ps:  [I beg you to move on to the new book "My Name is a Warlock" book number: 3046511, help me collect it, thank you.]

"Please do it for you?" Zhuge Jin frowned. He did not doubt Pang Yuan was talking big, but did not understand what Pang Yuan was talking about, so he was a little confused and unwilling.

Fa Zheng's eyes lit up, and he couldn't help but say, "Is what Mr. Pang said in Hanzhong!"

"Haha, that's right!"

"Hanzhong?!" Zhuge Jin said in surprise: "Hanzhong and Cao Cao are not bordered...I understand, could it be...give up the West City?!"

Everyone was shocked now and took the initiative to give up Xicheng. How courage would it take to think of it!

Liu Bei's mouth twitched. Although he felt uncomfortable, he still believed that Pang Yuan was definitely not talking nonsense, but it made sense.

"How do you say this?"

Pang Yuan glanced at Liu Bei with a slightly dark face and said slowly: "Sir, what are the benefits of Xicheng for me?"

"This... Xicheng is the wing of Shangyong. If Xicheng is missing, Shangyong..."

"Sir," Pang Yuan interrupted Liu Bei's words impolitely: "There is still a barrier between Shangyong and Xicheng. Is it really the wing of Shangyong?"

"This...but Xicheng is the gateway to Hanzhong..."

"Haha, yes, Xicheng is the gateway to Hanzhong. If Cao Cao got Xicheng, he would definitely think about taking over Hanzhong. With Hanzhong, Cao Cao could attack our army on both sides, at least encircle our army, and even attack Sima Fang from the side. Such a good place. Cao Cao would not want it."

"Since that's the case, why did Fuqing still give up Xicheng? Isn't this... Isn't this self-destructing the Great Wall?"

"Haha. My subordinates only said that Cao Cao wanted to take Hanzhong, but not that Cao Cao would definitely take Hanzhong. At least we would not agree, Sima Fang did not agree, and Zhang Liang did not agree. If we encourage Zhang Liang and Cao Cao to fight against each other, would it be the most beneficial to our army?"

"This...so that's it!"

Liu Bei suddenly realized that Pang Yuan's idea could be said to be quite clever. If it could really evolve into the situation Pang Yuan mentioned, it would be a good thing that would kill multiple goals in one fell swoop. First, it consumed Zhang Liang and Cao Cao. Secondly, it could also divert the conflict between Zhang Liang and Shuzhong, and finally, it could also invest a large number of troops drawn from Xicheng to the south, greatly accelerating the development of southern Shu.

The idea is really wonderful. But...

"Fuqing. What if Cao Cao just took over the West City and formed an alliance with Zhang Liang?"

"This is impossible. Zhang Liang and Cao Cao will not get any benefits. On the contrary, it may also attract attacks from our army and Sima Fang. On the contrary, if Zhang Liang forms an alliance with our army and Sima Fang, it will eliminate the pressure from both north and south, and only need to face an enemy in the east. This choice is something that a normal person can make."

"But what if both sides are at peace? This will not achieve the expected results."

"Yes. This peaceful choice is very likely to appear. However, even so, we still get benefits. First of all, Xicheng is a useless place for us. Apart from fighting, it is a war. We will draw out the troops from Xicheng to attack Shunan, and the gains and losses are self-evident. Secondly, if Cao's army controls Xicheng, it will expose the defense line from Nanxiang to Xicheng to our army, which also provides Shangyong's troops and Yiren with the opportunity to consume Cao's army; finally, it will be able to suppress Zhang Liang's development momentum and force him to cooperate with us honestly. Isn't that enough?"

Everyone nodded, but this was enough. Pang Yuan didn't think about it. Now when they thought about it, Xicheng was definitely useless and was useless at all. On the contrary, they also blocked the disaster for Zhang Liang.

...................................................................

It was still very puzzled that Liu Bei's army suddenly pulled away troops from the west city Cao Cao was still confused. Is this a trap?

However, the news came soon. Liu Bei began a large-scale southward battle, heading south along the Lushui and Baishui Rivers to Yueli County and Zhuti County, opening the curtain for the development of southern Shu. This made the suspicious Cao Cao feel relieved and at the same time he also had the idea of ​​taking the opportunity to seize the West City.

Xicheng itself has no value and does not have much arable land, but Xicheng is a pathway from the east road to Hanzhong. If Xicheng can be used as a springboard to take Hanzhong in one fell swoop, Cao Cao's bad strategic situation will be immediately alleviated, and it may even go south to Shuzhong and leave Yongzhou in the north, and the strategic situation will immediately become proactive.

There is no reason for Cao Cao to see such a great benefit, and there is no reason not to fight for it after seeing it. Of course, Cao Cao and Xi Zhicai can also see it. It is not easy to attack Hanzhong, but there is no reason to let this possibility go in vain. At least it will definitely be no harm in taking down Xicheng first, and then it will be not too late to decide on the attitude towards Hanzhong based on the specific situation.

Cao Cao quickly mobilized Ju Zu's troops to advance westward. Although the road to the west city was not easy to walk, and the defense of Liu Bei's army's military barriers, the disadvantages of large-scale withdrawal of troops quickly emerged. Although Liu Bei's army was very tenacious, and even a large number of strange people went deep into the mountains to harass and destroy them, Ju Zuo quickly took down the Yangxian Fortress.

Then the two sides fought for Mulansai. Although the battle was fierce, they did not invest much troops. Liu Bei's army did not have many troops because they originally had no troops, while Cao's army could not invest too much combat power because of the internal terrain. Both sides were purely fighting a war of attrition.

During this period, Yi Ren was very outstanding, making Ju Su's logistics channel a mess, which made Ju Su feel troubled about this, and had to mobilize Liang Xing's cavalry to protect the logistics channel. In this way, the logistics losses were still very serious.

Fortunately, the number of Liu Bei's army determined that the war would not last long. Soon after, Liu Bei's army finally gave up Mulansai and turned to defend Xicheng. When they entered the siege stage, Ju Su was easier to fight because the space below Xicheng was much larger, and with the help of Yi Ren, Ju Su took Xicheng in less than ten days.

In early July of the 14th year of Guangxi, Xicheng changed hands, and Cao Cao's troops soon appeared around Shiquan. Liu Bei's army retreated to Wanyuan to occupy favorable terrain to build a fortress. Zhang Liang was also nervous to increase troops to Shiquan.

Xiangyang Prime Minister's Study Room. Cao Cao and Xi Zhicai and others were studying the situation in Xicheng and planning for the subsequent strategy.

"Lord, we know the importance of Hanzhong. Liu Bei and Sima Fang will not be unaware of it. If our army attacks Hanzhong head-on, these two families will definitely support Zhang Liang strongly, and even send troops to attack our army sideways to contain the frontal battlefield. Therefore, it is really not easy to attack Hanzhong, so it should be considered another plan."

Xi Zhicai's attitude is very clear. That is, he cannot attack Hanzhong in a large and direct way. He can only use other methods to plot against Hanzhong.

Cao Cao nodded without commenting on his beard and frowned tightly. This is a great opportunity. The status of Hanzhong is really important, but as Xi Zhicai said, if a war is formed in Hanzhong, it is not what Cao Cao wants to see now. After all, there is a Yuan Shao who is ready to move in the east!

Cao Cao naturally wanted to take as little as possible and try to win Hanzhong without disturbing Liu Bei and Sima Fang. This idea is just impossible.

"I don't know if I can convince Zhang Liang to give up Hanzhong voluntarily. From Zhang Liang's perspective, Hanzhong should not be able to defend, so they will actively develop towards Wudu and Yinping. If Hanzhong is given to our army, our army will face Liu Bei and Sima's anti-strike. We will definitely not continue to pursue Zhang Liang westward, and will even support Zhang Liang..."

Xi Zhicai smiled and shook his head. Yan Xiang's idea was to take it for granted. Although Jiang Hanzhong gave it to Cao Cao, he would get one ally, but he would have two more enemies. On the contrary, if he fought against Cao Cao, he would not only not lose Hanzhong, but also two more allies, which would be a normal person.

Cao Cao also shook his head: "This is unlikely, or he can only use special means to find an opportunity to take down Shiquan and Nancheng in one fell swoop, and then attack Hanzhong with lightning speed, so that our army's goal can be fully achieved, otherwise it may turn into a war that is unfavorable to our army."

Xi Zhicai nodded: "Is the low-intensity war that the lord said is about to use Yi Ren?"

"Well, the infiltration of the Yiren and a small group of troops slowly smuggled the troops into place and then launched a thunder strike. Perhaps this is the only way to try. If it doesn't go well, you can try to take Shiquan first, and then use Shiquan's territoriality to block a possible counterattack, and then talk about other things later."

Xi Zhicai thought about it and it seemed that this was the only way to go now, but there was only one opportunity, so he should make more preparations and also paralyze Zhang Liang.

"Lord, you can send an envoy to make peace with Zhang Liang first, and at the same time, you can train Ju Su to fight in the mountains. As for the stranger, you can penetrate the opposite side first. On the one hand, you can be familiar with the terrain, and on the other hand, you can also create an illusion."

Cao Cao smiled and said, "This strategy is exquisite, and the opportunity is rare. We must try our best to create conditions and make full preparations. Mountain combat is indeed our weakness. This has been fully exposed in the previous war, so it is necessary to take this opportunity to train. As for the messenger, haha... This is good, let's arrange this matter as soon as possible."

"There is another question, lord."

Cao Cao was stunned for a moment, looked at Xi Zhicai and asked, "What's the question?"

"Shangyong's offensive should be slightly strengthened, so that it can better cooperate with the actions of making peace, and can also restrain and attract Liu Bei's attention."

"This is a very good plan! Haha..."

Cao Cao smiled happily.

Cao Cao's envoy entered Hanzhong through Shiquan with great fanfare. Soon, the news that Zhang Liang and Cao Cao wanted to make peace and form a military alliance came out of Nanzheng. Liu Bei and Sima Fang also quickly sent envoys. Zhang Liang suddenly became popular. Everyone seemed to have intentionally or unintentionally ignored the thief hat on Zhang Liang's head.

At the same time, Cao's army began to carry out large-scale purging operations in Xicheng. Ju Su's troops cooperated with Yiren and began to actively operate in the mountainous areas to clear out the Yiren troops of Liu Bei's army and Liu Bei's camp that infiltrated from Shangyong. Of course, many Yiren troops also penetrated into the west of Shiquan and Shiquan, and clashed with Yiren in the Yellow Turban camp.

After digging through the battle between the strangers, the situation in Xicheng seemed to be on the steadily. Cao Cao did not intend to increase his troops in Xicheng. Instead, he increased his troops to Shangyong, which was very meaningful to attack Shangyong in one fell swoop. However, Shangyong had Zhang Fei stationed, and it was not an easy thing to capture him.

[Please move on to the new book "My Name is a Warlock" book number: 3046511, help collect it, thank you.] (To be continued...)
Chapter completed!