Chapter 60 Notifying Cao Bao

Liu Feng could only turn a blind eye and continue to persuade: "Among Father's subordinates, Second Uncle, Official Cao Chen, and Uncle Tian all possess the talent to govern a region. Compared to them, Third Uncle still falls somewhat short. Father usually keeps Third Uncle by your side to guide him through personal instruction and deed, and he will certainly grow into a capable leader in due time. Why worry then about not having a regional post for him?"

"If Father forcefully pushes Third Uncle to a higher position at this moment, it will be difficult to convince the masses and will dampen the enterprising spirit of the other uncles. Should any mishap befall Third Uncle, it would hardly be a blessing for Father either."

Liu Bei let out a long sigh, somewhat moved by Liu Feng's words.

A moment later, he stroked his beard and asked with puzzlement, "You said Yide has a rough and blunt temperament and lacks harmony within the army, but Yunchang's arrogance far surpasses Yide's. Aren't you afraid that Yunchang will also lack harmony within the army?"

"Father, Second Uncle is arrogant toward his superiors, but he does not bully his inferiors. If he governs a region, he will inevitably offend the scholars, but when commanding an army, he can pacify the soldiers and make them willing to risk their lives for him."

Liu Feng continued: "Furthermore, Second Uncle's flaw is his arrogance toward superiors, not a targeted animosity toward scholars. Toward prominent scholars of genuine talent and learning like Official Cao Chen and Lu Zijing, Second Uncle holds them in equally high esteem."

"If Father employs Second Uncle as a commander in the future, you can assign wise strategists like Official Cao Chen and Lu Zijing to serve as his military advisors. Doing so will ensure absolute safety."

Though Liu Feng spoke of Chen Deng and Lu Su, these two men were destined for greater responsibilities; assigning them merely as military advisors to Guan Feng would be a gross underutilization of their talents.

What Liu Feng had in mind were figures like Xun You, Liu Ye, and Guo Jia.

All three were top-tier strategists, tactical experts, and masters of unorthodox plans, and their personalities were ideally suited for the role of senior advisors.

Xun You was understated and discreet, guarding his conduct carefully; Guo Jia was unrestrained and approachable; Liu Ye possessed a sharp mind and exquisite tact.

Regrettably, none of these three met with a favorable outcome in history: Xun You was implicated by his uncle and literally dragged to death on the battlefield by Cao Cao.

Guo Jia suffered from poor health; though favored by Cao Cao, Heaven did not grant him longevity, and he passed away prematurely.

As for Liu Ye, Liu Feng felt that among the three, he might have suffered the most miserable fate—the saying "plans are unused and strategies are ignored" perfectly described Liu Ye.

This supreme advisory talent was actually driven mad by three generations of the Cao family, eventually meeting the end of a hypocrite and dying of melancholy.

In Liu Feng's view, if nothing else, Xun You and Guo Jia would certainly win Guan Yu's affection and respect, and Liu Ye's smoothness and keen wit would most likely appease the Second Master.

Yet none of these three had arrived yet, and Liu Feng had no way to bring this up.

"Second Uncle is more steady than Third Uncle. Xuzhou is easy to attack and difficult to defend; aside from the main offensive front, the other fronts require someone who values stability above all."

Liu Bei's eyes suddenly lit up. Upon careful reflection, he found Liu Feng's proposal quite extraordinary, deeply stirring his heart.

Seeing Liu Bei nod silently, Liu Feng pressed his advantage: "Father commands a large army and also needs generals who dare to fight. Let Third Uncle follow closely by Father's side so he may establish merits and achievements. Once Third Uncle has matured, pair him with wise strategists whom he respects, and he can then be entrusted with major responsibilities."

Liu Bei nodded involuntarily, showing that Liu Feng's strategy was indeed remarkable.

Of course, Liu Feng was merely being wise after the event. Having understood the Xiangfan Campaign and the process of losing Jingzhou, he was well aware of where Guan Yu's flaws lay and how to remedy them.

Moreover, the Second Master in his youth was far from as arrogant as he would be while garrisoning Jingzhou, making him much easier to advise.

Recovering his composure, Liu Bei gave two dry coughs and said slowly, "Let your father ponder this matter thoroughly for now."

"Is there anything else Feng'er wishes to discuss? If not, you may withdraw first; your father still has official business to attend to."

Liu Feng had not expected the Big-Eared Brother to turn cold the moment he achieved his goal, attempting to dismiss him just like that. He still had some private gains he had yet to secure.

He hastily said, "Father, this son still has two matters that require your final decision."

Liu Bei glanced at him and said with mock displeasure, "Then speak quickly."

"Father, in your view, do we need to inform Cao Jianwei of this upcoming operation?"

Hearing this, Liu Bei knitted his brows tightly.

He had not expected Liu Feng to toss him such a hot potato at the very end.

Liu Bei did not blame Liu Feng for meddling; this was indeed an issue that could not be ignored.

If they informed Cao Bao and allowed him to participate, then once the operation succeeded, it would greatly reinforce Cao Bao's loyalty and recognition of him.

Yet the risks were also considerable. This was Liu Bei's very first military campaign since entering Xuzhou, and many people were watching coldly from the sidelines.

If Liu Bei won brilliantly, it would naturally be the unanimous desire of the people, and everyone would be a loyal subject of the Provincial Governor.

Should any mishap occur, however, there would surely be no shortage of people seizing the opportunity to kick a man while he was down and stir up trouble.

With a matter of such importance, was it worth increasing the risk by involving Cao Bao?

On the other hand, if they excluded Cao Bao, would it render all their current efforts at winning him over completely futile, and even jeopardize the impending marriage alliance?

Liu Bei found himself unable to make a decision.

Consequently, after waiting for a long time without receiving a verdict from Liu Bei, Liu Feng found the ball kicked right back to him.

"Hasn't the matter of Cao Jianwei always been handled by you, Feng'er? What is your suggestion?"

Liu Feng was struck dumb, unable to speak for a long while.

Liu Bei felt somewhat embarrassed as well, coughing dryly twice: "This matter is of great consequence, and your father cannot make a unilateral decision. I wish to hear your recommendation."

Fortunately, Liu Feng had previously pondered this exact question. Having no other choice, he braced himself and voiced his perspective: "I believe we should inform Cao Jianwei."

"Oh?" Liu Bei pressed further, "Feng'er, explain in detail."

Liu Feng poured it all out without reservation: "Since Cao Jianwei has already agreed to a marriage alliance with our family, I believe he possesses sufficient sincerity. Furthermore, those four thousand private troops are already being organized and allocated, awaiting Father to take them over, which shows his genuine goodwill."

"If at such a moment we fail to show him reciprocal sincerity, it will inevitably shake Cao Jianwei's trust in us."

Liu Bei nodded approvingly.

"Additionally, there is another benefit to communicating with Cao Jianwei, which is that we can rope him into dispatching troops together."

"Zang Ba and his faction have roughly six to seven thousand men, at most no more than eight thousand, and they are scattered across at least five or six strongholds."

"According to what Official Cao Chen mentioned, their military equipment and supplies are difficult to maintain, and the former Governor, Lord Tao, used Zang Ba while simultaneously guarding against him. I imagine their capability in open-field combat is likely inferior to our army."

"Even so, our side should ideally mobilize fifteen thousand men to achieve overwhelming superiority before claiming victory, which would ensure better odds."

"At present, Father's direct lineage forces number six thousand, the Danyang infantry twenty thousand, the county troops of Xiapi State eight thousand, the prefectural troops of Guangling Commandery ten thousand, and the surviving prefectural troops of Donghai Commandery four thousand."

"Among these military forces, we can draw four thousand men from the Xiapi county troops and levy all the Donghai commandery troops, giving us eight thousand commandery troops."

"From Father's direct lineage forces, we can pull at most four thousand, making a total of twelve thousand."

"If Cao Jianwei can dispatch several thousand more men, the available forces will approach twenty thousand, which is more than double the strength of Zang Ba and his cohorts. Our chances of victory will be even greater."

Listening to Liu Feng's meticulous calculation, Liu Bei felt his heart leap with excitement.