mtlumby2d Chapter 506 Cao Cao Wants to Fight Liu Bei Again
Chapter 506 Cao Cao Wants to Fight Liu Bei Again
Liu Ye continued, "Your Majesty should understand the difference between having no sword and having a sword but not using it. In other words, we must have what the enemy has, or we will suffer a great loss sooner or later. Therefore, we must obtain Guan Xing's steelmaking technology by any means necessary and at any cost."
Cao Cao's eyes lit up. He imagined the wonderful scene of the people in the Central Plains working day and night with a new type of farm tool in hand. His face was full of enthusiasm as he asked Cao Ren, "Zixiao, what about the steelmaking technology? Did you bring it back?"
Cao Ren smiled bitterly and said, "I had Zhang Jing try it, even resorting to kidnapping women, but it all failed. That damned Guan Xing is too vigilant about the steel mill."
Cao Cao said with regret and dissatisfaction, "Continue to send secret agents from the Imperial Academy to steal, rob, and bribe until we get the steelmaking technology. We must get our hands on this steelmaking technology, otherwise we won't be able to fight Liu Bei later."
Cao Ren clasped his hands in acceptance of the order, and Liu Ye continued, "Your Majesty, we can let the Imperial Academy find a solution, but we cannot place all our hopes on the Imperial Academy. The court must also make an effort. If Guan Xing can do it, there is no reason why our great court cannot."
"Therefore, I suggest issuing a generous reward to summon blacksmiths across the country to devise a solution. Whoever can forge steel comparable to that of the Wushang Steel Plant will be granted a title of nobility. I do not believe that such a vast Central Plains cannot find a few blacksmiths who can forge steel."
"While recruiting blacksmiths, we also need to send people to survey the mines and stockpile iron ore and coal... In Guanxing, it's called coal, right?"
Seeing Cao Ren nod, he continued, "We should recruit blacksmiths and stockpile coal and iron. This way, once the blacksmiths develop steelmaking technology, we can start producing quickly. We need to compete with Liu Bei not only in technology but also in output. Only in this way can we catch up with or even surpass Liu Bei in the upcoming farming competition."
Cao Cao nodded and said, "That makes sense. I'll leave this matter to you. Tell the blacksmiths you've recruited that I don't care about their background or appearance. As long as they can forge steel that's as good as the Wushang Steelworks, I'll immediately confer upon them the title of Marquis of Guannei."
"Send a message to Jiangnan again: whoever can bring over the technology from the Wushang Steel Plant will be immediately granted the title of Marquis of Wushang. I don't believe the blacksmiths under Liu Bei's command won't be tempted."
"Also, notify the school administration to conduct a thorough investigation of the steel mill's best blacksmiths. If they can be bribed, they should be bribed; if not, they should be eliminated. Without blacksmiths, let's see how that big-eared thief manages to forge steel."
Liu Ye and Cao Ren bowed simultaneously and said, "Yes..."
Cao Cao continued, "I heard that Guan Xing improved Cai Hou paper and built a paper mill in Wushang, right? Zixiao, you didn't even bring back the papermaking technology for me, did you?"
Cao Ren's heart skipped a beat, and he didn't dare to answer directly. Instead, he opened the last and smallest wooden box, took out a stack of new paper, and handed it to Cao Cao, saying, "The paper mill is guarded as heavily as the steel mill. We have no chance to enter the mill, but the paper from the steel mill is regularly delivered to the military camp for the Han army to practice calligraphy. The people from the Imperial Academy ambushed and robbed a batch of paper on its way from the paper mill to the military camp. Your Majesty, please take a look."
Cao Cao picked up a brush and wrote a poem on the paper. After examining it for a long time, he was both shocked and envious. He said, "What a wonderful thing! Although I don't know if the preservation period of paper can exceed that of bamboo slips, using this to practice calligraphy and start learning is no problem at all. The problem is that what I need is the papermaking technology. What use is this little bit of paper to me?"
Cao Ren remained silent. He also wanted papermaking technology, but the problem was that he couldn't get his hands on it.
Cao Cao knew this was a difficult task, so he looked at Liu Ye and said, "Ziyang, you should also handle the papermaking. The reward will be the same as for steelmaking. Like I said, if Guan Xing can make something, there's no reason why we can't."
Liu Ye nodded and accepted the order.
Cao Cao's gaze swept over the generals in the tent one by one, and finally looked at the farm tools and said: "When we left Guanzhong, Bo Ning (Man Chong) suggested to me that we should stockpile heavy troops in Xiangfan to confront and wear down Liu Bei, and attract all the able-bodied men in Jiangnan to the Xiangfan front, causing the people of Jiangnan to lose their livelihood, thereby dragging down Liu Bei."
"This plan was originally feasible, but with these new farming tools, it probably won't work. These tools are so sharp that if everyone had one, women could farm the land without the help of able-bodied men, right?"
Women of this era were not the delicate fairies of later generations who couldn't even cook; they were truly capable laborers who could hold up half the sky. With new farming tools in hand, women could actually manage farming while taking care of their children.
Everyone felt a chill, sensing that something big was about to happen.
as predicted……
Cao Cao then changed the subject and continued, "Liu Bei has just unified Jiangnan, and his internal situation is still unstable. If we launch a major battle at this time and kill most of Liu Bei's troops, do you think Jiangnan will automatically collapse?"
On his way from Guanzhong to Xiangfan, Cao Cao kept thinking about this problem. In the past, Cao Cao would definitely have accepted Man Chong's suggestion and maintained a long-term standoff with Liu Bei across the Han River, but now...
With the widespread adoption of new agricultural tools in Jiangnan, the idea of wearing Liu Bei down through a standoff became somewhat unrealistic.
More importantly, Cao Cao's lifespan was nearing its end, and he might not outlive Liu Bei. If he were to die on the battlefield, it would be a fatal blow to the morale of his troops.
If he were to die on the front lines, Cao Pi would certainly retreat, and Liu Bei would inevitably pursue him during the retreat, which could very likely lead to another crushing defeat for the Wei army.
Even if Liu Bei didn't pursue and allowed the Wei army to retreat smoothly, it wouldn't work. If the stalemate ended halfway and the troops had to withdraw, wouldn't all the previous efforts be wasted?
Furthermore, Cao Cao, knowing his days were numbered and unsatisfied with the previous Battle of Hanzhong, wanted to fight Liu Bei one last time, to see who the real deal was. If he won, he could cripple Liu Bei for ten years, forcing him to abandon the Northern Expedition and establish a separate regime along the Yangtze River. Even if he lost, he could still inflict heavy damage on Liu Bei, causing him to suffer heavy losses himself.
Therefore, Cao Cao wanted to bleed Liu Bei dry before his death, even offering his hundreds of thousands of troops in exchange for Liu Bei's, so that even if Liu Bei won, he would be powerless to launch a northern expedition, thus buying time for Cao Pi to stabilize the court.
Everyone's expression changed. They wanted to say something, but seeing Cao Cao's firm gaze, they didn't dare to object and all lowered their heads in silence.
Cao Cao didn't want them to pretend to be deaf and dumb, so when no one answered, he directly called out, "Liang Dao (Jia Kui), what do you think?"
Jia Kui understood Cao Cao's meaning, stepped forward, and bowed, saying, "Your Majesty's words are reasonable. The population of Jiangnan is far lower than that of the Central Plains. If we can sacrificing the hundreds of thousands of troops in Xiangfan to replace Liu Bei's equivalent number of troops, it will be beneficial to the court. However..."
"But what if our army doesn't replace the Southern Army, but instead surrenders or is captured by them? Wouldn't that be like handing Liu Bei free men?"
"Your Majesty may not know this, but Guan Xing is extremely good at winning over the hearts of the soldiers, under the guise of doing ideological work on the surrendered soldiers. Liu Bei is even more adept at winning over the hearts of the people. Once our army surrenders or is captured, it is very likely that Liu Bei will easily take it under his command and turn around to attack us."
This is the most critical issue, and also the one that Cao Cao most needed to consider before engaging in a final battle with Liu Bei.
It's important to know that Guan Xing defeated Lu Xun entirely thanks to the Wu army that had surrendered.
If, during the decisive battle with Liu Bei, any Wei soldiers were unable to withstand the pressure and surrendered to Liu Bei, or were surrounded and captured by Liu Bei, Cao Cao would not be bleeding Liu Bei dry, but rather sending him nourishment.
Cao Cao was speechless when he thought of Guan Xing's ability to gather and reform prisoners. He frowned and pondered, "So if we want to fight Liu Bei to the death and prepare for the worst, we need to prevent our army from being cut off and surrounded by Liu Bei, and ensure that even if the army is defeated, we can retreat smoothly back to Jiangbei, right?"
The Wei army can be defeated, but it must retreat. It cannot be completely annihilated or captured in its entirety, as Guan Xing did with the Wu army.
Jia Kui nodded and said, "Yes, if we want to cripple Liu Bei, we must ensure that even if our army is defeated, we can retreat smoothly, instead of being captured by Liu Bei and becoming nourishment for him to recover."
"This is the most crucial issue. Only by solving this problem can we confidently launch a general offensive against Liu Bei."
Cao Cao continued, "So how should we solve this problem? Tell me your thoughts."