Xuchang, the capital, is a name that has just emerged in the Han Dynasty recently.

Before Cao Cao was the general and Liu Bei was the prime minister, Xu County, located in the eastern part of Yingchuan, was just an unknown small county town. Since Cao and Liu formed an alliance, they began to vigorously expand Xu County and renamed Xu County to Xuchang, which led to the so-called Han people's capital today.

Before Zhao Xing entered Luoyang, Liu Bei stayed in Luoyang for a long time, and Cao Cao took root in Xuchang. The two of them were in charge of military and political affairs, and they complemented each other and got their own place. Now that Luoyang is lost, Liu Bei had to accompany the emperor to Xuchang and join the emperor to join Cao Heizi to make a meal.

Seeing that the situation was getting more urgent, Cao Cao withdrew his troops from Deng County to defend Xuchang, but he was so angry that Yuan Shu, who was in Nanyang, was half-extinguished. Since the fall of Chang'an, the three infantry troops of the Northwest Route Army detoured southeast of Chang'an and headed straight for Wuguan in Lantian. Once the martial arts were lost, Nanyang would be completely exposed to the Western Route Army. At that time, how could the 40,000 troops that Yuan Shu had pieced together now could resist the fierce attacks of Zhang He, Xu Rong and others?

Cao Cao was originally stationed in Deng County south of Wancheng. If the Northwest Route Army came to attack Wancheng, if Cao Cao wanted to not be cut off, he would help Yuan Shu defend Nanyang and also prevent the threat from Liu Biao from the direction of Xiangyang, Jingzhou. Previously, Yuan Shu swallowed his anger and provided food and supplies to Cao Cao's southern expedition army, hoping that Cao Cao could "give his brothers a hand in the face of the party and the country!"

Now, Cao Cao brought his troops back to Xu County without saying a word, but made Yuan Shu, who was attacked on both sides, become a frightened bird and a turtle in the jar, and could no longer think of any room for maneuver.

In fact, this time Yuan Shu cursed Lao Cao in his heart for being a good person, which was really a bit unfair to Cao Heizi. You know, Lao Cao led his army to the south to fight Liu Biao, which was really hurt and had a blue nose and a swollen face.

No one expected that Liu Biao, who seemed to have exhausted his energy, would have such a fierce and violent side in his bones. He insisted on defending Xiangyang City and fought with Cao Cao head-on. Although the danger in Xiangyang was ultimately resolved by Tian Yi's army's straits, if Liu Biao had become afraid and timid in the battle from the beginning, he would be afraid that Xiangyang would not be able to hold on to the day when Tian Yi's army came to rescue.

If Cao Heizi did not retreat to Xuchang from Deng County, the consequences would be really serious. First of all, Xuchang has now become a true accompanying capital. With the original defensive forces alone, it is impossible to reach the siege from the Northern Route Army, the Eastern Route Army and the future Northwest Route Army. Once Xuchang falls and the emperor falls into Zhao Xing's hands, Cao Heizi's general will come to an end.

Secondly, if Cao Cao continued to station troops in Deng County, he would face north-south attacks from the Northwest Route Army and the Southwest Route Army. Cao Cao had never expected Yuan Shu to defend Nanyang and block Zhang He, Xu Rong and others from the Northwest Route Army under Wuguan. The 50,000 troops of Taishi Ci and the 15,000 elite troops of Huang Zhong’s troops who set out from Yizhou had already passed Yiling and would not have arrived in Xiangyang for a long time. There were also Liu Biao’s troops in Xiangyang City.

If Taishici's troops did not come, Liu Biao might be a little afraid of Cao Cao, but if he received strong support from Taishici's army and Huang Zhong, who had just won a great victory in Yizhou, even if the Northwest Route Army did not take Nanyang, Liu Biao would have the confidence and courage to take the initiative to attack Deng County.

With the 70,000 troops stationed in Deng County, Cao Cao wanted to withstand the attacks of the Northwest Route Army and the Southwest Route Army, it was a dream. Cao Cao did not want to stay in Deng County and was made of dumplings, so he decisively led his troops back to Xuchang, where heavy troops were gathered, hoping to get a moment of breathing and peace.

After Cao Cao and Liu Bei met in Xuchang, they immediately discussed the strategy of defending Xuchang.

Cao Cao first said: "I went south to conquer Liu Biao today. I thought I could seize the next buffer space for the Han Dynasty, but Zhao Guochang was one step ahead of us everywhere. Not only did he plan to plot against the Sima family in Yizhou, but even Jingzhou wanted to seize it without bloodshed. However, Liu Jingsheng has not yet awakened!"

Cao Cao said this, as if he was suspected of finding excuses for his failure in the southern expedition, but Liu Bei would not think so. Liu Bei studied in Lu Zhi's mansion in his early years and met Cao Cao. He knew very well what kind of person Cao Cao was. Although this person was insidious and cunning, he was an absolute "real villain" and liked to play tricks that would make it more obvious. Since Cao Cao said that Zhao Xing was one step ahead of him everywhere, there was indeed such a very unfavorable situation.

Liu Bei sighed and said, "What Meng De said is very true. Since Zhao Guochang published the article "Letter to the Han compatriots" in the newspaper, all Sili areas have fallen, and the territory of Jizhou, which was originally in our place north of the Yellow River, was also taken away by the Eastern Army. Now it seems that this article has surpassed thousands of troops and has caused a huge blow to the emperor's prestige and the position of the court."

Cao Cao nodded and said unwillingly: "This Zhao Guochang seems to be born against us. Since he met in Luoyang more than ten years ago, he has been ahead of us and always let us chase him behind us. Now Zhao Guochang's situation has come true. If nothing extraordinary happens, our failure will inevitably be inevitable. I don't think that with the military strength and generals we currently control, we can defeat or defeat the nearly one million troops under Zhao Guochang!"

Liu Bei was silent for a long time, neither refuting Cao Cao's somewhat discouraged Chinese nor echoing Cao Cao and scolding Zhao Xing. He said expressionlessly: "Since everything is caused by Zhao Guochang, since Zhao Guochang is so important and irreplaceable in Jin State, then once something happened to Zhao Xing or even died, Xuchang's crisis can be automatically lifted!"

After hearing what Liu Bei said, Cao Cao was shocked. He seemed to have vaguely guessed what measures Liu Bei would take next. Cao Cao reminded Liu Bei and said, "If we do not defeat Zhao Xing head-on on the battlefield, but take some shameful measures, it will probably attract very crazy revenge from Zhao Xing and Jin."

Liu Bei replied indifferently: "It is now the time for life and death, and we can't care about so much. Even if we send all the good players to Luoyang, as long as we can assassinate Zhao Xing, it will be a great contribution and can turn the whole situation around. If the assassination fails, Zhao Xing may also send an assassin to Xuchang for revenge, but at this time, even if we don't suffer revenge, we will not last long. Instead of waiting for death, it is better to take the initiative!"

Cao Cao was finally convinced by Liu Bei, so he asked Liu Bei: "Who is going to send to Luoyang to assassinate Zhao Xing this time?"

Liu Bei seemed to be prepared and replied without hesitation: "Grand Sword Master Wang Yue, his apprentice Shi A, and a group of dead soldiers with high martial arts skills!"
Chapter completed!