Leif was taken aback and asked in confusion, "Why?"
Lu Li chuckled and said, "Cao Cao holds the emperor in his hands and is in a position of great righteousness, not to mention..."
"After losing Yan Liang and Wen Chou in the last great battle, how many capable generals does Yuan Shao still have left to command troops?"
"Yuan Shao's forces were strong in civil affairs but weak in military affairs, which became his fatal weakness!"
Laifu suddenly realized, "Yes, Yuan Shao is a man of many schemes but indecisiveness. Having too many advisors under his command is not necessarily a good thing."
In this way, Yuan Shao would undoubtedly be defeated in a confrontation with Cao Cao!
After figuring this out, Leifu was secretly pleased. His master was truly a genius, able to consider even such details.
"So, are we just going to sit back and watch Cao Cao take Qingzhou?"
Lu Li sighed and then said, "There's nothing we can do. The plague in Bingzhou has just been brought under control, and we are powerless to change it."
"But I have already sent Fazheng, Huang Zhong, and Xu Huang back to Jingzhou with their troops!"
Lai Fu was taken aback and asked in confusion, "Is Master afraid that Jiangdong will attack my Jingzhou?"
He didn't understand that even with insufficient troops in Jingzhou, Sun Ce, a mere nobody, was still not someone that the Jiangdong army could conquer.
"It's not Sun Ce, it's Zhou Yu!"
“Zhou Yu? Who is that?” Leif asked, puzzled.
He didn't know, but Lu Li did. There was more than just Sun Ce, the Little Conqueror, in the Jiangdong army. There was also Zhou Yu, the first Grand Commander of Eastern Wu!
This person's ability to command troops was definitely among the top three in the late Eastern Han Dynasty.
This brings us back to comparing him to Zhuge Liang.
Zhuge Liang was a well-rounded warrior, while Zhou Yu was a single-discipline god of war.
Zhou Yu's strategies may not be among the top three, but his ability to command troops is definitely among the top three!
The Battle of Red Cliffs alone is a famous example in history of a smaller force defeating a larger one.
A single fire utterly decimated Cao Cao's supposedly million-strong army, and it was this Battle of Red Cliffs that paved the way for the future Three Kingdoms period.
Otherwise, Cao Cao would have likely unified the country by then.
After the Battle of Red Cliffs, Cao Cao was unable to recover for ten years, which allowed Liu Bei and Sun Quan to develop rapidly and form the Sun-Liu alliance to fight against Cao Cao.
It can be said that Zhou Yu shattered Cao Cao's dream of unifying the world!
The saying "Since Zhou Yu was born, why was Zhuge Liang born?" that came out in later generations is complete nonsense.
Borrowing arrows with straw boats was Lu Su's achievement, while the burning of Red Cliffs was planned by Zhou Yu alone. At that time, Liu Bei only had Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, and Zhao Yun under his command, and Zhuge Liang had only recently joined his service.
In fact, many people mistakenly regard Romance of the Three Kingdoms as history.
In the Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Zhou Yu is portrayed as petty and narrow-minded. Zhuge Liang angered Zhou Yu three times, ultimately causing Zhou Yu's death.
These are utter nonsense!
Zhuge Liang truly displayed his terrifying strength after Liu Bei's death, when he single-handedly took charge of the entire Shu Han state.
In the early stages of Liu Bei's career, he had Xu Shu as his strategist, followed by Pang Tong, and after entering Sichuan, he also had Fa Zheng.
Zhuge Liang always favored domestic affairs, just like Xun Yu and Zhang Zhao.
It wasn't until after Liu Bei's death that Zhuge Liang gradually gained control of the military and political power of Shu!
Zhou Yu can be considered the founder of Eastern Wu, and his ability to command troops was absolutely top-notch.
It can be said that without Zhou Yu, there would be no Eastern Wu.
How could Lu Li dare to underestimate such a person?
But Leif didn't know that he had never even heard of the name Zhou Yu.
Therefore, he simply did not believe that Zhou Yu had any ability to command troops.
Lu Li shook his head and said, "Laifu, you don't need to doubt it, Zhou Yu is a very capable person!"
"Jingzhou is unlikely to be peaceful."
This is why Lu Li sent Zhao Yun there; a minor grandmaster was stationed there, and Zhao Yun's ability to command troops was also quite strong.
"I still can't believe that Jiangdong would dare to launch a surprise attack on Jingzhou," Lai Fu said with a wry smile.
The total number of troops in Jiangdong is only fifty or sixty thousand, and most of them are naval forces. How dare they attack Jingzhou?
“Leif, prevention is better than cure. There are no rules in war. Know yourself and know your enemy, and you will never be defeated!” Lu Li said in a deep voice.
Leif lowered his head and said, "Disciple will remember your teachings!"
Go!
Lu Li waved his hand, signaling him to step back.
Then, Lu Li fell into deep thought and murmured, "Cao Cao, Yuan Shao, Yuan Shu... this three-way battle is going to be quite a spectacle!"
.............
Qingzhou was instantly turned into a battlefield.
Kong Rong's forces were already weak, and the troops in Qingzhou were extremely frail. How could they possibly withstand the attacks of Cao Cao and Yuan Shao's armies?
In just half a month, all the counties in Qingzhou were in urgent need of help!
Kong Rong was in a state of great distress. He immediately summoned officials from various departments to discuss how to defend against Cao Cao's army.
Everyone offered their opinions, but ultimately no one could find a suitable solution.
Kong Rong frowned deeply, his face grim, clearly very worried about the current situation.
Suddenly, an advisor stepped forward, cupped his hands, and said, "My lord, I believe that Qingzhou cannot be defended. We should surrender to Cao Cao!"
"Huh? He surrendered to Cao Cao?" Kong Rong was immediately astonished upon hearing this.
"My lord, the situation is already set, and Qingzhou is in grave danger! Surrendering to Cao Cao is tantamount to surrendering to the Han Emperor, and at least we can retain some dignity!"
Kong Rong was a descendant of Confucius. Since the Western Han Dynasty, Confucianism has been promoting the idea of loyalty to the emperor and patriotism.
“Yes, my lord, Qingzhou is definitely beyond our control. We might as well surrender to Cao Cao and at least save our lives!” a general also stepped forward and said.
Even the generals of Qingzhou said such things, and Kong Rong was completely desperate. He closed his eyes and let out a long sigh, as if he had made a major decision.
This chapter is not finished, please click the next page to continue reading!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
