand in front of Mr. Tian, ​​grabbed Mr. Tian, ​​lifted him into the air like a chicken, and shouted, "Your Majesty, Mr. How many times have you sent food and grass to your home since you went to the warehouse? Now that there is no food in the army, what can you eat at home? If in normal times, I would not bother to pay attention to your behavior, but at this critical moment, you still dare to say that there is no food available?! Could it be that you are bullying? Is it bad for a certain knife?"

Tian's face turned pale and he couldn't say a word.

"Get out!" Lu Bu pushed Tian back to the ground, and then said, "Before noon tomorrow, deliver military rations to the camp. How dare you excuse yourself for neglect... humph..."

"... I don't dare, I don't dare... to obey my order... to obey my order..." Puyang Tianshi grinned and endured the pain, crawling away.

"Silverfish!" Lu Bu frowned and cursed.

"Marquis Wen... eh... this is..." Chen Gong, who came in a hurry, bumped into Puyang Datotian who was hiding his face and left. He couldn't help but asked in surprise, "I don't know what's going on..."

"Hey, isn't it just about preparing military rations..." Lu Bu briefly recounted what had just happened, and then said, "Gongtai is here, what's the matter?"

"Oh..." Chen Gong frowned, tilted his head slightly and looked in the direction Tian left, "...Marquis Wen, Cao's soldiers have retreated!"

"Really?" Lu Bu suddenly became interested, "Let's go up to the tower and have a look!"

The two came to the city gate tower and looked at Cao Jun's camp in the distance.

"Really retreated..." Lu Bu said with a laugh.

"There is nothing left outside the city, and there is no food for the troops. If we don't retreat, the whole army will be defeated..." Chen Gong stroked his beard and said, "Most of Cao's army retreated to Juancheng...Cao Pingdong is also a decisive person. , when we retreat, we must retreat. Our plan to lure the army will not be fully successful, which is also a pity..."

Once Cao Cao retreated to Juancheng, Chen Gong's original plan of letting Zhang Miao cover Cao Cao's flanks was basically in vain. After all, leading a sneak attack and a frontal confrontation are two completely different concepts. Zhang Miao's ability and courage are just like that. There is nothing special to count on.

"It doesn't matter!" Lu Bu stared at the direction in which Cao Jun was retreating and said proudly, "Let someone break it again!"

"Marquis Wen, Cao's army retreated in an orderly manner..." Chen Gong frowned and said, "I'm afraid I'm prepared...it's not advisable to pursue them...However, from Puyang to Juancheng, most of them are flat rivers. Where can't we attack?" Marquis Wen, please be patient... Cao's army retreats, and it will definitely be slack. Even if there is an ambush, it cannot stay for long... When the ambush is gone, Marquis Wen can lead the cavalry to attack it, and it will definitely be broken!"

"Well..." Lu Bu nodded and said with a laugh, "What Gongtai said is very consistent with what he meant! Come here! Send out scouts! Keep an eye on Cao's army's movements!"

…………………………

In the Tian family's house in Puyang, the dim lights flickered, and two figures were reflected on the window lintel, sometimes big and sometimes small, sometimes left and now right, shaking like ghosts.

"Tian Langjun..." a voice lowered its tone, and only a few words could be vaguely heard, "...will...leave the city tomorrow..."

Tian murmured. The flickering lights cast dark colors of varying sizes on Tian's face, so dark that it seemed like it could drip out ink...

In the past few days, in order to supply Lu Bu's army with food and fodder, Tian had to dig deep into his own family. Seeing the mountain of grain in his warehouse decreasing little by little, and eventually disappearing, Tian's heart felt like a knife being cut, bleeding all the time. !

If this continues, maybe Lu Bu will not be defeated yet, and the Tian family will be finished first!

So, the only option is to give it a try.

Mrs. Tian felt her heart go up and waved, asking the other person to come closer...

Above the window lintel, the shadows of two people met, dancing and dancing, like evil ghosts celebrating.

…………………………

As expected by Chen Gong, after Cao Cao's rear army withdrew, the scouts reported that one or two groups of troops had withdrawn from the ambush and looked eastward.

Lu Bu immediately led his troops to attack. After all, two legs could not outrun four legs. Cao Cao's rear army was soon overtaken by Lu Bu...

According to Lu Bu's original plan, Cao Cao's rear army should have collapsed upon seeing his cavalry. Then Lu Bu could drive these defeated troops and crush them all the way, just like driving sheep on the grassland, completely defeating Cao Cao's army. beat.

But the situation in front of him was beyond Lu Bu's expectation.

Cao Cao's army at the rear was surprisingly strong. After being caught up by Lu Bu's cavalry, they did not collapse. Instead, they immediately shrank their formation and gathered together. Even though Lu Bu's cavalry kept killing a group of them with bows and arrows from the outside. Another group of people also gathered together firmly and did not mess up their positions. It seemed that they would rather die in battle than retreat even one person...

Leave this group of people behind and move on?

Or should we forcefully eat these people and then pursue them?

Lu Bu frowned and sat on the red rabbit horse, hesitating a little.

It is not easy to replenish war horses, so it is not absolutely necessary. Lu Bu generally does not let the cavalry attack the infantry array densely packed in one place head-on. Because only when chasing and raiding the flanks or weak points of the infantry formation, the cavalry can exert its full lethality. However, facing the current dense infantry formation, a hard attack is not impossible, but the same There will be a lot of damage.

Just when Lu Bu was weighing the gains and losses, smoke and dust suddenly billowed from behind. Lu Bu quickly sent people to investigate, only to find that Chen Gong was leading his troops...

"Gongtai!" Lu Bu said dissatisfiedly, "If you don't guard the city in Puyang, why are you here to find me?"

"Eh..." Chen Gong was also a little confused and said, "Didn't Marquis Wen send someone to convey an order, saying that Cao's army had been defeated, and ordered someone to come and clean the battlefield and drive away Cao's army..."

"When did it happen..." Lu Bu was only halfway through his sentence when his expression suddenly changed like Chen Gong's.

At this moment, the roaring sound of war drums suddenly sounded from three directions: east, south, and north. The billowing smoke and dust were like a giant wall, squeezing towards Lu Bu and Chen Gong's troops!