Chapter 1588: Greatly Discounted

"My lord, it seems our plan has been leaked, and Gu Yi was prepared. Now the only way is to concentrate our forces and launch a fierce assault on Gu Yi's defensive line, striving to break through in one stroke," Guo Jia said.

Cao Cao nodded in agreement. He immediately ordered the entire army to prepare for departure, ready to launch the final charge against Gu Yi's defensive line. However, just as they were about to set off, an unexpected person appeared—a trusted messenger of Gu Yi.

The messenger held Gu Yi's personal letter, requesting a face-to-face meeting with Cao Cao. Though Cao Cao had doubts, he decided to see this messenger to see what Gu Yi's intentions were.

During the meeting, Gu Yi's messenger proposed a shocking suggestion: both sides should cease hostilities and make peace, jointly governing Jingzhou. After hearing this, Cao Cao pondered inwardly; he knew Gu Yi was not genuinely seeking peace but wanted to use this opportunity to stall for time and consolidate his defensive line.

However, Cao Cao also understood that the current war situation was not in his favor; if the stalemate continued, it would only cause greater losses. Thus, he decided to temporarily accept Gu Yi's suggestion and reach a temporary peace treaty with him.

After the peace treaty was signed, both armies withdrew, and Jingzhou returned to a temporary state of calm. However, this calm was only superficial; in secret, both Cao Cao and Gu Yi were busily preparing for the next battle.

After returning to the main camp, Cao Cao immediately summoned Guo Jia to discuss the follow-up action plan. Guo Jia believed that although a temporary peace treaty had been reached with Gu Yi, they must not be careless. They had to use this time to strengthen the army's training, improve combat effectiveness, and simultaneously search for Gu Yi's weaknesses, preparing for the next battle.

Cao Cao followed Guo Jia's suggestion and began preparations. He strengthened the army's disciplinary training and improved the soldiers' combat effectiveness; at the same time, he dispatched secret agents deep into Jingzhou to gather intelligence on Gu Yi, striving to know himself and his enemy.

After a period of preparation, Cao Cao felt the time was ripe and decided to launch another attack on Gu Yi. This time, he adopted the "surprise attack" tactic proposed by Guo Jia, dispatching elite troops under the cover of night to launch a surprise raid on Gu Yi's defensive line.

The battle erupted once again, and the two armies engaged in fierce clashes on the land of Jingzhou. Cao Cao's army, relying on elite troop numbers and outstanding tactics, gradually gained the upper hand. Gu Yi's army, due to the days of continuous fighting and defense, had low morale and greatly reduced combat effectiveness.

Ultimately, in a decisive battle, Cao Cao's army successfully broke through Gu Yi's defensive line and captured Jingzhou City. Seeing that the situation was lost, Gu Yi had no choice but to surrender to Cao Cao.

Cao Cao achieved victory in Jingzhou, but he did not become complacent. He knew that this victory was only temporary and that the road ahead was still long. He had to continue strengthening the army's construction and improving combat effectiveness to deal with potential new challenges.

At the same time, Cao Cao also deeply recognized the importance of Guo Jia. In this battle, Guo Jia's strategy and courage played a crucial role. He decided to grant Guo Jia a higher status and greater power, making him one of the most important advisors by his side.

Guo Jia did not disappoint Cao Cao's expectations. In the days that followed, he continued to offer strategies for Cao Cao, helping him consolidate his ruling position in Jingzhou. At the same time, he actively sought new opportunities and challenges, contributing his strength to Cao Cao's hegemony.

After capturing Jingzhou, Cao Cao did not stop his pace of conquest. He knew that in the Central Plains, heroes were rising everywhere, and only by continuous expansion could he consolidate his foundation. Thus, he began planning his next strategy, aiming directly at Sun Quan in Jiangnan and Liu Bei in Xichuan.

Guo Jia, as the most important advisor by Cao Cao's side, naturally took on the heavy responsibility of planning the overall situation. He knew that Sun Quan held Jiangdong with a powerful navy, while Liu Bei relied on the remnants of Jingzhou's forces, uniting with Eastern Wu to form a force that could not be ignored. To deal with these two major factions, one had to plan meticulously and implement step by step.

First, Guo Jia suggested that Cao Cao consolidate Jingzhou and stabilize the rear. He proposed a series of governance measures, including reducing taxes, recruiting refugees, and reorganizing military equipment, to restore Jingzhou's economy and people's livelihood while enhancing the army's combat effectiveness. Cao Cao adopted Guo Jia's suggestion, and Jingzhou soon presented a prosperous scene, laying a solid foundation for subsequent conquests.

Next, Guo Jia began planning the offensive against Sun Quan. He knew that Sun Quan's navy was the foundation of Jiangdong's statehood; to defeat Sun Quan, one had to first break his navy. Thus, he proposed a bold plan: utilize Jingzhou's abundant water resources to train a powerful navy and then engage in a decisive battle with Sun Quan's navy.

Cao Cao followed Guo Jia's suggestion and began assembling a navy. He selected generals proficient in naval warfare, recruited sailors skilled in handling ships, and simultaneously mobilized a large number of warships and supplies from various places. After arduous training and preparation, Cao Cao's navy finally began to take shape.

However, just as Cao Cao was preparing to launch an offensive against Sun Quan, an unexpected piece of news arrived: Liu Bei was uniting with Sun Quan, preparing to jointly resist Cao Cao. Upon hearing this, Cao Cao was shocked; he knew that while Liu Bei lacked great talent, he was skilled at making friends with heroes and uniting various factions. If he were allowed to join forces with Sun Quan, the consequences would be unimaginable.

Upon learning of this, Guo Jia smiled slightly and said, "My lord, do not worry. Although Liu Bei and Sun Quan have joined forces, both harbor their own agendas and find it difficult to truly unite. We only need to employ a small trick to sow discord between the two and make them kill each other."

Hearing this, Cao Cao was overjoyed and hurriedly asked, "What is the plan?"

Guo Jia pondered for a moment and said, "We can dispatch messengers to Jiangdong to propose an alliance with Sun Quan, while simultaneously spreading rumors in secret that Liu Bei intends to annex Jiangdong and declare himself king. Once Sun Quan hears this, he will surely harbor suspicions and become wary of Liu Bei. Then, we will dispatch another group of messengers to Jingzhou to propose to Liu Bei that we jointly attack Jiangdong, while secretly provoking the relationship between Liu Bei and Sun Quan. In this way, the two will surely harbor grievances and find it difficult to join forces against us."

After hearing this, Cao Cao felt the plan was ingenious and immediately dispatched messengers to Jiangdong and Jingzhou. Just as Guo Jia had anticipated, after hearing the rumors, Sun Quan indeed became wary of Liu Bei and began to strengthen his defenses. Liu Bei, upon learning of Cao Cao's proposal, was also indecisive, fearing that Sun Quan would take the opportunity to annex him.

Just as the two were harboring their own agendas, Cao Cao suddenly launched an offensive. He led a massive army, advancing by land and water, pressing directly upon Jiangdong. Seeing this, Sun Quan hurriedly mobilized his navy to meet the enemy. However, due to his previous wariness of Liu Bei, he did not commit his full force to the battle, causing the combat effectiveness of his navy to be greatly discounted. ===== CHAPTER 1589 =====